text
stringlengths 263
344k
| id
stringlengths 47
47
| dump
stringclasses 23
values | url
stringlengths 16
862
| file_path
stringlengths 125
155
| language
stringclasses 1
value | language_score
float64 0.65
1
| token_count
int64 57
81.9k
| score
float64 2.52
4.78
| int_score
int64 3
5
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Have your gums been looking a little swollen and red? Do they ever bleed while you’re flossing? Do you find it hard to remember the last time that you flossed? You’re likely suffering from gingivitis, the mildest form of periodontal disease (a.k.a., gum disease). Although gingivitis is quite common, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take it seriously. If left untreated, it can progress to periodontitis or even tooth loss. So, what causes gingivitis, and what can you do to treat the condition before it worsens?
What Causes Gingivitis?
The cause of gingivitis is typically pretty simple: poor oral hygiene. If you neglect your brushing and flossing routine or forgo dental appointments, your teeth and gums will reflect these choices. Plaque, an invisible, sticky film, will begin to build up on your teeth. Although plaque is present in every mouth, daily brushing and flossing remove it. If you allow it to form and fester, it will harden into tartar, which is more difficult to remove. In fact, tartar can only be removed through professional intervention.
When plaque and tartar are allowed to remain on the teeth, they irritate the gums and cause inflammation. This is why you may notice that your gums are swollen, red, or bleeding. Other symptoms of gingivitis include bad breath that doesn’t go away after brushing, sensitivity to hot or cold foods and drinks, and tenderness or pain when you chew food. If you notice that you have any symptoms of gingivitis, it’s important to schedule an appointment with your dentist quickly so that you can prevent the problem from escalating into periodontitis.
Although anyone can develop gingivitis, some people are more likely to develop it than others. According to the Mayo Clinic, the following characteristics increase your risk:
- Failing to maintain good oral hygiene
- Smoking or chewing tobacco
- Having dry mouth
- Being older in age
- Consuming a poor diet
- Having poorly fitted dental restorations
- Having crooked teeth
- Suffering from decreased immunity (may be caused by leukemia, HIV/AIDS, cancer treatment, etc.)
- Taking certain drugs (including phenytoin, some calcium channel blockers, etc.)
- Experiencing hormonal changes (which may be caused by pregnancy, a menstrual cycle, taking birth control pills, etc.)
- Having a family history of periodontitis
- Experiencing some medical conditions, including certain viral and fungal infections
Treating and Preventing Gingivitis
Now that you understand what causes gingivitis, you’re likely wondering about treatment options. Typically the treatment is to simply do what you should have been doing all along: taking excellent care of your oral health. Brush your teeth at least twice a day using a soft-bristled brush, and floss thoroughly at least once per day. Your dental hygienist can provide helpful tips and insights regarding how to brush and floss properly. In addition, visit your dentist every six months for a check-up and professional cleaning. In some cases, other treatments may be necessary as well, such as the following:
- Scaling and root planing, which removes plaque and tartar from your teeth above and below the gumline
- Dental restoration to fix or remove a crown, filling, or bridge that’s causing problems
- Antimicrobial mouth rinse may be prescribed to reduce harmful bacteria in the mouth
In addition, healthy lifestyle habits can prevent gingivitis. So, avoid tobacco products, limit your sugar intake, and control your blood sugar if you have diabetes. For more personalized advice, consult your dental team.
If you’re looking for an experienced, reliable, and friendly dentist near Springfield, Missouri, contact Wilkinson Dental. Dr. Wilkinson and his team will give you the personalized treatment you deserve using state-of-the-art technology. For exceptional and comprehensive dental care, schedule your first appointment today by calling 417-708-0556 or requesting an appointment online. We look forward to hearing from you! | <urn:uuid:336f9405-03f9-43a5-bae1-da48500bc7f9> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://www.wilkdental.com/what-causes-gingivitis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224644817.32/warc/CC-MAIN-20230529074001-20230529104001-00774.warc.gz | en | 0.922632 | 889 | 3.25 | 3 |
Sacred Heart, St. Joseph’s hospitals encourage heat safety
As summer sets in and temperatures begin to rise, it’s important to keep cool and stay hydrated. Hot weather can lead to heat exhaustion, heat stroke and sometimes even death.
HSHS Sacred Heart and St. Joseph’s hospitals offer these tips to stay cool and safe:
· Stay in air-conditioned buildings
· Never leave infants or children in a parked car
· Limit outdoor activity
· Wear loose, lightweight, light-colored clothing
· Take cool showers or baths
· Check on at-risk friends, family and neighbors at least twice a day
· Drink more water than usual and don’t wait until you’re thirsty to drink
· Avoid alcohol or liquids containing high amounts of sugar
· Regularly apply sunscreen
· Check your local news for extreme heat warnings
If you or someone you know experience any of the following symptoms, move to a cooler location, apply cool rags to your body and drink water. If symptoms do not improve, call 911 to seek medical attention immediately.
· Heavy sweating
· Cold, pale and clammy skin
· Weak pulse
· Fainting and vomiting
If someone is experiencing the below symptoms, do not wait, call 9-1-1 immediately.
· High body temperature
· Hot, red, dry or moist skin
· Rapid and strong pulse
· Possible unconsciousness | <urn:uuid:694bc075-868e-475c-a612-30f4ce7beb31> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | http://www.gmdmedia.net/augusta-area-times-tri-county-news/sacred-heart-st-joseph%E2%80%99s-hospitals-encourage-heat-safety | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506329.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20230922034112-20230922064112-00255.warc.gz | en | 0.837714 | 303 | 2.625 | 3 |
A Field Guide to Fossils of the Smoky Hill Chalk
Part 5: Coprolites, pearls, fossilized wood and other remains.
Copyright © 2004-2012 by Mike Everhart
Page created 08/12/2004; Last Updated 09/09/2012
LEFT: Several views of a giant fossil pearl found in the Smoky Hill Chalk, Gove County, Kansas (Click to enlarge). The specimen is the size of half a golf ball.
Continued from Part 4; Pteranodons, Birds and Dinosaurs
F. OTHER KINDS OF SMOKY HILL CHALK FOSSILS:
1. Coprolites: The remains of feces / excreta are often found in the chalk and sometimes contain well preserved vertebra and other fish bones. They are white and chalky in appearance, and since they are composed largely of calcium phosphate, they are more resistant to erosion than is the surrounding chalk. For more information, see my Coprolite webpage.
|LEFT: A large shark or mosasaur coprolite found in the lower Smoky
Hill Chalk. The mass includes small pieces of bone and fish scales.
RIGHT: Shell coprolites - Small, compacted masses of oyster shell fragments are found only in a limited zone in the lower 1/3 of the chalk. These appear to be the coprolites from a fish or other predator that fed exclusively on oysters. At this point, only the plethodid Martinichthys is a candidate.
2. Fossilized Wood - Pieces of logs and branches floated out into the Western Interior Sea where they became water logged and sank to the bottom.
Professor B. F. Mudge (1877, p. 283-284) was among the first to note the presence of an occasional fragment of fossilized wood. This wood was, in a few instances, bored before fossilization by some small animal. This might have been done by the larva of an insect (a borer) when the tree was living, or later by a teredo when the trunk floated in water. In either case it shows that the Cretaceous vegetation was subject to the same enemies as that of the present period. Some of this wood was in charred condition [carbonized] and would burn freely. Other specimens were changed into almost pure silica, the cavities studded with quartz. In one case a log, weighing about 500 pounds, had all conditions of the transformation; a portion had the appearance of soft decayed wood, which crumbled in handling, and other parts ringing like flint under a hammer. Occasionally specimens were converted into chalcedony, but the annual growth of the wood distinctly remained. In a single instance we detected the fibrous structure of the palm.
|LEFT: A fragment of the outer surface of a petrified log wood from the Fairport Chalk
Member (Middle Turonian) of the Carlile Shale in Ellis County. The small round circles are
abandoned borings that were later filled with chalk. Note that the shipworm
borings in wood that Mudge referred (above) to would now be called Teredolites
longissimus.... and that a "shipworm" is a actually a small
clam, not a worm.
RIGHT: A closer side view of the same specimen showing the closely packed chambers where the clams were living. It almost looks like a bee's honeycomb but is not organized.... it was literally "every clam for himself"
|LEFT: A closer side view of the same specimen showing the
closely packed chambers where the clams were living.
RIGHT: A closer side view of the same specimen showing the closely packed chambers where the clams were living. Note the fibrous appearance of the surrounding wood; it appears that this log was preserved.. and not necessarily "petrified."
The remains of a tree nearly 30 feet long were reported by Williston in 1897 from near Elkader, KS. Often flattened, the wood had become carbonized (or in some cases, crystallized with calcium carbonate) and will burn poorly. Sometimes oysters and other invertebrates attached themselves to the wood before it was covered by the bottom mud. Most fossilized wood in the Smoky Hill Chalk is black in color but retains the grain of the original wood. (NOTE
|LEFT: A section of carbonized wood from a large log in the lower
Smoky Hill Chalk.
RIGHT: Detail of the carbonized wood at left, showing the fibrous, barely altered texture of some areas in the specimen. This wood is about 85 million years old.
|LEFT: A small piece of preserved (calcitic?) wood where calcite
crystals are covering it in a pattern that looks very much like bark.
RIGHT: A gnarly piece of wood (pine?) that was preserved in the Smoky Hill Chalk.
3. Pearls - Sometimes small round nodules are found attached to inoceramid shells. They are the remains of pearls that were fossilized along with the clam shell. The nacre or "mother of pearl" luster is not preserved in inoceramid pearls. This is because the pearly, nacreous color associated with true pearls is made up of a mineral called aragonite. In the Smoky Hill chalk, the aragonite is not preserved. Inoceramid shells and pearls have lost the thin inner pearly aragonite layer, and are solely composed of calcite. This also means that some kinds of shells, like those of ammonites, were not preserved because they are composed entirely of aragonite. An 1940 article in the Hays Daily News noted that George Sternberg had donated 50 pearls from the Smoky Hill Chalk to the Smithsonian Institution, and a scientific paper was published on their occurrence (Brown, 1940).
|LEFT: Two free pearls and three that are attached to fragments of
inoceramid shells from the lower Smoky Hill Chalk. Click
here for a close-up of the pearl at upper left. The layers
showing how the pearl was formed over time are visible.
RIGHT: A side view of an inoceramid pearl showing the underlying inoceramid shell, most likely Volviceramus grandis.
Click here for pictures of a giant hemispherical pearl from the Smoky Hill Chalk.
PEARLS FROM OTHER FORMATIONS
LEFT: Two small pearls (4-5 mm) from the base of the Lincoln Limestone Member of the Greenhorn Limestone Formation (Upper Cenomanian) in Russell County, Kansas.
RIGHT: A cross section of the larger pearl shown at left showing. the concentric layers.
4. Borings: Many invertebrates that were living in the inland sea are represented indirectly by casts, burrows and other evidence.
|In some cases, the damage done by cirripids as they bored into inoceramid shells is preserved while the actual animal is not. In addition, the bottom muds of the inland sea may have been relatively low in oxygen and may have not supported large numbers of smaller invertebrates. There is still much work to be done in defining the somewhat limited invertebrate community of the inland sea.|
5. Burrows - Burrow structures from worms and other invertebrates were not generally preserved in the soft mud of the inland sea but can be found indirectly in some chalk strata. Currently, it is believed that the harder layers of chalk are evidence of thorough mixing (bioturbulation) by bottom dwelling organisms. It is likely that much of the evidence was simply not preserved due to the consistency of the mud and other, adverse chemical conditions as such lower levels of dissolved oxygen.
6. Bentonites - These are the remains of the ash (usually rust red in color) from volcanic eruptions that fell on the surface of the ocean. There are more than 200 bentonites in the Smoky Hill Chalk, each of which represents the eruption of a fairly large volcano (larger than Mt. St. Helens in May of 1980) to the west of present day Kansas. Some are an inch or more in thickness. Hattin (1982) used several of these bentonites as part of his stratigraphic marker units in the chalk.
7. Iron concretions: Iron concretions are found through out the Smoky Hill Chalk, but most often in the lower one-third. These concretions can form in many shapes and sizes and are composed primarily of iron sulfide (jarosite). In some cases they may form around bits of inoceramid shell or other debris. When freshly exposed, they are often shiny and exhibit various metallic colors on the surface. They tend to degrade fairly rapidly into splintery marcasite when exposed to moisture and often shatter or become piles of rust-red debris.
LEFT: The smaller, oval forms are referred to as "pop-rocks" locally. They may be relatively smooth or have a definitely rough, crystalline surface. Small cubical pyrite nodules are found at some levels.
RIGHT: A large concretion formed on an inoceramid shell fragment, and roughly shaped like an animal.
8. Silicified chalk - Variously referred to as Smoky Hill or Niobrara jasper, silicified chalk was formed after eroded and exposed chalk was covered by the sand of the Ogallala Formation. Silica leaching from the sand permeated the chalk and hardened it.
Hill jasper, also known as Niobrara, Graham, or Republican River jasper,
is derived from the Smoky Hill Formation of the Central Plains. This formation
outcrops over a fairly widespread area across Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and
Wyoming, although the highest quality chert-bearing deposits are limited
primarily to locations from west-central Kansas to southwest Nebraska (see
Hattin 1982). Smoky Hill jasper is a highly siliceous material that varies in
color from caramel to dark brown, tan, black, white, green, yellow, and red.
These materials frequently occur as flat, tabular cobbles banded with several of
the above colors. Concentrations of quarries have been located in Graham, Trego,
and Gove counties in Kansas (see Banks 1990:96; Stein 1997)." Excerpt from
pages 183-184 of Brosowske, S.D. 2005. The evolution
of exchange in small-scale societies of the Southern High Plains. Unpublished
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oklahoma, 526 pp.
"Nodular, usually stratiform masses of chert occur within the Smoky Hill Chalk at several places, e.g., at Locality 23, at several places in Graham County (Prescott, 1955, p. 47), and at Norton (Logan, 1897a, p. 220). At locality 24, the nodules reach thicknesses as great as 15 cm (0.5 ft). Smoky Hill chert is associated with highly weathered chalk and occurs in the uppermost part of the exposure. According to Frye and Leonard (1949, p. silicification took place at the same time as the silicification in adjacent Ogallala (Miocene and Pliocene) beds." Excerpted from Hattin, 1982, p. 19.
"In a few places the chalk beds carry large amounts of chert which seem to be interstratified with the chalk. This is well represented at Norton, along the Prairie Dog Creek. Northwest of town about a mile the chert is quarried to a considerable extent. Plate XXVIII shows this, and Plate XXIX shows the same chert capping a chalk bluff at the old mill, Norton." Excerpted from Logan, 1897, p. 220-221, Volume II of the University Geological Survey of Kansas.
the bluffs south of the Smoky a large quantity of clayey limestone has been
brought to fill the well. I found in these pieces of rock very good specimens of
common opal. They are white and look like porcelain, and were formed by the
infiltration of siliceous springs into the cretaceous strata; the magnesia
contained in the latter caused the silica to assume the opaline rather than the
agate or chalcedonic form." Excerpted from From
LeConte 1868, page 11.
|LEFT: A piece of silicified chalk from the contact
between the Smoky Hill Chalk and the Ogallala Formation above Marker Unit
9 in Gove County. This piece contains at least three fish scales but is
hard enough to ring when hit with a hammer.
RIGHT: Another piece of silicified chalk from southern Gove County shown in side and top view. In this case, coarse sand, probably carried by flowing water, infiltrated a space under a piece of loose chalk before being lithified by the silica leached from overlying sediments.
|LEFT: A piece of banded silicified chalk from eastern
Blade: A blade made from silicified chalk by a contemporary flint napper. The Plains Indians used silicified chalk as a source of tool making material, and as trade goods (Brosowske, 2005). Up to 40% of stone tools found in some areas of the Midwest are made from Smoky Hill Jasper.
BACK TO INDEX | <urn:uuid:0df0969b-1c91-4ecc-bd58-3552a5891996> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://oceansofkansas.com/FieldGuide5.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1408500833115.44/warc/CC-MAIN-20140820021353-00230-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951938 | 2,847 | 3.21875 | 3 |
The house mouse (Mus domesticus) was introduced to Australia by the first European settlers during the late 18th century. Its distribution is now widespread throughout the whole of the country, but it is in the key grain growing areas of south eastern Australia where mouse numbers have had the greatest impact. With the start of another surge of rodent activity being reported, Gerwyn Jones, Asia Pacific Manager for PelGar International outlines some of the reasons for mouse plagues and potential outcomes.
Mouse plagues have been regularly reported in Australia, the first being cited in a Victorian newspaper in 1917. On this occasion, in the town of Lascelles in the state of Victoria, around 200,000 mice (3 tons in weight) were caught in one night. By the end of June 1917, a total weight of 544 tons, equating to some 32 million mice, had been reported from this one plague.
Since then significant mouse plagues have appeared regularly in the country causing major losses in agricultural production. In 1993 one of Australia’s worst mouse plagues hit the grain producing areas of Victoria and South Australia, causing an estimated A$96 million worth of damage. The plague caused destruction of standing and stored crops, livestock was attacked, vehicles damaged and electrical and rubber insulation in buildings destroyed. In 2011 mouse numbers built to plague proportions in southern Queensland, New South Wales, western Victoria and South Australia. “Now again in 2019 we are seeing an alarming rise in rodent numbers,” explains Gerwyn Jones. “It is therefore crucial that we monitor and put in place strategies for control”.
A mouse plague is defined as an excessive and increasing population of mice that are having an economic and/or environmental impact. The density of mice in crops, in non-plague years is normally <50 mice ha-1 but at peak densities can exceed 1,000 mice ha-1. Mouse numbers are dependent on many factors but what is key is the difference between non-breeding winter populations and the breeding populations in spring and summer. As mice are not long lived the size of the overwintering population is often hard to detect, but the trigger for the commencement of breeding appears to relate to the prevailing weather and food supply.
The mouse breeding season starts in October continuing through until the following May. As mice can breed at an alarming rate with litters of up to 11 offspring every three weeks it is not surprising that plague proportions can be achieved after only four to five generations.
What triggers an actual plague, compared to the normal annual fluctuation of the mouse population, seems to be dependent on a number of factors, in particular when:
- there is a supply of quality food and water;
- environmental temperatures are not extreme;
- soil is moist and easy to dig;
- nesting conditions are favourable;
- diseases, parasites and predation levels are low.
It is also suggested that changes in agricultural practices may be increasing the frequency of mouse plagues. Stubble retention for example will provide additional habitat and extra food from split or unharvested grain, as was evident in the 2010 winter crop harvest. Plagues will often occur following a period of drought with a subsequent wet spring and summer which provides extra food and cover.
Impact of mice plagues
Wheat is the main winter cereal crop grown in southern and eastern Australia and is the crop which suffers most from mouse plagues. However, mice can also damage other cereal crops, soybean, maize, sunflower, rice, lucerne and a range of horticultural crops. They can impact farm storage areas and animal husbandry facilities, such as pig and poultry sheds and cause damage to farm machinery and vehicles.
Damage to the crops is caused by the mice consuming the grain and digging out newly sown seeds and germinating seeds which results in farmers frequently having to re-sow their crops.
In storage areas mice can enter via the smallest of holes so maintaining a mouse-free store is virtually impossible. Their droppings will contaminate stored grain and livestock feed.
They are also known to transmit a range of diseases and pathogens to both livestock and humans including:
- salmonella to humans and domestic animals;
- encephalomyocarditis virus to pigs;
- leptospirosis to humans and animals;
- tapeworms, roundworms and fungal diseases.
Guidelines issued by the New South Wales Government in Australia recommend monitoring and observation techniques before use of rodenticides for control. Monitoring helps to determine an increasing mouse population. Simple monitoring by observation, especially around buildings will provide a good indication of an increasing presence of mice through:
- an increase in droppings;
- smudges on walls; dark runways;
- tracks and worn pathways;
- smell, sight and sounds
- mounds of soil and seed
Visual signs are also valuable indicators. Damage to seed heads and chewed stems and seed husks at the base of plants are more indicative of mouse damage rather than bird and insect damage. The number of burrow entrances along a unit area or evidence of freshly dug soil will also suggest an active burrow. In irrigation areas syphons which have not been used for a while may have a very ‘mousy’ smell and mice may be seen running out of the ends. An increase in mouse numbers may also attract an increase in predators such as raptors.
Simple canola-soaked monitoring cards, which when chewed, can reveal the high probability that mice will take bait is the first recommended step.
Bait stations filled with a measured amount of grain and strategically placed in fields can also be used as a crude monitoring aid. If left overnight the loss of grain (eaten by the mice) is then determined by weighing the grain the following day. By assuming that a mouse will eat 4 grams each night (20% its body weight) then a rough estimate of the number of mice can be calculated by dividing the weight of grain lost overnight by four.
Once monitoring has taken place and a problem identified then use of rodenticides may be the only option. The most commonly used anticoagulant rodenticides used in Australia are: brodifacoum, coumatetralyl, flocoumafen and warfarin but these are not for field use and can only be used in and around farm buildings.
Two rodenticides currently permitted for field use are:
bromadiolone – a grain-based bait for crop-perimeter baiting only. Here the landowners supply the grain to the Livestock Health and Pest Authority (LHPA) who mix the grain with the bromadiolone.
zinc phosphide – this produces toxic phosphine gas on ingestion. The bait is registered for in-crop use and can only laid if a monitoring programme shows significant mouse activity.
It is important that an integrated pest management strategy should be employed to reduce damage caused during a plague. This includes mouse-proofing buildings, reducing the amount of farm rubbish around buildings and employing good farm hygiene practices. These strategies will help to reduce mouse populations exploding when conditions are optimal. It is also crucial that the threat to non-target species is minimal and as in-crop and perimeter baiting is an accepted method of minimizing the effect of mouse plagues on the Australian grain harvest assessing the impact of rodenticides on non-target species is recommended.
Problems for manufacturers
“From a manufacturer’s point of view it is quite difficult dealing with a mouse plague,” explains Gerwyn Jones. “I have personally been in the industry during two mouse plagues in Australia, and there were some challenging problems that we faced.”
“As an overseas manufacturer, PelGar usually plans to have product stored in Australia based on the previous season and forecasts given to us by customers and end users. When a plague strikes you can throw all of that out of the window. Within a few weeks, stocks that would normally last months are gone. It is a real Catch 22 situation – you want to have stock to tackle a plague, but then you don’t want to be overstocked. I have seen manufacturers stock their warehouse with product, in preparation for a bad mouse season, which then did not materialise. You are then left with ageing stock and the cost of warehousing product until the next season.”
Research work, which focuses on understanding the mechanisms leading to increasing mouse populations, and developing predictive models, are only able to achieve 70% accuracy. It is therefore vital that farmers and growers on the ground recognise and monitor the early signs of increasing mouse numbers and act to put control measures and management practices in place early on. It is far easier to control a small mouse infestation than the economic and environmental impact of a plague. With weather and the climate certainly having an influence on seasonal mouse populations, it is likely that climate change will have a significant impact on the number and magnitude of plagues in the future.
This article appeared in International Pest Control, May/June 2019 volume 61:3 | <urn:uuid:f768b1cd-eb89-44e4-a1d5-10f11d4163b1> | CC-MAIN-2020-34 | https://www.pelgar.co.uk/usa/news/mouse-explosions-in-australia/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-34/segments/1596439738562.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20200809162458-20200809192458-00099.warc.gz | en | 0.949813 | 1,868 | 3.375 | 3 |
When the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, it laid the foundation for the United States of America, a nation that would grow to incorporate 50 individual states over the following two centuries. While all states were annexed as equally valuable members, each featured historical, cultural and economic differences, along with unique governmental structures adopted to best serve their residents.
The NFHS membership is composed of one association in each state plus the District of Columbia for its 51 members. As a federation, the NFHS is a leadership and service organization to these 51 autonomous organizations.
Among the 51 member associations, there are a variety of governance structures. While in a number of states there is more than one organization that governs high school sports, only one organization – the largest and most comprehensive – in each state is a member of the NFHS.
In addition to reviewing the NFHS member state associations, following is information on some of the other governing organizations as well.
States with Multiple Associations
There are 12 states that have more than one governing body for high school sports and activities. Five members of this group – Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia – have additional differences that will be detailed in other sections. This section will focus on Alabama, Georgia, Iowa, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
When discussing multiple-association states, Iowa is perhaps the most unique in that it splits authority among four unified organizations and is the only state that fundamentally separates activities sponsorship by gender. The Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) – the NFHS member association in the state – oversees activities for boys, while the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) handles the girls’ side.
The answer to the obvious question “why the split?” dates to 1925, when the IHSAA elected to end its sponsorship of girls basketball – the only sport offering for girls in Iowa at the time.
Superintendents and administrators who were upset with the IHSAA’s decision banded together to form the IGHSAU and the two organizations have operated separately ever since. The IHSAA and the IGHSAU offer nearly identical sports offerings, with the primary exception being football. Additionally, the IHSAA sponsors both fall and spring golf seasons, while the IGHSAU girls only play during the spring.
“Formally, we have a ‘Joint Committee’ that includes the two executive directors and representative board members from each organization,” said Tom Keating, executive director of the IHSAA. “We meet twice per year and discuss topics that impact both organizations such as eligibility rules, unified sports and sports where we conduct co-ed tournaments (cross country, track and field and bowling).”
The Iowa High School Music Association (IHSMA) and the Iowa High School Speech Association (IHSSA) make up the other half of the four ruling authorities in the state. While each has oversight of its own activities, the IHSMA and IHSSA are actually housed and supported by the IHSAA and IGHSAU, respectively, which reduces cost for the two fine arts organizations.
The four states that share borders in the Southeast – Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina – feature independent schools’ associations in addition to their NFHS members. Originally formed as governing bodies for alternative schools that began in the region during the integration period, the independent associations have since evolved and no longer serve their initial purpose. Three of the four have established affiliate membership with the NFHS.
Along with the NFHS member Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) is the Alabama Independent School Association (AISA). While the AHSAA incorporates 414 schools and offers championships in 26 sports, the AISA has a listed membership of about 80 schools and sponsors about half the number of sports.
In Mississippi and Georgia, both the NFHS member association and the independent associations sponsor athletics and activities. Ironically, the membership of the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools includes 23 of its 122 member schools from Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee.
The Georgia High School Association (GHSA) and the Georgia Independent School Association (GISA) are the largest among the four states, with the GHSA’s membership including 464 schools to the GISA’s 165. The GISA was the product of a 1986 merger between two such organizations in the state – the Georgia Association of Independent Schools and the Southeastern Association of Independent Schools.
The South Carolina High School League (SCHSL) features 217 schools and is an athletics-only organization. In contrast, the South Carolina Independent School Association has a relatively large membership considering the state’s land area with 124 schools and sponsors a lengthy list of activities in addition to athletics.
The Pennsylvania Independent School Athletic Association (PAISAA) governs a much smaller group of schools in comparison. While the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association encompasses almost 750 schools and is the fifth-largest in the NFHS’ membership, PAISAA oversees just a collection of 24 schools and provides them with competition in 18 sanctioned sports.
Although there is another organization of schools in Oklahoma, the NFHS member Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association (OSSAA) governs the majority of schools with 20 sponsored sports and three non-athletic activities for its 484 members. The other group – the Heartland Christian Athletic Association, which is an NFHS affiliate member – has grown to incorporate 54 schools across four states, with 20 of them based outside Oklahoma.
In the remaining states with multiple organizations, the additional associations are composed of private schools.
Texas has four separate organizations for private schools in addition to the University Interscholastic League (UIL), the NFHS member organization composed of mainly public schools.
The UIL, which is the second-largest NFHS member organization with 1,479 schools, serves the interests of public schools and open enrollment charter schools in the state.
The UIL technically allows private-school membership, but sees very few applicants due to stringent stipulations. In the case of the UIL, only private schools that are accredited by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission and do not qualify for any similar organization are eligible to join.
The Texas Christian Athletic League and the Texas Schools Athletic Fellowship are two of the state’s governing bodies for non- UIL member schools, but both service fewer than 70 schools each.
The major associations handling athletics and activities outside of the UIL’s jurisdiction are the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) and the Texas Charter School Academic & Athletic League (TCSAAL), both of which are NFHS affiliate members.
The neighboring North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) and Virginia High School League (VHSL) use similar operations structures in that both allow approved non-boarding, non-public high schools to join their ranks in addition to public schools.
The NCHSAA specifies its exceptions to non-boarding parochial schools and mandates those schools do not recruit or offer athletic scholarships to student-athletes. While there are four such schools in the NCHSAA’s membership, the remaining non-public schools are members of the North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association (NCISAA).
The VHSL sponsors a variety of activities beyond athletics. In addition to being one of 12 NFHS member organizations to sponsor esports, the VHSL offers “Media Championships” through a partnership with the Virginia Association of Journalism Teachers and Advisers. The Media Championships consist of five competitions for student broadcasting, newspaper, online news, magazine and yearbook publications.
In addition to the state’s public schools, the VHSL offers membership to “non-public high schools which agree to follow VHSL By-Laws, Rules and Regulations as amended for them.”
Most non-public schools are members of the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA), another NFHS affiliate member. The VISAA, which was established in 1997, guides athletics participation for 92 schools and offers a total of 22 sports – 11 for each gender.
Another athletics-only NFHS member association on the Atlantic Coast – the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) – is divided along public-private lines.
The MPSSAA governs the state’s 198 public schools and provides 24 state championship events, while two separate organizations handle private school athletic offerings for boys and for girls – the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland, respectively.
States with Middle School Members
There are currently 24 NFHS member state associations that allow middle schools to join their membership, with two of them – the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) and the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) – providing state championship events at the middle school level.
The southern Great Plains region and its bordering states have a particularly strong representation, as associations in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas all welcome middle schools into the fold.
Many states east of the Mississippi River permit middle school members as well, including the TSSAA, Alabama High School Athletic Association, Mississippi High School Activities Association, Florida High School Athletic Association and the South Carolina High School League.
The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference, Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association, New York State Public High School Athletic Association, Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission and Vermont Principals’ Association support middle schools in the Northeast, while the Iowa High School Athletic Association, Michigan High School Athletic Association, North Dakota High School Activities Association and the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association join the OHSAA in the Midwest.
A stark contrast can be seen on the other side of the country, as the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association is the only organization west of the Rocky Mountains that offers membership for junior high schools.
The state of Illinois undoubtedly features the nation’s most unique structure for middle school sports and activities.
While the Illinois High School Association does not permit membership for middle schools, those activities for grades 5-8 are exclusively sanctioned by the Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) – the only organization of its kind in the United States.
“It’s a very unique opportunity for students in Illinois,” said IESA Executive Director Steve Endsley. “We are by far the most actively involved in providing state competition for middle schools in the country.”
Of its 10 sports and five activities offerings, track and field is the most popular sport within the IESA’s operations. Incorporating two classes each within the two grade levels, there are eight respective state championships up for grabs each year at the IESA track and field meet. About 580 schools participated in the 2019 state meet.
