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Freising Waterscapes Team 3 2022
>>>back to working groups overview
Moosach river is located near München, Bavaria in Germany. The river is a 38 long tributary of Isar river. Moosach characterizes the area of Freising as it flows through the landscape, however due to urbanization and population growth, this changed the course and the flow of the river. Floods could happen causing damage to settlements and the living environment as there is no buffer between these areas. People want to build close to the river in the floodplain to experience the water. Climate change also does not mitigate these flood events, it only increases these effects. All these our relevant issues which need to be solved in order for a better living space.
Location and scope
You can edit this map with the map editor
Water as a natural system
Geomorphology, typologies and dynamics of water areas
The river Moosach is a tributary in the Danube river Basin. The Moosach, with it's source in Unterscheissheim, is a spring water river that flows into the Isar. The Isar connects to the Danube near Deggendorf, close to the German-Chech Republic border. Clearly to see is the small scale of the Moosach river in the bigger context, but also the large impact the water can have on a long stretch of Europe's largest river.
The Moosach, especially in and around the city of Freising, has a complex water system. As visible in the figure below, the Moosach has many elements in the river flow, especially compared to the river Isar just south of it. Most of these elements consist of wears to regulate the hight of the water. The complexity is a result of many years of using the Moosach as a energy source for the many mills that used to be in the area. One of these mills is still active in Freising, used as a hydropower plant. This plant can be seen as the red symbol on the map.
Just like anywhere in the world, the climate around the Moosach is changing. The trends in the changing of the climate are clearly visible in graphs. The temperature is ever rising, and precipitation is reducing. This will project a future of heat and draught in the area, with peaks of precipitation. This will have a great effect on the ecosystem and human wellbeing in the area as the result of heat stress, draught and flood risks.
The river Moosach has a history of floodings, with locals living in flood plains having to evacuate every few years. This problem will, according to the projections of precipitation peaks, only get worse. In the figure below the cause and effect are shown. The waterflow of the Moosach is greatly affected by rainfall in the local area and the ridges of the hills in the north. Due to canalization in the 1930's, the river has been straightened resulting in a fast flow of water. When this fast flowing water flows into the complex water system of Freising, problems arise. Water builds up and is not contained by dykes (like the river Isar). The result is agricultural, and residential area's being flooded with economical cost and the possible loss of human life.
Water as a living space
In general, the water quality of the river Moosach is described as good. However, problems with overfertilization and water temperature have arisen. The Moosach has been used and adapted since the 1930 to drain the surrounding Freisinger Moos as agricultural land and as a place for fish farming. This has lead to problems in floodings, but also erosion and overfertilization of the river. This leads to the overpopulation of Macrophytes, water plants that take oxygen away from water fauna. This problem is also getting worse because of the open landscape, were the lack of shade in the river leads to high water temperatures. These temperatures lead to illness in trout species. Fauna also gets hindered by the many elements in the water system.
Fauna and flora around the Moosach
The surroundings of the Moosach river is a habitat for many endangered plant -, bird -, and butterfly species. In a large part of the Freisinger Moos the bird habitat is protected. This gets improved by the local use of the area as a drinking water source. Pesticides and chemical fertilization is prohibited here.
Blue and Green Infrastructure
On the bigger scale, the importance of the Isar river is clearly visible. Not only is it important on the local level, but also international. The green-blue infrastructure connects the center of Munich with the Danube near the Chech border. This connects it all the way to the Black Sea. Also the green-blue infrastructure of the Amper river is important on the local level, just as the green infrastructure of the hill ridge line. However, this is not connected to the Moosach.
The reason of this, again, goes back to the exploitation of the Moosach and the Freisinger Moos in the 1930's. Although a small part of the Freisinger Moos remains, most of the surroundings are lacking in forest. This can be seen again when looking at the protected area's, where this pattern returns.
Water as a cultural space
Land use and water
Over the centuries, the waterscape of Moosach river has been considerably altered by human activities, especially with the intensification of agriculture and urbanisation of the region. Today, agricultural land use covers most of the territory and has caused the canalization of the entire river, damaging the natural environment of the Freisinger Moos, the extensive flat mossy area between Freising and Munich. Furthermore, this area is also subject to constant change due to grey infrastructures, from the construction of the Munich-Freising railway in 1858 to the new Westtangente road in January 2022. These constructions are at the same time causes and effects of the expansion of urban areas, especially the Munich metropolitan area. On the contrary, Freising has remained a small compact city for most of its history and only in the last thirty years has it started to expand rapidly, mainly due to the new presence of the International Airport of Munich. It covers a large area in the southeast of Freising and its further expansion is still a possible threat for the territory, along with the continuing demand for housing in the city.
Cultural and spatial typologies of water areas
Starting from the open landscape of the Freisinger Moos, the river divides itself into many channels, partly still covered, running through the concrete landscape of Freising. Its canalization from source to mouth has been realized to its use for agriculture, fish farming, hydropower and drinking water.
Sacred spaces and heritage
The main cultural values of Freising and its surroundings have been strongly present for centuries, from its famous products, beer and milk, to its identity as a university city. Freising is also known as an important religious center and for its garden culture. These values are clearly visible in the city’s landscape, especially in the presence of churches, notably the Dom St. Korbinian on Dom Hill and the Korbiniansbrünnlein on Weihenstephan Hill. This latter hill is famous for being part of the university campus and for the Weihenstephan Brewery, known as the oldest brewery of the world still open. Along with the historical center, these identity places are commonly used and visited from both locals and tourists alike.
Visual appearance and landscape narrative
Moosach takes part of a special encounter between two different spatial landscapes, from flat to hilly. Mainly due to the presence of the river, it was there that the foundation of the city of Freising began, firstly on the two well-known Dom Hill and Weihenstephan Hill.
In numerous paintings of the Freising landscape the same characters always appear, which are still easily recognizable today. For example, we have identified most of the main historical values in a painting from 1698, where we can see the river, the Freisinger Moos, the compact city of Freising, the historical Weihenstephan garden and the surrounding agricultural fields.
Water and People
Accessibility and usability
The Moosach River flows along with urban spaces, rural spaces, and farms. Out of the city, the edges of the river are natural and there are not many public paths. In urban spaces, the water areas are more accessible by the walking and bike routes along the river. Some transects of the river are covered and because of channelization, it is not easy to touch the water in Freising. Most boundaries of the Moosach River are soft around Freising. But as we get closer to the city, the boundaries are getting more concrete. The interactions between people and the river are limited to countless spaces for sitting or bridges for crossing the river.
The Moosach River is exploited for agriculture, fish farming, energy (hydropower), housing, transportation, and drinking water. The people who use the spaces generally are the internal stakeholders. Additionally, the people that we had interviewed are more locals and students. There is no intensive activity and most of the people’s activities are just for relaxation or while traveling by bike or on their feet. According to the varied social, cultural, and artistic events that we found in Freising during the year, the most important events are held in the center of Freising (Marienplatz) and there is not a lot of connection to the Moosach.
The community is shaped by social groups, local stakeholders groups, and external stakeholder groups. It includes government, media, experts, interest groups, individuals, and associations. Their proportions are different; Conflicting, neutral, and positive relations. For instance, there are conflicting relations between ecologists (expert group) and farmers (interest groups). Active City Freising, TUM Students, and HSWT Students as three Associations have positive relations. In addition, Green Party and Landscape Architects are in a Neutral relationship.
These groups have specific needs, interests, and power. For example, the Green Party with high power needs to expand the protected areas and increase the biodiversity as their goals. It is interested in the plans they can sell to the voters and it contributes to promoting and financing a project that responds to its main political topics.
Rural area locals with low power need better infrastructure. They are interested in deforestation and sustainable agriculture and contribute by collaborating to take measures regarding flood risk management.
Analysing the project area, we used three main frameworks (DPSIR, SWOT, Riskmapping), identifying all the aspects which have to be considered before planning a new scenario. In the waterscape of Moosach, the Sustainable Development Goals which are at risk are mainly the ones threaten by the climate change risks, the flood risks and the growing of the population: water and soil as limited resources, human health, well-being, economic andsocial stability.
Collaborative Goal Setting
From our analysis of the Moosach river and using the frameworks such as SWOT, DPSIR and risk mapping, lead us to the understanding of the landscape, giving us the tools to see the different risks, impacts and problems. We started with studying the EU and German climate goals to implement these for our future design, aligning them with our 4 main goals: resilient economy, enriched identity, restored nature, suitable living.
To achieve this overall goal, we came up with several smaller goals. We would like a better connection between the local economy and global network and a better connectivity with the surroundings by improving and relying more on public railway networks, which reduces carbon fuel emissions. Having a sustainable agriculture (paludi culture) and innovative food production (hydroponics) lead us to a space-efficient landscape and reduced methane and nitrous emissions. Introducing renewable energy (solar panels) to our design reduces emissions in all sectors as well.
Our main goals are to improve and have more diverse habitats by renaturalization of the Moosach. Returning it to its natural flow and having better water quality, by removing the producers of pollution is important to us. Adding new diverse habitats to the green-blue infrastructure and connecting the Isar and Moosach will give us a green-blue cross-border network. In addition, restoring the Moos is one of our main concepts to be implemented which could absorb the greenhouse gasses.
In this section our main focus is not only on enhancing the already existing cultural identity of the landscape and community but also giving back a part of the past identity of Freising: The Moos and Moosach. We improve the accessibility to the Moosach, by adding more activities in the area. Sustainability and innovation as a new identity is also a goal of ours.
Our main goals here to have an urban space which is resilient to urban heat island, where people could live close to nature, protected by the airport noise pollution and floods.
Spatial Strategy and Transect
In 2050, the waterscape between Munich and Freising is a place where a trampled nature has the ability to restore itself. Modern technology balances the need for food and space which results in a compact, but integrated landscape without fragmenting it. The population has the unique opportunity to both live in a natural environment and be connected to a metropolis, while living the most sustainable way possible for its time.
To translate the vision to a design, a spatial concept has been created. Here a zoning has been given with peatland, settlement, hydroponic farms, closed agriculture and open agriculture. Through this run forest and the rivers. The placement follows the following rules:
- Settlements and hydroponic farms are encased by forest to protect natural area’s
- Peatland is restored, with a free flowing Moosach
- Bands of forest connect green structures
- Around the Isar is closed agriculture with a larger focus on recreation
- The Moosach and Isar are connected by an emergency overflow in case of floodings
From Theory of Change to Implementation
Many partnerships and connections are needed to realize our vision. Having the government on our side is an important relation to us, since now the Freising has a green party, our goals could be easily aligned and transform into realizations. Collaborating with department of climate protection alliance and environmental protection and waste management institute would increase our changes. In addition, it is also impossible to achieve our vision without stakeholder participation. According to are transect we mapped out what type of stakeholders we predict would be influenced by our design and how would they react to our ideas in the future of 2050. Three different colors show their relation to our design (in favor, neutral, against). By using this method, we can clearly see a mostly positive response as our main goals align with the stakeholders needs: restoring nature, making a resilient economy, enriching identity and having a sustainable living environment. Involving and compensating stakeholders and having consultations with experts could lead us to a sustainable implementation.
Of course, implementation need resources, which could be achieved by EU funding and various government and regional resources from the Bundesministerium des Innern, für Bau und Heimat and Städtebauförderung von Bund, Ländern und Gemeinden.
In 3Ds and axonometries you can see how some of our implementation would develop in the years.
- give a full list of the references you have used for your case
Working with an international and interdisciplinary team brings its benefits and conflicts as well. Since we use different software programs and have different knowledge it led us the opportunity to learn from each other and to see how people interpreter various ideas and how they think. However, cultural differences in work, time and conflict management were our key challenges. Slowly but steadily, we learned how to approach each other and discuss these problems openly, solving and easing them.
Living labs and having the opportunity of lectures from diverse countries gave us a large insight of understanding waterscapes. | <urn:uuid:3ffa94ee-e783-4839-83d2-5f40f6c669d7> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://wave.hfwu.de/index.php?title=Freising_Waterscapes_Team_3_2022 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570879.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808213349-20220809003349-00474.warc.gz | en | 0.952514 | 3,401 | 3.375 | 3 |
Every so often, Journal readers write in to tell us about ideas they have for new woodworking products. We also receive reader shop tricks for clever problem solvers that make interesting and potentially even salable products. It’s clear that woodworkers and do-it-yourselfers (most of us wear both of those hats) are generally a clever and resourceful bunch. Still, not every widget we dream up is destined to be tomorrow’s great new shop gizmo with a SKU number and a catalog price.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to turn a smart idea into a tangible product? Recently, I had a chance to ask Mark Bergman, president and CEO of Chanhassen, Minnesota-based Bercom International and the inventor of line of unique painting accessories, that very question. Mark could certainly answer it from experience: his company was founded a little over a decade ago on a product that began as a coffee can and a roll of duct tape. Today, his HANDy Paint Pail and other products are sold in some 15,000 to 20,000 store fronts nationwide.
“Here’s the short answer to the question,” Mark says. “You need to see a void in the market for a product that meets a need. Then people have to understand your invention and be willing to pay for it.”
Bergman’s HANDy Paint Pail was certainly born of need back in 2000, while he was remodeling part of his basement into a bedroom. During the painting stage, Mark got tired of holding a coffee can full of paint. He grabbed a roll of duct tape and fashioned a strap for the can that fit over his hand. It was more comfortable to keep painting without gripping the rim. Then, he added a strip of tape across the top of the can for scraping excess paint off the brush. That made it even better. He used it for a few more days, and so did his wife and son. Everyone liked the convenience of it, and that’s when the green light came on. Maybe he was onto something bigger.
But Mark was no stranger to new product development at the time. A few of his previous hunches had already turned into successful products. He knew the ropes.
“In ’86, a buddy of mine and I started a company called Harber Incorporated. We had business degrees and had been working in the financial industry when I had this idea to make children’s products. That inspiration came while feeding my young kids, where I would say what lots of parents do: ‘Open the hanger; here comes the airplane!’ It occurred to me that maybe spoons shaped like airplanes, race cars and trains could make meals even more fun, so that’s what we set out to make.”
The idea worked, even though Bergman admits the two business partners knew next to nothing about making products. It was a “trial by fire” experience for these entrepreneurs, in many respects. One learning curve to overcome was the patenting process. Finding a patent attorney proved to be essential. Then came the challenges of product design which, the two realized, was beyond their wheelhouse of skills.
“You can come up with a great product concept, but it takes the expertise of good industrial designers to help you make a product efficiently and affordably. I was lucky enough to find a couple of excellent designers, Matt Leyden and Jeff Waffensmith, at an agency called Psoup here in St. Paul. They love to help inventors with new product ideas, and I’ve been working with them ever since.”
Through the process of making plastic utensils for kids, Mark learned the ins and outs of injection molding as well as the cost-effectiveness of subcontracting that work out to companies that specialize in it. He says that “Even now, we ship our products, but we don’t do any of our own injection molding or other manufacturing. All of that work is done by five Minnesota- and Wisconsin-based companies. It’s a good lean business model for us.”
Mark says says that one of the first steps of exploring any new product concept is a careful patent search. He admits to never getting too excited until he’s sure that developing something new won’t infringe on other patents. He recommends the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s website (USPTO.gov) as an excellent and free resource for exploring existing patents before contacting a patent attorney. In the case of HANDy Paint Pail, “not only had no other company ever done anything like it, but we couldn’t even find evidence of a patent for a vessel with an adjustable strap attached to it. That was an excellent sign to move our product idea forward.”
The quart-capacity HANDy Paint Pail, which has an adjustable strap, a scraper lip and a built-in magnet for brush storage, has several patents pending. “You need that level of protection for any product, and you have to extend the patenting process as long as possible to keep other competitors from creating something similar to it.”
It took Bergman and his start-up company less than two years to transform that coffee can prototype into a marketable product, which launched in January 2002. By March of the same year, Menards® was selling HANDy Paint Pail in all of its stores. “It took a couple more years to establish vendor relationships with Lowe’s® and Home Depot® before they would carry our product, but persistence paid off. We are also carried in Sherwin-Williams® and other specialty paint stores as well as most independent hardware store chains.”
Bercom International, under Bergman’s leadership, has invented a variety of other painting-related convenience products in the years since, including the HANDy Ladder Pail, Paint Tray and Paint Cup. Removable, disposable liners and re-usable lids make the paint-holding products even more versatile. The company also recently launched HANDy Bucket Builder. It converts five-gallon buckets and 2x4s into knockdown sawhorses, benches and work tables.
Mark credits the company’s “crossover” product line as one reason for its success. “Both hobbyists and professional painters use our products. It took a while to convince the pros that they could use our accessories to paint in a different, more effective way, but eventually they realized the benefits. These days, our customer base is probably 60 percent DIY and 40 percent contractor.”
While Mark admits that he’s always had an inventive spirit and a drive to “do things better,” he leavens enthusiasm with a sensible approach to business. Experience always evaluates inspiration. Even so, some products are hits, and others are misses, Bergman revealed, and that’s the challenge of developing products both pros and DIYers will understand and be willing to buy. But Bercom is committed not to be another “me too” supply company. “I know that we’re helping to improve people’s projects with novel products, and at the end of the day, that’s a darn good thing.” | <urn:uuid:deea09bf-87ad-4f8d-b4cc-6c7e2549cac6> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.woodworkersjournal.com/handy-paint-pails-bergman-offers-advice-inventors/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570871.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808183040-20220808213040-00265.warc.gz | en | 0.977467 | 1,537 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Gain invaluable skills, training and experience by counseling startup companies, entrepreneurs and nonprofits in basic yet crucial corporate legal matters through our Small Business Clinic (SBC). These experiences, along with direct professor supervision, help students bridge the gap between law school and transactional legal practice.
The clinic handles more than 100 transactional legal matters each year, and students also assist with the structure and organization of issues and other challenges facing young businesses.
Small business is the backbone of the American economy, creating two out of every three new jobs nationwide. Students in the clinic work with a range of clients, from mom-and-pop retailers to website designers to childcare centers, and on a variety of issues - from handling transactional legal matters to implementing legal protections to providing guidance on regulatory compliance. The lessons learned will apply to future dealings across the business sector, including more complex business transactions.
Since the clinic's inception, participating students have helped Los Angeles-area entrepreneurs form more than 600 entities, from partnerships to corporations. We have assisted more than 2,500 business owners, approximately half of whom are women or minorities. On average, clients receive legal services ranging in value between $12,000 and $25,000. Most could not otherwise afford the caliber of legal services provided by the clinic.
A sampling of recent clients includes a local brewery, an online music business, an olive oil company, a business providing music lessons, a trucking company, an iPhone application, a fitness company, a local Chamber of Commerce, several video games, a juice business, tutoring businesses, a mobile nail salon and a nonprofit providing unused medical supplies to those in need in other countries.
First-year JD students are invited to apply in the spring for the summer and following academic year. Additional JD students apply during the first semester of their second year and commence work in the second semester of that year, once they have completed a course in Business Organizations. Because of the hands-on nature of the Small Business Clinic, enrollment is typically limited to eight to 10 students per year. Selection is interview-based.
The clinic is offered as a course within the JD curriculum and, if selected, you will receive academic credit. Students enroll in the clinical course for one year. The program begins with an intensive introductory study of the legal issues that arise in the formation and organization of corporations and limited liability companies.
Crucial skills developed through firsthand experience aiding clients include:
Michael Chasalow created the Small Business Clinic and has directed it since its inception in 2007. He brings more than 30 years of experience, ranging from complex corporate transactions as an attorney at Latham and Watkins - where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions and the issuance of sophisticated debt securities - to his years working with venture capital and private equity investments both as an attorney and an investor. Prof. Chasalow also spent many years working directly with start-up companies, guiding entrepreneurs through the development and financing of early-stage businesses. He earned his JD from the University of California, Berkeley, and an MBA from UCLA.
"The Small Business Clinic provided great drafting training and practice, as it required students to think through corporate structure and related issues from a very practical, client-focused perspective. The experience of forming entities and drafting LLC agreements with the clinic gave me a meaningful head start over others who had just a theoretical understanding of the issues."
Ted Dillman, JD '08, Associate, Latham & Watkins
"If not for the help that they gave, the process would have been longer and much more confusing. They helped us save time and money and made it so there was always someone to answer questions."
David Radcliff, who with his business partner established NimbleTrek LLC with help from the Small Business Clinic | <urn:uuid:a8159477-1e66-46ef-ae44-8e93cac60f38> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://gould.usc.edu/academics/clinical-programs/small-business-clinic/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280221.47/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00235-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959897 | 765 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Preston S.G.,University of Oxford |
Majtan J.,Slovak Academy of Sciences |
Kouremenou C.,University of Oxford |
Rysnik O.,University of Oxford |
And 8 more authors.
PLoS Pathogens | Year: 2013
Hard ticks subvert the immune responses of their vertebrate hosts in order to feed for much longer periods than other blood-feeding ectoparasites; this may be one reason why they transmit perhaps the greatest diversity of pathogens of any arthropod vector. Tick-induced immunomodulation is mediated by salivary components, some of which neutralise elements of innate immunity or inhibit the development of adaptive immunity. As dendritic cells (DC) trigger and help to regulate adaptive immunity, they are an ideal target for immunomodulation. However, previously described immunoactive components of tick saliva are either highly promiscuous in their cellular and molecular targets or have limited effects on DC. Here we address the question of whether the largest and globally most important group of ticks (the ixodid metastriates) produce salivary molecules that specifically modulate DC activity. We used chromatography to isolate a salivary gland protein (Japanin) from Rhipicephalus appendiculatus ticks. Japanin was cloned, and recombinant protein was produced in a baculoviral expression system. We found that Japanin specifically reprogrammes DC responses to a wide variety of stimuli in vitro, radically altering their expression of co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory transmembrane molecules (measured by flow cytometry) and their secretion of pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory and T cell polarising cytokines (assessed by Luminex multiplex assays); it also inhibits the differentiation of DC from monocytes. Sequence alignments and enzymatic deglycosylation revealed Japanin to be a 17.7 kDa, N-glycosylated lipocalin. Using molecular cloning and database searches, we have identified a group of homologous proteins in R. appendiculatus and related species, three of which we have expressed and shown to possess DC-modulatory activity. All data were obtained using DC generated from at least four human blood donors, with rigorous statistical analysis. Our results suggest a previously unknown mechanism for parasite-induced subversion of adaptive immunity, one which may also facilitate pathogen transmission. © 2013 Preston et al. Source
Metkar S.S.,University of Chicago |
Marchioretto M.,Fondazione Bruno Kessler |
Marchioretto M.,University of Trento |
Antonini V.,Fondazione Bruno Kessler |
And 10 more authors.
Cell Death and Differentiation | Year: 2015
Perforin-mediated cytotoxicity is an essential host defense, in which defects contribute to tumor development and pathogenic disorders including autoimmunity and autoinflammation. How perforin (PFN) facilitates intracellular delivery of pro-apoptotic and inflammatory granzymes across the bilayer of targets remains unresolved. Here we show that cellular susceptibility to granzyme B (GzmB) correlates with rapid PFN-induced phosphatidylserine externalization, suggesting that pores are formed at a protein-lipid interface by incomplete membrane oligomers (or arcs). Supporting a role for these oligomers in protease delivery, an anti-PFN antibody (pf-80) suppresses necrosis but increases phosphatidylserine flip-flop and GzmB-induced apoptosis. As shown by atomic force microscopy on planar bilayers and deep-etch electron microscopy on mammalian cells, pf-80 increases the proportion of arcs which correlates with the presence of smaller electrical conductances, while large cylindrical pores decline. PFN appears to form arc structures on target membranes that serve as minimally disrupting conduits for GzmB translocation. The role of these arcs in PFN-mediated pathology warrants evaluation where they may serve as novel therapeutic targets. Source
Belhouchet M.,Institute for Animal Health |
Jaafar F.,Institute for Animal Health |
Firth A.E.,University of Cambridge |
Grimes J.M.,Henry Wellcome Building for Genomic Medicine |
And 2 more authors.
PLoS ONE | Year: 2011
The genus Orbivirus includes both insect and tick-borne viruses. The orbivirus genome, composed of 10 segments of dsRNA, encodes 7 structural proteins (VP1-VP7) and 3 non-structural proteins (NS1-NS3). An open reading frame (ORF) that spans almost the entire length of genome segment-9 (Seg-9) encodes VP6 (the viral helicase). However, bioinformatic analysis recently identified an overlapping ORF (ORFX) in Seg-9. We show that ORFX encodes a new non-structural protein, identified here as NS4. Western blotting and confocal fluorescence microscopy, using antibodies raised against recombinant NS4 from Bluetongue virus (BTV, which is insect-borne), or Great Island virus (GIV, which is tick-borne), demonstrate that these proteins are synthesised in BTV or GIV infected mammalian cells, respectively. BTV NS4 is also expressed in Culicoides insect cells. NS4 forms aggregates throughout the cytoplasm as well as in the nucleus, consistent with identification of nuclear localisation signals within the NS4 sequence. Bioinformatic analyses indicate that NS4 contains coiled-coils, is related to proteins that bind nucleic acids, or are associated with membranes and shows similarities to nucleolar protein UTP20 (a processome subunit). Recombinant NS4 of GIV protects dsRNA from degradation by endoribonucleases of the RNAse III family, indicating that it interacts with dsRNA. However, BTV NS4, which is only half the putative size of the GIV NS4, did not protect dsRNA from RNAse III cleavage. NS4 of both GIV and BTV protect DNA from degradation by DNAse. NS4 was found to associate with lipid droplets in cells infected with BTV or GIV or transfected with a plasmid expressing NS4. © 2011 Belhouchet et al. Source
Metkar S.S.,NorthShore University HealthSystems Research Institute |
Wang B.,NorthShore University HealthSystems Research Institute |
Catalan E.,University of Zaragoza |
Anderluh G.,University of Ljubljana |
And 3 more authors.
PLoS ONE | Year: 2011
The cytotoxic cell granule secretory pathway is essential for host defense. This pathway is fundamentally a form of intracellular protein delivery where granule proteases (granzymes) from cytotoxic lymphocytes are thought to diffuse through barrel stave pores generated in the plasma membrane of the target cell by the pore forming protein perforin (PFN) and mediate apoptotic as well as additional biological effects. While recent electron microscopy and structural analyses indicate that recombinant PFN oligomerizes to form pores containing 20 monomers (20 nm) when applied to liposomal membranes, these pores are not observed by propidium iodide uptake in target cells. Instead, concentrations of human PFN that encourage granzyme-mediated apoptosis are associated with pore structures that unexpectedly favor phosphatidylserine flip-flop measured by Annexin-V and Lactadherin. Efforts that reduce PFN mediated Ca influx in targets did not reduce Annexin-V reactivity. Antigen specific mouse CD8 cells initiate a similar rapid flip-flop in target cells. A lipid that augments plasma membrane curvature as well as cholesterol depletion in target cells enhance flip-flop. Annexin-V staining highly correlated with apoptosis after Granzyme B (GzmB) treatment. We propose the structures that PFN oligomers form in the membrane bilayer may include arcs previously observed by electron microscopy and that these unusual structures represent an incomplete mixture of plasma membrane lipid and PFN oligomers that may act as a flexible gateway for GzmB to translocate across the bilayer to the cytosolic leaflet of target cells. © 2011 Metkar et al. Source
Fry E.E.,Henry Wellcome Building for Genomic Medicine |
Tuthill T.J.,University of Leeds |
Tuthill T.J.,Institute for Animal Health |
Harlos K.,Henry Wellcome Building for Genomic Medicine |
And 3 more authors.
Journal of General Virology | Year: 2010
Equine rhinitis A virus (ERAV) shares many features with foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) and both are classified within the genus Aphthovirus of the family Picornaviridae. ERAV is used as a surrogate for FMDV research as it does not require high-level biosecurity. In contrast to FMDV, which uses integrins as cellular receptors, the receptor for ERAV has been reported to involve the sugar moiety sialic acid. This study confirmed the importance of sialic acid for cell entry by ERAV and reports the crystal structure of ERAV particles complexed with the receptor analogue 3′-sialyllactose. The receptor is attached to the rim of a capsid pit adjacent to the major immunogenic site and distinct from the sialic acid binding site used by a related picornavirus, the cardiovirus Theiler's murine encephalitis virus. The structure of the major antigenic determinant of the virus, previously identified from antibody escape mutations, is also described as the EF loop of VP1, which forms a hairpin stretching across the capsid surface close to the icosahedral fivefold axis, neighbouring the receptor-binding site, and spanning two protomeric units. © 2010 SGM. Source | <urn:uuid:32bbc6cc-0e3a-4610-9a0f-c8998ebb77e1> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.linknovate.com/affiliation/henry-wellcome-building-for-genomic-medicine-384484/all/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280825.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00208-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.901007 | 2,110 | 1.726563 | 2 |
New products are being launched every day in order to improve the lives of millions. But while many products may be innovative or helpful, sometimes there are those that cause serious injury, disability, or even death. These defective or dangerous products cause injuries to countless numbers of consumers annually.
When products are rushed to market, the care that is necessary to safely protect the public suffers, often leaving the consumer to deal with the harmful consequences.
TYPES OF PRODUCT DEFECTS
There are three types of defects that may cause injury:
- Design defects are those that are present from the very beginning. In other words, something is wrong with the very design of the product that causes it to be harmful. For example, a chair is designed with three legs and ends up tipping over easily.
- Manufacturing defects are those that occur during the course of production. For example, the brakes on your new car do not work when you try to stop.
- Marketing defects are those that occur when advertising is false, labeling is improper, or safety warnings are inadequate. For example, a prescription drug bottle that does not warn of certain side effects.
Dangerous products can be found in a variety of categories, with common defects occurring with:
- Car Seats
- Baby Equipment
- Heavy Equipment
- Space Heaters
- Electrical Devices
- Medical Equipment
Call Freeburn Law Today at 717-777-7777 for a Free Consultation.
Everyone has the right to expect that the products they utilize will work and not cause harm to them or others. Products liability cases can be extremely complex and deserve the attention of a knowledgeable and experienced Pennsylvania Defective Products attorney. The sooner you contact an attorney, the sooner evidence can be preserved.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or killed due to a defective product, call Freeburn Law today for a FREE consultation with a leading Harrisburg Defective Products attorney. Don’t worry about paying us upfront – we only get paid after you recover damages. In addition to medical bills, you may also be entitled to compensation for lost wages, pain and suffering, and loss of quality of life. Don’t wait – call today!
Freeburn Law, Just Call the 7’s—Because the Right Law Firm Makes a Real Difference.
The information contained in this page is general in nature and is not intended to be, nor may it be relied upon as legal advice. Freeburn Law does not handle the type of matter discussed on this page, but will refer it to lawyers and/or law firms who do handle these types of matters. | <urn:uuid:3262b449-7242-4d23-84d8-503b218ed9cb> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://pa-injurylawyer.com/products-liability/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570765.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808031623-20220808061623-00278.warc.gz | en | 0.948124 | 569 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Our touring season ended in October and now it’s a good time to make some conclusions and write a bit more about our Alutaguse Bear Forest project.
In 2019, 177 persons traveled with Natourest and stayed in Estonia for about a week. Some stayed for longer, some for a shorter period. While most of the visitors came for a guided tour, directly through us through our partners, there were also over 20 persons who made a self-guided tour.
More than half of the people came from Germany, flying in from Frankfurt, Berlin, Munich and also coming with a ferry to Helsinki and from there to Tallinn. So it’s difficult to calculate exactly how much distance everyone covers with a plane or other vehicle. But we wanted to know if the piece of land and forest we have in Alutaguse (the land surrounding our Brown Bear hide), is enough to compensate for the CO2 emitted through the flights of our clients?
To make some kind of calculations, I chose Amsterdam as the starting point for all the travelers. One round-trip (Amsterdam-Tallinn) for one person produces about 0,552 tons of CO2. This calculation is made according to: https://co2.myclimate.org/en/flight_calculators/new
If all our clients (177) flew in from Amsterdam, it would mean they would altogether produce 97,704 tons of CO2.
Natourest owns 86,2 hectares of land, out of which 72,7 hectares is covered with forest. As most of the forest is still relatively young, the annual growth is 351 solid cubic meters (SCB) or 4-6 SCB per hectare.
In our forest, we have many different tree species – Norweigan Spruce, Silver Birch, European Aspen, Oak, Black- and Grey Alder, different willows and other species. To make some more general calculations, I chose Norweigan Spruce as the exemplary species as it’s probably the most numerous species in the area. It’s said that 1 SCB of a growing Norweigan Spruce has the moisture content of 53% (1). A freshly felled spruce tree is said to weight about 860 kg/SCM. The average dry-weight is said to be 405 kg.
The calculations for CO2 sequestered SCM (kg) =
Tree mass (tons of fresh biomass) x 65% (dry mass) x 50% (carbon %) x 3.67 x 120%
• 35% of the green mass of a tree is water so 65% is solid dry mass;
• 50% of the dry mass of a tree is carbon;
• 20% of tree biomass is below ground level in roots so a multiplication factor of 120%
is used; and
• To determine the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide, the carbon figure is multiplied
by a factor of 3.67.
So the calculation in our case would be: 0,86 x 65% x 50% x 3.67 x 120%= 1230, 918 kg or 1,23 tons of CO2/SCM
This means that in one year, our forest can offset = 1,23 x 351 = 431, 73 tons of CO2
431,73 t/CO2 means that our forest could actually offset the flight emissions of 782 potential clients and easily covering the 177 touring clients we had in 2019. For 2020, we plan a growth of 10%, which means, we hope to have at least 195 clients. Many of our partners also automatically offset the flights of our common clients, so people can feel secure that if they tour in Estonia with NaTourEst or with some of our partners, your flight emissions will be offset and even more.
Due to the relatively young age of our forest, the yearly growth of SCB is still growing in the future until it slows down again.
But we won’t stop here. Starting from the beginning of 2020, we will put 5€ from every visit to the Brown Bear hide into a fund, which we will use for buying more land and taking it under protection. More info about the fund will be published soon.
You can read more about our conservation efforts from here.
Some of the numbers in a chart:
|Cadastre||Total area/ha||Forest area/ha||Annual growth /SCM||Annual growth SCM/ha| | <urn:uuid:41ca5bfe-eb66-4b5b-b4d3-011753962bae> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://natourest.ee/blog/bear-forest-project-and-how-natourest-offsets-your-flight-emissions/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572408.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816151008-20220816181008-00676.warc.gz | en | 0.931562 | 985 | 1.914063 | 2 |
(Adds details, background)
MOSCOW, April 1 (Reuters) - Russia warned Ukraine against integration with NATO on Tuesday, saying Kiev's previous attempts to move closer to the bloc had strained ties with Russia and caused problems between Moscow and the defence alliance.
"(Past attempts) led to a freezing of Russian-Ukrainian political contacts, a headache between NATO and Russia and ... to a division in Ukrainian society," the Russian Foreign Ministry said as NATO foreign ministers gathered for a meeting in Brussels.
It warned that future economic ties between Moscow and Kiev "will largely depend on the actions Ukraine takes in its foreign policy".
The statement underscored Russia's sensitivity to contacts between Moscow's former Cold War enemy NATO and Ukraine, with whom Russia's relations have deteriorated since the removal of Moscow-backed Viktor Yanukovich as president on Feb. 22.
Moscow sees Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, as part of its traditional sphere of influence and wants a neutrality clause included in Ukraine's constitution to prevent it joining NATO.
Ukraine pursued NATO membership during President Viktor Yushchenko's rule from 2005 until 2010. The Kremlin has sought, where possible, to keep buffer states between Russia and NATO. (Reporting by Thomas Grove, Editing by Timothy Heritage) | <urn:uuid:01bd9cc0-996f-4c48-87fe-96c36e635d25> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://news.trust.org//item/20140401105711-6ugxo | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988719677.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183839-00559-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968853 | 253 | 1.921875 | 2 |
The presence of dark urine, a sign of elevated conjugated bilirubin, indicates a hepatobiliary process, such as biliary obstruction, cirrhosis, or viral hepatitis. The lack of dark urine indicates elevated unconjugated bilirubin and thus points to a prehepatic process such as hemolytic anemia. This is because unconjugated bilirubin binds to albumin in the serum and is not filtered by the kidney. The patient most likely has hemolysis related to a mycoplasma infection.
Check our archives to test your knowledge in other clinical signs:
If you do not already have Acrobat Reader, simply click on the icon below, scroll down to the "Get the Free Acrobat Reader" heading and follow the instructions to install the program. Acrobat enables you to convert any document into an Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) file for easy viewing. | <urn:uuid:b1ccfa35-1c5e-47d6-9f99-3135e493a429> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.turner-white.com/rcs/jul03/rcs_jul03_liver_ans03.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282926.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00391-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.854423 | 188 | 1.9375 | 2 |
Landeshauptstadt Dresden - www.dresden.dehttps://www.dresden.de/index_en.php 20.03.2020 17:11:05 Uhr 16.08.2022 18:41:02 Uhr
I am a
Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2
Since early December 2019, there has been an increasing number of cases of respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) emerged from Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province. Most of the cases appeared within China. The disease is transmitted from person to person, primarily via respiratory secretions. | <urn:uuid:89686c09-3767-4d4b-95dc-4403b3955c06> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.dresden.de/index_en.php/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572408.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816151008-20220816181008-00677.warc.gz | en | 0.794219 | 152 | 1.875 | 2 |
Help in bat conservation by taking photos, sharing your sightings and looking for indication of bats roosting.
The top tips for looking for bats around homes, gardens and outbuildings include:
- look for gaps where bats might squeeze in (e. G. Under roof tiles, behind cladding, fascia boards etc).
- Look for holes in trees, e. G. Woodpecker holes, cracks in branches or lifted bark.
- Look on the ground, windowsills, and walls for crumbly droppings, and look for dark stains just below a gap where bat roosts may be present.
- If you are going into an open space like a barn or attic, keep an eye out for piles of crumbly droppings and insect wings on the floor.
- At dusk, enjoy the warm evenings in your garden while looking for bats leaving their roosts.
Liz walsh, senior environment officer, said: 18 different species of bat have been recorded in Jersey, but for many of these species little is known of their roosting sites. Knowing where bats are resting during the day enables researchers to gather important data about the features bats choose to roost in and enable the recording of bat sounds as they fly to and from their roosts. These bat sounds or echolocation calls are key to the development of future methods to monitor bat populations.
Protecting and monitoring bats is particularly important to us as the moment as bats are facing threats including climate change, falling insect numbers, light pollution and a habitat loss. Roostwatch aims to increase our understanding of the places that bats in jersey call home, which will enable us to do further research and help us assess their conservation status in our island.
Partnership project with The Government of Jersey's natural environment team and the Jersey Biodiversity Centre. | <urn:uuid:f678a78f-05d2-4e77-8363-878175b5b407> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://jerseybiodiversitycentre.org.je/index.php/article/roostwatch | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570765.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808031623-20220808061623-00272.warc.gz | en | 0.931305 | 388 | 3.515625 | 4 |
At A Glance
The Great Neck Public School District encompasses Great Neck, North New Hyde Park, and a portion of Manhasset Hills. It is home to some 40,000 people on the suburban North Shore of Long Island, in Nassau County, 30 commuting minutes from Manhattan. District residents value public education and have high expectations for their school system.
A diverse population adds to the richness of the school community. Our more than 6,500 students come from over 40 countries.
A multi-disciplinary curriculum provides our students with individual learning opportunities.
Student achievement is high, with some 98 percent of our graduating seniors going on to higher education, according to the NYS Education Department. The annual dropout rate is less than 1 percent. A number of students are named National Merit Finalists, Semifinalists, and Commended Students; Advanced Placement Scholars; and Regeneron Science Talent Search Scholars. The Great Neck mean scores on the SAT-Critical Reading, SAT-Math, SAT-Writing, and SAT II: Subject Tests are consistently higher than the national mean scores.
Co-curricular and recreational activities are highly subscribed on all levels.
