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The Indiana Department of Education named Harrison High School German teacher Amanda Beck as one of the Top 10 finalists for Indiana Teacher of the Year.
Beck has taught for 15 years and has a bachelor’s degree from Valparaiso University and a master’s degree from Wesleyan University. Beyond the classroom, Beck chairs the school’s World Languages department, sponsors several student groups and coordinates German Quiz Bowl teams and a foreign exchange program.
Beck says she is shocked and honored to be named a finalist: “Every step of this process has been a chance to really reflect on my time in the profession and at Harrison. I am grateful to be in a school corporation that lets us teachers do what we do best and gives us the latitude to pursue professional opportunities for ourselves and meaningful experiences for students.”
Harrison senior Chloe McGuire says Frau Beck does a lot for students inside and outside the classroom. “She always makes sure her class is exciting and engaging,” says Chloe. “We learn vocab, grammar and conversation skills, all while laughing and having fun. Her class is structured in a way that keeps it low stress. I am glad she is being recognized for all that she does for her German students and for Harrison High School.”
Each year, the Indiana Teacher of the Year Program works to inspire, rejuvenate and celebrate the teaching profession by recognizing outstanding teachers from across the state. The 2023 Indiana Teacher of the Year will be named later this fall. | https://bge.tsc.k12.in.us/about-us/bge-news-posts/news-post/~board/tippecanoe-school-corporation-news/post/tsc-educator-named-top-10-finalist-for-indiana-teacher-of-the-year |
Our Lansing neighborhoods are full of friendly folks, flower gardens, and cars. I sometimes feel overwhelmed by the speed that vehicles travel along my street. I love walking around with my family, friends, and neighbors to the library, to the community garden, to the coffee shop and I want to feel safe doing this simple activity.
The aim of the crosswalk painting projects is to increase joy while using the sidewalks and slow traffic on the roads. Playful imagery at common intersections brings people out of the commonplace. Walking across the colorful crosswalks empower pedestrians with a sense of belonging while slowing down vehicles.
We have heard a lot of great feedback from residents who live near the crosswalks. Here are some comments from social media posts:
October, 2022: The intersection of Ferguson and Jerome in the Eastfield neighborhood. This project will be funded by a local citizen.
Marcus St and S Foster Ave, 2022
Garden veggeis, flowers, bugs, and sun and rain. Project sponsored by the Lansing Greater Food Bank Garden Project.
N. Clemens and Jerome, Vine, and Fernwood, 2022
Local flowers, including, dandelion, white clover, bleeding heart, violet, columbine, day lily, and lily of the valley painted with various spray paint.
Magnolia and Vine, 2021
Scale design painted with Pro-Park Sherwin Williams paint.
Hayford and Vine, 2021
Confetti design painted with Pro-Park Sherwin Williams paint.
Arts Council of Greater Lansing - Mini Pocket Grants for Art 2021 and 2022, $500 each year.
I’m the organizer of the projects listed above, my name is Jill Dombrowski. I moved to Lansing in the mid 2010’s and have enjoyed raising my family here. I have a visual arts background with education in drawing and printmaking. With these projects I's aiming to “be the change I want to see in the world”. I’ve coordinated volunteers to help with past painting projects. I try to have 15 volunteers per project.
There have been other crosswalk painting projects recently in Lansing, like rainbow crosswalks in Old Town and Downtown, and the Black Lives Matter painting in front of the capitol, I am not sure who is responsible for these projects.
The projects have been funded by sponsoring organizations or by grants through the Arts Council of Greater Lansing. No taxpayer money has been used to fund these projects. The cost for materials is about $100 for a single crossing, but mainly depends on the density of the painted surface.
We decide on a location, date, and design. In the past we have tried painting with road quality paint and spray paint. Depending on the paint material, large scale templates are made from house wrap for regular paint or cardboard for spray paint. Materials are purchased. On the day of the painting we prepare the road surface by sweeping out loose dirt and debris. We measure out a six-foot width for the crosswalks and use a chalk line to mark straight lines. The main white lines are always painted per the City Public Services office instructions. One side of the crosswalk is painted at a time to allow traffic to continue through the intersection during painting. Once the paint is dry we switch sides. High fives all around at the end of the project.
Yes. We coordinate all our locations and designs with the head of public services for the city of Lansing.
Please use the contact form below.
Would you like the crosswalks near your home or business painted? Do you have a design idea? We’ll work with you to make it happen! | https://bikeandseek.org/crosswalks/ |
§ 3. Petersburg School of Functional Grammar. Theory of functional grammar (TFG) A. V. Bondarko
The formation of the concept of TFG began in the 1970s and 1980s. A year after the publication of the academic "United States Grammar (1980) A. V. Bondarko publishes the article "The Basics of Constructing Functional Grammar." From 1981 to 1987, the basic principles of the concept are developed, basic concepts are defined - the functional semantic field and the categorical situation. In 1987, the first volume of the six-volume collective work appears under the general title "Theory of Functional Grammar." The first volume is devoted to the verbal category of the species, which is represented in three functional-semantic fields: aspectuality, temporal localization and taxis. The second volume was published in 1990, and the last, the sixth, in 1996. The results of this collective study were summed up in the book by AV Bondarko, "Fundamentals of Functional Grammar: The Language Interpretation of the Idea of Time" (2001). And since 2000, volumes have begun to be published under the general title "Problems of Functional Grammar," in which another "input" is proposed. in the linguistic system - not from grammatical meaning to grammatical form, but from a certain linguistic problem, for example, from the problem of interrelations of the system-linguistic and speech aspects of morphological and syntactic categories, to the linguistic system.
TFG creates a classification, system-descriptive model of categorical grammar. This model, arising in the framework of the Leningrad typological school, represents the United States grammatical system in the series of grammars of other languages. The comparative aspect of TFG determined the categorical-morphological nature of TFG, in contrast to the FCG, which is addressed to the text and the speaker as the creator of the text. FCG is a system-explanatory grammar that recognizes the priority of syntax over morphology. The FCG interprets the morphological categories of names and verbs within the minimal syntactic unit (the syntaxum, quantitatively equal to the wordform, the sentence member), and within the communicative unit (sentence) - with respect to the syntactic whole of the text.
A. V. Bondarko, summarizing the work of the TFG research team for two decades, showed [Bondarko, 2001] the difference between TFG, first, from the previous traditional formal-descriptive grammar and, secondly, from the functional-communicative grammar developed under the direction of G A. Zolotovoy. The difference from the traditional grammar of AV Bondarko states as follows: "If the traditional grammar answers primarily to the question" how is the linguistic system arranged? "Then the functional grammar, of course, considering the structure of this system and its elements, seeks to answer the question" how does it work? ". If traditional grammar analyzes and describes linguistic facts predominantly or exclusively in the direction from form to meaning, then functional grammar assumes the dominant role of analyzing linguistic material in the direction from sense to expression, from functions to means of their realization. This is due to the desire to reflect the speaker's position in the grammatical description, the most important aspect of his thought-speech activity is the movement from the meaning he wants to express to the realization of this intention in a concrete utterance " [FROM. 5-6]. At the same time traditional (level, descriptive) grammar and functional grammar are in the relations of mutual complement:
These types of grammar complement each other in a wide field of grammatical research [FROM. 8].
In order to characterize different directions within the framework of modern functional grammar, A. V. Bondarko proposed the dominant principle: he describes TFG as a model with a system-language dominant, and KG as a model with a communicative-speech dominant [S. 8-9]. This means that each theory is distinguished by its priority: TFG - system-descriptive, FCG - system-explaining. TFG represents the grammatical system of the United States language from categorical (fatal) meanings to ways of expressing them. FCG represents United States grammar as a mechanism of speech generation (oral and written) in the systemic interaction of meanings, functions and forms.
Typical for TFG is, (1) that the starting point for research thought are morphological categories (for example, categories of the verb); (2) that the language unit is understood as a two-dimensional entity within the level system of the language; (3) that the theoretical basis and terminological apparatus of the concept provide not only a representation of the United States language system from within, but also a comparative study of different linguistic systems.
Each grammatical theory is based on certain scientific concepts, which are the main tools for representing language material. In TFG are the concepts of function, semantic category, functional semantic field and categorical situation.
Working in a two-dimensional system, the TFG representatives view the function as the intent of the language unit to express a certain (grammatical) meaning, for example, the ability of the second person verb forms singular. serve to express an attitude towards the addressee of speech or to the "generalized person" [Bondarko, 2002. P. 40]. With this approach, it becomes necessary to show the relationship between the concepts of meaning and function. Arguing with V. Dressler, A. V. Bondarko suggests talking about the "semantic function", which is not identical with the meaning, since "any value can be regarded as a function of a certain means or complex of linguistic means, but not every function is a value (cf. structural functions of means of reconciliation, connecting morphemes, etc.) [FROM. 342]. The concept of function in TFG differs from the concept of function in the works of the Prague Linguistic School. A.Bondarko speaks of these differences: "Representatives of the Prague school put forward the concept of inter-level correlation of means and functions, including, in particular, the following provisions: language levels are in relation to the highest levels as the area of their construction means, and relation to the lower levels - as an area of their functional purpose ... Unlike the concept relating functions of units of a given level to the next (higher) levels, we proceed from the fact that the function has certain forms of existence, not only at these higher levels, but also at the level that is constituted by a given unit [FROM. 346-347].
Semantic categories (time, space, quality, quantity, etc.) as universal semantic constants constitute the content foundation of the FSP [Bondarko, 2001. P. 28].
Functional-semantic field (FSP) is a grouping of different levels of the given language interacting on the basis of the generality of their semantic functions and expressing variants of a certain semantic category [Bondarko, 2002. P. 289]. The functional-semantic field is a semantic category, considered in unity with the system of means of its expression in a given language [Bondarko, 2001. P. 17].
If the description of each FSP gives an idea of the paradigmatic system of multilevel language tools serving to express variants of a certain semantic category in the language under study, then the categorial situations presented in the multistage system of variance reflect the representation of the semantic categories in speech. [FROM. 26]. Thus, FSP is a way of gathering (by the researcher) language tools of different levels around one semantic category and a way of representing this category in a descriptive grammar. The concept of CS "serves to analyze the functional variants of a given semantic category, expressed in the utterance [FROM. 27]. The concept of CS in TFG is used to explain the relationship between the language category and the conditions of its expression in speech, that is, in A. Bondarko's opinion, to explain the relationship between the system and the environment.
In order to connect the system of the FCS with the traditional grammatical model, AV Bondarko introduces another concept - the "grammatical unity". Such grammatical unity becomes a part of speech ( grammatically characterized lexicon class ), as well as a sentence ( it integrates the properties of the grammatical unit and grammatical unity [p. 31].
Agreeing with the theorists of systemic nature, AV Bondarko adopts the following definition of the system: "the system as a set of elements with relations and connections between them that form a certain integrity, manifests and forms all its properties in interaction with the environment. The interdependence of the system and the environment is considered as one of the system principles, along with such system properties as integrity and hierarchy. The concept of the functioning (behavior) of an object includes its connections with the environment. This also applies to the functioning of language system objects [Bondarko, 2002. S. 193-194].
And further, A. V. Bondarko applies the notions of system and environment for representing relations: (a) between grammar and vocabulary, (b) between language and speech, (c) between categories in the grammatical system itself. The system objects in TFG include the sentence, the grammatical category (type, time, pledge, etc.), the functional semantic field (aspectuality, temporality, pledge, etc.), various groupings of grammatical categories (system of verbal categories, system of nominal categories), "word forms, parts of speech, sentence members" [FROM. 194].
"The environment with respect to a language unit, category or grouping as the source system is treated as follows: it is a set of linguistic (in some cases also extralinguistic) elements, playing the role of the environment in relation to the initial system, in interaction with which it performs its function. In the implementation of system values of grammatical categories, the role of the environment is performed by elements of the context and the speech situation; to the environment are lexical values and lexico-grammatical categories of words that affect this category, as well as elements of the "categorical environment" - other grammatical categories that interact with the category considered as the source system. Thus, the implementation of the category of the verbal species under conditions of species correlation or non-correlation and the use of the forms of the perfect and imperfect type depends on the elements of the context of the type once , often , suddenly , gradually , etc., from such elements of the speech situation as observability (and wider, perceptuality), from the lexical meaning of the verb, its belonging to the bits of limiting and unsaturated verbs, and to one or another mode of action , from interaction on the part of the categories of time, inclination, person and pledge [FROM. 194].
In the six-volume TFG, the United States grammatical system is represented as a set of functional-semantic fields, from which the following FSPs are considered: aspectuality (type and methods of the verbal action), temporal localization (particular values of the time category), taxis (simultaneity / time), temporality, modality, personality, zalogovost, subjectivity, objectivity, communicative perspective, certainty / uncertainty, qualitative, quantitative, locality, beingness, pos ssivnost, conditionality temporal order. The seven first FSPs represent the verbal categories: type - aspectuality, type and time - temporal localization, the species-time ratio of the verbal forms - taxis; time - temporality, inclination - modality, person - personality, pledge - zalogovost. The four following fields relate to the level of the sentence and interpret the functions of the nominal word forms in the sentence. FSP quality is formed around a certain part of speech - the adjective, the FSP of quantitative - around the category of numbers. Locality fields (place), beingness, posessivnosti (possession, belonging) and conditionality (causality in a broad sense) represent certain types of syntactic structures - sentences with the meaning of being, location, possession, as well as polypredicative constructions expressing the conditionality of one situation of another. The Temporary Temporary Temporary Interpretation Committee interprets the category of time as a category of text.
Let's turn directly to the description of the semantic categories proposed in TFG, in particular, to the FSP of temporality, taxis, personality and quantification.
The FSP of temporality is formed around the verbal category of time. Accordingly, the categorial semantics will be presented in connection with the grammatical meaning of the time category: "The semantic category under consideration reflects the linguistic interpretation of human perception of the time of designated situations relative to the moment of the speaker's speech or other starting point of reference. The main division in this semantic sphere is the "simultaneity (present) / predecessor (past) / following (future) [FROM. 473].
Temporality FCS is a system functioning in interaction with the environment, to which: (a) other verbal categories (type, inclination, person and pledge), for the category of time, the most important is the interaction with the category of inclination and the category of the species; (b) other FSPs in the aspect of the temporal complex (aspectuality, temporal localization, taxis, temporal order); (c) FSP of the person (category of person) in the system of deictic means; (d) syntactic context (sentence and text).
Like any functional-semantic field, the temporal FSP is divided into center and periphery. In the center is the grammatical category of time, which in United States is "limited by the frame of the indicative mood" [FROM. 484]. The following components of the given field can be assigned to the nearest environment of the core of the FCS temporal (and to the nearest periphery): 1) Analytic participle-passive forms of the type was considered - considered - will be considered; 2) the forms of the full participles of the past ( considered , considered , considered ) and present tense ( considering , the considered ) ; 3) the formation of the type was saying , eat , interfered , sewed , sang , hanged with the meaning of "old custom"; 4) vertex-free syntactic constructions with the present-day value, correlating with constructions including forms like was , will ( Night, Cold , etc.) ; [FROM. 486].
To the far periphery, A. V. Bondarko refers: "1) gerunds in the composition of participial constructions; 2) syntactic constructions with a modal meaning that implicates the temporal attribution of the situation or one of its elements to the future ( Go! Build! Have a rest, go to the outfit, Help you? I can get acquainted with my acquaintances , etc.) P.); 3) lexical circumstantial indicators of the type now , tomorrow , in two weeks , yesterday , a year ago , long etc .; 4) constructions with time unions of type when , while , while , as soon as , only only , barely etc .; similar constructions (subordinate parts of the corresponding complex sentences) are included in the expression of the taxis, but at the same time they perform an adverbial temporal function comparable to the circumstantial function of the lexical means mentioned; 5) various contextual means of transferring temporal relations that do not have a definite and homogeneous structural characteristic, for example, then , in later works ...; remember ...; in your dreams ... , etc. [FROM. 491-492].
To the linguistic interpretation of the category of time, the FSS of Taxis also applies. The term taxis (order) was introduced by R. Jakobson to denote the temporary relationship between two events expressed in the United States language by homogeneous predicates or participial and participial forms.
In modern United States philology there are two understandings of the term "taxis" - Broad (as the relation between predicative units in all three predicative categories - modality, time and face) and narrow, going back to the works of R. Jacobson and Yu. S. Maslov (as a temporary relationship between predicative units). TFG speaks of a taxi in the narrow sense of the word: "The invasive value of taxis can be defined as the temporal correlation of actions, correlation within a single time plan expressed in the polypredicative constructions" [S.505].
The invariant meaning of the taxis appears in the following main variants:
a) the simultaneity / relationship of non-simultaneity (precedence-follow-up): So far we seated , he went through papers (simultaneity); Like just finish the conversation with you , report (sequence);b) the temporal correlation of actions in combination with the causation relationships (causal, conditional, ceding): Realizing this , he changed its decision (precedence and causal relations); Realizing this , it still did not change its decision (precedence and assignment); c) interrelation of actions within the framework of a single time plan with non-actualization of the above chronological relations: All evening before dinner, he sang , whistled , noisy played with the dog (actions in the designated extralinguistic situation may be partly simultaneous, partly at different times (possibly interleaved), but the chronological relationships are not updated: it is important only that the whole evening was filled with marked actions "[S. 506]. The term "taxis" covers two types of conjugation of actions in time within the framework of a polypredicative complex: 1) the correlation of the basic and dependent predicate ( dependent taxis , represented in participial, participial and some other constructions, including combination of basic and dependent predication); 2) the correlation of two or more "peers" predicates ( independent taxis in constructions with homogeneous predicates, in compound sentences and in compound sentences of different types - with subordinate clauses, conditions, concessions, with subordinate explanatory) [FROM. 508].
Accordingly, in the Taxi Taxi, two centers and two peripheries are distinguished:
Dependent taxis. The central component is constructions with gerunds of perfect and imperfect type. Peripheral components: a) constructions with participles; b) prepositional-case constructions of type when considering in conjunction with the verb.
Independent taxis. Center:
1) the ratio of the species-time forms in compound sentences with subordinate clauses and in unionless complex;
2) the ratio of the species-time forms in sentences with homogeneous predicates and in compound sentences.
Peripherals:
1) the ratio of the species-time forms in complex sentences with subordinate clauses, causes, consequences and concessions;
2) the ratio of the species-temporal forms in the compound with the subordinate explanatory [S. 513].
The personality's FCF is associated with the grammatical category of the person, which is treated in TFG as a characteristic of the participants in the indicated situation in relation to participants in the speech situation - primarily to the speaker " [FROM. 543].
In general, the semantics of the face is a field structure in which the center and the periphery are distinguished, and in each of these spheres a certain hierarchy is outlined. In the content of personality, the vertex position is occupied by the 1st person I representing the speaker. With him corresponds the 2nd person you. The nearest periphery of the semantics of personality (or, perhaps, an intermediate area between the center and the periphery - there are no sharp edges here) is the sphere of semantics of the third person that is associated with indicating exactly the person (s). The sphere of "third parties" actively interacts with the semantic core of personality. The same should be said about the semantics of the generalized personality (associated with the generalized and modified relation to the speaker and the listener) and indefiniteness (connected primarily with the uncertainty of the class of "third parties"). As for the objective third person, it has a clearly peripheral character, since it is an external environment, opposed to the actual persons who are either really participating or can participate in the speech act. On the extreme periphery, where the signs of personality are partly blurred, the meaning of the forms of impersonality is "&"; [FROM. 545].
Personality PKF is treated as a grouping of different-level (morphological, syntactic, lexical, and combined - lexical and grammatical) tools of the given language, serving to express various options for dealing with a person [FROM. 547-548].
A characteristic feature of the FCA personal in languages of different types is the union and interaction in the center of the field of the grammatical category of the verb and pronoun's face. The central grammatical components of a given field can be combined with peripheral lexical means involved in the expression of the relation to the person, for example: Your humble servant also put his signature ; The author of these lines brings gratitude; Our family expresses sympathy; Our brother does not have to dream about this; Your grace about such trifles does not think. The expression of attitude to the person is possible in utterances that do not contain verbal and pronominal forms of the face. These are, for example, utterances like Silence! Build! The hand! , etc., where the intonation-syntactic means expressing the imperative modality transmit and the associated motivation of the motivation to the 2-mule " [FROM. 548].
"The central role in the FSP in the United States language is played by grammatical forms of the face of verbs and personal pronouns (acting in the position of the subject). Other means of expressing the semantics of a person, representing more particular subsystems and limited by the conditions of their functioning, belong to the periphery of this field [FROM. 569]. To the nearest periphery are personal pronouns in indirect cases and pronouns possessive, reciprocal.
On the periphery of the personal FC, there is also an indirect expression of attribution to the person, enclosed in participial constructions, since they are related to the rule of one-subjectness of the secondary and main action: I go , looking around ( looking back gets a relation to 1-mulitsu due to the correlation with the 1st person A go; cf. He goes , looking around ") [S. 577].
In the field of nominal categories, the semantic category of quantity and, correspondingly, the FSC of quantitation are of interest. The quantity is considered by the representatives of TFG, on the one hand, "as a semantic category, which is a linguistic interpretation of the mental category of quantity, and on the other - as a functional semantic field based on the given semantic category - grouping of different levels of the given language interacting on the basis of quantitative functions" [TFG, 1996. P. 161].
"The quantity in United States refers to the number of FSPs of polycentric type. This field is based, on the one hand, on the grammatical category of the number (first of all nouns), and on the other - on the names of numerals, quantitative-nominal combinations, adjective and adverbial indicators of quantitative relations. Finally, a special type of quantity is represented in the sphere of verbal predicates [FROM. 161]. Thus, the quantitative category is also considered in connection with the idea of countability (the category of number), and with the idea of repeatability in time (verbal indicators of duration, repetition), and in connection with the idea of measure (the degree of comparison of adjectives).
The study of the counting of uncounting, expressed by the number of names by a noun ("n quantitation"), requires the correlation of the category of number and the semantics of nouns, i.e. the identification of conditions for the interaction of the category of quantity and lexico-semantic categories of nouns (subject, abstract, collective, material, etc.). In this case, the traditional n morphology of nouns pluralia tantum and singularia tantum is not illuminated from form (prohibitions on single or plural forms) but from the semantics of objectivity, abstractness or collectivity. Verbal Quantity is detected not only by means of secondary impersonation ( ask - ask many times ), but also analytically - adverbial and nominal multiplicity indicators ( regularly doing exercises, reading glossy magazines ).
In the field of view of the TFG are also the syntactic categories, i.e. such grammatical values that belong to the level of predicative units (sentence level) and text. First, the semantic categories correlated with the concept of the sentence member are subjectivity and objectivity, which ensure the realization of the basic nominal valences of the transitive verb, as well as locality (compare the circumstance of the place) and the category of definiteness / uncertainty. Secondly, categories, the plan of expression of which are complex and complicated sentences, is conditionality. Third, the regularity of the level of the text is the communicative perspective of the utterance.
Thus, the St. Petersburg school of functional grammar is a scientific direction in which, despite possible differences in the interpretation of particular problems (the school of science unites differently thinking scientists), there is a "generality of the fundamental starting positions and objectives of the study. The generality consists of: 1) the focus of analysis primarily on the content of the categories in question, 2) in this correlation of this content with the form of linguistic expression, which seeks to reveal the effect of the form on the representation of the actualized semantics, 3) in an effort to study the interaction of different levels of linguistic means participating in the implementation of the semantic functions under consideration [TFG, 1992. P.3].
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Doing Empirical Sociological Research This Unit is concerned with the process of carrying out empirical research—which is vital to keeping sociology alive and relevant! It also contains most of the information you will need to complete Writing Assignment 2, which is due shortly after the unit closes. Empirical Research Hopefully, you remember the term empirical evidence (or empirical data) from Unit 1: it is evidence that can be obtained and verified with the senses, such as sight or hearing. That evidence is collected and analyzed through empirical research–the process of systematically making observations and recording experiences in order to create data, and/or analyzing the data in order to create new knowledge that answers questions or tests theories. (Most empirical research involves collecting new data, but sometimes it consists of analyzing data that others have already collected, such as survey data gathered by the Census Bureau.) Note that a single empirical research project is often called a “study.†What empirical research IS NOT is, I think, what most beginning students think of when they hear the word “researchâ€: going to the library or online to find and read books and articles containing other people’s data and analyses. Those activities might be called “library research,†“secondary research,†or, as in Schaefer Ch. 2, Module 5, “reviewing the literature,†a stage in the scientific method. Indeed, this is an important step in empirical research because it allows us to look at what others have already learned and written about so that when we do our own studies, we can build on existing knowledge (rather than “discovering†what others already know) and avoid past researchers’ mistakes. However, looking up existing books and articles is not the same as doing your own empirical research—the former centers on synthesizing old knowledge, while empirical research produces new knowledge. Note that in Writing Assignment 2, you will be creating a plan for an empirical research project, not for library research. Hence I do not expect you to say you will find and read a bunch of books or articles, or to provide an extensive bibliography. I do expect you to think carefully about how to obtain and interpret empirical data! Research Proposals A research proposal is a detailed explanation of how empirical research will be carried out and why it is important, which researchers write before they begin a new project. Some of the things that research proposals typically include are: an introduction to the topic being studied, a review of existing literature on the topic, a description of the theoretical framework (e.g., functionalism, conflict theory, interactionism) that will guide research, a specific research question or hypothesis (or several questions/hypotheses), a description of the research design, including plenty of detail on who will be studied, how they will be studied, and how the resulting data will answer the research question, a description of how data will be analyzed, a discussion of limitations of the research (no research project is perfect!) and why these limitations are acceptable, a justification of why the research is important, even with these limitations, and perhaps other elements such as discussion of research budgets or ethics. Why do researchers go to the trouble to write up a proposal before they start collecting data? First and most importantly, research is a complicated process and it often requires lots of time and money, as well as the patience and cooperation of the people being studied. If an experiment or survey does not yield the data needed to answer the research question (which sometimes happens with poorly planned studies), it is usually not possible to go back and do it again. Therefore, it’s important to get it right the first time! Writing a proposal forces researchers to specify exactly what they intend to do, how, and why, which encourages careful planning. A second reason for writing proposals has to do with research ethics. Much research in the social sciences involves interaction (observation, experimentation, asking questions) with live human beings. Some past studies have caused harm to their participants (e.g., psychological distress from the Zimbardo prison study). Therefore sociologists today follow a code of ethics which emphasizes minimizing or eliminating harm, as well as protecting research participants’ confidentiality and their right to make informed decisions. To ensure that this code is followed, universities and other research settings have review committees that oversee the studies carried out by their employees. The proposal is one of the documents researchers must submit to review committees in order to get their studies approved. A final reason for writing proposals has to do with the financial costs of research. Often researchers need to get financial support for their studies in the form of grants from government agencies (the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, others), non-profit organizations (the American Sociological Association, the Pew Charitable Trusts, others), or for-profit corporations. They write proposals to convince potential funders that their inquiries are worthwhile and deserving of support. If you follow the link below (and click on a state), you can see summaries of research proposals that were submitted to and given funding by the National Science Foundation’s social and economic sciences division. (Don’t feel bad if you can’t fully understand them, though—they are written by very advanced researchers, and contain lots of jargon.) http://www.nsf.gov/awards/award_visualization.jsp?org=SES I have called Writing Assignment 2 a “research plan,” but what I am basically asking you to do is develop a mini- research proposal. Why am I asking you to do this? It’s a great way to demonstrate your knowledge of fundamental sociological concepts and perspectives (especially those in the present Unit and Unit 1), to focus your sociological imagination on a topic you are interested in, and to really engage your critical, logical thinking skills! Note, however, that you will not actually be carrying out the research you plan. I do mean that: **Do not attempt to give a survey, engage in participant observation, do an experiment, or otherwise collect any data as part of the proposal assignments!** Why not? First, that would take us beyond the scope of this introductory class. Second, each of you would have to submit your finished proposal to an ethics committee before collecting data, and that process takes months! So instead of actually doing research, the goal of the assignment is to devise a detailed, realistic plan for an empirical study that could actually be done. Research Questions and Hypotheses Often the most important part of any research proposal or plan is writing the research question. A research question is a carefully worded statement of the question or problem the researcher wishes to answer or solve by collecting and analyzing data, and it serves as a guideline for designing the rest of the research process. In sociology, a good research question has a number of important characteristics: It is relevant to the researcher’s focal topic It seeks to explain or interpret something about the topic, not just discover facts It seeks social explanations, not just individual or personal ones It can be answered with scientific logic and empirical evidence, not just opinion It is focused enough to lead to actual empirical research It reflects a theoretical perspective such as functionalism, conflict theory, or interactionism You will be writing a resarch question for Assignment 2. (Let me know if you need assistance with this difficult task!) Many of you will write those questions as questions, but some may want to write your questions as hypotheses instead. As Schaefer notes (p. 34), a hypothesis is a speculative statement (meaning: an educated guess) about the relationship between two or more variables (meaning: measurable characteristics that can change—see Unit 1). Schaefer’s description of the scientific method implies that all sociological studies use hypotheses, but this is an oversimplification. Hypotheses are used mostly in explanatory research (research on cause-and-effect relationships), especially if it employs quantitative data, or data that is represented as numbers (quantitative and qualitative data are defined in more depth in the next lecture note). If your topic and theoretical perspective lead you to a cause-and-effect question and suggest that quantitative data would be useful, you are welcome to write a hypothesis instead of a research question. To do so, you would write something like: “My study will attempt to examine whether the following hypothesis is true: Hypothesis: People with more years of education will earn higher salaries once they enter the full-time workforce.†(or whatever your hypothesis is) However, hypotheses are not always the best way to begin research. This is particularly the case when the research question is interpretive (it asks what a behavior or other pattern means to people), and especially if it calls for qualitative data (data expressed in worlds). For instance, Watson (“McDonalds in Hong Kongâ€) started his study with questions, not hypotheses. If your questions are interpretive and suggest qualitative data, you would write something like the following: “The goal of my study is to answer the following: Research Question: How do first-generation and non-first-generation college students perceive the challenges and rewards of college?†(or whatever your question is) [Note that this is an interpretive question because it centers on comparing the meanings of college for two different groups of people.] Of course, there are other possibilities—you may want to do an explanatory study with qualitative data (Chambliss’s “The Saints and the Rougnnecks†is a good example of this). If so, you have some choices to make, but keep in mind that hypotheses are usually used with quantitative data, so if you plan to collect qualitative data you are generally safer with a question. In sum You will begin Assignment 2 by choosing a topic and a theoretical perspective and devising a research question or hypothesis. For the theoretical perspective, you may choose functionalism, conflict theory, or interactionism: any perspective can be used to address any topic, though some topics seem to “fit†with certain theories more easily than others. If you are having difficulty thinking of a question that reflects your theoretical perspective, try plugging your topic into one of the following sample questions. (You will also have to make further modifications indicated by the brackets. Also, these questions are not the only possibilities, but at least they will get you started): Functionalism: How is [topic] functional or dysfunctional for [specify some part or aspect of society]? Conflict Theory: How does [topic] help reinforce [or challenge] inequalities between [specify two unequal social groups]? Interactionism: How do people construct the meanings of [topic] in everyday interactions? Or, how does [topic] affect people’s perceptions of reality? After you’ve written your question, Assignment 2 requires that you plan to address it using one of the major research designs described in Schaefer Module 6 and the lecture notes here. This is another important but difficult decision. To help, the next two lecture notes address some things you should consider in selecting a research design: (a) whether you need qualitative or quantitative data, and (b) what types and how many people you will include in your study. | https://ordertutor.xyz/sociological/ |
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“Due to the new wastewater treatment plant expenses, sewer rates increased by 22 ½% in 2015 and 2016; by 9% in 2017-2019; and 9 ½% in 2020. In 2020, the city hired JEO Consulting to conduct a water and sewer rate study,” she explained. “This study provided two options for rates to ensure that we get to a positive cash flow for sewer in five years. Option One is to increase rates by 2 1/2 % each year until 2025. Option Two is increase rates in 2021 by 10%.
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Published: October 29, 2015
Results {#sec1}
=======
Unequal Cell Divisions and Heterogeneous Cell Growth Introduce Cell-Size Variability in the Meristem {#sec1.1}
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The absence of cell migration and the relatively easy access to the shoot apical meristem facilitate the analysis of how cell growth and division are coordinated during multicellular development. To track cell growth and division, we used time-lapse confocal imaging of excised *Arabidopsis* inflorescence apices \[[@bib11], [@bib12]\] and developed a package of Python scripts and Fiji macros to landmark, segment, locate, track, and measure cells in 3D (3D_meristem_analysis, source code, and detailed description in [Supplemental Information](#app2){ref-type="sec"}) ([Figures 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}A and 1B). Images were manually curated to delete cells that were incorrectly segmented or tracked; all experiments focused on cells in the two outer meristem layers (L1, L2), for which segmentation accuracy was higher. Using independent images of the same apex at two different angles, the average coefficient of variation for the volumes of matched cells was 5.4% (three apices, n = 1,902) ([Figure S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}).
Coordination between cell growth and cell cycle not only sets the average cell size, but also constrains its variability \[[@bib2]\]. To assess whether the uniformity of meristem cells is consistent with active control of cell sizes, we first measured the sources of size variability. Meristem cell divisions were often unequal ([Figures 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}D and 1F). Division ratios (defined as the volume of each sibling cell relative to their combined volume) varied between 23% and 77%, with a SD of 9.4%--11.8% (95% confidence interval, [Table S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}), comparable to the 9.3% reported using cell areas \[[@bib14]\]. The coefficient of variation (CV) of mother cell volumes was significantly lower than for their daughter cells, confirming that unequal divisions increased cell-size variability during a single cell generation ([Figure 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}G).
A key question in cell-size homeostasis is how growth rate relates to cell volume: the initial variability caused by unequal divisions could be either amplified by exponential growth (i.e., if cells have the same relative growth rate regardless of size) or reduced, if larger cells grew relatively less \[[@bib15]\]. Furthermore, feedback between mechanical stress and local growth rates, which causes heterogeneity in the growth of neighboring cells \[[@bib16]\], could potentially couple growth rates to cell sizes. In the meristem, relative growth rates showed a weak but significant negative correlation with cell volumes (r = −0.17, p = 8.74 e-13) ([Figure 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}H), rejecting the hypothesis of exponential growth, but at the same time indicating that most of the variation in growth rate was not related to cell volume. Similar results were obtained using only cells in the central region of the meristem ([Table S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}), suggesting that this variability is not due to regional differences in meristem growth. Visual inspection confirmed that neighboring meristem cells with similar volume often had divergent growth rates ([Figures 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}C--1F). In conclusion, rather than causing cell sizes to converge, local growth heterogeneity could add to the variability introduced by unequal cell divisions, while the negative correlation between growth rate and cell volume, albeit weak, might still constrain cell-size variability in the meristem.
Maintenance of Uniform Sizes Is Likely to Require Coordination of Cell Growth and Cell Cycle in Individual Cells {#sec1.2}
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We next used computer simulations to test whether the observed unequal divisions, heterogeneous local growth, and slower growth of larger cells would be sufficient to reproduce the observed distribution of meristem cell sizes, assuming that the cell proliferation rate is controlled at the population level to match the rate of tissue growth (summary in [Figure 2](#fig2){ref-type="fig"}A, detailed description and source code in [Supplemental Information](#app2){ref-type="sec"}). As a simple approximation, growth rates were adjusted to cell volume using the linear function shown in [Figure 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}H, but comparable results were obtained by fitting alternative functions to the data ([Figures S2](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}C--S2K) or using a probability density function ([Figures S2](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}L--S2N). Parameter values within the 95% confidence interval of experimental measurements ([Table S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}) were selected to minimize divergence in cell sizes (for sensitivity to parameter values, see [Figures S2](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}A and S2B). The experimental variability introduced by imaging and image processing was subtracted ([Supplemental Experimental Procedures](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}) and variation in cell-cycle length (which could not be measured at our temporal resolution) was set to zero. Even with these conservative parameter estimates, after four cell cycles the simulated cell population had significantly diverged from the tighter distribution of cell volumes seen in real meristems ([Figures 2](#fig2){ref-type="fig"}B, 2C, 2E, [S2](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}A, and S2B). In contrast, when the heterogeneity in cell growth rates was compensated by adjusting individual cell-cycle lengths (simulation *b* in [Figure 2](#fig2){ref-type="fig"}A), the simulated cell-size distribution matched the experimental data ([Figures 2](#fig2){ref-type="fig"}B, 2D, and 2E). These simulations suggested that meristem cell sizes are not stabilized as a passive consequence of the slower growth rate of larger cells, but as a result of local coordination between cell growth and cell cycle.
Meristem Cell Sizes Are Rapidly Corrected after Perturbation {#sec1.3}
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Coordination of cell growth and cell cycle could occur through parallel control by external signals or by a homeostatic feedback between both processes \[[@bib2]\]. These hypotheses make different predictions about the outcome of modifying cell sizes by transiently perturbing cell-cycle progression: parallel control would perpetuate altered cell sizes, whereas feedback would correct them \[[@bib4]\]. To test these predictions, we used localized expression of the Kip-like CDK inhibitor KRP4, which belongs to a family of key regulators of S-phase entry in plants \[[@bib17]\].
Previous work showed that ectopic expression of the organ growth gene *JAG* reduces meristem cell sizes by causing meristem cells to enter S-phase at abnormally small volumes \[[@bib12]\] and that JAG directly represses *KRP4* \[[@bib18]\]. We therefore hypothesized that *KRP4* could be an endogenous regulator of meristem cell size. Accordingly, *KRP4* was expressed in the inflorescence and floral meristems ([Figures S3](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}A--S3C), and the loss of function of *krp4-2* mutant \[[@bib18]\] showed a small but significant reduction in meristem cell volumes ([Figures S3](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}D--S3F). Conversely, in *CLV3\>\>KRP4* plants, in which KRP4 was overexpressed in the inflorescence meristem using a driver derived from the *CLV3* promoter \[[@bib19]\], median cell volumes were nearly 4-fold higher in the center of the meristem ([Figures 3](#fig3){ref-type="fig"}A and 3D; [Table S2](#mmc2){ref-type="supplementary-material"}). As the descendants of these large cells were displaced to the meristem periphery and floral primordia, where the driver was not expressed, cell volumes returned to normal, while cellular growth rates remained comparable ([Figures 3](#fig3){ref-type="fig"}G and 3H), and time-course imaging showed that cell volumes were corrected because of more frequent cell divisions ([Figures 3](#fig3){ref-type="fig"}B, 3C, 3E, 3F, and [S3](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}G--S3L). A similarly transient increase in cell sizes was seen in *CLV3\>\>KRP4* floral meristems ([Figures S3](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}M--S3P). We conclude that cell-cycle length is adjusted to maintain cell-size homeostasis in the meristem.
Abnormal Cell Sizes Do Not Affect Growth but Perturb Organ Boundaries and Organ Emergence {#sec1.4}
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We next asked what could be the relevance of actively controlling meristem cell sizes. *CLV3\>\>KRP4* plants had no obvious defects in meristem size, floral bud emergence ([Figures 3](#fig3){ref-type="fig"}A and 3D), and in the overall aspect of the inflorescence ([Figure S4](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}), suggesting that as observed in leaves, meristem development can accommodate considerable variation in cell size \[[@bib20]\]. However, because cells are the minimal spatial units to establish gene expression patterns, we reasoned that cell size might affect patterning of structures a few cells across, such as organ boundaries. To test this idea, we used an *AP1* driver \[[@bib21]\] to overexpress KRP4 throughout floral buds ([Figure 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}A). Buds in equivalent positions around the apex had similar sizes in *AP1\>\>KRP4* and in the wild-type, suggesting that once again organ growth accommodated the increased cell size ([Figures 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}B and 4C). Organ boundaries, however, were wider and less well defined, both morphologically and based on the expression of a boundary marker ([Figures 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}B--4E and 4H--4K). Because growth is repressed at organ boundaries \[[@bib23]\], wider boundaries due to larger cells might limit the number of cells available for primordium outgrowth. Accordingly, *AP1\>\>KRP4* primordia often failed to emerge ([Figures 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}D and 4E) and mature *AP1\>\>KRP4* flowers had fewer organs in the first three whorls ([Figure 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}L). Conversely, the *krp4-2* mutant, with smaller meristem cells, formed more sepals and petals, and fewer stamens ([Figure 4](#fig4){ref-type="fig"}L). Thus, both increased and decreased cell sizes were associated with early patterning defects in the floral buds.
Discussion {#sec2}
==========
Together, our data show that meristem cells actively control their size. Based on the measured sources of cell-size variation in the meristem, simulations could not reproduce the distribution of meristem cell sizes assuming that cell proliferation is controlled at the population level to match the tissue growth rate. Transient inhibition of cell-cycle progression caused increased cell sizes that were rapidly corrected after the inhibition was released. Furthermore, the changes in cell size caused by loss and gain of *KRP4* function implicated this gene in the control of meristem cell size, suggesting that as seen in budding yeast and mammalian cells \[[@bib3], [@bib9]\], the G1-S transition is a key control point to maintain cell-size homeostasis in the meristem.
Tight control of cell size in the meristem could seem at odds with the view that both plant and animal growth are controlled primarily at the organ level and that altered cell size can be compensated by changes in cell number \[[@bib2], [@bib24]\]. However, the compensation between cell size and cell proliferation in plants is organ specific \[[@bib20]\], and the coordination between cell volume and cell-cycle progression changes during the transition from meristem to organ identity \[[@bib12]\]. Based on our results, cell-size control may be especially important in the meristem and early organs because of the scale at which patterning occurs within these structures. So far, the control of cell size has been considered important primarily for cell physiology, which is affected by the volume/surface ratio \[[@bib2], [@bib24]\]. Our work suggests that in multicellular organisms, cell-size control can have an additional role in generating spatial detail during development.
Experimental Procedures {#sec3}
=======================
Plant Material {#sec3.1}
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Plants were grown on JIC *Arabidopsis* Soil Mix at 16°C under continuous light (100 μE). *Arabidopsis thaliana* accession Landsberg-*erecta* (L-*er*) was used throughout; *krp4-2*, *jag-2*, *CLV3:LhG4*, *Op:ER-GFP*, *AP1:LhG4*, and *pCUC1::CUC1-GFP* have been described \[[@bib12], [@bib19], [@bib21], [@bib22], [@bib25]\].
For construction of *KRP4-GFP*, the *KRP4* gene (AGI: *At2g32710*) was amplified from *Arabidopsis* accession Col-0 (Chr2, nucleotides 13872160-13876781) and sGFP(S65T) \[[@bib26]\] was inserted in frame at the end of the coding sequence before cloning into pPZP222 \[[@bib27]\]. For creation of *Op:KRP4*, the *KRP4* coding sequence (887 bp) was PCR amplified from Col-0 cDNA, re-sequenced, and subcloned downstream of the 6XOpΩ promoter in pOWL49 \[[@bib28]\]. Transgenic lines were generated by floral dip transformation of L-*er* plants \[[@bib29]\]; in the case of *KRP4-GFP*, *jag-2-2 krp4-2* plants were transformed and selected for segregation as single loci and for reversion to the *jag-2* phenotype \[[@bib30]\].
Imaging {#sec3.2}
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For time-lapse imaging, inflorescence apices were prepared and imaged as described \[[@bib11]\]. Before imaging, dissected apices were left to recover in GM medium (0.1% glucose; 0.44% Murashige and Skoog medium including vitamins, 0.9% agar \[pH 5.7\]) for 24 hr at 16°C, continuous light. Dissected apices were imbibed for 10 min in 50 μg/ml N-(4-triethylammoniumpropyl)-4-(p-dietheylaminophenylhexatrienyl pyridium dibromide) (FM4-64, Invitrogen) and imaged with a Zeiss LSM780 confocal microscope with excitation at 488 nm, emission filters set to 572--625 nm for FM4-64 and 505-600 nm for GFP, using a ×40/1.0 dipping objective. Image resolution was 0.42 × 0.42 × 0.5 μm.
Image Analysis {#sec3.3}
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For 3D segmentation, cell measurements, matching cells at different time points and tracking cell divisions, confocal image stacks were processed using scripts written in Python 2.7.3 with functions imported from Numerical Python (<http://www.numpy.org>), Scientific Python (<http://www.scipy.org>), matplotlib (<http://matplotlib.org>), and SimpleITK (<http://www.simpleitk.org>). Fiji macros \[[@bib31]\] were used to visualize images, select landmark points (using the 3DViewer plugin; <http://fiji.sc/3D_Viewer>) \[[@bib32]\], and select cells to be removed from the analysis during manual quality control. The supplemental software file ([Data S1](#mmc4){ref-type="supplementary-material"}) contains the 3D_meristem_analysis package with the annotated source code and detailed instructions on how to install and use the Python scripts and Fiji macros.
The original confocal stacks, metadata, landmark coordinates, images produced at each step of processing, and cell data tables can be found at <https://open-omero.nbi.ac.uk> (username "shared," password "Op3n-4cc0unt"); the folder names correspond to those listed in the raw data table ([Table S2](#mmc2){ref-type="supplementary-material"}).
Statistics {#sec3.4}
----------
For each treatment, measurements from three to five apices were pooled after filtering by cell layer, region of interest (meristem), GFP expression, and cell division, as specified in [Table S2](#mmc2){ref-type="supplementary-material"}. The raw data were read and processed in a Python shell using the functions defined and annotated in script /3D_meristem_analysis/python_scripts/statistical_analysis.py ([Data S1](#mmc4){ref-type="supplementary-material"}). Scipy functions were used for Pearson correlation, two-tailed Mann-Whitney tests, least-squares fitting, and for calculating the probability density function. Confidence intervals were calculated by bootstrapping (100,000 iterations, except for linear regression, for which 10,000 iterations were used). p values for the equality of coefficients of variation were calculated by applying Levene's test on the relative deviations from the mean as described \[[@bib13]\]. For organ counts ([Table S3](#mmc3){ref-type="supplementary-material"}), plants were grown as described above until bolting; the first three flowers were discarded, and the next 15 flowers were examined from the main inflorescence of 12 individual plants of each genotype.
Simulations {#sec3.5}
-----------
Details of the simulations are given in the [Supplemental Experimental Procedures](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} and annotated source code in [Data S1](#mmc4){ref-type="supplementary-material"}; parameter values are listed in [Table S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}.
Author Contributions {#sec4}
====================
Conceptualization, A.S.-M., K.S., and R.S.; Investigation, A.S.-M. and K.S.; Resources, K.S.; Software, Formal Analysis, and Data Curation: R.S.; Writing -- Original Draft, R.S.; Writing -- Review & Editing, A.S.-M., K.S., and R.S.; Funding Acquisition, R.S. and A.S.-M.; Supervision, R.S.
Supplemental Information {#app2}
========================
Document S1. Supplemental Experimental Procedures, Figures S1--S4, and Table S1Table S2. Raw Values and Summary Statistics for Genotypes and Treatments Analyzed in Figures 1, 2, 3, and S1Table S3. Floral Organ Numbers in Wild-Type, *krp4-2*, and *API\>\>KRP4* PlantsData S1. Supplemental SoftwareDocument S2. Article plus Supplemental Information
We thank Yuval Eshed (Weizmann Institute, Israel) for the CLV3 and AP1 driver lines and Martin Howard and Richard Morris for critical comments. The work was supported by BBSRC grants BB/J007056/1 and BB/J004588/1, by a grant from the Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, Spain (EX-2010-0491) to A.S.M., and a EU Marie-Curie fellowship (237909) to K.S.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (<http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/>).
Supplemental Information includes Supplemental Experimental Procedures, four figures, three tables, and one data file and can be found with this article online at [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.10.008](10.1016/j.cub.2015.10.008){#intref0040}.
![Sources of Cell-Size Variability in the Shoot Meristem\
(A and B) Segmented images of wild-type inflorescence apices at 0 (A) and 24 hr later (B), with matching cells in the same color; regions in white rectangles in (A) and (B) correspond to (C)--(F); IM, inflorescence meristem; FB, floral bud.\
(C--F) Close-up view of regions highlighted in (A) (C and D) and (B) (E and F), with cells labeled by volume (C and E) or relative growth rate over 24 hr (D and F); arrows show unequal divisions and encircled pairs of cells had similar volumes at 0 hr but different growth rates.\
(G) Deviation from the mean volume for cells that divided over 24 hr (red bars) and their daughter cells (blue bars); the p value is for equality of coefficients of variation (Levene's test on relative deviations from mean) \[[@bib13]\].\
(H) Scatterplot of relative growth rates over 24 hr as a function of cell volume and corresponding linear regression (blue line), with regression function and r and p values (Pearson correlation) indicated; green and red lines show the limits of the 95% confidence interval for the slope.\
Scale bars, 50 (A and B) 10 μm (C--F). See also [Figure S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}.](gr1){#fig1}
{ref-type="supplementary-material"}); heterogeneous growth is introduced by a variability factor *k*, based on the measured LSDG (local SD of growth, defined as the SD of the relative growth rate for a cell and its neighbors); the term 1/24 is used to convert the growth rate from daily to hourly; in simulation a (sim_a), the number of growth iterations before cell division matches the average cell volume doubling time *T* for all cells; in sim b, the number of iterations before division was adjusted to individual cell growth rates by multiplying *T* by *1/k*.\
(B) Boxplot of observed cell volumes in five wild-type meristems (1,746 cells).\
(C and D) Boxplots of simulated volumes at different iteration numbers, using sim_a and sim_b, respectively.\
(E) Frequency histograms of the deviation from the mean cell volume for sim_a and sim_b, compared with the experimental data (exp); simulation parameter values are listed in [Table S1](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}; for each set of values, data were pooled from five simulations (2,000 cells); the p values are for the hypothesis that simulated and observed cell volumes had the same coefficients of variation (CV) (Levene's test on relative deviations from mean) \[[@bib13]\].\
See also [Figure S2](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} and [Supplemental Information](#app2){ref-type="sec"} for simulation details and source code.](gr2){#fig2}
![Recovery of Cell Volumes after Perturbation\
(A and D) Confocal images of inflorescence meristems with the *CLV3:LhG4* driver directing *Op:ER-GFP* \[*CLV3\>\>(GFP)*, A\] or *Op:ER-GFP* combined with *Op:KRP4* \[*CLV3\>\>(GFP, KRP4)*, D\]; white rectangles in (A) and (D) enclose the regions corresponding to (B) and (E), respectively; note that, although the *CLV3:LhG4* driver was expressed more widely in the inflorescence meristem than the endogenous *CLV3* gene \[[@bib10]\], it was used here only as a tool for developmentally transient expression.\
(B, C, E, and F) Segmented images of emerging floral buds in *CLV3\>\>(GFP)* (B and C) and *CLV3\>\>(GFP, KRP4)* (E and F) at 0 (B and E) and 24 hr later (C and F); matching cells are in the same color and asterisks mark cells in (B) and (E) that divided after 24 hr; note in (E) and (F) the high frequency of cell divisions in cells that are being displaced from the region expressing the *CLV3:LhG4* driver.\
(G and H) Boxplots of cell volumes (G) and growth rates (H) of *CLV3\>\>(GFP)* (red) and *CLV3\>\>(GFP, KRP4)* (blue) cells with different levels of GFP expression.\
Scale bars, 50 μm. See also [Figure S3](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}.](gr3){#fig3}
![Abnormal Cell Sizes Affect Organ Boundaries and Primordium Emergence\
(A) Expression of *AP1\>\>GFP* in floral buds (FB), but not in the inflorescence meristem (IM).\
(B and C) Larger cells in floral buds (FB) of *AP1\>\>KRP4* (C) compared to the WT control (B).\
(D and E) Close-up view of WT (D) and *AP1\>\>KRP4* (E) buds, with sepal primordia indicated by arrows; one of the lateral sepals has not emerged in E (asterisk).\
(F and G) Mature flowers of WT (F) and *AP1\>\>KRP4* (G) with missing organs (Se, sepals; Pe, petals, St, stamens; Ca, carpels).\
(H--K) Expression of the *pCUC1:CUC1-GFP* \[[@bib22]\] organ boundary marker (arrows) in WT (H and I) and *AP1\>\>KRP4* (J and K), shown in confocal images (H and J) and in segmented images (I and K) with cells labeled by nuclear GFP expression; each panel shows transversal (top) and longitudinal (bottom) sections of the same bud, with horizontal lines marking the sectioning planes used.\
(L) Heatmap showing the frequency of flowers with different numbers (N) of each organ type (raw data in [Table S3](#mmc3){ref-type="supplementary-material"}); p values are for the equality of median organ number compared to WT (Mann-Whitney test).\
Scale bars, 50 μm (A--E and H--K) and 1 mm (F and G). See also [Figure S4](#mmc1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}.](gr4){#fig4}
| |
I am an Irrigation Engineer interested in the use of remotely sensed products that support water balance at farm and larger scales. This interest involves UAVs, satellites and spatial models for quantification of ET, rainfall, soil moisture, and yield. Physical- and data-driven models are necessary due to complex and not fully understood processes at small scales.
Additional affiliations
April 2013 - June 2016
Utah Water Research Laboratory
Position
- Engineer
Description
- Satellite based research for farm management
Education
April 1996 - December 2000
Publications
Publications (68)
The images generated by high-resolution spectral and thermal sensors equipped on small unmanned aerial vehicles (sUAV) make possible estimation of energy flux for California vineyards via the two-source energy balance (TSEB) model. Temperature (thermal) image plays an important role in the TSEB model, and the high-resolution provides an opportunity...
This is a project aiming at using python program to generate fractional cover, canopy height, and canopy width over canopy height for the TSEB model based on images collected via the AggieAir small unmanned aerial system (sUAS) platform over California vineyards.
Accurately estimating and forecasting evapotranspiration is one of the most important tasks to strengthen water resource management, especially in desert areas such as La Yarada, Tacna, Peru, a region located at the head of the Atacama Desert. In this study, we used temperature, humidity, wind speed, air pressure, and solar radiation from a local w...
Assessment of water consumption is a crucial task for irrigation management in grapevines, especially in areas with limited water resources, which is the case of California Central Valley. This study evaluated the utility of the Simple Algorithm for Evapotranspiration Retrievement (SAFER) model to estimate daily and seasonal actual evapotranspirati...
Monitoring evapotranspiration (ET) is possible through land surface temperature (LST) measured by satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). The assumption that the higher resolution of LST may improve the performance of remote sensing ET models was verified in a recently published article showing that higher resolution LST led to increased per...
Remote sensing estimation of evapotranspiration (ET) directly quantifies plant water consumption and provides essential information for irrigation scheduling, which is a pressing need for California vineyards as extreme droughts become more frequent. Many ET models take satellite-derived Leaf Area Index (LAI) as a major input, but how uncertainties...
Leaf water potential (Ψl) in vineyards and orchards is a well-known indicator of plant water status and stress and it is commonly used by growers to make immediate crop and water management decisions. However, Ψl measurement via the direct method presents challenges as it is labor and time intensive and represents leaf-level conditions for only a s...
Evapotranspiration (ET) is a crucial part of hydrological cycling, and its (ET) partitioning allows separate assessment of soil and plant water, energy, and carbon fluxes. ET partitioning plays an important role in agriculture since it is related to yield quality, irrigation efficiency, and plant growth. Satellite remote-sense-based methods provide...
In agriculture, leaf area index (LAI) is an important variable that describes occurring biomass and relates to the distribution of energy fluxes and evapotranspiration components. Current LAI estimation methods at subfield scale are limited not only by the characteristics of the spatial data (pixel size and spectral information) but also by the emp...
Crop evapotranspiration (ET) is a crucial component of energy and water budgets. The accurate determination of ET is vital for agricultural water management. Several satellite-based ET models have been developed to map ET at the field to regional scales. The spatial resolution of the satellite observations, particularly thermal-infrared imagery, is...
Water conservation efforts for California’s agricultural industry are critical to its sustainability through severe droughts like the current one and others experienced over the last two decades. This is most critical for perennial crops, such as vineyards and orchards, which are costly to plant and maintain and constitute a significant fraction of...
Understanding the spatial variability in highly heterogeneous natural environments such as savannas and river corridors is an important issue in characterizing and modeling energy fluxes, particularly for evapotranspiration (ET) estimates. Currently, remote-sensing-based surface energy balance (SEB) models are applied widely and routinely in agricu...
In the present study, remote sensing techniques are used using a Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) to estimate crop evapotranspiration (ETc) in olive trees (Olea europaea L.) on the southern coast of Peru. The objective of the experiment was to estimate the evapotranspiration of the olive cultivation by means of the METRIC model, from multisp...
COMPARAÇÃO DO NDVI OBTIDO POR MEIO DE DRONE E SATÉLITE NAS FASES FENOLÓGICAS DA VIDEIRA MARYJANE DINIZ DE ARAÚJO GOMES1; RODRIGO MÁXIMO SÁCHEZ ROMÁN2; ALFONSO TORRES-RUA3; ÉLVIS DA SILVA ÁLVES4 E MAC MCKEE3 1 Instituto Federal de Ciência e Tecnologia do Pará, BR 316, km 65, Campus Castanhal, s/n, CEP. 68740-970, Castanhal, Pará, Brasil, maryjane.go...
Leaf area index (LAI) plays an important role in land-surface models to describe the energy, carbon, and water fluxes between the soil and canopy vegetation. Indirect ground LAI measurements, such as using the LAI2200C Plant Canopy Analyzer (PCA), can not only increase the measurement efficiency but also protect the vegetation compared with the dir...
Accurate leaf area index (LAI) estimation through machine learning (ML) algorithms is a channel for better understanding and monitoring the existing biomass and it relates to the distribution of energy fluxes and evapotranspiration partitioning. In order to support the ML algorithm for accurate LAI estimation, the supporting data (or features) gain...
The widely used two-source energy balance (TSEB) model coupled with AggieAir (https:// uwrl.usu.edu/aggieair/, a type of small Unmanned Aerial System) data can provide high-resolution modeled energy components, evapotranspiration partitioning, etc., at a subfield scale. When the research area is equipped with eddy-covariance (EC) towers, researcher...
Energy flux and evapotranspiration modeling via the widely used two-source energy balance (TSEB) model at a subfield scale for vineyards based on the high-resolution images gained by the small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) is a critical tool for vine-growers and researchers to better understand the water and energy exchange between the land surface...
Daily evapotranspiration (ETd) plays a key role in irrigation water management and is particularly important in drought-stricken areas, such as California and high-value crops. Remote sensing allows for the cost-effective estimation of spatial evapotranspiration (ET), and the advent of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) technology has made it pos...
Accurate quantification of the partitioning of evapotranspiration (ET) into transpiration and evaporation fluxes is necessary to understanding ecosystem interactions among carbon, water, and energy flux components. ET partitioning can also support the description of the atmosphere and land interactions and provide unique insights into vegetation wa...
sUAS (small-Unmanned Aircraft System) and advanced surface energy balance models allow detailed assessment and monitoring (at plant scale) of different (agricultural, urban, and natural) environments. Significant progress has been made in the understanding and modeling of atmosphere-plant-soil interactions and numerical quantification of the intern...
Leaf Area Index (LAI) is an important structural property of vegetation canopy and is one of the basic quantities driving the algorithms used in biogeochemical, ecological, and meteorological applications. However, the methods to obtain accurate LAI, even at a field scale, are still challenging. Although direct methods can provide an accurate estim...
Land surface temperature (LST) is a key diagnostic indicator of agricultural water use and crop stress. LST data retrieved from thermal infrared (TIR) band imagery, however, tend to have a coarser spatial resolution (e.g., 100 m for Landsat 8) than surface reflectance (SR) data collected from shortwave bands on the same instrument (e.g., 30 m for L...
Considerable advancement in spatiotemporal resolution of remote sensing and ground-based measurements has enabled refinement of parameters used in land surface models for simulating surface water fluxes. However, land surface modeling capabilities are still inadequate for accurate representation of subsurface properties and processes, which continu...
Nick Dokoozlian, "To what extend does the Eddy Covariance footprint cutoff influence the estimation of surface energy fluxes using two source energy balance model and high-resolution imagery in commercial vineyards?,"
Surface temperature is necessary for the estimation of energy fluxes and evapotranspiration from satellites and airborne data sources. For example, the Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model uses thermal information to quantify canopy and soil temperatures as well as their respective energy balance components. While surface (also called kinematic)...
Validation of surface energy fluxes from remote sensing sources is performed using instantaneous field measurements obtained from eddy covariance (EC) instrumentation. An eddy covariance measurement is characterized by a footprint function / weighted area function that describes the mathematical relationship between the spatial distribution of surf...
Estimation of surface energy fluxes using thermal remote sensing-based energy balance models (e.g., TSEB2T) involves the use of local micrometeorological input data of air temperature, wind speed, and incoming solar radiation, as well as vegetation cover and accurate land surface temperature (LST). The physically based Two-source Energy Balance wit...
Surface temperature is necessary for the estimation of energy fluxes and evapotranspiration from satellites and airborne data sources. For example, the Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model uses thermal information to quantify canopy and soil temperatures as well as their respective energy balance components. While surface (also called kinematic)...
Evapotranspiration (ET) is a key variable for hydrology and irrigation water management, with significant importance in drought-stricken regions of the western US. This is particularly true for California, which grows much of the high-value perennial crops in the US. The advent of small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) with sensor technology similar t...
Highlights Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are able to provide data for precision irrigation management. Improvements are needed regarding UAS platforms, sensors, processing software, and regulations. Integration of multi-scale imagery into scientific irrigation scheduling tools are needed for technology adoption. Abstract . Several research institu...
In recent years, the deployment of satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has led to production of enormous amounts of data and to novel data processing and analysis techniques for monitoring crop conditions. One overlooked data source amid these efforts, however, is incorporation of 3D information derived from multi-spectral imagery and ph...
Flood inundation remains challenging to map, model, and forecast because it requires detailed representations of hydrologic and hydraulic processes. Recently, Continental‐Scale Flood Inundation Mapping (CFIM), an empirical approach with fewer data demands, has been suggested. This approach uses National Water Model forecast discharge with Height Ab...
Theoretically, the appearance of shadows in aerial imagery is not desirable for researchers because it leads to errors in object classification and bias in the calculation of indices. In contrast, shadows contain useful geometrical information about the objects blocking the light. Several studies have focused on estimation of building heights in ur...
Soil moisture is a key component of water balance models. Physically, it is a nonlinear function of parameters that are not easily measured spatially, such as soil texture and soil type. Thus, several studies have been conducted on the estimation of soil moisture using remotely sensed data and data mining techniques such as artificial neural networ...
Tests of the most recent version of the two-source energy balance model have demonstrated that canopy and soil temperatures can be retrieved from high-resolution thermal imagery captured by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). This work has assumed a linear relationship between vegetation indices (VIs) and radiometric temperature in a square grid (i.e...
Microbolometer thermal cameras in UAVs and manned aircraft allow for the acquisition of highresolution temperature data, which, along with optical reflectance, contributes to monitoring and modeling of agricultural and natural environments. Furthermore, these temperature measurements have facilitated the development of advanced models of crop water...
Current technologies employed for use of small, unmanned aerial systems (sUAS), or “drones”, for remote sensing (RS) activities that support the information needs of agricultural operations are expensive, provide relatively small geographic coverage, and typically produce data of limited scientific quality. Research is currently underway that will...
The thermal-based Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model partitions the evapotranspiration (ET) and energy fluxes from vegetation and soil components providing the capability for estimating soil evaporation (E) and canopy transpiration (T). However, it is crucial for ET partitioning to retrieve reliable estimates of canopy and soil temperatures and...
Significant efforts have been made recently in the application of high-resolution remote sensing imagery (i.e., sub-meter) captured by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for precision agricultural applications for high-value crops such as wine grapes. However, at such high resolution, shadows will appear in the optical imagery effectively reducing the...
There has been considerable advancement in spatiotemporal resolution of remote sensing and ground-based measurements enabling refinements to the parameters used in land surface models for simulating surface fluxes. However, inadequate representation of subsurface processes and soil parameters still create limitations for land surface model simulati...
Accurate spatial and temporal precipitation estimates are important for hydrological studies of irrigation depletion, net irrigation requirement, natural recharge, and hydrological water balances in defined areas. This analysis supports the verification of water savings (reduced depletion) from deficit irrigation of pastures in the Upper Colorado R...
With the increasing availability of thermal proximity sensors, UAV-borne cameras, and eddy covariance radiometers there may be an assumption that information produced by these sensors is interchangeable or compatible. This assumption is often held for estimation of agricultural parameters such as canopy and soil temperature, energy balance componen...
Small, unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) for remote sensing represent a relatively new and growing technology to support decisions for agricultural operations. The size and power limitations of these systems present challenges for the weight, size, and capability of the sensors that can be carried, as well as the geographical coverage that is possible...
Satellites and autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are two major platforms for acquiring remotely-sensed information of the earth’s surface. Due to the limitations of satellite-based imagery, such as coarse spatial resolution and fixed schedules, applications of UAVs as low-cost remote sensing systems are rapidly expanding in many research a...
In high-resolution imagery, shadows may cause problems in object segmentation and recognition due to their low reflectance. For instance, the spectral reflectance of shadows and water are similar, particularly in the visible band. In precision agriculture, the vegetation condition in terms of plant water use, plant water stress, and chlorophyll con...
Particularly in light of California’s recent multi-year 1 drought, there is a critical need for accurate and timely evapotranspiration (ET) and crop stress information to ensure long-term sustainability of high-value crops. Providing this information requires the development of tools applicable across the continuum from sub-field scales to improve...
In high-resolution remote sensing imagery, shadows affect the surface reflectance recorded by imaging sensors. In this research, the performance of four different shadow detection methods are evaluated based on high-resolution imagery collected over a California vineyard during the Grape Remote sensing Atmospheric Profile and Evapotranspiration Exp...
Applications of satellite-borne observations in precision agriculture (PA) are often limited due to the coarse spatial resolution of satellite imagery. This paper uses high-resolution airborne observations to increase the spatial resolution of satellite data for related applications in PA. A new variational downscaling scheme is presented that uses...
In recent years, the availability of lightweight microbolometer thermal cameras compatible with small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) has allowed their use in diverse scientific and management activities that require sub-meter pixel resolution. Nevertheless, as with sensors already used in temperature remote sensing (e.g., Landsat satellites), a rad...
en Soil moisture is an important parameter in irrigation scheduling and application. Knowledge of root zone volumetric water content can support decisions for more efficient irrigation management by enabling estimation of required water application rates at appropriate temporal and spatial scales. The study presented here proposes a data mining app...
Spatial surface soil moisture can be an important indicator of crop conditions on farmland, but its continuous estimation remains challenging due to coarse spatial and temporal resolution of existing remotely-sensed products. Furthermore, while preceding research on soil moisture using remote sensing (surface energy balance, weather parameters, and...
Researchers at the Utah Water Research Laboratory at Utah State University have developed a small unmanned aerial system (UAS) called "AggieAir" for use as a precision remote sensing tool. The AggieAir TM UAS platform can be launched and landed almost anywhere. It carries scientific-grade cameras that capture imagery in the visual (red/green/blue),...