There are six other state associations – the Kentucky High School Athletic Association, Maine Principals’ Association, Minnesota State High School League, New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association, South Dakota High School Activities Association and the Utah High School Activities Association – that do not accept middle school members, but allow middle school students to participate in high school state championship events.
States with Fine Arts/Activities Sponsorship
Twenty-five states strictly offer athletics-only programs for their schools and students, while the remaining 26 organizations have programs in performing arts, fine arts or other activities. Organizations such as the UIL, NMAA and VPA are among the states sponsoring the most activities beyond athletics.
In Texas, in addition to common offerings like music, debate, speech and drama, the UIL offers robotics, journalism, spelling and a Science Contest, which challenges participants to understand the significance of current events in biology, chemistry and physics.
New Mexico and Vermont have their own unique activities as well. The NMAA oversees chess, while the VPA sponsors a geography bee.
The Alaska School Activities Association sponsors eight activities and joins the Wyoming High School Activities Association (WHSAA) as organizations that run an all-state art competition/ symposium.
The associations in Illinois, South Dakota and Wyoming join the UIL in offering journalism. As profiled earlier, Virginia offers journalism through a relationship with an external association. Part of that arrangement also includes a film festival, which makes Virginia the only state to provide competition in that area.
The trademark activity of the SDHSAA is its visual arts competition, a massive art contest held every March that bestows state championship awards in 12 categories. Whereas art competitions in Alaska and Wyoming are conducted for individual art entries, the South Dakota visual arts competition crowns state champions in three classes – Class AA, Class A and Class B – on a school basis. The Minnesota State High School League sponsors visual arts as well but ends its awards recognition at the regional level. Minnesota, along with Arizona, offers a robotics competition.
In Kansas, the KSHSAA offers a unique character-building, leadership-training, service program for students called the Kansas Association for Youth.
The Missouri and Oklahoma associations sponsor similar activities – academic bowl, debate, drama, music and speech events – along with the Iowa association, which includes student council on its list rather than academic bowl.
Twelve NFHS member associations sponsor at least one activity other than athletics: Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah and Washington and West Virginia.
This final section profiles five of the most unique state associations in the NFHS’ membership.
The structure of the NFHS member in California – the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) – is specially designed to accommodate the state’s population and land area. Servicing more than 1,600 schools and almost two million students, the CIF governs its constituents through 10 geographic sections.
The Federated Council, which currently consists of 13 superintendents, principals and athletic directors from organizations like the California Coaches Association, California State Athletic Directors Association, Association of California School Administrators and others, sets a portion of the rules for the entire state.
Led by their own commissioners, the sections do retain some autonomy, as they formulate regulations in other areas that fit best with their participants. A notable stipulation is that sections cannot adopt rules that are less restrictive than those of the CIF.
The commissioners from all 10 sections must agree upon rules like these before they are reviewed and approved by the Federated Council. While a slow legislative process is conceivable within the levels of CIF governance, CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti said a collective mindset among decision-makers helps maintain reasonable timelines.
Like California, a federation format also exists in New York. The key difference between the two states is that only one part of the New York State Federation of Secondary School Athletic Associations (NYSFSSAA) – is a member association within the NFHS. That organization, based in the small upstate town of Latham, is the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA).
NYSPHSAA, an athletics-only association that allows middle school membership, is overseen by two separate committees – the Executive Committee and the Central Committee. One male and one female from each of NYSPHSAA’s 11 geographic sections make up the 22 members of the Executive Committee, which has general day-to-day management of the Association.
The other three entities within the New York federation include the New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association (NYSCHSAA), the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) and the Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL), an association devoted solely to the public schools of New York City. The NYSCHSAA and NYSAIS are both NFHS affiliate members.
Vermont and Maine
Vermont and Maine are the two NFHS members that govern high school sports and activities through principals’ associations. They are led entirely by high school principals and are committed to furthering the professional development of principals in their states. The VPA’s 15-member executive board, which is made up entirely of active and retired principals and assistant principals, governs seven fall sports, 11 winter sports and six spring sports.
In 2018, the Maine Principals’ Association underwent a pair of significant changes to its leadership structure.
Previously, the executive director oversaw both halves of the MPA – the Interscholastic Division and the Professional Division.
The Interscholastic Division is the area tasked with managing the MPA’s 17 sport programs for its 150-plus high schools, while the Professional Division deals primarily with professional development opportunities for the more than 800 member administrators in the state, and also handles the association’s sponsored activities.
Recently, the MPA has employed a second executive director, giving it one head for each division. Currently, Mike Burnham is the executive director in charge of the Interscholastic Division and Holly Couturier is the executive director for the Professional Division.
Oversight of the Interscholastic Division is a charge of the Interscholastic Management Committee, which has 13 members – nine active principals and four non-voting liaisons from various additional committees.
While similar to Maine and Vermont in some respects, the NFHS member association in Connecticut is part of a structure for high school sports and activities that is truly unique. The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) is the entity that reports to the National Federation for athletics, but is just one part of a much larger organization known as the Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS), which also contains separate branches for high school activities and a principals’ association.
The CIAC sponsors 14 boys sports and 13 girls sports, and includes field hockey, ice hockey, swimming and boys volleyball. It is guided by the CIAC Board of Control, which is made up of 40 individuals from various organizations and backgrounds in sport.
The CIAC Board of Control handles the implementation and management of policies for eligibility, transfers and several other issues on the athletics side. For all matters besides eligibility, Board of Control decisions can be appealed all the way up to the CAS Board of Directors – the supreme authority within the CAS conglomerate.
Diversity is a visible and integral element to the makeup of the United States melting pot, and, as showcased in this article, a similar theme runs through the NFHS’ membership. Through various structures, governance systems and provisions, each member association bears a slightly different methodology. However, there is one overarching commonality among them. For the collective 12 million students participating in athletics and activities nationwide, they provide the American Dream.
Nate Perry is coordinator of media relations at the National Federation of State High School Associations. | <urn:uuid:bda81c99-3f3a-4398-915b-d28e482da7a5> | CC-MAIN-2020-34 | https://www.nfhs.org/articles/state-high-school-associations-come-in-all-shapes-and-sizes/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-34/segments/1596439738351.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20200808194923-20200808224923-00541.warc.gz | en | 0.95086 | 3,887 | 2.8125 | 3 |
_________ is the study of drugs and their action on living organisms.
chemical, generic, official, trade, brand
What are the several types of drug names?
__________ name is the scientific term that describes the molecular structure of a drug; it typically is the chemical components of the drug.
__________ name is the general name given to a drug that can be made or marketed by any company; it is non-proprietary.
__________ name is capitalized and is selected by a specific company for marketing purposes.
To avoid confusion, what name should you use for the drug?
Drugs that retard or destroy pathogens are classified as?
prescription, nonprescription, controlled substance
Once a drug is approved for use, the FDA assigns it to one of the following categories?
_________ _________ are designated by the federal government as potentially harmful unless their use is supervised by a licensed health care provider, such as a nurse practitioner, physician, or dentist.
The nurse administers the drug and monitors the patient for therapeutic effect and _________ ___________.
Prescription drugs, also called ________ ________, are the largest category of drugs.
Prescription drugs are prescribed by a ?
_____________ ________ are designated by the FDA as safe and can be obtained without a prescription.
over the counter
Drugs that are purchased in a variety of settings, such as a pharmacy, drugstore, or the local supermarket are called ?
Over the counter drugs are known as?
___________ ___________ are the most carefully monitored of all drugs. These drugs have a high potential for abuse and may cause physical or psychological dependency.
___________ ____________ is the habitual use of a drug, in which negative physical withdrawal symptoms result from abrupt discontinuation; it is the body's dependence on repeated administration of a drug.
____________ ____________ act of 1970 established a schedule, or classification system, for drugs with abuse potential.
Controlled Substances Act
This act regulates the manufacture, distribution, and dispensing of these drugs.
The controlled substances act divides drugs into _____ ___________, based on their potential for abuse and physical and psychological dependence.
High abuse potential, lack of accepted safety, not approved for medical use in the United States is what schedule?
Potential for high abuse with severe physical or psychological dependence, approved for medical use in the United States
The schedule approved for opioids such as meperidine, methadone, morphine, oxycodone, amphetamines; and cocaine.
Less abuse potential than schedule 2 drugs, potential for moderate physical or psychological dependence
Examples of this schedule are anabolic steroids, ketamine, hydrocodone/codeine compounded with an nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug
Less abuse potential than schedule 3 drugs, limited dependence potential
Examples of this schedule are some sedatives and anxiety agents, non-opioid analgesics, "diet drugs"
Limited abuse potential
Examples of this schedule are small amounts of opiod (codeine) used as antitussives or antidiarrheals, pregabalin (Lyrica)
(What PREGNANCY category?)
Adequate, well-controlled studies in pregnant women have not shown an increased risk of fetal abnormalities to the fetus in any trimester of pregnancy.
(What PREGNANCY category?)
Animal studies have revealed no evidence of harm to the fetus; however, there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women
(What PREGNANCY category?)
Animal studies have shown an adverse effect, but adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women have failed to demonstrate a risk to the fetus in any trimester.
(What PREGNANCY category?)
Animal studies have shown an adverse effect and there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women.
(What PREGNANCY category?)
Animal studies have been conducted and there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women.
Adequate well-controlled or observational studies in pregnant women have demonstrated a risk to the fetus.
However, potential benefits may outweigh the risk to the fetus. If needed in a life-threatening situation or a serious disease, the drug may be acceptable if safer drugs cannot be used or are ineffective
Adequate well-controlled or observational studies in animals or pregnant women have demonstrated positive evidence of fetal abnormalities or risks.
The use of the product is contraindicated in women who are or may become pregnant.
What are the FDA pregnancy risk categories?
Prescription practices of the primary health care provider for controlled substances are monitored by the ?
In hospitals or other agencies that dispense controlled substances, the scheduled drugs are counted every __ to __ hours to account for each injectable, tablet, or other form of the drug.
Drug development is a long and arduous process that can take from __ to __ years, and sometimes longer.
The ____ has the responsibility for approving new drugs and monitoring drugs currently in use for adverse or toxic reactions.
pre-FDA phase, FDA phase
The development of a new drug is divided into what two phases?
During what phase, does a manufacturer discover a drug that looks promising?
______________ ____________ occurs after the manufacturer places the drug on the market.
FDA by Medwatch
Health care professionals are encouraged to help with this surveillance by reporting adverse effects by reporting to the?
Orphan Drug Act of 1983
What special program was passed to encourage the development and marketing of products used to treat rare diseases?
How many individuals is it considered to be a "rare disease"?
Multiple myeloma, cystic fibrosis, and phenylketonuria are types of what kind of diseases?
What drugs go through these three phases: pharmaceutic phase, pharmacokinetic phase, and pharmacodynamic phase?
the drug dissolves
Drugs must be ________ to be absorbed.
What type of drugs are already dissolved and are absorbed more quickly?
Tablets that have an ________ ________ or time-releasing capsules do not disintegrate until they reach the alkaline environment of the small intestine.
____________ refers to activities within the body after a drug is administered.
absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion
What 4 activites do pharmacokinetics go through?
Another pharmacokinetic component is the ______ ______ of the drug.
is a measure of the rate at which drugs are removed from the body.
__________ follows administration and is the process by which a drug is made available for use in the body.
Which process do the drug particles in the GI tract move into the body fluids?
active transport, passive transport, pinocytosis
What three ways does absorption act in?
cellular energy is used to move the drug from an area of low concentration to one of high concentration
no cellular energy is used as the drug moves from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration
cells engulf the drug particle (the cell forms a vesicle to transport the drug into the inner cell)
What route are drugs most rapidly absorbed?
(fast or slow) When drugs are absorbed orally, intramuscularly, or sub Q?
first pass effect
the metabolism of orally administered drugs by gastrointestinal and hepatic enzymes, resulting in a significant reduction of the amount of unmetabolized drug reaching the systemic circulation.
protein binding, blood flow, solubilty
Distribution of an absorbed drug in the body depends on __________ _________, _____ _____, and _________.
Drugs bound to protein are pharmacologically _________.
Only ____ _____ can produce a therapeutic effect.
large blood supply
A drug is distributed quickly to areas with a _______ _________ ________, such as the heart, liver, and kidneys.
skin and muscle
Distribution of drugs in these areas occur more slowly.
Metabolism is also called?
the process by which the body changes a drug to a more or less active form that can be excreted
What's the resulting form of metabolism?
an inactive form of the original drug
The elimination of drugs from the body is called _________.
Patients with what type of disease may require a dosage reduction and careful monitoring of kidney function?
_____ ______ refers to the time required for the body to eliminate 50% of the drug.
Drugs with a short half life hours?
Drugs with a long half life hours?
onset of action
time between administration of the drug and onset of its therapeutic effect
peak of concentration
when absorption rate equals the elimination rate (not always the time of peak response)
duration of action
length of time the drug produces a therapeutic effect
_________ is the study of the drug mechanisms that produce biochemical or physiologic changes in the body.
_____________ deals with the drug's action and effect in the body.
The primary effect of a drug is the desired or _________ ___________.
alteration in cellular function, alteration in cellular environment
A drug exerts its action by two main mechanisms:
The function of a cell is altered when a drug interacts with a ________.
receptor-mediated drug action
This occurs when a drug molecule selectively joins with a reactive site---the receptor--- on the surface of a cell.
When a drug binds to and interacts with the receptor, a ___________ response occurs.
a drug that binds with a receptor and stimulates the receptor to produce a therapeutic response.
a drug that joins with receptors but does not stimulate the receptors
What are the two types of antagonists?
competes with the agonists for receptor sites.
bind reversibly with receptor sites, administering larger doses of an agonist can overcome the antagonist effects.
binds with receptor sites and always blocks the effects of the agonists.
Human genome project
was a study to determine the different components of the human genetic code.
is the study of how people's responses to medications are variable due to individual genetic variation.
is the creation of individualized drug therapy that allows for the best choice and dose of drugs.
first trimester (3 months)
Drugs administered to pregnant women, particularly during what trimester, may have teratogenic effects?
any substance that causes abnormal development of the fetus, often leading to severe deformation.
_________ ________ are undesirable drug effects.
to explain mild, common, and nontoxic reactions
to describe more severe and life-threatening reactions
is an immediate hypersensitivity reaction.
A drug allergy occurs because the individual's immune system responds to the drug as a foreign substance called _________.
Lymphocytes respond by forming ________.
protein substances that protect against antigens
Common allergic reactions reactions occur when the individual's immune system responds aggressively to the _________.
__________ _________ released during the allergic reaction produce symptoms ranging from mild to life-threatening.
primary health care provider
Any indication of an allergic reaction is reported to the ________ ______ ___ _____ before the next dose of the drug is given.
Allergic reactions that occur __________ often are the most serious.
_______ ________ is an extremely serious allergic drug reaction that usually occurs shortly after the administration of a drug to which the individual is sensitive.
immediate medical attention
Anaphylactic shock requires ______ _________ __________.
Treatment of this is to raise the blood pressure, improve breathing, restore cardiac function, and treat other symptoms as they occur.
_________ (adrenalin) may be given subQ injection in the upper extremity or thigh and may be followed by a continuous intravenous infusion.
_________ and shock may be treated with fluids and vasopressors.
__________ are given to relax the smooth muscles of the bronchial tubes.
____________ and corticosteroids may also be given to treat urticaria and angioedema.
____________ is another type of allergic drug reaction.
manifested by the collection of fluid in the subQ tissues.
What drug allergic rx commonly affects eyelids, lips, mouth, and throat?
Angioedema can be dangerous when the mouth is affected, because the swelling may block the airway and ________ may occur.
____ __________ is a term to describe any unusual or abnormal reaction to a drug.
__________ is the study of ways that specific genes can enhance sensitivity or resistance to certain drugs.
____________ _______ is a genetically determined abnormal response to normal doses of a drug.
This abnormal response occurs because of inherited traits that cause abnormal metabolism of drugs.
destruction of red blood cells
Patients with pharmacogenetic disorder use aspirin, chloramphenicol, and the sulfonamides because these drugs are ?
______ _________ is a term used to describe a decreased response to a drug, requiring an increase in dosage to achieve the desired effect.
Drug tolerance may develop when a patient takes certain drugs such as ______ and ________, for a long time.
physical drug dependance
The development of drug tolerance is a sign of _________ _____ _________.
cumulative drug effect
________ ____ ________ may be seen in those people with liver or kidney disease because these organs are the major sites for the breakdown and excretion of most drugs.
cumulative drug effect
This drug effect occurs when the body is unable to metabolize and excrete one dose of a drugbefore the next dose is given
cumulative drug effect
________ _____ _____ can be serious because too much of the drug can accumulate in the body and lead to toxicity.
A ______ ______ interaction occurs when one drug interacts with or interferes with the action of another drug.
additive, synergistic, antagonistic
Drug-drug interactions can produce effects that are ______, _______, _____.
additive drug reaction
________ _______ ________ occurs when the combined effect of two drugs is equal to the sum of each drug given alone.
_______ ___________ occurs when drugs interact with each other and produce an effect that is greater than the sum of their separate actions.
______ __________ is exemplified when a person takes both a hypnotic and alcohol.
___________ _____ reaction occurs when one drug interferes with the action of another, causing neutralization or a decrease in the effect of one drug.
When a drug is given orally, food may impair or enhance its ________.
When is drug absorbed into the bloodstream more quickly?(full or empty stomach?)
1 or 2 hours
Drugs that should be taken on an empty stomach are administered __________ after meals.
age, wt, sex, disease, route of administration
What are the factors that influence drug responses?
Infants and children usually require _____ doses of a drug than adults.
What age group usually require smaller doses?
________ is the taking of numerous that can potentially react with one another.
Poly pharmacy is seen particularly in _______ patients who have multiple chronic diseases.
Dosages are based on a wt of approximately _____ lbs, which is calculated to be the average weight of men and women.
Women may require a __________ dose of some drugs than men.
Sometimes disease is an indication for not prescribing a drug or for reducing the dose of a certain drugs.
In ________ _________, the ability to metabolize or detoxify a specific type of drug may be impaired.
Patients with _______ _____ may exhibit drug toxicity and a longer duration of drug action.
________ administration of a drug produces the most rapid drug action.
IV, IM, SubQ
List administration routes from most rapid to least.
aka herbalism, and herbal therapy are names for complementary/alternative therapy that uses plants or herbs to treat various disorders.
According to _____, 80% of the world's population relies on herbs for a substantial part of their health care.
________, as well as vitamins and minerals, are classified as dietary or nutritional supplements.
dietary supplement health and education act
This act defines substances such as herbs, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and other natural substances as "dietary supplements".
_________ ______ are not approved by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Are you having any difficulty breathing?
Mr. Carer has a rash and prupritus. You suspect an allergic reaction and immediately assess him for other more serious symptoms. What question would be most important to ask Mr. Carter?
impaired ability to metabolize or detoxify a drug
Mr. Jones, a newly admitted patient, has a history of liver disease. In planning Mr. Jones' care, the nurse must consider that liver disease may result in an?
A patient asks the nurse to define a hypersensitivity reaction. The nurse begins by telling the patient that a hypersensitivity reaction is also called an __________ _______.
an effect greater than the sum of the separate actions of two or more drugs
In monitoring drug therapy, the nurse is aware that a synergistic drug effect may be defined as ? | <urn:uuid:2d5c318e-3a95-40b9-a31a-6310212ac029> | CC-MAIN-2013-48 | http://quizlet.com/18541088/pharmacology-chapter-1-flash-cards/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-48/segments/1386163047214/warc/CC-MAIN-20131204131727-00001-ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.894577 | 3,582 | 3.328125 | 3 |
Tutor profile: Andrew L.
How do you find the MIN and MAX of a function?
Set x=0 then y=0 solving for the unknown(s) in each equation. You will now be able to obtain your minimums and maximums
How do you know when the derivative of a function is equal to ZERO by looking at the graph of the function?
Looking at a graph, when the function changes direction and there is a minimum or maximum point on the graph, this is where the derivative of the function is equal to zero.
Why is anything to the power of ZERO equal to ONE?
x^3/x^2 = x^(3-2) = x^1 = x x^3/x^3 = x^(3-3) = x^0 = 1 ... ex) x/x = 1 and 2/2 = 1
needs and Andrew will reply soon. | <urn:uuid:52a1b442-ba23-42f4-bf66-93aee068a92d> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://tutorme.com/tutors/62858/interview/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585371604800.52/warc/CC-MAIN-20200405115129-20200405145629-00034.warc.gz | en | 0.895456 | 193 | 3.375 | 3 |
Hans my Hedgehog!
It's the perfect story for use with the Youth of the Year.
First I had to think through a few of the prickly places.
Hans is half-hedgehog, half-boy because his father made the mistake of saying “I want a kid and I don’t care if it’s a hedgehog as long as it’s mine.” (I’m not the first storyteller to notice that statements like this are downright asking for trouble.)
Hans’ mother (in the original German she is described as “erschrak” which means “troubled” and who can blame her?) gives him the name Hans-my-Hedgehog. (The woman may be troubled, but she also knows how to make a point. She’s got it set up so that every time her husband says his son’s name, he announces his own responsibility for the kid’s condition.)
Hans can’t sleep in a bed so he ends up spending eight years in a box of straw behind the stove.
(In the original, Hans’ father grows tired of him and often wishes for his death. I dial that back a bit since I tell the story during my first session with the youth and fathers can be problematical.)
Hans neither dies nor grows. He does talk his father into bringing him a set of bagpipes and having the family’s rooster shod like a horse. Once properly equipped, Hans announces he is leaving forever and, riding the rooster, drives the family’s herd of pigs into the forest.
(The original says pigs and donkeys, but I leave the donkeys out. They clutter up the story.)
There, the rooster perches on a branch above a clearing. Hans, still astride the rooster plays the bagpipes and watches the pigs increase in number.
(I found it impossible to sound like a bagpipe making music “that was very beautiful” as the original says. I settle for saying Hans was trying to learn the play the bagpipes. That way I can just make honking noises. It’s more goose than bagpipe, but this story needs all the comic relief it can get.)
The music attracts a lost king who wants help getting out of the forest. Hans demands a written promise – the king will give him the first living creature who greets him as he returns to the royal court. The king, figuring Hans cannot read, scribbles a string of nonsense and Hans leads him out of the forest.
Naturally the king is greeted by his daughter the beautiful princess. She isn’t the least bit happy to learn about Hans and the king reassures her that his promise means nothing.
Back in the forest, a second king gets lost, finds Hans, and makes the same request. Hans asks for the same written promise. This king writes the promise clearly. When he is also greeted by his beautiful daughter he has to tell her about Hans.
(In each case, the king sends a servant to talk to Hans. But, like the donkeys, the servants clutter up the story, so I leave them out too.)
This princess is all noble about agreeing to marry a half-hedgehog, half-human who is so small he can ride around on a rooster.
Back in the forest Hans and the rooster round up all the pigs. Hans sends word to his father that he is returning with pigs and his father is upset because he thought Hans had gone away and died.
(Apparently the donkeys were superfluous. They vanish from the story. Or maybe they ran away? Because of the bagpipes, perhaps?)
Hans has the pigs slaughtered so ther is meat for the whole village. He tells his father to get new shoes for the rooster and says he will not come back for as long as he lives. This makes the farmer happy.
When Hans and the rooster arrive at the first king’s castle, the guards follow the king’s orders and attempt to attack them. But the rooster flies over their heads and right into the throne room where Hans demands the king give him the princess. Fearing for his life, the king gives his daughter a carriage, servants and property before sending her off with Hans.
As soon as they are out of sight of the castle, Hans stops the carriage, strips the girl of her white dress, prickles her all over until she bleeds and tells her he doesn’t want her.
(It is already clear that this is not a story for the very young. I make an effort to assess the general maturity of the audience as I approach the fate of this princess. If it does not feel right, I don’t out and out say that he strips her, though I usually leave in the prickling part.)
Then Hans goes to the second kingdom, where the king has ordered that he be greeted with honor. When Hans arrives in the throne room, the king summons his daughter. She is not delighted, but she agrees to keep her father’s promise. She agrees to marry Hans. After the wedding, Hans tells the princess not to worry about his prickles. He asks the king to have four soldiers standing by.
(In his notes, D. L. Ashliman notes that the first edition of Grimm puts the princess in bed with Hans without any mention of a wedding.)
In the wedding chamber, Hans removes his hedgehog skin and gives it to the soldiers to burn. As the skin burns, Hans himself becomes entirely human, only burned (in Ashliman’s translation) “as black as coal, as though he had been charred.” After the king sends for doctors who provide lotions and balms Hans becomes “white and was a handsome young man.”
(THAT needed some re-working. I do say he was burned, glossy like charred wood and that he became handsome.
I also let the princess participate in healing by rubbing those lotions and potions into Hans’ skin. That way they fall in love for real.)
When Hans finally takes his new wife back to his home, his father does not, will not recognize him. So Hans and the princess return to her kingdom and, after the death of her father, rule long and well.
I see this story as a hero’s journey. I also knew it would have a lot to say the teens on their Youth of the Year Journey. I still had figure out to use the story to connect the youth with their journey.
Cute hedgehog picture by Tony Wills [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Harriet has told stories at the Phoenix Fringe and at the Gila Bend Shrimp Festivals. She’s taken part in the AZStorytellers Project and in StoryRise events. As an instructor at the South Mountain Community College Storytelling Institute, she has performed in many events including the La Lloronathon and a number of Myth Informed concerts. | <urn:uuid:fc9f838a-9574-4c68-91e5-30fd22730da8> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | http://www.harrietcolestoryteller.com/telling-teaching-a-blog/hans-my-wut | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187822822.66/warc/CC-MAIN-20171018070528-20171018090528-00710.warc.gz | en | 0.977393 | 1,512 | 2.59375 | 3 |
explanatory Research is the conducted for a problem which was not well researched before, demnds priorities, generates operational definitions and provides a better-researched model. It is actually a type of research design which focuses on explaining the aspects of your study in a detailed manner. The researcher starts with a general idea and uses research as a tool which could lead to the subjects that would be dealt in the incoming future. It is meant to provide details where a small amount of information exists for a certain product in mind of that researcher. For starting your research, you need to create a research outline or speech outline to pitch your research idea to your professor or a boss or in a board meeting.
Explanatory Research is conducted in order to help us find the problem that was not studied before in-depth. The Explanatory research is not used to give us some conclusive evidence but helps us in understanding the problem more efficiently. When conducting the research, the researcher should be able to adapt himself/herself to the new data and the new insight that he discovers as he/she studies the subject.
Explanatory Research Definition, Explanatory Research Example, explanatory Research Question
It does not aim to provide final and conclusive answers to the research questions but allows the researcher to explore the research with a varying level of depths. “It has been noticed that “exploratory research is the examination, which shapes the base for different inquiries about, it is the building obstruct for alternate looks into.”, it is the building block for the other researchers. It can even help in deciding the exploration configuration, testing philosophy and information gathering strategy”. Research allows the researcher to tackle such problems where no or less research has been done.
Purpose of Explanatory Research:
- Increasing Understanding:
The purpose of explanatory research is to increase the understanding of a researcher on a certain subject. It does not provide conclusive results because of lack of its statistical strength, but it makes the researcher determine how and why things happen.
- The flexibility of Sources:
Secondary sources, such as published literature or data, are commonly used in the explanatory type of research. Care ought to be taken to choose a scope of fair-minded sources to give a wide and balanced comprehension of the subject.
- Better Conclusions:
Exp-Research can be very advantageous in directing subsequent research approaches. A great understanding of the subject allows the researcher to hone subsequent research questions and can greatly increase the usefulness of a study’s conclusions. This exploration is likewise exceptionally valuable in deciding the best way to deal with accomplish a specialist’s goal. The CV is also very important
Explanatory Research Challenges:
- Bias information:
Exp-Research generates such types of information and interpretations which could sometimes lead to banal information.
- Useless samples:
Exp-Research studies make use of modest number samples which could not be for a targeted/ specific type of audience.
Explanatory Research Types
Some of the popular methods of explanatory research design include literature searches, depth interview, focus groups, and case analysis.
- Literature Research
- In-depth study of every single problem
- Focus Group Research
- Case Analysis Research
A literature search is one of the fastest and least expensive means to discover hypothesis and provide information about the subject we’re studying. There is an enormous amount of information available on the internet, libraries. The literature search may include magazines, newspaper, trade literature, and academic literature.
Literature research example: Expect an issue is “The reason is item deals lower?” This can without much of a stretch be assessed with the guide of distributed information which ought to specify “whether the issue is an “industry issue” or a “firm issue”.
The literature search is a good start but it would be much preferred to talk to a person who is well informed about the specific subject that you’re studying. These people can be professionals or person outside the organization. Depth interviews are widely used to tap information and the experience of the individuals with the information related to the specific subject we’re studying. Anyone with information related to the problem is a strong candidate for the depth interview.
Depth Interview Example: A youngsters’ book distributor got valuable data in regards to a business decay by talking with administrators and teachers who uncovered that expanding quantities of individuals were utilizing library offices and conceivably purchasing fewer books for their kids.
Another method used is the gathering of the people who have a common objective and has information about the specific problem at hand. Focus group can have 8-12 members. While selecting the members, it should be kept in mind that the individuals have information about the problem.
Researchers can understand and tackle the problem more efficiently by dealing with the carefully selected cases or cases of the phenomenon. Analysis of the case of the organization which has gone through the same case will help in dealing with the problem more efficiently.
Case Analysis Example: L.L.Bean is perceived for its excellent request satisfaction. Notwithstanding amid the bustling Christmas season, the company, for the most part, fills more than 99 % of its requests accurately. Hence, different organizations have tried to enhance their own particular request satisfaction by bench-marking L.L.Bean.
Why explanatory research:
The Explanatory Research allows the researcher to provide the deep insight into a specific subject, which gives birth to more subjects and provides more opportunities for the researchers to study new things and questions new things. The deep study of subjects creates a cycle and, the critical thinking/study of the subject creates more questions and those questions lead to more ways for the researchers to study more things related to that subject.
Purpose of Explanatory Research:
Exploratory researchers are normally led when an issue is not obviously characterized. It permits the agent to familiarize with the issue or idea to be examined, and conceivably create theories (meaning of theory) to be tried. By and large, this research is completed by the utilization of center gatherings or little gathering dialog’s, that is every now and again used in looking into the market. Exp. Research can be immensely valuable for social research. They are vital when an agent is breaking new ground and they ordinarily convey new data about a point for research. They’ve likewise been a hot-spot for the grounded hypothesis.
Exploratory research studies have three main purposes: to fulfill the researcher’s curiosity and need for greater understanding, to test the livability of beginning a more top to bottom review, and furthermore to build up the techniques to be utilized as a part of any after research ventures.
Explanatory Research Definition, Explanatory Research Example,
explanatory Research Question
- Descriptive research, being quantitative in nature, is not efficient to open-ended questions, this type of research can answer these questions more efficiently.
- research is more flexible as compared to that of descriptive research.
- The descriptive research uses the tools like mean, average, median and frequency. On the other hand, Explanatory research allows the researcher to use the tools which are more qualitative in nature.