The parent community is involved in all facets of school life through each school's Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and Shared Decision Making Committee, and through the districtwide United Parent-Teacher Council (UPTC).
The faculty is committed to participating in many important education-related areas, including building curriculum and representation; goal setting; inservice institute, workshops, and courses; and teacher selection. | <urn:uuid:8bc43b5c-4d16-4c4d-8f7f-cc9f7e181b99> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.greatneck.k12.ny.us/Page/5085 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573104.24/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817183340-20220817213340-00479.warc.gz | en | 0.941176 | 323 | 1.679688 | 2 |
A few days ago, lazily watching TV, I came across the movie Papillon and I appreciated it. There’s a scene that struck me and I didn’t remember. The main character, locked in isolation, falls asleep and dreams of being in an uncultivated field with judge and jury in the distance who accuse him of having “wasted his life” and his answer is a whisper “guilty… guilty…”. It seemed to me an emotionally intense scene and I asked myself: what does it mean to “waste one’s own life”? Culturally there are goals, almost obliged, that we feel we must achieve so as not to feel “out of place” or incomplete. Find a job that makes us make good money, so that we can support a family, get married and have children, have a successful career. Yet, we see so many examples, close or far, of those who have followed perfectly all the cultural dictates, and yet…
I thought that the accusation that those judges make to our protagonist was for other reasons, like they had delegated their lives to others. Constantly waiting for the right moment that never comes, a greater (material) security, be chosen and never choose as De André said. Living your life without having the courage to say certain no, or certain yes, focusing on your own feelings.
And I think of children and their being scientists, investigators, researchers. They never stand still, for them the right moment is linked to a feeling and not to the useful, their spontaneity is unsettling. I do not believe those who say that children are in the throes of impulses or un-regulated and that it is the adult who must contain/regulate them. On the contrary, just after disappointing relationships with the adult who does not understand/see their internal reality, there is the risk that that little great researcher will hide and become frightened or even lose themselves, to say, once they grow up, I’ve never been curious and that that inner world made of affections, of “gut feelings” is not really important.
In the movie, our protagonist knows he is guilty but he is not depressed, he does not ally himself with the jailers, with the culture or with those who want to teach him to live. He knows that the truth of his life is beyond that cliff and tries to escape from being a rational adult, who imprisons the child. He jumps from the cliff with the certainty that he will make it, while his friend remains there, accepts his condemnation and becomes his own jailer, perhaps not believing that he can find that little researcher anymore or that it ever existed.
While Papillon, free in the waves and towards freedom, shouts that he is still alive “in their face”. He turns to his jailers, but when I saw that scene, I thought he was a man yelling at anyone or anything that would stop him from actually being himself, if he believed that we were only made of what we’re told, advised, taught or imposed.
Another film comes to mind, more recent, where an American boy, fed up with the social and family pressure, decides to abandon everything and everyone to live free in the wild. “Into the wild” indeed, but his rebellion does not go as he would like. His rebellion seems to be blind, because he thinks to be free by going away physically, rejecting everything, even valid relationships, without thinking he has to change himself.
So what’s the difference between the two?
Papillon has that dream, which puts him in crisis, feels that the blame is also on him and tries to get out of it. He does not reject the human relationship by walking away from society as an ascetic, as it happens in Into the wild. He keeps his inner world and there he finds the courage to leave.
So I think that that movie, Papillon, tells us about something that was lost and that it’s vital to find again. As if each of us had a palette of colours to paint our own world but that, as a result of deep disappointments, more or less visible, these colours dry out convincing us that what we had before had never existed. And then you find yourself unfairly in prison, like Papillon. But he knows he’s responsible for something, he knows he played an active part in that conviction. He rebels as he can, like a child who knows he had those colours.
So might that leap, towards freedom, be the adolescent who doesn’t agree on becoming a rational adult? They want to hold on to a deep dimension with which we are all born.
Because, after all, what are we without that?
Thanks to Chiara Fanasca for the translation of this article | <urn:uuid:419e4ea2-9d89-455b-8ea0-a5e5ec2db70e> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://papillon.center/en/blog/delegating-ones-own-life/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573667.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819100644-20220819130644-00075.warc.gz | en | 0.985395 | 1,025 | 2 | 2 |
Best Sightseeing Places in Bhubaneswar
Before planning your Bhubaneswar vacation, be familiar with what you must visit
during the trip.
Situated to the north of the Lingaraja Temple, this Lake is amongst the most famous
tourist attractions in Bhubaneswar. In fact, this lake is getting more popular as a tourist
as well as a picnic spot.
Lingaraja temple is one of the most famous temples of Odisha. This beautiful temple
is dedicated to Hindu Lord Shiva that is also known as 'Lingaraja'. It is endowed with
magnificent sculptures, which have been engraved on the spire.
It is amongst the most renowned temples in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha.
This beautiful temple is made of the wonderful red and gold sandstone (which is locally
known as Rajarani) and that is why, the temple has been named so.
Another prominent temple of Bhubaneswar, Mukteshwar temple has been built in the
style, which is quite similar to Kalinga School of Temple Architecture.
Odisha State Museum:
Dating back to the year 1932, the Odisha State Museum's foundation was laid by
Professor Ghanshyam Dash of Ravenshaw College & Professor N. C. Banerjee (two
famous historians). This museum began the task of collecting archaeological treasures
from various places. You can see a variety of treasures and ancient artifacts of the state
Best Time for Holidaying in Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar enjoys a tropical climate with very hot summers and chilly winters. The
monsoons bring a lot of humidity (with approx. 1450 mm of rainfall). Therefore, the
best time to visit this city is from October to March, when the weather is quiet pleasant
and favorable for sightseeing and holidaying. So, make your Bhubaneswar trip plan
accordingly and enjoy its historical beauty.
Must Buy Things from Bhubaneswar
Often called as the "Temple City of India", Bhubaneswar is not only a famous place
of worship but also a paradise for shopping lovers. There are innumerable shopping
places right from private shops to Government-owned places from where you can
shop the well-known "Ikat Fabric", which is mostly used in making Sarees and
other garments. Some other best buys are Tussar silk, Sambalpuri silk and Cotton.
Beside fabrics, you can buy the Appliqué work of Bhubaneswar, which is locally
called 'Chandua'. There is also a wide variety of metal ware available in the city in
the form of exquisite metal silver and distinctive kinds of metal sculptures, known as
Dhokra. Some interesting items that you can take back home as souvenirs or gifts for
loved ones are handcrafted wooden items, such as lampshades, vegetable baskets,
vanity boxes etc. Stone sculptures of Gods & Goddesses, miniatures are also hot sale.
Last but not the least, this city is famous for its paintings including, paintings made on
palm leaf, Patachitra, Ganjapas etc. So, don't forget to buy any or all of the items from
your Bhubaneswar tour.
Explore Options to Reach Bhubaneswar
Before booking your Bhubaneswar holiday packages, you must be aware of the ways
to reach this beautiful city. To know more, read on:
Bhubaneswar has its own international airport, Bhubaneswar Airport (BBI) which
connects the city to various major cities of the country like Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai,
Vishakhapatnam, Nagpur and Varanasi. Also, several international flights commute
directly with the city.
The Bhubaneswar railway station and Mancheswar railway station connects the city to
major cities of India through fast and super fast train links to Kolkata, Delhi, Guwahati,
Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and
various other important centres of the country as well as within the state.
Bhubaneswar is well-linked to the rest of India by the national highways. The New Bus
Stand in Bhubaneswar is on NH5, at Baramunda, about 6 KM from town centre. You
can also hire private buses, taxis or take inter-state transport buses to reach to this city.
So, select any of the modes of Bhubaneswar travel and explore this beautiful city. | <urn:uuid:e750eec2-eeab-44d8-b05b-e3c588b8724b> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.easemytrip.in/tour/bhubaneswar-holiday-trip.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560283301.73/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095123-00503-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94613 | 973 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Tulsa, OK – Oklahoma Department of Transportation crews across the state are monitoring road conditions in areas where there is moisture and precipitation and treating roads as necessary. All roads remain open at this time.
Crews have been sanding and salting primarily bridges and overpasses, which tend to freeze first.
Early this morning, crews began sanding/salting in the central portion of the state, including the Oklahoma City metro area, as moisture moved across Oklahoma.
Drivers are reminded to stay at least 200 feet behind road-clearing equipment, for both their safety and the safety of the operators. During snow and ice conditions, motorists are asked to:
Be aware that conditions are continually changing; drive cautiously and for the conditions on the roadway.
Check road conditions before getting out on the roads.
Allow extra space between vehicles, so there is adequate distance for braking in wet and icy conditions.
Stay at least 200 feet behind road-clearing equipment; crews need room to maneuver and can engage plowing or spreading materials without notice.
Be aware of "black ice," which looks wet on the roadway, but is actually a thin layer of ice.
Please be patient, plan trips ahead and allow extra time to reach destinations.
To check CURRENT ROAD CONDITIONS, call the Department of Public Safety's ROAD CONDITIONS HOTLINE at 888-425-2385. Please give this number to the public for the latest road condition information. | <urn:uuid:4ebc69ea-9af2-4348-bbe6-107748b37984> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://publicradiotulsa.org/post/winter-weather-update | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279368.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00326-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94018 | 303 | 1.585938 | 2 |
The editors of the Comprehensive Textbook of Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography have created a new product entitled Basic Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography: A Multimedia Review. Consisting of a short, full-color paperback book with a bound-in DVD, this product was developed with the recent endorsement of the ASA of an extensive educational program to train its members as well as creating a certification process with the NBE for its members in basic echocardiography.
The book covers the basics—how to set up the machine, how to acquire the different views, relevant cardiac anatomy and pathophysiology, normal and abnormal values, how to perform the TEE exam, as well as basic assessment and interpretation skills. Each chapter ends with questions and answers.
The DVD consists of 3D animations of the probe scanning the heart correlated to TEE video output, as well as rotating 3D animations of cardiac anatomy, enabling the user to see what is being scanned (anatomy), the position of the scanner, and the appearance of anatomy and pathophysiology via the TEE video output at once.
Basic Perioperative Echocardiography and Review is suited for anyone interested in basic TEE skills: anesthesiologists, cardiologists, and critical care practitioners.
Chapter 1: Physics of Ultrasound and Physics: Behind the Knobs Chapter 2: Imaging Artifacts and Pitfalls Chapter 3: Optimizing Two-Dimensional Transesophageal Echocardiographic Imaging Chapter 4: Surgical Anatomy Chapter 5: Comprehensive TEE Examination Chapter 6: Indications for Intraoperative TEE Chapter 7: Organization for TEE Service Chapter 8: Global Systolic Ventricular Function Chapter 9: Right Ventricular Function Assessment Chapter 10: Assessment of the Mitral Valve Chapter 11: Aortic Valve Chapter 12: Tricuspid and Pulmonary Valves Chapter 13: Assessment of the Thoracic Aorta Chapter 14: TEE in the Critical Care Setting Chapter 15: Hemodynamic Assessment Chapter 16: TEE for Noncardiac Surgery Chapter 17: Echo for Vascular Access Chapter 18: Transthoracic Exam Chapter 19: Answers | <urn:uuid:7d90baea-aafa-4a5c-b33f-b029546bc14f> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.libreriastudium.it/it_IT/products/basic-perioperative-transesophageal-echocardiography-9781605472478 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572581.94/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816211628-20220817001628-00069.warc.gz | en | 0.895495 | 457 | 2.203125 | 2 |
If you have vaginal bleeding, but the lab tests and ultrasound show that the pregnancy is OK, your healthcare provider may tell you to rest for a few days. You will be watched for more bleeding. You may have more hCG blood tests and ultrasound exams to check the growth of the fetus and the fetal heartbeat.
If tests show that you have had a miscarriage in the first trimester, you may have several choices. Talk with your healthcare provider about the treatment that is best for you. Treatment choices include:
- Expectant management. This means waiting to let the miscarriage happen on its own. You will be checked often during this time.
- Medical management. This is treatment with medicines to help the pregnancy tissues pass. You may get a medicine called misoprostol. It makes the uterus contract and push out the pregnancy tissues.
- Surgical management. You may need surgery to remove the fetus and other tissues if they have not all been naturally passed. The procedure is called a surgical evacuation of the uterus, or a dilation and curettage (D&C). Anesthesia is used because the procedure can be painful to the mother. The cervical opening is stretched open (dilated). The doctor uses either suction or an instrument called a curette to remove all the pregnancy tissues inside the uterus.
Pregnancy tissues may be sent to the lab to test for gene or chromosome defects.
If you have an infection, your healthcare provider will give you antibiotics.
Pregnancy loss after 20 weeks may need different procedures. You may get medicines such as misoprostol or prostaglandin. These medicines help open the cervix and make the uterus contract and push out the fetus and tissues. | <urn:uuid:f19cbe6b-3b62-4987-83fc-60602758c960> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.spectrumhealth.org/patient-care/services-and-treatment-detail-pages/dilation-and-curettage-treatment-detail | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281226.52/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00373-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942541 | 349 | 2.359375 | 2 |
Signs announcing the closure of a store greet a passerby in Pamplona, northern… (Alvaro Barrientos / Associated…)
Reporting from London and Madrid — In the heart of Don Quixote country sits an airport whose outsized ambitions match those of Cervantes' immortal creation.
Opened three years ago, Ciudad Real Central Airport boasts a runway long enough for the world's biggest jumbo jets. Its backers confidently predicted that several million passengers would pass through each year, relieving traffic at Madrid's busy international hub nearly 150 miles to the north.
But only 33,000 people bothered to use the state-of-the-art facility in 2010. The ill-conceived airport, which cost about $1.5 billion to build and was subsidized by the Castilla-La Mancha regional government, now stands a good chance of being closed down.
More than just an embarrassing white elephant, the airport helps illustrate why Europe's relentless debt crisis goes far deeper than national governments. Profligate local government spending across the European Union constitutes ticking time bombs that policymakers are only beginning to deal with.
Through heavy social spending and investments in major building projects, Spain is one country whose regional authorities have been living beyond their means and racking up large budget deficits. Those gaps were sustainable during boom times, but in the current economic climate, they threaten to push Spain toward a financial reckoning that could have consequences far beyond its borders.
Regional overspending is likely to cause the central government in Madrid to miss its target of bringing the nation's overall deficit down to 6% of gross domestic product this year, considered crucial to maintain investor confidence. For that reduction to happen, Spain's 17 regional governments were told to post budget shortfalls amounting to no more than 1.3% of GDP, but they almost reached that level after just the first six months of the year.
"If the regions surpass their deficit limits, then they can send Spain as a whole off course," said Ismael Sanz, an analyst at King Juan Carlos University in Madrid.
In France, hundreds of municipalities appear headed for a financial crunch, including even the glitzy resort town of St. Tropez, which faces problems in part because of loans denominated in Swiss francs, a currency whose value has appreciated considerably over the years compared with the euro.
Towns and provinces in Italy, whose financial woes have roiled markets around the world, are also hard hit. Moody's credit rating agency downgraded the creditworthiness of 30 local government entities last month, including the historic city of Florence and the region of Lombardy.
Spain's Iberian neighbor, Portugal, was flabbergasted this year when auditors found that the governor of Madeira island had hidden $1.8 billion in debts in public accounts, the result of wild overspending on projects such as an extensive network of roads.
The unwelcome discovery forced Portugal, one of three European countries to have sought an international bailout, to revise its 2010 deficit to 9.8% of GDP, up from 9.1%. By agreement, the 17 nations that share the euro currency are supposed to keep their deficits to a maximum of 3%.
Madeira's controversial governor, Alberto Joao Jardim, who has headed the island for 33 years and is one of the world's longest-serving democratically elected leaders, remains unrepentant.
"I'm proud of having contracted debts. God bless the debt.... It has been put to the service of the dignity of every man and every woman," Jardim declared at a campaign rally before regional elections last month. He won another term.
Such reckless spending, though, is now being punished as global investors eye debt at all levels of government with increasing wariness.
Last month, the credit ratings of 10 of Spain's regions were downgraded, including the economic powerhouse of Catalonia, home to Barcelona. The Catalonian government has taken the unusual step of selling up to $5 billion in bonds to private citizens to fund its debt because it has in effect been shut out of the commercial markets owing to the deepening euro debt crisis.
In Castilla-La Mancha, an agricultural region whose flat expanses were made famous by Cervantes' classic novel, the financial woes have become particularly acute. Its credit rating from Moody's Investor Services has been relegated to junk status.
During the good times, as low interest rates stemming from Spain's membership in the Eurozone fattened a real-estate bubble across the country, local authorities went on a spending spree.
"It seems that every single village has gotten itself a new sports center and a new cultural center in the last few years," said Juan Antequera, who sells farming equipment. "But the truth is, these things weren't that necessary."
That included Ciudad Real Central Airport, which "everyone knew we didn't really need," Antequera said. | <urn:uuid:60910a7c-a339-408a-a3e3-b12ee2f39eee> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://articles.latimes.com/2011/nov/10/world/la-fg-europe-debt-spain-20111110 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285315.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00573-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962482 | 1,014 | 2 | 2 |
Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology
A selection of articles related to tokusatsu suitmation technology.
Original articles from our library related to the Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology. See Table of Contents for further available material (downloadable resources) on Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology.
- Software of the Mind #1: In The Beginning There Was Thought
- In the twilight before the dawn of civilization, the connection between humanity and Nature was still strong. Hunter-gatherers seeking food and self protection in the wilds, lived the wisdom of Nature because they never left its influence. Mind and body...
Mystic Sciences >> Mind
- The Old Ones Live in New Things Too
- Imagine living in a time where all things were sacred, in a place where everything you touched was part of a Goddess or God. Since all things were divine, each had a patron Deity. From doorways to ovens, from the farm, to the hunt, to the birth of anything...
Paganism & Wicca >> Daily Life
- The Case of Ted Owens (The PK Man)
- The principal concern of most readers will be whether the evidence in the Ted Owens case, as presented by Dr. Mishlove, is true beyond a reasonable doubt. Were this case the only case open to investigation it might well be considered beyond the pale of...
>> Psychic Abilities
- Am I Damned?: Part 2
- CAVEAT: It is impossible to answer a "theological" question simply and correctly at the same time. The reason for this is the fact that the theological arena involves reality not only beyond our capacity to adequately express, but even beyond that,...
Religions >> Christianity & Paganism
- Is Subliminal Influence Used in Advertising?
- If we use the term subliminal in the way that it is commonly used, to mean any sort of hidden message, then yes, advertisers do frequently hide their message. This might even be considered a standard advertising practice. Advertising agencies are paid to...
Parapsychology >> Subliminal Persuasion
- Evil Hypnosis
- "Evil" hypnosis is what I call the popular view of hypnosis as something that is used by devious agencies or individuals to control people's minds surreptitiously. Mind control or behavior control are possible with hypnosis only temporarily, and...
Parapsychology >> Hypnosis
- The 'W' Word (Witch), What Does it Mean?
- The other day I sat down and again tried to define what it is that I am doing. We are talking about beginning our church next year, but a church of what? I am the type that is most comfortable with a clear and complete understanding, so I began at the...
Religions >> Paganism & Wicca
Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology is described in multiple online sources, as addition to our editors' articles, see section below for printable documents, Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology books and related discussion.
Suggested News Resources
- Eiji Tsuburaya: Google Doodle artists spotlight a film legacy as towering as
- “Having grown up as a film fan, I've always had a deep love for “Tokusatsu” [特撮], so I was eager to find a way to bring attention to Tsuburaya's art,” continues Hom, a Long Island native in her 20s.
- Godzilla Japan Version Release in 2016:Co-directors Hideaki Anno and Shinji
- Godzilla is coming back real soon to its country, Japan, as a Godzilla movie is soon to be created. The movie is hoped to acquire lots of support from fans, and become a hit even in Hollywood despite budget.
Great care has been taken to prepare the information on this page. Elements of the content come from factual and lexical knowledge databases, realmagick.com library and third-party sources. We appreciate your suggestions and comments on further improvements of the site.
Tokusatsu Suitmation Technology Topics
Related searchesleveraged buyout structure
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abrahamic religion origins
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history of democracy ancient greece | <urn:uuid:df8c7903-0845-49ed-9ff0-88ead428738a> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.realmagick.com/tokusatsu-suitmation-technology/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988719784.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183839-00425-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.918097 | 892 | 1.875 | 2 |
William P Rogers
(fl.1842 - 1872)
William P Rogers was active/lived in Ireland. William Rogers is known for landscape and coastal painting.
Biography William P Rogers
William P. Rogers (fl.1846-1872) was an Irish artist who is best known for his landscape and coastal subjects. Rogers studied art at the Royal Dublin Society's Drawing School, winning prizes there in 1850 and 1852.
He exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin between 1848-1872, mostly of Wicklow and Wexford scenes, including two Scenes in the County of Wexford.
Sphinx Fine Art
... Displaying 529 of 787 characters.
also viewed by people who viewed William P Rogers | <urn:uuid:9e3f5ef1-b345-48dc-a763-fb477aed0af7> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.askart.com/artist/William_P_Rogers/11065733/William_P_Rogers.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988717954.1/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183837-00508-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941258 | 156 | 2.140625 | 2 |
alan.gauld at blueyonder.co.uk
Fri Aug 6 21:20:26 CEST 2004
> I need help with programming I'm new at it so my questions are going
That's OK, it's what we are here for! :-)
> well anyway how would I get a string to display on start up of a
> module/program? What command?
print "hello world"
on your console window.
Put that in a file by itself and them import the file and the
message will print.
Thus create a file called mymessage.py containing the single
print statement above. Save it in the sitepackages folder in
your python installation(so that it can be found by python)
create a new folder and add it to your PYTHONPATH envoironment
(How to do that depends on your OS)
Now open your python prompt(or IDLE) and when you get the chevrons,
>>> import mymessage
Note no .py...
And hopefully the message
You will find lots more in the nonprogrammers tutorials on the
Python web site, one of which is mine:
Author of the Learn to Program web tutor
More information about the Tutor | <urn:uuid:e6d5c404-7894-4db2-b342-226d7f396644> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://mail.python.org/pipermail/tutor/2004-August/030929.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282202.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00554-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.79802 | 262 | 2.15625 | 2 |
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women should have a well-woman appointment with their doctor every year, typically including pelvic and breast exams as well as any recommended screening, according to a group of U.S. ob-gyns.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) calls for annual pelvic exams starting at age 21. But it says that because there isn't a lot of hard evidence for examinations in symptom-free women, women can discuss with their doctors whether or not they want one.
The group also recommends annual clinical breast exams in women age 40 and older and exams every one to three years for those in their 20s and 30s, according to a new report, published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology.
An annual well-woman visit also provides doctors the opportunity to advise women on maintaining a healthy lifestyle as well as take their vital signs and check their weight.
"The need for an annual exam, I think the most important thing about that is the need for counseling," said Dr. Rebekah Gee, who has studied women's preventive services at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans but wasn't involved in the committee opinion.
Discussing obesity, smoking, physical activity and sexual behavior, she said, is "as, if not more, important in my opinion than the Pap (smear)" used to screen for cervical cancer.
ACOG's recommendations aren't all in line with what other doctors or organizations believe the evidence supports.
In a recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, researchers pointed out that pelvic exams can come with harms - such as false positives that lead to unnecessary but invasive biopsies and other procedures (see Reuters Health story of December 14, 2011).
That report also found many doctors did pelvic exams when they weren't called for, such as to check for ovarian cancer or before prescribing birth control pills.
A pelvic exam involves the doctor looking at the vagina and cervix and doing a manual exam with one hand inside the vagina and one outside to feel the uterus and ovaries.
"I think one of the big unknowns really in gynecology is the value of the pelvic examination in women who have no symptoms," said Dr. George Sawaya, an ob-gyn and reproductive sciences professor from the University of California, San Francisco.
"I still think it's unclear exactly what we're supposed to be using that examination for."
Sawaya, who had no ties to the ACOG report, said it was difficult to understand its lack of explanation for why pelvic exams should be done in most women and what doctors should plan to get out of them.
"Certainly in women with symptoms, a pelvic examination is indicated," he told Reuters Health. "I have not found any compelling reason to do it in asymptomatic women, but it has been a part of standard practice."
CLINICAL BREAST EXAMS USEFUL?
Screening for cervical cancer should begin at age 21, according to ACOG.
That's in line with guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which call for Pap smears to start then and be repeated every three years - or every five years together with HPV tests once a woman hits 30.
When it comes to clinical breast exams, the USPSTF, a government-backed panel, says there is "insufficient evidence" to determine whether the checks are helpful over and above the benefits of mammography.
Gee said she has found masses that weren't picked up on mammograms during the exams.
"There is insufficient evidence from the standpoint of systematic reviews, however some of these things make sense in an individual patient" if she has risk factors, Gee told Reuters Health.
As with pelvic exams, Gee said, whether or not breast exams are done should be based on both the patient and the doctor's preferences.
Sawaya pointed to a specific strength of ACOG's report: its recommendation to women, themselves, when it comes to keeping track of their breast health.
"ACOG does make an important point in this document that women should certainly be aware of any changes in their breasts and bring that to the attention of their provider," he said.
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/oa9imi Obstetrics & Gynecology, online July 23, 2012. | <urn:uuid:4dc306ea-88f6-46c6-9f98-89d76e8025c8> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.lifescript.com/health/centers/healthy_home/news/2012/07/26/ob-gyns_recommend_annual_well-woman_visit.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280242.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00072-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970837 | 903 | 2.03125 | 2 |
Why is Butane sold in pressurized cans?
Butane is naturally an alkaline substance with a chemical formula of C4H10. This means in this element there are four carbon atoms with ten hydrogen molecules attached to it. Butane has characteristics of a highly flammable substance that possesses no color and is procured in easily in liquefied gases. In the presence of an oxygen-rich environment, butane reacts through burning where carbon dioxide is then produced along with water vapor. On the contrary, when there is limited oxygen available, carbon monoxide becomes the product to the reaction oxygen with butane. Commonly known and sold in the market as LPG when propane is added, butane is mostly used as fuel in activities such as cooking and camping. In its pure form, it is used as refrigerants to replace the ozone-damaging substances used in household refrigerators and freezers. Although it provides certain effects to one’s health such as drowsiness, narcosis, asphyxia, arrhythmias and frostbite, it is still widely used today coupled with adequate caution and care.
For most people, they cannot fathom the reason why butane is sold in pressurized cans or containers. Butane is sold in pressurized cans because this substance is considered to be highly volatile that its boiling point is lower than that of the room temperature. Therefore, butane easily flames up. Because of this, placing butane in pressurized can will allow its vapor to exist in equilibrium with a bulk of higher pressure. Since butane can be easily liquefied, it has the capacity to mix with other substances creating a homogenous solution. This property supports the immediate replacement of expelled gas through the evaporating liquid coming from the pressurized can.
Because butane is characterized by unique, distinct property of higher flammability, it needs to sold in pressurized cans to preserve its consistency. | <urn:uuid:2ed5c248-e966-43ba-a722-c119594cf269> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.knowswhy.com/why-is-butane-sold-in-pressurized-cans/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573533.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818215509-20220819005509-00275.warc.gz | en | 0.955741 | 393 | 3.125 | 3 |
- This event has passed.
Basics of Photovoltaic (PV) Systems for Grid-Tied Applications
Tuesday | September 23, 2014 | 9:00 am — 4:30 pm
Pacific Energy Center | 851 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Our objective in this course is to provide the basic vocabulary, technical, and economic details necessary to understand and evaluate grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) projects from a project manager’s and/or owner’s perspective. In this introductory course, Pete Shoemaker, Renewables Program Coordinator for the Pacific Energy Center, will provide an overview of the fundamentals of solar electric systems, technically known as photovoltaics. He will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various PV technologies (monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and thin-film), including module efficiencies and their implications on the space requirements of a project.
Register online.Visit Event Website >> | <urn:uuid:04e492c6-9e10-48de-a4af-40f2d49520f3> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://ecologycenter.org/events/basics-of-photovoltaic-pv-systems-for-grid-tied-applications/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280825.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00210-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.874751 | 199 | 2.46875 | 2 |
The Venice Carnival was recently voted one of the world’s top five carnivals on earth. I would agree.
The masks are amazing too, just look at the ones on this page to see what I mean.
I remember the first time, when I was a little girl, my mamma bought me a small one. It was just so beautiful.
Now I'm all grown up I'm still a kid in a candy store at carnival time.
For the inside story on masks and carnival read on...
This is a carnival that dates back over 900 years. Its roots can be traced back even further than that to the ancient festivals celebrating the end of winter.
Carnival was the one time during the year when there were no bounds.
You were free to do all the things you had wanted to do all year, your fantasies and desires were free to be lived without guilt and anonymously thanks to the masks.
Social status, wealth or any of the things that we are normally so quick to judge had no bearing. It is not quite like that now, some of the wild abandon has gone and it is a little more refined. Perhaps a good thing for middle-aged folk like me and my husband.
The carnival runs during the two weeks leading up to the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Its date is therefore effected by Easter but in general it is held around late February.
During the carnival Venice is alive with masked Venetians – and tourists.
Bands, jugglers and entertainers enliven the piazza of the city, the canals are filled with colorful boats and the nights are full of parties and masked balls.
It really is a quite magical time to experience the city.
Venetians themselves all love Carnival time; although many tourists are in town the Carnival has mantained itself as a genuine and 100% authentic "Venetian" event. If you arrive as a tourist you'll just need to fit in with it and enjoy an experience that has hardly changed one iota.
The masks were originally pretty simple – they were just meant to disguise the wearer. With the passing of the years and the ever declining degree of debauchery involved they have become more elaborate.
A number of masks exist such as the Moretta and Larva but the Bauta is the mask that is most commonly worn during carnival. Authentic Bauta masks are always white and generally cover the whole face, which also means that the voice is distorted/disguised.
Many Bauta masks these days only cover the top part of the face allowing the wearer to eat and drink without having to remove the mask. Since eating and drinking is such a big part of carnival it does make sense.
If you would like to buy masks then there is one place I can thoroughly recommend – it is called Carta Alta in Giudecca - Venice. Phone +39 041 2771132. They make all their masks by hand in Venice.
Another very good shop is the Casin dei Nobili showrom, which is in Dorsoduro 2766/b, tel:0415202873. The video above was taken in their store and, like Carla Alta, all their masks are made in their own workshop by hand. Their store is a real delight to wander around, full of fascinating treasures.
Otherwise why not try Amazon, they often have a good selection at very good prices too. Actually it is sometimes cheaper to buy on Amazon than in Venice!
Even if you aren't going to Venice many people love collecting these beautiful masks that make wonderful additions to any home.
• I know this might be ridiculous advice but believe me I have seen poor unknowing souls get it all wrong. Venice Carnival is not a fancy dress party so don't dress like the poor guy I once saw wearing a Superman outfit.
• If you are going to wear a mask at least get a reasonable period costume. Venetians will think you silly if you're wearing a fancy mask and casual clothes.
For more great shopping ideas in Venice visit our guide. | <urn:uuid:5c29ab53-c252-4e18-b5de-f02a84cde303> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.italymammamia.com/venice-carnival-masks.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572212.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815205848-20220815235848-00468.warc.gz | en | 0.979853 | 849 | 1.710938 | 2 |
The trading of individual investments can be done very profitably through the use of futures. They can be bought and sold in very few units, and their prices range from that of a barrel of oil to that of a tonne of wheat. Futures are leveraged securities, and the high levels of leverage they offer make them an attractive option for individual investors who want to minimise their exposure to risk. You should be aware of the four benefits of using a futures trading platform if you are considering including futures trading into your overall trading strategy. These advantages are outlined below.
Futures are standardised contracts that can be entered into between two parties. These contracts give you the opportunity to speculate on the movement of prices. You buy and sell them in order to make a profit off of the fluctuations in their price. Futures are also very similar to stocks, however they have a more complicated structure. Futures are associated with a higher level of risk compared to equities and etfs, but they have lower margin requirements. In addition, you can leverage them, which means that you can generate a larger profit with the same amount of initial investment.
The term “highly liquid” refers to the fact that futures contracts are exchanged far more often than stock or commodity stocks. Near the time of maturity, there is less likelihood of significant price movement, which allows you more time to place market orders. The hours of operation for futures markets are often significantly longer than market hours. Extended trading in stock index futures frequently takes place throughout the night-time hours. It’s possible that some other markets trade continuously throughout the day. Futures contracts can be exchanged at any time of the day or night because of the liquidity that exists in the market. Utilizing a platform that is designed for futures trading offers users four distinct benefits.
The ability to trade futures essentially around the clock, enhanced leverage, and exposure to a diverse group of asset classes are just some of the benefits associated with futures trading. Traders may monitor the markets, prepare their tactics, and carry them out with the help of a futures trading platform such as the one offered by canadianfuturestrader. The trading platform provided by canadianfuturestrader also includes a substantial market price history record, which is useful for putting trading methods into action and analysing their performance.
Leverage is one of the most major advantages of futures trading, which is one of the most significant advantages of this form of investment because futures trading offers a greater opportunity for profit than trading equities alone. Let’s look at an example to understand how the idea of leverage truly works when it’s put into action in the real world. On a futures tradingplatform, the share price of Reliance will be presented along with the potential profit for a relatively modest investment.
The objective of this scenario is to demonstrate the relationship between the two. The trader will be forced to make a margin deposit, which is normally equivalent to ten percent of the total amount. It is essential that this buffer be maintained under any circumstances. | <urn:uuid:3109207e-d109-4cb2-8595-d80334b8710a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://godittor.com/find-a-futures-trading-platform-that-suits-your-needs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572127.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815024523-20220815054523-00268.warc.gz | en | 0.965615 | 622 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Take a sneak peek inside our printable book, "Environmental Science (Grades 6-10)." Included are worksheets and activities that focus on endangered animals, waste, and treatment through estimation, identification, and evaluation. These resources are a great way to broaden your science curriculum. You'll find the perfect activity to celebrate America Recycles Day (November 15). This slideshow is just a sampling of all you can find in the printable book!
Students estimate the size of a brine shrimp population. Assesses their understanding of the sampling method, and their ability to problem-solve, apply concepts, measure, and calculate. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Students identify three land biomes using average monthly temperatures and precipitation amounts. Assesses students' understanding of the temperature and precipitation characteristics of different land biomes, and their ability to graph, compare and contrast, interpret data, and apply concepts. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Students evaluate changes in the numbers of endangered animal species in the U.S. between 1994 and 1996. Assesses students' understanding of the factors that cause extinction and the reasons why preserving biodiversity is important. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Students classify common examples of solid wastes and identify disposal methods. Assesses students' understanding of concepts relating to recycling, composting, hazardous wastes, and sanitary and secure landfills. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Students design a model to demonstrate the first stage of wastewater treatment in a sewage plant. Assesses their understanding of primary sewage treatment: the use of filters as the first stage. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Students are asked to model lava with different thicknesses to determine how thickness affects flow rate. Assesses their understanding of how silica content affects lava's thickness, and how thickness affects lava's flow speed. Scoring rubric and background notes included.
Did you enjoy this slideshow? See the rest of the printable book now! There are many more worksheets, lessons, and activities to supplement your environmental science courses. The book is only available to subscribers, so to see more sign up for a free-trial membership today! | <urn:uuid:317bb326-d132-4677-88dd-073b674270b5> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.teachervision.com/environmental-science/environmental-science-printables-slideshow | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280763.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00512-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.912414 | 449 | 4.09375 | 4 |
Our Bible verse for today: “David said to the Philistine: “You come against me with a sword, spear, and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” 1 Samuel 17:45 (NIV)
Our thought for today: “Overcoming is spiritual.”
In his book “Overcomer”, David Jeremiah refers us to examples, from the Bible and from modern life, of people who were overcomers. One of the examples from the Bible is that of they shepherd boy David who confronted the giant Goliath.
Goliath was a muscular giant, by some estimates almost nine feet tall. He was a seasoned warrior in the Philistine army and he was considered their champion. In 1 Samuel 17 we find the armies of the nation of Israel lined up against the armies of the Philistines. Each day Goliath came forward and challenged the Israelites to send out just one man to fight him. Instead of the entire armies engaging each other, the battle would be decided in a fight between Goliath and whoever the Israelites sent out.
But Goliath was a formidable foe and there was no comparable warrior in Israel to oppose him. Each day Goliath came forward shouting his challenges, mocking Israel and mocking the God of Israel, but no one had the courage to face him. When David showed up on the scene he was astonished to discover that nobody responded to Goliath’s challenge – not even when he mocked their God. So David, even though he was just a boy, decided that he would face Goliath and, long story short, David won. You can read the rest of the story for yourself in 1 Samuel 17.
The lesson for us is that the key to David overcoming the challenge he faced from Goliath was spiritual not physical. It certainly appeared physical, but it was really a spiritual issue. As David Jeremiah points out in his book, if you read the passage in 1 Samuel 17 closely you discover that the three characteristics used to describe Goliath were all physical – they were size, sight, and shout. He was big, he was frightening, and he was loud. The three terms used to describe David are all spiritual – they were conviction, courage, and confidence. Goliath was relying on his physical attributes. David was relying on God. And it was no contest.
This is true for us too. In our own power, as mere men and women, we can easily be defeated by the giants we have to face. But when we turn the battle over to God we can face the situation with conviction, courage, and confidence.
The story of David and Goliath is in the Bible for a reason. It’s there as an example for us. Ultimately your situation (no matter how big and bad it seems) is a spiritual issue much more than it is a physical challenge. Turn it over to God and trust Him to help you deal with it. | <urn:uuid:115e00c7-b9e5-4424-9444-5391908a1949> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://oakhillbaptist.net/2018/11/07/devotional-for-wednesday-november-7th/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571987.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813202507-20220813232507-00272.warc.gz | en | 0.98399 | 624 | 1.960938 | 2 |
What are economies of scale? Give an example. What are the graphic relationships among fixed, variable, total, average, and marginal costs? What is the relationship between productivity, cost of inputs, and the cost of production?
Can you give me a good topic to write this paper on? I am at a blank with this paper.
1) Select a good or service produced by a organization you are familiar with. Is the price elasticity of demand for this product price elastic or price inelastic? Based on this determination what would be the impact of raising the price of the product? What would be the impact of lowering the price of the product?
2) Using the same good or service selected in question 1, determine substitutes and compliments, and answer the following questions:
a) What has happened to the price of the substitutes and complimentary goods/ services for your selected product over the last year?
b) How have price adjustments impacted the demand for the selected product?
Economies of scale occur when an industry can be arranged such that each additional unit of production costs less than the last. In this way, larger companies can be much more profitable than smaller ones. The smaller ones find themselves unable to compete- in order the match the prices of the large companies, they cannot cover their costs. They go under and the market becomes dominated by one or a few large firms.
Economies of scale is related to marginal costs. The marginal cost of a unit is the additional amount that it adds to the total costs incurred by the firm. If it costs $5 more to make the 12th unit, but only $4 more to make the next one, the marginal cost is declining. If a firm can reach a level of production where marginal costs decline, it achieves economies of scale.
Total costs are the sum of variable and fixed costs. Variable costs are those costs that are affected by the level of production. They include such things as raw material and labor. Fixed costs are those that stay the same regardless of the level of production. They ... | <urn:uuid:41f973b0-ad5f-4789-9da5-037d4aa490ed> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://brainmass.com/economics/factors-of-production/economies-of-scale-162508 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282202.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00558-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953862 | 417 | 3.875 | 4 |
Surveying: Career and Education Opportunities in Irvine, California
Surveying: Surveyors map the world on both the micro and macro level. Using a wide variety of tools in the field, the office and online, they develop models of the landscape around us all.
Irvine is situated in Orange County, California. It has a population of over 207,500, which has grown by 45.0% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Irvine, 136, is far greater than the national average. New single-family homes in Irvine are valued at $283,000 on average, which is below the state average. In 2008, one hundred twenty-five new homes were built in Irvine, down from two hundred twenty-nine the previous year.
