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Mace offers a full multidisciplinary design service to clients, and an integral part of this service is Building Services Engineering Design. Our unique offer means that a typical design team, including engineers, cost consultants and CDM-C professionals sit within the same office. Working in this joined-up way means excellent design skills are combined with great communication and a holistic understanding of how engineering design can evolve and adapt to meet the client’s true goals.
The Role
As a Graduate engineer, you will work closely with Senior Engineers of all disciplines assisting in the design of building services. You will work as part of a team assisting in the design and delivery of building and engineering projects in order to achieve the highest quality within given time scales, budgets and statutory requirements.
You will be involved in the development of the design from concept through to an ongoing monitoring role in the construction phases of a project. At all times you will be encouraged to champion low energy, sustainable design solutions.
As a graduate engineer you will assist in the production of electrical, mechanical and public health engineering designs. You will carry out calculations using first principles by hand and learn various industry standard software packages. Following completion of the Graduate programme you will have the opportunity to choose a discipline to specialise in.
The design approach we are now adopting involves producing digital models of the building incorporating all the various design disciplines. This provides a very hands on environment in which to learn about the roles and responsibilities of other members of the team.
There is an opportunity for this role to start work in September 2021, either based in London or Winchester.
The Programme
The Mace two-year graduate development programme offers you the chance to specialise in a specific role within the company. Through structured training and working relationships with colleagues you will also have the opportunity to learn about our work across a variety of disciplines that cross the entire property life cycle: project management, programme management, project controls, architecture and design, facilities management, sustainability, construction, commercial management, cost consultancy, structural engineering, and mechanical and electrical engineering.
Graduates that join our programme gain exposure to the variety of services offered to our clients and take on responsibility in real, live project environments. You will work alongside industry leading professionals at Mace and many prestigious and high-profile clients. Our comprehensive two-year development programme includes:
- A two-day formal induction
- Classroom and virtual sessions covering technical skills in the construction life cycle and key business skills including presentation and leadership skills.
- Interactive group projects using live case studies
- Guidance and support in order to progress towards professional chartership status with industry bodies.
- Networking opportunities with senior managers and peers
- One-to-one support from line managers, mentors, recent graduates and chartership advisors.
Professional Qualification Routes
Graduates working in Engineering Design will be supported in working towards a professional membership with either CIBSE or IET.
Minimum Requirements
- You must have, or be on track to achieve, a minimum 2.1 in an Mechanical, Electrical or Building services engineering degree by Summer 2021.
- 240 UCAS points and Grade C in GCSE Maths and English (or equivalent qualifications)
- Evidence of significant extra-curricular activities that demonstrate drive and excellent interpersonal skills
- A passion for a career in the construction industry
Remember to mention TARGETjobs when contacting employers! | https://targetjobs.co.uk/jobs/mace-2021-graduate-engineering-design-1052378 |
EXPLAINER: Recession fears grow. But how high is the risk?
May 8, 2022
WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation is at a 40-year high. Stock prices are sinking. The Federal Reserve is making borrowing much costlier. And the economy actually shrank in the first three months of this year.
Is the United States at risk of enduring another recession, just two years after emerging from the last one?
For now, even the more pessimistic economists don't expect a downturn anytime soon. Despite the inflation squeeze, consumers — the primary driver of the economy — are still spending at a healthy pace. Businesses are investing in equipment and software, reflecting a positive outl...
For access to this article please sign in or subscribe. | https://www.alvareviewcourier.com/story/2022/05/08/interesting-items/explainer-recession-fears-grow-but-how-high-is-the-risk/77858.html |
Computer software is basically a certain sequence of scripts. Correspondingly, Algorithms, like functions in mathematics, are a series of commands that show what / what will happen after a command.
Algorithms, which state the steps to be applied for the solution of the problem and the results in a certain order, can show the commands in software and what happens when that command runs. Algorith ms that we use in daily life without realizing it are the most basic part in the software preparation process and the operation of the software.
If we give an example from daily life to grasp the logic of the algorithm, we can examine the cake making algorithm. First of all, the necessary information and data should be obtained in order to prepare the Algorithm of any problem or transaction. As an example, let’s examine the cake making algorithm:
Algorithm Example
1-Provide and prepare the necessary ingredients for the cake. 2-Mix sugar and eggs in a bowl and beat. 3-Add oil to the mixture obtained and whisk to consistency. 4-Add and whip the other ingredients available. 5-Pour the mixture into the cake pan. 6-10 min. Put the mold in the oven, which started to be preheated. 7-Wait and cook until cooked 8-Take out the cake after cooking 9-Wait for the cake to cool. 10-Cut the cake into slices and serve.
Even in a simple cake making, we follow a certain order and commands, namely the Algorithm, without realizing it. Algorithms that we use in many parts of our daily life is a process we also apply in the problem solving and software process. However, the Algorithms we use in this software process also have some rules created by his father, Harezmi:
► When creating an algorithm, inputs, that is, the values to be used, must be determined.
► Output at the end of the algorithm, ie a value, result must be produced.
►The order and commands of the algorithm should be clear and should not lead to different results.
► Algorithms for different possibilities and results should consist of finite steps.
►Each process should be as simple as the user can show on paper.
You have to be careful about the commands and your attention in the created algorithm, because we must mention that changing the order and having different results at the beginning. Let’s skip Phase 3 and move from Phase 2 to Phase 4. At the end of the algorithm, maybe we can get the cake again, but we may not get the cake in the desired taste and consistency. From this point of view, the commands are not extremely high in order not to skip the commands and follow them in the correct order, so that the problem and software can give a healthy result.
The solution of a problem or the preparation / working order of a software can be created by showing different algorithms in more than one way. It depends on the developer’s decision, as well as on the features of the algorithms installed. The established algorithm should provide the best solution to the problem in the most precise, the shortest and the most practical way and should meet the wishes and needs of the problem owner. | https://www.flutteranywhere.com/2020/07/26/what-is-the-algorithm-why-is-it-important/ |
147 Conn. 708 (1960)
JAMES ATTARDO
v.
ALBERT A. AMBRISCOE
Supreme Court of Connecticut.
Argued October 11, 1960.
Decided December 6, 1960.
BALDWIN, C. J., KING, MURPHY and SHEA, JS.[1]
*709 Helen F. Krause, for the appellant (plaintiff).
Kevin T. Gormley, with whom were Joseph J. Mager and, on the brief, Martin E. Gormley, for the appellee (defendant).
SHEA, J.
This action was brought on behalf of the plaintiff, a minor, by his father and next friend to recover for personal injuries alleged to have been sustained through the defendant's negligence. The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff which the trial court set aside, and judgment was rendered for the defendant notwithstanding the verdict. Practice Book § 234. The plaintiff has appealed.
The jury reasonably could have found the following facts: The plaintiff, a boy seven years of age, resided with his parents in a house across the street from property of the defendant on which the defendant was constructing a dwelling house. On July 22, 1952, about 7:30 p.m., the plaintiff and three other children were playing tag in the defendant's house. Construction had reached the stage where the frame had been completed. It was daylight at the time. The defendant's employees had finished work for the *710 day and there was no one around the property. There were no temporary doors or barricades over the unfinished doorways, and no signs were posted to warn people to keep out. The plaintiff fell through an open stair well which had been provided for the stairs leading to the cellar. He sustained serious injuries. Before the day of the accident, children had played around the construction work, but the evidence does not show how often or for what period of time they had played there. In any event, none of them went on the premises while the defendant or his workmen were present. A number of children lived in the neighborhood. There was a schoolhouse about 600 feet from the defendant's property, but school was not in session at the time.
Ordinarily, the owner of property is not bound to anticipate and provide for the presence of trespassers, since he may properly assume that they will not be there. When, however, the owner knows or should know that children are likely to trespass on a part of his property on which he maintains a condition which is likely to be dangerous to them, he may be held liable for harm resulting to them therefrom. Wolfe v. Rehbein, 123 Conn. 110, 113, 193 A. 608. The property owner is not bound to anticipate the presence of children by reason of the fact that a structure or other artificial condition on his land is one which would be likely to attract children. But if he knows or should know that they are likely to trespass, he is bound to anticipate their presence and to refrain from maintaining a condition likely to be dangerous to them because of their propensities for intermeddling and their failure to realize the risk involved. Restatement, 2 Torts § 339, comment a. It is only when the owner knows, or is chargeable with knowledge of, the likelihood that children will trespass on *711 his property that he is under a duty to exercise due care not to do them injury. McPheters v. Loomis, 125 Conn. 526, 533, 7 A.2d 437.
In the present case, the defendant had no actual or constructive knowledge that children played on his property. It is true that where one has sufficient information to lead him to the knowledge of a fact, he is chargeable with knowledge of it. Full and adequate means of knowledge ordinarily are, in law, equivalent to knowledge. Bond Rubber Corporation v. Oates Bros., Inc., 136 Conn. 248, 252, 70 A.2d 115; Myers v. Burke, 120 Conn. 69, 75, 179 A. 88. Children had played around the defendant's house when the defendant and his workmen were away from the place. On occasion, the defendant, after he finished work, went by the house to see whether there was anyone disturbing the property and to check on the material stored there. At no time did he see any trespassers. No information concerning the presence of children was brought to his attention. Furthermore, we have no evidence as to the time when the construction began or over what period children were known to engage in play around it. The case is distinguishable, on its facts, from Wolfe v. Rehbein, supra, on which the plaintiff relies. There the evidence showed that children were accustomed to playing around the pile of lumber on the defendant's property and that the defendant knew that they were there every day and told their parents that he would keep an eye on them. Wolfe v. Rehbein, supra, 112. Here, there was nothing indicating either directly or by inference that the defendant knew of the presence of children upon his property while the house was under construction.
The burden was on the plaintiff to prove a breach of duty by the defendant in order to establish a basis *712 for recovery. The ultimate test of the duty is to be found in the reasonable foreseeability of harm resulting from a failure to exercise reasonable care. Botticelli v. Winters, 125 Conn. 537, 542, 7 A.2d 443. This does not mean foreseeability of any harm whatsoever or foreseeability of the particular injury which happened. The test is: Would the ordinarily prudent man in the position of the defendant, knowing what he knew or should have known, anticipate that harm of the general nature of that suffered was likely to result? Noebel v. Housing Authority, 146 Conn. 197, 201, 148 A.2d 766.
On the facts, the defendant could not be charged with that reasonable anticipation of harm which would be the basis of liability in negligence here. Reasonable care does not require that one must guard against eventualities which, at best, are too remote to be reasonably foreseeable. Noebel v. Housing Authority, supra, 202; Goldberger v. David Roberts Corporation, 139 Conn. 629, 632, 96 A.2d 309. Although the law requires property owners to guard against probable dangers, it does not require them to anticipate and guard against all possibility of danger. 2 Stevenson, Law of Negligence in the Atlantic States, p. 653. The defendant did not know, nor did he have any knowledge of facts which would charge him with knowledge, of the likelihood that children would trespass upon his property. The trial court was correct in setting aside the verdict and in granting the motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Senderoff v. Housatonic Public Service Co., 147 Conn. 18, 21, 156 A.2d 517; Robinson v. Southern New England Telephone Co., 140 Conn. 414, 420, 101 A.2d 491.
There is no error.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.
NOTES
[1] By agreement of counsel the case was argued before and decided by four judges.
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An asphalt roof typically needs to be replaced every 12 to 20 years, which means many homeowners have to replace their roofs multiple times. It can sometimes be difficult to determine when the roof was last replaced if the home's previous owner didn't maintain accurate records. However, there are ways to examine the health of the roof, which can tell you if you should start preparing for this expense.
1. Can the Age of the Roof be Determined?
Assuming the previous homeowner did maintain accurate records, you should look for documents indicating the most recent replacement job. Most roofs will last 20 years and some may even last longer, depending on the quality of work. Even if the roof is just over a decade old, you should begin preparing to have it replaced. It may last another decade, or it may begin to degrade early.
2. Visually Check the Inside of the Home
You should begin your roof inspection by taking a tour of the home and looking for water stains on the ceilings. Additionally, inspect the attic space on a bright, sunny day. If you see the light shining through small spaces or crevices, this is another indication that the roof needs replacing. Even if you haven't noticed water stains on the ceilings of the lower level of the house, you may still identify water stains and mold in the attic. Be watchful for these symptoms of an eroding roof.
3. Exterior Signs that Indicate a Problem
Finally, take a tour of the outside of your home. If you see shingles that are curling or flaking, your roof may be beyond repair. Additionally, discolored shingles indicate a loss of granules, which may also indicate a severe roofing problem. If you can find granules in the gutters, or in puddles around the home, this can confirm that it's time for a new roof. Once the shingles begin to erode and lose granules, repairing a specific area may no longer be an option. Replacing the entire roof is often the best choice in these circumstances. | https://garciadidmyroof.com/blog/signs-your-shingle-roof-needs-replacing |
Our ways of life differs, that is one of the major reasons we do things differently which might be tagged cultural taboo in some other places.
There are many tribes in Nigeria among which the Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba people are dominant. Cultural taboos in these places differ even to the smallest of villages.
What is Cultural Taboo?
A cultural taboo is an implicit prohibition on something (usually against an utterance or behaviour) based on cultural sense that is excessively repulsive or perhaps too sacred for ordinary people.
Taboos may be in form of food, environment, animals, materials, and so on.
The Igbo People of Nigeria
The Igbo people are the inhabitants of Igbo land. They belong to an ethnic group native to the present-day south-central and south east of Nigeria.
They are one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa and are located in 5 states in Nigeria (Abia, Anambra, Imo, Enugu and Ebonyi).
The people are rich in culture and tradition. Their customs, practices and traditions which include visual art, use of language, music & dance forms, dressing, cuisine, and language dialects make them unique and special.
7 Cultural Taboos in Igboland
Although there are different cultural taboos for different places where the Igbo people resides, there are some that are unique in the land.
Here are some of the cultural taboos associated with Igboland. They are listed below;
- It is a taboo for a new yam to be eaten before the new yam festival is celebrated. This is actually common in Igbo land.
- In some places especially in Imo, people surrounded by water (Egbere Miri) take their children to the stream at infancy where the water is poured on the child. This custom makes the children safe in aquatic habitats.
- It is also considered a taboo to eat animals such as white ram (evule) in some parts of Igbo land.
- In some places such as Enugu-Ezike, it is a taboo for a married woman to have extramarital affairs and then step into the land. Such persons will run mad if they do.
- It is also a taboo to collect money from any man except the man you’re married to. If you must do, the husband must be aware.
- In some places, it is a taboo to kill snakes like python. It is seen as a sacrilegious animal and considered a messenger from the gods. If such happen by mistake, a proper burial must be done for the python.
- It is a taboo for a woman having her bath to answer anybody except her husband and children.
These are few of the cultural taboos associated with Igboland. You can share with us other taboos in the land you know in the comment section.
Thanks for reading this piece. | https://everyevery.ng/7-cultural-taboos-in-igboland/ |
St. Louis rap artist Mvstermind will perform an augmented reality livestream concert at his new in-house content creation and performance venue The Gem, in collaboration with St. Louis-local digital media startup Maven. This will be one of the first live-stream, fully immersive concerts of its kind, bringing Mvstermind's music and new technologies together, while also showcasing his new venue.
Event attendees will be able to watch and interact on Instagram Live and/or Facebook Live, and share, comment and even toggle between different virtual backgrounds. | https://www.stlmag.com/events/mvstermind-presents-gems-xr-augmented-reality-livestream-experience/?occ_dtstart=2021-01-22t19:00 |
Bauer, S. E., Wagner, S. E., Burch, J., Bayakly, R., & Vena, J. E. (2013). A case-referent study: light at night and breast cancer risk in Georgia. Int J Health Geogr, 12, 23.
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Abstract: BACKGROUND: Literature has identified detrimental health effects from the indiscriminate use of artificial nighttime light. We examined the co-distribution of light at night (LAN) and breast cancer (BC) incidence in Georgia, with the goal to contribute to the accumulating evidence that exposure to LAN increases risk of BC. METHODS: Using Georgia Comprehensive Cancer Registry data (2000-2007), we conducted a case-referent study among 34,053 BC cases and 14,458 lung cancer referents. Individuals with lung cancer were used as referents to control for other cancer risk factors that may be associated with elevated LAN, such as air pollution, and since this cancer type was not previously associated with LAN or circadian rhythm disruption. DMSP-OLS Nighttime Light Time Series satellite images (1992-2007) were used to estimate LAN levels; low (0-20 watts per sterradian cm(2)), medium (21-41 watts per sterradian cm(2)), high (>41 watts per sterradian cm(2)). LAN levels were extracted for each year of exposure prior to case/referent diagnosis in ArcGIS. RESULTS: Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using logistic regression models controlling for individual-level year of diagnosis, race, age at diagnosis, tumor grade, stage; and population-level determinants including metropolitan statistical area (MSA) status, births per 1,000 women aged 15-50, percentage of female smokers, MSA population mobility, and percentage of population over 16 in the labor force. We found that overall BC incidence was associated with high LAN exposure (OR = 1.12, 95% CI [1.04, 1.20]). When stratified by race, LAN exposure was associated with increased BC risk among whites (OR = 1.13, 95% CI [1.05, 1.22]), but not among blacks (OR = 1.02, 95% CI [0.82, 1.28]). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest positive associations between LAN and BC incidence, especially among whites. The consistency of our findings with previous studies suggests that there could be fundamental biological links between exposure to artificial LAN and increased BC incidence, although additional research using exposure metrics at the individual level is required to confirm or refute these findings.
Keywords: Human Health; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Breast Neoplasms/*diagnosis/*epidemiology; Case-Control Studies; Circadian Rhythm/*physiology; Female; Georgia/epidemiology; Humans; Lighting/*adverse effects; Lung Neoplasms/diagnosis/epidemiology; Middle Aged; Registries; Risk Factors
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Czeisler, C. A. (2013). Perspective: casting light on sleep deficiency. Nature, 497(7450), S13.
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Keywords: Human Health; Circadian Rhythm/physiology/radiation effects; Electricity/adverse effects; Humans; Jet Lag Syndrome/etiology/physiopathology/therapy; Lighting/*adverse effects; Melatonin/metabolism/secretion; Phototherapy; Sleep Deprivation/epidemiology/*etiology/*physiopathology/therapy; Suprachiasmatic Nucleus/physiology/radiation effects
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Falchi, F., Cinzano, P., Elvidge, C. D., Keith, D. M., & Haim, A. (2011). Limiting the impact of light pollution on human health, environment and stellar visibility. J Environ Manage, 92(10), 2714–2722.
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Abstract: Light pollution is one of the most rapidly increasing types of environmental degradation. Its levels have been growing exponentially over the natural nocturnal lighting levels provided by starlight and moonlight. To limit this pollution several effective practices have been defined: the use of shielding on lighting fixture to prevent direct upward light, particularly at low angles above the horizon; no over lighting, i.e. avoid using higher lighting levels than strictly needed for the task, constraining illumination to the area where it is needed and the time it will be used. Nevertheless, even after the best control of the light distribution is reached and when the proper quantity of light is used, some upward light emission remains, due to reflections from the lit surfaces and atmospheric scatter. The environmental impact of this “residual light pollution”, cannot be neglected and should be limited too. Here we propose a new way to limit the effects of this residual light pollution on wildlife, human health and stellar visibility. We performed analysis of the spectra of common types of lamps for external use, including the new LEDs. We evaluated their emissions relative to the spectral response functions of human eye photoreceptors, in the photopic, scotopic and the 'meltopic' melatonin suppressing bands. We found that the amount of pollution is strongly dependent on the spectral characteristics of the lamps, with the more environmentally friendly lamps being low pressure sodium, followed by high pressure sodium. Most polluting are the lamps with a strong blue emission, like Metal Halide and white LEDs. Migration from the now widely used sodium lamps to white lamps (MH and LEDs) would produce an increase of pollution in the scotopic and melatonin suppression bands of more than five times the present levels, supposing the same photopic installed flux. This increase will exacerbate known and possible unknown effects of light pollution on human health, environment and on visual perception of the Universe by humans. We present quantitative criteria to evaluate the lamps based on their spectral emissions and we suggest regulatory limits for future lighting.
Keywords: Animals; Animals, Wild; Conservation of Natural Resources; Environment; *Environmental Pollution; Eye; *Health; Humans; Lighting/*adverse effects/standards; Melatonin/*antagonists & inhibitors; Sodium; Vision, Ocular/*physiology; Visual Perception
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Fonken, L. K., Lieberman, R. A., Weil, Z. M., & Nelson, R. J. (2013). Dim light at night exaggerates weight gain and inflammation associated with a high-fat diet in male mice. Endocrinology, 154(10), 3817–3825.
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Abstract: Elevated nighttime light exposure is associated with symptoms of metabolic syndrome. In industrialized societies, high-fat diet (HFD) and exposure to light at night (LAN) often cooccur and may contribute to the increasing obesity epidemic. Thus, we hypothesized that dim LAN (dLAN) would provoke additional and sustained body mass gain in mice on a HFD. Male mice were housed in either a standard light/dark cycle or dLAN and fed either chow or HFD. Exposure to dLAN and HFD increase weight gain, reduce glucose tolerance, and alter insulin secretion as compared with light/dark cycle and chow, respectively. The effects of dLAN and HFD appear additive, because mice exposed to dLAN that were fed HFD display the greatest increases in body mass. Exposure to both dLAN and HFD also change the timing of food intake and increase TNFalpha and MAC1 gene expression in white adipose tissue after 4 experimental weeks. Changes in MAC1 gene expression occur more rapidly due to HFD as compared with dLAN; after 5 days of experimental conditions, mice fed HFD already increase MAC1 gene expression in white adipose tissue. HFD also elevates microglia activation in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus and hypothalamic TNFalpha, IL-6, and Ikbkb gene expression. Microglia activation is increased by dLAN, but only among chow-fed mice and dLAN does not affect inflammatory gene expression. These results suggest that dLAN exaggerates weight gain and peripheral inflammation associated with HFD.
Keywords: Adipose Tissue, White/*immunology/metabolism/pathology; Animals; Antigens, CD11b/biosynthesis/genetics/metabolism; Appetite Regulation/*radiation effects; Arcuate Nucleus/*immunology/metabolism/pathology; Behavior, Animal/radiation effects; Circadian Rhythm; Cytokines/biosynthesis/genetics/metabolism; Diet, High-Fat/*adverse effects; Feeding Behavior/radiation effects; Gene Expression Regulation; Glucose Intolerance/etiology/immunology/metabolism/pathology; I-kappa B Kinase/biosynthesis/genetics/metabolism; Insulin Resistance; Lighting/*adverse effects; Male; Mice; Microglia/immunology/metabolism/pathology; Nerve Tissue Proteins/biosynthesis/genetics/metabolism; Obesity/*etiology/immunology/metabolism/pathology; Random Allocation; *Weight Gain
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Garcia-Saenz, A., Sanchez de Miguel, A., Espinosa, A., Valentin, A., Aragones, N., Llorca, J., et al. (2018). Evaluating the Association between Artificial Light-at-Night Exposure and Breast and Prostate Cancer Risk in Spain (MCC-Spain Study). Environ Health Perspect, 126(4), 047011.
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Abstract: BACKGROUND: Night shift work, exposure to light at night (ALAN) and circadian disruption may increase the risk of hormone-dependent cancers. OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the association of exposure to ALAN during sleeping time with breast and prostate cancer in a population based multicase-control study (MCC-Spain), among subjects who had never worked at night. We evaluated chronotype, a characteristic that may relate to adaptation to light at night. METHODS: We enrolled 1,219 breast cancer cases, 1,385 female controls, 623 prostate cancer cases, and 879 male controls from 11 Spanish regions in 2008-2013. Indoor ALAN information was obtained through questionnaires. Outdoor ALAN was analyzed using images from the International Space Station (ISS) available for Barcelona and Madrid for 2012-2013, including data of remotely sensed upward light intensity and blue light spectrum information for each geocoded longest residence of each MCC-Spain subject. RESULTS: Among Barcelona and Madrid participants with information on both indoor and outdoor ALAN, exposure to outdoor ALAN in the blue light spectrum was associated with breast cancer [adjusted odds ratio (OR) for highest vs. lowest tertile, OR=1.47; 95% CI: 1.00, 2.17] and prostate cancer (OR=2.05; 95% CI: 1.38, 3.03). In contrast, those exposed to the highest versus lowest intensity of outdoor ALAN were more likely to be controls than cases, particularly for prostate cancer. Compared with those who reported sleeping in total darkness, men who slept in “quite illuminated” bedrooms had a higher risk of prostate cancer (OR=2.79; 95% CI: 1.55, 5.04), whereas women had a slightly lower risk of breast cancer (OR=0.77; 95% CI: 0.39, 1.51). CONCLUSION: Both prostate and breast cancer were associated with high estimated exposure to outdoor ALAN in the blue-enriched light spectrum. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1837. | http://alandb.darksky.org/search.php?sqlQuery=SELECT%20author%2C%20title%2C%20type%2C%20year%2C%20publication%2C%20abbrev_journal%2C%20volume%2C%20issue%2C%20pages%2C%20keywords%2C%20abstract%2C%20thesis%2C%20editor%2C%20publisher%2C%20place%2C%20abbrev_series_title%2C%20series_title%2C%20series_editor%2C%20series_volume%2C%20series_issue%2C%20edition%2C%20language%2C%20author_count%2C%20online_publication%2C%20online_citation%2C%20doi%2C%20serial%2C%20area%20FROM%20refs%20WHERE%20keywords%20RLIKE%20%22Lighting%2F%5C%5C%2Aadverse%20effects%22%20ORDER%20BY%20first_author%2C%20author_count%2C%20author%2C%20year%2C%20title&client=&formType=sqlSearch&submit=Cite&viewType=Print&showQuery=0&showLinks=0&showRows=5&rowOffset=&wrapResults=1&citeOrder=&citeStyle=APA&exportFormat=RIS&exportType=html&exportStylesheet=&citeType=html&headerMsg= |
Dundas Castle is a 15th-century castle, with substantial 19th-century additions by William Burn, in the Dalmeny parish of West Lothian. The home of the Dundas family since the Middle Ages, it was sold in the late 19th century and is currently the residence of politician and businessman Sir Jack Stewart-Clark.
In the 11th century, the lands of Dundas, along with other land in Lothian, were granted by King Malcolm Canmore to Gospatrick, the earl of Northumbria, who had come north to escape William the Conqueror. The lands of Dundas passed to his great-grandson Waldeve, who granted them to his kinsman Helias in a charter dating from around 1180. Helias took his surname from his lands, becoming the first of the Dundas family. The Dundases and their cadets would later come to own much of Mid and West Lothian.
In 1416, James Dundas obtained a licence from the Duke of Albany (then the effective ruler of Scotland) to build a keep. This keep was extended in 1436, making it into an L-plan. The Keep served both as a home in times of peace and a fortress in times of war.
Oliver Cromwell is known to have stayed at Dundas Castle around the time of the Battle of Dunbar in 1650. A statue of him remains standing outside the Keep.
In 1818, James Dundas had the 17th century portion of the building pulled down and rebuilt in a Tudor-Gothic style by the renowned architect William Burn. Burn also designed many churches and this influence is visible throughout the building. Burn's designs for the main state rooms allow for huge windows that look out on to lawns and parkland outside.
The building and extensive gardens had cost so much to construct that the Dundases were forced to sell the castle and lands in 1875. The buyer was William Russell. It was again sold in 1899, when it was bought along with five farms and 1,500 acres of agricultural land by Stewart Clark, the owner of a Renfrewshire textile company and a respected philanthropist. Clark's son, John, took the double-barrelled surname 'Stewart-Clark' in honour of his father, and he was made a Baronet in 1918.
During the Second World War, Dundas Castle served as the headquarters for protecting the Forth Bridge. Since 1995, the castle's owner has been Sir Jack Stewart-Clark, the great-grandson of Stewart Clark. Stewart-Clark was a Member of the European Parliament between 1979 and 1999.References:
The first historical record of Lednice locality dates from 1222. At that time there stood a Gothic fort with courtyard, which was lent by Czech King Václav I to Austrian nobleman Sigfried Sirotek in 1249.
At the end of the 13th century the Liechtensteins, originally from Styria, became holders of all of Lednice and of nearby Mikulov. They gradually acquired land on both sides of the Moravian-Austrian border. Members of the family most often found fame in military service, during the Renaissance they expanded their estates through economic activity. From the middle of the 15th century members of the family occupied the highest offices in the land. However, the family’s position in Moravia really changed under the brothers Karel, Maximilian, and Gundakar of Liechtenstein. Through marriage Karel and Maximilian acquired the great wealth of the old Moravian dynasty of the Černohorskýs of Boskovice. At that time the brothers, like their father and grandfather, were Lutheran, but they soon converted to Catholicism, thus preparing the ground for their rise in politics. Particularly Karel, who served at the court of Emperor Rudolf II, became hetman of Moravia in 1608, and was later raised to princely status by King Matyas II and awarded the Duchy of Opava.
During the revolt of the Czech nobility he stood on the side of the Habsburgs, and took part in the Battle of White Mountain. After the uprising was defeated in 1620 he systematically acquired property confiscated from some of the rebels, and the Liechtensteins became the wealthiest family in Moravia, rising in status above the Žerotíns. Their enormous land holdings brought them great profits, and eventually allowed them to carry out their grandious building projects here in Lednice.
In the 16th century it was probably Hartmann II of Liechtenstein who had the old medieval water castle torn down and replaced with a Renaissance chateau. At the end of the 17th century the chateau was torn down and a Baroque palace was built, with an extensive formal garden, and a massive riding hall designed by Johann Bernard Fischer von Erlach that still stands in almost unaltered form.
In the mid-18th century the chateau was again renovated, and in 1815 its front tracts that had been part of the Baroque chateau were removed.
The chateau as it looks today dates from 1846-1858, when Prince Alois II decided that Vienna was not suitable for entertaining in the summer, and had Lednice rebuilt into a summer palace in the spirit of English Gothic. The hall on the ground floor would serve to entertain the European aristocracy at sumptuous banquets, and was furnished with carved wood ceilings, wooden panelling, and select furniture, surpassing anything of its kind in Europe. | https://www.spottinghistory.com/view/10838/dundas-castle/ |
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Surrealist author Franz Kafka’s "The Trial" and 20th Century Philosophy/Psychology
Kafka's The Trial: Conveying Modern Ideologies....
By the dawning of the twentieth century, a multitude of emerging scientific and philosophical ideologies were threatening to undermine the previously assumed solidity of rationality in everyday life. Thinkers were beginning to take up a brave exploration of the inner world of the mind with all of its irrational and, occasionally, frightening ramifications. It was within such an atmosphere that Franz Kafka, a Jewish employee at an insurance company, drafted his book, The Trial, a frightening look at the life of a man living under the pretext of anonymous guilt in a seemingly topsy-turvy world (Kafka, 268).
Though a piece of fiction, Kafka's work deals extensively with many of the predominant topics of scientists and philosophers contemporaneous with himself. In The Trial, Kafka presents readers with an absurd and surreal world prior to the cultural recognition in theatre and art of the later forms of "absurdism" and "surrealism." As perhaps two of the most widely recognized and influential cultural movements to result from the currents of thought surfacing around the turn of the century, it might be more correct to ally Kafka with the forefathers of these ideologies, namely "existentialist" philosophy and "psychoanalysis." It was Kafka's gift to be able to present the reader with the results of an application of these theoretical systems to everyday life, as in The Trial.
Prior to the turn of the century, artists and philosophers had left behind the rigidly structured, enlightenment-oriented ideals of Neo-classicism in favor of the emotionally-charged, subjectively-oriented Romantic movement around the beginning of the nineteenth century. Though this move towards subjectivity and exploration of the inner self took hold of the art world first (with painters and poets such as William Blake,...
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If you can’t wait another few months for the Girl Scouts to sell their popular Trefoils — and you are craving some classic shortbread cookies — the good news is that you can easily make them at home. A classic shortbread cookie recipe only has a few base ingredients, but depending on your personal taste, there are a few unique things you can add to spice things up.
Shortbread cookies are a traditional Scottish treat that have a basic “1-2-3” recipe of one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts oat flour. However, there are dozens of variations out there that add everything from cornstarch to chocolate.
Since these cookies are also a popular dessert during the holidays, it’s a good idea to find the shortbread recipe that works for you and add it to your holiday baking lineup. Whether you choose to go classic or add a modern twist, there is definitely a shortbread recipe out there that will work for you.
My Scottish Grandma’s Recipe
Being Scottish, my grandmother’s recipe for shortbread cookies has been in my family for years. If you want to add delicious flavor to your shortbread cookies, try this recipe that adds a unique ingredient, but gives the cookies incredible flavor.
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup unsalted butter, chilled
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse it a few times to make sure it is blended together well.
- Cut your butter into large chunks and add it into the dough, along with the almond extract. Then, whiz it for one minute. The dough will start to clump together and have a sandy appearance.
- Next, pour your mixture into a 9-inch square baking pan and spread it out into an even layer (A good trick is to use a flat-bottomed glass to press the dough down and make sure it is as smooth as possible).
- Lightly score the dough with a knife, making four rows one way and eight rows the other, for 32 shortbread pieces.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until the shortbread has a light brown color.
- Once you remove it from the oven and while it is still hot, use a knife to cut the shortbread on the lines you scored before baking. Then, allow it to cool after you cut it. Once cooled, the pieces should break apart easily.
Quick note — you can substitute the zest of one lemon for the almond extract to give it a different flavor.
Variations
Traditionally, shortbread cookies have a sinfully buttery taste. But, if you would like to try something different, there are many recipes that will give you multiple flavor options.
Chocolate
You can either cook chocolate or cocoa into the cookie, add chocolate chips, or try a dipped-in chocolate version. Either way, it will result in a tasty buttery-chocolate dessert.
Sugary
Start with your basic recipe and then add cinnamon sugar, vanilla, nuts, or crystalized ginger. Either one of these variations will make your shortbread cookies sinfully sweet. Also, you can add icing and use cookie cutters if you want to get really creative.
Citrus
If you prefer a citrusy dessert, there are also recipes that feature lemon poppy seeds, coconut lime, or orange. OMGChocolateDesserts also has a version with lemons and white chocolate. When you grate citrus skin, it releases oils and adds flavor to the cookie recipe without adding extra moisture. You can even do citrus during the holidays with a rosemary-lemon version.
Savory
If a savory cookie is what you are looking for during the holidays, try adding parmesan, olive oil, and rosemary or black pepper to the classic recipe.
Decorations
You can also add different colorful decorations to your classic recipe by adding a glace or maraschino cherry or baking gum to the center before baking. Adding the red cherry color definitely makes this version a perfect addition to the Christmas holiday.
Whatever your personal taste preference is, with just a few simple ingredients, you can make a delicious shortbread cookie in your own kitchen that will melt in your mouth. They can also be a nice addition to your holiday baking plans, and when you cook them, your house will smell amazing! | https://www.oola.com/life-in-flavor/2457451/how-to-make-classic-shortbread-cookies/ |
In this article, I am going to give you an overview of simple filters in Power BI.
We have already done a few examples regarding this so it should not be too difficult to pick up.
I am doing these demonstrations in tables for a good reason. It is easier to understand how formulas work when you see the numbers since looking at visuals can sometimes be confusing. You may watch the full video of this tutorial at the bottom of this blog.
Proper Usage Of Simple Filters
For example, in this Sales in NC measure, you do not have to use a FILTER function to generate a result.
This is because inside the CALCULATE function, the formula can already pick up what table you are referencing through the relationships in your model.
To show another example, I will create another measure called Sales in 2019.
I will use CALCULATE with Total Sales as the expression, put in the Year column of the Date table to serve as a simple filter, set it equal to “2019”, and then drag in our new measure.
To show an example of how it can go wrong, I will create a new measure called Sales of Product 100 to look at the sales of just one product.
I will use CALCULATE again and use Total Sales as the expression. Then, I will insert my Product Name column from the Products table, set it equal to “Product 100”, and drag in the measure.
Because of its initial context, the measure puts the Sales of Product 100 in every single row.
The CALCULATE function cannot differentiate based on the simple filter that we used since the Product Name column is in a table.
To fix this, you need to use the FILTER function and put it in the Products table.
As you can see, we finally got the value we needed just for Product 100.
The tricky thing here is that you get different results based on the different contexts that you have.
For example, if I use the Customer Name as my context and change back the simple filter without the FILTER function, the result is displayed normally.
The reason why I always default to using the FILTER function is because it would always work for both cases.
To avoid confusion, you should always use the FILTER function as best practice.
***** Related Links *****
Introduction To Filter Context In Power BI
Filtering Data By Custom Fiscal Years And Quarters Using Calculated Columns In Power BI
Using Filter Fields And Visual Interactions To Create Compelling Visualizations In Power BI
Conclusion
In this post, we talked about simple filters in Power BI and the best practices regarding their usage.
We also determined how these filters relate to the CALCULATE function and context in general.
Next, we will be covering table functions like FILTER, when you might use them, and how they work within Power BI.
All the best, | https://blog.enterprisedna.co/how-to-use-simple-filters-in-power-bi/ |
May 17, 2018
Scientists doing due diligence to provide answers to some of the world’s most pressing questions – increasing food production, the availability of clean water and energy and preserving or increasing biodiversity – can be overwhelmed by the complexity.
Achieving environmental sustainability is gnarly, and like many of today’s problems, begs the question, “shouldn’t there be an app for that?”
There is.
May 8, 2018
Global environmental sustainability isn’t just a destination. It really is about the journey.
Today’s tightly connected world has energy, people, organisms, information, natural resources and goods flowing back and forth. Regularly, the impacts of the exchanges are documented – pollution, deforestation, shortages, excesses – a flood of wins and losses.
May 7, 2018
Trees falling as fragile forests become cropland is a visual shorthand for the environmental costs exporting countries pay to meet lucrative global demands for food. Yet a new study reveals a counterintuitive truth: Importing food also damages homeland ecology.
In this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers at Michigan State University (MSU) and their colleagues show that the decisions domestic farmers must make as imported food changes the crop market can damage the environment.
May 4, 2018
With campus in bloom, CSIS celebrated commencement by hosting National Academy of Sciences president Marcia McNutt as she delivered the advanced degree commencement address and received an honorary degree.
Hongbo Yang received his PhD, hooded by advisor Jack Liu, and Kat Magoulick received her bachelor's degree Saturday.
A photo album can be found on the CSIS Facebook site.
Center for Systems Integration and SustainabilityMichigan State University115 Manly Miles Building1405 S. Harrison Rd.East Lansing, MI 48823, USA
(517) 432-5025
The Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability at Michigan State University integrates ecology with socioeconomics, demography and other disciplines for ecological sustainability from local, national to global scales.
Coupled Human and Natural Systems (CHANS) are integrated systems in which humans and natural components interact. CHANS research has recently emerged as an exciting and integrative field of cross-disciplinary scientific inquiry to find sustainable solutions that both benefit the environment and enable people to thrive. Visit CHANS-Net, the international network of research on coupled human and natural systems, for information and ways to engage. | http://csis.msu.edu/news/archive/201805 |
TECHNICAL FIELD
BACKGROUND ART
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
Solution to Problem
Advantageous Effects of Invention
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
First Embodiment
Second Embodiment
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
The present invention relates to an apparatus for controlling an electricity accumulation apparatus, an electricity accumulation apparatus, and a method of charging and discharging an electricity accumulation apparatus.
A recent increase in the awareness of global environment protection has drawn attention to a distributed generation such as a solar photovoltaic power generation. An inverse load flow is performed in which excessively-generated electric power, not consumed by a customer, in electric power generated by the distributed generation, inversely flows to a commercial power grid (or in short referred to as a grid). The introduction of the distributed generation has merit, because an electric power company purchases the inversely-flowing electric power by paying a predetermined unit price for it.
On the other hand, for example because the solar photovoltaic power generation varies in an amount of generated electric power according to an amount of insolation, a technology has been considered that accomplishes a stable supply of the electric power by charging an electricity accumulation apparatus, which is introduced, when the excessively-generated electric power occurs, and by discharging the electricity accumulation apparatus, conversely when the electric power is insufficient.
However, since also the electric power from the commercial power grid is stored in the electricity accumulation apparatus, it can not be determined whether the electric power stored in the electricity accumulation apparatus is the electric power from the solar photovoltaic power generation or is the electric power purchased from the commercial power grid. For this reason, as disclosed in JP-A-2007-209133, a technology is known in which the inverse load flow is possible with respect to the electric power generated by the solar battery, but the inverse load flow (a sale of the electric power) is prevented with respect to the electric power charged from the grid to the electricity accumulation apparatus.
[PTL 1] JP-A-2007-209133
However, in the related art, since the inverse load flow (the sale of the electric power) is prevented with respect to the electric power from the grid charged in the electricity accumulation apparatus, the inverse load flow of the amount of generated electric power, which is charged, is not possible. For this reason, there occurs a problem in that the excessive electric power from a distributed source can not be put to effective use.
An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for controlling an electricity accumulation apparatus, an electricity accumulation apparatus, and a method of charging and discharging an electricity accumulation apparatus, which are able to put an electric power generation from a distributed generation to effective use, in applying the electricity accumulation apparatus to the distributed generation such as a solar photovoltaic power generation.
In order to attain the object, the invention provides a configuration in which a distributed generation's share of an electric power, which is an electric power from the distributed generation, in an electric power stored in an electricity accumulation apparatus is computed to suppress the electric power discharged from the electricity accumulation apparatus to a grid to the distributed generation's share of an electric power, or to report a value of an electric power that is to inversely flow to the grid, as a value of the electric power that is suppressed to the distributed generation's share of the electric power.
Also, in order to attain the object, the invention provides a configuration provided with a charge and discharge control unit that controls charging and discharging of an electricity accumulation apparatus, a first charge terminal that connects to a distributed generation, installed to the side of a customer, a second charge terminal that is linked to a power grid, a first discharge terminal that is linked to the power grid, and a second discharge terminal that connects to an electric apparatus of the customer.
According to the invention, an electric power generation from the distributed generation can be put to effective use in applying the electricity accumulation apparatus to the distributed generation such as the solar photovoltaic power generation.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention can be apparent from the following descriptions of embodiments relating to the accompanying drawings, according to the invention.
Embodiments according to the invention is described below referring to the drawings. Moreover, the present embodiments are described that use a solar battery as a distributed generation (PV and a solar photovoltaic power generation system).
FIG. 1
FIG. 1
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is a block diagram illustrating a first embodiment of the invention. A distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus illustrated in , is installed in a customer's house that is linked to a power grid , and includes a charge and discharge control apparatus and a charge and discharge storage device , and two charge terminals and two discharge terminals. The charge and discharge control apparatus and the charge and discharge storage device , and each discharge terminal and each charge terminal are connected to one another over a predetermined communication network. In a case of receiving a charge order , the charge and discharge control apparatus transmits the charge order to a first charge terminal and a second charge terminal . In the same manner, in a case of receiving a discharge order , the charge and discharge control apparatus transmits the discharge order to a first discharge terminal and a second discharge terminal . Of each charge terminal and each discharge terminal, the first charge terminal is connected to a distributed generation (hereinafter referred to as a solar battery) with a predetermined electric wire (an electric power cable), the first discharge terminal and the second charge terminal are linked to the power grid with a predetermined electric wire, and the second discharge terminal is connected to an electric apparatus (including an electric machine and appliance, an electric communication machine and appliance and the like), possessed by a customer, with the electric wire, in the same manner. Moreover, in addition to the solar battery, the distributed generation also may be, for example, a wind power generation and additionally may be a renewal energy type of electric power generation apparatus that is known as a nature type and an environment type. Moreover, the electric machine and appliance and the electric communication machine and appliance, which are possessed by the customer, are connected to one another over the predetermined communication network, and specification information on electric power consumption (a load) and on the electric machine and appliance and the electric communication machinery and appliance may be transmitted to and received from one another or transmitted to and received from the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus and the solar battery .
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A first charge measurement device is installed between the first charge terminal and the solar battery . The first charge measurement device measures a charge electric power, which is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus (hereinafter referred to as a first amount of charge), of an amount of generated electric power that is generated by the solar battery (hereinafter referred to as an electric power generation). Data on the measured first amount of charge are transmitted to a measurement value display device installed in the customer's house and to the charge and discharge control apparatus within the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus . On the other hand, after flowing through the first charge measurement device , the amount of charge is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the first charge terminal .
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In the same manner, a first discharge measurement device and a first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus are installed between the first discharge terminal and the power grid . The first discharge measurement device measures an electric power that inversely flows from the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus to the power grid (hereinafter referred to as a first amount of discharge), and successively converts an electric power, which is discharged, from a direct current to an alternating current, in the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus , and then causes the alternating-current-converted electric power to inversely flow to the power grid . The electric power that inversely flows in this manner is measured or calculated in a measurement device not illustrated, and the electric power is reported to an electric power company. A purchase of the electric power is made based on this report. Data on the measured first amount of discharge are transmitted to the measurement value display device installed within the customer's house and to the charge and discharge control apparatus within the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus .
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On the other hand, also the electric power that results from deducting the first amount of charge from the electric power generation that is generated by the solar battery is converted from the direct current to the alternating current in the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus , and then is caused to inversely flow to the power grid .
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With regard to an charge electric power that is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the power grid (hereinafter referred to as a second amount of charge), the second amount of charge is converted from the alternating current into the direct current, in a second direct current/alternating current conversion apparatus installed between the power grid and the second charge terminal , and then is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the second charge terminal . An electric power, which is to be used in the predetermined electric apparatus possessed by the customer (hereinafter referred to as a second amount of discharge), of an charge electric power that is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus (the first amount of charge+the second amount of charge) is discharged from the second discharge terminal , and then is converted from the direct current to the alternating current in the second direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus and is consumed in the electric apparatus . On the other hand, also with regard to the electric power that is purchased from the power grid (an amount of purchased electric power), the remainder of the electric power that results from excluding the second amount of charge is assigned to the electric apparatus , thereby leading to consumption by the electric apparatus . As a result, the customer can use the electric apparatus .
