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University. Associate Professor at Nursing School of Coimbra, Portugal.
Email: [email protected]
II PhD in Mental Health. Coordinator Professor at Nursing School of Coimbra, Portugal. Email: [email protected]
III PhD in Mental Health. Associate Professor at Nursing School of Coimbra, Portugal. Email: [email protected]
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12957/reuerj.2016.12309
ABSTRACT
Objective: to examine nursing students' attitudes and beliefs about mental illness and the mentally ill and the effect of clinical training on these beliefs and attitudes by comparing stigma before and after clinical teaching. Method: this is a pre-experimental study and the sample comprised 89 students on an undergraduate Nursing course, in Portugal, in 2010. Data were collected using a Mental Illness Beliefs Inventory and the translated and adapted Portuguese version of the Opinions about Mental Illness Scale. Results: the results related to beliefs and attitudes before and after clinical training reveal a statistically significant effect on the belief in incurability and the attitude towards social restriction. Conclusion: the clinical training contributes to a more positive outlook in nursing students' beliefs and attitudes.
Keywords: Beliefs; attitude; students, nursing; mental disorders.
INTRODUCTION
Stigmatization, discrimination and non-respect for the human rights and the dignity of mentally ill people are still a reality challenging core European values1. Within this perspective, it is indisputable that mental disorders have been subjected to political and social rules, traditions, economic interests, and history2. Each historical period accentuates the complexity of attitudes and perceptions that coexist and give meaning to the phenomenon of madness and mental disorders.
Acknowledging that training ensures a better use of knowledge and a more reasoned intervention, nurses are now aware that mental health is developed and promoted in the day-to-day life of individuals within a given culture, technique and civilization, and that an investment should be made in education, culture and family in favor of the mental health of the populations3.
Building an identity, which is perceived as an eminently relational process, involves understanding the macrosociological structural phenomena that affect the students' attitudes and behaviors4. The way beliefs and attitudes, namely stigmatizing attitudes and discriminatory behaviors, are influenced by the contact with people with mental disorders has not been a major area of research in Portugal. Therefore, we decided to conduct a pre-experimental study with the following research questions:
- What are the beliefs about mental disorders and mentally ill patients of 3rd-year Nursing students before and after completing the Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing?
- What are the attitudes toward mental disorders and mentally ill patients of 3rd-year Nursing students before and after completing the Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing?
The purpose of this study was to analyze the beliefs and attitudes of Nursing students and the impact (through in vivo contact) of the Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing on those beliefs and attitudes.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Since childhood, individuals develop beliefs about themselves, the others and the world, i.e. absolute truths that guide them in their everyday lives.
These beliefs will shape attitudes, which, in turn, will operate as mediators between how we act and how we think5.
Research data suggest that attitudes result from learning and are largely influenced by individual experiences and the social context in which they occur6. Therefore, attitudes have a strong cultural influence insofar as we tend to adopt the attitudes that prevail within the culture where we grow up, particularly within the family structure.
The possibility of predicting behaviors in certain situations is one of the reasons for exploring attitudes7.
When addressing the issue of the beliefs and attitudes toward people with mental disorders, we should take into account how the prevailing view on this subject was built. The stigmatized view of the mentally ill patient - the mad person - has prevailed over time and, consequently, these individuals have remained socially excluded.
Within the new paradigm, the concept of madness evolved to the concept of mental disorder and the asylums gave place to the hospitals. This change of terminology reflects a clear change in how mental disorders and care practices are now perceived8.
Although the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) adopts the term mental disorders9, the terms mental illness and mentally ill patients continue to be commonly used in the academic and clinical settings, being the terminology used in the instruments applied in this study.
People with mental disorders anticipate rejection and discrimination, experiencing a form of self-stigma. In this regard, researchers distinguish between public stigma (how the general public reacts to a group based on stigmatized views about that group) and self-stigma (the process of transformation through which the person gradually loses his/her identity and stops performing his/her family, professional and social roles, adopting an attitude of self-devaluation)10-12.
Stigma is composed of three interrelated problems: the problem of knowledge: ignorance (literacy); the problem of attitudes: prejudice; and the problem of behavior: discrimination13.
The strategies for reducing the impact of public stigma and self-stigma have been grouped by relevance10. Therefore, the key strategies capable of changing stereotypes and prejudice, while promoting the adoption of health beliefs aimed at improving health care adherence, have been addressed and grouped into three processes of change: protest/complaint, education/awareness, and contact14.
Protest/complaint strategies emerge against the injustice of specific stigmas, leading to a moral appeal to change the way the public views people with mental disorders. Evidence suggests that these approaches can be successful if applied through television and cinema, namely if they reveal the successful therapies allowing millions of people with mental disorders to resume their normal lives.
Adult education strategies have also improved the attitudes toward people with mental disorders13 by contributing to promote mental health literacy and increase reflection on and change of attitudes. They are also essential to deconstruct negative beliefs and promote the development of skills for the identification and awareness of risk factors for certain mental disorders15.
Studies have shown a strong correlation between feelings of fear and the level of social distancing of the public toward mental disorders due to the scarcity of contacts16. As such, the efforts to familiarize the public with people who are more familiar with mental disorders should be intensified. This idea is corroborated by studies demonstrating an inverse relationship between the contact with mental disorders and stigma 16-18.
It should also be noted that some studies confirm a strong reduction of prejudice and promotion of positive attitudes toward people with mental disorders when the contact involved mainly face-to-face (in vivo) interaction in professional or institutional settings16,19,20.
Mental health services are currently being restructured21 with guidelines that are driven by a type of care based on prevention and reintegration aimed at eradicating stigma and increasing awareness on mental health issues through laws on the protection of people's rights. In light of these changes, we should also analyze the issues related to the qualifications and training of the health care professionals22 who play a key role in the implementation of paradigmatic, structural, operational and doctrinal changes23. Within this scope, Nursing has sought to offer a more humanized care grounded in the principles of the psychiatric reform, which requires nurses to rethink their competences and their practices, reassess their attitudes, and provide care focused on the person, who has the right to be assisted without being excluded24.
Nursing training is characterized by the alternation between periods of in-class training, with theoretical/theoretical-practical classes and laboratory practice, and periods of practical clinical teaching in several health care institutions. These are key moments for the development of professional skills, consolidation of knowledge, and reflection on the practices25.
METHODOLOGY
Given the lack of empirical research studies with Nursing students in Portugal, we conducted a pre-experimental study comparing the stigma among students before and after the Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing.
The sample was selected in 2010 from the population of 3rd-year students of the Undergraduate Nursing Degree attending a Nursing School in the Center region of Mainland Portugal. These students had already attended the course of Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing, which includes 54 hours of theoretical classes, 18 hours of theoretical-practical classes, and 9 hours of laboratory practice.
A total of 140 questionnaires were distributed to all students on the first day of their Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing. After the Clinical Teaching, the 140 questionnaires were distributed again, of which 89 were validated. This second moment had a rate of refusal to participate of 36.44%.
The Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing, which is carried out in short- and long-term psychiatric inpatient units, lasts 5 weeks, and has a workload of 35 hours/week, in a total of 175 contact hours.
Data were collected through a questionnaire consisting of a sociodemographic characterization, the Opinions about Mental Illness (OMI) scale26, which was translated and validated for the Portuguese population27,28, and theInventário de Crenças acerca das Doenças Mentais (ICDM) 28.
The OMI scale is composed of five factors corresponding to five attitudes: Authoritarianism (view that considers mentally ill people as belonging to an inferior class and requiring coercive handling); Benevolence (a moralist, paternalistic and protective view of mentally ill people that is based on a humanist and religious-moral perspective rather than on a scientific and professional ideology) ; Mental hygiene ideology (a positive view of mental disorders which demonstrates confidence in the interventions of mental health professionals); Social restrictiveness (a view in which mentally ill people are seen as a threat to society and whose freedom must be restricted); and Interpersonal etiology (a view that considers mental health as arising from individual life choices). The scale is rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree)27,28.
The ICDM is a 6-point Likert-type scale composed of 45 items divided into six beliefs: Incurability (belief in mental disorders as being chronic and incurable); Recognition of the disease (belief in a non-stigmatizing view of mental disorders associated with the acceptance of the disease); Dangerousness (belief in mentally ill people as dangerous individuals, given the unpredictability of their behavior, tending to criminality); Disease as a cause of stigma and discrimination (personal belief of disease-related stigma and prejudice in the social contexts surrounding people with mental disorders); Personal responsibility (belief in the individual as responsible for his/her health/illness); Disease as a medical condition (belief in mental disorders as clinical conditions which should be pharmacologically treated). The answers range from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree)28.
In relation to the ethical procedures, this study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra and by the President of the School where the study was conducted.
The statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 17 for Windows, and the G*Power software for calculating the effect size and the power of tests.
With regard to the statistics, the absolute and percentage frequencies, as well as the summary statistics were calculated. To assess the impact of the Clinical Training on the beliefs and attitudes, we compared the means before and after the Clinical Training using the paired Student's t-test. We also calculated the post-hoc power of the tests and the measure of effect size.
To calculate the effect size, we used Cohen's d, which corresponds to the standardized mean difference, with the Student's t-test, and transformed it into r2 (coefficient of determination), which represents the percentage of explained variance. A post-hoc power analysis was conducted, considering an alpha of .05 for n=89. We used the values proposed by Cohen29 for interpreting the effect size.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
With regard to the results, Table 1 shows the summary statistics for each belief and attitude.
TABLE 1:
Summary statistics for the dimensions of the OMI scale and the ICDM (n=89)
- attitudes and beliefs of Nursing students toward mental disorders and
people with mental disorders, Coimbra, Portugal, 2010.
(*) M=Mean; (**)SD=standard deviation; (***)SEM=standard error of the mean; (****)CV=coefficient of variation.
From the analysis of the weighted averages, we concluded that the beliefs with higher scores (>4.00 points) toward concordance are theRecognition of the disease and Disease as a medical condition, pointing to homogeneous responses. Conversely, the scores in the remaining beliefs generally point to discordance, being more marked in Disease as cause of stigma and discrimination. This shows that, in this specific belief, Nursing students do not believe that mental disorders are, by themselves, a cause of social stigma and discrimination.
These results show that Nursing students have a non-stigmatizing view of mental disorders, associated with the acceptance of the disease and the belief in treatment and rehabilitation when patients are diagnosed in a timely manner. However, we should note that the results obtained in our study can somehow be explained by the fact that students had already acquired theoretical knowledge about this issue during the course of Mental Health and Psychiatry, and that such knowledge may have contributed to a less stigmatizing view. Despite this, the stereotypes of dangerousness, incurability and personal responsibility are still intensified. These findings are in line with some studies that also point to the persistence of myths characterized by beliefs in the dangerousness and incurability of people with mental disorders28,30.
With regard to the attitudes about mental disorders and people with mental disorders, we applied the same procedures to the OMI dimensions. Thus, as in the ICDM, the low standard error of the mean in all dimensions shows that the mean is a good estimator. On the one hand, the high values (>.15) of the coefficients of variation indicate that the scale, has discriminating ability, and, on the other hand, suggest a more homogeneous position in the answers related to the Benevolence and Mental hygiene ideology dimensions.
As regards the mean score of attitudes, we observed that the Benevolence dimension obtained a higher mean score, immediately followed by the Mental hygiene ideology and the Authoritarianism dimensions. The Interpersonal etiology dimension had the lowest mean score.
These results, which suggest high levels of tolerance and social sensitivity toward these problems, may be related to previously acquired knowledge since studies indicate that a better knowledge on mental disorders makes people less prone to stigma and discrimination16,18,31,32.
According to Table 2 on the analysis of the results of the Student's t-test for paired samples, we observed that, despite the very low power of tests, all belief-related dimensions are statistically significant, with the exception of the Incurability and Personal responsibility dimensions.
TABLE
2 -
Results of the Student's t-test for paired samples (t -
calculated t; P - level of significance; d -
measure of effect size; OP - Observed Power). Dependent variables:
beliefs and attitudes toward people with mental disorders (n=89), Coimbra,
Portugal, 2010.
(*) M= Mean; (**) SD= Standard deviation
We found an increase in the mean scores for the beliefs related toRecognition of the disease and Disease as a medical condition, and a decrease in the mean scores for the beliefs related toDisease as cause of stigma and discrimination and Dangerousness.
With regard to the results obtained from the effect size measures and the power of tests, we should note that, when the mean differences are statistically significant, the d-values are small, with the exception of the belief in Dangerousness, which points to a medium effect size.
Therefore, based on the analysis of the impact of the Clinical Teaching on the beliefs about people with mental disorders, we found a decrease in negative beliefs. These results are in line with other studies which reported that the discriminatory beliefs of students are positively influenced by education16,32. We concluded that the beliefs related to the unpredictability and dangerousness of the mentally ill person proved to be weaker, thus, less stigmatizing. The model proposed by some authors also indicates that contact significantly decreased the belief in the dangerousness of people with mental disorders16. Here, it is important to stress that educational strategies have more positive effects when associated with the direct contact with people with mental disorders14. In this case, contact is particularly important for the person to acknowledge the mentally ill patient as a real person33,34, contributing to the reduction of stigmatizing beliefs. Furthermore, the combination of contact and education has proven to be the most effective strategy, particularly in the long-term31.
With regard to the impact of Clinical Teaching on the students' attitudes, with the exception of the attitude related to Interpersonal etiology, all the mean differences were statistically significant before and after the Clinical Teaching, decreasing in the Authoritarianism andSocial restrictiveness dimensions, and increasing in the Benevolence and Mental hygiene ideology dimensions.
The analysis of the effect size values revealed small effect sizes in the attitudes related to Authoritarianism (d=.26) and Mental hygiene ideology (d=.40) and medium effect sizes in the attitude of Benevolence (d=.50). The highest effect size was observed in the attitude related to Social restrictiveness (d=1.20), which showed a large effect size, with Clinical Teaching having a substantial impact.
Similarly to what we found regarding the beliefs, we also found that Clinical Teaching reduced the students' negative attitudes of Authoritarianism and Social restrictiveness and increased the positive attitudes of Benevolence and Mental hygiene ideology. These results confirm that the Clinical Teaching contributes to a more positive view, which is corroborated by other studies confirming that the direct interaction with people with mental disorders has a positive significant impact on the attitudes of Nursing students toward these patients35,36 and, more specifically, that the Clinical Teaching in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing contributes to a positive change in the students' perceptions of people with mental disorders34,37. Therefore, the clinical practice in hospital settings is a fundamental pillar in the students' training process38. Similarly, the results of a study carried out in Brazil also revealed that the Nursing education led to a change of attitudes among students, namely by reducing negative attitudes39.
CONCLUSIONS
Based on the objectives set out for this study, we will summarize the most relevant conclusions:
· The beliefs and attitudes showing a greater acceptance and tolerance point to an increasing recognition and awareness of the nature of mental disorders as medical conditions, although we should not overlook the myths on the incurability, dangerousness and unpredictability of people with mental disorders;
· Although the Clinical Teaching promotes a change in the beliefs and attitudes of Nursing students, the fact that it has a moderate effect indicates the need to prioritize contents that increase mental health literacy in the curricula;
· The change of attitudes and beliefs is more evident in the need to socially reintegrate the patients, as shown by the decrease in the attitude of Social restrictiveness. This is a positive effect of the Clinical Teaching, indicating that the contact and experience with Psychiatric Nursing practice increases the awareness of the need to ensure the protection of patients' rights and freedoms.
Since this study was conducted in a single Portuguese Nursing School, the sample is not representative of the Portuguese population. As such, the results, and subsequent conclusions, should be carefully interpreted.
Although we sought to include in the sample all 3rd-year students of the Undergraduate Degree, the rate of refusal to participate was high, which constituted a limitation of this study.
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17.Penn DL, Combs DR, Ritchie M, Francis J, Cassisi J, Morris S, Towsend M. Emotion recognition in schizophrenia: further investigation of generalized versus specific deficit models. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 2000;109 (3):512-16.
18.Romem P, Anson, O, Kanat-Maymon Y, Moisa R. Reshaping students' attitudes toward individuals with mental illness through a clinical nursing clerkship. The Journal of Nursing Education. 2008; 47(9): 396-402.
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21.Direção Geral de Saúde (Pt). Reatualização do Plano Nacional de Saúde Mental. Programa Nacional para a Saúde mental. Portugal, 2012; [cited 2014 June 2]; Available from: http://www.saudemental.pt/wpcontent/uploads/2012/06/Recalendarizac%CC%A7a%CC%83o_PNSM.pdf
22.Silva LH. Educação do campo e pedagogia de alternância. A experiência brasileira. Texto da conferência proferida na Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade de Lisboa a 17 de Maio de 2007. Sísifo: Revista de Ciências da Educação; [cited 2008 Sep 20]; 5: 105-12. Available from: http://sisifo.fpce.ul.pt
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27.Oliveira SA. Loucura no outro: Um contributo para o impacto da loucura no profissional de saúde mental. Tese de Doutoramento publicada da Faculdade de Psicologia e Ciências da Educação da Universidade de Coimbra; 2005.
28.Loureiro LMJ. Representações sociais da loucura: Importância para a promoção da saúde mental. Estudo realizado numa amostra de residentes no concelho de Penacova. Tese de Doutoramento publicada do Instituto Superior de Ciências Biomédicas de Abel Salazar. Porto. Universidade do Porto; 2008.
29.Cohen J. Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. 2nd ed. Hillsdale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erbaum;1988.
30.Goerg D, Zbinden E, Fischer W, Guimon J. Representations of psychiatric treatments. Advances in Relational Mental Health. 2004; [cited 2009 July 10] 3(3); Available from http://www.bibliopsiquis.com/asmr/0303/2.pdf
31.Corrigan PW, Watson AC. Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illness. World Psychiatry. 2002;1(1):16-20.
32.Corrigan PW, O'Shaughnessy JR. Changing mental illness stigma as it exists in the real world. Australian Psychologist. 2007;42(2):90-7.
33.Corrigan PW, Lurie BD, Goldman HH, Slopen N, Medasani K, Phelan S. How adolescents perceive the stigma of mental illness and alcohol abuse. Psychiatric Services. 2005;56 (5):544-50.
34.Markstrom U, Gyllensten AL, Bejerholm U. Attitudes towards mental illness among health care students at Swedish universities – a follow-up study after completed clinical placement. Nurse Education Today. 2009;29(6):660-65.
35.Madianos MG, Priam M, Alevisopoulos G, Koukia E, Rougakou E. Nursing students' attitude change toward mental illness and psychiatric case recognition after a clerkship in psychiatry. Issues in Mental Health Nursing. 2005;26(2):169-83.
36.Emrich K, Thompson TC, Moore G. Positive attitude. An essential element for effective care of people with mental illnesses . Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services. 2003;41(5):18-25.
37.Francisco I. Estudo da percepção dos alunos de enfermagem face à doença mental. Dissertação de Mestrado não publicada em Reabilitação Psicossocial. Porto. Universidade Católica Portuguesa; 2010. | https://www.e-publicacoes.uerj.br/index.php/enfermagemuerj/article/view/12309/23083 |
Chiropractors practice an ancient medical science which has been used for thousands of years to treat a wide variety of ailments. The principles of chiropractic medicine have not changed much over the years. You may want to check out Chiropractor Falls Church VA for more. Chiropractors believe in the following core beliefs: Chiropractic is an alternative medicine practice which recognizes that the body’s natural structures and function are capable of healing themselves. Chiropractic treatment attempts to modify the function of the body through the correction of spinal abnormalities or subluxations. For most ailments, chiropractic therapy can restore the mechanical integrity of the spine to the proper alignment, reduce chronic stress on the delicate nervous tissue, and thus improve the general health of the patient.
A chiropractor will use manipulative techniques and spinal adjustments in order to reduce pain, stimulate nerves, increase circulation, remove blockage, improve function, improve neuromusculoskeletal integrity, stabilize joints, increase and/or regain joint mobility, improve muscle strength and tone, and correct mechanical issues related to muscular contractions, movements, ligaments, bones, tendons, and other tissues and components. A chiropractor will often use drug treatment as additional treatment when the patient presents with an acute injury but will generally try to treat the problem before resorting to drug therapy. Chiropractic can be considered complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). While CAM may seem to be in conflict with chiropractic, they actually work very well together.
Before a chiropractor makes any spinal adjustments, he or she will conduct a physical exam, perform a thorough history of the patient’s medical history, and order urine and blood tests to determine the overall health condition of the patient. After the initial assessment of the patient, the chiropractor will make a specific plan for the treatment program and provide written directives to the patient on what steps they need to take to ensure proper treatment. The chiropractor will then take the time to assess the needs of each patient and develop an individual treatment plan based upon the feedback from the patients and the history of each case. Then, the chiropractor will execute the appropriate treatment protocol to restore and enhance the patient’s health. | http://www.sweetthymeinn.com/details-of-chiropractor-falls-church-va/ |
Our research group broadly examines socialization within schools, and focuses, in particular on the psychological experience of respect and disrespect and its impact on children’s and adolescent’s social development. This research interest stems from my own experience as a high school teacher in a multiethnic classroom. I constantly heard other teachers and students complain about not getting respect, or being disrespected, but neither teachers nor students ever elaborated on why respect was important, what it meant, and why one deserved it. Nor why one was disrespected, what it meant, and how one “dealt” with being disrespected.
Respect and disrespect are concepts that are colloquially fundamental to children’s relations with others; children are expected to respect their parents and teachers and be respected by their classmates. They are expected to not be disrespectful to others. However, what it means for a child to (dis)respect a parent or a teacher, or to be (dis)respected by peers, likely varies across contexts and cultures. There has been little systematic research on how children understand and experience respect. More so, how respect functions within and across different individuals, relationships, groups, and contexts, is not well understood. And yet, children are expected to successfully navigate and manage respect across different relationships and situations.
Our group focuses specifically on how (dis)respect is understood and coordinated within children’s relationships and peer groups. We are also interested in how context and development influences children’s understanding of (dis)respect, and who is to be respected, in their interactions with others. The theoretical perspective of our lab is heavily influenced by the work of Robert Hinde (1987), who suggests that social development occurs within and across a hierarchy of levels- individuals, relationships, and groups- and that each level of the hierarchy provides a distinct contribution to development. More so, the classroom, school, and larger cultural norms influence the promotion and rejection of certain behaviors, and thus the context in which development occurs must be considered as well.
We conduct our research in local schools and after school programs. If you are interested in participating in our research, or are interested in a professional development workshop on fostering respect or understanding children’s peer relations, please fill out the contact information below. | https://saudleylab.com/ |
Abstract In this work, a Geared Infinitely Variable Transmission (GIVT) which uses gears to transfer torque rather than frictional components is detailed. A comparison is made to existing continuously variable and infinitely variable transmission technology and a description of function in past and present GIVT designs is presented. The new GIVT features non-circular gearing and a scotch yoke mechanism to achieve zero speed fluctuation and avoid losses due to torque recirculation. A functioning prototype was designed and manufactured to test the performance of the scotch yoke mechanism. The theoretical efficiency was calculated and reported. New equations were derived to analyze the frictional power loss of a rack and pinion gear mesh, something which has been missing in gear design literature to date. The prototype efficiency was measured and compared to the theoretical efficiency. Using the theoretical and experimental results, several changes are proposed which will improve the performance and efficiency of the GIVT. | http://contentdm.ad.umbc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/25181/ |
Curriculum Feedback Form
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Module 5: Air Bags
Module 6: Lower Anchors and Tethers
Module 7: Introduction to Car Seats
Module 8: Rear-Facing Car Seats
Module 9: Forward-Facing Car Seats
Module 10: Booster Seats and Seat Belts
Module 11: Other Vehicles
Module 12: Interacting with Caregivers
Module 13: Using and Maintaining your New Skills
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GLP Joins UN PRI to Promote Responsible Investment Practices
Singapore, 4 November 2021 -- Today GLP announced it became a signatory to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), demonstrating our ongoing commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) and further aligning our values to our investment partners.
The UN-backed PRI is an international network of leading investors, asset managers, owners and service providers who work together to put responsible investing into practice. It aims to understand the investment implications of ESG factors and support its international network of signatories in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions.
Craig Duffy, Managing Director, Fund Management said: “This is a major milestone in our ongoing commitment to incorporate responsible investing practices into our business. We are pleased to join the others who have made the same commitment to build a more sustainable financial ecosystem.”
PRI CEO Fiona Reynolds said: “We are very pleased to welcome GLP as a PRI signatory. In joining PRI, GLP is recognising the importance of integrating ESG factors into its investment and ownership decisions. We look forward to working with the team.”
By adding our name to this growing group of more than 4,000 signatories, GLP sees this significant milestone as an opportunity to further enhance our ESG initiatives across the firm and accelerate our contribution toward building a more sustainable financial ecosystem.
GLP has made significant strides toward embracing ESG in all that we do as a firm. Following an extensive 360 review, we took our sustainability commitment to the next level in 2020. We expanded our ESG policy, launched an enhanced ESG due diligence process, trained our colleagues on ESG best practices, and strengthened our ESG capabilities by appointing a dedicated global head of ESG to lead our efforts. While great progress has been made already, this is only the beginning.
Driven by a shared purpose across the firm, we are working hard to continue building on all our achievements to date. GLP remains committed to a broad range of ESG policies and initiatives that help manage risk, drive value creation for investors, provide support for employees, and positively impact the local communities we operate in.
To learn more about how we are integrating ESG into our business and the achievements we have made so far, please see our 2020 Global ESG Report available online here: https://bit.ly/2X05j9O.
For more resources on GLP’s ESG strategy visit: glp.com/global/impact
About GLP
GLP is a leading global investment manager and business builder in logistics, real estate, infrastructure, finance and related technologies. Our combined investing and operating expertise allow us to create value for our customers and investors. We operate across Brazil, China, Europe, India, Japan, the U.S. and Vietnam and have more than US$120 billion in assets under management in real estate and private equity.
We are committed to a broad range of environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments that elevate our business, protect the interest of our shareholders and investors, support our employees and customers and enhance our local communities. Learn more at glp.com/global.
About PRI: The PRI works to understand the investment implications of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors and to support its international network of investor signatories in incorporating these factors into their investment and ownership decisions. The PRI acts in the long-term interests of its signatories, of the financial markets and economies in which they operate and ultimately of the environment and society as a whole. Launched in New York in 2006, the PRI has grown to more than 4,300 signatories, managing over US $121 trillion AUM.
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Craig A. Duffy
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Faye Kwan
This press release is not an offer of securities for sale or a solicitation of an offer to purchase securities. The information in this press release may not contain, and you may not rely on this press release as providing, all material information concerning the condition (financial or other), earnings, business affairs, business prospects, properties or results of operations of GLP or its subsidiaries. This release may contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the intent, belief and current expectations of GLP or its officers with respect to various matters. When used in this press release, the words "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "may," "will," "should," “intends,””foresees,” “estimates,” “projects,” and similar expressions, and the negatives thereof, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Similarly, statements that describe objectives, plans or goals also are forward-looking statements. Actual future performance, outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements as a result of a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Representative examples of these factors include (without limitation) general industry and economic conditions, interest rate trends, cost of capital and capital availability, availability of real estate properties, competition from other companies and venues for the sale/distribution of goods and services, shifts in customer demands, customers and partners, changes in operating expenses, including employee wages, benefits and training, governmental and public policy changes, and the continued availability of financing in the amounts and the terms necessary to support future business. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are based on the current view of management on future events and speak only as of the date of this press release. GLP does not undertake to revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances. No assurance can be given that future events will occur, that projections will be achieved, or that GLP’s assumptions are correct. | https://www.glp.com/global/article/glp-joins-un-pri-promote-responsible-investment-practices |
An upcoming Food Production Company is looking for an experienced Production Manager in a Noodle and Cereal Factory.
Basic Objective:
To plan, organize and control production in an organization to ensure that goods are produced efficiently, on time, within budget and to standard.
Responsibilities
- Take responsibility for set up and erection of instant noodles, snacks and cereal plant
- Co-ordinate plant design and civil works as well as co-ordinate the mechanical, auxiliary fittings and electrical work for the plants;
- Selection & procurement of world renowned machinery for efficient and quality production of instant noodles, snacks and cereals;
- Overall in charge of production logistics and supply chain.
Upon commissioning of the plants:
- Plan, implement and control the production schedule
- determine and manage human and material resources to meet production targets
- make decisions about equipment use, maintenance, modification and procurement
- work out and implement standard operating procedures for production operations
- ensure that standard operating procedures are adhered to;
- ensure implementation and adherence to health and safety procedures;
- set product quality standards;
- monitor quality standards of products;
- implement and enforce quality control and tracking programs to meet quality objectives;
- analyze production and quality control to detect and correct problems;
- determine and implement improvements to the production process;
- prepare and maintain production reports;
- monitor and review the performance of staff and organize necessary interventions for improvement;
- estimate production costs (ensure cost minimization and optimum productivity);
- set and manage production budgets;
- ensure efficient collaboration and co-ordination between relevant departments including procurement, distribution and management;
- oversee the implementation of ISO9001 & HACCP Code of Conduct;
- inventory & warehouse management;
- implement strict quality measures to ensure top line raw materials, packaging materials and finished products
- imparting training to subordinates on quality, production and logistics.
Qualification and Experience:
- A foundation degree, HND or degree in the following subjects:
- electrical and electronic engineering;
- food science/technology;
- materials science/technology;
- mechanical engineering;
- physics;
- process engineering;
- transport/distribution/logistics.
- knowledge and experience in production and manufacturing processes and techniques
- knowledge of raw materials
- knowledge of quality systems and standards
- knowledge of health and safety standards and complianc
- knowledge of process improvement techniques
- knowledge of engineering and technology principles and practices
Skills
You will need to have:
- project management
- planning and organisation skills to be able run and monitor the production process;
- the ability to act decisively and solve staff or equipment-related problems;
- the capacity to grasp concepts easily;
- ICT literacy to deal with various technologies and programmes;
- attention to detail to ensure high levels of quality;
- the ability to communicate clearly and persuasively with your team, managers and clients;
- strong negotiation skills for getting materials within budget and at the right time;
- the ability to work under pressure and motivate others to meet tight deadlines;
- the ability to work in a logical, systematic manner.
- delegation
- team work
- conflict management
- adaptability
- stress tolerance
Key competencies required (personal competencies)
- Previous experience setting up plants in food sector (noodles & snacks preferred)
- Computer literate with IT understanding
- Excellent communicator
- Detail orientated
- Analytical
- Building relationships
- Influencing at strategic level
- Innovative and adaptable
- Performance and results driven
Remuneration Per Year: $60,000 – $65,000
Requirements
Min education
Primary school
Required experience
4 Years
Nationality
Not defined
Languages
Not defined
Specializations
Skills
Not defined
Prerequisites
. | https://www.jobartis.co.zm/job-reputable-company-production-manager-noodle-cereal |
We are looking for talented people to work on the environment software for next generation of Autonomous driving cars for Tier 1 supplier. You will act as a primary interface with the customer for managing requests as L1 Support Lead (Data Manager for Operations team).
- Act as a primary management interface and escalation to Data Management team;
- Structure the project request;
- Lead the data management platform, consisting of component development, infrastructure and operations teams;
- Lead the change control process;
- Identify improvement opportunities and drive its implementation;
- Drive problems tracking and its timely resolution;
- Collaborate with peers and project representative on their requests;
- Manage stakeholders expectations in terms of timelines and technical solutions;
- Adapt and document the processes;
- Participation in customer meetings;
- Organize effective communication between the team members, peers and stakeholders;
- Collection of the Project requirements (including Use Cases and milestones) from customer and project partner departments;
- Reporting of decisions, time plans and status to the project.
Must have
- Minimum 3 years of experience as Software Project Manager or other similar roles;
- Great facilitation skills;
- Well organized person;
- Ability to work under pressure;
- Have a systematic approach;
- Analytical mindset. Ability to review engineering work products from technology domain point of view to identify gaps;
- Identify and analyze risks / issues that could hurt delivery and suggest approaches to resolve them;
- Positive, cheerful, enthusiastic personality mixes/communicates well with people;
- Manage conflict in getting technical choices made;
- Ability to raise issues constructively with team and with engineering management;
- Ability to mix, work well and present to customers effectively handling their doubts and questions;
- English: good communication skills, intermediate+ (B2.2).
Nice to have
- Experience in working with Cloud technologies (e.g. AWS);
- Experience in Data Handling;
- Experience being in Client Facing role;
- German language.
English: C1 Advanced
Regular
If needed, we can help you with relocation process. Click here for more information. | https://career.luxoft.com/job/data-manager-operations-lead/294273/ |
Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.
Faculty
Organisational Unit
Chief examiner(s)
Coordinator(s)
Unit guides
Offered
- Second semester 2018 (On-campus)
- Summer semester A 2018 (On-campus block of classes)
Prerequisites
ATS2043 or by permission
Prohibitions
ATS3044
Synopsis
The unit is an extension of Chinese Translation for Professional Purposes 1. Through a number of text-analysis focused projects, this unit will further introduce students to conceptual and practical issues in Chinese translation. It will help students to identify different types of source texts, to build up their skills in text analysis and to choose correct strategies when translating different texts for professional purposes. Through project-based exercises, this unit will provide an opportunity for students to improve their analytical skills and understanding of all factors that affect the translation of source texts into target language. The integration of classroom teaching and translation projects encourages students to apply the theories and skills they have learnt in class to translation practice.
Outcomes
Building on the skills acquired in Chinese translation for professional purposes 1:
- Weekly lecture/seminar on prescribed texts will further provide concepts of issues in translation studies in general and text analysis in particular. The unit will further introduce principles of text analysis and theories relating to the translation of source texts into target language. Students will further develop their understanding of theories relating to the classification and identification of source texts and translation strategies;
- By applying basic concepts relating to text analysis and translation strategy to weekly project-based translation practice and class discussion, students will further improve their ability to determine correct translation strategies specific for professional purposes;
- Three supervised translation projects and one examination in a time controlled situation will be conducted during the semesters in order to test the progress of students.
Assessment
Within semester assessment: 60% + Exam: 40%
Workload requirements
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement. | https://www3.monash.edu/pubs/2018handbooks/units/ATS2044.html |
MOSCOW, July 26 - RIA Novosti. "Publish or die" - this is how the West is ironic about the fact that the effectiveness of teachers at research universities is determined by the number of their publications in scientific journals. In recent years, this has been actively implemented in Russia as well. Now, only those professors and associate professors who made their way into the top English-language publications are in good standing, while the rest have to work under the threat of dismissal. How, in pursuit of ratings and funding, the country's leading universities curry favor with private foreign magazines - in the material of RIA Novosti.
Image is everything, science is nothing
"In Soviet times, scientific research in higher education was a secondary task. The teacher was required first of all to teach students. If he wanted to defend a thesis and become a professor, then, of course, he was engaged in science, published articles," says sociologist Denis Podvoisky.
In Western universities, on the contrary, scientific activity is considered the main one. In the second half of the 20th century, bibliometrics were introduced there - calculating the effectiveness of a scientist based on the number of publications and references to them from other scientific articles.
"In the 2000s, bibliometrics penetrated to us. Higher education institutions began to allocate more money, university management, which distributes funds and does not really understand how real research is conducted, began to focus on it. For teachers, it all turned out to be a terrible headache," the expert continues. ...
We needed articles in serious scientific journals included in the international databases Web of Science and Scopus. The first belongs to the commercial company Clarivate Analytics (a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters), the second to Elsevier. They index titles of journals, articles and abstracts in English, bibliography.
Based on these data, ratings of successful journals and authors are made.
The most famous rating is from the Web of Science. Scopus-based rating - SCImago Journal & Country Rank. The more articles from the journal are cited, that is, the higher the impact factor, the more significant the journal is in the eyes of the scientific community.
"The rating of educational institutions, membership in dissertation councils, grants - everything is tied to the indicators of Web of Science and Scopus. In many universities, publications in these databases are required," explains Vardan Baghdasaryan, professor at the Department of Public Policy at the Faculty of Political Science at Moscow State University.
Provides indicators to the faculty.
"Teaching positions are elective," adds Podvoisky. "Applicants submit documents, the personnel commission holds a competition. Previously, the contract was signed for five years. Now it is very rare, mainly for a year or two. The number of publications is stipulated in the contract. If there are no articles, may not be re-elected".
To someone else's tune
Evgenia teaches the humanities at one of the Moscow universities. Asks not to give the name and place of work. Afraid of losing his place. The fact is that until recently she did not have a single publication in a foreign scientific journal. And this is the reason for the termination of the contract.
“It seems that we are trying to copy the American system of teacher segregation, where there are permanent positions - tenure, only a few get them, and different temporary positions. But in Russia, unlike the United States , this market is not so developed. difficult. Combining is also problematic, "says Evgenia.
According to her, the university approves the internal "white" and "black" lists of journals every year, break them into quartiles (rank them). The more top magazine the publication is, the more valuable it is.
An article requires research, and this is time and resources at the expense of teaching. Further, the text must be translated into English and sent to the journal. There you can wait in line for years. But the main problem is different.
"There are a number of areas, articles on which in Western journals will not be accepted, because they are not interested. For example, methodology, some specific Russian issues. Obviously, nothing will be published on Crimea," says Evgenia.
Now she has published an article in the magazine from the second quartile, the contract was extended, but only for a year. Moreover, the teaching load was increased by one and a half times with the same payment. Evgenia thinks this is abnormal. “I would like to be guided not by quartiles, but to explore what is interesting to me and my colleagues,” she notes.
Minorities and discrimination
In Russia have their own scientific journals evaluation system. The oldest is the list of the Higher Attestation Commission (VAK), which awards the academic degrees of candidate and doctor of sciences. In the mid-2000s, the Russian Science Citation Index, based on the Scientific Electronic Library, appeared. All domestic scientific publications upload there entire articles or abstracts.
“We once raised the question of why publications should be tied to the Web of Science and Scopus, and not to the Higher Attestation Commission,” says Sergey Voronin , professor, head of the department of general history at RUDN University , adviser to the head of the LDPR faction in the State Duma.
According to him, not all scientific disciplines are suitable for Western publications. For those who are in the natural sciences, engineering, medicine, it is easier. It is very difficult for the humanities.
"An example from my sphere of oriental studies. We sent an article to Western magazines about the Libyan jamahiriya as a form of democracy on the African continent. We were told that it was not interesting. Colleagues tried to publish a work on Iran . Refusal: not relevant. The history of medieval Russia also does not bother the Anglo-Saxon community." , - Professor Voronin lists.
“Therefore, we have to change our shoes, write, for example, about minorities, discrimination,” explains Anna Kuleshova, chair of the Council on the Ethics of Scientific Publications of the Association of Science Editors and Publishers.
"There are areas of research that exist almost exclusively in native languages. They may be completely unknown outside the country or region of origin. It is unrealistic to break through with them into journals with a high impact factor," emphasizes Denis Podvoisky.
"Tighten the nuts"
In order to satisfy the demand for articles in Western magazines, intermediary firms have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain, offering translation and design services or even promising a turnkey publication.
Intermediaries ask for $ 1,500 to $ 3,000. "And we need several articles. The country has been under sanctions since 2014, but we are feeding them," Voronin said indignantly. This system is "an instrument of pressure on the teaching community."
Some universities are trying to compensate for the costs with large bonuses - up to one hundred thousand. But not everyone is so scrupulous.
“Employees are trying to buy ready-made scientific articles, attributing authorship, plagiarize (including translated), steal texts from students or force them to donate authorship. authorship ", - specifies Anna Kuleshova.
Denis Podvoisky calls it "a demonstration of pseudo-efficiency", Sergei Voronin - "profanation." And both experts note that the requirements for teachers are only growing.
"We started small, there is a publication - additional payment, then they included a fixed number of articles in the contract, now there are no publications - we will not re-elect," says Professor Voronin.
"At the moment I am in the middle of a four-year contract, this is the maximum term in my university. By the end, the conditions will be much tougher," Podvoisky is sure.
Ivan Rudov, Director of the Library and Publishing Complex of the Siberian Federal University (the university is a member of Project 5-100) comments :
“Siberian Federal University has an effective contract, the first indicator of which is publications in high-ranking journals, and only those that are indexed in Web of Science and Scopus are taken into account. The advantages of such a system are obvious. First of all, it helps to raise the standard of living of a scientist. Many universities do not have a transparent mechanism for reimbursing costs if there is a fee for the article, which, for example, is typical for open access journals.In our case, an effective contract is one way to compensate for these costs.
Disadvantages are associated with increased unfair activity related to publications. There are predatory journals, but if they get into the indexing databases, then not for long. There is no need to talk about the quality of such publications.
In addition, do not forget that the Web of Science and Scopus databases are oriented towards the Western market, with their own specifics in terms of language and style. With these methods of stimulation, we become dependent on Western publishers, and sometimes our scientists are forced to play by their rules.
How adequate is this criterion for evaluating a scientist? If there are many publications in the first and second quartiles - yes, we can say that he really studies current problems and he has a serious level of research. If there is a bias in the direction of publications with low rates, it is worth understanding more carefully.
It is important to note that it is a big mistake to evaluate only by publications and quartiles. An integrated approach is needed. Perhaps the scientist has a low publication activity, but he patents a lot or conducts serious scientific and educational work. So here, as elsewhere, it would be incorrect to cut everyone with the same size".
Break the system
Experts interviewed by RIA Novosti believe that it is time to change the tendency, and radically.
"The solution may be to create two tracks - teaching and research. Those who are not able to publish publications, for example, teachers of physical education, a foreign language, go to the first track," says Evgenia. This has been discussed in recent years, but it has not come to practice.
Sergei Voronin believes that it is necessary to completely abandon the orientation towards the West. "We have been raising this topic since 2014, we were supported by Vladimir Zhirinovsky . We need to create our own database on the CIS , BRICS , so that scientists from Eastern Europe and other countries aspire here ," the adviser insists.
"The very idea of rating by publications in a particular database is questionable. A scientist should be assessed according to the functions that he performs," says Vardan Baghdasaryan. In his opinion, new ideas that do not fit into the original paradigm cannot be published in journals with a high impact factor. They will make their way, but years later. Around scientific publishing houses there is a large feeding trough, many intermediaries. Not to mention the fact that this is the basis for the priority of Western science over Russian.
In November last year, State Duma deputy Sergei Kalashnikov sent a request to the Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev to speak out on this issue. According to him, he received a prompt reply: "Representatives of the government and the Russian Academy of Sciences approached me , they did the appropriate work. The only organization that opposed was the Higher School of Economics . The rest supported the idea of reviving and strengthening the role of the Russian certification system."
It is curious that the whole world also calls for the abandonment of formal indicators in assessing the work of researchers. In 2017, the French Academy of Sciences, the German Leopoldine Academy and the Royal Scientific Society of London issued a joint statement expressing concern about the overuse of bibliometrics. In 2015, Nature published the Leiden Manifesto, one of which reads: "Protect the priority of research relevant to your region." | https://www.russiadefence.net/t3010p200-russian-science-discussion-thread |
Neuroscience is increasingly a global challenge, with data and models produced by laboratories and research groups around the world. The US BRAIN Initiative and other large scale neural efforts are producing data at ever increasing scales, with the necessary capabilities to consolidate and analyze this data being increasingly appreciated by the global neuroscience community.
Neuroinformatics
Sandia neuroscientists are contributing to the growing neuroinformatics communty’s effort by developing tools and computational infrastructure to facilitate data sharing and collaboration between experimentalists and theorists. See sidebar for description of the N2A tool.
Neural Data Analytics
Consolidating the vast sources of neural data is only part of the challenge. Deriving insights from high throughput neural experiments and interpreting concepts across experiments are looming challenges to the neuroscience community. Sandia Neuroscience partners with experts around Sandia’s computing community who both develop sophisticated data analytics methods and engineer computing systems to enable their use at large scale. Areas of interest include:
- Graph Analytics
- Image Processing
- Machine Learning
- Bioinformatics
Featured Project
Neurons to Algorithms
The Neurons to Algorithms software tool, aka N2A, is a software tool capable of compositionally building complex neural models from simple parts represented as systems of dynamical equations. Because systems of dynamical equations can represent most physical processes in the brain, this enables the generation of robust, multiscale models that can leverage data and models originated at scales ranging from cellular processes to structural plasticity in neural circuits.
In addition to serving as a platform for consolidating neural models from across research efforts, N2A is being developed to serve as a front end “neural compiler” for neuromorphic hardware, including those being developed within Sandia. | https://neuroscience.sandia.gov/neuroinformatics-and-data-analytics/ |
In mid-sized or larger schemes, there is often a question as to when and what level of engagement should be incorporated prior to submitting a planning application. There are a range of requirements indicated in planning law, but it often comes down to the applicant’s discretion to judge what kind of engagement to try.
As the planning system has developed in recent years, a greater emphasis is being put on the role of engagement with key stakeholders to ensure the new proposals have a good chance to ‘blend’ in to their surroundings in a productive way. For example, the draft text for the new National Planning Policy Framework (for England) states: “Early engagement has significant potential to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the planning application system for all parties. Good quality pre-application discussion enables better coordination between public and private resources and improved outcomes for the community.” The favour towards early engagement is even stronger in other parts of the UK.
The statutory requirement for pre-planning engagement is contained within several Acts of Parliament and is applicable to a wide range of developments. Here’s a quick summary of the varying requirements for community engagement and statutory consultation in the UK, which differ between England, Scotland, and Wales.
In England, pre-application consultations are an essential part of the Planning Act 2008 and were further strengthened with the Localism Act (2011). With the introduction of the Localism Act , developers are now required to consult local communities before submitting applications for both residential and non-residential developments, allowing stakeholders the opportunity to influence proposals at an early stage. Importantly, developers must demonstrate how they have taken account of the community’s responses within their application.
However, only major applications in England are affected. Specifically, this includes residential developments of more than 200 homes or where the site area is 4 ha or more; and any non-residential developments with new floorspace of 10,000 sqm or more, or with a site area of 2 ha or more.
Both full and outline applications are subject to this requirement. Householder applications or those for listed buildings and conservation areas are not affected. Neither are LDC applications, prior notification applications or section 73 applications (that present variation on an earlier planning application).
The Localism Act also requires pre-application consultations for wind farm developments with plans to install more than two turbines, or where the turbine hub height is greater than 15 metres.
For nationally-significant infrastructure projects, developers are required to conduct pre-application consultations not just with the local community, but with statutory consultees, local authorities, landowners and all significantly affected persons. Just as with the Localism Act, the developers should demonstrate how they have taken account of the responses generated by their consultation.
For developments in Wales, much smaller applications require a consultation. The Planning (Wales) Act 2015 requires pre-planning consultations for all developments with more than 10 dwellings or sites larger than 0.5ha, or where floor space exceeds 1,000 sqm.
In Scotland, consultations are required for slightly larger developments than in Wales. The Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006 sets out a framework whereby all schemes with more than 50 units or more than 2 ha require pre-planning consultation or where the floor space exceeds 10,000 sqm.
In most cases, applicants should also speak to the development control officer at the local authority for advice on local ‘appetite’ for engagement and any relevant prior local knowledge. Increasingly, English local authorities also produce a detailed statement of community involvement (SCI) that explains how they themselves involve the public in planning decisions. These documents offer helpful guidelines regarding what applicants are expected to do. SCIs were introduced with the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 and increasingly outline the forms of community involvement encouraged with the public in greater detail.
Some key themes to pay attention to include a preference towards early engagement that facilitates novel, sometimes digital engagement methods on behalf of the applicant. For large projects especially, the objective is for communities to be provided with an opportunity to influence designs at an early stage.
If the project stays below the size and scale outlined previously, it is largely within the remit of the applicant to decide when to do any pre-application engagement and at what level. Increasingly, however, local authorities have suggested that applicants with large, complex, or potentially controversial projects try more open ended engagement methods. For example, Lancaster City Council’s draft Statement for Community Involvement mentions ‘planning for real’ workshops for larger schemes. ‘Planning for real’ facilitates a collaborative model making and mapping exercise to better understand issues surrounding the site – that the applicant may not yet be aware of – through the eyes of other stakeholders. Those insights can then be accommodated in the designs early on and help the architect or site engineer to complete designs or layouts for the scheme.
Get our community engagement tips straight to your inbox, subscribe today. | https://placechangers.co.uk/blog/engagement-requirements-larger-schemes/ |
Respiratory viral infections in infants with possible sepsis.
Knowledge of infections leading to sepsis is needed to develop comprehensive infection prevention and sepsis, as well as early recognition and treatment strategies.The aim of this study was to investigate the etiology of sepsis and evaluate the proportion of respiratory viral pathogens in infants under two years of age with possible sepsis. The prospective study was performed in two years. Multiplex reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed to detect viral pathogens. All patients who were included in this study had sepsis symptoms as defined by the Surviving Sepsis Campaign. We compared 90 patients with sepsis into three groups as patients (n = 33) who had only viral positivity in nasopharyngeal swab, patients (17) had proven bacterial infection with or without viral infection, and patients (40) without the pathogen detection. Human rhinovirus (16.7%) and influenza (7.8%) were the most commonly seen viruses. A cough was more common in the viral infection group than other groups ( P = 0.02) and median thrombocyte count was lower in the bacterial infection group than the others ( P = 0.01). Patients having bacterial sepsis had the longest duration of hospitalization than the other groups ( P = 0.04). During winter and spring seaons, patients with sepsis had more viral infection; however, in summer and autumn period, patients were mostly in a state that we could not prove infection agents ( P = 0.02). Our results suggest that respiratory tract viruses may play an important role in patients with sepsis and they should be kept in mind, especially during winter and spring seasons. In overall infection, viral respiratory viruses as a single pathogen with a detection rate of 36.6% in sepsis etiology.
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Get involved now! Get involved now! Get involved now! Get involved now!
Optimism prevails
There seems to be movement at all the edges of Europe - in the countryside but also in the cities. It’s a chance to get involved, to bring your message through.
It’s exciting to see how strong all these messages can be when we achieve to put them together.
There are two parallel activities attempting to make the best out of the chances this moment of creating a new agricultural and rural policy might offer:
Sustainable Mystery Tour 2012
Forum Synergies is fanning out in order to learn from good examples of sustainable rural development. Success stories are the best way in order to draw conclusions what our needs for the future are.
We’ve started our exiting tour in May in Estonia – have a look
(link
)!
Co-initiated by ARC the FOOD FOOD MARCH started to prepare for “The CAP we want” campaign. Apart from physical events everybody is invited to bring in a “photo-shut message” highlighting what the new CAP should take care of.
A fascinating variety is about to evolve. You can have a look and you can join! (
link
)
News from Forum Synergies projects
New ways of Access to Land for Community Connected Farming -
case studies are available! (
link
)
One of the output of this thematic exchange lead by Terre de Liens in 2010-2011 has been
the realization of seven case studies
quite diverse but all illustrating how new relationships between farmers, consumers and territories can be invented.
They all study the
land dimension:
either to show the difficulties of access to land in Eastern Europe (Viva sol, farm Jaglea),
either to illustrate the experiences of mobilization of land for the maintenance of a peri-urban agriculture (occupation land in Italy near Rome, mobilization of communal lands in Hamburg),
either to show innovative citizen initiatives of access to land (Tablehurst and Plaw Hatch Community Farm, Regionalwert AG, Terre de Liens)
About Forum Synergies
Forum Synergies is a European non-profit organisation. Since 1994 our network of engaged citizens and associations has gathered rich and varied experience in sustainable practices, mainly in rural areas. Trying out the best ways to save resources and energy in our local communities, combining the intelligent use of modern technologies with traditional know how, and sharing our successes and weaknesses throughout Europe, have given us faith in getting involved in political decision-making on our future.
Forum Synergies is kindly supported by
Fondation de France Fondation pour le Progrès de l’Homme
http://www.fdf.org
http://www.fph.ch
Events
Calendar of events
related to rural sustainable development
The new calendar of events is online! (
link
)
1
st
European Herb Gathering,
4.-7. Oct. 2012, Lesachtal, AT
Open for registration! Please register before 1.8.2012!
Link to
draft programme
and
registration form
forward to a friend
Copyright © 2012 Forum Synergies, All rights reserved. | https://us4.campaign-archive.com/?u=82f60909ecf0d2db5e03cac2c&id=b09c14bdbb |
THIS AGREEMENT, dated and effective as of December 23, 2004, between SPECTRUM Commercial Services Company, a Minnesota Corporation, having its mailing address and principal place of business at Two Appletree Square, Suite 415, Bloomington, Minnesota 55425 (herein called "Lender" or "SCS"), and Appliance Recycling Centers of America, Inc., a Minnesota corporation, having the mailing address and principal place of business at 7400 Excelsior Boulevard, Minneapolis, MN 55426, (herein called "Borrower"), amends that certain General Credit and Security Agreement dated August 30, 1996, ("Credit Agreement") as amended. Where the provisions of this Agreement conflict with the Credit Agreement, the intent of this Agreement shall control.
"Borrowing Base" shall mean the sum of (i) Eighty percent (80%) of the net amount of Eligible Receivables or such greater or lesser percentage as Lender, in its sole discretion, shall deem appropriate, plus (ii) the lesser of (x) Twenty Five percent (25%) of the net amount of Eligible Inventory (excluding Eligible Whirlpool Inventory and Eligible Scratch and Dent Inventory), plus Fifty percent (50%) of the net amount of Eligible Scratch and Dent Inventory, plus Eighty percent (80%) of the net amount of Eligible Whirlpool Inventory, or (y) Seven Million and No/100ths Dollars ($7,000,000), or such greater or lesser dollars as Lender, in its sole discretion, shall deem appropriate, although Lender may, in its sole discretion, raise or lower any such dollars and/or percentages in its sole discretion. Further, the total of the above may be reduced by $1 million, at Borrower's option; see Paragraph 5 of this Credit Agreement.
"Maximum Principal Amount" shall mean, at any date, Eight Million Dollars and No/100ths Dollars ($8,000,000).
If termination occurs on or prior to December 31, 2005—3.0% of the Maximum Principal Amount.
If termination occurs after December 31, 2005 but on or before December 23, 2006—2.0% of the Maximum Principal Amount.
If termination occurs after December 31, 2006 but before December 31, 2007—1.0% of the Maximum Principal Amount.
On the Termination Date, all obligations arising under this Agreement shall become immediately due and payable without further notice or demand. Lender's rights with respect to outstanding Obligations owing on or prior to the Termination Date will not be, affected by termination and all of said rights including (without limitation) Lender's Security Interest in the Collateral existing on such Termination Date or acquired by Borrower thereafter, and the requirements of this Agreement that Borrower furnish schedules and confirmatory assignments of Receivables and Inventory and turn over to Lender all full and partial payments thereof shall continue to be operative until all such Obligations have been duly satisfied.
5. Interest. Borrower agrees to pay interest on the outstanding principal amount of the Note, at the close of each day at a fluctuating rate per annum.(computed on the basis of actual number of days elapsed and a year of 360 days) which is at all times equal to Two and 95/100ths Percent (2.95%) in excess of the Prime Rate; each change in such fluctuating rate caused by a change in the Prime Rate to occur simultaneously with the change in the Prime Rate (the "Initial Rate"); provided, however, that (i) in no event shall the Initial Rate, the Adjusted Rate or the Re-adjusted rate in effect hereunder at any time be less than 7.5% per annum; (ii) interest payable hereunder with respect to each calendar month shall not be less than $37,500.00 regardless of the amount of loans, Advances or other credit extensions that actually may have been outstanding during the month, and (iii) interest shall continue to accrue hereunder until all Obligations have been paid in full.. Interest accrued through the last day of each month will be due and payable to Lender on the next Monthly Payment Date. Interest shall also be payable on the Maturity Date or on any earlier Termination Date. Interest accrued after the Maturity Date or earlier Termination Date shall be payable on Demand. Interest may be charged to Borrower's loan account as an Advance at Lender's option, whether or not Borrower then has the right to obtain an Advance pursuant to the terms of this Agreement.
In the event Borrower earns Net Profit in any fiscal year of at least One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) and evidences such profit by delivering to Lender the Periodic Financial Report for that period that reflects the required Net Profit, and provided no Event of Default exists or has occurred, then upon Borrower's written request, the Initial Rate shall be reduced to Two and 45/100ths percent (2.45%) in excess of the Prime Rate (the "Adjusted Rate") commencing with the next scheduled Monthly Payment Date following Lender's receipt of both Borrower's written request and the Periodic Financial Report.
Further, provided no Event of Default exists or has occurred, Borrower may opt to take advantage of the "Interest Discount" by providing to Lender at least two weeks written notice that it desires to do so. Upon the effective date of such notice, and for the duration of the Interest Discount, the definition of "Borrowing Base" shall be reduced by One Million dollars, and, the rate of interest then in effect, as provided herein, shall be further reduced by one-half percent (1/2%). The Interest Discount period shall end upon the earlier of the occurrence of an Event of Default, or the receipt by Lender of notice from Borrower that it shall end. Once it does end, the Interest Discount option shall not again be available to Borrower for at least 90 days from the end thereof.
actually may have been outstanding during the month, and (iii) interest shall continue to accrue hereunder until all Obligations have been paid in full.. (The Initial Rate, the Adjusted Rate and the Re-adjusted Rate in effect either before or after an Event of Default is referred to herein collectively as the "Interest Rate"). The undersigned shall also pay a late fee equal to 10% of any payment under the Note that is more than 10 days past due.
"Maturity Date" shall mean December 31, 2007, provided, however, that the then current Maturity Date shall be extended by succeeding periods of 12 calendar months without notice to or action by either Borrower or Lender, provided further however, that such extension shall not occur if: (i) Lender has notified Borrower of an Event of Default that has occurred and is continuing, or (ii) this Agreement has previously terminated as provided in the paragraph entitled "Termination", or (iii) Lender has, in its sole and absolute discretion, demanded payment of amounts owed hereunder, or (iv) Borrower or Lender have notified the other of the intention not to renew at least sixty days prior to the then current Maturity Date and thereafter no extension shall occur.
17(1). As of the end of each fiscal year hereafter, beginning with the year ending December 31, 2004, Borrower's financial statements shall reflect a Tangible Net Worth of at least Two Million Nine Hundred Thousand Dollars ($2.9 million), and for each subsequent fiscal year ending, adding an additional amount equal to the Net Income (only if positive and not if negative) earned in each fiscal year starting with the fiscal year ending December 31, 2004.
17(m). At the end the calendar quarter ending June 30, 2005, and for each subsequent calendar quarter ending thereafter, Borrower's financial statements shall reflect a positive Net Income of at least One Dollar ($1.00), for each such quarter as well as on a fiscal year to date basis.
Open any new stores unless 30 day written notice is provider to Lender prior to signing a lease for such location and provides written evidence to Lender that outside funds raised by the Borrower, after the date of this Sixteenth Amendment, will be sufficient to fund the cash required to open, stock and advertise the new store.
Without Lender's consent, expend or contract to expend an aggregate in excess of $250,000 for fixed assets in any fiscal year, whether by way of purchase, lease, or otherwise, and whether payable currently or in the future.
consider any Inventory not to be Eligible Inventory, and by way of example of types of Inventory that Lender will consider not to be Eligib1e Inventory, Lender, notwithstanding any earlier classification of eligibility, may consider any Inventory not to be Eligible Inventory if: (i) such Inventory does not constitute finished goods (eg: "Fixed". "Scratch & Dent", "Ding & Dent". "New" (either in box or out of box); (ii) such Inventory does not meet all standards imposed by any governmental agency having regulatory authority over such goods and/or their use, manufacture or sale; (iii) such Inventory has not been physically received in the continental United States by Borrower; (iv) such Inventory is not currently salable in the normal course of Borrower's operations; (v) such Inventory is on consignment to or from any other Person or is subject to any bailment; (vi) such Inventory is subject to any lien, security interest or other encumbrance whatsoever, except for the security interest of Lender under this Agreement; (vii) such Inventory has been sold to any other person; (viii) such Inventory is located in a place other than Borrower's stores or processing centers; or (ix) such Inventory was purchased or otherwise acquired by Borrower more than 12 calendar months ago. The value of Eligible Inventory shall be the lower of the cost or market value of the Eligible Inventory computed on a first-in, first-out basis in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles on the basis of the most recent inventory certificates delivered to Lender pursuant to Paragraph 17(a)(v).
SPECTRUM COMMERCIAL SERVICES COMPANY APPLIANCE RECYCLING CENTERS OF AMERICA, INC.
Steven I. Lowenthal, Co-CEO Its Pres.
The undersigned (collectively the "Guarantor") has entered into certain Guaranties of various dates (collectively the "Guaranty;" capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein being used herein as therein defined), pursuant to which each Guarantor has guarantied the payment and performance of certain Indebtedness of Appliance Recycling Centers of America, Inc., a Minnesota corporation ("Borrower") to SPECTRUM Commercial Services Company, a Minnesota corporation, ("SCS"), which Indebtedness includes, without limitation, all obligations of Borrower under that certain Revolving Note dated as of August 30, 1996 between the Borrower and SCS as subsequently amended and/or restated (as so amended the "Original Loan Agreement").
(ii) with respect to each corporate Guarantor, by such Guarantor's Subsidiary Security Agreement, such Guarantor continues to grant, and hereby does grant, a security interest in all of their respective property and assets as well as the "Collateral" described in such Guarantor's Subsidiary Security Agreement, to secure the payment and performance of the "obligations" described therein; and .
(iii) the Guaranty remains in full force and effect, enforceable against the Guarantor in accordance with its terms.
APPLIANCE RECYCLING CENTERS OF AMERICA-CALIFORNIA, INC.
ARCA OF ST. LOUIS, INC. | https://www.lawinsider.com/contracts/3OriWCCxF3BZSh1cCPbTie/appliance-recycling-centers-of-america-inc-mn/credit-and-security-agreement/2005-02-25 |
Astronomers have detected a previously unknown type of stellar explosion called a micronova involving thermonuclear blasts at the polar regions of a type of burned-out star called a white dwarf after it has siphoned material from a companion star.
The researchers said on Wednesday a micronova is by far the least powerful type of star explosions now known - less energetic than a blast called a nova in which a white dwarf's entire surface blows up and tiny compared to a supernova that occurs during the death throes of some giant stars.
Micronovae are observed from Earth as bursts of light lasting about 10 hours. They were documented on three white dwarfs - one 1,680 light years away from Earth, one 3,720 light years away and one 4,900 light years away. A light year is the distance light travels in a year, 5.9 trillion miles (9.5 trillion km).
"The discovery was an unexpected surprise. It goes to show just how dynamic the universe is. These events are fast and sporadic. Finding them requires looking at the right place at the right time," said astronomer Simone Scaringi of Durham University in England, lead author of the study published in the journal Nature.
White dwarfs, among the densest objects in the universe, result from the collapse of a dying star's core. They have the mass of our sun but are about the size of Earth in diameter. Most stars, including the sun, are destined to end their existence in this form.
Some white dwarfs are part of what is called a binary system, in an orbit with another star.
Micronovae happen in very specific binary systems - with a white dwarf star possessing a strong magnetic field and a low-mass normal star. The white dwarf's gravitational pull can strip hydrogen gas from the companion star's surface. The hydrogen then flows toward the white dwarf's magnetic poles, similar to how Earth's magnetic field channels the solar wind to our planet's magnetic poles, causing the auroras.
At the base of accumulating columns of gas at the white dwarf's poles, pressure and temperature rise, causing thermonuclear fusion that converts hydrogen into helium.
"Under the conditions in which this is triggered, this fusion is explosive, and the micronova occurs: a thermonuclear 'bomb' goes off," said astronomer and study co-author Paul Groot, who divides his time between Radboud University in the Netherlands and the University of Cape Town and South African Astronomical Observatory.
The explosion is localized and does not destroy the white dwarf. In fact, the micronova cycle can repeat itself.
"Only a very small percentage of the white dwarf participates in this explosion, roughly about one millionth of the surface area. Translated to the Earth this would be an area of about, say, the city of London," Groot added.
Each micronova event burns through material the equivalent of one large asteroid, or just over one millionth of Earth's mass, Scaringi said.
A micronova is similar to a nova, a thermonuclear explosion engulfing a white dwarf's entire surface. With novae, the white dwarf lacks a strong magnetic field, meaning that hydrogen stolen from the companion star is distributed globally rather than concentrating at the poles. Novae can last for weeks or months, burning through about a million times more mass than micronovae, Scaringi said.
The researchers discovered the micronovae when analyzing data from NASA's TESS space telescope. They used the European Southern Observatory's Chile-based Very Large Telescope to confirm the explosions involved white dwarfs.
Some other types of stellar explosions include: a kilonova, when two neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole merge; a hypernova, a kind of supernova involving a massive star exploding at end of its life cycle and collapsing to form a black hole; and a luminous red nova involving two stars merging. | https://dearborn.org/preview/surprised-astronomers-find-new-type-of-star-explosion-6506 |
Leaning Tower of Pisa: Bad or Luckiest Architect in History?