The three big industries for women in Irvine are educational services, professional, scientific, and technical services, and health care. For men, it is professional, scientific, and technical services, educational services, and computer and electronic products. The average travel time to work is about 23 minutes. More than 58.4% of Irvine residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 24.2%, is higher than the state average.
The unemployment rate in Irvine is 7.3%, which is less than California's average of 12.3%.
The percentage of Irvine residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 44.8%, is less than the national average but more than the state average. The most common religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Charismatic Churches Independent.
Irvine is home to the International Raceway and the Heritage Park Library as well as Heritage Park and Alderwood Park. Shopping centers in the area include Heritage Plaza Shopping Center, Alton Square Shopping Center and Arbor Village Shopping Center. Visitors to Irvine can choose from Atrium Hotel At Orange County Airport and Amerilodge Electronics for temporary stays in the area.
Featured Online Colleges
CAREERS WITHIN: Surveying
Cartographers collect, analyze, and interpret geographic information provided by geodetic surveys, aerial photographs, and satellite data. Cartographers need to actively seek out need information and learn from it. They also need to read and understand what has been read.
Survey Technicians adjust and operate surveying instruments, such as the theodolite and electronic distance-measuring equipment, and compile notes, make sketches and enter data into computers. Survey Technicians need to think through complex problems and develop a critical analysis of the situation and possible solutions. They also need to read and understand what has been read.
Surveying Technicians calculate mapmaking information from field notes, and draw and verify accuracy of topographical maps. Surveying Technicians need to actively seek out need information and learn from it. They also need to read and understand what has been read.
Surveyors make exact measurements and determine property boundaries. Surveyors need to read and understand what has been read. They also need to read and understand what has been read. | <urn:uuid:e1939b34-ce67-4e81-be88-8873b2571cb8> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.careeroverview.com/usa/california/irvine/architecture-and-engineering/surveying/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280504.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00141-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961669 | 636 | 2.03125 | 2 |
The procedure of developing a blog can be done promptly as well as conveniently. It requires basic computer understanding as well as a clear understanding of what your heart desires. As soon as you have a layout for your blog site, the remainder is easy. Comply with these suggestions for creating your initial blog. There are no technological needs, just a little time and also a little understanding. There are a number of advantages of blog writing, so read on to uncover the very best features! And as constantly, remain tuned for more pointers.
The very first true blogs arised in 1994 and also 1995, as well as these were open online diaries. Blog Owners like Justin Hall, Claudio Pinhanez, and Carolyn Burke were amongst the very early pioneers of blog writing. They soon began obtaining limelights and the general public began to record the content of these journals. In 1996, the use of blog sites as a research tool was preferred, as well as blogs are now made use of in academia for several functions. There are many benefits to blogging for your business.
It can aid you promote your service or brand. In the early years of blog writing, it was a simple means to make an existence known on the web. It also provided you exposure and also helped your business build a credibility. One paper even contrasted the benefits of blogging to creating a book. As an innovative outlet, blogging can be utilized to inform your tale as well as get to a broader audience. You can make a profit from your blog with just a few clicks.
Blog sites can additionally be utilized to market product or services. They can be used by nonprofit companies, where authorities can talk about their activities as well as goals. Another growing trend includes anonymous blog owners that slam companies, managers, schools, and various other companies. Sometimes, the writers have actually even lost their jobs, after their employer found their blogs. So, how does blogging aid businesses? If you’re taking into consideration beginning a blog site, you can follow these actions to make your organization much more effective!
Blogs are an important device for services. Many blog site owners as well as business owners use them to promote their products and services. Nevertheless, they have many downsides, as well. As an example, blogs can increase your online search engine ranking. While it’s important to be sincere, the much more legible as well as current content an internet site has, the far better. This is where the benefits of blogging can be examined. As an example, a blog site can boost website traffic and also conversions.
Blog sites have actually come to be a vital type of communication as well as a method of building brand-new connections. It permits individuals to speak with other people from around the world. Some blog sites supply discourse on a particular topic. Others act as an online diary or brand name advertising. A common blog site will consist of text, digital pictures, and web links to other websites. For those that want a particular topic, they can reveal it through a blog. Some blogs are created to be conversational, while others are intended to be interesting.
While numerous kinds of internet site web content don’t need to be upgraded as frequently, blogs are a fantastic tool for company owner. Not only do blogs permit you to reveal yourself, but they also enable you to involve with your neighborhood. Consequently, blogging assists you raise presence and also competition. As well as it’s very easy to develop your own blog, and also it’s cost-free! So, proceed as well as create your blog site today! It’s easier than ever before to begin!
Blogging is a wonderful way to promote your item. It assists you reach your customers. Not just does it help you gain acknowledgment for your products, yet it also boosts traffic. Along with producing a blog, it also creates an area for discussions. As well as if you’re a small company, blogging is a good way to keep your consumers educated. So, begin today! As well as keep in mind to take pleasure in the procedure! You’ll be glad you did!
Many different kinds of web site material do not require to be upgraded often. But blog writing is an excellent method to produce your very own distinct style and voice. A blog site will assist you build a neighborhood as well as show your brand. If your clients want to read your blog posts, they’re more probable to buy your products. And also this will certainly bring about a boosted degree of web traffic and also revenue for your business. It’s a great method to get in touch with your customers.
Obtaining even more website traffic to a blog site is crucial if you wish to make it successful. By utilizing the right tools, you can conveniently enhance your web traffic. By using the leading SEO tools, you can create an SEO-friendly blog site. The main objective of blog writing is to boost the variety of visitors to your internet site. If more readers visit your website, it will certainly be much easier to advertise your service. There are also lots of means to make a blog site SEO-friendly.
There are lots of kinds of blogs, and also each has its very own program. The main goal of a blog site is to get internet search engine traffic. Enhancing web traffic will certainly make it much easier for your blog site to generate income. You can even advertise through your blog. It does not matter if your blog is made use of for personal or company factors. You can utilize it to promote your service. By maximizing your messages for internet search engine, you will certainly draw in a lot more viewers and also make even more money.
Blogging can be made use of for several purposes. It can be made use of to promote a service. Nonetheless, there are likewise many individual reasons to begin a blog site. It can be a method to obtain a target market and a system for on the internet interaction. It can likewise help you construct partnerships. If you’re blogging for personal reasons, you’ll intend to make it as SEO-friendly as feasible. By using the right devices, you’ll enhance your blog traffic to a greater degree than in the past. Homepage
Depending upon its objective, blog sites can have various goals. Some are made use of for personal use, while others are used to promote an organization. If you’re writing a blog site for company functions, you can utilize SEO strategies to attract even more visitors. You can make your blog SEO-friendly with the help of the most effective search engine optimization tools. You can raise the number of site visitors to your blog site by utilizing these tools. If you’re blogging for personal factors, it is necessary to make it SEO-friendly also. | <urn:uuid:74478018-e4d4-43ad-9699-12553e0a0592> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://rockwelllodge191.com/2022/04/09/blogging-tips-you-need-to-find-out-now/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570793.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808092125-20220808122125-00673.warc.gz | en | 0.968727 | 1,390 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Finger ring depicting the head of Harpocrates
Egypt, Ptolemaic style
L: 1.5; W: 1.1 cm (plaque)
The Harry Stern Collection, bequeathed by Dr. Kurt Stern, London, in memory of his parents and his brother, who perished at Sobibor
Accession number: 76.43.2364
Small statuettes, jewels, and amulets depicting the infant Harpocrates were used to ward off evil spirits. Misunderstanding this image, later Greek and Roman poets made Harpocrates the god of silence and secrecy.
Bizarre Perfection, Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 19/12/2008 - 13/06/2009, December 2008 - June 2009
Digital presentation of this object was made possible by: The Ridgefield Foundation, New York, in memory of Henry J. and Erna D. Leir | <urn:uuid:77bb518b-01c8-43c7-8380-0a7a63dbf23a> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.imj.org.il/imagine/galleries/viewItemE.asp?case=10&itemNum=333747 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280730.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00253-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.916366 | 188 | 2.46875 | 2 |
The series is calculated by the Federal Reserve Bank of St.Louis.
Prior to 2003-01-01, the data are calculated as excess reserves minus total borrowings plus extended borrowings. From 2003-01-01 till 2007-11-01, the observations reflect excess reserves minus total borrowings plus secondary borrowings. From 2007-12-01, the definition changes to excess reserves minus discount window borrowings plus secondary borrowings. Please, check the latest definition of the discount window borrowings at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/DISCBORR.
This series has been discontinued with a phase of the simplification of reserves administration (https://federalregister.gov/a/2012-8562).
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (US), Net Free or Borrowed Reserves of Depository Institutions (DISCONTINUED) [NFORBRES], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NFORBRES, January 23, 2017. | <urn:uuid:7be3bf87-b232-471b-8484-7ca28d28c4e9> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NFORBRES?rid=19&soid=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282140.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00125-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.845526 | 228 | 1.921875 | 2 |
|Intro Part 1||Intro Part 2||Hardware 1||Hardware 2||Linkage|
Hardware Part 1
See my article on the Intel
Northwood Pentium 4 CPU for my latest thought on this topic
Can never have too much CPU horsepower – at least not when it comes to editing video. No matter how fast your processor is, you can always use more. High-end video-editing systems typically use a dual-CPU set-up, on Windows NT. Windows 2000 is based on the same NT design (kernel), but is easier to configure (than NT).
This should make it the ideal platform for the home enthusiast to edit video.
We currently dual-boot W98/SE & Win2000, but Matrox has not yet
released RT2000 drivers for Win2000. Rumor has it this should arrive by end of
year. Matrox is notorious for letting release dates slip. We have our fingers
* We currently use the P3-700 over-clocked to 938MHz. The money we saved on the CPU went into an upgrade for a 10Krpm SCSI-based system, which made editing life much more enjoyable. Upgrading from a 7200rpm IDE/ATA boot drive to a 10Krpm LVD SCSI boot drive was a much more dramatic upgrade than when we upgraded the CPU from C300a @ 464MHz (to P3-700 @ 938MHz).
* The latest Intel ‘stepping’ of the P3 is cB0. Steppings are updates to CPUs that correct what is called errata (what we commonly known as ‘bugs’). If you purchase your own CPU(s), get the latest stepping. The next P3 stepping after cB0 is scheduled to be released mid November, and will be cC0. It might take a month or two for these to actually hit the store shelves. So if you’re building a system in November or later, ask around and see if for CPUs with cC0 stepping.
If you choose a dual-CPU set-up, I heard that Tyan makes the best dual-CPU
mobo’s, altho I have heard some complaints about Tyan quality. Supermicro and
Asus also make quality dual-CPU mobo’s. Asus is the largest
manufacturer of motherboards in the world.
We currently use the Asus
CUSL2, based on the, Intel 815e chipset. If you read my ditty on the Intel
Northwood Pentium 4 CPU, you know I like the Asus P4T-E right
now (18 nov2001). Make sure the board you get is approved by your editing card
manufacturer. [I have begun updating small parts of this guide.]
* Ever since Win2000 arrived (with SMP support), we’ve been looking at a dual-CPU solution. As the time of this writing (June, 2000), the Tyan Tiger 100 (rev ‘F’, ~$160) mobo looks to be the best dual-CPU solution available. Most of the high-end video- and audio-editing apps made by companies like Adobe and Sonic Foundry are already coded for SMP (Symmetric Multi-Processing), which means they take advantage of a dual-CPU system.
At this time, selecting a dual-CPU motherboard is not easy.
* A dual-CPU set-up is not quite as cool as it sounds. It's not like, you drop in another CPU, and your performance instantly doubles. But those who have dual-CPU systems say you definitely notice the improvement, especially in CPU-intensive apps like Adobe After Effects. But even if you see (only) a 50% increase in certain functions, that can certainly make editing life much more enjoyable.
We noticed a large performance increase after upgrading from 128 to 256MB.
I heartily recommend 256. 128 will work, but 256 will work much better. I'd dare
say that 384 would be even better, but have no experience with more than
256. Editing video will use pretty-much whatever you have - especially as the
All our RAM is from Mushkin. They have the best service of any online company
I've ever dealt with, and they offer products at many different
price/performance points. Mushkin doesn't make the RAM chips themselves; rather,
they design & put the chips (that they buy from a variety of RAM-chip
manufacturers) on the boards that become RAM modules (or 'sticks'). I like
Mushkin sticks with Samsung chips, cuz Samsung invented DRAM -
they must know a little something about it.
* Although not necessary, it's best to get identical RAM sticks, if you need more than one. I heard it’s better to get two 128MB sticks, rather than a single 256MB stick.
* The problem with ‘bargain basement’ RAM is that, if you have a problem with it, you don't always know it, and RAM probs can manifest themselves in many spurious/random/weird ways. This might be fine for the typical user, but if you wanna edit video, you’ll have enough chances to run into problems without defective RAM.
Typically, you need to bring your RAM to a place that has the equipment necessary to test it – to see if it’s defective. So we suggest you spend a little extra & get quality RAM. But you don't need the 'ECC' stuff (error-correcting). I recommend nothing less than PC133-spec, especially since it doesn’t cost much more expensive than PC100 RAM.
Some PC100 RAM is
rejected PC133 RAM. Of course, don’t interpret this to mean that you can’t
have any probs with quality RAM – only that you’ll have less chance
of probs. If can afford to edit video, you can afford the extra $10 or $15 to
buy brand-name RAM modules, and you don’t need the top-of-the-line stuff,
RAM is the new stuff everyone’s talking about. It’s still too expensive to
even talk about – despite recent price drops. Rambus, the company,
doesn’t actually manufacture any RAM; they merely license the technology for
(other) RAM manufacturers to use. Prices of 128MB Rambus sticks (RIMMs) from
Mushkin, with Samsung chips, are still ~$600 – about half of what they used to
be – but still about four or five times the prices of PC133. The performance
of Rambus DRAM is not significantly faster than regular DRAM.
drives: A separate hard drive, dedicated solely for video/AVI files,
as a capture drive, is almost a necessity. I don't know anyone who uses
the same hard drive to run both their OS *and* capture video. That's asking a
bit much of a hard drive.
Speaking of hard drives, we noticed a wonderful performance improvement
after upgrading the system/boot (not capture) drive from IDE to 10Krpm LVD
SCSI. Unfortunately, this is not a cheap upgrade, but
if u can swing the price to set-up your system to boot from a 10Krpm LVD SCSI
hard drive, editing video suddenly becomes much more enjoyable. If not
the latest 7200rpm IDE drives still get the job done, though not quite as
* SCSI vs IDE is a subject of heated debate. I think that part of the problem stems from the fact that people tend to hear what they want to hear - & when they hear that current generation IDE drives are capable of sustaining data x-fer rates greater than the 3.6MB/s required to capture/output DV, (b-cuz IDE drives are less expensive) they interpret that to mean “you won’t have any problems capturing video with an IDE drive”.
This is not
necessarily so - which is why most capture card manufacturers recommend a
dedicated (A/V-rated) SCSI capture drive -> cuz they know you’ll
have less problems with one. Less probs for you means less probs for them. On the other hand, don’t interpret this to mean that
you won’t have any problems capturing to a SCSI hard drive either - you simply
have less chance of problems capturing to a SCSI hard drive.
* We use a separate 10Krpm (9-gig) LVD SCSI drive to run the operating system (Win98/SE & Win2K), applications (including Adobe Premiere), the swap file (part of the OS that uses hard disk space as RAM), and scratch disc functions (kinda like a swap file for the editing app). We use a 2nd, separate hard drive dedicated for the actual, captured, video/AVI files themselves (which, naturally, go on the capture drive).
We use a third, separate hard drive for all associated audio/sound files and graphics. So yes, we use three separate 10Krpm LVS SCSI beasts to edit real-time. It works and it works well. Do you need this? No. Is it nice? Yes.
* Whenever you can get two or more (physical) hard drives to do the work normally done by one, you’ll notice a performance increase.
* Regarding the capture drive (not system/boot drive), the performance of (less expensive) IDE/ATA drives has significantly improved over the past few years. These drives are well-capable to serve as a capture drive. Yet we still chose a SCSI drive as a dedicated capture drive. The advantages of a SCSI drive is related more to the bus or the interface than the drive itself.
The non-multitasking IDE interface has a greater chance to be interrupted during the capture process, which can result in dropped frames and other problems. This is why some of my friends who have IDE drives as their capture drives still have an occasional problem with dropped frames, even though their drives are (physically) more-than-capable of writing the 3.6MB/s that DV requires. Because it's not the maximum data x-fer rate that counts - it's the minimum.
If today's IDE/ATA drives can x-fer at 30MB/s, and DV only requires 3.6MB/s, why do they still (sometimes) have trouble dropping frames? Because IDE/ATA drives are not capable of multitasking/multithreaded. And if another function wants to use/access the drive while you're capturing or outputting video -> glitch, click, pop, dropped frames.
So, as far as capability is concerned, IDE drives are more than
adequate, but the IDE interface can be more problematic than the
multitasking-capable SCSI. In other words, if low on cash, get an IDE drive, but
if you can afford it, a SCSI drive will have a better chance of worry-free
capture. Again, this is a topic of often-heated debate. Your mileage may vary.
* A SCSI interface allows you to connect up to 15 devices, whereas, with IDE/ATA, you're typically limited to 4. For a SCSI adapter, we use the Tekram DC390-U2W (not the U2B). It installs surprisingly easy, comes with all the cables and terminators you'll ever need, and is significantly less expensive that the Adaptec counterpart.
It's performance has been benchmarked equal to or better than the Adaptec counterpart. The only thing bad about Tekram is that their sppt blows chunks, but you can get better sppt at hardware forums online. If you gotta have the sppt, go with Adaptec. Another unexpected benefit of an LVD SCSI adapter is that it lets you use much longer lengths of cabling.
IDE devices are typically limited to 18- or 24-inch cables. Whereas LVD cables can be up to 12 meters in long. You won't need 12 meters, but if you like to edit video, you're going to want/need lots of hard drive space - which means lots of hard drives. The longer LVD cables give you more room to work with when adding additional hard drives.
VideoGuys has a nice piece about various storage solutions for various
needs. See here.
* Can't recommend anything smaller than a 9-gigger as a capture drive. Since DV takes about 4 1/2 minutes per gig, 9 gigs will buy you enough space for about 40 minutes of video storage. We use an 18-gigger, which holds double than much. But if there's one thing for certain, it's that you'll always want more.
It can be agonizing to have to delete all the files associated
with a certain project, in order to make room for the next. 36 gigs dedicated
solely for video/AVI files would not be hard to fill.
We have two (relatively cheap) IDE/ATA drives that we use for basic
storage needs - like games, MP3s, back-up files, encoded MPEGs, graphics,
etc. That makes two IDE drives (for general/cheap storage), and two SCSI drives
(to do the real editing work) .. for a total of ~100 gigs, and
we're full to the brim. The message is that you can never have too much disk
space. That's the #1 rule of editing video.
* IDE and SCSI drives will peacefully co-exist in the same system. When setting up a multi-interface system, although not absolutely necessary, it wouldn't be a bad idea to use hard drives from a single manufacturer. I like hard drives manufactured by IBM (they invented the hard disk drive), but this is merely personal preference. Seagate also makes great drives, and is currently the biggest supplier of hard drives in the world. That’s saying something.
Their Cheetah line has been a perennial favorite of the
performance crowd. Using drives from the same manufacturer minimizes the chance
of compatibility conflicts. Building an NLE system will present you with plenty
of chances for conflicts .. you won't need any extras. Most feel that IBM makes
the best IDE drives, while Seagate makes the best SCSI drives.
* Hard drive coolers: Are like insurance: hopefully you never have to use, but they’re too cheap to live without the protection they offer. All 10Krpm drives should be cooled. They cost too much to risk burning up. I use the twin-fan Bay Cooler from PC Power & Cooling, which fits into a 5.25-inch drive bay. It’s one of the more expensive models, selling for ~$35. Chose it cuz it was rated ‘quietest of the group’. Having a bunch of ‘em, (multiple hard drives) means noise becomes an issue.
I'm of the opinion that your boot drive should be cooled no matter what interface or speed it is, cuz that’s the drive that does most of the work, and therefore, generates the most heat. Heat is what kills a hard drive, & a boot drive hurts too much to lose. Only had this happen once, but it was enough to make a believer out of me.
Overnight, I became Capt. Backup, but I was never satisfied until I found Ghost (thx to Ducky). Drives that sit higher in your case will get hotter, cuz heat rises, & the top of the case will be warmer/hotter than the bottom. Therefore, drives that will be mounted higher in the case deserve a cooler b4 those that living below.
* Good place to discuss Ghost. If there’s one secret I learned to making desktop video-editing work, it's Symantec’s Norton Ghost - a nifty little program that runs out of true DOS (Start | Shutdown | Restart in MS-DOS mode, or boot from DOS floppy). Ghost creates an image of your boot drive/partition you can use to restore your system, should you ever have a problem you can’t fix (you will).
Ghost uses this stored image of your system to restores your computer to the exact state it was in when you created the image (I image ~every 2 weeks). Without Ghost, you might have to reformat and go back to square one -> reinstalling OS & apps. Do this a few times after working your ass off to get everything running, & you’ll soon lose the desire to edit anything. I wrote up a nifty little guide for computer-illiterate friends & posted it here -> Radified Guide to Norton Ghost.
* Case: If you want to edit video, you'll need lots of hard drive space. Video files eat hard drive for lunch. If you run many hard drives, you'll want/need a nice, big, roomy, full-tower, ATX case. If your video files are important to you, you'll want to cool the drives containing your video files. If you cool many drives, then you'll need a case with plenty of 5.25-inch drive bays.
recording & editing workstation for one with eight 5.25-inch drive
bays. If you run many hard drives, you'll want a power supply unit w/ at least
300 watts. We use
a 350w ATX TurboCool made by the folks at PC Power &
Cooling. My electrician friend said they have the best specs. Also heard
good things about power supplies by Sparkle, and cases by CalPC. A
400w PSU would not be extravagant. Most video-editing rigs are chocked full of
hard drives w/ all PCI slots full - all sucking power.
full - all sucking power. | <urn:uuid:2f8d03ac-3b81-48cc-a7f4-ff5718bf54aa> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://radified.com/DV_NLE/dv_nle_3.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571692.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812105810-20220812135810-00065.warc.gz | en | 0.940246 | 3,842 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Other Therapies for Anxiety
The following information describes a variety of other therapies for anxiety. Most of these therapies are mildly sedating, and have been used for years as successful anti-anxiety and calming remedies. There simply isn't enough well-designed research to support their use as stand-alone treatments. Other therapies, like diet or acupuncture, may have a preliminary study supporting their effectiveness, but more research is necessary before fully recommending their use as anxiety treatments.
There are many herbs that have been traditionally used for anxiety that are mildly sedating and calming. These herbs may be taken as a tea or in a pill form, and are often combined to enhance their calming effect (for example a tea may contain Skullcap, Hops and Chamomile).
- Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora)
- Chamomile (Anthemis nobilis)
- Hops (Humulus Lupulus)
- Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca)
- Oats (oat straw) (Avena sativa)
Most of these herbs are safe even in very large amounts. The most common way to use them is to make a tea on an as-needed basis; perhaps 2-3 times a day.
Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant (substance that increases mental or physical processes such as heart rate and blood pressure), and should be avoided in people with anxiety. Caffeine is found in coffee, tea, chocolate, some stimulant medications (for example, No-Doz), and sodas. Always check the labels of food, beverages and medications to determine whether caffeine is an active ingredient. People with anxiety seem to be particularly susceptible to the negative effects of caffeine, such as dizziness, racing heart, and restlessness.
Acupuncture literally means 'needle piercing" and is the practice of inserting very fine needles into the skin to stimulate specific anatomic points for therapeutic purposes. In addition to needles, acupuncturists can also use heat, pressure, friction, suction, or electromagnetic energy impulses to stimulate acupuncture points. Treatment is designed to to balance the movement of energy (called qi) in the body to restore health.
Acupuncture is an effective treatment for general anxiety. This therapy is also effective for people who are very nervous before operations and dental procedures. Obviously, acupuncture will probably not work for people who have fear of needles; however, the needles used in this therapy are extremely small. Most people report that they feel nothing but a slight twinge when the needles are inserted.
The specific course and duration of acupuncture treatment depends on the nature and severity of anxiety symptoms. A typical course of treatment might involve ten to twelve weekly sessions.
Exercise is a commonly prescribed supportive treatment for anxiety. Many people note a drop in their level of worry and anxiety during and after exercising.
Starting an exercise program is something that should be discussed with your health provider. Always start slowly and progress gradually. Most health practitioners suggest that exercising 20-30 minutes a day, three times a week, is a good beginning. Exercise should incorporate both strength (such as lifting weights) and cardiovascular training (anything where your heart rate in increased for an extended period such as walking, bike riding, running, swimming, etc.).
Similar to exercise, yoga has shown some promise as a treatment for anxiety. Deep breathing and stretching can lead to feelings of contentment and calm on their own. Many yoga practices incorporate deep breathing, stretching, and strengthening exercises along with a mild cardiovascular workout.
Yoga can be practiced at home, or you can find a class at a local community/recreation center, gym, or yoga studio. There are forms of yoga that incorporate slow stretching and others that are more active. If you are thinking of trying yoga, visit a class a few times to determine which teacher and style would best meet your needs. | <urn:uuid:c961fbba-de73-4ef2-8451-4295fadda292> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://amhc.org/15-alternative-mental-health-medicine/article/11875-other-therapies-for-anxiety | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988721174.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183841-00283-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952394 | 798 | 2.5 | 2 |
A ramjet was a jet engine that could travel at supersonic speeds, but not at subsonic speeds. They were faster than turbofans.
(Note: The background section of this page uses most of the same words as Terra Futura's page on turbofans to save time.)
Early airplanes used piston engines similar to those used in cars, buses, and trains. As planes became common in the 1930s, radial engines started being used. In the early years of air travel, the radial engine was the dominant aircraft engine. The radial engine was used to turn a propeller which helped the airplane fly. After World War II, gas turbine engines started being used for propulsion. The earliest were turboprop engines which continued to use a propeller. In more large scale aircraft, the turboprop was initially replaced with the turbojet. But turbojets were inefficient and noisy. So they were replaced with turbofans.
Turbofans became commonplace after they were first used on the Boeing 707. The jet age was born. This was followed by the 727. Early turbofans were low bypass. The fan had multiple stages. It could go faster. In the 1960s, turbofans became high bypass. There was only one fan. They more efficient than ever before. By the early 21st century, the fastest turbofan used for passenger travel was the Boeing 787. It reached Mach .89 once it finally got in the air. In the 21st century, turbofans were mainly used for subsonic travel. Other engines went supersonic.
Tech Level: 9-10
Ramjets were faster than turbofans because they had no fan. The movement of air was not impeded. The most notable use of ramjets was the SR-71 Blackbird which traveled at Mach 3. That was where ramjets usually worked best. The maximum speed ramjets could do without trouble was Mach 6. The LAPCAT A2 approached that speed, but it topped off at Mach 5. There was one problem. Ramjets did not work at subsonic speeds. So a turbofan often accompanied it. In the mid-21st century, ramjets were going faster and becoming scramjets. | <urn:uuid:4116fe60-0ae3-4dc4-b197-3d1d29081529> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://future.wikia.com/wiki/Ramjet_Engines_(Terra_Futura) | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280730.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00255-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.991439 | 471 | 3.984375 | 4 |
Far from Glasgow and COP26, Ithaca, New York, just made an unprecedented move to tackle climate change and the city’s carbon footprint. In a unanimous vote on Wednesday night, Ithaca’s city council approved the full decarbonization of its buildings.
It is the first U.S. city to begin operation on a 100% decarbonization plan, but it won’t be the last, and its focus on buildings and its use of private financing to support the effort show how more urban models to tackle emissions may develop and even leapfrog federal and state efforts.
“On decarbonization, and frankly, just about every issue … no one is coming to save us. Whether on climate or infrastructure … we have more determination we will have to save ourselves,” said Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick. “This is the biggest step we’ve taken towards decarbonization and maybe the biggest step any city has taken.”
Cities have been dubbed as the laboratories of democracy, where new ideas include new forms of social investment and infrastructure and new models of governance get tried out, and on climate policy, it is small cities like Ithaca and Des Moines, Iowa, that are poised to lead. Both cities are part of a new UN-led consortium on climate called the 24/7 Carbon-free Energy Compact which also includes Google.
“Not enough attention is being paid to what works in small American cities, and that’s not unique to decarbonization,” Myrick said.
Ithaca had already lined up $100 million in private financing over the summer to support the effort from private equity partner Alturis. Its building energy efficiency partner BlocPower is in place and the city is ready to begin going into buildings and start the work on Thursday.
“We are ready to go, Day One,” said the city’s sustainability director Luis Aguirre-Torres.
Ithaca’s energy efficiency partner BlocPower, which is a CNBC Disruptor 50 company, brought the investors on board to pay the upfront costs of the buildings project. BlocPower founder and CEO Bonnel Baird recently told CNBC that 100 million buildings across the U.S. waste $100 billion a year on fossil fuels. “There are significant savings that can be introduced,” Baird said.
Ithaca’s plan will cover electrification projects for 1,000 residential buildings and 600 commercial buildings in the first phase of a total 6,000 building inventory.
For Ithaca, buildings are the first target for several reasons. Forty-percent of its buildings were constructed before 1940 and buildings represent 40% of its carbon emissions profile. The city already receives 80% of its power supply from hydroelectric and nuclear power plants, whereas in other cities transitioning the power fleet may take precedence.
“The fact that we have 80% power generation from renewables makes my job quicker, but not easier,” Aguirre-Torres said. The project is the largest of its kind in the country, according Aguirre-Torres. “By addressing buildings first we take on 40% of emissions dead on,” he said.
Tapping private investment for public climate projects
The strategy, according to Aguirre-Torres, is to not rely on government money, but to tap into private investors and combine it with incentives from government which can reduce the cost of capital and interest rates for project finance. Given the scope of the climate challenge, “That amount of money can’t come from government,” he said.
Former BP CEO and current leader of Beyond NetZero John Browne recently told CNBC it will take $2 trillion more per year for the society to meet its climate pledges.
Aguirre-Torres said while Department of Energy and New York Green Bank funding can help, Ithaca’s goal is to set the ratio at 1 to 20 for taxpayer versus private investment funding. Ithaca already is looking to raise another $250 million for further climate projects. Next year, it is planning to introduce a program to allow residents to buy used electric vehicles at a low cost with private equity investors being responsible for owning the battery technology — the biggest part of an EV’s cost — and leasing the battery to drivers. Ithaca already has the largest number of EV charging stations per capita in New York State, though Aguirre-Torres said there are significant issues to still be solved related to insurance coverage for the program if the leasing model is enacted.
Aguirre-Torres, who has an engineering degree, said his vision of using private finance for climate policy grew out of his experience working on innovation with local governments in Silicon Valley, as well as with the Schwarzenegger administration in California, and maybe most importantly, his work with the Mexican government on climate legislation. “When you work in Latin America you become familiar with there being no money for anything,” he said. “Legislation I worked on many times got passed and then relied on World Bank or other multilateral organizations who come in to supplement private investment.”
Mexican energy reform in 2014 drove significant investment in solar and wind, with most structured as debt equity projects. “PE is the most expensive form of capital we have, but the rates can be brought down if we start addressing the issues related to risk. I believe this can be a model for the entire country,” Aguirre-Torres said.
Mayor Myrick said there are other U.S. cities using private financing to help fund projects such as building upgrades in low- and moderate-income communities, but it is the scale of doing it at 1,000 residential units at $50,000 per home and a budget of $500 million in a city which has an annual budget of $85 million that sets Ithaca’s ambitions apart as a model for the future.
“Given the scale of problem people are open to public and private partnerships in Ithaca. They realize government has to be the catalyst setting rules for climate but if we are going to make sweeping changes we just don’t have the resources to do it alone,” he said.
Many more city decarbonizations will follow Ithaca
Myrick, who was first elected to city government at the age of 20 as a Cornell University college student and became mayor in 2012 at the age of 24, said Ithaca is a very progressive community and its climate justice movement dates back to the 1970s, and students have driven the city to where it is now reaching as a municipality in climate planning. Ithaca is an important test case because of its location in the Northeast which has both cold winters and hot summers making electrification of buildings and any changes to the power infrastructure a bigger challenge. “It’s doing this in a place that doesn’t have a better climate, that’s part of what can make this replicable,” he said.
Lower-income communities in cities that are not seeing major population growth and new construction have more reason to focus on existing building stock, said Stefen Samarripas, analyst at American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.
Heating systems, including water heating and space heating, are big drivers of energy use in residential and commercial buildings and are targets of climate projects, as well as insulation and lighting. In cities with less population growth, there will also be a larger share of legacy buildings in need of upgrades rather than new constructions in booming population hubs. And many lower income communities often include buildings with neglected energy efficiency standards, a task that is central to the business mission of Ithaca’s operational partner BlocPower.
“Lower-cost homes oftentimes are going to be those properties that are older and in need of upgrades and in need of appliances that are more inefficient,” Samarripas said. “What we’ve seen is low-income households are experiencing higher energy cost burdens than their middle-income or high-income counterparts where that lower energy efficiency translates into eating a larger share of their monthly income.”
This is making more cities consider the energy burden as a reason to create new incentive and financing programs, whether in partnership with a business or local utility, and whether directed at an individual resident or property owner.
Most of the buildings in the first phase of the Ithaca decarbonization project will be low- and moderate-income properties.
Local governments are best-positioned to lead on buildings
Local governments are in a good place to tackle the buildings issue because many existing policy structures given them the majority of the oversight in regulating buildings.
“A big reason why cities have really emerged as leaders on decarbonization, particularly with buildings, is traditionally land use and development has been more in the realm of state and local governments. They set the building codes, they have the levers,” said Elizabeth Beardsley, senior policy counsel at the US Green Building Council. “The cities are feeling the local impacts from climate change too, and it is becoming more tangible and motivating,” she said. “They are feeling the impacts and knowing they have those levers to use.”
That is the case in Des Moines, Iowa, which experienced serious flooding in 2008 inundating facilities along riverfronts, and in 2018 had ten inches of rain in less than five hours flooding buildings and homes. “That really drove us to start thinking of green building as a resiliency measure,” said Jeremy Caron, city sustainability program manager. Then last year, it experienced the “derecho” wind storm with 100-plus miles per hour winds which decimated electric service and supply chains. “It revealed a lot of challenges we need to start thinking about and dealing with,” Caron said.
“Cities across the board relative to states and federal are being more proactive on clean energy and building efficiency and mostly because we have that grassroots connection to residents and we’re responding to the requests from the community,” he said.
Des Moines is currently in the process of selecting a consultant to work on its decarbonization plan, which will also begin with buildings. The city shares one advantage with Ithaca in tackling climate and starting with building: it is the beneficiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy’s major investment in wind power, with the Warren Buffett-owned utility having the goal of making the entire state 100% renewable energy-powered in a decade.
“We can focus less on the grid and more on programs and solutions for residents and businesses and facilities,” Caron said.
Buildings in Des Moines represent 65% of its energy consumption with transportation second at 26%. Driving building efficiency up and demand down is key. “The most affordable energy you can use is the energy you don’t require,” he said.
Building direct energy and electricity use comprise roughly 38% of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., according to the USGBC, and the majority of buildings that will make up urban environments through 2030 already exist, and in big cities like New York it’s as high as 85% of building inventory. “Those buildings are really important and also areas where energy usage traditionally has not been regulated,” Beardsley said.
Construction of net zero carbon buildings will be normal over the next decade, but existing buildings are a much harder challenge and very fragmented as a market with a different cost burden than starting from scratch. In a country like the U.S., all of the existing building stock will require “deep renovation,” Beardsley said, in order to meet IPCC targets. But cities are now adopting performance benchmarks for energy efficiency, which is the precursor to energy efficiency upgrades.
Des Moines is collecting it building energy benchmarking data for private property owners through the end of next year and anticipates it may need additional time to verify data given the pandemic shutdowns created abnormal patterns in energy usage.
Congress is currently contemplating multiple measures to make building infrastructure more climate-resilient as part of the Biden administration spending plan and to overcome hurdles including the fact that many business owners perceive their energy costs as being low relative to other expenses.
“It’s taken a while to come up with new tools and policy ideas and will see more involvement of cities with existing buildings, those will grow,” Beardsley said. “Many cities have made climate commitments and hopefully many are working towards detailed plans and actions,” she said. “Sooner or later, they will have to work on existing buildings.”
Cities need to be prepared to take advantage of any federal funding that does become available because those opportunities do not occur often. Des Moines may begin rolling out programs as early as the latter part of next year as it works on a five-year timeline to develop its decarbonization plan for buildings and larger “energy master planning,” said Caron, who joined the city’s government in May 2020.
Ultimately, local government leaders need to think of projects as being able to survive changes in political administrations and ideologies, Myrick said, and building a financial model that works is key.
“You need to show a return every quarter,” he said. “When you set up a big ambitious project like this the next administration will have no choice but to continue regardless of ideology. It’s a win for private property owners and households to see buildings become more efficient and produce less emissions and for partners in private equity seeing a return on investment that works for the environment.”
Ten years ago, when he first became mayor, he said that he would never have imagined Ithaca could decarbonize all its buildings. “It wasn’t on my agenda,” Myrick said.
It was only over the past two years that Ithaca was prodded by local activists to be more aggressive and saw all the financing opportunities that were available at a time when the federal government was not stepping up to solve the problem.
“I have been in office through four presidents, and during the Trump administration, seeing how quickly the federal government could not just scale back ambitions and fail to meet goals but reverse course convinced me that we as cities had to be more aggressive.” | <urn:uuid:d8aae478-836c-4eea-8e63-60b839cc1a5a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://realestatehit.com/2021/11/04/ithaca-new-york-becomes-first-u-s-city-to-begin-100-decarbonization-of-buildings-an-urban-climate-change-milestone/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571536.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811224716-20220812014716-00277.warc.gz | en | 0.967371 | 3,000 | 2.40625 | 2 |
THE NIGERIAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY
Volume 11, No. 2, (2013)
Amazons of War and Peace: Local Women Organisations and Communal Conflicts in South-eastern Nigeria
Ifeanyi Onwuzuruigbo1 & Friday Asiazobor Eboiyehi2
1Department of Sociology Faculty of the Social Sciences University of Ibadan, Nigeria
2Centre for Gender and Social Policy Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife, Nigeria
This study investigates the role of women civil society organizations in communal conflicts in South-eastern Nigeria. Until recently the literature on the nexus of gender, civil society, peace and conflict research in Nigeria suggests that civil society studies have been largely gender blind. This is because the literature sometimes ignores the specificities of women group involvement in socio-economic and political processes. There is therefore the need to focus on the various links between gender, conflict and peace particularly in an increasingly violent and conflict-infested global political system. More specifically, the incorporation of cultural mechanisms of conflict resolution into mainstream peace process by women following the failure of conventional conflict management mechanism needs to be explored. From research findings conducted through a synergy of observation method, in-depth and keyinformant interviews, this study shows that women civil society organizations played vital roles in sustaining Aguleri and Umuleri conflict, and relied on traditional instrument of conflict resolution to manage the conflict.
Keywords: Umuleri, Agulari, conflict, gender, civil society organization | <urn:uuid:ed87b057-44ac-4e32-8bb8-e4dfcf9ef0d1> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://nasajournal.com.ng/volume-11-issue-2-2013/473-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572408.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816151008-20220816181008-00672.warc.gz | en | 0.882441 | 389 | 1.6875 | 2 |
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Biddulph Grange: Everything you need to know for a visit
Biddulph Grange is home to the most beautiful example of a Victorian garden in the whole of Britain. The culmination of over twenty years of sourcing plants from around the globe, these plants are spread out in a series of compartments that lead visitors on a discovery of beautiful rockery and winding streams complimented by novel plants.
