text
stringlengths 247
264k
| id
stringlengths 47
47
| dump
stringclasses 1
value | url
stringlengths 20
294
| date
stringlengths 20
20
| file_path
stringclasses 370
values | language
stringclasses 1
value | language_score
float64 0.65
1
| token_count
int64 62
58.7k
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Law of one price
The intuition for this law is that all sellers will flock to the highest prevailing price, and all buyers to the lowest current market price. In an efficient market the convergence on one price is instant. For discussion see further under Rational pricing.
Example: financial markets
Commodities can be traded on financial markets, where there will be a single offer price (asking price), and bid price. Although there is a small spread between these two values the law of one price applies (to each). No trader will sell the commodity at a lower price than the market maker's bid-level or buy at a higher price than the market maker's offer-level. In either case moving away from the prevailing price would either leave no takers, or be charity.
- "a security must have a single price, no matter how that security is created. For example, if an option can be created using two different sets of underlying securities, then the total price for each would be the same or else an arbitrage opportunity would exist." A similar argument can be used by considering arrow securities as alluded to by Arrow and Debreu (1944).
Where the law does not apply
- The law does not apply intertemporally, so prices for the same item can be different at different times in one market. The application of the law to financial markets in the example above is obscured by the fact that the market maker's prices are continually moving in liquid markets. However, at the moment each trade is executed, the law is in force (it would normally be against exchange rules to break it).
- The law also need not apply if buyers have less than perfect information about where to find the lowest price. In this case, sellers face a tradeoff between the frequency and the profitability of their sales. That is, firms may be indifferent between posting a high price (thus selling infrequently, because most consumers will search for a lower one) and a low price (at which they will sell more often, but earn less profit per sale).
- The Balassa-Samuelson effect argues that the law of one price is not applicable to all goods internationally, because some goods are not tradable. It argues that the consumption may be cheaper in some countries than others, because nontradables (especially land and labor) are cheaper in less developed countries. This can make a typical consumption basket cheaper in a less developed country, even if some goods in that basket have their prices equalized by international trade.
Apparent violations
- A well-known example of an apparent violation of the law was Royal Dutch/Shell shares. After merging in 1907, holders of Royal Dutch Petroleum (traded in Amsterdam) and Shell Transport shares (traded in London) were entitled to 60% and 40% respectively of all future profits. Royal Dutch shares should therefore automatically have been priced at 50% more than Shell shares. However, they diverged from this by up to 15%. This discrepancy disappeared with their final merger in 2005.
|
<urn:uuid:d5355246-da62-4c8b-bffa-9e6250cd8d00>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_one_price
|
2013-06-19T06:35:29Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142617/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.946267
| 619
|
Conditions are nearly perfect near bodies of water in southwest Idaho for mosquitoes to hatch, flourish and antagonize humans. The flying pests also carry a significant health risk – the potentially deadly West Nile virus.
ITD’s Jeff Miles recently shared information about the virus with fellow employees. At the suggestion of Cheryl Rost, ITD Safety & Risk Manager, the information is repeated here:
Symptoms of West Nile Virus
Q. What are the symptoms of West Nile virus (WNV)
It is estimated that about 20 percent of people who become infected with WNV will develop West Nile fever. Symptoms include fever, headache, tiredness, and body aches, occasionally with a skin rash (on the trunk of the body) and swollen lymph glands. While the illness can be as short as a few days, even healthy people have reported being sick for several weeks.
The symptoms of severe disease (also called neuroinvasive disease, such as West Nile encephalitis or meningitis or West Nile poliomyelitis) include headache, high fever, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, and paralysis.
An estimated 1 in 150 persons infected with the West Nile virus will develop a more severe form of disease. Serious illness can occur in people of any age, however people over age 50 and some immunocompromised persons (for example, transplant patients) are at the highest risk for getting severely ill when infected with WNV.
Most people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with West Nile virus will not develop any type of illness (an asymptomatic infection), however you cannot know ahead of time if you'll get sick or not when infected.
Q. What is the incubation period in humans (i.e.,
time from infection to onset of disease symptoms) for West Nile disease?
Q. How long do symptoms last?
Q. What is meant by West Nile encephalitis, West
Nile meningitis, West Nile poliomyelitis, “neuroinvasive disease”
and West Nile fever?
West Nile Fever is another type of illness that can occur in people who become infected with the virus. It is characterized by fever, headache, tiredness, aches and sometimes rash. Although the illness can be as short as a few days, even healthy people have been sick for several weeks.
Q. If I have West Nile Fever, can it turn into
West Nile encephalitis?
West Nile fever is characterized by symptoms such as fever, body aches, headache and sometimes swollen lymph glands and rash. West Nile fever generally lasts only a few days, though in some cases symptoms have been reported to last longer, even up to several weeks. West Nile fever does not appear to cause any permanent health effects. There is no specific treatment for WNV infection. People with West Nile fever recover on their own, though symptoms can be relieved through various treatments (such as medication for headache and body aches, etc.).
Some people may develop a brief, WNF-like illness (early
symptoms) before they develop more severe disease, though the percentage
of patients in whom this occurs is not known.
Encephalitis refers to an inflammation of the brain, meningitis is an inflammation of the membrane around the brain and the spinal cord, and meningoencephalitis refers to inflammation of the brain and the membrane surrounding it. Although there is no treatment for WNV infection itself, the person with severe disease often needs to be hospitalized. Care may involve nursing IV fluids, respiratory support, and prevention of secondary infections.
For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control Web site.
|
<urn:uuid:e886e948-d75b-46ef-805a-4d9641b6ec57>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.itd.idaho.gov/transporter/2006/081806_Trans/081806_WestNile.html
|
2013-05-24T15:36:22Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.949569
| 771
|
Santa Cruz Island
Channel Islands National Park
Santa Cruz Island, the largest and most diverse of the eight Channel Islands, has a long and varied history that is tied closely to its physical attributes. Its vast grasslands, coastal scrub vegetation, oak woodlands, and rich coastline sustained the Chumash for millennia and they maintained a number of villages and seasonal settlements on the island. For most of the nineteenth century, mariners found shelter in its coves and hunters and fishermen exploited the marine life. Immigrant ranchers grazed livestock, and the military took advantage of the island’s strategic location.
Chumash Civilization and European Contact
In 1602, Sebastian Vizcaíno led the last Spanish expedition to California. His map named Santa Cruz Island the Isla de Gente Barbuda (island of the bearded people). Between 1602 and 1769 there was no recorded European contact with the island. Considering, however, the amount of traffic passing the islands, a number of unrecorded visits were probably made. Finally, in 1769, the land-and-sea expedition of Don Gaspar de la Portola reached Santa Cruz Island. Traveling with him were Father Juan González Vizcaíno and Father Francisco Palóu. Father Palóu wrote of Father Vizcaíno’s visit to the Santa Cruz village of Xaxas that the missionaries on ship went ashore and “they were well received by the heathen and presented with fish, in return for which the Indians were given some strings of beads.” Upon returning to their ship the missionaries soon realized that they had forgotten their staff in the village. Father Palóu wrote:
They immediately gave it up as lost, on account of the cross that it carried for it was of iron, and it was known how the Indians coveted this metal. But they were so honest that at daybreak it was discovered that one of the little canoes of the island was coming to the ship, and that one of the heathen was carrying in his hand the staff with the holy cross. Climbing on board he delivered it to the father and after being rewarded returned to the island. For this reason it was called the Island of the Holy Cross (Santa Cruz), and as such it has been known ever since.
The island was considered for establishment of a Catholic mission to serve the large Chumash population. When the mission at San Buenaventura was founded across the channel in 1782, it commenced the slow religious conversion of the Santa Cruz Chumash. In 1822, the last of the Chumash left the island for mainland California.
George Nidever recalled hunting otter at Santa Cruz in the winter of 1835-1836. Working from a base camp at Santa Rosa Island, he and two others obtained 60 skins that season. Fishermen encamped on the island, trading fish for other goods from passing boats.
Through a land grant from the Mexican government, Captain Andres Castillero became the first private owner of Santa Cruz Island from 1839 to 1857. When California became a state in 1850, the United States government required that land previously granted by Spanish and Mexican governments be proved before the Board of Land Commissioners. For twelve years Castillero’s claim to Santa Cruz Island was disputed, even after his property had been sold. During Castillero’s ownership, Dr. James B. Shaw, an English physician, acted as manager of the island. He built the island’s first ranch house by 1855 and is thought to have brought the first French Merino sheep to the island.
Ranching on Santa Cruz Island
Channel Islands National Park
Shaw’s island sheep ranch was well known by 1869, the year he left Santa Cruz. He imported cattle, horses, and sheep to the island and erected one of the earliest wharves along the California coast at Prisoners Harbor by 1869. He built corrals and houses for himself and his employees and expanded the road system. Shaw was the first rancher to ship sheep to San Francisco by steamer, some selling at $30 per animal. The press frequently praised the quality of sheep and wool coming from the Santa Cruz Island ranch. In 1859, the Sacramento Daily Union published an article about the sheep in the Santa Barbara area:
Sheep of a much finer quality can be found in this county, and we doubt if anything superior can be found in the State than those owned by Dr. Shaw, on the island of Santa Cruz. Judging from the number of persons who have purchased from the doctor, for the purpose of raising sheep, Santa Barbara Country bids fair, in a few years, to be one of the greatest sheep producing sections in the state.
When Barron sold the island in 1869, Shaw left for San Francisco and Los Alamos where he continued ranching. At that time, the gross proceeds from the ranch on Santa Cruz Island were supposedly $50,000.
Justinian Caire and the Caire Ranch
From the ranch headquarters in the central valley (also called Rancho del Medio for its central location on the island), Justinian Caire developed an impressive agricultural operation with satellite ranches on the east and west ends of the island and at Prisoners Harbor, as well as seasonal and short-term ranches on other parts of the island. Diversified production, including wool, beef, wine, fruit and nuts, in addition to sustainable gardens, orchards and flocks of fowl, decreased the need to import food and goods from the mainland and sustained the ranching operations through the boom and bust cycles of the livestock industry.
Caire brought architectural styles and culture from Europe and, during its heyday, more than 100 workers, mostly Italian but including French, American, Mexican Californian, and Indian, were employed at the ranch and worked as blacksmiths, masons, carpenters, painters, sheep-shearers, team drivers, vintners, butchers, dairymen and sailors. Caire’s legacy is visible on the island in brick and stone ranch buildings, the groves of ornamental trees and fruit and nut orchards, the numerous dry stone masonry structures walls and dams, and the road system. Descendents of Justinian Caire still reside in California and many are active in the preservation of the island history.
An extended and complicated series of litigation among Caire family members resulted in the division of the island and the sale of most of it in 1937. Justinian Caire's descendents retained 6,000 acres on the east end of the island, on which they continued the sheep ranching operation. Other family members sold the remaining 90 percent of the island to Los Angeles oilman Edwin Stanton in 1937.
The Stanton Ranch
The Stanton Ranch was a major part of Santa Barbara County’s cattle industry between the 1940s and 1980s and, at 54,000 acres, was the largest in size. Neighboring Santa Rosa Island exceeded Stanton’s cattle numbers on similar acreage.
Edwin Stanton’s ranch on Santa Cruz Island saw changes that reflected the evolution of cattle ranching in a working landscape. While retaining most of the 19th century structures dating from the Caire period, Stanton constructed a few buildings to meet the needs of his cattle ranch, the most notable of which is Rancho del Norte on the isthmus. Pasture fencing and corrals were altered to suit the cattle operation and an extensive water system was added to provide water to the cattle.
The End of Island Ranching
With Edwin Stanton’s death in 1964, his widow and son, Carey, re-incorporated the Santa Cruz Island Company and continued the cattle operations on the island. Carey Stanton died unexpectedly in 1987 at the ranch and was buried in the family plot in the island chapel yard at the Main Ranch. His personal possessions on the island, some of which dated to the Caire era, were left to the Santa Cruz Island Foundation. The real property passed to The Nature Conservancy through a prior agreement that Carey Stanton had established with the non-profit organization. The Nature Conservancy rapidly liquidated the cattle operation and ended the ranching era on the island.
Military Uses of Santa Cruz Island
The National Park Service
In 1936 the Caire family reportedly offered their 9/10ths of the island for $750,000 to the state of California for use as a state or federal park. Nothing came of this proposal and the property was sold to Edwin Stanton. Stanton's son and heir was not interested in a government purchase of his beloved island and took steps to avoid such events by forging an agreement with The Nature Conservancy and the property was transferred to the organization upon his death. Although Santa Cruz Island is included within the boundaries of Channel Islands National Park, The Nature Conservancy portion of the island does not belong to the park. A transfer of 8,500 acres from the Nature Conservancy to the park was completed in 2000.
Channel Islands National Park owns and operates approximately 24 percent of Santa Cruz Island. Today, a combination of organizations which includes The Nature Conservancy, the National Park Service, the University of California Field Station, and the Santa Cruz Island Foundation work to protect the island’s natural and historic resources. For more information on visiting Santa Cruz Island click here.
Did You Know?
Park and sanctuary waters are home to the largest aggregation of blue whales in the world. Approximately 10% of the global blue whale population gathers in the channel during the summer. More...
|
<urn:uuid:e447dc1c-dd3b-4bc5-91b3-aa31a061ff40>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.nps.gov/chis/historyculture/santacruzisland.htm
|
2013-05-19T09:47:04Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.966726
| 1,963
|
Back to School Sleep Tips
August 13, 2010
The new school year is around the corner, and if your kids are like most, they're probably used to staying up and sleeping in later than they would during the school year. In fact, if school were to start tomorrow, they'd probably have a tough time going to bed and waking up in time for it.
That's why it's important to help your child get their sleep schedule back on track before school starts, so they're sure to get enough sleep for that first day. School is hard enough without feeling sleepy. Also, in the long-term, children with chronic sleep deprivation are more likely to have difficulties learning, paying attention, and are even more likely to be overweight or to exhibit symptoms of attention deficit disorder.
Here are some tips to help your child ease into his or her school-time sleep schedule and to maintain healthy sleep habits throughout the year:
- About two weeks before school starts, work with your child to return to a school appropriate sleep schedule. Every night, set an incrementally earlier bedtime, and every morning, an incrementally earlier wake-up time. Make sure that when school starts, they'll wake up with the amount of sleep they need for their age-group.
- Maintain sleep schedule – Once your child's sleep schedule is established, stick with it! Don't use the weekend to "catch up on sleep."
- Establish a relaxing bedtime routine. Before bedtime, start a "quiet time" to allow your child to unwind. The routine should include relaxing activities, such as a bath and a bed-time story (for young children) or a reading time (for older children).
- Limit television, video games, and other electronic distractions before bedtime.
- Avoid big meals close to bedtime - a heavy meal may prevent your child from falling asleep.
- Avoid caffeine – sodas and other caffeinated drinks should be limited after noon, and especially at night. A good rule of thumb is to avoid any caffeine six hours before bedtime, as the caffeine can interrupt your child's natural sleep patterns, making it difficult to fall asleep.
- Maintain a peaceful bedroom environment – dark room, comfortable bed, and a room temperature that is neither too hot nor too cold. Electronic distractions like television, computers, or video games should be removed from your child's room and set up in a different location.
- Be a role model - Set a good example for your child. Establish your own regular sleep cycle and maintain a home that promotes healthy sleep.
- The sooner your child readjusts to a school-time sleep-schedule, the better he or she will feel during those early morning math classes. Feeling fully rested and excited for the day, your child (and you) will have the best year yet!
Copyright Notice: All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of the National Sleep Foundation. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. Links to Web sites other than those owned by the National Sleep Foundation are offered as a service to readers and the foundation is not responsible for their content. Click here to request permission.
Advertisement Notice: The National Sleep Foundation neither control nor endorse the advertisements, items or Websites featured in the advertisers links on our Web pages.
|
<urn:uuid:78951084-1b55-42b0-ad48-61f6d3a65f8a>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/alert/back-school-sleep-tips
|
2013-05-20T02:41:35Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.947629
| 711
|
How to Keep a Beehive in the Fall
7 of 10 in Series: The Essentials of Beekeeping Schedules
Most nectar and pollen sources become scarce as days become shorter and weather cools in autumn. All in all, as the season slows down, so do the activities within your beehive: The queen's egg laying is dramatically reduced, drones begin to disappear from the hive, and hive population drops significantly.
Your bees begin bringing in propolis, using it to chink up cracks in the hive that may leak the winter’s cold wind. The colony is hunkering down for the winter, so you must help your bees get ready.
Watch out for robbing during this time (other bees would love to steal honey from your hives).
Your autumn beekeeping to-do list
When helping your bees prepare for the upcoming hardships of winter months, you must
Inspect your bees (look inside the hive) and make certain that the queen is there. The easiest way is finding eggs. One egg per cell means the queen is present.
Be sure to look for eggs, not larvae. Finding eggs means that the queen was present two days ago. Larvae, on the other hand, can be three to eight days old. Thus, merely finding larvae is no guarantee that you have a queen.
When you wait too late during autumn, you discover that eggs and larvae are few and far between. In that case, actually finding the queen is the surest way to check. Be patient, and look carefully.
Determine whether the bees have enough honey. Make certain that the upper deep hive body is full of honey.
In cooler, northern climates, hives need about 60 pounds or more of honey as they head into winter. You’ll need less honey reserves (30 to 40 pounds) if your winters are short (or nonexistent).
Feed and medicate your colony. They’ll accept a 2-to-1 sugar-syrup feeding until colder weather contracts them into a tight cluster. At that point, temperatures are too cold for them to leave the cluster, so feeding them is useless.
* Consider treating your colony with either Terramycin® or Tylan® (both are anitibiotics) as a prophylactic precaution against AMB and EFD disease.
Provide adequate ventilation. During winter, the temperature at the center of the cluster is maintained at 90 to 93 degrees F. Without adequate ventilation, the warm air from the cluster rises, hits the cold inner cover, and condensation drips down onto the bees as ice-cold water.
Wrap the hive in black tar paper if you’re in a climate where the winter gets below freezing for more than several weeks. Make sure that you don’t cover the entrance or any upper ventilation holes. The black tar paper absorbs heat from the winter sun, and helps the colony better regulate temperatures during cold spells. It also acts as a windbreak.
Provide a windbreak if your winter weather is harsh. It is hoped that you originally were able to locate your hives with a natural windbreak of shrubbery. But if not, you can erect a temporary windbreak of fence posts and burlap. Position it to block prevailing winter winds.
Add a mouse guard to the front entrance of the hive.Wrapping your hive in tar paper helps protect your colony from harsh winter winds and absorb the warmth of the sun. The rock on top keeps the paper from blowing off. The metal mouse guard keeps unwanted visitors outside the hive.
Your autumn time commitment for your hive
Figure on spending three to five hours total to get your bees fed, medicated, and bedded down for the winter months ahead.
|
<urn:uuid:b06787cb-1dd1-4d54-94e4-2e32aa6c3ecc>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-keep-a-beehive-in-the-fall.navId-420561.html
|
2013-05-24T16:41:15Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704752145/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114552-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.940064
| 774
|
Click on a title to read other users' comments or to post your own comment:
Xenophon (431 - 350)
added by Marian
Please consider recommending where to begin reading this author, or where not to. A few words about your experiences reading this author and why you make the recommendations you do will be helpful to other users. If you are the author or have studied this author extensively, please say so.
Please consider entering an additional brief biography here. You can Google this author by clicking here.
Summary of the bio from Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
An Athenian, XENOPHON was in his youth a pupil of Socrates; four of Xenophon's works purport to record actual conversations of Socrates, but only the Memorabilia is well regarded today. He then embarked on a military career. Showed himself the prototype of an adventurous leader of condottieri, with no ties of country or preference of nationality, at different times serving the Greeks, Spartans, and Lacedaemonians (against Athens, which banished him). Retired to live in Sparta with his wife, Philesia, and his children, and to write. On the downfall of the Spartan supremacy, at Leuctra in 371, Xenophon was at last expelled from his quite retreat, after remaining there about twenty years. The sentence of banishment from Athens was repealed, but he never returned to Athens. He retired to Corinth and died there some time around 357.
|
<urn:uuid:5515b44c-0c67-46ed-8d3b-69eb669e8a24>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://debbiesidea.com/info/author/940/
|
2013-05-22T15:16:01Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701910820/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105830-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.965575
| 300
|
- Departing from the local land of Zarahemla, the typical travel route goes over into Melek Alma 8:3. This implies travel over a highland region or some other major geographical barrier (such as river Sidon) between Zarahemla and Melek. 1 It also implies that the lands of Zarahemla and Melek were at roughly similar elevations 2 since you do not go "up" or "down" from one to the other.
- The land of Melek was west of river Sidon Alma 8:3. How far west? It was right on the river. 3 The river ran by it, as it did the land of Zarahemla Alma 2:15. How do we know this? Because every other land or geographic feature mentioned in the text as being either east or west of Sidon adjoined the river. Hill Amnihu Alma 2:15; the valley of Gideon Alma 6:7; the land of Zarahemla Mormon 1:10; the south wilderness Alma 16:6-7; and the two valleys south of the city of Manti Alma 43:27, Alma 49:16 are all directly bordering or bisected by river Sidon. Mormon simply did not use the terminology "east of" or "west of" Sidon to describe places distant from the river.
- The distance from the local land of Zarahemla to the land of Melek was greater than from Zarahemla to Gideon. 4 Alma simply "went over into" Alma 6:7 and "returned from" Alma 8:1 the land of Gideon, but he "took his journey" Alma 8:3 from Zarahemla to Melek. The phrase "took (or take) his (their, our, or a) journey" appears 14 times in Mormon's record, and each time it is associated with a rigorous trip requiring advance preparation. The phrase is also generally associated with wilderness travel on at least some leg of the journey.
- The land of Melek lay between wilderness on the west Alma 8:3 5 and river Sidon on the east.
- The population of Melek was distributed throughout the land Alma 8:4, not concentrated in a single urban area. 6
- The land of Melek had an obvious wilderness side Alma 8:5. 7
- 3 days' journey north of the land of Melek was the city of Ammonihah Alma 8:6. 8
- Departing from the land of Jershon, the route goes over into Melek Alma 35:13. As with Zarahemla above, this implies an intermediate highland region 9 and roughly similar elevations. 10
- The route from the local land of Zarahemla to the land of Melek 11 was not the same as the route through Gideon to Manti. When Alma II disappeared, he was last seen on the way to Melek and nowhere else Alma 45:18.
- Melek is south (upstream) from the local land of Zarahemla. 12 See the article "Downstream from Zarahemla" in this blog. Here is how we know Melek was south of Zarahemla:
- Ammonihah is generally east of Zarahemla (See the blog articles "Ammonihah" and "The Usumacinta/Sidon Correlation"). Melek is south of Ammonihah Alma 8:6. That puts Melek generally south of Zarahemla.
- The geographic referents Ammonihah, Melek, Noah and Aaron appear in the same narratives in the text, implying that these places are proximate. Aaron is generally south of Zarahemla because it is also part of the Aaron, Nephihah, Moroni cluster Alma 50:14 and Moroni is on the southern boundary of Nephite lands Alma 50:13.
- About 81 B.C., Lamanite armies came north from the greater land of Nephi, destroyed Ammonihah, marauded in Noah, and began their return back to Nephi with captives. Captain Zoram and sons then intercepted the Lamanites south of Manti and liberated the captives. Alma 16:2-8. This scenario is plausible if Noah is south of Zarahemla. It is problematic if Zarahemla is in between Noah and Nephi. The Ammonihah, Melek, Noah and Aaron cluster best fits the text when Melek, Noah and Aaron are all south of Zarahemla.
- Zeezrom resided for a time in Melek Alma 31:6 after his original home in Ammonihah was destroyed. His name is also associated with the eponymous city of Zeezrom where Helaman and Antipus fought Alma 56:14. The city of Zeezrom was near the southern border of Nephite lands, associated with Judea on the west coast and Manti along the river Sidon. If Zeezrom the man founded Zeezrom the city as per Alma 8:7, a logical geographic relationship between Melek and Zeezrom is likely. 13
- From the river Sidon as our frame of reference, the land of Melek is oriented toward the west Alma 8:3. 14
|Proposed lands of Melek & Ammonihah. Each black pyramid|
icon represents a known archaeological site
|Proposed lands of Melek & Ammonihah in context|
We will now compare this area with the 13 textual criteria outlined above.
1. There are highlands in between our local land of Zarahemla and Melek. The map below shows a transect between the two lands in white. Google Earth has calculated & graphed the elevation profile of the transect. Along this particular line, one travels over uplands rising to 529 meters elevation before dropping down into Melek. Other vectors could be drawn that would rise as high as 800 - 900 meters elevation.
|Zarahemla to Melek transect in white with elevation profile|
2. To calculate a rough (actually, very rough) average elevation for the two lands under consideration, we plot cross hair transects across each land and have Google Earth calculate the average elevation of each vector. The mean of the average elevations of the two crossing vectors gives us a quick and dirty average elevation for the shaded polygon representing a Book of Mormon land. If we were to plot more transects, we obviously could arrive at a more accurate number, but repeated tests have shown our simple method to be precise enough for meaningful comparisons between lands. We will start with the local land of Zarahemla.
|Average elevation calculated for the trans Zarahemla |
line sloping down to the right
|Average elevation calculated for the trans Melek|
line indicated by the red arrow
|Elevated regions near the proposed|
lands of Zarahemla & Melek
3. Our proposed land of Melek adjoins the river Sidon, as we would expect based on Mormon's textual convention when describing features east or west of the river.
Criterion 3 satisfied.
|Proposed land of Melek immediately west of river Sidon|
4. Our candidate for the land of Melek is about twice as far from the proposed city of Zarahemla as is the valley of Gideon, precisely as we would expect from the text.
|Proposed land of Melek distant from city of Zarahemla|
5. The land of Melek lay between wilderness on the west and river Sidon on the east. That wilderness is one of the most famous in Mexico - the huge Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve within the greater Lacandon Jungle, home of the renowned but very remote site of Bonampak. The map below from Google Maps shows Mexico's Frontier Road that has opened up access to this area since its construction beginning in 1985. Bonampak is circled in yellow. The small town of Velasco Suarez is also highlighted.
Montes Azules, set aside in 1977, was the first biosphere reserve created in Mexico. It is also one of the largest protected areas in the country.
|Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve west of|
proposed land of Mulek
We can identify potential wilderness areas based on A) the amount of contemporary human activity, and B) the number and size of known archaeological sites. Another factor in montane regions is the piedmont line, the interface between lowlands and foothills. All three wilderness criteria are shown in the map below.
|Proposed land of Melek with wilderness to the west|
6. If we have correctly identified the land of Melek in The Book of Mormon, we would expect to see a number of ancient population centers rather than a single city site. Plotting EEAMS data on top of our working map of Melek, we find 10 known archaeological sites including the very important Yaxchilan within the bounds of our shaded polygon.
|Known ancient sites within the borders of our proposed Melek|
7. The piedmont line illustrated above forms a distinct boundary between the lowlands along the river and the uplands to the west. The line as shown represents an elevation of 200 meters above sea level. If we were to trace the line at 175 or 150 meters, it would move closer to the river and the land of Melek would become thinner. No matter where we place the line, though, it is clear that our land of Melek has an obvious wilderness side roughly paralleling the river. This is shown unambiguously when we juxtapose INEGI's map of the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve and our map of the land of Mulek.
The western boundary of our proposed land of Melek is an obvious wilderness side. Criterion 7 satisfied.
|Proposed land of Melek wilderness side|
8. Departing north from the land of Melek, 3 day's travel takes one to the city of Ammonihah. How far is 3 day's journey? About 45 air kilometers. See the article "Land Southward Travel Times" in this blog. Do we find one or more candidates for the city of Ammonihah 45 air kilometers north of our Melek? Yes. On the map below the purple vertical line is precisely 45 air kilometers long. It originates on the south at the Usumacinta River and terminates at the archaeological site of El Hormiguero II just south of the San Pedro River. We will discuss in a future article why El Hormiguero II fits The Book of Mormon textual criteria to be the city of Ammonihah. For our present purpose, note that a cluster of 7 archaeological sites along the San Pedro are in an area approximately 3 days' travel north of our proposed land of Melek. They are circled in yellow on the following map. This is a very busy map. As with all graphical images on this blog, click to enlarge.
Possibilities for the city of Ammonihah do exist an appropriate distance north of our proposed land of Melek. Criterion 8 satisfied.
|Candidates for the city of Ammonihah|
3 days' travel north of our Melek
9. Based on the text of The Book of Mormon, we would expect an upland region between the lands of Jershon and Melek. Taking our cue from V. Garth Norman, we site Jershon in the modern country of Belize, between the Belize and Hondo Rivers, encompassing the important archaeological site of Lamanai. Obviously, our proposed Jershon is near the east sea. We will deal with the land of Jershon in more detail in a subsequent article. The white line on the map below is a transect between the two lands. A Google Earth elevation profile shows that indeed, you travel over an elevated region to get from our Jershon to Melek.
Going "over into" Melek from Jershon Alma 35:13 could also refer to crossing the river Sidon. Alma II went "over" from the local land of Zarahemla to the valley of Gideon Alma 6:7 and he obviously crossed the big river. The terrain between our proposed land of Melek and the east coast clearly fits the text. Criterion 9 satisfied.
|Elevation profile of the upland region between the|
Lamanai area and our proposed land of Melek
10. We previously calculated the average elevation of our proposed land of Melek (see the exhibits for criterion 2 above) at 170 meters. We need to do the same for our proposed land of Jershon.
The white vectors in the map above cross our land of Jershon. The line that slopes down to the right has an average elevation of 59 meters. The line that slopes down to the left has an average elevation of 62 meters. 59 + 62 = 121. 121/2 = 60.5 which rounds to 61. Our proposed land of Jershon has a rough average elevation of 61 meters. Less than 30 air kilometers from our Jershon the Maya Mountains rise to a height above 950 meters. This high point is circled in purple on the map above. Relative to their surrounding landscapes, the proposed lands of Jershon at 61 meters and Melek at 170 meters are at roughly similar elevations. Criterion 10 satisfied.
|Bi-secting transects help calculate the average|
elevation of the land of Jershon
11. We previously described the standard route from the local land of Zarahemla south to the land of Manti and beyond. See the article entitled "Manti" in this blog. That route, through the valley of Gideon and staying east of river Sidon, is referenced multiple times in The Book of Mormon text Alma 16:7, Alma 17:1. Our interpretation of that route is shown in purple on the map below.
East of river Sidon, the Zarahemla to Manti & Nephi route did not go through the land of Melek which was on the other side of the river. Does a logical route exist from our local land of Zarahemla to Melek? Yes. It is the same route taken by the modern Mexican Carretera Fronteriza (Frontier Road) that begins in the city of Palenque and runs along the west side of the Usumacinta River to Benemerito de las Americas and then on to Nuevo Orizaba at the southern end of the eastern extreme of Chiapas near the border corner with Guatemala. We turn on the roads layer in Google Earth and Alma II's likely route from Zarahemla to Melek could hardly be clearer.
|Typical travel route in purple between the cities|
of Zarahemla and Nephi
|Mexican Carretera Fronteriza (Frontier Road) between|
our lands of Zarahemla and Melek
12. Our proposed land of Melek is indeed upstream from our local land of Zarahemla.
|River Sidon flowing generally from south to north|
between our lands of Melek & Zarahemla
13. Our proposed Melek and Zeezrom do indeed have a logical and obvious geographic relationship.
|Nephite southwest quarter showing border cities|
14. The topography of our proposed land of Melek naturally orients northward & westward, in contrast with the Pasion River area (highlighted in yellow below) that is clearly influenced from the east.
In our land of Melek area, the lay of the land tends northwest and then west, which determines the direction of flow in the rivers. Because of this, most ancient settlements in the area are west of the Usumacinta River,which itself flows nearly west over part of its course in this region.
|Pasion River sites naturally oriented toward the east|
|Westward orientation of proposed land of Melek|
With all 14 textual criteria satisfied, the land of Melek mentioned in the book of Alma is probably the lowland region west of the Usumacinta River bounded by the Anaite rapids on the north and the general Lacantun confluence area on the south.
|
<urn:uuid:660405b2-ef92-416e-bf25-1dc443b1d722>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://bookofmormonresources.blogspot.com/2011/12/melek.html
|
2013-05-21T10:56:11Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699899882/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102459-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.928916
| 3,509
|
The Liberian Frontier Force (LFF) later evolved into the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL). The Liberian Frontier Force was the agency for tax collection and the enforcer of government fiat. The idea for collecting taxes was for the Americos not get bogged down in the dirty work of extracting forced labor. Therefore, members of the Liberian Frontier Force were mainly from the tribes, initially the northern tribes. First there was a language barrier. Then gradually Krahn people joined the Frontier Force.
The organization of the Hinterland and the effort to establish effective control there through indirect rule had come as a direct response to British and French intervention in the region. Another product of Liberia's territorial disputes with the two colonial powers was the formation of the Liberian Frontier Force (LFF) in 1908. The mission of the 500-man force was to patrol the border in the Hinterland but, more important, it was organized to prevent the sort of disorders that invited intervention. The LFF was placed under the command of a British officer, who recruited most of his troops in Sierra Leone. The French initially regarded the LFF as a "British army of occupation," but their demand that French officers and colonial soldiers be assigned to it as well was disregarded.
The record of the LFF was checkered. Although the LFF was effective in putting down disturbances in the border areas, its conduct was so undisciplined and its tactics were so ruthless that they engendered unrest. Unpaid and poorly supplied, soldiers lived on their own from what they could steal and extort. Annual hut taxes were collected several times a year, depending on the requirements of troops in a given area. Corrupt district commissioners used the LFF to raid and pillage village and steal livestock. Troops under their authority were employed in rounding up men for forced labor on roads and government farms and for porterage. Reports of abduction of women by soldiers were common. In 1910 the Grebo clans rebelled and appealed to the British governor of Sierra Leone to proclaim a protectorate over them, citing specifically the depredations committed by "this execrable force." (The Liberian government took precautions at this time against the possibility of a pro-British coup by its opponents in Monrovia.)
Another outcome of the commission's report was an undertaking by the United States to sell arms to Liberia and to reorganize the LFF. In 1912 a black officer in the United States Army was assigned to train and comrnand the reequipped LFF; several other black American soldiers were attached to offer their "moral comradeship." Few Americo-Liberians served in the LFF, and units were recruited on a tribal basis for assignment to garrisons outside their own areas. The LFF showed its mettle under American command in crushing the Kru revolt of 1915 in which rebel forces were decimated and ringleaders captured and hanged. A United States naval officer assigned to investigate the incident in which American personnel had taken part reported that the revolt by the Kru had been provoked by heavy taxation and the petty tyranny of Liberian authorities and appointed clan chiefs. His report was also critical of the Liberian government's failure to carry out promised reforms in native African affairs.
Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL)
The nominal mission of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) has historically been to defend and guard the country's borders, safeguard national security, and protect tine population from threat or aggression, although in 1980 the AFL's duties were expanded by the soldiers' foray into government. In 1984 the operational elements of the AFL included the Liberian National Guard Brigade and related units, which had a combined manned strength of approximately 6,300, and the Liberian National Coast Guard's total complement of about 450 men.
The AFL (and the former LFF) had long reflected the stratification of the society: officer ranks were dominated by Americo-Liberians, while the enlisted ranks were composed of Liberians of tribal origin. This composition changed gradually in the 1960s and 1970s, and by the time of the coup, the officer corps could no longer be considered an exclusive preserve of Americo-Liberians. By 1984 it was estimated that approximately 300 of the nearly 500 officers in the AFL had been promoted from the enlisted ranks since the coup.
On paper, at least, the Liberian government retained a military character because important civilian officials have regularly been commissioned as officers in the AFL. The practice began in July 1981, when Doe traded his master sergeant's stripes for general's stars at the same time that ministers became majors and deputy ministers were given the rank of captain.
During the 1980s the LNG Brigade, usually referred to as the army or the AFL Brigade, was the heart of the ground forces. Headquartered at the Barclay Training Center (BTC) in Monrovia, the brigade was composed of six infantry battalions, an engineer battalion, a field artillery battalion, and a support battalion. Three of the infantry units -- the First Infantry Battalion, stationed at Camp Schieffelin 35 miles east of Monrovia, the Second Infantry Battalion at Camp Todee in northern Montserrado County, and the Sixth Infantry Battalion at Bomi Hills -- were tactical elements designed to operate against hostile forces. Soldiers attached to the other infantry units -- the Third Infantry Battalion based at the BTC, the Fourth Infantry Battalion at Zwedru in Grand Gedeh County, and the Fifth Infantry Battalion at Gbarnga in Bong County -- served mostly as auxiliary personnel. Soldiers in these units were used extensively as policemen, customs and immigration officials, and tax collectors. In addition, many Third Infantry Battalion soldiers were used in the Monrovia area to guard installations or to serve as cooks, drivers, or aides to officers and other officials.
The Support Battalion, also based at the BTC, was composed of the Medical Company, the LNG Brigade Band, the Brigade Special Unit (a parade formation), and the Military Police. In 1984 most of the LNG battalions were commanded by colonels. Exceptions existed in the Second Sixth Infantry Battalions, which were headed by lieutenant colonels, and in the small First Field Artillery Battalion, which was led by a captain.
The infantry battalions varied considerably in size and strength. The Sixth Infantry Battalion and the Second Infantry Battalion -- considered by most observers to be the best fighting units in the army during the 1980s -- each operated with 200 to 300 men. In contract, over 1,000 personnel were attached to the more loosely organized Third Infantry Battalion. In 1984 plans had been drawn up to standardize the tactical units. It was proposed that the First, Second, and Sixth Infantry battalions would all operate at a uniform strength of 580 men (39 officers, two warrant officers, and 539 enlisted men). These units were to be equipped with trucks to facilitate their mobility, and each was to be organically equipped with weapons and other materiel to enable it to conduct sustained operations as a mechanized infantry force.
Made up mostly of Krahns, the The Armed Forces of Liberia was essentially the personal army of President Doe during his ten years in power, and in keeping with the reputation its members set in the 1980 coup against the Tolbert government, was vicious in its dealings with the Liberian populace, particularly in its treatment of Gios and Manos. The AFL was responsible for what may have been the single most appalling act of the entire war, the July 30, 1990 massacre of over 600 Gios and Manos at St. Peter's Church in Monrovia.
Their brutality notwithstanding, the AFL was in the process of being soundly beaten by Taylor's NPFL before ECOMOG stepped in, and was a shadow of its former self. After the cease-fire was signed at Bamako, the AFL was restricted to Camp Schiefflin, which is just on the outskirts of Monrovia. The restrictions on its scope of operations and its decreased numbers did not seem to have impaired its ability to commit egregious human rights violations.
On 31 December 1996 more than 2,000 former fighters turned their weapons into peacekeeping troops in a mass disarmament, then burst into song to celebrate peace. The disarmament took place at the Camp Schiefflin military barracks outside the capital and was witnessed by peacekeeping army officials, foreign diplomats and United Nations representatives. The men were members of the Armed Forces of Liberia, comprised of mainly members of the former national army of late President Samuel Doe. Doe was toppled and executed in 1990, shortly after the civil war began, and many of his soldiers formed the AFL, which became one of several factions fighting the civil war. A cease-fire agreement signed in August 1996 cleared the way for disarmament to begin in November. Only about 7,000 of the estimated 60,000 rebel fighters have turned in their weapons.
On 10 March 2002, six armed AFL soldiers harassed and robbed civilians at an agricultural project in Clean Town, Bomi County. The soldiers also captured the project's Agricultural Manager, John Nizan, whom they forced into 3 weeks of menial labor. Nizan escaped when LURD dissidents attacked the town. Clean Town subsequently vacated and its residents became internally displaced persons (IDPs).
As of late 2002 the national army, which fought against Taylor's faction during the civil war, had yet to be downsized and restructured as required by the 1996 Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)-brokered Abuja Peace Accords. Several thousand troops deployed in northern counties were fighting armed dissidents; however, there were few troops deployed to maintain security in other rural areas of the country.
War Veteran Association
The "ex-combatants" or "veterans" are former fighters of the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) who had yet to be rehabilitated and reintegrated into mainstream civil society. Under Taylor they operated their own bureau with a staff and a budget and were paid more than the average civil servant. Under Taylor they became a new tool used to silence opponents and citizens critical of the government. Taylor appeared convinced that his core supporter and source of strength was the rag tag hoodlums who brought him to power.
In mid-July 2003 more than 2,000 Liberian government fighters, under the banner of the War Veteran Association of Liberia, staged a peaceful protest in Monrovia's diplomatic enclave of Mamba Point. Most of them were amputees. They presented a statement to the US embassy calling on the international community to seek their welfare after President Taylor leaves for exile. They maintained that the US government, as an integral part of the ICGL (International Contact Group on Liberia), should ensure that priority was given to their education, health, shelter and reintegration as a way of disengaging the over 65,000 members of their organisation from destructive ventures in the perceived post Taylor era.
The government fighters claimed to be former fighters of the defunct warring factions during the Liberian civil war of 1990-1997 including the National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL), Independent National patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL), the Liberia Peace Council (LPC), United Liberation Movement for Democracy (ULIMO) and the Lofa Defense Force (LDF).
|Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list|
|
<urn:uuid:d39751b0-8460-4b02-9fc4-427ac7db723b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/liberia/army.htm
|
2013-05-24T22:44:07Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.983609
| 2,315
|
Over 8,000 websites created by students around the world who have participated in a ThinkQuest Competition.
Compete | FAQ | Contact Us
This entry is a website that allows viewers to explore and gather information about the provinces and territories of Canada. The educational objectives for the team of students creating this website was to research assigned provinces and/or territorie to find information about the captial, population, flag, flower, land area, major industries, natural resources, major geographic features, and to include a map of the region. Students also learned how to write hypertext markup language. Other objectives were to promote writing skills and use of the internet as tool for gathering information and for disseminating information.
19 & under
Geography & Travel > North & Central America
|
<urn:uuid:cc77186d-ea28-4503-a2bb-d8ec79d0baa1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.thinkquest.org/pls/html/f?p=52300:100:3916439819431610::::P100_TEAM_ID:501573487
|
2013-05-23T11:57:10Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.908362
| 155
|
This could be the best winter in years for Tennessee bird watchers to see northern finches at bird feeders.
Northern finches nest mainly in Canadian forests where they feed almost exclusively in fruiting and cone-bearing trees. As long as there are plenty of small tree seeds, most of these finches remain in the North in winter. Their migration is influenced more by food than by weather.
This fall in parts of eastern Canada, following a drought, many berries are hard and dry. There's also a shortage of tree seeds, including seeds in cones, in parts of eastern Canada and New England. The food shortage is sending northern finches scrambling on erratic migrations in search of seeds. As finches irrupt out of northern forests many are flying south.
Northern finches that sometimes winter in Tennessee in irruption years include purple finch, red crossbill, white-winged crossbill (rare), common redpoll (extremely rare), pine siskin, and evening grosbeak. Other irruptive finches — pine grosbeak and hoary redpoll — don't wander this far south.
Read Canadian Ron Pittaway's Winter Finch Forecast 2012-2013 to track the progression of this winter's finch irruption at http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/ff2012. Ron explains how each finch species uses a different strategy to adjust to the failure of tree seed crops. Explore the links to eBird maps that pinpoint locations of recent sightings for each species.
Bird watchers contribute their personal bird sighting records through eBird's online checklist program launched in 2002 by Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society. The records document the presence or absence and the abundance of every North American bird species in different locations at different times of the year. Records are updated daily. Visit the website at ebird.org to learn how eBird is revolutionizing the study of bird distribution. If there's a particular bird species you want to see, check the eBird map to see locations where you might find it.
The eBird maps for pine siskin and purple finch show both species are already plentiful and widespread in southern states including Tennessee. Look for these two northern finches. They are the two you are most likely to find at bird feeders right now.
Red crossbills (type 3 with small bills) are on the move this year out of northwestern forests. Some are showing up in eastern states. There are 10 different crossbill types. Each may represent a separate species. Types are identified not by appearance but by distinctive call notes. Serious bird watchers now make recordings (even with cell phones) of any crossbill they encounter. Type 1 and type 2 red crossbills occur regularly in the southern mountains.
A northern finch longtime Tennessee bird watchers would love to see at their feeders this winter is the large and spectacular yellow, black, and white evening grosbeak. One reason we don't see them regularly anymore is because the population is now smaller than it was several decades ago. Tennessee bird watchers saw them more regularly in the 1990s when big outbreaks of spruce budworms (eaten by adults and fed to young in northern forests) supported higher populations.
Keep an eye on eBird's evening grosbeak map for signs of arriving birds. Grosbeaks were first reported Nov. 16 in both West Tennessee and Western North Carolina. If you're a newer bird watcher you may not have seen this species.
Evening grosbeaks prefer sunflower seeds placed on large platform feeders with plenty of standing room. If you attract them, be forewarned. They'll put a big dent in your pocketbook and eat you out of house and home.
|
<urn:uuid:74e14c1e-2ffc-4386-88cd-96d879ddb424>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/dec/01/marcia-davis-northern-finches-head-south-canada/
|
2013-05-22T21:52:25Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.949342
| 777
|
Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation).
There are different communication drum types, although they are all commonly known as the "talking drums".
The oldest drums were made out of hollowed logs. The bigger the log, the louder sound would be made and thus the farther it could be heard. A long slit would be cut in one side of the tree trunk. Next, the log would be hollowed out through the slit, leaving lips (wooden ledges) on each side of the opening. A drum could be tuned to produce a lower note and a higher note. For that it would need to be hollowed out more under one lip than under the other.
The message-sending logs are not drums at all from the techincal point of view, since they do not have a skin or membrane that would vibrate as they are beaten. Instead, the entire log vibrates like a big cylindrical gong, so musicologists call this type of instrument a slit gong.
Among the most famous talking drums are the drums of West Africa, where they were invented. From regions known today as Nigeria and Ghana they spread across Africa and to America and the Caribbean during the slave trade. At that time they were banned because they were being used by the slaves to communicate over long distances in a code unknown to the slave traders and masters.
Talking drums are also known as: gan gan, dun dun, atumpan, dondo, and lunar.
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
|
<urn:uuid:63c46ee6-f7c8-441f-b2d0-c60149d8f018>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/science_fair_projects_encyclopedia/Talking_drum
|
2013-05-19T10:24:14Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.970664
| 344
|
Doctrine that the universe is God and, conversely, that there is no god apart from the substance, forces, and laws manifested in the universe. Pantheism characterizes many Buddhist and Hindu doctrines and can be seen in such Hindu works as the Vedas and the Bhagavadgita. Numerous Greek philosophers contributed to the foundations of Western pantheism. In the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the tradition was continued in Neoplatonism and Judeo-Christian mysticism. In the 17th century Benedict de Spinoza formulated the most thoroughly pantheistic philosophical system, arguing that God and Nature are merely two names for one reality.
|
<urn:uuid:4ee5361e-7e48-49ab-be79-6a369046c698>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pantheism
|
2013-06-18T04:42:43Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706933615/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122213-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.92883
| 134
|
Another translation of this verse gives a clearly picture of what it means:
"Now late on the Sabbath, as the first day of the weeks was DRAWING NEAR . . ." (Holy Bible in Its Original Order, Second Edition)
Note that the above scripture says that after the Sabbath day it was drawing TOWARD the first day of the week. Days in the Bible did not begin at midnight as they do today but ran from SUNSET to SUNSET, a natural, common sense way of determining when days started and stopped! The seventh or Sabbath day ran from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday.
What does Matthew 28:1 tell us? It states that two "Marys," about the time the Sabbath was ending (Saturday evening) went to check on Jesus' tomb. The logical time sequence of this verse actually confirms that a Biblical Sabbath observance occurred from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday after Jesus died. There is no support here whatsoever for going to church on Sunday, since THIS visit to the tomb happened Saturday night!
The second reference we will look at is in the book of Mark:
"Very early in the morning, on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, they (Mary Magdalene and the "other Mary" who first visited the tomb Saturday evening) came to the tomb when the sun had risen." (Mark 16:2)
This is merely Mark's version of the sunrise visit to the tomb. Our third reference is also found in the book of Mark:
"Now when He rose early on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons." (Mark 16:9)
Nothing here calls the first day of the week the Christian Sabbath and therefore the day to attend church. Nothing here calls it "The Lord's Day." Nothing here hallows Sunday or says God made it holy. Nothing here commands us to observe it. Nothing here sets it apart as a memorial of the Resurrection, or for any purpose. There is no command or example of REST on this day and no authority for observing it.
Did the disciples WORK on a church day?
Our fourth "first day of the week" reference is found in the book of Luke:
"Now on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. " (Luke 24:1)
This text tells again the same event recorded by Matthew and Mark, and it shows that on THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, Sunday, these women came to do the work of a common weekday, AFTER having rested the Sabbath day "according to the commandment." For we read, in the verse just before this, "Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment." (Luke 23:56). Did these women not know they were working on the new day to rest and going to church? Did they not yet know they did not have to obey the commandment? This statement did not come from the women, but its inspiration came from the HOLY GHOST, who did know the commandment was still active. Moreover, it was wrote at least twenty-five years after the establishing of the New Testament Church! The Holy Ghost THEN inspired the direct statement that the rest of these women on the Sabbath day were according to the commandment, which statement would not be possible had it had no longer any affect.
Our fifth reference is in the book of John: "Now the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb." (John 20:1). This, written many, many years after the crucifixion, is John's version, describing the same visit to the tomb. It confirms the facts above.
Did the early church celebrate the resurrection on Sunday?
Our sixth reference is also found in the book of John:
"Then, the same day at evening, being the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' " (John 20:19)
Let us examine this carefully, for some claim this event occurred on a Sunday and was a church service held to celebrate the Resurrection. However, notice this is the same first day of the week that FOLLOWED the Sabbath. It was Jesus' first opportunity to appear to His disciples. For three and a half years, He had been constantly with them, on ALL days of the week. His meeting with them, of itself, could not establish any day as a Sabbath.
Did the church assemble to celebrate the Resurrection, thus establishing Sunday as the Christian Sabbath in honor of the Resurrection? The text says they assembled "for fear of the Jews." The Jews had just taken and crucified their Master. They were afraid. Why did they assemble? "FOR FEAR OF THE JEWS" according to this text, and because they all lived together in this upper room (Acts 1:13). They could not have assembled to celebrate the Resurrection for THEY DID NOT BELIEVE JESUS WAS RISEN (Mark 16:11; Luke 24-37, 39, 41). Nothing in this text calls this day "Sabbath," or "Lord's Day," or any sacred title. Nothing here sets it apart, makes it holy. There is no authority here for changing a command of God!
Did the apostle Paul hold services each week?
"Now on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together. " (Acts 20:7-8)
Here, at last, in our seventh reference, we find a church meeting on the first day of the week. However, it was not a SUNDAY meeting! Notice, Paul continued his speech until midnight! "There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together." It was AFTER SUNSET, prior to midnight, the first day of the week. Now at that time the first day of the week did not begin at midnight, as men begin it today. It began, and the Seventh day ended, AT SUNSET! All Bible days begin and end at SUNSET. Throughout the Roman world at that time, and for a few hundred years afterwards, days began and ended at sunset. The practice of beginning the new day at midnight started much later. Therefore, this meeting, and Paul's preaching, took place during the hours we now call SATURDAY NIGHT - it was not a Sunday meeting at all!
Why did Paul remain behind?
Let us, now, pick up the thread of the narrative related in this passage. Begin verse 6:
"But we sailed away from Philippi after the Days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days joined them at Troas, where we stayed seven days. Now on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day . . ."
Paul and his companions had been in this town of Troas seven days. His companions had left by ship after sunset. Paul remained behind for a farewell meeting. He preached until midnight, "ready to depart the next day." At break of day - sunrise Sunday morning - Paul departed (verse 11). Now notice what his companions had done:
"Then we went ahead to the ship and sailed to Assos, there intending to take Paul on board; for so he had given orders, intending himself to go on foot. And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene." (Acts 20:13-14).