- The amount of information that the researcher has in mind, determines which type of research he/she should use to get better results. With only vague ideas in mind, it would be good for the researcher to go to exp. research. On the other hand, information like quantitative data allows the researcher to go for descriptive research which leads to unearthing specific relationships.
- Explanatory research needs to be conducted first, and then use that collection of information which is required for descriptive research.
Causal research, also known as explanatory research is conducted in order to identify the extent and nature of cause-and-effect relationships. Causal research can be conducted in order to assess impacts of specific changes in existing norms, various processes etc.
Causal studies focus on an analysis of a situation or a specific problem to explain the patterns of relationships between variables. Experiments are the most popular primary data collection methods in studies with causal research design.
The presence of cause cause-and-effect relationships can be confirmed only if specific causal evidence exists. Causal evidence has three important components:
1. Temporal sequence. The cause must occur before the effect. For example, it would not be appropriate to credit the increase in sales to rebranding efforts if the increase had started before the rebranding.
2. Concomitant variation. The variation must be systematic between the two variables. For example, if a company doesn’t change its employee training and development practices, then changes in customer satisfaction cannot be caused by employee training and development.
3. Nonspurious association. Any covariation between a cause and an effect must be true and not simply due to another variable. In other words, there should be no a ‘third’ factor that relates to both, cause, as well as, effect.
The table below compares the main characteristics of causal research to exploratory and descriptive research designs
|Causal research||Exploratory research||Descriptive research|
|Amount of uncertainty characterizing decision situation||Clearly defined||Highly ambiguous||Partially defined|
|Key research statement||Research hypotheses||Research question||Research question|
|When conducted?||Later stages of decision making||the Early stage of decision making||Later stages of decision making|
|Usual research approach||Highly structured||Unstructured||Structured|
|Examples||‘Will consumers buy more products in a blue package?’‘Which of two advertising campaigns will be more effective?’||‘Our sales are declining for no apparent reason what kinds of new products are fast-food consumers interested in?’||‘What kind of people patronize our stores compared to our primary competitor?’‘What product features are the most important to our customers?’|
Main characteristics of research designs
Examples of Causal Research (Explanatory Research)
The following are examples of research objectives for causal research design:
- To assess the impacts of foreign direct investment on the levels of economic growth in Taiwan
- To analyze the effects of re-branding initiatives on the levels of customer loyalty
- To identify the nature of the impact of work process re-engineering on the levels of employee motivation
Advantages of Causal Research (Explanatory Research)
- Causal studies may play an instrumental role in terms of identifying reasons behind a wide range of processes, as well as, assessing the impacts of changes on existing norms, processes etc.
- Causal studies usually offer the advantages of replication if the necessity arises
- This type of studies are associated with greater levels of internal validity due to the systematic selection of subjects
Disadvantages of Causal Research (Explanatory Research)
- Coincidences in events may be perceived as cause-and-effect relationships. For example, Punxatawney Phil was able to forecast the duration of winter for five consecutive years, nevertheless, it is just a rodent without intellect and forecasting powers, i.e. it was a coincidence.
- It can be difficult to reach appropriate conclusions on the basis of causal research findings. This is due to the impact of a wide range of factors and variables in the social environment. In other words, while casualty can be inferred, it cannot be proved with a high level of certainty.
- In certain cases, while the correlation between two variables can be effectively established; identifying which variable is a cause and which one is the impact can be a difficult task to accomplish.
The explanatory research is such type of research which is a pillar of the other type of researchers. Before initiating work for your next research, one should always conduct explanatory research first, because without it the research would be incomplete and it wouldn’t be as efficient. Explanatory research works to give your survey and research design a better focus and significantly limits any unintended bias information.
Explanatory Research – What Is It?
Ideas, Formulas and Shortcuts for Explanatory Research
The researcher knows in advance precisely what he is searching for. At the same time he must be aware of the uncertainty of social science. He does not exactly know what he is looking for. Also, he has full control of time and potential causes. Great researchers are extremely creative.
If you wish to learn more regarding the research or wish to share your thoughts, we’d like to hear from you! The secret to successful research is to realize the underlying methodologies, to select the proper tool for an undertaking. Qualitative research comprises a little collection of participants, dependent on criteria’s defined by the researcher. On the flip side, quantitative research attempts to classify, count or measure. Conducting business research isn’t an easy job. It’s crucial to be honest within a case study. Believe, you are going to be glad for it when you come to place the case study together.
Systematic study geared toward removing our biases is vital to understanding the world. As research involves a massive cut off from the pocket, it is critical to define the issue clearly. Approaching product research and the consequent data can be an intimidating task with little immediate gratification.
Think of ways to boil the data down into its most important components and the way you can use good visual design to present the main information first. Collection of data The assortment of information is regarding the gathering of facts that are to be utilized in solving the problem. When it can be hard to directly manipulate data without specialist software and abilities, don’t be reluctant to visit learn more about the raw data yourself.
How to Find Explanatory Research Online
People set goals for all types of factors. Attempt to have a thorough understanding of the research targets, and if you’re fortunate enough, the business objectives. Your target is rapid validation so you can quickly iterate your thinking. The objective is to develop a deep comprehension of a person’s life, decisions and challenges. Or, in case you have an extremely specific goal and question, then, for instance, it’s better to create a corresponding scenario, which will aid user to sort cards more effectively.
Things You Should Know About Explanatory Research
In that case, showcasing your abilities and input into a project will be quite important. Essentially, you grow your understanding of a subject and then you use qualitative research methods ensure that your knowledge of a subject is accurate. Whenever your prior knowledge is limited, it’s important to become up-to-speed quickly. Knowledge of processes is one particular thing. It’s always a good idea to mix qualitative and quantitative research techniques, therefore validating some first insights and concepts is essential to squeezing the most out of your research.
Conduct research on your users’ attitudes before development to make sure that you build an item that differs from what your competition offers, addressing real pain points which exist in the marketplace. It’s important to not forget when developing a solution or service to tailor it to fulfill the requirements of a specific set of users, as opposed to a generic group. The business began its company in the mid 1950’s in the center of Illinois. As it continues to struggle with its expansion in the United States and eventually succeeds, it is very likely that the company will only need to apply most of the same strategies while attempting to eventually change its strategy overseas if needed.
The difference of 10 lbs in the last example, is often known as the effect size. For the website, it’s crucial to be professional but also offer the CRA a feeling of comfort and assurance that the website is appropriate for participation in the protocol. More simply, it’s likewise an issue of commercial survival for those media companies in question. At length, you work towards open-ended questions that might be more difficult cognitively for the research participant. Difficulty in receiving people to pinpoint where the issue is and subsequently diagnosing the issue. It’s always helpful to observe how others have tackled a specific issue. After all, it’s a method of researching a prospective problem that isn’t clearly defined.
Think about including contextual help where it’s going to be helpful. Often providing some extra assistance and guidance is essential, especially every time a dashboard will probably be rarely used, or frequently employed for the very first time. Getting in a position to know why the cards belong in some specific categories is crucial.
The procedure isn’t as easy as you might think. A critical part of the research procedure is gathering knowledge from the net and other existing literature. Defining and identifying the issues The procedure for market research begins with the identification of issues encountered by the organization. It is very important to know why user makes a specific choice. | <urn:uuid:d2131e4c-558f-4a7a-963e-d8ebb23a3150> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.chinesescholarshipcouncil.com/ro/explanatory-research.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100287.49/warc/CC-MAIN-20231201120231-20231201150231-00501.warc.gz | en | 0.931992 | 3,466 | 3.65625 | 4 |
NZ Birds of Prey / Vagrant / White-bellied Sea Eagle
What does the White-Bellied Sea eagle Look Like?
The White-bellied sea-eagle, or Haliaeetus leucogaster, is a magnificent Australian eagle that has a wingspan of over six feet! It has a very large powerful bill and feet, and a striking white head and belly making it hard to confuse with any of New Zealand’s native raptors.
Despite this, most observations of this species in New Zealand have never been officially confirmed and although accepted as a vagrant to these shores, it appears that it is a very rare visitor indeed.
What does the White-Bellied sea eagle feed on?
Feeding largely on fish that they pluck from the surface of the water in a spectacular swooping stall, they are most often associated with the coast or along permanent water courses and reservoirs. Spending most of their time perched between meals they are often viewed as an enormous white bird sat in a tree.
It was once thought that there had also been a New Zealand sea-eagle called Haliaeetus australis that had become extinct. Subsequent investigations discovered that in actual fact the fossil bones that had led to this discovery were actually bones from a Bald eagle (the American species of sea-eagle) that had been mislabelled during an early expedition.
images: licensed under the Creative Commons license. | <urn:uuid:60a4bd7b-c1bd-4668-a4ff-f992339450b8> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | http://wingspan.co.nz/vagrant_birds_of_prey_nz_white-bellied-sea-eagle.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549425407.14/warc/CC-MAIN-20170725222357-20170726002357-00677.warc.gz | en | 0.980339 | 296 | 2.890625 | 3 |
Radiation Should Be Scheduled To Patient’s Body Clock
Genetic scientists from the University found that the toxicity of radiotherapy could be reduced if it’s administered according to an individual’s circadian rhythm, or body clock. Radiation uses high-energy rays to target and kill cancer cells, but the process has serious short- and long-term side effects such as pain, burning, and swelling.
Researchers found that 24 percent of patients experienced bright red skin as a radiation side effect when they were treated in the morning, but only 11 percent experienced the same when treated in the afternoon. The vast majority, around 90 percent, of operable breast cancer patients receive radiation therapy, and about 45 percent of those experience harmful side effects.
But the side effects might be reduced if radiation were administered based on a patient’s personal circadian rhythm. Morning people may experience fewer side effects if they receive treatment in the morning, and night owls may fare better with afternoon treatments.
Researchers tested 1,007 study participants who were either undergoing radiation treatment or had already undergone radiation. Participants were tested for two gene variants to determine their circadian rhythm. Overall, researchers found that patients fared worse when treatments were scheduled in the morning.
Depending on someone’s genetic makeup as a morning person or a night owl, radiation side effects might be reduced simply by changing the time of day it’s scheduled. Dr. Christopher Talbot of the University of Leicester and Professor Paul Symonds of Leicester Hospitals feel that cancer patients should go through gene sequencing to determine the best course of personalized treatment. “It’s an upfront cost but it could save a lot of people from getting bad side effects. Those people will be admitted to hospital for their reaction so the money might be a good investment,” they said.
More trials are needed to replicate and confirm the study’s findings. Dr. Kotryna Temcinaite, of Breast Cancer Now, was excited about the prospect of simply altering time of day to reduce side effects. “If we are to ensure NHS [National Health Service] breast cancer patients receive the best possible care, we must focus on personalising therapies to individuals—and the timing of treatment could be important in doing this,” she said. | <urn:uuid:848bd889-d338-476c-beb9-e661d76d7457> | CC-MAIN-2020-24 | https://blog.thebreastcancersite.greatergood.com/radiotherapy-side-effects/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-24/segments/1590348502097.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20200605143036-20200605173036-00310.warc.gz | en | 0.950168 | 467 | 3.453125 | 3 |
A swollen nose in cats is not a common condition but still not a normal situation. Let’s see what this circumstance can trigger in the feline.
As for all animals, even for the cat the nose is substantial as it is of fundamental importance for the sense of smell of the feline, one of its most developed senses. The cat, as we all know, has a hunter’s nature and instinct, without his nose he would lose this characteristic.
But it is precisely because of this instinct of his that he is likely to put himself in some dangerous situation, which can involve the nose and sometimes even the face. Certainly, however, we cannot blame only his hunting instincts, the reasons for which it is possible to see the swollen nose in the cat can be different. In the next paragraph we will find out what the other reasons for this condition in the feline may be.
In most of the times that this condition of a swollen nose occurs in cats, it is easy for other symptoms to come out together with it, very useful to help better identify the cause. These signs can be:
- the cat’s swollen face;
- nasal or ocular secretions;
- nasal congestion;
- loss of appetite;
- conjunctivitis in cats.
We said that these symptoms are of fundamental importance, since associated with the cat’s swollen nose can help the veterinarian to establish a more correct diagnosis and establish an adequate treatment for it.
Causes of a swollen nose in cats
The causes of a swollen nose in cats as we said are different, below is a list of the possible origins of this problem:
- foreign bodies: the presence of foreign bodies in the feline’s nose can lead to a swollen nose situation in the cat. The cat, with its extreme curiosity and its hunting instinct, sticks its nose almost everywhere and finds itself inhaling plant thorns, dust or small objects, which then remain inside, consequently creating this swelling.
- abscesses: an abscess is an accumulation of pus that can present itself as a lump in the cat’s nose and therefore appear swollen or a sore nose if in the case it has opened; even a simple scratch can cause injury to the cat’s nose or an abscess that deforms the cat’s face;
- trauma: among the causes, given the cat’s nature, we certainly cannot exclude any fights between cats, which can generate scratches, bruises and trauma. In this case it will be inevitable that the nose can swell but it will also be easy for sores and blood loss to occur.
- inflammation from bites: our cat is an animal that wanders happily outside our houses, it is impossible to keep him at home, his desire to explore is too much, but it may happen that he may come across some insect that can be placed on his nose and consequently prick it. A wasp, a bee, a scorpion, a mosquito, a spider bite or even a tick (rarely) on the cat’s nose will automatically trigger an inflammatory reaction;
- blockage of the nasolacrimal duct: an obstruction due to secretion, stricture or foreign bodies, causing inflammation of the area;
- Allergies: it is not uncommon to see that in front of the presence of a food allergy the cat can swell its nose and even its face. This is in fact one of the main conditions in which this situation can occur, a reaction of the body that is triggered when it comes into contact with the allergen. Depending on the type of allergy, the inflammation will spread to one area or the other;
- Feline cryptococcosis: Cryptococcosis in cats is caused by the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans or Cryptococcus catti. The cat becomes infected by inhaling this fungus present in the soil, in the feces of birds and in some plants. This infection generates nasofacial inflammation, accompanied by ulcers and nodules in the region. Generates in the animal the so-called “clown nose” which is formed due to the characteristic swelling of the nose and inflammation of the nasal region, associated with sneezing, runny nose and enlarged regional lymph nodes (lumps in cat’s neck). The treatment of this disease is quite long and is based on itraconazole, fluconazole and ketoconazole. And where there are injuries to the cat’s nose, topical and / or systemic antibiotic treatments should be prescribed, along with local cleaning and disinfection.
- viral diseases: also causing inflammation of the nose, sneezing and even wounds and scabs in the cat’s nose, can be viral diseases such as: feline AIDS virus (FIV), feline leukemia (FeLV), herpes virus or the calicivirus.
Diagnosis and treatment of a swollen nose in cats
Fortunately, establishing a diagnosis is quite simple, as we previously mentioned, the swollen nose in the cat always travels together with other more specific symptoms that give the vet the opportunity to understand the real reason why it is swollen.
Having established the diagnosis behind it, since there is a so-called primary cause, the doctor will go to deal with this (disease and conditions that we mentioned in the previous paragraph) and then intervene on the swollen nose of the cat.
Always remember to never self-medicate our pet, we could only make it worse. In addition, experts strongly advise not to use the same drugs that are used to treat human diseases. | <urn:uuid:e11fd136-963c-45b7-9708-7ede2e285f4c> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://petlifey.com/swollen-nose-in-cats-causes-symptoms-and-treatment/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233511424.48/warc/CC-MAIN-20231004220037-20231005010037-00052.warc.gz | en | 0.950218 | 1,176 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Infections and Immune Function in Mitochondrial Diseases
Patients diagnosed with a mitochondrial disease often experience more infections that are more frequent and/or severe. In some cases, researchers and clinicians have been able to identify problems in the patient’s immune system that contribute to their infection susceptibility.
Patients with mitochondrial diseases can have issues related to the decreased production and function of the body’s white blood cells and antibodies that need to be generated to fight infection. Clinicians cannot always predict which child will manifest problems with their immune system. There are some genetic deficiencies associated with immune dysfunction, but they are not a consistent predictor of immune response problems in patients.
If your child has a mitochondrial disease, we recommend considering screening them for their immunologic response. There are some treatments available that support immune-compromised patients when fighting infections, such as antibody infusions. We also strongly support giving recommend immunizations, including the annual influenza vaccine, to individuals with mitochondrial disease to prevent the otherwise very severe or even life-threating problems that may result from vaccine-preventable diseases. | <urn:uuid:e3186c61-12de-41ac-a6de-2d6f138508b6> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/infections-and-immune-function-mitochondrial-diseases | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506329.15/warc/CC-MAIN-20230922034112-20230922064112-00170.warc.gz | en | 0.940746 | 223 | 3.21875 | 3 |
are so many health benefits of honey that Hippocrates' saying: 'Let
food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food' is perfectly true about
honey. Honey is a natural sweetener and is considered better than sugar.
Honey is truly nature's gift to us. If you compare honey vs sugar, honey wins in every way.
Honey is used as sweetener, medicine for centuries. It is used both externally as well as internally.
Honey is available in different shades of golden orange or yellow color.
Honey also may have thick or thin consistency. It is a natural product and will change according to the seasonal flowers it is collected from.
There are many varieties of honey depending on the source such as acasia, alfalfa, avocado, manuka, blueberry, buckwheat, clover, heather etc. To get the honey health benefits, we must use raw honey.
Many of the honey varieties available in the market are heated to increase their shelf life. This heating can reduce the nutritional and medicinal benefits of honey.
So make sure that the honey you buy is raw and pure, without any additives.
Honey is a source of carbohydrates containing natural sugar (fructose and glucose).
It has minerals, vitamins and proteins.
it has antioxidants
it is free of fat and has no cholesterol
Minerals in honey - calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium and zinc
Vitamins in honey - B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and certain amino acids
Raw honey improves your immune system. Raw honey is full of minerals, vitamins and enzymes.
Honey nutrition and also protects us from bad bacteria by improving our immune system.
Those who frequently suffer from flu, cold, cough, throat infections, sore throat etc. will find that the regular consumption of raw honey will help in reducing and getting rid of these problems.
Honey helps improve digestion. It reduces acidity and gas in the stomach. Consumption of honey with warm water and lemon juice before a heavy meal will reduce the possibility of indigestion.
If you have already overeaten, take honey with warm water. This will help digestion.
Honey helps in weight loss. Start your morning with a glass of warm water with a little lime juice and honey before you eat and drink anything else.
Taking 'honey lime water' on empty stomach helps in removing toxins from your body / digestive system.
Honey is lubricating and stimulates the intestines. This will help in elimination. This will also help those who have constipation.
Honey with cinnamon reduces cholesterol. Add 1-2 tablespoon of honey and a pinch of cinnamon powder to warm water and drink it regularly.
Honey is a natural energizer. Instead of going for a sugar-filled drink when you are tired, take a spoonful of honey by itself or with water. Your fatigue will disappear. Add it to your fruit salad instead of white sugar.
You are likely to experience more honey benefits when it is consumed on empty stomach.
Honey is known from it’s anti microbial and anti fungal benefits. It is therefore one of the important ingredients in skin care.
Honey reduces inflammation and dryness of skin. It can also be effective in reducing inflammation and dryness of skin in skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, ring worm etc.
Home based skin care is not complete without the application of raw
honey to skin blemishes. Regular application will give you clear skin.
Caution - Honey is generally not given to infants – below one year. | <urn:uuid:833db885-ee5f-4aa5-8354-8160906d2870> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | http://www.stop-heartburn-indigestion.com/benefits-of-honey.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549425751.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20170726022311-20170726042311-00363.warc.gz | en | 0.929117 | 768 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Posted on January 20, 2016
Amílcar Lopes da Costa Cabral was born in Guinea-Bissau, but his parents were from Cape Verde.
Both of these places were African colonies ruled by Portugal.
While Cabral was going to college in Lisbon, Portugal, he started student movements dedicated to opposing Portugal's colonial rule in Africa. He believed fervently that the colonies should be liberated, independent.
Cabral returned to Africa in the 1950s, when he was in his early 30s, and he became an important figure in the struggle for independence in both Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau. He led a guerrilla movement against the Portuguese. Guerrilla warfare is an “irregular” sort of warfare with small bands of armed civilians or other not-quite-military personnel doing ambushes, sabotage, raids, hit-and-run attacks in order to fight a large, powerful enemy. Guerrilla tactics are common in order to attack a colonizing or occupying force.
Cabral's movement is considered one of the most successful wars of independence in modern African history. This is because:
- Cabral set up training that included effective communication skills, and he emphasized getting Guinean tribal chiefs to support the independence movement.
- Cabral had studied agriculture (to be specific, agronomy), and he was able to teach his troops better farming techniques that they in turn could teach to people. That way, the soldiers could not only grow their own food and live off the land, allowing them to last a long time, they could help the non-soldiers and win their support for the movement.
- Cabral set up a trade-and-barter system that made staple goods (the most important things that people need, such as flour, yams, and eggs) available to people at lower cost than those goods were sold in Portuguese-owned stores.
- Cabral also set up roaming hospitals and triage stations to give medical care to his troops, but ALSO to the people whose support he wanted and needed.
|The flag of Guinea-Bissau (above)|
and Cape Verde (below).
Cabral has been influential among other freedom fighters, particularly Africans. Unfortunately, he was killed in 1973, eight months before Guinea Bissau declared independence, and before Cape Verde's 1975 independence. Some people think that Cabral was assassinated by feuding ethnic groups but possibly with “Lisbon's complicity.” That means that Portuguese rulers may have known about a plot against Cabral but didn't do anything to stop it.
What do you know about these nations?
Decide if each item below tells about Cape Verde or Guinea-Bissau.
- Made up of 10 volcanic island in the Atlantic Ocean.
- Located in West Africa, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
- A very poor nation, depending mostly on agriculture.
- One of the most developed countries in Africa, with an economy based on services and tourism.
- Noted for being politically unstable, with no elected president yet serving a full five-year term!
- A stable representative democracy, one of the most democratic nations in Africa.
- Features an active volcano, extensive salt flats, and ocean cliffs formed by “catastrophic debris landslides.”
- Covered by mangrove swamps.
- Capital is Bissau.
- Capital is Praia.
Here are some pictures of the two nations:
ANSWERS: 1- Cape Verde; 2 - Guinea-Bissau; 3 - Guinea-Bissau; 4 - Cape Verde; 5 - Guinea-Bissau; 6 - Cape Verde; 7- Cape Verde; 8 - Guinea-Bissau; 9 - Guinea-Bissau; 10 - Cape Verde; 11 - Guinea-Bissau; 12 - Cape Verde; 13 - Cape Verde; 14 - Guinea-Bissau.
Also on this date:
Check out my Pinterest pages on:
And here are my Pinterest boards for: | <urn:uuid:034e67b3-7fde-49a9-b257-35b20c75f33f> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | https://every-day-is-special.blogspot.com/2016/01/january-20-national-heroes-day-in-cape.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187823220.45/warc/CC-MAIN-20171019031425-20171019051425-00568.warc.gz | en | 0.965242 | 853 | 3.578125 | 4 |
The Internet allows the public to have more information at its fingertips than ever before in history. However, it also allows for the dissemination of unverified claims. The role of information leaders is to help the public identify real information and learn to think critically about what is spread through social media, blogs, radio shows and even television. For those pursuing a library science degree online, it’s important to consider the role of the information leader in an age when fake news can impact public opinion. Suffice to say information leadership is more important than ever.
The trustworthiness of the media is not a new concept. Media in its many forms will always be at risk for bias. Writers have personal opinions, and newspapers have advertisers. Overall, however, certain outlets throughout history have consistently offered the facts rather than opinions. Nonetheless, there is no denying the recent emphasis on media bias.
Nowhere is this bias more evident than when it comes to politics. The United States presidential election in 2016 is perhaps the clearest example of all. On one side of the political spectrum are candidates and supporters calling out the biases and trustworthiness of an entire industry. On the other, professionals point to weaknesses across the aisle. The louder this gets, the more the public begins to distrust the media as a whole.
According to the Pew Research Center, a staggering 62% of people receive their news via social media. More specifically, 44% are using Facebook as a primary source for news. Social media may not always be the problem as there are major, reputable news outlets providing information on sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Reddit. The issue is that other, less reputable sources can post to these sites as well. When all of these sources are presented in the same format, how can the public determine which is trustworthy? That’s a challenge that information leaders like librarians have to tackle.
Information literacy is the ability to recognize the need for information, find relevant sources, evaluate those sources and then make use of the information. Information literacy has always been an issue. Facts in two encyclopedias may differ, and two newspapers can have different versions of the same event. Whether someone is reading a magazine article or a Facebook post, he or she must still work through the stages of information literacy.
First, that means recognizing the need for information. For many, that now means typing a question into the search bar of Google or Bing. If the search for information is more general in nature, it could mean clicking through to a news website and browsing the articles. On the other end of the spectrum, some of the news that Internet users come across in modern times is unsolicited. Indeed, the Pew Research Center reveals that up to 62% of Facebook users and 63% of Instagram followers get their news online while they are doing other things. In these situations, people may be more susceptible to believing information that is fake, as they are not actively seeking the information and may be less vigilant about sources and data.
As information leaders, library science graduates can teach the public about where to best search for information online. They can show people how to evaluate the information they do find and then question the integrity of each source. Sometimes, that means learning more about the origins and reputation of a source. A small blog with a firm view against a certain political party, for example, is likely not going to report the facts in an unbiased manner. It also pays to go deeper into learning about the individual reporters or researchers. A scientific finding sponsored by a beverage company won’t have the same weight as one sponsored by a leading medical organization with government funding.
Finally, information literacy has to include the sharing of information. After it has been processed and vetted, can the information be shared confidently? The action of a single click could mean someone is supporting a source, an article or a viewpoint. There is some personal culpability at play, and information literacy deals with this critical part of being a better judge of information both for oneself and for others in a network.
To truly understand the importance of information leaders, it is important to consider the potential impact of fake news. In the past year alone, dozens of celebrities have been the subject of high-profile death hoaxes, including Sylvester Stallone, Denzel Washington, and Angelina Jolie. Many of the hoaxes originated from fake news websites while others came from social media. The Sylvester Stallone hoax originated on Facebook and quickly escalated into a viral online rumor. The hoax was created to deceive users into clicking on a seemingly legitimate CNN news link and agreeing to reveal their private Facebook profile information. Examples like this serve as reminders that fake news dissemination can have dreadful consequences.
The 2016 election season also presented hundreds of prominent fake news stories regarding candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, some of which were shared more than a million times across Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Though this type of false information comes in many forms, the point remains the same: A single Tweet, real or not, can have untold influence around the world.
Information leaders have a challenging and exciting job that ultimately affects most of the population. Information leaders need to provide every generation with the tools and critical thinking skills necessary to be literate in every sense of the word. Some examples of information leaders educating the public in this way include:
This job involves teaching the public how to analyze every tweet, every Facebook post and even radio commercials. For those with the right skills, this career path has so many rewarding facets; and it will play a vital role for years to come.
Helping others navigate information overload and uncover factual information is an important role of the modern librarian. For those interested in this role who want to pursue a career in information science, an advanced degree can help. An education in this area can build the skills necessary for becoming an information leader in a time when these beacons of knowledge and guidance are needed more than ever before. To learn more, visit the USC Marshall School of Business Master of Management in Library and Information Science Online.
Information Literacy Competency – The American Library Association
News Use Across Social Media Platforms 2016 The Pew Research Center: Journalism & Media
Instagram, Facebook and YouTube news users most likely to happen upon news online, but LinkedIn, Twitter and Reddit news users are more evenly divided between news seekers and non-seekers The Pew Research Center: Journalism & Media
How Fake News Goes Viral: A case study – The New York Times
Can Librarians Save Us From Fake News? – The Vice
Fighting Fake News – LJ Professional Development | <urn:uuid:0aacbd28-638b-4768-87c1-34e486099bfc> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://librarysciencedegree.usc.edu/blog/why-information-leaders-are-more-important-than-ever/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224654871.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20230608103815-20230608133815-00516.warc.gz | en | 0.940862 | 1,342 | 3.421875 | 3 |
Bleach has been one of the most common household cleaning products for the last 100 years. However, bleach has some downsides for our health and the environment. Whether you’re looking to brighten whites, eliminate stains, or sanitize surfaces, these natural bleach alternatives may be the answer to a healthier, cleaner home.
What is Bleach?
Bleach is a chemical compound widely used as a disinfectant and whitener in the home. The most common type of bleach used in households is sodium hypochlorite or “liquid bleach.” Sodium hypochlorite is a clear, slightly yellowish liquid with a strong smell. It’s typically diluted with water because using it at full strength can cause it to “eat away” at certain materials.
How Does Bleach Work?
Bleach’s disinfectant and stain remover action comes through its oxidative and antimicrobial properties.
Sodium hypochlorite, the active ingredient in bleach, is a powerful oxidizing agent. It chemically alters substances by transferring oxygen molecules. This oxidation process breaks down many types of stains and contaminants. It makes them less visible or completely removes them.
Bleach is highly effective at killing many microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi. It disrupts their structure and function by oxidizing parts of their cells or key enzymes. This action disinfects surfaces and water, making it safe to drink and use.
Bleach’s oxidative effects can also break down pigments that discolor fabrics and surfaces. This is why bleach laundry products whiten clothing and remove stains.
What Are The Health Dangers of Using Bleach?
While bleach can be effective for disinfecting and whitening, it’s associated with several health dangers. Here are a few of them:
Mixing bleach with other cleaning products with ammonia or acids (like vinegar) can produce toxic fumes. One of those dangerous fumes is chlorine gas.
Prolonged or repeated exposure to bleach fumes can lead to respiratory issues. Some people may start coughing, wheezing, or have shortness of breath. Those with pre-existing respiratory conditions like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may get worse.
In severe cases, it can cause chemical pneumonia or other respiratory issues, which can be life-threatening. Even if you don’t mix bleach with other cleaners, the fumes alone can cause respiratory damage and cell death.
Skin and Eye Irritation
Direct contact with undiluted bleach or fumes can cause skin and eye irritation. It may lead to redness, burning, and, in some cases, chemical burns. If bleach comes into contact with the eyes, it can cause severe eye damage or even blindness.
Some people may be hypersensitive or allergic to bleach. In that case, exposure can lead to allergic reactions like skin rashes or hives. If you have an adverse reaction to bleach, seek medical attention immediately. In ingestion or severe exposure, contact poison control or call 911.
Suppressed Immune Response
In 2015, Researchers studied over 9,000 children ages 6 to 12 in the Netherlands, Finland, and Spain. They wanted to see how bleach affected infections in children.
The results were significant. The researchers found that homes using bleach increased the chances of children coming down with the flu by 20% compared to children whose parents didn’t use bleach. Recurrent tonsillitis was 35% more common in homes using bleach.
“Passive exposure to cleaning bleach in the home may have adverse effects on school-age children’s health by increasing the risk of respiratory and other infections. The high frequency of use of disinfecting irritant cleaning products may be of public health concern, also when exposure occurs during childhood.”
We truly can be “too clean,” as I discuss with MIT-educated engineer Jasmina Aganovic in this podcast episode. Even the FDA agrees that we don’t need to go overboard in fighting bacteria.