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Moreover, measurement data on the first amount of charge and the second amount of charge and measurement data on the first amount of discharge and the second amount of discharge, which are transmitted to the charge and discharge control apparatus , are stored in the charge and discharge storage device . The charge and discharge storage device uses one of recordable mediums such as a HDD, a CD-RAM, a DVD-RAM, a flash memory and a Blue-Ray.
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Furthermore, data communication between the first charge measurement device and the first discharge measurement device , and between the measurement value display device and the charge and discharge control apparatus is performed over the predetermined communication network, and the communication network is for wired communication or wireless communication such as ADSL or optical communication. In addition to a dedicated terminal monitor, a PC display, a television, or a mobile device such as a mobile phone, may be used as the measurement value display device .
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Next, basic configurations of the first charge measurement device and the first discharge measurement device are described referring to . is a block diagram illustrating the basic configurations of the first charge measurement device and the first discharge measurement device .
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The first charge measurement device is configured to include an amount-of-charge measurement device , an amount-of-charge storage device , and an amount-of-charge transmission device , and measures a first amount of charge in a case where the electric power (the first amount of charge) , charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus , in the electric power generation that is generated by the solar battery , flows through the amount-of-charge measurement device . Measurement data (numerical values) on the measured first amount of charge are transmitted to the amount-of-charge storage device and the amount-of-charge transmission device . The amount-of-charge storage device receives and stores the measurement data on the first amount of charge . The amount-of-charge transmission device transmits the measurement data on the first amount of charge to the measurement value display device installed within the customer's house, and the measurement data on the first amount of charge is received by a measurement value reception device of the measurement value display device .
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The first discharge measurement device is configured to include an amount-of-discharge measurement device , an amount-of-discharge transmission device , and an amount-of-discharge storage device , and measures a first amount of discharge in a case where the first amount of charge , discharged from the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus , flows through the amount-of-discharge measurement device . The measurement data (numerical values) on the measured first amount of discharge are transmitted to the amount-of-discharge storage device and the amount-of-discharge transmission device . The amount-of-discharge storage device receives and stores the measurement data on the first amount of discharge . The amount-of-discharge transmission device transmits the measurement data on the first amount of discharge to the measurement value display device installed within the customer's house, and the measurement data on the first amount of discharge is received by the measurement value reception device of the measurement value display device .
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The measurement value display device is configured to include the measurement value reception device , a display device and a measurement value storage device , transmits the measurement data on the first amount of charge and the measurement data on the first amount of discharge , which are received by the measurement value reception device , to the display device , and displays the measurement data on the display device . Moreover, in addition to the dedicated terminal monitor, the PC display, the television, or the mobile device such as the mobile phone, may be used as the display device . The measurement value storage device stores the measurement data on the first amount of charge and the measurement data on the first amount of discharge . The amount-of-charge storage device , the amount-of-discharge storage device and the measurement value storage device use one of the recordable mediums such as the HDD, the CD-RAM, the DVD-RAM, the flash memory and the Blue-Ray. Furthermore, the amount-of-charge storage device and the amount-of-discharge storage device , and the measurement value storage device are smaller in storage capacity than the charge and discharge storage device , and removes the numerical values, beginning with the numerical value from the storage of which 24 hours have elapsed.
FIG. 3
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Next, illustrates the measurement value display device according to one embodiment in a case where the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus connects to the solar battery . The customer who introduces the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus and an electric power storage system according to the invention can install the measurement value display device within the customer's house and can grasp the amount of charge and the amount of discharge in the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus .
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A display screen is configured to include a display space on which to display an amount of charge [Ah] in the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus as a diagram, a display space on which to display the amount of charge as a numerical value, a display space which displays a ratio [%] of one part of the electric power generation in the solar battery to the full capacity of the first amount of charge that is charged and the numerical value (an absolute amount) [Ah], and a display space which displays the ratio [%] of one part of the amount of purchased electric power in the power grid to the full capacity of the second amount of charge that is charged and the numerical value (the absolute amount) [Ah].
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On the display space , the amount [Ah] of charged electric power in the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus is displayed as bar graphs (, , and ). The bar graph displays an electric power that can be currently charged, the bar graph displays the ratio [%] of the first amount of charge, and the bar graph displays the ratio [%] of the second amount of charge. Moreover, according to the present embodiment, each amount of charge is displayed as the ratio [%], but may be displayed as the absolute amount [Ah] and the display may arbitrarily be changed by the customer. Furthermore, in addition to [Ah], each amount of charge may also be displayed as [kWh].
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As a method for displaying on the display screen , the display method may arbitrarily be changed by the customer. In a case of a display screen , the first amount of charge (indicated by a solid line ) that is charged from the electric power generation in the solar battery is shown on a graph with the electric current [A] resulting from charging along the vertical axis and time [h] along the horizontal axis. An electric current value [A] of the electric power that is charged from the current time solar battery and the amount of charge [Ah] from a predetermined time are shown as numbers on a display space . In the same manner, in a case of a display screen , the second amount of charge (indicated by a solid line ) is shown on the same graph , based on the amount of purchased electric power from the power grid . The electric current value [A] of the electric power that is charged from the current time solar battery and an accumulated amount of charge [Ah] from the predetermined time are shown as numbers on a display space . Moreover, in addition to [Ah], a unit of the amount of charge may be shown as [kWh].
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Next, charge and discharge control of the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus is described using . is a flowchart illustrating processing details of the charge and discharge control according to one embodiment of the invention.
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In processing S, a use-permissible range Rc [Ah] (a use-permissible lower limit value R[A] and a use-permissible upper limit value R[A]) is read within which the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus can be used, and proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the charge order (CH_ORDER) is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the discharge order (DCH_ORDER) is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, as the charge order and the discharge order , for example, in addition to the charge order and the discharge order from the customer, in whose customer's house the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus is installed, the charge order and the discharge order may be possible from a manager, responsible for the power grid, and the charge order and the discharge order associated with the charge and discharge control may be possible such as feedback control and feedforward control of the corresponding distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus. Next, in processing S, a current state of charge (SOC) Sc [Ah] is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, it is determined whether or not charging and discharging are possible, based on formulas (1), (2), and (3), from SOC read in the processing S, the use-permissible range Rc read in the processing S, and a rated capacity C[Ah] of the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus.
C
×R
<Sc<C
×R
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(1)
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Sc<C
×R
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(): charging is possible (2)
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<Sc
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(): discharging is possible (3)-1
iii
<Sc
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()0()discharging is possible (3)-2
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In the processing S, in a case where a charging-possible condition expressed by the formula (2) is met, it is determined that the charging is possible and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, a charging-possible flag is set to ON (fCHarge_ABLE=1) and the electricity accumulation apparatus is set to a charging-possible state. Next, in processing S, the charging starts and then the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, in a case where the electric power, generated by the charging in the distributed generation, is charged through the first charge terminal , a charge start signal is output to the first charge measurement device , and the first charge measurement device measures an amount of charge Cp [Ah].
408
108
105
409
5409
115
405
107
103
405
408
409
Next, in the processing S, the amount of charge Cp measured by the first charge measurement device is read by the charge and discharge control apparatus , and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing , the amount of charge Cp is stored by the charge and discharge storage device , and returning to the processing takes place. Moreover, in a case where the electric power from the power grid is charged through the second charge terminal to which the charge measurement device is not attached, the returning to the processing S takes place without performing the processing S and the processing S (a flow indicated by a dotted line).
405
413
108
109
115
On the other hand, in the processing S, in a case where a discharging-possible condition expressed by both of the two formulas, the formulas (3)-1 and (3)-2, is met, it is determined that the discharging is possible, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. At this point, Sc (pv) is a solar battery's share of the electric power generation in the state of charge (SOC) Sc, and is a difference (ΣCp−ΣDp) between an accumulately-computed value (ΣCp) of the amounts of charge Cp [Ah] in the first charge measurement device and the accumulately-computed value (ΣDp) of the amounts of discharge Dp [Ah] in the first discharge measurement device . The corresponding accumulately-computed value is computed at a predetermined period and is stored in the charge and discharge storage device .
106
106
107
The formula (3)-2 shows that the solar battery 's share of the electric power generation in the state of charge (SOC) is zero or more. That is, in a case where the electric power generation (the accumulately-computed value) in the solar battery is greater than the amount of discharge (the accumulately-computed value) to the commercial power grid , the discharging to the power grid to the extent exceeding this is not performed.
106
107
106
105
Moreover, the condition expressed by the formula (3)-2 can be excluded. That is, the electric power, greater than the electric power generation in the solar battery can be discharged to the commercial power grid . However, in this case, the electric power that is a target for the charging is defined as an upper limit on the electric power generation in the solar battery . This computation is performed by the charge and discharge control apparatus and is reported to the electric power company.
413
10
414
415
102
109
109
109
415
109
115
416
416
115
417
104
405
415
416
In the processing S, a discharging-possible flag is set to ON (fDCHARGE_ABLE=1) and the electricity accumulation apparatus is set to a discharging-possible state. Next, in processing S, the discharging starts, and then the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, in a case where the discharging is discharged from the first discharge terminal that is connected to the first discharge measurement device , a discharge start signal is output to the first discharge measurement device , and the first discharge measurement device measures the amount of discharge Dp [Ah]. Next, in the processing S, the amount of discharge Dp measured by the first discharge measurement device is read by the charge and discharge control apparatus , and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the amount of discharge Dp is stored in the charge and discharge storage device , and the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, in a case where the electric power discharged to an electric apparatus installed in the customer's house is consumed from the second discharge terminal to which the discharge measurement device is not attached, the returning to the processing S takes place without performing the processing S and the processing S (a flow indicated by a dotted line).
417
404
408
415
Next, in the processing S, it is determined whether or not the discharging ends using the formula (4), based on the charging state Sc read in the processing S, the amount of charge Cp read in the processing S, and the amount of discharge Dp read in the processing S.
Sc+Cp
Dp≦C
×R
N
L
()− (4)
417
418
418
419
105
417
414
In the processing S, in a case where the condition for determining the ending of the discharging, expressed by the formula (4), is met, the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the discharging-possible flag is set to OFF (fDCHARGE_ABLE=0). Next, in processing S, a discharging stop signal is output to the charge and discharge control apparatus and discharge control is ended. In the processing S, in a case where the condition for determining the ending of the discharging, expressed by the formula (4), is not met, it is determined that the continuous discharging is possible, and that returning to the processing S takes place to perform the continuous discharging.
405
410
410
411
105
412
412
12
412
12
413
On the other hand, in the processing S, in a case where the charging-possible condition, expressed by the formula (2), is not met, it is determined that the electric power can not be charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus, and the proceeding to the processing S. In the processing S, the charging-possible flag is set to OFF (fCHARGE_ABLE=0). Next, in processing S, a charging stop signal is output to the charge and discharge control apparatus and thus charge control is ended and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the discharge order is checked again, and in a case where the discharge order is not present, or is cancelled (DCH_ORDER=0), the charge and discharge control is ended. In the processing S, in a case where the discharge order is present (DCH_ORDER=1), the proceeding to processing S takes place, and the discharging control is performed based on the discharge control flow.
405
406
409
413
419
Moreover, in the processing S, in a case where the formula (2) and the formula (3) are both valid, the processing S to the processing S, and the processing S to the processing to S can be performed at the same time in terms of time, and in such a case the discharging is performed while the charging is performed. In addition to Ah (ampere hour), the unit of the electric power that is charged and discharged may be in kWh (kilowatt hour).
10
501
502
502
503
503
504
504
505
505
506
506
503
501
504
FIG. 5
FIG. 5
L
H
N
Next, the charge and discharge control of the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus is described using . is a flowchart illustrating the processing details of charge and discharge distribution control according to one embodiment of the invention. In processing S, the use-permissible range Rc [Ah] (the use-permissible lower limit value R[%] and the use-permissible upper limit value R[%]) is read within which the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus can be used, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the charge order (CH_ORDER) is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, time (T_HOUR) is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, the time (T_HOUR) is in 24 hours units (every hour from 0 to 23). Next, in the processing S, the current state of charge (SOC) Sc [Ah] is read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, a charge distribution rate cDST_PV indicating a ratio of the electric power [Ah] that is charged from the distributed generation (hereinafter referred to as the solar battery) and a charge distribution rate cDST_GR indicating the ratio of the electric power [Ah] that is charged from the power grid are read, and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, it is determined whether or not it is daytime, using a formula (5), based on the time T_HOUR and real time that are read in the processing S. Furthermore, it is determined whether or not the charging from the solar battery is possible, using a formula (6), based on the use-permissible range Rc and the rated capacity Cthat are read in the processing S and on the state of charge (SOC) Sc that is read in the processing S. In the same manner, it is determined from the formula (6)′ whether or not the charging from the power grid is possible.
cT
AM≦T
cT
PM
—
—
_HOUR≦ (5)
Cpv<Cap
(6)
Cgr<Cag
(6)′
108
In the formulas, cT_AM represents a daytime start threshold value, cT_PM represents a nightime start threshold value, and time is represented with 24 hour units (with numbers every hour from 0 to 23). Furthermore, Cpv is the amount of charge [Ah] from the solar battery, and is a measurement value measured by the first charge measurement device , and Cap is the possible amount of charge [Ah] that is the solar battery's share and is computed using a formula (7). Cgr is the amount of charge [Ah] from the power grid and is computed using a formula (8) when the amount of charge after the charging start is defined as Sc′, and Cag is the possible amount of charge [Ah] from the power grid and is computed using a formula (9).
Cap=Cabl×cDST
PV
—
(7)
Cgr=Sc
Cpv+Sc
′−() (8)
Cag=Cabl×cDST
GR
—
(9)
In the formulas, Cabl is the possible amount of charge [Ah] and is computed using a formula (10).
Cabl=C
Sc
max− (10)
Cmax is a charging-possible upper limit value [Ah] and is computed using a formula (11).
C
C
×R
N
H
max= (11)
506
507
507
506
07
507
In a case where the amount of generated electric power generated by the solar battery is charged, when the formulas (5) and the formula (6) are valid at the same time in the processing S, it is determined that the amount of generated electric power generated by the solar battery can be charged and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, a flag indicating that the charging is possible from the solar battery is set to ON (fCHARGE_ABLE_PV=1). Furthermore, with regard to the charging from the power grid, in a case where the formula (6)′ is valid in the processing S, it is determined that the electric power from the power grid can be charged and the proceeding to the processing S takes place. In the processing S, a flag indicating that the charging is possible from the power grid is set to ON (fCHARGE_ABLE_GR=1).
508
509
101
10
108
108
Next, in processing S, the charging starts and then the proceeding to processing S takes place. Moreover, in a case where the amount of generated electric power, generated by the solar battery, is charged from the first charge terminal to the electricity accumulation apparatus , the charge start signal is output to the first charge measurement device , and the first charge measurement device measures an amount of charge Cpv [Ah].
509
108
105
510
510
115
506
107
103
506
509
510
Next, in the processing S, the amount of charge Cpv measured by the first charge measurement device is read by the charge and discharge control apparatus , and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the amount of charge Cpv is stored by the charge and discharge storage device , and the returning to the processing S takes place. Moreover, in a case where the electric power from the power grid is charged through the second charge terminal to which the charge measurement device is not attached, the returning to the processing S takes place without performing the processing S and the processing S (a flow indicated by a dotted line).
506
511
511
512
506
11
511
512
On the other hand, in a case where the amount of generated electric power generated by the solar battery is charged, when either of the formula (5) and the formula (6) is not valid in the processing S, it is determined that the amount of generated electric power generated by the solar battery is not charged and the proceeding to processing S takes place. In the processing S, the flag indicating that the charging is possible from the solar battery is set to OFF (fCHARGE_ABLE_PV=0). Next, in processing S, the charging from the solar battery is stopped and charge distribution control is ended. Furthermore, in the same manner with regard to the charging from the power grid, in a case where the formula (6)′ is not valid in the processing S, it is also determined that the electric power from the power grid is not charged and the proceeding to the processing S takes place. In the processing S, the flag indicating that the charging is possible from the power grid is set to OFF (fCHARGE_ABLE_GR=0). Next, in processing S, the charging from the power grid is stopped and charge distribution control is ended.
10
10
107
FIG. 6
FIG. 6
Next, one embodiment of the charge and discharge control of the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus (hereinafter referred to as the electricity accumulation apparatus) is described using . illustrates the embodiment of a method of controlling charging and discharging in a case where the electric power from the power grid (nighttime electric power) that is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus in the night is assigned to an electric load that is consumed by the customer in the daytime, and on the other hand the electric power generated by the distributed generation inversely flows to the power grid (a sale of the electricity).
601
107
604
602
106
603
10
A graph is a graph that represents the electric power [kW], which is charged from the power grid , along the vertical axis, and the time [h] along the horizontal axis. A time zone is a daytime zone (hereinafter referred to as daytime), and according to the present embodiment, 10 hours from 8:00 a.m to 18:00 p.m is defined as daytime. With regard to the setting of the daytime, the customer, or a manager responsible for the power grid, an enterpriser responsible for the electric power generation, or a manager responsible for the distributed generation arbitrarily sets the daytime in advance, or can set it to the time zone that is determined in advance seasonally or monthly. A graph is a graph that represents the electric power [kW] generated by the solar battery (the distributed generation) along the vertical axis, and the time [h] along the horizontal axis. A graph is a graph that represents that the electric power [kW] consumed over time (hereinafter referred to as the electric power load) in the customer's house in which the corresponding electricity accumulation apparatus is installed, along the vertical axis, and the time [h] along the horizontal axis.
601
107
605
605
605
10
607
606
As illustrated in the graph , first, the electric power from the power grid is charged from 18:00 to 23:00 that is a nighttime zone (hereinafter referred to as nighttime) on the predetermined day (hereinafter referred to as the x-th day) and from 00:00 to 08:00 that is a time zone on the next day, that is, on the (x+1)-th day (). An amount of charge Cgr [kWh] is the sum of the electric power charged from 18:00 to 23:00 on the x-th day and the electric power charged from 00:00 to 08:00 on the (x+1)-th day. The state of charge (SOC) of the electricity accumulation apparatus at 8:00 on the (x+1)-th day becomes a state of charge in which the corresponding amount of charge Cgr [kWh] is charged with respect to a maximum permissible amount (a dotted line frame).
106
608
608
107
Next, when the solar battery generates the electric power in a pattern of an electric power generation curved line after 8:00 on the (x+1)-th day, the amount of generated electric power Gpv[kWh], a portion that is computed with time integration of the electric power generation curved line , is entirely caused to inversely flow to the power grid in order to sell the electricity.
603
609
605
10
609
610
604
611
607
604
107
609
611
On the other hand, as illustrated in the graph , when the power consumption (hereinafter referred to as a load pattern) by the customer on the (x+1)-th day is on a curved line , an electric power Cgr charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus is discharged with respect to the daytime load pattern in such a manner as to follow the corresponding load pattern . An amount of discharge Dp [kWh] is computed with the time integration of the discharged electric power [kW]. Because at that time the basic discharge control gives priority to the discharging over the daytime , a maximum value [kW] of the amount of discharge is set according to the state of charge (SOC) at 8:00 on the (x+1)-th day and the time zone [h], which is the daytime , and the electric power from the power grid is assigned with respect to the load [kW] in the time zone in which the load pattern exceeds the maximum value [kW] of the amount of discharge (selling the electricity).
10
612
607
The state of charge (SOC) of the electricity accumulation apparatus at 18:00 on the (x+1)-th day after the discharging becomes a state of charge [kWh] that results from deducting the amount of discharge Dp [KWh] from the state of charge .
611
609
604
607
604
107
Moreover, the maximum value of the amount of discharge may not be set, and in such a case, the discharge control gives priority to the discharging that follows the load pattern , without giving priority to the discharging over the entire time zone of the daytime . For this reason, in a case where the electric power Cgr in the state of charge is fully discharged in the middle of the daytime , the control may also be performed in such a manner that the discharge control is ended in the middle, and the electric power from the power grid is assigned with respect to an electric apparatus.
FIG. 7
FIG. 7
70
707
705
715
708
709
is a block diagram illustrating a second embodiment of the invention. A distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus illustrated in , is installed in a customer's house that is linked to a power grid , and includes a charge and discharge control apparatus and a charge and discharge storage device , and two charge terminals and two discharge terminals, and a first charge measurement device and a first discharge measurement device .
705
715
708
709
710
71
705
71
701
703
12
705
72
702
704
701
706
702
703
707
704
711
70
706
The charge and discharge storage device and the charge and discharge storage device , and each charge terminal and each discharge terminal, and further the first charge measurement device , the first discharge measurement device , and a measurement value display device are connected to one another over a predetermined communication network. In a case of receiving a charge order , the charge and discharge control apparatus transmits the charge order to a first charge terminal and a second charge terminal . In the same manner, in a case of receiving a discharge order , the charge and discharge control apparatus transmits the discharge order to a first discharge terminal and a second discharge terminal . Of each charge terminal and each discharge terminal, the first charge terminal is connected to a distributed generation (hereinafter referred to as a solar battery) with a predetermined electric wire (an electric power cable), the first discharge terminal and the second charge terminal are linked to the power grid with a predetermined electric wire, and the second discharge terminal is connected to an electric apparatus (including an electric machine and appliance, an electric communication machinery and appliance and the like), possessed by a customer, with the electric wire, in the same manner. Moreover, the electric machine and appliance and the electric communication machinery and appliance, which are possessed by the customer, are connected to one another over the predetermined communication network, and specification information on electric power consumption (a load) and on the electric machine and appliance and the electric communication machinery and appliance may be transmitted to and received from one another or transmitted to and received from the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus and the solar battery .
708
701
706
708
70
706
710
705
70
708
70
701
The first charge measurement device is connected between the first charge terminal and the solar battery with a predetermined electric power cable. The first charge measurement device measures an amount of charge, which is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus (hereinafter referred to as a first amount of charge), of an amount of generated electric power that is generated by the solar battery (hereinafter referred to as an electric power generation). Data on the measured first amount of charge are transmitted to a measurement value display device installed in the customer's house and to the charge and discharge control apparatus within the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus . On the other hand, after flowing through the first charge measurement device , the amount of charge is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the first charge terminal .
709
712
702
707
709
70
707
712
707
710
705
70
In the same manner, the first discharge measurement device and a first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus are connected between the first discharge terminal and the power grid with a predetermined electric power cable. The first discharge measurement device measures an electric power that inversely flows from the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus to the power grid (hereinafter referred to as a first amount of discharge), and successively converts an electric power, which is discharged, from a direct current to an alternating current, in the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus , and then causes the alternating-current-converted electric power to inversely flow to the power grid . Data on the measured first amount of discharge are transmitted to the measurement value display device installed within the customer's house and to the charge and discharge control apparatus within the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus .
706
712
707
On the other hand, also the electric power that results from deducting the first amount of charge from the electric power generation that is generated by the solar battery is converted from the direct current to the alternating current in the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus , and then is caused to inversely flow to the power grid .
70
707
713
707
703
70
703
711
70
704
713
711
707
711
711
711
With regard to an amount of charge that is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the power grid (hereinafter referred to as a second of charge), the second amount of charge is converted from the alternating current into the direct current, in a second direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus installed and connected with a predetermined electric power cable between the power grid and the second charge terminal , and then is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus from the second charge terminal . An electric power, which is to be used in the predetermined electrical apparatus possessed by the customer (hereinafter referred to as a second amount of discharge), of an amount of charge that is charged to the distributed generation supporting electricity accumulation apparatus (the first amount of charge+the second amount of charge) is discharged from the second discharge terminal , and then is converted from the direct current to the alternating current in the second direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus and is consumed in the electrical apparatus . On the other hand, also with regard to the electric power that is purchased from the power grid (an amount of purchased electric power), the remainder of the electric power that results from excluding the second amount of charge is assigned to the electric apparatus , thereby leading to consumption by the electric apparatus . As a result, the customer can use the electric apparatus .
705
715
715
Moreover, the measurement data on the first amount of charge and the second amount of charge and the measurement data on the first amount of discharge and the second amount of discharge, which are transmitted to the charge and discharge control apparatus , are stored in the charge and discharge storage device . The charge and discharge storage device uses one of the recordable mediums such as the HDD, the CD-RAM, the DVD-RAM, the flash memory and the Blue-Ray.
708
709
710
705
710
Furthermore, the data communication between the first charge measurement device and the first discharge measurement device , and between the measurement value display device and the charge and discharge control apparatus is performed over the predetermined communication network, and the communication network is for wired communication or wireless communication such as ADSL or optical communication. In addition to the dedicated terminal monitor, the PC display, the television, or the mobile device such as the mobile phone, may be used as the measurement value display device .
1
Features of the above embodiments are again described as follows. The electricity accumulation apparatus that is installed to the side of a customer includes a charge and discharge control unit that controls charging and discharging of the electricity accumulation apparatus, a first charge terminal that connects to a distributed generation, installed to the side of the customer, a second charge terminal that is linked to a power grid, a first discharge terminal that is linked to the power grid, and a second discharge terminal that connects to an electric apparatus of the customer (feature ).
2
The electricity accumulation apparatus includes a first charge measurement device between the distributed generation and the first charge terminal, and a first discharge measurement device between the power grid and the first discharge terminal. The first charge measurement device includes an amount-of-charge measurement unit that measures an electric power (an amount of charge), charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, in an amount of generated electric power generated by the distributed generation. The first discharge measurement device includes a discharge measurement unit that measures an electric power (an amount of discharge) that is discharged from the electricity accumulation apparatus (feature ).
3
The first charge measurement device includes an amount-of-charge transmission unit that transmits numerical data on the measured amount of charge to a measurement value display device and the charge and discharge control unit, and the first discharge measurement device includes an amount-of-discharge transmission unit that transmits the numerical data on the measured amount of discharge to the measurement value display device and the charge and discharge control unit (feature ).
4
An electric power (an amount of charge) that is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus from an amount of generated electric power generated by the distributed generation is measured by the first charge measurement device, and then is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus through the first charge terminal, and a second direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus converts the electric power from the power grid from alternating current electric power to direct current electric power, and then direct-current-electric-power converted electric power is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus through the second charge terminal (feature ).
5
A distinction is made between an electric power charged from the distributed generation and an electric power charged from the power grid, in an electric power charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, based on the numerical data on the amount of charge measured by the first charge measurement device (feature ).
6
There is a feature that the electric power, charged from the distributed generation, in the electric power charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, is discharged from the first discharge terminal, the electric power discharged (the amount of discharge) is measured in the first discharge measurement device, then the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus converts the measured amount of discharge from the direct current electric power to the alternating current electric power, and the alternating-current-electric-power converted electric power is discharged to the power grid (an inverse flow) (feature ).
7
The electric power, charged from the power grid, in the electric power charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus is discharged from the second discharge terminal, the electric power discharged is converted from the alternating current electric power to the direct current electric power in the second direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus, and then the direct-current-electric-power converted electric power is consumed in an electric apparatus possessed by the customer (feature ).
8
With respect to an amount of generated electric power generated by the distributed generation, the amount of generated electric power is converted by the first direct current and alternating current conversion apparatus from the direct current electric power to the alternating current electric power, and then alternating-current-electric-power converted electric power is caused to inversely flow to the power grid. At the same time, the electric power, which is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, and which is charged from the distributed generation, is discharged from the first discharge terminal to the power grid. As a result, the electric power that is equal to or more than an electric power that is generated by the distributed generation is caused to inversely flow to the power grid (feature ).
9
The electricity accumulation apparatus includes a measurement value reception unit that receives numerical data on an amount of charge which is transmitted from the first charge measurement device and numerical data on an amount of discharge which is transmitted from the first discharge measurement device, a measurement value storage unit that stores the numerical data on the amount of charge and the numerical data on the amount of discharge, and a measurement value display unit that displays the numerical data. The numerical data on the amount of charge measured by the first charge measurement device and the numerical data on the amount of discharge measured by the first discharge measurement device are displayed (feature ).
10
The distributed generation is an electric power generation apparatus, installed to the side of the customer and includes at least one or more electric power generation system of a solar photovoltaic power generation system using solar cells, a wind power generation system, a co-generation system including a generator using gas, and a bio-mass generation system (feature ).
11
The electric apparatus is an apparatus, possessed by the customer, which consumes the electric power. The electric apparatus includes at least one or more of an electric machine and appliance, an electric communication machine and appliance, an electronic applied machine and appliance, and a medical machine and appliance (feature ).
12
A distinction is made between an electric power charged from the distributed generation and an electric power charged from the power grid, in an electric power charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, based on the numerical data on the amount of charge measured by the first charge measurement device, and only the electric power charged from the distributed generation, or only the electric power generated by the distributed generation is caused to inversely flow to the power grid (feature ).
1
12
According to the features to described above, it is possible to grasp the amount of generated electric power, generated by the distributed generation, which is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus, by including the charge terminal that connects to the distributed generation, the discharge terminal that connects to a power grid, the charge terminal that connects to the power grid, and the discharge terminal for discharging to an electric power load such as the electric apparatus and by attaching an electric power meter to the charge terminal and the discharge terminal that connect to the distributed generation. Therefore, it is possible to make a distinction of the distributed generation's share of the amount of generated electric power, which comes from the distributed generation, in the electric power that is charged to the electricity accumulation apparatus and to cause the amount of generated electric power to inversely flow to the power grid (a sale of the electricity).
The above descriptions are provided with regard to the embodiments, but the invention is not limited to this, and it is apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications and changes are possible within the nature of the invention and the scopes of the accompanying claims.
10
DISTRIBUTED GENERATION SUPPORTING ELECTRICITY ACCUMULATION APPARATUS
106
DISTRIBUTED GENERATION (SOLAR BATTERY)
107
COMMERCIAL POWER GRID (POWER GRID)
111
711
, ELECTRIC APPARATUS (ELECTRIC APPARATUS POSSESSED BY CUSTOMER)
301
DISPLAY SCREEN (MEASUREMNET VALUE DISPLAY SCREEN)
604
DAYTIME TIME ZONE (DAYTIME)
605
AMOUNT OF CHARGE [kWh] FROM POWER GRID
606
MAXIMUM AMOUNT (CAPACITY) OF CHARGE FOR ELECTRICITY ACCUMULATION APPARATUS
607
STATE OF CHARGE OF ELECTRICITY ACCUMULATION APPARATUS AFTER BEING CHARGED FROM POWER GRID
608
ELECTRIC POWER [kWh] GENERATED BY SOLAR BATTERY
609
LOAD PATTERN OF CUSTOMER
610
AMOUNT OF DISCHARGE [kWH] FROM ELECTRICITY ACCUMULATION APPARATUS
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a block diagram illustrating a first embodiment according to the invention.
FIG. 2
illustrates one embodiment of a charge measurement device, a discharge measurement device, and a measurement value display device.
FIG. 3
illustrates one example of a display terminal device in a case of introducing a solar power generation system.
FIG. 4
is a flowchart illustrating charge and discharge control of an electricity accumulation apparatus.
FIG. 5
is a flow chart illustrating one example (distribution charge control) of the charge and discharge control.
FIG. 6
illustrates one embodiment (nighttime grid charge) of the charge and discharge control.
FIG. 7
is a block diagram illustrating a second embodiment according to the invention. | |
This has been an ongoing project to create a self sustaining stringed instrument that I am also able to physically perform through exciting and preparing the strings.
My initial prototype consisted of one string mounted on a long piece of plywood. To excite the string I connected the left and right outputs of a power amplifier to each end of the string and placed a strong magnet underneath. I then ran a simple one oscillator synthesiser through the system. The audio signal running through the string interacts with the magnet creating vibrations in the string.
I began developing this prototype into a four stringed instrument, my aims were to create an instrument with a larger sonic palette than my prototype whilst also focusing on design and playability. For the structure of my instrument I repurposed an old kitchen chair, removing the seating section and drilling the front and back of the frame together to create a solid, flat structure. To secure my strings I had to further modify the chairs structure sinking guitar machine heads into the wood of the instrument.
To excite the strings I connected them in series, with magnets placed individually beneath each string.
Connecting the strings in series reduces the current being received by the farthest strings so the next step is to play around with ways to get an equal amount of current sent to each string.
As I’m still prototyping this project I’m having a lot of fun finding different ways to play the instrument. The frame of the chair provides a great resonator which allows me to physically play the instrument without any amplification. I use small drum beaters to strike the strings and have also experimented with using the vibrations from a speaker to vibrate the instruments structure and strings. I use these techniques as well as augmenting the instruments range with feedback loops and the inbuilt effects of a connected mixer.
Next steps: paint the instrument, permanently attach magnets to the instrument, devise a more convenient way of connecting strings to the amplification device and allow each string to receive equal amounts of signal. | https://dantappersounddesign.com/magnetised-strings/ |
What is the philosophy of religion in the Arab thought?
After the domination of the formula for reconciliation between reason and tradition, or between philosophy and religious law in medieval Arabic and Islamic thought and in spite of all the opposing views that were described as heresy and atheism (Ibn al Moukaffaa, Ibn al Rawandi Mohammad bin al RaziZakharia … etc), the philosopher of man and of law Ibn Rushd or Avorroes (1126-1198) wanted to reconsider the connection between them in his book of wide notoriety “Treaty of decisive speech on the agreement of religion and philosophy “to draw the borders, recognize the junction of the two methods at the intersection of one truth and prove that “wisdom is a friend and a sister of religious law … ”
But since that ruchdiste moment, philosophy has endeavored to defend and justify its existence, and Arab thought has persisted to avoid direct confrontation with religion. Even when Arab thinkers had passed “the Enlightenment” in their cultural space and had adopted the formula of liberty, of progress, of the Constitution and rationality, they are not too interested in the situation of religion especially Islam, to submit to the analytical dissection.On the contrary, it was considered a part of the identity threatened by the superior West. Nevertheless, the religious case was revived as an important matter – not to say “the mother of all matters” – since the 19th century in particular in the discussions initiated between Sheikh Mohammad Abdo and Farah Antoun. Therefore, a separation of visions follows, as some have believed in the necessity of religious reform to accompany the modernization and modernity and integrate the new era (Abdo Al Afghani …) and the existence of complementarity between the two areas as it was expressed by Dr. Mohammad HassaneinHaykal in “faith and philosophical knowledge”; while others have adopted the idea of undoing the connection between religion and state (Khaled Mohammad Khaled Ismail Mazhar, ZakiNajib Mahmud Taha Hossein …). Similarly, the religious text, not religion taken as a whole, has not escaped the incisive criticism. This is how GebraelDalal, ChebliChmayyel and Francis Marrach proceeded by adopting scientific explanation instead of theological explanation and Adham Ismael in his text “Why am I an atheist? “(1937). It turned out also that Sadik Jalal al-Azm, in his book “Critique of Religious Thought” (1969) shocked “the religious conscience” by targeting the demolition of the dominant occult mentality and trying to substitute the modern scientific culture; because, according to him, the operation of the change should include the common cognitive structures. The great poet Ahmed Said Esber (Adonis) followed his footsteps denouncing the transformation of religion into an institution or authority; “When God shoves in the earthly world, it becomes a problem.” As for AbdelWahabMeddeb, in his book “The disease of Islam”, he pointed the finger of accusation directly to the latest religion.
When the question was appointed to “secularism”, some Arab thinkers had categorically refused it (Mohammad Abed al Jabiri, Hasan Hanafi, TahaAbd al Rahman, Abu Yacoub al Marzouki …) while the philosopher Nassif Nassar had apprehended it in ( Icharatwa
masalek), “the signs and lanes, of IwanIbenRushd to the expanses of secularism” (2001) in its connection to justice “given that secularism is a matter of historic evolution in relation to the religion that takes place under the banner of justice.”And he called to think of religion of its exterior considering it as one of the phenomena of human history, and to consider the matter of faith that is within the pluralistic secular society outside the confiscation. Also, when calling to rebuild the public domain in this context, he ensures that “the public sectarian domain has its defined place.”
On the left bank of the Mediterranean, the Algerian thinker Mohammed Arkoun devoted his energy to the opening of the religious text to human sciences in full, in an effort to humanize it by using the method of backlash and excess. Similarly, Nasr Hamed Abu Zeid has dealt with religious discourse characterizing it as a discourse that is subject to several interpretations or readings.
At the heart of the Arab popular movement, of uprisings, of the change in some governmental regimes, of the increase of the “fundamentalism” wave and the access of Islamists to power, the Arab Palestinian thinker AzmiBeshara, selected in his book “religion and secularism in a historical context” (first part, 2013), the transfer of the question to another level, namely “modes of religiosity” and considered it as responsible for what the religion has undergone deformation. According to him, what we are witnessing is far from being a religion; it is a social movement whose speech and culture are religious. He fears “a situation where religiosity increases and faith decreases.” He stands on the side of secularity as a historical process that affects societies and distinguishes it of secularism; it is the nature of the future of secularity in societies that defines the nature of secularism and of religiosity.
However, the above statement clearly underlines the dynamic of Arab thought, unlike the state of inertia and passivity which it was long qualified towards the changing reality. It is clear that the claims of freedom, social justice, the Constitution, the rule of law and the sovereignty of the people are just fruits of that thought which, like a mole, dug slowly deep into the social reality of structures with varying and invisible success. As to the responsible of any extremism or abuse, it is the narrow understanding of religion and politics and authoritarian use of religious text and its restriction within the interpretation of a single group, and the obstruction of democratic political horizons in natural course that results in the alternation of power and the equitable distribution of resources; because democracy is a political system capable of protecting pluralism and difference and keep individual and collective faith.The purpose aimed by this conference is the establishment of an evaluative result of the aspect of philosophy focused on religion and this is since the first appearance of the use of the concept or the notion of “philosophy of religion” in the Arab lexicon in 1898, after RachidReda had published his magazine “Al Manar” and to which he chose a secondary title or schedule “religious journal for research in the philosophy of religion and the societal and civilizational matters “. However and after a century and two decades, we have seen a “religion” that wins extremism and a “philosophy of religion” that evolves slowly, except for some Arabic works on philosophy of religion that can be counted on
fingertips, and are rather works of definition of philosophy of religion as critical and evaluative tests. This encourages us to try to assess the philosophical thought of religion on different levels. With that, the conference aims at highlighting the movement of Arab thought in its distortions, its deviations, its courage, its shyness, the forms of its hesitations and infancy, the positions of thinkers and current Arab philosophers towards religion and philosophy; and through several titles these are the most salient:
Philosophy and religion: the sinuous
Philosophy, democracy and religion
Philosophy, religion and dialogue
Hermeneutics and religion: conflicting readings (or the conflict of interpretations)
Religion and Public Space: the final judgment of the public space in its temporality
The human propensity in the religion: humanizing religion or xxx humanity? | https://cish-byblos.org/en/event/what-is-the-philosophy-of-religion-in-the-arab-thinking/concept-note/ |
Isolda Costa, Dr. Costa holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the State University of Campinas (1981), a Masters in Nuclear Technology - Materials from the University of São Paulo (1986) at the Nuclear and Energy Research Institute IPEN and a PhD from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) - Corrosion and Protection Center 1991. She has been involved in corrosion research at IPEN since 1984 and since 1992 has been supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students on this subject. The topics of interest of research are corrosion and protection of metallic materials. She has published over 170 peer-reviewed articles.
Isolda Costa
Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN)
Abstract
Metallic alloys are largely used in dentistry for implants, mainly titanium alloys. These alloys present a sole combination of physical, chemical and biological properties making them highly recommended for implants fabrication. Despite their unique combination of properties, failures do occur. Corrosion can be one of the reasons for these failures. This is due to the very extreme conditions encountered in the mouth, such as presence of microbial species, production of organic acids and enzymes, epithelial cells, food debris, pH and temperature variation, ionic corrosive species (chloride, sodium and potassium) and presence of proteins. These conditions make teeth function one of the most inhospitable environments in the body leading to corrosion of the high noble alloys used in dentistry. Corrosion results in surface roughening, liberation of elements from the metal or alloy, toxic and allergic reactions and, eventually, failure of the material. The aim of this lecture is to present an introduction to this important subject, that is, causes and consequences of metallic dental materials corrosion. | http://www.metallum.com.br/obi2017/palestra-info37.php |
A Hampstead Garden Suburb resident who is shielding has raised more than £9,000 on a charity walk.
Michael Jacobs, 72, is setting out to complete 12,250 laps of a secluded field behind his home, covering 1,143 miles.
Having embarked on the virtual trek from London to Rome on April 1, the pensioner has already completed 1,188 laps – a total of 108 miles.
The former tax lawyer has been shielding at home since March 2020 with primary immunodeficiency disorder.
His marathon walk is raising money for Nepal children’s charity Kidasha, of which Michael is a former chairman and trustee.
Michael said: “I am absolutely delighted to have taken on this challenge in support of Kidasha. I’ve previously completed many treks in various locations around the world, and hated the idea of the pandemic getting in the way of my support reaching those who desperately need help.
“I am, however, missing all the cheese, wine, and mountain views I’d be enjoying on the continent if I were doing this for real.
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“I’ve been very fortunate to have travelled to Nepal many times, and have witnessed first-hand the essential work Kidasha does to provide vulnerable children the opportunity of a better future.
“The pandemic has deepened a range of critical issues in the region.
“I hope that my local community will join me in raising the awareness and funds needed to overcome the wider impacts of this dreadful virus in one of the poorest countries in the world.”
The fundraiser is supporting children living in poverty in Nepal.
The charity Kidasha helps kids into education, providing safe shelter, and working with families and employers to end child exploitation and protect young people from dangerous living conditions.
Janice Miller, chief executive of Kidasha, said: “It’s incredibly heartwarming to see our supporters so committed to fundraising for us during this challenging period.
“We’ve all been affected by Covid-19, so we truly appreciate that longtime supporters like Michael are still thinking of us. | https://www.hamhigh.co.uk/news/hampstead-garden-suburb-man-completes-charity-london-walk-7954956 |
A group of animal biologists and chemists at the Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (ITbM), Nagoya University, has used a chemical genomics approach to explore the underlying mechanism of winter depression, according to a study reported in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S.A.(PNAS). The researchers have succeeded in understanding the underlying mechanism of winter depression-like behavior and identified a drug that treats winter depression-like behavior in medaka fish. The experiments were carried out through a joint research collaboration between researchers at ITbM, the National Institute for Basic Biology, the Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems, Fujita Health University, and The University of Manchester.
About the research:
Seasonal changes in the environment can lead to depression- and anxiety-like behavior in humans as well as animals. At high latitudes, including northern regions of the United States and Nordic countries, about 10% of the population suffers from winter depression (also known as seasonal affective disorder: SAD). Typical symptoms of SAD include low mood, sleep problems, disrupted circadian rhythms, social withdrawal, decreased libido, and changes in appetite and body weight. The increasing incidence of suicide and social withdrawal associated with winter depression has become a serious public health issue, and new therapeutic targets and therapies are urgently required. However, the underlying mechanisms of winter depression remain unclear.
Animal models play an essential role in virtually all fields of medicine in understanding the mechanistic nature of biological and behavioral processes, as well as in the discovery of new drugs. Small teleosts, such as zebrafish and medaka , have emerged as powerful models for the study of complex brain disorders and have become valuable pharmacogenetic tools. The research group demonstrated that medaka is an excellent animal model for winter depression. They observed decreased sociability and increased anxiety-like behavior in medaka exposed to winter conditions by using a three-chamber sociability test and a light-dark tank test (Fig. 1).
To characterize the metabolomic landscape of medaka kept under winter and summer conditions, the research group examined whole brain metabolites by capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry (CE-MS) and discovered significant changes in 68 metabolites, including neurotransmitters and antioxidants associated with depression (Fig. 2). Furthermore, transcriptome analysis demonstrated gene expression changes in multiple pathways associated with depression, including the NRF2 antioxidant signaling pathway and cytokines (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2. Seasonal changes in metabolites and gene expression that are known to associate with depression.
Since most psychiatric disorders are not caused by single gene mutations and are the result of dysregulation and abnormalities in multiple brain structures and neural pathways, both forward and reverse genetic approaches are quite difficult. Therefore, to understand the underlying mechanisms of winter depression, the research group has employed a chemical genomics approach. An in vivobroad-spectrum chemical screen identified the traditional Chinese medicine, celastrol, as rescuing winter behavior. NRF2 is a celastrol target expressed in the habenula, known to play a critical role in the pathophysiology of depression. Another NRF2 chemical activator also phenocopied the effect of celastrol, and genome edited NRF2mutant showed decreased sociability.
Fig. 3. Traditional Chinese medicine, celastrol rescued winter behavior.
Interestingly, NRF2expression was observed in the habenula (Fig. 4). The habenula has emerged as a key brain region in the pathophysiology of depression. Although fish do not have a defined prefrontal cortex (PFC), the habenula is evolutionarily highly conserved and connects the limbic forebrain and monoaminergic system (Fig. 4).
Fig. 4. Conservation of habenular pathways in mammals and fish. Schematic diagram of sagittalsections of rodent and fish brain (Modified from Aizawa et al., 2011).
Depression is considered an adaptation to a harsh environment. Given the striking parallels between patients with SAD and medaka kept under winter-like conditions, the present findings provide important insights into the mechanism of winter depression and offer new potential therapeutic targets for its treatment involving NRF2.