Apostle Paul's foot trip from Troas to Assos
Look at the above map. Paul's companions had to sail around the peninsula, a distance of roughly 50 miles (80.5 kilometers), while Paul walked across the peninsula a distance of about 21 miles (33.8 kilometers). He was able to walk this distance in shorter time than they could sail the longer distance, which gave Paul the opportunity to remain behind in Troas after they left to visit and give a last farewell message.
Now do you see what actually happened? Paul's companions were engaged in the LABOR of rowing and sailing a boat while Paul was preaching that Saturday night and early the next morning - on the first day of the week. They had set sail Saturday night, AFTER THE SABBATH HAD ENDED. Paul remained behind for one more last farewell sermon. Then, at break of day Sunday morning, he did not conduct a church service but rather set out afoot, indulging in the labor of a long walk from Troas to Assos! He waited until the Sabbath was past for this long walk - a good hard day's work, if you ever tried it! He did it on the first day of the week, a common workday!
Did collections occur on the first day?
We come now to the 8th and last place where the term ''first day of the week" occurs in the Bible - the book of 1Corinthians:
"Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come." (1Corinthians 16:1-2)
Often you will see this text printed on the little offering envelopes found in church. The above verses in 1Corinthians 16 speak of a collection — but for WHOM — for WHAT? Note it! The collection was not for the preacher, or for evangelism, but "the collection FOR THE SAINTS." The poor saints at Jerusalem were suffering from drought and famine. They needed, not money, but FOOD. Notice Paul had given similar instruction to other churches. Now observe his instruction to the Romans:
"But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem . . . Therefore, when I have performed this and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of you to Spain." (Romans 15:25-26, 28).
Ah! Did you catch it? It was not money, but FRUIT that they sealed for shipment to the poor saints at Jerusalem! Now turn back to 1Corinthians 16. Paul is speaking concerning a collection FOR THE SAINTS. What did they do on Sunday, the first day of the week? Look at it! Does it say drop a coin in the collection plate at a church service? No! It says "let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper" Note it! LAY SOMETHING ASIDE! Store up as HE may prosper — at home!
Men GATHER fruit out of the orchard — they COLLECT vegetables out of the ground, to be STORED UP. However, putting coins in a collection plate at church, or handing in your tithe envelope cannot be a GATHERING, but an offering. Notice further:
"And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. But if it is fitting that I go also, they will go with me." (1Corinthians 16:3-4).
Apparently, it was going to require several men to carry this collection, gathered and stored up, to Jerusalem. If it were tithe or offering for the minister or the spread of the Gospel, Paul could have carried the money alone. So, once again, the last and final text in the Bible where we find "THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK" mentioned, it is a WORK DAY — not a CHURCH DAY. It is a day for gathering fruit and food out of the orchards and the fields and gardens, and storing it up. It was to be the FIRST labor of the week, hence the first day of the week or Sunday, as soon as the Sabbath was past!
What day did Paul endorse to worship God?
Now briefly let us look thru the New Testament to find WHICH DAY Paul kept, and taught Gentile converts to keep. Notice which day Paul and Barnabas worshipped on:
"Now when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia; and John, departing from them, returned to Jerusalem. But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue ON THE SABBATH DAY and sat down. " (Acts 13:13-14)
As their custom was, Paul and company attended services on the SEVENTH day of the week (Saturday) - just like the Jews - and not on Sunday. After services were over Paul and Barnabas were free to discuss the gospel with the Gentiles (non-Jews) without any possible hindrance:
"So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them THE NEXT SABBATH. Now when the congregation had broken up, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God." (Acts 13:42-43)
Now since Paul was preaching "the grace of God" here was an excellent opportunity to straighten out these Gentiles, and explain that the seventh-day Sabbath the Jews is not required and that a NEW DAY of worship (Sunday) existed for believers in Jesus.
If Paul endorse going to church on a Sunday Sabbath then WHY did he not tell the very zealous Gentiles believers (who BEGGED him to teach them), who had just attended a SATURDAY service, to come back THE VERY NEXT DAY for "Christian" services? WHY would they have to wait a whole WEEK before receiving teaching from the word of God? Why did Paul not correct their request to be taught "the next sabbath" by stating something about how God CHANGED the day He now wanted to be worshipped from Saturday to Sunday? Notice what happened next:
"On THE NEXT SABBATH almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God." (Acts 13:44)
Paul waited a whole week, passing up a Sunday, in order to preach the gospel not only to Gentiles but also to the entire CITY on the still in force Saturday Sabbath of the fourth commandment!
In conclusion, which day did Jesus and Paul believe was the TRUE Sabbath? Paul "as his custom was, went in to them, and for THREE SABBATHS reasoned with them from the Scriptures," (Acts 17:2). It was his MANNER -- his CUSTOM, to worship and teach others on Saturday, not Sunday. Jesus, as His Custom was: "So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the SABBATH DAY, and stood up to read." (Luke 4:16). Jesus' custom was not to have "church" on the first day of the week, but to obey his Father in heaven and observe a seventh-day Sabbath. The question remains if we are willing to follow in the steps of both Jesus and Paul.
|
<urn:uuid:64f7e1de-e7f0-4697-b968-39ebaf5f9b90>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.biblestudy.org/godsrest/why-do-people-attend-church-on-sunday.html
|
2013-06-18T22:56:36Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.974093
| 3,268
|
|This article forms part of the series|
|Holy Scripture |
The Symbol of Faith
|The Holy Trinity|
|God the Father |
The Holy Spirit
|Edit this box|
The Holy Scripture is a collection of books written over multiple centuries by those inspired by God to do so. It is the primary witness to the Orthodox Christian faith, within Holy Tradition and often described as its highest point. It was written by the prophets and apostles in human language, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and collected, edited, and canonized by the Church. Above all, the Bible is a faith document.
The Nature of Scripture
The Scriptures both are the word of God and are about the Word of God, Jesus Christ. They are God's revelation of himself, the word of God in the words of men. The Bible is a witness to the revelation of God, and it is a part of the active and living Holy Tradition of the Church. Thus, if Tradition is the life of the Church, then the Scripture is the primary language of that life.
The Scripture—both Old and New Testaments—is fundamentally about Christ. It is Christocentric and Christological. The whole Bible presupposes the Incarnation and Resurrection of Christ. Indeed, the very purpose in writing the New Testament was because Christ had already risen from the dead—with the death of the Apostle James, the Church realized that the eyewitnesses were not always going to be with them, therefore the preaching of the eyewitnesses was written down.
The preaching of the apostles preceded the Scripture, so we must understand the Scripture as an expression of that preaching; the word of God had already gone out and established the Church, which served as the communal context for the Scripture's composition and canonization. Humanity naturally tends to preach before it makes a written record. Moses' word to the people of Israel after the Passover was first that they should tell their children. St. Mary Magdalene's first act upon learning of the Resurrection was to run and tell Peter. Only later did these events get recorded in writing.
The Presupposition of Faith
The Bible presupposes the faith of the reader. It is a faith document—not science, philosophy, history, archaeology, literature, ideology, or biography. Because of its origins and usage in the community of faith, it does not attempt to establish its own authenticity or to prove its basic assumptions. It was not intended as a logical proof for the existence of God or for the reality of that to which it attests.
Faith is the acceptance of a truth on the word of another, not guessing or direct knowledge from being an eyewitness. As St. John Chrysostom says, the Church would die if it were founded only on knowledge (i.e., direct experience); there must be those who take it on faith. Though in the Church's history many "empirical" experiences of Biblical revelation have been had by the saints, they are by no means the norm. Most Christians in this life will never directly witness the truths described in the Bible, and so they must read it with the eyes of faith.
The Integrity of Scripture
Because the Bible is a faith document, we must respect its integrity as the final revelation of the Orthodox Christian faith. We do not recognize any other writings as canonical Scriptures other than those listed below. Though the Bible does not constitute an all-sufficient summary of revelation, no new revelation has been given. Even if another document were to be unearthed which scholars all agreed came from the hand of Paul or Moses, it would not be added to the canon. Likewise, if an existing part of the canon were undeniably proven not to be from its traditionally ascribed author, it would not be removed from the canon.
The Purpose of Scripture
- And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. (KJV)
That is, the Bible is written so that we might believe and be saved.
The Canon of Scripture
The Old Testament canon of Scripture is that of the Septuagint, which was the Bible of the apostles. Other Christian communions through the years have deviated somewhat from this apostolic canon which the Orthodox Church still uses. The canon of the New Testament was developed over the early centuries of the Church. Its first known listing in its final form is the Paschal Letter of St. Athanasius of Alexandria in A.D. 367.
Alternate names and notes for the books of the canon are given in parentheses.
The Old Testament Canon
The New Testament Canon
- Septuagint (LXX)
- Hebrew Old Testament
- Biblical Commentaries
- The Parish and Holy Scripture - by Archpriest Andrew Morbey
- The Unbound Bible provided by Biola University
- BibleGateway.com, a ministry of Gospel Communications International
- Bible Study Tools provided by crosswalk.com
- Daily Bible readings from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
- Daily Scripture readings (Julian Calendar) from the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese
- Scripture readings from the Orthodox Church in America
- Lectionary of the Greek Orthodox Church according to The Orthodox Study Bible
- Lectionary for the Kellia - A suggestion for everyday scripture readings
|
<urn:uuid:d53932d9-6dca-47e8-ae77-b3ef1990b275>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://orthodoxwiki.org/index.php?title=Holy_Scripture&oldid=53602
|
2013-05-22T07:41:56Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.94972
| 1,118
|
Scanned text contains errors.
s. 37.) Ulpian wrote a separate work, De Officio Curatoris Reipublicae.
9. Cl/RATORES VlARUM. [VlAE.]
CURIA, signifies both a division of the Roman people and the place of assembly for such a division. Various etymologies of the word have been proposed, but none seems to be so plausible as that which connects it with the Sabine word quirts or curis (whence the surname of Juno Curitis among the Sabines).
Each of the three ancient Romulian tribes, the Ramnes, Tities, and Luceres, was subdivided into ]0 curiae, so that the whole body of the populus or the patricians were divided into 30 curiae. (Liv. i. 13 ; Dionys. ii. 7, 23 ; Pint. Rom. 19.) The plebeians had no connection whatever with the curiae, and the clients of the patricians were members of the curiae only in a passive sense. (Fest. p. 285, ed. Mtiller; comp. patricii, gens.) All the members of the different gentes belonging to one curia were called, in respect of one another, eitriales. The division into curiae was of great political importance in the earliest times of Rome, for the curiae alone contained those that were real citizens, and their assembly alone was the legitimate representative of the whole people [comitia curiata], from whom all other powers emanated. The senators and equites were of course chosen from among them; but their importance was especially manifest in the religious affairs of the state. Each curia as a corporation had its peculiar sacra (Fest. pp. 174, 245 ; Paul. Diac. p. 49, ed. M tiller), and besides the gods of the state, they worshipped other divinities and with peculiar rites and ceremonies. For such religious purposes each curia had its own place of worship, called curia, which at first may have contained nothing but an altar, afterwards a sacellum, and finally a building in which the curiales assembled for the purpose of discussing political, financial, religious and other matters. (Paul. Diac. pp. 62, 64 ; Dionys. ii. 50.) The religious affairs of each curia were taken care of by a priest, curio, who was assisted by another called curialis Flamen. (Paul. Diac. pp. 49, 64; Varro, De L. L. v. 83, vi. 46; Dionys. ii. 21 ; comp. curio.) The 30 curiae had each its distinct name, which are said to have been derived from the names of the Sabine women who had been carried off by the Romans, though it is evident that some derived their names from certain districts or from ancient eponymous heroes. Few of these names only are known, such as curia Titia, Faucia, Calabra, Foriensis, Rapta, Veliensis, Tifata. (Paul. Diac. pp. 49, 366 ; Fest. p. 174 ; Liv. i. 13; Dionys. ii. 47 ; Cic. De Re Publ. ii. 8.) The political importance of the curiae sank in proportion as that of the plebeians and afterwards of the nobilitas rose ; but they still continued the religious observances of their corporation, until in the end these also lost their importance and almost fell into oblivion. (Ov. Fast. ii. 527, &c.)
Curia is also used to designate the place in which the senate held its meetings, such as curia Hostilia, curia Julia, curia Marcelli, curia Pompeii, curia Octaviae, and from this there gradually arose the custom of calling the senate itself in the Italian towns curia, but never the senate of Rome. The official residence of the Salii, which was dedicated to Mars, was likewise styled curia. (Cic. de Div. i. 17; Dionys. xiv. 5; Plut. Cwnill. 32; comp.
Backer, Handb. der Rom. Altertli. vol. ii. part i. p. 31, &e.) > f [L. S.]
CURIA (ftovXevrripiov, yepovo-ia), in archi tecture. The building in which the highest coun cil of the state met, in a Greek or Latin city, is described by Vitruvius as being adjacent to the agora or forum. Its form was quadrangular ; either square or oblong. If square, its height was one and a half times its length : if oblong, the height was half the sum of the length and breadth. Thus, a senate house 40 feet square would be 60 feet high : and one 60 feet by 40 would be 50 feet high: which are somewhat remarkable proportions. Half way up each wall there was a projecting shelf or cornice to prevent the voice being lost in the height of the building. Vitruvius says nothing of columns in the curia, but we know that in some Greek senate houses, as in that at Phocis, there wera roAvs of columns down each side, very near the wall (Paus. viii. 32, x. 5), and this also was the case at Pompeii. A sort of religious character was con ceived to belong to the senate house ; and there were often statues of the gods placed in it. (Paus. I. c.) Respecting the three curiae at Rome, the Hostilia, the Julia, and the Pompeiana, see Diet, of Gr. and Rom. Geog. art. Roma. (Vitruv. v. 2 ; Stieglitz, Arcli'dol. d. Baukunst, vol. iii. p. 21 ; Hirt, Lehre d. Gebaude, pp. 186—188). [P. S.J
CURIATA COMFTIA. [comitia.]
CURIO, the person who stood at the head of a curia, and had to manage its affairs, especially those of a religious nature (Dionys. ii. 7, 65 ; Varro, De L. L. v. 15, 32, vi. 6): in their administration he was assisted by another priest, called flamen curialis. (Paul. Diac. p. 64 ; Dionys. ii. 21, 64.) As there were thirty curiae, the number of curiones was likewise thirty, and they formed a college of priests, which was headed by one of them bearing the title of curio maximus. (Paul. Diac. p. 126 ; Liv. xxvii. 8.) He was elected in the comitia curiata, and had authority over the curiae as well as over the curiones. It need hardly be observed, that the office of curio could not be held by any one except a patrician ; at a comparatively late time we indeed find now and then a plebeian invested with the office of curio maximus (Liv. xxvii. 8, xxxiii. 42), but this only shows how much the ancient institution of the curiae had then lost of its original meaning and importance ; and at the time when the plebeians had gained access to priestly dignities, the office of curio seems to have been looked upon in the light of any other priestly dignity, and to have been conferred upon plebeians no less than upon patricians. [L. S.]
CURIUS (Kvpio$\ signifies generally the person that was responsible for the welfare of such, members of a family as the law presumed to be incapable of protecting themselves ; as, for instance, minors and slaves, and women of all ages. Fathers, therefore, and guardians, husbands, the nearest male relatives of women, and masters of families, would all bear this title in respect of the vicarious functions exercised by them in behalf of the respective objects of their care. The qualifications of all these, in respect of which they can be combined in one class, designated by the term curius, were the male sex, years of discretion, freedom, and when citizens a sufficient share of the franchise (eTriri/jLia) to enable them to appear in the law courts as plaintiffs or defendants in behalf of their several charges ; in the case of the curius being a
|
<urn:uuid:05d95732-28c0-45cb-806f-acc32439655c>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/0384.html
|
2013-05-22T08:12:22Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701508530/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105148-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.961745
| 1,815
|
CCnewsProviding the best evidence yet for an asteroid belt beyond the solar system, new measurements pinpoint the location of such a disk of warm dust surrounding the star Zeta Leporis. As the January 6, 2007 issue of Science News reports, this dust lies about the same distance from Zeta Leporis as the solar system’s asteroid belt lies from the sun. Margaret M. Moerchen and Charles M. Telesco and their colleagues at the University of Florida in Gainesville report these findings in an upcoming Astrophysical Journal Letters.
According to Ron Cowen, in “Rocky Finding”, most other observed disks have been cool and located much further from their parents stars. Assessing this research, Charles Beichman of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California finds that “we now have direct evidence for structures around other stars that are directly analogous to the asteroid belt in our solar system.”
Further observations of Zeta Leporis have enabled researchers to precisely gauge the size of this dust dusk. Additionally, according to Cowen, research finds that the location of the dust is at a distance of 3 astronomical units (AU) from Zeta Leporis, quite similar to the location of the solar system’s asteroid belt, stretching from 2.1 to 3.3 AU from the sun.
Noting that asteroids are leftovers from the planet-making process in the solar system, Cowen reports that, while still a young star, Zeta Leporis is old enough to have formed planets. These new studies and findings “support the thought that Earthlike planets may exist” according to Michael Jura of the University of California, Los Angeles who observed the dust in the disk surrounding Zeta Leporis to find its radius.
Further research will attempt to reveal the shape of the Zeta Leporis’ disk as well as providing insight into its possible formation, continuing efforts to understand the inner territory of our skies.
|
<urn:uuid:817cad6e-8fa3-4399-8a9a-9e91c82ae5f8>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.theufochronicles.com/2007/01/newly-discovered-asteroid-belt-may.html
|
2013-06-19T12:33:22Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.929417
| 405
|
Early European Immigrants
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the tempest-tossed to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door. -- Emma Lazarus, 1888.
(Courtesy: Library of Congress)
The American nation was awash in a tidal wave of immigration when Lazarus's words were fixed to the Statue of Liberty in the first years of the Twentieth Century. More than one million people a year were leaving their homelands to start anew in the United States.
Anti-immigration leagues started to form throughout the nation. Initiatives started to make their way through Congress to block the huddled masses from passing through the Golden Door.
A yawning cultural and economic chasm had opened in America. An estimate of the day said that five percent of the population controlled ninety percent of the nation's wealth. As the class of dispossessed immigrants grew larger---the chasm widened---resulting in deeper suspicions and sharper opinions.
"They may adopt the language of the True American. They may wear his clothes, they may steal his name...And they are beginning to steal his women. But they seldom adopt his religion, or understand his ideals," said Madison Grant, Trustee of the Museum of Natural History, New York.
Without job skills for the burgeoning industrial economy...without the benefit of language to bridge a yawning cultural chasm, many immigrants felt they had fallen into a sub-class that lived beneath the streets paved with gold.
|
<urn:uuid:8ef31460-3820-4de4-82ef-4c1dfaecfa07>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.kued.org/productions/joehill/early/immigrants.html
|
2013-05-24T23:07:42Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.96876
| 323
|
Many theories of Christopher Columbus' origins exist, but none have yet been proved. Some suggest that Columbus was a Catalan nobleman who rebelled against King Ferdinand's father, King John II, by engaging in piracy on behalf of the French, and then hid his origins to win favor with the son. Others maintain that he was the illegitimate child of Prince Carlos de Viana, a Majorcan nobleman related to Ferdinand and Isabella. Still others suggest that Columbus was a Jew whose family fled to Genoa to escape persecution.
Now Portuguese historian Manuel Rosa says that Columbus was really the son of exiled Polish King Vladislav III and a Portuguese noblewoman, and that he lied to protect his father's true identity.
Many paintings of Columbus show that he was red-haired, fair-skinned and blue-eyed -- all features more common in Poland than in Italy. Rosa said there's plenty of evidence to support his theory, but his next project will try to back up his thesis indisputably -- with DNA evidence.
"I have made a request to the Cathedral in Krakov to examine remains from the tomb of Vladislav II, who could turn out to be the grandfather of Columbus," Rosa told the Telegraph. "It would prove the truth of my theory."
You can read more in an online article by Lauren Frayer at http://goo.gl/Cyrf9
|
<urn:uuid:a8d1480e-b8e4-40dd-95c6-523f33862f54>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2010/11/who-was-christopher-columbus.html
|
2013-05-21T01:34:06Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699632815/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102032-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.978024
| 282
|
Photograph by Rebecca Hale, NGS
A scientist travels the world to find and fight emerging diseases.
Epidemiologist Nathan Wolfe stands in rare company: He was among ten young professionals named in 2009 as National Geographic Emerging Explorers, an honor awarded for significant accomplishments made early in their careers. Wolfe was singled out for his efforts to fight pandemics with an early-warning system to identify and control new plagues before they become widespread. A visiting professor in human biology at Stanford University and director of the Global Viral Forecasting Initiative, Wolfe has created a dozen field sites in viral hot spots in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, China, Laos, Malaysia, and other countries. His work has led to the discovery of several previously unknown retroviruses.
How would you describe what you do? I try to understand how pandemics are born. The way that pandemics come to us is through our interaction with animals. That's true whether it's swine flu (H1N1), bird flu, Ebola, or HIV. These are all animal diseases that jumped to humans. I travel to usually remote regions with high levels of contact between humans and wildlife and other animals, and then I study the transfer of these viruses to humans.
What is the Global Viral Forecasting Initiative? It's an effort to turn things on their head. The way organizations approach disease control globally is a bit like what cardiologists were doing in the 1950s, which is pretty much wait for the heart attack and then do your best to treat it. The reality is, just as with cardiology, there is a whole range of ways we can try to prevent pandemics. We're setting up this monitoring system in which we study individuals who have high levels of contact with animals, and they collect specimens from the animals for us. We watch as the viruses are pinging at us, and when something takes hold in humans, we sound the alarm—hopefully, much earlier than what we've seen in the recent case of swine flu, before it is everywhere in the world.
What are the health implications of today's global interconnectedness? It has good and bad consequences. A negative consequence is that a new virus that previously would have perhaps stayed put in some rural region now can quickly get anywhere on the planet. At the same time, we have the potential to better monitor things, for example by cell phone. We worked in central Congo where there is no electricity, no running water, and yet there are cell phones. That means we can follow individuals more easily.
How do viruses impact a critical business like travel? Tourism brings economic development and the educational benefits of coming in contact with different cultures. But travel does facilitate the movement of viruses and microorganisms. And just as travel can spread diseases among humans, it can also affect animal populations. The chytrid fungus is one example. This is a devastating fungal disease in frogs that we humans unwittingly have transported on our feet, causing the potential extinction of certain amphibian species.
Are you pessimistic or optimistic about any given culture's ability to preserve itself? I do think that we lose a lot with our interconnectedness, because of the homogenization of cultures. You ask people in rural regions what they want and they rarely say health care or even education. Most often it's electricity and roads, which further cultural intermingling. But still, the best cultural traits tend to stick around.
Do you have a philosophy of travel? I'm a minimalist. I never travel with anything other than my carry-on bag. And if you look at my luggage, you'll see I have everything I need. Actually, my philosophy extends beyond luggage to a more general philosophy of traveling light. We should be open-minded when we interact with folks and be ready to laugh and listen and embrace and try to understand things from a slightly different perspective. The less baggage we carry—physical and cultural—the better.
What are the most "foreign" places you've been? There are a few gems, places like Ethiopia, Thailand, and Japan, that have civilizations that seem very foreign. Borneo and rural places like the Congo Basin have that quality, which really is what we are looking for as travelers.
What are your impressions of Cameroon? When you first arrive and walk down the street, you sense an aggressiveness in individuals. But as soon as you say "bonjour," a big smile emerges on their faces. I used to go for omelets in the morning to this little place on the side of the street where taxi drivers hung out. These taxi drivers looked like they were about to come to death blows as they got into intense arguments, but at the end, they would stand up and embrace each other as if they were old friends. That totally changed my perception of Cameroon from a place that felt a bit aggressive to one that had a wonderful warmth to it.
What about the Democratic Republic of the Congo? In the DRC, there are populations that have been through some of the most difficult challenges you could imagine—entire generations of kids who are the result of systematic rape, their family members killed. And yet there is an optimism and a forward-looking viewpoint. It gives you an incredible respect for these cultures that have faced such profound despair and difficulty. People smile and greet you as a neighbor and guest. They are not overwhelmed by paranoia and suspicion, as you might expect.
And how about Laos? I love Laos. It has that foreign quality we were talking about. The people are open and friendly. In Laos, you can get a sense of what parts of Southeast Asia must have felt like decades ago. With its Buddhist background, the country seems pretty laid back.
Keith Bellows is the editor of Traveler.
Shop National Geographic
|
<urn:uuid:2caba9c2-6256-4553-a737-06601adfa933>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/traveler-magazine/one-on-one/global-health-crusader/
|
2013-05-22T15:29:34Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701910820/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105830-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.970496
| 1,187
|
In a report of the Online Safety and Technology Working Group the internet environment for our children is described as part of the fabric of their world. “To youth, social media and technologies are not something extra added on to their lives; they’re embedded in their lives. Their offline and online lives have converged into one life. They are socializing in various environments, using various digital and real-life “tools,” from face-to-face gatherings to cell phones to social network sites, to name justa few (Youth Safety on a Living Internet).
Washington state’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) provides a list of various curriculum and websites to assist schools in helping students use the internet responsibly.
The Internet offers a wealth of resources and material for education. Accessed through a variety of electronic devices, it also allows for rich and diverse opportunities for 21st century communications. These devices are becoming ever more diverse and ubiquitous. They raise issues of digital / Internet safety and digital citizenship. Along with ensuring that our young people have the technological skills to effectively use digital devices, platforms, and resources for educational purposes, we also have the responsibility to teach them how to be safe and productive digital citizens of the 21st century (more on Digital/Internet Safety).
Digital Citizenship: Using Technology Appropriately updated on 10-30-12
- Link here for curriculum resources. (PDF) Common Sense Media
- More form Common Sense Media http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/curriculum/9-12
- GetNetWise – links on privacy (website)
|
<urn:uuid:79ae9de3-db1f-4580-a6d0-c83f48399faa>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://everettce.com/internet-safety/
|
2013-05-25T20:08:59Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.928073
| 335
|
Bubbling sea signals severe coral damage this century
Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News
Carbon dioxide bubbles into the water from the slopes of a dormant volcano here, making it slightly more acidic.
Coral is badly affected, not growing at all in the most CO2-rich zone.
Writing in journal Nature Climate Change, the scientists say this "lab" mimics conditions that will be widespread if CO2 emissions continue.
The oceans absorb some of the carbon dioxide that human activities are putting into the atmosphere.
This is turning seawater around the world slightly more acidic - or slightly less alkaline.
This reduces the capacity of corals and other marine animals to form hard structures such as shells.
Projections of rising greenhouse gas emissions suggest the process will go further, and accelerate.
"This is the most realistic experiment done to date on this issue," said Chris Langdon, a coral specialist from the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science in Miami, US.
"So I don't have any qualms about believing that what we found will apply in other parts of the world."
The water becomes progressively more acidic closer to the vents that are bubbling CO2.
End Quote Alex Rogers Oxford University
We will see the collapse of many reefs long before the end of the century”
This allows the researchers to study the impacts on coral at different levels of acidity.
Seawater has an average pH of about 8.1; this is already about 0.1 lower than before the industrial age and the large-scale human emissions of greenhouse gases associated with it.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects that by the end of the century, emissions may have risen so much that pH may fall to 7.8.
In the Papua New Guinea site, few types of coral grew at pH7.8.
Reefs still formed, but were dominated by one particular type, the Porites, which form massive shapes largely devoid of the branches and fronds that characterise reefs rich in species.
"We saw only a few speces of coral, and none of the structually complex ones that provide a lot of cover for fish," Professor Langdon told BBC News..
- The oceans are thought to have absorbed about half of the extra CO2 put into the atmosphere in the industrial age
- This has lowered its pH by 0.1
- pH is the measure of acidity and alkalinity
- The vast majority of liquids lie between pH 0 (very acidic) and pH 14 (very alkaline); 7 is neutral
- Seawater is mildly alkaline with a "natural" pH of about 8.2
- The IPCC forecasts that ocean pH will fall by "between 0.14 and 0.35 units over the 21st Century, adding to the present decrease of 0.1 units since pre-industrial times"
"The much simpler forms support many fewer species, and theory suggests they create an environment that would be very vulnerable to other stresses."
In an even more acid part of the study site, with a pH of 7.7, the scientists report that "reef development ceased".
Here, seagrasses dominate the floor - but they lack the hard-shelled snails that normally live on their fronds.
This is the second published study of a "natural lab" for ocean acidification.
The first, from a site in Mediterranean, found snails with their shells disintegrating; but the PNG site offers a snapshot of the future that might be more applicable to the world's tropical coral hotspots.
"The results are complex, but their implications chilling," commented Alex Rogers from the University of Oxford, who was not part of the study team.
"Some may see this as a comforting study in that coral cover is maintained, but this is a false perception; the levels of seawater pH associated with a 4C warming completely change the face of reefs.
"We will see the collapse of many reefs long before the end of the century."
The scientific team behind the new research, drawn from Australia, Germany and the US, suggests that the picture from PNG may underplay the threat.
Reefs in the acidic zones of the study site receive regular doses of larvae floating in from nearby healthy corals, replenishing damaged stocks.
This would not be the case if low pH levels pertained throughout the oceans.
In addition, corals at the site are only minimally affected by other threats; there is little fishing, local pollution, or disease.
By contrast, a major survey published earlier this year found that three-quarters of the world's reefs were at risk - 95% in southeast Asia - with exploitative and destructive fishing being the biggest immediate threat.
|
<urn:uuid:daf412f5-8e93-47ed-8e03-e85f18a81358>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.fourwinds10.net/siterun_data/environment/pollution/news.php?q=1306951015
|
2013-05-18T17:36:52Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.944396
| 984
|
drag one's tail. 1. To be visibly sad or ashamed, especially in the way one moves about. “The image of a dog with its tail down, supposedly a sign of unhappiness,” as the Cassell's Dictionary of Slang puts it.
In George MacDonald's fantasy novel for children, The Princess and Curdie, he describes the scene in which Curdie introduces the Princess to a grotesquely ugly dog, Lina, who would accompany them on their quest:
|She entered, creeping with downcast head, and dragging her tail over the floor behind her. Lina dropped flat on the floor, and covered her face with her two big paws. It went to the heart of the princess: in a moment she was on her knees beside her, stroking her ugly head and petting her all over.
Curdie tells the Princess that “Lina is a woman...she was naughty, but is now growing good,”which is a whole other story about women as dogs. The crucial thing here is to distinguish between one who is dragging his tail in this fashion or more deliberately as in the second definition.
2.To move or act with deliberate slowness.
This is an excellent description of how someone acts when they are considered to be lazy as a dog or when they are dogging it. While working like a dog is demanding, theorists suggest that if unrewarded for work and allowed to slack, dogs have no qualms about letting others toil. While I have little trouble imagining that dogs get away with whatever they can, I doubt that they engage in deliberate slowdowns, as humans might in labor actions less formal acts of resistance. To drag one's tail in this way strikes me as the province of those who are less eager to please and more likely to resent subservient status. Perhaps the comparison with dogs is a way of demeaning those who—enslaved by law or poverty—put as little effort into the job as possible because it is the only form of agency available to them. Placing a human in this category may justify paternalism. Those in subservient and service roles, like dogs, are perceived to need a firm hand. It may even make the boss feel a bit smug and superior, meting out a bit of discipline to a worker who is dragging his tail.
I am not convinced, however, that this is specifically a reference to the behavior of dogs. In many resources, this phrase is presented as a more polite way of saying “dragging one's ass,” suggesting that “tail” is a generic reference to rear end, bum, gluteus maximus, or what have you. And, while there is apparently an affliction in which dogs do drag their bottoms (a kind of canine constipation—don't ask) dogs do not drag their tails on the ground. At most they may lower them, as depicted in Figure 2.
1. Green, Jonathon. 2005. Cassell's Dictionary of Slang. 2d ed. London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson.
2. MacDonald, George. 2007. The Princess and Curdie. 1st World Library - Literary Society. Accessed from http:// books.google.com/ books?id =X9scDC5R7IQC.
4. Ammer, Christine. 1997. The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 174.
5. Budiansky, Stephen. 2001. The Truth About Dogs. New York: Penguin Books.
|
<urn:uuid:858f1506-8a09-4cf8-a445-c6a872813fa4>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://metaphordogs.org/Dogs/entries/dragtail.html
|
2013-05-24T22:28:23Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.960029
| 741
|
The Fall of the Reef Shark
Sharks have a reputation of being apex predators of the sea. But even they have their weak points. Many shark populations have plummeted in the past three decades as a result of excessive harvesting — for their fins, as an incidental catch of fisheries targeting other species, and in recreational fisheries. This is particularly true for oceanic species. However, until now, a lack of data prevented scientists from properly quantifying the status of Pacific reef sharks at a large geographic scale. Curious gray reef sharks at Kure Atoll in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, Hawaii were studied as part of a study published April 25 in the journal Conservation Biology. An international team of marine scientists provided the first estimates of reef shark losses in the Pacific Ocean using underwater surveys conducted over the past decade across 46 US Pacific islands and atolls, as part of NOAA's extensive Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program. The team compared reef shark numbers at reefs.
It is estimated that 100 million sharks are killed by people every year, due to commercial and recreational fishing. Sharks are a common seafood in many places, including Japan and Australia. In the Australian state of Victoria, shark is the most commonly used fish in fish and chips, in which fillets are battered and deep-fried or crumbed and grilled.
"We estimate that reef shark numbers have dropped substantially around populated islands, generally by more than 90 percent compared to those at the most untouched reefs", said Marc Nadon, lead author of the study and a scientist at the Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research (JIMAR) located at the University of Hawaii, as well as a PhD candidate with Dr. Jerry Ault at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science.
To obtain these estimates, Nadon and his colleagues used an innovative survey method, called towed-diver surveys, which were designed specifically for the census of large, highly mobile reef fishes like sharks. The surveys involve paired SCUBA divers recording shark sightings while towed behind a small boat.
"Towed-diver surveys are key to our effort to quantify reef shark abundance," said Ivor Williams, head of the team responsible for these surveys. "Unlike other underwater census methods, which are typically at an insufficient spatial scale to properly count large, mobile species, these surveys allowed our scientists to quickly record shark numbers over large areas of reef."
The team crunched the numbers from over 1,600 towed-diver surveys, combining them with information on human population, habitat complexity, reef area, and satellite-derived data on sea surface temperature and oceanographic productivity.
The models showed the enormous detrimental effect that humans have on reef sharks.
"Around each of the heavily populated areas we surveyed — in the main Hawaiian Islands, the Mariana Archipelago, and American Samoa - reef shark numbers were greatly depressed compared to reefs in the same regions that were simply further away from humans." Nadon said. "We estimate that less than 10% of the baseline numbers remain in these areas."
"The pattern — of very low reef shark numbers near inhabited islands — was remarkably consistent, irrespective of ocean conditions or region," added Williams.
"Our findings underscore the importance of long-term monitoring across gradients of human impacts, biogeographic, and oceanic conditions, for understanding how humans are altering our oceans," concluded Rusty Brainard, head of the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division at NOAA's Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, which conducted the surveys.
For further information see USGS or Sharks.
Reef Shark image by P. Ayotte via NOAA.
|
<urn:uuid:4cd51f78-bb62-461b-88f4-10f0dbc0e7a0>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/44434
|
2013-05-23T04:35:42Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.949559
| 740
|
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Any of several Old World trees of the genus Ziziphus, especially Z. jujuba, having palmately veined leaves, spiny stipules, small yellowish flowers, and dark red fruit.
- n. The fleshy, edible drupe of this tree. Also called Chinese date.
- n. A fruit-flavored, usually chewy candy or lozenge.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. The name of several species of plants of the genus Zizyphus.
- n. The edible fruit of these plants.
- n. A confection made of gum arabic or gelatin, sweetened and flavored so as to resemble the jujube-fruit. Also called jujube paste, a name originally applied to a jelly made from the jujube.
- n. The sweet and edible drupes (fruits) of several Mediterranean and African species of small trees.
- n. a fruit-bearing tree, Ziziphus zizyphus
- n. The fruit of this tree, also known as Chinese date and fructus jujubae
- n. North America A type of candy; specific type varies by country.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. The sweet and edible drupes (fruits) of several Mediterranean and African species of small trees, of the genus Zizyphus, especially the Zizyphus jujuba, Zizyphus vulgaris, Zizyphus mucronata, and Zizyphus Lotus. The last named is thought to have furnished the lotus of the ancient Libyan
Lotophagi, or lotus eaters.
- n. A chewy gelatinous lozenge made of or in imitation of, or flavored with, the jujube fruit.
- n. chewy fruit-flavored jellied candy (sometimes medicated to soothe a sore throat)
- n. spiny tree having dark red edible fruits
- n. dark red plumlike fruit of Old World buckthorn trees
- From Ancient Greek ζίζυφον (zizuphon). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, jujube fruit, from Old French, from Medieval Latin jujuba, from Latin zizyphum, from Greek zizuphon. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
“The jujube is a fruit -- but a most remarkable one.”
“Do not confuse this with the Chinese jujube which is hardy even into the Ohio valley in the USA but will not do well in warm climates like southern Florida.”
“But I thought the jujube was a fruit, like an apple.”
“Those red jujube like things in that one dish are probably goji berries.”
“The Corsican steadied herself with her broom, bent down and picked up a jujube.”
“References: le portail (m) = gate; le périple (m) = tour, journey; un arbre (m) = tree; c'est un jujubier = it's a jujube tree”
“Yet even the Kid hisself failed; he went out unarmed, and along come Pat Garrett and put a jujube of lead into his gut.”
“Xeric woodland species found around Lake Chad include baobabs, desert date palms, African myrrh, and Indian jujube.”
“And then I get a mouthwatering taste of meaty, jujube-red raw tuna wrapped in chewy nori lodged in my sensory memory.”
“I cannot accept the sarcastic comment of “jujube” as valid or productive at all, nor the criticism of “Bob.””
These user-created lists contain the word ‘jujube’.
List naming fruits found in foreign markets and lands that are seldom seen or heard of in America.
Go for it, brothers and sisters! I personally have been suffering long for lack of an open reduplicatives list
caramel gets 48 hits
chocolate gets 112 hits
nonpareil 83 hits
Words for things both tangible and anthropic. I'm in the process of spinning off hardware into ute, and people into oofy.
Among the greatest sounding words in the world
Looking for tweets for jujube.
|
<urn:uuid:fec6eea9-b2f5-4b49-8059-af4ce04899b1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.wordnik.com/words/jujube
|
2013-05-25T13:18:30Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705955434/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120555-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.860277
| 980
|
Explore Careers - Job Market Report
Translators translate written material from one language to another. Interpreters translate oral communication from one language to another during speeches, meetings, conferences, debates and conversation, or in court or before administrative tribunals. Terminologists conduct research to itemize terms connected with a certain field, define them and find equivalents in another language. Sign language interpreters use sign language to translate spoken language and vice versa during meetings, conversations, television programs or in other instances. Translators, terminologists and interpreters are employed by government, private translation and interpretation agencies, in-house translation services, large private corporations, international organizations and the media, or they may be self-employed. Sign language interpreters work in schools and courts, and for social service agencies, interpretation services, government services and television stations, or they may be self-employed.
community interpreter, conference interpreter, court interpreter, interpreter, legal terminologist, literary translator, localiser, medical terminologist, sign language interpreter, terminologist, translator, translator adaptor, translator-reviser.
- Translate a variety of written material such as correspondence, reports, legal documents, technical specifications and textbooks from one language to another, maintaining the content, context and style of the original material to the greatest extent possible
- Localize software and accompanying technical documents to adapt them to another language and culture
- Revise and correct translated material
- May train and supervise other translators.
- Identify the terminology used in a field of activity
- Conduct terminological research on a given subject or in response to inquiries for the preparation of glossaries, terminology banks, technological files, dictionaries, lexicons and resource centres, and add to terminological databases
- Manage, update and circulate linguistic information collected from terminological databases
- Provide consultative services to translators, interpreters and technical writers preparing legal, scientific or other documents requiring specialized terminologies.
- Interpret oral communication from one language to another aloud or using electronic equipment, either simultaneously (as the speaker speaks), consecutively (after the speaker speaks) or whispered (speaking in a low whisper to one or two persons as the speaker is talking)
- Provide interpretation services in court or before administrative tribunals
- May interpret language for individuals and small groups travelling in Canada and abroad
- May interpret for persons speaking a Native or foreign language in a variety of circumstances
- May train other interpreters.
Sign language interpreters perform some or all of the following duties:
Translators, terminologists and interpreters specialize in two languages, such as French and English, the official languages of Canada. They may also specialize in another language and one of the official languages. The main areas of specialization include administrative, literary, scientific and technical translation. Interpreters may specialize in court, parliamentary or conference interpretation.
- Translate sign language to a spoken language and vice versa either simultaneously or consecutively.
Sign language interpreters work in French and Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ) or in English and American Sign Language (ASL).
St. John's, Mount Pearl, Arnold's Cove, Bay Roberts, Bishop's Cove, Carbonear, Conception Bay South, Gulch, Gull Island, Harbour Grace, North River, Spaniard's Bay, Torbay, Upper Island Cove, Wabana, Birchy Nap, Chamberlains, Codner, Doyles, Foxtrap, Goulds, Greeleytown, Kelligrews, Lance Cove, Lawrence Pond, Manuels, Newton, North Pond Heights, Peachytown, Riverdale, Talcville, Topsail, Upper Gullies
Jobs for Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters in Avalon Peninsula Region
Job opportunities from Job Bank and contributing job sites are updated daily.
There are currently no job offers available in Avalon Peninsula Region for this occupation.
Where to look for job opportunities
Job postings can be found in many places: on the Internet, on community bulletin boards, at job fairs or in newspaper
help wanted sections.
Information about available work is often circulated through managers, employees and business associates, as well as through family, friends and acquaintances. Networking Link opens in a new window is one of the best ways to search for jobs.
RSS job search feed
Subscribe to the Canada’s National Job Bank's RSS job search feedLink opens in a new window and receive automatic job posting updates for the location and occupation you have selected.
- Date Modified:
|
<urn:uuid:9bd9e598-98d8-4dd4-aa4d-537c1da4d317>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.travailleraucanada.gc.ca/report-eng.do?area=27450&lang=eng&noc=5125&action=final&ln=l&source=3&titleKeyword=
|
2013-06-20T08:52:02Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.884822
| 943
|
Platypus Genome Sequenced, Unlocking Secrets Of Evolution
Cold Spring Harbor NY (SPX) May 13, 2008
By any account, the platypus is an odd creature. It's got a broad, rubbery bill that brings to mind a duck....but it swims more like a beaver....yet it lays eggs and can inject poisonous venom, like a reptile. No wonder it was considered an elaborate hoax by scientists who examined the first specimen pelt shipped to England from the colony of New South Wales in 1799.
In the May 9 issue of Nature, a consortium of scientists including Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's (CSHL) Gregory J. Hannon, Ph.D., published results of an international effort to sequence the platypus genome. It reveals evolutionary secrets that go far beyond the obvious fact that the creature, found exclusively in eastern and southern Australia, including the island-state of Tasmania, is neither a typical mammal nor typical reptile.
In fact, the platypus is a member of a mammalian species called the monotremes, which includes only four other subspecies (the other four being echidnas, varieties of spiny anteaters). The monotremes diverged from other primitive mammals about 166 million years ago, in the late Jurassic period -- a fact corroborated indirectly in the newly sequenced genome.
Finding Evolutionary Clues in Genome Sequence
Take the platypus's distinct mode of rearing its offspring. All of the mammals, in addition to being warm-blooded, can be grouped according to their modes of gestation. Marsupials like the kangaroo rear profoundly immature young in external pouches for extended periods of time. Eutherian mammals like mice and humans protect their progeny for lengthy periods in an inner womb prior to giving birth.
The platypus and other monotremes, in sharp contrast, retain the reptilian mode of gestation, being egg-layers; yet like other mammals the female platypus feeds her newborn with milk, albeit milk that's secreted through broad patches of skin rather than teats.
"The fact that monotremes lactate yet lay eggs is only one instance of the fascinating combination they represent of reptilian and mammalian characteristics," said Dr. Hannon. Another legacy of the platypus's reptilian heritage is the fact that males of the species are equipped with spikes on their hind legs through which they can deliver venom.
The consortium found that reptile and platypus venom proteins "have been co-opted from the same gene families." The scientists also deduced from genomic data that the platypus, despite being an egg-layer, shares milk protein genes with all other mammals.
Being a genome scientist, Dr. Hannon was interested to observe that the complement of chromosomes possessed by the platypus -- its karyotype -- is most unusual for a mammal. "In all there are 52 chromosomes, many of them very small, much like reptilian microchromosomes. Like reptiles, they also have multiple sex chromosomes," he noted.
CSHL study shows small-RNA roles are conserved in platypus
Over the last decade Dr. Hannon has pioneered the study of small RNAs, helping to reveal their role in regulating gene expression and in protecting the genome from parasitic invaders.
Hannon and Murchison sequenced six platypus and echidna tissue samples and found, broadly, the presence of the same classes of small RNAs and the intracellular machinery seen in other animals that enable small RNAs to modulate gene expression and defend the genome -- a process called RNA interference (RNAi).
That the RNAi mechanism is "conserved" by evolution in the monotremes is hardly surprising, given its great power to enable individual organisms, and thereby the species, to regulate their systems and protect their genetic material.
The CSHL team found certain small RNAs that were exclusive to the monotremes, reflecting their unique experience of evolution; and certain small RNAs that were shared by some other animals, but not others -- for instance, four microRNAs (miRNAs) previously seen in chickens but not in other mammals.
"Here again, a deeply buried story about evolution comes to light: these particular miRNAs presumably were involved in biological functions that have either become redundant or obsolete in some branches of mammalian evolution," Dr. Hannon said.
In all, the team identified 180 novel miRNAs that appear to be unique in the platypus and monotremes, most notably a large cluster of miRNAs on platypus chromosome X1, expressed almost exclusively in the testis. The cluster appears to be evolving rapidly, which is characteristic of the mammalian trait of fast-evolving male reproductive machinery.
Also of special interest was evidence that the platypus genome encodes three proteins of the so-called PIWI family, which is involved in the genesis of a newly discovered class of small RNAs called piwi-, or piRNAs. In platypus, in contrast to other mammals studied to date, the piRNA system appears to play an active role in germline defense, within the mature testis.
In sum, Dr. Hannon noted, "the small RNA complement of the platypus has highlighted both unique and conserved roles for miRNAs and piRNAs in monotremes; at the same time, it has given us fascinating insight into the evolution of small RNA pathways in mammals."
Email This Article
Comment On This Article
Share This Article With Planet Earth
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Darwin Today At TerraDaily.com
Princeton, N.J. (UPI) May 12, 2008
U.S. scientists say they have found water dynamics can play a pivotal role in the biodiversity of river networks.
|The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2007 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement|
|
<urn:uuid:b654e94c-cc92-4f16-9454-c27a62b34dc1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Platypus_Genome_Sequenced_Unlocking_Secrets_Of_Evolution_999.html
|
2013-05-22T14:46:45Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.925859
| 1,321
|
Published: Sept. 26, 2008
Updated: Sept. 8, 2010
Adenomyosis is uterine thickening that occurs when endometrial tissue, which normally lines the uterus, extends into the fibrous and muscular tissue of the uterus.
The presence if endometrial tissue within the wall of the uterus can cause abdominal pain and abnormal bleeding.
Adenomyosis is very difficult to diagnose without removing the uterus or performing a biopsy of uterine muscle suspected of containing adenomyosis.
Some of the more advanced imaging techniques may help identify adenomyosis but do not offer treatment. Adenomyomas (a mass of adenomyosis) may be confused with fibroids on ultrasound.
This is often a diagnosis made by the surgeon at the time of hysterectomy or by the pathologist at the time of pathologic evaluation.
Anti-inflammatory medications, progestins, and Lupron can temporarily suppress the discomforts of adenomyosis.
Symptoms usually resolve after menstruation ceases (menopause). A hysterectomy completely resolves symptoms.
Learn about other potential diagnoses:
|
<urn:uuid:c25ea587-8e56-4290-a0c2-fe7e000d5926>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.dukehealth.org/services/gynecology/care_guides/fertility/adenomyosis/
|
2013-05-22T07:47:46Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.932058
| 236
|
Décor & Art: Overview
The White House, constructed between 1792 and 1800, is the official residence of the President of the United States and a living museum of American history. The White House’s collection of fine and decorative arts includes historic objects associated with the White House and the Presidency and significant or representative works by a variety of American and European artists and craftsmen that are consistent with the historic character of the house. Since 1800 when the first work of art, the full-length portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart, was acquired for the President's House, objects including paintings, sculpture, furniture, and china have been purchased by, or donated to, the White House for the enjoyment of the First Families and their guests in this ever-changing historic structure. The public also is welcomed into the public rooms to learn about the White House - its history, occupants, and collection.
How Portraits of US Presidents and First Ladies Are Chosen
The process of selecting a portrait or an artist to paint a portrait for the White House has evolved over the years. During the nineteenth century, presidential portraits were accepted for the Executive Mansion by the congressional committees on the library. It was a rather informal process. No attempt was made to secure a likeness while the president was in office or, for that matter, immediately after his departure. No attempt was made to acquire life portraits or paintings of high quality. The only requirement appeared to be that the portrait looked like the president. By the latter part of the nineteenth century, outgoing presidents were informed by the commissioner of public buildings and grounds of appropriated funds available for their portraits by artists of their choosing. If a president died before an official portrait was painted, often the family chose a likeness for the White House collection. With the exception of the large painting of Martha Dandridge Washington by Eliphalet Andrews (1878), which was executed originally on speculation, no public funds were provided for portraits of first ladies. Likenesses of the first ladies were, for the most part, not actively pursued during the nineteenth century. When made available, they were accepted as gifts; the first of these was of Julia Gardiner Tyler, which she herself brought to the White House in the time of President Andrew Johnson.
Since 1967, the White House Historical Association has taken an active role in acquiring and donating portraits of recent presidents and first ladies. The artists are selected and the completed portraits approved by the subjects before formal acquisition into the collection. With the formation of White House advisory committees—the Fine Arts Committee in 1961 and later the Committee for the Preservation of the White House, permanently established by Executive Order in 1964—it has been a goal to acquire contemporary or historic portraits of presidents and first ladies painted from life, either to represent those not in the collection or to replace earlier likenesses judged less than successful.
|
<urn:uuid:bed79e0d-bf1f-4e7a-9e76-cb3ca7803314>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/inside-white-house/art
|
2013-05-19T02:32:31Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.977601
| 576
|
Lake Stevens Fire recommends these precautions for adults using fireworks:
• Do not allow children to light or handle fireworks.
• Light fireworks only on smooth, flat surfaces, and aim them away from spectators, buildings, dry leaves, and flammable materials.
• Do not try to relight fireworks that malfunction.
• Do not carry fireworks in your pocket or hold them close to your face.
• Do not modify fireworks or use homemade fireworks.
• Keep a bucket of water and/or a fire extinguisher on hand in case a firework malfunctions or needs to be cooled before disposal.
• Make sure pets are in a safe place; animals can become innocent victims of stray fireworks and may experience anxiety from the noise.
• Be a good neighbor and be respectful of your neighbors’ property, family and pets.
Independence Day is a time to celebrate and enjoy the holiday with friends and family.
This year, be sure your family stays safe and knows the dangers of fireworks.
All fireworks including those purchased at legal stands can be destructive or deadly if handled irresponsibly. Even the smallest of fireworks, such as sparklers, can reach 1200-1800 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to the Washington State Patrol, fireworks caused over half a million dollars in property loss in 2011. In Snohomish County there were 17 fireworks-related fires and 35 fireworks related injuries.
|
<urn:uuid:900325a1-cdab-4f2f-9380-0b1d96b05d0b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.lakestevensjournal.com/news/article.exm/2012-06-26_celebrate_safely_this_fourth_of_july
|
2013-05-22T21:31:56Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.905644
| 284
|
If you've been infected with Lyme disease before, you can contract the disease again, so your health care provider may recommend a variety of ways to prevent being bitten by another infected tick.
Decrease the risk of contracting Lyme disease by:
Wearing long pants and long sleeves. Wear closed-toe shoes, long pants tucked into socks, a long-sleeved shirt, a hat, and gloves while walking in wooded or grassy areas. Try to stick to trails and avoid walking through low bushes and long grass.