Ingestion By Children or Pets
Ingesting bleach can be dangerous and is considered a medical emergency. Swallowing bleach can cause severe chemical burns in the digestive tract, which can lead to serious symptoms. Bleach ingestion may cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and potentially life-threatening complications.
A 2010 study reported on 270,000 young children harmed by household cleaners. Bleach was the overwhelming culprit and was responsible for 37% of the incidents.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) mostly considers bleach safe to use. However, stored bleach may form a chemical called perchlorate. Perchlorate is a toxic chemical that appears in drinking water.
According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), perchlorate has made its way to irrigation water. It’s now detectable in produce, dairy products, and packaged foods. It can prevent the thyroid from getting the iodine it needs and can interfere with child development.
Here are some bleach alternatives for laundry and cleaning. I’m including both commercially prepared cleaners as well as some you can DIY at home:
1. Branch Basics Natural Cleaner
Branch Basics is a brand that produces non-toxic and environmentally friendly cleaning products. They also have an all-purpose cleaning concentrate that I love. When diluted, it creates cleaning solutions for many different surfaces and purposes.
Their Oxygen Boost product is a great alternative to bleach. You can add it to a load of laundry to whiten and brighten fabrics – just like bleach. You can also use it as a pre-treatment for tougher stains. Plus it works for tile and grout in the bathroom. Learn more about Branch Basics here.
2. Truly Free Home Natural Cleaner
Truly Free Home also has an OxyBoost bleach alternative. It’s fragrance-free and has the power of bleach without the toxicity and potential fabric damage. They are mission-based and support over 200 children in Central America with education, food, clothing, and shelter. Check out their Oxyboost stain remover and use code wellnessmama for a discount.
3. Hydrogen Peroxide
Good old H2O2 can also be a good bleach alternative. You can now find it with a sprayer right on the bottle. The standard concentration is 3% hydrogen peroxide. You’ll find it in most drugstores, box stores, and supermarkets.
As a stain remover, just apply directly to a stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Then wash as usual. To whiten clothing and other items, add 1 cup of 3% hydrogen peroxide to the bleach dispenser. You can also add it directly to the drum along with the detergent. Then continue the laundry process as usual.
You can also use hydrogen peroxide to disinfect countertops, cutting boards, toilet bowls, and shower tiles. A diluted spray also works for carpet stains. Be sure to open the windows or use proper ventilation when using it.
4. DIY Oxiclean
You can also make a DIY Oxiclean using hydrogen peroxide and washing soda. It’s super easy, just mix the two ingredients with hot water in a spray bottle. The two ingredients mixed together react to make sodium percarbonate. DIY Oxiclean deep cleans tough stains and it’s an eco-friendly alternative to chlorine bleach.
I spray the stains before I put them in the washer. Since the mixture doesn’t last for long, you can dump any extra in the washing machine with the laundry detergent when you’re done treating the stains. Learn more and find the recipe here.
5. White Vinegar
White vinegar is a versatile cleaning agent. It can help dissolve mineral deposits, remove stains, and eliminate odors. It also has mild antibacterial properties.
To use it for general cleaning, mix equal parts of white vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Use it to clean countertops, glass surfaces, and bathroom fixtures. To disinfect and deodorize in the kitchen, apply undiluted vinegar to cutting boards or counters. Let sit for a few minutes before wiping clean.
In the laundry room, it acts as a natural fabric softener and it’s great for those with hard water too. You can add some distilled white vinegar to the final rinse cycle of white clothes or colored clothes to help clean and soften.
6. Baking Soda
Baking soda is an excellent scrubbing agent and deodorizer. It cleans and removes stains from surfaces, sinks, and even fabric.
For a stain remover, mix it with a small amount of water to make a paste. Then apply it on the stained area before laundering. As a whitener, add half a cup of baking soda to the wash cycle to help brighten whites, soften fabrics, and neutralize odors.
For household cleaning, sprinkle baking soda on surfaces like sinks, stovetops, and bathroom tiles. Then scrub gently to remove grime and stains. Its mild abrasive action makes it effective without harsh chemicals.
Borax can also substitute for bleach for various cleaning tasks. For laundry, add half a cup of powdered borax to a gallon of warm water, stirring until it dissolves. For stains, make a paste with a small amount of water and apply it to the fabric before washing. You can also add borax to your laundry cycle to brighten whites.
For cleaning, mix borax with water in a spray bottle to tackle surfaces, disinfect, and deodorize. I use a natural borax powder free of added surfactants or detergents, but Mule Team Borax is also a high-quality natural form of borax.
8. Lemon Juice
Lemon juice contains citric acid, which has natural bleaching properties. It’s excellent for whitening laundry, removing stains, and cleaning surfaces.
To use lemon juice for a laundry pre-treat, apply it directly to the stain and let it sit for a few minutes before washing. Besides stain-removing, lemon juice can brighten and freshen white and light-colored fabrics. Just mix it with water and add it to the wash cycle.
For household cleaning, combine ¼ cup of lemon juice with water in a spray bottle. Then use it to clean and disinfect surfaces such as kitchen countertops, cutting boards, and bathroom fixtures. As a bonus, lemon juice also provides a naturally fresh scent!
Sunlight can be a natural and effective way to whiten and disinfect items and surfaces. The ultraviolet (UV) rays can naturally bleach, disinfect, and deodorize the fabric. Clean or wet the items first, then place them in direct sunlight for a few hours until dry. There’s nothing quite like the cleaning power of fresh sunshine on a clothesline!
While sunlight is a natural disinfectant, it isn’t as effective as commercial disinfectants in certain situations, like highly infectious diseases or heavy stains. Also, be careful when sun-bleaching colored fabrics, as prolonged sun exposure can cause fading.
Keep Your Home Microbiome in Mind
Keep in mind that it’s possible to go overboard on disinfecting. We really don’t need to bleach everything —even when using natural bleach alternatives. Doing so can disrupt something called your home microbiome.
Just as the human body has a microbiome that plays a crucial role in health, our homes also have microbiomes that impact our health.
The “home microbiome” is the diverse community of microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other microbes) that inhabit and coexist with you in your home. Different microorganisms colonize different rooms of the house. These microorganisms can come from the outdoors, our bodies, and our pets.
A beneficial microbial balance in the home may reduce the growth of harmful microorganisms like mold and mildew. It can also improve indoor air quality and create a more balanced living environment.
Research suggests the home microbiome can influence our health in many ways. It may impact respiratory health, allergies, and immune system development. For instance, exposure to a diverse range of microbes in early childhood can contribute to a better immune response. It may even reduce the risk of allergies later on. This is known as the “Farm Effect.”
Overusing disinfectants or other antimicrobial products can alter your home microbiome. While cleaning is essential for removing harmful pathogens, excessive use of disinfectants may disrupt the home microbiome.
How/When to Disinfect
Keeping your home microbiome in mind, here’s how and when to disinfect:
- Stick to Natural Products — Use mild, non-toxic cleaning agents to avoid disrupting the microbiome.
- Use Disinfectants Selectively — Reserve disinfectants for specific situations, such as when a family member is sick, when handling raw meat, or when exposed to potentially harmful bacteria or viruses.
- Target Your Disinfecting — Focus disinfectant use on high-touch surfaces and areas with a higher risk of pathogens, such as bathroom fixtures, kitchen counters, and doorknobs. Avoid unnecessary or excessive disinfecting.
- Hand Hygiene — Encourage proper hand washing as the primary way of dealing with germs. Then there’s not as much need for disinfectants.
Using disinfectants too often can cause bacteria, viruses, and molds to adapt and become stronger. (Learn more about antibiotic resistance and superbugs here). Saving disinfectants for when they’re really needed will help you avoid microbial resistance.
Final Thoughts on Natural Bleach Alternatives
These natural bleach alternatives can help you work toward a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable home. But you don’t have to stop there! Check out the many other natural cleaning posts on this website. Natural cleaning doesn’t have to be expensive or require lots of time. A few simple ingredients, like hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, can go a long way.
Do you use bleach? If not, what’s worked well for you? Share with us below! | <urn:uuid:15ce7d82-b6f4-490a-b0c1-ba47f6ed862c> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://plentyus.com/9-natural-bleach-alternatives-for-a-squeaky-clean-home/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100016.39/warc/CC-MAIN-20231128214805-20231129004805-00479.warc.gz | en | 0.914157 | 2,904 | 2.828125 | 3 |
Yosemite National Park located in Sierra Nevada mountain range in Central California USA is an hours drive from San Francisco, Los Angeles and Reno. Historians date the story of Yosemite to about five hundred million years ago when the Sierra Nevada region which lay beneath the sea thrust itself outside the sea level. Weathering and erosion with molten rocks and glaciers gradually carved the face of Yosemite, which proudly stands as the National treasure of America today!
Yosemite National Park extends to an incredible 1170 sq miles with altitude ranging from 2000 feet to 13000 feet above the sea level. Waterfalls, giant Sequoias, hiking to the Glacier Point, driving to Tuolumne Meadows...Yosemite offers a host of activities to the discerning tourist.
Yosemite National Park CA
The Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite Park has some rugged and sublime scenery, with the largest sub alpine meadow in Sierra. It is full of spectacular wild life and wild flowers during summer. The Tioga road is a scenic highway - sparkling lakes, fragile meadows, domes and lofty peaks that lay 10,000 years ago under glacial ice.
The Yosemite Valley is the world's best-known example of glacier carved canyon. Leaping waterfalls, towering cliffs, rounded domes and massive monoliths make this valley a natural marvel and photographers delight. The Yosemite Valley is full of wildflowers and shrubs, oak woodlands, mixed conifer forests with incense cedar and Douglas fir. Monarch butterflies, mule deer, black boars and other such wildlife flourishes here.
Sequoia groves: Many mature sequoias groves are found in Yosemite National Park. Three of the groves are most famous. They are the Mariposa grove, Tuolumne grove and Merced grove. Other than the historical Sequoias, there are many varieties of trees found in Yosemite Park. The California black oak with its yellow green and dark trunks, the incense cedar with its feathery reddish bark, the ponderosa pine trees made up of irregularly shaped plates and dark furrows are some of the trees worth mentioning.
Holiday at Yosemite
Climbing: Yosemite offers the world's best natural climbing areas. From the crack climbs of the Merced River to the sun drenched Tuolumne domes and the big walls of the valley, you can experience it all.
Stargazing: Thousand of tourists enjoy looking at the constellations of stars and planets through binoculars at Yosemite. Telescopes are also set up at Glacier Point for the visitors to enjoy stargazing more closely.
Swimming: Yosemite National Park permits swimming in all bodies of water in the park except the Hetch Hetchy reservoir and the waterfalls. The tourist can cool off swimming in the Merced River.
Tourist destinations at Yosemite National Park
Happy Isles: It is often said that no tourist can leave this place unhappy. The Merced River rushes around two little islands which are striking to watch. The Vernal and Nevada Falls trails begin here.
Yosemite Valley: Yosemite National Park houses the Yosemite Valley which is strikingly beautiful. The flat floor of the valley contrasts with the nearly vertical granite walls over which several major waterfalls pour. The valley is world famous for its impressive waterfalls, cliffs and rock formations that are rare to see.
Yosemite waterfalls: Yosemite waterfalls are the largest in North America and the fifth tallest in the world. The upper and the lower falls are connected by the intermediate cascades drop 2,425 feet.
Glacier Point: From the rim of this Yosemite Valley, take an eagle's view of the commanding 3214 feet down to the Valley floor, Half Dome and High Sierra. The Glacier Point can be reached via skis or snowshoes only.
Tunnel View: From here one can have a classic view of Yosemite Valley, including El Captain, Half Dome, Sentinel Rock and Cathedral Rocks as well as the Bridalveil Falls.
El Captain: This place is popular with rock climbers from throughout the world. This is a massive monolith made of the largest single granite rock on earth standing 4000 feet from base to summit.
Mirror Lake: This Lake projects impressive view and mirror reflections of the Tenaya Canyon during early summer and spring months. Half Dome: This is one of the most favorite distinctive features of Yosemite. Half Dome rises 4,733 feet from the valley floor and at 87 million years old, it is gauged to be the youngest plutonic rock in the valley.
Tuolumne: There is a grove of giant sequoia trees in Tuolumne. Tuolumne meadows are the largest sub alpine meadows in Sierra Nevada. Californian big horn sheep are a familiar sight in these meadows. The season for sub alpine flowers begins in late summer. One can watch Elephants' head, gentian, pentstemon, yarrow and shooting stars.
Wawona: Located inside the Yosemite National Park in a beautiful mountain valley, Wawona is a small community of vacation homes and cabins. Tourists pass through Wawona on their way to the Valley floor. Wawona is located at an elevation of 4000 ft and has a mild climate year round.
Mist Trail, Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall: The Mist Trail is popular with young hikers, in Yosemite Valley for its undulating climb alternating with steep and milder gradients. The hike starts with Happy Isles and climbs beside the scenic Merced River to the Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall. The Mist Trail becomes strenuous to climb beyond the Vernal Fall. The Nevada Fall is awesome in its scenic beauty.
Yosemite Cemetery: West of the Yosemite museum is the Yosemite cemetery. This cemetery is historically reputed and buried in the cemetery are people who played an important role in the development of Yosemite National Park, as well as Native Americans and casual park visitors.
Tourists to Yosemite National Park have a choice of accommodation 'within' and 'near' the Park. There are a variety of accommodations available for the tourists within the Yosemite National Park from unheated canvas tents to heated cabins.
Accommodations also range from plush elegance to comfortable lodges and historic cabins. Many of the lodges offer value added packages and specials that include world class cooking and wine seminars, yuletide feast and bed and breakfast packages throughout the year thereby making the stay and experience of the tourist visiting Yosemite more memorable.
When to visit Yosemite
The best time of the year to visit Yosemite would be from June to September. During this peak time, all areas of the Park are accessible by car. The climate is warm to hot with occasional rain during this time. During the months of December to March, it is snowy at Yosemite. Most of the roads are closed and inaccessible for the visitors. However Yosemite Valley and Wawona remain accessible by car all round the year.
The perfect time to visit the waterfalls would be April and May but many roads especially the Tioga and Glacier Point roads would remain closed due to snow at this time. The climate could be highly variable with sun and occasional winter storms.
Daunting rugged natural valley and giant waterfalls, transparent rivers, granite domes, extensive high mountain alpine wilderness and mountain peaks, meadows and groves of towering sequoia trees, acres of preserved wild lands and spectacular high country scenery ... all at Yosemite National Park! | <urn:uuid:50ec0a4d-26f0-4e4e-a91a-13dfbb44427d> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://www.targetwoman.com/articles/yosemite-national-park.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886105334.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20170819085604-20170819105604-00349.warc.gz | en | 0.93399 | 1,542 | 2.890625 | 3 |
to a study conducted by a group of researchers, tea is one of the most consumed
beverages in the world, next to water.
Green tea, the most famous type of tea, is
consumed mainly in Asian countries like India, Korea, China, and Japan. Its
therapeutic and healing properties have made it a popular beverage across other
countries as well.
health benefits offered by green tea have no comparison with other types of tea
such as herbal, white and black tea. Its medicinal benefits not only treat
physical ailments but also cure mental health issues.
stated by Nadine Taylor in her book, “ Green
Tea: The Natural Secret for a healthier life”, it has been used as a
medicine in China for at least 4000 years.
Green tea is unfermented and prepared without
any additives during the process of oxidation which makes it the least
processed type of tea.
What does Green tea contain?
chemical composition of green tea contains a rich amount of antioxidants and
polyphenols. The main polyphenols present in green tea are flavonoids such as:
tea buds and leaves are rich in these compounds that aid in digestion and
weight loss. Dried green tea leaves consist of up to 8-12% of polyphenols that
control high blood pressure levels, leading to proper blood circulation.
presence of healthful compounds provide excessive health benefits as mentioned
Major Health benefits of chemical
higher concentration of antioxidants and catechins inhibits the growth of
deadly diseases in the human body. EGCG present in green tea extract not only
obstructs the growth of cancer cells but also kills them without causing any
harm to the healthy tissue.
gallate (EGCG) is also effective in lowering cholesterol levels and blood clots
formation in the body. Lipid levels and platelet aggregation can also be
regulated with the help of this healthy compound.
are natural compounds that reduce chronic inflammation and blood sugar levels.
They also stop the formation of free radicals, preventing cells and molecules
which is the major component of green tea, reduces the production of cancerous
cells. The molecular mechanism of this active compound has a chemopreventive
effect on the human body.
countries where green tea is consumed on a daily basis have shown
cancer-protective effects on the overall population. Cancer rates are very low
in countries such as Japan where people regularly consume green tea.
clinical studies have depicted that EGCG and catechins play a significant role
in the prevention of cancer. The tumor growth gets suppressed by these
bioactive compounds if the regular intake of green tea is maintained.
Green tea also protects against:
Breast cancer- As per the observational studies conducted,
there was almost a reduction of about 20-30% of developing breast cancer in
women who routinely consumed green tea.
Lung cancer- According to Hirofumi
Tachibana’s team at Kyushu University in Japan, the growth of human lung cancer
cells that contain a cell receptor called 67LR, was lowered significantly after
taking two or three cups of green tea.
Prostate Cancer: With its medicinal
properties, the development of prostate cancer lowers considerably in men.
cancers such as bladder, ovarian, colorectal, stomach, skin and esophageal can
also be controlled with green tea consumption.
Prevents Cardiovascular diseases
production of abnormal blood clots is the major cause of heart attacks and
stroke. But, the consistent intake of green tea reduces the risk of
cardiovascular diseases. The polyphenolic compounds prepare the body to fight
against heart diseases.
study reported that people who drink green tea have up to 31% lower risk of
dying from cardiovascular problems.
studies also indicate that the antioxidant properties of green tea prevent
coronary artery disease.
study conducted among 240 men and women (approx 55 years), the high LDL
cholesterol levels were reduced by up to 15% who consumed green tea with their
when cholesterol levels are maintained, the danger of getting affected by
coronary heart disease lowers to a great extent.
Effective against skin disorders
to the anti-inflammatory properties of green tea, ultraviolet radiation does
not harm skin cells. EGCG reactivates epidermis cells and protects the skin
from rashes and infections.
pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies have started using green tea extract in
their products due to its skin-friendly components.
Aids in weight loss
in green tea are natural antioxidants that boost metabolism, contributing to
weight loss. Researchers observed that men who consumed caffeine and green tea
burned more calories than those who only took caffeine or a placebo.
was a significant reduction in belly fat too because of high concentrations of
addition of green tea pills or powder to your daily diet can help you achieve
your fitness goals like no other natural product.
epidemiological evidence suggests that drinking green tea may help prevent
diabetes. It helps in controlling blood sugar levels in the body. Regular
consumption of green tea also slows down the progression of type 1 and type 2
diabetes. EGCG increases insulin sensitivity and repairs damaged beta cells.
of the studies on Japanese individuals showed that people who drank green tea
consistently had up to 42% lower risk of type 2 diabetes.
Other significant benefits:
● Improves cognitive function
● Protects against Parkinson’s
and Alzheimer’s diseases
● Prevents tooth decay
● Boosts immunity
tea has a significant place in traditional and modern science communities. It
is widely consumed throughout the world for its anti-inflammatory and
antioxidant activities. It also alters the brain aging process while improving
cognitive memory. Nutravo’s green tea extract has thermogenic properties that
boost metabolic rate and keep diseases away for a much longer period of time.
So next time you start your day with a cup of coffee
to get rejuvenated, know that there’s this herbal elixir which can work wonders
on your body. Are you ready to make Green Tea your go-to morning drink? | <urn:uuid:9c37ff1a-6d16-49cb-a265-775a41fcabc6> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.nutralyfe.in/index.php?route=blog/blog&blog_id=29 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100603.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20231206194439-20231206224439-00563.warc.gz | en | 0.916275 | 1,295 | 2.796875 | 3 |
The 1990s saw a massive economic boom, not just in North America, but all around the world. At the time, many exotic auto manufacturers increased production of new vehicles to keep up with demand. Ferrari was forced to replace the 348 which was produced from 1989 up until 1995. The designer of the 348 was Pininfarina, a leading Italian auto design firm. Ferrari decided to use them once again for the next automobile that would be manufactured.
Ferrari would eventually decide to construct the Ferrari F355, which would be produced from 1994 to 1999. The F355 is seen by many as an evolved version of the 348 mainly because of its similarities to the automobile. For example, both vehicles have a V8 engine, but the F355 produced 375 horsepower compared to the 300 horsepower that the 348 produced. Furthermore, the 348 had a 3.4-liter engine and the F355 had a 3.5-liter power plant.Credit: Wikimedia Commons
The F355 underwent many tests to increase air flow into the engine at high speeds and improve its overall aerodynamics. In total, over 1,300 hours of tests were performed on the car which used different means of wind tunnel analysis.
Many other versions of the automobile underwent even more stringent wind tunnel tests. These include the Spider, Berlinetta, and GTS. These versions of the vehicle offered an upgraded transmission, more horsepower, and some upgraded interior options.Credit: Wikimedia Commons
The car cost around $100,000 when it first debuted. Many auto aficionados praised the automobile for its design and overall performance. They almost always point out the fact that the car's V8 engine had 5 valves per cylinder which enabled the vehicle to obtain high R.P.M.s (Revolutions Per Minute) compared to the 348, which only had 4 valves per cylinder.
Although the F355 lacked the V12 engine, its V8 powerplant still provided enough power to make the automobile perform superbly. The car can reach a top speed of 183 m.p.h. which can compete with many high-end sports cars.
Some auto enthusiasts have attacked the vehicle solely because of the V8 engine it was equipped with. They feel that all Ferraris should have been built with a 12 cyclinder engine because it ultimatley will make the automobile meet the 200 m.p.h. mark. This is the case for most Lamborghinis and other exotic vehicles. As of today, many Ferrari fans will still defend the vehicle because of how the V8 engine was constructed and its ability to produce a decent amount of horsepower. Many auto experts will compare the Cheverolet Corvette to the F355 because of the simliar engine type and overall top speed. The only diference is that the Corvette tends to be a more suitable vehicle for the price compared to the price tag of the F355.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
In 1999, Ferrari introduced a limited production version of the vehicle called the "Serie Fiorano" this limited production vehicle only had 104 units produced in total. The vehicle also had an upgraded suspension system, a Ferrari rear grill, enameled Scuderia Ferrari shields, carbon-fiber inserts, and a suede-covered steering wheel.
There is no doubt that the F355 will always be seen as one of Ferrari's best vehicles. The car was way ahead of its time and offered the driver the full Ferrari experience. Furthermore, the sound of the vehicle would make almost anyone believe that it was powered by a V12 engine. | <urn:uuid:f88cf933-b747-4fad-a6c6-a9d63c7beede> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | http://www.infobarrel.com/The_Ferrari_F355_One_Of_Ferraris_Best_Vehicles | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370505731.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20200401130837-20200401160837-00462.warc.gz | en | 0.962634 | 723 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Pascuales Wind Statistics, Spring averages since 2006
This image shows how frequently and how strongly the wind blows from different directions over a normal northern hemisphere spring. The biggest spokes point in the directions the wind most commonly blows from and the shade of blue indicates the strength, with the strongest winds shown by dark blue. It is based on 5802 NWW3 forecasts of wind since since 2007, at 3hr intervals, for the closest NWW3 model node to Pascuales, located 39 km away (24 miles). There are insufficient recording stations world wide to use actual wind data. No doubt some coastal places have very localized wind effects that would not be predicted by NWW3.
According to the model, the most common wind at Pascuales blows from the SSW. If the rose graph shows a fairly circular pattern, it means there is no strong bias in wind direction at Pascuales. On the other hand, dominant spokes show favoured directions, and the more deep blue, the stronger the wind. Spokes point in the direction the wind blows from. During a typical northern hemisphere spring, the model suggests that winds are light enough for the sea to be glassy (light blue) about 41% of the time (37 days each northern hemisphere spring) and blows offshore 49% of the time (45 days in an average northern hemisphere spring). Over an average northern hemisphere spring winds exceeding >40kph (25mph) are not expected, but 0 have winds on the range 30-40 (19-25) at Pascuales
IMPORTANT: Beta version feature! Swell heights are open water values from NWW3. There is no attempt to model near-shore effects. Coastal wave heights will generally be less, especially if the break does not have unobstructed exposure to the open ocean. | <urn:uuid:6e3dbfc2-0927-4af6-b190-86f685658710> | CC-MAIN-2014-23 | http://www.surf-forecast.com/charts/Pascuales/wind/statistics/spring | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-23/segments/1405997889001.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20140722025809-00136-ip-10-33-131-23.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.90816 | 373 | 2.953125 | 3 |
WASHINGTON — A close encounter of the rocky kind is set for Feb. 15 when an office-building-size asteroid will speed past the earth faster than a bullet and closer than some communications and GPS satellites.
It will be the nearest recorded brush with a space rock so large, NASA scientists said Thursday.
The good news: There is no chance of an impact. At its closest, asteroid 2012 DA14 will pass 17,000 miles above the earth.
The bad news: A million other potentially dangerous — and unknown — city-killing space rocks are out there, and one of them could be on a collision course with earth. Critics say NASA and other space agencies are not doing enough to scan for these threats.
‘‘It’s like Mother Nature sending a warning shot across our bow,’’ said Don Yeomans, who tracks asteroids for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
Satellite operators said they were monitoring the asteroid but that they expected it to safely cruise through a belt of satellites some 23,000 miles up.
‘‘We’re watching the situation but there’s not a giant concern,’’ said Alex Horwitz, spokesman for Intelsat, which operates some 50 communications satellites.
The Air Force, meanwhile, is leaving the tracking to NASA.
An astronomer in Spain spied the asteroid a year ago. Small, dim, and speedy, it was a ‘‘slippery target’’ as it moved across a background of stars, said Jaime Nomen of the La Sagra Observatory in southern Spain.
NASA-funded scientists then ran the numbers: The asteroid was about 150 feet wide, and its closest approach will occur at 2:24 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Friday. | <urn:uuid:24d88ed5-bb91-4d13-88ee-8d4dec28e184> | CC-MAIN-2017-26 | https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2013/02/09/nasa-asteroid-will-come-close-next-week-but-miss-earth/ZeeF02NkgatdMLdOKgdNIM/story.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-26/segments/1498128319688.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20170622181155-20170622201155-00593.warc.gz | en | 0.932212 | 372 | 2.671875 | 3 |
Mapping Woolley’s Notes
Spotlight on Letter Designators for area excavations found in Ur notes and reports
As we go through Woolley’s field notes from his excavations at the ancient city of Ur we learn more and more, not just about the buildings and artifacts he found, but about the way in which he approached the site and its excavation.
NB: So much of this would not be possible without the assistance of our many UrCrowdsource.org volunteers and students who diligently transcribe, tag and/or edit the notes into digitally searchable text. We are sincerely grateful to all of you!
Among the most notable features of the field cards are the labels Woolley used to identify certain areas as he excavated them. In publications he almost never refers to these designators, and therefore putting the notes into context within the published maps is all the more difficult. Furthermore, no preliminary maps showing these designators have been found either at Penn or at the British Museum.
The latest Ur volumes, published long after close of excavations and even after the death of Sir Leonard in 1960, show a grid overlain on the site. This grid was never in use during excavations; it was placed over the maps in the 50s or 60s in an effort to better locate certain buildings and to discuss the site as a whole. A few of the areas were then transcribed into grid coordinates, but not nearly all of them. Listings of some of these areas appear at the beginning of the latest volumes, Ur Excavations 7, 8, and 9. These were published in 1976, 1965, and 1962 respectively. By this time, a few seem to have been recorded inconsistently and incorrectly.
In an attempt to relocate the areas of work and thus to better match records to excavated space and objects to their findspots, we have now created a preliminary map with abbreviations placed over their locations (the base map for this image is the one published in UE 7, primarily showing the Old Babylonian period). As we investigate them more closely, we are also cracking Woolley’s code in creating them: each had a particular meaning. Long have I studied area AH, but not until recently did I realize that it stood for “Abraham’s Housing.” In this area, Woolley knew he had come down on a large extent of Old Babylonian houses and that this was the general time period in which the Patriarch Abraham might have lived at Ur. He frequently referred to Ur as the home of Abraham in newspaper and magazine articles in order to stir public imagination.
When he knew the ancient name of a building, Woolley would use that in his abbreviation. These ring strangely to the modern ear, names such as e-nun-mah, e-hursag, and dub-lal-mah. He found brick inscriptions of some of these and in some cases went hunting a particular building. This is especially true for the ehursag, the ‘palace of the mountain.’ Hall believed he had found it in 1919 but Woolley disagreed, thus Woolley’s EH designator actually falls on a housing area for temple officials; what he labeled HT (Hall’s Temple) was the ehursag all along.
Letter designators and their meanings (bold letters where known):
AH = Abraham’s Housing
BC = Bur-Sin Corner
CLW = Central Larsa Wall
EH = E–Hursag
EM = Extra Mural
ES = ???? E-nun-mah South?
FH = ????
HD = Hall’s Dump
HT = Hall’s Temple (also called DP = Dungi’s Palace)
KP = King’s Palace (actually the Giparu)
KPS = King’s Palace South
KW = Kassite Wall
LL = ???? Dub-Lal-Mah (also called DM?)
LW = Larsa Wall
NCF = North Corner Fort (also seen as NNCF, Neo-Babylonian NCF)
NH = Neo-Babylonian Housing
NT = Nin-ezen Temple
PD = ???? (there is also a PDW here)
PG = Prehistoric Graves (or Private Graves)
PJ = extension of PG to find Jemdet Nasr graves
RS = Rim Sin temple
SM = ????
XNCF = outside(X) North Corner Fort
YC = Y Cemetery (along with X and Z, these were late graves near NCF)
ZT = Ziggurat Terrace
One of the first abbreviations I encountered when examining Woolley’s notes way back in 2003 was CLW and I was convinced it was simply his initials–Charles Leonard Woolley. As I began to see that it was attached to a particular area of the site, I wondered if people’s initials were used for different places. A few other designators could have worked for this, such as KW (Katharine Woolley) and LL (León Legrain), but there was no MM (Max Mallowan) and there were far too many letter combinations to fit the few westerners who were at the site. Slowly I found the actual meaning of most, though a few remain somewhat a mystery.
Some abbreviations seem to have been created after the fact, not being in common use during the excavations (like RS, for example). Furthermore, the last year or two of the excavation did not apparently see new designators, instead referring mainly to buildings by their full names assigned by Woolley as he became more familiar with types of structures and their usage. The main area for which we cannot find a true designator is that in the northeast of the site, the area of the North Harbor. Many have assumed the abbreviation NH stands for this, but Woolley is quite clear that NH designates the area of Neo-Babylonian Housing just west of area AH. He specifically states this in UE 9 page 44. Near the North Harbor are the North Temple (but the designator NT does not refer to this building) and the so-called Bel-Shalti-Nannar palace (no designator known).
Father Legrain made a list of most of the designators in use at the site in his unpublished manuscript on terracotta figurines. This is one of our best sources since it is so close in time to the actual excavation and he was on the site for two years. Nonetheless, he did get a few designators wrong, including area NH. He also includes DM for the Dublal-mah, and DP for Dungi’s Palace (E-hursag), but I have not seen these in use anywhere else.
