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It’s been a great winter season for many elk and deer in southwest Colorado. Why? Because traversing what was a treacherous roadway is safer for wildlife and drivers alike, thanks to the completion and use of a wildlife underpass/overpass last summer on U.S. Highway 160 between Durango and Pagosa Springs.
“Considering that almost 2,000 deer and elk were kept off the highway in this first fall migration season, and many more as animals circle the project site on winter range — the results are already speaking for themselves,” Aran Johnson, Southern Ute wildlife division head, told the Southern Ute Drum.
Biologists and researchers can watch the results thanks to video and camera traps.
“This video shows more elk, and more various ages and genders of elk using the overpass than any other monitoring video or series of photos have demonstrated in the continental U.S. at any structure,” Patricia Cramer, an independent wildlife and road ecology researcher, told the Southern Ute Drum.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation contributed $75,000 for the project.
(Photo credit: Colorado Department of Transportation)
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Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Current estimates are that one in five Americans will be diagnosed with skin cancer in their lifetime. Fortunately, most skin cancers can be cured if detected early.
Exposure to ultraviolet light, from the sun and indoor tanning devices, is the most preventable risk factor for skin cancer. That’s why it’s important to know the simple steps that you can take to protect yourself from skin cancer. To effectively guard the skin and detect skin cancer early, dermatologists recommend the following:
- Generously apply a broad spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with a SunProtection Factor (SPF) of at least 30 to all exposed skin. On a cloudy day, up to 80 percent of the sun’s rays can pass through the clouds. So, use sunscreen even when cloudy.
- Throw away any old sunscreens. The FDA requires that all sunscreens retain their original strength for at least three years. Some sunscreens include an expiration date. If the sunscreen doesn’t have an expiration date, write the date of purchase on the bottle. That way you’ll know when to throw it out.
- Wear protective clothing, such as a long-sleeved shirt, pants, a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses.
- Seek shade, especially between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. when the sun’s rays are strongest.
- Use extra caution near water, snow and sand as they reflect the damaging rays of the sun. Sand reflects 25 percent of the sun’s rays.
- Get vitamin D safely through a healthy diet that may include vitamin supplements. Vitamin D is critical to healthy bones. The amount of vitamin D received from sun exposure is inconsistent. There is no known safe level of unprotected sun exposure.
- Avoid tanning beds. Ultraviolet light from the sun and tanning beds can cause skin cancer and wrinkling. If you want to look tan, consider using a self-tanning product, but continue to use sunscreen with it.
- Check your birthday suit on your birthday. If you notice anything changing, growing, or bleeding on your skin, see a dermatologist. Skin cancer is very treatable when caught early.
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Madagascar Pochard rediscovered
From BirdLife news:
"The Madagascar Pochard, a diving duck last sighted in 1991 and feared ‘Possibly Extinct’, has been rediscovered during a survey in remote northern Madagascar.
"Conservationists from The Peregrine Fund Madagascar Project, discovered nine adults and four recently-hatched young on a remote lake, and have since revisited the site for further observations and data." ...
"The Madagascar Pochard Aythya innotata was until recently listed as Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct). The last pochard sighting was on Lake Alaotra in the Central Plateau of Madagascar in 1991 when a male was captured and kept in Antananarivo Zoological and Botanical Gardens until its death one year later. The lack of subsequent records despite intensive searches, and the intensity of threats to the species, had led to it being tagged as Possibly Extinct.
"The last record of multiple birds dates back to June 1960 when 20 birds were sighted on Lake Alaotra."
BirdLife suggest this provides hope for the other bird species currently listed by the IUCN Red List as Possibly Extinct.
[Full news posted to StrangeArk archive.]
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The Kashghai are the most powerful of all Persia’s nomad tribes. Their area extends from Isfahan down towards Shiraz. They are a proud, freedom-loving people, whose black goatskin tent house a wealth of portraits of shot rebel ancestors. The men have a reputation as outstanding horsemen, the women as great carpet weavers. Th carpets are the tribe’s own product from beginning to end. The Kashghai spin yarn from the wool cut from their own sheep, and color it according to their own recipes with dyes made from plants picked around the camp. The numerous different patterns are also their own. The women weave them from memory. As with all nomad carpets, the patterns are geometrical, mainly with one to three rhombus in the field. A characteristic feature is their richness of detail. The weavers often improves, deviate from family’s traditional pattern and put in the occasional odd figure. The drawings are naive, mostly of birds, animals, horsemen, and trees – the living environment of the camp. Or stars, symbols and various small ornaments that recall the Caucasian carpets. The Kashghai came from the Caucasus four centuries ago.
The borders are always tasteful and imaginative, displaying infinite variety : finely patterned bands, oblique streaks, stepped motifs, garlands and tars. Truly illustrated carpets are rare, typical, however, is the three-trunked Tree of Life, a Trinitarian symbol of heathen origin. The older, finer and smaller carpets are also termed “Mecca Shiraz” . These were originally sold in the bazaars of Shiraz, and pilgrims used to take them to Mecca as prayer carpets. Both warp and weft are of wool. The warp is often dark, since it is usually of goat-hair. The wool is soft and has a great deal of animal fat in the fibres, giving the carpets an attractive lust re. As already mentioned, the dyes are vegetable. The shade most appreciated by the Persians themselves is a subdued rusty red. Older carpets in this color are in great demand.
The most frequent sizes are. c. 6 * 4ft and 5ft * 3ft 3in. The Kashghai also make very attractive saddle cloths, and camel and donkey bags.
No. of knots per inch
length breadth No. of knots per sq in
A 11 13 143
B 8 10 80
C 6 5 30
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Banded Sea Snake. (Alan Delmas)
Banded Sea Snake (Laticauda colubrina)
Sea Snakes have developed anatomical features streamlined for adaptation to an aquatic environment. Evolutionary marvels living at sea, Sea Snakes must still surface to breath air unlike eels, underwater neighbors who share the same habitat, like the moray eel, who have gills for absorbing oxygen and are absent of any scales.
Their venom is 10x more lethal than the venom of the landbased Rattlesnake, Africa’s deadly Black Mamba or the Royal Cobra but are quite friendly and rarely aggressive.
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Drought – Tolerant Plant Ideas for Central Florida
DROUGHT-TOLERANT CHOICES FOR LANDSCAPE BEAUTY
There are many drought-tolerant plants that will thrive in our central Florida landscapes. As with all plants, those native and non-native, water is often required to get any plant established. Here are a few drought-tolerant plants, from medium trees to perennials, you can try in your landscape:
The American Hop Hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana) is a medium tree that can reach up to 40 feet tall and 30 feet wide. They have attractive papery blooms and provide nutlets that attract birds.
Saucer Magnolia (Magnolia x soulangiana). We are at the southern end of the USDA Hardiness Zone of 9A for this tree that can get to 25 feet tall and wide. The joy of this magnolia is that it blooms pink saucers before the leaves open. It tolerates medium to well-drained soil after established.
Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) pictured, is a favorite large shrub that prefers part shade. This is a Florida native plant that blooms with small pink blooms circling the stem where the vibrant purple berries develop and are enjoyed by birds.
Japanese Aralia (Fatsia japonica) is a good choice if you need a course texture in your shade garden. If you plant this in sun, it will kill this plant. It has large evergreen leaves and white wintery flowers. It is hardy from zones 8-11 so will do well in your shade garden and only gets to about 8 feet tall and up to 10 feet wide.
Ground covers including Shore Juniper, Creeping Juniper, and Lilyturf, are all drought tolerant. All prefer sun and are not native plants. The junipers can spread as far as 10 feet so plan ahead on placement so they do not “eat” your sidewalks and require constant pruning. Do not cut them into dead wood as they will not break bud and grow more. Only trim within green growing areas. The green lilyturf can be a spreading ground cover (Liriope spicata) or mounding (Liriope muscari). If you choose a white variegated liriope, it prefers shade.
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) is a sun-loving Florida native perennial. Placing this in a shady spot means it will not survive. This is not an obnoxious spreader and does not sow seed. It does not like to be over-watered or put in poorly-drained soil, and it does not like extended wet weather. Birds and butterflies are attracted to this lovely plant.
Stokes Aster (Stokesia laevis) is a great Florida native perennial If you like blue. It prefers full sun and is also drought tolerant. It only grows up to 2 feet tall and wide and attracts butterflies. By its second year, it can be loaded with blooms which are purple “head” flowers.
To learn more about these drought tolerant plants, and others, check out this Florida-Friendly LandscapingTM PDF of the Guide to Plant Selection and Landscape Design at: https://ffl.ifas.ufl.edu/media/fflifasufledu/docs/FYN_Plant_Selection_Guide_2015.pdf
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Here’s a new chip from FTDI which brings a nice little feature to the USB-to-serial converter family: charging detection. That means that it is capable of detecting when a battery charger is connected. What does that actually mean? The top of the datasheet gives you the short version, but let’s look at the investigation [Baoshi] undertook to test the full extent of this particular feature. We agree with him that the listed capability leaves those in the know with a lot of questions:
USB Battery Charger Detection. Allows for USB peripheral devices to detect the presence of a higher power source to enable improved charging.
Obviously the chip will be able to tell when a charger is connected, alerting the device when it’s time to start lapping up the extra milliamps. But what type of chargers will actually trigger the detection circuit? After rigging up the test circuit shown above he ran through several scenarios: connected directly to the PC USB port, via externally powered and non-powered USB hubs, and with multiple wall wart chargers. Full results of the tests are included in the post linked above.
[via Dangerous Prototypes]
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RIVER MINISTRY IN PERU
BY JESSE MATTIX
South America’s jungle lands are deep in the middle of the continent and stretch into the neck of Panama. The jungle is almost forgotten, but a careful reading of colonial history and archaeology reveals places where the Inca people took refuge as they retreated from the Spanish on the western side of the continent, later known as Peru.
Taken from CMML Missions Magazine
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Envelope Detector Circuit with Separate Attack/Rise and Decay/Release Time Settings
Introduction to Envelope Detector Circuit
Envelope detector circuit is used to get the amplitude profile of a signal. Some important properties of an envelope detector are attack or rise time and decay or release time. In the Figure 1, a signal is plotted in blue, and the detected envelope is plotted in black. Since it employs capacitor for filtering inside the detection process, the process of charging and discharging of the the capacitor produces the attack and decay phenomenons. In some audio processing processes, such signal compressor or automatic wah effect, the characteristic of attack/rise time and decay/release time might produce some benefits and need to be controlled to produce various unique results.
Simple Envelope Detector Circuits
A very simple passive envelope detector circuit’s schematic diagram is shown in the figure 2. The detector assume a very low impedance in the input source and a very high impedance in the output devices. The drawback of this circuit is that the gain of the detector is affected by decay and delay setting, means that increasing attack time and or decreasing decay time will reduce the envelope gain. This would be difficult and inconvenient in many applications.
One improvement can be made using op-amp as an active amplifier. As seen in the figure 3, now the setting of the attack/rise time and decay/release time has separate paths through different orientation diodes. The drawback of this circuit is that the diode adds a dead-zone, when the difference between the output voltage (capacitor’s voltage) and the output of the op-amp falls within bias range of the diode. For silicon diode like 1N4148, both diode will be inoperative if the voltage difference s less than 0,6 volts.
The Ultimate Improvement: Separate Active Attack-Decay Rectification
To eliminate the bias error comes from the diodes, I have designed an envelope detector with separate attack and decay active rectification.
Operational amplifier (op-amp) U1A provide full-wave rectification, op-amp U1B provides active decay rectification, and op-amp U1C provides active attack rectification. At U1B, if the input is higher than the output then the output will be corrected as fast as possible since the op-amp will be actively drive the diode D2. But when the input gets lower than the output, the output will be slowly decayed through the resistor R3 and VR1 since the diode disconnect it from the strong negative pulling of the op-amp output. At U1C op-amp, the diode is reversed, so the op-amp will act to discharge as fast as possible whenever the input is lower than the output by actively driving the diode. But when the input is higher than the output, the capacitor will be charged slowly through the R4 and VR2. Ideally, VR2 should be connected to the buffered signal from D2 output, but it will need one additional op-amp. To avoid adding an additional op-amp while approximating D2 output, a diode D3 and a C5 capacitor is added to provide fast attack signal without affecting the decaying process of C4 capacitor discharging. Op amp U1D is provided to buffer the output, and D5 LED is provided as an indicator. If the indicator is not needed then D5 can be shorted directly to the output and the feedback path, and R5 can be omitted. See the circuit in action in the following video.
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I would like to walk you through the conversion of RGB to CMYK without Photoshop.
You will be guided step by step on how to convert RGB colors into CMYK colors.
To make the process easier, use the color picker tool in your computer and pick your desired colors.
The color picker is a tool that provides you with a plethora of tools that can help you select any color from different sources.
Once you have selected your colors, follow the steps below for converting them into CMYK without using Photoshop software.
Come on, invite your friends. Download Adobe Photoshop 7.0
Do you want to convert RGB to CMYK?
This is a common question asked by many people who want to switch from RGB to CMYK when they are printing their designs.
Cyan, magenta, and yellow are subtractive colors that subtract light in the color space while black, white and light gray add light.
CMYK is a subtractive color model that uses 3 primary colors: cyan, magenta, and yellow. Cyan is opposite of red on the color wheel. Magenta is opposite of green on the color wheel while yellow is opposite of blue on the color wheel. The three primary colors work together to create all other colors in the CMYK model.
How RGB Conversion Works?
RGB, or red-green-blue, is a color model that uses three primary colors – red, green, and blue. RGB stands for “Red Green Blue”.
RGB conversion is an algorithm used to convert RGB values into other color formats such as CMYK or HSL. Some of the most popular RGB conversion algorithms are Photoshop’s Lab Color space and Apple’s HSL Lab Color space.
As you can see, there are many different ways to convert RGB into colors other than black and white. There are not only different methods that work better for certain colors but also other methods that work better for certain content types.
Why Would You Want To Convert RGB To CMYK?
The conversion from RGB to CMYK is a process that turns an image (RGB) into a print (CMYK) file. This allows for the colors to be reproduced accurately and on various different printing presses, such as on screen and in print.
There are many reasons why you would want to convert RGB to CMYK. One of them is if you need your graphic design work ready for print so that it can be used in any type of publishing or media. Another reason is if you need to get your images seen on screens of different color depths, such as 8-bit gray scale screens and 16-bit color depth screens.
What are the Best Software Alternatives for Converting RGB To CMYK?
It is surprising to note that the conversion of RGB to CMYK can be achieved by using software. The following are some of the best software alternatives for converting RGB to CMYK.
Cocktail, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, Photoshop Elements, Adobe Illustrator
Free Software for RGB to CMYK Conversion
The trend of converting RGB to CMYK is a new phenomenon as it helps the artists to understand their work better.
RGB to CMYK conversion is a new trend in the art industry. The conversion of color space from RGB to CMYK gives artists a better understanding of their work on canvas or paper, which leads them on a path of improvement.
The first step for artists is always choosing the right software for making this process fast and efficient. There are multiple free software that can be downloaded from different sources online and used by anyone who wants to convert colors from RGB into CMYK without having any complications.
Benefit convert rgb to cmyk
One of the most crucial parts of any color printing process is converting the RGB values to CMYK. This conversion process needs a skilled professional to understand the different color spaces and how they work.
A lot of people might not know that this conversion process is quite complicated and there are a number of issues that can arise from it. That’s why a lot of printers use RGB convertors to make sure their prints come out as expected.
There are many benefits to RGB convertors, which include quick processing time, accurate colors, easy usage and reliable performance.
Conclusion: convert rgb to cmyk without photoshop
The conversion process should be relatively easy for you, as long as you have the right converter software. The first step is to install the correct program onto your computer. Next, you need to make sure that your monitor or other device is using cmyk color mode. The final step would be to click the “Convert” button and let the software do its magic.
After this, all you will need to do is wait until your image turns into a beautiful color-corrected image. Some programs even allow you to choose which colors and tones in your image will be changed by them, helping make sure that nothing gets lost in translation
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Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church teaches that it is the "one holy catholic and apostolic Church founded by Jesus Christ," and that "the sole Church of Christ which in the Creed we profess to be one, holy, catholic and apostolic" subsists "in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him"
(The Second Vatican Council's Decree on the Church, Lumen Gentium, 8). The term "successor of Peter" refers to the Bishop of Rome, the Pope. The phrase "governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him" thus defines the Catholic Church's visible identity.