Sarah Charlesworth - Wikimedia
Situated in Staffordshire, Biddulph Grange is in the care of The National Trust and a visit here is like taking a step back in time. The gardens were designed by James Bateman in the 19th century and he used a lot of his worldly collection of plants in the creation of the magical gardens.
The gardens, which are well over 150 years old, feature a fine selection of plants from China with some extremely exotic ones (Himalayan Rhododendrons anyone?). Visiting here means that you will discover many surprising and unexpected treasures on your walk and the gardens act as a bit of a retreat for relaxation.
You can even walk by impressive imitations of the Egyptian Court and The Great Wall of China. During your visit you can take in the fine tea rooms and plants are available to purchase if you spot something that would add to your garden.
Biddulph Grange is open to the public all year round. In Winter and Spring, the opening times are 11am to 3.30pm and in Summer and Autumn you can make the most of extended opening hours from 11am to 5.30pm. | <urn:uuid:ae28c5b0-2c70-4d81-9d53-50dc6d758f92> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://travel.excite.co.uk/biddulph-grange-everything-you-need-to-know-for-a-visit.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281424.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00327-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955637 | 333 | 1.875 | 2 |
Fed Rate Hike Pushes Mortgage Rates to Highest Since 1987
After the Federal Reserve took aggressive action to raise its benchmark interest rate, mortgage rates rose at their fastest pace since 1987. The New York Times reported that as of June 16, rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.78% — up from 5.23% the week before, according to Freddie Mac’s primary mortgage survey.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the 75-basis-point hike on June 15 was due in part to the Federal Reserve being worried about rising inflation, CNBC reported. The Consumer Price Index in May posted an 8.6% increase over the past year, and Fed officials are saying that they will continue raising interest rates until inflation holds at 2%.
While the rates on 30-year fixed mortgages don’t move simultaneously with the Fed’s benchmark rate, The New York Times pointed out that they do track the yield on 10-year Treasury bonds. These bonds are influenced by several factors, including expectations around inflation, the Fed’s actions and how investors react.
“These higher rates are the result of a shift in expectations about inflation and the course of monetary policy,” Sam Khater, chief economist at Freddie Mac, said in a statement, NYT reports. “Higher mortgage rates will lead to moderation from the blistering pace of housing activity that we have experienced coming out of the pandemic, ultimately resulting in a more balanced housing market.”
With the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rising by nearly 300 basis points, it means that on a $300,000 mortgage, the monthly payment has risen from $1265 in December to $1800 today, says Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. Yun also noted that only when inflation tops out will mortgage rates stabilize or even decline.
More From GOBankingRates | <urn:uuid:aa207c93-c23f-4dd1-abd3-7e4c1e74e6ef> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.gobankingrates.com/loans/mortgage/fed-rate-hike-pushes-mortgage-rates-highest-since-1987/?utm_campaign=1169549&utm_source=nasdaq.com&utm_content=9&utm_medium=rss | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572221.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816060335-20220816090335-00073.warc.gz | en | 0.963679 | 389 | 1.742188 | 2 |
This post describes and link to a new set of Autodesk’s Media and Entertainment Instructional Standards (MEIS) for three software products; Maya, 3dsMax and Softimage. These standards cover thirteen topic areas and toolsets and provide a ruich resource of theory, applications and exercises for teachers and trainers in animation and vfx.
I’ve argued in these posts for the development and implementation of explicit standards for animation education and training. I firmly believe that core competency standards will make life much easier for institutions and instructors. They provide clarity and accountability whether they are used in traditional forms of training or supporting a wide range of non-tradition, non-linear and informal learning processes.
While there is no universal system of content standards (yet), there are examples of standards for software skills (CISCO paved the way many years ago). Software companies are concerned about how their products are taught and in particular the learning principles and instructional abilities that teachers and trainers should possess to be effective in the “classroom”.
Standardized core competencies provide an explicit benchmark defining the content and level of expertise that should be evident throughout an educational or training regimen. They not only provide a framework for developing curriculum and courseware but also guide the instructor when he or she is planning, organizing and presenting the content of individual lessons and tasks.
Software companies (and everyone else come to think of it!) expect instructors to be effective and competent teachers rather than simply masters of the functionality of their products. Not every excellent animator (or vfx specialist) makes a good teacher - that takes a separate and well-developed set of additional abilities and talents. We have all been the recipients of substandard instructional practice and poor teacher performance at some time during our lives and it’s an incredibly frustrating, unproductive experience and a terrible waste of time, money and effort.
Autodesk Inc. has made considerable progress in improve this situation and their accomplishments are an important milestone in standards development and implementation for the animation and vfx industries. Last year, under the supervision and direction of Michael Sehgal, Senior Manager, Education and Training Programs at Autodesk, a group of experts developed a new set of Autodesk’s Media and Entertainment Instructional Standards (MEIS) for three software products; Maya, 3dsMax and Softimage.
These standards were designed to provide a comprehensive reference for those applying for Autodesk Certified Instructor qualification, but they are also an excellent source of high quality instructional content for all those designing curricula or teaching these applications at any level. The MEIS documents specify the content that certification candidates should know before applying to the ACI program and attending the ACI Workshop. I think every instructor will find them extremely useful.
The MEI Standards consist of 13 modules:
4. Dynamics / Simulation
7. Materials / Shading
10. Rigging / Setup
11. Scene Assembly / Pipeline Integration
13. UI / Scene Management1. Animation
Each module consists of four parts:
THEORY: provides conceptual or theoretical background information and reference suggestions for the topic.
APPLIED: provides practical information about how the software is used in terms of technique and workflow.
ACTIVITY: provides recommended activities and exercises that can be used by the instructor
TOOLS: covers the software toolset for each topic area.
I was hired to research, write and contribute to the Theory, Applied and Activity sections of the standards documents and I found the process a rewarding challenge and an opportunity to revisit standards development and rethink new ways to explore the theories, principles and activities that form the foundations of software functionality.
If you are an instructor or a trainer in Maya, 3dsMax or Softimage, I highly recommend the MEIS standards to you. Reviewing and rebuilding your resource base is a great way to continually improve your instruction and widen the range of information and skills you bring to your students.
You can access the Autodesk Professional Excellence Program documents and download a .pdf of the MEIS Standards for Maya, 3dsMax and Softimage at
The Impending Death of Traditional Education: When Push Comes to PullPrevious Post
Creating Better Animation Reference Using High Speed Video | <urn:uuid:1f8f5c1e-df4c-4ffc-a671-5d8b12d7c584> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.awn.com/blog/instructional-standards-maya-3dsmax-and-softimage | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572304.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816120802-20220816150802-00468.warc.gz | en | 0.908147 | 902 | 2.296875 | 2 |
Over half of our communication is done with body language, not words. I study it so I can characterize the people in my books–their actions, hand gestures, facial expressions–and it has taught me a lot about reading people’s interior monologue–those ideas they don’t want to share, but inadvertently do. Even the best speakers have a difficult time preventing twitches, unconscious hesitations or muscle movements from giving away what they truly feel.
Here are some of the ‘tells’ (movements the person doesn’t realize they are doing) that someone is lying that you can incorporate into your writing:
Verbal Context and Content
- A liar will use your words to answer a question. When asked, “Did you eat the last cookie?” The liar answers, “No, I did not eat the last cookie.”
- A statement with a contraction is more likely to be truthful: “I didn’t do it” instead of “I did not do it”
- Liars sometimes avoid “lying” by not making direct statements. They imply answers instead of denying something directly.
- The guilty person may say too much, adding unnecessary details to convince you. they are uncomfortable with silence or pauses in the conversation.
- A liar may leave out pronouns and speak in a monotonous tone. When a truthful statement is made, the pronoun is emphasized as much or more than the rest of the words in a statement.
- Words may be garbled and spoken softly, and syntax and grammar may be off. In other words, his sentences will likely be muddled rather than emphasized.
- Listen for a subtle delay in responses to questions. An honest answer comes quickly from memory. Lies require a quick mental review of what they have told others to avoid inconsistency.
- Lowered heads indicate a reason to hide something. If it is after an explanation, s/he may be lying, unsure if what they said was correct.
- Look into their eyes. Liars will consecutively look at you and look away a number of times.
- Avoiding direct statements or answers
- Leaving out pronouns (he, she, it, etc.)
- Watch their throat. A person may be either trying to lubricate their throat when he/she lies OR swallowing to avoid the tension built up
- Watch hands, arms and legs, which tend to be limited, stiff, and self-directed when the person is lying. The hands may touch or scratch their face, nose or behind an ear, but are not likely to touch their chest or heart
- If you believe someone is lying, change subject quickly. A liar follows along willingly and becomes more relaxed. They want the subject changed. An innocent person may be confused by the sudden change in topics and will want to go back to the previous subject.
- Or, if you believe someone is lying, allow silence to enter the conversation. Observe how uncomfortable and restless the person becomes.
- Liars more often use humor or sarcasm to avoid a subject.
- Under the eyes, small pockets of flesh pop up when someone smiles, but only if the smile is genuine.
Deception–maybe they aren’t lying, but they’re hiding something
- covering the mouth with the hands
- rubbing the side of the nose
- leaning away from you
- micro shrug
- voice pitch increases
- Liars, he says, use more “negative emotion” words (hurt, ugly, nasty) and fewer first-person singulars.
Sound complicated? It isn’t. Watch this TEDTalk from Pamela Meyer. Here’s a fascinating infographic on body language from Dr. Nick Morgan. Psychology Today has a thorough discussion on body language and lying.
More on body language:
Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy. She is the author/editor of dozens of books on integrating tech into education, webmaster for six blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for Examiner.com and TeachHUB, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, monthly contributor to Today’s Author and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. You can find her book at her publisher’s website, Structured Learning. | <urn:uuid:73064270-4c9e-47f7-9416-6a710bb17700> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | https://worddreams.wordpress.com/2015/02/25/how-to-tell-if-someone-is-lying-body-language-3/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988719677.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183839-00561-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943007 | 921 | 3.21875 | 3 |
Khaled al-Daher of the Lebanese al-Mustaqbal party, which opposes Hezbollah who warned in the past that Assad is transferring chemical weapons to them, claimed that the bases were built under the supervision of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. According to him, Hezbollah can arm the missiles with nuclear warheads.
Al-Daher linked this information with recent statements made by Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, who said that in the next conflict, Israel will face weapons that have not been used against it before. Continue reading
Although this event is unconfirmed, this is also what Saddam Hussein did with his WMDs shortly before the second invasion of Iraq, with help from the Russians. If confirmed to be so, some of these could even be the old Iraqi WMDs. The US State Department had previously warned Iraq about this possibly happening in February of 2012 (see fourth link).
For further information on the Iraqi WMDs and Syria WMD related items, see these following links:
Extra piece on the danger of loose WMDs: The Path to 9/11 and Beyond
Unconfirmed report in Lebanese newspaper echoes claims by Syrian rebels that Assad is hiding his WMD stocks to evade inspectors
Twenty trucks laden with equipment used in the manufacture of chemical weapons were driven across the border from Syria into Iraq on Thursday and Friday, the Lebanese newspaper Al-Mustaqbal reported on Sunday.
The trucks were “heavily protected” by security forces, and were not inspected by border guards, the paper reported, adding that its sources confirmed the illicit cargo. Continue reading | <urn:uuid:49d30372-1283-4a36-92a6-916d5383667a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://glblgeopolitics.wordpress.com/tag/al-mustaqbal/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571536.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811224716-20220812014716-00266.warc.gz | en | 0.977583 | 324 | 1.53125 | 2 |
With the nation's conservative political mood, minority professionals should prepare for a time when government-mandated affirmative action programs might no longer exist.
That was the one of the messages that came out of the 14th annual symposium of IMPACT of Greater Hartford, one of the area's largest organizations of minority professionals.
About 400 people attended the gathering Friday at the Farmington Marriott, titled: "Shaping the Vision: Now Through the Year 2000."
Whatever happens to these programs, Alyce T. Rawlins, a founder and board member of IMPACT of Greater Hartford, said young minority professionals should keep several things in mind when trying to thrive in corporate America.
"First, your performance has to be excellent, it has to be outstanding," Rawlins said. "The other thing is exposure, once you are a top performer, people have to know that you are there."
Therman E. Evans, president and chief executive officer of WholeLife Associates in Elkins Park, Pa., and the group's keynote speaker, said: "I think the largest companies in America will still have diversity programs. I think the largest companies in America will still have programs similar to those that they have now."
But, he asked, "Will it be as vigorous an effort? Will it last long?"
Evans, a former CIGNA executive, conceded he did not have the answers to those questions.
Nevertheless, corporations stands to lose out on a wide pool of business talent, knowledge and expertise by stifling opportunity, he said.
"America loses so much today because of its shortsightedness, greed and self-centeredness," Evans said.
Yvonne Alverio, director of work- force diversity for Aetna Life & Casualty Co., said the continuation of diversity efforts, absent government prodding, depends largely on how it affects the bottom line.
"One of the big reasons that corporations are really looking at diversity is not because it is right thing to do, but . . . because of business reasons -- because of the emerging markets, because of the nontraditional markets and because of the diversity of customers," Alverio said.
"We should prepare for the total elimination of affirmative action," said John Brittain, professor at the University of Connecticut School of Law.
Brittain pointed to the efforts of California Gov. Pete Wilson to eliminate affirmative action in that state.
But he said there could be larger legal consequences to eliminating affirmative action. | <urn:uuid:54730fc2-ab85-4e4d-9419-835376a1c6db> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-xpm-1995-10-14-9510161071-story.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572043.2/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814143522-20220814173522-00474.warc.gz | en | 0.95957 | 508 | 1.914063 | 2 |
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar to be awarded by Jewish rights group
Posted on: 15 Sep 2016 09:28:42
15 September 2016 Current Affairs: Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar will be honoured with a humanitarian award by a prominent Jewish human rights organisation for promoting human dignity, interfaith relations and tolerance among people.
The Art of Living founder will be conferred with Simon Wiesenthal Centres highest honour the Simon Wiesenthal Humanitarian Laureate at a ceremony in New Delhi on September 21.
Ravi Shankar has joined hands with the Jewish human rights organisation in its activities in the past and had even issued a joint statement, denouncing the widespread marketing of Hitlers book, Mein Kampf, as a management tool in India in 2009.
The organistations exhibit traces the 35 centuries of the Jewish peoples relationship with its land, emphasising the universal and particularistic values that inspired the unique journey of the Jewish people throughout history and inspired Jews to retain an unbreakable bond and love for their ancestral homeland.
The first such exhibit was co-organised with UNESCO, gaining UN approval, and sponsored by the governments of Israel, Canada and the United States.
It has also been presented at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, the UN Headquarters in New York, the Vatican, the US Congress, Israels Knesset (parliament) as well as in Copenhagen and Chicago.
FreshersLive - No.1 Job site in India. Fresherslive Current Affairs 2017 section offers informative quiz questions with answers regarding latest current affairs today for all sorts of competitive exams like UPSC, TNPSC , IFS, IAS, IPS, railway exams (RRB) and banking exams like IPBS PO, IPBS clerk, Federal Bank PO, ICICI, SBI, RBI legal officer & Grade officer posts and much more. Register with us to get latest Current Affairs Updates. Also get latest Current Affairs news and quiz Updates for free alerts daily through E-mail | <urn:uuid:51ba362e-4535-419c-ae66-baced83e78cc> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.fresherslive.com/current-affairs/articles/sri-sri-ravi-shankar-to-be-awarded-by-jewish-rights-group-5499 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280835.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00043-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940013 | 408 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Guelph author and entrepreneur Bob Desautels has some choice words for his fellow Baby Boomers and draws wisdom from a diverse selection of ancient and modern voices in his latest collection of essays, Rummagings of a Lapsed Boomer.
“I have been collecting quotations since I was a teenager so, I use them as a jump-off point for each essay,” said Desautels. “There are about 50 essays that represent the sum total of all the knowledge I’ve acquired during my 70 years on the planet.”
He feels he has earned the right after seven decades to take creative liberty with, at least, one word in the book’s title.
“I came up with the word ‘rummagings’, which I explain in the introduction,” he said. “Rummaging is searching, and I am always looking for good quotations. A lot of my friends know that, and they often send me something that is interesting.”
Desautels has a degree in philosophy from the University of Guelph and several philosophers are quoted in the book such as Socrates, who said, “An unexamined life is not worth living.”
It is fitting advice for someone writing such a retrospective book, but Desautels said he draws much of his personal philosophy from the teachings of the pre-Socratic, Greek philosopher Zeno of Citium, who founded the School of Stoicism.
“I consider myself a stoic,” said Desautels. “Stoics believe that you can control your emotions. If something bad happens to you, a stoic would say that you can control the reaction. I talk about stoicism quite a bit in the book.”
The book follows Desautels’ journey as a student, teacher, golf pro, writer, activist, entrepreneur, husband, father, grandfather and all things in between and is filled with time-tested observations as well as a collection of personal photos that document a life of adventure and progress.
One photo featuring a freshly inked tattoo of a monarch butterfly on his left shoulder, illustrates Desautels’ eclectic perspective in living colour.
“I did it to surprise my kids,” he said. “I believe in metamorphosis, that you can change. So, I thought there is nothing more symbolic than a monarch butterfly.”
Desautels will be discussing and reading excerpts from Rummagings of a Lapsed Boomer during a book launch event at the Bookshelf, on Quebec Street, Sunday at 7 p.m.
“I’m going to read the very first essay,” he said. “It starts with a quote from the Moody Blues and Justin Hayward, who said, 'There is none so blind than those who will not see.'"
It sets the tone for a sober analysis of, what Desautels’ considers a wasted opportunity by his generation.
“The Boomers were a failed generation,” he said. “We had so much promise in the 60s with Woodstock and the flower children but never did anything lasting. We all turned into the Me Generation. Now, most of the Boomers I know are more interested in their stock portfolios, yoga classes and their BMWs.”
Desautels has demonstrated through his own success as an entrepreneur, a founding member of the Green Party and a pioneer of the local food movement, that progress doesn’t have to come at the expense of community and the environment.
“I am an entrepreneur and I have a whole section on entrepreneurship, which will be interesting to some people who want to go into business,” he said. “I use a quote in here by a famous management guru in the (United) States, who said, ‘An entrepreneur is more interested in expressing themselves than making money.’ I believe in selling local products. I think it’s really important. I am sort of stubborn about that. When I set up the Wooly with all the craft beers, it just took off like lightning. I did the same thing at Borealis and Miijidaa and now at Park Eatery”
One of the essays is introduced with a quote from the 19th Century Indigenous leader Chief Seattle, who famously said, “We don’t inherit the earth. We borrow it from our children.”
Hope and advice for future generations are recurring themes throughout the essays and are messages expressed in the subtitle of the book, “An old man’s reflections and lessons learned for a younger generation.”
“It’s a labour of love really,” he said. “I dedicate the book to my grandchildren – Ava, Daisy and Harvey. They changed my life a lot and I love spending as much time as I can with them. They are so innocent and they are usually very optimistic too. Nothing bothers them that much.”
He even co-authored a book with his granddaughter Ava called The Girl Who Loved Cheese.
Family has always been at the centre of Desautels personal and business ventures. His son Court has taken over as president of the Neighbourhood Group of Companies, he started in 1991 and his daughter Emily was manager of the Wooly Pub for many years.
Desautels and his wife, Sue, recently returned from a river tour of the wine region in Bordeaux, France with editorial staff of the Globe and Mail and have many more adventures planned.
“I’m in my 70th year,” he said. “I will be 70 in November and Sue and I are going to Greece and Turkey for our 50th anniversary next year. I am a lucky man.”
For more info about Desautels and Rummagings of a Lapsed Boomer visit www.bobdesautels.com | <urn:uuid:6648dfbb-cf88-457b-b372-e7d7001c45f2> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.guelphtoday.com/following-up/seeking-words-of-wisdom-guelph-author-inspired-by-quotes-5517035 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572033.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20220814113403-20220814143403-00273.warc.gz | en | 0.975093 | 1,244 | 1.617188 | 2 |
My friend Elizabeth is from the South Pacific Island Kingdom of Tonga, an exotic locale long fixed in my memory with images of Polynesian paradise.
Tonga has sadly been in the news lately after an inter-island ferry sank on August 5 drowning over 70 people. It’s a huge tragedy in such a small place and it has saddened all Tongans around the world.
When I first met Elizabeth I had no idea that there were so many Tongan Americans living in large communities in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Dallas and other cities across the USA. Elizabeth is producing a documentary film on the history of Tongans immigrating to America and she knows a lot about the subject.
But surprisingly, a subject Elizabeth didn’t know a lot about is Tonga’s frontline role as a victim of the climate change crisis. | <urn:uuid:9f3e7710-5fd4-47e9-8d37-e92645945513> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://creativegreenius.com/2009/08/17/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571911.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813081639-20220813111639-00465.warc.gz | en | 0.940951 | 178 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Boeing announced this week their proposed alterations to the 787 lithium-ion batteries to prevent any major incidents in flight. Tellingly, the company has not announced the cause of he problem which suggests they do not still know it. The changes are designed not only to improve safety but reassure regulators, carriers and the public that the plane is safe.
The changes include:
- improving the insulation between the eight cells in the battery. The batteries’ original insulation was made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which can withstand heat of 300 degrees Fahrenheit (149 degrees Celsius). The cells will now be wrapped with another insulating material called phenolic glass laminate, made of thin layers of a fiberglass material and resin. This will give with a resistance of more than 900 degrees Fahrenheit (482 degrees Celsius)\
- reducing vibrations inside the battery that might have been one of the possible causes of the short circuits
- gentler charging to minimise “stress”
- installing a new titanium venting system.
- sealing the batteries in a steel box, which would contain any smoke and fire. The box adds 150 pounds (68 kilograms) which almost negates the point of using the lighter weight battery in the first place. Boeing has been testing the steel casing for three weeks and has found it can withstand three times the pressure generated when a battery “fails”.
If a cell did combust, the steel casing would contain the smoke and fire, the venting tube would open, and the smoke would be pushed outside the plane and out of the cabin.
The FAA Federal Aviation Administration approved these changes on Tuesday. Boeing has since begun a series of certification tests -20 over one to two weeks. Most of the tests will be conducted inside Boeing labs but one will be a test flight.
The company have also disputed the National Transportation Safety Board analysis of the original January 7 Boston airport fire which triggered the plane’s grounding. The NTSB said a short circuit led to “thermal runaway” and fire in the battery. Boeing says it was “thermal propagation.” and state the fire was not in the battery box.
Boeing said yesterday: “We think the likelihood of a repeat event is very unlikely,”
This is either good news or an expression of hope.
We shall see what the FAA says after the tests have concluded. | <urn:uuid:8e2fbfa8-a108-404e-9767-8961d657e219> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://wildabouttravel.boardingarea.com/2013/03/787-battery-fix/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282926.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00393-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95424 | 492 | 3.0625 | 3 |
Even now, as the matter refers to thy opinion on a point the more closely belonging to thee, in so far as it bears on thy personal well-being, we maintain that after life has passed away thou still remainest in existence, and lookest forward to a day of judgment, and according to thy deserts art assigned to misery or bliss, in either way of it for ever; that, to be capable of this, thy former substance must needs return to thee, the matter and the memory of the very same human being: for neither good nor evil couldst thou feel if thou wert not endowed again with that sensitive bodily organization, and there would be no grounds for judgment without the presentation of the very person to whom the sufferings of judgment were due. That Christian view, though much nobler than the Pythagorean, as it does not transfer thee into beasts; though more complete than the Platonic, since it endows thee again with a body; though more worthy of honour than the Epicurean, as it preserves thee from annihilation,—yet, because of the name connected with it, it is held to be nothing but vanity and folly, and, as it is called, a mere presumption. But we are not ashamed of ourselves if our presumption is found to have thy support. Well, in the first place, when thou speakest of one who is dead, thou sayest of him, “Poor man”—poor, surely, not because he has been taken from the good of life, but because he has been given over to punishment and condemnation. But at another time thou speakest of the dead as free from trouble; thou professest to think life a burden, and death a blessing. Thou art wont, too, to speak of the dead as in repose, 1483 when, returning to their graves beyond the city gates 1484 with food and dainties, thou art wont to present offerings to thyself rather than to them; or when, coming from the graves again, thou art staggering under the effects of wine. But I want thy sober opinion. Thou callest the dead poor when thou speakest thine own thoughts, when thou art at a distance from them. For at their feast, where in a sense they are present and recline along with thee, it would never do to cast reproach upon their lot. Thou canst not but adulate those for whose sake thou art feasting it so sumptuously. Dost thou then speak of him as poor who feels not? How happens it that thou cursest, as one capable of suffering from thy curse, the man whose memory comes back on thee with the sting in it of some old injury? It is thine imprecation that “the earth may lie heavy on him,” and that there may be trouble “to his ashes in the realm of the dead.” In like manner, in thy kindly feeling to him to whom thou art indebted for favours, thou entreatest “repose to his bones and ashes,” and thy desire is that among the dead he may “have pleasant rest.” If thou hast no power of suffering after death, if no feeling remains,—if, in a word, severance from the body is the annihilation of thee, what makes thee lie against thyself, as if thou couldst suffer in another state? Nay, why dost thou fear death at all? There is nothing after death to be feared, if there is nothing to be felt. For though it may be said that death is dreadful not for anything it threatens afterwards, but because it deprives us of the good of life; yet, on the other hand, as it puts an end to lifes discomforts, which are far more numerous, deaths terrors are mitigated by a gain that more than outweighs the loss. And there is no occasion to be troubled about a loss of good things, which is amply made up for by so great a blessing as relief from every trouble. There is nothing dreadful in that which delivers from all that is to be dreaded. If thou shrinkest from giving up life because thy experience of it has been sweet, at any rate there is no need to be in any alarm about death if thou hast no knowledge that it is evil. Thy dread of it is the proof that thou art aware of its evil. p. 178 Thou wouldst never think it evil—thou wouldst have no fear of it at all—if thou wert not sure that after it there is something to make it evil, and so a thing of terror. 1485 Let us leave unnoted at this time that natural way of fearing death. It is a poor thing for any one to fear what is inevitable. I take up the other side, and argue on the ground of a joyful hope beyond our term of earthly life; for desire of posthumous fame is with almost every class an inborn thing. 1486 I have not time to speak of the Curtii, and the Reguli, or the brave men of Greece, who afford us innumerable cases of death despised for after renown. Who at this day is without the desire that he may be often remembered when he is dead? Who does not give all endeavour to preserve his name by works of literature, or by the simple glory of his virtues, or by the splendour even of his tomb? How is it the nature of the soul to have these posthumous ambitions and with such amazing effort to prepare the things it can only use after decease? It would care nothing about the future, if the future were quite unknown to it. But perhaps thou thinkest thyself surer, after thy exit from the body, of continuing still to feel, than of any future resurrection, which is a doctrine laid at our door as one of our presumptuous suppositions. But it is also the doctrine of the soul; for if any one inquires about a person lately dead as though he were alive, it occurs at once to say, “He has gone.” He is expected to return, then.
[This whole passage is useful as a commentary on classic authors who use these poetical expressions. Cœlo Musa beat (Hor. Ode viii. B. 4.) but the real feeling comes out in such expressions as one finds in Horaces odes to Sextius, (B. i. Ode 4.), or to Postumus, B. ii. Od. 14.]177:1484
[The tombs, by the roadside, of which the traveller still sees specimens, used to be scenes of debauchery when the dead were honoured in this way. Now, the funeral honours (See De Corona, cap. iii.) which Christians substituted for these were Eucharistic alms and oblations: thanking God for their holy lives and perpetuating relations with them in the Communion of Saints.]178:1485
[Butler, Analogy, Part I. chap. i.]178:1486
[Horace, Book III. Ode 30.] | <urn:uuid:65a04a42-029b-465b-873c-c375a6e4233e> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/ecf/003/0030200.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988722459.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183842-00345-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970575 | 1,459 | 2.125 | 2 |
Bodyboarding Introduction Lesson at Jimbaran
For bodyboarding beginners, this course is designed as an introduction to bodyboarding and to get you riding waves within just a few hours. With no experience required, get comfortable with your board, learn about safety, and learn how to catch waves from your professional instructor.
After getting comfortable with your board and swim fins, and some short theory on water safety, it’s all about practice. Your coach offers tips and teaches you how to catch waves before they break, ride the open face, and change direction on your board. Nestled on the grounds of the InterContinental Bali Resort, the Rip Curl School of Surf Jimbaran club is just meters from the beach.
The sheltered crescent bay of Jimbaran has calmer and quieter waters all year, making it the perfect spot for students trying bodyboarding for the first time and a great option for families with young children wanting to avoid the crowds. In addition to helpful tips and instruction, get time to practice on the waves and enjoy convenient roundtrip transportation to and from your hotel.Read More
- Quad or Buggy Driving Adventure & Tubing Excursion
- Royal Mengwi Temple, Monkey Forest & Tanah Lot Excursion
- Bali Hai Sunset Dinner Cruise
- Devdan Show: Treasure of the Archipelago at Bali Nusa Dua Theatre
- Lembongan Island Leisure Day Trip
- Elephant Safari Park & Elephant Ride with Spa
- Highlights Of Bali Full-Day Tour
- Sunset Kecak Dance at Uluwatu & Barbecue Seafood Dinner
- Seawalker, Fly Fish Adventure & Underwater Tandem Scooter Ride
- 2-Day Lombok Island Tour | <urn:uuid:4044b776-d7dd-4aa1-820b-90f655ad66e7> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.bali-indonesia.com/tours/products/bodyboarding-introduction-lesson-at-jimbaran.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282202.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00546-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.882925 | 357 | 1.507813 | 2 |
It’s true, roses are prone to certain pests and diseases. At some point, every rose gardener will encounter black spot, Japanese beetles, rose chafers and mildew. Don’t let that deter you from rose gardening. It is possible to control problems or to avoid them all together. It’s even possible to rose garden organically. It just takes regular care and some gardening common sense. | <urn:uuid:d2b75f0d-d51d-4102-ba5d-98bdb8c0c83d> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.nathes101market.com/roses/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573699.52/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819131019-20220819161019-00277.warc.gz | en | 0.919016 | 87 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Indianola’s Main Street led into downtown to dead-end on Front Avenue, where many businesses were clustered. This charming stretch of Main in the 100 block prior to reaching Front Avenue was home to the Sunflower Bank (visible just to the left of the photograph, and featured in an earlier post), the Enterprise-Tocsin newspaper building (not shown), and the Masonic Lodge (visible beyond the one-story stucco building with the brick columns). From right to left, the buildings above:
- 131 Main is a circa 1952 building (MDAH Historic Resources Inventory) with a new porch. It currently houses the Indianola Wellness Clinic.
- 129 Main is a circa 1905-1908 building of stone. Permastone veneer was added to the front facade and the storefront changed in 1955. It was the home of Chapman Printing Company between 1931-1938 at least, although there is no other information I have been able to locate.
- 123 Main is a circa 1904 two-story stucco and brick building, currently home to Cities Insurance. Cities was located across the street at 124 Main during the late 1950s. The porch has a denticulated cornice with decorative cast iron balustrade atop the porch.
- 117 Main is a circa 1970 building.
It is quite the eclectic collection of buildings of varying styles, ages, and appearance. I suppose that makes it a typical example of rural southern Americana. | <urn:uuid:8dd9a461-9272-4858-8b0a-f3907f717365> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://suzassippi.wordpress.com/2017/11/18/main-street-indianola/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572870.85/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817062258-20220817092258-00676.warc.gz | en | 0.974932 | 299 | 1.773438 | 2 |
08 March, 2013 | (01 hr)
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Integrated reporting standards aim to give a view of the organization by putting its performance and strategy in the context of its relevant social and environmental issues. Importantly, integrated reporting includes information to allow shareholders to make a more informed assessment of the future of a company. United Technologies Corporation, American Electric Power, Southwest Airlines, Clorox, Germany’s BASF, Denmark’s Novo Nordisk, Brazil’s Natura and the Netherlands’ Philips have voluntarily started this practice. Adopting this practice can have a strong influence on corporate behavior and ethics.
Join Mike Krzus of Mike Krzus Consulting and Aleen Bayard of Footprint Partners as they explain the concept of integrated reporting and its benefits and challenges.
In viewing, participants will learn about:
- Improving internal controls over nonfinancial information
- Determining materiality for nonfinancial information
- Developing key performance indicators for nonfinancial information
- Monitoring the activities of the following key organizations: International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), and Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
Audience: Chief ethics officers/chief compliance officers, chief investment officers, chief risk officers, chief financial officers, asset managers, activist managers, pension funds, sustainability officers, investor relations
Aleen Bayard, LEED Green Associate, is Managing Partner of Footprint Partners. Aleen brings 25+ years of experience in change management strategy, communication, leadership
Kimberly Byer-Clark is a program director with The Conference Board. She develops and produces workshops and conferences in the Corporate Leadership practice. Kim is also responsible for content development, speaker selection and recruitment, sponsorship sales, and webcast production. From 2009-2...Full Bio | <urn:uuid:dd55128c-abf5-4cb1-947b-4aaae1a3836f> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.conference-board.org/webcasts/ondemand/webcastdetail.cfm?webcastid=2940&topicid=0&subtopicid=10 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280065.57/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00541-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.903578 | 381 | 1.609375 | 2 |
The 2014 Music Standards are all about Music Literacy. The standards emphasize conceptual understanding in areas that reflect the actual processes in which musicians engage. The standards cultivate a student’s ability to carry out the three Artistic Processes* of
- Performing, and
These are the processes that musicians have followed for generations, even as they connect through music to their selves and their societies. And isn’t competence in Creating, Performing, and Responding what we really want for our students?
Students need to have experience in creating, to be successful musicians and to be successful 21st century citizens.
Students need to perform – as singers, as instrumentalists, and in their lives and careers.
Students need to respond to music, as well as to their culture, their community, and their colleagues.
The new standards provide teachers with frameworks that closely match the unique goals of their specialized classes. The standards are presented in a grade-by-grade sequence from pre-K through grade 8, and discrete strands address common high-school music classes, such as Ensembles and Music Composition/Theory. The standards are provided in “strands” that represent the principal ways music instruction is delivered in the United States.
Click here to read the new 2014 Music Standards.
Click here to access the new State Standards Adoption Toolkit!
Click here for videos, FAQ, and more information on how the standards structure works in practice.
Click here for the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards site, which has a searchable database of the standards in all the arts.
Click here for Standards resources and workbooks (click on “Standards” in the left-hand navigation of the page).
What exactly are the new music standards?
How do they compare to the 1994 music standards?
What curriculum and scheduling, staffing, materials and equipment, and facilities are needed to support the music standards?
- OTL Summary Sheet
- OTL Standards Checklist – General Music Checklist
- OTL Standards Checklist – Specialized Areas Including Ensembles Checklist
- OTL Standards Checklist – General K-12 Checklist
How can I build these into my lesson plan using the new music standards?
Now that I have the new music standards, how do I evaluate my student’s progress?
What are Model Cornerstone Assessments, and how can I be involved?
*The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards, of which NAfME is a part, includes “Connecting” as a fourth Artistic Process. The music standards consider connecting to be embedded in the processes of Creating, Performing, and Responding. | <urn:uuid:08ef6b81-dd6c-42c8-a8d3-d5acec2c94e3> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://nafme.org/overview-of-2014-music-standards/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570741.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808001418-20220808031418-00077.warc.gz | en | 0.937673 | 566 | 3.953125 | 4 |
Writing in The New England Journal of Medicine, Atul Gawande offers a fascinating historical overview of the surgical profession. It's full of incredible facts and anecdotes. Even after the introduction of anesthesia, for example, it took surgeons a while "to discover that the use of anesthesia allowed them time to be meticulous." Here's Gawande on Robert Liston, a British surgeon who had pioneered a particularly speedy technique for leg amputation; Liston tried out anesthesia for the fist time in 1846, amputating the leg of a butler:
Liston, like many other surgeons, proceeded in his usual lightning-quick and bloody way. Spectators in the operating-theater gallery would still get out their pocket watches to time him. The butler's operation, for instance, took an astonishing 25 seconds from incision to wound closure. (Liston operated so fast that he once accidentally amputated an assistant's fingers along with a patient's leg, according to Hollingham. The patient and the assistant both died of sepsis, and a spectator reportedly died of shock, resulting in the only known procedure with a 300% mortality.)
Liston had suspected that anesthesia, like hynptosim (which had been used, unsuccessfully, to put surgical patients under), was a "Yankee dodge." But "throughout the procedure, [the butler] did not make a sound or even grimace. 'When are you going to begin?' asked the patient a few moments later. He had felt nothing. 'This Yankee dodge beats mesmerism hollow,' Liston exclaimed."
Mass. General in 1941.
Viewed from a high enough altitude, Gawande writes, one of the most surprising things about surgery is how routinized and minimal it's become. Surgery was once a cataclysmic, traumatizing life-event; nowadays, "virtually no one escapes having a condition for which effective treatment requires surgery" (the average American will have seven). That's made possible, in part, because surgeries are less and less invasive. In the last few decades, to choose just one example, "the advent of laparoscopy and thoracoscopy reduced the debilitating, half-meter-long abdominal and chest incisions to a half centimeter."
Perhaps, Gawande suggests, the future might bring truly bloodless surgery: "Scientists are already experimenting with techniques for combining noninvasive ways of seeing into the body through the manipulation of small-scale devices that can be injected or swallowed." Surgery could be next. Much more at The New England Journal of Medicine.
The author is solely responsible for the content.
Leon Neyfakh is the staff writer for Ideas. Amanda Katz is the deputy Ideas editor. Stephen Heuser is the Ideas editor.
Guest blogger Simon Waxman is Managing Editor of Boston Review and has written for WBUR, Alternet, McSweeney's, Jacobin, and others.
Guest blogger Elizabeth Manus is a writer living in New York City. She has been a book review editor at the Boston Phoenix, and a columnist for The New York Observer and Metro.
Guest blogger Sarah Laskow is a freelance writer and editor in New York City. She edits Smithsonian's SmartNews blog and has contributed to Salon, Good, The American Prospect, Bloomberg News, and other publications.
Guest blogger Joshua Glenn is a Boston-based writer, publisher, and freelance semiotician. He was the original Brainiac blogger, and is currently editor of the blog HiLobrow, publisher of a series of Radium Age science fiction novels, and co-author/co-editor of several books, including the story collection "Significant Objects" and the kids' field guide to life "Unbored."
Guest blogger Ruth Graham is a freelance journalist in New Hampshire, and a frequent Ideas contributor. She is a former features editor for the New York Sun, and has written for publications including Slate and the Wall Street Journal.
Joshua Rothman is a graduate student and Teaching Fellow in the Harvard English department, and an Instructor in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He teaches novels and political writing. | <urn:uuid:a5cab10d-10b6-4dd3-b4fa-52ce7bc57bfd> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | http://archive.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/2012/05/the_history_of_13.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570741.21/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808001418-20220808031418-00072.warc.gz | en | 0.95291 | 845 | 2.484375 | 2 |
Continuing education credits
Continuing Education Units, or CEUs, provide a new benefit to community members, particularly teachers, who may earn credit to maintain their accreditation by attending various lectures, seminars and other programs offered by the university.
“By offering CEUs, the university is providing a service to school teachers and making WCSU an even more valuable resource to the community,” said Dr. Linda K. Rinker, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “WestConn provides a wide range of excellent academic programs that are accessible to students first, but also to residents of the region. It is one of our strategic strengths.” | <urn:uuid:27defd55-6667-4650-b282-6bea40ac7af3> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://wcsu.edu/president/annualreport/2010/academics/CEUs.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560279650.31/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095119-00436-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954889 | 135 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Communion, participation, mission are key words for a Church on the move, says Pope
Moment of reflection for the beginning of the Synodal Process "For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission". To become "a Church of listening" to the Spirit and to our brothers and sisters, a "Church of closeness" that "establishes greater bonds of friendship with society and the world".