Finally, Woolley dug a number of deep pits, sometimes labeled with the letter P (most in the area of the royal cemetery and would not fit on the map shown above). The most frequently referred to of all of these is PFT, or the Flood Pit, wherein were found many meters of silt. Woolley claimed in general interest articles that this was evidence of the great flood. He dug other deep pits such as Pit W and Pit X, but realized that designators beginning with P would be confusing due to area PG as the royal cemetery. Some scholars today refer to this area as RC, and some use MS for Mausoleum Site, but these were not in use in the excavations to designate space. Woolley did use RC for types of pottery found in the royal graves, but the site of the Ur III mausolea was always designated BC in the notes.
Maps like the one we are creating will help us to attach notes to physical space, connecting everything into a virtual reconstruction of the excavations at Ur and assisting researchers the world over. Thanks again to all those who have helped us thus far and here’s to continuing discoveries! | <urn:uuid:e796e484-1838-435a-95a1-7b533f6ac26b> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | https://www.penn.museum/blog/museum/ur-digitization-project-february-2014/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549423785.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20170721142410-20170721162410-00088.warc.gz | en | 0.976852 | 1,660 | 2.90625 | 3 |
Doulas Saving lives
Doula care improves health outcomes and leads to more satisfying birthing experiences
Studies on the effectiveness of doula care conclusively demonstrate that women who are supported by a doula during labor and childbirth are less likely to require a cesarean birth or use pain medication, and more likely to give birth spontaneously, have a shorter labor, and feel satisfied with their birthing experience. By reducing the need for medical interventions such as cesarean births, doulas help mitigate the potentially severe complications associated with risky interventions. For example, complications such as death, cardiac arrest, blood clots, and infections are three times more common following a cesarean birth. Babies born via cesarean birth are also more likely to experience health problems including asthma, Crohn’s disease, and allergies.
Community-based doulas are well suited to reduce racial disparities
Black women in the United States are three times more likely to die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth than white women. Notably, the deep racial disparities in maternal health outcomes persist across income and education levels, indicating that racism in the health care setting is a driving force of disparities. A growing body of research indicates that stress related to daily exposure to racism detrimentally impacts birth outcomes. Moreover, communities of color have consistently reported mistreatment and dismissive behaviors from perinatal health care providers.
Community-based doulas are particularly well suited to improve racial disparities in health outcomes by ensuring that pregnant people who face the greatest risk of discrimination and mistreatment in the medical system receive the additional support they require. As members of the communities they serve, community-based doulas are able to intimately understand the needs of their clients and effectively build trusting relationships. Research demonstrates that a strong doula/client relationship grounded in trust and shared experience increases a pregnant person’s engagement in care, agency in decision-making, and overall improved health outcomes.
Doula care reduces overall perinatal spending
Rigorous studies show that doula care results in substantial cost savings by reducing the need for medical interventions including cesareans, instrument assisted births, and pain medication. Considering that cesarean births cost 50 percent more than vaginal delivery, and about one-third of all births in the U.S. occur via cesarean, the potential cost savings is dramatic.
In addition to cesarean births, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) admissions are a driving factor of high health care costs. The Institute of Medicine estimates that the annual health care cost in the United States associated with preterm delivery is $26.2 billion, or $51,600 per infant. One study found that when looking at the beneficial impact of doulas on cesarean and preterm birth rates among Medicaid beneficiaries regionally, doula care was associated with a savings of $58.4 million and 3,288 fewer preterm births annually.
In another study assessing the cost effectiveness of doula care among a theoretical cohort of 1.8 million women, Oregon researchers determined that doula care saved $91 million dollars and led to 219,530 fewer cesarean births, 51 fewer maternal deaths, 382 fewer uterine ruptures, and 100 fewer hysterectomies.
Doulas also have the potential to reduce spending as research shows that doula care increases the initiation and duration of breastfeeding. Breastfeeding reduces a parent’s risk of breast and ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure. Breastfed babies have lower rates of asthma, type 1 diabetes, and sudden infant death syndrome. The CDC estimates that the health concerns associated with low rates of breastfeeding add over $3 billion dollars to U.S. health care costs annually. | <urn:uuid:2d6416bf-45a3-4930-a469-caf63ec9f1cd> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://delvadoulas.com/doulas/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224653608.76/warc/CC-MAIN-20230607042751-20230607072751-00089.warc.gz | en | 0.943637 | 776 | 2.578125 | 3 |
The new Coronavirus may be a preview of WHO’s disease X
Preparedness at all levels are necessary – EpiShuttle, the only isolation unit approved for transport on air, sea and road – contributes to safer transport and handling of highly infectious patients.
Oslo— January 15th 2020— EpiGuard is a company founded in 2015, based on experiences from the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in 2014. The team of medical specialists from Oslo University Hospital was responsible for treatment and transportation of patients, including an Ebola-patient repatriated to Norway. In the emergency response work on the epidemic, they identified the need for new and improved equipment for transporting patients with high-risk infections. The result was EpiShuttle, developed together with Eker Design, focusing on patient and caregiver safety, patient comfort and improved medical treatment options.
“Our aim is to save the patient and increase protection of healthcare professionals and the environments.” Said Ellen Cathrine Andersen, CEO, EpiGuard
Positive Customer Impact
There are three main benefits of the EpiShuttle:
1. Patient Safety and Care
2. Safety of Health Care Professional
3. Cost and Operational Efficiency
The EpiShuttle is a single-patient isolation and transport system, designed to provide maximum patient safety and comfort while allowing critical care and treatment to be performed. The EpiShuttle can protect the environment from an infected patient or protect a vulnerable patient from a contaminated environment. The protection consists of two elements: A robust and completely sealed barrier between the patient and the surrounding environment, and a pressure difference that will prohibit leakage. The unique design allows patient monitoring and full intensive care treatment to be performed during transport, including emergency procedures like intubation and insertion of central venous catheters.
With the use of EpiShuttle, the need for disinfection of ambulances, helicopters or airplanes is reduced, and there will be less disruption of service.
For airport preparedness in case of suspicion of passengers arrive with highly infectious disease, the EpiShuttle provides a solution both for temporary isolation, and transport to hospital.
The Epishuttle is sold to several countries in Europe, as well as Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Namibia, and is donated through Norwegian MOH to WHO in Congo and Uganda.
Quote from customer:
“The new opportunity to isolate patients will have a significant impact on the working environment for rescuers, nurses and doctors,” said the head of Health Preparedness Department in Region Midtjylland,
The prehospital department in the region is working closely with the Aarhus University Hospital to develop a competence and education center for handling and transport of patients with infectious diseases such as SARS, MERS, Ebola and pneumonic plague.
“With the new insulation unit [EpiShuttle] we are raising transport safety to an international level. We can ensure that the infection is isolated from the point at which the patient is picked up and until the patient is placed in an isolation room at Aarhus University Hospital,” said Chief Physician in Region Midtjylland
EpiGuard sells the EpiShuttle through our valued distributors in several countries. If we do not have a distributor in your market, we are happy to sell directly. You can find the relevant contact information below.
The EpiShuttle is CE marked, according to all relevant norms
Founded in 2015, EpiGuard AS
Mission: Saving one – protecting everyone
For more information on Product:
Safety is key for transporting patients infected with viruses such as Ebola, and Epishuttle is the only isolation unit approved for transport by road, sea, helicopter and aircraft*. The health personnel do not have to wear full protective equipment when the patient is in Epishuttle making it easier to care for the patient and a more secure ambulance transport.
Text by EpiGuard A.S. | <urn:uuid:c54d495e-1387-4a1d-bd05-996949871144> | CC-MAIN-2020-34 | https://lok-corporation.com/the-new-coronavirus-may-be-a-preview-of-whos-disease-x/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-34/segments/1596439738674.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20200810102345-20200810132345-00271.warc.gz | en | 0.931085 | 814 | 2.734375 | 3 |
About This Image
The Raccoon, also known as the Northern Raccoon, Common Raccoon, Washing Bear or Coon, is a widespread, medium-sized, omnivorous mammal native to North America.
Since the beginning of the twentieth century, they have also been widespread on the European mainland, after having escaped from fur farms. Raccoons usually live together in small, loose groups. Their original habitats are mixed or deciduous forests, but due to their adaptability, they are often found in urban areas where they can be considered pests.
This Raccoon was photographed near some waste (garbage) bins at night. He was among 5 or 6 others, all scavenging for food.
Thanks for looking, :)
Add A Comment About This Image | <urn:uuid:8b95b6ca-4715-45e0-bb8f-13471d3d30ab> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | http://www.thelensflare.com/imgs/raccoon_47710.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579251672537.90/warc/CC-MAIN-20200125131641-20200125160641-00288.warc.gz | en | 0.966053 | 162 | 2.90625 | 3 |
The atypical mycobacteria. The commonest PPEM to cause human disease is the Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex. PPEM differ from M. tuberculosis in their source (environmental or zoonotic), rate of growth, temperature of growth and ability to produce pigment on culture. Mostly infect immunologically compromised humans and the disease caused by some species may be clinicallyindistinguishable from true human tuberculosis.
Article Categories:Dictionary of Tropical Medicine | <urn:uuid:b3ef6acd-c334-489a-b334-3f4045200463> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://www.healthylifelive.org/potentially-pathogenic-environmental-mycobacteria-ppem/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886105326.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20170819070335-20170819090335-00149.warc.gz | en | 0.874446 | 101 | 2.703125 | 3 |
Washington: A team of researchers has brought fresh hope in the form of a new treatment target for ovarian cancer aka “the silent killer.”
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory arrived at “new insights into signalling events that underlie metastasis in ovarian cancer cells,” said researcher Gaofeng Fan.
“The statistics point to the urgent need to address advanced disease – metastasis – in ovarian cancer,” Fan noted, adding “The problem is especially difficult because of a feature specific to this form of cancer: ovarian cells move around readily within the peritoneal cavity, via the peritoneal fluid, both under normal conditions, and also, unfortunately, when cancer is present. Thus, in addition to being able to colonize other sites in the body via blood vessels, ovarian cancer cells have another way of migrating. It’s very hard to render patients free of the disease via surgery due to this diffusion feature.”
The team found a previously undiscovered pathway, through which ovarian cells can be transformed into cancer cells, one they think provides an excellent opportunity for targeting by new drugs, which, when combined with others now in development, may be able to stave off metastatic disease.
The newly uncovered pathway depends on activity of a protein called FER, a member of a family of proteins (called non-receptor tyrosine kinases) that add phosphate groups to other proteins. FER can be found floating in the cytoplasm of cells, and in a series of initial experiments, Fan and the team demonstrated that it is both “upregulated,” i.e., overproduced, in ovarian cancer cells, and, importantly, responsible for the elevated motility and invasiveness of such cells. This was observed in human ovarian cancer cells grown in culture, and then in mouse models of the disease.
The key discovery made by the team is that FER is able to activate a receptor on the surface of ovarian cells “from below,” as it were – by interacting with a portion of the receptor that penetrates the cell membrane and plunges into the cytoplasm. That receptor is a well known target in ovarian cancer. Called MET, it is typically activated when a growth factor called HGF binds it at the cell surface. MET is overexpressed in up to 60% of ovarian tumors and its activation has been implicated in both cancer initiation and in advanced cancers with poor prognosis.
“We showed FER was essential for ovarian cancer cell motility and invasiveness, both in vitro and in vivo,” Researcher Nicholas K. Tonks said.
He added, “Considering that frequent amplification of MET accounts for resistance to therapies now in development and to poor prognosis, not only in ovarian cancer but in other cancers too, our findings pinpoint an important new signaling hub, involving the role of FER in MET activation. This may provide a novel strategy for therapeutic intervention, perhaps a drug to suppress FER being administered along with a MET inhibitor.”
The study appears in the journal Genes and Development. (ANI) | <urn:uuid:6db5899e-ba2e-4967-81e4-6a6f118610dc> | CC-MAIN-2017-39 | https://www.siasat.com/news/discovery-ovarian-cancer-target-paves-way-new-treatment-984179/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-39/segments/1505818688997.70/warc/CC-MAIN-20170922145724-20170922165724-00554.warc.gz | en | 0.9609 | 642 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Am Philosophy Readings
... Under the Articles, the states, not Congress, had the power to tax. Congress could raise money only by
asking the states for funds, borrowing from foreign governments, or selling western lands. In addition,
Congress could not draft soldiers or regulate trade. There was no provision for national cou ... | <urn:uuid:6e2102ad-1328-4a3a-b58e-af338d0d856a> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://studyres.com/concepts/4167/universal-declaration-of-linguistic-rights | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655929376.49/warc/CC-MAIN-20200711095334-20200711125334-00296.warc.gz | en | 0.945701 | 66 | 2.828125 | 3 |
An incredibly versatile fiber crop, every part of the cotton plant is used in a wide array of applications, ranging from clothing, to food, to explosives. As a textile, it can be woven into hearty protective canvas or silky smooth linens with impossibly high thread counts. Cotton is a staple in clothing because it feels good. It breathes. It moves with you and you forget you’re wearing it.
Although it’s history is difficult to track precisely, cotton was domesticated simultaneously in different parts of the world as early as 6500 years ago. In the decades following World War II, industrial agriculture was developed and quickly became the dominant method for farming in the US, featuring enormous single-crop farms. This large scale single-crop, or monoculture, farming was at first welcomed as a technological triumph and a way to enable the world, whose population was growing at an unprecedented rate, to feed itself. Today, corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, and cotton are all commonly grown this way in the US and it’s become more and more clear that it is an unsustainable method for growing crops over the long term.
Growing the same plant in the same place over and over quickly drains the soil of its natural biodiversity and makes it susceptible to erosion, so synthetic fertilizers are used to provide the plant with nutrients. Pesticides are needed because monoculture fields are highly attractive to certain weeds and insect pests, which overtime build up resistances to the pesticides, necessitating stronger pesticides, which the pests again build up resistances to, necessitating stronger pesticides, and so on.
These toxic chemical inputs and monoculture farming practices jeopardize soil, air, and water quality, and conventional cotton requires more chemicals than any other single crop. It’s estimated that conventional cotton uses 10 percent of all agricultural chemicals and 25 percent of the world’s insecticides. In the US, one-third of a pound of chemicals is needed to grow enough conventional cotton for a single t-shirt. That means that just like toxic paint, a t-shirt can off-gas chemicals that can affect your body’s systems and functions.
Instead of using toxic chemicals, organic farmers use beneficial insects, crop rotation, intercropping (planting several crops together), compost, cover crops, and weed by hand or machine in order to build soil quality, enhance biodiversity, and protect the air and water on which we depend.
Cotton and watermelon grow together in a south Georgia field.
Let’s quickly examine one organic farming method- intercropping. Trap crops can be used to divert pests away from the main crop. For example, sunflower can be sewn along with, or soon after cotton, so that it flowers at the same time bollworms would normally attack the cotton. The flowers attract predatory insects and birds which feed on the bollworms. The productivity of the sunflower is hardly affected by the bollworms, and the sunflower seeds can provide additional income for farmers. This is just one example of a huge number of possible crop combinations that naturally keep pests and weeds at bay, increasing yields and keeping soil, water, and air healthy and clean.
The benefits aren’t limited to the field. Without the presence of the synthetic chemicals used in conventional cotton production, the growers, harvesters, weavers, cutters, sewers, retailers- everyone on down the line, all the way to you, the consumer, is better off.
The Union of Concerned Scientists - www.ucsusa.org - is a great resource for learning about food and agriculture, clean energy, climate change, nuclear power and nuclear weapons, and just about any other subject that affects us all.
I used them as a reference for information in this post, along with the Organic Exchange Farmer Toolkit, available here - http://farmhub.textileexchange.org/upload/library/Farmer%20Toolkit/farmer_inter.pdf and compiled by the OE Farm Development Team. A list of sources and other publications on organic farming are available from Organic Exchange at www.organicexchange.org
I also used these as reference, and they’ll provide you with more information on industrial farming and on organic vs. conventional cotton. | <urn:uuid:31a513a2-0d98-43ab-b268-52a1ecfd6546> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://www.maluorganic.com/blogs/news | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655890092.28/warc/CC-MAIN-20200706011013-20200706041013-00094.warc.gz | en | 0.923886 | 888 | 3.5 | 4 |
Globalization has fueled the world’s economic growth for more than 200 years. It began in the 1800s when the steam engine made it possible to produce goods in one location and transport them to another—almost anywhere in the world. Globalization 2.0 and 3.0 followed over the next 100 years as advances in manufacturing and transportation made trade faster and cheaper.
While the first three waves of globalization represented the trade of goods, there’s another important component in our economy: the services sector. Until recently, the services sector—including knowledge industries like software development, consulting, design, and marketing—did not experience globalization.
Today, however, the digital economy and the ability of companies to hire remote workers have ushered in Globalization 4.0. This wave—for the first time—has moved beyond the buying and selling of goods to include the services industry.
Why Trade of Services Lagged Behind
Since the steam engine, globalization has continued to expand. Exports of goods and services have grown from 6% of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the 1850s to 30% in 2018.
Services are the largest contributor to the economy, at 63% of total global wealth. However, the export of services lags far behind the export of goods. (Goods represent 75% of total global exports, while services represent only 25%.)
Why do services represent only a quarter of all global exports?
Several differences between goods and services account for this disparity.
- The majority of services require on-site delivery. For example, goods can be produced in Indonesia and then transported and sold in the US. Services, however, until recently, haven’t been easily transported. Traditionally, the service provider and consumer had to be in the same location. This is still true for some service industries—customers must be on-site to experience the services of restaurants and hotels. Other knowledge-based services, such as communications and software, which make up 45% of the world’s service exports, attempted to solve this problem by having service providers travel to the customer. Unfortunately, this adds a significant cost to the basic services, making them less competitive.
Imagine a company in the United States hires IT consulting services based in Russia requiring 160 hours of work (20 days). Eighteen days of work can be done in Russia, but two days must be on-site in the US. If the IT specialist makes $20 per hour, they will make $3,200 (160 x $20) for the project. However, travel to the US, including transportation and lodging, will cost $1,600. The job now has a 50 % surcharge, so the effective hourly rate is $30.
Before Globalization 4.0, such remote work was too expensive. Remote work today, enabled by digital technology, is not only possible, it’s cost-effective. In addition, remote work provides access to talent around the world, addressing the shortage of skilled knowledge workers.
- Service businesses require high-skill labor. The manufacturing of goods during the earlier industrial revolutions primarily needed low-skill, low-cost labor. The factories that produced these goods moved to countries with this labor force. The services sector, however, requires mid- to high-skill labor. Until recently, knowledge-based industries had to be located in wealthier, more expensive countries like the US because of a shortage of high-skill labor in developing countries.
- Service characteristics are not observable before purchase. Unlike goods that have a definitive value and quality, the value and quality of services are more subjective. When someone seeks a well-made garment, they know to look at the material, stitching, cost, and delivery. On the other hand, a photograph of an IT consultant can’t demonstrate value and quality. Without the opportunity to interact with that IT consultant, the buyer may not trust the service. This problem is challenging to overcome. Some freelance talent platforms, like Toptal, address this problem with rigorous talent screening and a white-glove matching process for clients.
Today, the service sector is growing at a faster rate than the goods sector. Service trade still lags behind goods overall, but the gap is closing quickly. Between 2008 and 2018, the export of services grew nearly 48%, a higher rate than the export of goods, which only grew 30% in that same decade.
Remote Work Could Become the Main Driver of Globalization
Remote work can be the catalyst that unlocks the globalization of services. As professional services are delivered remotely, costs will go down.
The following levers contribute to the growth of remote work, and therefore of the services industry:
Broadband internet and tools. With the advances of technology such as 5G broadband internet, video conferencing, augmented reality, virtual reality, and instant messaging, many jobs can be delivered remotely in a way that rivals the quality of on-site jobs. When remote jobs are at the same quality level as on-site jobs, there is a huge competitive advantage to buy these services from lower-cost countries.
Global culture. The first three waves of globalization have made the world much smaller. We are now interconnected, our cultures are intermixed, and we have more in common. Today, thanks to travel, product globalization, and even Hollywood movies, Eastern European countries, for example, are far more aware of American culture than ever before. Americans are also more aware of cultures around the world. As cultural differences lessen, communication barriers will diminish and remote work can flourish.
The globalization of entertainment and goods results in a global culture that removes those trust barriers. Remote work is all about trust. The barriers to trust working with someone unknown and unproven are much higher than for a person you see each day. We tend to trust those that share our values and culture.
Foreign languages. Finally, speaking English is becoming far more common. There are currently 1.5 billion English speakers worldwide, or 20% of the world’s population. English is used not only when living in an English-speaking country but also as the common language between nations to conduct business. Having a common code of communication is the number one prerequisite for remote work.
How the Rise of Remote Work Will Change the World
Remote work and the accelerating export of services will bring tectonic changes to the world economy in the following ways.
Remote Work Will Stop Brain Drain
Developing markets often experience brain drain, also known as human capital flight. This is the physical migration of skilled individuals from a less developed area to a more developed area. When this occurs, a city or a country loses its most talented and educated workers, to the detriment of the entire country.
- The country experiences a shortage of skilled workers.
- The loss of skilled labor makes the country less able to attract businesses, which reinforces the flight of talent.
- The highly skilled people who leave are also potential entrepreneurs and innovators who might create new businesses and bring prosperity to the country. Without these people, the country experiences limited growth and development.
- Losing skilled workers results in a loss of tax revenue.
- The country also loses its investment in education. People educated at the country’s expense leave the area without paying back this investment.
Remote work, however, solves these problems. It allows those who might leave the area to stay and work remotely for companies in more developed markets. The effect is not entirely the same as if they were working for local companies, but the country can still benefit from their presence—they pay taxes, they are part of the local community, and they can contribute to the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. In addition, they export their services and bring money back into their country, positively contributing to the country’s trade balance.
Remote Work Will Intensify the Competition for Talent in Developing Markets
In the past, talent in developing markets had only one real option if they wanted higher compensation: emigration to a more developed market. Unfortunately, emigration comes with its own set of political, legal, cultural, and economic challenges. As a result, only a fraction of those who want to move to another country are capable of doing so.
With remote work, however, anyone with the right skill set can find a job. Remote work allows high-skilled labor to remain in their home country.
When companies from developed countries hire remote talent, they compete with local businesses for that talent. This has two effects in the local markets:
- Wages are pushed higher. Remote jobs typically pay better than local jobs. Therefore, if local companies want to keep local talent, they will have to pay higher wages. Higher wages may drive up the price of that company’s goods and services, making them less competitive.
- Talent shortages. If local businesses can’t pay the higher rates, they will lose high-skill talent.
Remote Work Will Disrupt Existing Business Models in Developing Markets
In offshore destinations, the service business model is simple: providing services at a lower cost than developed markets.
Let’s take, for example, the software industry. The majority of companies in Eastern Europe or India build software for Western clients at a low cost. They don’t innovate. In fact, they play the same role manufacturers in China and Southeast Asia play when it comes to goods. All of these countries offer access to the right talent at lower costs.
Remote work removes geographical barriers. Western companies can easily access the workforce of these developing countries, without a physical presence. The competitive advantage of local companies in developing countries disappears. In the past, a large US-based client might outsource specific projects to software agencies in India. Now, with the option of remote work, they can hire the best Indian-based developers remotely, which will eventually push these local companies out of business.
The only way for local companies to survive is to become value-producers instead of cost-cutters. To do so, they will have to invest in innovation and become more competitive.
Remote Work Will Bridge the Pay Gap
In a free market, talent rates are determined by the laws of supply and demand. An engineer in San Francisco might make four times that of an equally talented engineer in Bulgaria. Why? In San Francisco, there is more demand than talent supply and a higher cost of living, which pushes the rates up. In Bulgaria, the opposite is true, with far more supply than demand.
Let’s assume that the fair market rate for the Bulgarian developer is $25 per hour and that the San Francisco-based developer’s rate is $50 per hour. Because of high demand, San Francisco companies might have to pay that developer perhaps $100 or more per hour, putting a $50 premium on that rate.
The gap between $25 and $50 might be justified by the fact that the San Francisco developer has better training and education, more community support, and more experience in cutting-edge technologies or large-scale projects. The additional gap, from a $50 rate to a $100 rate, is just a premium based on high demand and cost of living in San Francisco. It’s highly doubtful the San Francisco developer offers value four times greater than the Bulgarian.
The discrepancy between the real value and the market value is simply a by-product of high demand and low supply and a difference in the cost of living.
Although this is an oversimplification, it illustrates the point. If success were as simple as hiring remote workers, there would be no San Francisco-based companies. They would have all been overthrown by Bulgarian companies. There are many other factors that explain why the biggest tech companies in the world are based in San Francisco and can still dominate the rest of the world. However, this traditional paradigm can be disrupted when remote work comes into play. With remote work, San Francisco-based clients have access to a larger talent pool, thus increasing the supply.
When supply and demand equalize, two things happen:
- The fees for talent in developed countries will go down.
- The fees for talent in emerging countries will go up.
Although the rates are not likely to become the same, the premium will become smaller, and market rates will converge to fair rates. This means that with remote work, companies will be able to pay talent their fair rate based on the actual value they bring. A developer living in San Francisco who makes four times more than one based in Bulgaria will have to produce four times the value.
Winners and Losers
The transformation of the world economy is not something new. We saw the same story with the globalization of products. Many companies moved their production to cheap labor countries causing many positions to disappear. Of course, for each job lost, there were multiple new jobs born. In these developed markets, talent doesn’t produce “stuff.” Instead, they perform higher-value jobs like management, design, and IT services.
Who will benefit from remote work?
- Companies in developed markets: They will now be able to get the same quality talent for a fraction of their current cost. This will improve the firms’ competitiveness.
- Talent in developing markets: They will now have access to fair market rates.
- Society as a whole: Society benefits when there are more services, greater economies of scale, and better resource allocation.
Who will lose? Talent in developed markets who now enjoy exceptionally high rates will eventually see these rates go down due to global competition.
Remote Work Can Democratize Opportunity
Remote work can create a consummate free market and democratize opportunity for both talent and clients.
- For talent: Talent should get paid based purely on merit, regardless of where they live. In theory, remote work will level the supply and demand outliers. Supply-constrained markets will see part of their demand filled in over-supply markets, helping the supply and demand balance of each market converge. As a result, the premiums and discounts applied to talent rates will also decrease, putting a talent’s earnings much closer to their fair value.
- For clients: Clients and companies will also have equal opportunities. Most San Francisco-based companies today can’t compete with Google and Facebook when it comes to accessing the local talent. However, with remote work, they can access an entire global pool of high-quality talent, thus having the ability to compete with much larger corporations.
Remote work will be the great equalizer of the 21st century. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing remote work across the globe, such equalization may be coming sooner than imagined.
As remote work becomes the new normal, Staffing.com has created a dedicated space to offer insights and tips. On our Rise of Remote pages, you’ll find The Suddenly Remote Playbook, articles, podcasts, and live streaming videos with experts in the world of remote work. Visit and subscribe to stay connected. | <urn:uuid:d16e62ed-3238-4b00-82c2-c6c2fe342d77> | CC-MAIN-2020-34 | https://www.staffing.com/remote-work-and-the-globalization-of-services/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-34/segments/1596439739370.8/warc/CC-MAIN-20200814190500-20200814220500-00401.warc.gz | en | 0.953633 | 3,068 | 3.046875 | 3 |
Wat Aham is a small temple consisting of a sim and two ancient stupas. It has a history of both Buddhism and spirit worship.
Wat Aham Temple
The Wat Aham is a small temple consisting of a sim and two ancient stupas. It has a history of both Buddhism and spirit worship. The temple was built in 1818 on the site of a much older temple dating back to 1527.
It is believed that around the 14th century at the site where the Wat Aham currently stands, a shrine was built for Pu No and Na No, the two guardian spirits of Luang Prabang.
Nearly two centuries later during the reign of King Phothisarath the shrines were destroyed. The King was a devout Buddhist who worked to end animism and spirit worshipping. He had the shrines destroyed and built a Buddhist temple on the site, the Wat Aham. When soon after the town of Luang Prabang was hit by several disasters including diseases, drought and failed harvest, local people believed the destruction of the spirit shrines to be the cause.
During the reign of the next King the shrines were rebuilt. When the spirit houses were destroyed again in the 20thcentury, the spirits were believed to have taken residence in the large banyan trees on the temple grounds. Even today the spirits are remembered during the Laos new year festival celebrations.
The sim was built in 1818. Flanking the steps at the front entrance are guardian tigers. Next to them are Hanuman and Ravana, two characters from the Phra Lak Phra Ram, the Laos version of the Indian epic Ramayana.
The structure has a three tiered roof, its ends decorated with stylized Naga finials. Its front porch is supported by four pillars with golden capitals in the shape of a lotus flower. The front façade is intricately decorated in gold and red. The red colored pediment over the front door contains a beautiful carved depiction of a seated Buddha surrounded by motifs of lotus flowers. The door panels are beautifully decorated with carved, gilded deities.
The porch on the back is of similar design as the front with four pillars. The gable of the back façade contains a colorful depiction of the Buddha teaching a number of followers.
The Wat Aham’s main Buddha image is a large sitting Buddha seated on an elaborate pedestal, surrounded by a number of smaller images. The walls are covered with colorful murals with depictions of scenes from the Jataka tales, the stories about the previous lives of the Buddha. Other murals contain scenes of Buddhist hell, with rather vivid depictions of the punishments and tortures received by those who stay there.
To get more about tourism in Laos, you can visit our website. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to let us know. We can reply you as soon as possible. You also like or share this article if you like it! | <urn:uuid:f99a57e7-7ed6-4d2a-9f0b-82c9812d1a80> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | https://laoshostels.com/where-to-see/wat-aham-temple.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187823214.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20171019012514-20171019032514-00812.warc.gz | en | 0.969828 | 613 | 3.234375 | 3 |
Low-grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesion
A low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion is a precancerous lesion. It refers to the early changes in the squamous cells that are present on the surface of the ectocervix. The following write-up provides information on the causes...
Stage 3 Cervical Cancer: Prognosis and Treatment
Did you know that in the year 2011, more than 12,000 new cases of cervical cancer were detected in the US, and that more than 4000 people died of cervical cancer? In spite of the incidence of cervical cancer having considerably...
Stage 1 Cervical Cancer
Cancer staging helps determine correct treatment. Stage 1 cervical cancer can be cured with prompt treatment. Read ahead to know how early stage cervical cancer is detected and how it is treated...
Cervical Cancer - Symptoms and Treatment
Cervical cancer is the cancer of cervix, the mouth of the uterus. Here is some useful information about cervical cancer symptoms and treatment.
Stage 2 Cervical Cancer
Stage 2 cervical cancer defines the progression of the disease in the body. Observing the intensity of the indications, the spread of this disease can be curbed and appropriate treatment provided.
Cervical Cancer Survival Rates
The mouth of the uterus is called the 'cervix' and malignant growth of cells at the cervical area is called 'cervical cancer'. This article provides information on cervical cancer survival rates. Read on to know how the rates vary...