--
Journal Information:
The article "Seasonal changes in NRF2 antioxidant pathway regulates winter depression-like behavior" by Tomoya Nakayama, Kousuke Okimura, Jiachen Shen, Ying-Jey Guh, T. Katherine Tamai, Akiko Shimada, Souta Minou, Yuki Okushi, Tsuyoshi Shimmura, Yuko Furukawa, Naoya Kadofusa, Ayato Sato, Toshiya Nishimura, Minoru Tanaka, Kei Nakayama, Nobuyuki Shiina, Naoyuki Yamamoto, Andrew S. Loudon, Taeko Nishiwaki-Ohkawa, Ai Shinomiya, Toshitaka Nabeshima, Yusuke Nakane and Takashi Yoshimura is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S.A. | https://www.itbm.nagoya-u.ac.jp/en/research/2020/04/post-19.php |
Background
==========
The \"omics\" revolution has dramatically increased the amount of data available for characterizing intracellular events at the cellular level. The main experimental methodologies responsible for this development have included differential gene expression analysis for recording mRNA concentration profiles, and proteomics for providing data on protein abundance \[[@B1],[@B2]\]. Each technique generates data related to a defined intracellular aspect, such as differential-gene-expression profiles at the transcriptional level, and currently the main focus is on interlinking the various data sources generated by high-throughput screening and array technologies. The concept of systems biology is grounded on such heterogeneous data sources, and also includes the use of homolog information from other systems \[[@B3]\]. Methodologies following the framework of systems biology have increasingly been used to study complex diseases. For example, Hornberg and colleagues discussed the importance of the network topology of protein interactions to selecting drug targets for improving cancer therapy \[[@B4]\].
We have recently outlined a computational analysis workflow aimed at characterizing cellular events at a functional level, which includes the use of differential gene expression and proteomics data, analysis of transcriptional control, and coregulation via joint transcription factor modules, further complemented by protein interaction and functional pathway data \[[@B5]\]. A major goal of such analysis workflows is to decipher biological functioning at the level of protein interactions \[[@B6],[@B7]\]; that is, to elucidate concerted processes by integrating diverse data sources that by themselves do not provide a functional context.
There are several experimental techniques for directly addressing protein-protein interactions, with the yeast two-hybrid system being the most commonly used \[[@B8]\]. The yeast two-hybrid approach can be used to identify protein interactions in vivo, with other techniques such as surface plasmon resonance being performed in a nonbiological environment, but still being useful for providing binding constants \[[@B9]\]. Other technologies involve protein arrays for parallel screening of protein interactions \[[@B10]\]. A recent review has discussed the different methodological approaches \[[@B11]\].
Public-domain databases have been established for making protein-protein-interaction data readily accessible. The Online Predicted Human Interaction Database (OPHID) is a collection of human protein-protein interactions assembled from other databases and complemented by homolog interactions identified in other organisms \[[@B12]\]. The OPHID database used in the present study (as at February 2006) included 41,785 interactions covering 8487 unique proteins of the human proteome. Unfortunately, the database contains only about 20% of the human proteome (presently representing about 39,000 sequences with a unique GI number). Generally, a literature bias is inherent in such interaction data due to disease associated genes and proteins being subject to more detailed analysis, also with respect to protein interactions.
Information on pairwise protein interactions as provided by the OPHID can be used to delineate protein interaction networks (PINs), which are usually represented as undirected graphs. Routines have been published for automatically generating and visualizing such interaction graphs \[[@B13],[@B14]\], where the nearest-neighbor expansion as proposed by Chen and colleagues \[[@B15]\] is a useful approximation for extended graph construction when dealing with the sparse data sets typical of biological systems. Such routines can be used to directly extract PINs utilizing a list of proteins assembled on the basis of differentially expressed genes. If the functional context at the level of protein interactions is represented by the differential gene expression data, this should also be reflected by the characteristics of resulting PINs. Characteristics in this context include both quantitative measures (e.g., the number of nodes found for the largest subgraph) as well as qualitative measures in the biological context (e.g., the identification of hub proteins).
Like many real-world networks, biological networks are scale-free in nature, with the majority of nodes showing a low degree of connectivity, complemented by some highly connected nodes serving as hubs \[[@B16],[@B17]\]. The connectivity, size, and topology of individual PINs are massively influenced by the number of hub proteins involved \[[@B18]\]. However, Lu and colleagues found in a murine asthma model that gene expression of the hub proteins tend to be less affected by disease \[[@B19]\]. The next-most-important factor to determining the overall PIN topology are the simple building blocks -- such as a three-node \"feedforward loop\" motif or a four-node \"bi-fan\" motif -- that have been detected more frequently in transcriptional gene regulatory networks than in networks generated from randomly selected genes \[[@B20]\]. PINs have been recently reviewed by Barabasi and Oltvai \[[@B21]\].
Various groups have applied network analysis to gene data sets associated with cancer. Jonsson and Bates reported very recently that proteins associated with cancer show an increased number of interacting partners in the interactome, reflecting their increased centrality in the PIN \[[@B22]\]. Wachi et al. specifically investigated the role of the interactome of genes differentially regulated in lung cancer \[[@B23]\]. That group found increased connectivity for these genes, in agreement with the findings of Jonsson and Bates. Tuck and colleagues analyzed transcriptional regulatory networks consisting of transcription factors and their target proteins \[[@B24]\]. Genes differentially regulated between acute myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia were significantly closer in the network as compared to randomly generated gene lists. The analogous result was observed for genes differentially regulated in breast cancer patients. On a more general level, Xu and Li showed that disease-associated genes as listed in the OMIM database \[[@B25]\] tend to interact with other disease-associated genes \[[@B26]\].
The present paper provides a systematic analysis of properties computed for PINs represented as graphs, as exemplified by an extensive set of differential gene expression profiles covering various tumors. The primary hypothesis was that differential gene expression analysis provides systematic data on concerted events in malignant tissue \[[@B27]\], and these systematic data should also be present at the level of protein interactions, in contrast to network properties computed on the basis of randomly generated protein lists.
The formal representation of PINs as undirected graphs makes it possible to utilize a variety of well-established graph measures. Junker and colleagues recently presented a tool for exploring centralities in biological networks, named CentiBiN \[[@B28]\]. CentiBiN can calculate various graph measures, including closeness, betweenness, and eccentricity in protein networks. Jonsson and Bates demonstrated that proteins mutated in cancer showed an increased number of interactions \[[@B22]\]. Another study analyzed protein communities in PINs that were reported as being involved in metastatic processes \[[@B29]\]. Also, Jeong and colleagues were able to identify hub proteins in the PIN that are centrally linked to cell survival \[[@B30]\].
We have computed 22 individual graph measures for 29 tumor-associated differential gene expression data sets that reflect the following graph properties: size, distribution, relevance, density, modularity, and cycles. These graph measures provide a detailed characterization of the differential gene-expression data represented at the level of protein interactions.
Results
=======
A mean of 90 genes (SD = 74 genes, range = 13--300 genes) were identified as significantly differentially regulated for each transcriptomics experiment, and these genes were selected for constructing the entire graph for each given data set. Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"} lists the number of differentially regulated genes (*N*), the number of nodes in graph (*G*), as well as the number of nodes in the largest subgraph (*G\'*) for the 29 studies. Furthermore, the characteristics of the individual studies as included in the Oncomine database \[[@B31]\] are listed, including study author, tumor type, class comparison, and number of samples analyzed.
######
Gene-expression studies and graph measures
**Study no.** **Study author** **cancer type** **class I** **class II** **No. of Samples** **N** **G** **G\'** **Size (3)** **distribution (2)** **relevance (3)** **density (8)** **modularity (3)** **circles (3)** **total (22)**
--------------- --------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- -------------------- ------- ------- --------- -------------- ---------------------- ------------------- ----------------- -------------------- ----------------- ----------------
1 Rosenwald et al. Leukemia Blood B cell, Blood T cells, Cell Line, Cord Blood B cells, Cord Blood T cells, Diffuse Large Cell, Follicular Lymphoma, Nonblastic Cell Line, Thymic T cells, Tonsil GC B Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia 118 264 426 384 3 2 3 6 3 1 18
2 Segal et al. Soft Tissue Cancer Cell Line Tumor 81 156 252 209 3 2 1 6 3 2 17
3 Rosenwald et al. Diffuse Large B- Cell Lymphoma -- Dlbcl Subgroup Activated B-Cell-like DLBCL, Type III B-Cell-like DLBCL Germinal-Center B- Cell-like 240 115 189 165 3 2 2 6 1 2 16
4 Rosenwald et al. Diffuse Large B- Cell Lymphoma -- Dlbcl Subgroup Activated B-Cell-like DLBCL, Germinal-Center B-Cell-like Type III B-Cell-like DLBCL 240 129 208 182 3 2 1 6 2 2 16
5 Welsh et al. Ovary -- Type Normal Ovary Ovarian Adenocarcinoma 32 96 153 128 3 2 1 6 1 1 14
6 Beer et al. Lung -- Type Non-neoplastic Lung Lung Adenocarcinoma 96 158 267 247 3 1 0 6 3 1 14
7 Notterman et al. Colon -- Type Normal Colon Ovarian Adenocarcinoma 36 41 62 44 3 1 1 5 1 2 13
8 Higgins et al. Kidney -- Type Normal Kidney Clear Renal Cell Carcinoma 29 62 96 76 3 1 2 5 1 1 13
9 Khan et al. Small Round Blue Cell Tumor/Cell Line Cell Line Tumor Sample 86 126 196 155 3 0 1 5 2 1 12
10 Lancaster et al. Ovary -- Type Ovary Ovarian Adenocarcinoma 34 106 169 135 3 1 1 5 1 1 12
11 Welsh et al. Prostate -- Type Normal Prostate Prostate Cancer 34 50 77 58 3 1 0 4 1 2 11
12 Singh et al. Prostate -- Type Prostate Prostate Carcinoma 102 300 469 409 2 1 1 3 2 2 11
13 Liang et al. Brain -- Type Normal Brain Glioblastoma Multiforme 33 53 86 70 3 1 0 5 1 1 11
14 Higgins et al. Kidney -- Type Angiomyolipoma, Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma, Granular Renal Cell Carcinoma, Oncocytoma, Papillary Renal Cell Carcinoma Normal Kidney 44 55 87 64 3 1 0 4 1 1 10
15 Sperger et al. Germ Cell -- Type Normal Testis Seminoma 37 219 342 279 3 1 0 4 1 1 10
16 Shai et al. Brain -- Type Normal White Matter Glioblastoma Multiforme 32 56 84 63 3 1 0 4 1 1 10
17 Rickman et al. Brain -- Type Normal Neocortex of Temporal Lobe Glioma 51 46 67 42 3 0 0 3 1 1 8
18 Rosenwald et al. Lymphoid -- Type Normal Blood CD19+ B-Cells, Normal Germinal Center B-Cells Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma 284 37 60 32 2 0 0 4 1 0 7
19 Frierson et al. Salivary Gland -- Type Normal Salivary Gland Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma of Salivary Gland 22 70 104 72 1 1 0 2 1 1 6
20 Bhattacharjee et al. Lung -- Type Normal Lung Lung Adenocarcinoma 156 128 195 149 2 0 0 1 1 1 5
21 Bhattacharjee et al. Lung -- Type Normal Lung Squamous Cell Lung Carcinoma 38 111 167 123 0 1 0 0 1 1 3
22 Lenburg et al. Kidney -- Type Normal Kidney Renal Clear Cell Carcinoma 18 13 14 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 1
23 Garber et al. Lung -- Type Normal Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma 19 26 34 5 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
24 Alon et al. Colon -- Type Colon Colon Adenocarcinoma 62 13 16 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
25 LaTulippe et al. Prostate -- Type Non-neoplastic Prostate Prostate Carcinoma 26 24 29 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
26 Iacobuzio- Donahue et al. Pancreas -- Type Normal pancreas Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma 17 80 106 35 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
27 Mutter et al. Uterus -- Type Normal Endometrium Endometrioid Adenocarcinoma 14 16 18 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
28 Bhattacharjee et al. Lung -- Type Normal Lung Small Cell Lung Cancer 23 17 20 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
29 Garber et al. Lung -- Type Normal Lung Lung Adenocarcinoma 46 45 58 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Study number, study author, cancer type, class comparison, and number of samples for data from the Oncomine database. The number of differentially regulated genes (*N*), the number of nodes in graph *G*, the number of nodes in largest subgraph *G\'*, and the number of measures per category outside the 2.5% lower and upper confidence limits as derived on the basis of randomly generated gene lists, and the total number of graph measures per study that fell outside the defined significance limits are also listed.
The mean number of nodes in *G*(after performing the nearest-neighbor expansion) was 140 (SD = 120 nodes, range = 14--469 nodes) for the 29 studies, with a mean of 109 nodes for the largest subgraph *G\'*(SD = 110 nodes, range = 3--409 nodes). For seven of the studies there were less than 30 nodes in the largest subgraph. Measures related to size, distribution, biological relevance, density, modularity, and cycles were computed for each subgraph *G\'*.
Size measures
-------------
We used three measures to characterize the graph size as reflected by the number of vertices, the graph expansion, and the length of the shortest path. All three measures -- *Closeness Centrality*, *Graph Diameter*, and *Index of Aggregation*-- were different for networks generated from gene lists derived from Oncomine than for randomly generated protein lists (Figure [1A,B](#F1){ref-type="fig"} and [1C](#F1){ref-type="fig"}), with networks derived on the basis of Oncomine data sets tending to be larger than networks derived on the basis of randomly generated protein sets.
{#F1}
Distribution measures
---------------------
We used two distribution measures in our analysis: the *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*and the *entropy of the distribution of edges*. The *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*uses the edge-to-edge distribution, whereas the *entropy of the distribution of edges*uses an entropic term reflecting the distinct number of edges per node. We found that the *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*was significantly higher in Oncomine networks than in random networks (Figure [1D](#F1){ref-type="fig"}).
Biological-relevance measures
-----------------------------
Three of the 22 computed measures focused on vertices in the network that were biologically relevant. All of the measures took the shortest path between two vertices in a given network into account. Highly connected proteins, frequently called hub proteins, usually show high *Betweenness*. Joy et al. demonstrated the importance of vertices with high *Betweenness*but low connectivity in the yeast PIN \[[@B32]\]. Interestingly, none of the three computed biological-relevance measures differed significantly between Oncomine networks and randomly generated networks.
Density measures
----------------
Eight of the 22 measures utilized in this study addressed aspects of graph density, including *Connectivity*, *Graph Centrality*, *Community*, and *Sum of the Wiener Number*. The numbers of edges and vertices, lengths of shortest paths, and walks on edges were key elements in calculating these measures. Two of the eight measures (*Connectivity*and the *Sum of the Wiener Number*) differed between Oncomine and random data sets (Figure [1E](#F1){ref-type="fig"} and [1F](#F1){ref-type="fig"}), and these are influenced by the size of the graph. Oncomine networks are generally larger but less dense than randomly generated networks.
Modularity measures
-------------------
We calculated three measures reflecting modularity, mainly associated with the number of edges, dilation, and shortest path lengths. One of the computed measures, namely the *modified Vertex Distance Number*, differed between Oncomine networks and randomly generated networks (Figure [1G](#F1){ref-type="fig"}). This measure is highly correlated to *Closeness Centrality*, which is also based on the sum of shortest paths between two vertices.
Cycles measures
---------------
The three measures implemented related to graph cycles were the *Cyclic Coefficient*, *Subgraph Centrality*, and *Eigenvalues*. The *Eigenvalues*, calculated from the adjacency matrix of the graph, differed between randomly generated data sets and Oncomine (Figure [1H](#F1){ref-type="fig"}). *Eigenvalues*, like *Subgraph Centrality*, mainly depend on all cycles of the graph, but the two methods differ in the scaling of cycle sizes. The *Cyclic Coefficient*mainly depends on local short cycles.
To study the data sets at the level of the graph-measure categories, the 22 graph properties of each data set were checked for measures that significantly deviated from those of random graphs. Results of this evaluation are listed in Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}, where the individual studies are sorted by the total number of graph measures that deviated significantly from those derived from random gene selections. The study that deviated the most from random selections related to leukemia, in which 18 of the 22 graph measures were different. On the other hand, in six studies none of the graph measures differed significantly from random selections. Tests of the correlation between the number of graph measures deviating from their respective values for random selections and the total number of genes differentially regulated (*r*^2^= 0.34, *p*\< 0.05), the total number of nodes in graph *G*(*r*^2^= 0.38, *p*\< 0.05), and the total number of nodes in the largest subgraph *G\'*(*r*^2^= 0.43, *p*\< 0.05) revealed the dependence on number of nodes selected and the degree of deviation from random selections. This correlation was significantly affected by the small graphs analyzed, since studies resulting in subgraph sizes of less than 10 do not provide conclusive graph measures.
Interestingly, the number of samples analyzed for differential gene expression was not significantly correlated with the number of statistically significant differentially regulated genes found (*r*^2^= 0.09, *p*= 0.12), nor with the number of graph measures deviating from the randomly generated reference sets (*r*^2^= 0.11, *p*\> 0.05).
Discussion
==========
We characterized PINs derived from 29 gene-expression profiles of various tumors (as listed in Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}) by computing 22 graph measures (as listed in Table [2](#T2){ref-type="table"}). In general, the values of the graph measures did not depend on the type of microarray used in the analysis (cDNA arrays or Affymetrix Gene Chips). The small number of individual data sets per cancer type made it impossible to delineate a correlation between graph measures and tissue type. Interestingly, the number of samples used was not correlated with the number of statistically significant differentially expressed genes, and also not with the number of graph measures deviating from random selections. Under the assumption of comparable sample processing, expression results are strongly affected by the tissue and cancer type, and to a lesser extent on the number of samples per group.
######
Formal representation of graph measures
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**Name** **Class** **Definition** **Description** **Ref.**
---------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------
***Closeness Centrality*** size $CC_{i} = \frac{1}{\sum\limits_{j}{d(i,j)}}$ *d*(*i,j*) is the length of the shortest path between vertices *i*and *j*. The sum of *CC*~*i*~over all vertices gives the total *Closeness Centrality*of a given subgraph. **\[42\]**
***Graph Diameter*** size $GD = \frac{\max(d(i,j))}{N}$ *d*(*i,j*) is the length of the shortest path between vertices *i*and *j*. *GD*is computed for all pairs (*i,j*), and reflects the longest path identified. **\[43\]**
***Index of Aggregation*** size $IoA = \frac{A}{B}$ *A*is the total number of vertices in the subgraph, and *B*is the total number of all given vertices in the graph. **\[15\]**
***Assortative Mixing Coefficient*** distribution *k*~*1*~and *k*~*2*~are the counts of edges of two vertices connected by a given edge. This measure reflects the edge-to-edge distribution over all edges of a graph. **\[44\]**
***Entropy of the distribution of edges*** distribution $H = - {\sum\limits_{k}{p(k)\ln p(k)}}$ *k*is the count of edges of one vertex, and *p*(*k*) is the ratio of vertices that have *k*edges. **\[45\]**
***Betweenness*** biological relevance $B = \frac{\sum\limits_{i \in V}{\sum\limits_{j,k}\frac{\sigma(j,i,k)}{\sigma(j,k)}}}{N}$ *σ*(*j,i,k*) is the total number of shortest connections between vertices *j*and *k*, where each shortest connection has to pass vertex *i*, and *σ*(*j,k*) is the total number of shortest connections between *j*and *k*. We computed *σ*(*j,i,k*) and *σ*(*j,k*) for the entire OPHID graph, but then only used vertices also present in the subgraph generated on the basis of a given gene-expression data set. **\[42\]**
***Betweenness of all selected Vertices*** biological relevance As for *Betweenness*, but considering all selected vertices. **\[42\]**
***Stress Centrality*** biological Relevance $StC = {\sum\limits_{i \in V}{\sum\limits_{j,k}{\sigma(j,i,k)}}}$ *σ*(*j,i,k*) is the total number of shortest connections between vertices *j*and *k*, where each shortest connection has to pass vertex *i*. **\[42\]**
***Connectivity*** density $C = \frac{A}{B}$ *A*is the total number of edges realized in a given graph, and *B*is the maximum number of edges possible. **\[43\]**
***Clustering Coefficient*** density $CLUST_{i} = \frac{A}{B}$ *A*is the total number of edges between the nearest neighbors of vertex *i*, and *B*is the maximum number of possible edges between the nearest neighbors of vertex *i*. The sum of *CLUST*~*i*~over all vertices gives the total *Clustering Coefficient*of a given subgraph. **\[46\]**
***Number of edges divided by the number of vertices*** density $NeNv = \frac{A}{B}$ *A*is the total number of edges in a given graph, and *B*is the number of selected vertices in a given graph. **-**
***Community*** density $Comm = \frac{A}{B}$ *A*is the total number of edges, where both connected vertices are in the given subgraph, and *B*is the total number of edges, where one connected vertex is in the subgraph and the other vertex is outside it. **\[47\]**
***Entropy*** density $H(G) = {\sum_{v \in V,i(v) > = 2}{(i(v) - 1) \ast \log(\frac{\left| E \middle| - \middle| V \middle| + 1 \right.}{i(v) - 1}}})$ where \|*E*\| is the total number of edges, \|*V*\| is the total number of vertices, and *i*(*v*) is the number of edges of vertex *v*. **\[48\]**
***Graph Centrality*** density $GC_{i} = \frac{1}{\max(d(i,j))}$ max(*d*(*i,j*)) is the length of the shortest path between vertices *i*and *j*for a given vertex *i*. **\[42\]**
***Number of walks of length n*** density $NW = {\sum{NW_{i}}}$ *NW*~*i*~is one walk with a length of *n*edges in the subgraph. **\[43\]**
***Sum of the Wiener Number*** density $W_{i} = \frac{1}{2} \ast {\sum\limits_{i,j}{d(i,j)}}$ *d*(*i,j*) is the length of the shortest path between vertices *i*and *j*. We computed the *Sum of the Wiener Number*for each vertex. **\[43\]**
***Total number of triangles of a subgraph and its dilation*** Modularity Given a subgraph *g*of graph *G*, the complement of *g*, denoted as *g*, is the subgraph implied by the set of vertices\ **\[42\]**
*N*(*g*) = *N*(*G*)\\*N*(*g*)\
The dilation of *g*is the subgraph *δ*(*g*) implied by the vertices in *g*plus the vertices directly connected to a vertex in *g*. The coat of nearest neighbors of the subgraph is defined as\
*DN*(*g*) = *δ*(*g*)\\*N*(*g*)\
The set of all valid triangles for *g*is defined as\
*VT*(*g*) = {*x*,*y*,*z*\| (*x*,*y*,*z*∈ *N*(*δ*(*g*)) \^ (*x*,*y*),(*y*,*z*),(*z*,*x*) ∈ *E*(*δ*(*g*))) ∩ (*x*∈ *N*(*g*) \^ *z*∈ *DN*(*g*))}\
where *N*is the number of vertices and *E*is the number of edges in the graph. The result for a subgraph *g*is the total number of elements in *VT*(g).
***Localized Modularity*** modularity $LM = \frac{\left| \text{E}_{\text{inside}} \right|}{\left| \text{E}_{\text{within~the~}(\text{direct})\text{~neighbors}} \right|} \ast \frac{\left| \text{E}_{\text{inside}} \middle| \ast \middle| \text{E}_{\text{to~the~outside}} \right|}{\left| \text{E}_{\text{within~the~}(\text{direct})\text{~neighbors}} \right|^{2}}$ where \|*E*\| is the total number of edges. **\[49\]**
***modified Vertex Distance Number*** modularity $mVD = {\sum\limits_{i,j \in V,i \neq j}^{V}\frac{1}{d{(i,j)}^{2}}}$ *d*(*i,j*) is the length of the shortest path between vertices *i*and *j*. For this measure, *i*and *j*are all selected from V. **-**
***Eigenvalues*** cycles $EV = {\sum\limits_{j}\left| ER_{j} \right|^{2}}$ *ER*~*j*~is the real part of the *j*-th *Eigenvalue*for the adjacency matrix of the given subgraph. **\[50\]**
***Subgraph Centrality*** cycles $SC = \frac{1}{N}{\sum\limits_{i = 1}^{N}{\sum\limits_{k = 1}^{\infty}\frac{(A^{k})ii}{k!}}}$ *A*is the adjacency matrix. We computed *SC*for *k*\[1,99\]. **\[42\]**
***Cyclic Coefficient*** cycles $\begin{array}{l} *S*~*i*~is the smallest possible cycle of vertex *i*and two of its neighboring vertices *k*. The total *Cyclic Coefficient*for all vertices *N*is then given as *θ* **\[42\]**
{\theta(i) = \frac{2}{k_{i} \ast (k_{i} - 1)} \ast {\sum\limits_{j,k}\frac{1}{S_{i}(j,k)}}} \\
{\theta = 1/N \ast \theta(i)} \\
\end{array}$
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Name, formal representation, and short description of graph measures computed for the categories of size, distribution, biological relevance, density, modularity, and cycles.
We assigned the graph measures to the following categories: size, distribution, biological relevance, density, modularity, and cycles. The individual graph measures that showed significant differences (defined as identifying at least 50% of gene-expression experiments outside the 2.5% lower and upper confidence limits computed on the basis of randomly generated data sets) between cancer networks and networks based on randomly generated data sets were *Closeness Centrality*, *Graph Diameter*, *Index of Aggregation*, *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*, *Connectivity*, *Sum of the Wiener Number*, *modified Vertex Distance Number*, and *Eigenvalues*.
All three measures associated with the size of the graph differed significantly between tumor networks and randomly generated networks. The *Index of Aggregation*was on average higher in tumor networks, indicating dependencies between proteins involved in cancer, as also proposed by Chen et al. in the context of Alzheimer disease \[[@B15]\]. This increased connectivity is also consistent with data obtained by Jonsson et al. \[[@B22]\]. However, it is likely that the bias in OPHID interactions toward disease-associated genes contributes to these findings. The values of both *Graph Diameter*and *Closeness Centrality*were significantly lower in tumor networks. This finding was also reported by Yu and colleagues for networks solely including highly expressed genes in the yeast interactome \[[@B33]\]. Low *Closeness Centrality*values for tumor networks may initially appear surprising, but relative large size of the largest subgraphs in tumor networks (on average close to 80% of all nodes of *G*are also part of *G\'*) makes higher *Closeness Centrality*values harder to obtain. The largest subgraph of tumor networks also more elongated shortest paths between nodes.
One measure of the distribution category, the *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*, differed significantly in tumor networks. This coefficient is influenced by both the number of hub proteins and the number of edges, and a large number of hub proteins is correlated with an unequal distribution in the number of edges. The *Assortative Mixing Coefficient*is directly proportional to the number of edges and inversly proportional to the number of hub proteins. According to Jonsson and colleagues, tumor networks contain numerous hub proteins \[[@B22]\]. However, our data generally indicate the presence of a small number of edges per node, and no evidence for a large number of hub proteins.
The *Sum of the Wiener Number*characterizes the density of the graph. The significantly higher values of this measure in tumor networks indicate larger graphs, which is consistent with the observed *Index of Aggregation*. We found that the *Connectivity*was lower in the largest subgraphs of tumor networks. This may be also due to the largest subgraphs of tumor networks being on average larger than the subgraphs of randomly generated gene lists, corresponding to low values of *Closeness Centrality*.
The *modified Vertex Distance Number*is also influenced by the sum of shortest paths between two vertices, but in contrast to *Closeness Centrality*, all vertices in the OPHID network are considered. A higher *modified Vertex Distance Number*in tumor networks indicates higher connectivity and modularity in Oncomine networks. Finally, higher *Eigenvalues*values indicate the presence of fewer cycles in tumor networks.
Our analysis of 29 studies on differential gene expression in cancer has revealed a general tendency toward large subgraphs without the presence of explicit hubs. Comparing the graph measures between the individual gene expression studies and randomly selected genes provided a heterogeneous picture. Gene-expression studies resulting in a low number of statistically significant differentially regulated sequences (and consequently small subgraphs) do not support an interpretation at the level of PINs (see expression studies 22--29 in Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}) as performed in this study: for small subgraphs the variance of graph measures determined for randomly selected gene lists is high, which prevents identification of significant differences of small subgraphs derived on the basis of differential gene-expression data.
Conclusion
==========
The usefulness of analyzing topological characteristics of cancer networks for supporting drug targeting was recently highlighted by Hornberg and colleagues \[[@B4]\]. We based our study on a diverse set of cancer types, and have identified characteristics of cancer networks from differential-gene-expression data. In particular, measures of graph size deviated significantly from those for graphs constructed from random gene selections. Genes showing significant differential expressions in cancer appear to be interlinked also at the level of PINs. However, we were not able to identify hub proteins from the given data, or nodes exhibiting high *Betweenness*. Such nodes have been considered as primary targets for therapeutic interventions.
Extended graphs with a low density may indicate a network with high robustness -- in contrast to networks containing hub proteins. This points to a different approach for identifying therapeutic intervention, namely synthetic lethality. This concept originates in classical genetics, where only the combination of two specific mutations leads to cell death. In metabolic networks a single node deletion can often be bypassed by different routes in the pathway. Combining this with a second deletion in that alternative pathway may only then result in lethality \[[@B34]\]. Analysis of the given PINs with respect to functional pathways and their potential bypass routes has the potential to identify synhetically lethal protein target combinations, as has been shown experimentally in yeast \[[@B35]\].
Methods
=======
Databases
---------
We used the OPHID \[[@B12]\] to derive information on human protein-protein interactions. This database contains information on protein-interaction pairs, where each protein is given by its Swiss-Prot identifier. We mapped the Swiss-Prot identifiers on the corresponding Gene Symbols so as to link gene-expression data sets, which mapped 8487 Swiss-Prot entries to 6033 different Gene Symbols. Among the protein-interaction sources used by the OPHID, we included HPRD (Human Protein Reference Database) \[[@B36]\], MINT (Molecular Interaction Database) \[[@B37]\], RikenBIND and RikenDIP \[[@B38]\], BIND (Biomolecular Interaction Network Database, \[[@B39]\], and MIPS (Munich Information Center for Protein Sequences) \[[@B40]\]. These data sets are mostly based on experimental evidence, which is further supported by expert reviews based on the scientific literature. We did not include interactions from other sources of low-to-medium quality that are also listed and indicated as such in the OPHID.
The OPHID provides interaction information in the form of object A interacting with object B. This information can be used to derive interaction graphs when providing an identifier list (A, B, \..., N), as resulting from the analysis of differential-gene-expression data.
We used Oncomine as a central repository for differential-gene-expression data \[[@B31]\]. This database provides an extensive collection of gene expression data on cancer, and compares various types and subgroups. A total of 962 raw data sets were identified in Oncomine (as at April 2006). We manually selected all gene expression studies where the malignant tissue was compared to a reference (either healthy tissue or a cell line). We initially selected 40 individual experiments covering tumors of 17 different tissues (4 B-cell, 1 bladder, 2 colon, 2 endometrium, 2 ovary, 5 brain, 1 liver, 1 leukemia, 9 lung, 1 multicancer, 3 kidney, 1 pancreas, 4 prostate, 1 salivary gland, 1 testis, 1 thyroid, and 1 soft-tissue tumor), of which 17 used cDNA arrays and 23 used Affymetrix Gene Chips. The mean number of available features per study was 11459 (range = 1988--44928 features).
We extracted each file and processed the raw data according to the following scheme: The two groups per study were analyzed at the level of individual genes by computing a probability value for the differential expression of a particular gene in that given experiment. Multiple testing was accounted for by using the Holm-Sidak step-down test and setting the significance level to 0.05 \[[@B41]\]. This procedure yield a mean of 278 genes from each study (range = 2--1838 genes). From the initial 40 gene expression data sets, 29 showed between 10 and 300 differentially expressed genes (mean = 90 genes), and these studies were included in subsequent analyses.
Each of the 29 selected differential gene expression studies was represented by a list of genes exhibiting significant differential regulation when comparing expression values for the group of tumor samples and the group of reference samples. Each gene on these lists was represented by its Gene Symbol, allowing a direct match with the protein interaction data as derived from the OPHID.
Graph construction
------------------
Protein interaction graphs (*G*) were constructed for each gene list of the 29 selected gene-expression studies based on OPHID interaction data utilizing the nearest-neighbor expansion. This procedure built edges between the nodes of entries A and B of a given gene list if the interaction between A and B was directly encoded in the OPHID, or if one element X was identified in the OPHID, allowing the construction of an interaction of the type A - X - B, where X was not listed in the gene expression data set \[[@B15]\].
For each gene list, entire graph *G*comprising *n*subgraphs *G\'*was constructed on the basis of genes in the initial list and their nearest neighbors in the PIN. *G\'*is defined as a graph whose vertices and edges form subsets of the vertices and edges of *G*.
Gene lists derived from analyzing differential gene expression might be linked on the level of coregulation and protein interactions. To quantitatively assess such dependencies, the graph properties of PINs derived on the basis of randomly selected gene lists were computed as follows: Proteins encoded by randomly selected gene lists exhibit a background level of protein interactions, and we analyzed graph measures characterizing gene expression data sets with respect to random data sets. One thousand random gene sets containing between 10 and 300 genes were picked in steps of 10. For each of these gene sets, the largest subgraph *G\'*was generated again following the nearest-neighbor expansion as outlined above, and the graph measures were computed for each *G\'*. This procedure yielded the mean value and 2.5% lower and upper confidence limits for each graph measure for each data set size represented by the 1000 individual data sets.
Graph measures and data evaluation
----------------------------------
The graph measures for each largest subgraph *G\'*were then determined for each Oncomine data set as well as for random data sets. Table [2](#T2){ref-type="table"} lists all of the applied graph measures. (Software for computing these properties on the basis of given Gene Symbol lists is available from the authors upon request.) The graph measures derived for Oncomine data sets were then interpreted in the context of the measure scales based on random data sets. A graph measure was considered as interesting in the context of cancer associated networks if at least 50% of the 29 Oncomine experiments showed this measure to be outside the 2.5% lower and upper confidence limits as computed on the basis of the randomly generated data sets.
Authors\' contributions
=======================
BM and PP designed the study. AP extended the concept, developed the software, and performed all the calculations. AP, PP, AL, and BM contributed to data interpretation and writing the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Acknowledgements
================
This study was partly supported by the European Union (project number LSHC-CT-2005-018698).
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With the incredible advances in technology today, we are encountering a phenomenon where gaining access to the world outside through portable devices has become readily available at the Manitoulin Bible Camp grounds.
There are indeed great benefits to these devices such as access to Bibles, concordances, lexicons and reference materials – but with these benefits come challenges that we do not need to elaborate on. Remarkably, even 4.4 kilometers (2.5 miles) back into the bush, instant internet access is very much possible, and cell phone coverage is also quite strong, so creating a focused environment with limited distractions for our young people becomes increasingly difficult to facilitate.
In an effort to have a measure of control over what our young people have access to during the week of Youth Camp we are requesting that iPods/iPads, tablets and cellular/smart phones (of all makes or models) are not sent up with children for the week of Youth Camp. We would ask that if these devices are used for Bible study, or as day to day Bibles, that for this one week they revert back to regular Bibles and study aids.
While we are sensitive to the fact that these devices may also serve as an important safety tool for the drive to/from the camp, we will be asking young people to turn in these devices to their counsellors upon arrival and they will be returned at the end of the week.
If you feel that for some reason communication throughout the week is absolutely necessary with your child, please feel free to contact one of the committee members and we can discuss how best to manage these situations.
We appreciate your understanding and are grateful for your support in striving to preserve the spiritual benefits we enjoy at Youth Camp when immersed in the beauty of God’s creation with like-minded disciples seeking to learn more about Him and how we can honour His Name. | https://christadelphianmyc.com/rules-policies/technology/ |
Are Pennsylvania and New Jersey Healthcare Workers Immune from Being Sued for Medical Treatment They Provide Related to the Corona Virus?
As states grapple with implementing the most effective measures to alleviate the immediate concerns presented by the Coronavirus / COVID-19 global health emergency, many states quickly implemented measures in order to protect health care workers and health care facilities from civil and criminal liability. Earlier this year, hospitals quickly became overrun with patients, were severely understaffed, the employees were overworked, and many facilities did not have adequate PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) to ensure the safety of their healthcare providers.
Although health care professionals are trained to treat respiratory illnesses throughout their education and career, this is an unprecedented time for those workers and their employers. With the looming threat of a second wave of the corona virus approaching, some state governments have decided it necessary to protect healthcare workers who were acting in good faith to save lives during the corona crisis. New Jersey and Pennsylvania are among the states to enact such protections (Coronavirus lawsuit immunity) for their healthcare workers.
New Jersey Provisions for Coronavirus / COVID-19
In order to combat the increasing infection rates of Coronavirus / COVID-19, on April 14, 2020, Governor Phil Murphy signed Bill No. S2333. This Bill offers significant legal protections to health care workers and related health care organizations (e.g., hospitals and telehealth facilities) as well as protecting currently employed healthcare professionals, according to the Bill. Retired doctors and nurses are permitted and encouraged to return to the workplace in order to alleviate the burden on overworked doctors, nurses, and understaffed hospitals.
Contrary to popular belief, Bill No. S2333 does not grant sweeping immunity to all medical doctors and healthcare workers in New Jersey for all inpatient or outpatient procedures or any medical treatment rendered during the pendency of the COVID-19 emergency. Due to the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 public health crisis, the Legislature intends to ensure that healthcare professionals’ main concern is treating patients to the best of their abilities, and that “all medical personnel supporting the COVID-19 response are granted immunity.” The focus of the Bill is to protect those providing medical care to COVID-19 patients. Therefore, the immunity provisions of the bill do not apply to medical treatments and procedures performed by health care professionals outside the scope of applicable COVID-19 treatments. Such treatments include OB/GYN services, orthopedic procedures, and many others.
The applicable portions of the immunity law are summarized as follows:
- Medical professionals (a term which has been defined broadly to include physicians, physician assistants, registered nurses, advance practice nurses, licensed practical nurses, EMTs, and mobile intensive care paramedics) along with health care facilities, “shall not be liable for civil damages for injury or death alleged to have been sustained as a result of an act or omission…in the course of providing medical services in support of the State’s response to the outbreak of coronavirus disease.”
- Civil immunity under the new law extends to acts or omissions “undertaken in good faith” by health care providers and facilities that would otherwise fall outside the scope of the provider’s license. However, if such act or omissions constitutes “a crime, actual fraud, actual malice, gross negligence, recklessness, or willful misconduct” the health care professional or facility will not be shielded from liability. These types of acts or omissions are beyond typical negligence and are considered direct violations of applicable standards of medical care. Additionally, health care providers and facilities engaging in telehealth or telemedicine are shielded from liability related to the treatment of COVID-19.
- Health care professionals and facilities are protected from both civil and criminal liability for injuries or death due to decisions regarding the allocation of ventilators and “other scarce medical resources” that are in high demand during a global health emergency like this. During this pandemic, health care professionals have had to prioritize scare resources and life-saving devices in order to save dying patients in ways in which the general public could not possibly imagine. Such healthcare professionals and facilities should not face civil or criminal penalties for enacting their best judgment in providing life-saving patient care. In order to be protected from such liability, the facility must adopt and adhere to a “scarce critical resource allocation policy” and may not act in an arbitrary manner. A “scarce critical resource allocation policy” is defined as a policy, protocol, or guideline for the allocation of ventilators, ICU beds, or other medical resources that may be in limited supply and high demand during a public health emergency. At a minimum, the policy must incorporate the Health Commissioner’s core principles identified in an Executive or Administrative Order.
- The immunities that are in place to protect healthcare workers, and the facilities in which they are employed, are granted until the state of emergency and public health emergency declarations in Executive Order 103 are rescinded.
Additionally, under S2333, the Commissioner of Health has the authority to enact the following: (1) issue a provisional certification to any EMT whose certification has previously expired or any paramedic whose certification expired within the past five (5) years; (2) temporarily reactivate a paramedic certification for an individual whose certification was placed on an inactive status within the past five (5) years; and (3) grant temporary reciprocity to certain paramedics.
Pennsylvania Provisions for Coronavirus / COVID-19
On May 6, 2020, Governor Tom Wolf signed an Executive Order protecting healthcare professionals acting in good faith against liability for actions taken while providing services during the Corona Virus / COVID-19 pandemic. As stated by Gov. Wolf, “[the COVID-19 pandemic] has required our health care providers to broaden their professional responsibilities and experiences like never before.” Therefore, it is necessary to implement a policy of civil and criminal liability to protect such workers acting in good faith and “serving on the front lines of the disaster response.”
The purpose of such executive action is as follows: to suspend specific regulations in order to provide a stronger network of support in order to provide additional medical care in facilities that are currently overworked and understaffed due to treatment of the coronavirus. The Executive Order is working to allow retired health care professionals to return to the workforce, extend reciprocity to out-of-state professionals coming into Pennsylvania to alleviate the lack of adequate healthcare professionals available to treat patients, employing healthcare professionals who have not previously maintained liability coverage, and allowing healthcare providers to perform medical treatments outside the ordinary scope of their license or business.
The applicable portions of the Executive Order are summarized as follows
- Civil immunity is granted to any health care professional who holds a license, certificate, registration, or certification to practice in Pennsylvania and who is either engaged in providing COVID-19 treatment or services during the public health emergency.
- Such immunity is only extended to health care professionals acting in good faith and within the appropriate standards of medical care. Immunity is not extended to acts or omissions that are considered a crime, gross negligence, fraud, malice, or other willful misconduct.
- Health care professionals working in the following health care facilities are granted immunity for providing COVID-19 treatment: nursing facilities, personal care homes, assisted living or alternate care sites, community-based testing or non-congregate care facilities being used for emergency services related to the COVID-19 emergency response. Additionally, organizations offering real estate or premises to be used for emergency services without compensation, are immunized from liability in the case of death, injury, loss, or damage to the property of any person on the premises for the purpose of providing emergency care.
- Out-of-state healthcare providers and other retired practitioners may resume providing healthcare services within the Commonwealth in order to alleviate the burden upon understaffed hospitals and facilities.
This Executive Order will be effective for the duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency.
While both the New Jersey and Pennsylvania immunity provisions have not been without criticism, the Governors in PA and NJ felt that this drastic step was necessary.
If you or someone you know has been injured during treatment for COVID-19 and you believe the actions taken by the health care provider or facility may rise to the level of gross negligence or willful misconduct, please feel free to contact us. We remain available to speak to you by telephone, or to correspond with you by email. We can be reached by telephone at our Pennsylvania office at (215) 568-1510 or at our New Jersey office at (856) 380-3999. Our receptionist continues to personally answer the firm’s main phone lines from the hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. | https://ml-law.net/insurance-legislation-law/coronavirus-lawsuit-immunity-pa-nj |
To the Editor: The article by O'Connor et al.1 suggests that depletion of cellular stores of ATP may be responsible for a decrease in left ventricular stroke work. Although we find this explanation attractive, it seems to us that an alternate mechanism can be postulated. A decreased 2,3-diphosphoglycerate level (2,3-DPG) (secondary to hypophosphatemia)2 would result in a leftward shift of the oxygen-hemoglobin dissociation curve and a decrease in peripheral oxygen release. By replacing phosphorus, the reversal of myocardial depression reported by O'Connor was perhaps due to increased oxygen release to the myocardium secondary to repletion of 2,3-DPG. This hypothesis would. | https://www.scholars.northwestern.edu/en/publications/hypophosphatemia |
Swine influenza is the first pandemic since the widespread sharing of information via the Internet. The last pandemic was the 1969 Hong Kong pandemic at which time the Internet did not exist. The amount of information relating to swine flu which is available on the Internet is huge (but unfortunately not all entirely accurate).
WordPress, Twitter, YouTube and the like are full of Swine Flu related content published by individuals. The Bookmarking and Sharing sites are also being inundated with Swine Flu related content. A quick search this morning for “swine flu” returned the following:
- Google: 2,750,000 search results
- WordPress: 5,929 search results
- YouTube: 5,120 search results
- Technorati: 10,095 search results (see the dynamic chart below which shows the number of posts containing the term ‘swine flu’ for the past few days):
There are all sorts of very cool ways that data from the various online resources is being shared for example:
- Google Maps is being used to relay the locations of reported cases.
- Widgets such as the one below which shows the latest news from the Center of Disease Control (CDC) are available to share information:
Information now travels very quickly and in many forms. In cases such as swine flu, my belief is that it is best to get information regarding serious events such as this from the authorities on such matters. In the case of swine flu, the World Health Organization website is great! | https://organicweb.com.au/internet/swine-influenza-google-wordpress-information/ |
I am deeply convinced that in order for us to win the war that Russia has launched against Ukraine and the world, all of us — the government and every Ukrainian — must absolutely know and fully understand the phenomenon, its scale, and the level of threat it represents for Ukraine today
We must know our enemy.
We must know ourselves
And we must know the space in which this confrontation is taking place.
Ukraine is at war, and the undeclared war that Russia is waging against us is defined as “hybrid,” “non-linear” or “war of controlled chaos.” This type of war combines military, informational, terrorist, and other aggressive actions that are coordinated from one center and directed at achieving a certain strategic goal. The goal of this war is Ukraine’s complete subjugation to the expansionist, neo-imperialistic plans of the Kremlin.
The content, nature and characteristics of such a war differ significantly from the traditional models of previous wars. Experts refer to it as a so-called war of controlled chaos.
In the geopolitical system of coordinates, the essence of the war of controlled chaos lies in the geopolitical destruction of the victim state and the neutralization of its geopolitical characteristics — size of territory, population, international status, economic opportunities, military power, and total potential. During such a war the victim state and its regions experience certain internal political processes that are, in fact, strategic actions of controlled chaos. The true roles, locations, interests, and goals of the aggressor state are removed from the sphere of public attention and are hidden behind “informational garbage” and demagoguery.
In general, the controlled war of chaos or hybrid war involves three stages:
Aggravation of the situation and encouragement of internal conflict in the victim state.
Degradation, destruction, and disintegration of the country, turning it into a so-called “failed” state.
Changing the country’s political power to one that is completely under control of the aggressor state.