The Roman Catholic Church has a membership of over one billion people. According to canon law, members are those who have been baptized in or who, after being baptized in another Church, have been received into the
Catholic Church on making a profession of faith, and who have not formally renounced membership.
Worldwide, the Church is divided into jurisdictional areas, most commonly on a territorial basis. The typical form of these
is called in the Latin Church a diocese, in the East an eparchy, and is headed by a bishop or an eparch.
The city of Rome is seen as central, and its bishop, the Pope, is considered to be the successor of Saint Peter, the chief of the Apostles, sometimes called the "prince" (from Latin princeps, meaning "foremost", "leader") of the Apostles.
Pope Benedict XVI, like his predecessors, is considered by Catholics as the Vicar of Christ and therefore leader of
The Catholic Church teaches that it was instituted by Jesus Christ for the salvation of souls, and that this is accomplished through teaching and administering the sacraments - including Baptism, Eucharist, and Penance (forgiveness of sins, also called "Confession") - means by which God grants grace. It bases its teachings on both Scripture and Apostolic Tradition. It is a hierarchical organization headed by the Pope, with ordained clergy divided into the orders of bishops, priests, and deacons. The Church also encourages monasticism, and has many religious institutes of monks, friars, nuns, and others who live in celibacy and devote their lives entirely to God. Other religious practices for clergy, religious and laity alike include fasting, prayer, penance, pilgrimage and meditation.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Church's first purpose is "to be the sacrament of the inner union of men with God." Thus the Church's "structure is
totally ordered to the holiness of Christ's members." (Catechism of the Catholic Church 775, 773).
Roman Catholic Church is a term often, though by no means exclusively, used for this Church by other Christian Churches,
especially in English-speaking Protestant-influenced countries. While the Church itself usually accepts this description in
its relations with other Churches, Catholic Church is the designation it normally uses. Nevertheless, because of the
centrality of the see of Rome, it has, even in internal documents, sometimes applied the adjective "Roman" to itself in its
entirety, as when, at the start of chapter 1 of the First Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic Faith, it described itself as the "Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church". (This is only one of many self-descriptions
that the Catholic Church has used. Others include "Mystical Body of Christ", "People of God", "universal sacrament of salvation"
(cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 748-810).
Divergent usages attach a certain ambiguity to each of these terms. For some, the term "Roman Catholic Church" refers only
to the Western or Latin Church, excluding the Eastern-Rite particular Churches in full communion with the Pope, which therefore are part of the same Church taken as a whole. Different Christian groups also attach different
meanings to the term 'Catholic'; see Catholicism.
Although most other Christian denominations prefer to employ the term "Roman Catholic Church", some use "Catholic Church"
even in formal discourse. Examples are found in the documents drawn up in common between "the Catholic Church and the World
Lutheran Federation", and signed by both sides, and in the "Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East", again agreed
on and signed by both parties.
In colloquial use, "Catholic" is often used to refer to the Roman Catholic Church even by members of Christian groups that
formally dispute the Church's right to that title. St Augustine (354-430) wrote about the same phenomenon in 397, when he considered it evidence of the heresy of other churches:
- ...the name itself of Catholic, which, not without reason, amid so many heresies, the Church has thus retained; so
that, though all heretics wish to be called Catholics, yet when a stranger asks where the Catholic Church meets, no heretic
will venture to point to his own chapel or house.
- — Against the Epistle of Manichaeus called Fundamental, chapter 4: Proofs of the Catholic Faith
Without intending to make any judgement on which is the correct term, "Catholic Church" and "Roman Catholic Church" will
be treated within this article as alternative names for the entire Church "which is governed by the successor of Peter and
by the bishops in communion with him".
The Crucifix, bearing the image of Jesus suffering on a cross, often serves as a symbol of the Roman Catholic Church.
The Catholic Church is a Christian church, and therefore shares core beliefs with the majority of other trinitarian groups generally considered to be Christian.
The Nicene Creed and the Apostles' Creed, which are accepted by all major Christian denominations, can be considered a fundamental core of the Catholic Church's beliefs. However some Christian denominations have developed
a different understanding of many central issues concerning Christ's role in the Church and of the salvation of believers
that vary greatly from the Church's historic teachings. The Catholic Church publishes a detailed exposition of its beliefs
in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
The nature of God
A Catholic Christian is baptized in the name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit - not three
gods, but One God subsisting in three Persons. The faith of the Church and of the individual Christian is based on a relationship
with these three Persons of the one God.
The Catholic Church believes that God has revealed himself to humanity as Father to his only-begotten Son, who is in an
eternal relationship with the Father: "No one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the
Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him" (Matthew 11:27).
Catholics believe that God the Son, the second of the three Persons of God, became incarnate as Jesus Christ, a human being, born of the Virgin Mary. He remained truly divine and was at the same time truly human. In what he said, and by how he lived, he taught us how to
live, and revealed God as Love, the giver of unmerited favours or Graces.
After Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, his followers, foremost among them the Apostles, spread more and more extensively their faith in Jesus Christ with a vigour that they attributed to the Holy Spirit, the
third of the three Persons of God, sent upon them by Jesus.
Humanity's separation from God
Human beings, in Catholic belief, were originally created to live in union with God. Through the disobedience of the first
humans, that relationship was broken and sin and death came into the world (cf. Romans 5:12). Man's fall left him condemned,
when he died, to remain eternally separate from God. But when Jesus came into the world, as both God and man, he was able
through his sacrifice to pay the penalty for the sins of men and to reconcile the human with the Divine. By becoming one in
Christ, through the Church, humanity was once again capable of participation in the Divine Life, called also the Beatific Vision.
The role of the Church
Catholics believe that Jesus established only one Church, not many, and that that Church is truly, though of course not
physically, the Body of Christ, made up of members both on earth and in heaven. They believe that Jesus chose the Apostle
Peter to lead the Church, that Peter went to Rome and became bishop of the Church there, and that Peter's authority was subsequently
passed on to the successive bishops of Rome. The one true Church therefore consists of those who follow Jesus and who recognize
the religious authority of Peter in his current successor, popularly called the Pope.
Catholics believe that Jesus has promised that the Church on earth will always be guided and maintained in truth by the
Holy Spirit, meaning that the doctrine taught by the Church is infallibly true. Many Christian churches consider the written
Scriptures (the Bible) to contain infallible truth, but Catholic Christians believe that infallible truth is also contained in the oral traditions
passed down through the Church; and also that, as the written Scriptures arose within a Church that handed on true doctrine
orally, they can be properly understood only in the light of the Church's living tradition. This position is a marked contrast
from the sola scriptura ('by Scripture alone') position espoused by the Protestant Reformation. The Catholic Church teaches that the two forms of the "deposit of faith" (from Latin depositum, something entrusted, cf. 1 Timothy 6:20) hold equal status and are equally infallible, meaning that no
Catholic belief or practice can contradict the Sacred Scriptures.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 85 states that authentic interpretation of the Word of God is entrusted to the living Magisterium of the Church, namely
the bishops in communion with the successor of Peter. Catholic theology places the authoritative interpretation of scripture
in the hands of the judgment of the Church rather than the private judgment of the individual. The church does, however, encourage
its flock to read Sacred Scripture.
The Church teaches that salvation to eternal life is God's will for all people, and that God grants it to sinners as a
free gift, a grace, through the sacrifice of Christ. Man cannot, in the strict sense, merit anything from God (Catechism
of the Catholic Church, 2007). It is God who justifies, that is, who frees from sin by a free gift of holiness (sanctifying
grace, also known as habitual or deifying grace). Man can accept the gift God gives through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans
3:22) and through baptism (Romans 6:3-4). Man can also refuse the gift. Human cooperation is needed, in line with a new capacity
to adhere to the divine will that God provides (cf. Response of the Catholic Church to the Joint Declaration of the Catholic
Church and the Lutheran World Federation on the Doctrine of Justification, 2-3). The faith of a Christian is not without works, otherwise it would be dead (cf. James 2:26). In this sense, "by works a man
is justified, and not only by faith" (James 2:24), and eternal life is, at one and the same time, grace and the reward given
by God for good works and merits. See Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1987-2016.
The Christian Path
Following baptism, the Catholic Christian must endeavour to be a true disciple of Jesus. The believer must seek forgiveness
of subsequent sins, and try to follow the example and teaching of Jesus. To help Christians, Jesus has provided seven sacraments
which give Grace from God to the believer. These are, Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation/Confession, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony.
Catholics believe that God works actively in the world. Christians may grow in grace through prayer, good works, and spiritual
disciplines such as fasting and pilgrimage. Prayer takes the form of praise, thanksgiving and supplication. Christians can
and should pray for others, even for enemies and persecutors (Matthew 5:44). They may address their requests for the intercession of others not only to people still in earthly life, but also to those
in heaven, in particular the Virgin Mary and the other Saints. As Mother of Jesus, the Virgin Mary is also considered to be the spiritual mother of all Christians. Unless a Christian
dies in unrepented mortal sin, which is normally remitted in Penance, that person has God's promise of inheriting eternal life. Before entering heaven,
some undergo a purification, known as Purgatory. Catholic teachings include a stress on forgiveness, doing good to others, and on the sanctity of life, opposing euthanasia, eugenics, contraception and abortion, which can destroy divinely created life.
The Catholic Church maintains that, through the graces Jesus won for humanity by sacrificing himself on the cross, salvation
is possible even for those outside the visible boundaries of the Church, whether non-Catholic Christians or non-Christians,
if in life they respond positively to the grace and truth that God reveals to them. This may sometimes include awareness of
an obligation to become part of the Catholic Church. In such cases, "they could not be saved who, knowing that the Catholic
Church was founded as necessary by God through Christ, would refuse either to enter it, or to remain in it" (Second Vatican
Council: Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 14).
The Church holds that the teachings of Jesus call on its members to act in a particular way in their dealings with the rest of humanity. While not endorsing any particular
political agenda, the Church holds that this teaching applies in the public (political) realm, not only the private. Among
these teachings, as they have been elaborated in recent decades by Catholic thinkers, Bishops' statements and Papal encyclicals, are that every person has a right to life and to a decent minimum standard of living, that humanity's use of God's creation implies a responsibility to protect the
environment, and that the range of circumstances under which military force is permissible is extremely limited.
The Catholic Church sees the liturgy, the celebration of the Mystery of Christ, in particular the Paschal Mystery of his death and resurrection, as the high point
of its activity and the source of its life and strength.
As explained in greater detail in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and its shorter Compendium, the liturgy
is something that "the whole Christ", Head and Body, celebrates - Christ, the one High Priest, together with his Body, the
Church in heaven and on earth. Involved in the heavenly liturgy are the angels and the saints of the Old Covenant and the
New, in particular Mary, the Mother of God, the Apostles, the Martyrs and "a great multitude, which no man could number, out
of every nation and of all tribes and peoples and tongues" (Revelation 7:9). The Church on earth, "a royal priesthood" (1
Peter 2:9), celebrates the liturgy in union with these: the baptized offering themselves as a spiritual sacrifice, the ordained
ministers celebrating at the service of all the members of the Church in accordance with the order received, and bishops and
priests acting in the person of Christ.
The Christian liturgy uses signs and symbols whose significance, based on nature or culture, has been made more precise
through Old Testament events and has been fully revealed in the person and life of Christ. Some of these signs and symbols
come from the world of creation (light, water, fire, bread, wine, oil), others from life in society (washing, anointing, breaking
bread), others from Old Testament sacred history (the Passover rite, sacrifices, laying on of hands, consecrating persons and objects).
In the Christian liturgy these signs are closely linked with words. Though in a sense the signs speak for themselves, they
need to be accompanied and vivified by the spoken word. Taken together, word and action indicate what the rite signifies and
Singing and music are associated with the liturgy. So also are sacred images, which proclaim the same message as do the
words of Sacred Scripture and which help to awaken and nourish faith.
The most important parts of the liturgy are the sacraments, instituted by Christ (see below).
In addition there are many sacramentals, sacred signs (rituals or objects) instituted by the Church (rather than by Christ)
that derive their power from the prayer of the Church. They involve prayer accompanied by the sign of the cross or other signs.
Important examples are blessings (by which praise is given to God and his gifts are prayed for), consecrations of persons,
and dedications of objects to the worship of God.
Popular devotions are not strictly part of the liturgy, but if they are judged to be authentic, the Church encourages them.
They include veneration of relics of saints, visits to sacred shrines, pilgrimages, processions, the Stations of the Cross
(also known as the Way of the Cross), and the Rosary.
Sunday, which commemorates the resurrection of Christ and has been celebrated by Christians from the earliest times (1
Corinthians 16:2; Revelation 1:10; Ignatius of Antioch: Magn.9:1; Justin Martyr: I Apology 67:5), is the outstanding occasion
for the liturgy; but no day, not even any hour, is excluded from celebrating the liturgy.
The Liturgy of the Hours consecrates to God the whole course of day and night. Lauds and Vespers (morning and evening prayer) are the principal hours. To these are added one or three intermediate prayer periods (traditionally
called Terce, Sext and None), another prayer period to end the day (Compline), and a special prayer period called the Office of Readings (formerly known as Matins) at no fixed time, devoted chiefly to readings from the Scriptures and ecclesiastical writers. The Second Vatican Council suppressed an additional 'hour' called Prime. The prayers of the Liturgy of the Hours consist principally of the Psalter or Book of Psalms. Like the Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours has inspired great musical compositions. An earlier name for the Liturgy of the
Hours and for the books that contained the texts was the Divine Office (a name still used as the title of one English translation), the Book of Hours, and the Breviary. Bishops, priests, deacons and members of religious institutes are obliged to pray at least some parts of the Liturgy of
the Hours daily, an obligation that applied also to subdeacons.
New Testament worship "in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24) is not linked exclusively with any particular place or places,
since Christ is seen as the true temple of God, and through him Christians too and the whole Church become, under the influence
of the Holy Spirit, a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16). Nevertheless the earthly condition of the Church on earth makes
it necessary to have certain places in which to celebrate the liturgy. Within these churches, chapels and oratories, Catholics
put particular emphasis on the altar, the tabernacle, the place in which chrism and other holy oils are kept ('ambry'), the seat of the bishop ('cathedra') or priest, and the
The richness of the Mystery of Christ cannot be exhausted by any one liturgical tradition and has from the beginning found
varied complementary expressions characteristic of different peoples and cultures. As catholic or universal, the Church believes
it can and should hold within its unity the true riches of these peoples and cultures.
There are in the liturgy, specifically in the sacraments, elements that cannot be changed, because they are of divine institution.
These the Church must guard carefully. Other elements may be changed, and the Church has the power, and sometimes the duty,
to adapt them to the different cultures of peoples and times. Also, individual Catholics may privately pray in many different
ways because of the great variety of Catholic Spirituality.
The Catholic Church, like other ancient Christian Churches such as the Eastern Orthodox Church, recognizes and administers seven sacraments as gifts from Christ to his Church. These signs perceptible to the senses are seen as means by which Christ gives the particular
grace indicated by the sign aspect of the sacrament in question, helping the individual to advance in holiness, and contributing
to the Church' s growth in charity and in giving witness. Not every individual receives every sacrament, but the Church sees
the sacraments as necessary means of salvation, conferring each sacrament' s special graces, forgiveness of sins, adoption
as children of God, conformation to Christ, and membership of the Church. The effect of the sacraments comes ex opere operato
(by the very fact of being administered): through them, regardless of the minister' s personal holiness, Christ provides the
graces of which they are signs. However, a recipient' s own lack of proper dispositions can block their effectiveness in that
person. The sacraments presuppose faith; and, in addition, their words and ritual elements nourish, strengthen and give expression
List of the seven sacraments, with references to the sections of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) that
deal with each:
What follows is an account, again largely based on the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, of how
the Catholic Church views each of these sacraments.