Stages of Cervical Cancer
Cervical cancer is a malignant cancer of cervix uteri and is termed as one of the most life- threatening cancers. There are five stages of cervical cancer, stage 0 to stage IV. The stages are classified according to the invasion of... | <urn:uuid:68a3bf39-a52b-4c0f-b452-4a1830107ec7> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://www.buzzle.com/articles/cervical-cancer/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370497301.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20200330181842-20200330211842-00278.warc.gz | en | 0.930469 | 374 | 2.75 | 3 |
We often draw on physical metaphors when we think and talk about our feelings. We might describe someone as having a warm heart. Or we’ll speak of a wrong-doer as washing their hands of a crime.
Past research has shown that this mental link with the physical world may be due partly to the fact that the same brain regions that represent bodily states such as warmth, also respond to their psychological equivalents like trust.
Now Lawrence Williams and John Bargh have taken things further by providing a compelling behavioural demonstration of how physical and psychological warmth are linked, and specifically how the former can actually influence our judgements of others and our behaviour toward them.
In an initial experiment, 41 participants held either an iced coffee or a hot coffee for 10 to 15 seconds while travelling in a lift towards a psychology lab. The coffee was passed to them by a research assistant as she took down their names. Once upstairs, the participants assessed two cars (to distract them from the true purpose of the study) and then rated the personality of a fictional “person A” who they were told was intelligent, skillful and industrious.
The intriguing finding is that the participants who’d earlier held a hot coffee rated the man more “warmly”, for example describing him as more good-natured and generous, than the participants who’d held an iced coffee. Personality ratings unrelated to warmth/coldness, such as attractiveness or talkativeness, were unaffected by which coffee had been held, thus showing that this wasn’t just a non-specific effect on mood. Also, none of the participants guessed the true purpose of the study.
A second experiment followed a similar pattern except participants were asked to rate a hot or iced therapeutic pad, and then to choose a reward for their time. Crucially, compared with the participants who rated the ice pad, those who rated the hot pad were subsequently more likely to choose (as a reward for participating) a drinks or ice-cream gift-voucher for a friend than to opt for a free drink or ice-cream for themselves.
“Experiences of physical temperature per se affect one’s impressions of an prosocial behaviour toward other people, without one’s awareness of such influences,” the researchers said. The new results also appear to support Solomon Asch’s intuition, published in the first half of the last century, that the warm-cold dimension is central to the first impressions we form of other people.
L. E. Williams, J. A. Bargh (2008). Experiencing Physical Warmth Promotes Interpersonal Warmth Science, 322 (5901), 606-607 DOI: 10.1126/science.1162548 | <urn:uuid:956a4b31-d7a9-444c-98f9-84f4b49d6d31> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | https://digest.bps.org.uk/2008/11/10/physical-warmth-affects-our-judgments-of-others-and-our-behaviour-towards-them/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187820487.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20171016233304-20171017013304-00373.warc.gz | en | 0.958102 | 568 | 2.9375 | 3 |
It does not select or discard variations in its form, it does not retain beneficial endowments - it simply takes what it gets and carries on with no descent toward complexity, only the mindless effects of the elements, until such time as the structure collapses from the detrimental carelessness of random process. In fact, given time, it is a certainty that the "random mutations" of erosion will destroy the structure.
Who knows but there are hundreds of such collapsed arches in the world, desguised as heaps of broken stone. To put this into perspective, remember that you're comparing an enormously complex biological system to a single massive formation of inanimate sandstone. I fail to see any challenge here to Behe's work.
Respectfully, m. The amendment simply filled in a gap in the logic. There is no statement in Behe's definition about mutations. As far as Behe is concerned, mutations don't do anything anyway! This is hard to believe, if you have ever dealt with mutations in humans that cause genetic diseases. Take a look at those unfortunate kids shown in Figure 1! There is nothing in Behe's definition that explicitly says the system has to be living.
Note that this is quite different from my definition of molecular machines which explicitly linked them to living things. He implicitly says it because it has to 'function'.
Let's see if the arch matches: By irreducibly complex I mean a single system An arch is a single system of stone and side supports. So let us imagine some Native Americans using the arch as a bridge. Everybody now has to climb down and back up again. Notice that people and all living things eventually collapse into rubble too. It's called death and it is therefore not an argument against the arch. Conclusion: The arch matches Behe's definition. It does not require anything fancy to be formed, it happens by well understood natural phenomena. Therefore Behe's argument that something else is needed is false.
Note also, as many people have pointed out, that Behe's argument goes like this: "I can't think of a good evolutionary argument for how this might have come about and I'm too busy to spend the next 40 years of my life doing the hard work to figure it out.
So I'll just take the easy way out and suppose it was supernatural. Venus Flytrap - a natural mouse trap. Behe used the mouse trap as an example of an irreducible complex system. But a Venus flytrap is also a trap and So how? Pete Dunkelberg has a nice page on this: Irreducible Complexity Demystified which shows how various species of plants could lead to a venus flytrap.
The page has fascinating stories. Real stories of science are invariably much more interesting than the poor arguments of creationists! Dembski tried to defend Behe's thesis and failed. Behe, posted December 13, did not deal with the Ev program. Yet the Ev program completely destroys his thesis because it fits his definition and yet shows generation of "irreducibly complex" by an evolutionary process.eswunredurwoll.gq
Download Seven Clues To The Origin Of Life A Scientific Detective Story Canto
I will paraphrase his response here. First, he did not think that binding is a function. Secondly, binding can happen by small steps and so is 'reducible'. Third, one would have to consider more than the binding and that is messy. He said he had not followed this line of thinking enough to draw a solid conclusion and suggested that it would be good for me to look into these probems. Most molecular biologists would say that binding is a biological function. Without correct binding an organism will die, so it is one of the most important functions in biology and it occurs in all living molecular systems.
To use Behe's example, which he mentioned, the flagellum is constructed by binding parts together and I suggest based on advanced molecular information theory that its mechanism will eventually be shown to involve binding reactions. That something could evolve in small steps was not part of Behe's original definition. So here he has changed his definition. If we cannot agree on a single definition, then the concept of 'irreducible complexity' evaporates.
However, during the Dover Trial in , Behe used a new definition almost identical to the one above, with a minor language difference that seem meaningless to me, so I will stick to the original definition until Behe publishes a complete revision. It is indeed true that binding is part of a larger system. However, this complexity is not part of the definition of irreducibly complex and therefore must be excluded from the argument. Furthermore, the Ev program which I published the year after these emails shows clearly that the complexity can be modeled in precise parallel to the natural genetic control systems and that the Ev model gives results identical to the naturally observed ones, namely that Rsequence evolves towards and oscillates irregularly around Rfrequency.
To explain biological complexity, Cairns-Smith brings in the concept of arches of stones on pages 59, 60, 64 and Most interestingly, he used biochemical arches as his main example.
- Seven Clues to the Origin of Life: A Scientific Detective Story (Canto) A. G. Cairns-Smith PDF Down!
- SEVEN CLUES TO THE ORIGIN OF LIFE - Los Angeles Times;
- ~ Many helpful hints on living your life more successfully..
- Doping in Sports: Biochemical Principles, Effects and Analysis?
This was Behe's example, but years before Behe published his book! Perhaps Behe got his idea from Cairns-Smith but neglected to understand it! On page we find a nice summary: Third clue from the building trade To make an arch of stones needs scaffolding of some sort; something to support the stones before they are all in place and can support each other.
It is often the case that a construction procedure includes things that are absent in the final outcome. Similarly in evolution, things can be subtracted. This can lead to the kind of mutual dependence of components that is such a striking feature of the central biochemical control machinery.
And it seemed very possible that these first organisms would have been based on a genetic material no longer present at all in our biochemistry.
This is interesting because Darwin's Black Box was first published in hardcover in , more than 10 years after Cairns-Smith demolished the irreducibly complex idea! Unlike Jurgen, Hunsicker remains something of a cipher, but it seems implausible that this decent, honorable man would turn out to be such an amoral creep in other circumstances. It seems that those whom the gods wish to destroy they first send to California. After homesteading a farm on the fertile prairie, her father and mother married and soon added children to their demanding but apparently enjoyable existence.
Life Ascending. – Or is it descending? – review | Probaway - Life Hacks
As the title suggests, Young focuses on her mother, an exceptional woman who homesteaded a substantial tract of land on her own, and who managed to help run the family farm while rearing the children, doing all the cooking and making all the clothes. In this overview of the current debates about early human evolution, journalist Delta Willis emphasizes that these controversies involve technical issues of scientific classification--how the family tree of Homo sapiens should be described; that humans evolved from an apelike ancestor in East Africa is not in question.
Because hominid remains are rare and fragile fossils, paleoanthropologists must work from bone fragments, teeth and secondary evidence: Rick Potts studies the markings on animal bones to determine whether the beasts had been butchered by early hunters with stone tools. Willis combines scientific data with personal accounts of meeting such eminent scientists as Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Leakey in this enjoyable book, intended for the general reader.
PDF Seven Clues to the Origin of Life: A Scientific Detective Story Free Books
About Us. Brand Publishing. Times News Platforms. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options. March 17, | <urn:uuid:0f73d65b-c2e6-4d19-a863-10155d2023e6> | CC-MAIN-2020-24 | https://inrecnatomi.ml/seven-clues-to-the-origin-of-life.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-24/segments/1590347385193.5/warc/CC-MAIN-20200524210325-20200525000325-00577.warc.gz | en | 0.953393 | 1,680 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Companion Animal Zoonoses
February 2011, Wiley-Blackwell
Covering the complete range of companion animal zoonoses, each topic begins with information on etiology, geographic distribution, epidemiology, and pathophysiology. The discussion then moves into clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management, alongside prevention information for both animals and humans. Companion Animal Zoonoses is an essential reference for practicing veterinarians, public health veterinarians, and veterinary students. It will also appeal to physicians who wish to better understand zoonotic diseases.
1 Parasitic Zoonoses (J. Scott Weese, Maureen E.C. Anderson, and Martha B. Fulford).
2 Bacterial Diseases (J. Scott Weese and Martha B. Fulford).
3 Viral Diseases (J. Scott Weese and Martha B. Fulford).
4 Fungal Diseases (J. Scott Weese and Martha B. Fulford).
5 Pets and Immunocompromised Individuals (Jason Stull).
6 Pet Bites (Martha B. Fulford).
Martha Fulford, MD, FRCPC, is an infectious diseases physician at McMaster University Medical Centre, Hamilton Health Sciences, and medical coordinator for the Waterloo Wellington Infection Control Network.
- Comprehensive resource on diseases transmitted between companion animals and humans
- Emphasizes prevention and control strategies for zoonotic diseases
- Provides practical information on preventing the spread of disease between pets and owners or veterinary staff
- Offers an in-depth, current guide with coverage of emerging issues, disease incidence and risk, and management measures
"J. Scott Weese & Martha B. Fulford's Companion Animal Zoonoses provides a fine resource on diseases transmissible between animals and humans and surveys the latest research on disease incidence, risk, and management." (The Midwest Book Review, 1 November 2011) | <urn:uuid:9fe66ffa-95e7-44ac-b2ac-5fd7c1a148cf> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0813819644,subjectCd-VE10.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934805911.18/warc/CC-MAIN-20171120032907-20171120052907-00282.warc.gz | en | 0.819092 | 383 | 3.03125 | 3 |
Monday marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the political movement, with no official commemorations planned. Official records whitewash the details of both periods, but admit that Mao made major mistakes.
The 1958-1961 Great Leap Forward, when millions starved to death in late chairman Mao Zedong’s botched industrialization campaign, and the Cultural Revolution are two of modern China’s most sensitive historical events.
Fan Jianchuan, who opened his Jianchuan Museum Cluster to the public in 2005, said his relics, which refer discreetly to a “Red era”, were beneficial to the nation.
“I have a saying: We don’t speak. Let the cultural relics talk,” Fan told Reuters TV.
“Our nation’s cultural treasures need to be inherited … but it is more important to pass on the nation’s experience and some lessons. That’s why I have stayed with this cause for decades.”
During the Cultural Revolution, children turned on parents and students on teachers after Mao declared class war, convulsing the country in chaos and violence. The upheaval affected industry as well, including the critical steel sector.
From 1967 to the end of 1968, thousands of steel mills were occupied and closed down, slashing steel output. China’s cabinet, or the State Council, was forced to step in, ordering steel enterprises to cease the “struggle” and restore output.
While recent years have seen increased public discussion of both events, certain topics remain almost completely off limits, including the death of Lin Biao, once handpicked to succeed Mao but killed in a mysterious plane crash in 1971 while fleeing China having been accused of plotting a coup.
Students who toured the museum in a suburb of the provincial capital Chengdu, listened carefully as their guide explained a period in China’s history that is largely missing in their textbooks.
Luo Qingsong, one of the students from Sichuan Management Professional Institute, said the Cultural Revolution could not happen again in China today.
“I think modern China is an open country and integrated into the world. I believe our party, the country and our leadership would not adopt such policies again,” Luo said. | <urn:uuid:b9053316-efef-4dcb-b0b0-9db74aa08106> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | http://arynews.tv/en/museum-shines-rare-spotlight-on-chinas-cultural-revolution/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806615.74/warc/CC-MAIN-20171122160645-20171122180645-00699.warc.gz | en | 0.954227 | 468 | 2.65625 | 3 |
This 2:40-minute film presents a ‘day in the life’ of a research-for-development project working to improve smallholder pig production in Uganda. The film highlights the big opportunities as well as challenges faced by small-scale pig producers in this East African country.
Pig farming is becoming big business in Uganda. Some 1.1 million mostly small-scale farmers in the country keep more than 3 million pigs. Uganda is Africa’s leading pork-consuming nation, with Ugandans consuming an average of 3.4 kg of pork per person per year. Researchers from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) who are conducting two projects in the country that will propose more efficient ways of raising pigs, safer ways of handling and selling pork, and ways to increase access to pig markets by poor farmers.
One ILRI project is investigating Smallholder Pig Value Chains to enhance the whole of these chains – from farms to forks. Another, Safe Food, Fair Food, is working to improve pork safety, especially meat sold in the country’s many ‘informal’ markets, in both rural and urban areas.
The local partners in these projects include veterinary and other officials from Uganda’s Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries; National Agricultural Research Organization; National Livestock Resources Research Institute; as well as staff of Makerere University, local governments and NGOs, such as Volunteer Efforts for Development Concern.
These Uganda pig projects are part of two CGIAR Research Programs on Agriculture for Nutrition for Health (A4NH), and Livestock and Fish and are funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
The film was created by Elisabeth Kilian, a communications student on attachment to ILRI in 2013, and edited and produced with the assistance of Kristina Rösel, project coordinator of the Safe Food, Fair Food project and Danilo Pezo, project leader of the Smallholder Pig Value Chains Development in Uganda Project.
Read an ILRI news story on Ugandans and pork: A story that needs telling, 19 Feb 2014. | <urn:uuid:6145f3ed-e5f0-43fc-8faf-6b386f35b5a7> | CC-MAIN-2020-10 | https://news.ilri.org/2014/02/27/film-pig-farming-in-uganda-big-options-and-big-research-take-hold/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-10/segments/1581875145648.56/warc/CC-MAIN-20200222023815-20200222053815-00418.warc.gz | en | 0.926135 | 446 | 2.640625 | 3 |
Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into smaller components that are more easily absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism: a breakdown of large food molecules to smaller ones.
In the human digestive system, food enters the mouth and mechanical digestion of the food starts by the action of mastication, a form of mechanical digestion, and the wetting contact of saliva. Saliva, a liquid secreted by the salivary glands, contains salivary amylase, an enzyme which starts the digestion of starch in the food. After undergoing mastication and starch digestion, the food will be in the form of a small, round slurry mass called a bolus. It will then travel down the esophagus and into the stomach by the action of peristalsis. Gastric juice in the stomach starts protein digestion. Gastric juice mainly contains hydrochloric acid and pepsin. As these two chemicals may damage the stomach wall, mucus is secreted by the stomach, providing a slimy layer that acts as a shield against the damaging effects of the chemicals. At the same time protein digestion is occurring, mechanical mixing occurs by peristalsis, which is waves of muscular contractions that move along the stomach wall. This allows the mass of food to further mix with the digestive enzymes.
The human gastrointestinal tract is the stomach and intestine, sometimes including all the structures from the mouth to the anus. (The "digestive system" is a broader term that includes other structures, including the accessory organs of digestion).
In an adult male human, the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is 5 metres (20 ft) long in a live subject, or up to 9 metres (30 ft) without the effect of muscle tone, and consists of the upper and lower GI tracts. The tract may also be divided into foregut, midgut, and hindgut, reflecting the embryological origin of each segment of the tract.
Gastrointestinal physiology is a branch of human physiology addressing the physical function of the gastrointestinal (GI) system. The major processes occurring in the GI system are that of motility, secretion, regulation, digestion and circulation. The function and coordination of each of these actions is vital in maintaining GI health, and thus the digestion of nutrients for the entire body.
Science of drugs including their origin, composition, pharmacokinetics,
pharmacodynamics, therapeutic use, and toxicology.
Pharmacology (from Greek φάρμακον, pharmakon, "poison" in classic Greek; "drug" in modern Greek; and -λογία, -logia "study of", "knowledge of") is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action, where a drug can be broadly defined as any man-made, natural, or endogenous (within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemical and/or physiological effect on the cell, tissue, organ, or organism. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function. If substances have medicinal properties, they are considered pharmaceuticals.
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to serve several billion users worldwide. It is a network of networks that consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government networks, of local to global scope, that are linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries an extensive range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW), the infrastructure to support email, and peer-to-peer networks.
Most traditional communications media including telephone, music, film, and television are being reshaped or redefined by the Internet, giving birth to new services such as voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Internet Protocol television (IPTV). Newspaper, book and other print publishing are adapting to website technology, or are reshaped into blogging and web feeds. The Internet has enabled and accelerated new forms of human interactions through instant messaging, Internet forums, and social networking. Online shopping has boomed both for major retail outlets and small artisans and traders. Business-to-business and financial services on the Internet affect supply chains across entire industries. | <urn:uuid:4ab48f03-6f81-41f9-bce4-810626a36fed> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://answerparty.com/question/answer/what-is-the-process-of-peristalsis | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1393999636018/warc/CC-MAIN-20140305060716-00084-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932173 | 909 | 3.703125 | 4 |
...Return to Designs
Go to Methods...
Go to Results...
Figure 1. A three-dimensional model of the sphere (Han et al. 2011).
In our search for a robust and elegant design, we were inspired by the origami sphere that Dongran Han demonstrated in their 2011 Science paper "DNA Origami with Complex Curvatures in Three-Dimensional Space".
- The spherical design appealed to us because of its efficient use of DNA and lack of weak points--that is, instead of having edges, it only has two holes at each pole, minimizing spots where cargo can leak out. We imagined that we would be able to change the design of the Han sphere to make it an openable and closable container.
The design principles for an origami sphere (and other 3D origami with complex curvatures) employed by Han are the following (Figure 1):
- Multi-planar arrangement of parallel double helices with in-plane curvature of helices into rings, and
- Curvature across planes caused by different ring sizes and greater distance between crossovers in larger rings than in smaller rings.
Ultimately, the Han sphere is comprised of 24 parallel rings of helices (12 rings in each hemisphere) and is 6626 bases long. Its largest ring is 42 nm in diameter and the hole at each pole is 4 nm.
To adapt the Han sphere to our purposes, we generated a caDNAno file from diagrams provided in Han's supplementary materials. We succeeded in reconstructing the Han sphere down to the base and matched all staple strands generated by caDNAno to staple strands used by Han et al.
Figure 2. A cross-sectional view of the sphere depicting our strategy for attachining gold nanoparticles. The ssDNA conjugate and extension strands are complementary.
The cargo that we chose to place inside our containers was gold nanoparticles of 5 nm in diameter. As gold nanoparticles are highly visible under the transmission electron microscope (TEM), we can easily tell if cargo was placed inside our containers or released from our containers.
To place gold nanoparticles inside the sphere:
- We conjugated ssDNA to the nanoparticles that are complementary to staple strand extensions on the inside of the sphere (Figure 3). That is, the ssDNA on the nanoparticles would bind to the staple extensions on the inside of the sphere, tethering the nanoparticle to the sphere.
- The ssDNA conjugated to gold contains a photocleavable (PC) spacer from IDT; once the cargo is inside the sphere, we can solubilize it by exposing the solution to UV light, which cleaves the PC spacer.
- To maximize the chance that the staple extension on the sphere points inside rather than outside, we chose to extend the staple strand at a base where it is oriented inside the sphere in its helical turn. This was possible because we mapped out the orientation (inside the sphere, upward crossover, downward crossover, or outside the sphere) of every base in the sphere in SphereCAD.
Figure 3. We created the open state of the sphere by removing all staples holding together the two hemispheres.
Since the Han sphere in its unaltered form is closed, next came the question of how to incorporate cargo. Our options were:
- Fold the sphere in the presence of gold nanoparticles
- Fold the sphere in an "open state," add gold nanoparticles, and then close the sphere.
Since gold nanoparticles aggregate under high temperatures, we opted for the latter strategy.
To create an open state of the sphere, we removed all staple strands holding the twelfth and thirteenth helices (the helices at the "equator" of the sphere) together (Figure 3). This results in two hemispheres held together by a scaffold strand crossover.
Figure 4. Azobenzene tweezers (Liang et al. 2008).
To close the sphere after loading of cargo and reopen it to release cargo, we designed a series of "locks" based on azobenzene tweezers detailed by Liang et al. in this paper (Figure 4). Recall that we had cut all staple strand crossovers holding the two hemispheres together.
To create the locks, we extended staples on helices 12 and 13 where they are oriented outward; again, these locations were found with SphereCAD.
- We were able to find nine positions around the equator of the sphere where symmetric staples on the Northern and Southern hemisphere both face outward. Thus, we designed the closable sphere with a maximum of nine locks.
- We extended the 3' ends of staple strands on the Northern Hemisphere and the 5' ends of staple strands on the Southern Hemisphere. Onto all Northern staples were appended the sequence 5'-CTGGTAACAATCACG-3', onto all Southern staples 5'-CTGTCTGAACTAACG-3'. These sequences are from the Liang tweezer design.
To close the sphere, we used Liang's "lock strand" that is complementary to both the Northern and Southern staple extensions.
In order to have a re-openable sphere, we designed a strand displacement mechanism and a photocleavage mechanism.
- In the strand displacement mechanism, a "key strand" with greater complementarity to the lock strand than the staple extensions is added to solution and displaces the lock strands from the staples, opening the sphere (Figure 5). Thus we added a toehold to the lock strand and designed a complementary key strand. To make sure these strands do not have problematic secondary structures and that lock:key interactions are stronger than staple:lock:staple interactions, we consulted NUPACK.
- Lock strand sequence, with toehold bolded: 5'-CGTGATTGTTACCAGTTCGTTAGTTCAGACAG-CAGACAGACAG-3'
- Key strand sequence: 5'-CTGTCTGTCTG-CTGTCTGAACTAACGAACTGGTAACAATCACG-3'
Figure 5. A diagram explaining our strand displacement mechanism for opening the sphere.
- In the photocleavage mechanism, rather than use a key strand to displace the lock strand, we simply insert a photocleavable (PC) spacer (ordered from IDT) between the halves complementary to the Northern and Southern staple extensions (Figure 6).
- When exposed to UV light, the spacer cleaves, splitting the lock strand in half and opening the sphere (FIGURE). The lock strand used in this mechanism is the same as that used for the strand displacement mechanism except for the presence of a photocleavable spacer.
- Lock strand sequence, with PC spacer and toehold bolded: 5'-CGTGATTGTTACCAG-/iSpPC/-TTCGTTAGTTCAGACAG-CAGACAGACAG-3' (Note: the toehold is not of use in the photocleavable mechanism.)
Figure 6. A diagram explaining our photocleavage mechanism for opening the sphere.
The final caDNAno file can be downloaded here (Figure 7).
An Excel file containing all staple sequences for the sphere can be downloaded here. The file includes staples needed to recreate the original, closed Han sphere, as well as the staples we modified to create our locks.
- To create the open state of the sphere, add all staples to solution except for those labeled orange in the Excel file.
- We used M13mp18 scaffold from New England Biolabs and ordered our staple strands from Integrated DNA Technologies.
Figure 7. A strand diagram corresponding to the caDNAno representation of the Han sphere. Click to expand! | <urn:uuid:53d10fa4-0b1c-4b0f-8894-c0aab626f763> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://openwetware.org/wiki/Biomod/2011/Harvard/HarvarDNAnos:Design_Sphere | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1394678694108/warc/CC-MAIN-20140313024454-00032-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.894019 | 1,610 | 3.296875 | 3 |
Many students come to my class feeling “comfortable” with PowerPoint so my goal is to teach them some news skills to keep the focus on content or make formatting and animating quicker, easier and consistent.
One of the ways that I do this is to teach my students how to create their own original design template by using the slide master. The preformatted design templates are overused and not very interesting – plus they usually don’t match the topic. I teach students how to go to View / Master / Slide Master and design a template from scratch. I encourage students to choose background colors, designs or images that match their topic.
The slide master shown above was created for a slide presentation for “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”. The images on the left are hyperlinked to a slide to explain more about that wonder. The column and text banner appear on every page. This student put a lot of thought into the design of their PowerPoint and had it coordinate with their topic. It was much better than choosing an overused Design Template.
The student is now more than half done since all the text and slide formatting is completed. The next steps include changing the slide layouts, transitions and adding images/sounds/movies.
Animations for titles and body paragraphs can be added to the slide master as well as “actions” to link the navigation bar to individual slides.
By the way, the PPT presentation (right) is not shown in front of the whole class. We save our presentations in a shared folder and then each student opens the presentations and interacts with them (by clicking on links/action buttons) more like a webpage. Students don’t need to sit through all 30 presentations but most of them eventually view everyone’s projects – cuz they’re kids and they are curious.
I asked students to give opinions about the use of the slide master:
- It makes it easier to format all the slides at once.
- You can match your design to your topic.
- It makes the show more professional looking – but I still like change some of the background designs for some slides.
- I probably won’t go search for design templates online anymore – I’ll just make my own.
- I used to spend a lot of time animating all of the text. Completing the animations in the slide master saves TONS of time.
- I like using the slide master and Word outline together – it’s so much easier.
- I never knew that you could add action buttons or hyperlinks in PowerPoint to make the projects more interactive.
Photo Credit: PowerPoint made by C. | <urn:uuid:752a682d-f4e1-4a20-ab82-5b3ab87212fc> | CC-MAIN-2017-39 | http://edtechvision.org/?p=115 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-39/segments/1505818688940.72/warc/CC-MAIN-20170922112142-20170922132142-00276.warc.gz | en | 0.926995 | 552 | 2.890625 | 3 |
In Buenos Aires, Argentina, the government has established neighborhood “justice centers,” where residents of the city’s poorest areas can get legal assistance to gain access to government services, including health care, housing and other life-supporting programs. The model is similar to what the Asian Development Bank is supporting in Bangledesh, where a network of community health centres that provide comprehensive and integrated services, from legal and land rights to ambulatory care, for the urban poor.
Improving unjust living conditions is at the heart of both these programs: “Poor living conditions leave the urban poor, especially women and children, more exposed to health problems than the general population,” said M. Teresa Kho, country director of the Bangladesh Resident Mission.
Brazil remains one of the world’s leaders in linking neighborhood-based, integrated and comprehensive services to health equity for the urban poor. Its Family Health Program (PSF) and related clinics, staffed by clinicians, nurses, lay outreach workers, social workers and others, is increasingly seen as a one of the most significant reasons behind the health gains being experienced by the urban poor in Brazil, as discussed in this recent Lancet series.
What is important to note about the factors of success in Brazil (and granted they still have much progress to make) is that public health officials are acknowledging that reductions in morbidity and mortality for the least well off are the result of an integrated set of economic, social, and place-based policies, along with national leadership but local (municipal and neighborhood-scale) priority setting and implementation.
As a government worker in the slums of Buenos Aires noted in this article, there is no one-size-fits-all or single intervention that will change entrenched inequalities that contribute to health inequities. Rather, what is needed are integrated strategies with the power of the national government but with the accountability of neighborhood organizations: “There are economic, social, cultural and geographic barriers standing in the way of everyone having access to the same rights. For that reason, rather than sporadic interventions, what we are seeking at the centre is to provide a stable state presence.”
Cross-posted from the blog Healthy Cities. | <urn:uuid:2a028ca4-de96-42bd-acf5-6f008b698d2a> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | http://blogs.berkeley.edu/2012/09/21/slums-justice-and-health-from-neighbourhood-to-nation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806316.80/warc/CC-MAIN-20171121040104-20171121060104-00163.warc.gz | en | 0.957141 | 450 | 2.8125 | 3 |
This meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and United States President Trump is not the first and is not the most important play afoot.
The first meeting Kim Jong Un had since taking power in 2011 was with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Over the past two decades, Kim and his father and predecessor Jim Jong Il have met with more Chinese leaders than with all other foreign leaders combined. As North Korea’s neighbour, largest trading partner, and most important patron, China is both the country most responsible for facilitating Pyonyang’s provocations and the one with the most to lose should the regime collapse. It’s possible – as with Cuba – that following a set of successful negotiations a slow transition could occur. But more likely that North Korea’s brittle shell will simply implode bar for perpetual Chinese propping.
And yet in the months prior to U.S. President Trump’s explosive announcement in March 2018 of a forthcoming summit between the U.S. and North Korean leaders, U.S. officials have assumed responsibility and risk for what is in most part China’s problem. Trump has successfully colonised the North Korea discourse. If Trump’s hawks think Kim Jong Un will bow and open his doors to full Americanisation, they might want to revisit the history of China’s involvement in the Korean war.
On June 1st, Trump said, with respect to the Chinese sphere of influence around North Korea, “That’s their neighbourhood; it’s not our neighbourhood.” That is the right tone to take.
What is at stake for North Korea is reinstatement of much of their economy, which has been strangled through United Nations resolutions. Since 2006 they have included: demands to cease nuclear testing, and stopping luxury goods and some arms; a broadening out of the arms embargo and ship inspections in 2009; further sanctions in 2013 including right to seize and destroy cargo, and sanctions on money transfers and shutting them out of the financial system; 2016 bans on gold, titanium and rare earth metals, and on exports of coal, iron, nickel, zinc, and silver; seafood in 2017; then stopping crude and refined oil and petroleum, all joint ventures, textile exports, and banned North Koreans from working abroad in other countries.
Because of the force of censorship in North Korea, it’s really hard to say how bad all of those have made North Korean society. But it will be bad. Suffice to say the North Korean leader has never come to the table like this before.
China’s gamble is that Trump is taking the global glory for getting the meeting irrespective of what is actually achieved, and the very unlikely risk of a bad outcome to the talks (especially after the G7 debacle) is clearly one that Trump handles with ease. China’s further risk is that its errant client state begins to see more to gain from economic reforms similar that which Cuba went through and Iran is starting to see, and doesn’t need China as much anymore. There’s a slippery slide between a long-term Hong Kong handover scenario (recolonisation by China) and a Chinese Taipei scenario (U.S. tacit affiliation and armaments), and in the end North Korea is a whole bunch more China’s problem than any other country except South Korea.