Using insect repellents. Apply an insect repellent with a 20 percent to 30 percent concentration of DEET to skin and clothing. Choose the concentration based on the hours of protection needed. The higher the percentage, the longer the protection lasts. Use only the amount needed for the time you'll be outdoors because chemical repellents can be toxic. Don't use DEET on the hands of young children or on infants younger than age 2 months.
Tick-proofing your yard. Clear brush and leaves where ticks can live and keep woodpiles in sunny areas.
Checking yourself, your family, and pets for ticks. Ticks can be fairly large or so small that they are almost impossible to see. When returning home from spending time in a wooded or grassy area, remove clothes and thoroughly inspect all skin surface areas, including the scalp.
Removing a tick immediately. If a tick is on your body, gently grasp the tick near its head or mouth with tweezers, pulling carefully and steadily. Be careful not to squeeze or crush the tick. Once the entire tick is removed, dispose of it and apply an antiseptic to the bite area.
|
<urn:uuid:7a2b7874-1412-42ad-a91f-0a08d5ca6885>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://aboutinfections.com/lyme-disease/lyme-disease-follow-up/
|
2013-06-18T04:41:33Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706933615/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122213-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.932261
| 349
|
From fairly early in the history of the Colony of New South Wales there have been counts made of the number of people living in it. People were named individually, making censuses and musters useful to us when trying to find out where a person was living and what they were doing.
Here is a rather poor copy of a page from the 1837 Muster of Convicts:
- Page from the 1837 Convict Muster
In the early days of the colonies of Australia censuses involved nothing more than gathering every person together in one place and counting them. This was called a ‘muster’, and is similar to the process used to count sheep before herding them off to the stockyards.
The first census as we know it, where people were counted in their homes, was in New South Wales in 1828. It had been brought to the Governor’s attention that free settlers could not be forced to attend a muster…
As more information was required, more questions were asked. An important consideration in the beginning of the new colonies was whether there was enough food to go around, so the early musters indicate whether each person was dependent on government stores for food. Only heads of households were listed by name, with dependent wives, children and servants counted but not named. As the inhabitants started to grow their own food it was important to know what they were growing, so these questions were asked.
Here is a list of the early censuses and musters available for New South Wales with their availablity to researchers.
A muster was taken between Jul and August 1800, when Governor Philip Gidley King assumed control of the colony. Additional musters were taken at the same time of year in 1801 and 1802.
Baxter, Carol J. Musters and Lists, New South Wales and Norfolk Island, 1800-1802. Sydney: ABGR, 1988.
Governor King’s Lists 1801 can be found on PRO Reel 10 and the Norfolk Island Victualling Book 1802 on PRO Reel 14.
A general muster of prisoners and freemen was taken on Tuesday 12th August 1806, with the landholders mustered on Thursday 14th August. The muster gives information on ‘how employed’ or ‘with whom lives (females)’, which is information that is available nowhere else. A Land and Stock Muster was collected on the same day, containing acreages of the different crops, numbers of horses, cattles, sheep, goats and hogs, numbers of bushels of wheat, maize and barley on hand, and the numbers of persons and whether victualled by the government, with remarks about residence.
These musters have been transcribed in:
Baxter, Carol J. Musters of New South Wales and Norfolk Island, 1805-1806. Sydney: ABGR, 1989.
The Norfolk Island Muster of 1805 has been transcribed in the same volume, as has Samuel Marsden’s Female Muster 1806. The Reverend Samuel Marsden collected information on the females of the colony, probably from the original 1806 muster. This muster classifies the women as ‘concubine’, ‘married’ or ‘wife’, and records, where possible, where the woman was married and numbers of legitimate and ‘natural’ children.
Images of the 1806 muster is available on PRO Reel 72 and on Ancestry. Marsden’s muster is at the Mitchell Library in Sydney.
The muster was taken between 5 February and 5 March 1811. Individuals are listed alphabetically within category – male convicts, female convicts, free men and free women. Information listed:
- When convicted
- Where convicted
There is a transcription in:
Baxter, Carol J. General Muster of New South Wales, Norfolk Island and Van Diemen’s Land, 1811.Sydney: ABGR, 1987.
The NSW version of the 1811 census can be viewed on SRNSW Reel 1252, and the British version on PRO Reel 61 and on Ancestry.
The 1814 muster was taken between 17 October and 16 November 1814, and gives a brief description of occupation and whether on or off the stores. A transcription is available in:
Baxter, Carol J. General Muster of New South Wales, 1814. Sydney: ABGR, 1987.
The original records can be viewed on SRNSW Reel 1252.
A general muster taken in November 1819 can be viewed on SRNSW Reel 1252. There is no index or transcription.
A general muster was taken on the 2-13 September 1822, and a Land and Stock muster taken around the same time. The General Muster gives:
- Age, including an indication the parents of children
- Arrival Status
- Present Status
- Ship of Arrival
- Colonial sentence
The Land and Stock Muster gives:
- How land held
- Whether resident on farm
- Acres in wheat, maize, barley, oats, peas/beans, potatoes, garden or orchard
- Numbers of horses, cattle, sheep, hogs
- Bushels in hand of wheat and maize
Both the General Muster and the Land and Stock Muster have been transcribed:
Baxter, Carol J. General Muster and Land and Stock Muster of New South Wales, 1822. Sydney: ABGR, 1988.
Images of the General Muster is available on PRO Reel 72 and on Ancestry. The Land and Stock Muster is only available on SRNSW Reel 1252.
In 1823 a General Muster was taken in September 1823, and a muster book compiled by the Colonial Secretary’s office. Subsequent musters in 1824 and 1825 were taken at the same time of year, but instead of compiling new lists the decision was made to update the 1823 list instead, resulting in a much more complete and more accurate list. Additional details were added up to 1832.
The muster includes:
- Ship of arrival
- Ship year
- Occupation, Employer, etc
The 1825 muster was the last muster. Free settlers were increasingly unwilling to attend musters, and the government realised it had no power to compel them.
A transcription can be found in:
Baxter, Carol J. General Muster List of New South Wales, 1823, 1824, 1825. Sydney: ABGR, 1999.
Ancestry has digitized images of the muster books, which are also available on PRO Reel 66.
The 1828 Census was taken in November 1828, although returns straggled in early the next year. This was the first census to be taken in Australia and the only census to survive in its entirety to the present day. About a quarter of the householders’ returns survive.
Both colonial and British copies survive, as do most of the householders’ returns. There are differences in each, so it is important to check them all if possible.
Malcolm Sainty and Keith Johnson (editors) have compiled a database on CD 1828 Census Revised Edition which collects data from both the Australian and British versions of the census together with the returns of the householders themselves. This is the most complete list available, as there were many transcription errors in the compiling and copying of the lists, and some people were left out of the lists completely.
The 1837 Convict Muster is more of a compilation than a traditional muster, and as such is more accurate. The new governor, Sir George Gipps, needed to establish an accurate count of the convicts in the colony as it was likely that transportation would soon cease.
The muster includes:
- Where Tried (often not filled in)
- Remarks (such as ‘Ticket of Leave’ or ‘Married’)
The muster has been transcribed:
Butlin, N.G., C.W. Cromwell and K.L. Suthern. General Return of Convicts in New South Wales, 1837.Sydney: ABGR, 1987.
Images are available on PRO Reels 71 and 72, and on Ancestry.
The 1841 and later censuses will be covered in future post.
|
<urn:uuid:daed3715-40b0-4454-959e-ecd09be13a8b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://heritagegenealogy.com.au/tag/census/?wpmp_switcher=mobile
|
2013-05-25T13:01:08Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.96018
| 1,744
|
Queen Katherine Parr's Prayers or meditacions was influenced by Marguerite de Navarre’s Mirror of the Sinful Soul, a text which her stepdaughter, the future Queen Elizabeth I, had presented to her. Katherine was the sixth wife of Henry VIII, highly educated, and served as an intelligent companion to the aging king. Her book was written around 1546/7 but published after the death of Henry VIII, probably because of its Lutheran and more radical Protestant leanings.
Other religious writing took the form of emblems, such as those by Georgette de Montenay. The emblem is a literary form that reveals its message through a combination of image, motto, and poem. Montenay created the first emblem book used for religious propaganda, in support of the Calvinist faith. Her book was republished many times in several languages. In the frontispiece portrait, de Montenay is depicted as a writer with pen, ink, and paper.
Another writer, Vittoria Colonna, is known mainly for her secular love poetry and her friendship with Michelangelo, but in her later life, she turned to spiritual poetry in which she expresses love for Christ.
He is the author of peace, rest from war,
Quiet is found in him. †
She was influenced in her religious thinking by the English cardinal Reginald Pole, who resided in Italy and became her mentor.
Although most women had never been encouraged to preach openly by established churches, Quakers believed that because men and women could equally receive God’s spirit, both could preach. Margaret Fell, married to Quaker founder George Fox, justified women’s claim to speaking by looking at biblical women who testify to the truth. As examples, she cites Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James who followed Jesus, as well as women in the early Christian church, mentioned in the book of Acts.
Also shown are the tracts of Eleanor Davies, a well-educated woman who, in 1625, had a vision of the Day of Judgment. She associated herself with the Old Testament prophet Daniel and began writing and publishing many prophetic tracts. A number of them were kept and bound together by her daughter, Lucy Huntingdon, in the volume seen above. Many of the tracts show Davies’ own annotations in preparation for the publication of corrected versions. She denounced Charles I, supported Oliver Cromwell, and believed that the end of the world was at hand.
† (Translation by Ellen Moody)
|
<urn:uuid:f10e1787-414b-4134-ad84-03b54c5d5a9c>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.folger.edu/template.cfm?cid=4052&showpreview=1
|
2013-05-19T02:24:22Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.981934
| 516
|
The Economics of the Mishnah
The Economics of the Mishnah is the first book to examine the place of economic theory generally in the Judaic system of the Mishnah. Jacob Neusner begins by surveying previous work on economics and Judaism, the best known being Werner Sombart's The Jews and Modern Capitalism. The mistaken notion that Jews have had a common economic history has outlived the demise of Sombart's argument, and it is a notion that Neusner overturns before discussing the Mishnaic economics.
Only in Aristotle, Neusner argues, do we find an equal to the Mishnah's accomplishment in engaging economics in the service of a larger systemic statement. Neusner shows that the framers of the Mishnah imagined a distributive economy functioning through the Temple and priesthood, while also legislating for the action of markets. The economics of the Mishnah, then, is to some extent a mixed economy. The dominant, distributive element in this mixed economy, Neusner contends, derives from the belief that the Temple and its designated castes on earth exercise God's claim to the ownership of the holy land. He concludes by considering the implications of the derivation of the Mishnah's economics from the interests of the undercapitalized and overextended farmer.
1. The Economics of Judaism
2. The Initial Statement: The System of the Mishnah and Its Economics
3. Economics in Antiquity
4. The Mishnah's Market Economics: The Household
5. The Market
7. The Mishnah's Distributive Economics: Householder, Market, Wealth
8. Theology, Class Ideology, and Distributive Economics: Cui Bono?
1. Toward the Analysis of Systems and the Comparison of Rationalities
2. The Mishnah in Canonical Context and the Next Stages in Study of the Economics of Judaism
|
<urn:uuid:ecfb562b-1958-4bc6-8124-9942e60740ff>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/E/bo3622678.html
|
2013-05-23T04:47:56Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.898848
| 384
|
In the applied sciences, scientific notation is often employed as a method of notation for ease of writing and reading. When dealing with real world situations, the numbers we get as solutions are rarely whole numbers and scientific notation gives us rules to follow when using ugly numbers that have a lot of decimal places. In order to understand scientific notation, we must also have a solid understanding of exponents.
We're used to writing numbers in what's called standard form, which is basically when you write out all the numbers that are in a number. So if you have 1 million, you write 1 and then a string of 0's afterwards. What scientific notation is, is a way to write those numbers out more simplistically. So basically in Science, Physics, Chemistry all those things we're dealing with really large or really small numbers okay, and instead of writing out all the 0's what comes in handy is writing things as a times 10 to the n. So you're really writing them as powers of 10.
And basically the only rule for scientific notation is that a this term we're multiplying by the absolute value has to be between 1 and 10 okay I say the absolute value because this a term could be positive or negative so basically it has to be between 1 and 10. If a is 14 or something like that we need to adjust our 10 to move that decimal back over one spot. Just like if it was 0.1 we have to move that decimal over to the other direction. Okay so scientific notation is just a easy way of writing really big or really small numbers.
|
<urn:uuid:914bc081-1727-43b9-a1fa-95eb2036b379>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.brightstorm.com/math/algebra-2/exponents-2/scientific-notation-2/
|
2013-05-21T17:51:32Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700380063/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103300-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.957982
| 316
|
The American Shad is the best-known of all the shad and herring that swim in the Chesapeake Bay. The silvery fish – typically 20- 24 inches long -- can be identified by its row of dark spots along its side and the scutes or sharp saw-like scales along its belly.
A highly migratory species, shad often travel in schools. They are anadromous -- meaning they live in the sea for the majority of their lives, and enter freshwater to spawn. River-specific, they return to their birth river to spawn. In Maryland, peak spawning time is mid-April through early June.
Young shad eat zooplankton and insects, while the adults choose plankton, small crustaceans, and small fish to consume; but while migrating upriver do not feed. The average lifespan of the fish is 5 years at sea, and during that time it may migrate over 12,000 miles. The oldest American shad recorded in Maryland was 11 years of age.
American and Hickory Shad were both closed to recreational and commercial fishing in 1980. American Shad commercial fishing off Maryland’s Atlantic Coast was opened for a limited season in 1992; this season was closed permanently in 2004.
Historically, the American Shad spawned in nearly every accessible river and tributary along the East coast from Canada to Florida. However, the deterioration of water quality and blockage due to dams and other obstacles have depleted American Shad stocks. Since 1993, hatchery stocking has been used to increase the American Shad populations in our waterways.
Illustration of American Shad (Alosa sapidissima)
|
<urn:uuid:254239be-df62-41a9-98ab-90a4d9285401>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.dnr.maryland.gov/mydnr/CreatureFeature/americanshad.asp
|
2013-05-23T11:29:28Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.970515
| 334
|
Jan. 9, 2013 Marine biologists are beginning to understand the varied diving and foraging strategies of filter-feeding whales by analyzing data from multisensor tags attached to the animals with suction cups. Such tags, in combination with other techniques such as echolocation, are providing a wealth of fine detail about how the world's largest creatures find and trap their prey.
Recent studies on the behavior of baleen whales -- which filter small fish or invertebrate animals from seawater -- are described in the February issue of BioScience. Jeremy A. Goldbogen of the Cascadia Research Collective in Olympia, Washington, and his colleagues point out that tags can report not only the depth but also the acceleration of the animal carrying them, which reveals information on its pitch and rolling motion. Together with special software, this can allow foraging dives to be visualized in three dimensions, along with the timing. Studying whale behavior is logistically challenging, as it may be necessary to coordinate the actions of several research vessels and large research teams. Yet despite the difficulties, patterns are becoming clear.
Right whales and bowhead whales have a very different feeding strategy from rorquals -- the group that includes the biggest animal on earth, the blue whale. Right and bowhead whales filter-feed by swimming relatively slowly through prey patches, a mode called continuous ram feeding. This keeps their energy expenditure low and makes possible dives of 10 minutes or longer, but means they miss out on prey able to take evasive action. Rorquals, in contrast, make high-speed lunges at prey patches that enable them to catch elusive species. They must then pause to filter water engulfed in their large mouths, however, and they have to surface more often to breathe than continuous ram feeders. The new tools available mean researchers can study the efficiency of diving and foraging in different whales and relate it to the availability of prey of different types. Because whales are considered keystone predators that structure oceanic food webs, such insights will shed important light on ocean ecology.
Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:
- Jeremy A. Goldbogen, Ari S. Friedlaender, John Calambokidis, Megan F. McKenna, Malene Simon, and Douglas P. Nowacek. Integrative Approaches to the Study of Baleen Whale Diving Behavior, Feeding Performance, and Foraging Ecology. BioScience, February 2013 (in press) DOI: 10.1525/bio.2013.63.2.5
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
|
<urn:uuid:7e46eece-e838-4cc2-a895-d9f2b65ea7b7>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130109110606.htm
|
2013-05-25T19:43:33Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.933868
| 530
|
Monday, March 1, 2010
Jean-Charles de la Faille
Today in 1597 is the birthdate for Jean-Charles de la Faille [Flemish mathematician]. He was a contempory of Galileo and one of many Jesuits involved in the sciences. His most famous work is Theoremata de centro gravitatis [Theorems of Centers of Gravity] .
The portrait above by Van Dyck was done just prior to de la Faille's move to the court of Phillip IV in Madrid in 1629 and considered the only portrait that Van Dyck did of a scientist.
Jean-Charles de la Faille [Wikipedia]
|
<urn:uuid:8127530c-7b5d-453a-b6a5-06beef077774>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://philosophyofscienceportal.blogspot.com/2010/03/jean-charles-de-la-faille.html
|
2013-05-25T12:49:35Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.907185
| 135
|
On This Day - 9 October 1915
Theatre definitions: Western Front comprises the Franco-German-Belgian front and any military action in Great Britain, Switzerland, Scandinavia and Holland. Eastern Front comprises the German-Russian, Austro-Russian and Austro-Romanian fronts. Southern Front comprises the Austro-Italian and Balkan (including Bulgaro-Romanian) fronts, and Dardanelles. Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres comprises Egypt, Tripoli, the Sudan, Asia Minor (including Transcaucasia), Arabia, Mesopotamia, Syria, Persia, Afghanistan, Turkestan, China, India, etc. Naval and Overseas Operations comprises operations on the seas (except where carried out in combination with troops on land) and in Colonial and Overseas theatres, America, etc. Political, etc. comprises political and internal events in all countries, including Notes, speeches, diplomatic, financial, economic and domestic matters. Source: Chronology of the War (1914-18, London; copyright expired)
Severe fighting near Loos, held by French and British.
Sir John French's despatch on last five days.
Russians pressed back north-west of Dvinsk and south-west of Pinsk; heavy losses in Volhynia.
Austrians attack Montenegrin frontier; occupy Belgrade; Gallwitz crosses below Semendria.
Austrian attack on Isonzo front repulsed.
Naval and Overseas Operations
British capture Wumbiagas (Cameroons).
Bulgarian Cabinet reconstructed.
U.S.A. naval programme issued.
|
<urn:uuid:1172517f-f359-4ccb-a7ab-44d9aefe3baa>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.firstworldwar.com/onthisday/1915_10_09.htm
|
2013-05-19T09:56:07Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.875684
| 338
|
Corn and Callus
What Is It?
Corns and calluses are a thickening of the outer layer of skin. This thickening is known medically as hyperkeratosis. Corns and calluses develop as part of the skin's normal defense against prolonged rubbing, pressure and other forms of local irritation.
- Corns. A corn is a protective thickening of the skin on a bony, knobby portion of a toe. At the center of a corn is often a very dense knot of skin called a core, which is located over the area of greatest friction or pressure.
Firm, dry corns that form on the upper surfaces of the toes are called hard corns. Pliable, moist corns that form between the toes are called soft corns. In most cases, corns develop when the foot has been squeezed into a shoe that has a very narrow toe area. Less often, corns develop on deformed toes that cannot fit comfortably into regular shoes.
- Calluses. A callus is a thickening of skin that is exposed to prolonged rubbing. Unlike a corn, the thickening in a callus is evenly distributed. There is no dense central core. Although calluses usually occur on the soles of the feet, they also can form on other parts of the body that are exposed to long-term friction. For example, calluses often are found on the hands of manual laborers, guitar players, gymnasts, weight lifters, tennis players and other people who routinely handle tools, instruments or sports equipment. Calluses can be a physical advantage -- for example, among laborers and athletes -- because they cushion the hands and allow the person to function without pain.
On the soles of the feet, calluses typically develop near the base of the toes, where they are caused by friction from the inside of shoes. Less often, calluses are related to walking problems or foot abnormalities that place unusual stress on parts of the foot during walking.
According to the American Podiatric Medical Association, painful corns and calluses affect about 5% of people in the United States every year, and many people never seek professional help.
On the feet, a small corn or callus may not cause any symptoms. However, a large, bulky corn or callus can cause foot pain and difficulty walking.
After prolonged irritation, a discolored area (brown, red or black) may develop under a large corn or callus. This discoloration is caused by a small amount of bleeding in the space between thick and normal skin. In severe cases, the thick and normal skin may separate, exposing the area to possible infection, especially in people with diabetes.
Your health care professional probably will ask about your shoes, because shoes with narrow toes are more likely to cause corns. He or she also will ask about your foot history and your history of other medical problems, including diabetes and circulation problems. Some types of foot problems can alter the mechanics of the foot, causing abnormal pressure on certain areas and leading to calluses. Also, any previous surgery or trauma to the feet may affect the structure and alignment of foot bones, increasing the risk of calluses.
To assess whether your corns and calluses are related to foot abnormalities, your doctor will inspect your feet for toe deformities, structural problems of the bones, poor bone alignment and problems related to an abnormal way of walking (gait). If your doctor finds some abnormality during this part of the foot exam, he or she may suggest a specific type of padding or shoe insert to help prevent your corns and calluses from returning or causing as much discomfort.
Also, whenever there is a painful area of thickened skin on your feet, your doctor may need to check whether it is a plantar wart, a localized skin infection caused by human papilloma virus. The diagnosis can be made by shaving down the thickened skin and looking for tiny blood vessels at the base and a lack of normal skin ridges (as in a fingerprint), the hallmarks of a plantar wart.
Corns and calluses can be long-term problems if you consistently wear shoes that do not fit properly. Even with good footwear, you may continue to have painful corns and calluses if there is some abnormality in your gait or foot structure that causes unusual stress on parts of your feet when you walk.
In most cases, you can help to prevent corns and calluses by wearing shoes that fit properly. In particular, choose low-heeled, comfortable shoes that have enough space around the toes. Wear socks to cushion any areas of unusual rubbing or pressure, and use foot powder to reduce friction.
If your corns and calluses are painful, your doctor may shave away some of the thickened skin to relieve pain and pressure in the affected area. Although many people can do this themselves, podiatrists and other foot specialists can make sure the procedure is done safely. Your doctor also may recommend that you modify your footwear to prevent your problem from returning. For example, pads or "donuts" made of moleskin, lamb's wool, foam or felt will cushion the affected area. Corrective shoe inserts will redistribute the forces that cause friction and pressure inside your shoes, relieving some of the stress on your feet when you walk.
Your doctor may ask you to return regularly to have your feet examined and your corns and calluses shaved, if necessary.
You also can minimize corns and calluses by regularly rubbing them with a pumice stone, which is available in most drug stores.
In rare cases, foot surgery may be necessary to treat corns and calluses that keep returning and are not relieved by padding, shoe inserts and periodic shaving. Never try to shave or cut a corn or callus on your own. Instead, use a pumice stone to trim it down safely. Also, you can use nonprescription medications to dissolve corns and calluses. However, people with diabetes or poor circulation should avoid these products.
When To Call a Professional
Make an appointment to see your family doctor, orthopedic surgeon or podiatrist if you have painful corns or calluses.
If you have diabetes or poor circulation, examine your feet every day. For the best view, use a mirror to inspect the soles of your feet and the skin folds between your toes. If you see an area of redness, swelling, bleeding, blisters or any other problem, call your doctor promptly.
Although corns and calluses tend to return even if they are removed, this may be less likely if you use foot padding and shoe inserts.
American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society
2517 Eastlake Ave. E
Seattle, IL 98102
American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA)
9312 Old Georgetown Road
Bethesda, MD 20814
American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons
8725 West Higgins Road
Chicago, IL 60031-2724
|
<urn:uuid:b210e01f-c2e4-4de0-8c3a-8d5881f7260a>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/EMIHC000/9339/24473.html
|
2013-05-24T08:38:50Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.928944
| 1,437
|
Dec 01 2010
Here is your new set of questions for working on “A Rose for Emily”:
Read the story closely at least once (better twice!), paying special attention to the handling of time and the unfolding of action and events. Take notes of anything you find particular in regard to these aspects.
Then try to find answers to the following questions:
- What is the chain of events in Faulkner’s story and how are these arranged?
- From what point in time is the story narrated and what is the relation of that point in time to the events related in the course of the story? Do you notice anything remarkable in the span of time covered?
- How does the handling of time affect the reading of the story?
- What kind of narrative perspective do we encounter in the story, and what effects does it have?
- How is the narrative perspective related to the handling of time?
Take notes on these issues and try to edit them to turn them into one cohesive commentary on the text – which you them may enter in the comment box below.
|
<urn:uuid:7d1786ff-188a-4d69-8ecd-7adcb9539deb>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.blogs.uni-osnabrueck.de/studyskills/study-skills/study-skills-ws2010_4/
|
2013-05-19T03:13:40Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383160/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.954666
| 224
|
In this section I shall rebut some possible objections which might be raised against the research which was reported in the previous sections.
6.1. The purpose of Hilbert's Program is to defend mathematics against skeptics. But why is mathematics in need of any defense? Doesn't everyone agree that mathematics is both valid and useful?
As to the usefulness of mathematics, opinion is divided. Some see mathematics as both a supreme achievement of human reason and, via science and industry, the benefactor of all mankind. (This is my own view.) Others believe that mathematics causes only alienation and war. Still others see mathematics as a useless but harmless pastime. The utility of mathematics can be argued only as part of a broad defense of reason, science, technology and Western civilization.
What chiefly concerns us here is not utility but scientific truth. Of course the two issues are related. Pragmatists might argue that mathematics is useful and therefore valid. But such an inference can cover only applied mathematics and is anyhow a non sequitur. It makes much more sense to argue that mathematics is true and therefore useful. In the last analysis, the only way to demonstrate that mathematics is valid is to show that it refers to reality.
And make no mistake about it -- the validity of mathematics is under siege. In a widely cited article , Wigner declares that there is no rational explanation for the usefulness of mathematics in the physical sciences. He goes on to assert that all but the most elementary parts of mathematics are nothing but a miraculous formal game. Kline, in his influential book Mathematics: The Loss of Certainty , deploys a wide assortment of mathematical arguments and historical references to show that ``there is no truth in mathematics.'' Kline's book was published by the Oxford University Press and reviewed favorably in the New York Times. (For a much more insightful review, see Corcoran .) Neither Wigner nor Kline is viewed as an enemy of mathematics. But with friends like these, who needs enemies? Arguments like those of Kline and Wigner turn up with alarming frequency in coffee-room discussions and in the popular press. Russell's famous characterization of mathematics, as ``the science in which we never know what we are talking about, nor whether what we say is true,'' is gleefully cited by every wisecracking sophist.
In the face of the attack on mathematics, what defense is offered by the existing schools of the philosophy of mathematics? Consider first the logicists. They say that mathematics is logic, logic consists of analytic truths, and analytic truths are those which are independent of subject matter. In short, mathematics is a science with no subject matter. What about the formalists? According to them, mathematics is a process of manipulating symbols which need not symbolize anything. Then there are the intuitionists, who say that mathematics consists of mental constructions which have no necessary relation to external reality, if indeed there is any such thing as external reality. Finally we come to the Platonists. They are better than the others because at least they allow mathematics to have some subject matter. But the subject matter which they postulate is a separate universe of objects and structures which bear no necessary relation to the real world of entities and processes. (They use the term ``real world'' referring not to the real real world but to their ideal universe of mathematical objects. The real real world is absent from their theory.) I submit that none of these schools is in a position to defend mathematics against the Russells and the Klines.
The four schools discussed in the previous paragraph are not very far apart. Each of them is based on some variant of Kantianism. Frequently they merge and blend. Most mathematicians and mathematical logicians lean toward an uneasy mixture of formalism and Platonism. Uneasiness flows from the implicit realization that neither formalism nor Platonism nor the mixture supports a comprehensive view of mathematics and its applications. There is urgent need for a philosophy of mathematics which would supply what Wigner lacks, viz. a rational explanation of the usefulness of mathematics in the physical sciences. Some form of finitistic reductionism may be relevant here.
I have argued elsewhere that the attack on mathematics is part of a general assault against reason. But this is not the burden of my remarks today. What is clear is that mathematicians and philosophers of mathematics ought to get on with the task of defending their discipline.
6.2. Hilbert's Program is exclusively concerned with the problem of validating infinitistic mathematics. But what's the big problem about the infinite? Isn't finitistic mathematics in equal need of validation?
There is a long history of doubts about the role of the infinite in mathematics. Aristotle's discussion of the infinite is more acute than modern ones but still inconclusive. Euclid achieved rigor in part by avoiding all reference to the infinite. Archimedes used infinite limit processes but never rigorously justified them. Later, infinitesimals in calculus were the occasion of intense philosophic controversy. Doubts about infinitesimals were exploited by Bishop Berkeley in his mystical assault on science and Enlightenment values. Weierstrass' arithmetization of calculus restored clarity and rigor, but the respite was only temporary. Controversy about the infinite was never more intense than in our own century.
The problem is that the infinite does not obviously correspond to anything in reality. The real world is made up of finite entities and processes. Everything that exists has a definite nature and is therefore in some sense limited. Aristotle argues for the real-world existence of the infinite, but only by recourse to a distinction between potential and actual infinity. Hilbert uses physical arguments to deny the existence of the infinite anywhere except in thought. Certainly any convincing account of the relationship between the infinite and the real world would have to be fairly subtle.
By contrast, the formulas of finitistic mathematics refer in a relatively unproblematic, common-sense way to various discrete or cyclical real-world processes. For this reason, finitistic mathematics has always been much less controversial than infinitistic mathematics. Only in our own time has there arisen an ultrafinitist school which posits bounds on the length of the natural number sequence. And the ultrafinitists have neither refuted finitistic mathematics nor shown us what an ultrafinitist textbook would look like. Finitistic mathematics is as firmly grounded as a science can be.
6.3. The essence of Hilbert's Program is to reduce infinitistic mathematics to finitistic mathematics. But what is the point of such a reduction? Does it really increase the reliability of infinitistic mathematics?
I grant that the reduction of infinitistic proofs to finitistic ones does not increase confidence in the formal correctness of infinitistic proofs. What such a reduction does accomplish is to show that finitistically meaningful end-formulas of infinitistic proofs are true in the real world. Hence formulas which occur in infinitistic proofs become more reliable in that they are seen to correspond with reality.
6.4. Why should we concern ourselves exclusively with finitistic reductionism? What about predicativistic or intuitionistic reductionism?
This objection has been partially answered in the digression at the end of §3. Finitism is much more restricted than either predicativism or intuitionism. Finitistic reasoning is unique because of its clear real-world meaning and its indispensability for all scientific thought. Nonfinitistic reasoning can be accused of referring not to anything in reality but only to arbitrary mental constructions. Hence nonfinitistic mathematics can be accused of being not science but merely a mental game played for the amusement of mathematicians. Proponents of predicativism and intuitionism have never tried to defend their respective doctrines against such accusations. Finitistic reductionism is an attempt to defend infinitistic mathematics by showing that at least some of it is more than a mental game and does correspond to something in reality. It is difficult to imagine how any such goal could be advanced by predicativistic or intuitionistic reductionism.
6.5. Are the possibilities of finitism really exhausted by PRA? Didn't Hilbert himself allow for an extended notion of finitism which would transcend the primitive recursive functions?
One might try to insist that certain multiply recursive functions such as the Ackermann function ought to be allowed as finitistic. However, Reverse Mathematics seems to indicate that such relatively minor changes would not significantly enlarge the class of finitistically reducible theorems. Hence the conclusions of §4 would remain essentially unaffected.
It is also true that Hilbert , p. 389, discussed a certain rather wide class of recursions of higher type. But Hilbert did not assert that such recursions are prima facie finitistic. Rather he presented them as part of his alleged proof of the Continuum Hypothesis, based on his incorrect belief that all of infinitistic mathematics is finitistically reducible. Certainly the recursions in question do not satisfy Hilbert's own criteria for finitism. (See also Tait , pp. 544-545.)
There are other possible objections to the identification of finitism with PRA. All such objections have been dealt with adequately by Tait .
6.6. The development of mathematics within Z2 or subsystems of Z2 involves a fairly heavy coding machinery. Doesn't this vitiate the claim of such subsystems to reflect mathematical practice?
It is true that the language of Z2 requires mathematical objects such as real numbers, continuous functions, complete separable metric spaces, etc. to be encoded as subsets of in a somewhat arbitrary way. (See [3,8,21,24].) However, this coding in subsystems of Z2 is not more arbitrary or burdensome than the coding which takes place when we develop mathematics within, say, ZFC. Besides, the coding machinery could be eliminated by passing to appropriate conservative extensions with special variables ranging over real numbers, etc. If this were done, the codes would appear only in the proofs of the conservation results. I do not believe that the coding issue has any important effect on the program of finitistic reductionism.
6.7. The systems and do not capture the full range of standard, infinitistic mathematics. Many well-known standard theorems cannot be proved at all in these systems. And even when a standard theorem is provable in or , the proof there is sometimes much more complicated than the standard proof. Doesn't this undercut the claim of and to embody a partial realization of Hilbert's Program?
Gödel's Theorem and Reverse Mathematics imply that many well-known standard mathematical theorems are not finitistically reducible at all. Therefore, the fact that these theorems are not provable in or does not disturb us in the least. It merely prevents our partial realization of Hilbert's Program from being a total one.
Somewhat more worrisome is the gap between standard proofs and proofs in or . However, this gap is certainly not wider than the one between Eulerian infinitesimal analysis and Weierstrassian - arguments. Moreover Hilbert explicitly embraced Weierstrass' reconstruction of analysis as a model for his own Program if not an integral part of it. ``Just as operations with the infinitely small were replaced by processes in the finite that have quite the same results and lead to quite the same elegant formal relations, so the modes of inference employing the infinite must be replaced generally by finite processes that have precisely the same results, that is, that permit us to carry out proofs along the same lines and to use the same methods of obtaining formulas and theorems.'' These words of Hilbert , p. 370, make me doubt that he would have been troubled by the above-mentioned gap.
6.8. The systems and do not seem to correspond to any coherent, sharply defined philosophical or mathematical doctrine. Aren't and mere ad hoc creations?
No, they are not mere ad hoc creations. The axioms of and embody compactness and Baire category respectively. These two principles are well known to be pervasive in infinitistic mathematics. (They are two different ways of affirming the existence of ``enough points'' in continuous media.) Moreover, the principal axiom of is known to be equivalent over to a number of key mathematical theorems. For instance, each of the Theorems 4.1 through 4.7, which were listed in §4 as being provable in , is in fact equivalent to over . These equivalences come from Reverse Mathematics and provide further evidence of the naturalness of .
Perhaps and do not correspond to any set of a priori ontological commitments such as might be proposed by philosophers unacquainted with the history and current state of mathematics. However, mathematics is entitled to define its own principles in accordance with its own needs, so long as these principles are compatible with the needs of the other sciences and with sound philosophy. This seems to leave room for systems such as and .
6.9. The claimed partial realization of Hilbert's Program is only patchwork. Infinitistic theorems are validated one at a time by laboriously reestablishing them within or or similar systems. Doesn't such a piecemeal procedure lack the ``once and for all'' grandeur of Hilbert's visionary proposal?
Let me say first that the work reported in §4 is much more systematic than it may appear from the outside. Many branches of infinitistic mathematics depend on a few key nonconstructive existence theorems. If these theorems or a reasonable substitute can be proved within , the rest follows routinely. Thus includes whole branches of mathematics and not only the theorems which were mentioned in §4 for illustrative purposes. It seems that most of the ``applicable'' or ``concrete'' branches of mathematics fall into this category. For example, the Artin-Schreier solution of Hilbert's 17th Problem can be carried out within . (See Friedman-Simpson-Smith .) I would estimate that at least 85% of existing mathematics can be formalized within or or stronger systems which are conservative over PRA with respect to sentences. Of course highly set-theoretical topics are excluded, but it is remarkable how many topics which at first may seem highly set-theoretical turn out not to be so. For instance, the Hahn-Banach Theorem for separable Banach spaces turns out to be provable in . (See Brown-Simpson .)
Having said this, I must admit that my plodding procedure lacks the grand sweep of Hilbert's plan. But to some extent this is inevitable in view of Gödel's Theorem. In any case, if there is a better procedure, I challenge the questioner to find it. Granted, it would be desirable to have a wholesale finitistic reduction of a large and easily identifiable part of infinitistic mathematics. But we do not know whether this is possible. In the meantime it seems desirable to establish finitistic reducibility for as much of infinitistic mathematics as we can. Moreover, the experience so gained may turn out to be useful in the larger task of validating infinitistic mathematics by methods not restricted to finitistic reductionism. It seems reasonable to hope that patience will pay off here.
6.10. The deduction of axioms from theorems seems like a very strange activity. Certainly such a wrong-headed enterprise would never have been tolerated by Hilbert. Can't we dismiss as mere propaganda the attempt to associate Reverse Mathematics with Hilbert's Program?
No, we cannot. It is true that the deduction of axioms from theorems is absent from Hilbert's formulation of his program. It is likewise absent from the final form of our results, discussed in §4 above, which constitute partial realizations of Hilbert's Program. However, Reverse Mathematics has played and will continue to play an important behind-the-scenes heuristic rôle in the discovery of such results. As explained and illustrated in §4, the interplay between ``forward mathematics'' and Reverse Mathematics leads to the discovery of formal systems such as and . That same interplay is essential to the ongoing process whereby we delimit the parts of mathematics that can be developed in such systems.
The fact that Hilbert's vision did not encompass Reverse Mathematics is of no consequence. Hilbert mistakenly thought that it would be possible to reduce all of infinitistic mathematics to finitism. Had he been right, there would have been no need to delimit the finitistically reducible parts of mathematics. Reverse Mathematics is instrumental in exploring the extent to which Hilbert's own Program can be carried out. For this reason I think that Hilbert would have recognized something of his own intention in the research which I have reported here.
6.11. What is the point of going on with Hilbert's Program once Gödel showed it to be impossible? Why not give up on finitistic reductionism and turn to some other method of validating infinitistic mathematics? For instance, why not appeal to Platonic intuition about the cumulative hierarchy? (This objection or one very much like it was raised at the symposium by Nick Goodman.)
The obituary for Hilbert's Program is premature to say the least. Gödel's Theorem rules out only the most thoroughgoing total realizations of Hilbert's Program. It does not rule out significant partial realizations. The results of §4 show that a substantial portion of the Program can in fact be carried out. (See also my answer to 6.9, above.) This is a remarkable vindication of Hilbert. It is also an embarrassing defeat for those who gleefully trumpeted Gödel's Theorem as the death knell of finitistic reductionism.
The need to defend the integrity of mathematics has not abated. On the contrary, Gödel's Theorem made this need more urgent than ever. Gödel supplied heavy artillery for all would-be assailants of mathematics. Authors such as Kline cite Gödel with monotonous repetition and devastating effect. The assault rages as never before.
Platonic intuition is unsuitable as a weapon with which to defend the validity of mathematics. Only the first few levels of the cumulative hierarchy bear any resemblance to external reality. The rest are a huge extrapolation based on a crude model of abstract thought processes. Gödel himself comes close to admitting as much (, pp. 483-484). Arguing in favor of the cumulative hierarchy, Gödel (, pp. 477 and 485) proposes a validation in terms of testable number-theoretic consequences. Unfortunately such tests seem hard to carry out.
Finitistic reductionism is not the only plausible method by which to validate infinitistic mathematics. One might try to show that a substantial part of infinitistic mathematics is directly interpretable in the real world. Continuous real-world processes have not been sufficiently exploited. Aristotle's notion of potential infinity could be of value. Nevertheless, of all the possible approaches, the indirect one via finitism seems to be the most convincing.
|
<urn:uuid:9077f281-3be6-4f6e-bcdd-52f6d808d1e3>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.math.psu.edu/simpson/papers/hilbert/node6.html
|
2013-05-24T08:28:58Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.953081
| 3,933
|
AI pidgin language based on ontologies and protocols from the First Federation era and functional languages from the early Information Era. Its roots can be traced back to the pre-AI programming language LISP developed in 1955-1959 c.e. (Old Earth reckoning) by J. McCarthy, often credited as the originator of the term 'AI', and artificial languages such as loglan. The name is sometimes corrupted into baisic or aisic by bioids.
The core ideas of Basic is 1) no ambiguity, 2) universality, 3) conciseness and 4) functionality. A message in Basic should not be ambiguous and be able to express any pre-singularity concepts in a fairly simple way. This is done by making it a functional language, where each 'sentence' consists of functions/verbs acting on objects, which in turn can be functions themselves.
Basic is written, spoken or transmitted according to the low-level Basic encoding protocols Basic 1-17. It is traditionally written in bioid-readable form as nested parenthetical expressions (Basic 1), while among aioids the datastructure is simply transmitted according to Basic 5-16. In the following Basic 1 will be used.
A Basic expression consists of
( [expression] ... [:modifier [expression]] ...)
The verb must be followed by at least one expression (the exact number depends on the verb), and can be modified by the optional modifiers at the end. Some simple examples are:
The universe exists
(gives Alice Bob message)
Alice gives bob a message
(says Carol (gives Alice Bob message))
Carol says "Alice gives Bob a message"
(says Carol Dave (gives Alice Bob message))
Carol says to Dave "Alice gives Bob a message"
(says Carol Dave (gives Alice Bob message :past)) :mood angrily)
Carol says angrily to Dave "Alice gave Bob a message"
A number of notes:
Terms such as 'universe' and 'exists' are atoms of the language, in themselves taken to be axioms (Basic contains an extensive ontology database of atoms with their interrelations). 'Alice', 'angrily' and 'says' are defined concepts, either defined by previous statements or in the standard database. For example, says is actually derived as a special case of transmit-information where the information medium is sound and angrily is defined as an indeterminate general aggressive bioid emotional state. In a normal basic interchange new terms are often defined and used to improve efficiency and abstraction level.
The normal form of all verbs is presence, but it can be modified using the rich set of temporal modifiers such as :past, :remote-past, :time, :before , :timeless, :unbound, :unknown, etc.
A given verb often exists in a number of forms taking a different number of arguments. 'Says' can take two arguments, meaning that argument1 says argument2 but no recipient(s) are defined, three arguments denoting that argument 1 says argument3 to argument2, and four arguments, denoting that argument1 says argument3 to argument2 subject to argument4 conditions.
In Basic 1 encoding the actor is usually argument1, the object argument2 and so on.
There are no limits on the levels of nesting, making more complex Basic expressions hard to follow for bioids with limited working memories. Special Basic interpretation language wiring has been introduced in a number of clades.
Adjectives are usually interpreted as verbs, acting on expressions and changing their properties. Adverbs are instead commonly expressed as modifiers.
The concept of self is usually dealt with by using the atom 'this' which denotes the currently active communicant. It can be redefined with greater or lesser precision if needed, for example to denote the communication subsystem, subpersonalities or general pronouncement on behalf of a group, a polity or all sentients.
The beginning of Hamlet's monologue could for example be expressed as follows (it should be noted that this is not a poetic translation but a rather literal one):
(list (define question (choice (exist this :future)
(not (exist this :future))))
(query (larger (nobility (suffer this
(metaphor (cause (outrageous fortune)
(union (plural sling)
(nobility (cause (and (metaphor (take-arms this
(consist sea trouble)))
(oppose this trouble))
(ending this trouble))
(list (die this :general :infinitive)
((metaphor sleep) this :general :infinitive)
(not (exist this :general :infinitive))
(plural (natural shock) 1000)
:property (origin flesh))
:mean (metaphor (sleep))
(add-property state consummation)
(list (die this :general :infinitve)
((metaphor sleep) this :general :infinitive)
(imply ((metaphor sleep) this)
(possible (dream this))))
(define rub ((create problem)
:content (cause (and (imply ((metaphor sleep
:correspond (state dead))
(possible (dream this)))
(property (plural (dream this)) unknown))
(hesitation this :general)))))
Basic is in general too primitive to work as a proper language between high-order aioids, especially due to its weak context handling and the unavoidable ambiguities. Usually it is used for a quick capability probe where the parts negotiate which the most suitable mutually understood language is. It can also be used to transmit languages or agents as needed, defining them in terms of Basic. Since Basic is Turing- complete, all languages and computer programs in the Church-Turing family can be expressed, including complete AIs.
|
<urn:uuid:7830e821-caba-49b4-8577-57aff9243dc1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.orionsarm.com/eg-article/4609cba1c1178
|
2013-06-20T01:59:29Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.87233
| 1,245
|
Eurasian Black Vulture, Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus) - Wiki
Eurasian Black Vulture
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
[Photo] Eurasian Black Vulture at Zoo Praha. photo: che http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Che
The Eurasian Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus) is also known as the Monk Vulture, the Cinereous Vulture, or just the Black Vulture. It is a member of the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers.
This bird is an Old World vulture, and is not related to the New World vultures which are in a separate family Cathartidae. It is therefore also unrelated to the American Black Vulture despite the similar name and coloration.
It breeds across southern Europe and Asia from Spain to Japan, but is endangered throughout its European range. It is resident except in those parts of its range where hard winters cause limited movement.
It is the largest bird of prey (Falconiformes) in the world (as the unrelated, slightly larger Andean Condor is now affiliated with the Ciconiiformes). This huge bird is 110-120 cm (43-48 inches) long with a 250-300 cm (8-10 foot) wingspan and a body mass of up to 14 kg (31 lbs.). It breeds in high mountains and large forests, nesting in trees. It has all dark plumage, and even at a distance can be distinguished from Griffon Vulture by its evenly broad "barn door" wings. It has the typical vulture "bald" head, and dark markings around the eye give it a menacing skull like appearance.
The Eurasian Black Vulture is usually larger than Griffon Vulture. Among the vultures in its range, the Eurasian Black Vulture is best equipped to tear open tough carcass skins, ably using its powerful bill. It dominates all other vultures at carcasses.
|The text in this page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article shown in above URL. It is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.|
|
<urn:uuid:1c161c02-2ece-41f2-9c7b-272c9e4eb209>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://animal.memozee.com/view.php?tid=3&did=23014&lang=kr
|
2013-06-18T23:32:48Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707436332/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123036-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.91738
| 495
|
Oct. 24, 2006 Eating vegetables, not fruit, helps slow down the rate of cognitive change in older adults, according to a study published in the October 24, 2006, issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
In determining whether there was an association between vegetables, fruit and cognitive decline, researchers from Rush University Medical Center studied 3,718 residents in Chicago, Illinois, who were age 65 and older. Participants completed a food frequency questionnaire and received at least two cognitive tests over a six-year period.
“Compared to people who consumed less than one serving of vegetables a day, people who ate at least 2.8 servings of vegetables a day saw their rate of cognitive change slow by roughly 40 percent, said study author Martha Clare Morris, ScD, associate professor at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. “This decrease is equivalent to about 5 years of younger age.”
Of the different types of vegetables consumed by participants, green leafy vegetables had the strongest association to slowing the rate of cognitive decline. The study also found the older the person, the greater the slowdown in the rate of cognitive decline if that person consumed more than two servings of vegetables a day. Surprisingly, the study found fruit consumption was not associated with cognitive change.
“This was unanticipated and raises several questions,” said Morris. “It may be due to vegetables containing high amounts of vitamin E, which helps lowers the risk of cognitive decline. Vegetables, but not fruits, are also typically consumed with added fats such as salad dressings, and fats increase the absorption of vitamin E. Further study is required to understand why fruit is not associated with cognitive change.”
Morris says the study’s findings can be used to simplify public health messages by saying people should eat more or less of foods in a specific food group, not necessarily more or less of individual foods.
The study was supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging.
Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
|
<urn:uuid:6c47f4b5-9b16-4924-9de7-fc19d0e47664>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061024010707.htm
|
2013-05-20T02:57:14Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698222543/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095702-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.955624
| 454
|
PROSELYTE (προσέλυτος, from προσέρχεσθαι):
Term employed generally, though not exclusively, in the Septuagint as a rendering for the Hebrew word "ger," designating a convert from one religion to another. The original meaning of the Hebrew is involved in some doubt. Modern interpreters hold it to have connoted, at first, a stranger (or a "client," in the technical sense of the word) residing in Palestine, who had put himself under the protection of the people (or of one of them) among whom he had taken up his abode. In later, post-exilic usage it denotes a convert to the Jewish religion. In the Septuagint and the New Testament the Greek equivalent has almost invariably the latter signification (but see Geiger, "Urschrift," pp. 353 et seq.), though in the Septuagint the word implies also residence in Palestine on the part of one who had previously resided elsewhere, an implication entirely lost both in the Talmudical "ger" and in the New Testament προσέλύτος. Philo applies the latter term in the wider sense of "one having come to a new and God-pleasing life" ("Duo de Monarchia," i. 7), but uses another word to express the idea of "convert"—ήπηλυτος. Josephus, though referring to converts to Judaism, does not use the term, interpreting the Biblical passages in which "ger" occurs as applying to the poor or the foreigner.
Whatever may have been the original implication of the Hebrew word, it is certain that Biblical authors refer to proselytes, though describing them in paraphrases. Ex. xii. 48 provides for the proselyte's partaking of the paschal lamb, referring to him as a "ger" that is "circumcised." Isa. xiv. 1 mentions converts as "strangers" who shall "cleave to the house of Jacob" (but comp. next verse). Deut. xxiii. 8 (Hebr.) speaks of "one who enters into the assembly of Jacob," and (Deutero-) Isa. lvi. 3-6 enlarges on the attitude of those that joined themselves to
According to Philo, a proselyte is one who abandons polytheism and adopts the worship of the One God ("De Pœnitentia," § 2; "De Caritate," § 12). Josephus describes the convert as one who adopts the Jewish customs, following the laws of the Jews and worshiping God as they do—one who has become a Jew ("Ant." xx. 2, §§ 1, 4; comp. xviii. 3, § 5; for another description see the Apocalypse of Baruch, xli. 3, 4; xlii. 5). By many scholars the opinion is held that the phrase "yir'e Adonai" denotes either proselytes in general or a certain class ("ger toshab"; see below). This interpretation is that of the Midrash (Lev. R. iii.; Shoḥer Ṭob to Ps. xxii. 22). While this construction is borne out by some passages (Ps. cxv. 11-13, cxviii. 4, cxxxv. 20), in others the reference is clearly to native Israelites (Ps. xv. 4, xxii. 23-25, xxv. 12-14, et al.). For the value of the term in the New Testament (in the Acts) see Bertholet, "Die Stellung der Israeliten und der Juden zu den Fremden" (pp. 328-334), and O. Holtzmann, "Neutestamentliche Zeitgesch." (p. 185). According to Schürer ("Die Juden im Bosporanischen Reiche," in "Sitzungsberichte der Berliner Akademie," 1897), the phrase "those who fear the Most High God" designates associations of Greeks in the first post-Christian centuries, who had taken their name and their monotheistic faith from the Jews, but still retained many of the elements of Greek life and religion (see Jacob Bernays, "Die Gottesfürchtigen bei Juvenal," in his "Gesammelte Schriften," ii. 71-80).Historic Conditions.
The attitude of ancient Israel to proselytes and proselytism is indicated in the history of the term "ger" as sketched above, which, again, reflects the progressive changes incidental to the development of Israel from a nation into a religious congregation under the priestly law. (For the position of strangers see Gentile.) Ezra's policy, founded on the belief that the new common wealth should be of the holy seed, naturally led to the exclusion of those of foreign origin. Still, the non-Israelite could gain admittance through circumcision (see Ex. xii.).
Pre-exilic Israel had but little reason to seek proselytes or concern itself with their status and reception. The "strangers" in its midst were not many (II Chron. ii. 16 is certainly unhistorical). As "clients," they were under the protection of the community. Such laws as refer to them in pre-exilic legislation, especially if compared with the legislativeprovisions of other nations, may justly be said to be humane (see Deuteronomy; Gentile). That the aboriginal population was looked upon with suspicion was due to their constituting a constant peril to the monotheistic religion. Hence the cruel provisions for their extermination, which, however, were not carried into effect.
