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Michigan Radon Information
General Radon Information
Michigan specific radon and radon level information can be found throughout this site. You will be able to find information about certified radon inspectors in Michigan, as well as detailed radon level information for every county in Michigan.
Radon - You can't see it. You can't smell it. You can't taste it.
Radon is a Class A carcinogen and the second leading cause of lung cancer. It comes from the radioactive breakdown of naturally occurring radium found in most soils. As a gas in the soil, it enters buildings through small openings in the foundation. Since the building can hold the radon similarly to smoke trapped under a glass, indoor radon concentrations can increase to many times that of outdoor levels.
The only way to know whether your home has elevated radon levels is to test your home. There are no physical signs to warn you of the presence of radon, and it cannot be detected with the senses. And since radon levels can vary significantly from home to home, you can't use your neighbor's test results to determine whether or not your home has a problem. Your home must be tested.
How does radon enter your house? Air pressure inside your home is usually lower than pressure in the soil around and under your home. Because the pressure is lower inside, radon is sucked into your house through cracks or holes in the slab or foundation. If you have elevated radon levels you can fix your home. If you are building a house in an area of moderate or high radon potential, it is recommend that you use radon resistant building techniques.
Radon was first recognized as an indoor environmental health concern in the mid-1980s, and media coverage of the issue both enlightened and alarmed the public. The Michigan Department of Public Health (MDPH) Division of Radiological Health (DRH), with the assistance of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Michigan's local health departments (LHDs), initiated a statewide residential indoor radon survey. Conducted during the 1987-88 winter heating season with all but four of the state's 83 counties participating, the survey found that approximately 12 percent of the homes in Michigan would have radon screening levels greater than 4 picocuries per liter of air (pCi/l). In some counties, as many as 40-45 percent (or more) of the homes would have screening levels above the 4 pCi/l guideline.
In 1990 MDPH conducted a second survey that was aimed at determining radon levels in the public school environment. Radon levels were measured in rooms in more than 385 school buildings across the state during the 1991 school year. While fewer than 3 percent of the rooms showed radon levels greater than the 4 pCi/l guideline, as many as one in four buildings had at least one room with an elevated radon level.
A third survey was conducted in 1991-92 to confirm the extent of the radon problem in the state's one true radon hotspot (discovered during the 1987-88 residential survey), the Republic area in Marquette County. In this project, both short-term and long-term radon detectors were provided to Republic homeowners for measuring more than 250 sites. Preliminary short-term results indicated that more than 84 percent of the returned detectors had radon levels greater than 4 pCi/l. More than 45 percent of those were greater than 20 pCi/l, and more than 5 percent had levels exceeding 100 pCi/l, with the highest result being 389 pCi/l. Long-term test devices placed during this SIRG 2 project were not retrieved until SIRG 3, but the results confirmed the hotspot designation and generally correspond with the above-mentioned percentages for the short-term results.
Data from these three surveys confirmed that Michigan residents could be at risk from exposure to elevated levels of radon gas, and the focus of the SIRG program was shifted toward education and outreach that would strongly encourage testing and mitigation to address that risk.
The Michigan Indoor Radon Program is a non-regulatory program.Its purpose is to increase awareness of the health risk associated with exposure to elevated indoor radon levels, to encourage testing for radon, and to also encourage citizens to take action to reduce their exposure once elevated radon levels are found.
Funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, matched by state dollars, provides for a toll-free radon hotline (1-800-RADON GAS/1-800-723-6642) that citizens can call to get information on the health risk, how to test, how to interpret results, how to reduce elevated radon levels, etc. Literature is distributed free of charge, and program staff can help locate do-it-yourself test kits, professional testers, and radon reduction contractors. | <urn:uuid:420c6b78-63b3-43af-b131-d2b01983576b> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://mi-radon.info/MI_general.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397567.28/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00023-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958218 | 1,016 | 3.015625 | 3 |
DETROIT (Feb. 5)
Gen. Josef Haller, “good-will ambassador” from the Polish Government-in-exile, admitted here today that there were “some excesses” during the early days of the Polish Republic but pledged a square deal for all minorities in the new Poland. He made his statement to Philip Adler, foreign correspondent who represented the Detroit News in Poland, Russia, Japan and Germany.
According to Adler, Gen. Haller blamed the last Polish Government for failure to meet with Jews in conference to iron out differences and said that the presence of 600,000 non-Polish Jews described as “Litvaks” was responsible for the trouble.
Asked what guarantees there were that the discrimination against minorities would not be repeated in the new Poland, Gen. Haller said: “Our best guarantee is the fact that the moment Hitler invaded Poland, Ukrainians, Jews, White Russians and other minority groups forgot their past differences with the Polish Government and fought side by side against the foreign invader. They died side by side on the battle field and are today dying side by side before the Nazi firing squads and in the inquisition chambers of the Gestapo.”
When the interviewer reminded him of the charges against him by Jews that he was responsible for pogroms and that the term “Hallerscszyk” (a Haller soldier) at one time was a synonym for a Jew-baiter, Gen. Haller explained his attitude as follow.
“I must admit there were some excesses in Poland during the early phases of post-war reconstruction. The reasons were many. They were different for different nationalities. Ukrainians, Lithuanians and White Russians were separatists. They wanted to break up the Polish State when we tried to create it. We had to use force After all, the interests of the whole are greater than those of any of its parts. We had to save the Polish union first and make adjustments with nationality groups afterward.
“The Jewish problem then was quite different. We never accused Jews of trying to break away from Poland. On the contrary, Poland’s historical tradition in dealing with the Jews was liberal. Jews, remembering this, began to flock to Poland from neighboring states. Some 600,000 non-Polish Jews settled in Poland in those days. They created an antagonism not only among the Poles, but among the Polish Jews themselves, who derogatively referred to them as ‘Litvaks.’ Many of those Jews brought with them the Russian revolutionary ideas. On the other hand, many of my Polish troops had been raised on the anti-Semitic traditions of the Czar. A clash was inevitable. It came. There were excesses. I do not condone them.”
Referring to the “wave of national minority disturbances which preceded the German invasion,” Gen. Haller said:
“The so-called Jewish question again was different than the other minority problems. Again there was no Jewish separatism. Controversies with Jews arose over questions of kosher meat, of Jewish passion for education which resulted in a Jewish invasion of our universities far out of proportion with the size of population, etc. All these were questions which could have been settled amicably at a conference table. But the last Government of Poland, to which I was not an adherer, did not believe in conference tables. It shut down all parties. The opposition was not permitted to raise its voice. Jews felt they were being discriminated against and, naturally resented it. The fact is that my own Polish party was not given a voice in Parliament. I may add that my military advice was not heeded. In fact, there was nobody to whom I could present it.
“Much as it hurts me to do so, I must admit that life in Poland preceding the German invasion was somewhat chaotic. National minorities, like Polish opposition groups, suffered considerably from this chaos. The was made us all forget our petty little differences, and take a common stand against our common foe. I am confident that those of us who will survive this holocaust will come out of it better men. Poles have learned much from our national calamity about the patriotism and loyalty of our minority groups.” | <urn:uuid:34ee8830-d7c4-4398-806b-b5ae442d3780> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.jta.org/1940/02/06/archive/haller-admits-some-excesses-in-old-poland-pledges-square-deal-in-new-state | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403823.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00070-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984028 | 885 | 2.515625 | 3 |
In line with an analysis of plant profitability, a similar analysis of product profitability by production line may offer further possibilities for profit optimization. Certain products may run better, i.e., be produced at faster production speeds on one production line than on another. Knowing differences in profitability for a given product by production line allows the production team to consider potential causes and actions. One possibility might be to switch a product to another production line where it runs faster or with better yields and less downtime (Figure 3).
Figure 3. Comparing products and lines is crucial in maximizing plant and company profits.
Perhaps another product could run more efficiently on the production line in question. Routings of products to production lines where they generate the most cash-per-minute is a significant benefit from a profit-per-minute approach to profitability.
Producing chemicals in larger lot sizes would seem to be a logic means of increasing a product’s profitability by reducing set-up times. However, without knowing in detail the differences, if any, in profitability for a product by lot size, it is impossible to schedule product batches in way that will maximize profits. If there are not significant differences in profitability for different lot sizes, the production team might decide to schedule smaller lot sizes in order to meet demand for spot market products.
On the other hand, large differences in cash-per-minute with varying lot sizes might direct the production team to increase pricing for smaller lot sizes for certain products in order to increase their profitability. Again, without knowing product profitability at a granular profit-per-minute level, it is impossible to even know that one should be looking at these types of production decisions (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Efficiency of production is not always improved with bigger lots.
The ability to rank products on profitability by plant and production line opens up the possibility of quantifying downtime and losses in yield by product. If downtime or yield is worse than average for a given product, efforts can be made to investigate the causes. Does a product just not run well on a given production line? Is maintenance needed on that production line? Are capital improvements or replacements in equipment needed? Without knowing product profitability at this detailed level, the production team would not even know the need to ask these questions.
Once product profitability is known by plant, production line, lot size and non-production dimensions such as customer and geography, then decisions may be made to consider reducing the demand for certain products or even killing off others. The detailed view of profitability provided by the profit-per-minute approach may lead to major changes in product, customer and asset mix. As a result, capacity planning and loading of production facilities might be significantly impacted. For example, if a particular product is found to have very low profitability, sales and marketing, and production may jointly decide to stop making it and use the freed-up capacity to make more of a more profitable product.
If existing capacity among all plants is insufficient to produce more of a very profitable product, a decision might need to be made to add a new production line, or build or acquire a new plant. If a particular production line is old and in need of upgrades, a decision will need to made how to load other production lines while upgrade work is done on the poorly performing one.
If, as discussed earlier, changes in production lot size should be made to increase overall profitability, decisions can be made in the scheduling and loading of all company production facilities.
Effectively managing profit
As seen in the sidebar, product decisions can dramatically differ when based on profit per minute — the operational equivalent of ROA — rather than on margin alone. With this insight, we can readily see how the use of ROA at an operational level can have significant impact in deciding which products to make, where to make them and what to charge for them.
From a production perspective, an operational ROA view impacts decisions in areas such as productivity improvement initiatives, capital investment decisions and plant maintenance. Thus, using a profit-per-minute approach, makes it possible to base every day product-level operating decisions on ROA rather than on margin alone. The net result, as we have shown, is that production, sales, marketing and finance have a common platform that can be used to maximize overall company ROA.
Richard Batty is director of product marketing at Maxager Technology in San Rafael, Calif.; email him at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:717ee64c-fbed-4049-8758-de2812ca1d70> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.chemicalprocessing.com/articles/2007/014/?start=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403502.46/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00178-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949286 | 901 | 2.640625 | 3 |
In microeconomics, supply and demand is an economic model of price
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Younger Americans and Public Libraries
How those under 30 engage with libraries and think about libraries’ role in their lives and communities
Summary of Findings
Younger Americans—those ages 16-29—especially fascinate researchers and organizations because of their advanced technology habits, their racial and ethnic diversity, their looser relationships to institutions such as political parties and organized religion, and the ways in which their social attitudes differ from their elders.
This report pulls together several years of research into the role of libraries in the lives of Americans and their communities with a special focus on Millennials, a key stakeholder group affecting the future of communities, libraries, book publishers and media makers of all kinds, as well as the tone of the broader culture.
Following are some of the noteworthy insights from this research.
There are actually three different “generations” of younger Americans with distinct book reading habits, library usage patterns, and attitudes about libraries. One “generation” is comprised of high schoolers (ages 16-17); another is college-aged (18-24), though many do not attend college; and a third generation is 25-29.
Millennials’ lives are full of technology, but they are more likely than their elders to say that important information is not available on the internet. Some 98% of those under 30 use the internet, and 90% of those internet users say they use social networking sites. Over three-quarters (77%) of younger Americans have a smartphone, and many also have a tablet (38%) or e-reader (24%). Despite their embrace of technology, 62% of Americans under age 30 agree there is “a lot of useful, important information that is not available on the internet,” compared with 53% of older Americans who believe that. At the same time, 79% of Millennials believe that people without internet access are at a real disadvantage.
Millennials are quite similar to their elders when it comes to the amount of book reading they do, but young adults are more likely to have read a book in the past 12 months. Some 43% report reading a book—in any format—on a daily basis, a rate similar to older adults. Overall, 88% of Americans under 30 read a book in the past year, compared with 79% of those age 30 and older. Young adults have caught up to those in their thirties and forties in e-reading, with 37% of adults ages 18-29 reporting that they have read an e-book in the past year.
The community and general media-use activities of younger adults are different from older adults. Those under age 30 are more likely to attend sporting events or concerts than older adults. They are also more likely to listen to music, the radio, or a podcast in some format on a daily or near-daily basis, and socialize with friends or family daily. Older adults, in turn, are more likely to visit museums or galleries, watch television or movies, or read the news on a daily basis.
As a group, Millennials are as likely as older adults to have used a library in the past 12 months, and more likely to have used a library website. Among those ages 16-29, 50% reported having used a library or bookmobile in the course of the past year in a September 2013 survey. Some 47% of those 30 and older had done so. Some 36% of younger Americans used a library website in that time frame, compared with 28% of those 30 and older. Despite their relatively high use of libraries, younger Americans are among the least likely to say that libraries are important. Some 19% of those under 30 say their library’s closing would have a major impact on them and their family, compared with 32% of older adults, and 51% of younger Americans say it would have a major impact on their community, compared with 67% of those 30 and older.
As with the general population, most younger Americans know where their local library is, but many say they are unfamiliar with all the services it may offer: 36% of Millennials say they know little or nothing about the local library’s services, compared with 29% of those 30 and older. At the same time, most younger Americans feel they can easily navigate their local library, and the vast majority would describe libraries as warm, welcoming places, though younger patrons are less likely to rate libraries’ physical conditions highly.
While previous reports from Pew Research have focused on younger Americans’ e-reading habits and library usage, this report will explore in their attitudes towards public libraries in greater detail, as well as the extent to which they value libraries’ roles in their communities. To better understand the context of younger Americans’ engagement with libraries, this report will also explore their broader attitudes about technology and the role of libraries in the digital age.
It is important to note that age is not the only factor in Americans’ engagement with public libraries, nor the most important. Our library engagement typology found that Americans’ relationships with public libraries are part of their broader information and social landscapes, as people who have extensive economic, social, technological, and cultural resources are also more likely to use and value libraries as part of those networks. Deeper connections with public libraries are also often associated with key life moments such as having a child, seeking a job, being a student, and going through a situation in which research and data can help inform a decision. As a result, the picture of younger Americans’ engagement with public libraries is complex and sometimes contradictory, as we examine their habits and attitudes at different life stages.
Even among those under 30, age groups differ in habits and attitudes
Though there are often many differences between Americans under 30 and older adults, younger age groups often have many differences that tie to their age and stage of adulthood.
Our surveys have found that older teens (ages 16-17) are more likely to read (particularly print books), more likely to read for work or school, and more likely to use the library for books and research than older age groups. They are the only age group more likely to borrow most of the books they read instead of purchasing them, and are also more likely to get reading recommendations at the library. Yet despite their closer relationship with public libraries, 16-17 year-olds are less likely to say they highly value public libraries, both as a personal and community resource. Older adults, by contrast, are more likely to place a high level of importance on libraries’ roles in their communities—even age groups that are less likely to use libraries overall, such as those ages 65 and older.
The members of the next oldest age group, college-aged adults (ages 18-24), are less likely to use public libraries than many other age groups, and are significantly less likely to have visited a library recently than in our previous survey: Some 56% of 18-24 year-olds said they had visited a library in the past year in November 2012, while just 46% said this in September 2013. They are more likely to purchase most of the books they read than borrow them, and are more likely to read the news regularly than 16-17 year-olds. In addition, like the next oldest age group, 25-29 year-olds, most of those in the college-aged cohort have lived in their current neighborhood five years or less.
Finally, many of the library habits and views of adults in their late twenties (ages 25-29) are often more similar to members of older age groups than their younger counterparts. They are less likely than college-aged adults to have read a book in the past year, but are more likely to keep up with the news. In addition, a large proportion (42%) are parents, a group with particularly high rates of library usage. Additionally, library users in this group are less likely than younger patrons to say their library use has decreased, and they are much more likely to say that various library services are very important to them and their family.
Younger Americans’ community activities, and media and technology landscapes
As a group, the library usage of younger Americans ages 16-29 fits into the larger context of their social activities and community engagement, as well as their broader media and technological environment. Those under age 30 are more likely to attend sporting events or concerts than older adults. They are also more likely to listen to music, the radio, or a podcast in some format on a daily or near-daily basis, and socialize with friends or family daily. Older adults, in turn, are more likely to visit museums or galleries, watch television or movies, or read the news on a daily basis.
About four in ten younger Americans (43%) reported reading a book—in any format—on a daily basis, a rate similar to older adults. Overall, 88% of Americans under 30 read a book in the past year, making them more likely to do so than older adults. Among younger Americans who did read at least one book, the median or typical number read in the past year was 10.
Younger Americans typically have higher rates of technology adoption than older adults, with 98% of those under 30 using the internet, and 90% of those internet users saying they using social networking sites. Over three-quarters (77%) of younger Americans have a smartphone, and many also have a tablet (38%) or e-reader (24%).
Respondents of all age groups generally agree that the internet makes it much easier to find information today than in the past, and most Americans feel that it’s easy to separate the good information from bad online. However, Americans under age 30 are actually a little more likely than older adults to say that there is a lot of useful, important information that is not available on the internet. They are also somewhat more likely to agree that people without internet access are at a real disadvantage because of all the information they might be missing.
Relationships with public libraries
Younger Americans are significantly more likely than older adults to have used a library in the past year, including using a library website. Overall, the percentage of all Americans who visited a library in person in the previous year fell from our 2012 to 2013 surveys, but the percentage who used a library website increased; the same is true for younger Americans. Few library users made use of a library website without also visiting a library in person in that time, however, so overall library usage rates did not increase:
- Among those ages 16-29, the percentage who visited a public library in person in the previous year dropped from 58% in November 2012 to 50% in September 2013, with the largest drop occurring among 18-24 year-olds.
- 36% of younger Americans used a library website in the previous year, up from 28% in 2012, with the largest growth occurring among 16-17 year-olds (from 23% to 35%).
Despite their higher rates of library usage overall, younger Americans—particularly those under age 25—continue to be less likely than older adults to say that if their local public library closed it would have a major impact on either them and their family or on their community. Patrons ages 16-29 are also less likely than those ages 30 and older to say that several services are “very important” to them and their family, though those in their late twenties are more likely than younger age groups to strongly value most services.
As with the general population, most younger Americans know where their local library is, but many are unfamiliar with all the services they offer. However, most younger Americans feel they can easily navigate their local library, and the vast majority would describe libraries as warm, welcoming places, though younger patrons are less likely to rate libraries’ physical conditions highly.
Views about technology in libraries
Looking specifically at technology use at libraries, we found that as a group, patrons under age 30 are more likely than older patrons to use libraries’ computers and internet connections, but less likely to say these resources are very important to them and their families—particularly the youngest patrons, ages 16-17. Even though they are not as likely to say libraries are important, young adults do give libraries credit for embracing technology. Yet while younger age groups are often more ambivalent about the role an importance of libraries today than older adults, they do not necessarily believe that libraries have fallen behind in the technological sphere. Though respondents ages 16-29 were more likely than those ages 30 and older to agree that “public libraries have not done a good job keeping up with newer technologies” (43% vs. 31%), a majority of younger Americans (52%) disagreed with that statement overall.
About these surveys
This report covers the core findings from three major national surveys of Americans ages 16 and older. Many of the findings come from a survey of 6,224 Americans ages 16+ conducted in the fall of 2013. A full statement of the survey method and details can be found here: http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/03/13/methods-27/.
The details and methods of the two other surveys can be found at:
Disclaimer from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
This report is based on research funded in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The findings and conclusions contained within are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. | <urn:uuid:a37cba31-1ea6-4cf1-8c0d-9f13f25ea288> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/09/10/younger-americans-and-public-libraries/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393146.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00190-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97302 | 2,754 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Rebuttal: Imminent collapse of Arctic sea ice drives danger of accelerated methane thawIMMINENT COLLAPSE OF ARCTIC SEA ICE DRIVES DANGER OF ACCELERATED METHANE THAW
Archer Errs in Dismissing Concern About Potential "Runaway" Feedback, Precautionary Principle Should Prevail
Background of rebuttal author -
Peter Wadhams Sc.D. is Professor of Ocean Physics at the University of Cambridge in the UK. He is an oceanographer and glaciologist involved in polar oceanographic and sea ice research and concerned with climate change processes in the polar regions He leads the Polar Ocean Physics group studying the effects of global warming on sea ice, icebergs and the polar oceans. This involves work in the Arctic and Antarctic from nuclear submarines, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), icebreakers, aircraft and drifting ice camps. He has led over 40 polar field expeditions. His full background is available here: University of Cambridge DAMTP: Professor Peter Wadhams
The present thinning and retreat of Arctic sea ice is one of the most serious geophysical consequences of global warming and is causing a major change to the face of our planet. A challenging characteristic of the behaviour is that both the rate of retreat (especially in summer) and the rate of thinning in all seasons have greatly exceeded the predictions of most models. The sea ice cover of the Arctic Ocean, particularly in summer, has been in retreat since the 1950s at a rate of about 4% per decade which has recently increased to 10% per decade. More seriously, the thickness of the ice has diminished.
Satellites can track ice area, but ice thickness distribution can be most accurately measured by sonar from underneath the ice. Since 1971, I have been going to the Arctic in UK nuclear submarines, mapping the ice thickness using upward-looking sonar along the vessel’s track. U.S. submarines have also allowed such availablity. Opening these submarines to scientific work has been a marvelous service to climate research. It was thanks to submarines that I was able to show for the first time that the ice in the Arctic is thinning (in a 1990 paper in Nature (2), showing a 15% thickness loss in 11 years), and recent work from UK and US submarines now shows a loss of more than 43% in thickness between the 1970s and 2000s, averaged over the ocean as a whole (3). This is an enormous loss – nearly half of the ice thickness – and has changed the whole appearance of the ice cover. Most of the ice is now first-year rather than the formidable multi-year ice which used to prevail.
The thinning is caused by a mixture of reduced growth in winter, because of warmer temperatures and more heat in the underlying water column, and greater melt in summer. A change in the direction and speed of ice motion has also played a role, with the ice departing quicker from the Arctic Basin through Fram Strait rather than circulating many times inside the Arctic.
The summer (September) area of sea ice reached a record low in 2007, almost matched in 2011, but what is most serious is that the thinning continues. It is inevitable that very soon there will be a downward collapse of the summer area because the ice will just melt away. Already in 2007, measurements indicated that during the summer there were 2 metres of melt off the bottom of of ice floes in the Beaufort Sea, while the neighbouring first-year floes had only reached in 1.8 metres during winter – so all first-year ice was disappearing. This effect will become more important and will spread throughout the Arctic Basin.
There is currently disagreement about when the summer Arctic will become completely ice-free. It depends on what model is being employed. My own view is based on purely empirical grounds, that is, matching the observations of area from satellites with observations from submarines (combined with some modelling) of thickness to give us ice volume. If we think in volume terms instead of area terms, the downward trend is more than linear, in fact it is exponential, and if extrapolated it gives us an ice-free summer Arctic as early as 2015.
Others have talked of later dates, like 2030-2040, but I do not see how the trend of summer ice volume can possible permit this. Those who agree include W Maslowsky, a leading ice modeller (Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey), and the PIOMAS project at University of Washington which generated the data shown below (4).
The ice retreat is having major impact on the planet. The Arctic is the most rapidly warming region on Earth. It has become widely accepted that Arctic amplification of global warming is due to the albedo effect of sea ice retreat. The increased open water reduces the albedo (fraction of solar radiation reflected into space) and causes warming at high northern latitudes to be 2-4 times as fast as in the tropics, with enormous implications for climatic instability. Secondly, the summer retreat of the ice from the wide Arctic continental shelves (particularly the East Siberian Sea) allows the shallow surface layer to warm up, bringing temperatures of up to 5 degrees C right down to the seabed.
Quantification of this affect has only very recently been attempted, in a paper to the 2011 AGU by Hudson (5). The startling conclusion is that the rate of warming of the Arctic could double or triple, once the Arctic Ocean is ice-free in September. And it could double or triple again, once the ocean is ice-free for half the year. But the timescale makes this all the more worrying.
The scientific community has drawn attention to the risk of dangerous climate change if the world does not reduce emissions of carbon dioxide - a worthy and critical objective. However, I wish to point toward a much more immediate problem that does not seem to be recognised among the climate change community at large: This is the problem of rapid retreat of Arctic sea ice, and likely consequence of catastrophic methane feedback.
These rapidly warming temperatures are accelerating the melt of offshore permafrost, releasing methane trapped as methane hydrates and causing large plumes of methane to appear all over the summer Arctic shelves (observed for the last 2-3 summers by Semiletov and colleagues on joint University of Alaska – Far Eastern Research Institute cruises). Methane levels in the Arctic atmosphere have started to rise (measured by Dr Leonid Yurganov, Johns Hopkins University) after being stable for some years. As methane is a very powerful, if short lived, greenhouse gas (23 times as powerful per molecule as CO2 though only lasting about 7 years in the atmosphere instead of 100), this will give a strong upward kick to global warming.
According to research crew leader Igor Semiletov:
"We carried out checks at about 115 stationary points and discovered methane fields of a fantastic scale - I think on a scale not seen before.... This is the first time we've found continuous, powerful and impressive seeping structures more than 1,000 meters in diameter." (6)Semiletov has also described how warmer temperatures are making their way down to the bottom of the shallow seabeds in the Arctic continental shelves:
"When ice has gone, there are stronger winds and waves and a deeper mixing of water which causes the comparatively warm upper layer to mix with water at deeper levels. There are already studies which confirm that in some areas, bottom temperature in summer is 2 to 3 degrees above zero celsius (freezing). As this warming spreads to a larger area, the more that shelf-based permafrost will thaw." (7)There have been warnings that a major methane outbreak may be imminent.
In a piece Archer co-authored in 2009, he acknowledged both the significant warming power of methane and the fragile and "intrinsically vulnerable" nature of hydrates:
"There are concerns that climate change could trigger significant methane releases from hydrates and thus could lead to strong positive carbon–climate feedbacks. .... Methane hydrate seems intrinsically vulnerable on Earth nowhere at the Earth's surface is it stable to melting and release of the methane." (8)In this same piece, Archer affirms another key factor:
"Rapid warming well above the global average makes the Arctic hydrates particularly vulnerable to climate change." (8)Archer clearly acknowledges the vulnerability of methane hydrates to thawing in response to rising Arctic temperatures. Given that ice loss is accelerating, which in turn will only accelerate that temperature rise through the albedo effect, one has to wonder why he does not perceive an imminent and urgent crisis. Ira Leifer - methane specialist at the Marine Science Institute at Univ. of Calif - Santa Barbara - describes the mechanics of a "runaway" methane feedback:
"A runaway feedback effect would be where methane comes out of the ocean into the atmosphere leading to warming, leading to warmer oceans and more methane coming out, causing an accelerated rate of warming in what one could describe as a runaway train." (9)Given that this "train" would be one way and feed upon itself in a way that might well be unstoppable by humanity, it would seem to be a classic case where the precautionary principle should immediately be invoked. When Archer dismisses the legitimate concern that conditions in the Arctic are approaching a potentially catastrophic tipping point, he is deflecting away a vitally important perspective that needs to be communicated to the world's policymakers. I strongly urge Archer to re-consider his position.
It is also my understanding that one of the recipients of Archer's "dismissal" charge was documentary film-maker Gary Houser. Houser had submitted an earlier rebuttal to Archer - based on his interviews with scientists related to a program on the issue of Arctic methane - which was rejected by "Real Climate" on the grounds that he himself is not an accredited scientist. I have read his rebuttal and wish to link to it here (10), as I believe it contains points of merit I do not have space to address here.
Footnoted sources and links:
(1) RealClimate: Much ado about methane
(2) Wadhams: 1990 Wadhams, P. Evidence for thinning of the Arctic ice cover north of Greenland. Nature, Lond., vol 345, 795-797.
(3) Wadhams: Arctic Sea Ice Thickness: Past, Present & Future - European ...
(4) PIOMAS graph link: http://neven1.typepad.com/.a/6a0133f03a1e37970b0153920ddd12970b-pi
(5) Hudson: http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2011/2011JD015804.shtml
(6) UK Independent, Dec.13, 2011 Vast methane 'plumes' seen in Arctic ocean as sea ice retreats ...
(7) Documentary interview with Semiletov: www.590films.org/methane.html
(8) Archer, co-author Gas hydrates: entrance to a methane age or climate ... - IOPscience
(9) Documentary interview with Leifer: www.590films.org/methane.html
(10) Houser rebuttal to Archer, link: http://arctic-news.blogspot.com/2012/02/rebuttal-david-archer-wrong-to-dismiss.html
Arctic Ice Cover, Ice Thickness and Tipping Points - SpringerLink This paper was written for the Arctic Tipping Points Project (www.eu-atp.org) - a large scale integrating project funded by the European Union 7th Framework Programme. | <urn:uuid:422af4b7-dd86-4e68-8094-b386a9e8006c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://climatechangepsychology.blogspot.com/2012/03/peter-wadhams-imminent-collapse-of.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396949.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00068-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945743 | 2,426 | 2.53125 | 3 |
The French colonial town of Grand Bassam was one of the most important ports and administration centers in the Gulf of Guinea in the late 19th and early 20th century. In 1893 it became the first capital of the Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) and played a significant role as a large French trading post. The vibrant city attracted people from all over Africa and Europe and the mainly French architecture reflected the exciting mix of nationalities. The city was neatly divided into districts for housing, economics and judiciary functions.
Sadly from the late 1800s the city was abandoned due to the outbreak of Yellow Fever and administrative and governmental functions were also moved out. Up until the mid-1900s buildings were left to squatters and deteriorated structurally and aesthetically as commercial shipping also declined and eventually ceased completely.
The Ivory Coast gained independence in 1960 and by the 1970s Grand Bassam began a tourism revival. Hotels opened and the remarkable local crafts were reborn. Skilled craftsmen and women got back into making wooden and bronze carvings, traditional cloth and handmade pottery.
In 2012 the United Nations Organisation (UNO or UN) added the city to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage List. The over-reaching purpose of UNESCO is to build “peace in the minds of men and women” and its World Heritage List achieves this by protecting heritage and identity. It uses funding and expertise to ensure sites of natural or cultural importance are preserved for humanity.
Grand Bassam has in recent times been wrapped up in war and civil unrest, which has left this ghost town with little business, few customers and no visitors. The war has eased and peace agreements have been signed. It is now hoped that, along with peace, the inclusion on the Heritage List will allow for the restoration of some of their classic French colonial architectural structures and transform this historic town to attract customers and visitors. The five thousand permanent residents in Grand Bassam have faith in the future and know that UNESCO will help to bring the stability needed to bring their town back to life. | <urn:uuid:b89afc27-75df-48b1-af26-12a6bed8016f> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.bellaonline.com/ArticlesP/art17138.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395613.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00150-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971976 | 426 | 3.46875 | 3 |
"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all" - Francis Bellamy (1855-1931), author or the original version
Hopefully, most Americans will remember that today is Flag Day.Yes, many of us “older folks” learned that Betsy Ross made the first American flag. Unfortunately, this American fable has never been verified.
In truth, our history books have recorded that the first “official” American flag had 13 alternating red and white alternating stripes with 13 stars on a blue canton (both representing each of the 13 colonies). On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress approved this design. Later, in 1818, Congress fixed the number of red and white stripes at 13 and allowed the number of stars to represent the current number of states.
History books also tell us that President Wilson designated June 14 as Flag Day by proclamation. However, it did not become official until President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th of each year as National Flag Day
June 14 is a dual celebration that most people will have missed. Today is the 239th Birthday of the U.S. Army. The United States Army joined with New York City on Friday, June 13, to begin this year's birthday celebration with the theme, "America's Army: Our Profession."
As you travel about your city, you will find most veterans flying the American flag not only today, but every day. That’s who we are – and that’s what we do.
So, in honor of Flag Day and before the weekend is over, please thank those whom you know who are presently serving or who have previously served. Just send them a message by phone or email.
We veterans would appreciate your kind thoughts. | <urn:uuid:88e7777e-7218-4ed7-b4ad-4ba5d40e7fcf> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.examiner.com/article/today-june-14-2014-is-flag-day?cid=rss | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783394605.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154954-00095-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965084 | 388 | 3.125 | 3 |
Scientists at the Stanford University have discovered that skin cells make use of the three geographic coordinates: latitude// , longitude and altitude to reach their destined place in the body.
Researchers also think that this plays an important role in directing the embryonic and non differentiated cells. ‘There is a logic to the body that we didn't understand before,’ said John Rinn, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar in the laboratory of Howard Chang, MD, PhD, assistant professor of dermatology. ‘Our skin is actively maintaining itself throughout our life, and these 'address codes' help the cells know how to respond appropriately.’ Rinn is the first author of the research, which is published in the current issue of Public Library of Science-Genetics. Until now it's been a mystery as to how adult skin, which consists of basically the same components all over the body, knows to grow hair in some areas like the scalp, while manufacturing sweat glands, calluses and fingerprint whorls in others.
In 1969, well-known developmental biologist Lewis Wolpert authored a famous treatise that described two possible ways for cells to know where they are in the body: Either they infer their location and adjust their behavior based on interactions with nearby cells, or they deduce their ‘positional identity’ through the use of some type of coordinate system. The findings from the new Stanford study bolster the second possibility. The scientists analyzed the gene-expression profiles of adult fibroblasts from more than 40 areas of the body. They found about 400 genes whose expression patterns varied with the cells' original location. Those from the top half of the body - arms, head and chest, for example - shared expression patterns that were markedly different from the patterns shared among cells from the bottom part of the body, such as the legs and feet.
Similar patterns existed among cells originating close to or far from the center of the body, and tho
se from the outer or the inner layer of the skin. While these three rough anatomical divisions don't provide the precise coordinates of a global-positioning system, they do help explain similarities between the skin on the palms of the hands and the relatively distant soles of the feet. Like botanically similar areas of the world that share a latitude and altitude but differ in longitude, both the palms and soles are on the outer layer of the skin far from the center of the body and are more like one another than like their biological neighbors. ‘Ideally, we can use this finding to develop a positional map that will allow us to correlate location with function in a way that will make it easier to regenerate certain parts of the body,’ said Rinn.
‘For example, if we need to grow skin in the laboratory to graft onto someone with badly burned palms, we'll know how to turn on the specific genes that make that type of skin.’ The implications are vast. Fibroblasts and other skin cells also comprise the lining of the lung and intestine as well as internal organs. Not every kind of skin cell expresses gene patterns that can be correlated with their location in the body; the study found no such association in endothelial cells, which might depend on signals from surrounding cells. ‘It's not like every cell has this code,’ said Rinn. ‘I like to think of the fibroblasts as wise, old parental cells who may tell the others how to behave.’ Their input is invaluable during embryogenesis, normal growth and wound healing, each of which requires location-specific responses by cells. Many of the genes identified by Rinn are known to be important in patterning the early embryo.
Rinn and his colleagues speculate that some of these processes may require more specific location indicators than the three they've currently identified. It's possible that additional cues may be provided by variations in gene expression levels too subtle to be detected in their current stud
y. Alternatively, cell types other than fibroblasts or endothelial cells may express signals that further refine the current rough map. Finally, it's possible that adults simply don't need the same level of precision mapping as a developing embryo, and they stop broadcasting the finer points of the signal when it's no longer necessary.
Related medicine news :1
. Blood Cells Capable of Regenerating Liver
. White Cells Count Can Predict Heart Attack Death Risk
. Gene Therapy Destroys Pancreatic Cancer Cells4
. Stem Cells Have Few Mutations5
. Heart may pull Cells from Body to Self-repair6
. Cells critical for asthma development found7
. Vitamin D Wipes out Cancer Cells8
. Bone Marrow Cells Help Heart Attack Patients9
. Islet Cells May Lead to Diabetes CureChildren 10
. Stem Cells Found To Offer Promise For Hair Growth11
. Bone Marrow Cells Could Yield A New Lease of Life | <urn:uuid:bbe1ca7e-c71d-47bc-ae77-d5952c9321c7> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.bio-medicine.org/medicine-news/Skin-Cells-Make-Use-of-Geographic-Co-Ordinates-to-Reach-Their-Destination-12937-1/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393518.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00180-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938173 | 1,003 | 3.71875 | 4 |
Prof. Luke Whisnant
"Metafiction is a term given to fictional writing which self-consciously and systematically draws attention to its status as an artifact in order to pose questions about the relationship between fiction and reality."
--Patricia Waugh, Metafiction: The Theory and Practice
of Self-Conscious Fiction.New York: Methuen, 1984.
In many respects, Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried concerns the relationship between fiction and the narrator. In this novel, O'Brien himself is the main character--he is a Vietnam veteran recounting his experiences during the war, as well as a writer who is examining the mechanics behind writing stories. These two aspects of the novel are juxtaposed to produce a work of literature that comments not only upon the war, but also upon the actual art of fiction: the means of storytelling, the purposes behind them, and ultimately the relationship between fiction and reality itself.
Through writing about
his experiences in Vietnam, O'Brien's character is able to find a medium
in which he can sort through his emotions, since "by telling stories, you
objectify your own experience. You separate it from yourself. You pin down
certain truths" (158). He does not look upon his stories as therapy--he
recounts his stories since they are a part of his past, and who he is now
is the direct result of them:
Forty-three years old, and the war occurred half a life-time ago, and yet the remembering makes it now. And sometimes remembering will lead to a story, which makes it forever. Stories are for joining the past to the future. Stories are for those late hours in the night when you can't remember how you got from where you were to where you are. (38)
Most importantly, "In a true war story, if there's a moral at all, it's like the thread that makes the cloth. You can't tease it out. You can't extract the meaning without unraveling the deeper meaning" (77). Through extracting the true meaning of The Things They Carried, it is impossible to miss the deeper relationship that is being expressed in this novel and the true motivation behind the narrator's storytelling: the relationship between stories, reality, and time.
As the narrator, O'Brien often comments upon the concept of time, such as in the section "On the Rainy River": "Looking back after twenty years, I sometimes wonder if the events of that summer didn't happen in some other dimension, a place where your life exists before you've lived it, and where it goes afterward" (54). During the lake scene in this section, O'Brien sees everyone important in his life on the shore: "I saw faces from my distant past and distant future....It was as if there were an audience to my life" (59). In this scene, the power of fiction to transcend the barriers of time and space and also life and death are shown. We are directly the result of our experiences, and, through the powers of storytelling, everyone who has had an impact upon the life of the narrator is brought together. As a collective entity, they are not only an audience to his life, but also serve as reflection of O'Brien's life in its entirety.
Drawing upon the ability of fiction to preserve life against death, O'Brien says that, during wartime, that they were able to "[keep] the dead alive with stories" (239). To the living, stories were a way to keep the memory of the dead alive, but to the dead, it was the simple act of remembering that kept them alive: "That's what a story does. The bodies are animated. You make the dead talk" (232). This theme of preservation is exemplified by story of Linda, in which O'Brien uses the power of storytelling and memory to keep people alive: "Stories can save us. I'm forty-three years old, and a writer now, and even still, right here, I keep dreaming Linda alive...They're all dead. But in a story, which is a kind of dreaming, the dead sometimes smile and sit up and return to the world." (225).
Ultimately, this novel
is not about Vietnam--in fact, it is not about war at all. It is about
the narrator's attempt to find a place where the erosion of time will have
no effect. By working through the "threads" of this novel, O'Brien's intentions
become obvious: He is fighting to preserve the physical against deterioration,
and by extension, to preserve life by immortalizing it in fiction. He is
not writing as a result of neurosis or as a form of therapy; he does this
since immortality and preservation lies in the memory of people. If the
true measure of life is how long we live after we are gone, then keeping
the memory of people alive through fiction is a means of preserving life:
I'll never die. I'm skimming across the surface of my own history, moving fast, riding the melt beneath the blades, doing loops and spins, and when I take a high leap into the dark and come down thirty years later, I realize it is as Tim trying to save Timmy's life with a story. (246)
Copyright © 2000 by Michele Friedlander. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:c40728c7-8614-49c7-89a3-cde3fa93e1ed> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://core.ecu.edu/engl/whisnantl/4300/michele.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395620.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00078-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976283 | 1,113 | 2.546875 | 3 |
Health Officials Worried MDR-TB Will Become More Common Worldwide, In U.S.
The case of a Nepalese man with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) traveling through 13 countries before illegally entering the U.S. from Mexico, “first described by Betsy McKay at the Wall Street Journal, provides a window on a problem that health officials say is sure to arise more and more often,” NPR’s “Shots” blog reports. “‘We estimate at any one time in the world there are about 630,000 cases of MDR-TB,’ Dr. Dennis Falzon of the World Health Organization tells Shots, referring to multidrug-resistant TB,” the blog writes. Of those, about 60,000 have XDR-TB, which is resistant to second-line drugs as well as first-line therapies, according to the blog. “The CDC has recorded 63 cases of XDR-TB from 1993 through 2011 (the most recent data available), more than half of them among foreign-born people,” “Shots” writes (Knox, 3/8).