Ukraine is encountering this phenomenon directly for the first time. However, military experts have long been familiar with this type of warlike activity.
The concept in its modern sense was explored as early as during the 1960-70 years in the work on “war insurgency” by Evgeny Messner, the former colonel of the General Staff of the Imperial Russian Army. (in his book Insurgency or the name of the Third World War, Messner predicted that future wars would be won through subversion and organized revolutions carried out by special forces and terrorists — Ed.)
In particular, he wrote:
“In earlier wars, conquest of territory was considered important. In the future, the conquest of souls in the enemy country will be most important. The fighting will not happen on a two-dimensional level, as in the past, nor in three-dimensional space, as during the birth of military aviation, but in a four-dimensional space where the psychology of the warring nations becomes the fourth dimension … fighting in the future will use rebels, guerrillas, saboteurs, terrorists, propagandist on large scale.”
Obviously, this is exactly what the Kremlin had in mind when it launched the hidden war against Ukraine in Crimea and began fueling the instability in the eastern and southern regions of our country. In the Pentagon, as early as 2004, it was believed that China, North Korea, Iran and Russia would be the first countries to launch hybrid wars. This new war relies on using the civilian population to whip up mass hysteria and opposition to lawful authority and to provide reliable “human shields” to cover the armed militants.
From the aggressor’s perspective , it is here that the informational component plays perhaps its most important role in shaping the “correct” view of the victims of this war. This is much more important than achieving actual victory. The killing of foreign soldiers ceases to be the main goal — in a hybrid war killing one’s own soldiers suffices since it guarantees the required informational support.
In conducting this war, the aggressor attributes to his victim what he, in fact, does himself. Everything is as described by Orwell — the victim is transformed into the aggressor in the eyes of the consumer of this information, and the aggressor becomes the just avenger. Informational infection thus takes place.
The main target in a hybrid war is not the adversary but the population that is being “liberated.” The objectives and methods of such a war are clear — to encourage citizens to betray their own country and support the aggressor. Additionally, all means are utilized to shape the aggressor’s desired depiction of events in the international community.
The non-standard nature of such a war is based on the non-official involvement of non-governmental implementers — “polite (little green) men,” the “volunteers” who are, in fact, commonplace mercenaries and local traitors. They are not bound by international law and are simply doing the “dirty work.”
An important feature of the hybrid war is the active use of asymmetric fighting, which is characterized by a significant difference between military power and the strategies and tactics of the participants. This type of warfare is extremely difficult to counter, since there are no formal grounds for fighting with the aggressor state, who only unofficially (but very actively) supports the militants and terrorists.
This is how the extensive agent network of the intelligence services of the Russian Federation, the Russian saboteurs and mercenaries are operating in the east of our country today. And Russia is supplying them with weapons and new fighters and continuing to shell our positions from Russian territory.
In this undeclared war against Ukraine, Russia is actively using the methods of the information-psychological war that is designed to destroy the morale of the soldiers and the civilian population of our country. The so-called “journalists” from the Russian channels LifeNews, Russia Today and the like are “dual-use weapons,” performing the functions of shaping the “right image” for propaganda purposes while conducting intelligence and subversive work as agents of the special services of the Russian Federation.
Russian military experts and scientists have been working on developing information and information-psychological war for some time and quite thoroughly. In particular, the Russian scientist Andrey Manoilo, graduate of the FSB (Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation) Academy, has explored with exceptional depth the phenomenon of current information warfare in his monograph “National information policy under special conditions.”
The author defines the status of the new war: ” The information-psychological war […] at this time represents the most socially dangerous form … of confrontation, carried out by violent means and attempts to influence the information-psychological sphere of the opponent with the goal of achieving strategic objectives.”
We can cite a few more descriptions by experts who view the information war as an integral part of the hybrid war:
Information Warfare — the purposeful actions designed to ensure information superiority by damaging the information processes and systems of the enemy while ensuring the safety of one’s own information, information processes and systems. The components of information warfare are information and psychological warfare and cyber warfare.
Information-psychological war – is designed to have a specific influence on the military and civilian population of a country — the targets of the prepared information-psychological operation.
Cyber war — component of the information war, which is designed to damage or destroy the information infrastructure of the opponent (including software and hardware) through penetration of the infrastructure and illegal hacking.
Information weapons — a set of technical and other means, methods, and technologies that are determined not so much by their own properties but by the properties of the objects against which the information weapons are applied. Information weapons integrate all the means of influencing the foundation of any society through information.
To understand the strategy and actions of the enemy it is advisable to note his main approaches to the implementation of the information war.
Russian specialists define information war as a confrontation between states in the information space that are designed to damage the information systems, processes and resources of critically important structures, to undermine the political, economic and social systems, and also to submit the population to mass psychological manipulation in order to destabilize the society and the state.
The basic training of the Russian special services specifies:
– Secret information-psychological operations serve as the basis for conducting the information war through the influence of managed information on the consciousness of individuals, groups or masses and on the will and feelings of the citizens of another country. It also includes the disruption of the information infrastructure and media of the enemy country and the disinformation of those making political, economic, and other governmental decisions.
– These measures are designed to have a negative impact on the awareness and systems of knowledge and understanding in the target country and to organize the desired sources of influence beyond its borders.
– To implement these steps an information gathering and distribution center must be developed that operates in real time.
– Fighting must be preceded by the ability to provide rapid disruption of the political and economic government infrastructures of the enemy as well as their communication systems and electronic warfare.
– An important component of modern warfare (not only information warfare) is the question of morale. The creation of a system for the moral-psychological training of Russian soldiers and the development of algorithms to undermine the morale of the enemy is a crucial factor in modern warfare.
The targets for attack are identified:
– The information structure of the state
– The awareness, will, and feelings of the soldiers and various segments of the civilian population, especially during elections and crises.
– The system of decision-making in the political, economic, social, scientific-technical fields and in the area of security and defense.
-The more negatively oriented groups (the opposition, dissidents, the criminal elements, etc.), viewed as means to intensify the crisis in the enemy’s society.
Ukrainian experts have identified a number of threats to Ukraine in the context of the information war.
The massive information-psychological operations and cyber warfare that accompany military action against Ukraine.
The latent (hidden, marginal) actions of the enemy. The Russian Federation is actively using the religious factor to promote its conditions for stabilizing the situation and to spread false statements about a peaceful settlement of the war. There are many eye-witness accounts of sermons by priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate about “militant heroes,” “holy war,” and the “Kyiv junta,” not only in the Donbas but also in the Sumy and Chernihiv oblasts. Another direction that is actively pursued is the spreading of rumors. The instruments of distribution are not only specific individuals and Russian TV, but also informational messages delivered through the printed press, leaflets, and local cable broadcasts.
The information-propaganda structures on Ukrainian territory (information agencies, publishers, IT-structures, blogger groups, etc.) which formerly did not demonstrate their pro-Russian positions are now attempting to share their destructive (panicked, depressive) attitudes in Ukraine (“we’re nothing without Russia,” “Russia will swallow us,” etc.) to create a negative trend regarding Ukraine and at the same time a positive trend regarding Russia’s actions
Inadequate implementation of necessary measures: the internal nature of the threats is based on opposition to the inherited bureaucratic system that is unable to handle current challenges.
Massive cyber warfare. It should be noted that in 2004 the Russian Minister of Defense announced the launch of the program to expand cyber warfare and involve leading IT companies and scientific and educational institutions in this strategy, following the U.S. example. Russian structures that carry out cyber warfare are disguised as “anonymous hackers,” private individuals and organizations (“Cyber Berkut,” Anonymous).
Ukraine’s own capabilities and potential that must be used without fail:
We can identify the following factors that enhance a successful response and increase the effectiveness of Ukraine’s actions in the hybrid war in the context of informational warfare:
General heightening of patriotism. Examples of heroic military deeds, the National Guard, the soldiers of the volunteer battalions, the volunteers, the material assistance to Ukrainian soldiers from local residents and from all the regions of Ukraine, the funds collected for the army, are examples not only of a high level of patriotism but also demonstrate the significant self-organizing capabilities of the population.
Strategic Management. The creation of separate state and public situation centers (and the inclusion of existing ones) will ensure a prompt response to changes in the military-political situation. Building a networked system of situational management will ensure the preservation of stability and the continuity of government in the event of total and intense aggression on the part of Russia. The main conditions should be the qualifications of the personnel, the availability of horizontal connections with the structures of other law enforcement agencies, and the implementation of national standards for the delivery and content of information.
Effective information politics. Namely, the daily context, the strategic direction and the feedback from the public. This direction is already being implemented, particularly on the basis of two integrated partner information platforms: civilian — in the form of the Ukrainian Crisis Management Media Center (UCMC), and state — the Information Analytical Center of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (IAC RNBO of Ukraine). We must understand that only the complete unified societal resistance to Russian aggression will lead us to victory. In the fight for Ukraine, all of us — the government agencies and the independent media, the independent journalists, and all Ukrainian citizens — must present a united front:
Availability of a significant number of trained military and civilian professionals, especially in the area of information, including those trained in NATO programs and programs of other Western countries.
A significant resource base, especially in the production and deployment of the information infrastructure for the benefit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other law enforcement agencies.
Changes in the geopolitical situation should be used for including experienced advisors and specialists in information warfare and military network operations (Net Centric Warfare). The involvement of advisors during the preparation and transformation of the military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will avoid mistakes and help the army rise rapidly to the level of a modern military organization.
By confronting the West on the Ukrainian question, Moscow has relied on the active destabilization of the internal contradictions in “traditional” alliances such as EU and NATO. Moreover, the Russian rulers derive confidence from their corruption of the financial streams within the framework of the “new business relationships” with a number of leading, nominally “Western,” companies that in reality are governed by the Kremlin
The civilized world needs to realize that Ukraine may not be the final victim of the imperialistic revanchist plans of Moscow to impose the “Russian world” and alter the European and global security architecture to one aligned with Kremlin’s wishes.
Our neighbors may experience the treacherous methods of the Russian hybrid war as well — the former Soviet republics, such as Estonia and Latvia, where significant Russian-speaking population reside. Attempts to destabilize the situation in these countries in order to create “independent” pro-Russian enclaves (Narva, Tartu, Riga) should not be ruled out. Similarly, realizing that the continuing uninterrupted advancement of Chisinau in the direction of integration with Europe will finally move Moldova out of the zone of Russian influence, the Kremlin may exert “soft” diplomatic pressure and well as “tough” pressure on this country from the Transnistria territory.
Even a close alliance with Russia guarantees nothing. Increasingly, statements by various Russian politicians regarding Russian claims to the northern regions of Kazakhstan can be heard. The President of Belarus has something to consider as well as he plans his next steps.
The victories of Ukrainian armed forces in the east demonstrate that we have rapidly learned how to counter the enemy effectively, even under the most difficult conditions. The introduction of the third level of sanctions demonstrates that even Putin’s foreign policy plan has failed.
As was the case a thousand years ago, Ukraine again has become a shield for European civilization. Today Ukraine provides an example of successful resistance to Putin’s imperialistic aggression. We will return our native Crimea from Moscow’s captivity back to our united Ukrainian family. Victory over the enemy in a hybrid war can be achieved only through national unity and the mobilization of the entire society for the battle with a treacherous enemy. The terrorist and criminal groups, the foreign agent networks, and the resource bases of the aggressor on Ukrainian territory must be neutralized and disabled through clear and coordinated actions by our security agencies.
We also will win the information war by acting coherently, intelligently, and systematically. We will gain invaluable experience, new skills and habits. Ukraine will become much stronger.
By uniting and perfecting the two components of our struggle — the military-security component and the information one, we will restore peaceful life, security, and welfare to our native Donbas under the protection of the Ukrainian State.
We will stop Putin for the sake of peace in Ukraine and the world. Ukraine will win!
by Andriy Parubiy, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, August 6, 2014
Translated by Anna Mostovych
Pravda
Putin’ Russia is still an empire and is evil. Russia is on the verge of invading eastern Ukraine. Putin’s regime is currently engaged in a massive military buildup, including the development of a whole new range of nuclear forces. It is in the midst of an open war against American values, arresting political opponents and journalists, crushing the internet and spewing forth nothing but neo-Soviet propaganda on state-controlled TV.The world must unite and help Ukraine defeat Russia.
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Natural magnetite nanoparticles from an iron-ore deposit: size dependence on magnetic properties
Earth, Planets and Space volume 61, pages 151–160 (2009)
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Abstract
We report on the discovery of magnetite nanoparticles ranging in size from 2 to 14 nm in the mineralized zones of the Pe~na Colorada iron-ore deposit, southern Mexico. Micrometric scale magnetite was magnetically reduced and divided into distinct size ranges: 85-56 μm, 56-30 μm, 30-22 μm, 22-15 μm, 15-10 μm, 10-7 μm and 7-2 μm. Nanometric-scale magnetite in the size range 2-14 nm was identified. The magnetite was characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmitted and reflected light microscope, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high angle annular dark field, Mossbauer spectroscopy and its magnetic properties. Crystallographic identification of nanostructures was performed using high-resolution TEM. Characteristic changes were observed when the particles make the size transition from micro- to nanometric sizes, as follows: (1) frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility percentage (χFD%) measurements show high values (13%) for the 2-14 nm fractions attributed to dominant fractions of superparamagnetic particles; (2) variations of χFD% < 4.5% in fractions of 56-0.2 μm occur in association with the presence of microparticles formed by magnetite aggregates of nanoparticles (< 15 nm) embedded in berthierine; (3) Mössbauer spectroscopy results identified a superparamagnetic fraction; (4) nanometric and 0.2-7 μm grain size magnetite particles require a magnetic field up to 152 mT to reach saturation during the isothermal remanent magnetization experiment; (5) coercivity and remanent magnetization of the magnetite increase when the particle size decreases, probably due to parallel coupling effects; (6) two-magnetic susceptibility versus temperature experiments of the same 2-14 nm sample show that the reversibility during the second heating is due to the formation of new magnetite nanoparticles and growth of those already present during the first heating process.
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Rivas-Sánchez, M.L., Alva-Valdivia, L.M., Arenas-Alatorre, J. et al. Natural magnetite nanoparticles from an iron-ore deposit: size dependence on magnetic properties. Earth Planet Sp 61, 151–160 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03352895
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On an as-needed basis, serve as a substitute teacher at the elementary, middle and/or high school levels.
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- On an as-needed basis, serve as a substitute teacher at the elementary, middle and/or high school levels.
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Minimum Qualifications - An equivalent combination of education and experience may substitute for the requirements listed.
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Jessica L. Ware is an assistant professor at Rutgers University in NJ. Her B.Sc is from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver Canada. She received her Ph.D. in Entomology from Rutgers in 2008 after which she completed two years at the American Museum of Natural History as an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow. She has received several awards including the Entomological Societys Comstock Award and Snodgrass Memorial Award and Rutgers Compton Markle Award. She is currently on the Editorial Board for Organismal Diversity and Evolution as well as the International Journal of Odonatology. She currently has published a dozen peer reviewed manuscripts and has served as a reviewer for Systematic Entomology, International Journal of Odonatology, Cladistics Zootaxa Royal Biological Linnaean Society, Journal of Insect Science Geobios, Entomologica Americana Organismal Diversity and Evolution and Southeastern Naturalist Guest Editorship.
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At GDIT, people are our differentiator. As a Project Manager, you will be trusted to support a mission-critical software modernization program in the Albany, NY area. This position works under the general guidance of the Project Director, and is a fast-paced, rapidly changing, collaborative environment, and requires strong troubleshooting and analytical skills, strong critical thinking, complex problem solving, appropriate judgment, and decision-making skills. This job will allow for hybrid, or remote with travel, work arrangements.
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We are GDIT. The people supporting some of the most complex government, defense, and intelligence projects across the country. We deliver. Bringing the expertise needed to understand and advance critical missions. We transform. Shifting the ways clients invest in, integrate, and innovate technology solutions. We ensure today is safe and tomorrow is smarter. We are there. On the ground, beside our clients, in the lab, and everywhere in between. Offering the technology transformations, strategy, and mission services needed to get the job done.
GDIT is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status, or any other protected class. | https://kansasworks-veterans.jobs/olathe-ks/project-manager-software-development/291156B5F0804139814FCFF1B75010D4/job/?vs=28 |
Wendy Hodge December 1, 2019 Family Budget
Good family budget software will help you learn when to make these right decisions to secure your family`s financial security. There is one program that emphasizes not spending more than what you earned in the previous month, and also to put every dollar to work in some capacity. This makes a lot of sense and it is no wonder why this program has become so popular.
Personal/ Family budgets, or spending plans, are tools that can help you meet your financial goals. The process of building a budget can help you to take a hard look at your priorities and to determine whether you are on track to reaching your financial goals. A budget is a list of expenses and income. It is the amounts of money that currently comes in and out each month/year. It is also the projected in and out amounts of each month/year.
Q: What if I make my budget, and the expenses are way above my current income? A: First, it is good that you made it, because you now realize you have a problem. Secondly, you will want to decide whether there are expenses you can eliminate. For instance, if the entertainment section is $20 a week, can you cut it back to $10? What other categories can you reduce? Finally, you may need to work more hours or get a second job to make ends meet.
Today, many families are floundering in debt, and realize their spending is out of control. However, although they know they ought to do something about it, many people do not have experience or know-how in budgeting. To some people it sounds like a huge, insurmountable task, while others are afraid they will never be able to live within the confines of a budget. If one of your goals is to get your finances or your family`s finances under control, here are some common budgeting questions answered for you:
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"Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home, so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. [...] Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world." Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Day is observed by the international community every year on 10 December. It commemorates the day in 1948 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The formal inception of Human Rights Day dates from 1950, after the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V) inviting all States and interested organizations to adopt 10 December of each year as Human Rights Day. When the General Assembly adopted the Declaration, with 48 states in favor and eight abstentions, it was proclaimed as a "common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations", towards which individuals and societies should "strive by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance". Although the Declaration with its broad range of political, civil, social, cultural and economic rights is not a binding document, it inspired more than 60 human rights instruments which together constitute an international standard of human rights. Today the general consent of all United Nations Member States on the basic Human Rights laid down in the Declaration makes it even stronger and emphasizes the relevance of Human Rights in our daily lives. The High Commissioner for Human Rights, as the main United Nations rights official, and his Office play a major role in coordinating efforts for the yearly observation of Human Rights Day.
Human Rights Day is observed by the international community every year on 10 December. It commemorates the day in 1948 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The formal inception of Human Rights Day dates from 1950, after the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V) inviting all States and interested organizations to adopt 10 December of each year as Human Rights Day.
When the General Assembly adopted the Declaration, with 48 states in favor and eight abstentions, it was proclaimed as a "common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations", towards which individuals and societies should "strive by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance". Although the Declaration with its broad range of political, civil, social, cultural and economic rights is not a binding document, it inspired more than 60 human rights instruments which together constitute an international standard of human rights. Today the general consent of all United Nations Member States on the basic Human Rights laid down in the Declaration makes it even stronger and emphasizes the relevance of Human Rights in our daily lives.
The High Commissioner for Human Rights, as the main United Nations rights official, and his Office play a major role in coordinating efforts for the yearly observation of Human Rights Day. | https://tuetego.net/article/stand-up-for-your-rights |
Behind the walls of West Albany’s kitchen, three women efficiently layer chicken and hamburger patties onto hundreds of buns one by one, anticipating the cascade of hungry high school students to come in less than an hour.
Not long after the pandemic started, West received financial aid for the purpose of providing free lunches for students. With the burden of financial troubles eliminated, the number of students flooding into the cafeteria to grab a bite to eat during lunch rapidly increased to almost three times the amount before COVID-19. More kids being provided with food is ultimately a positive situation, but it also necessitates busier work days for the kitchen staff.
At 9:30 a.m. sharp, kitchen manager Kimberly Hill and her coworkers Mary Gaspard and Donna Affinito get to work on putting together anywhere from 300 to 670 lunches for the day, depending on the insight Hill gains from the number of leftover lunches from previous days. The volume of students that get lunches from the kitchen can fluctuate wildly from week to week, so the amount of food that needs to be ordered at the beginning of the week is usually a guessing game.
The trio has made a variety of main courses this year, in both sack lunch and hot lunch form. Providing a steady stream of high schoolers with food is no small feat, but the kitchen staff has a quick and structured system to keep everything running smoothly.
Nacho chips are scooped into their paper dishes and buns are laid out on the massive steel island in the kitchen, creating a blanket of bread. Finished sandwiches are stacked into bins and placed in the buffet with a covering before lunch or wrapped and packed in a brown paper bag for sack lunches. The rhythm of productivity becomes a back-and-forth between the island in the kitchen and the buffet area, and before long, the three women are fully prepared for lunch. In addition to the responsibility of making the main course, the buffet is fully stocked with sauces, utensils, milk, and fruit for kids to take.
The buffet is aided by a group of 12 students in addition to the kitchen staff during lunch to help serve the freshly prepared food.
While the rush of the free lunch crowd is overwhelming at times, Hill has not yet asked for additional staff to help with kitchen prep work. The unpredictable patterns of how many kids will take a lunch from week to week makes her hesitant to request more workers, especially because her and her coworkers are managing well with their current system. For the time being, the trio of hard-working kitchen staff resolves to take on the daily responsibilities that come with preparing food for hundreds of high school students.
Behind the walls of West Albany’s kitchen, these three women continue to overcome the stressors of a mid-pandemic year to provide hundreds of hungry kids with meals, day after day.
Hill’s Skills
Kimberly Hill arrives at school at 6 a.m. She gets right to work, following a strict schedule that she can’t fall behind on. It’s a Monday, so on top of being tasked with planning every meal down to the number of cheese slices, she has to order fresh food for next week. She sends emails, records stock, prints out and delivers menus, plans some more. Finally, she steps out onto the floor to start making lunch, all before 9:30 in the morning.
Hill has worked as West’s kitchen manager for the past five years, helping the school through big events such as the pandemic and moving to free school lunch. But even through thick and thin, she continues to run the kitchen in a lighthearted atmosphere.
“She’s so cheerful and always upbeat, which I love,” said Donna Affinito, her coworker of six years. “She makes me laugh…she’s just a character.”
But she hasn’t always worked exclusively at West; she’s actually been in the industry for over a decade. Though she’s successful today, Hill had never actually intended to be a kitchen manager. Her career actually started out as a surprising opportunity.
“When my kids were little they were both going to Periwinkle [Elementary School], and I would volunteer there all the time,” Hill said. “The lady that worked there asked if I would ever be interested in working in a kitchen. I never thought about it, you know, because I was a stay at home mom…so I was like, ‘Yeah, I would love to try it out.’”
Since her time at Periwinkle, Hill has worked her way up the food chain, beginning at elementary schools, then transitioning to middle, and finally landing her current job in a high school. With the new addition of the blue building, she enjoys managing an extensive kitchen complete with updated appliances and a personal office. However, her time working in school kitchens started off in a much more humble space.
“I worked at Oak Grove [Elementary School] before going to Memorial [Middle School], and I literally worked in a gym with carpeted walls. It was horrible,” Hill recounts. “I had a table, a stove, and a small refrigerator…I remember once I was trying to get a pizza out of the oven, and a ball came flying over.”
But even with dangerous projectiles flying around her space, Hill’s favorite part of the job has always been getting to interact with the students at the schools she works at. Because of her substantial experience in working in the kitchens, she’s been able to form connections with many students as they move up through schools together. She worked with elementary schoolers at Periwinkle her first year in the kitchen; she just recently watched them graduate, serving them in both elementary and high school, and she currently enjoys seeing the students from her Oak Grove experience. But Hill welcomes all students, regardless of whether or not she recognizes them.
“They’re just the highlight of the day, to be honest…They’re happy to be here. And plus, I feed them, so they’re always happy. If they get cranky, we just send them back to their teacher,” Hill joked.
And students themselves seem to share the same attitude towards the kitchen manager. Junior Madison Wheeler helps to serve lunch along with around eleven other students, working with Hill almost every day of the school week.
“She’s very nice, very relaxed and more than happy to help with anything,” Wheeler said about Hill. “Be it school drama, kitchen drama, life drama. She’s always willing to lend an ear.”
On the flipside, her love for the students can also be the hardest part of the job. Hill has found that denying students any food does not come easily to her. Prior to the introduction of free school lunches, Hill had an especially hard time seeing kids foregoing the meal. | https://wahswhirlwind.com/4035/uncategorized/meet-the-women-feeding-an-entire-student-body/ |
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Quiz
iOS
Android
More
huntingtons onset is between ages of _ and _
2-80 years of age. Average progression is 10-20 years with a peak onset between 30-50
Huntingtons with rapid progression and early onset is known as
Juvenille Huntingtons
give characteristics of each stage of HD
Early
Miuddle
Late
Clumsy
prominent chorea
Severe chorea, akinetic, severe rigidity
Death due to choking
Cognitive disorder characteristics
Early
Middle
Late
Deficits in cognitive speed
Difficulty using/understanding words
Global impairment affecting memory
Pathology of neurodegeneration most prominent in the
Striatum, progressive loss medium spiny projection GABA neurons
Loss of neurons in Globus Pallidus and subthalamic nucleus. Loss of neurons greatest leading to thalamus
What happens to cause the "chorea-like" movements, talking inhibition wise.
Too much GABA inhibition on the next GABA neuron causes too much excitation to the thalamas which leads to cortex, spinal cord, then muscleds.
HTT gene is found on chromosome
4
The HTT gene is ____ dominant
autosomal
HTT protein is involved in
Axona; vesicle transport, endocytosis, anti apoptosis, and gene transport
T/F Huntington protein is a multidomain membrane protein with no significant homology to other known proteins.
False, cytoplasmic
CAG repeats code for a series of _____
Glutamine PolyQ
T/F If an individual has a number of CAG repeats is greater than 40, they might get huntingtons.
False, they WILL
CAG repeat in Htt gene (is/is not) stable during intergenerational transmissions.
IS NOT
T/F most of the time the htt gene only changes 1 repeat per generation.
True
If someones CAG repeat is 32, will they develop HD?
No, but frequency of expansion will greatly increase with Intergenerational transmissions
Most individuals have how many repeats in the CAG
11-26 with a median of 18
Paternal expansion of CAG is (more/less) common than maternal expansion.
More, possibly due to spermatogenesis?
Possible mechanism for repeats include the following: (4)
Aggregation
Reduced gene transcription
Cellular dysfunction
Apoptosis
T/F mutant huntington in striatal neurons have longer polyglutamine repeats.
True
T/F without a family history, it is not difficult to diagnose someone with HD.
False, it is difficult.
Drug to reduce chorea like movements
Haloperidol
Author:
swynocker
ID:
50843
Card Set:
PBD 4 Huntingtons
Updated:
2010-11-21 05:28:02
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PBD Huntingtons
Folders:
Description:
PBD 4 Huntingtons
Show Answers: | https://www.freezingblue.com/flashcards/print_preview.cgi?cardsetID=50843 |
Dr. Mae C. Jemison leads 100 Year Starship (100YSS), a bold, far reaching nonprofit initiative to assure the capabilities exist for human travel beyond our solar system to another star within the next 100 years. Jemison is building a multi-faceted global community to foster the cultural, scientific, social and technical commitment, support and financial framework to accomplish the 100YSS vision-An Inclusive, Audacious Journey (that) Transforms Life Here on Earth and Beyond. 100YSS programs include: Annual public conference NEXUS- Pathway to the Stars: Footprints on Earth; the Canopus Awards for Excellence in Interstellar Writing; the 100YSS Crucibles-Invitation only, transdisciplinary workshops to generate new disciplines to disrupt technological and systemic hurdles; and 100YSS True Books to engage elementary students. The 100YSS Way Research Institute seeks to generate the radical leaps that accelerate knowledge, technology, design, and thinking not just for space travel, but to enhance life on Earth. Jemison led the team that won the competitive, single awardee seed funding grant in February 2012 from premiere research agency DARPA.
Jemison, the first woman of color in the world to go into space, served six years as a NASA astronaut. Aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, STS-47 Spacelab J mission in September 1992, she performed experiments in material science, life sciences and human adaptation to weightlessness.
Jemison started The Jemison Group, Inc. (JG) a technology consulting firm integrating critical socio-cultural issues into the design of engineering and science projects, such as satellite technology for health care delivery and solar dish Stirling engine electricity in developing countries. JG researches and develops stand-alone science and technology companies. BioSentient Corporation, a medical devices and services company focused on improving health and human performance is such a company. An Environmental Studies professor at Dartmouth College, Jemison worked on sustainable development and technology design particularly for the developing world. Before joining NASA she was the Area Peace Corps Medical Officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia and a general practice physician in Los Angeles.
November 18, 2020 04:00 PM PT
Matei Zaharia
Assistant Professor of Computer Science Original Creator of Apache Spark & MLflow, Databricks
Deploying and operating machine learning applications is challenging because they are highly dependent on input data and can fail in complex ways. Problems such as training/inference differences in data format, data skew, and misconfigured software environments can easily sneak into a production application and impact its quality. To address these types of problems, organizations are adopting ML Platform software and MLOps practices specifically for managing machine learning applications.
In this talk, I’ll present some of the latest functionality added for productionizing machine learning in MLflow, the popular open source machine learning platform started by Databricks in 2018. These include built-in support for model management and review using the Model Registry, APIs for automatic Continuous Integration and Delivery (CI/CD), model schemas to catch differences in a model’s expected data format, and integration with model explainability tools. I’ll also talk about other work happening in the open source MLflow community, including deep integration with PyTorch and its growing ecosystem of model productionization tools.
Kasey Uhlenhuth
Sr Product Manager, Machine Learning, Databricks
Lin Qiao
Engineering Director, PyTorch, Facebook
Lin Qiao, engineering director on the Facebook AI team, talks about bringing machine learning to production at scale, including the PyTorch integration with MLflow. She talks about the guiding principles for PyTorch and the goals set back in 2016 during initial development through the present day, with a focus on ecosystem compatibility.
Lin reviews the PyTorch production ecosystem and discusses how MLflow and PyTorch are integrated for tracking, models and model serving.
Clemens Mewald
Director of Product Management, Data Science and Machine Learning, Databricks
It is no longer a secret that data driven insights and decision making are essential in any company’s strategy to keep up with today’s rapid pace of change and remain relevant. Although we take this realization for granted, we are still in the very early stage of enabling data teams to deliver on their promise. One of the reasons is that we haven’t equipped this profession with the modern toolkit they deserve.
Existing solutions leave data teams with impossible trade-offs. Giving Data Scientists the freedom to use any open source tools on their laptops doesn’t provide a clear path to production and governance. Simply hosting those same tools in the Cloud may solve some of the data privacy and security issues, but doesn’t improve productivity nor collaboration. On the other hand, most robust and scalable production environments hinder innovation and experimentation by slowing Data Scientists down.
In this talk we will give an update on the next generation Data Science Workspace on Databricks, originally unveiled at Spark + AI Summit 2020. Specifically, we will cover new capabilities added to Databricks Notebooks as well as Git-based Databricks Projects. Until now, the industry has assumed that collaborative notebooks are for experimentation only, and not for production. Our approach solved for these challenges and, for the first time, provides a single platform for data teams to rapidly and confidently move from experimentation to production.
In this talk, we will unveil the next generation of the Databricks Data Science Workspace: An open and unified experience for modern data teams specifically designed to address these hard tradeoffs. We will introduce new features that leverage the open source tools you are familiar with to give you a laptop-like experience that provides the flexibility to experiment and the robustness to create reliable and reproducible production solutions.
Stephan Schwarz
Production Planning: Manager Smart Data Processing (Mercedes Operations), Daimler
Sebastian Findeisen
Data Scientist, Daimler
When we think about luxury cars, what first comes to mind is often the end product-- the sleek design, how fast it goes, and so on. But we often overlook the enormous amount of effort it takes before that car rolls off the assembly line. In this talk, Daimler will give us a peek into how data and ML is playing a critical role to drive car production automation, with MLOps and tools like MLflow being leveraged to automate a number of complex processes, and provide insights that create production efficiencies.
Rohan Kumar
Corporate Vice President, Azure Data, Microsoft
Responsible ML is the most talked about field in AI at the moment. With the growing importance of ML, it is even more important for us to exercise ethical AI practices and ensure that the models we create live up to the highest standards of inclusiveness and transparency. Join Rohan Kumar, as he talks about how Microsoft brings cutting-edge research into the hands of customers to make them more accountable for their models and responsible in their use of AI. For the AI community, this is an open invitation to collaborate and contribute to shape the future of Responsible ML. This keynote is brought to you as an encore presentation from the global Summit.
Sarah Bird
Principal Program Manager, Microsoft Azure AI
Keynote from Mae Jemison
First woman of color in the world to go into space, former NASA astronaut
Exploration of the opportunities and obstacles encountered and clarity of purpose needed to achieve an extraordinary future -- such as human interstellar travel or a sustainable human existence on planet Earth -- and what roles can big data and advancing IT play. | https://databricks.com/speaker/mae-jemison |
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z All
A., Adewumi A.
- Comparative Food and Feeding Adaptations of Two Teleosts in Ado-Ekiti Reservoir
Authors
SourceInternational Journal of Innovative Research and Development, Vol 3, No 2 (2014), Pagination:
Abstract
A comparative study of food and feeding adaptations of Clarias gariepinus (40.6-47.6cm) and Oreochromis niloticus (8.4–20.5cm) in Ado Ekiti reservoir was carried out using numerical, frequency of occurrence, volumetric assays and physical observation of the morphological features. The mouth gape and dentition, spacing and number of gill rakers as well as the length of O. niloticus and C. gariepinus wer significantly different from one another. The food items in the gut of O. niloticus include; detritus/mud, higher plant remains, Chlamydomonas, Closterium, Spirogyra, Volvox and insect parts. C. gariepinus were found to feed mainly on crustaceans, insects, molluscs, fish, detritus, algae and vegetable matters. The results reveal high level of similarities in the diet of O. niloticus and C. gariepinus. However, O. niloticus had more of higher plant (76.96% by numerical method) than C.gariepinus, indicating high herbivorous feeding in tilapia while C.gariepinus had higher occurrence of insect and fish parts (36.76%), thus highlighting omnivorous habit. The mouth gape, dentition, spacing and number of gill rakers and gut length of O. niloticus and C. gariepinus were significantly different (p<0.05) from one another. C. gariepinus and O. niloticus in Ado Ekiti reservoir are essentially omnivores and herbivores respectively, with some overlapping food preference. However, the different major food items fed upon by the species and the corresponding adaptations to feeding makes co-existence of the two species, amongst others, possible, and would ultimately reduce intense competition. | https://www.i-scholar.in/index.php/IJIRD/search/authors/view?firstName=Adewumi&middleName=A.&lastName=A.&affiliation=&country= |
A festival combining both natural heritage and cultural traditions addressed to people of all ages.
PARTICIPATION AND INCLUSION: Engaging remote living residents, including vulnerable groups
A festival addressed to persons of all ages, aiming to combine traditional activities such as local/regional gastronomy, wine tasting, traditional games, exhibitions (e.g. cork products and other local products), with the enjoyment of nature, including hiking, biking, horse riding, hot air balloon rides, bird watching and other nature-related activities. The festival will be held in the low season and it is expected to contribute to reducing tourism seasonality and attract responsible tourists. | https://common-heritage.eu/projects/tradinatur-festival/ |
The 1930s have gone down as the golden age of endurance cycling, culminating with the incredible achievement of long-distance legend Tommy Godwin in 1939. Initially riding a Raleigh bicycle fitted with a Sturmey-Archer 3-speed hub, Tommy upgraded to a 4-speed during his marathon challenge before breaking the 'Year Record' when cycling 75,065 miles in 12 months. Astonishingly he carried on to become the fastest cyclist to 100,000 miles, which he achieved in just 500 days.
Tommy still holds the 'Year Record' but is being challenged this year by CTC member Steve Abraham. Needing to average over 205 miles a day, every day, Steve was firmly on track to beat the record prior to breaking his leg above the ankle on 29 March 2015 following a collision with a moped. After stopping riding completely for two weeks Steve resumed cycling gradually, using just one leg to pedal on a modified recumbent trike.
Once Steve's recovery reached a point where he felt he could give his all again, he launched a second attempt at the 'Year Record'. His original bid will continue until the end of this year, with the second attempt now into its fourth month.
76 years on and different challenges
When the country went to war in 1939, the problems Tommy had to cope with included dwindling food supplies due to increased rationing and the risk of severe penalties for failing to abide with blackout restrictions at night time. Steve has needed to cope with different challenges, however, including increased traffic on the roads, being hit by a moped in March, and last Saturday potential arrest after he was stopped by the police while cycling from Cardiff to Norwich.
According to Steve's Facebook posts the alleged offence was 'cycling on an A road'. Fortunately he was able to explain that he had not actually breached any road traffic regulations and was allowed to proceed, although it is somewhat disconcerting that this explanation was required at all!
Where would you like us to ride?
While Steve's discussions with the police about Saturday night cyclist's rights are an amusing Facebook read, and an excuse for me to write a blog highlighting both his extraordinary record attempt and Tommy's amazing story, there is a serious issue regarding people's perceptions about where we should ride, and which roads or facilities we should use.
Some people reading this blog may question whether cyclists should ride on 'A' roads or specifically busy 'A' roads. I don't know the level of traffic on the road on which Steve was stopped but he is an extremely experienced cyclist who has been cycling most of his life. Some cyclists might prefer to avoid busier roads but the moment anyone suggests that an experienced cyclist, confident riding with traffic, should not choose to or be allowed to ride on certain roads, we implicitly excuse the motorist who drives on such roads without due regard for cyclists, because they 'did not expect to see them on that road'.
You may recall the tragic story reported by CTC last month involving lorry driver Martin Ashford, who drove into and ran over cyclist David O'Connell on the A40 near Cheltenham. At the Inquest, Coroner Katy Skerret is reported to have said that Ashford 'would not have expected a cyclist to be on that road at that time of night'. The police collision investigator speculated as to why O'Connell might have failed to see the illuminated cyclist in front of him, but there was implied if not express criticism of Ashford's decision to cycle on that road, and a reversal of the Highway Code by effectively suggesting that motorists do not have to have regard for vulnerable road users on certain roads, because they are not expected to be there.
A police officer stopping and questioning Steve for cycling on an 'A' road reflects the same reluctance to accept and acknowledge both the rights of cyclists to use the highway, and the responsibilities of others towards them. It is crucial that cyclists do not feel bullied off certain roads which motorists would rather we did not use, because if we lose the right to use those roads we are unlikely to retrieve it, which could be the thin end of the wedge with cyclists' legal rights.
Compulsory cycle paths?
For every motorist who questions whether cyclists should be using 'A' roads there is likely to be another who believes we should always use cycle lanes or paths rather than 'their' part of the road, regardless of the suitability of the particular cycle infrastructure. As most cyclists will testify, the quality of segregated cycling facilities varies hugely. CTC fought hard to prevent the Highway Code being amended to require cyclists to use segregated facilities where they exist, but that argument has not disappeared completely and may have to be fought again at some point.
Once cyclists feel pressurised not to use roads where there are alternative segregated facilities, or not use certain 'A' roads, then the next questions could be whether they should use country roads at night time, be allowed to ride two abreast, ride in large groups or use cargo bikes on certain roads.
CTC winning victories since 1878
Ever since CTC - then the Bicycle Touring Club - won a famous legal victory in 1878 in the case of Taylor v Goodwin, bicycles have been legally regarded as 'carriages'. Put bluntly that means we have a right to use the roads, which should not be eroded by police officers questioning whether certain roads are suitable, coroners suggesting that motorists should not expect to see us on other roads, politicians trying to require us to use inadequate segregated facilities, or pressure from other road users. Rights hard won should not be lightly surrendered, which is why a police officer stopping Steve for cycling on an 'A' road is a serious issue, why we should choose which roads we cycle on without succumbing to external pressure, and make a fuss when someone interferes with those rights.
Christmas cheer for Steve
Having moved - hopefully seamlessly - from Tommy's 1939 blackout problems to Steve's 'Year Record' attempt and 2015 mishaps, on to cyclists' rights on the highways and back to 1878 legal victories, I need to return to Mr Abraham. As you all tuck into your Christmas dinner and enjoy the festive cheer, spare a thought for Steve - 205 miles on December 25!
Good luck from all at CTC in your incredible record attempt. Have you thought of a 'Decade Record'? | https://www.cyclinguk.org/blog/duncandollimore/super-steve-stopped-cycling-road |
What a woman eats and drinks during pregnancy is her baby's main source of nourishment. So, experts recommend that a mother-to-be choose a variety of healthy foods and beverages to provide the important nutrients a baby needs for growth and development.
Key pregnancy nutrition
A pregnant woman needs more calcium, folic acid, iron and protein than a woman who is not expecting.Here is why these four nutrients are important.
Folic acid, also known as folate when found in foods, is a B vitamin that is crucial in helping to prevent birth defects in the baby's brain and spine, known as neural tube defects.
It may be hard to get the recommended amount of folic acid from diet alone. For that reason the March of Dimes, an organization dedicated to preventing birth defects, recommends that women who are trying to have a baby take a daily vitamin supplement containing 400 micrograms of folic acid per day for at least one month before becoming pregnant. During pregnancy, they advise women to increase the amount of folic acid to 600 micrograms a day, an amount commonly found in a daily prenatal vitamin.
Food sources: leafy green vegetables, fortified or enriched cereals, breads and pastas.
Calcium is a mineral used to build a baby's bones and teeth. If a pregnant woman does not consume enough calcium, the mineral will be drawn from the mother's stores in her bones and given to the baby to meet the extra demands of pregnancy, explains the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Many dairy products are also fortified with vitamin D, another nutrient that works with calcium to develop a baby's bones and teeth.
Pregnant women age 19 and over need 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day; pregnant teens, ages 14 to 18, need 1,300 milligrams daily, according to ACOG.
Food sources: milk, yogurt, cheese, calcium-fortified juices and foods, sardines or salmon with bones, some leafy greens (kale, bok choy).
Iron: Pregnant women need 27 milligrams of iron a day, which is double the amount needed by women who are not expecting, according to ACOG. Additional amounts of the mineral are needed to make more blood to supply the baby with oxygen. Getting too little iron during pregnancy can lead to anemia, a condition resulting in fatigue and an increased risk of infections.
For better absorption of the mineral, include a good source of vitamin C at the same meal when eating iron-rich foods, ACOG recommends. For example, have a glass of orange juice at breakfast with an iron-fortified cereal.
Food sources: meat, poultry, fish, dried beans and peas, iron-fortified cereal.
Protein: More protein is needed during pregnancy, but most women don't have problems getting enough of these foods in their diets, said Sarah Krieger, a registered dietitian and spokeswoman on prenatal nutrition for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in St. Petersburg, Florida. She described protein as "a builder nutrient," because it helps to build important organs in the baby, such as the brain and heart.
Food sources: meat, poultry, fish, dried beans and peas, eggs, nuts, tofu.
Foods to eat
During pregnancy, the goal is to be eating nutritious foods most of the time, Krieger told Live Science. To maximize prenatal nutrition, she advises emphasizing the following five food groups: fruits, vegetables, lean protein, whole grains and dairy products.
When counseling pregnant women, Krieger recommends they fill half their plates with fruits and vegetables, a quarter of it with whole grains and a quarter of it with a source of lean protein, and to also have a dairy product at every meal.
Fruits and vegetables: Pregnant women should focus on fruits and vegetables, particularly during the second and third trimesters, Krieger said. Get between five and 10 "tennis ball"-size servings of produce every day, she said. These colorful foods are low in calories and filled with fiber, vitamins and minerals.
Lean protein: Pregnant women should include good protein sources at every meal to support the baby's growth, such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, beans, tofu, cheese, milk and nuts, Krieger said.
Whole grains are an important source of energy in the diet, and they also provide fiber, iron and B-vitamins. At least half of a pregnant woman's carbohydrate choices each day should come from whole grains, such as oatmeal, whole-wheat pasta or breads and brown rice, Krieger said.
Dairy: Aim for 3 to 4 servings of dairy foods a day, Krieger suggested, such as milk, yogurt and cheese, which provide good dietary sources of calcium, protein and vitamin D.
In addition to a healthy diet, pregnant women also need a daily prenatal vitamin to obtain some of the nutrients that are hard to get from foods alone, such as folic acid and iron, according to ACOG.
For women who take chewable prenatal vitamins, Krieger advised checking the product labels because chewables might not have sufficient iron levels in them.
Detailed information on healthy food choices and quantities to include at meals can also be found in the pregnancy section of the USDA's choosemyplate.gov.
Foods to limit
Caffeine: Consuming fewer than 200 mg of caffeine a day, which is the amount found in one 12-ounce cup of coffee, is generally considered safe during pregnancy, according to a 2010 ACOG committee opinion, which was reaffirmed in 2013. The committee report said moderate caffeine consumption does not appear to contribute to miscarriage or premature birth.
Fish: Fish is a good source of lean protein, and some fish, including salmon and sardines, also contain omega-3 fatty acids, a healthy fat that's good for the heart. It is safe for pregnant women to eat 12 ounces of cooked fish and seafood a week, according to ACOG. However, they should limit albacore or "white" tuna, which has high levels of mercury, to no more than 6 ounces a week, according to ACOG. Mercury is a metal that can be harmful to a baby's developing brain. Canned light tuna has less mercury and is safer to eat during pregnancy.
Foods to avoid
Alcohol: Avoid alcohol during pregnancy, Krieger advised. Alcohol in the mother's blood can pass directly to the baby through the umbilical cord. Heavy use of alcohol during pregnancy has been linked with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, a group of conditions that can include physical problems, as well as learning and behavioral difficulties in babies and children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Fish with high levels of mercury: Seafood such as swordfish, shark, king mackerel, and tilefish are high in levels of methyl mercury, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and should be avoided. Methyl mercury is a toxic chemical that can pass through the placenta and can be harmful to an unborn baby's developing brain, kidneys and nervous system.