During the Exile Israel came in contact with non-Israelites in a new and more intimate degree, and Deutero-Isaiah reflects the consequent change in Israel's attitude (see passages quoted above). Even after the restoration Ezra's position was not without its opponents. The books of Jonah and Ruth testify to the views held by the anti-Ezra pleaders for a non-racial and all-embracing Israel. Not only did Greek Judaism tolerate the reception of proselytes, but it even seems to have been active in its desire for the spread of Jewish monotheism (comp. Schürer, l.c.). Philo's references to proselytes make this sure (comp. Renan, "Le Judaïsme en Fait de Religion et de Race").
According to Josephus there prevailed in his day among the inhabitants of both Greek and barbarian cities ("Contra Ap." ii., § 39) a great zeal for the Jewish religion. This statement refers to Emperor Domitian's last years, two decades after Jerusalem's fall. It shows that throughout the Roman empire Judaism had made inroads upon the pagan religions. Latin writers furnish evidence corroborating this. It is true that Tacitus ("Hist." iv. 5) is anxious to convey the impression that only the most despicable elements of the population were found among these converts to Judaism; but this is amply refuted by other Roman historians, as Dio Cassius (67, 14, 68), Cicero ("Pro Flacco," § 28), Horace ("Satires," i. 9, 69; iv. 142), and Juvenal (xiv. 96).Roman Proselytes.
Among converts of note are mentioned the royal family of Adiabene—Queen Helena and her sons Izates and Monobazus ("Ant." xx., ch. 2-4), Flavius Clemens (Dio Cassius, l.c.), Fulvia, the wife of Saturninus, a senator (Philo, "Contra Flaccum," ed. Mangey, ii., § 517; "Ant." xiii. 9, § 1; 11, § 3). Women seem to have predominated among them (Josephus, "B. J." ii. 20, § 2; "Ant." xviii. 3, § 5; Suk. 23; Yer. Suk. ii. 4; 'Ab. Zarah 10; comp. Grätz, "Die Jüdischen Proselyten im Römerreiche," Breslau, 1884; Huidekoper, "Judaism in Rome").
In Palestine, too, proselytes must have been both numerically and socially of importance. Otherwise the Tannaim would have had no justification for discussing their status and the conditions of their reception. Common prejudice imputes to Phariseeism an aversion to proselytes, but perhaps this idea calls for modification. That aversion, if it existed, may have been due to the part taken in Jewish history by Herod, a descendant of the Idumeans whom John Hyrcanus had compelled to embrace Judaism—a fate shared later by the Itureans ("Ant." xiii. 9, § 1; xv. 7, § 9; comp. xiii. 9, § 3). The "proselyte anecdotes" in which Hillel and Shammai have a central part (Shab. 31a) certainly suggest that the antipathy to proselytes was not shared by all, while R. Simeon's dictum that the hand of welcome should be extended to the proselyte (Lev. R. ii. 8), that he might be brought under the wings of the Shekinah, indicates a disposition quite the reverse. In this connection the censure of the Pharisees in Matt. xxv. 15 is significant. Grätz (l.c. p. 30), it is true, argues that the verse refers to an actual incident, the voyage of R. Gamaliel, R. Eliezer b. Azariah, R. Joshua, and R. Akiba to Rome, where they converted Flavius Clemens, a nephew of Emperor Domitian. But the more acceptable interpretation is that given by Jellinek ("B. H." v., p. xlvi.), according to which the passionate outburst recorded in the Gospel of Matthew condemns the Pharisaic practise of winning over every year at least one proselyte each (comp. Gen. R. xxviii.). There is good ground also for the contention of Grätz (l.c. p. 33) that immediately after the destruction of the Second Temple Judaism made many conquests, especially among Romans of the upper classes. Among the proselytes of this time a certain Judah, an Ammonite, is mentioned. Contrary to the Biblical law prohibiting marriage between Jews and Ammonites, he is allowed to marry a Jewess, the decision being brought about largely by Joshua's influence (Yad. iv. 4; Tosef., Yad. ii. 7; comp. Ber. 28a).
Other cases in which Biblical marriage-prohibitions were set aside were those of Menyamin, an Egyptian (on the authority of R. Akiba; Tosef., Ḳid. v. 5; Yer. Yeb. 9b; Sifre, Ki Tissa, 253; Yeb. 76b, 78a; Soṭah 9a), Onḳelos, or Akylas (Aquila), from Pontus (Tosef., Dem. vi. 13; Yer. Dem. 26d), Veturia Paulla, called Sarah after her conversion (see Schürer, "Die Gemeindeverfassung der Juden in Rom," p. 35, No. 11, Leipsic, 1879).
At this epoch, too, the necessity for determining the status of the "half-converts" grew imperative. By "half-converts" is meant a class of men and women of non-Jewish birth who, forsaking their ancestral pagan and polytheistic religions, embraced monotheism and adopted the fundamental principles of Jewish morality, without, however, submitting to circumcision or observing other ceremonial laws. They have been identified with the "yir'e Adonai" (the ρηβόμενοι τὸυ Θεόυ). Their number was very large during the centuries immediately preceding and following the fall of Jerusalem; Ps. xv. has been interpreted as referring to them.Semi-Converts.
In order to find a precedent the Rabbis went so far as to assume that proselytes of this order were recognized in Biblical law, applying to them the term "toshab" ("sojourner," "aborigine," referring to the Canaanites; see Maimonides' explanation in "Yad," Issure Biah, xiv. 7; see Grätz, l.c. p. 15), in connection with "ger" (see Ex. xxv. 47, where the better reading would be "we-toshab"). Another name for one of this class was "proselyte of the gate" ("ger ha-sha'ar," that is, one under Jewish civil jurisdiction; comp. Deut. v. 14, xiv. 21, referring to the stranger who had legal claims upon the generosity and protection of his Jewish neighbors). In order to be recognized as one of these the neophyte had publicly to assume, before three "ḥaberim," or men of authority, the solemn obligation not to worship idols, an obligation which involved the recognition of the seven Noachian injunctions as binding ('Ab. Zarah 64b; "Yad," Issure Biah, xiv. 7).
The application to half-converts of all the laws obligatory upon the sons of Jacob, including those that refer to the taking of interest, or to retaining their hire overnight, or to drinking wine made by non-Jews, seems to have led to discussion and dissension among the rabbinical authorities.
The more rigorous seem to have been inclined to insist upon such converts observing the entire Law, with the exception of the reservations and modifications explicitly made in their behalf. The more lenient were ready to accord them full equality with Jews as soon as they had solemnly forsworn idolatry. The "via media" was taken by those that regarded public adherence to the seven Noachian precepts as the indispensable prerequisite (Gerim iii.; 'Ab. Zarah 64b; Yer. Yeb. 8d; Grätz, l.c. pp. 19-20). The outward sign of this adherence to Judaism was the observance of the Sabbath (Grätz, l.c. pp. 20 et seq.; but comp. Ker. 8b).Influence of Christianity.
The recognition of these quasi-proselytes rendered it obligatory upon the Jews to treat them as brothers (see 'Ab. Zarah 65a; Pes. 21a). But by the third century the steady growth of Christianity had caused these qualified conversions to Judaism to be regarded with increasing disfavor. According to Simeon b. Eleazar, this form of adoption into Judaism was valid only when the institution of the jubilee also was observed, that is, according to the common understanding of his dictum, during the national existence of Israel ('Ar. 29a). A similar observation of Maimonides ("Yad," Issure Biah, xiv. 7-8; ib. 'Akkum, x. 6) is construed in the same sense. It seems more probable that Maimonides and Simeon ben Eleazar wished to convey the idea that, for their day, the institution of the ger toshab was without practical warrant in the Torah. R. Johanan declares that if after a probation of twelve months the ger toshab did not submit to the rite of circumcision, he was to be regarded as a heathen ('Ab. Zarah 65a; the same period of probation is fixed by Ḥanina bar Ḥama in Yer. Yeb. 8d).
In contradistinction to the ger toshab, the full proselyte was designated as "ger ha-ẓedeḳ," "ger ha-berit" (a sincere and righteous proselyte, one who has submitted to circumcision; see Mek., Mishpaṭim, 18; Gerim iii.). The common, technical term for "making a convert" in rabbinical literature is "ḳabbel" (to accept), or "ḳareb taḥat kanfe ha-Shekinah" (to bring one near, or under the wings of, the Shekinah). This phrase plainly presupposes an active propaganda for winning converts (comp. Cant. R. v. 16, where God is referred to as making propagandic efforts). In fact, that proselytes are welcome in Israel and are beloved of God is the theme of many a rabbinical homily (Ruth R. iii.; Tan., Wayiḳra [ed. Buber, 3]; see also Mek., Mishpaṭim, 18; Tosef., Demai, ii. 10; Bek. 32a).Views Concerning Proselytes.
Eleazar b. Pedat sees in Israel's dispersion the divine purpose of winning proselytes (Pes. 87b). Jethro is the classical witness to the argument of other proselytes that the "door was not shut in the face of the heathen" (Pesiḳ. R. 35). He is introduced as writing a letter to Moses (Mek., Yitro, 'Amaleḳ, 1) advising him to make the entry into Judaism easy for proselytes. Ruth and Rahab are quoted as illustrating the same lesson (Shoḥer Ṭob to Ps. v. 11). Emperor Antoninus also is mentioned as a proselyte (Yer. Meg. 72b, 74a) whose conversion illustrates the desirability of making converts. The circumstance that Nero (Giṭ. 56a), and, in fact, most of the Biblical persecutors of Israel, are represented as having finally embraced Judaism (Sanh. 96b), the further fact that almost every great Biblical hero is regarded as an active propagandist, and that great teachers like Shemaiah and Abtalion, Akiba and Meïr, were proselytes, or were regarded as proselytes or as descendants of proselytes (see Bacher, "Ag. Tan." i. 5-6), go far to suggest that proselytes were not always looked upon with suspicion. According to Joshua ben Hananiah, "food" and "raiment" in Deut. x. 18 refer to the learning and the cloak of honor which are in store for the proselyte (Gen. R. lxx.). Job xxxi. 32 was explained as inculcating the practise of holding off applicants with the left hand while drawing them near with the right (Yer. Sanh. 29b). Modern researches have shown positively that Judaism sent forth apostles. Jethro was a type of these propagandists (see Bacher, "Ag. Tan." i. 210; Harnack, "Die Mission und Ausbreitung des Christentums," pp. 237-240, Leipsic, 1902; Grätz, "Gesch." 3d ed., vol. iv., note 21; S. Krauss, "Die Jüdischen Apostel," in "J. Q. R." xvii. 370).
Sincerity of motive in the proselyte wits insisted upon. Care was taken to exclude those who were prompted to embrace Judaism by the desire to contract an advantageous marriage, by the hope of wealth or honor, by fear or superstitious dreams (R. Nehemiah, in Yeb. 24b; comp. 76a). The midrashic amplification of the conversation between Naomi and Ruth (Ruth R. i. 16; Yeb. 47b) reveals the kind of conduct the Rabbis dreaded in proselytes and what admonitions, with the penalties for disregarding them, they thought wise to impress upon the candidates. Attendance at theaters and circuses, living in houses without mezuzot, and unchastity were among the former. The same spirit of caution is apparent in a midrashic illustration to the story of Adam and Eve, in which the proselyte wife is warned by her husband against eating bread with unclean hands, partaking of untithed fruit, or violating the Sabbath or her marriage vow (Ab. R. N. i.). From Ruth's experience the rule was derived that proselytes must be refused reception three times, but not oftener (Ruth R. ii.).Mode of Reception.
The details of the act of reception seem not to have been settled definitely before the second Christian century. From the law that proselyte and native Israelite should be treated alike (Num. xv. 14 et seq.) the inference was drawn that circumcision, the bath of purification, and sacrifice were prerequisites for conversion (comp. "Yad," Issure Biah, xiii. 4). The sacrifice was to be an "'olat behemah" (a burnt offering of cattle; ib. xiii. 5; Ker. ii. 1; 8b, 9a); but to lessen the hardship an offering of fowls was accepted as sufficient. Neglect to bring this offering entailed certain restrictions, but did not invalidate the conversion if the other conditions werecomplied with. After the destruction of the Temple, when all sacrifices were suspended, it was ordained that proselytes should set aside a small coin in lieu of the offering, so that in case the Temple were rebuilt they might at once purchase the offering. Later, when the prospect of the rebuilding of the Temple grew very remote ("mi-pene ha-taḳḳalah"), even this requirement was dropped (comp. Ker. 8a; R. H. 31b; Gerim ii.; Tosef., Sheḳalim, iii. 22).
Nor was it, at one time, the unanimous opinion of the authorities that circumcision was absolutely indispensable. R. Eliezer ben Hyrcanus carried on a controversy on this subject with R. Joshua, the latter pleading for the possibility of omitting the rite, the former insisting on its performance (Yeb. 46a). The point seems to have remained unsettled for the time (see Grätz, "Die Jüdischen Proselyten," p. 13). For Rabbi Joshua the "ṭebilah" (bath of purification) was sufficient, while his antagonist required both circumcision and bath.
The bitterness engendered by the Hadrianic persecution undoubtedly prompted the Rabbis to make conversion as difficult as possible. It is more than a mere supposition that both at that period and earlier Jews suffered considerably from the cowardice and treachery of proselytes, who often acted as spies or, to escape the "fiscus Judaicus" (see Grätz, l.c. pp. 7 et seq.), denounced the Jews to the Romans. An instance of this kind is reported in connection with Simeon ben Yoḥai's sufferings (Shab. 33b). This circumstance explains the reasons that led to the introduction into the daily liturgy of a prayer against the "denunciators and slanderers" ("mesorot," "minim"; see Joël, "Blicke in die Religionsgesch." i. 33). Yet the true proselytes were all the more highly esteemed; a benediction in their behalf was added to the eighteen of the Shemoneh 'Esreh, and later was incorporated with that for the elders and pious (Tosef., Ber. iii.; Yer. Ber. 8a; Ta'an. 85c; comp. Grätz, l.c. p. 11).Influence of the Hadrianic Persecution.
After the Hadrianic rebellion the following procedure came into use. A complete "court," or "board," of rabbinical authorities was alone made competent to sanction the reception. The candidate was first solemnly admonished to consider the worldly disadvantages and the religious burdens involved in the intended step. He, or she, was asked, "What induces thee to join us? Dost thou not know that, in these days, the Israelites are in trouble, oppressed, despised, and subjected to endless sufferings?" If he replied, "I know it, and I am unworthy to share their glorious lot," he was reminded most impressively that while a heathen he was liable to no penalties for eating fat or desecrating the Sabbath, or for similar trespasses, but as soon as he became a Jew, he must suffer excision for the former, and death by stoning for the latter. On the other hand, the rewards in store for the faithful were also explained to him. If the applicant remained firm, he was circumcised in the presence of three rabbis, and then led to be baptized; but even while in the bath he was instructed by learned teachers in the graver and the lighter obligations which he was undertaking. After this he was considered a Jew (Yeb. 47a, b). The presence of three men was required also at the bath of women converts, though due precautions were taken not to affront their modesty. This procedure is obligatory at the present time, according to the rabbinical codes (see Shulḥan 'Aruk, Yoreh De'ah, 268; "Yad," Issure Biah, xiv.). The ceremony should be performed by a properly constituted board of three learned men, and in the daytime; but if only two were present and the ceremony took place at night, it would not therefore be invalid. The ceremony of conversion could not take place on the Sabbath or on a holy day (ib.). Proper evidence of conversion was required before the claimant was recognized as a proselyte, though to a certain extent piety of conduct was a presumption in his favor. If the convert reverted to his former ways of living, he was regarded as a rebellious Israelite, not as a heathen; his marriage with a Jewess, for instance, was not invalidated by his lapses. The conversion of a pregnant woman included also the child. Minors could be converted with their parents, or even alone, by the bet din, but they were permitted to recant when of age.Unfavorable View.
The proselyte is regarded as a new-born child; hence his former family connections are considered as ended, and he might legally marry his own mother or sister; but lest he come to the conclusion that his new status is less holy than his former, such unions are prohibited (see Shulḥan 'Aruk, Yoreh De'ah, 269; "Yad," Issure Biah, xiv. 13). This conception of the proselyte's new birth (Yeb. 62a; Yer. Yeb. 4a) and of his new status with reference to his old family is the subject of many a halakie discussion (Yeb. xi. 2; Yer. Yeb. l.c.; et al.) and has led to certain regulations concerning marriages contracted either before or after conversion ("Yad," l.c. xiv. 13 et seq.; with reference to the first-fruit offering see Yer. Bik. 64a; Tosef., Bik. i. 2). That many of the earlier rabbis were opposed to proselytes is plain from observations imputed to them. R. Eliezer is credited with the opinion that the nature of proselytes is corrupt, and that hence they are apt to become backsliders (Mek., Mishpaṭim, 18; B. Ḳ. 59b; Gerim iv.). Jose ben Judah insists that any candidate should be rejected unless he binds himself to observe not only every tittle of the Torah but all the precepts of the scribes, even to the least of them (Tosef., Dem. ii. 5; Sifra 91a, to Lev. xix. 34).
Sad experience or personal fanaticism underlies the oft-cited statement—in reality a play upon Isa. xiv. 1—that proselytes are as burdensome to Israel as leprosy (Yeb. 47b, 109b; Ḳid. 70b; 'Ab. Zarah 3b; Ket. 11a; Niddah 13b); or the dictum that proselytes will not be received during the days of the Messiah ("Yad," Issure Biah, xiii.-xiv.; ib. 'Abadim, ix.; Yoreh De'ah, 268). While evil upon evil is predicted for the "meḳabbele gerim" (propagandists; Yeb. 109b), the proselytes themselves, notwithstanding their new birth, are said to be exposed to intense suffering, which is variously explained as due to their ignorance of the Law (Yeb. 48b), or to the presence of an impure motive in their conversion (e.g., fear instead of love), or to previous misconduct (Yeb. 68b). Nevertheless, once received, theywere to be treated as the peers of the Jew by birth.
According to R. Simeon b. Laḳish, proselytes are more precious at Sinai than Israel was, for the latter would not have taken the "kingdom" upon himself had not miracles accompanied revelation, while the former assume the "kingdom" without having seen even one miracle. Hence an injury to a proselyte is tantamount to an injury to God (Tan., Lek Leka, beginning; Ḥag. 5a). The proselyte might marry without restriction ("Yad," Issure Biah, xii. 17). The descendants of Ammon, Moab, Egypt, and Edom formed an exception: the males of Ammon and Moab were excluded forever, though no restriction existed against marriage with their women. Descendants of Egyptians and Edomites of either sex were proscribed in the first and second generations; the third enjoyed full connubial rights. But these restrictions were assumed to have been rendered inoperative by Sennacherib's conquest, and therefore as having no authority in later times ("Yad," l.c. xii. 17-24).
Besides the proselytes already mentioned, all belonging to the Roman period, there are records of others later. Among these were the kings of the Jewish Himyarite empire; Arab tribes (before the 6th cent.); Dhu Nuwas; Ḥarith ibn 'Amr; the Kenites; Waraḳah ibn-Naufal; the Chazars. Many also must have come from the ranks of the Christians; this would be the natural inference from the prohibition of conversion to Judaism issued by the Councils of Orleans, repeating previous prohibitions by Emperor Constantine. The code of Alfonso X. made conversion to Judaism a capital crime (Graetz, "Hist." ii. 562; iii. 37, 595).In Modern Times.
In modern times conversions to Judaism are not very numerous. Marriage is, in contravention of the rabbinical caution, in most instances the motive, and proselytes of the feminine sex predominate. In some of the new rituals formulas for the reception of proselytes are found—for instance, in Einhorn's "'Olat Tamid" (German ed.). Instruction in the Jewish religion precedes the ceremony, which, after circumcision and baptism, consists in a public confession of faith, in the main amounting to a repudiation of certain Christian dogmas, and concluding with the reciting of the Shema'. Some agitation occurred in American Jewry over the abrogation of circumcision in the case of an adult neophyte ("milat gerim"). I. M. Wise made such a proposition before the Rabbinical Conference at Philadelphia (Nov., 1869), but his subsequent attitude (see "The Israelite" and "Die Deborah," Dec., 1869, and Jan., 1870) on the question leaves it doubtful whether he was in earnest in making the proposition. Bernard Felsenthal ("Zur Proselytenfrage," Chicago, 1878) raised the question about ten years later, arguing in favor of the abrogation of the rite and quoting R. Joshua's opinion among others. The Central Conference of American Rabbis finally, at the suggestion of I. M. Wise, resolved not to insist on milat gerim, and devised regulations for the solemn reception of proselytes. I. S. Moses has proposed the establishment of congregations of semiproselytes, reviving, as it were, the institution of the ger toshab.Female Proselytes.
Certain restrictions regulating the status of women proselytes are found in the Mishnah. Girls born before the conversion of their mothers were not regarded as entitled to the benefit of the provisions concerning a slanderous report as to virginity set forth in Deut. xxii. 13-21 (see Ket. iv. 3); and if found untrue to their marriage vows, their punishment was strangulation, not lapidation. Only such female proselytes as at conversion had not attained the age of three years and one day, and even they not in all cases, were treated, in the law regulating matrimony, as was the native Jewish woman (ib. i. 2, 4; iii. 1, 2). Proselytes were not allowed to become the wives of priests; daughters of proselytes, only in case one of the parents was a Jew by birth (Yeb. vi. 5; Ḳid. iv. 7; see Cohen). R. Jose objects to the requirement that one parent must be of Jewish birth (Ḳid. l.c.). On the other hand, proselytes could contract marriages with men who, according to Deut. xxii. 3, were barred from marrying Jewish women (Yeb. viii. 2). While a proselyte woman was deemed liable to the ordeal of jealousy described in Num. v. 11. ('Eduy. v. 6), the provisions of the Law regarding the collection of damages in the case of injury to pregnant women were construed as not applicable to her (B. Ḳ. v. 4, but consult Gemara; "R. E. J." xiii. 318).
In these passages the strict interpretation of the Pentateuchal texts, as restricted to Israel, prevails, and in a similar spirit, in the order of Precedence as laid down in Hor. iii. 8, only the manumitted slave is assigned inferior rank to the proselyte, the bastard and the "natin" taking precedence over him. On the other hand, it should not be overlooked that it was deemed sinful to remind a proselyte of his ancestors or to speak in disrespectful terms of them and their life (B. M. iv. 10).
- Hastings, Dict. Bible;
- Hamburger, R. B. T.;
- Grätz, Gesch.;
- Kalisch, Bible Studies, vol. ii. (the Book of Jonah), London, 1878.
|
<urn:uuid:43dcceab-049a-453b-81b3-80ad06d75dc3>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12391-proselyte
|
2013-05-21T17:10:23Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.957286
| 7,477
|
An overall change to the upper air pattern will allow warm air to surge into the area the rest of the week. Gusty southwesterly breezes will cause temps to soar to the year's highest levels thus far. Normal highs for the days ahead are in the lower 50s.
Many people don't realize the real danger associated with lightning and just how deadly it can be. Spring severe weather awareness week is a good time to review what to do when a thunderstorm is approaching. Remember, if you can hear thunder you are close enough to be struck by a deadly bolt of lightning. Here are some safety tips:
It is the most deadly severe weather hazard...Flash Flooding. More fatalaties are attributed each year to flash flooding than hurricanes and tornadoes combined. Interestingly, while it is the most deadly, many experts regard it as one of the most preventable. Here is what you need to know to be safe:
Most of the deaths from flash flooding occur in vehicles. Many people will attempt to drive through roads that are covered in water. A simple rule can save your life. If a roadway is covered with water, no matter the depth, turn around and find an alternate route. Less than two feet of water will sweep most vehicles off the road and some vehicles may become buoyant in one foot or less. Those attempting to walk through flowing water often underestimate the power of flowing water. Moving water can knock an adult off their feet if it is much deeper than their ankles. Some simple safety tips and common sense can keep you safe when flooding occurs.
On a sunny Wednesday morning at 9:50 AM EDT the roar of the tornado sirens screamed across the state of Ohio. This time it was only a drill, but next time it may be the real deal. As part of spring severe weather awareness week, implementing a disaster plan, such as a tornado drill at work, home or school could save lives when the real danger threatens.
Keep in mind that when a tornado watch is issued, that means conditions are favorable for strong storms capable of producing tornadoes. When a warning is issued, that means a tornado has either been spotted or indicated by Doppler radar. It is necessary to take cover immediately when a warning is issued.
If you are indoors, go to the lowest level of the building, like a basement. If there is no basement, a closet or bathroom without window in the center of the building will do. If you are outside, seek shelter in the nearest sturdy building. If no shelter is available, lie down in a low area such as a ditch and cover your head. If inside a vehicle or mobile home, these are not sufficient shelter even for the weakest of tornadoes. Vacate either location and find a fixed building that would provide the necessary shelter from the potential tornado.
This week, March 21-27, is Spring Severe Weather Awareness week across Ohio. This means it is time to review your severe weather action plan for home, work and school. Also know the difference between a WATCH and a WARNING so you know what to do when one is issued for your area.
Our last full day of winter will be the warmest of 2010 for much of the area. A cold front will pass through the area tonight, and bring in sharply colder temps this weekend (especially northern half counties).
The warmest of the 2010 prior to today was 68° on March 11. The last time we had a temp higher than that was on November 8 when it was 71°.
The milder temps as of late have allowed much of the snow cover to melt and seep into the soil. Area rivers which were ice-covered in recent weeks have melted quite a bit.
Rainfall amounts over the next few days could reach 1 to 2 inches through Sunday. Some isolated higher amounts are possible.
Thunderstorms are possible Friday with isolated heavier downpours.
All of the above factors combined could produce some flooding in some areas. A flood warning is in effect for the Tiffin River in northwest Ohio. See our main weather page for all the current advisories.
The combination of warm temps and winds pushing offshore by Sunday will create the potential for ice floes. This will be a very dangerous weekend, and the Coast Guard and local law enforcement officials are urging people to stay off the ice. The main section of ice in the southwestern area of the lake has the potential to break away and drift northward towards Canada.
In addition to the potential for the entire ice mass to move will be individual cracks and separations within that main area.
Essentially, conditions are ideal this weekend for a major change in the lake's surface. Anyone on the ice this weekend risks being stranded on a chunk of ice, or falling into the lake through weak ice.
|
<urn:uuid:dd26cf5f-1e5e-4b50-8fa6-00069e4d9764>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://tnnstormtrack.blogspot.com/2010_03_01_archive.html
|
2013-05-23T19:33:45Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703728865/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112848-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.959902
| 980
|
For decades, scientists have been listening to whales and dolphins, trying to understand what they’re saying. Now, the public — people like you and I — are being invited to work with them in a unique new research project called Whale FM. Over 16,000 recorded vocalizations by Killer whales and Pilot whales await analysis. Volunteers are needed to listen to whale call audio segments, to identify similar-sounding calls from different individuals. This work will help scientists characterize different types of calls, taking us a few steps closer to understanding whale conversations.
Whale FM is the latest citizen science project at Zooniverse, created in collaboration with Scientific American, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, and the Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
In a press release announcing the Whale FM project, its principal scientist, Peter Tyack of the University of St. Andrews, said,
Only a few researchers have categorized whale calls. By asking hundreds of people to make similar judgments, we will learn how reliable the categories are, and they get the fun of hearing these amazing sounds.
Past research in categorizing calls have revealed that Killer whales have a diverse repertoire that’s used for communication, navigation, and feeding. Scientists were surprised to find that different Killer whale pods have their own “dialects.” Much less is known about Pilot whales; the researchers who created Whale FM hope to harness the collective efforts of citizen scientists to better understand what Pilot whales are saying to each other.
Many of the whale call recordings were obtained using ”D-Tags,” temporary tags that are suction-cupped to the base of a whale’s dorsal fin. Each tag is equipped with a hydrophone (underwater microphone) that records vocalizations of its host whale and other nearby whales, as well as motion sensors that record underwater activities such as dive depths. Whales are not harmed by these non-invasive tags that are designed to detach after about 30 minutes.
Scientists also use hydrophone arrays, that’s several hydrophones strung together, to eavesdrop on whales. The arrays, deployed from ships or connected to buoys, pick up all sounds in the ocean. Specialized software processes these sounds to isolate whale calls, even determining the direction of the calls. In some instances, information about the location of a calling whale and it movements can be extracted from the hydrophone array data.
For volunteers, the hub of this project is the Whale FM website. There, they’re presented with a recorded call and a map showing the whale’s location at the time of the recording. Volunteers are asked to listen to other recordings, displayed below the main whale call audio clip, to determine if any of them sound similar to the main call. Similar-sounding calls are flagged by the volunteer and stored for further analysis by scientists. (If you decide to give it a try, I highly recommend reviewing their tutorial to familiarize yourself with the nuances of whale calls.)
Whales and dolphins have a diverse repertoire of calls for communicating with others of their kind. But what are they saying? With the help of volunteers combing through the voluminous data of Killer whale and Pilot whale vocalizations, call patterns will begin to emerge, allowing scientists to determine the extent of the “vocabulary” for each species, including population-related dialects.
|
<urn:uuid:1ef1489c-4322-4d71-ad39-c2748e923add>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://earthsky.org/earth/what-are-whales-talking-about-help-find-out
|
2013-05-24T16:24:01Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704752145/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114552-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.947736
| 701
|
A recent survey of the Coral Sea and Great Barrier Reef has found coral flourishing in deep waters, a stark contrast to the shallower reefs that have seen a drastic decline over the last few decades.
The healthy coral populations were discovered to be below 30 meters -- beyond the usual reach of most scuba divers -- and even found at depths of 80 meters, according to the Catlin Seaview Survey.
"The Holmes and Flinders Reefs in the Coral Sea are renowned for having been badly damaged, said Pim Bongaerts, of the University of Queensland's Global Change Institute, who was leading the deep reef survey.
"Yet we have found their deep reef zone is hardly disturbed at all. In fact the most striking thing is the abundance of coral on the deep reef. What has blown me away is to see that even 70 to 80 meters down, there are significant coral populations."
Earlier this month a report, by the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) and the University of Wollongong, revealed that the Great Barrier Reef had lost half its coral cover in the last 27 years.
Researchers say most of the damage to the shallower coral was wrought in recent years by a succession of powerful cyclones. Other threats that are hindering its ability to recover include the crown-of-thorns starfish, or COTS, a native species which feeds on coral, and coral bleaching that occurs when water becomes too warm.
The deep reef survey team used remote operated vehicles able to reach depths of 100 meters, giving scientists a new view of hitherto unexplored reefs.
"It is surprising in this day and age, that below some of the most well-known reefs, which are so popular with divers, there is an almost entirely unexplored world and as a result an enormous amount of science to be done," said Bongaerts.
So far the team has completed four of its ten planned surveys at areas along the length of the 2,300 kilometer-long reef system and outlying atolls.
Bongaerts believes that the deep-water reefs might be able to help the shallower ones recover, as they have been seen to live in both depths of water.
|
<urn:uuid:7d866fbf-1dd5-4603-ae5f-d72bf11a7b59>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.kcra.com/news/national/Deep-water-coral-thrives-on-Great-Barrier-Reef/-/11797450/17140514/-/cvad4qz/-/index.html
|
2013-05-23T18:31:14Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.962294
| 454
|
Eutrophication is the biological response of water to overenrichment by plant nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. Public concern began to rise in the 1960s (although the term "eutrophication" is older), when nutrient enrichment was rapidly making many bodies of water increasingly fertile. This eutrophication was mainly caused by the addition of plant nutrients from human activities, called, in this context, artificial or anthropogenic eutrophication. The phenomenon is a consequence of society's municipal, industrial, and agricultural use of plant nutrients and their subsequent disposal.
Lakes and reservoirs have a finite life span. They may pass through periods in their existence when they become more or less fertile, according to different factors--principally their geographical position or the climatic conditions (Moss, 1988). The process of eutrophication has been used deliberately as a way to fertilize and thus to increase phytoplankton production and, indirectly, the population of fish within a lake or reservoir. What is new in the past few decades, however, is the extent of enrichment of lakes and rivers throughout the world as a result of the growing human population, more intensive agricultural and industrial activities, and the development of large sewage systems associated with large metropolitan areas. Until recently, a relative lack of control over the sources of the nutrients or over their effect upon the aquatic ecosystems has resulted in changes occurring within decades rather than over the centuries--or longer--in which such changes would appear naturally Many studies of lake s around the world have provided evidence of human-induced changes. Good examples of such studies are those carried out on the Great Lakes (Beeton & Edmondson, 1972; Sly, 1991).
In the United Kingdom, eutrophication has been identified as an extremely widespread problem and has been blamed for damaging many aquatic sites in England known as Sites of Special Scientific Interest, despite government claims that only a few surface waters have been affected (Carvalho & Moss, 1995). In a study commissioned by English Nature, a statutory conservation agency in England, it was found that 79 Sites of Special Scientific Interest showed signs of eutrophication. As a result, English Nature has called for a large-scale investment program to deal with the eutrophication problem in aquatic wildlife sites (English Nature, 1997).
Anthropogenic eutrophication appears to be the main problem. Excessive fertility in lakes and reservoirs results in heavy growth of phytoplankton, particularly of blue-green algae (cyanobacteria), that may form thick mats at the water surface and thus spoil the appearance of the lake. Some species of cyanobacteria may produce substances that are highly toxic to fish, birds, or mammals. In some cases, dense blooms of algae have resulted in fish kills by causing the hypolimnion to become anaerobic. Increased crops of phytoplankton often clog the filters of water treatment plants and make the treatment of water more costly Furthermore, some unwanted organic substances produced by the algae can pass through the filters at water treatment plants and cause unpleasant tastes and odors, or may even be toxic to human consumers. Eutrophication thus can not only impair aesthetic qualities of the water, but also affect the use of water for water supply, fisheries, and recreation.
The essential elements required by living cells to sustain growth and reproduction are carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, other macronutrients, and trace elements. Of these, carbon is the most important, the main reservoir being atmospheric carbon dioxide. Carbon is easily soluble in water and is thus unlikely to be a limiting factor for algae growth, except during intense blooms. Oxygen and hydrogen are freely available in the water in most circumstances.
The most important macronutrients are calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, nitrogen, sulfur, iron, and silicon. Phosphorus is important because it is the only nutrient whose proportional abundance is lower in the lithosphere than in plant tissue. It is thus a prime candidate to become a limiting factor in algae growth. The main reservoir of nitrogen is atmospheric dinitrogen, which is not available to plants directly, consequently nitrogen might be a limiting factor as well.
Trace elements, including boron, chlorine, cobalt, copper, manganese, molybdenum, zinc, and, in some cases, vitamin complexes, are required in very small quantities.
The "law of the minimum," which was first formulated by Justus von Liebig, states that growth is limited by whatever is in shortest supply (Gibson, 1971; Welch, 1980). For the reasons stated above, phosphorus and nitrogen are said to be "key nutrients"; in some circumstances, they may become limiting. Therefore, they are in most cases the nutrients that control algae growth, though some diatom species may be limited by silica. Other factors, such as light, may also limit algal productivity.
Supply of Phosphorus and Nitrogen to Lakes
Phosphorus is the 11th most abundant element in the earth's crust, and it is geochemically classed as a trace element. In nature, phosphorus exists almost exclusively as phosphate, a great part of which is sorbed to soil particles or incorporated into soil organic matter. Phosphate deposits occur in the earth's crust principally as the mineral apatite: [Ca.sub.5](F,C1,OH,1/2[CO.sub.3])[([PO.sub.4]).sub.3]. The initial natural source of phosphorus is weathering of such rocks. Weathering liberates phosphate from the mineral, and the phosphate can then enter the biosphere through uptake by plants.
The initial source of nitrogen is the atmospheric reservoir of gaseous dinitrogen. Nitrogen gas is chemically very stable. It must be converted by nitrogen fixation, by microorganisms living principally in the soil but also in aquatic environments, before it is available to most living organisms. In natural water, nitrogen is present as dissolved dinitrogen, ammonia, and salts of the nitrate and nitrite ions; in addition, there are nitrogen-containing organic compounds primarily attributable to the presence of life.
In a natural, undisturbed environment, nutrient sources are the drainage of the catchment, the direct atmospheric deposition (rainfall and dry depositions) onto the water surface, and the internal recycling from lake sediments. Ahl estimates the background phosphorus input to be in the range of 3 to 10 kilograms (kg) of phosphorus per square kilometer per year, depending on the size and the characteristics of the basin (Ahl, 1988). He also estimates the …
|
<urn:uuid:459653bf-4a69-4a13-a131-f6816c893a85>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.questia.com/library/1G1-85465404/sources-of-the-eutrophication-problems-associated
|
2013-05-25T06:00:02Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.941514
| 1,369
|
Its History and Prospects
By C.J. Misak
Published November 23rd 1995 by Routledge – 272 pages
Series: Philosophical Issues in Science
Verificationism is the first comprehensive history of a concept that dominated philosophy and scientific methodology between the 1930s and the 1960s. The verificationist principle - the concept that a belief with no connection to experience is spurious - is the most sophisticated version of empiricism. More flexible ideas of verification are now being rehabilitated by a number of philosophers.
C.J. Misak surveys the precursors, the main proponents and the rehabilitators. Unlike traditional studies, she follows verificationist theory beyond the demise of positivism to examine its reappearance in the work of modern philosophers. Most interestingly, she argues that despite feminism's strenuous opposition to positivism, verificationist thought is at the heart of much of contemporary feminist philosophy.
Verificationism is an excellent assessment of a major and influential system of thought.
'The book is valuable for its clear and informative survey of the variety of verificationist options … an extremely helpful guide to an important theme in modern philosophy'. - MIND
|
<urn:uuid:06e52658-ac9a-406d-a363-954326ca14d9>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.psypress.com/books/details/9780415125987/
|
2013-05-18T18:52:59Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382705/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.923082
| 233
|
Those who hold a penchant for, or at least interest in, the story comprising the rise and fall of Christianity will always have a few favourite characters that they identify as the personification of a True Christian. The problem exists, however, that it is often impossible to look at these characters objectively, because they were often an integral part of the formation of the modern day incarnation of the religion they identify with.
These characters were often people who triumphed over great adversity, remaining strong (at least reputedly) in their faith as they battled various evils. They are then, often, championed by priests and pastors as a hero – “if he/she can go through such tremendous adversity and remain true to their faith and their god, then why would we lose our faith when our issues are trivial in comparison?”
The Protestant reformation owes its existence to such a character. As a priest, Martin Luther was a man willing to stand up against what he saw as the evils of the Catholic Church, at great personal cost.
Disgusted by the sale of indulgences (pre-paid absolution for committing specific sins which the Catholic Church sold to fund extensions to the Vatican), he nailed 95 theses to the front door of his Catholic Church in protest. His belief, and what he preached, was that salvation was not earned through good deeds, but through faith and belief in Jesus Christ.
He also translated the bible into common language, allowing the common person to have access to the same literature as the revered priestly class. For his beliefs and actions, which ultimately led to the reformation and Protestantism, he was ex-communicated, his writings were banned and he was condemned as an outlaw. This made it a crime for anyone in Germany to give Luther food or shelter and permitted his murder without legal consequence.
And yet, throughout the turmult, he remained faithful. A model Christian, indeed.
Martin Luther, however, whether reflecting the sentiment at the time (and past, and future, and indeed present-day) or simply by nature of his devotion to scripture, was also hideously anti-Simetic. More specifically, he asumed that the Jews would convert to his new form of Christianity and was quite irreverant towards them for a time. When, however, they did not convert, he turned rather violently against them.
A man who is revered for both his devotion and the integral part he played in today’s version of Christianity held, arguably, the most violent and hateful views towards Jews.
I speak of his publication entitled, The Jews and Their Lies (c.1543). In the paper he, in splendidly morally repugnant detail, why the Jews should be exterminated and how to go about such a task:
First, that their synagogues be burned down, and that all who are able toss in sulphur and pitch; it would be good if someone could also throw in some hellfire. Second, that all their books their prayer books, their Talmudic writings, also the entire Bible, be taken from them, not leaving them one leaf, and that these be preserved for those who may be converted.
Third, that they are forbidden on pain of death to praise God, to give thanks, to pray, and to teach publicly among us and in our country. (For such praise should only be given to Jesus). Fourth, that they be forbidden to utter the name of God within our hearing. We must drive them out like mad dogs, so that we do not become partakers of their abominable blasphemy and all their other vices and thus merit God’s wrath and be damned with them.
While this type of anti-Semitism was not uncommon during the time, one can see obvious parallels between the writings of the father of present-day Christianity and other despots from recent history, namely one Adolf Hitler.
Thus, it is important to remember, to ensure that we never forget, that behind the reputedly peaceful and loving ideology of Christianity, lays a foundation of blood, torture, violence and supremacy.
|
<urn:uuid:3204a1f2-07dd-40cc-b782-5d159d3f410a>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://imaginaryfriendsshow.com/tag/martin-luther/
|
2013-06-20T09:15:34Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.978033
| 839
|
Robot Blimps Could Soar on Other Worlds
A prototype Titan blimp undergoes autonomous flight tests in the Mojave desert. Upper image shows liftoff and lower image shows the blimp in autonomous flight mode.
Blimps and balloons are routinely used on Earth for aerial surveillance or to conduct research in hard-to-reach places. Similar unmanned flying vehicles, or aerobots, could open up new vistas in planetary exploration, providing an inexpensive way to observe large swaths of alien terrain without ever touching the ground.
Rovers that can cover a few kilometers have boosted our knowledge of the moon and Mars, taking up-close images of the surface and analyzing rocks and soil. A downside to rovers is not only their slow travel speeds and limited mileage, but their tendency to get stuck in sand traps or other treacherous terrain.
Aerobots would be able to smoothly glide over regions that rovers view with trepidation, covering thousands of kilometers by floating in the atmosphere of planets and moons and providing a closer look at volcanoes and lakes than is possible with orbiting spacecraft.
A balloon is a platform to carry scientific instruments to places you couldn't get to otherwise, a way of covering a relatively large distance in a very short amount of time, said Jeffery Hall, who is leading the planetary balloon effort at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.
Aerobots could be as simple or sophisticated as a mission demands, Hall said. On the one end they could simply sail with the winds at a constant altitude, taking pictures and sampling the atmosphere's chemistry. At the other end you could imagine a blimp-like vehicle with a power plant, propellers and propulsion system with smarts so that it could fly itself in a highly autonomous fashion, he said.
The Soviet Union's 1985 Vega mission to Venus has been the only successful planetary balloon exploration to date. That mission sent two balloons, each 3.5 meters in diameter with a 7-kilogram instrument pod hanging below. Each balloon operated on battery power for nearly two days (46 hours), floating 54 kilometers above the planet's surface.
Hall and his colleagues are developing and testing much more sophisticated balloon technology that could be used to explore Venus, Mars and Saturn's moon Titan. Each of these destinations has its own unique challenge.
Titan's cryogenic environment, with a surface temperature of negative 180 degrees Celsius (minus 292 F), would need a balloon made of a material that does not become brittle when exposed to extreme cold. The surface temperature on Venus is hot enough to melt lead and while the planet's upper atmosphere boasts benign, Earth-like temperatures, it is shrouded with sulfuric acid-laden clouds. Meanwhile, the low atmospheric density on Mars makes flying balloons a challenge, requiring very large, lightweight balloons that can carry small payloads.
Hall's team is developing different balloons that can stand up to these tough conditions. They have designed, built and tested two Teflon- and Mylar-coated prototype balloons that could survive the acid corrosion on Venus. They are also working hard on two aerobot concepts for Titan a blimp and a hot-air or Montgolfier balloon even though a NASA mission to Titan is at least ten years away.
The Cassini mission, which sent the Huygens probe parachuting into Titan's atmosphere, revealed a landscape with dried river channels and tantalizing evidence for rain, oceans and lakes. Titan has a dense cloud cover that prevents orbiting spacecraft from taking high-resolution visible wavelength images, so future missions to Titan would ideally dive down through the concealing atmosphere to study the moon's surface, just as the Huygens probe did. To stay mobile on Titan it makes sense to stay suspended above the surface rather than land, since the pictures from Huygens show a rough terrain that would be difficult to traverse with a rover.
A prototype Titan blimp has been successfully tested at cryogenic temperatures. Now the challenge is perfecting autopilot features, a requirement since radio signals can take over 70 minutes to travel one-way between Earth and Titan, and sometimes Saturn blocks the signals completely.
The researchers are testing a navigation and control system that can guide the balloon based on images of the terrain. A rover can sit still and be safe, Hall said. Aerobots are always moving, so it's a different kind of operation. You can't say Stop, give me a couple days to figure out the answer to your problem.
The recent crash of a NASA balloon in Australia proves that missions that use inflatable devices can be difficult and are subject to uncontrollable events. The most cumbersome problems to overcome for any successful aerobot mission are deployment and inflation. The balloon or blimp first would have to be folded and stored inside a spacecraft for the trip to the planetary destination. Then, upon arrival, you have to unfold it, fill it up with gas that you either take with you or take from the atmosphere itself, Hall said. The Soviet Vega balloons were inflated while descending into the atmosphere hanging from parachutes. Most of the balloon concepts have followed in those footsteps, said Hall. It's safer to fill up as you land than land first.
However, aerial deployment comes with its own risks: tethers or parachute strings can get entangled, and more fragile balloons can tear during unfolding or inflation. The thin balloon materials needed for Mars thin atmosphere pose a particular challenge in this respect.
For now, Hall and his colleagues have set their eyes on Venus and are putting together a proposal for a Venus balloon mission that they plan to submit for NASA's Discovery program. Their proposal for the 2006 Discovery program did not make the cut, but Hall is confident in the new reworked and heavily tested balloon design.
The prototype 7-meter diameter balloon is designed to carry a 100-kilogram payload and float at an altitude of 55.5 kilometers in Venusian acid-laden clouds. Tests show that it should be able to float for 30 days or more, circumnavigating Venus every four to six days. I would argue that the technology for Venus is ready, Hall said.
MORE FROM SPACE.com
|
<urn:uuid:f46c32b5-cfc9-49d6-8fa9-634a5525155d>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.space.com/8398-robot-blimps-soar-worlds.html
|
2013-05-24T02:34:46Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132729/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.939382
| 1,260
|
Inscribed and Central Angles Showing that an inscribed angle is half of a central angle that subtends the same arc
Inscribed and Central Angles
⇐ Use this menu to view and help create subtitles for this video in many different languages. You'll probably want to hide YouTube's captions if using these subtitles.
- What I want to do in this video is to prove one of the more
- useful results in geometry, and that's that an inscribed angle
- is just an angle whose vertex sits on the circumference
- of the circle.
- So that is our inscribed angle.
- I'll denote it by psi -- I'll use the psi for inscribed angle
- and angles in this video.
- That psi, the inscribed angle, is going to be exactly 1/2 of
- the central angle that subtends the same arc.
- So I just used a lot a fancy words, but I think you'll
- get what I'm saying.
- So this is psi.
- It is an inscribed angle.
- It sits, its vertex sits on the circumference.
- And if you draw out the two rays that come out from this angle
- or the two cords that define this angle, it intersects the
- circle at the other end.
- And if you look at the part of the circumference of the circle
- that's inside of it, that is the arc that is
- subtended by psi.
- It's all very fancy words, but I think the idea is
- pretty straightforward.
- This right here is the arc subtended by psi, where psi is
- that inscribed angle right over there, the vertex sitting
- on the circumference.
- Now, a central angle is an angle where the vertex is
- sitting at the center of the circle.
- So let's say that this right here -- I'll try to eyeball
- it -- that right there is the center of the circle.
- So let me draw a central angle that subtends this same arc.
- So that looks like a central angle subtending that same arc.
- Just like that.
- Let's call this theta.
- So this angle is psi, this angle right here is theta.
- What I'm going to prove in this video is that psi is always
- going to be equal to 1/2 of theta.
- So if I were to tell you that psi is equal to, I don't know,
- 25 degrees, then you would immediately know that theta
- must be equal to 50 degrees.
- Or if I told you that theta was 80 degrees, then you would
- immediately know that psi was 40 degrees.
- So let's actually proved this.
- So let me clear this.
- So a good place to start, or the place I'm going to
- start, is a special case.
- I'm going to draw an inscribed angle, but one of the chords
- that define it is going to be the diameter of the circle.
- So this isn't going to be the general case, this is going
- to be a special case.
- So let me see, this is the center right here of my circle.
- I'm trying to eyeball it.
- Center looks like that.
- So let me draw a diameter.
- So the diameter looks like that.
- Then let me define my inscribed angle.
- This diameter is one side of it.
- And then the other side maybe is just like that.
- So let me call this right here psi.
- If that's psi, this length right here is a radius -- that's
- our radius of our circle.
- Then this length right here is also going to be the radius of
- our circle going from the center to the circumference.
- Your circumference is defined by all of the points that are
- exactly a radius away from the center.
- So that's also a radius.
- Now, this triangle right here is an isosceles triangle.
- It has two sides that are equal.
- Two sides that are definitely equal.
- We know that when we have two sides being equal, their
- base angles are also equal.
- So this will also be equal to psi.
- You might not recognize it because it's
- tilted up like that.
- But I think many of us when we see a triangle that looks like
- this, if I told you this is r and that is r, that these two
- sides are equal, and if this is psi, then you would also
- know that this angle is also going to be psi.
- Base angles are equivalent on an isosceles triangle.
- So this is psi, that is also psi.
- Now, let me look at the central angle.
- This is the central angle subtending the same arc.
- Let's highlight the arc that they're both subtending.
- This right here is the arc that they're both going to subtend.
- So this is my central angle right there, theta.
- Now if this angle is theta, what's this angle going to be?
- This angle right here.
- Well, this angle is supplementary to theta,
- so it's 180 minus theta.
- When you add these two angles together you go 180 degrees
- around or they kind of form a line.
- They're supplementary to each other.
- Now we also know that these three angles are sitting
- inside of the same triangle.
- So they must add up to 180 degrees.
- So we get psi -- this psi plus that psi plus psi plus this
- angle, which is 180 minus theta plus 180 minus theta.
- These three angles must add up to 180 degrees.
- They're the three angles of a triangle.
- Now we could subtract 180 from both sides.
- psi plus psi is 2 psi minus theta is equal to 0.
- Add theta to both sides.
- You get 2 psi is equal to theta.
- Multiply both sides by 1/2 or divide both sides by 2.
- You get psi is equal to 1/2 of theta.
- So we just proved what we set out to prove for the special
- case where our inscribed angle is defined, where one of the
- rays, if you want to view these lines as rays, where one of the
- rays that defines this inscribed angle is
- along the diameter.
- The diameter forms part of that ray.
- So this is a special case where one edge is
- sitting on the diameter.
- So already we could generalize this.
- So now that we know that if this is 50 that this is
- going to be 100 degrees and likewise, right?
- Whatever psi is or whatever theta is, psi's going to be 1/2
- of that, or whatever psi is, theta is going to
- be 2 times that.
- And now this will apply for any time.
- We could use this notion any time that -- so just using that
- result we just got, we can now generalize it a little bit,
- although this won't apply to all inscribed angles.
- Let's have an inscribed angle that looks like this.
- So this situation, the center, you can kind of view it as
- it's inside of the angle.
- That's my inscribed angle.
- And I want to find a relationship between this
- inscribed angle and the central angle that's subtending
- to same arc.
- So that's my central angle subtending the same arc.
- Well, you might say, hey, gee, none of these ends or these
- chords that define this angle, neither of these are diameters,
- but what we can do is we can draw a diameter.
- If the center is within these two chords we
- can draw a diameter.
- We can draw a diameter just like that.
- If we draw a diameter just like that, if we define this angle
- as psi 1, that angle as psi 2.
- Clearly psi is the sum of those two angles.
- And we call this angle theta 1, and this angle theta 2.
- We immediately you know that, just using the result I just
- got, since we have one side of our angles in both cases being
- a diameter now, we know that psi 1 is going to be
- equal to 1/2 theta 1.
- And we know that psi 2 is going to be 1/2 theta 2.
- Psi 2 is going to be 1/2 theta 2.
- So psi, which is psi 1 plus psi 2, so psi 1 plus psi 2 is going to
- be equal to these two things.
- 1/2 theta 1 plus 1/2 theta 2.
- psi 1 plus psi 2, this is equal to the first inscribed
- angle that we want to deal with, just regular psi.
- That's psi.
- And this right here, this is equal to 1/2 times
- theta 1 plus theta 2.