The Leaning Tower of Pisa, in the Tuscany region, is considered a must see. It’s a marvel and a miracle that attracts many tourists from all over the world. Did you know that it began to lean even before its construction was completed during the 12th century? Nowadays the current tilt makes an angle of 3.9 degrees from the vertical axis. Definitely impressive! | https://www.trips2italy.com/blog/tag/pisa/ |
Author: Kiyoshi Akuta, IT Security Analyst
Among consultations regarding security incidents caused by malware infection, there are certain number of cases caused by “unmanaged device(s)”. In these incidents, devices that were not properly managed as corporate assets, referred to as “stray devices”, were infected with malware and spread to other devices within the network. Based on the cases so far, there is a strong tendency that it occurs at regional and overseas bases where asset management is a challenge.
Stray devices are devices that cannot be forced to implement security measures by mechanisms, such as Active Directory, and tend to be the starting point for malware infection. In addition, it is often difficult for the administrator to know of the infection and the scale of damage, as it tends to increase as the detection is delayed.
Under these circumstances, many administrators are being forced to take measures in addressing major issues of asset management, detection of, and response to cyberattacks. It has become a large concern for many organizations.
What can be done to achieve those goals at once? Introducing a new approach of security measures including asset management at the endpoint.
1. Difficulties of Asset Management
As mentioned above, asset management has the important meaning of eliminating unknown devices and enabling security control. CIS Controls, developed by the US Center for Internet Security (CIS) in collaboration with the National Security Agency (NSA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), states “Inventory and Control of Hardware” and “Inventory and Control of Software” as high-priority basic items.
On the other hand, items such as “Malware Defenses” are listed as foundational, and it is described that it is an appropriate approach to maintain after basic items are implemented.
In reality, there are many companies that cannot proceed with maintenance in such a straightforward manner. One of the many factors is the sophistication of cyberattacks. According to a survey by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, more than half of the attacks observed in recent years are attacks that are difficult for traditional antivirus solutions to detect, and it is not possible to expect 100% protection by antivirus alone. In order to respond to sophisticated attacks, the priority of introducing a mechanism to detect and respond to attacks, such as Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), is high.
Another factor is the lack of human resources for security measures. In a survey conducted by NRI Secure in 2019, about 90% of companies answered that there was a shortage of personnel engaged in security measures, and it shows the ability to propel security measures forward is insufficient.
With the sophistication of cyberattacks and the shortage of security personnel, it is not possible to promote the development of measures in the order of “asset management” to “protection, detection and response” with urgency. There is no choice but to prioritize counter measures against cyberattacks that are currently occurring. From now on, it is expected that an approach will be further required, which can easily improve asset management while responding to cyberattacks.
2. Utilizing Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) for Asset Management
How can it be achieved? One option is to utilize an additional feature of EDR.
It is common to use “dedicated” asset management solutions for asset management, but recently EDR has introduced products equipped with an asset management feature. In addition to the original purpose of EDR, “detection and response to cyberattacks,” we will introduce the advantages of using asset management features.
2-1. Easy Grasp of Managed Asset Information
There are two main types of asset management solutions, depending on whether or not a program called an agent that runs on the endpoint is required. The following is a brief summary of each method.
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Method
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Overview
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Pros
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Cons
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Agent
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An agent is installed on each device and collects asset information.
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- A lot of information can be collected
- It works offline and can be collected when it comes online
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- High installation load (agent installation required)
- The management of agent software is necessary
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Scanning
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Access each device from the management server and collect asset information.
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- Low installation load (no work required at each endpoint for installation)
- No need to manage agent software
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- Device and network bandwidth load occur when exploration is executed
- The device must be online when scanning
- The amount of collected information may be small if administrator privileges are not available
From the viewpoint of the information that can be collected, many of the products in circulation use the agent type. Many EDRs are agent based and by using the asset management feature, it is possible to eliminate the need for installing agents for the purpose of asset management only. Asset management can be started quickly with a low load. In addition, since it operates with a single agent, the required machine resources can be reduced, the effect of reducing the impact on the business can be expected.
2-2. Easy Discover of “Stray Device(s)”
Another advantage is that you can easily know whether or not EDR has been implemented to the endpoint.
With the asset management features of EDR, it is possible to detect devices that do not have EDR installed on the same network. Using this feature, the load of searching for stray devices can be expected to be reduced.
If there is a device that does not have EDR installed and receives a cyberattack, the attack cannot be detected and may be compromised. Attackers who infringe upon devices in an organization tend to use devices that have not been installed with security products as a hiding place and spread the infringement further, so it is important how to find stray devices and put them under control.
3. Conclusion
If you focus only on “asset management”, it’ true that the solution dedicated to asset management is functionally superior; on the other hand, the benefits of implementing EDR and asset management as part of a single solution is likely to be sufficient.
For those who are looking for quick and easy asset management, or who are considering its implementation, why not consider using the asset management features of EDR as an option?
In general, EDR often has the feature set of collecting detailed information of and controlling the device. Technically, it can be applied to many scenarios. An increasing number of products have multiple functions such as USB control, vulnerability, and firewall management. In the future, it is expected that a single solution will reduce load and cost without having to worry about a wide variety of products and discrete operations. | https://www.nri-secure.com/blog/20210309 |
On Sunday, the 76ers released an update on guard Markelle Fultz’s right shoulder injury. They stated that after a visit with Dr. Ben Kibler in Lexington, KY, it was confirmed that Fultz did not have any structural impairment but he would be out indefinitely with soreness and scapular muscle imbalance.
Scapular muscle imbalance, also known as scapular dyskinesis, is an asymmetry of the shoulder blades characterized by an abnormal movement pattern of the overused side. This is often seen in baseball pitchers and tennis players due to the repetitive overuse of the throwing or hitting arm. Although typically in basketball, shoulder injuries occur when the arm is blocked during a shot or hits the rim after a dunk.
Media reports stated that Fultz had a cortisone injection earlier in October. These are typically used to reduce inflammation and pain but with Fultz’s continued symptoms, we can assume that the injection didn’t have significant benefit. This supports the scapular dyskinesis diagnosis as injections generally don’t offer relief for this problem.
Return to play can be very difficult to predict, especially with the diagnosis of scapular dyskinesis. Some athletes respond to rehab in a few weeks whereas others require months of work. Rehab focuses on improving scapular stability and movement patters, but also addressing any kinetic chain dysfunctions that may be contributing to the shoulder issue. Sometimes another injury, such as Fultz’s previous ankle sprain, can cause certain muscle groups to overcompensate, resulting in dysfunction elsewhere in the body, like Fultz’s shoulder injury. Think of it as your car’s alignment being off.
The good news in all of this is that the injury appears to be non-surgical. The Sixers will be on top of Fultz’s rehab and will have him back on the court once the scapular dyskinesis and any other movement dysfunctions are addressed. Correcting these dysfunctions will allow Fultz to return to his previous level of performance while minimizing his risk of re-injury.
Philly.com Sports Doc
Posted: Monday, August 25, 2014, 5:30 AM
Achilles tendon rupture, the fear of every middle age man on the basketball and tennis court. Now that I am in my 40s I fall into that category. And unfortunately for me, I recently felt the dreaded “pop” while playing doubles tennis. At first, I thought the ball came from the next court and hit me on the back of the leg. Then I came to my senses and realized I had torn my Achilles. The people who stopped playing on the courts next to us must have thought I was in a lot of pain the way I was yelling while lying on the baseline. In truth, I didn’t really have much pain. I was yelling because I knew what was to come: Surgery, weeks of non-weight bearing and partial weight bearing, and the huge inconvenience this would be for work and life in general. My father-in-law, who was my partner in this ill-fated doubles match pointed out, “Hey, at least you won the point.” Not much consolation. My summer fun was over.
So what happened? How did I tear my Achilles? As I am known to do, I reviewed all the research hoping to figure out the cause. Maybe I was fatigued which may have contributed to the injury. More likely I’m predisposed as I tore the other side over a decade ago playing soccer. Neither time did I have any Achilles pain leading up to the injury.
There are some studies showing possible relationships with risk factors and Achilles ruptures. In the June 2014 edition of the journal Sports Medicine, Claessen et al categorized these potential risk factors into two categories: non-modifiable and modifiable. Non-modifiable factors include age, race, sex, medical issues, pre-existing musculoskeletal disease/tendon changes, ankle/foot alignment and genetic factors. Modifiable risk factors include obesity, sports activity, medication and smoking. From a specific sport perspective, Achilles tendon ruptures are found more frequently in athletes who participate in sports involving explosive acceleration such as basketball, tennis, baseball, and softball. Of the above factors, medications, especially Quinolones (specific antibiotics) and Corticosteroids, have shown to have the greatest risk for Achilles rupture.
There are multiple potential risk factors for Achilles tendon ruptures but none have been proven to be key factors. One risk factor that I definitely have is O blood type. A study from 1989 in the American Journal of Sports Medicine stated “In cases of multiple ruptures and re-ruptures, the frequency of blood group O was 71%.” However, the O blood type correlation is still up for debate.
Although the mechanism is still up for debate, what you’ll see if you slow down a video of the injury is the player taking a back step to push off and the knee forcibly extending at the same time. The combined force of foot plantar flexion and knee extension is likely too much stress for the tendon to handle. Watch the video of David Beckham tearing his Achilles for the prototypical mechanism of injury.
Strauss et al reported the following statistics in 2007 in the International Journal of the Care of the Injured. The incidence of Achilles tendon rupture is approximately 18 per 100,000 people. Ruptures typically occur in males between 30 and 50 years old and account for approximately 40% of all operative tendon repairs. Approximately 75-80% of cases can be attributed to participation in athletic activities, including ball and racquet sports.
Surgery or not?
There is ongoing debate as to what is the best course of treatment: Surgical repair or non-operative treatment. Surgery involves bringing the two ends of the tear together and suturing them in place while the tendon heals. Non-surgical treatment involves casting the foot in plantarflexion (toes pointed down) and recasting weekly with gradual progression into dorsiflexion (toes up). Non-operative care has demonstrated a re-rupture rate from 10-30% where surgical re-rupture rates are around 3-4%. Surgical complications have been reported to occur in 7-42% of all cases and include difficulty with wound healing, skin necrosis, infection, and sensory loss. For me, it wasn’t a question. I elected to have surgery as I want the best chance at a full recovery.
Rehabilitation
This is the most frustrating part for me. For surgeries such as an ACL reconstruction, the harder you work the quicker you recover. It’s just the opposite with an Achilles repair. The tendon needs time to heel so for the first 2-4 weeks you can’t put any weight on the foot. Then, over the next 3-4 weeks you gradually increase weight bearing in a boot with a heel lift to take pressure off the tendon. Strengthening is started late in the rehab process which means it takes a long time to get your full strength back, and many people never regain full strength after this injury. I never regained full strength after my first surgery and definitely lost a step with sports (although that could just be me getting older but I’m going with the injury). It takes approximately 4-6 months to start back to running and to initiate sports activities with complete recovery taking close to a year. As you can guess, I’m in for a long and slow recovery following Achilles surgery.
Prevention
Is there any way to prevent an Achilles injury? There isn’t much research on this topic. In younger, high level athletes, there probably isn’t a way to prevent it other than not playing as intensely. For someone older like me, there is the possibility that by improving flexibility and fitness you may be able to reduce the risk of injury, but it is still probably just bad luck.
For me, I’ll do my rehab and get back on the tennis court and the soccer field in the spring. Unless my surgeon and my wife force me to take up a sport with a lower risk of traumatic injuries, but with my luck, I’ll probably fall off the elliptical and break an arm.
Philly.com Sports Doc
Justin Shaginaw, MPT, ATC, Aria 3B Orthopaedic Institute, Athletic Trainer - US Soccer Federation
Robert Senior, Sports Doc blog Editor
POSTED: MONDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014, 6:00 AM
A 2008 study by Borowski et al in the American Journal of Sports Medicine looked at high school basketball injury rates using the online reporting from 100 high schools for the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons. They found that high school basketball players sustained 1.94 injuries per 1,000 athlete exposures (AE).
Injuries were more common in games versus practices (3.27 game injuries vs. 1.40 practice injuries).
Most Common Injuries (percentages are the respective portion of all injuries observed):
Girls sustained more injuries (2.08 per 1,000 AE) versus boys (1.83 per 1,000 AE). Girls accounted for more concussions and knee injuries, while boys sustained more fractures and contusions.
For college basketball, two articles published in the Journal of Athletic Training in 2007 (Agel et al and Dick et al) looked at the NCAA injury data from the 1988-89 through 2003-04 seasons. Lower extremity injuries accounted for more than half of all game and practice injuries with rates two times higher in games than practice.
Male injuries were 9.9 per 1000 AE during games and 4.3 per 1,000 AE during practice vs. 6.75 and 2.84 for females. Regarding ACL injuries in college basketball, women showed a 3.5 times greater incidence than men.
Common Game Injuries:
Philly.com Sports Doc
Justin Shaginaw, MPT, ATC, Aria 3B Orthopaedic Institute, Athletic Trainer - US Soccer Federation
Robert Senior, Sports Doc blog Editor
Posted: Monday, January 13, 2014, 6:00 AM
The winter sports season is in full swing. In gyms everywhere the squeak of basketball shoes on the court can be heard. Along with the layups and 3 pointers, there are common injuries that occur. Let’s talk about some of these common basketball injuries and the appropriate treatment.
Ankle Sprains
This is the most common injury in basketball, accounting for 24.6 percent of women’s game injuries and 26.2 percent for men. It occurs when the foot rolls inward spraining the ligaments on the outside of the ankle. Swelling and bruising often occur with the severity of the injury dictating the athlete’s ability to return to play.
Mild ankle sprains can return fairly quickly, sometimes even in the same game with taping or a brace. More serve injuries can take weeks to months to recover. Immediate treatment involves immobilization and ice followed by range of motion, strengthening, and balance/proprioceptive exercises. For athletes that cannot bear weight on their foot, they should be put on crutches and see a physician to rule out a fracture as well as assess the extent of the injury. For prevention, taping and bracing has been shown to reduce the rate of ankle injuries in sports.
Stress Injuries
Stress injuries (shin splints, stress fracture, etc) are another common basketball injury, usually seen during preseason as athletes transition from softer outdoor fields in fall sports to the hard indoor courts. Initially, symptoms are only with activity. As the problem worsens, pain can occur with walking and even at rest. If not addressed early, it can lead to a stress fracture requiring the patient to stop sports for a prolonged period of time.
The common locations of these injuries are the tibia, medial malleolus, fifth metatarsal, and navicular. Initial treatment involves decreasing impact activities until symptoms resolve and assessing the athlete’s feet for appropriate shoes and possibly supportive inserts. It’s also a good idea to progress practice intensity gradually to allow players to acclimate to the new playing surface. Players that do not respond to conservative measures should be seen by a sports medicine physician for further evaluation.
ACL/Meniscus
Knee injuries are the second most common injury in basketball, with ACL injuries being more common in female players. Both meniscal tears and ACL injuries are caused by deceleration and pivoting on a planted foot. The common signs of an internal knee injury include swelling and a feeling of a “pop” or “catching and locking.” Immediate treatment should include ice and crutches if the athlete cannot walk normally followed by a referral to a sports medicine doctor to diagnose the injury.
Research has shown that ACL prevention programs have been effective in reducing the incidence of injury. Some well-known programs are the PEP program (http://smsmf.org/smsf-programs/pep-program), Sportsmetrics (http://sportsmetrics.org/), and the FIFA 11+ program (http://f-marc.com/11plus/home/) . Although some of these are sports specific, they can be easily modified for basketball.
Patellar Tendinopathy
Commonly known as patellar tendonitis or jumper’s knee, this injury presents as pain and tenderness of the patellar tendon. The mechanism of injury is believed to be due to repetitive strain to the tendon from jumping, cutting, and deceleration activities involved in basketball. Treatment includes limiting activity until symptoms improve, as well as ice, quad stretching, eccentric quadriceps exercises, and soft tissue treatments. Patellar tendon straps can also be beneficial. In more chronic cases, medications, injection therapies, and surgery are other options.
In younger patients whose growth plates are not closed, usually under 15, Osgood-Schlatter syndrome is more common. This is an injury to the attachment of the patellar tendon to the tibia. The tendon actually pulls away from the bone causing a boney protuberance that can become painful and tender. The treatment for Osgood-Schlatter syndrome is rest and ice as it is almost always self-limiting.
Hand Injuries
Finger injuries are fairly common in basketball and occur when players “jam” their fingers on the ball. The injuries are usually simple sprains that can be treated symptomatically with ice and buddy taping. Occasionally these injuries can be more serious such a fracture and tendon rupture. If the player’s finger looks deformed or if they are unable to move it, they should be evaluated by a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury.
Upper Extremity
Shoulder injuries are relatively rare in basketball with the most common being dislocations and labral tears. These injuries usually occur when a player is blocked during a shot forcing the arm backwards. For a dislocation, urgent treatment should be sought from the team’s athletic trainer and a physician if necessary. Labral tears should be considered for players with chronic shoulder pain with overhead activities such as shooting, and an appointment with a sports medicine physician should be schedule to accurately diagnose the injury.
The other upper extremity injury seen in basketball is a fracture. These usually occur from falling on an outstretched arm. As with dislocations, the player should be evaluated by the team’s athletic trainer and referred to a physician for urgent care.
As you can see, lower extremity injuries account for the majority of basketball injuries. Many of these are minor and can be managed conservatively with a quick return to sports. With more serious injuries such as ligament/tendon ruptures and fractures, urgent care by a sports medicine physician is advised. The above treatment recommendations are just a guideline and any injury should be evaluated by your team’s athletic trainer or a sports medicine physician to accurately diagnose the injury and provide appropriate care.
Philly.com Sports Doc
POSTED: Tuesday, May 14, 2013, 6:00 AM
Justin Shaginaw MPT, ATC
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis speaks during an NFL Super Bowl XLVII football news conference on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, in New Orleans. Lewis denied a report linking him to a company that purports to make performance-enhancers. The Ravens face the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl on Sunday. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
We all marvel in the extraordinary recovery of athletes following injury.
Ray Lewis returned to play less than 3 months following tricep repair surgery. Adrian Peterson nearly broke the single season NFL rushing record less than a year after ACL reconstruction. Kyle Lowry played point guard for Villanova less than 4 months following his own ACL reconstruction.
How is this possible? Do these gifted athletes just work harder during rehab? Do their bodies heal faster than the rest of us?
Or could it be the fear of most sports fans in the 21st century? Could these be using performance enhancing agents to speed up their recovery? Let’s discuss the factors and controversies that contribute to a speedy recovery in more detail.
Ray Lewis and his tricep. Ray injured his tricep on October 14th, 2012. He had surgery three days later and played in his first game on January 6th, 2013. That’s less than 3 months after injury—an unheard of turnaround time. There are many factors contributing to his extraordinary recovery.
First and foremost, Ray took a great risk at returning that soon. His chance of re-tear was very high as the surgical repair takes at least 3-4 months to be even close to being strong enough to withstand the forces involved in football. I’m sure that his rehab was rigorous in regaining the strength needed to block and tackle in the NFL. One would think his age would be a detriment to a speedy recovery, but it doesn’t seem to have been a factor.
The big question: did the deer antler spray help? There is little scientific evidence that IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor) has any performance enhancing or injury recovery benefit. And IGF-1 is not affected when delivered through a spray. In Ray Lewis’ case, he probably beat the odds of re-injury by playing as early as he did vs. having an amazing recovery aided by performance enhancing supplements.
Adrian Peterson. He is still the talk of the town when it comes to returning from ACL surgery. In his first season back, he nearly sets the NFL rushing record.
Adrian’s first game back was 9 months after his ACL surgery. Although his level of play was astonishing— many players never quite get back to their pre-injury level—the time frame that he returned to play in is within the normal range of 9-12 months. Was there anything more than hard work and determination that contributed to his recovery? A good surgeon and rehab staff helps. But probably more than anything is what makes him such an amazing athlete is the same thing that gave him such a remarkable recovery… great DNA. There are no rumors or whispers about deer spray or any other performance enhancing substances with Peterson, just old fashioned hard work.
When we look for an unbelievably quick recovery from ACL rehabilitation, we don’t need to look any further than the Main Line and former Villanova basketball star Kyle Lowry. Kyle tore his ACL the summer before his freshman year at Villanova. He had surgery on September 17th and played in his first collegiate game on December 31st. That’s just 3 ½ months after ACL reconstruction! Not only did he return to play so quickly, but he had a great season and was named to the Big East All-Rookie team as well as being tabbed Philadelphia Big Five Rookie of the Year. Kyle has gone on to have a successful NBA career without any inkling of a previous ACL injury.
In Lowry’s case, his recovery can be based almost exclusively on his genetics as even performance enhancing substances couldn’t have produced such as a rapid return to basketball.
Genetics, hard work, or performance enhancement? How do these athletes return so quickly? Even though in Ray Lewis’ case there are questions regarding hormone usage, all the deer antler spray in the world won’t get players back on the court and field as quickly as these players returned. These players get back to sports on the accelerated track due to their genetic makeup, excellent surgeons and rehab staff, hard work, and willingness to play in a time frame that puts them at higher risk for re-injury.
I'm sure everyone is curious of this experimental treatment that pro athletes are flying to Germany to have done. It is a Similar treatment to PRP (platelet rich plasma) that is done here in the states. PRP is used to stimulate healing of tissue where Bynum's therapy, Regenokine or Orthokine treatment, is in theory blocking inflammation through the infanti-inflammatory cytokine IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra). The hope is that it can alter the inflammatory response and limit cartilage erosion present in osteoarthritis. To date, there only a few studies that support this claim, and no longer term trials supporting its use. Insurance does not pay for either PRP or Regenokine/Orthokine treatments which cost hundreds (PRP) to thousands of dollars (Regenokine). There are other treatment options that are covered by insurance and have research to support their use, such as viscosupplementation. It's important to discuss your options with an orthopedic or sports medicine specialist as newer isn't always better and potential downsides do exist for some treatments, the least of which is the money you've spent for a treatment that didn't work. | http://www.justinshaginawptatc.com/blog/category/basketball |
The Humanities at Greenfield Community College have a distinct role in providing access to the knowledge and skills often associated with quality of life for all students regardless of class, perceived ability, or background. We believe that all people should have access to the skills and passions that emerge from studying art, dance, English, English as a second language, geography, history, music, personal communication skills, philosophy, theater, and world languages. These skills and passions are crucial to integrate into one’s study in other academic areas, and they are crucial to transforming ourselves, through learning, into the people we wish to become.
By taking classes in the Humanities we hope students develop the creative and critical thinking skills
- to find their place and voice in local, regional, and global communities; to employ self-expression as a catalyst for discovery;
- to exercise the skills of constructive dialogue; to explore ideas from multiple perspectives;
- to enrich their lives with a broad understanding of and appreciation for the world and its historical, cultural, and aesthetic contexts;
- and to utilize these skills in a process of becoming life-long learners.
The Humanities provides an education that will enable students to become artists, dancers, historians, linguists, musicians, performers, philosophers, poets, and writers; an education that encourages students to contemplate the aesthetic, the ethical, and moral aspects of knowledge; and an education that enables students to think critically and creatively about culture, society, and the world. | https://www.gcc.mass.edu/humanities/ |
US liberal icon George McGovern, who has died at the age of 90 in a South Dakota hospice, was the Democratic nominee who ran unsuccessfully against President Richard Nixon in 1972.
He earned distinction as an Air Force pilot in World War II, where he flew B-24 bombers over Nazi Germany.
Born in South Dakota, in the Mid-West, he was first elected to national office in 1956, after years of working for the Democratic party in his home state.
He was a member of the House of Representatives, a senator, and ran for president three times.
Anti-war advocate
An early critic of the Vietnam War, McGovern became the first senator to speak out against American involvement. He made critical comments as early as 1963 and amplified his rhetoric as the war continued.
Image caption
President Richard Nixon easily saw off George McGovern's 1972 challenge for the White House
"We must learn that it is madness, not security, to devote 70% of our controllable federal budget to armaments and only 11% to the quality of life," McGovern reportedly said at a 1969 anti-war rally in Boston, Massachusetts.
"Perhaps out of the blood-soaked jungles of South-East Asia will come the humility and the national wisdom that will lead us into the light of a new day."
His vocal anti-war position made him a champion of the American left, and he won the Democratic nomination for president in 1972 in a close contest.
He had made two other brief attempts to obtain the Democratic nomination in 1968 and 1984.
In 1972, McGovern campaigned on a liberal platform that included withdrawing US troops from Vietnam, reducing defence spending and providing amnesty to men who evaded the draft.
His campaign was popular among college students and progressives, including a young Bill Clinton, who ran McGovern's Texas office with help from his wife, Hillary. But McGovern fared poorly against the incumbent President Nixon, and lost in a landslide.
In the electoral college, he captured only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.
Despite Nixon's immense advantage throughout the campaign, the president's re-election committee was later found to have perpetrated dirty tricks against the McGovern campaign and the Democratic party, including the Watergate break-in at the Democratic National Headquarters.
Nixon later resigned the presidency after evidence showed he was aware of the misdeeds.
Despite his drubbing in the White House race, McGovern remained an influential senator and liberal icon. He served in Congress until the "Reagan Revolution" of 1980, when he was swept from office by a Republican challenger.
Family tragedies
Throughout his life, McGovern championed the cause of world hunger.
In 1961, he became the first director of the United States' Food for Peace plan, which sent US food overseas as a form of international aid.
Image caption
George McGovern married his high-school sweetheart and had five children
After he left Congress, he worked for President Clinton as the US ambassador to the UN agencies for food and agriculture.
When that appointment ended in 2001, he became the World Food Programme's first UN global ambassador on world hunger.
"It is immoral for 800 million of the world's people to be hungry from birth to death," he wrote in his 2004 book, The Essential America: Our Founders and the Liberal Tradition.
McGovern married his high-school sweetheart and had five children.
His daughter, Theresa, and son, Steven, died of alcohol-related causes.
McGovern often spoke and wrote about alcoholism and addiction, and penned a book about the death of his daughter.
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Search through our library of courses, select a category you might be interested in, use the search bar, or filter options on the left side of the page.
Social and emotional learning (SEL) is a hot topic in education, and figuring out how to address students' needs while learning remotely has been a challenge. In this course, we'll take a look at some of the tools SMART already has built into their software, and how these tools can be used to engage students in positive social and emotional learning both in and out of the classroom.
Keeping Routines for Special Ed Students
As special educators, we know that schedules, sensory support, and close collaboration with parents and caregivers is crucial during home-based instruction situations. Join us as we share strategies for special education teachers to tailor instructional materials to meet each student’s needs and keep routines as consistent as possible in an alternate setting. We’ll share scheduling templates, suggestions for specialized coaching and instruction, and other digital resources to support behavioral and social needs to help keep students on task no matter the setting.
We’re sorry, no results were found. Maybe try searching a different term. | https://otis.teq.com/courses/category/id/20/events/Blended-Learning/role/3/type/14/duration/2/gradeband/2 |
Occupational therapy helps patients gain greater autonomy and better integrate their personal, professional and social environment.
The occupational therapist first evaluates the person's daily difficulties by means of concrete situations. He also studies the environment in which these difficulties are expressed (at work, at school, at home).
Occupational therapy treatments are then offered, which consist of teaching tools to better manage everyday activities (personal care, work and leisure) and teaching appropriate behaviors and work methods. In the event of residual incapacities creating daily limitations, an occupational therapist can evaluate the need for technical aids / adaptations (eg specific equipment for work), and develop effective compensation strategies to overcome these problems.
Occupational therapy is therefore beneficial in case of a permanent or temporary disability resulting from an accident or trauma, but also in case of psychomotor disorders or developmental delays in children (learning disabilities), or motor disorders related to old age. | http://irem.ca/en/our-services/occupational-therapy/ |
I like the cashew pieces as opposed to whole cashews because I feel like they soften better in such a short time. Ideally, I would do nothing except play in my kitchen all time, but because I usually cook on a time budget, the pieces happen to facilitate expedience.
1. Place cashew pieces in a bowl/deep container, and submerge with water. The water line should be about two inches higher than the cashews. It's okay if some float to the top. Allow to sit for at least two hours.
2. Drain the cashews in a strainer. There's no need to rinse them.
3. Now take that snazzy food processor of yours. Throw in the cashews, lemon juice, dill, 3/4 of the chives, garlic and salt, and let it run on high for one minute (I know this bad-boy's loud...don't make this at night!). Then scrape down the sides with your spatula, add the water, and let it run on high for another four minutes, pausing every minute or two to scrape down the sides.
4. Transfer to a visually appealing dish, and garnish with the remaining chives and a sprinkle of dill. Voila! You should let it stand out at room temperature, covered, for 1-2 days before serving if possible. After a few days, though, you can throw it into the fridge for up to about a week.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
i made more and used basil and oregano, and used for eggplant lasagna! yes this is good! thanks!
i am having a difficult time waiting 24 hrs before gobbling it up after tasting this yummy food. though next time i will use the water recommend not kombucha as i keep mine sweeter than gt's and the nuts are sweet enough. | http://vegweb.com/recipes/dill-and-chive-cashew-cheese?qt-sign_in_sign_up_block=1 |
At Palo Alto Networks®, everything starts and ends with our mission:
Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
We have the vision of a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. These aren’t easy goals to accomplish — but we’re not here for easy. We’re here for better. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.
Your Career
As a Community Solutions Engineer, you are an experienced, highly organized, thorough, security minded, problem solver. A passionate pioneer in technology - solutions builder, a roll-up-your-sleeves technologist who wants a daily collaborative environment, think-tank feel. You enable and help create an exceptional customer experience in the online user community by promoting, building engagement, with content across various mediums and are the technical author and SME around Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Security Platform in the LIVEcommunity team. You will play a key role in navigating technical online community discussions and interactions while keeping the LIVEcommunity the key pillar of self service. You are an integral part of LIVEcommunity team, the evolving community strategy and big picture of customer experience outcomes.
Your Impact
● Engage with our global online community daily to understand their needs, identify and proactively develop innovative solutions, and promote and build awareness for them online and in person in ways that illustrate.
● Create technical content across a variety of formats, presenting and sharing solutions at technical events, and promote, build awareness and engagement for the community to the world.
● Showcase creative content formats that connect with key user personas, enable them to understand quickly and easily how to implement solutions, and identify creative ways to expand the reach of content to a larger community outside of Palo Alto Networks.
● Collect insights and trends from the community to help continually advance and improve Palo Alto Networks products, services, and partnerships.
● Author blogs for Palo Alto Networks that are relevant, timely, and engaging to our user community that we are highlighting, and participate in technical editing.
● Establish a presence as an industry leader in social media
Your Experience
● 8+ years of experience working with technical communities and understanding how to create content, share it, and engage with users to ensure successful implementations
● Ability to understand complex business solutions and integration approaches and communicate effectively to stakeholders
● Familiar with security and cloud best practices for applications, servers, and networks
● Understanding and knowledge in cloud security and top public cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud).
● Proficient in Palo Alto Networks Cloud family of products and understanding of strategy.
● Comfortable presenting to customers in person and online
● Have a presence on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, our own Community forum
● Travel 15% to 20% globally
The Team
To stay ahead of the curve, it’s critical to know where the curve is, and how to anticipate the changes we’re facing. For the fastest growing cybersecurity company, the curve is the evolution of cyberattacks and the products and services that proactively address them. Our LIVEcommunityTeam helps us do just that.
Our organization and employees are committed to changing as rapidly as our industry’s threats do, and to do that, we need a creative LIVEcommunity team, as part of our online customer experience team, to address the emerging cyber threats. By focusing on self – service and deflection initiatives we are increasing our ability to protect digital transactions by establishing relationships with our Palo Alto Networks global user community and help them understand how our products and services can protect their environments. As threats and technology evolve, we stay ahead to accomplish our mission.
Our Commitment
We’re trailblazers who dream big, take risks, and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: We can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.
We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with disabilities. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [email protected].
Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics. | https://jobs.jobvite.com/paloaltonetworks/job/o79NbfwY |
Britain will retain its ability to wage war as a ‘tier one’ power, the Defence Secretary insisted yesterday.
Ben Wallace said the Armed Forces had the strength to fight another Falklands alone and would invest heavily in electronic warfare. However the Ministry of Defence is preparing for its funding to be further cut due to the financial fallout from the pandemic.
A review, which is due to be published in November, is examining ways to save cash and modernise at the same time.
Armed forces minister Ben Wallace, pictured, said: ‘We should always plan to rely on different allies, but we should also be able to fight a war where we can do things on our own’
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Mr Wallace outlined his ambitions, saying: ‘We should always plan to rely on different allies, but we should also be able to fight a war where we can do things on our own.
‘We are never going to give up our ability to provide for ourselves a long-range UK sovereign capability to cover a range of scenarios.’
He said he would not ‘delude’ the Armed Forces by telling them they would not be able to fight a Falklands again: ‘Obviously how we would do the Falklands, it would probably be different to how we did it last time.’
The UK would still use submarines, planes, probably an aircraft carrier and infantry, he confirmed, adding: ‘We will keep all of that. It is our intention still to be a tier one power, but we have to be a modern power.’
He said lessons had to be taken from countries that had failed to update their military doctrines.
But armour will still be important: ‘We are not scrapping all the tanks. We will still always have a requirement – at the moment until technology changes – for elements of armour, both heavy and light.’
Mr Wallace said Britain would ‘do the Falklands different to last time’
Mr Wallace said an armoured division today would be different from one in the 1980s but must still provide a lethal force and mobility.
Paving the way for cuts he questioned whether an army of the future needed massed units if it had already softened up the enemy by using ‘long-range and deep fires’.
This was a reference to artillery, warplanes and naval bombardment – tactics deployed by Russia in its attack on Ukraine.
He said: ‘There’s no point us trundling along if the Russians can pick us off in the way they picked off the Ukrainians, with deep fires, deep artillery, 50, 60, 70km away.
‘That means more investment in electronic warfare, more investment in signals intelligence … cloaking, hiding yourself. We know if we can be found, a lot of us can be killed, so we’ve got to be careful.’
Mr Wallace was speaking on a visit to Qatar and Oman, where he announced a further £24million investment in a logistics hub at Duqm. The move will triple the size of the UK base, which will be used by Royal Navy aircraft carriers. | https://newsfeeds.media/we-will-keep-firepower-to-fight-another-falklands-defence-secretary-reveals/ |
The idea of merit-based education has plagued institutions of higher education for a substantial amount of time. The notion that ability, talent, and effort ultimately determine the success of an individual perpetuates the false ideology of all people have equal opportunities at success. In terms of education, using a merit-based lens magnifies the oppression of marginalized student groups specifically, Black female college students. Through a synthesis of the current literature, intersections between the use of merit in education, defining academic collegiate success and Black female students in higher education were discussed to explore the potential influence meritocracy has on how Black female college student define collegiate success. At the conclusion of the article, recommendations are shared on ways to support marginalized students in merit-based environments based on prior research. | https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/handle/10919/86932 |
The Power Electronics Engineer will develop switched mode power supplies (SMPS), Battery backup systems (upto 1000W) and related materials/processes used in industrial and hazardous automation systems for global markets. As such, the successful candidate will actively participate in the new product development cycle, including requirements, design, verification, release and documentation, working as a key contributor to our development efforts.
Job Responsibilities
Lead the electronic development process - concept, specifications, design, schematic creation, supplier specifications, product validation, certification to meet specified cost and performance parameters.
Work from specific product requirements to develop technical specifications of associated electronic components.
Write assembly and test specifications for new products, materials, or processes.
Conduct quality and reliability testing of power supplies, electronic components, end products, system level testing.
As an individual contributor, conceive, plan, and conduct research in problem areas or areas of opportunity.
Serve as the technical specialist in the application of advanced theories, concepts, principles and processes for the assigned area of responsibility.
Keep abreast of new technologies for the purpose of recommending changes in existing programs or new programs warranted by such developments.
Evaluate product, material, or process performance as necessary to support the Quality, Manufacturing, Field Service, and/or Marketing functions.
Issue complete and concise reports regarding the performance of new or improved company products, as well as products made by our competition.
Participate in the initial production phases of product/process design and all subsequent manufacturing inquiries and problems.
Participate in peer design reviews.
Training, development program and mentoring junior team members.
Maintaining existing products.
Education/Minimum Experience
Bachelors degree in Electronics or Electrical Engineering with specialization in Power Electronics. Masters, PhD or Advanced training in related Power Electronics field preferred.
5 years experience in the design of switching power supplies, resonant power conversion circuits, Inverters in the 100-1000W range, magnetics design, analog and/or digital control.
5 years experience in selection, use, testing and qualification of electronic and mechanical components for power electronic products.
5 years experience in technical leadership role, for release of new power electronic products.
3 years experience in DFM (design for manufacturability), Printed circuit board layout.
Embedded hardware electronics design experience is a plus. PIC/32bit microcontroller experience preferred.
Familiarity with UL, CSA and IEC standards.
Knowledge/Skills
Strong technical skills with advanced knowledge in Power electronics; switched mode power supply design, resonant topologies, power quality, control theory, magnetics design.
Curiosity, self-learning, and technical analysis abilities.
Ability to systematically analyze technical data, solve problems, and coordinate projects.
Skilled in use of Electronic CAD, MS Office, and related applications.
Ability to handle multiple projects or tasks simultaneously.
Knowledge of statistical tests, familiarity with statistical process control.
Foster Teamwork: Collaborate with team members to set goals, resolve problem, and make decisions that enhance organizational effectiveness.
Resourceful and organized in taking steps throughout the development.
Excellent communication skills: Speak, listen and write in a clear, thorough and timely manner using appropriate and effective communication tools and techniques.
Make Decisions: Assess situations to determine the importance, urgency and risks, and make clear decisions which are timely and in the best interests of the organization.
Applicant must be willing to work in Ortigas Center, Pasig.
Willingness to travel to remote manufacturing facilities and customer sites as requested. | https://m.timesjobs.com/mobile/job-detail/senior-power-electronics-design-engineer-emerson-electric-co-india-pvt-ltd-philippines-5-to-8-yrs-jobid-HZt69RBEdNlzpSvf__PLUS__uAgZw==&bc=+&sequence=12 |
Q:
Python3 search value in this array
I'm still on the learning curve for python3, please advise on this.
I have a very long array which looks like something below and how do I check whether two of this value exist(Date in the 4th position and string in the second position of the array) in any of the array element.
Array:
[
('1','200','300','500','2015-04-25 7:00:00'),
('1','200','500','500','2015-04-26 8:00:00'),
('1','200','500','500','2015-04-26 8:00:00'), # Repeated
('1','200','900','500','2015-04-27 9:00:00'),
('1','200','300','500','2015-04-28 17:00:00'),
('1','200','300','500','2015-04-28 17:00:00'), # Repeated
...
...
]
A:
I'd recommend using pandas. Say your array (actually called a list in Python) is called A, you can load it with
import pandas as pd
df = pd.DataFrame(A)
df
0 1 2 3 4
0 1 200 300 500 2015-04-25 7:00:00
1 1 200 500 500 2015-04-26 8:00:00
2 1 200 500 500 2015-04-26 8:00:00
3 1 200 900 500 2015-04-27 9:00:00
4 1 200 300 500 2015-04-28 17:00:00
Then you can get the repeated rows like this
df['Repeated'] = df.duplicated(subset=[3,4])
df
Out[463]:
0 1 2 3 4 Repeated
0 1 200 300 500 2015-04-25 7:00:00 False
1 1 200 500 500 2015-04-26 8:00:00 False
2 1 200 500 500 2015-04-26 8:00:00 True
3 1 200 900 500 2015-04-27 9:00:00 False
4 1 200 300 500 2015-04-28 17:00:00 False
A:
Some approaches that don't require using an external library are:
long_array = [
# ...
]
Use a set..
values = set()
for entry in long_array:
value = (entry[1], entry[4])
if (value in values):
print("Duplicate " + str(entry))
else:
values.add(value)
or use collections counter..
from collections import Counter
values = Counter([(entry[1], entry[4]) for entry in long_array])
for value, count in values.items():
if count > 1:
print(str(count) + " duplicates of " + str(value))
Size of the array is pretty important here.. These may cause problems for really really big arrays.
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Polo Lopez, Cristina Silvia (2016) Método experimental para la caracterización de las diferentes tecnologías de integración arquitectónica de la energía fotovoltaica en condiciones de funcionamiento real. Experimental method for characterization of several building integrated photovoltaic technologies under real working conditions. PhD thesis, UPM, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid..Full text not available from this repository.
Abstract
A proper BIPV element for façade should take into account thermal and insulation properties, factors as transparency to allow solar gains if possible or a good solar control if necessary, aspects that are linked and high dependent on climate conditions and on the level of comfort to be reached. However, the influence of different façade integrated photovoltaic solutions on the building energy consumption is not easy to assess under real operating conditions. Thermal aspects, indoor temperatures or luminance level that can be expected using building integrated PV (BIPV) modules are not well known. As said before, integrated photovoltaic BIPV components and the use of renewable energy is already a standard for green energy production, but would also be important to know the possible contribution to improve the comfort and health of building occupants. Comfort, light transmission or protection, thermal insulation or thermal/electricity power production are aspects that are usually considered alone, while all together contribute to the building global energy balance. Besides, the need to prioritize a particular building envelope orientation to harvest the most benefit from the electrical or thermal energy production, in the case of active and passive systems respectively might be not compatible, but also not necessary. A holistic approach is needed to enable architects and engineers implementing technological systems working in synergy. A new concept have been suggested: “C-BIPV, conscious integrated BIPV”. BIPV systems have to be “consciously integrated” which means that it is essential to know the positive and negative effects in terms of comfort and energy under real operating conditions. Purpose of the work, method and results The façade-integrated photovoltaic systems are often glass solutions easily integrable, as they usually are custommade. These BIPV semi-transparent components integrated as a window element provides natural lighting and shade that prevents overheating at times of excessive heat, but as static component, likewise avoid the possible solar gains contributions in the cold months. In addition, the temperature of the module varies considerably in ,certain circumstances influenced by the PV technology installed, solar radiation, mounting system, lack of ventilation, etc. This factor may result in additional heat input in the building highly variable and difficult to quantify. In addition, further insights into the indoor environmental comfort in buildings using integrated photovoltaic technologies are needed to open up thereby, a new research perspective. This research aims to study their behaviour through a series of experiments in order to define the real influence on comfort aspects and on global energy building consumption, as well as, electrical and thermal characteristics of these devices. The final objective was to analyze a whole set of issues that influence the global energy consumption/production in a building using BIPV modules by quantifying the global energy balance and the BIPV system real performances. Other qualitative issues to be studied were comfort aspect (thermal and lighting aspects) and the electrical behaviour of different BIPV technologies for vertical integration, aspects that influence both energy consumption and electricity production. Thus, it will be possible to obtain a comprehensive global characterization of BIPV systems. A specific design of an outdoor test facility, the BIPV Env-lab “BIPV Test Laboratory”, for the integral characterization of different BIPV semi-transparent modules was developed and built. The method and test protocol for the BIPV characterization was also defined in a real building context and weather conditions. This has been possible once assessed the state of the art and research, the aspects that influence the architectural integration and the different possibilities and types of integration for PV and after having examined the test methods for building and photovoltaic components, under operation conditions heretofore used. The test laboratory that consists in two equivalent test rooms (1:1) has a monitoring system in which reliable data of thermal, daylighting and electrical performances can be obtained for the evaluation of PV modules. The experimental set-up facility (testing room) allows studying three different aspects that affect building energy consumption and comfort issues: the thermal indoor comfort, the lighting comfort and the energy performance of BIPV modules tested under real environmental conditions. Knowing the energy balance for each experimented solar technology, it is possible to determine which one performs best. A theoretical methodology has been proposed for evaluating these parameters, as defined in this thesis as indices or indicators, which regard comfort issues, energy and the overall performance of BIPV components. This methodology considers the existing regulatory standards for each aspect, relating them to one another. A set of insulated glass BIPV modules see-through and light-through, representative of different PV technologies (mono-crystalline silicon technology, mc-Si, amorphous silicon thin film single junction, a-Si and copper indium selenide thin film technology CIS) were selected for a series of experimental tests in order to demonstrate the validity of the proposed characterization method. As result, it has been developed and generated the ICD Integral Characterization Diagram, a graphic and visual system to represent the results and manage information, a useful operational tool for decision-making regarding to photovoltaic installations. This diagram shows all concepts and parameters studied in relation to each other and visually provides access to all the results obtained during the experimental phase to make available all the qualitative and quantitative information on the energy performance of the BIPV components by characterizing them in a comprehensive way. | https://repository.supsi.ch/7816/ |
There are relatively few compounds that damage stationary phases. Introducing nonvolatile compounds (e.g., salts) in a column often degrades performance, but damage to the stationary phase does not occur. These residues can often be removed and performance returned by solvent rinsing the column. Inorganic or mineral bases and acids are the primary compounds to avoid introducing into a column. The acids include hydrochloric (HCl), sulfuric (H2S04), nitric (HNO3),
phosphoric (H3PO4), and chromic (CrO3). The bases include potassium hydroxide (KOH), sodium hydroxide (NaOH), and ammonium hydroxide (NH4OH). Most of these acids and bases are not very volatile and accumulate at the front of the column. If allowed to remain, the acids or bases damage the stationary phase. This results in the premature onset of excessive column bleed, peak tailing for active compounds and/or loss of efficiency (resolution). The symptoms are very similar to thermal and oxygen damage. Hydrochloric acid and ammonium hydroxide are the least harmful of the group. Both tend to follow any water that is present in the sample. If the water is not or only poorly retained by the column, the residence time of the HCl and NH4OH in the column is short. This tends to eliminate or minimize any damage by these compounds. Thus, if HCl or NH4OH are present in a sample, using conditions or a column with no water retention will render these compounds relatively harmless to the column. The only organic compounds that have been reported to damage stationary phases
are perfluoroacids. Examples include trifluoroacetic, pentafluoropropanoic, and heptafluorobutyric acid. They need to be present at high levels (e.g., 1% or higher). Most of the problems are experienced with splitless or Megabore direct injections where large volumes of the sample are deposited at the front of the column. Since chemical damage is usually limited to the front of the column, trimming or cutting 0.5-1 meter from the front of the column often eliminates any chromatographic problems. In more severe cases, five or more meters may need to be removed. The use of a guard column or retention gap will minimize the amount of column damage; however, frequent trimming of the guard column may be necessary. The acid or base often damages the surface of the deactivated fused silica tubing which leads to peak shape problems for active compounds.
Column Contamination
Column contamination is one of the most common problems encountered in capillary GC. Unfortunately, it mimics a very wide variety of problems and is often
misdiagnosed as another problem. A contaminated column is usually not damaged, but it may be rendered useless. There are two basic types of contaminants: nonvolatile and semivolatile.
Nonvolatile contaminants or residues do not elute and accumulate in the column. The column becomes coated with these residues which interfere with the proper partitioning of solutes in and out of the stationary phase. Also, the residues may interact with active solutes resulting in peak adsorption problems (evident as peak tailing or loss of peak size). Active solutes are those containing a hydroxyl (-OH) or amine (-NH) group, and some thiols (-SH) and aldehydes. Semivolatile contaminants or residues accumulate in the column, but eventually elute. Hours to days may elapse before they completely leave the column. Like nonvolatile residues, they may cause peak shape and size problems, and, in addition, are usually responsible for many baseline problems (instability, wander, drift, ghost peaks, etc.).
Contaminants originate from a number of sources, with injected samples being the most common. Extracted samples are among the worst types. Biological fluids and tissues, soils, waste and ground water, and similar types of matrices contain high amounts of semivolatile and nonvolatile materials. Even with careful and thorough extraction procedures, small amounts of these materials are present in the injected
sample. Several to hundreds of injections may be necessary before the accumulated residues cause problems. Injection techniques such as on-column,
splitless, and Megabore direct place a large amount of sample into the column, thus column contamination is more common with these injection techniques.
Occasionally, contaminants originate from materials in gas lines and traps, ferrule and septa particles, or anything coming in contact with the sample (vials, solvents, syringes, pipettes, etc.). These types of contaminants are probably responsible when a contamination problem suddenly develops and similar samples in previous months or years did not cause any problems. Minimizing the amount of semivolatile and nonvolatile sample residues is the best
method to reduce contamination problems. Unfortunately, the presence and identity of potential contaminants are often unknown. Rigorous and thorough sample cleanup is the best protection against contamination problems. The use of a guard column or retention gap often reduces the severity or delays the onset of column contamination induced problems. If a column becomes contaminated, it is best to solvent rinse the column to remove the contaminants.
Maintaining a contaminated column at high temperatures for long periods of time (often called baking-out a column) is not recommended. Baking-out a column may convert some of the contaminating residues into insoluble materials that cannot be solvent rinsed from the column. If this occurs, the column cannot be salvaged in most cases. Sometimes the column can be cut in half and the back half may still be useable. Baking-out a column should be limited to 1-2 hours at the isothermal temperature limit of the column. | https://aasnig.com/what-are-the-major-causes-of-gc-capillary-column-performance-degradation-part-ii/ |
Polluted Pets
For Immediate Release:
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Amounts of Toxics in Blood and Urine Many Times Higher in Pets Than Humans
WASHINGTON – In the first study of its kind, Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that companion cats and dogs are polluted with even higher levels of many of the same synthetic industrial chemicals that researchers have recently found in people, including newborns.
In addition to being guardians, playmates and even beloved family members, dogs and cats may also be serving as sentinels for human health problems that can arise from exposures to industrial chemicals.
In recognition of the unique roles that pets play in our lives, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) undertook a study to investigate the extent of exposures dogs and cats face to contaminants in our homes and outdoor environments. What we found was startling.
Dogs and cats were contaminated with 48 of 70 industrial chemicals tested, including 43 chemicals at levels higher than those typically found in people, according to our study of blood and urine from 20 dogs and 40 cats. Average levels of many chemicals were substantially higher in pets than is typical for people, with 2.4 times higher levels of stain-and grease-proof coatings (perfluorochemicals) in dogs, 23 times more fire retardants (PBDEs) in cats, and more than 5 times the amounts of mercury, compared to average levels in people found in national studies conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and EWG.
“Like humans, pets are also exposed to toxic chemicals on a daily basis, and as this investigation found, are contaminated at higher levels,” said Jane Houlihan, VP for Research at EWG. “The presence of chemicals in dogs and cats sounds a cautionary warning for the present and future health of children as well. This study demonstrating the chemical body burden of dogs and cats is a wake-up call for stronger safety standards from industrial chemical exposures that will protect all members of our families, including our pets.”
“This study is valuable in that it used pet animals that live in nearly fifty percent of all US households as environmental sentinels to measure the level of contamination with a wide variety of industrial chemicals that have also been shown to be present in human tissue. Because pet animals tend to have similar or higher concentrations of these chemicals in their body than humans, epidemiological studies of pets can be used to identify potential adverse health effects at a lower cost and in a much shorter period of time than it would take to perform similar studies in humans,” said Dr. Larry Glickman – a leading veterinarian and distinguished scientist who for the past three decades conducted research in veterinary epidemiology.
"This study shows that our pets are susceptible to the absorption of potentially harmful chemicals from our environment just as we are. Perhaps even more troubling is that these chemicals have been found in higher levels in pets than in humans implying potential harmful consequences for their health and well being and the need for further study," said Dr. John Billeter, DVM, the veterinarian who conducted the blood and urine tests.
Just as children ingest pollutants in tap water, play on lawns with pesticide residues, or breathe in an array of indoor air contaminants, so do their pets. But with there compressed lifespans, developing and aging seven or more times faster than children, pets also develop health problems much more rapidly. Pets, like infants and toddlers, have limited diets and play close to the floor, often licking the ground as well as their paws, greatly increasing both their exposures to chemicals and the resulting health risks.
In America there are 8 times more companion dogs and cats than there are children under five. Seventy percent more households have dogs or cats than children of any age. These pets are often beloved family members, and yet they can be subjected to chronic, constant exposures to chemical contaminants in homes, yards, and parks that pet owners cannot always prevent.
Scientists Link Chemical Exposure to Increased Rates of Cancer, Other Diseases in Pets:
Under current federal law, chemical companies do not have to prove chemicals are safe before they are used in products, including pet toys and other products for our companion animals. For pets as for people, the result is a body burden of complex mixtures of industrial chemicals never tested for safety. Health problems in pets span high rates of cancer in dogs and skyrocketing incidence of hyperthyroidism in cats. Genetic changes can't explain the increases in certain health problems among pets, leaving scientists to believe that chemical exposures play a significant role.
###
EWG is a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC that uses the power of information to protect human health and the environment.
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Targeted therapeutic effect of bavachinin nanospheres on pathological site of chronic asthmatic mice model. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Targeted Therapeutic Effect of Bavachinin Nanospheres on Pathological Site of Chronic Asthmatic Mice Model.
J Nanosci Nanotechnol. 2021 02 1 ;21(2):1085-1090. PMID: 33183447
Chunxia Zhang
Steroids are the main drugs currently used to treat asthma. However, the toxic and side effects of these drugs and the tolerance of the drugs due to long-term administration are still problems in the clinical treatment of asthma. Bavachinin has a good effect in the treatment of mouse asthma models, and it can effectively inhibit the expression of a variety of cytokines. However, it is extremely difficult to dissolve in water, has low bioavailability, and is quickly cleared in the blood. These characteristics limit its clinical application potential. In this study, nanotechnology was used to construct an effective oral drug delivery system. Through analysis of serum-related antibodies and cytokines, the system showed significant therapeutic effects on asthma-positive groups. Far-infrared imaging results showed that the system has a good targeted enrichment effect on pathological parts, while showing lower toxicity and higher therapeutic effect. Whether it is the splenocyte flow typing or the analysis of lung tissue, the system has verified the excellent treatment, and through the observation of paraffin sections of lung tissue, it was found that the bronchial morphology returned to normal after drug treatment, and the leakage of inflammatory cells was significantly reduced. | http://web.greenmedinfo.com/article/targeted-therapeutic-effect-bavachinin-nanospheres-pathological-site-chronic-a |
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Traffic.com
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Traffic Pulse
, TrafficPulse
Traffic.com, also known as Navteq Traffic, Traffic Pulse and Mobility Technologies, was a provider of traffic information via a number of media…
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2016
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Studying the Effect of Urban Furniture on Satisfaction of Domestic Tourists in Isfahan Bus Terminals
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2014
A Shockwave Speed Estimation Method for Freeway Facilities Based on Archived Vehicle Probe Data.
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2014
Corpus ID: 114989546
XUAN, XINGYU. A Shockwave Speed Estimation Method for Freeway Facilities Based on Archived Vehicle Probe Data. (Under the…
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2012
TrafficPulse: a mobile GISystem for transportation
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Dynamic routing under recurrent and non-recurrent congestion using real-time ITS information
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ATIS, THE NEXT STEP : USING TRAFFIC.COM'S ADVANCED TRAVELER INFORMATION SYSTEM SOLUTION, MOTORISTS BENEFIT FROM REAL-TIME ACTIONABLE INFORMATION, INCLUDING ACTUAL SPEEDS AND ACCURATE TRAVEL TIMES FOR…
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Hello everybody, in the last post we were talking about Standardization one crucial task, when it is needed, to take in mind when we are in the preprocessing part. Now we will speak of normalization, which is another crucial step when we are building artificial intelligence models.
Normalization is a technique commonly applied as part of data preparation for machine learning. The idea is to take values in numeric columns of a dataset and transform them to a standard scale, without distorting differences in the ranges of values. Not always that we are building an AI model, we need data normalization. It is only required when features have different varieties.
There are many examples where we can take advantage of this technique; let’s talk about some of them.
In regression and multivariate analysis where the relationships are of interest, we can do the normalization to reach a linear, more robust relationship.
Frequently when the relationship between two datasets is non-linear, we transform the data to reach a linear relationship. Here, normalization doesn’t mean normalizing data. It means normalizing residues by changing data. So normalization of data implies to normalize residuals using the method of transformation.
Another case is when we are analyzing the frequency of concurrence of the same phenomena in two different population with different size, and we want to compare them. Here, we normalize both of them, because otherwise, you don’t know how significant the influence of your phenomena is with the total number of cases.
In Data Minning approaches, we need to normalize the inputs; otherwise, the network will be unconditioned. In essence, we do normalization to accomplish the same range of values in the inputs we will use for our model. This technique can guarantee stable convergence of weight and biases.
In distance-based classification, for instance, we need to normalize each feature value of a feature vector not to get conditioned by features with a broader range of possible values when computing distances.
When a feature has a range [-1, 1] and another feature has a range [-100, 100], then, a small variation in feature two is probably more influencing than a big variation in feature one when computing the distance of two feature vectors.
So finalizing, we saw how normalization is significant when dealing with different situations of the data we want to use. In Data Minning, Classifications problems, analyzing phenomena using diverse populations, and so on. Learn how to normalize and how to standardize (this post) is a crucial part of the process of learning how to build our artificial intelligence models. We are going to continue in our next post, so keep connected.
Thanks for reading
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It is important when looking at crime statistics to consider numbers, rates, population counts, and types of crime and victimization reported or underreported. Social, cultural, and political changes can affect legal definitions of crime, sentencing lengths, and crime reporting patterns.
Social Disorganization, and Social Control
When crime rates rise, criminologists attempt to explain them with community and neighborhood factors. Early 20th century social disorganization theory suggested that crime was the result of a criminogenic foreign-born class who experienced the effects of strain and economic deprivation. Social disorganization has continued to serve as an explanation for crime in socially diverse neighborhoods.
Violent Crime and Immigration
Some people, in many countries, are concerned that immigrants are violent and engaged in particular types of violent crime. However, there is not a relationship between violent crime and immigration. In most cases, foreign-born persons were not responsible for the communities’ drug and violent crime.
Illegal Immigration and Crime
While there is no connection between immigration and increases in crime, in many countries, citizens believe that immigrants are dangerous. Some immigration policies, in a number of jurisdictions, do not distinguish clearly between the act of being an undocumented immigrant, which is (only) illegal, and crimes committed by immigrants.
Undocumented Immigrant
Immigration law violations take place, in many jurisdictions, when foreign-born persons overstays their visa or permit, or when foreign-born persons enters surreptitiously the territory of a country.
Crime Victimization and Immigration
In many western nations, immigrants may be less likely to report victimization to the police in the United States for a variety of reasons: language barriers, fear of the police, and fear of deportation.
Immigration, Interpersonal Violence, and Gender Victimization
Workplace Victimization
Refugees
Many refugees want to start a new life in the western nations to escape from the ordeals that they experience in their homelands: torture, war, and persecutions due to their race, ethnicity, religion, and political orientation. Instability in North Africa and the Middle East further drove forced migrations of people into harm’s way as unscrupulous traffickers warehoused, harmed, and tortured migrants without concern that they would be stopped. (…) refugees are willing to take the risks associated with migration rather than stay in dangerous homelands (e.g., Afghanistan, Libya, Somalia, and Syria)
Resources
Notes
- Fox News. (September 16, 2015). Exclusive crime wave data shows frightening toll of illegal immigrant criminals. Retrieved from foxnews.com/us/2015/09/16/crime-wave-elusive-data-shows-frightening-toll-illegal-immigrant-criminals/.
- Immigration and Crime, Frances Bernat
See also
- Opposition to immigration
- Race
- Crime
- Youth bulge
Further Reading
- Aguirre, A., Jr., & Simmers, J. (2008/2009). Mexican border crossers: The Mexican body in immigration discourse. Social Justice, 35, 99-106.
- Anderson, R. (2016). Europe’s failed “fight” against irregular migration: Ethnographic notes on a counterproductive industry. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.
- Bersani, B. E., Loughran, T. A., & Piquero, A. R. (2014). Comparing patterns and predictors of immigrant offending among a sample of adjudicated youth. Journal of Youth Adolescence, 43, 1914-1933.
- Blondell, J. (2008). Adverse impacts of massive and illegal immigration in the United States. The Journal of Social, Political, and Economic Studies, 33, 328-350.
- Border Network for Human Rights. (November 2008). U.S.-Mexico border policy report. El Paso, TX, and Tucson, AZ: Border Network for Human Rights and Border Action Network.
- Chiricos, T., Stupi, E. K., Stults, B. J., & Gertz, M. (2014). Undocumented immigrant threat and support for social controls. Social Problems, 61(4), 673-692.
- Desmond, C. E. (2009). The power of place: Immigrant communities and adolescent violence. The Sociological Quarterly, 50, 581-607.
- Desmond, Scott A., & Kubrin, Charis E. (2009). The power of place: Immigrant communities and adolescent violence. The Sociological Quarterly, 50(4), 581-607.
- Ferraro, V. A. (2014). Immigrants and crime in the new destinations. LFB Scholarly Publications.
- Ferraro, V. (2016). Immigration and crime in the new destinations, 2000-2007: A test of the disorganizing effect of migration. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 32, 23-45.
- Frohlich, T. C., Stebbins, S., & Sauter, M. B. (July 15, 2015). America’s most violent (and most peaceful) states.
- Fussell, E. (2011). The deportation threat dynamic and victimization of Latino migrants: Wage theft and robbery. The Sociological Quarterly, 52, 593-615.
- Gleeson, S. (2010). Labor rights for all? The role of undocumented immigrant status for worker claims making. Law & Social Inquiry, 35, 561-602.
- Grieco, E. G., Acosta, Y. D., de la Cruz, P. G., Gambino, C., Gryn, T., Larsen, L. J., et al. (May 2012). The foreign-born population in the United States: 2010. Report number ACS-19. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
- Grimes, M., Golob, E., Durcikova, A., & Nunamaker, J. (May 2013). Reasons and resolve to cross the line: A post-apprehension survey of unauthorized immigrants along the U.S.-Mexico border. National Center for Border Security and Immigration (BORDERS). Tucson: University of Arizona.
- Gutierrez, C. M., & Kirk, D. S. (2015). Silence speaks: The relationship between immigration and the underreporting of crime. Crime & Delinquency.
- Hickman, L. J., & Suttorp, M. J. (2015). Are deportable aliens a unique threat to pubic safety? Comparing the recidivism of deportable and nondeportable aliens. Criminology & Public Policy, 7(1), 59-82.
- Katz, C. M., Fox, A. M., & White, M. D. (2011). Assessing the relationship between immigration status and drug use. Justice Quarterly, 28, 541-575.
- Koper, C. S., Guterbock, T. M., Woods, D. J., Taylor, B., & Carter, T. J. (2013). The effects of local immigration enforcement on crime and disorder: A case study of Prince William County, Virginia. Criminology & Public Policy, 12, 239-276.
- Martinez, R., Jr., Lee, M. T., & Nielson, A. L. (2004). Segmented assimilation, local context and determinants of drug violence in Miami and San Diego: Does ethnicity and immigration matter? International Migration Review, 38, 131-157.
- Martinez, R., Jr., Stowell, J. I., & Lee, M. T. (2010). Immigration and crime in an era of transformation: A longitudinal analysis of homicides in San Diego neighborhoods, 1980-2000. Criminology, 48(3), 797-829.
- Mauer, M., & King, R. S. (2007). Uneven justice: State rates of incarcertion by race and ethnicity. Washington, DC: Sentencing Project.
- Mears, D. P. (2001). The immigration-crime nexus: Toward an analytic framework for assessing and guiding theory, research and policy. Sociological Perspectives, 44, 1-19.
- Messing, J. T., Becerra, D., Ward-Lasher, A., & Androff, D. K. (2015). Latinas’ perceptions of law enforcement: Fear of deportation, crime reporting, and trust in the system. Affilix Journal of Women and Social Work, 30, 328-340.
- Metcalf, M. H. (2011). Built to fail: Deception and disorder in America’s immigration courts. Washington, DC: Center for Immigration Studies.
- Ousey, G. C., & Kubrin, C. E. (2014). Immigration and the changing nature of homicide in US cities, 1980-2010. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 30, 453-483.
- Pitts, K. M. (2014). Latina immigrants, interpersonal violence, and the decision to report to police. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 29, 1661-1678.
- Reina, A. S., Lohman, B. J., & Maldonado, M. M. (2014). “He said they’d deport me” : Factors influencing domestic violence help-seeking practices among Latina immigrants. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 29, 593-615.
- Salas-Wright, C. P., Vaughn, M. G., Schwartz, S. J., & Córdova, D. (2015). An “immigrant paradox” for adolescent externalizing behavior? Evidence from a national sample. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. Published online September 2015.
- Sampson, R. J. (2008). Rethinking crime and immigration. Contexts, 7(1), 28-33.
- Sampson, R. J., Morenoff, J. D., & Raudenbush, S. (2005). Social anatomy of racial and ethnic disparities in violence. American Journal of Public Health, 95(2), 224-232.
- Sampson, R. W., & Raudenbush, S. W. (2004). Seeing disorder: Neighborhood stigma and the social contruction of “broken windows.” Social Psychology Quarterly, 67(4), 319-342.