The best case is that North Korea really does disarm from nuclear weapons, and North Korea and the United States actively engage with the U.N. Security Council to rescind the many resolutions.
So far as I am aware this has rarely worked before, but hey, I’m open minded.
But Trump now adds active international diplomacy to the active trade war against China. If he wins and gains preferential access for U.S. companies over all others in return for a partnership to overturn the U.N. resolutions, he boxes China itself.
This summit is a China play. | <urn:uuid:58005e02-d2c0-4664-8f24-4b8337945fe3> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://thestandard.org.nz/this-is-a-china-play/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250592565.2/warc/CC-MAIN-20200118110141-20200118134141-00108.warc.gz | en | 0.9557 | 810 | 2.671875 | 3 |
In this article, we’re going to take a look at using thermal imaging (or “thermal vision”) for surveillance purposes.
First of all, what do we mean by thermal imaging?
All natural and manmade objects emit infrared energy as heat.
With the right equipment we can detect the very subtle temperature differences of everything in view – and present it as a video image.
Thermal imaging technology reveals what otherwise would be invisible to the naked eye.
This sounds like exotic technology (and it sort of is) but you’ll also be surprised at just how capable and affordable these thermal vision devices have become.
Having said that – “affordable” is relative in this case.
This IR gear is more expensive than night vision devices that use Image Intensification methods that amplify ambient light.
There are also a lot of interesting uses of IR that aren’t just for surveillance – we’ll talk about those too.
Advantages of Thermal Imaging for Surveillance
Thermal Imaging has some substantial benefits over class night vision using Image Intensification.
Thermal imaging works in daylight or darkness – because that thermal energy is radiated at all times – and the devices aren’t too sensitive to use in daytime.
Further, IR devices won’t be blinded by bright light – they don’t “see” that light (except the IR component of it.
Thermal Imaging works in more diverse weather conditions – including fog, smoke, rain, and more.
Those weather conditions can be a challenge for classic I2 devices because those atmospheric conditions block or scatter the ambient light.
Lastly, thermal vision is very stealthy – as it can’t be used in complete darkness.
Thermal imaging excels at highlighting “hot” objects – people, animals, and vehicles (running or having recently run) all stand out against their cooler backgrounds.
Uses of Thermal Vision
OK, so now we understand what thermal vision can do – let’s talk about what we can use it for.
First of all, it’s a great surveillance tool – it highlights objects (animals, vehicles, people) at great distances.
Many IR vision devices include magnification of 20x or more – so this makes it easy to use remotely.
Many of these devices include photo or video recording.
Remember that these devices are creating a video image of the scene – so it’s trivial to record that.
(It’s also one of the reasons this tech is so much more expensive than I2 – there’s a lot more computing power involved.
IR Photography (thermography) is a whole subject by itself.
We can use the heat emanating from objects to determine if someone has a fever, if equipment is working properly, or to find hotspots.
In fact, you can use an IR camera or vision device to look for unexpected devices – like hidden spy cameras and other spy gear.
Let’s move on and look at some thermal vision hardware next.
We also need to highlight one more important point.
ITAR Regulations Prohibit Export Of Thermal Imaging Devices
You may have heard of ITAR – the International Traffic in Arms Regulations of the United States.
These were setup to control the export and import of defense-related articles and services.
And in particular – thermal imaging devices fall under these regulations.
ITAR is serious business – and can result in jail time.
As a US citizen there are no laws against buying and using thermal imaging devices.
But, it is illegal to export, sell, or even to let a foreign citizen use these (or the manuals!).
So, be careful – and know what you are doing.
Thermal Vision Devices
Let’s look at some gear.
Monoculars are like a miniature telescope – meant to be used with one eye – in case that isn’t clear.
What are the benefits of this sort of device?
Because it’s one tube it’s lighter, smaller, and easier to deploy.
You don’t really get any proper depth perception from these sort of devices anyways so a monocular is a very popular choice.
These can be used hand-held or tripod mounted.
Theoretically you could helmet mount this as well – but IR imaging doesn’t really work well in that role.
A binocular has two eye pieces and is meant to be used just like traditional binoculars.
They will be heavier, harder to pack, and probably have less battery life (unless they have proportionately more battery.
Binoculars are primarily used hand-held – or mounted on a tripod.
Rifle scopes are also a popular form factor for thermal vision.
This is a no-brainer for using this tech for hunting nocturnal nuisance animals.
IR Cameras are also available – these are lenses or other gear that let you take IR images.
These are used for hotspot detection in electronic equipment, and many other purposes.
Thermal Imaging for Surveillance – In Summary
Thermal vision is advanced technology that you can use to see in total darkness or in almost any other conditions.
It has become quite small, durable, and affordable (relatively speaking).
Check it out today and see what you can do with thermal imaging gear.
Some photos are property of the manufacturer, and provided by the manufacturer. | <urn:uuid:423c4949-5e24-4a9f-8109-6ae3276e8ec5> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://covertblueprint.com/thermal-imaging-for-surveillance/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370518767.60/warc/CC-MAIN-20200403220847-20200404010847-00193.warc.gz | en | 0.919499 | 1,138 | 2.828125 | 3 |
In this section the electoral divisions are supposed to provide a mechanism to provide equal representation by population.
A previous Chief Elections officer said that he did not put it to the legislature because he already knew, that the party in power would not pass the necessary legislation to bring the electoral divisions in line with the requirements of the Constitution.
One does not have to wonder why too long? The current electoral divisions give the Belize District and the capital of this district, Belize City an inordinate amount of representation in the British monarchist sytem we use. This town is also the center of a service economy, not productive and carries a huge tax burden from the revenues of the nation as a whole. If fact, one could say, that most of the national debt is spent on just this one town. In the old days, this town was the old capital. It had a mentality of Chicle and Logwood exploitation of the interior districts of Belize. Indeed, the culture and social milieu of this town, still think culturally they represent the nation. The town is also full of ne'er do wells, that cannot make a decent living in the service sector and lack the business and management abilities to move to the more rural agricultural districts and make a living there. These most often see the political office of elected representative as a cash cow and a steady salary for at least five years, if they should happen to win. The keys to the treasury are hotly contested in this port town.
The facts are, that of the 28 electoral divisions throughout the nation of Belize, 16 of them represent 70% more eligible voters than the 13 electoral divisions in the port town of Belize City.
They say Absolute Power corrupts absolutely. This can be seen in practice by the cliques that commandeer the electoral divisions in the port town, ignoring the Belize Constitution section 90, which if followed would give the port town lesser representatives and the rural five other districts more representation in the national legislature. As it should be. One does not even have to cry political reform. One just simply has to comply with the current Belize Constitution. But both major parties have been in power for five year terms and have failed to correct these discrepancies. When one considers, that the British monarchist centralized system of parliamentry parties is a spoils exploitation system for the benefit of a few in the political ruling class, one can see why both the PUP and the UDP members led by their party leaders have not only ignored the Belize Constitution, but criminally and flagrantly violated it with the continuance of an illegal representation practice that favors this old capital and all the ne'er do wells, that cannot succeed in business otherwise. This perpetuated criminal mafia mind set is a result of the practice of power corrupting. The current political party setup in the way the country is run, by a party and a strong man elected dictator leader gives one port town, a gang of members who enter the system of British political organization, with the intent of spoils and exploitation, the right to use the whole nation as their personal fiefdom.
What chance does political reform recommendations have for the Constitution, when the current Constitution is not obeyed either, by both political parties. Democracy is a mockery in Belize. It is more than electing a port town Belize City gang to make a Cabinet, pass their laws and rules with a rubber stamp legislature. What solutions do you have to wrest the control of the nation from this port town crowd in one district and distribute power more equitably in a democracy, throughout the nation? How can such solutions be implemented, when the political parties perpetuate violations of the Constitution to serve the ends of individual ambitions of these port town residents? How does the nation put power where it belongs? Shared equitably with all six districts? | <urn:uuid:a65efeab-02b2-4a87-9706-b5f9a57e4f5b> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | https://ambergriscaye.com/BzLibrary/trust37.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806979.99/warc/CC-MAIN-20171123214752-20171123234752-00019.warc.gz | en | 0.960216 | 772 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Saturday, December 27, 2008
History in the News
Michael Barton of The Dispersal of Darwin got a nice write-up in The Billings Gazette for the work he did at Yellowstone National Park's Heritage and Research Center a while back when he was working as an intern there.
Barton found that use of religious language in descriptions of the park was common during the Romantic movement, a reaction to the 18th century's Enlightenment that stressed science and objectivity. Romanticism was about emotions and imagination. It was a period that produced such American literary giants as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman and Edgar Allen Poe. But it also carried over to the writings of travelers to Yellowstone and is found in newspaper accounts, journal entries and letters sent to family and friends. Barton catalogued the references in more than 50 documents - everything from short journal reminiscences to published books and U.S. Geological Survey writings.
There's no mistaking the references, especially when they were highlighted. Following an 1871 trip to Yellowstone Lake, journalist Calvin Clawson wrote: "We could not help feeling that we were lifted up BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL, for while the seething, sulphurous lakes were on each side and far beneath us, the placid sky hung in grandest beauty above us." ...
Barton said he saw scientists in the 1870s steer away from Romanticism and be more descriptive about what they saw, rather than describing sites in emotional terms.
"They started to write more about the height of a geyser, the times of eruptions rather than the raw emotional scenes," he said.
Perhaps the best part of the research, Barton said, was having access to the park's extensive archive collection in its newly built facility, to view the original watercolors of artist Thomas Moran stored there and to travel to some of the places he'd read about.
Via Evolving Complexity | <urn:uuid:b15c139a-16a8-467f-8300-d881f0c4f6cc> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://dododreams.blogspot.com/2008/12/history-in-news.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886120573.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20170823132736-20170823152736-00317.warc.gz | en | 0.968384 | 392 | 3.078125 | 3 |
Memory cards are used with lots of digital products, including cameras, camcorders and many mobile phones, to store images and other data.
- The higher the capacity of the card (measured in gigabytes or GB), the more you can store on the card.
- e.g. if you have a 12MP camera, a 4GB card would store around 1000 high quality photos, but an 8GB card would hold around 2000.
- Read and write speeds show how fast the card is- the higher the number, the faster it will operate.
- High speed is essential with camcorder use in particular.
- Most cameras work with SDHC cards, and have only extremely limited built-in memory.
- If you buy a camera from Argos that uses other format memory cards, these are detailed in the description.
- Camcorders generally use SDHC also, and many have inbuilt storage as well.
- Some HDD models need and use no memory cards at all. Most mobiles use microSD/microSDHC cards with smartphones needing the most storage as a general rule.
- Mobile phones can have good inbuilt storage capacity: see the description for full details.
- Memory card adaptors enable MicroSD/SDHC cards to be used as normal sized SD/SDHC cards.
- One card can then fit a camera and a mobile phone.
- Card readers are available to transfer data from any of these cards to your PC or laptop.
- WiFi or Bluetooth might also be available dependent on the device in question.
Memory card formats explained
There are different memory card formats shown as follows:
||Smaller version of SD
||Smaller version of SDHC
||Memory Stick Pro Duo- proprietary to Sony.
||Secure Digital High Capacity
||Extreme Digital- proprietary to Olympus & Fujifilm | <urn:uuid:4a8b0f48-5733-40a5-821a-5d9e5f2d2dea> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://www.argos.co.uk/static/BuyingGuide/bgTrail/memory_cards_00260.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1409535925433.20/warc/CC-MAIN-20140901014525-00190-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.880355 | 384 | 3.1875 | 3 |
WASHINGTON — Clarifying a much-anticipated new benefit in the new health-care law, the Obama administration on Wednesday issued rules outlining how millions of consumers will soon be able get many preventive medical services at no out-of-pocket cost.
Republicans and Democrats both have endorsed expanded preventive care such as cancer screening, and it is viewed as key to catching diseases early and ultimately controlling costs.
Here is how the new benefit will work:
What does it mean that the services will be free?
New insurance plans will be prohibited from charging consumers a co-pay or deductible for services getting the top recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
These plans will also have to cover immunizations recommended for children and adults by an advisory committee of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Insurers could still charge consumers for services delivered out of network and for treating conditions identified by screenings.
In some cases consumers could also be charged if a preventive service is not billed separately from another service, such as an office visit.
Which services would be covered?
The benefits vary depending on consumers' age, sex and whether they are at higher risk for a medical condition.
The services covered include: colorectal cancer screening for adults over 50; hepatitis B screening and tobacco counseling for pregnant women; depression screening for adults and adolescents; HIV screening for adults at high risk; and obesity screening and counseling for adults and children.
Children would qualify for more than two dozen services, including vaccinations for influenza, diphtheria and tetanus; and screenings for hearing, vision impairment and autism.
A list of many of the services covered, as well as background about the benefits is available at http://www.healthcare.gov/law/about/provisions/services/index.html
What about mammograms?
In a controversial move last year, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended that women between 40 and 50 do not need regular mammograms.
But lawmakers inserted a provision in the new law specifying that women older than 40 will still be able to get a mammogram screening every year or two at no cost.
The administration is also working with an outside panel of experts to develop a series of other preventive services for women that may be covered in the future.
Will everyone qualify for this new benefit?
No. Only people in new insurance plans beginning after Sept. 23 or in existing plans that change substantially will be able to get the discounted preventive services.
The health-care law exempts so-called grandfathered plans offered by employers that have not substantially changed since the legislation was signed in March.
To maintain grandfathered status, employers cannot substantially raise co-pays, deductibles and other employee contributions or lower their contribution to their employees' premiums by more than 5 percentage points.
How much difference will this make?
That's difficult to say. Many experts and consumer groups are hopeful it will ultimately have a huge impact.
Tens of millions of Americans still do not get basic screenings for diseases such as colorectal and cervical cancer. Numerous studies have suggested that early detection of diseases as well as interventions to address bad habits such as smoking and overeating can improve health and productivity.
But it is still unclear how many people will take advantage of the less expensive services, some of which, such as dietary counseling for obese Americans, may not be readily available in some parts of the country.
Will the added benefits drive up premiums?
They could. The administration estimated that the new benefits may push up premiums by 1.5 percent on average.
But officials at the Department of Health and Human Services noted that any premium increases may be offset as millions of Americans no longer pay out-of-pocket co-pays and deductibles. | <urn:uuid:b71c7e50-bc0b-4b3f-b93e-d1fd2a006daa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2010-07-14/business/fl-health-care-qa-20100714_1_preventive-services-task-force-cancer-screening-regular-mammograms | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705502703/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115822-00089-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96082 | 776 | 2.53125 | 3 |
Ivy is a plant that attracts strong opinions, especially when arborists are asked to consider its impact on trees and their ecology. Andrew Cowan considers some of the common arguments for and against ivy, while also looking at the influence of climate change on the natural balance of arboreal ecosystems.
When I first tackled this issue it was with the objective of expressing some form of balance to the frequent heated discussions and arguments about whether ivy should be considered good or bad and subsequently something to be removed from trees. To some, it is a pernicious weed that smothers the natural form of trees and on which constant war must be waged. To others, it is an integral part of the arboreal ecosystem offering an essential wildlife habitat, providing shelter and food for a diverse range of different organisms.
In reality, it will all depend on where and under what circumstances the tree is growing. Context is the key word here, and what might be fine in the middle of woodland may not be so desirable in formal parkland or a residential front garden. However, there are numerous variations and considerations needs to be given to such things as tree species, age, maturity and vigour, but ultimately it is the management objectives associated with the trees location that should have the most influence on the decision.
Meanwhile, there is now more to think about, because with the climate progressively changing and creating longer growing seasons, especially for evergreen plants, the ‘natural’ balance of plant growth is changing too.
There is an increasing argument that ivy may be gaining advantages from our warming climate that is extending its growing season and enhances its growth rate to the extent that it can actively compete with even healthy trees. This is an issue that requires serious consideration because it could affect the way we manage the balance between the longevity of the tree and the value of wildlife habitat created by the ivy.
Ivy is very well adapted to living in woodland, which represents its natural habitat. The growth characteristics of ivy enable it to survive where light levels are low, on the ground and up trunks
of trees whose dense foliage shade the woodland floor. Ivy’s attributes of shade tolerance and evergreen foliage have proved invaluable in our gardens, where it has been used for attractive evergreen coverings for north facing walls and to provide ground cover in dark corners. Although the common ivy Hedera helix appears the most frequent, a variety of cultivars and other species are available for horticultural use.
Hedera helix, is the only evergreen climbing shrub that is native British. It has a habit known as dimorphism, whereby two forms occur within the same plant. The juvenile growth, with its characteristic lobed ‘ivy shaped’ leaves, is adapted to living in low light conditions and is found creeping along the ground or climbing up walls and tree; while as the plant matures, it can throw out bushy branches and flowering shoots with very different, elliptical leaves (lanceilate to ovate). This adult form will only develop where the light conditions allow, and it is mostly found on the climbing section of the plant, only rarely on the ground.
The mature oak tree, pictured here, is in decline and the ivy is beginning to smother it. This process is a natural part of the woodland ecology, but with the tree adjacent to a public path there are clearly some concerns with regard to health and safety. However, this prominent location also makes the tree of particular value for bats that could make regular use of the dense ivy for roosting while foraging along the ride and woodland edge. Meanwhile the tree would live for longer, if it did not have to compete with the ivy, and it could undergo the process of retrenchment to a lower canopy, although the removal of the ivy to prioritise tree survival will incur considerable cost and effort while potentially inflicting the tree to thermal exposure that could result in extensive bark death.
Ivy has a very bad reputation and it is commonly thought that it kills trees. Contrary to popular belief, ivy is not parasitic and does not directly affect the health of the trees it climbs. Unlike true parasitic plants, (such as mistletoe, whose roots tap directly into the resources of the host plant) ivy has its feeding roots anchored in the ground and simply uses the tree as a support to get to where it wants to go.
The masses of tiny, hair-like roots sprouting from the under surface of the stems, are designed to provide support and allow the plant to climb. Although these roots provide almost immovable adhesion to the rough surfaces of tree trunks and walls, they are not used for feeding, and at worst only penetrate the outermost layer of bark on host trees.
It is primarily in terms of competition for natural resources that ivy affects the health of trees, particularly where light is concerned. If ivy has become established on a tree, it is more likely to be a sign of stress than a cause of it. A heavy infestation of ivy, particularly in the upper crown, is usually an indication that the tree is in a natural state of decline; most healthy crowns will let insufficient light through for the ivy to grow vigorously.
Ash, Fraxinus excelsior, is an exception as the crown tends to be thin and open. This allows major infestations to occur, thereby restricting photosynthesis, but it is still considered unlikely that the life of a healthy tree will be shortened. In the case of a diseased or dying tree, where its growth rate and vigour may be slow or in decline, the ivy’s more vigorous growth allow it to smother the tree. The bushy adult growth will then have a tendency to make the tree top heavy, making it more likely to fall, particularly during adverse weather conditions.
On ancient trees the presence of a dense ivy coverage over the trunk and main branches can reduce the ability of the tree to generate a lower crown canopy during retrenchment, so it could be important to control ivy growth on such trees. However, it is also important to consider thermal impact on the tree when dense ivy growth is removed, because a sudden exposure to the heat of increased sunlight on the bark can kill it and be counterproductive to the original objective of ivy removal.
One of the most important aspects when contemplating the removal of ivy, from a mature tree, is its enormous wildlife value. The dense mass of foliage and intertwining stems around the trunks of trees, provide shelter for birds to build their nests, and dark nooks and crannies where bats can roost through the day. In Autumn, ivy flowers are an important source of pollen and nectar for wasps, butterflies, bees and a host of fly species. Over winter, ivy protects woodland soils from full snow cover and frost. This enables ground foraging birds such as blackbirds, robins, dunnocks and thrushes to continue feeding, while a sheltered habitat is also provided for small mammals and insects.
The berries, which ripen in March / April, have a high fat content and, although poisonous in large quantities, they provide both native and migrant birds with an invaluable early energy resource. Woodpigeons, starlings, resident and migrant thrushes and newly arrived summer migrants such as blackcaps feed on them. Some species of invertebrate are known to feed on the foliage of ivy, and several species of beetle bore the mature stems, while spiders spin their webs to catch others that fly in to shelter.
It should rarely be considered necessary or appropriate to remove ivy from trees within a woodland setting, where it is an integral part of the native arboreal ecosystem. On the other hand, in parks and gardens where conditions have allowed it to grow unchecked, it can become quite a problem; choking the crowns of ornamental trees, swamping less vigorous shrubs and smothering walls and rockeries.
Although rarely a problem to the tree, a dense covering of ivy over the trunk and throughout the crown of a mature specimen can inhibit essential safety checks, by limiting a visual inspection of the trunk and main branches. Where mature trees are growing in residential gardens often close to dwellings or public open space, it is important to be able to complete regular hazard assessments and monitor the decay of old wounds. In such circumstances it may be necessary to remove the ivy.
From a practical viewpoint, the most effective way of removing ivy is to cut it near to the base of the tree. When doing this, it is necessary to remove a section of all the stems around the entire circumference of the tree’s trunk. Once cut from its roots the ivy growth, up the trunk and branches, can be left to die on the tree, and when sufficiently dry and brittle it can be removed.
The best time to consider this work is over the winter when the host tree is likely to be bare of leaves and visibility while completing the task is much improved. However, it is important to be aware that dense ivy is frequently used by bats for roosting. To avoid unnecessary disturbance of hibernating bats it is best to cut the stems of ivy in the late summer or autumn, so the foliage dies before the winter months. The removal of ivy during the summer should be avoided where possible, because of its likely use by nesting birds and roosting bats.
It is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), to intentionally damage or destroy a wild bird’s nest, whether in use or under construction. The use of the ivy by bats for shelter and roosting must also be considered. A bats roost is protected both under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), and The Conservation (Natural Habitats &c.) Regulations 1994 (as amended), which make it an offence to damage or destroy a breeding site or resting place of any bat, and it does not require the offence to be intentional or deliberate. Furthermore, under an amendment made within the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, it became an offence to recklessly damage or destroy a bat roost, and it could be reckless not to consider possible use of ivy for roosting.
However, considering the habitat implications of removing ivy from individual trees or felling a tree with ivy on it, there can be reasonable argument to support decision because although it offers good roosting and nesting opportunities, they are frequently commonly found in other trees locally. As such the loss of roosting opportunities in one or two ivy covered trees in an area with a number of other similar trees is not likely to have a negative impact on the conservation status of the local bat population.
To summarise the decision process to remove or manage the growth of ivy up trees is a matter of considering the context in which the tree is growing and the management priorities associated with the surrounding area. Personal prejudices should be avoided because they hinder informed and balanced decisions. | <urn:uuid:875b5b13-05fc-472a-9bf0-d0d885e1f17c> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | https://arbtalk.co.uk/articles.html/articles/hedera-helix-r28/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806842.71/warc/CC-MAIN-20171123142513-20171123162513-00255.warc.gz | en | 0.953369 | 2,268 | 3.53125 | 4 |
The current federal election is being fought against a backdrop of deepening inequality and the social problems that accompany it. Promises to “make things better” will no doubt be uttered throughout the campaign.
As we mark another labour day, it is important to remain discerning of the policies on offer.
Our recent research suggests that many public policies that have been sold to Canadians as helping them boost their paycheques may be making things worse. On this day when we reflect on the hard won gains of workers and trade unions, let’s consider some prominent public policies that have contributed to the stagnation of real wages and, consequently, deepening inequality.
To understand the troubling trends in income inequality, looking at the way the national economic pie has been distributed is instructive. Figure 1 shows you what has happened to paycheques over recent decades. As labour’s share of GDP declines over time, workers have been getting a smaller slice of the national economic pie.
The trend is unmistakable: the decline in the labour share of GDP means that money that used to flow to paycheques is now going elsewhere.
If workers are losing, then who is gaining?
Figure 2 shows that the share of profits for employers has grown. Employers are getting a bigger slice of the economic pie, while workers are taking home less.
These two graphs tell a troubling story. Unlike the relatively more equitable income distribution of the 1970s, we now have an economy that skews income away from workers and towards employers. This shift in income distribution evident in these graphs provides a snapshot of an important dimension of inequality in Canada.
What is causing this shift in income distribution in the first place?
While there are a mix of factors, a key one is the role that stagnating real wages have played in driving this fall in workers' share of the economic pie. To really make a difference in inequality, we have to address what is causing the failure of paycheques to grow as our economy becomes more productive.
Our research suggests that some of the government policies that were sold to Canadians as those that would boost their wages may in fact have contributed to wage stagnation and growing income inequality.
For decades now, the federal government has been following policies that were supposed to boost productivity. Don Drummond, a Canadian productivity guru, has a nice run-down of these sorts of policies. This productivity agenda includes international trade and investment agreements, lower business taxes, deregulation, and the restructuring of Employment Insurance. These and many other policy initiatives were intended to maintain low and stable inflation, reduce government deficits and debt, and increase what is euphemistically referred to as “labour market flexibility”.
Canadians were told that what was good for productivity would be good for workers. But what about is boosting productivity supposed to be so good for workers?
Most economists assume that growing productivity will be translated into rising paycheques. This is often asserted as a truism: “Ask any economist and he or she will tell you that faster productivity growth leads to higher real wages…” . But there is no necessity that policies that raise productivity will lead to higher real wages.
As Figure 3 shows, while productivity has been growing in Canada since 1961, real wages have fallen behind .
Figure 3 is really a reflection of figures one and two: as the lines in figure three diverge, more of Canada’s income is allocated to profits for employers and away from wages. The cumulative impact of this trend means that, by 2011, average labour income per hour including benefits (expressed in 2011 dollars) was $32.20, while it would have been $36.97 had it followed average productivity growth. In other words, workers are not reaping their proportional share of productivity gains.
If pay followed productivity, workers would have earned an additional $14.81 per cent per hour; instead the $4.77 differential went to employers. An extra $4.77 per hour for every worker across the whole economy is significant amount of money.
In fact, if pay had matched productivity, full-time workers would taken home approximately $9,540 more on average in their annual paycheques.
Behind the divergence in pay and productivity growth:
Why is it that Canadian workers are not getting the fruits of that growing productivity?
Our research looks at the possibility that the very policies that governments said would help our paycheques by boosting productivity have undermined workers’ ability to secure the benefits of productivity growth.
To test this hypothesis, we conducted an econometric analysis for all Canadian provinces between 1981 and 2010. We evaluated several policies that have been prominent in the “productivity” agenda outlined above. If these policies were helpful to workers’ paycheques, we would expect to see that the gains from productivity growth were being passed along as rising real wages. Instead these policies are correlated with an increased divergence between pay and productivity growth.
Why might these productivity policies be undermining workers’ paycheques? Our analysis suggests that the government policies promoted in the name of the productivity agenda could have hurt workers’ bargaining power, making it harder for workers to get a fair share of growing productivity.
Deliberate government policies can have important impacts on workers’ bargaining power. For example: cutbacks to EI make the prospect of a potential job loss more punitive. The more fearful workers are of the consequences of job loss, the more likely they are to settle for less rather than risk the possibility that they may lose the jobs they have. NAFTA, made it easier for firms to relocate abroad (and to threaten to move if workers fought for a better wage deal), limiting worker’s ability to bargain for higher wages.
Many polices that fall under the “labour flexibility” heading that have constrained union membership, have made it more difficult for workers to bargain collectively, thereby reducing their bargaining power. Low minimum wages also made workers more vulnerable. Since the minimum wage is often taken as a reference point in wage negotiations, lowering it would decrease overall wage prospects for many lower-wage workers. And workers who are worried about potential unemployment realize that finding another job may mean a minimum wage job.
Finally, high unemployment rates of recent decades indirectly point to public policy. Government obsessions with keeping inflation low resulted in the relatively high unemployment rates of the 1980s and 1990s. And when unemployment is high, worker bargaining power is reduced.
So what’s the upshot of all this?
While politicians told Canadians that pro-productivity policies would be good for our paycheques, there is reason to believe just the opposite. These policies not only failed to produce the stellar productivity rates that their advocates hoped, they also may have inhibited worker’s ability to gain from productivity growth.
As Canadian paycheques failed to keep up, the distribution of income in Canada swung to the disadvantage of workers.
So this election season, any party that really cares about inequality has got to look at paycheques. While governments can do lots of things to lessen inequality, it is an uphill battle to try to fix if wages are falling behind.
On this labour day, let’s take seriously that policies that help workers get a better deal will set the stage for a meaningful reduction in inequality in Canada.
Ellen Russell is Assistant Professor at Wilfrid Laurier University. Mathieu Dufour is a professor at the Département des sciences sociales Université du Québec en Outaouais. | <urn:uuid:b3d8f058-1685-4801-9407-25b7fd06ef79> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://www.broadbentinstitute.ca/inequality_wages_bargaining_power | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370500426.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20200331084941-20200331114941-00486.warc.gz | en | 0.967769 | 1,541 | 2.59375 | 3 |
This month marks the 40th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, signed in 1964 by Lyndon B. Johnson. Traditionally bipartisan, wilderness designation has been advocated by presidents as ideologically opposite as Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter, by hunters and animal welfare activists, by hikers and horseback riders. But some conservationists worry that recent partisan divides and election battles in Washington state are jeopardizing a piece of legislation that would officially designate 106,000 acres of Washington's remaining wild lands.
Wilderness is unruly, uncultivated; it's home to beasts and abides only by the laws of nature. So it may seem ironic that wilderness in America must be designated through state and federal acts, monitored by official agencies and specified down to particular acres on maps.
Forty years ago, America welcomed the Wilderness Act, a monumental step in preserving America's remaining wild lands. Twenty years ago last April, Washington state passed the Washington Wilderness Act, and just last weekend a variety of wilderness-loving locals teamed up with the Colville National Forest Service (CNF) to celebrate these anniversaries in the Salmo-Priest Wilderness, the lone piece of official wilderness in the 1.1-million-acre CNF.
"It was a real outpouring of everyone working hard together for something they believe in," says Cindy Reichelt, public affairs officer for the CNF. "All the groups came together surrounding that wilderness ethic."
Along with Forest Service employees, the Backcountry Horsemen from both the Inland Empire and Northeastern Washington chapters came, as did the Pacific Northwest Trails Association, the Spokane Mountaineers and the Kettle Range Conservation Group (which recently joined forces with the larger Northwest Ecosystem Alliance). The teams report that the anniversary celebration was a success; in just two days, they installed bear-proof storage containers for campers, posted vertical steel posts for horses and steel fire rings for campfires, pulled noxious weeds, took out a rotting section of trailhead and removed dead tree snags that pose fire threats. Debbie Wilkins, a recreation staff member for the Newport and Sullivan Ranger District, coordinated the wilderness project.
"After meeting, they found they weren't as far apart philosophically as they thought," she says, explaining that during a series of public meetings to create a strategic plan for recreational wilderness users, the group decided to work together on restoration.