In a related article, the Wall Street Journal reports there is “a nagging concern among health officials who say the 2,000-mile border between the U.S. and Mexico could become a breeding ground for one of the hardest forms of TB to treat.” The newspaper continues, “To be sure, the actual number of cases in the U.S. and Mexico is still small and the rates of multidrug-resistant TB … are nowhere near as severe as India, China, or Eastern Europe, where drug-resistant TB is at epidemic proportions,” but “[h]ealth officials say it is crucial to jump on prevention now, because the disease is transmitted airborne and can spread quickly.” According to the Wall Street Journal, “the challenge of trying to control an airborne disease along an area as large as the U.S.-Mexico border is enormous.” The newspaper discusses the dynamics of the border region, funding issues, and challenges to keeping patients compliant with medication regimens (McKay/Campo-Flores, 3/8). | <urn:uuid:ac13b1f4-4087-4721-aaca-85fe816fca27> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://kff.org/news-summary/health-officials-worried-mdr-tb-will-become-more-common-worldwide-in-u-s/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783394605.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154954-00001-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949003 | 469 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Manatees or Sirerians (from a Greek word
meaning siren or beautiful maiden) spend their entire life in the ocean
feeding off of plant life. Manatees can be fond along the Atlantic seaboard
from Florida to Northern South America. Manatees keep to shallow water
away from predators such as sharks and killer whales. But many manatees
are being killed from boat propellers.
Why are manatees going extinct ?And are they endanger species?
Boat propellers and natives in tropical America have played
a big part in the decrease in manatee populations. For hundreds of years
the natives have been hunting and eating manatees which is believed to
mean big beaver.
What is the habitat like?
Spending its entire life in the water, a manatee cannot
crawl on land not even to breed. Its most common habitat is the narrow
margin between the deep sea and the dry land .It is at home in shelters,
harbors, Estuaries, lagoons, bays, and large rivers where it feeds on the
various kinds of seaweed and grasses that grow on the ocean floor. The
amount of vegetation available to feed the manatees is nowhere sufficient
to support large colonies and, thus, the population is not and never was
What is the migration of the manatee like?
They migrate from marine areas into the warmer spring-fed
channels during the cold winter months. On the coldest days , they go to
the mouth of various springs where warm waters flow into the rivers.
What is the manatees main predator?
Sharks and killer whales have forced the manatee to live
in shallow waters. For fear of being attack.
How many types of manatees are there? and What types of manatees are there?
Trichechus manatees lives in the west Indian(or west Indian
manatee). Trichechus senegalensis living in west Africa. Same shape and
same size of the West Indians mantee. Trichechus inunguis the amanzonain
mantee. which is the smallest of the mantees. Trichechus manatus latirostris
also called the Florida manatee.
How do manatees communicate with each other?
Manatee send out sound underwater. They make these sounds
when frighted ,sexually aroused, or interacting with each other. They respond
to each from 600 ft. from each other.
The manatees earliest ancestors date back 75 million years ago. They were known as prorastomus found in the Paleocene deposits of the west Indies. Another ancestor was the protosiren found in the deposits of the middle Eocene Epoch in Egypt and Europe about 60 million years ago.
Colliers Encyclopedia ,1997.
By; Justin G. and Geoff L. | <urn:uuid:7f21ece0-403d-44a5-a8d6-c30a06cf1aa3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://gaudet.info/LEARNIN1/GAUDET/ENVIRO98/GRSRTS/MANATEES.HTM | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397562.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00058-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.924722 | 616 | 3.328125 | 3 |
The 2010 USDA Dietary Guidelines recommended a shift of food intake patterns to a more plant-based diet. They even included is a 100% plant based adaptation for people who choose to take recommendations of zero intake of saturated fat, cholesterol, trans-fat to their logical conclusions. But for those at risk for cardiovascular disease, the official recommendation is to limit cholesterol intake to under 200 mg per day. Avoiding eggs and brains, the two foods with the most cholesterol, will help achieve this target (see also here, here, here). Any intake of transfat, saturated fat, and cholesterol above zero has been found to increase bad cholesterol (LDL), so the Institute of Medicine has not even set safe upper limits (see also here). The LDL level of cholesterol in the blood may be the best indicator of heart disease risk. The serum total cholesterol in our blood needs to be lowered to the 150 area (around the level of the average pure vegetarian) to stop plaque buildup (see also here). Under the current guidelines total cholesterol is recommended to be under 200, but many who had heart attacks were in the “optimal” range; this suggest that the guidelines need to be revised. Mercury concentrations in 55% of tuna in 3 national brands have been found to be above the US EPA safety limit for human consumption (see also here). The EPA safety limit for mercury may not be sufficiently specific to completely prevent fetal risk for women considering getting pregnant, though. A recent test found that a single serving of tuna would put women of child bearing age over the EPA mercury safety limit (see also here). Mercury has also been found in high fructose corn syrup. The fish oil found in stores was found to contain PCBs. Other foods found to be high in PCBs: fish fillets, eggs, and dairy. Fish in general is especially high in all dioxins. Putrescine has been found in levels exceeding safety limits (40 mg/meal) in canned fish (sardines and tuna). AGEs are found in high levels chicken, bacon, fish, and hot dogs; the safety limit for AGEs is unknown but there have been studies that suggest the cutting one’s intake in half may extend one’s lifespan. Phthalates have an unknown safety limit and are found in primarily in chicken and eggs; when consumed during pregnancy, they may affect genital development. The national food standard guidelines for fecal bacteria on ready to eat food is 30,000; sushi has been found to exceed this limit. Similarly, one bucket of fast food chicken may exceed the EPA safety limit for arsenic in a glass of water by 2000%. Creatine supplements have been found to contain organic contaminants and heavy metals that exceed the safety limits recommended by the European Food Safety Authority. And American vegetarians live longer than even healthy meat eaters so there may be no safe upper limit for meat consumption. Chinese cinnamon contains the compound coumarin, which may be toxic to the liver. Caffeine has been found to be safe in moderate amounts (up to 10 cups of coffee a day is okay for most). The safe upper limit for broccoli consumption is about 100 cups a day (see also here). Ayurvedic supplements have been found to be contaminated with heavy metals, and arsenic, lead, and mercury levels in triphala have been found to exceed EPA limits. Antioxidant vitamin supplements should be avoided. Kelp consumption has resulted in iodine toxicity and should be used only in tiny amounts. Apple juice (non-organic) was tested and found to contain fungal toxins at levels exceeding the World Health Organization safety guidelines. Benzene levels in soda were found to exceed safety levels set for drinking water. Acrylamide in french fries has been found at levels exceeding certain safety limits by 30,000%.
Topic summary contributed by Jerry. | <urn:uuid:7ce6df97-ea51-44fe-b670-f04e4f4d1d57> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://nutritionfacts.org/topics/safety-limits/page/5/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393146.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00188-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95724 | 778 | 3.171875 | 3 |
In season 43 of Sesame Street, the show continues its focus on STEM education, adding the arts to the equation, creating STEAM. The cornerstone of the curriculum remains the connection between the four main domains: science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but the updated approach integrates the arts. This helps make learning STEM concepts relevant and enticing to young children by highlighting how artists use STEM knowledge to enhance their art or solve problems. It also provides context for the importance of STEM knowledge in careers in the arts (e.g. musician, painter, sculptor and dancer).
In order for children to explore STEAM, it is important to highlight the underlying scientific process skills; observing and questioning, investigating, analyzing and reporting and reflecting on the “big idea.” These skills enable children to formulate thoughts into questions, solve problems and allow for the learning of new concepts and “big ideas” to become apparent and meaningful. It also helps make the connection between scientific (“Let’s find out.”) and innovative (“What if?”) thinking to clearly demonstrate that the arts can be used to inspire learning and teach STEM concepts.
As an extension of our STEAM curriculum, the show features “Elmo The Musical,” an exciting new segment and interactive experience. Each episode is a musical adventure created by Elmo and the child at home. Focusing on imagination and math skills, such as enumeration, relational concepts, addition/subtraction, geometric shapes and many more, Elmo takes viewers on thrilling explorations as he imagines himself in different scenarios and must use math to solve the various problems he encounters. Kids can sing, dance, play, problem solve and imagine along with Elmo on math-filled adventures. | <urn:uuid:221aef7f-fb24-4e3a-a27e-9879151025ac> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.sesameworkshop.org/season43/about-the-show/curriculum/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399385.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00201-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943537 | 362 | 3.84375 | 4 |
Running across the regular grain in timber: cross-grain swelling
More example sentences
- How about a rabbet with a rabbeted cleat pinned underneath with dowels (in elongated holes, to allow seasonal cross-grain dimension change)?
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Comments that don't adhere to our Community Guidelines may be moderated or removed. | <urn:uuid:9cefca3a-9e21-40c6-afb4-6cac3b889b0a> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/cross-grain | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397797.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00142-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.848989 | 113 | 2.765625 | 3 |
MV Cordiality, a large ship operated by a Chinese crew was anchored in the seas off Pulmoddai, loading valuable ilmenite, when LTTE Sea Tigers attacked it on September 1997. Six sailors were killed and the ship sank with its cargo close to the shore.
This war victim was forgotten within months, but nature claimed its ownership of the sunken vessel. Corals started growing on its large metal surface and thousands of fish and marine creatures have found the shipwreck a safe haven for the last 13 years. Now however the ship is being salvaged for scrap metal.
|Teaming with marine life: The wreck of MV Cordiality
“The MV Cordiality shipwreck at Pulmoddai has now become a huge artificial coral reef in the ocean, transforming itself into an oasis of marine life,” says Darshana Jayawardane, a marine naturalist who went diving near the wreck in May. “One could spend hours just looking at the multitude of exquisite Lionfish, Scorpionfish, Butterflyfish, Juvenile Snappers, Nudibranchs and Fusiliers that swam around the massive hull. The huge towers, pillars and twisted pieces of metal lay around with ilmenite at the bottom, reminding one of a moon landscape,” Darshana said.
MV Cordiality could be easily developed as a key destination to attract tourists who travel around the world exploring marine and coastal environments. Dive Tourism or wreck-diving is now becoming a huge business that forms a significant component of the growing global tourism industry. Sri Lanka has real potential to develop high-end Dive Tourism, based on these wrecks, point out marine specialists.
But shipwrecks, especially in the North and East, are being destroyed for their metal. Authorities sometimes claim salvaging is done to clean the shallow waters or because the wrecks are a problem for fishermen who cannot lay their fishing nets due to the underlying wrecks. But what they do not know or consider is the long term value these wrecks can bring to our economy.
The revenue that can be gained by Dive Tourism based on these shipwrecks can be much more than the wreck’s scrap metal value. If the average amount of metal that can be salvaged from this shipwreck is estimated as 15,000 metric tons and one kilogram of scrap metal is worth about 20 rupees – salvaging can bring Rs.300 million revenue from MV Cordiality. But the long term gains from marine tourism are much greater and nothing special has to be done compared to the money that is spent on salvage operations. The marine tourism potential of a ship wreck is in fact incremental because it is becomes richer with biodiversity and coral cover day by day.
Sinking ships for tourism
Amal Karunaratna, another enthusiast who dived at MV Cordiality, labels it a world class shipwreck which could attract thousands of divers a year for several decades, earning revenue for dive operators and the hospitality industry in an area that has faced massive privation through the war and the Tsunami. “All we need to do is preserve it – nothing else is needed for this to be a true resource for the local community” he pointed out in his write up about MV Cordiality.
In some other countries, governments purposely sink decommissioned ships to create sites for Wreck Diving.
Despite being a tedious process, sinking ships has been practised by countries like Australia, New Zealand, Kenya, USA and UK, which carefully consider the return of investment it brings. But these ships sunk under a controlled process cannot replace the value of a sunked wreck which has its own place in history. Sri Lanka on the other hand is already blessed with many shipwrecks and has the potential to be a great destinations for wreck diving.
Sri Lanka’s star shipwreck that lies off Batticaloa at a depth of 42 metres is the HMS Hermes, the first ship in any navy to be designed and built as an aircraft carrier. This was sunk by a Japanese air attack in April 1942 and placed Sri Lanka among other top Wreck Diving destinations. Tourism sources say about 30 divers will arrive in Sri Lanka to dive at this world famous shipwreck.
Other famous shipwrecks in Sri Lanka of interest to divers include Conch (Hikkaduwa), Earl of Shaftesbury (Hikkaduwa), SS Rangoon (Unawatuna), Colombo Cargo Wreck, Colombo Taprobane East Wreck, Colombo Barge and MV Cordiality (Pulmoddai).
(See http://www.divesrilanka.com and click on the “Shipwrecks” link under the ‘information’ section for more information about shipwrecks in Sri Lanka)
Sri Lanka also has many ships sunk during the colonial era and a few even prior to that which are of enormous archaeological value. According to Sri Lankan law any ship older than 100 years cannot be salvaged considering its archaeological value.
But sadly even these are not safe from racketeers eying a quick buck. The diving community had to put up a big fight in 2008 to stop the illegal salvaging of such a wreck lying off Hikkaduwa -the Earl of Shaftesbury. This capsized as far back as 1893, but was the target of greedy racketeers and those who were involved in saving the Hikkaduwa wreck received death threats, highlighting the organized nature of the crime and the political backing it recieves. It was the intervention of the President that saved the Earl of Shaftesbury in 2008.
Marine naturalist, Dr. Malik Fernando, who started diving as far back as the 1960s, reckons salvaging wrecks for iron is on the rise. First the dynamite fishermen started dynamiting the ship wreck sites prior to the ’80s, as these sites are rich fishing grounds. Then they realized there were valuable metals such as brass, copper and started breaking them up using dynamite. “Then came salvaging ships for their iron,” he explained.
Dr. Malik, who has done Wreck Diving in the UK decades ago, says Sri Lanka has true potential to develop to the standards of wreck diving in developed countries.
“Shipwrecks are also spawning ground for fish, so keeping the wrecks intact will increase economic benefits through the fisheries industry,” points out a Marine Biologist of National Aquatic Resources Research & Development Agency (NARA), Arjan Rajasuriya, who dives regularly. He says marine pollution together with illegal fishing practices puts huge pressure on fish populations. Quality breeding grounds are necessary for sustainability of the fishery that creates the livelihood of many.
The fisherman already sees a decline of fish harvest and removing shipwrecks will destroy some of the quality fishing grounds being enjoyed at present. “So destroying the wrecks for its metal value is indeed killing the goose that lays golden eggs,” says Arjan.
It is believed there are as much as 75 shipwrecks, big and small, around the country. It may be too late for MV Cordiality, but there are also many wrecks in the Northern and Eastern theatres of war and many of them are still unexplored. Should we allow these wrecks be destroyed for short term revenue or protect them to gain much higher economic benefits in the long term? This is in fact, the million dollar question. | <urn:uuid:2a6e2ba7-1bd2-42c6-9182-44d3fa908f81> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.sundaytimes.lk/100718/Plus/plus_02.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403823.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00185-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962636 | 1,557 | 2.75 | 3 |
Many fans hate the concept of the designated hitter, saying that it ruins tradition and makes players one-dimensional. A few fans like the DH, because of the potential for added offense. Loved or not, the DH has been a permanent part of the game for two generations. If you’re under the age of 45, you probably don’t remember the game without the designated hitter.
According to the post-Mayan calendar, it has been 40 years since the designated hitter rule first came into play in the major leagues. The rule was officially passed in January of 1973. Yet, the idea for a DH has origins that date back to the 1890s, when some believed that a pitcher batting late in a game might be exhausted by fatigue. In the early 1900s, Connie Mack suggested that the game might be improved if a better hitter replaced the pitcher at bat. And in 1929, National League president John Heydler made a formal proposal that pitchers, who had long carried reputations as weaker hitters, should not be allowed to bat. Although he actually never used the term “designated hitter,” Heydler suggested that a so-called “10th man” be allowed to hit in place of the pitcher‘s spot.
When Heydler’s suggestion failed to gain acceptance during his lifetime, the issue of the DH fell into the background. In the 1960s, at a time when pitchers were beginning to dominate the game, Kansas City A’s owner Charlie Finley pushed hard for the adoption of a designated hitter, a rule that he felt would increase the amount of action in the game by aiding each team’s offensive production. The other major league owners resisted Finley, but did allow the American League to use the DH in a few exhibition games during the spring of 1969.
Late in 1972, National League owners rejected the latest proposal to institute the DH, but in an important concession, they granted the American League the right to use the DH on an experimental basis if approval could be gained from the Playing Rules Committee.
By January of 1973, a sufficient number of owners had come to see the potential benefits of the DH. The American League, which had seen its attendance decline in recent years, saw a particular need for the extra fan interest, and the increased level of offense, that the DH might spur.
AL owners began the process of writing a designated hitter rule. “A hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent pitchers in any game without otherwise affecting the status of pitchers in the game,” stated the first part of the rule. The rule went on to say that a DH was not mandatory, but a failure to designate a hitter for the pitcher prior to the game would preclude the use of the DH that day. Furthermore, the DH could be moved to a defensive position after the start of the game, but the pitcher would then have to bat in the place of the substituted defensive player.
On Jan. 11, American League owners officially voted, by a count of 8-4, to allow use of the DH on an experimental three-year basis. The Playing Rules Committee then delivered its formal approval. The designated hitter was born.
At first, some media outlets referred to the new rule as a “designated pinch-hitter” or “DPH.” Within a few days, writers dropped the “P,” shortening the acronym to “DH.” The DH abbreviation became the accepted term in baseball’s changing lexicon.
Although American League owners voted for the DH, many of the league’s managers expressed opposition to it. The naysayers included Baltimore’s Earl Weaver, who loved his three-run home runs but preferred nine-man baseball. “I might be from the old school, but I don’t think baseball needs saving,” Weaver told The Sporting News. “I’d like to keep the game just as it is.”
A fewer number of AL managers expressed their approval of the DH. One of them was Rangers skipper Whitey Herzog, whose team had just acquired a hard-hitting outfielder during a wintertime trade. “We’ve got the perfect DH in Rico Carty,” Herzog told The Sporting News. To the surprise of some, Carty expressed an opposing view. “I’m no invalid,” said Carty, who had missed two full seasons because of injury and illness while with the Braves. “I want to play both ways.” That may have been Carty’s sentiment, but his frequent injuries and his reputation as a brutal defensive left fielder dictated that he be a DH first and foremost.
Three months after the American League passed the rule, the DH moved from legislation to reality. On Opening Day, April 6, the Yankees’ Ron Blomberg became the first designated hitter to appear in a major league game. Playing in 30-degree weather at venerable Fenway Park, Blomberg made his first plate appearance in the top of the first inning. With the bases loaded, he faced Red Sox right-hander Luis Tiant. The setting had all the makings of grand drama, but the result lacked theatrics: Blomberg drew an anticlimactic walk.
Blomberg made three more plate appearances in the game, picking up a hit in a 15-5 drubbing at the hands of the Red Sox. After the game, Yankees public relations director Marty Appel arranged for Blomberg’s bat and jersey to be sent to the Hall of Fame, where it was featured in a prominent exhibit for several years.
In many ways, the DH rule was made to order for a player like Blomberg, a poor defensive first baseman who was prone to injury. Blomberg was fragile to begin with, and the more often that he had to play the field, the more he found himself susceptible to injuries.
Blomberg is well remembered for being the first DH, but he did not lead the Yankees in DH appearances in 1973. That honor went to former Giants standout Jim Ray Hart, who did not even start the season in the Bronx. After coming over in a midseason deal with San Francisco, the hard-drinking Hart put up so-so numbers (13 home runs and a .742 OPS) in 106 games, before being released early in 1974.
Blomberg and Hart’s counterpart with the Red Sox was Orlando Cepeda, the first player signed specifically to fill the role of a DH. Playing in that historic opener against the Yankees, Cepeda did not fare as well as Blomberg did in his debut. Cepeda went 0-for-6. In spite of his lackluster debut, Cepeda would go on to enjoy a productive season, finishing second in home runs and RBIs among all designated hitters. In the highlight of his season, Cepeda rapped out four doubles in one game, a particularly significant accomplishment considering the state of his pain-wracked knees.
For the season, Cepeda hit 20 home runs and reached base 35 per cent of the time, making him one of the best of the early DHs. As a footnote, Cepeda is the only one of the debut designated hitters to make the Hall of Fame. (Frank Robinson, who hit extremely well in 127 games as a DH for the Angels, actually started the season in California’s outfield before making the in-season switch.)
In terms of appearing first at the new position, Blomberg and Cepeda would lead the charge of new DHs. Still, 10 other players would become the first official designated hitters in their teams’ histories. Many of these players are better known for something other than being a DH. Along those lines, some of the names may surprise you.
Baltimore: Terry Crowley. Mostly a pinch-hitter throughout his journeyman career, Crowley lacked the power that most teams seek in a DH. Not surprisingly, he eventually lost the job to veteran Tommy Davis, who put in one of his typical seasons: little power, few walks, a high average (.306), and plenty of RBIs. In fact, Davis’ 89 RBIs made him the leader among first year designated hitters. Davis also managed to steal 11 bases, a remarkable occurrence given the state of his knees in 1973.
Known as the “King of Swing,” Crowley remained a part-time player for the next 10 seasons, which included brief stints in Cincinnati and Atlanta before he returned to the Orioles. After his playing days, Crowley enjoyed a long career as a batting coach, with lengthy tenures in both Minnesota and Baltimore.
California: Tommy McCraw. Like Crowley, McCraw lacked power and was better suited to a role as a backup player. So he quickly gave way to Frank Robinson, who hit 26 home runs as a DH and put up an OPS of .857 in that slot.
McCraw was mostly a journeyman who split his time between first base and the outfield, but he made interesting news in 1971 when he hit a 200-foot pop fly that resulted in an inside-the-park home run. He would make a much larger mark as a highly respected batting instructor during a 21-year coaching career. In particular, he became a confidante of Frank Robinson (his Angels teammate) working under him on four different teams.
Chicago: Mike Andrews. He was perhaps the most unlikely of the debut designated hitters. Best known as a solid defensive second baseman and a far better fielder than Jorge Orta, the Sox’ Opening Day starter, Andrews was serving as a DH largely because of a sore shoulder. Later in the season, the White Sox turned to Carlos May, who gave them a more powerful DH presence.
The Sox eventually released Andrews, who ended up signing a midseason deal with the world champion A’s. It was during the 1973 World Series that Andrews made headlines when Charlie Finley tried to “fire” him as punishment for making two critical errors in Game Two against the Mets. Though Andrews was reinstated to the postseason roster by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, he would appear only once as a pinch-hitter before being forced into retirement that winter.
Cleveland: John Ellis. Having just joined the Indians in the ill-fated Graig Nettles deal, Ellis served as Cleveland’s first DH, but would put in most of his time as a catcher in 1973. (The inimitable Oscar Gamble would handle much of the DH duty against right-handed pitching.)
While with the Indians, Ellis earned the nickname of “Moose,” a tribute to his rugged strength and his rock-solid toughness. He played three fairly productive seasons with the Tribe before being traded to the Rangers, where he spent the final six seasons of a journeyman career as a part-time catcher, first baseman, pinch-hitter and, of course, DH.
Detroit: Gates Brown. If only the DH rule had come earlier, Brown could have spent some of his prime seasons in the 1960s as an everyday player. For much of his career, Brown was a terrific pinch-hitter and an effective left-handed batter against right-handed pitching. Brown platooned most of the ‘73 season with another veteran, the mammoth Frank Howard, before settling into a backup role in his two final seasons.
Perhaps the most colorful of the debut designated hitters, Brown liked to snack during the early portions of the game and was once called upon to pinch-hit while buying a hot dog from a vendor. Brown proceeded to tuck the hot dog into his pants, grab a bat, and pound out a double, sliding into second base and smearing the front of his uniform with mustard and frankfurter.
Kansas City: Ed Kirkpatrick. Nicknamed “Spanky” for his resemblance to the Our Gang character of the same name, Kirkpatrick was a valuable and versatile player throughout his career. He could catch, play first base, and man the outfield corners, all while supplying above-average pop from the left side of the plate. Curiously, he appeared in only eight games as a DH for the ’73 Royals, spending most of his time in right field while the Royals rotated the DH role among journeymen Gail Hopkins, Rick Reichardt and Jim Wohlford.
Three years after his playing days, Kirkpatrick was badly injured in a car accident, which left him with a blood clot on his brain and put him in a coma for nearly six months. Ever tough, Spanky recovered to live nearly 30 additional years before he finally succumbed to throat cancer in 2010. He was 66.
Milwaukee: Ollie Brown. Downtown Ollie was far better known for his throwing arm in right field, an attribute that went to waste as a DH. Like many of the debut designated hitters, Brown shared the job with several teammates. The Brewers used 10 DHs in 1973, including journeymen Johnny Briggs, Joe Lahoud and Bobby Mitchell.
Unlike many of his managerial counterparts, Milwaukee’s Del Crandall used the DH role to rest many of his regulars, including first baseman George Scott, center fielder Dave May and catcher Darrell Porter.
Brown’s 1973 season would represent his last as a semi-regular player. In fact, he would never again appear as a DH because he returned to the National League in 1974. After a brief stint with the Astros that year, Brown became a valuable bench player and pinch-hitter for the Phillies during the middle years of the decade.
Minnesota: Tony Oliva. Like Cepeda and Davis, the DH was made for a player like Oliva, who could no longer play the field because of injury and age. Oliva was a onetime star whose ailing knees prevented him from appearing in the outfield beyond the 1972 season. At his 1960s peak, Oliva was an underrated all-around star, a three-time batting champion who had power, speed, and a rifle arm from right field.
Like Cepeda, Oliva served exclusively as a DH in 1973. He put up solid numbers including 16 home runs and a .291 batting average, though his .754 OPS looks mediocre by today’s standards. He spent two more mildly productive seasons as Minnesota’s DH before his play fell off badly in 1976, forcing his retirement.
Oakland: Billy North. Charlie Finley spent much of the winter trying to find a DH, at one time trying to convince Don Mincher, who had just retired, to reverse his decision. Mincher turned down the offer, forcing the A’s to continue their search. They settled on North, an unlikely choice given his youth (25 years old) and his reliance on base stealing.
Though North began the season as DH, he spent only six games there before A’s manager Dick Williams realized that his speed and strong throwing arm would play much better in center field. The A’s would struggle to find another DH before eventually making an early season trade for Philadelphia’s Deron Johnson, who would hit 19 home runs and become an important contributor to Oakland’s repeat world championship.
Meanwhile, North became a mainstay in center field for two world champions and remained a fine player and top-notch base stealer through 1976. The switch-hitting speedster put in later stints with the Dodgers and Giants before retiring in 1981.
Texas: Rico Carty. On paper, Herzog loved the idea of Carty, a onetime batting champion, serving as his DH, but the situation did not play as well in reality as it did in theory. Accustomed to playing the outfield, the free-swinging Carty found it difficult to be comfortable as a DH and fell into a season-long slump. The Rangers eventually dumped him on the Cubs, where he clashed with Ron Santo and soon drew his release. Carty then signed with the A’s as a late-season DH and pinch-hitter but was ineligible for postseason play.
Released after the season, Carty spent the 1974 season in the Mexican League before eventually working his way back into the major leagues with the Indians. After having struggled so badly in his first go-round with the DH, Carty became a master of the position, putting up strong seasons with the Indians, Blue Jays and A’s before retiring in 1980. In terms of long-term success, Carty emerged as the first great designated hitter.
If nothing else, the DH allowed players like Carty, Oliva, Robinson, Davis and Cepeda to continue their careers as hitters; without the DH, they might have been relegated to pinch-hitting duty or forced into complete retirement. Fans of those five players will be forever grateful for the opportunity to see them play well beyond their normal expiration dates as players.
When the American League saw its attendance jump from 11.4 million in 1972 to 13.4 million in ’73, the “experimental” tag was dropped from the DH legislation. It also didn’t hurt that offensive production increased in 1973, as AL teams combined to score 8,314 runs (4.28 runs per team per game), compared to only 6,441 in 1972 (or 3.47 runs per team per game). After becoming a permanent part of the rules in 1974, the DH has been in place ever since.
So what has changed since then? The DH still helps offense; American League teams perennially outscore their National League counterparts. On the other hand, the DH is no longer a novelty and likely has no impact on attendance in the current day. Other than possibly David Ortiz, I cannot think of a single fulltime DH who would bring fans to the park in today’s game. Perhaps that is one reason why the National League continues to oppose the DH—and probably will for the foreseeable future.
That matters little to the Players’ Association, which continues to love the DH for two reasons: Designated hitters tend to make good salaries, while aging players can extend their careers for several seasons. For those reasons alone, and I tend to like the latter one, the DH is not likely to become part of baseball oblivion anytime soon. | <urn:uuid:125c0b12-004c-4803-ba09-ebc117e13cf0> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.hardballtimes.com/cooperstown-confidential-the-pioneers-of-the-dh/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783400031.51/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155000-00194-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981058 | 3,799 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Food Science's Golden Age
In the years following the 1977 Dietary Goals and the 1982 National Academy of Sciences report on diet and cancer, the food industry, armed with its regulatory absolution, set about reengineering thousands of popular food products to contain more of the nutrients that science and government had deemed the good ones and fewer of the bad. A golden age for food science dawned. Hyphens sprouted like dandelions in the supermarket aisles: low-fat, no-cholesterol, high-fiber. Ingredients labels on formerly two- or three-ingredient foods such as mayonnaise and bread and yogurt ballooned with lengthy lists of new additives — what in a more benighted age would have been called adulterants. The Year of Eating Oat Bran — also known as 1988 — served as a kind of coming-out party for the food scientists, who succeeded in getting the material into nearly every processed food sold in America. Oat bran's moment on the dietary stage didn't last long, but the pattern now was set, and every few years since then, a new oat bran has taken its star turn under the marketing lights. (Here come omega-3s!)
You would not think that common food animals could themselves be rejiggered to fit nutritionist fashion, but in fact some of them could be, and were, in response to the 1977 and 1982 dietary guidelines as animal scientists figured out how to breed leaner pigs and select for leaner beef. With widespread lipophobia taking hold of the human population, countless cattle lost their marbling and lean pork was repositioned as "the new white meat" — tasteless and tough as running shoes, perhaps, but now even a pork chop could compete with chicken as a way for eaters to "reduce saturated fat intake." In the years since then, egg producers figured out a clever way to redeem even the disreputable egg: By feeding flaxseed to hens, they could elevate levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the yolks.
Aiming to do the same thing for pork and beef fat, the animal scientists are now at work genetically engineering omega-3 fatty acids into pigs and persuading cattle to lunch on flaxseed in the hope of introducing the blessed fish fat where it had never gone before: into hot dogs and hamburgers.
But these whole foods are the exceptions. The typical whole food has much more trouble competing under the rules of nutritionism, if only because something like a banana or an avocado can't quite as readily change its nutritional stripes. (Though rest assured the genetic engineers are hard at work on the problem.) To date, at least, they can't put oat bran in a banana or omega-3s in a peach. So depending on the reigning nutritional orthodoxy, the avocado might either be a high-fat food to be assiduously avoided (Old Think) or a food high in monounsaturated fat to be embraced (New Think). The fate and supermarket sales of each whole food rises and falls with every change in the nutritional weather while the processed foods simply get reformulated and differently supplemented. That's why when the Atkins diet storm hit the food industry in 2003, bread and pasta got a quick redesign (dialing back the carbs; boosting the proteins) while poor unreconstructed potatoes and carrots were left out in the carbohydrate cold. (The low-carb indignities visited on bread and pasta, two formerly "traditional foods that everyone knows," would never have been possible had the imitation rule not been tossed out in 1973. Who would ever buy imitation spaghetti? But of course that is precisely what low-carb pasta is.)
A handful of lucky whole foods have recently gotten the "good nutrient" marketing treatment: The antioxidants in the pomegranate (a fruit formerly more trouble to eat than it was worth) now protect against cancer and erectile dysfunction, apparently, and the omega-3 fatty acids in the (formerly just fattening) walnut ward off heart disease. A whole subcategory of nutritional science — funded by industry and, according to one recent analysis,* remarkably reliable in its ability to find a health benefit in whatever food it has been commissioned to study — has sprung up to give a nutritionist sheen (and FDA-approved health claim) to all sorts of foods, including some not ordinarily thought of as healthy. The Mars Corporation recently endowed a chair in chocolate science at the University of California at Davis, where research on the antioxidant properties of cacao is making breakthroughs, so it shouldn't be long before we see chocolate bars bearing FDA-approved health claims. (When we do, nutritionism will surely have entered its baroque phase.) Fortunately for everyone playing this game, scientists can find an antioxidant in just about any plant-based food they choose to study.
Yet as a general rule it's a whole lot easier to slap a health claim on a box of sugary cereal than on a raw potato or a carrot, with the perverse result that the most healthful foods in the supermarket sit there quietly in the produce section, silent as stroke victims, while a few aisles over in Cereal the Cocoa Puffs and Lucky Charms are screaming their newfound "whole-grain goodness" to the rafters. Watch out for those health claims.
*L. I. Lesser, C. B. Ebbeling, M. Goozner, D. Wypij, and D. S. Ludwig, "Relationship Between Funding Source and Conclusion Among Nutrition-Related Scientific Articles," PLoS Medicine, Vol. 4, No. 1, e5 doi:10.1371/journal. pmed.0040005.
Excerpted from IN DEFENSE OF FOOD by Michael Pollan. Reprinted by arrangement with The Penguin Press, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc. Copyright (c) Michael Pollan, 2008. | <urn:uuid:106b6ac4-7d5f-4bbf-b8c4-02c2148dbe6e> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95896389 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783408840.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155008-00185-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954104 | 1,219 | 2.921875 | 3 |
ByStephen D. Simpson, CFA
Commercial lending - lending to businesses - is really a two-tier market in the United States. At the level of large corporations, bank lending is not as significant in the United States as in many other countries, as there are a larger number of accessible alternative sources of funds for businesses, like the bond market. For small businesses, though, bank lending is often a crucial source of capital.
Business lending includes commercial mortgages (loans used to purchase buildings), equipment lending, loans secured by accounts receivable and loans intended for expansion and other corporate purposes. Traditionally, the residential construction industry has been a major borrower; using bank loans to acquire land and pay for the construction of houses or apartments, and then repaying the loans when the dwellings are completed or sold. Many banks effectively "double dip" in their lending to the housing market, lending money to homebuyers as residential mortgages, and lending to developers and contractors engaged in building new homes.
Business lending can also take the form of mezzanine financing, project financing or bridge loans. Mezzanine lending is not all that common for most commercial banks, but bridge loans and project financing is often extended on a short-term basis, until the borrower finds a more permanent source of funds.
Banks also frequently use their capital to acquire investment securities. Regulators in all countries require that banks hold back some percentage of capital as reserves. Debt securities issued by the national, state, and local governments are frequently treated as safe as cash, or close to it, by regulators. Therefore, banks will often hold these instruments as a way of earning some income on their reserves.
Many banks will also buy and hold securities as an alternative to lending. In cases where prevailing loan rates are inadequate to satisfy a bank's risk-weighted pricing, certain debt securities may be more attractive as alternate uses of capital. Accordingly, the bank sector is a major buyer of government debt securities. Banks are also frequent buyers of municipal bonds. In the case of so-called "bank qualified bonds," banks can earn interest that is free from Federal taxation.
It is less common for banks to hold common stock. Though many common stocks do pay dividends, U.S. regulators have traditionally punished equity holdings by giving them poor risk weightings.
It is much more common overseas for banks to hold equity. Many banks in Europe and Asia view their relationships with businesses as something akin to partnerships, and will hold equity for a variety of reasons, including both a stake in the upside of the company, as well as the influence that significant ownership can provide.
In the past couple of decades, non-interest income has become a key component of the profits of many commercial banks in North America. As the name suggests, this is income that does not originate as interest on loaned funds. Non-interest income typically requires minimal risk for the bank and minimal capital. It is not fair to say that non-interest income is "free money," employees still have to be paid, for instance, but it is accurate to say that non-interest income often carries very attractive margins and returns on capital, and is a crucial source of income for many banks.
Fees On Deposits and Loans
Customers may revile bank service fees, but they are a large part of how many banks make money. Banks can charge fees for simply allowing a customer to have an account open, typically if, or when, the account balance is below a certain break-point, as well as fees for using ATMs or overdrawing accounts. Banks will also earn income from fees for services like cashier's checks and safe deposit boxes.
Banks also frequently attach a host of fees and charges when they make loans. While banks gamely try to defend these fees as important to defraying the costs of paperwork and so forth, in practice they're a honeypot of profits for the bank. Congress and has moved aggressively, in the wake of the subprime crisis, to restrict some of the fees that banks can charge customers. In many cases these new rules simply mean that customers have to actively select and approve certain account features, like automatic "overdraft insurance," but there are increasing limitations on what services banks can charge for, and how much they can charge.
Business Operations – Insurance and Leasing
nsurance is another surprisingly popular non-banking activity for many banks. Perhaps the popularity of insurance is due to its similarities to banking; both businesses are predicated on adequately evaluating and pricing risk, and supporting a large amount of liability on a thin layer of capital. Both businesses also happen to be highly regulated, though insurance is regulated almost exclusively at the state level.
Likewise, given the similarities between lending and leasing, it is perhaps not surprising that many banks establish leasing operations. Relatively few banks look to take ownership of the underlying assets, but many banks look to form financing relationships with equipment dealers, paying a small fee to the dealer for every leasing agreement signed, and then collecting interest on the lease. In effect, these operations allow banks to expand their business lending, while leveraging the infrastructure of other businesses such as the equipment dealers, for example.
Treasury services are a broad collection of services that banks will offer to corporate/business clients, such as company CFOs or treasurers. In addition to simple services like deposit-gathering and check writing, banks will also help companies manage their accounts receivable and accounts payable. Managing working capital and payroll is a significant headache for many companies, and while banks charge for these services, many customers find that the charges are less than the cost of fully staffing and operating their own treasury functions.
arger banks can also earn non-interest income from payment processing services. Banks will help merchants, frequently small or mid-sized businesses, set up payment systems that will allow them to accept debit and/or credit cards, handle checks electronically, convert currency and automate much of the back-office work, to ensure faster payment and less hassle.
Along similar lines, banks can help businesses set up automated/electronic payment networks that make invoicing and supplier payments faster and less of a hassle. Of course, the banks charge for these services, often earning a small amount on every transaction that they handle or help process. Given that a single network can support large numbers of clients with minimal incremental expenses, these services can be very profitable for a bank, once they have reached a certain scale.
Although making mortgage loans and collecting the interest is certainly part of everyday "interest income" operations at banks, there are aspects of lending that fall into the non-interest income bucket. In some cases, banks are willing and able to lend money, but not especially well-equipped to manage the back office tasks that go into servicing those loans.
In situations like this, a bank can sell the rights to service that loan, collecting and forwarding payments, handling escrow accounts, responding to borrower questions, etc., to another financial institution. While this can be done for almost any kind of loan, it is most common with mortgages and student loans; mortgage servicing rights (MSR) constitutes a multi-billion dollar industry. (For more, check out The New Mortgage Business: More Than Just Loans.)
Other Sources of Income
In their drive for additional sources of income, most commercial banks have expanded into offering various investment and retirement products to banking customers. In many cases, banks will offer an array of products like mutual funds, annuities and portfolio advice. Larger banks may actually operate these funds themselves, through a subsidiary, but others will simply act as a commission-gathering agent.
Although the deposit guarantees that cover bank deposits do not extend to retirement accounts, many investors are under the misconception that they do, and will buy securities from banks under the misconception that they are less risky.
Managing WealthRetail banking is the visible face of banking to the general public. Corporate banking, also known as business banking, refers to the aspect of banking that deals with corporate customers.
MarketsContrary to the story told in most economics textbooks, banks don't need your money to make loans, but they do want it to make those loans more profitable.
InvestingA bank is a financial institution licensed to receive deposits or issue new securities to the public.
MarketsLearn about how banks use this interest rate when lending to other banks.
InvestingA careful review of a bank's financial statements can help you identify key factors in a potential investment.
MarketsMany factors go into how banks set interest rates for loans. Use this information to negotiate the best possible rate when you're borrowing.
InvestingLearn how internet banking services stack up against those of their brick-and-mortar peers.
Managing WealthIn weaker economic times, banks may be tested by the government to see how safe they are.
RetirementThere are many avenues from which to drum up funding. Find out the pros and cons of each.
MarketsRecently Goldman Sachs has announced its entry into the online lending space. Most commonly known as an investment bank, Goldman’s newest venture may provide insight into the future of online ... | <urn:uuid:b693a859-1cd6-4bfb-aec1-4e864e58195e> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.investopedia.com/university/banking-system/banking-system4.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783408840.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155008-00151-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965867 | 1,872 | 2.640625 | 3 |
3 September 2008. The need for treatments that act on the full spectrum of schizophrenia symptoms—including positive, negative, and cognitive—remains critical. While the likelihood of a single compound filling this bill remains slim, several recent papers may lead to incremental gains. For example, several new publications describe the selectivity, efficacy, and safety of compounds that target cholinergic systems in schizophrenic brain, whereas another new study examines the use of estrogen for schizophrenia. Writing about the cholinergic papers in the August issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, Jeffrey Lieberman of Columbia University and colleagues opine that these data "suggest that the tide may be turning and that rational drug development may have arrived in psychiatry."