- Shaw, C. R., & McKay, H. D. (1942). Juvenile delinquency in urban areas. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Sherman, A. (July 28, 2015). Donald Trump wrongly says the number of illegal immigrants is 30 million or higher. Politifact.
- Sohoni, D., & Sohoni, T. W. P. (2014). Perceptions of immigrant criminality: Crime and social boundaries. Sociological Quarterly, 55, 49-71.
- Stansfield, R., Akins, S., Rumbaut, R. G., & Hammer, R. B. (2013). Assessing the effects of recent immigration on serious property crime in Austin, Texas. Sociological Perspectives, 56(4), 647-672.
- Stargardter, G., & Gardner, S. (October 12, 2014). Migrants snared in multi-million dollar kidnap racket on U.S.-Mexico border. Baltimore Sun.
- Stowell, J. I., Messner, S. F., McGeever, K. F., & Raffalovich, L. E. (2009). Immigration and the recent violent crime drop in the United States: A pooled, cross-sectional time-series analysis of metropolitan areas. Criminology, 47, 889-928.
- Stupi, E. K., Chiricos, T., & Gerz, M. (2016). Perceived criminal threat from undocumented immigrants: Antecedents and consequences for policy preferences. Justice Quarterly, 33, 239-266.
- Vélez, M. B. (2009). Contextualizing the immigration and crime effect: An analysis of homicide in Chicago neighborhoods. Homicide Studies, 13, 325-335.
- Vélez, M. B., & Lyons, C. J. (2012). Situating the immigration and neighborhood crime relationship in multiple cities. In R. Martinez, M. S. Zatz, & C. E. Kubrin (Eds.), Punishing immigrants: Policy, politics, and injustice (pp. 159-177). New York: New York University Press.
- Wagner, P. & Walsh, A. (2016). States of incarceration: The global context. Prison Policy.
- Wang, X. (2012). Undocumented immigrants as perceived criminal threat: A test of the minority threat perspective. Criminology, 50(3), 743-776.
- Wright, Emily M., & Benson, Michael L. (2010). Immigration and intimate partner violence: Exploring the immigrant paradox. Social Problems, 57(3), 480-503.
- Zingher, J.N. (2014). The ideological and electoral determinants of laws targeting undocumented migrants in the U.S. states. State Politics & Policy Quarterly, 14, 90-117.
- Zong, J., & Batalova, J. (December 1, 2015). European immigrants in the United States. Migration Policy Institute. | https://lawin.org/criminal-aspects-of-immigration/ |
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AGRA, India -- The Taj Mahal has met the mall, and may come out the loser. India's greatest architectural marvel is threatened with possible monsoon-flood damage because of work on a nearby riverbank where a $40 million restaurant and shopping complex was planned. The government has halted construction, but experts say that what has already been done has hemmed in the Jamuna River, and it could rise and flood the gardens of the Taj Mahal, just 330 yards away. | https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-06-26-0306260155-story.html |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a method of preparing poly(aryene ether ketones).
Poly(arylene ether ketones, in particular para-linked poly(arylene ether ketones), possess many desirable properties, for example, high temperature stability, mechanical strength, and resistance towards common solvents. The preparation of poly(arylene ether ketones) by two different approaches has been described in the literature. The first approach is an electrophilic synthesis in which an aryl ketone linkage is formed. The second approach is a nucleophilic synthesis in which an aryl ether linkage is formed.
In an electrophilic synthesis, the polymerization step involves the formation of a aryl ketone group derived from reaction the between an aromatic acid halide functional group and an activated hydrogen atom attached to an aromatic carbon atom i.e., a hydrogen displaceable under the electrophilicreaction conditions. The monomer system employed in the polymerization can be, for example, (a) phosgene or an aromatic diacid diaalide and a polynuclear aromatic compound containing two ctivated hydrogen atoms, for example, terephthaloyl chloride and 1,4- diphenoxybenzene; or (b) polynuclear aromatic compound containing both an acid halide group and an activated hydrogen atom, for example, p- phenoxybenzoyl chloride
Electrophilic polymerizatons of this type are often referred to as Friedel-Craftsppolymerizations. Typically, such polymerizations are carried out in a reaction medium comprising the reactant(s), a catalyst, such as anhydrous alumiuum trichloride, and an inert solvent such as methylene chloride. Because the carbonyl groups of the reactant(s) and/or product(s) complex with aluminum trichloride and thereby deactivate it, the aluminum trichloride catalyst is generally employed in an amount slightly more than one equivalent or each equivalent of carbonyl groups in the reaction medium. Other metal halides such as ferric chloride may be employed as the catalyst. The preparation of poly(arylene ether ketones) by Friedel-Crafts polymerization is disclosed by Bonner, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,065,205; Berr, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,516,966; Jones, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,203; Goodman et al., in GB No. 971,227; and Jones, in GB No. 1, 086,021.
The polymers as initially produced by these processes are generally relatively intractable and difficult to isolate and purify. Gander et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,380, address this problem and disclose a process which permit the preparation of polyketones in granular form. Their process comprises bringing into contact, in an organic medium, diphenyl ether and a stoichiometric amount of at least one compound selected from terephthalic and isophthalic acid chlorides with aluminum chloride catalyst and completing the reaction by abruptly dispersing the reaction mixture into a higher temperature fluid maintained at a temperature of about from 50° C. to 130° C. , to effect an abrupt rise in temperature, the volume of said fluid being at least 200 percent of the initial volume of the reaction mixture, the reaction mixture being dispersed (a) prior to coagulation of the mixture and (b) after the lapse of at least 25 percent of the time period between the completion of the combination of reactants, including catalyst, and the coagulation of the reaction mixture. This process requires critical timing as the reaction mixture must be dispersed before gelation occurs. Further, the process subjects the reaction mixture to relatively high temperatures, thereby increasing the possibility of side reactions. The resulting product is granular and may entrap catalyst residues making purification more difficult.
Another solution to the problem of an intractable polymerization medium is the use of boron trifluoride catalyst in anhydrous hydrogen fluoride. See, for example, Marks, in U.S. Pat. No. 3, 441,538; Thornton, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,857; Dahl, in U.S. Pat. No. 3, 953,400; and Dahl et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,956,240. The resulting polymer- catalyst complex is soluble in the hydrogen fluoride/boron trifluoride reaction medium. Recovery polymer from this reaction mixture and decomplexation of the polymer-catalyst complex while in solution are disclosed by Dahl in U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,398 and U.S. Pat. No 4,239,884. However, the use of boron trifluoride and hydrogen fluoride requires special techniques and equipment making this process difficult to practice on a commercial scale.
Jansons et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,709,007 (1987), disclose an improved process for preparing poly(arylene ether ketones) in which a Lewis base controlling agent or, alternatively, a specified, exceptionally large excess of Lewis acid catalyst is used. This process, besides producing polymers of higher quality (higher molecular weight, with little or no ortho substitution), maintains the polymer in solution or in a more tractable state, facilitating its recovery and purification.
Yet another solution to the intractability problem is proposed by Reamey in U.S. Pat. No. 4,665,151. Reamey discloses that an intractable gel resulting from a Friedel-Crafts polymerization can be converted into a tractable gel or even a liquid reaction product by treatment with a liquefaction agent, such as anhydrous hydrogen chloride. However, Reamey's method has the disadvantage that additional material must be added to the polymerization mixture, requiring adaptation of the polymerization equipment with a means for introducing that material and a means for metering the requisite amount.
It would thus be desirable to be able to work up and isolate the poly(arylene ether ketone) product directly from a gelled Friedel- Crafts polymerization mixture without the need for the introduction of any additional components. The present invention provides such a method.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention provides a method of preparing a poly(arylene ether ketone) by a Friedel-Crafts polymerization wherein a gelled reaction mixture is produced, comprising the steps of:
(A) forming, in a first reactor, a reaction mixture for polymerization comprising
(I) a monoer system comprising
(a) (i) phosgene or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalide and (ii) a substantially stoichiometric amount of a polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms or
(b) a polynuclear aromatic carboxylic acid halide having an active hydrogen atom; and
(II) a Lews acid in an amount of at least one equivalent per equivalent of carbonyl groups in the monomer system, plus an amount effective to act as a catalyst for the polymerization;
(B) permitting the reaction mixture to polymerize in the first reactor until substantial partial polymerization has occurred, but before substantial gelation of the reaction mixture;
(C) transferring the partially polymerized reaction mixture into a second reactor having a nozzle at one end thereof and a piston which, in its retracted position, is at the other end of the second reactor and has a stroke substantially equal to the length of the second reactor;
(D) permitting polymerization to continue in the second reactor until a gelled, polymerized reaction mixture containing polymer of the desired molecular weight has been obtained;
(E) discharging the gelled, polymerized reaction mixture from the second reactor through the nozzle by stroking the piston the length of the second reactor; and
(F) recovering and purifying the polymer.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the reaction mixture comprises
(I) a monomer system comprising
(a) (i) phosgene or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalide and (ii a substantially stoichiometric amount of a polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms or
(b) a polynuclear aromatic carboxylic acid halide having an active hydrogen atom;
(II) a Lewis base in an amount from 0.01 to about 4 equivalents per equivalent of acid halide groups present in the monomer system;
(III) a Lewis acid in an amount of at least one equivalent per equivalent of carbonyl groups in the monomer system, plus about one equivalent per equivalent of Lewis base, plus an amount effective to act as a catalyst for the polymerization; and
(IV) a non-protic diluent in an amount from 0 to about 93% by weight, based on the weight of the total reaction mixture.
This invention further provides a method of preparing a poly(arylene ether ketone) by a Friedel-Crafts polymerization wherein a gelled reaction mixture is produced, comprising the steps of:
(A) forming, in a first reactor, a reaction mixture for polymerization comprising
(I) a monomer system comprising
(a) (i) phosgene or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalide and (ii) a substantially stoichiometric amount of a polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms or
(b) a polynuclear aromatic carboxylic acid halide having an active hydrogen atom; and
(II) a Lewis acid in an amount of at least one equivalent per equivalent of carbonyl groups in the monomer system, plus an amount effective to act as a catalyst for the polymerization;
(B) permitting the reaction mixture to polymerize in the first reactor until substantial partial polymerization has occurred, but before substantial gelation of the reaction mixture;
(C) transferring partially polymerized reaction mixture into a second reactor having (i) at least one valved nozzle t one end thereof, (ii) a piston which, in its retracted position, is at the other end of the second reactor, (iii) a plurality of contiguous zones, the first zone being at the nozzle end and the last zone being at the piston end of the reactor, (iv) a controlled inlet for feeding the partially polymerize reaction mixture into the last zone and located immediately forward of the piston when the latter is in its forward position, and (v) means for ensuring substantial plug flow of polymerized reaction mixture being discharged, the stroke of the piston being substantially equal to the length of the last zone, the volume of reaction mixture transferred being substantially equal to the volume of the last zone, and the piston being retracted synchronously with the transferring;
(D) permitting polymerization to continue in the second reactor until a gelled, polymerized reaction mixture has been obtained;
(E) stroking the piston forward to push the reaction mixture to the next zone;
(F) repeating the cycle of steps (C)-(E) a number of times at least equal to the number of zones in the second reactor;
(G) recovering and purifying the polymer from the reaction mixture after it is discharged from the second reactor.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 depicts schematically the process and preferred reactors of this invention.
FIG. 2 and 3 depict preferred methods for transferring the partially polymerized reaction mixture from the first reactor to the second reactor.
FIG. 4a depicts in cross-section a preferred conically shaped nozzle for a second reactor of this invention. FIG. 4b depicts in cross- section the corresponding piston.
FIG. 5a and 5b depict in plan and elevation views, respectively, a preferred second reactor of this invention.
FIG. 6 depicts in a magnified cut-away view the piston at the rear end of the second reactor of FIG. 5a and 5b.
FIG. 7 depicts schematically a process of this invention in which the second reactor operates in a semicontinuous manner.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The monomer system for the polymerizations of this invention comprises
(a) (i) phosgene or an aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalide and (ii) a substantially stoichiometric amount of a polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms or
(b) a polynuclear aromatic carboxylic acid halide having an active hydrogen atom.
"Substantially stoichiometric" means that the molar amount of phosgene or aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalide is substantially equal to the molar amount of polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms. slight stoichiometric imbalance may be employed, for the purpose of molecular weight control or capping, as is well known in the art and is discussed in more detail hereinbelow.
Suitable aromatic dicarboxylic acid dihalides include: terephthaloyl chloride, isophthaloyl chloride, [1,1'-biphenyl]-4,4'- dicarbonyl dichloride, naphthalene-1,4-dicarbonyl dichloride, naphthalene- 2,6- dicarbonyl dichlorie, naphthalene-3,6-dicarbonyl dichloride, benzophenone- 4,4,-dicarbonyl dichloride, and diphenyl ether- 4,4'- dicarbonyl dichloride. Terephthaloyl chloride, isophthaloyl chloride, [1, 1'-biphenyl] -4,4'-dicarbonyl dichloride, and diphenyl ether- 4,4'- dicarbonyl dichloride are preferred.
Suitable polynuclear aromatic comonomer having two active hydrogen atoms include: diphenyl ether, 1,4-diphenoxybenzene, 4- phenoxybiphenyl 4, 4'-diphenoxybiphenyl, 4,4'-diphenoxybenzophenone, 4,4'- diphenoxydiphenylsulfone, 1,3-bis(4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene, and 1,4- bis(4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene. Diphenyl ether, 1,4-diphenoxybenzene, 4,4'- diphenoxybenzophenone, 1,3-bis(4-phenoxybenzoyl)benzene, and 1,4-bis(4- phenoxybenzoyl)benzene are preferred.
Suitable polynuclear aromatic carboxylic acid halides having an active hydrogen atom include: p-phenoxybenzoyl chloride, 4- biphenyloxybenzoyl chloride, 4'-phenoxybiphenyl-4-carbonyl chloride, and 4'- phenoxybenzophenone-4-carbonyl chloride. p-Phenoxybenzoyl chloride is preferred.
While in the above exemplifications carboxylic acid chlorides are recited, other acid halides, particularly the fluorides and the bromides, may be used. Generally, the acid chlorides are preferred because of their availability and reactivity. Other groups displaceable under Friedel- Crafts conditions may also be used, such as OR, where R is methyl, ethyl, isopropyl or other lower alkyl.
Poly(arylene ether ketones) further comprising imide, amide, ester, azo, quinoxaline, benzimidazole, benzoxazole, or benzothiazole groups may be prepared according to the method of this invention, by using monomers having such groups Illustrations of monomers having such groups are found in Dahl et al., EP No. 178,185 (1986), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Combinations of monomers (a) and monomers (b) can be used to prepare copolymers.
The term "Lewis acid" is used herein to refer to a substance which can accept an unshared electron pair from another molecule. Lewis acids which can be used in the practice of this invention include, for example, aluminum trichloride, aluminum tribromide, antimony pentachloride, antimony pentafluoride, indium trichloride, gallium trichloride, boron trichloride, boron trifluoride, zinc chloride, ferrc chloride, stannic chloride, titanium tetrachloride, and molybdenum pentachloride. A preferred Lewis acid is aluminum trichloride.
A preferred Friedel-Crafts process for practicing this invention is described by Jansons et al., in U.S. Pat. No 4,709,007 (1987) , the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. This application discloses a method of moderating or controlling Friedel- Crafts polymerizations by the addition of a Lewis base which acts as a controlling agent or by using specified excesses of the Lewis acid.
Preferred Lewis bases include diphenyl sulfone, dieethyl sulfone, N- methylformamide, N,N-dimethylformamide, N,N-dimethylacetamide, 1- methyl- 2-pyrrolidone, tetramethylene sulfone (also known as sulfolane), n- butyronitrile, dimethyl sulfide, imidazole, acetone, benzophenone, trimethylamine, trimethylamine hydrochloride, tetramethylammonium chloride, pyridine-N-oxide, 1-ethylpyridinium chloride, lithium chloride, lithium bromide, sodium chloride, potassium chloride, potassium bromide, and mixtures thereof. Particularly preferred Lewis bases are lithium chloride, N,N-dimethylformamide, tetramethylene sulfone, and dimethyl sulfone.
The amount of Lewis base present should be from 0 to about 4 equivalents per equivalent of acid halide groups present in the monomer system. Amounts greater than 4 equivalents could be employed, if desired. However, no additional controlling effect is usually achieved by adding larger amounts. Thus, it is preferred to use no more than about 4 equivalents and generally no more than about 2 equivalents. When a Lewis base is added to control the reaction, at least about 0.01, preferably at least about 0.05 and most preferably at least about 0.5 equivalents of Lewis base per equivalent of acid halide groups present should be used.
Additionally, protic controlling agents, such as water, n- alkanols, or benzoic acid may be used, as described in the copending application of Towle, Ser. No. 96,415 filed Sep. 11, 1987, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The temperature at which the reaction is conducted is not critical and can be from about -70° C. to about +150° C., or even higher. It is preferred to start the reaction at lower temperatures, for example at -50° to about -10 ° C., particularly if the monomer system contains highly reactive monomers. After polymerization has commenced, the temperature can be raised if desired, for example, to increase the rate of reaction. It is generally preferred to carry out the reaction at temperatures in the range of between -30° C. and +25 . degree. C. (room temperature).
The reaction can also be moderated by use of an apprppriate excess of Lewis acid. In general, the amount of Lewis acid is used in amount of at least one equivalent per equivalent of carbonyl and other basic groups present in the reaction mixture, plus an amount effective to act as a catalyst. In preparing the copolymers of this invention the catalytically effective amount should be between about 0.003 and about 0. 5 equivalent per equivalent of acid halide groups.
The polymerization can be carried out in the presence of a non- protic- -also known as aprotic--diluent Preferred nonprotic diluents include methylene chloride, carbon disulfide, o-dichlorobenzene, 1,2,4- trichlorobenzene, o-difluorobenzene, 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,1,2,2- tetrachloroethane, and the like.
Polymers prepared according to this invention are preferably high molecular weight polymers. By "high molecular weight," it is meant a polymer having an inherent viscosity greater than about 0.6 dL/g. Preferably the polymer has an inherent viscosity in the range of about 0. 6 to about 2.0 dL/g. Polymers having an inherent viscosity below about 0. 6 are generally not useful because they have poor mechanical properties, such as low tensile strength and elongation, while polymers having an inherent viscosity above about 2.0 are very difficult to melt process. Throughout this application, inherent viscosity refers to the mean inherent viscosity determined according to the method of Sorenson et al., "Preparative Methods of Polymer Chemistry," 2nd ed. (Interscience 1968), at page 44 (0.1 g polymer dissolved in 100 mL of concentrated sulfuric acid at 25° C.). However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that in particular applications, for example, where material for chain- extension reactions is being prepared, lower molecular polymer or oligomer may be desirable, and that such polymer or oligomer may be obtained by molecular control methods as taught herein.
If desired, the molecular weight of the polymer, the degree of branching, and the amount of gelation can be controlled by use of, for example, capping agents as described by Dahl in U.S. Pat. No. 4,247,682, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The molecular weight of the polymer can also be controlled by employing a slight excess of one of the monomers.
Capping agents, when employed, are added to the polymerization reaction medium to cap the polymer on at least one end of the polymer chain. This terminates continued growth of the chain and controls the resulting molecular weight of the polymer, as shown by the inherent viscosity of the polymer. Judicious use of the capping agents results in a polymer within a selected narrow molecular weight range, decreased gel formation during polymerization, and decreased branching of the polymer chains and increases melt stability. Both nucleophilic and electrophilic capping agents can be used to cap the polymer at each end of the chain.
Preferred nucleophilic capping agents are 4-chlorobiphenyl, 4- phenoxybenzophenone, 4-(p-phenoxyphenoxy)benzophenone, biphenyl, 4- benzenesulfonylphenyl phenyl ether, and the like.
Typical electrophilic capping agents are compounds of the formula
Ar-CO-E or Ar-SO2-E
wherein Ar is phenyl, 3-chlorophenyl, 4-chlorophenyl, 4- cyanophenyl, 4-methylpenyl, napthyl, biphenyl, or an aromatic group substituted with an electron withdrawing substituent and E is halogen or other leaving group, preferably chloride. Preferred electrophilic capping agents include benzoyl chloride, benzenesulfonyl chloride, and the like.
According to the method of this invention, polymerization is initiated by combining in a first reactor the monomer(s) and the Lewis acid, and optional materials such as a Lewis base, a non-protic diluent, and capping agent(s). Polymerization is allowed to proceed until substantial partial polymerization has occurred, by which is meant a degree of polymerization such that a significant viscosity build-up has occurred in the reaction mixture, but before it has substantially gelled, so that it can still be readily discharged from the first reactor. The viscosity of the reaction mixture at this point is preferably between about 1,500 and about 12,000 centipoise, more preferably between about 4, 000 and about 10,000 centipoise, at the discharge temperature. Preferably the first reactor is stirred, to efficiently dissolve the monomers and catalyst, ensure homogeneity of the reaction mixture prior to its discharge from the first reactor, and to help control the initial exotherm of the polymerization reaction.
Next, the partially polymerized reaction mixture is transferred from the first reactor into a second reactor, which has a piston, which, in a retracted position, defines one end of the second reaction, and a nozzle at the other end thereof. The stroke of the piston is substantially equal to the length of the second reactor. Polymerization is allowed to proceed in the second reactor until polymer of the desired molecular weight has been formed. Then, the polymerized and gelled reaction mixture is discharged through the nozzle by stroking the piston the length of the second reactor.
It is preferred that the polymerization temperature in the first reactor be somewhat lower than the polymerization temperature in the second reactor, which in turn should be lower than the temperature at which undesirable side reactions occur. At the same time, the polymerization is preferably conducted at the highest temperature consistent with the avoidance of undesirable side reactions, for faster polymerization and turn-around times. Friedel-Crafts polymerizations are exothermic, the exact extent of exotherm being dependent on parameters such as the type of monomers used and their concentration but generally being greatest at the early stages of polymerization. Stirring in the first reactor provides for a more efficient heat transfer and permits the maintenance of a lower polymerization temperature by temperature control means such as jackets or internal or external cooling coils, while the second reactor, being unstirred, is less capable of dissipating the heat of polymerization. Upon transfer of the reaction mixture to the second reactor, there may be a slight rise in the polymerization temperature because of the latter's lesser ability to remove the remaining heat of reaction via conduction. If the temperature of the reaction mixture at transfer is slightly below the desired temperature (from the point of view of combining rapid polymerization but yet avoiding side reactions), the rise will help bring the polymerization temperature to the desired temperature. Conversely, if transfer takes place at the desired temperature, it may be difficult to prevent the temperature in the second reactor from rising above it, to an undesirably high level. For example, polymerization in the first reactor may be initiated at about -15° C. and allowed to increase to between about 0 and about +35 ° C., depending on the specific monomer system, while polymerization in the second reactor may be conducted at a temperature between about 0 and +35 . degree. C. Temperature control in the second reactor can be accomplished by jacketing or by providing it with external cooling coils.
The first reactor should be resistant to chemical attack by the relatively acidic Friedel-Crafts polymerization medium. It can be made of or lined with materials such as glass, inert polymers, or metal alloys such as Hastelloy B-2. During polymerization, the stirred reactor can be vented to prevent the pressure buildup due to the evolution of hydrogen halide from the reaction mixture, but the reaction mixture should be protected from atmospheric moisture by nitrogen blanket or trap. It is usually desirable to maintain a pressure of > 30 psig to prevent foaming of the reaction mixture by hydrogen chloride evolution.
A preferred method for transferring the reaction mixture from the first to the second reactor is to use a combination of gravity and a positive nitrogen pressure, while simultaneously stroking the piston of the second reactor from a fully extended to a retracted position. In this way, the reaction mixture is constantly under pressure an does not foam, nor are any voids formed inside the second reactor. Alternatively to retracting the piston to charge the second reactor without forming any voids, the second reactor may be equipped with a vent adjacent to the retracted piston, the vent being under pressure control to prevent foaming.
During the second reactor stage, the polymerization reaction is completed. Because of its gelled state, the polymerized reaction mixture would be very difficult to discharge from a conventional reactor. However, the piston/nozzle feature permits its convenient discharge for work-up and isolation of the polymer.
The second reactor should be also protected from chemical attack or corrosion. This can be accomplished by lining the reactor walls with a fluoropolymer such as poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) or a copolymer of tetrafluoroethylene and perfluoroalkylvinyl ether, commercially available under the trade name Teflon PFA (du Pont). The fluoropolymer lining can be applied by coating or by swaging a tube of the fluoropolymer into the reactor. Thus, PTFE-lined stainless or carbon steel would be suitable constructions. Alternatively, the second reactor can be made from a tube of suitable polymer (e.g., PTFE) around which is wound a fiber-glass reinforced composite to provide mechanical strength, although in such a construction heat transfer would not be as efficient.
Another consideration in the selection of materials for the second reactor is that the polymerized, gelled reaction mixture should adhere minimally to it and release cleanly during the discharge process. Then, the power required to drive the piston is reduced and complete discharge, without leaving behind residues which might contaminate subsequent batches, can be effected. Fluoropolymers such as PTFE or Teflon PFA are also preferable because of their nonadhesive properties.
The second reactor should be constructed to resist the significant pressure build-ups which occur during the polymerization and/or discharge process. During polymerization, the pressure build-up may be as high as 150 psi. During discharge, the pressure may be as high as 650 psi or even higher, depending on reactor geometry. Preferably, the second reactor is capable of withstanding an internal pressure of at least 650 psi, preferably at least 950 psi.
The piston is preferably coated with material such as a fluoropolymer (e.g., PTFE) to protect against corrosion, to minimize adherence of gel to it, and to reduce friction during a stroke. A tight seal between the piston and the reactor wall should be maintained to prevent leakage. This can be accomplished by fitting the piston with an O- ring. Fluoroelastomers such as Viton (TM) or Kalrez (TM) are suitable materials for the O-ring. If the gap between the piston and the reactor wall is greater than about 0.08 mm, excessive reaction mass may build up in the O- ring groove and compromise its sealing performance. A small gap also helps prevent extrusion of the O-ring around the groove in the axial direction and to guide the piston down the tube. Extrusion of the O-ring may also be minimized by the use of a back-up ring made from PTFE or a fluoroelastomer, for example a ring called "Parbak" made by the Parker Seal Group. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, despite such precautions, there will be some wear and tear on the O-ring and some reaction mixture will enter into the groove, necessitating periodic replacement of the O-ring. Other means of sealing the piston, such as T- seals, cut lip seals, U-packing, an chevron packing may also be used.
The piston is conveniently driven by a hydraulic cylinder and shaft, although other drive means, for example, hydraulic or gas pressure or a screw may be used. The drive means should be sufficiently powerful to expel substantially all of the gelled or highly viscous reaction mixture from the second reactor through the nozzle.
The polymerized reaction mixture is discharged through the nozzle. The nozzle can also be the inlet for the reaction mixture during charging, in which case it is alternatively connected to the stirred reactor during charging and a receiving apparatus during discharge. In another embodiment, the second reactor may be equipped with both a discharging nozzle and a separate inlet.
The second reactor preferably has an interior length-to- interior diameter ratio (L/D) of at least 5, more preferably at least 10. A large L/D improves control of the reaction mixture temperature. If the L/D is too low, there could be an undesirable temperature rise in the center of the reaction mixture. Also, a large L/D minimizes the force that is required to drive the piston in discharging the polymerized reaction mixture, for a given reactor volume and discharge nozzle geometry.
In a preferred embodiment, the nozzle is conical in shape, the base of the cone coinciding with tee cross-section of the second reactor. In this case, the front of the piston should also be conical in shape and fit snugly in the nozzle, to ensure complete discharge.
Where the second reactor is of a large size, by which is meant a size greater than 12 inches in diameter, it is preferably operated in a vertical configuration, because the weight of the piston may cause it to drag along the bottom of the reactor, resulting in galling and/or wear of the surfaces and deterioration of the seal. Smaller reactors may be operated in either a vertical or horizontal configuration or at intermediate angles.
The polymer, at the end of the polymerization, contains Lewis acid complexed to its carbonyl groups. For many polymerizations, the Lewis acid is complexed to substantially all the carbonyl groups in the polymer. As is well known with polymers of this type, the catalyst residue must be removed, i.e., the Lewis acid must be decomplexed from the polymer and removed. A method for removing the catalyst residue is described by Dahl in U.S. Pat. No. 4,237,884, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Decomplexation can be accomplished by treating the polymerization reaction mixture with a decomplexing base after completion of polymerization. The decomplexing base must be at least as basic towards the Lewis acid as the basic groups on the polymer chain. Such decomplexation should be effected before the isolation of the polymer from the reaction mixture.
The amount of decomplexing base used should be in excess of the total amount of bound (complexed) and unbound Lewis acid present in the reaction mixture and is preferably at least twice the total amount of Lewis acid. Typical decomplexing bases which can be used include water, dilute aqueous hydrochloric acid, methanol, ethanol, acetone, N,N- dimethylformamide, N,N-dimethylacetamide, pyridine, dimethyl ether, diethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, trimethylamine, trimethylamine hydrochloride, dimethyl sulfide, tetramethylene sulfone, benzophenone, tetramethylammonium chloride, isopropanol, and the like.
To facilitate decomplexation and handling, it is desirable to discharge the gelled, polymerized reaction mixture from the second reactor into an apparatus capable of cutting the gel into small pieces, preferably less than 1/4 in across. Small sized gel articles can readily be transferred or otherwise handled as a slurry. Decomplexation is easier and more complete and the decomplexation exotherm is better controlled, because of the increased surface-to-volume ratio. A Rietz disintegrator (hammer-mill) made by Bepex Corporation, Santa Rosa, Calif. , is such an apparatus. For example, with a Rietz disintegrator with an 1/8 inch screen, a range of particle sizes ranging from about 1/100 to 3/16 inch is obtained. Other suitable apparatuses are a Fitzmill comminutor (Fitzpatrick Company, Elmhurst, Ill.) and colloid mills. Generally, many other methods of size reduction known in the art may be used. Alternatively, the gel may be forced through a screen or extruded through a multi-hole die and cut into pellets at the low-pressure side of the die.
The process and equipment of preferred embodiments of this invention may be further understood by reference to the figures, which are now discussed in detail. FIG. 1 depicts schematically the process of this invention. The monomers, Lewis acid, Lewis base, capping agent(s) (if any) and aprotic diluent (if any) are charged into a first reactor 1, which is a pressure resistant vessel equipped with a temperature control jacket 1a and motorized agitator 5. At the appropriate stage of the polymerization, the polymerization mixture is transferred from the first reactor 1 to the second reactor 2, which is equipped with a piston (obscured, not depicted), a temperature control jacket 2a, and a hydraulic cylinder/shaft 3 for driving the piston. Upon completion of polymerization, the polymer-containing reaction mixture is discharged from reactor 2 into a hammer-mill 4 by stroking the piston. The hammer- mill is driven by a motor 4a. Decomplexing base is added to the polymerized reaction mixture in the hammer-mill. The resultant polymer slurry is then transferred to a receiving vessel 6, for further purification steps such as decomplexation, digestion, or washing.
FIG. 2 depicts the embodiment of this invention wherein the transfer of the polymerization mixture from the first reactor 1 to the second reactor 2 is effected with simultaneous retraction of the piston 7, to reduce void formation. When the polymerization mixture is ready for transfer, valves 1 (at the bottom of the first reactor 1) and 16 (at the nozzle end of the second reactor 2) are opened, permitting the polymerization mixture to flow from one reactor to the other though transfer line 14 by a combination of nitrogen pressure and gravity (the first reactor being positioned higher than the second reactor. At the initiation of transfer, piston 7 s at an extended position 10. As transfer progresses, it is steadily retracted, until it is at a retracted position 11 at the completion of transfer.
FIG. 3 depicts the embodiment of this invention wherein the second reactor 2 is equipped with a valve 26 adjacent to the retracted position of piston 7, to facilitate void-free transfer. As in FIG. 2, the partially polymerized reaction mixture is transferred from first reactor 1 to second reactor 2 via opened valves 15 and 16 and transfer line 14, by a combination of gravity feed and applied nitrogen pressure. However, piston 7 is initially and remains in a retracted position. Vent valve 27 is opened, permitting air inside reactor 2 to exit, but maintaining a pressure in excess of 30 psi to prevent foaming, thus ensuring a void- free filling of the reactor 2.
FIG. 4a shows in detail a conical nozzle end of a second reactor according to the invention. Nozzle 44 is equipped with a front and a rear flange 46 and 47, respectively, and a lifting lug 48. It is lined with a PTFE coating 49 (shown on one half only). FIG. 4b shows in detail a corresponding tapered or conical piston 42 for fitting within the conical nozzle 44, also having a PTFE coating 49.
FIG. 5a and 5b show in detailed plan and elevation views, respectively, a preferred second reactor of this invention. Reactor body 54 and its hydraulic cylinder 91 are supported by a rigid base frame 51, in turn supported by a pedestal 52. Body 54 is mounted on the frame 51 by a reactor bracket 53. To guard against spillage, the set-up is provided with a drip pan 76 At one end of the reactor is a conical nozzle 56, to which is attached a Teflon-PFA lined valve 50. To facilitate disconnection of the nozzle from body 54, there is provided a davit crane 58, equipped with a trolley 95, lifting fixture bar 84, turnbuckle 96, trolley stop 57, and lifting fixture plate 83. Temperature control fluid is circulated in a temperature control jacket (obscured, not shown) through inlet 87 and outlet 88. Hydraulic cylinder 91 is connected to body 54 by an alignment coupler 92. Shaft 100 is supported by a piston support 70 having a support pad 71. To indicate the position of the piston within the body 54, there is provided an indicator rod 65, driven by an indicator drive disc 63. Rod 65 is also protected by a cover 59, supported by base 61.
FIG. 6 is a magnified cutaway view of piston 66, positioned at the rear end of body 54, for the reactor of FIG. 5a and 5b. A seal against the inside surface of body 54 is provided by O-ring 101 and back- up O- rings 102. The piston is mounted to its drive mechanism by an adapter 67. Alignment coupler 92, shaft 100, position indicator drive disc 63, and rod 65 are as previously described. Rod 65 is coupled to drive disc 63 by a fitting 64. Fine adjustment of the piston position is made with shims 68 and 69.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the second reactor operates in a semi-continuous manner, accommodating the reaction mixtures from a plurality of runs, in different stages of polymerization. This embodiment is described in more detail in FIG. 7. First reactor 12 is generally as hereinbefore described, and has a stirrer 121 and a bottom outlet controlled by a valve 122. The first reactor is connected to the second reactor by a transfer line 130 having a drain valve 131. Drain valve 131 is useful for draining a defective polymerization mixture from first reactor 120 without passing it through the rest of the system. The second reactor, identified by the numeral 123, has a piston 124 and a shaft 125. The stroke of piston 124, instead of being substantially the length of reactor 123, is only for a segment of its length. Optionally, a ram valve 132 may be positioned flush with the inside diameter of second reactor 123, to permit complete draining of transfer line 130 without extrusion of polymerization material from second reactor 123 into the empty transfer line 130 when piston 124 surges forward. In this particular exemplification, reactor 123 designed with a five-run capacity (runs A-E), and the stroke is for about 1/5 its length. Reaction mixture for Run A, the first-introduced run, is charged into second reactor 123 via inlet 127, located just fore of piston 124 when the latter is in its forward or extended position. Piston 124 is retracted simultaneously while Run A charge is introduced. Foaming during the charging of Run A may be controlled by applying an overpressure to he second reactor during the charging process via valve 130 or any of nozzles 128a-c. The polymerization of Run A is then permitted continue to the desired molecular weight in the second reactor. (Meanwhile, the next run, Run B, is charged into the first reactor and its polymerization is initiated.) When the run A reaction mixture has polymerized sufficiently to gel, piston 124 is stroked forward, pushing the plug of gelled run A reaction mixture forward. Piston 124 is then retracted, as the Run B reaction mixture is charged, to fill the volume created by its retraction. Repetition of the charging/stroking sequences for runs C, D, and E, leads to the situation depicted in the figure. At the next forward stroke of piston 124, each of the plugs of gelled reaction mixtures of runs A-E is pushed forward, with the plug for run A being pushed out of second reactor 123 through nozzles 128a-c. Each of nozzles 128a-c is depicted as controlled by valves 133a-c, respectively. (Alternatively, they may be jointly controlled by a single valve, not shown.) Additional runs of can then be processed by repeating the aforementioned cycle. After discharge from the reactor, the reaction mixture for each run can be worked up as described hereinbefore. By the use of suitable molecular weight control techniques, such as those described hereinabove, it is not essential that the reaction mixture for each run be discharged immediately upon attainment of the desired molecular weight, but, instead, may be allowed to remain in the reactor until pushed out.
The second reactor is depicted as having a three nozzle design, with nozzles 128a-c, because such a design ensures that plug flow is substantially maintained in the reaction mixture being discharged. With a different nozzle design, for example a single nozzle, the flow of the reaction mixture is likely to be parabolic, meaning that material in the center flows faster than material at the edges, with the result that the latter material will experience a longer residence time in the reactor. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the three nozzle configuration is shown here for convenience and that other plural numbers of nozzles, in particular more than three, may be used, as appropriate. The plural nozzles may discharge individually into separate work-up apparatuses, or they may combined their discharges into a single apparatus of suitable capacity.
Other methods for ensuring substantial plug flow may be used, for example, placing a screen immediately before the nozzle, the screen having larger openings therein near the edges than in the center. Alternatively, a series of concentric rings may be placed immediately before the nozzle, the spacing between the rings being such as to permit greater flow for a given pressure drop near the edges, or slight amounts of a solvent may be injected into the reaction mixture near the edges, to reduce the viscosity of the edge material and increase its flowability, enhancing slip of the gel along the wall of the tube.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, while in this instance, the second reactor has been depicted as accommodating five runs, a it can be designed to accommodate a larger or lesser number of runs.
Preferably, the second reactor is positioned vertically. Then, the reaction mixture will tend to form a uniform plug over the piston as it is charged into the reactor.
This embodiment offers the advantage that a single large second reactor may be used instead of many smaller second reactors, for a given production capacity, with a significant advantage in capital and operating economy.
EXAMPLE
A Hastelloy B2 jacketed kettle-shaped first reactor equipped with an anchor-type stirrer and pressure-rated to 300 psi was purged with nitrogen and vented to prevent condensation of moisture on the interior surfaces as it was cooled to below 0° C. The kettle temperature was controlled by means of a heat transfer fluid circulated in the external jacket. When the kettle temperature reached -5° C. , methylene chloride (41.517 kg) was charged into it and cooled under agitation to a temperature below -10° C. Next, aluminum chloride (22.164 kg) was added, followed by dimethyl sulfone (two equal aliquots of 2.148 kg each). Each aliquot of dimethyl sulfone was made after the mixture was cooled back down to below -10° C. after the addition of the preceding material. (The dimethyl sulfone is added in aliquots because it complexes exothermically with the aluminum chloride and raises the temperature of the mixture, despite the cooling jacket and the agitation. By aliquot addition, the mixture is kept below 0° C. at all times.) Once the mixture temperature returned to below -10. degree. C. after the addition of the last aliquot of dimethyl sulfone, terephthaloyl chloride (6.175 kg) was added, along with benzoyl chloride (0.154 kg) dissolved in methylene chloride (0.200 kg). After the above mixture had cooled to less than - 13° C., 4,4'- diphenoxybenzophenone (11.346 kg) was added. The total charging time of all ingredients took about 30 min.
As soon as the addition of 4,4'-diphenoxybenzophenone was completed, the kettle reactor's vent was closed and a pressure of 10 psig of nitrogen was applied. The reactor was then isolated, and the vessel temperature was raised to 14° C. by means of a circulating heat transfer fluid in the vessel jacket. The exotherm of the reaction raised the temperature of the mixture to approximately 20° C. within approximately 10 min. The reaction was allowed to proceed under agitation for circa 17 min from the start of the las monomer addition. At the end of this time period, the pressure in the first reactor is increased by the addition of nitrogen until the internal pressure was 50 psig. Then, a bottom discharge valve on the kettle reactor, attached a hose connecting the kettle reactor to a second, tubular reactor, was opened and the agitation wa stopped.
The second tubular reactor had 8 in. diameter×6 ft length interior dimensions. It was lined with poly(tetrafluoroethylene). It had a piston with a conically shaped front, angled at 60°. It had a valved intake/discharge nozzle at its front, which was conically shaped to fit the piston. It was equipped with a jacket for circulating a temperature controlling fluid. At the start of the transfer, the piston was located at the front end of the tube, within 1/16 inch of the inside of the conical nozzle.
The valve at the front of the second reactor was opened and the piston retracted, allowing the reaction mass to flow from the first reactor to the second reactor through the connecting hose. The piston was retracted at a rate sufficient to drain the first reactor within three minutes. Once the transfer to the second reactor was completed, the valve at its front was closed. The jacket of the second reactor was maintained at 25. degree. C. by means of a circulating heat transfer fluid.
Four hours after the transfer, the gelled mixture was discharged from the second reactor by stroking the piston forward at a displacement rate of 15 gal/hr. As the gel exited the reactor, it was passed into a Rietz hammer-mill where it was decomplexed with water flowing at 4-6 gal/min and ground by the hammers until the ground-up pieces could pass through the 1/8 inch diameter openings in the mill screen. The water helped convey the decomplexed polymer particles as a slurry through the screen, out of the mill, and into a receiving vessel.
The polymer was recovered and purified by the following wash sequence. After grinding in the hammer mill, the resulting polymer slurry is washed four times with deionized water by repeatedly filtering the solids from the slurry, then reconstituting the slurry with fresh deionized water. After the fourth wash, sufficient aqueous hydrochloric acid to the slurry to obtain a concentration of 0.55% hydrochloric acid by weight in the water phase. This slurry was then allowed to leach for six hours. The slurry was then heated and held at reflux for two hours; then water was stripped from the slurry for an additional six hours. The overhead was replaced with fresh deionized water to maintain a slurry concentration of 3.5 gallons of aqueous phase per pound of polymer solids. After the stripping step, the slurry was washed three times with deionized water in the manner described above. After the third wash, sufficient aqueous ammonia was added to the slurry to obtain a concentration of 0.15% ammonia by weight in the water phase. This slurry was heated at reflux for one hour. Finally, the slurry was again washed three times with deionized water as described above and recovered on a gravity Nutsche filter. The polymer was dried in a vacuum oven (an air circulating oven may also be used) at 200° C. for sixteen hours.
The polymer yield was approximately 15.4 kg, with an inherent viscosity of 1.07 dL/g. | |
Serengeti National Park is undoubtedly the most famous wildlife sanctuary in the world, unequalled for its great concentration of plains game. It lies between the shores of Lake Victoria in the east and the Kenyan border to the northwest. In addition to its vast herds of wildebeest, zebra, Thomson’s gazelle and other plains game, the Serengeti is renowned for its lion and other predators, including wild dog, spotted hyena and jackal. Leopard may often be seen along the Seronera River. The wealth of bird life is of special interest. During May and June, or sometimes earlier, the famous Serengeti migration begins, as nearly two million wildebeest and a quarter million zebra move toward the Maasai Mara to the northwest.
The vast rolling plains of Serengeti National Park span 150km south from the Kenyan border and 100km east from almost the shore of Lake Victoria to the edge of the Eastern Rift Valley. The surface is of weathered west sloping ash from the Ngorongoro volcanoes and covers a plateau of mainly crystalline rock, dotted with rocky outcrops (kopjes). Low slightly wooded mountain ranges, mainly of volcanic origins cover the north east and run along the western corridor as well. The Mara river, a permanent river that stretches from Kogatende to Lamai crosses the northwest corner of the park. The central is a savannah that is crossed by the Grumeti and Mbalageti rivers which drain to Lake Victoria. The south is mainly open grasslands. The park is also endowed with water bodies albeit small. These are mainly small lakes, marshes and seasonal water holes that are numerous in the park.
The Serengeti is a unique ecosystem, alternating between dusty summer drought to green winter and spring lushness. The central, Seronera and other neighboring areas like Togoro plains and Musabi are mostly savanna with scattered acacia. The north, an area that spans from Lobo all the way to Kogatende at the tip of the park are thornwood long grasslands and gallery forests along the permanent river Mara. Same can be said of the western part and river Grumeti, an area that stretches from Nyamuma all the way to the Ndabaka plains. The hilly western corridor is mostly extensive woods and black clay pans.
Volcanic soils in combination with the ecological impact of the great migration have played a huge part in formation of one of the most productive ecosystems on earth. The Serengeti ecosystem supports the largest number of angulates as well as the highest concentration of predators in the world. Many of these animals migrate between seasonal water sources and grasslands, starting from the central plains to the western corridor, moving north across river Mara into Kenya before dispersing southeast and finally settling in the south to calve in midsummer. The white-bearded wildebeest dominates the migration, with around 2 million individuals partaking the never-ending slog. Around 300,000 zebras make great companions for the gnus as well as approximately 900,000 Thomson gazelles. Other herbivores found in the park include elands, topis, hartebeest, buffalos, giraffes, warthogs, waterbucks, elephants, hippos, black rhinos, 10 species of antelope as well as 10 species of primates. Normally following the herbivores are lions, estimated to be around 4,000 in population, around 1,500 leopards, 3,500 spotted hyena, striped hyenas, black backed jackals, side striped jackals, golden jackals and wild dogs. Of all these animals the black rhino, leopard, African elephant and cheetah are listed in the IUCN Red List.
The park has around 500 species of birds which are perennially and seasonally present in the park, 5 of which are endemic to Tanzania. These bird species include 34 raptors, 6 vultures and aggregations of over 20,000 water birds. Unsurprisingly the park has the highest ostrich population in Tanzania and may probably be so in Africa.
Serengeti National Park experiences a subtropical climate. The dry season is usually from mid May to August before it gets warmer, but still quite dry from September to October. Rains start falling from November to April when it also gets really hot at the same time. Short rains are experienced from October to December while heavy rains start from March to early May. July is the coldest month, but the temperatures are generally low in August and sometimes September.
Delve into planning a safari in the Serengeti and you might find that you’re faced with more than a few types of accommodation. Serengeti offers a huge array of lodging properties ranging from large modern state-of-the art hotels to tented permanent bush camps to luxurious mobile camps, to lodges, chalets to tents, and plenty more to choose with each offering its own subtle differences, quirks and distinctions
Location:
Serengeti’s southern entrance is 321 kilometers / 200 miles from Kilimanjaro Airport, your recommended point of entry into Tanzania. Transfer time to / from Arusha: 8 hours (approx.)
By Road
- Transfer time to / from Ngorongoro: 2 hours (approx.)
- Transfer time to / from Manyara airstrip: 4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Transfer time to / from Kilimanjaro Airport: 9 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
By Air: | https://nisimulieafrica.co.tz/destination/serengeti-national-park/ |
New research sheds light on how the rhythms of daily life are encoded in the brain. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have discovered that different groups of neurons, those charged with keeping time, become active at different times of day despite being on the same molecular clock. The findings are published in Science.
Life on Earth follows the rising and setting of the sun. Daily cycles have been found in animals, plants, fungi and even bacteria. For humans, sleeping and waking as well as hormone levels, body temperature and cognitive performance, follow a daily cycle.
”The influence of our circadian rhythms can be substantial – for example, some of us are night owls and others are morning larks,” said senior investigator Paul Taghert, PhD, professor of neuroscience. ”It’s important to understand how such fundamental timing information is translated into actual neuronal signals in the brain that control daily rhythms, including rhythmic behavior.”
The biological control for these daily cycles is known as the circadian clock. In animals, a master circadian clock in the brain helps coordinate most of these body rhythms, including the sleep-wake cycle.
The biochemical basis of the circadian clock has been conserved through evolution. It involves a small number of ”clock proteins” whose levels go up and down in a controlled manner once a day.
But scientists long have puzzled over how some circadian-controlled behaviors and physiological changes that occur two or more times a day correspond to the once-daily rise and fall of clock proteins. The fruit fly Drosophila, for example, is behaviorally active twice a day, in the morning and evening.
Taghert, along with graduate student Xitong Liang and Timothy Holy, associate professor of neuroscience, asked how one biochemical peak in clock proteins could lead to two distinct peaks of activity at different times of day. They wondered whether the neuronal time-keeping circuit produces a single daily signal or generates multiple signals throughout the day.
To answer that question, Liang performed whole brain scans of living fruit flies every 10 minutes for 24 hours. Fruit flies are widely used in circadian research because the clock in each fly’s tiny brain is represented by only 150 time-keeping or so-called pacemaker neurons, making it much easier to dissect than the clock in larger animals. Even in mice, for example, the circadian system involves about 20,000 pacemaker neurons in a part of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus.
The experiments measured calcium levels inside pacemaker cells to assess the cells’ activities – higher calcium levels indicate higher levels of neuronal activation. Unexpectedly, each pacemaker group displayed a distinct phase of activity. These activity patterns were sensitive to environmental signals, such as day length, and also to the circadian clock. The researchers found that one specific group of pacemaker neurons was active about four hours before the fly’s morning peak in activity, and another specific group was active about four hours before the fly’s evening activity.
”Essentially, groups of neurons decide to take different parts of the clock,” explained Holy. ”One group says, ’We’ll be active in the morning, to make the fly active that time of day,’ and this other group of neurons says, ’Even though our molecular clock is peaking here in the morning, we’re going to wait to be most active until later on in the day.’”
Studying the genes of mutant fruit flies, the research team identified a chemical signal called pigment-dispersing factor (PDF). This neuropeptide is secreted by the morning pacemakers to help diversify the timing of pacemakers that control behaviors at other times of day.
”PDF is secreted by cells that are most active at dawn,” Liang said. ”In the flies with a mutation in the PDF receptor, we found that two other groups of neurons normally active at other times of day instead become active at dawn.” The activity of the pacemaker neurons become more synchronous in the mutant flies, and the regular morning-evening pattern of fly activity is thrown off, the researcher said.
Previously, scientists had thought that cellular activity was closely coupled to the peak levels of the clock molecules.
”The idea was, as the clock goes, so goes the activity,” Taghert said. ”But here, we’re suggesting that there may be a disconnect in some cells, and the reason for that disconnect is to space out the timing signals.
”We would never have been able to measure this activity 10 years ago,” he said. Until a few years ago, it would not have been possible to monitor the activity of groups of neurons in a living animal in distant parts of the brain over extended time periods.
”One of the important new tools in neuroscience is the ability to measure brain activity with light,” Holy explained. ”However, too much light can be damaging to brain cells, especially if you’re imaging for a long time. A few years ago, my lab developed a microscope that can illuminate the brain very gently, yet still get very high-quality pictures of what’s happening over time. The trick is to shine light on just the part of the brain that’s in focus so you avoid damaging any part you’re not looking at. After snapping one picture, you move the microscope and take another picture of a different part of the brain. By doing that very quickly, you can cover the whole brain of the fly in a second or less.”
”This is very much an example of techniques allowing you to answer questions that weren’t answerable before,” Taghert added.
Because many principles of circadian time-keeping are conserved across distant species, this neuronal mechanism discovered in Drosophila also may indicate a general clock principle. Naturally, time will tell. | https://hailscience.com/2016/02/29/shedding-light-on-the-day-night-cycle/ |
In the process of destroying Maggi worth Rs 320 cr: Nestle
New Delhi, Jun 15: Nestle India is in the process of destroying Maggi instant noodles worth Rs 320 crore after it was banned by central food safety regulator FSSAI due to presence of lead and taste enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG) beyond permissible limits.
The company said it is in the process of withdrawing the stock of Maggi Noodles from markets, factories and distribution and destroying it.
"The estimated sales value of the stock in the market, including those with our trade partners is around Rs 210 crore. In addition, there was Maggi Noodles and related materials in our factories and distribution centres when the withdrawal was announced and the estimated value of these is around Rs 110 crore," Nestle India informed the BSE.
It, however, added that it was only a broad estimate "as it is impossible to calculate the final figure while the withdrawal is taking place".
"There will be additional costs to take into account for example bringing stock from the market, transporting the stock to the destruction points, destruction costs. The final figure will have to be confirmed at a later date," it said.
That unforeseen costs on withdrawal "will be dealt with in line with the applicable accounting standards at the time of announcing the financial results on due dates". Shares of Nestle India today closed at Rs 5,948.65 apiece on the BSE, down 2.14 per cent from previous close.
Traders body Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has sought government intervention to direct Nestle to make immediate refunds for recalled stocks of its Maggi noodles as the company has "blocked capital of wholesalers and retailers for nearly two months".
On June 5, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) banned Maggi directing Nestle to immediately withdraw and recall all nine variants of Maggi instant noodles from market.
Nestle India has also recalled the product from the market. Nestle India has challenged the ban order before the Bombay High Court, which on June 12 declined to give any interim relief over ban of Maggi noodles.
The court has scheduled the next hearing for June 30 and has directed FSSAI and the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to file affidavits within two weeks over concerns raised by Nestle. | https://www.oneindia.com/india/in-the-process-destroying-maggi-worth-rs-320-cr-nestle-1777983.html |
How to Interpret the Report?
The Mettl Test for Abstract Reasoning (MTAR) measures the abstract reasoning ability of the test takers working in a variety of individual contributor or managerial roles. This test is suitable to be used in both recruitment and development settings. Abstract reasoning is defined as the ability to think laterally, examine problems in unique and unusual ways and make fresh connections between different concepts.
Responses to MTAR are scored based on how many correct options a respondent chooses. Each item answered correctly is awarded 1 mark and items answered incorrectly or not attempted are given a 0 (zero) mark. An individual’s overall score is an average of all items answered correctly. The scores are then converted into Sten scores, which bring these scores into a 10 point scale. A score of 1 indicates low performance and a score of 10 indicates high performance.
Abstract Reasoning Score:
Values shown in above chart are sten scores
1. Abstract Reasoning Score:
Abstract Reasoning: High
Very likely to have the ability to solve complex problems by identifying patterns and their underlying rules. Will be able to communicate thought process clearly and accurately. Effective problem solving and performing well in novel situations are likely to be strengths.
Development Plan
1. Abstract Reasoning
Developmental Tips
• Think broadly about the nature of the problem before starting to solve a problem in a new and creative way.
• Think creatively which requires looking at a problem from all the directions and not just relying on past experiences.
• Use different approach each time you're in a new situation. Jot down the learning and apply the same in future.
Suggested Activities/ Tasks
• Try to connect the unknown facts to the known ones to make a quick understanding of the new concepts.
• Focus on the relevant details as It helps to improve your working memory over time.
•Look for deeper meaning or underlying patterns in issues and try to relate with broader picture.
•Try to develop to use metaphors and analogies while thinking about an issue. Also use figurative language like similes and metaphors during thinking and writing both.
•Use 3D, visual, and word puzzles as it helps you to think differently and logically. | https://mettl.com/corporate/v2/analytics/candidate-share-report?key=ZrVL%2B0RIlgxdMs6yXEB0Mg%3D%3D&timeZoneOfReport=Asia%2FKolkata |
Combustion takes place when fuel, most commonly a fossil fuel, reacts with the oxygen in air to produce heat. The heat created by the burning of a fossil fuel is used in the operation of equipment such as boilers, furnaces, kilns, and engines. Along with heat, CO2 (carbon dioxide) and H2O (water) are created as byproducts of the exothermic reaction.
By monitoring and regulating some of the gases in the stack or exhaust, it is easy to improve combustion efficiency, which conserves fuel and lowers expenses. Combustion efficiency is the calculation of how effectively the combustion process runs. To achieve the highest levels of combustion efficiency, complete combustion should take place. Complete combustion occurs when all of the energy in the fuel being burned is extracted and none of the Carbon and Hydrogen compounds are left unburned. Complete combustion will occur when the proper amounts of fuel and air (fuel/air ratio) are mixed for the correct amount of time under the appropriate conditions of turbulence and temperature.
Although theoretically stoichiometric combustion provides the perfect fuel to air ratio, which thus lowers losses and extracts all of the energy from the fuel; in reality, stoichiometric combustion is unattainable due to many varying factors. Heat losses are inevitable thus making 100% efficiency impossible.
In practice, in order to achieve complete combustion, it is necessary to increase the amounts of air to the combustion process to ensure the burning of all of the fuel. The amount of air that must be added to make certain all energy is retrieved is known as excess air.
In most combustion processes, some additional chemicals are formed during the combustion reactions. Some of the products created such as CO (carbon monoxide), NO (nitric oxide), NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), SO2 (sulfur dioxide), soot, and ash should be minimized and accurately measured. The EPA has set specific standards and regulations for emissions of some of these products, as they are harmful to the environment.
Combustion analysis is a vital step to properly operate and control any combustion process in order to obtain the highest combustion efficiency with the lowest emissions of pollutants.
|Objective of Combustion|
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The objective of combustion is to retrieve energy from the burning of fuels in the most efficient way possible. To maximize combustion efficiency, it is necessary to burn all fuel material with the least amount of losses. The more efficiently fuels are burned and energy is gathered, the cheaper the combustion process becomes.
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Complete Combustion
Complete combustion occurs when 100% of the energy in the fuel is extracted. It is important to strive for complete combustion to preserve fuel and improve the cost efficiency of the combustion process. There must be enough air in the combustion chamber for complete combustion to occur. The addition of excess air greatly lowers the formation of CO (carbon monoxide) by allowing CO to react with O2. The less CO remaining in the flue gas, the closer to complete combustion the reaction becomes. This is because the toxic gas carbon monoxide (CO) still contains a very significant amount of energy that should be completely burned.
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Stoichiometric Combustion
Stoichiometric combustion is the theoretical point at which the fuel to air ratio is ideal so that there is complete combustion with perfect efficiency. Although stoichiometric combustion is not possible, it is striven for in all combustion processes to maximize profits.
Fuels
There are many fuels currently used in combustion processes throughout the world, the most common are: Coal, Oils (#2, # 4, and # 6), Diesel Oil, Gasoline, Natural Gas, Propane, Coke Oven Gas, and Wood. Each fuel has different chemical characteristics including, a unique C/H2 ratio, and calorific value, among others. The amount of combustion air required to completely burn a specific fuel will depend on those characteristics especially the C/H2ratio. The higher the carbon in the fuel the more air is required to achieve complete combustion. When monitoring the efficiency of a combustion process, it is important to know the fuel being burned since this information will help not only determine a boiler’s optimal working conditions but also maximize the boiler’s efficiency.
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Effect of burning different fuels
Coal
There are many varieties of coal being used in combustion processes around the world; the most widely used are anthracite, bituminous, sub-bituminous, and lignite. When burning coal a considerable amount of carbon dioxide is generated given the extremely high levels of carbon in coal; since carbon requires more oxygen to burn, more combustion air is needed to burn coal that other fossil fuels.
In addition to the carbon dioxide emissions, coal burning creates some other pollutants including NOx, sulfur dioxide (SO2), sulfur trioxide (SO3), and particle emissions. Sulfur dioxide chemically combines with water vapor in the air to produce a weak form of sulfuric acid, one of the main causes of acid rain.
Oil
Oil fuels are mostly a mixture of very heavy hydrocarbons, which have higher levels of hydrogen than those found in coal. At the same time, oil contains less carbon than coal and therefore requires less combustion air to achieve complete combustion. Therefore, burning oil releases less carbon dioxide than burning coal, but more carbon dioxide than burning natural gas. Most of the pollutants produced when burning coal are also a byproduct of burning oil.
Natural Gas
Natural gas requires much less air in combustion because of its relatively low amounts of carbon and high amounts of hydrogen. The burning of natural gas is cleaner than the burning of oil and coal. When gas is burned with insufficient combustion air some volatile hydrocarbons can be created, which could become a safety hazard; care should be taken to avoid dangerous conditions.
The burning of natural gas produces less greenhouse gases, which are believed to be one of the main sources for global warming. In equivalent amounts, burning natural gas produces about 30% less carbon dioxide than burning oil and 45% less carbon dioxide than burning coal.
In addition to the carbon dioxide emissions, gas burning creates NOx emissions, while the emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and Particles are negligible.
Other fuels including wood, diesel, gasoline, propane, butane, bio fuels such as ethanol, etc. have there own combustion properties that will affect the combustion efficiency and emissions of the process.
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Air Flow
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Maintaining appropriate airflow during combustion is fundamental to ensure safe and complete combustion. The total airflow includes combustion air, infiltration air, and dilution air.
Combustion Air
Time, Temperature and Turbulence
The combustion process is extremely dependent on time, temperature, and turbulence. Time is important to combustion because if a fuel is not given a sufficient amount of time to burn, a significant amount of energy will be left in the fuel. Too much time to burn on the other hand will produce very long flames, which can be a function of bad mixing. The correct balance of time and mixing will achieve complete combustion, minimize flame impingement (boiler maintenance hazard), and improve combustion safety. In addition, a properly controlled combustion process strives to provide the highest combustion efficiency while maintaining low emissions of harmful gases.
Excess Air
In order to ensure complete combustion, combustion chambers are fired with excess air. Excess air increases the amount of oxygen and nitrogen entering the flame increasing the probability that oxygen will find and react with the fuel. The addition of excess air also increases turbulence, which increases mixing in the combustion chamber. Increased mixing of the air and fuel will further improve combustion efficiency by giving these components a better chance to react. As more excess air enters the combustion chamber, more of the fuel is burned until it finally reaches complete combustion. Greater amounts of excess air create lower amounts of CO but also cause more heat losses. Because the levels of both CO and heat losses affect the combustion efficiency, it is important to control and monitor excess air and the CO levels to ensure the highest combustion efficiency possible.
Calculating Excess Air
As discussed earlier, under stoichiometric (theoretical) conditions, the amount of oxygen in the air used for combustion is completely depleted in the combustion process. Therefore, by measuring the amount of oxygen in the exhaust gases leaving the stack we should be able to calculate the percentage of excess air being supplied to the process.
The following formula is normally used to calculate the excess air:
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What is Draft?
The pressure of the gases in the stack must be carefully controlled to insure that all the gases of combustion are removed from the combustion zone at the correct rate. This draft pressure can be positive or negative depending of the boiler design; natural draft, balance draft, and forced draft boilers are the most commonly used in the industry.
Monitoring draft is important not only to increase combustion efficiency, but also to maintain safe conditions. Low draft pressures create build-ups of highly toxic gases such as carbon monoxide and highly explosive gases. These build ups may take place in the combustion chamber or may even be ventilated indoors creating the risk of injury and death. Conversely, extremely high draft pressures can cause unwanted turbulences in the system preventing complete combustion. Unwanted high draft pressures tend to damage the combustion chamber and heat exchanger material by causing flame impingemen
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What is a Boiler?
A boiler is an enclosed vessel in which water is heated and circulated, either as hot water, steam, or superheated steam for the purpose of heating, powering, and/or producing electricity. The furnace of the boiler is where the fuel and air are introduced to combust; fuel/ air mixtures are normally introduced into the furnace by using burners, where the flames are formed. The resulting hot gases travel through a series of heat exchangers, where heat is transferred to the water flowing though them. The combustion gases are finally released to the atmosphere via the stack of exhaust section of the boiler.
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Condensing Boilers
A condensing boiler preserves energy by using heat exchangers designed to remove additional energy from the gases of combustion before leaving the stack. The flue gases produced from condensing boilers are at a much lower temperatures than those of non condensing boilers to the extent that the water vapor in the flue gases condenses, thus releasing their latent heat and increasing efficiency of the boiler. Condensing boilers have efficiencies of 95% or greater as compared to the normal 70%-80% for non-condensing boilers. | http://www.topac.com/combustioninfo.html |
Do your students understand the job of a "criminal profiler"? Yes, they see them nightly on tv shows and in the news, but do they have a real understanding of how law enforcement can use empirical data to correctly assess behavior and help solve crimes, particularly serial crimes?
Criminal and Behavioral Profiling, by well-established authors Curt and Anne Bartol, presents a realistic and empirically-based look at the theory, research, and practice of modern criminal profiling. Designed for use in a variety of criminal justice and psychology courses, the book delves into the process of identifying behavioral tendencies, geographical locations, demographic and biographical descriptors of an offender (or offenders), and sometimes personality traits based on characteristics of the crime. Timely literature and case studies from the rapidly growing international research in criminal profiling help students understand the best practices, major pitfalls, and psychological concepts that are key to this process.
This book has been considered as supplemental reading for our MSc programme. It provides a comprehensive overview of criminal profiling in an interesting and accessible manner. Case studies help bring the theory and techniques to life.
This is a really well-written and interesting book that our students will hopefully connect with well. Uses a good range of examples and relevant research.
My profiling class is very specific and this just didn't quite fit it.
Used a lot of the information for the topic of offender profiling and have recommended the book to the students if they want to take this topic further in their final year dissertations.
I found this book lively and engaging, with interesting coverage of the subject area.