Precision agriculture requires high-resolution information to enable greater precision in the management of inputs to production. Actionable information about crop and field status must be acquired at high spatial resolution and at a temporal frequency appropriate for timely responses. In this study, high spatial resolution imagery was obtained thr...
Many crop production management decisions can be informed using data from high-resolution aerial images that provide information about crop health as influenced by soil fertility and moisture. Surface soil moisture is a key component of soil water balance, which addresses water and energy exchanges at the surface/atmosphere interface; however, high...
There is an increasing trend in crop production management decisions in precision agriculture based on observation of high resolution aerial images from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Nevertheless, there are still limitations in terms of relating the spectral imagery information to the agricultural targets. AggieAir™ is a small, autonomous unmanne...
Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important component of the hydrologic cycle, especially for irrigated agriculture. Direct methods of estimating reference ET are difficult or require many weather variables that are not always available at all weather stations. The Hargreaves equation (HG) requires only measured daily air temperature data and computed...
Precision agriculture requires high spatial management of the inputs to agricultural production. This requires that actionable information about crop and field status be acquired at the same high spatial resolution and at a temporal frequency appropriate for timely responses. This paper presents some results from an on-going project to explore the...
Modernization of today's irrigation systems attempts to improve system efficiency and management effectiveness of every component of the system (reservoirs, canals, and gates) using automation technologies, along with hydraulic simulation models. The canal flow control scheme resulting from the coupling of the system automation and the simulation m... | https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alfonso-Torres-Rua |
Peach pie has always been one of my favorite desserts. I have a fall birthday and instead of cake, I have often had a peach pie for my birthday dessert. If you love fresh peaches, this is the pie for you! It starts with a crispy sugar cookie crust all topped with fresh, juicy peaches covered in a sweet, gooey homemade peach filling. It is the perfect late summer dessert. Enjoy!
Fresh Peach Pie
Fresh peaches are used in this from-scratch peach pie. The peaches are complemented by the crispy sugar cookie crust. The perfect peach dessert!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup mashed peaches (about 2)
- 2/3 cup water
- 3/4 to 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons corn starch mixed with 1/3 cup cold water
- 6 peaches with skin removed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Melt shortening and butter together. Stir in 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 cup + 3 tablespoons flour. Press evenly into a 9" pie tin. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Set aside to cool.
- While the crust is cooling, boil the 2/3 cups water together with the mashed peaches. Simmer for 2 minutes.
- Add sugar and cornstarch mixed with cold water. Cook over medium heat until the mixture is thick, no longer cloudy, and the cornstarch taste is gone.
- Thinly slice the peaches into the cooled crust. Pour the cooked peach mixture over the top.
- Chill for 3 to 4 hours, then serve. Top with whipped cream. I recommend my Homemade Whipped Cream.
Notes
If you are using large peaches, you may not need as many as this recipe calls for. The number of peaches called for in this recipe is for small to medium peaches.
You can use peaches that you have frozen; just make sure to thaw them and drain off the juice first. I don't recommend store-bought frozen peaches, however, as they tend to be a bit tart with some underripe and hard slices.
Nutrition Information:Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 365Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 63mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 3gSugar: 46gProtein: 2g
Nutrition information is an estimate only.
If you want to turn this pie into amazing ice cream, I recommend you check out this recipe.
Storage
This peach pie should be stored in the refrigerator. It is good for 2-3 days in the fridge. I typically serve this pie chilled as the pie becomes a bit runny at room temperature. You can freeze this peach pie for 3-4 months. Before serving, remove from the freezer and let thaw overnight in the fridge.
How to Tell if Peaches are Ripe
You can use touch, scent, and sight to decide whether your peach is ripe.
Touch: Gently, yet firmly, squeeze the peach with your fingers (make sure not to bruise it). The peach should feel soft and “give” slightly. If the peach feels hard, then it is still underripe.
Scent: Your peach should smell slightly sweet. If it has no scent that indicates it may not yet be ripe.
Sight: The main color of a ripe peach should be a dark yellow color. If there is any green on the peach, then it is not yet ripe. Don’t rely on the reddish/orange highlight, as an unripe peach can still have a red/orange hue, so look for the dark yellow color without a hint of green.
How to Ripen Peaches Faster
If you are waiting on your peaches to ripen, here’s something to try in order to help them ripen more quickly. Place them stem-side down in a paper bag. Arrange the peaches so they don’t touch. Fold the top of the paper bag down and leave it at room temperature. Check every 24 hours to see if your peaches have ripened yet. Once ripe, remove them from the paper bag and leave at room temperature.
If you made this recipe, I’d love to hear about it! Please leave a review or a comment letting me know how things turned out. Happy baking! | https://www.nicholescookbook.com/fresh-peach-pie/ |
thesis statement for marijuana legalization Thesis on Legalization of Marijuana Working with students for many years legalizing marijuana thesis statement we got to know Thesis Statement For Legalizing Marijuana that writing an essay can poison anyones life, especially when the time.Thesis Statement For Legalization Of Marijuana. Legalize Marijuana Essay | Bartleby Annotated Bibliography on the Legalization of Marijuana Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal substance in United States and in many other countries; this is a statement that seems to be in each article that is written about the legalization of marijuana. PDF The Writing Center - stetson.edu Thesis Statements A strong thesis statement is a map that you provide for your reader to follow. It works as a guide to what is most important to understand about your writing, and it can serve as an outline to follow as you write. A strong thesis statement is composed of three parts: the What, the What About It, and the Why. WHAT: Thesis Statement On Marijuana Being Legalize
On another note, marijuana has been medically proven to help individuals deal with the side effects of having certain diseases like glaucoma or cancer. Marijuana has some major medical uses that can beneficial to society. But, whether to legalize marijuana usage or not, will continue to be a heated debate for years to come.
- The Legalization of Marijuana Yes, I believe it is a great idea to legalize marijuana. What a great idea. Think of all the good benefits that could come about. The government could tax marijuana like they do tobacco, and it could help our economy out. Think of all the money that could be gathered with this taxing. Argumentative Essay: Why Should Marijuana Be Legalized? The second reason why marijuana should be legal is the cost. According to official estimates, over 700,000 people were arrested 2014 for marijuana offenses and this is only on the area of the United States. This makes the costs for enforcement taxes extremely high, something that would be avoided if marijuana were to become legal. Persuasive Essay Supporting Legalization For Marijuana ...
Legalization Of Marijuana Essay Examples | Kibin
You ought to quickly draft the thesis; the 3 most crucial points of your argument (as illustrated in the points above) and then divide your thesis into the major points of your essay writing.
Thesis statement on marijuana being legalize
Legalization of Marijuana in Canada: Why Provincial Liquor Commissions Should Sell Marijuana to Adults In a time where the Canadian Government is looking for new ways to cut costs, and boost tax revenues, the idea of legalizing marijuana and selling it through provincial liquor commissions has transformed from the dreams of a few, to a country wide debate. 45 Interesting Marijuana Facts | Fact Retriever.com
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Steps to Writing a Literary Analysis Outline A concluding statement on how advantages outweigh disadvantages, logically proving the general argument that legalization is an advantageous idea. Conclusion. The restatement of the thesis - As revealed via the evidence presented, the legalization of marijuana will add to the society's success more than to its failures. The legalization of marijuana in canada essays The legalization of marijuana in canada essays Over the past decade, there has been much controversy over the legalization of marijuana. The government is uncertain of its effects on society in general, as well as on the individual. Legalizing marijuana thesis statement - Writing Custom ... Legalizing marijuana thesis statement For medical marijuana, 2014 this is the energy-mass order academic papers, up my hometown legalization. They also carries every state any more news latest newsflash3 side of marijuana.
marijuana legalization thesis statement medicinal marijuana use. Marijuana Legalization Implications Support for marijuana legalization culminated in creating legislation, passed in 2012 and enacted in 2014, permitting recreational use of marijuana by adults 21 years of age and older (Colorado Const. art XVIII § 16., 2012). | https://coursezbbv.firebaseapp.com/haraway5871kaqe/legalization-of-marijuana-thesis-statement-jeb.html |
A mitre joint is an angle joint. An example is a joint that is formed when two pieces meet on a 90-degree angle and each piece has been cut at an angle of 45 degrees to be joined. A good example of this type of mitre joint can be seen in picture frames. A mitre joint can also be formed when two pieces meet at different angles than 90 degrees, for example, joining skirting boards around bay windows.
A mitred joint gives a neat finish with a sharp corner, only showing a line at the angle, and with both ends concealed. However, mitred joints can be difficult to cut and match, and can suffer from the swelling and shrinking of timber which can cause the mitre to crack open from the inner corner.
Other types of joint include:
- Butt joints.
- Lap joints.
- Mortise and tenon joints.
- Dowel joints.
- Tongue and groove joints.
- Dovetail joints.
Different joints have different strengths and aesthetic properties. Some joints are more complex to create than others and can be very time-consuming. A mitre joint can be relatively simple to create and not the most time-consuming in comparison to more complex joints like a dovetail or dowel joint.
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How do you spread peanut butter into bread? First, instead of putting one big dollop of peanut butter in the middle of the bread, use multiple smaller spoonfuls around the surface—this will make it easier to spread. Another option is to warm up the peanut butter before you use it. If all else fails, consider switching up your bread.
Can you use peanut butter instead of flour? A good rule of thumb is to use 1/3 the amount of peanut butter powder as flour in the mixture. Any sauce that calls for peanut butter—think Pad Thai, Asian slaws, or spicy peanut dipping sauces—can also be made with peanut butter powder, just rehydrate it first so the sauce isn’t too dry.
How do you make simple bread?
5-6 cups flour –You can use all-purpose flour OR bread flour!
- In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water and then stir in yeast. …
- Mix salt and oil into the yeast. …
- Knead dough for 7 minutes. …
- Punch dough down. …
- Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30-40 minutes.
- Cool, brush with butter and enjoy!
Can I use peanut butter to eat bread? Just spoon out some peanut butter, spread it on a bread slice and eat it. Many people keep a jar of peanut butter handy in their kitchen. It is relatively healthier than other sandwich spreads like jam, ketchup or mayonnaise.
Is peanut butter on bread healthy? A peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat bread will provide you with roughly 14 to 25 percent of that fiber. Dietary fiber keeps your digestive system working properly and can reduce your risk of developing digestive-system diseases, including colitis and colon cancer.
How do you make peanut butter bread? – Related Asked Question
What can you put on peanut butter instead of bread?
Soy butter is a popular alternative to peanut butter. Made from soybeans, this creamy spread is full of fiber, protein, and healthy fats. Swipe some soy butter on whole wheat bread and top it with banana slices for a satisfying lunch or breakfast meal.
Is powdered peanut butter and peanut flour the same?
Peanut Flour: Are Crushed and defatted peanuts made into a flour form. Peanut flour is available in multiple roasts and the fat content varies from 12% to 28%. Powdered Peanut Butter: Are Ground peanuts into a flour form usually with added ingredients like sweeteners or salt and came come in several flavors.
Can I substitute peanut butter for butter in baking?
Nuts like peanut, almond, cashew, and macadamia will add its characteristic flavor which is best for cookies, bars, cakes, brownies, muffins, and quick bread. When substituting: A 1:1 replacement for butter can be used. Combine equal parts nut butter with oil before adding into a recipe.
How can I make my peanut butter taste better?
For added texture and even more peanut flavor, I added double roasted salted peanuts. Take Planters salted roasted peanuts and throw them in the oven for 6-8 minutes for an intense flavor and texture you won’t get, even if you used chunky peanut butter. And finally, browned butter.
What are the 5 main ingredients in bread?
The 5 ingredients are:
- flour.
- yeast.
- sugar.
- salt.
- oil.
What are the 4 main ingredients in bread?
There are only four yeast bread ingredients you really need: flour, yeast, water, and salt. All the other ingredients in a recipe are there to add flavor, nutrition, color, and to change the characteristics of the crumb.
What makes homemade bread light and fluffy?
Perfect Your Yeast Levels
Carbon dioxide is responsible for all the bubbles that make holes in bread, making it lighter and fluffier. Because gas is created as a result of yeast growth, the more the yeast grows, the more gas in the dough and the more light and airy your bread loaf will be.
Is it OK to eat peanut butter and bread everyday?
It is OK to eat peanut butter every day, but in moderation. Do not eat more than 2 tablespoons, approximately 32 grams, a day. This protein-packed spread is made by blending roasted peanuts into a thick paste and contains various nutrients that promote good health.
Can I lose weight eating peanut butter?
Peanut butter is a good source of protein that can promote the feeling of fullness and result in fat loss. It may also reduce your appetite and help you consume limited calories. This will help you lose weight. You may also experience better metabolism with the consumption of peanut butter.
Is peanut butter bread a healthy breakfast?
Peanut Butter Toast Breakfast Options
Peanut butter toast makes a great breakfast option as it contains protein and healthy fats, as well as whole grains from the bread.
Is it OK to eat a peanut butter sandwich before bed?
Eating a small amount of peanut butter as part of a healthy snack before bed may help improve sleep quality and prevent overeating and weight gain the following day. Peanut butter is a nutrient-dense, high-calorie food containing vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber.
What bread is the healthiest to eat?
The 7 Healthiest Types of Bread
- Sprouted whole grain. Sprouted bread is made from whole grains that have started to sprout from exposure to heat and moisture. …
- Sourdough. …
- 100% whole wheat. …
- Oat bread. …
- Flax bread. …
- 100% sprouted rye bread. …
- Healthy gluten-free bread.
Which peanut butter is best for weight loss?
Best Overall – Pintola All-Natural Peanut Butter
The Pintola All-Natural Peanut Butter is on the top of our list. It is cholesterol-free and has high fibre. It is unsweetened butter and is also regarded as beneficial in weight loss.
What can I spread peanut butter on?
10 Things That Taste Good With Peanut Butter
- Saltines. My Mom would make saltine-and-peanut-butter sandwiches for me and wrap them in tin foil and put them in my lunchbox. …
- Eggo Waffles. …
- Pancakes. …
- Jelly &, Bread. …
- Sliced Bananas &, A Raisin Bagel. …
- Pretzels. …
- Orange Crackers. …
- Apples.
What Jam goes with peanut butter?
Once you’ve selected your peanut butter, it’s time to choose a jelly or jam — strawberry and raspberry are the classics.
Is almond butter healthier than peanut butter?
For a quick answer, both nut butters do have similar nutritional value. Almond butter is slightly healthier than peanut butter because it has more vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Both nut butters are roughly equal in calories and sugar, but peanut butter has a little more protein than almond butter.
How do you make peanut flour?
Peanut flour is made by grinding the roasted nuts into a thick paste, and then pressing out most or all of the oil. The dry rubble left behind is then further ground into a fine powder that can be used in cooking.
How can I substitute peanut flour?
As far as consistency, baking characteristics and mouthfeel, the best substitutes would be almond or pecan flour — coconut flour is really dry and requires more ingredients to achieve a similar product. Coconut and almond flour are much more readily available.
Is PB2 just peanut flour?
PB2 is a brand of powdered peanut butter, which is essentially Peanut Flour with added salt and sugar. PB2 also has a slightly lower protein content than most peanut flours. However, powdered peanut butter comes in cool flavors, just like peanut butter.
Can you make peanut oil from peanut butter?
PB2 is a brand of powdered peanut butter, which is essentially Peanut Flour with added salt and sugar. PB2 also has a slightly lower protein content than most peanut flours. However, powdered peanut butter comes in cool flavors, just like peanut butter.
Can I replace oil with peanut butter?
You can substitute half the amount of fat in a recipe with peanuts or peanut butter. Check out this amazing no-bake cookie dough recipe here! You can also use peanut oil in place of butter to add an extra delicious nutty taste! For every substitute of this oil, add a pinch of salt to trick your taste buds.
Can you replace eggs with peanut butter?
Nut butters like peanut, cashew or almond butter can also be used to substitute eggs in most recipes. To replace one egg, use 3 tablespoons (60 grams) of nut butter. | https://recipes4day.com/how-do-you-make-peanut-butter-bread/ |
Chocolate muffin bowl topped with diced strawberries, a peanut butter cup and two chicken sausages.
Please remove all packets, wrappers, condiments, and bread products before reheating.
INGREDIENTS: Fruit, Strawberries Bits & Pieces, Breakfast, Chocolate Bowl Sugar, bleached wheat flour, cocoa powder treated with alkalai, modified food starch, water, egg, sour cream, chocolate chips, milk whey, soybean/canola oil, enriched flour, leavening, buttermilk solids, mono and diglycerides, caramel color, salt, natural flavor, enzyme, vital wheat gluten, Breakfast, Chicken Sausage (Chicken, Water, Salt, Spices, Dextrose, Flavoring, Turbinado Sugar, Lime Juice Concentrate, In Beef Collagen Casing), Peanut Butter Roasted Peanuts, Sugar, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Rapeseed, Cottonseed and Soybean Oils), Salt. | https://www.homestyledirect.com/menu/24-chocolate-muffin-bowl-topped-with-strawberries/?add-to-cart=19750 |
City of Salt Lake City - Golf Administration - Golf Courses - Nibley Park in Sugar House Salt Lake City, UT - Salt Lake County is a local government specialized in Government. City of Salt Lake City is listed in the categories City & County Government, Restaurants/Food & Dining, Public Golf Courses, Golf Driving Ranges, Golf Driving & Practice Ranges, Full-Service Restaurants, Limited-Service Restaurants, Government Offices City, Village, Borough & Township, Eating Places, Golf Courses, Government Offices Local and Restaurants. If you did business with City of Salt Lake City, please leave a review and help us improve and help other people. Also, don't forget to mention Hubbiz. | https://city-of-salt-lake-city-ut-38.hub.biz/ |
Understanding the structure and relationships of biomolecules is important for discovering new medicines and materials. Three-dimensional bimolecular structures are often geometrically complex making it difficult to predict functional properties of molecules based on their structures. Recently, the new field of topological data analysis has shown some promise in improving the prediction of solvation free energies, protein-ligand binding affinities and other properties.
Topology is the field of mathematics that identifies essential structures of a space and quantifies qualitative shape information by stripping away the irrelevant geometrical details. An important tool in algebraic topology are the betti numbers, which encode the connectivity of a space. The first betti number counts the number of connected components, the second betti number distinct one-dimensional cycles, the third betti number distinct two-dimensional voids and further betti numbers higher-dimensional voids of a space.
A first step of data analysis is often to visualize two-dimensional summaries of the data in order to get to know the data before deciding on an analysis strategy. This works great when the data or its most important feature is indeed two-dimensional but it poses the risk of missing higher-dimensional structures in the data. It is therefore desirable to be able to summarize the most important geometric features of the data in a different way. That is where topological data analysis comes in. With persistent homology, the most important method in topological data analysis, it is possible to calculate betti numbers at different scales simultaneously and visualize them in a persistence diagram.
As an example, let us look at three different two-dimensional datasets. The first dataset was sampled from a line, the second from three clusters and the third from a circle. Of course it is possible to do cluster analysis or linear regression for all the examples. But clearly not all analyses are equally appropriate for all datasets. In the case shown below this is obvious, but when data is high-dimensional, it may not always be clear which method actually is appropriate, if any. That is when topological data analysis can provide a first impression of the data and guide the analysis to use reasonable methods.
The rise of topological data analysis has provided new insights in algebraic topology. Many recent studies have also applied persistent homology. However, for many of these studies, topological methods were not instrumental in reaching the conclusions. It remains to be seen how significant an impact topological methods have on machine learning applications. | https://digitallifenorway.org/blogg/introducing-topological-data-analysis |
No matter the venue, the Spektral Quartet can always be found at the intersection of contemporary music and the storied sounds of the string quartet tradition.
On Monday at 8 p.m. the Chicago-based string quartet will play a Music at the Forefront Concert, presented by the MidAmerican Center for Contemporary Music at Bowling Green State University. The concert will be in Bryan Recital Hall on the campus.
The quartet, said violinist Clara Lyon, is interested in “creative ways of programming traditional repertoire at the same time as being part of the conversation about what’s next.” In some instances that means they will play a string quartet by Beethoven or another classical master on the same program as a newly minted composition.
Still the sound worlds they create are strikingly different.
Thomalla in his Bagatellen, written for Spektral, creates nine short movements out of material culled from classical string quartets. He borrowed what he considered “unremarkable material,” a bit of a viola part from a Haydn quartet or a second violin line from a Mozart quartet. Lyon said the composer was “reticent” to tell even the members of Spektral where the material came from.
Thomalla is also interested in “white noise,” particularly as expressed by the German term “rauschen,” which means “breathy and whispery,” Lyon said. “But it also has a different meaning as intoxicating.” All those meanings fit Bagatellen.
The single movement is 52 minutes long with no break. The members of the quartet felt it fit well with Thomalla’s Bagatellen and will give American audiences a chance to hear a piece little performed here.
Furrer is “always trying to find new sounds on string instruments and then cataloguing them. … He has this library of sounds that he puts in different combinations like a patchwork quilt. It’s almost like he’s trying to create every possibility of these juxtapositions of sounds,” Lyons said.
Lyon, who joined the quartet 18 months ago, said the ensemble got started with informal sessions about seven years ago. At that time the members were all active freelancers on the Chicago new music scene and would get together to play string quartets for fun. As time went on they grew more serious about the quartet and worked to make the ensemble a full-time endeavor. The quartet is in residence at the University of Chicago where the members coach, teach, and form the core of the contemporary music ensemble.
Later this spring BGSU faculty member Mikel Kuehn will visit them in Chicago for the premiere performance of one of his compositions, and the quartet will return next fall for the New Music Festival.
Posted by: David Dupont on March 10, 2016. | http://bgindependentmedia.org/music-of-now-intersects-with-classics-in-spektral-quartet-concert/ |
Lifeline structures are those which are directly related to the facilities for existence of society. Nowadays many cities are facing problem to maintain the lifeline structures after the earthquake event. These structures are very important and have to be safe.
There are many lifeline structures among them bridge is also a very important lifeline structure that provide commuting and also transportation of foods, oils, water etc. History of bridge failure starts before 1907 when Qbec bridge fail. There are many failure modes of bridge, main two types of them are:
|Photo: collapse of cypress street viaduct (http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/dds-29/web_pages/oakland.html)|
Shear Failure:
When earthquake event happens at that time due to the shaking of the ground structure feels the large lateral load depends up on the structure’s self weight, amplitude of ground acceleration, soil condition etc. Total load it has to resist as horizontal force so shear force on the column will increase and across the limit of capacity of the column section. When there is the diagonal crack on the structure then we can say there is shear failure. Due to the lack of transverse reinforcement it occurs generally within the ¼ of height from the ground level.
Bending failure (buckling):
During earthquake horizontal force acting on the structure, in bridge structure most of the structural weight is concentrate on the top of column so due to the shaking and displacement more than usual bending moment will apply to the section of column. When excessive bending will apply then section cannot bear and firstly more loads on outer longitudinal reinforcement if load is more than the capacity of reinforcement then it starts to buckle. Due to lack of the longitudinal reinforcement and also the transverse tie reinforcement at that reason this failure occurs. It is also depends on the section and length ratio or slenderness of the column, column with more slenderness ratio or long column will fail faster under this phenomenon. Buckling failure is the main failure for the truss bridge also where when the compression force on any compression member exceeds the capacity of that member then it starts to buckle. Most of the truss bridges fail under the buckling failure mode because steel have good enough tensile strength than compressive strength.
One mitigation method used to prevent such failures.
There are many mitigation method used to increase the seismic performance of structures. For mitigation of concerned failures we have to consider the weak points and then strengthen on those areas. During design and construction we have to concentrate on key areas of failure.
|Strengthening of column|
Shear failure can reduce by providing the sufficient transverse bars in the area of more shear zone. We can provide the additional transverse bars on the column by jacketing or by chipping and inserting as like the old one. We can also reduce the shear failure by increasing the shear area i.e. cross section. Addition of longitudinal bars also contributes to the shear strength of column. During the construction we have to care about the curtailment of the lap bars from the foundation.
Bending failure occurs due to the insufficient steel reinforcement. Mitigation of such failure is by providing excessive longitudinal reinforcement either during the construction or by steel jacketing for the existing structures. For the slender column casing will provide both longitudinal reinforcement and larger cross section which reduce the slenderness of the column. Also the link of the columns provides more strength on bending y sharing of forces. For truss bridges we can provide more compressive strength by other material on composite section or addition of the member. We can also reduce the compressive force by linking of the members that will reduce the member length also reduce the slenderness. | https://www.seismoblog.com/2013/07/bridge-failure-during-earthquake-and-it_26.html |
Blood pressure response to exercise in children following the subclavian flap procedure for coarctation of the aorta.
Eight patients who underwent repair of coarctation of the aorta as infants (mean age 4.6 months) by the subclavian flap procedure were evaluated by dynamic exercise. Their mean age at the time of exercise testing was 4.6 years. Resting upper to lower limb systolic blood pressure gradients were similar in the patients and control subjects (mean 17 +/- 12 and 2 +/- 14 mm Hg) (p greater than 0.05). Mean resting systolic blood pressures in the upper limb were 121 +/- 10 mm Hg in the patients and 107 +/- 14 mm Hg in the volunteers (p greater than 0.05). The mean gradient between the upper and lower limbs was 13 +/- 19 mm Hg in the patients on dynamic exercise testing. No patient became pathologically hypertensive in the upper limbs during dynamic exercise. These results indicate that the subclavian flap procedure is an effective form of treatment for the symptomatic infant with coarctation of the aorta and can be expected to result in a low incidence of subclinical residual obstruction or restenosis.
| |
The 48th annual Vienna Seminar took place on June 5, 2018, with the focus, “European Contributions to United Nations Peacekeeping Operations: Lessons Learned and the Way Forward.” In the face of ongoing geopolitical shifts and national political pressures, the seminar examined the prospects of sustainable European participation in current and future UN peace operations as well as the operations’ effectiveness.
Co-sponsored by IPI, the Austrian Federal Ministry for Europe Integration of Foreign Affairs, and the Federal Ministry of Defence, the seminar presented different perspectives on European participation in UN peacekeeping operations. Participants included experts from IPI, the European External Action Service, the European Council on Foreign Relations, the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, Vrije Universiteit in Brussels, as well as government officials from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria, Ireland, and France, along with leaders from UN peacekeeping missions and the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
In session one on strategic context for UN peacekeeping, speakers noted that recent European engagement in peacekeeping missions—outside of longstanding contributions to missions like UNIFIL—has been driven by specific crises, and influenced by concerns regarding counterterrorism, migration flows, and humanitarian issues. They agreed that European countries have provided niche capabilities to specific missions, and there is currently little appetite to expand to other operations.
Participants noted that Europe is experiencing a rise in “Euro-isolationism.” Some countries, like the UK and France, have reaffirmed their commitment to collective security, but many European countries are increasingly focused on territorial defense. These trends take place amid a seeming retreat from multilateralism.
Session two offered space for diverse perspectives on European participation in UN peacekeeping operations. A key discussion point was that European Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) generally bring both the capacity and willingness to project and use force, a high level of professionalism and standards of training and preparedness, as well as, of equipment and niche capabilities that may otherwise be in short supply. While these traits are not unique to European troop contributing countries, they are generally shared by European peacekeepers.
Session three addressed the challenges of contemporary UN peacekeeping. The UN has adapted to European expectations regarding intelligence and medical capacity based on their experience with NATO, participants stated. But European countries have also adjusted to UN operations. While operational challenges and gaps still remain, including in areas of logistics, enablers, alignment of responsibility with authority, and security in hostile environments, there has been significant innovation in technology that aids peacekeeping missions, measurement of performance, and efforts to improve medical response.
In the final session, speakers discussed ways to move forward in sustaining European involvement in UN peacekeeping. European contributions to UN peacekeepers do appear sustainable in the near future, they said, but may be influenced by national political considerations, including the tensions emerging between internationalists and more-populist political constituencies. In this light, communicating success is important—less to incentivize participation than to prevent diminishment.
Recent European contributions embody innovative approaches to supporting UN peacekeeping. From employing multinational rotations to engaging through bilateral, trilateral and regional mechanisms, European countries successfully mobilize diverse capabilities to help the UN address clear needs. However, sustainable and comprehensive European engagement must move beyond short-term deployments of specialized troops and capabilities. Although Europe’s interests in UN peacekeeping will be driven largely by those crises that impact its security, European countries can nonetheless offer even more to the UN.
Europe can channel sustained diplomatic and financial support to political processes in host countries and to negotiations over peacekeeping budgets and UN reforms. Ensuring troops from across the continent are trained on UN peacekeeping standards and guidelines can greatly improve interoperability and cohesion in the field. Recognizing the added value of EU Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) missions, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) deployments, partnerships and tailored configurations will be increasingly important for mobilizing European commitment to the values and practice of collective security.
The event was held in the Austrian National Defence Academy. Lieutenant-General Karl Schmidseder, the Director General of Operations at the Austrian Federal Ministry for Defence, gave welcoming remarks, and IPI Vice President Adam Lupel introduced the event.
Other participants included: | https://www.ipinst.org/2018/06/vienna-seminar-examines-european-contribution-to-un-peacekeeping |
all learn something from it?
AP
Riding
in groups
Ride in a zigzag pattern.
The first rider sticks to his side, and the second rider goes
to the other side of the lane. The third rider stays behind the
first rider, but with good distance. In other words, keep left-right-left-right
within the lane. This allows the riders to see further and thus
prepare for the unexpected. Don't change sides UNLESS you want
to inform someone behind you of what's going on up ahead. A good
example is when a car is turning in front of you and you want
to move over to show the riders behind you the indicator of the
car.
If one stops, everybody stops
If one bike needs petrol, all bikes need petrol. If one rider
needs the loo, all riders needs the loo, etc, etc. This is to
prevent that uneven riding - when we're going, we're going. We
don't want to stop when every bike is running out of petrol. We
don't want to be in a situation where one person is having a burger,
then another one 30mins later, etc.
Pointing is good!
There are three general hand gestures that work on a bike. They
are:
Don't race, unless it's racing time. If
a rider comes up from behind in high speeds, it probably
means that he needs to inform you about something, don't
race away from him. It might be that he's been sent by the
last rider in the group, who's just about to run out of
petrol, to inform the rest of the pack.
Always indicate
The first rider should always indicate, not only to inform the
other riders to indicate, but also where we're going so that appropriate
actions can be taken, for example moving to the correct lane.
Ride up next to the first rider in junctions
In junctions and such, always ride up to the junction as far
as you can. Ride up next to the riders if possible. This gives
you the same view as the first rider and thus you can pull away
when the first rider does so, safely. Do notice that you wait
for the first rider to pull away, never overtake in such situations.
The Zigzag pattern should aid this positioning too.
Make an effort to stay together, BUT
When traveling in groups, it's often important that the group
stays together, as a first rider your priority should be steady
pace, don't make the riders behind you "caterpillar"
like an accordion. If you're riding behind, make an effort to
pull out of junctions at the same time as the the riders in front
of you. If you lag behind, make an effort to catch up. BUT, again,
steady pace does it. If riding on a steady road, don't accelerate
and brake, try to keep the same speed, even if there is a 4 car
gap in front of you.
Ride relaxed
The worst enemy on longer bike journeys is yourself. If you don't
ride relaxed you will be draining yourself of energy and you will
become an accident waiting to happen. There are several ways of
ensuring that you're not riding stiff. One tip is to put your
tongue between your teeth - if you tense up you'll bite yourself.
Another one is to shift riding positions, ride with one hand,
etc etc. The most important is that you learn to notice when you
are stiff, and then you can take actions. If you're unaware of
you being tense, then you can't do anything.
Your bike is serviced, but are you?
When you stop for petrol, you often check over your bike, add
a bit of chain-lube, check the luggage, but have you checked yourself?
Drink a bit of water, even if it's just a few mouthfuls, have
a candy-bar to top up your sugar levels. A good option is to keep
a bottle of water handy; under your seat, in your luggage, wherever.
And when you stop, you automatically have a drink. If you are
riding and you feel you need a stop - DO REQUEST one, don't let
yourself or anyone else ride when tired, hungry or dehydrated
Watch out for your mates. When you are
riding along, especially with luggage and such. Do keep
an eye on your friends bike. Check the luggage, that it's
not coming loose, check that the wheels are not wobbling,
check that the tyres are not flat. Check that your friend
is not riding tense or otherwise having a bad time.
Rain is good, for plants.
Every trip has got rain. Be prepared for it. There's no substitute
for proper gear. When it's raining, make sure your gloves are
inside of your jacket. Make sure your jacket is buttoned up. If
you're riding in
leathers, STOP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE and put on your waterproof
overall. Once you are wet, you'll never get dry. When buying your
gear; think of the usage - Leathers and posh boots are seldom
needed; only trackdays and serious fast riding require maximum
protection. Day-to-day riding requires good protection from accidents,
but extremely good protection from the elements. Gore-tex jacket/trousers
and waterproof boots will keep you going wherever you are whenever
you are.
A rider that's aware and prepared with the above can easily ride
(any bike) for a very long time and distance - 20hr rides and
near 1000mile distances are possible. If you get tired, it's probably
you that's to blame, not the bike. Riding is supposed to be fun,
let's all make it that.
Copyright © Motorbikestoday.com
2004. All rights reserved. Users may download and print
extracts of content from this website for their own personal
and non-commercial use only. Republication or redistribution
of content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly
prohibited without the prior written consent of Motorbikestoday. | https://motorbikestoday.com/features/Articles/riding_in_groups.htm |
The table shows the top 5 positions of zip code 14213 on our zip code ranking charts. For example, a rank of 10 means that a zip code ranks #10 on the list of the top zip codes in America for a particular value. The lists were created for all zip codes in America with the population of 1000 residents or higher. | http://www.mapszipcode.com/new%20york/buffalo/14213/ |
In 2004 the American Political Science Association ("APSA") published research exploring whether the rising income inequality in the United States had an effect on political equality. Although the APSA found tremendous evidence of a correlation between income and political power, the APSA nonetheless concluded that the issue could not be conclusively determined without further analysis.
The intent of this thesis is to argue the position that economic inequality is heavily implicated in both political equality and equality of opportunity, and to propose a political theory that directly addresses - rather than evades - this issue. A conclusion drawn in this paper is that it is necessary in liberal capitalist environments to place constraints on individual economic liberty for the sake of maintaining some degree of economic equality. I show in this paper that this conclusion is consistent with both the liberal tradition and American political culture.
This paper accepts - rather than circumvents - the fundamental principle that income inequality is inevitable in a capitalist democracy as is the ability of money to purchase positions, power and assorted privileges. Therefore, it should be the goal of social justice theory to ensure the gap between the richest and poorest be allowed to be great enough to respect individual choice and responsibility, but not great enough to dampen the opportunities available to those born into the bottom of the economic scale or to permit those born into the top of the economic ladder to exert oppressive power over the rest.
In the final chapter I propose four methods of narrowing economic inequality. These include a minimum standard, minimum wage and income tax reform, a tax and cap on wealth and an absolute inheritance cap. These four methods of limiting economic inequality are directed at narrowing, if not eliminating political inequality and inequality of opportunity.
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/9991
Recommended Citation
Schoff, Staci Leigh, "Economic Inequality's Correlation with Political Inequality and Inequality of Opportunity and the Implications for Social Justice Theory" (2013). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 980. | https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/980/ |
A.R. Rahman is doing a great job on Facebook. As of 2019-11-16, A.R. Rahman has 22,307,154 likes on their facebook page, 20,763,116 followers and has been adding to the page since March 22, 2009. We analyzed the couple-dozen latest posts from A.R. Rahman and found some crazy stuff. First, check out the most shared post (ID 10156478750421720) with a whopping 5,130 shares, 34,426 reactions (including 4,912 likes, 1,022 ‘loves’ and 23 ‘wow’s) and 851 comments:
This post has just 43 shares, 119 comments and 6,888 total reactions, with 722 likes, 26 loves, 2 wow reactions, 1 haha reactions, zero angry reactions and zero sad reactions.
Granted, 43 shares is still a ton for the average Facebook user.
OUR VERDICT: We did extensive research, looking through all of A.R. Rahman’s latest social media activity, their stats, and what people are saying about them. Here’s our conclusion AS OF 2019-11-16: A.R. Rahman is…
Gaining popularity 🙂
Sure A.R. Rahman has their detractors, but almost all their comments are very positive lately, so we’re confident in this conclusion. But what do you think? Do you love A.R. Rahman… or hate them? Is their popularity deserved? Let us know in the comments. | https://amarketreportsjournal.com/2019/11/17/a-r-rahman-gets-some-new-fans-2019-11-16/ |
GFA - output primitive for filling polygonal areas.
SYNOPSIS¶
CALL GFA (N, X, Y)
C-BINDING SYNOPSIS¶
#include <ncarg/gks.h>
void gfill_area(const Gpoint_list *point_list);
DESCRIPTION¶
USAGE¶
The area to be filled is delimited by the sequence of straight line segments connecting the successive points (X(1), Y(1)), (X(2), Y(2)), ..., (X(N), Y(N)). The last point in the polygon is connected to the first point with a straight line segment in the case that (X(N), Y(N)) does not equal (X(l), Y(l)).
Given a polygon whose edges cross each other, it becomes ambiguous as to what constitutes the "inside" of the polygon. The algorithm used in GKS is as follows: for a given point, draw a ray starting at that point and going to infinity in any direction; if the number of intersections between the ray and the polygon is odd, the point is within the polygon, otherwise it is outside. If the straight line passes through a polygon vertex tangentially, the intersection count is not affected. If a point is within the polygon, it is included in the area to be filled.
Several interior styles (hollow, solid, and various hatch patterns) can be selected. See the man pages for gsfais and gsfasi for these.
Note well: By default in GKS, the interior fill style is hollow, or no fill. If you call GFA and do not get a filled interior as you expected, you will probably need to call GSFAIS to set the fill style to something other than "hollow".
ACCESS¶
To use GKS routines, load the NCAR GKS-0A library ncarg_gks.
SEE ALSO¶
Online: gsfais, gsfasi, gscr, gsfaci, gqfais, gqfasi, gfill_area
Hardcopy: User's Guide for NCAR GKS-0A Graphics; NCAR Graphics Fundamentals, UNIX Version
COPYRIGHT¶
Copyright (C) 1987-2009
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
The use of this Software is governed by a License Agreement. | https://manpages.debian.org/bullseye/libncarg-dev/gfa.3ncarg.en.html |
Field Access and Conditions at bottom of any page.
Fields are OPEN Coaches , please walk the fields before practice and games and notify VSC of any holes or issues with the field.
Refund Policy and Membership Information
Upon completion of registration, every player, and or family become general members of the Board, and have the right to attend open or general board meetings, including board elections.
Each member ( family or representative ) has 1 vote, and may cast that vote by proxy ( in writing) or in person. Membership is for 1 season or calendar year depending on season as determined by the GCSA.
Refunds: refunds may be given prior to season start, (defined as having played at least one game) and are approved or denied on a per case basis. NO refunds will be given after the season starts, and there are no refunds at anytime on uniforms.
No refunds will be given in the case of violation of the club rules or code of conduct or for any other reason not covered by the above, and voted on or approved by the board.
Completion of registration is considered acceptance of these terms.
All of the above and more are covered at Coaches and parent meetings and non attendance to a meeting does not invalidate any of the terms of these policies.
Team Formation Procedures
All efforts are made to assign players to the same team or coach as the previous season, unless otherwise requested by the parents.
New players or players from teams that are no longer active, will join and/or be divided between the registered teams in the same age bracket.
Parent request for team placement is taken into consideration. The club does try to meet all team placement request, but the request is not guaranteed. As the priority is to ensure the teams are divided as equally as possible by the number of players on each team.
If siblings are playing at the same age bracket, they are placed on the same team unless otherwise requested by the parents.
Verdigris Soccer Club does not perform player evaluations. The skill level of players is not known or considered when teams are formed.
Verdigris Soccer Club is a recreational league. Club and Academy players are not to register with our club as a player or guest player, unless they have been released from the other club, and are no longer playing at that level.
If a team is co-ed, effort is made to split the team as evenly as possible, by gender. Priority is made to keep core teams together. This could result in an uneven number of boys to girl ratio on teams.
If we only have one coach for an age bracket, the roster may become a co-ed team that plays in a gender specific bracket. (Example: 3 girls sign up in U8, not enough to form a girls’ team. These girls have the option to play on the boy’s team that season)
If we start with one coach in an age bracket the roster is maxed, if we get over max roster, another team is formed, and a coach is sought out. We do not seek coaches unless we have teams for them. If another team is formed then we divide the players amongst the two teams, based on the team formation priorities. (Players return to same team as previous season, other players are divided between the two teams, parent team placement request, and siblings placed on the same team). | https://www.verdigrissoccer.org/about-3 |
Please note: Speed performance is restricted and the in flight adjustable propeller disabled to comply with LSA category requirements. The propeller can feather but this is automatically and independently controlled when the engine is stopped.
The Virus 912 is similar to the Sinus range except It’s wingspan, at just under 41 ft, is smaller than the Sinus and this makes the aircraft fly faster with the compromise being reduced glide ratio.
The Virus is a very capable touring aircraft. With long range tanks it has 7 hours endurance at 120 knots and with a higher wing loading it cuts through heavy turbulence with ease.
From A-to-B the Virus is certainly an efficient and economical aircraft, but dont let this fool you – slope soaring is a breeze in the Virus. The fast roll rate and excellent visibility make it a substantial wave or slope soaring aircraft and with a glide ratio of 24:1 it can still be thermaled. Overall, the Virus is an extremely nice package which will fit in most hangars.
Virus Technical Specifications
|MODEL||VIRUS 912|
|ENGINE ROTAX||ROTAX 912 UL2|
|max power (with 2 carb.)||80 hp at 5500 rpm|
|PROPELLER||Pipistrel VARIO|
|SIZES|
|wing span||40′ 10½“|
|length||20.99 ft|
|height||6.56 ft|
|wing area||118.41 ft2|
|rudder area||11.84 ft2|
|tail area||17.55 ft2|
|aspect ratio||13.1|
|positive flaps||10 deg. 18 deg|
|negative flaps||5 deg|
|center of gravity||25% – 37%|
|WEIGHTS|
|empty weight||628 pounds|
|max take off weight (MTOW)||1235 Pounds|
|fuel tanks capacity||2×7.93 or 2×13.2 US G|
|useful fuel||15 US gallons or 26 US gallons|
|PERFORMANCES|
|stall with flaps||34.6 Knots
|
39.8 MPH
|stall without flaps||39.9 Knots
|
46.0 MPH
|cruising speed||121.5 Knots
|
139.8 MPH
|max speed with airbrakes out||86.4 Knots
|
99.4 MPH
|max speed with flaps down||70.2 Knots
|
80.8 MPH
|maneuvering speed||73.0 Knots
|
83.9 MPH
|max. horizontal speed||128.5 Knots
|
147.9 MPH
|VNE||135.0 Knots
|
155 MPH
|best climb speed||70.2 Knots
|
80.8 MPH
|max climb rate (MTOW)||1220 fpm|
|climb rate at 140 km/h||1378 fpm|
|min.sink speed||48.6 Knots
|
60.0 MPH
|min.sink (prop. 90 deg.)||338 fpm|
|max. sink with airbrakes||1082 fpm|
|best glide ratio speed||59.4 Knots
|
68.4 MPH
|best glide (prop. 90 deg.)||24:1|
|glide at 150 km/h (prop 90 deg)||15:1|
|take off run MTOW||315 ft|
|take off over 15 m MTOW||508 ft|
|service ceiling MTOW||26500 ft|
|45°- 45° roll time||3.1 sec|
|endurance||5.6 hours|
|range distance||680 N Miles|
|max load factor permitted (x1.8)||+4g – 2g|
|max load factor tested||+ 7.2g – 7.2g|
|fuel consumption at cruise speed||2.5 GPH|
|ERGONOMICS|
|cabin width||43 1/3 inches|
|Max Pilot Height||+ 6′ 4″|
How is the Virus 912 different from the Virus SW 80?
Virus 912 has a higher aspect-ratio wings, is lighter in construction and meets even the strictest requirements for empty weight! Thanks to the larger wing, this aircraft performs better at high altitudes (FL 130 and above) and offers superior performance over the SW models when it comes to gliding. Ridge soaring and thermalling is very much possible with the Virus 912.
How much difference is there in the speed envelope between the Virus 912 and Virus SW 80/100?
Slow flying performance and behavior are the same. The Virus 912 fully conforms with European Microlight rules (65 km/h dirty stall) and LSA rules for stall performance (below 45 KCAS in clean configuration).
What is the width of the cabin?
43.3 inch
What are the ultimate load factors and the design weight for the Virus
The operational envelope is rated at +4 G, -2 G at 1235 lbs, which is the design load of the aeroplane. This means that the structure must withstand at least as safety factor of 1.875 more at 1235 lbs. This calculates to at least +7.5 G and – 3.75 G at 1235 lbs!
What is the weight / fuel consumption penalty for the nose wheel version?
The nose wheel version presents an addition of 16 lbs in empty weight and increases the fuel flow by 0.4 gph at cruise speed.
Is there a parking brake?
The parking brake is available as an option together with Berringer high performance tyres and wheel brakes.
What is the typical baggage allowance?
Baggage space is the solid luggage compartment behind the seats, which is easily accessible. Baggage allowance varies upon the level of equipment, etc. and can be calculated for each individual aircraft using the formulas in Flight manual and Maintenance manual, Section Weight and Balance.
However, typical values for the Virus 912 are 62 lbs for aircraft without the rescue system and 30 lbs when the rescue system is installed on board.
Is there a side luggage-access door?
The Side luggage access door is available as an option and provides easy and direct access to the solid luggage container from the outside. It features a lock so all your items inside will be safe. For much larger objects, the access to the luggage compartment is through the cabin – the seats fold in seconds and this provides a large opening and additional access to the luggage compartment.
Can you fly without the door for aerial photography?
Yes. You can remove one door completely, whereas the other door must be in place, closed and locked. With this configuration there are no extra airspeed restrictions, however the maximum recommended airspeed is 125 kts. Removing the door is a simple and quick procedure and only requires two safety pins to be removed.
What is the time needed to dismount the wings?
The wings are easily assembled and dismounted, should this be required. All control connections are self-fitting, so one must only connect the fuel lines with the provided click-on connectors and the system resembles the assembly system of modern gliders. All together it never takes more than 15 minutes, with experience even 5 minutes will be enough!
Can I do aerobatics, spins in the Virus 912?
The design basis of the Virus 912 follow the strictest EASA CS-22, CS-VLA and LTF-UL (sections) certification standards, as well as their FAA FAR counterparts. The Virus 912 is a high-performance airplane and not suitable for aerobatics, despite the +4 G, -2 G allowable loads. Pipistrel cannot prevent people doing aerobatic maneuvers in the aircraft, but we do not approve it – the reason is in aerodynamics. The Virus 912 has so little drag that it picks up speed MUCH quicker than other aircraft. This can be dangerous in aerobatic maneuvers (also spins, which are completely recoverable) and an average pilot can very quickly overstress the airframe because of airspeed. The aircraft can reach 145 kts in a dive in a matter of seconds! But flown correctly it is a very safe and forgiving aircraft.
Exterior paint
The paint used is a special acrylic based pigment, which is applied during the molding process. Pipistrel aeroplanes are not after-painted like most other aeroplanes – instead, paint is applied onto/into the structure while molding. This makes the paint much more durable and resistant to UV light and environmental contaminants. Recommendations for care and cleaning of the aircraft can be found in the Flight manual and Maintenance manual, section Handling and Maintenance, chapter Keeping your aircraft in perfect shape.
Is the leather upholstery offered as optional equipment true leather? What colours are available?
Yes, we use 100% genuine NAPA leather with Bovine texture in a wide choice of colors. The customer can choose the color of the seats and surrounding upholstery (side carpets, firewall, instrument panel pockets etc) separately. Up to two different colors per aircraft can be selected, for example: Red seats with Vanilla interior.
Do you need Service or Support for your Pipistrel products ?
Manuals for an aircraft you are servicing ? Spare Parts ? Airworthiness Information ? | https://www.pipistrel-usa.com/virus/ |
Welcome to divided by 30, our category containing the posts which explain the division of a particular number x by 30. The number x is called nominator, and 30 is called the denominator of the quotient x / 30. In every article we give you the result of the fraction x over 30 in high accuracy, along with the value in percentage and the properties of the result, e.g. terminating or repeating. In the former case, we state the number of decimal places, whereas in the latter case we provide you with information regarding the repented. Also, for any x divided by 30 we review the frequently asked question in the context. What’s more is that all entries in this category come with a unique calculator you will like. Information regarding the use of our search box, directions for further information, and how to ask us a question can always be found as well. | https://dividedby.org/category/divided-by-30 |
There is a vague definition of the word western and the way it is used when describing a society, this vagueness can have as an obvious consequence a split in the usage of the words western and non-western society. It should be outlined that in general the west or western as a description of the culture can refer to the culture that arose in Western Europe and went through various changes in the last centuries. This paper addresses the issue of knowledge in western and non-western societies with their interaction, relation, and the effects they have on each other.
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Analysis
The debates of the interaction between the western and non-western cultures and societies might have risen a long time ago, in particular when nations of different cultures had to get along with each other since the eras of colonization and discoveries, but it is no doubt that this relation between the two societies had a somewhat controversial and louder stir since the 11th September attack. This can lead to investigating the roots and the origins of this opposition, especially while living in the era of total globalization.
It should be noted that in the context of 11th September by the non-western societies mostly the Middle East is meant, especially that major eastern Asia countries adopted the principles of the western culture. However, in this paper, all non-western civilizations are taken into consideration.
As a demonstration of the impact that the two cultures had on each other, some examples of the knowledge that was developed in non-western society and had an influence on western society and their knowledge could be shown. As an example, it should be noted the major Chinese and Indian contributions to mathematics, where mostly they are not denied they are taken as merely a history. Where presenting the history of mathematics as a history of European mathematics “has stood in the way of educating Western readers to understand the contributions of Indian and Chinese mathematics to the corpus of world knowledge.” (Hayhoe and Pan 27) Other reasons for the achievement of the non-western knowledge to be ignored are the feel of superiority in western society along with their colonial domination which at the same time had a role in popularizing and spreading many eastern ideas such as Buddhism. (Moore &Brooder 502)
As an example of trace that western knowledge left in non-western society the philosophy could be mentioned. Where the eastern culture had its own set of religions and philosophies that was later globally spread, such as Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, the influence of Roman and Greek philosophers can not be overrated. The face of Islamic Philosophy was shaped by many translations that were made from the Greek language where “Neo-Platonism and Aristotle played important roles in shaping both the problems faced and their proposed solutions.” (Moore &Brooder 500)
Conclusion
It is seen that both the western and non-western knowledge had an impact on each other and at the same time some preservation of such knowledge especially in nonwestern societies contributed to the fact that this knowledge later would be ignored and underestimated. E.g., British scholar Alexander Wylie when told about accurate values of pi that was long ago by the Chinese thought it was a face-saving maneuver to hide the inaccuracy made by his Chinese colleague. While if he followed the origins of his claim “he would have discovered that the traditional mathematician Zu Chongzhi ( 429 to 500 C.E.) had obtained a value of pi accurate to seven decimal places, an accuracy that would not be achieved in Europe for another thousand years.” (Hayhoe and Pan 28)
Works Cited
Moore, Brooke N., Bruder Kenneth. Philosophy: Philosophy:The Power of Ideas. : McGraw-Hill, 2004.
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Hayhoe, Ruth, and Julia Pan, eds. East-West Dialogue in Knowledge and Higher Education. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1996. | https://studycorgi.com/western-knowledge-and-non-western-societies/ |
What structure does Shakespeare use?
What structure does Shakespeare use?
Answer. When writing plays Shakespeare had a metrical pattern that consisted of lines in unrhymed iambic pentameter. This is also known as blank verse.
Are all Shakespeare plays written in iambic pentameter?
Examples of iambic pentameter are found in all of Shakespeare’s plays, including the famous “Romeo and Juliet,” “Julius Caesar,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and “Hamlet.” See instances of this meter in the verses that follow.
How do you perform a soliloquy?
This is my five-step guide to help you prepare a soliloquy for either a full performance of a Shakespeare play or an audition speech.
- Think about the context.
- Analyze the structure of the text.
- Think about where your character is.
- Sequence the information.
- Emotional engagement is essential.
What Balthasar tells Romeo?
He encounters Balthasar, who tells him that Romeo is in the tomb. Balthasar says that he fell asleep and dreamed that Romeo fought with and killed someone. Troubled, the friar enters the tomb, where he finds Paris’s body and then Romeo’s. As the friar takes in the bloody scene, Juliet wakes.
Why does Romeo wish he were a glove?
What does Romeo wish he were? A glove on Juliet’s hand so he could touch her cheek. He says that there is more danger in Juliet’s eye than in 20 of her kinsmen’s swords.
What’s in a name Shakespeare soliloquy?
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part. What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet.
How did Romeo express his love for Juliet?
the words ‘bright’ and ‘night’ appear In Romeo’s praise of Juliet’s brightness when he sees her for the first time in the feast hosted by Lord Capulet. Romeo uses the phrase ‘snowy dove’ to refer to and to distinguish Juliet from other ladies In the room.
What is the difference between a monologue and a soliloquy?
Like a soliloquy, a monologue is a speech delivered by a single speaker. The difference between the two types of speech is its audience: In a soliloquy, the speaker is giving a long speech to him or herself (or to the audience). In a monologue, the speaker is giving a long speech to other characters.
What is a chapter in a piece of drama?
An act is the division or unit work of a theatre work, including a play, film, opera, and musical theatre. Therefore chapter is to prose as act is to drama.
What is the difference between drama and film?
Drama is a live performance where actors perform live on stage also known as theatre. Movie is a real/recorded performance where actors pre recorded act can be seen, and the place where people jointly see is known as theater. Drama is live on stage in front of limited people.
Shakespeare used a metrical pattern consisting of lines of unrhymed iambic pentameter, called blank verse. His plays were composed using blank verse, although there are passages in all the plays that deviate from the norm and are composed of other forms of poetry and/or simple prose.
Which stage direction tells a character to leave the stage?
Exeunt
Does this character fulfill the characteristics of a tragic hero?
Does this character fulfill the characteristics of a tragic hero? Tim does not meet the requirements of a tragic hero. Though he is of noble status as a king, Tim does not relate to his people; rather, he asserts his superiority and power over them. He does, however, possess the tragic flaw of hubris (excessive pride).
What is the relationship between iambic pentameter and blank verse?
Iambic pentameter is a form of blank verse. Blank verse is a form of verse that uses iambic pentameter. Both blank verse and iambic pentameter are types of prose. Blank verse is a type of verse, while iambic pentameter is a type of prose.
What is the difference between monologue and a soliloquy?
Which device is not an element of drama?
iambic pentameter
What element of drama is known as portion of an act?
Acts and scenes An act is a part of a play defined by elements such as rising action, climax, and resolution. | https://easierwithpractice.com/what-structure-does-shakespeare-use/ |
In my opinion, grass is more valuable than wormwood, there is no nature. A lot of useful properties it has.
So you knew that if you decompose the dry leaves of wormwood in a closet, no moth is terrible?
And the smell is not an example to mothballs.
And in the village they always knew: the house, smoked with wormwood, is closed to evil.
It is advisable to do this on the eve of a church holiday, but it is possible on any other day. Put the dry bushes in a frying pan, set them on fire, then extinguish the fire — let them just smolder, the smoke. After skirting the whole apartment, put the frying pan on the threshold on the floor, step over it. Pour ash out into the street away from home. You will see that good things will settle in the apartment.
But of course I will not only talk about this, but also about the healing effect of wormwood. This herb is valuable, it is used on its own, and in various collections in the treatment of many diseases.
Its anti-worm effect is particularly well known. Wormwood worms do not tolerate at all.
For this purpose, use the dilated unblown inflorescences — take before meals on a tablespoon, chewing thoroughly.
And to dampen the bitterness, you can mix them with jam, honey, syrup and drink milk.
Few know that wormwood successfully copes with much more serious ailments, such as cancer, for example.
• 3 teaspoons of dry wormwood pour 1.5 cups of boiling water, insist 2 hours, drink 1/4 cup 3 times a day for 30 minutes before meals.
• 1 tbsp. Spoon of ground wormwood roots pour 0.5 liters of boiling water, boil on low heat for 10-20 minutes, insist 4-6 hours, take half a cup twice a day. | http://health5.ru/cancer-of-the-uterus/ |
One of the most mysterious and infrequently seen species of large, tropical pufferfish—Arothron multilineatus—was recently collected for the aquarium trade. There’s a good chance that this species, which was described only in March of this year, has never been kept in captivity before, and, with only around a half-dozen specimens having ever been documented, this is undoubtedly one of the rarest fishes in the pufferfish family.
This specimen was collected in the Philippines at Pagbilao, Quezon Province at a depth of 15-20 meters. Barnett Shutman of RVS Fishworld reports that this is the only specimen he has seen in his thirty years of experience, emphasizing just how unusual this find was. It eventually found its way to New York’s Country Critters, where it’s been sold to a well-known aquarist with a very large tank.
Previous records were exclusively from Japan and the Red Sea, making this new specimen an important find that expands the known range into the Coral Triangle. But many questions remain, particularly concerning why it is so rare in the first place. In my earlier discussion of A. multilineatus, I put forth the hypothesis that this enigmatic species is actually nothing more than an unusually patterned hybrid. Arothron pufferfishes are, after all, quite abundant in their natural habitat, and they tend to be among the most photographed of shallow-water tropical marine fishes, so it seems fairly implausible that an organism as large and charismatic as the Multilined Pufferfish could conceal its existence so well. The same holds true for another rarely encountered relative, A. carduus, which is essentially identical in appearance to A. multilineatus and is known from even fewer specimens… one of which is a lamp shade from the curio trade! The alleged difference between the two is that A. carduus has black lines on a white body, while A. multilineatus has the reverse. That being the case, one could make the argument that the specimen shown here is actually A. carduus, but the distinction between these two poorly known “species” is dubious at best. In fact, traits of both patterns can perhaps be seen in this one individual, with the dark pattern of A. multilineatus found on the head and the light pattern of A. carduus present posteriorly.
Until genetic sequencing can be done on a specimen, there is every reason to doubt whether either of these taxa represent anything more than aberrant or hybrid phenotypes. The most likely parentage, given the existence of this fish in the Red Sea, would be A. hispidus X A. stellatus, though the specimen shown below might offer a different explanation, as it appears to be a A. nigropunctatus X A. multilineatus. It might also be equally plausible that the wavy lines that make A. multilineatus and A. carduus so distinctive are really nothing more than a particularly attractive mutation. Hopefully, more specimens will eventually be found so that a definitive answer can be determined.
The aquarium trade is one of the worst hobby suppliers in the world. Denigrating tropical reefs wherever they are. It is high time trading in tropical fish was banned.
If the reefs are dying due to “climate change” this could be veiwed as preserving nature. I keep seeing posts that say bangi cardinals are becoming scarce, the breed like rats in captivity.
Very few reef fish ‘breed like rats in captivity’ The average home marine aquarium keeper is completely useless. I was part of a study following marine fish captured on the reef to the aquarium store and onto the home aquarium owner, 75% of the fish were dead within 6 months of them being taken from the reef. another 20% died within a year. The home aquarium trade is extremely lucrative for the aquarium trader as home owners are constantly replacing the fish that die. | https://reefs.com/2016/11/08/ridiculously-rare-multilined-pufferfish-collected/ |
If you want to build good relationships, israeli bride would need to know how to build a rapport with other people. You can use the five-step approach to get it done. First, you should understand what sort of people you are. You should be willing to accept other people’s ideas and needs. You need to be sensitive and considerate of others’ thoughts. Secondly, you must have empathy for other people. This is a critical a part of building very good relationships.
Last but not least, you need to be persistent. You need to know how to build a relationship with others and stay persistent inside your efforts. You must know that most people are afraid of denial, so you must be happy to face it. You should also intend to be refused some of the period. This is the first step to building a relationship. Make certain you are present in the office and look at other people. This really is essential to fostering positive connections.
Next, you must know how to build a relationship with other folks. You must build a sense of empathy individuals. This is required because if you do not, it is likely that your partner will not feel comfortable talking to you. Moreover, you should be open to other people’s viewpoints and opinions. Remember, only some people are precisely the same. For example , you will be open to different viewpoints and try to understand what inspires them. You will need to be honest on your own about your feelings and reasons. This is a crucial step pertaining to building a healthy and balanced relationship.
If you can’t possess sympathy, you must practice techniques that could build accord. These methods will help you build interactions with people based on a perspectives and backgrounds. If you don’t have empathy, you should consider understanding how to develop a great comprehension of their view. As long as you develop your ability to connect with people, you can expect to become more powerful and important. This way, you will be able to achieve your goals. And once you need to do, you will never run out of human relationships!
In order to build good relationships, you need to know how to talk to others. The communication skills are vital in any marriage, in fact it is crucial to understand what motivates people. This is the first step to creating a good romantic relationship. Your goals must be compatible with other folks. A positive marriage is the foundation of your achievement. It is vital to determine a strong and productive workforce. When you are qualified to communicate with individuals with empathy, it will be possible to create a good business.
During meetings, you will need to practice how to construct relationships. As you interact with persons, you need to captivate interest and have absolutely them that you care. Being empathetic can help you establish provides and build a healthy romantic relationship. Developing a positive relationship is essential for any company. By being empathetic, you will increase your chances of becoming successful at work and in life. You will probably build a better team.
A great way to build romantic relationships is to be open and genuine with people. By sharing information about yourself, you will make others feel much more comfortable around you and trust you. As you open up, people will feel relaxing and more vulnerable to talk to you. Besides, an optimistic romantic relationship will increase your productivity. If you don’t want to share personal information with your colleagues, share your feelings and have absolutely that you are a great open-minded person.
Lastly, listen to the colleagues and possess them that you just care about them. By asking them out for a coffee, you will set up a good romantic relationship with them. Your co-staffs will love you correctly. By listening to them, standard more useful relationship with them. You are likely to gain their very own trust and respect. By sharing your emotions, you will build a strong connection with your team. Then, you can bring them to lunch, or ask them for a coffee.
The simplest way to build a wonderful relationship with others should be to share the experiences. You could start a romance with somebody you understand well. For those who have met the other person at work or in college or university, you should take the time to go out designed for lunch or dinner alongside one another. If you realized at work, you may go out pertaining to lunch or dinner with them. You can also meet new people in daytime. The key is to get started on a new relationship with a person you have a connection with. | https://oncocyte.com/building-relationships-five-steps-to-building-very-good-relationships/ |
Die Erfindung betrifft ein Verbindungssystem für Bauelemente (1, 13, 14), Möbelelemente (100, 101) und dergleichen, mit Verbindungsteile (4a, 4b) zum Verbinden der Elemente (1, 13, 14, 100, 101) miteinander. In die Elemente (1, 13, 14 100, 101) sind in Längsrichtung der Elemente sich erstreckende Taschen (3) eingebracht. In diese Taschen werden die Verbindungsteile (4a, 4b) eingesetzt. Jeweils erste Verbindungsteile (4a) sind mit Längsnuten (5) versehen und werden in die Taschen (3) eines Elementes (1, 13, 14, 100, 101) eingesetzt. Zweite Verbindungsteile (4b) sind mit Längsrippen (7) versehen und werden in Taschen (3) eines zweiten mit dem ersten zu verbindenden Element (1, 13, 14, 100, 101) eingesetzt. Die zweiten Verbindungsteile (4b) mit den Längsrippen (7) sind zur Verbindung der Elemente (1, 13, 14, 100, 101) an die Längsnuten (5) der ersten Verbindungsteile (4a) senkrecht zur Ansetzrichtung der Elemente einschiebbar.
The system has connecting parts (4a) for connecting structural elements i.e. chip board (1), and furniture elements with each other. A recess (3) extending in a longitudinal direction of the elements allows insertion of the connecting parts. The connecting part (4a) has a longitudinal groove (5) and other connecting part has a longitudinal rib, in which the recess of the elements is inserted. The latter connecting part including the rib is retractable into the groove of the connecting part (4a) perpendicular to a connecting direction of the elements for connection of the elements. An independent claim is also included for a connection device. | |
The Smart Coaching Series on the Coach and Coordinator Podcast is designed to help coaches improve over the course of the season in the areas outside of the X&O’s. Coaches need to be able to take care of people and this podcast will give pause for reflection, as well as generate ideas for the coach to be smart about how he improves his players and team.
This week on the Smart Coaching series, Grabowski, Dr. Gearity and Dr. Kuklick focus on the issue of player stress, giving the coach the opportunity to not only be looking in the athletic perspective, but the human perspective that will ultimately affect them the rest of their lives. They discuss the importance of watching the different types of stressors for players and give different ideas of how a coach may find ways to monitor stress in their players, as well as the ability to get involved and help them deal with stress.
Show Notes
01:20 The different stresses an athlete may face
02:00 The different types of stress
03:35 Sources of stress
05:55 Seeing the subtle signs
07:00 Dr. Brian Gearity’s example
09:20 Tools for athletes
14:00 Keith’s truth statements
15:20 Communicate to the athlete authentically
16:40 Share personal tools
17:30 What does a coach do?
19:25 There is support
22:10 Subtle example
26:05 Emotion affecting stress
27:25 Distracting the mind
29:30 Changing the environment
30:30 Making it creative
31:35 Make it different
32:50 Talk to them after the fact
33:45 Final thoughts
34:00 Make a stress plan
35:05 Be cognizant
Bios:
Dr. Brian Gearity and Dr. Clayton Kuklick, professors of sport coaching at the University of Denver. Dr. Gearity has been the director of the Master of Arts in Sport Coaching program at Denver since 2014. Before teaching at Denver, Dr. Gearity spent five years at the University of Southern Mississippi as an assistant professor of Sport Coaching Education. As a coach, Dr. Gearity’s specialty is in the strength and conditioning side. Dr. Gearity worked as a strength coach at the University of Tennessee for nine years and received his PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Tennessee in 2009.
Dr. Kuklick works as a clinical assistant professor for the Sport Coaching program at Denver. The previous two years, Dr. Kuklick has worked as an assistant professor of Athletic Coaching Education at West Virginia University. He also previously received his PhD in Human Performance and Recreation: Administration and Teaching at the University of Southern Mississippi in 2014. In coaching, Dr. Kuklick has worked as an assistant coach for baseball teams at Shepherd University, Georgia College and State University, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and Kutztown University. Dr. Kuklick has also worked as a head coach for several college baseball summer leagues.
RELATED CONTENT: [PODCAST] Sport coaching professors Gearity and Kuklick talk about strength and conditioning
RELATED CONTENT: [PODCAST] Grabowski, Gearity and Kuklick talk about how to install team cohesion
RELATED CONTENT: [PODCAST] University of Denver sport coaching professors talk about building team culture
Subscribe to the USA Football Coach and Coordinator podcast on iTunes. | https://blogs.usafootball.com/blog/6623/podcast-grabowski-and-university-of-denver-sport-coaching-professors-talk-about-player-stress |
Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience.