Baptism is the first and basic sacrament of Christian initiation. It is administered by immersing the recipient
in water or by pouring (not just sprinkling) water on the person's head "in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit" (cf. Matthew 28:19). The ordinary minister of the sacrament is a bishop or priest, or (in the Western Church, but not in the Eastern Churches) a deacon. In case of necessity, anyone intending to do what the Church does, even if that person is not a Christian, can
baptize. Baptism frees from original sin and all personal sins and from the punishment due to them, and makes the baptized
person share in the Trinitarian life of God through "sanctifying grace" (the grace of justification that incorporates the
person in Christ and his Church). It makes the person a sharer too in the priesthood of Christ and is the foundation of communion
between all Christians. It imparts the "theological" virtues (faith, hope and charity) and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It
marks the baptized person with a spiritual seal or character that indicates permanent belonging to Christ.
Confirmation or Chrismation is the second sacrament of Christian initiation. It is conferred by anointing
with chrism, an oil into which balm has been mixed, giving it a special perfume, together with a special prayer that refers,
in both its Western and Eastern variants, to a gift of the Holy Spirit that marks the recipient as with a seal. Through the
sacrament the grace given in baptism is "strengthened and deepened" (Catechism of the Catholic Church §1303). Like baptism, confirmation may be received only once, and the recipient must be in a state of grace (meaning free from
any known unconfessed mortal sin) in order to receive its effects. The "originating" minister of the sacrament is a validly
consecrated bishop; if a priest (a "presbyter") confers the sacrament - as is done ordinarily in the Eastern Churches and
in special cases in the Latin-Rite Church (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1312-1313) - the link with the higher
order is indicated by the use of oil blessed by a bishop. In the East the sacrament is administered immediately after baptism.
In the West administration came to be postponed until the recipient's early adulthood; but in view of the earlier age at which
children are now admitted to reception of the Eucharist, it is more and more restored to the traditional order and administered
before giving the third sacrament of Christian initiation.
The Eucharist is the sacrament (the third of Christian initiation) by which Catholics partake of the Body and Blood
of Jesus Christ and participate in his one sacrifice. The first of these two aspects of the sacrament is also called Holy Communion.
The bread and wine used in the rite are, in Catholic faith, considered to be transformed in all but appearance into the Body
and Blood of Christ, a change that is commonly called transubstantiation. Only a Bishop or priest is enabled to be a minister of the Eucharist, acting in the person of Christ himself. Deacons as
well as priests are ordinary ministers of Holy Communion, and lay people may be authorized in limited circumstances to act
as extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. The Eucharist is seen as "the source and summit" of Christian living, the high
point of God 's sanctifying action on the faithful and of their worship of God, the point of contact between them and the
liturgy of heaven. So important is it that participation in the Eucharistic celebration (see Mass (liturgy)) is seen as obligatory on every Sunday and holy day of obligation and is recommended on other days. Also recommended for those who participate in the Mass is reception, with the proper dispositions,
of Holy Communion. This is seen as obligatory at least once a year, during Eastertide.
Penance and Reconciliation are names given to the first of two sacraments of healing, which is also called
the sacrament of conversion, of confession, and of forgiveness (Catechism of the Catholic Church,
1423-1424). It is the sacrament of spiritual healing of a baptized person from the distancing from God involved in sins committed. It
involves four elements: the penitent's contrition for sin (without which the rite does not have its effect), confession to
a priest (it may be spiritually helpful to confess to another, but only a priest has the power to administer the sacrament),
absolution by the priest, and satisfaction. In early Christian centuries, the fourth element was quite onerous and generally
preceded absolution, but now it usually involves a simple task (in some traditions called a “penance”) for the
penitent to perform, to make some reparation and as a medicinal means of strengthening against further temptation.
Anointing of the Sick is the second sacrament of healing. In it a priest anoints with oil blessed specifically for
that purpose those who because of sickness or old age are in incipient danger of dying. A worsening of their health enables
them to receive the sacrament a further time. When, in the Western Church, the sacrament was conferred only on those in immediate
danger of death, it came to be known as "Extreme Unction", i.e. "Final Anointing", being conferred as one of the "Last Rites".
The other "Last Rites" are Confession (if the dying person is physically unable to confess, at least absolution, conditional
on the existence of contrition, is given), and the Eucharist, which when administered to the dying is known as "Viaticum",
a word whose original meaning in Latin was "provision for a journey".
Holy Orders is the sacrament by which a man is made a bishop, a priest or a deacon. Only a bishop may administer
this sacrament. Ordination as a bishop confers the fulness of the sacrament, making the bishop a member of the body that has
succeeded to that of the Apostles, and giving him the mission to teach, sanctify and guide, along with the care of all the
Churches. Ordination as a priest configures the priest to Christ the Head of the Church and the one essential High Priest,
and conferring on him the power, as the bishops' assistant, to celebrate the sacraments and other liturgical acts, especially
the Eucharist. Ordination as a deacon configures the deacon to Christ the Servant of All, placing him at the service of the
bishop, especially in the Church's exercising of Christian charity towards the poor and preaching of the word of God. (On
"minor orders", see below, under the heading "Priests and deacons".)
Matrimony, or Marriage, like Holy Orders, is a sacrament that consecrates for a particular mission in building
up the Church, and that provides grace for accomplishing that mission. This sacrament, seen as a sign of the love uniting
Christ and the Church, establishes between the spouses a permanent and exclusive bond, sealed by God. Accordingly, a marriage
between baptized persons, validly entered into and consummated, cannot be dissolved. The sacrament confers on them the grace
they need for attaining holiness in their married life and for responsible acceptance and upbringing of their children. The
sacrament is celebrated publicly in the presence of the priest (or another witness appointed by the Church) and other witnesses,
though in the theological tradition of the Latin Church the ministers of the sacrament are the couple themselves. For a valid
marriage, a man and a woman must express their conscious and free consent to a definitive self-giving to the other, excluding
none of the essential properties and aims of marriage. If one of the two is a non-Catholic Christian, their marriage is licit
only if the permission of the competent authority of the Catholic Church is obtained. If one of the two is not a Christian
(i.e. has not been baptized) this permission is necessary for validity.
Relations with other Christians
The Catholic Church attributes very high authority to 21 Ecumenical Councils: Nicaea I (325), Constantinople I (381), Ephesus (431), Chalcedon (451), Constantinople II (553), Constantinople III (680-681),
Nicaea II (787), Constantinople IV (869-870), Lateran I (1123), Lateran II (1139), Lateran III (1179), Lateran IV (1215),
Lyons I (1245), Lyons II (1274), Vienne (1311-1312), Constance (1414-1418), Florence (1438-1445), Lateran V (1512-1517), Trent
(1545-1563), Vatican I (1869-1870), Vatican II (1962-1965).
Of these, the Orthodox Churches of Byzantine tradition accept only the first seven, the family of "non-Chalcedonian" or "pre-Chalcedonian" Churches only the first three, and the Christians of Nestorian tradition only the first two.
Dialogue has shown that even where the break with one of these ancient Churches occurred as far back as the Councils of
Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451), long before the break with Constantinople (1054), the few doctrinal differences often concern
terminology, not substance.
Emblematic is the "Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East" (note the less common but by no means unique use in an inter-Church document of "Catholic Church" rather than "Roman Catholic
Church"), signed by "His Holiness John Paul II, Bishop of Rome and Pope of the Catholic Church, and His Holiness Mar Dinkha
IV, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East", on 11 November 1994. The division between the two Churches in
question goes back to the disputes over the legitimacy of the expression "Mother of God" (as well as "Mother of Christ") for
the Virgin Mary that came to a head at the Council of Ephesus in 431. The Common Declaration recalls that the Assyrian Church of the East
prays the Virgin Mary as "the Mother of Christ our God and Saviour", and the Catholic tradition addresses the Virgin Mary
as "the Mother of God" and also as "the Mother of Christ", fuller expressions by which each Church clearly acknowledges both
the divinity and the humanity of Mary's son. The co-signers of the Common Declaration could thus state: "We both recognize
the legitimacy and rightness of these expressions of the same faith and we both respect the preference of each Church in her
liturgical life and piety."
Some, at least, of the most difficult questions in relations with the ancient Eastern Churches concern not so much doctrine
as practical matters such as the concrete exercise of the claim to papal primacy and how to ensure that ecclesial union would
not mean mere absorption of the smaller Churches by the Latin component of the much larger Catholic Church (the most numerous
single religious denomination in the world), and the stifling or abandonment of their own rich theological, liturgical and
There are much greater differences with the doctrinal views of Protestants, who Catholics feel have broken continuity with the past, while Protestants claim that, if they have done so, it was for
the sake of fidelity to what they believe to be the true teaching of the apostles. But even with these groups, dialogue has
on both sides clarified some misunderstandings of what the other believes.
Particular Churches within the single Catholic Church
Unlike "families" or "communions" of Churches that see themselves as distinct Churches, the Church of those who are in
full communion with the Pope considers itself a single Church, not a federation of Churches. It has authoritatively expressed
this self-understanding in, for instance, the 28 May 1992 Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on some aspects
of the Church understood as communion, 9.
Accordingly, it has never adopted the usage of those who apply the term "Roman Catholic" to the Latin-Rite or Western Church
alone, to the exclusion of the Eastern Churches that also are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome. When it employs the
term "Roman Catholic Church", which it rarely does except in its relations with other Churches, it means the whole Church
"governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him", wherever they live and whether they are of
Eastern or Western tradition, the whole Church that has as its central point of reference Rome, whose Bishop the Church sees
as the successor of Saint Peter. The only other meaning it would give to "Roman Catholic" is "a Catholic who lives in Rome",
as a Catholic who lives in Dublin could be called a Dublin Catholic.
On the other hand, the Catholic Church attaches great importance to the particular Churches within it, whose theological significance the Second Vatican Council highlighted. Two categories of particular Churches are
Particular Churches or Rites
The higher level of particular Churches is that of what the Second Vatican Council’s Decree on the Catholic Eastern
Churches Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 2 calls "particular Churches or rites". The long-established use of the term "Rite" for these particular Churches is due to
the central place that the Eucharist holds in the Catholic Church, making each particular Church's liturgy its most noted
However, the word "rite" is used not only of particular Churches but also of liturgical rites. While the Eastern Orthodox Churches have, with scarcely any variation except for language, a single uniform liturgical rite, known, because of the city where
it originated, as the Byzantine rite, the Catholic Church uses a great variety of liturgical rites.
Not only the term "Rite", but also, as we shall soon see, the term "particular Church" can be understood in more than one
way. Since a legal text must be careful to avoid ambiguities, the 1983 Code of Canon Law adopted instead the term "autonomous ritual Church" (in Latin, "Ecclesia ritualis sui iuris") for
the reality that the Second Vatican Council called a "particular Church or Rite"; and the 1990 Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches shortened this to "autonomous Church" (in Latin, "Ecclesia sui iuris").
The autonomy of each such Church, Eastern or Western, shows in its distinctive liturgy, canon law, theological tradition,
etc. The Latin or Western particular Church is governed by the Code of Canon Law, while the Code of Canons of the
Eastern Churches outlines the discipline that the Eastern particular Churches have in common.
The official yearly directory of the Holy See, Annuario Pontificio (publisher: Libreria Editrice Vaticana), gives
a list of Rites (in the sense of particular Churches, not of liturgical rites) within the Catholic Church accompanied by a
scheme of their dioceses. A synthesis of these runs as follows:
Particular or local Churches
In Catholic teaching, each diocese too is a local or particular Church: "A diocese is a section of the People of God entrusted
to a bishop to be guided by him with the assistance of his clergy so that, loyal to its pastor and formed by him into one
community in the Holy Spirit through the Gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes one particular church in which the one,
holy, catholic and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and active" (Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Pastoral
Office of Bishops in the Church Christus Dominus, 11).
The particular Churches within the Catholic Church, whether rites or dioceses, are seen as not simply branches or sections
of a larger body. Theologically, each is considered to be the embodiment in a particular place of the whole Roman Catholic
Church. "It is in these and formed out of them that the one and unique Catholic Church exists" (Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic
Decree on the Church Lumen Gentium, 23.).
Note on liturgical rites in use within the Latin or Western Church
For many centuries there were as many or more liturgical rites in the Latin-Rite or Western Catholic Church, as in the
East. In the aftermath of the Council of Trent, in 1568 and 1570 Pope St Pius V suppressed the Breviaries and Missals that could not be shown to have an antiquity of at
least two centuries. Many that remained legitimate even after this decree were abandoned voluntarily, a process that continued
into the second half of the twentieth century. A few persist today for the celebration of Mass, but the distinct liturgical rites for celebrating the other sacraments
have been almost completely abandoned.
None of these still surviving liturgical rites is a "particular Church or Rite" in the sense considered here. A "particular
Church or Rite" does not necessarily use a distinct liturgical rite: many Eastern Catholic Churches use the same Byzantine
liturgical rite in a variety of languages. And an individual "particular Church or Rite" may use several distinct liturgical
rites, which is true of the Latin-Rite Church.
Liturgical rites currently in use within the Catholic Church of Latin Rite
- The Roman Rite is the most widely used in the Catholic Church. Like other liturgical rites, it developed over the centuries.
The form of its Eucharistic liturgy that was codified in the wake of the Council of Trent underwent only minor modifications until Pope Pius XII revised the part dealing with the days from Holy Thursday to the Easter Vigil in 1955 and Pope Paul VI made a general revision of the whole Roman Missal in 1970. (Some Catholics refer to the form that the Mass of the Roman Rite had in the four centuries from Pope Pius V's 1570 revision to before the 1970 revision as the Tridentine Mass or "Tridentine Rite".)
- The Ambrosian Rite is celebrated in most of the Archdiocese of Milan, Italy and in parts of some neighbouring dioceses in Italy and Switzerland. With some variant texts, it is similar in form to the
- The Rite of Braga is used in the Diocese of Braga in Portugal.
- The Mozarabic Rite, once prevalent throughout Spain, is now celebrated mostly in limited locations, among them the cathedral of Toledo.
- There exists a very rare Anglican Usage Rite, essentially a Catholicised Book of Common Prayer.
Defunct Catholic Western liturgical Rites
- The African Rite used in Latin-speaking Roman North Africa prior to the Arab conquest (8th century). Practically no details are known of it
except that, like the Ambrosian Rite, it was close in form to the Roman Rite.
- The ancient Celtic Rite was a composite of non-Roman ritual structures and texts not exempt from Roman influence that was similar to the Mozarabic
Rite in many respects and would have been used at least in parts of Ireland and Northern Britain (including Scotland) and perhaps even Wales and Cornwall, before being replaced by the Roman usage in
the early Middle Ages. Little is known of it, though several texts and liturgies survive. Some Christians (typically groups
not in full communion with the Catholic Church, including some in communion with Orthodox Christian Churches, e.g. Celtic
Orthodoxy), have attempted to breathe life into a reconstruction of the Celtic Rite whose historical accuracy is debated.
- The Gallican Rite is a retrospective term applied to the sum of the local variants, on similar lines to that designated elsewhere as the Celtic
Rite and the Mozarabic Rite, which faded from use in France by the end of the first millennium. It should not be confused
with the so-called Neo-Gallican liturgical books published in various French dioceses after the Council of Trent, which
had little or nothing to do with it.
- Several local rites (more properly, uses) of limited scope.
- The Sarum Rite (more properly Sarum Use), a defunct variant on the Roman Rite originating in the Salisbury diocese, which had come to be
widely practised in England and Scotland by the time of the Protestant Reformation, alongside limited other variants such as the York Use.
- The Lyonese Rite of the diocese of Lyons, France, now defunct, was once again a local variant of the Roman Rite, much as was the Sarum Use.
- The Nidaros Use, long defunct, based mainly on imported English liturgical books, used in pre-Reformation Norway.
- The rites particular to some religious orders (e.g. Dominicans, Carthusians, and Carmelites), now largely abandoned, were generally based on the kind of local territorial
variants exemplified in the Braga Rite and the Sarum Use.
The hierarchical constitution of the Church
The Basilica of St John Lateran, cathedral of the diocese of Rome and so of the Pope
What most obviously distinguishes the Catholic Church from other Christian bodies is the link between its members and the
Pope. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 882, quoting the Second Vatican Council’s document Lumen Gentium, states: "The Pope, Bishop of Rome
and Peter’s successor, ‘is the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and
of the whole company of the faithful.’"