Presents an international perspective, integrating research, theory, practice, and examples from not only the United States, but also Great Britain, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Finland, and more.
Includes case examples to illustrate theory and techniques.
Offers historical information about the origins of profiling, including its development by the FBI Behavioral Science Unit.
Highlights the victimology approach, with an emphasis on the importance—for profiling purposes—of gathering information about the victim and how serial offenders treat their victims.
Features Focus Boxes in each chapter to provide applied information from practice. | https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/criminal-behavioral-profiling/book234764 |
Also See: Toledo, OH ZIP Codes & ZIP Code Maps | Local Area Photos
The City of Toledo is the 4th largest city in Ohio with a population of 280,406 as of July 1, 2015. Toledo ranks in the upper quartile for Population Density and Diversity Index when compared to the other cities, towns and Census Designated Places (CDPs) in Ohio. See peer rankings below.
The primary coordinate point for Toledo is located at latitude 41.6641 and longitude -83.5819 in Lucas County. The formal boundaries for the City of Toledo (see map below) encompass a land area of 80.72 sq. miles and a water area of 3.43 sq. miles. Lucas County is in the Eastern time zone (GMT -5). The elevation is 610 feet.
The City of Toledo (GNIS ID: 1086537) has a C5 Census Class Code which indicates an active incorporated place that is independent of any county subdivision and serves as a county subdivision equivalent. It also has a Functional Status Code of "A" which identifies an active government providing primary general-purpose functions.
Beneath the boundary map are tables with Toledo population, income and housing data, five-year growth projections and peer comparisons for key demographic data. The estimates are for July 1, 2015.
Alternate Unofficial Names for Toledo: Fort Industry, Port Lawrence, Upper Toledo, Vistula.
POPULATION
|Total Population||280,406|
|Population in Households||272,293|
|Population in Familes||198,396|
|Population in Group Qrtrs||8,113|
|Population Density1||3,475|
|Diversity Index2||60|
HOUSEHOLDS
|Total Households||117,943|
|Average Household Size||2.31|
|Family Households||65,832|
|Average Family Size||3|
HOUSING
|Total Housing Units||138,579 (100%)|
|Owner Occupied HU||61,946 (44.7%)|
|Renter Occupied HU||55,997 (40.4%)|
|Vacant Housing Units||20,636 (14.9%)|
|Median Home Value||$90,395|
|Average Home Value||$103,182|
INCOME
|Median Household Income||$33,582|
|Average Household Income||$44,901|
|Per Capita Income||$19,117|
|(Compound Annual Growth Rates)|
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GROWTH RATES
|2010-2015||2015-2020|
|Population||-0.46%||-0.22%|
|Households||-0.29%||-0.19%|
|Families||-0.72%||-0.49%|
|Median Household Income||2.38%|
|Per Capita Income||2.55%|
The table below compares Toledo to the other 1,204 incorporated cities, towns and CDPs in Ohio by rank and percentile using July 1, 2015 data. The location Ranked # 1 has the highest value. A location that ranks higher than 75% of its peers would be in the 75th percentile of the peer group.
|Variable Description||Rank||Percentile|
|Total Population||# 4||100th|
|Population Density1||# 57||95th|
|Diversity Index2||# 13||99th|
|Median Household Income||# 1105||8th|
|Per Capita Income||# 995||18th|
Additional comparisons and rankings can be made with a VERY EASY TO USE Ohio Census Data Comparison Tool. | http://ohio.hometownlocator.com/oh/lucas/toledo.cfm |
1. Introduction
===============
Depression is one of the important causes of illness and disability in adolescents and adults. In the past few years, an increasing number of survivors have been discharged from intensive care units (ICUs). Patients recovering from critical illness, physical dysfunction, and organ failure may experience psychological and cognitive dysfunction after discharge, which is called post-intensive care syndrome.^\[[@R1]\]^ A previous study showed that depressive symptoms are common in patients discharged from the ICU and have a negative impact on quality of life.^\[[@R2]\]^ Systematic reviews showed that approximately 30% of ICU survivors had clinically important depressive symptoms in the first 12 months after severe disease.^\[[@R2]\]^
Symptoms of depression hinder patients from performing physical work and act as a barrier to social participation.^\[[@R2]\]^ In addition, the overall 5-year mortality rate was 3.4 times higher among patients discharged from the ICU compared with the general population,^\[[@R3]\]^ and there are correlations between depression and the risks of mortality and morbidity, both in the general population and among patients with comorbidities.^\[[@R4]\]^
The risk factors for depression in the first year after acute respiratory distress syndrome include female sex, younger age, unemployment, alcoholism, and greater opioid use in the ICU, while a greater severity of disease and longer ICU stays were not correlated with depression.^\[[@R5]\]^ Parker et al showed that the risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder included psychopathological history, the use of benzodiazepines, and early memories of frightening ICU experiences.^\[[@R6]\]^
In addition to these risk factors, we hypothesized that the duration of ICU stay may play an important role in psychological problems. The aim of our study was to clarify the relationship between the length of ICU stay and the occurrence of depression.
2. Methods
==========
2.1. Data source
----------------
The Taiwan\'s National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) was used in a retrospective nationwide population-based cohort study. The NHIRD was established for research purposes and includes detailed healthcare services information, including all payments for outpatient visits, hospitalizations, and prescriptions for each patient who participates in the national health insurance program that provides coverage for over 99% of the residents of Taiwan.^\[[@R7]\]^ This claim database uses the Internal Classification of Disease, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) to archive each patient\'s outpatient visits or hospitalization diagnostic records, which can be linked to the prescriptions and procedures. Each individual\'s unique personal identification number in the NHIRD is interlinked with all the datasets, and all data used in this study were deidentified. The study was approved by the institutional review board (IRB) of the Chi Mei Medical Center (IRB no: 10411-E01).
2.2. Study population
---------------------
ICU survivors were identified as the study subjects. ICU patients were recognized by to the medical expenditure applications, and those patients who stayed in the ICU between 2000 and 2013 were enrolled in this study. The study subjects were defined as those with a survival duration after discharge from the ICU of more than 1 year and an age between 20 and 65 years. The exclusion criteria were
1. patients with a disease history of psychotic episodes/depression/anxiety before and during the ICU stay;
2. patients with mortality records during the follow-up period;
3. patients with a record of hospitalization for longer than 1 year;
4. patients with records of machine ventilation and ECMO;
5. ICU survivors with anxiety/depression records after the follow-up; and
6. the groups of patients with dementia and cancer, as they have a potentially high risk of depression.
Figure [1](#F1){ref-type="fig"} shows the flowchart of subject selection.
{#F1}
The baseline covariates included age, sex, Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) score, trauma (ICD-9-CM code: 800-949), and metabolic syndrome diseases, including hypertension (HTN) (ICD-9-CM code 401--405), diabetes mellitus (DM) (ICD-9-CM code 250), and hyperlipidemia (ICD-9-CM code 272). Age was grouped into 3 categories: 20 to 34, 35 to 49, and 50 to 65 years. The CCI was used to summarize important concomitant diseases based on the ICD-9-CM codes.^\[[@R8]\]^ The diseases included in the CCI, trauma, and metabolic syndrome diseases were defined by 3 related outpatient visits or 1 inpatient admission within 1 year prior to the first ICU admission date.
2.3. Measurements
-----------------
The outcomes of interest in this study were patients with a new-onset diagnosis of depression (ICD-9-CM code: 300.4, 309.2, 309.3, 309.4, 296.2, 296.5, 300.4, 309.0, 309.1, 296.82, 300, and 311). The depression diagnosis was defined by 3 related outpatient visits or 1 inpatient admission after the ICU admission date. All selected ICU survivors were right censored on December 31, 2013, or on the date they received the diagnosis of depression. The patients were followed for a maximum of 1 year.
According to the study aims, the length of ICU stay and length of hospital stay for ICU survivors with new-onset depression were major concerns in this study. The length of ICU stay was categorized as 1 to 3 days, 4 to 7 days, 8 to 14 days, 15 to 21 days, and ≥22 days.^\[[@R9]\]^ The length of hospital stay was categorized as fewer than 14 days and more than 14 days.^\[[@R10]\]^ The medical records of ICU survivors with depression were screened to identify the potential factors affecting the incidence of depression.
2.4. Statistical analysis
-------------------------
The categorical variables are presented as frequencies with percentages, and the continuous variable, age, is shown as the mean with standard deviation. Pearson Chi-squared test and Student *t* test were used to compare the differences between patients with depression and those without depression. The risk of depression among patients with different ICU stay durations was estimated using Cox regression analysis with adjusted variables, including age, sex, and comorbidities. The trends of the cumulative risk of the incidence of depression after ICU discharge among patients with different durations of ICU stays were plotted, and the log-rank test was used to compare the differences. SAS statistical software (version 9.4; SAS Institute, Inc., Cary, NC) was used to perform all statistical analyses. Kaplan-Meier curves were generated using STATA (version 12; Stata Corp. College Station, TX). All significance levels were set at *P* \< .05.
3. Results
==========
A total of 15,545 patients with depression were enrolled. The mean age of the patients was 46.49 years, and 58.2% were male. Metabolic syndrome patients accounted for 41.66%, and 45.4% of patients had a history of trauma. We further divided our study period into 3 periods: before 2005, 2005 to 2009, and after 2009. This variable was also used to adjust the risk of depression in the model. The median time from ICU discharge to depression was 3.13 months (Table [1](#T1){ref-type="table"}).
######
Patients characteristic after the first intensive care unit hospitalization with and without depression.
The length of ICU stay (percentage of patients with depression) were as follows: 1 to 3 days (28.15%), 4 to 7 days (24.02%), 8 to 14 days (22.09%), 15 to 21 days (11.66%), and ≥22 days (14.08%). Most patients with depression had a hospital stay that lasted fewer than 14 days (55.57%) (Table [2](#T2){ref-type="table"}).
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Medical utilization during the first ICU hospitalization with and without depression.
Compared to patients with ICU stays between 8 and 14 days, the adjusted HRs (95% confidence interval) for depression in patients with ICU stays that were 1 to 3 days, 4 to 7 days, 15 to 21 days, and ≥22 days were 1.08 (1.03--1.13), 1.01 (0.96--1.05), 1.08 (1.01--1.14), and 1.12 (1.06--1.19), respectively. Considering of the possible bias, we added the diagnosis of depression defined by psychiatrists. This sensitivity analysis presented the similar results. ICUs of the study include internal ICU, surgical ICU, neurological ICU, neurosurgical ICU, and others. We had added the analysis among different ICUs, accordingly (Table [3](#T3){ref-type="table"}).
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Risk factor for depression after first time ICU hospitalization.
In the separate analysis of patients 20 to 34 years old, compared to patients with ICU stays of 8 to 14 days, the adjusted HRs (95% confidence interval) for depression in patients with ICU stays of 1 to 3 days, 4 to 7 days, 15 to 21 days, and ≥22 days were 1.16 (1.05--1.29), 0.91 (0.82--1.01), 1.17 (1.01--1.34), and 1.31 (1.14--1.49). For male patients, the risk of depression was higher in those with ICU stays of 15 to 21 days and ≥22 days than in those with ICU stays of 8 to 14 days, with the adjusted HRs (95% confidence interval) of 1.11 (1.03--1.21) and 1.27 (1.18--1.37). Figure [2](#F2){ref-type="fig"} shows the cumulative incidence rate of depression among patients with different durations of ICU stays.
{#F2}
Table [4](#T4){ref-type="table"} shows that the most common primary diagnoses in all ICU patients were subarachnoid, subdural, and extradural hemorrhage following injury; intracerebral hemorrhage; chronic ischemic heart disease; septicemia; and occlusion of the cerebral arteries. For patients with depression after discharge from the ICU, the most common primary diagnoses were intracerebral hemorrhage; subarachnoid, subdural, and extradural hemorrhage following injury; chronic ischemic heart disease; occlusion of cerebral arteries; and fracture of the base of the skull. Table [5](#T5){ref-type="table"} shows the primary diagnoses among patients with different ICU stay durations. Figure [3](#F3){ref-type="fig"} showed the association between incidence rate of depression and length of stay in ICU.
######
Primary diagnosed in patients with depression.
######
Primary diagnosed in different length of ICU stay.
{#F3}
4. Discussion
=============
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to use a national claims database to investigate the association between length of stay in the ICU and depression. We found a U-shaped association between the length of stay in the ICU and the risk of depression. The risk of depression was the highest in patients with ICU stay durations longer than 21 days followed by those with stays of 15 to 21 days and then 1 to 3 days when compared with patients with ICU stay durations of 8 to 14 days. This U-shaped association was also observed in patients 20 to 34 and 35 to 49 years old but not in those 50 to 65 years old. In male patients, the longer the length of stay in the ICU, the higher the risk of depression was. In females, the length of ICU stay did not have an impact on the risk of depression.
ICUs are psychologically challenging environments; patients in the ICU may be frightened by high-pitched alarms that beep sporadically; if patients have endotracheal tubes, then they cannot communicate with people, and many patients have intravascular lines in their arm or leg, Foley catheters in their urethra and physical restraints. These experiences make patients suffer a loss of dignity; they may feel helpless, sad, powerless, punished, embarrassed, and violated, and these feelings could trigger depression after their discharge from the ICU.
Wang et al^\[[@R11]\]^ reported that patients with depressive symptoms after ICU discharge were younger, less likely to have cardiac disease, more likely to have had a previous history of depression and more likely to use an antidepressant on hospital admission and discharge. A large retrospective analysis of Danish ICU survivors also found that patients with pre-ICU compromised physical functioning and depression had more severe depression postdischarge and that those with a previous depression history were more likely to have premorbid psychiatric diagnoses compared with the general population.^\[[@R12]\]^
Our study surveyed new depression cases among ICU survivors for 1 year after discharge and excluded patients with a depression history or depression diagnosed during hospitalization.
Wang et al^\[[@R11]\]^ found that younger patients had a higher risk of depressive symptoms independent of antidepressant use status. Studies about the correlation between age and depression in ICU survivors have varied in their conclusions. Weinert et al found that older age was associated with more depressive symptoms after discharge for 1 year and that depressive symptoms were prevalent among both younger and older patients.^\[[@R2]\]^
Other systematic reviews did not show a correlation between post-ICU depression and age.^\[[@R13],[@R14]\]^ These differences may be due in part to variations in inclusion criteria. Our study focused on the length of ICU stay and depression after a first ICU admission. We found that patients aged 20 to 49 years had an association between depression and ICU stay duration. The association was U-shaped, and a lower risk of depression was observed in the patients with lengths of ICU stay between 4 and 14 days. For patients aged 50 to 65 years, there was no correlation between depression and the length of ICU stay.
In our study, we found that the most important diagnoses related to depression after ICU discharge were intracerebral, subarachnoid, subdural, and extradural hemorrhage. Brain damage has a substantial impact on depression after patient discharge. This is consistent with the findings of previous studies. Brain injury may result in long-term disability of physical, cognitive, and psychosocial functioning.^\[[@R15]\]^ Patients also experience difficulty remaining employed in the same occupation, having and maintaining social relationships, and fulfilling their true social function.^\[[@R16]\]^ In addition to cognitive sequelae and psychiatric problems, anxiety disorders combined with alcohol use disorders may contribute to depression.^\[[@R17]\]^
It is important to detect and recognize depression because it may lead to poor quality of life following ICU discharge; furthermore, depression is potentially treatable and preventable. Depression is related to a poor quality of life after a critical illness, and a previous study also showed that depression increases mortality.^\[[@R17]\]^
From our study, we found that the common diagnoses among patients with depression were cerebrovascular disease, included intracerebral hemorrhage, subarachnoid, subdural, and extradural hemorrhage, occlusion of cerebral arteries, and chronic ischemic heart disease. Depression starts after a major life change or trauma. We suggest physicians to pay attention to this population and psychotherapy may help individuals recover from depression. Cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy can help patients learn ways to better cope with stress and manage their symptoms of depression. These strategies can lead to recovery and enable patients to function at their best. Males having greater depression rates and in the age group of 20 to 49 is more significant and relatable as younger males may have the burden of supporting their family, which if they were unable to do so due to the aftermath of the disease process may have resulted in depression. So again, socio-economic factors and disease process probably are more significant than the length of ICU stay. Patients above 50 years had lower rates, that too may go along with the fact that by that age their socio-economic responsibilities were less.
4.1. Limitations
----------------
Our study has several limitations. First, our database does not include information on disease severity in patients admitted to the ICU. Our study could not examine whether greater disease severity in the ICU was associated with a higher risk of depression because ICU severity data were not available. Second, information on some risk factors for depression was not available in the claims data, such as education level, true income, alcohol use, smoking, physical activity, and emotional abuse. These factors may have confounded the observed association between depression and ICU stay. Third, our diagnosis of depression was based on physician coding of the diagnosis using ICD-9 codes. The clinical criteria for depression listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, including current patient symptoms and patient history, were not obtained. It may be a limitation about underestimation of patients with depression in this study. Patients who did not seek treatment for depression will not be recorded in this claims database. Patients with depression in this study were identify as health care seeking behavior for depression treatment.
5. Conclusions
==============
Our study suggests that there is risk of depression following the care of a critical illness in the ICU and that depression may be more common among patients 20 to 49 years old. The association between depression and length of ICU stay was U-shaped, with a greater risk of depression in patients with ICU stays of 1 to 3 days and more than 15 days. Physicians need to recognize and monitor symptoms of depression after ICU stays.
Author contributions
====================
All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
**Data curation:** Chih-Cheng Lai, Chien-Ming Chao, Chong-Chi Chiu.
**Formal analysis:** Chung-Han Ho.
**Investigation:** Shyh-Ren Chiang, Jhi-Joung Wang.
**Supervision:** Kuo-Chen Cheng.
**Writing -- original draft:** Kuang-Ming Liao.
**Writing -- review & editing:** Kuang-Ming Liao, Chin-Ming Chen, Kuo-Chen Cheng.
Abbreviations: ICD-9-CM = International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification, ICU = intensive care unit, NHIRD = National Health Insurance Research Database.
How to cite this article: Liao KM, Ho CH, Lai CC, Chao CM, Chiu CC, Chiang SR, Wang JJ, Chen CM, Cheng KC. The association between depression and length of stay in the intensive care unit. *Medicine*. 2020;99:23(e20514).
The study was approved by the institutional review board (IRB) of the Chi Mei Medical Center (IRB no: 10411-E01).
The data that support the findings of this study are available from NHIRD, but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under license for the current study and thus are not publicly available. Data are, however, available from the authors upon reasonable request and with permission of the National Health Insurance Research Institutes.
This study was based in part on data from the NHIRD provided by the Bureau of National Health Insurance (BNHI) of the Department of Health and managed by the National Health Research Institutes.
This work was supported by the Chi Mei Medical Center.
The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
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HOOKER, Okla. (July 4, 2014, 10 a.m. update) – As of 9 a.m. on July 4, about 140 TCEC meters remain off, most of them nonresidential. About 20 residences remain without power and the cooperative plans to restore power to those members as soon as possible.
"As of yesterday evening, roughly 500 poles have been identified as damaged due to Monday’s storm," Zac Perkins, TCEC assistant general manager, said. "We’ve continued to discover damage to the system since our initial daylight assessment on Tuesday. Although we’ve been able to restore power to most members, we’ll be repairing damage for weeks to come. Crews from other cooperatives are still assisting TCEC today and work will likely continue over the weekend."
_______________________________________________________________________
As of 8 a.m., TCEC has restored power to 88 percent of the approximately 9,000 meters originally affected by the June 30 storm. Approximately 1,100 meters still remain off, with the majority in Texas and Cimarron Counties. Additional crews from Greenbelt Electric Cooperative, Central Rural Electric Cooperative and Northwestern Electric Cooperative as well as a contract crew from North Plains Electric Cooperative are joining power restoration efforts today. Fifteen crews are now in the field.
“We’ve made major progress in our restoration efforts since Monday night,” Zac Perkins, TCEC assistant general manager, said. “Work will continue through Friday evening which is when we hope to have power restored to the majority of affected members if weather permits.”
Perkins explained initial repairs are focused on restoring power to the greatest number of members possible. By the evening of July 2, transmission repairs were completed and all distribution substations were online. This restored a large number of outages quickly. Repairs to distribution lines feeding towns will continue today. After feeders have been restored, repairs will turn to tap lines which serve several meters. Following that, crews will work on service lines for individual homes. | https://www.kscbnews.net/update-progress-made-in-power-restoration-in-the-panhandle/ |
Egypt: Soon after 90 years old Congress leader N D Tiwary accepted paternity of Rohit Shekhar, a paleontological dig in Egypt conducted by a team of scientists from National Geographic has found traces of Mr. Tiwari’s DNA in dinosaur fossils as well.
The team was clearly scandalized with the results. On the other hand, Mr. Tiwari is reported to have shrugged and accepted the test results stoically.
“We are not sure how this has happened,” Dr. Tadapit Kumar, the palaeontologist in charge of the dig, said in an exclusive interview with this Faking News reporter.
“Clearly N D Tiwari is older and sexually much more active than we had earlier thought was possible for human beings. But this raises new questions now. Will all descendants of dinosaurs have the rights to Mr. Tiwari’s properties as well? Lizards? Snakes? Generic reptiles?”
While scientists and lawyers are trying to figure out causes and effects, political parties have jumped on to the issue.
BJP has claimed that the incident proved that Congress will take India to dinosaur age with help of their leaders, while Congress has termed it as an UPA government achievement.
“BJP is just jealous that nobody in their party is as potent as our leader,” said Congress leader Salman Khurshid. | http://www.fakingnews.com/snippets/traces-of-n-d-tiwaris-dna-found-in-dinosaur-fossils-4829 |
The institutional mission of the Araucanía Regional Government is to represent the President of Chile in the implementation of public policies according to his or her government program. It must also foster, oversee and promote the region’s economic, social and cultural development by formulating and executing the budget for regional investment. The region has a total surface area of 31,858 km² and a population of 957,224 inhabitants according to the 2017 Census. Administratively, it is composed of 2 provinces (Cautín and Malleco), which are divided into 32 districts. The regional capital is the city of Temuco.
Víctor Manoli
Mr. Manoli is an entrepreneur in the transportation sector; a social and sports leader, and former candidate for mayor of Angol; regional vice-president of the Renovación Nacional (RN) party; president of the Circle of Friends of Carabineros (uniformed police force) and zonal public relations officer; member of the first Community Development Council (CODECO) in representation of community organizations; general councilor, district and municipal president of the RN party.
Married to Gabriela Sanhueza Romero, he is the father of two daughters. He has always been involved in the social and political sphere, and his goal will be to promote the guidelines of the government of President Sebastian Piñera, to support and strengthen all of the districts in the province of Malleco. | https://www.gob.cl/en/regions/la-araucania-region/ |
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is planning to start collecting excise duty on soft drinks, abolished in 1993 by the interim national government.
Hameed Ali, comptroller-general of the NCS disclosed this before a joint committee of the senate on finance and national planning on Thursday, stating that the federal government should lift the tax waivers for companies producing soft drinks within the country.
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Ali argued that if companies producing alcoholic beverages and tobacco could pay taxes, those producing soft drinks could do the same.
“We have been pushing for the expansion of our own excise collection. During the (Ernest) Shonekan regime (in 1993), excise was stopped for carbonated drinks manufacturers, like Coca-Cola,” the retired colonel said.
“The only one approved for us are tobacco alcoholic beverages. The understanding then was that tobacco and alcoholic beverages affect the health of citizens and should be taxed.
“But we know that carbonated drinks are also injurious to the health of the people due to the high sugar content.
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“Therefore if tobacco and alcoholic beverages companies are paying tax, the carbonated drink manufacturers should also pay.”
The custom boss, also informed the lawmakers that revenue from import would reduce because of a number of agreements Nigeria has signed.
Customs would generate N1.2 trillion before the end of the year because it had already collected N830 billion as of the end of July, the comptroller-general said.
Read also: For a Healthy lifestyle during, after lockdown, see all you need to do
Also speaking at the event, Senate President Ahmad Lawan said there was a need to look into why companies such as Coca-Cola do not pay excise duty.
“I don’t understand why Coca-cola, for instance, should not pay excise,”.
“It is an established company all over the world and it dominates the soft drinks industry,” Lawan said. | https://govtoros.com/soft-drinks-will-cost-more-see-why/ |
The Air Force didn’t effectively oversee the development of the KC-46’s refueling boom, leading to additional delays and costs and a lingering deficiency that prevents the tanker from refueling some USAF aircraft, according to a new Pentagon watchdog report.
The Defense Department Inspector General, in a report released May 27, said the Air Force’s KC-46 Program Office didn’t effectively manage the development of the refueling boom, specifically following a redesign of the system in 2012. That year, Boeing presented a system design during the preliminary design review that “differed significantly” from the initial design from the 2011 contract award.
Despite the new design, the Air Force did not “ensure that critical technologies for the refueling boom were demonstrated in a relevant testing environment,” and it “did not verify full functionality” of the boom in accordance with the program’s own plan when performing flight tests, the IG found.
The Program Office didn’t revalidate changes to critical technologies “at any point during the engineering and manufacturing development phase, since revalidations were not required by DOD policy,” the report states. The office decided, with approval from the Pentagon, in 2014 that reduced flight testing was fine to evaluate the performance of the tanker in support of a 2016 Milestone C decision. Officials believed, since the KC-46’s boom is based on the proven system on the KC-10, further assessment of boom technologies was not necessary.
“Despite encountering flight test failures in January 2016 that required Boeing engineers to redesign the refueling boom, the KC-46 Program Office officials did not change their decision to perform reduced flight testing prior to the Milestone C decision. This reduced flight testing did not include the stressing conditions under which the refueling boom problem could potentially occur.
Because of this, in 2018 when the company tried to test full functionality of the boom system, test results showed the boom was problematic during refueling of A-10, C-17, and F-16 receivers. The KC-46 still can’t refuel the A-10 and some variants of the C-130, with operational limits on several other airframes, according to the DOD IG.
These problems led to August 2019 and March 2020 contract modifications at a cost of $100 million to redesign the KC-46’s refueling boom, with a retrofit not estimated to begin until January 2024.
“Had KC-46 Program Office officials effectively managed the development and testing of the refueling boom for the KC-46A tanker, the Air Force would not have had to spend an additional $100 million for the redesign of the refueling boom to achieve its required performance,” the IG’s report states.
Going forward, the IG recommended that the Pentagon’s acquisition officials conduct “knowledge-building technology readiness assessments” throughout the buying process, including at preliminary design review, critical design review, and Milestone C “at a minimum.” The Defense Department also should develop and execute technology maturation plans “for critical technologies that have not been demonstrated in a relevant testing environment.” The Pentagon’s director of Development, Test, Evaluation, and Assessments agreed with these recommendations. | https://www.airforcemag.com/kc-46-boom-oversight-development-report/ |
Elevated Planter Garden Bed (6' x 2')
First 6 feet by 2 feet standing planter bed built with redwood legs and walls from Lowes lumber. I used premium pine trim to top off and clear stain to increase overall longevity.
I started off on Google by searching for "standing planter beds" and found a good DIY article at instructables.com.
Tools:
- Miter Saw
- Ridgid Cordless Drill
- Wood Screws (Lengths: 1.5", 2.5", 3")
- Behr Premium Transparent Waterproofing Finish
The Process: | https://olloman.com/blogs/home-and-garden/elevated-planter-garden-bed-6-x-2 |
How to Clicker Train Your Cat: A Step-by-Step Guide to Teaching New Skills and Fun Tricks in 15 Minutes a Day
For CJ, who is a zookeeper at heart.
INTRODUCTION
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
---
PART 1 Learning the Basics
CHAPTER 1 Understanding Cat Behavior
CHAPTER 2 Cat Communication 101
CHAPTER 3 The Fundamentals of Clicker Training
Clicker Practice
Your First Clicker Training Session: Charging Up the Clicker
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PART 2 Time to Train
CHAPTER 4 Practical Skills
Targeting
Name Recognition
Station Your Cat on a Mat
Lie Down
Sit
Come Here
Stay
Wearing a Kitty Harness
Cats Can Leash Walk, Too
Brushing Your Cat
Kitty Pedicure
Sparkling White Kitty Teeth
Squeaky Clean Ears
Making Eye Drops Less Scary
Training Multiple Cats at Once
CHAPTER 5 Solving Behavioral Problems
See, Petting Isn’t Too Bad
Picking Kitty Up
No More Hiding Under the Bed
No More Destructive Scratching
Bedtime Kitty Snuggles
My Bed, Not Yours
No More Counter Surfing
Cat, Meet Other Pets
Ouch! Stop Biting Hands
Shhh! Stop Meowing All the Time
No More Feet Attacks
Crate Training
Chewing Challenge
Don’t Jump On Me!
CHAPTER 6 Fun Games
Follow the Dot
Catch That Prey!
Ring the Bell
Fetch!
Popping Bubbles
Tunnel Run
Hurdle Jump
Magic Cup Game
Chair Leaps
Figure Eight Leg Weave
CHAPTER 7 Cool Cat Tricks
Roll Over
Spin Around
High Five
Sitting Pretty
Kitty Kisses
Waving Hello
Keyboard Kitty
Jumping Through an Arm Hoop
---
RESOURCES
REFERENCES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Introduction
During my 12 years as a zookeeper, my favorite animals to train were cats: cheetahs, tigers, and leopards—oh my! Working at the Houston Zoo, I learned how positive reinforcement training could benefit both the animal and veterinary staff; for example, by teaching big cats to be willing participants in their own medical care. Without the ability to train lions and tigers to voluntarily come over to get shots or have blood drawn from their tails, we would have to resort to anesthesia, which can be very stressful for the cat. Not to mention the stress involved in making a large cat unhappy!
Most people have never thought about training their house cats, though. There’s a common misconception that cats are stubborn and impossible to train; in reality, they are just as trainable as dogs. In fact, some common traits of cats make them the best training subjects.
One widely held belief is that cats are lazy and sleep most of the day. Actually, cats naturally conserve their energy and are active in shorter bursts, usually when hunting. Because of this, cats do very well with fast 5-minute training sessions and are motivated to work for food.
Cats are also independent. With positive reinforcement, this independent behavior makes training easy and fun, and your cat will enjoy participating. Conversely, if you punish a cat, they will simply walk away and not come back. Building a positive relationship with your cat will only improve their overall behavior.
Additionally, cats are more agile than dogs, making them more capable of performing acrobatic tricks involving climbing and jumping in smaller spaces, such as in your home or apartment.
The easiest way to use positive reinforcement and train your cat is with clicker training. A clicker is a small handheld device that makes a “click” sound every time you press the button. Clickers are relatively inexpensive and easy to stock up on and stash around your home or keep in your pocket for quick access. The unique clicking sound clearly communicates that your cat did something right and will be rewarded with a treat (more on this later). You’ll continue using the clicker after you’ve taught your cat a skill to remind them of the desired behavior. It’s quick and easy to use, making it perfect for short bursts of training. Communicate desired behavior, click, and treat—that’s it!
This book was written to help you build a stronger relationship with your cat, and to reverse any negative behaviors you may be experiencing with your feline friend. You’ll discover various exercises to train your cat in all kinds of ways, from practical skills and behavior solutions to fun tricks.
As a zookeeper, I trained lizards, parrots, primates, cheetahs, and everything in between. Throughout my education training animals, I completed an advanced certificate in Behavioral Husbandry, a holistic field that encompasses making sure an animal’s social, physical, and mental needs are met in their daily care. I’ve also completed training at top US animal facilities, including Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium.
I now focus my attention on training domestic cats and dogs, helping people strengthen their relationships with their beloved pets. I love animals, which is why I wanted to write this book. I’m excited to give you the foundation to understand how to clicker train your cat and ultimately enrich the bond you share with your cuddly companion.
How to Use This Book
This book is divided into two parts. In part 1, you’ll learn the basics of cat behavior and communication. To make progress in training, it’s important to understand what your cat is trying to tell you and how their training differs from that of other animals—even other cats. Human behavior is very different from cat behavior, so you’ll learn what your cat is communicating to you with their unique body language expressions and vocalizations.
We’ll wrap up part 1 with an overview of the basics of clicker training. By the end of chapter 3, you’ll understand the benefits of clicker training, what tools are necessary to get started, and how to build your training skills, even in the face of common hurdles. I’ve also provided a template for a training session log so you can keep track of your cat’s progress.
In part 2, we’ll launch into the training plans. Each chapter in this section contains various exercises and skills to teach your cat. Make sure to start with chapter 4, as it covers the practical and most important skills you’ll need for training. Try not to skip around when learning these skills and behaviors, as they provide the foundation for your cat’s behavior and ability to learn more fun skills later on.
Once your cat has a solid footing with their training, they will be less likely to get confused or frustrated as they learn more difficult tricks. These basic behaviors are also a great way to pull a timid or skittish cat out of their shell. Chapter 5 will help you solve common behavioral issues, while chapters 6 and 7 will cover fun games and cool cat tricks.
I truly hope the exercises in this book help you train your cat important (and fun) skills. By training your cat, you are creating a lasting bond in which you and your cat will understand each other on a deeper level. Let’s dive in!
PART 1
Learning the Basics
To effectively train and bond with your cat, you need to understand their behavior. While each cat is unique, all cats exhibit some similar behaviors, including how they communicate and learn various skills. Throughout this section, we’ll cover the basics of cat behavior and communication, plus the essentials of clicker training, before you start practicing with your own cat. Here we go!
CHAPTER 1
Understanding Cat Behavior
This chapter serves as a crash course on understanding cat behavior and how cats have evolved into the companion animals we know and love. Understanding cat behavior is essential, not only for training your cat but also for recognizing whether or not your cat is comfortable during training. Learning more about where your cat came from and how they behave will strengthen your connection and build a better training relationship.
How Your Cat Came to Live in Your Home
Domestic house cats can be traced back to the African wildcat, which is still found across Africa and parts of Asia. Small in stature, this species of cat is light gray and tan in color except for some white on their belly and dark striping on their tail and legs. If you visit Africa or parts of Asia today and see one in the wild, you may not even notice a visible difference from today’s typical tabby cat, except this wild cat has a slightly longer tail and legs. Their behavior is even similar to a domestic cat’s—they’re solitary, meaning they don’t travel in packs, and they hunt small rodents and birds. I’m sure you’ve seen your own cat catch bugs or try to hunt while peering out your windows.
Research indicates cats were first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent (an area in the present-day Middle East) around 12,000 years ago. This lush agricultural area stretched from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to the Nile River. As the population on the land grew, so did the population of pests, such as mice and rats, attracting wildcats to the area to hunt and putting them in close proximity with humans.
The ancient Egyptians recognized the cats’ efficient hunting skills. They witnessed cats protecting their homes from scorpions, snakes, and rodents, so they made them part of the family. In fact, the ancient Egyptians came to worship cats and considered them magical beings. Harming them was punishable by death.
Although African wildcats are feral, their kittens who grew up around humans eventually became comfortable with and even affectionate toward humans. This led people to provide cats with a safe place to stay and furthered the human-cat bond. Essentially, cats domesticated themselves by moving closer to humans so they could take advantage of an easy food source.
Using what we know about cats allows us to train them more efficiently:
KITTY FAQ: “ARE CATS ACTUALLY DOMESTICATED?”
Scientists often debate whether house cats can be considered domesticated. The leading consensus is that cats are actually only semi-domesticated, since there’s not much genetic difference between house cats and their wild counterparts. House cats simply evolved to be more tolerant of humans and other house cats, while wild cats are still completely solitary.
On the other hand, dogs that were commonly found wandering around in villages were purposefully domesticated to help humans perform certain tasks, like herding or hunting. Cats largely haven’t undergone this type of selective breeding for behavior, so their behavior is primarily unchanged. However, this lack of selective breeding can be helpful in training since cats are still heavily prey-driven. Cats can be motivated to train by using food, and they enjoy the mental stimulation they would have received when hunting.
THE CAT’S CULT OF PERSONALITY
It’s well known that cats prefer to be independent. Compared to dogs, who are often described as unconditionally loyal, cats require more work to gain their approval. One wrong move and you could be out of your cat’s good graces.
While a cat’s apparent aloofness does hold some merit (who hasn’t been snubbed by their cat?), a lot of their perceived unfriendliness has to do with the difference between how cats and dogs were domesticated. Dogs were bred over the years to perform various jobs and to adopt certain personality traits, but cats were utilized for pest control. As long as they kept the pest population under control, their personality didn’t matter.
Most cats exhibit many of the same personality traits, but not every trait will apply to every cat. Knowing which personality traits your cat possesses will help you optimize your training sessions so your cat is comfortable and capable of being trained. Read on to see which of the following traits you can identify in your cat.
CURIOUS
Curious cats are often seen exploring and getting into things around your home. Whenever anything new enters the scene, like a new chair or a new arrangement of furniture, your cat will be right there to check it out. Curious cats tend to be outgoing and don’t let fear hold them back.
This explorative spirit can be leveraged to introduce different items during training, such as stools, tunnels, and hoops, without scaring your cat. You’ll want to allow your cat to explore the items first, but they’ll generally be less hesitant to use them due to their curiosity.
IMPULSIVE
Impulsive cats act and react quickly without thinking. This can be both good and bad in a training scenario. You’ll want to achieve a level of predictability so you have a general idea of the training steps and how your cat is going to react.
An impulsive cat may throw your training plans out the window if they don’t react or progress to the next training step as you had anticipated. You may need to problem-solve if this happens. On the other hand, impulsivity can be good. Your cat may exhibit fun and unique behaviors that are more difficult to train, like air acrobatics or jumping to the top of a door.
SKITTISH
Skittish cats are excitable or easily scared. This behavior could result from a loud noise or unexpected movement. It may take more effort to build a positive relationship with a skittish cat at the start. For example, you may need to slow down your hand movements or muffle the sound of the clicker.
Skittish cats are more likely to hide or run away when something unexpected happens. For training, it’s important to give your cat a place to run to or hide where they feel safe, but not somewhere that will be difficult to coax them out of.
INDEPENDENT
Independent cats feel confident being out with you but don’t necessarily need you for anything. They most likely won’t follow you around the house or beg for your attention. This trait is great for training, since an independent cat is confident enough to be comfortable around you.
Independent cats are still motivated by food but may prefer not to get a lot of praise and physical affection. Keep this in mind when training to avoid creating an overwhelming or negative experience for them.
FRIENDLY
Friendly cats want to be around people. They show affection through head-butting, purring, and coming over to be petted. Friendly cats are easier to train than skittish cats because they want to be around people.
However, friendly cats have a tendency to come to your lap or beg for pets more often, which can make it challenging to keep them focused on the training session. This type of cat may be more motivated by praise and affection than treats.
KITTY FAQ: “HOW DO INDOOR CATS BEHAVE VERSUS OUTDOOR CATS?”
Indoor and outdoor cat behavior doesn’t vary much, but there are some environmental considerations. An outdoor cat will likely be more aware of their surroundings and on the lookout for predators. There may be more distractions outside with flying bugs, birds, cars driving by, and other elements.
Both indoor and outdoor cats should be trained where they feel safe and secure. How your cat expresses themselves during training may change, depending on how comfortable they feel. Think about this: If your cat is outside, they may rub against your legs to be friendly but may not flop onto their side to be petted due to potential vulnerability from attack in that position.
Many people think of outdoor cats as skittish and indoor cats as affectionate; however, the opposite can be true. Their behavior has more to do with their prior experiences, so consider whether they’ll feel more comfortable training inside or outside. If your cat isn’t comfortable somewhere, don’t force it. Work within their comfort level.
DOMINANT
Dominant cat behavior is important to understand, especially in multi-cat households. The dominant cat is usually the one who rubs their face on items, “claiming” them as their own, and takes toys away from the other cats. They may also act with aggression toward other cats when food is involved.
When training more than one cat, it’s important to understand which one is dominant. The dominant cat may interrupt the training sessions of your less dominant cat(s) and try to steal their rewards. You can avoid this situation by taking each cat to a separate room and training them one-on-one.
SUBMISSIVE
A submissive cat will show their submission or compliance by flattening their body to the ground and flattening their ears. In a multi-cat household, this type of cat may also be skittish.
During a training session, a submissive cat is going to keep track of the dominant cat, so they can move out of the way if the dominant cat comes around looking for something the submissive cat has, like a bed, toys, or food. You can help this underdog (or “undercat,” in this case) build up their confidence in training by taking them to a room to train one-on-one. Understandably, this cat will be able to focus better when they aren’t constantly worried about the other cats.
Cat Behavior by Age
As your cat ages, their behavior will change. Just like us, a cat’s experiences and developmental milestones will change as they transition through life. In this section, we’ll go over the main differences you’ll see as your cat ages, and how different life stages may affect training.
KITTENS
Play is a huge part of a kitten’s life and serves an important role: It keeps kittens active and allows them to practice their hunting skills before they would typically need to rely on them for survival. This desire to play emerges at around 10 weeks of age, when they start to wean.
KITTY FAQ: “WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MALE AND FEMALE CATS?”
Cats that have been spayed or neutered do not exhibit distinctly different behaviors based on gender. These male or female cats may exhibit any of the personality traits discussed previously. However, there are distinctive behavioral differences between the genders of cats that are “intact” (haven’t been spayed or neutered).
Fully mature intact male cats tend to become territorial and more aggressive when they reach sexual maturity, while intact females may be more vocal and affectionate when they are sexually mature. Cats that are intact are more difficult to train because their main focus is on mating. Spaying and neutering will give your cat a more even temperament, making training easier.
Above all, the breed and environment in which your cat is raised will most accurately determine their behavior. There’s no steadfast rule. It has more to do with how you’re raising them.
Once your kitten isn’t focused on nursing and shows a little more independence, you can begin building a positive training relationship with them. Start by teaching your cat boundaries around not attacking your hands and feet (see exercises, pages 72 and 74). Instead, redirect them to toys, scratching posts, cat trees, or other appropriate outlets.
Also, get your kitten comfortable with being handled. Take them to different rooms to help with future training. Use feather toys to entice your kitten to climb on stools and follow you around your home. Keep in mind: Feeding kittens too many treats or restricting their diet will inhibit their growth. Kittens grow quickly and need all the calories and nutrients possible. Too many treats and they can become nutrient-deficient; too little food and they won’t grow as they should. Both scenarios can cause medical problems, including stunted growth and digestive issues.
Your kitten’s personality will determine when you are able to start formally training them (or continue light training, like establishing boundaries). When starting out, I suggest teaching your kitten the first seven behaviors in chapter 4, as well as the behaviors in chapter 5 about not biting hands and feet.
ADOLESCENT CATS
Cats are considered adolescents between six months and three years old. A cat’s body is fully grown around their first year, but their mind and behavior continue to develop and mature until about age three. During this time, your cat will become even more independent and start testing the boundaries you’ve set. If you haven’t started training your cat, this is the perfect time to start.
During adolescence, your cat will be more motivated by food and have a better attention span than in the early kitten months. Consistency with training and expectations of your cat is important at this stage. Cats thrive on routine, so training consistently two or three times a day will give you and your cat something to look forward to. Now is the time to get all of the basic behaviors down from chapter 4, solve any behavioral problems you’re having (chapter 5), and move on to the fun tricks and games in chapters 6 and 7.
ADULT CATS
Your cat is an adult when they are between three and ten years old. At this age, they will be fully grown, their mischievousness will have died down, and their personality is pretty much set.
There is a common misconception that you can’t train older animals, but many adult cats will become more affectionate or outgoing after they start training regularly. It’s never too late to begin training your cat. Even if you’ve had them since they were a kitten, training can start anytime.
SENIOR CATS
Senior cats are typically age 11 and up. During this stage of life, senior cats may experience certain health issues or bodily limitations that make doing advanced tricks too difficult. An example might be training a 13-year-old cat to jump through a raised hoop. This cat may not have the muscle strength to jump as high anymore, nor the agility to land safely without injuring themselves. You can protect your cat by thinking about training from your cat’s perspective and keeping expectations reasonable.
However, your elderly cat can be taught all the practical behaviors from chapter 4 and trained to solve behavioral issues from chapter 5. It’s the tricks and trainings from chapters 6 and 7 where you’ll need to consider if your cat has any limitations that would make those lessons uncomfortable or risky for them.
CHAPTER 2
Cat Communication 101
Have you ever wondered what your cat is trying to tell you? Knowing how your cat communicates will make all the difference with training and bonding. This chapter offers an introduction to the art of cat communication, with each other and with humans. You’ll learn to decode what your cat is trying to tell you and acquire some tips so you can communicate back with them.
How Cats Communicate with You
Cats communicate in three ways: through body language, sounds, and facial expressions. By understanding what your cat is trying to tell you, you gain valuable insight into your cat’s state of mind. And by being able to decipher your cat’s behavior, you’re on your way to becoming a good trainer.
During a training session, it’s important to know if your cat is comfortable so they can properly learn the behavior you’re working on. If your cat is nervous about being near your dog or in a different environment than they’re used to, they’ll be distracted, which can result in a negative experience for both you and your cat.
BODY LANGUAGE
Body language refers to the behaviors and positioning of your cat’s body, including their back, fur, legs, and tail. Body language is an excellent indicator of their mood, and it’s one of the first you might notice while training. In this section, we’ll cover the most common postures, tail positions, and actions that cats display and what they mean.
It’s important to see the big picture when looking at the body language of your cat. Similar postures or tail positions can mean completely different things depending on the sounds and facial expressions that go along with them.
POSTURES
A cat’s posture is one of the easiest body languages to spot since it’s the most obvious. Cats will commonly reveal intense emotions like fear, happiness, or security through the position of their body. When training, you’ll want to see a neutral, attentive body posture.
Here are some other postures you may see:
Belly up: A cat lying belly-up is exposed and vulnerable. If your cat is doing this, you can be sure they feel comfortable and safe around you.
Crouched down: A crouching body position indicates fearfulness or anxiousness. Your cat is trying to make themselves appear small and is telling you to back off. This posture is often paired with sideways ears, dilated pupils, and their tail wrapped around their body.
Arched back: When you think of cats during Halloween, this is that cat. An arched back is a sign of aggression and is usually paired with a puffy tail and hissing.
READING THE TAIL
Your cat’s tail is mainly used to assist them with balance. It acts like a rudder and counterweight when they’re climbing and balancing. But your cat’s tail is also an excellent indicator of their mood. Cats can communicate confidence, fear, and even irritation through their tail. Let’s learn how:
Flagpole tail: A tail standing straight up with flat fur indicates confidence, alertness, or happiness. However, if the tail is in this position but puffy with fur sticking out, this indicates fear or aggression.
Question mark tail: A tail straight up with a curve at the end like a question mark means your cat is playful.
Tail low to ground: If your cat’s hindquarters are crouched and their tail is low to the ground, this indicates insecurity, anxiety, or pain.
Quivering tail: When your cat’s tail is straight up and quivering as if it’s vibrating, this shows excitement and happiness. But watch out! This is also an indicator your cat is about to spray urine if they’re not spayed or neutered.
Swishing tail: When the end of your cat’s tail is swishing side to side while sitting, this expresses mild irritation, or they’re hunting and playing. If their tail is thumping on the ground and the swishing is more pronounced, anger and greater irritation are at work.
Wrapping tail around human: If your cat comes over to you and wraps their tail around your leg, this is a friendly greeting.
Wrapping tail around themselves: If your cat is crouched down on all four feet and has wrapped their tail around their body, they are expressing discomfort, pain, or illness.
ACTIONS
Cats communicate with each other in much the same way they communicate with us, including behaviors like grooming, stretching, and head-butting. Many of these behaviors can be used with the trainings in part 2. For example, you’re trying to train your cat to flip something over. If they’re already digging in their litter box, you can leverage this digging behavior to have your cat press a lever that flips an object over. A cat’s inherent behaviors are great building blocks to train them to do more fun and unexpected tricks.
Stretching: A cat stretching in front of you feels safe and relaxed. They’ve let their guard down and are at ease being more vulnerable.
Head-butting: Head-butting is actually an affectionate behavior in cats. It’s also a way for your cat to put their scent on you, claiming you as “one of their own.”
Rubbing against you: Rubbing is another way your cat transfers their scent to you. It is a loving behavior which means you’re part of their group.
Licking/grooming: Cats groom themselves to keep clean, but they are also known to lick their favorite people. When your cat licks you, they’re removing other scents while depositing their own, expressing their affection.
SOUNDS
In this section, we’ll explore the most common noises cats make and the most important ones to understand for training your cat. For example, you’ll want to know when your cat is stressed, uncomfortable, upset, or afraid because trying to train them at that point may do more harm than good. You only want to train your cat when they’re comfortable and calm.
MEOW
This quintessential cat noise is the most common vocalization you’ll hear your cat make. It can mean a variety of things like trying to get your attention or wanting to draw attention to something else. Your cat could also be asking for food, wanting to play, or looking for you to pet them.
PURR
A purr sounds like a rhythmic vibration from the cat’s throat. Purring sounds are made during both happy and stressful times and convey strong emotions. Cats will often purr while being petted or cuddled, but a cat may purr when they’re extremely stressed. In stressful situations, your cat’s purr is like a defense mechanism that helps keep them calm.
HISS
A hiss is a sharp, threatening noise made when your cat’s mouth is open and teeth are bared. Hissing is a defense when your cat is scared or uncomfortable. It can sometimes escalate to a spit, where your cat exhales sharply while closing their mouth, expelling saliva. This sound is an indication that your cat wants to be left alone.
GROWL
Growling is a threatening vocalization, typically with a low, rumbling frequency. Your cat may be lying down in a defensive position to make themselves look small. This warning sound communicates that your cat feels scared or threatened and wants to be left alone. Growling can escalate to hissing, biting, or attacking.
KITTY FAQ: “WHY IS MY CAT SO CRAZY SO EARLY IN THE MORNING?”
Does it seem like your cat has endless energy early in the morning? Cats are crepuscular, which means they’re most active in the morning and evening twilight hours. This schedule evolved because midday is generally the hottest part of the day. Cats sleep 12 hours a day, so it makes the most sense to be awake to hunt when it’s cooler out and their prey is active. Cats have great eyesight in low light, improving their chances of catching prey during these times, as well.
Unfortunately, your cat at home didn’t get the memo that they don’t have to worry about hunting for prey. They instinctually want to hunt and play during this time. You may even have gotten your feet attacked while you were peacefully sleeping. To avoid this rude awakening, you may need to close them out of your bedroom when they start getting energetic. Another way to prevent them from waking you is to set an automatic feeder to dispense food during the time they’re normally zooming around. This may distract your cat enough and fill them up so they move their energetic bursts to slightly later in the day.
CHATTER
A cat’s chatter sounds like a repetitive “eh-eh-eh” noise in a high-pitched frequency, made with their mouth open. Your cat might chatter when they are staring at prey, like a tempting bird outside the window. This sound occurs when your cat can’t reach their prey. It indicates excitement or frustration.
TRILL
The trill sounds like a mix between a meow and a purr. This high-pitched, chirp-like noise is made while your cat’s mouth is closed. It’s an affectionate greeting between mother and kittens but is used as a friendly greeting for humans as well.
YOWL
A yowl is a long, drawn-out, intense, and ongoing meow sound. It’s a threatening noise your cat will loudly make as a last-ditch effort before attacking. Yowling is most often used between two cats, but it can also be used as a threat for other animals and people.
FACIAL EXPRESSIONS
Cats and humans have very different facial expressions, so it’s important not to assign human characteristics to your cat (also known as anthropomorphizing) or you may miss something important. What looks like an adorable, wide-eyed expression of apparent interest on your cat’s face could actually be your cat telling you that they’re angry.
Since most cats are covered in fur, their facial communication is mainly exhibited through their ears and eyes. We’ll explore how small changes in ear, eye, and whisker positioning can mean very different things. Although they express themselves in different ways, cats can still convey excitement, fear, irritation, contentment, trust, and more.
EYES
Cats have excellent night vision, making the colors they’re able to see limited and more muted. They are also more nearsighted than typical humans, which means that an object we might see clearly at 100 feet away would appear blurry to your cat. When training, you’ll want your cat to have their eyes wide open.
Let’s look at some common meanings behind your cat’s eye movements:
Narrow pupils: Narrow or slit pupils may indicate arousal by fear, excitement, pleasure, or anger. The size of your cat’s pupils will help determine which. Narrow pupils alone can mean excitement when playing with a toy or using catnip. If your cat’s ears are back along with narrow pupils, this shows fear.
Dilated pupils: Wide or dilated pupils can mean both fear and excitement, depending on what other signals they’re giving. Wide pupils at the vet is likely fear, but the same pupils while playing indicate excitement.
Eyes half-closed: Squinted eyes can signify trust and love, but it can also indicate aggression or discomfort. Look to body language for clues: If your cat is lying down hunched over, their squinted eyes will indicate aggression or perhaps illness. A cat in a relaxed position whose eyes are squinted while you’re petting them is exhibiting contentment and trust.
Eyes wide open: A cat whose eyes are open wide shows trust. If your cat’s eyes are wide in an unblinking intense stare, however, that’s an expression of aggression and intimidation.
Slow blink: A slow blink is another sign of trust. If you slow blink at your cat, you’re letting them know you’re not a threat. If your cat does this to you, they’re letting you know they trust you.
Avoiding eye contact: In natural cat behavior, direct eye contact from one cat to another is seen as assertive and intimidating. If your cat is avoiding direct eye contact, it likely makes them uncomfortable.
EARS
Cats can hear a far wider range of sound frequencies than humans. Their ears are shaped like small satellite antennas, which are helpful to funnel sound. Unlike humans, cats can turn their ears from side to side, allowing them to acutely determine the direction of the sound, which aids in hunting prey. Cat ears are important communication tools, and how they are positioned can indicate a variety of different things. When training, you’ll want your cat to have perked ears.
What are your cat’s ears trying to tell you?
Perked ears: Upright, forward-facing ears indicate alertness or interest in something. These are also your cat’s neutral ear state when they’re happy.
Ears flattened back: This means your cat is anxious, nervous, or scared.
Sideways ears: Also known as “airplane ears,” this indicates your cat is annoyed, angry, or aggressive. This positioning allows your cat to still hear and be alert while also showing their displeasure.
Twitchy ears: Ears that swivel around express attentiveness, and they’re also trying to pick up every bit of sound. This is a handy cat maneuver while hunting or keeping a lookout for danger.
WHISKERS
Whiskers are your cat’s sensory equipment. Whisker follicles are three times deeper than regular fur follicles, and they connect to the cat’s nervous system. Since cats are nearsighted, whiskers help your cat “see” items up close by sensing even the slightest movement. Their whiskers also help them detect the tiniest changes in air temperature, pressure, and wind. This aids them in navigating their environment at night. And guess what? Cats have 24 whiskers on their muzzle (nose), but they also have numerous other smaller ones on their ears, legs, jaw, and above their eyes.
Whiskers are also used as a form of communication. When training, you’ll want your cat to have relaxed whiskers.
Let’s translate what your cat’s whisker position means:
Relaxed whiskers: The default position of your cat’s whiskers is straight out to the sides. This cat is happy and content.
Pulled back: When your cat’s whiskers are back against their face, it means they’re afraid or stressed.
Pulled forward: Forward-facing whiskers are used when hunting. Cats can sense the slightest change in airflow caused by movement of their prey.
How You Communicate with Your Cat
Do you ever talk to your cat? Although cats can’t understand every word coming out of your mouth, they can be trained to understand certain words, tone, and body language. Even if you repeat the same word (such as your cat’s name), your cat will react differently depending on whether you say it happily or sternly. The goal of positive reinforcement training is to keep our communication positive, so they have the best experience possible. For best success when training, here are some helpful “Dos” and “Don’ts” for communicating with your feline friend.
DOs
To positively communicate with your cat:
Be a good “listener.” We’ve explored the various ways cats communicate (here). Use this information to put your “listening” skills into action.
Use the same words. When training a behavior, you’ll use a word or hand signal as the cue for that behavior. Using multiple words or hand gestures for the same cue can be confusing to your cat. For example, if you want to teach your cat to high-five, say “high five” consistently instead of sometimes asking for a “fist bump” or a “boop.”
Be consistent. Commit to training at least once a day. If there is too much time between training sessions, your cat may forget the lesson, or they may not pick things up as quickly. Consistency is important during the training session as well. If you’ve trained your cat to stay on their mat, make sure you don’t start accepting looser criteria for that behavior over time.
Stay calm. Training your cat should be fun! If your cat is struggling with training, consider what really might be going on. If you were huffing, saying “no,” or showing agitation, they will pick up on that. Your calm demeanor will help prevent your cat from getting stressed.
Keep your body language neutral. Even though cat body language differs from humans’ (here), your cat already knows what you look like when you’re angry or irritated. Sit or stand calmly when training your cat, instead of, for instance, with your arms crossed or hands in your pockets.
DON’Ts
Avoid these communication tactics with your cat, as they may make your cat afraid of you and unwilling to participate in training:
Don’t yell. Loud noises can frighten cats. If your cat isn’t doing what you want them to do, yelling is not the answer. Yelling is considered aggressive, and your cat will probably run and hide.
Don’t greet them aggressively. Pet names or nicknames are fine, but calling your cat something mean (even if meant affectionately) isn’t a helpful way to communicate. These names actually reinforce the limiting belief the trainer has of the cat.
Don’t threaten your cat. Clapping your hands at your cat, hissing at them, or making threatening motions will make your cat fear you. You want your cat to be comfortable coming close to you and to trust you during training. These gestures hinder that.
Don’t punish your cat. Punishing a cat is never okay, nor is it helpful. This includes spraying them with water or rubbing their nose into a mess they made. Positive reinforcement training is about rewarding good behavior and setting your cat up for success.
Don’t say “no.” Have you ever tried saying “no” in a neutral tone? It’s difficult and usually comes across as harsh. Instead of saying “no” in training sessions, ignore the unwanted behavior and reward the behavior you are trying to teach them. Alternately, ask your cat to do a different behavior that can be rewarded. If your cat is scratching furniture, pick them up and place them on the scratcher instead. Anytime you see your cat using the scratcher, give them praise.
KITTY FAQ: “DOES MY CAT KNOW THEIR NAME?”
If you’ve been using the same name when referring to your cat, they probably know their name by now. But that doesn’t mean they’re always going to respond to it. Even if a cat knows their name, they’re less likely to react when it’s spoken by someone they don’t like or know well.
People who have punished their cats, or have not interacted with them much, are more likely to have cats that won’t respond to their name. That’s why positive reinforcement training is so great. Your cat will begin to associate you with delicious food and fun training. Once you’re training consistently, your cat will start getting excited when you mention their name. (More on this in chapter 4.)
CHAPTER 3
The Fundamentals of Clicker Training
In this chapter, we’ll walk through everything you need to know about clicker training your cat, including how clicker training works, its benefits, and what you need to get started. You’ll be a whiz in no time!
The Clicker and the Cat
Clicker training a cat is very similar to training a dog. But, unlike dogs, cats usually don’t follow you around the house, loyally waiting for you to interact with them. Cats are more independent, so the way you train them should be adjusted to suit their personality.
With positive reinforcement training, it’s not about dominance, giving orders, or making your cat comply. Think about training as more of a conversation, where you’re communicating directly with your cat and building a relationship. With clicker training, you’re “clicking” for the desired behavior and rewarding your cat with treats or small bits of food.
Clicker training is based on operant conditioning work, which provides rewards in order to increase desired behaviors and punishment to decrease negative behaviors. From there, clicker training was built around an area of science called positive reinforcement, which actively avoids punishing the animal and instead rewards good behavior. Positive reinforcement training was found to be an effective way to train marine mammals because dolphins would simply swim away if they thought they would be punished. By removing fear of punishment, the animals willingly came over to participate and ended up learning much faster.
Clicker training provides clear communication for your cat as to what behaviors you want to see. A “click” on its own is meaningless, but with training, your cat will begin to understand that a click means they did what you wanted and will now get a reward. As you follow the training exercises in part 2, you’ll go through the individual steps for teaching each behavior. By keeping the steps small, you can progress to more complex behaviors without it overwhelming you or your cat.
As the trainer, you may need to make slight adjustments based on your cat’s unique personality and how they respond. For example, getting your cat to jump over a broomstick isn’t going to begin with the broomstick in the air. You’ll place it on the ground and work on getting your cat to walk over it first. Then you’ll raise the broomstick inch by inch as your cat builds more confidence climbing over it. As the broomstick continues to rise, eventually your cat will have to jump over it. Then, this behavior will be paired with a verbal cue or hand signal. Once your cat performs the behavior on cue consistently, your cat has completed learning the behavior.
KITTY FAQ: “WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CUED AND UNCUED BEHAVIORS?”
Throughout the trainings in part 2, there are some behaviors your cat will be trained to do on cue and others where no cue will be necessary. A cued behavior is one where you give the command and the behavior is performed, like “sit.” Uncued behaviors include behaviors that get your cat comfortable with their surroundings, like coaxing your cat from under the bed.
In both instances, you’ll use a clicker to teach the steps for each behavior. The difference lies in the end goal. For instance, the end goal for a cued behavior like “sit” is your cat sitting when you ask them to. When training your cat to come out from under the bed, the end goal is for your cat to not fear you and to be more comfortable in that room. You’re simply working with your cat to rid them of their fear. Therefore, this skill doesn’t require any command or cue.
However, training isn’t completely linear. If your cat jumps over the broomstick one day but won’t the next, don’t worry. Move back a step and lower the broomstick again to build back your cat’s confidence. It’s always okay to review the basics or go back a step or two to refresh your cat’s memory.
You may also discover your cat requires a different approach to training. If your cat is afraid of the broomstick or spooks themselves after accidentally knocking it over, you may have to go back and get your cat used to it again. This is all normal in training. A good trainer will read their cat’s behavior and train at a comfortable pace for the cat.
THE BENEFITS OF CLICKER TRAINING
While there are a lot of benefits of clicker training, it does have its challenges. If your pet isn’t driven by food, you’ll need to find a different reward, perhaps toys or praise. Also, it takes some practice to get the clicker timing right, so you don’t click for the wrong behaviors. We’ll work on practicing using your clicker ahead of time.
Now let’s jump into the many benefits of clicker training.
IT’S EASY FOR BEGINNERS
Clicker training is easy for beginners to learn; in fact, the entire family can learn it together. This can be especially helpful when you’re trying to teach a cat to change an unwanted behavior, such as biting hands. When everyone’s on board, the cat receives a consistent message. And all you need to get started is a clicking device, some treats, and, of course, a cat.
IT PRECISELY IDENTIFIES DESIRABLE BEHAVIORS
When you click the clicker, it’s like you’re taking a snapshot in time. Ideally, at the exact moment you sound the click, the desired behavior is performed. This precision is excellent for a fast-moving cat. You can use a clicker to capture a unique behavior that would otherwise be difficult to train. When done right, your cat has a clear message about what you’re asking them to do more of. This is particularly useful in training because you can more easily isolate parts of a complex behavior.
IT HELPS THE CAT FEEL IN CONTROL
Clicker training won’t work if your cat doesn’t want to participate. Cats are inherently independent, so training may take a little more coaxing for some cats. Training is a two-way street, and you need your cat to be on board. Unlike correction-based methods (or punishment-based training), with clicker training, your cat is choosing to perform the behavior you’re asking them to. If they don’t feel like training one day or doing a certain behavior, they don’t have to. No one will force them to train, which gives your cat more of the autonomy they desire.
IT FORTIFIES THE BOND BETWEEN CAT AND OWNER
Clicker training should be a positive process between you and your cat. Think of each training session like a one-on-one meeting with your cat—it should be fun. During the session, you’re giving your cat treats and praise, which strengthens your bond and makes them want to be around you.
As your bond grows and your cat begins to trust you, you’re likely to see your cat interact with you more outside of training sessions. They will be more friendly and well-behaved overall. Even timid cats gain confidence after they’ve started training.
And training doesn’t always have to be purposeful. It can just be for fun. I once trained a black bear to ring a hanging cowbell. Whenever I said “We need more cowbell,” she’d ring the bell (throwback to the Will Ferrell SNL skit).
IT SAVES TIME AND ENERGY
Clicker training doesn’t require long training sessions. You can have a well-trained cat in as little as 15 minutes a day. In fact, short, positive training sessions keep your cat interested and wanting more. It’s even better if you can do multiple 3-minute sessions rather than one long 10-minute session. The shorter, the better.
You can train in short bursts when it’s convenient for you and when your cat is hungry. Even if you’re short on time, most people can find two minutes to train right before feeding their cat their normal meals.
KITTY FAQ: “HOW DO I USE THE CLICKER IN A MULTI-CAT HOUSEHOLD?”
Training in a multi-cat household is possible, but it’s more complicated. (We’ll walk through a more in-depth training for multiple cats at once.)
If you have multiple cats at home, I recommend training each cat individually, beginning with the first seven skills in chapter 4. This will give each cat the foundational knowledge and behaviors they’ll need to have a successful multi-cat training session. This is especially important if you are new to training.