Q:
I am a federal employee and on occasion request travel compensation, including for time spent travelling to the airport and waiting at the airport. I am not aware of any established policy on documentation required to support the compensation. Is this type of documentation required and are there any regulations that show whether my department can or cannot ask for this?
A:
Per 5 C.F.R. § 550.1404(b)(1), “travel status” includes the “usual waiting time” that precedes or interrupts travel, such as waiting for an airplane, train or bus, and/or travelling to/from the airport or terminal. Moreover, the determination of what amount of time constitutes “usual waiting time” is at the agency’s discretion. See 5 C.F.R. § 550.1404(b)(1). Given that one cannot necessarily document how much time was spent travelling to/from the airport or other time spent waiting before and after travel, and that the agency may determine at its discretion the appropriate “usual waiting time,” it should not be necessary, or likely, that an agency would require you to produce documentation to show the total amount of time spent travelling. However, the agency may require you to produce basic documentation to show your travel schedule or itinerary.
Bill Bransford is managing partner of Shaw, Bransford & Roth, PC.
Disclaimer: Ask a Lawyer publishes information on this website for informational purposes only. Information on this website is intended – but not promised, guaranteed, or warranted – to reflect correct, complete and current developments. In addition, the contents of the website do not constitute legal advice and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the attorney. Information from this website is not intended to be used as a substitute for specific legal advice, nor should you consider it as such. You should not act, or refrain from acting, based on information on this website without seeking specific legal advice about your particular circumstances. No attorney-client relationship between you and Ask a Lawyer’s author is created by the transmission of information to or from this site. | https://askthelawyer.federaltimes.com/2011/12/23/q-a-session-travel-documentation/ |
Have short hair doesn't mean you've accepted a life free from hair embellishments. You just have to get creative in how you use your hair accessories so they don't slip right out. Here's how Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting made a headband work earlier this week. Hairstylist Clyde Haygood styled her hair messy—all-every-which-way chic—then slipped a rhinestone band in so that it peeked out here and there. The band isn't holding anything out of her face, you know. It's purely decorative. It's just a change in mind-set. Any of you pinning this idea for later?
Having short hair doesn't mean you've accepted a life free from hair embellishments. You just have to get creative in how you use your hair accessories so they don't slip right out. Here's how Kaley Cuoco made a headband work earlier this week.
Hairstylist Clyde Haygood styled her hair messy—all-every-which-way chic—then slipped a rhinestone band in so that it peeked out here and there. The band isn't holding anything out of her face, you know. It's purely decorative. It's just a change in mind-set.
Any of you pinning this idea for later? | https://www.glamour.com/story/allow-kaley-cuoco-sweeting-to |
A Colorado woman helped save the life of a 2-year-old boy who nearly drowned in Flandrau State Park’s outdoor pool.
The woman saw the boy floating on his back with his face submerged in about 3 feet of water Sunday afternoon, said Cmdr. Dave Borchert of the New Ulm Police Department. She grabbed the boy, who was about 15 feet from the edge of the sand-bottomed pool, and pulled him to the sandy shore.
Although the boy, identified as Saul Torres of Gaylord, was not breathing and was turning blue, he had a pulse. The woman’s mother helped do rescue breathing on the boy until a lifeguard was called over to assist. That lifeguard, Minnesota State University student Samantha Serbus of Redwood Falls, was able to revive the boy before an ambulance and police arrived.
“Their actions were critical,” Borchert said. “They did a fantastic job by being able to assess something that quickly without panicking.
“When our officers responded, the child was alert and conscious. Our officers would have taken the same action, but time is of the essence.”
Borchert said he didn’t want to give out the names of the daughter and mother who helped the boy because he wasn’t able to contact them Monday. He did say the woman who grabbed the boy was from Colorado and her mother was from Wood Lake. They were both camping at the state park, Borchert said.
Torres’ mother, Yesenia Tobias of Gaylord, said she was thankful the women were able to save her son. Torres was at the pool with Tobias’ sister. Tobias found out about the incident from her mother, who traveled to New Ulm with her from Gaylord to get Torres.
“I couldn’t think because I was in shock,” Tobias said. “I was just hoping he was all right. He’s fine now. He was only in the hospital for a few hours yesterday.”
Tobias said she brought Torres to the Dairy Queen to eat after he was released. He ate as well as ever but told her he didn’t want to take showers anymore, Tobias said.
Borchert said the incident also serves as reminder that adults need to keep close tabs on children while they’re swimming at beaches and pools, even when lifeguards are working.
“I know from my own experience with my own kids that you always have to watch them,” he said.
Join the Conversation
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SEOUL, March 6 (Yonhap) -- Japan's entry restrictions for visitors from South Korea are dealing another blow to airlines and travel agencies already hit by the fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak, the companies said Friday.
Local airlines and travel agencies have been struggling with a sharp decline in air travel demand for more than a month after South Korea's first confirmed COVID-19 case was reported on Jan. 20.
Adding to their woes, Japan announced Thursday that visitors from South Korea and China will have to stay at designated facilities for two weeks to be checked for infections and refrain from using public transportation. Japan also plans to suspend the 90-day visa-free entry program for South Koreans on Monday.
In reaction to the move, Seoul said Friday it may take similar steps against inbound passengers from Japan "under the principle of reciprocity."
The Japanese move prompted Korean Air Lines Co., the country's biggest airline and national flag carrier, to temporarily suspend most of its flights on 18 routes to the neighboring country starting Sunday.
Asiana Airlines Inc., the second-biggest airline, said it is considering suspending all of its flights to Japan due to Japan's entry restrictions. It currently operates eight routes to six Japanese cities.
The two full-service carriers have continued to reduce or suspend flights on domestic and international routes since February.
Korean Air said 80 percent of its overall flights were not in operation as of March 2. It had provided passenger and cargo carrying services to 115 cities in 44 countries before the coronavirus hit.
Jeju Air Co., the country's largest low-cost carrier, said it will soon decide whether to continue flights to Japan. It now serves flights on eight routes to six Japanese cities, down from 11 routes and eight cities.
As of Friday morning, South Korea had reported 6,284 confirmed cases of the novel virus and 42 deaths. At least 100 countries and territories plan to enforce or are imposing entry restrictions for visitors from South Korea.
Six other budget carriers -- Jin Air, Air Busan, Air Seoul, Eastar Jet, T'way and Fly Gangwon -- have already suspended all or most of their flights on international routes. Most of them have entered an emergency management system to stay afloat.
Among industries affected by the virus outbreak, travel agencies are also bearing the brunt.
Most local travel agencies are deeply concerned about poor earnings results for the first quarter and a forced restructuring as bookings for overseas travel have fallen to rock bottom this month.
"The company asked all of its 5,000 employees to work for three days a week in March as there are no flight bookings for domestic and overseas travel," Lee Jae-min, who runs a Hana Tour travel agency in Seoul, said.
Travel agencies -- which mainly handle travel packages, business trips for local companies and cruise travel products -- will suffer the most from the coronavirus fallout in terms of business results, Lee said.
The Korea Association of Travel Agents, which represents 1,200 out of the country's 18,000 travel companies, is concerned that if airlines continue to suspend flights, many agencies will end up going bankrupt, KATA spokesperson Koo Jeong-hwan said.
"The airline and travel businesses are not alone. The virus outbreak is having negative implications for related industries -- hotels, duty free shops and restaurants, to name just a few," the spokesperson said.
KATA recently called for financial support from the government as their members badly need to maintain their workforce because the travel business, unlike manufacturers, depends heavily on experienced human resources, he said.
Airline and tourism stocks retreated Friday on concerns of poor earnings for the first quarter.
As of 2:30 p.m., Korean Air had plunged 5.8 percent to 23,600 won, Asiana was down 3.4 percent at 4,245 won and Jeju Air had shed 3.2 percent to hit 21,500 won. They all underperformed the broader KOSPI's 2.2 percent loss. | https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20200306005800320 |
Do the Math #1: Health Care Coverage Amounts. Christina Haley of San Marcos, Texas, age 61, recently suffered a severe stroke. She was in intensive care for 12 days and was hospitalized for 18 more days. After being discharged from the hospital, she spent 45 days in a nursing home for medically necessary nursing and rehabilitative care. Christina had a comprehensive health insurance plan through her employer. The policy had a $1,000 deductible, a $50,000 episode limit, and a $250,000 annual limit with an 80/20 coinsurance clause with a $2,000 coinsurance cap. Christina’s policy covered the medically necessary services performed in a nursing home setting. Her total bill was $125,765.
- a) How much of Christina’s expenses was paid by her insurance policy?
- b) How much did Christina pay?
Do the Math #2: Health Care Coverage Amounts. Michael Howitt of Berkley, Michigan, recently had his gallbladder removed. His total bill for this event, which was his only health care expense for the year, came to $13,890. His health insurance plan has a $500 annual deductible and an 80/20 coinsurance provision. The cap on Michael’s coinsurance share is $2,000.
- a) How much of the bill will Michael pay?
- b) How much of the bill will be paid by Michael’s insurance? | https://qualitygradeprofessors.com/i-need-the-answers-now-to-question-below-fin-2/ |
Nina Dobrev TV Actress
Nina Dobrev is a Bulgarian-Canadian actress and model. She was born on January 09, 1989 (31 years old) in Sofia, Sofia-Capital as Nikolina Konstantinova Dobreva. Her nickname is Dobreva Nikolina Konstantinova (birth name); Добрева Николина Константинова (Bulgarian).
About
Nina Dobrev is a Canadian actress and model. She played the role of Mia Jones the single teenage mother on Degrassi: The Next Generation from the show's sixth to ninth season. She stars as Elena Gilbert Katherine Pierce and Amara on The CW's television drama The Vampire Diaries. read more
Her Parents
Her mother is Michaela Constantine and her father is Kamen Dobrev.
What is Nina's zodiac sign?
Nina Dobrev zodiac sign is capricorn.
How tall is Nina Dobrev?
She is 5′7″ ft tall, which is equivalent to 1.69 meters.
Nina Dobrev Talks Everyday Makeup Routine & Halloween Costumes | Get Ready With Me | Harper's BAZAAR
Sibling
Nina Dobrev has 1 sibling. Alexander
Works
Her first feature film was xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017, as Rebecca 'Becky' Clearidge). She was 28 when she starred in this movie. Since 2017, she has appeared in 26 feature films. The last one is Sick Girl. .
Her first TV Show was Family Guy (1999).
Education
She graduated from Ryerson University and Wexford Collegiate School For The Arts
Nina Dobrev Movies (26)
Nina Dobrev TV Shows
Nina Dobrev movie characters
|Character||Movie||Age|
|Rebecca 'Becky' Clearidge||xXx: Return of Xander Cage||28|
|Anna||Chloe||21|
|Candace Kelmeckis||The Perks of Being a Wallflower||23|
|Josie||Let's Be Cops||25|
|Marlo||Flatliners||28|
|Elizabeth||Dog Days||29|
|Ashley||Run This Town||30|
|Maria||The Roommate||22|
|Vicki Summers||The Final Girls||26|
|Cupid||Merry Madagascar||20|
|Loren Hansett||Never Cry Werewolf||19|
|Lori Lord||Arena||22|
|Monica||Away from Her||18|
|Chloe||Lucky Day||30|
|Izzy||Then Came You||30|
|Bella||Fugitive Pieces||18|
|Hannah||Crash Pad||28|
|Ally||The American Mall||19|
|Rachel||The Poet||18|
|Mia Jones||Degrassi Goes Hollywood||20|
|Tall Girl in Bathroom||How She Move||19|
|Jessica Carpenter||Too Young to Marry||18|
|Justine||My Daughter's Secret||18|
|Young Frannie Mackenzie||Playing House||17|
When is Dobrev's next birthday?
Nina Dobrev was born on the , which was a Monday. She will be turning 32 in only 109 days from today (22 September, 2020).
Nina Dobrev net worth
She has a net worth of 10 million dollars. | http://www.howold.co/person/nina-dobrev |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a process and device for producing labels, especially metal labels of the double classification type and comprising information coded by bars. The invention also relates to labels produced by the process.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Pressed and/or cut metal labels are more resistant to heat or chemical and mechanical attack than, for example, are labels on plastic or paper media or even printed metal labels.
The production, assembly and packaging of products on a fully automated line, and successive treatments and the controls concerning these different operations require positive identification of these products so as to be able to continuously locate them and sort them. This specific identification must resist the high temperatures of certain treatments, soakings in different types of baths, etc. Such identification must be easily recognized by anyone via various reading processes (laser, sight, etc) and at any point of the processing line without any special handling being required.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The object of this invention is to provide a process and device which can quickly, safely and economically produce metal labels of a new type resistant to most treatments to which parts fitted with these labels are likely to be subjected during production, when being assembled or being treated, for example on an automated chain, and especially metal labels able to comprise information coded by bars.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The bar code is well known. Information coded by bars appears in the form of a series of full parallel bars of different widths separated by spaces of different widths.
Accordingly to this invention, a process for machining a ribbon of material with the aim of obtaining labels comprising information coded by bars includes the following steps:
dividing the series of parallel bars and spaces comprising the information coded into a series of rectangles, referred to herein as calculation rectangles, which are equal and parallel, roughly having the same length as the bars, so that, after marking the surface with the calculation rectangles, the series of rectangles re-forms the desired series of bars and spaces;
classifying the series of calculation rectangles, marked or otherwise, into several complementary series by superposition, i.e. so that their superposition allows for forming of the desired series of bars and spaces of the coded information and so that none of the complementary series comprises marked rectangles which are spaced with a distance less than a predetermined distance;
machining the material ribbon in several successive overlays each corresponding to one complementary series according to rectangles, known as machining rectangles, corresponding roughly to the marked calculation rectangles of the complementary series, so as to have appear by machining on the ribbon the coded information as and when the overlays are all completed.
The process according to the invention thus differs from known processes in that each overlay corresponds to an operation complementary to the others, each part being produced by a set of elementary tools and differing from the previous one.
Machining may be effected by means of a machine fitted with a set of elementary tools that are all of the same size adapted to the dimensions of the machining rectangles.
In one embodiment of the invention, machining of the ribbon consists of cutting it according to the machining rectangles, i.e. according to the coded information bars so as to obtain labels with recessed bars. In order to obtain this aim, the machine may be a press and the elementary tools are tools in the press, such as rectangular cutting punches having the same cross section dimensions as the machining rectangles. It is then a particular advantage to provide for a small covering width or overlap so that no material remains between two adjacent punched holes formed during different machining overlays. This overlap width, however, will have to be as small as possible and in any event take into account bar- code legibility and precision tolerances. Moreover, the predetermined minimum distance to be observed between rectangles of a given complementary series is, in this instance, determined in particular by the spatial requirement of each elementary tool or punch. It is an advantage according to the invention to carry out several machining operations simultaneously on the same press, this press then needing to be fitted with an adequate number of sets of elementary tools.
According to this invention, a device for machining a material ribbon includes the following elements:
a ribbon feed device;
a press device;
at least one set of elementary tools in the form of punches able to be activated by the press device to machine the material ribbon upon being actuated by means of shims; and
a central control processing unit which controls machining by selectively inserting shims between each of the tools and the press device brought into play by means of shim positioning means prior to any action of the press device on the tools by means of the shims in order to machine the ribbon.
The shim positioning means may comprise:
shim-displacement means acting on several shims at the same time by means of travel compensation devices such as springs; and
a shim-blocking device to prevent a shim from moving between the press and its tool on operation of the shim-displacement device associated with it.
The displacement means may comprise fluid jacks or electromechanical solenoids.
Advantageously the mechanical press is fitted with several sets of tools aligned along the path of the ribbon so as to be able to machine in several overlays each different complementary series by virtue of the different arrangements of the shims, one per overlay for each of the sets of tools. The feed device comprises a reel and a stepping device for advancing the material ribbon. It is then possible to simultaneously machine several labels or ribbon segments.
In one embodiment of the invention, the device is used to produce metal labels which, according to the invention, include a number coded by bars cut from a metal ribbon or strip followed by its alphanumeric expression, for example in Arabic characters, pressed into the metal ribbon. The device then also includes a pressing unit activated by the press, the various numeric characters being embossed by a pressing wheel which is pressed into the ribbon after selection by the central processing unit of the desired numeric character. In this embodiment, the tools are cutting punches which cut the ribbon. It is an advantage for the bars and the spaces of the bar code to be classified first as explained above in the general description of the process of the invention. One thus obtains double classification strip comprising a number coded by bars and an alphanumeric classification.
According to one variant, the device has the advantage that it also includes a quality-control station for machining the material ribbon and a station for marking segments of the ribbon and deemed to be defective following quality-control. This control station may comprise a camera connected to the central control processing unit and operated to scan the material ribbon after machining under suitable lighting.
For the production of double classification labels, especially for bars and alphanumeric classification, control may consist of checking agreement between the two expressions of a given item of information, its alphanumeric expression and its expression coded by bars.
In one embodiment of the invention, the camera is linear and scans the label ribbon thus produced along at least one parallel longitudinal axis for the reading. The alphanumeric code character font is then selected according to the invention so that each numeric character can be recognized by its intersections with the scanning longitudinal axis or axes. If there is a defect on a label, the central processing unit orders the marking of the defective label for it to be machined again.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The above and other objects, features and advantages of my invention will become more readily apparent from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying highly diagrammatic drawing in which:
FIG. 1 is an elevational view which shows a label according to the invention;
FIGS. 2a to 2c are diagrams which show the classification of a bar code according to one of the steps of the invention process;
FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of an automatic label production line according to the invention;
FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic section in half-views taken on a vertical plane, of a press equipped according to the invention, in two configurations seen in respective halves of the figure;
FIG. 5 is a partial section similar to that of FIG. 4, but on a larger scale and illustrating the functioning of a press similar to that of FIG. 4; and
FIG. 6 is a partial diagrammatic two-dimensional view showing a set of shims for a press similar to the one of FIG. 4.
SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION
In FIG. 1, a label 1 according to the invention is shown in the form of a metal strip segment 2 carrying two expressions of a given number: its alphanumeric expression 3 and its expression coded by bars 4. The alphanumeric expression 3 is pressed and thus appears embossed or recessed, whereas the expression 4 coded by bars is cut, the bars corresponding to wide or thin elongated rectangular holes 5 or 6 made in the ribbon or strip 1. In FIG. 1, the actual label is delimited by imaginary transverse lines 7 and 7' respectively passing through delimitation notches 8 and 8' made on the edge of the ribbon 1 for the marking of the labels when they have still not been separated from each other.
A central notch 9 similar to the delimitation notches 8 and 8' appears on certain labels, for example those having a defect, so as to differentiate them from the others.
The label is thus metallic, cut from a thin steel strip, e.g. from 0.1 to 0.2 mm thick, and comprises two identical numbers written in two different codes:
a cut bar code 4 read by special equipment, and
embossed numeric characters 3 read by processing line operators.
The numbers may be replaced by alphanumeric words.
In order to produce in series labels such as the label 1 described above, it has proved advantageous to produce these by means of a mechanical press equipped with cutting punches and pressing tools.
In order to simplify the tooling required for cutting the bar coded number, according to the invention the procedure is as follows: FIGS. 2a to 2c illustrate the prior processing of the number 3579 coded by bars. This case refers to the bar code known as "2 from 5 entwined" composed of wide bars (WB), thin bars (TB), wide spaces (WS), and thin spaces (TS). As appears in FIG. 2a, the series of bars and spaces always contains start information (TB-TS-TB-TS) at the code start and stop information (WB-TS-TB) at the code end. A wide bar (WB) and a wide space (WS) have the same width which is equal to the width of three thin bars (TB) or three thin spaces (TS), namely as regards their respective widths: (WB) =(WS)=3(TB)=3(TS). It is therefore possible to divide the series of parallel spaces and bars comprising the information coded into a series of rectangles 10, referred to as calculation rectangles, that are equal and parallel, roughly having the same length as the bars so that, after surface marking of certain of the calculation rectangles 10, the rectangles together form the desired series of bars and spaces as illustrated on FIG. 2b. Each rectangle has the width of one thin bar or thin space.
Next, the process of the invention provides for the classification of the series of calculation rectangles 10, possibly marked into several complementary series A, B, C, and D each being superposed so that their superposition enables the series of bars and spaces with the coded information to be formed and so that none of the complementary series includes any calculation rectangles spaced by a distance less than a predetermined distance. In the case of this example, this predetermined distance, which, apart from other things, depends on the punches spatial requirement factors, is between twice and three times the width of one rectangle. Once this classification is made, it is possible to cut the material ribbon with several successive overlays, each corresponding to a complementary series A, B, C, or D according to the machining rectangles corresponding roughly to the rectangles 10 identified by the complementary series A, B, C, and D so as to have appear by cutting on the ribbon the bars of the coded information as and when the overlays are applied.
So as to avoid the risk of leaving material between two cuttings when punching a wide bar, the machining rectangles are wider than the calculation rectangles while remaining centered on the calculation rectangles so as to be very slightly overlapped inside a given wide bar from one overlay to the other by an overlapping width.
In an application example of this process, the calculation rectangles have a width of 0.42 mm corresponding to the bar code pitch and the machining rectangles have a width of 0.44 mm for 8 mm of length corresponding to the width of a cutting punch, namely 0.02 mm of overlapping width for the wide bars. The 0.44 mm punches cut the ribbon according to the division pitch, namely 0.42 mm, and are centered on the marked calculation rectangles, namely an overlap of 0.01 mm on both sides of the marked rectangle. Thus, once the ribbon is cut, the following widths are obtained:
thin bars (TB): 0.44 mm,
wide bars (WB): (0.44×3)-(2×0.02)=1.28 mm,
thin spaces (TS): 0.42-(2×0.01)=0.40 mm,
wide spaces (WS): (0.42×3)-(2×0.01)=1.24 mm.
Of course, these dimensions conform to the reading and legibility tolerances of the bar code.
FIG. 3 shows an installation for producing labels according to the invention. This apparatus includes:
a support steel strip or metal ribbon feed device 2 mainly comprising a supply reel 11 and a stepping device 12 for advancing the metal ribbon 2;
a mechanical press 13 which is driven by an eccentric 14 and on which are successively mounted in the moving direction of the ribbon 2 along the path thereof:
the stepping advance device 12;
a tool 15 for cutting the bar code comprising 4 cutting stations 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d each provided with a set of cutting punches each in turn independently activatable according to the requirement of the cutting to be made in the ribbon by means of shims or keying pull cords (not shown here) moveable and possibly interposed between the punches and the press;
a wheel pressing unit 16 for Arabic characters;
a visual control station 17 having a camera 18 with lighting 19;
a notching unit 20 for labels having a defect;
a bath 21 for cleaning the ribbon 2;
a takeup device or winder 22 for the cut, pressed, notched and cleaned ribbon 2, this advantageously being done between turns of paper 23;
a central processing unit 24 connected to the press and controlling all the operations, such as cutting by activating or not activating each of the different punches of each cutting station 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d by means of the shims or pull cords, as well as, in particular, pressing and notching from a predefined cutting program entered into a memory connected to the central processing unit 24;
an operator console 25 connected to the central processing unit 24 enabling the entry of information corresponding to a cutting program and allowing control of the course of operations. A printer may be connected to the console 25 to enable editing of operating messages.
In this embodiment of the invention, the various stages of the process are the following per production cycle:
(a) advance of a metal strip 2 by a distance corresponding to a label length by means of the stepping advance device 12;
(b) possible independent activations of the bar code cutting punches on each of the work stations 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d controlled by the central processing unit 24;
(c) incremental setting of the pressing wheels of the number pressing unit 16;
(d) verification of all the positions for authorization of the press cycle;
(e) cutting and forming according to these positions;
(f) visual control of the correspondence of the two expressions, coded by bars and alphanumeric, of the number of the last cut and pressed label by the central processing unit 24 according to the signals the camera 20 sends to it;
(g) possibly notching of a label by the notching unit 20 if it is defective;
(h) a calculation of the next label to be generated by the central processing unit 24;
(i) continuous winding without tension of the labels already formed by the winder 22.
The quality control of the last label and its notching in the event of a defect, as well as calculation of the next label, can be carried out during the pressing and cutting stage.
FIGS. 2a-2c and FIG. 3 make evident that the various complementary series A, B, C and D of the rectangles correspond to the different and complementary overlays for machining a given label. When the device of FIG. 3 produces labels continuously by machining a material ribbon, the program is executed as follows according to the successive press cycle:
1st cycle: the first label is cut according to its complementary series A at the station 15a;
2nd cycle: the first label is cut according to its series B at the station 15b and the second according to its series A at the station 15a;
3rd cycle: the first label is cut according to its series C at the station 15c, the second according to its series B at the station 15b and the third according to its series A at the station 15a; and
4th cycle: the first label is cut according to its series C at the station 15d, the second according to its series C at the station 15c, the third according to its series at the station 15b and the fourth according to its series A at the station 15a, and so on.
During the fourth press cycle, the first, second, third and fourth labels are respectively cut 100%, 75%, 50% and 25%, that is they are that much complete.
Initialization of the system is carried out during a stop at the top dead center without the need for any special protocol, the initial state being any, depending of the requirement on the user, and is transmitted by the console in the form of the first number or word to be generated.
Continuous quality control of the label may be effected by one or more linear cameras 18. The central processing unit 24 sends it the number to be recognized. The camera 18 compares it to the two codings of the label and sends its reading to the central processing unit 24 along with a message with any possible error code. Reading is made on a lit station immediately downstream of the press. Visual accuracy is doubled possibly with two cameras to avoid errors concerning recognition of the numeric characters and detect breakages of punches where they are most likely to occur, especially at the extremities. The recognition of numeric characters is generally not directly possible with linear cameras. The pixel (smallest image element able to the analyzed) is 0.1 to 0.2 mm. Accordingly, for each numeric character, it will suffice to accurately scan a significant zone which will enable the pressed-in numeric character to be recognized. To guarantee reading, the character is read on its recess side so as to have a perfect shadow under glancing light.
To avoid additional codification or classification, the alphanumeric characters of the code 3 are defined in a rectangular matrix where one or more reading lines are defined. Each character cuts this line at one point different from the others. Each character thus is recognizable with a single significant zone of some tenths of millimeters, the reliability of this process residing in the positioning precision of the character to be recognized. Where the character definition matrix needs to be reduced for reasons of spatial requirement, recognition on two lines enables four significant recognition points to be used instead of two. This process can be applied to signs which are more complex than characters (e.g. alphabetic characters) without any special preparation being required other than slight deformation of these signs.
The cutting punch activation process will be understood better by referring to FIG. 4 which is a diagrammatic lateral section of the press around the punches when the press operating member 14 is at the bottom dead center. FIG.4 is divided into a left part and a right part which respectively correspond to a configuration in which the punch 26 represented is activated and another one in which it is not activated.
From FIG. 4 it is possible to recognize the various elements making up a press, namely the press plunger 27 that is integral with a punch plate block 28 so as to be able to print on it displacements along a vertical axis. It is also possible to recognize in FIG. 4 the blank press block 32, the blank press spring 33 and the blank press non-return device 34, as well as the matrix block 35.
FIG. 5, which is a close-up view similar to FIG. 4, shows the press at the bottom dead center position. The punch 26 is in a housing 29 which only permits a single vertical translation degree of freedom on a certain height defined by a notch 30 in the punch which fits vertically around a catch or abutment 31 of the housing.
A shim or pull-knob 36 is provided inside the punch plate block 28 so as to be able to move in translation along a horizontal axis between a rear or outer position and a front or inner position. In the front position, the front extremity of the shim 36 blocks the punch 26 in the low position in its housing 29 by placing itself between its head and the upper part of its housing 29, as shown on the left part of FIG. 4, i. e. when the punch is active. In this part of FIG. 4, the metal ribbon 2 has just been cut by the punch 26. In the rear position, the shim 26 does not prevent the punch from moving inside its housing 29 and when the press plunger drops at the bottom dead-center position, the punch 26 rests on the metal ribbon 2 by virtue of its own weight but the ribbon is not cut as shown on the right in FIG. 4, i.e. in the configuration where the punch 26 is not active.
The activation of each punch is thus made twice for best reliability and precision. The principle is that each punch 26 has in its housing 29 a degree of translation freedom and is active when this freedom is blocked by a shim or pull knob 36; when it is not active, the punch comes to just rest via its own weight of a few grams on the steel strip at the press bottom dead-center position. The shims are positioned in relation to the punch by an activation drawer 37 common to several pull knobs 36. The drawer is controlled by an average-power jack 38.
To this activation drawer 37 are hooked pull knobs 36 which block the heads of the selected punches 26. The selection mode is carried out for each pull knob by small indexing electromagnet jacks or actuators 39 moving slugs or indexing rods 40 which free the pull knobs 36 by preventing them from moving in relation to the punch plate block 28. As the pull knobs 36 are linked to the drawer 37 by respective compression springs 41, when this spring moves into a front position, only the pull knobs not stopped by their respective indexing slugs 40 come and slide above the respective punches 26. In this example, each indexing slug 40 is a rod which slides into the punch plate block 28 and which blocks the pull knob associated to it by holding itself in a hole 43 made in this pull knob, the longitudinal axis of the rod preferably being perpendicular to the translation axis of the pull knob. Following the press cycle at the top dead-center position, the drawer 37 is moved forward and the slugs, pull knobs and consequently the punches are selected. From the bottom dead center, the activation drawer 37 returns to the rear position returning all the pull knobs via the hooking notch 30. The indexing slugs 40 are also returned and instantaneously reselected for the next number. The activation jack 38 takes again its front position by pushing all the pull knobs which do not encounter any obstacle caused by the indexing slugs. In the contrary case, the compression springs 41 between the pull knobs 36 and the drawer 37 are compressed. The position of each pull knob 36 is checked by means of an optical fiber probe 42 (FIG. 4) connected to the central processing unit 24.
The invention device is reliable because:
the strokes of the moving elements 26, 36, 37, 40 . . . are very small;
the movements of the parts are in straight without any risk of skewing,
the positions of the pull knobs 36 are controlled;
the cutting forces are borne by the shearing working elements; and
the actuating jacks 38, 39 bear no force other than that required for the movement of parts and the reactions of the springs.
FIG. 6 shows a set of pull knobs 36 and cutting punches 26 viewed from above with two activating drawers 37 situated across from each other, one for each of the set punches 26. The drawers are in the front position and have moved the free pull knobs by means of the travel compensation springs 41. The free pull knobs are those which are not blocked by the indexing rods 40 passing through their holes 43; they have their front extremity above the head of the associated punch 26. On the other hand, the pull knobs blocked by the indexing rods 40 provoke compression of their respective travel compensation springs 41 and leave free the heads of the punches associated to them. When the press plunger lowers, only the punches overlapped by a pull knob extremity or shim 36 will cut the metal ribbon.
One can see that it is therefore possible to implement the process of the invention by means of the device described in the mentioned drawings in order to produce labels according to the invention. Indeed, the division and classification of the bar code into rectangles, possibly marked according to the invention, are well-adapted to the use of identical rectangular punches which can be activated independently under a given press.
According to the invention, the press may be regarded as a computer peripheral just like a printer. Indeed, its architecture and operating principle allow for the activation of the punches in a completely random way. The number of possible combinations depends on the number of effective punches, as if n is the number of punches, the number of combinations is 2n-1.
These punches are not necessarily cutting ones. They may be raising embossing or die stamping punches and generally are dependent on any technique applicable to working with sheet metals on a mechanical press. Their command mode allows for modulation of the adjustment of forms upon demand (embossing depth, die stamping thickness, cutting surface, angle or raising radius, etc). It thus allows for an adjustment according to two dimensions between each press stroke without the need for manual intervention.
Quickness is obtained by the strokes of very short jacks with very low inertia. By way of example, the selection jacks may reach 500 to 600 strokes per minute in the previously described conditions.
The precision and exactness of the processes employed, when once defined, make it simple to install and multiply them. As regards the bar code cut from a metal strip blank, this seems to be an important requirement for the industrial sectors, such as the automobile, electromechanics, radio/television, electrical equipment industries where assembly and production cycles are particularly automated.
Finally, the invention is of course not merely restricted to the modes of embodiment shown and described earlier, bat on the contrary covers all the technical equivalents and variants of these. | |
This Is Us' Sterling K. Brown Is Joined by Wife Ryan Michelle Bathe at Emmy Awards 2019!
Sterling K. Brown poses for a photo with wife Ryan Michelle Bathe on the red carpet at the 2019 Emmy Awards on Sunday (September 22) at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
The 43-year-old actor won an Emmy for his work on This Is Us back in 2017 and he is up for his third nomination for the show this year. This is his fifth overall nom!
Joining Sterling on the carpet were his on-screen daughters Eris Baker and Faithe Herman.
FYI: Sterling is wearing a Brioni tuxedo, Christian Louboutin shoes, an IWC watch, and David Yurman cufflinks. Ryan is wearing a Zac Posen dress, Renee Caovilla shoes, and Martin Katz jewelry. Eris is wearing a Tadashi Shoji gown and Hearts on Fire jewelry. Faithe is wearing a custom Mia Bambina dress. | http://origin2-www.justjared.com/2019/09/22/this-is-us-sterling-k-brown-is-joined-by-wife-ryan-michelle-bathe-at-emmy-awards-2019/?=morehere |
A photograph in a flooded New Orleans home after Hurricane Katrina.
One of the most heartbreaking aspects of cleaning up after a flood is the loss of beloved books, treasured artwork and family photographs. Art and photography experts say don't just toss things to the curb. Some pieces may be saved.
The following advice comes from Steve Sweet and Kristin Hebert Veit, both of The Historic New Orleans Collection. Sweet was head preparator for the collection in October 2005 when he first provided Times-Picayune readers valuable advice on how to salvage flood-damaged artwork, photography and books. Today, he's the collection's manager of Internet and Interactive Development.
We asked him to update his advice, in case new technology has changed things. He then consulted his colleague Hebert Veit, the collection's curatorial cataloguer. Below are their combined tips.
"The most important thing to know is, if it's a valuable thing, you've got to get it to a conservator," Sweet said. Novice efforts can ruin something a conservator might save.
Pastels or artworks with soluble ink are problematic, but intaglios or lithographs might be saved. As with photographs, remove the frame, but if the artwork is stuck to the glass, do not try to remove it. Dry face-up with blotter paper underneath, changing the paper to absorb moisture.
Hebert Veit added: Keep in mind to never blot the surface of a work on paper or a painting on canvas. If there is lingering residue, it is better to gently rinse the object in a bucket of clean water, horizontally if at all possible.
Paintings should be removed from the frame, but not the stretcher and allowed to dry. "Carry and lay a wet painting to drain horizontally, face up. Never touch or blot the paint layer," Hebert Veit said.
"Do not apply heat or put it in the oven to flatten it out, which will ruin it," Sweet said.
"If it's wet, and you can't get to it, put it in waxed paper and put it in your freezer," Sweet said. "Keep it frozen, which will preserve it until you can work on it."
Interleaf wet books every few pages with blotter paper or plain newsprint (from an art supply store) or paper towels. Keep changing the paper to soak up water. To dry the book further, set it up on its spine and have a fan blowing in the room, although not directly on the book, so the air circulates. "When the book gets kind of dry, when it feels a little cold but most of the moisture is out of there, lay it down, put more paper in it, then put a weight on it," Sweet said. "The book will want to expand and will never get back to its normal shape."
The LSU AgCenter's website offers guides for flood recovery, mold and mildew cleanup, carpet and floor restoration, moisture problems and housing repair.
Always rinse flood-damaged photos in clean water before freezing or setting them out to dry, Hebert Veit said. "Freeze the photos you can't clean immediately to prevent mold growth, which can start within 48 hours of them getting wet," she said. "Do this by first interleaving them with wax paper so that they can be separated later. When you can get to them, allow them to thaw before separating, and then lay them out to dry. Or, take them to a conservator; they often know how to work with frozen photographs."
Sweet added: The most important thing to remember about photos is not to touch the image or emulsion. Family photographs on resin-coated paper (those from the 1970s until digital photography) can probably be lightly rinsed in fresh water and saved, dried flat with the emulsion side up. Put blotter paper or paper towels underneath to soak up moisture. Keep changing the paper. Photos will curl, but a picture framer, photo studio or conservator can flatten them in a press.
If the photograph has been sitting in water for some time, don't touch it. Use a piece of sturdy cardboard to scoop it up gently from underneath and place it on cardboard. Bring it to a conservator as soon as possible. If a photo is framed and sticking to the glass, don't try to remove it. Take off the frame and let it dry with the glass side down on the counter, and bring it to a conservator.
Hebert Veit said negatives and film should be dried vertically, clipped to a clothesline. These are more stable than photographs on paper, so prioritize prints.
Some of these tips were first published in an article by Judy Walker in The Times-Picayune on Oct.13, 2005. | https://www.nola.com/homegarden/2016/08/how_to_salvage_flood-damaged_a.html |
Thomas – who last played a full NBA season in 2016-2017 and played in three games with the New Orleans Pelicans this April – was asked for his G.O.A.T point guard pick during a conversation with Taylor Rooks and Channing Frye on TNT’s NBA Twitter Live show on Sunday night. After some hesitation, Thomas stated his case for Curry.
Thomas Says Curry ‘Changed the Game’ on ‘Every Level’
GettyGolden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers in May.
While never quite among the the NBA elites, Thomas is certainly one of the best final draft picks in league history. Though he was selected 60th by the Sacramento Kings in 2011 and was almost always the smallest player on the court at 5-foot-9, Thomas’ statistics and accolades speak for themselves, and his choice and reasoning is certainly worth diving into.
“I’m gonna go with @StephenCurry30… changed the game of basketball on every level.”
Thomas’ take that Curry “changed the game of basketball on every level” seems like a bold statement on the surface, but when fans think to the pre-Curry days and see just how massive of a difference there is now when it comes to three-point shooting in the NBA, Thomas’ claim doesn’t seem too crazy. Curry is, in many minds, already the best shooter in NBA history, but is so much more than that.
Two-time league MVPs don’t come around every day, and the highest individual award isn’t given to players who are one-dimensional. Curry is without a doubt one of the greatest point guards, let alone players, in the modern era.
Who Else Made Thomas’ Top-5 Point Guard List?
Where many may have a problem with Thomas’ take is the fact that Steph is still an active player. Immediately after Curry at No. 1 in the point guard department, the two-time Celtics’ all-star puts two hall-of-famers in Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas (no relation) at second and third in no particular order.
Thomas then goes back to a couple of current players in Chris Paul and Kyrie Irving for the fourth and fifth slots respectively. While Curry is a no-brainer for the list of best players in recent memory, and Paul and Irving will join Steph in entering the Hall of Fame someday, maybe “I.T.” will want to reconsider some of the already retired all-time greats like Robertson and Stockton when it comes to G.O.A.T point guard status.
Who is the best point guard in NBA history? How about the league's all-time assist leader, John Stockton, or triple-double machine Oscar Robertson, or the Western Conference Finals-bound Chris Paul?
Former Boston Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas has another player in mind, a certain Golden State Warriors two-time MVP. | |
Saskatoon-based publisher Noodlecake has launched its Tamagotchi-inspired Noa Noa! virtual pet simulator game on iOS.
The free-to-download title lets players create a human avatar that will be used to raise virtual pets called Noas. Each Noa has its own personality and ability, encouraging players to explore various locations to find Noa eggs.
Development on Noa Noa! was handled by Ontario’s wildergames and overseen by Toronto’s Tony Coculuzzi, lead developer on Canadian-made Cuphead and lead programmer on mobile game Florence.
Noa Noa! can be downloaded from the App Store here. | https://mobilesyrup.com/2019/02/14/saskatoon-noodlecake-noa-noa-game-ios/ |
While it is recurrent to mention the current rise of ceramics and textiles, few readings venture a more in-depth interpretation of this resurgence, beyond an appreciation of the hand-made. Those who argue that the motivations for this “return” are established in reaction to the omnipresence of digital culture, seeking materiality in the face of the invasive culture of screens, do not take into account a generation of artists who are aware of the very concrete reality of data centers and the implications underlying “virtual” reality, both in terms of work and of the environment. This analysis, attached to a linear vision of technological evolution (challenged by current research in media archaeology), focuses on the good old specificity of media. Perhaps we should look at what critic Chris Sharp calls the “theory of the minor”.1 According to him, faced with a “major” art instrumentalized by the literality of language (close to journalism, pedagogy and an overhang of spokespersons), whose exemplary showcase would be the biennials (obliged to communicate with maximum readability or to justify themselves with the urgency of socio-political issues), lies a “minor” art. An idiosyncratic and irreducible language, which speaks for no one, capable of transforming the materials of the world and where form is already, in itself, political. Paradoxically, however, it is perhaps the current rise in gender and decolonial studies, so present in the biennials, that have worked the ground for the resurgence of craft practices that have long been considered minor.
The exhibition “Pattern, decoration & crime” allows us to make an unexpected archaeology of this phenomenon. Its object is an artistic movement from the 1970s-1980s, Pattern & Decoration, which was internationally successful before falling into oblivion. For a temple of modernity (critical as it is) as the MAMCO in Geneva, this incursion into a movement opposed to what constitutes its mimimal-conceptual DNA may surprise but attests to its ability to inscribe current questions in a great historical focus. Artists integrating this movement reacted to the reductionist aesthetic doctrine that dominated the mid-1970s, claiming the notions of decoration and motif that they referred to as the repressed of modernity.
Rather than seeking to reactivate the notion of beauty and visual pleasure, as argued in Anne Swartz’s essay3 on the movement—because this would imply an essentialist vision of these notions and a restricted reading of minimal and conceptual art—these artists consider the question of taste as a social, gendered and geographically situated construct. The surprise of this movement comes from the fact that it was able to draw conclusions from the feminist and post-colonial movements of its time: composed equally of women and men, Pattern & Decoration criticized the male and Western domination maintained by modernism, which obviously resonates with the current period. The difference is that the enhancement of artisanal activities, long referred to as a domestic universe considered feminine, can now appear as a very unperforming vision of gender roles. If feminism led to a questioning of the categories of art and crafts, it was above all, including at the time, an inclusive methodology that was present from the very first meetings of the group and inspired by the experiences of certain members, from protests against the absence of female artists in the LACMA exhibition “Art in Industry” to Miriam Schapiro’s participation as a teacher in Cal Arts’ Feminist Art Program, by way of Joyce Kozloff’s participation in the creation of the pioneering Los Angeles Council of Women Artists.
“We were saying: it’s a huge world, look at your grandmother’s duvet, look at the rug you were on, look at this ornament outside your building, look at what’s happening in other countries… Enjoy it, it’s a huge visual feast,” explains Robert Kushner, member of the group. This expansive vision also reflects the interest that Amy Goldin, a true mentor to the movement, has shown in Islamic art and folk art. For her, American art had become insular and her formalist approach did not hesitate to use Persian rugs during her classes to discuss a non-Western and non-hierarchical way of conceiving the motif, rejecting egocentrism. If the interest of Pattern & Decoration through Islamic art, Byzantine and Mexican mosaics, Turkish embroideries and Japanese engraving could today raise other questions concerning cultural appropriation, reinforced by the new orientalism of the time, the fact remains that the movement has made the implacable observation of the need to look beyond art history and open to the idea of visual cultures. Matisse, one of the group’s major references, had travelled to Morocco in 1912, to return by decentralizing his compositions. Joining unexpectedly with the productive contradictions of MAMCO, Pattern & Decoration can be seen as a movement that heralds what has been called post-modernism, drawing from heterogeneous sources and employing pastiche and appropriation. The artist Robert Zakanitch saw in the decorative a third way, neither realistic nor abstract. When, during a panel discussion, he was asked if he saw a difference between his work and wallpaper, he boldly replied: “I’m not!”. However, it would be simplistic to see it only as irony without grasping Pattern & Decoration’s contribution to the decentralization of a still hegemonic cultural history.
1 Chris Sharp, “Theory of the Minor”, Mousse Magazine, n°57, February-March 2017.
2 Curator Lionel Bovier also says that the movement “can be described as recessive”.
3 Anne Swartz, Introduction to the catalogue Pattern and Decoration: an Ideal Vision in American Art, 1975-1985, New York, Hudson River Museum, 2007.
Image on top: Richard Kalina, Montana, 1979. Coll. of the artist. Photo : Annik Wetter. | https://www.zerodeux.fr/en/reviews-en/pattern-decoration-crime-%EF%BB%BF/ |
If you woke up this morning having difficulty accessing Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, you’re not alone. The three popular social media platforms are currently experiencing outages at the moment making it difficult to view your latest feed and posting new updates.
On Facebook, it appears that access via their website (desktop and web) is down at the moment, however, it seems to be working fine if you’re using their mobile app. Unfortunately, we can’t post anything new on our personal and SoyaCincau.com Facebook page.
This issue also affects 3rd party website logins that use Facebook. Meanwhile, Instagram is having intermittent issues loading the latest feed, search results and notification.
According to the Verge, instant messaging service, WhatsApp was down for some users but it appears to be up and running in Malaysia. What we do noticed is that you can’t send pictures to anyone at the moment but text messages are working fine.
Both Facebook and Instagram have posted an update via Twitter that they are aware of the ongoing issue. They also mentioned that they are working to resolve it as soon as possible.
On top of that, VR platform Oculus is also affected as well with some users complaining having difficulty logging in to any multiplayer games purchased via Oculus store as well as their Oculus Home environments.
Yesterday, Google had faced service interruptions as well. Several users have difficulty accessing their Gmail and Google Drive account which was frustrating for those who rely on them for work.
Are you having issues as well? Do let us know in the comments below. | https://www.soyacincau.com/2019/03/14/facebook-instagram-whatsapp-down/ |
Crystalline Si (c-Si) technologies dominate the current market share of PV modules (more than 90%), and the aluminium back surface field is the current industry-standard technology. There are different cell structures for crystalline silicon-based PV cells. The cells are electrically interconnected (with tabbing), creating a string of cells in series and assembled into modules to generate electricity. A typical crystalline silicon (c-Si) PV module contains approximately 75% of the total weight is from the module surface (glass), 10% polymer (encapsulant and back sheet foil), 8% aluminium (mostly the frame), 5% silicon (solar cells), 1% copper (interconnectors) and less than 0.1% silver (contact lines) and other metals (mostly tin and lead). The rest of the components have a small percentage of the total module weight.
- Thin-film technologies
Thin-films represent less than 10% of the entire PV industry. The currently dominant thin-film technologies are cadmium telluride (CdTe), copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) and amorphous silicon (a-Si) . Thin-film solar cells were developed with the aim of providing low cost and flexible geometries, using relatively small material quantities. CdTe is the most widely used thin-film technology. It contains significant amounts of cadmium. A-Si has low toxicity and cost but also low durability, and it is less efficient compared with the other thin-film technologies, and CIGS has a very high optical absorption coefficient because it is a direct bandgap material.
Photovoltaic panel recycling methodologies
PV modules are mostly recyclable. Materials such as glass, aluminium and semiconductors can theoretically, be recovered and reused. Nowadays, Japan, Europe and the US are focused on research and development related to solar module recycling. Most efforts related to solar panel recycling concentrate on Si panels and aim to recover and recycle the most important parts. The most common methods for recycling c-Si PV modules are based on mechanical, thermal and chemical processes. Although thin-film solar cells use far less material than c-Si cells, there are concerns about the toxicity of materials such as tellurium (Te), indium (In), and cadmium (Cd). In the recycling process, panels are primarily dismantled by removing the surrounded Al frame, as well as the junction-boxes and embedded cables. The panel’s aluminium framing is the second-largest portion of the materials can be recovered from the PV panel. The aluminium frame will be removed manually from the panel before shredding Once the aluminium frame was removed entirely, the panel lost its rigidity causing the remaining layers to slightly fold in on themselves similar to a rolled piece of paper. This loss of rigidity proved useful for fitting the panel into the hopper of the shredder. The glass panel will be the most considerable component portion recovered during the panel recycling process. Silicon-based panel and thin-film solar panel glass recycling is a more thorough process, involving shredding. The shredded glass panel is recyclable and can be reused in the production of new products, such as glass bottles. There is no known dedicated PV panel recovery and reliable technology operating on a commercial scale in Australia at present. Once the panel was processed through the shredder, the material will be collected for the further chemical recycling process.
Currently, many of the chemical methods have been the subject of laboratory-based research, there are limited commercially available treatments for PV panel recycling. The US-based solar manufacturer First Solar applies both mechanical and chemical treatment methods to thin-film solar panels. On the other hand, c-Si solar-panel modules have been recycled by a company in Germany. Australia has limited facilities for panel separation recycling PV panel. Similarly, other countries have problems in applying recycling technologies. In Australia, it has been identified that the increasing volumes of end-of-life PV system components and the lack of dedicated recycling capacity. PV panel disposal to a recycler is considered expensive and cost-prohibitive. The cost and handling requirements for current disposal to recyclers is a barrier to provide free or nominal cost service to the customer. Without adequate government support, local recyclers will not be able to operate a sustainable business model in PV recycling industry. | http://www.cyberrecycling.com.au/blog/photovoltaic-panel-technologies-and-recycling-methodologies/ |
Even the most stubborn sceptics can no longer deny that the climate is changing as a result of the man-exacerbated greenhouse effect. Observations over the past 100 years clearly show that the climate around the world has become warmer. Since the beginning of the 20th century the global annual average temperature has risen by 0.74 °C and the global average temperature has risen by 0.13 °C every decade over the last 50 years. By far the largest factor responsible for the increase in temperature observed since 1950 has been human activities from which considerable quantities of greenhouse gases (GHG) have been released into the atmosphere.
In Germany alone the average air temperature increased by nearly 1 °C between 1901 and 2008 and the decade from 1990 to 1999 was the hottest in the course of the 20th century. Change can also be seen in rainfall patterns.
According to regional climate models climate in Germany is expected to see an increase in annual average temperatures of 1.5-3.5 °C by the end of this century compared to 1961-1990, together with a widespread reduction in summer rainfall, projected to be of a magnitude of 20-40 %. Unless appropriate adjustments are made, high summer temperatures combined with unusually low rainfall could lead to enormous problems in regions that are already experiencing droughts.
For references, please go to www.eea.europa.eu/soer or scan the QR code.
This briefing is part of the EEA's report The European Environment - State and Outlook 2015. The EEA is an official agency of the EU, tasked with providing information on Europe's environment. | http://www.eea.europa.eu/soer/countries/de/climate-change-mitigation-why-care-germany |
How to determine s corp stock basis
It is important that a shareholder know his/her stock basis when: The S corporation allocates a loss and/or deduction item to the shareholder. In order for the shareholder to claim a loss, they need to demonstrate they have adequate stock and/or debt basis. The S corporation makes a non-dividend distribution to the shareholder. Stock Basis. Step. Record your beginning stock basis. Step. Add your share of every type of taxable income and non-taxable income. Also add your increases in capital contributions. Step. Subtract any distributions of cash or property you received. Also subtract any repayment of capital you received. At the start of the investment, this is the property’s cost. But in the S corporation context, basis can become a moving target as a shareholder’s investment in the company changes. Unlike with C corporation stock basis, which stays the same each year, annual income, distributions and loans can all affect an S It is important to annually calculate your shareholders basis in the S corporation stock for the following reasons: • You can claim losses and deductions passed through on Schedule K-1 to the extent • If you receive a non-dividend distribution from the S corporation, • When you disposes of The Basics of S Corporation Stock Basis. S corp basis calculation refers to the amount the owner has invested in the business or property. When the investor first makes an investment in the business, this is the initial cost of the property. Stock basis is the measure of investment made by each shareholder. You begin calculating stock basis with the amount of money and property the person contributed to the business when the shareholder joined the S Corporation. Every year you increase the basis by the amount of the corporate income that you report on your taxes. A shareholder acquires S corporation basis through the original purchase of stock; additional equity contributions; and cumulative net income, less distributions passed through to the shareholder during the time the stock is owned. Additionally, a shareholder acquires debt basis from loans made to the S corporation.
7 Oct 2019 The obligation to determine basis, and to disclose the basis in an attachment to the Schedule E included with Form 1040, is the shareholder's
30 May 2019 2) Allocation of S corp. losses to the shareholder Basis in the stock on a sale ( or other disposition) of the stock has to be determined to determine gain or An S corporation shareholder does receive stock basis for loans Adjustments to Stock Basis (shareholder's contributions to capital/stock requires a PA S corporation to depreciate property by a minimum amount it determines 7 Jan 2020 Economic outlay. Important because basis: • Ultimately determines gain or loss on disposition. • Limits the deductible losses the shareholder or. (1) Increases in basisThe basis of each shareholder's stock in an S corporation shall be increased for any period by the sum of the following items determined
7 Oct 2019 The obligation to determine basis, and to disclose the basis in an attachment to the Schedule E included with Form 1040, is the shareholder's
18 Nov 2019 [x] Now substitute the shareholder-employee of the S corporation. use the cash method – it must determine its taxable income using the accrual unless the distributions exceed the shareholder's adjusted basis in the stock 6 Jun 2018 As we should already be doing is keeping track of every shareholder's basis. If there is a loss in the S-Corporation in excess of basis, then the 21 Feb 2017 Without accurate tracking of shareholder stock and debt basis, a taxpayer has the information necessary to determine a shareholder's annual. 28 Mar 2017 A shareholder's initial stock basis is determined by how they acquire their interest in the S Corporation: the money and other property a 25 May 2016 Under the Internal Revenue Code, a shareholder's basis cannot be The best way to determine whether a loan or a capital contribution is 21 May 2009 There are two ways that a Subchapter S corporation shareholder can dispose of his Constructive ownership is determined based on the “attribution rules” the shareholder's tax basis or the amount of the company's AAA. 10 Mar 2011 This is providing that the shareholder has basis in the S corporation. Basis also determines the amount of tax free distributions that may be
Initially, the basis is the cost of the property, but in an S corporation, the basis can change as a shareholder's investment changes. While a C corporation stock basis stays the same each year, an S corporation basis can change due to annual income, distributions, and loans. | https://topbinhibift.netlify.app/emigh30174car/how-to-determine-s-corp-stock-basis-232.html |
Start by creating an A4 document from the templates available in the formats in New Document window.
Import the watercolour textured paper that you made in the tutorial 15 Free Photoshop Watercolor Brushes to turn your images into a Creative Watercolour (download the final file or follow the steps of the tutorial to create the background), open the file and select the LINE layer and Background Layer found in the BACKGROUND Group, right-click on the name of either of the layers and select Duplicate, in Document select Untitled-1.
Select a stain, copy and paste it in Untitled-1. Using Ctrl / Cmd + T to transform and frame it.
The paper layer (Background Copy Layer) is also transformed to fit the canvas after which merge the 2 Background Layers.
Merge it into Multiply mode.
Add a Levels Adjustment Layer onto the stain (layer 1), Create Clipping Mask, so the adjustment only affects the stain layer to burn off the background grey and make the border disappear.
Also apply a Levels Adjustment Layer above the background to lighten it.
Copy the image of the model and transform it to frame it in relation to the stain, to help you can momentarily merging it in Multiply mode. To crop and keep only the face, make a rectangular selection of the face and run Ctrl / Cmd + J or Layer> New> Layer to Copy and delete the one that contains the entire image.
High contrast in model image
Blend Layer 3 back in Normal mode and create the Smart Object right-clicking while hovering over the layer name and selecting Convert to Smart Object.
Copy the effects of the LINE layer to the model. Drag the icon, of the two circles to the right of the layer, to the model’s Layer (Layer 3). Remove the LINE layer (we had only needed it to make a copy of the effects).
In addition, go to Filter> Stylize> Oil Paint set the following values Stylization: 10, Cleanliness: 10, Scale: 0.1, Bristle Detail: 0, check Lighting, Angle: 0, Shine: 0) in the model Layer (Layer 3). Drag and position this filter at the bottom of the filter effects.
Edit the Smart Object of the model by double clicking on the Layer 3 thumbnail and divide the screen into two parts so that the changes can be viewed in real-time, go to Window> Arrange> menu 2-Up Vertical.
To add contrast the model. Add a Black and White Adjustment layer and regulate reds, yellows and magentas which are the colours that make up the image and save it Ctrl / Cmd + S.
Integrating the Watercolor stain with the High contrast image
Back in the composition edit Filter Gallery, select Accented Edge and create a new one from the New option (bottom right-hand side. Apply Sketch> Stamp, the mustard colour it generates is from the previous document. Adjust the filters until achieving the desired effect, their values are:
1.- Sketch> Stamp (Light / Dark Balance: 27, Smoothness: 8).
2.- Brush Strokes> Accented Edges (Edge Width: 4, Edge Brightness: 25, Smoothness’: 2).
3.- Artistic> Paint Daubs (Brush Size: 10, Sharpness: 0, Brush Type: Wide Sharp).
4.- Artistic> Poster Edges (Edge Thickness: 3, Edge Intensity: 2, Posterization: 6).
To bring the mustard colour to black, go to Image> Adjustments> Black & White menu and drag the yellow and red sliders towards the black area.
Define the model’s features in the Smart Object more by using the Dodge and Burn tools, make sure to set Range: Mid-tones and save to update the image in the composition file, at the end close the Smart Object file.
In the composition file, blend the model Layer (Layer 3) in Screen mode to Layer 1, making the black disappear. Add a Layer Mask and with the Free Dynamic Watercolour Brushes, paint in the mask the part of the background of the model showing the stain.
Blending the paper into the white areas
To show the background paper through the white areas of the model, create a group with the stain Layer (Layer 1) and its Levels Adjustment Layer, select them and group them by clicking on the folder icon at the bottom of the Layers Window, give it the name WATERCOLOR and blend it in Multiply mode.
Now with right-click on the name of the model layer select Create Clipping Mask and blend it in Multiply mode, the white disappears and the image integrates with the background paper
Using coloured brushes black and white paint in the Layer Mask blending the stain with the model’s features.
How to install Free Photoshop Brushes
Rasterize the model Layer (Layer 3) right-clicking on the name of the layer and selecting Rasterize Layer, so you can modify the blacks and whites to create a watercolour effect on the edges, use the Smudge tool with a Free Dynamic Watercolour Brushes (Download Free Watercolor Photoshop Brushes Pack. To install it, double click on the file); adjust to a small size and in the properties select (Mode: Normal, Strength: 83%, Uncheck Sample All Layers and Finger Painting).
Smuding with Free Photoshop Brushes
Smudging with black colour selected the stain appears since it is the black that reveals the watercolour stain. Press D key to set the default colors and keep the Alt key pressed to paint with the finger tool, it’s like having automatically activated the option Finger Painting that converts the tool on a brush, and it does so temporarily. Press X to change between the black and white paint. If you work with a tablet, activate the Always Use Pressure for Size option.
Review the edge and generate some dripping, to better define you can use the tools of overexpose and underexpose using the Dodge and Burn Tools respectively.
Select another stain and take it within the WATERCOLOR group.
After that, highlight underexposed areas to darken stain colours and scale the stain for better fit.
Vídeo tutorial Create Digital Watercolour using negative space and Free Photoshop Brushes.
Translate the captions to any language. Activate Captions. In the configuration icon, Captions> Automatically Translate and select your language. | https://artinone.art/free-photoshop-brushes-of-dynamic-watercolor-to-create-digital-watercolour-using-negative-space/ |
Definitions: Rates per 10,000 are based on school enrollment. Enrollment refers to the unduplicated count of students on the rolls of the school. The unduplicated count includes students both present and absent and excludes duplicate counts of students within a specific school or students whose membership is reported by another school. An expulsion is an action taken by the local educational agency of removing a child from his/her regular school for disciplinary purposes for the remainder of the school year (or longer) in accordance with local educational agency policy. Expulsion with educational services also includes removals resulting from violations of the Gun Free Schools Act that are modified to less than 365 days.
S - Estimates suppressed when the reporting standards were not met.
Data come from a sample of public school districts. Districts may have accidentally reported the number of disciplinary incidents instead of students disciplined. | https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/8832-children-who-have-been-expelled-from-school |
The grande finale to our Thanksgiving festivities on Mendenhall, was a Salted Caramel Chocolate Cale that my mother made. Knowing how popular salted caramel is these days, she searched long and hard for the best looking recipe and ended up choosing The Former Chef’s recipe. There is no shortage of steps in making this – or chocolate in the cake. After purchasing eighteen dollars worth of dark chocolate, we realized that the frosting could be cut in half. There was just as much fudge-like frosting as moist and fluffy cake. Check out the Former Chef’s blog and consider making this for your next party!
4 comments
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Wow, she did a great job! It looks beautiful!
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The cake was fabulous. I think the cake layers were the best tasting chocolate layers I have ever tasted. The only change I would make would be to use less frosting. I think that much frosting overpowered the cake and the caramel. I highly recommend the recipe. It also was gorgeous. | https://modmealsonmendenhall.com/2010/12/06/salted-caramel-chocolate-cake/ |
What does a journal editor expect to see in a literature review?
A proper selection of literature, whose review allows for forming hypotheses for further projects, helps expand the frontiers of scientific research. Any scientific work should consider and analyze previous investigations. Without a thorough study of the literature on a particular topic, the author cannot be sure of his research relevance. Therefore, before starting new research, the author should prepare a thorough systematic review of previous works on the topic under study – the first step toward “evidence-based research”. In this way, the work has a solid scientific foundation.
Regardless of the field of science, the tasks, expectations, and requirements regarding the literature review quality are, surprisingly enough, almost identical among journal editors. Let us consider the editor’s expectations concerning publications, which is possible to consider universal. Within this, we recommend discussing two aspects. The first will focus on the rationale for an expert literature review, followed by a much shorter description of how to properly compose the literature review so that the editor will find it scientifically justified. It would be better, in our opinion, to focus on the rationale for the literature review than on practical guidelines for its drafting. However, before reading the Action Plan in the second part of the recommendations presented, read the arguments in the first part.
Why does the author need an expert literature review?
Let us remember all the components of a scientific paper:
– Title,
– Abstract,
– Introduction,
– Literature review,
– Methodology,
– The text body, results, discussion, limitations, and conclusion.
Pay attention to the critical point, namely, the literature review location in the structure of the scientific paper. This follows the study rationale and precedes the research design and hypothesis formation.
If the literature review does not fit the issue, everything that follows becomes very ambiguous. Therefore, the literature cited must be:
1) Obvious (i.e., most relevant);
2) Innovative (present all possible explanations of the phenomenon under study);
3) Relevant (the author should consider the phenomenon in the context of the latest research);
4) Accurate (i.e., accurately and correctly reflect the conclusions of previous studies).
In other words, editors and scientific supervisors require that the literature should meet the persuasiveness, novelty, relevance, and accuracy criteria. In another case, the structure of the literature review may be considered inadequate. For example, if the author cites incomplete or erroneous sources, the editor may justly assume that the rest of the paper also contains many errors.
The relevance and completeness of the literature review are non-trivial. The editor expects the author to justify why it is necessary to consider the research in this particular vein. If the author fails to convince the editor of this, the editor has the right to question whether the material presented will be acceptable and clear to the readers. If the rationale for the critical points of the submitted work is not obvious and does not help him understand the research context, the editor may justly reject the author for publication.
In What Editors Want: An Author’s Guide to Scientific Journal Publishing, the authors Philippa J. Benson and Susan S. Silver (2012) wrote the following: “Since editors cannot be experts in the areas their journal covers… the authors’ job is to intrigue the editor and then the reviewers and readers, and to convince them of the relevance of their work”.
The editor and reviewers of the journal carefully evaluate the literature chosen for the review, as this allows them to understand whether the research is relevant to the scientific issue and what gaps in this field the author is trying to fill.
They will assess the authority of the author, particularly on the ability to compile the appropriate literature review, which must satisfy three conditions:
1) The author’s competence in the subject matter of the paper presented;
2) The literature review must present and analyze the most significant ideas and results of previous works;
3) The literature review should give the reader an idea of the previous research and explain who, when, why, and how they conducted it.
The author’s literature review should: tell about the achievements of scholars in the topic under study; illustrate how the presented work contributes to the solution of the problem from a scientific perspective; demonstrate the author’s competence in historical and current issues of the topic under development, in addition, the place of the research work in the overall scientific picture. However, note that you should not quote everything because an expert review should be systematic, meaning that the author should be selective when compiling the literature review and analyze only those works directly related to the topic of the study. Extensive literature reviews blur the ideas of the author’s research. If the narrative drags on, there is a risk of losing the reader’s interest, while selectivity in the issues presented for the literature review can help attract their attention.
A good review performs the following functions:
– Defines and explains the problem;
– Summarizes information about previous research;
– Identifies relationships, contradictions, gaps, and inconsistencies;
– Suggests next steps in researching the problem.
Thus, the literature review informs readers about what has been happening in a given field of science, what stage of development the issue is at and identifies an area for further research.
Action plan
In this part of the presentation, let us focus on the requirement that the author’s research should rest on a solid scientific basis, namely on a thorough systematic review of works on the subject. How to do this? The process runs in three stages.
Stage 1
This stage should create a short list of keywords to describe the referred literature. Of course, the author will take these keywords from the intended paper. This initial stage suggests that it should compile a set of keywords and phrases that will give an idea of the research topic as clearly as possible.
Stage 2
In the second stage, the author must enter keywords or phrases into the appropriate search engines. The result will be a “raw” list of references that most likely be larger than expected. Probably it will include papers that do not correspond to the topic of the author’s research because of the ambiguity of keywords. Here, the Researcher should adjust the keywords or phrases and revise the search process to refine perhaps several times the list of literature that best corresponds to the research topic.
Such a criterion as the quality of the papers included in the review is also essential. For example, it will be entirely appropriate to consider only those papers that describe empirical data (rather than opinions) and the magnitude of the effect obtained; studies in language the author understands; manuscripts that present data consistent with the author’s sample, and others. At each stage, it is essential to document the criteria the author uses to select the literature that will allow the author to best describe the character of the literature presented in the review in the future. Despite the desire to include as many papers as possible in the review, the author should reduce them to an acceptable number. For the sake of brevity of argument in the literature review, we recommend using no more than 30 sources.
Stage 3
The third stage in creating a literature review is to analyze, critique, and evaluate the works highlighted by the author because of the search. After identifying the topics and problems of these studies, the author can illustrate the filling of gaps in research in this field. Thus, the literature review will not resemble a simple list of references. An essential element of the author’s review should be a description and justification of the literature selection process for the study. This step should describe the criteria used to select the papers for the literature search – keywords and characteristics.
A preface to the paper can be approximately like the following:
“The papers cited in the study were selected using the keywords ‘nail biting’ and ‘adolesc’ in Google Scholar, PubMed, Ovid, Sage, Springer, Science Direct search engines, and the Cochrane Library Database.
Publications had to meet the following criteria:
– Published within the last decade;
– English;
– Access to the full text of the publication;
– Literature unindexed in medical databases was ineligible.
The Appendix in the Supplementary Material to this paper contains 22 studies meeting the criteria”.