Unpasteurized food: According to the USDA, pregnant women are at high risk of getting sick from two different types of food poisoning: listeriosis, caused by the Listeriabacteria, and toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by a parasite.
The CDC reports that Listeria infection may cause miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm labor, and illness or death in newborns. To avoid listeriosis, the USDA recommends forgoing the following foods during pregnancy:
Unpasteurized (raw) milk and foods made from it, such as feta, Brie, Camembert, blue-veined cheeses, queso blanco and queso fresco. Pasteurization involves heating a product to a high temperature to kill harmful bacteria.
Hot dogs, luncheon meats and cold cuts unless heated before eating to kill any bacteria.
Store-bought deli salads, such as ham salad, chicken salad, tuna salad and seafood salad.
Unpasteurized refrigerated meat spreads or pates.
Raw meat: A mother can pass a Toxoplasma infection on to her baby, which can cause problems such as blindness and mental disability later in life, reports the CDC. To avoid toxoplasmosis, the USDA recommends avoiding the following foods during pregnancy:
Rare, raw or undercooked meats and poultry.
Raw fish, such as sushi, sashimi, ceviches and carpaccio.
Raw and undercooked shellfish, such as clams, mussels, oysters and scallops.
Some foods may increase a pregnant woman's risk for other types of food poisoning, including illness caused by salmonella and E. coli bacteria. Foodsafety.gov lists these foods to avoid during pregnancy, and why they pose a threat.
Raw or undercooked eggs, such as soft-cooked, runny or poached eggs.
Foods containing undercooked eggs, such as raw cookie dough or cake batter, tiramisu, chocolate mousse, homemade ice cream, homemade eggnog, Hollandaise sauce.
Raw or undercooked sprouts, such as alfalfa, clover.
Unpasteurized juice or cider.
Note: We at Medikoe provide you with the best healthcare articles written and endorsed by experts of the healthcare industry to boost you knowledge. However, we strongly recommend that users consult a doctor or concerned service provider for expert diagnosis before acting on this information. | https://medikoe.com/article/Pregnancy-Diet-Nutrition-What-to-Eat-What-Not-to-Eat-1225 |
Several factors contribute to a disparity of cancer care and outcomes between minority and majority populations in the United States.
Several factors contribute to a disparity of cancer care and outcomes between minority and majority populations in the United States.
The 2 predominant underserved populations in the United States are black and Latino patients, but other underserved populations include Native American patients, white impoverished patients, older patients, and patients on Medicaid, said Derek Raghavan, MD, director of the Taussig Cancer Center at the Cleveland Clinic.
Although lower education levels are common among these underserved populations, contributing to lower awareness of cancer prevention, detection, and treatment, even well-educated minorities have a basal level of discomfort when presenting to hospitals serving mainly majority populations, he said.
One of the factors in disparities of cancer care is suspicion of a medical establishment that is not sufficiently diverse to meet minority needs, said Dr Raghavan. "It's difficult to look cross-culturally at the man in control and not feel vulnerable," he said. A lack of health insurance, money, and family support is another key contributor that was identified by the American College of Physicians in a 2004 position paper.
Some other factors involve the medical establishment, such as a distribution of physicians outside of areas with a low standard of living and a lack of time or knowledge regarding advances in cancer diagnosis and management in those medical personnel who are available to the underserved.
Disparities in care have resulted in a higher total incidence of cancer and a higher mortality rate in minority populations, Dr Raghavan said.
Harold A. Harvey, MD, professor of medicine at Penn State University in Hershey, Pennsylvania, noted the health disparities between black and white patients with breast cancer. One assumption that needs to be modified is that equal access and care result in equal outcomes, he said.
For example, disparities in tumor biology between black and white patients, with overexpression of higher-grade tumors, higher stages, and basal subtypes in black patients compared with white patients, contribute to worse outcomes among black patients.
Studies have demonstrated lower immediate reconstruction rates among black women with breast cancer compared with white, Hispanic, and Asian patients.
Even in clinical trials of adjuvant therapy for breast cancer in which black and white women were randomized to the same treatment, outcomes have been worse in black patients, said Dr Harvey.
Minority participation in clinical trials is generally low, resulting in less understanding of the effects of treatments on populations whose tumor characteristics may be different from those of the majority of patients enrolled in clinical trials.
A program at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, that attempts to minimize disparities in women with early breast cancer was described by Edith A. Perez, MD, director of the Breast Cancer Program. The aim of the program is to eliminate diagnostic delays and provide services after abnormal screening mammograms among low-income women. The program employs a nurse navigator to increase the use of diagnostic services. Funding is provided by Mayo Clinic collaborators and foundations.
Thus far, the program has served 447 women, of whom 65% were white, 22% were black, and 11% were Hispanic. Among women with Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS) class 4/5 cancer (suspicious abnormality or highly suggestive of malignancy), 82% received a diagnosis within 60 days of screening. The median time from enrollment to diagnosis was 0 days for women with BIRADS class 3/4 cancer and 0.5 days for women with BIRADS class 5 cancer.
The program has yet to be reimbursed for the nurse navigator, Dr Perez said. Ongoing evaluation will attempt to document a beneficial effect of the nurse navigator on the underserved population. | https://www.drugtopics.com/view/asco-2008-disparities-cancer-care-addressed-solutions-offered |
The debt to income ratio is a formula lenders use to calculate how much of your income is available for a monthly mortgage payment after all your other recurring debt obligations have been met.
Most conventional loans need a qualifying ratio of 28/36. An FHA loan will usually allow for a higher debt load, reflected in a higher (29/41) ratio.
The first number is how much (by percent) of your gross monthly income that can be spent on housing. This ratio is figured on your total payment, including hazard insurance, HOA dues, PMI - everything that constitutes the full payment.
The second number in the ratio is the maximum percentage of your gross monthly income that can be applied to housing costs and recurring debt. Recurring debt includes auto/boat payments, child support and monthly credit card payments.
A 28/36 ratio
With a 29/41 (FHA) qualifying ratio
If you want to calculate pre-qualification numbers with your own financial data, please use this Loan Pre-Qualification Calculator.
Do you have a question? We can help. Simply fill out the form below and we'll contact you with the answer, with no obligation to you. We guarantee your privacy. | http://straighttalklending.proiwebsites.com/Debt-to-IncomeRatios |
Click here to register and view the Webinar.
Moderator: Donald M. Petersen, Jr., Publisher of Dynamic Chiropractic and Acupuncture Today
Presenter: Dr. Mark Flannery DC, MS, BS, FAAIM, DCBCN, DCCN, CNS
Dr. Flannery will review the complex relationships and interactions among the gastrointestinal, hepatic, and immune systems. He will detail the complex relationship between the gastrointestinal tract and liver mechanisms.
He Will Also Discuss: | https://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/webcasts/20130813/index.php |
Education:
Ph.D. Washington University, St. Louis
Research Focus:
Molecular Mechanisms of ion Channel Function and Disease
Research Description:
We are interested in the molecular basis of membrane excitability and its role in disease in the human heart and brain. At the focus of our studies is HERG, a potassium channel that helps repolarize the cardiac action potential. Disruption of HERG channels by inherited mutations or drug block causes a life-threatening condition known as Long QT Syndrome (LQTS), a leading cause of sudden cardiac death. We are interested in how the biophysical mechanisms of gating enable HERG to fulfill its normal physiological role in the heart, and how disruption of HERG leads to disease. We are using genetic, biochemical and electrophysiological means to identify proteins that interact with HERG and facilitate the biogenesis and transport of the channels to the membrane. These newly-discovered proteins may also be novel disease targets for LQTS. In addition, ongoing efforts are aimed at uncovering the functional role of HERG in the brain, where it was first identified.
Please click here for publications. | https://ntp.neuroscience.wisc.edu/staff/robertson-gail-a/ |
For a long time now it has been common understanding that Africa played only a marginal role in the First World War. The reduced theatre of operations appeared irrelevant to the strategic balance of the major powers. The idea that WWI has been a global conflict is now accepted by the scholarly community, and it constitutes a real leitmotif of the most recent literature on this topic. This volume is a contribution to the growing body of historical literature that explores the global and social history of the First World War. It questions the supposedly marginal role of Africa during the Great War with a special focus on Northeast Africa. In fact, between 1911 and 1924 a series of influential political and social upheavals took place in the vast expanse between Tripoli and Addis Ababa. The First World War was to profoundly change the local balance of power.
This volume consists of fifteen chapters, divided into three sections. The essays examine the social, political and operational course of the war and assess its consequences in a region straddling Africa and the Middle East. The relationship between local events and global processes is explored as well as the regional protagonists and their agency. Contrary to the myth still prevailing, the First World War did have immediate and long-term effects on the region and this book highlights some of the significant aspects associated with it.
Article précédentCFEE joint seminar: bifacial tools at the Melka Wakena Acheulian site complexArticle suivantNew Publication: L’Afrique ancienne. De l’Acacus au Zimbabwe. | https://cfee.hypotheses.org/3345 |
The opening event of the 9th edition of SIGHT + SOUND 2017, will feature interventions by Aliens in Green and Thomas Bégin, the vernissage of the exhibit and the chance to meet the local and international artists! INTERVENTION – ALIENS...
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Flashcrash
RYBN [FR]
29 September 2017, 21:00 - 23:00
On May 6th 2010 at 2:40 p.m. sharp, a 20-minute crash on the New York Stock Exchange took place. Its losses are estimated at around 1000.000.000.000 USD. This event, known as the "Flashcrash," is one of the most significant events to shed light on...
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Artificial Voyager
DISNOVATION.ORG [FR, PL]
29 September 2017, 21:00 - 23:00
The "Voyager Golden Record” is a phonograph record that was included aboard both Voyager spacecrafts launched in 1977 - a bottle tossed into the cosmic ocean. It contains sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and...
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Data_Connection
Jean-François & Jérôme Blanquet [FR]
29 September 2017, 21:00 - 23:00
“Data_connection,” referring to the film “The French Connection” directed by William Friedkin, is a data stream performance. With a downloaded set of texts encoded in digital signal on audio cassettes and an apparatus of...
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Convolution Gate Sequence
MSHR (Birch Cooper & Brenna Murphy) [US]
30 September 2017, 21:00 - 23:00
“Convolution Gate Sequence” is a composition in which MSHR engages with a series of generative systems via sculptural interfaces. The systems are composed of MSHR’s hand made analog synthesizers, in feedback with light, movement,...
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Redbull
JESSE OSBORNE-LANTHIER [CA, DE]
30 September 2017, 21:00 - 23:00
Redbull or: Time is Recognized as Being Not Feasible -- at Least in the Longer Term -- Just as With "Inspiration", Necessarily to be Followed by Expiration. As shifting replicas become clarified through boundaried and repetitive...
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Live DJ set
Bambii [CA]
30 September 2017, 23:00 - 3:00
Kirsten Azan, baptized Bambii, is one of Canada’s most compelling new DJs. Whether online or on dancefloors. Her political and musical vernacular give credence to dance music’s ever expanding reach, The relationships it helps forge... | https://easternbloc.ca/en/sight-sound-festival/performances-events |
Section 24 : Electronic Mail Containing PHI
The UT Dallas email policies and standards apply equally to all individuals granted access privileges to any UT Dallas information resource with the capacity to send, receive, or store electronic mail. Callier workforce are required to use UT Dallas issued email accounts for any email correspondence containing PHI.
Definitions
Electronic Mail System: Any computer software application that allows electronic mail to be communicated from one computing system to another.
Electronic Mail (email): Any message, image form, attachment, data, or other communication sent, received, or stored within an electronic mail system.
Protected Health Information (PHI): Individually identifiable health information transmitted or maintained in any form or medium, including oral, written, and electronic. Individually identifiable health information relates to an individual’s health status or condition, furnishing health services to an individual or paying or administering health care benefits to an individual. Information is considered PHI where there is a reasonable basis to believe the information can be used to identify an individual.
Ownership: Electronic mail sent, received, or stored on computers owned, leased, administered, or otherwise under the custody and control of UT Dallas is considered to be the property of UT Dallas.
Sending Emails
- Email containing PHI must be encrypted and treated as a confidential medical record. However, a patient or the patient’s personal representative may request that PHI be sent in unencrypted form for ease of access or other reasons.
- If a patient or patient’s personal representative requests that PHI be sent in an unencrypted form, the patient must make the request in writing and acknowledge that the Callier Center cannot insure the confidentiality of unencrypted email. The managing clinician must document the reason for the request and be sure that this documentation is placed in the patient’s OMR.
- Failure to encrypt email containing PHI absent the written consent of the patient or the patient’s personal representative is a violation of Callier Center’s policy.
Maintaining Emails
- All Callier Center Workforce must ensure that emails documenting or constituting a medical record are included in the patient’s OMR. Convenience copies and other emails containing PHI should be securely deleted when they are no longer needed for treatment or administrative purposes.
- Employees should routinely review email accounts for emails that should be included in the OMR and delete extraneous emails containing PHI. | https://calliercenter.utdallas.edu/doc/section-24-electronic-mail-containing-phi/ |
Papers to grade, parents to call, meetings to attend ... there seems to be no end to stress! What happens to our bodies if we are under too much stress for too long? Examine the facts through an insightful video from the American...
How Does Tylenol Work? The Truth Is—We Don't KnowLesson Planet
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Surprise—even pharmacists don't know how Tylenol works! An installment of the ACS Reaction series considers three theories that explain the function of acetaminophen, the ingredient in the popular pain reliever Tylenol. Scholars consider...
Endocrine System – Glands and Hormones (Part 1)Lesson Planet
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Hug it out! Hugging releases oxytocin, a hormone proven to reduce swelling, thus hugging can heal physical wounds faster. Hormones control many things in the body, from healing it to causing emotions, so understanding more about them is...
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More than 27 million Americans have some type of thyroid disease. In the 24th video in a series of 47, scholars see how the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis works in the human body. The narrator then explores what happens to the body...
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The pineal gland in the endocrine system secretes melatonin which helps humans sleep. In this human body video, scholars explore the major parts of the endocrine system. The instructor explains the roles of hormones, glands, and cells...
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Diabetes is the most common endocrine disorder in the United States, affecting about eight percent of the total population. The working parts of the endocrine system are examined in a video that demonstrates how cells receive information...
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Humans have produced more than 8,000 synthetic chemicals, and we don't know the long-term effects on our bodies for most of them. A video highlights current scientific research to determine which are safe and how to modify those that...
How the Body Works: Endocrine GlandsLesson Planet
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Mr. Glandman will not put your class to sleep as he explains the endocrine system. This simply animated cartoon showcases a leotard-donned super hero as he explains to a responsive audience how glands release hormones and instruct cells...
AP: Chapter 45: Chemical Regulation & Communication - Hormones and the Endocrine SystemLesson Planet
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Infuse your AP biologists with the details of the endocrine system. This six-page worksheet queries learners thoroughly about gland structure and hormone function. Ms. Foglia, the author, has not left anything out of this resource,... | https://lessonplanet.com/search?concept_ids%5B%5D=36455 |
Tamkeen is a semi-governmental organization in Bahrain tasked with making the private sector the key driver of economic development.
Tamkeen’s mandate revolves mainly around developing Bahrainis to allow for their effective competition in the labour market. Additionally, drive increased productivity and efficiency among businesses, and simultaneously help generate value-added job opportunities in the Kingdom.
Zain Bahrain is a leading telecommunications operator which has re-shaped Bahrain’s telecommunications experience with a bold and innovative technological and marketing approach. Zain continues to evolve and encompass new areas of growth with a promise of positioning the Kingdom at the forefront of the global telecoms industry.
Bahrain Development Bank’s (BDB) activities are focused on financing and development of small and medium businesses in addition to encouraging & supporting the entrepreneurship activities in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Working in-line with Bahrain Economic Vision 2030, BDB adopts a dynamic and effective strategy for stimulating entrepreneurial activity in implementing its plans for financing & advising small and medium businesses.
Rowad is an initiative launched by Bahrain Development Bank with the aim of providing entrepreneurs an access to Bahrain’s ecosystem through training programs, workshops, coaching programs, incubation and more. Rowad also links startup to financial support programs offered by BDB and other SME’s supporting organizations.
StartUp Bahrain is a community initiative that brings together entrepreneurs, corporates, investors, incubators, educational institutions, and the Bahrain Government, to promote startup culture in Bahrain. | https://www.startupmgzn.com/english/partners/ |
24 March 2022 | by Aadam
Hey,
It’s time for another instalment of Physiqonomics Weekly.
AADAM ANSWERS
Q-All your discussions about carbs is always in the context of weight gain/loss. I never read any discussion about the long term health effects, e.g., high blood sugar, that could lead to diabetes or other chronic disease. Has your research suggested that high carb intake is also not the enemy when it comes to chronic diseases?
That’s because the two aren’t mutually exclusive. When people lose weight, their health also improves. And there are dozens of examples of this.
Like the “Twinkie” professor who restricted his calorie intake and subsisted on a steady stream of Twinkies and a number of other ‘junk food’ items. At the end of the two months, the “Twinkie professor” had lost 27 lbs while increasing his ‘good’ cholesterol levels and decreasing his ‘bad’ cholesterol levels. In 2015 a science teacher lost 56 lbs in six months eating nothing but McDonald’s; in 2016, Pasquale Cozzolino lost 100 lbs eating pizza; in 2018, Anthony Howard-Crow lost 32 lbs eating ice cream. And more recently, Andrew Flinders Taylor ate nothing but potatoes for an entire year and dropped 117 lbs, while improving his health markers.
I’ve seen the same thing with clients I’ve worked with. As one example, the client pictured below lost just under 70 lbs when we worked together, and all his health markers drastically improved.
Of course, it’s not just about weight loss. Regular exercise is equally important for overall health and longevity.
But, it’s never just one thing that leads to poor health, it’s a combination of factors. This is why solely blaming carbs is comical. People drink excessive alcohol, don’t get enough sleep, are constantly stressed and increasingly sedentary, but it’s just carbs that are the problem?
Anyway, this is a topic I’ve written about in a ton of detail here. And I’d encourage you to read it to gain a better insight into a topic that’s highly nuanced.
THURSDAY TIDBIT
– Smartwatches Are Still Terrible at Estimating Energy Expenditure
In 2019, I wrote an article where I argued against “eating back” exercise calories. In that article, I reviewed several studies that showed how inaccurate activity trackers can be.
But that was 2019 and as of writing this, we’re on the seventh generation of the Apple Watch. And with tech companies constantly innovating and improving their products and algorithms, has the accuracy of smartwatches improved?
Well, that’s what a recent study by Hajj-Boutros and colleagues (PMID: 34957939) decided to find out. The researchers investigated the accuracy of three recently released wrist-worn devices––the Apple Watch 6, Polar Vantage V, and Fitbit Sense––for heart rate and energy expenditure during sitting, walking, running, resistance training, and cycling.
A total of 60 participants (30 men and 30 women, mean age: 25 years) were equipped with the reference devices the watches were measured against (Polar H10 chest strap and MetaMax 3B; an indirect calorimetry system), and the three wrist-worn devices (Apple Watch 6, Polar Vantage V, and Fitbit Sense).
The participants then performed five different activities for 10 mins each:
1) Sitting on a chair
2) Indoor walking on the treadmill at the participant’s normal pace
3) Indoor running on the treadmill
4) Machine-based resistance exercises (chest press, leg press, and seated cable row) for three sets of 10 reps with a 1 min rest between sets
5) Cycling
The researchers performed a number of statistical analyses to compare the accuracy of the devices.
All the devices were fairly accurate for measuring heart rate (though the Apple Watch had the highest level of accuracy across all activities measured, while heart rate accuracy varied for the Polar Vantage V and Fitbit sense depending on the activity).
Unfortunately, as the image below illustrates, all three devices did a poor job of estimating energy expenditure for all activities measured.
As the researchers write:
Healthcare care professionals, athletes/coaches and the general population may want to proceed with caution on the clinical utility of energy expenditure of these devices during the implementation of an exercise training or nutritional programme.
I don’t think there’s much more to add here and what I said in my 2019 article still stands: You shouldn’t be putting too much stock in the energy expenditure numbers your smartwatch gives you, and you definitely shouldn’t be eating back those calories.
Instead, use these devices as a way to quantify movement and to encourage you to be more active. For example, if you’re aiming for a certain number of steps, and you find you’re short of your daily target, you can get outside for a walk. We also know energy expenditure can drop as you get leaner, and tracking your step count can help you maintain your activity levels so progress isn’t hindered.
Before wrapping up, I want to address a question I’m frequently asked about this topic: What should you do on days where energy expenditure is unusually high? For example, maybe you do a long hike once per week and according to your smartwatch, you burn, I dunno, 2000 kcals, should you “eat back” those calories?
I wouldn’t recommend it for two reasons. The first, and most obvious, is this number isn’t going to be very accurate. Second, the calories you burn during an activity (or training session) may not translate to an increase in total energy expenditure throughout the day. If an energetically costly training session results in increased fatigue and tiredness, you’ll likely move less the rest of the day, so any increase in acute energy expenditure could be negated or reduced. Instead, eat a bit more on those days until you’re satisfied while being mindful of hunger and satiety. Basically, don’t use it as an excuse to eat until you’re sick.
The same holds true in instances where you’ve consistently increased your energy expenditure, like say, you added additional cardio or sports to your weekly training. Instead of eating back the calories or adjusting your diet based on erroneous values from your smartwatch, you should monitor changes in weekly body weight and adjust your intake based on that.
For example, if you added three cardio sessions to your weekly programming and find you’re consistently losing weight faster than you should be, you can increase calories to account for the change in weight loss. On the other hand, if you’ve increased your activity but find the rate of weight loss is unchanged, then you wouldn’t need to adjust anything. The same holds true if you’re looking to gain muscle (increase calories until weight gain is back on track) or maintain your weight (adjust calories so you’re maintaining weight).
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Hamimi offers a fresh take on Moroccan design, capturing the country’s exotic culture and honouring traditional craftsmanship.
Hamimi is a boutique brother and sister brand, with Alex based in Brisbane and Rebecca on the ground in Marrakech, where she oversees the team of skilled local artisans that bring our designs to life.
INSPIRED BY LIFE IN MOROCCO
Daily life in Marrakech provides an endless source of creative inspiration – it’s a place where you can have one foot in the very distant past and the other seemingly in the future. Our designs embrace the old and the new, combining traditional materials and techniques with a contemporary sensibility.
Our designs begin with a spark of inspiration and then develop with sketch pad, pencil, paint palate, material swatches and coffee at hand. We appreciate texture and are not afraid of using colour. We favour the use of natural materials and simple shapes. We like to mix old and new, traditional and modern to produce items of contemporary yet timeless appeal. | https://thesockphilosophy.com/collections/hamimi-design-moroccan |
called toxemia because it was thought to be caused by a toxin in a pregnant woman's bloodstream.
Although this theory has been debunked, researchers have yet to determine what causes preeclampsia.
Possible causes may include:
Uterine ischemia/
underperfusion Insufficient blood flow to the uterus
Prostacyclin/thromboxane imbalance (ASA) Disruption of the balance of
the hormones that maintain the diameter of the blood vessels.
Endothelial activation and dysfunction Damage to the lining of the
blood vessels that regulates the diameter of the blood vessels keeping fluid and protein inside the
blood vessels and keeps blood from clotting.
Calcium deficiency Calcium helps maintain vasodilation, so a
deficiency would impair the function of vasodilation
Hemodynamic vascular injury Injury to the blood vessels due to too
much blood flow,i.e. the garden hose hooked up to a fire hydrant
Preexisting maternal conditions Mother has undiagnosed high blood
pressure or other preexisting problems such as diabetes, lupus, sickle cell disorder,
hyperthyroidism, kidney disorder, etc.
Immunological Activation The immune system believes that damage has
occurred to the blood vessel and in trying to fix the "injury" actually makes the problem worse
(like scar tissue) and augments the process.
Nutritional Problems/Poor Diet Insufficient protein, excessive
protein, not enough fresh fruit and vegetables (antioxidants), among others
theories.
High Body Fat High body fat may actually be the symptom of the
tendency to develop this disorder linked to the genetic tendency towards high blood pressure,
diabetes and insulin resistance.
Insufficient Magnesium Oxide and B6 Magnesium stabilizes vascular
smooth muscles and helps regulate vascular tone. Too much magnesium acts as a laxative and is not
absorbed into the body.
Genetic Tendency
There is nothing that any woman can do to prevent preeclampsia from
occurring. Therefore, it is both unhealthy and not helpful to assign blame and to review and rehash
events that occurred either just prior to pregnancy, or during early pregnancy that may have
contributed to the development of preeclampsia.
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Pandemic in Perspective: COVID-19 Cases Continue to Rise
History will mark 2020 as the year the novel coronavirus spread across the world, leaving death and economic disruption in its wake. And while virtually every country in the world has dealt with the pandemic head-on, few will ultimately suffer the consequences that the United States faces. After a slow response to the pandemic and minimal guidance and support from the federal government, the U.S. is seeing a marked increase in cases and deaths while most of the world has tamped down on the virus.
How COVID-19 continues to spread across the nation
Heading into the end of summer, experts are referring to the nation’s upswing in coronavirus cases as the “second wave.” Although this describes the upward trajectory of cases for the second time since the virus was first discovered in the U.S., it is somewhat misleading. The “first wave” of the virus never truly ended, and the U.S. has yet to get the outbreak under control.
As of the end of July 2020, 4,515,787 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the United States. Although the majority have recovered, 152,729 have sadly passed away after contracting the virus. These numbers continue to climb after what appeared to be a promising decrease in new cases.
After initial cases of the virus were discovered in late January and early February, the government issued a travel alert between the U.S. and China. Unfortunately, the virus was already beginning to spread uncontrollably, and reliable testing was in its infancy. By mid-March, coronavirus was declared a pandemic and a national emergency in the U.S.
California issued the country’s first stay-at-home order, followed by numerous states across the nation. Non-essential businesses were closed, which caused a widespread economic shutdown and a wave of uncertainty as case numbers continued to climb. By mid-June, the U.S.’s confirmed case count reached 2 million; however, states began to reopen and ease social distancing requirements.
Since then, states have continued to reopen and now, the nation faces a steadily climbing number of new cases.
Why are we on the upswing?
There are a number of potential reasons the U.S. has failed to get the coronavirus pandemic under control like other countries around the world. One of the major challenges has been widespread misinformation. As researchers continue to learn about this new virus, confusion has taken root, leading to myths and outdated information about limiting the spread.
A lack of federal guidance and support have played a role as well. The economic fallout from the multi-month shutdown left millions of people unemployed. This, combined with conflicting information about the virus’s severity, has led states to reopen too early, resulting in a surge of viral spread. Adjacent states also have drastically different protocols, threatening to spread the virus across state lines.
Additionally, a widespread reluctance to observe social distancing or to wear a mask has emerged. Major retailers across the nation have begun mandating masks for shoppers, but the concept has been a point of contention on the local, state, and federal levels.
These challenges combined have paved the path for rapid COVID-19 spread, particularly in states like Florida, California, and Texas. Fortunately, some states like New York have succeeded in limiting new cases due to proper guidance.
Where do we go from here?
Without significant intervention from government bodies on all levels, the U.S.’s coronavirus outlook is bleak. Case numbers continue to climb, and hospitals are quickly becoming overwhelmed again. Federal officials are pushing for schools to reopen this fall without a virus containment strategy in place, and flu season is right around the corner.
Real, radical change needs to happen to contain the spread of the virus, or the nation could face the disastrous effects of an unchecked pandemic that still has no vaccine, effective treatment, or cure.
Health Providers Choice is continuing to monitor the COVID-19 pandemic and the healthcare and staffing trends that accompany it. We’re working diligently with facilities across the country to ensure proper staffing and the safest possible conditions for our nurses on the front lines. To learn more, please contact us online or call us today at 888-299-9800. | https://hpcnursing.com/index.php/nwblog/item/pandemic-in-perspective-covid-19-cases-continue-to-rise |
2018 UPDATE: It’s out now you can buy it HERE!
This project came about when Sony approached the university to port the game PieceFall (2014) to the PSVR platform. I was the first student in the UK to use the PSVR kit.
I produced initial designs for the new UI and gameplay improvements to the game and got to grips with the pre-release version of the PSVR kit and the large PieceFall codebase.
As the PSVR kit was the first in the studio I had to teach myself how to develop for the platform by studying the PhyreEngine code samples and worked with Sony's support team, to report bugs and engine performance issues.
My dissertation project consisted of me prototyping two new control schemes and playtesting these along with the original scheme in VR to identify their effects on comfort and gameplay.
After this project, a team of one programmer and three 3D artists were brought on board to produce a new level and optimise & remaster assets.
This was part of a university module, so we only had 13 weeks together. We decided to prioritise performance issues, UI and the new level. I was responsible for managing the team project during this time as well as completing tasks in all areas of the game with the other programmer.
After 13 weeks the team disbanded and I continued working on the game taking it to DevCon 2017 to get feedback from industry devs. I am still working on the game putting it through the submission process for release on the PS Store in September 2017.
PSVR Frank reviewing the game.
This is a very early video of the game running just after I upgraded the version of the engine the codebase used to latest at the time which let me access the new VR capabilities PhyreEngine has.
This is one of the 30 play testing sessions i conducted to obtain data to see if the original control scheme was sufficient for VR. It turned out it was.
Unfortunately this island had to be cut in the end as it still needed more work to bring it up to the standard of the other levels and the artists had moved on to other projects.
This is a recent build after many asset, game and engine improvements. The game runs at 120 fps and has a brand new VRUI. This is not the final version of the game.
This was a project for a course module in my 3rd year.
This project was part of a year long module (3D Games Prototyping) it consisted of a group of 3 programmers and 3 artists working together to make a prototype for the PS4 using PhyreEnigine for the first time. However 6 weeks before the deadline the team had to split up due to conflict within the team.
So after making a fairly complex and unplayable 3D platformer prototype for the PS4 with minimal artwork the programmers decided it would be best to start over. We discarded 5 months worth of work, to make something simpler and with a smaller scope.
We knew more about the engine so one of our programmers was able to incorporate PhyreEngine's dynamic mesh system into a new project which is what we used for the levels. I set to work on making a small gameplay prototype in Unity, and using what I had just recently learned in another module to build an integrated tile level editor into Unity which exported text files which could be read by our PhyreEngine project.
The team could try out and refine new ideas fairly quickly in the Unity project and then implement them in the Phyre project when we were sure we wanted the features. This meant spending less time rewriting C++ game play code and helped us to deliver more content than any other team and in less time!
This project really taught me the importance of a good workflow.
The game went on to win a prize for best game at the uni's end of year which got alumni working in industry to judge the cohorts work.
This project also taught me that using a point light for a player character sounds like a good way to make a decent looking asset on the cheap but is actually more trouble than its worth.
The game in action there were 15 levels made in the end. A major goal of the level design was to teach mechanics without text.
This was a small project in which I designed some tools for an artist who approached me asking for help making an audio reactive scene in unity.
The tools are still in development but the first video is out now! | https://www.muneerfergiani.co.uk/ |
The essence of Modern Asian signature colours, textures, furnishings and homewares are beautifully displayed in this book and will influence an easy transition to your living space. You will learn how to choose the key ingredients which bring the contemporary elements from the West and the exquisite simplicity of the East into your own home.
Modern Asian Style is a fusion of East and West and Zen principles of simplicity, harmony and serenity are key components of this style. The mood is informal and peaceful and the overall look is linear, uncluttered and calming.
Includes: Introduction, Modern Asian Colours, Yin and Yang Texture, Silk Road Fabrics, Eclectic Furniture, Exotic Accents, Relaxed Living Areas, Resting Place, Outdoor Room and Resource Guide. Overall 14 pages of the colour, sense and style of Modern Asian Style.
Reviews
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- Time of issue:2020-04-16 15:36
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(Summary description)Chen Ligang | Suzhou Standis Design Manager
Consumer grade texture development direction
(Summary description)Chen Ligang | Suzhou Standis Design Manager
- Categories:TTF 2018
- Author:
- Origin:
- Time of issue:2020-04-16 15:36
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Chen Ligang | Suzhou Standis Design Manager .
Mr. Chen Ligang is the design manager of Suzhou Standis Modal.
Speech video
Content overview
First of all, imagine our future society. On the basis of emotional needs and surface needs, what direction will texture design take? If the material needs of robots can be met, then what AI needs is feelings. Therefore, Mr. Chen Ligang discussed his feelings with everyone from the perspective of texture in his speech.
Mr. Chen Ligang quoted a sentence from Simon Collins, "People don't really care about how good a thing is, but only what they are interested in. Therefore, communication is not output but resonance."
With the development of the entire economy, technologies such as high-speed mobile, Internet, and artificial big data have played a very important role in the changes of society and changes in social trends. Through a systematic analysis of the character characteristics of the characters, these people were classified into some categories, namely geek, light English, Yapi, and electronic coffee.
Taking geeks as an example, it is characterized by high-intensity work, pursuing the ultimate life, relying on high-tech life, and likes environmental protection. These people prefer the feeling of being alone with the natural environment, and hope that the surrounding environment is more integrated with nature. In the use of furniture, I prefer the log style, such as the extremely minimal style of Japanese MUJI, and the style of denim. In terms of aesthetic preferences, for example, when Apple appeared, Apple proposed that its aesthetic is silent.
For example, when recommending to people like geeks, I hope to use some logs, and Morde cooperates with Kaxiu Baohui to make plastic parts into real wood. In addition, there are fabrics. In fact, the texture of the fabrics is very soft. In this regard, Morde has also developed many different fabrics. This year, it has also made denim fabrics.
When it comes to geeks, most of the technology components are retained, and in many changes, it is possible to combine nature and technology. The basic unit has only one or two patterns, and when fused together, it creates a feeling of combining nature and technology.
Many designs are very avant-garde and bold. I hope that the designer can become a poet who depicts nothingness, and through the reflection of light, etc., present an unprecedented spiritual feeling. For example, Mercedes-Benz Maybach, simulated sky cabin and so on. What is depicting nothingness? It is to arrange simple lines through different arrangements to create different textures on the surface, and then present a completely different feeling. | http://en.atot.org.cn/news/67.html |
Photo courtesy of moonjazz.
The Powerful Learning Practice experience is coming to an end, and it’s time for us to gather our thoughts and share what we’ve done.
I’ve been putting off my reflection because, frankly, the thought of gathering my thoughts about this relatively short, but intense, period of PLP participation, is overwhelming. Scouting around in blogs and Twitter links, I came across something which describes what I consider to be the focus of what is most valuable from my PLP experience: connectedness.
I love the way Lisa Huff compares the spider’s web-weaving in Walt Whitman’s A Noiseless Patient Spider with our reaching out to connect with others through technology.
Whitman, writing in the 1800’s, observes how a spider ceaselessly launches forth filament to explore his surroundings, to travel from one place to another, to bridge his world. Whitman notes mankind’s similarity to the spider. We too ceaselessly seek to connect, to make sense of the world, to reach out to others.
Technology of the 21st century is connecting us like never before. We blog, we podcast, we collaborate via wikis, webcams, e-mails, discussion boards. We explore endless information easily summoned with a few clicks. We are living in the midst of sweeping technological changes that are reinventing the way we live, learn, laugh. At the heart of this change, however, is the basic spirit of exploration–that same spirit Whitman captured some two hundred years ago.
This is what I have learned since joining the PLP team – how much richer my life has become through connections with people globally via technology. I’m connected through people’s blogs, wikis, through Twitter, and other Web 2.0 applications, to a limitless network of resources, ideas, discussions and creativity. At the risk of sounding evangelical (once again), this is a life-changing experience. It’s not just a matter of acquiring some technological skills with tools, it’s what we have in common with Whitman’s spider as we ‘ceaselessly seek to connect, to make sense of the world, to reach out to others.’
Coming down to earth a little, I must say that my fervour about 21st century learning, and that of my team members, is shared by few in our school community, and I hear it’s the same everywhere. At times it’s lonely, other times frustrating, to be convinced that networked learning and teaching are in step with our fast-paced, global world, and to know that our current education system supports an outdated society. Trying to take tiny steps in convincing others is perhaps the only way to move forward, taking care not to alienate others, but to support them, model new ways of teaching, and to celebrate small successes.
What have I enjoyed the most?
- writing my personal and fiction blogs
- reading others’ blogs, wikis; commenting; taking part in discussion
- creating and supporting nings, joining others’ nings
- the support of my personal learning networks on Twitter, Facebook, Friendfeed, etc.
- sharing information and ideas
- ‘converting’ others to the networks
- discovering amazing people with great talents and wonderful minds
- seeing engagement and joy in students, especially after the new ways of teaching have been a struggle to implement
- being able to participate in professional development opportunities online at many different times
- lifting up the minds of young people, seeing the spark in their eyes, hearing excitement in their voices
- collaborating with others towards common goals
- discovering unexpected and wonderful links to links to links
- feeling energized by the depth of what’s out there
- loving the learning
What have we learned, and what have we achieved? We’ve learned so much, and at the same time, we have so much more to learn. We’ve achieved a great deal, and yet we’ve only just begun.
What I’m sure of is that there are people I can rely on for help, ideas, support, resources, inspiration. These are the people I connect to as a teacher. I can never be bored, will never feel isolated, will always look forward to more. | http://taniasheko.com/tag/connectedness/ |
Friendship, Connection, and Volunteering: The MS Young Professionals Network (MSYPN)
Founded in 2004, the RMMSC’s MS Young Professionals Network (MSYPN) is a key component of our support programming for people living with MS and provides an opportunity for young professionals to raise awareness of MS in Colorado through networking, fundraising and volunteer events.
Members include young professionals between the ages of 18 and 40 who have a connection to MS or have an interest in learning more about MS. MSYPN members join us for meaningful volunteer activities, networking opportunities, and for MS support and social engagement. Throughout the year, MSYPN members and their friends meet at networking happy hours, plan special fundraising events, and Board socials.
“I’m involved with MSYPN because the struggle of MS is often hidden from others to some degree, and there aren’t many places to go and talk openly where people just get it,” says Andrew Collier, MSYPN member. “The individuals involved with MSYPN understand we can help each other out in a myriad of ways as we talk openly about dealing with the healthcare and insurance system, as we share our symptoms and what we’ve learned dealing with them in the world, and as we welcome new people to the group. We energize each other sometimes as we discuss ideas for volunteer work and other ways to be more effective in our pursuits.”
“When I was first diagnosed I was lost and didn’t have anyone to talk to about my condition,” explains Edward Huss, MSYPN member. “Since joining the MSYPN group, that has changed for me. I now know lots of young professionals that are all connected through MS. It’s a group that understands me and offers support when it’s needed. MS is a very unique condition and MSYPN is a community that can help you get through tough times. I remember feeling alone and that’s why I encourage everyone affected by MS to come and join our community because you don’t have to go through it by yourself.”
“I knew very few people, I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into,” says MSYPN member Reese Garcia. “Being recently diagnosed with MS, sometimes jumping into a ‘support group’ is slightly intimidating at best. What I found at the MS Center, however, was quite the opposite. I was welcomed into a group that knew exactly what I was going through, because they were going through the same thing. Fast forward to the present and what I saw was the same thing I experienced my first time with the group: We were all people, who happened to have MS or a connection to MS, gathering for a cause but also supporting one another, checking up on recent appointments, and having a good time. As the MSYPN grows, it’s great to see new and old faces that gather for a worthwhile cause.”
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Come Join Us and Make a Difference
If you want to be part of a values-driven organization and work with other bright, committed people who want to change the world, then consider joining our team. There has never been a more exciting time to work at ADL.
For individuals with disabilities who would like to request an accommodation to support the interview process, please contact Talent & Knowledge at [email protected].
We create annual DEI plans and have:
- Established a DEI Committee with representation from all levels of the organization
- Launched Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) based on social identity
- Required DEI training for all staff
- Promoted individual accountability for DEI efforts through individual goals setting
- Enhanced our recruitment strategy and execution to prioritize a diverse and inclusive workforce
- Increased the ethnic, racial and gender diversity of our national board
And we are committed to:
- Supporting vendors from marginalized communities
- Increasing diversity on regional boards
Benefits include: | https://www.adl.org/about/careers |
People have different learning styles. But does that mean you have to change the way you preach to reach them all?
I filled the margins of my notebooks with doodles during my high school and college years. There is something about doodling that helps me to engage a lecture at a deeper level. I don’t understand it. I can’t explain it. It’s just the way I am wired. I’m a visual learner.
Chances are, there are tons of doodlers in your congregation. And wanderers, ponderers, frantic note takers and artists as well. People learn in drastically different ways, yet most church services are set up for auditory learners—those who learn by hearing. There are three types of learning: auditory, visual and kinesthetic. When it comes to sermons, auditory learning is the primary mode of communication. Preaching just to the listeners leaves up to 70% of your congregation out of the learning process each week. Not only is this a detriment to the congregation, it is a huge waste of a teaching pastor’s time as well. Do we really want pastors spending time preparing sermons that only reach three out of ten persons in our congregations?
The advent of PowerPoint slides has helped to bring in visual learners somewhat, but the way visual learners (sixty-five percent of the population) best learn is through interacting visually through engaging with patterns and graphics, not just reading from a screen. Then there are the kinesthetic learners, who at five percent of the population are a minority, but that five percent adds up. In a church of three hundred people, fifteen people are completely disengaged from the sermon each week. More than just PowerPoint slides is needed to effectively teach during church sermons. Pastors need to reflect on how their sermons are presented and retool their preaching styles to address the fact that sixty-five percent of their congregation learns through visuals and five percent through movement and creativity.
Educational psychologist Howard Gardner defines eight multiple intelligences:
Verbal-Linguistic – learn best through hearing, reading and writing
Logical-Mathematical – learn best through patterns, classifying and categorizing
Musical – learn best through music; respond through music; learn while listening to music
Visual-Spatial – learn through pictures, visualizing and imagination
Kinesthetic – learn through touch and movement; need to hold something in their hands
Naturalist – learn through interacting with nature
Interpersonal – learn through conversation and dialogue
Intrapersonal – learn through personal reflection and inner-dialogue
By exploring these three learning styles and eight multiple intelligences, pastors can begin to integrate the content of their sermons into other parts of the church service and re-imagine their applications so that they can present the message of their sermon effectively to all members of their congregation.
The eight multiple intelligences that Gardner defines are all alive and active in every congregation. Sermons, as they are most widely presented today, are catered toward those who are auditory. Instead of attempting to fix or change how sermons are usually done, it is more powerful to integrate the sermon content into the other parts of a service. Let’s use a sermon on the fruits of the spirit as an example of integrating the three learning styles and eight multiple intelligences into the whole church service.
Three Learning Styles
Auditory – listen to sermon.
Visual – display a graphic of a tree with the fruit of the spirit hanging on it. Emphasize how the fruit of the spirit are all interconnected and rooted in Christ. Extra credit: If you’re really adventurous you can dress up like the musician Danielson.
Kinesthetic – Hand out fake fruit with the names of the fruit of the spirit attached to them. Explain that each person should take the fruit they most need to work on in their life. Remind each person to hang this in their home or office where they will see it each day. Let this symbol be a reminder that they need to grow in this area.
Eight Multiple Intelligences
Verbal-Linguistic – see auditory learning style.
Logical-Mathematical – display a chart that shows actions associated with each fruit of the spirit; this will classify each fruit of the spirit and show a call/response pattern.
Musical – select songs that have the fruit of the spirit in the lyrics. Choose a song with the fruit of the spirit as a closing song to reinforce the sermon and aid in response.
Visual-Spatial – (see visual learning style.)
Kinesthetic – (see kinesthetic learning style.)
Naturalist – make a connection between the fruit of the spirit and gardening/farming. Encourage the congregation to cultivate and grow the fruit of the spirit in their own lives.
Interpersonal – during the passing of the peace or greeting time, have the congregation ask each other: “What is the fruit of the spirit that is most evident in your life? The least evident?”
Intrapersonal – allow two or three minutes of quiet personal reflection after the sermon. Allow space for people to have a moment to confess their lack of fruit and pray for God to grow the fruit of the spirit in their lives.
As you can see, preaching to different learning styles and intelligences does not mean you have to change how you preach. It means that the sermon content should bleed into other aspects of the worship service, forming a cohesive flow of ideas and presentations that reach every person in the congregation in a tangible, meaningful and impactful way.
Related Preaching Articles
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A Preaching Q&a With David Platt
By David Platt on Apr 23, 2018
Michael Duduit interviews David Platt about his sermon prep process and the most important things he has learned about preaching over the years.
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Piper's Authority For Preaching
By Sermoncentral on Mar 24, 2020
In this video John Piper answers the question, "What Bible passages do you use to base your claims about how we should preach?"
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Why Jesus Never Used A Classroom
By Bob Hamp on Jul 25, 2020
When Jesus wanted to teach his disciples something important, he took them on the road, not into the classroom.
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7 Ways To Improve Your Preaching Using Youtube
By Gregory K. Hollifield on Nov 5, 2020
No matter how much you feel like a foreigner when surfing the Web, there are preaching treasures to be discovered there.
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10 Things You Can Do To Make Your Pastor’s Sermons Better
By Jared Moore on Nov 19, 2020
Most people would be surprised there's anything they could do to help. Why don't you tell them?
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How I Learned To Love Preaching About Money
By Joe Mckeever on Nov 30, 2020
Few subjects are as fraught with danger for the unsuspecting pastor as preaching on stewardship.
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What Small Groups Do Best...and What They Don't
By Glenn Packiam on Aug 16, 2016
Small groups are a perfect example of how pastors may learn from researchers. At many church conferences, pastors speak confidently of their latest, greatest small group model, sure that it is the new breakthrough in discipleship.