With the hypothesis of dopamine dysregulation at the forefront, schizophrenia medications have historically targeted this system, as well as other monoaminergic neurotransmitters—primarily via dopamine D2 and serotonin 5HT2A receptors—through the use of receptor antagonists. Available antipsychotics have been successful at treating positive symptoms, including hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorders. Unfortunately, efficacy in treating negative (ahedonia, alogia, and asociality) and cognitive symptoms (deficits in attention, executive function, and memory) via conventional antipsychotics has yielded disappointment. Although reduction of positive symptoms may enable individuals with schizophrenia to function outside of institutions, addressing negative and cognitive symptoms may greatly improve their ability to work and maintain relationships, thus enhancing their quality of life.
Reflecting growing interest in cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia, the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) established the MATRICS (Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia) initiative, which has included the development of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery. Studies examining novel pharmacological approaches against cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, such as targeting the cholinergic system, have been established as a goal of this initiative.
Much like the monoaminergic neurons, the majority of cholinergic cells are located in small discrete subcortical nuclei, from which their axonal projections fan out throughout the brain to modulate neuronal activity. (The major exceptions are the cholinergic interneurons of the striatum.) Drugs that act on the cholinergic system target one or both of the two receptor subtypes, the nicotinic and/or muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. Nicotinic receptors (nAChRs) are found at highest concentrations in the medial temporal lobe, and there is evidence of the involvement of this region in schizophrenia pathology. Expression of one specific receptor, α-7, is reduced in postmortem tissue from schizophrenic brain.
Muscarinic receptors are also intriguing targets for cognitive enhancement, and muscarinic agonists have shown some efficacy against cognitive symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease. Interestingly, these compounds also appeared to reduce some of the psychotic symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Additional support for targeting muscarinic receptors comes from evidence that muscarinic antagonists have the opposite effects—causing psychotic symptoms. Animal models have also shown both cognitive enhancement with muscarinic agonists and cognitive decline with muscarinic antagonists. In preclinical models of schizophrenia, modulation of M4 and M5 appear to show the most promise. Low muscarinic receptor binding has also been documented in postmortem tissue from people with schizophrenia, in prefrontal cortex, hippocampal formation, and striatum. (Recent reviews of cholinergic systems in schizophrenia include Conn et al., 2008; Lieberman et al., 2008; and Raedler et al., 2007).
Targeting the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor…
In the August issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, Robert Freedman of the University of Colorado and colleagues from several other institutions report data from a Phase 2 trial of the efficacy and safety of 3-(2,4-dimethoxybenzylidene) anabaseine (DMXB-A), a nicotinic agonist, in 31 schizophrenic individuals. DMXB-A is a partial agonist of the α-7-receptor subtype. Evidence suggests that modulation of the α-7 nicotinic receptor subtype, in particular, can improve attention, learning, and working memory (for a recent review, see Cincotta et al., 2008). The MATRICS initiative has in fact identified this receptor subtype as a possible therapeutic target for schizophrenia treatment.
Twenty-two men and nine women fulfilling DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia, between the ages of 22 and 60, were included in the study. DMXB-A was added to the participants’ existing antipsychotic medications, in most cases second-generation drugs other than clozapine. The subjects received four weeks of twice-daily placebo, 75 mg b.i.d. DMXB-A, or 150 mg b.i.d. DMXB-A. The study was a double-blind, crossover design, so all subjects received each treatment for periods of four weeks. The MATRICS cognitive battery was used to assess cognitive symptoms and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) and Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) were used to assess overall and negative symptoms, respectively.
Disappointingly, DMXB treatment did not result in differentiation from placebo in the primary efficacy variable for this trial, which was performance on the six domains of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery. These domains include processing speed, attention/vigilance, working memory, verbal learning, visual learning, and reasoning/problem solving. There were no differences between either DMXB-A dosage and placebo. The authors suggest that practice effects on the cognitive battery may have obscured actual treatment effects (see SRF related news story). Significant improvements in the SANS total score for negative symptoms and nearly significant improvement on the BPRS overall symptoms score were observed for the higher DMXB-A dose. DMXB-A may therefore be at least somewhat effective for negative symptoms of schizophrenia, but thus far does not seem to have effects on cognitive problems in schizophrenia.
…and its muscarinic cousin
In the same issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, Anantha Shekhar and colleagues at Indiana University School of Medicine, Eli Lilly and Company, and Merck Research Laboratories published a pilot study of the compound xanomeline. This somewhat selective M1 and M4 receptor agonist is currently in development for the treatment of schizophrenia in a collaboration between Eli Lilly and Merck. The rationale for this approach is based on muscarinic regulation of dopamine levels in areas of the brain believed to be critically involved in psychosis. The same compound is also being studied for possible use in Alzheimer’s disease.
Twenty subjects were included in this double-blind, placebo-controlled, four-week study. The subjects were between 18 and 60 years old and were diagnosed with DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder as their only axis I disorder. The primary efficacy measures were total symptom scores and improvement in scores on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), BPRS, and Clinical Global Impression (CGI). The subjects were also given a neuropsychological battery to measure cognitive function. Significantly greater improvement in total BPRS scores versus placebo was observed by week 1 of treatment and continued throughout the study. The xanomeline group also showed significantly superior improvements versus placebo in total PANSS scores, and in PANSS positive and negative symptom subscales. In terms of cognitive effects, the xanomeline group had greater improvements than those taking placebo in verbal learning and short-term memory. Specific measures that achieved statistical significance included list learning, story recall, delayed memory, and digit span tests. The results show that xanomeline has some potential for treating both negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia (as well as positive), although further study is clearly warranted.
One limitation of xanomeline is that it also activates M2, M3, and M5 cholinergic receptors, leading to unwanted side effects; thus, many drug developers are active in designing M1- or M4-specific drugs (see, e.g., Langmead et al., 2008; Niswender et al., 2008; Nawaratne et al., 2008). A new study by W. Y. Chan and colleagues at Eli Lilly and Company as well as collaborators at several institutions, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, describes LY2033298, a compound that targets an allosteric site—i.e., not the site where acetylcholine docks—on human M4 receptors. The drug is selective for an allosteric site on this cholinergic receptor subtype, which may be particularly important for cholinergic regulation of dopaminergic cells involved in psychosis.
In this preclinical study, Chan and colleagues determined the selectivity of LY2033298 for the M4 muscarinic receptor subtype using several in vitro assays. The researchers also examined allosteric modulation of M4 via LY2033298 using radioligand binding assays and found that agonist but not antagonist binding is potentiated by this compound. Finally, LY2033298’s activity in animal models of antipsychotic drug efficacy was tested. LY2033298 attenuated behavior in two models of antipsychotic efficacy—conditioned avoidance responding and prepulse inhibition—when administered with the muscarinic agonist oxotremorine. Microdialysis studies indicated that LY2033298 modulated dopaminergic systems in prefrontal cortex. Since this is only a preclinical study, further studies are clearly needed to elucidate the value of LY2033298 for treating schizophrenia.
Can estrogen help?
Finally, Jayashri Kulkarni and colleagues at Alfred Hospital and Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, recently examined the use of transdermal estradiol in women with schizophrenia. As they note in the August issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, interest in estrogen has been spurred by the observation that women are vulnerable to a first psychotic episode or to relapse during both the postpartum period and during menopause, when estrogen levels are lowered. Interestingly, improvement in psychosis and relapse is often observed during pregnancy in women with schizophrenia. (For more information, see Riecher-Rossler and Seeman, 2002 and Hafner, 2003).
One hundred and two women meeting DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or schizophreniform disorder participated in this double-blind trial. All were of child-bearing age. The subjects continued their antipsychotic medication, which included the full range of available atypical and typical antipsychotics. Fifty-six women received adjunctive estradiol and 46 received placebo. Schizophrenic symptoms were assessed at baseline and days seven, 14, 21, and 28 using the PANSS.
Significant improvement in positive and general psychopathological symptoms was observed over time for the estradiol group versus the placebo group, although no differences in negative symptoms were observed between groups. Although this therapy may serve as a useful adjunct to existing antipsychotic medication in women, unfortunately, estradiol seems to have no novel effects of reducing negative symptoms of schizophrenia. It should be noted that cognitive symptoms were not assessed in this study.
For now, an incremental approach
As in other complicated disorders, the therapeutic approach for schizophrenia is likely to involve multiple approaches, including non-pharmacological. However, there were disappointing results recently from the psychosocial treatment front. Mette Bertelsen and colleagues in Denmark reported on an intensive early-intervention program of the Danish government (called OPUS) for first-episode psychotic patients, who were provided assertive community treatment, psychoeducational family treatment, and psychosocial training. Compared to treatment as usual, this program improved clinical outcomes after two years, but the effects diminished by five years after the initiation of the program (Bertelsen et al., 2008). The outcome of this study underscores the unfortunate reality that while pharmacology is not always a panacea, it seems to be the best hope for real gains in schizophrenia.
Available antipsychotic drugs have had variable success at reducing (primarily positive) symptoms, and since many patients discontinue medication due to side effects, new drugs are greatly needed. Although the trials described in this article are of some interest (and drugs targeting glutamatergic neurotransmission have had recent success; see SRF related news story), the new approaches seem to offer uncertain hope. If they achieve regulatory approval, their clinical use will provide the true test.—Alisa Woods.
Chan WY, McKinzie DL, Bose S, Mitchell SN, Witkin JM, Thompson RC, Christopoulos A, Lazareno S, Birdsall NJ, Bymaster FP, Felder CC. Allosteric modulation of the muscarinic M4 receptor as an approach to treating schizophrenia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Aug 5;105(31):10978-83. Abstract
Freedman R, Olincy A, Buchanan RW, Harris JG, Gold JM, Johnson L, Allensworth D, Guzman-Bonilla A, Clement B, Ball MP, Kutnick J, Pender V, Martin LF, Stevens KE, Wagner BD, Zerbe GO, Soti F, Kem WR. Initial phase 2 trial of a nicotinic agonist in schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry. 2008 Aug 1;165(8):1040-7. Abstract
Kulkarni J, de Castella A, Fitzgerald PB, Gurvich CT, Bailey M, Bartholomeusz C, Burger H. Estrogen in severe mental illness: a potential new treatment approach. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008 Aug 1;65(8):955-60. Abstract
Shekhar A, Potter WZ, Lightfoot J, Lienemann J, Dubé S, Mallinckrodt C, Bymaster FP, McKinzie DL, Felder CC. Selective muscarinic receptor agonist xanomeline as a novel treatment approach for schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry. 2008 Aug 1;165(8):1033-9. Abstract
Lieberman JA, Javitch JA, Moore H. Cholinergic agonists as novel treatments for schizophrenia: the promise of rational drug development for psychiatry. Am J Psychiatry. 2008 Aug 1;165(8):931-6. Abstract | <urn:uuid:6d79af59-e2b8-45b9-9c38-a13fe488eeda> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.schizophreniaforum.org/new/detail.asp?id=1451 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395560.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00149-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.926772 | 2,995 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Sunday, August 28, 2011
This lab was new too us but not in many ways. My partner (Seth Harmon) and I have worked with yeast in a scientific experiment before. However never did I know until recently that it was an Enzyme, a catalyst. In this experiment we got a graduated cylinder, filled it with water from a tub, held it in position upside don in the tub so no water could get out. Then we got one milliliter of yeast and ten milliliters of hydrogen-peroxide and poured them into what appeared to be a smaller graduated cylinder but with no markings (I don't know the official term). We then immediately plugged the cylinder with a stopper with a tube coming out of it and submerged it in the tub water which was room temperature; we placed the tube inside the upside down cylinder and started timing. Now whats the significance of this? Well yeast is an enzyme and it will break the bonds in the hydrogen-peroxide and live water and pure oxygen. Since the there is already oxygen trapped in the submerged cylinder it will push through the tube, into the upside down cylinder and push the water in it out. Using this and the ever so constant time we can calculate just how fast this reaction and how well this reaction is occurring. in our first experiment we used ten milliliters of yeast which speed the reaction up at the beginning but it crawled to a halt afterwards. We learned from our mistake and corrected our measurements and ended up with normal calculations.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
In this assignment for my AP Biology class we had to gather ten rollie pollies or armadillidium vulgare to experiment its reaction to different environments. In my groups investigation we tested the reaction of wood and dirt to sand. We used some form of tray with two pieces of filter paper, one filled with the forest environment and the with the sandy environment. We discovered that the armadillidium vulgare didn't quite like the sandy environment because the sand particles were too small and easily pushed aside for the crustaceans to get a good grip to climb or very well walk on. Also the sand was dry and bright while the creatures are used to a more moist and shady habitat. This was expected considering I found them behind my shed under some slabs and wood. | <urn:uuid:f3748d5a-573a-46cc-8a7d-d5015f84acdc> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://ketchemall.blogspot.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393146.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00055-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97185 | 470 | 3.625 | 4 |
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Column: The Impact of Sequestration
By Congressman Scott Tipton
Sequestration is here, leaving many uncertain about what’s next.
One of the major problems with the President’s sequester is not that it initiates a needed reduction in federal spending, but that its unwieldy nature casts a broad shadow of uncertainty with regard to how those spending cuts will be implemented. Nobody knows for certain the extent to which sequestration will transform the federal government. Considering that the cuts amount to $85 billion reduction from a bloated $3.7 trillion in federal spending this year, the effects may prove to be minimal.
Sequestration will reduce federal expenditures by approximately 2.3 percent over the next seven months, about $1,150 less for every $50,000 the federal government plans to spend, which is comparable to the 2 percent tax increase most American families are now paying because of the expiration of the payroll deduction tax credit earlier this year. An American family making $50,000 a year is now taking home $1,000 less per year. That amounts to a mortgage payment, two semesters of books for a college student, or a couple months’ worth of groceries, and contributes to the highest tax burden since 2008 for most U.S. households.
On top of bearing the brunt of this tax increase, many families have made drastic changes over the past few years to make ends meet. According to a study conducted by two former census officials, from 2009-2012, median household income fell 4.8 percent. A family making $50,000 in 2009 made $2,400 less by 2012.
Between the increase in taxes and dwindling incomes, January of 2013 was extremely tough on families. According to a report by the Commerce Department, individual incomes plunged 3.6 percent in January, and disposable income dropped 4 percent, the steepest decrease since 1959.
While American families have seen their taxes go up and their incomes shrink over the past few years and are doing all they can to weather the storm, the federal government continues to increase spending, and will collect more revenue in 2013 than ever before--$2.7 trillion.
At the end of the day, sequestration is forcing the federal government to do what American families have been doing for some time—tighten its belt.
While reducing federal spending is a good thing—and drastically needed given our nation’s $16.5 trillion debt and trillion dollar deficit spending—it could have been done more strategically, and in a way that would have prevented the speculation and uncertainty created by sequestration.
This uncertainty stems from the broad scope in which the cuts are applied and the discretion federal agency heads will have to direct budget cuts. In many cases, federal agency heads will determine how budget cuts are implemented in their agencies.
It is my hope that as sequestration goes into effect, agency officials when possible implement cuts to eliminate waste, bureaucracy and inefficiency in government, and minimize the impact to valuable programs.
Ultimately, the uncertainty created by sequestration was avoidable.
The House passed two measures to replace the cuts in sequestration with targeted budget reforms to eliminate government waste, slush funds and duplicative programs. These efforts fell upon deaf ears in the Senate with the President unwilling to push for them. The President had 18 months to present an alternative solution to sequestration, but instead of identifying needed spending cuts, he moved the goalpost, insisting that revenue is the basis for America’s debt problem, not spending. The Senate followed that with a weak last minute vote to replace sequestration with tax increases, and it failed.
Given that most families are already taking home less income and paying more taxes, while the federal government is bringing in more tax revenue than ever, I believe that spending is the problem, and that our budget crisis must be solved through responsible spending reforms. The coming months will bring robust budget debate, and ultimately its outcome will shape the future of our nation.
The ends of this debate shouldn’t be political, but about doing what’s right for our nation. We must reduce spending, and put our country on a sustainable course so that we pass the American dream on to our children, not just a maxed out credit card. I stand ready to work with my colleagues of all political stripes to advance this goal. | <urn:uuid:2c6dd40e-00f8-4484-b0b0-1cbc473fa399> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://tipton.house.gov/press-release/column-impact-sequestration | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783392159.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154952-00105-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961412 | 896 | 2.53125 | 3 |
PHYSICAL CONDITIONS, HISTORY, RELIGION. During the second millennium B.C., a country had been developing on the northern boundary of Babylonia which, after being the dependent and then the rival, finally became the conqueror of the older empire. This was Assyria. The country was a narrow, insignificant strip of land, hardly sixty miles in width, between the Tigris and the mountains. Its inhabitants were a hardy and vigorous race who made up in unity what they lacked in numbers. They were not of mixed race, like the Babylonians, but were pure Shemites. Not until the very close of their history do they show signs of being contaminated by the luxurious life of the Babylonians. In religion they worshipped Asshur as supreme god, and Ishtar was their goddess; but they followed the example of the Babylonians, and, besides their special patrons, adopted the official Babylonian mythology with its twelve great deities.
In the seventeenth century B.C. the rulers of Assyria first took the title of kings ; and in the fifteenth and fourteenth centuries they were in frequent conflict with the Babylonian kings. The period of conquest did not begin, however, until the time of Tiglath-pileser I. in the twelfth century, to be renewed on an even grander scale by Assur-nazir-pal in the ninth century, though between the times of these two great monarchs the Assyrian empire had relost nearly all its accretions. From Assur-nazir-pal’s reign until the fall of Assyria two and a half centuries later, there was an uninterrupted course of conquests. Armenia, the Hittites, Babylonia, Palestine, Syria, Phoenicia, Egypt, and finally Elam became subjects of Nineveh. The Assyrian kings ruled from the Persian Gulf to Asia Minor. Nineveh became the commercial and artistic as well as the political capital of the entire East until the unity, so burdensome to the subject races, was finally burst asunder by the Babylonians shortly before 600 B.C.
The strength of the Assyrians lay in their wonderful political and social organization, which enabled them to establish securely their hold upon new conquests. We know far more of the Assyrian organization than of the Babylonian. The personality of the king, by a gradual growth, came to overshadow the whole land. He, and not the priests, was the direct intermediary between the gods and the country. He was the favorite, the ” firstling,” the beloved, of the gods. His personality was blazoned forth in a palace that was his very own, built for him, and made to glorify his reign. Its inscriptions and its sculptures were the official records of his deeds. Imprecations were called down upon any of his successors who either failed to keep his palace in repair or diverted any of its decoration from its purpose.
No city in the Oriental world could compare with the Nineveh of the Sargonid kings as a world metropolis, as a centre of art, industry, and commerce, as a place where works of art were brought from all countries, where colonies of foreign artists settled and worked, and where Assyrian art, with its clearly defined and impressive individuality, could exercise an influence that would be spread over the entire East and be carried by the Phoenicians as far as the Greek islands.
The Assyrians were not by nature a literary or artistic people. They appropriated much from the older civilization of Babylonia, upon which they were at first largely dependent. The Assyrian kings established libraries like those which had existed since 4000 B.C. in the Babylonian cities, and caused the contents of the Babylonian libraries to be copied for the use of the Assyrian people. Thus the northern race entered into the inheritance of the southerners, and borrowed from their mythology, their literature, and their art. But, while this led at first to almost complete dependence, as soon as the latent qualities of the Assyrians were developed, toward the twelfth century, a civilization radically opposed in many ways to the Babylonian resulted. This is shown very clearly in the political organization of Assyria. For as strongly as Babylonia stands for local government, just so strongly does Assyria represent centralization. The difference between the two peoples is shown even more clearly in sculpture.
SUBJECTS. The Assyrian royal palace, more than the temple, was the shrine of art. Every king wished to build at least one palace that should be a memorial of his reign and perpetuate his name forever. Of the three sections into which the royal palace was always dividedstate apartments, harem, and servants’ quartersthe first was more or less thoroughly deco-rated with sculptures in relief throughout the main halls and corridors, and Place calculates that the reliefs in the palace of Sargon at Khorsabad, if placed end to end, would cover a distance of about a mile and a half.
In the temples were placed images of the gods. Judging from the bas-reliefs which represent soldiers carrying such images, they appear to have been less than life-size, usually from three to four feet high. Mythological subjects were but seldom represented, except in the seal cylinders. The scenes with which the discoveries of Layard and Place have made us familiar are almost entirely secular and genre subjects. They differ from the corresponding subjects in Egyptian art in not relating to the lives of private individuals, but to the life of the king. His horses are represented led by grooms to water. His private parks are shown stocked with lions and gazelles. He is portrayed as reclining at a banquet, his table being sup-plied by a procession of viand-bearing attendants. He starts out to hunt the lion, the wild ass, or the gazelle, in his chariot or on his horse, accompanied by soldiers, courtiers, and huntsmen. Sometimes the hunt is open, and at other times great battues are organized and the game surrounded by serried lines of warriors into which the king breaks to bring the hunt to a close. Then he returns, his attendants bearing the game. The bodies are laid on the ground and offered to Asshur by the pouring out of a libation. If there is war and conquest, the court sculptor, in true Oriental style, gives all the credit to the royal prowess. The king is the central figure in the march and in the stricken field. The camp is depicted, the grooming of horses, the cooking of rations, the establishment of tetes-de-pont, the propitiatory offerings on the march, the setting up of commemorative stelae as the army passes along after victory. We see all the details of the attack on a walled city the archers firing from behind skin-covered shields, the soldiers pushing forward a battering-ram and pouring water upon its front to prevent it from being fired by the torches cast down by the besieged, and, in front of the gates, prisoners being impaled to strike terror, while others are led away. In the representations of battle-scenes many successive stages of the conflict are given, even portraying (as in the siege of Susa) the fate of the particular leaders. Then follow the submission of the vanquished, the presentation of tribute, the soldiers bringing in the heads of slain enemies to be counted.
Thus the Assyrian sculptor excelled in telling a story, clearly and with no superfluous details. His work was naturalistic and somewhat narrow in its scope, but it was greatly varied in its detail. The power of observation was cultivated far more than with the Bahylonians. And there was a sympathy with animal life that went far to redeem the hardness and rigidity of the style. The lions and lionesses, in repose and action, bounding to the attack or in their last agonies ; the fleeing, prancing, kicking wild asses, the horses stretching themselves in fleet course, with quivering nostrilsare given with wonderful naturalness and artistic sense : they are full of life and of true plastic simplicity. The reality is so great that one can scientifically identify many breeds of birds and animals from the sculptures. With plants, trees, and flowers the sculptor had far less success, as his material was less suited to their representation in the low relief which was his only method of modelling.
MATERIALS, METHODS, AND CONVENTIONS. The Assyrians did not employ to any extent diorite or other hard stone for sculpture, as did the Babylonians. Such stones were suited more particularly to work in the round, for which the Assyrians did not care. At most they used such material for an occasional commemorative stele or obelisk. Bas-relief was their specialty, and they found excellent material in the alabaster and soft lime-stone quarried from the mountains on their borders. This use of soft material, so easily handled by the sculptor, was not without influence both on the quality and quantity of the monuments produced. The Assyrian sculptor seemed to revel in the facility with which he could fashion the stone, indulging in the minutest detail work and exaggerating lines, muscular development, and expression.
This artistic plasticity and freedom of hand, with which the Assyrian artist appears to have been far more liberally endowed than his Babylonian predecessor, is nowhere more clearly shown than in the terracottas. These were not cast in mouldsas with the Babylonians, Phoenicians, and Greeksbut executed with free hand in the lump of clay. At other times, when the clay was covered with a glaze, a mould was employed, but the style remained free and bold.
Bronze figures were not, apparently, so common as with the Babylonians, but, on the other hand, the working of bronze in relief was carried to a perfection unknown to Babylonia. The hammer, chisel, and burin were used with wonderful skill in the production of bronze doors, plaques, dishes, vases, etc. The delicacy of touch and beauty of detail that distinguished Assyrian artists were also shown in their ivory carvings. Amid Egyptian and Phoenician imported works, so numerous among the finds at Nineveh, the native Assyrian ivories stand out most markedly. They are in precisely the same style as the larger sculptures, but with freer modelling and greater refinement of type.
The Babylonian custom of using seals and cylinders in all public documents was followed in Assyria, and the characteristics that we find in large sculpture are equally evident in these small works of the engravers. It is as easy to distinguish Assyrian from Babylonian work in cut seals as in the larger monuments. We find in them the same sharp outlines, the same precise rendering of details and muscular exaggeration, the same symmetry of composition as contrasted with the less artistic grouping of the Babylonian artists.
Beside the mass of work in low relief, some few statues in the round have been preserved, and a number of statuettes, but they are in themselves proof of the inaptitude of the Assyrian artists to work in the round. It is true that many statues of the gods are mentioned in the texts as existing in the temples, and in the bas-reliefs we see Assyrian soldiers transporting such divine statues on their shoulders, but sculpture in the round was not the best or the most frequent expression of the Assyrian artist. The colossal figures of genii that guarded the city and palace gates were of a type midway between statuary and relief, and they were certainly the most original and impressive works of the school.
One must not overlook the fact that the Assyrians followed the common Asiatic custom of carving colossal reliefs on the surface of rocks along the course of their expeditions. These were monuments to commemorate treaties or victories, and representing the gods and the king. Such a monument is that at Bavian, of the time of Sennacherib, and another is at Malthai. Analogous works were executed by the Elamites and Hittites.
As a rule, the sculptor showed remarkable ability in eliminating all superfluous elements from the compositions. The figures were always arranged on a single plane, except where two figures were shown standing side by side, one immediately behind the other. When an action was depicted which, like the drawing of a colossus on rollers, necessitated the deployment of several lines of men, the lines were placed one over the other in profile, their grouping being in plan. So, if it was desired to show soldiers mounting a hillside, they were carved in profile ascending along a section of the hill marked by a line drawn along its surface, upon which the soldiers stepped.
The figure was represented quite perfectly in profile, and here we see marked superiority to the Babylonian school, but, on the other hand, we find no examples of the use of the full face, which was by no means unknown to the Babylonians. The sculptor employed but a single type of facethat of the Shemitic Assyriansits only variant being a reproduction of the cognate Jewish type.
The master sculptors appear to have executed models on a small scale both in terracotta and in stone, which were after-ward used by the workmen to whom the bulk of the execution was confided. The production of bas-reliefs was so immense, at the time of the construction of any royal palace, that some such method as this was required in order to insure uniformity of style and type in the different parts. Color was quite an important element in the effect. The hair, eyes, and drapery were generally brightened with it, and it is probable that this peculiarity passed from the Assyrians to the Greeks, who succeeded them in the perfect mastery of relief sculpture.
The sculptors were, so to speak, a part of the organization of the state, and their work was an official act. They were not only employed in temples and palaces, but accompanied the army on its campaigns to carve memorials of its victories on the nearest cliff or to erect obelisk-like step carved with images of the king and the figures or symbols of the great gods, and sometimes, even, scenes from the campaign.
HISTORY. There is less variety of style in Assyrian than in Babylonian sculpture. There seems to have been but one school, one technique, one style. And yet it is possible to distinguish at least two periods of production; one from the heginning up to the reign of Sargon, the other from Sennacherib to the fall of Nineveh. One of the earliest pieces of Assyrian sculpture is a nude female figure of a goddess in the British Museum, with an inscription of King Assur-bel-Kala, which reproduces so perfectly a well-known type on the Babylonian seal cylinders that it would lead one to conjecture that in the twelfth century, when Assyria was in the course of establishing an autonomous civilization, she had not yet broken loose from an imitation of Babylonian work. At the same time, the few remains of the reign of Tiglath-pileser I. prove that at this date (circa 1120) the Assyrian artists had formed their style. We know nothing of the development of Assyrian sculpture during the following centuries. The next monuments in date are those of the reign of Assur-nazir-pal (88586o) which constitute one of the greatest series known, and are the most impressive and grand of all the Assyrian work. The artists had reached their apogee in the reliefs from the royal palace at Kalah. The figures are large, and the story is told simply and clearly. There are no backgrounds of scenery, no elaborate attempts at establishing different planes in the same relief. The carved marble dado along the palace halls has but a single row of figures. The relief is exceedingly low, but the muscularity and the features are strongly accentuated. The desire to tell the story clearly is so predominant as often to lead the sculptor to carve the historic inscriptions straight across the reliefs which illustrate them, much to the detriment of artistic effect. It was at this period that the colossal genii that flanked the palace gates, the lions, and the man-headed bulls were executed with greatest power. The same style was followed under Assur-nazir-pal’s successors. There remain two remarkable monuments of the reign of his son Shalmaneser II., a basalt obelisk found at Nimroud and the bronze gates to a palace which he built at Balawat. The few sculptures from that date to the reign of Tiglath-pileser II. (745727) continue the traditions of the previous century.
With Sargon (722705) comes the decadence of the grand, epic style. The figures are less lifelike, the relief is higher, but character and sharpness are lost instead of gained by a softer gradation of the surfaces. The inscriptions no longer cross the reliefs, and occasionally an attempt is made to intro-duce picturesque accessories into the background. Sennacherib, his immediate successor (705-681), inaugurated a new artistic ideal ; and the art of his time aims at being picturesque, varied, lifelike, and dramatic. We find scenery and accessories, a multitude of small figures, a detailed representation of incident. The stone dado is carved in several super-posed lines of relief, so that the processions of impressive large figures are lost. But the change of style seems unfortunate, and the effect is confused. The artists of a later king, Assur-bani-pal (668), the last great patron of art, showed better insight. They returned in part to the old simple style, with greater delicacy of treatment and higher finish. In compositions, such as battle-pieces, they retained the style of Sennacherib, but succeeded better in being dramatic, and in portraying scenes full of a multitude of small figures without lapsing into confusion. Such are some of the hunting and garden scenes. On the other hand, in the battle-pieces, like that of the defeat of the Elamites at Susa, the artist has not succeeded wholly in avoiding the confused compositions characteristic of the reliefs of Sennacherib.
EXTANT REMAINS. Rock-cut sculptures of Tiglath-pileser I., at Korkhar (N. of Diarbekr) ; of Sennacherib at Bavian (N.N.E. of Mosul); of Essarhaddon and other kings near the Nahr-el-kelb in Phoenicia (near Beyrouth) ; of a Sargonid king at Malthai (N. of Mosul): The British Museum contains the results of Layard’s excavations, especially the numerous series of reliefs of Assur-nazir-pal and Assur-bani-pal, and less important series of Tiglath-pileser III. and Sennacherib, the obelisks of Assur-nazir-pal and Shalmaneser II., and the latter’s bronze gates. The Museum of the Louvre is especially rich in the series of Sargon reliefs found in this king’s palace by Place. There are small collections of reliefs at the Vatican Museum, at the Historical Society in New York, at Amherst College, etc. The British Museum is especially rich in remains of industrial art of all kinds, while Assyrian seals and cylinders are numerous, not only there and at the Louvre, but also in the collections mentioned as being rich in Babylonian carved gems. | <urn:uuid:dc12a1f7-bb4e-484b-8f0a-a2d63595828b> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://art.yodelout.com/assyrian-sculpture/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398516.82/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00122-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974926 | 4,109 | 3.40625 | 3 |
See what questions
a doctor would ask.
People behave differently when they travel, and this increases the risk of some medical conditions in recent travellers for reasons sometimes unrelated to the location travelled to. These causes of Mouth infection may be more likely in patients with travel history:
The full list of all possible causes for Mouth infection described in various sources is as follows:
The following drugs, medications, substances or toxins may possibly cause Mouth infection as a side effect.See detailed list of 4 drug side effect causes of Mouth infection]
The following list of conditions have 'Mouth infection' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.
Select from the following alphabetical view of conditions which include a symptom of Mouth infection or choose View All.
Search Specialists by State and City | <urn:uuid:4cecfbeb-7a3f-4bad-88cd-71d2db15be9e> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.rightdiagnosis.com/symptoms/mouth_infection/travel.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391519.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00027-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932875 | 182 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Latest update: March 29th, 2013
In the spring of 1981 Menachem Begin faced one of the most difficult decisions of his premiership. Iraq had indicated its intentions to build a nuclear bomb and left no doubt as to the designated target. Israeli intelligence had estimated that Iraq would have a working bomb within two years. Despite diplomatic efforts, Iraq continued with its efforts to develop her nuclear program. Once his military leaders presented him with a viable plan of attack against the Iraqi nuclear plant at Osirak, Begin had to decide whether to give the mission a green light. Time was not on his side, as it was believed that only a few months remained before the plant went hot. If that happened an attack would no longer be viable because of the radioactive fallout that would result from the plant’s destruction.
Although Begin realized there would be an international outcry against the bombing, he nonetheless felt it was necessary to ensure Israel’s future. On June 7, 1981 Israel successfully neutralized the Iraqi threat. As Begin suspected, many countries, including the United States condemned the attack. But with the passage of time most of these same countries realized that Israel had made the world a safer place.
In a speech delivered to the Knesset that June 26, Begin explained his reasons. What follows is a partial translation of his speech.
“My dear friends, we have experienced many awful days and nights since we discovered that in Osirak they were planning to develop atomic bombs. We faced a terrible dilemma. Assuming we did nothing what would happen to us? What would happen to our children? We have fought and won five wars. We do not want a sixth one….But now, with Iraq, a cruel enemy, possessing atomic bombs, when we went out to the streets and saw five year old children playing, we wondered what would be in two or three years when they will be seven and eight. What will happen to them when Saddam Hussein will have two to three bombs the strength of those that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Tens of thousands of these children might be killed or injured….We therefore asked ourselves what should we do? How could we forgive ourselves if G-d forbid we didn’t act?”
From this speech, as well as from internal cabinet memos, we see that Begin was focused on the children’s future. He believed that he and his government had the responsibility to do all that they could to safeguard it. That is what compelled him to order the bombing.
What does this have to do with Pesach? Pesach is the holiday that celebrates the future of our children and their education in the ways of the Torah. But to successfully educate our children and prepare them for their future challenges we must look at them now and determine what needs to be done to ensure that they grow into outstanding Bnei and Bnot Torah. Regrettably, all too often we focus on teaching our children how to address our current adult challenges and not the challenges they will encounter when they themselves will become adults.
I believe a careful reading of the third son’s (the tam) question provides us with insight into this issue. Based on the pasuk in the Torah (Shemot 13:14) the Haggadah relates that the tam’s question consists of two simple words: “Mah Zot (what’s this)?” In response, the Torah relates how the son’s parent should explain to him how G-d took us out of Egypt and freed us from our bondage with a strong hand. When we look in the Torah the preamble to the questions is: “And it will be when your son asks you tomorrow saying what is this…” There is something striking about the word tomorrow. Rashi explains that the word connotes some future distant time. Accordingly, for some reason the son described in this pasuk will not know why we perform the rituals connected with Pesach (or why we redeem firstborns, which is the immediate topic of the Torah section).
The commentators offer many explanations for this unfamiliarity. The common denominator is that the question is a function of his limited intellectual abilities. However, let us take a moment to collectively take a step back and look inward. What if the reason the son asks such a simple and shallow question is not because of unfamiliarity but because we failed over the years to instill within him the importance and relevance of the Seder night. The wise son is also described as asking his question in the future. But unlike the tam’s unidimensional question, the wise son asks detailed and penetrating ones. Arguably, the real difference is not in their intellectual abilities but in their understanding of the importance and relevance of the evening.Rabbi David Hertzberg
About the Author: Rabbi Dr. David Hertzberg is the principal of the Yeshivah of Flatbush Middle Division and is an adjunct assistant professor of History at Touro College.
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Due to the presence of sensitive species and difficult access, visitation at the Walnut Hill preserve is restricted. This preserve supports a high quality occurrence of smooth purple coneflower, known from only 15 sites in the world. The coneflower is federally listed as an endangered species.
Walnut Hill is a gently sloping old field with abundant grasses and sedges, interspersed with red cedar, redbud, locust and walnut. More than 1,000 smooth purple coneflowers exist here. This species, a member of the daisy family, is a tall perennial that flowers in June and July. Stiffly erect and generally unbranched, it may reach a height of five feet. The coneflower forms a cone-like head, ringed by drooping ray florets. It is closely related to the common purple coneflower that is one of the sources of the medicinal herb Echinacea, but in addition to being smoother, it has longer and narrower corolla rays.
Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
Ellison and Mary Linda Smyth donated Walnut Hill to The Nature Conservancy. Mrs. Smyth, a botanist, had realized that the tall purple perennial blooming in their field was unusual. Through her job at the Virginia Tech herbarium, she located the plant in The Nature Conservancy's computerized inventory of rare species. She discovered that her land contained the largest documented population of smooth purple coneflowers in the world. Realizing that The Nature Conservancy could provide these plants with the necessary long-term stewardship, the Smyths chose to turn the land over to the Conservancy's Virginia chapter.
What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
At Walnut Hill, the coneflowers are growing in a successional field of broom sedge (or bluestem) which is slowly yielding to forest. The population is threatened by land use changes, particularly livestock grazing. However, the greatest threat to their survival is the shade that results from the invasion of woody species. The Conservancy now monitors the plants and manages the habitat to keep the coneflower population healthy. | <urn:uuid:703c752b-4889-40ae-a5a2-f3221d569ed3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/virginia/placesweprotect/walnut-hill-preserve.xml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393518.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00031-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944458 | 447 | 3.453125 | 3 |
Walsh E. J., M.L. Banner, J.H. Churnside, et al. (August 2005): Visual demonstration of three-scale sea-surface roughness under light wind conditions. IEEE T. Geosci. Remote, 43 (8), 1751-1762. doi:10.1109/TGRS.2005.851633Full text not available from this repository.
During the Southern Ocean Waves Experiment (SOWEX) an aircraft carried a down-looking video camera to help document the sea surface. Reflected images of the aircraft were intermittently observed in the video recorded at 15-30-m height under light and variable wind conditions. A numerical simulation was developed to relate image contrast to the gravity-capillary wave contribution to sea-surface mean square slope (mss). "Carnival fun-house" mirror-type distortions of the image in the absence of the gravity-capillary waves relate to intermediate-scale wave persistence when wind forcing stops. Video image estimates of mss correlated better with 36-GHz scanning radar altimeter estimates than with the wind speed measured at 30-m height. When the gravity-capillary waves disappeared in the absence of wind forcing, about one-third of the 0.0015 residual mss was contributed by the dominant waves, and about two-thirds was contributed by the 1-10-m wavelength region. Near the shores of a lake in Alaska, reflected aircraft images were also observed, indicating that the gravity-capillary wave contribution to mss was only about 0.000 001, even though the wind speed at the 160-m aircraft height was 10 m/s.
|Divisions:||Physical Sciences Division| | <urn:uuid:af853273-dc9b-4d96-823c-3c7d4853b030> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/pubs/549/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783404826.94/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155004-00062-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.889414 | 352 | 2.515625 | 3 |
A Rapid Assay for Detecting Sulfonamides in Tissues of Slaughtered Animals
Abstract:Governments regulate antimicrobial residues in slaughtered animals with surveillance programs for detecting drugs in food-producing animals. Although initial screening bioassay systems are recognized for their sensitivities to antimicrobial drug groups, none are sensitive to sulfonamides at or near the maximum residue levels (MRLs) in the Codex Alimentarious. We have developed a sulfonamide-sensitive rapid assay using Bacillus stearothermophilus inoculated PM indicator agar containing bromcresol purple and trimethoprim, where the end point is a combination of color change in the agar and zone of microbial growth inhibition around the sampling disk. Five sulfonamides, plus 16 other antimicrobial drugs were tested in standard concentrations in water, bovine kidney, and ground beef. Sulfonamides were detected at concentrations near the MRLs, and they were presumptively identified using para-aminobenzoic acid. The rapid assay was extremely sensitive to β-lactams that were presumptively identified using penase. The system also was sensitive to tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, and macrolides, of which tetracyclines and gentamicin were identified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In trials on slaughterhouse tissues submitted for testing in Ontario's meat surveillance program, the rapid assay identified twofold the number of positive kidneys and threefold the number of positive diaphragm samples compared to a standard microbiological inhibition test (MIT) currently approved. Fifty-three of 471 carcasses were sulfonamide positive with the rapid assay, while no sulfonamides were detected with the MIT.ELISA and thin-layer chromatography were used on selected samples to confirm the rapid assay sulfonamide presumptive results.
Document Type: Research Article
Publication date: October 1, 2001
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You are getting the warnings because you are using the wrong format specifier in
p is an integer-pointer.
&p is the address of a pointer.
&y are addresses of integers. These are all addresses in memory, not values of a variable. The specifier
%u is for values of unsigned integers. So you are printing apples where the compiler expects oranges. Addresses are shorter than some values stored in variables. By using
%u will actually print an address value as decimal (highly unusual) and some more data located behind that in memory. The compiler is complaining, because that's probably not what you want to do. To print the addresses use the specifier
%p, as in:
printf("\n&x = %p\n",&x);
Aside from that, your variables are signed integers and as such should use
%i instead of
%u format specifier of
printf() is for positive integers only. For small positive values both,
%u are interchangeable. The warning is displayed because the variable type does not match its specifier and this causes problems in some cases.