Vatican City (AsiaNews) - The Synod assembly is not a parliament governed by the logic of the majority and minority, but a process indicated by three words: "communion, participation, mission".
This is how Pope Francis described the Moment of Reflection for the beginning of the Synodal Process "For a Synodal Church: communion, participation and mission" this morning in the New Synod Hall.
Addressing those present - bishops, priests, religious and laity – he said: " You have come by many different roads and from different Churches, each bearing your own questions and hopes. I am certain the Spirit will guide us and give us the grace to move forward together, to listen to one another and to embark on a discernment of the times in which we are living, in solidarity with the struggles and aspirations of all humanity".
The first key words of the Synod, communion and mission, are "theological expressions". They designate "the mystery of the Church which it is good to remember" and the task entrusted to her by Christ. And Paul VI wanted to "condense precisely in these two words - communion and mission - the main lines enunciated by the Council".
However, " can risk remaining somewhat abstract, unless we cultivate an ecclesial praxis that expresses the concreteness of synodality at every step of our journey and activity, encouraging real involvement on the part of each and all. I would say that celebrating a Synod is always a good and important thing, but it proves truly beneficial if it becomes a living expression of “being Church”, of a way of acting marked by true participation. This is not a matter of form, but of faith. Participation is a requirement of the faith received in baptism. As the Apostle Paul says, “in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Cor 12:13). In the Church, everything starts with baptism. Baptism, the source of our life, gives rise to the equal dignity of the children of God, albeit in the diversity of ministries and charisms. Consequently, all the baptized are called to take part in the Church’s life and mission. Without real participation by the People of God, talk about communion risks remaining a devout wish. In this regard, we have taken some steps forward, but a certain difficulty remains and we must acknowledge the frustration and impatience felt by many pastoral workers, members of diocesan and parish consultative bodies and women, who frequently remain on the fringes. Enabling everyone to participate is an essential ecclesial duty!”.
The Synod therefore "offers a great opportunity for a pastoral conversion in a missionary and also ecumenical key", but it presents three risks, starting with formalism. " If we want to speak of a synodal Church, we cannot remain satisfied with appearances alone; we need content, means and structures that can facilitate dialogue and interaction within the People of God, especially between priests and laity" because "sometimes there is some elitism in the presbyteral order that makes it detach itself from the laity and the priest becomes in the end the leader of the pack". The second risk is intellectualism, "turning the Synod into a kind of study group" on the problems of the Church and the world, a "talking over ourselves" in which we end up " ould turn into a kind of study group, offering learned but abstract approaches to the problems of the Church and the evils in our world. The usual people saying the usual things, without great depth or spiritual insight, and ending up along familiar and unfruitful ideological and partisan divides, far removed from the reality of the holy People of God and the concrete life of communities around the world". The third risk is "the danger of complacency", the "because it has always been done this way it is better not to change" that is "a poison in the life of the Church". With the danger that "old solutions are adopted for new problems".
The Synod should instead be "an occasion for meeting, listening and reflection", "a season of grace that, in the joy of the Gospel, allows us to recognize at least three opportunities. First, that of moving not occasionally but structurally towards a synodal Church, an open square where all can feel at home and participate. The Synod then offers us the opportunity to become a listening Church, to break out of our routine and pause from our pastoral concerns in order to stop and listen. To listen to the Spirit in adoration and prayer, to listen to our brothers and sisters speak of their hopes and of the crises of faith present in different parts of the world, of the need for a renewed pastoral life and of the signals we are receiving from those on the ground. Finally, it offers us the opportunity to become a Church of closeness, that not only in words, but by her very presence weaves greater bonds of friendship with society and the world. A Church that does not stand aloof from life, but immerses herself in today’s problems and needs, bandaging wounds and healing broken hearts with the balm of God."
Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod, concluding the session, first of all recalled that the current 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod begins on 10 October 2021, with the Pope's Mass in St. Peter's. This will be followed by the "journey" of all the particular Churches with the listening of all the People of God and the celebratory phase, with the Assembly of October 2023, and then the subsequent implementation phase.
In this regard, the Cardinal asked whether "it is so impossible to imagine, for example, resorting to voting on the Final Document and its individual numbers only when consensus is not certain? Isn't it enough to foresee motivated objections to the text, perhaps signed by a suitable number of members of the Assembly, resolved with an additional discussion, and to resort to the vote as the last and undesired instance?".
And again: "if instead of ending the assembly by delivering the final document to the Holy Father, we were to take another step, that of returning the conclusions of the synodal assembly to the particular Churches".
"The final document would reach the Bishop of Rome, who has always and by all is recognised as the one who issues the decrees established by the councils and synods, already accompanied by the consensus of all the Churches".
"In this case the Bishop of Rome, the principle of unity of all the baptised and of all the bishops, would receive a document that manifests together the consent of the People of God and of the College of Bishops: it would be the case of an act of manifestation of the sensus omnium fidelium, which would be at the same time an act of magisterium of the Bishops scattered throughout the world in communion with the Pope". | <urn:uuid:a1ac8313-ae7b-467b-bbed-5904e26d4446> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.asianews.it/news-en/Communion,-participation,-mission-are-key-words-for-a-Church-on-the-move,-says-Pope-54247.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571719.48/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812140019-20220812170019-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.9555 | 1,556 | 1.78125 | 2 |
If you’re pregnant, have a baby, or are expecting a new grandchild, this is the perfect time to make something found in Montessori infant-toddler programs – a treasure basket.
A treasure basket is simple and inexpensive to create. It contains a number of items found in your home and in nature. (Try to avoid plastic.)
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links (at no cost to you).
Treasure Basket Ideas from How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way
A treasure basket encourages your baby to use his or her senses to explore and make new discoveries independently. In How To Raise An Amazing Child the Montessori Way, Tim Seldin introduces a section on making a treasure basket with:
All around your baby is a magical world of objects just waiting to be discovered.
Once your baby is able to sit and hold things she will love to explore a ‘treasure basket.’ This is a low basket or sturdy box you have filled with lots of interesting household objects and things from nature. The objects must be large enough not to be swallowed and free from sharp edges or anything else that might be harmful when they are touched and quite possibly mouthed by a young child. Older toddlers enjoy the treasure basket, too – just keep introducing new objects.
The book recommends using items that are:
- Fabric and leather
The book warns against:
- Small choking hazards
- Objects with sharp edges
- Objects with loose threads or pieces
- Anything that might be harmful if mouthed
- Materials with non-colorfast dyes
Treasure Basket Ideas from Around the Blogosphere
Here are some sites with great ideas for treasure baskets:
Themed Treasure Baskets for Babies (my roundup post)
Kitchen Treasure Basket for Babies (my post)
Ball Treasure Basket for Babies (my post)
Have fun watching your baby learn through the simplicity and beauty of a treasure basket! | <urn:uuid:592b7dfb-9928-40fb-939e-ea472828acf6> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://livingmontessorinow.com/how-to-make-a-treasure-basket-for-your-baby/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280128.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00385-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.890817 | 412 | 2.375 | 2 |
The Arboretum features a broad range of ecologically significant habitats common to the New England landscape. A blending of both glacial remnant features and the influence of over 300 years of farming has transformed the landscape to provide diverse wildlife habitats.
At present, most of the property is in the process of undergoing some tertiary stage of forest succession. Greater than 14 acres were once apple orchards that over time have become overgrown with both native and in some instances non-native vegetation. In addition, approximately 22% of the property can be classified as wetlands, encompassing a variety of habitats, which mesh to form a species rich wildlife mosaic.
Of greatest significance to the development of a "naturalistic" arboretum, is the high degree of emphasis placed upon recognizing wildlife corridors, maintaining edge habitat and in understanding the inter-relationship and dependence of one wildlife habitat region to another. Below, an outline of each of the major wildlife habitat regions will be reviewed.
Although limited by size and encroached upon on all sides by residential development, the Arboretum provides important habitat for all life functions to an interesting variety of wildlife . In large part, this is a direct function of the abundant habitat diversity found in a relatively diminutive land area, 64 acres. In essence, the Arboretum is an oasis in the heart of residential Acton.
Located within the bounds of the property are:
- Open grazing/foraging areas for deer, rabbits, voles and mice
- Extensive wetlands areas for nesting, cover, and water
- Upland hardwood forests with abundant acorn and hickory nuts and numerous cavity and den trees
- Several successional stage abandoned orchards providing exceptional wildlife habitat.
Wildlife travel corridors represent a fascinating aspect of the Arboretum seldom noticed by the visitor, as most wildlife travel is done under the cover of darkness. These recognized wildlife travel corridors connect specific feeding, roosting denning, and nesting areas. Daytime travel is done in a way to be concealed from the ever alert senses of predators.
Primary to all life function is the need to procure both food and water. In the Arboretum satisfying these fundamental requirements is most often accomplished in the wetlands areas or along the forest field edge where plant diversity is at its greatest. Reaching these feeding areas presents many species with a daily exercise in staying alive, while giving others an opportunity to hunt.i
One such predator/prey association is the relationship between Red Fox (Vulpus vulpus) and Chipmunk (Tamius stratus). Chipmunks are primarily a ground dwelling member of the squirrel family, utilizing the arboretums grid pattern of stonewalls as travel corridors. In addition to travel, the walls provide shelter and a place to store caches of nuts and other gathered foods hidden within the stones. The Arboretum's fox family is acutely aware of the stonewall thoroughfares. Instead of walking adjacent to the walls, fox stealthily walk along the top of the walls expecting to bewilder an unsuspecting chipmunk.
Wildlife Habitat Inventory
Open Meadow Habitat
Open meadows represent a wildlife habitat quickly becoming a thing of the past in New England. A special effort is made to maintain the grassland habitat found in the Arboretum and not to disturb the wildlife. Meadows are mowed each November after the songbird migration has concluded. Cutting fields back on a yearly schedule is primarily done to remove the uninvited onset of gray dogwood, Japanese multiflora rose and European buckthorn.
For example, gray dogwood masses left unmowed for as little as three consecutive years can encompass entire meadow areas, excluding virtually all other herbaceous growth.
Approximately 5 acres of the Arboretum is actively managed as open meadow habitat. In 1997, the abandoned orchard near the ledge outcropping on the Wood Lane side of the property received some much needed clearing removing two acres of European buckthorn, multiflora rose, and countless saplings. In just one year since the clearing, many herbaceous plants including meadow grasses, buttercups (Ranuncolos acris), black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta), and common milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) have returned.
The Arboretum's meadows play host to a wide variety of bird life as well. By maintaining grass fields, we have been able to preserve a healthy population of song sparrows (Melopspiza melodia), chipping sparrows (Spizella passerina), and other ground or herbaceous layer nesting birds.
Over the past two decades, New England has seen a gradual increase in the population of coyotes. The Arboretum is no exception. We have had several reported sightings on the property. While alarming to some, coyotes account for the elimination of more feral cats than any other single predator. With substantially fewer unwanted cats in our meadows, the population of native songbirds continues to rebound.
The meadow next to the rhododendron collection is an excellent place to enjoy the diversity offered by an open meadow habitat.
Meadow/Forest Edge Habitat
Of all habitat regions found in the Arboretum, none is more diverse in species than the forest/meadow edge. A healthy edge habitat ranges from meadow grasses at its most exposed extreme to mature successional forest at its source. Plant species such as staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina), black cherry, various dogwood species, viburnum species, members of the rose and raspberry families, and sapling hardwoods mesh to create the fabric of a diverse forest meadow edge.
The abundance and variety of fruiting plants attracts numerous species of songbirds such as yellow warblers (Dendroica petechia), mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos), catbirds (Dimetella carolinensis), cardinals (Cardinalis carninalis), and goldfinches (Carduelis tristis). All species nest in the Arboretum, and some feed on the berries and seeds. Wharblers and swallows enjoy the abundant insects that pollinate the flowers, herbs, and other plants.
Edge habitat ranges in age from yearly mowed areas, exhibiting perennials such as the aster family, goldenrods, and vervian to woody shrubs mowed on a three-to-five year cycle allowing for taller denser stands. Many bird nests are found in this dense mass of honeysuckle, multiflora rose, and dogwood.
Travel corridors are less noticeable and generally hidden within the shrub layer of the edge habitat. Starting in late February with the first hint of spring, raccoons and skunks begin a nightly pilgrimage exploring the meadow edge, as omnivorous opportunists consuming a wide range of foods.
The dense stands of gray dogwood left to grow for five years provide the structural support for catbird and cardinal nests. Much older successional growth nearer the forest edge provides support for wild grapes to climb. Catbirds remove the exfoliating bark from the wild grape vines to mold the interior lining of their nests.
Once the nesting season has ended and the frosts of autumn have blanketed the meadow, white-footed mice utilize the abandoned catbirds' nests to store swamp rose and multi-flora rose hips in. The mice leave their warm winter homes deep within the aging apple trees each evening to reclaim their winter supply of food stored in the edge habitat nests. Barred owls watch the meadow shrub edge intently, waiting for mice and voles to come out and feed each evening.
While the shallow, rocky till made farming nearly impossible, it did provide sufficient depth, nutrient availability and gently rolling slopes upon which to grow apples. In fact, 12 acres of the Arboretum were productive orchards as recently as the 1960s. The entire area off Taylor Road is where much of the Arboretum's development has been focused in part of the abandoned apple orchard. Several other orchards in various states of forest succession can be found on the property. In this section, the orchards will be classified in one of three ways:
- Early succession
- Late successionii
Maintained Orchards can be found in the Taylor Road region as well as at the end of Wood Lane in the eastern most region of the property. Our definition of maintained orchard does not mean sprayed and heavily pruned; in fact, quite the opposite. Meadows around the sixty year-old apples are kept open, and poison ivy and multiflora rose is routinely removed from the aging trees. Eastern kingbirds (Tyrannus tyrannus) and robins (Turdus migratorius) frequently nest in these trees. As old trees die some are left standing for Woodpeckers (Picidae) to mine. The dead and peeling bark provides narrow, dark crevices for little brown bats to escape the light of day.
Early Succession in the Arboretum can be observed in two areas: just beyond the southern end of the Rhododendron trail and meadow on the left side of the Wildflower trail, and in the northeast corner of the property near the easement in from Wood Lane. Early stage succession is rich in plant and animal diversity, in many ways quite similar to forest/meadow edge habitat, except that no open meadow borders the orchard. The transition from dense shrub sapling growth to mature forest is unbroken. In the case of the first example referred to above, the abandoned orchard is bordered by a red maple swamp.
Many of the apple trees have died but are still standing, providing denning areas for raccoons, red and gray squirrels, deer mice, and white-footed mice. These areas are densely overgrown with honeysuckle and multi-flora rose providing nesting habitat for many of the same species found in the edge habitat. Blue jays (Uanolitia cristata) and yellow-billed cuckoos (Loccyzus americanos) nest in this protected environment.
A wide variety of songbirds are attracted to early succession orchards to feed on the abundant insect and berry crop found there. Sharp-shinned hawks (Accipiter striatus) feeding on the songbirds spend much of their hunting time motionless in trees along the forest orchard edge waiting for an opportunity for a surprise attack.
Only one example of Late Succession Orchard can be observed in the Arboretum. The 2-acre area is located on the west side of the Highlands/Bog Loop trail as you come up the hill from the bog, near the Wood Lane trail intersection. You have to really search just to find the remains of the apples that have all died and fallen to decay. This unmanaged landscape features 20 to 30 year old red oak (Querius rubra) and white ash (Fraxinos americana), with red maple making up the orchard's southern border. The dense canopy reduces shrub and herbaceous growth on the young forest floor.
With the established growth of red oak, leaf litter covers the ground in this successional stage orchard, providing habitat for ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) to forage in. The western edge of this orchard is bounded by the esker, with spring runoff following the base of the slope. Larger wildlife such as deer, fox, and coyotes travel along a wildlife corridor leading to the bog and wetlands at the south end of the property.
Uplands Hardwood Forest Habitat
Deciduous forests represent 17 acres of the Arboretum landscape. Hardwood forests represent a complex ecosystem stratified into canopy, understory, and forest floor dwellers. The largest region of hardwood forest can be found on the east side of the old farm ponds running along the ridge in a north/south orientation.
This is an excellent place to observe warblers and other insect eating songbirds on their northern migration each April and May. Many of these warblers have just returned after having wintered in Central and South America living high in the canopy of tropical rain forests. These behavioral characteristics continue during the northern migration making observation difficult without binoculars and a lot of patience. Warblers such as chestnut sided (Dendroica pensylvanica), Canada (Vilsonia canadensis), black and white (Mniotilta varia), and blackburnian (Pendrolla fusia) spend several days each spring in the hardwood uplands at the Arboretum.
The red-eyed vireo (vireo olivaceus), a member of the warbler family, remains in the Arboretum throughout the summer breeding season and nests on sapling understory hardwoods 10 to 30 feet above the forest floor. Both wood (hylochia mustelina) and hermit thrushes (catharus guttatus) nest in the Arboretum's hardwood forests. Their distinct songs can be heard while walking along the Wildlfower Trail near the native New England wildflower collection.
Far fewer shrub species exist in the partial sunlight of the dry hardwood floor. With fewer shrubs providing food and camouflage, far fewer species of both small birds and rodents live in this region in comparison to the forest/meadow edge habitat. There is much less protection from the keen observation of forest hawks such as the sharp-shinned (Accipter striatus) and broad-winged (Buteo platypterus).
Great-crested flycatchers (Myiarchus crinitus) nest in abandoned woodpecker cavities near the wildflower collection and on the esker, in both instances utilizing dry uplands hardwood forests for nesting. In each case, the flycatchers nest in woodlands bordering significant wetlands areas where insect life is abundant.
White Pine Forest Habitat
White Pine forest Habitat represents 8 acres of the property. The largest stand borders the esker's ridge by a hardwood forest and its westerly side by a red maple swamp. A second dense white pine (Pinus strobus) stand can be found at the end of Wood Lane.
The Wood Lane pine stand provides the isolation necessary to attract roosting great horned owls (Bubo virninianus). Numerous owl pellets have been found in the dense pine needle litter. Crows find privacy high up in these pine stands as well, sometimes building nests on abandoned gray squirrel nests.
The pine stand found along the western boundary of the property adjacent to the esker provides shelter for a pair of red-tailed hawks (Buteo samailensis) that have returned each year to nest. Flying squirrels occupy abandoned downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) holes in dead white pine trees shadowed below the 75 year-old white pine canopy.
The dense shade and thick acidic decomposing needle litter on the forest floor limits shrub growth. Few songbirds find the pine stand to be a safe place to nest. An exception can be found along the telephone easement running through the property where sapling black birch (Betula lenta) and red maple (Acer rubrum) grow in profusion. For large animals such as white-tailed deer, red fox and coyotes, the unmaintained telephone easement provides an important east/west travel corridor through the Arboretum.
Red Maple Swamp / Farm Ditch Corridor Habitat
As discussed in the hydrology section and again in describing the wetlands communities found in the Arboretum, water tends to flow from north to south through the property. In a very simplistic way, so does wildlife. The most clearly defined wildlife travel corridors follow the drainage ditches. This is certainly true for both raccoon and skunks that seek crustaceans, frogs, and whatever else may be found in and around the flowing ditches.iii
When designing the first plantings in 1986 along the drainage ditch near the Taylor Road entrance, special attention was given to use native shrubs having a benefit to wildlife, in some instances bearing fruit, with other species providing cover. This was our first attempt to create a wildlife travel corridor in an otherwise intensely developed portion of the property. Our efforts have been rewarded as each spring warblers feed on the first hatch of black flies and midge flies along the corridor.
The Arboretum has a modest population of white-tailed deer, a small herd of approximately three to five family members that utilize red maple swamps as travel corridors. This herd ranges between the Nashoba Brook floodplain marshes to the east, through the Woodlawn Cemetery to the Arboretum, and to the south to the open meadow grasses and clover growing on the town landfill. To the west beyond the Arboretum, they encounter a wall of residential development.
Farm Pond Habitat
In 1990, permits were obtained under the Wetlands Protection Act to excavate a 1600 sq. Ft. area of marsh and create a wildlife beneficial farm pond. The criteria in selecting the location focused on the pond's proximity to the handicapped trail system then under construction, visibility, and its full-sun orientation. At that time the only existing open bodies of water on the property were the two very old man-made farm ponds, both shallow and densely shaded.
The constructed wildlife pond fluctuates from a spring maximum depth of approximately four feet to completely dry during dry summers as in 1997. The fluctuating water depth has its advantages for many aquatic insects as well as several amphibian species such as American toads and green frogs, both species found to breed in the shallow pond. Breeding success for both frogs and toads is very high as the occasional drying of the pond eliminates a permanent fish population. The dry, down-cycle also aids the rate of leaf and weed decomposition on the pond bottom, allowing for more oxygen to be present, elevating the rate of aerobic bacteria decomposition.
Native shrubs and trees were successfully planted around the perimeter of the pond increasing species diversity and attracting a variety of insect eating birds. Eastern phoebes (Sayornis phoebe), eastern kingbirds, yellow warblers, and tree swallows (Iridoprocne bicolor) are common visitors to the pond. A resident pair of mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) nests near the pond each year.
Open water is fundamental to a well-balanced wetlands ecosystem. The initial attempt to create this important habitat feature has met with much interest by Arboretum visitors and acceptance by many native species.
Old ponds / vernal pools
Years of accumulated silt and decomposing leaf litter have left the upper farm pond with water depths of less than three feet. During the summer of 1997, the upper pond was completely dry. Even in its current state, the upper pond is frequented by an interesting variety of bird species, especially during the spring migration when the willow trees (Salix nigra) along its shoreline host many species of warblers. Wood ducks (Aix sponsa) frequent the shallow pond; and, in 1993, a wood duck box was placed along the pond's eastern shoreline. Green herons (Botorides striatus) and great blue herons (Ardea herodias) can be observed wading in the water throughout the summer months.
Both farm ponds are bordered by upland hardwood forests along their eastern shorelines, creating sufficient habitat for the ponds to be used by wood frogs and spotted salamanders as breeding areas. Further study may indicate how important these ponds are as active vernal pools.
Studying the interesting variety of life on the bog is a difficult proposition. Fortunately, for those visiting the Arboretum's bog, a 220 foot long boardwalk was constructed by two Eagle Scouts in 1989. The elevated deck crossing the southwest corner of the bog allows for a superb opportunity to observe this unique wetlands landscape.
The surface or mat of the 2.5 acre bog consists of a dense layer of sphagnum moss (sphagnum palustre). These chlorophyll enriched "green" leaves grow perpendicularly atop previous years of growth. As the organic layers below the bog surface slowly decompose, a deep bed of peat is assembled. The process of creating peat occurs very slowly, at a rate of about 1 inch of accumulation every 100 years.iv Depth probing of the peat done in March, 1998 indicates a maximum depth of about 16 feet.
Sphagnum moss is able to retain approximately 25 times its own weight in water and acts as the environmental control mechanism for most other life living on the bog. The bog remains cold, even frozen just below the sphagnum surface well into the spring, limiting the ability of plant roots to absorb water. Though the wetlands is completely saturated, very little of the water can be utilized by the plants inhabiting the bog.
Members of the heath family common to the bog, such as Leatherleaf (Chamaedaphne calylulata), retain their leaves for two years with nitrogen stored in second year leaves being made available for the next year's growth; as nitrogen for leaf growth in the bog soils is not found in a complex useful for plant development. The Leatherleaf leaves are thick and do not give up water readily. The plants grow in dense, shrubby masses and provide nesting habitat for mallard ducks and red-wing blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus). Ribbon snakes can often be seen from the boardwalk moving through the Leatherleaf tangle.v
The bog's harsh environment has caused some plants to pursue different methods of procuring sufficient nitrogen to survive. In this instance a group of plants has actually become carnivorous in order to augment the limited availability of nutrients. Northern pitcher plants (Sarracenia purpurea) are the Arboretum's only plant carnivore, and can be observed from the boardwalk. These unusual insect-eating plants have evolved in such a way as to consume insects, and occasionally salamanders and even frogs, to provide the protein necessary during the flowering and seed production season. Insects lured by a fragrance emitted from the plant enter the mouth of the pitcher, slip into an enzyme enriched rainwater reservoir, and drown in a bath of digestive juices. It is possible that sundew, another insect eating plant, may also exist in the bog. However no locations have been confirmed.i Tracking and the Art of Seeing (Paul Rezendes, Camden House Publishing, Inc., 1992)
ii Forest Wildlife of Massachusetts (Richard M. Degraaf, David A. Richard, University of Massachusetts, Cooperative Extension, 1987)
iii Tracking and the Art of Seeing (Paul Rezendes, Camden House Publishing, Inc., 1992)
iv Saving Graces, Sojourns of a Backyard Biologist, (Roger B. Swain, Little, Brown and Company, 1991)
v Bogs of the Northeast, (Charles W. Johnson, University Press of New England, 1985) | <urn:uuid:32702398-9566-4bb3-85cf-6fe8977e340f> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.actonarboretum.org/the_land/wildlife.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988720941.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183840-00519-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.927747 | 4,832 | 2.90625 | 3 |
By Michael Lev for MxD
Once there was an industry struck by existential crisis. Companies scrambled to react and innovate. Employees, shocked by the changes, were eager for the crisis to abate and business to return to normal. But a wise manager warned them to embrace change as a constant because competitors, having honed new skills, would not fall back asleep. Everyone would need to keep innovating to survive. “Get comfortable with feeling uncomfortable,” the manager advised.
That example comes from my experience in the print newspaper business, which was rocked by the internet, but it sticks in my mind as a parable for the supply chain upended by COVID-19. Not that the global supply chain was sleepy or lacked innovation. What exploded overnight in response to COVID was the pace of change in manufacturing, logistics, and distribution. My point: Don’t wait for an end to pandemic-related supply chain upheaval. Now that demands for improved efficiency have taken hold, they will not slow.
There are many lessons from the supply chain crisis, but here are three takeaways. Each is an emergency response to the strains and snarls caused by the pandemic. Each will likely become permanent. Because once an industry faces down a cataclysmic challenge, participants keep pushing or risk being left behind.
Shorten the tail: A global supply chain, stretching to China and beyond, may still make sense for some low-cost industries, But the previous era of outsourcing-or-bust is over, done in by COVID, trade tension with Beijing, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. COVID especially has forced businesses to assert more control over their suppliers or risk disaster when shipments are held up by factory shutdowns abroad or cargo delays at sea.
The smart response is to diversify manufacturing and, for global companies, adopt a regional approach that puts assembly lines closer to customers. Often this means bringing back some manufacturing to the U.S or Mexico. Chris Snyder, an industry analyst at UBS, told Bloomberg that companies are abandoning the China model and looking at manufacturing in ways that “have never been done before.” A UBS survey of C-suite executives found that 90% were either in the process of moving production out of China or had plans to do so, and 80% were looking at coming back to America. Dodge Construction Network reports that manufacturing construction starts in the U.S. ballooned a record 161% in the past year.
Rethink delivery: Last year there were as many as 100 cargo ships stalled off the coast of Los Angeles, trapped for days or weeks as the two local ports struggled to process a deluge of backed-up arrivals. They don’t do it that way anymore. Amid its crisis, the shipping industry abandoned its 100-year-old system of assigning ships to berth when they arrived at Los Angeles/Long Beach. Now, they schedule each docking as a ship departs its last port. Vessels then steam slowly across the Pacific and wait further offshore in a shorter queue before arriving to unload, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California. This innovative new system improves safety and efficiency while reducing emissions. On July 9, there were 25 vessels queuing well offshore to unload in L.A., 84 fewer than the record 109 stacked up within sight of the ports on Jan. 9.
This type of radical change is taking place throughout the supply chain, as companies look for new ports to use, shift to air freight, and expand fleets. Executives at craft retailer Joann and apparel chain Abercrombie & Fitch both spoke on recent earnings calls about expanding ocean freight carrier relationships to improve flexibility. The goal, said Abercrombie’s CFO, “is to have optionality and flexibility and hopefully that will result in lower rates.” Smart, and likely overdue.
Embrace technology: Seattle-based Flexe – a digital supply chain company you may not know – has a valuation of more than $1 billion after raising $119 million in funding. Flexe does something complex with technology that’s simple in concept: It locates short-term warehouse space for online retailers so they can avoid the expense of leasing their own real estate, GeekWire explained. Think of Flexe as a travel agent for stuff. Digital disruption in the supply chain is getting a major push from the pandemic as companies engage in frantic efforts to circumvent logjams and move goods as efficiently as possible: warehouse robotics, delivery drones, and self-driving trucks are rolling out everywhere. West Coast dock workers and ports are engaged in a contentious contract negotiation over the question of automation. The ports want software-assisted cranes and autonomous vehicles; dock workers fear for their jobs. This conflict has been ongoing for years. “We’ve been living for decades with a supply chain that was just waiting for a black swan event to show its weaknesses and the cracks in the overall process,” Stephanie Loomis of freight forwarder CargoTrans told Bloomberg.
COVID is that once-in-a-lifetime event that will change the supply chain permanently.
Read the complete Issue 15 of ChainMail here.
Enjoying this story? Subscribe to ChainMail, MxD’s newsletter on breaking supply chain news, trends, and updates. | <urn:uuid:2a7f7ea6-7116-445d-9dd0-0b12680ce03b> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.mxdusa.org/2022/07/26/chainmail-the-3-biggest-takeaways-from-the-supply-chain-crisis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570871.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808183040-20220808213040-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.958945 | 1,101 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Google's project program for developing a line of hands-free, head-mounted intelligent devices that can be worn by users as "wearable computing" eyewear. The first product release from Project Glass, Google Glass, was available for beta testers (U.S. residents only) to purchase in 2013, for $1,500 plus tax.
Interactive Glass Features
Google Glasses look like a pair of eyeglasses, but the lens of the glasses are an interactive, smartphone-like display, with natural language voice command support as well as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity. Google Glass is powered by the Android mobile operating system and compatibility with both Android-powered mobile devices and Apple iOS-powered devices is expected.
Early Versions and Beta Testing
Early versions of Google Glass were titanium-framed glasses (that fit with your prescription or no prescription at all) to show communications from your smartphone or Google accounts in the display. Google Glass was designed to take phone calls, send texts and also take photos and video and deliver search results. The wearable computing device is also keyed to voice commands, for example to take a picture you simply say "take a picture" to capture what is in your view.
App developers, working with Google, are currently developing software that will be incorporated into the consumer version of Google Glass in 2014. Google also offers the "The Glass Explorer Program" for people who want to get involved early and help shape the future of Glass. The program is open to U.S. residents, over 18 years old, and the beta tester must purchase the eyewear.
Google Glass Criticism
Early reports from testers suggest users can expect "curious stares" from those around them and several incidents of fights and verbal disagreements have been reported between the Glass wearer and people around them who did not wish to be recorded in a public place. One person in particular, Sarah Slocum, alleged she was harassed and attacked for wearing Glass in a Lower Haight bar (Source: SF Gate). Since then, a number of bars and restaurants in San Francisco and other cities have implemented a "no Glass" policy to prevent customers from recording other patrons.
As the Glass devices receive some serious criticism, Google's response was to offer this list of 10 Google Glass Myths to try to counter the concerns:
Myth 2: Glass is always on and recording everything: Just like your cell phone, the Glass screen is off by default. Video recording on Glass is set to last 10 seconds. People can record for longer, but Glass isn't designed for or even capable of always-on recording (the battery won’t last longer than 45 minutes before it needs to be charged). So next time you’re tempted to ask an Explorer if he’s recording you, ask yourself if you’d be doing the same with your phone. Chances are your answers will be the same.
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This second Study Guide describes the basics of Java, providing an overview of operators, modifiers and control Structures. Read More »The 7 Layers of the OSI Model
The Open System Interconnection (OSI) model defines a networking framework to implement protocols in seven layers. Use this handy guide to compare... Read More » | <urn:uuid:be8d4980-3bde-417a-b669-e8b40d66762f> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/G/google_glass.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988720153.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183840-00323-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931918 | 810 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Obesity 'may pose osteoporosis risk'
- 16 July 2013
- From the section Health
Obesity may be a risk factor for the frail bone disease osteoporosis, a study suggests.
US researchers have discovered that some people who are overweight have hidden fat inside their bones that could make them weak and prone to fractures.
The Harvard Medical School team in Boston did body scans on 106 obese but healthy men and women.
The findings are published in the journal Radiology.
The scans reveal some people carry fat in hidden places like the liver, muscles and bone marrow as well as their belly, hips or thighs.
Dr Miriam Bredella, who carried out the work, says apple-shaped people who carry weight around their waist may be at greatest risk.
The bone marrow is where the cells responsible for new bone formation - osteoblast cells - live.
Dr Bredella reasons that if more of the marrow is taken over by fat cells then this will weaken the bones.
She said: "If you have a spine that's filled with fat, it's not going to be as strong.
"Obesity was once thought to be protective against bone loss. We have found that this is not true."
Given that none of us can choose where we put on weight, the only answer is to stay slim, say the researchers.
Almost three million people in the UK are estimated to have osteoporosis. The condition is normally associated with being slight of frame and frail.
Bone marrow fat has been found in higher-than-normal levels in people who have osteoporosis. | <urn:uuid:439be464-c649-402c-ae4a-69065e382655> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.bbc.com/news/health-23313047 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280718.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00401-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961977 | 335 | 3.03125 | 3 |
According to Marilyn Yalom’s A History of the Breast, the female breast has been perceived differently by men and women depending on the era and the country. In the beginning, the breast was a sacred thing because its only function in society ensured that it contained milk to nourish society’s babies. It was a fundamental necessity that entrusted the survival of a city’s people. Prehistoric symbols of full-breasted women were fashioned out of clay, rock, and even bone to emphasize the breast’s sacred existence. Since women were in possession of the breast, they were regarded as priceless figures and crucial to the propagation of mankind. Where has that respect for women and her breasts gone to?
Yalom outlines a historical regard for the female breast that provides the reader with an idea of how each society viewed the breast and therefore, the value of its possessor. In fifth century B.C. Athenian women’s bodies were covered and shielded from anyone’s view. They and their bodies were controlled and confined to the interior of their homes, their breasts covered by their dress. Their babies were breast-fed by wet nurses, and theirs were the only breasts exposed. The New Testament regards the female flesh as a threat to mankind, as it influenced the male gaze away from purity and God, and enticed them to act sinfully. In the French Renaissance, the breast became an eroticized vessel of abundance, and many women were painted with bare and voluptuous breasts. The 17th-century Netherlands domesticated the breast, an object of succor that belonged to her man and her children only.
During the Enlightenment period, the breast became the object of politics, male philosophers deciding whether a woman should breast feed her children or not. This is an issue that is controversial among women even today. In the feminist movement of the 70s, the breast was politicized in a different manner, women removing their bras and symbolically “burning” them to cast off the constraints society placed upon their roles in society. Since the early 1900’s to the present, the breast has remained a commercialized commodity, a marketable tool used to lure women and men into making major purchases — a symbol of womanhood that defines how women perceive their bodies and their own value in society. Today, women go under the knife to augment their breasts, attempting to match the ideal image of perfection inscribed upon her body and worth. Big breasts is equal to male gaze and approval is equal to success in all aspects of life.
No matter how the breast has been perceived, one thing remains true for every generation, every era, every culture: the breast has never quite belonged to the woman on whose body it was formed. It has always belonged to the men who owned them, married them, and ruled them. In all patriarchal societies, the female breast has been a fetishized symbol of female beauty and value—and women have had to keep up with the ideologies and trends and fashions and rules that governed their bodies. The only time that men and society begin to ignore the breast is when it becomes diseased, and unfortunately, it is the only time the breast actually belongs to the woman in possession of it.
According to Yalom, “It is the tragic reality of breast cancer that is bringing women into full possession of their breasts” (pg 276). Some of them are being abandoned by men and lovers who don’t find the cancerous breast, or the one-breasted woman alluring anymore. Whatever the case, the tumorous breast becomes the complete responsibility of the woman’s, and she learns to love it or hate it, revere it or repress it, eroticize it or domesticate it. A woman’s breast is finally her own and she can do with it as is her will.
The inspirational part of all this is that breast cancer brings women together. For the first time, women become allies—not in competition over status, beauty, and the men that love them—but as friends, companions, advocates, and support systems. Breast cancer brings all kinds of women together in fundraising walks and runs, on blog discussions, in organizations headed by women, and on Facebook (the color of bra phenomenon that made the news a few years back), all to create awareness and raise money to find the problem for the number one killer of women. Women come together to combat an illness that indiscriminately attacks them, garnering a community of strong women the likes of the one-breasted Amazons who fought like champions against pervasive enemies that threatened their their livelihood, their bodies, and their freedom.
It’s unfortunate that it takes cancer to create such an alliance, to demonstrate the innate strength and power of women, but more than anything, it shows how much power we have as women when we get together for a common cause. If only we did this for every societal threat that targets its venom on women and their value in our cultures. We would be infallible—unconquerable—and our bodies and all its parts would belong solely to us. | <urn:uuid:9c0ebbda-4d48-458f-9297-646ad892d72b> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.hercircleezine.com/2011/07/27/reclaiming-the-female-breast/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560282935.68/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095122-00236-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98097 | 1,049 | 3.734375 | 4 |
morning of April 15, 1926, a young aviator named Charles A.
Lindbergh stowed a bag of mail in his little DH-4 biplane
and took off from Chicago for St. Louis. Later that day, he
and two other pilots flew three plane loads of mail from St.
Louis to Chicago.
At the time,
Lindbergh was chief pilot of Robertson Aircraft Corporation
of Missouri, which was the second aviation company to hold a
U.S. airmail contract. It was one of scores of companies
that eventually consolidated to form the modern-day American
consolidation began in 1929, when The Aviation Corporation
was formed to acquire young aviation companies, including
Robertson. In 1930, The Aviation Corporation's airline
subsidiaries were incorporated into American Airways, Inc.
In 1934, American Airways became American Airlines, Inc.
On May 13,
1934, Cyrus Rowlett Smith became president of American.
Except for a period during World War II, "Mr. C.R."
continued as chief executive officer until 1968, when he was
named U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
On June 25,
1936, American was the first airline to fly the Douglas DC-3
in commercial service. By the end of the decade, American
was the nation's number one domestic air carrier in terms of
revenue passenger miles. On Feb. 16, 1937, American carried
its one-millionth passenger.
Airlines began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on
June 10, 1939.
American entered the airline catering business with a
subsidiary called Sky Chefs, providing food service to its
passengers as well as to other airlines.
American introduced the first domestic scheduled U.S.
freight service with the DC-3. As the business grew, Douglas
DC-4, DC-6A and DC-7 freighters were put into service in the
1940s and 1950s.
War II, half of American's fleet was turned over to the
military airline, Air Transport Command, along with the
crews who operated all over the world. The remaining fleet
and personnel handled a vast increase in demand for air
travel within the United States.
From 1945 to
1950, American operated American Overseas Airlines (AOA), a
trans-Atlantic division, which served a number of European
countries. This was American's first European service. AOA
was formed as a result of a merger between the international
division of American and a company called American Export
Airlines. AOA merged with Pan American World Airways in
American established its Tulsa Maintenance & Engineering
Base. The end of World War II brought a series of new
aircraft to fill the expanded need for air transportation.
In 1947, American's first Douglas DC-6 entered service
followed by the Convair 240 in 1948. By 1949 American had
become the only airline in the United States with a
completely post-war fleet of pressurized passenger
American introduced the Family Fare Plan to enable families
to travel together at reduced rates. It also introduced
scheduled coach service, an economical and comfortable
alternative to first class travel.
American introduced the Magnetronic Reservisor to keep track
of available seats on flights. In 1953, American pioneered
nonstop transcontinental service in both directions across
the United States with the Douglas DC-7.
In 1957, the
world's first special facility for flight attendant
training, the American Airlines Stewardess College, was
built in Dallas/Fort Worth.