The Pope is referred to as the Vicar of Christ and the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church. Applying to him the term
"absolute" would, however, give a false impression: he is not free to issue decrees at whim. Instead, his charge forces on
him awareness that he, even more than other bishops, is "tied", bound, by an obligation of strictest fidelity to the teaching
transmitted down the centuries in increasingly developed form within the Roman Catholic Church.
In certain circumstances, this papal primacy, which is referred to also as the Pope's Petrine authority or function, involves
papal infallibility, i.e. the definitive character of the teaching on matters of faith and morals that he propounds solemnly as visible head of the Church. In any
normal circumstances, exercise of this authority will involve previous consultation of all Catholic bishops (usually taking
place in holy synods or an ecumenical council).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church, 891 says: "’The Roman Pontiff, head of the college of bishops, enjoys
this infallibility in virtue of his office, when, as supreme pastor and teacher of all the faithful – who confirms his
brethren in the faith – he proclaims by a definitive act a doctrine pertaining to faith or morals... The infallibility
promised to the Church is also present in the body of bishops when, together with Peter’s successor, they exercise the
supreme Magisterium,’ above all in an Ecumenical Council."
These are two ways, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 890 states, in which the pastors of the Church exercise
the charism of infallibility with which Christ has endowed them for the purpose of guarding from deviation and decay the authentic faith
of the definitive covenant that God has established in Christ with his people. In other words, they are two ways of ensuring
that "the gates of Hell will not prevail" (Matthew 16:18) against the Church.
The Pope lives in Vatican City, an independent state within the city of Rome, set up by the 1929 Lateran Pacts between the Holy See and Italy. Ambassadors are accredited not to Vatican City State but to the Holy See, which was a subject of international
law even before the state was instituted. The body of officials that assist the Pope in governance of the Church as a whole
is known as the Roman curia. The term "Holy See" (i.e. of Rome) is generally used only of Pope and curia, because the Code of Canon Law, which concerns
governance of the Latin Church as a whole and not internal affairs of the see (diocese) of Rome itself, necessarily uses the term in this technical sense.
The present rules governing the election of a pope are found in the apostolic constitution Universi Dominici Gregis. This deals with the powers, from the death of a pope to the announcement of his successor’s election, of the cardinals
and the departments of the Roman curia; with the funeral arrangements for the dead pope; and with the place, time and manner
of voting of the meeting of the cardinal electors, a meeting known as a conclave. This word is derived from Latin com- (together) and clavis (key) and refers to the locking away of the participants
from outside influences, a measure that was introduced first as a means instead of forcing them to reach a decision.
A pope has the option of resigning. (The term "abdicate" is not normally used of popes.) The two best known cases are those
of Pope Celestine V in 1294 (who, though the poet Dante Alighieri pictured him condemned to hell for this action, was canonized in 1313) and Pope Gregory XII, who resigned in 1415 to help end the Great Western Schism.
Cardinals are appointed by the pope, generally from the ranks of his assistants in the curia and bishops of important sees, Latin or
Eastern, throughout the world. They are in most recent times usually, but not always bishops.
The cardinalate is not an integral part of the theological structure of the Catholic Church, but largely an honorific distinction
that has a complex history. As can be seen below, it has its origins in the different sections of the local clergy of Rome.
Since the clergy had a role in the election of the Pope after the death of his predecessor, the granting of the title came
to be a pragmatic way of designating a restricted body of electors.
In 1059, the right of electing the Pope was assigned exclusively to the principal clergy of Rome and the bishops of the seven "suburbicarian"
sees. Because of their resulting importance, the term "cardinal" (from Latin "cardo", meaning "hinge") was applied to them.
In the twelfth century the practice of appointing ecclesiastics from outside Rome as cardinals began. Each cardinal is still assigned a church in
Rome as his "titular church" or is linked with one of the suburbicarian dioceses. Of these sees, the Dean of the College of Cardinals holds that of Ostia while keeping his preceding link with one of the other six sees. Traditionally, there have thus been
only six cardinals who hold the rank of Cardinal Bishop, but when Eastern rite patriarchs are made cardinals, they too hold the rank of Cardinal Bishop, without being assigned a suburbicarian see, still less a church
in Rome. The other cardinals have the rank either of Cardinal Priest or Cardinal Deacon, which are titles with largely ceremonial or honorific importance.
Only cardinals whose eightieth birthday does not fall before the date of a Pope's death may enter the conclave that elects
his successor. The number of cardinals not over eighty years of age has therefore been limited to 120. But additional cardinals
can be chosen from among clergy over that age, an honour that has been bestowed on priests who have suffered long imprisonment
under dictatorial regimes or have been distinguished theologians.
The colour associated with the robes of cardinals is a crimson red, while the red of bishops who are not cardinals (and
of Apostolic Protonotaries and Honorary Prelates) is really a Roman purple.
The hat and tassels of cardinals' armorial bearings are red; those of bishops and lesser prelates are green. The hat has
the same form for all these prelates and should therefore not be identified with the galero, a large hat that once distinguished cardinals.
Bishops are the successors of the apostles in the governance of the Church. The Pope himself is a bishop and traditionally uses the
title "Venerable Brother" when writing formally to another bishop. The typical role of a bishop is to provide pastoral governance
for a diocese. Bishops who fulfill this function are known as diocesan ordinaries, because they have what canon law calls
ordinary (i.e. not delegated) authority for a diocese. Other bishops may be appointed to assist them (auxiliary and coadjutor
bishops) or to carry out a function in a broader field of service to the Church. Even when a bishop retires from his active
service, he remains a bishop, since the ontological effect of the sacrament of holy orders is permanent.
On the other hand, titles such as archbishop or patriarch imply no ontological alteration, but are generally associated with special authority. Some of the Eastern Catholic Churches
are headed by a patriarch. (A few bishops in the Latin Church, such as those of Venice and Lisbon, also have the title of patriarch, but in their case the title is merely honorary.) Three Eastern Churches are headed by
a major archbishop, a bishop who has practically all the powers of a patriarch, but without the title. Smaller Eastern Churches (consisting
however of at least two dioceses or, to use the Eastern term, two eparchies) are headed by a metropolitan. Within the Latin
Church too, dioceses are normally grouped together as ecclesiastical provinces, in which the bishop of a particular see has
the title of metropolitan archbishop, with some very limited authority for the other dioceses, which are known as suffragan
sees. However, almost all the authority of a metropolitan archbishop to intervene in case of necessity with regard to a suffragan
see belongs, in the case of the metropolitan see itself, to the senior suffragan bishop. (In some Eastern Churches, the term "metropolitan bishop" corresponds instead to "diocesan ordinary" in the Latin Church;
and an Anglican usage of "suffragan" corresponds to Catholic "auxiliary bishop.") The Latin-Church title of primate is now
Bishops of a country or region form an episcopal conference and meet periodically to discuss common problems. Decisions
in certain fields, notably liturgy, fall within the exclusive competence of these conferences. But the decisions are binding
on the individual bishops only if agreed to by at least two-thirds of the membership and confirmed by the Holy See.
In terms of Jurisdiction or governance, in the Latin Church a diocesan Bishop is the Ordinary(a term signifying that he has normal or "ordinary", rather than delegated, authority}. In the East the bishop can be known
as the diocesan Hierarch. Some of the Church's jurisdictional areas have the rank of archdiocese or archeparchy, and are headed
by an archbishop or archeparch, who, if he has a certain limited jurisdiction over the other dioceses of the same ecclesiastical province,
is known as the metropolitan. The word "see", derived from Latin sedes, (a bishop's) chair, is applied generically to all of these. Other jurisdictional areas
are territorial prelatures, territorial abbacies, apostolic exarchates and ordinariates for Eastern-rite faithful, military ordinariates, personal prelatures (of which only one exists at present), apostolic vicariates, apostolic prefectures, apostolic administrations, personal apostolic
administrations (only one exists), and sui iuris (i.e. autonomous) missions.
Priests and deacons
Bishops are assisted by priests and deacons. Parishes, whether territorial or person-based, within a diocese are normally in the charge of a priest, known as the parish priest
or the pastor.
In the Latin Church only celibate men, as a rule, are ordained as priests, while the Eastern Churches also ordain married
men. Both sides maintain the tradition of holding it impossible for a priest to marry after ordination. Even a married priest
whose wife dies may not then marry again.
To explain this tradition, one theory holds that, in early practice, married men who became priests – they were often older men, "elders" – were expected
to refrain permanently from sexual relations with their wives, perhaps because they, as priests representing Christ, were
treated as the Church's spouse. When at a later stage it was clear that not all did refrain, the Western reaction was to ordain
only celibates, while the Eastern Churches relaxed the rule, so that Eastern Orthodox Churches now require their married clergy
to abstain from sexual relations only for a limited period before celebrating the Eucharist. The Church in Persia, which in
the fifth century became separated from the Church described as Orthodox or Catholic, decided at the end of that century to
abolish the rule of continence and allow priests to marry, but recognized that it was abrogating an ancient tradition. The
Coptic and Ethiopic Churches, whose separation came slightly later, allow deacons (who are ordained when they are boys) to
marry, but not priests. The theory in question, if true, helps explain why all the ancient Christian Churches of both East
and West, with the one exception mentioned, exclude marriage after priestly ordination, and why all reserve the episcopate
(seen as a fuller form of priesthood than the presbyterate) for the celibate.
Since the Second Vatican Council, the Latin Church admits married men of mature age to ordination as Permanent deacons, but not if they intend to advance
to priestly ordination (Ordination to the order of Deacon (transitional) is part of the process through which Priests pass
on their way to Priestly ordination). Ordination even to the diaconate is an impediment to a later marriage, though special
dispensation can be received for remarriage under extenuating circumstances.
The Catholic Church and the other ancient Christian Churches see priestly ordination as a sacrament effecting an ontological change, not as the deputizing of someone to perform a function or as the admission of someone to
a profession such as that of medicine or law. They also consider that priestly ordination can be conferred only on males.
In the face of continued questioning, Pope John Paul II felt obliged to confirm the existing teaching that the Church is not
empowered to change this practice: "In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter
which pertains to the Church's divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Luke 22:32) I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment
is to be definitively held by all the Church's faithful." (John Paul II, Ordinatio Sacerdotis ) The Catholic Church thus holds this teaching as irrevocable and as having the character of infallibility, not in virtue of the apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis itself, from which this quotation is taken and which
states this only implicitly, but because the teaching "has been preserved by the constant and universal Tradition of the Church
and firmly taught by the Magisterium."
For the Latin Rite, the term "minor orders" was, together with the subdiaconate, abolished in 1969 by Pope Paul VI. Of the four Latin-Rite minor orders, which were stages in the passage to ordination to the diaconate and priesthood, he
preserved those of lector and acolyte, applying to them the term "instituted ministries". Some groups particularly attached to the earlier form of the Roman liturgical
rite (the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter and the Priestly Union of St. Jean-Marie Vianney), have been permitted to continue to administer the rites of admission to
all the previous orders, as well as that of tonsure, which formerly marked entrance to the ranks of the clergy. The Eastern
Churches have maintained their less numerous minor orders.
The honorary title of Monsignor may be conferred by the Pope upon a diocesan priest (not a member of a religious institute) at the request of the priest's
bishop. The title goes with any of the following three awards:
- Chaplain of His Holiness (called Papal Chamberlain until a 1969 reform ), the lowest level, distinguished by purple buttons and trim on the black cassock, with a purple sash.
- Honorary Prelate (until 1969 called Domestic Prelate), the middle level, distinguished by red buttons and
trim on the black cassock, with a purple sash, and by choir dress that includes a purple cassock.
- Protonotary Apostolic, the highest level, with the same dress as that of an Honorary Prelate, except that the non-obligatory
purple silk cape known as a ferraiuolo may be worn also.
The consecrated life
Consecrated Life, referred to also as Religious Life, is a way of Christian living within the Catholic Church that, publicly
professed, is recognized by Church Law (canons 573-746 of the Code of Canon Law). Those who profess it are not part
of the hierarchy. They commit themselves, for love of God, to observe as binding obligations what the Christian Gospel proposes
as counsels (Evangelical Counsels) rather than commands.
Most join what are called Religious Institutes (cf. canons 573-602, 605-709), often referred to in everyday life
as religious orders or religious congregations, in which they follow a common rule under the leadership of a superior. They
usually live in community, although some may for a shorter or longer time live the Religious Life as Hermits without ceasing to be a member of the Religious Institute.
Canons 603 and 604 give official recognition also to hermits and consecrated virgins who are not members of religious institutes.
Common usage about the different forms of religious life is more imprecise in English than in the languages of many countries
of Catholic rather than Protestant culture (see Catholic order). The term "monks" is commonly applied to members not only of institutes classified as "orders" (grouped in four subsets:
canons regular, monks, mendicant friars, and clerics regular), but also of the institutes classified as either clerical or
lay religious congregations, and even of societies of apostolic life. And since the houses of monks are indeed rightly called
monasteries (abbeys if headed by an abbot), any house of any of these categories is commonly called a monastery. Similarly,
all female religious are commonly called nuns; but in their case the general term for their houses is "convent", rather than
the term proper to the houses of nuns in the strict sense.
Members of Religious Institutes for men are usually addressed as "Brother", unless they are priests, in which case the
form of address is "Father". In Institutes for women most members are addressed as "Sister", and the superior generally as
"Mother", "Mother Superior" or "Reverend Mother". The formal title for the superior of a community or a whole institute varies
according to the category of the institute: even in English few would address a Jesuit superior as "Abbot" or an abbot as
"Guardian" (the term used by Franciscans).
There is a great variety of Religious Institutes, both male and female. Some have only lay members, while among male Institutes
some have both priests and lay members, and yet others only priests and men preparing for priesthood. Some date from the earliest
centuries of Christianity, others spring up every year. Their apostolates, too, vary considerably, depending on the vision
of the founder: some have an apostolate specifically of prayer, often called "contemplative", others have an outgoing apostolate,
e.g. teaching, missionary work. The rare "double communities" known in earlier centuries, where monks and nuns prayed and
worked alongside each other under the leadership of only one superior, usually an Abbess, have not survived, though a small
number have been founded afresh in recent times.
The oldest existing forms of Religious Institutes are those of monks and nuns, such as the Basilians of the East and the Benedictines of the West, who live in monasteries. Around the thirteenth century Mendicant Orders arose, such as of those of the Dominicans and Franciscans. Unlike the monks and nuns of the earlier Orders, the members of the latter Orders had their houses (which they called convents,
not monasteries) not in the country but in the towns, which were becoming increasingly important. One of the best known of
those that appeared still later is the Society of Jesus, which today is the Religious Institute with the largest number of members (known as Jesuits).
According to canon law (cf. canon 579), religious communities normally begin as an association formed, with the consent
of the Diocesan Bishop, for the purpose of becoming a Religious Institute. After time has provided proof of the rectitude,
seriousness and durability of the new association, the Bishop, having consulted the Holy See, may formally set it up as a
Religious Institute under his own jurisdiction. Later, when it has grown in numbers, perhaps extending also into other dioceses,
and further proved its worth, then the Holy See may grant it formal approval, bringing it under the Holy See's responsibility,
rather than that of the Bishops of the dioceses where it is present. For the good of such Institutes and to provide for the
needs of their apostolate, the Holy See may exempt them from the governance of the local Bishops, bringing them entirely under
the authority of the Holy See itself or of someone else. In some respects, for example public liturgical practice, they always
remain under the local bishop's supervision.
Typically, members of Religious Institutes take vows of evangelical poverty, chastity and obedience (the "Evangelical Counsels")
to lead a life in imitation of Christ Jesus. For some the vow of stability in a monastery or to live according to a particular
written rule is considered to include these vows. Other Institutes add further vows.
Secular Institutes (cf. canons 710-730) are another form of Consecrated Life. They differ from Religious Institutes in
that their members live their lives in the ordinary conditions of the world, either alone, in their families or in fraternal
groups. They include, among others, Caritas Christi, The Grail, and the Servite Secular Institute.
Comparable to Religious Institutes are the Societies of Apostolic Life (cf. canons 731-746), dedicated to pursuit of an
apostolic purpose, such as educational or missionary work. They do not take religious vows, but live in common, striving for
perfection through observing the "constitutions" of the society to which they belong. Among them are, for example, St. Philip Neri's Institute of the Oratory, the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, and the Priests of St. Sulpice.