This would be more sensible from your variable types:
printf("\n\np = %p\n", p); // p is a pointer so %p would print the address
printf("\n*p = %i\n", *p); // the data saved at that address is an integer
// so %i is appropriate if you dereference the
// pointer with the star "*p"
printf("\n&x = %p\n", &x); // &x gives the address of the integer variable x
// so %p is the specifier for that address
printf("\n&y = %p\n", &y);
printf("\n&z = %p\n", &z);
printf("\n&p = %p\n\n", &p); // &p gives the address, where the pointer p is
// stored -> still an address -> %p is the right
A bit background on signed and unsigned integers and pointers:
C uses the same 32 bit (or another power of two depending on the system architecture) to store unsigned and signed integers. Thus the highest
unsigned int is 232-1 or in binary notation:
232-1 = (11111111111111111111111111111111)2 <- (unsigned)
And a the number one would look like this in binary:
1 = (00000000000000000000000000000001)2 <- (unsigned)
Now regular signed integers need to store the negative numbers as well, but still in the same space of 32 bit. If you stored the sign, of the number in e.g. the first bit, you would loose a whole bit. That would be wasteful, e.g. the zero would have two representations as + and - zero. To circumvent this problem negative numbers in signed integers are stored a little differently: To encode a number into a signed integer, you add halve the possible range for your 32 bit number. This is 2(32-1), and then use the regular binary representation of that new number. So a one is encoded like 2(32-1) + 1 would be for an unsigned integer. We have:
2(32-1) = (11111111111111111111111111111111)2 <-signed
1 = (10000000000000000000000000000001)2 <- signed
0 = (10000000000000000000000000000000)2 <- signed
-1 = (01111111111111111111111111111111)2 <- signed
-2(32-1) = (00000000000000000000000000000000)2 <-signed
Now you have encoded the same number of integers, but the maximum for signed integers is consequently only 2(32-1) as opposed to double that, 232-1, for unsigned integers. This is called excess-K or offset-binary representation for negative numbers. Most systems use the Two's complement, where the first, most significant bit is reversed.
To see this, set
x=-1; and then
printf("%u",x). You will get the following output:
Which is 232-1 or (01111111111111111111111111111111)2 in binary notation. For the Two's complement this number would be:
Or 232-1. This equals (11111111111111111111111111111111)2 in binary, so it has the first bit reversed compared to the above excess-K value of 2147483648.
So this is how the data is stored. Pointers come into play when you think of the where. The physical bits in the memory must have addresses. Since there are incredibly many of them you address them in chunks of more then one bit. If you create a pointer, the physical memory at the address of the pointer holds another address in memory. So a house is a physical object, much like a bit in your PC's memory. A piece of paper would be a pointer. It is smaller than the house, but can hold the address of a house or other houses. In that analogy, above you would have tried to demolish the piece of paper instead of the actual house and it was actually a mountain... | <urn:uuid:d789808e-8196-4485-8301-4c0d17a68be3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://askubuntu.com/questions/276758/warning-messages-while-compiling-c-program-using-gcc | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395613.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00167-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.90905 | 1,087 | 3.203125 | 3 |
Alliance owes its existence and early prosperity to the railroads. It was because of the anticipated rail linkage with important cities to the east and west that such people as Elisha Teeters, Matthias Hester, Simeion Jennings, and Isaac and Anna Webb purchased land near the newly acquired railroad right of way and began to develop it. The first railroad to reach Alliance was the Cleveland and Wellsville. Amidst much celebration the first locomotive steamed into the village of Freedom on July 4, 1851. Soon the Ohio and Pennsylvania Railroad was also running to the village.
On May 12, 1852 Colonel Daniel Sourbeck arrived from Pennsylvania to take charge of the hotel that had been built on the north side of the intersection of the two tracks. One of the worst disasters in the city's history occurred at the crossing in front of the hotel on December 6, 1856. In spite of the fact that the city council had ruled that locomotives could go no faster than six miles per hour through the area, a speeding locomotive collided at the intersection of the tracks with another train. One of the cars smashed into the hotel, and a number of people waiting for the trains to pass were killed. The grave of one of the victims, John McIntyre, can still be seen in the old United Brethren Church cemetery on River Street.
The newly elected President, Abraham Lincoln, dined at the hotel on his way to his inauguration in 1861. A monument was erected near the spot where he gave a brief speech.
The first building burned in 1863, and a brick building was constructed to replace it. The new structure was officially known as the Sourbeck House and served as a combination hotel, depot, and restaurant. Travelers came from hundreds of miles to enjoy its famous food and hospitality. The three Union Army Generals; Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan are said to have enjoyed one of Mr. Sourbeck's meals in 1867.
Today there is nothing left of the old buildings, but Alliance's industry is still dependent upon the railroads for the crucial transportation of raw materials and finished products. | <urn:uuid:bc2c389f-7ec1-4e71-9ede-1632be1ebb91> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.rodmanlibrary.com/sourbeck-house | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396949.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00091-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983768 | 430 | 2.78125 | 3 |
In the Apostles Creed, why do we say that Jesus descended into hell? Why would he go to hell?
It is not surprising that you should wonder about this phrase since it is part of our profession of faith. Jesus, as a human being, had a body and soul. His body was put in the tomb, but where did his soul go?
To get some understanding, we need to have a language lesson. The Hebrew biblical term for the underworld, the place of the dead, is sheol. Hades is the Greek translation for the Hebrew.
In English, sheol/hades is translated as "hell" which is derived from the place of the dead in Germanic mythology and comes to us through the Latin inferna.
According to several NT texts (Matthew 11.23, 16.18; Luke 10.15, 16.23), Sheol/hades, has two divisions: the abode of the saved and of the lost.
The first, called paradise/heaven or Abraham's bosom is a temporary place for righteous Israelites who died before Christ's coming. The other, the Greek gehenna or hell is the destination of the wicked, damned for eternity.
In the parable of Lazarus, the poor beggar and the rich man (Luke 16.19-31), Christ affirms this strict division. The rich man, who is suffering from the flames and who begs Abraham to send Lazarus to put cool water on his tongue, is told that "between you and us a great chasm has been fixed" (16.26) that cannot be crossed either way.
Christ's descent into hell is a way of saying he died a real death. His soul, separated from his body, descended among the dead. Paul wrote: "When it says 'he ascended,' what does that mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the very one who ascended high above the heavens that he might fill all things" (Ephesians 4.9-10).
We believe that the sin of Adam closed the gates of heaven. The souls of the righteous awaited the redeemer in the land of the dead. It is to this abode of the righteous that Christ descended and not to gehenna, the abode of the damned.
Why then did we go back to saying, Christ descended to hell, instead of to the dead? It is because the most recent translations have been made to correspond more closely to the Latin.
An unusual text in 1 Peter 3.18-19 speaks of Christ preaching to the spirits in prison. Who are these spirits? In the New Testament, "spirits" is used to describe angels or demons and not humans.
The word "preached" used here does not mean a message of redemption since angels cannot be redeemed. It is rather a proclamation, probably a declaration of victory over Satan.
Some believe that Christ went to the hell of the wicked to be further punished for our sins but that idea is not supported by Scripture. By his death on the cross, he took the burden of the whole human race: "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5.21).
Christ offered the perfect sacrifice once and for all time by dying on the cross.
Jesus' suffering ended the moment he died. However, according to St. Thomas Aquinas, the power of Christ's presence was felt to the furthest reaches of hell, thus conquering the devil in his home territory.
What can all this mean for us today? As Christ delivered the righteous, we can hold to a firm hope that Christ will deliver us in our trials and tribulations.
When we feel a sense of abandonment by God, if the silence is deafening and the darkness is blinding, we know Christ is with us as he experienced that final loneliness on the cross. When no voice can reach us, Christ is there.
That fact that Christ did not deliver all those in the underworld, those in gehenna, must lead us to a fear of hell and to avoidance of serious sin.
Christ could have gone immediately to the Father in heaven. Instead, Christ descended into the place of ultimate spiritual desolation and isolation.
This should renew our awe and gratitude at what Christ did for us. It should deepen our awareness and appreciation of his love for us. It should increase our closeness to Christ and our willingness to welcome him into our hearts and lives.
(Other questions? Email: [email protected]) | <urn:uuid:4827735a-28a2-49c5-a4e2-55bcacce8973> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://wcr.ab.ca/DesktopModules/SunBlog/Handlers/Print.aspx?id=4553 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391634.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00059-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96397 | 951 | 3.21875 | 3 |
Transplantation Activities in Iran
Iran is a tropical country with a land area of 1,648,000 square kilometers and a population of 68,100,000. Iran has a recorded history that dates back 2553 years. Its earliest medical school was Pasargad. Jondi Chapour University was founded 1753 years ago during the Sassanid dynasty as a center for higher education in medicine, philosophy, and pharmacology. Indeed, the idea of xenotransplantation dates back to days of Achaemenidae (Achaemenian dynasty), as evidenced by engravings of many mythologic chimeras still present in Persepolis. Avicenna (980-1037 AD), the great Iranian physician, performed the first nerve repair. Transplantation progress in Iran follows roughly the same pattern as that of the rest of the world, with some 10-20 years’ delay. Modern organ transplantation dates back to 1935, when the first cornea transplant was performed at Farabi Hospital in Tehran, Iran. The first living-related kidney transplantation performed at Shiraz University Hospital dates back to 1968. The first bone marrow transplant was performed at Dr. Shariaati’s Hospital in Tehran. The first heart transplant was performed 1993 in Tabriz, Iran. The first liver transplant was performed in 1993 in Shiraz. The first lung transplant was performed in 2001, and the first heart and lung transplants were performed in 2002, both at Tehran. In late 1985, the renal transplantation program was officially started in a major university hospital in Tehran and was poised to carry out 2 to 4 transplantations each week. Soon, another large center initiated a similar program. Both of these centers accepted surgical, medical, and nursing teams from other academic medical centers for training in kidney transplantation. Since 2002, Iran has grown to include 23 active renal, 68 cornea, 2 liver, 4 heart, 2 lung, and 2 bone marrow transplantation centers in different cities.
In June 2000, the Organ Transplantation Brain Death Act was approved by the Parliament, followed by the establishment of the Iranian Network for Transplantation Organ Procurement. This act helped to expand heart, lung, and liver transplantation programs. By 2003, Iran had performed 131 liver, 77 heart, 7 lung, 211 bone marrow, 20,581 cornea, and 16,859 liver tranplantations. Sources of these donations were living-unrelated donor, 82%; cadaver, 10%; and living-related donor, 8%. The 3-year renal transplant patient survival rate was 92.9%, and the 40-month graft survival rate was 85.9%.
Another large step in expanding the transplantation program is the construction of the Avi-Cenna (Abou Ali Sina) Transplant Hospital in Shiraz. This hospital hopefully will begin operation in 2 years. It will offer the opportunity for the exchange and sharing of organs and increased cooperation between transplant teams in the Middle East. The hospital offers great promise for transplant medicine in Iran and other Persian Gulf countries.
Key words: Living-related donor, Living-unrelated donor, Middle East, Brain death, Cadaveric renal transplantation
Iran is a tropical country with a land area of 1,648,000 square kilometers and a population of 68,100,000. Iran has a recorded history that dates back 2553 years. Its earliest medical school was Pasargad, erected during Achaemenidae. Jondi Chapour University was founded 1753 years ago during the Sassanid dynasty as a center of higher education for medicine, philosophy, and pharmacology . Jondi Chapour University was one the biggest centers for the sciences at that time. Transplantation has a long history in Iran. Indeed, the idea of xenotransplantation dates back to the glorious days of Achaemenidae, as evidenced by engravings of many mythologic chimeras still present in Persepolis, manifesting the idea of chimerism with the body of lion and the head of human. Creatures of this kind appear in different parts of Iran like the very impressive chimera in Gheissarieh Bazar of Isfahan. Avicenna (980-1037 AD), the great Iranian physician, performed the first nerve repair . Transplantation progress in Iran follows roughly the same pattern as that of the rest of the world, with some 10-20 years’ delay. The first cornea transplant was followed by first kidney transplantation 37 years ago in Shiraz . The first bone marrow transplant was performed at Dr. Shariaati’s University Hospital in Tehran in 1990 . The first heart transplant was performed 1993 in Tabriz, Iran . The first liver transplant was reported in Shiraz Namazi University Hospital in 1993 by Dr. Malek-Hosseini . The first lung transplant was performed in 2001 followed by a heart and lung transplant in 2002 .
The eye bank in Iran is a nonprofit nongovernmental organization established in 1988 that by 2003 had performed more than 20,000 corneal transplants. This organization can provide a cornea for transplantation in 48 hours in emergency cases, the usual waiting time for a corneal or scleral transplant is 2 weeks .
Following the first living-related kidney transplant performed at Shiraz University Hospital in 1968, 112 renal transplantations had been performed from living-related donors by 1980. Two cadaver kidneys were transplanted in Shiraz and Tehran, and 14 cadaver kidneys imported through the Eurotransplantation Network were transplanted from 1968 to 1980 . It should be mentioned that in 1975, the number of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis was fewer than 60 nationwide, so one could not expect a much higher number of transplants to be performed during this period. An office of ESRD management was established by Iran’s Ministry of Health, which helped to expand dialysis facilities. Consequently, the number of patients undergoing chronic maintenance hemodialysis increased rapidly after 1975. There was a period of slow transplantation activities from 1980 to 1984. Subsequently, in late 1985, the renal transplantation program was officially started in a major university hospital in Tehran by Professor Iraj Fazel and was set to carry out 2 to 4 transplantations per week. Soon after, another large center initiated a similar program. Both of these centers accepted surgical, medical, and nursing teams from other academic medical centers for training in kidney transplantation . Between 1985 and 1987, 274 renal transplants were performed from living-related donors (LRDs) in these 2 centers . As maintenance hemodialysis was expanding rapidly and the number of LRDs could not meet the needs of the transplantation candidates, a controlled living-unrelated donor (LURD) program was begun in 1988 . This program coincided with an increase in the number of transplantation units and resulted in rapid growth of the number of renal transplants performed. The number of LRDs decreased while the number of LURDs increased. Since 2001, there are 23 active renal transplantation centers (0.367 per million population) in different cities of Iran (Figure 1) . All of these centers are in university hospitals.
In the last 5 years, 3 private hospitals have begun kidney transplant programs on a small scale. Between 1985 and 2003, a total of 16,859 renal transplants had been reported by the management center for transplantation . The sources of donors were LURD, 82%; cadaver, 10%; and LRD, 8%. In one report, it was found that 85% of LURD renal transplant recipients had a potential LRD. The 3-year patient survival rate was reported to be 92.9%, and the 40-month graft survival was 85.9% (Figure 2). Namely that there was no significant difference regarding patient and graft survival between LRD and LURD transplants .
Nonnative Iranians are not permitted to receive organs for transplantation from Iranian LURDs. If a nonnative Iranian needs an organ transplantation while in Iran, they must bring the donor from their own country.
During the pretransplantation workup for the LURD, the nephrologist emphasizes the advantages of LRD compared with LURD with respect to kidney transplantation outcomes. These advantages are less early onset of acute rejection, better graft survival rates, and the need for less immunosuppressive medications in cases of negative HLA cross-matching. If recepients have no living related donors, they are referred to the Dialysis and Transplant Patients Association (DATPA) to find a suitable unrelated donor. All the members of DATPA are themselves patients who are maintained on some sort of renal replacement therapy, either maintenance hemodialysis, or continous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, or they have undergone renal transplantation. After the workup, if the donor is suitable, they will be referred to one of the transplant units. Following transplantation, donors receive a gift from the government as a reward. The majority of the unrelated donors recieve supplemental compensation, equivalent to US $1550 from the recipients.
Although admittedly, the program of LURD transplants is one of the barriers to expanding cadaveric renal transplantion, it also has lowered the number of LRDs. This practice is defended by the statement, “I admit that the best practice of renal transplantation can only be accomplished by an effective cadaveric renal transplant program; but in its absence and when adequate numbers of LRD transplants are not avaiable, the adoption of a controlled LURD renal transplant program remains the only alternative. Otherwise, many patients will have to stay on dialysis forever, without being given the chance to receive a renal transplant. Finally, in the presence of a controlled LURD renal transplant program, which is closely monitored by national societies and transplant teams, the development of uncontrolled, commercial, and illegal LURD renal transplantation is prevented” .
In several series, most renal transplant recipients have been between the ages of 20 and 40 years [8,11]. Although there has not been a waiting list for kidney transplatation since 1999, one should consider the fact that many dialysis patients still are not scheduled for renal transplantation and continue chronic hemodialysis . According to the Center for Management of Organ Transplantation, the distributions of patients on renal replacement therapy are as follows: hemodialysis, 51%; continous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, 1%; and transplant, 48% (Figure 3) . The explanation for less acceptance of renal transplantation as the treatment of choice for patients with ESRD is that both they and their physicians do not consider renal transplantation a preferred choice, preferring to continue on dialysis instead . This indicates the need for greater public education. Another major barrier to renal transplantation in Iran is the country’s geographic constraints. Many patients who are candidates for renal transplantation are from remote rural areas, and long-term posttransplant follow-up would be hard for them. one of the studies reveals that 2864 of 8409 patients (34.1%) patients were lost to follow-up .
In June 2000, the Organ Transplantation and Brain Death Act was approved by the Parliament . According to the law, brain death must be diagnosed and certified by 4 physicians, including a neurologist, a neurosurgeon, an internist, and an anesthesiologist, none of whom can be part of a transplantation team. After brain death is confirmed, cadaveric organ tissues are used for transplantation if the deceased had signed a donor card or consent had been given by the next of kin. Passage of this law was followed by establishment of the Iranian Network for Transplantation Organ Procurement (IRANTOP). This network was created to expand heart, lung, and liver transplantations. In 2003, there were 1640 kidney, 49 liver, 20 heart, 2 lung, 211 bone marrow, and 2581 cornea transplantations. Currently, there are 23 kidney, 2 liver, 4 heart, 2 lung, 2 bone marrow, and 68 cornea transplant units in different cities in Iran.
Since 1985, there have been 16,859 renal, 131 liver, 77 heart, 7 lung, and 2 heart and lung transplant operations in Iran. IRANTOP organized 17 centers to find patients with brain death and 7 centers to obtain tissues and organs for transplantation. A summary of the activities of IRANTOP is shown in Figure 4. The activities of IRANTOP resulted in the donation of 47 cadavers, which were used in 23 liver transplants during the first 6 months of 2003. During the first 6 months of 2004, 28 liver transplants were performed from 51 cadavers, while simultaneously, 764 renal transplants were performed, 12.90% from cadavers and 87.10% from living donors . Figure 5 shows the growth of IRANTOP activities since the Brain Death Act was approved in 2000 and its effect on different organ transplantations.
The first liver transplantation in Iran was performed on May 4, 1993, in Shiraz . However, the shortage of available cadaver livers owing to various social and legal issues remains a crippling problem. In an attempt to overcome the problem, living-related liver transplantation was started in Shiraz . Another promising step to expand the transplantation program in Iran is the construction of the Avicena (Abou Ali Sina) Transplant Hospital in Shiraz. This hospital hopefully will begin operation in 2 years. It will provide the opportunity for the exchange and sharing of organs and increased cooperation between transplant teams in the Middle East. The hospital offers great promise for transplant medicine, in Iran and in many other Persian Gulf countries.
Finally, we must recognize that organ transplantation encompasses not only medical, legal, and ethical aspects, but economic issues as well. In one study, 500 LURDs and their recipients were grouped according to socioeconomic status. The results showed that 84.0% of LURDs were poor and 16% were middle class. Of the 500 recipients, 50.4% were poor, 36.2% were middle class, and 13.4% were wealthy . Presently, there is no fee for transplantation incurred by patients; all hospital charges are paid for by the government. The cost of renal transplantion is approximately US $10,000-$15,000, and the cost of liver transplantation is approximately US $22,000. This is much less expensive than that for neighboring countries, so each year, transplantation services are provided to natives of Central Asia and Persian Gulf countries.
Poor, unrelated donors are the most vulnerable group. Measures such as establishing donor registries and insuring donors at no charge are being investigated to provide greater support to this population. Another important goal is multinational cooperation in the region to prevent organ trafficking in Middle Eastern countries and internationally.
Volume : 3
Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Figure 1. The Number of Transplantation Centers in Iran from 1984 to 2001
Figure 2. Patient and Graft Survival
Figure 3. HD, Hemodialysis; CAPD, Chronic ambuatory peritoneal dialysis
Figure 4. The Activity of the Iranian Network for Transplant Organ Procurement (IRANTOP)
Figure 5. The Growth of IRANTOP (Iranian Network for Transplant Organ Procurement) Activities since the Brain Death Act was Approved in 2000 and its Effect on Different Organ Transplantations.
Copyright © Baskent University 2003. Printed in Turkey. All Rights Reserved. | <urn:uuid:f8c844a9-4193-4f87-b4f1-c3cd8936804a> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.ectrx.org/forms/ectrxcontentshow.php?year=2005&volume=3&issue=1&supplement=0&makale_no=0&spage_number=333&content_type=FULL%20TEXT | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396100.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00102-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952642 | 3,223 | 2.546875 | 3 |
On January 31, 1921, the schooner Carroll A. Deering was spotted having run aground off the coast of North Carolina. When rescue ships finally reached her, they found nothing short of a ghost ship to rival the Mary Celeste, which suffered a similar fate 50 years earlier. The Deering’s entire crew was missing. Evidence in the galley suggested that food was being prepared for the following day, yet nothing was found of the crew; none of their personal effects and nothing relating to the schooner itself, such as the ship logs. Speculation has pointed to the paranormal, notably to the fact that she was in the region that is today known as the Bermuda Triangle. Alternative theories have come forward as well, including one that is a sign of its times: that it was part of a communist plot spearheaded by Russia to seize U.S. ships. | <urn:uuid:172e2cc1-fb12-42d1-9062-a3f8779c0bfd> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.experts123.com/q/what-happened-to-the-carroll-a-deering.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397562.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00131-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988803 | 179 | 3.171875 | 3 |
During an episode of activity, a volcano commonly displays a distinctive pattern of behavior. Some mild eruptions merely discharge steam and other gases, whereas other eruptions quietly extrude quantities of lava. The most spectacular eruptions consist of violent explosions that blast great clouds of gas-laden debris into the atmosphere.
The type of volcanic eruption Is often labeled with the name of a well-known volcano where characteristic behavior is similar--hence the use of such terms as "Strombolian," "Vulcanian," "Vesuvian," "Pelean," "Hawaiian," and others. Some volcanoes may exhibit only one characteristic type of eruption during an interval of activity--others may display an entire sequence of types.
In a Strombolian-type eruption observed during the 1965 activity of Irazú Volcano in Costa Rica, huge clots of molten lava burst from the summit crater to form luminous arcs through the sky. Collecting on the flanks of the cone, lava clots combined to stream down the slopes in fiery rivulets.
Irazú Volcano, Costa Rica, 1965.
In contrast, the eruptive activity of Parícutin Volcano in 1947 demonstrated a "Vulcanian"-type eruption, in which a dense cloud of ash-laden gas explodes from the crater and rises high above the peak. Steaming ash forms a whitish cloud near the upper level of the cone.
Parícutin Volcano, Mexico, 1947.
In a "Vesuvian" eruption, as typified by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Italy in A.D. 79, great quantities of ash-laden gas are violently discharged to form cauliflower-shaped cloud high above the volcano.
Mount Vesuvius Volcano, Italy, 1944.
In a "Peléan" or "Nuée Ardente (glowing cloud) eruption, such as occurred on the Mayon Volcano in the Philippines in 1968, a large quantity of gas, dust, ash, and incandescent lava fragments are blown out of a central crater, fall back, and form tongue-like, glowing avalanches that move downslope at velocities as great as 100 miles per hour. Such eruptive activity can cause great destruction and loss of life if it occurs in populated areas, as demonstrated by the devastation of St. Pierre during the 1902 eruption of Mont Pelée on Martinique, Lesser Antilles.
"Hawaiian" eruptions may occur along fissures or fractures that serve as linear vents, such as during the eruption of Mauna Loa Volcano in Hawaii in 1950; or they may occur at a central vent such as during the 1959 eruption in Kilauea Iki Crater of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii. In fissure-type eruptions, molten, incandescent lava spurts from a fissure on the volcano's rift zone and feeds lava streams that flow downslope. In central-vent eruptions, a fountain of fiery lava spurts to a height of several hundred feet or more. Such lava may collect in old pit craters to form lava lakes, or form cones, or feed radiating flows.
Mauna Loa Volcano, Hawaii, 1950.
Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii, 1959.
"Phreatic" (or steam-blast) eruptions are driven by explosive expanding steam resulting from cold ground or surface water coming into contact with hot rock or magma. The distinguishing feature of phreatic explosions is that they only blast out fragments of preexisting solid rock from the volcanic conduit; no new magma is erupted. Phreatic activity is generally weak, but can be quite violent in some cases, such as the 1965 eruption of Taal Volcano, Philippines, and the 1975-76 activity at La Soufrière, Guadeloupe (Lesser Antilles).
Taal Volcano, Philippines, 1965.
The most powerful eruptions are called "plinian" and involve the explosive ejection of relatively viscous lava. Large plinian eruptions--such as during 18 May 1980 at Mount St. Helens or, more recently, during 15 June 1991 at Pinatubo in the Philippines--can send ash and volcanic gas tens of miles into the air. The resulting ash fallout can affect large areas hundreds of miles downwind. Fast-moving deadly pyroclastic flows ("nuées ardentes") are also commonly associated with plinian eruptions.
Mount St. Helens about noon, May 18, 1980.
[ Previous ] [ Table of Contents ] [ Next ] | <urn:uuid:dcff130c-3e9d-4e98-91a7-9d32d6bc8d71> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/volc/eruptions.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395346.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00054-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915383 | 950 | 3.875 | 4 |
The Trade silver dollar has a rather cloudy history. These coins were minted from 1873-1885 and were intended for use in trade with the Orient of the time. Most official documents of the time glowingly portrayed the silver dollar as a resounding success.
Meanwhile the newspapers of the day presented the complete opposite picture. Under no uncertain terms they blasted the coin’s existence and use. Of course most of the glowing government reports were bought and paid for by the silver interests of the time and had no relation to reality.
In 1873 a new law abolished the standard silver dollar. However the law allowed for the production of a slightly heavier silver dollar to compete with the more popular Mexican silver that were popular in China. In a way the idea for a Trade silver dollar actually did make sense. Some folks felt that the Oriental nations had a peculiar ability to absorb silver in large quantities.
It was true that Chinese merchants did favor the use of silver for the purchase of their goods over other means of trade. And naturally the coin that contained the most silver was preferred by them. The Chinese merchants first used the Spanish silver dollar, but later switched to the Mexican silver dollar.
Until 1873 U.S. banks bought and sold Mexican silver dollars to supply merchants who had payments to make for their Orient transactions. The U.S. Trade silver dollar was intended to knock the Mexican silver dollar off of its pedestal. Trade dollars only had a limited legal-tender status in the United States. They had the legal-tender status of $5.
The Trade dollar was designed by Mint engraver William Barber. The coin was intended to represent the country of origin as well as fill the bill for all of the uses to which it would be put to. Barber used the standard Sitting Liberty design wit a few modifications. Instead of the Liberty being seated on a rock, it was seated on bales of export goods.
The Trade dollar’s weight and fineness was stamped on the reverse of the coin—“420 grains, 900 Fine.” In reality the Trade dollar was more of a round ingot than a standard silver dollar. And it was slightly heavier than a standard silver dollar which had a weight of 412.5 grains of silver.
Trade dollars were struck at the Philadelphia, Carson City, and San Francisco Mints in 1873. More than 1 million Trade dollars were produced from all three Mints. In 1874 Production quickly soared. By 1875 the San Francisco Mint alone had minted over 4 million Trade dollars.
Unfortunately, most of the Trade dollars were finding their way home from the Orient. As the price of silver declined, speculators bought up Trade dollars at a discount. Trade dollars soon flooded into general circulation.
An 1876 law revoked the Trade dollar’s legal-tender status. However the law failed to deal with the problem of the Trade dollars already in circulation. Government reports gave glowing testimonials of the Trade dollar’s success and recommended its continued use.
Many U.S. banks stopped accepting Trade dollars. Other banks only took them at a discount. In reality, Trade dollars were a complete failure. They simply failed to fulfill their original intent. All the Trade dollar did was to enrich the silver interests of the time.
The Chinese merchants stuck with the Mexican silver dollars and accepted the Trade dollar only at a heavy discount. Another problem was that Trade dollars were counterfeited and many were clipped—shaved of silver from the edge. Starting in 1879 only proof Trade dollars were minted.
While the Trade dollar was an utter failure in its heyday, they have become a success as a collectible. Though millions were sent to the Orient, they failed to replace the Mexican silver dollar as the most preferred coin. Although the Trade dollar ultimately lost its legal-tender status, it did tied the silver industry over until the 1878 Bland-Allison Act revived the standard silver dollar and eliminated the excuse of minting Trade dollars. | <urn:uuid:76a8fadd-926b-4c68-9aab-f98122444e9e> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.bellaonline.com/ArticlesP/art171147.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395548.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00197-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977499 | 819 | 3.140625 | 3 |
Typex was the name for the principal encryption device, or cipher machine, used by the military, intelligence, and diplomatic services of the British Empire during World War II. In the 1920s, the British were still using book cipher systems, and became aware of the need to modernize using new cipher machinery. They initially planned to use the Enigma system, but instead settled on an improved Enigma machine known as "Type X." The Typex system remained in use among British forces throughout the war.
In 1926, the British government formed an interdepartmental committee to study technology as a means of finding a replacement for the laborious system of encryption by hand. For the purposes of evaluation, the government purchased two Enigma machines, but in January 1935, the committee advised the Royal Ministry to acquire three of the "Type X" machines, which represented an improved Enigma design. Satisfied with the machine, Whitehall commissioned the Creed & Company to manufacture Type X machines to specification.
As war broke out in September 1939, the British War Office and Air Ministry had fully adopted the Typex system, although the Royal Navy would continue to perform encryption by hand until 1943. Unlike the Germans, who encrypted nearly every official message on their Enigma machines, the British used their Typex system sparingly. This may have given them an unexpected advantage, because the Germans' proliferation of enciphered messages gave the British plenty of material to study. By contrast, the Germans made no significant attempt to crack the Typex ciphers, even though they captured several of the machines at Dunkirk and in North Africa.
Britain undertook the joint development of a Combined Cipher Machine with the Americans, who developed their own Sigaba system. In 1943, the Royal Navy began using the Combined Cipher Machine. Meanwhile, the rest of the British forces continued to use Typex, though British units in the China-Burma-India theatre adopted Sigaba, while some American units adopted Typex. After the war, many Typex machines remained in use among English-speaking nations for several decades until finally, in 1973, New Zealand became the last nation to set aside its Typex system.
█ FURTHER READING:
Freedman, Maurice. Unravelling Enigma: Winning the Code War at Station X. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England: Leo Cooper, 2000.
Kozaczuk, Wladyslaw. Enigma: How the German Machine Cipher Was Broken, and How It Was Read by the Allies in World War Two. Frederick, MD: University Publications of America, 1984.
Melton, H. Keith. The Ultimate Spy Book. New York: DK Publishing, 1996.
Miller, A. Ray. The Cryptographic Mathematics of Enigma. Ft. Meade, MD: National Security Agency, 2001.
Polmar, Norman, and Thomas B. Allen. Spy Book: The Encyclopedia of Espionage. New York: Random House, 1998.
COMINT (Communications Intelligence)
SIGINT (Signals intelligence)
Special Relationship: Technology Sharing Between the Intelligence Agencies of the United States and United Kingdom | <urn:uuid:16170aa9-361b-4ea6-92a4-e61797e34341> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.faqs.org/espionage/Te-Uk/Typex.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399425.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00068-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928625 | 642 | 3.75 | 4 |
The Family of Museums
Read more about our Family
NHM has amassed one of the world's most extensive and valuable collections of natural and cultural history - more than 35 million objects, some as old as 4.5 billion years.
Located in the heart of metropolitan Los Angeles, the world famous Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits represents the only active urban paleontological excavation site in the world.
Silent film star William S. Hart purchased ranch property in Newhall, north of Los Angeles, in 1921. He built a 22-room mansion and filled it with Western art, Native American artifacts, and early Hollywood memorabilia.
We are grateful to our Institutional Partners | <urn:uuid:6b65f8cb-f3e4-4348-b1a7-3a2b29648492> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.nhm.org/site/node/649/min | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395613.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00151-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.911178 | 142 | 2.53125 | 3 |
- Alternative technologies
- Modify HTML page, write text in it, add or remove tags, change styles etc.
- Execute code on events: mouse clicks and movements, keyboard input, etc.
- Send requests to server and load data without reloading of the page. This technology is often called "AJAX".
- Get and set cookies, ask for data, output messages…
- …And much, much more!
But execution in browser context implies certain security limitations.
There are at least three killing points about it.
- Full integration with HTML/CSS
- Simple things can be done simply
- Supported by all browsers and enabled by default
The mix of the advantages cannot be found in any of other technologies.
When you plan to study a technology, say invest your time, it is always good to overview the trends.
Besides the modern ECMAScript specification, which enhances the language itself, the browsers-makers are adopting features from HTML 5. That’s a related standard, or more precisely a pack of standards, containing many features which people have been wanting for ages.
Just a few:
- Reading/writing files on visitor’s disk (with proper security to keep it safe).
- A database embedded into the browser, which allows to store data on client side.
- Multithreading (can use multiple CPUs).
- Video playback.
- Drawing 2d and 3d, with hardware acceleration, just like in modern games.
Most topics of HTML5 are still in “draft” stage, but browsers tend to adopt them.
The title “HTML5” is a bit misleading. As you saw, the new standard is not just about HTML, but about interaction and advanced browser features.
It is also very important that new standards HTML5 and ECMAScript 5/6 are mostly compatible with older standards. That means they don’t break existing apps.
Well, to be sincere, there is a minor problem with HTML5, named “Browsers run too fast”. Sometimes browsers adopt a feature which is in not fully described in the standard (draft stage), just because it is so cool they can’t wait.
But then, with time, the standard evolves and changes, so browsers have to reimplement or correct the feature. This breaks the code which relied on the earlier version. So we’d better think twice before using such draft-stage solutions. This mainly refers to an advanced stuff.
The trend is: things are going to be compatible.
Of course as far as we don’t use browser-specific features or early-adopted draft sections of a standard.
A Java applet is a program for a browser just like an executable file. A programmer writes it in Java, then compiles and puts a link on it into HTML. A browser then opens a page, finds the reference to an applet, downloads and executes it (if Java is enabled).
- Java can do everything, just like an installed executable. For security, an unsafe action requires visitor’s confirmation.
- Java development is easier: IDEs are cool.
- Java takes more time to load and is heavy to start running.
- Java needs to be installed and enabled.
- Java is not integrated with HTML page, it runs in a separate container within the page.
Adobe Flash initially appeared as a cross-browser platform and language for multimedia, for making web alive with animation, audio and video. But there are other interesting features in Flash.
A flash movie is a compiled program, written in ActionScript, usually bundles with images and other resources.
- Great stuff for networking (sockets, UDP for P2P)
- Support for complex multimedia: images, audio, video is much more advanced compared to HTML5. Camera and microphone are here too.
- Comfortable IDE for Flash, no browser incompatibilities.
- Flash has to be installed and enabled.
- Flash is not integrated with HTML page, it runs in a separate container within the page.
As of now, there is a high pressure on Flash monopoly in many areas of it’s use. For example, HTML5 provides means for browser to play video, draw, etc. Browsers which implement HTML5 stuff don’t require Flash to do such things. And most browsers really go forward in making HTML5 features work.
ActiveX, browser plugins/extensions
ActiveX is a great, but IE-only thing. It allows to write a program in C language which integrates with the page if the visitor allows.
- Integrated with HTML/CSS
- Written in C, hence very fast and featured.
- Can do everything if the visitor allows it to install.
- Internet Explorer only. Chrome has partial support that has to be enabled.
- Development of ActiveX is difficult.
Programs on Windows provide interfaces which can be used by ActiveX. So, a page can call Microsoft Word, or load a document into Excel, etc.
Other browsers allow to write plugins and extensions using NPAPI.
Personally, I’m not a Microsoft fan. But I saw great applications done with ActiveX, and I can understand why people are using it and bind themselves to Windows/IE.
Other technologies: Silverlight, XUL, VBscript
These technologies are much less widespread.
- XUL is a language for interfaces, useful if you only write for Mozilla browsers or making extensions to Firefox. Also used for desktop applications.
- Silverlight is an Adobe Flash competitor from Microsoft based on .NET. It runs best on Windows, the cross-platform support improves gradually time. Mostly used for Windows-based applications and intranet.
Examples are: selecting uploading multiple files at once (Flash), using camera and microphone (Flash), doing complex multimedia and graphics, including calculations (Flash, Java) and much more. You’ll meet them on your way. | <urn:uuid:2b4517f1-7959-4c03-850d-66cb65a27283> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://javascript.info/tutorial/overview | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399428.8/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00059-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.881964 | 1,247 | 3.109375 | 3 |
Wednesday, November 18, 1998 Published at 12:06 GMT
Official: A little of what you fancy does you good
Eat chocolate, get healthy
Feeling tired, run down, under the weather? Scientists have come up with the answer - a good dose of chocolate.
Researchers have discovered that physical and emotional enjoyment, even in small doses, can enhance immune function for hours afterwards.
They believe that life's small pleasures may have a cumulative effect in boosting the immune system over a long period.
And how did they test their theories? By subjecting people to the smell of chocolate.
The research was carried out by ARISE (Associates for Research Into the Science of Enjoyment) an international group of scientists and academics from the fields of physiology, psychology, psychopharmacology and sociology.
Two separate studies measured how much of an antibody, secretory Immunoglobulin-A (sigA), was produced when people had pleasant and unpleasant experiences.
SigA, found in the saliva, protects against respiratory infections.
The first study examined how the immune system responds to happy and guilty memories. Happy thoughts showed a marked improvement in mood and clearly increased immune response, while guilty ones were shown to undermine it.
The amount of SigA secreted doubled 20 minutes after happy thoughts and grew further after 45 minutes. Even three hours later the immunity level was 60% higher than when the experiment started.
The second study showed that unpleasant odours, such as rotting meat, reduce the amount of SigA that is produced - potentially weakening resistance to disease.
Conversely, pleasant smells, such as chocolate, may stimulate SigA production, enhanching immune protection.
The research also found significant differences in the way men and women react to odours.
Women were more likely to be disturbed or soothed by the different odours, but the actual impact on their immune system was weaker than in men.
Listen to your body
"Instead of worrying about the often ill-founded health scares created by so-called health experts most people would do better to listen to their bodies.
"These studies illustrate how our bodies naturally seek to protect themselves from disease by doing the things we enjoy."
Professor Warburton said two other new studies had showed that the body has some self-regulating systems to ensure that people do not take pleasures to excess.
In one study people were asked to eat "special" food such as chocolate on a regular basis. It was found that their appetite for the special foods diminished with regular exposure, while their appetite for staples such as bread and butter remained constant.
The final study found that brain receptors activated by sweet tastes become less sensitive with repeated exposure.
Professor Warburton said: "Rather than worrying about whether or not you should be indulging in the things you enjoy doing, it is probably healthier just to get on with them, albeit within moderation." | <urn:uuid:436e2661-f458-449f-9c56-5201d765cb25> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/216383.stm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403508.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00169-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965696 | 596 | 2.78125 | 3 |
Kansas Geological Survey, Bulletin 194, pt. 1, originally published in 1969
Originally published in 1969 as part of "Short Papers on Research in 1968," Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 194, part 1, p. 21-24. This is, in general, the original text as published. The information has not been updated.
An earthy variety of vivianite is found in Cretaceous marine sediments (Graneros Shale) in central Kansas. It occurs as nodular aggregates and encrustations along the surfaces of bedding planes and joints. Vivianite within 2 feet of the outcrop surface is blue, and that beyond 2 feet is white. Associated minerals are jarosite and gypsum. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported occurrence of vivianite in Kansas.
Vivianite changes color rapidly from white to blue after collection. Crystallites of the mineral are lath-shaped and range from 2 to 4 μ in length. Differential thermal analysis shows endothermic reactions at 190°, 360°, 470°, and 570°C, and exothermic reactions at 650° and 755°C. The infrared spectrum has wide absorption bands at 3300 and 1000 cm-1, and medium bands at 1620, 800, and 500 cm-1.
Field evidence suggests that iron sulfides and fossil remains in the sediments may contribute to the formation of the vivianite and associated minerals.
(Note: The infrared spectrum was provided by G. A. McCaskill, of the Kansas State Highway Commission Laboratory. The electron micrograph and the D.T.A. curve were taken by J. M. Huh. The atomic absorption analysis was done by O. K. Galle. E. E. Angino, J. C. Davis, and E. D. Goebel reviewed the manuscript and made helpful suggestions.)
Vivianite, Fe3(PO4)2 • 8H2O, was found by one of the authors (Dilts) along a new road cut in the marine Graneros Shale (Upper Cretaceous). The locality is 3 miles south of the town of Wilson, Ellsworth County, Kansas, and is close to one described by Hattin (1965, p. 76, Locality 8). To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported occurrence of this mineral in the state of Kansas.
The vivianite is concentrated in a zone 9 feet thick, approximately 9 feet below the top of Graneros Shale, in an exposure that is 100 feet long in a north-south direction on both sides of the road (NW sec. 6, T. 15 S., R. 10 W.). Lateral extent of the vivianite zone is not known.