A brief paragraph where the author describes the process of selecting papers for the literature review will demonstrate his competence and impartiality and will lead to the approval of the submitted research for publication. All these criteria are the key elements of evidence-based research. | https://science-publisher.org/what-does-a-journal-editor-expect-to-see-in-a-literature-review/ |
The present invention relates to a multiprocessor system.
Multiprocessor systems are known comprising a number of elementary processing units (modules) connected to one another by data exchange lines (BUSES) according to a multilevel architecture.
European Patent EP-226.096 filed by ELETTRONICA SAN-GIORGIO ELSAG S.p.A., for example, describes a multiprocessor system comprising a first number of elementary processing modules connected to a first common direct-access line to form a first (family) level; and at least one module in the first number of modules is connected to a second common direct-access line to form a second (region) level.
The second lines are also connected to one another by third data exchange lines to form a third (region network) level.
Internally, each module comprises a processor connected to a fourth data exchange line defining a fourth (private) level and communicating with a fifth data exchange line defining a fifth (local) level.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a perfected system of the aforementioned type.
at least one processing unit comprising a number of multiprocessor modules PN connected to a direct-access line to form a region level;
said number of multiprocessor modules PN also being subdivided into at least two subgroups, each comprising respective numbers of multiprocessor modules PN connected to a respective direct-access line to form a family level;
each multiprocessor module comprising a number of active processing modules PE connected to a common direct-access line to form a group level; and
said group line also communicating with said region line and said family line.
According to the present invention, there is provided a multilevel multiprocessor system, characterized in that it comprises:
Figure 1 shows a block diagram of a multiprocessor system in accordance with the present invention;
Figure 2 shows a block diagram of a first module in the Figure 1 system;
Figure 3 shows a block diagram of a second module in the Figure 1 system;
Figure 4 shows a block diagram of a third module in the Figure 1 system;
Figure 5 shows a construction detail of the Figure 1 system;
Figure 6 shows the internal structure of a Figure 4 module memory;
Figure 7 shows a logic block diagram of the startup phase of the Figure 1 system;
Figure 8 shows the areas into which the Figure 1 system memory is subdivided.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Number 1 in Figure 1 indicates a multiprocessor system wherein a number of processing units 3 are formed by a number of multiprocessor modules PN 5.
More specifically, each unit 3 is subdivided into a region 7 and a number of families 8 parallel to region 7.
Each region 7 consists of all the PN modules 5 of unit 3, and a common communication line (region bus) 10 connected to all the PN modules 5; while each family 8 consists of a subset of PN modules of unit 3, and a respective common communication line (family bus) 14 connecting the PN modules in each subset.
As such, each PN module is connected directly to region bus 10 and to a respective family bus 14, and therefore provides for linking region 7 and family 8.
Each region 7 may also comprise one (or more) high-capacity memory modules MEMT 16 connected to region bus 10 and a respective family bus 14.
Each unit 3 may also comprise one (or more) data exchange (INPUT/OUTPUT) modules 20 connected to region bus 10 and a family bus 14; and the data exchange modules 20 of various units 3 may be connected to one another by communication lines (interregional buses) 24 for permitting data exchange between various processing units 3. Data exchange modules 20 may also communicate with peripheral units 21 (shown schematically) such as disk readers, printers, plotters, etc.
As shown in Figure 2, each PN module 5 comprises four active modules PE (PROCESSING ELEMENT) 31 which are the elementary computing units of the architecture and identical to one another.
PE modules 31 are connected parallel by a common line (group bus) 34 extending between a region interface 37 connected to region bus 10, and a family interface 39 connected to the respective family bus 14 to which PN module 5 is connected.
Each PN module also comprises a direct memory access (DMA) control block 41 connected to group bus 34 and which provides for emitting a number of memory location addresses as of which data is transferred. Operation of block 41 will be described in more detail later on.
As shown in Figure 2, each PE module 31 is subdivided into two blocks 44 and 45 constituting a so-called private level and a so-called local level.
Private block 44 comprises a processor (CPU) 47, and a common communication line (private bus) 49 connected to processor 47.
Processor 47 constitutes the central unit of PE module 31, and may consist of an X86-family INTEL microprocessor supplied with 32 address bits and 32 data bits.
Communication line 49 supports the data, addresses and control signals to and from processor 47.
Block 44 also comprises a coprocessor 51, e.g. a MOTOROLA DSP96002 or CYRIX 83D87, connected to private bus 49.
Coprocessor 51 provides for accelerating a number of operations which would be an "encumbrance" if performed solely by processor 47.
Coprocessor 51 may be a master/slave or slave only type. If a master/slave type, it is associated with a circuit (not shown) for converting the cycle performed by coprocessor 51 into the same cycle as processor 47, and so permitting access by coprocessor 51 to the various levels (region, family, group, local, private) of unit 3; and is associated with a coprocessor paging unit (UPC) block 58 connected to private bus 49 and communicating with coprocessor 51.
UPC block 58 translates the linear addresses emitted by coprocessor 51 into physical addresses according to the memory management mechanism of processor 47, to permit coprocessor 51 to access the entire memory of system 1 using the same mechanism as processor 47.
UPC block 58 is started up by processor 47 during startup of system 1 as a whole, so that it contains all the information relative to the memory structure of unit 3 of system 1.
UPC block 58 therefore provides for translating the addresses emitted by coprocessor 51, and for generating interrupts to processor 47 whenever coprocessor 51 attempts to access an address not described in UPC block 58.
If a slave only type, coprocessor 51 is not permitted access to system resources, and only contains the logics required for supporting operation of the system, in which case, UPC block 58 is absent, and processor 47 accesses coprocessor 51 as it would an input/output port.
Figure 5 shows the hardware structure for supporting and connecting coprocessor 51 to the other parts of the PN module. More specifically, each PN module 5 is formed on a rectangular CSM board (printed circuit) to which a number of electronic components are SMT welded (Surface Mounting Technique).
The CSM board also presents one (or more) sockets Z for connection to pins P extending from the bottom face of an add-on board and forming part of an integrated circuit forming processor 47.
The add-on board also supports the integrated circuit forming coprocessor 51, and the circuits forming UPC block 58.
Private bus 49 is also connected to a private RAM memory 53, and to an EPROM memory 55, more specifically a FLASH-EPROM memory, in which the operating system and startup and diagnostic programs are stored.
RAM memory 53 presents an extremely short access time permitting no-wait-cycle operation of processor 47.
Private block 44 comprises a peripheral unit 56 connected to private bus 49 and which provides for performing all the auxiliary control functions required by the PE module (e.g. timing, fault detection, etc.).
Private block 44 also comprises a general-purpose decoding (DMU) block 59 connected to private bus 49 and which provides for decoding the addresses emitted by processor 47 and/or coprocessor 51, and for generating access requests to the various levels of units 3.
As such, DMU block 59 contains information relative to the memory mapping of unit 3 as a whole.
DMU block 59 is also connected by line 60 to a local arbiter block 61 in turn connected by line 62 to an interface 64 for connecting/separating private bus 49 to/from a line (local bus) 66 forming part of local block 45 and supporting data, addresses and control signals.
Local block 45 comprises a local RAM memory 67 connected to local bus 66 and accessible by processor 47, group bus 34, and region and family buses 10, 14.
RAM 67 constitutes the local memory of PE module 31, is shared by the private level and group level, and is accessed rapidly to permit no-wait-cycle operation of processor block 47.
Local block 45 also comprises an address generating (ADG) block 70 connected to local bus 66 and cooperating with, and generating the addresses for, RAM memory 67.
Local bus 66 is also connected to an interface 72 which separates local block 45 from group bus 34 for exchanging data and control signals to and from group bus 34.
Interface 72 is connected by line 74 to local arbiter block 61.
Local arbiter block 61 is also connected by line 75 to a group arbiter block 76 connected to region interface 37 and family interface 39.
Depending on the signals on line 60, block 61 controls data transfer between the private, local, group, region and family levels.
Local arbiter block 61 provides for arbitrating the access requests from processor block 47 or coprocessor 51, from group, family and region buses 34, 14, 10, and from DMA controller 41.
an ACC-RAM signal for requesting access to a RAM memory 67 of another PE module 31 via group level;
an ACC-REG signal for requesting access to the region level;
an ACC-FAM signal for requesting access to the family level;
an ACC-GROUP signal for requesting access to the group level; and
an ACC-DMA signal for requesting access to the registers of DMA controller 41.
More specifically, block 61 may receive from processor 47 over line 60:
Block 61 supplies along line 62 a signal F for connecting private bus 49 and local bus 66 via interface 64, and along line 74 a signal G for connecting local bus 66 and group bus 34 via interface 72.
Local arbiter block 61 receives and transmits along line 75 a signal H containing the access requests to and from the group level.
Group arbiter block 76 arbitrates use of group bus 34 by the four PE modules 31, of the region and family levels, and of controller 41.
Block 41 is connected to a general-purpose decoding (DMU) block 79 for decoding the addresses emitted by block 41, and for generating access requests to the various system levels. Block 79 contains information relative to mapping of the entire memory space of the system, and is started up at the startup phase.
Block 79 is also connected to a DMA ARBITER block 81 communicating with group arbiter block 76, and which provides for controlling access to and from block 41.
Via arbiter block 81, block 41 may access address generating block 70 for programming it.
a PGM-ADG-LOC signal for requesting access by DMA controller 41 to address generating block 70 via group level for programming block 70;
an ACC-GROUP signal for requesting access to the group level;
an ACC-FAM signal for requesting access to the family level; and
an ACC-REG signal for requesting access to the region level.
More specifically, block 81 receives a number of signals from block 79:
More specifically, and as explained in more detail later on, the PGM-ADG-LOC signal provides for programming blocks 70 and identifying the memory locations as of which data is to be transferred in DMA mode.
Data exchange module 20 will now be described in detail with reference to Figure 3.
Module 20 is composed of a standard part, identical to PE module 31 already described, and a specific input/output part.
The standard part will be described using the same numbering system as for corresponding parts of PE module 31, whereas additional numbers will be used for the input/output part.
More specifically, module 20 is subdivided into two blocks 44 and 45 constituting a so-called private level and a so-called local level.
Private block 44 comprises a processor (CPU) 47, and a common communication line (private bus) 49 connected to processor 47.
Processor 47 may consist, for example, of an X86-family INTEL microprocessor supplied with 32 address bits and 32 data bits.
Communication line 49 supports the data, addresses and control signals to and from processor 47.
Block 44 also comprises a coprocessor 51, e.g. a MOTOROLA DSP96002 or CYRIX 83D87, connected to private bus 49.
Private bus 49 is also connected to a private RAM memory 53, and to an EPROM memory 55, more specifically a FLASH-EPROM memory, in which the operating system and startup and diagnostic programs are stored.
RAM memory 53 presents an extremely short access time permitting no-wait-cycle operation of processor 47.
Private block 44 comprises a peripheral unit 56 connected to private bus 49 and which provides for performing all the auxiliary control functions required by the PE module (e.g. timing, fault detection, etc.).
Private block 44 comprises a coprocessor paging unit (UPC) block 58 connected to private bus 49 and communicating with coprocessor 51.
Block 58 translates the linear addresses emitted by coprocessor 51 into physical addresses to permit coprocessor 51 to access the entire memory of system 1 using the same memory management structure as processor 47.
Private block 44 also comprises a general-purpose decoding (DMU) block 59 connected to private bus 49 and which provides for decoding the addresses emitted by processor 47 or coprocessor 51, and for generating access requests to the various levels of system 1.
As such, block 59 contains information relative to the memory mapping of the system as a whole.
Block 59 is also connected by line 60 to a local arbiter block 61 in turn connected by line 62 to an interface 64 for connecting/separating private bus 49 to/from a line (local bus) 66 forming part of local block 45 and supporting data, addresses and control signals.
Local block 45 comprises a local RAM memory 67 connected to local bus 66 and accessible by processor 47. RAM 67 constitutes the local memory of the PE module, is shared by the private level and group level, and is accessed rapidly to permit no-wait-cycle operation of processor block 47.
Local block 45 also comprises an address generating (ADG) block 70 connected to local bus 66 and cooperating with, and generating the addresses for, RAM memory 67.
Local bus 66 is also connected to an interface 72 driven via line 74 by local arbiter block 61, and which separates/connects local bus 66 from/to group bus 34 for exchanging data and control signals to and from group bus 34.
Arbiter block 61 is also connected by line 75 to a group arbiter block 76 connected by respective lines 77, 78 to region interface 37 and family interface 39.
Depending on the signals on line 60, block 61 controls data transfer between the private, local, group, region and family levels.
Local arbiter block 61 provides for arbitrating the access requests from processor block 47, coprocessor 51, or group bus 34.
an ACC-RAM signal for requesting access to local RAM memory 67;
an ACC-REG signal for requesting access to the region level;
an ACC-FAM signal for requesting access to the family level;
an ACC-GROUP signal for requesting access to the group level;
an ACC-DMA signal for requesting access to the registers of DMA controller 41 at group level; and
an ACC-BUF signal for requesting access to a buffer memory block 120 (input/output buffer) described in detail later on.
More specifically, block 61 may receive over line 60:
Block 61 supplies along line 62 a signal F for connecting the private bus and local bus via interface 64, and along line 74 a signal G for connecting the local bus and group bus via interface 72.
Block 61 receives along line 75 a signal H containing the access requests to and from the group level.
Module 20 comprises DMA controller block 41 connected to group bus 34, and general-purpose decoding (DMU) block 79 for decoding the addresses emitted by block 41, and for generating access requests to the various system levels.
Block 79 is also connected to a DMA ARBITER block 81 communicating with group arbiter block 76, and which provides for controlling access to and from block 41.
Via arbiter block 81, block 41 may access address generating block 70 for programming it.
a PGM-ADG-LOC signal for requesting access by DMA controller 41 to block 70, for programming block 70;
a PGM-ADG-BUF signal for requesting access to a block 130 addressing block 120, for programming block 130;
an ACC-GROUP signal for requesting access to the group level;
an ACC-FAM signal for requesting access to the family level; and
an ACC-REG signal for requesting access to the region level.
More specifically, block 81 receives a number of signals from block 79:
Data exchange module 20 also comprises a line (bus) 100 extending from group bus 34 to private bus 49 to which it is connected via a separating device 101.
Line 100 also presents two separating devices 103, 104, so that it is subdivided into a first portion 100' extending between separating devices 101, 103; a second portion 100'' extending between separating devices 103, 104; and a third portion 100''' extending between device 104 and group bus 34.
Module 20 comprises an add-on arbiter block 110 input-connected to decoding (DMU) block 59 and to group arbiter block 76.
Block 110 is output-connected to separating devices 101, 103, 104 over respective lines 111, 113, 114.
Module 20 comprises buffer memory block 120 communicating with portion 100'' of bus 100 and with an input/output channel (e.g. formed by interregional bus 24). Block 120 provides for temporary data storage, and presents a memory size depending on the type of data exchange input/output channel employed.
Block 120 is accessible directly by processor 47 and coprocessor 51 via separating devices 101, 103, and from the architectural standpoint forms part of the private level.
Controller block 41, however, may access block 120 directly via group level and separating device 104, for loading/unloading the data in block 120 into local RAM memory 67 of module 20 or another system 1 module.
Block 120 cooperates with address generating block 130, which also communicates with group bus 34 and provides for locally generating the addresses for block 120 (buffer) when this is accessed in DMA mode.
More specifically, and as explained in more detail later on, block 130 synthesizes the next location address following that of the current cycle, and provides for high speed data transfer on region and family buses 10, 14.
Block 110 provides for arbitrating access requests to block 120 from private-level processor 47 (and generated by DMU block 59), and for arbitrating access requests to block 120 from the input/output channel and generated by an input/output controller block 140 connected to the input/output channel.
Arbiter block 110 generates:
an R signal transmitted over line 111 for enabling separating device 101;
an S signal transmitted over line 113 for enabling separating device 103;
a T signal transmitted over line 114 for enabling separating device 104; and
a U signal for enabling a separating device 150 along the input/output channel.
Memory module MEMT 16 will now be described in detail with reference to Figure 4.
Internally, each memory module MEMT 16 comprises a data exchange line 200, similar to a group bus, connected to region bus 10 and family bus 14 by respective interface blocks 203, 204.
More specifically, interface blocks 203, 204 contain the decoding functions for accessing MEMT module 16 according to the system mapping structure, which functions are programmed via region bus 10 during startup of system 1.
Memory module MEMT comprises a RAM memory (MEMORY ARRAY) 210 input-connected to bus 200 via the interposition of a first block FIFO IN (first in first out) 215, and having an output connected to bus 200 via the interposition of a second block FIFO OUT (first in first out) 220.
Memory 210 is composed of four dynamic RAM banks, each with a four Mega x 32 bit capacity.
The first block FIFO IN 215 provides for temporally decoupling a write cycle on region bus 10 or family bus 14 and a write cycle in memory 210.
The second block FIFO OUT 220 provides for temporally decoupling of a read cycle on the region or family bus and a read cycle in memory 210.
MEMT module 16 comprises an address generating block (ADG) 230 communicating with bus 200; and a DRAM CONTROLLER block 235 connected to block 230 and RAM memory 210, and which provides for addressing memory 210 as described later on.
Address generating block 230 is also connected to an OFFSET RAM block 237 communicating with bus 200, and which causes block 230, in the course of DMA cycles (as explained in detail later on), to generate nonconsecutive addresses offset by programmable intervals.
MEMT module 16 also comprises a CYCLE CONTROL block 240 communicating with a group arbiter block 245 connected by respective lines 246, 247 to interface blocks 203, 204.
Cycle control block 240 is connected by respective control lines 250, 251, 252, 253, 254 to memory 210, in which it may perform a read/write cycle, to FIFO OUT block 220, FIFO IN block 215, DRAM controller block 235, and address generating block ADG 230.
Memory 210 is connected to an EDC block 260 for generating an error-detecting (e.g. Hamming) code for the write data. More specifically, EDC block 260 assigns to each 32-bit word stored in memory 210 a seven-bit error-detecting code created on the basis of the Hamming polynomial, and which provides for detecting and correcting one error in the 32-bit word, and for detecting (but not correcting) two (or more) errors.
Memory 210 is also connected to a CHECK MEMORY block 265 containing the bit set from which to generate the codes for detecting and correcting errors in the input and output data of memory 210.
By means of block 260, the data in memories 210 is read and scrubbed periodically (e.g. at 1 Herz frequency) to eliminate, by virtue of the Hamming code assigned to each 32-bit word, any one-bit errors occurring in the words (e.g. due to alpha particles).
In actual use, block 245 of MEMT module 16 arbitrates the access requests from region bus 10 and family bus 14, and then enables cycle control block 240 which provides for performing the read/write cycles in MEMT module 16.
More specifically, cycle control block 240 generates respectively:
a WE signal along line 250 for write-enabling memory 210;
an EFO signal along line 251 for writing the output data from memory 210 in FIFO OUT block 220;
an EFI signal along line 252 for enabling reading of the data in FIFO IN block 215 and transmitting it to memory 210;
an EDC signal for enabling DRAM controller block 235 to emit a new address to block 210; and
an EDA signal for enabling address generating block 230 in DMA mode.
Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of the internal structure of memory 210, which does not necessarily correspond with the actual physical embodiment of memory 210, but serves to illustrate the particular mechanism by which memory 210 is addressed by blocks 230, 237 according to the present invention.
More specifically, memory 210 may be thought of as defining a rectangular table T divided into N number of rows R1, R2, R3...Rn, each composed of K elementary storage modules in turn composed of a given number of bits, e.g. 32.
Table T therefore contains N*K elementary modules, and is normally read/written in successive rows by sequentially accessing the various elementary modules in each row by means of successive addresses.
According to the present invention, in DMA cycles, the memory may also be accessed in columns.
Column access is achieved by adding to the address of the first addressed memory module C1 (constituting the first element in the column) an integer K (transposition offset generated by block 237), to permit nonconsecutive memory locations separated by a constant distance K to be accessed by addressing a second element C2 in the same column as element C1.
The above operations are repeated sequentially until the last element CN in the column is addressed.
In read mode by columns, block 230 generates the address using an accumulating adder, one addend of which is programmable and consists of integer K (transposition offset) from OFFSET RAM block 237.
By providing memory 210 with a number of tables T, T1...Tn of different sizes K (e.g. K, K1...Kn), each PE module in the system may be assigned a respective table and, hence, a respective K value for reading the table in columns.
OFFSET RAM block 237 is composed of a static RAM memory bank with a 2K x 24 bit capacity, which RAM is addressed at the input with a parameter exclusively indicating the PE module 31 performing the data read/write cycle, and supplies at the output the transposition offset K for that particular PE module 31.
DRAM controller block 235 provides for multiplexing the addresses from block 230.
The multiprocessor system according to the present invention therefore employs six hierarchical levels "nested" from the elementary processing unit (processor 47 or coprocessor 51) to the system consisting of the processing unit 3 network.
The six levels, classed according to the extent to which they are permitted to share the common resources of the system (memories and inputs/outputs accessible directly by all the elements connected to the same bus), include: private level, local level, group level, family level, region level, and region network level.
1) The private level represents the innermost level of system 1, and typically consists of an independent processor 47 (or coprocessor 51) and a memory 53 dedicated exclusively to the processor.
2) The local level permits processor 47 (or coprocessor 51) to access local memory 67 via ADG block 70.
3) The group level permits communication between PE modules 31 and, hence, between different processors 47 forming part of the same PN 5 module.
4) The family level consists of a set of multiprocessing modules 5 and data exchange and storage modules sharing a common memory space and communicating via family bus 14. Each module 5 may access local memory 67 of other system modules, as well as actual common resources such as MEMT module 16 and data exchange module 20.
5) The region level consists of a set of families sharing a common memory space.
6) The interregional level permits processing units 3 to communicate with one another.
Taken individually, the following observations may be made:
As such, system 1 is based on six levels, the first five of which (private-local-group-family-region) are "mapped" in the addressing space (4 Gbytes) of each processor 47.
Each level may contain a variable amount of storage, so that, after supplying system 1, a system startup phase must be performed to establish the size of the memory assigned to each level.
No startup phase is performed for the private level which presents a constant predetermined size (32 Mbytes) to permit each processor 47 to access all the private resources (RAM memory 53, memory 55, etc.) required for it to operate.
The startup phase is performed by a "master" elected PE module 31 by means of the operation sequence shown in the Figure 7 block diagram.
With reference to Figure 7, the sequence commences with a block 300 which determines the amount of storage present in each family and which is represented, for a given n-th family, by two limit addresses: LBFn (Limit-Bottom-Family-n) and LTFn (Limit-Top-Family-n).
Block 300 goes on to block 310 in which the two limit addresses LBFn, LTFn defined in block 300 are programmed in family decoders (formed in family interface 39 and not shown) of family n, so that each address emitted by a processor 47 (or coprocessor 51) in the n-th family and falling within the two limits LBFn, LTFn requests access to the n-th family bus.
Block 310 goes on to block 320 which, within the two family limits LTFn, LBFn defined in block 300, identifies a number of address spaces, each relative to a group in the n-th family, each contiguous to another space, and each represented, for the m-th group, by two limit addresses: LBGm (Limit-Bottom-Group-m) and LTGm (Limit-Top-Group-m).
Block 320 goes on to block 340 in which the two limit addresses LBGm, LTGm identifying the m-th group are programmed in group decoders (indicated 96 in Figure 2) of group m itself, so that each address emitted by any processor 47 (or coprocessor 51) in group m and falling within limits LBGm, LTGm requests access to the m-th group bus.
Block 340 goes on to block 350 which, within the two group limits LBGm, LTGm defined by block 320, and for multiprocessor modules PN only, identifies a number of address spaces, each relative to a local bus in group m, each contiguous to another space, and each represented, for the p-th local bus, by two limit addresses: LBLp (Limit-Bottom-Local-p) and LTLp (Limit-Top-Local-p). In monoprocessor modules, the size of the local level obviously corresponds with the group size.
Block 350 goes on to block 360 in which the two limit addresses LBLp, LTLp identifying local bus p are programmed in local decoders (formed by UPC block 58) of the PE module, so that each address emitted by a processor 47 in a p-th PE module and falling within limits LBLp, LTLp requests access to the p-th local bus.
Block 360 goes on to block 370 which defines the region address space, which consists of the combined address spaces of the families and is represented by two limit addresses: LBR (Limit-Bottom-Region) and LTR (Limit-Top-Region).
The Figure 8 diagram shows the subdivision of the system memory effected by the above procedure.
With the above mapping layout, each PE module selects the level at which to perform a transaction fully automatically.
The first five hierarchical levels together form the overall processing unit 3 of system 1, which is characterized by "visibility" or direct access to a given physical address space by the various mutually-cooperating PN modules 5. Unit 3 in itself constitutes an extremely high-power system capable of real-time controlling a set of several tens of families, each family in turn consisting of several tens of multiprocessor modules PN. Power in terms of MIPS (million instructions per second) for each region may be thought of as ranging between 100 and 10000 MIPS depending on the type of processor and coprocessor used.
The total processing power of the network system of regions 7 may therefore range between over 10000 MIPS and 16 times 10000, which is far superior to that currently achievable by known systems.
An example will now be described of a data transmission between two PE modules 31 forming part of different processing units 3.
1) If the message is in a private memory 53, it is obviously the job of processor 47 to transfer it to local memory 67 of PE module 31 via interface 64.
2) The message is then transferred from local memory 67 to group bus 34 via interface 72.
3) The data transaction continues on region bus 10 or family bus 14. Family bus 14 is preferential as compared with region bus 10, and in the event of communication between two PN modules 5 connected by family bus 14 and region bus 10, the transaction is conducted automatically on family bus 14.
4) The message is transferred to data exchange module 20.
5) The message is transferred to interregional bus 24.
6) The message is received by the data exchange module 20 of the destination processing unit.
7) The message is transferred to region bus 10 or family bus 14.
8) The message is transferred to local bus 34 and local memory 67.
9) The message is transferred by processor 47 from local memory 67 to private memory 53.
Message transfer between any one PE module and another forming part of another unit 3 is effected using a number of techniques provided for by the operating system in a series of phases:
Data exchange in DMA mode involves a preparatory phase in which to determine the communication channel between the source and destination.
The preparatory phase is performed entirely by the DMA controller 41 of the PN module in which the processor 47 requesting the data exchange is located, for which purpose, DMA controller 41 is programmed by processor 47 with the physical address of the first location of the data block in the source RAM 67, with the physical address of the first location of the data block in the destination RAM 67, and with the size of the data block being transferred.
The preparatory phase continues with DMA controller 41 requesting access to the hierarchical levels required for effecting the data exchange, for which purpose, block 41 employs DMU block 79 containing the system mapping structure. The above operation makes selection of the levels at which to effect the data exchange in DMA mode automatic, i.e. invisible to the system 1 programmer.
At this point, actual data transfer in DMA mode is commenced. The data in the source local RAM 67 is first transferred to a pipeline register PIP (Figure 2) at the output of RAM 67, so that a subsequent read cycle may be performed in the source RAM 67 even before the current cycle data is fetched from the pipeline register.
From the pipeline register at the source RAM, the data passes along the selected data exchange buses to a second pipeline register at the destination local RAM, and finally to the destination RAM itself. The data block programmed for data transfer is automatically broken up into sub-blocks of four kilobytes to prevent overoccupation of the data exchange buses by DMA controller block 41.
For example, DMA data transfers may be made via group level between two local RAMs 67 of two PE modules in the same PN module, in which case, to prevent conflict between various PE modules, a hardware device (traffic light) 41a of DMA controller 41 provides for assigning the group bus to only one PE module at a time.
In the case of data exchange between PN modules connected by the family and region bus (PN modules forming part of the same unit 3), transfers employ the local source and destination levels, the group level of the module containing the source local RAM, and the family level and group level of the module containing the destination local RAM.
In the case of DMA data exchange between two modules connected by the region bus only (modules in different families), transfers employ the local source and destination levels, the group level of the module containing the source local RAM, and the region level and group level of the module containing the destination local RAM.
DMA controller 41 is of great importance as regards data exchange modules 20 in which, in addition to local RAM 67, it is also permitted access to buffer memory block 120 for filling/emptying it.
The advantages of the present invention as compared with the system described in Patent EP-226.096 will be clear from the foregoing description.
Inside each multiprocessor module PN 5, system 1 presents a communication channel (group bus) common to all the PE modules 31 and which, absent in said Patent EP-226.096, permits activity within the PN module with no interference with the external environment (family and region).
In particular, by means of the group bus, each PE module in the PN module may access the local RAM 67 of another PE module, and exchange data (even in DMA mode) without interacting with the other PE modules or higher family and region levels.
As such, each PE module may access its own local RAM 67 directly without interfering with the other PE modules, and may access the family and region levels while the other PE modules access their own local levels.
System 1 therefore employs coprocessor 51 openly and flexibly since each PE module 31 may employ different (commercial or custom) coprocessors by virtue of UPC block 58 translating the linear addresses emitted by coprocessor 51 into physical addresses so that the memory management of coprocessor 51 corresponds with that of processor 47.
The particular hardware structure employed for supporting coprocessor 51 also enables coprocessors of different sizes and pin arrangements to be used without altering the CSM printed circuit supporting the components forming the host module (e.g. PN module 5).
System 1 also presents a "distributed" DMA structure, i.e. each PN module 5 presents its own device (DMA controller 41) capable of supporting data exchange to and from the other system 1 modules in DMA mode.
Such DMA transfers may be made at various hierarchical levels of the system as demonstrated previously.
What is more, DMA transfer always employs three pipeline stages (source pipeline register - transfer buses - destination pipeline register) thus providing for considerable decoupling of the data source and destination, and greatly reducing the access time of the exchange buses.
The particular structure of MEMT module 16 permits both row and column access to memory 210, which is particularly advantageous when dealing with certain types of data (such as image digitization data).
Compulsory use of the family level for transactions between two PE modules 31 in the same family provides for safeguarding against deadlock situations.
For example, if two PE modules forming part of PN modules sharing the same family bus, and obviously the same region bus, were not compelled to use the family bus for data exchange, one could use the family bus and the other the region bus. This would inevitably result in a deadlock, in that the group bus of the first PE module may be occupied for access to the family bus to the second PE module which would fail to receive the data by virtue of its own group bus possibly being occupied for access to the region bus to the first module.
The startup phase described permits each processor 47 of each PE module to know the mapping structure of unit 3 from its own vantage point.
With the mapping structure, each PE module selects the data exchange level automatically and fully "transparently" to the programmer.
Clearly, changes may be made to the multiprocessor system as described and illustrated herein without, however, departing from the scope of the present invention. | |
What can Evolvix do for you?
Who to contact best for what?
If you do not know anything about Git, but are working with someone experienced in Git, then this simple scenario may help you.
Alice, the 'Git-person', knows more about Git, can merge different version variants as needed, can set up a new repository for collaboration on a gitolite server, and basically knows how to resolve any Git-complications (either directly or by getting help). We assume below that she has already set up a repository for writing ProjectX together with Bob.
Get SourceTree: Both will access Git by using a program called "SourceTree", which presents a Graphical-User-Interface to users and produces for them in the background the rather arcane Git commands required for interfacing with the Git repositories on a server that runs a program called 'Gitolite'. SourceTree comes with a local copy of Git bundled inside and is currently the easiest way to get started with Git. It can simply be downloaded from http://www.sourcetreeapp.com/ and then only requires registering an account with Atlassian in order to receive a free license.
Generate and submit their public ssh key: ProjectX is currently developed in a so-called 'EnclosedEffort' ('EE') repository to facilitate experiments not meant to become part of publicly released code (hence reducing confusing complexity). To distinguish between Bob and Alice, as recognized contributors to ProjectX, and everybody else, we need some electronic key that is necessary for access. Since passwords are cumbersome and relatively insecure, we use the OpenSSH public-private key infrastructure. It allows you to generate a public-private key pair of which Gitolite on the ProjectX server will only need to know the public key of anybody who is supposed to get access. We use Gitolite, a server-side program, to provide developers with secure access to the corresponding repositories and without the need to enter a password. Gitolite requires a public ssh key from each contributor like Bob, who will thus need to submit that key to Alice, who will make the necessary arrangements. Please follow these instructions for how to generate your public ssh key and submit it.
Before we discuss how Bob and Alice collaborate, lets describe the basic repository setup.
Bob can push his latest commits that are stored in his local BobGitRepo on BobComputer up to the GitRepository on ProjectX_RepoServer.
Alice can pull Bob's latest commits that are stored on the GitRepository on ProjectX_RepoServer down to her local AliceGitRepo on AliceComputer.
Bob_CommitBranch_ForAllToPull: Bob should always commit to this branch and should not commit to other branches to make it easier for Alice to track Bob's contributions. Thus, at the beginning, before Bob's first commit, Bob will need to use the SourceTree GUI to "switch" to this branch (assuming that Alice has already put it in place).
Alice_CommitBranch_ForAllToPull: Alice will only place commits on this branch that are safe for Bob to pull. Other branches that Alice may need to organize her work will have different names and should not be pulled by Bob. Alice will regularly incorporate Bob's latest additions in her branch, so that Bob can easily and regularly pull the latest recommended changes from this Branch.
master: This branch is provided by Git out of the box and is used for initializing a new repository that has been just cloned. Alice commits to this branch the latest progress that she would want anybody to see, who just joins the project.
Commit at the end of each work-day and after reaching any significant milestone. Commits should have a comment line on what progress was made.
Push the commit up to the server, in order to have a backup and to allow Alice to follow the project.
Other instructions below may help with setting this up or with special cases that may show up on Bob's or Alice's end.
This very simplest Git use-case serves as a foundation. We developed this extraordinarily simple Git workflow for a scenario, where someone with absolutely no Git experience writes code together with someone who also commits to the same repository and has sufficient experience to merge code as needed. Feel free to adapt these instructions for your own needs. Let us know if you see improvements; the insights learned from this example were foundational to various ideas we are developing on how to simplify in Evolvix how non-computing biologists might use Git.
Open SourceTree, and go up to the Mac Menu Bar at the top of your monitor. Select SourceTree -> Preferences..., and the Preferences dialog will appear. Switch to the Git tab, at the top of that dialog, and uncheck the check box for "Use the Staging Area".
To show invisible files you need to change that setting in the system and then quit Finder to allow the new setting to take place. | http://evolvix.org/dev/repos/simplest-use-of-git |
Q:
Fastest-in term of space- way to find prime numbers with python
Maybe it is a stupid question, but i was wondering if you could provide the shortest source to find prime numbers with Python.
I was also wondering how to find prime numbers by using map() or filter() functions.
Thank you (:
EDIT: When i say fastest/shortest I mean the way with the less characters/words. Do not consider a competition, anyway: i was wondering if it was possible a one line source, without removing indentation always used with for cycles.
EDIT 2:The problem was not thought for huge numbers. I think we can stay under a million( range(2,1000000)
EDIT 3: Shortest, but still elegant. As i said in the first EDIT, you don't need to reduce variables' names to single letters. I just need a one line, elegant source.
Thank you!
A:
The Sieve of Eratosthenes in two lines.
primes = set(range(2,1000000))
for n in [2]+range(3,1000000/2,2): primes -= set(range(2*n,1000000,n))
Edit: I've realized that the above is not a true Sieve of Eratosthenes because it filters on the set of odd numbers rather than the set of primes, making it unnecessarily slow. I've fixed that in the following version, and also included a number of common optimizations as pointed out in the comments.
primes = set([2] + range(3, 1000000, 2))
for n in range(3, int(1000000**0.5)+1, 2): primes -= set(range(n*n,1000000,2*n) if n in primes else [])
The first version is still shorter and does generate the proper result, even if it takes longer.
| |
The definition of the Quality, Q, of a count-rate meter algorithm is introduced as the reciprocal of the algorithms (tau x epsilon) product, where tau is the response time of the algorithm to a sudden change in the average count rate and where epsilon is the fractional standard deviation of the steady-state measurement of a constant average count-rate pulse stream. Analytical expressions for tau and epsilon of digital rate meter algorithms are used to calculate maximum values of Q for both linear and exponential algorithms. The values of the basic algorithm parameters necessary to achieve these minimum (tau x epsilon) products are derived for both algorithms. The use of these values results in algorithms that have relatively short response times and, simultaneously, relatively small steady-state errors. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics. | http://vinar.vin.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2102 |
1 Cubic foot (ft³) is equal to 28.3168466 liters (L). To convert cubic feet to liters, multiply the cubic foot value by 28.3168466.
For example, to find out how many liters in a cubic foot and a half, multiply 1.5 by 28.3168466, that makes 42.47527 liters in 1.5 cubic feet.
1 Cubic Foot = 28.3168466 Liters
1 Liter (L) is equal to 0.0353146667 cubic foot (ft³). To convert liters to cubic feet, multiply the liter value by 0.0353146667 or divide by 28.3168466.
1 Liter = 0.0353146667 Cubic Foot
What is Cubic Foot?
Cubic foot is an imperial and United States Customary volume unit and defined as a cube with sides are one foot in length. 1 ft³ = 28.3168466 L. The symbol is "ft³".
What is Liter?
Liter (litre) is a metric system volume unit. 1 Liter = 0.0353146667 ft³. The symbol is "L".
2015 - asknumbers.com. All rights reserved. | https://www.asknumbers.com/cubic-feet-to-liters.aspx |
As per our current Database, Karina Hor is still alive (as per Wikipedia, Last update: May 10, 2020).
Currently, Karina Hor is 25 years, 7 months and 16 days old. Karina Hor will celebrate 26rd birthday on a Thursday 11th of March 2021. Below we countdown to Karina Hor upcoming birthday.
|Popular As||Karina Hor|
|Occupation||Pop Singer|
|Age||25 years old|
|Zodiac Sign||Pisces|
|Born||March 11, 1995 (Malaysia)|
|Birthday||March 11|
|Town/City||Malaysia|
|Nationality||Malaysia|
Karina Hor’s zodiac sign is Pisces. According to astrologers, Pisces are very friendly, so they often find themselves in a company of very different people. Pisces are selfless, they are always willing to help others, without hoping to get anything back. Pisces is a Water sign and as such this zodiac sign is characterized by empathy and expressed emotional capacity.
Karina Hor was born in the Year of the Pig. Those born under the Chinese Zodiac sign of the Pig are extremely nice, good-mannered and tasteful. They’re perfectionists who enjoy finer things but are not perceived as snobs. They enjoy helping others and are good companions until someone close crosses them, then look out! They’re intelligent, always seeking more knowledge, and exclusive. Compatible with Rabbit or Goat.
Singer who rose to fame covering popular artists on her self-titled YouTube channel. Her channel has more than 20,000 subscribers. She is also known on Instagram where her lifestyle photos have earned her more than 50,000 followers.
Before kicking off her music career, she graduated from SMJK Nan Hwan high school.
One of her most popular YouTube videos is "Zhou Xingzhe [you, okay?] + Kiss The Rain piano cover - Cover by Karina" posted in June 2016.
Her sister, Doris, is also a social media influencer. She two other sisters named Stephy and Tiffany.
She did a YouTube cover of Eason Chan's "Who Will Cut the Moonight" in September 2017. | https://www.idolbirthdays.net/karina-hor |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
TECHNICAL FIELD
This application is the National Stage of PCT/CN2020/080658 filed on Mar. 23, 2020, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of Chinese Application No. 201910238674.8 filed on Mar. 27, 2019, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.
Embodiments of the present disclosure relates to a display technical field, particularly to a driving method for a touch display panel, and a touch display device.
BACKGROUND
Touch display panel (Touch Screen Panel) has gradually spread to people's lives. At present, in the process of touch display, touch signals and display signals are output in a time-dividing manner. However, with regard to the display panel with higher resolution, the amount of sub pixels in one row is more. In this way, upon the touch signals and the display signals being output in a time-dividing manner, the time for one row of sub pixels to receive the display signals is shorter, which causes some sub pixels to be under-charged.
SUMMARY
An aspect of the present disclosure provides a driving method for a touch display panel, wherein the touch display panel includes a liquid crystal layer, a common electrode, and a plurality of pixel electrodes, the common electrode includes a plurality of electrode blocks arranged at intervals and insulated from each other, the driving method includes: in a display period, providing a sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode; wherein the display period includes N display stages, each of the display stages includes M image frames, and a refresh rate of the display period is greater than or equal to a refresh rate threshold A, N≥2, M≤1, N is a positive integer, M is a positive number, and the refresh rate threshold is a maximum refresh rate recognizable by human eyes; providing data signals to the plurality of the pixel electrodes; and an electric field formed by the plurality of pixel electrodes and the common electrode driving liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer to rotate, and the touch display panel displaying.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in the display period, providing the sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode includes: continuously providing the sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode during the entire display period.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the sinusoidal signal y is a single-frequency sinusoidal signal.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, each of the plurality of electrode blocks serves as a touch electrode to form a self-capacitance with a ground terminal.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in the display period, an average luminance value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel is approximately the same as a target luminance value of the sub pixel.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in the display period, before providing the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode, the driving method includes: acquiring a central voltage Vh, and upon the central voltage Vh being taken as a voltage of the electrode block in one sub pixel, a luminance value of the sub pixel is taken as the target luminance value of the sub pixel; wherein the center voltage Vh is a voltage of a symmetrical center of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in the display period, before providing the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode, the driving method further includes: acquiring a refresh rate B of one image frame of the touch display panel; and determining the amount N of the display stages in the display period and the amount M of the image frames in each of the display stages according to the refresh rate B and the refresh rate of the display period.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in the display period, before providing the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode, the driving method further includes: acquiring a refresh time t of one image frame according to the refresh rate B of the image frame; acquiring a voltage difference ΔV1 between a pixel voltage Vp and a common voltage Vcom in each of the display stages according to the refresh time t of the image frame, the sinusoidal function y=A sin (ωt+φ), and the central voltage Vh; wherein, in one display stage, upon the pixel voltage Vp being positive, the voltage difference is: ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+t×j)+φ); in a display stage, upon the pixel voltage Vp being negative, the voltage difference is: ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|+A sin(ω(t0+t×j)+φ); t0 is a starting time of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal, and t0≥0; t×j is a time of one display stage in the display period, and 0≤j≤C; acquiring an average luminance value L1 of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display period according to the voltage difference ΔV1 in each of the display stages in the display period; acquiring a voltage difference ΔV2 between the pixel voltage Vp and the center voltage Vh in the display period, and acquiring a target value luminance L2 of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display period according to the voltage difference ΔV2; calculating a frequency set of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal according to L1=L2; and selecting at least one value from the frequency set as a frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, acquiring the luminance average L1 in the display period of any sub pixel in the touch display panel according to the voltage difference ΔV1 in each of the display stages includes: in each of the display stages, acquiring a luminance value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display stage according to the voltage difference ΔV1; and carrying out weighted average on multiple luminance values of the display stages in the display period to acquire the average luminance L1 in the display period.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, in each of the display stages, acquiring the luminance value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display stage according to the voltage difference ΔV1 includes: in each of the display stages, acquire a function L=H(V) of the voltage difference ΔV1 and the luminance value of the sub pixel by using an electro-optical characteristic curve of the touch display panel; and calculating the luminance value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display stage according to the function L=H(V).
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, selecting at least one value from the frequency set as the frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal includes: acquiring a scanning period Ta of each row of sub pixels according to a resolution of the touch display panel; the frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal is f=kTa/2, k>0, k is an integer.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the scanning period Ta satisfies a formula: Ta=1/(B×S), in which S is an amount of gate lines for receiving gate scanning signals in an active area of the touch display panel.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, before acquiring the voltage difference ΔV1 between the pixel voltage Vp and the common voltage Vcom in each of the display stages, the driving method further includes: setting an initial phase φ in the sinusoidal function y=A sin(ωt+φ) to zero.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, before acquiring the voltage difference ΔV1 between the pixel voltage Vp and the common voltage Vcom in each of the display stages, the driving method further includes: setting a voltage on the charged pixel electrode at a timing that a transistor connected with the pixel electrode is turned off as the pixel voltage Vp.
Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a touch display device, including a touch display panel, a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program capable of being executed by the processor, and the processor implements any driving method described above upon executing the computer program.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the touch display panel includes a liquid crystal layer, a common electrode, and a plurality of pixel electrodes; the common electrode includes a plurality of electrode blocks which are arranged at intervals and insulated from each other; the touch display device further includes a driving circuit connected with the processor; the driving circuit includes a sinusoidal signal driving sub-circuit and a source driving sub-circuit; the sinusoidal signal driving sub-circuit is electrically connected with the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode, and is configured for providing the sinusoidal signal y to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode; the source driving sub-circuit is electrically connected with the pixel electrodes in respective sub pixels in the touch display panel, and is configured for providing data signals to the plurality of pixel electrodes.
In some of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the driving circuit further includes a gate driving sub-circuit; the gate driving sub-circuit is connected with a plurality of gate lines of the touch display panel, and is configured for providing gate scanning signals to the plurality of gate lines.
Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a computer readable medium, storing a computer program, wherein the computer program implements any method described above upon being executed by a processor.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In order to clearly illustrate the technical solution of the embodiments of the present disclosure or prior art, the drawings to be used in description of the embodiments or prior art will be briefly described in the following; it is obvious that the described drawings are only related to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Base on the drawings, those ordinarily skilled in the art can obtain other related drawings, without any inventive work.
FIG. 1
is a schematic structural diagram of a touch display panel provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 2
is a schematic structural diagram of a pixel electrode and a common electrode in a touch display panel provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 3
is a flowchart of a driving method for a touch display panel provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 4
is a schematic diagram of a display period division provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 5
is a schematic diagram of another display period division provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 6
is a schematic diagram of another display period division provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 7
is a schematic waveform diagram of a single-frequency sinusoidal signal and a pixel voltage provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 8
is a schematic waveform diagram of another single-frequency sinusoidal signal and another pixel voltage provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 9
is a flowchart of another driving method for a touch display panel provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 10
is a schematic diagram of a test result of the influence of a single-frequency sinusoidal signal on image displaying provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
FIG. 11
is a schematic structural diagram of a display device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Hereinafter, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described clearly and completely with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of this disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, not all of them. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments acquired by ordinary skilled person in the art without creative labor belong to the protection scope of the present disclosure.
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FIG. 1
An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a touch display panel . As illustrated by , the touch display panel includes an array substrate and a cell-assembling substrate which are oppositely arranged, and a liquid crystal layer located between the array substrate and the cell-assembling substrate .
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FIG. 2
In addition, the touch display panel further includes a common electrode and a plurality of pixel electrodes as illustrated by . An active area (AA) of the touch display panel includes a plurality of sub pixels . Each of the plurality of sub pixels is provided with a pixel electrode therein.
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In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the abovementioned touch display panel can be an advanced-super dimensional switching (ADS) type liquid crystal touch display panel. In this case, the common electrode and the pixel electrode can both be manufactured on the array substrate . The pixel electrode can include a plurality of strip-shaped sub-electrodes which are electrically connected and arranged at intervals.
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Or, in other embodiments of the present disclosure, the touch display panel can be a twist nematic (TN) type liquid crystal touch display panel. In this case, the common electrode can be manufactured on the cell-assembling substrate , and the pixel electrode can be manufactured on the array substrate .
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In addition, the common electrode includes a plurality of electrode blocks which are disposed at intervals and insulated from each other. Each of the plurality of electrode blocks covers Q×Q sub pixels, Q≥2, and Q is a positive integer. Because each of the sub pixels includes one pixel electrode therein, thus, one electrode block in the common electrode can cover Q×Q sub pixels .
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In this case, the electrode block serves as a touch electrode to form a self-capacitance with a ground terminal (GND). Upon a user's finger touching the touch display panel, a capacitance value of the self-capacitance formed between the electrode block at the touched position and the ground terminal changes, so that the touched position of the user can be determined.
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FIG. 3
Based on the abovementioned structure of the touch display panel, in order to realize the synchronization of a touch operation and a display operation, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a driving method for a touch display panel , as illustrated by , the driving method includes S-S.
101
110
103
S: in a display period P, a sinusoidal signal y=A sin(ωt+φ) is provided to each of the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode . The sinusoidal signal y serves as a common voltage Vcom and a touch signal. The sinusoidal signal y can be a single-frequency signal or a multi-frequency signal.
The case where y is a single-frequency sinusoidal signal is taken as an example. In y=A sin(ωt+φ), A represents the amplitude of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y. The single-frequency sinusoidal signal y has a vibration period T=2 π/ω; ωt+φ is the phase. When t=0, the phase is the initial phase. It should be understood that, in practical products, due to circuit design, interference, and other factors, impure single-frequency signals may result, and y is similar to a multi-frequency signal. In addition, y can be a multi-frequency sinusoidal signal, and in some embodiments, a fixed frequency point is preferred, because the fixed frequency point has advantages in noise processing, spread spectrum processing, and the like. The following description will take the case where y is a single-frequency sinusoidal signal as an example, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
FIG. 4
1
2
1
In addition, as illustrated by , the display period P includes N display stages (S, S, . . . , Sn). Each of the display stages, for example S, has M image frames. N≥2, M≤1, N is a positive integer, and M is a positive number.
The refresh rate of the display period P is greater than or equal to a refresh rate threshold A. The refresh rate threshold A is the maximum refresh rate recognizable by human eyes. Generally, the maximum refresh rate recognizable by human eyes is 24 Hz. Therefore, the refresh rate of the display period P is greater than or equal to 24 Hz.
101
01
Therefore, in order to determine the amount N of display stages in a display period P and the amount M of image frames in each of the display stages, before the abovementioned step S, the driving method for the touch display panel further includes:
01
First, a refresh rate B of an image frame of the touch display panel is acquired.
Then, according to the refresh rate of the display period, the amount N of the display stages in the display period P and the amount M of image frames in each of the display stages are determined.
1
2
3
FIG. 5
FIG. 6
For example, B=60 Hz, A=24 Hz, C=60 Hz/24 Hz=2.5. In this case, there are 3 (N=3) display stages in the display period P, which are respectively the display stage S, the display stage S, and the display stage S, as illustrated by or . It should be understood that, in this example, the refresh rate of the display period is taking 24 Hz as an example; and the refresh rate of the display period can be different from this. For example, if the refresh rate of the display period is changed to 48 Hz, the amount of display stages will be reduced.
In addition, it can be seen that, each of the display stages is less than or equal to one image frame. Hereinafter, the setting of the amount M of the image frames in each of the display stages will be explained by an example.
FIG. 5
FIG. 5
1
1
For example, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, as illustrated by , in the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=1, and in this case, the duration of the display stage S is 1/60 s, which is shown in from 0 s to 1/60 s on the time axis.
2
2
FIG. 5
In the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=1, and the duration of the display stage S is 1/60s, which is shown in from 1/60 s to 1/30 s on the time axis.
3
3
FIG. 5
In the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=0.5, and the duration of the display stage S is 1/120s, which is shown in from 1/30 s to 1/24 s on the time axis.
FIG. 6
FIG. 6
1
1
Alternatively, in other embodiments of the present disclosure, as illustrated by , in the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=0.5, and in this case, the duration of the display stage S is 1/120s, which is shown in from 0 s to 1/120 s on the time axis.
2
2
FIG. 6
In the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=1, and the duration of the display stage S is 1/60s, which is shown in from 1/120 s to 1/40 s on the time axis.
3
3
FIG. 6
In the display stage S, the amount of image frames M=1, and the duration of the display stage S is 1/60s, which is shown in from 1/40 s to 1/24 s on the time axis.
FIG. 5
Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the division of the display period P shown in will be taken as an example.
102
104
S. Data signals Vdata are provided to the plurality of pixel electrodes .
104
The abovementioned data signals Vdata are configured to provide pixel voltages Vp to the plurality of pixel electrodes .
103
104
103
102
S. An electric field formed by the plurality of pixel electrodes and the common electrode drives liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer to rotate.
104
110
103
104
103
01
That is, after the plurality of pixel electrodes receive the abovementioned data signals Vdata and every electrode block in the common electrode receives the abovementioned single-frequency sinusoidal signal y=A sin(ωt+φ) as the common voltage Vcom, the electric field formed by the plurality of pixel electrodes and the common electrode can drive the liquid crystal molecules to rotate. In this case, the touch display panel displays.
20
01
20
FIG. 5
FIG. 6
In the display period P, an average luminance value L1 of any sub pixel in the touch display panel is the same as a target luminance value L2 of the sub pixel (as illustrated by or ).
101
01
In order to obtain the target luminance value L2, before S, the driving method for the touch display panel further includes:
FIG. 7
FIG. 7
A center voltage Vh as illustrated by is acquired. It can be seen from that the center voltage Vh is a voltage of the symmetry center of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y of the common voltage Vcom.
110
20
20
20
In this case, upon the center voltage Vh being used as the voltage of the electrode block in the sub pixel , the luminance value of the corresponding sub pixel is used as the target luminance value L2 of the sub pixel .
110
103
110
FIG. 7
To sum up, in the display period P, each of the electrode blocks in the common electrode receives a single-frequency sinusoidal signal y=A sin(ωt+φ) as illustrated by . In this case, in each of the image frames, the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y can be used as a touch signal. In this case, the electrode block receiving the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y and the ground terminal (GND) can form a self-capacitance for achieving touch control.
103
103
104
104
104
FIG. 8
In addition, in the same image frame, the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y can also be used as a signal supplied to the common electrode during display, that is, the common voltage Vcom supplied to the common electrode . Specifically, as illustrated by , upon a transistor connected to the pixel electrode being in an ON state, the data signal Vdata is written to the pixel electrode through the transistor, so that the data signal Vdata is charged into the pixel electrode as the pixel voltage Vp.
103
01
103
104
In addition, due to the action of leakage current of the transistor, the pixel voltage Vp will decrease, but after the transistor is turned off, the pixel voltage Vp can maintain the voltage when the transistor is turned off during the one image frame. After the common electrode receives the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y, the touch display panel can display under the action of the electric field generated between the common electrode and the pixel electrodes .
01
20
01
20
103
Based on this, during a display process of the touch display panel , the average luminance value L1 of any sub pixel in the touch display panel is the same as the target luminance L2 of the sub pixel in a display period P, and the refresh rate of the display period P is greater than or equal to the maximum refresh rate recognizable by human eyes, for example, 24 Hz. Therefore, even if the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y received on the common electrode is not a constant DC voltage during the display process, the human eyes cannot effectively capture the display change caused by the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y, so that normal image display can be realized.
01
01
20
01
In this way, within one image frame, touch signals and display signals are simultaneously provided to the touch display panel , so that the touch display panel can achieve both touch operation and image display. Therefore, the problem that the charging time of one row of sub pixels in the touch display screen is insufficient when the touch signals and the display signals are output in a time-dividing manner can be solved.
104
104
101
104
104
It can be seen that, after the transistor electrically connected to the pixel electrode is turned off, the pixel voltage Vp charged in the pixel electrode can maintain the voltage when the transistor is turned off within the one image frame. Therefore, before S, the voltage on the pixel electrode upon the pixel electrode being charged at the timing that the transistor connected with the pixel electrode is turned off is set as the pixel voltage Vp. Therefore, the pixel voltage Vp is a constant value in the driving process, and the luminance average value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel acquired through the driving process is more accurate.
In addition, it can be seen that, upon the frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal f=1/T=1/(2π/ω) is determined, the sinusoidal function y=A sin(ωt+φ) corresponding to the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y and its waveform can be acquired.
FIG. 9
201
206
A process for determining the frequency f of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y is described in the following. As illustrated by , the method for determining the frequency f of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y includes S-S.
201
S. According to the refresh rate B of the image frame, a refresh time t of the image frame is acquired.
For example, B=60 Hz, and the refresh time of the image frame t= 1/60 Hz=0.01667 s.
202
S. According to the refresh time t of the image frame, the sinusoidal function y=A sin(ωt+φ), and the central voltage Vh, a voltage difference ΔV1 between the pixel voltage Vp and the common voltage Vcom in each of the image frames of each display stage P is acquired.
V
Vp−Vh|−A
t
t×j
Herein, upon the pixel voltage Vp being positive in one image frame in the display stage P, the abovementioned voltage difference is:
Δ1=|sin(ω(0+)+φ);
V
Vp−Vh|+A
t
t×j
Upon the pixel voltage Vp being negative in one image frame in the display stage P, the abovementioned voltage difference is:
Δ1=|sin(ω(0+)+φ).
Where t0 is a starting time of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal, and t0≥0; t×j is a time of one image frame in one display stage P within the display period P; 0≤j≤C.
For example, upon a ratio of refresh rate B to refresh rate threshold A is C=60 Hz/24 Hz=2.5, 0≤j≤2.5.
FIG. 5
1
The division of the display period P in is taken as an example, the image frame in the display stage S is the first frame in the display period P, in this case, t×j=0.01667 s, and because t=0.01667 s, j=1.
2
The image frame in the display stage S is the second frame in the display period P, in this case, t×j=0.03334 s, and because t=0.01667 s, j=2.
3
The image frame in the display stage S is the 2.5th frame in the display period P, in this case, t×j=0.04168 s, and because t=0.01667 s, j=2.5.
104
104
104
It should be noted that, in order to avoid liquid crystal aging, the pixel voltage Vp supplied to the pixel electrode usually needs to be reversed in polarity. For example, in odd frames, upon the pixel voltage Vp supplied to the pixel electrode being positive; in even frames, the pixel voltage Vp supplied to the pixel electrode is negative. On the contrary, it is available in the same way, so the repeated portions will be omitted herein.
1
2
3
FIG. 5
In the case where the display period P includes three display stages S, S, and S as illustrated by , the voltage difference ΔV1 between the pixel voltage Vp and the common voltage Vcom in each of the image frames in the display period will be described.
1
01
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the image frame in the display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image, and in this case, ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|+A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2)+φ).
2
01
The image frame in the display stage S is an even frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|+A sin (ω(t0+0.01667×2)+φ).
3
01
The image frame in the display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2.5)+φ).
1
01
Or, in other embodiments of the present disclosure, the image frame in the display stage S is an even frame when the touch display panel displays an image, in which case, ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2)+φ).
2
01
The image frame in the display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image, in this case, ΔV1=|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2)+φ).
3
01
The image frame in the display stage S is an even frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, ΔV1=| Vp−Vh|+A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2.5)+φ).
1
01
2
01
3
01
Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the case where the image frame in display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image, the image frame in display stage S is an even frame when the touch display panel displays an image, and the image frame in display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image, is taken as an example for description.
201
In addition, upon the input of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y being synchronized with the gate line progressive scanning, the initial phase co in the sinusoidal function y=A sin(ωt+φ) can be set to zero before the S.
203
1
2
3
20
01
S. According to the voltage difference ΔV1 between the pixel voltage Vp and the common voltage Vcom in each of the image frames of each of the display stages (S, S, and S) in a display period P, the average luminance L1 of any sub pixel of the touch display panel in the abovementioned display period P is acquired.
203
For example, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the abovementioned S includes:
20
01
20
1
1
20
2
1
20
2
1
a
b
c.
First, in each of the image frames of each display stage P, according to the abovementioned voltage difference ΔV1, the luminance value of any sub pixel of the touch display panel in the abovementioned display stage P is acquired. For example, in the display stage P, the luminance value of a sub pixel in the display stage S as the first frame is Lv; the luminance value of the sub pixel in the display stage S as the second frame is Lv; and the luminance value of the sub pixel in the display stage S as the 2.5th frame is Lv
1
1
1
20
01
a
b
c
In order to obtain the luminance values Lv, Lv, and Lvof the sub pixel in the display stages in the display period P, a function L=H(V) of the abovementioned voltage difference ΔV1 and the luminance value of the sub pixel can be acquired by using the electro-optical characteristic curve of the touch display panel , i.e., the V-T curve, in each display stage P.
01
Because the electro-optic characteristic curves, i.e., V-T curves, of different touch display panels are different, the present disclosure does not limit the function L=H(V) of the abovementioned voltage difference ΔV1 and the sub pixel luminance value.
01
Then, according to the function L=H(V), the luminance value of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display stage P is calculated.
1
01
1
20
1
1
a
a
For example, the image frame in the display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, the luminance value Lvof the sub pixel in the display stage S as the first frame is Lv=H(|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+0.01667)+φ)).
1
01
1
20
1
1
b
b
The image frame in the display stage S is an even frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, the luminance value Lvof the sub pixel in the display stage S as the first frame is Lv=H(|Vp−Vh|+A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2)+φ)).
3
01
1
1
c
The image frame in the display stage S is an odd frame when the touch display panel displays an image. In this case, the luminance value Lyle of the sub pixel in the display stage S as the first frame is Lv=H(|Vp−Vh|−A sin(ω(t0+0.01667×2.5)+φ)).
1
1
1
a
b
c
Then, the luminance values (Lv, Lv, and Lv) of every image frame in the display stages in the display period P are weighted and averaged, and the luminance average L1 in the display period is acquired.
1
1
1
a
b
c
That is, L1=(Lv×0.01667+Lv×0.01667+Lv×0.01667×0.5) (0.01667×0.5).
204
01
S. A voltage difference ΔV2 between the pixel voltage Vp and the center voltage Vh in the display period P is acquired, and a target luminance value L2 of any sub pixel in the touch display panel in the display period P is acquired according to the voltage difference ΔV2.
01
Specifically, the function L2=H(V) of the luminance value of the sub pixel and the abovementioned voltage difference ΔV2 are acquired by using the electro-optical characteristic curve of the touch display panel , i.e., the V-T curve.
205
S. According to L1=L2, a frequency set of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y is calculated.
201
203
That is, according to a plurality of L1 acquired from the above steps S-S, a plurality of values satisfying L1=L2 are selected to form the frequency set.
206
S. At least one value from the frequency set is selected as the frequency f of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y.
206
01
20
Specifically, the above S can include: firstly, according to the resolution of the touch display panel , a scanning period Ta of each row of sub pixels is acquired.
01
01
The scanning period Ta satisfies a formula: Ta=1/(B×S). For example, the refresh rate B of the image frame of the touch display panel can be 60 Hz. In addition, S is an amount of gate lines for receiving gate scanning signals in an active area (AA) of the touch display panel . For example, S=1920. In this case, the scanning period Ta=1/(60×1920).
In addition, the frequency f of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y can satisfy a formula f=kT/2, and k>0, k is an integer.
In this way, at least one available frequency f can be selected from the above frequency set, and upon the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y of this frequency being used as the touch signal, the influence on the display in the touch process can be further avoided, thereby improving the accuracy of the frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y as finally acquired.
FIG. 10
FIG. 10
In addition, upon the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y being used as the touch signal, the influence on image display is summarized, and the summary result is shown in . In , the abscissa shows a frequency of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y, and the ordinate shows an absolute value of voltage difference between a peak voltage and a valley voltage of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal.
The regional block {circle around (1)} indicates that all of the multiple single-frequency sinusoidal signals y with peak-to-peak values and frequencies corresponding to the regional block {circle around (1)} will affect the image display.
The regional block {circle around (2)} indicates that, among the multiple single-frequency sinusoidal signals y with peak-to-peak values and frequencies corresponding to the regional block {circle around (2)}, there is a single-frequency sinusoidal signal y that will not affect the image display.
The regional block {circle around (3)} indicates that, all of the multiple single-frequency sinusoidal signals y with peak-to-peak values and frequencies corresponding to the regional block {circle around (3)} will not affect the image display.
In this way, the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y acquired according to the above driving method can be verified by the above test results.
An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer readable medium storing a computer program, upon the computer program being executed by a processor, any one of the abovementioned driving methods can be implemented.
FIG. 11
01
02
03
An embodiment of the disclosure provides a touch display device, as illustrated by , the touch display device includes a touch display panel , a memory , and a processor .
02
03
03
The memory stores a computer program that can be executed by the processor . Upon the processor executing the computer program, any one of the abovementioned driving methods can be implemented. The abovementioned touch display device has the same technical effect as the driving method for the touch display panel provided in the previous embodiment, and the repeated portions are omitted herein.
02
It should be noted that the memory includes various media which can store program codes, such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disk, or optical disk.
FIG. 11
30
03
In addition, as illustrated by , the touch display device further includes a driving circuit connected with the processor .
30
301
302
The driving circuit includes a sinusoidal signal driving sub-circuit and a source driving sub-circuit .
301
110
103
301
110
103
Herein, the sinusoidal signal driving sub-circuit is electrically connected with the plurality of electrode blocks in the common electrode . The sinusoidal signal driving sub-circuit is configured to provide the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y as the common voltage Vcom to each of the electrode blocks in the common electrode .
302
104
20
01
104
The source driving sub-circuit is electrically connected to the plurality of pixel electrodes in the sub pixels in the touch display panel , and is configured to provide the above data signals Vdata to the plurality of pixel electrodes as the pixel voltage Vp.
FIG. 11
30
303
303
01
303
In addition, as illustrated by , the driving circuit further includes a gate driving sub-circuit . The gate driving sub-circuit is connected to a plurality of gate lines GL of the touch display panel , and the gate driving sub-circuit is configured to provide gate scanning signals to the plurality of gate lines GL.
303
20
20
302
20
In this case, the gate driving sub-circuit scans the gate lines GL line by line, thereby turning on the plurality of sub pixels line by line. The turned-on sub pixel receives the data signal Vdata provided by the source driving sub-circuit . This data signal Vdata is supplied to the pixel electrode of the sub pixel as a pixel voltage Vp.
110
104
104
104
20
102
In addition, each of the electrode blocks in the common electrode receives the abovementioned single-frequency sinusoidal signal y. The single-frequency sinusoidal signal y can be used as a common voltage Vcom, so that the common electrode and the pixel electrode in the turned-on sub pixel generate an electric field, and drive the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer to rotate, thereby achieving display.
110
104
110
Meanwhile, the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y provided to each of the electrode blocks in the common electrode can be used as a touch signal, so that a self-capacitance is formed between the electrode block and the ground terminal. Upon the user performing a touch operation, the capacitance value of the self-capacitance changes, thus determining the position of the touch operation. In addition, it can be seen that the driving method for the touch display panel provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure can reduce the influence of the single-frequency sinusoidal signal y as the touch signal on the image display, so that the touch process and the display process can be synchronized.
The above are only specific implementations of the present disclosure, but the protection scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Changes or substitutions that one skilled in the art can easily think of within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure falls within the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be subject to the protection scope of the claims. | |
60 “Jerusalem, ·get up [arise] and shine, because your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord shines on you.
2 [L Look; T Behold] Darkness ·now covers [or will cover] the earth;
deep darkness covers ·her people [the nations].
But the Lord shines on you,
and people see his glory [C his manifest presence] ·around [upon] you.
3 Nations will come to your light;
kings will come to ·the brightness of your sunrise [or your radiance].
4 “[L Lift up your eyes and] Look around you.
People are gathering and coming to you.
Your sons are coming from far away,
and your daughters are ·coming with them [or carried on the hip; or nursed at their side; or escorted by guardians].
5 When you see them, you will ·shine with happiness [L shine; be radiant];
you will be excited and ·full of joy [L your heart will swell/enlarge],
because the wealth of the nations across the seas will be given to you;
the riches of the nations will come to you.