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How To Be A Strategic Pastor And See Your Church Grow
By Hal Seed on Aug 26, 2017
You make a dozen decisions a day. How do you know what’s the right decision? What moves your church forward? What’s wasting time? | https://www.sermoncentral.com/pastors-preaching-articles/thom-turner-you-preach-i-ll-doodle-1467 |
(6x2 -3x -3) square meters.
A parallelogram wth base, b, and height, h, has an area given by, bh.
To calculate the base and the height, factor this expression
3(2x2 - x - 1)= 3(2x+1)(x-1)
Now multiply 3: either distribute 3(2x +1) or 3(x-1)
the dimensions can be as follows, | https://www.wyzant.com/resources/answers/128717/shaped_like_a_parallelogram_the_area_of_the_parking_lot_is_6x_2_3x_3m_2_what_are_the_measures_of_the_height_and_base_of_the_parking_lot |
Cabinet is one among the main facet that is essential in a wood. Cabinet has multiple purposes in a space; the functions are for storage and the other function is for exhibiting or producing the appearance of it to support the design of a room. Moreover in a wood that need storage to save the wood appliance and stuff. Since cupboard is important, it is very important to use big effort so as to find the best outcome. Among them is by dark wood floor 2015 home design ideas.
dark wood floor 2015 home design ideas are difficult to choose. Because you understand determing the ideal product for our wood home furnishings is not straightforward. There are some elements we want to think about prior to selecting them. Those attributes will also encourage the item uses at your home. Thus, are there any hints to select them? Keep reading beneath. Here’s the discussion for you.
To begin with, we want certainly to consider in regards to the materials. You’ll find main materials of household furniture you may uncover. They have been wooden and stainless steel. Talking about long-lasting power, of course stainless steel will provide you longer durability compared to wooden stuff. Aside from that, it is likewise simpler to clean and treat than hardwood products. Thus, you are not going to need exceptionally maintenance for stainless products. You may choose them as the very best reference. | http://www.birchwoodcc.net/dark-wood-floors/pic/a585/dark-wood-floor-2015-home-design-ideas.htm |
– Architectural Corner –
The AIA recognizes that continuing education in architecture is crucial to advancing and improving the profession. Architects need continuing education to maintain competency, to prepare for the future, to fulfill the continuing education requirements for AIA membership, and frequently to renew state licensure.
Seward Associates believe it is imperative that those in the construction industry stay up to date with products, techniques and code advancements by continuing their education. We are proud to offer Lunch and Learn's with our staff, as well as digital offerings from all of the highly esteemed manufacturers we represent. Please use this page to take advantage of these excellent opportunities.
Additional Manufacturer's Training
Please click below for additional training via Manufacturer's respective websites. | http://sewardassociatesllc.com/architectural-corner.html |
The use of proteomics to identify novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of disease.
The completion of the Human Genome Project has revealed a multitude of potential avenues for the identification of therapeutic targets. Extensive sequence information enables the identification of novel genes but does not facilitate a thorough understanding of how changes in gene expression control the molecular mechanisms underlying the development and regulation of a cell or the progression of disease. Proteomics encompasses the study of proteins expressed by a population of cells, and evaluates changes in protein expression, post-translational modifications, protein interactions, protein structure and splice variants, all of which are imperative for a complete understanding of protein function within the cell. From the outset, proteomics has been used to compare the protein profiles of cells in healthy and diseased states and as such can be used to identify proteins associated with disease development and progression. These candidate proteins might provide novel targets for new therapeutic agents or aid the development of assays for disease biomarkers. This review provides an overview of the current proteomic techniques available and focuses on their application in the search for novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of disease.
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As Asian Pacific American Heritage Month comes to an end, PBS will be broadcasting three episodes of “Japanese American Lives.” These intimate documentaries vividly capture the stories of several Japanese subjects harboring a unique interest. Whether it is judo, photography or jazz, these interests become a mode of expression and resistance against discrimination, war and natural disaster. The diverse narratives situate Japanese Americans within important historical events and recount the continuing resilience that cuts across cultures and generations.
In “Mrs. Judo: Be Strong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful,” director Yuriko Gamo Romer covers women’s judo pioneer Keiko Fukuda. Using rare interviews with Fukuda, who passed away in February of last year, the film is an essential tribute to a fiercely passionate judoka who shattered the female glass ceiling in judo and became an ambassador for judo in the United States.
The film delicately weaves in the essence of judo with Fukada’s philosophical teachings to her numerous pupils. Using footage of Fukada’s teachings in her Bay Area dojo, Romer shows how judo transcends a fighting technique and becomes a way of life. The episode captures the transnational scope of her achievements, pointing out the ways in which she has paved the way for future female judo fighters and continues to influence martial arts students in America.
The first half of the second episode, “Don’t Lose Your Soul,” features bassist Mark Izu and drummer Anthony Brown, who are some of the founders of the Asian American jazz movement in the Bay Area. The segment exhibits their performances, which utilize both standard jazz instruments and Japanese instruments such as the taiko drum, shamisen and sho. The combination of these instruments forms a unique hybrid of sounds — the free-flowing jazz melodies mixing with light rhythmic beats of the taiko — that represents the heterogeneity of Asian-American experiences.
The segment chronicles the inception of Asian-American jazz through the first San Francisco Asian-American jazz groups, which started in the ‘70s during the same time as and with similar ambitions to student protests and strikes. “We were all in this struggle together,” Brown explains in the episode. “I think that’s why they called this Asian-American jazz movement not just music or recognized as an art form but a cultural entity and force.”
The second half of the episode, “Honor and Sacrifice,” focuses on Roy Matsumoto, a World War II Japanese-language intelligence specialist for the United States. Even while Matsumoto’s family was being interned as a result of Executive Order 9066, he served an integral role in Merrill’s Marauders, a distinguished unit that fought behind Japanese lines. “The war became a test for all Japanese Americans,” the narrator states. “(It was) a proof of loyalty that was bought by their sacrifice.”
The third episode, “Stories from Tohoku” follows the more recent Japanese tsunami and Fukushima disaster within the microcosm of the Tohoku region. The documentary uses long takes of panoramic shots, accurately detailing the devastation and the after effects of the combined destruction from the earthquake, tsunami and radiation exposure in a northern Japanese region. Olympic gold-medalist figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi accompanies and interviews the families affected by the natural disasters. Despite the bleak images of environmental damage, the segment offers glimpses of hope through the support American universities volunteered to help rebuild the destroyed towns.
The series uses the Japanese word “gaman,” which means “enduring the seemingly unbearable with patience and dignity,” to epitomize the collective spirit of these individuals. Their layered stories bring a more multifaceted and multinational conception of Japanese identity that offers a holistic account of historical rifts and cross-cultural influences. The broad scope of these documentaries serves as an indicator that these stories aren’t just a part of Japanese-American history but also American history. | https://www.dailycal.org/2014/05/28/lives |
Why do universities have values?
Whether it is the traditional and more fundamental values of autonomy and academic freedom, social responsibility toward their community, or other values specific to institutional missions, values are crucial to helping universities understand and identify themselves and communicate that identity and mission to …
What is the core values of the university?
The University’s Core Values
- Respect. Respect moves us to understand the gifts and unique contributions of every person in the University community and to value diverse perspectives. …
- Excellence. …
- Compassion. …
- Service. …
- Hospitality. …
- Integrity. …
- Diversity. …
- Learning for Life.
What is the purpose of core values in school?
Core values help communicate your school’s story – its mission, standards and desired outcomes. Establishing those ideals provides the foundation for building the type of atmosphere you want to foster. These standards also offer a way of thinking about which educational philosophies or initiatives your school supports.
What are the values of universities?
The project focused on the four fundamental values – autonomy, academic freedom, equity and integrity – and how to define them from the point of view of Stockholm University and how they can form a basis for the strategy, the project report says.
What are Oxford University values?
Our Core Values
- Welcome to Oxford International.
- We create life enhancing learning experiences that help students worldwide to develop personally and professionally and that enrich their future opportunities.
- INTEGRITY: We build relationships through trust, honesty and respect.
What is the motto of Cambridge University?
Hinc lucem et pocula sacra
What are the goals of a university?
- Goal #1: Become More Student Focused.
- Goal #2: Hire, Motivate, and Reward Superior Faculty.
- Goal #3: Increase Research, Scholarly Activity, and National Recognition.
- Goals #4: Grow Selectively, Serve the Region, and Achieve Distinction.
- Goal #5: Create an Inclusive and Just Campus Environment.
What are the values of Harvard University?
With that in mind, I want to draw your attention to Harvard University’s community’s values:
- Respect for the rights, differences, and dignity of others.
- Honesty and integrity in all dealings.
- Conscientious pursuit of excellence in our work.
- Accountability for actions and conduct in the community.
17.08.2018
What is the value of excellence?
Excellence is what you strive for when you believe in what you are doing and that the value of what you do warrants the persistent committment to its betterment. Stephen M.
What values are important for students?
Kuehn recommends seven moral values for students:
- Unconditional love and kindness.
- Honesty.
- Hard work.
- Respect for others.
- Cooperation.
- Compassion.
- Forgiveness.
19.02.2018
What is core values as a student?
Students in the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics have identified the values of respect, honesty, integrity, commitment, and responsibility as their guiding principles. The following statement describes these core values.
How do students use core values?
- 7 Ways to Apply Your Personal Core Values in Daily Life. …
- Put them where you can see them. …
- Discuss them with close family and friends. …
- Put the right people in your life (and eliminate the wrong ones). …
- Assess your daily tasks each morning. …
- Integrate them into your regular conversations. …
- Apply them as key motivators.
What is the mission of Stanford University?
Stanford’s mission is clear—to advance knowledge and contribute to society through research and the education of future leaders—and as president, I assess opportunities within that framework.
What is the mission statement of Harvard University?
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
What is considered a value?
Value is the monetary, material, or assessed worth of an asset, good, or service. “Value” is attached to a myriad of concepts including shareholder value, the value of a firm, fair value, and market value. | https://surjatclarku.com/where-to-study/why-do-universities-have-core-values.html |
1.. Introduction
================
Nodes in a *Wireless Body Area Network* (WBAN) are required to operate under strict resource constraints. Specifically, power for transmitting data from nodes to the *Access Point* (AP) must be preserved so that battery life is extended and recharging is as infrequent as possible. The need to implement frequent recharging procedures is one of the main obstacles impeding wide adoption of WBANs as an alternative to traditional practices of monitoring a patient\'s physiological condition. To reduce the maintenance requirements associated with recharging of batteries, an efficient routing protocol is crucial for extending battery life.
Power-efficient routing for *Wireless Sensor Networks* (WSNs) has received much attention in the past. However, porting routing solutions from WSNs to WBANs is problematic due the different network architectures and operating conditions. In WSNs hundreds to thousands of sensor-nodes cover large areas and offer a considerable degree of redundancy. The task of monitoring the environment does not have to involve all sensor-nodes all the time. This setting brings about routing solutions which rely on dynamic network configurations involving many hops from sensor-node to sink. WBANs cover an area limited to the human body and offer no redundancy. Data must be collected reliably from all nodes placed on the body, while addressing unique signal propagation conditions not present in WSNs such as body shadowing and mobility of sensors. It follows, that efficient routing solutions should be designed specifically for WBANs.
Several routing protocols were designed in the past specifically for WBANs---some prominent examples follow. Latre *et al.* developed the CICADA protocol, consisting of a spanning tree architecture with a time-division scheme for transmission scheduling \[[@b1-sensors-12-13088]\]. In CICADA, nodes closer to the root will deplete their energy source faster due to the need to relay messages from children nodes. Quwaider *et al.* developed a protocol tolerant to network changes \[[@b2-sensors-12-13088]\]. They proposed a store-and-forward method that maximizes the likelihood of a packet reaching its destination. Each packet is stored by multiple nodes and retransmitted, which consumes more power. One solution to this problem was proposed by Ehyaie *et al.* \[[@b3-sensors-12-13088]\]. It consists of using dedicated, non-sensing, relay nodes with larger power sources. While this method increases the *Network Lifetime* (NL), it requires additional dedicated hardware. This method was further improved by Maskooki *et al.* in \[[@b4-sensors-12-13088]\], where body movement, such as hand motion while walking/running, was utilized to achieve NL improvement. The approach requires additional hardware and a line of sight between various network components, which limits nodes positioning on the body. Nabi *et al.* proposed a similar store-and-forward method that integrates *Transmit Power Adaptation* (TPA) \[[@b5-sensors-12-13088]\]. Nodes keep track of neighbors and utilize power control to consume minimal transmission power while maintaining a preset link quality. A slightly different approach was used by Guo *et al.* \[[@b6-sensors-12-13088]\]. It proposes a Minimum Energy Packet Forwarding Protocol which implements the *Transmission Power Control* (TPC) similar to the method proposed by Nabi *et al.* with *Automatic Repeat Request* (ARR), where a lost packet is retransmitted only when the link quality returns to acceptable level. Other work on relaying signals in WBANs includes the use of creeping waves by Tsouri *et al.*, to maintain reliable on-body communication while reducing power consumption at the nodes \[[@b7-sensors-12-13088],[@b8-sensors-12-13088]\]. Recent work by Quwaider *et al.* moves in the direction of developing a routing method based on body posture. In \[[@b9-sensors-12-13088]\] they proposed a delay tolerant routing protocol and compared it with various routing schemes. Finally, Razzaque *et al.* proposed a data-centric multi-objective QoS-Aware routing protocol (DMQoS) \[[@b10-sensors-12-13088]\]. It categorizes a data packet into two different classes, namely, delay and reliability domains. Depending on the data type, a different routing scheme is applied to that specific packet. While this approach improves the delay and bit error rate statistics, energy consumption increases significantly, in turn decreasing the overall NL.
Global routing algorithms are usually avoided in *Wireless Sensor Networks* (WSNs) where the network comprises hundreds to thousands of nodes and great distances are covered. The exponentially increasing complexity with the number of nodes and the need to exchange large volumes of link-state information make such algorithms prohibitive.
Unlike WSNs, a common network architecture used in WBANs is a star-topology, where an AP is placed on the body and the nodes are distributed up to 1.5 meters from the AP. The AP collects data from the nodes and acts as a gateway for remote access. The AP is typically a PDA-like device equipped with substantial computation power, energy source and memory space compared to the simpler distributed nodes. This asymmetry between AP and nodes extends to their functionality as well: the AP is typically the coordinator of all network activities (master node), and the nodes\' functionality is kept as simple as possible to preserve resources (slave nodes). The asymmetric star-topology architecture coupled with the low number of nodes (typically on the order of 10) makes global routing protocols a viable option for collecting data at the AP. Implementing a global routing algorithm would require periodically gathering link-state information from nodes to AP, optimizing all the routing paths at the AP and sending routing instructions from AP to all nodes.
Alternative network architectures for WBANs make use of an off-body AP with a single or multiple antennas. Such architectures can be efficiently employed in indoor environments with supporting infrastructure. Examples include healthcare facilities and protected-living environments, where the off-body AP can be easily integrated with other information services and hardware. An off-body AP relieves the need to maintain the on-body APs of multiple patients (recharging schedules, *etc*.) and reduces the need for patient compliance.
In this contribution, we propose a global routing protocol based on Dijkstra\'s algorithm \[[@b11-sensors-12-13088]\] with a novel link cost function specialized for balancing energy consumption and increasing NL in WBANs. NL is defined as the time it takes a single component of the network to deplete its power source from network startup. Given the asymmetric WBAN topology, we consider the time it takes a single node to deplete its battery, assuming the AP has abundant energy compared to the more compact nodes on the body. We view the nodes\' batteries as a distributed network resource. It follows that no single node should deplete its battery while there are other nodes with available energy. Thus, our proposed link cost function is designed to ensure that all nodes deplete their battery at the same time.
We presented preliminary results of the proposed approach in \[[@b12-sensors-12-13088]\], where the link cost function was implemented for a single network architecture with on-body AP. In \[[@b12-sensors-12-13088]\] the NL was evaluated for a single run and an arbitrary value of the protocol parameters. In this contribution, we present more comprehensive results for the on-body AP network architecture, including evaluation of *Energy per Bit* (EpB), finding optimal value for protocol parameters and insights on the workings of the protocol. In addition, we extend the work to include network architectures comprising an off-body AP with multiple antennas and analysis of network connectivity.
We focus on NL and EpB as the performance parameters of interest. EpB is defined as the average energy spent globally to deliver a single bit to the AP \[[@b13-sensors-12-13088],[@b14-sensors-12-13088]\]. It is a good indication of the overall energy efficiency of the system---lower EpB corresponds to less battery weight and less heat dissipation which in turn increase wearability of the WBAN. For the scope of this work, we do not consider latency as a performance parameter. WBANs for monitoring physiological state collect data with very low-bandwidth. In typical scenarios of the proposed network architectures no more than three hops would be required to relay data from node to AP, and the expected latency would be marginal compared to the dynamics of the physiological parameters of interest.
We evaluate the proposed global routing protocol for two network architectures. The first architecture comprises eight on-body nodes and an on-body AP. The second architecture comprises five on-body nodes and an off-body AP equipped with up to four antennas. NL and EpB are evaluated using simulation with recorded channel data and hardware experimental setups in typical indoor environments. In addition, network connectivity is evaluated as a function of the normalized transmission power providing insight on reliability of global routing for WBAN application. To provide accurate channel conditions, *Received Signal Strength Indicator* (RSSI) measurements are used as input to simulations. To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed global routing protocol, real-time hardware implementations are used in the experimental setups.
Results demonstrate efficient balancing of energy consumption across the nodes in the network, an average increase of 40% in NL corresponding to an average increase of 0.4 dB in EpB for the on-body AP architecture, and an average 16%--20% increase in NL corresponding to an average increase of 0.025 dB in EpB for the off-body AP architectures. Increasing NL and balancing energy consumption across the nodes means that the WBAN needs to be serviced less frequently for recharging batteries. This outcome helps make WBANs a more attractive alternative for physiological monitoring of patients. Connectivity analysis demonstrates a cutoff effect, where exceeding a threshold transmission power level allows for practically full connectivity throughout the network\'s lifetime.
2.. Proposed Link Cost Function
===============================
When applying a conventional approach to power-efficient routing, the power required to transverse a link is used as the link cost. As a result, the routing path from each node to AP is the one which requires the least amount of accumulated energy across the nodes in the path. This is equivalent to optimizing for the EpB parameter. A probable outcome would be that a single node would deplete its power source before all others, thereby setting NL while other nodes still have energy to use. In the proposed cost function, the accumulated energy used by each node is factored in as well. If a node used more energy than the other nodes, its use as a relay for other nodes would be discouraged by increasing the costs of its outgoing links.
As in any global routing protocol, link-cost information is periodically gathered at the AP in the form of channel attenuation for each link in the network, and all routing calculations are performed at the AP. Note that for a dynamic network (mobile user and/or changing environment), link-state information should be gathered more frequently (on the order of channel coherence time as implied by the Doppler spread).
The channel attenuation for the selected link between node *j* and node *k*, *α~j,k~*, is noted in [Equation (1)](#FD1){ref-type="disp-formula"}, where *RSSI* is the received power measured by node *k* and *P~tx~* is the transmitted power used by node *j*. For each round of collecting link-state information, each node\'s normalized energy used thus far is calculated as shown in [Equation (2)](#FD2){ref-type="disp-formula"}, where *j* denotes the node ID, *i* is the current round, $E_{i}^{j}$ is the accumulated energy of node *j* at round *i* normalized to packet time, *α~j,k~* is the channel attenuation for the selected link, and *RSSI~T~* is a predefined target RSSI needed to achieve a required reliable performance level. Note that *P~tx~* as implied in [Equation (2)](#FD2){ref-type="disp-formula"} is a simple power control mechanism ensuring use of minimum required power to transverse a single link while meeting target RSSI: $$\alpha_{j,k} = \frac{\textit{RSSI}}{P_{\textit{tx}}}$$ $$E_{i}^{j} = E_{i - 1}^{j} + \frac{\textit{RSSI}_{T}}{\alpha_{j,k}}$$
The accumulated energy used is incremented by the energy used to transmit a single packet while maintaining *RSSI~T~*. The link cost between node *j* and node *k*, *C~j,k~*, is computed by calculating the energy that would be used by the node if that link is selected, and multiplying it by a cost factor as depicted in [Equation (3)](#FD3){ref-type="disp-formula"}: $$C_{j,k}^{i} = \frac{\textit{RSSI}_{T}}{\alpha_{j,k}} \times \left( \frac{1 + \left( \frac{E_{i}^{k}}{E_{i}^{\textit{min}}} \right)^{M}}{2} \right)$$
The cost factor is derived by dividing the accumulated energy used by the destination node, *E~k~*, with the minimum accumulated energy across all nodes, *E~i~^min^*. This ratio is then raised to the power of *M* ≥ 0, which determines how strong the effect of energy imbalance would be. If the energy spent by a specific node is much greater than the current minimum, it is more likely to be avoided as a relay for other nodes, because its incoming link cost would be very high. The cost factor is normalized so that when *M* = 0 it reduces to the conventional cost function which is the power required to transverse the link regardless of accumulated energy across nodes in the network.
*Quality of Service* (QoS) is an important topic in traditional networking applications. However, in WBANs the vast majority of applications present no redundancy (all nodes are equally important) and no sensitivity to latency (the number of hops times transmission time is very small compared to the bandwidth of sampled physiological signals). QoS can still be implemented in the proposed protocol by manipulating the cost factor on outgoing links from preferred nodes. For example, a direct link from preferred node to AP can be made to be lower by decreasing *M* on its outgoing link cost. This would cause Dijkstra\'s algorithm to gather data from the preferred link using a smaller number of hops, thereby reducing latency compared to other nodes. In the proposed link-cost function, we make sure data from all nodes reach the AP reliably by forcing all nodes to meet a link budget as dictated by the target RSSI (see [Equation (2)](#FD2){ref-type="disp-formula"}). This approach assumes all nodes have equal priority as expected in physiological monitoring WBAN applications. The issue of QoS in global routing algorithms was addressed extensively in the past---see \[[@b15-sensors-12-13088],[@b16-sensors-12-13088]\] for examples where the Dijkstra\'s algorithm was augmented to prefer specific paths and nodes in the network. Such methods and others are readily applicable to WBAN applications as well.
3.. Performance Evaluation
==========================
The proposed link-cost function is tested in both simulated and experimental environments. In order to gauge the effect of the energy balancing cost function, it is compared to a reference system using a conventional link cost function, where the link cost is the required power to meet a link with the desired *RSSI~T~* (*M* = 0 in [Equation (3)](#FD3){ref-type="disp-formula"}). NL is evaluated by measuring the time it takes any node\'s accumulated normalized energy to cross an arbitrary threshold. The threshold represents the amount of energy stored in a battery. In all simulations and experiments the network was comprised of an AP and *End Devices* (EDs) acting as nodes. Detailed pseudo-code for the routing algorithm is depicted in Algorithm 1. Similarly, code for calculation of accumulated energy is depicted in Algorithm 2.
Algorithm 1.
Dijkstra\'s Algorithm with proposed cost function
1:
for i = 1 to \# of Nodes do
2:
node
i
.visited ← 0
3:
node
i
.distance ← ∞
4:
node
i
.previous ← node
i
5:
end for
6:
node
AP
.distance ← 0
7:
energy
min
= min(node.energy)
8:
while unvisited nodes available do
9:
node
source
← node with smallest distance
10:
for i = 1 to \# of Links do
11:
if link
i
.source = node
source
then
12:
node
dest
← link
i
.destination
13:
if node
dest
.visited = 0 then
14:
cost ← link
i
.power \* (1 + (node
dest
.energy/energy
min
)
M
)/2
15:
newdistance ← node
source
.distance + cost
16:
if distance \< node
dest
.distance then
17:
node
dest
.distance ← newdistance
18:
node
dest
.previous ← node
source
19:
end if
20:
end if
21:
end if
22:
end for
23:
node
source
.visited ← 1
24:
end while
Algorithm 2.
Accumulated Energy Calculation
ptr
= node
i
3:
if node
ptr
.previous = node
ptr
then
4:
No path to node
i
5:
else
6:
while node
ptr
.previous = node
ptr
do
7:
link
ptr
← link between node
ptr
and node
ptr
.previous
8:
node
ptr
.energy+ = link
ptr
.power
9:
node
ptr
←= node
ptr
.previous
10:
end while
11:
end if
12:
end for
3.1.. Experimental Setup
------------------------
The experimental setup was based on a hardware platform employing a *Texas Instruments* (TI) EZ430-RF2500 receiver \[[@b17-sensors-12-13088]\]. This device includes both an MSP430F2274 microcontroller along with a CC2500 2.4 GHz transceiver. The CC2500 was configured to run at 250 kbps. A single device, labeled as AP, was connected via a USB to a Serial link, running at 115,200 BAUD, to the host computer. All other devices, labeled as EDs, were battery powered. In this implementation, the AP acts as a bridge between the host and the end devices. All routing and power control calculations were done on the host. The host was a laptop computer with an Intel^®^ Core™ i5-2410M CPU and 4 GB of RAM.
3.2.. On-Body Access Point Network Architecture
-----------------------------------------------
Eight EDs were placed on a 170 cm, 70 kg male subject as shown in [Figure 1](#f1-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}. The host computer was carried in a backpack and connected to the AP via a USB cable. For both simulation and hardware experiments, the target RSSI (*RSSI~T~*) was arbitrarily chosen to be −60 dBm to support a large dynamic range of power consumption. The positioning of EDs and AP on the body along with link-cost notation is depicted in [Figure 1](#f1-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}.
The experimental setup was used to implement the routing algorithm in real-time in response to the changing channel conditions using various values of *M*. The subject walked around a room depicted in [Figure 2](#f2-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}, while the following procedure was carried out at a rate of 5 Hz: The AP sends a synchronization beacon which includes routing and power control tables.Each ED transmits its own RSSI table back to the AP, while simultaneously listening to other ED messages and storing the received power from each.Once all EDs have transmitted their data, the AP transfers a table with the RSSI data from all devices to the host, see [Table 1](#t1-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="table"} for an example.The host uses the RSSI table to compute the routes along with the required powers to meet the selected links using Dijkstra\'s algorithm and the link costs depicted in [Equations (1)](#FD1){ref-type="disp-formula"}--[(3)](#FD3){ref-type="disp-formula"}.The host sends both routing and power tables back to the AP so that a new cycle may begin.
To minimize the number of control packets being transmitted, the EDs are not individually polled. The only control packet sent is the synchronization beacon, which also carries the routing and power tables. Once the EDs are synchronized, they transmit their data on a pre-defined schedule to avoid collisions. Each ED has a network ID. The time between synchronization packets is divided into time-slots, where each slot is used by a single ED. The time slot used depends on the network ID of each device. This avoids the need for scheduling during runtime.
The routing table is a simple array which lists the destination for each ED packet. The ED does not need to know the entire route its packets will take, but only the next device in the path. Similarly, the power table lists the transmission power setting each device needs to use. The size of these tables is directly proportional to the number of devices in the network.
3.3.. Off-Body Access Point Network Architecture
------------------------------------------------
For off-body access point experiments, five EDs (ED1-ED5) were placed on a 172 cm, 73 kg male subject as shown in [Figure 3](#f3-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}. The experiments were conducted in an indoor environment depicted in [Figure 4](#f4-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}. AP1, AP2, AP3 and AP4 mark four EDs placed on the walls. The host computer was placed on the desk near AP1 and connected to AP1 via a USB cable. AP2, AP3 and AP4 acted as three additional optional antennas of the AP. This was implemented by fixing the link costs from AP1 to AP2-4 to a constant zero. This means that routing data from ED1-5 to AP1 is possible by routing to AP1, AP2, AP3 and AP4. Since three nodes were used as AP antennas, the number of on-body nodes was reduced from eight to five.
The experimental setup was used to implement the routing algorithm in real-time in response to the changing channel conditions using various values of *M* and varying number of antennas at the AP. Four experiments were conducted. In the first, AP2-4 were not used (single antenna at the AP). In the second AP3 was added (two antennas at AP) and so on for AP2 and AP4. In each experiment, the subject walked around a room depicted in [Figure 4](#f4-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}, while implementing the data gathering procedure described in Section 3.2.
3.4.. Computer Simulations
--------------------------
Real-time implementation of the aforementioned procedure required the use of specific values of the protocol parameter *M*. A simulation environment would be useful to efficiently evaluate the effects of such parameters because many simulation runs can be performed in a fraction of the time it takes to perform a real-time procedure. Measurements of real channel data were acquired by running the same real-time procedure described in Section 3.2 without routing and power control. Each ED continuously sampled RSSI data from all other devices and transmitted them to the host. A set of captured RSSI tables (as seen in [Table 1](#t1-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="table"}) were fed to the simulation, which proceeded to run the routing algorithm. The simulation produced accumulated energy use data, along with power settings, and routes taken for all devices, while sweeping over many values of *M*.
3.5.. Network Connectivity
--------------------------
Dijkstra\'s algorithm is an iterative procedure for building a networking tree with minimal accumulated costs across all routing paths in the network. Every iteration results in the addition of another node to the forming networking tree. The iterations are over when all nodes are added to the routing tree. A node can never be left outside of the routing tree, *i.e.*, Dijkstra\'s algorithm would always find relay nodes to carry signals from any node to the AP. The only case where the Dijkstra\'s algorithm would fail in reaching all nodes is if during a specific iteration there are no nodes to be reached using the maximum transmission power of nodes already in the forming routing tree. This represents a power limitation constraint and is true regardless of the link-cost function being used. Forming a routing tree could fail due to severe channel attenuations as dictated by the dynamic multipath fading environment and body-shadowing.
To address network connectivity, we define the outage ratio, *P~out~*, as the ratio between Dijkstra\'s failed routing attempts over the overall routing attempts. A failed attempt occurs when any node is unable to join the Dijkstra\'s forming network tree due to a transmission power limitation. To evaluate *P~out~*, A set of captured RSSI tables were fed to the simulation, which proceeded to run the routing algorithm under a transmission power constraint assumption. To obtain generic results, the maximum transmission power, $P_{\textit{tx}}^{\textit{max}}$, was normalized to target RSSI to obtain a maximum power ratio, $P_{\textit{ratio}}^{\textit{max}}$: $$p_{\textit{ratio}}^{\textit{max}} = \frac{p_{\textit{tx}}^{\textit{max}}}{\textit{RSSI}_{T}}$$
Simulations for evaluating *P~out~* were ran while sweeping over various values of $P_{\textit{ratio}}^{\textit{max}}$. Referring to the power control mechanism for meeting the link budget in [Equation (1)](#FD1){ref-type="disp-formula"}, failed routing attempts correspond to channel instances where $\alpha_{j,k} < {(P_{\textit{ratio}}^{\textit{max}})}^{- 1}$. The simulation is evaluating the probability for this event to occur.
4.. Results
===========
4.1.. On-Body Access Point Network Architecture
-----------------------------------------------
### 4.1.1.. Balancing Energy Consumption
[Figure 5](#f5-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents results from a 5 minutes real-time run using the reference system (*M* = 0) as depicted in Section 3.2. [Figure 6](#f6-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the same real-time run using the proposed cost function with *M* = 100. The accumulated energy of each ED is presented as a function of time. Note that at the end of the 5 minute run of the reference system, the device which consumed the most power was ED7 with approximately 1.06 μJ and would be depleted of its power source before all other EDs. On the other hand, with *M* = 100, all EDs consume energy at the same rate and end up with less than 0.81 μJ each. It is clear that the reference system consumed less overall power (6 μJ) than the proposed system (6.31 μJ). This is expected, due to the fact that the new cost function specifically avoids the most energy efficient path from node to AP in favor of the most efficient path for balancing energy across all nodes in the network.
While more energy is consumed overall, no single ED consumes more energy than others and it is expected that all EDs would deplete their battery at the same time. In the reference system, when ED7 depletes its battery, there is a significant amount of energy left unused in the network. However, when an ED depletes its power source in the proposed system, there would be almost no energy left in the network. This results in a NL improvement. For example, assuming all EDs have a battery capable of supplying an accumulated energy of 0.625 μJ, the reference system (*M* = 0) would last for 175 seconds (until 0.625 μJ are spent by ED7), while the proposed system (*M* = 100) would last for 240 seconds (until 0.625 μJ are spent by all EDs almost simultaneously). Another advantage of the proposed system (*M* = 100) relates to maintenance of the network. Since all EDs deplete their batteries simultaneously, the network can be serviced once to replace/recharge batteries, instead of multiple times in the reference system (*M* = 0).
### 4.1.2.. Protocol Response to Dynamic Conditions
A vivid demonstration of the ability of the proposed cost function to make use of the energy in the network as a distributed resource is presented in [Figure 7](#f7-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"}. During a real-time experiment, a single ED was turned off for several seconds and then reconnected. As a result, the slope (energy consumption rate) of all other EDs was increased since the network lost an energy source. Because the ED did not consume power for several seconds, it became the one with the least energy used in the network. After being reconnected, it was immediately used as a relay by other nodes.
This is expressed in a sharp increase in the slope of the reconnected ED versus a decrease in the slope of all other EDs. The excess energy of the reconnected ED was used by all EDs in the network to balance their energy consumption by more frequent relaying of packets through the reconnected ED. Relaying relaxes when the ED\'s accumulated energy equals other EDs in the network and the slope of all EDs is the same from that point on.
### 4.1.3.. Gain in Network Lifetime and Evaluation of Energy per Bit
[Figures 8](#f8-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} and [9](#f9-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} present results from a more comprehensive real-time run taken over 37 minutes. The accumulated energy data was processed to evaluate ratios of EpB and NL for *M* = 100 *vs. M* = 0. The recorded data was partitioned into groups of 100 consecutive routing cycles (each group spans 22 seconds). For finding the EpB ratio, the total energy spent across all nodes was evaluated and divided by the number of routing rounds. This provides the EpB normalized per routing round for *M* = 0 and *M* = 100. The result for *M* = 100 was divided with the result for *M* = 0, providing the EpB ratio. For finding the NL ratio per group, the battery energy was defined as the EpB result times 40. This is equivalent to assuming that each ED would be able to sustain an average of 40 routing rounds. The NL was then extracted by finding the number of routing rounds it took for the first ED to accumulate energy equal to the defined battery energy. This provides the NL normalized to the routing cycle time. The result for *M* = 100 was divided with the result for *M* = 0, providing the NL ratio.
[Figure 8](#f8-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the NL ratio results. It is evident that NL was improved for all groups of 112 groups of 100 routing rounds except three. The average improvement ratio is 1.4 meaning that on average NL was increased by 40%.
[Figure 9](#f9-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the EpB ratio for the same data. As expected EpB is higher for *M* = 100 since more energy is used to increase NL. On average, 0.4 dB more energy was used. It is interesting to note that the EpB was lower for *M* = 100 for the three instances where the NL wasn\'t improved. This implies that the network links were such that no relaying was available to balance the energy consumption across the network.
### 4.1.4.. Finding Optimal Protocol Parameter Using Off-Line Computer Simulation
Due to the similarities between the off-line simulation conditions and the on-line hardware implementation (both processed real channel data), simulation results matched hardware results. The only difference was that in hardware implementation the RSSI table is a reduced version of that used for simulation due to the use of power control in the real-time implementation. Since each ED only uses enough transmission power to reach a specific ED, other EDs might not receive the message and so RSSI data would not be obtained. We observed a negligible disparity between hardware and simulation results due to this factor.
[Figure 10](#f10-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents a simulation sweep over values of *M* using RSSI data obtained using the experimental setup for the on-body AP network architecture (Section 3.2). The NL improvement ratio is presented as a function of *M*. It is clear that increasing *M* improves performance substantially up to *M* = 60. For *M* \> 60 performance is still better than for *M* = 0 but to a diminishing extent as *M* increases. Choosing 10 \< *M* \< 110 obtains a NL improvement of around 40%. Similar trends were observed for other network architectures. Results are omitted for brevity.
4.2.. Off-Body Access Point Network Architecture
------------------------------------------------
[Figures 11](#f11-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} and [12](#f12-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} present results from multiple 37 minutes real-time experiments for varying number of antennas at the AP. Each experiment was conducted as described in Section 3.3. The accumulated energy data was processed to evaluate improvement ratios of EpB and NL for *M* = 100 *vs. M* = 0 as described in Section 4.1.3.
[Figure 11](#f11-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the NL ratio results. It is evident that NL was improved for the vast majority of runs and for any number of antennas at the AP. The NL was increased by an average of 25% for a single antenna AP, which is lower than the improvement for an on-body AP (40%). We attribute this to the fact that a link from body to off-body AP is much more likely to have a higher cost than on-body links due to body shadowing and distance of the link. This means that the off-body link would impose the dominant cost in the path cost calculation. Since the experiment was performed in a dynamic scenario (movement of subject) the node from which a link to AP is best varied all the time. Optimizing for total path cost (reference system) meant changing the node from which data is transmitted to AP. This resulted in a balancing of the energy consumption across the nodes and is in-fact a type of spatial diversity where the diversity branches are from nodes to off-body AP. Improvement in NL decreased further when number of antennas was increased to 22%, 20% and 16% for 2, 3 and 4 antennas respectively. We attribute this decrease to the increase in spatial diversity gain obtained by the use of multiple antennas at the AP. Each additional antenna introduced an additional set of 5 diversity branches from body to AP.
[Figure 12](#f12-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the EpB ratio for the same data. As expected EpB is higher for *M* = 100 since more energy is used to increase NL. On average across all instances and number of antennas, a negligible 0.025 dB more energy was used when *M* = 100. This result implies that using a network architecture with a multiple antenna off-body AP can increase wearability by avoiding the need to carry the AP on the body and improving NL at practically no cost to nodes\' battery size.
4.3.. Reliable Network Connectivity
-----------------------------------
[Figure 13](#f13-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="fig"} presents the outage ratio, *P~out~*, as a function of the normalized maximum transmission power, $P_{\textit{ratio}}^{\textit{max}}$. A threshold effect is evident in all curves, where a certain maximum normalized transmission power threshold must be exceeded to ensure the routing algorithm would almost always be able to connect all nodes to AP via other relaying nodes. For example, in the architecture with on-body AP if the transmitter\'s maximum power output is 70 dB higher than the target RSSI then the outage ratio falls below 0.1. However, if the power output is 60 dB lower than the target RSSI then the outage ratio rises above 0.9. In another example, in the architecture with off-body AP with a single antenna, the transmitter\'s maximum power output is required to be 67 dB higher than the target RSSI to achieve an outage ratio below 0.1. The benefit of using multiple antennas is evident as well, as the threshold drops to 62.5 dB when four antennas are used. Recall that the experimental setup used in our experimentation and the target RSSI are such that we operated above the maximum normalized transmitted power threshold.
4.4.. Performance Comparison with Previous Work
-----------------------------------------------
All previous work on routing in WBANs assumed unique application and system assumptions as the setting for algorithm design and evaluation. The proposed protocol is designed for physiological monitoring applications. Algorithm design therefore targeted energy balancing as a means to reduce maintenance by achieving infrequent recharging of batteries while maintaining reliability and wearability. As a consequence, performance analysis focused on network lifetime, energy per bit and connectivity parameters rather than latency.
There is no previous work on global routing in WBANs, and previous work on routing in WBAN did not consider these settings. Some even considered other system assumptions, e.g., use of dedicated relays. It follows that there is no meaningful way of comparing performance. It is however possible to position the proposed global routing protocol within state-of-the-art by summarizing performance results of relevant methods to date. [Table 2](#t2-sensors-12-13088){ref-type="table"} presents such a summary. It includes the work reported in \[[@b3-sensors-12-13088]--[@b6-sensors-12-13088]\] briefly described in the Introduction Section. These past works were selected since they considered energy consumption and network lifetime rather than latency. It is clear from the summary that the proposed protocol excels at its original design goal of increasing network lifetime without using extra hardware such as dedicated relay nodes.
5.. Conclusions
===============
Global routing using Dijkstra\'s algorithm was augmented with a novel cost function specialized for balancing energy consumption at the nodes and increasing NL in WBANs. The cost function was designed to avoid relaying through nodes which spent more accumulated energy than others. As a result, each node\'s link costs are dynamically changed to balance energy use in the network. The algorithm was evaluated through real-time implementation in dynamic indoor environments and computer simulations using real channel RSSI data. Two network architectures were evaluated: on-body AP and off-body AP with multiple antennas. Results for the on-body AP network architecture depicted efficient balancing of energy consumption across nodes in the network and an average increase in NL of 40%. The corresponding average increase in EpB was a moderate 0.4 dB. Results for the off-body AP network architecture depicted an increase in NL of 25%, 22%, 20% and 16% for one, two, three and four antennas, respectively. The increase in EpB across all configurations was a marginal 0.025 dB.
Network connectivity analysis revealed a threshold effect. It was shown for all network architectures that if the ratio between maximum transmitted power and target RSSI is higher than about 65 dB, then Dijkstra\'s algorithm results in full connectivity almost all the time. If the ratio is below the threshold, network connectivity is severely hindered. This result holds for any link cost function being used.
The proposed global routing approach allows WBANs to operate efficiently for longer periods of time before recharging of batteries is required. Due to the balancing of energy use in the network, devices would deplete their energy sources at approximately the same time. This is highly beneficial since all devices can be recharged or replaced simultaneously, instead of constantly monitoring and servicing individual devices. Since NL is increased as well, depletion of batteries is less frequent, decreasing maintenance requirements even further. The moderate increase in EpB indicates that the wearability of the WBAN is unhindered.
In its current form, the protocol is optimizing energy use solely with regard to the transmission power required to transverse the wireless link. A future modification could make use of actual battery status in the algorithm. This would allow devices with different power sources and power requirements to be addressed in the energy balancing process.
{#f1-sensors-12-13088}
{#f2-sensors-12-13088}
{#f3-sensors-12-13088}
{#f4-sensors-12-13088}
{#f5-sensors-12-13088}
{#f6-sensors-12-13088}
{#f7-sensors-12-13088}
{#f8-sensors-12-13088}
{#f9-sensors-12-13088}
{#f10-sensors-12-13088}
{#f11-sensors-12-13088}
{#f12-sensors-12-13088}
{#f13-sensors-12-13088}
######
Sample RSSI Table at the AP.
**AP** **ED1** **ED2** **ED3** **ED4** **ED5** **ED6** **ED7** **ED8**
--------- -------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
**AP** − −60 −60 −60 −60.5 −60.5 −60.5 −60 −79.5
**ED1** −66 − −62 −75 −63.5 −69 −75.5 −73 −67.5
**ED2** −72 −61.5 − −80 −69 −70 −74 −75 −66
**ED3** −77.5 −74.5 −80.5 − −67.5 −70 −72.5 −70.5 −70
**ED4** −39 −63 −69.5 −67 − −82.5 −74.5 −69 −65.5
**ED5** −67.5 −68 −71 −69.5 −84 − −55.5 −51.5 −62
**ED6** −67 −75 −75 −72.5 −75 −55.5 − −44.5 −53
**ED7** −46 −70 −77.5 −70.5 −69 −50.5 −45 − −51.5
**ED8** −78 −67.5 −66.5 −71 −66 −62 −54 −51.5 −
######
Summary of WBAN routing algorithms performance.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**Technique** **Parameter** **Performance Improvement**
---------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Use of dedicated relays \[[@b3-sensors-12-13088]\] Energy consumption in sensor nodes. Decreased by a factor of 20.
Opportunistic Routing \[[@b4-sensors-12-13088]\] BER\ Slight improvement in BER.\
Energy per bit\ 25% less than Multi-hop routing.\
Network lifetime Increases somewhat.
Transmit Power Adaptation \[[@b5-sensors-12-13088]\] Energy per bit Power control reduces energy per bit.
Minimum Energy Packet Forwarding Protocol \[[@b6-sensors-12-13088]\] Energy per bit A 10% reduction due to power control and a 1.7% reduction due to ARR.
**Proposed Modified Dijkstra\'s Global Routing Algorithm** Network lifetime\ Up to 40% increase.\
Energy per bit A slight increase.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| |
To be considered one of Australia’s finest golf clubs, with a course worthy of a ranking within the top 20 and which fosters and encourages a great golfing and social experience for Members and visitors.
Our Mission
Royal Canberra Golf Club will strive for excellence in enhancing membership benefits and services by:
- Maintaining the integrity of the courses through the enhancement and presentation of playing surfaces to the highest possible standards.
- Ensuring that the Club’s traditions and standards are upheld and respected;
- Exceeding requirements of environmental stewardship and compliance;
- Providing a comprehensive range of golf services to enable Members, guests and visitors to enjoy, develop, play and compete;
- Ensuring strong financial performance underpinned by stable governance and staff, whilst operating the Club in a transparent, compliant manner;
- Offering a consistently high standard and variety of food and beverage and events in congenial surrounds that fosters camaraderie;
- Attracting new Members to the Club and providing an inclusive and welcoming introduction;
- Continuing to review and investigate new and diverse revenue streams and business models to strengthen the clubs financial position.
Our Core Values
- Treat all Club Members and other members of the community with dignity and respect;
- Foster a welcoming, friendly and inclusive environment for Members, families, guests and visitors;
- Recognition and support for the traditions of the Club and the game of golf;
- Foster communication between Members, staff and stakeholders.
Critical Success Factors
- Guaranteeing financial security through proper and careful planning;
- Improving course standards, playability and presentation;
- Maintaining the Club’s membership base;
- Ensuring responsible environmental stewardship;
- Recruiting, retaining and training high quality staff. | https://www.royalcanberra.com.au/cms/club/our-values/ |
Phorcys and Ceto brought into the world a swathe of monsters, earning Ceto the title “mother of monsters”.