On Jan. 25,
1959, American became the first airline to offer
coast-to-coast jet service with the Boeing 707. Also in Jan.
1959, American introduced the Lockheed Electra, the first
U.S. designed turboprop airplane. American continued into
the jet age with the introduction of the turbofan engine in
1961, another industry first for American, and with the
Convair 990 in 1962, also powered by fan-jets.
At the end
of 1959 and into the early 1960s, American, teaming up with
IBM, introduced and implemented SABRE (Semi-Automated
Business Research Environment), the largest electronic data
processing system for business use. By 1964, the SABRE
network extended from coast to coast and from Canada to
Mexico. It became the largest real-time data processing
system, second only to the U.S. government's SAGE system.
added other jets throughout the 1960s and 70s, including the
Boeing 727 (1964) and the Boeing 747 (1966), as the older
aircraft were retired. American's last piston airplane
flight was operated with a DC-6 in Dec. 1966. In 1968,
American was the first to order the McDonnell Douglas DC-10,
which made its first scheduled flight in Aug. 1971.
gained its first Caribbean routes through a merger with
Trans Caribbean Airways in 1970. It expanded those routes
throughout the early 70s, and acquired other Caribbean
routes in 1975 from Pan American World Airways Inc.
1974, Albert V. Casey was elected president and chief
executive officer; in April of that year he also assumed the
position of chairman of the board.
1974, American introduced One-Stop-Automated Check-in.
American's first Boeing 747 freighter, capable of carrying
221,000 pounds of cargo, went into service in November. In
1975, American began marketing SABRE to travel agencies in
On April 24,
1977, American introduced the most popular fare in its
history, the Super Saver. Initially offering discount fares
from New York and California, Super Saver was expanded to
all of American's routes in March 1978 and later to Mexico
deregulation took place in 1978 and in January 1979,
American launched a major route expansion, inaugurating
service to new routes and new destinations across the U.S.
and the Caribbean.
moved its headquarters from New York City to Dallas/Fort
Worth, Texas in 1979. The new headquarters complex also
included The Learning Centre, a training facility; the
Flight Academy, the pilot training facility, and the
Southern Reservations Office.
Robert L. Crandall was elected president and chief operating
costs soaring, American accelerated the retirement of the
Boeing 707 fleet in 1980. By August 1981, American had
retired all its Boeing 707s aircraft, including their
American introduced the AADVANTAGE travel awards program, a
revolutionary marketing program to reward frequent fliers.
Also that year it unveiled "AAirpass," a concept that
guaranteed fixed personal and business air travel costs with
five-year to lifetime range of options.
On June 11,
1981, American established its Dallas/Fort Worth hub. Later
American added new cities and new routes to strengthen its
brought American its first 767, its 500 millionth passenger
and its Chicago hub.
1982, it began interchange service with Alaska Airlines,
linking Anchorage and Fairbanks with Houston and DFW via
Seattle with 727s. American also returned to Europe with
service between London's Gatwick Airport and DFW in May
On May 19,
1982, stockholders approved a plan of reorganization and a
new holding company was formed, AMR Corporation, which
became the parent company of American Airlines, Inc.
American added the McDonnell Douglas MD-80 (Super 80) and
announced an agreement with Pan American World Airways to
exchange Boeing 747s for Pan Am's McDonnell Douglas DC-10s.
On Dec. 12,
1983, AMR Services was formed as a subsidiary to provide
aviation services to other airlines.
American introduced the American Eagle system, a network of
regional airlines offering high-level service from small
communities to large cities through connections to and from
In the fall
of 1984, American retired its 747 cargo freighter fleet and
focused on smaller shipments carried in the bellies of its
In 1985, Al
Casey retired and Robert L. Crandall became chairman and
chief executive officer of AMR Corporation and American
Super Saver fares were introduced in 1985, offering American
passengers up to 70 percent discounts and competition for
the low-service, cut-rate carriers which had sprung up in
the wake of deregulation. American also unveiled its Senior
SAAVers Club, which offered discounts to senior citizens.
American introduced second-day door-to-door freight delivery
using passenger aircraft. In 1986 and 1987, the delivery
network expanded and evolved into same-day service by 1988.
more than 10,000 travel agency offices were using SABRE for
opened its Nashville hub in April 1986 and its San Juan hub
in November. Also in 1986, American employees topped 50,000
for the first time and American sold its Sky Chefs
subsidiary and completed the acquisition of Air California
American had completed an underground facility -- secured
against fire, earthquakes and any other disasters -- in
Tulsa, Okla. to house the SABRE computer equipment and
software that formed the world's largest private real-time
computer network and travel information data base. Also in
1987, SABRE became available via the personal computer.
American acquired the Airbus A300-600ER to serve its
Caribbean markets from locations on the mainland and in
1989, American put its first Boeing 757 into service. 1988
also saw the opening of American's reservations office in
1989, American opened its seventh hub in Miami on Sept. 13.
American also began construction on its second major
maintenance base at Alliance Airport in Fort Worth. Ground
was also broken in Fort Worth for a 750,000-square-foot
expansion of AMR's corporate headquarters complex.
broken again in 1990 for the expansion of American's
facilities at DFW International Airport, an expansion of the
pilot-training facilities at American's Flight Academy in
the headquarters' complex, and a new reservations center in
Tucson. Also, a new state-of-the-art System Operations
Control (SOC) Centre opened in 1990.
1990, American's premiere international service,
International Flagship Service, was introduced. A San Juan
reservations centre opened and American expanded its Latin
American service with routes acquired from Eastern Airlines,
with Miami as the focal point of the expansion.
long-time president, C.R. Smith, died at the age of 90 in
American flew its billionth passenger, expanded its European
routes, opened its western reservations office in Tucson,
and took delivery of its first McDonnell Douglas MD-11 and
Fokker 100 aircraft.
16, 1992, American opened the first state-of-the-art airline
maintenance facility to be built in the United States in
more than 20 years - the Alliance Maintenance and
Engineering Base at Fort Worth's Alliance Airport.
American introduced Value Pricing. The plan was designed to
make fares simple, sensible and fair. It offered customers
substantially greater travel flexibility, and was a major
revision to American's fare structure. Intense price
competition made the Value Plan unfeasible, however, and
American was forced to abandon it.
Consulting Group, a new subsidiary, was formed in 1992 to
take advantage of a growing demand for consulting services
in airline-related businesses. This expanded into the AMR
Training and Consulting Group in July 1993.
1992, American introduced American Flagship Service, a
premium three-class transcontinental service for domestic
travellers, and also continued its expansion in the European
market with flights to Berlin and Paris.
In 1993, AMR
Corporation formed the SABRE Technology Group. It included
AMR Information Services (AMRIS), SABRE Travel Information
Network (STIN), SABRE Computer Services (SCS), SABRE
Development Services (SDS), and AMR Project Consulting and
Risk Assessment Units.
On July 3,
1993, the American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum opened at its
headquarters complex in Fort Worth.
1994, American signed a comprehensive service agreement with
Canadian Airlines International to provide access to
state-of-the-art airline administrative services and
computer technology. Canadian Airlines successfully
converted to AMR computer systems in November 1994.
In May 1994,
American added additional routes to London to become the
airline with more service to Britain than any other U.S.
airline. Also in 1994, American launched its first
non-smoking transatlantic flight.
of 1994, American launched First Call, allowing travel
planners to speak with a group specialist to evaluate group
travel needs, negotiate fares, book space and generate
agreements in minutes.
Donald J. Carty became president of the AMR Airline Group
and of American Airlines. Also in 1995, American announced
its World Wide Web site.
In 1996, AMR
announced the SABRE Group's filing for Initial Public
Offering (IPO), the first step in making SABRE its own
1996, American officially launched AAccess ticketless travel
and AAccess boarding. Also in 1996, American added in-flight
laptop computer capabilities to its aircraft, and announced
that it would equip certain aircraft with defibrillators.
In 1997, all
American Airlines flights became non-smoking. Also, American
introduced "stickerless" upgrades and became the first
airline to expand ticketless travel to all transatlantic
flights. Also in 1997, American introduced the College
On May 20,
1998, Donald J. Carty became chairman, president and chief
executive officer of AMR Corporation and American Airlines,
Inc. upon the retirement of Robert Crandall.
American announced the addition of defibrillators to all of
its aircraft, and said American Eagle would acquire small
regional jets. Plans for a new Dallas reservations center
also were announced.
in 1998, American announced its acquisition of Reno Air and
American Eagle's acquisition of Business Express. American
Eagle completed its acquisition of Business Express in March
of 1999, and Reno Air was fully integrated on August 31,
On Sept. 21,
1998, American and four other airlines announced a new
customer-driven global alliance - oneworldTM
- launching a multi-million dollar program designed to raise
the standard of global air travel. The new alliance took off
on Feb. 1, 1999.
American dedicated the new Terminal B facilities at DFW and
announced plans to build a new terminal at New York's JFK
Airport, breaking ground in New York in November.
American also introduced the Boeing 777 and the 737-800 and
completed the installation of defibrillators on all its
aircraft. Also, American became the first airline to offer
DVD in-flight video players on scheduled flights.
1999, American began an expansion of its West Coast service,
and American Eagle opened a new terminal in Los Angeles and
took delivery of its first 37-seat Embraer ERJ-135.
2000, American announced More Room Throughout Coach,
removing an average of two rows on every aircraft to add
legroom throughout the entire coach cabin. American later
decided to expand legroom in business class.
2000, American received the CIO Magazine's 2000 Web Business
50/50 Award for its AA.com web site.
2000, AMR completed the spin-off of SABRE into its own
American announced plans to renovate Terminal B at Boston's
Logan Airport and also announced the addition of fully flat
Flagship Suite seating for its Boeing 777. Also, American
named Alliance as the "maintenance home" for its 777 fleet.
2001, American's first aircraft featuring bigger overhead
storage bins took to the skies. Also, American announced
that it had agreed to purchase substantially all the assets
of Trans World Airlines, Inc.
2001, American Airlines completed acquisition of TWA's
assets. At about the same time, American opened a new
Admirals Club and Lounge facilities at Dallas/Fort Worth
Airport in memory of former Special Services employee Walter
American Eagle accepted delivery of 15 44-seat regional jets
(ERJ-140) manufactured by Embraer of Brazil. American also
announced plans to accelerate retirement of 36 aircraft --
19 DC-9s, 12 Boeing 727s, 4 MD-11s and one Fokker 100.
2001, American Airlines was recognized by the State of
California EPA's 2001 Governor's Environmental and Economic
Leadership Awards Program. The award complemented the
previous Breath of Life Award, the Clean Cities Award at El
Paso and the National Clean Cities Award received by
American Airlines earlier this year.
2001, American announced that it will accelerate
construction of its new $1.3 billion terminal at New York's
JFK Airport, advancing the completion date nine months to
On April 2,
2002, Gerard J. Arpey was elected President and Chief
Operating Officer of American Airlines.
2002, American began daily nonstop Boeing 777 service
between New York JFK and Tokyo, giving AA four U.S. gateways
On April 30,
2002, American operated its final Boeing 727 passenger
flight, marking the retirement of an airline industry
workhorse by its largest operator. AA began flying the 727
in 1964 and was among the first to operate the airplane. At
its peak, AA operated 182 Boeing 727s.
In May 2002,
American was named to DiversityInc.comís annual list of Top
50 Companies for Diversity, coming in 15th. AA was the only
airline to make the list.
On Aug. 1,
2002, American officially dedicated its $300 million
improvement project at Los Angeles International Airportís
Terminal 4, culminating four years of work on what was the
largest project of its type ever undertaken by a single
carrier at LAX.
In a move to
make popular Web fares more widely available to consumers
while reducing its total distribution costs, American on
Sept. 25, 2002, announced its innovative EveryFare program.
With EveryFare, AA provides traditional travel agents in the
U.S. and Canada the option to access and sell its very low
Web fares, previously offered only via Americanís own Web
site, AA.com, and select low-cost distribution channels. In
exchange, travel agents provide AA with long-term
distribution cost savings through a creative cost-sharing
On April 24,
2003, Edward A. Brennan was named Executive Chairman of AMR
Corporation and Gerard J. Arpey became Chief Executive
Officer and President of AMR. | <urn:uuid:b4b62349-a027-4e03-bb90-5ea859c52beb> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%20history/coming%20of%20age/usairlines/American%20Airlines.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285001.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00309-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939821 | 4,018 | 3.28125 | 3 |
Ever received an email from eBay asking you to verify your account? Or from Gmail warning you to login otherwise your account will be suspended? How many times have you gotten a supposed Paypal email asking reactivation because your account has been hacked?
If you dismissed the email and simply deleted it, good for you. But if you opened it, clicked and accessed the link, and tried to login to the website, congratulations, you have just become a victim of an unfortunate phishing attempt!
Phishing (pronounced “fishing” as in “fishing for information”) is a type of deception designed to steal one’s personal data such as credit card numbers, passwords, account login information, etc.
The phishing email usually looks like an official letter from a trusted source, such as a bank, credit card company, payment processor, or online merchant. Phishing emails normally direct recipients to a fraudulent website where they are asked to provide personal information. This information is then used for identity theft.
6 Items to Check if an Email is a Phishing Email
Here are six (6) things to look for if you think an e-mail message is a phishing scam.
1. Suspicious email subject
Most phishing emails alert you that something is wrong with your account, and email subject headings are used to entice you to open the mail and follow instructions outlined in the email. Most phishing emails usually use any of the following subject headings.
- Account Alert
- Account Incident
- Account Issue
- Account Renew
- Account Review
- Account Suspended
- Avoid your account or credit card suspension
- Check your account
- Confirm that you are the real owner of this account
- Confirm your bank account
- IMPORTANT: Your account has now been suspended and may be terminated
- Notification of account update
- Notification of Unclaimed Parcel
- Password Change Required
- Protect your bank account
- Restore your account access
- Second (third) notification
- Steps to remove limitation
- The Security of your account
- Unauthorized access report
- Unauthorized account access
- Update your xxxx account
- Verify your xxxxx account
- Warning – Your email account will be closed
- Your account might be compromised
- You have successfully updated your password
- Your email requires verification
- Your profile has been updated
2. Sense of urgency in the letter
Phishing emails usually use the line, “If you don’t respond within 24 hours, your account will be closed.”
These types of messages convey a sense of urgency forcing you to act immediately without thinking. They want you to quickly click and visit the link and access your account in the fake site. Don’t fall for this trap.
3. Unofficial email address
Some senders of phishing mails merely use a generic email address from, say, Gmail or Yahoo. That’s why you might receive a supposed PayPal warning which came from [email protected] or an email about your eBay account sent by [email protected].
Instinct should tell you that since the email did not come from the official email address of the company, it might not be a genuine email. Genuine Paypal’s emails, for instance, should come from their official email address [email protected], and eBay’s email should come from [email protected] or any other official email addresses they are using.
4. Masked URLs
Some phishing scammers, however, spend some time and effort to change the email information to make it look like it was sent from the official email address of the company. This practice is called “masking” — that is, the link looks like a trusted site’s official link but the actual URL or landing page has been masked and is different. In short, the link you visually see does not take you to the actual website address but to somewhere different, usually to a fake website.
Two examples of this “masked URL” technique is shown below. You will see that the links appear to direct you to the websites of Paypal and eBay. However, what you see is not always right!
- www.paypal.com (Looks like paypal.com but embedded URL is pavpal.com)
- www.ebay.com (Looks like ebay.com but embedded URL is ebav.com)
If you hover or rest your mouse pointer on the links above, you’ll be surprised to see that the links actually go to a different URL! (By the way, we do NOT encourage you to click the link. These are just for illustration purposes.)
5. Unspecified recipient
Phishing messages are usually sent out in bulk and often do not specify your first or last name. Normally a phishing email’s opening line is a generic “Dear Customer” or “Dear valued customer” greeting. If you receive an email with such opening or greeting line, this should alert you that the email you’re reading could be a phishing email.
6. Spelling or grammar errors
A legitimate company would take time to proofread its email so that no spelling or grammar error appears in the email. Senders of phishing emails are usually not concerned with that.
How to protect yourself from phishing emails
Almost all legitimate companies will never ask you to provide your personal or account information. If you received an email supposedly sent by your bank, credit card, PayPal, eBay, etc., confirm with them by going to the official website and contacting them using the company’s contact information. Do not simply click on any links you see in an email.
Also never open any attachment in an email sent by people you do not know. It might contain an executable (.exe) file that will unleash a trojan, virus, or malicious software that will steal your data or hack your accounts.
You can also copy parts of the suspicious email you got and search for it in Google. You’ll most likely see if other other sites have already given warning that the email you received is a phishing email.
Stay safe and don’t be a victim of these scams! | <urn:uuid:dce31a2c-d28a-41b9-861c-46afc50184bf> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.pinoymoneytalk.com/what-is-phishing/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572212.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815205848-20220815235848-00465.warc.gz | en | 0.923105 | 1,312 | 2.171875 | 2 |
Happy Mystery Monday! It may look like silly string, but it’s actually a plant growing around our wetland. Do you know what it is?
Last week, we highlighted the nodding onion (Allium cernuum). Nodding onion is beautiful in mass plantings, offering delicate blooms bowing in the summer breeze. Nodding onion flowers range from white to pastel pink and are very attractive to hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. This native perennial is a host plant for the hairstreak butterfly and can grow in stressful environments, like full sun, dry, and sandy soils.
#adkinsarboretum #mysterymonday #mysteryplant #pollinatorplant #noddingonion
Adkins Mystery Monday is sponsored by the Spy Newspapers and Adkins Arboretum. For more information go here. | <urn:uuid:a395d065-b3c1-474b-81c7-4b8bc0f24a5d> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://chestertownspy.org/2022/07/18/adkins-mystery-monday-what-plant-is-growing-around-our-wetland/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572833.95/warc/CC-MAIN-20220817032054-20220817062054-00477.warc.gz | en | 0.892151 | 177 | 2.390625 | 2 |
Video blogger and web producer Evan Puschak aka The Nerdwriter took a fascinating look at the beautiful film Arrival and how director Denis Villeneuve used the connection between language and time to tell a cohesive yet non-linear story.
Every scene is filtered through other moments and characters and eventually other themes until it starts to feel like something solid. You start to think what is the relationship between language and time? Maybe it’s that the mind is not a thing, but a process. Language happening in time just like film is communication occurring in time. | <urn:uuid:ecc78a34-77d2-417e-a3c4-2e4cdc2b658c> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://laughingsquid.com/how-the-film-arrival-connects-the-concepts-of-language-and-time-to-tell-a-non-linear-story/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571982.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813172349-20220813202349-00076.warc.gz | en | 0.960724 | 114 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Uncategorized March 26, 2020
It’s quite easy to learn how to think good thoughts. It simply takes a little bit of practice on your part, especially if you’re not used to it in the first place. But once it becomes second nature to you, nothing will ever get in the way of your goal again.
Cuddle with your pets – There is not much in the world sweeter than a happy cat or dog. Petting and loving animals is a great way to help one stay calm. It is a great way to help raise your Tomorrow is a new day. It will make them feel great too. Pets can sense a mile a way when something is bothering their human. My cats run up to me and try to comfort me whenever I am upset, even if I’m in another room. It would stand to say then that pets know when their humans are really happy as well.
Let’s pick on the favorite topic of so many: money. First good vibes it doesn’t exist. From the quantum mechanics perspective, there’s nothing there but the illusion we’ve created in a holographic field held together by conscious thought, created so we can have an experience (true for everything we think is solid). We even demonstrate this to ourselves in the physical realm every time we use an automatic transfer. What we’re really exchanging is energy and calling it money. Our electronic age is reflecting this fact to us, and most of us don’t even see it. When you move money into or out of your account electronically, what moves? Agreed-to numbers, right?
Being away from your partner gives you time to focus on yourself and do the things you want to become a better person. Self-development is your inalienable responsibility. It goes with you anytime and anywhere. If loneliness hinders you from starting a single thing, here’s the inspiration trick. Don’t do it just for your own good. Do it for your partner to be proud of you.
The artist or producer may also ask you to change or adjust your part or go in a completely different direction. You may completely disagree! I know of one session player who actually started debating with the producer about the merits of his change. What a terrible mistake. His overbearing position was the end for him.
Bubble Bath – Every time you find yourself worrying or feeling upset about something, go take a nice, hot bubble bath immediately. It will help you cleanse more than just physically, and you will most likely feel better. The more you do it, the more you’ll feel better in the long run. If you’re not home when you start feel upset, then do it the second you get home.
Ask Coach Jeff… Question: As I understand it, Law of Attraction involves focusing your attention, then allowing the results to happen. I’m struggling with this a little, because they seem like opposites. How can I make the process work? | <urn:uuid:c721f2a5-71dd-4804-b1fb-5d6a6c4e974f> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://rosesofonegarden.com/truth-about-women-and-attraction/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573744.90/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819161440-20220819191440-00469.warc.gz | en | 0.955925 | 630 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Activity time: 5 minutes
Materials for Activity
- Chalice-lighting words, written on newsprint
- Chalice with tea light flame or other preschool chalice option
- Feelings Chart or Feelings Flashcards by Todd Parr
Preparation for Activity
- Post the chalice-lighting words on the wall near the Circle Time area.
Description of Activity
Bring the chalice into the circle, either on the floor or on a small table or stand. Say, in these words or your own:
Welcome to Circle Time! First we light our chalice.
Point out where your chalice-lighting words are displayed. Repeat your chalice-lighting words as you “light” the chalice:
We light this chalice for the warmth of love, the light of truth, and the energy of action.
Say, in these words or your own:
Now we share our names and feelings. How are each of you feeling today? We will go around the circle and each say our name and point to how we’re feeling today on the Feelings Chart [or Feelings Flashcard]. If you would rather not share today, you may say, “No, thank you.”
Once everyone who wishes to has shared, say, in these words or your own:
For all the feelings that we feel today, we know that we have our friends, our families, and our church [congregation] family to share them with.
Introduce today’s theme, in these words or your own:
Today we are going to take a walk around the outside of our church [congregational] building and see some of the things that make our “church [congregational] home” a special place. After we discover what the outside of our building looks like, we’ll read a story.
Note: You may choose to read the story outdoors.
Including All Participants
If any child has mobility problems, restrict the tour to places that are accessible to all. | <urn:uuid:449bba21-a60c-46a7-95f8-3613b91e730a> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.uua.org/re/tapestry/children/chalicechildren/session3/297811.shtml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572286.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20220816090541-20220816120541-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.921491 | 432 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Art Deco, sometimes referred to as Deco is a movement in the decorative arts and architecture that originated in the 1920s and developed into a major style in western Europe and the United States during the 1930s.
It combined modern styles with fine craftsmanship and rich materials. During its heyday, it represented luxury, glamour, exuberance, and faith in social and technological progress.
Art Deco is most commonly associated with a sleek aesthetic, symmetrical geometric shapes and bold bright colors like yellow, purple, ruby and turquoise.
Skyscrapers, furniture, and everyday objects were embellished with angular patterns like zigzags, sunburst and chevrons.
Automobiles, trains, ocean liners and other means of transport began to take on a more futuristic, aerodynamic look. Steel, glass and lacquered wood were used to achieve that sleek, modern look.
Art Deco owed something to several of the major art styles of the early 20th century. These formative influences include the geometric forms of Cubism, the machine-style forms of Constructivism and Futurism, and the unifying approach of Art Nouveau. Its highly intense colours may have stemmed from Parisian Fauvism. Art Deco borrowed also from Aztec and Egyptian art, as well as from Classical Antiquity. Unlike its earlier counterpart Art Nouveau, however, Art Deco had no philosophical basis – it was purely decorative.
Arts décoratifs was first used in France in 1858 in the Bulletin de la Société française de photographie. In 1868, the Le Figaro newspaper used the term objets d’art décoratifs for objects for stage scenery created for the Théâtre de l’Opéra. In 1875, furniture designers, textile, jewellers, glass-workers, and other craftsmen were officially given the status of artists by the French government. In response, the École royale gratuite de dessin (Royal Free School of Design), founded in 1766 under King Louis XVI to train artists and artisans in crafts relating to the fine arts, was renamed the École nationale des arts décoratifs (National School of Decorative Arts).
The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées (1910–1913), by Auguste Perret, was the first landmark Art Deco building completed in Paris. Previously, reinforced concrete had been used only for industrial and apartment buildings, Perret had built the first modern reinforced-concrete apartment building in Paris on rue Benjamin Franklin in 1903–04.
At the 1925 Exposition, architect Le Corbusier wrote a series of articles about the exhibition for his magazine L’Esprit Nouveau, under the title “1925 EXPO. ARTS. DÉCO.”, which were combined into a book, L’art décoratif d’aujourd’hui (Decorative Art Today). The book was a spirited attack on the excesses of the colourful, lavish objects at the Exposition, and on the idea that practical objects such as furniture should not have any decoration at all; his conclusion was that “Modern decoration has no decoration”.
The Art Deco style, adopted by architects and designers around the world, spanned the “Roaring Twenties”, the Great Depression of the early 1930s, and the years leading up to the Second World War. It suffered a decline in popularity during the late 30s and early 40s, when it began to be seen as too gaudy and ostentatious for wartime austerity, after which it quickly fell out of fashion.
Although the style went out of fashion in most places during World War II, beginning in the late 1960s there was a renewed interest in Art Deco design. Into the 21st century Art Deco continued to be a source of inspiration in such areas as decorative art, fashion, and jewelry design.
The actual term “art déco” did not appear in print until 1966, in the title of the first modern exhibition on the subject, held by the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris, Les Années 25 : Art déco, Bauhaus, Stijl, Esprit nouveau, which covered the variety of major styles in the 1920s and 1930s. The term was then used in a 1966 newspaper article by Hillary Gelson in The Times (London, 12 November), describing the different styles at the exhibit.
Some of the most outstanding examples of Art Deco design can be found in New York City. These include the stunning Chrysler Building, designed by architect William Van Alen, with its polished stainless-steel spire that became an emblem of modernity.
The Empire State Building, designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon is another emblem of the Art Deco era, built in 1931, with bold, angular shapes and a streamlined simplicity that filled the city of New York with hope and optimism for the post-war future.
Art Deco was the design choice for movie theaters of the era, such as Grauman’s Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles and Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Art Deco was also the guiding principle for stylish transportation, such as Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic automobiles, trains like Henry Dreyfuss’ 20th Century Limited and luxury liners like the Queen Mary. | <urn:uuid:c456cb5f-ec24-44cc-b05e-c45c65eaf0d6> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-art-deco/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570793.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808092125-20220808122125-00677.warc.gz | en | 0.953963 | 1,149 | 3.5 | 4 |
From freeze to thaw – end of cold spell in sight
After two weeks of freezing temperatures, heavy snow and ice, an end is finally in sight to the cold weather that has had a firm grip on the UK.
From this weekend onwards, there is going to be a huge change in the weather pattern, with high pressure being eroded by vigorous areas of low pressure sweeping in off the Atlantic – bringing milder, wetter and windier weather for all.
The return to stormy weather is being fuelled by a powerful jet stream, racing across the Atlantic, high up in the atmosphere at more than 200mph.
This train of relative warmth and moisture will push back the cold air to central and eastern parts of Europe, allowing temperature to rise across the UK, with a thaw setting in this weekend.
One last spell of significant snow
As often happens when a cold spell comes to an end, there will be one last spell of significant snow as the milder, moister air moves in from the west and collides with the cold air that has been with us for the past fortnight.
This is expected to happen on Friday as strong winds and heavy rain move in from the west, readily giving a spell of heavy, wet snow – especially from the Midlands northwards.
At low levels, there could temporarily be another 2-10cm, with 15cm or more across the higher hills and mountains, drifting around given the strong wind.
In southern and western areas, the snow is expected to quickly turn to rain as less cold air arrives, but some northern and eastern areas could have 6-9 hours of snow before this happens.
Then the thaw begins
Saturday will see a window of quieter weather with a temporary ridge of high pressure. Even though the weather computer models suggest that there could be some sunshine, I think they are being optimistic.
With the ground still covered in ice and snow, warmer air moving over it will cool and condense, leading to low cloud, mist and some fog, with sunshine not guaranteed.
Saturday night will see another area of heavy rain and strong winds sweep in from the west, with each subsequent push of milder air increasing the rate at which lying snow thaws.
In fact, by Tuesday, temperatures across a large swathe of the UK could reach 8-13C, thanks to a south westerly wind bringing air all the way from the Azores.
Localised flood risk
During the next five days, not only will there be heavy rain falling, but also thawing snow. This will mean that two sources of water will be flowing into the rivers, potentially causing them to rise rapidly and give a flood risk.
The Environment Agency is already warning of a low risk of flooding across south west England on Friday due to the reasons I’ve outlined above. | <urn:uuid:c0966d35-5d58-493d-8dd0-699c61ce7caf> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.channel4.com/news/by/liam-dutton/blogs/freeze-thaw-cold-spell-sight | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280242.65/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00079-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949379 | 579 | 2.0625 | 2 |
LOTS TO SPOT FLASHCARDS: ANIMALS!
Lots to Spot Flashcards: Animals! is a captivating set of double-sided flashcards, designed to engage young children as they learn numbers, colours and simple words of both familiar and unusual animals. The bold illustrations encourage learning through playing games and having fun. The durable cards have curved corners and are easy for small hands to hold, making them perfect for use at home and while travelling.
Size: Cards 110 x 145 mm, Box 111.5 x 146.8 x 34.5 mm | <urn:uuid:03dea5d0-46e6-4641-86b6-74edb017f4fd> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://cottonkids.ie/products/lots-to-spot-flashcards-animals | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572163.61/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815085006-20220815115006-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.92348 | 126 | 2.84375 | 3 |
Gurgaon (Haryana), July 21 (ANI
-Newsvoir): Students of the G D Goenka University (GDGU) can soon expect to build apps and acquire skills needed to get entry-level jobs as Android developers, thanks to the university deciding to link up with Google to provide world-class Android Developer education.
This partnership is a part of Google's ambitious Android Skilling Programme in India.
Expressing happiness over the course providing opportunities to students to appear in Google's Associate Android Developer Certification Exam, university Vice Chancellor Professor (Dr.) Deependra Kumar Jha, said: "Mobile technology is the future, and this agreement will give our students the skills that they need to go out and compete with the world's best."
As part of this initiative, Google will train the University's Faculty first. It will also share reference materials and provide guidelines for lab exercises (including developer tools).
The main aim of Google's Android Skilling Program is to train 2 million developers in India. As per data shared by Google VP, Mr. Caesar Sengupta, only 4% of the top 1,000 Android apps on Play Store come from India, but the country is on its way to becoming one of the largest developer hubs in the world by 2018. Google
believes that with this programme India will become the app hub of the world. (ANI | <urn:uuid:4a4276b2-7c12-4386-b5e7-a5fac40c30d0> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.aninews.in/newsdetail-Nw/MjcyOTg2/world-class-android-developer-education-for-goenka-university-students-courtesy-google.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280128.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00385-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9139 | 282 | 1.671875 | 2 |
"I'm a junior in high school and am thinking about all the colleges that I intend on applying to for next year. However, I'm confused as to which major I should choose. I've asked many people including my high school counselor if it's better to apply to a school with a major or go undecided, but nobody seems to have a straight answer for me. Is it true that applying undecided gives you a better chance when it comes to getting into your preferred college?"
Sarah, 17, Springfield, OH
Applying undecided does not give you a better chance when it comes to getting into your top-choice school. You don't have to indicate a major on your application, but by doing so you give the admissions office more insight into what you want to get out of your college experience. Some schools may be specifically looking for students who want to study particular subject areas, and in those instances it can actually increase your chances of being admitted if you indicate a major that is in high demand at that school. Now, that doesn't meant you should start checking off majors just because you feel pressure to pick something; the majors you choose should be serious indicators of the subject areas you might like to study in college.
If you are going to select a major or two, make sure that there is some evidence of this interest elsewhere in your application. For example, if you check off journalism, an admissions officer will think, "Okay, this student is interested in our journalism program, so what has she been doing to explore that subject area?" That means you need to show through the classes you take, the activities in which you participate, your short answers or essay, and the books or newspapers that you read that journalism is important to you.
If an applicant indicates marine biology as a potential major but then doesn't have any evidence of interest in science or activities that relate to marine biology, then an admissions officer might think that major is coming out of left field. It's always important to back up the statements you make in your application with evidence of your interest. And if you honestly have no clue what you'd like to study, then you should indicate that you're undecided. Remember, you want the admissions office to get an accurate picture of who you are, and you'll have plenty of time to figure out your major once you get to campus. | <urn:uuid:635d8f2e-80b2-4ff8-ad9e-bbe18b27750f> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.seventeen.com/life/school/advice/a27670/law-school-cqa-092807/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281162.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00539-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976681 | 475 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Over the past 30 years, the top 10% have had their taxes reduced and their income increased while the middle class has lost ground:
Average Hourly Earnings in 2008 Dollars:
1972 = $20.06
2008 = $18.52
A 7.6% decrease.
The Gap Between the Richest and the Poorest has grown.
Gap Between the Share of Capital Income earned by the top 1% and the bottom 80%:
1980 = 10%
2003 = 56%
A 5.6 times increase.
The Probably of Moving Up from the Bottom 40% to the Top 40%:
1945 = 12%
1958 =Â 6%
1990 =Â 3%
2000 =Â 2%
Income Increase/DÂecreases from 1990 to 2005:
CEO = 290.2%
S&P 500 = 141.4%
Coporate Profits = 106.7%
Production Workers = 4.3%
Minimum Wage = -9.3%
Reagan’s Tax Cuts Increased the Wealth in the Top 1% by 19%
Bush’s Tax Cuts Increased the Wealth in the Top 1% by 10%
Effective Tax Rates:
1960 = 72%
2004 = 38%
1960 = 18%
2004 = 18%
The Top 50% have 97.5% of the wealth.
The Top 10% have 70.5% of the wealth.
The Top 1% have 33.8% of the wealth.
The Top 1% own 90.3% of the stock and bonds.
At this stage, adjusting the income tax (either by changing marginal tax rates and/or by closing loophole, denying deductions, etc) to redistribute wealth from high earners to low wage households would be like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Over the past thirty years US households have seen not only a shocking redistribution of income toward top earners, but also a consequent, massive and damaging inequality in wealth (as opposed to income).
It is time to consider a wealth tax: a sizable one off levy on the wealth of every household, corporation, trust or other legal person with assets of over say $2m. ideally the levy would be progressive with those with fortunes in excess of say $100m paying the lion’s share. The proceeds could be used to repay debt, make infrastructure investments, finance financial aid, healthcare and income transfers to poorer households.
Any student from Economics 101 will grasp the likely stimulative effect of this sort of wealth transfer since those with lower incomes (and less wealth) are more like to consume what they are given. Also, if the tax were enacted in a way that rules out it being levied again for a considerable period, the effect of incentives to work, save, invest etc of those who are assessed the tax would be minimized.
Now THAT would be a class war worth fighting. | <urn:uuid:99e34623-f444-4f94-ab19-3531ce2c456b> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://investmentwatchblog.com/over-the-past-30-years-the-top-10-have-had-their-taxes-reduced-and-their-income-increased-while-the-middle-class-has-lost-ground/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280763.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00518-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950255 | 603 | 2.4375 | 2 |
Avocados are delicious additions to sandwiches and salads, but you need to know if they're overripe or rotten.
You will need
Step 1 Check the color Look at the avocado’s color. Avocados that aren’t yet ripe are pale to dark green. Ripe avocados are dark green to greenish-brown, and an avocado that is dark brown to black is rotten.
Avocados reach peak ripeness just before they begin to rot. If the avocado has only slightly rotten parts inside, it’s still good to eat.
Step 2 Pull out the stem Determine if an avocado is rotten by prying the stem from the top of the avocado. If the bottom of the stem is mushy, black, or mildewed, the avocado is probably rotten.
Step 3 Feel the avocado Pick up the avocado. If it is hard and unyielding, it isn’t ripe yet. If it’s overly soft and mushy, it’s rotten.
Step 4 Cut it open Cut open the avocado with a knife. If it’s dark green near the skin and pale green near the stone, it’s ripe. But if the meat is separated, stringy, and brown or black, it’s rotten. If the meat of a ripe avocado is exposed to air, it’ll brown quickly, but you can skim off the top layer and still use the avocado.
Did You Know:
Archaeologists in Peru have found domesticated avocado seeds buried with Incan mummies dating back to 750 BCE. | <urn:uuid:2a91e1f4-bff9-472b-8fac-6a719d4fff51> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.howcast.com/videos/398336-How-to-Tell-if-an-Avocado-is-Rotten/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280763.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00518-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.835249 | 334 | 3.125 | 3 |
English: Zeal Monachorum (Latin translation Cell of the Monks) is a village and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon, England, about 18 miles north-west of Exeter, situated on the River Yeo. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 398. You will also find reference made to the village in the song "Referee's Alphabet" on the album Cammell Laird Social Club by popular 4 piece combo Half Man Half Biscuit - '...see also Zeus, Zatopek and Zeal Monachorum, I had a caravan there (static) of course'.
This category has the following 2 subcategories, out of 2 total.
Media in category "Zeal Monachorum"
The following 83 files are in this category, out of 83 total. | <urn:uuid:79d2c52f-14e5-4357-81da-ed6218249b4c> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Zeal_Monachorum | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280128.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00393-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945476 | 169 | 1.671875 | 2 |
It’s easy to make fun of the lunacy in the liberal wing of the Episcopalian Church (and the commentators at First Thoughts have a number of clever retorts), but this latest example of Episcopalian inclusiveness gives me the creeps. Sure, bless the animals. I bless the family dog or cat whenever I do a house blessing. But providing a “worship service” for animals crosses a line that ought not be crossed; even more, it reveals a line that should have remained invisible let alone crossed.
Worship services for animals will, in the end, erase the line between man and animal. This is more than the “Naked Ape” nonsense that pours out of Darwinian sociological paradigms. This adds a patina of false sanctity (worship is serious business) to a person’s love of their animal that has no place in the Church.
In theological terms, animals, and all of creation glorify God when acting according to their nature. A flower in bloom glorifies God; it functions according to its created nature, it has become what God created it to be. But the creation has no moral agency, only man does, and this moral dimension is also why liturgical worship is reserved for man, and man alone. Bring dogs into the sanctuary and, down the road, man becomes nothing more than a sophisticated dog.
Maybe the commentators are right. The best way to handle this is to relentlessly mock it.
Calvary Episcopal Church of Danvers, Massachusetts, has just announced it will begin offering a monthly worship service for dogs. Besides being driven to the service by Starbucks-jittered suburban elites in trademark Volvo station wagons, the canine faithful will enjoy the unique pleasure of being lived through vicariously.
“Perfect Paws Pet Ministry,” as Calvary officials call it, will include a form of communion and prayers offered for the pets. While surely a natural outgrowth of American Episcopalianism, what really bugs me about it is the rank discrimination involved. Calvary Episcopal has announced that only well-behaved dogs may attend, and feline and equestrian companions are roundly excluded from the economy of salvation. Why not invite the local strays, or, better, invite them to preach? | <urn:uuid:0a572d34-6ea2-4394-af7b-fab06d36501f> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.aoiusa.org/episcopal-church-is-going-to-the-dogs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285001.96/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00300-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94632 | 481 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Railway infrastructure management involves a high degree of complexity. Economic, legal, political and, above all, technical interdependencies are required. The aim of the Best Practice Permanent Way Maintenance series is to describe these relationships in a structured way for all stakeholders.
Infrastructure Management Volume 1 looks at aspects of infrastructure management with particular reference to the single European railway area. Based on best-practice examples from Central Europe, measures for the targetted retrofitting and improvement of the infrastructure maintenance of the existing network are presented. In many cases, infrastructure operators are faced with a generational change, which accelerates the process. Modern information and communication technology can simplify the comprehension and presentation of complex contexts. Modified approaches to asset management and life-cycle management enable implementation of the" transparent permanent way" or the "railway 4.0".