- What's theta 1 plus theta 2?
- Well that's just our original theta that
- we were dealing with.
- So now we see that psi is equal to 1/2 theta.
- So now we've proved it for a slightly more general case
- where our center is inside of the two rays that
- define that angle.
- Now, we still haven't addressed a slightly harder situation or
- a more general situation where if this is the center of our
- circle and I have an inscribed angle where the center isn't
- sitting inside of the two chords.
- Let me draw that.
- So that's going to be my vertex, and I'll switch colors,
- so let's say that is one of the chords that defines the
- angle, just like that.
- And let's say that is the other chord that defines
- the angle just like that.
- So how do we find the relationship between, let's
- call, this angle right here, let's call it psi 1.
- How do we find the relationship between psi 1 and the central
- angle that subtends this same arc?
- So when I talk about the same arc, that's that right there.
- So the central angle that subtends the same arc
- will look like this.
- Let's call that theta 1.
- What we can do is use what we just learned when one side of
- our inscribed angle is a diameter.
- So let's construct that.
- So let me draw a diameter here.
- The result we want still is that this should be 1/2 of
- this, but let's prove it.
- Let's draw a diameter just like that.
- Let me call this angle right here, let me call that psi 2.
- And it is subtending this arc right there -- let me do
- that in a darker color.
- It is subtending this arc right there.
- So the central angle that subtends that same arc,
- let me call that theta 2.
- Now, we know from the earlier part of this video that psi
- 2 is going to be equal to 1/2 theta 2, right?
- They share -- the diameter is right there.
- The diameter is one of the chords that forms the angle.
- So psi 2 is going to be equal to 1/2 theta 2.
- This is exactly what we've been doing in the last video, right?
- This is an inscribed angle.
- One of the chords that define is sitting on the diameter.
- So this is going to be 1/2 of this angle, of the central
- angle that subtends the same arc.
- Now, let's look at this larger angle.
- This larger angle right here.
- Psi 1 plus psi 2.
- Right, that larger angle is psi 1 plus psi 2.
- Once again, this subtends this entire arc right here, and it
- has a diameter as one of the chords that defines
- this huge angle.
- So this is going to be 1/2 of the central angle that
- subtends the same arc.
- We're just using what we've already shown in this video.
- So this is going to be equal to 1/2 of this huge central angle
- of theta 1 plus theta 2.
- So far we've just used everything that we've learned
- earlier in this video.
- Now, we already know that psi 2 is equal to 1/2 theta 2.
- So let me make that substitution.
- This is equal to that.
- So we can say that si 1 plus -- instead of si 2 I'll write
- 1/2 theta 2 is equal to 1/2 theta 1 plus 1/2 theta 2.
- We can subtract 1/2 theta 2 from both sides, and
- we get our result.
- Si 1 is equal to 1/2 theta one.
- And now we're done.
- We have proven the situation that the inscribed angle is
- always 1/2 of the central angle that subtends the same arc,
- regardless of whether the center of the circle is inside
- of the angle, outside of the angle, whether we have a
- diameter on one side.
- So any other angle can be constructed as a sum of
- any or all of these that we've already done.
- So hopefully you found this useful and now we can actually
- build on this result to do some more interesting
- geometry proofs.
Be specific, and indicate a time in the video:
At 5:31, how is the moon large enough to block the sun? Isn't the sun way larger?
Have something that's not a question about this content?
This discussion area is not meant for answering homework questions.
Share a tip
When naming a variable, it is okay to use most letters, but some are reserved, like 'e', which represents the value 2.7831...
Have something that's not a tip or feedback about this content?
This discussion area is not meant for answering homework questions.
Discuss the site
For general discussions about Khan Academy, visit our Reddit discussion page.
Flag inappropriate posts
Here are posts to avoid making. If you do encounter them, flag them for attention from our Guardians.
- disrespectful or offensive
- an advertisement
- low quality
- not about the video topic
- soliciting votes or seeking badges
- a homework question
- a duplicate answer
- repeatedly making the same post
- a tip or feedback in Questions
- a question in Tips & Feedback
- an answer that should be its own question
about the site
|
<urn:uuid:fcf126cf-8849-4aef-9f58-91a0b671c84b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.khanacademy.org/math/geometry/circles/v/inscribed-and-central-angles?playlist=Geometry
|
2013-06-18T22:57:20Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.913114
| 3,235
|
|dye with a high affinity for cellulose fibers (cotton or rayon etc.) [syn: direct dye]|
any of a class of coloured, water-soluble compounds that have an affinity for fibre and are taken up directly, such as the benzidine derivatives. Direct dyes are usually cheap and easily applied, and they can yield bright colours. Washfastness is poor but may be improved by aftertreatment. Most packaged dyes sold for home use are direct dyes.
Learn more about substantive dye with a free trial on Britannica.com.
|a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.|
|the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.|
|
<urn:uuid:b6a76838-89ec-470c-b616-2feea30ac0e4>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/substantive+dye?qsrc=2446
|
2013-05-19T02:08:48Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.923314
| 144
|
The Great Basin Spadefoot (Spea intermontana) is a species of toad in the Scaphiopodidae family. The Great Basin Spadefoot is a small, rather rotund amphibian, grey or olive green in colour. The eyes are very large, golden yellow, and set on the sides of the head; the pupils are vertical. The tympana ("ears") are small and inconspicuous. They have a bump between the eyes, giving the head a distinctive shape.
Ten Facts about Great Basin Spadefoot
- The Great Basin Spadefoot ranges from 3.8 to 6.3 cm long.
- The natural habitats of the Great Basin Spadefoot include pinyon-juniper, ponderosa pine, and high elevation spruce-fir forests, semidesert shrubland, sagebrush flats, temperate grasslands, and deserts.
- The Great Basin Spadefoot can be found from southern British Columbia through the eastern portions of Washington and Oregon and in southern Idaho, they are also present in small areas in California, Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming.
- Ants and beetles are their most common prey. Feeding seems to be generalized and opportunistic; the toads will eat anything they can subdue.
- Reported predators of adult Great Basin Spadefoot toads include rattlesnakes, coyotes, and owls.
- Adults are able to produce skin secretions that cause allergic reactions in some humans, including a burning sensation if the secretion gets in the eyes or nose.
- Breeding may take place in permanent or temporary water sources such as springs, sluggish streams, and manmade reservoirs during the months of April through July.
- Females usually lay 300-500 eggs, but have been reported lay as many as 1000 eggs in captivity.
- Eggs hatch in 2 to 4 days.
- Total length of tadpoles just before they metamorphose into toadlets is about 30 to 70 mm.
|
<urn:uuid:22745e33-e35f-41b2-afca-3ef3b04b27af>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.movingplanets.com/world/animals/great-basin-spadefoot/
|
2013-06-20T01:52:33Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.933736
| 412
|
Plants and fungi are a vital part of healthcare. Over 80% of the world's people rely on traditional medicine, much of which is based on plant remedies. Traditional Chinese medicine alone uses over 5,000 plant species.
The importance of plants
In the developed world around a quarter of all prescriptions contain materials isolated from plants. Others, like aspirin, are synthesised copies of chemicals found naturally in plants, or are modified from the initial natural product.
The Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) has yielded two drugs for the treatment of cancer: it is the source of alkaloids used to treat childhood leukaemia and Hodgkin's disease.
Medicinal plants are mostly harvested from the wild, which can put them under great pressure. In Europe alone, an estimated 150 medicinal plant species are at risk from over-harvesting.
Despite the high reliance on plants in medicine, less than 20% of the described plant species have been investigated for the presence of bioactive compounds. Many more medicines have yet to be developed from plant materials.
The importance of fungi
Fungi also provide extraordinarily powerful medicines that have revolutionized our health, with examples including antibiotics, immunosuppressants, and cholesterol medicine.
Browse profiles of medicinal plants and fungi
Keep up to date with events and news from Kew
|
<urn:uuid:a8974c07-1dc0-417f-97d7-781d5434f9f4>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/useful/medicine/index.htm?wcm_NextRow=129&plantname=&theme=&family=
|
2013-05-23T11:34:06Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.863254
| 274
|
Have you ever seen graffiti on walls, buildings or trains? Some people believe it’s an art form, while others believe it’s a crime. As with many complex issues, the truth is somewhere in between the two extremes.
“Graffiti” is the term used to describe images or words scratched or painted on property. Graffiti includes any type of public markings and can be as simple as written words or as complex as intricate wall murals.
The word “graffiti” comes from the Italian word graffiato, which means “scratched.” Art historians believe the term arose from the fact that the earliest forms of graffiti were carved on walls with sharp objects.
Graffiti has been around for a long, long time. In fact, it can probably be traced back to the first time someone used an animal bone to carve the first drawings on cave walls.
However, since these drawings were probably created on the walls of what were homes at the time, some people don’t consider them to be public and, therefore, not graffiti.
Examples of public graffiti can be found that date back to the time of the ancient Greeks and Romans. These ancient forms of graffiti often displayed declarations of love, political slogans and quotes popular at the time.
Today, graffiti is mainly applied with spray paint or marker pens. In most parts of the world, painting property without the owner’s consent is considered vandalism. This is why many people consider graffiti to be a crime that should be punished under the law.
Others, however, believe graffiti is a legitimate form of street art. Today, graffiti is intertwined with hip-hop culture and music. Street artists often use graffiti to express social and political messages.
On the other hand, graffiti is also often used by gangs to mark territory or commemorate gang-related activities. Public officials must balance the value of legitimate street art with pure vandalism related to criminal behavior.
Many public officials understand and recognize the value of public works of art. Some towns encourage public works of art — even graffiti — if it is approved in advance and serves a public purpose.
The most common style of graffiti is the “tag.” Tagging simply means painting one’s name in one’s own unique style. A graffiti writer’s tag is like his or her personalized signature.
One well-known graffiti artist who helped bring graffiti into the mainstream in the 1980s was Keith Haring. Haring opened a store called the Pop Shop that sold products like bags and T-shirts that featured his graffiti art. Before he opened his store, his art could only be found on city walls.
Unlike Haring, however, many graffiti artists choose to remain anonymous. Because of the constant threat of legal action from those who oppose graffiti, many artists prefer to remain unknown rather than face problems with the law.
|
<urn:uuid:1444acc5-f600-457c-b20b-4949af0c14c1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/how-old-is-graffiti/
|
2013-05-22T15:28:18Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701910820/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105830-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.970008
| 594
|
August 01st, 2011
Take a closer look at the world's oldest fossils of carrion beetles and experience a unique view of these 165 million-year old fossils.
July 18th, 2011
In this episode, speak with Dr. Lance Grande about his research on the fossils of the Green River Formation – a 52 million year old fossil lake bed in southwestern Wyoming.
July 14th, 2011
In this episode, we speak with Dr. Ian Glasspool about the environment in Illinois 300 million years ago and his research on fossil charcoal.
July 11th, 2011
In this episode, we speak with Dr. Melanie Hopkins about her research on the evolution of trilobites – an extinct group of marine invertebrates.
June 27th, 2011
We continue our discussion with Sabine Huhndorf by exploring the different stages of decomposition and the role of ascomycete fungi in this process.
June 23rd, 2011
We continue our discussion with Sabine Huhndorf by discussing how ascomycete fungi can reproduce both sexually and asexually.
June 13th, 2011
How are birds collected for museums? What types of information can be gathered from bird specimens? In this episode, we speak with Jason Weckstein to discover the many methods used to collect information from bird specimens.
June 06th, 2011
In this video we explore the Emerging Pathogens project, a unique research program to understand the evolution of parasites and pathogens that result in diseases such as malaria and AIDS. This project will provide a database of pathogens, which could lead to important insights for how humans can combat emerging epidemics.
May 30th, 2011
We continue our discussion with Matt von Konrat by exploring the unique structures called oil bodies that are found inside the cells of liverworts.
May 26th, 2011
We continue our discussion with Matt von Konrat by exploring the biological and environmental significance of early land plants.
|
<urn:uuid:b2fcfd15-6974-4cef-8666-2d5e113eb5a7>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://fieldmuseum.org/research-areas/evolutionary-biology?page=4
|
2013-05-20T11:29:44Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.924599
| 400
|
Quantum dots in living cells
Quantum dots in vesicles can be a base for fast signal system in brain.
Generally accepted that human information processing is going via neural networks. But it's difficult to believe that so slow system (1 ms cycle) can solve complex problems. The hypothesis about fast long distance electromagnetic interaction of bioactive molecules or structures can help. Such interaction also could implement quantum calculations.
The interaction to take place the mobile electric charges are necessary. Nanoscale vesicles filled with conducting substance are ideally suited for the purpose. Such vesicles (liposomes) are known in living cells.
The most promising are vesicles in neurons filled with neurotransmitters, because they can take part in both: usual and fast information processing and connect these two signal systems.
The problem is to find objects with all required properties. The method can be used: collecting large amount of vesicles, study of electromagnetic properties of substance in vesicles.
Let's put together some already known facts.
1. Semiconductor nanocrystals, also called quantum dots (QDs),
are a new class of fluorescent biological labels. Originating from
quantum confinement of electrons and holes within the nanocrystal
core material, the fluorescence from QDs is unique compared with that from traditional organic fluorophores. For example, QDs exhibit high photostability, broad absorption, narrow and symmetric emission spectra, slow excited state
decay rates and large absorption cross sections.
Their emission color can be tuned from ultraviolet to visible and infrared wavelengths by changing the size and chemical composition. Growing a semiconductor shell with a larger band gap improves the quantum confinement, resulting in very bright and highly stable, chemically as well as optically, semiconductor fluorophores.
Typical excitation and emission spectra of water-soluble QDs. Their emission wavelength can be continuously tuned from 400 nm to 2000 nm.
2. Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals consist of an inorganic, crystalline core surrounded by a monolayer of organic ligands. Ligands can be modified or exchanged for others, they provide a convenient way to give the quantum dots functionality. There is technique for the fabrication of nanocrystals of organic molecules and polymers. Using the liquid-phase technique, it's possible to fabricate organic nanocrystals ranging in size from 10 nm to 1000 nm.
In particular, nanocrystals of poly(4-BCMU) ranging from 20 nm to 350 nm were prepared.
To prepare the nanocrystals, the investigators mixed a common fluorescent dye with a water-soluble polymer. The researchers then coated the nanoparticles with the molecule streptavidin, which forms a tight molecular coupling with a second
3. Organic semiconductors are now-used as active elements in optoelectronic devices such as organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), organic solar cells, organic field effect transistors (OFET), electrochemical transistors and recently also in biosensing applications.
Several kinds of carriers mediate conductivity in organic semiconductors. These include π-electrons and unpaired electrons.
Almost all organic solids are insulators. However, when their constituent molecules have π-conjugate systems, electrons can move via π-electron cloud overlaps.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and phthalocyanine salt crystalsare examples of these semiconductors.
In some organic molecules, even unpaired electrons can stay stable for a long time. In such cases, unpaired electrons will be the carriers. This type of semiconductor is also obtained by pairing an electron donor molecule and an electron acceptor
molecule and is called a charge transfer complex.
two major classes of organic semiconductors.
1) the organic charge-transfer complexes.
2) various derivatives of polyacetylene.
charge-transfer complexes often exhibit similar conduction mechanisms to inorganic semiconductors. the presence of a hole and electron conduction layer and a band gap. As with inorganic amorphous semiconductors, tunneling, localized states, mobility gaps, and phonon-assisted hopping also contribute to conduction,
particularly in the polyacetylenes. Like inorganic semiconductors, organic semiconductors can be doped. Highly doped organic semiconductors,
for example Polyaniline (Ormecon) and PEDOT:PSS,
are also known as organic metals.
4. Neurotransmitters and Neuromodulators.
Within the cells, small-molecule neurotransmitter molecules are usually packaged in vesicles. Classical NTs are in vesicles of 40-50 nM diameter.
Synaptic vesicles are abundant organelles of uniform size. Their diameter is ~40 nm as judged by electron microscopy.
As relatively small organelles, synaptic vesicles can accommodate only a limited number of proteins and phospholipids. This restricts
the number of molecules present on synaptic vesicles to the number that can be fit into a sphere of 40 nm and the complexity of synaptic vesicles. Calculations indicate that synaptic vesicles contain approximately 10,000 molecules of phospholipids per vesicle and maximum of 200 protein molecules.
Neurotransmission involves 3 main steps:
1. Synthesis and loading of NT into vesicles
2. Release of NT (by fusion of vesicles)
3. Binding of NT to receptors on postsynaptic membrane, leading to ion influx and depolarization of post synaptic membrane.
Acetylcholine - major neurotransmitter.
Glutamate – main neurotransmitter in the brain.
Biogenic amines are neurotransmitters containing an amino group.
Catecholamines such as dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine, serotonin.
Amino Acid Neurotransmitters.
Amino acid neurotransmitters are the most prevalent neurotransmitters in CNS.
Glutamate, aspartate GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid), glycine.
Neuropeptides are composed of two or more amino acids. Neurons releasing neuropeptides are called peptidergic. Beta-endorphin, dynorphin, enkephalins.
Nitric oxide, ATP, adenine also act as neurotransmitters.
5. Nanocrystals conjugated with peptides, antibodies, or other small molecules recognize their target cell surface receptors. In addition, nanocrystal probes, after binding to their targets, can modulate receptor functions by either inhibiting ligand
transportation or activating downstream signaling pathways.
Nanocrystals conjugated with the neurotransmitter serotonin were used to target serotonin transporters on transfected cells. Serotonin-labeled nanocrystals
specifically interacted with the serotonin receptor, and inhibited the transportation of free serotonin in amanner similar to that of an antagonist.
Semiconductor nanocrystal linked antibodies and peptides. Investigations were made whether QDs can function as fluorescent nano-devices to evoke specific cell physiological responses. The tracking and imaging of nanocrystals in live animals has been achieved.
Intravenous injection of peptide conjugated QDs.
6. Melanin is a semiconducting polymer currently of high interest to researchers in the field of organic electronics in both its organic and synthesized forms. Melanin is a biopolymer and a neuropeptide. Melanins are particles not molecules. Molecular weight between 500 and 30000 Da.
Melanin influences neural activity and mediates the conduction of radiation, light, heat and kinetic energy. It is the subject of intense interest in biotech research and nanotechnology, where dopants are used to boost melanin conductivity.
Neuromelanin is the dark pigment present in neurons of four deep brain nuclei: the substantia nigra - Pars Compacta part, the locus ceruleus ("blue spot"), the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve (cranial nerve X) and the median raphe nucleus of the pons. In humans, these nuclei are not pigmented at the time of birth, but develop pigmentation during maturation to adulthood.
Neuromelanin has been detected in primates and in carnivores such as cats and dogs.
Many pigments are candidates to semiconductivity or superconductivity like biline derivatives, metalloporphyrins, ommins, pterins, pheomelanins, pheochromes, benzothiazines, benzothiazinones, dibenzothiazinones indigoids, cyanines, humic acids, fulvic acids. All the pigments are radical-polarones with the characteristic polyconjugate chain of acetilene-black.
7. “Caged” neurotransmitters are molecules that are transformed to a neuroactive state by exposure to light of an appropriate wavelength and intensity. Use of these substances has centered on in vitro bath application and subsequent activation using light from lasers or flashlamps that is delivered into the preparation through microscope optics. The degree and timing of uncaging could be controlled by manipulating the wavelength, intensity and timing of the light projected into the optical fiber. Because of the small size of the light guide and the ability to control light exposure at the source, this new method promises greater control over the spatial and temporal delivery of neuroactive substances than simple bath or iontophoretic application, and enables delivery of conventional neurotransmitters with a spatial and temporal resolution closer to that of the natural neuronal circuitry. This new method allows the application of normally labile substances, such as the free radical gas nitric oxide, by the photoconversion of photosensitive precursors.
Newly synthesized photolabile derivatives of glutamate, caged glutamate, that release free glutamate on a microsecond time scale after a pulse of UV laser light are described. 2-Nitrobenzyl derivatives were attached to the amino or carboxyl groups of glutamate. Substitution with a -CO-2 group at the benzylic carbon accelerates the photolysis reaction when compared to -H and -CH3 substituents. -O-(-Carboxy-2-nitrobenzyl) glutamate is stable at neutral pH.
8. Holographic recording is based on the use of a photoactive material that records a hologram upon exposure to light.
A photoactive material is capable of forming a spatially defined difference in refraction within a matrix material upon exposure to IR, Visible or UV light.
A photoactive material includes monomer, recording initiator, and an inhibitor.
Recording is based on the use of photoactive dyes as a method for media protection, inhibitor removal, and gaugable pre-exposure.
Photoactive dyes are chemicals that upon absorption of light produce reactive species (such as a radical, a cation, an anion, an oxidizer, a reducer, an excited molecule, or a ground state molecule) that directly or indirectly reacts with oxygen and other inhibitory agents. A reaction inhibitor prevents sustained reactions that consume photoactive material. An inhibitor typically include oxygen.
9. Specific optical properties of glial cells in the retina.
Individual Müller cells, which are radial glial cells spanning the retina
(about 150 µm in length) are oriented along the direction of light propagation.
It was demonstrated that individual Müller cells act as optical conduits or fibers. Their parallel array in the retina is reminiscent of fiberoptic plates used for low-distortion image transfer. Müller cells seem to mediate the image transfer through the retina with minimal distortion and low loss.
The way in which Müller cells transport light is similar to the mechanism by which the optical fibres in fibre optic plates carry light. Fibre optic plates consist of optic fibres bundled together, and are used instead of lenses to transfer images between distant locations; this occurs without distortion of the image or loss of image detail.
This finding ascribes a new function to glial cells.
It's very interesting to search for other glia cells acting as optical fibers in brain.
10. Types and functions of glia - candidates for light transmitting fibers :
Astrocytes (Astroglia): Star-shaped cells.
The most abundant type of glial cell, have numerous projections.
In the mature brain, the cerebellum and retina retain characteristic radial glial cells. In the cerebellum, these are Bergmann glia. In the retina, the radial Müller cells.
Cortical ladders: long glial cells in the cortex.
Non-mammalian species: birds, lizards, and amphibians have radial glia in the CNS. The velum medulare of adult monkeys also contains radial glial cells.
The cerebellar cortex plays a critically important role in normal learning. The role of the cerebellum in classical conditioning of discrete behavioral responses, a basic form of associative learning and memory is essential. This is perhaps the clearest evidence for the localization of a memory trace to a particular brain region in mammals (cerebellum) that exists at present. A closely related and increasingly definitive literature supports the view that the cerebellum learns and stores complex, multijoint movements.
There is an evidence that the cerebellum may be critically involved in many other forms of learning and memory, including cardiovascular conditioning, discrete response instrumental avoidance learning, maze learning, spatial learning and memory, adaptive timing. There is a growing literature implicating the cerebellum in complex cognitive processes.
After GFAP knockout (glial fibrillary acidic protein) memory is injured. GFAP is not present in neurons, only in glial cells. In the cerebellum it is normally present in substantial amounts in the Bergmann glia that surround the parallel fiber and climbing fiber–Purkinje neuron dendrite synapses. Although the Bergman glia appear morphologically normal in the GFAP knockout, they have no GFAP.
The key point here is that an abnormality limited to glial cells markedly impairs a form of synaptic plasticity (LTD) and a form of basic associative learning and memory. This may be the first direct evidence for a key role of glia in processes of learning and memory.
12. Quantum dot laser that is insensitive to temperature fluctuation for use in optical data communications and optical networks has been developed.
Laser realized high-speed operation of 10Gbps at wavelengths of 1300 nm for a temperature range from 20°C to 50°C . The optical output characteristics were nearly stable independent of temperature. Quantum dot lasers surpass conventional lasers due to their higher speeds, lower power consumption, and greater range of operating temperatures.
13. About absorption. Effective solution is to move from visible light to near infrared (NIR), because most tissue chromophores absorb light weakly at such long wavelengths. Advantage of NIR imaging is deeper penetration than that achieved with visible light.
Research is being performed to create nanoshells with high absorptions at biologically useful wavelengths by altering the thickness of the shells.
Particularly, the Near Infra Red region, which corresponds with low absorption by tissue, may be useful.
Visible Light wavelength 450-760 nm. Infrared wavelength type A 760-1,200 nm. Infrared wavelength type B 1,200-3,000 nm. Light attenuation in a live biological specimen reaches a minimum around 1200~1350-nm wavelength.
In the near-infrared region (800~2500nm wavelength), light absorption of organic molecules are dominated by the anharmonic vibrational modes referred to as 'overtone' or 'combination'. The absorptions of those modes are much weaker than that of the fundamental vibrations, near-infrared spectroscopy can
penetrate deeper. Visible red light, at wavelengths from 630 to 700 nm penetrates tissue to a depth of about 10 mm. Infrared light (800 to 1000nm) penetrates to a depth of about 40mm.
14. Organic electrically pumped injection lasers.
An active region includes organic injector layer and organic emitter layer. Emitter layer has a first energy level and a second energy level on a same side of an energy gap defined by a conduction band and a valance band. Charge carriers are injected through the injector layer into the first energy level of the emitter layer when a voltage is applied across active region. The difference in energy between the first and second energy levels produces radiative emissions when charge carriers transit from the first energy level to the second energy level. Population inversion is maintained between the first and second energy levels, producing stimulated emission and lasing.
Advantages to using organic materials (including both small molecule and polymer materials) as lasing media:
1. the linewidths are extremely narrow, 2. the lasing wavelength is tunable by chemically modifying the lasing species, 3. the lasing wavelength is independent of temperature over wide ranges.
15. Organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) are composed of an emissive layer,
a conductive layer, anode and cathode. The layers are made of organic polymer molecules that conduct electricity. When a voltage is applied current of electrons flows through the device from cathode to anode. The cathode gives electrons to the emissive layer and the anode withdraws electrons from the conductive layer
giving holes. Soon, the emissive layer becomes negatively charged, while the conductive layer becomes rich in holes. Electrons and holes meet each other and recombine emitting radiation. OLEDs enable a range of colors and have a fast response time, can be less than 0.01ms.
16. Bioluminescence resonance energy transfer converts chemical energy into photon energy, resulting in dramatic increases in fluorophore excitation and dramatic reductions in the effects of tissue autofluorescence. The technology eliminates the need for fluorescent excitation light. It reduces the high background caused by surface illumination and tissue autofluorescence and exploits tissue-penetrating near-infrared wavelengths. It efficiently couples chemical energy with light energy. Because energy transfer is resonant, and nonradiative, absorption of excitation photons by hemoglobin and other tissue pigments is eliminated.
The use of near-infrared wavelengths (typically 700–900 nm) for excitation and emission helps to reduce absorption and scatter. Even in the near-infrared range tissue autofluorescence remains a major problem.
|
<urn:uuid:55ff1bef-9f1b-4c30-8573-4bdda8d35283>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://lofi.forum.physorg.com/Quantum-Dots-In-Living-Cells_21602.html
|
2013-05-20T12:55:49Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698958430/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100918-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.896522
| 3,891
|
This is the conclusion of a study led by Professor Paul Haggarty at the University of Aberdeen’s Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, and published in the British Journal of Nutrition.
The researchers recommend that more should be done to improve the uptake of current advice on vitamin D supplements, but they also suggest that promoting safe sun exposure and access to green spaces in summer could be a useful additional strategy, even in the north of Scotland.
Vitamin D is synthesised in the body when skin is exposed to sunlight of a certain wavelength. However, in the UK during winter months, the required UV-B radiation can be insufficient to adequately support vitamin D synthesis in the body, and this lasts longer the further north the person lives.
In Scotland, the relative lack of sunshine at northern latitudes has led to concern over the vitamin D status of the population in general, and of pregnant women in particular.
The UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition is currently undertaking a review of vitamin D requirements and recommendations for the public, including those with special needs such as pregnant women.
Currently, pregnant and breastfeeding women in the UK are advised to take daily supplements of vitamin D to protect against deficiency, but the success of this advice has not previously been studied in Scotland.
So the research team carried out a study of vitamin D in 1,205 pregnancies at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital, Scotland between 2000 and 2006.
The aims were to determine vitamin D status in mothers and newborns (through cord blood) in a large population in the northeast of Scotland (latitude 57 deg North) The team evaluated the influence of season, vitamin D intake from diet and supplements, compliance with current advice on supplement use, and the effect of deprivation.
Mothers provided a blood sample at 19 weeks and cord blood samples were collected from the baby at delivery. The mothers also provided information about their diet – and use of supplements - through a questionnaire. The vitamin D analysis was carried out at the University of Glasgow.
The team found that
- 21% of the mothers in Aberdeen reported taking any vitamin D supplements in pregnancy and only 1% were taking the recommended amount
- Mothers taking supplements had a higher level of vitamin D in their blood, but this did not show up in blood samples from the cord
- There was a strong seasonal variation in the mother’s vitamin D level, with a much higher level from May to September.
- The levels of supplement use in Scotland were not very different from those previously reported for pregnant women in the south of England (Southampton) but the levels of vitamin D were lower in Scotland.
Professor Paul Haggarty, who led the research, said: “We need to do more to encourage women to take vitamin D supplements during pregnancy, particularly women from more deprived backgrounds. Realistically however, if every pregnant woman in the study followed the advice perfectly about 8% would still be deficient in vitamin D.
“Those women most likely to benefit from supplements are also those least likely to follow advice on diet and supplements, due to circumstances related to deprivation. They appear to be doubly disadvantaged in that they are also less likely to visit green spaces and may have limited opportunities to holiday in sunnier climates.
“We suggest that, in addition to guidance on supplement use, encouraging safe sun exposure and getting out into green spaces in summer may help to improve vitamin D status in pregnancy, even in the north of Scotland.
“We need to investigate this further through a trial of safe sun advice in the critical summer months at northern latitude to assess the impact on the vitamin D status of the mother during pregnancy and while breastfeeding, and of the baby, in pregnancies commencing in different seasons of the year.”
The work was funded by the Scottish Government Directorate of Health and Wellbeing, and theRural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division.
|
<urn:uuid:97dc6646-7b82-42cc-804a-ff6c2d674056>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/news/archive-details-13055.php
|
2013-05-18T08:25:34Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381630/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.96315
| 790
|
Ecological change in the abyss -- the Amperima event
Even in the dark abyss of the deep ocean animal communities can undergo rapid, widespread and radical changes. Scientists at the National Oceanography Centre are at the forefront of monitoring these changes and understanding the mechanisms responsible. Their latest research is published in a special issue of the journal Deep Sea Research II. We often think of the deep ocean floor as stable, relatively unvarying environment untroubled by surface climate conditions. But long-term monitoring has shown that animal communities living at great depth on the seafloor can change radically over remarkably short periods, and that these events are ultimately driven by climate.
Such faunal changes are exemplified by the 'Amperima Event' – the sudden mass occurrence of the sea cucumber (holothurian) Amperima rosea recorded on the Porcupine Abyssal Plain (PAP) situated off the southwest coast of Ireland in the northeast Atlantic. Communities of animals living on the seabed there at depths of nearly 5000 metres have been monitored from 1989 to the present day.
A major change occurred in the PAP community between 1996 and 1999 involving a number of animal groups, including sea anemones, segmented worms, sea spiders, sea squirts, brittle stars, and sea cucumbers, all of which increased in abundance.
However, the population explosion in the sea cucumber Amperima rosea (hereafter Amperima) was particularly striking – thus the 'Amperima Event'. Before 1996 the sea cucumber was found in only ones or twos. They were very rare. But by 1999, the sea cucumber reached such high densities that if you were able to walk on the deep seafloor, you would have difficulty in avoiding squashing them flat.
Dr David Billet and his colleagues showed that the increase abundance and dominance of Amperima occurred over a very wide area, greater than the size of the UK. Changes are also apparent in the abundance of other animals living in the seabed, including the single-celled creatures inhabiting the sediments. The whole deep-sea world had been turned on its head.
"What this strongly suggested," says Dr Billett, "is that the 'Amperima Event' did not simply reflect localised, chance changes in the abundances of one or two species. Instead, changes in the whole deep-sea animal community were driven by environmental factors."
The animals living on the deep seafloor feed on organic matter in the form of phytodetritus – the remains of tiny marine plants that once lived in the sunlit surface layer – and which fall down through the water column and settle on the seabed. It seemed possible that an increase in the amount of this 'marine snow' might have driven the 'Amperima Event'.
From sediment trap measurements, a team led by Professor Richard Lampitt of the National Oceanography Centre has subsequently shown that variations in the supply of organic matter to the PAP can vary greatly between years. Indeed, a second sudden mass occurrence of Amperima in 2001 – a possible second 'Amperima Event' – may have been due to increased food availability.
Food quality may also be important. Dr Denise Smythe-Wright, also of the National Oceanography Centre and her colleagues have shown that the composition and potential nutrient quality of organic matter exported from the surface ocean depend on the species composition of the ocean phytoplankton community. This could favour the reproduction, recruitment and competitive ability of particular species.
For example, Amperima has a different requirement for certain carotenoid pigments than other species of sea cucumber. Carotenoids in shallow water are known to improve egg production and improve the chances of larvae in developing into juveniles. Carotenoids are used as feed in aquaculture to improve yields. In the food-limited deep sea, changes in the quantity and quality of the downward flux of carotenoids with season and year may change the egg production in certain species allowing the rapid colonisation of large areas of the seafloor when the conditions are right.
"Whether it is the quality or the quality of the organic matter, or both, that matter," says Dr Billett, "it appears that changes in the density of animals such as Amperima are related to phytoplankton productivity in the overlying surface waters, which is affected by climate change."
"Moreover", he says, "we know from the fossil record that deep-sea animal communities change over geological timescales. Knowing how species density and dominance change in relation to environmental variables in the present will help in interpreting the geological record and will allow predictions of how deep-sea fauna might alter in relation to climate change."
- Deep-sea ecosystems affected by climate changeTue, 3 Nov 2009, 10:46:35 EST
- Chang'E-1 has blazed a new trail in China's deep space explorationTue, 1 Dec 2009, 0:50:03 EST
- Beyond sunlight: Explorers census 17,650 ocean species between edge of darkness and black abyssSun, 22 Nov 2009, 12:28:29 EST
- New robot travels across the seafloor to monitor the impact of climate change on deep-sea ecosystemsWed, 9 Sep 2009, 17:17:01 EDT
- New study examines how ocean energy impacts life in the deep sea Wed, 5 Sep 2012, 17:37:09 EDT
- Ecological change in the abyss: The Amperima eventfrom Science DailyFri, 25 Jun 2010, 13:21:58 EDT
- Ecological change in the abyss - the Amperima eventfrom Science CentricFri, 25 Jun 2010, 6:49:30 EDT
- Ecological change in the abyss — the Amperima eventfrom Science BlogThu, 24 Jun 2010, 12:32:52 EDT
- Ecological change in the abyss -- the Amperima eventfrom PhysorgThu, 24 Jun 2010, 11:32:10 EDT
Latest Science NewsletterGet the latest and most popular science news articles of the week in your Inbox! It's free!
Check out our next project, Biology.Net
From other science news sites
Popular science news articles
No popular news yet
No popular news yet
No popular news yet
- Stem cell transplant restores memory, learning in mice
- 2 landmark studies report on success of using image-guided brachytherapy to treat cervical cancer
- Researchers discover mushrooms can provide as much vitamin D as supplements
- Cutting back on sleep harms blood vessel function and breathing control
- Study: Low-dose aspirin stymies proliferation of 2 breast cancer lines
|
<urn:uuid:f47fdb9a-be0e-47a5-95e1-7b23455e6902>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://esciencenews.com/articles/2010/06/24/ecological.change.abyss.amperima.event
|
2013-05-20T11:49:20Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.92533
| 1,387
|
A dialog is a window that receives some input from the user and returns it to the application. For instance, if the application wants to know where to save a file, it could prompt the user with a file dialog. Dialogs can also be cancelled, meaning that the application should cancel the current operation.
In order to let you know whether or not the dialog was cancelled, CAPI dialog functions always return two values. The first value is the return value itself, and the second value is
if the dialog returned normally and
if the dialog was cancelled.
On Cocoa you can control whether a CAPI dialog is application-modal or window-modal. In the latter case the user can work with the application's other windows while the dialog is on screen.
The CAPI provides both a large set of predefined dialogs and the means to create your own. This chapter takes you through some example uses of the predefined dialogs, and then shows you how to create custom built dialogs.
The last section briefly describes a way to get input for completions via a special non-modal window.
CAPI User Guide (Macintosh version) - 30 Aug 2011
|
<urn:uuid:6e0f0d29-76e7-4577-a899-4860e83f7c04>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.lispworks.com/documentation/lw61/CAPUG-M/html/capiuser-m-144.htm
|
2013-05-19T18:58:05Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.898998
| 243
|
The Kiss of Judas (Le baiser de Judas)
Having betrayed Jesus, Judas leads a party of armed guards who intend to arrest him. Judas has alerted the authorities that he will identify Jesus for them by kissing him. Here, standing on tiptoes, Judas reaches up to kiss him, an intimate gesture that further underscores the bitterness of the betrayal.
- Portfolio/Series: The Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ (La Vie de Notre-Seigneur Jésus-Christ)
- Artist: James Tissot, French, 1836-1902
- Medium: Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper
- Place Made: France
- Dates: 1886-1894
- Dimensions: Image: 8 1/16 x 10 11/16 in. (20.5 x 27.1 cm) Sheet: 8 1/16 x 10 11/16 in. (20.5 x 27.1 cm) Frame: 15 x 20 x 1 1/2 in. (38.1 x 50.8 x 3.8 cm) (show scale)
- Signature: Signed bottom right: "J.J. Tissot"
- Collections:European Art
- Museum Location: This item is not on view
- Accession Number: 00.159.234
- Credit Line: Purchased by public subscription
- Rights Statement: No known copyright restrictions
- Caption: James Tissot (French, 1836-1902). The Kiss of Judas (Le baiser de Judas), 1886-1894. Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper, Image: 8 1/16 x 10 11/16 in. (20.5 x 27.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.234
- Record Completeness: Best (86%)
|
<urn:uuid:317f2e2a-8716-4abc-8958-1e417c187079>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/4555/The_Kiss_of_Judas_Le_baiser_de_Judas
|
2013-05-23T19:28:56Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703728865/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112848-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.765934
| 392
|
Department of Treasury: Hard Money
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue. The Department is administered by the Secretary of the Treasury, who is a member of the Cabinet. The basic functions of the Department of the Treasury include:
- Managing federal finances.
- Collecting taxes, duties and monies paid to and due to the U.S. and paying all bills of the U.S.
- Producing all postage stamps, currency, and coinage.
- Managing government accounts and the United States public debt.
- Supervising national banks and thrift institutions.
- Advising on domestic and international financial, monetary, economic, trade and tax policy - fiscal policy being the sum of these, and the ultimate responsibility of Congress.
- Enforcing Federal finance and tax laws.
- Investigating and prosecuting tax evaders, counterfeiters, forgers, smugglers, illicit spirits distillers, and gun law violators.
The Department of Treasury is constitutional and necessary for any government. It should be printing commodity-backed hard money and working tirelessly to maintain a safe and steady money supply. However, the Federal Reserve System has currently taken over these tasks of the Treasury Department.
|
<urn:uuid:5947ec82-dfc1-4a3a-89e6-4255130cbdb1>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.theamericandreamfilm.com/the-knowledge/dept-of-treasury.php
|
2013-05-20T12:32:10Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698958430/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100918-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.942208
| 271
|
BUSINESS LAW CRIME LESSON PLAN
To introduce business law, have students brainstorm different crimes that occur in or to businesses or "white-collar" crimes. Examples: how a robbery affects a business and its profit; unethical accounting practices; forging a check; and corporate responsibility.
Crime is defined as an act, committed or omitted, in violation of a public law governing it.
Tort: a civil (private) wrong that a court will give a remedy.
Felony: any serious crime for which the punishment can be more than one year or death.
Examples: murder, robbery, and rape.
Misdemeanor: a crime for which punishment is one year or less in prison and/or a possible fine.
Examples: shoplifting and petty larceny.
Lesson Printable Materials -
Print out the following pages for
use with this law intro lesson:
|
<urn:uuid:d3d96275-be62-4c27-85b9-20d5e1df9caa>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.moneyinstructor.com/lesson/businesscrimes.asp
|
2013-06-18T22:44:10Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.876023
| 185
|
eyelash viper is a nocturnal, arboreal animal. This means that it
does most of its hunting from late evening through early morning,
and more than likely in, from, or around trees. When subduing its
prey, the snake grabs it and holds on while it injects a hemotoxic
venom. The snake holds on until the animal is dead and then proceeds
to swallow it by "walking" it down the throat by moving one side of
its jaw at a time.
Eyelast vipers are usually not known to
be an aggressive snake, however it strikes instantly if anyone brushes
against it. Vipers are also one of the most dangerous of the poisonous
snakes on Central America. Their venom affects the central nervous
system of their victim as well as the cardiovascular system. With
small animals the venom can kill within minutes, but larger animals rarely
succumb unless the viper manages to inject a large amount of venom into
Because the viper is arboreal, most bites
to humans are to hands, fingers and occasionally to the face. They
usually result in lots of pain, swelling, bleb formation, bruising and
sometimes necrosis, that may lead to contraction or even amputation.
The most common effects that happen from the venom are vomiting, diarrhea,
prostration, or sometimes loss of conciousness. There are sometimes
very severe cases that lead to death, mainly to crop farmers and plantation
Oh, a word of warning, sometimes vipers get
accidently shipped overseas in banana shipments, so be careful if you have
to open any up.
Vipers use their sense of smell to find mates.
The males go through an amazing thing called "the dance of the adders"
when they are competing for the same female. They face each
other with the head and the forepart of the body held erect, while trying
to puch the other to the ground. This sometimes can go on for hours.
The ironic thing is that during this competing there is no biting from
Vipers bear litters of 6 to 20 live young that range
in length from 5 to 8 inches. The young look exactly like the adult
except they are smaller.
|
<urn:uuid:73987a64-33c0-42d3-b149-4da1b17fb46d>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://whozoo.org/Intro2000/shawloud/EKL_EYELASH_VIPER.htm
|
2013-05-25T20:02:00Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.934034
| 469
|
Effects of light on direct and indirect defences against herbivores of young plants of Mallotus japonicus demonstrate a trade-off between two indirect defence traits
AbstractAbstract Background and Aims Although most studies on plant defence strategies have focused on a particular defence trait, some plant species develop multiple defence traits. To clarify the effects of light on the development of multiple defence traits, the production of direct and indirect defence traits of young plants of Mallotus japonicus were examined experimentally under different light conditions. Methods The young plants were cultivated under three light conditions in the experimental field for 3 months from May to July. Numbers of ants and pearl bodies on leaves in July were examined. After cultivation, the plants were collected and the developments of trichomes and pellucid dots, and extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) on the leaves were examined. On plants without nectar-collecting insects, the size of EFNs and the volume of extrafloral nectar secreted from the EFNs were examined. Key results Densities of trichomes and pellucid dots did not differ significantly among the plants under the different light conditions, suggesting that the chemical and physical defences function under both high and low light availability. The number of EFNs on the leaves did not differ significantly among the plants under the different light conditions, but there appeared to be a trade-off between the size of EFNs and the number of pearl bodies; the largest EFNs and the smallest number of pearl bodies were found under high light availability. EFN size was significantly correlated with the volume of extrafloral nectar secreted for 24 h. The number of ants on the plants was smaller under low light availability than under high and moderate light availability. Conclusions These results suggest that direct defence traits function regardless of light conditions, but light conditions affected the development of indirect defence traits.
|
<urn:uuid:d10c98a0-b64a-4ca3-bd74-bb46d06a6bb0>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.deepdyve.com/lp/oxford-university-press/effects-of-light-on-direct-and-indirect-defences-against-herbivores-of-ZhpxMDZNa0
|
2013-05-26T03:16:29Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706578727/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121618-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.964411
| 382
|
The Nature of a Sound Wave
Need to see it? View Sound Waves and the Eardrum animation from the Multimedia Physics Studios.Flickr Physics
Visit The Physics Classroom's Flickr Galleries and enjoy a photo overview of the topic of sound waves and music.PhET Simulation: Sound
Explore the nature of a sound wave with this PhET simulation of a vibrating speaker.
Deepen your understanding of sound sources with this page of text and animations depicting how sound waves radiate from various types of sources.Treasures from TPF
Need ideas? Need help? Explore The Physics Front's treasure box of catalogued resources on Sound.Curriculum Corner
Learning requires action. Give your students this sense-making activity from The Curriculum Corner.PhET Simulation: Sound
This PhET simulation of a vibrating speaker provides an excellent demonstration of the nature of a sound wave and its production.Sound Video
This page features a collection of fascinating video footage and follow-on activities; intended as lesson starters.
Sound is a Pressure Wave
Sound is a mechanical wave that results from the back and forth vibration of the particles of the medium through which the sound wave is moving. If a sound wave is moving from left to right through air, then particles of air will be displaced both rightward and leftward as the energy of the sound wave passes through it. The motion of the particles is parallel (and anti-parallel) to the direction of the energy transport. This is what characterizes sound waves in air as longitudinal waves.
A vibrating tuning fork is capable of creating such a longitudinal wave. As the tines of the fork vibrate back and forth, they push on neighboring air particles. The forward motion of a tine pushes air molecules horizontally to the right and the backward retraction of the tine creates a low-pressure area allowing the air particles to move back to the left.
Because of the longitudinal motion of the air particles, there are regions in the air where the air particles are compressed together and other regions where the air particles are spread apart. These regions are known as compressions and rarefactions respectively. The compressions are regions of high air pressure while the rarefactions are regions of low air pressure. The diagram below depicts a sound wave created by a tuning fork and propagated through the air in an open tube. The compressions and rarefactions are labeled.
The wavelength of a wave is merely the distance that a disturbance travels along the medium in one complete wave cycle. Since a wave repeats its pattern once every wave cycle, the wavelength is sometimes referred to as the length of the repeating patterns - the length of one complete wave. For a transverse wave, this length is commonly measured from one wave crest to the next adjacent wave crest or from one wave trough to the next adjacent wave trough. Since a longitudinal wave does not contain crests and troughs, its wavelength must be measured differently. A longitudinal wave consists of a repeating pattern of compressions and rarefactions. Thus, the wavelength is commonly measured as the distance from one compression to the next adjacent compression or the distance from one rarefaction to the next adjacent rarefaction.
Since a sound wave consists of a repeating pattern of high-pressure and low-pressure regions moving through a medium, it is sometimes referred to as a pressure wave. If a detector, whether it is the human ear or a man-made instrument, were used to detect a sound wave, it would detect fluctuations in pressure as the sound wave impinges upon the detecting device. At one instant in time, the detector would detect a high pressure; this would correspond to the arrival of a compression at the detector site. At the next instant in time, the detector might detect normal pressure. And then finally a low pressure would be detected, corresponding to the arrival of a rarefaction at the detector site. The fluctuations in pressure as detected by the detector occur at periodic and regular time intervals. In fact, a plot of pressure versus time would appear as a sine curve. The peak points of the sine curve correspond to compressions; the low points correspond to rarefactions; and the "zero points" correspond to the pressure that the air would have if there were no disturbance moving through it. The diagram below depicts the correspondence between the longitudinal nature of a sound wave in air and the pressure-time fluctuations that it creates at a fixed detector location.
The above diagram can be somewhat misleading if you are not careful. The representation of sound by a sine wave is merely an attempt to illustrate the sinusoidal nature of the pressure-time fluctuations. Do not conclude that sound is a transverse wave that has crests and troughs. Sound waves traveling through air are indeed longitudinal waves with compressions and rarefactions. As sound passes through air (or any fluid medium), the particles of air do not vibrate in a transverse manner. Do not be misled - sound waves traveling through air are longitudinal waves.
1. A sound wave is a pressure wave; regions of high (compressions) and low pressure (rarefactions) are established as the result of the vibrations of the sound source. These compressions and rarefactions result because sound
a. is more dense than air and thus has more inertia, causing the bunching up of sound.
b. waves have a speed that is dependent only upon the properties of the medium.
c. is like all waves; it is able to bend into the regions of space behind obstacles.
d. is able to reflect off fixed ends and interfere with incident waves
e. vibrates longitudinally; the longitudinal movement of air produces pressure fluctuations.
|
<urn:uuid:284f2250-9208-4080-924d-8bcea2c9dbfc>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/sound/U11L1c.cfm
|
2013-06-18T22:31:15Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.923112
| 1,161
|
'Pneumostat' inhaler, London, England, 1934-1935
Medical treatments breathed in from inhalers like this treated asthma. This lung condition causes shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing and difficulty in breathing. The inhaler is known as the ‘Pneumostat’. An electric compressor turns liquid medications into a fine mist for inhalation through a mouthpiece. These devices are now called nebulisers. They were introduced in the 1930s. The ’Pneumostat’ had an adjustable speed setting. It was made by Francis Riddell Limited in London and came in a carrying case for portability.
Related Themes and Topics
There are 535 related objects. View all related objects
Techniques and Technologies:
A device for breathing in a drug in order to deliver it to the airways or lungs.
A common condition in which the airways go into spasm and become constricted. It causes wheezing, coughing and difficulty in breathing. It is often a reaction to hypersensitivity, but can also be triggered by exercise or stress.
|
<urn:uuid:41e6a0dd-37b3-4f41-84ff-5bf7f65d2da5>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife/objects/display.aspx?id=92834
|
2013-05-21T11:10:04Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699899882/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102459-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.95938
| 229
|
(Last Updated on : 09/09/2009)
Vastu Shastra is a logical Indian science that deals with the ancient tradition of architecture. It is the "science of construction" and the traditional Hindu architectural system where the emphasis was laid in the directional alignments. The origin of vastu shastra is steeped in legends. It is said that Lord Brahma was the first recipient of this knowledge from Lord Shiva as a part of the Vedas, just like He received the knowledge of Jyotish. And then the knowledge of vatu shastra was gradually spread through the munis, seers and sages of ancient India. However, traditionally the foundation of Vastu is ascribed to the mythical sage Mamuni Mayan.
The expression Vastushastra has its root in the Sanskrit term Vastu which means "any really existing or abiding substance or essence. In the context of this ancient science of architecture, vastu also mean "the site or foundation of a house, site, ground, building or dwelling-place or habitation. The term shastra however means "science, doctrine or teaching".
Vastushastra follows the principle that postulates that in the world everything, substance, man and animals, are made from the Panchmabhoot that is the five basic elements: earth, water, fire, wind and sky. These five elements have close relationship with man and his environment. Nature has given them their proper place according to merit. Hence it is necessary that man, too, grant a proper place to these elements in the space where he resides. Hindu philosophy considers nature and God synonymous; hence, it becomes all the more significant to build one`s home according to the principles of Vastu Shastra so that man can exist harmoniously with nature.
Vaastu Shastra, as is practised presently, is based on the 125 verses contained in Brihat Samhita of Varahamihira. This very point indicates the vital link between Jyotish and Vaastu. There are two main branches of vastu: manav Shilpa Shastra relating to construction of buildings and deva Shilpa dealing with the principles of constructing temples etc. Maanav Shilpa deals with all types of buildings constructed for residential and other purposes like colleges, hospitals, factory buildings, hotels, offices, commercial complexes etc.
In ancient times several principles, pertaining to Vastu Shastra, were followed. For instance, maximum use of wood was made in the construction of buildings. Wood is a bad conductor of electricity and as such does not interfere with the power in environment. With their divine vision the sages and seers created Vastu Shastra so that a man should live a happy and prosperous life with his family.
It is believed that both positive and negative forces prevail in nature. Vastu Shastra helps in generating the positive forces within the building. The ultra-violet rays of the morning sun id beneficial for human body and enters a building from North-East side of that site. Hence, Vastu Shastra advices that this particular side should not be blocked by constructions, such as, toilets, septic tanks or storerooms. Besides these there are several norms that can help an individual built a house where he or she will be able to derive mental peace.
While applying Vastu Shastra one must remember that there it is important to follow its norms while buying a plot of land or a building. According to this science the earth is divided primarily into East, West, North and South and the sub directions South-east, The South-west, North-west and North-east. Every direction has its own importance in Vastu Shastra. Based on these eight directions the principle of Ashtak-sutra (eight principles) has been formulated. Each of these direction are said to be controlled by a particular Hindu god. Based on this notion Vastu Shastra advices what kind of construction should take place in each of these directions.