Find an area that your other cats can’t get to, a place where the cat you’re training feels comfortable, like a bedroom with the door closed. Alternatively, you can put the other cats away in another room with toys to occupy themselves.
When you transition to multi-cat sessions, if you have three or more cats, start out by training only two cats at once. During each session, you can switch which cats are paired together, but it takes a talented and experienced trainer to train three or more animals at the same time. Even after you graduate to multi-cat sessions, I still recommend individual sessions when training a new behavior with your cat so you avoid distractions and can give them your full attention.
Getting Started
It takes just a few items to get started with clicker training. The basics include a clicker and treats. It’s also helpful to have a retractable target wand for pointing, but you can use anything as a target stick provided that it’s unique and only used during training. Check out the Resources section for recommendations on the best training supplies and where to buy them.
THE CLICKER
A training clicker is a small device that fits in the palm of your hand. It has a button that, when pressed, makes a consistent “click” sound. Most pet stores carry clickers in the dog training section. Any clicker will do, as they are relatively the same for each species.
Clickers come in various shapes and sizes, so find one that fits best in your hand. I recommend one with a wrist lanyard attachment, which will prevent you from dropping it during a session.
Once you have a clicker, it should only be used during training and not as a noisemaker at any other time, so your cat doesn’t confuse its meaning.
THE TREATS
This is your cat’s favorite part! Clicker training requires a reward that your cat is excited about. For young kittens, their reward can be their regular food, since they have special nutrition requirements. But as your cat gets older, they may not be as excited about their normal food, so treats make a better reward, especially when starting out.
When choosing a training treat, here are a few things to consider:
For a short 3- to 5-minute training session, you’ll need an average of 15 to 20 treats. It’s recommended that treats make up no more than 10 percent of your cat’s daily calories. If you plan on training multiple times a day, I encourage using a sample-size bag of cat food as treats, so your cat is getting nutritionally complete food, but it’s still unique enough flavor-wise that they’re willing to work for it. Finally, to ensure you aren’t overfeeding your cat, subtract what you give your cat during training from their overall daily food amount.
EVERYTHING ELSE
A clicker and treats are all you really need to get started; however, a few other useful items will help with training as you progress through the book:
Clicker Practice
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Before you introduce clicker training, it’s necessary to practice using the clicker. And after just a few sessions, you’ll see your clicking accuracy improve.
Animals are unpredictable, so you’ll want to be observant and ready for anything. Practicing with a clicker allows you to get the precise timing down. If you’ve never used a clicker before, you may not be used to how it feels in your hand. You will also have to coordinate the actions of paying close attention to your cat and having your hand click the clicker at the exact right moment.
DURATION 5 minutes for three sessions, or until or your clicking is precise
MATERIALS
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1. Turn on a game of basketball.
2. With the clicker in your dominant hand, every time the basketball touches the court floor, click the clicker.
3. Follow the pace of the game as it changes, clicking more quickly to keep up during intense activity, and work to sync your click with the bouncing of the ball.
4. Continue practicing your clicking until you’re able to click as soon as the basketball touches the court floor, without any lag.
PRO TIP
If you don’t have a clicker handy, clicking with your tongue can be used in a pinch. It’s less precise than a mechanical clicker but works for those times when you don’t have a clicker nearby.
Once you feel confident with your skills, you can move on to your first training session with your cat on the next page!
Your First Clicker Training Session: Charging Up the Clicker
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The purpose of this exercise is to pair the sound the clicker makes with a reward. This is referred to as “charging up the clicker,” because you’re taking a meaningless noise and giving it meaning to your cat. To make sure your cat understands, wait at least two hours and then repeat this session before moving on to train actual behaviors.
This exercise should only need to be done twice. Most cats understand after about five or six clicks, but you can keep going until you use 10 to 15 treats.
DURATION 3 minutes for two sessions, or until your cat masters step 6
MATERIALS
1. Find a room where your cat feels most comfortable and won’t be distracted.
2. Sit on the ground with your training treats in a container that your cat can’t get into.
3. Hold the clicker in your preferred hand and press the button once.
4. Immediately toss a treat to your cat regardless of whether they are looking at you.
5. Once your cat has finished eating, repeat the process of clicking and treating a few times.
6. Sound pairing is complete when your cat looks at you with excitement after they hear the click.
PRO TIP
If your cat is afraid of the clicker sound, try muffling it by wrapping it in a washcloth or clicking while it’s in your pocket. Try out different brands of clickers and see what works best for your cat. If your cat is afraid of all clicking noises, see the Resources section for a link to an adjustable training whistle that will make the sound softer. You’d blow it in a quick, short burst, just like the clicker.
Clicker Training in 15 Minutes a Day
Now that you’ve practiced using the clicker, it’s time to start training your cat skills and tricks! As a reminder, start with the first seven skills in chapter 4 to build a strong foundation with your cat. Many of those behaviors are used in training more advanced or complex tricks. My advice is to start slow, keep it fun, and go at the pace of your cat. Some cats need more time in the beginning to get the hang of this new experience.
I’ve found that having a few short training sessions produces much better outcomes than one long session. The 15 minutes a day this book recommends can be broken up into whatever fits your schedule. You might consider three 5-minute sessions, or even five 3-minute sessions. Just keep the first few sessions to 5 minutes or less.
There really is no minimum length of time that a training session needs to be. If your cat is skittish or doesn’t seem interested in training at first, each session could be one “click and treat” broken down into 10 mini sessions throughout the day.
FAMILIAR HURDLES
You may encounter some hurdles when training your cat, but don’t worry—there are ways around them.
Some of the more common hurdles that cat owners face during training are forgetting where they left off in the last session and not having a plan before starting training. This is why I recommend keeping a training log for each cat. The table on the following page is an example of a simple training log you can fill out after each session. You’ll also find a link to a printable training planner in the Resources section).
You can keep track of your training sessions in a notebook or a computer doc, whatever your preference. You’ll want to keep track of:
In addition to keeping you organized, this log can serve as an insight into the patterns and behaviors of your cat, as you may find some cats do better with certain behaviors or during different times of the day.
| DATE | TIME/LENGTH | BEHAVIORS PRACTICED | NOTES |
| Monday, 11/1 | 8:30 a.m.
3 minutes | Sit, target | Coco touched her nose to the target today. Started adding in hand cue for “sit.” |
| Monday, 11/1 | 12 p.m.
5 minutes | Sit, target | Coco is now touching her nose to the target whenever it’s presented. Hand cue successfully paired with “sit.” |
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Another hurdle many trainers face is pushing too hard or fast in a session. It’s better to end on a good note rather than try to get your cat to repeat a behavior. If, at the beginning of a session, your cat doesn’t seem interested, it’s okay to practice one or two easy behaviors and then end the session. Try again later when both of you are refreshed.
CLICKER COMMANDMENTS
Okay, you’ve got the clicker and you’ve practiced using it. But for success during actual training, you’ll want to keep the following “commandments” in mind:
Be consistent. Repetition makes a behavior progress and then stick. Commit to at least one training session with your cat every day.
Ensure the treats are rewarding. Sometimes a cat’s lack of progress in training can be as simple as they didn’t think the reward was worth doing what you asked of them. Their excitement about the training treat will help them learn the behavior. Test different types of treats to find one that your cat really loves.
Go at your cat’s pace. It can be tempting to try to push your cat to the next step, but it can backfire if they aren’t ready. Instead, take small incremental steps, so your cat feels comfortable and confident.
Keep your relationship positive. Anyone who occasionally punishes their cat will have to let go of this habit for clicker training to work, even outside of training sessions. Daily interactions influence the cat-owner relationship. If they run away from you outside of a training session because you squirt them with a spray bottle, they surely won’t want to come over to you for training. Your entire relationship with your cat matters and will influence your training success.
PART 2
Time to Train
You now have the exciting opportunity to put into practice everything you’ve learned from part 1. Soon, you’ll be able to clicker train your way through the steps of each behavior. The exercises in the coming chapters are arranged from easiest to the most difficult, except for chapter 5, which covers specific behavioral problems that don’t necessarily apply to every cat. Ready to get started? Let’s go!
CHAPTER 4
Practical Skills
This chapter will cover a series of practical skills that serve as a starting point for training. The first seven are the most important: targeting, name recognition, stationing on a mat, lie down, sit, come, and stay. I recommend teaching these skills to your cat in the order they are presented in this chapter for best success. They will all come in handy, especially in chapters 6 and 7.
Targeting
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Teaching your cat to “target,” or touch their nose to a target stick, is an important first lesson, as you’ll see this trick mentioned throughout the book. Anything can be used as a target stick. Just make sure it’s something you only use during training. Retractable click sticks or a stick with a small ball at the end are good options, but something like a ruler or a spatula could work, too.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Bring your cat into a room where they feel comfortable and won’t be distracted.
2. Hold the end of the target stick in front of you, at your cat’s eye level. Wait for them to come explore the stick. Once their nose touches the end, click and then immediately reward them with a treat.
3. If your cat doesn’t come over to sniff the stick, gently move the target closer to their face. When your cat sniffs the target and touches their nose to it, click and then treat.
4. Continue holding the target at your cat’s eye level. Slowly move the stick an inch in any direction. Click and treat when your cat touches their nose to the target.
5. Slowly increase the distance between your cat and the target. The behavior is considered trained when your cat follows you and touches their nose to the target whenever it is presented.
PRO TIP
If your cat isn’t touching their nose to the target, rub a treat on the end so the smell will be on the target. Your cat will likely come over to sniff it and touch their nose to it.
Name Recognition
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The goal of this skill is to have your cat look at you attentively when you say their name. This response is useful in training sessions if your cat is distracted and you need them to refocus their attention back to you.
DURATION 5 minutes, two or three times a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Sit with your cat in a room free of distractions.
2. When your cat is looking at you attentively, click and then immediately reward them with a treat.
3. If your cat isn’t looking at you, wait until they do, then click and treat.
4. If they’re still looking at you attentively, say your cat’s name, then click and treat. Repeat this step four or five times.
5. Now, wait until your cat looks away and then say their name. Once they look at you, click and treat. Repeat this step until your cat looks at you every time you say their name.
PRO TIP
If your cat doesn’t look away from you during step 5, try introducing a distraction to get them to glance away. For example, you could toss an article of clothing in another direction or throw a pillow toward a corner to distract them.
Station Your Cat on a Mat
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This skill teaches your cat to walk to a specific location when asked, and to stay there and wait patiently for the next command. This is useful, for instance, if your cat tends to dart outside whenever you open the door, as you’ll be able to direct them to their mat instead. Placing your cat’s mat in various locations and having them “station,” or move to the various spots, is good physical exercise for them, as well.
Stationing is also useful for training multiple cats at once, as each cat will stay on their mat to avoid interrupting each other’s training. You can use differently shaped felt pieces for multiple cats—I trained a cheetah to recognize a triangle as “his shape,” and he learned to ignore all other shapes and seek out the triangle!
DURATION 5 minutes, two or three times a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place your cat’s mat in a room free of distractions.
2. Use the target stick to position your cat on the mat. Click and reward them with a treat.
3. Tuck the stick away. All four of your cat’s feet should still remain on the mat. If they do, click and treat.
4. If your cat climbs off the mat, use the stick to coax them back. Click and treat when they are completely back on the mat (including legs and feet).
5. Tuck the stick away. All four of your cat’s feet should remain on the mat. If your cat is able to stay on the mat, continue to click and treat three or four more times to reinforce the behavior.
6. While your cat is on the mat, begin to add a consistent verbal cue, like “station,” “mat,” or “bed.” Click and treat. Only add the verbal cue once your cat has shown they can consistently station all feet on the mat. Continue with this verbal cue, click, and treat three or four times.
7. Use the target stick to move your cat off the mat. If they comply, click and treat.
8. Use the stick to coax your cat back onto the mat, click, and treat. Add the verbal cue again while your cat’s feet are on the mat. Click and treat.
9. To test whether your cat understands the verbal cue, say the verbal cue to station when they are off the mat. If they position themselves with all four feet on the mat, click and treat. The first time they do this, give them a “jackpot” (see Pro Tip) and end the session.
10. As your cat gains confidence in this skill, start moving their mat to a different location each session.
PRO TIP
A jackpot is a special reward, like a handful of treats or a piece of unsalted roasted chicken. A jackpot should be memorable to your cat (and used sparingly).
Lie Down
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The goal of this lesson is to get your cat to lie down in a relaxed position with their belly touching the ground. This is a good behavior for times when you want your cat to settle in their bed instead of coming over when you’re cooking or entertaining guests, or if your cat is overly excited about something. It’s also a behavior your cat will need to know when training the roll-over skill in chapter 7 (here).
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. In a room free of distractions, have a treat in your hand and place it under your palm on the ground without letting your cat get it.
2. As your cat tries to obtain the treat, they will likely lie down in the process. When they do, click and then reward them with the treat.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 three or four times.
4. Now, repeat steps 1 and 2, but without the treat, and with your hand flat on the ground. Click and treat each time your cat successfully lies down.
5. It’s time to add a verbal cue. With your hand flat on the ground, say “down” right before your cat lies down. Click and treat. Repeat this step five to eight times.
6. Ask your cat to lie down with the hand and verbal cues before they’ve started lying down. Click and treat when they do.
PRO TIP
Give your cat a jackpot (see Pro Tip) the first time they lie down on cue by themselves to help cement this behavior.
Sit
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Sure, cats sit when they feel like it, but with this exercise, your cat will do it on cue. This behavior is essential for getting your cat to stay in one location, or when you’re training more than one cat at a time.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Find a comfortable room that is free of distractions.
2. If your cat knows other behaviors well, like targeting, ask them to perform two behaviors they know first to get the session started. As they comply, click and reward your cat with a treat to create positive momentum.
3. Next, stay still in front of your cat to see if they’ll sit on their own. If your cat sits, click and treat.
4. If your cat doesn’t sit on their own after a few seconds, hold a treat in your hand and slowly raise it directly above your cat’s head. Your cat’s head will follow your treat hand and they will likely sit in the process. Once your cat sits, click and treat.
5. Now, add the verbal cue “sit.” If your cat sits on their own without prompting, say “sit” before they actually sit down. Click and treat. Repeat the process until your cat sits when given the verbal cue.
6. If your cat needs prompting, say the word “sit” and then raise your treat hand over the cat’s head until they sit. Click and treat.
7. Slowly phase out the use of the treat while limiting the hand motion, until your cat will sit to the verbal cue alone.
PRO TIP
You can also capture your cat sitting by watching them throughout the day. Keep a clicker and treats on you. When your cat sits, click and treat. Then continue with step 5.
Come Here
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This skill is helpful in getting your cat to come to you from wherever they are in your home. It can be useful when you aren’t sure where your cat is but want them to come over, or more importantly, during an emergency.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Find a room free of distractions.
2. When your cat comes over to you, give them lots of verbal praise and then click and reward them with a treat. You want your cat to associate coming to you with praise and positivity.
3. Slowly increase the distance your cat needs to walk to come to you. Start with only a few feet at first. If your cat is comfortable, try having someone else pick your cat up and take them to the other side of the room. Have them release your cat when you say the word “come.” Click and treat when they come back to you.
4. Eventually, your cat should come when you ask, even when they cannot see you or they’re in another room. Click and treat each time. To strengthen the behavior, you can also incorporate household noises like a blender or pots and pans when asking your cat to come. The more distractions you introduce and the farther your cat has to travel to reach you, the larger the reward should be to make it worthwhile.
PRO TIP
Don’t use your cat’s name to get them to come over. You’re likely to use your cat’s name in the course of everyday life, so this can confuse them. The “come” recall cue needs to be strong so it can be used in a safety situation. A cue will become background noise to your cat if you use it frequently without rewarding each time.
Stay
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Before training this behavior, your cat will need to know how to station on a mat (here), lie down, and sit. Start by building up the length of time your cat remains in one spot (whether sitting, lying down, etc.), and increase your distance from them while asking them to stay. This skill is useful when you want your cat to stay out of the room while you’re doing something.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. In a room free of distractions, ask your cat to either sit, lie down, or station on their mat.
2. Hold your hand out in front of you with your palm forward, as if you are saying “stop,” and say “stay.” Hold your hand there for a few seconds. Then click and reward them with a treat.
3. Repeat this step three to five times, gradually increasing the amount of time before treating.
4. Once your cat is comfortable staying for a few seconds, back up a bit. Give your cat the cue to stay, and then move back a few inches. Then return to the original starting point. Click and treat.
5. If your cat moved from their position, use a treat or target stick to lure them back and try again using smaller movements.
6. Continue, increasing the distance each time. Make sure to slowly add in different body movements and distractions like tossing toys. These variations will make it tempting for your cat to leave their spot, so it tests whether they understand this behavior.
PRO TIP
This may be difficult for your cat to learn because they want to engage with you and play. Take each step slowly and expect to have to go back and repeat earlier steps.
Wearing a Kitty Harness
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Going for a walk with your cat? You’ll be the talk of your neighborhood! Wearing a harness is the first step in getting your cat to walk on a leash so they feel completely comfortable in the harness. To keep kitty safe, choose an escape-proof walking jacket or harness made specifically for cats.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the harness on the ground in front of you. Whenever your cat positively interacts with the harness, click and reward them with a treat.
2. Hold the harness up and open it. Use the target stick to get your cat to stick their head halfway into the harness. Click and treat.
3. Continue working on getting your cat’s head into the harness until they feel comfortable with their head all the way through. Click and treat each time.
4. Next, work on slowly bringing the harness between your cat’s legs and buckle it over their back. Click and treat. Go very slowly here so your cat isn’t afraid.
5. Once the harness is completely on and buckled, use the target stick to coax your cat to move around, getting them used to moving in the harness. Click and treat.
6. Work up to slowly tightening and adjusting the harness to fit, making sure to click and treat throughout the process.
7. Slowly build up the time your cat wears the harness. Focus on rewarding your cat whenever they’re in the harness.
PRO TIP
Each cat harness is different, so you may need to adjust the training to work for your particular harness. The Resources section includes information about choosing the right harness for your cat.
Cats Can Leash Walk, Too
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Getting your cat to walk on a leash is helpful for bringing them to another location. Cats should not be walked from a neck collar, as it puts too much strain on their neck and they can easily escape. First, get your cat fully comfortable wearing a harness (here).
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the leash on the ground for your cat to explore. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interactions with the leash. Then, put on their harness. Use the target stick to coax them into walking around; click and treat for walking without the leash attached.
2. If your cat isn’t comfortable with the leash, slowly move it around while clicking and treating, until they’re comfortable.
3. Once your cat is walking around with their harness, clip the leash to the harness and then immediately unclip it. Click and treat.
4. Next, clip the leash and leave it dangling for a few seconds before unclipping it. Click and treat.
5. Slowly build up the time the leash is clipped and dangling on the floor while your cat moves around.
6. Continue steps 3 to 5 until you can gently hold the leash.
7. While holding the leash, use the target stick to get your cat to take a few steps forward. Click and treat.
8. Slowly continue until your cat is comfortable walking around your home on a leash.
PRO TIP
Retractable leashes can break easily, and chain leashes are too heavy. Check out the Resources section for helpful information on choosing cat leashes.
Brushing Your Cat
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Brushing your cat is especially important for long-haired breeds, otherwise their fur can become a tangled mess. Younger cats typically do a good job self-grooming, but older cats may need some help as they become less flexible and can’t reach everywhere.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the cat brush on the floor in front of you. Click and reward your cat with a treat for any positive interaction they have with the brush.
2. Hold the brush up to your cat’s head level. If they rub their face on the brush, click and treat. Face rubbing means they are claiming it as their own and putting their scent on the brush.
3. Once your cat is comfortable with the brush, slowly move the brush toward their body. Click and treat. Gently start brushing your cat’s head and neck since those are the least sensitive areas.
4. Work up to making small strokes with the brush on your cat. Click and treat with each brush.
5. Keep brushing in small movements to get your cat used to the feeling. Build up to larger movements before moving to another part of your cat’s body.
6. As your cat gets used to each area being brushed, you can move on to the next area. Some cats are more sensitive to brushing than others, so use less pressure starting out.
PRO TIP
Each cat will have a brush they prefer, so it’s helpful to have a few styles to test out. For help picking out a brush, see the Resources section.
Kitty Pedicure
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Clipping your cat’s nails helps cut down on destructive scratching and snagging on things. Each nail has an area of blood vessels and nerves called a quick that you don’t want to cut into, as it will be painful and bleed (see Pro Tip). It looks like a dark line in the middle of your cat’s nail.
DURATION 5 minutes, once a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. First, get your cat used to you touching their feet and moving their toes around. Choose one foot. Click as you gently touch your cat’s foot and give them a treat. Keep the nail clippers visible.
2. Work up to touching your cat’s foot longer, picking it up, gently squeezing it, and moving their toes around. Click and treat for each small movement.
3. Once your cat is used to one foot being handled, do the same for the remaining feet.
4. Once they’re comfortable with all feet being touched, slowly pick up the clippers and put them down. Move the clippers closer to your cat’s foot. Click and treat each time they don’t react.
5. Work up to touching the clippers to your cat’s foot to touching a nail, all while clicking and treating.
6. Finally, clip the tiniest bit of nail off one toe. Click and treat.
7. Continue clipping tiny bits off your cat’s nails while rewarding them. At first, you may only cut a few millimeters from one nail. Repeat this training once a day.
PRO TIP
If you cut the quick, don’t beat yourself up. Just apply a glob of cornstarch and pressure to the area until bleeding has stopped.
Sparkling White Kitty Teeth
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Brushing your cat’s teeth daily is great for maintaining their health, cutting down on expensive dental procedures, and preventing other health and mouth issues for your cat. It’s important to only use cat-safe toothpaste and not those intended for humans, as many sweeteners found in them are not safe for pets.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Put a small dab of kitty toothpaste on the toothbrush bristles.
2. Hold the toothbrush out in your hand with the bristles facing toward your cat. Click and give them a treat for every positive interaction they have, including sniffing, licking, and rubbing their face on it.
3. Once your cat is comfortably licking the toothbrush, gently lift your cat’s upper lips and rub the toothbrush on the outer surface of their teeth by their gums. Click and treat. Repeat this until they’re comfortable.
4. If your cat doesn’t like their lips being moved, click and treat each time they let you move them and slowly increase the length of time spent moving them before you try to brush their teeth.
5. The goal is to be able to gently brush the exterior of your cat’s teeth by their gums on both sides of their mouth, top, and bottom. Click and treat as you slowly work up to different parts of their mouth.
PRO TIP
You don’t need to brush the interior of your cat’s mouth since their tongue helps prevent plaque buildup there. Most cats don’t like their mouths being opened wide, either.
Squeaky Clean Ears
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Cats are great at cleaning their own ears, but kittens or older cats may need a little extra help. Speak with your vet before starting an ear-cleaning regimen to rule out any possible infection or a ruptured eardrum, and learn how often you should clean your cat’s ears.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. For the entire training process, you’ll use a capped solution bottle. Place the capped solution bottle and cotton balls on the ground and let your cat investigate them. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interaction they have with the bottle or cotton balls.
2. Leaving the bottle on the ground, get your cat used to ear touching. Gently touch their ear flap, then click and treat.
3. Slightly pull the ear flap back so the ear area is more exposed. Click and treat. Make sure you aren’t folding their ear flap back because most cats find this uncomfortable.
4. While their ear is being held, bring the capped solution bottle to the opening of their ear. Don’t put the tip inside your cat’s ear, as that could damage their eardrum. Click and treat.
5. Gently rub the base of your cat’s ear like you would if solution had been applied. Click and treat.
6. Finally, hold up a cotton ball and touch it to the base of your cat’s ear. Click and treat.
PRO TIP
It’s easiest to apply ear solution when your cat is somewhat restrained. You can do this when your cat is snuggled in your lap to make it easier to hold them while cleaning their ears. You want them to feel comfortable throughout the training and not associate your lap with being a scary place.
Making Eye Drops Less Scary
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Some cats may need eye drops for bacterial infections, cataracts, or other issues. However, this behavior is helpful to train before your cat is prescribed eye drops. This way, if your cat ever needs eye drops, this behavior will already be trained and there will be less stress for you and your cat.
You’ll begin training with the eye-drop bottle closed and only work up to the actual eye drops when your cat needs them. You can also ask your veterinarian if they have any non-medicated eye drops that are safe to practice with.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Get your cat to sit comfortably in front of you. Have the eye-drop bottle on the floor in front of you with the cap on. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interaction they have with the bottle.
2. Lift up the bottle and place it back down on the floor. Click and treat. Repeat this a few times until your cat is comfortable with the bottle moving around.
3. Lift the bottle and move it slowly toward your cat. Click and treat. Slowly move the bottle toward your cat’s head and eyes while clicking and treating.
4. With one hand holding the bottle, use the other hand to gently touch the area on either side of your cat’s eye, making sure not to directly touch their eye. Click and treat.
5. If you’re having trouble holding the clicker while doing this, use your tongue to make a click sound instead. Avoid holding the clicker near your cat’s head because it will be very loud to them.
6. Work your way up to holding their eye open briefly and moving the eye-drop bottle over to above their eye. Click and treat. If your cat becomes scared or uneasy, go back a few steps and move forward more slowly.
7. If you have vet-approved practice drops, work up to putting a droplet in one eye. The first time this happens, give them a jackpot (see Pro Tip) and end the session.
8. Work up to putting the eye drops in both eyes. You can go through the steps focusing on one eye at a time or alternating eyes, depending on your cat’s comfort level.
PRO TIP
Most cats do not like being restrained or having their eyes held open. Take very small steps throughout this training so you don’t make it scary. This behavior could take weeks or months of consistent training, depending on your cat.
Training Multiple Cats at Once
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Before training multiple cats at once, each cat will need to know the first seven behaviors from this chapter, ensuring that each cat understands the foundational behaviors before multiple-cat training begins and before moving on to more difficult skills. Start with two cats and work your way up to more. The more cats you train at once, the more difficult it is.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place each cat’s mat in front of you, about two feet apart from one another. One at a time, ask each cat to station. Click and reward them with a treat.
2. Train one cat at a time, alternating back and forth. For the cat you aren’t actively training, continue to click and treat for staying on their mat and not interrupting the other cat.
3. If a cat gets off their mat on their own, ask them to station again or use the target stick to lead them back onto the mat. Click and treat.
4. For the cat you’re actively training, ask them for behaviors they know, like targeting, lie down, or sit. Click and treat.
5. For each click to the cat you’re actively training, also give a treat to the other cat for staying on their mat. This lets the second cat know that staying on their mat is the desired behavior. It also prevents them from stealing the training cat’s treats.
PRO TIP
When training new behaviors, train each cat one-on-one. You can use multiple-cat sessions to spice up your training sessions. Some cats perform trained behaviors perfectly in an undistracted room but forget once they’re back in the “real world.” Having other cats around adds a distraction to test behaviors you’ve already trained.
CHAPTER 5
Solving Behavioral Problems
Cats are fun, but sometimes they adopt unwanted behaviors. This chapter will teach you how to train away some of the most common behavioral problems in cats. There’s no need to go in order here. Feel free to skip around to the specific problem you’re having with your fuzzy feline, and you’ll discover just how to correct their behavior.
See, Petting Isn’t Too Bad
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The key to getting your reluctant cat to agree to petting is to go slowly and “listen” to them. Some cats are sensitive and don’t like being petted along their back and would prefer you pet around their head and neck area. Most cats don’t want their belly, feet, or tail petted.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Hold your hand out toward your cat. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interaction they have with your hand.
2. Slowly touch the top of your cat’s head, gently but firmly. Click and treat.
3. Pet the top of your cat’s head in one-second intervals. Click and treat with each pet.
4. Next, after each one-second interval, ask for a different behavior your cat knows, such as targeting or sitting. This will break up the lesson if they’re not used to being petted. Click and treat. Then return to step 3, clicking and treating less frequently. Go back and forth between steps 3 and 4 until your cat is used to you briefly touching the top of their head.
5. Increase the length of time your cat allows you to pet them, while also moving your hand down to their neck area as well. Click and treat throughout the intervals.
6. Continue moving to different body parts of your cat, like their back. Click and treat. Watch their behavior, and try not to pet any area that makes your cat feel uncomfortable. Watch for signs like their ears going back, flicking their tail around, or vocalizing at you.
PRO TIP
Most cats can learn to like having their heads and necks petted. It’s better not to force the issue with other body parts if they find it overstimulating.
Picking Kitty Up
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Training your cat to be more comfortable being picked up is helpful when you need to move them from one location to another, whether it’s to another room or to the vet.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Start by petting your cat on their head and neck. Gently place one hand on your cat’s chest between their front legs. Click and reward them with a treat.
2. Place your other hand over your cat’s shoulder blades so that you’re firmly holding them. Click and treat.
3. Rotate your hands so both are on your cat’s chest, a bit away from their armpits. Click and treat.
4. Slowly raise your cat’s front legs up one inch. Click and treat. Work your way to raising your cat about one foot off the ground while clicking and rewarding with treats.
5. With one hand on your cat’s chest, use your other hand to touch your cat’s hind legs and feet. Click and treat.
6. Continue lifting your cat at a low height. Click and treat each time. Work your way up to one hand on your cat’s chest area and the second arm supporting their hind end. Ideally, this should be done in a sitting position.
7. Work your way to standing upright, holding your cat in various positions to find how they prefer to be held. Some cats like being held like a baby, upright with their hind legs supported fully, or even draped over your shoulder.
PRO TIP
When picking up your cat, make sure you’re lifting at their chest and not their sensitive belly or they might try to bite you.
No More Hiding Under the Bed
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Hiding under the bed is a common safety response; cats know it’s difficult for people and other animals to get to them. Instead of dragging your cat out from under the bed, this training will encourage your cat to come out on their own. Your cat should know targeting before training this skill.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Wait until your cat is located in their usual hiding spot. Extend the target stick close to where your cat is hiding. If they touch the target, click and reward them with a treat.
2. Move the target one inch away from your cat. When they touch it, click and treat.
3. Continue to move the target stick around in the hiding spot, clicking and treating. This will make your cat more comfortable and likely to follow the target stick out from under the bed.
4. Slowly move the target stick an inch or two outside of the bed, where your cat can stay mostly underneath but still reach the target. Click and treat. The first time your cat ventures out from under the bed, give a jackpot (see Pro Tip) and end the session.
5. In later sessions, continue to target under and outside the bed, increasing the distance outside the bed inch by inch. Work your way up so your cat comes all the way out from under the bed while clicking and treating.
PRO TIP
If your cat is frightened, keep the sessions short. In the beginning, you can entice them with larger jackpots when they come out from under the bed, like a piece of unsalted turkey or a spoonful of wet food.
No More Destructive Scratching
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Cats scratch to keep their nails healthy, mark their territory, and get some stretching in. Sometimes cats choose something we don’t want them to scratch, like furniture. With this training, you’ll redirect your cat to approved scratching options.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Take note of where your cat destructively scratches. Notice the materials and the position of their body when scratching.
2. Purchase two or three cat scratchers (per cat) in their preferred scratching materials. Make sure the scratchers are sturdy and allow your cat to scratch in their preferred position. Some cats like scratching horizontally; others prefer vertical posts.
3. Place the scratchers near where your cat is destructively scratching. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interaction with the scratchers.
4. Use the target stick to coax your cat into climbing on the scratchers. Click and treat.
5. If your cat is hesitant about using a vertical post, place the post on its side. Use the target stick to coax them onto the scratcher. Click and treat for targeting with their feet on the post.
6. Stand the post up once they’re more comfortable. Click and treat for targeting with their feet touching the post.
PRO TIP
If needed, sprinkle a small amount of catnip onto the scratchers. This will usually entice the cat to come over and rub on the scratchers. Make sure to replace any scratchers that get old.
Bedtime Kitty Snuggles
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If you’d like your cat to snuggle in bed with you but your cat has other ideas, these steps will help encourage your cat to stay with you at night. Cats love warmth, and these steps enlist the help of a heating pad to make your bed an enticing place to be.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. If your cat isn’t comfortable in your bedroom yet, give them a few days with access to your room. Click and reward them with treats when they follow you into the room.
2. During your bedtime routine, place the heating pad on low in your bed where you’d like your cat to sleep. Click and treat if your cat jumps up onto your bed and lies down.
3. If your cat doesn’t jump onto your bed on their own, use the target stick to coax them up. Click and treat for every successful target.
4. Target your cat over to the heating pad so they can investigate it and get comfortable on your bed.
5. Keep clicking and treating as your cat snuggles on your bed while you get in and go to sleep. For safety, turn off and remove the heating pad before going to sleep yourself (see Pro Tip).
6. If you’re already in bed, call your cat over and target them up onto the bed with you already in it. Click and treat.
PRO TIP
You can also use your own body warmth to warm up the bed. Entice your cat into bed by making a nest of blankets for them to snuggle in as well.
My Bed, Not Yours
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You may be okay with your cat in your bedroom, but there may be times you don’t want to share your bed with them. These steps will help keep them away. Multi-level cat trees can be purchased at most pet stores or online.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place a cat tree in your room with one of your cat’s beds. Cats prefer to sleep up high, so if the tower is higher than your bed (and comfy), you’ll have an easier time getting them to sleep there.
2. Use the target stick to coax them into the cat tree bed. Click and reward them with a treat for each successful target.
3. Once your cat is in their bed, use the verbal cue “stay”. Click and treat for increasing lengths of time they stay in the bed.
4. Anytime you see your cat in your bed, use the target stick to coax them back into their cat tree bed. Click and treat.
5. Before you go to bed, target your cat into their bed for the night. Click and treat.
PRO TIP
If your cat won’t stay in the cat tree bed, make sure it’s not in the way of a draft or too exposed. Cats like feeling safe while sleeping, so a corner might be a good location for the tower.
No More Counter Surfing
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Cats are constantly exploring their surroundings, which may include your kitchen counters and other surfaces. They’re attracted to food, smells, running water, and the safety that the height of countertops provides. Once you determine why they’re drawn to them, follow these steps to keep them off.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Watch your cat to see why they’re going on your counters in the first place. Are they just sniffing around or sneaking food? Are they in the kitchen sink licking up water droplets? Or do they simply like hanging out up high? Make note of the possibilities.
2. Offer a better option for your cat nearby. If your cat likes flowing water, get a cat water fountain that bubbles. If your cat likes being up high, place cat shelves or a cat tree in a nearby room so they can see what’s going on in the kitchen. If your cat is looking for food, offer them puzzle cat toys where they have to work for their food.
3. The next time you see your cat on a countertop, hold the target stick out near the ground. As soon as they jump down, click and reward them with a treat.
4. If your cat runs away before you can hold out the target, toss a treat onto the floor instead. Click as soon as your cat’s feet touch the ground and let them eat the treat on the ground.
5. Repeat step 3 or 4 each time your cat is on the countertop. Then, use the target stick to bring your cat over to the alternative option you’ve provided for them. Click and treat for following the target and using the alternatives.
6. Continue this process until they no longer jump onto your countertops. Persistence by everyone in the household to train this behavior the same way will speed the process. Otherwise, your cat may think that it’s only in the presence of certain people that they can’t be on the countertop.
PRO TIP
You can speed this process by temporarily cluttering up your countertops so they’re too messy and your cat can’t get onto them easily. They’ll be more likely to use the better options you’ve set up.
Cat, Meet Other Pets
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Whether your cat is new or you’re bringing home another cat or dog (or any other animal they might interact with), taking steps to ensure your cat is comfortable during introductions will help prevent fights and behavior issues down the road. This lesson focuses on acclimating a new cat to a home with other pets.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Start by putting your new cat in a separate room with a solid door so they can’t escape. This room should be comfortable with a bed, toys, a perch, scratchers, food, water, and a litter box.
2. Leave your new cat in this room for four or five days so they can get acclimated. Give other household pets access to the other side of the solid door so they can smell one another.
3. Start training your cat wherever they seem comfortable in the room. Eventually begin training closer to the closed door so your cat becomes more comfortable with other pets nearby. Click and reward with a treat for all positive behaviors and interactions.
4. Throughout the first week, swap out a few of the new cat’s toys with your other pets’ toys to let them get used to their scent.
5. After the fifth day, put your other pets into a closed-off room with a solid door and let the new cat out to explore freely for a few hours, so they can spread their scent and get the lay of the home. Allow your cat full access to their original room in case they get spooked.
6. Repeat this for three or four days. Try training behaviors with the new cat when they’re out exploring. Click and treat whenever appropriate.
7. If there aren’t any negative noises between your pets through the solid door, put up a mesh-front baby gate on the new cat’s door and open the solid door. Stand on the side that allows you to close the door quickly if necessary. If you have multiple pets, only let the calmest one out at this time. Allow them to sniff each other. Don’t use the clicker or treats here, since this may cause food aggression between the two. Spend time with both pets and just observe. If they come over to you, give them praise and attention.
8. Alternate which pet is at the gate if you have a multi-pet household. Give your new cat a few hours to rest in between each introduction.
9. Eventually, there will be a point where you can let your pets interact fully with one another. Make sure there aren’t any aggressive noises coming from any of the pets and all seem relaxed before doing this.
10. Always give your new cat access to their room for safety and comfort. If you’re introducing your cat to dogs, get a baby gate with a small cat hole in it so your cat can escape back into their room. Make sure there are cat towers and high places that only the cat can access.
PRO TIP
Take introductions very slowly, especially if you are introducing your new cat to large dogs. It can take between three and five weeks for your new cat to get acclimated with your other pets. It can still take eight months or longer for cats to develop a friendship with other pets.
Ouch! Stop Biting Hands
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Cats will often bite hands because people allowed them to do this as kittens, wiggling their fingers and letting them attack. As a kitten, those bites don’t hurt, but as an adult cat, it can become a painful problem. For best success, everyone in your household should be in agreement not to let your cat play with anyone’s bare hands, including visitors.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Every time you play with your cat, use a toy. Starting out, use a cat toy on a stick to keep your hands farther from their mouth.
2. If your cat attacks your hand when playing, remove your hand and put a toy in front of them. Click and reward them with a treat when they start playing with the toy instead of going after your hand.
3. Continue repeating this process to ensure you never play with your cat using your hands.
PRO TIP
Until this behavior is trained, hold off on trying to pet your cat immediately after playing with them to avoid them instinctively biting your hands.
Shhh! Stop Meowing All the Time
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Cats might meow when they’re hungry, want to play, or simply want to talk to you. Some cats take this to the extreme and seem to be meowing constantly. The following training will reward your chatty friend for their quiet behavior.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Try to stop the meowing before it even starts by immediately clicking and treating at the beginning of a session if they’re being quiet.
2. If your cat is meowing, wait until they are quiet before you click and treat.
3. Starting out, you’ll want to click at even the briefest moment when your cat is not meowing. Then slowly build up the length of time that your cat must be quiet before clicking and giving them a treat.
PRO TIP
It’s easiest to train one behavior at a time. If your cat is meowing when you’re training a different behavior, it’s easiest to get your cat to be quiet first. Then when you start training other behaviors, your cat won’t be meowing throughout the training session.
No More Feet Attacks
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Cats often attack their human’s feet during play. It may be a little maddening, but it’s not out of aggression. Through this training, each time they try to go for your feet, you’ll redirect your cat’s attention to their toys and reward them for focusing on their toys.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Observe the situations in which your cat attacks your feet. Are your feet wiggling under a blanket? Are you walking by the couch while your cat is hiding underneath?
2. The next time you’re in a situation where your feet typically get attacked, have some cat toys on hand. Long wand cat toys are good for this purpose.
3. If your cat attacks your feet, use the cat toy to play with them instead. As soon as they play with the cat toy, click and reward them with a treat.
4. Preemptively play with the cat toys away from your feet so your cat doesn’t attack. Click and treat when they are playing nicely with you and the toys.
5. Continue these steps until your cat is no longer attacking feet and instead goes for their toys as a first choice.
PRO TIP
To avoid confusing the cat, make sure all family members are in agreement not to encourage your cat to attack any feet.
Crate Training
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Crate training is useful for transporting your cat. Training your cat to go in and out of their crate voluntarily will reduce stress for everyone, especially in an emergency.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the crate on the ground with the door open (but secured) or off. Click and reward with a treat if your cat walks toward the crate.
2. Toss a treat into the crate. As soon as your cat sticks their head inside, click and let them eat the treat. Continue until your cat goes fully inside the crate.
3. If your cat doesn’t go all the way inside, use a target stick to coax them in.
4. Once they’re comfortable going in and out, put the door back on. Target your cat in and out with the door open. Click and treat.
5. When your cat is inside the crate, close the door an inch and then open again. Continue slowly, increasing the movement of the door until it’s closed but not latched. Click and treat.
6. Build up to latching the crate and increasing the time it stays closed. Click and treat.
7. With the door latched, raise the crate one inch off the ground and put it back down. Click and treat. Open the crate door once it’s back on the ground so your cat can exit. Ask your cat to return to the crate, latch it, and raise it again.
8. Increase the distance your cat is raised. Work up to walking around with your cat in the crate. Click and reward for each step.
PRO TIP
Leave the opened crate out all the time, with their bed inside, so your cat gets used to the crate.
Chewing Challenge
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Cats like to chew on things like cords, plastic, plants, and more, often because they are bored or curious. The easiest solution is to hide those items, but you can also train your cat to stop chewing on things they shouldn’t be.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Observe when your cat is chewing (and on what) to determine whether it’s around their feeding time or if they seem bored.
2. If your cat is chewing around dinnertime, it’s likely due to hunger. You can solve this by making sure your cat is eating enough food. One way to make food last longer is to put their food in puzzle feeder bowls and toys.
3. If you find your cat is chewing due to boredom or if they want to play, get a variety of cat toys that are crinkly and have different textures similar to what they’re chewing on.
4. The next time your cat is chewing something they shouldn’t, get their attention by tossing a toy in their direction. Click and reward them with a treat if they start playing with the toy instead.
5. When your cat starts heading to the thing you don’t want them to chew, toss them a toy and play with them. Click and treat.
6. Continue this process until they start going to their toys to chew, instead of to the objects they shouldn’t be chewing.
PRO TIP
Puzzle feeders are one of the best ways to keep your cat from destructively chewing since it engages your cat’s mind and takes longer for them to access the food. Check out the Resources section for some puzzle feeder recommendations.
Don’t Jump On Me!
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Cats love being up high, and humans can sometimes appear to be nice tall “trees” for a furry friend to climb. But their claws can be painful! Have no fear—this prickly behavior can be curbed in a few short steps. With this training, the cat tree becomes a more fun and positive choice for them.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Make sure your cat has cat trees or towers and other places to climb high so you aren’t their only option.
2. Whenever your cat looks like they’re going to climb up or jump on you, use the target stick to coax them away from you by having them follow the target instead. Click and reward them with a treat.
3. If your cat does jump on you, remove them and place them onto their cat tree. Target them around on the cat tree, clicking and treating as they move around.
4. Make an agreement that no one in the household will allow your cat to climb or jump on them, even as a tiny kitten; otherwise, this will be confusing and result in bad habits later on.
PRO TIP
If your cat has a favorite spot they jump on you from, like the back of the couch, outwit them by putting items in that spot, blocking them from using it.
CHAPTER 6
Fun Games
Ready for some fun? This chapter is all about games, training your cat to have fun with you, and providing connection through play. Cats love to hunt and are naturally curious creatures. In addition to being fun, these games keep their minds active.
Follow the Dot
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Laser pointers are such fun toys to use, especially with your cat, and can be found at most pet stores. These can also be used as a target to get your cat to move to a new location. Make sure to never shine the laser into your cat’s eyes or let your cat look directly into the laser, as this will damage their eyesight.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Shine the laser pointer onto the ground directly in front of your cat. As soon as they paw at the red laser dot, click and reward them with a treat.
2. If your cat isn’t pawing at the dot, wiggle the laser slightly to make the dot move. Click and treat as soon as your cat paws the dot.
3. Start moving the dot a few inches away. When your cat paws the dot, click and treat.
4. Keep moving the laser dot farther away and to different locations around the room. Each time they successfully paw the red dot, click and treat.
PRO TIP
A laser pointer can also be used as a target when you want your cat to go somewhere your regular target stick can’t reach.
Catch That Prey!
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Teaching your cat how to chase prey may come naturally, but some domesticated cats never seem to get the hang of it. With this behavior, you’ll witness your cat’s natural predatory ability and build up their confidence by letting them successfully “catch prey.”
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Tie a mouse or feather toy to a string or shoelace so the toy mimics a prey item. Hold the end of the string and lay the toy on the ground. If your cat goes over to explore the toy, click and reward them with a treat.
2. Wiggle the mouse toy. Click and treat when your cat interacts with it.
3. Continue to wiggle and move the mouse toy, increasing its distance from your cat. Click and treat whenever your cat engages with the toy.
4. Toss the mouse toy a few feet away from your cat. Click and treat when your cat chases the toy.
5. Eventually you’ll be able to wiggle the toy and toss it with your cat without a reward or treat. Your cat will consider it a reward in itself just to play and chase their prey.
PRO TIP
If your cat doesn’t take to the toy you’re using, find a toy that uses real fur or feathers. Cats have a high prey drive, so they should take to chasing prey fairly quickly if it incorporates the “real deal.”
Ring the Bell
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This unique trick can be utilized to alert you to something, perform a musical routine, or just have fun with your cat. This lesson uses a call bell, but you can train using any kind of bell.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the bell on the floor between you and your cat. Position your hand out in front of your cat, directly over the bell, with your palm facing up. Click and reward them with a treat for any movement of your cat’s paw.
2. If your cat won’t move, move your hand closer to their front foot. Wiggle your fingers a bit. Click and treat if they move their paw toward your hand.
3. Put your hand back out with your palm facing up. Click and treat for any movement of your cat’s paw toward your hand.
4. The first time your cat touches their paw to the palm of your hand, give them a jackpot (see Pro Tip).
5. Move your hand away from the bell, or have your fingers slowly spread open so when your cat puts their paw in your hand, they touch the bell. Click and treat.
6. Slowly move toward replacing your hand with the bell, so the cat’s paw is touching the bell. Work toward just pointing at the bell. Whenever you point to the bell, your cat’s paw should touch the bell, instead of your hand. Click and treat.
7. Once your cat is reliably ringing the bell with your hand cue, say “bell” immediately before giving the hand cue. Click and treat each time your cat rings the bell with the verbal cue.
PRO TIP
Use your pointed finger as a cue, or fade that out to only use the verbal cue.
Fetch!
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Yes, cats can be taught to fetch, just like dogs! The key is to use their favorite type of toy. Some cats prefer ball toys, while others may prefer mouse toys. Use whatever type of toy your cat loves and would be interested in for this training. If you’ve already trained the Come Here behavior (here), this will make step 3 easier.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Grab your cat’s favorite toy and roll it a few feet away from them. As soon as your cat picks up the toy in their mouth, click and reward them with a treat.
2. Do this four or five times until your cat understands you want them to pick up the toy.
3. Whenever your cat picks up the toy in their mouth, call them over to you. Click and treat.
4. Each time your cat picks up the toy, call your cat back to you until they’re reliably bringing the toy to you on command.
5. The next time you toss the toy, say the word “fetch.” Your cat should go get the toy and bring it back. Reward your cat with a jackpot (see Pro Tip) the first time they fetch the toy on cue.
6. Once you start incorporating the word “fetch,” you’ll want to stop using the word “come” so it doesn’t confuse the cues.
PRO TIP
If your cat won’t pick up the toy in their mouth at the beginning, rub a treat on the toy to get the scent of food on it.
Popping Bubbles
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Everyone loves playing with bubbles, but have you ever blown bubbles for your cat to pop? If not, wait until you try this. It’ll be as much fun for you to watch as for them to do! As your cat gains confidence popping, they’re more likely to jump or leap to pop the bubbles. Make sure the bubbles are nontoxic, as your cat may ingest some bubble liquid in the process of popping. There are even catnip-infused bubbles you can buy to keep your cat engaged!
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. With your cat in front of you, blow a small bubble so it’s still attached to the bubble wand. Hold the wand in front of your cat. Click and treat for any interaction that pops the bubble.
2. Repeat step 1 four or five times until your cat begins to understand the concept of popping the bubble. Make sure you’re clicking at the exact moment the bubble is being popped and not when your cat touches the wand.
3. Next, blow one bubble into the air. Click and treat for any motion your cat makes to pop the bubble, even if they miss.
4. Continue this until your cat reliably pops any bubbles you blow.
PRO TIP
If your cat won’t pop a floating bubble, teach your cat the high-five behavior first (here) so they learn to pop the bubble while giving you a high five.
Tunnel Run
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Teaching your cat how to run through a tunnel can be great exercise. You could even use this as part of a kitty agility course in your house and train your own personal ninja warrior cat! Cats especially love tunnels because it gives them a place to hide and pounce out from.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the cat tunnel near you. Let your cat explore the tunnel on their own to get comfortable. Click and reward them with a treat for any positive interaction with the tunnel, like rubbing their face on it or going inside.
2. Place the target stick a few inches inside the tunnel. Click and treat when your cat targets.
3. Extend the target stick farther into the tunnel. You may need to get on the opposite end of the tunnel. Click and treat each time your cat makes it through the tunnel.
4. Once your cat is comfortable going through the tunnel, position them at one end and say “tunnel,” and hold your target stick at the far end of the tunnel. Click and treat for going through. Repeat this step five or six times.
5. Once your cat walks through with just the verbal cue, slowly limit the use of the target stick. Start by briefly showing the target stick, say “tunnel,” and then remove the stick as your cat walks through the tunnel. Click and treat for each successful tunnel walk-through.
PRO TIP
If your cat won’t target through the tunnel, use a wand feather cat toy to encourage them through it. Phase this out quickly; otherwise, your cat will think you’re just trying to play with them.
Hurdle Jump
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We’re raising the bar, literally! Hurdles are a great activity to help your cat burn off excess energy and get in some exercise. This hurdle can also be used as part of a cat agility course at home. Anything can be used as a hurdle. This exercise will show you how to train your cat using common items found around the home.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Lay a broomstick flat on the ground. Have your cat follow the target stick over the top of the broomstick. Click and reward them with a treat. Repeat this step five or six times.
2. Raise the broomstick one to two inches off the ground, using shoebox lids or other items to lift it up. Tape the broomstick in place so it won’t roll. Use your target stick to motion your cat toward the top of the broomstick. Click and treat as they step over the broomstick.
3. Raise the broomstick a few more inches by securing it on top of the shoeboxes. Click and treat each time the cat successfully follows the target over the top of the broomstick.
4. As your cat gets more comfortable, continue to raise the height of the broomstick using more or bigger boxes. At some point, your cat will need to jump to follow the target over the broomstick. Give them a jackpot (see Pro Tip) the first time this happens.
5. Once your cat is consistently following the target by jumping over the broomstick, start adding in a verbal cue of “hurdle” right before your cat jumps. Click and treat.
6. Fade out the use of the target stick once your cat jumps over the hurdle whenever you say “hurdle.” To do this, slowly decrease the target stick movements. Go at your cat’s pace so you don’t confuse them by removing the target stick. If your cat seems confused, go back to step 5 to strengthen the association with the verbal cue “hurdle.”
PRO TIP
Make sure the broomstick is secured to whatever item it’s suspended on so it doesn’t roll off or fall if your cat touches it.
Magic Cup Game
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In this game, you’ll engage your cat as they learn to pay attention to where you placed the treat and where it was moved to. This is great mental stimulation for kitty—and hilarious to watch.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the cups in a line in front of your cat. Let your cat sniff and see the treat in your hand.
2. Place the treat underneath one of the cups but don’t move the cup. Click and reward them with a treat when your cat paws or nudges the cup with the treat underneath it.
3. Repeat this process 10 times, alternating which cup the treat is under but not moving the cup around. Click and treat for each correct choice by your cat.
4. Now, place a treat under a cup and slowly move it around. When starting out, you want to move it only a few inches, but you can increase the movement once your cat gets the hang of it. Click and treat if your cat paws or sniffs the correct cup.
5. Work your way up to moving the cups around more, moving them faster, and swapping their locations. Click and treat for each correct choice.
PRO TIP
Once your cat has the game down, swap the treat out for a small ball for them to find. This way, they won’t have the advantage of smell to find the right cup.
Chair Leaps
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Once your cat knows this trick, you can transfer this skill to other platforms, including smaller stools. All of this activity is great exercise for your cat and a fun way to use furniture in your house for training. Make sure the chairs you use are stable so they don’t topple or scare your cat into abandoning their acrobatic aspirations.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place two chairs directly next to each other, with no gap in between. Use the target stick to signal your cat to jump onto one of the chairs. Click and reward them with a treat.
2. Using the target stick, motion your cat to move from one chair to the other. Click and treat.
3. Now, move one chair an inch away from the other. Target your cat from chair to chair. Click and treat for each successful target.
4. Slowly increase the distance between the chairs, inch by inch. Target back and forth, clicking and treating for each successful target.
5. Eventually, your cat will need to jump to get from one chair to the other. Reward with a jackpot (see Pro Tip) the first time your cat successfully jumps from one chair to the other.
6. Slowly fade out the target stick to a finger cue by pointing to the chair. Your cat will now associate your finger pointing to a chair as the cue to jump to it. Click and treat for each successful jump.
PRO TIP
After you fade out the target stick and replace it with your finger pointing, your cat may need an occasional refresher to jump using the target stick.
Figure Eight Leg Weave
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This skill is challenging, but it’s still a fun game to play with your cat. The goal here is to train your cat how to do a figure eight around your legs while you’re standing still, or train them to weave while you’re walking. Once they master this, you can even have them weave to the beat of the music as you walk.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Stand with your legs spread slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Get your cat used to walking underneath your legs by tossing some treats on the floor below you. Clicking isn’t necessary yet.
2. Using your target stick, signal your cat to go from in front of you, through the middle of your legs, and then around to the side of one leg. Click and reward them with a treat. Make sure to give the treat in front of you so your cat knows to come back to the front starting position after they go through your legs.
3. Once your cat is used to going under your legs following the target, remove the target stick from between your legs. Instead, place it by the side of your leg you want them to go around. Click and treat them in front of you after they go through your legs. This will test if your cat knows how to walk between your legs and around to the target stick. If they don’t understand yet, keep repeating step 2 until they do.
4. Repeat steps 1 to 3 for each individual leg until they’ve mastered it.
5. Now, signal your cat to walk around both legs in a figure eight shape before you click and treat. Use the target stick to motion your cat around one leg and then again around the other. Click as soon as your cat goes around your second leg and give them a treat in front of you.
6. Fade out the use of the target stick and replace with a pointed finger. (If you have a retractable target stick, you can make it shorter over time until your pointed finger is the replacement.) Use your finger to point to the leg you want your cat to weave around as the cue. Only click and treat after your cat has completed the entire figure eight. Continue to give treats in front of you after a successful figure eight.
7. Now, take a few steps, using your finger to point to your forward leg for a walking figure eight leg weave. Click and give them a treat in front of you for each successful walking weave. At first, smaller steps may be easier for you and your cat, but you can upgrade as they progress.
8. Fade out the finger-pointing cue until the natural motion of your leg stepping forward signals your cat to weave underneath your leg. Click and treat for each successful weave.
PRO TIP
If your cat tries to move around the outside of your legs instead of through the middle, widen your stance to encourage them to go directly under your legs.
CHAPTER 7
Cool Cat Tricks
The tricks you are about to learn are sure to grab everyone’s attention. This chapter covers some more fun (and unusual) skills that you can train your cat to do. These behaviors are especially fun to show off when you have friends over. They’ll all love your little “party animal”!
Roll Over
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Does your cat know how to lie down on command (here)? If so, wow your friends with a cat who can roll over! When training this skill, you will need to keep your cat’s comfort in mind. Practicing on carpet instead of a hard floor will prevent discomfort. Older cats with limited mobility may not be able to do this trick. As with the Spin Around trick (here), train this skill in one direction first before going through the steps on the other side.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. With your cat in front of you, ask them to lie down. If your cat lies down on their side with one hip touching the floor, click and reward them with a treat.
2. If your cat lies down in a “sphinx” position, you’ll need to get them used to lying on their hip. To do this, hold a treat in your hand and slowly move the hand with the treat near the side of their head toward their back legs. Click and treat as soon as your cat relaxes onto their hip.
3. Next, get your cat to rest their shoulder on the ground. With a treat in your hand, move your hand toward your cat’s neck and shoulder area. Click as soon as your cat’s opposite shoulder touches the ground. Try to feed your cat the treat in this position.
4. Now, you’ll begin training the actual roll. With a treat in your hand, move your hand near your cat’s neck from one side of their body toward the other. Click and treat.
5. If your cat didn’t roll all the way over, click and give them a treat for rolling as far as they go. Keep working on it, inch by inch, until your cat rolls all the way over. The first time your cat rolls all the way over, give them a jackpot (see Pro Tip).
6. Fade out from using the food in your hand to just a hand cue. With your finger pointed, move your finger in a half-circle motion over your cat’s head. Start feeding the treat from your opposite hand so your cat stops thinking that the hand with the cue is supposed to have treats. Click and treat for each successful roll.
7. Once your cat knows how to roll over in one direction, return to step 1 to train them in the opposite direction.
PRO TIP
When learning how to roll over, your cat may use their paws to grab your hands. This is fine as long as their claws aren’t out. They’re trying to stabilize themselves since they don’t have enough momentum to roll all the way over yet. You can help them succeed!
Spin Around
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This behavior involves training your cat to turn around in a circle. When training them to spin, it’s important to teach moving in one direction in its entirety before you train going in the opposite direction to avoid confusing your cat.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. With your cat in front of you, motion the target stick in a half circle away from you so that they’ll turn slightly to their right to follow it. Click and toss a treat in a spot that will help them complete the full turn. This will help your cat get comfortable completing the spin movement from the beginning of the training session.
2. Repeat step 1 until your cat knows how to do the full spin following the target stick.
3. Start fading out the use of the target stick and replace it with a pointed finger as the cue. This can be done by extending a pointed finger on the same hand that’s holding the target stick. Slowly shorten the target stick while continuing to point with your finger. Eventually the target stick will be the same length as your finger and will no longer be needed.
4. Once the target stick is no longer being used, your cat should be able to spin in one direction by following your finger in a spinning motion toward the direction you are signaling. Click and treat for a full spin completion.
5. Return to step 1 and teach your cat to spin in the opposite direction.
PRO TIP
Once your cat knows how to spin around once (both ways), you can ask them to spin once in either direction before clicking and giving a treat for a figure eight.
High Five
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This cat trick will train your cool kitty to give a high five to anyone who asks. If you want to celebrate an accomplishment (or just need a boost), your furry friend will be able to share in your joy!
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Hold a treat in your hand. Hold that hand slightly above your cat’s head with your palm facing out. Click and give them a treat from your other hand when your cat sticks their paw up to grab the treat.
2. Continue this process five to ten times, but only click if your cat doesn’t have their claws out. You don’t want them to think you’re asking them to claw your hand.
3. Now, remove the treat from your high-five hand. Click and treat for each successful high five.
4. Add in the verbal cue “high five” immediately before you put your hand out for a high five. Click and give them a treat if they actually connect. Continue to do this until your cat begins to high-five you consistently.
PRO TIP
If your cat jumps up to get your hand, you’re probably holding your hand too high above their head. Make sure your hand is easily accessible for them when they’re sitting on their hind legs.
Sitting Pretty
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This pose will have your cat sitting on their hind legs, with their back erect and front legs up off the floor. This is a great pose to show how adorable and well-behaved your cat is on social media.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Hold a treat above your cat’s head so they have to sit up on their hind legs. Once your cat’s front paws are up in the air, click and reward them with the treat while they’re in that upright position.
2. Grab four or five treats and persuade your cat to sit up so they’re resting on their two hind legs again. Click and treat, keeping them in this position until all the treats in your hand are gone. Repeat this process a few times to get your cat comfortable holding this upright position.
3. After you’re out of the treats from your hand, click as soon as your cat’s front feet touch the ground again. Give them another treat.
4. Next, use a target stick held above your cat’s head to get them into the sitting pretty position. Click and treat. Repeat this until your cat reliably follows the target stick up into the pose.
5. Start fading out the target stick to just a hand cue of your finger, pointed up toward the ceiling. Fade out the target stick by making it smaller over time until your cat is sitting pretty with only the hand cue. Click and treat for each successful “sitting pretty.”
PRO TIP
If your cat tries to grab the target stick, quickly click before they’re able to. Then give them a treat. It’s easier to cut out the grabbing behavior by clicking before the behavior happens than to get your cat to let go of the target stick.
Kitty Kisses
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Do you wish your cat showed more affection? The following steps will show you how to train your cat to give you “kisses” by getting your cat to target their face to your cheek. This is also a great photo op or trick to show off to others.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. While sitting on the floor, hold the target stick to your shoulder. Click when your cat targets and reward them with a treat.
2. Slowly move the target inch by inch, clicking and treating, until the target is against your cheek.
3. Continue to hold the target to your cheek and have your cat target about 10 times before continuing on. Click and treat for each successful target.
4. Fade out the target stick to using your finger, pointing to your cheek. Click and treat for each phase of fading until your cat is targeting your cheek using only your pointed finger.
5. Once your cat “kisses” your cheek using only the finger cue, you can add in a verbal cue of “kiss.” To do this, say “kiss” and then immediately give the finger cue. Click and treat.
6. Continue step 5 as many times as necessary while you fade out the finger cue. Eventually you’ll be able to say the word “kiss” and have your cat come over and give you a kiss on the cheek. Click and treat for each successful kiss.
PRO TIP
I don’t recommend putting wet cat food on your cheek (like you’ll find in some recommendations online). You want kisses, not hungry “love bites”!
Waving Hello
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To learn this trick, your cat should already be familiar with how to station on a mat (here) and how to give you a high five (here). Whenever someone waves at your cat, they’ll now receive a friendly wave back!
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Start with your cat stationed on a mat. Click and reward them with a treat for staying on the mat.
2. Click and treat your cat as they stay on the mat while you step back a few feet and move around.
3. With your cat on the mat, come over to them and hold your hand up in the same position that you ask for a high five, except don’t give a verbal cue. Click and treat if your cat gives you a high five.
4. Next, hold your hand up again, but click before your cat’s paw touches your hand. Give them a treat. Repeat this process 10 times or more. Your cat should be raising their paw, but not touching your hand.
5. Slowly start moving your hand farther away from your cat, inch by inch. Click and treat each time your cat raises their paw. Take this step slowly, and repeat it numerous times. You want your cat to stay on their mat and not follow you.
6. Once your cat is staying on the mat and waving while you’re a few feet away, add in the hand cue. Instead of holding your hand up motionless, add in a slight wave. Click and treat for each completed wave from your cat. Make sure they’re still staying on the mat.
7. Once your cat is used to the waving hand cue, you can add in a verbal cue of “hi.” Say “hi” immediately before you give the hand cue for the wave. Click and treat for each wave your cat does.
PRO TIP
If your cat keeps getting off their mat, place the mat on a chair or stool. This way, they’ll be more likely to stay on it rather than follow you.
Keyboard Kitty
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Train your cat to play the piano! With practice, you can train your cat to play certain notes, but we’ll start their musical career by training them to press random keys on a piano. The following steps use a toy piano, but cats are awesome and can be easily trained on a full-size one, too. They’ll just need a bench so they can reach the keys.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place the toy piano on the ground in front of you and your cat. Let your cat explore the piano. Gently press one of the piano keys so they begin to understand the noises the piano makes.
2. Hold the target stick over the piano, in a place where your cat will need to step on a piano key. As soon as your cat steps one front foot on a key to reach the target, click and reward them with a treat.
3. Keep repeating step 2 until your cat is comfortable stepping on the keys. Click and give them a treat each time.
4. Add in the verbal cue of “play” immediately before showing the target stick. Click and treat as soon as your cat plays a note.
5. Fade out using the target stick over time to just using the verbal cue, clicking and treating for pressing the keys. Your cat should know to touch the piano key after hearing the verbal cue “play.”
PRO TIP
If your cat is afraid of the noise the piano makes, you can use an electronic keyboard that lets you lower the volume.
Jumping Through an Arm Hoop
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This is the trademark maneuver of a well-trained circus cat. If you want your friends to be uber impressed with your training skills, this is the behavior to show.
DURATION 5 minutes, twice a day until trained
MATERIALS
1. Place a treat in one hand. With your arms outstretched, place the non-treat hand against a wall, low enough for your cat to easily jump over.
2. With your cat on one side of you, persuade them to jump over your arm using the treat hand. Click as your cat jumps over your arm and reward them with a treat.
3. Fade out using the treat to lead your cat over your arm by pointing your finger. Click and treat for each successful jump.
4. Now, fade out your finger as the cue. You want your cat to jump over as soon as your arm is placed with your palm against the wall. Click and treat.
5. With your one arm as the hurdle, place the palm of your other hand a few feet higher on the wall. This arm will become the top of the hoop. Click and treat for each successful jump.