As mentioned earlier, individuals unattached to any such institutes can be granted official recognition as hermits or consecrated
virgins. Although widows appear to have been given special attention in the early Church, present canonical legislation does
not mention them as a category calling for similar recognition.
Map showing Roman Catholic Church membership as a percentage of each country's population
The number of Catholics in the world continues to increase, particularly in Africa and Asia, although the religion has lost much of its political influence in the "First World" (e.g. Europe, USA). The increase between
1978 and 2000 was 288 million. Protestant evangelicals have succeeded in making inroads into parts of Latin America, but remain a small percentage of the population. In most industrialized
countries, church attendance has decreased since the 19th century, though it remains higher than that of other "mainline" Churches.
Criticisms and controversies
Over the centuries, the Catholic Church has encountered criticisms for numerous reasons. (Some particular controversies
are discussed in separate articles. See, for instance, on the charge of anti-Semitism, Relations between Catholicism and Judaism.)
Pope John Paul II acknowledged publicly that the Catholic Church (and its members) has sometimes been involved in questionable activities,
and asked God to forgive the sins of its members, both in action and omission.
Historically, the Church's response to heresy through the Inquisition and its alleged association with witchhunts have brought criticism. Pope John Paul II apologized for certain historic excesses in May 1995.
Enlightenment philosophers perceived the Church's doctrines as superstitious and hindering the progress of civilization. Many thinkers and academics
criticized it for opposing scientific advancement, the trial of Galileo Galilei being a famous, though still hotly-debated, example. Pope John Paul II publicly apologized for the Church's actions in the trial on October 31, 1992.
In recent times, the Catholic Church has sustained criticism from many quarters on the basis of several of its teachings.
Its exclusion of women from the ranks of the ordained clergy and so from many of the most important decisions is seen by
some as unjust discrimination (at a time when feminism and other social and political movements advocating equal access have removed barriers to the entry of women into professions
that were traditionally male strongholds). The Church believes that Jesus chose men to form the college of the twelve apostles,
and the Church is bound to follow this example. Rome has declared the matter closed for discussion.
The Catholic Church also has a rule of mandatory celibacy for priests in the Latin Rite (though individual exceptions are known). This differs from Christian traditions issuing from
the Protestant Reformation, which almost universally allow clerical marriage. It also differs from the practices of Eastern Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, which require celibacy for bishops and priestmonks, and do not allow clergy to marry after ordination, but allow ordination of married men to priesthood. Some criticize this
tradition, believing it to be unrealistic, and claim that relaxing the celibacy requirement is necessary to solve a perceived
shortage of candidates to the priesthood in some Western countries. Some also claim that mandatory priestly celibacy only
appeared in the European Middle Ages.
Some have argued that reform in these two areas could make a career in the priesthood more appealing among the faithful
and would update the Church's image as more relevant to modern society. Many of them do not recognize the clôture of
debate within the Church on the first of these issues. However, they also recognize that such dramatic changes in Church traditions
would alienate conservative Catholics worldwide. It has also been pointed out that, in spite of admitting ordination of women
and of married men, mainline Protestant Churches too are experiencing difficulty in drawing people in the same countries to
ministry and seminaries and dioceses that are more insistent on traditional values are much more successful in attracting
vocations to the priesthood.
Some criticize the Church's teaching on sexual and reproductive matters. The Church requires members to eschew homosexual practices (CCC 2357), artificial contraception (CCC 2370), and pre-marital sex (CCC 2353). The procurement or assistance in abortion can carry the penalty of excommunication (CCC 2272), as a specific offense. Some see the Church's stance as restricting women's "reproductive rights".
Some heavily criticize the Church's teaching on sexual abstinence and its opposition to promoting the use of condoms as a strategy to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS (or teen pregnancy or STD) as counterproductive. They comment that, even if abstinence is a worthy ideal, it is not realistic to expect a high proportion
of people to follow the practice, and so contraceptives and safe sex practices should be promoted. The Church argues that there is considerable proof that distributing condoms and failing to
condemn promiscuity amounts to condoning the behaviors and actually increases HIV infection.
The Church is criticized for its opposition to scientific research in fields such as embryonic stem cell research, which the Church teaches would cause the utilitarian destruction of a human being, or simply put, an act of murder. The
Church argues that advances in medicine can come without the destruction of human embryos; for example, in the use of adult
or umbilical stem cells in place of embryonic stem cells.
Political advocacy by bishops and other officials have also aroused controversy. For example, some bishops in the United
States denied the Eucharist to politicians and parishioners who hold views contrary to the Church on important moral questions. In predominantly Catholic
Philippines, some bishops and priests have also been criticized for political advocacy.
Much of the recent criticism of the Church, particularly in the United States, has centered around the sex abuse scandal. The failure of some bishops to take action against offending priests is reported to have undermined the Church's moral authority
among some segments of the public.
Traditionalist Catholics see the Church's recent efforts at reformed teaching and practice (known as "aggiornamento"), in particular the Second Vatican Council, as not benefitting the advancement of the Church. Some groups claim the Church has betrayed the core values of Catholicism,
and reject some of the decisions of the Holy See that they see harmful to the faith.
Others go so far as to characterize the current leaders of the Roman Catholic Church as heretics. Several groups, known as sedevacantists, claim that the current Pope (as well, perhaps, as some of his immediate predecessors) is not legitimate. A handful of them
have appointed papal replacements: see list of sedevacantist antipopes.
Some evangelists see the Roman Catholic Church as Occult and working with Satan. This belief has been popularized by the
evangelist Jack Chick. He popularized the belief that the Roman Catholic Church is a continuation of early Babylonian religious
practices, and that the pope is the antichrist. Most of Jack Chick's claims are quite outlandish such as the Catholic church
starting Islam and the KKK.
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The focus of this article is to show the relationship and development of the motifs used in the first movement of Beethoven’s Tempest sonata. At this point in his composing, Beethoven began to distill his motifs to very short phrases, often just a few notes. The Tempest sonata is a great example of how Beethoven uses fragmented motifs as the essential components of the sonata’s thematic material.
The opening of the sonata is the most dramatic that Beethoven had yet to compose. Within just six measures we have three different tempi, which also contrast motivically and by mood. The slow rolled chord followed by three notes which outline the dominant chord of A-major sounds like an introduction, but make no such mistake, this is a motif on which much of the movement is built, recurring in faster tempi and various keys. Take a look at Ex. 1, below, and notice the different tempi and motifs:
The opening Largo is the basis for the first theme of the piece. In Ex. 2, I’ve circled just the four-note motif in the Largo. This develops into the first full theme of the piece shown in Ex. 3. Both of these examples are below:
Circled in red in Ex. 3 is the opening motif from the Largo, which is being used as a fully developed theme. You’ll also notice that Ex. 3 has a blue-circled motif as well. This is actually used, rather discreetly, as an accompaniment for the second theme of the piece. More on that as I discuss the second theme.
The Allegro of the opening bars is the basis of the second theme, which I’ve isolated in Ex. 4. It is characterized by small two-note phrases. This developed into the second theme as shown in Ex. 5. See them both below:
In Ex. 5 You’ll notice two different colored examples. The blue-circled material shows the full development of the motif first stated in the opening Allegro as shown in Ex.4. Also, notice the circles in red. This is the accompaniment of the second theme that uses, again rather discreetly, the motif from the first theme shown in blue in Ex. 3. Compare the blue in Ex. 3 with the red in Ex. 5. While the original statement in Ex. 3 uses quarter notes and the accompaniment uses eighth notes, the contour of the line is the same and is a play off that original motif.
Here is a live recording from one of my recent recitals. This took place at Stage 7 in Kirkland, WA on 1/16/16.
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Data Analysis in the Automotive Industry
The interconnected relationship between data and the automotive industry is becoming increasingly transparent and essential.
Especially in recent years, with the rapid advancement of technology, increasingly niche, and higher customer expectations, supply chain improvements, and global regulations, automakers have started to redefine how they use data intelligence and technology to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of how they operate.
As the automotive industry continues to face challenges from competitors, a saturated market, consumer shifts, and volatility, it’s important that they have transparent and detailed information to make strategic business decisions.
With the help of big data and data analysis, automakers can widen the products and services they provide, deliver more value to customers, and remain agile and scalable regardless of global challenges or market pressures.
How are data analytics used in the automotive industry?
Key players in the automotive industry use data analytics to improve performance, monitor relationships with suppliers, develop customer relationships, and reduce operational costs.
Throughout the automotive lifecycle, many processes and people collaborate to design and deliver products and services that are reliable and cost efficient and have the features that customers want to see. These processes involve many pieces of information and datasets that must be analyzed. This helps the industry develop smarter, more connected cars for customers and increase sales and marketing to improve the customer journey and increase company profits and operations.
Data analytics is the backbone of compiling and understanding the complex datasets to derive actionable strategies, and because there is so much data collection involved, the auto industry has truly turned into a data-driven industry in recent years.
Here are some ways data analytics are used in the automotive industry:
- Development and production
Data scientists and engineers analyze large volumes of information and complex data points to improve their development and production processes. For example, car manufacturers use data analytics tools to test a combination of components to determine the most fuel-efficient and best-performing car models. This helps the design process, as the manufacturer can select the most aerodynamic models designed to be cost and fuel-efficient for the customer.
Manufacturers also use data analytics tools to predict potential issues with a vehicle. For example, sensors installed in vehicles have predictive abilities to detect when potential problems might arise. As a result, they can resolve the issues, recall defective products, and advise clients on repairs before they become more serious problems.
- Sales and marketing
From a sales and marketing perspective, data analytics tools play a huge role in the engagement and quality of car dealerships and manufacturers’ relationships with their customers. Fostering good customer relationships is critical for automakers because it creates trust and loyalty, growing their market and customer base.
Predictive analytics help automakers personalize the customer experience and better target the pain points of individual customers. For example, data analytics can show customers’ demographics, preferences, and budgets and guide service offerings tailored to customers’ specific situations. Automakers can also use data analytics tools to better enable their dealerships’ aftersales offerings, such as vehicle service, parts and accessories.
How big data can be used in automotive
Big data describes complex, large datasets that continuously grow exponentially over time. In the automotive industry, big data exists in supply chain management, financing, predictive analysis, and design and production.
Each connected car and automotive process produces data constantly, which means automakers have access to an entire fleet of helpful information and datasets. For example, big data can be integrated into sound supply chain management practices to monitor their stability and overall efficiency. Automakers can compare products required based on the materials and suppliers available to use reliable components and ensure on-time delivery of finished products.
Big data can also be used within the car to connect users with information like safety alerts and automakers with real-time vehicle conditions. With connectivity from inside and outside the vehicle, automakers can see trends and make improvements to vehicle models.
One of the most important uses of big data in the automotive industry is predictive analysis. It helps automakers predict customer problems in advance and develop actionable plans to remedy these issues. Not only does it ensure better reliability of vehicles, but it also dramatically improves customer satisfaction and cost control.
Why is data important in the automotive industry?
Data provides essential information that allows automakers to benchmark their performance and make strategic business decisions. Data analytics help plan for delivering better customer engagement initiatives, cost reduction efforts, reliable car designs, higher customer retention rates, and agility and scalability in a competitive market. It structures the evidence that automakers need to understand the effectiveness of their decisions and operations.
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The terms quality assurance, quality control and quality management are usually used interchangeably.
As a test manager or project manager, it is important to understand the differences between these terminologies so that you know what exactly are you talking about with your client and team members.
So let’s get this straight:
What is Quality Assurance?
Quality Assurance is the set of activities that determine the procedures and standards to develop a product.
What is Quality Control?
Quality Control refers to the activities and techniques to verify that the developed product is in conformance with the requirements. The ultimate output of both processes is to deliver a quality product.
Are you also confused with quality assurance vs quality control in software testing? No problem! Keep reading to know the difference.
Understanding Quality Management
Quality Management is a much broader field that ensures the required level of quality is achieved in software product. You can create a standard quality management approach for your organization. It has four main sub processes: quality assurance, quality planning, quality control and quality improvement.
Software Quality Assurance, QA, is a planned and systematic way of creating an environment to assure that the software product being developed meets the quality requirements.
QA refers to the implementation of well-defined standard practices and methods. It is a pro-active quality process. This process is controlled and determined at managerial level. Quality assurance focuses on the process checklists, process standards, project audits, methodology and procedures for development.
It is a preventive process that aims at establishing the correct methodology and standards to provide a quality conducive environment to the product being developed.
In this sub process, quality assurance plan is created for a particular project. In the quality assurance plan, organizational standards are selected which are applicable to a project. It should also involve the plan for quality control.
Quality assurance planning details out what QC activities are performed, when the QC activities are performed and who will perform those. It also contains details of resource required, tools and techniques to be used for performing quality control.
Quality Control, QC, is the set of activities that control the quality of product being developed by identifying any bugs that might be present.
Quality control process is a subset that falls under the quality assurance. It is a corrective process. The task of actual testing is performed to find out and identify the bugs present in the product. The bugs are raised to the developers, who then try to fix them.
After fixes, the product is verified again such that the functionalities and features are working as required. QC process assures that that the product being developed is of the required quality. Examples of quality control activities include inspection, deliverable peer reviews and the software testing process.
Quality improvement is a formal approach to analyse the feedback received from the quality control team. In this process efforts are put systematically to identify any room of improvements in the existing standards and procedures. The target is to improve the process that establish the standards of quality in the organization.
What are the Differences between Quality Assurance and Quality Control?
“The primary difference between quality assurance vs quality control is that the quality assurance activities are conducted during the software development. Quality control activities are performed after the software has been developed.”
We have listed down the differences between quality assurance and quality control to further clarify your concept:
|Quality Assurance||Quality Control|
|Definition||QA is the implementation of processes, methodologies and standards that ensure that the software developed will be up to the required quality standards.||QC is the set of activities that are carried out to verify the developed product meets the required standards.|
|Target||QA focuses on the improvement of process and methodologies used to develop product.||QC focuses on the improvement of the product by identifying the bugs and issues.|
|Orientation||It is process oriented.||It is product oriented.|
|Nature of process||QA is preventive process as it establishes the methods which prevent the bugs.||QC is corrective process as it focuses on identifying the bugs and getting them fixed.|
|Verification vs Validation||Quality Assurance is a verification activity that verifies you are doing the right thing in the right manner.||Quality assurances is a validation activity that validates the product against the requirements.|
|Who||All the persons involved in the project starting from the requirement.||It is the responsibility of Quality Control inspector or the testing team that finds the issues.|
|Tools and Techniques||Defining Processes, Quality Audit, Selection of Tools, Training.||Defining Processes, Quality Audit, Selection of Tools, Training.|
|Examples||Examples of quality assurance activities include process checklists, process standards, process documentation and project audit.||Examples of quality control activities include inspection, deliverable peer reviews and the software testing process.|
You may like to read more about the quality assurance vs quality control.
Quality Assurance vs Quality Control Tools and Techniques
You are probably wondering what is the difference between tools and techniques, when we talk about quality assurance vs quality control. Well, we have listed down the tools and techniques for QA and QC separately so that you can understand and distinguish between them easily.
Quality Assurance Techniques
The characteristic feature of software quality assurance is defining the organizational processes and standards. The process shall serve as a guideline and improve over time.
It is critical that the organizational standards are defined by experts as it will lay the foundation of quality assurance and assures development of reliable, quality products. You can also refer to the IEEE Standard for Quality Assurance Processes.
The standard is harmonized with the software life cycle process and contains requirements for initiating, planning, controlling and executing the Software Quality Assurance.
Quality audit is a quality assurance technique that examines the work products and evaluate whether the software product has followed the standards, guidelines, regulations, plans and procedures. It a systematic approach to examine all the required procedures and standards were considered at the time of product development and testing.
Selection of Tools
The following tools are indispensable while you are setting up the quality assurance process for your organization:
1. Cost-Benefit Analysis
Cost benefit analysis is a systematic approach of evaluating an investment against its expected benefits. It is used to determine whether the investment is feasible in terms of labour, time and cost savings.