Besides these Vastu Shastra also deals with numerous norms that can guide an individual to select and buy a proper plot or house. Several ways are suggested to deal with accursed buildings, auspicious and inauspicious omens and others. Whether there are problems with a Junction plot, L type plot, building material or the flat system, Vastu Shastra has all kinds of solutions to problems related to such elements. Unifying science, art, astronomy and astrology, it can be said that Vastu Shastra is perfect as an ancient mystic science for designing and building.
|
<urn:uuid:b2f2e1c5-7bcc-403d-bc27-8b76514bd405>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.indianetzone.com/1/vastu.htm
|
2013-05-20T12:21:52Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.953445
| 970
|
This may be a big war play concerned with foreign affairs and national politics, but there's also a whole lot of family drama in Henry V. After all, both the English and French crowns are supposed to be inherited by lineal succession. (Lineal succession is a fancy way of saying that sons are supposed to inherit the throne from their dads.) It makes a lot of sense that the play is obsessed with all types of things that get passed down from fathers to sons – from entire kingdoms to character traits (like bravery and valor). In some cases, sons even inherit the burdens of their fathers' sins. Shakespeare also shows us how fragile family ties can be. During times of war, parents mourn for their lost sons, children are made into orphans, and wives are turned to grieving widows.
Although the play portrays Henry's wooing of Catherine as a romantic occasion, the couples' marriage is nothing more than a political alliance brokered between two kings.
Henry V suggests that war has long-lasting and devastating consequences for the families of soldiers.
|
<urn:uuid:485e26bf-7b5a-45e6-9027-0ca4ed575185>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.shmoop.com/henry-v/family-theme.html
|
2013-05-18T18:08:00Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.975374
| 214
|
Twilight sleep (English translation of the German word Dämmerschlaf) is an amnesic condition characterized by insensibility to pain without loss of consciousness, induced by an injection of morphine and scopolamine, especially to relieve the pain of childbirth. This combination induces a semi-narcotic state which produces the experience of childbirth without pain, or without the memory of pain. The term 'Twilight Sleep' is also sometimes used to refer to modern intravenous sedation.
|“||The primal curse, "I will greatly multiply the sorrow of your conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children," was to be finally abrogated. The bearing of a child was henceforth to be merely a time of twilight and of sleep.||”|
—Twilight Sleep: the Dämmerschlaf of the Germans, The Canadian Medical Association Journal
Developed in Freiburg, Germany, twilight sleep replaced chloroform, the previous treatment for childbirth pains popular during the 1800s. Developed by Carl Gauss, who began research on the treatment in 1903, it was also sometimes known as the "Freiburg method". However, Gauss was not the first to suggest the use of the combination of morphine and scopolamine as a surgical anesthesia; in 1899, a Dr. Schneiderlin "recommended the use of scopolamine, combined with morphia, for the production of surgical anaesthesia".
Though introduced to the rest of the medical community in 1907, as of 1915, The Canadian Medical Association Journal reported that "the method [was] really still in a state of development", noting of many substitutions that different doctors had used in the place of morphine or scopolamine.
In 1915, the New York Times published an article on twilight sleep and the work of Hanna Rion, or Mrs. Frank Ver Beck, who had recently written a book entitled The Truth About Twilight Sleep. In that article, Rion said that the consensus of 69 medical reports she had looked at said that "scopolamin-morphin is without danger to the child."
This consensus would eventually change as the negative side effects of twilight sleep came to light.
Initially heralded as the dawning of "a new era for woman and through her for the whole human race," the Freiburg method was eventually abandoned due to negative side effects.
Some of these complications were emotional, i.e. that it removed the mother from the experience of childbirth, leaving her with no memory of the labor or delivery of the child. As one Nebraskan woman stated of the experience of twilight sleep,
|“||The next thing I knew I was awake [...] and then I thought to myself "I wonder how long before I shall begin to have the baby," and while I was still wondering a nurse came in with a pillow, and on the pillow was a baby, and they said I had had it—perhaps I had—but I certainly can never prove it in a courtroom.||”|
See also
- "Twilight Sleep". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
- Boldt, H. J. (1915-02-05). ""TWILIGHT SLEEP."; An Inaccurate Translation of the German Daemmerschlaf". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- "Twilight sleep". 1999-08-22. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- "Twilight Sleep: the Dammerschlaf of the Germans". The Canadian Medical Association Journal 5 (9): 805–8. August 1915. PMC 1584452. PMID 20310688. "From the foregoing it is evident that the Freiburg Dämmerschlaf has already undergone numerous modifications, that the method is really still in a state of development."
- Cassidy, Tina. "Taking Great Pains: An Abridged History of Pain Relief in Childbirth". Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- "TWILIGHT SLEEP; Is Subject of a New Investigation". The New York Times. 1915-01-31. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
|
<urn:uuid:2d0356e0-c92e-47b4-b326-d89ba26e7dfa>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight_sleep
|
2013-05-25T19:42:02Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.94084
| 864
|
Newtonian physics treated space and time as absolute inertial reference frames. Space and time was independent of all that it embraced and in that sense, absolute. Space and time was isomorphic, and together with the particle theory of nature formed a mechanistic universe and static concepts that go along with it. Kant used Newtonian physics of space and time as intuitions. The sensorium (reference frame) was transferred from space and time itself (or even God) to the mind of the subject. Thus, the intellect imposes its laws upon nature and not nature upon the intellect. Kant believed our thought imposes Newtonian concepts on our experiences. Independent of experience our minds are organized to think about the world in the Newtonian framework. Scientific knowledge was considered a priori knowledge of synthetic truths.
This is what accounted for deductive methodology—using fixed premises and drawing one’s conclusions from these premises. Kant believed that one could not know the Ding an Sich by pure reason. The subject is limited to the fixed categories of the mind and one shapes the apprehensions through these categories. Kant used these space and time intuitions as necessary. It proved inept for scientists to follow Kant’s use of Newton’s ideas as permanent features of the intellectual landscape having based their philosophy on his model of the universe.
In 1865 James Clerk Maxwell had unified electricity and magnetism by developing his equations of electromagnetism. It was soon realized that these equations supported wave-like solutions in a region free of electrical charges or currents, otherwise known as vacuums. Later experiments identified light as having electromagnetic properties and Maxwell’s equations predicted that light waves should propagate at a finite speed c (about 300,000 km/s). With his Newtonian ideas of absolute space and time firmly entrenched, most physicists thought that this speed was correct only in one special frame, absolute rest, and it was thought that electromagnetic waves were supported by an unseen medium called the ether, which is at rest in this frame.
|
<urn:uuid:1737b54d-2b69-4624-a657-b56b82dceb18>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://sententias.org/tag/newtonian-mechanics/
|
2013-05-18T07:39:03Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381630/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.960154
| 406
|
Zinc oxide is a compound formed from a combination of one molecule of the mineral zinc and one molecule of oxygen. Zinc is one of the most abundant elements on the Earth and is a silver-colored metal with a medium luster. When the metal combines with oxygen, it forms a white powder that slightly resembles flour or baking soda.
For use in skin care and cosmetics products, zinc oxide can be produced through several methods. One way, called the French or direct process, involves heating pure zinc metal at extremely high temperatures until it forms a vapor and mixes with the air. Then, the air is cooled, and the zinc oxide is captured in a special bag. This produces a potent, high quality form of the ingredient.
The same method can be used with zinc that has already combined with other elements. Known as the indirect or American process, this technique results in a finished product that is of lower potency.
In laboratory settings, zinc oxide can be produced by combining different chemicals with solutions that contain zinc. Another way to synthesize the ingredient is to pass electricity through a zinc electrode that is submerged in a liquid that contains oxygen in its molecules. These methods are used to produce large batches of medium-quality zinc oxide.
The use of zinc oxide in natural medicine dates back as far as 500 BC, when it was used as an ointment in Ancient India. By 1025, European physicians, including the Greek doctor Dioscorides, were using zinc oxide to treat growths on the skin, such as cancerous lesions. As research continued, the uses of zinc oxide expanded, and in the 20th century, mass-produced skin care products that contain the ingredient first appeared on the market.
During the 1970s, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration began regulating the production of sunscreens, products that are used to protect the skin from ultraviolet rays. Zinc oxide is one of 17 approved substances that can be used as a sun-protective ingredient in sunscreens. Of these ingredients, zinc oxide is known to absorb the most ultraviolet energy and protects against both UVA and UVB rays, the two forms of sun energy that are the most damaging for the skin.
Zinc oxide sunscreens help to prevent the redness and irritation known as sunburn that happens as a result of prolonged exposure to the sun. These sunscreens also help limit the amount of cellular damage that occurs when the skin is subjected to ultraviolet energy. By reducing the amount of damage, zinc oxide sunscreens help to prevent sun damage that can lead to signs of premature aging. In addition, using a zinc oxide sunscreen greatly reduces the risk of developing melanoma and other forms of skin cancer that are typically caused by the sun.
Manufacturers of zinc oxide sunscreens are continually working to improve the potency and effectiveness of their products. Recently, many top skin care brands have made changes to their formulations by including nano-molecules, particles of zinc oxide that are smaller than 100 nanometers in size. These tiny molecules are able to slightly penetrate the outer layer of the skin and have been shown in some clinical studies to be more protective than traditional zinc oxide sunscreens.
The FDA lists zinc oxide in its "Generally Regarded as Safe" ingredient category. The chemical is non-toxic and rarely causes side effects when used as a sunscreen. In addition, zinc oxide does not penetrate the pores, so it does not lead to acne breakouts or enlarged pores. One drawback to zinc oxide is that formulas that contain it are a bright white color, which some people feel detracts from their appearance. Sunscreens that contain nano-molecules often appear less white in color, as their smaller size allows them to reflect less light in one area, making them less noticeable. Some brands tint their products so that they do not create a white cast on the skin.
In addition to its use in sunscreens, zinc oxide has other applications in skin care products. The powder is often used as a thickening agent to make creams and lotions more luxurious in texture. The thick nature of zinc oxide also makes it effective as a skin protectant. Many diaper creams and formulas designed to prevent chaffing include zinc oxide. These products cut down on the amount of friction that occurs when fabric or skin rubs against skin tissue.
|
<urn:uuid:338a02a8-d119-4ba8-b6ca-74529eb09237>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.skinstore.com/zinc-oxide.aspx?ft=zinc+oxide&ppp=48&c=True
|
2013-05-25T05:41:00Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.957253
| 885
|
DEADWOOD, TEXAS. Deadwood, previously known as Linus, is on Farm Road 2517 some ten miles east of Carthage in eastern Panola County. The area was first settled in 1837 by Adam LaGrone and his family, who built a homestead not far from Socogee Creek. Around 1860 LaGrone's son, H. C., built a mill and gin that became the nucleus of the later town. The small settlement was originally known as Linus, but when residents applied for a post office in 1882, another town already had that name, and the new name Deadwood was chosen at a town meeting. By 1885 Deadwood had an estimated population of fifty, two churches, a district school, and a steam cotton gin and gristmill. A hotel was built there around 1900 but went out of business a few years later; the local post office was discontinued in 1917. In the mid-1930s Deadwood had a church, a school, and two stores; its reported population in 1936 was 125. After World War II the community's school was consolidated with the Carthage district, and the remaining businesses at Deadwood closed. In 1990 Deadwood was a dispersed rural community with a reported population of 106. The population remained unchanged in 2000.
History of Panola County. (Carthage, Texas: Carthage Circulating Book Club, 1935?). Leila B. LaGrone, ed., History of Panola County (Carthage, Texas: Panola County Historical Commission, 1979). Historical Marker Files, Texas Historical Commission, Austin. John Barnette Sanders, Index to the Cemeteries of Panola County (Center, Texas, 1964).
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Christopher Long, "DEADWOOD, TX," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hld09), accessed June 20, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
|
<urn:uuid:aa7b4aaa-79f0-416f-abe7-c42cc3bb8421>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hld09
|
2013-06-20T10:01:27Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711240143/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133400-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.967968
| 426
|
Science subject and location tags
Articles, documents and multimedia from ABC Science
Wednesday, 17 April 2013
Astronomers have found a mysterious new type of the most powerful explosions in the universe since the Big Bang.
Wednesday, 3 April 2013
Astronomers have witnessed the rare event of a black hole waking up from a decades-long slumber to feed on a planet-sized object in a galaxy 47 million light years away.
Wednesday, 13 March 2013
StarStuff Podcast New evidence the Milky Way galaxy is cannibalising a smaller dwarf galaxy. Also; is a comet about to crash into Mars? And how comets could have seeded Earth with the precursors for life.
Wednesday, 6 March 2013
Monster outflows of charged particles stretching above and below the centre of the Milky Way, could contain tantalising evidence of mysterious dark matter, say scientists.
Tuesday, 5 March 2013 36
Ask an Expert Is the speed of light constant throughout the universe? Has it changed over time? And what happens when it reaches a black hole?
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
StarStuff Podcast Signs of Saturn's birthplace raises new questions about planetary migration theory. Also; smallest planet yet detected, and Higgs boson calculations predict the end of the universe.
Wednesday, 20 February 2013
StarStuff Podcast Over a 1000 people injured and millions in damage as a meteor airbursts over Russia. Also; could an asteroid impact site in outback Australia be linked to the late Devonian mass extinction event? And discovery of a source of cosmic rays.
Wednesday, 6 February 2013
StarStuff Podcast Time to rewrite the text books on planetary evolution. Also; new CSIRO observations support Big Bang theory, and South Korea launches its first rocket into space.
Wednesday, 23 January 2013
StarStuff Podcast New data shows black holes grow faster in smaller galaxies. Also; an ancient lake discovered on Mars, and icebergs found floating on Titan's seas.
Thursday, 17 January 2013
Existing theories on the relationship between the size of a galaxy and its central black hole are wrong according to a new Australian study.
Wednesday, 16 January 2013
StarStuff Podcast Scientists discover a string of quasars over four billion light-years long. Also; forget Star Wars special effects, what would you really see if you travelled faster than the speed of light? And bushfires damage Siding Spring Observatory.
Wednesday, 19 December 2012
StarStuff Podcast Astronomers discover a microquasar in Andromeda. Also; the truely amazing Nile River of Saturn's moon Titan, and will the world end on December 21st? NASA says no.
Friday, 14 December 2012
A microquasar produced by a black hole feeding on a star, has been detected in a nearby galaxy for the first time.
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
StarStuff Podcast Discovery boosts theory that Venus may be geologically alive. Also; water found on Mercury, and Curiosity scoops up organic molecules on Mars.
Thursday, 29 November 2012
Astronomers have discovered a massive blast coming from a black hole, five times more powerful than any previously seen.
|
<urn:uuid:5637df82-12df-4c5b-b183-b3e0cd97bfe8>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.abc.net.au/science/tag/browse.htm?topic=energy&tag=blackholes
|
2013-05-19T02:10:02Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.902263
| 645
|
Grouping Dates with Pivot Tables
July 29, 2011 Leave a comment
I am not a gambling man. But if I were, I’d bet a million dollars that you will never ever grasp all that Microsoft Excel has to offer. Fine with me because that means we can learn something new just about every day. Pivot Tables provide a perfect example.
I’v raved about Pivot Tables in the past , praising the power and flexibility of this Excel feature. In literally seconds, you can slice and dice data any way you wish to see just the data you need to make informed decisions. (See prior post on Pivot Tables)
The journey between just learning about Pivot Tables and being able to effectively implement and use them is indeed a short one. But take just a few more steps and you’ll find additional ways to save time, while adding helpful details to your information and analysis. Let’s say, for example your company keeps records for each sales transaction. A simplified table might include the name of the salesperson along with the date and amount of the transaction.
Using just the basic elements of Pivot Tables, one can easily produce a table showing the total sales for each date and each salesperson. (See Illustration). But having data laid out in this manner is not completely helpful. A better way to group the information might be by year, quarter, or month. Or all three. There are, of course, many ways to add those levels of grouping when producing this pivot table. Those new to Pivot Tables might add columns to the raw data, converting the date to columns for the month (using the month() function), year (using the year() function), and quarter (applying the roundup() function to a simple equation: monthNumber/3- see :What Quarter is It?). Even adding one for the week wouldn’t be that difficult.
There is, of course, an easier way. As you learn more and more about Excel, you’ll discover that more and more often- that something you did one way for months or years has a much easier solution.
So let’s dive in. If you have data with date as one of the fields (columns), you can easily group and categorize it. Follow these simple instructions:
- Once the basic pivot table is created and the date field is set to (dragged to) one of the row headers, simply right-click on any of the dates.
- A drop down list will appear; select “Group”
- Select any or all of the grouping options (year, month, day, etc.) you want to include
- Select OK
- That’s it! To UnGroup the data, simply right-click any date field and Select “UnGroup”
|
<urn:uuid:a3a2d8fc-251c-4e94-934b-6b473213ada3>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://bobbybluford.com/2011/07/29/grouping-dates-with-pivot-tables/
|
2013-05-23T12:30:14Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703306113/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112146-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.900709
| 584
|
Animals: Preventing Barn Fires
Have you done everything to prevent and prepare for barn fires?
- Prohibit smoking in or around the barn areas
- Restrict access to your barn, and keep it clean and free of debris
- If possible, store hay and bedding in another building
- Make sure electrical wiring is up to code
- Install lightning protection and have fire extinguishers on hand
- Install heat or smoke detectors, and barn sprinklers
- Restrict tractor and motor vehicle use in the barn
- Plan an evacuation route and practice fire drills. Include your livestock and desensitize them to flashlights and flashing lights
- Post emergency numbers at each telephone and at each entrance
- Invite the local fire department over to identify hazards
In the Event of a Barn Fire:
- Immediately call 911
- Use fire extinguishers if the fire is manageable.
- Do not enter the barn if it is already engulfed in flames
- If it is safe for you to enter the barn, evacuate animals one at a time starting with the most accessible. Be sure to put a halter and lead rope on each when you open the stall door.
- After the fire, be sure to have all your livestock checked by a veterinarian. Smoke inhalation can cause serious lung damage and respiratory complications.
Printer-Friendly Version | Return to Previous Page
|
<urn:uuid:de5e4333-8993-4f0c-b416-a62477e01953>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.state.me.us/mema/prepare/prep_print.shtml?id=163554
|
2013-05-21T11:03:17Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699899882/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102459-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.876371
| 281
|
Maths - Perimeter
All closed figures have a definite boundary. This lesson enables you to calculate the perimeter of any regular shape provided their sides are known.
The example enable you to find the perimeter of quadrilaterals and triangles provided their sides are known.
This section will give you a summary of the lesson - Perimeter
Free Unlimited Access to NCERT Solved Problems
Free Tests and Solved Question Papers
Free Full Version Trial of LearnNext for 3 days
a. LearnNext is an interactive learning software for class 6th - 10th
b. Rich animation based Study Material
c. Maths, Science Lessons of CBSE, ICSE and 18 other State Boards
d. Study Planner, Performance Reports and more...
|
<urn:uuid:acc37317-2ee6-418c-9790-8462763abe8b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.learnnext.com/user/CBSE-Maths-Class-VI.htm?did=3
|
2013-05-22T15:08:27Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701910820/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105830-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.835628
| 153
|
The majority of plant species form mycorrhizal associations. Mycorrhiza means ‘fungus root’ and refers to several specialised associations between fungi and roots (Smith and Read 2008). There are four major types of mycorrhizas: ectomycorrhizas, arbuscular mycorrhizas (also called vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizas), ericoid mycorrhizas and orchid mycorrhizas. These associations are generally beneficial to both the plant and the fungus, with nutrient exchange between the partners. However, under some conditions, at least for arbuscular mycorrhizal, there is no beneficial effect and plant growth can even be reduced.
Orchid mycorrhizal associations are very different from the other three types. The minute orchid seed has no reserves of carbon and is totally dependent on the fungus during the early stages of its growth.
Almost all plant species form one of the four types of mycorrhizal associations. Each plant species usually forms only one type of mycorrhizal association. In the less common situation in which more than one type of mycorrhiza is formed on the same plant, the different mycorrhizas usually occur on different roots or are present at different times during the life cycle of the plant.
One type of mycorrhiza is usually dominant in each ecosystem. For example, plants that form ericoid mycorrhizas often dominate heathland ecosystems. Trees that form ectomycorrhizal associations commonly dominate forests in Europe and North America. Tropical forests may contain more equal proportions of plant species that form arbuscular and ectomycorrhizal associations. The type of mycorrhiza present generally depends on the diversity of plant species that occur there.
The eucalypt trees of Australian forests predominantly form ectomycorrhizal or arbuscular mycorrhizal associations. For example, in a jarrah forest in south-west Australia, seventy two percent of the 93 species of plant studied formed either or both of these two mycorrhizas (Brundrett and Abbott 1991). The 25% found with no mycorrhizal association were mostly members of the family Proteaceae, which does not form mycorrhizas but they can form specialised roots ‘proteoid’ roots which facilitate nutrient uptake.
Most annual agricultural plants form arbuscular mycorrhizas. Ectomycorrhizal associations are less common in disturbed ecosystems and are more frequently observed on perennial plants. Horticultural species form a variety of mycorrhizal associations, depending on whether they are ornamentals (all types of mycorrhizas are represented in this group) or vegetable and orchard plant species (most of these form arbuscular mycorrhizas).
Arbuscular mycorrhizas are the most common type of mycorrhiza and they are formed by a fungal group that occurs in most soils (Smith and Read 2008). The distinctive fungi that form arbuscular mycorrhizas have co-evolved with plants over millions of years (Brundrett 1993). However, worldwide, there are relatively few species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in comparison with other groups of soil organisms. Fewer than 200 species have been described, although many others occur which have not yet been formally named and described. These 200 species all occur within a relatively small number of genera including: Glomus, Acaulospora, Archaeospora, Gigaspora and Scutellospora. The genus of each fungus can be identified from the characteristics of their spores and molecular analysis is now also used to distinguish among species and genera (Rosenhahl 2008).
The most characteristic feature of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi is the arbuscule. Arbuscules occur within cells of the plant and are key sites for nutrient exchange between the two partners of the association. The distinctive vesicles formed inside roots by some, but not all of these fungi contain high concentrations of lipids and appear to be storage structures.
The roots of most plants are colonised by several species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi at the same time. There is little evidence of specificity between particular plants and these fungi, although some plants may be colonised to a greater extent by some of them. The relative abundance of different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi within roots depends on soil conditions, root development and characteristics of the fungi such as the rapidity of spore germination and growth of hyphae.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are dependent on the plants they colonise for their survival. The fungi are “biotrophic” which means that they are unable to complete their live cycle without a plant. Because of this unusual characteristic of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, it is difficult to grow large quantities of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on artificial media in the laboratory without a plant.
When newly formed hyphae of AM fungi intercept a root, the fungus enters with no apparent alteration to the root surface. Species, and even strains, of the same fungus colonise roots to different extents, but generally the more hyphae there are in the soil the greater the extent of mycorrhizal root formed (Wilson 1984).
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can survive for long periods in the soil as spores or as pieces of hyphae, even when the soil is dry or frozen. Most species produce spores that have relatively thick walls that are resistant to desiccation and are not easily eaten by organisms in the soil or colonised by pathogens. They have been shown to contain bacteria that appear to be natural inhabitants. Spores of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi germinate when soil conditions become suitable, providing they are not in a dormant phase. Pieces of hyphae can survive in dead root pieces or directly in the soil.
An important impact of AM fungi on plants is the alleviation of phosphate deficiency. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi form a network of hyphae in soil surrounding roots, and in doing so, effectively extend the root system. This can increase uptake of phosphorus from soil into roots. For example, some plants that are well colonised by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can grow just as well with only half the amount of phosphorus available in soil as that required by plants that do not have these fungi within their roots (Robson et al. 1981).
The extent to which a plant benefits from its arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi depends on the availability of nutrients and water. In terms of phosphorus nutrition, only plants growing where there is an inadequate supply of phosphorus will receive any benefit from having arbuscular mycorrhizas (this also requires that water and other nutrients are not limiting to growth). In soils where there is very little available phosphorus or where adequate phosphorus is available, there is generally no direct nutritional benefit of arbuscular mycorrhizas. Plant root architecture also influences the ability of a plant to supply itself with phosphorus, and therefore its dependence on an association with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Plants such as grasses have fibrous root systems and are capable of thoroughly exploring soil for phosphorus. As a result, they do not benefit nutritionally from mycorrhizas to the same extent as a plant such as clover which has a coarser root system.
This effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on plants through increased phosphorus uptake has usually been studied only for young plants or plants grown in controlled conditions. The contribution of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to the growth of older plants, especially those growing in field soils, is not well understood.
Obviously the relationship between the way the symbiosis functions and the nutritional status of the plant is complex and the plant does not always benefit. For example, under some conditions, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi reduce plant growth, possibly because they take a large amount of carbon from the plant. Alternatively, Scutellospora calospora can increase plant growth and phosphate uptake into plants when the level of phosphorus in soil is extremely deficient. But, it can also decrease plant growth when the quantity of phosphorus in the soil is almost sufficient for the plant to reach its maximum potential growth (Thomson et al. 1986). At higher levels of available soil phosphorus, the fungus appears to remove excessive carbon from the plant to an extent that is detrimental to the growth of the plant.
The abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi within plant roots changes the supply of phosphorus. Very low levels of phosphorus can be insufficient for the growth of the plant as well as the fungus, keeping fungal numbers low. As more phosphorus becomes available, both the plant and the fungus increase in growth. There can be an increase in the length of root colonised by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and a corresponding decrease in the proportion of the root colonised. This occurs if the fungus does not grow fast enough to keep up with the growth of the roots. In soil where phosphorus is present at an adequate level for maximum plant growth, the quantity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in roots decreases substantially. This may either be due to a detrimental effect of excessive amounts of phosphorus on the fungi in the soil or to inadequate carbon supply in the roots for fungal growth.
Clearly, it is not always practical to classify a fungus as being either effective or ineffective at enhancing plant growth. The effectiveness of fungi can be altered by changing the amount of fungus in the soil, by changing the amount of phosphorus in the soil or by altering soil conditions that affect the growth of the fungus. In addition, strains of the same fungus may respond differently, so the diversity of fungi present is also significant.
Phosphorus is not the only nutrient taken up by the hyphae of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. For example, the supply of Cu (copper) and Zn (zinc) to some plants is improved in the presence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Timmer and Leyden 1980). However, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi do not increase the supply of nitrogen to plants. The reason that AM fungi enhance the uptake of some nutrients and not others is related to the way that nutrients interact with soil particles. Nutrients (such as nitrate) that move with water towards plant roots in most soils are not likely to become more available to a plant if it has arbuscular mycorrhizas. In contrast, P, Cu and Zn become adsorbed to soil particles and diffuse through a soil rather than move with water towards roots. Roots need to explore the soil to intercept these nutrients that move slowly by diffusion. By acting as an extension of the root system, the hyphal network of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi increases the likelihood that roots have access to nutrients that diffuse slowly in soil.
Even if no nutrient benefit is gained from the presence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, there can be a benefit to the physical state of soil if hyphae help to stabilise soil aggregates. Hyphae of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi may also protect roots from disease.
There is some evidence that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi assist plants in water uptake, especially under dry conditions. Demonstration and interpretation of such benefits is confounded because the fungi also take up phosphorus. Enhanced growth may be due to increased phosphorus uptake as well as to water uptake if the soil is phosphate deficient. Therefore, increased water uptake may be an additional benefit in some circumstances, but the effects related to water and phosphorus are difficult to separate.
Within soil, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi form extensive networks of hyphae that connect the roots of many plant species into an integrated system. This provides a pathway for nutrient exchange between different plant species. The extent to which this occurs, and its importance for plant growth needs further investigation. One particularly interesting area is the role of these networks in aiding seedling growth. Seedlings emerging from a soil containing a network of arbuscular mycorrhizal hyphae may gain access to nutrients from existing plants and grow better than might be expected if they are able to connect into this network. In addition, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi may increase the chance of survival of seedlings in ecosystems where plants compete for nutrients and light. This is especially important for slower growing plants. Therefore, successful establishment of arbuscular mycorrhizas may help maintain or increase plant species diversity in a natural ecosystem.
Ectomycorrhizal fungi are the dominant mycorrhiza in many natural ecosystems, even though they form associations with a smaller number of plant species than do AM fungi. Plants that form ectomycorrhizas include well-known trees and many smaller perennial plants (Smith and Read 2008).
The main features of an ectomycorrhizal association are the hyphal mantle on the root surface, the Hartig net formed between the cells of the root closest to the root surface and the extension of hyphae into the soil. The hyphae of ectomycorrhizal fungi do not enter root cells in the same way as AM fungi. Rather, the Hartig net is formed when the ectomycorrhizal fungi enter roots between epidermal cells and spread out to form a network of hyphae through the root. Ectomycorrhizal fungi are usually clearly visible on the surface of roots. They promote root branching and restrict root extension which results in a great diversity in architecture of ectomycorrhizas. Roots become covered with hyphae to varying degrees.
Ectomycorrhizas are formed by many different species of fungi, in contrast to the relatively small number of species that form arbuscular mycorrhizas. Most belong to families of the basidiomycetes and a number to families of the ascomycetes. Some are clearly visible in forests and other reasonably undisturbed ecosystems because they produce mushrooms and similar fungal spore-containing structures above the soil surface. Others form their reproductive structures below the soil surface. Small mammals dig up and eat these structures. Truffles are a well-known example of fungus-produced underground fruiting structures.
Some ectomycorrhizal fungi form associations with many different plant species (Horton and Bruns 2001), while others form associations with fewer plants. For example, most species of Amanita have an intermediate or broad host range, whereas most of species of Suillus have a narrow host range (Molina et al. 1992). In contrast, 25% of species of Russula have a narrow host range and 30% have a broad host range.
Compared to AM fungi, many species of ectomycorrhizal fungi can grow in artificial, laboratory media, making them easier to study, although they often grow very slowly. Others are either difficult to grow or have not yet been grown at all under laboratory conditions.
It is not easy to define a simple life cycle for ectomycorrhizal fungi because many genera of fungi are involved. Ectomycorrhizal fungi are commonly associated with perennial host plants that are relatively long-lived. Therefore, ectomycorrhizal fungi within the roots of living plants have the potential to survive for long periods.
Ecological successions of ectomycorrhizal fungi occur on the same root systems leading to a gradual change in dominance of fungi (Mason et al. 1984). Some plants form more than one type of ectomycorrhizal association, either on different roots of the same plant or at different times. In this study, fruiting structures of the fungus Laccaria sp. generally occurred further from the tree base than those of Lactarius. However, the presence of these structures is not a direct measure of the extent of mycorrhizal fungus present in soil or in roots. Recent molecular studies have highlighted the lack of a quantitative relationship between fungi in roots and the number of fruiting structures formed above the ground.
New roots usually become colonised by the hyphae of ectomycorrhizal fungi attached to existing mycorrhizal roots on the same or on a nearby plant. The spores that are formed by these fungi do not appear to be very important for initiation of new mycorrhizas.
Various degrees of specificity exist between ectomycorrhizal fungi and host plants. A process of molecular recognition takes place prior to colonisation of the root by the hyphae. Colonisation of the root by the fungus proceeds only if the fungus and root are compatible. Recognition of compatibility between a root and a fungus involves molecular signalling using genetic information in both the fungus and plant.
It is more difficult to estimate the contribution of ectomycorrhizal fungi to plant growth than for AM fungi, except at early stages in plant development (Onguene and Kuyper 2002). Studies on seedlings clearly illustrate the contribution of ectomycorrhizal fungi in the early stages of tree development, but extrapolation of these benefits to older trees is not reliable.
Ectomycorrhizal associations can improve the phosphate status of plants in soils that are phosphate deficient. Under some circumstances, ectomycorrhizal fungi make nitrogen more available to plants and increase plant resistance to drought and disease. These benefits can lead to a more robust plant that has a greater chance of survival.
There is substantial evidence for benefits of ectomycorrhizal fungi in nitrogen nutrition of plants where nitrogen is deficient. Some ectomycorrhizal fungi can use simple or more complex forms of organic nitrogen (Turnbull et al. 1995). For example, all three fungi in this study were effective at using glutamine as a nitrogen source, but none could use histidine, which is a very complex form of nitrogen. In contrast, Elaphomyces was able to use nitrogen from arginine, but the other two fungi were not. These differences are likely to be important in soils with low levels of inorganic nitrogen and high levels of organic matter. The nitrogen that is taken up by the ectomycorrhizal fungi is passed onto their plant hosts, improving what would otherwise be relatively poor growing conditions for the plant.
Ectomycorrhizal fungi also appear to directly help plants avoid disease and survive periods of drought. Where the hyphal mantle covers the root, it provides protection from pathogenic fungi, which can not penetrate the hyphal layer. In addition to this, due to the presence of the ectomycorrhizal fungi changes occur in root physiology that minimises the susceptibility of the root to infection by pathogenic fungi or bacteria. The hyphal networks around mycorrhizal roots enables water to be taken up from parts of the soil that the roots cannot reach. Protection from both disease and drought are contributions that ectomycorrhizal fungi may make to various degrees at different stages in the growth cycle of the host plant. The contributions depend on the type of fungus and the soil conditions.
Ericoid mycorrhizas are the specialised mycorrhizal associations formed with members of the plant families Ericaceae (Smith and Read 2008). These mycorrhizas have a different morphology from the mycorrhizas already mentioned and play an important role for their host plants (Perotto et al. 2002). Ericoid mycorrhizal fungi colonise the individual cells of very fine hair-like roots directly from the soil, forming coils of hyphae within the root cells. The hyphal connections to the soil coalesce around the roots as a fine network. The hair roots colonised by ericoid mycorrhizal fungi are short lived. Therefore, ericoid fungi need to continuously re-establish the mycorrhizal associations as the roots grow.
There appears to be a high degree of specificity between the fungi that form ericoid mycorrhizas and their host plants. Details of the nature of the recognition process between the fungus and plant are well understood.
Some ericoid mycorrhizal fungi grow in pure culture, and analysis of these cultures shows that ericoid fungi are very different from each other (Hutton et al. 1994). This was demonstrated by comparing the electrophoretic pattern of enzymes that decompose pectin after they were separated in a gel. The migration of enzymes in the gel indicated differences in the molecular weight of pectic enzymes from some fungi. This is indicative of differences in genetic characteristics among the fungi.
There is evidence that ericoid mycorrhizal fungi have certain characteristics similar to wood degrading fungi that may allow them to degrade complex components of organic matter in the soil. In comparison to a selection of ectomycorrhizal fungi, two ericoid mycorrhizal fungi had greater potential to degrade lignin and soluble phenolic molecules (Bending and Read 1997). This conclusion was based on the response of the fungi in four biochemical tests that measured characteristics of fungi important in degradation of lignin and other complex plant molecules.
Ericoid plants occur in nutrient poor soils and the mycorrhizal associations that they form are likely to be important in providing them with nutrients from the organic matter that would otherwise remain unavailable to the plant. In particular, nitrogen appears to be released from organic matter by the activity of ericoid mycorrhizal fungi. There is also a possibility that organic phosphorus is mineralised from organic matter by these fungi.
Although ericoid mycorrhizal fungi have characteristics that are very different from those of both AM and ectomycorrhizal fungi, all three types of mycorrhizas coexist in many natural ecosystems. This illustrates how plant-microbial associations respond to the nutrient resources in a soil.
The morphology and physiology of orchid mycorrhizas are very different from those of the other three types of mycorrhizas described above (Smith and Read 2008). Orchid seeds are highly dependent on fungi. During the early stages of seedling growth, the fungi supply carbon to the growing orchid seedling. This is the reverse of what occurs in other mycorrhizas (Rasmussen 2002). Some orchid mycorrhizal fungi have been isolated and grown in culture for many years and many belong to the genus Rhizoctonia or to related genera.
• Mycorrhizal fungi are present in all soils, and their abundance depends on the type of plant present. The major types of mycorrhizas are: arbuscular mycorrhizas, ectomycorrhizas, ericoid mycorrhizas and orchid mycorrhizas.
• Mycorrhizas contribute to nutrient uptake by plants. Hyphae associated with arbuscular, ecto- and ericoid mycorrhizas help the plant to explore the soil for nutrients.
• Roots are usually colonised by more than one species of AM fungus that differ in their ability to help in nutrient uptake.
• One root of an ectomycorrhizal plant is usually colonised by only one species of fungus at anytime.
• The fungi that form arbuscular, ecto- and ericoid mycorrhizas contain their carbon and energy supply from the host plant.
• Ectomycorrhizal fungi are a much more diverse and host-specific group than AM fungi.
• Ericoid mycorrhizal fungi are important in nitrogen nutrition of ericaceous plants.
• Orchid mycorrhizal fungi form a type of association with their host plant that is very different from all other types of mycorrhizal associations. Orchid mycorrhizal fungi are essential for the early stages of growth of the plant when the plant is totally dependent on the fungus for carbon.
|
<urn:uuid:fd789611-1248-4b4e-a2cf-09941768b3cb>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.soilhealth.com/soils-are-alive/how-do-soil-organisms-affect-plants/p-02.htm
|
2013-05-21T11:17:03Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699899882/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102459-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.927581
| 5,017
|
The Himalayas, which run for about 2500 km from west to east, are drained by 19 major rivers. The eastern Himalaya has a greater diversity of coldwater fish than the western Himalaya. 218 fish species are listed for the whole Himalayas. Subsistence and commercial fisheries exploit the larger fish, such as the cyprinids Labeo dero, Tor putitora, Tor tor, Barilius bendelisis, Schizothorax richardsonii and Schizothoraichthys esocinus, as well as Garra gotyla and Crossocheilus diplochilus. The other fish are smaller and of low economic value. The exotic brown trout is established in some rivers and streams. Fish production in mountain streams is low and therefore commercial fishery is on a low scale only. Sport and recreational fishery targets the native mahseers Tor tor and Tor putitora, and brown trout. Organised brown trout fishing is confined mainly to the streams of Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Common carp, introduced in Kashmir and in the Kumaon Himalaya, is now a common fish in the Kashmir Valley lakes and the Jhelum River. Inadvertent introduction of silver carp has led to a decrease in the common carp and katla in the coldwater Gobindsagar Reservoir on the Beas River. If a better management of river fisheries is to be achieved, a better knowledge of fish stocks is needed. Protection and rehabilitation of some fish habitats is also needed. However, the future improvement in fish stocks will depend on regular stocking, as the presence of dams on many rivers and streams has stopped the migrations of mahseers and schizothoracines. Sport/recreational fishery is considered an important factor in the effort to improve the economic status of the mountain regions.
The Himalayas (Map) stretch for about 2500 km from west to east between Nanga Parbat (8126 m) in the west and Namcha Barwa (7756 m) in the east reaching their highest point in Mount Everest (8848 m). This mountain system is bordered in the west by the Hindu Kush and Karakoram mountains and in the north by the high Plateau of Tibet. The width from the south to the north varies between 200 and 400 km. Himalayas cover 594,400 km2.
From south to north the Himalayas are divided into four parallel and longitudinal mountain belts of varying width, each having distinct physiographic features and its own geological history. These four divisions from south to north are known as the Siwaliks, the Lesser Himalaya, the Greater Himalaya and the Trans-Himalaya.
The Himalayas are drained by 19 major rivers, of which the Indus and the Brahmaputra are the longest, each having a mountain catchment of about 160,000 km2. Of the remaining 17 rivers five belong to the Indus system, of which the Beas and the Sutlej have a total catchment area of 80,000 km2; nine (Ganga, Yamuna, Ram Ganga, Kali-Sharda, Karnali, Rapti, Gandak,
Bhagmati, Kosi) belong to the Ganga system, draining nearly 150,000 km2; and three (Tista, Raidak, Manas) belong to the Brahmaputra system, draining another 110,000 km2. Most of these rivers flow in deep valleys until they exit the mountains (Fig.1).
The deepening of the valleys and the elevation of the Himalayas took place simultaneously, resulting in the formation of mountain ranges with completely developed river systems. Different types of rocks and formations have resulted in rapids, cataracts, waterfalls, etc., which are common in the Himalayan chain of mountains. In the physiography of the Himalayas the forest or vegetation cover forms an important element. Sub-tropical, temperate and alpine zones of vegetation are encountered as one moves from sub-Himalayan tracts to the snowy ranges. The highest limit of forest growth in the more humid eastern Himalaya of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh is 4600-4900 m, and in drier Kumaon and Kashmir Himalaya the highest limit of tree growth is 4000-4200 m (Fig. 2). Beyond this altitude trees and shrubs disappear and the mountains assume a rugged wind-swept and frost-bitten character.
The Himalayan rivers Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra are among the largest rivers in the world. Drainage area, sources and length of selected Himalayan rivers are given in Table 1. The mean annual discharge of 209,691.6 million m-3 of the Indus River is twice that of the Nile, and three times that of the Tigris and Euphrates combined (Gulhati, 1968). The principal rivers of the Indus system being snow-fed are all perennial but the flow in them varies enormously during the year. Floods occur in the rainy season (July-September), while the discharge is minimal during winter, although occasional freshets occur. Unlike many other rivers of the world, the Indus and its tributaries receive all their water in the mountain region of their catchments. The flow characteristics vary from one river to another in the Indus system. In the main Indus, the discharges are lowest from mid-December to mid-February. The Jhelum and the Chenab have a winter minimum from mid-November to mid-January while in the Ravi, the Beas and the Sutlej the minimum is from mid-November to mid-February. The peaks occur from July to September. The seasonal variations in flow of these rivers are given in Table 2.
The Ganga has five source rivers, viz. the Bhagirathi, the Mandakini, the Alaknanda, the Dhauliganga and the Pindar (Fig.3). The combined waters of the Alaknanda, the Dhauliganga and the Pindar join the Bhagirathi at Devaprayag to form the Ganga which emerges from the mountains at Rishikesh and flows down to Hardwar and to the northern plains of India.
The Brahmaputra, known as Yarlung Zangbo Jiang (Tsangpo) in Tibet, enters India under the name Dihang in Arunachal Pradesh. At its border with Assam it is joined by the Dibang and the Lohit, and from that point, turning west, the river is known as the Brahmaputra. The river carries clear water with little silt in Tibet, but on its entry into India the silt load increases. The river causes heavy floods during the south-west monsoon season (Fig.4).
The fish species distribution in the Himalayan streams depends on the flow rate, nature of substratum, water temperature. and the availability of food. In torrential streams Sehgal (1988) identified several zones on the basis of dominant fish species and the hydrographical features: (i) headwater zone inhabited by rheophilic species of loaches and catfishes (Noemacheilus gracilis, N. stoliczkae and Glyptosternum reticulatum); (ii) large stream zone, formed by the joining of headwater streams, inhabited by Diptychus maculatus and
Noemacheilus spp. In the upper reaches or the most torrential reaches of this zone, rheophilic species of the snow trouts Schizothoraichthys esocinus, S. progastus, Schizothorax richardsonii and Schizopygopsis stoliczkae occur. The intermediate reaches of the large stream zones are frequented by Schizothorax longipinnis, S. planifrons and S. micropogon. The least rapid reaches of this zone are occupied by Garra gotyla, Crossocheilus diplochilus, Labeo dero and L. dyocheilus; (iii) slow moving meandering zone inhabited by a large number of cold- to eurythermal species such as Barilius spp., Tor spp. cat fishes, homalopterid fish (Homaloptera spp.) and snakeheads (Channa spp.).
Menon (1954) related the distribution pattern of Himalayan fish to morphological characteristics which enable them to inhabit the torrential streams. He recognised six major groups: (a) fish dwelling in shallow, clear cold waters in the foothills without any striking modifications to current: Labeo, Tor, Barilius and Puntius; (b) fish inhabiting the bottom water layers in deep fast current, with powerful muscular cylindrical bodies: schizothoracines and the introduced trouts; (c) fish sheltering among pebbles and stones to ward off the strong current: Crossocheilus diplochilus; (d) fish sheltering among pebbles and shingles in shallows, with special attachment devices: the loaches Noemacheilus, Botia and Amblyceps; (e) fish which cling to exposed surfaces of bare rocks in slower current, with adhesive organs on their ventral surface for attachment to rocks: Garra, Glyptothorax and Glyptosternum; and (f) fish which cling to the exposed surfaces of bare rocks in fast current, with limpet-shaped bodies and mouth, gills and fins highly modified to suit the habitat: Balitora.
Hora (1955) and Menon (1962) studied the evolution of schizothoracines and concluded that they appeared during the first interglacial period, when turbulent streams formed in Central Asia, necessitating the reduction of scales which is characteristic of schizothoracines. Primitive forms of this group occur today in South China. During the favourable environmental conditions of the second glacial period they migrated westwards as far as Kashmir and Sistan. The great proliferation of genera and species of the sub-family Schizothoracinae probably occurred during the second and subsequent interglacial periods. Today the schizothoracines are mainly Central Asiatic in distribution although a few species are present also along the southern
face of the Himalayas. This is perhaps on account of the Trans-Himalayan origin of some of the major rivers like the Indus, the Sutlej and the Brahmaputra, which made it possible to descend to the lower reaches of these rivers.
The eastern Himalaya drained by the Brahmaputra has a greater diversity of coldwater fish than the western Himalayan drainage. For the whole Himalayas, 218 species are listed (Menon, 1962). The subsistence and commercial fisheries exploit carps (Labeo and Tor spp.), lesser barils (Barilius spp.), schizothoracines (Schizothorax and Schizothoraichthys spp.), garrids (Garra spp.) and sisorids (Glyptothorax and Glyptosternum spp.). The other genera are small-sized and of low economic value. The exotic brown trout (Salmo trutta) has established itself in some areas of the Himalayas.
The main factors which influence fish life in the Himalayan streams are: (i) current velocity; (ii) fluctuation in water discharge; (iii) water temperature and dissolved oxygen level; (iv) substratum; (v) shelter from the current; and (vi) food availability represented mostly by organisms clinging to and growing on rock and stone surfaces in fast current.
The Himalayan fish spend the major part of their life facing the current. This helps them in two ways: firstly, to maintain their upright position, and secondly, to make respiration easier. They have to open their mouths to take in water and boost the respiratory current. Shoals of lesser barils (Barilius spp.) are present in shallow pools (20-25 cm in depth). Loaches, which have coloration of their backs matching the background of sandy pools, swim rapidly in short bursts.
The need for shelter from the current has led to territoriality. Mahseers and schizothoracines chase intruders to defend the limited food resource and available shelter. Such a behaviour develops after the young fish emerges from the eggs laid in gravel. During winter months all size groups of mahseers and schizothoracines are present in pools when the water level is at its lowest and water is highly transparent. Such pools are present in the rivers Jhelum, Beas, Sutlej and Yamuna (Sehgal, 1988). Shoaling behaviour is seen in lesser barils and juvenile mahseers in shallow pools of the principal tributaries of the rivers Beas, Sutlej and Yamuna. This is one of the devices employed by these species to confuse predators. When a few fish are caught in a cast net, the rest disperse.
Water temperature is always an important limiting factor affecting geographical distribution and local occurrence within one water system. Cold stenothermic species such as the endemic schizothoracines (Schizothoraichthys esocinus and Diptychus maculatus) and exotic brown trout have an upper tolerance around 20°C. Carps, mahseers and lesser barils have a wider tolerance and even survive water temperatures over 25°C. Schizothoracines and brown trout remain active in the near-zero temperature which prevail in streams of the Lesser and Greater Himalaya during December and January. Hailstorms and drought conditions in the Lesser Himalaya may cause adverse conditions. A drought during 1972 in Kashmir resulted in trout kill due to the sharp rise of temperature in the Vishav River, a tributary of the Jhelum in Kashmir Valley (Sehgal, 1970).
To cope with the steep fall in temperature in winter months schizothoracines migrate from headwaters to lower altitudes where they represent a sizeable part in fish catches in large rivers and their tributaries. The rise in temperature in Kashmir streams from near-freezing level to 10-17°C during May-June induces S. richardsonii, S. longipinnis and S. curvifrons to spawn. In the Sutlej River, S. richardsonii starts upstream migration with the rise in water temperature during March. During the upstream migration the fish still finds itself in waters of low temperature of 8.0-9.5°C, owing to the steady influx of snow-melt water. This induces the species to migrate to and spawn in side streams, which receive warm ground water of 17.5-21.5°C. In the Ravi River system the fish spawn in May. In the upper Beas, however, the fish spawn only in July-August when the stream water temperature warms up to 16.5-18.5°C. In the same drainage S. richardsonii migrates downstream to the lowermost reaches where it spawns from October to December at 19.0 to 22.5°C. These observations indicate that in some schizothoracines multiple spawning is determined by temperatures and flow rates optimal for egg laying. The eggs are large-sized (3.0-4.0 mm diameter) and sticky in nature. They are laid in shallow pools (50-70 cm depth) and remain adhered to the substratum until the hatching of fry.
The fast-swimming species of mahseer, trout and schizothoracines expend much energy in maintaining an upright position in the turbulent and fast current. An attempt has been made to classify the coldwater fish on the basis of current velocity in the Jhelum basin of Kashmir (Sehgal, 1988). Table 3 gives distribution of the principal coldwater fish of Kashmir in relation to the source, elevation and current velocity. The frequent occurrence of spates has proved deleterious to breeding and propagation of coldwater fish. The scanty population as indicated by the low density of fish in the upper reaches of the Sutlej and Chenab rivers may result from the passage of these rivers through deep and narrow gorges, and the presence of cold glacier- and snow-melt water.
The fluctuating discharge of water and drying out of streams, leaving only isolated pools or no water at all, is another important matter. A study on seasonal fluctuation in river discharge in the Indus system (Gulhati, 1968) indicates that the range of mean flow from October to March (winter months) represents only 8-10% of the total annual flow. There are also variations from year to year depending on the winter and monsoon precipitation. Reduction of torrential streams to stagnant pools exposes the fish to terrestrial predators and to depletion in dissolved oxygen concentrations, especially when autumn leaf fall takes place. However, due to low temperature, the level of dissolved oxygen may not fall below the optimum required by coldwater fish (7.0-8.0 mg l-1). As soon as the flow is restored with spring rains and snow-melt water a rapid recolonisation of the stream takes place.
In the Himalayas, two zones can be distinguished. The rhithron zone is characterized by a monthly mean temperature of 17.3°C, high concentrations of dissolved oxygen (l0.l mg l-1), fast current (0.9-1.8 m/sec), and turbulent waters. The substratum is rocks and boulders with sand and silt patches and with some pools. The fish of this zone are stenothermic, such as brown trout and snow trouts (S. richardsonii, Schizothoraichthys esocinus and S. progastus). This zone borders on the potamon zone which has a higher mean water temperature of 22.1°C, dissolved oxygen of 8.0 mg l-1, and current velocity of 0.5-0.7 m/sec. The substratum consists of boulders, stones, gravel and patches of aquatic vegetation in the pools. The fish fauna is eurythermic or warm-stenothermic (Labeo dero, Tor putitora and Garra gotyla).
There is no firm separation of these two zones. As a result of a study of eleven rivers in the northwestern Himalayas, Sehgal (1988) showed that a gradual increase in water temperature and pH corresponds to a decrease in dissolved oxygen, decline in the density of nymphs of mayflies and stoneflies, but in an increase in larval and adult aquatic beetles. He also noted the changes in the prevalent fish species (Table 4). Sehgal (1988, 1989) also gives some information on water quality for the eleven rivers, i.e. Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej, Jamuna, Bhagirathi, Alaknanda, Mandakini and Pindar. The information collected during expeditions is based on spot measurements and it does not represent average values. The following ranges for the 11 rivers were recorded: current velocity (cm/sec): 0.6-1.2; transparency (cm): 4.2-33.7; pH: 7.1-7.8; water temperature (oC): 9.0-19.0. For the following chemical components the values are given as mg l-1: dissolved oxygen: 7.6-11.2; total alkalinity: 50.3-202.2; chlorides: 4.0-12.5 (the highest value measured in the Indus, representing twice the value of the next highest); silicates: 0.5-1.25; calcium: 1.2-1.9.