6. Slowly move your upper arm down, moving closer to your lower arm to make a hoop. Click and treat for each successful jump.
7. Continue to close the distance until your hands can interlock in a hoop shape. Keep practicing with your hands against the wall. Click and treat for each successful jump.
8. Slowly move your arm hoop a few inches away from the wall, then work your way up to greater distances, different body positions, and varying heights. Click and treat for each successful jump.
PRO TIP
You can use your tongue to make a click sound instead of the mechanical clicker.
Resources
I hope you’ll keep learning and training your cat. There’s still a lot we don’t know about animals, so don’t ever think your cat can’t do something just because they haven’t done it before! The following resources will help in continuing your cat’s training.
Websites
Cat Training Supplies: CuriosityTrained.com/cat-training-tools
This is a list of recommended cat training tools.
Free Training Planner: CuriosityTrained.com/book-training-planner
This is my free planner for organizing and planning your cat training sessions.
Best Cat Harnesses and Leashes: CuriosityTrained.com/best-cat-harness
Here are my favorite harnesses and leashes for cats.
Tips for Choosing a Cat Brush: CuriosityTrained.com/best-cat-brush
Here you’ll learn how to choose the right cat brush.
Cat Puzzle Feeder Recommendations: CuriosityTrained.com/interactive-cat-puzzle-toys
Here is a list of puzzle feeders I recommend.
Clicker Training Terms and Knowledge Building: ClickerTraining.com/library
Build your cat training vocabulary with this library of terms and information.
Additional Clicker Training Concepts: StaleCheerios.com/top-blog-posts
Here you’ll find articles for expanding your clicker training knowledge.
Beyond Training—Learn about Cat Enrichment: CuriosityTrained.com/cat-enrichment-guide
This guide teaches about how to make sure your cat is never bored again!
Books
Don’t Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor
A great training book to read once you finish this one.
Reaching the Animal Mind by Karen Pryor
This book contains interesting stories about clicker training across species.
References
American Association of Feline Practitioners. “Feline Behavior Guidelines.” Accessed December 20, 2020. CatVets.com/public/PDFs/PracticeGuidelines/FelineBehaviorGLS.pdf.
Ault, Alicia. “Ask Smithsonian: Are Cats Domesticated?” Smithsonian Magazine. April 30, 2015. SmithsonianMag.com/smithsonian-institution/ask-smithsonian-are-cats-domesticated-180955111.
Driscoll, Carlos A., Juliet Clutton-Brock, Andrew C. Kitchener, and Stephen J. O’Brien. “The Taming of the Cat.” Scientific American 300, no. 6 (2009): 68–75. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5790555.
Ghose, Tia. “Feline Vision: How Cats See the World.” Live Science. October 16, 2013. LiveScience.com/40459-what-do-cats-see.html.
Litchfield, Carla A., Gillian Quinton, Hayley Tindele, Belinda Chiera, K. Heidy Kikillus, and Philip Roetman. “The ‘Feline Five’: An Exploration of Personality in Pet Cats (Felis catus).” PLOS ONE 12, no. 8 (August 23, 2017): e0183455. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0183455.
McLeod, Saul. “Edward Thorndike: The Law of Effect.” Simply Psychology (blog). Updated 2018. SimplyPsychology.org/edward-thorndike.html.
McLeod, Saul. “What Is Operant Conditioning and How Does It Work?” Simply Psychology (blog). Updated 2018. SimplyPsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html.
Pryor, Karen. Don’t Shoot the Dog. Rev. ed. Lydney, Gloucestershire: Ringpress Books, Ltd., 2002.
Ramirez, Ken. “Animal Training: Successful Animal Management Through Positive Reinforcement.” Chicago: Shedd Aquarium Society, 1999.
SNL. “More Cowbell.” YouTube. Accessed February 20, 2021. YouTube.com/watch?v=cVsQLlk-T0s.
Sunquist, Mel, and Fiona Sunquist. Wild Cats of the World. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002.
Vieira de Castro, Ana Catarina, Danielle Fuchs, Gabriela Munhoz Morello, Stefania Pastur, Liliana de Sousa, and Anna S. Olsson. “Does Training Method Matter?: Evidence for the Negative Impact of Aversive-Based Methods on Companion Dog Welfare.” PLOS ONE 15, no. 12 (December 16, 2020): e0225023. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225023.
Acknowledgments
---
I want to start by thanking my amazing husband, CJ. He has always been there cheering me on as I chased after my dream of becoming a carnivore keeper and working with cheetahs. From keeping our son entertained for many, many weekends so I could write, to encouraging me to keep going, I couldn’t have completed this book without him.
Special thanks to my son, whose unadulterated love for animals continues to ignite my joy.
To Lizzy and Katie, thanks for being part of my carnivore crew. Bouncing ideas off of fellow training nerds helped me grow into the trainer that I am today. Thanks for sticking by me all those years with your friendship. I’m truly lucky to be able to call you my friends.
Thanks to all the keepers I’ve worked with over the years. I’ve learned something from each and every one of you and am fortunate to have spent over 12 years working in this field.
Additional thanks to Callisto Media for taking the chance on publishing this book and to Samantha Holland for walking me through the entire process.
About the Author
---
STEPHANIE MANTILLA is a positive reinforcement-based animal trainer with over 15 years of experience. She spent over 12 years as a zookeeper and trained a little bit of everything, including sloths, monkeys, rhinos, bears, cheetahs, cougars, and much more. One of Stephanie’s favorite animals is the cheetah, and in 2013, she traveled to Namibia to spend time volunteering at the Cheetah Conservation Fund. Before she left her position as a senior carnivore keeper at the Houston Zoo, Stephanie was her department’s training and enrichment coordinator. She has a BS in biology and environmental science and received a behavioral husbandry certificate from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Stephanie now runs her own business that focuses on training domestic cats and dogs using clicker training. She helps cat parents enhance their cat’s life on her website, CuriosityTrained.com. | |
UN experts: Drop charges against Palestinian Hebron activist
The United Nations has urged Israel to abide by international law as it reactivates charges against a prominent Palestinian human rights defender.
Issa Amro, an advocate of non-violent resistance, co-founded the grassroots group Youth Against Settlements, which has relentlessly campaigned against the Israeli military's shutdown of the once-thriving and historic Palestinian neighbourhood around Shuhada Street. The area was on Friday declared part of a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Their activities have included running a community centre, organising protest marches and opposing the many restrictions placed by the military on daily Palestinian life.
But Israeli authorities accuse Amro of "insulting a soldier," "assault" and demonstrating without a permit.
"On the information available to us, many of the charges against [Issa] Amro appear to be directed squarely at his lawful right to peacefully protest against the 50-year-old Israeli occupation," said Michel Forst, the UN's special rapporteur on human rights defender and Michael Lynk, the special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, in a statement on Friday.
"If the Israeli military court convicts Mr Amro on any of the charges against him, the convictions will be stained by reasonable doubts about the system's ability to ensure justice," they added.
The experts also raised concerns about the Israeli military court system, which all Palestinians in the West Bank are subject to, meeting many international standards of due process required under international human rights and humanitarian law. The conviction rate under the system is above 99 percent.
The two experts underscored that Amro and other Palestinian human rights defenders have faced a long pattern of harassment, intimidation, discriminatory treatment and physical interference from Israeli military and settler groups, and that the non-violent work of human rights defenders must not be disrupted and attacked by the authorities, even under a military occupation.
"Their rights to freedom of expression and assembly must be respected and protected," they stressed.
Last month 34 US Democrat politicians wrote to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in support of Amro, urging him to press Israel to drop the charges.
The intervention from the special rapporteurs comes as another United Nations body, UNESCO, voted to make Hebron's old city a world heritage site.
The heritage site in the city, which for Palestinians is often referred to as Khalil, is also thought to include Shuhadah Street, whose heritage Amro has been instrumental in defending.
The site will also include the ancient Ibrahimi mosque, which sits above the revered cave of the prophets, believed by Christians, Jews and Muslims to be the burial site of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their wives.
The move has been welcomed by Palestinians but slammed by Israel, which is reportedly cutting $1mn from the UN to build a museum in Hebron. Others have taken to social media to express their views on the vote. | https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/un-experts-drop-charges-against-palestinian-hebron-activist |
I have been coming to Barn on the Farm for a few years now. Each year the festival is a genuine highlight of my summer, the intimacy and chilled vibe of the entire weekend has always kept me coming back for more.
This year will always stand out among other years at Over Farm though, for two main reasons; the 30-degree heat, and a little thing called the Fifa World Cup. These added elements made it a festival weekend I’ll never forget.
The line-up was on-point as usual. With headline sets from the ‘two Toms’, Tom Grennan and Tom Misch, there was a perfect balance of chilled tunes to lounge around to in the sun-filled days and belters you could dance to in the evenings.
My weekend started on the evening of ‘Behind the Doors Friday’ where only 2 of the stages are open for early arrivers to enjoy a taster of what the weekend had in-store. My personal highlights from that very special evening was Hudson Taylor, and the secret headliner, which turned out to be electronic music duo Honne. After quite a stressful journey of un-air conditioned trains down to Gloucester, the peacefulness of the Friday evening immediately chilled me out and get me excited for the festival ahead. The atmosphere of that ‘pre-event’ was something else, with only real music lovers on-site, all walking between stages to make sure they caught a glimpse their favourite acts.
With the England v Sweden game imminent on the Saturday afternoon, I was interested to see how many of the punters would sneak away to the nearest pub. In the run-up to the match, pretty much every artist took the stage in a red and white England footie t-shirt- this seemed to bring bands and fans together even closer than the usual BOTF.
To my surprise, acoustic music and football came together that weekend in a surprising and beautiful way. Bands like Outlya and Aquilo joked that it was “the worst clash of their careers” with the footie being on at the same time as their set. But in reality, the excitement of someone keeping an eye on the score while the live music took place on stage turned out to be the makings of a rather good festival atmosphere. It added an extra dimension to the excitement of seeing your favourite band that I hadn’t experienced before. The lads of Aquilo in particular seemed rather keen on keeping up with the score in between songs. The second time they asked coincided with the exact moment England scored their second goal against Sweden and the both the crowd and the band erupting into giddy cheers. By the time England had won the match, the whole festival had the perfect excuse to sing ‘It’s Coming Home’ on loop for the rest of the weekend.
Most bands following the England win referenced the match in their own way, and Lewis Watson took the crown for sure. After his note-perfect set in the barn itself, he walked down into the packed out venue and did his encore in the middle of the crowd. He orchestrated his own rendition of ‘Three Lions’ with just his acoustic guitar and the crowd as his chorus. He split the barn into two and somehow managed to get us harmonising alongside him. It was such a unique take on an anthem.
Alongside this football frenzy, British weather really delivered for Barn on the Farm. At its peak reaching a casual 30ºC, the intense heat just added to tranquillity of the weekend, with whole families grabbing naps together in any available shade. The heat certainly added to the charm of the place too. With most people down to what can only be described as their swimsuits, there was an air of cheekiness in the air, as kid and adults alike soaked themselves under the water points and bought out all the ice cream the festival’s ice cream van had to offer.
Everything about this festival feels like a conscious choice to add to the gorgeous atmosphere which is there from the moment you arrive on site. From the exquisitely curated line up, to the trader who are invited to the cosy site, to the hand painted signs which decorate the stages and bars. Wherever you were on the farm, there was a feeling of community, in the way that it’s obvious that all the revellers want to get the same thing out of the weekend.
Due to the size of the site, it was obvious that new friendships were naturally forming, as you noticed the same people going from stage to stage and queuing for the delicious Greek food every night. With ostriches roaming around as well, there were smiles all around. One thing that really made me smile was when I was in line to collect my dinner on the final night and I spotted a friendly message tacked on a ketchup bottle which read ‘meet here for a rave tonight’. There was something about that message that made me feel that the people of the festival are what make it special and give it the unique vibe that we all come back from year after year.
Truth be told, if you like good home-grown acoustic music, Barn on the Farm is the festival for you. All I can say is I just can’t wait what line-up they are going to come up with for their 10-year anniversary in 2019.
Bring it on is all I say. | https://www.festivalmag.com/reviews/barn-on-the-farm-festival-review-2018/ |
Video: Couple caught erm, coupling, by riders
You can't beat the mountain bike for getting you out in the midst of nature, surrounded by the flora and fauna.
However, this group of Irish mountain bikers saw a whole lot more than that when out riding. Instead of spotting the usual kind of birds and bees, they came across a couple coupling rather vigorously at the side of the trail.
- Mountain bike virgin? You'll want our guide to buying your first mountain bike
- New helmet? The Merida Freeride might fit the bill
After riding past the pair, the rider with the helmet camera almost did himself a mischief laughing at what he'd just seen.
We assume the mountain bikers continued with their ride afterwards, but we've no news on how the rest of the couple's afternoon faired after being caught in flagrante delicto.
Ever seen something similarly unexpected out on the trail? Do let us know in the comments. | https://off.road.cc/content/news/video-couple-caught-erm-coupling-by-riders-718 |
Annie is now fifteen and she imagines that she is unhappier than anyone else could possible be. Her unhappiness cannot be traced to a simple factor, but thrives inside like a heavy black ball that is covered with cobwebs. Annie believes that this blackness inside makes everything that she once enjoyed appear sour. She and her mother now go through the world with two faces. To her father and to their friends, they act pleasant and friendly. Toward each other, though, the truth is apparent. Annie acts hidden and secretive toward her mother. Her mother pays her back by constantly complementing Annie in a way that annoys her. Annie is completely obsessed by her love and revulsion for her mother. She both wishes her dead and doubts that she will be able to survive without her. Annie starts to have a recurring dream in which she is walking down a road and with each footstep hears her voice saying, "I would kill my mother if I got the chance. My mother would kill me if she got the chance." This dream makes Annie feel afraid of her mother, but at the same time makes her feel empowered.
In school, Annie has been raised out of her grade because of her abilities. She is now in a class with girls two or three years older than her and she feels out of place. These girls have fully mature bodies and appear very vain. Annie devotes her time to her studies and once again emerges as either the top or second to the top student. Gwen and Annie still walk home together, but Annie knows that something has changed between them. One day, Gwen suggests that Annie marry Gwen's brother, so that Gwen and Annie will always be together. This idea startles Annie and Gwen's suggestion of it reminds her of how far apart the two girls are. As Gwen keeps talking, Annie starts to daydream. She decides that she wants to move to Belgium, where Jane Eyre, her favorite character, once traveled. In Belgium, Annie's mother could address letters to her as "Annie John, Somewhere Belgium," because Annie would not say in what city she was. Gwen assumes that Annie's silence means that she agrees with the marriage idea.
Annie stops spending so much time with Gwen after the marriage discussion, and even lies about having extra work in order to avoid her. One day, evading Gwen, Annie walks into town after school. She finds herself in front of a clothing store and sees her reflection in the window. Annie sadly observes that she looks awkward and ugly, and she compares herself to a picture of young Lucifer. Some boys standing nearby start teasing her gently. Annie knows one of them, Mineu, because they used to play as children. One day when they were children, they acted out the hanging of a legendary murderer and Mineu got stuck in the noose and almost choked. His mother's arrival saved him, but everyone wondered why Annie had not run for help. Another time, Mineu tricked her by getting her to sit naked on a red anthill, where she promptly was stung all over. Annie's mother stood up for Annie then and she and Mineu stopped being friends when Mineu's mother refused to accept Mineu's fault. As the boys keep laughing at her on the street, Annie walks away.
When Annie gets home, her mother appears angry that Annie is late from school. Her mother explains that she was in the clothing store and saw Annie looking in. She also saw Annie flirting and conducting herself improperly with those boys. After Annie's mother uses the slang word for "slut" numerous times, Annie says "like mother like daughter." Silence grows between the two and the mother tells Annie that she always loved her best until that moment, and then walks away. As Annie watches her mother walk away, Annie feels that her mother is young and vigorous, while Annie is old and broken. Annie returns to her room depressed and contemplates her mother's old trunk sits under her bed. Later at dinner, Annie's father asks her what type of furniture he should make her next and Annie asks him to make her a trunk of her own. He agrees to do so.
Annie's relationship with her mother has completely disintegrated and Annie starts to feel the effects physically. Annie envisions a heavy black ball inside of her body that lends a sour edge to the world around. The ball comes everywhere with Annie and makes her miserable. Her relationship with her mother has disintegrated such that the two now stand completely opposed to one another. The world may think that everything is normal between them, but they know better. At the same time, Annie's relationships at school have also diminished. Due to her abilities, Annie is played in a class where she is no longer fits in socially with the other students. Even Annie's relationship with Gwen seems outdated and uninteresting. Annie's relationship with her mother stands as poorly as ever, while at the same time those things that previously supported her in her time of woe have disappeared.
Annie's misery sends her into the world of fiction. Annie's favorite book is Jane Eyre and she, as did Jane, wants to go to Belgium. Although Annie once wanted to never be separate from her mother, her anger and dismay at their differences now makes Annie want to hide completely in some unknown Belgian town. It is worth noting that the character of Jane Eyre, herself, is an orphan who always felt cast out and separated from the world. Annie's tendency to identify with Jane, despite the fact that she has a family, demonstrates how alienated and isolated she feels from her mother. | https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/anniejohn/section6/ |
The invention discloses a distributed power supply maximum access capacity calculation method for a rural power grid. The method comprises steps: the power supply structure of a rural power grid in ato-be-analyzed area is analyzed; in the case of a single power supply radiation structure, the maximum apparent power of a load in the area and the maximum access capacity of the power grid in the to-be-analyzed area are calculated; in the case of a dual-power supply hand-in-hand tie structure, two sections of feeders operating separately are taken as two independent area power grids with a tie switch as a boundary, the distributed power supply maximum access capacity which is allowed to be accessed by the power grid in each area and the maximum access capacity of the distributed power supplywhich is allowed to be accessed to the feeder are calculated; and the distributed power supply maximum access capacity which is allowed to be accessed by the power grid in each area is finally adjusted to meet restriction requirements. The calculation method is simple to implement, a small amount of data information is required, popularization and application are easy, the reliability is high, theaccuracy is good, and the method is scientific and reasonable. | |
Economic experts are still talking about a future rise in interest rates. If you have an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM), you could be at risk of rising payments if there is no cap on your loan over time. For example, if the index, which is used to calculate the interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage, rose steadily and aggressively every year and there was no limit in place to restrict how high it could go, you could conceivably watch your interest rates rapidly shoot up from 5% to 11% or higher over the course of just a few years. A 5% interest rate is manageable, but an 11% rate over many years could potentially create serious problems for you.
For this reason, most ARMs have interest rate caps in place. Caps place a limit on how high a loan payment can increase over the course of a single adjustment period. The standard cap is roughly 2% every 12 months but this can vary.
Let’s imagine you have an ARM with an interest rate of 3% that has a 3% margin. Several years later when it’s time to reset the rate, the index has risen to 6%. In this scenario, when the margin is added in with the new index rate, the total interest rate would be 9%.
If your loan does not specify capping limits, you would be stuck with a 9% rate, which is a fairly drastic jump from the initial 3% you were accustomed to paying. If, however, the ARM has a cap of 2% for adjustment periods, then the increases and decreases could never fluctuate by more than 2% from one year to the next.
In this case, rather than getting hit with a new rate of 9%, your rate would move to 7%, which is 2% higher than the previous rate.
Caps can also be applied to the lifetime of an ARM.
- For example: Let’s say that your ARM has a lifetime cap of 8%. The rate currently sits at 5%, but one year later the index rises to 6% bringing the fully indexed interest rate, which is the interest rate calculated by adding the margin to an index level, to 9%. Because of the lifetime cap of 8%, your new interest rate would never rise higher than 8%.
Putting It All Together
- An example: You put $30,000 down on a $200,000 home, leaving you with a $170,000 mortgage. You elect a 30-year, 3/1 adjustable rate mortgage and the interest rate is 3% with an annual cap of 2% and a lifetime cap of 12%.
- Based on these numbers, the initial monthly payment for your mortgage will be $717. This will be the monthly payment for the first month and the next 35 months thereafter. (Remember, this is only the mortgage and interest portion of your home payment. There is still property tax, HOA fees, insurance and maintenance fees to consider.)
- After three years pass, the mortgage will be reset based on the index, which your lender uses to determine rates. In this scenario, let’s assume the interest rate will increase by 1%. After this reset, then the monthly payments would increase to $803 per month and the overall year-end increase would total $1,032.
- If after three years, the interest rate increased to 2% instead of the 1% mentioned above, your monthly payments would jump to $895.
Compare the scenarios above to what would happen if the ARM did not have an annual cap in place. Let’s say the loan rate went up by three percentage points.
Without an annual cap on the ARM, you could be stuck with a 3% increase, which would bring the monthly payments to $992. This means that within a single year, your payments could increase by $275 per month, or an overall annual increase of $3,300.
These examples are shown to highlight the very big difference that just one or two percentage points can make when it comes to home interest rates.
While there is the potential for much larger mortgage payments when an ARM loan resets, there is also the potential for big savings if interest rates happen to go down. Take a look at what would happen to the exact same adjustable-rate mortgage if the loan rates went down after the first 36 months of the loan:
- If the newly adjusted rate dropped by half a percentage point to 2.5%, the monthly payments would drop from $717 to $675. If the newly adjusted rate dropped by a full percentage point to 2%, the monthly payments would drop to $636 and annual savings would be $972.
When you’re ready to look at the numbers in more detail for your new home, give me a call at (602) 456-2195. I’d be happy to walk you through all the possible scenarios so you can make the best decision for your future.
Source: Salted StoneQuestions? Contact David Krushinsky Today! | https://dkhomeloans.com/06/22/2016/how-a-rate-cap-affects-your-adjustable-mortgage/ |
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Power - Jump Mat test - UNIT 7: FITNESS TESTING AND SPORT
The length of the run will depend on the athlete's age and speed. When first determining the number of strides in the approach run start by matching the number of strides with the athlete's age;.
The start of the approach run should be marked and the athlete should commence the start from a standing start. Some athletes use a 'walk on start' or 'run on start' that will provide more initial speed but if not consistent will impact the accuracy of the approach run onto the take-off board.
The athlete begins the run with a marked forward lean to develop speed but before they reach the take-off board, they should be upright. The athlete should be on the balls of the feet as in sprinting with a natural head position, the eyes focused beyond the pit and not at the take-off board. The accuracy of the approach run onto the take-off board is established by:.
Graham-Smith and Professor Lees [3,4] have identified algorithms that will predict an average distance that an athlete would be expected to jump for a given speed. These algorithms are based on official approach speeds and distances collected over a period of ten years from junior and senior championships and Grand Prix events. The following calculator will give you some idea if your athlete's speed, technique and strength are in balance. Enter the time for the athlete to run between the 11 metres and 1-metre markers and the actual distance achieved in the jump and then select the Calculate button.
The calculator will determine the predicted distance and analyses the athlete's speed. Select gender, enter the time for the 10m, the distance jumped and then select the "calculate" button for an analysis of the athletes speed on the approach run up.
Sargent Jump Test
The preparation for the long jump take-off begins in the later phases of the approach run. The long jumper prepares for take-off by sinking the hips and then raising the hips into the take-off phase. This usually results in the next to last stride is longer than normal and the final stride being up to 25 centimetres shorter than a normal running stride. It must be emphasised that the hip sink and stride adjustment all happen in response to the athlete's postural adjustments in preparation for the take-off.
At take-off ensure the hips are slightly forward of the shoulders.
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When the take-off foot is placed on the board, it is slightly in advance of the jumper's hips and should strike the board on the mid-line. The final two-foot contacts in the take-off should be flat, almost slapping. The vertical impulse is achieved by the upward acceleration of the "free" limbs, the arms and the non-take-off leg, against the braced take-off leg.
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These movements should be characterised by short radius blocked , fast explosive actions. The apparatus is not large or bulky, so you can move it easily to suit the environment you are in. Can be carried around and performed almost anywhere, preferably in a controlled environment such as a sports hall or lab. The test does not take long to conduct.
Disadvantages: 1.
Brian mac standing long jump
If athletes do want to perform the test they will have to go to a specialist lab that has the equipment. To carry out the test, you need a specialist tester to administer the test. The equipment required needs to be calibrated, this could prove to be difficult with some athletes if they are performing the test on their own.
Reliability:To produce stable and consistent results the test should be performed in the same conditions, under the same administer. Publisher: Human Kinetics. Page This test is suitable for active individuals but not for those where the test would be contraindicated. Test reliability refers to the degree to which a test is consistent and stable in measuring what it is intended to measure. Reliability will depend upon how strict the test is conducted and the individual's level of motivation to perform the test.
The following link provides a variety of factors that may influence the results and therefore the test reliability. Test validity refers to the degree to which the test actually measures what it claims to measure and the extent to which inferences, conclusions, and decisions made on the basis of test scores are appropriate and meaningful.
This test provides a means to monitor the effect of training on the athlete's physical development. Journal of Applied Sport Science Research , 5 3 , p. Journal of strength and Conditioning Research , 10 3 , p.
Explosive Strength
Med Sci Sports Exerc , 31, p. London: Harcourt Publishers. Philadelphia PA: Saunders. American Physical Education Review , 26, p. Croatia: Thomas Nelson and Sons. | http://unesopipukyd.tk/299/lakax-brian-mac-standing.php |
If you spend any time in the gaming world, you’ve probably met your fair share of characters—good, bad, weird, and just plain silly. Of course, most of us have some friends who share our passion for gaming, but there are times when we wonder about these friends who seem to share our love of games or even know more about our favorite genres than we do.
But how well do you really know them? Can you be sure they’re your friend, or could they actually be something else? Are they as outgoing and friendly as they seem? Are they looking to rip you off? Or are they some kind of psychopath?
The gaming community consists of many different gamers, each with their level of dedication and skill sets. To play games with fellow players, you need to know what type of gamer you are dealing with. So without further ado, let’s discuss different types of gamers and how to tell them apart.
Different Types of Gamers and How to Tell Them Apart
All your gaming friends may seem to be the same on the surface, but if you look closer, you’ll see that there are different types of gamers out there, and each deserves a different kind of attention. Some are more serious about games than others, and some focus more on a casual play while others compete in tournaments.
Here are the four major types of gamers you are likely to come across:
The Aggressive Challenger
If you’re new to a game, do not be surprised if people are occasionally rude or dismissive toward you. Sometimes, when someone is perfect at a game—and being really good makes you feel great about yourself—it’s easy for them to believe they’re better than everyone else.
It may sound silly, but some gamers genuinely believe that every new player gets in their way and make it difficult for others to get better themselves.
So, if someone calls you out on your bad performance or seems overly aggressive during gameplay, don’t take it personally; just remind yourself that winning isn’t everything. People who play aggressively want what they want: victory at all costs.
The Relaxed Slacker
He’s never done anything particularly remarkable in his life, but he’s good at what he does. And for some reason (and often against better judgment), people continue to like him. He doesn’t worry about deadlines or responsibilities; he just plays games until he can play no more.
He isn’t the leader type, so it may take a while for him to develop a plan or figure out your next move in FIFA. But when he does come up with an idea, expect it to be fun or hilarious or both.
The Confident Comrade
Some gamers are there for you through thick and thin. It’s like having a best friend with benefits. These gaming partners may not be as close as family, but they have your back. If you find yourself struggling in a game, they won’t be afraid to call you out or step in to help.
They don’t mind playing games together, but it doesn’t make them inseparable. They still enjoy their own time away from each other, and that’s a great type of friendship to have because you can relax knowing someone has got your back when things get tough.
The Shy Casual Gamer
The Casual Gamer is somewhat new to gaming but has always loved it. This player may not be very competitive or experienced but still loves video games. They might be scared away by competitive gamers in social circles, so going solo is a smart move for them. Maybe they’ll make a friend while they’re at it.
If you happen to find yourself in a game with a Casual Gamer, go easy on them and make sure they feel welcome. Don’t expect them to perform at your level or understand how you communicate with your teammates. Just remember that every gamer has a story, so be nice.
6 Ways to Find Out Who Your Gaming Friends Are (or Are Not)
It’s common knowledge that when you play video games online, you’re playing with strangers—people whose names and faces you may never know in person. But sometimes, despite the anonymity of online gaming, real friendships develop between people from all over the world who share the same interests.
However, if you have no idea who your friends are in a game, the chances are that you might be stuck in a toxic gaming group where people lie about their identity or just go by aliases.
Here are some of our best tips on finding out who your gaming friends are (or are not).
1) Play games with them
The best way to get a sense of who someone is online is by playing with them regularly over time because they may prove themselves as someone worth knowing, or they won’t. If you want to find out if your gaming friends are more than just a passing interest, invite them and play games together.
This is a crucial step in learning how well you work with someone, and it’s also a great way to discover who they really are as people since it takes away all of their social media veneers. You might be surprised by what you find.
2) Do your research
If you know the name or contact information, you can run a simple check on Nuwber to know who they are and what they do apart from playing games.
Also, social media has become a big part of people’s lives, so if you and your gaming friends have linked up on social media, you can understand them based on what you know about their social media habits, like how often they post and when they are most active on each platform.
3) Ask open-ended questions
A person can’t answer open-ended questions with a simple yes or no. Instead, they encourage users to provide more detailed responses and elicit more thoughtful, personal responses instead of superficial ones.
Even closed-ended questions can benefit from being open-ended: For example, instead of asking a gamer who their friends are and how they know them, ask what kinds of games people play together, how people find out about games, etc.
4) Get to know their habits
Just like in-person friendships, your gaming friends have habits that define them. Take a close look at how your gaming friends play games—do they usually rush through to get quick results, or are they more interested in being thorough and methodical? Do they work together on group projects, or do they prefer completing their own quests?
Pay attention to what’s important to them, and you’ll soon begin identifying their quirks.
5) Learn their opinion on important topics
Get a good sense of how your gaming friends view life. How do they feel about their job, family, marriage, and more? All these factors can play into how dedicated they’ll be when gaming with you.
Make sure you discuss politics, economics, religion, or any other topic. It’s okay if you don’t agree on every subject; just get an idea of how they think. For example, if you find out that one of your friends is pro-life and another is pro-choice, you can prepare for some tension in future gaming sessions.
6) See how well they understand you
Learning how well your friends understand you is a great way to know if they’re true friends or just hanging around for fun.
If you find that these people don’t really get you or aren’t willing to listen, it might be time to reevaluate who makes up your gaming crew. We spend quite a bit of time getting close with people we game with, so keep an eye out for friends who might not always have your best interests.
To Sum It Up
The gaming community has so many different types of gamers, and it can be hard to identify who the people you play games with are. From casual gamers to esports players to people who just play mobile games on the bus, everyone has their own identity. Knowing your friends’ identities will make your experience more enjoyable and safe for all parties involved.
If you’re having trouble telling apart some of your gamer friends, look at their attitudes toward the game, how they interact with other players and their strategies during gameplay. You’ll have no problem telling them apart in no time. | https://thenationroar.com/do-you-really-know-your-gaming-friends/ |
Scalzi has a post that gives a name to the point I raised earlier about the uncanny valley in storytelling.
To which I said: ‘So you can accept a snowman eating hot soup, but not flying?’ Because, you know, if you can accept the former (not to mention the entire initial premise of a snowman coming to life), I’m not sure how the snowman flying became qualitatively more ridiculous.
‘The Flying Snowman Problem’ works as well as a label for the issue as anything, and better than most. Consider it named. | https://veilwar.com/2011/12/11/give-it-a-name/ |
Introduction {#Sec1}
============
Shaping a coherent laser beam with independent control of its intensity, phase and polarization is a long posted problem of high interest in science and technology. This is particularly important in areas such as optical manipulation of micro/nano-particles and light material processing, where laser beams strongly focused in the form of diffraction-limited patterns such as points and curves are required. For example, it is known that the three-dimensional (3D) high intensity gradients of a focused laser beam yield optical forces responsible for stable 3D trapping of particles^[@CR1]^. The phase gradients of the beam can be also exploited to exert optical forces able to drive the motion of the particles along different trajectories^[@CR2]--[@CR5]^. The combined use of high intensity and phase gradients allows for improving laser micromachining tools^[@CR6],[@CR7]^. It has been also reported that vector Gaussian beams with radial and/or tangential (azimuthal) polarization have advantages for laser material processing (micromachining such as drilling and cutting), e.g.: tangential polarization provides increased laser micro-drilling velocities and generation of thin capillaries with high aspect ratios in thick sheets^[@CR8],[@CR9]^. Moreover, it has been demonstrated that femtosecond vortex pulses tightly focused onto the surface of dielectric media allows creating subwavelength ripples whose orientation depends on the polarization direction^[@CR10],[@CR11]^. The ability to change the polarization state in the focal plane by tuning the vortex topological charge^[@CR11]^ adds new income in the development of such micro- and nano-scale surface structuring.
In general, a vector beam **E**(*x*, *y*) = *A*(*x*, *y*)**e** with arbitrary complex field amplitude *A*(*x*, *y*) and polarization distribution **e** = (*a*~1~(*x*, *y*), *a*~2~(*x*, *y*)), at a given transverse *xy*-plane, can be generated by using computer generated holograms (CGHs) addressed into programmable spatial light modulators (SLMs) as reported elsewhere^[@CR12]--[@CR16]^. Here **e** is a Jones vector where *a*~1,2~(*x*, *y*) are complex functions such that \|*a*~1~(*x*, *y*)\|^2^ + \|*a*~2~(*x*, *y*)\|^2^ = 1. Indeed, a combination of two collinear beams **E**~1~(*x*, *y*) = *A*(*x*, *y*)*a*~1~(*x*, *y*)**e**~1~ and **E**~2~(*x*, *y*) = *A*(*x*, *y*)*a*~2~(*x*, *y*)**e**~2~ with orthogonal linear polarization states **e**~1~ = (1, 0) and **e**~2~ = (0, 1) forms a vector beam. Circular polarized beams $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
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\begin{document}$${{\bf{e}}}_{\mathrm{1,2}}^{c}=(1,\pm \,i)$$\end{document}$ can be also used for this task. The superposition of the beams **E**~1~ and **E**~2~ created by using two SLMs is often achieved applying a Mach-Zehnder interferometer^[@CR16]^ or a common-path interferometer with a Ronchi grating^[@CR17]^ as the one sketched in Fig. [1(a)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}. Numerous vector beams have been created by using this approach^[@CR12]--[@CR16]^, however, the challenging problem of the design and generation vector beams strongly focused in form of a diffraction-limited light curve of arbitrary shape with independent control of its intensity, phase and polarization distributions along it has not been completely solved. While in^[@CR18]^, an inverse design based on a numerical calculation procedure has been proposed for complete 2D shaping of the optical focal field with the prescribed distribution of intensity, phase and polarization, however, an analytical expression for the required beam simplifying the light curve generating process has not been found. On the other hand in^[@CR19]^, using the expression for scalar curved beams proposed by us in^[@CR20]^, a particular case of polarization shaping of curved vector beams in three dimensions has been demonstrated. Note that the approach reported in^[@CR19]^ does not allow shaping an arbitrary phase along the curve.Figure 1(**a**) Sketch of the system used for the generation and analysis of vector beams. (**b**) Intensity and phase distributions of a scalar polymorphic beam shaped in form of triangular-like curve given by Eq. ([9](#Equ9){ref-type=""}) with parameters **q** = (1, 1.8, 1, 2, 1.4, 6) and *ρ*(*t*) = constant. The second and third rows show the uniform and non-uniform phase distributions (charge *l* = 8) prescribed along the curve. (**c**) Intensity and phase shaped along a spiral curve with **q** = (1, 1, 250, 100, 100, 6) and *ρ*(*t*) ∝ *t*. (**d**,**e**) Experimental results: vector polymorphic beam with uniform and non-uniform polarization variation, $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\bf{e}}(t)=({e}^{{\rm{i}}2p\pi \sigma (t)},\,{e}^{-{\rm{i}}2p\pi \sigma (t)})/\sqrt{2}$$\end{document}$, prescribed along the curve. In the experiments the focal length is f = 150 mm and the input collimated laser beam (linear polarized) has a wavelength of *λ* = 532 nm. (**f**) Changes of the polarization state along the curved vector beams considered in this example. The repetitive changes of the polarization, associated with the movements on the green-marked meridians of the Poincaré sphere, along the curves are illustrated in the corresponding zoom inserts of (**d**).
In this work we present a kind of vector beam, referred to as vector polymorphic beam, that solves this challenging problem of beam shaping. It is based on its scalar analogous beam^[@CR21]^, which can be strongly focused in form of diffraction-limited light curve of arbitrary shape with the following key properties: high 3D intensity gradients, independent design of the intensity and phase distributions (both of them can be arbitrary) along the curve according to the considered application. The scalar polymorphic beam has been used to create freestyle laser traps providing both optical confinement and transport of micro/nano-particles along reconfigurable trajectories^[@CR5],[@CR20],[@CR22]^. Apart from optical manipulation, scalar polymorphic beams have been also applied for laser printing of plasmonic nanoparticles^[@CR23]^ illustrating their possible application for single-shot laser lithography, micro-machining (drilling and marking)^[@CR7]--[@CR9]^, etc. Its design has an inherent versatility that can be exploited to create other types of coherent beams such as electron beams shaped along curves, as it has been shown in^[@CR24]^. Another advantage is that this kind of beam shaping technique does not require the use of iterative algorithms, thus enabling direct and fast generation of such laser curves. Moreover, it can be easily implemented by using a CGH addressed into a conventional programmable SLM.
In next section we propose a simple technique for the generation of vector polymorphic beams with tailored polarization distribution along the light curve, thus enlarging the practical applications of their scalar counterparts. In section 3 the technique is experimentally verified. The article ends with conclusion remarks.
Principle of the Technique {#Sec2}
==========================
The vector polymorphic beam is defined by:$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$\begin{array}{rcl}{\bf{E}}(x,y) & = & {E}_{1}(x,y){{\bf{e}}}_{1}+{E}_{2}(x,y){{\bf{e}}}_{2}\\ & = & {\int }_{0}^{T}({g}_{1}(t){{\bf{e}}}_{1}+{g}_{2}(t){{\bf{e}}}_{2})\,\exp \,[-\,{\rm{i}}\frac{k}{{\rm{f}}}R(t)(x\,\cos \,t+y\,\sin \,t)]\,{\rm{d}}t,\end{array}$$\end{document}$$with **e**~1,2~ corresponding to orthogonal polarization components, for example, linear **e**~1~ = (1, 0) and **e**~2~ = (0, 1) or circular $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${{{\bf{e}}}^{{\rm{c}}}}_{\mathrm{1,2}}$$\end{document}$ = (1, ±i) ones. Specifically, *g*~1,2~(*t*) = *g*(*t*)*a*~1,2~(*t*) are weight functions defining the intensity and phase distributions along the curve, while *a*~1,2~(*t*) controls the polarization along it assuming \|*a*~1~(*t*)\|^2^ + \|*a*~2~(*t*)\|^2^ = 1. Here, *R*(*t*) is the radius of an arbitrary 2D curve given in polar coordinates that can be either closed (*T* = 2*π*) or open, f is a normalization constant, *T* stands for the maximum value of the azimuthal angle *t*, while *k* = 2*π/λ* with *λ* being the light wavelength.
Let us first briefly recall the main characteristics of the scalar polymorphic beam^[@CR21]^$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$E(x,y)={\int }_{0}^{T}g(t)\,\exp \,[-\,{\rm{i}}\frac{k}{{\rm{f}}}R(t)(x\,\cos \,t+y\,\sin \,t)]\,{\rm{d}}t,$$\end{document}$$used in the design of the vector polymorphic beam Eq. ([1](#Equ1){ref-type=""}). To create the light curve, the polymorphic beam is Fourier transformed^[@CR21]^:$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$\begin{array}{rcl}\tilde{E}(u,v) & = & \frac{1}{{\rm{i}}\lambda {\rm{f}}}\int E(x,y)\,\exp \,[-\,{\rm{i}}\frac{k}{{\rm{f}}}(xu+yv)]\,{\rm{d}}x{\rm{d}}y\\ & = & \frac{\lambda {\rm{f}}}{{\rm{i}}}{\int }_{0}^{T}g(t)\delta (u+R(t)\,\cos \,t)\delta (v+R(t)\,\sin \,t){\rm{d}}t,\end{array}$$\end{document}$$by using a convergent lens of focal length f. Thus, the shape of the beam $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$\tilde{E}(u,v)$$\end{document}$ in the focal plane is described by the 2D curve written in parametric form as **c**(*t*) = (*u*(*t*), *v*(*t*)), with *u*(*t*) = −*R*(*t*) cos *t* and *v*(*t*) = −*R*(*t*) sin *t*. While, the complex weight function$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$g(t)=|g(t)|\,\exp \,[{\rm{i}}\frac{2\pi l}{S(T)}S(t)],$$\end{document}$$controls the amplitude and phase distributions along the curve. Specifically, the field amplitude distribution along the curve is given by $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$|\tilde{E}(u(t),\,v(t))|=|g(t)|/\kappa |{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (t)|$$\end{document}$, where: $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$|{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (t)|=\sqrt{R^{\prime} {(t)}^{2}+R{(t)}^{2}}$$\end{document}$ with **c**′(*t*) = d**c**(*t*)/d*t*, and *κ* = *L*/*λ*f with $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$L={\int }_{0}^{T}|{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (\tau )|{\rm{d}}\tau $$\end{document}$ being the curve length^[@CR21]^. While, the phase of *g*(*t*) is controlled by the real function *S*(*t*) describing the phase variation along the curve. Note that the parameter *l* defines the phase accumulation along the entire curve^[@CR21]^. For closed curves the phase accumulation is 2*πl* and *l* corresponds to the vortex topological charge^[@CR25]^. For instance, a light curve with uniform intensity is obtained by using \|*g*(*t*)\| = *E*~0~*κ*\|**c**′(*t*)\| (with dimension of electric field) while$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$S(t)={\int }_{0}^{t}|{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (\tau )|{\rm{d}}\tau ,$$\end{document}$$sets a uniform phase distribution along the curve **c**(*t*). A non uniform phase shaped along the curve can be easily obtained by using, for example, the following constraint$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$S(t)={\int }_{0}^{t}{R}^{\alpha }(\tau ){\rm{d}}\tau ,$$\end{document}$$with *α* being a real number^[@CR21]^. For instance, in Fig. [1(b)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} it is shown a scalar polymorphic beam focused in form of triangular-like curve with a topological charge *l* = 8, for the case of uniform \[Eq. ([5](#Equ5){ref-type=""})\] and non-uniform \[Eq. ([6](#Equ6){ref-type=""}) with *α* = 2\] phase distribution. Note that the change of either the phase distribution and/or value of *l* does not alter the shape and size of the beam curve, independently whether the curve is closed or open as the spiral one demonstrated in Fig. [1(c)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}.
Such a versatile control of amplitude and phase along the curve results crucial for creating vector polymorphic beams. For example, to adapt the polarization **e**(*t*) = (*a*~1~(*t*), *a*~2~(*t*)) to the curve shape, the phase of *a*~1,2~(*t*) can be expressed similar to Eq. ([4](#Equ4){ref-type=""}) as it follows: exp\[i2*πp*~1,2~*σ*~1,2~(*t*)\] with *σ*~1,2~(*t*) = *S*~1,2~(*t*)/*S*~1,2~(*T*) and *p*~1,2~ being real numbers. Note that *σ*~1,2~(*t*) ∈ \[0, 1\] and the variation of the Jones vector along the curve can be also uniform if *S*~1,2~(*t*) is described by Eq. ([5](#Equ5){ref-type=""}), or non-uniform when it is described for example by Eq. ([6](#Equ6){ref-type=""}). Thus, when $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$|{a}_{1}(t)|=|{a}_{2}(t)|=\mathrm{1/}\sqrt{2}$$\end{document}$, *σ*~1,2~(*t*) = *σ*(*t*) and *p*~2~ = −*p*~1~ = *p* the polarization defined by the Jones vector $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\bf{e}}(t)=({e}^{{\rm{i}}2\pi p\sigma (t)},\,{e}^{-{\rm{i}}2\pi p\sigma (t)})/\sqrt{2}$$\end{document}$ performs a 2*p* rotation along two meridians of the polarization Poincaré sphere with an azimuthal angle distant 180° between each other. In this case the global phase of the vector beam is given by the phase of *g*(*t*), Eq. ([4](#Equ4){ref-type=""}). Other combinations of *a*~1,2~(*t*), allows for more complex movements along the polarization sphere.
A polarization tangential to the curve results more relevant in practical applications such as laser material processing and micro-machining. Indeed, as pointed out in^[@CR8],[@CR9]^ tangential polarization yields improved laser drilling on materials. Phase gradients of scalar vortex beams have been also proved successful for clearer and smoother processed surfaces^[@CR6]^. Therefore, a vector polymorphic beam with both polarization and phase gradient tangential to the curve opens up promising perspectives. In this case the vector polymorphic beam has to be created with$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$\begin{array}{rcl}{a}_{1}(t) & = & (\,-\,R(t)\,\sin \,t+R^{\prime} (t)\,\cos \,t){|{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (t)|}^{-1},\\ {a}_{2}(t) & = & (R^{\prime} (t)\,\sin \,t+R(t)\,\cos \,t){|{\bf{c}}^{\prime} (t)|}^{-1},\end{array}$$\end{document}$$when using orthogonal linear polarization components. Indeed, the Jones vector **e**(*t*) = (*a*~1~(*t*), *a*~2~(*t*)) is tangential to the curve ***c***(*t*). We recall that the weight functions are *g*~1,2~(*t*) = *g*(*t*)*a*~1,2~(*t*) and therefore it is possible obtain the tangential polarization independently of the intensity and phase prescribed by *g*(*t*) along the curve. To set the polarization orthogonal to the curve, *a*~1~(*t*) and *a*~2~(*t*) given by Eq. ([7](#Equ7){ref-type=""}) have to be exchanged.
As we have previously mentioned, orthogonal left- and right-hand circular polarization components $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${{\bf{e}}}_{\mathrm{1,2}}^{c}$$\end{document}$ = (1, ±i) can be also used to generate a vector polymorphic beam. In this case, in order to create a polarization tangential to the curve, the required functions for two orthogonal components of the beam are defined by$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$\begin{array}{rcl}{a}_{1}^{c}(t) & = & \exp \,[-\,{\rm{i}}(\arctan \,(\frac{R(t)}{R^{\prime} (t)})+t)],\\ {a}_{2}^{c}(t) & = & \exp \,[{\rm{i}}(\arctan \,(\frac{R(t)}{R^{\prime} (t)})+t)].\end{array}$$\end{document}$$
Experimental Results {#Sec3}
====================
The experimental setup sketched in Fig. [1(a)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} has been used to generate the vector beams Eq. ([1](#Equ1){ref-type=""}) considered here. It consists of a programmable SLM (Holoeye PLUTO, pixel size of 8 *μ*m) in which a phase-only CGH encoding the beam components as *E*~1~(*x*, *y*) exp (i2*πx*/Λ) + *E*~2~(*x*, *y*) exp (−i2*πx*/Λ) has been addressed by using the approach reported in^[@CR26]^. We recall that the weight functions are *g*~1,2~(*t*) = *g*(*t*)*a*~1,2~(*t*) and therefore the polarization information of *a*~1,2~(*t*) has been also included into the CGH encoding *E*~1,2~(*x*, *y*). This CGH allows for generating the beams $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\tilde{E}}_{\mathrm{1,2}}(u,v)$$\end{document}$ spatially separated at the focal plane of the convergent lens *L*1, where they are respectively modulated by two half-wave plates (HWP1 and HWP2) in order to obtain the required orthogonal linear polarization components, see Fig. [1(a)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}. If orthogonal left- and right-hand circular polarization components are used to generate a vector polymorphic beam then the HWPs of the setup have to be replaced by quarter-wave plates. The beam components $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\tilde{E}}_{\mathrm{1,2}}(u,v)$$\end{document}$ are combined by using another convergent lens *L*2 (in our case *L*1 and *L*2 are identical, working together as a 4f system) and a diffraction grating of period Λ (in our case a Ronchi Ruling grating of 20 lp/mm, Edmund Optics). Thus, the focused vector polymorphic beam $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\tilde{E}}_{1}(u,v){{\bf{e}}}_{1}+{\tilde{E}}_{2}(u,v){{\bf{e}}}_{2}$$\end{document}$ (the laser curve) is obtained at the focal plane of the lens *L*3, where its intensity distribution has been recorded by a digital camera (color CMOS, Thorlabs, pixel size of 4.7 *μ*m). In our case the analyzer has been set into a programmable rotation stage (Newport URS100BCC).
In the considered examples, the curve is described by$$\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$$R(t)=\rho (t)\,{[{|\frac{1}{a}\cos (\frac{m}{4}t)|}^{{n}_{2}}+{|\frac{1}{b}\sin (\frac{m}{4}t)|}^{{n}_{3}}]}^{-\mathrm{1/}{n}_{1}},$$\end{document}$$known as Superformula^[@CR27]^, that allows for straightforward generation of a large variety of shapes where the real numbers in **q** = (*a*, *b*, *n*~1~, *n*~2~, *n*~3~, *m*) are the design parameters of the curve and *ρ*(*t*) is a non-periodic function of *t* required for the construction of asymmetric and spiral-like curves (e.g.: *ρ*(*t*) ∝ *e*^*βt*^ or *ρ*(*t*) ∝ *t*^*β*^). For example, with **q** = (1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 0) and constant *ρ*(*t*) = *ρ*~0~ a circle of radius *R*(*t*) = *ρ*~0~ is obtained, while for other values of **q** a variety of closed polygons of different symmetry are easily generated^[@CR21]^.
Let us first consider the experimental examples displayed in Fig. [1(d,e)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} corresponding to a triangular-like and spiral curves. In this case the vector polymorphic beam focuses into the curve with uniform intensity distribution and constant phase, while its polarization $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\bf{e}}(t)=({e}^{{\rm{i}}2\pi p\sigma (t)},\,{e}^{-{\rm{i}}2\pi p\sigma (t)})/\sqrt{2}$$\end{document}$ varies along the curve following the meridian path on the polarization Poincaré sphere as shown in Fig. [1(f)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}. Specifically, Fig. [1(d)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} shows the experimental results obtained for the triangular-like curve with *l* = 0, *p*~2~ = −*p*~1~ = *p* = 8 and *σ*(*t*) yielding uniform \[Eq. ([5](#Equ5){ref-type=""})\] and non-uniform \[Eq. ([6](#Equ6){ref-type=""}) with *α* = 2\] variation of the polarization along it, see second and third rows respectively. Note that in this case the analyzer has been set at 45° and therefore the measured intensity distribution shows 2*p* = 16 fringes distributed along the curve. The same polarization configurations have been prescribed in the case of the spiral curve, see Fig. [1(e)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}. We underline that in the case of uniform variation of *σ*(*t*) the polarization distribution periodically changes along the curve (*t* ∈ \[0, *T*\]): it is linearly polarized at 45° and −45° in the points where *σ*(*t*) = *n*/16 and *σ*(*t*) = 1/32 + *n*/16, correspondingly (with *n* = 0, 1, 2, \..., 15). While right(left)-hand circular polarization is obtained in the points where *σ*(*t*) = 1/64 + *n*/16 (and *σ*(*t*) = 3/64 + *n*/16), see also Fig. [1(f)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}. In the case of non-uniform variation of *σ*(*t*) \[described by Eq. ([6](#Equ6){ref-type=""})\] this transformation in the polarization is accelerated along the curve.
The examples considered in Fig. [1](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"} have mostly fundamental character. Now we turn to practically important cases: Polymorphic beams with both uniform intensity and phase distribution and linear polarization tangential to the curve. In Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"} and Supplementary Video [1](#MOESM2){ref-type="media"}, the rotation of the analyzer indicates that the polarization has been set tangential to the curve as it follows from the further analysis of the Stokes components. Indeed, by calculating the first three Stokes parameters *S*~0~ = *I*(0°) + *I*(90°), *S*~1~ = *I*(0°) − *I*(90°), and *S*~2~ = *I*(45°) − *I*(135°), −where *I*(*θ*) stands for the measured intensity distribution when the analyzer is set at an angle *θ* with respect the horizontal axis − one derives that $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${S}_{0}^{2}={S}_{1}^{2}+{S}_{2}^{2}$$\end{document}$ and therefore the fourth parameter is *S*~3~ = 0. It means that the polarization is linear in all the points of the curve and forms an angle *θ* = (arctan(*S*~2~/*S*~1~))/2 with horizontal axis as it is shown in the last row of Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}. Note that an uniform phase distribution, given by the function *S*(*t*) in Eq. ([5](#Equ5){ref-type=""}) with *l* = 8, has been used in all the beams displayed in Fig. [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"}. For example, the uniform phase distribution prescribed in Fig. [2(a,b)](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"} is the same as the one displayed in Fig. [1(b,c)](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}, respectively.Figure 2Experimental results: intensity distributions of a vector polymorphic beam $\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
\begin{document}$${\tilde{E}}_{1}(u,v){{\bf{e}}}_{1}+{\tilde{E}}_{2}(u,v){{\bf{e}}}_{2}$$\end{document}$ with a polarization set tangential to the curve. In this case an uniform phase distribution (*l* = 8), **e**~1~ = (1, 0) and **e**~2~ = (0, 1) have been used. The first row displays the intensity distribution of the generated vector beams while the second and third ones shown their intensities when an analyzer is rotated, see also Supplementary Video [1](#MOESM2){ref-type="media"}. The last row shows that the polarization is linear in all the points of the curve and forms an angle *θ* = (arctan(*S*~2~/*S*~1~))/2 with horizontal axis, where *S*~1,2~ are measured Stokes parameters. The polarization is tangential to the curve as expected. Curve parameters: (**a**) triangular-like curve **q** = (1, 1.8, 1, 2, 1.4, 6), (**b**) spiral **q** = (1, 1, 250, 100, 100, 6) with *ρ*(*t*) ∝ *t*, (**c**) a polygon with **q** = (2.7, 2.6, 6, 12, 8.3, 5.3), starfish curve **q** = (10, 10, 2, 7, 7, 5), spiral with **q** = (1, 1, 5, 5, 5, 10) and *ρ*(*t*) ∝ *t*^0.2^.
Discussions {#Sec4}
===========
The vector polymorphic beam can be easily created by using a hologram and provides a direct (non-iterative) way for confining light in the form of a diffraction-limited 2D curve of arbitrary shape and size, with independent control of the intensity, phase and polarization distributions. These degrees of freedom are demanded by relevant applications as for example laser material processing^[@CR7]--[@CR9],[@CR23]^ and optical manipulation of micro/nano-particles^[@CR5],[@CR20],[@CR22]^. Here, the versatility in the design and generation of the vector polymorphic beams have been illustrated in several examples using a straightforward experimental setup. More sophisticated setups, as the ones reported in^[@CR9]^, can be applied instead for practical implementations of the polymorphic beams. Industrial applications of the polymorphic beams could require a diffraction optical element instead of a liquid crystal SLM for hologram encoding.
Electronic supplementary material
=================================
{#Sec5}
vector polymorphic beams whose polarization has been set tangential to curves Legend for supporting videos
**Electronic supplementary material**
**Supplementary information** accompanies this paper at 10.1038/s41598-018-26126-9.
**Publisher\'s note:** Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
The Spanish *Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad* is acknowledged for the project TEC2014-57394-P.
J.A.R. and T.A. developed the idea discussed the results and wrote the manuscript. J.A.R designed and performed the experiments as well as programs.
Competing Interests {#FPar1}
===================
The authors declare no competing interests.
| |
Desert Energy Urea is a granular fertilizer and it’s the richest source of Nitrogen among the common dry fertilizers. It’s having 46% Nitrogen.
The main function of Urea fertilizer is to provide the plants with nitrogen to promote green leafy growth and make the plants look lush. Urea also aids the photosynthesis process of plants.
Composition:
Nitrogen (N) 46%
Phosphorus (P2OS) 0%
Potassium (K2O) 0%
Method of Soil Application:
Apply urea by soil incorporation. As a general rule, urea should not be applied on the soil of the surface or crop residues without immediate incorporation. A substantial loss of Nitrogen from urea can be reduced or eliminated by soil incorporation.
|Crop||Application Rate|
|Open field vegetables, legumes, Potato||15 gm per m2|
|Matured Trees||500 gm/Tree|
|Potted Plants||2-3 gm for each 5 Ltr growing medium|
|Lawn & Landscape||Foliar Feeding: 10gm per m2 Using 600ml of Water|
NOTE: Urea 46-0-0 (46% Nitrogen) is a very concentrated form of Nitrogen, you need to be very careful and not over your plants/Lawn. Overfeeding plants with Nitrogen could harm the plants/Lawn grown very easily.
TIP:
Applying in the early morning to late afternoon will produce the best results.
STORAGE:
- Keep out of direct sunlight.
- Store under dry and cool conditions.
- Partly used bags must be closed. | https://homesupplies.ae/products/urea |
One habit of the Indigo Bunting bird is his persistant singing. Singing well into the summer when most birds have fallen silent. I would probably never see this bird if it wasn't for hearing him at the top of a tree.
While this bird appears to love singing, he's not especially melodic. One song may sound like another, but individual birds vary greatly in melody and sequence.
Measuring 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 inches in length and has a sparrowlike dark gray conical bill.
In summer, the male is dark blue overall. In winter the male is brownish with some blue on underparts. It takes the sun's light to see the iridescent blue of this bird.
The feathers don't contain any blue pigment but the diffracted sunlight gives the feathers the appearance of blue.
The female is a plain brown, with faint wing bars and faint streaking. Keeping this same plumage all year. Female Indigos can be difficult to find. Their plain plumage and secretive nature during nesting make them hard to add to the birders list.
Not much is known about this birds mating habits other than to say, singing from an uppermost perch is likely done to attract a perspective mate and protect his territory.
The nest is a well-made cup of grass, leaves, bark strips and lined with finer grasses and downy material.
Located 5 to 15 feet above ground in a bush, small tree, or tangle.
The female lays 2 to 6 bluish unmarked eggs. Incubation is done by the female only and last about 12 days.
The young will leave the nest withing 10 to 15 days after hatching. These birds are very reluctant to approach the nest if humans are close by.
If you get near the nest they will give a "spit" call and flick their tail.
1 - 2 broods raised each season. Sometimes the male will still be feeding the first fledglings while the female begins building a second nest.
Indigo Buntings forage on the ground and in low folige for insects such as spiders. Additional food sources for these birds include weed seeds, wild berries, and grain.
Subscribe To Our YouTube Channel To See All Our Bird Videos! | https://www.wild-bird-watching.com/Indigo-Bunting.html |
December 10, 2019
79 years, 9 months, 5 days old age Ram Gopal Bajaj will turn 80 on 05 March, 2020. Only 2 months, 23 days, 11 hours, 3 minutes has left for his next birthday.
|Tuesday|
|Thursday|
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Birthdays Celebrated on Each Day of Week
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Ram Gopal Bajaj has celebrated the total number of 79 birthdays till date. See the analysis by days count and bar graph. | https://www.celebrityborn.com/biography/ram-gopal-bajaj/2182 |
Sustainable management of water resources in any country or region requires relevant data and information. The disruptive digital technologies, i.e., big data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and blockchain show promise in water-related applications such as planning optimum water systems, detecting ecosystem changes, forecasting/predicting/detecting natural and human made calamities, scheduling irrigation, mitigating environmental pollution, studying climate change impacts, and many others.
The project focuses on application of remote sensing, GIS, big data, AI, and machine learning to assess risks of hydroclimatic disasters, detect changes in water resources and help quantify of water security indicators and water cycle components – all in the form of web-enabled applications and tools. These applications and tools use open data repositories, open-source computing, AI models and cloud computing platforms to ensure the technology transfer to the Global South without big cost impact.
In 2020-2021, this project developed a historical flood mapping tool using historical Landsat data. The tool allows mapping of surface inundation for any region of the world over the period 1984-2020 to be carried out. The tool was developed leveraging the power of Google Earth Engine (cloud computing) resources. It enables users to analyse spatial and temporal extent of surface water inundation and download the result for further analysis.
The objectives of the project over the period 2022-2023 are to:
- Enhance this historical flood mapping tool (FMT) by incorporating other data sources especially freely available RADAR satellite data and improving the overall spatial resolution of the mapped products (using both free and commercial data) for local, urban and property level applications.
- Develop a flood risk analysis and mapping (FRAM) tool that will provide flood risk map for a given area based on historical flood map generated by the FMT and trained AI model. FRAM will help identify the most flood-risky areas for future planning and risk mitigation.
- Develop a Surface Water Change Detection (SWCD) to quickly calculate past patterns of surface water extent. This tool will be useful for analysing storage in waterbodies and reservoirs.
- Support UNU-INWEH water security assessment project by developing methodologies for quantification of specific water security indicators – water quality ones in the first place
Partners
The project works with a range of partners to co-develop and roll out the above tools and is building new partnership across the world as the work develops. Examples of such partnerships – in the previous years and at present – include, but not limited to:
- The Pacific Community, Fiji
- International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management, Japan
- Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, Kenya
- The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Nepal
- SDG Accelerator Lab, University of Baluchistan, Pakistan
- Qatar Computing Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
- Ministry of Agriculture, Sri Lanka
- Asian Disaster Preparedness Center, Stockholm Environment Institute, Thailand
- United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)
- Flood Forecasting and warning Center (FFWC), Bangladesh
Example Outputs of Previous Work
Media Coverage:
Popular Science Magazine: UN’s World Flood Mapping Tool is One of 2021’s 100 Greatest Innovations
Earth’s floods mapped: UN develops an interactive tool that reveals street-level resolution maps of floods worldwide since 1985
New Online Tool Offers Up-To-Date Maps Of Floods Worldwide
New tools to map flood risk will help bring disaster planning up to date
News at a glance: A namesake questioned, flood-risk maps, and an extinct woodpecker
Tool :
Research Publications:
- Mapping of Flood Areas Using Landsat with Google Earth Engine Cloud Platform
- Strategic Foresight to Applications of Artificial Intelligence to Achieve Water-related Sustainable Development Goals (2020)
- Online Historical Flood Mapping Tool for Ontario, Canada (2020)
- A Publicly Available GIS-based Web Platform for Reservoir Inundation Mapping in the Lower Mekong Region (2020)
Op-eds: | https://inweh.unu.edu/projects/data-and-technology-for-strategic-water-planning-and-management/ |
Property Price:
£
|Study||8'5" x 10'5" (2.57m x 3.18m). Once you enter the property, immediately to your left
|
is a spacious area with a bay window, previously used
as an office area which opens out onto the hallway.
This room also benefits from a W/C.
|Living Room||17'6" x 16'5" (5.33m x 5m). A spacious room featuring a bay window with double
|
doors opening out onto the rear garden. An internal
door leads into the adjacent dining room.
|Dining Room||14'10" x 22'3" (4.52m x 6.78m). This large reception room with fireplace benefits from
|
floor to ceiling bay windows which can be opened to
take access directly to the south facing rear lawns and
garden.
|Kitchen||13'11" x 16'5" (4.24m x 5m). The kitchen is located at the far end of the hallway.
|
The kitchen has fitted units with two large windows
and traditional stone flagged flooring. The two doors
from the kitchen lead outside and to the cellar. The
former solid fuel heating system and associated
pipework is found in the kitchen, but is now largely
redundant.
|Cellar/Coal Store||13'9" (4.20m) x 8'11" (2.72m) & 5.31 x 7'2" (2.18m). Leading on from the kitchen, down the original stone
|
steps is the vaulted cellar which is currently used as a
solid fuel store. All original features remain. The cellar
provides very useful additional storage space.
|Master Bedroom||14'10" x 16'5" (4.52m x 5m). A large double room with a south facing bay window
|
overlooking the garden. Includes an open fireplace.
|Second Bedroom||14'9" x 15'4" (4.5m x 4.67m). A large double bedroom with a south facing window
|
overlooking the garden. Includes an open fireplace.
|Third Bedroom||13'8" x 9'10" (4.17m x 3m). A double bedroom with dual aspect windows to the
|
north and west. Includes built in wardrobes and
storage cupboards.
|Family Bathroon||10'1" x 10'1" (3.07m x 3.07m). A spacious bathroom with a bath situated in the centre
|
of the room, sink unit and storage cupboards on one
wall. Hot water is provided by an electric immersion
water tank located in the bathroom cupboard.
|Water Closet|| Complete with WC, sink basin and storage cupboards.
|
|Second Floor|| The second floor would require modernisation work,
|
but offers significant additional accommodation space.
This floor includes a door out on to an external iron
staircase which leads to the ground floor outside. This
was previously used as a self contained annex/flat and
includes three further bedrooms, a living area (which
could also be utilsied as a further bedroom), a small
kitchen area, and bathroom/WC. This could be an ideal
opportunity for a holiday let or simply further living
accommodation for the main house.
|Access|| Access is taken directly from a single track road, onto a
|
wholly owned driveway. The neighbouring properties
benefit from a right of access over this roadway.