The mineral occurs as 0.5- to 2-cm nodules and encrustations along the surface of bedding planes and joints in the shale. It is blue within 2 feet normal to the surface of the outcrop, and is white beyond 2 feet. Associated minerals are jarosite, gypsum, and, rarely, iron oxides. Molds of invertebrates, impressions of fish scales(?), and plant remains are found in the shale. Montmorillonite, quartz, illite, and kaolinite are major constitutents of the shale.
Fresh vivianite is white, rapidly changing to blue after exposure to air. Because the white material is not stable under laboratory conditions, only blue material was examined. The specific gravity of vivianite was determined by a pycnometric method using distilled water. Five determinations gave a mean specific gravity of 2.56.
The nodules and encrustations of vivianite are aggregates of fine crystallites. The crystallites are lath-shaped and range from 2 to 4 μ in their longest dimension (Fig. 1). Under the petrographic microscope in transmitted light, crystallites are light green or colorless and exhibit blue pleochroism.
Figure 1--Electron micrograph of vivianite crystallites.
X-ray diffraction data (Table 1) were obtained at a scanning speed of 0.25° 2θ per minute and chart speed of 0.5-inch per minute. Cu-radiation was used with a diffractometer having a focusing monochromator and proportional counter. The center of the peak at half-height was used for measurement of the reflections.
Table 1--X-ray powder data for vivianite.
|* ASTM X-ray Powder Data File, Inorganic Sets 1-5, p. 558, 3-0070.
Vivianite loses weight continuously during heating to 500°C. Less weight is lost between 500°C and 650°C than at 500°C. At 675°C, weight loss reaches a maximum of nearly 24 percent (Fig. 2). At a fixed temperature of 105°C, weight loss is 15.7 percent after the sample has been in the furnace for 28 hours; beyond this time no further weight loss occurs.
Figure 2--Weight-loss curve for vivianite upon heating.
The D.T.A. curve (Fig. 3) for vivianite shows endothermic peaks at 190°, 360°, 470°, 570°, and exothermic peaks at 650° and 755°C. Differential thermal data obtained from this study disagree with that available in the literature (Manly, 1950; Pulou, 1955; Lesnyak, Yasinskaya, and Tymchishin, 1961; Anderson, Stringham, and Whelan, 1962; Rao, 1965). Manly (1950) and Kleber, Wilde, and Frenzel (1965) interpreted the first, second, and third endothermic reactions as the loss of five, two, and one waters of crystallization from vivianite. Amplitudes of the endothermic peaks are roughly proportional to water loss (Manly, 1950, p. 112).
Figure 3--D.T.A. curve for vivianite. Rate of heating 10°/min.; mixture of calcined kaolinite and alumina as reference.
Information obtained from D.T.A. and weight loss in this study does not demonstrate clearly such relationships. It is likely that loss of water continues after the first strong endothermic reaction occurs. At the same time, oxidation of ferrous iron takes place until completed at 650° to 700°C. The exothermic reaction at 755°C suggests that a phase change is taking place.
The infrared absorption spectrum (Fig. 4) for vivianite has wide bands at 3300 and 1000 cm-1, and medium bands at 1620, 800, and 550 cm-1. The spectrum was obtained with a Perkin-Elmer 521 grating spectrophotometer. A disc containing a mixture of 0.2 gm of KBr and 1 mg of powdered sample was used to obtain the spectrum. It was found that the spectrum for the vivianite from Kansas is similar to that reported by Anderson, Stringham, and Whelan (1962, p. 1307), Omori and Seki (1960, p. 401), and Omori (1961, p. 128; 1964) in the range 550 to 4000 cm-1. No reference was found in the literature for the spectrum between 300 and 550 cm-1.
Figure 4--Infrared absorption spectrum for vivianite.
A quantitative analysis for major constituents was made on the vivianite sample, and a semiquantitative spectrographic analysis was made for minor constituents (Table 2). Total iron was determined by atomic absorption (Galle, 1968).
Table 2--Chemical analysis of sample of vivianite from Kansas.
to 100 percent
Fe3(PO4) • 8H2O
|Minor cations, percent|
|HCl insoluble residue 1.28 percent|
The chemical elements necessary for the formation of vivianite and associated minerals are available locally. Iron sulfides (pyrite and marcasite) in the shale decomposed by weathering have formed acidic solutions. These solutions have migrated along bedding planes and joints and reacted with fossil remains and clay minerals to form vivianite and associated jarosite and gypsum.
Anderson, W. R., Stringham, B., and Whelan, J. A., 1962, Secondary phosphates from Bingham, Utah: Am. Mineral., v. 47, p. 1303-1309.
Galle, O. K., 1968, Routine determination of major constituents in geologic samples by atomic absorption: Appl. Spectry., v. 22, no. 5, pt. 1, p. 404-408.
Hattin, D. E., 1965, Stratigraphy of the Graneros Shale (Upper Cretaceous) in central Kansas: Kansas Geol. Survey, Bull. 178, 83 p. [available online]
Kleber, W., Wilde, W., and Frenzel, M., 1965, The thermal decomposition and oxidation of bivalent iron in vivianite: Chem. Erde, v. 24, p. 77-93 (in German); [Chem. Abs., v. 63, 16040g, 1965].
Lesnyak, V. F., Yasinskaya, A. A., and Tymchishin, Ya. D., 1961, Vivianite from the western part of the Ukrainian S.S.R.: Vopr. Mineralog. Osad. Obrazorv. L'vovsk. Gos. Univ. 6, p. 166-180 (in Russian); [Chem. Abs., v. 58, 356f, 1963].
Manly, R. L., Jr., 1950, The differential thermal analysis of certain phosphates: Am. Mineral., v. 35, p. 108-115.
Omori, Keiichi, 1961, Infrared absorption spectra of some essential minerals: Tohoku Univ. Sci. Repts. Ser. 3, v. 7, p. 101-130.
Omori, Keiichi, 1964, Infrared studies of essential minerals from 11 to 25 microns: Tohoku Univ. Sci. Repts. Ser. 3, v. 9, p. 65-97.
Omori, Keiichi, and Seki, Toshickazu, 1960, Infrared studies of some phosphate minerals: Tohoku Univ. Sci. Repts. Ser. 3, v. 6, p. 397-403.
Pulou, R., 1955, Caractères thermiques des phosphates de la famille de la vivianite: Acad. Scl. Paris, C. R. 241, p. 221-223.
Rao, A. B., 1965, Notes on the d.t.a. study of some rare Brazilian phosphate minerals: Mineral. Mag., v. 35, p. 427-428.
Kansas Geological Survey, Short Papers on Research in 1968
Placed on web July 26, 2011; originally published in Feb. 1969.
Comments to [email protected]
The URL for this page is http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/Bulletins/194_1G/index.html | <urn:uuid:30eb4c86-e323-4ebe-84a1-72f44cbe3aac> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/Bulletins/194_1G/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403823.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00150-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.851202 | 2,408 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Life History and Behavior
Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical
Key Reproductive Features: gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual
Molecular Biology and Genetics
Statistics of barcoding coverage
Specimens with Sequences:8
Specimens with Barcodes:8
Species With Barcodes:3
Hydrochoerinae is a subfamily of Caviidae, consisting of two living genera, Hydrochoerus, the capybaras, and Kerodon, the rock cavies. In addition, a number of extinct genera related to capybaras should also be placed in this subfamily. The taxonomy of Hydrochoerinae is confused by the fact that, until recently[when?] living capybaras and their extinct relatives were placed in their own family, Hydrochoeridae (e.g. McKenna and Bell, 1997). Recent molecular phylogenetic studies recognize a close relationship between Hydrochoerus and Kerodon (Rowe and Honeycutt, 2002), supporting placement of both genera in a subfamily of Caviidae (Woods and Kilpatrick, 2005). Paleontological classifications have yet to incorporate this new taxonomy, and continue to use Hydrochoeridae for all capybaras, while using Hydrochoerinae for the living genus and its closest fossil relatives such as Neochoerus (Vucetich et al., 2005; Deschamps et al., 2007). The taxonomy of fossil hydrochoerines is also in a state of flux. In recent years, the diversity of fossil hydrochoerines has been substantially reduced (Prado et al., 1998; Vucetich et al., 2005; Deschamps et al., 2007). This is largely due to the recognition that capybara molar teeth show strong variation in shape over the life of an individual (Vucetich et al., 2005). In one instance, material once referred to four genera and seven species on the basis of differences in molar shape is now though to represent differently aged individuals of a single species, Cardiatherium paranense (Vucetich et al., 2005).
- Deschamps, C.M., A.I. Olivares, E.C. Vieytes and M.G. Vucetich. 2007. Ontogeny and diversity of the oldest capybaras (Rodentia: Hydrochoeridae; late Miocene of Argentina). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 27(3):683-692.
- McKenna, Malcolm C., and Bell, Susan K. 1997. Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level. Columbia University Press, New York, 631 pp. ISBN 0-231-11013-8
- Prado, J.L., E. Cerdeño, and S. Roig-Juñent. 1998. The giant rodent Chapalmatherium from the Pliocene of Argentina: New remains and taxonomic remarks on the Family Hydrochoeridae. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18(4):788-798.
- Rowe, D. L. and R. L. Honeycutt. 2002. Phylogenetic relationships, ecological correlates, and molecular evolution within the Cavioidea (Mammalia, Rodentia). Molecular Biology and Evolution, 19:263-277.
- Vucetich, M.G., C.M. Deschamps, A.I. Olivares, and M.T. Dozo. 2005. Capybaras, size, shape, and time: A model kit. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 50(2):259-272.
- Woods, C. A. and C. W. Kilpatrick. 2005. Infraorder Hystricognathi. pp 1538–1600 in Mammal Species of the World A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds.). Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press.
|This article about a rodent is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.|
To request an improvement, please leave a comment on the page. Thank you! | <urn:uuid:230469a2-902c-4544-b1da-a45a530028b1> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://eol.org/pages/8695/details | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783402699.36/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155002-00042-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.74815 | 900 | 3.125 | 3 |
Since September 2009, the project has been focused on developing a ‘Footprint Family’ of indicators: Ecological, Carbon and Water footprint to track the multiple and often hidden demands that human consumption makes on the planet’s resources and to measure their impacts on the planet.
The ‘Footprint Family’ indicators will allow decision-makers to track and measure the impact of consumption on the earth’s natural resources and ecological assets. With this information they can develop an informed response to issues such as limits to natural resource and freshwater consumption, and sustainable use of natural capital across the globe.
The Ecological Footprint for a particular population is defined as; “the total area of productive land and water ecosystems required to produce the resources that the population consumes and assimilate the wastes that production produces, wherever on Earth that land and water may be located” (Rees, 2000).
We are placing demands on nature to provide us with food, materials, energy and waste absorption at a faster rate than they can be provided or renewed. Ecological footprinting allows us to quantify how far the world’s resources are being used against how many are available which is invaluable information for those attempting to design policy for a sustainable future.
The Carbon Footprint indicator allows for a comprehensive assessment of human contribution to climate change which is consistent with standards of economic and environmental accounting. It offers an alternative angle for international policy on climate change as it complements the territorial-based approach used by the UNFCCC.
With a better understanding of countries’ responsibility it could facilitate international cooperation and partnerships between developing and developed countries.
The Water Footprint of a country is the total volume of freshwater consumed and polluted for the production of goods and services consumed by citizens in the country (Hoekstra et al 2009). Consumption is defined as water permanently removed from a water body in a catchment, which happens when water evaporates, returns to another catchment area or the sea or is incorporated into a product.
The pollution element of the footprint is the water required to dilute pollution so it can be returned to the environment. The water footprint of a country includes the internal footprint and the external footprint:
- The Internal Footprint is the use of domestic water to produce goods and services consumed within the country (excluding water used to produce goods that are exported).
- The External Footprint is the use of water in other nations to produce goods and services consumed by the country.
This gives us a complete picture of how national consumption translates to water use not only in the country of interest but also abroad, which allows us to analyse water dependency and sustainability of imports. | <urn:uuid:39ccfb80-dfb0-430c-b58d-e39e4023851a> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.oneplaneteconomynetwork.org/eureapa/footprint-indicators.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783404826.94/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155004-00192-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915893 | 542 | 3.8125 | 4 |
New Nonflammable Electrolyte for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Lithium-ion batteries are almost everywhere in our lives, as they power our mobile devices as well as electric cars and airplane electronics. Due to the electrolyte used inside of them, all of these batteries are at risk of spontaneously combusting, though smaller batteries are much less at risk than larger ones. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have recently discovered a new polymer that could be used as an electrolyte that is nonflammable, and thus will not allow a battery to catch on fire.
In simplest terms, a battery is made of two electrodes and an electrolyte that connects them. The electrolyte serves as a medium for ions to travel between the electrodes, where they either release or obtain energy. The typical electrolyte used in lithium-ion batteries is flammable, so if a battery heats up too much, such as from an overcharge, there is a risk of it catching on fire. What the North Carolina researchers have discovered is that perfluoropolyether, or PFPE, is able to contain transport lithium-ions. This polymer has been used for years as a heavy-duty lubricant and to keep marine life from attaching to the bottom of ships, but the researchers decided to try it as an electrolyte after recognizing its structure is similar to that of a polymeric electrolyte being studied for lithium-ion batteries.
The researchers are now focusing on optimizing the electrolyte's conductivity and improving battery cycling. This research must be done for it to enter commercial batteries, and may also allow it to operate in extremely cold environments. | <urn:uuid:b907b2c0-fe0a-47d6-8add-46adb5902cbc> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.overclockersclub.com/news/35409/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395039.24/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00116-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962191 | 339 | 3.578125 | 4 |
(Responsibility of all shown in italics.)
collect objects and ask questions to gather
information, organising and displaying my
findings in different ways.
match objects, and sort using my own and
others’ criteria, sharing my ideas with
use the signs and charts around me for
information, helping me plan and make choices
and decisions in my daily life.
explored a variety of ways in which data is
presented and can ask and answer questions
about the information it contains.
used a range of ways to collect information and
can sort it in a logical, organised and
imaginative way using my own and others’
use appropriate vocabulary to describe the
likelihood of events occurring, using the
knowledge and experiences of myself and others
to guide me.
discussed the variety of ways and range of
media used to present data, I can interpret and
draw conclusions from the information
displayed, recognising that the presentation
may be misleading.
carried out investigations and surveys,
devising and using a variety of methods to
gather information and have worked with others
to collate, organise and communicate the
results in an appropriate way.
conduct simple experiments involving chance and
communicate my predictions and findings using
the vocabulary of probability.
work collaboratively, making appropriate use of
technology, to source information presented in
a range of ways, interpret what it conveys and
discuss whether I believe the information to be
robust, vague or misleading.
find the probability of a simple event
happening and explain why the consequences of
the event, as well as its probability, should
be considered when making choices.
evaluate and interpret raw and graphical data
using a variety of methods, comment on
relationships I observe within the data and
communicate my findings to others.
applying my understanding of probability, I can
determine how many times I expect an event to
occur, and use this information to make
predictions, risk assessment, informed choices | <urn:uuid:19dc38e5-091f-4962-968d-da49784320ac> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.margaretirving.co.uk/ace/Numeracy/Information%20Handling/Information%20Handling.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396106.25/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00196-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.810238 | 431 | 3.296875 | 3 |
The rising death rates for white adults, ages 25 to 34, make them the first generation since the Vietnam War years to experience higher death rates in early adulthood than their previous generation.
Drug overdoses are driving up the death rate of young, white adults in the United States to levels not seen since the end of the AIDS epidemic more than two decades ago, a New York Times analysis of death certificates has found.
The rising death rates for white adults, ages 25 to 34, make them the first generation since the Vietnam War years of the mid-1960s to experience higher death rates in early adulthood than the generation that preceded it.
The Times analyzed nearly 60 million death certificates collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from 1990 to 2014. It found death rates for non-Hispanic whites either rising or flattening for all the adult age groups younger than 65 — a trend that was particularly pronounced in women — even as medical advances reduce deaths from traditional killers like heart disease. Death rates for blacks and most Hispanic groups continued to fall.
The analysis shows that the rise in white mortality extends well beyond the 45- to 54-year-old age group documented by two Princeton economists in a research paper that startled policymakers and politicians two months ago.
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While the death rate among young whites rose for every age group over the five years before 2014, it rose faster by any measure for the less educated: by 23 percent for those without a high-school education, compared with 4 percent for those with a college degree or more.
The drug-overdose numbers were stark. In 2014, the overdose-death rate for whites ages 25 to 34 was five times its level in 1999, and the rate for 35- to 44-year-old whites tripled during that period. The numbers cover illegal and prescription drugs.
“That is startling,” said Dr. Wilson Compton, deputy director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Those are tremendous increases.”
Rising rates of overdose deaths and suicide appeared to have erased the benefits from advances in medical treatment for most age groups of whites. Death rates for drug overdoses and suicides “are running counter to those of chronic diseases,” such as heart disease, said Ian Rockett, an epidemiologist at West Virginia University.
Graphs of the drug-overdose deaths look like those of deaths from a new infectious disease, said Jonathan Skinner, a Dartmouth economist. “It is like an infection model, diffusing out and catching more and more people,” he said.
Overdose deaths for young adult blacks have edged up only slightly. Overall, the death rate for blacks has been steadily falling, largely driven by a decline in deaths from AIDS. The result is that a once yawning gap between death rates for blacks and whites has shrunk by two-thirds.
“This is the smallest proportional and absolute gap in mortality between blacks and whites at these ages for more than a century,” Skinner said. If the past decade’s trends continue, even without any further progress in AIDS mortality, rates for blacks and whites will be equal in nine years, he said.
There is a reason that blacks appear to have been spared the worst of the narcotic epidemic, said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, a drug-abuse expert. Studies have found that doctors are much more reluctant to prescribe painkillers to minority patients, worrying that they might sell them or become addicted.
“The answer is that racial stereotypes are protecting these patients from the addiction epidemic,” said Kolodny, a senior scientist at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University and chief medical officer for Phoenix House Foundation, a national drug-and-alcohol-treatment company.
Not many young people die of any cause. In 2014, there were about 29,000 deaths in a population of about 25 million whites in the 25-to-34 age group. That number had steadily increased since 2004, rising by about 5,500 — about 24 percent — while the population of the group as a whole rose only 5 percent. In 2004, there were 2,888 deaths from overdoses in that group; in 2014, the number totaled 7,558.
Mortality rates, said Mark Hayward, a professor of sociology at the University of Texas, Austin, are one of the most sensitive measures of quality of life.
By that measure, said Anne Case, a Princeton economist, “there’s a real rumbling that bad things are coming down the pike.” Case made the original observation with her husband, the Nobel laureate Angus Deaton, in a published paper that showed death rates for middle-aged whites rising in contrast to those in every other rich country.
For young, non-Hispanic whites, the death rate from accidental poisoning — which is mostly drug overdoses — rose to 30 per 100,000 from six from 1999 to 2014, and the suicide rate rose to 19.5 per 100,000 from 15, the newspaper’s analysis found.
For non-Hispanic whites ages 35 to 44, the accidental-poisoning rate rose to 29.9 from 9.6 in that period. And for non-Hispanic whites ages 45 to 54 — the group studied by Case and Deaton — the poisoning rate rose to 29.9 per 100,000 from 6.7, and the suicide rate rose to 26 per 100,000 from 16, the analysis found
Deaths from the traditional killers for which treatment has greatly improved over the past decade — heart disease, HIV and cancer — went down.
Sad stories abound.
There are men like Steve Rummler, who lived in Minnesota and died of a heroin overdose at age 43, taking the drug after becoming addicted to OxyContin, which was initially prescribed for a back injury. “He didn’t understand the risks,” said his mother, Judy Rummler.
Researchers are struggling to come up with an answer to the question of why whites, in particular, are doing so poorly. No one has a clear answer, but researchers repeatedly speculate that the nation is seeing a cohort of whites who are isolated and left out of the economy and society and who have gotten ready access to cheap heroin and to prescription-narcotic drugs.
“There are large numbers of people who never get established in the economy, who live outside family relationships and are on the edge of poverty,” Hayward said. Many end up taking prescription narcotics, he added.
Eileen Crimmins, a professor of gerontology at the University of Southern California, said the causes of death in these younger people were largely social: “violence and drinking and taking drugs.” Her research shows that social problems are concentrated in the lower-education group.
“It’s not medical care, it’s life,” she said. “There are people whose lives are so hard, they break.” | <urn:uuid:324faa18-f14a-402d-8482-ae74511f9586> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/drug-overdoses-lead-to-big-rise-in-death-rates-for-young-whites/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398873.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00132-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955363 | 1,506 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Proposition 37 is a labeling requirement for the right of all consumers to have the opportunity to know if we are buying and eating genetically altered food. Many countries (Japan, New Zealand, Germany, Ireland, Austria, Hungary, Greece, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, India) have chosen to ban certain aspects of GMOs [genetically modified organisms].
The only threat Monsanto Corporation can use and abuse, in regards to their defense in promoting opposition to GMO labeling, is the threat of increasing food costs. The truth is, while having no evidence of increasing food prices, Monsanto (profiteers from everything toxic: Agent Orange, DDT, PCB’s, pesticides, herbicides, bovine growth hormones, Aspartame) will loose billions in profits should people vote for GMO labeling, of which there is no evidence of health safety. In fact, the recent long-term French study reports their findings of “tumors, liver, and kidney disease” in rodents fed a GMO diet.
At present, we are all participating in an undocumented GMO experiment, which cannot continue as acceptable, especially since our children are the most vulnerable, while they unknowingly being raised on genetically altered foods or as some refer to them, “Franken-food.” As we are all witness to, it is quite often that food-labeling changes, with the addition of “heart healthy,” “low sodium,” “low calorie,” “low salt,” etc. apparently without prohibitive costs. Adding three simple letters, “GMO,” is not proven to cost consumers even a penny. As a matter of fact, the healthiest non-GMO foods do not change any labeling, and probably these are the packaged foods, fruits, and vegetables most of us will prefer to purchase once we have the right to know! | <urn:uuid:f891f426-d6ca-41b5-b528-733c5f427569> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.independent.com/news/2012/oct/15/right-know-if-its-gmo/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783402699.36/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155002-00156-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952497 | 388 | 2.625 | 3 |
2.1.5 Golf Courses
22.214.171.124 Example 2
|Location of Example:
|| 149°06'35" East, 35°19'55" South
- Golf courses have very characteristic fairways that are close together and generally lined with trees.
- There are often water bodies associated with the course and numerous small sand traps mostly at the ends of the fairways.
- Golf Courses often have a definite boundary and are within or adjacent to residential areas.
- In Figure: 126.96.36.199a note the stronger green of the putting green at the end of the fairways. When water etc is limited, putting greens are given higher maintence then the fairways, providing the distinction seen in this image. A centralised clubhouse with parking to one side the golf course is also to be expected for the meeting of golfers prior to and after the their play.
|Figure: 188.8.131.52 Representation of a Golf Course.
Topic contact: [email protected] Last updated: January 20, 2012 | <urn:uuid:7590d944-906e-4714-9ac1-86f7c4785de9> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.ga.gov.au/mapspecs/topographic/v6/appendixU_files/hab_golfcourse_ex2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397565.80/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00037-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.913318 | 229 | 2.75 | 3 |
- Module 1
- Module 2
- Fair Use
- Checklist for Fair Use
- U.S. Copyright Law Section 108
- U.S. Copyright Law Section 110
- Module 3
The Effect of the Use on the Market or Value of the Copyrighted Work
This factor examines the anticipated effect of the use on the market for the copyrighted work. If the proposed use is likely to become widespread and would negatively affect the market for or value of the copyrighted work, this factor would weigh against fair use. This factor is often cited as the most important of the four, although the factors all interrelate and must be evaluated in conjunction with each other.
Weighing and Balancing the Factors
A central tenet of the fair use analysis is a flexible doctrine that Congress wanted us to test and adapt for changing needs and circumstances. The law provides no clear and direct answers about the scope of fair use or its meaning in specific situations. Instead, we are compelled to return to the four factors and to reach reasoned and responsible conclusions about the lawfulness of our activities. Reasonable people may differ widely on the applicability of fair use, but any reliable evaluation of fair use must depend upon a reasoned analysis of the four factors of fair use. If most factors lean in favor of fair use, the proposed use is probably allowed; if most lean the opposite direction, the action will not fit the fair use exemption and may require permission from the copyright owner. Reliance on a “reasoned” analysis using the Checklist for Fair Use is essential to claiming a good-faith effort.
Procedure for “Fair Use” Analysis
The law permits some “fair” uses if a reasoned analysis is conducted and most of the factors weigh in favor of fair use. To do an analysis, use the Checklist for Fair Use to determine whether portions of copyrighted works may be used without permission. Do this analysis each time you want to determine whether your proposed use of a work is fair. Contact Morris Library if you have any questions regarding the overall analysis and use of the checklist.
Back / Next | <urn:uuid:da75b7f1-d1f2-4b9c-9b85-b726c4e5f79d> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://lib.siu.edu/copyright/node/24 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397865.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00073-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927298 | 433 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Friday Squid Blogging: The Colossal Squid isn't a Vicious Predator
New research shows that, even though it's 15 meters long, it's not the kraken of myth:
Its large size and predatory nature fuelled the ancient myth of the underwater "kraken" seamonster and modern speculation that the colossal squid must be aggressive and fast, attributes that allow it to prey on fish and even give sperm whales a hard time.
Yet as the creature is seldom encountered let alone studied, there are no direct measurements of the colossal squid's behaviour.
So instead, the team used a set of routine metabolic rates for other deep-sea squid species and extrapolated the data to match the colossal squid's size.
"Our findings demonstrate that the colossal squid has a daily energy consumption 300-fold to 600-fold lower than those of other similar-sized top predators of the Southern Ocean, such as baleen and toothed whales," says Dr Rosa.
This study reveals a single 5kg Antarctic toothfish would provide enough nourishment for a 500kg colossal squid to survive for 200 days.
"The colossal squid is not a voracious predator capable of high-speed predator-prey interactions," says Dr Rosa.
"It is rather, an ambush or sit-and-float predator that uses the hooks on its arms and tentacles to ensnare prey that unwittingly approach."
Posted on May 7, 2010 at 4:26 PM • 17 Comments | <urn:uuid:c1f90aed-d14d-4bbc-9d7e-a749cb432fb5> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2010/05/friday_squid_bl_232.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783403502.46/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155003-00063-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.928372 | 302 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Russia says it will sink the International Space Station
First NASA launched its final shuttle mission earlier this month, and now Russia is debating how to do away with the International Space Station (ISS) as it nears the end of its life cycle.
The answer? To fly the ISS into the ocean, rather than leave the station floating in space.
"After it completes its existence, we will be forced to sink the ISS. It cannot be left in orbit, it's too complex, too heavy an object, it can leave behind lots of rubbish," deputy head of Roskosmos space agency Vitaly Davydov explained in a statement.
"Right now we've agreed with our partners that the station will be used until approximately 2020," he added.
Cosmic junk has become a real problem for astronauts in recents years as miscellaneous defunct pieces of space equipment are left floating about.
Just last month, space debris nearly smashed into the ISS, forcing the six crew members aboard the station to huddle in their rescue craft.
The International Space Station originally launched in 1988 and remains on track to be shuttered in 2020.
Currently, it orbits 220 miles above Earth and acts as a base for astronauts from Russia, the U.S., Europe, Japan, and Canada.
This isn't the first time the Russians have sunk a space station, as it sent the ISS predecessor, the Mir, into the Pacific in 2001 after 15 years in space.
In other space related news, Russia has officially declared this month the beginning of "the era of the Soyuz." The country plans to replace the existing Soyuz shuttle with an improved ship. Tests of the new shuttle will begin in 2015 and will have "elements of multi-use whose level will be much higher than they are today," said Davydov.
The U.S. is also developing a new space craft with the intention of exploring deep space, putting it in direct competition with Russian engineers.
"We'll race each other," added Davydov.
As both the U.S. and Russia build space shuttles for deeper space exploration, Davydov said it was unclear if there will a need for a new space station once the ISS is retired. Nevertheless, Davydov emphasized that "lots of our tasks are still linked to circumterrestrial space," meaning, a new space station might be a good base for building components to help explore deep space.
Still, as jobs at NASA are cut, the American shuttles sent to museums, and astronauts forced to hitch rides aboard Russian ships to get to the ISS, it's certainly a sad and uncertain time for the U.S. space program. | <urn:uuid:9b4ebf07-8a88-4837-b461-e79ee4ba1e7c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.tgdaily.com/space-features/57520-russia-says-it-will-sink-the-international-space-station | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783392099.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154952-00159-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956643 | 550 | 3.203125 | 3 |
A term from the Quenya tongue, meaning 'Middle Land', the equivalent in that language of 'Middle-earth'. In fact Quenya was not widely spoken in Middle-earth itself (most Quenya speakers dwelt in the West), and Endóre would have been seen as an archaic or poetic form among those living east of the Great Sea. The more common Elvish forms of the name in the Hither Lands would be Sindarin Endor or Ennor, etymologically related words that carried the same meaning.
For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page.
Website services kindly sponsored by Axiom Software Ltd.
Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 1999, 2001, 2014. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. | <urn:uuid:18edc72c-13dd-4eb5-aa78-540e93493cee> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/e/endore.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397864.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00007-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.919503 | 165 | 3.078125 | 3 |
PART III. GROUNDING ELECTRODE SYSTEM AND GROUNDING ELECTRODE CONDUCTOR
250.53 Installation of Grounding Electrode System.
(A) Ground Rod Electrodes. Where practicable, ground rods must be embedded below permanent moisture level and must be free from nonconductive coatings such as paint or enamel [250.12].
See 250.53(G) for additional details.(B) Electrode Spacing. Where more than one grounding electrode system exists at a building or structure, they must be separated by at least 6 ft.
(C) Grounding Electrode Bonding Jumper. Where within 18 in. of earth, the conductor used to bond grounding electrodes together to form the grounding electrode system must be copper [250.64(A)], securely fastened to the surface on which it's carried, and be protected if exposed to physical damage [250.64(B)]. The bonding jumper to each electrode must be sized in accordance with 250.66.
In addition, the grounding electrode bonding jumpers must terminate to the grounding electrode by exothermic welding, listed lugs, listed pressure connectors, listed clamps, or other listed means [250.8]. When the termination is encased in concrete or buried, the termination fittings must be listed and identified for this purpose [250.70].
(D) Underground Metal Water Pipe Electrode.
(1) Continuity. The bonding connection to the interior metal water piping system, as required by 250.104(A), must not be dependent on water meters, filtering devices, or similar equipment likely to be disconnected for repairs or replacement. When necessary, a bonding jumper must be installed around insulated joints and equipment likely to be disconnected for repairs or replacement to assist in clearing and removing dangerous voltage on metal parts because of a ground fault. Figure 250.99
See 250.68(B) and 250.104 for additional details.(2) Underground Metal Water Pipe Supplemental Electrode Required. The underground metal water pipe grounding electrode, if present [250.52(A)(1)], must be supplemented by one of the following electrodes:
Where none of the above electrodes are available, one of the following electrodes must be used:
- Metal frame of the building or structure [250.52(A)(2)]
- Concrete-encased steel [250.52(A)(3)] Figure 250.100
- Ground ring [250.52(A)(4)]
The underground water pipe supplemental electrode must terminate to one of the following:
- Ground rod in accordance with 250.56 [250.52(A)(5)]
- Grounding plate [250.52(A)(6)]
- Metal underground systems [250.52(A)(7)]
(E) Underground Metal Water Pipe Supplemental Electrode Bonding Jumper. Where the supplemental electrode is a ground rod, that portion that is the sole connection to a ground rod isn't required to be larger than 6 AWG copper.
- Grounding electrode conductor
- Grounded neutral service conductor
- Metal service raceway
- Service equipment enclosure Figure 250.101
The bonding jumper for the underground metal water pipe supplemental electrode is sized in accordance with 250.66, including Table 250.66, where applicable.(F) Ground Ring. A ground ring encircling the building or structure, consisting of at least 20 ft of bare copper conductor not smaller than 2 AWG, must be buried at a depth of not less than 30 in. See 250.52(A)(4) for additional details.
(G) Ground Rod Electrodes. Ground rod electrodes must be installed so that not less than 8 ft of length is in contact with the soil. Where rock bottom is encountered, the ground rod must be driven at an angle not to exceed 45 degrees from vertical. If rock bottom is encountered at an angle up to 45 degrees from vertical, the ground rod can be buried in a minimum 30 in. deep trench. Figure 250.102
The upper end of the ground rod must be flush with or underground unless the grounding electrode conductor attachment is protected against physical damage as specified in 250.10.
(H) Ground Plate Electrode. A plate electrode with not less than 2 sq ft of surface exposed to exterior soils must be installed so that it's at least 30 in. below the surface of the earth [250.52(A)(6)].
a€¢ See 250.52(A)(5) and 250.53(A) for additional details.
a€¢ When the grounding electrode attachment fitting is located underground, it must be listed for direct soil burial [250.68(A) Ex. 1, and 250.70].
|If you have already been approved for reprint permission, you may right mouse click on the link above and choose "Save Target As ..." or "Save Link As ..." to save the file to your local computer.
|©2005 Mike Holt Enterprises, Inc. | <urn:uuid:0e40bc40-9601-407b-b2b8-bcca7860556c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | https://www.mikeholt.com/videodisplaynew.php?pageid=4129 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391634.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00061-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.869367 | 1,024 | 2.765625 | 3 |
For a periodically driven planar example, the Poincaré section can be obtained by sampling at regular time intervals. Sampling can be done using WhenEvent, with an action having Sow with an enclosing Reap around the call to NDSolve.
Solve the Duffing equation and save samples at every period of the driving force, .
The strange attractor for these parameter values can be visualized using ListPlot.
For higher-dimensional systems, the Poincaré section in effect samples on a slice across the phase space. This typically requires an event that depends on the solution. An example of this is the Arnold-Beltrami-Childress (ABC) flow that is used to model chaos in laminar flows of the three-dimensional Euler equations.
The Poincaré section will be computed by taking samples as the solution crosses the plane. To get a full picture of the space, it will be necessary to use several different initial conditions. | <urn:uuid:df2e0e94-e3c7-4c81-b6dd-2bd0b766d78e> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.wolfram.com/mathematica/new-in-9/advanced-hybrid-and-differential-algebraic-equations/poincare-sections.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396029.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00072-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.865898 | 203 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Make Whole-Grain Fruit Bars with the Super Crew Kids!
AICR and SuperKids Nutrition are teaming up to prevent cancer by promoting healthy habits in childhood. Our Healthy Kids Today – Prevent Cancer Tomorrow campaign toolkits are designed to show kids and parents how eating healthy foods and moving more can happen.
It's never been more important to teach kids healthy habits like eating smart and moving more. Today, one in three US children are overweight or obese – and obesity is a major cause of many cancers, according to AICR's Continuous Update Project.
But a healthy diet and regular activity can reduce the risk of future cancer and avoid overweight now. Our series of free Toolkits is designed to give parents step-by-step recipes, games and activities that focus on healthy foods and exercise.
1. Take the Pledge
First, take the Cancer Prevention Pledge with your kids. Then download our first toolkits – Eat Powerful Plant Foods and Go for Whole Grains. Additional free toolkits will be available from AICR's website each month.
2. Try Our Kid-Approved Whole-Grain Fruit Bars
Here's an easy, healthy whole grains recipe your kids will love. Make these yummy, kid-tested Whole-Grain Fruit Bars with your kids' help so they begin to learn how to make healthy foods that taste good. These bars can be eaten as a healthy breakfast treat or a substitute for sugary desserts and Easter sweets.
Check out our Cooking with Kids and Safety Tips, too.
Whole-Grain Fruit Bars
- Canola oil cooking spray
- 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
- 1 cup whole-wheat flour
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 5 Tbsp. apple juice, divided
- 1/2 cup apricot jam or cherry jam, fruit-sweetened
- 1 package (7 oz.) dried apricots or dried tart cherries, chopped
- Preheat over to 350 degrees.
- Spray 9 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
- In large bowl, mix together oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda until well combined.
- In small bowl, whisk oil and 3 tablespoons juice together and pour over oat mixture, blending well until moist and crumbly. Reserve 3/4 cup of mixture for topping.
- Press the remainder evenly into prepared pan.
- In small bowl, blend jam with remaining 2 tablespoons apple juice.
- Stir in dried fruit.
- Spread evenly over crust.
- Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture over fruit, lightly pressing down with fingers.
- Bake 35 minutes or until golden.
- Cool in pan on wire rack.
- Cut into bars.
Makes 16 bars. Nutrition analysis for apricot option: Per serving: 162 calories, 5 g total fat (<1 saturated fat), 28 g carbohydrate, 2 g protein, 2 g dietary fiber, 63 mg sodium. | <urn:uuid:f6511931-772f-40d8-adb8-c19e18dd0013> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.aicr.org/enews/2013/march-2013/whole-grain-fruit-bars.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397213.30/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00091-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.865549 | 653 | 2.6875 | 3 |
April 02, 2013
- translucent (adjective)
- What does it mean?
- 1 : clear and pure as if shining from within2 : not transparent but clear enough to allow light to pass through
- How do you use it?
- Dani held the piece of translucent amber up to the light and could just make out a tiny, ancient bug trapped in its center.
- Are you a word wiz?
"Translucent" traces to the Latin verb "lucere," which means "to shine." Which of these other words do you think comes from the same root?Answer C is clearly the right choice. Look closely and you will notice several common letters in "translucent" and "elucidate." Those similarities let the family relationship between the two words shine through. Both terms descend from the Latin word "lucere," meaning "to shine." When you "elucidate" something, you make it clear by explaining it in a way that can be easily understood. In a way, you shed light on it. "Lucere" is also the root of another bright and shining English word, "lucid," which can mean either "bright with light" or "clear and easy to understand." | <urn:uuid:c3b26646-c9f7-4be1-b43e-f2d53b77f02c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.wordcentral.com/buzzword/buzzword.php?month=04&day=02&year=2013 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393533.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00197-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948308 | 256 | 3.203125 | 3 |
But that screening comes with a cost: The review found that for every life saved, roughly three other women were overdiagnosed, meaning they were unnecessarily treated for a cancer that would never have threatened their lives.
The expert panel was commissioned by Cancer Research U.K. and Britain’s department of health and analyzed evidence from 11 trials in Canada, Sweden, the U.K. and the U.S.
In Britain, mammograms are usually offered to women aged 50 to 70 every three years as part of the state-funded breast cancer screening program.
Scientists said the British program saves about 1,300 women every year from dying of breast cancer while about 4,000 women are overdiagnosed. By that term, experts mean women treated for cancers that grow too slowly to ever put their lives at risk. This is different from another screening problem: false alarms, which occur when suspicious mammograms lead to biopsies and follow-up tests to rule out cancers that were not present. The study did not look at the false alarm rate.
“It’s clear that screening saves lives,” said Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research U.K. “But some cancers will be treated that would never have caused any harm and unfortunately, we can’t yet tell which cancers are harmful and which are not.”
Each year, more than 300,000 women aged 50 to 52 are offered a mammogram through the British program. During the next 20 years of screening every three years, 1 percent of them will get unnecessary treatment such as chemotherapy, surgery or radiation for a breast cancer that wouldn’t ever be dangerous. The review was published online Tuesday in the Lancet journal.
Some critics said the review was a step in the right direction.
“Cancer charities and public health authorities have been misleading women for the past two decades by giving too rosy a picture of the benefits,” said Karsten Jorgensen, a researcher at the Nordic Cochrane Centre in Copenhagen who has previously published papers on overdiagnosis.
“It’s important they have at least acknowledged screening causes substantial harms,” he said, adding that countries should now re-evaluate their own breast cancer programs.
In the U.S., a government-appointed task force of experts recommends women at average risk of cancer get mammograms every two years starting at age 50. But the American Cancer Society and other groups advise women to get annual mammograms starting at age 40.
In recent years, the British breast screening program has been slammed for focusing on the benefits of mammograms and downplaying the risks.
Maggie Wilcox, a breast cancer survivor and member of the expert panel, said the current information on mammograms given to British women was inadequate.
“I went into (screening) blindly without knowing about the possibility of overdiagnosis,” said Wilcox, 70, who had a mastectomy several years ago. “I just thought, ‘it’s good for you, so you do it.”’
Knowing what she knows now about the problem of overtreatment, Wilcox says she still would have chosen to get screened. “But I would have wanted to know enough to make an informed choice for myself.” | <urn:uuid:91356286-2b9e-4d53-a99c-2cfb8cd2ce07> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.couriernews.com/view/full_story/20663761/article-Mammograms--For-1-life-saved--3-women-overtreated-?instance=top_news | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397865.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00073-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973305 | 683 | 3.03125 | 3 |
About Relationship Violence
Dating/domestic violence can be loosely defined as a pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner. Domestic violence can be physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person. Domestic violence can happen to anyone regardless of race, age, sexual orientation, religion, and gender. Domestic violence affects people of all socioeconomic backgrounds and education levels. Domestic violence occurs in both opposite-sex and same-sex relationship and can happen to intimate partners who are married, living together, or dating. (NCADV, 2007).
Although it is difficult to correctly identify who will and who will not perpetrate violence upon another person, below describes common abusive actions and personality characteristics of those who perpetrate violence.