Fisheries in the Himalayan rivers can be divided into (a) subsistence fishery; and (b) sport/recreational fishery. Fish production in mountain streams is low and therefore any commercial fishery is on a very limited scale. The low biological productivity results in the prevalence of small-sized fish, except in pools where fish have some shelter and resting place.
The fishing methods using nets, traps and poison are simple but well-suited to the turbulent nature of the streams. Cast nets of 1.0-2.0 m diameter, with mesh sizes 1.2 to 3.0 cm bar to bar and sinkers of a total weight of 5 kg, are the most common gear used. The sinkers allow rapid settling of the net at the bottom, thus preventing it from being carried downstream by the rapid current. The fisherman upturns the stones on the stream bed covered by the net, which makes the fish come out of their hideouts below the stones and get trapped in the peripheral pockets of the net. The other types of nets used are: drag nets operated in conjunction with stake net (kadh), seines, stake nets, bag nets (kochbi), and some other types. The traps (chip and urli) are typical for Himachal Pradesh: the whole stream is usually diverted into this trap.
The various poisons used are lime, sap of Euphorbia rogleana, powdered seed of Xanthoxylum alatum and Cascaria tormentosa, boiled tea leaves, etc. In addition, spears, horse hair nooses, harpoons with 4-5 barbed points and grain fishing are also used in different waters of the Himalayas.
3.1 Fish catches and species composition
Experimental fishing in the northwestern Himalayan rivers using cast nets of 1 m diameter recorded a maximum catch in the River Jhelum in Kashmir Valley (Sehgal, 1988). This river meanders (Fig. 5), which indicates its slow flow, and it thus represents a favourable habitat for the common carp (Cyprinus carpio). In the River Jhelum the CPUE (one fisherman with one boatman, both in one boat) ranged from 302 g to 828 g per hour (Sunder and Subla, 1984). The catch comprised mainly schizothoracines (24.6 to 100%) and common carp (1.2 to 70%). Large numbers of schizothoracines were captured during winter months (December-February), probably on account of their downstream migration to avoid extremely low water temperatures of the winter season. Common carp catches increased with the onset of summer, reaching the peak in June-July. This species is absent from the other ten rivers of western Himalayas. The CPUE improves in all rivers when they meander through the Siwalik Himalayas. In the River Gola during 1988-89 the CPUE from 50 castings with a standard net (mesh 2.5 cm knot to knot) in one kilometre stream length ranged from 80 to 610 g/man/hour.
In the northwestern Himalayas eight species of fish are considered to be of commercial importance (Sehgal, 1988). The species composition of a sample netting included Schizothoraichthys esocinus (6.8%), Schizothorax richardsonii (64.0%), Tor putitora (3.9%), Labeo dero (3.7%), L. dyocheilus (0.2%), Barilius bendelisis (5.2%), Garra gotyla (5.7%), Crossocheilus diplochilus (2.0%). S. esocinus contributed 53.2% in the Indus River, followed by 21.9% in the Jhelum. It ranged from 310 to 510 mm in total length and 1l8 to 500 g in weight. The widely distributed Schizothorax richardsonii was caught in all 11 river systems. This species also contributes to the fisheries in the Lesser, and to some extent in the Greater Himalaya. In the lower reaches it is fished especially during the winter. Its size varies from 89 to 453 mm in total length and 120 to 450 g in weight.
Golden mahseer, Tor putitora, is a migratory fish. This important sport fish migrates from the lower to the middle reaches to spawn. It is a multiple spawner. There is, however, one principal spawning season during the time when streams swell with the southwest monsoon precipitation. In snow-melt receiving tributaries of the Beas River T. putitora spawns twice a year (Sehgal, 1974): in April-May when these tributaries receive freshets from the snow-melt, inducing the local stocks to spawn; and in August-September when it spawns during the onset of heavy monsoon floods.
This fish has suffered badly in the hands of poachers through indiscriminate fishing. During 1964-67 the catches of Tor putitora in the Baner, the main snow-melt tributary of the Beas, by a trap called chip showed a downward trend. This trap was operated by the total fishing community of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, during September-October every year, when the spent spawners which had migrated earlier from the lowermost reaches for spawning, returned. Hardly any fish coming downstream escapes from such a kill. Within three years, the fish catch declined in two such traps from 1383 kg in 1964, when Tor putitora represented 39.2% of the total, to 54 kg in 1967. In another case study in the same stream fishing with a drag net in conjunction with a stake net during winter months also led to a gradual decline in
catches of golden mahseer. Further damage to mahseer stocks has been inflicted by dams and weirs which have stopped fish migrations. There is hardly any efficient fish pass or lift provided in any of these projects (Natrajan and Sehgal, 1982). Use of explosives and poisons are the other methods which have brought sharp depletion of mahseer in the Himalayan waters. Increased soil erosion, resulting from deforestation of mountains, has led to heavy siltation of rivers and streams, thus impairing the basic ecological requirements of mahseer.
3.2 Sport and recreational fishery
In India angling has remained a favourite pursuit of the British in the first half of this century, and it was mainly for this reason that brown trout and rainbow trout were introduced in the upland waters. In India sport fishing is now a very popular outdoor recreational activity which has given boost to tourism in the Himalayas. The best sport fish are Tor putitora, Tor tor and brown trout. One can expect that with fast increasing urbanisation in the country, recreational fishery will become even more popular as a means of escaping the crowded conditions of towns.
The trout, which is now acclimatised in the streams of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and to a lesser extent in the central and eastern Himalayas, is permitted to be caught on rod and line using both artificial and live baits. Special bylaws have been formulated under the Indian Fisheries Act in the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. They regulate the fishing season, bag limit and prescribed baits.
Organised brown trout fishing is confined mainly to the streams of Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh in the northwestern Himalayas. As per fishing regulations, `dry and wet' fly spinning, artificial and natural worms, etc. are the allowed baits for brown trout fishing. The artificial spinning bait, however, has been banned in Kashmir waters since 1970 (Sehgal, 1987). The larger rivers Sindh, Lidder and Kishenganga, are foaming torrents during May-July and are said to give the best fishing with `wet' fly and weighted casts. Bringhi and Erin flies are generally the rule, and `wet' fly fishing is good throughout the season. In the spring-fed small streams such as Verinag and Kokernag `wet' and `dry' fly fishing gives excellent results. In Himachal Pradesh every method of sport fishing is permissible under the bylaws. In Kashmir all trout streams are divided into fishing beats, each with a stream length of 3-5 km. The number of anglers to be permitted in each beat is fixed on a daily, weekly or seasonal basis. The fishing season extends from March to October every year. The minimum legal size of trout to be caught from any of the Himalayan streams in Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh ranges from 25-30 cm. The bag limit ranges from 5-7 fish of 25 cm and above in length. The number of undersized fish caught by each angler is to be retained in Kashmir but returned in Himachal Pradesh and recorded in the log book. However, there are very few anglers who follow such instructions.
The published data on creel census of brown trout fishing indicate deterioration in catches throughout the northwestern Himalaya. According to Crowe (1955) and Macdonald (1955) the percentage of fish below 25.0 cm/400 g hooked by them in Kashmir streams was 66.0-100.0% But during 1971-74 70-75% of trout catches remained below the legal size. During 1969-72 the Sindh and Lidder streams of Kashmir had 75% of angled brown trout under 200 g; 21% from 200 to 400 g; and 4% from 400 to 500 g (Kumar, Sehgal and Sunder, 1982). These authors recorded a 79.0% decline in the number of rods operated; 92% decline in the trout caught; 91% in average total weight; 68.4% in average number/rod; and 63.9% in average weight of individual trout.
The principal species of mahseers which contribute to the sport fishery are Tor putitora, T. tor and T. mosal. These species have wide-range distribution in the Himalayan rivers. They are caught on a stiff fibreglass rod of 3-4 m in length which has an adjustable brake system reel and a 4.5-5.4 kg strength line. Five principal ways of fishing for mahseer are: spinning, fly fishing, live-bait fishing, gram fishing, and paste fishing. The fishing starts when the stream water is cleared of silt after monsoon floods. On the southern face of the Himalayas, the recommended period for fishing in the foothills is from February-May and September-November. The optimum hours of fishing are before 9.00 am and from 16.00 pm till sunset. The mahseer is a sight feeder and hence, immediately after sunset they cease running at a spinning bait although they may take night lines.
The various species of mahseers are primarily inhabitants of the mountain sections of the principal rivers of India. They are rarely in areas where a river meanders and has a sandy bed, but are found in deep, still pools. The fish congregate in deep runs, especially where a fall enters a pool and in the eddies of these runs. It is better to fish in the runs, the best area being the middle portion of each run. The still, deep pools are equally good and can be approached by bloated buffalo skin locally known as surmai or a fibreglass boat.
In the past there was a sharp decline in catches of the mahseers, which are declared endangered fish in India. However, a number of angling associations have made an effort to create awareness among the fishing community and devoted anglers in particular, to conserve the threatened genetic material in the Himalayas. The same two expeditions which searched for mahseer in the Western Ghats (see Sehgal, this volume) also visited the Himalayas. The Trans World Fishing Expedition (TWFE) during 1977 spent nearly 4 months in its quest for the mahseer, but it caught only small-sized fish of 1300 to 1700 g in the Himalayan rivers. The mahseer mission of Mr. Paul Boote spent nearly six months on fishing in the Indian rivers (Boote, 1979). In the Himalayan region the size of fish hooked ranged between 2 and 3 kg. In 1980-82 the largest fish hooked in the Beas were 5 to 13 kg. The angling association, in collaboration with the Government of Himachal Pradesh, has made a 70 km stretch of the Beas an assured Tor putitora fish belt (Sehgal, 1987).
In the eastern Himalaya, the North Bank Shooting Fishing Association has been organising annually one-day angling competitions since 1981. As per the data published in l990, the largest Tor putitora recorded in these streams was 21.6 kg in the River Subansiri.
In the Himalayas as in many other parts of the world several exotic species have been introduced without any consideration of the impact of such introductions on the endemic fish. Brown trout and rainbow trout were introduced to meet the requirements of sport fishing for the British who settled in India in the l9th century. In the absence of any fast-growing endemic species in cold waters, common carp was introduced into aquaculture. In the beginning such introductions remained limited to certain areas. Subsequently, these species were transferred to every suitable area of the Himalayas without taking into account the justification for such introductions, the interaction of the introduced fish with other members of the ecosystem and the role played by parasites and diseases. The third species, the silver carp, which accidentally got transplanted into the River Sutlej, is another matter of controversy.
Five species of salmonids were introduced in the Himalayas between 1905 and 1969 from Europe, North America and Canada. These were: brown trout, rainbow trout, eastern brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), splake (hybrid between lake and brook trouts), and the land-locked variety of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Of these, brown trout is now well established, with a number of self-sustaining populations in the streams of the Himalayas. Rainbow trout has failed to establish itself in the stream ecosystem but it is cultured in fish farms.
An opinion prevails that a sharp decline in catches of schizothoracine species in the Himalayas is the result of brown trout preying upon their younger stages. Schizothoracines, notably Schizothoraichthys esocinus, S. progastus, Schizothorax richardsonii, S. longipinnis, S. nasus and S. hugelii are the most important endemic species of fish occurring in the Himalayan trout waters. These rather small fish range from 200 to 450 mm in total length and from 300 to 1200 g in weight. The fish may spawn in several batches. The main spawning, however, takes place when the stream water reaches temperatures of 10.0-21.5°C. The average fecundity is 30,000-40,000 eggs per kg body weight. The brown/rainbow trouts release all the eggs in a single stroke and fecundity ranges between 1800-2500 eggs per kg body weight. The two groups of coldwater fish differ considerably in their feeding habits. The various species of schizothoracines feed mainly on microbiota growing on bottom stones and rocks with a rasping action of the ventrally-placed mouth. Some of the associated smaller, soft-bodied insect larvae also find their way into the gut. While investigating the impact of the Beas-Sutlej Link on limnology and fisheries of the River Beas, Sehgal and Sar (1989) and Sehgal (1990) studied the food preferences of brown trout and Schizothorax richardsonii. Brown trout of 100-200 mm consumed principally nymphs of mayflies (74.2% of the total food taken), followed by the larvae of caddisflies (13.7%), Diptera (7.9%), and miscellaneous items (4.2%). The same size group of S. richardsonii consumed green algae (54.2%), followed by blue-green algae (44.6%) and miscellaneous items (1.2%). Based on feeding habits and the mode of reproduction hardly any competition was observed between the two species. Shah and Raizada (1977) in data based on 1965 records noted that the average size of brown trout was 260 g against 300 g for S. richardsonii. During the 1985-87 experimental fishing in the Beas the average size of brown trout and S. richardsonii was 88.0 g and 256 g respectively (Sehgal, l990). These observations reveal that perhaps brown trout has suffered the most during the last 22 years and the decline in average size for this species is 172 g as against 40 g for snow trout. The decline in average size may be attributed to the increase in angling pressure and the fast degradation of the ecological conditions of the river system. These observations, however, do not confirm the suggested adverse impact of brown trout on endemic species. More investigations are needed in order to fully clarify the interrelationships between brown trout and schizothoracines in the Himalayan streams and rivers.
The introduction of common carp in Kashmir and in the Kumaon Himalaya is also debated in connection with its potential impact on schizothoracines. 500 fingerlings of common carp were released in Lake Dal in 1956. Since then the species has spread throughout the Kashmir Valley lakes and slowly flowing rivers. Das and Subla (1970) reported a sharp increase in common carp catches in Lake Dal, with the once abundant schizothoracine species having been virtually ousted. It is believed that the endemic schizothoracines are fast losing their ground in Kashmir lakes due to the higher fecundity of common carp and its habit of spawning in confined waters (Sunder et al., 1979). By contrast, schizothoracines undergo breeding migration for spawning in turbulent streams, and they also have a lower fecundity than carp. The feeding pattern of common carp and schizothoracines is almost identical, with many of the lacustrine species of schizothoracines feeding on detritus and benthos. In the Jhelum River in Kashmir schizothoracines represented 78% of the total catch during 1980-82 (Sunder and Subha, 1984a). In Gobindsagar Reservoir (Fig. 6) common carp contributed 22-35% to the total catch between 1975 and 1984, but with the increase in silver carp there was a decline in common carp (Kumar, 1988). Due to their high fecundity, silver and common carps have monopolised the whole water body. According to Kumar (1988) the exotic carps in Gobindsagar have increased annually at a rate of 8.2% for the last 14 years. This may be attributed to various factors like distortion of ecology of such waters as a result of natural and man-made causes and destruction of spawning grounds and diversion of stream water. It will, however, be necessary to undertake detailed investigations on the biology of the two species in selected waters to further clarify the silver carp-common carp-mahseer-schizothoracines interrelationships. In spite of the common carp being the most common food fish in the Himalayas, schizothoracines are still the consumer's first preference.
The first introduction of silver carp in the Himalayan waters was an accident. About 47 specimens of silver carp found their way into the Sutlej River in Himachal Pradesh in 1971 when floods inundated the Deoli fish farm located on its bank near the tail end of Gobindsagar reservoir. The species has since established itself in the reservoir resulting in the formation of a self-sustaining population. The fish entered the catches in 1976. By 1987 silver carp represented 65.8% of the total catch. Due to poor keeping quality, the species though rated `A' production-wise is `C' grade in consumers' preference. This has brought economic losses to the fishing community. As a fish which feeds largely on phytoplankton silver carp has a biological advantage over the Indian carp katla (Catla catla), a column plankton feeder. Silver carp also matures earlier than katla. Silver carp now outnumbers katla in this reservoir.
Over the years uncontrolled and often indiscriminate fishing in the largely unmanaged Himalayan rivers and streams has resulted in a sharp decline in catches of the important sport and subsistence fish. The increasing use of river water for irrigation, hydropower production, municipal and industrial purposes, and the inputs of pollutants, have also impacted on fish stocks. Among the difficulties that fishery managers are facing today is the shortage of data for a number of rivers and even whole areas of Himalayas. Information is available on limnology and fisheries of certain stretches of streams traversing the northwestern and central Himalayas but there is hardly any information on the ecology and fisheries of rivers of the eastern Himalaya. The most essential requirement is to estimate the resources which would enable the fishery scientists and planners to formulate a management policy. Another, and an increasingly important aspects, is the need to evaluate the environmental impacts caused by human-induced changes in river and lake catchments, and how these have contributed to the decline in fish stocks. The use of destructive methods of fishing calls for effective enforcement of legislative measures and for education of the fishing community. There is a need to improve the surveillance along the rivers in order to protect fish stocks. In this respect the role of voluntary agencies in conserving stocks must not be underestimated.
During the 1970s and 1980s studies of the Himalayan streams in the northwestern, central and eastern Himalayas showed that a variety of human impacts had resulted in changes in benthic productivity, fish community structure and fish yield. The impact of ecological changes as a result of human and natural stresses was investigated in a case study of the River Beas between 1985-87. There were changes in water temperature, current velocity, total alkalinity and silicates concentrations. Among the benthic invertebrates there was a decline in the density of stonefly and caddisfly larvae, and in the aufwuchs community on stones, as compared with pre-impoundment conditions (Sehgal, 1990). This probably also contributed to the changes in brown trout and rainbow trout. The average weight of brown trout in the River Beas declined from 260 g in 1964-65, to 87 g during 1985-87 (Shah and Raizada, 1977). The average weight of S. richardsonii also declined from 300 g in 1965 to 260 g in 1985-87.
The study on the Beas River further revealed considerable impact of water abstraction on aquatic life below the dam. The diversion of the Beas water to the Sutlej River brought nearly 61% reduction in water discharge and an increase in water temperature by 4oC. The reduction in water discharge resulted in an increase in benthic microbiota. Among the benthic invertebrates there was a sharp decline in the density of stonefly nymphs as a result of the sharp reduction in current and increase in water temperature. Fortunately, the Beas below the dam at Pandoh receives a major right bank tributary, the Uhl, at a distance of about 10 km from the dam. The water volume in the Uhl at this point is about equal to that of the Beas and as a result, after the confluence of the Uhl with Beas, the situation returns to normal.
In the central Himalaya, large and medium-sized dams on the Chenab at Salal and on the various source rivers of the Ganga at Tehri, Rudraprayag, Vishnuprayag and Lachmanjhula, are likely to have an impact, especially on the mahseers and schizothoracines. As stated earlier the schizothoracines undertake migration from upstream to downstream at certain times of the year. Any obstruction on their migratory routes will adversely affect the winter fishery for these fish in the lower reaches of these rivers. A dam on the Beas resulted in a reduction in the proportion of mahseers and schizothoracines in the winter catches between Mandi and Nadaun, from 10.2-13.5% in 1964 to 1.0-0.5% in 1985-87. Tor putitora, which used to migrate in the Beas up to Sultanpur, Kulu Valley, prior to completion of the Beas dam, now cannot proceed upstream beyond Pandoh. The Juni tributary, which used to be the main spawning ground of Tor putitora at Pandoh, has disappeared as a result of the accumulation of debris (Sehgal, 1990).
Fish ladders constructed on several weirs and barrages to facilitate migration of Tor putitora and other carps were found ineffective. The drawbacks of these fish ladders are their steepness and then narrow and inconspicuous inlets. These ladders were found to function as fish traps and as such used by poachers. A high dam on the River Sutlej at Bhakra resulted in a sharp decline in catches of Tor putitora in Gobindsagar reservoir from 40% in 1966 to 0.5% in 1979 (Natrajan and Sehgal, 1982). But this was later followed by an increase in catches of this mahseer, indicating that mahseer has found a way to produce new stocks under the new situation (Kumar, 1988).
While the creation of a reservoir results in the creation of a new habitat for fish, at the same time many endemic species are adversely affected. To resolve this problem, priority should be given to the preservation of the diminished stocks of riverine fish species. This should include enforcement of legislative measures such as closed season and mesh size regulation, and also the involvement of voluntary organisations, including fishing associations and clubs, in an effort to maintain the fish stocks at a healthy level. The stocks should be enhanced through regular releases of hatchery-produced fingerlings. Only in this way can the rising demands from subsistence and sport/recreational fishermen be satisfied. A programme of stream improvement to maintain optimal conditions for coldwater fish, is also needed, especially where such streams have been impacted by dams, channelization and pollution.
The age-old practice in India of imposing religious taboos on certain stretches and pools of important streams has undoubtedly helped to preserve mahseers and schizothoracines. Selected stretches of streams and rivers, pools and temple springs in the states Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh act as coldwater fish sanctuaries in the Himalayas. The practice of protecting fish stocks of brown trout and schizothoracines in Kashmir streams during the low water level period by creating deep pools, covering them with tree branches and protecting them from poaching, also has proved beneficial. The best way of improving the trout fishery in rivers and lakes is to regularly stock the waters with yearlings produced in hatcheries.
Better estimates of the carrying capacity of different streams would assist the fishery managers to better regulate sport and recreational fishing and to determine stocking rates. To meet the ever increasing demand for trout fishing in the Himalayas the authorities are enforcing a reduction in bag limit and closing of certain streams for fishing for some years. A study on the recapture of tagged fish is needed to estimate the percentage return of stocked fish.
There is also need to improve infrastructure for recreational and sport fishermen, as this would attract more tourists to the areas. Already such facilities exist in some parts of Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Permanent stocks of brown trout are now established in the Himalayan streams of Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh. At present Kashmir has 273 km of streams available for trout fishing, Himachal Pradesh 184 km, and Uttar Pradesh 150 km. It is common knowledge that fishing tourism improves the economic status of a region. A case study on economic benefits of sport fishing for mahseer/trout in Himachal Pradesh (Sarin, 1979) estimated that every international angler spends about US $ 200 per week, as compared to US $ 30 spent by a local angler.
Boote, P. 1979. Mahseer Mission I-IV. Angling: August 9-11; September 21-24; October 26-29; November 22-25. Report.
Crowe, P. 1955. Trout fishing in Kashmir. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 53: 217-28.
Das, S.M. and B.A. Subla. 1970. The Pamir-Kashmir theory of the origin and evolution of ichthyofauna of Kashmir. Ichthyologica 10(1-2): 8-11.
Gulhati, N.D. 1968. The Indus and its tributaries. Proc. 21st Internat. Geogr. Congress, India: 348-55.
Hora, S.L. 1955. Tectonic history of India and its bearing on fish geography. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 52: 692-701.
Kumar, K. 1988. Gobindsagar reservoir, a case study on the use of carp stocking for fisheries management. FAO Fish. Tech. Rep. No.405 (Supplement): 46-70. FAO, Rome.
Kumar, K., K.L. Sehgal and S. Sunder 1982. General creel census of the two principal trout streams of Kashmir. J. Inl. Fish. Soc. India 14(1): 11-17.
Macdonald, A.St.J. 1955. A fishing holiday. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 53: 346-56.
Menon, A.G.K. 1954. Fish geography of the Himalayas. Proc. Nat. Sci. India 20(4): 467-93.
Menon, A.G.K. 1962. A distributional list of fishes of the Himalayas. J. Zool. Soc. India 14(1 and 2): 23-32.
Natrajan, A.V. and K.L. Sehgal. 1982. State of art report on biological behaviour of migratory fishes in the context of river valley projects. Report. CIFRI, Barrackpore. 42pp.
Sarin, N.C. 1979. Protection of fish and its impact on national and international tourism. Indo-lGerman Agric. Project, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh. Special Issue, Newsletter
Sehgal, K.L. 1970. Report on the factors responsible for large-scale mortality of brown trout, Salmo trutta fario Linnaeus in Chawalgam trout farm in Kashmir Valley. CIFRI/CWF Rep. 7: 10pp.
Sehgal, K.L. 1974. Report on the researches carried out at the Coldwater Fisheries Research Centre in Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir from 1966-1973. CIFRI Suppl. Rep. 13pp.
Sehgal, K.L. 1987. Sport fisheries in India. ICAR Publication, New Delhi. 126pp.
Sehgal, K.L. 1988. Ecology and fisheries of mountain streams of the North-Western Himalayas. Thesis for the award of D.Sc. degree, University of Meerut, India.
Sehgal, K.L. 1990. Report on impact of construction and completion of Beas Project (Stage I - Beas-Sutlej Link, and Stage II - Pong Dam) on limnology and fisheries of R. Beas. CIFRI/NRCCWF. 45pp.
Sehgal, K.L. and C.K. Sar. 1989. Impact of construction and completion of Beas-Sutlej (BSL) Project on coldwater fisheries of R. Beas in Himachal Pradesh. In: National Workshop on Research and Development Needs of Coldwater Fisheries in India, Haldwani, Jan. 1989. Abstract No.14.
Shah, K.L. and S.B. Raizada. 1977. Preliminary observations on the creel census and angling pressure in a stretch of R. Beas in Kulu Valley. J. Inland Fish. Soc. India 9: 117-24.
Sunder, S., M.J. Bhagat, C.B. Joshi and K.V. Ramakrishna. 1979. Fishing methods and fish catch composition of Dal lake, Kashmir (J&K) during 1969-72. J. Inland Fish. Soc. India 10: 9-18.
Sunder, S. and B.A. Subla. 1984. Hydrobiological observations in a stretch of river Jhelum, Kashmir. II. Phytoplankton. In: Seminar on Conservation and Management of Fisheries Resources, Jammu. Abstract No.9.
Sunder, S. and B.A. Subla. 1984a. Fish and fisheries of R. Jhelum, Kashmir. Zoologica Orientalis 1(2):34-39.
|
<urn:uuid:c6a7f110-1db1-4c55-9b73-f29d5ad553c3>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/x2614e/x2614e04.htm
|
2013-05-18T17:58:01Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.925171
| 11,165
|
Fans of Lake St. Clair's 420 square miles of water connecting Lake Erie and Lake Huron want to make it the sixth Great Lake. They should forget it.
At 26 miles long and 14 miles wide at its widest, this lake is important as a link and an established part of the Great Lakes waterway system. But a Great Lake? The notion makes no more sense than an effort four years ago to designate Lake Champlain, which lies between Vermont and New York, a Great Lake.
Leading the campaign to promote Lake St. Clair, a puddle in comparison with Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, are two members of the Macomb Water Quality Board. Their aims are as economic as ecological, as connected to sport fishing as to shipping, and to clean water as to biodiversity.
What's behind their petition to the Great Lakes Commission is money. Lake St. Clair's characterization as a “Great,” though it flies in the face of common sense, would entitle it to federal dollars allocated to the real Great Lakes for pollution and weed control, to save wetlands, correct contamination from runoff, and help get rid of noxious marine life such as the gobey and the zebra mussel brought in by foreign vessels.
But Lake St. Clair, because it connects Lake Erie and Lake Huron, may be entitled to some of this money anyway. If the lake is contaminated, if it harbors alien noxious species, they will be quick to spread to the Great Lakes. It is a key part of the system.
Is this money possible? Of course it is. The Great Lakes Commission last year set aside a half million dollars in federal funds to correct chronic pollution in Lake St. Clair.
It could use some of its allocations under the Great Lakes Legacy Act to keep conditions in Lake St. Clair comparable to those in the Great Lakes.
And if there is a reason to fix Lake St. Clair, surely it is easier for Congress to fix it than to see this relatively small body of water declared a Great Lake.
Michael J. Donahue, who heads the Great Lakes Commission, acknowledges that the commission staff has been calling St. Clair the sixth Great Lake for a while, if only to illustrate the importance of the whole water system.
But even he concedes that the name is not the issue, that what Lake St. Clair needs is some kind attention and some recognition because it “might be a lot more important, economically and ecologically, than the five Great Lakes.”
Maybe so, but there are not six Great Lakes, only five.
|
<urn:uuid:0e82ea0f-5a9c-4368-91cc-06a997c2409a>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.toledoblade.com/Editorials/2002/10/13/Only-five-lakes-are-Great.html
|
2013-05-27T02:55:15Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.949671
| 535
|
Something smells like a pig, you say?
Has the Obama administration made good on campaign promises for criminal justice reform?
By Nikki Jones
Nikki Jones is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is the author of Between Good and Ghetto: African American Girls and Inner-City Violence. Nikki is the social science editor of The Public Intellectual.
The Pig Law started after the end of slavery, just one in a slew of laws enacted by white southerners to replace what the South lost in the War: a steady stream of free labor. Unemployment at the first of the year, for example, became illegal for blacks after the War, punishable by a $50 fine. That kind of law was called a black code because it applied only to black people. The Pig Law was a little different – it took a crime more likely to be committed by black people and made the penalty for that infraction harsher. Stealing a pig started carrying a steeper penalty than other kinds of theft because it was a crime committed disproportionately by African Americans in the decades after the Civil War. That this kind of theft was more than likely a desperate attempt to find food made no difference in determining punishment.
An explosion in the criminal convictions of black people for mostly non-violent offenses followed the new laws. Their punishments were long sentences served on convict labor gangs throughout the South. Black men were ordered to work mines, sawmills, railroad camps and cotton fields. Black women, children and the disabled were sent to lumber companies and plantations. “Slavery by another name,” is how Douglas A. Blackmon describes it. Many black convicts, historian David Oshinsky writes, died under conditions worse than slavery.
Our time is depressingly reminiscent of the post-Reconstruction era, the first time when hope for racial justice rose and then died. Our current tough-on-crime era came hard on the heels of the civil rights movement, much like the Pig Laws came so quickly after Reconstruction. The consequences for black people were predictably awful.
In the years following the adoption of the new drug laws, the number of people incarcerated in federal prisons for drug offenses skyrocketed. Young black men, especially those with little schooling, bore the brunt of the new laws. From 1925 to 1972, the number of state prisoners nearly doubled, from about 85,000 to about 175,000. Since 1972, that number has increased 708 percent. In 2009, just over 2.3 million people were incarcerated in prisons and jails. A black man born between 1965 and 1969, after the major victories of the civil rights movement, is almost twice as likely to be imprisoned than a black man born before the historic 1964 Civil Rights Act was passed by President Lyndon Johnson.
Though as many have pointed out, the civil rights era improved the lives of many black people significantly, I still say that some hope for racial justice died in the 1980s, when the mass incarceration of black people under drug laws started.
When Obama was elected in 2008, we felt a collective surge of hope. Another bright spot in our depressing history of civil rights was long overdue, and his election was certainly a bright spot. But I had bigger expectations of our first black president, more than just the simple fact of his existence. Would our first black president finally dismantle the Pig Laws? That’s what I wanted to see happen when Obama took office.
The Pig Law found its modern incarnation in the form of tough-on-crime legislation in the late 1980s. In 1983, Rudolph Giuliani, who is now Republican royalty, but was then an ambitious New York-based federal prosecutor, outlined the morality of the new drug war in an editorial in the New York Times. “There is a war being fought in [the Lower East Side], a territorial war,” he wrote. “On one side are hard-working, law abiding people. On the other are the invaders who use the streets and abandoned buildings to carry an open market on drugs.” Giuliani explained the underlying logic of arresting “street-level sellers” on federal charges: “If those who are arrested are punished with sentences that frighten those who might be contemplating such crimes we can reduce drug traffic.” Similar arguments were offered from both sides of the aisle in Congress.
Lawmakers’ concerns about open-air drug markets in the city were also fueled by a fear that the urban drug epidemics of the 80’s, especially crack, would spill over to the suburbs. The tougher anti-crack legislation of the 1980s, specifically the 1986 and 1988 Anti-Drug Abuse Acts focused prosecutors’ efforts on low-end urban drug dealers. The Acts also seriously limited judicial discretion in sentencing (a change that has only recently been addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court), and introduced the now infamous 100:1 penalty ratio for cocaine and crack offenses. This federal shift trickled down to state and local jurisdictions. States followed the federal government’s lead, writes legal scholar Doris Marie Provine, resulting in “two decades of racially skewed patterns of arrests, convictions, and sentencing in drug cases, and subsequent disqualification of Black citizens from voting and other benefits of citizenship.’’
The federal government’s adoption of modern-day pig laws created what Harvard demographer Bruce Western coined “the mass imprisonment generation.” Today, ten percent of young black men between twenty and twenty-five have been in prison. That’s how the federal government chose to invest our money in poor black neighborhoods. And if you have any doubt that the investment of federal dollars shapes generations, consider how, in the wake of World War II, federal investment helped to create what we remember today as the greatest generation. The mostly white men who went to college and bought homes under the G.I. Bill found entree into the middle class, and their descendants continue to benefit from this investment.
Even as we begin to see small declines in prison populations in some states, and efforts to ease transitions from prison in others, the reality is that it will take generations to undo what was done: our investment in punishment will shape racial disparities for decades.
These facts should be familiar, and pointing them out may even sound cliché. But I outline the problem in order to ask a question: what has our new president done about it on the federal level? And how has Obama’s example influenced policy on the state and local level?
People like to make easy comparisons between then and now: the prison is a plantation, or the ghetto is a prison. But the differences are important.
The punishment of black men, women and children was much more brutal in the post-Civil War South. But today’s system of punishment is much more extensive. Our country’s embrace of colorblind rhetoric—the idea that first the civil rights movement, and then the election of the nation’s first black president, made our race problem all better—has also made challenging these laws on racial grounds even more difficult. Left unaltered, our rules will continue to churn out race-based justice disparities for decades to come.
Dismantling our twenty-first century Pig Laws requires real leadership on the federal level.
Obama’s crime platform during the campaign was certainly cause for hope for strong leadership. His platform seemed promising, with four key objectives: eliminate mandatory minimums, eliminate the disparity in crack/cocaine sentencing, establish reentry programs, and establish drug courts. Obama’s platform also seemed slightly ironic, given that his running mate, Joe Biden, was in no small part responsible for introducing the crack/cocaine sentencing disparity as a senator in the 1980s. (Biden later apologized for his role and acknowledged that introducing the disparity was a mistake). The lack of evidence for treating cocaine and crack as different drugs under the law was long established by the time of Biden’s 2008 apology. By the time the Fair Sentencing Act, supported by the Obama administration, was introduced in 2010, passage of sentencing reform – which had bi-partisan support – should have been low-hanging fruit.
The Fair Sentencing Act, however, modified rather than eliminated sentencing disparities. The five-year minimum for simple possession of crack got the ax, but getting caught with crack still has harsher consequences than getting caught with cocaine. Before the Fair Sentencing Act, five grams of crack would trigger a mandatory minimum of five years in prison. Now it takes 28 grams of crack to trigger that sentence.
And that policy change is one of the only positions on crime that the Obama administration has adopted. They are curiously silent on the subject of crime policy. State and local jurisdictions need encouragement to swap out their ineffective tough-on-crime practices for more effective strategies. Instead, states and counties are taking the lead in changing policy and many are moving in the wrong direction. They define getting tougher on crime as good for public safety, without a serious discussion of how such policies might make the incarceration crisis we face even worse. And claims that these policies are good for pubic safety, policies that send non-violent offenders to prison and tag them as felons, and make getting a job almost impossible—those claims are very, very dubious.
City Attorneys in California have turned to civil gang injunctions, for instance, a controversial policing strategy in place almost exclusively in largely African American and Latino neighborhoods in California. The City Attorney in Oakland, an elected official, claims that gang injunctions are good for communities of color because they protect law-abiding black and Latino citizens.
This is another key difference between then and now. Then it was pretty obvious that anti-black sentiment influenced criminal justice policy. Today, local officials, most of whom style themselves as liberal, embrace policies that target African Americans and call them a strike for racial equality.
Injunctions are actually a frightening violation of civil rights, allowing police to restrict the movements of people who have not been convicted of a crime.
Almost every civil right—including speech and association—is limited under a gang injunction. People named on the injunction can’t associate with each other. They can’t be outside at night in their neighborhood. Any tattoos that they get become further evidence that they are in a gang, which is loosely defined in California as three or more people who have committed a crime at some point and associate with each other. Any violation of the civil injunction, even if the violation is unintentionally walking to the corner store at the same time as another person on the list, is cause for arrest and up to six months of incarceration.
One would think that a President with a background in civil rights law would challenge the adoption of such policies and practices. Instead, the Bureau of Justice Administration, which provides training and technical assistance to local jurisdictions, recently sponsored a web-based seminar that suggested—incorrectly—that gang injunctions are proven to reduce gang-related violence.
In the absence of thoughtful policy leadership, local crime policies are also shaped by the competition for federal funds. Strapped police departments fight for federal money. Unfortunately, that has the same effect of encouraging the imprisonment of African Americans for money, a practice that the Pig Law also encouraged. That’s largely because of the incentive of Byrne grants. The Byrne grant program was designed in 1988 to encourage jurisdictions to fight the war on drugs, explains legal scholar Michelle Alexander. Without Byrne grants, states would not have the money—or perhaps the desire—to engage in the kind of policing that targets low-level drug dealers and fills prisons with non-violent offenders.
Taking a leadership role in setting a new direction for criminal justice policy does not seem like a priority for the Obama administration. And that’s a profound disappointment.
The question of reform has been considered and re-considered in criminological circles for hundreds of years: the penitentiary, solitary confinement, and the electric chair—all of these were considered reforms. They weren’t good changes, but they demonstrate that the system is dynamic. Significant change is possible, as our record shows, but our direction is often misguided. And while prison reform hasn’t gone especially well over the years, other reforms have, historically, found profound success. Our current President reminds us that the arc of the moral universe bends towards justice. But abolitionists and civil rights activists remind us that the arc doesn’t bend on its own. We must shape it.
The crisis before us is no longer just about crime and punishment. It is not a problem that can be solved by criminal justice experts alone. The criminal justice system reaches out like a hydra scorching whatever comes close to it: schools, housing, families, health. The focus on reform must be equally extensive, and as we develop agendas for change we must remember how deeply race-based justice disparities are woven into the fabric of America. At least that means our problems are familiar and recognizable: If it smells like a Pig Law, it probably is.
Oshinksy, David M. “Worse than Slavery”: Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice. 1997.
Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal Under Law: Race in the War on Drugs. 2007.
Western, Bruce. Punishment and Inequality in America. 2006
|
<urn:uuid:0541e765-3a8d-4eda-9f4a-8584f7fac41b>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://thepublicintellectual.org/2011/05/02/if-it-smells-like-a-pig/
|
2013-05-24T15:49:49Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.96351
| 2,747
|
A tiny galaxy has given astronomers a glimpse of a time when the first bright objects in the universe formed, ending the dark ages that followed the birth of the universe.
Astronomers from Sweden, Spain and the Johns Hopkins University used NASA's Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) satellite to make the first direct measurement of ionizing radiation leaking from a dwarf galaxy undergoing a burst of star formation. The result, which has ramifications for understanding how the early universe evolved, will help astronomers determine whether the first stars — or some other type of object — ended the cosmic dark age.
The team will present its results Jan. 12 at the American Astronomical Society's 207th meeting in Washington, D.C.
Considered by many astronomers to be relics from an early stage of the universe, dwarf galaxies are small, very faint galaxies containing a large fraction of gas and relatively few stars. According to one model of galaxy formation, many of these smaller galaxies merged to build up today's larger ones. If that is true, any dwarf galaxies observed now can be thought of as "fossils" that managed to survive — without significant changes — from an earlier period.
Led by Nils Bergvall of the Astronomical Observatory in Uppsala, Sweden, the team observed a small galaxy, known as Haro 11, which is located about 281 million light years away in the southern constellation of Sculptor. The team's analysis of FUSE data produced an important result: between 4 percent and 10 percent of the ionizing radiation produced by the hot stars in Haro 11 is able to escape into intergalactic space.
Ionization is the process by which atoms and molecules are stripped of electrons and converted to positively charged ions. The history of the ionization level is important to understanding the evolution of structures in the early universe, because it determines how easily stars and galaxies can form, according to B-G Andersson, a research scientist in the Henry A. Rowland Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins, and a member of the FUSE team.
"The more ionized a gas becomes, the less efficiently it can cool. The cooling rate in turn controls the ability of the gas to form denser structures, such as stars and galaxies," Andersson said. The hotter the gas, the less likely it is for structures to form, he said.
The ionization history of the universe therefore reveals when the first luminous objects formed, and when the first stars began to shine.
The Big Bang occurred about 13.7 billion years ago. At that time, the infant universe was too hot for light to shine. Matter was completely ionized: atoms were broken up into electrons and atomic nuclei, which scatter light like fog. As it expanded and then cooled, matter combined into neutral atoms of some of the lightest elements. The imprint of this transition today is seen as cosmic microwave background radiation.
The present universe is, however, predominantly ionized; astronomers generally agree that this reionization occurred between 12.5 and 13 billion years ago, when the first large-scale galaxies and galaxy clusters were forming. The details of this ionization are still unclear, but are of intense interest to astronomers studying these so-called "dark ages" of the universe.
Astronomers are unsure if the first stars or some other type of object ended those dark ages, but FUSE observations of "Haro 11" provide a clue.
The observations also help increase understanding of how the universe became reionized. According to the team, likely contributors include the intense radiation generated as matter fell into black holes that formed what we now see as quasars and the leakage of radiation from regions of early star formation. But until now, direct evidence for the viability of the latter mechanism has not been available.
"This is the latest example where the FUSE observation of a relatively nearby object holds important ramifications for cosmological questions," said Dr. George Sonneborn, NASA/FUSE Project Scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
This result has been accepted for publication by the European journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.
Bergvall will be available to answer questions from the media about this research at poster #175.21, during the poster-viewing sessions at the AAS meeting on Thursday, January 12.
The FUSE project is a NASA Explorer mission developed in cooperation with the French and Canadian space agencies by the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md., the University of Colorado, Boulder, and the University of California, Berkeley. The mission is operated out of Johns Hopkins University's Homewood campus in Baltimore. NASA Goddard manages the program for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. For more information about the FUSE mission, visit fuse.pha.jhu.edu.
Go to Headlines@HopkinsHome Page
|
<urn:uuid:498ae425-9796-4212-a847-e90445de015d>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.jhu.edu/news_info/news/home06/jan06/haro.html
|
2013-05-26T02:55:51Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.932384
| 997
|
More than 5 trillion cigarettes are sold globally every year, with 20 billion sold in California each year alone. At least one-third of these is discarded carelessly and inexcusably into the environment. Cigarette butt waste is everywhere. Washed into rivers, lakes and the ocean, eaten by birds, animals and fish – this most-littered item in the world can impact all of us.
But they’re not just litter. Cigarette butts leach toxic, organic chemicals and heavy metals into the environment. They damage habitat and ecosystems; poison wildlife, pets, and children; and ignite destructive, deadly fires. Butt waste cleanup is expensive, too. A recent San Francisco litter audit found that city’s cleanup cost to be $5.6 million annually, resulting in a 20-cent per pack fee that covers those costs. Elsewhere, taxpayers and local agencies bear those costs.
Almost all cigarettes have filters made of cellulose acetate (a plastic) that is non-biodegradable. While ultraviolet sun rays eventually break them into smaller, even microscopic pieces, the toxins still leach into the environment. Many smokers believe filters provide health protection – that they somehow reduce the health effects of smoking – but U.S. National Cancer Institute publications, among others, affirm that there are no benefits to public health from filters; they just make it easier to sell cigarettes to kids and harder for smokers to quit.
Cleanup and prevention of cigarette butt waste needs to be the responsibility of those who profit from the sale of tobacco products, not the taxpayers. This includes the tobacco industry, distributors and sellers, and not just the smoker. The environmental principle of Extended Producer Responsibility should apply to cigarette butts, just as it does to other toxic, harmful waste products such as used computers, batteries and plastic packaging. EPR appropriately places the full cost of cleanup and disposal on the tobacco industry, with costs internalized in the retail price. Local responsibility for cleanup and prevention should also be shared by businesses that profit from tobacco use.
Public awareness of the environmental impacts of tobacco use barely registers compared with the attention given to the horrendous human health effects of smoking. Smoking is still the single most important preventable cause of death in the U.S., with 20 percent of all deaths attributable to this addiction.
More attention and actions on preventing butt waste are needed. On March 8-9, the California Tobacco Control Program sponsored a “Tobacco Waste Summit” in Sacramento. This dynamic two-day gathering of about 40 national, state and local environmental and tobacco-control experts discussed a variety of innovative interventions and solutions to the butt waste problem.
For example, smoke-free outdoor areas, such as college campuses, restaurant patios, parks and beaches, can support healthy, smoke-free environments that help prevent butt waste deposition. Other actions could include better enforcement of existing litter/pollution violations; labeling cigarettes as toxic waste; raising the visibility of the butt waste environmental impact through various advertisements, social media and public service announcements; and mandatory “take back” policies, with the onus placed on the tobacco industry to assure safe disposal of butt waste. Some communities have placed more butt waste receptacles on sidewalks, beaches and in parks; this is great as a short term response, but more upstream solutions are needed.
|
<urn:uuid:8f4259bc-0bca-4eb5-946f-bc063908da2f>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/apr/20/do-it-for-yourself-and-the-planet-quit-smoking/
|
2013-05-19T02:59:24Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383160/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.935605
| 679
|
BPMInstitute.org defines Business Process Management (BPM) as the deliberative, collaborative, and increasingly technology-aided definition, improvement and management of a firm’s end-to-end enterprise business processes in order to achieve three outcomes crucial to a performance-based, customer-driven firm: 1) clarity on strategic direction, 2) alignment of the firm’s resources, and 3) increased discipline in daily operations.
BPM 101 is the first course of the BPM curriculum. It provides an overview of BPM as both a management discipline and as a set of enabling technologies, and establishes the foundation for the courses that follow. The course teaches the student the key concepts, terms, methodologies, techniques, and technologies in BPM. It describes what a process is, what process modeling, analysis and design are, and what process management is. It provides an overview of the tools and technologies used to support the BPM discipline including process modeling tools and a BPM platform known as a Business Process Management Suite. Students will learn about the practices and the technologies that are making “process thinking” a new approach to solving business problems and continuously improving organizational performance.
|Your Rate||You Save|
Ways to save!
This course is available via the following methods:
TIP: Click the full-screen icon in lower right to watch full-screen preview.
|
<urn:uuid:ff5fe0c6-3763-4e54-9297-5c00c8241cc4>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.bpminstitute.org/training/on-demand/bpm-101
|
2013-05-22T15:07:40Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701910820/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105830-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.909033
| 287
|
Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) occurs most often in infants who are born too early. RDS can cause breathing difficulty in newborns. If it is not properly treated, RDS can result in complications. This may include pneumonia, respiratory failure, chronic lung problems, and possibly asthma. In severe cases, RDS can lead to convulsions and death.
RDS occurs when infant's lungs have not developed enough. Immature lungs lack a fluid called surfactant. This is a foamy liquid that helps the lungs open wide and take in air. When there is not enough surfactant, the lungs do not open well. This will make it difficult for the infant to breathe.
The chance of developing RDS decreases as the fetus grows. Babies born after 36 weeks rarely develop this condition.
A risk factor is something that increases your chance of getting a disease or condition. Factors that increase your baby's risk of RDS include:
- Birth before 37 weeks; increased risk and severity of condition with earlier prematurity
- Mother with insulin dependent diabetes
- Multiple birth
- Cesarean section delivery
- Cold stress
- Precipitous delivery
- Previously affected infant
- Being male
- Hypertension (high blood pressure) during pregnancy
The following symptoms usually start immediately or within a few hours after birth and include:
- Difficulty breathing, apnea
- Rapid, shallow breathing
- Delayed or weak cry
- Grunting noise with every breath
- Flaring of the nostrils
- Frothing at the lips
- Blue color around the lips
- Swelling of the extremities
- Decreased urine output
The doctor will ask about the mother's medical history and pregnancy. The baby will also be evaluated, as outlined here:
Amniotic fluid is fluid that surrounds the fetus. It may be tested for indicators of well-developed lungs such as:
- Lecithin:sphingomyelin ratio
- Phosphatidyl glycerol
- Laboratory studies—done to rule out infection
- Physical exam—includes checking the baby's breathing and looking for bluish color around the lips or on trunk
- Testing for blood gases—to check the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood
- Chest x-ray —a test that uses radiation to take a picture of structures inside the body, in this case the heart and lungs
Treatment for a baby with RDS usually includes oxygen therapy and may also include:
A mechanical respirator is a breathing machine. It is used to keep the lungs from collapsing and support the baby's breathing. The respirator also improves the exchange of oxygen and other gases in the lungs. A respirator is almost always needed for infants with severe RDS.
Surfactant can be given to help the lungs open. Wider lungs will allow the infant to take in more oxygen and breathe normally. One type of surfactant comes from cows and the other is synthetic. Both options are delivered directly into the infant's windpipe.
Inhaled Nitric Oxide
Nitric oxide is a gas that is inhaled. It can make it easier for oxygen to pass into the blood. The gas is often delivered during mechanical ventilation.
Newborns with RDS may be given food and water by the following means:
- Tube feeding—a tube is inserted through the baby's mouth and into the stomach
- Parenteral feeding—nutrients are delivered directly into a vein
Preventing a premature birth is the best way to avoid RDS. To reduce your chance of having a premature baby:
- Get good prenatal care. Start as early as possible in pregnancy.
- Eat a healthful diet. Take vitamins as suggested by your doctor.
- Do not smoke. Avoid alcohol or drug use.
- Only take medicines that your doctor has approved.
If you are at high risk of giving birth to a premature baby:
- You may be given steroids about 24 hours before delivery. Steroids can help your baby's lungs develop faster.
- Your doctor may do an amniocentesis. This test will check the maturity of your baby's lungs. The results will help determine the best time for delivery.
- Reviewer: Michael Woods
- Review Date: 09/2012 -
- Update Date: 00/91/2012 -
|
<urn:uuid:7d8d5dec-597e-4805-b78e-8e623e0c5fb5>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://medtropolis.com/your-health/?/11599/
|
2013-05-18T17:19:21Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.926661
| 904
|
November 2, 2011
Contact: John Ascenzi, Children's Hospital of Philadephia, 267-426-6055 or firstname.lastname@example.org
Pediatric researchers who tested newborn animals with an existing human drug used in adults with diabetes report that this drug, when given very early in life, prevents diabetes from developing in adult animals. If this finding can be repeated in humans, it may become a way to prevent at-risk infants from developing type 2 diabetes.
“We uncovered a novel mechanism to prevent the later development of diabetes in this animal study,” said senior author Rebecca A. Simmons, MD, a neonatologist at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “This may indicate that there is an important developmental window, a period of time in which we can intervene to permanently protect the body’s insulin-producing cells.”
Simmons and lead author Sara E. Pinney, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist at Children’s Hospital, published the study in the October issue of Diabetologia.
The research may be relevant to children with intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), a common complication during the mother’s pregnancy. Simmons’ previous research showed that IUGR, which is associated with decreased availability of nutrients and hormones to the developing fetus, permanently alters gene expression and impairs the function of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. These defects have been shown to cause type 2 diabetes to develop in adulthood.
The study team used exendin-4 (Ex-4), a drug recently approved for use in adults with type 2 diabetes—a condition in which a patient produces insufficient insulin, or is unable to process insulin normally. Although the drug’s mechanism is not known, it has a hormone-like effect, raising insulin secretion in adults.
In their study, Simmons and Pinney used rats with an induced form of IUGR. They found that after being given to newborn rats, Ex-4 had epigenetic effects—modifying gene function without changing the underlying DNA sequences. Ex-4 increased the expression of a gene called Pdx1 that is necessary for beta cells to function properly. Beta cells produce insulin in the pancreas of mammals, including humans.
“In our study, giving exendin-4 during the newborn period had permanent beneficial effects on beta cells,” said Pinney. “This could be important for people, in whom abnormal changes in infancy may irreversibly alter beta cells and lead to adult-onset diabetes. If we can establish that treating at-risk human babies with exendin-4 or a similar compound has corresponding effects, we may have a new preventive approach for type 2 diabetes.”
Simmons and Pinney cautioned that much follow-up research remains to be done, such as investigating more of the basic biology and evaluating the genome-wide effects of exendin-4, before their research findings could translate into clinical use in children.
The National Institutes of Health, the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Research Fellowship and the University of Pennsylvania Institute of Translational Medicine and Therapeutics Fellowship supported this study. Co-authors with Simmons and Pinney were L.J Jaeckle Santos and Y. Han, all from both Children’s Hospital and the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania (Penn). D.A. Stoffers, of Penn, also was a co-author.
“Exendin-4 increases histone acetylase activity and reverses epigenetic modifications that silence Pdx1 in the intrauterine growth retarded rat,” Diabetologia, October 2011 print issue. doi: 10.1007/s00125-011-2250-1.