These figures are not quotations or an offer of mortgage and should be used as a guide only.
The mortgage amount shown is intended as a guide only. The actual amount you will be able to borrow could be more or less than this figure and depends on your personal circumstances. | https://hhlandestates.co.uk/property/castle-hill-house-castle-hill-middleham-leyburn-north-yorkshire-dl8-4qw/DUR220025/ |
As a creative mother who in turns wants to nurture creative children, I want to cultivate a home that allows time for creativity.
“I don’t know how you do it,” she said as I walked my friend towards the door. “Homeschooling, four kids, writing…” her voice trailed away.
But that was the third time someone had said something similar to me in a month. I’m not wonder woman. I don’t have amazing multitasking skills. I don’t want people to think I do. I don’t do more or better than any other woman who juggles children, work, home, and extra-curricular activities.
Whether you identify yourself as a “creative type” or not, everyone is creative in some aspect of their life. As a Christian I believe God made us in His image. He is the ultimate Creator. When we use our creative talents for expression and problem solving we are imaging God, and so it is little wonder we find the act of creating so satisfying. When we create, we image God by crafting beauty, displaying truth, fulfilling a service, or doing good in the world on behalf of others.
But not everyone feels the need to be creative. I’m not writing this article to make you feel guilty if you aren’t a person who desires to have a creative outlet. I’m not advocating adding one more thing to your to-do list or for you to get less sleep than you already do. But if you identify yourself as someone yearns to express yourself creatively but struggle to find time or make time for it in your life, I’m writing this to encourage you.
Creativity looks different for different people. For some it may be a source of income — a full-time job. For others it may simply be a way to unwind. It could be graphic design or knitting, or baking. It could be gardening or playing music in a community orchestra. It could be something you do for just your family, like scrapbooking memories. It could be something you create for a client, like presenting a gallery of images from a photography session or running an Etsy shop.
Whatever “it” is, if we don’t make such endeavors a priority, they could very well simply remain a desire, not a reality.
The first step in making time for a creative project is acknowledging mentally that’s a priority. That it is important to you.
Once I became a work-at-home-mom, this has looked different for me over the years. First, it was doing graphic design and creating logos for small businesses. Then it morphed into portrait photography for about five years. And through all of those artistically visual pursuits, I was always writing.
I’m a naturally creative person but also a very organized one. In one sense, creating is like breathing to me. As a kid I carried sketchbooks around with me to draw and write in any spare moment I had. I’m also naturally good at time management. This is not always true for creative folks. Sometimes we can be a very disorganized lot. Once I acknowledge I want to make a creative endeavor a priority, the next step is organizing my time in such a way that it can actually happen.
If our creative pursuits also coincide with our career, then making time to complete them may happen naturally. If not, it may be harder to find time for creativity. But whether this is time set aside daily or weekly or monthly, if we believe it’s important, we need to find time to cultivate that interest.
For me this has meant setting aside a few hours during most weekday afternoons. These hours have been the times I’ve worked on client logos, photos, or written articles for publication. But a commitment to these jobs has also meant less play dates when my kids were little. It has meant less extra curricular activities for the kids if they fall into that time slot. It means not spending that time cleaning or doing laundry. Generally speaking, I’ve kept that work time as a sacred space because I’m not super woman. I can only do so much each day. My husband supports my work and we work together to make dinner and do other household chores.
There will be times that certain pursuits do go by the wayside. Our abilities and the time we have will fluctuate with the seasons of life we are in. Sometimes we can do more, sometimes less. For instance, with my commitment to homeschooling and the fact that I have a three-month-old baby, I am not doing photography for clients at the moment. And if I am not finding my value in what I do but instead who I am, I will be less likely to struggle with guilt and comparison. When I seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance in how I spend my time I have peace — even if my days look different than other mothers I know.
Creativity can also be something I use to build memories and relationship with my children. I involve them in my interests. And in turn, I just might ignite their own creative passions.
Granted, when I’ve been on deadline to have pictures processed for a client, I can’t involve my kids. But we can learn about nature by drawing leaves gathered on a walk. We can bake together to take cookies to our neighbors. I can teach my daughter how to knit when she sits beside me and asks me to teach her. I can talk to my kids about how plants grow as we get seeds in the ground for a summer garden. I can introduce them to different musical styles if I play an instrument.
As a creative mother who in turns wants to nurture creative children, I want to cultivate a home that allows time for creativity. Not just for my kids, but for myself.
Soule’s book is brimming with inspiration about how to involve the whole family in living a creative life.
Schaeffer demonstrates how to infuse creativity into every aspect of life. This books is less about homemaking in the way you might assume but more about creativity. | https://ungrind.org/2015/cultivating-creative-motherhood/ |
Q:
Question on modular arithmetic
How does one calculate $3^{(29^{10001})} \mod 35$? I'm just not seeing how to start on it, unless someone could give me a hint? Thanks!
A:
Hint: To use Euler's theorem, you need to compute $29^{10001} \bmod \phi(35)$, noting that $\phi(35)=24$.
| |
So began a column I wrote 22 years ago this month while serving as editor and publisher of the Boerne Star in the Texas Hill Country. The weekly newspaper piece was about “Liz,” a member of the Aldridge family for 59 years come this November.
The story of Liz in the 1993 story continued: “The old green ’57 Ford affectionately dubbed “Liz” by my father’s mother sat silently. The car never objected to being neglected while others in the collection were driven and pampered. One might have surmised she actually enjoyed the peace and quiet of retirement, and furthermore relished in her warehouse storage space alongside a varying variety of vintage cousins.
“Over a dozen or so years, scores of wrecking yard refugees came and went in a seeming quest to resurrect and relive automotive history from the 5Os and 6Os. At first, I paraded tail-finned, rag-topped, white-walled and chrome-plated memories past her as she sat quietly and watched.
“But as the dual-carburetor, dual-exhaust, gas guzzlers of a previous generation passed in and out of the building, one remained. On this particular morning, three survivors were being surveyed in preparation for yet another move to a new home in Pipe Creek, Texas. One of them was granny’s Liz.
“My fingers disturbed the thin coating of dust on her still smooth skin sending particles swirling through the air as they twinkled in beams of morning sunlight.
“I opened the driver’s door and once again smiled at the aroma greeting my nostrils. The interiors of old cars always present a unique smell, regardless of their age, make or background—a unique olfactory experience that I prefer over that of a showroom new car any day.
“The seat springs groaned lightly beneath my weight. ‘Not bad for an all-original car,’ I thought as I scanned the metal and chrome dash, then gazed across the expanse of the big green hood. I touched the ignition switch, but on this particular morning, I let Liz rest choosing the peace of deafening silence in the warehouse over that of her V-8 motor.
“After age and illness confined him to a bed, Liz hibernated, untouched in the garage. Several Christmas seasons passed while my grandmother stayed home to care for the man she loved. When he died just days before Christmas of 1967, dad and I went to the garage to check on Liz. Although suffering from neglect, she had traveled only 17,000 miles in ten years, and a new battery and some fresh gas brought her back to life.
“Granny and Liz were quickly reunited, and the two were back on the street going places of which neither had likely dreamed in a while. The old Ford responded well to granny’s loving touches, and the “green blur” with the little old lady peeping over the steering wheel was once again a common sight buzzing around Pittsburg.
“It was the summer of l98I that granny gave in to the temptation of power steering, automatic transmissions and air conditioning. “You still want Liz,” she asked one day.
“You know I do,” I replied, and Liz was headed for a new home in Center.
“Summer’s late evening breeze wafted the smell of freshly mowed grass through the open windows as I guided Liz south that Saturday in May. Driving the old car kindled long forgotten memory after memory. Driving lessons from my grandfather on shifting a “three-on-the-tree;” cruising the Kilgore College campus when Liz served subbing for one of my ailing hot rods; and dating. “Vivian Thompson, where are you today,” I mused that summer afternoon.
“Opening my eyes and looking at the empty seat beside me on this day was an instant return trip to reality. The memories stirred by the old car were very real, but old girl friends were still only a memory. Giving a gentle push to Liz’s door brought the usual solid and rewarding ‘click’ as the door closed and latched with ease.
The scenario above has been replayed numerous times since that column appeared in print, but Liz is still in the family. She still sits quietly in the garage wearing only 46,000 miles and all but a few of the parts she left the factory with 59 years ago. She still mostly sits at home while her ’55 Ford Crown Victoria and ’57 Ford Thunderbird current cousins enjoy the parties on cruise nights and at car shows.
But, she knows that when the more glamorous and valuable garage mates have moved on, as others before them have, she’s the family member with the priceless memories. And she also knows that she will be the last one to leave the ball when the lights are dimmed for the last time.
Leave her alone……you don’t mess with survivors.
That’s a given. She’s got some thin spots in the paint, couple of dings, small places in the front seat where the threads are coming out. I call that patina and experience. Ain’t gonna do nothing but keep her running.
Love this story. Keep the old girl forever.
Thanks Jeanettte. She’s not going anywhere. I tell everyone as far as old cars go, she’s not that valuable, but I wouldn’t take a million dollars for the memories. | https://leonaldridge.com/2015/09/25/she-will-be-the-last-one-to-leave-the-ball/ |
Jackie Robinson Print (14X21)
14X 21 limited edition Jackie Robinson print on archival paper, signed and numbered.
Print Run: 10
Please allow up to 2 weeks for delivery.
"When he stepped onto the Ebbets Field grass on April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson changed the landscape of the National Pastime - and the nation itself. It was a victory for civil rights, a momentous cultural shift and the beginning of a long journey... all embodied by the Brooklyn Dodgers first baseman." - National Baseball Hall of Fame
Jackie Robinson will always be remembered for breaking the color barrier, but he was also one of baseball's all-time greats! He was a 6x All-Star, World Series Champion, NL MVP who absolutely brought an electricity to baseball that the game had never seen! He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962 and his number, #42, was retired across MLB. | https://lostballparks.com/collections/legends-prints/products/jackie-robinson-print-11x14 |
Table of Contents
How Long Can Turtles Live? For example, a typical pet turtle can live between 10 and 80 years or so while larger species can easily live over 100 years. Sea turtles typically live between 30 and 50 years, and some anecdotal record show that they could live up to 150 years.
Can turtles live up to 500 years? Turtles and tortoises are some of the most long-lived members of the reptile family. Larger species such as sea turtles are estimated to live about 80 years. The giant tortoise, the largest of all land turtles, typically lives at least a century. Some have even been known to live for more than 200 years!
Can turtles live for 200 years? And these turtles have lifespans that perfectly match their 500- to 1,000-pound weights: giant tortoises in captivity have been known to live longer than 200 years, and there’s every reason to believe that testudines in the wild regularly hit the 300-year mark.
How long do domestic turtles live? In captivity, their lifespan can be around 40 to 50 years. These lifespans mostly depend on how well the turtle is taken care of. With a proper turtle tank setup, a turtle can live for more than its average lifespan in captivity or wild.
How Long Can Turtles Live – Related Questions
Can turtles live 300 years?
You’re right, turtles and tortoises live a lot longer than most other animals. If you were a turtle, you might live for more than 150 years. One giant Galápagos tortoise named Harriet even lived to be more than 170 years old, said my friend Donna Holmes.
Can turtles die of old age?
“Turtles don’t really die of old age,” Dr. Raxworthy said. In fact, if turtles didn’t get eaten, crushed by an automobile or fall prey to a disease, he said, they might just live indefinitely. Turtles resist growing old, and they resist growing up.
Which animal can live the longest?
One is even immortal.
10 Turritopsis dohrnii. The oldest living creature is a jellyfish just a few millimetres long and can be found in moderate to tropical waters.
1 Asian Elephant.
2 Blue and yellow macaw.
3 Man.
4 Giant lobsters.
5 Bowhead whale.
6 Giant tortoise.
7 Greenland shark.
•
What is the lifespan of humans?
79 years
Human/Lifespan
Search for: What is the lifespan of humans
Why is a turtle slow?
Well, turtles are slow because they don’t have to be fast. They’re herbivores, so they don’t have to chase their food. They have nice, thick shells, which means that most predators simply don’t bother with them.
What pet turtle has the shortest lifespan?
At the other end of the spectrum, the curiously low profiled ‘Pankcake Tortoise’ is a species with one of the shortest lifespans; usually no more than 30 years.
Which pet turtle lives the longest?
Aldabra giant tortoise
Adwaita, an Aldabra giant tortoise, is probably the longest-living tortoise on record. Adwaita lived in a zoo in India and died at the age of 255 if claims are to be believed.
How Long Do Turtles Live
Do turtles bite?
Though their shells provide very effective protection, most turtles will bite to protect themselves if necessary. This is especially prevalent among wild turtles, but pet turtles may bite as well. While this is a relatively minor concern for owners of small turtles, bites from large turtles can cause severe damage.
Is it OK to move a turtle?
Do NOT relocate a turtle to a “better place”. Turtles have small home territories and should be left where they are found. These turtles may be as much as 19 inches long, weigh up to 35 pounds, have powerful jaws, and a long neck . To handle a large Snapping Turtle safely, avoid the front half of the turtle’s body.
How long will a turtle live without food?
In terms of days, a turtle can survive around 160 days without food. However, they must also have access to water during this time period as well as a healthy amount of light.
Where do turtles go when they die?
Dead turtles that have drowned may float to the surface. This is due to the gases that build up after death, making the turtle buoyant. However, some turtles may simply float along the surface because they choose to. To check if the turtle is still alive after a suspected drowning, set it on a flat surface.
What animal does not age?
To date, there’s only one species that has been called ‘biologically immortal’: the jellyfish Turritopsis dohrnii. These small, transparent animals hang out in oceans around the world and can turn back time by reverting to an earlier stage of their life cycle.6 Sept 2018
What’s the oldest thing on earth?
The zircon crystals from Australia’s Jack Hills are believed to be the oldest thing ever discovered on Earth. Researchers have dated the crystals to about 4.375 billion years ago, just 165 million years after the Earth formed. The zircons provide insight into what the early conditions on Earth were like.
What dog lives the longest?
Australian cattle dogs
The current longest-living dog in Guinness record is hold by an Australian cattle dog named Bluey who lived for 29 years. As a typical working breed, Australian cattle dogs are energetic, intelligent and respond well to training.
What is the longest a human has lived?
According to this criterion, the longest human lifespan is that of Jeanne Calment of France (1875–1997), who lived to age 122 years and 164 days.
Can humans live for 200 years?
Humans may be able to live for between 120 and 150 years, but no longer than this “absolute limit” on human life span, a new study suggests. If therapies were to be developed to extend the body’s resilience, the researchers argue, these may enable humans to live longer, healthier lives.
What job has the shortest life expectancy?
Machinists, musi cians, and printers live from 35 to 40, and clerks, operatives and teachers are the shortest lived of all being, only from 30 to 35. | https://neeness.com/how-long-can-turtles-live/ |
Last Post 10 Apr 2018 10:31 PM by Belfast Blueberry Cooperative & 3 Streams Farm. 8 Replies.
Previous years we used an incubator to hatch our chickens. This year we had a couple of broody hens, so we thought we'd separate them, and let them do it for us. The incubator took 21 days to hatch, does it take hens longer?
They are sitting on the nests, so everything "looks" right, but the timing is off from the incubator.
bonnie it takes 21 days under a hen too. hatching out can take a while but try not to disturb the eggs/nest during the last few days, as the chicks are getting into the proper position to pip their way out.
you're going to have tons of fun watching the mama and their little ones!
Our first broody hen sat on her clutch for 15 days before she got bored with it and stopped sitting.
Our second broody hen is currently on her 26th day of sitting on her clutch.
Our third broody hen is currently on her 6th day of sitting on her clutch of eggs.
hmmm.. either the eggs weren't fertile or maybe you got the dates mixed up? duck eggs take 28 days, chicken 21, i don't know about other species.
hope it works out! i have always had the hatch start on day 21, sometimes it's not til evening, but it's always 21 days from when i set the hen.
These are chickens, and I write it on my calendar when we do it.
Cochins are the best hens for hatching eggs. Best to keep a few around if you don't want to use an incubator. | http://www.mofga.net/Forums/tabid/56/aff/54/aft/218/afv/topic/afpg/1/Default.aspx |
CHICAGO — Remember how dominant the Golden State Warriors were in Tuesday night”s win at Minnesota? Remember how fluid they were offensively, how pesky they were defensively, how undermanned they made the Timberwolves look?
Well, as good as they were Tuesday, they were equally inferior Wednesday night at the United Center. The Warriors put together a Pepe Le Pew of a performance against the Chicago Bulls, going down, 110-88.
After outgunning Minnesota in a 24-point win Tuesday, the Warriors outbricked the Bulls on Wednesday night. Golden State shot 40 percent from the field. It was the Warriors” second time shooting that low a percentage in the last 31 games.
“I thought after such a good performance at Minnesota we”d come in here and really play well,” Warriors coach Don Nelson said. “And we did in the first quarter. But that was the worst three quarters of basketball we”ve played in two months. Couldn”t get anything going. It was just horrible. And it was everybody. I didn”t have a guy on the roster who played worth a darn after the first quarter. . . . It”s disappointing because I was surprised.”
The Warriors got another surprise after the game. Center Andris Biedrins is returning to Oakland to tend to a family matter, according to a team official. He will not be with the team for the game at Detroit on Friday and his status for Saturday”s game at Milwaukee is uncertain.
With guard Monta Ellis still in Jackson, Miss., dealing with a personal matter, the Warriors are down two starters, three counting forward Brandan Wright (dislocated left shoulder). Throw in Wednesday night”s performance, and there”s no doubt the Warriors” finish-the-season-strong movement has taken a noteworthy setback.
“These games matter,” point guard C.J. Watson said. “We can still get better. We just have to keep working at it.”
For the first five minutes of the game, it looked as if the Warriors were still rolling from Tuesday. Swingman Stephen Jackson missed the Warriors” first two attempts of the contest, the second being a lay-up that he put back for the game”s first basket.
That was the first bucket in a stretch of nine straight made baskets, the last a fast-break lay-up by rookie forward Anthony Randolph that capped a 17-4 run to open the game. Crawford broke the string with a bricked 22-footer, but Belinelli followed with a 3-pointer to put the Warriors ahead 20-6 with just over five minutes elapsed in the game.
After making 10 of their first 13 shots 11, the Warriors finished the quarter by missing 7 of 8. They made just a third of their 21 attempts in the second quarter and the Warriors” 26-20 lead after one quarter became a 51-45 deficit at the half.
The Warriors” offense was so bad that the Bulls increased their lead in the third quarter despite shooting 36.8 percent. Crawford was 2-for-12 at one point, forward Corey Maggette 3-for-13.
The Warriors” 13 free throw attempts were their lowest total since they took 13 at Philadelphia on Nov. 23, game No. 13 of the season. Their 13 assists ended a run of six consecutive games with at least 20 assists, which is their goal for every game.
“We”ve got to keep pushing it,” Morrow said. “We”re better when we play fast. You just sense that we were slowing down.”
Notes
Swingman Kelenna Azubuike was a late scratch from the starting lineup, thanks to a mid-back strain. He sustained it when Minnesota swingman Rodney Carney went for a block and leap-frogged him, catching the back of Azubuike”s head on his way down. Azubuike finished the game, but experienced soreness later. . . . Randolph replaced Azubuike as the starting power forward. But he sustained a strained left groin in the first quarter. Though he returned in the second half, he said it was still bothering him after the game. He wasn”t sure if he”d be ready for Friday at Detroit. | https://www.montereyherald.com/2009/03/05/windy-city-slide/ |
Association schemes were introduced by statisticians in the 1950’s to analyze designs of statistical experiments. Today, association schemes are useful not only in experimental designs, but in other areas of mathematics such as combinatorics (coding theory) and group theory (permutation groups).
There are several equivalent ways to define an association schemes. Three useful ones are illustrated here:
Let be a non-empty set with elements, and a positive integer.
Definition 1. An association scheme on is a partition on into sets called associate classes, such that
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•
each is a symmetric relation on , and in particular is the diagonal relation,
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•
for , there is an integer such that, for any ,
If we write for the set , then the second condition says that for any , the value is a constant, depending only on and , and not on the particular elements of . This implies that, for any , the relation is a union of (some of) the ’s.
The definition above can be restated in graph theoretic terminology. First, think of is a set of vertices, and two-element subsets of are edges. The complete graph on is just the set of all two-element subsets of . We may color the edges of the graph. Say there are colors labeled through . For each color , let be the set of edges with color . Then each is just a symmetric relation on , and that all the ’s, together with the diagonal relation, partition the set . This is basically the first condition of the definition above. In this regard, we can redefine an association scheme graph theoretically, as follows:
Definition 2. An association scheme is a surjective coloring on the edge set of a complete graph whose vertex set is , by a set of colors (numbered through ), such that
for any , there is an integer such that if (the edge has color ), then
In words, the definition says that, for any color , and any given edge with color , the number of triangles (a triangle in a graph is a cycle consisting of three edges) with as an edge, and two other edges with colors respectively, is .
The first definition can also be viewed in terms of matrices, and adjacency matrices more specifically. Given a finite set , a binary relation on naturally corresponds to matrix called the adjacency matrix of . Entry is if the -th element and the -th element are related by , and otherwise. If is reflexive, then has all ’s in its diagonal, and if is symmetric, then so is . Also, it is easy to see that the composition of two binary relations is the same as the product of their corresponding adjacency matrices. Then the comment in the paragraph after the first definition is the same as saying that the adjacency matrix of is a linear combination of the adjacency matrices of . This gives us the third definition below:
Definition 3. An association scheme is a finite set of non-zero matrices whose entries are ’s and ’s, such that
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•
each is a symmetric matrix, with , the identity matrix,
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•
, the matrix whose entries are all ’s, and
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•
for any , is a linear combination of .
By the definitions of the matrices and the second condition, for every pair , exactly one of the matrices has in cell , and all others have in the corresponding cell. As a result, the matrices are linearly independent.
Also, in view of the discussion above, it is easy to see that
Some terminology. is called the rank of the association scheme . Any , an element is said to be an -associate of if . For each , define:
So is the set of all -associates of . Then
and because of the above equation, each is called an intersection number of . For each , the intersection number is called the valency of , denoted by .
Some basic properties of the intersection numbers:
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•
-
•
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•
for all . | https://planetmath.org/AssociationScheme |
We didn’t eat ice cream for nearly two years… not out of choice, but because suddenly there were soy-derived additives in all the commercial ice creams. We don’t eat a lot of ice cream in our family, but this was a disappointing development. Birthdays especially just didn’t seem the same.
Then we saw an ice cream machine on sale during the hottest part of last summer. We were skeptical at first that it would make ice cream as easily as the description said, but by that time we were really wanting ice cream! Actually, the process is amazingly easy, and it is so quick… we can make a batch of natural, delicious, soy-free ice cream from start to finish in under thirty minutes. We’ve made peach, coffee, strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate ice cream, as well as blueberry, strawberry, and peach frozen yogurt. Our favorite ice creams so far have been the strawberry and the coffee.
Here’s how it works. At least a day before we want to make ice cream, the freezer bucket… the frosty metal bucket you see in the first picture… needs to be frozen hard. This freezer bucket is basically a small container sealed inside a larger container with some sort of freezable liquid trapped in between. This liquid freezes hard, and the bucket takes the place of the crushed ice and salt used by the old-fashioned ice cream machines. We like to be able to make ice cream at a moment’s notice, so we leave the freezer bucket in the freezer all the time and it’s always frozen and ready to go.
The basic ice cream recipe we use comes from the instruction book, but any recipe for ice cream can be used.
Ingredients
2 cups of heavy cream
1 cup of milk
3/4 cups of sugar (I always use less)
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Stir all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Vanilla ice cream has no additional ingredients, but if we’re making strawberry or peach ice cream, we puree a small amount of the fruit and stir that into the mixing bowl as well. If we’re making coffee ice cream, we stir in a scant tablespoon of instant coffee granules, and if we’re making chocolate ice cream, we stir in some wonderful soy-free baking cocoa.
Now remove the freezer bucket from the freezer, set it in position on top of the ice cream maker. Put the stirring paddle in position and turn the ice cream maker on. The freezer bucket will start rotating… pour all the ice cream mixture into the freezer bucket and snap on the plastic dome. You’ll know the dome is in the right position because it will click… the freezer bucket will continue to rotate but the stirring paddle will be locked in position, stirring the ice cream as the bucket turns around.
It takes about fifteen to twenty-five minutes of stirring time before the ice cream is “done.” The top of the ice cream maker is open so you can monitor the progress (or steal a taste)… you’ll know it is ready because the motor sound will change and will start to sound labored, like it’s turning the bucket with an effort. The ice cream will also become quite thick (as you can see in the photograph). Immediately spoon the ice cream into a freezer-safe container and put the container in the freezer for a couple of hours for it to harden further. Take this opportunity to clean out the freezer bucket, dry it completely, and put it back in the freezer so it will be ready for the next time.
My entire family agrees that this homemade ice cream is the smoothest, creamiest, best-tasting ice cream we have ever eaten… and best of all, a batch of delicious ice cream is now only about a half hour away!
I just want to mention that after years of struggling to find or make a non-dairy ice cream that isn’t too heavily processed, too high in sugar or based on soy, I finally hit on using coconut milk. It has the fat essential for a really creamy ice cream and some brands are available without lecithin or another soy-based additive. Now when I want ice cream, I just pour out a can of organic coconut milk, add another cup of homemade nut milk (usually almond milk), some vanilla and whatever fruit or chocolate or other flavors I want in it, and sweeten it delicately with honey, maple syrup, agave or stevia. I control everything that goes into it. Then I pop it into the freezer, and since I don’t have an ice cream maker, I just stir it a few times while it’s freezing. The next day I let it soften for about an hour, put it into the blender or processor, and process it until it’s really smooth. Then it’s all ready to go! Just an idea for anyone looking for a different kind of ice cream. :) I’m definitely jealous that you have an ice cream maker. I keep thinking about getting one but I’m trying to reduce the gadgetry in my kitchen. So far this is working!
That ice cream looks so delicious. We don’t eat much sugar either but I would always use sugar in ice cream like you do and not one of the substitutes. They just don’t taste the same. I like honey but not in ice cream.
I haven’t stumbled on one of these yet so I make mine the cheater way–I put mine in a sealable container (jar or Gladware) and set the timer while cleaning to go off every 5 minutes. I then shake the container and back into the freezer it goes. Not as smooth, but certainly good for getting a “fix” and very easy. (Plus, I am horribly lazy about cleaning! This gets some done.)
This one seems easy enough. I just bought an ice cream maker for my kitchen aid and im hopeing this works out great for myself and family.
I add 3/4 cup canned pumpkin to the mixture before putting in the ice cream freezer! Awesome! | http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/quick-and-easy-homemade-ice-cream/ |
PURPOSE:
1. To experience a team planning process.
2. To design and implement a team project.
3. To learn to give and receive team feedback.
4. To learn factors that help and hinder team decision making.
GROUP SIZE:
A minimum of 15 people. The activity is especially useful in a team
training workshop but it can be used with an intact team.
TIME:
2 to 3 hours depending on group size and the number of teams in the
workshop.
PHYSICAL
SETTING:
Round or rectangular tables with chairs spread out around the room. It
is important that the teams be unable to hear each other during the
session. If necessary, break-out rooms can be used.
MATERIALS:
Team Reaction Form, Observer Guidelines, easel, flipchart and
markers.
PROCESS:
1. Form teams of six to seven. Ask for two volunteers from each
team to be observers. Explain the role of observers.
2. Brief the observers privately using the Observer Guidelines.
3. While you are meeting with the observers, you may ask the teams
to develop a set of norms for team effectiveness that they will use
during the exercise. See Activity 32, The Team of Your Life.
4. Ask each team to clear their table completely. Each team member
is to place one small item from a pocket or handbag on the table
(e.g., coin, pen, key).
5. Explain that the task is to develop a competitive game that can be
played by two people using only the objects on their table. They
must also plan to teach the game to two people who will actually
play the game. Give teams a time limit of 30 to 45 minutes.
6. When the time period is over, ask team members to complete the
Team Reaction Form. Observers join with team members to give
feedback and discuss the team’s process during this period.
50 Activities for Team Building
96
25
The Product Development Team
(continued)
7. Have observers join a table they did not observe. They are
taught the game that was created by that team. They play the
game and give the team feedback on the game.
8. The observers rejoin their original team. The teams absorb the
feedback and they use the information to revise the game. The
observers continue to record their observations. Time limit: 15
minutes.
9. Observers then go to another team they did not observe (a
different one from the team they moved to in step 7). They are
now taught this game. They play the game and give feedback on
the game to the team.
10. The observers return to their original team where they join with
team members to discuss the process and summarize learnings
on team planning, communication and decision making.
11. The facilitator asks each team for key learnings from this
experience. The learnings are posted on the flipchart. The
facilitator summarizes with a lecturette on team planning,
listening, roles, and decision making.
VARIATIONS:
1. Change step 4 to give all teams the same items (e.g., paper clip,
rubber band, watch, ring). The activity can be changed to a
competitive exercise where the object is to create the best game.
2. A companion activity is Activity 1, Tricky Tales: A Cross-Team
Building Approach.
50 Activities for Team Building
97
Team Reaction Form
1. How satisfied are you with the way your team planned the project?
1 2 3 4 5
Very Dissatisfied Very Satisfied
Comments:
2. How satisfied are you with the way the team utilized its resources (material and
human)?
1 2 3 4 5
Very Dissatisfied Very Satisfied
Comments:
3. Comment on the extent to which team members:
a) Were focused on the task and shared their expertise.
b) Saw the “big picture” and addressed strategic issues.
c) Were concerned about team dynamics and positive process.
d) Raised important questions about team goals and methods.
50 Activities for Team Building
98
4. What things helped the team?
5. What things hindered team effectiveness?
6. How can we increase team effectiveness?
50 Activities for Team Building
99
Observer Guidelines
1. Sit where you can see and hear most of the team.
2. Take notes—include quotes where possible. Note the things that help and hinder
the team and the impact of what was said or done.
3. Look for data on:
TASK-ORIENTED BEHAVIOR (keeping focused on the job to be done)
STRATEGIC BEHAVIOR (seeing the big picture)
PROCESS BEHAVIOR (how the team is working together)
Get 50 Activities for Team Building, Volume I now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience live online training, plus books, videos, and digital content from nearly 200 publishers. | https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/50-activities-for/9780874251746/chapter-36.html |
I prayed my womb was soft enough to hold him. He showed me his face in the feeling that rides on the branches of an evergreen pine. The sun shone on it’s needles. It was early spring, before the new growth and just after the stillness of winter left. It looked to me like a mountain, towering over my hopes and dreams with the power to reassure me and the power to set me straight. The wind allowed the audible whisper of the needles to reach my ears like twinkling rain, “hold on”, said the earth, and I could hear the smile in her tone.
And now he’s one.
Seeing Truth In Our Internal and External World
When we look at our external world and more specifically other people we have two choices;
We can make judgments to fit them into our current world view OR we can consciously allow our worldview to expand by viewing them as an expression of source energy. The benefits of choosing the second option are unbound. The first option is continually limiting yourself and causes pain in every area of your life as you try to build and re-build the box that you are constantly breaking out of just to keep your illusion of security. Stay tuned for more videos expanding on this concept. Please like, subscribe and share!
Thoughts on unified field theory, existence, choice and creation as I sip bitter foam…
I’ve always understood this conceptually:
When one is fully relaxed one is fully in harmony with the Universe as a whole, on every scale and level of existence, every other being, every thing, every vibrating particle, everything. This allows all parts to move fluidly, taking the path of least resistance which always provides the experience most joyous to the one who experiences it. Obviously, if every being was living this way our world would be completely harmonious and peaceful, no need would go unmet and each individual would have the full support of all others and the Universe at large.
I also understood this conceptually:
We don’t fully relax and let go because we look at our current reality and we are afraid. We then make decisions based in this fear which perpetuates it. The lack of fundamental understanding of one-ness, which includes the truth that we do not die but simply experience perspective shifts, gives rise to the fear that we can be harmed by another and inspires individuals to act out of fear which we call “protection” and “safety”. Actions based in fear do not ever produce true protection and safety. Actions made from any vibratory frequency (energetic starting point, emotional platform, mindset) are only able to produce more of that same vibratory frequency (energy). We look at our reality in any given moment and think that we need to protect ourselves from the “other” when in reality there is no “other” to protect ourselves from.
I realized this:
To escape from the conundrum of experiencing fear and reacting to it, which creates more fear to then be reacted to with more fear, we must stop reacting and instead choose to act. I put this principle in action in my life and in doing so continually see astonishing results that transform my world-view at a constantly accelerating pace.
And then I realized this:
I am not actually doing anything. I’m not taking any action or thinking any thoughts. I’m not making any movements, I’m not causing anything to happen. The person that I have imagined to be me (Charlotte) doesn’t exist. I (Charlotte) am a figment of a larger imagination and ultimately that imaginative being simply watches things occur in a self-organizing system. Ultimately, that imaginative being IS the self-organizing system and is self-aware. I have assigned an identity to a piece of this energetic information and then assumed that perspective identity to be me, allowing it set a boundary condition for my experience. I am, at will, able to extend the boundary condition to include any and all aspects of the whole and THAT is how I am able to get information from beyond my own life experience as Charlotte. THAT is how I get psychic information. It is available to all of us as this truth is universal. The self-awareness that allows me to experience myself is “consciousness”, it is also everything that is, is the “whole”, it is the “one”, it is “God”, it is the “highest power”, it is my “higher-self”, it is the “Universe”, it is everything. I am self- aware because of my nature as an infinitely dense vacuum in which information is exchanged constantly on infinite levels of size and density, informing that which I am not that I am not and that which I am that I am.
My experiment in this life is to learn/remember how to extend the boundary condition that defines and contains my experience so that I (Charlotte) am able to bring information and experiences from beyond the boundary condition that I identify as Charlotte into the 3D, earth reality that we share.
Implications:
This understanding allows me to completely relinquish the imaginary control that I once held onto because I know now that I (Charlotte) the identity that I assume within these boundary conditions, does not actually exist as a separate entity from the whole. There is, therefore, no possible way that Charlotte can control anything because Charlotte is both the cause and effect in any given situation. Charlotte is the resulting boundary conditions that arise from the feedback of the whole universe. Causation moves in all directions and is not limited by time. Time is experienced only within the boundary conditions that produce the identity of the individual self. The individual self, in truth, cannot exist because there is no separation between that which the individual is and that which the individual is not. This implies that in understanding my nature as the whole, I am no longer experiencing as the individual. This means that I am no longer able to be a part of the illusion that I effect what I am not. This means that I am both the cause and the effect rather than the one who experiences the effect or creates the cause. Neither the cause nor the effect are created by me (Charlotte), Charlotte is simply an expression of the whole energy which self-organizes. In understanding that the system organizes itself by inherent laws, I understand that I (Charlotte) have no power and thus no control. I do, however have full control from the perspective that is my ultimate truth, the whole. When I allow the façade of the self to fall away, I relax, I let go and I am in harmony with the self-organizing aspect of the Universe which gives rise to all things. There is never a moment in which I am not a part of this system, it never ceases to create my experience within these boundary conditions. It merely works with the information that I produce within these boundary conditions. I give feedback to the whole about that which I am to create the boundary conditions continuously anew. There is no time but instead just a constant fluctuation in energetic resonance feedback that provides differentiation. I give feedback saying, “this is what I am”, which creates the experience of “that which I am not”. This is how I create my own reality with my beliefs. I create my own reality with the feedback that I provide to the whole. I choose the energetic frequency at which I vibrate in every moment and that determines what my experience is and is not. From the perspective of self-awareness, of the whole, of my true nature as not being defined by the boundary conditions that create the experience of the individual, I am able to choose with the full freedom and knowledge of the whole. I recreate my boundary conditions and tell the universe what I am in each moment. I have the choice to create literally any experience that I am able to imagine and any experience that I am able to imagine is able to be. So, I (Charlotte) am not doing, not controlling anything. I am, rather, experiencing everything through feedback loops that exist on an infinite scale.
What I’m working to understand from the perspective of Charlotte:
It stands to reason that if I have the power to consciously create at all, on any scale, that I have the power to consciously create anything on any scale. In other words, it stands to reason that if I have any power, I have complete power. Although I understand this and am able to release my illusion of control, why is it that I still cannot grasp the fullness of my power and experience the full freedom of choice? Why is it that I am not yet able to experience my full power? I know that to experience full understanding I must only choose to let go, again and again in every moment until it becomes always (a way of being instead of an act of doing). Moments are not actually separated either, the one universe is just continually experiencing vibratory fluctuation.
Answer: I am still choosing to experience myself less than fully. I am still abiding by boundary conditions that I put in place previously and that creates my current experience. I have the freedom to choose to experience my full power now. I find myself asking if it can all really be true though, if I can really let myself experience miraculous behavior. Yes. Yes it is true and yes I can. If I have not yet experienced it, I have not yet chosen it. As my awareness of myself expands, as my perspective continues to shift, as my boundary conditions continue to change and allow in more information, I am allowing myself to experience greater and greater harmony, miracles and expressions of ultimate power. I see how each moment brings me to a more expanded boundary condition in the next. As these two perspectives interact, that which is Charlotte and that which is the whole, I am continually being recreated.
My prediction:
I am going to perform miracles that baffle much of the world. This understanding of my true nature will inspire others and allow them to experience their full power, which is, of course equal to mine because any part is equal in potential to the whole. Great change is coming.
Things that have happened lately – journal
A few interesting things have happened lately that I’d like to share.
One: In meditation the other day, in a totally regular and routine moment, while I was putting my son down for a nap, a new energy came to me that I had not previously interacted with consciously. They called themselves, or it called itself, “Masters” and I received a flood of visions as well as auditory (clairaudient) messages. They told me that they were connected with me now and would continue to be accessible to me moving forward. They said they would help me receive psychic information. It felt like I got a whole new team of guides in one quick download! I remember thinking, “this is big but this moment is ordinary, I just expected that with something like this there would be more of a BANG!” Since then I have dialed into the “Masters” in meditation many times. It has only been two days but they have been consistently available to me and have answered all questions that I have allowed them to answer. They have also given me extra support and information that I didn’t directly ask for. I’m very excited to be working with this new energy! At this point I am not concerned with figuring out who or what it really is because I feel it is beyond my current capacity to understand. In the near future I expect to expand to a perspective where I can ask this question to the “Masters” with clarity and thus receive clarity in the answer. As of now I understand them to be one of an infinite number of divisions of God that holds a specific purpose, intention and application to my life.
Two: I manifested a tomato. A whole bunch of them actually! I was playing Ultimate Frisbee and the thought came to me, “I would really love to have a tomato right now!” I imagined myself eating it like an apple, biting into a bright red, juicy, delicious tomato and enjoying it’s tangy refreshment. I acknowledged that I didn’t currently have a tomato and I let it go completely, I didn’t think of it again. Then, after Frisbee, my partner, our kids and a friend of ours stopped by my partners grandparents house. His grandparents recently built an outdoor structure that includes a bar and mini fridge with a clear glass door. Up until this point the fridge has just held some beverages and other things that were of no interest to me. Through the door of the mini-fridge something caught my eye, a beautiful tomato! THE tomato that envisioned, on the vine AND a whole bunch more in a bag on a shelf below it! It probably goes without saying that ate the tomato. I also gave one to my daughter and brought a bunch home. All of you who are on a journey similar to mine, trying to understand exactly how we manifest as conscious creators of our own reality, you will understand the significance of this divinely synchronicity experience. I am using it as a blueprint in my attempt to manifest other things. I had very little attachment to the outcome of my manifestation. A desire arose, I enjoyed the thought of it and felt good thinking it. I let it go. It showed up along with even more than what I asked for. Boom. Let’s see what else I can do.
Three: I did not receive the grant that I was SO sure I was going to get. Again, I use this experience to try to understand exactly how my manifesting process works. I applied for a grant, I wanted it for multiple reasons. 1. The money would be very helpful to me. 2. The support would be meaningful to me to know that others were behind my vision. There was about four months between the time I applied and the this morning when I was told I didn’t get the grant. So, here is what I think happened. I told the universe that I didn’t really want it because my thoughts looked like this: I said, “I don’t need that money, that money doesn’t matter, because I want more money than that, I want SO much money that the amount of money this grant is worth will not even matter, I shouldn’t need or want this money because I want more money than this and I will not accept this grant allowing me to do or have anything because I want those opportunities to come in another way and specifically through me receiving so much money that I never have to even think about money, I don’t want this money I just want the support, I will not accept less than full support and abundance and so for this amount of money to matter to me I must not be where I want to be which I do not accept, I don’t want this money to matter to me, this money doesn’t matter to me but oh, wouldn’t it be nice to have it. I want money but not like that.” Wow. Look at that! I see now, in hindsight, how I was saying one thing aloud, “I want this grant” and another with my thoughts, “This isn’t enough for me so I don’t want it”. Which brings me to the fourth thing…
Four: Realizations around my relationship with money, the law of attraction and what and how I am manifesting experiences in my life are happening exponentially rapidly. I have discovered in the past week a handful of beliefs that have been preventing me from accepting the abundance that I actually desire. Typically realizations like this would come after months of “work” on a particular thought pattern. Now, realizations come to me like lightening bolts allowing past repressed self-expression to leave my energy field completely and cease to continue to create my reality subconsciously. The rate with which my subconscious beliefs are becoming conscious and being released baffles me. I wonder if others on this path are experiencing something similar. Some of my realizations:
a. My experience will not stop. Ever. Death will not be the end and achieving a goal that I’ve been working toward (experiencing complete freedom through abundance, full support by the universe, full guidance and full confidence) will not be the end of my journey. I realized that I’ve been worried that if I achieve a state of enlightenment that I will be done. That there will be nothing left to discover or to do. I’ve been afraid that if I understand my manifesting process I will have revealed to myself the great mystery and the fun of life will cease to exist. Not true. As soon as I became aware of this belief I laughed in the face of its absurdity, thanked it for its service and let it go. There is always more to discover.
b. It is not actually the manifestation of money that I want, it’s the security that comes with that idea. I want to have complete trust in the support of the universe, complete freedom to make any choice that I please with the resources to support me. I want to have an awareness of beauty and synchronicity in every moment. I’ve been wanting large sums of money as a symbolic representation of this support and freedom. Now, although I still want the same financial support, the place that I am experiencing this desire from has shifted. My desire is no longer coming from lack but from the delight in experiencing the fullness of who I am. I know that I am the Universe, in part and in whole, on infinitely divisible levels of awareness. The perspective that I am experiencing from is not separate from the whole and is fully supported by the fullness of the whole. All of the pieces are available to me. Now, in each moment I recognize that I have the choice to acknowledge the abundance and support that is here for me. With this, the wanting isn’t really there. I am more just open to experiencing things that fit this awesome feeling I have. It’s the power of choice. I know that I have the power to choose in every moment.
c. If I create the space, the desired experience flows into it. I have understood for some time that the perspective I experience as being “Me” is like an empty space that experiences flow through. My awareness is witnessing them and a more dense aspect of myself is making choices within 3D reality. It all works in layers which, ultimately, can’t really be separated but can be understood that way from this perspective. The perspective which is “Me” is continually shifting in each moment that is “Now”. When I have a desire and create the space for it manifest, it does. Every time. Without fail. If I have a desire and fill the space with thoughts of the lack of it, it has no room to come in to my experience.
d. It is my purpose in life to create and to experience myself through my creation – in other words, to express myself fully and freely.
e. There is no perspective truth that is wrong. Each persons truth is real and valid, regardless of if it is congruent with the truth of others. We do all create an agreed upon, collective, truth that each of us may choose to experience in our own way. Still, each of our perspectives is its own expression of the whole universe and can’t be challenged as far as whether or not it is the one correct way of looking at things or not. On the highest “level” or perspective, no one of our experiences can be seen as separate from any other, there is no right or wrong or morality or issues or problems or good or bad or any of these distinctions that we experience from our perspective of duality. We are blessed to be human, this experience is amazing!
f. I have the full power of the universe within me expressed through my ability to choose. I choose in every moment and am developing and increasing awareness of the choices that are available to me.
Five. There have been bright, royal blue cars and objects jumping into my awareness, pulling my attention toward them in moments when I ask the universe for support and when I am feeling “lucid” meaning that I am aware of higher aspects of myself or in other words that I am aware that I am not only this expression of myself but also the “dreamer” of this expression. I never used to notice royal blue cars and now they have popped out of the woodwork! I see them constantly, the more lucid I am the more blue cars and objects. I know that my awareness is always guided, this is the law of attraction. I attract into my experience that with which I resonate with. With this understanding I am able to experience the magic and synchronicity in my everyday life and make decisions that are based in my “knowing” or intuitive mind. These blue cars/things have signified a large shift for me in my potential to be guided 100% of the time. I am still working on discovering the full implications of my awareness being guided to these royal blue objects. Also, butterflies have been coming into my experience in a similar way and have a similar but different significance tied to the specific energetic frequency of transformation during this time of great transition for me. I am marginalizing my experience less and less and with that I am able to see the magic in all things and acknowledge my full support.
So, this is what’s been going on for me lately! I hope that my words meet you where you are having some parallel experiences that reflect the truth in this and give this information a place to rest within you. I’d love to hear your comments! Thanks for reading!
Last Words
My grandmother is in her final hour and I’m not so sure it’s final at all. Where will she go? Is it a place at all? What will we find beyond space and time?
I Commit to Speak My Truth
No longer will I make decisions based in fear, whether they be thought or actions. I’ve committed, many times, in pieces, to speaking and living my truth which is communicated to me by the feeling of love. I am always guided, as we all are, by emotional compass. Decisions that are in alignment with truth feel like love, those that are not feel like fear. No longer will I let the fear of others keep me from experiencing my true nature as a conscious creator of this world, as the sculptor of my own reality, as a realized aspect of Godx*. We all have the power to make this choice in every moment. Watch as the miracles flow into my life following this decision.
*I use the word Godx to express that genderless nature of “God”. God, being all that is and is not, the whole that we are all aspects of.
Please don’t hesitate to comment on this video, on this post, or to reach out to me personally. Like and Share if you feel it!
Common Law of Attraction Pitfall – Stop Feeding the Monster!
When you’re just not seeing the manifestations your asking for, this might be why. How to stop feeding the beliefs that keep you living from a place of fear and limitation.
Life Purpose
Looking at life purpose from multiple perspectives. What’s mine, what’s yours? | https://mamarose.blog/tag/universe/ |
I have a very large dataset with two columns of interest: Name and Cousin.
Each row has a unique name and each name has a cousin.
The data is mutually inclusive, so the cousin's name will also appear as another row in the data.
The effect is therefore a big dataset with lots of names of people who are related to each other.
The relations, however, form themselves into separate groups. These are groups that have no relation with any person in any other group.
E.g (using -> to denote a relation)
A->C->E->G = Group 1
B->D->F->H = Group 2
None of the people in Group 1 shares a relation with any person in Group 2.
So, I'm looking for an approach to find these groups of related people using only their names and relations. This could be some pseudo-code or a conceptual approach, anything to point me down the right path.
Example dataset:
Name Cousin A C B D C E D F E G F H G E H K I M K H M I
This data would be aggregated into three groups: Group 1 (A,C,E,G); Group 2 (B,D,F,H,K); Group 3 (I,M). | https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/285945/algorithm-to-find-groups-of-common-relations |
Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) greets Head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov (R) in Moscow, Russia, on September, 23, 2016.
Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images
Putin’s military ally said he was blindsided by the Ukrainian-Russian prisoner swap.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said that he was ‘extremely unhappy’ about the deal.
In particular, he took issue with the fact that senior Azov Battalion fighters were freed.
One of Vladimir Putin’s top military allies broke rank and sharply criticized the Russian-Ukrainian prisoner swap, claiming he and his Chechen colleagues were blindsided.
Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya’s leader and typically a staunch Putin supporter, took issue with the fact that around 100 Ukrainian Azov Regiment soldiers – a battalion associated with neo-nazis – were returned to Ukraine. In the early months of the war, Chechen soldiers conscripted to help Russian soldiers clashed with Ukrainian Azov fighters in Mariupol as Russians briefly occupied the city.
Kadyrov said Thursday he was “extremely unhappy,” with the swap, calling the Azov fighters “terrorists.”
“I’m extremely unhappy about yesterday’s news. The whole situation doesn’t even make sense to me,” Kadyrov said in a telegram post, according to a translation by Russian outlet Meduza. “Whenever combat or tactical decisions have been made, they’ve always consulted with us, the active participants in the special military operation. But now…” Kadyrov added.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak said in an update posted in the administration’s telegram channel that 215 Ukrainians were returned as a result of the prisoner swap, which Yermak added was also negotiated by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Along with 55 Russian fighters, Viktor Medvedchuk, an MP and one of Putin’s staunchest Ukrainian allies, was sent to Russia, Reuters reported. He was arrested by Ukrainian authorities in April. | https://online--news.com/2022/09/22/one-of-putins-closest-allies-sharply-criticized-russias-decision-to-free-right-wing-ukrainian-azov-troops-his-forces-battled-during-mariupol-siege/ |
Common diseases are currently defined by their clinical appearance, with little reference to mechanism. Molecular genetics may provide the tools necessary to define diseases by their mechanisms. This is likely to have profound effects on clinical decisions such as choice of treatment and on our ability to characterise more clearly the course of disease and contributory environmental factors. This information also raises the possibility that new therapeutic interventions can be obtained rationally, based on a clear understanding of pathogenesis. Most of these genetic factors will act as “risk factors” and should be managed ethically and practically, as would other risk factors (in hypertension or hypercholesterolaemia, for example). The rapid advances in human molecular genetics seen over the past five years indicate that within the next decade genetic testing will be used widely for predictive testing in healthy people and for diagnosis and management of patients.
Molecular genetics was originally used in medicine to map and identify the major single gene disorders, such as cystic fibrosis1 and polycystic kidney disease.2 The excitement in the field has shifted to the elucidation of the genetic basis of the common diseases. With the help of very large, well characterised family collections, genetic linkages for many of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in Western populations have been identified. The genes and DNA variants responsible for these disorders are now being cloned at an ever increasing pace. Large scale genotyping, increasingly integrated genetic and expressed sequence maps,3 and large scale sequencing programmes4 have all contributed to this remarkable evolution in our understanding of how genes might modify our susceptibility to disease.
Considering the current rapid acquisition of genetic information relating to common disease and the dramatic technological developments that continue to fuel the field, it would be surprising if most of the major genetic factors involved in human disease were not defined over the next 5-10 years. This information will form an important template for redefining disease, clarifying biological mechanisms responsible for disease, and developing new treatment for most disorders.
Summary points
Genetic information is likely to transform the practice of clinical medicine
Genetics will provide a taxonomy of disease that is based on biochemical mechanisms rather than phenotype
Genetic information will be used to identify individuals who are likely to respond to or suffer toxicity from drugs
Genetic variation will be another form of “risk factor” and will permit early treatment and directed screening
The rapid developments in human molecular genetics have often been underestimated, largely due to a failure to recognise the power of new technologies being applied to the problem. The use of information encoded within the genome for clinical practice has previously been limited by problems of scaling up accurate detection of DNA variation for rapid and inexpensive analysis. The problem will soon be resolved, perhaps by the use of oligonucleotide array technology or “chips.” 5 The ease with which this can be accomplished will determine how widespread DNA diagnostics will become, but there is little doubt that the problem is likely to be solved, technologically, in the near future.
The role of genes for susceptibility to disease has been emphasised in clinical medicine; it is now clear that this represents too narrow a perspective for the genetics of the future. Although such genes will be critical for redefining diseases and understanding their pathogenesis, equally important will be loci that determine disease progression, disease complications, and response to treatment.
A new taxonomy of disease
Perhaps the most important single contribution of the new genetics to health care is that it will create a biological rather than a phenotypic framework with which to categorise diseases. Clinical physiology and biochemistry have provided many insights into the biological disturbances that accompany disease, but it is genetics that is able to identify the pathways that are unambiguously involved in pathogenesis. Such genetic information will eventually lead to the redefinition of disease on the basis of biochemical events rather than phenotype; on molecular events driving biological processes rather than a correlation of clinical syndromes and outcomes.
The ability to redefine common human disease, using genetics to define the biochemical processes responsible for disease, will allow the subdivision of heterogeneous diseases such as hypertension or diabetes into discrete entities. Such subdivision is likely to help explain the wide variation of these diseases, including apparent differences in physiology, clinical course, and response to treatment, and it might also provide a basis for identifying environmental factors that contribute only to certain subtypes of disease. This has already begun in diabetes, where definition of the involvement of HLA genes suggested an immune mechanism in a subset of patients, leading to the subdivision into type I and type II diabetes.6 More recently, type II diabetes has been subdivided further on the basis of distinct mechanisms involving glucose phosphorylation and insulin (glucokinase) secretion, transcriptional regulation (HNF), and insulin receptor dysfunction.
A new taxonomy of disease: diabetes
Type I Autoimmune (HLA, INS) Type II Insulin resistant (INS receptor) Insulin secretion (glucokinase) Insulin transcription (?) (HNF1α, HNF4α, IPF)
Disease mechanisms have led to clear definitions of infectious diseases. For example, our understanding of hepatitis has progressed: it used to be viewed as a clinical syndrome with a wide variety of outcomes, and is now seen as a set of quite specific diseases defined by the aetiological agent, each with its own clinical course, prognosis, and (perhaps) response to treatment. An understanding of the biological process underlying the clinical phenotype has been of unquestionable benefit in defining and managing disease, and doctors are unlikely to attempt to manage a jaundiced patient with hepatitis without attempting to define the specific viral agent involved. Similarly, pharmaceutical companies are unlikely to attempt to develop novel vaccines or therapies without precise information about the disease type. Even in a well defined disease such as viral hepatitis, aspects of disease progression such as viral persistence will need to await genetic clarification.
Understanding the biological events and pathways identified by genetics as contributing to disease will lead to clear definition of disease. Such information may become the starting point in the management of most patients.
A new taxonomy of disease based on genetics is already being developed. The first examples of disease definition have come from the loci in common disease that seem to resemble autosomally inherited traits in families. Although these contribute to disease in only a small proportion of affected people, they provide considerable insights into disease mechanisms. Breast cancer (BRCA1, BRCA2), 7 8 colon cancer (FAP, HNPCC),9 and diabetes (MODY 1, 2 and 3)10-12 all have such highly penetrant loci, and their elucidation has provided some of the first insights into disease pathogenesis. The controversy over the potential role of impaired insulin secretion versus insulin resistance has been clarified by our understanding of mechanisms that result in each type of pathophysiology (glucokinase mutations versus insulin receptor mutations). Disease genes that contribute a component of susceptibility but require other genetic and environmental factors for disease to occur are also now available for disease definition. Apo E4 involvement in Alzheimer's disease is leading to revelations about its pathogenesis,13 while angiotensin converting enzyme14 and angiotensinogen15 probably contribute to different forms of cardiovascular disease in more predictable ways. The result of these developments is that we are beginning to move toward a refined taxonomy in medicine that is based on biochemical mechanisms and driven by genetics.
Genetic information in clinical practice
Early diagnosis, patient stratification, and improved management
With an increasing trend to focus healthcare resources so that they are most efficiently used, to develop accurate definition of disease to predict its clinical course, to target other forms of screening, and to choose optimal treatment, it is likely that genetic information will be an essential part of future clinical practice. Already it is possible to identify people at high risk of breast or colon cancer and to focus screening (such as mammography or colonoscopy) or early interventional treatment on these groups. In both breast and colon cancer we understand the genetic basis for about 5% of cases, a sufficiently large number of patients to overwhelm the already stretched genetic screening capacity in the United Kingdom. As we learn more about the effect of individual mutations on phenotype and as we identify more high frequency, low penetrance genes in both of these diseases, the pressure for screening in populations with and without symptoms will increase. Similarly, in diabetes, both the aetiological mutations (HNF, glucokinase) 10 11 and other loci (ACE)16 contribute to the course of the disease or the frequency of complications; hence these and other genes will be important prognostic indicators for those managing the disease and will need to be tested for. Even relatively simple management decisions regarding individuals at risk of deep venous thrombosis (patients with total hip replacement, or those taking the oral contraceptive pill) may benefit from evaluation of their factor V Leiden status.17 Decisions about the best treatment (CETP alleles and statins, 5'-lipooxygenase in asthma, or tacrine in Alzheimer's disease) or the side effects of drugs (cytochrome P-450 and flecanide) may rely on genetic stratification.18 These and many other indications for the use of genetic screening in patients with disease are likely to emerge in the coming years, and the pressure from patients and doctors for such services is likely to increase steadily.
Clinical benefit accruing from genetic studies of disease
A new taxonomy of disease based on mechanisms, not phenotype
New drugs developed rationally from our understanding of pathogenesis
Drug development and utilisation focused on disease subtypes likely to respond to treatment
Adverse effects of drugs avoided by genetic screening
“Risk factor” analysis will facilitate environmental modification, screening, and therapeutic management of people before they develop symptoms
Discovery and development of drugs
One of the earliest applications of this genetic information will be in the discovery and development of new drugs. Genetics is now widely used to identify new targets for drug designs, and it is increasingly recognised that defining disease populations by genotype will probably correlate with response to drug treatment. The variety of mechanisms that underlie complex disease may account for the wide variations in response seen in clinical practice and the difficulty often encountered in drug development of showing consistent large benefits in trial populations. Wise pharmaceutical companies are already introducing genotyping in their trials to predict response, and eventually this information will be needed to protect individuals from receiving a drug if they are unlikely to respond to it. Effort will also be focused on defining more clearly the basis for severe side effects of drugs and not giving them to people likely to experience side effects. Disease definition and drug response will go hand in hand, and lifelong treatment is unlikely unless an accurate genetic diagnosis provides an indication of response. Development of drugs along genetic guidelines will be a major force driving implementation of genetic screening by healthcare providers, as both response to treatment and complications will have been defined genetically for many new therapeutic agents.
Genes as risk factors
An indication of how important genetic information will be in defining disease and predicting outcomes in complex diseases can be gained from our knowledge of Apo E4 and Alzheimer's disease. Homozygosity for this allele is associated with a shift of about 20 years in the average age of onset of Alzheimer's disease.13 These effects are at least as great as other more conventional risk factors in common disease (such as hypertension in hypercholesterolaemia). Although current recommendations suggest that Apo E genotyping be used as an adjunct to diagnosis in cognitively impaired people, it is likely that genetic stratification by Apo E genotype will define drug response, and hence such genotyping may soon be applied in clinical trials and eventually will be more relevant to daily clinical practice.
Examples such as Apo E4 raise the question of whether a genetic susceptibility factor might best be treated as another “risk factor.” Other risk factors (blood pressure or cholesterol concentrations) show similar patterns of incomplete penetrance and have been considered for population screening. There is little reason that risk factors based on DNA should not be treated in the same way. Genetic factors that can be used to predict the risk of a population rather than an individual should be viewed in the same way as other risk factors, particularly if safe treatment or environmental modification were available.
This raises the possibility of population screening to detect important susceptibility loci when intervention becomes available. The obvious requirement for such screening would be validation by large scale trials on the benefits of such early detection and treatment. A combination of conventional and genetic risk factors may be optimal for identifying populations at risk. In hypertension or hypercholesterolaemia, risks vary greatly. Treating the extremes of variation has the most favourable cost benefit ratio, but most “at risk” patients fall within the normal range. Genetics could be used to identify those who have additional genetic risks and in whom reduction of these variables might be beneficial, even where such variables might be in the “normal” range. There are some trial data to support such an approach.19
Conclusion
The widespread redefinition of disease through genetics will be accompanied by the use of genetics for prediction and diagnosis and to optimise treatment in most common diseases. This is likely to occur within the next decade. Testing for genetic “risk factors,” even in people without symptoms, may develop (as it has for other risk factors), and this information may be used to identify people at increased risk, for early intervention. There is a possibility, however, that DNA diagnostics and pharmacogenomics will be used without proper evaluation—especially as few resources are available for rigorous evaluation and pressure continues to introduce this information in routine clinical practice.
Acknowledgments
Funding: Wellcome Fund.
Conflict of interest: JB sits as a non-executive member on the board of Oxagen, a genomic biotechnology company, but holds no equity. | https://www.bmj.com/content/316/7131/618?ijkey=139ec389ce3c8b9a5c7ea9f8ab1d1b703b7a4772&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha |
Shane Daniels (シェーン・ダニエルス) is a free runner who qualified for SASUKE 23 as the #7 qualifier through American Ninja Warrior, the United States's qualifying competition.
American Ninja Warrior
In qualifying, he put up a great performance as he coasted through the first four obstacles with little issue. Despite a miss on the Warped Wall due to rushing, he cleared the course in 51.5 seconds. He managed to repeat that performance in the semi-finals, where he managed to move at an even faster pace than in qualifying, even using a new technique on the Tarzan Rope, where he reached farther and skipped multiple ropes to clear much faster. He ended up clearing in 1:39.2 seconds, placing 9th overall and moving on. In the finals, he started strong, finishing the brutal first stage in 1:46.4 minutes, placing 6th overall. However, in the second stage, he had to restart the second obstacle due to losing his balance and touching the sand. Despite that, he managed to pull through and clear in 31.5 seconds, placing 7th and moving on to Japan.
In the tournament, he performed fairly well. Despite a close call on the Curtain Slider after almost tapping the water on the dismount, he managed to continue on. However, he struggled a lot on the Spider Walk portion of the Jumping Spider, and took two tries to summit the Soritatsu Kabe. He was shown to have made it all the way to the Tarzan Rope with two seconds left and timed out before he could attempt the obstacle.
He also earned a spot in SASUKE 26 via American Ninja Warrior 2. Despite coming off a wrist injury in qualifying that caused him to struggle on the Spider Walk portion of the Spider Jump, he managed to clear the course in 19th place overall. In the semi-finals, he blazed through the first six obstacles in 43 seconds (despite almost failing the Rope Swing and Cross Bridge), but was one of many to go out on the Salmon Ladder, after failing the trampoline jump up to the obstacle. However, he placed 11th and moved on to Boot Camp. He then managed to secure a place as one of the Top 10, returning to Japan for a second year.
In the tournament, he performed well again, managing to clear most of the obstacles. However, he struggled to gain his footing on the Jumping Spider, costing him valuable time. He managed to reach the Tarzan Rope with much more time on the clock than in SASUKE 23, but got a very low grab on the Rope Ladder and timed out at the top of the obstacle, just a few feet away from the buzzer. It's worth noting that he started approximately two seconds late, which possibly could've prevented him from hitting the buzzer and moving to Stage 2.
After his impressive showings in the first two American Ninja Warrior tournaments, Daniels returned for American Ninja Warrior 3, with new footwear and a new mindset for attempting the obstacles. However, his new technique backfired on the very first obstacle, as he attempted to stay low on the Quad Steps, only to lose his footing on the slippery step and shockingly slide into the water, ending his run.
In American Ninja Warrior 4, Shane returned in the Southwest qualifiers after a disastrous exit last season. Shane used a different approach at the Quad Steps and managed to earn redemption on the obstacle, clearing the rest of the course quickly and hitting the buzzer with the 5th fastest time of 54.18 seconds. In the city finals, Shane made quick work of the first six obstacles yet again, but failed the Salmon Ladder for the second time in his career and was eliminated.
He returned for American Ninja Warrior 5 and competed in Venice. In the Qualifying Round he flew through the qualifying course and ended up with the 2nd fastest time. In the Semi Finals, his run was all cut, but on a 2018 live stream with David Rodriguez, Shane revealed that he made it all the way to the Cliffhanger before failing, but was disqualified on Domino Hill after his knee tapped one of the dominoes, placing 29th overall and failing to move on.
Daniels has not competed since. In early 2019, he announced that he plans to return to American Ninja Warrior in 2020, after a long hiatus. However, he has not competed yet, likely due to his busy work prior to the season.
Trivia
- Shane's stunt credits include The Maze Runner franchise, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2. | https://sasukepedia.fandom.com/wiki/Shane_Daniels |
The green building performance gap has been well acknowledged in building industry and one of the contributors to these issues is the behaviour of users in the building. One of the element that influences the behaviour of users is the attitude of the user towards the building environment. The consideration of the human aspects especially the user attitudinal component and factor is essential as an approach in improving the building performance. This paper aims to identify the user attitudinal component and factor from the literature and to validate the research instrument by using the content validation method. The procedure of content validity include the conceptualization and development of instrument throughout an extensive literature review and to validate the relevance of the user attitudinal component and factors to be considered in green buildings. Three user attitudinal components and seventeen factors were developed from the extensive review of the literature. Ten experts were chosen to appraise the instrument of research by using a quantitative content validation. Fifteen items were accepted as relevant to the study within the accepted range and two items were eliminated from the research instrument. The study’s output allows the building industry a new insight on what user attitudinal aspect to be considered and integrated when dealing in the development of green building. The output of this study greatly benefits the building designers and managers when designing, constructing and managing green buildings.