2. Cause and Effect Diagrams
Cause and Effect diagram is also known as ‘Fishbone’ or ‘Ishikawa’ diagram. This technique uses brainstorming with mind mapping on a diagram and compels you to think of all the possible causes to a problem. Once you have identified the root cause, you will be able to find the right solution for it.
3. Control Charts
Control charts are used to analyse performance trends of process over time. It is an important tool to determine if you need to make any fundamental changes to the process and avoid specific problems.
4. Cost of Quality
There can be two types of cost of quality. The cost of poor quality affects the internal and external costs resulting from failing to meet requirements. On the other hand, the cost of good quality includes the prevention costs for investing in services and appraisal of product.
Benchmarking is the process of measuring performance to standard metrics and practices.
6. Design of Experiments
It is systematic approach carried under controlled conditions to determine the relationship between factors affecting a process and the output of the process. It is used to manage process in order to analyse which input has the significant impact and what steps can be taken to optimize the output.
A quality culture should be established where everyone feels responsible for maintaining the quality of product.
Quality Control Techniques
Quality Control Reviews
One of the popular techniques for quality control is the Quality Reviews. According to Wikipedia, a software review can be defined as:
“A process or meeting during which a software product is examined by project personnel, managers, users, customers, user representatives, or other interested parties for comment or approval.”
The product to be reviewed is an outcome of any software development activity. Quality reviews are conducted to review the project plans, requirements documents, design documents, quality assurance plan, test documents and code.
The people reviewing the software products give their feedback which is recorded and passed to the concerned person for incorporating the changes.
Roles and Responsibilities in QC Review
In a review, the roles and responsibilities can be classified as:
- Moderator leads the review process. He determines the type of review and the attendees. He is responsible for disbursing the needed information and documents to the team members.
- He is the writer of the software product under review. His role is to describe unclear areas to team members and understand the required changes as suggested by reviewers.
- He is the person responsible for recording the issues found and noting down any suggestions or feedback for process improvement.
- Reviewer is the expert who reviews the software product, identify the issues and suggest improvements.
Types of Reviews
Management reviews are conducted by the upper management to see the amount of work done and take required decisions accordingly.
Technical reviews are a less formal type of quality control review, which is led by trained moderators. Technical reviews are conducted to establish consistency in the use of technical concepts. It is conducted at an early stage to verify that the technical standards and practices are used correctly. Any alternatives options for the product are also evaluated in the technical quality control review.
A walk-through is a type of quality control review in which the author of product leads the review session and presents his thought process to the entire team. The product to be reviewed is thoroughly explained and the feedback is gathered from the audience.
Walk-throughs are usually conducted for the high level documents such as specifications documents, design documents. Walk-throughs are useful especially if the audience is people who do not understand the software easily.
The main objectives of a walk-through are:
- Establish a common understanding and gain feedback from stakeholders
- Discuss the validity of proposed solutions
- Evaluation of the software product
Inspection is a formal review practice found in software testing practices to identify defects and issues. It is a planned meeting in which roles are defined to each participant. Inspection is a quality control process to check whether the software product is in compliance with the required specifications and standards. Defects are logged if any non-compliance is found.
The main target of inspection is to find defects as early as possible. An estimate of re-work effort is also taken as the output of this QC process. Inspection is conducted for design documents, specification documents, test documents and the code.
Software testing techniques are a major tool of the quality control process. There are several software testing techniques such as functional testing, black box testing, usability testing, exploratory testing, compatibility testing, regression testing.
You may like to read further about software testing techniques:
- Guide to software testing process
- Advanced software testing techniques
- Recovery Testing
- Compatibility Testing
- Exploratory Testing
In this article, we’ve analysed the big difference between quality assurance vs quality control. Quality assurance is the implementation of standardized procedures whereas quality control is following those procedures and techniques to assure the deliverable is of required quality.
The processes of quality assurance, quality planning, quality control and quality improvement make up the bigger process of Quality Management. We have also discussed various tools and techniques used for establishing quality assurance and quality control.
Now It’s Your Turn
I hope this article finally resolves the confusion surrounding quality assurance vs quality control. Now you can communicate confidently while using the terms and know what exactly you or the client is referring to. Moreover, you are now equipped with the tools and techniques used for QA and QC process.
Start implementing these techniques and improve the quality assurance and quality control process in your organization. Let us know about your success with those in the comment section below.
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HHere is a slideshow with a very good representation of the human mind. The model of the mind designed by the Austrian neurologist, Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) is still valid currently. Very impressive.
Freud used the analogy of an iceberg to describe the three levels of the mind. Freud (1915) described conscious mind, which consists of all the mental processes of which we are aware, and this is seen as the tip of the iceberg. … It exists just below the level of consciousness, before the unconscious mind.Simply Psychology
There seems to be a magic with the number 21 — “You can rewire your brain to be happy by simply calling 3 things that you are grateful for every day for 21 days”. By Psychology Facts.
What is Ego, Superego, and Id?
Apologizing doesn’t always mean you are wrong and the other person is right. It means you value your relationship more than your Ego.By Psychology Facts.
The Id, Ego and Super-ego are three distinct, yet interacting agents in the psychic apparatus, defined by Sigmund Freud.
The Id (Latin for “It”) is the set of uncoordinated instinctual trends. The Id is the disorganized part of the personality structure that contains a human’s basic instinctual drives. The Id is the only component of personality that is present from birth. It is the source of a person’s bodily needs, wants, desires and impulses, particularly their sexual and aggressive drives. The Id acts according to the “pleasure principle”.Psychological Terms App
The Super-ego plays the critical and moralizing role. The Super-ego is observable in how someone can view themselves as guilty, bad, shameful, weak, and feel compelled to do certain things. The Super-ego reflects the internalization of cultural rules, mainly taught by parents when applying their guidance and influence. The Super-ego also takes on the influence of educators, teachers, people chosen as ideal models. The Super-ego aims for perfection. It forms the organized part of the personality structure, mainly but not entirely unconscious, that includes the individual’s ego deals, spiritual goals, and the conscience that criticizes and prohibits their drives, fantasies, feeling and actions. The Super-ego works in contradiction to the Id. The Super-ego’s demands often oppose the Id’s, so the Ego sometimes has a hard time in reconciling the two.Psychological Terms App
The Ego is the organized, realistic part that mediates between the desires of the Id and the Super-ego. The Ego (Latin for “I”) acts according to the reality principle; it seeks to please the Id’s drive in realistic ways by bringing benefit other than grief. The Ego is the organized part of the personality structure that includes defensive, perceptual, intellectual-cognitive, and executive functions. Conscious awareness resides in the Ego, although not all the operations of the Ego are conscious. The Ego is about judgment, tolerance, reality testing, control, planning, defense, synthesis of information, intellectual functioning and memory. The Ego represents what may be called reason and common sense in contrast to the Id, which contains the passion.Psychological Terms App
Overall, the Id, Ego and Super-ego are purely psychological concepts and does not correspond to somatic structures of the brain.
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Antiquarians studied antiquarianism, an older multidisciplinary study from which later in the modern times archaeology branched out. This was a historical study field that focused primarily on ancient artefacts, manuscripts, and sites of historical significance. The underlying foundation of this vast and ancient field was always facts, where empirical evidence was relied on for an evolved understanding of the past.
Before the advent or evolution of archaeology as we know it today, antiquarianism was responsible for unearthing of facts and clues that helped in piecing together the ancient history. It was under the gamut of this field that during the Middle Ages there was a philosophical interest in the remains of the Greco-Roman civilization. Antiquarians of the 16th and 17th centuries surveyed the English countryside through drawings, descriptions and interpretations of the monuments they came across.
One of the earliest excavations was Stonehenge and other megalithic monuments in England. It was in this period numerous megalithic and other field monuments in southern England. There, also was an attempt to chart the chronological stylistic evolution of handwriting, medieval architecture, costume, and shield shapes.
In the mid-18th century excavations began in Pompeii & Herculaneum. Both these sites had been covered with ash from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. Entire towns, complete with utensils and even human shapes were discovered and ancient frescoes were unearthed which had a big impact on Europe.
Developing archaeological Methods
Towards the end of the 18th century excavations were done in Wiltshire and the recordings that were made for Neolithic and Bronze Age were so meticulous that these are a resource even for the modern day archaeologists. It was in this period that Stratigraphy – the idea of overlapping strata that traced back to successive periods.
Stratigraphy was first applied to archaeology during the excavations of prehistorical and Bronze Age sites. The first time Stratigraphy was popularly applied for excavations and archaeology was in later half of the 19th century on the site of ancient Troy. The archaeologists accomplished to individuate nine distinctive cities that had overlapped one another from prehistoric to Hellenistic period. However it was only in the 20th century that archaeology became a profession and it was then possible to study it in a formalized system of education. Further evolution and advancements in the field led to more diversification and maritime archaeology, urban archaeology and later rescue archaeology came into existence.
Art, Artefact & Antiques
Art is an expression and showcase of creative talents and fantasy, most commonly in a visual form, producing in the process works of appreciable beauty and emotional connect.
An artefact is typically an object shaped by human hands, from common use in their everyday lives or things of obvious monetary worth, but the term is more relevant for their historical or archaeological significance.
An antique, however is an artefact that has been assessed to have a significant monetary worth purely because of its age, notwithstanding its historical or cultural significance. Having said that, in some cases the monetary worth is sometimes affected by their historical worth too.
We may say that all antiques are artefacts, but not all artefacts are antiques. Art however has no timeline to it, a work of art may be an antique or an artefact or just that – a work of art.
Museology & Archaeology
Museology, Museum Studies, or Museography (older version) is a study of museums, museum curation and the evolution and development of museums as a shaping factor in the world of education, sociology and politics. Museum displays get their meaning and purpose from the context and surroundings in which they are housed. It is the intent of museology to discover the catalyzing factors that promote such associations and help them succeed through such effectiveness.
Archaeology, however differs greatly from museology as it entails a study of human history and prehistory, mostly from before the invention of writing. It is through a study and analysis of material remains and features that archaeology aims to discover the rich histories that led to the development of our contemporary society.
History & Archaeology
To put it simply history is an interpretation of the past in the historian’s words. History does not involve judgements or analysis, it is an entirely academic study. History is a record of facts and sequence of events based on ancient chronicles. It began after the invention of the writing as it was only then that people started keeping records of events & happenings. History is known to include only authentic information about the past, the timelines and the series of events leading up to any event.
Archaeology however is a field of study that tries to unearth data about the past events through digs where they recover artefacts and then analyze them to reconstruct the sequence of events of the said era. Archaeology has a close symbiotic relationship with history but it is not as accurate as recorded history. The reconstruction of events by archaeologists depends on their experience as they string together analyses of the artefacts that have been unearthed.
It is safe to say that Archaeology is effectively a study of people and their lifestyles from the periods before writing was invented. The archaeological information is entirely deduced on the basis of the artefacts that have been dug up. History however is a rewriting of the series of events that have been recorded earlier by the people of the past.
Anthropology & Archaeology
Anthropology as the name suggests is the study of man, a subject much broader than archaeology. Comprising of subparts like geographical anthropology, racial anthropology and cultural anthropology, it studies the geographical distribution of early man, physical features and classification of man into different races and his social life, interactions and customs and traditions. Cultural anthropology, a subpart of archaeology is the closest to archeology.
Archaeology deals with study of the prehistoric man and his society through an analysis of artefacts and material retrieved from digging in specific sites. This field relies on part conjecture and part revelations through a systematic analysis of objects found through excavations or digs carried out in archaeological expeditions.
The key difference between the two is that anthropology studies mankind across eras and time periods in all its aspects. Archaeology is a much narrower gamut where a study of the artefacts dug out from under the earth reveals the socio-cultural aspects and lifestyle of the men for a particular time period.
Purpose & Theory
More than 99% of the development of humanity occurred within the prehistoric cultures, before writing was developed, hence leaving no written record of anything from those time periods. In absence of written records, it is only through archaeology that we can enrich our knowledge base about the prehistoric societies. There is an application or subfield of archaeology – historical archaeology that studies the literate cultures that often leave few or partial records that are sometimes biased too. This field of study bridges the gap between the literate world view of the elite and the lives and interests of the common populace.
Archaeological theory is multi-dimensional and has quite a few approaches that shape it up. Cultural – history archaeology was the first approach to archaeological theory, which developed with an intent to explain the change in the culture and the way it adapted. With the beginning of the 20th century direct historical approach developed under which the archaeologists studied the continuing links between the past and existing cultures, looking into compare ancient and contemporary ethnic & cultural groups. In the 1960s as a rebellion against the cultural – history archaeology, “New Archaeology” developed that employed scientific and anthropological approach and tools like hypothesis testing and the scientific methods that constituted processual archaeology.
The 1980s saw the rise of a postmodern movement – post–processual archaeology that questioned the scientific positivity of processualism and favored a more self-critical theoretical reflexivity. Meanwhile historical processualism came up to focus on the historical aspect of processual and post processual archaeology.
The theory of archaeology borrows from a wide range of influences today, including neo-evolutionary thought, phenomenology, postmodernism, agency theory, cognitive science, structural functionalism, gender-based and feminist archaeology, and systems theory.
Any archaeological expedition begins with a clear chalking out of the archaeologists’ objectives, then a site survey and an inspection of the surrounding area is carried out. The excavation is then carried out followed by an analysis of this data.
Aerial Photography – aerial shots are captured and documented through photography to study the light and dark soil patterns or patterns in crops to reveal probable sites for further consideration.
Desktop Survey – already known sites that are recorded in various related databases are looked into and reconsidered and analyzed.
Ground-penetrating radar, resistivity and magnetometer surveys – a set of intense techniques are put to use to observe patterns of high and low resistivity underground.
Contour Survey – a detailed contouring of the site is carried out through an extensive survey. The intent here is to discover and plan the earthwork.
Physical Survey – to record standing buildings and earthwork
Fieldwalking – to collect and plot artefacts and study their distribution patterns.
Remote Sensing – prior to the actual dig, remote sensing is used to attain an idea of location of sites within a larger more expansive area. Passive Remote sensing instruments detect the energy reflected or emitted naturally from the observed site. Active remote sensing instruments that emit energy and record that which is reflected at the site in various locales. For example Lidar (Light Detection & Ranging) transmits a light pulse using a laser and measures the reflected light through a sensitive detector, calculating the distance in the process. These instruments can determine atmospheric profiles of aerosols, clouds and other such bodies that constitute the atmosphere. Laser altimeter further uses a Lidar to determine the topography of the underlying surface.
Field Survey – it is an attempt to locate hitherto unknown sites in a region. In the process there is also an effort to systematically locate features of interest like houses or structures within the site. Field survey as an archaeological technique came to be used first in the mid-20th century and became prominent with the rise of processual archaeology. As a preliminary exercise survey work takes comparatively lesser time, expense and minimal damage to the site.
Surface survey, the simplest survey technique involves scouring an area to search for features or artefacts that are visible on surface.
Aerial Survey is carried out by attaching a camera to an airborne object giving a bird’s eye view of the site. Aerial photographs have the ability to detect many things that are not visible to the eye. The speed with which each area develops in a photograph may help find some hidden structures.
Geophysical survey uses magnetometers to detect minute deviations caused by buried artefacts, other devices that measure the electrical resistivity of the soil. It is through a variation in the electrical resistivity that many an archaeological features have been discovered.
Excavation – one of the oldest methods of archaeology till date remains the primary source of data recovered in most expeditions. Through a series of modern procedures primary data of the site is obtained to deduce the kind of artefacts and features were most likely used together and which ones may belong to different phases of activity. This method is expensive and causes maximum damage, hence carries ethical concerns too. It is because of this reason that very few of the sites have been excavated to its entirety.
First and most important step is sampling, followed by mechanical removal of topsoil and then the exposed area is hand cleaned to preserve the features in the best possible manner.
Analysis – the artefacts and features obtained from the excavation is then studied properly. Post-excavation analysis is probably the most time consuming part of the entire process, sometimes taking years to finally get published. At a superficial or physical level, the feature or artefact is cleaned, catalogued and compared to previously published collections, by categorizing and classifying them into manageable categories. More intensive techniques include archaeological sciences that maybe used for dating and examining their compositions, unearthing information that any other means may not have been able to.