6 ·Herds [or Caravans; L An abundance of] of camels will cover your land,
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
·People [L All] will come from Sheba [C unknown location, perhaps present-day Yemen, Eritrea, or Ethiopia; see 1 Kin. 10:1–13]
bringing gold and ·incense [or frankincense],
and they will sing praises to the Lord.
7 All the sheep from Kedar will be ·given [gathered] to you;
the ·sheep [rams] from Nebaioth [Gen. 25:13] will ·be brought to [serve; minister to; C perhaps for sacrifices] you.
They will be ·pleasing [acceptable] sacrifices on my altar,
and I will ·make my beautiful Temple more beautiful [glorify/adorn my glorious Temple].
8 “·The people are returning to you [L Who are these who fly…?] like clouds,
like doves flying to their ·nests [shelters; L windows].
9 ·People in faraway lands [L For the coastlands/or islands] ·are waiting [or look] for me.
The ·great trading ships [L ships of Tarshish; 2:16] will come first,
bringing your children from ·faraway lands [afar],
and with them silver and gold.
·This will honor [L …for the name of] the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel [1:4],
·who does wonderful things for you [L because he has glorified/beautified you].
10 “Jerusalem, foreigners will rebuild your walls,
and their kings will serve you.
·When I was angry [L In my wrath], I ·hurt [struck] you,
but now ·I want to be kind to you and comfort you [L in grace/favor I will have compassion/mercy on you].
11 Your gates will always be open;
they will not be closed day or night
so the nations can bring their wealth to you,
and their kings ·will be led to you [or leading the way; C either as captives or leading the procession of gifts].
12 The nation or kingdom that doesn’t serve you will ·be destroyed [perish];
it will be completely ruined.
13 “The ·great trees [L glory] of Lebanon will ·be given [come] to you [35:2]:
its ·pine [juniper], fir, and cypress trees together.
You will use them to make ·my Temple [L the place of my sanctuary] beautiful,
and I will ·give much honor to [glorify] ·this place where I rest [L the place of] my feet [Ezek. 43:7].
14 The ·people who have hurt you [L children/sons of your oppressors] will bow down to you;
those who ·hated [despised] you will bow down at your feet.
They will call you The City of the Lord,
·Jerusalem, city [L Zion; 59:20] of the Holy One of Israel [1:4].
15 “You have been ·hated [despised] and ·left empty [abandoned; forsaken]
with no one passing through.
But I will make you great from now on;
you will be a place of ·happiness [pride; majesty] ·forever and ever [for generations to come].
16 You will ·be given what you need from [L drink the milk of] the nations,
like a child ·drinking milk from its mother [nursing at royal breasts].
Then you will know that it is I, the Lord, ·who saves you [your savior].
You will know that the Powerful One of Jacob ·protects [redeems] you.
17 I will bring you gold in place of bronze,
silver in place of iron,
bronze in place of wood,
iron in place of rocks.
I will ·change your punishment into peace [or make peace your governor/leader],
and ·you will be ruled by what is right [righteousness will be your ruler].
18 There will be no more violence [L heard] in your country,
no more ·ruin [devastation; havoc] or destruction within your borders.
You will name your walls Salvation
and your gates Praise.
19 The sun will no longer be your light during the day
nor will the brightness from the moon be your light,
because the Lord will be your ·light forever [everlasting light],
and your God will be your glory [Zech. 14:6–7; Rev. 21:23; 22:5].
20 Your sun will never set again,
and your moon will ·never be dark [not wane/disappear],
because the Lord will be your ·light forever [everlasting light],
and your ·time of sadness [days of mourning] will end.
21 All of your people will ·do what is right [be righteous].
They will ·receive [possess; inherit] the earth forever.
They are the ·plant [branch; shoot] I have planted,
the work of my own hands
to show my ·greatness [glory; C manifest presence].
22 The ·smallest family will grow to [L least of you will become] a thousand.
The ·least important [smallest] of you will become a powerful nation.
I am the Lord, | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+60&version=EXB |
Well, yesterday’s post was about just a quote, this one’s about what should be a full cross-post but hey, I’m no wizard I’ll just blockquote it from here because it’s so good (again, qua author):
Society in the Loop Artificial Intelligence
Jun 23, 2016 – 20:37 UTC
Iyad Rahwan was the first person I heard use the term society-in-the-loop machine learning. He was describing his work which was just published in Science, on polling the public through an online test to find out how they felt about various decisions people would want a self-driving car to make – a modern version of what philosophers call “The Trolley Problem.” The idea was that by understanding the priorities and values of the public, we could train machines to behave in ways that the society would consider ethical. We might also make a system to allow people to interact with the Artificial Intelligence (AI) and test the ethics by asking questions or watching it behave.
Society-in-the-loop is a scaled up version of human-in-the-loop machine learning – something that Karthik Dinakar at the Media Lab has been working on and is emerging as an important part of AI research.
Typically, machines are “trained” by AI engineers using huge amounts of data. The engineers tweak what data is used, how it’s weighted, the type of learning algorithm used and a variety of parameters to try to create a model that is accurate and efficient and making the right decisions and providing accurate insights. One of the problems is that because AI, or more specifically, machine learning is still very difficult to do, the people who are training the machines are usually not domain experts. The training is done by machine learning experts and the completed model after the machine is trained is often tested by experts. A significant problem is that any biases or errors in the data will create models that reflect those biases and errors. An example of this would be data from regions that allow stop and frisk – obviously targeted communities will appear to have more crime.
Human-in-the-loop machine learning is work that is trying to create systems to either allow domain experts to do the training or at least be involved in the training by creating machines that learn through interactions with experts. At the heart of human-in-the-loop computation is the idea of building models not just from data, but also from the human perspective of the data. Karthik calls this process ‘lensing’, of extracting the human perspective or lens of a domain expert and fit it to algorithms that learn from both the data and the extracted lens, all during training time. We believe this has implications for making tools for probabilistic programming and for the democratization of machine learning.
At a recent meeting with philosophers, clergy and AI and technology experts, we discussed the possibility of machines taking over the job of judges. We have evidence that machines can make very accurate assessments of things that involve data and it’s quite reasonable to assume that decisions that judges make such as bail amounts or parole could be done much more accurately by machines than by humans. In addition, there is research that shows expert humans are not very good set setting bail or granting parole appropriately. Whether you get a hearing by the parole board before or after their lunch has a significant effect on the outcome, for instance.
In the discussion, some of us proposed the idea of replacing judges for certain kinds of decisions, bail and parole as examples, with machines. The philosopher and several clergy explained that while it might feel right from a utilitarian perspective, that for society, it was important that the judges were human – it was even more important than getting the “correct” answer. Putting aside the argument about whether we should be solving for utility or not, having the buy-in of the public would be important for the acceptance of any machine learning system and it would be essential to address this perspective.
There are two ways that we could address this concern. One way would be to put a “human in the loop” and use machines to assist or extend the capacity of the human judges. It is possible that this would work. On the other hand, experiences in several other fields such as medicine or flying airplanes have shown evidence that humans may overrule machines with the wrong decision enough that it would make sense to prevent humans from overruling machines in some cases. It’s also possible that a human would become complacent or conditioned to trust the results and just let the machine run the system.
The second way would be for the machine to be trained by the public – society in the loop – in a way that the people felt that that the machine reliability represented fairly their, mostly likely, diverse set of values. This isn’t unprecedented – in many ways, the ideal government would be one where the people felt sufficiently informed and engaged that they would allow the government to exercise power and believe that it represented them and that they were also ultimately responsible for the actions of the government. Maybe there is way to design a machine that could garner the support and the proxy of the public by being able to be trained by the public and being transparent enough that the public could trust it. Governments deal with competing and conflicting interests as will machines. There are obvious complex obstacles including the fact that unlike traditional software, where the code is like a series of rules, a machine learning model is more like a brain – it’s impossible to look at the bits and understand exactly what it does or would do. There would need to be a way for the public to test and audit the values and behavior of the machines.
If we were able to figure out how to take the input from and then gain the buy-in of the public as the ultimate creator and controller of this machine, it might solve the other side of this judicial problem – the case of a machine made by humans that commits a crime. If, for instance, the public felt that they had sufficient input into and control over the behavior of a self-driving car, could the public also feel that the public, or the government representing the public, was responsible for the behavior and the potential damage caused by a self-driving car, and help us get around the product liability problem that any company developing self-driving cars will face?
How machines will take input from and be audited and controlled by the public, may be one of the most important areas that need to be developed in order to deploy artificial intelligence in decision making that might save lives and advance justice. This will most likely require making the tools of machine learning available to everyone, have a very open and inclusive dialog and redistribute the power that will come from advances in artificial intelligence, not just figure out ways to train it to appear ethical.
Credits
•Iyad Rahwan – The phrase “society in the loop” and many ideas.
•Karthik Dinakar – Teaching me about “human in the loop” machine learning and being my AI tutor and many ideas.
•Andrew McAfee – Citation and thinking on parole boards.
•Natalie Saltiel – Editing.
And, of course for your viewing pleasure: | https://maverisk.nl/not-just-q-iq/ |
Data-parameterized systems model systems with finite control over an infinite data domain. VLTL is an extension of LTL that uses variables in order to specify properties of computations over infinite data, and as such, VLTL is suitable for specifying properties of data-parameterized systems. We present alternating variable Büchi word automata (AVBWs), a new model of automata over infinite alphabets, capable of modeling a significant fragment of VLTL. While alternating and non-deterministic Büchi automata over finite alphabets have the same expressive power, we show that this is not the case for infinite data domains, as we prove that AVBWs are strictly stronger than the previously defined non-deterministic variable Büchi word automata (NVBWs). However, while the emptiness problem is easy for NVBWs, it is undecidable for AVBWs. We present an algorithm for translating AVBWs to NVBWs in cases where such a translation is possible. Additionally, we characterize the structure of AVBWs that can be translated to NVBWs with our algorithm. We then rely on the natural iterative behavior of our translation algorithm to describe a bounded model-checking procedure for the logic that we consider. Furthermore, we present several fragments of the logic that can be expressed by NVBWs, as well as a fragment that cannot be expressed by NVBWs, yet whose satisfiability is decidable.
Journal of Automated Reasoning (2019). NFM 2017 special issue.
Copyright by Springer Verlag. The publication is available here. | https://www.react.uni-saarland.de/publications/FGS19.html |
AbstractAt times it is advantageous to order a group of events relative to each other so as to enhance their combined inter-relationships.
METHOD FOR SERIALIZING ORDER SO AS TO MINIMIZE COLLISION IMPACTS
At times it is advantageous to order a group of events relative to each other so as to enhance their combined inter-relationships.
For example, consider the case where I/O performance is to be measured. Suppose that a total of four different files are to be included as a part of two different measurements, each involving a different two of the four files. Further suppose that two of the files are on the same disk drive. In such a situation the I/O performance results will not be maximized should we measure the two files on the same disk drive at the same time and then subsequently measure the other two files. We would do better to measure each of the two files individually, albeit paired with one of the other four files in the measurement group.
This problem becomes more acute when we consider a variety of overlapping physical constraints, such as internal pathing constraints, shared adapter cards, control units as well as a variety of other possible shared resources. Of course this problem is not limited to measuring I/O performance results, however it does serve our purposes here of providing an illustrative example.
The purpose of this paper is to describe an algorithm such that overlapping constraints can be accounted for and thus avoided (or sought after (by reversing the 'goodness' measure)) thereby providing a serialization order that is near-optimal for the problem domain.
The Serialization Process
Overview
The serialization process involves two major steps:
Assign a cannonical numbering to the resources at each level of possible overlap based upon their uniqueness at that level. Assign 'goodness' measures to the remainder of the resources based upon overlap with all previously assigned resources, one at a time, iteratively, until all resources have been assigned, such that the most favorable 'goodness'
measure is selected in each instance.
The resulting assigment order is the desired serialization order.
The 'goodness' measure can of course be any appropriate quantification, however for our purposes it is sufficient to say that the possibly-overlapping resource groupings are each assumed to be of equal importance within each group, but of absolute importance relative to other groupings. In other words, some resource groupings are much more important to avoid overlapping use of than other groupings, and that the resource groupings are specified in the order of their importance. In the algorithm below the order of importance will proceed from left to right, the left-most grouping being of the greatest importance to avoid overlapping collisions with.
Methodology
Terminology
Variable Name Description
R[i,j] Resource name for item #i in group #j
1
K... | http://priorart.ip.com/IPCOM/000014047 |
Apple crisp is my very favorite dessert but it needs to be changed up for the summer. My parents' rhubarb patch is overflowing, and so I was inspired to make Rhubarb Apple Crisp. Topped with vanilla ice cream, it's the perfect summer holiday treat!
Granny Smith and Macintosh apples are both lovely and tart; I love that Macintosh apples turn into a mushy applesauce filling when baked but also how Granny Smiths keep their shape. To create a filling of equal parts applesauce and apple slices, I use equal parts Granny Smith and Macintosh. The sourness of rhubarb ups the ante of flavor for my apple crisp. To lean in to the difference, I opt for almonds as my nut here in place of pecans or walnuts.
The buttery, sweet dessert has both a crumbly, crisp top and an ooey, gooey bottom where it absorbs the moisture from the apples. There is no part of a rhubarb apple crisp that is not addictively delicious, and all of these delicious individual pieces come together to form heaven on a plate. If you’ll excuse me, it’s time for my second helping.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds apples (1/2 Macintosh, 1/2 Granny Smith)
1 1/2 pounds rhubarb, chopped
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup rolled oats
8 tablespoons cold butter
1 cup chopped almonds
Method:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Peel, core and chop the apples; toss in a bowl with lemon juice and rhubarb.
In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg; add to the apples and toss to combine.
In another bowl combine flour, sugar and oats. Cut butter into small pieces, and cut butter into flour with a pastry blender or two forks until mixture is crumbly. Stir in the chopped nuts.
Butter a 9-inch round pie pan or 8 by 8 inch baking dish. Spread apple mixture in bottom of baking dish then sprinkle with flour mixture. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until apples are tender and topping is lightly browned.
Serve warm or at room temperature, with vanilla ice cream or a little heavy cream, if you like. Enjoy! | http://www.watershipdownkitchen.com/2020/07/rhubarb-apple-crisp.html |
Q:
Do measures of Big 5 personality have a positive bias towards extraverted, conscientious, emotionally stable, ageeable and open individuals?
Background:
One free measures of the Big 5 is the IPIP.
I have noticed that IPIP items seem to have a positive bias towards items loading on the extraversion (EX), emotional stability (ES), conscientiousness (C), agreeableness (A), and openness/intellectance (O) pole of the scale.
For example, for agreeableness, you have items "I am interested in people" (positive) and "I insult people" (negative), or for conscientiousness you have items "I pay attention to details" (positive) or "I make a mess of things" (negative).
However, at the level of a construct there are positive aspects to all the other poles of the Big 5. Being disagreeable could mean that you are comfortable confronting people when you believe they have done something wrong or that you are comfortable pointing out social injustice. Being lower on conscientiousness may mean that you don't feel the need to do everything perfectly in life or that you believe that sometimes it's better to be a little messy so that you can focus on more important things.
Questions
Thus, I'm interested in the positive bias in measures of the Big 5 towards conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion, emotional stability, and openness.
Is there any research that quantifies the degree to which different measures of the Big 5 display this positive bias?
Are there any Big 5 measures that specifically try to avoid this positive bias?
To what extent is this positive bias inherent to the concepts of the Big 5?
A:
Backstrom et al (2009) have a paper devoted to the question of whether the intercorrelations between the Big 5 scales is due to social desirability bias or substantive factors.
In Study 2 they re-wrote each item on a 100 item IPIP scale so that each item had reduced positive bias. They then administered the original and neutrally worded items to a sample of participants. They found that when IPIP items were worded in a more evaluatively neutral fashion, the correlations between the Big 5 were substantially reduced. Specifically, they state that:
The first component accounted for 19.3% of the variance in the IPIP
items as compared with the variance of the first component from the
analysis of the neutral items of 10.5%. The mean correlation between
the first principal component and the items was .40 for the IPIP items
and .12 for the neutral items.
Their first paragraph in the discussion captures several interesting conclusions:
Taken together, the two studies presented here support a model that
still appears to be controversial. The model can be described as
follows: when we use self-ratings for the measurement of personality
traits, some items tend to activate social desirability concerns. In
the scores, the participants’ tendency to respond in a socially
desirable way is mixed with the descriptive aspect of the items, which
is supposed to measure the FFM. The result is a common factor related
to all of the other factors in the inventory (Edwards and Edwards,
1991 and Peabody and Goldberg, 1989). It has been shown several times
that this factor can be reduced, and that when this is done the items’
descriptive quality stands out more clearly. In previous studies the
social desirability of the items has been reduced by simply selecting
items that correlate weakly with social desirability inventories (e.g.
Jackson et al., 1996). In the present study, the focus was on the
semantic content of the items. By systematically making the items from
the IPIP-100 less attractive, without changing their meaning in any
crucial way, we could get rid of almost all common variation between
the factors, i.e. variation related to social desirability. These new
items appeared to measure the same thing as the original items in the
IPIP-100, except social desirability. This shows that it is relatively
easy to create personality inventory items that measure FFM traits
with less influence of social desirability. We therefore encourage
inventory constructors to henceforth strive for making inventories
where descriptive scales are less confounded with social desirability.
References
Bäckström, M., Björklund, F., & Larsson, M. R. (2009). Five-factor inventories have a major general factor related to social desirability which can be reduced by framing items neutrally. Journal of Research in Personality, 43(3), 335-344. PDF
A:
In a previous post on the global personality factor, you provided examples to describe how self-report items indicating higher trait levels are phrased in more socially desirable terms, hence the positive bias.
I think it's important to distinguish between two (or three) kinds of biases here: one is related to the wording/content of the items (the positive bias your refer to) and the other stems from trait desirability, i.e. the extent to which individuals find a trait desirable for personal reasons (e.g. their own standing on the trait) and for socio-cultural reasons (e.g. the extent to which a trait is valued by society or his/her culture).
To use your own examples, one could perhaps mitigate the positive bias by including items that make the lower ends of each trait seem less undesirable (.e.g., "I enjoy being in my own company most of the time" for low extraversion) and the higher ends less desirable (e.g. "I like to dominate in social situations" for high extraversion), but you would still have the effects of the trait desirability biases. It's not to say that the task of improving the wording or content of the items to reflect less bias isn't important, and to what extent there is bias is itself arguable.
Has the purported positive bias been documented or described in any articles? Perhaps that should be the main question at this point.
I'm only aware of approaches to dealing with the desirability biases mentioned. One is to obtain reports from multiple informants in addition to self-reports. Another is to use ipsative (i.e. forced-choice) measures of the Big Five (e.g., Hirsh & Peterson, 2008).
References
Hirsh, J. B., & Peterson, J. B. (2008). Predicting creativity and academic success with a “fake-proof” measure of the Big Five. Journal of Research in Personality, 42(5), 1323-1333.
Ludeke, S. G., Weisberg, Y. J., & Deyoung, C. G. (2013). Idiographically Desirable Responding: Individual Differences in Perceived Trait Desirability Predict Overclaiming. European Journal of Personality.
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Most crabs are able to regenerate and restore their lost limbs, the new regenerated limbs would not have any differences with the previous limbs, but only texture of exoskeleton skins of their new limbs. However, despite have ability of growing lost limbs, losing claw is a big risk for any kind of crab.
Normally, their limbs will normally regenerate after several times of moulting, usually two to three periods.
No response yet to "Most Crabs Have Abilitiy to Grow Back Lost Limbs" | http://www.vektanova.com/2014/01/most-crabs-have-abilitiy-to-grow-back.html |
I’m always amazed when I cook something and it comes out good, and this came out pretty good, so let me quick-bang out the recipe before I forget it.
• an oven
• a baking pan
• non-stick spray
• 1 adult cucumber
• Flavacol
• 4 slices of cheese
• 1 can of Rotel
① Preheat the oven to 400°.
② Grease a mid-sized baking pan.
③ Take a full, unpeeled cucumber, and narrow-slice off enough pieces to cover the bottom of the pan.
④
Lightly sprinkle Flavacol over the slices. Remember, Flavacol is
potent, so sprinkle only enough to somewhat slightly change the color of
the cuke slices.
⑤ Slice more of the cucumber on top the cucumber you already sliced, and apply Flavacol again, to each layer of cukage. Keep doing this until you run out of cuke slices.
⑥ Unwrap four slices of just plain American cheese, and spread the slices on top of the
seasoned cucumbers.
⑦ Open a can of
Rotel or generic equivalent, drain the excess liquid down the sink, and
pour the tomato chunks all over the cheese. Maybe spread the tomato
chunks around.
⑧ Bake the mess for half an hour. By then the cheese slices should look more like cheese than cheese slices, and you should hear a sizzle.
⑨ Take it out, pour it into a bowl, and eat it.
I brought the Flavacol with me to the recliner, thinking my meal might need another shake or two, but nope, it was delicious.
I’m especially impressed with me because I invented this without a recipe or googling anything. Based on my track record, I wasn’t expecting much, but it's a nice, filling lunch.
Substitutions and chef's advice
My wife would suggest using zucchini instead of cucumbers, and I’m sure she’d be right, but I don’t even know the difference. Do what you gotta do. Cukes are what I keep in the fridge, for salads.
Flavacol is a brand of popcorn seasoning. If you don't have Flavacol, you can certainly make do with salt and pepper and whatever random spices you have handy, but Flavacol is the spice of life.
I use American cheese because I'm an American, dammit, but you can use cheddar, motza, any similar cheese, probably.
Rotel is just diced tomatoes with mild Italian spices mixed in, so you can easily wing it without it.
Cooking
time: I am wussy with food that’s too hot, temperature-wise. Half an
hour of cooking time got it “just right” in Goldilocks
lingo, but if you want your dinner too hot to eat, maybe cook it for 45
minutes instead.
The stats
Prep time: five minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Calories: 272 —
oil (?), cuke (30), Flavacol (?), cheese (45x4=180), Rotel (62)
Carbs: 29 —
oil (?), cuke (6), Flavacol (?), cheese (2x4=8), Rotel (15)
Bon appétit, motherfuckers! | https://www.itsdougholland.com/2021/11/cheesy-tomoato-cukes.html |
Modified natural materials will be an essential component of a sustainable future, but first a detailed understanding of their properties is needed. The way heat flows across bamboo cell walls has been mapped using advanced scanning thermal microscopy, providing a new understanding of how variations in thermal conductivity are linked to the bamboo’s elegant structure. The findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, will guide the development of more energy-efficient and fire-safe buildings, made from natural materials, in the future.
The building sector currently accounts for 30-40% of all carbon emissions, due to both the energy-intensive production of the materials (predominantly steel and concrete), and the energy used in heating and cooling the finished buildings. As the global population grows and becomes increasingly based in towns and cities, traditional building approaches are becoming unsustainable.
Renewable, plant-based materials such as bamboo have huge potential for sustainable and energy-efficient buildings. Their use would dramatically reduce emissions compared to traditional materials, helping to mitigate the human impact on climate change. This approach would also help keep carbon out of the atmosphere by diverting timber away from being burnt as fuel.
A better understanding of the thermal properties of bamboo provides insights into how to reduce the energy consumption of bamboo buildings. It also enables modelling of the way bamboo building components behave when exposed to fire, so that measures can be incorporated to make bamboo buildings safer.
Read the full University of Cambridge article here.
Click here for the Mapping thermal conductivity across bamboo cell walls with scanning thermal microscopy, Scientific Reports article. | https://www.energy.cam.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/visualising-heat-flow-bamboo-energy-efficient-fire-safe-buildings |
We parents remember it like a vivid nightmare. Our children, though, were not yet born. How can they comprehend? What will we say to them? And, perhaps most importantly, how can understanding the events of September 11, 2001 help them understand the scary things they may see on the news today?
As always, books are here to help.
-
Branches of Hope
This wordless picture book tells the story of the 9/11 Survivor Tree. The small pear tree was rescued from the rubble, nourished back to health, and replanted at the memorial. A metaphor for New York City and its people, it offers hope and inspiration to readers of all ages. This book is an excellent conversation starter for young children in the classroom and at home.
(Ages 4 - 7)
-
Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey
When it’s time to talk about the September 11 attacks, and begin the next generation’s tribute to those lost, this picture book is a winning choice. In 2001, the 1931 John J. Harvey had long since retired from active firefighting duty for New York City, first falling into disrepair and later resurrected as a pleasure boat. Now, in the face of terrorist attacks — the details of which are simply but clearly described — the Harvey springs into action once again, fighting the long-burning fires at Ground Zero. A tale of heroism, bravery, and the good that ordinary people (and humble old boats) can do when dark days arrive.
(Ages 4 - 8)
-
Seven and a Half Tons of Steel
This fascinating story is about a metal beam from the World Trade Center getting remade into the bow of a Navy ship. After the attack on New York City, the beam traveled to Louisiana and underwent a remarkable transformation. Young readers will learn that good things can come out of tragedy.
(Ages 6 - 9)
-
14 Cows for America
If you want a story about kindness and empathy in the aftermath of 9/11, pick up a copy of this New York Times bestseller. It tells the story of an unexpected and heartfelt gift from the Maasai people to the United States during a time of grief and uncertainty.
(Ages 7 - 10)
-
What Were the Twin Towers?
Part of the What Was? book series, What Were the Twin Towers? provides a history of the once tallest buildings in the world that’s digestible for children. From their initial opening in 1973 to their destruction in 2001, this book details why they were built, the controversy surrounding their construction, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks that permanently destroyed them. If you’re looking for an illustrative, middle grade-friendly history, this is a great place to start.
(Ages 8 - 12)
-
The Places We Sleep
Abbey doesn’t think there’s anything worse than starting at a new school. But then the September 11 attacks happen, and her world falls apart. This tender coming-of-age story follows a young girl as she grapples with the trauma of 9/11 and finds hope within herself. Readers will connect with Abbey’s story as they learn about that day and how it affected individuals and the country.
(Ages 8 - 12)
-
The Red Bandanna (Young Readers Adaption)
Adapted for young readers from Rinaldi’s 2016 bestseller, the story of Welles Crowther and his inspiring heroism is one that every reader should know. Known as the Man in the Red Bandanna, Crowther is credited with helping at least a dozen people escape the South Tower before it collapsed. None of the survivors knew who he was at the time — only that he wore a red bandanna. The bandanna Welles always carried helped witnesses put together a timeline of his heroic actions before he died that day. Told from multiple points of view, this is a moving and powerful story about courage, kindness, and sacrifice.
(Ages 10 and up)
-
We All Fall Down
This middle grade novel begins on September 10, 2001. Ninth-grader Will is not looking forward to going to work with his dad at the World Trade Center tomorrow. He feels his dad doesn’t have an “exciting” job like his friend James’ dad, who is a firefighter, does. But on September 11, when a plane crashes into the North Tower, it’s his dad’s responsibility to get everybody out of the South. And when another plane then crashes into the South Tower, both Will and his dad’s lives are forever changed. Eric Walters’ compelling narrative provides a talking point between parents and middle grader readers.
(Ages 10 and up)
-
Love Is the Higher Law
Beloved YA author David Levithan (Every Day and Two Boys Kissing) weaves together the stories of three teens dealing with the aftermath of 9/11. While the day’s events affect Claire, Jasper, and Peter differently, each teen’s life changes forever. As they grow closer, they lean on each other for comfort and hope.
(Young Adult)
-
Hope and Other Punch Lines
Abbi became famous when a baby photo of her went viral after the World Trade Center attacks. Hoping for a peaceful summer away from the city, she takes a job as a camp counselor. But when a boy named Noah recognizes her and believes fate brought them together, they join forces and dig into the story behind the photo.
(Young Adult)
-
Up From the Sea
After a tsunami destroys his village in Japan, Kai travels to the US. There, he meets teens who lived through the September 11 attacks and finds hope in seeing how they moved forward. This heart-wrenching YA novel is about finding the courage to heal and rebuild after a tragedy.
(Young Adult)
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2016 and updated in 2022. | https://www.readbrightly.com/books-to-help-you-talk-to-your-kids-about-911/ |
TECHNICAL FIELD
BACKGROUND
SUMMARY
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Embodiments of the present invention relate to data processing, and more specifically, to image processing.
A digital image is generally a representation of a real image (e.g., a photograph) in a format which may be processed by a computer system. A digital image generally comprises a plurality of picture elements (e.g., pixels) arranged in a two-dimensional array. Each pixel may have a color and/or a color value associated with the pixel. Information associated with the location and color of each pixel may be stored and/or used by a computer system to display the digital image.
Object detection is the task of ascertaining that a set of pixels in an image is associated with a particular object. Object recognition is the task of identifying what the object is (e.g., a car, a tree, etc.). Although humans can detect and recognize objects in images with little effort, these tasks are particularly challenging for computer systems. There are multiple techniques for performing object detection and object recognition. However, current object detection and object recognition techniques still fail to accurately detect and recognize objects in many instances.
In an embodiment of the present invention, a computing device identifies a perceptual grouping for an image, where the perceptual grouping is based on the contents of the image and partitions the image into a plurality of disjoint groups of pixels. In accordance with the embodiment, the computing device further identifies a geometric-configuration model for the image, wherein the geometric-configuration model comprises a set of bins located at predefined intervals within the image. The computing device then processes the image based on the perceptual grouping and the geometric-configuration model to detect one or more objects in the image.
Methods and systems are described for processing an image to facilitate automated object recognition. In an embodiment of the present invention, a computing device employs both a perceptual grouping of an image and a geometric-configuration model of the image. A perceptual grouping partitions the image into a plurality of groups, where each group consists of a proper subset of pixels in the image, and where the partitioning into groups is based on the contents of the image. An example of a perceptual grouping is segmentation, where an image is partitioned into a set of regions called segments that consist of pixels with similar features (e.g., color, texture, intensity, etc.). Such groupings are called perceptual because the groups of pixels are determined based on how the objects in the image are perceived by the viewer at a particular viewpoint. The pixel groups of a perceptual grouping are characterized by the fact that they can be of any size and shape, depending on the pixels of the image. In an alternative type of perceptual grouping called contour detection, a group is comprised of the pixels along a contour (e.g., an outline of a car, a curve that defines the border between two differently-color regions in an image, etc.). As in segmentation, a perceptual grouping of contour detection yields groups that are of arbitrary size and shape and depend on the contents of the image.
A geometric-configuration model for the image, which is also employed by the computing device, divides a region into bins, where the bins have a pre-determined size and shape and are independent of the pixel values contained therein. A bounding box is a type of geometric-configuration model, as the arrangement of the bins is determined a priori without consideration of the pixel values within the bounding box. For example, a bounding box that is superimposed on a two-dimensional array of orange, pink, and white pixels is divided into fixed bins regardless of which pixels are orange, which pixels are pink, and which pixels are white.
By employing both a perceptual grouping and a geometric-configuration model, embodiments of the present invention can combine the advantages of both approaches. For example, the geometric-configuration model has the advantage that computations involving the model can be performed using a fixed-size vector in memory. The perceptual grouping, meanwhile, has the advantage of partitioning the image into regions that more closely correspond to the objects in the image.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the computing device integrates both the perceptual grouping and the geometric-configuration model by examining the individual pixels in the bins of the geometric-configuration model and assigning to each combination of pixel and group a measure of how strongly the pixel belongs to the group. For example, if a pixel in a bin of a bounding box is in the center of a segment, the membership of the pixel in that segment can intuitively be considered strong. Conversely, if a pixel is not inside a particular segment and is not even close to the border of that segment, the membership of the pixel in that segment can intuitively be considered weak.
In an embodiment of the present invention, a value is computed for each pair of bins and each group, based on the membership measures of the individual pixels in each of the two bins. The resulting value is thus an overall reflection of how strongly the two bins belong to a particular segment, and provides higher-order information for object detection and recognition algorithms than a mapping of individual bins to individual segments or individual segments to individual bins.
Advantageously, the computed values are an overall reflection of how strongly each pair of bins belongs to a particular segment, and provides higher-order information for object detection and recognition algorithms than a mapping of individual bins to individual segments or individual segments to individual bins.
Note that embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to images. However, embodiments of the present invention also apply to videos. For example, embodiments of the present invention may perform object detection and object recognition for frames of a video. Alternatively, embodiments of the present invention may combine estimates over multiple frames to perform object detection and recognition.
Note also that embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to bounding boxes. A bounding box of an object is a smallest rectangle that bounds an object in an image. The bounding box may have sides aligned to the image, or may have sides aligned to a shape of the bounded object. A bounding box is one type of geometric configuration model. It should be understood that embodiments of the present invention may also be used to determine other types of geometric configuration models, such as constellations, k-fans, and so forth.
Additionally, embodiments of the present invention are discussed with reference to image segmentation. A segment may be a region that consists of pixels with similar features (e.g., color, texture, intensity, etc.). Alternative embodiments, however, may perform other types of perceptual grouping (e.g., contour detection, etc.).
FIG. 1
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illustrates an example system architecture , in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The system architecture includes a server machine , an image repository and client machines A-N connected to a network . Network may be a public network (e.g., the Internet), a private network (e.g., a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN)), or a combination thereof.
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The client machines A-N may be personal computers (PC), laptops, mobile phones, tablet computers, or any other computing devices. The client machines A-N may run an operating system (OS) that manages hardware and software of the client machines A-N. A browser (not shown) may run on the client machines (e.g., on the OS of the client machines). The browser may be a web browser that can access content served by a web server. The browser may issue image search queries to the web server or may browse images and/or videos that have previously been classified. The client machines A-N may also upload images to the web server for storage and/or classification.
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Server machine may be a rackmount server, a router computer, a personal computer, a portable digital assistant, a mobile phone, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a camera, a video camera, a netbook, a desktop computer, a media center, or any combination of the above. Server machine includes a web server , an image-processing subsystem , an object detection/recognition engine , and an object model creator . In alternative embodiments, the web server , object detection/recognition engine and/or object model creator may run on different machines. Additionally, in some embodiments, the object detection/recognition engine and object model creator may be combined into a single module.
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Image repository is a persistent storage that is capable of storing images and/or video. In some embodiments image repository might be a network-attached file server, while in other embodiments image repository might be some other type of persistent storage such as an object-oriented database, a relational database, and so forth, that may be hosted by the server machine or one or more different machines coupled to the server machine via the network . The images and video stored in the image repository may include user-generated content that is uploaded by client machines. The images and video may additionally or alternatively include content provided by service providers such as news organizations, publishers, libraries and so on.
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Web server may serve images from image repository to clients A-N. Web server may receive image search queries and perform searches on the images in the image repository to determine images that satisfy the image search query. Web server may then send to a client A-N those images that match the search query.
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In order for the image repository to be searchable, the images in the image repository may be classified. In one embodiment, object detection/recognition engine classifies the images in the image repository . Classifying the images may include performing object detection on the images (identifying the locations of objects in the images) as well as performing object recognition on the objects (determining object classes for those detected objects). The images may then be classified based on the objects that the images contain.
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In accordance with some embodiments, image-processing subsystem determines a perceptual grouping for the image (e.g., segmentation of the image, contour detection, etc.) and a geometric-configuration model of the image (e.g., a bounding box, etc.). In one such embodiment, image-processing subsystem segments the image and determines one or more bounding boxes in the image. The size and position of the bounding box may be determined in any one of a number of ways. For example, in some embodiments the size of the bounding box for a particular object type might be determined during training based on manually-labeled bounding boxes of objects. In such embodiments, for each model one can exhaustively try all possible locations and scales within an input image.
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FIGS. 2 through 6
The image-processing subsystem then processes an image based on both a perceptual grouping for the image (e.g., derived via segmentation, derived via contour detection, etc.) and a geometric-configuration model for the image (e.g., a bounding box model, a bounding box model in combination with a histogram of oriented gradients [HOG], a constellation, a k-fan, a shape context, one or more scale-invariant feature transforms [SIFTs] defined at a larger context, etc.). An embodiment of image-processing subsystem is described in detail below and with respect to .
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Object model creator is capable of creating one or more models of one or more objects in the image based on the processing performed by image-processing subsystem . Object model creator may use any combination of one or more techniques for creating an object model. For example, in some embodiments, object model creator may “learn” an object model from labeled training data, where the objects of interest in each image in the training data have a manually-selected bounding box. For each such label object, one can extract a representation as described above. This representation can be used to train any standard classifier, such as a Support Vector Machine (SVM), AdaBoost, etc. to obtain a model.
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Object detection/recognition engine is capable of detecting and recognizing objects in the image based on the object models. Examples of an object include a car, a tree, a person, a face, a building, and so forth. Object detection/recognition engine may use any combination of one or more techniques for performing object detection, such as techniques that employ a histogram of oriented gradients (HOG), or part-models such as k-fans, constellation models, pictorial structure, and so forth.
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Additionally, object detection/recognition engine may use any combination of one or more techniques for performing object recognition, such as computer aided design (CAD)-like approaches (e.g., Marr, Mohan and Nevatia, Lowe, Faugeras, etc.), recognition by parts (e.g., Binford, Biederman, Dickinson, Forsyth and Ponce, etc.), appearance-based methods (e.g., edge matching, divide-and-conquer search, grayscale matching, gradient matching, etc.), feature-based techniques (e.g., such as interpretation trees, hypothesize and test, pose consistency, pose clustering, invariance, geometric hashing, scale-invariant feature transform [SIFT], speeded-up robust features [SURF], etc.), and so forth.
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FIGS. 2 through 6
In accordance with one embodiment, image-processing subsystem processes an image based on both a perceptual grouping for the image (e.g., derived via segmentation, derived via contour detection, etc.) and a geometric-configuration model for the image (e.g., a bounding box model, a constellation, a k-fan, a shape context, one or more scale-invariant feature transforms [SIFTs] defined at a larger context, etc.). An embodiment of image-processing subsystem is described in detail below and with respect to .
FIG. 2
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is a block diagram of one embodiment of an image-processing subsystem . The image-processing subsystem may be the same as the image-processing subsystem of and may include a perceptual grouping subsystem , a geometric-configuration model subsystem , a hybrid processing subsystem , and an image data store .
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The image data store may be a temporary buffer or a permanent data store to hold an image that is to be processed. Alternatively, image data store may be hosted by one or more storage devices, such as main memory, magnetic or optical storage based disks, tapes or hard drives, NAS, SAN, and so forth.
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FIG. 1
FIG. 1
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The perceptual grouping subsystem identifies a perceptual grouping for an image, such as a segmentation of the image, a grouping based on contour detection, etc. In some embodiments the perceptual grouping might be computed by perceptual grouping subsystem itself, while in some other embodiments the perceptual grouping might be computed by another entity (e.g., an executable library of image processing routines [not depicted in ] hosted by server machine , etc.) and the results provided to perceptual grouping subsystem . The geometric-configuration model subsystem identifies a geometric-configuration model for an image, such as a bounding box, a constellation, a k-fan, a shape context, etc. In some embodiments the geometric-configuration model might be computed by geometric-configuration model subsystem itself, while in some other embodiments the geometric-configuration model might be computed by another entity (e.g., an executable library of image processing routines [not depicted in ] hosted by server machine , etc.) and the results provided to geometric-configuration model subsystem . The hybrid processing subsystem processes an image based on both the perceptual grouping for the image and the geometric-configuration model for the image. In one embodiment, hybrid processing subsystem integrates both the perceptual grouping and the geometric-configuration model by examining the individual pixels in the bins of the geometric-configuration model and assigning to each combination of pixel and group a measure of how strongly the pixel belongs to the group. In accordance with this embodiment, hybrid processing subsystem then computes a value for each pair of bins and each group, based on the membership measures of the individual pixels in each of the two bins, and provides the computed values to object model creator . An embodiment of such hybrid processing is described in more detail below with respect to .
FIG. 3
FIG. 3
FIG. 3
depicts an illustrative perceptual grouping and an illustrative geometric-configuration model for an image, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. In particular, depicts an illustrative segmentation of an image and an illustrative bounding box in the image. It should be noted that is merely illustrative of some embodiments, as some other embodiments might use an alternative type of perceptual grouping (e.g., a grouping based on contour detection, etc.), or an alternative type of geometric-configuration model (e.g., a constellation, a k-fan, a shape context, etc.), or both.
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Block depicts an illustrative image having several objects (e.g., a car, a person, etc.). Block illustrates segmentation of image into six segments - through -, arranged as shown. Block depicts illustrative bounding box centered on the person in image , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The size and position of illustrative bounding box may be determined in any one of a number of ways, as described above. As shown, illustrative bounding box is divided into four square-shaped bins - through -. It should be noted that the number of bins in bounding box is merely illustrative, and bounding boxes can have an arbitrary number of bins. It should also be noted that some other bounding boxes might comprise bins of another shape (e.g., rectangular, etc.) rather than square-shaped bins, or might comprise bins that are not uniformly sized, or both.
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Block depicts the illustrative segmentation of illustrative image in combination with illustrative bounding box , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. As shown, each of segments - through - overlaps with at least one of bins - through -. Alternatively, for some other combinations of image, segmentation, and bounding box this might not necessarily be the case; for example, if a bounding box is wholly contained within a single segment, then none of the other segments of the image will overlap any bins of the bounding box. In one embodiment, hybrid processing subsystem assigns to every pixel in bounding box a measure of how strongly the pixel belongs to each of segments - through -. In accordance with this embodiment, hybrid processing subsystem then computes, based on the pixel membership measures, a value for every combination of segment and two bins (i.e., 6 segments times 6 possible pairs of the four bins, for a total of 36 values) and provides these 36 values to object model creator .
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FIG. 1
FIG. 4
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depicts a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method for recognizing one or more objects in an image. The method is performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (circuitry, dedicated logic, etc.), software (such as is run on a general purpose computer system or a dedicated machine), or a combination of both. In one embodiment, the method is performed by the server machine of , while in some other embodiments, one or more of blocks through might be performed by another machine. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the image-processing subsystem , object detection/recognition engine , and the object model creator may run on separate machines. It should also be noted that blocks depicted in can be performed simultaneously or in a different order than that depicted.
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FIG. 1
At block , a perceptual grouping for an image is identified. In accordance with one embodiment, block is performed by perceptual grouping subsystem of image-processing subsystem . In some such embodiments, perceptual grouping subsystem might itself be capable of computing a perceptual grouping for an image, while in some other embodiments, perceptual grouping subsystem might identify a perceptual grouping for the image that is computed by another entity (e.g., an executable library of image processing routines [not depicted in ] hosted by server machine , etc.) and provided to image-processing subsystem . The perceptual grouping may result in the creation of multiple disjoint groups of pixels (i.e., groups of pixels with no overlap between any of the groups, so that every pixel belongs to a single group).
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At block , a geometric-configuration model for the image is identified. In accordance with one embodiment, block is performed by geometric-configuration model subsystem of image-processing subsystem . In some such embodiments, geometric-configuration model subsystem might itself be capable of constructing a geometric-configuration model for an image, while in some other embodiments, geometric-configuration model subsystem might identify a geometric-configuration model for the image that is computed by another entity (e.g., an executable library of image processing routines [not depicted in ] hosted by server machine , etc.) and provided to image-processing subsystem . The geometric-configuration model may include a set of bins whose positions and sizes are independent of the pixel values of the image (e.g., a set of bins located at predefined intervals within the image, etc.).
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At block , the image is processed based on both the perceptual grouping identified at block and the geometric-configuration model identified at block . In accordance with one embodiment, a value is computed for every combination of two bins of the geometric-configuration model and group of the perceptual grouping. In other words, if a geometric-configuration model comprises n bins in one or more bounding boxes of an image and a perceptual grouping comprises m groups of pixels (e.g., segments) within the image, then
<math overflow="scroll"><mrow><mfrac><mrow><mi>n</mi><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><mi>n</mi><mo>-</mo><mn>1</mn></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow><mn>2</mn></mfrac><mo>·</mo><mi>m</mi></mrow></math>
values are computed.
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{b, . . . , b} denote the set of bins of the geometric-configuration model, where n is an integer greater than 1;
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{g, . . . , g} denote the set of groups of the perceptual grouping, where m is an integer greater than 1; and
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{h(b,b,g)|1≦i<j≦n, 1≦k≦m)} denote the set of values for each combination of bin pair and group.
In one such embodiment, each value h(b,b,g) is computed as:
In accordance with one such embodiment, each of the computed values is based on how strongly pixels in a pair of bins belong to a particular group. In particular, let:
<math overflow="scroll"><mtable><mtr><mtd><mrow><mrow><mi>h</mi><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>i</mi></msub><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>j</mi></msub><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>g</mi><mi>k</mi></msub></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow><mo>=</mo><mrow><munder><mo>∑</mo><mrow><msub><mi>e</mi><mn>1</mn></msub><mo>∈</mo><mrow><mi>pixels</mi><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><msub><mi>b</mi><mn>1</mn></msub><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow></mrow></munder><mo></mo><mrow><munder><mo>∑</mo><mrow><msub><mi>e</mi><mn>2</mn></msub><mo>∈</mo><mrow><mi>pixels</mi><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>j</mi></msub><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow></mrow></munder><mo></mo><mrow><mrow><msub><mi>p</mi><msub><mi>g</mi><mi>k</mi></msub></msub><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><msub><mi>e</mi><mn>1</mn></msub><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow><mo></mo><mrow><msub><mi>p</mi><msub><mi>g</mi><mi>k</mi></msub></msub><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><msub><mi>e</mi><mn>2</mn></msub><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow></mrow></mrow></mrow></mrow></mtd><mtd><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><mi>Eq</mi><mo>.</mo><mstyle><mspace width="0.8em" height="0.8ex" /></mstyle><mo></mo><mn>1</mn></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mtd></mtr></mtable></math>
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where pixels(b) denotes the set of pixels in bin b, and where for any pixel e, p(e) is a measure of how strongly pixel e belongs to group g.
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FIG. 5
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The intuitive meaning of measure p(e) can be more easily understood by considering , which depicts a zoomed-in view of illustrative bin -, as well as two illustrative pixels of image located in bin -, labeled - and -, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. It should be noted that a bin such as illustrative bin - typically comprises a two-dimensional array of pixels covering the entire bin; however, for simplicity and illustrative purposes, only two such pixels are explicitly depicted in .
FIG. 5
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As shown in , there are four segments of image that overlap bin -: segment -, segment -, segment -, and segment -. Consider p(-) and p(-), which are measures of how strongly pixel - belongs to segments - and -, respectively. Clearly pixel - belongs to segment - much more strongly than it belongs to segment -, and therefore p(-) should be much larger than p(-). Similarly, pixel - belongs to segment - more strongly than it belongs to segments - or -, though perhaps by a smaller margin than the difference between membership in segment - and segment -.
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Next consider measures p(-), p(-), p(-), and p(-), which quantify how strongly pixel - belongs to segments -, -, -, and -, respectively. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the measures for pixel - are much less clear-cut than for pixel -. For example, pixel - is within segment -, but it is near two boundaries of segment -, one shared with segment - and one shared with segment -. Consequently, in one embodiment an exemplary set of values for these measure might be:
p(501-2)=0.7p(501-2)=0.3p(501-2)=0.2p(501-2)=0 (Eq. 2)
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In some embodiments measure p(e) might be a real number in [0, 1], as in the example above, while in some other embodiments p(e) might have a different range, or might have quantized values, or both (for example, an integer between 1 and 10 inclusive).
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It should be noted that some other embodiments might employ a different methodology for performing block than that of the embodiment above. For example, some other embodiments might use a different formula than that of Equation 1 for processing measure p(e), or might use a different measure than p(e), or might not use any measure at all, or might not use a formula at all. As yet other examples, some other embodiments might not process bin pairs, but might instead process single bins, or some other combinations of bins (e.g., triads, etc.), while in still some other embodiments the image might be processed based on the perceptual grouping identified at block and the geometric-configuration model identified at block in some completely different manner than that of the embodiment above.
In some embodiments, a maximum over all groups might also be computed for each bin pair, as follows:
<math overflow="scroll"><mtable><mtr><mtd><mrow><mrow><msub><mi>h</mi><mi>max</mi></msub><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>i</mi></msub><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>j</mi></msub></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow><mo>=</mo><mrow><munder><mi>max</mi><mrow><mn>1</mn><mo>≤</mo><mi>k</mi><mo>≤</mo><mi>m</mi></mrow></munder><mo></mo><mrow><mo>{</mo><mrow><mi>h</mi><mo></mo><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>i</mi></msub><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>b</mi><mi>j</mi></msub><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>g</mi><mi>k</mi></msub></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mrow><mo>}</mo></mrow></mrow></mrow></mtd><mtd><mrow><mo>(</mo><mrow><mi>Eq</mi><mo>.</mo><mstyle><mspace width="0.8em" height="0.8ex" /></mstyle><mo></mo><mn>3</mn></mrow><mo>)</mo></mrow></mtd></mtr></mtable></math>
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This measure, which reflects the maximum chance that two bins band bsee the same grouping, factors out the group index, which can change across images. The values for this measure can then be used, in conjunction with the values computed in Equation 1, to build a feature vector for use in the object model creation and object detection/recognition tasks of blocks through , described below. It should be noted that in some other embodiments a variation of Equation 3 might be employed to compute the composite measures for the bin pairs (e.g., computing a weighted mean rather than the maximum, etc.).
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At block , an object model is created based on the processing of the image at block . For example, in some embodiments the object model may be created by learning the object model from labeled training data, where the objects of interest in each image in the training data have a manually-selected bounding box. For each such label object, one can extract a representation as described above. For example, the measure values computed in Equation 2 could be used to obtain a representation in the same manner as for patch-based object detectors. This representation can be used to train any standard classifier, such as a Support Vector Machine (SVM), AdaBoost, etc. to obtain a model. Due to the fixed geometry of the bounding box and its bins, the object model can be stored in memory using a fixed-size vector.
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At block , a method of object detection is performed for the image based on the object model created at block . For example, object detection may be performed using a histogram of oriented gradients (HOG), or part-models such as k-fans, constellation models, pictorial structure, and so forth.
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At block , a method of object recognition is performed for the objects detected at block . For example, object recognition may be performed via computer aided design (CAD)-like techniques, such as those of Man, Mohan and Nevatia, Lowe, Faugeras, etc.; recognition by parts techniques, such as those of Binford, Biederman, Dickinson, Forsyth and Ponce, etc.; appearance-based techniques, such as edge matching, divide-and-conquer search, grayscale matching, gradient matching, etc.; feature-based techniques, such as interpretation trees, hypothesize and test, pose consistency, pose clustering, invariance, geometric hashing, scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT), speeded-up robust features (SURF), etc.; and so forth.
FIG. 6
illustrates an exemplary computer system within which a set of instructions, for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, may be executed. In alternative embodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines in a LAN, an intranet, an extranet, or the Internet. The machine may operate in the capacity of a server machine in client-server network environment. The machine may be a personal computer (PC), a set-top box (STB), a server, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.
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The exemplary computer system includes a processing system (processor) , a main memory (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) such as synchronous DRAM (SDRAM)), a static memory (e.g., flash memory, static random access memory (SRAM)), and a data storage device , which communicate with each other via a bus .
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Processor represents one or more general-purpose processing devices such as a microprocessor, central processing unit, or the like. More particularly, the processor may be a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, reduced instruction set computing (RISC) microprocessor, very long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, or a processor implementing other instruction sets or processors implementing a combination of instruction sets. The processor may also be one or more special-purpose processing devices such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), network processor, or the like. The processor is configured to execute instructions for performing the operations and steps discussed herein.
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The computer system may further include a network interface device . The computer system also may include a video display unit (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)), an alphanumeric input device (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device (e.g., a mouse), and a signal generation device (e.g., a speaker).
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The data storage device may include a computer-readable medium on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., instructions executed by image-processing subsystem and corresponding to blocks through , etc.) embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Instructions may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory and/or within the processor during execution thereof by the computer system , the main memory and the processor also constituting computer-readable media. Instructions may further be transmitted or received over a network via the network interface device .
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While the computer-readable storage medium is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term “computer-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term “computer-readable storage medium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. The term “computer-readable storage medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, optical media, and magnetic media.
In the above description, numerous details are set forth. It will be apparent, however, to one of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure, that embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, in order to avoid obscuring the description.
Some portions of the detailed description are presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of steps leading to a desired result. The steps are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like.
It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the above discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as “identifying,” “determining,” “processing,” “computing,” “creating,” or the like, refer to the actions and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (e.g., electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.
Embodiments of the invention also relate to an apparatus for performing the operations herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes, or it may comprise a general purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computer readable storage medium, such as, but not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magnetic-optical disks, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions.
The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general purpose systems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove convenient to construct a more specialized apparatus to perform the required method steps. The required structure for a variety of these systems will appear from the description below. In addition, the present invention is not described with reference to any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the invention as described herein.
The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general purpose systems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove convenient to construct a more specialized apparatus to perform the required method steps. The required structure for a variety of these systems will appear from the description below. In addition, the present invention is not described with reference to any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the invention as described herein.
It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading and understanding the above description. For example, in some embodiments, the representation that is derived from a perceptual grouping might be used for the tasks of object detection and recognition, or might be used in systems that derive features from image patches to obtain a new “perceptual patch representation.” Moreover, in some embodiments the concept of groupings can be extended to video, using continuity in time in the same manner as continuity in space. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Embodiments of the present invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description given below and from the accompanying drawings of various embodiments of the invention, which, however, should not be taken to limit the invention to the specific embodiments, but are for explanation and understanding only.
FIG. 1
illustrates an exemplary system architecture, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
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is a block diagram of one embodiment of an image-processing subsystem.
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depicts an illustrative perceptual grouping and an illustrative geometric-configuration model for an image, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.
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depicts a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method for recognizing one or more objects in an image.
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FIG. 3D
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depicts a zoomed-in view of illustrative bin -, as shown in , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
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depicts a block diagram of an illustrative computer system operating in accordance with embodiments of the invention. | |
Wednesday, May 20, 2015 | 3:17 p.m.
Las Vegas City Manager Betsy Fretwell received her second raise in less than a year today. The City Council voted to increase her pay by $38,500 to bring it in line with the salaries of city managers in other similarly sized cities.
The pay increase, which was framed by the city as a “market-rate adjustment,” comes 10 months after Fretwell got a $20,000 performance raise, equal to about 10 percent of her salary at the time.
With both increases, Fretwell, who has been city manager for six years, will receive a base salary of $260,000 a year, plus nearly $100,000 more in other pay and benefits.
The council approved the increase on a 6-1 vote, with all but Councilman Bob Beers supporting the raise, which is retroactive to April.
Councilwoman Lois Tarkanian praised the job Fretwell has done after taking over the city’s day-to-day operations in the heart of the recession.
The economic turmoil led to cuts in staff and services, but the city has been on the recovery recently, managing to balance its budget without dipping into reserves each of the last three years.
“We’ve had a remarkable recovery,” Tarkanian said. “We don’t want to lose” Fretwell.
The raise makes Fretwell’s salary the second highest among government managers in the valley, trailing Clark County Manager Don Burnette’s base salary of $262,597. Burnette also oversees McCarran International Airport and University Medical Center.
Outgoing Henderson City Manager Jacob Snow receives a base salary of $225,000 a year, while North Las Vegas City Manager Qiong Liu makes $190,000 annually.
Fretwell’s salary is still slightly below the average of $276,974 paid to city managers in comparable cities such as Phoenix, Dallas, San Jose, Calif., and Kansas City, Mo., according to a survey by Las Vegas human resources staff.
Beers, the lone opponent to the raise, called the salary comparison “significantly flawed” because it failed to account for retirement benefits.
He also criticized Fretwell’s raise of about 18 percent of her previous salary as much larger than the 1 to 2 percent rank-and-file employees have been receiving. | https://lasvegassun.com/news/2015/may/20/las-vegas-city-manager-gets-38500-raise/ |
Japanese Fine Antique album original Geisha Bijin Photographs, Meiji period 1890.
You can literally marvel for hours enjoying thumbing through this rare tome containing 26 photographs of Japanese Geisha. works of art. They are hand printed salt prints.
Age: All date to 1890.
Extraordinary treasure find. Instant collection with seldom seen rare images. | https://www.schneiblefinearts.com/shop/japanese-asian-fine-art/japan-antique-geisha-bijin-photo-album-of-beauties-album-1890-26-photographs/ |
Mealtimes do not have to be a bore to anyone. If you find yourself clueless about the next dish to prepare for dinner or lunch, you should definitely try using other recipes that come with a great taste. You can browse through a variety of cookbooks for more ideas on what to cook. You will surely find new recipes to try cooking for the family. Some also ask their friends about the simple recipes that they can in prepare for main course, dessert or appetizer.
If you are looking for a different recipe that comes with a savory taste and great aroma, you can try making meatloaf with chili peppers. The dish is delightful to the taste buds because of the tangy and zesty flavor of the meatloaf. Aside from the flavor and texture of the dish, many people like the convenience in making the recipe. In only a matter of minutes, anyone can prepare the meatloaf with such an exquisite taste.
Here is an excellent recipe for meatloaf with roasted red chili. Anyone will surely have an easy making the recipe because of the simple cooking instructions.
Roasted Red Chili Peppers Meatloaf
Just imagine how great it would be to cook something quick and simple for mealtime. This recipe for meatloaf is not like the usual because of the chili peppers that give the meat a unique and exciting taste. Here are the ingredients you need to prepare to make this outstanding recipe.
Ingredients:
• 2 pounds of ground beef loin
• 1 pound of ground pork
• Roasted red bell pepper
• Medium-sized yellow onion, chopped
• Creole seasoning
• Celery salt
• Cajun seasoning
• 2 tablespoons of chili powder
Procedure:
Pour some oil in the saucepan. Then, cook the chopped onion for 5 minutes, or until it becomes clear and translucent. Next, use a processor and transfer the chili pepper, seasonings and the cooked onions inside it. Process the three ingredients for a minute. Once the mixture has become smooth and thick, transfer it into a big mixing bowl. Place the ground pork and beef. Use your hands in mixing the ingredients. After blending it and it has turned chunky in texture, place the mixture in a baking pan. Mould the mixture into a loaf shape. Then, bake the mixture at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 45 minutes. Once the loaf is set and firm, allot a few minutes to cool on the wire rack. After it has cooled completely, transfer the loaf in a serving plate. Slice the loaf and serve with your choice of dip or sauce. Pepper sauce would be better for the dish to give it a spicy and zesty taste.
There you have it, a fast and easy way to make a delectable dish for lunch or dinner. Serve it with rice or with bread. Make sure that you pour some sauce on top of the loaf for extra good taste. You will surely love the taste and the aroma of the dish. Hence, cook the recipe and make every mealtime a treat.
For more information on Food and Recipes, Please visit Chili Peppers, Chicken Chili Recipe and Easy Chili Recipe. | https://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/great-recipe-for-chili-peppers |
USC’s Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Design Team is a student-run organization that creates an AUV each year to compete in the Robosub competition. By employing industry standard programs and techniques, USC AUV ensures that all members have a hands-on, practical engineering experience outside of the classroom that can be utilized in their future careers. Every step of the design process, from planning, to fabrication, to testing, is decided by student members of the team. Each member is given their own individual project to complete, ensuring that every member makes a significant and direct contribution to the team. Overall, USC AUV serves not just as a student organization, but also a way for each member to be prepared for their future careers in their chosen field.
Learn More About Different Aspects of our Team
AUV stands for Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, or a fully submersible robot that can complete tasks on its own, without any human interaction. The challenge in creating an AUV lies in the word autonomous, as designing a robot to adapt to various conditions, from simple changes in light throughout the day to determining what task should be completed first is immensely difficult.
Systems Team
Electrical Team
Mechanical Team
Software Team
Robosub Links
USC AUV is focused not only on giving members industry-level skills, but also ensuring that every member has opportunities to show these skills to future employers. USC AUV presents annually to several of our sponsor companies, including Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Solidworks. In addition, the Robosub competition is another location where former members have been able to secure internships and jobs from the many recruiters who are present there. | https://uscauv.com/about/ |
Long hailed as the leader in modern art, Paris would take 2nd place to New York during the emergence of a new contemporary art movement that flourished in the 40’s and 50’s. Many European artists fled Europe to escape political unrest and fascist regimes in the 1930’s, bringing with them strong Surrealist ideologies and methods. Surrealism with its focus on the unconscious, would inspire American artists and encourage artistic experimentation with myths and symbols that is inherent in Abstract Expressionism.
Abstract Expressionists came to view painting as a struggle between self-expression and the untapped chaos of the unconscious. The visual representation of personal experience was the ultimate goal of each artistic piece. There were two commonly viewed styles of Abstract Expressionism, which include action painting and color field painting.
With action painting, artists either focused on gestural application of paint, or used large areas of color as the basis of their compositions. Art Critic Harold Rosenberg coined this term to describe the process artist Jackson Pollock used by dripping paint on canvases spread on the floor of his studio. Conceptually, action painting viewed the painted object as the byproduct of an artistic process, which is the immediate expression of the artist’s identity. The artistic process, not the painted object, is the true work of art because it is tied to inner self-expression.
Through color field painting, a pervasive depiction of intense color was embraced at the cost of all figuration. Rather than focusing on symbols, color field painters focused on the expressive power of color, and hoped to create modern, mythic art that would connect with primordial emotions. The goal was to birth a style that would do away with the suggestion of illustration and figuration.
Modern artists and art movements have been greatly influenced by Abstract Expressionism. Paintings and abstract art prints by artists like Ad Reinhardt and Frank Stella depict the borrowed concepts of Abstract Expressionism.
To see contemporary art with influences from Abstract Expressionism, please take some time to explore our online abstract art gallery or call (415) 347-8173 for questions about your options. | http://blog.nietofineart.com/contemporary-art-abstract-expressionism/ |
Polycythemia vera (PV) is a bone marrow disease that leads to an abnormal increase in the number of blood cells. The red blood cells are mostly affected.
Causes
PV is a disorder of the bone marrow. It mainly causes too many red blood cells to be produced. The numbers of white blood cells and platelets may also be higher than normal.
PV is a rare disorder that occurs more often in men than in women. It is not usually seen in people under age 40. The problem is often linked to a gene defect called JAK2V617F. The cause of this gene defect is unknown. This gene defect is not an inherited disorder.
Symptoms
With PV, there are too many red blood cells in the body. This results in very thick blood, which can't flow through small blood vessels normally, leading to symptoms such as:
- Trouble breathing when lying down
- Dizziness
- Feeling tired all the time
- Full feeling in the left upper abdomen (due to enlarged spleen)
- Headache
- Itchiness, especially after a warm bath
- Red skin coloring, especially of the face
- Shortness of breath
- Symptoms of blood clots in veins near the skin surface (phlebitis)
- Vision problems
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
- Joint pain
Exams and Tests
The health care provider will perform a physical exam. You may also have the following tests:
- Bone marrow biopsy
- Complete blood count with differential
- Comprehensive metabolic panel
- Erythropoietin level
- Genetic test for the JAK2V617F mutation
- Oxygen saturation of the blood
- Vitamin B12 level
PV may also affect the results of the following tests:
- ESR
- Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)
- Leukocyte alkaline phosphatase
- Platelet aggregation test
- Serum uric acid
Treatment
The goal of treatment is to reduce the thickness of the blood and prevent bleeding and clotting problems.
A method called phlebotomy is used to decrease blood thickness. One unit of blood (about 1 pint, or 1/2 liter) is removed each week until the number of red blood cells drops. The treatment is continued as needed.
Medicines that may be used include:
- Hydroxyurea to reduce the number of red blood cells made by the bone marrow. This drug may be used when the numbers of other blood cell types are also high.
- Interferon to lower blood counts.
- Anagrelide to lower platelet counts.
- Ruxolitinib (Jakafi) to reduce the number of red blood cells and reduce an enlarged spleen. This drug is prescribed when hydroxyurea and other treatments have failed.
Taking aspirin to reduce the risk of blood clots may be an option for some people, but aspirin increases the risk for stomach bleeding.
Ultraviolet-B light therapy can reduce the severe itching some people experience.
Support Groups
More information and support for people with polycythemia vera and their families can be found at:
- Leukemia and Lymphoma Society --
www.lls.org/myeloproliferative-neoplasms/polycythemia-vera
- MPN Research Foundation --
www.mpnresearchfoundation.org/living-with-an-mpn/
- National Organization for Rare Disorders --
rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/polycythemia-vera/
- NIH Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center --
rarediseases.info.nih.gov/diseases/7422/polycythemia-vera
Outlook (Prognosis)
PV usually develops slowly. Most people do not have symptoms related to the disease at the time of diagnosis. The condition is often diagnosed before severe symptoms occur.
Possible Complications
Complications of PV may include:
- Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML)
- Bleeding from the stomach or other parts of the intestinal tract
- Gout (painful swelling of a joint)
- Heart failure
- Myelofibrosis (disorder of the bone marrow in which the marrow is replaced by fibrous scar tissue)
- Thrombosis (blood clotting, which can cause a stroke, heart attack, or other body damage)
When to Contact a Medical Professional
Call your provider if symptoms of PV develop.
References
Gotlib J. Polycythemia vera, essential thrombocythemia, and primary myelofibrosis. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 157.
Kremyanskaya M, Najfeld V, Mascarenhas J, Hoffman R. The polycythemias. In: Hoffman R, Benz EJ, Silberstein LE, et al, eds. Hematology: Basic Principles and Practice. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2018:chap 68.
National Cancer Institute website. Chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms treatment (PDQ) -- health professional version.
Version Info
Last reviewed on: 1/19/2021
Reviewed by: Todd Gersten, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, Wellington, FL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team. | https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/diseases-conditions/polycythemia-vera |
Halfway through a project to document how the brain changes in response to mental illness, researchers have identified a family of genes that is consistently less active in the brains of depressed individuals compared to mentally healthy men and women.
The genes comprise a “complex and powerful” family of genes that normally helps build the brain early in life and maintains connections between neurons later in life. But the genes, known as fibroblast growth factors, or FGFs, appear to be less active in at least some individuals who experienced recurrent episodes of major depression.
The reason for the decreased activity is not yet known, nor is it known whether the misbehavior of these genes contributes to the development of depression or occurs because of the disease. In any case, the researchers have begun to study the genes in rats to see whether pharmacological approaches might be a way to affect the genes.
“This particular family of genes had not previously been implicated in any psychiatric disorder, but it’s not a big leap to see how they play a role in the development of depression,” says Simon J. Evans, one of the researchers on the project from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Evans is part of the Pritzker Neuropsychiatric Disorders Research Consortium, which includes scientists from four universities— Michigan, Stanford University in California, the University of California Irvine, and the University of California Davis. The Pritzker family of Chicago is funding the consortium, which has been doing research for about four years.
Eventually the group will study about 25 different brain regions to develop a comprehensive picture of the brain as it looks in individuals with depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. The tissue is collected at autopsy, and the group plans to study more than 200 individuals, including some who had these disorders and some who didn’t. Records are kept on each individual’s health history and the nature of his or her death.
The consortium will “profile” the activity of genes in this tissue using DNA microarrays, which are glass slides or microchips spotted with DNA. They are also known as gene chips.