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Cam Talbot and the Minnesota Wild head to Climate Pledge Arena on Saturday where they'll take on the Seattle Kraken. The line on this game has the Wild coming in at -135 and the Kraken are at -105. The over/under opens at 5.5.
The Wild will look for better times on the ice after their 3-2 defeat against the Golden Knights in their previous outing. The Corsi for the Wild sat at 38 and the Corsi against at the end of this game was 50 which had their Corsi rate coming in at 43.2%. Their offensive zone starts were rated at 48.1% and they had a PDO of 103.0 for this one. Minnesota compiled 12 minutes in the box for this game. The Wild had an offensive game that was below their expectations in the loss. Their Fenwick was 28 and the Fenwick against was 36, meaning they had a Fenwick rate of 43.8%. They accumulated 21 face-off wins at even strength and were beaten on 20 opportunities to take control of the puck. Moreover, they had 6 opportunities with more players on the ice but weren't able to convert one of them into a goal. For the game, they tallied a score on 2 out of the 26 shots they put on net.
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In terms of their scoring capabilities, the Minnesota Wild have accounted for 43 goals (5th in the league) on the season and have given up 41. For the current campaign, they have recorded 18 points and their points percentage comes in at .692. Minnesota has compiled 43 power play chances and they have scored 8 goals out of those tries, giving them a percentage of 18.60%. At even strength, the Wild let the opposition score 31 goals while having 35 when they are on offense. Minnesota has taken 457 shots and holds a shooting percentage of 9.4%. The Wild have had 385 shots tried against them and have a save percentage of .894. Minnesota Wild opponents have 46 power play opportunities (6th in professional hockey) and have a total of 10 goals in those chances.
The player protecting the goal in this game is Cam Talbot. The opposition has notched 892 goals versus Talbot in his career and his goals against average per game is 2.62. Talbot has taken the ice for 357 games over the course of his hockey career. He has a save percentage of .915 for his 20,460 minutes in the crease. He has earned a record of 176-133-30 and he has gotten the start in 343 games. From the beginning of his pro career to now, Talbot is sitting with 180 quality starts and his quality starts percentage sits at .525. Talbot has had 10,490 shot attempts against him and has accrued 9,598 saves.
In their last game, Seattle faced the Ducks in a game where the Kraken ended up losing by a mark of 7-4. Their PDO was 97 and their oZS percentage was 48.1%. They had 1 opportunity on the power play in this game but weren't able to score a goal. Their Fenwick rate came in at 42.5% by way of having a Fenwick of 34 and the Ducks having earned a 46 Fenwick at even strength. The Kraken recorded 4 goals of the 25 shots on goal they took. Seattle had a 42.9% Corsi rating. This Corsi rating is telling of the kind of game that Seattle played and we'd say they played well overall.
Seattle has put up 407 shots (14th in professional hockey) and has earned a shot percentage of 9.83%, while allowing the opposition 369 shots. They have a penalty kill rate of 80.00% on their oppositions 30 power play opportunities, and their save percentage comes in at 86.2%. They have a tally of 43 power play opportunities and they have a power play percentage of 9.30%. The Kraken are sitting with 36 goals at even strength and 4 goals (30th in hockey) while having a power play advantage. They have permitted 51 goals to be scored by of a combination of 45 goals at even strength and 6 goals while they were shorthanded. Over the course of the season, the Seattle Kraken have a total of 40 goals, 9 points, in addition to a points percentage of .321.
On the other side of the ice you will find Philipp Grubauer defending the net. He has compiled 5,534 stops out of the 6,024 shots taken against him, which gives him a save percentage of .919. Grubauer has a lifetime mark of 113-67-22 and has been in net for 225 games. He has been a starter 198 games and his ice time sits at 12,342 minutes. Grubauer's quality start percentage sits at 58.1% and he has qualified for 115 quality starting assignments in his pro hockey career. His opponents are averaging 2.38 goals per game and he has yielded 490 goals altogether.
Who will win tonight's NHL game ATS?
Guy's Pick: Take Minnesota (-135)
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Thursday, August 8, 2013
How to cut and pin a pattern
If you ever wondered how to cut and pin a pattern. Above is a picture of how it looks to correctly cut out and pin a pattern. This picture was taken during last Saturdays Project Skirt Class.
Cutting out the Pattern;
First, when you open up your pattern there will be several pieces. You will look at the directions of the pattern to determine what pattern pieces you need to cut out to make the skirt/item you desire.
Basically, you cut out the pattern right outside the black lines of the size skirt you are making.
Once the Pattern is cut out;
Some suggest ironing the wrinkles out. I don't, I've always been scared I might burn or scorch the pattern. Plus, it seems like an extra delay from me getting started. So what I do is just smooth the pattern out with my hands as I pin.
Pinning the Pattern to your material;
Place the fabric as stated in the directions, or place is where you waste the least amount of fabric. But, keeping in mind the direction markers on the pattern. Also, keep in mind the cut on fold marker.
If you look closely at the pattern, the student is pinning the pattern by placing the pins in the long way.
Once the pattern is pinned to the wrong sides of the fabric. You can begin cutting the pattern out.
Keep in mind the arrows that need to be cut out. But this step will be shown in class.
I hope this helps you get started cutting your pattern out for your next class. Please let me know if this helps your. If you have any questions, or something isn't clear please leave a comment below.
Thanks Happy Sewing
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Copper Mountain Mining (C6C) has announced its results for the first quarter, noting that COVID-19 has not affected its results.
Copper Mountain revised their mining plan in early March to accommodate COVID-19 related regulations, including social distancing on sites, reduced man hours, reduced crew numbers and a number of other operational plans to avoid impacts to production.
Revenue for the quarter totalled roughly A$54.7 million. This amounted to a loss of $0.17 per share for the quarter, primarily due to the inclusion of non-cash foreign exchange loss equating to $0.14 per share related to the company’s debt, which is traded in U.S. dollars.
Production totalled 21.8 million pounds of copper equivalent, made up of 17.5 million pounds of copper, 6,139 ounces of gold and 80,016 ounces of silver.
All-in sustaining production costs for Copper Mountain over the March quarter were approximately three Australian dollars per pound.
Copper Mountain’s CEO Gil Clausen said the results highlighted the company’s ability to perform during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We rapidly responded to the potential market impacts of COVID-19 in early March with our announcement of a revised mine plan in light of copper price uncertainty,” Gil stated.
“While this mine plan has now been fully implemented and the company is efficaciously reducing expenditures, unit costs remained higher in the early part of the quarter as we were still operating under the previous mine plan,” he said.
The junior miner also secured a deal with Mitsubishi Materials Corporation to extend the maturity of the company’s funding advances out to June 30, 2023. This has boosted Copper Mountain’s working capital by $135 million for the three-year period.
Copper Mountain Mining is trading flat at 43.5 cents per share at 10:22 am AEST. | https://themarketherald.com.au/copper-mountain-mining-asxc6c-dodges-covid-19-impact-2020-04-28/ |
According to the 2000 Census, Meade County, Kansas has a population of 4,631 people. Of those, 4,219 (91%) are White, 18 (0%) are Black, and 505 (11%) are Latino. However, 31 (or 1% of the 4,631 people) are not residents by choice but are people in prison.
Even though prisoners cannot participate in the local community, the Census Bureau nevertheless counts them as residents of the county where they are incarcerated.
A more accurate description would not include the prisoners. This would give Meade County a population of 4,600 with a demographic that is 91% White, 0% Black, and 11% Latino.
|Reported in
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Census 2000
|Incarcerated
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population
|Actual
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population
|Total||4,631||31||4,600|
|White||4,219||25||4,194|
|Black||18||6||12|
|Latino||505||7||498|
The numbers for Whites, Blacks and Latinos may not add up to the total number because we have not included racial groups other than Whites and Blacks and because the Census Bureau considers "Latino" to be an ethnicity, not a race. Most of the people reported as being Latino are also counted as being White or Black. | https://www.prisonersofthecensus.org/toobig/countydetail/05000US20119/ |
Egypt says 90 percent chance of hidden rooms in Tut tomb
FILE -- In this Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2015 file photo, the tomb of King Tut is displayed in a glass case at the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt, Tuesday. On Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015, Antiquities Minister Mamdouh el-Damaty said there is a 90 percent chance that hidden chambers will be found within King Tutankhamun's tomb, based on the preliminary results of a new exploration of the 3,300-year-old mausoleum.
CAIRO — Egypt on Saturday said there is a 90 percent chance that hidden chambers will be found within King Tutankhamun's tomb, based on the preliminary results of a new exploration of the 3,300-year-old mausoleum.
Researchers say the discovery of a new chamber could shine new light on one of ancient Egypt's most turbulent times, and one prominent researcher has theorized that the remains of Queen Nefertiti might be inside.
Egypt began the search for the hidden chamber last week. Announcing the results of three days of testing in the southern city of Luxor, Antiquities Minister Mamdouh el-Damaty said the findings will be sent to Japan for a monthlong analysis before the search is resumed.
Luxor, in southern Egypt, served as the pharaonic capital in ancient times, and is home to sprawling temples and several ancient tombs.
British Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves theorizes that Tutankhamun, better known as King Tut, who died at the age of 19, may have been rushed into an outer chamber of what was originally Nefertiti's tomb. Famed for her beauty, Nefertiti was the subject of a famous 3,300-year-old bust.
Reeves reached his theory after high-resolution images discovered what he said were straight lines in King Tut's tomb. These lines, previously hidden by color and the stones' texture, indicate the presence of a sealed chamber, he said. The images were later broadcast live on national television last September.
Nefertiti was the primary wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, who unsuccessfully attempted to switch Egypt to an early form of monotheism. Akhenaten was succeeded by a pharaoh referred to as Smenkhare and then Tut, who is widely believed to have been Akhenaten's son.
Tut, Nefertiti, and Akhenaten's family ruled Egypt during one of its most turbulent times, which ended with a military takeover by Egypt's top general at the time, Horemheb. The whole family's names were wiped out from official records later on.
Reeves believes that Smenkhare is actually Nefertiti.
This is the second find to be announced this week. On Tuesday, el-Damaty said the Austrian Archaeological Institute discovered a "giant fence" dating back over 3,500 years at the site of another ancient capital city, Avaris. The sandstone fence is least 500 meters (yards) long and 7 meters (yards) thick, antiquities official Mahmoud Afifi said.
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The European Raw Materials Alliance released its action plan to secure access to rare earth elements for the industrial sector in the European Union. Detailed in a 38-page report published on Sept. 30, the plan outlines current and projected European demand for REEs and steps that should be taken to secure their supply.
"The EU has committed to the goal of becoming climate neutral by 2050. The raw materials needs to facilitate this energy transition are massive, and Europe urgently needs to secure their supply. This action plan outlines the steps we must take to ensure that the rare earth elements upon which the EU Green Deal relies remain available for European industry and society," said Bernd Schäfer, CEO of EIT RawMaterials, the innovation community that manages the European Raw Materials Alliance.
Following along the global trend of decarbonization and the transition to clean energy, ERMA has addressed the main challenges connected to raw materials supply for Europe in thematic clusters. The first of these topical clusters is on rare earth magnets and motors.
You can read about one of the steps Europe is taking with rare earth magnets at Recycling loudspeaker magnets for REEs in this week's edition of Metal Tech News.
With the input of more than 180 stakeholders, ERMA has developed the action plan to highlight the challenges related to the highly vulnerable global rare earth supply chain and to provide specific actions that the EU, its Member States, industry, and innovation communities should implement with the aim of triggering a disruptive change to diversify EU supply chains.
The action plan contains 12 actions that are summarized in four key recommendations:
• European policymakers need to create a level playing field, since the cost of EU production is intrinsically higher than the Chinese production cost, which is massively lowered by a set of direct and indirect state subsidies.
• European OEMs (original equipment manufacturers, in this case the producers of components making use of rare earths) need to consider potential commitments to buying a significant percentage of rare earth materials from European producers.
• The EU needs to ensure that end-of-life products and waste materials containing rare earths stay in Europe, facilitating their reprocessing and recycling.
• There is a unique opportunity to trigger large private investments in the emerging European rare earths value chain by match funding. For this reason, the EU and its member states should pull all financial levers including state aid, such as a dedicated important project of common European interest.
Presently, the European Raw Materials Alliance is working on a second action plan covering the materials for energy storage and conversion, such as batteries, fuel cells, solar and hydrogen and other alternative energy storage and conversion systems. | https://www.metaltechnews.com/story/2021/10/06/tech-metals/eu-action-plan-starts-with-magnet-recycling/727.html |
I have been making and repairing the instruments and the bows of a number of well-known musicians whenever necessary. Some of them have become good friends, and so I would like to introduce them to you.
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I make and repair the violins for my violinist friend, Zoltán Lantos. He has learnt to play the violin for almost ten years in India. After returning home, he has been playing with Hungarian jazz- and folk musicians in different bands. His instruments: violins, violin with 5 strings, violins with resonating strings, Tibetan singing bowls and bells. >>>
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I make and repair the violins for the violinist, Félix Lajkó too. He had travelled and conquered the world at the age of twenty-three from a tiny village from Vojvodina, Serbia. In his virtuoso music he connects folk with classical, jazz with blues. >>>
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I also make and repair the instruments of guitar player, Gábor Juhász. He is a jazz guitarist, plays classical guitar, in 2002 he won the award of 'The Jazz Player of the Year'. Keeping his identity Gábor Juhász is an active member of world-music stage, has performed with Indian musicians too. >>>
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Nikola Parov was born in Bulgaria, Sofia, first played music at the age of six, the mandolin. Started to play the piano and the cello at the age of ten. Soon after this he moved to Budapest. Together with Zsarátnok band they cultivate Balkan folk traditions. I make and repair his cellos. >>>
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Omar Bashir, oud virtuoso, brings his instruments to repair to me. He was born in 1970 in Budapest and started to play the oud at the age of five with the help of his father, Munir Bashir, Iraqi musician, who was the pioneer of popularizing oud as a solo instrument in the West.
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I also have to mention Iván Barvics, the member of Tatros band, who plays the lute and the tambura. I made some of his plucked string instruments. Violinist Kevin Shopland also plays with baroque bows made by me. István Nagy, violin teacher living in Switzerland also uses my baroque bows. He plays and teaches with them.
My baroque bows have reached the Royal Academy of Music in London where they have been widely used. | http://lakatoslaszlo.hu/megrendeloim_eng.html |
A worksheet to practice the rooms of the house. First, the students have to solve the crossword puzzle. After that they should unscramble the words and do the wordsearch.
Rooms of the house included: attic, bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, study, garage, garden, living room and dining room.
A similar worksheet to the one I posted yesterday, but this one only focus on the grandparents, parents and brothers (the other one adds the uncle, the aunt and the cousin).
The students must cut and paste the words under the right family member, do the crossword puzzle and colour the family.
These are the templates of the frogs I made with felt to act out the story The Frog Family. In the last page you can see the photos of the final work.
You can see how I planned to work with this story here (written in Portuguese).
A worksheet I've made to follow the story Where's Spot?, by Eric Carle. You can choose to work with page 2 or page 3. They are similar, but page 3 focus more on prepositions and is more suitable for older students, since they must be able to read and understand the sentences.
Cut the animals and paste on page 1, under the right picture (students must remember where are the animals hidden in the story).
On page 3, students must colour the animals and paste them in page 1, according to the sentences.
Since I didn't choose a colour for Spot (the dog in the story), I tell my students to colour it either the colour they want or the colour it is in the story.
Some flashcards to teach Fruits.
Fruits included: apple, banana, orange, pear, pineaple, raspberry and strawberry. | https://teacherslove.blogs.sapo.pt/2009/06/ |
Hi,
Having some issues using the Command Line Tools (on Windows 10) with videos from my Garmin Dashcam and hoping someone can help. I have managed to get 1 gpx file per video (with some help from the program ExifTool). In a folder I have the following:
20190908/video_name0001.gpx
20190908/video_name0001.mp4
20190908/video_name0002.gpx
20190908/video_name0002.mp4
…
I want to take the date and time from the gpx files rather than from the videos (as trying it with the videos is giving me an error and all the resulting JPEGs were taken in 1970!).
Here’s the code I have been trying but I’m not sure how to process all files in the folder in one go (each is 1 min long so feeding in the name of each mp4/gpx file combination manually would take forever):
…\mapillary_tools.exe sample_video --video_import_path “20190908” --advanced
…\mapillary_tools.exe process --advanced --import_path “20190908\mapillary_sampled_video_frames” --user_name “X” --geotag_source “gpx” --geotag_source_path “20190908/???” --overwrite_all_EXIF_tags
As you can see the mapillary_tools.exe is 2 folders above the working folder where I have put the code in a Windows batch file. The mp4/gpx files are in folder “20190908” in this working folder.
Is it possible to automatically work out the name of the gpx file from the name of each mp4 file? I have put in “???” above as I don’t know what to put in here.
Thanks! | https://forum.mapillary.com/t/command-line-tools-query-video-process-upload/3393 |
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When analysing an item to be thermoformed with punch and die moulds, one aspect that must always be carefully evaluated is stacking the pieces once they have been formed and ejected from the mould.
Today’s thermoformed containers present also complex shapes with squared or hexagonal bottoms. It is more and more frequent to find items that do not fit the conventional conical trunk shape typical of cups and yoghurt cups.
There are also items that require the type of handling that does not subject the pieces to stressful mechanical actions that would end up degrading the product’s aesthetic appearance or could alter its mechanical features, thus causing an increase in production waste.
Thermoforming machines with tilting platen have certainly greatly simplified the piece stacking phase, making the managing of this final processing phase much more reliable. In fact, the rotation of the lower half mould is the perfect solution to present the products, regardless of the number of impression rows, in a stable and repetitive configuration for whichever type of following operation.
As already said, for the classic disposable cup in HIPS or PP, the easiest system remains the stacking through aspiration and blowing in curved chutes that stack the pieces ejected from the mould and forms pre-counted piles which are then placed on the conveyor belt to be sent in a continuous single queue to the subsequent rimming or packaging operation.
However, this system cannot be absolutely used for items with square or rectangular shapes or when the height of the piece is less than its diameter (the piece would roll in the chute). Moreover, for cups made from crystal polystyrene for example, the mechanical friction between the cup and the chute during the stacking process would surely degrade the aesthetic appearance on the transparent sides of the cup.
For this reason, an alternative system must be arranged.
WM Wrapping Machinery SA has developed a rotating plate stacker that allows the pieces ejected from the half mould to be received on a plate with suction spindles.
A system, synchronised with the thermoforming machine cycle, positions the receiving spindles near the half mould during ejection and extracts the pieces via suction/vacuum, keeping them firmly attached to the spindles. Once the mould has been freed, the lower forming platen will complete the return rotation and, with a vertical movement, reposition for the next simultaneous forming and cutting cycle of the pieces thus formed.
The receiving spindles are shaped so as to imitate the inner shape of the piece to be stacked, be it cup, tray or any other shape.
The spindle holding plate then completes a 180° rotation, dropping the moulded product into collection chutes located inside a stacking frame. Once the number of pre-set cycles has been completed, the different stack levels are transferred, one level at a time, onto a horizontal evacuation belt which sends the pieces in a single queue to all the subsequent packaging operations.
The system can be equipped with a double receiving plate, making it possible to increase stacking speed (compatible with the thermoforming machine speed if necessary). This reduces waiting time for the rotating plate which, while dropping the moulded product into the drum’s collection chutes, can already present another series of spindles to extract the pieces from the half mould.
Since, as mentioned, the spindles extract each piece individually, there are no limitations regarding piece shape. In fact, even when dealing with anomalous or polyhedral shapes, the pieces will always and in any case be constantly stacked in the same position without lags phases due to rolling.
System movement is through four servo-motors 0.9 kW each, which therefore do not weigh heavily on the total calculation of installed power and absorption of the entire system.
Two motors guarantee perfect receiving plate movement, a third handles the 180 degree rotation of the said plate, while the fourth motor controls the vertical movement of the piece collection frame.
This stacking unit has already been widely tested and is currently used from different customers. We can therefore conclude by saying that the solutions used have proven very valid both in terms of efficiency and reliability. | http://www.wm-thermoforming.com/2013/08/28/forming-punching/?ajaxCalendar=1&mo=1&yr=2020 |
Why does the sun spin around the earth?
Our teacher told us about the sun and how it spins around the earth, but why?
12 Answers
- eriLv 79 years agoBest answer
It doesn't. The Earth orbits the Sun because of the Sun's gravitational pull, not the other way around. The Sun does revolve, however, because of inertia.
- gintableLv 79 years ago
You are being taught knowledge that has been obsolete for six centuries. What the hell is your teacher teaching you? Has your teacher been repressed from true scientific facts?
The sun doesn't spin around the Earth. The sun rotates on its own axis roughly once a month (but not as a rigid body), and unless you are studying the sunspot cycle and solar activity, you don't really observe this.
The APPEARANCE of the sun orbiting Earth is really nothing more than EARTH ROTATING ON ITS OWN AXIS.
It takes 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds (a little less than the 24 hours that we call a day) for Earth to rotate on its axis once. That is why it SEEMS like everything revolves around Earth. But in reality, Earth is rotating.
The Earth orbits the sun once every 365.25 days (year).
The 24 hour daylight cycle that we observe is a mathematical combination of both the orbit around the sun and the rotation of Earth on its axis.
- Vincent GLv 79 years ago
The Sun does not spin around the Earth. The Earth spins once every day while the Sun stays put.
- ErikaLv 43 years ago
The sunlight (Sol) and the Earth are a factor of the image voltaic gadget. The image voltaic gadget is a factor of the Milky way Galaxy. The image voltaic gadget orbits the centre of the galaxy so for this reason Sol does one orbit or spin around the Earth each and every 250 Million 12 months approx.
- What do you think of the answers? You can sign in to give your opinion on the answer.
- 9 years ago
the Earth revolves around the Sun, when the Earth rotates on its axis the Sun seems to move across the sky but it doesn't
- 9 years ago
the earth revolves around the sun. the sun does not revolve around the earth and it is all due to the gravitational pull of the sun the exact same relationship our moon and earth share
- Anonymous9 years ago
The God Apollo pulls the Sun with his chariot and 4 golden steeds across the sky.
- 9 years ago
the earth orbits the sun because of gravitational pull
- SophileLv 49 years ago
Is his name Ptolemy? It does 'spin', but only on its own axis (the middle part rotates faster than the poles).
- 9 years ago
Are you old enough to be using Yahoo Answers? | https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110128172553AATBTrf |
1. Introduction {#sec1-sensors-20-02783}
===============
Smart homes is one of the most promising applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). However, the adoption rate of smart homes is still low despite substantial research about this technology in recent years. As a recent study \[[@B1-sensors-20-02783]\] explains, there are several barriers to the mass adoption of smart home technology, and one of them is technological fragmentation within the smart home ecosystem. Many connectivity technologies (protocols) can be currently used in a connected home \[[@B2-sensors-20-02783]\], which is confusing for smart home consumers. To solve this fragmentation problem, researchers and companies tend to advocate one of two approaches: (1) creating a universal protocol \[[@B3-sensors-20-02783]\] that can be used for all devices and all use cases in smart homes and (2) developing a gateway supporting many protocols that acts as a central controller for all smart devices in the home.
Regarding the first solution, there has been a competition among wireless protocols in smart home networks: many new protocols have been suggested, tested, and even deployed commercially. However, ultimately, it is unlikely that there will be a clear winner in this battle; as different protocols are currently used in smart home networks \[[@B4-sensors-20-02783]\]. Because each protocol has its own advantages and disadvantages, different protocols are best for different purposes and usages. Thus, it is difficult to design an all-in-one protocol for smart homes. Hence, the most suitable solution is to design a gateway to handle diverse protocols as a central hub in a home \[[@B5-sensors-20-02783]\]. This solution seems preferable as more products appear on the market nowadays. However, this solution leads to another issue for manufacturers, which is the compatibility problem. Because of the various smart devices on the market, to support every possible device is a big challenge. This is why each gateway manufacturer always maintains a compatible device list for their gateway.
In [Table 1](#sensors-20-02783-t001){ref-type="table"}, we survey some popular commercial smart home gateways on the market and the number of devices that they support. These numbers are impressive, but they still cannot cover all available smart devices on the market. In other words, there are many devices that still cannot work with these gateways. If a customer wants to use these devices in his/her house, he/she must use more than one gateway (hub). This makes control less convenient and limits consumers' choices when buying smart devices. In the future, the compatibility problem will become more critical since increasing numbers of smart devices will appear daily. Until this problem is solved, consumers will have to face the difficulty of choosing a smart home system and smart devices, and as a result, the prevalence of smart homes will remain hard to achieve in the near future.
In this paper, we propose a software architecture for smart home gateways to tackle the aforementioned compatibility problem. Our gateway supports multiple protocols, unified control over heterogeneous networks, and allows developers to create applications to control diverse types of devices without any in-depth knowledge of the underlying protocols. In detail, we create a virtual device for each physical device in the home and provide standard RESTful APIs for interacting with this virtual device. In summary, this paper aims to propose a mechanism to easily support new devices that will appear in the future.
To satisfy this requirement, the gateway basically needs to know all the information and functions about a new device. This information comprises what is called a *device profile* in this paper. A device profile is a file that contains information about the device (e.g., manufacturer or model name), its functions, and how it can be controlled. If the gateway lacks a device profile, it cannot completely control a new device. We introduce a *Device Profile Handler* module to dynamically download and update the device profile every time a new device is connected to the gateway. This mechanism enables the gateway to be able to work with new devices; therefore, it can solve the compatibility problem. In addition, this approach does not require any modifications in either the protocol or the device; hence, it can be applied to current devices on the market.
The rest of this paper is organized as follows: in [Section 2](#sec2-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}, we review related studies on smart home gateways. [Section 3](#sec3-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"} explains what the compatibility problem is and why it happens in smart homes in detail. In [Section 4](#sec4-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}, we describe how we designed the software architecture to achieve a dynamically updatable gateway supporting unified control over heterogeneous networks. We also present a prototype to prove our concept in [Section 5](#sec5-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"} and evaluate its performance in [Section 6](#sec6-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}. Finally, we discuss the feasibility of the proposed solution in [Section 7](#sec7-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"} and conclude this paper in [Section 8](#sec8-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}.
2. Related Work {#sec2-sensors-20-02783}
===============
2.1. Smart Home Gateway {#sec2dot1-sensors-20-02783}
-----------------------
Since smart home technology has emerged, numerous studies have been conducted on different aspects such as its architecture, communication protocols, application services, and security. Regarding the architecture studies, most early studies \[[@B12-sensors-20-02783],[@B13-sensors-20-02783],[@B14-sensors-20-02783]\] as well as recent works \[[@B15-sensors-20-02783],[@B16-sensors-20-02783]\] use OSGi-based architecture to develop smart home gateways that support heterogeneous networks. These studies have achieved the initial goal of a gateway---to make different protocols work together in the home network. For example, Kim et al. \[[@B12-sensors-20-02783]\] proposed a comprehensive software architecture for supporting the seamless integration of devices and services and providing access control in smart homes. This study also presented a process to discover and install new devices using bar-codes and smartphones. In spite of that, it does not clearly address how to fully support a new device type. Overall, prior studies have been successful in making a platform for smart home gateways and created a fundamental research basis for further studies. However, they do not present any solution for handling the variety of devices on the market.
Another approach to making a smart home gateway is leveraging existing devices in a home such as a TV set-top box \[[@B17-sensors-20-02783],[@B18-sensors-20-02783]\] or smartphone \[[@B19-sensors-20-02783],[@B20-sensors-20-02783]\]. For instance, there have been studies \[[@B17-sensors-20-02783],[@B18-sensors-20-02783]\] that proposed the integration of a smart home gateway and a TV set-top box to provide a unified experience from the smart home and TV services, and hardware implementations have been developed to prove the feasibility of this idea. These studies have opened a new approach to design a smart home gateway. Meanwhile, smartphone-based solutions \[[@B19-sensors-20-02783],[@B20-sensors-20-02783]\] utilize the smartphone hardware with multiple radio interfaces (e.g., Wi-Fi and BLE) to communicate with different devices. Although smartphones are very popular today, they are not always located at a fixed place in the house and cannot be the main gateway of the smart home system.
In addition to the studies on architecture, there has been an increasing number of studies that implemented a smart home system based on specified protocols. The majority of these studies have targeted Wi-Fi \[[@B21-sensors-20-02783],[@B22-sensors-20-02783],[@B23-sensors-20-02783]\], ZigBee \[[@B24-sensors-20-02783],[@B25-sensors-20-02783],[@B26-sensors-20-02783]\], or combined ZigBee and other protocols such as Bluetooth \[[@B27-sensors-20-02783]\] or Power-line communication \[[@B28-sensors-20-02783]\]. In our previous work \[[@B29-sensors-20-02783]\], we implemented a gateway using Z-Wave, which is one of the most popular protocols for smart home systems nowadays. Although Z-Wave provides diverse types of smart home devices, that study has a fundamental limitation because it supports only one protocol. Therefore, a multi-interface gateway is a mandatory requirement to support the heterogeneous networks in a modern smart home system.
In brief, [Table 2](#sensors-20-02783-t002){ref-type="table"} compares the previous and proposed gateways in terms of type of hardware design, heterogeneous network supported, unified control with API, and target problem, proving that in spite of intensive studies on the gateway, how to handle the increasing number of IoT devices and types had to be still considered. This paper aims to fill the literature gap by tackling the compatibility problem between smart devices and gateways.
To make it clear, we do not aim to redefine the entire software architecture of a gateway or propose a new approach to implement a gateway in this work. Instead of that, we introduce a design of gateway architecture to cope with the exponential growth of smart devices. In fact, some components of our proposed architecture are based on previous studies because they are the core components of any gateway platform (e.g., the driver and database). In addition, we add a new module called the *Device Profile Handler* to implement our ideas. Unlike the OSGi-based architecture, which is written only in Java, the proposed architecture is not restricted to any programming language.
2.2. Device Profile {#sec2dot2-sensors-20-02783}
-------------------
Device discovery is also a challenge in the age of IoT. A number of studies have proposed approaches to address this issue in smart home applications. For example, Kim et al. \[[@B30-sensors-20-02783]\] proposed a device management and auto-configuration platform using the Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) protocol. Another study \[[@B31-sensors-20-02783]\] proposed a configuration framework leveraging upon the Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP) for IoT devices. Recently, a study \[[@B32-sensors-20-02783]\] used the Device Description Language (DDL) to describe the metadata of a device and how to access its services. The descriptive metadata is embedded in each device and exchanged through the MQTT or CoAP protocols. Unfortunately, the MQTT and CoAP protocols only work on top of the TCP/IP protocol, which is not suitable for many non-IP devices. Protocols such as ZigBee, Z-wave, and Bluetooth are not IP-compatible, and it is impossible to control these devices through MQTT or CoAP protocols. In addition, several protocols designed to support seamless discovery of devices and services in the network are the Devices Profile for Web Services (DPWS) or Universal Plug and Play (UPnP). However, similar to MQTT, DPWS and UPnP also only work with IP devices. Additionally, UPnP has a security risk and is not recommended for IoT devices which are more vulnerable to cyber-attacks \[[@B33-sensors-20-02783]\].
A recent study \[[@B34-sensors-20-02783]\] recognized the compatibility problem in current smart home gateway systems. However, the approach proposed in this research requires an intermediate server to run on top of the other gateway software, which means that a user still needs more than one gateway in the home. Of all the open-source gateway software, openHAB \[[@B35-sensors-20-02783]\] is the most famous software for home automation. In this software, we found that to add a new device type on the market, users must write configuration files manually. This task requires programming skills as well as deep technical knowledge, which is difficult for most normal customers. In brief, we still do not see any convenient way to support a new type of device in current smart home systems. In the meanwhile, our proposed solution can work with non-IP protocols such as ZigBee, Z-Wave. It also does not require device manufacturers to make any change in their products, all changes are made at the gateway. This means the proposed idea can be applied to existing devices on the market.
In summary, previous academic works focus on making a platform that combines multiple protocols together to support heterogeneous networks. Meanwhile, companies try to create closed ecosystems and only support a limited number of device types. However, over time, increasing numbers of new smart home devices will be invented, which will lead to more complicated use-cases (applications) that can be defined to support new types of devices. That defines a new problem about compatibility which is usually ignored in previous studies. Clearly, the very first requirement of any gateway is to be able to connect to various devices. Hence, we need a solution to make it easy for a gateway to support new types of smart devices in the future, which would automatically increase the compatible device list for smart home systems. In this paper, we focus on presenting a solution to solve the compatibility issue completely. Therefore, the main contribution of this paper is to build a smart home gateway platform that can interact with any type of smart device, today or in the future.
3. Compatibility Problem {#sec3-sensors-20-02783}
========================
Most of the home gateway solutions on the market nowadays are a closed ecosystem, and the main problem of these solutions is device compatibility. In other words, when a customer decides to buy a new smart home device, they need to ask whether it will work with their gateway (because the new device may not). It is important to note that a modern smart home system may contain a number of different device types (e.g., lighting, switches, sensors, security devices, and other home appliances). Apparently, each device type has different features and purposes. Even devices in the same type can also have different functions. For example, one smart bulb could provide on-off and dimming functions, while another bulb might provide extra functions like changing color and blinking. Another example is sensor devices. There is a wide variety of sensors such as door, motion, temperature, and gas sensors. As a result, it will be increasingly difficult to support every new device in heterogeneous networks \[[@B36-sensors-20-02783]\] owning to the proliferation of connected home devices.
To explain why the compatibility problem exists and why it is a huge problem of smart homes, we need to look at some characteristics of smart home devices. A smart home device is usually a resource-constrained device that has limited CPU, memory, and power resources. Because of these characteristics, smart home devices need to use low-power communication protocols such as ZigBee, Z-Wave, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), or Thread. Except for Thread, these protocols use a specific application layer in their design. In this case, all functionalities of a device (e.g., turn on, turn off, and send notifications) are specifically defined in the protocol and the developers have to follow the protocol specification to create an application.
The protocol's inventors typically organize a set of related functions as an application profile. There are many application profiles defined for different types of devices. An application profile contains specific details about what information a device can communicate. Of course, besides the standard profiles, all these protocols also support option fields for manufacturers to define their own custom profiles for a special purpose or particular application. This protocol design strategy benefits the device maker because it makes it easier to develop applications. On the contrary, it imposes a processing burden on the gateway. In detail, a gateway needs to know all the application profiles that were implemented on every smart device (product), so that it can communicate with a variety of devices. Moreover, to provide a seamless experience for users through the control application, the gateway needs to know extra information related to device such as the product's name, description, and image of product so that this information can be accurately displayed in the user interface of the control application.
This large amount of information is very important, but it cannot be completely embedded inside a device as well as exchanged through the communication protocols because of bandwidth limitations. For this reason, gateway manufacturers need to pre-implement the application profiles and information of all devices that they want to support on the market. In other words, the gateway must already know all the information about a device it will work with in order for it to be compatible with the device. As a result, there are two cases in this situation: (1) the gateway has already implemented all the application profiles of a new connected device and also knows what device it is controlling or (2) the gateway does not have enough information about a new connected device, so it cannot fully control this device. The second case is referred to as the compatibility problem that we want to address. If the gateway manufacturer wants to support new devices in the future, they need to update the software for the gateway. However, this process usually takes a long time and it depends on the development plan of each manufacturer.
Overall, the compatibility problem is real and is becoming more critical nowadays. Therefore, it needs to be resolved in the development of every gateway product. We believe that making a universal protocol will be hard to achieve in near future while the current closed ecosystems still have many limitations. Solving the compatibility problem would help accelerate the adoption rate of smart homes \[[@B37-sensors-20-02783]\], and this is the main goal of this paper.
4. System Architecture Design {#sec4-sensors-20-02783}
=============================
A smart home system consists of various smart devices, a central home gateway, and a client application that enables the user to control all smart devices as shown in [Figure 1](#sensors-20-02783-f001){ref-type="fig"}. A home gateway is a hardware device with multiple integrated wireless interfaces; thus, it is able to communicate with a variety of devices using different protocols. In this section, we describe the software architecture that enables a unified control over heterogeneous networks and supports dynamic updates of device profiles for new devices.
4.1. High-Level Architecture {#sec4dot1-sensors-20-02783}
----------------------------
We illustrate the components and operation of our gateway system in [Figure 1](#sensors-20-02783-f001){ref-type="fig"}. First, every smart device in a home needs to be discovered and connected to a network that is formed by the gateway device (this step is also called pairing, joining, or bootstrapping). The procedure of discovery and connection is different according to each protocol, and it may require some actions from the user (e.g., to push buttons or input code). Through this process, the gateway and device exchange some basic information such as manufacturer, device type (product) identification, and a list of the names of application profiles that are used in the device. The gateway can download the device profile according to the device type identification information. Note that the device type identification information can be different according to the underlying network protocols. For example, both ZigBee and Z-Wave use a unique 16-bit hexadecimal number to represent a manufacturer as well as device type, but this number is different in each respective protocol. Similarly, each protocol also provides a different mechanism to obtain the device type identification information.
In fact, device type identification information is mandatory to distinguish a specific device type (product) from others. If a new type of device is discovered, the gateway connects to the device profile server and downloads the device profile according to each device type (product). By parsing this information from the downloaded file and storing it in a database, the gateway is able to know all the details of application profiles and has a description of the new device. Thus, without any software update, the gateway still can provide correct RESTful APIs for client application to communicate with the new device. In addition, if the device makers want to add new features to their device, they can also update the corresponding device profile on the server. In this case, the gateway will download a new profile as it did the first time and dynamically update the RESTful APIs for the new features. The software architecture of the gateway is composed of multiple layers (modules) as shown in [Figure 2](#sensors-20-02783-f002){ref-type="fig"}. The detailed roles of each module are described in the next subsections.
4.2. Connectivity Driver {#sec4dot2-sensors-20-02783}
------------------------
The *Connectivity Driver* is the lowest layer of the system. It provides a software interface to ensure that the gateway software can interact with the hardware. Gateway hardware usually consists of a single-board computer, which includes a micro-processor, storage, and communication modules (e.g., Wi-Fi, ZigBee, Z-Wave, or BLE). Each type of communication module needs a particular driver to connect the hardware and the upper software layer. The driver is responsible for communicating with physical devices.
4.3. Device Profile Handler {#sec4dot3-sensors-20-02783}
---------------------------
The *Device Profile Handler* is the key module of the proposed architecture that helps to solve the compatibility problem. It is in charge of downloading and updating the device profile from the server. When a new device type is connected to the gateway, the *Device Profile Handler* immediately connects to the *Device Profile Server* and downloads the corresponding device profile of the new device. Note that we assume that the profile servers are owned and maintained by the manufacturers in a distributed manner and the location of the profile server is known by the gateway. The device profile server architecture and the resolution system required to determine the location of the profile server are out of scope of this paper. However, it is possible to apply various existing systems. For example, GS1 \[[@B38-sensors-20-02783]\] provides a distributed profile server architecture and ONS-based resolution system.
After downloading a device profile, the *Device Profile Handler* will read the information from the downloaded file and store it into a database. This process is only performed once for each type of device, and the profile file is permanently stored in the gateway's storage. Thus, if the gateway connects with the same device type in future, the *Device Profile Handler* only needs to read its information from a local file. This procedure can increase the performance of the system. If a manufacturer updates a device profile on the server, the *Device Profile Handler* will download a new version of the device profile and automatically add the changes into the system.
The second role of the *Device Profile Handler* is to act as a bridge between the *Driver* and *Controller* module to deal with a new type of device on the market. The compatibility problem comes from the fact that the gateway cannot know how to handle unknown application profiles or custom profiles. In detail, the gateway needs to know what this device is and how to use all the functions implemented in the new device. More technically, each application profile contains a set of functions for the smart device, and each function is represented by value (in bytes) exchanged between the gateway and device. In fact, the gateway and device exchange a stream of bytes that forms a command. From the command, we can obtain meaningful information (e.g., "turn on a light" or "report the current temperature") by interpreting the command according to a specific format. Without the information from the application profile, the gateway cannot know how to interpret a command.
We solve this problem by storing the specifications of all application profiles in the device profile and then using them in the gateway's operation. [Figure 3](#sensors-20-02783-f003){ref-type="fig"} illustrates the process flow of a gateway and the *Device Profile Handler* in three cases: (a) adding a new device to the gateway, (b) handling an application message from the upper layer, and (c) handling a command from the lower layer. As mentioned in [Section 4.1](#sec4dot1-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}, for case (a), the gateway downloads the corresponding device profile if a new type of device is discovered, as shown in [Figure 3](#sensors-20-02783-f003){ref-type="fig"}a. In cases (b) and (c), we assume that the gateway is communicating with a new device type and it does not implement commands for this new device. In these cases, the *Device Profile Handler* reads the device profile from the database and handles the unknown commands. For instance, [Figure 3](#sensors-20-02783-f003){ref-type="fig"}b shows the procedure for handling an application message from the upper layer (a user's request). To send the user's request to the device, the gateway needs to generate a correct command according to the user's request and command format. If this command is not implemented, the gateway can parse the command format by reading the device profile. Here, we assume that the request from the user is authorized to perform on the device. Advanced functionalities of a typical IoT gateway such as user authentication, access control, and data validation can be implemented in the *Controller* or *RESTful API* layers. The implementation of these functions is discussed in [Section 4.4](#sec4dot4-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}. It is worthwhile to note that the *Device Profile Handler* is the core function of this study and the rest modules can be implemented the same as a traditional gateway providing fruitful functions based on stateful information.
In contrast, in [Figure 3](#sensors-20-02783-f003){ref-type="fig"}c, if a command is received from a lower layer (the device), the gateway needs to interpret meaningful information from the byte data. To do that, the command format is necessary, and it can be parsed from the device profile, similar to the process shown in [Figure 3](#sensors-20-02783-f003){ref-type="fig"}b. To clarify, a device profile is like a guidebook that helps the gateway to communicate with a new smart device. With this mechanism, although the gateway does not fully implement all the application profiles (commands) of the new device, it still able to control new kinds of devices without a software update.
In our architecture, we use JSON as the data format for the device profile. The JSON format is sufficient for describing device information and has been used in other studies \[[@B14-sensors-20-02783],[@B34-sensors-20-02783]\]. Because other modules of the gateway software (i.e., NoSQL database and RESTful API) also use JSON format, this design reduces the cost for converting data between components. Another advantage of JSON is that it is a lightweight and very readable format. An example of a device profile of a Z-Wave switch is shown in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}. Basically, the device profile is composed of two parts: general and specific information. The general information includes the identification and description of the device (lines 2--8 in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}). Based on that information (i.e., device type, protocol type), the gateway can determine how to properly handle the specific information in the device profile. For example, the specific information in the device profile of a Z-Wave device can be interpreted differently compared to that in a ZigBee device.
Meanwhile, the specific information includes status and commands (functions) that are used to communicate with the device (lines 9--74 in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}). The specific information can be categorized into three parts such as state information (lines 9--20 in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}), commands (lines 21--35 in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}), and the specification of status and commands (lines 36--74 in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}). The first part describes the template to store state and all sensing information that are frequently collected from the device. This signifies that all information about the device can be obtained by control applications through RESTful APIs. The second part describes all available commands of the devices and the corresponding RESTful APIs to use these commands. This helps the users to fully control their devices in the smart home system. Note that the semantics of each status information and commands (i.e., Switch ON/OFF state, Turn on switch) can be provided through the description field. Moreover, additional information can be defined after the device is connected to the gateway, such as device name (i.e., power switch 01) and device location (i.e., living room), as shown in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}. Therefore, semantic models can be built based on the information in the device profile and NoSQL database. Finally, the third part describes in detail how to construct each command of each device. More precisely, this part provides the guidance to build a command, to interpret the data that receives from a device, and to store the result in the template that is defined in the first part.
As explained previously, a command is formed by a set of data as defined in the protocol. Therefore, the gateway only needs to combine data in the device profile to construct a defined command. In an opposite way, the data that receives from a device must be interpreted to a human-readable data (i.e., string, number) and stored in the database. The device profile contains information such as the data type, mapping values, and the result destination so that the gateway can precisely interpreted the information from the device. For example, [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"} shows that the gateway must convert the data periodically reported from a smart switch to a float number to present the consumed energy of that switch. Note that the number of attributes and the values of them in the device profile may vary depending on the type of the device or the connectivity protocol. However, it is reasonable to assume that the structure of the device profile is known by all manufacturers in advance. Moreover, the JSON format has sufficient flexibility to support various types of device products and the connectivity protocols. Thus, the JSON-based device profile is expected to be widely used in future applications and scenarios.
4.4. NoSQL Database {#sec4dot4-sensors-20-02783}
-------------------
A NoSQL database is a new kind of database system that can replace traditional relational databases. Information such as the description, status, and features of each device are very different, so it is complicated to store in a traditional database. However, a NoSQL database can store different varieties of data, particularly unstructured data. Because of these characteristics, a NoSQL database was used in the gateway's system. Moreover, to provide unified control over heterogeneous networks, we need to abstract each physical device as a logical device (called a *virtual device* in our platform). Virtual devices are stored in the NoSQL database, as shown in [Figure 4](#sensors-20-02783-f004){ref-type="fig"}, and the user application can only interact with these virtual devices via standard RESTful APIs.
Using the virtual device allows developers to manipulate any device type without having a deep understanding of the underlying protocol or hardware design of the device. Also, it is easy to create additional services or applications based on the virtual device approach. For example, a security feature such as access control \[[@B39-sensors-20-02783]\] can be built by adding user permissions information into virtual devices. Meanwhile, an intrusion detection service can be developed by combining time-series data of virtual devices and machine learning techniques \[[@B40-sensors-20-02783]\]. Note that preventing security threats that occur at lower layers in the smart home system (e.g., hardware, network) typically depend on the design of underlying protocols and not that of the gateway \[[@B41-sensors-20-02783]\]. Most smart home protocols provide built-in security features, such as node authentication, message encryption, and key management, independently from the gateway. In brief, connectivity protocols provide security features for communication between devices and the gateway, while secure communication between the gateway and users will be provided by high-level security services that are installed in the gateway. These security aspects are out of scope of this paper and can be handled by other studies.
Another important application that can be leveraged on the virtual device approach is device-to-device communication. Since the information of physical devices can be proactively or reactively updated to the gateway, virtual devices exactly reflect the current status of physical devices. Therefore, interaction among heterogeneous devices in the system can be performed partially at the gateway level through virtual devices. This allows to reduce the communication overhead between smart home devices as well as increase the scalability of the gateway. For example, an actuator can access sensing data of a sensor by simply querying the database without directly communicating with that sensor. Apparently, several complicated modules, such as protocol translator and message broker, are needed to achieve a seamless interoperability in the IoT system \[[@B42-sensors-20-02783]\]. In addition, stateful applications, such as asynchronous event notification, publish/subscribe messaging, and cloud-based data analysis/storage services, can be developed by utilizing the information of virtual devices in the NoSQL database. For example, by integrating an open-source publish/subscribe framework \[[@B43-sensors-20-02783]\], the gateway can act as a broker between message producers and message consumers. In other words, diverse sensor data from the devices can be stored and analyzed at a cloud server, while the external users or devices can remotely query the data through cloud services. This indicates that the gateway needs to be equipped with an additional publish/subscribe framework in addition to the proposed gateway architecture. However, the detailed design and implementation of these applications depend on the gateway vendors, and these processes are independent of the core gateway architecture described herein.
4.5. Controller {#sec4dot5-sensors-20-02783}
---------------
The role of the *Controller* is to translate commands from a user application into the respective command in the driver for each protocol. From an application viewpoint, developers do not need to know the details of underlying protocols because they only interact with virtual devices via RESTful APIs. All requests from the RESTful API are passed to the Controller, which detects which device the user wants to control, which protocol this device uses, and how to translate the user's command to the corresponding protocol's command. For example, if a user wants to turn off a kitchen light, they press the off button in an application. The application then sends an HTTP request to the gateway and information from the RESTful API passes to the Controller. The Controller detects the network address of this kitchen light from the database and knows that this light uses the ZigBee protocol. Finally, the Controller requests to send the light-off command from the ZigBee Driver to the physical kitchen light. After that, the driver takes care of the communication between the gateway and device.
4.6. RESTful Web Service {#sec4dot6-sensors-20-02783}
------------------------
The RESTful web service is a set of standard APIs that are used for communication between control applications (client) and a gateway (server). A client application can be a traditional desktop, mobile, or web application. Since client applications are run on powerful devices, it is suitable to implement RESTful APIs over HTTP protocol. With the standard APIs, developers can customize the control application for a particular customer. To provide unified control over heterogeneous networks without any in-depth knowledge about real devices, we define all APIs based on the types and functions of devices. [Table 3](#sensors-20-02783-t003){ref-type="table"} shows examples of RESTful formats that are used in the gateway. With each type of device, we predefine common APIs, for example, a light device definitely has an on-off command in its APIs. Moreover, based on a device profile, the gateway can provide custom APIs for each device. For example, a special bulb (light) might have an API to provide the current temperature in the home.
The RESTful web service has become more popular because of its advantages, such as simplicity, better performance, and variety of data formats compared to the SOAP-based web service \[[@B44-sensors-20-02783]\]. Since the RESTful web service also supports JSON format, it is convenient to exchange data among modules in the gateway. Furthermore, separating the control application and the gateway allows each component to be developed independently, which can reduce the development time of the gateway product. In case the manufacturers open the REST APIs publicly, it is easy for a third-party to develop a control application based on RESTful APIs thank to its simplicity. In summary, using the RESTful web service is beneficial to the development of a smart home gateway.
5. Prototype Implementation {#sec5-sensors-20-02783}
===========================
A prototype was implemented to prove the feasibility of our smart home architecture. Our testbed consists of a home gateway, six real smart devices, a device profile server, and a desktop application that acts as a user application, as shown in [Figure 5](#sensors-20-02783-f005){ref-type="fig"}. In this testbed, we evaluated all the gateway related functions from device discovery and profile downloading from the server to updating the device profile to the database (virtual device) in order to create RESTful APIs for a client application.
To build the gateway hardware, we used a single-board computer that has the Linux OS already installed. To support the ZigBee, Z-Wave network, we used two USB dongles acting as the ZigBee coordinator and Z-Wave controller, respectively. The single board also supports Wi-Fi and BLE, so our gateway hardware can support four protocols. Note that the goal of the proposed architecture is to enable the gateway to dynamically update the device profile for a new type of device. However, it does not mean that the gateway can be updated for a new type of network protocol since adding an underlying protocol into the gateway requires a hardware interface as well as relevant software modules, such as connectivity driver and controller. Therefore, we assume that the gateway is already equipped with the latest version of networking protocols that a new device works on.
Regarding the software implementation, the gateway software was written in Java. To implement the driver for Z-Wave and ZigBee (Connectivity Driver), we used two Java open-source software libraries, WZWave \[[@B45-sensors-20-02783]\] and ZigBee for Java \[[@B46-sensors-20-02783]\], respectively. A MongoDB database system \[[@B47-sensors-20-02783]\] was chosen to implement the NoSQL database. To create a RESTful web service in Java, we used the Jersey framework \[[@B48-sensors-20-02783]\]. In addition, we used PHP to implement a simple device profile server. Finally, to control the smart devices through RESTful APIs, we created a desktop application, as shown in [Figure 6](#sensors-20-02783-f006){ref-type="fig"}. There are no restrictions on making user applications, so developers can create any kind of web, mobile, or desktop application, and all of them can easily work with the RESTful APIs.
6. Evaluation {#sec6-sensors-20-02783}
=============
We evaluated the performance of the prototype with respect to message execution time over heterogeneous networks, the latency for downloading and updating, and the handling of an unknown command from the gateway to a device and vice versa.
6.1. Application Message Execution Time {#sec6dot1-sensors-20-02783}
---------------------------------------
Application message execution time is the most important criterion for evaluating the operating performance of a gateway system. The execution time for a user's operation is calculated from the point at which a user executes a command on an application until they see the result for this command through the application display. For instance, a user wants to turn off a light, he/she pushes the OFF button of the application user interface. After that, the light is switched off and then the application displays the status of the light (OFF) according to the actual status of the device. The runtime of this procedure is divided into three phases, as shown in [Figure 7](#sensors-20-02783-f007){ref-type="fig"}: (1) *T${}_{app1}$* is the time required to transfer the request from the application to the gateway via a RESTful API, (2) *T${}_{gw}$* is the time needed for the gateway to handle the command from the user, and (3) *T${}_{app2}$* is the time needed for the application to receive the change from the gateway via a RESTful API and update its user interface. The times of *T${}_{app1}$* and *T${}_{app2}$* depend on the network condition and the design of the application. Thus, we measure them by focusing only on time *T${}_{gw}$*, which is from when the gateway receives the HTTP request until new values from the device are updated to the database.
As shown in [Figure 7](#sensors-20-02783-f007){ref-type="fig"}, we can divide the application message execution time further into (1) *T${}_{proc\_ req}$*, which is the time for handling the HTTP request, (2) *T${}_{trans}$*, which is the time for transmitting a packet over the air, and (3) *T${}_{proc\_ rsp}$*, which is the time for handling the response command and updating the new values in the database. The results of some different commands are listed in [Table 4](#sensors-20-02783-t004){ref-type="table"}. There are some differences in the result of *T${}_{proc\_ req}$* because we used different open-source software for implementing the Z-Wave and ZigBee drivers. However, in general, the total time the gateway needed to process everything is only about 250--300 ms. This amount time is fast enough that a user does not perceive any delay in the system.
6.2. Downloading and Updating Device Profiles {#sec6dot2-sensors-20-02783}
---------------------------------------------
The gateway needs to download the device profile whenever it connects with a new type of device (new product). When a smart home is composed of many devices that have the same product type, the gateway only needs to download the corresponding profile once. In our testbed, we used a PC to act as the device profile server and measured the time for downloading and updating the device profile in the gateway for different sizes of profile files. Both the PC and gateway were connected to the local network. The test case was repeated 15 times and the result is shown in [Figure 8](#sensors-20-02783-f008){ref-type="fig"}, which shows the average, maximum, and minimum values of each profile's size respectively. Generally speaking, the gateway only needs under 100 ms to download and update a real profile file (which is usually smaller than 10 Kb). In practice, the connection between a gateway and server is an Internet connection, and it does not take a long time to download a small file over the Internet.
It is worth noting that even a new type of device can successfully join a network assuming that it has proper information and permission for authentication and association of the underlying networking protocol. This proves that the gateway can communicate with a new type of device freely from a viewpoint of networking, but it cannot interpret the application messages due to a lack of device profile. Since our goal is to enable dynamic update of device profile, we focused on the total time for downloading and updating device profile as shown in [Figure 8](#sensors-20-02783-f008){ref-type="fig"}. In other words, we excluded the time consumed for the networking perspective from this measurement, since the discovery and connection to the network is a networking perspective as discussed in [Section 4.1](#sec4dot1-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"} and they vary depending on the underlying network protocol. In summary, the time measured in [Figure 8](#sensors-20-02783-f008){ref-type="fig"} can be considered that taken for learning the device profile on the application level.
6.3. Handling Unknown Commands with the Device Profile {#sec6dot3-sensors-20-02783}
------------------------------------------------------
We evaluated a special case of our gateway system---handling unknown commands with the device profile. Obviously, the gateway needs time to read a device profile and convert it to the relevant commands. In [Figure 9](#sensors-20-02783-f009){ref-type="fig"}, we compare the time needed to handle two commands ("notification" and "meter") of the Z-Wave protocol for two cases: (1) a native implementation and (2) using a device profile. The notification command is used to notify the gateway of events that are reported from devices. The meter command is used to read the accumulated values in physical units from metering devices (e.g., water, gas, and electric meters). Both commands are very complicated because they cover many use cases and can be used by many device types.
To display the exact information about the device to the user, the gateway needs to understand the data received from a device, for instance like the kind of event or measurement the data represents or the value of meter. Note that the structure and meaning of the data are described in the specification document of the protocol. In case 1, we need to implement the usage of each command case-by-case in source code. In contrast, in case 2, we convert the usage of each command to the device profile, then guide the gateway to parse the information from the device profile. In both cases, the accuracy of the command is the same; however, the time needed for processing is slightly different. Although the result is still very positive, using a device profile takes about 5 ms longer than the native implementation. This amount time is short enough that a user is not able to recognize any difference in the system. Therefore, we conclude that the proposed gateway architecture provides a performance that is comparable to the native implementation while solving the compatibility problem effectively.
7. Discussion {#sec7-sensors-20-02783}
=============
The proposed gateway architecture breaks down the compatibility problem and allows consumers to freely choose smart devices from any manufacturer without technical knowledge about them. However, to realize the proposed solution, we need to resolve the assumption that device manufacturers provide the device profiles to a profile server so that the gateway downloads, parses, and interprets them dynamically. This section discusses the feasibility of this assumption as well as the advantages of the proposed solution.
Basically, the collaboration between device manufacturers and gateway manufacturers is reasonably necessary to achieve the compatibility regardless of the design of the gateway \[[@B49-sensors-20-02783]\]. However, the proposed architecture can facilitate that collaboration and can be beneficial to both types of manufacturers. From the viewpoint of device manufacturers, providing device profiles allows their devices to be supported by multiple gateways simultaneously on the market. As a result, it helps to increase the accessibility and usability of devices produced by the manufacturer. Also, the device profile approach can be applied to launched devices on the market without requiring a firmware update. It is important to note that providing device profiles does not mean that all profiles are open, or that it provides less privacy and protection. It is possible to apply a secure mechanism so that only allowed individuals or vendors can search for and download device profiles from the profile servers. Therefore, we expect previously mentioned benefits will increase the number of IoT device manufacturers sharing their device profiles on profile servers.
The proposed architecture is fascinating to commercial gateway manufacturers, since it solves the compatibility problem in the proliferation of smart home devices in a totally open manner. Clearly, it is not a trivial task for gateway manufacturers to support the increasing IoT devices by themselves. Instead of manually implementing protocols for new devices within the gateway software, the proposed gateway solution can support new devices in a dynamic manner by downloading and interpreting device profiles from profile servers. Interestingly, these processes are totally transparent to the consumers. Therefore, we can conclude that the proposed solution significantly reduces gateway development and update time and provides compatibility for new IoT devices through the collaboration with device manufacturers.
In addition, there have been several standardization attempts \[[@B50-sensors-20-02783],[@B51-sensors-20-02783]\] to solve the interoperability problem of IoT devices. In particular, W3C defines how IoT devices are described following the Thing Description specification \[[@B50-sensors-20-02783]\] so that they can easily interact with each other. Similarly, a standardized description developed by an organization can facilitate the widespread use of the device profile across gateway platforms. Apparently, several aspects must be considered to achieve standardization. First, the standard development organization (SDO) must define a uniform set of attribute names (vocabulary) for the device profile, following the structure we discussed in [Section 4.3](#sec4dot3-sensors-20-02783){ref-type="sec"}. It is also necessary to specify whether each attribute is a mandatory or optional field. For example, the device type should be a mandatory field to identify the type of each device. Regarding protocol specific information, the SDO can provide a mapping guideline to clarify how to declare that information in the device profiles. For example, a "turn on" command in the ZigBee protocol may have different parameters compared with that of the Z-Wave protocol. Therefore, additional fields are needed to precisely describe and link each parameter from protocols into the device profile. Second, the data format of the device profile also needs to be clearly specified. The device profile can be represented by the JSON format like our proposed architecture. However, any other formats such as XML and YAML are also allowed if they can describe the variable set of attributes of the device. Finally, the standardization of the device profile description is expected to accelerate the adoption of the proposed gateway architecture to accommodate the proliferation of IoT devices.
8. Conclusions {#sec8-sensors-20-02783}
==============
The ultimate vision of a truly smart home system not only includes the automation and remote control of smart devices but also a combination of other smart applications such as healthcare \[[@B52-sensors-20-02783]\], security \[[@B53-sensors-20-02783]\], artificial intelligence \[[@B54-sensors-20-02783]\], and ambient assisted living \[[@B55-sensors-20-02783]\]. However, all these applications need seamless connections among all the smart devices through a central hub in the house to work more efficiently. In this paper, we proposed a software architecture for a gateway in a smart home system to support unified control over heterogeneous networks. In addition, based on device profiles, we can design a flexible and extensible gateway which can solve the compatibility problem in current smart home systems. We demonstrated the feasibility of our gateway platform and evaluated its performance with respect to application message execution time, device profile downloads and updates, and handling unknown commands with a device profile.
The proposed architecture can also serve as fundamental research for further studies because all devices are seamlessly connected to one central hub and mapped to a database as virtual devices. We believe this work can be applied in various gateway products and will leverage the development and adoption of smart home technology. For future works, we will consider to extend the evaluation testbed as well as develop advanced applications and services that utilize the device profile based smart home gateway.
Conceptualization, L.-A.P.; Funding acquisition, T.K.; Software, L.-A.P.; Supervision, T.K.; Writing---original draft, L.-A.P.; Writing---review & editing, T.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. NRF-2019R1F1A1059408).
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
{#sensors-20-02783-f001}
{#sensors-20-02783-f002}
{#sensors-20-02783-f003}
{#sensors-20-02783-f004}
{#sensors-20-02783-f005}
{#sensors-20-02783-f006}
{#sensors-20-02783-f007}
{#sensors-20-02783-f008}
{#sensors-20-02783-f009}
sensors-20-02783-t001_Table 1
######
Commercial Gateway Products.
Vendor Supported Protocols Supported Devices
------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------- -------------------
Samsung SmartThings \[[@B6-sensors-20-02783]\] ZigBee, Z-Wave, Wi-Fi 300+
Apple Homekit \[[@B7-sensors-20-02783]\] Bluetooth LE (BLE), Wi-Fi 130+
Wink Hub \[[@B8-sensors-20-02783]\] ZigBee, Z-Wave, BLE, Wi-Fi, Kidde, Lutron Clear 120+
VeraSecure \[[@B9-sensors-20-02783]\] ZigBee, Z-Wave, BLE, Wi-Fi, VeraLink 210+
Homey \[[@B10-sensors-20-02783]\] ZigBee, Z-Wave, 433 MHz, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 70
HomeSeer \[[@B11-sensors-20-02783]\] Z-Wave, Wi-Fi, Serial, Ethernet 160+
sensors-20-02783-t002_Table 2
######
Comparison of previous studies about smart home gateway.
Gateway Hardware Design Hetero-Geneous Network Unified Control with API Targeted Problem
--------------------------------------------- --------------------- ------------------------ -------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kim et al. \[[@B12-sensors-20-02783]\] Independent gateway Yes Yes Integration of heterogeneous, semantic interoperability
Sleman et al. \[[@B15-sensors-20-02783]\] Independent gateway Yes No Hardware design of multi-interface gateway
Aloi et al. \[[@B19-sensors-20-02783]\] Smartphone based Yes (Limited) No Mobile gateway solution
Moazzami et al. \[[@B20-sensors-20-02783]\] Smartphone based No No Smartphone based home automation systems (focus on RESTful and SOAP-based smart devices)
Phan et al. \[[@B29-sensors-20-02783]\] Independent gateway No Yes Z-Wave smart home gateway
Nugur et al. \[[@B21-sensors-20-02783]\] Independent gateway Yes Yes IoT gateway for a cloud-based energy management system
Gavrila et al. \[[@B17-sensors-20-02783]\] TV Setup box based Yes No An integration of smart home system to a TV set-top box
Proposed Independent gateway Yes Yes To tackle the compatibility problem between smart home devices and the gateway and support unified control over heterogeneous network
sensors-20-02783-t003_Table 3
######
Example Format of RESTful APIs in The Gateway.
API Path Example Method Description
------------------------------------- --------------------------- -------- ------------------------------------------
/api/device /api/device GET Get all devices in system
/api/device/{:id} /api/device/1 GET Get information of device with id = 1
/api/device/light/:id/{:command} /api/device/light/1/on POST Turn on device (light) with id = 1
/api/device/light/:id/{:command} /api/device/light/1/color POST Set color for device (light) with id = 1
/api/device/security/:id/{:command} /api/device/lock/3/unlock POST Unlock device (lock) with id = 3
sensors-20-02783-t004_Table 4
######
Time (Millisecond) for Executing a Command in Gateway.
Command T$\mathbf{{}_{{proc}\_{req}}}$ T$\mathbf{{}_{trans}}$ T$\mathbf{{}_{{proc}\_{rsp}}}$ Total (T$\mathbf{{}_{gw}}$)
------------------ -------------------------------- ------------------------ -------------------------------- -----------------------------
Z-Wave ON 80 151 10 251
Z-Wave OFF 80 151 10 250
ZigBee ON 12 209 11 232
ZigBee SET COLOR 14 233 12 259
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