Computational and virtual archaeology – with the help of state of the art computer graphics virtual 3D models of the sites are constructed. Various advanced analytical tools like photogrammetry, digital topography models are combined with astronomical calculations to verify the timeline of the events by aligning them with astronomical events. Agent based modelling and simulation is also used to experience and explore the social dynamics and their outcomes in the era being studied.
Drones – in an effort to speed up the survey work and to protect the site from malicious human or other elements archaeologists all over the world are using drones these days. Small drones have known to help them create 3D models instead of the traditional maps, thus reducing the time of years and months to weeks and days. Drones of varying size, price and capabilities have been used as a super specialized tool to bring in a revolutionary change in the way the survey area is visualized.
It is a part of archaeology that deals with and studies places, artefacts and issues from past wherein written or oral traditions can provide a link or context to the recovered cultural material. In the literate historical societies the written records were somewhat incomplete in their nature of non-inclusion of those that the elite and the literate considered unimportant to talk or write about. Hence these records are sometimes concurrent with the materials or artefacts or may even contradict them and expose certain biases.
Through a detailed study of material and non-material remains of a society ethnoarcheology aids archaeology in reconstructing the ancient way of living. It also helps archaeology in comprehending the construction of an object and the uses it was put to. This process helps the archaeologists draw parallels and contradictions between the techniques used in the ancient societies and their modern counterparts.
Experimental, experiment or experiential archaeology involves replicating the probability of a particular ancient culture’s ability for certain errands. Ancient structures or artefacts, specific techniques, analyses and approaches are employed to generate and then test archaeological hypotheses. The replication, however is based on one person’s idea of the past, hence it may not be referred to as reconstruction technically.
Archaeometry is a field of research that has an intent to systemize archaeological measurement. With a heavy inclination on the application of revered analytical techniques from physics, chemistry, and engineering, it investigates varied spatial characteristics of archaeological features. In doing so archaeometry tends to lean on space syntax techniques and geodesy, in addition to computer based tools. Archaeological materials is a subfield that is relatively new and is designed to develop a better understanding of ancient cultures through scientific analysis of materials.
Cultural Resource Management
Cultural Resource Management aims to identify, preserve, and maintain sites of cultural importance – public or private. It also takes over retrieval and removal of culturally valued materials from areas that propose damage to it. Through this study, a survey is conducted to determine the effects of a proposed construction on neighboring or associated archaeological sites of significance. The business aspect of this endeavor, however has been heavily criticized, as lowest quotes are granted the projects and CRM archaeologists are forced to rush up the projects by the private organizations to finish it probably in haphazard manner in a considerably shorter time period, as compared to a full blown academic excavation project.
CURRENT ISSUES & CONTROVERSY
With an intent to curb looting, restrain pseudoarchaeology and to assist in the preservation of archaeological sites, there is an effort from the archaeologists to reach the intellect of the general public. The intent is to induce appreciation and awareness along with a general sensitivity among the public about archaeology, archaeological sites, and their national worth. By devising community excavation projects and better visibility and awareness of archaeological sites and information there is a conscious effort to induce a civic and individual pride in the local heritage.
Local knowledge has forever been appreciated by archaeologists, who are advocating community excavation projects extensively as the locals have a better knowledge of the proposed archaeological sites of excavation. This process ends up saving a lot of time and money for the archaeologists.
Rejecting the accepted and verified methods of data collection and analyses, Pseudoarchaeology and pseudoarchaeologists (usually from outside the archaeological community) use the materials, data or artefacts to construct insubstantiated theories and aims. There are a number of such theories that are at constant odds with the data and interpretations developed by real archaeologists who have supporting facts, verified methods and techniques and sound training to back themselves.
Archaeological artefacts are a rich source of ethnographic and cultural information. The financial worth however, attracts more malevolent elements than we think. Since the times of excavations in the tombs of Pharaohs in Egypt, people of varied interest and intents have been looting precious archaeological artefacts, causing extensive damage to the site in the process. This has and still does lead to a massive loss of information, which is then denied to future generations. The motivation for this looting is usually money through private collectors abroad or a personal passion for collection.
Archaeological sites or features of interest may have a cultural significance and strong religious, cultural, social or individual sensitivity. This is one factor that may have been overlooked in the past and the understanding of these culturally sacred spaces may have been limited. In such cases there is a definite need for a close link and two way trust between the concerned archaeologist and the people directly affected by the same. This creates a profitable exchange for the both of them as the ethnic or affected people are able to preserve what they consider sacred and the archaeologists are helped these very people in interpreting and analyzing their finds in the area.
There is an aspect of archaeology that requires excavating burial grounds of some ethnic or native communities. This has been a source of some strong controversies as there have been cases where these dug up human remains have been archived, some of which have not even been studied. The communities to which the burial grounds belonged were sentimentally hurt and felt violated and exploited. It is then that consensus was said to have been reached between the concerned archaeological authorities and the communities in question, where an appropriate ritualistic reburial or repatriation was carried out, thus making any further scientific study impossible.
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Art history is the academic study of works from an historical perspective, spanning centuries of imagination, perspective, history and culture.
At Emmanuel College, students study painters, sculptors, architects and others from Ancient Egypt to the present, learning to not only to analyze creative works, but also to ask broader questions about the place and role of the arts in human history. Students of art history take an interdisciplinary approach, considering art objects not only in relation to history but also to the politics, economics and societal and cultural values of the time period in which they were made.
View the 2016-2017 Academic Catalog to find course titles, numbers and descriptions.
Requirements for Art History Minor
- ART1201 Survey of Art I
- ART1202 Survey of Art II
- Three courses in art history to be selected in consultation with the advisor
Learning Goals + Outcomes
Students enrolled in the art history program will be trained to:
- Identify and describe the formal properties of art objects
- Connect specific art objects to major art movements
- Understand the ways in which art objects engage history, culture and other external forces
- Analyze the shifting meanings of art objects based on the theoretical tools employed by art historians
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We draw on the expertise and knowledge of a range of external partners in order to support students’ learning and progress. We use their advice and recommendations to problem solve and support students more effectively. Our partners include:
Educational Psychologists work with children and young people aged up to 19 years and with their teachers, parents (and other carers) and other professionals involved e.g. doctors, social workers. Educational Psychologists work to find solutions to difficulties children and young people may be experiencing. This might be difficulties with learning, social and emotional development or behaviour, to name a few! Sometimes they work directly with children and young people , and sometimes they work only with the adults in the children’s lives.
Occupational therapy (OT) helps children to participate in daily activities. These activities may be personal care tasks (such as dressing, toileting or feeding), work and play tasks (such as activities carried out at pre-school, school or college) and/or leisure activities. These are ‘occupational performance’ tasks.
Occupational therapists work with the child, parents and teachers to find solutions to minimise the difficulties children face, helping them get the most from life.
Students at Catcote receive support for mobility and posture management from the Paediatric Occupational Therapy team at North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust. The team can recommend things like seating and moving and handling equipment.
We also purchase additional support from Smart Occupational Therapy and a member of their team is based in the school for one day per week. This is mainly focused on supporting our students’ sensory needs.
If we think that your child would benefit from working with an Occupational Therapist we will contact you to discuss this, before completing a referral form.
Speech and language therapists (SLTs) help children to communicate. This means they can help with different skills: to make someone easier to understand, help them communicate with others and to understand what others say to them. They can work with schools and settings or parents to help them to support children and young people’s communication skills. SLTs can also provide training and strategies for other people to use.
We will always ask for your permission before we make a referral to the Speech and Language Therapy team.
Children, young people and their families can be offered support by CAMHS if they are experiencing difficulties with their behaviour or emotions, or are finding it hard to cope with life in the family, at school or in the wider world.
Hartlepool’s CAMHS team is based at Dover House and provides a range of support following referral. We will always ask for your permission to make a referral to this service.
This year we are working with a new service to support our student’s emotional health and wellbeing. A trained psychotherapeutic counselor spends 1 day per week in the school working with individual students, observing classes and consulting with staff.
There can be lots of pressures on young people growing up, for example friendships, teasing and bullying; exams and school work; family relationships, separations and changes; as well as illness, loss or death of someone close. Young people also have to cope with adolescence and the strong feelings and physical changes that go with it. Even quite young children can find that the time and space they get from counselling/therapy helps them feel better, and cope better at home and in school.
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For decades, medical practitioners have insisted their patients to give up smoking as it may cause them bronchitis, cancer of the lungs, tuberculosis, and severe breathing problems such as asthma.
Asthma and smoking statistics show that smoking cigarettes, cigars and pipes is harmful to our body and lungs in many ways.
Especially for an asthmatic who smoke with asthma, this can be a powerful triggering agent for asthma symptoms. Even for babies, children and asthmatic who do not smoke, passive smoking and third-hand smoke pose great dangers to their health.
It is therefore important for an asthmatic (smoker or not) to know the connection between asthma and smoking in detail so that they can avoid living in an environment which is unhealthy for them and their loved ones.
The other common questions asked about smoking and asthma are the following:
- Can smoking cause asthma?
- Can smoking while pregnant cause asthma?
- Can smoking harm my children?
- Can second-hand smoke cause asthma in adults?
- Can third-hand smoke cause asthma in adults and babies?
- Why are my breathing and asthma worse since giving up smoking?
As you continue to read further you will be able to get all the answers to the questions listed above, along with the one asked in the article title.
Let us start with the very first important question…How smoking affect asthma?
In This Article ...
- How Does Smoking Affect Asthma?
- Can You Get Asthma From Smoking?
- Developing Asthma After Quitting Smoking: Possible Reasons
How Does Smoking Affect Asthma?
Airways of an asthmatic person are very much sensitive and can adversely react very fast to irritating substances or allergens such as tobacco smoke or the smoke of cigarettes, vape, weeds, fire, etc.
Studies reveal that if you smoke with asthma on a regular basis, these allergens settle down on the moist lining of your airways causing an attack of asthma more often.
In many cases when a person is an active smoker, the tobacco smoke also damages cilia.
Cilia are the tiny hair-like structures present in the lungs and respiratory tract which functions to clear up the airways from mucus and dirt allowing us to breathe easily without causing any irritation.
Can Smoking Help Make Asthma Better?
Yes, indeed it was the case in the past when smoking was considered a way to make asthma feel better.
According to various past studies, asthma cigarettes which contained belladonna and stramonium were used by asthmatics due to its sweet aroma known to relieve respiratory issues and asthma symptoms.
Thanks to all latest medical researches due to which it has been proved the smoking of any kind is harmful to health and it outweighs the benefits offered, if any.
Fortunately, there are better and safer medicines known today, used by doctors, to treat asthma conditions. And smoking no longer is recommended for relieving respiratory issues such as asthma!
Can You Get Asthma From Smoking?
Smoking is hazardous to health and we all know that very well. Not only smoking cigarettes and cigars but also weeds, vapes and e-cigarette are found to be a potential risk for people who suffer from mild respiratory issues.
Consequences of smoking may not seem to be severe in starting stages but if the practice is not stopped, it can lead to severe health problems such as asthma and COPD sooner or later.
Smoking and asthma is an unfortunate combination for many. Studies show that for an active smoker, smoking in the form of tobacco, nicotine or e-liquids actually damages the lung cells causing lung inflammation.
Chronic inhalation of the tobacco smoke also stimulates the mucus glands present in the bronchial tubes which lead constant build-up of excessive mucus. It slowly results in recurrent cough and phlegm formation.
Smokers, because of the recurrent cough and mucus formation, find their respiratory passage getting obstructed causing a feeling of dyspnea which can eventually end up in the occurrence of bronchial asthma.
Can Smoking While Pregnant Cause Asthma?
Being pregnant is a great feeling for new moms. This is in fact a time which is best for you to quit your smoking habit and concentrate on the health of your unborn baby.
If not, you will be putting (not only yourself but also your baby) at risk of getting lung problems and respiratory issues such as asthma.
Hard to believe, more than 1000 babies die each year die only because their mothers used to smoke when they are pregnant.
The truth is, if you are smoking while pregnancy you are inviting long term health issues for your unborn child which can be faced by them at later stages of their life in the form of low immunity, cold, cough, etc.
Many times new born babies have small lungs which make it harder for them to breathe normal.
Second-hand smoke and third-hand smoke can also cause serious issues for young ones which may even lead to fatal issues like heavy wheezing, bronchitis, asthma and pneumonia.
[Also read: Best humidifiers for childhood asthma]
What Is Second Hand Smoke And How It Affects Asthma?
Secondhand smoke (also called passive smoke or environmental tobacco smoke) is basically a mixture of two types of smoke that originates from the burning of tobacco. These are:
- Mainstream smoke which is exhaled out directly by the smoker
- Sidestream smoke that comes from a lighted cigarette, cigar, or hookah
Lots of people who do not actually smoke, but have a family member as a smoker, have a question in mind: can passive smoking cause asthma?
To be true, passive smoke is found to be much more harmful than actually smoking.
This is due to the fact that the smoke coming out of a lighted cigarette or cigar tip contains more hazardous substances that includes nicotine, carbon monoxide, tar, etc.
This can prove to be much harmful to health than the smoke which is inhaled directly by the smoker.
Studies show that secondhand smoke is actually more harmful to people who are already suffering from asthma or other respiratory issues.
When these people are exposed to such smoke they are highly vulnerable to getting asthma attacks and associated problems like shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing.
What Is Third Hand Smoke And How It Affects Asthma?
Thirdhand smoke basically refers to residual byproducts of cigarette smoke (like nicotine, chemicals or other harmful particles) which are left behind on indoor surfaces like furniture, walls, carpets, drapes, clothes, etc.
The residual chemical and ultrafine particles of the tobacco smoke can also get linger on hairs, skin, or to the interiors of the car surfaces weeks after a cigarette or cigar has been put off and smoker has left the area.
These potentially harmful tiny particles when gets exposed to asthmatics can prove to be hazardous and much more deadly for them, as compared to nicotine inhaled directly by the smoker.
The residue left behind due to thirdhand smoke gradually build up on various surfaces which get reacted with other indoor pollutants present in the air slowly.
This gets converted into a deadly toxic mixture and chemical compounds that act as a potential health hazard for children and non-smokers resulting in respiratory issues like asthma for them.
Infants and toddlers are often at increased risk of thirdhand smoke as they tend to get in touch with these contaminated surfaces through hands and mouth.
Sad to reveal, you cannot get rid of thirdhand smoke so easily. To remove these tiny residues and harmful particles completely, you should regularly get your furniture and upholstery cleaned.
And most importantly you should insist on living in a smoke-free environment by not allowing anyone in your family to smoke. This is important not only for you but also for your small ones.
[Also read: Why you should opt for HEPA vacuum for allergies?]
Developing Asthma After Quitting Smoking: Possible Reasons
Smoking and asthma in adults can be a severe problem for long. Even for many people asthma and bronchitis symptoms persists (and may get worse initially) when they quit smoking.
Breathing and asthma getting worse, since giving up smoking, can be attributed to the fact that your lungs and respiratory system (including the gradually growing damaged cilia) are once again getting ready for normal functioning.
As they experienced sudden changes and are not habitual to it, the signs of increased asthma symptoms can be sometimes seen.
Possible Reasons and Things You Need To Check
It’s a proven fact that if you continue to smoke it can put you at risk of developing asthma and not when you quit. The fact, that you experience aggravated asthma symptoms even after quitting may be sometimes due to various other reasons.
Try to figure out if there are any triggers/allergens present in your environment that may be causing the problem. These may be like: fire smoke in winters, increased pollen count, heavy pollution, etc.
If you find any, you definitely need to get rid of them (or at least try to reduce exposure to it) so that you can easily alleviate your asthma symptoms.
Few tips that can help are:
- Avoid traveling with people who smoke
- If travel with them, do not allow them to smoke
- Limit your company to friends who do not smoke
- Avoid visiting public places where smoking is allowed
- Avoid visiting outdoors on days when there is high pollen count or heavy pollution
Breathing may sometimes feel to be more difficult for you but worry not.
Quitting is not an easy task for everyone! But as you keep yourself motivated from staying off cigarettes and smoking, you will see improved health conditions slowly.
You just need to be patient, as your body may sometimes need a bit more time to get accustomed to the healthy changes you are trying to make in your lifestyle!