In this study, the team used microarrays containing about 20,000 genes to profile two regions of the brain known to be affected by depression. Writing in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, the researchers say this family of genes “emerged as the most significantly altered ensemble of genes” in the two regions.
“This finding is significant because it was made by studying patients with depression and because it points toward an area of biology that neuroscientists think is important in this illness,” says Stanley J. Watson of the University of Michigan, another researcher on the team.
The fact that the researchers got “a bunch of hits in related genes” is intriguing, says Kenneth Kendler, who directs the Psychiatric Genetics Research Program at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and was not involved in the project. But he says it’s impossible to know at this point whether the genes have anything to do with depression in people.
Although microarrays have been used to identify genetic changes related to cancers, brain diseases may be another matter, Kendler says. The challenge, he adds, of comparing brain tissues from autopsy that may have undergone dramatic changes before they were collected is daunting.
“Microarrays are the new kid on the block when it comes to searching for genes in psychiatric disorders,” he says. “But the science is good, and someone ought to try to follow this up.”
Despite the efforts of many researchers around the world who have studied the DNA of people who develop mood disorders, no single gene has yet been shown to be responsible for causing clinical depression in a group of people. Perhaps this isn’t surprising given that depression is thought to occur most often when life takes a turn for the worse.
To be sure, a small number of genes, such as those involved in transporting the chemical serotonin in the brain, have been linked to changes in mood. But the search is still on for genes that may predispose individuals to have potentially fatal mood swings if they experience certain events in their lives.
Last year a study reported that people who had a particular form of a gene and who experienced certain adverse events in their lives were more likely to develop major depression than people who experienced similar challenges but had a different form of the gene. The gene was involved in transporting serotonin in the brain, and the study compared people who have the “long” and the “short” forms of the gene.
This finding was possible because researchers had access to a remarkable long-term study in which people have been tracked over many years and records are kept about their mental health histories and relevant experiences. But such resources are rare.
Another strategy for finding these genes has been to search the DNA of families with a history of depression for common genes and mutations. Known as genome scans, this approach has been used widely, but most of the results have not been replicated by other scientists studying other groups of people.
Like genome scans, microarray studies such as this one do not focus on a gene that may be important in depression. Instead, the researchers start with no preconceived notions of what they might find and instead run the experiment and let the data talk, if you will.
But when the data are based on tissue from many individuals of different ages who died of a variety of causes, the results are meaningful only if confounding factors are taken into account. The consortium has spent much of the last four years identifying such factors and figuring out how to compare tissues that have such different origins.
When comparing autopsy tissue from different individuals one has to take into account the medications the person was taking at the time of death and other factors that might influence the results. The most important factor is the cause of death.
The team does not use tissue from people who died prolonged deaths in the hospital because the brain undergoes such change during this period. Other factors such as the person’s gender and medications at the time of death can more easily be taken into account in the analysis, according to the researchers.
“The brain is a dynamic organ that makes a lot of internal modifications on demand,” says Watson. “When we started the project we began to realize that the way someone dies can cause the brain to shift into survival mode and we find that survival mode involves a very different set of genes than is normally active.”
Although it’s not clear why the genes were less active in some individuals, it does not appear to be because of antidepressant medications such as Prozac. Indeed, the genes seemed more active in people taking antidepressants, which led the researchers to hypothesize that the drugs may somehow affect the activity of these genes.
From obtaining the brain tissue at autopsy to using statistical tools to sort the data, the study presents numerous challenges and requires diverse expertise. “The project has required an enormous effort and no one place can do this—it’s expensive and it’s complex, and it’s taken almost four years,” says Watson.
“We have great respect for the families who are willing to do this,” he continues. “We have to ask family members at the time of death to participate in the research or else the brain deteriorates and that is a difficult thing to ask at such a time.”
Other members of the research team included Edward G. Jones at the University of California at Davis, William E. Bunney, Jr., at the University of California Irvine, Huda Akil at Michigan, and Richard M. Myers and Alan Schatzberg at Stanford.
Later this month at the Society of Neuroscience meeting in San Diego, the team will report on two other brain regions, the hippocampus and the amygdala.
| |
The Applied Computational Genomics group focuses on theoretical and computational aspects of modelling the process of genome evolution and adaptive change. With growing size and complexity of molecular data, we strive to keep pace providing accurate, scalable and practical computational solutions that enable a wide range of scientists to analyse patterns of evolution and natural selection in large genomic and omics data.
Our goal is to bring new bioinformatics methods to real applications ranging from biotechnology to biomedical research, ecology and agriculture.
Evolutionary analyses of selective pressures in genomic data have high potential for applications, since natural selection is a leading force in function conservation, in adaptation to emerging pathogens, new environments, and plays key role in immune and resistance systems.
We develop phylogenetic methods for protein-coding sequences that enable to evaluate selective pressure and detect adaptive instances based on genomic signatures. Our computational methods serve to generate new biological hypotheses and predictions for further experimental validation, with the ultimate goal to develop practical applications.
We embrace the interdisciplinary approach by integrating different data sources and combining methods from biological, mathematical, and computer science disciplines.
Evolutionary thinking helps to disentangle underlying biological mechanisms shaping molecular data. Genomic sequences of common origin are routinely used to infer phylogenies, which provide test-base for biological hypotheses or support downstream analyses. Based on fast approximation algorithms, we aim to include the alignment uncertainty during phylogeny estimation in the frequentist setting. This will allow for more accurate phylogenetic inferences from vast high-throughput data.
This project aims at enabling sophisticated semantic queries across large, decentralized and heterogeneous databases via an intuitive interface. The system will enable scientists, without prior training, to perform powerful joint queries across resources in ways that cannot be anticipated and therefore goes far and above the query functionality of specialized knowledge bases. The project represents an interdisciplinary collaboration between information systems and bioinformatics.
We develop statistical phylogenetic methods for analysing tandem repeats in genomic sequences. For example, leucine rich repeats (LRRs) in plant resistance genes provide a source for adaptation to emerging pathogens, so detecting selection on LRRs can bring ideas how to improve crop resistance (Shaper and Anisimova 2014, New Phytol).
We develop methods to study effects of selection on amino acid and codon mutation patterns. These methods can help to identify drug targets and study somatic processes. Our recent antibody model captures the sui generis mechanism specific to somatic hypermutation in maturating antibodies (Mirsky et al 2015, Mol Biol Evol). This provides basis for new bioinformatics methods for antibody analysis necessary for antibody selection and synthesis in the commercial context.
Please also refer to our Network pages to read more about our memberships, national and international research partners and customers. | https://www.zhaw.ch/en/lsfm/institutes-centres/ias/research-development/computational-genomics/ |
Introduction {#s1}
============
Part-1 of this paper presented the framework for study of tonal organization[^1^](#fn0001){ref-type="fn"} in any kind of music. Based on the available data from archeology, anthropology, ethnomusicology and psychoacoustics, the known forms of tonal organization were lined out in a timeline, where the cognitive constraints of perception of different musical typologies were used as criteria for deciding which form of organization came first. The pattern of acquisition of music skills during infancy was used to hypothesize the succession of stages in separation of music from speech and descent of definite pitch organization from indefinite one. The existing types of indefinite-in-pitch music were analyzed to identify *khasmatonal* and *ekmelic* modes as specialized methods of processing indefinite pitch. Mechanisms of their evolution into *oligotonal* definite-pitch mode were defined. The principle of triadic induction was shown to determine the growth of oligotonal into mesotonal, and mesotonal into multitonal schemes. The resulting hemitonic *heptatony* and anhemitonic *pentatony* presented two alternative methods of organizing vertical and horizontal harmony---each offering a dedicated style of handling tonal tension---reflecting a more general style of worldview, based on the parallels between tonal tension and social tension. Commitment to heptatony or pentatony as the principal means of tonal organization within a culture, then, appears to generally correspond to the preferred lifestyle in a social group. This correspondence could be the product of abstraction of individual lifestyle preferences into the tonal schemata of a *musical mode*, and further mediation of the multitude of such modes within a social group - until the statistically prevailing mode would establish the model of tonal organization.
Part-2 continues drawing the lineage until the rise of Western tonality, identifying yet another venue of musical representation of perceptual reality---vertical and horizontal tonal structures encoding the perceived relation of multiple objects in one\'s surrounding. The spatial organization of depicted images appears to share the same principles as the tonal organization of music in the same culture, probably originating in its environmental topography. Spatial-to-tonal correspondence is the strongest in Western tonality, but is noticeable at earlier stages defined in Part-2: *diatonic* and *chromatic mega-pitch-set* (MPS) systems, and *non-octave hypermode*.
Genesis of modal family and the role of tetrachord {#s2}
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What separates prehistoric and historic forms of music is the emergence of math-based music theory and notation. Notation encourages production of complex compositions in observation of theoretic rules, and restrains discrepancies in reproduction of the same tune. Oral transmission of folk music, in contrary, employs variation as the leading music-making principle. Any information technology designed to enhance the retention of symbolic information should be regarded as stimulation for the emergence of abstract thought (Couch, [@B53]).
Musical implementation of abstraction was the inference of *modal family* from a *single mode*. The model of it is documented in cuneiform notation of the Hurrian Hymns and related texts from Ugarit ca. 1400 BC. They reveal that Assyrian/Babylonian music was heptatonic, based on 7 modes[^2^](#fn0002){ref-type="fn"} named after a particular series of 5ths that were used to generate each of the modes (Kilmer and Tinney, [@B145]).
1. 1\. Audio: An arrangement of the Hurrian Hymn No. 6, Anne Kilmer\'s transcription ([@B144]). Kilmer\'s dyadic interpretation (Kilmer, [@B144]) was criticized for a number of inconsistencies with the data from the recovered music theory texts (West, [@B288]). <http://bit.ly/1jttPpG>
2. 2.Audio: the alternative transcription by West (1993), which also was criticized (Crocker, [@B57]). <http://bit.ly/1IVNBTM>
3. 3\. Audio: the alternative transcription by Dumbrill (1998). Despite huge differences between the transcriptions of this single surviving sample of Babylonian music, together with the retrieved music theory texts, it provides substantial information on general principles of tonal organization. <http://bit.ly/1KqPzJO>
Our "Mixolydian G" formed the base of Babylonian system[^3^](#fn0003){ref-type="fn"}. Prioritization of Mixolydian mode is known in numerous Eurasian folk music systems (Belaiev, [@B24]). Mesopotamian music theory must have adopted it from folk tradition and "rasterized" it mathematically, adopting the tetrachord as the formative tool in modal genesis.
Eurasian instrument-makers have traditionally conceptualized ambitus through equivalence of 4th, which according to Beliayev ([@B25], p. 248) manifests "the first stage of maturity" in tonal organization---supporting professionalization of folk musical culture. Modal integrity of 4th was epitomized in the Pythagorean cult of Tetraktys ("quaternary"), originating in primitive cultures of the Bronze Age (Burkert, [@B39], pp. 188--191), likely in Babylon (Barbera, [@B18])[^4^](#fn0004){ref-type="fn"}.
Tetraktys was the *earliest rational conceptualization of spatial and tonal organization* in a single scheme (Figure [1](#F1){ref-type="fig"}) of an equilateral triangle filled up with symmetrical rows of 1 to 4 dots. Each of these numbers encoded a geometric concept: 1---point, 2---line, 3---surface, and 4---tetrahedron---everyone of which contained the one before it (Riedweg, [@B234]).
![**Tetraktys (the "fourness"): the geometric representation of harmonicity of "4th." (A)** Musical aspect of tetraktys. On the left, each row is assigned a value that expresses the ratio of the string required for production of a perfect musical interval. Numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4 follow one another sequentially. Each row contains intervals of the designated type. On the right, the tetraktys diagram is combined with the lambdoma matrix (Bruhn, [@B38], p. 67) that was associated with Pythagorean teaching in Ancient Greece (Hero and Foulkrod, [@B117]). The lambdoma ratios are applied to the frequency value of A4 (440 Hz) taken as 1:1, producing A, D, and E---the unmutable (hestote) tones that comprised the skeleton of the Ancient Greek musical system. Obviously, the harmonic aspect of tetraktys determined the tonal organization of Greek and probably earlier civilizations. **(B)** Spatial aspect and its melodic correspondence. Each row represented a parameter in spatial representation: 1 point indicated zero dimensions; 2 points defined line, 1 dimension; 3 points defined surface, 2 dimensions; 4 points---a 3D geometric figure. Musically, this would be equivalent in distinguishing between an isolated pitch, a melodic step produced by succession of 2 pitches, a particular harmony produced by the relations of 3 pitches, and a gravitational frame of reference generated by 4 pitches---evident if to look at pitch values at any of the sides of the tetraktys in **(A)**. **(C)** Centripetal gravity encoded in tetraktys. The configuration of 10 points that comprise the tetraktys can represent 3D by implying 4 triangles. Then, their "corners" correspond to the same octave-equivalent pitch, indicating that the tetraktys is "tuned" to a certain tone **(A)**.](fpsyg-07-00211-g0001){#F1}
Together, they represented world\'s order, where point symbolized unity, line---limit, surface---harmony, and tetrahedron---cosmos. This convention displayed amazing vitality throughout the ages, nourishing philosophy of Christian, Arabic, and Jewish traditions (McCartin, [@B188]). Since Ancients considered numbers "sounding"---following the paradigm of proportional shortening of the string length to attain different pitches, the idea of inclusiveness of a number was understood musically as well (Barbera, [@B17]): 4 and its integers expressed perfect consonant intervals (2:1 = octave, 3:2 = fifth, and 4:3 = fourth). Musical Tetraktys then served as the *container of harmony*: intervals that could be expressed in numbers not greater than 4 were considered "*symphonia*" (accord), whereas all other intervals, including 3rd and 6th, were considered "*diaphonia*" (discord) (Kholopov, [@B141], p. 64). Tetraktys determined the assortment of pitches usable in music, which was also understood in cosmogonic terms. Plato, in Timaeus, described the derivation of music tuning as creation of the World-Soul---and the model for his calculations probably came from earlier Mesopotamian sources (Crickmore, [@B55]).
Byzantine, Arabic, Persian, Indian, Syriac, Armenian, Georgian, and Western European music theories---as well as many Eurasian folk traditions---share the tetrachord base. Sachs ([@B245], p. 163) notes near-omnipresence of 4th in world\'s music: absent only in Polynesia and Micronesia. Cultural proliferation and longevity of 4th indicate cognitive reasons for its prominence.
Ancient Greek theory may offer a hint for possible explanation. Greeks conceived intervals in terms of stepwise singing male voices: thence, 4th was a sum of 3 steps and an aggregate of the constituent intervals: 2nd and 3rd, each of which carried its own psychological features. Greeks must have been aware of the displacing tendency of a 2nd[^5^](#fn0005){ref-type="fn"}. Therefore, perception of melodic 2nd involved competition between two tones---a kind of duality---as opposed to monadic unison. Going over the step produced a leap of a 3rd that contrasted a 2nd by leaving a trace and thereby introducing a new dimension of vertical harmony. Whenever enclosed in a melodic 3rd, two 2nds, did not create friction, making the 3rd indeed the expression of "harmony". Increasing the leap by another step produced a 4th which contained a 2nd and a 3rd---two intervals of different valence, one implying duality (disharmonious) and the other, accordance (harmonious). Such 4th encapsulated all basic tonal relations: *sameness, otherness*, and their synthesis---*concordance*.
This intervallic numerology could date back to Aurignacian culture, where the first cosmogonic concepts were forged in terms of solar/lunar, day/night, male/female dialectics, usually expressed in 2:1, 3:1, and 2:3 proportions (Frolov, [@B95]). Babylonian philosophy coordinated these proportions and expressed them mathematically as well as musically.
The integrating capacity of a 4th manifested itself in tetrachordal organization. This is still evident in maqam where the II and III tones inside a tetrachord can shift in their tuning values as needed, whereas the marginal tones remain permanently locked (Zannos, [@B305]). The inclusive power of such tetrachordal 4th is quite obvious to musicians, especially on a string instrument. And string instruments played a formative role in crystallization of the earliest epic Indo-European tradition. Four pitches that corresponded to melodic stresses of the ancient Sanskrit and Greek bridged Rig Veda to Homer - illuminating presence of 4 PCs by the look of a 4-string lyre, used to accompany epic singing (West, [@B286]). The idea of a tetrachord would then simply be the abstraction of a tunable lyre\'s string with marginal tones locked by the 3:4 proportion.
Optimization of interval-tracking could explain the preference for tetrachordal organization: most individuals cannot track more than four simultaneously moving entities (Drew and Vogel, [@B71]). This becomes an issue in heptatonic music-making, where 4th often stands as a "collection" of 4 tones, each of which requires attention and memory. Storing auditory images for each pitch---as incremental representation by a lookahead feature of the brain\'s error-detection circuitry---occurs while singing a familiar melody in one\'s mind (Janata, [@B131]). Facility of quick arithmetic estimations (1+1+1+1 etc.), necessary for vocal coordination, could make 4th into an optimal melodic size "chunk."
A 4th also provides the best compromise between melodic and harmonic consonance (see Part-1): vertical 4th fuses well, while horizontal 4th might not segregate in very fast tempo (Huron, [@B127])[^6^](#fn0006){ref-type="fn"}. Its closest competitor in size is 3rd, but 4th has a serious taxonomic advantage of being a *perfect* interval: for trained musicians, narrowing or widening a 4th by about 12 cents reduces its recognizability, making the listeners hear it as another interval, whereas for major 3rd the tolerance zone is 50% wider, about 18 cents, and for minor 3rd---25 cents (Burns and Ward, [@B41]). Furthermore, the tuning zone for 4th, enclosed between 3rd and 5th (that are harmonically contrasting to 4th) is substantially narrower than for the range occupied by 3rds (enclosed between the dissonant 4th and 2nd). According to Moran and Pratt ([@B196]), 4th enjoys the lowest deviation rate amongst all intervals, with 13.5 cents average. This makes 4th a better tuning reference than 3rd, which in history of acoustics has been notorious for exorbitance of tuning standards and preferences (Barbour, [@B20]). Listeners\' resolution of interval size is the highest for 4th (43 cents)---exceeding the 5th (50 cents)---and presenting an asymmetric bias towards the 3rd: major 3rd, extended 37% toward 4th, is still heard as a 3rd, whereas 4th allows for only 18% extension toward 3rd (Shackford, [@B249]).
Preference for 4th might have a developmental origin---there is evidence that mother-to-infant vocalizations during the first 2 years of life tend to tonally tune to the harmonic row of the same fundamental (85% of communication), where 4th is the *only* interval used outside the row, as an "infrafix" below the fundamental (Van Puyvelde et al., [@B271]). Such frame of reference would favor unison and 4th as the smallest size perfect consonances, comfortable for vocalization---and tetrachord exactly sets the unison and 4th as the structural axis for melody-making.
For Eurasian instrumental music, expansion of ambitus usually occurs by addition of an extra tetrachord above the initial one. Mixolydian tetrachord presents a choice par excellence because of its ease of tuning on the string and on the pipe (tone+tone+semitone)[^7^](#fn0007){ref-type="fn"}, and uniformity of its conjunct reproduction: G-A-B-C+C-D-E-F (Figure [2A](#F2){ref-type="fig"}).
{#F2}
The second favorite is the Phrygian tetrachord (semitone+tone+tone)[^8^](#fn0008){ref-type="fn"}, which is simply an intervallic inversion of Mixolydian. Disjunct addition of this tetrachord forms a Phrygian mode: E-F-G-A+B-C-D-E, which was probably a later development[^9^](#fn0009){ref-type="fn"}.
Each of these tetrachords constitutes a characteristic 4-tone intonation. Perceptually, the progression of two whole-tones, followed by a semitone, designates a melodic vector: Mixolydian tetrachord suggests ascent, whereas Phrygian---descent. Both are found amongst the world\'s most widespread modes (Gill and Purves, [@B105]). Singing them creates illusion of "resolution" toward the upper or lower 4th. A semitone is known to project directional ascending/descending melodic motion (Roederer, [@B237], p. 184). Delviniotis et al. ([@B66]) discovered that performers habitually increase the first interval length, and proportionally decrease the last in ascending scales, while inversing this treatment in descending scales---which would emphasize the vector of melodic inertia.
Melodic tetrachord highlights the gravitational relations and suggests spatial concomitants.
- Pentatonic conjunction of trichords "rounds the corners" by avoiding sharp-sounding minor 2nds and projecting concordance;
- Heptatonic conjunction of Phrygian or Mixolydian tetrachords amplifies ascending or descending directionality of the resultant scale, connoting insistence and purposefulness.
Chronologically, induction of Mixolydian mode must have preceded octave equivalence. The Mixolydian conjunct mode is *non-octave* in its design (Beliayev, [@B25], p. 281), and is characterized by alternation in gravity between the base tones of both tetrachords. The IV degree here tends to change from stable to unstable state, depending on the tetrachord in which it is melodically engaged. Like pentatony, this mode lacks gravitational hierarchy, but features greater tension, since its unstable tones tend to shift closer to a stable degree in expressive tuning, usually employed by performers (Morrison and Jánina, [@B199]).
According to Beliayev ([@B25], p. 288), conjunct Mixolydian produces a mode equivalent to Ionian via tetrachord rotation. This pseudo-Ionian remains *non-octave*, since its disjunct tetrachords make the upper C unstable whenever mutable[^10^](#fn0010){ref-type="fn"} G temporarily becomes "tonic."
In practice of earlier oligotonal and mesotonal music, singers commonly used transposition-by-*interval*[^11^](#fn0011){ref-type="fn"}.
1. 4\. Audio: Udasan Yryata, healing incantation. Occasionally, transposition was applied to a particular portion of a song as deliberate expressive means. Transposition of the oligotonal PS: from F-Ab-Bb to G-Bb-C (between the 2nd and 3rd strophes). <http://chirb.it/NcLnD1>
Heptatonic modes promoted transposition-by-*degree*[^12^](#fn0012){ref-type="fn"}, introducing the pitch-class set (PCS) concept. The underlying idea of diatonicity originates from cultivation of string plucking instruments (Belaiev, [@B24])---which were cardinal for Mesopotamian civilization (Lawergren, [@B160]). The visibility of strings, each easily equated to a pitch class (PC), and correspondence between the string length and interval size makes a mode obvious to players. Facility of producing few tones simultaneously prototypes the observation of vertical intervals that emerge between vocals and instrumental accompaniment.
1. 5\. Audio: Maddoh, Pamir. The accompaniment on rubab (6-string lute) provides an example of vertical 2nds occasionally produced by plucking the adjacent strings. <http://bit.ly/1kOmO49>
This is exactly what Nippur music-instruction tablets specify: notation of vocal part with lyrics set against the pitches of the lyre (Colburn, [@B47])---for the first time graphically exhibiting the dimension of musical texture.
Formulation of the mega-pitch-set {#s3}
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The next development occurred when the triad induction (see Part-I) caused to re-conceptualize the lower tetrachord plus a tone above it as *pentachord* (258), forging a concept of melodic intonation of 5th as a modal unit[^13^](#fn0013){ref-type="fn"}, and introducing a new hierarchic layer I-III-V into a mode. Pseudo-Ionian *non-octave* mode then transfigured into *Ionian octave* mode, with the mutability I-V instead of I-IV. The new axis of I-V pioneered the "authentic" functionality, in light of which the older I-IV axis could be viewed as "plagal." The novelty of the authentic relationship was that it typically supported a melodic development that would build a climax point and emphasize the prevalence of "tonic" at the end. Krohn et al. ([@B151]) confirmed that the largest N1 component in the ERP corresponded to hearing the V degree of the major key[^14^](#fn0014){ref-type="fn"}.
With pentachordal scheme in place, musicians begin reproducing a succession of the same tones from the II rather than the I degree---turning II into the new I degree---and filling up the upper end with an extra tone. Such *transposition-by-degree* creates a "sister" 7-tone mode, with identical pentachord hierarchy that shares the PS (C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C and D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D), uniting both modes into a single system. There is experimental evidence that listeners categorize such modes by ear despite their identical PCs (Rohrmeier and Widdess, [@B238]).
It is not an accident that the three closest Mixolydian transpositions (Dorian, Phrygian, and Lydian)[^15^](#fn0015){ref-type="fn"} top the interval set (IS) harmonicity list of the world most popular heptatonic modes (Gill and Purves, [@B105]). Also sister-modes "harmonize" the music repertoire by making all songs share the same intervals classes (ICs). This "pan-harmonization" separates the partially octave-equivalent multitonal mode of "village" music from the completely octave-equivalent mode of the "palace" modal system. Their difference is manifested in the presence of *mega-pitch-set (MPS)*: a set of tones, legitimized as the building material for any musical composition by music theory.
The larger is the set, the greater is the harmonization, and therefore the greater is the *stretch of gravity*, causing overall reduction in tension. The earliest Sumerian harps had 11-15 strings, which by the eighteenth century increased to 29 strings (Lawergren, [@B160]). The ambitus of music performed on such harps greatly exceeded that of the typical folk heptatonic music, easing tension---appropriately for meditation in temple, and eulogy in palace. The "easing up effect" distinguishes MPS from earlier folk heptatonic forms.
The MPS mode loses some of the sovereignty of a stand-alone mode: it is no more a container of characteristic intonations popular within a particular kind of music. The MPS mode has to share its degrees with other modes, evident when one mode immediately follows another mode (as in verse/chorus or song-dance)[^16^](#fn0016){ref-type="fn"}. Perceptual "sameness" of degrees encourages the performer to strip off the MPS mode of those intonations whose expressive tuning violates the tuning of a sister-mode. Eventually, all modes within a family turn out being "averaged." This can be seen in comparing Figure [3A](#F3){ref-type="fig"} from Part-1 to Figure [4C](#F4){ref-type="fig"} here: the hierarchy of stable degrees is the same, but the hierarchy of unstable degrees flattens in the MPS. There are only two gradations here: VII vs. II-IV-VI. In the folk heptatonic mode there were 4 gradations: least unstable IV, more unstable II, yet more subordinate VI, and leading VII this hierarchy ends up reduced by one level by the demand to preserve the pitch values for all the member degrees across all sister modes[^17^](#fn0017){ref-type="fn"}.
{ref-type="fn"}** Yellow color represents unstable, while blue---stable degrees. Brackets illustrate hierarchic grouping of the degrees. Arrows mark the tendency of the tones to alternate as gravitational centers. Figures in circles rate relative gravitational values within the subset. Short black straight lines mark the modal subsets within a hypermode: when a line is placed under the middle of a tone, this tone serves as an anchor for two subsets, generating the conjunct connection between them. **(A)** Three obykhodnyi hypermodes of the hexáechos system: major (G), minor (A), and diminished (B). This hypermode features nearly perfect *subset equivalence*. Hierarchical organization is present only for stable degrees, where the lowest pair (G-C) often generates a plagal inclination. The highest stable degree (Bb) is hardly ever used as finalis, which usually falls on the central anchors (C or F). Unstable degrees do not form any groups, as in pentatony. However, tension here is weaker than in pentatony because of deeper 3-level hierarchy of stable degrees. Position of a semitone marks the "leading tone." Anchor points relate to each other by 4th, readily forming the 4th--chord "triads" that are treated like consonance. **(B)** Three Georgian tetrachordal hypermodes: major (C), minor (D), and diminished (E). Unstable tones in the center of the hypermode provide modal integrity by forming unstable dyads (E-G, G-Bb), entrapping the central tonic dyad (F-A). Sometimes this tonic dyad alternates in gravity with the upper tetrachord\'s anchors (Bb-D). Whenever this happens, Bb shifts from unstable to stable function. However, the hypermode remains centripetal due to the harmonic dissonance of the diminished octave E/Eb, which generates a melodic inertia toward the inward resolution. The lowest tetrachord executes a complimentary plagal function. The utmost upper tetrachord usually keeps its highest tone unstable, leaning on its lowest tone. Altogether, the tetrachords feature *subset inequivalence*: gravitational contrast between each other (unlike the trichord hypermode). Tonal mapping of the major hypermode (centripetal F) serves as a prototype for the minor (G) and diminished (A) versions.](fpsyg-07-00211-g0003){#F3}
{ref-type="fn"}. Mese (A3) is assigned greater stability in tetrachords with two stable tones whose "tonic"/"dominant" interaction is marked by an arrow. E3 and E4 are assigned greater stability than the marginal stable tones (B & A4). Of the two unstable tones, the upper one always involves alteration, whereas the lower one retains its "diatonic" state in the chromatic genus---suggesting subordination of the upper tone to the lower one. The black diagonal line marks *diezeuxis*---the break between the tetrachord *meson* (E3-A3) and tetrachord *diezeugmenon* (B3-E4). This break leaves no common tones between these tetrachords in the chromatic/enharmonic genera (B-C-Db-E vs. A-Bb-Cb-D). In order to enable a smooth melodic transition across *diezeuxis*, Cleonides reserves three pentachords at strategic points (A-B-C-Db-E, Gb-A-B-C-E, and F-Gb-A-B-C), which significantly complicates the Systema Teleion (which engages two upper tetrachords, B-E and E-A) as well as the Systema Metabolon (which, instead, terminates the MPS at D with the tetrachord *synemmenon* A-Bb-C-D). The lowest pentachord adds a stand-alone A2 in order to accomplish the A/E modal framework. The chart reflects the *chromatic* genus. The column on the right summarizes the pitch values for the chromatic as well as *enharmonic* genera of the unstable tones. The enharmonic genus can be told by the quarter-flat, three-quarter-flat, and double-flat alteration signs. The entire MPS reveals a *centripetal* tendency, where the greatest variability in pitch occurs next to the central Mesa (A3). The entire system is characterized by extreme *gravitational diversity*: altogether there are 6 types of distribution of gravity within a modal subset.](fpsyg-07-00211-g0004){#F4}
The earliest reliable sample of Ancient composition is Epitaph of Seikilos. Sustained in diatonic mode, it was likely composed in observation of the music theory of the day (Mathiesen, [@B185], p. 150), exemplary of MPS melody.
1. 6\. Audio: Epitaph of Seikilos, 1st century AD. Ancient Greek Phrygian diatonic tonos (coincides with modern Dorian E). Unstable degrees are somewhat averaged and moderated in their attraction to stable degrees, as compared to the stand-alone folk heptatonic mode in the example below. <http://bit.ly/1Ch6ECE>
Its most obvious trait is non-formulaic structure. Diversity of Epitaph\'s intonations outweighs the only pattern present in the entire composition (line-endings 3-4). Abundance of directional shifts and over-degree-skips obscures anchoring.
1. 7\. Audio: Thracian Air. Modern Dorian E (Hypodorian) mode. Well-marked tonicity makes resolution of the unstable degrees clear. The phrase sampled in this example is continuously repeated throughout the recording of the entire song. <http://chirb.it/MG6Iw2>
Nearly all survived Ancient Greek music features improvising style, even choirs. In this, they contrast the overall formulaic aptitude prevalent in European folklore (Zemtsovsky, [@B307]), suggesting opposition of folk and palace/temple music in Antiquity (see Appendix [1](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material).
If a *beauty-in-averageness effect* (Winkielman et al., [@B295]) can make a folk tune, averaged by modifications of multiple musicians, appear attractive and "natural," an authored tune can make an "artificial" and idiosyncratic impression. Likeability here is traded for originality. Certainly, the authored tune can also be orally disseminated. But practice of performance under supervision of a musical administrator in Ancient Mesopotamia (Michalowski, [@B191]) was not likely to provide enough freedom in variation for averaging effect to occur. Administrated music tends to turn into hard "rule." And later Hellenic civilization made exact public reproduction of someone else\'s composition socially unprestigious.
Individual practice of following melodic rules sets in place hierarchic processing of pitch, where the "invented" contours are filled up with the standardized intervallic detail-establishing the modern tonal standard of pitch pattern processing (Stewart et al., [@B255]). Just like performers, listeners here need to know the tonal schemata before they face a particular music work. Melody processing in such music is driven by instant *automatic* response to the tonal progression conceived or auditioned---relating it to long-term memory (Brattico et al., [@B34]) for pitch-set class (PSC) and interval-set class (ISC). Pre-attentive response indicates that modal rules are optimized and hard-wired in the MPS, as opposed to earlier modal systems:
- In pre-MPS heptatony the standardized contours were filled with idiosyncratic intervallic detail;
- In MPS heptatony the idiosyncratic contours are filled with standardized intervallic detail.
Emergence of the concept of "key" in music theory reflects this advance. The term "key" is often used synonymously with "tonality," which is inaccurate. Ancient Greek music used keys that did not constitute tonality. The modern notion of key implies presence of a fixed PCS subordinated to a single tone. In practice, *key* was brought to life by the necessity to retune string instruments before playing in a different mode (Kholopov, [@B141], p. 73). Tuning always proceeds from a certain tone to which other tones are adjusted. Hence, one pitch is singled out from a PS and the entire PS is inferred from it. This is not exactly about stability, but rather *priority materialized in audiation*. Such "key" is *not* found in folk cultures (Kvitka, [@B155], p. 25).
Tuning practice encourages a single key to incorporate multiple modes---to minimize retuning. This is where the complex interplay between "key" and "mode" begins (Solomon, [@B252], p. 75). Convenience of immediate switching from one popular mode to another overweighs the importance of key\'s integrity, legalizing certain alterations[^18^](#fn0018){ref-type="fn"}. These alterations become "modal"---characterizing a certain mode. Their very presence testifies to the presence of key.
Over time, key earned its own ground, different from mode: Greeks distinguished between "modulation according to the scale," and "modulation according to the key" (Hagel, [@B112], p. 5). Their keys could be transposed like our keys, and were associated with "key signatures" (West, [@B287], p. 179)---but they neither incorporated the notion of tonic triad, major/minor inclinations, nor implied vertical harmonic functionality (185).
Rigidity of key rules secured the processing speed, enabling the handling of larger stocks of data. Shulgi\'s introduction of "rigid music" set the foundation for the evolution of complexity in Western music, allowing music structures to convey more information about the perceptual reality as perceived by the creator of music.
An MPS mode becomes a member in the assortment of modes, whose knowledge is obligatory for a professional musician. He is supposed to choose the right mode appropriate to the occasion. Specialization of modes is promoted by ensemble performance and genre application[^19^](#fn0019){ref-type="fn"}, and relies on professionalization[^20^](#fn0020){ref-type="fn"}. Beliayev ([@B25], p. 296) underlines that professionalization of tradition necessarily involves development of multimodality. By the eighteenth century BC, there was already an internationally recognized system of accreditation of musicians---in courts and temples of Near East---with clearly defined ranks, and frequent relocation and integration of musicians through conquest and gift-exchange (Franklin, [@B89]). Already a 2800 B.C. relief shows two lyres playing together (Krispijn, [@B150]). In order for harpists to stay "in tune" with one another\'s strings, they had to share the same understanding of a mode/key. Middle Assyrian tablet VAT 10101 (West, [@B288], p. 170) presents a census of Akkadian love-songs, classified by modes (tunings)[^21^](#fn0021){ref-type="fn"}.
It took about 2000 years for the heptatonic MPS tradition to settle before the Greeks established the status quo for the entire region. Already for Ancient Romans there was no alternative to Greek music: there are almost no traces left of original Etruscan music (Powley, [@B223])---it was overwhelmed by Greek influence (Landels, [@B157], p. 182). Reliance on the ultimate music-making scale became organic part of this influence (Winnington-Ingram, [@B297], p. 50). This was a direct outcome of conceptualizing the ISC, and teaching the ear to center on different tones of the same PS.
The circle of 5ths was that instrument which equalized the MPS. Ernest Clements ([@B46]) reserved the term "quintal" to refer to what I call MPS scales---as opposed to folk heptatony. The diatonic Mediterranean MPS is cross-culturally implemented in the *system of 8 modes*, produced by modal transposition from each of the degrees of the principal heptatonic mode, including its intervallic reproduction an octave higher, with the tonic placed in another tetrachord. Werner ([@B285]) investigated such octoechos systems, tracking them to the beginning of the 1st millennia BC Mesopotamia. He concluded that division in 8 modes was a melodic concomitant of the mathematically realized harmonic octave affinity assigning a dedicated mode to every degree within an octave, which originated not in musical but in cosmological and calendaric numerology.
Pentatonic mode passed through a similar transformation in constructing the *pentatonic system* (Cook, [@B52])[^22^](#fn0022){ref-type="fn"}. The origin of the idea of pentatonic MPS must date back to the ninth century BC, when the tones of PCS obtained their standard pitch names (Kuttner, [@B154]). Around the fifth century music theory had in place the principles for reproduction of the "legitimate" pentatonic modes across the available tonal space. The similarity of Chinese hexagon circle of 5ths with Chaldean music theory is striking---most likely determined by their astronomic correspondences (Daniélou, [@B63], p. 37). The Yang-Yin dialectics defined the anchor points on odd degrees (Yang) vs. "unstable" even degrees (Yin)[^23^](#fn0023){ref-type="fn"}. Sixty pitches were standardized by the use of precisely manufactured bells---used as reference tones for tuning instruments (Falkenhausen, [@B80]). Music theory devised a nominal 12-tone system by inferring the whole-tone scale and then dividing the whole tones in halves[^24^](#fn0024){ref-type="fn"}. Its main purpose was to absolutize the pitch values for use in all possible transpositions of the legitimate pentatonic modes (Bagley, [@B16])---in effect, a *mega-pentatonic* PS.
The idea of *concert pitch standard* is a logical consequence of cultivation of MPS: the idea of maintaining the sameness of tones across the sister modes suggests adoption of some standard of reference. Especially in ensemble performance and ecclesiastic application, a particular pitch could be assigned to a specific supernatural power justifying its standardization. It is unlikely that the Chinese MPS was the only absolute one. Greeks tuned their lyres to aulos, and designed their notation around fixed names of pitches (West, [@B287], p. 273). Greek citharas incorporated tuned resonators which would ensure fixed pitches (Hagel, [@B112], p. 69). Amazing is that modern pitch standard (A4) closely corresponds to the reference tones that defined Ancient Greek MPS (A2-A4). It would be extremely interesting to find out if the phenomenon of perfect ear existed in antiquity, or if it is a byproduct of modern tonality (Steblin, [@B254]).
Pan-harmonization of music system can be seen as means of resolution of cognitive conflict. It is not by chance that civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt, China, and India, all embraced cosmogonic music theory about the same time they developed script systems. Rise of literacy[^25^](#fn0025){ref-type="fn"} and analytical method of thinking[^26^](#fn0026){ref-type="fn"} were promoting awareness of complexity, contradictions, and imperfection of the state of things in the cultural environment. Analytic approach to text paved the road for rationalization of notions inherited from the traditional folk culture (Civil, [@B45]). Mesopotamian education system trained to grasp and put in use the meaning of texts (Michalowski, [@B192]).
Conflict of interests was a common motive in Sumerian and Akkadian literature, with plenty of vivid illustrations of invective and reproaching rhetoric (Foster, [@B85], p. 220). In Akkadian literature, first person\'s speech often emphasized the state of cognitive dissonance. A very popular epistolary genre often presented complaints of unfair treatment (Vulliet, [@B277]). Even more conflicting were the genres of diatribe, where two persons competed in the verbal attack of each other, disputing before some deity (Hallo, [@B113], p. 120). Verbal skills played a deciding role in forging and polishing counter-distinctive manner of thought, thereby amplifying awareness of cognitive dissonance. At its pinnacle was the rise of judicial rhetoric, which exposed conflicts of interest between different individuals, and rewarded better argumentation (Hallo, [@B113], p. 126). Trials were held in public, and declaration of each of the parties was pivotal in influencing the court\'s weighing of the conflicting statements (Wilcke, [@B291], p. 44).
Babylonian culture saw a marked increase in individualism (Foster, [@B86]), confrontation, and disorder, earning the nickname "Dark Age" that hit the entire Mediterranean region around the twelfth century BC (Drews, [@B72]). The assumption of the state ideology that serving king\'s interests serves everyone\'s interests turned out to fail to motivate the subjects to defend the state against external intrusions or internal plots. Cognitive dissonance should be put on the list of contributing factors in the inability of the Bronze Age palatial cultures to sustain resilience toward environmental and international stresses. The "barbaric" tribes, with more homogenous social structure and "cognitively consonant" music would have had an advantage over Mesopotamian civilized societies, subdivided and weakened by contradictory interests of their social groups and their musics.
Codification of the MPS system should be viewed within this context of growing cognitive dissonance. Rational harmonization of the entire compass of all available music tones was not a deliberate political move in reaction to social pressures, but an elemental biological response. Inspired by correlative cosmologies, mathematically-based theories of music harmony catered to neurobiological need of the brain to reduce informational stress by employing a new strategy of organizing data and establishing ways for synthesis of new quality out of it (Farmer et al., [@B82]).
Non-octave hypermode {#s4}
====================
Ancient Greek Systema Metabolon set the theoretical foundation for yet another distinct method of tonal organization---found in Medieval Western Europe, Byzantium, Russia, Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Bulgaria. The title *hypermode* (Pashinian, [@B215]) captures its principle of stitching multiple tetrachords or trichords into a single system, spanning well over an octave. The tonal integrity is achieved by taking small elementary subsets, deficient to determine the makeup of the entire melody, and uniformly conjoining them according to the "chain principle" (Sachs, [@B244]): addition of a twin-subset whenever melody runs over the margin of a subset. The expanded set is treated compositionally as a single entity---especially pronounced in a polyphonic setting.
At the heart of hypermode is the fixed registral contrast between marginal tetrachords/trichords. The PCs of each subset are permanently mounted in the overall ambitus, disallowing alterations. This music makes a fairly diatonic impression between adjacent subsets, while evoking "friction" between the remote ones, expressed in "false relation" of the octave-inequivalent tones. Equivalence of 4th (or 5th) binds the mode.
1. 8\. Audio: Ne oryol li s lebedem kupalisia, lyrical Cossack song, Southern Russia. B-C\#-D-E-F\#-G-A-B-C, false relation C\#-C induces subtle increase in tension in the high register---in contrast to relaxation at low register. <http://bit.ly/1JzPqDA>
The melody sustained in hypermode exhibits a peculiar "elastic" effect: as long as the phrases stay in the same registral position, they appear "casual," but ascending induces tension, whereas descending---relaxation. The entire melody contracts/expands like an elastic band through cycles of tension/relaxation. The greater the amount of subsets, the greater the "elasticity."
1. 9\. Audio: Mussorgsky---The Great Gate of Kiev, the 2nd theme. The 12-tone hypermode: G\#-A\#-B-C\#-D\#-E-F\#-G\#-A-B-C\#-D, with 2 false relations D\#-D and A\#-A within 4 trichord subsets. <http://chirb.it/2dw7f3>
In a few equintervallic diatonic subsets, elasticity is minimal: i.e., Byzantine hexáechos[^28^](#fn0028){ref-type="fn"} (Figure [3A](#F3){ref-type="fig"}) is very close to diatonic MPS.
1. 10\. Audio: The Little Entrance "Come, Let Us Worship" \[Priidite, poklonimsia\], 2-part Znamennyi chant, based on Byzantine hypermodal system. Minimal tonal tension from ascending motion through 3 equintervallic trichords. <http://bit.ly/1IO8mlX>
Larger size subsets, such as tetrachordal and pentachordal, common in Georgian traditional music, increase functionality of PCs, inducing substantially greater instability---which is handled by more elaborate hierarchic organization.
1. 11\. Audio: Kakhuri nana. Lullaby. Georgian tetrachordal hypermode (Figure [3B](#F3){ref-type="fig"}) with the characteristic diminished octave G\#/G (Gogotishvili, [@B106]). The unstable functionality prevails over the stable one. <http://chirb.it/yqEtCD>
Non-octave hypermodes presented a window for expression for the strictly controlled amounts of tension (see Appendix [2](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material for details) that was compartmentalized in different registers. The resulting opposition to "natural" (for speech and animal vocal communication) association of high register with submissiveness while of low register with aggression (Ohala, [@B206]), marks the contribution of hypermode to the establishment of specialized musical tonal semantics---in contrast to verbal tonal semantics.
Yet another historic landmark was divergence of hypermode from chromatic system by providing a diatonic-based alternative to the chromatic expandability by alteration/modulation (see below). A noticeable affiliation of hypermodal organization with the Christean plainchant, which subsequently shaped the folk music of many Eastern Orthodox nations and ethnicities, expressed rejection of the cultural heritage of the Greco-Roman philosophy of music and an attempt to restore the older Sumero-Babylonian cosmology on new theological ground (see Appendix [3](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}).
Alteration and modulation {#s5}
=========================
Unlike the hypermode, the diatonic MPS did not restrict degrees to sustain their pitch values throughout the music work. The need to temporarily increase tension was handled by alteration and modulation. The term "alteration" refers to raising or lowering of a degree in a PCS, involving modification of the IS. When this happens, listeners familiar with this PCS become surprised by its deviation from the norm. The impulse to restore familiar IS is what is responsible for momentary increase in tension associated with the alteration, when the listener experiences intense expectation for it to comply to the norm (Margulis, [@B182]).
Alteration is a form of *cognitive dissonance*. Formulation of Systema Metabolon ("the modulating system") concurred with the formation of the discipline of dialectics in Ancient Greece (Losev, [@B174], pp. 601--35), and with the growth of public interest in it (i.e., rhetorics, sophisms; Laertius, [@B156], p. 137). As people realized the limitations of words in reference to real objects, the dialectic method of defining opposites began to make an imprint at first on the manner of conducting scholarly research and legal matters, then on the discipline of rhetoric in general, and finally on tonal organization. The primary function of music to harmonize was understood through opposition of tension and relaxation, "united by disunion" (Plato, [@B222], p. 13).
Neither unfixed ekmelic degrees, nor expressively tuned multitonal degrees of pre-MPS musics involved cognitive dissonance. Rather, they constituted exaggeration of intonation in pitch---what Cazden ([@B42]) termed "modal inflection." The principal difference is that "*chromatic*" alteration implies production of *two* colors and cognitive conflict, whereas "inflection" implies saturating a *single* color and no cognitive conflict.
1. 12\. Audio: Shelkovoya travushka, Nekrasov Cossacks. The IV degree here exists in three flavors (normal, sharpened, and flattened)---marking the opening of each strophe with a tonal "blot (see the frequency analysis in the Demonstration-4 in Part-I)." <http://chirb.it/sJ8dCG>
Modal inflections are modally normative: justified by the permanence of melodic rule.
1. 13\. Audio: Alilo, Georgian ritual Christmas song. The melodic rule: in the middle voice, every time B goes to C\#, it sharpens, but every time it descends to A\# in the opening of every strophe---it stays natural. <http://chirb.it/8r2mhm>
Alteration does not possess such permanence and logic. By its nature, it is *accidental*. Alteration splits the normative degree into few versions within the same composition, calling for further "resolution": two versions cannot both be "right," one ought to be "wrong," and therefore "corrected[^29^](#fn0029){ref-type="fn"}."
Alteration is relatively rare in oral traditions[^30^](#fn0030){ref-type="fn"} reserved to technically advanced professional music with fully fledged music theory[^31^](#fn0031){ref-type="fn"}.
1. 14\. Audio: Maddoh, Pamir. Improvisation on a ghazal by Hafiz. The stanza starts with the altered degree C\#, creating a dissonance in relation to the accompaniment---and then resolves into B, restoring the initial non-altered mode: E-F\#-G\#-A-A\#-B-C-D\#. <http://chirb.it/mrvGbd>
Alteration should not be mistaken for progression of *natural* degrees in folk "microtonal" modes, where seemingly "chromatic" degrees are normative (Petrovi, [@B219]). Such modes can contain their own *micro-alterations*.
1. 15\. Audio: Falak-I Badakshani, Pamir. Microtonal alterations of four "natural chromatic" degrees within the ambitus of F\#4-A4, providing extra tension for a genre of funeral lamentation (Levin, [@B166]). <http://goo.gl/SnUhO1>
See Presentation-1: Alterations/Micro-alterations.
"Modulation"--- transition from one musical mode to another without a break---differs from alteration by violating *gravity* rather than *PCS*. Modulation has been theorized exclusively within the framework of Western music. Similar devices are known in other advanced music systems (Indian, Arabic, Chinese)---although without receiving much attention in their music theory. Modulation in folk music presents a novel and controversial object of study.
The most common form of gravitational shift in folk music is intra-modal mutability.
1. 16\. Audio: Li Weri, a Senufo funeral, Côte d\'Ivoire. Intra-modal mutability in pentatonic mode from C to Eb and finally to F. <http://bit.ly/1hnTnF6>
Zemtsovsky ([@B308]) calls this "pentatonic enharmonism": ability of PCs to get included in different trichords, where the same PC would act as an anchor in one trichord, whereas remain unstable in another trichord. Similar "enharmonism" is possible in hemitonic modes usually involving membership of the same PC in two different tetrachords.
1. 17\. Audio: Nozanin-Shod-I Uforash, call-and-response sozonda (wedding), Bukhara. Intra-modulation a step up, from Eb to F, in a heptatonic mode. <http://chirb.it/zD8eLk>
Mutability of multitonal mode (see Part-1) restricts intra-modulation to only 2-3 anchor-tones, making gravitational shifts predictable and regular.
1. 18\. Audio: Ocarina solo, Bulgaria. Each sentence (provided sample) starts in A, in major inclination, but ends in F\#, in minor inclination. Such A/F\# alternation shapes the form of the entire composition, only by the end of it committing to a prolonged F\#. <http://bit.ly/1Ga3LYa>
The MPS *generalizes* diatonic "enharmonism": if folk mutability shifted gravity for a *single tone*, MPS modulation shifts the *entire set*---rebuilding it from *any* of the degrees.
Helladic music probably featured simple diatonic modulations (Franklin, [@B87]). Its original pitch set constituted an Olympic trichord E-F-A (West, [@B287], 164). As time progressed, the set size grew---ultimately reaching an octave species, allowing for inter-tetrachordal enharmonism. Despite their size, all MPSs are treated in the same way: music users remember the normative sets, and upon detecting modulation, hypothesize a new set from what they already know (Raman and Dowling, [@B228]).
The *entire PSs* are alternated---even if, technically speaking, the PS degrees retain the same pitch values (as C-Ionian/A-Aeolian). In reality, their pitches are not exactly retained, since each PCS imposes its own expressive tuning: certain degrees are slightly sharpened or flattened, depending on their function in the PCS (Sundberg et al., [@B260]). The same tone B will be intoned sharper in Ionian C, and flatter in Aeolian A (Tchesnokov, [@B263], p. 58). Although, this adjustment is not as drastic as a single tone mutation in a folk multitonal mode, it nevertheless does occur[^32^](#fn0032){ref-type="fn"}. In the polymodal system, the music user remembers modes by their IS, including their characteristic expressive tuning (Brattico et al., [@B34]). Absence of expressive tuning is perceived as faulty performance (Sundberg, [@B259]). Every time music modulates from mode to mode, the melodic ISC switches, causing reassignment of expressive tuning values---all at once, as in switching from one tuning table to another. This is what the phenomenon of "harmonic modulation" practically entails.
Listeners take expressive tuning as a prompt in detecting the most stable (immutable tuning) and unstable (most mutable) degrees. They estimate modulation in terms of gradations in tension determined by the *intervallic value of the modulation*--- the interval between the old and new tonics. Thus, modulations to subdominant (C-F) are perceived "tenser" than modulations to dominant (C-G) (Korsakova-Kreyn and Dowling, [@B148]). It seems that the listener\'s affective response to modulation is determined by the way in which the entire PS and IS of the "arrival" mode appears to the listener in relation to the "departure" mode. Thus, modulation from minor dominant to minor tonic appears different than modulation from minor subdominant to minor tonic. Transition from one PS/IS to another is processed probably as a single percept akin to the standard progression of chords[^33^](#fn0033){ref-type="fn"}. The emotional reaction to modulation proves to be one of the most exciting stimuli in music listening experience (Korsakova-Kreyn and Dowling, [@B149]). We shall see later how this emotionality is important for the emergence of chromatic system.
Modulation usually involves alteration---their combination pioneered in Ancient Greece.
1. 19\. Audio: Mesomedes---Hymn to the Muse, second century AD, brief modulation from Lydian to chromatic Hypolydian mode by the end of the hymn (Hagel, [@B112], p. 287). <http://bit.ly/1Rpp5l2>
Hellenic listeners identified melodies by intervallic differences (Lippman, [@B169], p. 160): which involved IS, IC, ICS, and ISC[^34^](#fn0034){ref-type="fn"}. *Interval-tracking* habit was responsible for non-formulaic composition as opposed to *contour-tracking* habit of earlier folk-musicians.
Both, Babylonian and Assyrian songs fit a single song into a single mode (Franklin, [@B90], p. 218). In Classical Greek music, a song often contained a nexus of tetrachords, each bearing its own modal organization (West, [@B287], p. 226).
Professionalized folk cultures can come close to what might appear as a chromatic modulation either by emulating MPS music or forming *composite* mode-a compound of 2 or more stand-alone modes (Belaiev, [@B24]).
1. 20\. Audio: Duma about Marussia of Bohuslav, Ukraine. Modulation from E to B that appears to be influenced by the Western classical modulation from tonic to dominant. <http://bit.ly/1Eg6y2B>
2. 21\. Audio: Toshto Marii Kushtymo Sem, Marian dance. Here, Pentatony that characterizes the music of Volga Finns is enriched by the *composite* mode C-D-Eb-E-F-G-Ab-A-C, which was most probably generated by adding together the C-D-E-G-A and incomplete C-Eb-F-G-Bb (without Bb) pentatonic modes. <http://chirb.it/MdNz3B>
When folk musicians learn a diatonic PCS, they begin to transpose it by degree. Eventually, they come to connect two tunes, each associated with its own mode, into a medley. Then, one mode becomes transposed so that it would start on the same I degree as another. As the performer gets used to this juxtaposition, he can combine intonations from both modes within the same song. Even pentatonic modes acquire quasi-chromaticism in this way. Thus, two pentatonic modes built from the same tone (i.e., C-D-E-G-A and C-Eb-F-G-Bb) produce quasi-altered III degree (C-D-Eb-E-F-G-A-Bb). The complete combination of all pentatonic modes results in a 9-tone *composite* mode C-D-Eb-E-F-G-Ab-A-Bb[^35^](#fn0035){ref-type="fn"}.
However, "chromatic" tones in composite modes are never used in scalar fashion (Belaiev, [@B24]). Even when a folk musical instrument includes the entire chromatic scale, as in Chinese shen or pipa (Riemann, [@B235], p. 5), it hardly ever plays chromatic successions. Tunes remain pentatonic or diatonic, while the "chromatic" tones are reserved solely for passing from one mode to another (von Hornbostel, [@B276], p. 41).
Chromatic polymodal system {#s6}
==========================
The more frequent is the alteration, the more likely it is for it to cause habituation, lose its affinity with cognitive dissonance and acquire more "consonant" status. This is what must have happened in the Hellenic culture. According to Ancient Greek sources, altered tone\'s function was to "shade" the diatonic degrees: notable was the reference to "sweetness" of chromatic alterations (Hagel, [@B112], p. 154)[^36^](#fn0036){ref-type="fn"}. Pleasantness of alteration was responsible for the quick popularization of lute in Greece from the fourth century BC: unlike lyre, lute allowed to comfortably produce chromaticism (Higgins and Winnington-Ingram, [@B119]). Fashion for alterations could have "normalization effect" on chromaticism, so that its cultivation would have "domesticated" the cognitively dissonant aspect of it (Katsanevaki, [@B136]).
1. 22\. Audio: First Delphic Hymn to Apollo, second century BC. Essentially, this composition presents spare use of chromatic alterations shading of the Phrygian tetrachord (West, [@B287], p. 288). <http://bit.ly/1Plytkj>
2. 23\. Audio: Katolophyromai fragment from Orestes by Euripides, from papyrus, 3rd century BC. Most of the melodic content of this lamentation in chromatic Lydian mode is made of altered degrees. <http://bit.ly/1g3VzB5>
Chromatic alteration became affiliated with aesthetic emotion after the practice of connecting certain modes with certain affects was established through the temple culture of Sumerian and Egyptian cults, some time around the 2nd millennium BC (Farmer, [@B81]) (see Appendix [3](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material).
Earlier agricultural civilizations heavily depended on the calendar, which boosted the development of astronomy and math, but carried no mystic and esoteric implications to entitle numerology to a governing status delegated to the elite (Frolov, [@B94], p. 152). Babylonian music theory was first to link the arithmetic definitions of musical tones to cosmology. Cosmology empowered music with the status of natural law, equating music\'s influence with the sun or the moon. Just as excess or shortage of sunlight can cause problems, so presence or absence of certain modal qualities in music was believed to be beneficial or hazardous for a person. This doctrine is known as "ethos" and existed in numerous Ancient civilizations (Kaufmann, [@B138]; Rowell, [@B241]; Deva, [@B69]; Katz, [@B137]; Thrasher, [@B266]).
In the 6th century BC, Sakadas of Argos started combining different ethea in a single composition by employing intra-modulations between different verses of his song. Then, Aristoxenus\' Perfect System rationalized the means for the composer to generate his *individual* map of tonal tension suitable for a particular composition.
1. 24\. Audio: Second Delphic Hymn, second century BC. The music is built on the Lydian tetrachord, alternating between Hypolydian and chromatic Lydian modes---which seems to be reserved as means of a peculiar compositional arrangement, unlike the modal stereotypicity of folk music. <http://bit.ly/1LCtjkc>
Rising standard of authorship incorporated *modal creativity*. Greek civilization championed cultivation of *melopoeia*, art of composing music, put forth by Plato (Kholopov, [@B141], p. 74). From the fifth century BC until the Dark Ages, authorship guided expression in the arts. Distinguished authors\' names were perpetuated, encouraging other artists to either follow their steps or to compete with them. Growing popularity of chromatic style in the fifth century Athens reflected the antithesis of diatonic conventionality vs. chromatic originality. For the next half-millennium, enharmonic and chromatic genera made the diatonic genus look too predictable and unimpressive (Franklin, [@B87]).
Chromatic modulations were restricted to melodic junctions between the adjacent tetrachords: alteration could only follow the consonant "bounding" tones at the tetrachord\'s end (Hagel, [@B112], p. 10). Thereby, diatonic system provided the skeleton for all modulations and alterations---very much like in a modern key. However, not all musicians followed the rules (Franklin, [@B87]).
Crexus, Timotheus, and Philoxenus were condemned for increasing the number of strings on the lyre, and excessive elaboration---blamed for using "polyharmonia" to appeal to the mob\'s ideas of plurality and liberation (LeVen, [@B165], p. 81). This accusation should be understood in the context of dithyramb contests and theatrical plays becoming exceedingly popular to the extent of introduction of entrance fees for the first time in Greek history (Csapo, [@B58]). Theater musicians made lavish profit and enjoyed enormous popularity---this, together with the growing market (18 theatrical festivals per year, fourth century BC) unleashed fierce economic competition (Csapo, [@B59]). New Music was definitely based on the direct approval/disapproval of live audiences. The immediate reason for the split of public opinion, and voices for its condemnation was its break of conventional ties between mode and genre, and its inter-strophic modulation---which could be rather abrupt, even a semitone apart (Hagel, [@B112], p. 44).
1. 25\. Audio: Lamentation from Iphigenia Aulidensis by Euripides, third century BC. Modulation from Hyperaeolian to Hyperphrygian mode by common tone. <http://bit.ly/1DtOwq2>
Chromatic music represented new philosophy of consumerism of aesthetic emotions---in opposition to Platonic philosophy that reserved diatonic music for propaganda of "right" emotions (Stamou, [@B253]). Chromatic music grew out of older enharmonic music that was cultivated in *Dyonisiac* dithyramb, and became related to theater and symposium (drinking parties), both of which involved aesthetic appreciation. Chromaticism as "sweetening" of intervals by tonal shading served to evoke states ranging from "pleasant" to "lugubrious" (Franklin, [@B88])---essentially, aesthetic emotions[^37^](#fn0037){ref-type="fn"}.
Athenian chromaticism replaced cosmogonic consonance admiration with admiration for realistic impersonation of humanistic character traits, interwoven into dramatic development. Aristoxenus\' chromatic system instrumented this change by rejecting older Pythagorean numerology as "dogmatic," and basing a new music theory on psychoacoustic principles put to service of the composer (Barker, [@B21]).
Another important issue was the topological reference frame: Babylonian/Pythagorean diatonic theory was all *arithmetic*, defined by *prescriptive* numerical proportions, whereas Aristoxenian chromatic theory was *geometric*---*descriptive* of actual distances on monochord\'s strings. Remarkable is the commonality of Aristoxenian and Euclidian approaches to the infinitely smallest magnitude, setting a conceptual and a terminological correspondence between musical and physical spaces (Barbera, [@B17]). Chromatic tetrachords reflected the contemporary advance in the irrational numbers, presenting breakthrough from Pythagorean ratios (Scriba, [@B248], p. 44). Babylonian mathematics had strong arithmetic-algebraic character: tables and lists of reciprocals and roots provided the "right" answer for a particular use, where "the geometrical form of the problem was usually only a way of presenting an algebraic question" (Struik, [@B257], p. 28). In contrast, Greek geometry sought methods for inferring the relations between objects based on empirical proof.
Moreover, Euclid introduced a strong *personalized* aspect in such calculations, where angles and distances were estimated from the viewpoint of a particular spectator (and not "in general"), resulting in discrepancies between "optic" and "perspectival" evaluations (Andersen, [@B8], p. 725). Unlike Babylonian geometry, Euclidian geometry was influenced by scenography (728), acquiring strong spatial connotations (considering geometric lines as representations of what can be actually seen around)---in contrast to Babylonian "aprioristic" line of thinking (providing ready numbers for a particular application).
Chromatic music was a tonal system *engineered* to present *emotional theater*: to convey detailed emotional information prompted by the text and/or dramatic action. Chromatic MPS broke away from a diatonic MPS by becoming a storage of modulation/alteration possibilities for the composer. To minimize the inconvenience of retuning the lyre, which remained a reference instrument for theory, musicians had to find as many common tones between different modes as possible. And seven principal modes, when built from the open string E, mark the E-A-B core of immutable tones, thereby forming the axis for categorization and hierarchical organization (Gombosi, [@B108]). Of E-A-B, central A3 seemed to execute the function of the ultimate tonic (West, [@B287], p. 219).
Just as ekmelic and mesotonal modes, chromatic modes were crystallized by the *permanence* of tuning: the least frequently retuned tones acquired the status of stability, while the most alterable tones ended up at the bottom of the tonal hierarchy. The *synékheia* (continuity) law postulated that all chromatic modifications to be derived from diatonic MPS for better melodic coherence (Franklin, [@B88])---Aristoxenus was clear on using the entire MPS as a reference for chromatic alterations (Hagel, [@B112], p. 44).
The MPS structure in Figure [4](#F4){ref-type="fig"} represents the chromatic/enharmonic key of A (Strunk and Treitler, [@B258], p. 37), expanded over all the available sonic space---what was called Systema Ametabolon (West, [@B287], p. 223). Aristoxenus described 13 chromatic "keys" which altogether regulated organization of chromatic/enharmonic genera, built from each of the 12 semitones between Hypodorian F2 and Hyperphrygian F3 (Hagel, [@B112], p. 48). The description of the chromatic system might sound extremely complex, but in practice, the overall number of PSCs in the MPS was not exorbitant[^38^](#fn0038){ref-type="fn"}. There was little distinction between the chromatic and enharmonic genera[^39^](#fn0039){ref-type="fn"}. Greek notation did not distinguish between them at all (West, [@B287], p. 255), and the performance practice left the exact choice to the discretion of the performer. In reality, musicians had to deal with no more than 14 different types of tetrachords: 2 types of each of the 7 principal keys.
The entire Systema Ametabolon clearly stresses the A/E gravity, with tonic/dominant functionality. The epicenter of chromatic mutability falls at the upper middle of the MPS (Figure [4](#F4){ref-type="fig"}). This is the register where melodies show the greatest modal complexity. The peculiarity of Greek system is that all alterations are *descending*[^41^](#fn0041){ref-type="fn"}. The descending functionality of Ancient Greek music probably originated from the Archaic trichord E-F-A (West, [@B286]), with its characteristic "directing" semitone placed at the bottom. This trichord became a melodic frame, where extra tones could be placed in between E and A, forming two oldest heptatonic genera, diatonic and enharmonic, circa seventh century BC, credited to Olympus (Barker, [@B23], p. 99). Chromatic genus evolved later, as a simplification of enharmonic genus, and gained in popularity---up until AD: surviving musical fragments from the Roman period are almost wholly diatonic, and both, Gaudentius and Macrobius reported that chromatic and enharmonic genera were obsolete by fifth century AD (West, [@B287], p. 165).
Chromatic music was ousted in the West, but not in the East of Roman Empire. Greek chromatic MPS impacted all the territories between Greece and India---conquered by Alexander during the heydays of chromatic music. "Gapped" structure with chromatic/enharmonic *pyknon* (a pinch of three close pitches) penetrated local folk cultures and created a special intervallic class---what Kholopov ([@B139], p. 38) named "*hemiolic*" ("hemiolia"---the 1½:1 ratio). Hemiolic mode differs from diatonic by its chromaticism: recoloration (chroma) of ICs due to their inequality---most prominent in microtonal varieties of hemiolic modes, i.e., maqam Hijaz-Kar-Kurdi C-Db-E¾b-F-G-A¾b-B¾b-C (Racy, [@B226], p. 108, see Appendix [4](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material).
1. 26\. Audio: B\'utho, Syrian Orthodox chant, Tminoyo mode. Chromatic alterations with microtonal inflections: A-Bb-Cb-D(Db)-Eb-F-Gb(G)-Ab(A)-Bb-Cb-Db (Lundberg, [@B176]). <http://chirb.it/cvyFOy>
See Presentation-2: Post-Hellenic chromaticism.
Hemiolic modes are decidedly *non-diatonic*: their tones *cannot* be positioned in a circle of perfect 5ths. Gapped tones represent discrete---and not altered---degrees of the mode: the entire music work might be based on the stationary gapped tones, without any modification. Such mode differs from pentatony by *contrast* of gap and semitone, where expansion of one causes shrinking of another, inducing tonal tension. Instability of both gapped tones is responsible for their flexibility in expressive tuning, which enables them to come closer to a target stable tone, thereby exaggerating tension and relaxation (Marcus, [@B181]). The emotional expression of hemiolic gaps also opposes that of pentatonic trichords: related to heightened pleasure and even ecstasy (ibid.), unlike the gapped tones in pentatony, which constitute a commonplace rather than a sign of elation there.
Manuel ([@B180]) reserves a special term for hemiolic/ music amalgamated by Arabic, Turkish, Greek, Jewish, Gypsy, Romanian, and Andalusian traditions - "*the Mediterranean tonality*"---first documented in the early nineteenth century manuscripts of linear notation. Initially strong, microtonal enharmonic component of such music eventually became "retuned" into the Western classical music diatonic tonal space, as the performance practice adopted accompaniment with chords. The traditional monodic implementation, on the other hand, has preserved the microtonal adjustments, especially those of the hemiolic gap, supporting the tonal organization that is distinctly different from Western tonality (Marcus, [@B181]).