Abuse in relationships: Does your partner (boy/girlfriend, spouse, date) do the following:
- Control what you do, who you see, talk to, where you go, or what you wear
- Call you names, insult you, or constantly criticize you
- Try to isolate you from family or friends
- Humiliate you and embarrass you with insults
- View women as objects and adhere to strict gender roles and responsibilities
- Often accuse you of cheating, flirting, or "wanting" another man/woman's attention and display jealous tendencies
- Force you to have sex even when you're sick, tired, hurt or simply don't want to
- Push, slap, bite, kick, squeeze, or choke you
- Smash, throw, or break things to intimidate you
- Make you think the abuse is no big deal and not a big deal
- Make you ask permission for all things including money
- Use threats to leave or threats to commit suicide or harm her/himself if you leave
- Display weapons as a way to intimidate you
- Look at you or act in certain ways that scare you
- Talk, text, or IM you constantly
If you said yes to even one of these, you may be in an abusive relationship!
What you might hear or say…
- "My boyfriend would always tell me that he was the only person I needed in my life."
- "My boyfriend makes all the decisions about what we do. I feel like I have no say in any matter."
- "He always puts me down in front of other. He would tell me how stupid I was and call me names like slut or fat ass."
- "My girlfriend has a short temper and will lash out at me, but then apologize the next day."
- "My boyfriend would constantly call me, text me, and email me just to see where I was and who I was with."
- "My boyfriend accused me of cheating every time I talked to another guy."
- "My girlfriend threatened to kill herself if I broke up with her."
- "We had sex whenever he wanted to, even if I didn't."
- "Whenever I did something he didn't like or even if I looked at him the wrong way, my boyfriend would hit me."
Check out The Shorthorn student newspaper for stories about RVSP programs around campus and how to get involved. | <urn:uuid:a9a7b7c8-3f65-460b-8e5c-dcabadb9cd00> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.uta.edu/rvsp/get-educated/relationship-violence/index.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393332.57/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00191-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960817 | 670 | 3.28125 | 3 |
LSD is a potent drug. It causes hallucinations and has very unpredictable effects. It is manufactured from lysergic acid, which is found in a fungus that grows on rye and other grains.
LSD can have long-lasting impacts on a person's brain and emotional state. This is true even if someone uses the drug only once.
On this page:
LSD (also known as acid, mellow yellow, California sunshine, window pane, blotter and dots) stands for lysergic acid diethylamide. In its pure form, LSD is a white, odourless and slightly bitter crystalline powder.
On the street, it is often sold as small squares of LSD-soaked blotting (absorbent) paper. These squares each contain 1 dose of LSD and are taken by mouth, generally held on the tongue or swallowed.
LSD can also be sold as a powder or as capsules and tablets. The powder may be made into miniature powder pellets called microdots, which are taken by mouth.
LSD crystals may also be dissolved into liquid. This liquid can be sold in small breath freshener droppers or applied to various substances, including:
- sugar cubes
- gelatin squares
- postage stamps
Rarely do people try inhaling or injecting LSD.
The drug's effects are felt gradually within 30 to 60 minutes after consumption and peak in 2 to 4 hours. Afterwards, the effects fade over a period of 10 to 12 hours. People refer to their experience under the influence of LSD as a "trip".
LSD produces vivid visual effects called pseudo-hallucinations because users are aware that they are not real. Whether or not a person experiences hallucinations while using LSD is related to the dose consumed. It may also be affected by the person's mood, thoughts and surroundings.
Taking LSD can be an unpredictable experience. People can react very differently to it, even in the same trip. Reactions may range from pleasant sensations of well-being, joy and wonder to uncomfortable and very frightening feelings.
People may even experience a psychotic episode. These reactions are often described as either a good or bad trip. There is no guarantee that the same experience will happen again after using LSD.
Short-term effects of LSD
LSD use can lead to short-term mental and physical effects.
LSD causes hallucinations and affects people's brains by:
- changing their senses, moods and thoughts
- distorting their perceptions of themselves and of the world around them
- altering what they hear, taste, feel and smell (brighter colours, sharper sounds)
- mixing up their senses, so that they hear colours and see sounds
- making them see, hear or feel things that are not really there
Other effects of LSD can include:
- feelings of weightlessness or heaviness
- feeling disconnected from your body
- impaired judgment of distance, time or speed
- altered or impaired memory
- difficulty concentrating
- extreme changes in mood, from:
- joy to desperation
- calmness to anxiety or depression
- well-being to terror or aggression
Deaths associated with LSD use are usually the result of accidents caused when a person senses or sees something abnormally. This can lead to errors in judgment. For example, users may be convinced that they can fly or can walk through traffic unharmed.
Some of the effects reported by users during and after the time that LSD is taken include:
- increased blood pressure and heart rate
- increased body temperature or sweating
- numbness or tremors
- dilated pupils
- loss of appetite, nausea or dry mouth
- decreased coordination and weakness
Long-term effects of LSD
The health risks related to frequent LSD use are more mental than physical. The drug can have long-lasting effects on a person's brain and emotional state. Sometimes the effects, such as depression, flashbacks, psychosis and paranoia, continue for years after LSD use.
However, if women use LSD during their pregnancy, there may be an increased risk of:
- spontaneous abortion
- birth defects in the infant
A long-term result of LSD use is flashbacks (known as hallucinogen persisting perception disorder). This is the spontaneous and unpredictable re-occurrence of visual distortions or emotional experiences from a previous episode of LSD use. Frequent users of LSD are at greater risk of experiencing flashbacks. However, flashbacks can occur after only a single use.
Not everyone who takes LSD experiences flashbacks. When people do have them, they may occur over and over. While flashbacks usually decrease over time, they can continue for years. There is currently no established treatment for this disorder.
Another condition that can develop long after a person has stopped LSD use is persistent psychosis. Psychosis refers to losing contact with reality. Common symptoms include:
- changes in thinking patterns (disconnected thoughts)
- false beliefs that have no basis in fact
- changes in mood
- disorganized behaviour
This can happen to people who do not have any history or symptoms of psychological disorders. This condition may last for months or years.
Addiction and withdrawal
People who use LSD regularly may become tolerant to its effects. This means they need to take more and more of the drug to experience the same effects.
Tolerance to LSD can develop very quickly. If a person keeps using LSD for several days, no amount of the drug will produce an effect. Sensitivity to the drug's effects only returns if it is not used for 3 to 4 days.
LSD does not cause physical dependence. Unlike with some other drugs, frequent users are not driven to use it. Even though they do not experience physical withdrawal symptoms, some people can develop a psychological dependence on the drug.
- Date modified: | <urn:uuid:37482035-d883-46c0-9861-2e39b4644f1c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/healthy-living-vie-saine/substance-abuse-toxicomanie/controlled-drugs-substances-controlees/lsd-eng.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396945.81/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00098-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94735 | 1,185 | 3.21875 | 3 |
by Matt Slick
Yes, Jesus claimed to be God. He claimed to be "I AM," which is God's name (Exodus 3:14 with John 8:58). For us to understand his claim in its cultural and biblical context, we need to read something in the Old Testament and then in the New Testament. Before God freed the people of Israel from bondage in Egypt, he appeared to Moses in a burning bush. Let's take a look.
- Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt. 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 And He said, “Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.” 13 Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations," (Exodus 3:10-15).
We can see that God said his name is "I AM WHO I AM." He told Moses to say to the sons of Israel that "I AM has sent me to you." So, God's name is "I AM." Let's take a look at the Hebrew.
Exodus 3:14 in Hebrew
As you can see in the red highlights, God says he is the "I AM." Now, let's take a look at the Greek version of that text.
Exodus 3:14 in the Greek LXX, Septuagint
Around 250 before Christ was born, the Jews translated the Hebrew Old Testament into the Greek. This translation is called the Septuagint, which is also known by the letters LXX. LXX means 70 and it is said that it took 70 Jewish translators to finish the work. When we examine the Septuagint at Exodus 3:14 we find the following...
So we have the Greek version being ἐγὼ εἰμί, ego eimi, where God gives his name. In the LXX it further says he is ὁ ὤν, ho own. Ego eimi is literally "I am," and ho own is "the being one." So God is saying that he is the "I AM," "The Being One." Now, let's take a look at something Jesus said.
John 8:58 in Greek
- "Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” 59 Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple," (John 8:58-59).
The Jews wanted to kill him for what he said. Why? Notice that he said, "Before Abraham was born, I am." That is incredibly significant. He is claiming existence before Abraham and he does not say, "Before Abraham was, I was." He uses the present tense, "I am." In Greek it is as follows....
Notice that ἐγὼ εἰμί, ego eimi, in John 8:58 is the same as the Greek found in the LXX of Exodus 3:14. The Jews knew what Jesus was claiming.
So, did Jesus claim to be God? Yes he did. He used the same phrase that God said about himself in the Old Testament referring to his identity. | <urn:uuid:51927fda-e21c-44f0-bb3a-e5bf7849a9b3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.carm.org/did-jesus-ever-claim-to-be-god | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393146.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00035-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981556 | 922 | 2.734375 | 3 |
10 Ways to Keep the Mind Sharp as We Age
Aging takes a toll on the brain. The brain literally shrinks as we age, losing up to 10% of its size. Research on aging shows that seniors experience declines in many key areas of cognitive function. Learn more about 10 ways to keep your mind sharp.
How to Keep Your Mind Sharp
Here are 10 activities you can incorporate into your life to help keep the mind sharp and brain nourished:
It has long been understood that the mind and body are interconnected. What benefits the body will benefit the brain. Regular exercise goes a long way to keeping the brain healthy.
2. Read a Book
Reading is beneficial on many levels. When you read, not only do you absorb the information contained in the book, but the act of reading itself builds connections within the brain that make it more versatile.
3. Eat Right
Many foods, including nuts, fish and red wine, have been linked to a healthy brain. But concentrating on an all-around healthy diet may be the best nutritional strategy for keeping the brain sharp.
4. Maintain Good Posture
Maintaining an upright, un-slouched posture improves circulation and blood-flow to the brain.
5. Sleep Well
6. Paint, Draw or Doodle
Whether it’s a masterpiece or a mere doodle, simply making a picture is an excellent workout for the brain.
7. Listen to Music
Music affects the brain profoundly, and has been linked to improved cognition and memory functioning.
8. Learn Something New
Many colleges and senior centers offer engaging, low-cost lectures and classes for older adults. Whether you’re learning a new language or beefing up your computer skills, ongoing education is a surefire way to keep sharp.
9. Do Puzzles
When you challenge and stimulate yourself intellectually, you exercise your brain and increase your mental capacity. Crosswords are a popular choice, but puzzles of all kinds may be similarly helpful.
Writing improves working memory and your ability to communicate. It matters not whether it’s an email to family, a private journal or the “Great American Novel.”
It’s important to know that although there are no clinically proven ways to reverse the course of brain diseases like Alzheimer’s, leading a healthy lifestyle that’s both socially and intellectually stimulating combats normal, age-related mental decline. This may decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other kinds of dementia.
Do you have advice about how to sustain an aging brain? Share your suggestions with us in the comments below.
We Can Help! Our local advisors can help your family make a confident decision about senior living.
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- mind sharp tips | <urn:uuid:48093216-5e45-4c84-acdd-4de00ab075af> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.aplaceformom.com/blog/10ways-to-keep-the-mind-sharp/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395546.12/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00033-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.89987 | 586 | 2.734375 | 3 |
The scientific name given to great white sharks in the 19th century—Carcharodon carcharias, from the Greek for "jagged tooth"—reminds us that these creatures were defined by their most fearsome feature long before the movie Jaws. But great white sharks are more than just masterful masticators; they are equipped with powerful sensory systems that equal or surpass our own in many respects.
Researchers rarely get a good look at a great white's brain; specimens are hard to come by, and a dissection must be done during the hours between death and decomposition. In 1992, biologists Leo Demski of the University of South Florida and R. Glenn Northcutt of the University of California at San Diego obtained a fresh great white's head from a Florida fisherman. They were surprised at the "relative smallness" of the brain, which weighed less than an ounce and a half. But they found that 18 percent of it was devoted to smell, the highest percentage among sharks. That explains why dropping pieces of not-so-fresh fish into the water, as researchers and tour guides often do, is a good way to attract great whites.
Great whites also have excellent vision. Inside their retinas, they have a pattern of cone-shaped cells (which detect color) and rod-shaped cells (which detect contrast in low light conditions) comparable to that in humans. They also have a reflective layer behind their retina—the same thing that makes cats' eyes appear to glow in the dark—which bounces extra light to the retinal cells. This allows the sharks to see in the dimness of the deep ocean.
Great whites and other sharks lack external ears, but that doesn't mean their world is silent. They have inner ears on either side of their head, and a system of hair-lined tubes called a "lateral line" runs beneath the skin of their flanks, making their body sensitive to vibrations caused either by sound or movement in the water.
A. Peter Klimley of the University of California at Davis, who has studied sharks for 36 years, says a great white operates from a "hierarchy of senses" depending on its distance from potential prey. "At the greatest distance, it can only smell something, and as it draws closer it can hear, and then see it," Klimley explains. "When the shark gets really close, it can't actually see the prey right under its snout because of its eye positioning, so it uses electroreception."
Electroreception is a kind of "sixth sense" found in some aquatic animals. Sharks and rays use an organ called the ampullae of Lorenzini, named after the Italian scientist who discovered it in 1678. Tiny holes in the shark's snout lead to a network of narrow canals beneath the skin that are filled with a jelly that conducts weak electrical currents—the sort generated by the heartbeat or other muscle movements of a seal or swimmer.
Despite all these sensory tools, many scientists say that great whites don't always know what they're biting into. They often release an animal after biting it once, particularly if it is a relatively low-fat creature like a sea otter or a human, instead of a high-fat seal or sea lion.
"It may be a textural discrimination [of fat], more than what we would call taste... We once took a seal and stripped the fat off it and put it all in the water. The shark ate the fat, but not the rest of the body," Klimley says. "They are actually very discriminating predators." | <urn:uuid:89d12c97-be17-4d3b-ad0f-ea901be47df2> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/sense-and-sensitivity-48346717/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395346.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00125-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962402 | 740 | 3.8125 | 4 |
The Science of Forming
Sheetmetal Failures: Fracture or Necking?
Two common forms of sheetmetal fracture are brittle and ductile. Fractures in glass, rocks and ice have the characteristics of brittle fracture. However, brittle fracture in sheetmetal forming is uncommon. A rare example would be a stamping that cracks when dropped on the floor because the chemistry, processing, microstructure and amount of cold work all interact just right to produce a brittle condition.
Instead, the more common brittle fractures in sheetmetal happen for specific metal chemistries when subjected to high impact loading at very low (-40 deg.) in-service temperatures. Unfortunately, too many statements are heard in press shops that deformation work hardens the steel so much that it becomes brittle and fails. Others will explain that high-strength grades or full hard tempers of sheet must be formed only once because the material already is so hard after the first hit that any added deformation makes it brittle and unable to withstand a second hit.
Work hardening increases the strength and hardness of the stamping while reducing the remaining stretchability. A second hit would require a very high force that most likely would initiate deformation in the least worked (lowest strength) area of the stamping and not at the desired location. However, exceeding the maximum allowable deformation would initiate a ductile fracture, not a brittle fracture.
The usual mode of stamping fracture is ductile fracture. The cross-sections through the sheet thickness in Fig. 1 illustrate the difference between brittle and ductile fracture. The brittle fracture (A) has no or very little localized plastic deformation surrounding the fracture. The fracture surface often occurs at a 45-deg. angle through the thickness of the sheet.
In contrast, the ductile fracture (B) has significant deformation and thickness reduction prior to the onset of fracture. One can visualize the ductile flow of material before the sheet actually tears. The resulting fracture surface has a cup and cone topography.
|Fig. 1—Fracture profiles of brittle fracture (A) without any through-thickness thinning, and ductile fracture (B) showing extensive localized thinning.|
Fortunately for press shops, the termination of useful deformation in most stampings is not the unpredictable ductile fracture. A local neck is the failure mechanism that terminates global stamping deformation. Local necking is defined as a narrow line of highly localized thinning with deformation across the neck but no deformation along the line of the thinning (Fig. 2A). The forming mode changes to a rigid sheet above and below the neck that move apart as the local neck thins and widens as total deformation force decreases. In a normal tensile-test sample (Fig. 2A), the local neck is angled about 55 deg. from the major loading axis. This is the angle along which the resultant strain is zero. As specimen width increases, the angle increases until the local neck eventually occurs perpendicular to the major strain direction. As the local neck develops, a high rate of straining occurs within the neck that eventually leads to ductile fracture (Fig. 2B).
|Fig. 2—Schematic of a tensile-test sample (A) showing an angular local neck at the onset of fracture, and a stress-strain curve (B) with the local neck occurring just prior to the onset of specimen fracture.|
The criteria for a local neck defined above for a tensile test remains the same when forming stampings in the press shop. However, the direction of the maximum strain, as well as widely varying gradients of strain that change throughout the stamping with the stroke of the punch, make the theoretical prediction of the onset of local necking almost impossible. However, metalforming studies over the last three decades have collected sufficient data to generate experimental curves that predict the maximum allowable stretchability. Called forming-limit curves or forming-limit diagrams, these important curves and their application will be the topic of the December column.
So far the discussion has focused on excessive stretching of sheetmetal. Other types of failures occur when sheetmetal is formed compressively. For small amounts of compressive deformation of thick sheets, the compressive direction becomes smaller as sheet thickness (and sometimes sheet width) becomes larger, according to the constancy of volume rule. When the amount of compression becomes too large for a given sheet thickness, the sheetmetal simply forms buckles as the least-energy mode of deformation.
Understanding how sheetmetal interacts with the die is very important at the product design, process design and die design stages of the stamping cycle from concept to production. The primary benefit of work hardening due to deformation is an increase in strength. The payment for this mode of strength increase is a reduced stretchability as measured by the total elongation in a tensile test. The companion increase in hardness reduces surface wear. Neither increased strength nor hardness by themselves changes the failure mode from ductile to brittle. Too much emphasis is placed on fracture and total elongation as the maximum amount of allowable deformation. Virtual press shop analyses use local necking (forming limit curve) as the termination of useful deformation. So do many of the highly productive physical press shops. MF
There are no comments posted at this time. | <urn:uuid:6f116c56-21fb-4f8e-929f-99089661b759> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.metalformingmagazine.com/magazine/article.asp?iid=52&aid=5128 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399522.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00132-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.914375 | 1,087 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Indicates that 71100 calories are evolved when 32 grammes of sulphur react with 2 X 16 grammes of free oxygen to form sulphur dioxide.
Thus the equation Cl 2 -1-2KI, Aq=2KC1, Aq+12+52400 cal., or (C12) +2KI, Aq =2KC1, Aq+-I-52400 cal., would express that when gaseous chlorine acts on a solution of potassium iodide, with separation of solid iodine, 52400 calories are evolved.
Thus, in the production of hydrochloric acid from hydrogen and chlorine 22,000 calories are developed; in the production of hydrobromic acid from hydrogen and bromine, however, only 8440 caloriesare developed; and in the formation of hydriodic acid from hydrogen and iodine 6040 calories are absorbed.
158.6 calories; this means that the replacement of a hydrogen atom by a methyl group is attended by a constant increase in the heat of combustion.
How would you define calories? Add your definition here. | <urn:uuid:c65c5745-26e5-4d4e-a941-d9805cabdd79> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.yourdictionary.com/calories | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396875.58/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00001-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.908122 | 224 | 2.921875 | 3 |
When a dead body decomposes in the ocean, scientists know little about what happens to it. To find out, some researchers performed an unusual experiment that involved dropping pig carcasses into the sea and watching them on video.
Lots of human bodies end up in the sea, whether due to accidents, suicides or from being intentionally dumped there, but nobody really knows what happens to them, said Gail Anderson, a forensic entomologist at Simon Fraser University in Canada who led the unusual study.
Anderson and her team got a chance to find out, using the Victoria Experimental Network Under the Sea (VENUS), an underwater laboratory that allows scientists to take video and other measurements via the Internet. With that equipment, all they needed was a body. [See Video of Ocean Scavengers Eating the Dead Pigs]
"Pigs are the best models for humans," Anderson told Live Science. They're roughly the right size for a human body; they have the same kind of gut bacteria, and they're relatively hairless, she said.
In the study, published Oct. 20 in the journal PLOS ONE, Anderson and her team used a remotely operated submarine to drop three pig carcasses into the Saanich Inlet, a body of salt water near Vancouver Island, British Columbia, at a depth of 330 feet (100 meters).
The researchers monitored what happened to the pig bodies using the live VENUS cameras, which they could control from anywhere with an Internet connection, and sensors that could measure oxygen levels, temperature, pressure, salinity and other factors. At the end of the study, the scientists collected the bones for further examination.
It didn't take long for scavengers to find the pigs. Shrimp, Dungeness crabs and squat lobsters all arrived and started munching on the bodies; a shark even came to feed on one of the pig corpses.Scavengers ate the first two bodies down to the bones within a month, but they took months to pick the third one clean.
The third body likely took so much longer due to the levels of oxygen in the water, the researchers found.
The Saanich Inlet is a low-oxygen environment, and has no oxygen during some times of the year, Anderson said. When the researchers dropped the first two pigs into the water, the oxygen levels were about the same, but when scientists dropped the third body in, the levels were lower.
The big scavengers (Dungeness crab and shrimp) need more oxygen to smaller creatures like the squat lobsters. But the smaller animals' mouths aren't strong enough to break the skin of the pigs. So as long as the carcass entered the water when oxygen conditions were tolerable, the larger animals would feed, opening the bodies up for smaller critters and the squat lobsters, Anderson said. But when oxygen was low, the larger animals didn't come, and the smaller animals couldn't feed.
"Now we have a very good idea of how bodies break down underwater," Anderson said. This kind of research helps solve mysteries such as the "floating feet" found wearing running shoes that have washed up along the West Coast in recent years. In fact, it's quite normal for ocean scavengers to gnaw off feet, and the running shoes simply make the body parts float, Anderson said.
Knowing how bodies degrade in the ocean can give rescue divers a sense of what to look for, as well as manage the expectations of family members of those lost at sea, Anderson said. | <urn:uuid:dd380583-a3b8-4e3c-b73a-10684a9427d8> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.livescience.com/48480-what-happens-to-dead-body-in-ocean.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391634.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00025-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966129 | 718 | 3.59375 | 4 |
Observatories around the world have turned their telescopes to the brightest stellar explosion to appear in the Northern Hemisphere in decades, a cosmic furnace of the kind that produces the raw materials of life itself.
The new supernova flared into view on March 28, when it was discovered by an amateur astronomer with a small telescope in Spain. Several days elapsed before his observation could be officially confirmed and for the news to circulate among professional astronomers at leading observatories.
But by Tuesday astronomers in North America, Europe and Asia, using both ground-based telescopes and satellite observatories, were rushing to analyze the explosion and were hoping to reap a bonanza of information, said Dr. Jay M. Pasachoff of Williams College in Williamstown, Mass.
Supernova explosions fascinate scientists for many reasons. Supernovas are thought to be the source of the heavy elements found in the universe, including the carbon from which all living organisms are made.
Supernovas also initiate huge shock waves that some theorists believe may play a role in initiating the formation of galaxies. Scientists hope eventually to detect gravity waves caused by supernovas as these massive stars collapse on themselves to form neutron stars, pulsars or even black holes.
The new supernova, named SN1993J, lies about 12 million light-years from the Earth and is in one of the spiral arms of a galaxy named M-81. The galaxy, which is similar in size and shape to the Milky Way, is visible through powerful binoculars between the constellation Ursa Major (also known as the Big Dipper) and the pole star Polaris. It is always high enough in the sky to be seen from the Northern Hemisphere.
Although the light from the supernova is already fading, it is still visible to amateur telescopes, and it may brighten again in the next few weeks. | <urn:uuid:88a3a0dd-53cc-47f8-92e4-6a0717c32747> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1993-04-07/news/9304070097_1_new-supernova-amateur-astronomer-observatories | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391519.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00079-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953415 | 372 | 3.921875 | 4 |
Dubbed the "Cancún Agreements," the decisions included formalizing climate change mitigation pledges and ensuring increased accountability for them, as well as taking concrete action to protect the world's forests. Figueres told the opening session of the two-week conference, "Governments lit a beacon in Cancún towards a low-emission world which is resilient to climate change. They committed themselves to a maximum global average temperature rise of 2 degrees Celsius, with further consideration of a 1.5-degree maximum. Now, more than ever, it is critical that all efforts are mobilized towards living up to this commitment."
She indicated that last week, the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) estimated that 2010 emissions from global energy generation returned to record highs, representing an unexpectedly sharp rebound from the effects of the financial crisis. In addition, the United States Government's Hawaii-based Mauna Loa laboratory -- a key scientific monitor for global climate change -- reported last week that carbon dioxide concentrations peaked yet again in May.
According to a news release issued by the UNFCCC, negotiators at the Bonn meeting are working hard "to provide clarity on the architecture of the future international climate regime to reduce global emissions fast enough to avoid the worst climate change." They are also working on the design of the finance, technology and adaptation institutions agreed in Cancún that will allow developing countries to build their own sustainable futures.
Figueres highlighted the global climate action which governments need to capitalize on, including new policies that promote low-carbon growth and an increase in low-carbon investment by the private sector, as well as greater use of clean technology. She said, "The clean and renewable energy revolution has already begun -- the challenge is to complete it in time."
The Bonn meeting follows a 6-day meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, held in April [See WIMS 4/4/11 & WIMS 4/8/11] where an estimated 2,000 participants from 175 countries attended. The meetings are leading toward the culmination at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP17) in Durban, South Africa at the end of this year. In Bonn the 34th sessions of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) are taking place from June 6-16. And, the second part of the fourteenth session of the AWG-LCA [Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention] and the second part of the sixteenth session of the AWG-KP [Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol] are taking place from June 7-17.
In an opening press briefing by the U.S. State Department the U.S. said it would stand by its commitments made in Cancun and would lower GHG emissions in the range of 17% below 2005 levels by 2020. The U.S. said the progress in the previous Bangkok meeting was slow and the negotiations must move forward. The U.S. said by the Durban meeting their should be guideline for monitoring and verification of GHG emissions.
Access a release from the UN (click here). Access a video of the Bonn opening press briefing (click here). Access a press release from UNFCCC (click here). Access links to all conference documents at for the UNFCCC June meetings (click here). Access the U.S. opening press briefing video (click here). Access the on-demand webcasts of press briefings and various meetings from Bonn (click here). Access the UNFCCC website for background information (click here). [*Climate] | <urn:uuid:5376d1d3-daeb-4f52-a78f-53552bdc881b> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://enewsusa.blogspot.com/2011/06/2-week-climate-change-meeting-kicks-off.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396459.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00181-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932956 | 765 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Psychology and Brain Sciences | Cognitive Psychology
P335 | 8777 | Motz, B.
Taking P335, you’ll become equipped to answer “How” questions of the
human mind, such as How do we recognize objects?, How do we
remember?, and How do we make decisions? In addressing these
questions (through the lens of experimental psychology), mental
phenomena are demystified, and you’ll begin considering the human
mind as a complex (but not impossibly complex) information processor.
This section will take an untraditional approach to Cognitive
Psychology. Rather than directly discussing disembodied abstract
cognitive facilities (e.g., Attention), you’ll be presented with
applied challenges (How do you concentrate on something?). We’ll
puzzle through these challenges, reviewing primary source material
and using active exploration, hopefully fostering a more relevant
and vivid perspective on cognition. | <urn:uuid:e3e77652-21fc-475f-950e-ca1bcfe1e47f> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.indiana.edu/~deanfac/blsu211/psy/psy_p335_8777.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398873.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00097-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.856419 | 201 | 3.34375 | 3 |
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
- (geography) The subfield of geography that studies physical patterns and processes of the Earth. It aims to understand the forces that produce and change rocks, oceans, weather, and global flora and fauna patterns.
- The descriptive part of a natural science as distinguished from the explanatory or theoretical part.
- mineral physiography
subfield of geography | <urn:uuid:50cd7517-f27c-4d59-8a32-35e8342ca98b> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/physiography | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393332.57/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00173-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.795905 | 82 | 2.765625 | 3 |
The Akan of West Africa have a proverb that beautifully illustrates the importance of remembering the legendary Dr. Dorothy Height: “Se wo were fi na wosankofa a yenkyi,” which translates to “It is not wrong to go back for that which you have forgotten.” Yet, what if you never knew enough to go back in the first place?
As inspiring as Black History Month can be, it is absurd to think that a history as complex and convoluted as that of black people could possibly be relegated to a matter of 28 (or 29) days. In that short amount of time, many a pioneer is overlooked or covered in such a shallow, archaic manner that what was initially intended as celebration and retrospection ultimately becomes inadequate cliché. As a result, the redundant portrayals of these individual’s portrayal’s and their roles in Black History make it understandably difficult for the younger generations to identify with their predecessors.
Well, to all of the young people out there reading this–have you ever been prematurely judged because of your race? How about your gender? Imagine getting accepted into your dream college, only to be turned away due to an unspoken quota of only two students of your racial background. Now, picture a world with no female DJs, no congresswomen, and no BLACK GIRLS ROCK. As absurd as this imaginary world may seem to you, this was the reality for a young Dr. Dorothy Height, who had been turned away from Barnard College in 1929.
I want to be remembered as someone who used herself and anything she could touch to work for justice and freedom…. I want to be remembered as one who tried. -Dr. Dorothy Height
Last Tuesday, Dr. Dorothy Height passed away at 98 in Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C. The outstanding legacy that she leaves behind should not become another ancient relic, only to be recovered and dusted off every February. No, just as Dr. Height relentlessly struggled for seemingly unattainable rights, people everywhere, particularly black women, ought to follow Dr. Heights lead and begin taking the initiative. Granted, the social and political climate in the US may not seem as dire as during the 60s and 70s, and so making a difference may seem all the more daunting and impossible, given that there is no current movement similar in influence and strength Civil Rights Movement. The key to remaining hopeful lies in baby steps. Why not try the following:
- Creating and following a book club focused on Africana scholars
- Volunteering for the social non-profit of your choice
- Setting up literacy classes with your friends
- Beginning a Big Brother/Big Sister program at your school
- Throwing monthly dinners to honor and remember those who fought and died for our rights
As long as you do not forget to look back and learn, you will be able to face the future as fearlessly as Dr. Dorothy Height.
How do you feel about the passing of Dr. Dorothy Height? How has she inspired you to make a difference? | <urn:uuid:034006b5-9a78-4890-a0e0-4222a71d02e3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | https://blackgirlsrock.wordpress.com/2010/04/29/black-girls-rock-remembers-civil-rights-pioneer-dr-dorothy-height/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395613.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00050-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973107 | 624 | 3.140625 | 3 |
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Credit: KSC, NASA
Explanation: Next stop: Mars. On Saturday the 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida on a path to enter orbit around Mars in late October. Pictured above, a Delta II rocket lifted the robot spacecraft, located in the nose cone, off the launch pad, while a camera mounted on the side of the rocket took the inset picture. The Odyssey orbiter will map the locations of chemical elements and minerals, look for evidence of water, and measure the Martian radiation environment. These data will help NASA better determine whether life ever arose on Mars, better understand the climate and geology or Mars, and better plan for future human exploration. The spacecraft's name is a tribute to 2001: A Space Odyssey, an epic fictional story of future space exploration written by Arthur C. Clarke.
Authors & editors:
Jerry Bonnell (USRA)
NASA Technical Rep.: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA/ GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U. | <urn:uuid:3369ec2f-91af-4019-a6d4-da0486795304> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap010409.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398869.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00178-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.87643 | 246 | 3.875 | 4 |
This item is available under a Creative Commons License for non-commercial use only
Food and beverages, Horticulture, viticulture
The effects of methods used for peeling and physiological age (over-wintering) on the quality and storage life of carrot disks packaged in modified atmosphere were examined. Commercial mechanical abrasion peeling using fine or coarse carborundum plates, was compared with carrots peeled by hand, before slicing into disks. Slices which had been peeled by abrasion had higher respiration rates, greater microbial contamination and growth rates, higher pH values, higher rates of weight loss and shorter microbiological shelf-lives than those which had been hand peeled. These results reflected the higher quality of the manually peeled carrots. Micrographs of the peeled surfaces confirmed that abrasion peeling inflicted greater damage. Carrots lifted in the autumn produced slices with longer shelf-lives than carrots lifted in the spring after over-wintering in the ground for four months .
Barry-Ryan, C., O'Beirne, D.:Effects of peeling methods on the quality of ready-to-use carrot slices.International Journal of Food Science and Technology, 35, 243-254. | <urn:uuid:d1e74ecb-4be1-4890-896c-a39388277dd3> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://arrow.dit.ie/schfsehart/16/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396455.95/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00052-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.907679 | 247 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Why do we have to strictly focus on something to really see what it looks like? Is everything else around blurred, or is our brain trained only to see in the center of the image projected on the retina?
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I basically agree with @Nick Stauner, but I want to add another important aspect, namely the gradient of photoreceptor densities in the human retina: In the fovea there is a sharp peak in cone density compared to more eccentric regions, as described in Curcio et al. (1990) and see the following graph obtained from Web Vision:
The cones have a different retinal circuitry, as about 20-100 cones converge onto one ganglion cell via bipolar cells (Webvision. In contrast, tens of thousands of rods may connect onto a single ganglion cell through massive convergence of rod input into bipolar cells and amacrine cell connections (Webvision). This, together with the exceptional high density of cones in the fovea result in excellent visual acuity in the central field of view, and far lower acuity more eccentrically. Indeed, eccentric vision is used for movement detection and rod-driven night vision (conditions of low lighting), while central vision is used for tasks where high-acuity is preferred (analysis of fine spatial detail such as reading).
Basically, the retina contains two different kinds of receptors: rods and cones. Cones are concentrated in the fovea and activate ganglion cells more discretely than rods. Rods are more interconnected by horizontal cells (if I'm not mistaken...), so multiple rods can often activate the same ganglion cell, whereas each cone is more likely to have its own ganglion cell. Ganglion cells transmit visual sensory input to the brain, so information that is consolidated into one before transmission can't really be discriminated by the brain as coming from one rod or another if both rods connect to the same ganglion cell. Since cones have more independent ganglion cells, they transmit info to the brain more individually. Where cones are concentrated (the focal area of the retina), the resolution of visual perception is more fine-grained.
Here's a somewhat simplistic illustration: | <urn:uuid:27bee4b0-ff04-4c51-9dca-6c8084d5b050> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://cogsci.stackexchange.com/questions/6265/why-can-we-not-see-around-our-point-of-focus-of-our-eyes | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391519.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00103-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.920397 | 475 | 3.53125 | 4 |
Railroads America - Trains And Tracks
( Originally Published 1927 )
THERE was little luxury to travel on the pioneer railroads. Trains were often delayed and passengers went hungry. The cars were flimsily built and shook and jolted and creaked over the rude roadbeds. Stoves provided the heat, which was apt to be too much for those travellers near them and too little for those at a distance. The Harlem Railroad was complimented in 1845 for introducing cars "so high that one can stand erect when he cannot find a seat." By 1859 several roads were employing so-called sleeping cars; in most instances these were ordinary coaches with three tiers of bunks, for which the company supplied mattresses and pillows.
George M. Pullman, of Chicago, rode from Buffalo to Westport in one of these sleeping cars in 1859, and the discomforts of the journey led him to consider the possibility of constructing a coach in which passengers could really sleep. The idea interested him so much that a few years later he arranged with the Chicago and Alton Railroad to build a new type of sleeping car.
This car—named the "Pioneer"—was so constructed that it was a foot wider and two and a half feet higher than any coach then built. A railroad friend of Pullman pointed out that the "Pioneer" could not be used on the tracks, because it was so large that it would not clear the station platforms and bridges.
"I know it," agreed the builder. "I suppose you'll have to cut down the platforms and rebuild the bridges."
Since Pullman would not alter his coach the railroad built a line of track to fit it. The inventor then invited a party of editors and railroad officials to take a trial ride in the "Pioneer." The guests were greatly surprised when they boarded the new coach. Not only was it very large, but it rested on eight-wheeled trucks instead of the customary four-wheeled trucks, had a high deck with ventilating transoms, and was beautifully panelled and deco-rated. The best passenger cars cost four thousand dollars to build; the "Pioneer" had cost eighteen thousand dollars. The guests examined and admired. Then one of them said : "I thought this was a sleeping car. Where are the passengers supposed to sleep ?"
Pullman evaded the question by inviting his guests to have something to eat. Porters fitted little tables between the seats, set out linen, china, and silver, and served a delicious meal. When the guests had enjoyed this to the full their host asked them to go into a day coach for a few minutes. Soon he called them back. To their amazement the "Pioneer" was trans-formed. The seats had vanished, and in their stead were luxurious beds, furnished with sheets and blankets, and partly screened by handsome curtains.
The guests tried the beds and found them all that could be desired in the way of comfort. Then they rose and watched the porters change the sleeping car back into a day coach. The demonstration was a complete success. The guests spread the news of the wonderful coach and everyone wanted to ride in it. Yet there were many who, having admired the "Pioneer," declared that the use of such coaches was a commercial impossibility; the beds, the carpets, the upholstery would be spoiled by the rough-and-tumble passengers.
To these objections Pullman answered: "I have always held that people are very greatly influenced by physical surroundings. Take the roughest man, a man whose lines have always brought him into the coarsest and poorest surroundings, and bring him into a room elegantly carpeted and furnished, and the effect on his bearing is pronounced and immediate. I am not at all afraid people will go to bed with their boots on. I am convinced that if I devote all my energies to providing handsome cars the financial re-turns will take care of themselves."
So, in spite of all criticism, Pullman went on building and improving his coaches. The second one cost twenty-four thousand dollars. The Michigan Central Railroad altered its stations and bridges and ordered some of the new sleeping coaches. When they were ready for service the question of the proper charge for a berth arose. The charge on the Woodruff sleeping cars that had been used by the Michigan Central was a dollar and a half for the trip between Detroit and Chicago, but that price would be too low to obtain a proper return on a twenty-four-thousand-dollar coach.
Pullman said that he intended to charge two dollars for a berth.
"My dear sir," exclaimed the president of the Michigan Central, "that is not to be thought of. If you undertake to charge two dollars a berth when other roads only charge a dollar and a half between Detroit and Chicago, you will simply drive all the night travel to our competitors. It is no concern of mine that you have chosen to spend so much money for useless luxuries for people who will not appreciate them and do not want them."
"People are willing to pay for the best, if they get the worth of their money," Pullman replied. "Run your cheap cars as usual at a dollar and a half a berth and put my cars on the same train at two dollars a berth, and let the public choose between them.''
The suggestion was adopted. Passengers refused to purchase the cheap berths so long as any in the Pullman coaches could be had, and those who could not get berths in the Pullmans complained so vociferously at the discomfort of the old style that within six weeks the cheap cars were discarded and only Pullmans used. Traffic was won from other railroads and as a result competing lines were forced to buy Pullman coaches for their through trains.
When the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific opened their through line between Omaha and San Francisco Pullman cars made part of the transcontinental trains and demonstrated their superiority in comfort and convenience over all other types of coaches.
The Pullman Palace Car Company was originated in 1867 and built sleeping cars for use on the railroads of Canada as well as on those of the United States. A new type of car, the "hotel" sleeping ear, was introduced on the Canadian Great Western road; this was a Pullman sleeper with a kitchen at one end, and meals were served at tables between the seats. The first regular dining car, christened the "Delmonico," was employed on the Chicago and Alton Railroad in 1868.
Sir James Allport, the general manager of the Midland Railway of England, on a visit to America was so much impressed with the luxury of the new coaches that he invited Pullman to go to England to explain his innovations, and as a result Pullman dining- and sleeping-cars were adopted on various British roads.
Pullman continued to work on improving train service; one of his ideas was to provide a safe means of passage from one platform to another while a train was in motion. Canvas diaphragms had been used between cars as early as 1857, but had not served the purpose. Pullman devised a better method, and the modern vestibule was patented in 1887. By this means an entire train is made into one whole, and passengers may go as safely from one coach to another as from room to room of a house.
Almost all of the American railroads are of the standard gauge, 4 feet 81/2 inches. The first rails were long wooden stringers, on top of which was fastened a thin, narrow piece or strap of iron. These were called strap-rails. The stringers rested on granite blocks, which were set in the soil of the roadbed.
An early improvement was the substitution of wooden cross ties for the blocks of granite, which had jolted engines and cars to pieces. Then Robert L. Stevens designed the metal T-rail, a much better and heavier rail than the wooden stringers with the narrow straps, and most of the American roads replaced the strap-rails with the more satisfactory T-rails. The rails, both in America and Europe, were made of iron.
In 1859 an Englishman, Henry Bessemer, discovered a method of making steel in large quantities and at low cost. Steel rails could carry much heavier loads than iron rails and lasted much longer ; they were therefore adopted on railroads. The first steel rails were used in the United States about 1865 and were found to last fifteen times as long as the iron rails.
What a marvellous story is that of the railroad in North America ! In 1830 there were 23 miles of rail-road tracks in the United States. By 1850 there were 9,021 miles, most of which was in the territory between the Atlantic Ocean and the Alleghanies, though railroads had reached to Chicago and Detroit. By 1870 the mileage was 52,922; the rails had leaped across the continent to San Francisco. A decade later and the Southern Pacific and Santa Fé have built a second route to the Pacific through the southwest and the Northern Pacific is crossing the Dakotas from St. Paul. The greatest era of railroad building in the United States was between 1880 and 1890, which saw 70,000 miles of new tracks laid. Since that time there has been less building, because most of the necessary lines had by then been constructed; repairs to tracks and rolling-stock took the place of new projects.