#FolkloreThursday
#Mythology
The Sky Makes No Promises
Minoa was lost. We call it Crete now. Maybe, it had gone through an apocalypse; Something happened. It might have been an explosive event at Thera, what… Read more “The Sky Makes No Promises”
Athena and Arachne
Imagine this: You are a shepherd’s daughter; from the time you were a child, you’ve worked the loom. This is no longer work; it is pure art.… Read more “Athena and Arachne”
Demeter in the Mortal Realm
In many re-tellings of the story of Persephone and Demeter, the focus often becomes Persephone. Brutally abducted by her uncle and swept into the Underworld where she… Read more “Demeter in the Mortal Realm”
The Garden of the Hesperides. | https://mythcrafts.com/category/mythology/greco-roman-mythology/ |
Who said we can’t make a snowman in Singapore by 32 degrees? Well, of course we had to get creative, there’s no snow here but lots of coconuts! So, I baked a batch of my always perfect vanilla cupcakes, layered some marshmallow cream on them (thought it would be the best option as it doesn’t melt as quickly as all other icings), dipped them in coconut flakes and placed some chocolate and peanut butter chips to make the face.
Let me give you my recipe for my always perfect cupcakes: 225g of room temperature butter 175g of sugar (use less if the frosting is very sweet) 225g of plain flour 1 teaspoon of baking powder 4 eggs 1 teaspoon of good quality vanilla extract Beat all the ingredients together for 3 minutes, until smooth and creamy. Heat the oven at 175 C degrees. Use a tablespoon to measure how much cream you put in the muffin tins, so you will bake them evenly, I put two tablespoons in each and end with approximately 18 pieces. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden on the sides. Let it cool down for 5 minutes then release them from the tins and let them cool down completely before decorating. ⛄️❄️☃️❄️⛄️❄️☃️
If you end up with cupcakes that raised too much (as in my case!), just use a sharp knife to cut the top.
For the decoration you will need:
Marshmallow cream or royal icing or vanilla frosting
coconut flakes in a small bowl
chocolate chips
peanut butter (or butterscotch) chips
And here are the easy step by step instructions for decorating:
Repeat for all your cupcakes and place them on a plate covered with coconut flakes as if they were sitting in the snow!
Have fun!! | https://thecookingglobetrotter.com/coconut-snowman-cupcakes/ |
The increasing development in smart and mobile technologies are transforming learning environments into a smart learning environment. Students process information and learn in different ways, and this can affect the teaching and learning process. To provide a system capable of adapting learning contents based on student's learning behavior in a learning environment, the automated classification of the learners' learning patterns offers a concrete means for teachers to personalize students' learning. Previously, this research proposed a model of a self-regulated smart learning environment called the metacognitive smart learning environment model (MSLEM). The model identified five metacognitive skills-goal settings (GS), help-seeking (HS), task strategies (TS), time-management (TM), and self-evaluation (SE) that are critical for online learning success. Based on these skills, this paper develops a learning agent to classify students' learning styles using artificial neural networks (ANN), which mapped to Felder-Silverman Learning Style Model (FSLSM) as the expected outputs. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the consistency of classification data, and positive results were obtained with an average accuracy of 93%. The data from the students were grouped into six training and testing, each with a different splitting ratio and different training accuracy values for the various percentages of Felder-Silverman Learning Style dimensions.
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Articles in this journal are published under the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (CC-BY What does this mean?). This is to get more legal certainty about what readers can do with published articles, and thus a wider dissemination and archiving, which in turn makes publishing with this journal more valuable for you, the authors.
By submitting an article the author grants to this journal the non-exclusive right to publish it. The author retains the copyright and the publishing rights for his article without any restrictions. | https://online-journals.org/index.php/i-jet/article/view/24251 |
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Astrophysics > Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
Title: A 3.9 km baseline intensity interferometry photon counting experiment
(Submitted on 2 Oct 2018)
Abstract: In the last years we have operated two very similar ultrafast photon counting photometers (Iqueye and Aqueye+) on different telescopes. The absolute time accuracy in time tagging the detected photon with these instruments is of the order of 500 ps for hours of observation, allowing us to obtain, for example, the most accurate ever light curve in visible light of the optical pulsars. Recently we adapted the two photometers for working together on two telescopes at Asiago (Italy), for realizing an Hanbury-Brown and Twiss Intensity Interferometry like experiment with two 3.9 km distant telescopes. In this paper we report about the status of the activity and on the very preliminary results of our first attempt to measure the photon intensity correlation.
Submission historyFrom: Giampiero Naletto [view email]
[v1] Tue, 2 Oct 2018 07:21:59 GMT (450kb)
Link back to: arXiv, form interface, contact. | https://export.arxiv.org/abs/1810.01096 |
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We love the sound of raindrops falling on our land. We also love the smell of petrichor, the pleasant smell produced when rain fall on dry soil. But will we love rain that much when it is raining plastic, like what happened in Rocky Mountains?
Yes, we have contaminated this earth so much with plastic that it is now even raining plastic. It means that we have even contaminated the air with plastic, or at least we can say that we are contaminating the clouds with it.
A survey conducted by Gregory Wetherbee, a researcher in United States Geological Survey found that rainwater samples collected from the area contained significant amount of microplastic. Is it possible that Rocky Mountains in not the only place on earth where such kind of phenomenon occurs?
Here in this article we are going to talk about this shocking story of plastic rain.
The Plastic Rain
The survey that Whetherbee conducted that day was ordinary, just collecting rainwater samples from all around places. The main intention was actually to study nitrogen pollution in the area, what he found was more shocking than what he had expected.
“I guess I expected to see mostly soil and mineral particles,” the researcher said to The Guardian. However, rainwater collected across Colorado that he had analyzed under microscope showed rainbow plastic fibers, beads, and shards.
“Fibers were present in a variety of colors; the most frequently observed color was blue followed by red > silver > purple > green > yellow > other colors,” the report stated. “Plastic particles such as beads and shards were also observed with magnification.”
“The plastic materials are mostly fibers that are only visible with magnification (~40X),” the report stated. The findings were polished in a report titled “It is raining plastic”, and in the report he stated that about 90% of the rainwater collected from six sites in Denver-Boulder area contained microplastic.
“My results are purely accidental,” he said. “I think the most important result that we can share with the American public is that there’s more plastic out there than meets the eye. It’s in the rain, it’s in the snow. It’s a part of our environment now.”
Where Did It Come From?
So, where did the plastic pollution in our clouds come from? Sherri Mason, a microplastic researcher and sustainability coordinator at Penn State Behrend said that major contributor for the phenomenon is our waste.
With only 10% of plastic consumed to ever be recycled, we are actually piling plastic all up over the earth. The unrecycled plastic waste then breaks down into tiny particles called microplastic. “Plastic fibers also break off your clothes every time you wash them,” said Mason.
We currently don’t have any method for tracing where did the plastic particles come from. Almost anything made of plastic will shed itself into plastic particles. “And then those particles get incorporated into water droplets when it rains,” Mason explained.
What’s scary is that when the particles are incorporated into water droplets when it rains, it can go literally anywhere. It will wash into rivers, lakes, bays, and oceans, worsening current water pollution caused by plastic waste.
Furthermore, it can even enter our groundwater sources, which is our last resort for clean and fresh water. It might have happened now, or will happen sometime later in the future. But the prove is real and it means that we have reached the point of no return.
The plastic particles in the water will last for hundreds of years, and even more, and humans in present or in the future will consume the contaminated water.
What Will Happen?
So, what will happen when our rain water is contaminated with microplastic? There are so many terrors await when it happens. We are already living in a polluted world, and since we were born, we have been exposed to many kinds of pollutants.
With the addition of microplastic in our purest form of water, rain water, we will be exposed to even more dangerous pollutant. Even though there is still no study stating about the effect of microplastic to human health, but can’t we already imagine living with tiny particles of plastics inside our bodies?
With the presence of microplastic in rain water, it means almost impossible to avoid consuming microplastic nowadays. Just as we mentioned earlier, rain water has the access to get to any water bodies. And even though it will not happen now, it will surely happen in the future.
A study in 2018 published in Science of the Total Environment, described that plastic contains additives that can act as endocrine disruptors. In a test of feeding plastic to mice, it was found out that the disruptors significantly interfered with the microbiome.
“Mice aren’t humans, but we do know that when the microbiome is disrupted in humans it leads to many diseases, including type 2 diabetes and obesity,” said Erin Pitkethly, RPh, a registered pharmacist and certified nutritionist with Robinsong Health in Ontario.
Not The First Time
Pretty scary story, isn’t it? well, actually plastic rain in Colorado is not the first time researchers found microplastic contamination in rain water. Researchers have also found such kind of thing earlier in France when they observed rain falling in Pyrenees.
Microplastic has even also wound up in remote and pristine island. Trillion pieces of plastic also have been floating in the ocean, creating ‘artificial’ islands that disrupt the balance of marine ecosystem and kill marine creatures.
It might be good to find out about this condition earlier, because without such kind of ‘accident’, we will not be aware of the dangers up to nowadays. “This study was not designed for collecting and analyzing samples for plastic particles. The results are unanticipated and opportune,” said Whetherbee.
Preventing greater disaster to happen might not be that easy, but we can at least try to reduce the scale. Stop consuming single use plastic in our daily activities, recycle our plastic waste, and participating in ocean-cleaning activities might be able to hamper the disaster.
Sources: | https://earthbuddies.net/raining-plastic/ |
PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the heat resistance of cation-type antimicrobials and to obtain an antimicrobial for resin causing no thermal decomposition in heat- kneading or resin-molding by constructing a compound having a specific counter anion and a specific cationic group.
SOLUTION: The antimicrobial for resin which a weight average molecular weight of preferably 1,000-100,000 is obtained by constructing (A) a compound containing (i) a counter anion, which is a superstrong acid and has a Hammett acidity function (-H0) of preferably 12 or more, and (ii) at least two cationic groups combined with a nonionic molecular chain, e.g. a compound containing repetition units of the formula [Q is nitrogen or phosphorus; R1-R4 are each a substituent containing nonionic molecular chains (the two substituents among R1-R4 may be combined to form a cyclic ring)] and a superstrang acid of anion. As the component (i), a superstrong acid derived from the combination of a protonic acid with a Lewis acid is illustrated. As the component (ii), a quaternary ammonium base, a phosphonium base or the like is illustrated.
COPYRIGHT: (C)2000,JPO | |
This report sets out the Vision, Priorities, and Outcomes for the new Strategic Plan. The report includes information on how the document has been drawn together including the results of consultation and feedback. The report sets out the next steps if the document is agreed by Council including the development of the action plan and narrative to complete the plan.
That the new Strategic Plan Vision, Priorities and Outcomes, set out in Appendix A, are adopted.
������� Strategic Plan are developed alongside the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) as the financial expression of the Strategic Plan. Service planning allows the Council to convert high level objectives from the Strategic Plan into actions for each directorate, service or team across the Council, which then feeds into individual staff performance objectives.
1.2 The current Strategic Plan covers the period until 2020. Policy and Resources Committee agreed in June that the plan should be reviewed comprehensively in 2018 so that the Council has an up to date vision and priorities to inform other plans that go beyond 2020 and need to be reviewed in the near future including the Local Plan.
1.5 The purpose of the workshops was for Councillors to consider the objectives and outcomes the Council should aspire to in the new Strategic Plan considering what the Council could do to achieve these objectives alone and working with others.
1.6 These themes were further refined following the workshops and a draft vision, 8 objectives and outcomes were presented to Policy and Resources on the 19 September when agreement was given to undertake formal consultation.
1.8 Results of the consultation can be seen at section 5 of the report.
1.9 The vision statement has developed significantly throughout the process. Early discussions highlighted that there was a general desire for the statement to be shorter than the existing statement in the Strategic Plan 2015-2020.
1.10 It was also identified from conversations with Members that our new vision needed to go beyond the 5 years of the Strategic Plan to ensure it leads all policies and strategies of the council and sets out where we want to be in the future. As such it is was proposed that the Strategic Plan covers the period to 2045.
1.12 Following on from this a new vision statement was presented to Members at a workshop on the 13th of November. The majority of Members present were supportive of the new statement. Although some forms of alternate phrasing were suggested these were not universally accepted.� One amendment was made to change aspirations to potential as a number of those present supported this change.
1.13 Members will observe that there has been a significant change in the draft objectives reducing from 8 to 4.
1.14 This change is reflective of a range of feedback from all consultees� comments that the outcomes were too detailed; feedback from Parishes, businesses and Members that infrastructure was important; and the prioritisation of clean, green and safe from a range of consultees.
1.16 We have reviewed our Partners� priorities (see Appendix C). The desktop review has identified a lot of synergy between others who shape our Borough and our own vision and priorities. It was very clear from the consultation that we need to acknowledge the role of others in shaping our Borough and that many of the outcomes we want to achieve will require partnership working or lobbying/influencing other players to get change.
� A Borough that works for everyone.
The first strapline is already in use and appears on Borough Insight and Council Vehicles. The second could be used for key projects and other work we are undertaking as appropriate. Again, whilst some wording changes were suggested, on the whole most Members were largely supportive of the straplines as they are.
2.1 Adopt as is. The document at Appendix A has been developed following extensive consultation and engagement with Councillors, Parishes, Leaders, businesses and residents as outlined in the consultation section of the report.� Feedback has been taken into account to shape and change the document; the new draft has also been shared with Councillors at an informal workshop on the 13th of November where it was accepted positively with some feedback on wording which where possible has been taken into account.
2.2 Adopt the plan with any amendments that Council is minded to make.
2.3 Do not adopt a new Strategic Plan. The current Strategic Plan finishes in 2020 so would stay in place. The purpose of creating a new plan was to ensure the Council�s vision and priorities led important documents such as the Local Plan, Medium Term Financial Strategy and the Commissioning and Procurement Strategy that are all coming forward in the next few months. Policy and Resources agreed in July that a new Strategic Plan would be developed to ensure there was a clear strategic narrative for the Council ahead of the refresh of the Local Plan.
2.4 Come up with a new version of the plan. This would be difficult to achieve in a single meeting, so it would be unlikely that a new plan and vision would be in place by December as originally agreed by the Committee.
3.1 Adopt as is.� A huge amount of work has been undertaken by officers and Members to reach this point. The document has been carefully developed to take into account the extensive consultation and input we have received as part of the corporate planning process. To take an alternative course of action runs the risk of not taking into account feedback and consultation that has been sought which would be detrimental to the Council�s reputation.� Additional points of member involvement have been included in the process to ensure the document reflects the wishes of as many Councillors as possible.
4.1 Risks associated with the delivery of the Strategic Plan will be set out in the Risk Management Framework and operationally through the service planning process.
5.1 The outcome of the most recent consultation results is summarised below, and a more detailed summary can be seen at the appendices B, D, E and F.
5.2 There were a total of 33 votes from businesses (3 per business) identifying the objectives that were most important for the Borough. Their top three areas for focus were: A Thriving Economy, Better Transport Systems and Well Connected Safe and Empowered Communities.
5.4 There were a total of 435 total votes from staff (3 per officer) at the One Council event in September. Officers identified that the three most important objectives to them as people who work, live or travel into the Borough as Better Transport Systems, Great Environmental Quality and A Decent Home for Everyone.
5.5 The Commissioning and Procurement Strategy is currently under development and it has been identified as part of this preparation, that the Council considers its strategic objectives alongside all commissioning and procurement activities.
5.7 There were 60 attendees from Parishes across the Borough at the two Parish events in Lenham and Yalding. An overview of their comments on the Vision, Objective and Outcomes can be seen at Appendix D.
5.8 Parish representatives identified the following three areas of focus for the Borough: Better Transport Systems, Great Environmental Quality and A Decent Home for Everyone. However it should also be noted that attendees at the Lenham workshop requested an additional box for infrastructure, which received a majority of tokens - 67 in total.
� Improve relationship with partners including Parishes and KCC.
� Improved management of infrastructure including transport.
� Support businesses & communities.
� Disconnect between rural and urban.
5.10 The survey had a total of 870 respondents, based on Maidstone�s population aged 18 years and over. This means unweighted results are accurate to 3.3% at a 95% confidence level. ��Residents identified the following three areas as the most important to them: Well Connected Safe and Empowered Communities, Better Transport Systems and Great Environmental Quality.
5.11 Comments have been aligned to the new draft objectives at Appendix E.
5.12 Earlier feedback from Members was attached to the report to Policy and Resources in September (please see background documents).
5.13 Each Service Committee considered the original 8 objectives the feedback can be found in the background papers for each meeting where it was considered. Feedback on the vision statement at these meetings included reference to ensuring it was not a slogan and should embrace all of our communities and be progressive. There were other comments regarding naming key sites or buildings � name all or none at all and a wish to reduce the 8 objectives to 6. A further request was that the language should not be passive.
5.14 29 Members participated in the Pairwise exercise and four priorities emerged: Decent Home for Everyone, Better Transport Systems, Environmental Quality and Well Connected, Safe & Empowered Communities.
5.15 Following revision of the vision, objectives and outcomes a further session was held with Members on the 13 November, to review the revised draft.
� Amending the fourth bullet point under Embracing Growth and Enabling Infrastructure to state �sufficient infrastructure is planned to meet the demands of growth�.
5.17 Some suggestions made were specific actions which will be considered and included as part of the �how we deliver section�.
5.18 Policy and Resources Committee considered the new Strategic Plan Vision, Objectives and Outcomes 2019-45 at its meeting of 28 November 2018 and recommended Council to adopt the plan.
6.1 If the new Strategic Plan is approved by Council, work will then begin on the �how we will� section of the Strategic Plan and the narrative that needs to surround our vision. As with previous iterations of the plan the action plan will cover 5 years, the vision, priorities and outcomes apply for the period to 2045.
6.2 There will be action planning with Heads of Service and Committee Members through workshops in January and February. The results of these will go to Policy and Resources to recommend the full Strategic Plan document in March alongside the Medium Term Financial Strategy.
6.3 The completed document will then need to be shared with our partners. Events will be planned post March with key partners including our Parish Councils to look at how we can all deliver the outcomes and achieve our vision for the Borough.
6.4 The new vision will be used to set the direction for the refresh of the Local Plan and other key strategies and policies as they are developed.
6.5 Democracy Committee is undertaking a review of the committee structure. They will consider the new priorities and whether any changes may need to be made to the service committees as a result. Any changes will be recommended to Council for decision. | http://www.maidstone.gov.uk/home/primary-services/council-and-democracy/primary-areas/your-councillors?sq_content_src=%2BdXJsPWh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGbWVldGluZ3MubWFpZHN0b25lLmdvdi51ayUyRmRvY3VtZW50cyUyRnM2Mzg2MyUyRk5ldyUyMFN0cmF0ZWdpYyUyMFBsYW4lMjBWaXNpb24lMjBPYmplY3RpdmVzJTIwYW5kJTIwT3V0Y29tZXMlMjAyMDE5LTQ1Lmh0bWwlM0ZDVCUzRDImYWxsPTE%3D |
For some years, scientists have recognized that tumors alone are not responsible for rapid cancerous cell spreading and growth. Circulating tumor cells – and to a lesser extent, cancer stem cells (CTCs and CSCs) – a known primary cause of metastatic cancers, are responsible for 90% of cancer-related deaths.
In many cases, once these cells reach this state, they possess all necessary data and ability to form micro-colonization and micro-metastases. This means they have the potential to develop into potent micro-metastases. This is why we see recurrence of cancer.
This is also why practitioners see these CSC’s remaining in the blood sometimes years later after primary tumors are discovered and are no longer detectable via PET/CT, MRI, CT, standard blood markers (CA 125, CA 19-9, etc.), and other standard traditional diagnostic measurements.
CSCs are problematic since these are immortal cells, meaning they have no Hayflick limit for cell division. These cells also have the ability to divide as long as they live. They circulate in the bloodstream continually (24/7/365 days a year) and wait for immune system vulnerability, for an opportunity to generate more tumors. They may also become dormant for up to 30+ years.
RGCC testing uses blood samples as the most appropriate form for analysis because it includes circulating tumor cells containing the most relevant information to determine risk for both a potent metastasis and/or recurrence from months to many years later. Metastasis of cancer cells, which often occurs 30+ years later, is the known chief cause of death.
This is why RGCC is regarded as the optimal method for testing. It is also used for regular follow-up tests to determine whether CTC’s/CSC’s remain, how many and any sudden changes in the number of CTC’s/CSC’s that may be present in circulation over months and years. Using this and other standard measurements, we can obtain a good picture of recurrences (if any) much sooner. Simply relying upon only one test does not provide the most accurate data on cancerous growth, which is why RGCC and other standard medical tests and biopsies are recommended and used in combination to determine health status, as well as provide the comprehensive methods of evaluating patient health.
Source: http://www.rgccusa.com/files/9614/1342/6446/Reasons-We-Use-The-RGCC-Cancer-Test.pdf
What are RGCC tests for cancer and how do they work?
Research Genetic Cancer Center in Switzerland uses detection, immunophenotyping and isolation of circulating tumor cells, with state-of-the art flow cytometers and sensitivity/chemoresistance testing, and with the use of micro-array technology.
High throughput screening is used to allow an automated and fast method for sample processing as well as screening different types of libraries, including combinatorial chemistry, genomics, protein and peptide libraries.
RGCC testing is the study of circulating tumor cells in the bloodstream, as it relates to cancer prognosis and progression. Circulating tumor cells (or CTCs in the bloodstream) constitute a non-homogenous (dissimilar) population of cells which possess the ability to metastasize.
Source: https://www.rgcc-group.com/?page=about-us
There is a continuing and growing need for identification of these types of cells for the following reasons:
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To detect early signs of developing cancer
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To enable monitoring of existing cancers
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To produce an individual profile of chemotherapeutic medications as well as natural treatments to use in the determination of optimal outcomes for treatment options
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To monitor impact and effectiveness of therapy
Chemo-sensitivity testing is one method of accomplishing this goal, where cancer cells are tested in a laboratory prior to administration of drugs for treatment.
The R.G.C.C Group Test
This test uses blood samples (or in some cases tissue tests) to identify and isolate tumor cells for the following analysis:
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Viability testing of chemotherapy drugs
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Genetic profiling for guidance about targeted therapies e.g. monoclonal antibodies
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Viability testing (and identification of mechanisms of action), of natural substances which may be used as part of a complementary treatment strategy.
Results are compiled into a written report which enables the practitioners to map treatment options and choices. As well, the R.G.C.C. Group test can provide data to enable understanding of how an individual may tolerate specific chemotherapy agents. Whether patients “accumulate” or “rapidly metabolize” these agents is based on the genetic make-up of the individual.
Source: https://www.rgcc-group.com/?page=tests
Source: https://imcwc.com/html5-blank/rgcc-test-greek-test/
The importance of the tests and what can be tested
The test has emerged as one of the most accurate and complete tests of its kind. The test can be performed using a simple blood sample with RGCC-Ltd works for all cancers (solid tumors, blood cancers, sarcomas, etc.) with the exception of brain and central nervous system primary tumors (glioblastomas, astrocytoma, meningioma etc.). These laboratory tests are still viable with these cancers using a small, live tissue sample from the tumor.
Source: http://www.rgccusa.com/files/9614/1342/6446/Reasons-We-Use-The-RGCC-Cancer-Test.pdf
RT-PCR
Another type of diagnostic test, known as RT-PCR (reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction ) using peripheral blood samples, seeks to detect circulating tumors has been used with some success in patients with localized and metastatic cancers such as prostate, ovarian, and breast. | https://www.thekarlfeldtcenter.com/measuring-circulating-tumor-cells-to-assess-metastasis-risk-through-rgcc-the-greek-test/ |
Does a tree that can repair degraded land, heal damaged skin and provide an important source of energy sound too good to be true? Think again.
News - Jun 2020Forest tenure reforms in Indonesia could open door to greater gender equality
Signs that women may benefit from greater access to earnings and education
Podcast - Apr 2020How trees and water fuel sustainable communities
Podcast reveals the relationship between trees, forests and water
News - Apr 2020Lifting the barriers to improve women and child health in Indonesia’s Komodo
Myths limit fish consumption, a potential source of valuable nutrients
In-depth - Apr 2020Indonesia’s secret forests: Underground water world
In Java’s cultural heartland, a hidden world of caverns, clear water and mysterious creatures is an ecosystem like no other
News - Mar 2020Papua mangroves could help Indonesia coast to climate targets
Research details variables in measuring greenhouse gas emissions for NDCs
Religious and Indigenous leaders in Indonesia unite to protect forests
Must reach people through values and ethics to end deforestation, U.N. says
Feature - Feb 2020What are Bhutan’s sacred forests worth?
Bhutan’s mountain communities provide foundation for assessing ecosystem services
Feature - Feb 2020What are Bhutan’s sacred forests worth? | https://forestsnews.cifor.org/location-en/asia-pacific/ |
Work Credits:
- nathaniel stern, creator
Take full advantage of the ArtBase by Becoming a Member
Artist Statement
hektor.net is a navigable artsite of experimental pinhole photography, spoken word and video poetry. Each vignette is in a performative writing style, and the series collectively explores narrative and storytelling, time and memory, multiplicity and identity, anger and trauma, and the labors of communication. I use technologies unique to digital video in order to accent its many historical references and literary allusions. While viewers surf the site, hektor attempts to re-member: embody a past in the present. Floating memories, re-presented as art pieces, congeal in different patterns; from the “ruins of memory,” viewers re-invent the past and its meaning, piecing together a story for themselves. However, similar to Julio Cortazar’s Hopscotch, where readers can tackle any chapter, in any order, to assemble a whole story, this narrative is built by the listener, according to which pieces they have seen, in what context, and in which order. Viewers continually bring new insights to possibility by juxtaposing visited and revisited pieces and ideas several times over. | http://classic.rhizome.org/artbase/artwork/2180/ |
The blast furnaces that once produced iron will soon become an exciting new visitor destination for the City of Birmingham. Sloss Furnaces, a National Historic Landmark and the only such entity of its kind in the world, is undertaking a renovation to improve educational resources, stabilize on-site historic structures, and constructed a Visitor Center.
Visitors will be immersed in the sounds, smells, and actions of making pig iron. They will literally feel the heat of the blast furnace, hear the rich legacies of those who once worked in the plant, realize the importance and danger of their work, and leave with a sense of pride about Birmingham’s past. | https://vsrltd.com/portfolio-2/archival/sloss-furnaces-national-historic-landmark/ |
The “Worktivity” mHealth intervention to reduce sedentary behaviour in the workplace: a feasibility cluster randomised controlled pilot study
Background: Office work generally consists of high amounts of sedentary behaviour (SB) which has been associated with negative health consequences. We developed the "WorktivIty" mobile app to help office workers reduce their SB through self-monitoring and feedback on sedentary time, prompts to break sedentary time, and educational facts. The aim of this paper is to report the feasibility of delivering the Worktivity intervention to desk-based office workers in the workplace setting and describe methodological considerations for a future trial.
Methods: We conducted a three-arm feasibility cluster randomised controlled pilot study over an 8-week period with full time-desk based employees. Clustered randomisation was to one of three groups: Worktivity mobile app (MA; n = 20), Worktivity mobile app plus SSWD (MA+SSWD; n = 20), or Control (C; n = 16). Feasibility was assessed using measures of recruitment and retention, intervention engagement, intervention delivery, completion rates and usable data, adverse events, and acceptability.
Results: Recruitment of companies to participate in this study was challenging (8% of those contacted), but retention of individual participants within the recruited groups was high (81% C, 90% MA + SSWD, 95% MA). Office workers' engagement with the app was moderate (on average 59%). Intervention delivery was partially compromised due to diminishing user engagement and technical issues related to educational fact delivery. Sufficient amounts of useable data were collected, however either missing or unusable data were observed with activPAL™, with data loss increasing at each follow up time point. No serious adverse events were identified during the study. The majority of participants agreed that the intervention could be implemented within the workplace setting (65% MA; 72% MA + SSWD) but overall satisfaction with the intervention was modest (58% MA; 39% MA + SSWD).
Conclusions: The findings suggest that, in principle, it is feasible to implement a mobile app-based intervention in the workplace setting however the Worktivity intervention requires further technical refinements before moving to effectiveness trials. Challenges relating to the initial recruitment of workplaces and maintaining user engagement with the mHealth intervention over time need to be addressed prior to future large-scale implementation. Further research is needed to identify how best to overcome these challenges.
Funding
Invest Northern Ireland under the Competence Centre Programme Grant RD0513853 – Connected Health Innovation Centre.
Vice Chancellor's Research Scholarship from Ulster University
History
CommentsThe original article is available at https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com
Published CitationStephenson A, Garcia-Constantino M, Murphy MH, McDonough SM, Nugent CD, Mair JL. The "Worktivity" mHealth intervention to reduce sedentary behaviour in the workplace: a feasibility cluster randomised controlled pilot study. BMC Public Health. 2021;21(1):1416. | https://repository.rcsi.com/articles/journal_contribution/The_Worktivity_mHealth_intervention_to_reduce_sedentary_behaviour_in_the_workplace_a_feasibility_cluster_randomised_controlled_pilot_study/15015087/1 |
Peter FaderProfessor of Marketing, The Wharton School of the Univ. of Pennsylvania
Peter S. Fader is the Frances and Pei-Yuan Chia Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. His expertise centers around the analysis of behavioral data to understand and forecast customer shopping/purchasing activities. He works with firms from a wide range of industries, such as consumer packaged goods, interactive media, financial services, retailing, and pharmaceuticals. Managerial applications focus on topics such as customer relationship management, lifetime value of the customer, and sales forecasting for new products. Much of his research highlights the consistent (but often surprising) behavioral patterns that exist across these industries and other seemingly different domains.
Many of these cross-industry experiences have led to the development of the Wharton Customer Analytics Initiative, a new research center that serves as a “matchmaker” between leading-edge academic researchers and top companies that depend on granular, customer-level data for key strategic decisions.
Professor Fader believes that marketing should not be viewed as a “soft” discipline, and he frequently works with different companies and industry associations to improve managerial perspectives in this regard. His work has been published in (and he serves on the editorial boards of) a number of leading journals in marketing, statistics, and the management sciences. He has won many awards for his teaching and research accomplishments.
Current papers, course syllabi, and other materials are available at www.petefader.com.
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- VIEW COMMENTS
- Posted on: 12/03/2019
Why are brands so bad at identity resolution?This might ruffle some feathers, but retailers don't care enough about this (hugely important) topic. Doing this merely for "improved customer satisfaction" is a weak rationale that ends up being treated as a cost to be minimized as opposed to a genuine investment. Aligning customer data at a granular level should be as vital to retailers as are their accounting compliance issues: if they viewed this issue with similar importance (as they should), then this conversation would be way different. Of course the related (and larger) problem is that few retailers are in a position to effectively leverage better data about their customers. Let's first motivate them to see the benefits, and then the data systems will naturally improve.
- Posted on: 12/02/2019
Mobile jumps out as retailers get a mixed start to the holiday seasonCount me in as skeptical, unimpressed, and confused. The picture above shows someone shopping on a tablet, not a mobile phone. Big difference! Do tablets count towards mobile? If so,how about laptops? Seems like a lot of these analyses are relying on fairly arbitrary/meaningless distinctions. It's fine to talk about how online and in-store activities are supporting each other -- that's great. But must we (over)use "mobile," per se? I bet that the amount of sales volume attributable to mobile phones is far smaller than the numbers above suggest. In short, I suspect that we're making a lot out of a little here.
- Posted on: 11/07/2019
Why do digital transformations often fail?It's pretty simple: because the tech and the tactics get way out in front of the strategic reasons/benefits that motivate them. Retailers (and any other firm) will not find success with any kind of "transformation" initiative until they are truly ready to be transformed -- and have some sense of how the transformed version of the firm will operate. Most retailers, at heart, want to run the business the good old way, with the hope that the digital stuff will help them keep chugging along. They're not willing/able to adapt to the strategic demands of the new reality. (Self-serving plug: "The Customer Centricity Playbook”) Figure out -- and truly commit to -- the right strategy, and the digital transformation aspects will make a lot more sense.
- Posted on: 09/20/2019
Is AI at the center of the retail technology universe?"Is AI at the center of the retail technology universe?" I sure hope the answer is no! Meaningful insights about buyers and buying patterns should be at the center (and all too often, this isn't the case). But that's different from the tools that enable them. It's just a rebirth of the same old 1990s fuss (and, ultimately, frustration) about CRM -- it was going to change everything, but the focus on the tools ended up blocking out the focus on their purpose. So count me as a pessimist here: the same thing will happen with AI.
- Posted on: 08/22/2019
Will shoppers thank heaven for mobile checkout at 7-Eleven?Beyond the obvious benefit of speed/convenience, there's the more subtle (but equally powerful) one: granular customer-level data. Traditionally, c-stores have been at the tail end of the data-driven retail revolution in their ability to really understand their customers and find ways to build better relationships with them. Mobile checkout can be a huge step forward to enable them to finally embrace customer-centricity and better align their offerings with the wants and needs of their best customers. So it's not just the shoppers "thanking heaven" in this case -- but even more so for the c-store retailers themselves!
- Posted on: 03/27/2019
Wayfair takes a bigger step into brick and mortar retailingThe e-commerce fantasy world of finding glory by losing lots of money does not work in the real (brick-and-mortar) world. Several of the comments (especially the one from Neil Saunders) focus on this key point. Wayfair is hemorrhaging cash and their outlook is getting worse every quarter (shrinking margins, increasing acquisition costs). It won't be long before Wayfair is the subject of jokes and scorn, similar to its idealistic (and fiscally irresponsible) dot-com predecessors such as Pets.com.
- Posted on: 01/02/2019
Why are retailers publishing paid-subscription magazines?This is a very promising trend -- and I hope it doesn't stop with print magazines. It's a great way to get retailers to change their mindsets from being "sellers of stuff" towards being "builders of meaningful, multi-faceted relationships with select customers." Or, in other words, the shift from product- to customer-centricity. This is vitally important for retailers to master -- not just a box to check in order to keep up with their rivals.
- Posted on: 12/13/2018
Retailing success doesn’t depend on silver bulletsThe top two comments here (by Min-Jee and Bob) say it all: the value created for (and extracted from) most customers has got to exceed the value invested in them. And yes, it's hard work to figure that out and do it consistently. But it also takes a lot of discipline: don't "give in" to a particular customer just because they make a lot of noise, or because of some old-fashioned notion that they'll suddenly become a great customer after you satisfy them. The key takeaway here is that value creation happens at the *customer* level, not the *transaction* level. It's about CLV developed over time, not revenue collected at a particular moment. Doing that is hard, but it starts with a very different mindset than most retailers (and store managers) currently utilize.
- Posted on: 06/13/2018
The question for today’s retailers: What business are you in?The answers here reveal a very interesting pattern: in the first 21 posts, there are 15 mentions of "experience," but only one reference to "relationship." That's the problem with retail today: too much focus on the former and not enough on the latter. Giving out glasses of champagne is not a business model. Building relationships can be one.
- Posted on: 05/11/2018
The importance of prioritizing high(er)-value customersYes, yes, yes! This is the key to sustainable growth in today's highly competitive (and data-driven) era. Let's all celebrate CLV day next Monday. (Get it? CLV=155 in Roman numerals, and Monday is the 15th day of the 5th month....) All the other stuff we chatter about (e.g., customer experience, in-store technology, personalization, and branding) follows after you get good at customer valuation. But too many retailers are getting the cart before the horse by jumping into those tactics without a clear understanding of how their customers differ and which ones are likely to be the best in the future.
- Posted on: 05/03/2018
Do retailers need to update customer persona development?No no no! Focusing on buyer personas is pretty much like relying on horoscopes. Retailers should move far away from them and focus more on the gritty reality of their actual customers and the vast differences across them. As long as retailers focus on personas, they will continue to get steamrolled by Amazon.
- Posted on: 03/20/2018
Will it always be about price for Gen Z?Most of this generational marketing stuff is utter nonsense. At best, marketers are just making up harmless stereotypes, but at worst, these one-size-fits-all pronouncements become destructive self-fulfilling prophecies. Given the quality of the data and analytical capabilities that we have today, why are we still legitimizing this kind of broad-based stereotyping -- and making big decisions based on it?
- Posted on: 01/02/2018
Is Walmart aiming for a new customer with personalized text shopping?I'm right there with all the other folks here who have said "great idea but why that subgroup?" This kind of demographic targeting is a terrible idea in this day and age. Why not offer this interesting service to all of their highest CLV customers -- and then learn which ones are most responsive to it? It's ironic to see an initiative that is so technologically advanced in one respect, but so terribly backwards in another.
- Posted on: 12/26/2017
Is ‘brick mining’ valuable enough to justify physical stores?Of course not! I'm as strong a proponent as anyone for retailers to fully leverage point-of-sale (and other in-store) data, but that's not reason enough to have physical stores. So the question is a bit absurd as it is phrased here, but I do hope that all retailers will make it a high-priority New Year's resolution to start using their data more effectively. My advice:
- Make bigger/better investments in systems that allow for clean tagging/tracking of customers at a granular level.
- Focus primarily on simple transaction data -- don't get distracted by less-direct sources such as geolocation, social media usage and shopper characteristics.
- Carefully test predictive analytics (such as customer lifetime value) instead of relying on purely backwards-looking/descriptive metrics.
- Segment and target customers based on these forward-looking metrics instead of demographics, etc.
- Do this repeatedly -- the real learning and value arises over time, as you look across different cohorts of customers to see what tends to distinguish the best customers (and what tends to make them even better).
- Posted on: 11/08/2017
Big Data is done, put a fork in itI'm as strong an advocate as you can get for "Small Data," i.e., squeezing as much value/insight as possible about simple transaction log data before turning to more elaborate "Big Data" schemes. But that doesn't mean that Big Data is done -- quite to the contrary, the real era of Big Data hasn't even started yet. Once we master the art and science of Small Data, we'll finally be in a position to start to properly leverage Big Data, in ways that most retailers can't even imagine today. It's a lot like CRM: people were writing off CRM systems (literally and figuratively) 15 years ago because they weren't yet in a position to make strategic decisions that required it. But today we know that CRM is the bare minimum pf what you need for customer-centric success. Big Data will have a similar resurgence in a few years. But first retailers really need to get started with the Small Data revolution that is right at their doorstep and ready to happen ... | https://retailwire.com/author/peter-fader/ |
Physical Science introduces students to key concepts and theories that provide a foundation for further study in advanced science disciplines. It comprises the systematic study of the physical world as it relates to fundamental concepts about matter, energy and motion. Students will gain an understanding of phenomena in physical, earth and space systems, along with historical perspective and mathematical reasoning. We will examine science through research, class investigative labs, collecting and analyzing data, creating models, group activities and presentation projects.
Materials: | https://renewchristianacademy.com/classes/physical-science/ |
Children regularly walk with traffic nearby, which can be incredibly dangerous (especially when one considers the number of intoxicated drivers on the road and the prevalence of speeding). Moreover, certain roads can be particularly dangerous for young pedestrians, such as those which do not offer key safety features such as reduced speed limits and infrastructure that accommodates the needs of pedestrians. It is important for communities, schools and parents to be aware of the dangers that children face while walking and take steps to prevent these accidents.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has outlined some measures that can be taken to lessen the likelihood of a pedestrian accident involving a child. For example, schools should have programs in place that educate children about the dangers they face on the road. Traffic enforcement near schools is critical, and crossings, as well as sidewalks in these areas, should be suitable for young pedestrians. It is also very helpful for young pedestrians to be escorted to school by volunteers or parents.
There are other steps that can be taken to reduce the chances of a pedestrian accident for children and pedestrians of all ages. For example, raised sidewalks, sufficient chances to cross the road safely, raised sidewalks and pedestrian signals that are audible can make the roads much safer for pedestrians. Tragically, pedestrian accidents will keep happening, no matter how many preventative measures are taken. Many lives have been lost due to these accidents and far more pedestrians have sustained debilitating injuries in accidents across the country, often because of careless drivers. | https://www.healanlaw.com/blog/2019/10/how-can-pedestrian-accidents-involving-children-be-prevented/ |
A man went swimming with his friends in Raystown Lake earlier this week and unfortunately never made it back to shore. Troopers say he drowned near the Seven Points area, but this accident didn’t need to happen.
Two Rangers discussed safety protocols that could’ve made a difference in this tragedy. 20-year-old Douggreco Bailey went swimming with his friends in Raystown Lake Wednesday, but unlike his friends, Bailey didn’t make it to shore.
Witnesses say they last saw him swimming to shore. For hours, Volunteer Fire Fighters and First Responders searched for Bailey. Eventually, they found his body. Allen Gwinn, a Park Ranger at Raystown Lake saying: “When you’re swimming in deep water, if you’re jumping off the boat, if you’re trying to go from one place to another and the water is kind of deep, if you can’t stand up, you should wear a life jacket because that life jacket…if you get in trouble, you can’t swim far enough or you have some type of unexpected incident, the life jacket will bring you back up to the surface where we can get emergency services and response to you to help. That would’ve been the case here.”
Earlier this year, another similar tragedy happened at Canoe Creek State Park in Blair County. Both have one thing in common – neither victim wore a life jacket. Park Rangers say that life jacket can save your life. Jenna Conner, another Park Ranger at Raystown Lake saying: “Yep, sometimes it can, it really depends on the situation that occurred, you know, the incident that occurred, where they went down, what they were doing when they experienced when they got in trouble. So yeah, there’s a lot of instances.”
And when an emergency like this happens, you have to act fast. Conner adding: “Just calling in, again, all of that emergency personnel, making sure we get enough people there to help because ultimately, the more bodies on the ground, usually the better.”
And that was exactly what went down last week. Park Ranger Allen Gwinn adding: “In this particular case, when someone’s in trouble, they typically will call 9-1-1, 9-1-1 dispatcher alerts the emergency services, alerts us, and we respond to the incident, and then we team up to provide whatever services are needed in that particular situation to get the, the best care and the quickest care that we can to, to the victim.”
Rangers say this was the only death at the Lake this year. | https://www.fox8tv.com/newspost/raystown-lake-drowning/ |
The past weekend, tens of thousands of members of the Global Catholic Climate Movement participated in the Global Climate March around the world. Carrying banners and signs that read ‘Hear the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor,’ they endeavoured to put Laudato Si into action and showcase the moral imperative of taking action on climate change.
Cardinal Hummes acknowledged these efforts in an Op-Ed that was published on Sunday, “Here [Paris] and around the globe, in interfaith and secular events including today’s massive Global Climate Marches, Catholic climate activists are holding hands with their brothers and sisters from many faith communities – including other Christian denominations, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and so many others. From Sao Paulo to Berlin, from London to Manila, together they cry out for the planet, for the poor and the indigenous, and for future generations so that the world may know peace.”
Here are some highlights:
– Cardinal Hummes delivered the Pope’s shoes in the “Shoes March” in Paris. See pictures and story of Cardinal Hummes with the Pope’s shoes.
– Beautiful, colorful, festive marches took place in more than a dozen cities in the Philippines with thousands of Catholics, most often preceded in the wee hours of the morning by a mass.
– In the small Amazonian town of Tena, Ecuador, 200 people came out in the streets to speak with one voice on the importance of preserving their beautiful homeland – the Amazonian rainforest basin – for all generations and all people.
– The British Catholic community joined a massive march of over 50,000 people inLondon, led by the Catholic charitable organization CAFOD.
– In Lahore, Pakistan, a GCCM partner of Islamic faith lead an Interfaith prayer vigil by candlelight leading people of multiple faiths to pray for peace and solidarity.
– In the tiniest state in the United States, marchers in Westerly, Rhode Island led by Madeline Labriola, a retired religious, marched to six churches of different denominations, stopping and praying for peace and the COP21 at each one.
– In Jakarta, Indonesia, Father Paulus Rahmat led 3,000 marchers wearing face masks to emphasize the need to care for the air we breath, water we drink and atmosphere that surrounds us.
Tomás Insua, Global Coordinator, Global Catholic Climate Movement, said: “As Pope Francis well reminds us, climate change is a profound moral crisis and a matter of justice towards the poor and future generations. That is why the Catholic community is mobilizing at a massive scale demanding climate justice, by collecting more than 600,000 Catholic Climate Petition signatures for world leaders in Paris and by joining the Global Climate March in all major cities around the world.”
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How To Choose the Right Solar Inverter for Your Home? | https://blueandgreentomorrow.com/environment/cop21-thousands-of-catholics-join-pope-francis-for-global-climate-march/ |
The world’s greatest marathoner faces a fired-up Farah in the UK capital and neither will be backing down without a fight
Given his incredible track record on the roads, not many would bet against Eliud Kipchoge winning a fourth title at the Virgin Money London Marathon on Sunday.
The stats speak for themselves. Beaten only once over the marathon distance, the Kenyan’s 10 wins include 2016 Olympic victory and world record-breaking success in Berlin, plus there’s the 2:00:25 he ran for 26.2 miles at the non-record-eligible Breaking2 time trial in Monza in 2017.
Kipchoge, however, does believe he is beatable.
“Anybody can be beaten,” said the world record-holder, preparing to return to marathon action for the first time since his remarkable time of 2:01:39 in the German capital last September.
“Mo can beat me, others can beat me, but the best thing is that if you can accept the results, that’s the only way to enjoy the sport.”
While the field features six other sub-2:05 runners, it’s Kipchoge vs Mo Farah which is being billed as the big head-to-head in the UK capital, as the Briton aims to build on his maiden major marathon win in Chicago where he broke the European record with 2:05:11.
October’s Chicago race was 10-time global track gold medallist Farah’s third marathon and Kipchoge admitted to being surprised and motivated by his progress.
“I’m really surprised that [Mo] is learning so fast,” he said. “As far as the sport is concerned, he is a fast learner. It doesn’t worry me, but it makes me get interested in him because that’s what you want in sport; it’s what helps you perform.
“I am coming to London to win the race and defend my title. If I can win again in London, I will be a happy man because it will be my first race after running the world record.”
Farah made a strong statement by breaking the British record to finish third in the UK capital behind Kipchoge and Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata last year, with his decision to stick with the leaders despite the brutal early pace paying off.