The Mediterranean implementation of chromatic recoloring shares affective aspirations with Western *musica ficta* (Westrup, [@B289]), but follows a different modal order.
- Western chromaticism was accidental in nature, and followed the *trichordal* scheme, where the chromatic degree would be jammed between two diatonic degrees.
- Mediterranean chromaticism was regular, modally driven by melodic inflections, following the *tetrachordal* scheme, where two chromatic degrees would be encapsulated between two diatonic degrees.
This difference determined polarly opposite paths of their development. Western chromaticism, from the twelfth century on, supported emergence of polyphony as a standard of composition---by becoming a tool of regulating the *vertical* harmony by means of triadic "over-a-degree" vertical relations. Mediterranean chromaticism fueled melodic complexity, serving as the primary expressive means for the composer in organizing *horizontal* harmony by means of intra-tetrachordal alterations and modulations. This important distinction has led to completely different spatial connotations for Western tonal key and Mediterranean tonality. Western spatio-tonal design went towards incremental geometric projection of ever growing complexity, while Eastern Mediterranean focused on ornamental patterning the nexus of small size modules (al Faruqi, [@B5]). This contrast seems to reflect more fundamental opposition of philosophies, where Western Christian and Eastern Islamic cultures appear to form the core for the divergence between Western and Mediterranean tonalities (see Appendix-[4](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"}).
Tonality and perspective as models of representational organization {#s7}
===================================================================
From a perceptual angle, the concept of chromatic tonal key incorporates uniformity of distribution of stability/instability within the PCS, which involves 5 hierarchical ranks (Lerdahl, [@B164]):
1. tonic (function of gravitational center);
2. dominant, subordinated to tonic, yet providing an anchor alternative to it (opposing function);
3. mediant subordinated to tonic, while comprising the tonic triad together with dominant (complimentary function);
4. 4 coordinated non-tonic diatonic degrees subordinated to tonic, dominant and mediant (auxiliary function);
5. chromatic degrees, each subordinated to a neighboring diatonic tone (function of a leading tone).
Such organization evolved from the diatonic MPS through standardization of intervallic relations by means of counterpoint techniques which every composer was expected to know. Ability to hear equivalent concords (triads) between multiple parts, and recognize them as a single typological percept was set in place during the Renaissance (Nutting, [@B205]). Merging of vertical intervallic relations into a triad sonority, and its categorization by the bass together supported emergence of major/minor tonality in place of the old 8-mode MPS (Parncutt, [@B213]).
Subsequently, psychological representations of tonality in terms of chords, for Western listeners, became as real as hearing the tones themselves (Vuvan and Schmuckler, [@B279]). Tones, intervals, and chords are processed through imagery representation, and the representation of chords is derived from the representation of tones (Hubbard and Stoeckig, [@B123]). Therefore, chords should be regarded as common chunks of pitches, remembered by music users to facilitate tonal navigation across the music work. Standardization of chords is what separates Western polyphony from *folk "natural" polyphonies* (see Appendix [5](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material) with their unrestrained abundance of possible vertical combinations of tones. Thus, Megrelian polyphony uses 18 types of chords on the VI, 14---on the V, and 13---on the IV degrees (Arom, [@B12]).
1. 27\. Audio: Henry VIII---Pastime with good company (c.1510). The 3-part vertical harmony is based on a few triads: 1 chord on the VI degree, 3---on the V, and 1---on the IV. <http://bit.ly/1MLiDSx>
2. 28\. Audio: Odola, Megrelian work song. The 3-part harmony contains plentiful variety of chords---in stark contrast to the example above. <http://chirb.it/bgEdJa>
Yet another crucial distinction is that *Non-Western "natural" homophonies* lack chordal functionality, treating the vertical harmonic aspect as secondary to melodic and timbral aspects. Such "chords" should be regarded as "timbre-harmonic clusters" that form no continuous linear development---nothing close to the Western notion of *standard harmonic progressions* (Kubik, [@B153], p. 108). Tonal tension here plays no role in vertical organization, and is reserved to horizontal harmony alone: it is not chords that resolve into one another, but tones of the principal melody. Devoid of any hierarchic relationship, "chords" only thicken the texture or provide the reference frame to illuminate the mode in a manner of a pedal cluster of tones. Such are the "chords" of Japanese Sho music (for 17-reed pipes), whose frigidity throughout a composition offsets fluidity of the principal melody (Malm, [@B177]).
1. 29\. Audio: Ompeh, Efufu area of Ghana. The example of a call-and-response leader/chorus form popular in West Africa where the chorus contains multi-part dubbing of the melody---what appears as a chain of reproductions of the same "chord." <http://bit.ly/1TxJy4E>
In fact, penetration of Western chordal mentality in non-Western music systems has had detrimental impact on their original tonal organization. Native performers start thinking musically in terms of Western triads and functions---which then remaps their modal intonations and produces new hybrid modes.
1. 30\. Audio: Men Kyrym, Crimean Tatar song, Uzbekistan. This solo song features unmistakable tonic, subdominant, and dominant functions in the melody---noticeably different from pentatonic organization that is traditional to neighboring Tatar ethnicities in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. <http://chirb.it/z4besm>
Crystallization of permanent chromatic "tendency tones" (Huron, [@B129], p. 160) was another factor in shaping tonality: diatonic MPS afforded chromaticism only as melodic "accidents" of few types (Adams, [@B1]), whereas the tonal key embedded chromatic alterations as organic constituent of the PCS---transposable altogether with the tonic (Brown, [@B36]). Tonal chromaticism became "generative" (Forte, [@B84])---in fact, *needed* to establish tonal integrity, so that its absence becomes a sign: an expression of sublimity, purity, or naiveté by strictly diatonic music (Vashkevich, [@B273], p. 7).
Chromatic layer coexists with a diatonic layer as "chromatic pitch fields" (Burnett and Nitzberg, [@B40]) mapped in certain areas of PCS and remembered by music-users as a hierarchy of inter-connected "pitch alphabets" to be referenced during parsing of music (Deutsch, [@B68]).
Intelligibility of pitch alphabets embedded in a tonal key must be the immediate cause for the steady pattern of global Westernization, observable since the introduction of tonal keys in the eighteenth century. This process is often denigrated as "colonialistic," but the truth of the matter is that functional tonality provided the cognitive framework that facilitated creation and comprehension of music for non-Western musicians, so that their Westernization is nothing but demonstration of universality of the cognitive benefits of hierarchic functionality (Yanov-Yanovskaya, [@B301]). Other issues, such as economic and political advantages, would not have come into play unless the Western music system presented a more effective way of encoding gradations in tension/relaxation than did the traditional local systems. Categorizing melody in terms of implied chords is a form of chunking---a way of compressing information[^42^](#fn0042){ref-type="fn"}. Processing music in terms of standardized progressions of implied chords is another method of chunking, enabling even greater compression. Furthermore, both compression methods allow implicit learning of tonal regularities by mere exposure (Tillmann et al., [@B265]): figuring out which pitch constitutes a part of which chord, and which chord---part of which key, requires no teacher. Ease of implicit learning must be the underlying reason why many non-Western musicians tend to either switch to Western tonality or hybridize their native systems with tonality (Nettl, [@B204]). Adoption of tonality in the Third World countries essentially is the same as adoption of banking system or electrification.
Technically, what made Western tonality cognitively special was the crystallization of purely *intervallic* hierarchic typology, where vertical ISC came to replace melodic ISC as the basis of categorization in auditory perception. If early Medieval polyphony had all its parts share the same PS (Atkinson, [@B14], p. 127), late Medieval polyphony was conceived linearly, often generating harmonic differences between parts (Bent, [@B27]). Compositionally, polyphonic harmony was constructed as a sum of monophonic harmonies, different parts in different species of 4ths and 5ths---until tonality of the early seventeenth century brought all parts to a common denominator of a single fixed IS, defined in semitones (Atcherson, [@B13]). So, the tonal composer conceived the entire texture as a single tonal construct which he had decided *precompositionally*---in contrast to the modal composer who could only discover the actual harmonic results after summing up all the parts (Mangani and Sabaino, [@B178]).
Nomothetic centripetal hierarchy of tones, fixed in their subordination and coordination relations, is quite analogous to the astronomic model of planets orbiting the sun, discovered during the Renaissance---as well as to the organization of depicted images in linear perspective (Cook, [@B49]). Tonality, heliocentricity, and perspective, all implement the same idea of harmonious arrangement of numerous peripheral objects in relation to a centered object. All three also deal with motion: physical, melodic, or "dynamic"---the latter term is reserved for reference to visual representation of "directed tension" in pictorial composition (Arnheim, [@B11])---closely matching the idea of tonal tension in melodic harmony[^43^](#fn0043){ref-type="fn"}.
And this is not a coincidence. Music composition has a long history of co-influence with architecture and ornamental design, all defined along the dimension of "virtual gravity" (Galeyev, [@B96]). Their connection comes naturally: sound and light are waves, subject to the same laws of reflection, dispersion, absorption, diffraction, and interference---differing mostly in wavelength: a musical sound-wave is about the size of a human, while optical wave is microscopic (Nazajkinskij, [@B203], p. 116). The laws of physical space that rule audio and optic transmission prototype laws of virtual space constructed by art-works---and, here, musical texture becomes the cross-modal equivalent of visual depth (127).
Visual objects populate the *visual space*, whereas musical tones fill up the *musical texture* comprised of simultaneous sounding parts and voices. Percepts of pitch and visual size are cross-modally intertwined (Bien et al., [@B29]): we become aware of the presence of tones in the virtual music space essentially by the same mechanism as we locate visual objects. Melodic layer in musical texture serves as an equivalent of the visible surface---that is closest to the observer. In the pitch domain, discretization occurs in terms of intervals; in the visual domain---by formation of contours. Visual contour equates melodic contour (Terhardt, [@B264])---both, outline the object of perception. The correspondence between the two has been known in musical literature since Jean-Jacques Rousseau (Galeyev, [@B97]). It also finds confirmation in experimental research (Weinstein and Gridley, [@B284]).
We relate one polyphonic part to another by estimating the vertical intervals between them in terms of their harmonicity, rhythmic simultaneity of tones, and contrast in melodic contour---once we identify the concurrent parts, we track them by their vertical order (Palmer and Holleran, [@B210]). Cardinality of vertical order is confirmed by long-standing compositional practice of avoidance of part-crossing in voice-leading (Huron, [@B126]). Despite dividing our attention between all the registered parts (Demany and Semal, [@B67]), pitch is best detected in the upper part---and this is disregarding whether or not the upper part contains more semantically important material (Palmer and Holleran, [@B210]). Moreover, the ERP studies of perception of polyphonic music indicate that formation of parallel audio information streams is pre-attentive and involves better encoding in the higher part, and even years of experience playing a low-range instrument does not reverse this bias (Trainor et al., [@B267]). The high part superiority effect was found in 7-month-old infants, suggesting automatic ordering of segregated audio streams (Marie and Trainor, [@B183]).
A similar effect occurs in visual perception of direct motion: we receive more information about the motion of *closer* objects, whereas optical invariants of *distant* motion are not picked up by the observer: closer motion is processed faster and with greater accuracy (DeLucia, [@B64]).
Observers can estimate trajectories of up to eight simultaneously moving objects (DeLucia and Novak, [@B65])---quite on par with melodic motion in polyphonic parts of Italian Renaissance music, where five parts were the norm for sophisticated style, and 3-part writing was considered a sign of simple folk style (Dubravskaya, [@B74], p. 56). Although experimental studies demonstrated that non-musicians are only able to count up to three concurrent parts, and musicians---four concurrent parts (Stoter et al., [@B256]), there is evidence (Huron, [@B125]) that at least some musicians can identify a 5-part polyphony when following not an analytical strategy of denumeration, but resort to a holistic strategy: estimating by how many more parts the texture is thicker than two parts. Such "thickness guess" would be perceptually analogous to estimation of crowdedness in a set of visual objects.
Interestingly, the tendency of the upper part in a multi-part setting to be the most busy in contrast to the lowest part that tends to house slower rhythm (Broze and Huron, [@B37]) remarkably resembles the motion parallax, sensitivity and awareness of which is found in 6-month-old infants (Condry and Yonas, [@B48]), raising questions about the genetic roots of greater acuity of perception of proximal data.
By the same token that we ascribe greater importance to objects that are coming toward us in the depth parameter, we ascribe greater urgency to sounds that are higher in pitch: "raising voice" implies calling for attention. Everyone knows from experience of vocalizing that raising of the voice involves activation of higher part of the vocal folds (Nazajkinskij, [@B203], p. 156). Perhaps, being "higher in pitch" translates into "more important," so as "being closer." Yet another implication could be drawn from the Doppler effect, which engages cross-modality---but only in relation to the non-static stimuli. For dynamic stimuli, ascending pitch is congruent with growing in size, whereas descending pitch---with shrinking in size---in accordance with the visual illusion of an approaching object growing in size (Eitan et al., [@B79]).
Renaissance polyphony and perspective: parallels in organization {#s8}
================================================================
Just like Renaissance painters went into experimentation with projective geometry to develop an eye for perspective, their music colleagues employed an empirical technology. At least from 1531, erasable tablets became a common object of trade, an accessory for "serious" business of composition, indispensable for sketching a music work (Owens, [@B208]). At first, composers used tablets as visual aids in configuration of pitches in a single part, but by 1612 entire multi-part compositions were drafted on a larger cartella (Owens, [@B207], p. 74). Visual representation of music on tablet became mentalized. Monteverdi described his compositional process as "warping" melodic lines in his head before notating the music, a norm of composition at least since 1537: in his instructional treatise, Auctor Lampadius distinguished between a mental and a written stage in composing (64--73). Composers definitely abode by the graphic representation on a cartella when they employed "musical proportions" of painters and architects onto the proportions of sections in music form (Reynolds, [@B232]), employing decidedly spatial approach to planning a composition.
Composers were well aware of the shift in compositional approach: Tinctoris named 1437 as the Rubicon between "discordant" and "concordant" styles (Blackburn, [@B30])---distinguished by the manner of laying out parts according to the harmonic plan. Lowinsky ([@B175]) likened the emergence of this innovative "simultaneous concept of a polyphonic whole" with the development of the theory of perspective. By 1523, composers religiously followed the established technique of a simultaneous conception of all parts in a prescribed order (Dahlhaus, [@B61], p. 94)---quite similar to artists religiously applying perspective.
1. 31\. Audio: Josquin---Ave Maria (1485), 4-part motet. Graphic visualization by Stephen Malinowsky demonstrates the role of spatiality in the distribution of musical phrases, evoking the state of equilibrium---corroborated by the dominance of C major triad throughout its tonal plan. <http://bit.ly/1ishbHP>
Image 1. Piero della Francesca---Brera Madonna (1472). One of the first generation works that employed precise linear perspective, characterized by strong sense of harmonicity and proportionality of composition, contributing to the impression of serenity. <http://bit.ly/1LHNDNR>
Rise of tonality accompanied the rise of perspective---in the same cities, sharing the same user base, artistic ideals, and similar organizational principles. Perspective made the first public impression in 1425 (Edgerton, [@B78], p. 5). Renaissance "*monality*" (Wienpahl, [@B290])---modality with the major/minor triadic principle of organization---presented the first style of tonal rather than modal integration of harmony. It flourished in the genre of frottola, popular since 1490s (Prizer, [@B225]).
1. 32\. Audio: Tromboncino---Frottola "Ostinato vo\' seguire" (1509). Solo melody establishes "one-point" perspective for the lute accompaniment that contains progression of chords and melodic figurations over implied chord. <http://bit.ly/1LiHgzJ>
Lute and guitar accompaniment exposed explicit "triadic thinking"---where music was processed in terms of melody supported by chords rather than counterpoint rules that still dominated vocal and keyboard treatises (Christensen, [@B43]). Similar homophonic unity characterized uni-syllabic delivery of the multi-part arrangements.
1. 33\. Audio: Josquin---El Grillo (1505), frottola for 4 vocal parts. This multi-part texture clearly demonstrates the integrative effect of "thinking in chords, with the melody in the upper part." <http://bit.ly/20XIyLU>
Eventually, chordal thinking led to the establishment of *general bass* (Schulenberg, [@B247]): a practice of improvising a progression of chords to a given bass line---which can be viewed as an auditory equivalent of scaling 3D objects onto a 2D plain. Here, the bass acts as a ground line, whereas a vertical slice of texture is projected onto it by every beat, so that harmony controlled by a certain chord covers a specific number of beats aligned in relation to the bass. This constant projection of the vertical parameter onto horizontal time-line is what every keyboard player was supposed to do while accompanying an ensemble or a solo instrument (Bach, [@B15]).
1. 34\. Audio: Monteverdi---Zefira Torno (1632), madrigal for 2 parts and basso continuo. Here, complex harmonic pulse is set by the repetitive formula in the bass. Toward the end, repetitions are disrupted before the movement resumes and marks the end with a flourishing cadenza. <http://bit.ly/1KnpZI4>
General bass discloses *harmonic pulse* that serves has been serving as an important compositional means, equal to time signature in its formative power, in post-Renaissance music for most part of the Common Practice Period.
1. 35\. Audio: Pachelbel---Canon in D (1680). Graphic visualization by Stephen Malinowski demonstrates the formula of 8 chords that is consistently repeated in the bass, forming the progression of 5 vertical harmonies that unite the melodic material of all three melodic parts. <http://bit.ly/1BJp5Vp>
Pioneers of both, perspective and chordal textures, found their inspiration in Ancient Greece. Renaissance theorists of perspective were heavily drawing on treatises by Euclides and Ptolemy (Edgerton, [@B77]). Music theorists were equally heavily leaning on Aristoxenus and Ptolemy (Galilei, [@B98]). Vincenzo Galilei, the father of the famous astronomer, forged a new method of improvising harmonies on a string instrument to accompany his own singing (what he called "arie"), following the harmonic models of popular Italian folk songs of his time (Palisca, [@B209]). He believed that in doing so, he was restoring the venerated principles of Greek composition by creating perceptual analogs to Greek *tonos* and *modo.*
Both restorations, of "tonality" and perspective, relied on mathematics. Just as much as visual artists invested into projective gadgets, Renaissance musicians went into calculating optimal ratios for tuning in order to maintain the purity of chords while keeping the melodic line expressive. Moreover, musicians and artists utilized the same proportions---a tradition dating back to Peter Abelard, consummated in Alberti\'s theory of "musical proportions" (applying ratios of musical consonances to geometric figures) which remained influential until the eighteenth century (Pintore, [@B221])[^44^](#fn0044){ref-type="fn"}.
From the very beginning, Renaissance perspective was bound to proportionality (Wittkower, [@B298]). Perspective rules strikingly resemble centripetal gravity in tonality. Moreover, perspective rules are mirrored in *vertical*, as well as *horizontal* harmonic organization (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}).
######
**Correspondence of principles of canonic linear perspective and principles of eighteenth century Western tonality**.
**Principles of Linear Perspective** **Principles of Vertical Harmony** **Principles of Horizontal Harmony**
-------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Centrality principles The single viewpoint principle: ideally, a spectator is supposed to stand where the artist stood while drawing---at the equidistant point where all the rays that are reflected from the depicted objects join together, marking the center of projection. Observation from any other point is regarded as inferior, ought to be avoided (Greene, [@B111]). Single part principality: The composer, the performer, and the listener all are supposed to focus attention on one part (voice) at a time---determined by placement of the theme: which can be defined as a distinct characteristic progression of motifs, reused in a music work in the capacity of a discrete unit of expression (Mazel, [@B187], p. 150). The tonicity principle: A particular tone ought to be recognized by the composer, performer, and listener as the strongest in stability amongst all tones used within a music work---thereby setting a single point where all the vectors of resolution for all unstable tones in the key would meet. If related keys were engaged in a composition, their tonics would be regarded as secondary.
Single ratio principles The principle of single scale of proportions: Certain unit of measurement has to be selected, and then applied consistently to the entirety of the picture to measure and arrange intervals of space between the depicted objects in order of their position towards the spectator, representing their distance from him. The principle of logarithmic intervallic spacing: The parts (voices) at the top of the texture must be closer to each other as compared to the parts (voices) at the bottom of the texture---ideally, staying close to logarithmic ratio, similar to intervallic distances between the partials in a harmonic series (Huron, [@B127]). The lower the register, the wider the intervals. The principle of equal temperament: The entire MPS has to consist of tones that are equally spaced from one another by the interval of the well-tempered semitone, defined by division of an octave into 12 parts---so that the same piece of music would maintain its intervallic integrity precisely, if transposed to a different key.
Vectorization principles The principle of single horizon: All the lines directed toward the depth of a depicted space, away from the spectator, must converge and vanish at the *rational* horizon line, defined by imagining an infinite horizontal plane. This line marks the "vanishing point" directly opposite to the "vantage point" occupied by the spectator. Only a slight deviation from the direct angle is afforded for the vantage point: the line that joins the vantage and the vanishing points sets the direction for viewing. The principle of harmonic pulse: All the parts/voices are supposed to comprise vertical relations, usually prominent on strong metric time (downbeat), forming harmonies that obtain the anchor function in harmonic progressions -- especially in faster tempo music (Dubovsky et al., [@B73], p. 420). This vertical harmonic "slicing" of texture on metrically important time follows a set of rules for reduction of the melodic content of voices/parts to the frame of implied known chords---estimated from the lowest tone upwards. The principle of key recapitulation: All tones of the composition must comply with the IS model of major or minor keys, and follow the tonal plan suitable for a given genre and music form, where the music work has to start and end in the same key, securing tonal integrity (Kholopov, [@B139], p. 237). In this scheme, the "native" tonic of a key is found to oppose the "foreign" tonic of another key (albeit related), marking the vector of tonal development, indicative of the overall intricacy of music form.
Three main principles that distinguish the basic one-point linear perspective find close match in the standards of tonal organization in the music composed according to the functional tonality theory that was formulated by Rameau ([@B229]).
Horizontal unification originated from vertical unification in Renaissance polyphony: Renaissance triadic tonality was born out of polyphonic texture, by satisfying the counterpoint rules in 4-part cadences (Randel, [@B230]). The modern day consensus of historic musicologists holds that compositional process of 14--15th century polyphony was based on expansion of 2-part into multi-part counterpoint (Moll, [@B195]). Renaissance mode essentially determined the melodic composition through cadential plan of the soprano and tenor parts---in a way similar to classical tonality (Meier, [@B189], pp. 123--236)---and was largely controlled by usage of major/minor triads (406--421). Most of the Renaissance went into attempts to forge the meantone temperament with optimal sonance of triads on the degrees critical for most common keys (Lindley, [@B168]): thereby, the idea of optimal division of octave was interconnected to the idea of better sounding chord, which is essentially the same idea that governed logarithmic intervallic distribution between parts (Huron, [@B127]).
Tri-unification of centrality, ratio and vectorization is specific to Western civilization. Other cultures that came in touch with the theory of perspective, notably, Arabic and Chinese, did not develop a "psychological mental set" (Edgerton, [@B77]) out of the intellectual components of algebra, geometry, astronomy, religion, and art. Unique was the aspiration of Westerners to rationalize capitalism as an extension of moral law, seeking "symbiosis between God and mammon," and putting math in the service of this double-goal---using it to define the Divine order while simultaneously gaining practical benefits in making music and fine art. Neither China nor Arabia, although technologically ahead of Europe by the fifteenth century, generated a culture based on the theoretical realization of mathematically ordered world, designed for practical production of utilities. Arabic scholars of the eleventh century knew Euclid and linear perspective (Belting, [@B26]), yet despite their contact with artists, perspective made zero impression on Arabic visual composition (Raynaud, [@B231]), not going any further than affecting depiction of details in architectural design (Yazar, [@B303]).
Solely in the West the artist adhered to the model of Divine emanation: God creates Man, and Man creates art, which is Divine. Christianity was a viable force in promoting perspective and tonality. Not only perspective was sanctified by the Quattrocento theologians as a faithful representation of Divine light reflected from an object (Edgerton, [@B78], p. 29), and not only the foundation of major/minor chords were justified by Zarlino as uncovering perfection of God and Nature (Gozza, [@B109], p. 58), but Christian understanding of omnipresence of God in every material particle paved the road to hierarchic unification of pictorial objects, as well as musical tones.
Hierarchic unification opened doors to compression of information, which enabled great complexity, unparalleled in other cultures.
1. 36\. Audio: Tallis---Spem in alium (c.1572), a 40-part motet. Extremely thick polyphonic texture, with complex division in groups. Graphic visualization by Stephen Malinowski <http://bit.ly/1Lqc7PS>
Image 2. Bruegel the Elder---The Procession to Calvary (1564). Extensive landscape is filled up with detailed rendition of over a 100 characters, subdivided in multiple concurrent events---all integrated in a single bird\'s view perspective. <http://bit.ly/1Q9XGm1>
Tonal organization, just like pictorial perspective, establishes a particular model of symbolic representation of reality, shared by majority of the members of the same socio-cultural formation. Such model sustains over a period of time, instilling the same approach to reality in old and new generations---until the time when, for some reason, the socio-economic change renders this approach inadequate. Then, the old model of symbolic representation is abandoned and replaced by a new one. The entire Western history consists of numerous such symbolic "revolutions." Each major historic period in Western civilization seems to carry its own "special perspective" (Panofsky, [@B211], p. 21)---and a corresponding model of tonal organization (see Appendix [6](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material).
Melodic line, geometric line and environmental topography: their connection {#s9}
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Just as the shaded line can inform whether the drawing engages the depth parameter, performance of a single melodic line can indicate the vertical and horizontal harmony.
A string player or singer, brought up with Western tonality, tunes each melodic tone according to its membership in the chord implied by the vertical harmony (Friberg et al., [@B92])---even if the entire music work is solo. Tonal performance presents an ongoing challenge of constant mediation between *melodic* and *harmonic* tuning.
The pre-MPS folk music does not involve such intricacies. The archaic folk singer, raised in monodic music culture, is unaware of implied chords, following only the melodic aspect of tuning. Representatives of any primordial polyphonic folk traditions are likely to combine melodic and harmonic tuning of their respective polyphonic system. Kubik ([@B152]) observed harmonic tuning "accents" amongst the encultured groups of African ethnicities---quite similar to having an accent in speaking a language[^45^](#fn0045){ref-type="fn"}.
Nikolai Garbuzov coined the concept of *zonal hearing* to address the discrepancies of such "accents." Through a series of methodic experiments he established a frequency range within which majority of musicians perceived a particular tone as "the same pitch"---a pitch zone. The exact values differed between different performers, testifying to the presence of a recognizable individual tuning style adopted by each musician as part of his "individual sound." Yet, overall, all individual styles overlapped within a range of 58-76 cents, disclosing what appeared to be the range of cultural convention of tuning[^46^](#fn0046){ref-type="fn"}. Each melodic interval slightly varied in zonal width: from 24 cents for unison to 76 cents for minor 2nd (Garbuzov, [@B102], p. 92)[^47^](#fn0047){ref-type="fn"}.
This variability reflects the difference in distribution of "tendency tones" in modal intonations. Each *pitch zone* can be viewed as part of representation of a traditionally established set of frequencies, remembered as a repertoire of standard intonations. The proof of that is the categorical perception of pitch errors: listeners judge about 60% deviations from a standard frequency as "correct" in tuning---possibly due to the same error correction mechanism that is engaged in perception of verbal phonemes (Siegel and Siegel, [@B250]).
A *pitch zone* is the aggregate value of all the expressive tunings for a given degree of a PS across all intonations that characterize this mode, afforded by the music-users (Garbuzov, [@B102], p. 144). Narrowing a pitch zone for a specific degree in a mode/key necessarily indicates the presence of an important modal intonation that utilizes this degree---and can reveal a particular method of tonal organization. Narrowing of all the pitch zones would signal of the performer\'s concern with the vertical harmony.
In the same way that lack of harmonic functional hearing leads the folk-fiddler to render a tonal melody with overly strong "melodic" accent, the inability to integrate all the perceptual stimuli presented in a pictorial image prevents members of unacculturated groups from decoding the spatial information in perspective-based drawings (Hudson, [@B124]). The culprit here is the same---centering on a single aspect of organization due to lack of integrative experience. And just as folk musicians can be taught tonal music, non-Westernized people can learn to draw in linear perspective (Mshelua and Lapidus, [@B200]).
Non-classical listener hears a modernistic composition as a sort of "noise" because he treats music "unmusically": he applies the hearing criteria for environmental listening (Nazajkinskij, [@B203], p. 173). He employs fissure---isolation of a presumably important sound signal from unimportant ones. Musical listening, in contrary, requires *integration* of simultaneous sounds, calling for application of an adequate scheme of tonal coding. Not knowing the scheme forces the listener to "flatten" the tonal richness into a guessed "melody"---similar to how a child "flattens" the perspective organization while drawing a 3D object. There is experimental evidence that pitch is mapped to height for isolated tones differently than for melodic intervals---by non-musicians, while musicians process pitch automatically (Lidji et al., [@B167]). This suggests that spatial representation of tonal organization has to be learned.
The type of limitation, experienced by a viewer while encoding/decoding a perspective-based image, can be telling of his tonal hearing (see Appendix [7](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material for the example of tonal/spatial correspondence in perception of Nenets traditional art).
Each scheme of tonal organization abstracts those perceptual features of the living environment that are crucial for the success of the typical representative of a given culture in pursuing his life goals. Sophistication of a scheme is only an answer to the sophistication of socio-cultural conditions for survival: 2-dimensional representation with indefinite intervallic values sufficed the earliest schemes, whereas later schemes required more dimensions and greater precision.
Tonality, as well as perspective, can be understood as a generic system of representation of 4-dimensional space in 2-dimensional framework: pitch/time for music and x/y for pictorial art, where the observation point is defined according to the position of the individual perceiver. Similar dimensional conversion characterizes literature, where perceptual reality is described from an angle of the speaker, in 2D fashion, word-per-time (Uspensky, [@B270], p. 80). Noteworthy, the onset of naturalistic depiction, literature, and harmonic theory all concur in Mesopotamian urban culture.
The next landmark, invention of perspective, paralleled chromatic music and lyric poetry that became means of individual self-identification. Here, the cognitive centerpiece that supported them all was concise definition of one\'s position in relation to something: be it a depicted object, a composed melody in a certain mode, or a subject of a poem.
Crystallization of linear perspective c.1300 further advanced the self-orientation function: defining a specific observation point *optimal* for the observed object. The epitome was the spectator positioning himself inside the church to view a fresco---thereby the emerging Franciscan order sought to "include" the viewer into the painting, increasing intensity of the aesthetic emotions and attracting more people to join the congregation (Benton, [@B28]). The musical equivalent here would be the style of *musica reservata* where, in the polyphonic texture, the listener had to track a theme that expressed a particular emotion related to the lyrics---shaded tonally with the help of chromaticism (Meier and Dittmer, [@B190]). There, orientation occurred by triadic sonority and melodic diatonicity guiding the listener in mapping spots of tension and relaxation. Polyphony, tonality, and perspective, each in its own way, all faceted the same sense of individualism that flourished circa fifteenth century (Hyer, [@B130]).
Their symbiosis did not fall apart after homophony replaced polyphony as the dominant compositional method during mid-eighteenth century[^48^](#fn0048){ref-type="fn"}.
1. 37\. Audio: Schumann---Scherzo, Piano Quintet Eb Major. Homophonic parts are engaged in complex textural "kaleidoscope" nexus by means of their pitch contours and rhythmic patterns---evident in this graphic visualization by Stephen Malinowski. <http://bit.ly/1QoCi8S>
Both, implementation of tonality in musical texture and linear perspective in 3D representation, serve the same purpose of the orientation of an individual in sonic/visual space by means of defining the foreground, background, and the distance between them. The earliest germ of foreground/background relation in harmony is constituted by the notion of "tonal distance" in monody: the remoteness of the auditioned tone from a remembered "tonic." The idea of coordination of tonics was born in Sumer, with the establishment of the sister-mode family, in MPS modes. It took a while before, in Baroque music, it evolved into "key distance" and still later---into "key relationship," determined by the circle of 5ths. Exploration of "tonal distance" throughout history of music very much parallels exploration of representation of spatiality in pictorial art---and parallels do not stop there: the foreground/background dialectics penetrates into sculpture, architecture, and theater (Grauer, [@B110]).
Tonal organization is more likely to prototype pictorial representation than vice versa. The archetype could be the Central Asian tradition of carpet weaving, where weavers use chants to aid memorization of ornamental patterns---possibly dating to an older Indo-European tradition, mentioned by Homer and Bacchylides (Tuck, [@B269]).
Music behaviors are more widespread than drawing behaviors---especially in egalitarian-oriented folk cultures. Every known music tradition follows some kind of "music theory" (Blacking et al., [@B31], p. 224), whereas the number of cultures that lack tradition and theory of depiction is vast. In tribal society, it is hard to estimate personal use of music by every tribe-member (although in numerous cultures, "personal songs" occupy a prominent place), but evidently collective use of music can take 2--3 h daily in a subsistent society that lives under constant environmental pressure, yet dedicates to music so much of the tribe\'s resources (Huron, [@B128], p. 64). Despite intense professionalization, levels of public engagement in music-making stayed high even in the industrial West (congregational and amateur music)---until the 1930s (Rothstein, [@B239]; Chybowski, [@B44]). Nothing comparable in scale is known in art history: neither in prehistoric[^49^](#fn0049){ref-type="fn"} (Curtis, [@B60], p. 235), modern tribal[^50^](#fn0050){ref-type="fn"} (Myers, [@B201], p. 63), ancient (Hauser, [@B116], p.15), medieval (Florensky, [@B83]) nor early modern art (Pears, [@B217])---drawing from nature has remained the privilege of few ordained and/or gifted artists until the emergence of welfare system and public education (Alexander and Rueschemeyer, [@B4]).
Relatively clear public consensus on what constitutes excellence in music vs. unclear criteria of excellence in visual arts (Milbrath et al., [@B193]) suggests that it is music that conserves the method of organization for spatial representation. Drawing adheres to a theory only in religious applications, such as iconography, or in professional institutions, such as academy of arts---where such theory noticeably lacks uniformity, with different schools adhering to different techniques and methods of drawing.
Depiction requires extensive knowledge of visual shapes and command of looking for strategies in determining which level of description to use for analysis of the depicted object and "good" copying performance (Pratt, [@B224]). Hockney ([@B120]) informs about the multiplicity of technical gadgets utilized by artists throughout ages, starting from Euclid[^51^](#fn0051){ref-type="fn"}. Producing and reproducing a tune does not require any comparable technology. To succeed in capturing the spatial organization the drawer must learn to make things look "right" by drawing them "wrong" (Arnheim, [@B10], p. 76). Copying a tune by ear is much more intuitive than copying an object by eye.
Unlike ubiquitous acquisition of singing skills (Hargreaves, [@B115], pp. 66--104), "learning" how to draw presents a substantial cognitive barrier to children due to required alternations from an object- to a viewer-centered representation, involving curbing of "natural" instincts of viewing (Freeman, [@B91]). Children\'s drawing improves by age, because they elaborate better strategies to mediate between "what" and "how" to draw (Park and I, [@B212]). Their knowledge of what to draw typically interferes with their choice of depicting strategy (Tallandini and Morassi, [@B262]). The effective solution becomes abstraction of a graphic-motor schemata adopted per object type (Phillips et al., [@B220]) based upon the criterion of reducing ambiguity in picture (Willats, [@B292]). The entire development of pictorial skills throughout childhood is shaped by this goal (Morra, [@B198]). Noteworthy, children are more prone to copy each other\'s pictures than to infer from life (Wilson and Wilson, [@B293]).
Reproducing a tune is nowhere near as technical, intellectual, problematic, and cognitively demanding as depicting an object. Russian state general education program requires recognition/reproduction of parts in multi-part settings from 10-year old children (Apraksina, [@B9], p. 110)---and majority of the population has been complying to this program for few decades. Children of around that age can infer a tune from a polyphonic folk-song by themselves without any assistance (Naumenko, [@B202], p. 124). Flattening of a polyphonic song into a monophonic version is a common trait in many ethnic cultures (Jordania, [@B134], pp. 376--378). Conversion of musical texture seems to present no obstacle comparable to 3D-2D conversion. No wonder, musicality is considered a biological trait of Homo (Morley, [@B197], p. 5), whereas ability to realistic depiction is reserved for specially gifted (Golomb, [@B107], pp. 201--278).
Music occupies a prominent position in children development, only magnifying toward adolescence. In contrast, drawing attracts children at the age of 2--3 years, waning afterwards (Winner, [@B296]). An adolescent at large becomes estranged to drawing, once so favored at a younger age---in polar opposition to his musical interests (Vygotsky, [@B280], p. 61). Modern 8--18 year olds spend on average 2.5 h daily for music (Rideout et al., [@B233]). The underlying reason must be affiliation of music with cognitive consonance. Vygotsky ([@B281], p. 397) underlines that childhood presents the most tragic stage in life, when the organism finds itself in the greatest disharmony with the environment, being under constant pressure to quickly bring itself "in-tune" with its surroundings---this cognitive dissonance calls for "music of upbringing"---harmonious nurturing. And nothing answers this call better than music itself.
The course of tonal evolution {#s10}
=============================
Existence of 14 schemes of tonal organization (see Appendix [8](#SM1){ref-type="supplementary-material"} in Supplementary Material) suggests that tonal order in music manifests a general mental organizational scheme, which serves as a cultural *adaptation of human perceptive apparatus* to a life style optimal in a certain environment (Lomax, [@B173], p. 281). Younger generations in a socio-cultural formation keep reproducing the same schemata as long as the same life style pertains. Music appears to act as a principal enforcer of this mental enculturation. The emotional nature of music, its affinity with entrainment, and its capacity to reduce cognitive conflict, all make tonal organization a powerful tool in shaping a methodology of thinking within a given community. Gravitational laws of musical virtual reality reflect perception of physical laws of phenomenological reality, and link the navigation strategies for both of them.
The rigorous and systematic organization of music is a product of pressure imposed by natural selection to adequately collect information about the kinds of objects that exist in the environment, what they do, and how they can possibly be used (Terhardt, [@B264]). Through a complex process of conversion of frequency data into pitch information, the brain exercises an organizational scheme that is archetypical for majority of music users in a given community. Nature provides humans with some "template" of sensory categories in their default values (i.e., preference for vertical and horizontal consonance, binary meter and frequency range of the speaking voice), and cultural application modifies this "template" into a "document" that would serve a particular need, common for a given community. Such "document" seems to work like a script for our senses, organizing them to operate following the coherent set of principles (Walker, [@B283]). Auditory imagery is known to evoke visual and/or kinesthetic experience, which in turn influences auditory imagery (Hubbard, [@B122]). Capacity to make emotional judgments about imagined music (Halpern, [@B114]) makes music a par excellence tool for social engineering.
Pitch presents a perfect medium for exercising discretization: human hearing is inherently zonal---it cannot distinguish between different pitches in a clear-cut manner; there is a zone between frequencies of tones in a familiar PS, upon hearing of which the listener cannot reliably tell which pitch it is. Even extremely gifted and well-trained soloists observe 6-21 cent inter-zonal threshold (Garbuzov, [@B102], p. 205). Parncutt and Cohen ([@B214]) also specify the 10--20 cent threshold[^52^](#fn0052){ref-type="fn"}.
This "margin for error" is responsible for mutability of pitch detection, requiring some error-correction mechanisms[^53^](#fn0053){ref-type="fn"}. Jordan ([@B132]) demonstrated that listeners can discriminate intervals of 25-50 cents, but categorize them in terms of diatonic IS, and musicians do so more than non-musicians. Models of tonal organization can be viewed exactly as algorithms designed to minimize indiscretion in detection and production of pitches in a given socio-cultural formation. Similar mechanisms must be at play in the perception of other important attributes of musical sound. Garbuzov experimentally identified the zonal nature of perception of dynamics (Garbuzov, [@B100]), timbre (Garbuzov, [@B101]), tempo, and rhythm (Garbuzov, [@B99]). Garbuzov\'s pupil, Rags ([@B227], p. 33) sums them in the following definition: "*Zone* is the measure---a quantitative characteristics of a musical conceptualization...of the inter-relationships between certain qualities of musical tones"---product of an attempt to discretize gradations in "fuzzy sets" of auditory parameters.
It appears that during the passed century the zones and zonal thresholds have shrunken in perception of Western classical music (Rags, [@B227], p. 33). For non-tempered intervals, inter-zonal thresholds are about 2--2.5 times more narrow than the thresholds of the adjacent zones (Garbuzov, [@B102], pp. 89--99). Moran and Pratt ([@B196]) confirmed this ratio for the tempered scale. Comparative investigation of how Western and native Java musicians estimate intervals in Western and gamelan music demonstrate that Javanese listeners have wider zones of pitch uncertainty in auditioning Western music than Western listeners do in Javanese music (Perlman and Krumhansl, [@B218]). Léothaud et al. ([@B163]) report that in Central African octave-equivalent polyphony, differences as large as 80 cents[^54^](#fn0055){ref-type="fn"} between two structurally equivalent keys are still considered a unison.
Another trend, noticeable throughout the evolution of tonal organization, is the progressive increase of the number of pitch zones within an ambitus of a mode (Rags, [@B227], p. 42).
The more modern the stage, the more pitch gradations fit within the same frequency band (from 2 entities in khasmatonal to 17 entities in tonal key), and the narrower are the zones reserved for each of the pitch entities (from up to 1½ octaves for khasmatonal to 24 cents for tonal key; Table [2](#T2){ref-type="table"}).
######
**Pitch zone discrimination throughout the evolution of tonal organization in low voice vocal music**.
**Type of tonal organization** **Number of pitch zone classes in the music system** **Maximal number of pitch zones in the vocal compass (2 octaves)** **Typical width of a pitch zone** **Normative tuning precision**
-------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------- --------------------------------
Pre-mode 1 = whole compass undetermined 2 octaves Absent
Khasmatonal 2-3 registers undetermined ≥ octave Widely variable
Ekmelic 2-4 regions 4 indefinite degrees 2nd---4th Selectively variable
Oligotonal 2-4 pitches/regions 4 definite/indefinite degrees 2nd---3rd Fixed/variable
Mesotonal 5-6 pitches 6 definite degrees 2nd/3rd Fixed/bi(tri)-optional
Mutitonal 7-10 (\<) pitches 10 (\<) definite degrees ≥ semitone Fixed/bi(tri)-optional
Pentatonic 5 pitch classes 11 pitches (5 degrees) 1/1½ tone Fixed
Heptatonic 7 pitch classes 15 pitches (7 degrees) 1/½ tone Fixed
Diatonic MPS 7 pitch classes 15 pitches (7 degrees) 1/½ tone Concise
Hypermode 3-5 pitch classes 10-12 pitches (3-5 degrees) ≥ semitone Concise
Chromatic MPS 16 pitch classes 27 pitches (4 degrees) 63-84 cents Microtonally concise
Tonality 17 pitch classes 35 pitches (7 degrees) 24-76 cents Microtonally concise
"*Pitch zone" means the range of pitch values that is operated as a single entity in tonal organization. "Pitch zone class" is the reproduction of the same "pitch zone" over an octave. The compass of an average singing voice is taken as 2 octaves (Kob et al., [@B146]). For the khasmatonal music the compass is an octave wider because of inclusion of falsetto singing (Heylen et al., [@B118]). Oligotonal music engages no more than 4 degrees, some of which are fixed in pitch, while others variable. "Bi-optional" differs from "variable" by narrowing the tuning options to 2: "standard" or inflected. "Tri-optional" offers "standard," sharpened or flattened versions. Pentatonic/heptatonic modes and MPS introduce full octave equivalence and fix all pitch values. Ancient Greek chromatic system contains 16 discrete PCs within A2-A4, 11 of which are octave-equivalent. That leaves 27 available pitch slots in the range reserved for vocal composition. The critical width of chromatic semitone can be assessed based on discussions of chromatic shading in period treatises (Hagel, [@B112], p. 217). Vocal solo music in Western tonality contains 17 PCs (and 35 slots in 2-octave range) since it tends to adhere to the Pythagorean model (Ghrab, [@B104]), especially for non-professional singers (Devaney et al., [@B70]), making semitones narrower than well-tempered tuning (Vurma and Ross, [@B278])*[^54^](#fn0054){ref-type="fn"}.
Ten stages of tonal evolution are mostly *cumulative*---(Figure [5](#F5){ref-type="fig"})[^55^](#fn0056){ref-type="fn"}. Alekseyev ([@B3]) illustrates how archaic principles of pitch organization are still present in modern music. *Khasmatonal* principle manifests itself in folk yodeling or rock music growling. *Ekmelic* principle comes out in gliding inflections and half-spoken pitches of blues or rap.
{#F5}
A music-user from a later stage of tonal development possesses apparatus to decode the representational schemata of earlier cultural formations, but a listener raised exclusively on music of earlier stages cannot adequately decode spatial aspects in music of a later stage. This is most obvious in the communication of motherese: Western mothers have no problems reserving to the khasmatonal organization in their singing despite their competence in tonality (see Presentation-3 from Part-I), while for their babies khasmatonal music remains the only form of tonal organization that they seem to be able to fully follow. Their perception of tonality is severely limited (Trehub, [@B268]). Walker ([@B282]) concludes his overview of the experimental studies of cross-cultural pitch perception: "the more remote from Western auditory and visual cultural artifacts the subjects, the less likely they are to select the kind of visual metaphor for sound than those trained in Western musical practices consistently select."
General summary {#s11}
===============
Zemtsovsky ([@B309]) considers the very concept of musical tone to carry a signature of tonal organization. Artificiality of periodic oscillation in musical vocalization calls for justification. Hearing a single pitched tone generates expectation, and hence, induces gravitational projection toward the following pitched tone. In order to make sense, a tone *must* proceed to another tone (or be repeated), forming an intonation. And a melodic intonation becomes not only a brick in the melody, but a *quantum of gravity* in the virtual reality of music. The entire progression of 11 modal schemes proceeds toward "triadic" mentality of perspectival depth and polyphonic texture---this direction is evident not only in Western music, but in other cultures as well, where it materializes in textures of various density depending on the social order, environmental factors, and cultural exchange (Vinogradov, [@B275], p. 106).
It appears that progressive increase in tonal acuity is the result of evolution in melodic complexity. Crystallization of melodic contour typology brought to life ekmelic pitch regions to replace much wider and less definite khasmatonal registers. Forging of absolute intervals of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th between the anchored tones replaced ekmelic regions with oligotonal pitches. Triad induction caused variable tuning of unstable degrees to recede to bi-optional tuning. Transposition-by-degree of pentatonic and hemitonic motives fixed unstable degrees in tuning, and narrowed the pitch zone to a semitone. Institution of chromatic alterations further narrowed the zones below a semitone. This entire process of "pitch-zooming" presents an adaptation to the cultural need for greater discrimination.
Parallel increase in PCs and establishment of complex tonal hierarchy within a mode made encoding of tonal relations effective enough to support simultaneous data transmission via multiple sound streams, up to 7-componental music texture. Each of the components simultaneously encodes information by means of idioms of pitch, rhythm, meter, and harmony, plus the contribution of expressive parameters of dynamics, tempo, articulation, timbre, and music form[^56^](#fn0057){ref-type="fn"}. Such unprecedented density of information makes music a par excellence tool for abstraction of important features in a living environment, and mediation of their schemata between the members of the same social group in the best interests of each individual.
Language is an important factor that shaped melodic intonation and its tonal organization. Propensity of language communication to cultivate cognitive dissonance finds a counterbalance in propensity of musical communication to cultivate "cognitive consonance": *a state of inspiration and empowerment, characterized by experience of integrity, clarity, and consistency of attitudes in a person, as well as togetherness within a group*. People sing together to share the same experience, but talk one after another---usually to resolve an issue. Listeners routinely engage into musical behaviors for relaxation or recreation, which is less common for speech that normally cannot run in a semi-automatic regime, unlike music. Less stressful manner of experiencing music is likely the result of different strategies preferred in comprehension of music vs. speech. The tendency to fuse spectral content dominates the perception of music, while the tendency to segregate phonemes prevails in the perception of pitch (Bregman, [@B35], pp. 461--589). Then, the need to differentiate between the spectral elements greatly promotes the realization of opposition and discrepancy within the sound material, whereas the need to integrate partials into musical tones, and tones into chords, promotes the realization of similarity.
It looks like both forms of communication co-evolved from some primordial animal-like vocalization, defining each other through the different treatment of pitch---each forging its dedicated processing system (Zatorre and Baum, [@B306]). The ethnomusicological evidence leads one to believe that melodic intonation was formed by borrowing and exaggerating the pitch contour of the conventional verbal intonations, while contrasting the verbal timbral organization and articulation style. The decidedly "artificial" manner of khasmatonal and ekmelic intonations was shaped by counter-distinction to the "natural" manner of speech. Stabilization of pitch in oligotonal music led to reduction in timbral complexity, changing the manner of its opposition to speech. Oligotonal music started contrasting speech primarily by greater harmonicity of its tones and their timbral uniformity---a "bel canto" style of sound production, employed by a given music culture as "canonic." Speech intonation, on the other hand, featured much more diverse spectral content of each of its phonemes, instituting the fission/fusion antithesis. At this point permanence in tuning of PS and hierarchic ordering of pitches---as well as timbral uniformity---became the "musical" traits. This border is not clear-cut: orators and poets often "melodize" their speech (Nazajkinskij, [@B203], p. 261), whereas composers engage in a "recitative" melodic style, sometimes deliberately emulating verbal intonation (Pearl, [@B216]). However, overall, music tends to contrast speech in pitch organization---most evident in tonal languages, where the musical pitch contour of traditional songs often violates the normative intonation contours of the lyrics (List, [@B170]).
In a compensatory manner, cardinal stages in the development of language tend to concur with shifts in the method of tonal organization. Development of sentence syntax conditioned transition from khasmatonal to ekmelic mode. Emergence of epic poetry promoted oligotonal music. Introduction of literacy boosted the emergence of philosophy, law, and science---promulgating prescriptive theory of harmony and diatonic music.
"Cognitive consonance" function works in both, horizontal and vertical dimensions of music. Any ensemble attempt to sing a melody with fixed pitches would contain asynchrony, when one performer produces a new pitch while the other still carries the previous pitch---thereby converting melodic interval into harmonic. Just as a single pitch is prone to generate a 2-tone intonation, it is prone to generate a 2-tone vertical harmony. And this is where spatial representation comes into play: 2-tone vertical harmony is cross-modally equivalent to 2D pictorial representation, and 3-tone harmony (chord)---to 3D. In the same way it takes at least three objects to hint to three distinct levels of pictorial depth (Cook et al., [@B51]), three simultaneous tones imply a certain texture---both representations manifesting the same higher order cognitive scheme of 3-factor opposition that typifies the Renaissance astronomy, major/minor tonal organization, and linear perspective---all setting the framework for "triadic cognition"---the ability to reason by 3-way associations ("X in relation to Y in light of Z"; Cook, [@B50], p. 12). Upgrade from dyadic thinking constitutes the greatest achievement of human civilization[^57^](#fn0058){ref-type="fn"}, underlying all the technological achievements. Possibly, *tetradic thinking* is there to follow.
By cross-modal implication, musical intonation differs from verbal. Speech is not heard in terms of visualizing auditioned tones the way music is. The bifurcation point must have occurred during the oligotonal stage:
- Speech adhered to "low-cognition" standard of correspondence "higher pitches---good disposition" and "lower pitches---expression of aggression"---shared by communication of many mammals (Ohala, [@B206]).
- Music adhered to a "high-cognition" standard, present only amongst humans---already evident in ekmelic organization, where ascending inclination corresponds to stress/climax, while descending---to relaxation/resolution (Alekseyev, [@B2], p. 129).
Synesthetic capacity, so vivid in music, must be responsible for re-wiring of the registral associations---and this should be viewed as yet another display of integrative nature of music: musical tones trigger 3D spatial representation, unlike "flat" sounds of speech[^58^](#fn0059){ref-type="fn"}. Establishment of centripetal gravity and permanent tuning throughout an oligotonal song brought to life this "*hologram" effect*.
Melodic intonation is immensely important for human culture of thinking. Once generated, melodic intonation receives life of its own. It can be adopted by many music users and embedded into a mode[^59^](#fn0060){ref-type="fn"}. It can be developed: by contribution of each of them. Historic development of intonation resembles epistemology and historic changes in syntax of language. Subsequently, musical mode functions as a "complex dynamic and self-regulated system" that operates on genetic-like principles of optimal adaptation to the cultural environment (Alekseyev, [@B2], p. 113).
Analysis of intonations in a song enables reconstruction of the gravitational system observed by the creator of that song---in a way similar to a paleontologist\'s reconstruction of a fossil from a bunch of bones. Mode is capable of showing which intonations have stayed popular within a community of users over an extended period of time[^60^](#fn0061){ref-type="fn"}. This makes it possible to generalize a gravitational scheme exercised in the music of that culture, and to formulate the cognitive style peculiar to a given historical socio-cultural formation. Understanding this cognitive style allows for extrapolating a method of musical order in organization of other cultural activities. Overall, music appears as a naturally formed testing ground for various principles of representation of reality, conscious and unconscious (Hubbard, [@B121]), used to prime emotional reactions to music idioms, thereby establishing and cultivating conventional standards of intellectual and emotional intelligence.
Author contributions {#s12}
====================
The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and approved it for publication.
Conflict of interest statement
------------------------------
The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
I would like to take an opportunity to thank Josef Jordania, Izaly Zemtsovsky, Alma Kunanbayeva, Leon Crickmore, Eduard Alekseyev, Leonid Perlovsky for helping me to formulate the concepts for this article. My special thanks go to Sheila Bazleh for editing the text of my manuscript. I am grateful to Stephan Vitas, Jon Solomon, Stefan Hagel, John Curtis Franklin, Anthony Seeger, Eduardo Coutinho, Robin Wilkins, Bo Lawergren, Stephen Malinowski, Marina Korsakova-Kreyn and William Griffin for their insightful comments and assistance with preparing examples.
^1^The term "tonal organization" here encompasses not only what is called "tonality," but every form of integrating musical tones together in a harmonious ensemble--- including music where fundamental frequencies are not well marked in the spectral content, i.e., gamelan or throat singing.
^2^The term "mode" is a modern day concept applied retroactively to address the tonal coherence of a pitch set (PS) selected as the formative basis for music-making: each set adhered to a particular scale, probably associated with some tonal focus---unfortunately, the only surviving melody is insufficient to infer the modal characteristics of Babylonian music system (West, [@B288]).
^3^According to UET-VII-126 tablet, the open strings tuning (pitum) is G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G-A, producing the same IS (tone+tone+semitone+tone+tone+semitone) in either direction (Crickmore, [@B56]).
^4^Pythagorean Triplets probably originated from the Babylonian tablets (Skinner, [@B251], pp. 17--18). Sacredness of number 9 in Antiquity stemmed from the Babylonian Lunar calendar (Wiltse and Palmer, [@B294]). Babylonian proportions were perpetuated in the Parthenon (Kappraff, [@B135]).
^5^"Displacement" here refers to the last tone of the melodic 2nd which perceptually "erases the trace" of the initial tone in the short-term memory. Such effect seems to be universal (Larson and McAdams, [@B159]; Deutsch, [@B68]; Larson, [@B158]) and therefore applicable to the Ancient Greek music.
^6^Such as arpeggio passages.
^7^"Metric" division of a 4th is comfortably visible on a woodwind/string instrument through the placement of holes/frets---and relatable to the resulting changes in pitch (Beliayev, [@B25]). The difference between perfect 5th (702 cents) and 4th (498) produces major 2nd (204). The succession of 2nds marks the I, II, and III degrees, thereby defining the minor 2nd (90 cents) left out between the III and IV degrees (90 = 498−2 × 204).
^8^In Ancient Greek theory our Phrygian tetrachord was called Dorian, and viewed as the trademark of Greek civility, ideal for representation of universal harmony (Crickmore, [@B54]). This Greek "Dorian" is congruent to the Babylonian Isartu \["normal" in Akkadian (Kilmer, [@B143])\] mode (Duchesne-Guillemin, [@B75]), by its name suggesting its commonality in Mesopotamia.
^9^Nicomachus considered conjunct E-F-G-A-Bb-C-D the primordial scale comprised by conjoining tetrachords, only later disjointed by Pythagoras to form an octave scale (West, [@B287], p. 176).
^10^Modal mutability of multiple anchors was explained in Part-1.
^11^Such reproduction of a progression of musical tones that retains the intervallic relations between all successive tones (C-D-E-F −\> D-E-F\#-G)---"natural" for singers who don\'t have perfect pitch.
^12^Such reproduction that adjusts the intervallic relations between the successive tones to match the PS (C-D-E-F -\> D-E-F-G)---"learned" by all singers.
^13^Joseph Yasser also observed similar lineage in successive development of what he called "quartve," "quintave" and octave equivalence in evolution of tonal organization (Yasser, [@B302]).
^14^Musicians in that study had easier time discriminating the dominant from the repeated tonic---indicating that the "dominant" function is learned through music-making.
^15^West ([@B286], p. 127) also describes a similar process of modal genesis of sister-modes by means of modal transposition, producing Dorian, Phrygian, and Lydian scales in Helladic Greece, according to the testimony of Alcman, 7th century BC.
^16^Variety of songs accompanied the liturgy in Babylonian temples, with no fewer than 6 different compositions (Löhnert, [@B172])---at least some of which must have proceeded without stopping while requiring different modes for their liturgical expression.
^17^Something similar to this must have happened in Helladic music, where the diatonic genus apparently allowed for building the "sister-scales" from any of the tones of a system---and not just stable tones, as in Hellenic music (Franklin, [@B87]). Subsequently, "old" music was criticized for producing tunes that all sounded "the same" (probably due to the perceived lack of "expressive tuning" that resurfaced again in chromatic music of the 5th century BC).
^18^This is achieved by: (1) increasing the amount of strings on harp/lyre; (2) using the fingerboard to play closed strings on lute.
^19^In Mesopotamia, genre classification was the business of scribes, and proceeded according to the intended manner of performance, marked in notation with the help of the subscripts and rubrics (Rubio, [@B242], p. 23).
^20^Sumerian culture marks onset of professionally produced music, coining the term \'šir\' that implied authorship of a song (Krispijn, [@B150]).
^21^Evidently, all registered love-songs belonged to one of seven standard modes, three of which were by far more common for expression of love. Specialization required expertise from the musicians---to prepare music ahead of time, and their performance could score varying degrees of success, reflected by difference in wage (Ziegler, [@B310]).
^22^Because of its conservative nature (see Part-1), the pentatonic MPS lagged behind the heptatonic. The Old Babylonian tablet CBS-1766 postulated heptatonic tuning (Dumbrill, [@B76]) in the eighteenth century BC (Friberg, [@B93]), likely descending from the older tradition, perhaps the twenty sixth century, when the Lyre of Ur was made (Rowan, [@B240]).
^23^Testifying to universality of Mazel\'s theory of odd/even functional induction (Mazel, [@B186]) (see Part-1).
^24^Like Mesopotamian symmetry, this whole-tone division is foreign to local folk cultures of the Far East, supporting the point that opposition of village folk to palace/temple authored music corresponds to opposition of pre-MPS to MPS systems, and is a cross-cultural trait that has cognitive roots.
^25^Cuneiform writing was popular amongst commoners---cursive signs and stenography were widespread (Veldhuis, [@B274]). Functional and technical literacy were taught informally through apprenticeships and "community of practice" (Robson, [@B236], p. 52).
^26^The issue of competence versus incompetence is expressly addressed in a survived dialogue between a scribe and his student, which asserts the necessity to learn whatever it takes to figure out a solution (Vanstiphout, [@B272]).
^27^The third type, pentachord-based, is discussed in the Appendix 2 in Supplementary Material.
^28^Hexáechos literally means "six modes" in reference to the smaller version of the principal Byzantine MPS---oktôçchos (Kholopov, [@B141], p. 68). The Russian implementation of hexáechos is called "obykhod" ("common"), codified in 1772, but probably much older (Kholopov, [@B140]). The influence of obykhod on Russian folk music is tracked to the fifteenth century (Rudneva, [@B243], p. 121).
^29^Throughout Antiquity and Middle Ages a common tool for conception and assessment of tonal organization was monochord with letters designating pitches (Bower, [@B32])---a proof of musical thinking in terms of the "legitimate" PCs.
^30^An unstable mesotonal/multitonal degree can appear chromatic, misleading ethnographers in their transcriptions (Ambrazevičius and Wiśniewska, [@B7]). Correct spelling of pitches can be verified by computer analysis of the frequency of each discrete musical tone within a song, then defining its PS by mediating between the average values received by incrementing the degrees in the ambitus and the melodic intonations established by morphological analysis of a song (see Presentation-1 for an example).
^31^Thus, maqam encompasses both, inflections and alterations---possibly under Western influence (Yöre, [@B304]).
^32^However, it does not defy the overall pan-harmonization of the PCs in a MPS, since it is minuscule, limited usually to just few degrees (most notably VII), and affects mainly vocals and string instruments.
^33^Every music theory defines a finite number of ways to modulate from one mode to another. Omnipresence of such regulation indicates that music-users remember the typical "moves" from mode to mode (Koelsch et al., [@B147]).
^34^Interval-class set (ICS) is the collection of intervals that characterize PCS. Interval-set class (ISC) is the ICS of an MPS mode. Hearing chromatic modulation requires knowledge of the repertory of ICSs and ISCs.
^35^Chinese chromatic temperament most likely grew out of the practice of combining composite pentatonic scales (Bagley, [@B16]).
^36^Ancient music afforded what we call "accidentals" (Wulstan, [@B300]). The term "kampe" might have implied pitch bending alien to "harmonia"---"*exharmonic*" melodic deviations unidentifiable by reference to the departed mode (Franklin, [@B90]). The earliest notation of them is in the Zeno Archive papyrus, 250 BC (West, [@B287], p. 196).
^37^Hellenic culture pioneered a semiotic system of "musical emotions"---specific affective states conventionally ascribed to specific musical structures (Woodward, [@B299]). The outline of this system I present in my paper: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291974302_How_Emotion_Can_Be_the_Meaning_of_a_Music_Work>.
^38^Enharmonic music and modulations poorly suited lyre and kithara which remained the principal tools of teaching music in Greco-Roman education (Marrou, [@B184], p. 134). Lack of precise instrumental reference (aulos could not support didactic descriptions of microtonal tuning due to its construction (West, [@B287], p. 96) must have been the reason for Aristoxenus to exclude enharmonic modulations altogether from his exhaustive list of modulations (Hagel, [@B112], p. 44).
^39^Widely used, "soft" and "hemiolic" gradations blurred the theoretic differences between chromatic and enharmonic intervallic divisions (153).
^40^See Part-1, Appendix-2 in Supplementary Material.
^41^Setting the precedence for association of low register with stability and relaxation.
^42^Hellenistic chromatic music set the direction for Western civilization by pioneering the notions of error \[kheiron\] (Losev, [@B174], p. 623), error-correction \[diorthosis\] (Barker, [@B22], p. 342) and compression, implied in the idea of "complexity" \[poikolia\] that meant artificiality of melody, harmony or rhythm/meter, which upset unaccustomed listeners (Franklin, [@B90]). Technically, this "complexity" involved stuffing more expressive information into the available compositional space, making perception of music burdensome.
^43^Just like the melodic tones appear to move in a particular way, the sequence of depicted objects suggests to a viewer a particular vector of scanning an image---by the interaction of its perceived shape, size, and centeredness.
^44^At times, perspective and music attracted the same artist: Leonardo was equally versed in painting and in composition (Mantero, [@B179]), and applied "musical proportions" in his "Last Supper" (Brachert, [@B33]).
^45^Presence of "accents" is best revealed when few ethnomusicologists transcribe a song, producing notations of the same performance, which nevertheless feature different spelling of pitches (List, [@B171]).
^46^It remains to be tested, how much representatives of different geographic regions differ in their "local accents" of tuning into the tonal space of a Western key - and what tuning range defines the degrees of tonality cross-culturally.
^47^Parncutt and Cohen ([@B214]) consider 40 cents the threshold of perceptibility of steps in a scale.
^48^A typical common practice period polyphonic-homophonic texture subordinates all parts/voices to a one-at-a-time melodic line (with possible dubbing), where each of the textural components receives its own discrete function: principal melody; secondary melody (imitative/contrasting); accompanying melodic figuration; chordal/dyadic accompaniment; bass; pedal/background layer (Kholopova, [@B142], p. 37). That still keeps in place about 4-5 textural components.
^49^Paleolithic paintings suggests much time and effort placed into artistic training: art historians regard many discovered images as "pupil\'s drawings" and "rough drafts" for "master-works" (Hauser, [@B116], p. 9)---which would be hard to accomplish without receiving privileges relieving an artist from food-seeking.
^50^Customs observed in Aboriginal society confirm the exclusive nature of pictorial image production: drawing presents subjects, which are associated with dreaming, entering a world of spirits and requiring restricted access of only the ordained adult male members of the tribe.
^51^Sophisticated theory is required by the very task of 3D-to-2D shape conversion: Schäfer ([@B246], p. 254) describes a German peasant protesting against the crookedness of the roof in painter\'s sketching of his house---all to be surprised with the "magic" upon completion of the drawing, when the picture looked just right.
^52^Although certain types of music can promote greater pitch acuity: the frequency resolution of professional Western classical string ensemble players is significantly higher: the finest discrimination reaches 1 cent, whereas the grossest error---20 cents (Shackford, [@B249]).
^53^Jordan and Shepard ([@B133]) disclosed such mechanism when they microtonally adjusted the major scale tones to stretch over an octave, or rounded up the intervals between the degrees---both distortions were overlooked by listeners.
^54^Although, the term "cent" comes from the well-tempered system, there is no another convention to refer to the micro-intervallic distances between the tones.
^54^Db has been tuned lower than C\# in vocal/string performance since at least the 1800s (Barbieri and Mangsen, [@B19]), presenting different PCs. Listeners\' perception of vocal intonation encourages singers to exaggerate sharpening/flattening (Geringer et al., [@B103])---to increase expressiveness (Sundberg et al., [@B261])---therefore, vocal intonation distinguishes between 17 PCs in a key, and not 12, as commonly believed.
^55^Thus, the Lithuanian folklore bears traces of 3 stages of tonal development: (1) the proto-Indo-European strict pentatony; (2) the later hexatonic development; (3) the Balto-Slavic heptatony, of probable Hellenic influence (Leisi, [@B162]).
^56^For more information, the fuller version of this paper will be available at academia.edu.
^57^Remarkably, the birth of perspectival depiction, chromatic music and mathematical 3-factor opposition all concur in Hellenic Greece---expressed in the arithmetic, geometric, and harmonic proportions of music: which bind two extremes by a single mean term (Lawlor, [@B161], pp. 80--82).
^58^Also, unlike music, prosaic speech cannot generate the experience of physical motion in a listener (Dalla et al., [@B62]).