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Delaware is a state of the eastern United States on the Atlantic Ocean. It was admitted as the first of the original Thirteen Colonies in 1787. Settled by the Dutch in 1631 and by Swedes in 1638, the region passed to England in 1664. It was part of William Penn's Pennsylvania grant from 1682 until 1776. Dover is the capital and Wilmington the largest city. Population: 843,000.
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Native Inhabitants and European Claims
Long before Europeans explored the Delaware area, it was inhabited by several Native American groups of the Delaware—notably the Nanticoke in the south and the Minqua in the north. In 1609, Henry Hudson, in the service of the Dutch East India Company, sailed into Delaware Bay. A year later the British captain Sir Samuel Argall, bound for the colony of Virginia, also sailed into the bay. Argall named one of the capes Cape La Warre after the governor of Virginia, Thomas West, Baron De la Warr.
From the time of its discovery, the region was contested by the Dutch and English. The first settlement was established by Dutch patroons, or proprietors, in partnership with the Dutch navigator David Pietersen de Vries; it was called Swanendael and was established (1631) on the site of the town of Lewes. However, within a year it was destroyed by a Native American attack. This attack notwithstanding, the Native Americans were generally friendly and willing to trade with the newcomers.
The Dutch West India Company, organized in 1623, was more interested in trade on the South River, as the Delaware was called at that time, than in settlement (the North River was the Hudson, in the Dutch colony of New Netherland). Several Dutchmen, interested in settling the area, put their services at the disposal of Sweden and colonized the area for that country. The best known of these was Peter Minuit, who had been governor of New Amsterdam (later New York). In 1637–38 Minuit directed the colonizing expedition for the Swedes that organized New Sweden. Fort Christina was founded in 1638 on the site of Wilmington and was named in honor of the queen of Sweden. The colony grew with the arrival of Swedish, Finnish, and Dutch settlers.
English colonists from Connecticut tried to establish trading posts in the Delaware River region and failed, but Dutch interests in the area were not disposed of as easily. Peter Stuyvesant, governor of New Netherland, sailed to the Delaware region in 1651 and established Fort Casimir on the Delaware shore at the site of present-day New Castle. The Swedes captured the fort by surprise in 1654, but their triumph was brief; Stuyvesant returned with an expedition in 1655 and conquered all New Sweden. The Dutch West India Company sold part of New Sweden to the Dutch city of Amsterdam in 1656 and the rest in 1663.
In 1664 the English seized the Dutch holdings on the Delaware. The Dutch recaptured the colony in 1673 and although they held Delaware only briefly, they set up three district courts that marked the beginning of Delaware's division into three counties. The colony was returned to England in 1674 and remained in its hands until the American Revolution.
The Three Lower Counties
The English Duke of York (later James II) annexed the region to New York, land granted him earlier by Charles II. In 1682 the duke transferred the claim to William Penn, who wanted to secure a navigable water route from his new colony of Pennsylvania to the ocean. The three counties of Delaware thus became the Three Lower Counties (or Territories, as Penn called them) of Pennsylvania. The individual counties were called New Castle, Kent (formerly St. Jones), and Sussex (formerly Hoornkill, also known as Whorekill, and Deale). The English proprietors of Maryland contested Penn's claim to Delaware, and the boundary dispute was not fully settled until 1750.
The inhabitants of the Delaware counties were at first unwilling to be joined to the radical Quaker colony of Pennsylvania or to have their affairs settled in Philadelphia. They finally accepted the Penn charter of 1701 after provisions were added giving the Three Lower Counties the right to a separate assembly, which first met in 1704. Delaware maintained quasi-autonomy until the American Revolution. The two colonies maintained strong ties, however, and two of Delaware's leading statesmen during the Revolution—Thomas McKean and John Dickinson—were also prominent in Pennsylvania affairs.
Revolution and Statehood
Although there were many Loyalists in Delaware just prior to the American Revolution, Delaware supported independence, with two of its three delegates to the Continental Congress—Caesar Rodney and Thomas McKean—voting for independence. George Read, the third Delaware delegate, voted against independence, fearing that Loyalist sentiment was too strong in the colonies. However, Read subsequently signed the Declaration of Independence.
In 1776 the colony of Delaware became a state, with a president as its chief executive. Regiments from the state rendered valiant service to the patriot cause, especially the Delaware 1st Regiment, which was nicknamed the Blue Hen's Chickens—originally because they carried with them gamecocks bred by a famous hen of Kent and later because they themselves showed the fighting quality of gamecocks. Delaware was a leader in the movement for revision of the form of government under the Articles of Confederation and in 1787 became the first state to ratify the new Constitution of the United States. The state constitution of 1776 was superseded by a new constitution in 1792, which provided that the chief executive be a governor rather than a president.
The late 18th cent. also marked the beginning of industry in Delaware with the establishment of gristmills on the Brandywine and Christina rivers. Wilmington became a center for the manufacture of cloth, paper, and flour—products that helped to build the industrial economy of N Delaware that flourished in the 19th cent. Shortly thereafter, in 1802, Eleuthère Irénée Du Pont established a gunpowder mill on the Brandywine River.
Pro- and Anti-Slavery Factionalism
Prior to the Civil War, Delaware was a slave state, but in the early 19th cent. the number of slaves in the state declined, while the number of free blacks increased. Many citizens of Delaware favored manumission of slaves and belonged to the American Colonization Society, but there were few who sympathized with the growing abolitionist movement and there was strong sentiment for separation of whites and blacks. In the Civil War, Delaware remained loyal to the Union, but pro-Southern feeling increased rather than diminished during the course of the war. Delaware refused to accept an emancipation proposal made by Lincoln in 1861 and did not ratify the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth amendments to the U.S. Constitution until 1901. Delaware Democrats subsequently became divided, and the Republican Party emerged in 1905 to assume a leading political role for some years.
Maintaining a Rural–Urban Balance
A new state constitution in 1897 reflected the political strength as well as conservatism of Delaware's farmers through provisions that kept the political strength of Wilmington at a minimum and that of rural areas at a maximum. Many European immigrants came to the state in the late 19th and early 20th cent., settling in the Wilmington area. Southern Delaware's population continued to be made up largely of African Americans and persons of English origin.
Delaware's industries flourished during the 19th cent. as transportation facilities improved. Industry continued to expand in the 20th cent., especially during World Wars I and II. The chemical industry built up by the Du Pont family was broken up by a federal antitrust suit in 1912, but was nonetheless large enough to buy control of General Motors corporation in the 1920s and hold it for many years.
Racial tensions appeared in the state in the 1950s and 60s as Delaware's schools were racially integrated, and after the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968, rioting erupted in Wilmington. In the 1980s, Governor Pierre S. Du Pont fought to liberalize the state's usury laws and won. As a result, many large New York banks set up subsidiaries in Delaware (especially the Wilmington area), and thousands of jobs were created.
- Delaware was the first state to ratify the United States constitution. It did so on December 7, 1787.
- Delaware shares a semi-circular border with Pennsylvania. The border was drawn at the time of the original land grants to William Penn from King Charles II and the Duke of York.
- The nation's first scheduled steam railroad began in New Castle in 1831.
- The United States battleship Delaware was commissioned in 1910.
- Delaware is the only state without any National Park System units such as national parks, seashores, historic sites, battlefields, memorials, and monuments.
- Delmar is popularized as the little town too big for one state. The community has the distinction of being located partly in Delaware and partly in Maryland.
- The most historic site in Frederica is Barratt's Chapel east of town. The chapel is where the Methodist Church of America was organized in 1784.
- Today about 500 descendants of the original Nanticoke Indians reside in Delaware. They celebrate their heritage each September with the Nanticoke Indian Pow Wow.
- The log cabin originated in Finland. Finnish settlers arrived in Delaware in the mid-1600s and brought with them plans for the log cabin, one of the enduring symbols of the American pioneer. One of the cabins has been preserved and is on display at the Delaware Agricultural Museum in Dover.
- John Dickinson was called the Penman of the Revolution for his writings on independence. His boyhood home is preserved in Dover.
- Tradition holds the first time Betsy Ross's famous flag was flown was at the Battle of Cooch's Bridge. This historic site is located on route 4 in Newark.
- The Blue Hen chicken is the official state bird. The hens were noted for their fighting ability. Delaware is sometimes referred to as the Blue Hen State.
- The Lady Bug is Delaware's official state bug.
- Eleven years after the landing of the English pilgrims the first white settlement was made on Delaware soil.
- In 1785 Oliver Evans of Newport invented the automatic flour-milling machinery that revolutionized the industry.
- "Our Delaware" is the official state song. The words are by George Hynson, music by William Brown.
- In total area Delaware ranks 49th in the nation. It contains 1,982 square miles. It is 96 miles long and varies from 9 to 35 miles in width.
- Ebright Road in New Castle County is the highest state elevation at 442 feet above sea level. The lowest elevation is along the coast at sea level.
- Thomas Garret lost his entire fortune in his battle against slavery. He was sued by a Maryland slave owner and fined for aiding a black family in flight. Over his lifetime, Garrett reportedly helped more than 2,000 fugitive slaves move through Delaware, an important stop on the Underground Railroad.
- Rehoboth Beach is the state's largest coastal resort town. Methodists who purchase the land for a summer camp and meeting place originally constructed it.
- The 87-foot Fenwick Island Lighthouse was painted in 1880 for a total cost of about $5.00.
- Twelve concrete observation towers along the coast were constructed during World War II to protect the state's coastal towns from German u-boat attacks.
- Fisher's popcorn is a famous coastal caramel corn. It has been ordered from as far away as Vietnam and Indonesia.
- The American holly is the official state tree. The tree can reach a maximum of 60 feet in height and a trunk diameter of 20 inches.
- The peach blossom is Delaware's official state flower and has prompted Delaware's nickname as the peach state.
- New Sweden was founded as a colony in 1638 and is recognized as the first permanent colony on Delaware soil.
- Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library, six miles northwest of Wilmington features one of the world's finest naturalistic gardens.
- Hagley Museum was originally the du Pont black powder manufactory, estate, and gardens.
- The state's Coastal Heritage Greenway consists of a corridor of open space running along 90 miles of coast and spanning the area between Fox Point State Park and the state line at Fenwick Island.
- Thousand Acre Marsh is the largest freshwater tidal wetland in northern Delaware. The Chesapeake and Delaware Canals border the marsh.
- In 1812 Port Penn was considered the best port in Delaware.
- Augustine Beach was named for Augustine Hermann. He was a Bohemian adventurer who mapped the Delmarva Peninsula and surrounding areas in the mid-1600s.
- Odessa possesses one of the finest collections of late 18th- and early 19th-century architecture in the middle Atlantic region. The center of town is on the National Register of Historic Places and the entire town has been zoned as historic.
- Barratt's Chapel is known as the Cradle of Methodism. It was built in 1780 and is the oldest surviving church built by and for Methodists in the United States.
- The 80-food Great Dune is the state's highest. It is located at Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes.
- The Maryland/Delaware boundary and the Mason-Dixon Line divide Delmar. A double crown stone marker was erected in 1768 as the southern end of the only North-South portion of the Mason-Dixon line.
- Horseshoe crabs may be viewed in large numbers up and down the Delaware shore in May. The crabs endure extremes of temperature and salinity. They can also go for a year without eating and have remained basically the same since the days of the dinosaur.
- The Du Pont Laboratories first produced nylon at its plant in Seaford. This earned the town the distinction of being the Nylon Capital of the World.
- In recognition of sportfishing's overall recreational and economic contributions to the state of Delaware and of the specific values of the weakfish (Cynoscion genus) as a game and food fish, the state Legislature adopted the weakfish as Delaware's State fish in 1981. This fish is also known as sea trout, gray trout, yellow mouth, yellow fin trout, squeteague, and tiderunner.
- Colonial blue and buff are Delaware's official state colors.
- Delaware was named for Lord de la Warr. He was the first governor of Virginia.
- The sheaf of wheat, ear of corn, and the ox on the state seal symbolize the farming activities of early Delaware.
- The Delaware Indians were one of the most advanced tribes of the eastern United States.
- New Castle County includes the largest population and smallest area of Delaware's three counties.
- Wilmington's Delaware History Center is housed in a renovated, art deco former Woolworth five-and-ten-cent store.
- America's newest tall ship is ten stories high and 139 feet long. The recreation is the Kalmar Nyckel that landed on the Christina River in 1638.
- Quaker merchant Thomas Garret is thought to be the model for a Quaker farmer in the novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin." Garret and famed abolitionist Harriett Tubman worked closely with Delaware's anti-slavery forces.
- The frying pan built in 1950 for use at the Delmarva Chicken Festival is 10 feet in diameter and holds 180 gallons of oil and 800 chicken quarters.
- The Delaware Breakwater at Cape Henlopen State Park was the first structure of its kind in the western hemisphere.
- The town of Milton was named after the English poet John Milton in 1807.
- Delaware.gov - Official website.
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MONTPELIER — Vermont students’ vocabulary comprehension in the fourth and eighth grades are above national averages, according to data released by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
Challis Breithaupt, NAEP state coordinator at Vermont Department of Education, said it was the first-ever national vocabulary report.
“There was a new framework for reading in 2009 and the feeling was there needed to be a criteria developed for vocabulary,” Breithaupt said.
The measure would assess more of students’ ability to understand vocabulary and their ability to acquire meaning from passages they were reading.
“Helping students to increase their vocabulary and to feel comfortable using words in various contexts is paramount,” state Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca said in a statement. “There is significant research in the field supporting a link between vocabulary and comprehension.”
On a scale of 0-500, fourth-graders scored 224 and eighth-graders scored 274. The national average for fourth- and eighth-graders was 217 and 263, respectively.
Only Connecticut, Massachusetts, Montana and North Dakota scored higher than Vermont’s eighth-grade vocabulary.
“Students use their knowledge of words in order to understand what they are reading, to identify ideas and themes,” said Vilaseca. “Summer reading programs continue to support the good work that is done throughout the school year; keeping our children’s minds active supports strong reading and comprehension skills.”
The NAEP addressed the method of the vocabulary test in its results: “Unlike traditional tests of vocabulary that ask students to write definitions of words in isolation, NAEP always assesses word meaning within the context of particular passages. Students are asked to demonstrate their understanding of words by recognizing what meaning the word contributes to the passage in which it appears.”
For more information, The report card can be found online: www.nationsreportcard.gov.MORE IN Vermont News
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Soil Testing Lab. Experiment
- Go to Soil and Water Testing Lab home page
and find the reference on how to do analysis for Organic Matter.
- Turn in a report on how to collect
soil samples and explain how the soil and water testing lab will analyze
the sample for organic matter.
- Explain the importance of organic matter in controlling erosion.
- Explain how the Soil and Water Testing Lab
will analysis a soil sample for texture analysis and water content and why a farmer would
have his soil analysised for these characteristics.
- Search the internet including NMSU for information on soil testing. and list the links
and a description of each link.
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In Shakespeare’s Sonnet 135, the bard is playful and inventive as he embarks on an extended play on words using his first name, Will. He must have had fun writing this piece, and I certainly had fun reading it.
Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy Will,
And Will to boot, and Will in over-plus;
More than enough am I that vexed thee still,
To thy sweet will making addition thus.
Wilt thou, whose will is large and spacious,
Not once vouchsafe to hide my will in thine?
Shall will in others seem right gracious,
And in my will no fair acceptance shine?
The sea, all water, yet receives rain still,
And in abundance addeth to his store;
So thou, being rich in Will, add to thy Will
One will of mine, to make thy large will more.
Let no unkind, no fair beseechers kill;
Think all but one, and me in that one Will.
This is a love sonnet and seems designed to remind the poet’s lover of his name, by using it as much as he can in the poem. So in the fourteen lines of the sonnet we can find the word “will” no fewer than twelve times, but with a number of different meanings. We have will as the poet’s name; will as intention or purpose; will as desire; and will as material possession, as expressed in a legal will.
The sonnet is a tour de force of verbal inventiveness , a bit like a jazz musician improvising around a couple of notes in a melody, yet here everything works within the formal confines of the sonnet, and within the logic of the poet’s theme – an appeal by the poet to his lover.
So this is an example of Shakespeare at his most playful, and there are definitely parallels in theme and tone with the poem by Marot posted here yesterday.
The Poetry Dude
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