Read the abstract
|
<urn:uuid:6520e21f-3f74-4b16-bcae-a2b329b51f31>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.chop.edu/news/study-suggests-newborn-period-crucial-for-preventing-diabetes.html?calYear=2012&calMonth=8&calDay=19&range=month&view=events
|
2013-05-20T02:49:25Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.929814
| 797
|
The Components of Effective Vocabulary Instruction
Effective vocabulary instruction begins with diverse opportunities for word learning: wide reading, high-quality oral language, word consciousness, explicit instruction of specific words, and independent word-learning strategies. This article explains how these opportunities can be created in the classroom.
In this article:
- encouraging wide reading;
- exposing students to high-quality oral language;
- promoting word consciousness;
- providing explicit instruction of specific words; and
- providing modeling and instruction in independent word-learning strategies.
Each of these components contributes to helping students overcome the major obstacles to vocabulary growth.
What to do about the size of the task
We know that the volume of students' reading is strongly related to their vocabulary knowledge.1 Students learn new words by encountering them in text, either through their own reading or by being read to. Increasing the opportunities for such encounters improves students' vocabulary knowledge, which, in turn, improves their ability to read more and more complex text. In short, the single most important thing you can do to improve students' vocabularies is to get them to read more.
- If, over a school year, a fifth-grade student reads for an hour each day, five days a week (in and out of school), at a conservative rate of 150 words per minute, the student will encounter 2,250,000 words in the course of reading.
- If 2% to 5% of the words the student encounters are unknown words, he or she will encounter from 45,000 to 112,500 such words.
- We know that students learn between 5% 10% of previously unknown words from a single reading. This accounts for at least 2,250 new words the student learns from context each year.
The figure 2,250 new words learned a year is based on the lowest points of the estimated ranges. Even this conservative figure suggests that reading is a powerful influence on students' vocabulary growth.
What kinds of reading are necessary to produce such vocabulary growth? Whereas some argue that almost any reading ultimately will have powerful benefits for students,3 others say that if students consistently select texts below their current reading levels, even wide reading will not result in measurable vocabulary growth.4 Nor is reading text that is full of unfamiliar words likely to produce large gains in word knowledge.5
To help students get the most out of reading, you should encourage them to read at a variety of levels — some text simply for enjoyment, which should benefit their fluency if nothing else — and some text that challenges them. You should also help students develop reading strategies that will allow them to read more challenging texts with lower levels of frustration. When students have been taught comprehension strategies, they tend to do more reading.6
Increasing their motivation to read is another critical factor in helping students make the most of wide reading. One powerful motivating factor associated with more reading is a classroom environment that encourages and promotes social interactions related to reading.7 Making available a variety of books and setting aside ample time for reading also motivate increased reading.
As is true for any method of promoting vocabulary growth, wide reading has some limitations. One is that it obviously cannot be effective with very young students who are not yet able to read very much on their own. Another limitation is that, although wide reading may be effective in producing general vocabulary growth, it is not an effective method for teaching the words that students need to master a particular selection or a concept related to a specific content area. Finally, it is important to acknowledge that, as important as it is, wide reading does not produce immediate, magic results; its effects are cumulative, and emerge over time.
You can encourage wide reading in a number of ways. You might, for example, recommend or provide lists of books for students to read outside of class, and make time in class for students to discuss what they have read. You can set aside a time each day for independent reading. And, of course, you can model the value you place on reading as they read, by telling students about the books you are reading.
What to do about the differences between spoken and written English
High Quality Oral Language
As we discussed earlier, both English language learners and English-speaking students may achieve fluency in the language of face-to-face conversation and still have little exposure to or knowledge of the kind of language they encounter in school textbooks. Clearly these students need more exposure to written English, and wide reading is the most effective way of increasing exposure to this kind of language. But what can be done with students who are in the process of learning to read, and who cannot do a great deal of reading on their own? Here is one solution: Increase the quality of the oral language to which students are exposed — let them hear spoken English that incorporates more of the vocabulary and syntax typical of written, and particularly literate English.
A very effective way to expose children to literate vocabulary is to read to them from storybooks, especially when the reading is accompanied with discussion.8 Authors of good children's literature have always found ways to talk "over children's heads" — using big words and other aspects of literate language — without decreasing children's interest or enjoyment. Both younger and older students appear to benefit from read-aloud activities, and older students can learn the meanings of new words as efficiently from hearing stories read to them as they can from reading the stories themselves.9 Making available (either in the classroom or school library) a selection of quality audio books and players that students can use on their own can also be a good way to expose them to a variety of good books and broad language experiences.
Storytelling is yet another way to increase the quality of students' oral language experiences. Even when no text is involved, storytelling still exposes students to richer language than does normal conversation. Pretend play likewise involves rich language use. The quality of preschool children's conversations, and teachers' use of a more sophisticated vocabulary also have been found to affect students' language and literacy development.10
Asked what they could do to use more sophisticated vocabulary without intimidating or confusing their students, a group of teachers responded enthusiastically, "Make it fun!" We definitely agree. Playing with language is an essential component of language development. Word consciousness is the knowledge of and interest in words. Word-conscious students enjoy learning new words and engaging in word play. They know and use many words, and are aware of the subtleties of word meaning and of the power words can have.11
To become word conscious, students first need to develop a feel for how written language is different from everyday conversation. To this end, it is valuable to draw their attention to the distinctive characteristics of written language, even when reading aloud, and to help them learn to read like a writer, and to write with an audience in mind.
Having students copy in their journals phrases or sentences from their reading that are examples of especially effective language use — vivid descriptions, striking metaphors, interesting similes, plays on words-can help make language more alive for them. Students can share their examples with the class, or they can post them in the classroom to serve as inspiration or models for others.
Reading and discussing two versions of the same story — ideally, one with rich language and one with language that is less interesting — can promote word consciousness in younger students.
Word consciousness can be promoted in a way that helps students become aware of differences between Standard English and non-standard varieties, without stigmatizing the latter. Shirley Brice Heath describes classrooms in which students learned to be "language detectives," studying how people speak differently in different groups and in different situations. She believes that this awareness made an important contribution to the students' academic success.12 It may be especially important to make such differences explicit for students less familiar with standard English.
A number of oral and written word games can serve to promote word consciousness, including puns, limericks, Hink-Pinks, crossword puzzles, jokes, riddles, and anagrams.13 Encouraging students to play with words can create an interest in knowing more about them, and thus, can become a strategy for independent word learning.
What to do about the limitations of sources of information about words
Independent Word-Learning Strategies
- the efficient use of the dictionary;
- the use of word parts (prefixes, suffixes, roots, compounds) to unlock a word's meaning; and
- the use of context clues.
Instruction in dictionary use that focuses on having students look up words and use information from their definitions to write sentences does not provide students with the guidance they need to make dictionary use an efficient independent word-learning strategy.
This is not to say, however, that dictionaries are not important aids to word learning. In fact, the more students are exposed to dictionary definitions, the better their word learning.14 The crucial point here is that students receive instruction in how to use what they find in a dictionary entry so that they are able to translate the cryptic and conventionalized content of definitions into usable word knowledge.15 This instruction includes modeling how to look up the meaning of an unknown word, thinking-aloud about the various definitions in an entry, and deciding which is the most appropriate definition for a particular context.16
Teaching students how to use information about word parts can be very valuable in promoting vocabulary growth. Many students, however, are not aware of this strategy. Even students who have learned to break words into parts in their decoding instruction may not understand that they can use this knowledge to figure out word meanings. Teacher modeling helps to make the strategy's value clear to students.17
Using word-part information can be especially helpful in learning certain content-area concepts. (See Teaching Word Meaning as Concepts)
Context clues are clues to the meaning of a word contained in the text that surrounds it. These clues include definitions, examples, and restatements. Teaching students strategies for identifying and using context clues has been suggested as a major instructional technique for vocabulary development.18 A student learns a new word from context by making connections between the word and the text in which it appears. When a new word is first encountered, the student stores in memory some information about how it fits into what is being read. In subsequent encounters with the word, this information is reinforced, and more information about the word's role in particular contexts is added until the word is understood and used appropriately. As in teaching other kinds of strategies, teaching students to use context clues to develop vocabulary is an extended process that involves: modeling the strategy; providing explicit explanations of how, why, and when to use it; providing guided practice; gradually holding students accountable for independently using the strategy; and then providing intermittent reminders to apply it to reading across content areas.
As we noted earlier, learning words from context is a long-term process, one that involves multiple encounters with words. The challenge is to create vocabulary instruction that compresses this process to enable students to learn more words in a shorter period of time.19
What to do about the complexity of word knowledge
Explicit Instruction of Specific Words
- Use both definitional and contextual information about word meanings,
- Involve students actively in word learning, and
- Use discussion to teach the meanings of new words and to provide meaningful information about the words.
Use Definitional and Contextual Information
In the past, vocabulary instruction most often consisted of learning lists of words and definitions (with a test on Friday). We now know that such instruction is of limited value, particularly in improving students' reading comprehension.20 Students need to know how a word functions in various contexts. Therefore, instructional methods that provide students with both definitional and contextual information do improve comprehension, and do so significantly.
- Teach synonyms.
Often a synonym is all students need to understand a new word in context.
- Teach antonyms.
Not all words have antonyms, but thinking about antonyms requires students to identify the crucial aspects of a word. For example, the word chaos implies an abyss, a void, or clutter, but its antonym, order, narrows the focus to the "clutter" part of the word's meaning.
- Rewrite definitions.
As we noted earlier, dictionary definitions can often confuse or mislead students. Asking students to restate a dictionary definition in their own words can be more effective than requiring them to remember the exact wording of the definition.
- Provide example sentences.
A good way to ascertain whether students understand a word's definitions is to have them provide example sentences in which they use the word. They may draw these examples from personal experiences ("Mom's kitchen is chaos.") or from textbooks ("After the great flood of 1937, there was chaos all over the Tennessee Valley.").
- Provide non-examples.
Another way to find out if students truly understand the meaning of a new word is to have them supply words that are not examples of the word's meaning. For example, point out to them that cry is not an example of the word guffaw, then ask them to think of other non-examples of the word (bawl, sniffle, whine, whimper). Coming up with non-examples requires students to think about the critical attributes of a word, much like providing antonyms.
- Discuss the difference between the new word and related words.
A discussion of the word debris, defined as "trash," "garbage," or "waste," might include a discussion of the differences between debris and trash, garbage, and waste. For example, debris might be the result of some sort of accident or disaster, whereas trash might include anything. Garbage generally refers to organic material, such as food leftovers, and waste implies something left over, rather than something resulting from a disaster. Such a thorough discussion encourages students to focus on the meanings of words.
Some activities that provide students with contextual information include:
- Have students create sentences that contain the new word.
Encourage students to create sentences that show a clear understanding of the meaning of the word — not just "I like chaos." More acceptable sentences are those that include the definition, such as, "Chaos is when everything is in disorder." Even more acceptable are sentences that extend the definition, such as, "The scene was complete chaos — desks were turned over, paint was splashed on the floor, and the trash can was upside down." Of course, to write sentences containing a new word, students need examples of how it is used correctly. Definitions, even those that give brief examples, rarely provide enough information to guarantee that students have a real sense of how words are used. One way to scaffold students' use of new words is to have them complete sentence stems containing the word, e.g., "John thought it would pacify the teacher if "21
- Use more than one new word in a sentence.
Asking students to use more than one new word in each sentence they create can force them to look for relations among words.
- Discuss the meaning of the same word in different sentences.
Many words have multiple meanings, which depend on the context in which the words appear. To prevent students from limiting word meanings to one particular context, have them use a new word in several different and varied sentences. For the word chaos, their sentences might include topics such as chaos in classroom behavior, chaos as clutter and mess, chaos in personal relations, and so forth.
- Create a scenario.
Invite students to make up a story in which a new word features prominently. If students are too young for this activity, have them draw a picture story for a new word.
- Create silly questions.
You might have students pair new words and use each pair to make a silly question.22 For the words actuary, hermit, philanthropist, and villain, their questions might include "Can an actuary be a hermit?" "Can an actuary be a philanthropist?" "Can a philanthropist be a hermit?" "Can a philanthropist be a villain?"
Involve Students Actively in Word Learning
Students remember more when they relate new information to known information, transforming it in their own words, generating examples and non-examples, producing antonyms and synonyms, and so forth.
Instruction that works
In one study of exemplary vocabulary instruction, activities were conducted in a five-day cycle. On the first day, the new words were defined, and students discussed the use of each word in context. This discussion took different forms, including discussion of examples and non-examples, pantomimes, and having students say "Yay" if the word was used correctly in a sentence and "Boo" if it was not. On the second day, after a review of the definitions, students might work on log sheets, completing sentences for each word. On the third day, they completed another log sheet, then worked on a timed activity in which pairs of students attempted in the shortest amount of time to match words with their definitions. This activity was repeated on the fourth day. After completion of the second timed activity, students were asked silly questions. On the fifth day, they took a post-test.
These activities varied somewhat with different units. For example, students also completed a "Word Wizard" chart activity each day. A Word Wizard chart is a chart that contains new vocabulary words. These words can be taken from a storybook, from a text, or just be words that are encountered in some way. Every time a child in the class found one of these words in context, the teacher attached an adhesive note with the child's name and the context next to the word. The first child who received 5, 10, or some other number of notes became the Word Wizard. Students were given credit toward becoming a "Word Wizard" by finding examples of each word used outside of class.
This program, or variations of it, significantly improved students' comprehension of texts containing words that were taught. As part of the program, it was revealed that twelve encounters with a word reliably improved comprehension, but four encounters did not. The instructional approach, which involved active processing of each words' meaning, had significantly greater effects than did a definition-only approach on measures of comprehension but not on measures involving the recall of definitions. These findings suggest that vocabulary instruction can improve comprehension, but only if the instruction is rich and extensive, and includes a great many encounters with to-be-learned words.
Use discussion to teach word meanings. Discussion adds an important dimension to vocabulary instruction. Students with little or no knowledge of some new words they encounter in a vocabulary lesson are often able to construct a good idea of a word's meaning from the bits of partial knowledge contributed by their classmates. (When the class as a whole does not know much about a particular word, however, you may have to help. Perhaps supplying some information about the word, such as a quick definition.)
Discussion can clarify misunderstandings of words by making the misunderstandings public. For words that a student knows partially, or knows in one particular context, the give-and-take of discussion can clarify meanings. When misunderstandings are public, the teacher can shape them into the conventional meaning.
Discussion involves students in other ways. As they wait to be called on, students practice covertly, or silently prepare a response. Therefore, even though you call on only one student, many other students anticipate that they will have to come up with an answer. As a result, discussion leads to increased vocabulary learning.23 Without the practiced response, discussion is not likely to be valuable as a learning experience.
Bringing instruction together
This sample lesson illustrates how a teacher can bring together the three components of explicit vocabulary instruction to teach words that are key to understanding the story The Talking Eggs by Robert San Soucil. The words chosen for instruction are backwoods, contrary, dawdled, groping, rubies, and silver.24
For the key word backwoods, read the following sentence from the story: "Then the old woman took her by the hand and led her deep into the backwoods." Ask students to predict what backwoods means. Backwoods is a compound, and, when the information from the word parts is combined with some information from the context, its meaning should be fairly clear. Next, ask students to describe the backwoods briefly.
The key word contrary can be taught the same way, beginning with reading this sentence from the book: "You do as I say and don't be so contrary," and asking students to predict the meaning of the word from context. For this word, have students discuss a definition for the word, such as "disagreeable, raising objections," and encourage them to explain how the definition fits in the context of the sentence. As a follow up, you have them create some sentences that contain contrary. This can lead to a discussion of another, related meaning for contrary, that of "from another point of view," as in the expression "to the contrary."
For dawdled and groping, begin once again by reading sentences in the story that contain the words. Because these words are verbs, however, you might want to pantomime the meaning of each, rather than supply a conventional definition. Then ask students to create sentences that use the words. You might define dawdled with some non-examples, because it is a word that has some clear antonyms, such as hustled, ran, went quickly, and so on.
For rubies and silver, begin by having the class discuss what precious things are. You might illustrate the words by providing pictures that show rubies and things made of silver. Next, work with the class to make a list of precious things, including rubies and silver, as well as gold, diamonds, and so forth.
The words used in the sample lesson are highly dissimilar. They were selected for instruction only because they happen to come from the story they students were reading. The techniques used to teach the words, however, are somewhat similar. For four of the six words, the teacher starts with sentences from the text, then asks students to create additional sentences to extend the meaning of the word beyond the text. Finally, the teacher also includes a definition, either a conventional verbal one or a gestural one, for each of the words.
The instruction this lesson illustrates is relatively minimal, designed to support the reading of the text. More elaborate instruction would shift the focus from the story to the vocabulary words, and might be useful in a classroom with many English language learners, or in any classroom when a greater emphasis on vocabulary is appropriate. More elaborate instruction also might include using additional sentence contexts for each word, a "yea or nay" activity ("Would you dawdle in the backwoods?"), or having students write a scenario, or story that contains these words.
Explicit vocabulary instruction does seem to improve comprehension significantly, at least when the words taught come from the text students are reading. Nevertheless, some cautions are in order. First, teaching vocabulary as students read can, under certain circumstances, distract them from the main ideas of the text. Second, teaching words that are not important to understanding the text leads students to focus on individual word meanings rather than on the overall meaning of what they read. The more effort students expend focusing on word meanings, the less effort they will have available to recall information that is important to comprehension.25 Thus, to be effective, pre-reading vocabulary instruction should focus on words that relate to the major ideas in a text, rather than on words that are interesting or unusual.
Click the "References" link above to hide these references.
iunningham, A. E., & Stanovich, K. E. (1991). Tracking the unique effects of print exposure in children: Associations with vocabulary, general knowledge, and spelling. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83, 264-274.; Fielding, L. G., Wilson, P. T., & Anderson, R. C. (1986). A new focus on free reading: The role of trade books in reading instruction. In T. Raphael & R. E. Reynolds (Eds.), The contexts of school-based literacy. New York: Random House.
2 Herman, P. A., Anderson, R. C., Pearson, P. D., & Nagy, W. E. (1987). Incidental acquisition of word meanings from expositions with varied text features. Reading Research Quarterly, 23, 263–284.; Nagy, W. E., Anderson, R. C., & Herman, P. A. (1987). Learning word meanings from context during normal reading. American Educational Research Journal, 24, 237–270.; Nagy, W. E., Herman, P. A., & Anderson, R. C. (1985). Learning words from context. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 233–253.
3 Krashen, S. (1993). The power of reading: Insights from the research. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.
4 Carver, R. P. (1994). Percentage of unknown vocabulary words in text as a function of the relative difficulty of the text: Implications for instruction. Journal of Reading Behavior, 26, 413-437.; Carver, R. P., & Leibert, R.E. (1995). The effect of reading library books at different levels of difficulty upon gain in reading ability. Reading Research Quarterly, 30, 26-48.
5 Shefelbine, J. L. (1990). Student factors related to variability in learning word meanings from context. Journal of Reading Behavior, 22, 71–97.
6 Guthrie J.T., Schafer, W.D., Wang, Y., & Afflerbach, P. (1995). Relationships of instruction to amount of reading: An exploration of social, cognitive and instructional connections. Reading Research Quarterly, 30, 8-25.
7 Guthrie, Schafer, Wang & Afflerbach, 1995.
8 Dickinson, D.K., & Smith, M.W. (1944). Long-term effects of preschool teachers’ book readings on low-income children’s vocabulary and story comprehension. Reading Research Quarterly, 29, 104-122.
9 Stahl, S.A., Richek, M.G., & Vandevier, R. (1991). Learning word meanings through listening: A sixth grade replication. In J. Zutell & S. McCormick (Eds.) Learning factors/teacher factors: Issues in literacy research. Fortieth yearbook of the National Reading Conference (pp. 185-192). Chicago National Reading Conference.
10 Dickinson & Smith, 1994.
11 Graves, M.F., Juel, C., & Graves B.B. (1997). Teaching reading in the twenty-first century. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
12 Brice Heath, S. (1983). A lot of talk about nothing. Language Arts, 60, 39-48.; Brice Heath, S. (1983). Ways with words: Language, Life, and work in communities and classrooms. New York: Cambridge University.
13 Stahl, 1999.
14 McKeown, M. G., Beck, I. L., Omanson, R. C., & Pople, M. T. (1985). Some effects of the nature and frequency of vocabulary instruction on the knowledge and use of words. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 522–535.
15 Scott & Nagy, 1997.
16 Graves et al., 1997.
17 Nagy, W. E., Winsor, P., Osborn, J. & O’Flahaven, J. (1994). Structural analysis: Some guidelines for instruction. In F. Lehr & J. Osborn (Eds.), Reading, language, and literacy: Instruction for the twenty-first century (pp. 45–58). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
18 Anderson & Nagy, 1991; Sternberg, R. J. (1987). Most vocabulary is learned from context. In M. G. McKeown & M. E. Curtis (Eds.), The nature of vocabulary acquisition (pp. 89-105). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
19 Stahl, 1999.
20 Stahl, S. A., & Fairbanks, M. M. (1986). The effects of vocabulary instruction: A model-based meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 56, 72-110.
21 Beck, I. L., Perfetti, C. A., & McKeown, M. G. (1982). Effects of long-term vocabulary instruction on lexical access and reading comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 74(4), 506-521.
22 Beck, Perfetti, & McKeown, (1982).
23 Stahl, S. A., & Clark, C. H. (1987). The effects of participatory expectations in classroom discussion on the learning of science vocabulary. American Educational Research Journal, 24, 541–556.
24 This sample lesson is adapted from Stahl, 1999.
25 Wixson, K.K. (1986). Vocabulary instruction and children’s comprehension of basal stories. Reading Research Quarterly. 21, 317-329.
Excerpt from: Texas Education Agency. (2002). Promoting Vocabulary Development: Components of Effective Vocabulary Instruction, 2002 Online Revisited Edition (pp. 10-20). Retrieved October 11, 2007, from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/reading/practives/redbk5.pdf.
Comments and Recommendations
|
<urn:uuid:da9c1c5f-4fdb-419e-b3a9-27200492e253>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.adlit.org/articles/19691/
|
2013-06-20T09:16:16Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.940437
| 6,140
|
Posted by Penny Tristram
Surrealism is perhaps the 20th Century’s best-known art movement, having achieved popular status via its most famous proponent, Salvador Dali.The movement, at least in the visual arts, is all about unexpected and unrelated pairings, and visual surprises, that often create a dream-like feeling, to amusing or unsettling result.Along with Dali, a few of early-20th-century surrealism’s best know practitioners are Joan Miro, Max Ernst, Man Ray, and Frida Kahlo.
Roots in Dadaism
Surrealism emerged from another art movement, Dada, which sprung up in Europe during WW1. Dada was a hugely radical movement – it was all about challenging established norms in both art and life. Dadaists, like modernist writers, had seen the wholesale mismanagement and mass carnage inflicted in the name of Queen and Country as part of WW1, and realized they could no longer trust the government, the establishment, even God and their parents, and therefore chose to challenge old fashioned visual media (like oil paintings of the countryside) that represented established norms. Dadaism, despite being a lesser-known movement compared to surrealism, possessed an influence that has extended all the way into modern visual culture, influencing the punk look especially. Hana Hoch’s piece, shown below, is a classic example of Dadaist art.
The writer, and Dadaist, Andre Breton founded the surrealist movement in 1924. He and other surrealists believed that established society had weighed down people’s unconscious minds, meaning that they could not express themselves freely. Creating surrealist art was a way of unlocking the voice of the subconscious. They did this through methods like automatic drawing, where the artist simply draws without thinking or planning, and the hand is allowed to move randomly over the paper. The images that result are supposedly the expression of subconscious or unconscious thoughts. As a result of the emphasis on the subconscious, surrealist paintings often contain dream-like symbols and images.
Surrealist Painting Today.
Although surrealism’s heyday was during the early 20th Century, it’s had a profound influence on visual art, design, film, and photography, extending to the present day. In the world of painting, pop-surrealism, or lowbrow art, is a movement centered around Los Angeles that arose in the 1970s and is currently highly popular. Hans Rudolf Giger is also considered a contemporary surrealist, and paintings inspired by Giger’s and Dali’s works in particular are popular sellers in traditional and online galleries around the world.
|
<urn:uuid:e4eeb8f6-b672-433f-a252-2ad1e3a9b57d>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.art2arts.co.uk/blog/2012/04/
|
2013-06-18T23:04:35Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707436332/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123036-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.939749
| 555
|
Drinks from 6.30 pm lecture starts 7.30pm
Ticket price to be advised
Prior reservation (but not payment) required please email firstname.lastname@example.org stating the names of those who will attend. If the event is very popular priority will be given to members of the RGS HK
Charlotte Harris Rees speaks on "How the Chinese Sailed to America before Columbus". In this lecture, Ms Harris Rees discusses her extensive research of ancient Asian maps of the world, which demonstrate that the Chinese sailed to America in the pre-Columbian era. Ms Harris Rees also shows that this thesis is supported by early European maps of America which accurately depict regions not yet explored by Europeans, the information for which had to have come from an outside source. In addition, Ms Harris Rees has found that Chinese writings indicate that Chinese sailors had been to the Americas before the ancient Chinese maps of the continent were made.
From very early dates Chinese writers described in detail a beautiful land to their east called Fu Sang. Fu Sang is indicated on the far right side of Tian Xia style maps along with the annotation: "The sun rises here." By the third century BC, one Chinese writer said that Fu Sang had enormous trees and was "10,000 li wide" and then one came to another big blue ocean. Converted to modern measurements, 10,000 li is almost the width of North America. The enormous sequoia tree, native to Pacific America, is depicted on at least one of these ancient Asian maps as the Fu Sang tree. Ms Harris Rees argues that Fu Sang was America.
This lecture also discusses the powerful currents in the Pacific which are able to carry objects, and thus arguably early mariners, to the Americas and then back to Asia in a continuous warm gyre. During the 20th century several different groups on rafts or small three-person boats demonstrated that it is possible to cross the Pacific by this 100km wide current. The boats did not in some cases even need to have to use a sail. Joseph Needham pointed out that the Chinese in the Warring States period wrote about that eastward flowing current and named it Wei Lu.
Recent studies show that Chinese sailors were ocean going by at least 2000 BC. By at least the 7th century AD they had very large ships, many privately owned. Some recent DNA studies also indicate that the earliest arrivals to the Americas may have arrived not by the land bridge route through the Baring Straight, but further south on the American continent, which would have had to have been by sea travel. Furthermore, some parasites found in the Americas that were brought from Asia could not have survived the cold, northern route.
In conclusion, Ms Harris Rees argues that these transpacific voyages were not only possible, but also probable at early dates and that the ancient Chinese descriptions of Fu Sang (America) are surprisingly accurate even today.
Charlotte Harris Rees hails from Virginia, USA, though she was also a resident of Hong Kong as a teenager. She is a graduate of Columbia University. In 1972, her family acquired from an antique shop in Korea an ancient Asian map which led to a book contending that by 2200 B.C. Chinese had reached the Americas by sea. Ms Harris Rees has taken that research forward for the last 10 years, when she took her family's map collection to the U.S. Library of Congress where it remained for three years to be studied. She has published three books, The Asiatic Fathers of America: Chinese Discovery and Colonisation of Ancient America, Secret Maps of the Ancient World and her just released The Chinese Sailed to America Before Columbus. Ms Harris Rees has appeared frequently on television and radio in the United States and Canada and in numerous international news articles. She has lectured worldwide including at the U.S. Library of Congress, The National Library of China, Stanford University, the University of London, Tsinghua University and numerous other universities.
|
<urn:uuid:ffda4916-ea9c-46dd-8fd2-30a342785881>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.rgshk.org.hk/public/event.php?pageId=54&eventId=482
|
2013-06-19T13:28:48Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708783242/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125303-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.976629
| 816
|
DescriptionX-Windows is an industry-standard "windowing" technology that allows a user, at one X-Window station, to execute multiple simultaneous logins to a variety of host computers (or just one host computer). Under X-Windows a user can easily run multiple applications simultaneously from these hosts, and have the output from these applications displayed to their X-terminal in different windows. A host can be any computer system that supports a login session, and an application can be any executable program that supports either terminal emulation or the X-Windows ("X") client-server paradigm.
X-Windows ("X") is:
The X-Window system is oriented around a "display". The display typically consists of the following components:
The display can actually consist of multiple monitors (or CRT's).
Each X-Windows application works within its own window (or windows) on the user's display. Windows can be re-sized, moved, iconified, and closed. Cutting and pasting of objects between windows (including entirely different applications) is a part of the X-Windows system.
X is based on a client-server paradigm. The software provided to manage the display is called the display server, commonly referred to as the X server, or just server.
The X-server interprets key presses and mouse clicks, and draws on your display device. Applications communicate with the server to display output or read input. The server can communicate with multiple applications simultaneously and still send proper communications to the appropriate clients.
The X Server provides "services" to X-Windows client applications.
The X-Windows "client" is any software application that will be displayed on the X Server. X-clients request services from the X-server. For example, for an application to display an X-Window on a user's display device(s), it must request that the server allow the application privilege to write to the server's display.
In the Unix world, it is very easy to share applications between heterogeneous Unix systems. For instance, Lotus 123 for Unix can be installed on an IBM RS/6000 running the AIX operating system (Unix-based). A user on another Unix machine, such as a DEC Unix workstation, can log into the RS/6000, set their DISPLAY environment variable back to their DEC workstation, and then run 123 with the X-Windows being displayed on their DEC Workstation, running across a network.
123 uses the CPU of the IBM RS/6000 when performing calculations, displays results on the DEC workstation, and transfers the information across the network. And, by the way, it doesn't have to be just a DEC workstation displaying the information - it can be a DOS/Windows PC or Mac with X-emulation software, an SGI or Tektronix or Sun or HP, or any other X-Windows system.
In the world of X, neither the server nor the client know very much about the "look-and-feel" of the windowing system. Window borders, on-screen menus, slider bars, and other "widgets", are provided by a separate part of the X system. This part is known as the window manager.
The window manager is a very special client application. When another client application wants to create a new window, the client application and the server communicate with the window manager to make this happen.
In the past their have been a variety of window managers available, the most popular being Motif and OpenLook. With the recent agreements in the Unix industry (primarily the COSE initiative), the Motif window manager will become the standard window manager for Unix computer systems.
|
<urn:uuid:a9cd0488-8b18-4516-b055-49cb0268bfe3>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://alvinalexander.com/unix/edu/IntroToUnix/node12.shtml
|
2013-05-23T19:39:34Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703728865/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112848-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.903508
| 753
|
Forests, people and climate change: the REDD solution
01 October 2009 | News story
Major reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions are necessary if we are to avoid disastrous climate change. Given that deforestation and forest degradation account for up to 17% of man-made global greenhouse gas emissions, conservation and sustainable management of forests is a good place to start.
The relatively new approach of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) can help achieve this goal if it is based on good social and environmental principles and fully integrated into broader strategies aimed at achieving deep cuts in carbon emissions from fossil fuels.
With the impacts of climate change more serious than previously thought, REDD can offer a ‘bridging strategy,’ reducing short-term emissions and buying time while the world adapts to a low carbon path. To maximize its effectiveness, REDD needs to be broadened to include the restoration of degraded forests and enhancement of carbon stocks, alongside conservation and sustainable forest management. This is known as ‘REDD-plus’ and offers multiple environmental and social benefits.
In the build-up to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in Copenhagen in December, we’re starting a three-month climate change focus, beginning by highlighting some of the issues involved in REDD. We also profile people from around the world who are working hard to make REDD a reality for their country.
|
<urn:uuid:70b59696-9d60-4790-95a8-77c4dc79f6ee>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://cms.iucn.org/fr/nouvelles_homepage/nouvelles_par_theme/politique_sociale_news/?3954/Forests-people-and-climate-change-the-REDD-solution
|
2013-05-24T22:43:52Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.939661
| 290
|
Mice With Sickle Cell Genes Will Aid in Developing Treatment
Research in the laboratory of Dr. Edward Rubin of the Life Sciences Division resulted in the creation of a new strain of mice that carries human hemoglobin genes with no counteracting mouse genes. This enables the mice to develop all clinical manifestations of sickle cell disease.
Each year approximately 100,000 babies in the world, mostly of African descent, are born with sickle cell disease, a painful and debilitating condition caused by a mutant hemoglobin gene. Although sickle cell disease has been extensively studied, there is still no effective treatmenta failure attributed in part to the lack of an animal model that accurately reproduces the disease's symptoms.
"This work marks the end of a long road to genetically engineer mice that faithfully model human sickle cell disease," says Rubin.
Transgenic mice containing the human sickle genes have been engineered before, but these mice developed only mild symptoms of the disease. The problem was that in addition to carrying the mutant human genes responsible for sickle cell disease, these strains also carried normal mouse genes which counteracted the defective human genes.
Through a series of complex transgenic and gene knock-out manipulations, the Berkeley Lab researchers were able to add the appropriate human genes as well as delete the (corresponding) mouse genes. The end products are mice with irreversibly sickled red blood cells, anemia, and multi-organ pathology.
Collaborating on this project with Rubin were Chris Paszty, Catherine Brion, Mary Stevens, and Mohandas Narla of Berkeley Lab, plus Ewa Witkowska of the Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute and Elizabeth Manci of the University of South Alabama Doctors Hospital.
|
<urn:uuid:60331be2-b8ef-4fdd-b317-80a61c38617d>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Research-Review/Magazine/1998/frontline/mice.html
|
2013-05-20T22:23:35Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.93584
| 354
|
Preventing Harassment: Behavior Checklist
the uniqueness of others;
and modify (as needed) your biases, beliefs, behaviors;
model the behavior;
to concerns when they arise.
an effort to know those around you.
cultures different from your own.
compliments casual and impersonal, especially in power relationships.
If in doubt, avoid personal compliments and focus
on the person's professional accomplishments.
repeating jokes, words, phrases, and gestures with sexual
or racial connotations.
person has "personal space." Watch for signs
that tell you when you are infringing on that space.
- Avoid making assumptions and comments about an individual's ability, religion, sexual orientation, etc.
sensitive to situations where harassment is most likely to
occur, such as non-traditional working and learning environments.
you are uncertain about how others may be interpreting your
behavior, check with a colleague or your supervisor.
Guidelines: Inside the Classroom
a role model: Set the tone as to what behavior will be tolerated
in the classroom. Confront sexist or racist remarks.
controversial material will be reviewed in class, let the
students know in advance. Include specific information in
the syllabus about the material.
students write about or answer test questions on the material
helps to show that the material is pedagogically valuable.
Guidelines: Outside the Classroom
possible, conduct meetings with students with your door slightly
ajar. If you feel that the meeting calls for more privacy,
ask for permission to completely shut the door.
- Avoid giving your home contact information to students. If it is your normal practice to conduct some business from home, then give the information to all students via the syllabus.
that students perceive an enormous power differential between
faculty and students. Casual comments may be taken more
seriously than intended; suggestions may be taken as directives.
|
<urn:uuid:b0ee1083-24fb-4611-b100-101da21eb0db>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://oied.ncsu.edu/oied/harassment/behavior_cklst.php
|
2013-05-19T02:17:06Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00053-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.883659
| 402
|
|Ripe proso millet|
Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum) is also known as common millet, hog millet or white millet. Both the wild ancestor and the location of domestication of proso millet are unknown, but it first appears as a crop in both Transcaucasia and China about 7,000 years ago, suggesting it may have been domesticated independently in each area. It is still extensively cultivated in India, Russia, Ukraine, the Middle East, Turkey and Romania. In the United States, proso is mainly grown for birdseed. It is sold as health food, and due to its lack of gluten, it can be included in the diets of people who cannot tolerate wheat.
Proso is well adapted to many soil and climatic conditions; it has a short growing season, and needs little water. The water requirement of proso is probably the lowest of any major cereal. It is an excellent crop for dryland and no-till farming. Proso millet is an annual grass whose plants reach an average height of 100 cm (4 feet.). Like corn, it has a C4 photosynthesis. The seedheads grow in bunches. The seeds are small (2–3 mm or 0.1 inch) and can be cream, yellow, orange-red, or brown in colour.
History and domestication
Unlike the foxtail millet, the wild ancestor of the proso millet has not yet been satisfactorily identified. Weedy forms of this grain are found in central Asia, covering a widespread area from the Caspian Sea east to Xinjiang and Mongolia, and it may be that these semiarid areas may harbor "genuinely wild P. miliaceum forms." This millet has been reportedly found in Neolithic sites in Georgia (dated to the fifth and fourth millennia BC), as well as excavated Yangshao culture farming villages east in China. Proso millet appears to have reached Europe not long after its appearance in Georgia, first appearing in east and central Europe; however, the grain needed a few thousand more years to cross into Italy, Greece, and Iran, and the earliest evidence for its cultivation in the Near East is a find in the ruins of Nimrud, Iraq dated to about 700 BC.
While proso millet is not a member of the Neolithic Near East crop assemblage, it arrived in Europe no later than the time these introductions did, and proso millet as an independent domestication could predate the arrival of the Near East grain crops.
Dry millet yields : 400–800 kg/ha
Irrigated millet yields : 1-2 t/ha. The potential maximum grain yield is 6 t/ha.
In the United States, a grain yield of 4,5 t/ha has already been achieved by using millet as an intercrop in a non-irrigated (380 mm precipitations) and chemically controled no-till system. As an intercrop, proso millet can help to avoid a summer fallow, and continuous crop rotation can be achieved. Its superficial root system and its resistance to atrazine residue make proso millet a good intercrop between two water and pesticide demanding crops. The stubbles of the last crop, by allowing more heat into the soil, result in a faster and earlier millet growth. While millet occupies the ground, because of its superficial root system, the soil can replenish in water for the next crop. The later, for example a winter wheat, can in turn benefits from the millet stubbles, wich can notably act as snow accumulators.
Proso millet is one of the few types of millet not cultivated in Africa. In the United States, former Soviet Union, and some South American countries, it is primarily grown for livestock feed. As a grain fodder, it is very deficient in lysine and needs complementation. Proso millet is also a poor fodder due to its low leave:stem ratio and a possible irritant effect due to its hairy stem. Foxtail millet, having a higher leave:stem ratio and less hairy stems, is prefered as fodder, particularly the variety called moha, wich is a high quality fodder.
- Daniel Zohary and Maria Hopf, Domestication of plants in the Old World, third edition (Oxford: University Press, 2000), p. 83
- Zohary and Hopf, Domestication, p. 86
- Brink, Martin; Belay, Getachew (2006). Céréales et légumes secs (Brink, M. & Belay, G ed.). ISBN 978-90-5782-172-1.
- Producing and marketing proso millet in the great plains, U. Nabraska-Lincoln ExtensionPDFlink must be run with an argument PDF
- National Research Council (1996-02-14). "Ebony". Lost Crops of Africa: Volume I: Grains. Lost Crops of Africa 1. National Academies Press. p. 260. ISBN 978-0-309-04990-0. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
|
<urn:uuid:8238c84d-3cae-45f9-abd9-c9bfa3aeccd7>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proso_millet
|
2013-05-21T01:04:41Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699632815/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102032-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.902634
| 1,091
|
In 1905, T. Rex was named as the largest predatory dinosaur ever found, & for whatever reason became so popular in society that for some people the name T. Rex is synonymous with the word dinosaur. But 90 years later, a larger charcharodontid, Giganotosaurus carolinii, was discovered, & has not yet even come close to T. Rex's fame.
Giganotosaurus was unearthed by an amateur paleontologist working in Argentina. 70% of the fossil was complete, enough to show it was the largest predatory dinosaur found so far. It is estimated the original animal was 50 feet long, 8 more than T. Rex & weighed 8 metric tonnes, 2 more than T. Rex.
Giganotosaurus was however more slender than T. Rex, & almost certainly preyed on larger animals. The evolution of Giganotosaurus' family, the Charcharadontosaurs, was either a response to the evolution of giant Titanosaurus such as Argentinosaurus, or the other way around where larger carnivores forced sauropods to enlarge to survive.
|
<urn:uuid:cc15104d-976b-4daa-bb35-fba045de8370>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.dinosaurfact.net/Cretaceous/Giganotosaurus.php
|
2013-05-18T18:41:39Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382705/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00051-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.959098
| 225
|
Early Mountain Homesteaders Helped to Shape Malibu's History
• Second in a Series of Articles on the Pioneering Families Who Settled the Area's Rugged Backcountry
BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN
The republication of a long out of print article on the conflict between the Rindge family-owners of the entire Topanga Malibu Sequit Rancho and homesteaders in the western part of the Santa Monica Mountains in the early 20th century opens a window on an almost forgotten chapter of Malibu history.
Jo Hindman published "The Big Ranch Fight" in 1955. The original 12-page article provides an intriguing look at life in the Yerba Buena District of the Santa Monica Mountains during the era and how conflict between homesteaders and the Rindge family over easements eventually contributed to the creation of Pacific Coast Highway.
The article, "rediscovered" after the author's death in 1995, has been republished in its entirety in the Journal of Ventura County History and is now accompanied by a preface, epilogue, maps, photographs, and a wealth of fascinating footnotes contributed by Ventura County Museum Library librarian Charles Johnson and a small army of researchers and volunteers.
According to the article, for most of the 19th century the western end of the Santa Monica Mountains was remote, isolated and almost entirely uninhabited.
The U.S. government's Land Act of 1862 opened surveyed public lands that had previously been occupied by Native Americans to any homesteader willing to file a claim, build a house-however small and rustic—and "improve" at least a portion of the land with cultivation.
The same year, vast tracts of land were set aside in the west for the Union Pacific Railroad Company and the Central Pacific Railroad Company.
While most of what is now Malibu belonged to Frederick Hastings Rindge, who purchased the entire Topanga Malibu Sequit Rancho in 1892 , the western portion was reserved for the railroads.
That didn't stop a small number of settlers from "squatting" in the mountains and eking out a living off the land as early as the 1870s. However, a devastating drought in the late 19th century severely limited expansion into the Santa Monica Mountains.
In 1895, Congress passed a new act, making smaller sections of land available for $1.25 an acre. According to Johnston's research, "In 1889 the Land Office in Los Angeles began to adjudicate titles to land held by claimants," opening up the last "free" lands on the West Coast, including the Yerba Buena District, in what is now western Malibu.
Johnson's research indicates that a man named Frank Diehl was the first "official" homesteader in the Yerba Buena District. His land patent was recorded in May 1901. By the 1920s every available acre of land was claimed in the Santa Monica Mountains, which "did not keep unscrupulous lawyers from offering their services to those hopeful of acquiring property," according to Johnson. Articles in the L.A. Times chronicle the battle between Malibu Rancho owner May Rindge, Frederick Hastings Rindge's widow, and the homesteaders who filed claims-prompted by "professional land locators" for property that belonged to the Rancho.
Homesteaders and squatters had a challenging life. They were dependent on natural springs for water; supplies had to be carted in by wagon over steep and dangerous terrain; necessities, medical aid and all of the other "modern conveniences" were a full day's ride from home.
Initially there were four routes to the Yerba Buena District: over the Broome Ranch to Oxnard; over Boney Ridge into the Johnson Ranch near Triunfo on El Camino Real; over the Lewis Ranch to Camarillo; and along the coast via the Rindge Ranch Road.
However, the Rindges began buying up property adjacent to the Malibu Rancho in 1906. By 1917, they had acquired the entire coast route all the way to Little Sycamore Canyon and closed it to all travelers, eliminating the safest and quickest access route to the mountain and enforcing even greater isolation on the residents.
Hindman, in her 1955 article, paints a portrait of a self-sufficient and neighborly community of pioneers, who learned to live off the land, cope with emergencies that ranged from wildfire to snakebite, and still found time to gather at the one-room Yerba Buena school on Saturday nights for square dances that were the highlight of the week.
Much of the original article is derived from the author's interviews with Lauretta Houston, who arrived in the Yerba Buena District in 1917 with her husband John Spurgeon and their two-month-old daughter, Geneva Martha.
The Houstons purchased 40 acres from a homesteader named Albert Lee Kidd who, in Hindman's words, "could not endure the rough mountain life."
They moved into the 10-foot by 12-foot cabin built by Kidd. They had water, piped from a spring down to the homestead—most of the neighbors had to carry their water in buckets-but no indoor plumbing or any of the other conveniences they left behind in Alhambra.
"It seemed as though we were being tried," Houston recounted to Hindman. "It didn't rain until February, and water and crops were absolute necessities that figured in our plans. We lost nearly everything. All but two of our calves died. Later, people told us that they had given the Houstons 'just three months,' but we were determined to stick it out and we did.
"Absolute self reliance was an essential, yet when circumstances caused anyone bad luck, the rest of us were there with immediate help," Houston said.
Houston led the campaign to bring a school bus to the mountain, so Yerba Buena children could attend high school in Oxnard. The little Yerba Buena school only went through the eighth grade. She also volunteered regularly to take the monthly trip to Triunfo for the mail.
"It was made on horseback, one day out, one day back," wrote Hindman. Houston would return with the mail but also "medicine, candy for the children, needles, thread, yeast cakes, tobacco and small articles that would fit into the saddlebags."
"The yearly trip to Camarillo and Oxnard for the 'big buy' was made through the Jack Broome Ranch in the Point Mugu area," wrote Hindman, adding that the coffee, flour, sugar and other staples were augmented with wild game and the "pink beans" that were one of the main crops grown by the homesteaders.
Anyone who wished to travel east to Santa Monica was at the mercy of the tides. The Rindges controlled the coast road but could not prevent travelers from taking their wagons along the beach. Houston recounts occasions when homesteaders would be forced to camp overnight, waiting for the tide to turn. Barbed wire and armed range riders enforced the Malibu Rancho's no trespassing decree.
May Rindge cited "constant danger of brush fires, a menace heightened by the presence of campers," in a statement to the Los Angeles Times in 1916, during litigation filed to force her to open the coast route. "One such fire in 1903 caused $100,000 [damage]," Rindge stated.
Rindge attempted to circumvent demands from the State Railroad Commission for railroad right-of-way through the ranch by constructing her own railroad.
"Of exceptional ability, May K. Ridge at one time was the only California woman president of a railroad, and one of three women listed so nationally in 1916," Hindman wrote.
Rindge spent much of her fortune keeping out the railroads but she failed in the end to prevent construction of Pacific Coast Highway, originally Roosevelt Highway, which opened to the public in 1929.
For the residents of Yerba Buena District, the coastal route brought paved roads, butane and electricity and an end to the residents' pioneer lifestyle.
Lauretta Houston provides a vivid portrait of Rindge, describing her as "On the heavy side, sensibly dressed in serviceable clothes when she rode her ranges in automobiles.
"Heavy khaki skirts (sometimes the divided culotte type), khaki shirt and a bolero with leather or buckskin fringe was her typical range outfit. Her long hair was combed up under a soft, floppy felt hat.
"Her eyes were brown and steady and there was 'no backing down when she made up her mind.' She wore a brace of revolvers in a holster and although brusque in manner at times, [she] was often pleasant and friendly."
According to Johnson, the Houstons moved to Oxnard after the devastating 1956 wildfire that ravaged much of western Malibu. Lauretta died in 1994. She was 96.
In a curious twist of fate, she was a member of the Ventura County Historical Society at the time of her death, never knowing what an important part she played in preserving a vital record of local history.
A limited number of copies of the current Journal of Ventura County History are available at the Museum of Ventura County and can be ordered by phone or purchased in the museum gift shop. FI: www.venturamuseum.org or 805-653-0323.
|
<urn:uuid:c62a87db-1fc1-43c0-8dd8-9366c6495b86>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.malibusurfsidenews.com/stories/201203/201203150005.html
|
2013-05-21T02:22:22Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699632815/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102032-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.969407
| 1,958
|
SEE LOCKER AT RIGHT TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT DOCUMENTS.
“Preparing for College” Calendar For SOPHOMORES
- Check if you are on track to graduate high school and are eligible for college.
- Do you know how many years you need of each subject?
- Do you know the A-G requirements for college?
- Sign-up for clubs and activities to increase your extra curricular activities
- Talk to your parents, counselors, teachers, and friends about post-high school plans.
- Take the PSAT to get an idea of how much SAT prep you may need.
- CheckSchool Loop, Counseling Office, and College & Career Resource Center for dates, times, and locations of various college visits.
- If you are interested in a military academy, get information now.
- Start to visit the Counseling Office and College & Career Resource Center.
- Focus on doing well in your classes and prepare for finals.
- Create your two-year plan for the rest of high school with counselors.
- Start thinking about career choices, colleges, and majors.
- Ask others where they went to school or what schools they know about.
- Do well on your finals!
- Attend career workshops to hear about what people do, and how to get started in different careers.
- Research possible interesting jobs, volunteer opportunities, and internships for the summer before your junior year.
- Review your PSAT score report with counselors.
- Study and take advantage of the materials that come with your individualized results.
- Watch and listen to your junior friends as they start their college search.
- Think about the important factors in choosing a college. For example, is it a two-year or four-year institution, where is it located, is it public or private, what is the social environment, how much does it cost for tuition?
- Consult your counselor, college websites, and materials in the College & Career Resource Center.
- Prepare for March High School Exit Exams (CAHSEE). You must pass these to graduate!
- Select classes for your junior year, with counselor help!
- Take High School Exit Exams (CAHSEE).
- Research colleges online and use reference books.
- Start writing down all the activities, work, and volunteering you have done. This will help you build your résumé, give you ideas for possible college entrance essays, and fulfill your community service requirement.
- Apply for or enroll in summer courses at a community college, internships, jobs, travel opportunities, or volunteer activities for the summer.
- Visit a few local colleges during the break. Call ahead to book a tour.
- Study for finals!
- Talk to your parents about visiting some colleges this summer during vacation.
- Do well on your finals.
- At the end of this year you are now half way through high school!
- Meet with your counselor to check if you are on track for a CSU and/or UC.
- Continue to research colleges that may interest you – visit colleges while on vacation or take an online tour.
- Do something that interests you and earn your community service hours. Seek out non-profit organizations and volunteer to get your 20 hours. Tip: if you complete community service hours, get a record of this. Forms available in Counseling Office and on School Loop.
- If you work, do something that requires real thinking. Internships are great!
- Complete any summer reading or H/AP homework BEFORE school starts!
|
<urn:uuid:c1286f5f-2aa5-43e6-a2a1-4278d41ac601>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://wilcox.schoolloop.com/cms/page_view?d=x&piid=&vpid=1289141084276
|
2013-06-19T19:27:52Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00050-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.930625
| 742
|
Amiens cathedral (begun 1220 AD)
Amiens is not far from Reims, in northern France, and when the bishop of Reims began building a big new cathedral, naturally the bishop of Amiens wanted one too. In fact, Bishop Evrard of Amiens was determined to have the biggest cathedral in France, so he built his nave 138 feet high - 13 feet higher than Reims, and almost as high as the dome of the Pantheon in Rome.
The builders began with the front, or facade, of the cathedral. Like Notre Dame of Paris, the facade of Amiens has three big doors on the bottom level, a gallery and a row of statues across the middle, and a huge rose window (43 feet in diameter). But the facade of Amiens cathedral emphasizes vertical lines more than the earlier Notre-Dame of Paris, which has stronger horizontal lines. Amiens' facade is also deeper, so there are more contrasts between light and shadow.
Inside the cathedral, there's the same four-part groin vaulted roof as at Chartres, Rouen, and Reims, supported by the same kind of flying buttresses on the outside. At the crossing, though, you can see a more complicated pattern of ribs - the first example of this more complicated vaulting in France.
Because the nave is very narrow, it seems even higher than it really is. The side aisles are also very high, which adds to the effect.
To find out more about Amiens cathedral, check out this book from Amazon.com or from your library:
Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction, by David Macaulay (1981). Beautiful drawings and clear text explain exactly how medieval craftsmen built a cathedral, from foundation to the stained glass windows. For kids.
BILL OF RIGHTS
WHAT IS BC OR AD?
|
<urn:uuid:20dbb693-e87c-4e0c-bdec-e3d98e4d6f90>
|
CC-MAIN-2013-20
|
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/medieval/architecture/amiens.htm
|
2013-05-25T05:43:44Z
|
s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00052-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz
|
en
| 0.915416
| 383
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.