The included pdf e-book allows users to search and access all terms and references electronically using their PC, Tablet or Smartphone | <urn:uuid:61bf3aac-3386-4f47-b690-e4b3bd0903a0> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.pmcmedia.com/en/all-titles/rail/148/best-practice-fahrweginstandhaltung-vol-1-infrastrukturmanagement | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572215.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815235954-20220816025954-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.887838 | 191 | 2.046875 | 2 |
This Is Why There Isn’t a Light in Your Freezer
It's time to finally shed some light on why our freezers are so dark.
If you’ve ever stumbled into the kitchen during the wee hours of the night to satisfy that Ben & Jerry’s craving only to realize you can’t see a single thing in your freezer, you know how much of a dilemma this can be. So why is there a light in our refrigerators but not in our freezers? We finally have an answer.
As it turns out, the reason behind this dark mystery (literally) actually makes sense, contrary to what our midnight ice cream cravings might say. Robert H. Frank, a professor of economics at Cornell University, says it all boils down to what’s called the cost-benefit principle. The cost to install an automatic light in a freezer is the same as the cost to put one in a fridge, and that amount doesn’t change, regardless of how many times you open the door and turn on the light. The benefit of that light is that your food is easier to find. However, since people tend to open their refrigerators more than their freezers, the cost of adding a freezer light outweighs the benefits. For manufacturers, the money they save justifies their decision to forego that second light. Find out which foods you should never keep in your freezer.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like most freezer manufacturers will be installing lights anytime soon—but that doesn’t mean these magical contraptions don’t exist. “In general, the benefit of such features, as measured by what people are willing to pay for them, tends to increase as income increases,” Frank writes. “The cost-benefit principle thus predicts that consumers with extremely high incomes might think a light in the freezer well worth the extra cost.”
Some companies have decided to cater to this wealthy, freezer-light-wanting clientele with state-of-the-art products. For example, the Sub-Zero Pro 48 refrigerator/freezer has light in all six of its compartments. The catch? It costs $16,950.
While we all can’t afford the luxury of freezers with lights, there are ways to make the one you do have even more effective. Check out these genius non-food ways to use your freezer. | <urn:uuid:b11a4403-7d2f-4e46-ae6b-c5d21a5f5f6d> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://preprod.rd.com/article/no-light-freezer/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571284.54/warc/CC-MAIN-20220811103305-20220811133305-00472.warc.gz | en | 0.954551 | 512 | 2.109375 | 2 |
Infestation by a Nalepella species induces emissions of alpha- and beta-farnesenes, (-)- linalool and aromatic compounds in Norway spruce clones of different susceptibility to the large pine weevil
2008 (English)In: Arthropod-Plant Interactions, ISSN 1872-8855, Vol. 2, no 1, 31-41 p.Article in journal (Refereed) Published
The emissions of spruce grafts (Picea abies), caused by infestation of an acarid species of the genus Nalepella were investigated. Volatiles of three clones, both healthy and infested, with different susceptibility to the large pine weevil Hylobius abietis were collected by solid phase micro extraction (SPME) and analyzed by gas chromatograph coupled to mass-spectrometry (GC-MS). In addition, enantiomers of the main chiral compounds were separated by a two dimensional-gas chromatograph (2D-GC). In the characteristic flower-like fragrances emitted by the infested grafts large amounts of E-beta-farnesene, E, E-alpha-farnesene, (-)-linalool, methyl salicylate and minute amounts of benzyl alcohol, E-anethole, methyl benzoate, neral and geranial were found. All together, these compounds could explain the characteristic scent emitted by the infested seedlings. Large differences in the emissions of E-beta-farnesene, E, E-alpha-farnesene and methyl salicylate were found between but not within the clones.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2008. Vol. 2, no 1, 31-41 p.
Nalepella; Picea; Infestation; Farnesene; Methyl salicylate; Linalool; Neral; Stress
IdentifiersURN: urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-17983DOI: 10.1007/s11829-008-9029-4ISI: 000260961100004ScopusID: 2-s2.0-41149104564OAI: oai:DiVA.org:kth-17983DiVA: diva2:336028
QC 201005252010-08-052010-08-052010-08-18Bibliographically approved | <urn:uuid:dda4fcf2-a53e-4dbf-8fd7-5e5f956e3228> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://kth.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:336028 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718426.35/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00137-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.849501 | 521 | 1.960938 | 2 |
Studies in regards to the wellness benefits of a optional blanket are a couple however they really do point in a positive way. One such study noted that burden raising reduced spine discomfort. The members experienced significant decreases in lower back pain in lifting weights when compared with people who did exercise. One other review noted that sleeping quality rose from overweight or overweight older people as a consequence of weight loss with a weighted blanket. Weighted blankets push down the body into a more profound state of comfort and rest. This study reported that weight raising reduced cortisol levels while restraining the body at the low-stress condition during sleep.
Moreover, another study noted that placing weight-bearing blankets onto a mattress reduced sleep disturbance among adolescents. The individuals underwent significant declines in sleep onset latency and increased sleep caliber in comparison with the ones who put on non-weighted blankets. These findings have been encouraging as lots of men and women suffer with sleeplessness, which is often associated with additional weight and inadequate snooze. It is well worth noting that kids have especially problematic times sleeping and getting weight due to consuming too much processed and sugar food items during your day.
Rest is essential to get a healthy body also for psychological and physical wellness. Modern studies have found that insomnia, or poor quality sleep, also leads to depression, stress, inadequate focus, and inadequate memory functioning. Over weight men and women are more inclined to own disturbed sleep as a result of excess body weight mass and bad flow caused by raised human body weight percent. A weighted blanket can add extra burden and additional strain to the spine. Weighted bedsheets can bring about additional stress in the backbone and might possibly also subscribe to other health conditions like back ache, bad posture, and ache at different fields of your whole body.
A well-designed weighted blanket can promote far better sleep and also minimize the unwanted side ramifications of sleeping issues. You’ll find many distinctive sorts of blankets and sleep processes available on the industry these days. A very simple internet search will reveal the wide assortment of services and products with different heights of fancy and technology materials. A number of the products use infra red heat technologies to reduce or eliminate the feeling of cool after wrap your system in it. 1 favorite form of blanket uses this particular technology to make heat which helps warm the body without adding further levels of warmth into the skinarea.
The blanket can be wrapped on your patient’s side or bed and left place for 20 minutes. People experiencing acute back ache and muscle weakness may find respite from the impacts of the weighted blankets. The extra layers of cushioning helps to relieve stress and enhance blood circulation for a result of heat being generated from the warmth element within the duvet.
A number of scientific studies have indicated that using a weighted blanket may reduce the effects of testosterone and estrogen, that can be known to subscribe to sleep disorders. The endocrine production and discharge during sleep have become very essential for ensuring that a relaxed and pain-free night’s sleep to each person. Because of those research studies, several wellness care practitioners, chiropractors and massage therapists regularly suggest the use of weighted blankets for individuals with problems with sleep. Weighted blankets may be purchased online and in the neighborhood retailers who promote bedding items for healthy slumber. | <urn:uuid:2485655d-0c8e-4551-9f3a-ffa9af0f746b> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://repetti.org/2021/01/24/thick-yarn-weighted-blanket/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573533.87/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818215509-20220819005509-00274.warc.gz | en | 0.944443 | 662 | 2.078125 | 2 |
- The doctrine that non-physical phenomena are features or products associated with brain only.
- Something cerebral.
- The doctrine or concept that psychical phenomena tend to be features or items associated with mind only.
- In psychology, the theory or doctrine that all emotional operations arise through the task associated with cerebrum or mind.
- The doctrine that non-physical phenomena are functions or items of the mind just.
- One thing cerebral.
- The doctrine or principle that psychical phenomena are features or services and products regarding the mind only.
- In therapy, the idea or doctrine that emotional functions occur from the activity associated with cerebrum or mind.
Sentence for "cerebralism"
- His outrageous intellect is cited as… | <urn:uuid:ab447839-8e50-439d-ac86-ad979a5b11ed> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | https://www.azdictionary.com/definition/cerebralism | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560280900.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095120-00003-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.831995 | 156 | 2.734375 | 3 |
In 1884, with Egypt a de facto British protectorate, damaging attacks by Mahdist rebels on areas of Egyptian-held Sudan alarmed the British government. Bowing to popular pressure, Gladstone dispatched the much-loved General Gordon, who had been governor of Sudan in the 1870s, to implement an orderly evacuation of Egyptian troops. But once in Khartoum, Gordon instead called for the provision of British soldiers to support him against the rebel forces. Gladstone refused, but still Gordon did not leave Khartoum. His stubborn resistance infuriated the government but earned him huge popular admiration at home, where he was regarded as a man of unimpeachable honour. When the rebels besieged the city, Gordon and his garrison were trapped.
An Honourable Man begins when the siege is eight months old. Food supplies are almost exhausted. In England, after months of popular anger and the intervention of the Queen herself, Gladstone has at last consented to send a detachment of soldiers to relieve Gordon. Among them is John Clarke, a London doctor attached to the expedition as a surgeon, leaving Mary, his emotionally unstable wife, alone at home.
With the rescue party making its slow way towards the besieged city, Slovo interweaves John and Mary's stories with the unravelling of "the last two Englishmen in Khartoum", General Gordon and Will, his unofficial batman, who is barely more than a boy. Though the expedition is hopeful, Gordon knows things are close to being over. The wretchedness of the garrison's predicament is exquisitely evoked by the trumpet boys posted at each corner of the palace, "so small they had to stand on boxes to see over the parapet", who, under heavy bombardment from rebel shells, blow the determined message "we are strong" in code.
Slovo, whose Orange-shortlisted Ice Road was set during the siege of Leningrad, writes eloquently about suffering and its effects on the human spirit. In An Honourable Man, however, her primary focus is not physical torment, though all her characters suffer much, but the anguish of isolation. All of her protagonists are cut off from those around them not only by geography but by the vicious tourniquets of class and rank and propriety, and are only dimly conscious of the complexities of their own emotions. As a civilian among professional soldiers, John is an outsider, an officer without men who envies the ordinary ranks their easy camaraderie. His loneliness is mirrored by that of his wife, left alone in Barnsbury with only a maid for company. Mary is highly strung, prone to "foolish questions, sudden laughter and strange tears", and John had on occasion prescribed laudanum to help her sleep. Without her husband's presence to give her life shape and purpose, it is not long before she succumbs to depression and then to self-medication.
As the novel unfolds, the question for the characters is whether the expedition will reach Khartoum in time to save Gordon. For the reader, history has already answered that question. What preoccupies us is whether the protagonists will find the strength to save themselves.
The strands of the novel set on the road to Khartoum are a triumph. Slovo's descriptions are stunning, the simplicity of her language conjuring images of visceral vividness. John is a terrific creation: idealistic, alternately arrogant and paralysed with self-doubt, he is torn between devotion to his wife and a deep resentment at her neediness. His emotional awakening is complex and profound. When he walks away from saving a life we long for him to save, not through cowardice but because his men may be endangered, we are forced to acknowledge that objectivity is impossible, that the lives of those we love will always be worth more than those of people we do not know. The urchin Will is an equally touching character, giving us a child's-eye view of the dogmatic, evangelical maverick General Gordon. The London sections of the book are not so compelling. The volatile Mary never quite comes to life. Beside the restraint of the male characters, her emotional adventures are overheated, her slide into addiction and adventures in the slums too redolent of the clichés of the Victorian gothic tradition.
Despite this, An Honourable Man remains an ambitious and accomplished novel. Against the backdrop of Gordon's magnificent, misguided ambitions for Khartoum, Slovo explores the essential nature of goodness. All three of the novel's primary characters – the military hero, the selfless doctor, the Angel in the House – represent paradigms of Victorian virtue but, as Slovo shows, goodness is not an absolute. It is subjective and conditional, its value often quantifiable only after the event. Gordon's stand in Sudan cost hundreds of lives. Would those sacrifices have been more worthwhile if Khartoum had not fallen? Is it the principled man or the pragmatist who, in the end, is the better man? Slovo is too subtle a writer to offer easy answers but, in this perceptive novel, she compels us to ask ourselves what it means to be an honourable man.
Clare Clark's latest novel is Savage Lands (Vintage). | <urn:uuid:cf0623c4-07cd-41a9-9907-f82a10124630> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jan/20/honourable-man-gillian-slovo-review | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988718285.69/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183838-00106-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961662 | 1,085 | 2.125 | 2 |
By Charles Q. Cutshaw
I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Mr. Jim Schatz of Heckler & Koch, Inc., without whose assistance this
article would not have been possible.
Heckler and Koch’s Universal Self-Loading Pistol, better known as the USP, is a true firearms success story in what has become a highly competitive worldwide handgun market. In order to succeed in this arena, a handgun must not only meet the criteria for which it was designed, but must actually exceed most of them. In essence, a good firearm is synergistic – it is greater than the sum of its parts. The USP is such a pistol. It combines the best of traditional firearms with the best of state of the art firearms technology. While not as widespread in police use as Glock pistols, the USP is nonetheless just as reliable, while being much more flexible in its ability to be modified to meet specific user requirements. Moreover, the USP is a traditional pistol in the American idiom, while at the same time taking full advantage of the most modern materials to achieve levels of reliability and longevity that would have been unimaginable just 25 years ago.
The genesis of the USP can be traced to the “Miami Shoot-out” which caused the Federal Bureau of Investigation to change from 9mm Parabellum to 10mm. H&K wanted to compete for the FBI 10mm pistol contract, but had no pistols in 10mm caliber, nor any conventional double action/single action (DA/SA) pistol as required by the FBI specifications. In fact, H&K had no pistols other than in 9mm caliber and the company came to realize that if it was to maintain its viability in an increasingly competitive handgun market, it would have to expand and diversify its product line. Moreover, management realized that as good as their pistols were, several, such as the P7 were unconventional, although most people who purchase handguns are essentially conservative, preferring more conventional designs. Further, Heckler & Koch realized that P7 pistols for the most part had become so expensive that they could not effectively compete against companies such as Glock and Smith & Wesson in the US market.
The company decided to begin with a clean slate and gather input from the shooters themselves to influence the design of the new pistol. H&K also decided that their next pistol should be developed primarily for the US market. Accordingly, H&K conducted a market survey to determine the preferences of American handgun shooters of all types, including military, law enforcement and civilian. This study was completed in July 1989.
The H&K study revealed a number of facts regarding the American handgun market which many firearms manufacturers would do well to heed. Perhaps most important was the fact that people who were serious about handguns were conservative. Whether they were professionals or simply serious enthusiasts, they preferred a handgun of conventional design. This is not to say that the American market is hostile to innovation – far from it. Americans have traditionally been enamored with innovation and technology, but technology alone cannot replace that which is of proven efficacy unless it improves upon it. Heckler & Koch concluded that a conventional pistol incorporating as many high-tech innovations as possible would be most attractive to the American market. Affordability was another major concern. While many people might well have purchased an innovative H&K P7, its high price made that pistol a non-starter for most individuals and law-enforcement agencies. Other major considerations were high quality, durability and reliability, safety, accuracy, magazine capacity and low recoil. And finally, the science of ergonomics would play a large part in design of the new pistol. After their market study, Heckler & Koch compiled and prioritized the characteristics of what would eventually become the Universal Self-loading Pistol, now simply known as the USP. In addition to the characteristics already noted, it was decided early in the design process that the pistol would be a double-action/single-action (DA/SA) with the capability for straightforward conversion to a number of different configurations to satisfy the requirements of as many users as possible. H&K also decided that the pistol would be initially chambered for the .40 S&W cartridge with other calibers to follow. This decision was based on the increasing popularity of the .40 S&W, which delivers ballistics nearly on a par with those of the venerable .45 ACP, although with less recoil. Also, a pistol designed from the outset for .40 S&W would have no problem accommodating the less powerful 9x19mm cartridge. H&K had noted that some .40 S&W pistols that were modified from 9x19mm designs had durability problems and they wanted to ensure that there were no such problems with their new pistol. In fact, the USP was the first pistol specifically designed for the .40 S&W cartridge. Design development began in September 1989 and took nearly two years. The head of the design team was Helmut Weldle, designer of the P7 pistols.
By May 1991, basic USP design work was nearly completed and the desired characteristics agreed upon. Shortly thereafter, in August, H&K began design work on the Offensive Handgun Weapons System (OHWS) for the United States Special Operations Command. This design was later type-classified as the Mark 23 Mod 0 USSOCOM Pistol, hereafter referred to as the Mark 23. While development of the Mark 23 pistol was concurrent with that of the USP and the final products shared many similar characteristics, they were developed independently within H&K.
The fact that the USP went into production after the Mark 23 prototypes were delivered to the US Government for testing is not indicative that the USP design was derived from the USSOCOM handgun. On the contrary, if anything, many of the Mark 23’s features were derived from the USP, which was already under development when the US Government’s request for proposal (RFP) for the OHWS was announced in December 1990. At the same time, development of the USP was influenced by the Mark 23’s development process. The development of the Mark 23 will be covered separately. While the Mark 23 is not a member of the immediate USP family, it is a first cousin and must be included in any discussion of the USP’s development.
By late 1991, the first prototype of the USP had been constructed and the USP name assigned to the new pistol. Two further prototypes were produced and tested during 1992. Testing was successful and the basic design was “frozen” in December of that year. Reliability testing on the USP prototypes was unfinished at the time of the design “freeze,” but since both pistols had fired 10,000 rounds of their 20,000 round reliability test without incident, it was decided to freeze the design and proceed with production planning and formal introduction of the USP at the January 1993 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trades (SHOT) Show. Actual production of the USP40 was undertaken in February 1993.
At this point, it is worth noting the testing process that the USP underwent in the final stages of its development. The fact that the pistol passed a 20,000 round reliability test without meaningful wear on any component or any effect on accuracy has little meaning until one considers that the tried and true M1911A1 pistols which still serve in some military special operations units (not all have purchased the Mark 23 at the timeof this writing) require a depot-level rebuild after approximately 12,000 rounds to ensure accuracy and reliability. Another measure of the rugged design of the USP is the fact that unmodified USP45s have presently fired over 6,000 rounds of the new .45 super ammunition without incident. M1911-type pistols must be modified to reliably fire the .45 Super cartridge. Both USP45s and the Mark 23 are being tested with this new cartridge with a view towards certifying both pistols for its unlimited use. .45 Super testing should be complete by mid-1998 and results made pubic shortly thereafter.
USP testing was heavily influenced by the development of the Mark 23, which had to meet stringent military durability and reliability standards. The tests of the USP paralleled the NATO military test protocols of the Mark 23, which are much more stringent than commercial standards. The USP pistols were subjected to test firing in various attitudes and were checked every 1,000 rounds for damaged or broken parts and for accuracy. After each 10,000 rounds, the slide was manually cycled 1,000 times. A bullet was driven into the forcing cone of the USP barrel, a live round chambered and the pistol fired. There was no damage to the pistol and accuracy was unaffected. Another bullet was driven 30mm into the muzzle of the pistol and the pistol fired, again with no damage or degradation in performance. The pistols were dropped onto rubber on all sides and at a 45 degree angle onto the muzzle from a height of four feet with a primed case in the chamber, 13 dummy rounds in the magazine and the safety/decocking lever set in the “fire” position without incident. The pistols were then dropped six times onto a cocked hammer from a height of three and nearly seven feet onto a steel/concrete surface. There were no primer indentations in any of these tests. For ammunition compliance testing, USPs were tested using every type of commercially available ammunition.
Environmental testing of the USP was virtually identical to that of the Mark 23. The USP had to function in temperatures as low as -51O Fahrenheit and as high as +145O Fahrenheit. It functioned after a ten minute mud bath, after a ten minute exposure to blowing sand, freezing rain (water spray on the pistol to a thickness of 1 to 3mm). After these torture tests, the parts of four different pistols of different caliber were interchanged, except for barrel, slide and magazine. The USP passed or exceeded all tests and the .40 caliber pistols were placed on the market in the United States in April 1993. The 9mm USP followed in September.
The USP is, as we have stated, largely a traditional pistol design executed in nontraditional ways. It is a short recoil, modified Browning system similar to that used in the Browning M1935. This system is simple, very reliable, inexpensive to produce and makes barrel replacement easy. Unlike the system used in the M1935, the H&K locks on the front and rear edges of the ejection port, rather than using locking grooves machined into the slide and barrel.
The safety/decocking lever, called a “control lever” by H&K, is positioned at the same relative location on the frame as that in both the M1935 and M1911 pistols, and functions in the same fashion – up is “safe,” down is “fire.” There is one difference, however. Pressing the lever down past the “fire” position usually decocks the USP when the hammer is cocked. The lever then automatically returns to the “fire” position, enabling the USP to be operated in the double action mode for the first shot. This feature also allows the USP to be safely carried in “Condition One” – cocked and locked, which is favored by many armed professionals who are intimately familiar with the M1911 Colt Government Model and its many copies. Unlike the M1911, however, setting the USP to the “safe” position does not lock the slide. The control lever can easily be set up for left hand, right hand, or ambidextrous use. It should also be noted that besides having controls which are very similar in function to those of the M1911, the grip angle of the USP is identical to that of the venerable Browning design. Thus, an individual familiar with the M1911 or M1935 can pick up a USP and become familiar with it with very little familiarization training. Not all USPs, however, incorporate this system. The versatility of the USP allows it to be configured without a safety or decocking position in some versions. The different versions into which the USP can be configured are shown in Table 1.
Table 1: USP & Mark 23 Specifications
|Mark 23||.45 ACP||10/12*||1.53||5.90||2.42||7.76||5.87||9.65|
** Fixed sights. Height is 5.78 w/adjustable sights.
*** Fixed sights. Weight is 2lb w/adjustable sights.
The slide release of the USP is also located similarly to that of the M1911 and M1935 and like the earlier designs is used to disassemble the pistol. The ambidextrous magazine release, however, is a real improvement over the traditional M1911 “push button.” The magazine release of the USP is located in essentially the same position as the older pistols, but instead of having to push in to release the magazine, the release button is pressed down to drop the magazine. To the author, at least, this is a much more natural movement than pressing in. The release is actually shielded by the trigger guard to prevent inadvertent actuation. We should also note that the magazines of the USP drop free when the release is pressed, an important tactical consideration. Despite this, there are “tearaway grooves” on the sides of the grip just in case….
The USP incorporates three or four separate safety mechanisms, depending on variant. Two of these safeties, the disconnector and the firing pin block, are passive. All USP pistols incorporate these two passive mechanisms. Six of the nine USP variants have a manual safety/decocker. Variant Seven has the double action safety with no manual control lever at all. Variants Three and Four do not have a manual safety, but have a decocking lever. The reader can determine the specific features of USP variants by referring to the chart accompanying this article. While Variant Eight is listed in the chart matrix, it was never produced except in very small numbers for US Immigration and Naturalization Border Patrol testing. Variant eight was essentially a Variant Seven USP with European tritium sights.
The barrel of the USP is cold hammer forged. Early pistols had six lands and grooves with a right hand twist. .40 S&W USPs were rifled with 1 turn in 14.96 inches, while 9mm Parabellum pistols had rifling at a rate of 1 turn in 9.84 inches. In November 1994 the rifling was changed from conventional lands and grooves to polygonal rifling, an H&K innovation. Twist rates remained the same as in earlier guns, but the cold hammer forged polygonal rifling has several benefits. Muzzle velocity is increased versus standard rifling due to a tighter gas seal. Because there are no sharp edges, bore wear and erosion are reduced, thus providing longer service life. Barrels with polygonal rifling are easier to clean and maintain because there are no grooves, per se, in which fouling and metal deposits can accumulate. Finally, polygonal rifling increases accuracy. The USP45 was never manufactured with conventional rifling.
The polymer frame of the USP continues a Heckler & Koch tradition that dates back to the mid-1960’s VP70, P9S and other H&K firearms. The precise makeup of the polymer frame is proprietary, but it is glass-fiber reinforced with metal guide rails on which the slide runs. As previously mentioned, the grip has “tear away” grooves to enable the shooter easy access to the magazine floorplate in case the magazine does not drop free when the release is pressed. The trigger guard is oversize to allow use of gloves and is shaped so as to help prevent the magazine release from being inadvertently pressed, which could prove highly embarrassing, not to mention fatal! The entire surface of the frame is textured for a positive grip, even with wet hands. The USP’s texturing is very similar to that of the Mark 23 and incorporates stippling on the grip side panels and deeply embossed grooves on the grip front and backstraps. A lanyard loop is molded into the heel of the grip as part of the insert that retains the hammer spring. The magazine well is beveled and stepped to facilitate reloading.
Another feature of the USP frame is the molded in grooves for mounting accessories such as laser, tactical lights, optical sights, or muzzle compensators. The grooves are parallel with the bore of the pistol, so any accessory mounted is boresighted when mounted. H&K claims that the grooves are more secure and resistant to recoil forces than trigger guard mounts in addition to providing automatic bore alignment for attached accessories.
H&K makes a full range of accessories for all versions of the USP, including a tactical light, designated the Universal Tactical Light (UTL), a UTL carrying pouch which allows the UTL to be attached to long guns, tools, bicycles, etc. H&K once manufactured the “Quik-Comp” muzzle brake/compensator which attached to the mounting grooves. This may still occasionally be found as a used component. Finally, H&K has an Optical Sight/Scope Mount available for the USP. This mount incorporates a Weaver mounting rail, can be used either with or without the “Quik-Comp,” and does not interfere with the pistol’s iron sights. The popularity of the USP has caused after-market manufacturers to begin producing similar accessories for the USP pistol family.
Magazines of the .40 S&W and 9x19mm pistols are of polymer with a stainless steel insert, while that of the USP45 is steel. Magazine capacity is 13 rounds in .40 S&W, 15 rounds in 9x19mm and 12 rounds in .45 ACP, except for civilian use pistols, which are all equipped with the silly federally-mandated “politically correct” ten-round magazines. The reader should be aware that there are no unmarked “pre-ban” .45 magazines for the USP. Any “pre-ban” magazines for the USP45 are in fact stolen Mark 23 magazines. Caveat emptor! The .45 caliber magazine was made from steel to keep grip circumference down while maximizing magazine capacity. The .45 magazine design is virtually identical to that of the Mark 23 USSOCOM Pistol. All magazines drop free when the release is pressed, contain “round count” holes with numbers and can be disassembled for cleaning and maintenance by the owner, even the “politically correct” ten-round civilian-use magazines.
A unique feature of the USP is its recoil reduction system, again virtually identical to that used on the Mark 23 USSOCOM Pistol. Essentially, the recoil reduction system consists of two concentric springs held in place by a guide rod. The outer recoil spring is a lower rate than the inner buffer spring, which slows the slide at the end of its recoil movement, prevents the slide from impinging against the frame of the pistol and buffers the unlocking of the barrel from the slide during the first three to four millimeters of movement. The buffer system reduces recoil forces by approximately 30 per cent and provides a number of benefits. First is reduced felt recoil to the shooter, resulting in reduced muzzle “flip” quicker recovery time after each shot and increased accuracy. Another benefit is reduced stress on components, which is one of the reasons for the extremely long service life of all USPs. The USP recoil reduction system is “transparent” to the shooter; it is insensitive to ammunition, requires no maintenance and has an indefinite service life. On early USPs, the recoil spring could be removed from the guide rod, but in September 1994, a “captured spring” design was incorporated, which makes USP disassembly and reassembly easier and safer. The new recoil reduction system can be retrofitted into earlier USPs without modification.
USP Compact pistols have a different recoil reduction system than the larger pistols because there is insufficient space for a dual-spring system and because the compact designs use a flat recoil spring to save space and facilitate shortening the barrel and frame. The buffer in the H&K USP Compacts is therefore a high strength polymer bushing that surrounds the recoil spring and cushions the blow of the slide against the frame as the slide recoils. Life of this polymer buffer is stated to be over 20,000 rounds.
The polymer frame of the USP is virtually impervious to wear or corrosion, but the USP, like all firearms, also incorporates metal components, which are subject to corrosion and wear unless protected. Heckler & Koch applies a proprietary Hostile Environment (HE) nitrogen/carbon finish to the USP slide. This finish is not only extremely hard (732 HV1 Vickers), but highly corrosion resistant, as well. The non-reflective HE finish has been used on the G3SG1 sniper rifle since the 1970’s and has proven itself in service. A stainless steel slide is available for all USP models. All other USP components, both external and internal, are finished with Dow-Corning’s “Molykote,” a very tough corrosion-resistant finish which also incorporates low-friction qualities.
Two versions of the USP which are not available in the United States are H&K’s German military P8 and P10 pistols. The P8 replaces the Walther P1 (modernized P.38) in Bundeswehr service, while the P10 is being issued to German police. Both are versions of the USP9 and USP9 Compact, respectively, but with two differences in comparison to other USP versions. Indeed, these pistols could be considered a new USP variant, were they commercially available. One difference is the functioning of the control lever, which reverses the “safe” and “fire” positions of the Variant 1 USP. The uppermost position of the lever on both German pistols is “fire,” rather than “safe.” The mid position is “safe,” and fully down decocks the pistol, as with other USP variants. The second difference is that when the trigger is released on the P8 and P10, the control lever automatically returns to the “safe” position. Some 20,000 USP “P8” variants have been issued to the German military.
Table 2: Mark 23 & USP45 Tactical Pistol Comparison
(Only items where specifications differ are listed)
|Mode of Operation||DA/SA||DA/SA; SA only: DA only;|
user convertible to any
of 9 variants
|Safety||Ambidextrous||Left or Right; user convertible|
|Decocking Lever||Separate, left side only||Incorporated in safety, left or right side; user convertible|
|Finish||Special marine coating. Salt water corrosion proof||Hostile Environment finish. Salt water corrosion resistant|
|Empty Weight (ounces)||42.56||31.37*|
|Overall Length (inches)||9.65||8.64|
|Barrell Length (inches)||5.87 (threaded w/O-ring)||4.92 (threaded w/O-ring)|
|Grip Circumference (inches)||5.68||5.57|
|Trigger Pull (pounds)||SA:4.85; DA: 12.13||SA:4.25; DA: 9.9|
|Service Life, +P ammunition prior to depot maintenance||30,000 rounds||20,000 rounds|
|Unit Cost to US Military, 1997||$1,372.52||Approx. $600|
*Fixed sights. Weight with adjustable sights is 32 ounces.
** Fixed sights. Height with adjustable sights is 5.78 inches.
*** Five shots, 25 meters, service ammunition.
The USP45 was a follow-on to the original USP40 and USP9 pistols and was introduced in January 1995 at the SHOT Show. The pistol became available for sale in May of that year. The change to .45 ACP caliber was not as simple as changing barrel, slide and recoil spring. As mentioned earlier, the USP45 steel magazine was essentially carried over from the Mark 23 USSOCOM Pistol because use of polymer magazines would have caused the grip circumference to be too large. The recoil reduction system was lengthened to accommodate the longer .45 ACP cartridge while providing an identical 30 per cent reduction in recoil forces. The USP45 was the first pistol to incorporate an improved trigger system which is not only smoother and lighter than the original, but also virtually eliminates “stacking,” or increased resistance as the trigger is pulled back in double action. In the USP45, the double action trigger take-up does not begin until the trigger reaches the “half-cock position. This enhanced trigger feature was incorporated into all USPs in early 1995. As stated, the USP45 is different than its smaller caliber sisters. While the USP9 and USP40 share virtually 100 per cent parts interchangability, only 78 per cent of USP45 parts will interchange with the earlier guns. The USP45 was subjected to and passed all the tests of the earlier firearms, including a durability test of 24,000 rounds of +P ammunition.
As we have seen, the USP pistols were designed with the American market in mind and the success of the pistol in the US market and overseas clearly indicates that Heckler & Koch was “on target” with its design. One of the major trends in the US firearms market has been engendered by the spread of “shall issue” concealed carry laws in the majority of the states. As of this writing in early 1998, 32 states have “shall issue” concealed laws which mandate that any citizen of good character who applies must be issued a license to carry a concealed weapon, usually a pistol. This has engendered a demand for compact pistols and many manufacturers have begun producing pistols designed for concealed carry. Compact versions of the USP for concealed carry were therefore virtually inevitable. .40 S&W and 9x19mm USP Compact pistols were introduced in early 1997 and a USP Compact .45 followed that autumn. Aside from the shorter length and height, there are minimal differences between the compact USPs and their full-size sisters, most of which have already been discussed. First, of course is the fact that the pistols are smaller both in height and in length for concealment. Grip circumference and trigger reach are also reduced for improved handling. Dimensional differences may be found in the specifications tables.
Unlike many “scaled down” pistols, the grips of the USP Compacts accommodate the entire hand of most shooters, even without using the extended floorplate magazine. (The USP Compact is shipped with two magazines – one with a flat, flush-fitting floor plate for maximum concealability and another with an extended floorplate to provide maximum comfort for those with large hands.) In terms of overall size, the USP Compacts are very close dimensionally to the Colt Officer’s ACP except for the slide, which is slightly thicker. Other changes in the compact pistols were the previously discussed recoil spring and buffer mechanism. The author had the opportunity to test one of the USP45 Compact pistols in October 1997 and shortly thereafter purchased one for personal use. It has since had several thousand rounds fired through it without a single stoppage.
The next iteration of USP is the USP45 Tactical Model, shown at the 1998 SHOT Show and officially put on sale in April, although the USP45 Tactical Model will not be available in quantity until May 1998. The Tactical Model USP is essentially a “cross” between the Mark 23 and the USP, incorporating the best features of both. The USP45 Tactical Model uses the barrel developed for the Mark 23, which is threaded for attachment of a suppressor. USP45 Tactical threads, however, are left handed to prevent installation of the Mark 23’s suppressor, which was designed for a heavier slide. At the time of this writing, a Knight’s Armament Company stainless suppressor and a Brugger & Thomet aluminum suppressor are available for the USP45 Tactical. The sights on the USP45 Tactical are fully adjustable and are designed to look above an installed suppressor. Trigger pull is greatly improved over earlier USPs and an adjustable trigger top is incorporated as a standard feature. Magazines are of an improved design with an extended floor plate to improve retention. All USP45 Tactical pistols are provided with a cleaning kit, spare barrel “O” rings, and tools for sight and trigger stop adjustment.
It is clear that the USP45 Tactical was designed for military and law enforcement use, but this requires some explanation. Several US military special operations forces did not purchase the Mark 23 and continue to use modified M1911A1 pistols, which are reaching the end of their service lives, despite having been rebuilt by military special operations armorers time after time. Moreover, while the M1911A1 will continue to function beyond 20,000 rounds, it begins to lose its accuracy after approximately 12,000 rounds and must be depot rebuilt. The failure of all special operations organizations to purchase the Mark 23 was not engendered by any specific fault of the Mark 23 itself; the pistol was built to the specifications determined by USSOCOM and surpassed all of them. In the words of one special operations requirements officer, “The Mark 23 isn’t a bad pistol; it simply doesn’t meet our requirements.” The fact is that USSOCOM does not directly speak for all special operations forces, nor can it require them to purchase a pistol that does not meet their individual service requirements. This will be further discussed in the section on the Mark 23 which follows. Nonetheless, a military requirement exists for a .45 caliber pistol that is different than the Mark 23, while improving on the venerable M1911A1 and at the same time maintaining the operational characteristics virtually identical to those of the Mark 23. Although Heckler & Koch has made no official comment regarding the intended market for the USP45 Tactical Pistol other than the statement, “…the Heckler & Koch USP45 Tactical Pistol is designed for users who require the features of the H&K MK 23/Mark 23 pistol for tactical, combat, or CQB use in a smaller and more affordable package.” (boldface in original), it is clear that the Tactical Pistol is aimed (no pun intended) at this market, and if the basic characteristics of the USP45 Tactical Pistol are any indication, it can be expected to be seen in the hands of many military and police special units in the coming years.
What does the future hold for the USP? The immediate future for the US market will see the USP product line expanded to include .357 SIG caliber. This addition to the USP product line will appear in the second half of 1998. In Germany, Heckler & Koch is entering into IPSC Competition and has developed a “full-race” version of the USP for use by its IPSC team. The IPSC pistol, called the “Expert Model” goes on sale in Europe in late June and if it achieves success in European IPSC circles, it may well be added to the American USP product line. The proven excellence of the USP design means not only that the pistol will be available for many years to come, but that the variety of USPs available to the shooter will continue to grow as well.
|This article first appeared in Small Arms Review V1N12 (September 1998)|
and was posted online on February 3, 2017 | <urn:uuid:2de9d6cd-6f3f-4518-9d72-4d2873a1150e> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://smallarmsreview.com/hk-usp-past-present-future-part-i/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570765.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20220808031623-20220808061623-00276.warc.gz | en | 0.957788 | 7,171 | 1.5 | 2 |
Becoming a Woman Poet is brisk, each indicator of geography reinforcing the urge to break barriers.
Born in Dublin, Eavan Boland is the youngest child of a painter and a diplomat. Author of more than a dozen volumes of poetry and nonfiction, she is also a professor and the Director of the Creative Writing Program at Stanford.
Becoming a Woman Poet–A Journey With Two Maps is quirky and personal, and most of it was published in literary journals. “Poetry begins where language starts: in the shadows and accidents of one person’s life,” she writes in the preface. Soon after, she delivers Muriel Ruykeyser’s question: “How shall we tell each other of the poet?” This suggests a feminist stance to those familiar with Ruykeyser and helps frame her premise that her exposure to poetry had two maps, one drawn in Ireland, the other drawn in the United States. Both maps are outlined in countless configurations by awareness of herself as daughter, wife, mother, citizen. In compelling ways she restates her belief that “the journey toward being and becoming a poet cannot happen with one set of directions only.” She provides intriguing detail, including the fact that there are questions of credit (authorship( surrounding at least one of her mother’s artworks.
Becoming a Woman Poet is brisk, each indicator of geography reinforcing the urge to break barriers: “In the sense that my life as a poet has been marked by boundaries, this book allows me to unwrite them–moving freely between countries and poems and histories.” “Unwriting” is an apt invention for “the rooms of other women poets,” the chapter that reels off a collection of names, some familiar, some not, “unwriting” an unheralded literary history on both sides of the Atlantic.
Becoming a Woman Poet is also appropriately unconventional in each approach to Adrienne Rich, Sylvia Plath, Elizabeth Bishop, Gwendolyn Brooks, Denise Levertov, and Charlotte Mew, who killed herself using a poison that guaranteed a particularly gruesome death. Mew transgressed, not just because she was a lesbian in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but because she challenged “the false pastorals of Georgian England and the dead sweetness of pre-Modernist, post-Victorian poetry,” in this oddly, unidentified excerpt:
I remember rooms that have had their part
In the steady slowing down of the heart,
The room in Paris, the room at Geneva,
The little damp room with the seaweed smell,
And that ceaseless maddening sound of the tide
Rooms where for good or for ill things died.
Boland discovered Mew in her thirties, in Ireland in the fifties, and her appreciation for Mew was not instant, but expanded over time. It is not lost on Boland that the decade of her own young adulthood needed later transgressions, and she acknowledges that that era was and still is critical to all citizens.
Upheaval is constant, and Boland writes with immediacy of her student days, walking past statues of Parnell and other major participants in Irish history. She paused outside the home of Oscar Wilde’s mother, pondering the life and work of one who took the pen name Speranza and produced poorly-written polemic. Later in this chapter, “Becoming and Irish Poet,” Boland goes back to the eighteenth century, to a piece by young Eiblhin ni Chonaill, in which the writer puts her hand in the blood of her martyred husband. The poem was hijacked to make it palatable to opponents of Home Rule, and was rescued largely by scholar Angela Bourke. Crediting her, Boland also credits Frank O’Connor for his “incantatory” translation. Boland is too fair not to liberally quote and credit men, sometimes different men in different centuries on the same page, so don’t be surprised when she bursts forth Dryden or Lowell.