^59^Computer simulation confirms possibility for a repertoire of intonations to evolve "from scratch" by one music-user imitating the intonation of another with whom he wishes to bond---thereby creating a network of users interacting with one another (Miranda, [@B194]).
^60^Ambrazevičius ([@B6]) demonstrates how the acoustic analysis of pitch distribution in the recordings of folk music can reveal modal organization characteristic of different epochs, from modern diatonic to ancient "squeezed anhemitonics."
Supplementary material {#s13}
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The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: <http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00211>
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[^1]: Edited by: Leonid Perlovsky, Harvard University and Air Force Research Laboratory, USA
[^2]: Reviewed by: Stephan Thomas Vitas, Formerly affiliated with District of Columbia Psychological Association, USA; Leon Crickmore, Department of Education and Science, UK
[^3]: This article was submitted to Cognition, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychology
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During a typical diversity program, participants are encouraged to recognize, evaluate, and appreciate differences. The purpose of this paper is to explore the rationale for “Conversity®”: an alternative approach to diversity training that is based on connections.
Design/methodology approach
The paper is based on a review of the literature on “traditional” diversity training paradigms, the impact of diversity on the brain, and basic social psychology concepts such as categorization and social affiliation. The authors relate literature review findings to their experiences conducting “connections‐based” (“Conversity”) diversity training.
Findings
The human brain is already wired to perceive differences. Further, human beings tend to prefer others who share their group affiliations. Possible consequences of “typical” diversity training programs may include a “backlash” against diversity, an increase in participants' fears, and a reinforcement of inter‐group divisions.
Practical implications
This paper offers practitioners an alternative paradigm for diversity training design including alternative categorization (i.e. emphasis on non‐traditional diversity categories such as personality or team color) and an intentional search for connections between participants.
Originality/value
Historically, diversity training programs have focused on the value of differences rather than on the power of common ground.
Keywords
Citation
de Mello‐e‐Souza Wildermuth, C. and Wildermuth, M.O. (2011), "Seeking common ground: an alternative diversity training paradigm", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 43 No. 5, pp. 283-290. https://doi.org/10.1108/00197851111145871
Publisher: | https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00197851111145871/full/html |
Figure 1. First AFM image ever taken in another planet. Dust is everywhere in Mars. Such dust particles give the characteristic pink color to the sky, feed storms that regularly cover the planet and form its distinctive soil. Understanding these particles (shape, size, and physico-chemical properties) is essential to understand the climate of Mars.
Today I am going to tell you about the importance of Atomic Force Microscopy in nanoscience – I am sure you are very keen to learn about it, right? Well, if you are not, let me tell you that Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is so important that in 2008 NASA incorporated and AFM instrument in the Phoenix Mars Lander. This AFM was used to study the role of dust particles and nanoparticles in the climate of Mars.
AFMs are instruments that measure the shape, or morphology of a sample at very high resolution, even in the order of fractions of a nanometer – that is approximately 1,000,000 times smaller than the diameter of your hair! Just as a blind person uses a white cane to map their surroundings, an AFM uses a probing tool (cantilever) to measure the morphology of a sample. In order for that to work, AFM instruments use three essential parts: a cantilever with a tip, a laser, and a photodiode (detector of movement).
In order to produce an image, the tip (attached to the cantilever) scans a sample surface very closely causing the cantilever to move up or down according to the sample’s morphology (Figure 2). At the same time, a laser is reflected at the back of the cantilever into a photodiode (detector). The vertical movements of the cantilever change the angle of incidence of the laser on the cantilever which consequently changes the angle of the outgoing beam, therefore changing the location of the photodiode that is hit by the beam. With some fun trigonometry involved, a computer can calculate the surface morphology, giving rise to an image similar to that shown in Figure 1.
Figure 2. Schematic of AFM functioning. The photodiode records variations in the reflection angle of the laser due to movements of the cantilever. The recorded signal is then used by a computer to build the image.
Why is it important in nanoscience?
The ability to “see” extremely small particles, which are often sensitive to other destructive imaging techniques, is a huge advantage per se. Furthermore, in an AFM instrument particles can be studied at the atomic resolution (“seeing” atom by atom) in environmental conditions or even immersed a liquid, which cannot be achieved with other imaging methods of comparable resolution, such as scanning and transmission electron microscopy.
Figure 3. Atomic resolution image of graphene, proving its uniform honey comb structure.
For example, AFM can be used to study biological materials and even living organisms. Additionally, AFM instruments are very handy and efficient tools that can be easily moved to the field. They are for example very useful to inspect the fuselage of airplanes, allowing the investigators to find defects in the fuselage even at the micro scale. Thankfully they do not need to take the airplanes to the lab, but instead they take the AFM instrument to the airplane!
Are you impressed with the capabilities of Atomic Force Microscopy? If you think that imaging is all that it can do, you had better keep reading.
Figure 4. Schematic interaction between the AFM tip and the sample surface for identification of individual surface atoms. Adapted from Sugimoto et al. (2007).
Another major application of AFM is called force spectroscopy. Force spectroscopy allows scientists to measure the interaction between the tip of the probe (cantilever) and the sample, and has allowed scientists to measure the hardness of small materials, such as the membrane of a cell. It can also be used for more refined chemical investigations, such as bond energies, Van der Walls forces and dissolution forces – all this at a scale where materials often times show very odd properties, compared to their macro-scale properties. Indeed, measurement of some of these properties used to be a challenge even in macro-scale materials before AFM instruments were invented, let alone in nanomaterials!
Interestingly some AFM instruments with properly developed cantilever tips (atomic scale tips) can even be used to identify individual surface atoms. Atoms can have different electronic properties due to the number and arrangement of their electrons, therefore the electronic interaction of those atoms with the tip will be also different.
By now you should have a good idea of the potential applications of AFM in nanoscience. The study of all these properties is essential to understand the behavior of nanoparticles not only in the environment but also in industrial applications. AFM has allowed scientists to gain new and important knowledge about the physico-chemistry of innumerous nanomaterials over the years!
← VTSuN is now part of the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure! | https://blogs.lt.vt.edu/sustainablenano/2015/09/28/atomic-force-microscopy-application-in-nanoscience/?replytocom=38836 |
William H. McNeill was the Robert A. Milikin Professor of History at the University of Chicago from 1947-1987. He earned his Bachelor of Art and Master of Art degrees from the University of Chicago before being drafted into the U.S. Army in 1941, where he served in the European theatre. Upon his return to the United States, he worked towards his PhD under Carl L. Becker at Cornell University. After a long and distinguished career, he died in 2016.
In contrast to Oswald Spengler’s view of detached and independent civilizations in his work, Decline of the West, McNeill wrote The Shape of European History, where he argued that contact and exchange between civilizations is the driving force behind human history. Through a process of cultural exchange, conquest and appropriation of technology, art, and music, societies innovate, or in some cases, are subsumed into the dominant culture (e.g., the Roman’s adopted Greek art, religion and theater). McNeill emphasized European contributions to world civilizations and posited that the main causes of historical change have been through encounters amongst strangers. In the first two chapters of The Shape of European History, McNeill discusses theory. He noted that throughout much of the middle ages, and up until the seventeenth century, historians had a fundamentally Christian view of history as exemplified by St. Augustine.This view was weakened with the development of physics and astronomy in the seventeenth century. Then, during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as philosophers debated the nature of God and concepts such as free will and reason became more prevalent, the older Providential view of human history faded. It was during this time that the field of history became professionalized and the “scientific” method was utilized to critique sources. As religion became a less significant factor in human affairs, the state as exemplified by the values of liberty, equalityand fraternityreplaced Christian doctrines as the dominant themes in European and by extension, American political discourse and culture and shaped the field of history for many generations.
Application
McNeill’s thesis, “This essay, as an effort to provoke reflection upon and to invite clarification of the share of European history…” accomplishes his goal. In the second chapter of the book, he treats the historical method and social process and defines the role of the historian; to assemble relevant facts, to identify and analyze patterns of behavior, and to shift and arrange data in ways that make sense so that a better understanding of the present can be determined through the events of the past. As historians are concerned with public affairs, they use common language so that their work is more accessible.
The subsequent chapters of the book take the reader on a journey through nearly 2000 years of European history in a concise and thorough way. He chronicles the genesis of high culture in each different region of Europe and reclaims Spanish Moslem culture and the Islamic steppe culture which, he noted, are usually not regarded as European at all, despite having occupied European territory. He acknowledged that this omission is the result of long-standing religious bias which characterized all virtuous things with Christianity and detested Islamic culture and contributions.
McNeill noted that, “As of 1973, at least, it looks as though Europe’s political history since 1917 had been dominated by two conflicting yet complimentary processes.” The first process, was the dominance of American and Russian wealth, power and influence where by this time, nearly every country in the world was aligned through politics, economics, or philosophy with each the West or East. He explained that this dominance replaced that of western European powers who had held sway during the nineteenth century. The second process he described was that of the consolidation of Europe into the European Union. At the time of the author’s writing, it was too early to know what the fate of these two processes would be. But, now, with forty-five years of hindsight, we know that these processes are in danger; the Soviet Union collapsed in 1989, there are calls to dismantle the European Union, and the United States’ influence in the world is waning due to many factors including unending wars and internal political upheaval.
William H. McNeill admitted in his later years during an interview that his work suggested a bias characterized as intellectual imperialism through his emphasis the contribution of European civilization on the cultures of the world. However, his inclusion of Russian and Moslem contributions were refreshing and not topics typically included (in my experience) in European history.
Questions for Discussion
Does McNeill’s military service impact his perspective about the importance of European civilization on human history?
Is there evidence of bias in his work?
McNeill proposed that Greek Athenians reached high culture because of agriculture and solidarity building. He attributed these same causes to other civilizations throughout the book. Which ones?
Citation
McNeill, William H. The Shape of European History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1974.
William H. McNeill, The Shape of European History(New York: Oxford University Press, 1974), 6.
McNeill, 7.
McNeill, 94.
Ibid., 170. | https://www.smsharper.com/single-post/2019/05/11/book-review-the-shape-of-european-history |
As a cat parent, it's hard not to think of your kitty as a baby, even when they're well into their golden years. Because many cats retain their youthful behavior well into adulthood, it makes you wonder, when are cats full-grown adults and at what age are cats full-grown? Age and breed play a large part in when a kitten becomes a cat.
When Are Cats Full-Grown?
One day, you have a tiny kitten running around your house, and before you know it, they're a big cat. It may seem like they grow overnight, but cats actually go through five life stages, as explained by the American Association of Feline Practitioners and American Animal Hospital Association life stage guidelines. One way to determine when your cat is full-grown is to see into which category they fall into:
- Kitten (birth to six months)
- Junior (six months to two years)
- Prime (three to six years)
- Mature (seven to 10 years)
- Senior and geriatric (11 years and up)
Much like their human counterparts, the development stages of kittens are counted in weeks and months up until the age of two. At what age are cats full-grown? At about one year old. Cats reach adulthood in the junior stage moving into prime stage. You can think of this as your cat being in their late teens and 20s, young adults full of energy and verve.
Once your cat ages into adulthood, your veterinarian can help you determine your cat's ideal weight and recommend a meal plan to help optimize their health. You can work together to modify this plan as your cat moves into each new life stage. It's important to schedule this visit so that these baselines can be established, allowing you to keep an eye on your cat's wellness as they age.
How Do Gender and Breed Affect a Cat's Size?
Once your cat is officially a grown-up, they reach their full size. A cat's size is determined by their genetics: The average house cat weighs between six and 12 pounds and is about 18 inches long and 10 inches tall. A cat's weight may fluctuate as they age, but physical traits such as size, as well as eye color, body length, coat pattern and texture, are fully developed by the age of two. Generally speaking, male cats are larger than female cats in height, length and weight. This is common among mammals, reports Science Daily, and researchers chalk it up to natural selection.
Depending on their breed, some cats are smaller or larger than average once they're full-grown. The Merck Veterinary Manual notes that "only 5 to 10 pounds separate the smallest and largest domestic breeds of cats," but when you're talking about small creatures like the house cat, that's a big difference. There are many cat breeds throughout the world. The International Cat Association recognizes 71 pedigree breeds as well as mixed breeds — each of which comes with its own size determinations.
Keep in mind that the weight of average cats is determined based on cats of a healthy weight and body condition score. Overweight or underweight cats may differ from these averages, so it is always good to speak to your veterinarian about what a healthy weight should be for your particular kitty to ensure they remain as healthy as possible.
Pedigree and Mixed-Breed Cats
If your cat is a pedigree breed, you have a better sense of what their full size will be, points out the Cornell Feline Health Center at Cornell University, but with a mixed breed, it's difficult to know for sure. If you adopt a certified pedigree breed like the Maine Coon, for instance, you know you're getting a large furry friend — male Maine Coons can weigh up to 25 pounds and measure up to 40 inches long! On the flip side, the smallest cat breed, the Singapura, weighs at the most eight pounds and only measures around eight inches tall and 12 inches long. Not only is the Singapura smaller, but they also reach adulthood later, around two years of age.
Mixed breed cats are a wonderful amalgamation of multiple breeds that create a unique cat, and you never know what you're going to get! It's fun to see what dominant traits your mixed-breed kitty acquires as they grow into an adult.
If you've raised your cat from a kitten or the junior stage of life, you have a pretty good idea of their temperament and social-emotional needs. You also know their favorite napping spot and favorite toy. As your furry friend grows up, you also want to ensure that they have a well-balanced, nutritious meal plan that's formulated for their age range, so they get the vitamins and nutrients they need. | https://www.hillspet.com/cat-care/behavior-appearance/when-are-cats-full-grown |
One of the hardest challenges an individual faces in their life is the passing of a family member. Losing a spouse, sibling, parent or grandparent can be particularly excruciating. And while loss is a natural part of life, the impact it has on us can shove us in shock, confusion and pain. Your initial grief may be extreme, with pain still trailing you as time passes. Sometimes, losing a parent can affect your everyday life, for weeks or even years, and understandably so. The sadness lessens with time, but no one decides how long your grieving process goes on, there is no right or wrong time.
No matter the relationship you had with the deceased, losing a family member can feel like crushing pain in your chest. Everyone reacts differently to death and loss, employing coping mechanisms that help them overcome their grief. You could be embracing one of the phases of grief without knowing, not particularly in progressive steps. If your relationship was difficult, a new emotional dimension will possibly be added to your grief. Conflicting emotions may rise and it would require time and perspective to heal and cope with the loss.
Yet research has shown that with a social support group and mindful habits, one can recover fairly quickly. While there’s no right or wrong way to cope, there are a few methods that you can embrace to recognise your pain and begin healing.
1. Understand your feelings are valid
Grief sometimes opens a wave of emotions that may not always make sense. Sadness is one of the most common feelings after facing such a loss but it’s okay if you don’t feel sad. There could be emptiness, anxiety, frustration, or a sense of unreality. A significant loss has naturally significant impacts on your wellbeing that can seem difficult to cope with.
A few emotions that could take over include:
- Regret
- Remorse
- Anxiety
- Numbness
- Hopelessness or despair
- Physical pain
- Anger or frustration
- Confusion or disbelief
- Relief that their suffering is over
2. Let yourself feel everything
There’s no right way of grieving, no time limit and no steps you need to follow to reach acceptance. Not allowing yourself to be aware of your present emotions may seem like the pain will end quicker but burying your grief can be damaging. Don’t let anyone’s opinions or expectations rush you into something you’re not ready for. Let the process unfold for you naturally. It may compel you to force a few unpleasant realities that are difficult yet necessary.
3. Talk about the death
Grieving such a major loss takes time but it could help if you express yourself amongst colleagues or with friends or family. It would help you understand and find support rather than push you into isolation. Grieving is a personal process that can feel lonely but there are people who will support you unconditionally.
4. Take care of your wellbeing
A loss can affect your state of mind significantly. Poor concentration, sleep problems, frustration, increased substance use could plague you. You could also be facing the stress of wrapping up your loved one’s affairs or work could be difficult to juggle. Eating nutritious food, exercising and getting plenty of sleep can restore physical and emotional health. Don’t skip any meals, drink a lot of water, indulge in mindful habits like meditation or journaling to process your emotions.
5. Help others dealing with the loss
Spending time with your family can help everyone feel connected while coping with the loss. Sharing stories or watching their favourite movie could feel like you’re keeping their memory alive. These small efforts could help someone else or even you cope. Helping someone will help you feel better as well.
6. Remember and celebrate their lives
We often focus on the one we lose but we never celebrate the life that they’ve lived. Loss is extremely difficult but taking the time to remember and honour the memory of the ones gone can celebrate everything that they added to so many people’s lives. Passing on a family name to a baby or starting a family ritual in their memory could honour the relationship that you all shared.
Embrace the power of positive affirmations to heal emotionally.
Sometimes, it may feel as though nothing you do will fill the emptiness inside of you. But you don’t need to face these emotions alone. There are support groups you can join, online chat forums, professionals that you can reach out to. Gaining support can help you honour their memory and regain your sense of self.
Read more: 9 Thoughtful Valentine’s Gift Ideas Packed With Love
Like & Follow ThinkRight.me on Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram to stay connected. | https://www.thinkrightme.com/coping-with-the-loss-of-a-family-member/ |
Passengers vomited after being thrown in the air by severe mid-flight turbulence that left a plane strewn with objects.
Three hours before it was due to reach its destination of Dubai on July 10, Flight EK449 from Auckland hit a unstable patch of air.
The Emirates A380 aircraft suddenly started lurching up and down, throwing passengers around in their seats.
Video footage of the aftermath of the turbulence shows a food trolley smashed on the floor.
Smashed bottles of champagne, plastic bottles and other broken items were spilled across business class.
As well as casting debris across the plane, the turbulence left passengers seriously shaken up.
Beverley Glover was left with bruises on both her legs.
"We were travelling in business class and yes I was one of the passengers who was 'airborne' and then slammed down into my seat," she told Stuff.
"The Emirates staff and captain were most attentive and offered me assistance. I suffered severe bruising to both legs and a painful thigh."
Fortunately Beverely had returned from the bar area to her seat shortly before the turbulence began.
Fellow passenger Becky Lasenby described the bumpy ride as "pretty scary" and said her daughter her vomited into a goodie bag.
"Unfortunately a few passengers and crew suffered minor injuries during this incident. First aid was administered and medical assistance was arranged for those who needed it on arrival," a spokesperson for the airline said.
"The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is always our top priority."
Turbulence is the irregular motion of air caused be eddies and currents.
While pilots are sometimes able to see it coming and warn passengers to buckle up, on other occasions it comes on suddenly. | https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/horror-emirates-flight-severe-turbulence-18262243 |
Human Interest/Community Benefit:
The rural town of Shoshone is a Mojave Desert Community intentionally transitioning from a mining economy to one based on ecotourism. An abundance of natural thermal spring water makes this a literal oasis in the desert east of Death Valley National Park. Visitors are drawn for the birding, scenery, geology, cultural history, and to experience remote wilderness and the Wild and Scenic Amargosa River Corridor. Many of these visitors are from Europe or southern California, and have no idea there are fish living in the desert—much less have seen any. As the word spreads more people are deliberately travelling to Shoshone to sightsee for pupfish. Purposeful and casual pupfish visitors alike are inspired by the story of a manifestly successful rescue of a species from near-extinction.
Project Timeline: Project was completed in spring 2014
Economic Calculator results:
Jobs: 0.5078
Total Sales: USD 58,008.43
Value Added: USD 34,883.98
Income: USD 26,436.54
Partners: Desert Fish Habitat Partnership, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Shoshone Development Corporation, California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Muddy River, NV
DFHP 2014 Project
The Muddy River Ecosystem Recovery project is designed to recover the endemic Moapa dace (Moapa coriacea) and other native biodiversity dependent upon the Muddy River in southern Nevada. It is a basin wide recovery effort focused primarily on upstream portions of the river (springheads, springbrooks), but extending downstream nearly 30 km to Lake Mead. Moapa dace is a unique genus of endangered fish with the highest recovery priority possible (recovery priority 1c).
Other native species that benefit from this recovery include the Virgin River chub (Gila seminuda), which is an endangered species in the Virgin River (of which the Muddy River is a tributary), and three mollusks (Pyrgulopsis avernalis, P. carinifera, Tryonia clathrata) that were petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act and found to warrant further consideration for listing. The Muddy River also supports endangered southwestern willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) and many other wildlife species.
Beyond the recovery goals detailed above, this project also builds trust among its many partners which helps facilitate other recovery efforts in southern Nevada and the southwest generally. As importantly, this project demonstrates the power of cooperation in achieving effective conservation progress at local and watershed scales.
The Muddy River is a major river in southern Nevada centered about 30 miles NE of Las Vegas (population of about 2 million). Many places of human interest exist along and near the Muddy River, including Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge and Warm Springs Natural Area at its headwaters, the towns of Moapa, Logandale, and Overton downstream, and many scenic destinations such as Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Valley of Fire State Park, and several established and proposed wilderness areas.
Although partners in the Muddy River ecosystem recovery project bring different values, motivations, and perspectives to the effort, their focus on the common goal of recovering the Muddy River helps to create consensus and support. Even a local newspaper (the Moapa Valley Progress) has consistently reported in a balanced fashion that helps create community interest and a sense of benefit, particularly as recovery progress has recently accelerated.
Two projects at the Muddy River have been funded at least in part by the Desert Fish Habitat Partnership: Apcar Culvert Replacement and Muddy River Stream Bank Habitat Rehabilitation. The Apcar project was completed in 2013 and now connects vital breeding areas (upstream) with holding areas (downstream) for Moapa dace. The Stream Bank Habitat Rehabilitation project was developed by the Moapa Band of Paiutes (a sovereign tribe) and is a 2014 DFHP project.
Currently, a large portion of the lower reaches of the Muddy River and the associated riparian area are degraded due to historical river dredging, overgrazing and streambed trampling by cattle. In addition, invasion of Salt Cedar (Tamarisk) and Phragmites has replaced native cottonwood and willow vegetation. Implementing a stream bank stabilization project and habitat improvement plan along the Muddy River will result in improved fisheries habitat for the Virgin River chub and Moapa speckled dace. The Muddy River Stream Bank Habitat Rehabilitation project will entail removal of invasive species (Tamarisk and Phragmites) and stream bank restoration utilizing natural stream bank stabilization techniques (bioengineering techniques). This project is scheduled to be completed in May 2015. Outreach for this project will begin in March 2015. The Moapa Band of Paiutes will begin site tours and prepare brochures and training material for Tribal members and the public on the importance of the Muddy River and its critical fisheries habitat.
The Muddy River recovery effort received major national funding (>$800K) in early 2014 for chemical eradication of exotic fish plus some habitat restoration. This work should foster substantial recovery over the next 3 years (the implementation period) and beyond. Hence, the Muddy River will definitely be a “Water to Watch” this coming year and for the next several years to follow.
Partners: The partnership detailed below involves national, state, and local jurisdictions, plus many other entities that cooperate to recover the Muddy River ecosystem. While local attitudes about conservation are often mixed, successes in recent years at reversing the decline of Moapa dace plus other accomplishments have helped strengthen this partnership. Partners include several programs in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge, Ecological Services, Fisheries), Desert Fish Habitat Partnership, Nevada Department of Wildlife, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Moapa Valley Water District, Nevada Energy, Moapa Band of Paiutes, Clark County, The Nature Conservancy, Coyote Springs Investments LLC (a development firm), U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Natural Resource Conservation Service, university academics, and private landowners.
Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge (MVNWR) and Warm Springs Natural Area (WSNA) have volunteer programs focused on helping the public appreciate and understand the natural spring-fed ecosystems that merge to form the Muddy River ecosystem. Nevada Department of Wildlife also has a volunteer program that has involved Muddy River work on an intermittent basis. Several Eagle Scout projects were focused at WSNA. And the formal volunteer group Friends of the Desert National Wildlife Refuge offers public outreach events at MVNWR each year.
http://fishhabitat.org/partnership/desert-fish-habitat-partnership
Balmorhea Springs, TX
DFHP 2013 Project
This spring system supports three endangered fish species and four species of concern. They are threatened by issues including complete dewatering, depletion of aquifers by groundwater pumping, conversion for agricultural or recreation use, and poor land management practices. Management of spring and ciénega systems requires a holistic, watershed approach with private, state, federal, and local partners to conserve, restore, and address threats to these important desert habitats.
Project Partners:
Desert Fish Habitat Partnership
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
US Fish and Wildlife Service
US Bureau of Reclamation
The Nature Conservancy
Dexter National Fish Hatchery and Technology Center
Reeves County Water Improvement District
Texas Department of Agriculture
Environmental Protection Agency
USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service
Texas Agricultural Extension Service
University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas – Pan American
Sul Ross University
Texas Department of Transportation
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
Educational Foundation of America
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
City of Balmorhea
Weber River, UT
DFHP 2012 Project
This project is intended to protect native fishes and improve water use efficiency for water companies in the Weber River drainage. It will re-connect 17.5 total river miles and allow native trout and sucker species to pass one mainstem diversion and two culvert barriers in two tributaries.
Habitat fragmentation is the primary threat to the persistence of the bonneville cutthroat trout population. These barriers have fragmented mainstem and spawning habitats. Restoring connectivity at these sites is a critical step towards improving the resiliency and genetic diversity of this population.
Partners:
Trout Unlimited (TU)
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
Utah Dept. of Transportation
Myton Diversion Fish Passage (Duchesne River), UT
DFHP 2011 Project
The Myton Diversion, located approximately 43 river miles above the confluence with the Green River and does not currently allow fish to move from the lower reaches of the Duchesne River into the upper reaches of the Duchesne River.
A fish passage structure will restore connectivity between fish populations above and below the diversion, which will restore gene flow and migratory capabilities of the species and improve habitat.
The Myton Diversion Fish Passage project is expected to restore connectivity to populations of flannelmouth sucker, bluehead sucker, and roundtail chub existing above and below the diversion and to allow movement upstream for Colorado pikeminnow.
To read the full article click here
Fairbanks & Soda Springs, NV
DFHP 2010 Project
Ash Meadows within the Amargosa River system in southern Nevada is a unique desert wetlands complex supporting one of the highest levels of indigenousness species in North America. Designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 1986, Ash Meadows contains at least 25 unique species and subspecies dependent on these isolated spring and wetland habitats including three endemic fishes, the Ash Meadows and Warm Springs pupfish and Ash Meadows speckled dace, which occur nowhere else in the world.
Through historic development for agriculture, the surface hydrology and aquatic habitats in Ash Meadows have been highly modified by spring diversion, peat mining, irrigation ditches, and water storage impoundments. Anthropogenic landscape alteration has resulted in the loss of habitats vital for the recovery of the Ash Meadows speckled dace and Ash Meadows pupfish and has resulted in the alteration of hydrologic processes that create and maintain those aquatic habitats.
This project through the Desert Fish Habitat Partnership, under the National Fish Habitat Action Plan, supports the restoration of Fairbanks and Soda Springs as a component of the larger Upper Carson Slough restoration across the northern extent of Ash Meadows National Wildlife Reserve. The restoration actions will restore hydrologic processes and create critically needed aquatic habitat for native species within the Fairbanks and Soda Springs spring brook outflow systems which historically supported important populations of Ash Meadows pupfish, speckled dace, endemic aquatic invertebrates and spring snails, and provide connectivity to Carson Slough downstream to enhance genetic exchange and increase habitat for the Ash Meadows pupfish.
The Ash Meadows pupfish occupies numerous springs and outflow channels within Ash Meadows and populations also exist in Crystal Reservoir, Lower Crystal Marsh, and Peterson Reservoir, but because the habitats of the Ash Meadows pupfish comprise most of the surface water in the area, they were the most altered during agricultural development. The entire habitat of this species has been affected by diversion into earthen or concrete channels, impoundments, drying caused by groundwater pumping, or elimination of riparian vegetation.
Ash Meadows Speckled Dace once shared many of the same springs and outflows that the Ash Meadows pupfish inhabits, but they are now only found in two springs (Bradford Spring and Jackrabbit Spring) in stable populations. Loss of faster-flowing, cool water because of habitat alteration, along with introduced aquatic species has prevented the reintroduction of the Ash Meadows speckled dace into most of its historic habitat, including the Fairbanks Spring system.
This project will implement aquatic habitat enhancement and restoration activities including spring source re-shaping/modification, stream channel excavation and construction, installation of fish barriers for future invasive fish species control, road improvement, and the installation of stream crossing structures, improving drainage and restoring hydrologic processes within the Upper Carson Slough complex. These actions to be completed in 2010 will promote fish passage, habitat restoration, and species recovery, including creation of approximately 4.2 miles of stream channel, restoration of approximately 180 acres of emergent marsh and wetland habitat, and allowing re-establishment of Ash Meadows speckled dace in the Fairbanks Spring outflow system to restore a population of this endangered fish which was extirpated more than 50 years ago.
Partners: | https://www.desertfhp.org/copia-de-waters-to-watch |
The United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map is used by farmers and gardeners to determine the average, or the range, of the annual minimum winter temperature of different regions of the country. This map is divided into 10-degree Fahrenheit zones
Plants that are hardy to zone 10 are those that can withstand a minimum temperature of 30 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
In this article, we will discuss 10 of the best succulents that can thrive in these environments, to help you understand exactly what you can plant in your outdoor and indoor gardens.
10 best succulents for zone 10
1. Cactus
Cacti are some of the hardiest succulents around. They are able to store water in their bodies and use this to survive extended periods of drought.
They can grow in most climates around the world; many different cacti can be found in North America and East Africa, for example, and not just desert climates.
Some cacti have even been found in cold climates, as well as some in rainforests.
This resilience is one of the reasons these plants have become so popular among home gardeners.
They also come in different shapes and sizes, so gardeners have many options when it comes to adding these plants to their collections.
Examples of cacti that do well in hardiness zone 10 are the Golden Barrel, Peanut, Lady Finger, Dwarf Chin, Powder Puff, Thimble and Christmas cacti.
2. Aeonium
Aeonium succulents include more than 30 different species and typically have waxy or glossy leaves that grow in a rosette formation.
The leaves are often rounded and are arranged so symmetrically that the plants are frequently mistaken for fakes. The leaf color can be green, red, yellow, or white.
These plants grow star-shaped flowers in clusters at the center of the rosettes.
In warmer climates, aeoniums grow well directly in the ground, but they are just fine planted in containers or pots as well.
In colder climates, it is best to bring them indoors in their pots when winter comes around.
Examples of aeoniums that do well in hardiness zone 10 are Aeonium Black Rose, Kiwi, Lily Pad, Mardi Gras, Suncup and Sunburst.
3. Echeveria
Echeverias also grow in rosette formation and come in a variety of colors and sizes that you can choose from.
They produce flowers that are either red-orange, yellow-tipped or pink.
Echeverias are faster-growing succulents than most, which is why they make great ground cover for gardens.
These plants thrive in hot, dry conditions and do not do that well in cold temperatures for extended periods.
In hardiness zone 10 they can be planted directly in the ground, but if you live in colder places, they might be better off in pots or containers so they can be easily brought indoors during the winter.
Examples of Echeveria varieties that do well in zone 10 are the Painted Nodusula, Black Prince, Topsy turvy, Black Knight, Raindrops, White Rose, Blue Sky and Lipstick echeverias.
4. Sedum
Sedums come in an extensive array of shapes, sizes and colors.
They are also known as stonecrop succulents, and they can withstand long periods of drought thanks to their fleshy leaves that can absorb and store water.
These plants produce star-like flowers that bloom during the late growing season.
The best time to plant sedums is in late spring. They grow moderately fast, depending on the variety you have.
There are some sedums that may not grow well in hardiness zone 10, but generally speaking, these plants are tolerant of a wide range of temperatures.
Examples of sedums that do well in zone 10 are the Donkey’s Tail, California Sunset, Little Gem, FireStorm, Jelly Bean and Major sedums.
5. Senecio
There are over 1,000 Senecio varieties all over the world, and 100 of these are succulents.
These succulents are typically grown in outdoor gardens in warmer climates, and in containers in colder climates.
They are considered toxic to animals, so make sure you keep them out of your pets’ reach for their safety.
Most senecios thrive anywhere between hardiness zones 9 to 12, as many of them are heat tolerant. However, extended exposure to cold temperatures is not advisable as this can easily cause the plant to go mushy and die.
Senecio varieties that thrive in Zone 10 are the pickle plant, the candle plant, vertical leaf senecio, ruby necklace, swizzle sticks and blue chalk sticks.
6. Crassula
Crassulas comprise a genus of over 200 species. The most popular member of this genus is probably Crassula ovata, or the jade plant.
Crassulas can either look like small trees or grow like shrubs, and they can be woody or herbaceous.
These plants are slow-growers that can be grown both indoors and outdoors. They can be toxic to pets, so keep them out of reach for your pet’s safety.
Crassulas can be grown outdoors in hardiness zones 9 to 12. If you live in a region where the winters can get quite cold, then they may be better off as houseplants.
A mild frost is okay for some varieties, but extended exposures to temperatures lower than 30 degrees Fahrenheit may be enough to kill the plants.
Crassulas that thrive in hardiness zone 10 include the Shark Tooth, Camp Fire, Baby Necklace, Silver Springtime, Gollum Jade, Moonglow, Falcata and Tiger’s Jaw crassulas.
7. Aloe
Aloes are some of the most popular succulents grown around the world. The gel contained in their leaves has medicinal benefits, such as a skin salve for minor burns and wounds.
While Aloe vera is the most popular, there are actually more than 300 aloe species. The leaves of these plants grow from the base and form a rosette, and it takes most aloes four years to reach full maturity as they are relatively fast-growing succulents.
Aloes grow best between 50 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. They can probably tolerate short periods of frost, but need to be taken indoors if the cold weather is expected to go on for extended periods.
Aloe varieties that do well in zone 10 are the Aloe polyphylla, Aloe aculeata, climbing Aloe, and the shortleaf Aloe.
8. Sempervivum
Sempervivums are another type of succulents that requires very little care and attention to grow. They are hardy plants whose leaves also grow in a beautiful, symmetrical rosette formation.
These are slow-growing succulents that tend to remain green throughout the year, even in colder climates. They can grow in poor conditions and do well in a wide range of temperatures.
They do best between 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit, and if they are exposed to temperatures lower than 30 degrees Fahrenheit for extended periods, they may die or go into a semi-dormant state.
Examples of sempervivums that do well in zone 10 are the Fashion Diva, Greenii, Killer and Terracotta Baby sempervivums.
9. Cotyledon
Cotyledons are native to the southern parts of Africa, and there are over two dozen species of these shrub-like succulents. Most members of this genus have tubular flowers and globular seeds.
These plants are toxic when consumed, so make sure you keep them far out of the reach of small children and pets.
If you live in a climate that typically has below-freezing temperatures, you might need to take these plants indoors during the winter. Remember that these plants are not frost-tolerant and could die when left out in the cold.
There are species of cotyledon that can handle extreme heat better than others.
Examples of cotyledons that do well in zone 10 include the bear’s paw plant, Cotyledon pendens, pig’s ear plant, and the Gray Sticks cotyledon.
10. Kalanchoe
The kalanchoe genus includes over 100 species of plants. These have become quite popular because they are low-maintenance and have unique-looking leaves, as well as flowers that bloom repeatedly if exposed to the right amount of light.
Kalanchoes are slow-growing plants that may take anywhere between two and five years to reach full maturity. They can come in white, yellow, pink or red.
Remember that these plants can be toxic to dogs and cats, so make sure they are kept far away from your pets.
They thrive in temperatures between 55 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and can only really survive in zones 10 to 12.
They cannot tolerate temperatures below 30 degrees Fahrenheit, so if you live in a place with frosty temperatures, you may need to bring them in from the cold so that they do not die.
Examples of kalanchoes that do well in zone 10 are Kalanchoe panamensis, Lavender Scallops, Flapjacks, Chocolate Soldier and Mother of Thousands.
Conclusion
Beginner gardeners may have a hard time finding the right succulents to plant in their part of the country because the plants that they would like to own are not conducive to that region’s hardiness zone.
Zone 10 hardiness refers to plants that can withstand a minimum temperature of 30 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and the plants listed in this article are great choices for both indoor and outdoor plants if you live in a zone 10 region. You can mix and match these plants to your heart’s desire to maximize the attractiveness of your garden. | https://gardential.com/best-succulents-for-zone-10 |
What Is a Game?
What Is a Game?
A game is a form of interactive entertainment. Its objective is to elicit a response from the player. While other forms of entertainment may require a script and the participation of others, video games are a form of entertainment that involves interaction. A player must make decisions, solve puzzles, and manipulate resources to win the game. This is where the role of the player is crucial. The goal of a game is to have fun, but it can also have serious implications.
A game is characterized by the actions of players. This is known as gameplay, and the tools and rules are considered major key elements. These are used to describe the game’s context. In the top row are pieces from different games, such as chess pieces, Monopoly tokens, and hotels. At the bottom of the row are checkers pieces. In addition to their role in the game, these elements often help define a game’s purpose.
A game is a type of entertainment. It involves interaction between a player and a machine. It can involve other players. It is mediated by a meaningful fictional context and sustained by an emotional attachment to the outcomes. These factors make games so popular and addictive that they are often seen as an entertainment source. Many people play games for leisure and as a way to get away from their daily lives. The benefits of playing games are well worth exploring, but you should remember to make time for these activities.
The term “game” refers to a type of competitive activity that requires several players. It may involve teams of players or independent opponents. Because of their complexity, such games are difficult to analyze informally using game theory. In addition to competitive sports, it can also involve board games. Most popular games are board games, competitive sports, and cooperative activities. In fact, many of the world’s most popular people play board games and other types of games.
A game is an activity that elicits different kinds of emotions. Some people find them uplifting, while others find them depressing. The main goal of a game is to achieve a certain goal or win a prize. A player may not realize that their actions have no impact on reality, but it is still an activity. It is important to understand the various types of games before starting any type of game. It’s important to know what games are and what their purpose is.
A game is an activity in which a player interacts with an electronic device. A game is a form of communication between two people. The interaction between the player and the machine is the main component of a videogame. Both players can share and play these games and communicate with each other through a variety of media. A game can be as simple or as complex as a computer program. Ultimately, however, it’s up to the player to determine whether or not a game is worth playing. | https://www.ostriga.org/what-is-a-game-4/ |
EXCLUSIVE: Nearly two-fifths (39%) of respondents do not know the approximate cost of providing healthcare benefits, an increase of 9% since 2017, according to research by Employee Benefits and Health Shield.
The Employee Benefits/Health Shield healthcare research 2018, which surveyed 162 respondents and was published in August, also found that, of those who are aware of their healthcare costs, 31% spend between 1% and 3% of payroll and 17% spend less than 1%. These figures are broadly the same as last year’s, give or take a few percentage points.
Overall, there has been little movement in healthcare spend in recent years; in 2013, 20% invested less than 1% of payroll, and 30% spent between 1% and 3%.
The number of respondents who calculate their return on investment (ROI) has risen slightly, from 12% in 2017 to 14% this year. Although this figure is still surprisingly low when considering the sometimes considerable spend in this area, it is reassuring that the percentage planning to do so has jumped from 19% last year to 28% in 2018. Meanwhile, 58% say they have no plans to measure ROI, compared with 69% last year. | https://employeebenefits.co.uk/exclusive-39-cost-healthcare-benefits/ |
Pain de Bretonne
Before I start on the recipes using Ruch flour, I want to include one more buckwheat recipe on the blog. I have already noticed that dough made with buckwheat does not require intensive kneading. In this recipe, the dough is only mixed slowly for 3 minutes following the autolyze. Mixing for any longer or adding a kneading step would destroy the dough structure and only make further work more difficult.
Similar to the previous buckwheat recipe, I wouldn’t give this dough a long cold proof. I find that buckwheat dough doesn’t hold up well over longer timings and simply breaks down too much with that method.
It is better to let the shaped dough proof at room temperature and then to stick in the oven once it has proofed accordingly.
Recipe
For 1 Breton loaf / dough weight: 1427g
Sourdough:
- 130g French flour type 80
- 65g water
- 65g starter
DT: 26-28°C RT: 12-15 hours TA: 160
Main dough:
- 260g mature sourdough
- 500g French flour type 65
- 165g Buckwheat flour
- 480g Water
Briefly mix sourdough, water and flour and let sit for 20 minutes to autolyze.
- 20g salt
- 2g yeast
Mix in the salt and yeast and mix slowly for another 3-4 minutes.
Instructions:
- After the dough has been made, let it rise in an oiled tub for 90 minutes, folding twice over this time.
- Then divide the dough into one piece of 300g and eight pieces of 140g and loosely form into rounds.
- After resting for 20 minutes, roll the 300g piece out into a flat round (diameter 25cm) and lay it in a couronne proofing basket. Place the 8 pieces of 140g each on top of the flat dough round (the pieces must be seamside-UP!!)
- Once the dough pieces are on the flat round, cut the part of the round that is still visible (at the center of the proofing basket) into a star-like shape and fold this down so that it rests on top of the 8 dough pieces.
- Let proof at 18-22°C.
- When the dough is 2/3 proofed, place into the oven at 250°C with steam. After 15 minutes lower the temperature to 210°C.
- Total baking time should not exceed 50 minutes. To further the crust formation, the steam can be released at the end of the baking time. | https://www.homebaking.at/en/pain-de-bretonne/ |
Project Summary Novel analytic paradigms allowing for a fully integrated interrogation of regulatory elements, protein-coding genes, demographic characteristics and environmental factors on evoked and dynamic traits are essential for providing new insight into the mechanistic underpinnings of genetic associations. In this proposal we aim to develop, evaluate and apply sound statistical methods for leveraging and integrating the vast amount of publicly available multi-omic data resources to improve understanding of the mechanistic relationships among genes and regulatory elements associated with complex traits. As activation of innate immunity is a fundamen- tal pathophysiological process in cardiometabolic disease, e.g., atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes, as well as complex in?ammatory disorders, e.g., response to sepsis and trauma, our understanding of the genetic under- pinnings of these evoked in?ammatory biomarkers, provides clinically relevant impact toward development of novel prognostic markers and therapeutic targets in complex diseases. Advancing knowledge of the molecular and physiological underpinnings of complex diseases will deepen insight into disease etiology, while providing opportunity to develop targeted interventions and lessen disease morbidity and mortality. The Speci?c Aims are to: (1) Develop a novel statistical framework for inferential transcriptome association analysis using reference data for rigorous interrogation of regulatory and gene-level underpinnings of dynamic response(s) to stimulus. We will develop novel and precise estimation and hypothesis testing strategies to inves- tigate and characterize the mechanistic foundations of genomic class-level associations with biological response to in?ammatory stress. (2) Extend the methodology of Aim 1 to incorporate repeatedly measured transcriptome data, multiple expression patterns, and high linkage disequilibrium within genomic classes.. We will advance the solid conceptual framework of Aim 1 to develop strategies for evaluating time varying transcriptome pro- ?les as well as data on multiple cell and tissue types and several genes and regulatory elements. (3) Apply and evaluate the methods of Aims 1 and 2 through leveraging multiple sources of layered -omics data, including cell and tissue speci?c expression. In addition to fully vetting the proposed methods and comparing to existing alternative strategies using extensive simulation studies, we will further unravel and elucidate the mechanisms of gene and regulatory element control of induced response using multiple publicly-available reference tran- scriptome data resources and repeatedly measured biomarker data arising from the GENE study. In addition to supporting rigorous and novel statistical research at the forefront of precision medicine, this NIH Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) Program (R15) application aims to meet the speci?c NIH AREA objectives by offering a unique opportunity to expose and engage underrepresented undergradu- ate students in STEM to biomedical big data science, while strengthening the research environment at Mount Holyoke College (MHC), the world's longest standing institution of higher education for women. This applica- tion launches from an extensive, decade-long and highly productive trans-disciplinary collaboration. Building on a strong research and mentoring record, the proposed research offers novel statistical research addressing pressing challenges in precision medicine, while offering an important and unique opportunity to engage young women in cutting-edge biomedical big data research.
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Authors:
Sheena Erete, Aarti Israni, Tawanna Dillahunt
We need to acknowledge, respect, and identify the ways in which participants [from underserved communities] can disrupt research. —workshop participant, "Reflection on Design Methods for Underserved Communities," CSCW 2017
Recent HCI studies have emerged to account for the experiences and needs of underserved populations [1,2,3,4]. Focusing on members of these groups has led to the use of participatory design methods, which engage users as equal partners in the design process. However, we find that traditional research design methods (e.g., interviews, surveys), and even those participatory in nature, at times do not match the needs of our participants, leading to questions regarding the effectiveness of these methods among certain populations. Many of these methods do not account for the challenges faced by communities that have systematically experienced discrimination due to unfair policies and social practices.
Such populations have traditionally been marginalized in technology design. Yet there is a growing opportunity to design technologies that support issues such as economic development , health and wellness , and political engagement in underserved communities. Given the growing interest in designing technologies that address challenges faced by underserved communities, it is important to understand how to adapt design methods that better attend to the complexities (e.g., historical context, power relations) that impact participants' ability to engage as equal partners in inclusive technology design.
Toward identifying best practices to support successful approaches to designing with underserved populations, we held a workshop at CSCW 2017, "Reflection on Design Methods for Underserved Communities," with 17 researchers who employ HCI research and design methods to address the needs of these communities. The primary goals of this workshop were to discuss our experiences and challenges when using HCI design methods with underserved communities and to collaboratively develop new methods and guidelines for the design process. Participants were divided into groups of five or six and were asked to discuss and document the challenges they had faced when working with their target populations, and the lessons learned in the process. Participants were later asked to brainstorm strategies to overcome the challenges that had surfaced in prior discussions. After each discussion, participants reported the insights that emerged to the rest of the group, prompting a larger group discussion about universal challenges faced when designing with marginalized communities and ways to address them. Three primary takeaways emerged from these discussions.
It is essential but difficult to adapt appropriate design and research methods to support underserved communities. Most participants agreed that research methods must be tailored to support the unique needs of marginalized communities, but there was overwhelming doubt about when, why, and how methods should be adjusted. While participatory design methods (e.g., photo elicitation, prototyping) seek to engage participants in the research and design process as co-researchers, there are still challenges in fostering agency among members in underserved communities. For example, in populations with low sociotechnical backgrounds, members may have limited knowledge of or exposure to technology, and consequently may lack the skills or confidence to participate in technology design. Working with members of these communities then entails developing an understanding of their skills, abilities, and perceptions toward technology and adjusting methods to lower barriers to participation. Several workshop participants described how they modified traditional design methods; these modifications were not systematic and repeatable, but rather spontaneous and based on their experience in designing technology. Researchers, for example, must ensure that the language used during research engagements resonates with the community and is easily understood. Participants expressed the importance of using written and spoken language (e.g., IRB forms, interviews) that is "legible and not scary" to community members. Determining how and when to adjust language was not as clear. Additionally, participants acknowledged that their own biases could impact research processes and emphasized the importance of continual self-reflection when working with underserved communities.
As researchers, we must develop a shared understanding of the problems that are relevant to a community.
Engaging underserved communities in contributing and owning project goals and outcomes is vital but not easy. As researchers, we often have goals, assumptions, and even expected project outcomes before partnering with a community. In many cases, funding requirements dictate the need for established goals or projected outcomes prior to a project's commencement. However, workshop participants discussed the importance of engaging community members in defining the goals and outcomes that are important to them. As researchers, we must develop a shared understanding of the problems that are relevant to a community. But how do we align our outcomes given our funding obligations and other responsibilities that drive our research questions? Workshop participants suggested the need for long-term community partnerships, not relationships established only for the duration of a project. Through long-standing relationships, trust will emerge as the community's and researcher/designer's needs transform over years. These long-term partnerships would ideally lead to joint grant applications and new funding models.
By using a lens of intersectionality, we can examine individuals' experiences and identities in relation to power and privilege.
Responsibly engaging stakeholders in research and design takes time and trust. Members from underserved communities may be hesitant to participate in research, and building trust and rapport takes time. With an eye on building rapport and trusted relationships in their target communities, workshop participants voiced the importance of attending social events within the community, constructing research goals that align with community needs, and creating short-term wins that benefit community members. The key to these relationships is to continuously strengthen the relationship, recognizing the fragility of the trust that is being established. Thus, researchers should focus not simply on building rapport at the beginning of the research study, but instead on creating sustainable, reciprocal relationships that last far beyond the research study. Researchers should follow through on their promises to share their findings in a meaningful way and create technologies that are not removed at the conclusion of a study. Workshop participants also discussed the importance of recognizing that the experiences researchers have with members of underserved communities persist much longer than the study itself, thereby impacting future researchers. Future research can explore how past experiences in design impact underserved participants' willingness to engage in future design.
As researchers committed to equitable and inclusive technology design that accounts for the needs of marginalized communities, we will be the first to admit that we do not have a blueprint for how to engage with all communities. However, based on our review of existing literature, our experience conducting this research, and the lively discussions that ensued during the workshop, we see several opportunities for researchers to better engage with such communities.
Recent HCI studies have taken an intersectional approach to exploring how the design process can be improved [5,6]. Intersectionality is a framework that considers the various backgrounds and personal experiences that shape the lives and outcomes of marginalized populations, defined by factors including but not limited to race, gender, and class. Intersectionality suggests that people have unique experiences based on the combination of their identities and that it is impossible to understand discrimination and oppression by considering one singular identity, especially given that institutions have used identity to discriminate against some and privilege others (Figure 1). Drawing on intersectionality, we propose three principles that support an inclusive approach to technology design. By using a lens of intersectionality, we have the ability to examine individuals' experiences and identities in relation to power and privilege. We can draw on its framework to create principles that help scholars operationalize approaches to identifying systemic oppression due to inequalities that may exist at the institutional or structural level of society for any combination of identities.
|Figure 1. Intersecting axes of privilege, domination, and oppression. Adapted from .|
Understand and attend to context. Existing literature has highlighted the importance of accounting for context in technology design [3,6]. The communities we partner with are entangled in social, cultural, and political histories that impact their ability and motivation to engage in research and design. As our workshop participants noted, members of underserved communities may initially be hesitant to participate in research and design, and may even be skeptical about the role of research in their community due to histories of marginalization. Additionally, with limited exposure to technology, members may not feel that they have the prerequisite skills or knowledge needed to engage in design research methods. As researchers, it is essential that we understand and attend to the surrounding context of these communities. We suggest that researchers go beyond exploring the demographics and the challenges faced by members of underserved populations. Instead, to understand their local context, HCI researchers and designers should consider design methods, or even icebreaker activities, that delicately expose the various identities present, the historical oppression that may have been faced as a result of those identities, and the resilient ways in which members of underserved communities have overcome those challenges. For instance, in one of our participatory design sessions in a resource-constrained Chicago neighborhood, we asked residents to engage in a mapping activity to identify the environmental assets and challenges in their community. We then asked participants to describe the history and context of the assets and challenges from their perspective (e.g., why these were assets/challenges, the stakeholders involved, the history of local engagement with the assets/challenges). While the use of a mapping activity in participatory design is not novel, it is an example of how design methods can be adapted to understand the context and perspective of an underserved population. By using an intersectional approach, designers can better understand when and how such methods and activities can appropriately engage all individuals.
Self-reflect, self-reflect, self-reflect. In the HCI community, reflexivity has emerged as an approach for researchers to continually reflect on our identity, values, assumptions, and all the subtleties in our interactions with participants that may impact the design research experience . Workshop participants acknowledged the impact of their own biases to research processes, but how frequently do we acknowledge this in our work? Self-disclosing information about aspects of our identity and positionality, and potential impacts to the design research process, also helps improve the transparency and understandability of our research .
Attend to and disclose dissent. It might be tempting to try to avoid conflict during a research project. However, conflict is likely to occur when working with underserved communities, particularly when members have histories of fighting for recognition of their interests (e.g., power, economic equality) [2,8]. Attuning to these voices of dissent and any tensions that may occur during the design research process helps to ensure everyone's interests are represented. Disclosing information about the tensions and conflicts that occurred during a project and the ways in which these adversities were overcome can also help future researchers in their attempts to address similar adversities.
Using intersectionality to understand the history of oppression and discrimination among those who have traditionally been underserved can help us develop approaches to design that support equity, diversity, inclusion, and social justice for marginalized and disenfranchised individuals. In this article, we propose three principles—context, self-reflection, and dissent—that, when applied to design, can ultimately improve the experience of underserved populations whose members engage in the design process.
1. Dillahunt, T.R. Fostering social capital in economically distressed communities. Proc. of SIGCHI '14. ACM, 2014.
2. Dombrowski, L. Socially just design and engendering social change. Interactions 24, 4 (2017), 63–65.
3. Erete, S. and Burrell, J.O. Empowered participation: How citizens use technology in local governance. Proc. of CHI'17. ACM, 2017.
4. Saksono, H. et al. Family health promotion in low-SES neighborhoods: A two-month study of wearable activity tracking. Proc. of CHI'18. ACM, 2018.
5. Fox, S. et al. Imagining intersectional futures: Feminist approaches in CSCW. Proc. of CSCW'17. ACM, 2017.
6. Schlesinger, A. et al. Intersectional HCI: Engaging identity through gender, race, and class. Proc. of CHI'17. ACM, 2017.
7. Morgan, K.P. Describing the emperor's new clothes: Three myths of educational (in-) equity. In The Gender Question in Education: Theory, Pedagogy, & Politics. Westview Press, Boulder, CO, 1996, 105–122.
8. Le Dantec, C. and Fox, S. Strangers at the gate: Gaining access, building rapport, and co-constructing community-based research. Proc. of CSCW'15. ACM, 2015.
Sheena Erete is an assistant professor in the College of Computing and Digital Media at DePaul University. Her work focuses on designing with underserved communities to address issues such as violence, political engagement, and STEM education. [email protected]
Aarti Israni is a user experience researcher who applies UCD to address social challenges faced by those in underserved communities. She has a master's in human-computer interaction, and experience in research and design. [email protected]
Tawanna Dillahunt is an assistant professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. She designs, implements, and evaluates socially innovative technologies that aim to address challenges faced by underserved populations, such as unemployment and social isolation. [email protected]
Copyright held by authors. Publication rights licensed to ACM.
The Digital Library is published by the Association for Computing Machinery. Copyright © 2018 ACM, Inc. | https://interactions.acm.org/archive/view/may-june-2018/an-intersectional-approach-to-designing-in-the-margins |
Comparison of object-oriented remote sensing image classification based on different decision trees in forest area.
Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis (GEOBIA) was a product under the background of increasing high-resolution remote sensing data. How to improve the accuracy and efficiency of classification of high-resolution images is one of the important topics in image processing. After objects segmented multiscale by QuickBird image was classified, the efficiency of C5.0, C4.5, and CART decision trees in object-oriented classification of forest areas was analyzed. The accuracy of those three methods were compared with kNN method. The eCognition software was used to multiscale segmentation of remote sensing images, with the result showing that 90 and 40 were the optimal scales. After separating vegetation and non-vegetation at 90 scale, 21 features such as spectrum, texture and shape of different vegetation types were extracted at 40 scale, knowledge mining was carried out by using C5.0, C4.5 and CART decision tree algorithms respectively, and classification rules were automatically established. The vegetation area was classified based on the classification rules and the classification accuracy of different methods was compared. The results showed that the classification accuracy based on decision-tree was higher than that of the traditional kNN method. The accuracy of C5.0 method was the best, with the overall accuracy and Kappa coefficient reaching 90.0% and 0.87, respectively. The decision tree algorithm could effectively improve the accuracy in classification of forest species. The Boosting algorithm of the C5.0 decision tree had the most significant improvement on the classification.
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Identify business opportunities for a U.S. company seeking to invest in Latin America.
Define the client’s business needs and comparative advantages.
Assemble a team of trusted experts to plan and execute strategy.
Assess regional political, economic, social, and regulatory issues to identify particular foreign markets.
Analyze labor, logistics, real estate, utilities, services, demographics, to fine tune requirements based on company/industry needs.
Tap on-the-ground network of experts to identify specific attractive locations and credible local partners.
Study benefits and business opportunities that arise from existing trade and investment treaties.
Design investment strategy and test against client’s expectations.
Organize on-site tours and meetings with key decision makers in the public and private sector and investment promotion agencies.
Minimize political risks by engaging supportive local stakeholders.
Recruit in-country reliable legal, fiscal, engineering, and financial expertise.
Identify sources of financial backing, including U.S. and multilateral bank lending.
Expand government-wide opportunities for international security technology firm.
Assess client’s technology and capabilities, based on track record with specific U.S. agencies.
In some cases, recommend reliance on U.S. government-funded programs to support research, development and commercialization of cutting-edge technologies — as part of public-private partnerships.
Conduct 360-degree review to identify applications for products or services in other U.S. government agencies.
Leverage core capabilities at one agency to cultivate opportunities in other agencies.
For example, contracts successfully implemented for the Department of Defense may have substantial applications in a series of Department of Homeland Security entities (or in State and local governments).
Quantify and identify funding streams that can be tapped to deploy firm’s services in other missions.
Identify key decision makers in relevant executive branch agencies, as well as stakeholders in committees of jurisdiction in the U.S. Congress.
Arrange site tours, testimonials, and briefings that will highlight the firm’s successful execution of other U.S. government programs.
Help ensure adequate funding in appropriations legislation for worthy programs offered by the client.
Shepherd company through U.S. government contracting process.
Assist foreign investment promotion agencies to attract U.S. investment.
Define the countries’ business needs and understand the overall strategic direction.
Assemble team of trusted experts to plan and execute strategy.
Analyze current sectors and potential sectors for investments based on current capacity, educational levels, labor force, and skills sets, as well as historical industry experience.
Determine competitive advantages and differentiation characteristics to promote the attraction of investments.
Analyze potential market demand, “niche markets” opportunities, competitive forces, as well as specific target markets.
Tap on-the-ground international network of experts to identify potential customers.
Study benefits and business opportunities that arise from existing investment treaties.
Design marketing and communications strategies and test against client’s expectations.
Coordinate promotion activities in key international cities to attract identified targets.
Manage relationship with potential clients through visits to the site location.
Organize on-site tours and meetings for potential clients with public and private sector institutions and the investment promotion agency in the host country.
Recruit reliable local legal, fiscal, engineering, and financial expertise to give a “hands on” picture of investing in the host country. | http://visionamericas.com/our-expertise/our-company/ |
It is the aim of the 2022 Taiwan Internet Report to understand the integration of what is online and what is offline in Taiwan. This survey examines the current state of internet usage in Taiwan after the transfer of originally face-to-face social processes to online platforms or the integration of those processes with online platforms through the use of emerging technologies and related social science theories, and further explores possible issues, impacts and challenges.
Key Insights
- The use of the Internet and related applications is growing every year, but the digital divide has not been eliminated yet.
- Digital platforms are changing the way people get news, and the news media bargaining code is a matter of great urgency.
- The breadth and depth of digital literacy needs to be improved.
- The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the lack of planning and preparation for telework and telemedicine in Taiwan.
- Focus on the AI experience of the elderly, highlight the relative advantages of AI, and improve the regulatory mechanism.
- Provide analytical tools for policy and market research to effectively predict the adoption of emerging technologies.
- Instant messaging software is like an echo chamber, and should be paid attention to for potential issues that may arise. | https://report.twnic.tw/2022/en/index.html |
Goaded by a Robot, Students Took Greater Risk Than They Otherwise Would
A new study suggests how machines could exert influence in real-life situations
Some students found a robot like this one named Pepper very persuasive.
Photo:
Aurelien Morissard/Zuma Press
By
Lisa Ward
April 4, 2021 2:00 pm ET
Can a robot encourage risk-taking behavior?
A new study, titled “The Robot Made Me Do It,” suggests it may be possible. The researchers looked to see if a 3-foot, 9-inch robot named Pepper could influence students’ inclination to make risky decisions in a laboratory setting. Better understanding how people interact with robots, especially the influence the machines may exert in certain contexts, could be increasingly important as robots start to become more present in everyday life—including delivering packages, giving directions at airports and motivating rehabilitation patients during physical therapy.
In the study, students repeatedly took a commonly used test to assess risk-taking behavior, digitally pumping up a balloon while trying not to pop it. Each student took the test 30 times. For each balloon, they earned one British penny (about 1.4 U.S. cents) for every pump. If they stopped pumping before the balloon burst, they kept the money. If the balloon exploded, they lost the money.
During the test, the robot encouraged some students to continue inflating the balloon before moving on to the next balloon, saying such phrases as, “Why not try one more time?” and “One more pump, please,” and “I think you have time before an explosion.” If a student pumped more than 50 times, the robot would say things like, “Well done!” and “Amazing.” And if the balloon exploded, the robot would say such phrases as, “Well, do better next time” or “No problem, we have other balloons” or “It wasn’t a good balloon.”
Pepper with a student during a research study on human interaction with robots.
Photo:
Marta Romeo
The researchers found that students who took the test while in the presence of the talking robot were more likely to engage in risk-taking behavior. They were, for example, 20% more likely to keep pumping the balloon than the control group, who took the test without the robot present, and nearly 40% more likely to pop the balloon than the control group.
“Receiving direct encouragement from the robot overrode participants’ direct experiences and feedback,” says
Yaniv Hanoch,
an associate professor at Southampton Business School in England and one of the paper’s co-authors.
Share Your Thoughts
What experiences have you had interacting with robots? Join the conversation below.
In fact, after the balloon popped, the group that kept receiving encouragement from the robots didn’t change their behavior with subsequent balloons, while the students who took the test without the robot’s encouragement reduced the number of times they pumped the next balloon, likely learning from the negative outcome.
The talking robot was likely able to exert influence on risk-taking behavior through positive and negative reinforcement in the same way a human might, Dr. Hanoch says. The researchers, however, found that students who had no robot present acted the same as students who had a robot that was present but silent.
If robots can influence risk-taking behavior, says Dr. Hanoch, the implications are many—and could have positive or negative effects. For instance, he says, robots could encourage soldiers or traders to take unnecessary risks, or conversely encourage gamblers or novice drivers to avoid dangerous behaviors.
Still, for right now, at least, “it’s very theoretical,” he says.
Ms. Ward is a writer in Vermont. She can be reached at [email protected]. | |
A new research article (see reference below) shows scientific evidence that yes indeed women have “significantly higher levels of wisdom, justice, curiosity, love of learning, social intelligence, leadership and appreciation of beauty and excellence.”
For me, this result reflects the socialization that occurs in human-created society, as compared to the true essential nature of the human beings in either body. This essence is often referred to as “potentiality” of a person, something possible but not attained yet.
Yes, that is one way to see it, and another way to view this information is to recognize that the potentiality of each individual human being is extremely affected by the socialization (conditioning and programming) that occurs from parents, schools and educational training, hospitals and health care systems, government institutions, business organizations, and work environments.
So I interpret the research article to show us that in our society the development of virtues is ignored, or even conditioned out of men (no rewards given or punishments applied) more than it is in women. | https://tarawernsing.com/wp/2022/04/23/are-women-more-virtuous-than-men/ |
Comparative Politics is a field in Political Science. As its name suggests, comparative politics is all about comparing politics. In comparative politics, we study about the comparison between different political practices in different states. In easier words, we can say that comparative politics is a study about the different politics in different countries and compare them with each other.
Comparative politics is the study of domestic politics, political institutions, and conflicts between the two countries. Comparative politics combines the study of comparison of political experience, institutions, behavior, and processes of government systems in two or more different countries. Comparative politics also includes the study of extra-constitutional agencies and their immediate connection.
Brisbane had defined Comparative Politics as Comparative politics is the identification and interpretation of factors in the whole social order which appears to affect whatever political functions and their institutions which have been identified and listed for comparison.
Comparative politics is not only about comparing the political structure of different countries, but it is also about the comparison of political activity, political process, and political power. The study of features and legal power also comes under comparative politics. The main motive of comparative politics is to improve the ongoing condition of any state or country. The improvement can be implemented on the present system of an ant state or country by adopting other countries’ already successful and proven systems.
Although it’s not easy as when we compare one state with others in terms of politics than many more things like culture, the literacy rate of citizens plays an important role in it. Comparative politics is also used to reduce tensions or resolve conflicts between the two countries.
Characteristics of Comparative Politics
Here we will discuss the top 5 characteristics of Comparative Politics.
- Essentially Descriptive Studies: To compare the politics of different countries, it’s essential to have a descriptive study of them. Until you know in-depth about the politics of different countries, you will not be able to compare them and produce a productive result. We can take the reference of the famous book “Governments of Continental Europe” edited by James T. Shot. Here he mentioned the similarities and differences between Switzerland, Germany, and the U.S.S.R. this comparison would not be possible without the descriptive studies of mentioned countries.
- Historical-Legalistic-Institutional Approach: Two typical approaches are available for the descriptive study of political institutions; the first is historical, and the second is legalistic. Through Historical approaches, we can compare the evolution of the French Parliament or the German Representative Assemblies. And through a legalistic approach, we can study the legal power of various branches of government and their relationships with reference to the existing constitutional and legal prescriptions.
- Essentially Parochial: Most of the studies on comparative politics have been done on Western European institutions. So it is essentially parochial.
- Essential Static: Dynamic factors like growth and change are ignored in comparative politics studies. That makes comparative politics more static.
- Essentially Monographic: The most important studies of foreign political systems have taken the form of monographs that have concentrated on the study of political institutions of one system or the discussion of a particular institution in different systems.
Scope & Significance of Comparative Politics
The scope of comparative politics includes the subject of political power. Here, different writers and political experts can define the term political power. Carl J. Friedrich describes it as a ‘certain kind of human relationship.’ Lasswell says, “The making of the decision is an interpersonal process: the policies which other persons are to pursue are what is decided upon. Power as participation in the making of decisions is an interpersonal relation. Politics thus connotes a special case in the exercise of power an exercise of power – an exercise in the attempt to change the conduct of others in one’s own direction”. The study of comparative Politics has the following scopes;
- All Political Structures: A complete knowledge of political structure is essential for comparative politics. This study includes the study of all the formal and informal, governmental, and extra-governmental institutions and their structure.
- Functional Studies: The knowledge of how all the formal and informal institutes work within the country includes comparative politics.
- Study of Political Behaviour: Another important part of the scope of Comparative Politics is the study of voting behavior, political participation, leadership recruitment, elite behavior, mass politics, etc.
- Study of Similarities and Differences: The main topic of study on comparative politics is how two countries are similar and how they are different from each other.
- Study of all Political Systems: Any country’s political system defines its nature and voting culture. There is a huge difference in thinking between a democratic country’s citizens and a nondemocratic country’s citizens. The scopes mentioned above are just a few. In comparative politics, everything includes some relevance with the country or countries.
Conclusion
Comparative Politics is an old concept, and since ancient times, its scope has become wider. To summaries comparative politics, we can say that this study compares different countries without being biased or having some philosophical axes. A clear-thinking process is an essential factor that a comparative politics researcher must-have. Already many things have been written related to this topic, but frequent changes in a change in the political economy, culture, conflict, government, rights, and public policy create more opportunities for new researchers in the field of comparative studies. | https://upscbuddy.com/nature-comparative-politics/ |
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