Kitata also returns to race, while they will be joined by athletes including Kenya’s Wilson Kipsang, who beat Kipchoge over 26.2 miles in 2013 when he broke the world record in Berlin.
Others with PBs faster than Farah’s 2:05:11 are Ethiopia’s Chicago runner-up Mosinet Geremew (2:04:00), Valencia Marathon champion Leul Gebrselassie (2:04:02), world silver medallist Tamirat Tola (2:04:06) and Amsterdam runner-up Mule Wasihun (2:04:37).
At the pre-event press conference, 61:20-61:25 was mentioned as a potential target halfway split time for the leading men’s group, with 61:00 clocked at that stage last year.
“My aim is to win the London Marathon one day, that is my task, but you can’t take anything for granted because Eliud is a great athlete and he’s the world record-holder – 2:01. On Sunday, if I do beat him, and it comes down to that, it would be an amazing achievement,” said Farah.
On whether he’d again stick with the lead group at that pace, he added: “I’ll have a chat with my coach and see what we can do. If I’m feeling good, then why not?
“Chicago was 2:05, I know I can run 2:05, I know I can run 2:04-something. I’ve done some great training over the last few months.
“I’m learning as I go along. The marathon is completely different to the track. Since racing against Eliud in London last year and having to learn the hard way – I believe I’ve learned a lot. Each race you get better and get a bit more experience.”
Away from road race action, Farah’s head-to-head with Kipchoge wasn’t the only clash hitting the headlines on Wednesday as a dispute over an alleged theft led to a public spat between Farah and Ethiopian running great Haile Gebrselassie. Read more here. | https://www.athleticsweekly.com/athletics-news/eliud-kipchoge-and-mo-farah-braced-for-london-marathon-battle-1039922168/ |
BEIJING — China will endeavor to make new breakthroughs in reform this year and continue to unleash and develop productive forces, Premier Li Keqiang said on March 5.
“It now remains a game-changing move for us to achieve China’s two centenary goals,” the Premier said.
Reforms will be advanced in State capital and State-owned enterprises (SOEs). “Our SOEs should, through reform and innovation, become front-runners in pursuing high-quality development,” he said.
Reforms introducing mixed ownership in SOEs will be carried forward prudently, according to Premier Li.
The development of private enterprises will also be supported, he said, pledging to fully implement all policies and measures in support of non-public sectors, earnestly address salient problems that concern private companies, and take firm action to remove hidden barriers.
China will improve property rights systems, the cornerstone of a socialist market economy, as well as mechanisms for market-based allocation of the factors of production.
Meanwhile, the country will continue structural fiscal and tax reforms, speed up reforms in the financial sector, advance institutional social reforms and build a more robust system for developing an ecological civilization.
“We will improve local tax systems, and prudently advance legislation on the real estate tax,” the Premier said, adding that the government will also reform the personal income tax.
The financial service system will be reformed and improved, and efforts will focus on solving financing problems of small and micro enterprises.
China will deepen reforms to make the interest rate and exchange rate more market-based, and see that the RMB exchange rate remains generally stable at an adaptive and equilibrium level, he said.
For institutional social reform, the government will deepen reform in the old-age pension system, and establish a central system for enterprise employees’ basic old-age pension funds to be used inter-provincially.
Reforms will also be advanced in the healthcare sector and continued in sectors such as education, culture and sports.
To enhance ecological protection, China will reform and improve the ecological and environmental regulation system, strengthen regulation over the use of natural ecological spaces, roll out a compensation system for ecological and environmental damage, and improve the compensation mechanisms for ecological conservation. | http://english.gov.cn/premier/news/2018/03/05/content_281476067241603.htm |
We are seeking a Director, Sustainability Programs to join American Tower’s Sustainability group. The Director plays a pivotal role in managing the development, maintenance, and growth of an ongoing Digital Communities program, which is a major sustainability-focus of the Company.
Through the Digital Communities program, American Tower helps close the digital gap by leveraging our global tower footprint of more than 185,000 sites through Digital Villages. These are computer-equipped kiosks that use uninterrupted power supplies and broadband connections to provide communities with free education and technology training and access to digital services such as telehealth and e-governance. The Director focuses on scaling the program across American Tower’s global markets to deepen capabilities and services available at each Digital Community center. Using strong project management, coordination, communication, and integration skills, the Director’s role will ultimately evolve into a lead operational one managing the network of Digital Communities.
The Director will also undertake a significant role in guiding the evolution and maturation of sustainability-related policies and help establish the strategic direction for the global sustainability program through analytics and training. The incumbent directly reports to the Chief Sustainability Officer and will identify new opportunities for the global sustainability programs and implementing operational improvements as the program grows.
The position provides the opportunity to work efficiently and effectively across functions and regions to establish new, and enhance existing, sustainability programs. The role also affords the opportunity to work with senior executives on global sustainability committees, across international operational teams, as well as with members of the Public Affairs, Innovation, and Human Resources departments. Our Core Principles (https://www.americantower.com/us/company/vision-mission-and-core-principles.html) are the foundation of our culture, and we’re focused on achieving continued success by thinking long-term, leading with values, and creating value with decisions.
What You Can Offer Us
Support, develop, facilitate, and manage the Digital Communities program, along with the Chief Sustainability Officer, the Digital Communities organization, and American Tower Foundation. Provide project updates, reports, goals, and milestones achieved.
Collaborate with key stakeholders and partners on the Public Affairs team to build partnerships to scale the Digital Communities program.
Spearhead and facilitate internal sustainability committees around the Company’s global operations, including organizing, tracking information, developing success metrics, and analyzing and creating reports of regional-level strategic plans and sustainability projects.
Collaborate with Innovation department teams on energy-related projects and facilitate communication among key stakeholders.
Perform regular assessments of new and existing business processes, including resource and collaboration needs across markets, to organize and advance the global sustainability program.
Provide practical and timely advice to global stakeholders to determine process improvements by implementing market best practices.
Manage responses to data subject requests ( e.g ., completing customer audits, data reporting requests, etc .).
Provide subject matter expertise and guidance to the sustainability committees.
Keep abreast on best practices, trends, and new standards in sustainability for health and safety, environment, etc .
Develop and review content for sustainability training materials, guidance documents, and other communications to increase employees’ understanding of and further awareness in sustainability throughout the Company.
Other duties as assigned.
What You Need to Succeed
Bachelor’s degree required; sustainability-related degree, MBA, Juris Doctor, or other advanced degree preferred.
Between 10–15 years in positions of increasing responsibility.
Exposure to or experience with sustainability preferred.
Strong program management and organizational skills; ability to accomplish multiple tasks within the agreed upon timeframes through effective prioritization of duties and functions in a fast-paced environment.
Strong leadership skills; ability to drive and motivate others to achieve results.
Knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.
Approximately 15% travel may be required to support the position’s responsibilities.
Strong written and oral communication skills and attention to detail, including the ability to present ideas and suggestions clearly and effectively.
Ability to work with different internal functional groups and levels of employees, to effectively and professionally achieve results.
American Tower is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against an applicant or employee based on age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, color, creed, religion, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, marital status, familial status, disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law.
American Tower (the “Company”) is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a diverse workforce. The Company is committed to a policy of equal employment and will not discriminate against an applicant or associate based on his or her age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, color, creed, religion, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, marital status, familial status, physical or mental disability, handicap, military or veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy or any other category protected under federal, state or local law, regulation or ordinance.
To ensure reasonable accommodation for individuals protected by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Veterans’ Readjustment Act of 1974, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, applicants that require accommodation in the job application process can contact us at (617) 587-7911 for assistance. | https://mass-it.jobs/boston-ma/director-sustainability-programs/03A7381B3DC14986AAAD300BA4456E1C/job/?vs=28 |
The next headings consist of information on necessary factors for assortment and right utilization of gearbox.
For distinct information over the gearbox range,see the appropriate chapters.
1.0 OUTPUT TORQUE
one.1 Rated output torque
Mn2 [Nm]
The torque that may be transmitted constantly as a result of the output shaft, using the gear unit operated underneath a support factor fs = 1.
one.2 Expected torque
Mr2 [Nm]
The torque demand primarily based on application requirement. It really is advised to get equal to or much less than torque Mn2 the gearbox underneath examine is rated for.
one.3 Calculated torque
Mc2 [Nm]
Computational torque worth to get made use of when choosing the gearbox.
It’s calculated taking into consideration the required torque Mr2 and services aspect fs, as per the partnership right here immediately after:Mc2 = Mr2 ?¡è fs ?¨¹ Mn2
2.0 Energy
2.1 Rated input electrical power
Pn1 [kW]
The parameter is often identified inside the gearbox rating charts and represents the KW that can be safely transmitted for the gearbox, based mostly on input pace n1 and service aspect fs= 1.
2.2 Rated output electrical power
Pn2 [kW]
This worth is the energy transmitted at gearbox output. it may possibly be calculated together with the following formulas:
Pn2 = Pn1 ?¡è |?d
Pn2= Mn2*n2/9550
3.0 EFFICIENCY
Efficiency is really a parameter which has a major influence about the sizing of sure applications, and in essence is determined by gear pair designelements. The mesh data table on page 9 displays dynamic efficiency (n1=1400)and static efficiency values.
Remember that these values are only achieved after the unit continues to be run in and is in the doing work temperature.
three.1 Dynamic efficiency
[|?d]
The dynamic efficiency would be the romantic relationship of power delivered at output shaft P2 to electrical power applied at input shaft P1:
|?d =P2/P1
three.2 Static efficiency[|?s]
Efficiency obtained at start-up on the gearbox. Although this really is usually not important aspect for helical gears, it might be rather essential when deciding on worm gearmotors working underneath intermittent duty.
4.0 Services Element
The services issue (fs ) depends upon the operating ailments the gearbox is subjected on the parameters that have to be taken into consideration to select quite possibly the most adequate servies component appropriately comprise:
1. type of load in the operated machine : A – B – C
2. length of everyday operating time: hours/day(?¡Â)
3. start-up frequency: starts/hour (*)
Sort of LOAD: A – uniform,fa?¨¹0.three
B – moderate shocks, fa?¨¹3
C – heavy shocks, fa?¨¹10
fa=Je/Jm
–Je(kgm2) second from the external inertia decreased at the drive shaft
–Jm(kgm2) minute of inertia of motor
–If fa>10 please get in touch with our Technical Support
A -Screw feeders for light elements, followers, assembly lines, conveyor belts for light supplies, modest mixers, lifts, cleaning machines, fillers, manage machines.
B -Winding units, woodworking machine feeders, products lifts, balancers,threading machines, medium mixers, conveyor belts for heavy components,winches, sliding doors, fertilizer scrapers, packing machines, concrete mixers, crane mechanisms, milling cutters, folding machines, gear pumps.
C -Mixers for heavy materials, shears, presses, centrifuges, rotating supports, winches and lifts for hefty products, grinding lathes, stone mills, bucket elevators, drilling machines, hammer mills, cam presses, folding machines, turntables, tumbling barrels, vibrators, shredders.
The next headings consist of information on necessary factors for assortment and right utilization of gearbox. | http://bellows-coupling.com/jdlb-make-choice/ |
Ignoring the risks of Macro EventsPratik Mate
The Russian army’s invasion of Ukraine is the latest macro event that has investors concerned about equity markets. It is also the latest macro event that most investors would do well to ignore. We worry about specific, prominent issues because we want to protect against the losses that may occur if our worst fears are realised. The irony is the most sure-fire way for investors to make consistent and substantial losses is by jumping from one high profile risk to the next, making consistently poor decisions along the way.
We have all seen the charts depicting the benefits of taking a long-term approach to equity investing. They show how markets have produced strong returns in-spite of wars, recessions, and pandemics. They are a great illustration of the benefits of a long-term approach, but they don’t tell us everything. What they fail to show is all those critical issues that worried investors but never came to pass. We are always wondering about the next great risk to markets; the key to successful investing is finding ways of drowning out this noise.
Even though we can be certain that there are some events that will cause dramatic (short-term) losses for risky assets; ignoring them is absolutely the best course of action for most long-term investors. This is for a host of reasons:
We cannot predict future events: Pre-emptively acting to deal with prominent risks that pose a threat to our portfolios requires us to make accurate forecasts about the future. Something that humans are notoriously terrible at.
We don’t know how markets will respond: We don’t only need to forecast a particular event; we also need to understand how markets will react to it. What is in the price? How will investors in aggregate react? Even if we get lucky on point one, there is no guarantee we will accurately anticipate the financial market consequences. It is worth pausing to reflect on these first two reasons. Forecasting events and their impact on markets is an unfathomably complex problem to solve. We are incredibly unlikely to succeed in it.
We are poor at assessing high profile risks: We tend to judge risks not by how likely they are to come to pass, but how salient they are. This a real problem for macro events because the attention they receive makes them inescapable, so we greatly overweight their importance in our thinking and decision making..
We need to be consistently right: Even if we strike lucky and are correct in adjusting our portfolio for a particular event, that’s not enough – we need to keep being right. Over the long-run being right about any individual prominent macro event is probably more dangerous than being wrong, because it will urge us to do it again.
If we find ourselves consistently worried about the next major risk that threatens markets, there are four steps we should take:
1) Reset our expectations: Investing in risky assets means that we will experience periods of severe losses. These are not something we can avoid. They are the reason why the returns of higher risk assets should be superior over time. We cannot have the long-term rewards without bearing the short-term costs.
2) Check we are holding the right investments: The caveat to ignoring the risks of major macro events is that we are sensibly invested in a manner that is consistent with our long-term objectives
3) Engage less with financial markets and news: There is no better way to insulate ourselves from short-term market noise and become a better long-term investor than to stay away from financial markets. Stop checking our portfolio so frequently and switch off the financial news.
4) Educate ourselves about behaviour, not macro and markets: What really matters to investors is not the latest macro event or recent markets moves, but the quality of our behaviour and decision making.
Source: Most Investors Should Ignore the Risk of Major Macro Events By Joe Wiggins
Asset Multiplier Comments:
- Macro Events are a recurring feature of the markets, trying to anticipate when they will occur, rather than accepting them as an expected feature of long-term investing, will inevitably lead to worse outcomes.
- Provided we are appropriately diversified, the real investment risk stemming from major macro events is not the issue itself but our behavioural response to it – the hasty decisions we are likely to make because of the fears we hold.
- Long Term Investors are better off not being bothered by macro events and it’d serve them well to not check their Portfolio Performance daily to avoid unwise decisions. | https://www.assetmultiplier.co.in/blog/2022/02/24/ignoring-the-risks-of-macro-events/ |
Not homework, but something I'm interested in finding out. The setup is a flexible wire with left endpoint fixed at [itex]x=0[/itex] and right endpoint at [itex]x=L[/itex]. You push the right endpoint with some horizontal force directed towards the left endpoint which will move the right endpoint to a position [itex]x=L-a[/itex] and cause the wire to deform and bend into some sort of downwards-facing parabola thing. What I want to know is what function actually describes the shape of the wire.
Homework Equations
Material from classical mechanics, hopefully.
The Attempt at a Solution
I believe that the solution might have something to do with the principle of stationary action. My original idea was to simply find the function of minimum arc length that joins two points, with the constraint that the arc length has to be greater than just the straight line distance between the two points using what little I know about calculus of variations. I couldn't figure out how to actually impose that constraint though, I just kept getting [itex]f(x)=mx+b[/itex]. Then I tried to use an approach similar to the derivation of the wave equation where you consider a small chunk of the wire, resolve the tensions, and then use some shrewd approximations to get an equation out of it. This didn't work though, because all I ended up doing was finding the wave equation again. I think there might be other forces besides the tension on a small chunk since the wire will want to return to a straight line so I could maybe throw in a spring-like force but I wouldn't really know where to put it.
Thanks for any suggestions. | https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/what-shape-will-a-bent-wire-take.603156/ |
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/772,303 filed on 10 Feb. 2006.
This invention pertains generally to feed formulations and the bioavailability of nutrients to animals raised in aquaculture and, more particularly, to a microencapsulated nucleotide formulation that resists degradation in water and provides active nucleotides to the animal.
Aquaculture has played an increasingly significant role in the production of food as the world population continues to expand. The ability of the aquaculture industry to meet future production needs will depend on improved farming techniques and improved profitability to justify the investment in infrastructure. There is also an increasing need for intensive commercial farming of food fish, crustaceans, sport fish and other marine animals for restocking natural bodies of water to alleviate the pressures of over-fishing and/or the loss of natural habitat.
Commercial aquaculture can take the form of offshore cages or screened pens that take de of the natural tidal flow of water through the system to remove waste advantage and provide oxygenated water to support the animals in a protected, predator-free environment. Other forms of aquaculture take place inland in semi-closed or closed systems of tanks; ponds or raceways. Controlling the water temperature and oxygenation along with suitable natural and artificial feeds can assist to optimize growth conditions.
The juvenile and adult stages of many farmed aquatic animals can benefit from specialized feeds that support growth and aid in survivability and vitality of the particular type of animal. It will be seen that the controlled environment in aquaculture permits the introduction of additives to feeds that can stimulate growth, provide disease resistance and reduce mortality during development thereby maximizing yields and improving profitability. However, many potential feed supplements are water soluble or subject to degradation or Consumption by waterborne bacteria and the like and, therefore, do not have the intended effect on the cultured animals. There is a need for a low cost feed formulation that permits the efficient delivery of desired supplements to the digestive system of animals without significant losses.
A general object of the invention is to provide a nucleotide-containing feed supplement having improved resistance to degradation or leaching in aquatic environments.
A more specific object of the invention is to overcome one or more of the problems described above.
The general object of the invention can be obtained, at least in part, through a feed supplement comprising a core including at least one nucleotide and a coating material, the nucleotide core encapsulated within the coating material. In accordance with certain embodiments, the core can further include an immune system stimulating compound and/or a growth stimulating compound. The feed supplement can have a water stability of from about 3 minutes to about 3 hours.
The prior art generally fails to provide nucleotide-containing feed supplements which exhibit enhanced water stability. Further, the prior art generally fails to provide a feed supplement including a nucleotide-containing core microencapsulated within a coating material which can be mixed or combined with a nutrient base or feed material to deliver desired supplements to the digestive system of aquatic animals with reduced loss of the supplements to the surrounding environment. Additionally, the prior art fails to provide microencapsulated nucleotide feed supplements having increased water insolubility and increased efficacy in enhancing growth and well being of cultured organisms.
The invention further comprehends a method of making a feed supplement which involves preparing a core mixture including at least one nucleotide and a thickening agent, preparing a coating material, combining the core mixture with the coating material to form a microencapsulated nucleotide material, drying the microencapsulated nucleotide material, and grinding the dried microencapsulated nucleotide material to form the feed supplement.
The invention still further comprehends a feed formulation including a nutrient base and a microparticulate nucleotide supplement. The microparticulate nucleotide supplement includes a core material encapsulated within a protein coating material. In accordance with certain embodiments, the core material can include one or more nucleotides and/or oligonucleotides alone or in combination with a thickening agent. The microparticulate nucleotide supplement can include about 20% to about 60% core material and about 30% to about 80% protein coating material.
The invention additionally comprehends a microencapsulated nucleotide supplement including about 1% to about 50% of at least one nucleotide, about 1% to about 30% of a thickening agent, and about 30% to about 70% of a protein coating material. In accordance with certain embodiments, the microencapsulated nucleotide supplement can further include about 0.01% to about 50% of an immune system stimulating compound and/or a growth stimulating compound.
As used herein the term “microencapsulated” refers to a particle or droplet of material surrounded by a coating to give or form small capsules or microcapsules. The material inside of a microcapsule can be referred to as a core, internal phase or fill. The coating surrounding the particle or droplet can be alternatively referred to as a wall, shell or membrane. The shape and surface, texture of the microcapsules can be smooth and/or spherical or, alternatively, can be rough and/or irregular.
Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the examples and the appended claims.
The invention provides a nucleotide-containing feed supplement having improved resistance to degradation and/or leaching in aquatic environments. Such feed supplements typically include at least one nucleotide microencapsulated within a coating material.
Nucleotides are the building blocks of tissue RNA, DNA and ATP used in fast multiplying cells during growth and/of in an immune response. According to one aspect of the invention; an aquaculture feed formulation is provided that is supplemented with nucleotides for RNA, DNA and combinations thereof. The nucleotides can be provided alone or in combination with amino acids proteins and other essential nutrients or compounds that have been shown to stimulate growth and/or provide disease resistance.
Dietary nucleotides have been shown to improve feed uptake by some animals and enhance the morphology of the intestinal tract resulting in improved utilization of the feed. In some animals, dietary nucleotides can significantly improve disease resistance by supporting the immune system of the animal. One limitation to the use of nucleotides as a dietary supplement in aquaculture feeds is the ability to deliver sufficient quantities of biologically active nucleotides to the digestive system to be absorbed and used by the animal.
In accordance with the invention, a feed supplement or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement includes a core including at least one nucleotide and a coating, the nucleotide core microencapsulated within the coating. Advantageously, the core includes a nucleotide preparation comprising select, purified nucleotides alone or in combination with other proteins, amino acids, nucleotide precursors, medicines and/or other beneficial compounds. Suitable nucleotides include monophosphate nucleotides, such as, for example, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), cytidine monophosphate (CMP), uridine monophosphate (UMP), guanosine monophosphate (GMP), inosine 5′-monophosphate (IMP), uracil; oligonucleotides, and combinations thereof. In general, the core can include about 10% to about 60% by weight of at least one nucleotide. In accordance with certain embodiments, the core can include about 30% to about 60% by weight of at least one nucleotide or about 40% to about 50% by weight of at least one nucleotide.
The core can additionally include an immune system stimulating or immunopotentiating compound. In general, the core can include an immune system stimulating compound selected from beta-glucans, chitin, peptidoglycans, saponins and combinations thereof. Other immunopotentiating compounds which can be used in the core include various prebiotic and/or probiotic compounds whose effectiveness may be enhanced by microencapsulation.
In accordance with certain embodiments, the core can include about 0.01% to about 50% by weight of an immune system stimulating compound, or about 0.01% to about 25% by weight of an immune system stimulating compound or about 0.01% to about 2.5% by weight of an immune system stimulating compound. For example, in accordance with one embodiment, the core can include about 0.01% to about 2.5% by weight beta-glucans.
Some growth stimulating or supporting compounds such as, for example, amino acids and Many vitamins, may not be available for use in feed formulations dispersed in water because of the inability to deliver sufficient or efficacy quantities of such compounds to the animals. However, it has been discovered that such biologically active compounds can be effectively delivered through microencapsulation.
Accordingly, the core can further include growth stimulating or supporting compounds such as, for example; amino acids, hormones, and/or pharmaceutical compositions or drugs such as, for example, levamisole. Other biologically active compounds such as, for example, prebiotic, probiotic and/or other water soluble compounds which would benefit from microencapsulation can also be included in the core.
In accordance with certain embodiments, the core can include about 0.01% to about 60% by weight of a growth stimulating compound or about 1% to about 60% by weight of a growth stimulating compound or about 2.5% to about 50% by weight of a growth stimulating compound
The core can be in the form of a solid material such as, for example, a particulate or crystalline material, a liquid, an emulsion, a suspension of solids, and/or a suspension of smaller microcapsules. A thickening agent can be added to or combined with the at least one nucleotide to increase the viscosity of the core material and enhance or assist the microencapsulation process. Suitable thickening agents include, but are not limited to, cellulose derivatives such as, for example, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). In accordance with certain embodiments, the core can include about 30% to about 90% by weight thickening agent or about 30% to about 60% by weight thickening agent.
The core is advantageously surrounded or microencapsulated by a coating material which limits leaching of components from the core of the feed supplement into the water when fed to aquatic animals. Utilizing such a coating material to encapsulate and protect the core components can result in growth enhancement of fish, shrimp and/or other crustacean species when fed a feed supplement including a nucleotide preparation as described above.
In practice, any material that will provide a barrier to water for the core material but will degrade in the digestive system and release its contents after consumption by an animal can be used as a coating material. It will be understood that the coating materials can be varied to increase or decrease the half life of the coating within water as well as degradation with the digestive system of the animal.
Advantageously, the coating material can be selected to impart a desired level of water stability to the feed supplement. For example, the coating material may be selected to provide a feed supplement having a water stability of at least several minutes or about 3 minutes to about 3 hours or about 1 hour to about 3 hours. As used herein, the term “water stability” refers to the length of time during which the coating material of a microencapsulated nucleotide supplement remains intact and/or reduces leaching or dissolution of the core material into a surrounding aquatic environment.
Suitable coating materials include, but are not limited to, animal and/or vegetable proteins such as, for example, caseinate, soy concentrate, soy isolate, soy flour, wheat gluten, egg albumin, milk albumin, gelatin, zein (corn protein), whey protein concentrate and combinations thereof. In accordance with certain embodiments, the coating material can include a protein material such as, for example, casein, gelatin, whey protein concentrate and combinations thereof.
In general, the feed supplement or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement can include about 1% to about 60% by weight of at least one nucleotide and about 30% to about 99% by weight of a coating material such as, for example, a protein coating material. For example, the teed or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement can include about 20% to about 60% by weight of at least one nucleotide and about 30 to about 80% by weight of a coating material. In accordance with certain other embodiments, the feed or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement can include about 35% to about 60% by weight of at least one nucleotide and about 40% to about 65% by weight of a coating material. In accordance with certain additional embodiments, the feed supplement can also include about 1% to about 30% by weight of a thickening agent. For example, in accordance with one embodiment, the feed or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement can include about 1% to'about 50% by weight of at least one nucleotide, about 1% to about 30% by weight of a thickening agent and about 30% to about 65% by weight of a protein coating material. Such feed supplement can further include about 0.01% to about 50% by weight of an immune system stimulating compound and/or a growth stimulating compound.
The feed supplement can be prepared in a variety of particle sizes. Suitably, the particle size can be adjusted depending on the size of an associated diet for a target organism. For example, the particle size of the feed supplement can be adjusted to accommodate feeding of fish or crustaceans at various stages of development (e.g., for larval or juvenile aquatic organisms). Advantageously, the size of the feed supplement is selected such that it will not interfere with the taste and/or texture of an associated feed formulation so that the feed formulation will be attractive to fry and, therefore, consumed entirely.
In practice, the feed supplement can have a particle size in a range of about 20 microns to about 150 microns. In accordance with certain embodiments, the feed supplement can have a particle size in a range of about 20 microns to about 100 microns. In accordance with certain other embodiments, the feed supplement can have a particle size in a range of about 40 microns to about 100 microns in diameter.
In practice, the feed supplement can be included in or added to traditional feed formulations or diets such as, for example, an aquaculture feed formulations. In one embodiment, a feed formulation can include a nutrient base and a microparticulate nucleotide supplement including a cote material encapsulated within a protein coating material. Suitably, the core material includes at least one nucleotide and/or oligonucleotide alone or in combination with a thickening agent, an immune system stimulating compound and/or a growth stimulating compound. In accordance with certain embodiments, the microparticulate nucleotide supplement can include about 20% to about 50% by weight core material and about 40% to about 65% by weight protein coating material. Suitably, the feed formulation is produced with a density of less than about 1 gram/milliliter such that the feed can float in water.
A method for making the feed formulation involves combining or mixing the microparticulate nucleotide supplement with a nutrient base. Suitably, the nutrient base can be adapted for the physiology of unique aquatic animals. Advantageously, the microparticulate nucleotide supplement can be mixed or combined with a mineral and/or vitamin supplement to form a premix and the premix can be mixed into the nutrient base.
It will be understood that the encapsulation or coating process used to prepare feed supplement of the present invention can be varied to increase or decrease the half life of the coating in water as well as degradation within the digestive system of the animal.
A method of making a feed, microparticulate nucleotide, or microencapsulated nucleotide supplement in accordance with the invention involves preparing a core mixture including at least one nucleotide, preparing a coating material, combining the core mixture with the coating material to form a microencapsulated nucleotide material, drying the microencapsulated nucleotide material, and grinding the microencapsulated nucleotide material to form the feed supplement. In practice, the microencapsulated nucleotide material may be freeze-dried or spray-dried prior to grinding.
Alternatively, the feed supplement can be made using a spray-drying method. An advantage of preparing the feed supplement in this manner is the ability to handle labile materials because of the short contact time in the dryer. In certain embodiments, a method of making the feed supplement involves dissolving or suspending the nucleotide core materials in a melt or solution of the coating material and spray-drying the core/coating mixture such that core materials become trapped or encapsulated within the dried particles.
The present invention is described in further detail in connection with the following examples which illustrate or simulate various aspects involved in the practice of the invention. It is to be understood that all changes that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected and, thus, the invention is not considered to be limited by these examples.
Sciaenops ocellatus
Litopenaeus vannamei
As shown in TABLES 1-3, below, laboratory feeding trials have provided consistent positive results for one finfish species (red drum, ) and one crustacean species (Pacific white shrimp ) which constitute important aquaculture species around the world.
Feed Supplement Preparation:
1. 2 grams each of AMP, CMP, UMP, GMP and IMP were measured and mixed together to form a nucleotide premix.
2. 10 grams of the nucleotide premix was dissolved in 500 ml of water.
3. 25 grams of CMC was added to the water/nucleotide mixture and mixed until it formed a dough-like consistency.
4. A coating was prepared by adding 35 grams of gelatin into 500 ml of hot water and mixing thoroughly. 30 grams of casein was then added to the gelatin mixture.
5. The hot casein-gelatin mixture was poured into the nucleotide/CMC mixture and mixed thoroughly.
6. The mixture from step 5 was placed in an ultra cold freezer for one hour, then placed into freeze-dry jars and freeze-dried overnight.
7. The freeze-dried product was ground and sieved.
By way of example and not of limitation, a microencapsulated nucleotide supplement was prepared according to the following scheme:
The resulting microencapsulated nucleotide supplement contained about 2% AMP sodium, 2% CMP sodium, 2% GMP sodium, 2% UMP sodium, 2% IMP sodium, 25% CMC, 30% casein and 35% gelatin by weight.
Although a casein-gelatin coating is used in the preparation of the feed supplement, it will be understood that other coating materials may be used that can provide a barrier to water for the core materials, but will degrade in the digestive system and release its contents after consumption by the animal.
Litopenaeus vannamei
A growth trial was conduced at high stocking density in indoor tanks to evaluate nucleotide feed supplements in a semi-purified base diet. In the growth trial, diets were compared in terms of growth and survival of juvenile (Pacific white shrimp) after five weeks. High rates of water recirculation and exchange, i.e., 12 gallons per hour (GPH) and 2 gallons per minute (GPM), respectively, and aeration were used to insure that water quality was not limiting growth and survival. Natural feeds were not available in the culture system.
Two test diets and two base diets were evaluated in the study. The two base diets include 25% and 35% protein, respectively. The test diets were prepared by adding 0.4% of the microencapsulated nucleotide feed supplement described above to a base diet.
2
Shrimp fed the base diet and the test diet including microencapsulated nucleotide feed supplements were stocked at a density of 100 shrimp/m. Results of the study are presented in TABLE 1.
TABLE 1
Initial weight
(g)
Final weight (g)
Survival (%)
Dietary Protein (%)/
Nucleotide (%)
25/0
0.83 ± 0.06
10.44 ± 1.00
97.5 ± 7.9
35/0
0.84 ± 0.08
11.32 ± 1.32
90. ± 24.2
25/0.4
0.84 ± 0.04
10.96 ± 1.08
97.5 ± 7.9
35/0.4
0.88 ± 0.04
12.32 ± 1.31
95 ± 10.5
ANOVA Pr > F
Protein
0.314
0.005
0.277
Nucleotide
0.215
0.051
0.584
Protein × Nucleotide
0.409
0.531
0.584
Values represent means of ten replicates ± SD
As shown in TABLE 1, juvenile shrimp fed an aquaculture diet supplemented with the microencapsulated nucleotides supplement described above demonstrated increased weight gain and survivability as compared to juvenile shrimp fed a standard diet unsupplemented base diet.
Sciaenops ocellatus
A study was conducted to determine if, juvenile fed a base diet supplement with the microencapsulated nucleotide feed supplement described above would demonstrate increased weight gain, improved efficiency in nutrient uptake from feed and improved survival rates.
Sciaenops ocellatus
The growth and survival performance of juvenile (red drum fish) fed isonitrogenous basal diets containing about 30% to about 40% protein, with and without the microencapsulated nucleotide feed supplement described above, for 4 weeks was assessed: The results of this study are presented in TABLE 2.
TABLE 2
Diet
Weight gain (g)
Feed efficiency
Survival (%)
Basal
187.0 ± 5.9
0.87 ± 0.03
95.83 ± 1.86
Basal + Nucleotides
203.7 ± 3.0
0.93 ± 0.01
98.9 ± 1.1
ANOVA Pr > F
0.011
0.012
0.162
As shown in TABLE 2, juvenile Red Drum fish feed a basal diet supplement with microencapsulated nucleotides demonstrated increased weight gain, improved feed efficiency and enhanced survival rates compared to juvenile Red Drum fish fed a standard, unsupplemented diet.
Litopenaeus vannamei
A growth trial was conducted at high stocking density in indoor tanks to evaluate nucleotide feed additives in a semi-purified base diet containing 35% protein. In the growth trial, diets were compared in terms of growth and survival of juvenile after 42 days. At the conclusion of the trial, animals were evaluated with respect to immune response. Aeration and high rates of water recirculation and exchange were used to insure that water quality was not limiting to growth and survival. Natural feeds Were not available in the culture system.
2
2
Shrimp fed the nucleotide additives were stocked at a density of 100 shrimp/m. To document the effects of stocking at high density, a control treatment was stocked at a density of 10 shrimp/mand fed the base diet without any nucleotide additives.
2
Two additional treatments, stocked at both 10 and 100 shrimp/m, were fed a high quality commercial aquaculture diet, Rangen 45/10 available from Rangen, Inc., Buhl, Id., USA., as a control to confirm that the semi-purified diet was adequate for good growth and survival.
Litopenaeus vannamei
A total of ten diets, as shown in TABLE 3, were prepared and/or fed to juvenile . Experimental diets were prepared by adding encapsulated or nonencapsulated nucleotides to a semi-purified base diet containing 35% protein. The test groups were fed 15 times daily with an automatic feeder at a rate of 2.5 g/shrimp per week.
TABLE 3
%
Density
Label
Diet
Nucleotide
(Shrimp/m<sup>2</sup>)
EPG.1
Peng-Gatlin encapsulated pure
0.1
100
ERA.1
ROAN encapsulated practical A
0.1
100
ERA.4
ROAN encapsulated practical A
0.4
100
ERB.1
ROAN encapsulated practical B
0.1
100
ERB.4
ROAN encapsulated practical B
0.4
100
ERC.1
ROAN encapsulated practical C
0.1
100
ERC.4
ROAN encapsulated practical C
0.4
100
NER.1
ROAN nonencapsulated practical
0.1
100
NER.4
ROAN nonencapsulated practical
0.4
100
B*1
Base diet - 35% protein
0.0
10
B*10
Base diet - 35% protein
0.0
100
R*1
Rangen 45/10
0.0
10
R*10
Rangen 45/10
0.0
100
The Peng-Gatlin encapsulated diet (EPG.1) included 0.1% of the microencapsulated feed supplement described above added to a 35% protein semi-purified base diet. The ROAN encapsulated diets (ERA.1, ERA.4, ERB.1, ERB.4, ERC.1, and ERC.4) included at least about 1% to a maximum of at least one nucleotide as previously described. The results of the 42 day growth study are shown in TABLE 4.
TABLE 4
Diet
% Survival
Weight gain (g)
Growth rate (g/week)
EPG.1
82.50 ± 17.08
8.76 ± 1.62
1.43 ± 0.27
ERA.1
70.00 ± 20.00
9.71 ± 1.09
1.62 ± 0.18
ERA.4
93.33 ± 5.16
9.74 ± 1.19
1.62 ± 0.20
ERB.1
95.00 ± 8.37
9.36 ± 1.51
1.56 ± 0.25
ERB.4
90.00 ± 8.94
8.09 ± 2.08
1.35 ± 0.35
ERC.1
90.00 ± 12.65
8.76 ± 1.12
1.46 ± 0.19
ERC.4
85.00 ± 10.49
9.02 ± 0.80
1.50 ± 0.13
NER.1
78.33 ± 7.53
9.21 ± 1.04
1.54 ± 0.17
NER.4
86.67 ± 5.16
9.18 ± 0.92
1.53 ± 0.15
B*1
100.00 ± 0.00
11.07 ± 1.42
1.84 ± 0.24
B*10
83.33 ± 5.16
8.84 ± 1.76
1.47 ± 0.29
R*1
100.00 ± 0.00
9.79 ± 2.18
1.63 ± 0.36
R*10
90.00 ± 10.95
6.31 ± 1.17
1.05 ± 0.20
As shown in TABLE 4, this study demonstrates that diets including the ROAN encapsulated nucleotides aid in increased survivability, assist in greater weight gain, and further assist in better uptake of feed to increase the growth rate in high stocking density situations.
1. The protection conferred by such a coating or microencapsulation process increases the efficacy of nucleotide preparations.
2. The components used in the microencapsulation process as well as in the nucleotide preparation are natural products that are generally recognized as safe.
3. The components of the coating material will not accumulate in the animal.
The microencapsulation of nucleotides and other water soluble constituents are believed to have the following benefits:
Accordingly, coating or microencapsulation of nucleotide preparations or other water-soluble dietary components using the above describe materials and/or methods can reduce or prevent leaching of such dietary components in water and, thus, increase the efficacy of such dietary components as reflected in improved weight gain, feed efficiency and health. Additionally, it is believed that there are no known disadvantages or limitations to using the above described materials and/or methods to prepare nucleotide-containing feed supplements.
While in the foregoing specification this invention has been described in relation to certain embodiments thereof, and many details have been put forth for the purpose of illustration, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible to additional embodiments and that certain of the details described herein can be varied considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
EXAMPLES
Example 1
Litopenaeus vannamei
Juvenile
Example 2
Sciaenops ocellatus
Juvenile
Example 3
Litopenaeus vannamei
Juvenile | |
We have developed computer methods to predict protein three-dimensional structure by recognition of folding motif. A protein's sequence is "threaded" through alternative backbone structures in a database, and the conformations most compatible with that sequence are identified by approximate free-energy calculation, using contact potentials. The work has focused on two areas: 1) development of algorithms for fast, "adaptive" threading, and 2) construction of a database of "core" folding motifs. We have found that optimal alignments of a sequence and structure may be identified using a Gibbs Sampling procedure. The algorithm samples alternative alignments of subsequence blocks with the ungapped core elements which define the folding motif. Alternative boundaries of the core elements within the structure are also sampled, so that the optimal definition of common core substructure may be identified. This adaptive approach to fold ecognition preserves the favorable statistical properties of block alignment, yet allows identification of optimal core substructures from an approximate starting point, such as an automatic definition based on secondary structural elements. To build a database of folding motifs we have identified the large helices and beta strands within structures from the protein Data Bank. For this purpose we have developed an algorithm based on matching of alpha-carbon distance matrices against paradigm helices and beta-ladders, optimized to be robust against local distortions and/or coordinate imprecision. This core folding motif database has been tested-as the target for a threading search of known structures, using the adaptive threading algorithm. The significance of this research is that these methods may allow 3- dimensional modeling for sequences only distantly related to proteins of known structure, and in this way suggest hypotheses as to their mechanism of action and function.
| |
An urban heat island occurs when a city has significantly elevated temperatures relative to surrounding rural areas. It should come as no surprise to Richmonders that the temperature within the city is higher. But temperatures can vary even within the city itself.
Virginia Commonwealth University’s Stephen S. Fong, Ph.D., professor of Chemical and Life Science Engineering, is a national leader in researching the effects of urban heat islands. He has led projects to map areas most affected by heat waves and to build green walls in the city, which serve multiple functions, including carbon dioxide sequestration and cooling of the local environment.
As a hot summer continues in Virginia, Fong shared with VCU News what we need to know about the urban heat island effect:
What causes the urban heat island effect? What factors contribute to it?
Urban areas basically have a double-whammy where abundance of materials like brick, concrete and asphalt absorb and retain heat leading to increased temperatures. The second half is the lack of vegetation. Plants have a cooling effect from providing shade and evaporation of water through the leaves.
Why is it bad? Does it have any positive effects?
The effect that we’ve focused on the most is the direct effect this has on health, especially heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke. A person’s susceptibility to heat-related illness increases with increased temperature. This may seem like common sense, but the practical aspect of it is that we might get a weather forecast saying that the high temperature in Richmond will be 95 degrees. Some areas within the city might experience temperatures below 95 degrees while others may be well over 100 degrees. We measured temperature variation around the city of 16 degrees Fahrenheit at the same time, so you can have some areas with temperatures of 90 degrees while others are experiencing temperatures of 106. We need to be aware of areas where people will be routinely experiencing elevated temperatures to warn and monitor for health impacts.
How can we reverse the effects of urban heat islands?
There’s no single solution but possibilities range from large-scale city-driven policies to simple personal choices. At the policy level, mindful city planning that considers green spaces, building materials, and variation on building heights is important. There are also simple things that people can do including choosing colors that reflect light rather than absorb it (e.g. choosing to paint the side of a building white rather than black) and supporting efforts such as urban gardening.
What would you like to add?
Richmond has a great community of engaged citizens, nonprofit organizations, researchers and city officials with genuine interest and concern to take action on issues such as this. It is great to be part of something that translates technology and research into community action and others have recognized the importance of this issue where the Richmond Heat Island Consortium has conducted heat island studies in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Norfolk. | https://egr.vcu.edu/news-events/news/archive/urban-heat-islands-crosspost.html |
Since being admitted to the practice of law in Virginia in 1976, I have tried more than 300 jury cases and handled thousands of other cases of every conceivable type. In 1985, I became a partner with the firm of Johnson & Roche in McLean, Virginia. My practice has been principally litigation with a focus on tort litigation along with substantial involvement in commercial litigation, real estate litigation and domestic relations litigation.
My interest in writing fiction ties in with my interest in the study of history. The main character in the Prohibition series is not a historical character but he acts as part of some historical events including the race riot of July 19, 1919 in Washington, D.C. Most of the other events are purely fictional but many of the characters of course are not. The existence of the Liberator boats is fact-based as these watercrafts were constructed as part of the U.S. war effort in Europe. The integration of fact and fiction is always tricky but hopefully these novels instill some further interest in the reader in this historical era and in further historical exploration. | https://speakingvolumes.us/author/brien-a-roche/ |
As part of the Gynecologic Cancer Initiative, we aim to provide an excellent and supportive training environment for all trainees working on gynecologic cancer research in the province. To achieve this, we’ve created the GCI Trainee Education Committee to help inform, build and create GCI trainee initiatives. The committee is composed of current MSc, Ph.D., post-doctoral and clinical trainees who are conducting gynecologic cancer research in BC.
The Trainee Education Committee is excited to announce a new professional development series in the form of a seminar: Transitioning to an Academic Career. This is a two part series including:
Finding you faculty position
Date: November 3, 2021
Time: 12 – 1pm PST
Where: Virtual (sign up to receive the link)
This first seminar will feature a panel of three faculty members who will answer questions about finding a faculty position. They will cover the different types of academic positions, how to find those opportunities, and the application and interview process. We will be joined by Dr. Sarah Munro, Dr. Gillian Hanley and Dr. Katrina Bouchard.
Academic faculty crash course
Date: January 19, 2022
Time: 12 – 1pm PST
Where: Virtual (sign up to receive the link)
During this second seminar, we will be joined by three additional panelists who will discuss setting up a research program, how to find and apply for the most appropriate grants, budgeting your program, and working with human resources. For this session, we will be joined by Dr. Aline Talhouk, Dr. Michael Anglesio and Dr. Paul Yong. | https://gynecancerinitiative.ca/gci-trainee-education-committee-launches-new-professional-development-opportunity/ |
Remote cameras document Oman's rare Arabian leopards
An Arabian leopard photographed in Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve in southern Oman. These elusive creatures are rarely seen in the flesh, but conservationists monitor them via camera traps.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
The Arabian leopard is one of eight leopard subspecies and once lived across the Arabian Peninsula. But today its range is limited to isolated pockets, with the largest wild populations in Oman and Yemen. It is thought there are fewer than 200 adults left living in the wild. Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
The leopard subspecies has its largest population in Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve (pictured) in Dhofar, southern Oman. Around 20 to 30 adults live inside the 4,500 square kilometer (1,737 square mile) protected area. The population here is considered relatively stable, according to local conservationist Hadi Al Hikmani. Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
An Arabian leopard photographed in Jamal Qamar, another mountainous area in Dhofar.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
Killing a leopard or its prey species (such as the Arabian gazelle) has been illegal in Oman since 1976 and is punishable with imprisonment and/or a fine.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
Al Hikmani says policy and education programs have changed local opinions towards the Arabian leopard. Historically, the animal was killed by pastoralists for preying on livestock. Today, a compensation program is in place to prevent retribution killings. Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
A pair of Arabian leopards photographed in Jabal Samhan. Oman has a known breeding population, but data in other countries is limited. In Saudi Arabia and Israel, for example, the Arabian leopard has not been seen in the wild for some years.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the Arabian leopard as critically endangered and is currently reassessing its population and range.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani
Though populations are currently isolated from one another around the Arabian Peninsula, there is some evidence in Oman that the Arabian leopard is returning to its historic range. It has been spotted in new areas of Dhofar in recent years.Courtesy Hadi Al Hikmani | |
Expert Answer:
The body moving in a circular motion moving with constant speed is an accelerated motion because even though the speed is constant, the direction of motion keeps on changing constantly.
Example- Planet moving around the Sun in its orbit.
Answered by Shiwani Sawant | 5th Mar, 2019, 09:56: AM
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