The United States has approximately 270,000 miles of railroad. In comparison Europe has approximately 217,000; Asia 69,000; and Africa 29,000.
Separate railroads have been combined in great railroad systems and nine of these control about two-thirds of the total mileage of the country. These systems are, with their mileage in round numbers : The New York, New Haven and Hartford, 7,000; The New York Central, 23,000; The Pennsylvania, 14,000 ; The Southern, 29,000; The Northern Pacific and The Great Northern, 28,000; The Union Pacific, 10,000; The Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul, 10,000; The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé, 11,000; The Southern Pacific, 10,000.
Over these great systems run celebrated express trains, the ultimate of luxury in railroad travel. In the east, among many others, are the "Merchants' Limited," the "Bay State" and the "Knickerbocker" between Boston and New York; the "Twentieth Century" of the New York Central from New York to Chicago; the "Broadway" of the Pennsylvania from New York to Chicago and the "Congressional" of the same road from New York to Washington. In the west are the "Sunset Limited" of the Southern Pacific, linking New Orleans, El Paso and San Francisco ; the "Katy Limited" of the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad between St. Louis, Houston and Galveston; the Union Pacific's "Gold Coast Limited"; the "Panama," the "Overland," the "North Coast," the " Shasta," of other western roads.
Canada has its great through trains, such as the "Continental" and the "National" from Montreal and Toronto respectively to Vancouver. Other expresses join important cities of the two countries, and the network of steel rails has brought the St. Lawrence River and the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans within a few days' journey of each other, an achievement that would have been laughed at as a fairy tale a century ago. | <urn:uuid:1137a413-a112-466f-875c-c7e3815b4205> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.oldandsold.com/articles25/railroads-33.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399522.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00125-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984808 | 2,399 | 2.984375 | 3 |
This article is from Dollars & Sense: Real World Economics, available at http://www.dollarsandsense.org
This article is from the July/August 2014 issue.
at a 30% discount.
When the Public Square Is in Cyberspace
Why Democracy Demands Net Neutrality
Image credit: Freepress Save the Internet campaign.
It is sometimes hard to remember how young the Internet really is. Many of the people I know first ventured online (starting with email) around 1995. For the technologically savvy, the Internet was a cool thing to play around with, but it was peripheral to most of the world’s communications, commerce, and governance. Now, in less than one generation, it has become all but impossible to participate fully in many aspects of U.S. society without using the Internet, and this is also true to varying degrees around the world.
The Internet has become a layer of the public square. Because it now mediates our access to the cultural, economic, and political realms, its infrastructure matters. A lot. The structure of the Internet has deep implications for democracy. And that structure is not fixed. New rules being considered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)—under a heavy lobbying effort by the giant telecommunications companies—now threaten to change the architecture of the Internet in dangerous ways.
Since the Internet is a component of the public sphere, we should hold it to the ideal of freedom of expression. For this ideal to be fully meaningful, it must include not just the “negative freedom” from interference with the act of speaking, but also the “positive freedom” of access to other listeners and other voices. A democratic ideal of freedom of expression requires the practical ability to participate in public conversation.
The Internet has tremendous democratic potential. Its user-to-user architecture enables people to both speak and listen in ways that one-way-transmission technologies of print and broadcast media do not. Recognizing the role of Internet access in enabling full social participation, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 assigned the FCC the task of monitoring “whether advanced telecommunications capability ... [reaches] all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.” The Act defined a slow connection as a problem that should be remedied. According to the FCC’s most recent progress report, in 2012, 19 million Americans, mostly in rural areas, did not yet have access to broadband service. Of those living where broadband was offered, only 40% subscribed. Those who did not cited a variety of reasons, including inability to afford it. Still, most of us find one way or another to get online.
Now, the big internet service providers (ISPs)—telecom giants like Time-Warner, Comcast, and Verizon—want to change the price and speed structure. Under the current system, all of the data that any subscriber uploads or downloads is treated equally. When traffic is light, it all gets to its destination equally quickly. When traffic strains the capacity of the network, all data is at equal risk of delay. What the telecom companies would like to do, and what the FCC is poised to let them do, is charge a premium for priority service.
The telecom companies are the gatekeepers to the public square of cyberspace. They supply the physical infrastructure through which we make contact with one another. Those wires and fiber optic cables and wifi signals are valuable to us not as things-in-themselves but as conduits to the people on the other side. The telecom companies, standing between users, are positioned to shake us down, in exchange for letting us reach one another. It is a hugely profitable position to hold, and it would be an even more profitable position under the proposed rule changes. (Their proposal makes for strange bedfellows—you and I, and web-content companies like Netflix and Google, would all be subject to the shakedown.)
The position of gatekeeper is, or should be, a public trust. That is, in theory, why we have the FCC setting rules. If we allow differential pricing, we will be increasing the already staggering power of money, amplifying the voices of those who can pay, and further diminishing the democratic meaning of freedom of expression—understood as equal access for all. Indeed, these rule changes are only being considered because money already buys so much influence. Michael Powell is a former chairman of the FCC and a current big-money lobbyist for the cable industry. Tom Wheeler is the current chairman of the FCC and a former big-money lobbyist for the cable industry. Oh, and Wheeler was also a big contributor to Obama’s presidential campaign before the President appointed him to the FCC.
The FCC is still taking comments on the proposed rule changes via their website (www.fcc.gov/comments) and via e-mail at [email protected] (the deadline has been extended to Friday, July 18). You may not be able to afford a lobbyist to bend Wheeler’s ear in person, but at least your email will be delivered just as fast as the next person’s—for now. | <urn:uuid:c569d6f8-6641-40f3-b54e-5683998bd5e9> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://dollarsandsense.org/archives/2014/0714sherman.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395679.92/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00173-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951365 | 1,050 | 2.625 | 3 |
The selection in 1972 of an ambitious and technologically challenging shuttle design resulted in the most complex machine ever built. Rather than lowering the costs of access to space and making it routine, the space shuttle turned out to be an experimental vehicle with multiple inherent risks, requiring extreme care and high costs to operate safely. Other, simpler designs were considered in 1971 in the run-up to President Nixon's final decision; in retrospect, taking a more evolutionary approach by developing one of them instead would probably have been a better choice....ADDED: Was the shuttle program too expensive? It cost $209.1 billion. Think of it as a jobs program and compare it to the Obama stimulus, which is said to have cost $278,000 per job. The stimulus was $666 billion, more than 3 times the cost of the shuttle program, which went on for many years and which went way over budget.
The shuttle was much more expensive than anyone anticipated at its inception.... The shuttle's cost has been an obstacle to NASA starting other major projects.
But replacing the shuttle turned out to be difficult because of its intimate link to the construction of the space station....
Today we are in danger of repeating that mistake, given Congressional and industry pressure to move rapidly to the development of a heavy lift launch vehicle without a clear sense of how that vehicle will be used. Important factors in the decision to move forward with the shuttle were the desire to preserve Apollo-era NASA and contractor jobs, and the political impact of program approval on the 1972 presidential election. Similar pressures are influential today. If we learn anything from the space shuttle experience, it should be that making choices with multidecade consequences on such short-term considerations is poor public policy.
July 6, 2011
Asks John M. Logsdon — professor emeritus at the Space Policy Institute, George Washington University, member of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board — in the MIT Technology Review: | <urn:uuid:941de896-e37d-4054-939b-eb2e68471edf> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://althouse.blogspot.com/2011/07/was-space-shuttle-mistake.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398516.82/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00125-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963253 | 389 | 3.296875 | 3 |
”) For example, rheumatoid arthritis generally occurs in a symmetrical pattern, meaning that if one knee
or hand is involved, the other one also is. The disease often affects the wrist joints and the finger joints closest to the hand. It can also affect other parts of the body besides the joints. (See “What Happens in Rheumatoid Arthritis?”) In addition, people with rheumatoid arthritis may have fatigue, occasional fevers, and a general sense of not feeling well. | <urn:uuid:42ed295c-eddb-4501-8242-b9a5155464b0> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://healthquestions.medhelp.org/knee-cartilage-erosion | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783394605.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154954-00072-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.915458 | 110 | 2.890625 | 3 |
FUNdamental Musicianship Skills, Elementary Level B
By June C. Montgomery
An approach to musicianship that is fun and appealing! Focusing on keyboard skills such as five-finger patterns, scales, sightreading, ear training and transposition, this series is designed to prepare students for National Guild of Piano Teachers musicianship requirements. Logically organized by Musicianship Phase. Includes practice suggestions and enjoyable exercises. | <urn:uuid:6188b018-ffca-4542-92db-86cdc57ebe13> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://alfred.com/Products/FUNdamental-Musicianship-Skills-Elementary-Level-B--00-6691.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391519.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00024-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927005 | 85 | 2.578125 | 3 |
This is the first photograph ever taken on the surface of the planet Mars. It was obtained by Viking 1 just minutes after the spacecraft landed successfully early today. The center of the image is about 1.4 meters (five feet) from Viking Lander camera #2. We see both rocks and finely granulated material--sand or dust. Many of the small foreground rocks are flat with angular facets. Several larger rocks exhibit irregular surfaces with pits and the large rock at top left shows intersecting linear cracks. Extending from that rock toward the camera is a vertical linear dark band which may be due to a one-minute partial obscuration of the landscape due to clouds or dust intervening between the sun and the surface. Associated with several of the rocks are apparent signs of wind transport of granular material. The large rock in the center is about 10 centimeters (4 inches) across and shows three rough facets. To its lower right is a rock near a smooth portion of the Martian surface probably composed of very fine-grained material. It is possible that the rock was moved during Viking 1 descent maneuvers, revealing the finer-grained basement substratum; or that the fine-grained material has accumulated adjacent to the rock. There are a number of other furrows and depressions and places with fine-grained material elsewhere in the picture. At right is a portion of footpad #2. Small quantities of fine grained sand and dust are seen at the center of the footpad near the strut and were deposited at landing. The shadow to the left of the footpad clearly exhibits detail, due to scattering of light either from the Martian atmosphere or from the spacecraft, observable because the Martian sky scatters light into shadowed areas.
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Browse Image | Medium Image | Full Res Image | <urn:uuid:ec5c70cb-207f-45af-afe1-70a040f725e9> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/images/?ImageID=3348&NewsInfo=59C884BFF2B8E0EFC9DB02B94F94BA55AC4A8F9603007CDEC74050EBAAD4DB83D5F78C9BE787961180 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393332.57/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00000-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95583 | 370 | 3.421875 | 3 |
Knowing It By Heart
Americans Consider the Constitution and its Meaning
While most Americans admit they do not have detailed knowledge about the Constitution and Bill of Rights, they seem to have absorbed its core values of protecting the rights of all citizens. Most respondents were able to put aside their personal views on controversial issues such as homelessness and abortion to consider the rights of others. But two-thirds express concerns that the rich have more rights than others and that their right to privacy is under threat. Conducted for the National Constitution Center and funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. (2002)
Like our resources? Consider donating $20 to help us provide them for free to the public. Every dollar counts!
Download this PDF now. | <urn:uuid:3b0280d6-4581-4070-a6b0-18848ff4a817> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://publicagenda.org/media/knowing-it-by-heart | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397795.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00086-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966254 | 150 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Beginning the Puzzle:
Sources, Couples, and Private Enforcement in Early Irish Law
Cáin Lánamna- The Law of Couples
The Cáin Lánamna is one of the Irish law tracts from around the 7th century. This particular text listed laws related to marital and parental legal relationships. This is one of the texts of which we have a recently translated version from a peer-confirmed reliable translator. The laws are brief and sometimes somewhat confusing in their syntax, but they reveal some otherwise unknown aspects of the rights of woman from a primary source.
There are ten types of relationships for cohabitation and procreation described in the text. Common to all, however, are some general principles that are described before the specifics of the different relationships.
Exempt from legal suit for each is what each may have used or have consumed as against the other, except what lien, obligation or loan may have imposed, or what one of them may have mis-appropriated from the other. Exempt from legal suit is everything useful to the partnership, everything done in good faith; liable to legal claim is everything done in bad faith in the law of the couple.
Essentially, when a couple in a relationship splits, one party may try to retain more goods than the law provides that party is allowed. This first law provides that the wronged party only has a legal claim to items used or gained by the other in bad faith. In the course of a relationship, goods are used and contracts are made in good faith; these items cannot be disputed or sought in litigation.
The next general law sets out the types of legal pairings to be found in Irish law:
Question. How many pairings are there in Irish law? Answer. Eight: a lord and his base clients, a church and its tenantry, a father and his daughter, a girl and her brother, a son and his mother, a foster-son and his foster-mother, a teacher and his pupil, a man and his wife.
It is not immediately clear to what this law pertains in a text about couples; perhaps these ‘pairings’ are the types of relationships to which the general rules apply, and the rest of the laws specific to male-female pairings are sub-rules for the last group, “a man and his wife.”
The final general law further describes the division of property; rather, what can and cannot be litigated, and what remedies a party has against the other.
Equally exempt from legal suit for each is whatever one of them may have given the other, whatever one of them may have used as against the other, without violent crime, without stealth. Everything taken without permission that is complained about is repaid by simple replacement of the object until the matter goes as far as the legal remedy of fasting, except in the case of the church. Repayment, by simple replacement, of what is taken without permission and complained about is all that is required until there is evasion of the legal obligations that arise from fasting, or legal default. Anything taken by stealth, by violent crime, anything taken without permission, that is complained about and ignored, is levied with its penalty fine.
Essentially, if something was taken without permission, and the other party complained about it, the first party need only replace the item. If, however, the first party tries to evade its legal obligations by not replacing the item, or if the item was taken by stealth or violent crime, then a penalty fine is added to the replacement.
Moving on to the more specific laws related to cohabitating couples and procreation, the first of these laws describes the ten specific types of legally recognized relationships:
Question: how many couples of cohabitation and procreation are there in Irish law? Answer: ten-(1) union of common contribution; (2) union of a woman on a man's contribution; (3) union of a man on a woman's contribution with service; (4) union of a woman who accepts a man's solicitation; (5) union of a man who visits the woman, without work, without solicitation, without provision, without material contribution; (6) union by abduction; (7) union of wandering mercenaries; (8) union by criminal seduction; (9) union by rape; (10) union of mockery.
These ten types of relationships are addressed in more detail in the following laws. The first is the “union of common contribution” when the man and woman come to the union as equals.
(1) Union of common contribution: if it is a union with land and stock and household equipment, and if their marital relationship is one of equal status and equal propriety-and such a woman is called a woman of joint dominion-no contract of either is valid without the consent of the other, except for contracts that benefit their establishment. These are: an agreement for common ploughing with proper kinsmen when they do not themselves have a full ploughing team; paying for the leasing of land; getting together food for a coshering; getting food for feast-days; paying stud fees; fitting out the household; making an agreement for joint husbandry; the purchase of any essentials that they lack. Every contract shall be without neglect, an advantageous contract, conscientious, in accordance with right and propriety, with acknowledgement on both sides that the ownership of what is acquired belongs to the person whose property was alienated to acquire it.
In a marriage of common contribution, the consent of both spouses was necessary for the formation of certain contracts. Those contracts which were excepted were specifically described. In addition, the law includes that agreements shall be made in good faith. Further, as the next law specifies, if the lack of an item will bring a loss to the household, it cannot be sold without the agreement of both spouses:
Anything, the lack of which brings loss on the household, cannot be sold without common counsel, consultation, and mutual concession. For the impairment of the joint economy in a union of common contribution is not proper without mutual concession.
Interestingly, it is social policy that pushes the equal rights of both spouses in the union of common contribution. Similarly, the law regarding the fosterage of children of a common contribution household is also related to policy:
Putting children in a well-befriended and good fosterage is a contract in accord with all propriety that brings well-being into the community of their common household.
The following are the remainder of the laws set out for a union of common contribution. These laws describe the rights of the woman and the man in contracts, divorce, and the partition of proceeds. Note the rights of the women and the extent to which she is treated an equal in this type of marriage.
Every contract shall be without cheating. Either of them may dissolve the bad contracts of the other. The one does not dissolve the good contracts of the other in the case of those matters that have been listed, if the joint husbandry is without mutual friction, without mutual inculpation, in good partnership, in good faith.
If they divorce, each divorce shall be without mutual defrauding. If they divorce by mutual consent, let them divide their property in accordance with legal propriety.
A third of all proceeds belongs to the owner of the land, except for handiwork; a third of the cattle dropped during the union belongs to the owner of the stock from which they are sprung; a third to whoever did the labour. Division is made in proportion to the entitlement of each in regard to land, stock and labour. If the conduct of each is equally good or equally bad, this is the way they divide their thirds.
The third assigned to labour of the proceeds of the cattle is further divided into thirds: a third to the master of the house, a third to the mistress of the house, a third to the workers, that is, the herders.
Likewise dairy produce: it is divided in three between land 12/36, stock 12/36 and labour 12/36. The labour third: half goes to the woman who does the work 6/36; a twelfth goes to dairy vessels 3/36; two-thirds of the remaining half go to the master of the house 2/36, a third to the dairy workers 1/36.
If one of them is ill-behaved, the labour portion of the ill-behaved falls to the well-behaved, but the portions due to land and stock are not diminished
The labour third of the fodder corn and salt meat: let it be divided in three i.e. a third 1/9 to the wife who is responsible for ploughing and reaping and for looking after the pig-sties, for feeding and for fattening the pigs, unless they are fattened on milk. In that case, the wife gets two-thirds 2/9. For only spring-work in regard to ploughing and looking after the sties, the wife is entitled to two-thirds of a third 2/27.
The wife takes a half of clothing and of woven fabric, a third of fibre combed and ready for spinning; a sixth of fleeces and sheaves of flax; a third of woad in steeping vats, half if it is caked.
Anything that either of them may consume that belongs to the other is exempt from liability if it is by mutual consent. Whence is said: Without penalty is anything mutually discussed, mutually conceded.
Every defrauding is paid off by replacement in kind unless the person entitled waives claim, or else compensation is paid on the day of parting.
Anything taken by stealth, or despite mild or forceful protest, or by violent seizure, is repaid with its interest and with double its replacement if dry goods; if it is livestock, it is repaid with milk and young, with double replacement, and with interest.
Exempt from liability is every loan, every lease, every sale, every purchase, without mutual defrauding by either, made with the private property of each up to the amount of the honour-price of each, in accordance with the contracting rights of each.
Hospitality and refection is a duty of each of them according to rank. [...] Each of them gives hospitality to his/her own lord, to his/her own church and friends and relations.
In many decisions, the wife’s opinion is of equal importance to the husband’s. In terms of property division, women (not necessarily the wife) get sometimes a half and sometimes a share in goods created through her labor. While women may in general not enjoy equal rights to men, they do receive more rights than a medieval image often allows them.
Next the laws describe the rights of a man and woman in a union in which the man brings more, a “union on man’s contribution.” The word “cétmuinter” refers to a chief wife (as opposed to a concubine or secondary wife).
Union on man's contribution: (2) Union of a woman on a man's contribution: the man's contract is a valid contract without the wife's consent, except for the sale of clothing and food; and the sale of cattle and sheep, if she is a duly contracted wife who is not a cétmuinter.
If she is a woman who is a proper cétmuinter, equally good and equally well-bred — for everyone of equal goodness is of equal birth — she impugns all his contracts if they are foolish — for immunity from suit does not attach to defrauding and to what is forcefully protested against — and her sureties annul them.
If he gives bridewealth to acquire another woman, even from his own private property, that bridewealth is forfeit to his cétmuinter if she carries out her marital obligations. Every secondary wife who comes 'over the head' of a cétmuinter is liable to penalty: she pays the honour-price of the cétmuinter.
The wife gives hospitality to half as many people as her husband, in accordance with the social status of her husband.
[...]Everybody is fed and hospitality is not refused up to the legal number of his/her retinue. Refusal of hospitality in the case of a guest accompanied by a excessive retinue does not damage one's honour for, though one refuse, this is not deemed refusal of hospitality if the retinue is excessive.
If they divorce and the divorce is by mutual consent and their behaviour is equally good at the time of parting, what the one may have freely consumed as against the other is without penalty at the time of parting if it is done without bad faith and with consent, so that they may not defraud each other. Every replacement in kind shall be as that consumed, with milk and young and dung and with interest. Everything taken by stealth, by force, by secret removal, without consent, without recompense, without asking pardon, is levied with its penalty fine.
The wife receives half the handiwork, as we said in the first type of union we discussed; a sixth of the dairy produce with the same proportions as previously between land and cows and vessels and servants. She receives ~a ninth of the cattle dropped during the union, a ninth of the corn, and a ninth of the salt meat, if she is a great worker.
She receives a sack of corn for every month that remains until the year end i.e. until the first of May next, following the time they part.
Even when a wife contributes little to the initial union, she still retains influence over some contracts entered into by her husband. She has rights, if a chief wife, over the secondary wives and she has rights upon divorce to a portion of the goods produced.
Next we examine what changes when a woman brings more to a union than the man: a “union of an heiress”.
Union of an heiress: (3) Union of a man on a woman's contribution: in that case, the husband goes in the track of the wife and wife in the track of the husband. If he is a man of service he receives a ninth of the corn; and of the salt meat, if he is a 'head of counsel' who controls the people of the household with advice of equal standing. The sixth of milk produce is divided in two: one half (1/12) goes to the vessels; of the other half, the husband receives two-thirds (1/18). He receives a ninth of the handicraft when they divorce. If they divorce by mutual consent, they part in this way.
If either of them is badly behaved, the labour third of the badly-behaved partner is forfeit to the well-behaved one. In the case of a cétmuinter, everything is forfeit to the party that carries out his/her marital duties, apart from what the other is entitled to in respect of land and breeding stock. But they part as they came together: what survives of what each brought in to the other, that is what each brings away on parting, or its replacement out of the profits if it no longer survives.
But he is a husband who is paid honour-price in accordance with his wife's status if she holds all the property, unless he has higher property qualifications in his own right than his wife or is more godly, more high-born or more estimable than she.
Here, upon dissolution, each leaves with the property he or she brought to the union that remains. The man receives a portion of goods produces, but these laws are instead written to specify what portion the man receives rather than the portion the woman receives as in the prior laws.
The following laws describe other types of unions and the affirmative rights that exist in those scenarios. The first two seem to cover unions perhaps more informal than the first, or perhaps when neither party can contribute to the initial union.
Other Unions: (5) Union of a man who visits the woman, without provision without work: a fifth of the handiwork is the portion of the man (i.e. of the partner) when they part if the handiwork is hers to dispose of-for a fifth is the proportion of the compensation due to him for her being dishonoured; if an offence is committed against her, that is the compensation he is paid for it.
(4) Union on accepting the inducement of the man: in that case the man receives a quarter of her handiwork. If it is a union with stock on land, let them divide by the proportions of land, labour and breeding stock, in accordance with what each owns.
When these unions dissolve, the man retains a proportion of the handiwork of the woman if it is hers to give. These unions seem to involve consent on the part of the woman, because the following rules contrast in that there is no consent by the woman (or in the case of “union in secret,” of her family). The word “éraic’ refers to the body honor price.
(6/8) Union by abduction and union in secret: they have no stock or dry goods to divide on parting, only offspring. If a woman abducted from her family grants property to her partner who has abducted her, that grant is invalid from the point of view of her family and it is thus repaid: it is paid off with half penalty-fine if what was given belonged to the woman; if a third party owns a share in it, it is paid off with full penalty-fine. The same holds good for union by criminal seduction in secret.
(9) Union by rape or by stealth: they the partners possess nothing but offspring. Full éraic is paid for a virgin, for a young nun who does not reject her veil, and for a cétmuinter; half éraic for secondary wives— all this is without the cooperation of the woman— together with the full honour price of the man of highest rank who has authority over her of those to whom she specially belongs.
In these unions, no property exists to divide because the union had no legal support to property, and because all that was produced recognized by the law are offspring. The final law describes a cruel union created for the amusement of others: a “union of mockery”. Here, someone has brought together a mentally handicapped man and woman. The law provides for the care of any offspring:
(10) Union of mockery: union of a lunatic or madman with a deranged woman or madwoman. Neither of them is bound to take or to make payments. The person who brings them together for fun and the responsible person in whose presence this takes place, theirs is the offspring, if offspring there be; its rearing, compensation for its offences, and its suretyship falls on both of them. The éraic and the legacy of such persons is divided between the king, the church and the family.”
Whoever brings the two together or has knowledge of the union is responsible for any offspring produced. This responsibility includes raising the children, paying for the children’s offenses, and supporting the children when they enter into suretyship arrangements. Since the parents likely cannot provide such complex duties for their children, the law supports these children being provided for.
State or Private Enforcement?
While some evidence exists that the king played a role in some disputes, those disputes seem limited to disputes involving the king himself. Disputes within kin groups were arbitrated by independent judges who interpreted the laws but had no means of enforcement. It was up to individuals to enforce judgments by means of fasting or cattle raiding if the other party was not paying. But lest we make the same mistake as the Victorian anthropologist and impose the idea that our society reflects the epitome of culture and hold the early Irish legal system as inferior and anarchic, let’s consider the society as a whole and the role of the law in it.
In a society that at the same time is rural, hierarchical, familiar, and “tribal,” there was not in existence a system that could support the development of the judicial, administrative, and political institutions which we find in our States now. The túath was small, both in population and in the geographic area it covered and influence it held, and so there was no need for an intermediate group between the king and subjects. In addition, cities and walled towns were brought to Ireland by invaders; the early Irish people did not have these places of mass congregation that supported cities and marketplaces. Remember that the very words we use – politics, civilization, etc.—reflect the urban roots of our own society. In an aristocratic and rural society, like that of the early Irish, it is quite possible, owing to the system of patronage, to produce great literature and art… but it is not possible to develop a “polity,” as the Greeks called it, because the pattern of life is not complex enough to demand it. Within each túath, the king, with the aid of a few officers, could practice the few functions of government necessary in person. Essentially, the idea of the State as something distinct form the ruler, or of the king’s government as distinct from the king (the idea of depersonalization of institutions) would be foreign to the minds of the early Irish.
“The Linguistic and Historical Value of the Irish Law Tracts” D. A. Binchy—Proceedings of the British Academy. Oxford University Press. Oxford. 1943.214
“The Linguistic and Historical Value of the Irish Law Tracts” D. A. Binchy—Proceedings of the British Academy. Oxford University Press. Oxford. 1943. Pgs 213-214
Some Comparative Aspects of Irish Law
Alfred Gaston Donaldson. Duke University Press, Durham, NC. 1957
Modern Irish cases referencing Brehon Law: Foyle and Bann Fisheries Ltd. v. Attorney General (1949) 83 I.L.T.R. 29 at page 41
“The Linguistic and Historical Value of the Irish Law Tracts” D. A. Binchy—Proceedings of the British Academy. Oxford University Press. Oxford. 1943. Pg 219 | <urn:uuid:dabc6822-3584-4996-829f-1705e555d510> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Academic/Course_Pages/legal_systems_very_different_12/Papers_12/Irish%20Law%20Osborne.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397428.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00111-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966857 | 4,658 | 2.5625 | 3 |
till the early twentieth century
symptoms like inexplicable paralysis
and nervous breakdown
s were explained to be caused by a disease from the womb, called 'hysteria' (hystera
is the Greek
word for womb
Around 1880 French neurologist Martin Charcot researched the differences between the symptoms of hysteria, epilepsy and psychic disorders. He put that there had to be a physical cause of hysteria, and found out that this physical cause was not to be found in the womb, yet in the central nervous system. Even though he gave many public lectures with hypnosis-experiments on women, Charcot denied that hysteria would be a gender-sensitive disorder. His experiments were of great influence on the work of Sigmund Freud, a frequent visitor of Charcot's lectures in Paris. | <urn:uuid:89becc46-ab47-4a1a-b18e-586152808366> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://everything2.com/user/Soberty/writeups/Hysteria | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783397428.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154957-00028-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962435 | 162 | 3.15625 | 3 |
María Aurora Yánez-Pérez, M.A.
Sexual harassment in schools, as in the workplace, has definitely taken its place in the public eye. Schools have received their wake-up call through highly publicized and costly litigation. Schools seem to be aware of sexual harassment, especially student-to-student sexual harassment, but they sometimes have difficulty addressing the issue because of its volatile nature. IDRA has published numerous articles on this topic before, two of which are referenced below. This article is part of the continuing efforts by IDRA to provide ongoing information on sexual harassment in schools.
Defining Sexual Harassment
The legal definition for sexual harassment is still evolving, but some helpful interpretations have emerged. Peggy Orenstein presents a definition that relates to school situations whether they be student to student, employee to student or vice versa. She says that sexual harassment consists of sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other inappropriate verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when any of the following occur:
- Submission is made, either explicitly or implicitly, a term or condition of an individual's employment or education.
- Submission or rejection by the harassee is used as the basis for academic or employment decisions affecting that individual.
- Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual's academic or professional performance, or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive employment or educational environment (Orenstein, 1994).
The two forms of sexual harassment that are identified within school settings are quid pro quo and hostile environment sexual harassment. Quid pro quo in its simplest form involves an exchange such as sexual favors for grades. The hostile environment form involves a prevailing course of conduct, action or behavior that is offensive to a "reasonable person" similarly situated.
Thus, sexual harassment is not based on the content or the intention of the harasser but in the perception of the person who is being influenced.
Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, employees are protected from discrimination due to race, national origin or gender. Recently, principles from Title VII have been applied to education and schools. Title IX specifically forbids sex discrimination in schools and other educational organizations that receive federal government funds. Its protection of students and employees includes the areas of recruitment, advertising, hiring, upgrading, tenure, firing, rates of pay, fringe benefits, leave for pregnancy and childbirth, and participation in employer-sponsored activities.
These definitions and laws are the framework that guide sexual harassment policies today. Now that we know what sexual harassment is and what guides many of the court actions taking place throughout the nation, it is important to go through the steps of how school districts can prevent sexual harassment.
School districts can begin at the most basic level by creating written policies that prohibit sexual harassment. A school district has to send a clear message that certain behaviors will not be tolerated. Definitions and examples of inappropriate behavior should be included to avoid any ambiguity or confusion. Once these clear rules have been established, schools should post them in locations accessible to students, faculty and staff. Title IX requires that the information be distributed annually to employees.
The policy should clarify that when a complaint is reported, everyone involved will be treated with anonymity. Also, every site within the school district needs to have a complaint manager at the district level who gathers and keeps all the information. This is vital when and if a complaint is brought forward.
A last fundamental step is to include specific language regarding sexual harassment in students' and employees' policy handbooks.
Staff members within the school must receive training to sensitize them to issues of harassment. Fundamentally, they must understand that only one type of relationship should exist between them and their students: a professional relationship. In addition to understanding the issue of sexual harassment, staff members must also take a strong stand against it. This is vital within schools because staff members are the students' role models and thus need to exhibit appropriate behavior.
Principals should conduct periodic "environmental scanning" to determine student, teacher and staff attitudes within their schools.
Schools need to provide information to students about what constitutes appropriate and inappropriate behavior. Mary Joe McGrath states that many students who have received sensitivity training regarding sexual harassment in schools have changed. Once they understood that sexual harassment includes unwanted touching and degrading behaviors and language, they began to oppose those types of behaviors (1996).
Sensitizing students effectively will not discourage them from exploring relationships and understanding that relationships can be mutually satisfying if both parties want the attention. That is not the purpose. The purpose is to teach students that it is not "okay" to keep quiet when the behavior of one student makes another feel embarrassed, uncomfortable or threatened.
Finally, schools should have appropriate grievance procedures to ensure that students will be heard and believed. The procedures should provide both formal and informal opportunities. Schools can often avoid going through costly court procedures if appropriate action is taken during an informal investigation. Mary Larson suggests using the following questions to review grievance procedures:
- Does the grievance procedure provide an opportunity for informal consultation and, where appropriate, informal resolution before moving into formal procedures?
- Does the grievance procedure provide for impartial investigation that includes fact finding, careful review, due process and opportunity for appeal?
- Does the grievance procedure include an appropriate remedy based on the severity of the offense and institute corrective action where there is a finding of harassment? (1996).
Currently there is not a law that requires schools to provide training on sexual harassment. However, school districts that are found to have incidents of sexual harassment in their schools are viewed more harshly by the courts than are those schools who have had more extensive staff and student training. Thus, it behooves school districts to train everyone from school board members and superintendents to clerical staff and custodians.
The IDRA Desegregation Assistance Center - South Central Collaborative (SCC) provides various services to schools and districts for dealing with sexual harassment in public schools. These services include training in sexual harassment policies, creating a non-hostile environment and sexual harassment and the law. The Desegregation Assistance Center - SCC also provides assistance in selecting materials that are free of gender bias and in developing policies and procedures on sexual harassment. For more information, contact Bradley Scott, director of the Desegregation Assistance Center - SCC, at 210-444-1710.
Capitol Publications, Inc. School Law News (Alexandria, Va.: Capitol Publications, Inc., March 21, 1997), 25(6).
Larson, Marta. "Is Harassment a Problem in Your School?" Equity Coalition (Ann Arbor, Michigan: Program for Educational Opportunity, University of Michigan School of Education, Spring 1996).
McGrath, Mary Jo. Sexual Harassment Investigation Training Manual: Training for Administrators and Staff (Santa Barbara, Calif.: Mary JO McGrath, 1996).
Orenstein, P. School Girls: Young Women, Self-Esteem and the Confidence Gap (New York, NY: Anchor Books, 1994).
Penny-Velázquez, Michaela. "Combating Students' Peer-to-Peer Sexual Harassment: Creating Gender Equity in Schools," IDRA Newsletter (San Antonio, Texas: Intercultural Development Research Association, March 1994).
Scott, B. "Administrator's Alert: Sexual Harassment is Everybody's Business," IDRA Newsletter (San Antonio, Texas: Intercultural Development Research Association, March 1996).
Thompson Publishing Group. Educator's Guide to Controlling Sexual Harassment (Washington, D.C.: Thompson Publishing Group, May 1997).
María Aurora Yánez-Pérez, is a research assistant in the IDRA Division of Research and Evaluation. Comments and questions may be sent to her via e-mail at
[©1997, IDRA. This article originally appeared in the IDRA Newsletter by the Intercultural Development Research Association. Every effort has been made to maintain the content in its original form. However, accompanying charts and graphs may not be provided here. To receive a copy of the original article by mail or fax, please fill out our information request and feedback form. Permission to reproduce this article is granted provided the article is reprinted in its entirety and proper credit is given to IDRA and the author.] | <urn:uuid:25a0265e-3150-4856-b94e-bdb5c3d622c0> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.idra.org/IDRA_Newsletter/August_1997_Policy/Sexual_Harassment_Policies_and_Schools/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783394414.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154954-00047-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944259 | 1,694 | 3.375 | 3 |
It’s well-known that young people typically leave rural areas in search of higher education and work opportunities. There’s also a common belief out there that this out-migration of young people represents a “brain drain.” Recently, a University of Minnesota Extension study showed that though young people (18-29) might be leaving rural areas, between 1990 and 2010 rural areas across the US were attracting people age 30-49. These authors argue that this is evidence of a rural “brain gain.” So the question for us is, is this true for Oregon? Is this really a brain gain?
Between 1990 and 2010 rural Oregon did attract people age 30-49, but these in-flows of people weren’t necessarily associated with gains in the overall education levels of the population – we actually can’t be sure if this in-migration is synonymous with “brain gain.”
Evidence to Support the Nugget:
- The charts below show that the 1990s and 2000s saw net in-migration of 30-49 year olds in non-metro Oregon
- Net in-migration of 30-49 year olds is not associated with gains in the level of education among the population.
- Correlation of non-metro net migration rates with change in the percent of adults age 25+ with a Bachelor’s or more actually reveals a negative relationship in the 1990s and 2000s (rho = -.47 for 1990s, rho = -.08 for 2000s). This means that counties with higher net in-migration rates of people age 30 to 49 had lower growth in the percent of people with a Bachelor’s or more in these two decades. In other words, counties with high rates of in-migration of 30-49 year olds saw low growth in educational attainment, while counties with low rates of in-migration of 30-49 year olds saw high growth in educational attainment.
- According to linear regression, these negative correlations were statistically significant for the 1990s, but very small (b = -.0057), and non-existent for the 2000s. This ultimately means that in the 2000s net in-migration of 30 to 49 years had nothing to do with changes in educational attainment among the population, and in the 1990s net in-migration had only a small amount to do with changes in educational attainment, and they were negative.
- There may be a few reasons for this finding:
- The education levels of rural 30-49 year old in-migrants in the 1990s were actually relatively low.
- We aren’t accurately measuring brain gain. Instead of using overall educational attainment in counties perhaps we need to be measuring the “brainy-ness” of the in-migrants themselves. Unfortunately, we don’t know the education levels of these in-migrants because the data don’t exist.
- The effect of in-migrants age 30-49 on the overall education level in the non-metro counties may be muted by the presence of other age groups and their education levels.
- New-comers, age 30 to 49, are a reality in our rural communities. This means we can think about and talk about rural communities in Oregon as places of growth in this respect. Out-migration of youth can happen at the same time as in-migration of middle-aged adults. It also means that we shouldn’t forget to include these new-comers in our programs. They may have some cool ideas about new programs or ways of offering current programs and they’ll likely benefit greatly from being involved!
- The data also show us that we can’t infer that the in-migration of middle-aged adults to rural areas represents a brain gain. If we want to find out about the education levels of this new population, we need to gather better data.
- What else do you take away from these data? | <urn:uuid:54899e07-f64e-41bb-9329-fef4cf378a0c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/socialdemography/2013/10/03/rural-brain-drain-or-gain/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393533.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00092-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964348 | 831 | 3 | 3 |
- What other names is Vitamin A known by?
- What is Vitamin A?
- How does Vitamin A work?
- Are there safety concerns?
- Are there any interactions with medications?
- Dosing considerations for Vitamin A.
Vitamin A is used for treating vitamin A deficiency. It is also used to reduce complications of diseases such as malaria, HIV, measles, and diarrhea in children with vitamin A deficiency.
Women use vitamin A for heavy menstrual periods, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), vaginal infections, yeast infections, "lumpy breasts" (fibrocystic breast disease), and to prevent breast cancer. Some women with HIV use vitamin A to decrease the risk of transmitting HIV to the baby during pregnancy, childbirth, or breast-feeding.
Men use vitamin A to raise their sperm count.
Some people use vitamin A for improving vision and treating eye disorders including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, and cataracts.
Vitamin A is also used for skin conditions including acne, eczema, psoriasis, cold sores, wounds, burns, sunburn, keratosis follicularis (Darier's disease), ichthyosis (noninflammatory skin scaling), lichen planus pigmentosus, and pityriasis rubra pilaris.
It is also used for gastrointestinal ulcers, Crohn's disease, gum disease, diabetes, Hurler syndrome (mucopolysaccharidosis), sinus infections, hayfever, and urinary tract infections (UTIs).
Vitamin A is also used for shigellosis, diseases of the nervous system, nose infections, loss of sense of smell, asthma, persistent headaches, kidney stones, overactive thyroid, iron-poor blood (anemia), deafness, ringing in the ears, and precancerous mouth sores (leukoplakia).
Other uses include preventing and treating cancer, protecting the heart and cardiovascular system, slowing the aging process, and boosting the immune system.
Vitamin A is applied to the skin to improve wound healing, reduce wrinkles, and to protect the skin against UV radiation.
- Vitamin A deficiency. Taking vitamin A by mouth is effective for preventing and treating symptoms of vitamin A deficiency. Vitamin A deficiency can occur in people with protein deficiency, diabetes, over-active thyroid, fever, liver disease, cystic fibrosis, or an inherited disorder called abetalipoproteinemia.
Possibly Effective for...
- Breast cancer. Premenopausal women with a family history of breast cancer who consume high levels of vitamin A in their diet seem to have reduced risk of developing breast cancer. It is not known if taking vitamin A supplements has the same benefit.
- Cataracts. Research suggests that high intake of vitamin A in the diet is linked to a lower risk of developing cataracts.
- Diarrhea related to HIV. Taking vitamin A along with conventional medicines seems to decrease the risk of death from diarrhea in HIV-positive children with vitamin A deficiency.
- Malaria. Taking vitamin A by mouth seems to decrease malaria symptoms in children less than 3 years-old living in areas where malaria is common.
- Measles. Taking vitamin A by mouth seems to reduce the risk of measles complications or death in children with measles and vitamin A deficiency.
- Precancerous lesions in the mouth (oral leukoplakia). Research suggests that taking vitamin A can help treat precancerous lesions in the mouth.
- Recovery from laser eye surgery (photoreactive keratectomy). Taking vitamin A by mouth along with vitamin E seems to improve healing after laser eye surgery.
- Complications after pregnancy. Taking vitamin A seems to reduce the risk of diarrhea and fever after pregnancy in malnourished women.
- Complications during pregnancy. Taking vitamin A by mouth seems to reduce the risk of death and night blindness during pregnancy in malnourished women.
- Eye disease affecting the retina (retinitis pigmentosa). Research suggests that taking vitamin A can slow the progression of an eye disease that causes damage to the retina.