As someone who has heard Gaelic, here and in Ireland, I was surprised that Boland did not provide some transliteration for a clearer sense of the sound of Irish poetry that weaves in and out of all she has written. As she notes, her younger years away from Ireland kept her from learning the language. I hope this volume stays in print and that future editions will either add that, or be in the form of a paperback with a CD.
Boland’s treatment of writers she names is generally admiring. Edna St. Vincent Millay has been poorly served by two biographers and many critics, and Boland helps correct that without sounding shrill. Her first exposure to Elizabeth Bishop was a poem called “Moose” in an anthology of American poetry she (disappointingly) doesn’t name, that she was sent to review. “I read the first stanza. I read the second and marked the place. later that night, with the children in their cots and the house quiet, I began to read her again.” Bishop’s poplars became “hairy, scratchy things” in New Brunswick, Canada’s woods, and Boland gladly got lost.
It is startling that he misquotes part of Bishop’s famous poem “One Art.” “A joking gesture” is hat Boland supplies, instead of “(the joking voice, a gesture / I love)” set in parentheses in my 1983 edition of the Complete Poems, and on the Academy of American Poets home page. Nor does she mention Bishop’s alcoholism or the fact, so essential here, that she lived in Brazil with a woman who committed suicide. These misdemeanors are the only off notes in an otherwise fine volume, though it is surprising that in her chapter about the correspondence between Denise Levertov and Robert Duncan and the tensions in it, she neglects to mention Levertov’s prose classic The Poet in the World.
The last chapter on this journey is called “Letter to a Young Woman Poet,” and it is powerful and encouraging. On the final page she declares that “women poets, from generation to generation, will be able to befriend one another.” This is old news, made fresh on almost every page. Becoming a Woman Poet is a welcome guide, for women and men who write, or who care about the lettered life, to befriend one another and the literature that sustains them. | <urn:uuid:41ee1554-d943-46c2-81b3-6f77aa77d718> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://therumpus.net/2011/08/a-journey-with-two-map/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560284411.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095124-00464-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964014 | 1,393 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Since the years following World War II, when British veterans began the tradition that would become the Paralympic Games, athletic competitions for people with disabilities have showcased the nobility and determination of the human spirit. They’ve also been staging grounds for bleeding-edge adaptive technologies, from specialized wheelchairs to limb prostheses.
Cybathon, new games that will take place in Zurich in October 2016, aims to further explore the possibilities of such devices—almost to the point of science fiction. It’s billed as “The Championship for Robot-Assisted Parathletes." Participants will use “powered knee prostheses, wearable arm prostheses, powered exoskeletons, powered wheelchairs, electrically stimulated muscles, and novel brain-computer interfaces” to compete in six different disciplines.
While a race in which people paralyzed from the neck down mentally control avatars in a computer racing simulation sounds novel enough, the Cybathon will also reward the innovations behind such futuristic endeavors. For each event, there will be two medal-winners: the “pilot” and whoever provided the athlete's bionic device. So while men and women training to take on an obstacle course in a set of robotic legs might call to mind Ripley’s exosuit from Aliens, engineers will be laboring to give their athlete every possible advantage.
“The idea,” Cybathon organizer Robert Riener, a professor with the University of Switzerland, told the BCC, “is that we want to push development of assistive technologies towards devices that patients can really use in everyday life. Some of the current technologies look very fancy but are a long way from being practical and user-friendly.”
If the project also serves to blur the line between man and machine, the thinking seems to be, so much the better. | <urn:uuid:f18fba75-ae5b-4ba4-92b4-7dc8bafb83c7> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.dailydot.com/debug/cybathon-worlds-first-bionic-olympics/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560281574.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095121-00020-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948145 | 380 | 2.421875 | 2 |
Solomon Islands: Essential aspects of governance for Aquatic Agricultural Systems in Malaita Hub
- In late 2012, a governance assessment was carried out as part of the diagnosis phase of rollout of the CGIAR Aquatic Agricultural Systems Program in Malaita Hub in Solomon Islands. The purpose of the assessment was to identify and provide a basic understanding of essential aspects of governance related to Aquatic Agricultural Systems in general, and more specifically as a case study in natural resource management. The underlying principles of the approach we have taken are drawn from an approach known as “Collaborating for Resilience” (CORE), which is based on bringing all key stakeholders into a process to ensure that multiple perspectives are represented (a listening phase), that local actors have opportunities to influence each other’s understanding (a dialogue phase), and that ultimately commitments to action are built (a choice phase) that would not be possible through an outsider’s analysis alone. This report begins to address governance from an AAS perspective, using input from AAS households and other networked stakeholders. We attempt to summarize governance issues that are found not only within the community but also, and especially, those that are beyond the local level, both of which may need to be addressed by the AAS program.
- Miscellaneous themes
- Working Paper | <urn:uuid:c810cef7-c087-4ef0-b565-e3e9069a8525> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://digitalarchive.worldfishcenter.org/handle/20.500.12348/791 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572215.27/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815235954-20220816025954-00678.warc.gz | en | 0.944659 | 352 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Work has begun on a $791m South Runway Expansion project at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida, US, in order to reduce flight delays and meet rising traffic demands.
The new project will extend, shift and lengthen runway 9R/27L from 5,276ft to 8,000ft, which will provide two parallel runways to accommodate larger aircraft. The runway will open in September 2014 and will handle 450,000 takeoffs and landings a year.
US Department of Transportation secretary Ray LaHood commented that the project is one of the largest and most important airport construction projects in the country.
"Modernising our airport infrastructure will keep our economy moving forward, and put thousands of Americans back to work," said LaHood.
The parallel runways will increase the airport’s capacity and help the airport handle 107 flights an hour from 84 flights an hour.
Broward County Aviation Department spokesman Greg Meyer said that the design meets all FAA standards for safe and efficient airplane arrivals and departures.
"If the airport does not increase its runway capacity, its average annual delay is projected to surge from the current rate of six minutes to 26 minutes by 2020," Meyer said.
The US Government will provide $250m for the project, Florida will contribute $129m and the remainder will come from passenger ticket charges.
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport handles 22 million passengers every year, with over 600 flights to 60 US cities and international destinations.
Image: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport’s South Runway Expansion project will reduce flight delays and meet air traffic demands. Photo: Broward. | <urn:uuid:a12de8d2-96b7-466e-be28-14b8385b9b57> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.airport-technology.com/news/newsft-lauderdale-hollywood-international-airport-begins-runway-expansion-project/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571982.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20220813172349-20220813202349-00072.warc.gz | en | 0.913983 | 340 | 1.640625 | 2 |
It is A necessary mineral for boosting muscle mass and nerve perform. Magnesium is, consequently quite practical in advertising and marketing a calm physique. Thus, a deficiency of the critical mineral can result in lots of problems.
Except if you might be ingesting at the very least two to a few servings of fish each week, it might seem sensible to supplement with a superior-high-quality fish oil irrespective of whether you might have anxiety or not.
The supplement consists of liposomal vitamin C, a method of vitamin C that’s encased in small lipid spheres and has long been demonstrated to be far more bioavailable than non-liposomal vitamin C (29).
Most persons in The usa are minimal in vitamin D — an essential nutrient. Vitamin D don't just helps Your whole body take in calcium, nevertheless it’s also essential for a happy mood.[eight] Considering that a lot of people get their vitamin D from sunshine, you may not get more than enough, particularly in the winter.
Though many of the supplements reviewed are generally identified as Secure, you might require to consult your healthcare service provider In case you are now using sure medicines or supplements.
It may derail your body’s most vital functions. It might also result in a variety of health issues, which include:
Its time for you to go with the best natual supplements for decreasing stress and anxiety. We've spent a long time trawling in the out there scientific investigate, and these substances provide the best supporting evience to be used as natural anxiolytics.
Vitamin C is often a nutrient that functions as a strong antioxidant in your body, and scientists suggest that vitamin C may possibly help beat damage due to oxidative stress in persons with neuropsychological disorders, which includes anxiety (26).
Tip: Deficiencies of zinc and magnesium may contribute to panic attacks in men and women too. Also, good zinc reserves are important to hurry up wound therapeutic.
The exploration to support valerian use for anxiety is mixed; even so, a meta-Assessment suggests that getting valerian may well improve sleep.
Manufactured to demanding criteria: We elect to manufacture at a GMP Licensed facility, appropriate in this read more article within the United states, working with globally sourced ingredients.
Vitamin A even is made up of fatty acids, which can be also a necessity inside our bodies. They're also helpful in lessening all kinds of stress and anxiety, which can discuss extra in later on this informative article.
Eleuthero is an adaptogen that supports adrenal operate and prevents adrenal exhaustion when Your system is challenged to stress.
Adaptable AND STACKABLE – Potent more than enough to provide results By itself, flexible more than enough you'll be able to add it to any supplement regiment for an more pronounced impact. | <urn:uuid:7f5af012-060b-418f-bc5a-13cac64872a4> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://vitamins-for-stress30741.diowebhost.com/67045816/fascination-about-vitamins-for-mood-swings-for-teenage | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571758.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20220812200804-20220812230804-00666.warc.gz | en | 0.939717 | 584 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Those plants you’ve got growing on the balcony or in your backyard have an unlimited number of uses. And we’re not just talking ways to cook them: your skin and hair are just waiting to be pampered by these easy, DIY (do-it-yourself) home beauty recipes. They’ll save you money – not only can you use flowers, herbs and vegetables you’ve already got, but you can store the homemade products in old, washed-out containers. Plus, you’ll smell delightful, we promise.
1. Shine Amplifier
Blend one egg, half a cup of olive oil, and half of a peeled, chopped cucumber. Spread evenly through your hair, leave on for 10 minutes, and rinse out.
Chop all of one lemon and add two cups of water. Simmer until the liquid has been reduced by half, then strain out the solids. Pour the liquid into a spray bottle, and add a bit more water if it’s too think for your liking. Use as you would any store-bought hairspray.
Chop two sprigs of fresh thyme with two teaspoons of crushed fennel seeds. Cover with boiling water, and add the juice of a small lemon. Steep until cool, then strain out the solids. Apply mixture to a cotton pad, swipe on the face, and rinse. And be sure to keep it in the fridge, which is actually a good idea with all homemade spa treatments.
Mix two cups of water with a teaspoon each of mint and rosemary, chopped. Boil it for 15 minutes, strain, and use as mouthwash. Wait till it’s cooled, of course!
Blend together 10 strawberries, two tablespoons olive oil, and a teaspoon of coarse salt. Apply to rough spots and rinse off in the shower.
Boil one carrot until it’s soft enough to smoosh with a fork. Mix with three tablespoons of honey and 1/4 cup plain yogurt. Then, either apply it to your skin or add it directly to the bath. Have a good soak, then rinse and follow with lotion to keep the moisture in.
Squeeze an orange into a small bowl of cornmeal until it reaches the consistency you want. Scrub onto skin for a few minutes, then rinse and follow with moisturizer.
8. Skin Softener
Combine 1/2 cup dried lavender with 1/2 cup finely chopped sage with two cups of water. Simmer the mixture for no more than 30 minutes, then strain and let cool. Add about eight drops of lavender essential oil (we have a great recipe for that). Shake before applying it to feet with a cotton pad.
(Image via jordanfischer) | <urn:uuid:b2815afa-bed2-4864-bd18-87f6af2347b6> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.organicauthority.com/organic-gardening/beauty-uses-for-plants.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988719843.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183839-00291-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.899074 | 580 | 1.546875 | 2 |
This twisted tower was designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and is set to rise up, adjacent to an invisible highway, in Vancouver, Canada. The design is stunning and quite genius, as the building twists away from the highway so that none of the windows overlook the busy expressway. The 49-storey building will have apartments on top, with office, shops and restaurants in the lower nine floors.
Winning the Future Project of the Year 2015 award at the World Architecture Festival, this twisted tower cleverly allows people living in a busy urban setting to avoid the ugly views they don't want to see. The BIG architects won this prestigious award because of the positive impact this design will have on municipality planning of the future.
Highway-Avoiding Twisted Towers
More Stats +/-
Twisting Sculptural Skyscrapers
Twisting Tower Complexes
Flaked Light Architecture
Twisted Tower Sculptures | <urn:uuid:db52ecf2-04f0-4c20-9cf5-bd8f661de4ec> | CC-MAIN-2016-44 | http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/twisted-tower | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2016-44/segments/1476988720000.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20161020183840-00023-ip-10-171-6-4.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.921309 | 192 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Thankfully, we spend more time training and preparing for potential rescues than we do actually being called out for emergencies, but of course they do happen – and that’s when all the training, equipment, team-work and vital support we have really pays off.
We also have a lot of enquiries from people who are concerned for others’ safety (people as well as animals) on local beaches or when out at sea.
We’re also often asked to support other services such as the RNLI Rye Harbour Lifeboat, such as in a recent episode where a dog needed rescuing in the Rye Harbour area.
The crew is also often asked to provide water safety support and first aid support at local events.
Our SHOUT record for 2018 shows some of what we’ve been involved in this year:
- 6th May 2018 (PLIRB alerts)
- 13:44 Missing child at Camber, stood down when child found.
- 16:30 Missing child at Camber, stood down when child found.
- 7th May 2018 (large boat patrolling off-shore at Camber; PLIRB base monitoring local beaches)
- Missing child reported, found quickly, no action required.
- 16:30: Requested to assist 5 persons struggling to steer their dinghy, being taken out to sea. PLIRB recovered dinghy and towed it back to safety of the beach.
- 15th July 2018 (possible boat in trouble / wreckage at cliff)
- 18:50 Base and boat crew mustered to boathouse to respond to possible Mayday, involving a boat and wreckage.
- Radio comms informed that there was uncertainty with regards to this call as it was initially received around the coast and Littlestone and then the signal came through via the Fairlight mast.
- The crew responded quickly to the Shout and were ready to take action when requested to launch by the coastguards. The Tornado boat was launched to double-check the local coastline and cliff bases towards the Fairlight Coastguards section of the sea. Nothing out of the ordinary was identified and the crew returned safe and sound.
- 11th August 2018 (injured person on the beach at Cliff End)
- 16:30 approximately. The call came that a person had sustained a suspected ankle injury, on the far end of the Pett beach, around the Cliff End area.
- Some of the crew were already in the vicinity and were quickly able to launch so that the injured female could be stretchered from the beach and back to the base. This was achieved quickly and, with no further input needed, the crews stood down.
- 21st October 2018
- 11:54 approximately. Mayday response, Pulfer boat launched to assist in search for missing diver.
- 18th November 2018 (PLIRB alert)
- 18:30 Person reported walking into sea at Camber. | <urn:uuid:55126968-3414-49e0-96e8-a00cf717b443> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://plirb.com/call-outs-shouts/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882572192.79/warc/CC-MAIN-20220815145459-20220815175459-00077.warc.gz | en | 0.974068 | 605 | 1.5 | 2 |
William Everett Justis Jr. (October 14, 1926 – July 16, 1982) was an American pioneer rock and roll musician, composer, and musical arranger, best known for his 1957 Grammy Hall of Fame song, "Raunchy." As a songwriter, he was also often credited as Bill Everette.
Justis was born in Birmingham, Alabama, United States, but grew up in Memphis, Tennessee and studied music at Christian Brothers College (high school department) and Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. A trumpet and saxophone player, while in university he performed with local jazz and dance bands. He returned home to Memphis in 1951 and was eventually taken on by Sam Phillips at Sun Records where he recorded music for himself as well as arranged the music for Sun artists such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, and Charlie Rich, the latter of which he is credited with discovering. Released in November 1957, his song "Raunchy" was the first rock and roll instrumental hit, and its popularity was such that it reached #2 on the American Billboard chart by three different artists, Ernie Freeman for Imperial, and Billy Vaughn on Dot. It also reached #11 in the UK Singles Chart. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Justis had one other significant hit record, "College Man", that went to U.S. #42.
In 1961, Justis moved to Nashville where he became a successful record producer and music arranger for both pop and country music performers at Monument and Mercury Records and other labels. He played saxophone on the soundtrack for the 1964 Elvis Presley film, Kissin' Cousins and that same year took over as manager of the singing group, Ronny & the Daytonas.
Justis had a number one hit in Australia in 1963 with "Tamoure". The song did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. In the early 1960s he produced a successful series of instrumental albums on the Smash label (Alley Cat/Green Onions and Telstar/The Lonely Bull). Justis was credited by Ray Stevens in the TNN special, The Life and Times of Ray Stevens, for giving him the phrase "gitarzan", which became a million selling hit for Stevens in 1969.
- "William E. Justis, Jr (1926-1982)". Findagrave.com. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
- Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 47. CN 5585.
- Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 693. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
- Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 294. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 92–93. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
- Archived December 15, 2006, at the Wayback Machine | <urn:uuid:db0e1b4b-9ea1-4823-8204-3bb6b44b595f> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Justis | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882570879.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20220809003642-20220809033642-00678.warc.gz | en | 0.950541 | 709 | 1.789063 | 2 |
The South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) conducts a range of tests against the South African National Standards (SANS) and customer-specific requirements and/or testing against compulsory specifications that may be issued for certain product categories.
The SABS offers certification schemes for both products and/or systems that comply with SANS or a relevant Mark scheme/system such as the Scheme for Food Safety Management Systems (FSSC). Additionally, many products undergo more frequent testing and conformity assessments to earn the status which allows them to use the “SABS Approved” mark on their product.
SABS testing and certification
The SABS’s testing and certification services are offered independently, thus the SABS attains and maintains an accreditation status to offer the testing and certification services. In cases where the SABS uses third-party laboratories, the laboratories need to meet stringent requirements and are subject to assessments and inspection by the SABS.
The SABS is aware that there are numerous manufacturers in possession of SABS test reports which they use as evidence that their products are “SABS Approved”, but it is important for consumers to understand that “SABS Approved” can only be claimed by a manufacturer if the products were actually certified by the SABS.
Testing is just one of the requirements in the complete SABS certification process. The testing of products and systems is essential to determine whether performance meets specified requirements of the standard, and this is done in controlled and simulated environments. SABS is the partner of choice and any clients that are looking to test their product or have their products or systems certified, should consult the SABS.
Knowledge is power! Sign up for our newsletter: https://www.buildinganddecor.co.za/register/ Subscribe to our free magazine on http://tiny.cc/fwsubs or join other discussions on http://www.facebook.com/buildinganddecor, http://www.twitter.com/buildingdecor and https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/10172797/ | <urn:uuid:dafe74e2-891c-4dbb-8e3e-5800914d7945> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://www.buildinganddecor.co.za/certification-provides-quality-assurance/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882571097.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20220810010059-20220810040059-00269.warc.gz | en | 0.937066 | 430 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Convexity Event Risks in a Rising Interest Rate Environment
The rise in the ten-year Treasury rate last summer was perhaps the most dramatic since the 2003 bond market sell-off. This post explains how major changes in the composition of agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) ownership caused by the large-scale asset purchase programs (LSAPs) may have prevented a major convexity event triggered by MBS duration extension hedging. In fact, MBS hedging activity remained muted by historic standards and likely contributed only modestly to the rise in interest rates.
Historically, the risk of sudden yield curve movements has greatly affected the market for MBS, which represent claims on a pool of underlying residential mortgages. The interest rate risk of MBS differs from the interest rate risk of Treasury securities because of the embedded prepayment option in conventional residential mortgages that allows homeowners to refinance their mortgages when it is economical to do so: When interest rates fall, homeowners tend to refinance their existing loans into new lower-rate mortgages, thereby increasing prepayments and depriving MBS investors of the higher coupon income. However, when rates rise, refinancing activity tends to decline and prepayments fall, thereby extending the period of time MBS investors receive below-market rate returns on their investment. This is commonly known as “extension risk” in MBS markets.
Duration and Convexity
The effect of the prepayment option can be seen in the chart below, which displays the relationship between yield changes (x-axis) and changes in the value of an MBS (black) and a non-prepayable ten-year Treasury note (red). The sensitivity of each instrument to small changes in yields (essentially the slope of each yield-price relationship at the point at which the MBS was last hedged, indicated by the dashed line) is known as the effective duration, while the rate at which duration changes as yields change (the curvature of the price-yield relationship) is known as its convexity. In the example shown below, the MBS and Treasury security are duration matched in the sense that they will tend to move one-to-one for small changes in yields.
When interest rates increase, the price of an MBS tends to fall at an increasing rate and much faster than a comparable Treasury security due to duration extension, a feature known as the negative convexity of MBS. Managing the interest rate risk exposure of MBS relative to Treasury securities requires dynamic hedging to maintain a desired exposure of the position to movements in yields, as the duration of the MBS changes with changes in the yield curve. This practice is known as duration hedging. The amount and required frequency of hedging depends on the degree of convexity of the MBS, the volatility of rates, and investors’ objectives and risk tolerances.
Duration hedging of MBS can be done with interest rate swaps or Treasury bonds and notes. When rates decline, hedgers will seek to increase the duration of their positions. This can be achieved by buying Treasury notes or bonds, or by receiving fixed payments in an interest rate swap. Conversely, MBS holders will find the duration of their MBS extending when rates increase, which they may choose to offset by selling Treasury notes or bonds, or by paying fixed in swaps. If sufficiently strong, this hedging activity can itself cause interest rates to rise further, and further increase duration for MBS holders, inducing another round of selling of Treasuries.
A Convexity Event Averted
A sudden initial rise in medium- to long-term rates can therefore trigger a self-reinforcing sell-off in Treasury yields and related fixed income markets, fueled by MBS hedging—a phenomenon known as a convexity event. During a convexity event, MBS hedgers collectively attempt to decrease duration risk by selling Treasury securities or paying fixed in swaps. The two most important factors that determine the likelihood of a convexity event are the size of the MBS portfolio held by duration hedgers and the convexity of that portfolio. The large-scale purchases of MBS initiated by the Federal Reserve in November 2008 as part of the post-crisis LSAPs have had a profound impact on both these determinants.
MBS investors, broadly speaking, fall into two categories: those holding MBS on an unhedged or infrequently hedged basis and those that actively hedge the interest rate risk exposure. Unhedged or infrequently hedged investors include the Federal Reserve, foreign sovereign wealth funds, banks, and mutual funds benchmarked against an MBS index. MBS holders who actively hedge include real estate investment trusts (REITs), mortgage servicers, and the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs).
The pie charts compare the holders of MBS in 2005 and at the end of 2012. The biggest change is the increase in Federal Reserve holdings, partly offset by a large reduction in the actively hedged GSE portfolio.
As can be seen in the earlier chart, the negative convexity of an MBS security (that is, the curvature of the black price-yield relationship) is greatest when the prepayment option is near- or at-the-money (or mortgage rates are close to the MBS coupon), but dissipates for sufficiently large rate changes. In May 2013, it was the 2010-13 MBS vintages that possessed the greatest levels of negative convexity. This is important because the Federal Reserve portfolio consists primarily of recently-issued low-coupon mortgages. Most of the holdings are in 3.5 percent or lower coupons, as the MBS purchased were primarily current coupon securities. While the Federal Reserve held slightly more than 20 percent of outstanding MBS by early summer 2013, it held a much larger fraction of the convexity risk of the MBS universe, a risk that was entirely borne by investors before the crisis.
The low-rate environment in early 2013 had arguably set the stage for a convexity event (historically low rates coupled with substantial negative convexity). As the ten-year yield rose from 1.70 percent in early May to 2.90 percent in August, mortgage portfolio durations extended significantly, forcing MBS hedgers to sell duration, or to sell the underlying MBS. However, by all accounts, the MBS-related hedging activity was more muted than in previous bond sell-off episodes, including those in 1994 and 2003. While the rate increase was similar in magnitude to the June 2003 sell-off, for example, it was more gradual and therefore inconsistent with a sell-off driven primarily by convexity hedging. A convexity event of the intensity seen in 1994 and 2003 did not materialize in 2013, and the risk of one occurring in the near future is lower as the Fed continues to hold a significant portion of all mortgage convexity risk and mortgage rates have risen substantially from their early 2013 lows.
The views expressed in this post are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York or the Federal Reserve System. Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of the authors.
Allan M. Malz is a vice president in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Markets Group.
Ernst Schaumburg is a research officer in the Bank’s Research and Statistics Group.
Roman Shimonov is an assistant vice president in the Bank’s Markets Group.
Andreas Strzodka is an associate in the Bank’s Markets Group. | <urn:uuid:6113a608-c4c6-47d6-b4eb-5d131f2a1da8> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://libertystreeteconomics.newyorkfed.org/2014/03/convexity-event-risks-in-a-rising-interest-rate-environment.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285289.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00143-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956277 | 1,571 | 1.8125 | 2 |
When thinking of an outdoor recreational activity this summer camping is very good to consider next to swimming. In most countries, camping is associated with the use of a tent and in some locations of the world they use motor home and caravan. I had my first camping when I was in grade 5 elementary in an activity for girl scouts. It happened at our school quadrangle followed by an out of town camping activity.
Before the camping activity, I have learned that there are many important things to prepare before the event. You should have a checklist on the things that you need to bring on the camp site.
Basic things you need in camping (camping checklist)
- Water and easy-to-cook foods
- Tent and sleeping bags
- Small pillow and light weight blanket
- Flashlight and batteries
- Matches and candles
- Personal hygiene small kit (toothpaste, toothbrush,soap, etc)
- First aid medicine kit (betadine ointment, alcohol, cotton, gauze and bandage)
- Small axe, knife
- Recreational things you may need such as bicycle, rope when climbing and book
In our out of town girl scouts camping at that time, each group was assigned to have a pair of partner and share a tent. I am lucky because my partner shared a comfortable sleeping bag that looks like eureka sleeping bags. Because it is an out of town activity, having a partner is an effective way to avoid being lost when we have an activity in the forest. | <urn:uuid:7037d9c5-54d6-4316-9ac9-65c77b4d7c96> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://www.esupermommy.com/2012/02/basic-things-you-need-in-camping/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560284352.26/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095124-00194-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958018 | 312 | 2.59375 | 3 |
10 clean energy investments from Google
The past few years has seen Google embark on an ambitous program of investment in the renewables space, the most recent announcement seeing Google investing $200 million in a Texas wind farm. So where else has Google been putting its money?
Spinning Spur Wind Farm: West Texas wind
In December 2012, Google invested approximately $200 million in a 161 MW wind farm in Oldham County, Texas. The project, which uses 70 Siemens 2.3 MW turbines, has been contracted to SPS, a utility that primarily serves Texas and New Mexico. EDF Renewable Energy built the project and will remain the manager and an owner alongside Google.
Rippey Wind Farm: wind power in Iowa
Google invested $75 million in a 50 MW wind farm in Rippey, a small town in Greene County, Iowa. The wind farm, developed by RPM Access, uses turbines produced by Nordex USA at its Jonesboro, Arkansas facility. The energy produced by the wind farm has been contracted to the Central Iowa Power Cooperative, an Iowa-based utility that will deliver the energy to local consumers.
Recurrent Energy: Large-scale solar PV projects in California
A $94 million investment was made in a portfolio of four solar photovoltaic (PV) projects being built by Recurrent Energy near Sacramento, California. These projects have a total capacity of 88 MW— and the energy produced is already contracted for 20 years with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), the first projects to be built under their feed-in tariff program (FIT) to help green the grid for Sacramento-area residents.
Clean Power Finance: Financing for rooftop solar
Google invested $75 million to create a fund with Clean Power Finance (CPF) that will help up to 3,000 homeowners go solar. Purchasing a solar system is a major home improvement, but the upfront cost has historically been one of the biggest barriers for homeowners. Clean Power Finance's open platform connects installers with investors to provide financing to homeowners. It's an innovative and scalable model that makes business sense, and has the potential to lower costs and accelerate adoption of solar energy.
SolarCity: Solar for US residential rooftops
In what Google says is the largest deal of its kind to date, it invested $280 million in a SolarCity fund to help provide innovative financing for residential solar projects. SolarCity is a full service solar systems provider offering the option for consumers to go solar through a solar lease or power purchase agreements. SolarCity works with a customer to design a solar system for their home. Investors like Google purchase the system up front and, in return, receive a portion of lease payments from the homeowner along with Solar City. This kind of innovative financing removes a major adoption barrier for homeowners—the upfront cash required for systems—and makes solar power accessible to homeowners who would otherwise not consider it. SolarCity has completed or is currently building out more than 15,000 residential solar systems, the most of any company in the US.
BrightSource: Concentrated solar power at scale
In 2008, Google invested $10 million in startup company BrightSource Energy via Google.org. It subsequently invested another $168 million into their first utility-scale solar project - Ivanpah - in California’s Mojave Desert. BrightSource specializes in “power towers"— solar thermal technology that uses heliostats, or sun-tracking mirrors, to focus solar energy onto a tower-mounted receiver. The receiver produces high pressure steam which, in turn, spins a traditional turbine generator to make electricity. Ivanpah will produce 377 MW (net) of solar power once it is up and running in 2013, and is expected to supply Pacific Gas and Electric and Southern California Edison with energy equivalent to that used in 140,000 homes in Central and Southern California. This will be the first large scale power tower project operating efficiently at high temperatures and pressures, demonstrating a critical step for the technology on a path to reliable, low cost, clean power.
Atlantic Wind Connection: A superhighway for clean energy transmission
Google has invested a 37.5 percent equity stake in the critical early-stage development of the Atlantic Wind Connection (AWC) backbone, a project to build a superhighway transmission infrastructure off the Mid-Atlantic coast. Once completed, the AWC backbone will stretch 250 miles along the coast from New Jersey to Virginia, enabling the connection of up to 7,000 MW of offshore wind power. The project helps states meet their renewable energy goals and standards using the most abundant local resource. The Mid-Atlantic region has a vast offshore wind resource capable of powering more than 60,000 MW of wind turbines in shallow waters that allow wind turbines to be installed 10-15 miles offshore.
Alta Wind Energy Center: Harnessing the winds of the Mojave
The wind resource is most impressive where the Mojave sands meet the Tehachapi Mountains in Southern California, making it a great spot for wind development. Google has invested a total of $157 million in two projects totalling 270 MW at the Alta Wind Energy Center (AWEC). This investment used a leveraged lease—a financial structure new to wind but one which provides advantages to both developers and investors. The project will also use some of the first transmission lines being developed specifically to transport renewable energy from remote, resource-rich areas to major population centers. The power will be delivered to Southern California Edison under long-term agreements with the first five Alta projects, totaling 720 MW, already operational. AWEC will reportedly boost California’s wind energy production by 30% and help the state meet its ambitious renewable energy mandate of 33% clean power generation by 2020.
Shepherd’s Flat: One of the world’s largest wind farms
Located in Arlington, Oregon, Shepherd’s Flat is anticipated to be one of the world’s largest wind farm at 845 MW. Google has invested $100 million in the farm, which will also reportedly be the largest to deploy, at scale, permanent magnet generators, a state-of-the-art turbine technology used to increase efficiency and reliability and ultimately lower the cost of wind energy. The project will also benefit the region by helping California meet its aggressive renewable energy goals. The electricity produced at Shepherds Flat will be sold under long-term agreements to Southern California Edison.
Peace Garden wind farms: More financing for wind
Google’s first investment in a utility-scale renewable energy project was $38.8 million in two wind farms in North Dakota that generate 169.5 MW of power. The projects were built by NextEra Energy Resources, which uses advanced wind turbine technology and monitoring and control systems to provide one of the lowest-cost sources of renewable energy in existence today.
Photovoltaics in Germany
In 2011, Google made its first international investment of €3.5 million (approximately $5 million for a 49 percent equity stake in the project) in a recently completed solar facility in Brandenburg, Germany. The plant, one of the largest in Germany, has peak capacity of 18.65 MW and will generate as much energy as that used in more than 5,000 homes. Germany has a strong framework for renewable energy and is home to many leading-edge technology companies in the sector. More than 70 percent of the solar modules used in the project were produced by German manufacturers.
Posted 31/01/2013 by David Hopwood
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Male Characters in the works of Female Poets during Sangam Period
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Men's characteristics have been mentioned in the perspective of women poets during the sangam period. When a men falls in love, to whom does he express it first, what are the efforts taken by the leader to win the love, the efforts of the men to see the heroine during the love period, what is the mood of men suffering from the excess of love, and the infamy that the men gets due to going along with heroine, for all these the love life of men gives answers. It is also said how the lust of a men is in a chastity life. And it can be known that a men's natural love is revealed when he is a father who shows true affection to his children and seeks the permission of his beloved in the act of doing. The habits and duties of men in daily life are also mentioned. It is also explained about the weakness of men and what are the activities that make men happy and sad. Who gets angry with men, the moments when men's anger is revealed, the way men reveal humor, and the moments when men are afraid have been explored and highlighted. Feminist poets have recorded in their songs about men's travel vehicle, entertainment, heroism, the way of exspressing the pain of separation, news about the heroine's father – brother and male workers. The news is known from male birds and animals, and also tells about the actions of a men who lived happily in his youth and also what he did after his ascetic life. This article is based to say all the above mentioned from the songs of sangam period womens.
- Mooventhan, P.S., (2016) Perumpanarrupadai Sirupanarrupadai, Kalaignan Pathippagam, Chennai, India.
- Puliyur kesigan, (2005) Pathitrupathu, Paari niliyam, Chennai, India.
- Puliyur Kesigan, (2010) Agananooru, Paari Nilaiyam, Chennai, India.
- Puliyur kesigan, (2011) Purananuru, Paari Niliyam, Chennai, India.
- Puliyur Kesigan, (2013) Kurunthogai Thelivurai, Paari Nilayam, Chennai, India.
- Puliyur kesigan, (2018) Nattrinai, Paari Niliyam, Chennai, India.
- Ramaiya Pillai, N., (2015) Nattrinai Moolamum Uraiyum, Saradha Pathippagam, Chennai, India.
- Subramanian, S.V., (2009) Tholkaapiyam Thelivurai, Manivasagar Pathippagam, Chennai, India.
- Vaani Arivaalan, (2009) Sanga Ilakkiya Thedal, Tamil Kottam, Chennai, India. | <urn:uuid:081fa53a-df59-48b4-ba94-8fde6d0a2aa2> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://irjt.iorpress.org/index.php/irjt/article/view/1036 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573623.4/warc/CC-MAIN-20220819035957-20220819065957-00673.warc.gz | en | 0.935876 | 662 | 2.953125 | 3 |
A Plan of Part of the East Coast of the Island of Cape Breton
- A Plan of Part of the East Coast of the Island of Cape Breton
- Former owner:
- Amherst, Jeffery Amherst, Baron, 1717-1797
- Former owner:
- Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies
- British Library
- Collection (local):
British Library Collection
Cape Breton Island (N.S.)--Maps, Manuscript--Early works to 1800
CanadaNova Scotia (province)Cape Breton Island (island)
- 1 map : manuscript pen and ink with watercolour ; 45 x 29 cm
No known copyright restrictions.
This work is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike License (CC BY-NC-SA).
[Place of production not identified] :
[producer not identified]
Scale approximately 1:253,440
- Catalog Record:
Date from previous British Library cataloguing and stylistic observations.
Shows title at lower left.
Shows "A Scale of English Statute Miles" at lower right.
Includes a note at lower right "Note. The Red Line is Drawn at the distance of two Miles parallel to the Sea Coast".
shows a decorative compass rose at upper right including north and magnetic north. The compass rose includes an arrow with a feathered fletch.
Shows English and French nomenclature or toponyms.
Copy at Add Ms 57,701.8. Bound in R.U.S.I. Vol LXVI. Shows manuscript addition of "8" in pencil at upper right, "A84" at lower left and "A 27/6" at lower right. Laid on linen. Green circular sticker to verso with "6". Additional white label to verso showing "DRAWER 27 SECTION 5". Additional blue label to verso showing "a 27/6".
- Notes (date):
This date is inferred. | <urn:uuid:6a7ce1cc-6763-42dc-be7e-58a9123f98ee> | CC-MAIN-2022-33 | https://collections.leventhalmap.org/search/commonwealth:hx11z016b | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2022-33/segments/1659882573197.34/warc/CC-MAIN-20220818124424-20220818154424-00675.warc.gz | en | 0.806821 | 539 | 2.078125 | 2 |
Growing up, watching television wasn’t part of my family’s morning routine. By the time I got up, showered, made my lunch, ate breakfast and read the comics, it was time to head out the door to school. So, twelve years ago when my mom turned on the television when she got back from dropping my sister off at school, I immediately migrated to the living room because I knew something had happened.
Before September 11, 2001, I had no idea what the World Trade Center was. Yet that day, as the television showed footage of two smoking buildings in New York City, it didn’t matter. As a sophomore in high school, I wanted answers about these buildings, and as the broadcasters tried to make sense of the situation, it was the one thing they couldn’t provide.
We tried to talk about it at school that day, and while some teachers indulged us, most just encouraged us to go about our business as we did every day. It’s hard to experience a tragedy through television because movies and cable regularly show fictional tragedies of a far greater scale. Eventually the line between real and fake blurs, and people become desensitized to what’s actually happening out in the world.
At least that’s what happened to me. I’m not proud to say that beyond the initial fear for my own safety, I was easily able to forget about what was happening on the other side of the country because I had no frame of reference to comprehend it. I was able to move on, because a few weeks post-tragedy the television cameras moved on and my life was once again normal and safe. Many others didn’t have that luxury.
Ten years later, I had the blessing of doing campus ministry at Saint Peter’s College (now University), and my perspective changed. Saint Peter’s is a small Jesuit Catholic institution in Jersey City, New Jersey – just a stone’s throw away from the Hudson River and Manhattan. My first weekend on the East Coast, my Dad and I took the PATH train to the World Trade Center stop and were able to see the construction happening on the Freedom Tower, the site where the World Trade Center towers used to stand. Suddenly, something that happened ten years previous seemed a lot more real.
What really changed me, though, was listening to the stories of colleagues and students as they vividly recounted their version of the events of September 11, 2001. I heard stories of those in elementary school as they looked out over the New York skyline and saw smoke billowing up from a place it wasn’t the day before; I heard from parents who frantically left work and fought traffic because they knew that the only place their kids would be safe was their arms; I heard from priests who tried their best to stay composed as they comforted the people losing their minds because the safety and normalcy of every day life had been shattered. Everyone was affected because everyone knew someone who died in downtown Manhattan that day.
My high school vantage point on the West Coast did not afford me the intimate look at the grief and loss that millions of people felt that day. The oppressive blanket of patriotism that irritated me as it emerged in the days following, I learned instead was a great city trying to be strong enough to support a country that just needed to grieve and cope with a profound loss. The theme of “Never Forget” became a cliché in my world, but it was far from that for the folks of New York and New Jersey. It was a curse and a prayer: “Dear Lord, I want to put this day out of my mind forever, but the memories just won’t erase. And the pain that numbs as time passes never really leaves completely. As you bore your cross, please help me bear this one.”
I am proud of my Angeleno heritage, and wouldn’t change it for the world. But today, I wish to forsake it so that I might stand more closely with my brothers and sisters of New York and New Jersey. I only spent a year there, so I won’t pretend to understand the entirety or complexity of emotions felt on this anniversary, but I have a better idea now than I did 12 years ago. Though I can’t be there with you, know that in Nebraska there’s a little piece of New Jersey in my heart that because of you will Never Forget.
Creighton Center for Service and Justice
The CCSJ blogs are meant to be a place for Creighton students, faculty, staff, alumni/ae, and friends to reflect on their experiences with programs sponsored by the office or related to its mission. The views expressed in these reflections, and all other blogs found on or linked to from this website, are those of the individual authors and are not necessarily those of Creighton University, the Creighton Center for Service and Justice (CCSJ), or any of the University’s affiliates. The University and the CCSJ are not responsible for the actions, content, accuracy, or opinions expressed in these blogs. | <urn:uuid:661899e3-a8db-41c3-8e1e-261e6248289d> | CC-MAIN-2017-04 | http://blogs.creighton.edu/ccsj/2013/09/september-11th-why-ill-never-forget/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-04/segments/1484560285289.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20170116095125-00154-ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979458 | 1,056 | 1.632813 | 2 |
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