Possibly Ineffective for...
- Breathing problems that affect newborns (bronchopulmonary dysplasia). Research shows that injecting vitamin does not reduce the risk of breathing problems in low birth weight infants.
- Gastrointestinal side effects of chemotherapy. Taking vitamin A by mouth does not prevent or reduce gastrointestinal side effects of chemotherapy in children.
- Fetal and early infant death. Taking vitamin A supplements before, during, or after pregnancy does not seem to reduce the risk of fetal or early infant death when taken by malnourished women. However, giving vitamin A to some infants seems to lower the risk of infant death in areas where malnutrition or vitamin A deficiency is common.
- A type of skin cancer called melanoma. Research shows that taking vitamin A by mouth does not increase disease-free survival in people with melanoma.
- Miscarriage. Women who take vitamin A by mouth, alone or in combination with other vitamins before or during early pregnancy, do not have a lower risk of miscarriage or stillbirth.
- Osteoarthritis. Taking a specific product containing selenium, vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin E (Selenium ACE) does not appear to improve osteoarthritis. Also, taking additional vitamin A does not reduce pain in people with spinal osteoarthritis who have adequate levels of vitamin A.
- Tuberculosis. Low levels of vitamin A are common in people with tuberculosis. However, taking vitamin A does not appear to improve symptoms or decrease the risk of death in people with tuberculosis.
Likely Ineffective for...
- Head and neck cancer. Taking vitamin A by mouth does not reduce the risk of developing new tumors or improve survival in people with head and neck cancer.
- HIV transmission. Taking vitamin A by mouth does not lower the risk of passing HIV to the fetus during pregnancy, to newborns during delivery, or to infants during breastfeeding. In fact, early research suggests that HIV-positive women who take vitamin A supplements during pregnancy might have an increased risk of passing HIV to their babies through breast milk.
- Lower respiratory tract infections. Taking vitamin A by mouth does not prevent or reduce symptoms of lower respiratory tract infections in children. In fact, vitamin A is linked to a slight increase in the risk of respiratory tract infections in children.
- Pneumonia. Taking vitamin A by mouth does not help treat or prevent pneumonia in children living in developing countries.
Insufficient Evidence to Rate Effectiveness for...
- Alcohol-related liver disease. Early research shows that taking vitamin A together with coenzyme Q10 and other vitamins and minerals does not improve survival in people with alcohol-related liver disease.
- Anemia. Taking vitamin A may help increase levels of proteins that store iron. This may reduce the risk of anemia in children and pregnant women. However, in developing nations in which anemia is common, taking vitamin A (retinol) with iron and folate does not seem to improve anemia in pregnant women compared to taking only iron and folate.
- Cervical cancer. Research suggests that increased vitamin A levels in the blood or higher vitamin A intakes are associated with a lower risk of cervical cancer. However, this only appears to be the case when both forms of vitamin A, retinol and carotenes, are considered. Intake of retinol alone is not linked with a reduced risk of cervical cancer.
- Child development. Taking vitamin A does not appear to improve growth in children with normal nutrition. However, taking vitamin A might improve growth in children with vitamin A deficiency.
- Cancer that starts in the bone marrow (chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML)). Early research shows that taking a specific vitamin A product (Aquasol, Armour Pharmaceuticals) together with busulfan therapy does not improve survival in people with chronic myelogenous leukemia. Taking vitamin A with busulfan therapy might also increase the risk of toxicity.
- Rectal damage caused by radiation therapy. Early research suggests that taking vitamin A (retinol palmitate) can reduce rectal symptoms caused by pelvic radiotherapy.
- Colorectal cancer. Taking vitamin A alone or in combination with beta-carotene does not seem to prevent colorectal cancer.
- Esophageal cancer. Some population research suggests that higher intake of beta-carotene and vitamin A is linked to a reduced risk of esophageal cancer. However, other higher quality evidence suggests that taking vitamin A in combination with beta-carotene does not prevent esophageal cancer.
- HIV. Taking vitamin A during pregnancy does not seem to reduce the risk of death for the mother or child. Also, vitamin A supplementation during pregnancy does not seem to prevent HIV progression in women with HIV and low levels of vitamin A. However, giving vitamin A to HIV-positive infants and children seems to reduce the risk of HIV-related death.
- Lung cancer. Early research suggests that taking vitamin A by mouth might improve survival and reduce the development of new tumors in people with lung cancer. However, other research shows that vitamin A has no effect on lung cancer survival. Also, vitamin A seems to increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers and people exposed to asbestos.
- Ovarian cancer. Population research suggests that taking vitamin A does not reduce the risk of developing ovarian cancer.
- Overall mortality. Giving vitamin A to children aged 6 months to 5 years seems to decrease the risk of death, especially in those at risk for vitamin deficiency. However, taking vitamin A does not seem to reduce the risk of death in healthy adults.
- Pancreatic cancer. Taking vitamin A in combination with beta-carotene does not seem to prevent pancreatic cancer.
- Prostate cancer. Vitamin A intake from the diet does not seem to be linked with a reduced risk of prostate cancer.
- Stomach cancer. Taking vitamin A alone or with beta-carotene does not seem to prevent stomach cancer.
- Promoting good vision.
- Age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
- Preventing and speeding recovery from infections.
- Improving immune function.
- Wound healing.
- Relieving hay fever symptoms.
- Other conditions.
Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database rates effectiveness based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Effective, Likely Effective, Possibly Effective, Possibly Ineffective, Likely Ineffective, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate (detailed description of each of the ratings).
Next: How does Vitamin A work?
Report Problems to the Food and Drug Administration
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit the FDA MedWatch website or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Get breaking medical news. | <urn:uuid:e33f11b9-09aa-4f75-a2a2-fdf33cc753b6> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.rxlist.com/vitamin_a/supplements.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783402479.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155002-00150-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.91968 | 2,252 | 3.546875 | 4 |
This is a great example of how nice it often is to reason about refraction stuff using Fermat's principle.
Let's reduce all this to 2 dimensions. The surface tension produces something like this:
Now if we want to now were a light "ray" needs to go to get from some light source, we just need to find the way that takes it the least time. Light is slower in water, so it wants to go as far as possible in air – of course, only if that's not too much longer to go. So far from the insect, a light ray would just enter the water straight perpendicular, since that minimises both the total waylength and the path in water.
However, right below the insect foot, that won't work – the foot itself is not translucent* – and, more importantly, a little way left or right from right below the foot the quickest path will still be right through the foot, since any other path will require the light to travel substantially more through water, while the total path length is only a little shorter.
so all these rays are "invisible". Whether that works out this way depends on how far we are away from right-below-the-foot, so that makes a circular shadow, even when the foot itself has another shape.
*Actually, it is
kind of translucent I suppose, but we now it won't get hit by a lot of light total. So if that bit of light has to be spread over a whole lot of ground, there won't be much intensity down there. | <urn:uuid:08a96650-12f7-49e1-8220-7a11b42bac09> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/55833/what-causes-insects-to-cast-large-shadows-from-where-their-feet-are/55881 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396029.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00167-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959301 | 319 | 2.5625 | 3 |
The ancient city of Ephesus (Turkish: Efes), located near the Aegean Sea in modern day Turkey, was one of the great cities of the Greeks in Asia Minor and home to the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Today, the ruins of Ephesus are a major tourist attraction, especially for travelers on Mediterranean cruises. Ephesus is also a sacred site for Christians due to its association with several biblical figures, including St. Paul, St. John the Evangelist and the Virgin Mary. The religious history of ancient Ephesus was the subject of the webmaster's thesis at Oxford (completed in June 2007), so this section is even more comprehensive than most - including the most detailed map of Ephesus on the Web! Excerpts from the thesis are included among the background articles in this city guide - see the menu at left.
Temple of Artemis
In ancient times it was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, but today the Temple of Artemis is represented by a single column standing in a swamp.
House of the Virgin
Discovered in a vision by a bedridden German nun in 1812, this stone building is believed by many Catholics and Muslims to be where the Virgin Mary lived her last years. There is also a healing fountain.
A very important civic building where the sacred fire of Hestia was tended, official visitors were received by civic and religious dignitaries, and where two statues of the Ephesian Artemis were found.
Grotto of St. Paul
Although not generally accessible to the public, this cave is worth mentioning for the important frescoes and inscriptions that were found inside.
Basilica of St. John
The Basilica of St. John was built by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century over the traditional tomb of John the Evangelist. The site became a major pilgrimage destination in the Early Middle Ages.
Temple of Hadrian
This attractive Roman imperial temple was constructed in 118 AD and reconstructed in the fifth century. Its tympanum bears an interesting frieze that may depict Medusa.
The Isabey Mosque was built in 1375 at the direction of the Emir of Aydin. It incorporates columns and stones recycled from the ruins of Ephesus and the Temple of Artemis.
Church of Mary
The walls, an arch, and the baptismal pool remain intact at the Church of Mary, possibly the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the world and the site of the Council of Ephesus in 431. | <urn:uuid:68b5b91b-7946-4fc9-9d50-a8f68c8a75cc> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesus/map | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783393997.50/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154953-00107-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964213 | 530 | 3.03125 | 3 |
|A pussy cat with a purulent abcess. Photo: Zemlinki!|
"Containing, consisting of, or being pus."
OK, so I apologize for the gross word today but this is one word that a lot of people are unsure about. How so? Let me explain a little bit.
When I was new to the world of Veterinary Medicine, I would occasionally come across a patient who might have an abcess or sore of some type. Pus is a regular occurrence at a vet hospital. One day, while trying to write down my description of a patient's wound in their medical file, I became stumped.
At first I was inclined to write "pussy" on the paper... but that just didn't seem right. Besides, I didn't want to write that word down and look like an idiot. I decided to stick with "pus-y" instead. I brought the file to the doctor I was assisting so she could read my notes and we could talk about the patient.
We also discussed the proper way to describe something that contains pus. You don't say a "pussy sore" or "pusy sore". The right way to describe a sore that contains pus would be to say that it is purulent.
Several years later, I was relieved to see that I wasn't the only technician who had ever made this mistake. I would see other technicians writing the same things I did down. | <urn:uuid:d322a1ee-ae80-483f-bae4-c1fcee326b8f> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.mypawsitivelypets.com/2013/01/veterinary-medical-terminology-101.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783392159.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154952-00009-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984662 | 299 | 2.5625 | 3 |
Professor Adler is preparing a book on the legal aspects of the Arab-Israeli conflict. This chapter is being published on the site with his kind permission. We have split the chaper into individual sections, with links below, for easier navigation
Download entire chapter as a PDF file here.
We are now approaching the 40th anniversary of the
Six Days War. At the present time it is important to recall the causes
of that war and the factors that have led us to our present situation. These
are too extensive and complicated to set out here in detail, but it should
be understood that the Six Day War was caused essentially by a local expression
of a wider conflict.
Regionally, the Western Powers retained historical, political and economic
interests in the Middle East. These blocked the Soviet intentions to penetrate
the region, limiting its sphere of influence, while at the same time,
seeking to destabilise Arab relationships with the West. In Egypt, Russia
had already supplanted America by financing the construction of the Aswan
Dam and supplying arms to Syria and other Islamic Middle-Eastern countries.
Locally, the scarcity of water in Israel led to an escalating tense situation
upon which the Soviets capitalised with their misinformation tactics.
This resulted in a war which Israel unsuccessfully attempted to avert
and the results reverberate to this very day. | <urn:uuid:9b4ec3e5-9bc0-494b-8598-38e4c16ab6b6> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.sixdaywar.co.uk/6_day_war_aftermath_prof_adler_intro.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396875.58/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00041-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943999 | 278 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Other diseases and thrush?
Apr 16, 1997
I realize that on previous occasions you have mentioned that all the opportunistic dieseases that prey on people when they are HIV+ are all symptoms of other illnesses, I was wondering what other illnesses might bring on an occurrence of thrush? Thanks.
Response from Mr. Sowadsky
Hi. Thank you for your question.
Thrush is a yeast infection in the mouth. It commonly occurs in children, but is not normally seen in adults. In adults, it normally occurs when there is some type of problem with the immune system. The more severely damaged the immune system, the greater the chances that thrush (and other opportunistic diseases) will occur. People who have other diseases of the immune system (like leukemia), persons with various forms of cancer, and persons who are on immunosupressive drugs (like organ transplant recipients), can also get Thrush. These groups of people can also get other opportunistic infections as well. The key to remember is that opportunistic diseases are not just seen in persons with AIDS. They're also seen in persons with other problems involving the immune system. If a person is diagnosed with an opportunistic disease (including Thrush), they are often tested for HIV, and other diseases of the immune system as well. But having an opportunistic disease does not necessarily mean the person has AIDS. Remember, other diseases involving problems with the immune system can also lead to opportunistic infections. Thrush is also sometimes seen in persons on strong antibiotics. However, once the antibiotics are discontinued, Thrush should go away.
If you have any further questions, please feel free to call the Centers for Disease Control at 1.800.232.4636 (Nationwide).
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Experts appearing on this page are independent and are solely responsible for editing and fact-checking their material. Neither TheBody.com nor any advertiser is the publisher or speaker of posted visitors' questions or the experts' material. | <urn:uuid:29261a7e-b78c-43c0-b3fe-9b6b393247f9> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SafeSex/Q9341.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783392099.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154952-00091-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959868 | 479 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Mrs. Merz gives her class an assignment to write poems apologizing. The sixth graders like the assignment so much, they assemble them in book form and ask those to whom they apologized to write a note of forgiveness back, also included in the book.
A very original concept, many forms of poetry are in this book, which makes it enjoyable to read as it is not repetitive. There is even a pantoum which I had never before heard of. The apologies and forgiveness notes range from things the kids are not really sorry for to deep, heartfelt and moving. The illustrations are done a mixture of mediums it looks like, collage, pen and ink, water color. Each page is a different color, leaving the words as focus, the pictures adding to them but not the main draw of the book by any means. Often, the abundance of empty space give impact to the sparse amount of words on the page.
Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee 2007
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Her skill as a poet accessible to young people is unmatched. Zagarenski’s delicately outlined collage drawings and paintings are created on mixed backgrounds–notebook paper, paper bags, newspaper, graph paper, school supplies. This is an important book both for its creativity and for its wisdom.”
For an opening unit on Poetry this would be incredible simply for the examples of all the different types there are. It also could be used as a springboard in a writing lesson on either poetry or letters (a lost art). | <urn:uuid:c059cb53-e171-43f3-89fd-dab47450bcfc> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.lhpl.org/2010/10/this-is-just-to-say-by-joyce-sidman-illustrated-by-pamela-zagarenski-review-for-twu-course/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391766.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00065-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970324 | 322 | 3.140625 | 3 |
When Eleanor Glueck and her husband Sheldon, both distinguished academics and co-authors of several books, were hired by the Law School in 1929, no women held tenured professorships at Harvard University. The Law School offered Sheldon Glueck a position as assistant professor. His wife became a research assistant. Both gladly accepted.
In 1969, six years after Sheldon Glueck, Pound Professor of Law, had retired from his prestigious chair the Faculty of Arts and Sciences still had not offered tenure to any women. Eleanor Glueck was a research associate at the Law School.
It was not until the Federal government began pressuring Harvard to end its discriminatory hiring in 1970 that women and blacks began to ascend to the higher rungs of the academic ladder. Under the executive orders issued in 1970 and 1972 Harvard, like thousands of others schools, businesses and other institutions employing one-third of the nation's labor force, could lose their Federal contracts if they fail to devise acceptable "affirmative action" plans for correcting discriminatory employment policies. Federal contracts comprise nearly one-third of Harvard's annual income--about $60 million last year.
Always money conscious, Harvard has responded to the pressure. When Eleanor Glueck--still a lecturer--died last year, 14 women and 29 minority group members held tenure. The University has spent between $50,000 and $250,000 in the past two years drawing up three unsuccessful affirmative action plans and one that is now pending revision. Few examples of unfair treatment of women or minority group members are as blatant as that of the Gluecks. Harvard claimed in 1940, as it does today, that the University hires only the "best person in the world" to fill each faculty position. If blacks or women did not hold high positions, it must have been that they were not qualified. In the case of women, perhaps their feminine timidity or child-rearing responsibilities kept them from producing the books required for most full professorships. The blame was with the employee, not the University.
Subjective factors in the past have cloaked discriminatory hiring decisions. Civil rights lawsuits were thus usually ineffectual without evidence of obvious patterns of discrimination against women and black applicants.
In order to unmask these patterns, the affirmative action would require employers to conduct an extensive analysis of all jobs, hiring procedures and policies within the institution. If this analysis uncovers patterns of discrimination, the university must change its policies, enlarge its search procedures and initiate training programs. In addition, the institution must set goals and timetables for placing women and minorities in jobs from which they have previously been unfairly excluded. The program forces the employer to find and examine its own possible hiring biases. He can no longer say "Well, they just weren't qualified."
Harvard this Spring completed its "utilization analysis" of faculty and administrative jobs. Not surprisingly, the University found that women and minority group members were underrepresented in higher faculty and administrative posts.
"While there has been an increase over the past three years in the number of minority and women professors at Harvard, the numbers still remain small," Harvard admitted in the report it sent to the Department of Health, Education and Welfare May 1.
As part of its plan, the University will now treat maternity leave as part of sick leave, granting women time off with pay as long as they have not used up their yearly quota of days off. The University has also initiated a new grievance procedure, begun giving part-time appointments with tenure, opened up search procedures, and set target figures for hiring women and minorities in faculty and administrative positions.
In spite of the progress being made on procedural matters, the University's numerical goals are extremely modest, and in some areas even regressive.
In their affirmative action plan, the University states that the University will concentrate on junior faculty positions since "in this way, faculties can develop a group of proven ability to be promoted from within to more senior positions." Yet the goals actually project a decrease of four women assistant professors--the lowest ladder position--for next year, despite an overall increase of 31 such positions and although 109 of these posts will be available between now and 1975.
In many cases, the figures are misleading, making it appear as if women and minorities are permeating traditionally male fields when, in reality, these people are segregated in positions specifically related to women or minority affairs.
The figures sent to HEW show that four of the 17 full deans in the University are female, and project that the one post opening up will go to a woman. This is less impressive when one notes that the four women deans are affiliated with the Radcliffe structure, and the one dean position opening up in the University is one which Matina Horner has just created, Radcliffe dean of admissions, financial aid and women's education. A woman will fill that post.
Just as Radcliffe is a ghetto of opportunity for women, so special faculty appointments for people teaching Indian Affairs or Black Studies create specialized openings for minority group members while the traditional fields remain closed. The Ed School projections call for an increase of three minority lecturers. At the same time, that school is creating two new faculty positions: an urban professorship and a faculty adviser for the American Indian Program.
Unlike Eleanor Glueck, the women now employed by the University are no longer passively accepting unfair treatment. Women at Harvard filed at least two charges of sex discrimination with HEW this year: Franziska Hosken claimed she was unfairly denied consideration for a position at the Graduate School of Design, and a group of women law school students submitted a long list of charges including claims of discriminatory admissions and financial aid policies. | <urn:uuid:f8010e4e-5f05-4c60-b7e6-971e5a5bc7c9> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1973/6/14/harvards-affirmative-action-plan-slow-progress/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783394414.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154954-00039-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967463 | 1,151 | 2.65625 | 3 |
- "A crawling foulness will overcome you because you did not shut the gates of your heart to iniquity."
- ―A prophetic warning of the rat plague.
The rat plague (called "The Doom of Pandyssia" by the Heart) is an all-consuming disease, originally believed to be rodent-borne, which decimates the population of Dunwall. According to studies conducted by Doctor Galvani, the plague has an unusual migration pattern: the oldest strains of the disease exist in the city's slums and other impoverished districts, rather than the docks, the most likely location for invasive foreign pests to have entered the city.
Corvo Attano eventually discovers that the plague was introduced to Dunwall by Royal Spymaster Hiram Burrows as a means of putting an end to poverty in the city, with the results proving catastrophic.
Symptoms and TreatmentEdit
Symptoms of the plague include discolored skin (particularly on the face and chest), weight loss, and thinning of the hair. As the disease progresses, the lungs and brain become more damaged, leaving its sufferers with a chronic cough and a significant decrease in cognitive ability.
Late-stage symptoms include subconjunctival hemorrhaging, which causes blood to drip from the eyes, and infestation by parasitic stinging insects. Early efforts to combat the plague are fruitless once these symptoms surface, and prior to the discovery of a cure, the disease is lethal at this stage. Plague sufferers in the last stages of the disease are known colloquially as "weepers".
Preventative methods, such as Sokolov's Elixir and Piero's Spiritual Remedy, exist but are expensive and scarce. As such, they are generally not affordable to the majority of citizens in Dunwall. Cheaper and less effective methods for combating the disease have emerged, including bootleg elixir produced by the Bottle Street gang, homeopathic remedies, and ritualistic ceremonies. Although official sources discourage the use of these methods, given the inaccessibility of elixirs, they are still commonly used.
Natural resistance to the plague does exist, as explained by a doctor in the Flooded District who is caring for a dying patient. He emphasizes, however, that the chances of the body fighting off the disease on its own are a thousand to one.
The rat plague has killed half of Dunwall's population since its initial spread. Empress Jessamine Kaldwin sent Corvo to solicit the other nations of the Empire for aid in stemming the plague, but the effort was in vain, and Dunwall was subsequently blockaded.
While the Empress was unwilling to use draconian measures of containment to prevent the plague's spread, others in her government were not; following her assassination, Lord Regent Burrows institutes martial law and commissions Anton Sokolov to invent new methods of containment. Walls of light quarantine infected areas, a dusk-to-dawn curfew has been instituted (both to reduce human contact with rats and to decrease the chance of infected individuals breaking quarantine), and both civil and religious officials have been given wide-reaching power to deal with disruptive or uncooperative persons.
Red crosses mark buildings where the plague has struck, and linen-wrapped bodies that await disposal litter Dunwall's streets and residences. Guards are instructed to place these corpses on barges and then trains bound for the Flooded District by official Dead Counters; however, some guards have taken to dumping them into the city's waterways to avoid prolonged exposure to the disease, if the bodies are not first consumed by rats.
Individuals suspected of contracting the plague have their property and assets immediately seized by The City Barrister, which are transferred to the state if there are no surviving kin to inherit. Corruption and bribery within the Legal District has led to false claims of infection on otherwise healthy persons so that their property may be seized for political and financial gain.
During the infestation, scientists such as Doctor Galvani and Anton Sokolov conduct research to find a cure for the plague, occasionally in secret due to a ban on certain scientific practices. In the low chaos ending of Dishonored, provided that both Piero Joplin and Anton Sokolov survive, they combine their efforts and find a cure for the plague that heals even late-stage victims. They can at one point be seen curing weepers in their shared laboratory.
- The rat plague is loosely based on the real-world bubonic/septicemic plague. It too was an all-consuming disease that was thought to be carried by rodents in the Middle Ages (in reality, it was carried by the fleas living in the rats' fur, as well as through direct contact with those already infected, but this was not discovered until centuries later). The environment of Dunwall also reflects this parallel, as bodies littered the streets during the bubonic plague, with the same happening in Dunwall. Also, houses infected by the bubonic plague were marked with a cross, which corresponds with those marked on select houses in Dunwall.
- Unlike the bubonic plague, however, the drastic measures put in place to stop the spread such as sealing houses and whole districts did not prove effective in Dunwall. This is most likely due to the plague's deliberate introduction and the pervasiveness of the rats.
- An Old Serkonan poem tells the tale of death caused by a "a disease from the East," suggesting that there was an awareness of the plague long before it reached Dunwall.
- A guest at the Boyle Party claims that the "rats came a half year before the Empress died."
- ↑ Galvani's Speculation
- ↑ The Rat Plague (book)
- ↑ The Lord Regent's Confession
- ↑ Weeper Identification and Handling
- ↑ Lieutenant Niles' Report
- ↑ Avoiding the Rat Plague
- ↑ Dead Counter Responsibilities
- ↑ Eminent Domain (book)
- ↑ The City Barrister
- ↑ Timsh's Daily Business
- ↑ Galvani Academy Notice
- ↑ Developer Commentary - Rat Plague
World in the Dishonored series | <urn:uuid:60f060ad-154d-4974-aec3-26eff2040235> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://dishonored.wikia.com/wiki/Rat_Plague | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783391766.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154951-00020-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956336 | 1,258 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Library of Burned Books to Recall Nazi Barbarism
A German foundation plans to create a "library of burned books" to honor authors persecuted by the Nazis. In order to remember barbarism and victimization of authors, the Moses Mendelssohn Center for European-Jewish Studies in Potsdam is launching a "library of burned books." And even though the financing for the project has not yet been secured, its promoters are hard-pressed to keep quiet about the project."The point is to collect a selection of these titles," said Julius Schoeps, who runs the center and initiated the project. "This library should be on a few bookshelves and tour more than 3,000 high schools. We believe this is a type of living memorial, more important than one made of stone or iron." | <urn:uuid:0547c32d-a9cd-4dc3-b0fc-d5a4a0fd8d70> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://lisnews.org/node/18648 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783395560.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154955-00061-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954358 | 163 | 3.265625 | 3 |
IB Fundamental Concepts
The Three Fundamental Concepts of the MYP
Adolescents are confronted with a vast and often bewildering array of choices. The MYP is designed to provide students with the values and opportunities that will enable them to develop sound judgment. From its beginning, the MYP has been guided by three fundamental concepts that are rooted in the IB mission statement. These three fundamental concepts are:
Holistic Learning—representing the notions that all knowledge is interrelated and that the curriculum should promote the development of the whole person, whose attributes are described by the IB learner profile
Intercultural Awareness—representing the notion that school communities should encourage and promote international-mindedness by engaging with and exploring other cultures, a key feature of international education as reflected in the attributes of the IB learner profile
Communication—representing the notion that schools should encourage open and effective communication, important skills that contribute to international understanding as exemplified by the attributes of the IB learner profile. | <urn:uuid:eca84f52-34c3-48e6-8798-2d9bae6e1a03> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://schoolweb.psdschools.org/clpms/ib/fundamentalconcepts.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396459.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00039-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933502 | 200 | 3.78125 | 4 |
It may be difficult to see that this wall-hanging is closely related to our Scaled Up afghan as one is all twists and turns, the other is all straight lines.
Scaled Up is representation of Dragon Curves which are ‘curves’ created when you fold a strip of paper many times. Chromatic Scale shows the creases in the paper with successive folds. One colour shows folds that go inwards, the other colour is for folds that go outwards.
The long orange line, in the centre, represents where the paper was folded in half. A quarter of the way from each end are the next longest coloured stripes. These represent the second fold - one inwards and one outwards.
As you continue to fold the strip (which you can only do about six times in real life) more and more creases appear.
Buy the pattern using the link at the top of this page
Some parts of this design are represented on three scarves called Corrugated Comforters
We have a booklet called Dragonometry which explains the mathematics of these curves. See Dragon Curves on the Woolly Thoughts website for more details. | <urn:uuid:1e4686dc-9d38-4aaa-8b97-a2faa328f871> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/chromatic-scale?buy=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783404382.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155004-00201-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958776 | 238 | 2.734375 | 3 |
This workshop illustrates the wide variety of applications of computational thinking at conceptual and practical levels through a series of teacher-participation exercises and presentations. In particular, the workshop includes hands-on activities that teachers can duplicate in their classrooms to illustrate computing principles beyond computer programming.
We will illustrate the use of the popular Computer Science Unplugged activities which show students computing concepts without the use of computers. Much of the material will be based on a new course that runs at Carnegie Mellon University titled Principles of Computation that highlights various aspects of computation, presented in a way that is applicable to all students, not just computer science majors. In addition to the material on computation, we will introduce basics of the Python programming language so teachers can learn how to express some of the basic computing principles as a program without a large amount of syntax or programming "rules".
No programming experience required.
Computational Thinking Photos: 2012
Supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation (DRL-0833496)
Additional support provided by Oracle | <urn:uuid:a5ba78ac-9ed9-4667-891b-e91b2e09a73c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.cs.cmu.edu/activate/ct.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783398873.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154958-00008-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.902492 | 207 | 3.78125 | 4 |
401 East State Street
7th floor East Wing
Mail Code: 402
Trenton, NJ 08625
PH: (609) 292-2908
FX: (609) 984-3962
Various studies show communities of color and low-income
communities are exposed to a disproportionate number of environmental hazards.
To help rectify
environmental inequities, the DEP launched an environmental justice program
to ensure fair treatment for people of all races, cultures, and incomes,
in the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws,
regulations and policies. Environmental justice issues are among the DEP’s
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s
(DEP) Environmental Justice Program encourages community stakeholders
to improve the quality
of life for those who live and work in our developed cities and suburbs.
Environmental justice initiatives seek to engage and empower local municipal
officials and concerned citizens to participate in environmental decision
making in all levels of government.
Environmental justice initiatives can help municipalities
effectively address a host of concerns that are unique to New Jersey’s cities
and older suburbs. Once thriving industrial centers, many cities and older
suburbs today face significant challenges to development and to environmental
protection. Massive factories now stand idle, abandoned on land contaminated
by industry. Pristine open space is limited, leaving little room for parks
and preservation. And while population growth has shifted away from cities
and into new suburbs, older municipalities, struggling to maintain tax
ratables, are often forced to accept polluting industries just to increase
the community’s tax base.
Under the leadership of Gov. James E. McGreevey, New Jersey is focused
on smart growth initiatives that will revitalize densely populated cities
and older, developed suburbs to make these communities cleaner, healthier
places to live, work and raise families. These municipalities are equipped
with the infrastructure to support growth and a wide array of benefits
including easy access to major metropolitan areas, ports, affordable housing,
public transportation, cultural venues, government agencies and health
is Environmental Justice?
EPA defines Environmental
Justice (EJ) as the:
treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless
of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to
the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental
laws, regulations, and policies. Fair treatment means that
no group of people, including a racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic
group, should bear a disproportionate share of the negative
environmental consequences resulting from industrial, municipal,
and commercial operations or the execution of federal, state,
local, and tribal programs and policies."
Implementing environmental justice locally
New Jersey’s unique system of home rule enables communities to chart
their own course for development, and environmental decisions at the local
level are increasingly important to every community. Using environmental
justice as a framework, municipal officials can strategically address local
environmental concerns. Implementing a local environmental justice program
rarely requires additional resources. In fact, many communities already
have the tools to begin considering environmental decisions that often
impact the quality of life for community members and the municipality’s
In July 2003, the National
Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) released the third of its
reports on environmental justice, entitled “Addressing
Community Concerns: How Environmental Justice Relates to Land Use Planning
and Zoning.” (pdf) In the report, NAPA recommends several ways
local officials can implement environmental justice locally. Strategies
- Identify, understand, and communicate local
environment concerns to community members, county, state and federal
- Understand which municipal entities have authority to address environmental
issues, such as members of the city council, zoning board, housing
authority, environmental commission, school board, and the solid waste and recycling
- Review local policies and regulations to find areas in which public participation
can be increased.
- Collaborate with county, regional, state and federal levels of government
to respond to environmental justice concerns.
- Eliminate existing land uses that present public health and environmental
hazards, and adopt flexible zoning techniques.
- Share information and work with other municipal departments to ensure
responses to environmental justice issues are effective.
- Support programs that educate the community and youth about the importance
of protecting and preserving the environment.
- Invite residents, including minorities and low-income community members,
to participate in planning and zoning decisions to ensure their concerns
- Establish overlay zones that impose additional requirements for environmental
- Train municipal staff on environmental justice concerns.
- Use Geographical Information System (GIS) technology
to understand your municipality’s environmental assets and liabilities.
- Take advantage of DEP’s resources to help
ensure protection of public health and the environment in your community.
Taking action on environmental concerns
Achieving environmental justice hinges on identifying and correcting environmental
concerns in your community. Municipal officials can take action to:
- Improve controls on existing industrial facilities,
including zoning regulations, hours of operation, truck routes, noise
- Identify priority areas for brownfields redevelopment
- Create opportunities for tree planting
- Understand watershed issues and their relationship to nearby municipalities
- Develop plans for open space/park development
- Create incentives for using mass transit
- Make road network improvements
- Understand and collect data on health issues
- Facilitate environmental infrastructure improvements such as lead line
replacement in water distribution systems
- Establish environmental authorities or commissions to implement action
- Develop community master plans
Resources for environmental justice
The following are a list of resources that may be helpful for county and
municipal officials. Be sure to visit the Environmental Justice Resources
section of this website. | <urn:uuid:8dbc146d-aa7a-4542-a182-8c441ea6eed1> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.state.nj.us/dep/ej/municipal.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783402746.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624155002-00183-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.88089 | 1,205 | 2.578125 | 3 |
The Dangers of Whooping Cough (Pertussis)
Are you at risk?
Classic Symptoms of Whooping Cough continued...
Symptoms start to ease in the third stage of whooping cough, called the convalescent phase. Coughing fits become less frequent and eventually subside over a few weeks.
To a parent, a child’s coughing fits from pertussis can be disturbing to see. Children often cough themselves beet-red in the face. They may vomit or pass out after a spasm of coughing. Exhausted by coughing, small children can stop breathing for a few moments after a fit. Infants may stop feeding, resulting in weight loss or malnutrition. Hospitalization is often necessary in young children with pertussis.
Infants Most Vulnerable to Serious Whooping Cough
Prior to the vaccine introduced in the 1950s, whooping cough was a common cause of death in young children. Since then, serious cases of pertussis have plummeted, but haven’t disappeared. If anything, whooping cough may be on the rise, experts believe.
Between 2000 and 2006, there were 156 deaths from pertussis reported to the federal government, according to Tami Skoff, MS, an epidemiologist at the CDC National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. “More than 90% of those were in children less than 1 year old,” Scoff tells WebMD. “And, fully 120 of the 156 deaths [77%] were newborns less than 1 month old.”
The vast majority of children survive whooping cough, even if unvaccinated. But Skoff tells WebMD that in children less than 1 year old, serious illness is the rule rather than the exception:
- More than half must be hospitalized
- More than half momentarily stop breathing
- One in eight develop pneumonia
- 1% have seizures
According to Keyserling, pertusssis is even more dangerous in infants under two months old:
- Nine in 10 babies are hospitalized
- 15% to 20% develop pneumonia
- 2% to 4% have seizures
- One in 100 will die from complications of pertussis
Protecting Babies From Whooping Cough With Vaccines
Babies in the U.S. are typically immunized against pertussis in a series of four injections: at 2 months old, 4 months old, 6 months old, and at 15 to 18 months. Until infants receive the third dose of pertussis vaccine at age 6 months, they’re particularly vulnerable to serious illness, experts say. Older children are given a fifth DTaP injection at 4 to 6 years old. And teens should receive a booster shot called Tdap at age 11.
“After that third dose, they have about 80% immunity,” says Skoff. And, if they become infected despite the vaccine, “the partial protection generally results in mild illness.” | <urn:uuid:da097763-dc81-41ea-a5c3-800dbd42e04c> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.webmd.com/children/features/the-dangers-of-whooping-cough-pertussis?page=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399385.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00112-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94964 | 618 | 3.203125 | 3 |
When educators try to inculcate children with the scientific method, the main legacy of traditional science, the outcome is often an educational train wreck. As Jeremy Rifkin, author of The Empathic Civilization, puts it:
[T]he scientific method [is] an approach to learning that has been nearly deified in the centuries following the European Enlightenment. Children are introduced to the scientific method in middle school and informed that it is the only accurate process by which to gather knowledge and learn about the real world around us ... The scientific observer is never a participant in the reality he or she observes, but only a voyeur. As for the world he or she observes, it is a cold, uncaring place, devoid of awe, compassion or sense of purpose. Even life itself is made lifeless to better dissect its component parts. We are left with a purely material world, which is quantifiable but without quality ... The scientific method is at odds with virtually everything we know about our own nature and the nature of the world. It denies the relational aspect of reality, prohibits participation and makes no room for empathic imagination. Students in effect are asked to become aliens in the world.
In Rifkin's view, the way science is currently defined and taught is a profound violation of how today's youngsters -- and an increasing number of scientists -- see the world. Although he does not use these words, the way kids are taught science these days constitutes a form of child abuse. It involves the forced infliction of a false identity. There is an unfortunate precedent -- Native American children who were once forced into white-run schools and forbidden to speak their native tongue or wear native clothing. They were required to become something they were not. Many Native Americans who endured this experience were psychologically scarred. They recall their experiences as a nightmare and speak of them with deep bitterness. Similarly, many young people see themselves as foreigners in the world of science, strangers in a strange land. No wonder they do not fall in love with science and seek it as a career. The separateness, distance, and aloofness required to do science is a repudiation of the relational, embedded, networked way they view their place in the world. They simply are not psychologically geared the way their forebears were for the past 200 years, a fact which many science educators have a hard time accepting.
And not just science educators. All of us are locked into comfortable, personal learning styles that stand us in good stead over the years. We become biased: the learning style that works for me should work for you as well. I bumped into my own learning prejudice recently, while on tour for my book The Power of Premonitions. Following a talk at a bookstore, a woman and her teen-age daughter came forward. The mom said her daughter was fascinated by premonitions and wanted to ask me a question. I listened. She was obviously very intelligent and I was pleased to have touched a young mind. There was a long line of people behind the pair, so I answered her question briefly and concluded, "Thanks! Sorry we can't talk longer, but it's all in Part One of my book." At that point the teen gave me a look suggesting I was demented and said, "You mean like a book. Like you want me to read a book. Like a real book?" The disconnect was painful. For a moment I felt like an old fart about 1,000 years old.
The prevailing image of science as an individual, solitary endeavor is largely inaccurate. In today's world, research problems are tackled by teams of scientists working collaboratively. Scientific papers commonly have dozens of authors. Yet this collaborative image does not come through to teens contemplating science, particularly young women. "Girls steer away from careers in math, science and engineering because they view science as a solitary rather than a social occupation," according to Jacquelynne Eccles, a senior research professor at the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research and the University of Michigan Institute for Research on Women and Gender. Eccles and her colleagues found that young women were more likely than young men to place a high value on occupations that permitted flexibility and did not require them to be away from their family. The young women also valued working with people. In contrast, young men were more likely to value jobs that required them to supervise others. Eccles concluded, "We as a culture do a very bad job of telling our children what scientists do. Young people have an image of scientists as eccentric old men with wild hair, smoking cigars, deep in thought, alone. Basically, they think of Einstein. We need to change that image and give our children a much richer, nuanced view of who scientists are, what scientists do and how they work."
No wonder kids are confused about how science is done in real life. The science community seems to go out of its way to conceal the collaborative, cooperative, team approach. Nobel Prizes are given to individuals, not to teams. In medicine we emphasize individuals -- e.g., Jonas Salk and his polio vaccine, not the research group that helped make it a reality. It's not that individual achievement in science is bad, but that it's an incomplete view that is increasingly off-putting to a generation of young people who are more sensitive than their predecessors to mutual, shared endeavors.
Additional stereotypes prevent girls from entering science, such as the widespread belief that females don't have the innate mental abilities that boys have, and therefore aren't able to compete successfully in the so-called STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). This is a hot-button issue because evidence suggests that if young women are told they can't hack it in science and math, the result can be a self-fulfilling prophesy. The belief in the inferiority of women for STEM fields is widespread, even in academia. Lawrence H. Summers, then the president of Harvard, ignited a firestorm in January 2005 when he suggested that "there are issues of intrinsic aptitude, and particularly the variability of aptitude" reinforced by '"lesser factors involving socialization and continuing discrimination" that account for the paucity of women at the highest levels in science and math. The respondents in the Bayer Facts of Science Education XIV survey, which polled 1,226 female and minority chemists and chemical engineers in 2010, gave the U. S. K-12 education system a "D" for the job it does to encourage minorities to study STEM subjects and a "D+" grade for encouraging girls.
Mae C. Jemison, a chemical engineer and the first African-American female astronaut, who works with Bayer's science literacy project, says, "My professors were not that excited to see me in their classes. When I would ask a question, they would just look at me like, 'Why are you asking that?' But when a white boy down the row would ask the same question, they'd say 'astute observation.'" Gender disparities are glaring at the upper academic levels of science and math. Commenting on a 2010 report on the underrepresentation of women in science and math by the American Association of University Women, Nancy Hopkins, an M. I. T. biology professor, said, "Harvard just tenured its first female [math professor], after 375 years." | <urn:uuid:379d3af3-ef9f-44ea-8196-103ef1e47367> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-larry-dossey/the-scientific-method-an_b_550004.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783399425.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154959-00180-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972371 | 1,495 | 3.109375 | 3 |
1A thin layer or covering of something: a coating of paint
More example sentences
- Paints and coatings work by creating a thin film on the surface to which they are applied.
- A common theme in the new generation of coatings is the ability to be applied in extremely thin layers.
- Black coatings on stainless steel wash off easily, leaving a dull gray appearance.
1.1Material used for making coats.
- Petersham, a very thick, waterproof woolen coating, usually dark blue, is used for men's trousers or heavy coats.
For editors and proofreaders
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Comments that don't adhere to our Community Guidelines may be moderated or removed. | <urn:uuid:b3cfbda3-248a-4b69-bbae-b17a33e89aaf> | CC-MAIN-2016-26 | http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/coating | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-26/segments/1466783396887.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20160624154956-00124-ip-10-164-35-72.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.902199 | 154 | 3.171875 | 3 |
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