It's not uncommon for wilderness advocates from different backgrounds and with different interests to work together. As opposed to other environmental issues, the preservation of wilderness has regularly garnered bipartisan support and collaboration among politicians and outdoorsmen. Jimmy Carter, a conservative Democrat, was nevertheless decidedly liberal in terms of wildlife preservation; he holds the record among presidents for designating the most wilderness acreage. His successor Ronald Reagan, one of the most conservative presidents in history, holds the record for signing the most wilderness bills while in office.
"Wilderness [areas] are open for horse riding, backpacking, berry and mushroom picking and more," says Derrick Knowles, outreach and volunteer coordinator for the Northwest Ecosystem Alliance, which was once the Kettle Range Conservation Group.
"People can hunt, fish and hike, but it's closed off to ATVs, mountain bikes, logging, mining, chainsaws - it keeps [the land] in a primitive, wild state." Knowles says. Though about 70 percent of Americans say they support federally designated wilderness areas, there's still heavy opposition from the timber industry, motorized recreation associations and other groups that support resource development.
"There's still a culture of seeing these lands as resource-based, and it's hard to change," Knowles explains.
Despite the fact that it's the 40th anniversary of the federal Wilderness Act, and it's just after the 20th anniversary of Washington's Wilderness Act, politicians can't seem to emulate the spirit of collaboration and bipartisanship that wilderness traditionally has inspired. Case in point: The Wild Sky Bill. Authored by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), who is currently running for reelection, and by Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA), the Wild Sky Bill would designate 106,000 acres of wild land in eastern Snohomish County as federally protected wilderness. The bill passed in the Senate - twice unanimously -- but is held up in the House Resources Committee by committee chair Richard Pembo (R-CA), who isn't fond of Murray or her wilderness bill.
"Pembo set rigid guidelines for getting the bill passed," says Knowles, explaining that part of what made the Wild Sky Bill so unique was that it included lower-elevation acreage, which hosts old growth trees, salmon runs and is the center for recreational use. Many existing wilderness areas are in higher elevations, where there are no roads or clear cuts and the wildlife is undisturbed. Enter 5th District Rep. George Nethercutt, who is running against Patty Murray for the U.S. Senate and who chose not to support the Wild Sky Bill when it was first introduced.
"Nethercutt came in to green his image for West Side voters and said he wanted to get the Wild Sky Bill passed," Knowles says. In addition to catering to voters west of the Cascades, Nethercutt's sudden interest in environmental legislation would work in his favor if he could say Murray wasn't able to pass her own bill and he stepped in and got it done. But after working with Larsen on a new version of Wild Sky, which Pembo also rejected, Nethercutt struck out on his own and proposed an all-new Wild Sky Bill. But his new bill excluded about 13,000 acres of the originally proposed wilderness area -- all of it in the significant lower elevations.
"Nethercutt had to bow to Pembo," Knowles says.
April Isenhower, Nethercutt's press secretary, argues that the 13,000 acres in question will gain protections, just not actual wilderness designation. "While not wilderness, [the new bill would] prohibit mining, commercial logging and impose strict limits to ensure water quality is enhanced and maintained," she says. "Congressman Nethercutt believes and continues to believe, that with Pembo leading the [House Resources] Committee, if he didn't take action now it was unlikely anything would happen in the next four yeas. It was too late to wait for protection."
The House was scheduled to vote on Nethercutt's version of the bill on Wednesday, Sept. 22. At press time, results were not available.
But Nethercutt's efforts to ride to the rescue may be backfiring: Advocates of the original Wild Sky Bill are furious over the changes he made. Many say that a congressman from California shouldn't be making decisions about wilderness designation in Washington. In addition to criticism from environmental groups, wilderness advocates and politicians who voted for the original bill, Nethercutt has endured harsh rebukes from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, The Everett Herald and Spokesman-Review columnist Rich Landers, to name a few. If Nethercutt wanted to look green for voters, perhaps he should have used less red ink on the Wild Sky Bill -- but, then again, he wouldn't have gotten it past Pembo.
Knowles, who was a participant in last weekend's collaborative wilderness restoration in the Salmo-Priest area, says wilderness must be designated through bipartisan cooperation, as it always has been.
"This is a family issue, a community issue," he says. "It's not some radical environmental movement. It's a mainstream thing." | <urn:uuid:0426a295-2fdf-4f98-80c2-c7dee6eb0109> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | https://m.inlander.com/spokane/politics-in-the-air/Content?oid=2127765 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934806586.6/warc/CC-MAIN-20171122122605-20171122142605-00798.warc.gz | en | 0.958584 | 1,559 | 2.625 | 3 |
Today, many educators argue that high standards in education curriculum improve the overall quality of education. Thus, more and more schools are looking for effective ways to develop curriculum based on high standards. The process of developing standards should provide opportunities for improvements and revision on a regular basis. (A Flexible curriculum) The tasks for developing standards in curriculum are to develop curriculum framework based on standards reform; to select proper curriculum-planning model, to build capacity in education system; and to evaluate and implement standards in the classroom.
Firstly, developing curriculum framework requires detailed analysis of national and state standards that are available for understanding the key elements of curriculum framework. Specific standards to be considered are content, student performance and benchmarks. Teachers are responsible for learning the characteristics of successful school, their student learning and teaching strategies. Secondly, selecting proper curriculum-planning model is the foundation of further development of curriculum standards.
The sub-tasks are to encourage student and community participation in standards development process and to pay attention to controlling student learning process. (Pattison & Berkas, 2000) Thirdly, building capacity means that teachers are responsible for increasing the capability the produce reform and for providing opportunities for staff development. Curriculum committee should develop a plan that will comprise school staff, administrators, students, parents and community members.
A culture of accountability should be created with the emphasis on such learning community that will promote high student outcomes and achievements. Building capacity is not limited to teachers and administrators. Finally, the task of evaluating, reflecting and implementing standards suggests that teachers are responsible for identifying the effects of standards on student learning and determining the appropriateness of the standards. (Pattison & Berkas, 2000) | <urn:uuid:e1216671-c5bb-473a-8fbb-101b191b8845> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://woodstock-online.com/tasks-developing-standards-curriculum/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370497301.29/warc/CC-MAIN-20200330181842-20200330211842-00521.warc.gz | en | 0.937152 | 343 | 3.84375 | 4 |
This amazing sequence of images, taken by Rupert Kirkwood aboard his kayak off Mousehole yesterday shows the incredible lengths some birds will go to to avoid certain death! Rupert explains:
“Extraordinary peregrine attack witnessed from my kayak two miles off the coast near mousehole. Peregrine stooped at Common Sandpiper that took evasive action and crash-dived into the sea . The peregrine then tried to retrieve its prey from the surface, which dived as it approached! The peregrine dipped its feet under the water to try to catch the submerged sandpiper.
After a couple more circuits and attempts to catch its prey it flew off. I paddled up to the swimming sandpiper assuming it was injured but when my kayak was a few feet away it flew off apparently unharmed! Photos show peregrine dipping feet into water, and the sandpiper’s head is just visible as a tiny dot below peregrine in photo 4″ | <urn:uuid:fa5a01ad-ec39-4c70-a2c2-8bc8e35bd46d> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | http://www.cornwall-birding.co.uk/articles/unusual-survival-behaviour-by-common-sandpiper/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549424079.84/warc/CC-MAIN-20170722142728-20170722162728-00403.warc.gz | en | 0.968002 | 211 | 2.75 | 3 |
“Even if all the nations of the world agree to create large marine protected areas in the high seas, how are you going to enforce this?” says Liu. “The policy can’t just stay on paper, you need to have practical ways to make sure it’s going to work.”
In lieu of expanding expensive Coast Guard units, most countries will need to rely on satellite data and monitoring tools from organizations like Global Fishing Watch. But while these programs provide a comprehensive look at maritime traffic, they rely heavily on GPS data from these vessels—those ship identification (AIS) numbers mentioned above. Because of this, not many programs are able to track illegal ships that have “gone dark” by turning off their GPS transponders.
Hope to improve these systems, however, may lie in automation.
At WHOI, Liu and a team of engineers and researchers passionate about mitigating illegal fishing are looking into testing the use of artificial intelligence to fill in the criminal activity gaps that existing vessel monitoring systems can’t. By feeding a computer algorithm with databases of illegal fishing vessel images and descriptions, they hope to teach it to cite illegal vessels through high-resolution satellite feeds in real time.
If it works, she says, they will be able to create a program that can codify the characteristics of illegal vessels, possibly alerting local coast guard patrols with SMS alerts on their phones in the not-too-distant future. To find hope that such a project could work, she adds, you need look any further than the progress of marine mammal tracking tools.
“There are examples of good machine learning everywhere that use satellite images to detect whales in the ocean, which are much smaller than the vessels we’re trying to detect,” says Liu. “I think that’s promising for the work we’re doing.
“I think if we can make this happen, it’s going to change the world.”
The AI-based project referenced in this piece, “Seeing the Unseen: Tools for tracking illegal vessels at sea,” is currently led by a team of private investigators at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, including Yaqin Liu (Assistant Scientist, Marine Policy Center), Tom W. Bell III (Assistant Scientist, Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering), Daniel Zitterbart (Associate Scientist, Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering), Lee Freitag (Principal Engineer, Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering), Austin Greene (Postdoctoral Investigator, Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry), and Alessandro Bocconcelli (Emeritus Research Scholar, Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering). | <urn:uuid:b4aad4f0-ec98-4d7c-bc16-3902f01a5dc1> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://oceannewshubb.com/2023/08/10/as-illegal-fishing-rages-on-is-there-any-hope-on-the-horizon/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510368.33/warc/CC-MAIN-20230928063033-20230928093033-00677.warc.gz | en | 0.919897 | 548 | 2.953125 | 3 |
Proiectul Inclusive Digital Environments to Enable High-Quality Education for Disadvantaged and Disabled Learners addresses core challenges associated with inclusive and accessible education and envisions technology-enriched interventions that target the specifics of disadvantaged and disabled learners, and that are directly enabled by teacher and stakeholder training initiatives to equip them with knowledge and skills.
News & Status
INCLUDEME Kick of Meeting
The INCLUDEME project kick off meeting was organised online by Advanced Technology System, the coordinator of the project. The online meeting took place via Skype from 15:00 (CET) to 16:30 (CET). Seventeen attendees representing the seven partners of the project from six different countries joined the meeting to define a shared vision for the project for the next three years...
The INCLUDEME project Newsletter...
The INCLUDEME project focus on implementing iclusive education practices across educational, economic, social, and cultural contexts...
The INCLUDEME consortium capitalises on the existing synergies between key R&D partners and industry partners...
What to find more about INCLUDEME project, then check out the presentation video and...
Individuals & Community
Inclusive education practices across
educational, economic, social, and cultural contexts.
Enable disabled and disadvantaged learners to improve the quality of their lives through the provision of customizable digital learning environments available in both formal and informal settings
Invest in the teaching staff skills to optimize the capacity ti effectively employofsupporting technologies that foster inclusive education.
Support communities to be more inclusive, by increasing awareness and equipping the relevant stakeholders with the knowledge, methodologies and tools needed to address social exclusion and equality issues.
Create synergies among local and European communities that drive awareness, change of perceptions,leading to immediate actions and long-term strategies that support inclusive education. | <urn:uuid:33aa6e11-47da-4789-8606-abc3c74df57b> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://includeme-project.eu/ro/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296945218.30/warc/CC-MAIN-20230323225049-20230324015049-00389.warc.gz | en | 0.87693 | 404 | 2.609375 | 3 |
1. Corolla ca. 3.3–4.5 cm long; upper leaves (if not all) broadly ovate, ± obtuse to rounded at apex and subcordate-clasping at base, strongly glaucous.
1. Corolla not over 3 cm long; leaves narrower, very acute, often not glaucous.
2. Throat of corolla inflated, distinctly differentiated from the narrower tube; lower (3) lobes of corolla slightly longer than upper lobes; anthers usually at least sparsely bearded; stem glabrous below the inflorescence or rarely locally puberulent.
3. Anthers glabrous; calyx lobes linear-lanceolate.
3. Anthers with at least a few bristly hairs (rarely glabrous) on the back (near attachment of the filament); calyx lobes lanceolate-ovate.
2. Throat of corolla not sharply differentiated, only gradually expanded from the tube; lower lobes of corolla distinctly longer than the upper; anthers glabrous; stem ± uniformly puberulent to glandular-hairy from base to near the inflorescence.
4. Stem with numerous hairs 0.5–1 mm long (or even longer); lower lip humped, nearly closing throat of corolla; corolla (20–) 22–28 (–30) mm long, purple-lavender with whitish lips but not streaked with purple lines (nectar guides).
4. Stem with few or no hairs as long as 0.5 mm; lower lip not humped, the throat open; corolla (14–) 16–20 (–22) mm long, streaked with nectar guides (usually not visible on dry specimens).
5. Longest (lower) branches of inflorescence usually at least 2 cm long before first pedicels; cauline leaves puberulent on both surfaces (at least on main veins and margins); corolla white.
5. Longest branches of inflorescence less than 2 cm before first pedicels; cauline leaves glabrous; corolla pale violet. | <urn:uuid:04d34f94-004a-4487-a132-c2423afa8013> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://michiganflora.net/genus.aspx?id=Penstemon | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579251778168.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20200128091916-20200128121916-00032.warc.gz | en | 0.845137 | 453 | 2.75 | 3 |
An Introductory ESL Lesson Plan on Object Pronouns
English Learners must be introduced to object pronouns at an early stage in their learning. The reason for this is that object pronouns are a major building block of basic sentences. This lesson plan on object pronouns is perfect for introducing such an important concept to your students. Keep reading to find out more about how to teach this lesson.
When to use this lesson plan on object pronouns
This lesson is perfect to use with beginner students. It is designed for introducing object pronouns to beginner students. Additionally, it is great to use as a practice or review lesson. In any case, when using this lesson students should have an understanding of how to use subject pronouns.
What does this lesson include
This lesson includes a variety of activities that allow students to practice their current knowledge of subject pronouns. It also contains simple examples of sentences including object pronouns. As well, it has a slide to show the difference between object and subject pronouns. Finally, this lesson includes several pictures and exercises that correspond to help students understand and practice how to use object pronouns.
You can download this lesson plan on object pronouns here:
What will students do in this lesson?
This lesson plan on object pronouns is dynamic, entertaining and educational. Students will complete several exercises and activities that will help them retain new concepts and vocabulary. They will also work to match images and sentences. As well, students will be asked to fill in the blanks of sentences with the correct object pronoun. Lastly, students will work on forming sentences using the object pronouns provided. This final activity allows students to be creative but also supports retention.
How to teach this lesson on object pronouns
Before even introducing object pronouns to students, you must review the subject pronouns that they are already familiar with. Be sure to have students use these subject pronouns in sentences so that you can check their understanding of them. You can find the Off2Class lesson on subject pronouns here.
After reviewing subject pronouns you can start introducing students to sentences with the object pronouns me, you, him, her, it, us, you and them. I suggest referring to the images as a means to display the fact that object pronouns receive actions. It is also helpful to add arrows on the slides to further enforce this concept. I also recommend providing students with examples or demonstrations if they are having difficulty grasping the role of object pronouns. In any case, as a teacher, you should provide your students with feedback and encouragement.
By the end of the lesson, your student should be able to make sentences with object pronouns. If they are not able to do this I recommend having an honest discussion with your student(s) about what they find difficult about object pronouns.
But wait there’s more…
If you would like more information about how to teach this lesson be sure to download a free Off2Class account. When you do this you will gain access to useful teacher notes that help to guide lessons. Also, you will gain access to 150 free lesson downloads. In any case, be sure to check out our other free lessons here. We would love to know what you think of our lessons so leave a comment below. Happy teaching! | <urn:uuid:e2bee07c-d442-47d6-bbd9-5e4e00a4020d> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.off2class.com/lesson-plan-downloads/an-introductory-esl-lesson-plan-on-object-pronouns/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100762.64/warc/CC-MAIN-20231208144732-20231208174732-00795.warc.gz | en | 0.952996 | 650 | 4.375 | 4 |
From a New York Times piece today:
Recently, at Public School 253 in Brooklyn, Myra Wenger applied her new curriculum in a lesson on ancient Athens, asking her second graders why the city adopted Athena, not Poseidon, in naming itself. A pupil, Daniel Gornak, 8, answered, “Because Athena gave more uses than Poseidon did, and more healthy things for Athenians,” and Ms. Wenger lauded his methods in consulting his marble notebook for the facts.
“They love it,” Ms. Wenger said of her lesson plans. “They’re very engaged, more than last year.”
In another room, a group of first graders sat on a mat, eagerly raising their hands to explain similarities between farming in ancient Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt.
“They needed water,” one student, Rabiha Islam, 6, said.
“And, and, and,” she continued, searching for another answer, “they didn’t have, so they made canals.”
The school chose one of the country’s most popular Common Core curriculums, called Core Knowledge. It is based on the ideas of E. D. Hirsch Jr., whose 1987 book, “Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know,” argued that mastery of a common set of facts was critical to learning.
Beyond the testing difficulties, one of the criticisms of the Common Core, in New York and elsewhere, is that it can be too demanding for young grades. Diane Ravitch, an educational historian, has said that very little of what is taught to first graders about ancient civilizations will stick with them; Mr. Hirsch and other defenders of the Common Core say children in early grades need lessons in history, civics, science and literature to build vocabularies and thrive.
This captures the question that I get asked more often than any other during discussion around change: Where is the balance when it comes to what every child needs to know now and making sure kids become deep learners in the context of having access to abundant information, knowledge, tools, and teachers? And are we really saying that “what every American needs to know” has to be learned in school? At the same time as everyone else? If you asked a random selection of 100 adults who Poseidon and Athena were, how many could answer? 10? 20? And are those who can’t failures? And by the way, who decides what facts are worthy of “learning?”
Seems easy enough to test this hypothesis. Why don’t we do a large scale assessment on 30-year olds to see how many of them are Common Core or culturally literate and them correlate that to their “success” in life. (Defining success is a long conversation in an of itself.) My guess would be that “success” is much more based on dispositions than it is on content knowledge and the ability to have a conversation about Mesopotamia. | <urn:uuid:857e9be2-dabc-47bf-b10e-cda3745dec5b> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://willrichardson.com/how-common-is-the-common-core-really/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100583.13/warc/CC-MAIN-20231206031946-20231206061946-00851.warc.gz | en | 0.964916 | 638 | 2.734375 | 3 |
[ puh-loot-nt ]
/ pəˈlut nt /
something that pollutes.
any substance, as certain chemicals or waste products, that renders the air, soil, water, or other natural resource harmful or unsuitable for a specific purpose.
HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!
Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
OTHER WORDS FROM pollutantnon·pol·lu·tant, adjective, noun
Words nearby pollutant
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for pollutant
/ (pəˈluːtənt) /
a substance that pollutes, esp a chemical or similar substance that is produced as a waste product of an industrial process
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Medical definitions for pollutant
[ pə-lōōt′nt ]
Something that pollutes, especially a waste material that contaminates air, soil, or water.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Scientific definitions for pollutant
[ pə-lōōt′nt ]
A substance or condition that contaminates air, water, or soil. Pollutants can be artificial substances, such as pesticides and PCBs, or naturally occurring substances, such as oil or carbon dioxide, that occur in harmful concentrations in a given environment. Heat transmitted to natural waterways through warm-water discharge from power plants and uncontained radioactivity from nuclear wastes are also considered pollutants.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:4caab1c5-f728-4a2c-9108-87ebd9add6f8> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://www.dictionary.com/browse/pollutant | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655899209.48/warc/CC-MAIN-20200709065456-20200709095456-00467.warc.gz | en | 0.803146 | 452 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Our thanks to the ESA Blawg for permission to reprint this blog post by Keith Rizzardi, published on their site on Nov. 20, 2009. The ESA Blawg writes about issues and developments surrounding the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
The Sierra Club today is calling on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to help the Florida panther survive global warming by protecting its habitat, the non-profit organization announced in the Press Room today. “In many ways, the Florida panther is like the polar bear of the South. Because of its low-lying and exposed habitat, the panther is extremely vulnerable to global warming,” said Sierra Club Representative Frank Jackalone. “In order to survive sea level rise and other impacts of climate change, panthers need to be able to migrate to new ground.” In other words, Sierra Club has joined the Center for Biological Diversity, who previously filed a petition to designate 4,860 square miles—roughly 3 million acres—to be protected as critical habitat in southern Florida.
Florida panthers have appeared in other news reports this month. Coincidentally, earlier today, an anonymous caller reported seeing a dead Florida panther by the side of the Florida Turnpike near Yeehaw Junction—more than 150 miles north of where most panthers live—but when Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission staffers checked out the tip, they discovered a decapitated animal. Although the big cat appeared to be hit by a car, FWC posted a reward for information leading to an arrest. As noted on Big Cat Rescue, traffic presents a continuing threat to the species.
Still, despite today’s unfortunate incident, long-term hope remains for the species. The U.S. Army Corps announced the award of a $53-million construction contract Nov. 4 for the Picayune Strand Restoration Project as part of Everglades restoration in Collier County, Fla. “This latest step by the Corps underscores our federal commitment and sets the future of the Picayune Strand in motion. Our endangered Florida panther and many other species will benefit,” said Paul Souza, field supervisor of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s South Florida Office. “Four decades ago, this area was slated to become a suburb of Naples. But today, because of leadership shown by our Everglades partnership, we’re one step closer to achieving its restoration potential.”
Image: Florida panther—George Gentry/US Fish and Wildlife Service.
To Learn More
For more information about the potential effects of global warming and sea level rise on the Florida panther:
- irreplacablewild.org, an Earthjustice project
- Florida Wildlife Commission, On the Front Lines of Climate Change
- U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee on Energy Independence
Big Cat Rescue
Previous Advocacy for Animals post: “The Return of the Mountain Lion: The Wild Confronts the Tame” | <urn:uuid:1e3efe59-5e86-4c42-985e-67ac196fbbab> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2009/11/sierra-club-warns-of-climate-change-effects-on-florida-panther/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1408500825010.41/warc/CC-MAIN-20140820021345-00130-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.909868 | 624 | 2.734375 | 3 |
Victoria never fully
recovered from the untimely death of her husband, , in 1861. Nonetheless, she
found solace in the companionship of John Brown, who acted as the queen’s personal
servant. Whispers concerning an improper relationship abounded and to this day, no one knows
how deep that relationship truly ran. The 15th Earl of Derby, Edward
Stanley, reported that they slept in adjoining rooms “contrary to etiquette and
even decency.” Prince Albert ’s
own daughters, in joking manner, referred to John Brown as “mama’s lover.” Victoria
So, were Queen Victoria and John Brown star crossed lovers, separated by Royal birth and class, or did they simply have an honorable friendship besmirched by those with a mean, jealous, malicious streak?
Either way, the queen had strong feelings for John Brown and in a letter after his death in 1883, she said, “the blow has fallen too heavily not to be very heavily felt...”
Is it any wonder then that Queen Victoria spotted the ghost of John Brown, dressed in his all too familiar kilt, on the grounds of Balmoral castle? One might think the sighting a case of simple grief, or wishful thinking.
However, the queen is not the only one to have seen him on the grounds or roaming the halls since his death well over a century ago. | <urn:uuid:cb32b4b3-c5a2-452b-ae19-b401eb6c14e8> | CC-MAIN-2017-26 | http://debbie-peterson.blogspot.com/2012/10/balmoral-castle-queen-victoria-and.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-26/segments/1498128320338.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20170624203022-20170624223022-00440.warc.gz | en | 0.960081 | 298 | 3.4375 | 3 |
‘Look mum, no hands,’ could be the cry of a school kid letting go of their bicycle handlebar.
Very soon, it may be something we can all say when we hop in our cars – taking our hands off the steering wheel and our eyes off the road.
If that sounds to you like a recipe for traffic mayhem, you haven’t yet met up with the driverless car. The car that will pick you up, drop you off, and let you read the newspaper and have a coffee on the journey in-between.
This is not some science fiction vehicle from the distant future. You can actually drive ‘hands-free’ today. The technology is already available, and major trials are currently underway in the UK, the US and in Sweden.
In Australia, Adelaide is at the forefront with ongoing testing for driverless cars.
These cars need millions of kilometres of testing to make sure that all the potential errors in the sensors are eliminated. We also need new laws, rules and insurances to make sure we can integrate driverless and non-driverless cars on the road.
Even so, by 2020 – only a few years from now – driverless cars are likely to be in high demand. Most of the forecasts for the take-up of this technology are between 5 and 15 percent of the market place.
There is, however, a very limited understanding of how the impacts of driverless cars might play out. Let me give you an example. The current forecasting suggests there would be an increase in the number of vehicles on the road because people would be inclined to use driverless cars as a substitute for public transport or in conjunction with public transport, perhaps taking a driverless bus to the train station. If automated cars are further enhanced with solar power or batteries, making them cheaper to run, they will become even more attractive to use.
The current thinking is that the whole movement to driverless cars could end up in gridlock.
But against that, driverless vehicles have queuing technologies, allowing speed and traffic flow to be controlled through traffic lights. So there are reasonable prospects that the new technologies can neutralise the potential increase in congestion caused by more vehicles on the road.
Nevertheless, driverless cars will lead to entirely different patterns of driving, and change urban networks.
Firstly, fuel station location will alter dramatically. Secondly all of the stops we make on our way home in the car will change. Think about it: if there are 50% more cars on the road, it will be hard to get a parking spot at the supermarket at the end of the work day. In response, we’ll see an improvement in online and sharing technologies. There will be much more home delivery, much more ordering online, and we’ll see different distribution networks for a broad range of services.
The automated vehicle movement has led to what are called ‘new mobility ecosystems’, where firms like uber are already testing the viability of an automated uber service. We’ll also have a wide variety of car rental and car share schemes. In the States, at the moment, you can hire a car for $6 an hour just by basically swiping your card. So soon you’ll be able to drive a car, without hands . . . and without actually owning a car!
Macroplan has taken the lead on incorporating projections of how this game-changing technology will impact future planning. So, we are pleased to be supporting Future Vehicles World 2017 conference. This year is only the second time it has been held and Executive Chairman, Brian Haratsis will be a key note speaker.
Join us and a cast of key international industry experts in Sydney on May 2-4 to learn about the technology timeline, what’s imminent, and the various ‘future’ scenarios. Macroplan clients are eligible for a 10% partner discount – so use promo code ASSN at the time of registering.
Get in touch:
For more information or to discuss your property research requirements, please contact Amy Williams, National Marketing Manager on 02 9221 5211 or [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:764b08fb-1a2d-4ca5-8d1d-9c8aee7e2cda> | CC-MAIN-2017-39 | https://macroplan.com.au/the-driverless-car-movement-creating-a-new-mobility-ecosystem/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-39/segments/1505818690035.53/warc/CC-MAIN-20170924152911-20170924172911-00542.warc.gz | en | 0.949387 | 859 | 2.65625 | 3 |
What often separates a good book, from a great work of literature is symbolism. So what is symbolism? That’s when the author takes some kind of concept or idea, and represents it by another thing, person, item. And believe it or not, symbolism is all over the place in the world, in your everyday life even. Like the statue behind me that represents work, or strength, and determination, and hard efforts paying off.
Symbolism can be found in literature for sure. Like Holden’s hat in Catcher in the Rye. And even in Pop culture, Dave Beda’s mask that’s also symbolism believe it or not.
Now in To Killing a Mockingbird, there is a ton of different symbols of play. The first one that we’re going to talk about today is Boo Radley’s Gifts to the Children. Then we'll move on to the Snowman and we’ll finish up with mocking bad. And decide who in this book is a mocking bird? Who isn’t? And what it all means.
Can you believe that some people actually characterise To kill a Mockingbird as children’s literature? That completely blows my mind. And I’ve got to think that those people somehow are related to this 1960’s reviewer, who called To kill a Mockingbird pleasant undemanding reading. Are you kidding me? Seriously? Undemanding reading, race relations, a trial, rape not demanding at all. I can’t help bit think that these people don’t think about symbolism at all, and we don’t want to be like those people.
So we’re going to talk about three different symbols that are used through the course of the book. The first of which are Boo Radley’s Gifts to the Children. Do you remember what they all are? Let’s go through some real quick.
We have two pieces of gum and later on a pack of gum, two Indian head pennies. There's also a bowl of grey twine, a spelling medal first place, a pocket watch, and a knife. Now together, this might seem like a really weird motley collection of items. But to children, this is pretty much a bounty of treasure. I remember when I was little, one of my favourite things to play with, at my grandfather’s house was his key ring. He had like a hundred keys on it and I would walk around the house pretending to lock and unlock doors. I don’t, it fascinated me and that’s kind of what these items are. They are strange little things that might not mean anything to adults. They are like, “It’s just a bunch of junk.” But to Jem and to Scout, these things are really cool.
And in it, we can kind of see some symbolism of Boo being a good innocent person. He’s reaching out to these children and giving them things that he knows that he knows he’s going to enjoy, they’re going to enjoy. And we can take the symbolism even a step further, when we see Mr. Radley come out, he takes the node hole in the tree that Boo’s being putting all these presents in and he fills it up. So it’s not there anymore. This kind of, is suspects, he says, “Oh the tree is dying and I was trying to keep from dying.” That doesn’t really seem like it’s the case. It seems more like Mr. Radley ids trying to negate the goodness and the innocence, and stop this positive thing that’s happening between Boo and the children.
So to take that symbolism, you can kind of run with it and look at these different things as a lot more than just these little collections of strange knick-knacks and items.
The next symbol we’re going to talk about is Jem’s Snowman. You do remember the Snowman in chapter eight. You want a little of refresher? Let’s go back into the book, I’ve got a passage about it. “Jem ran to the backyard produce the garden hoe and began digging quickly behind the wood pile, placing any worms he find to one side. He went in the house, returned with the laundry hamper, filled it with earth and carried it to the front yard. Then a little bit later Jem scooped up some snow and began plastering it on. He permitted me to cover only the back saving the public parts for himself. Gradually the snowman turned white.”
So do you get what’s going on here? In terms of context. There is not a lot of snow in Alabama, and this is a big exciting thing. They’re very determined to make this snowman. It’s kind of like the first snow of the year. I don’t know where you live, but I know that when I see the first of the snow of the year I want to go slide, and drink hot chocolate, and build a snowman, and do snow angels even when if there is like this much snow on the ground. So, they’re very excited on that level, but a little bit more than that because they’re in Alabama.
So, essentially what Jem is doing here, is taking mad and earth, and he is creating kind of like a base for the snowman like this. Then Jem takes the snow since there is a limited amount, and puts it on top and kind of forms it around the dark base that he has. I want you think about that imagery. Keep in it in your mind as we discuss this, the symbol of the snowman and what it really represents.
I would have to say that the snowman with a dark and the light together, shows us the idea of peaceful coexistence. It’s the mixing of dark and light together. Now that’s really important because race relations is a key to the whole book. So in the snowman, we have the dark and the light working together to produce something.
Now Scout’s initial reaction to the snowman, first she laughs. She actually uses the N word and says she’s never seen that kind of snowman before. This is important because it really represents the era, the community, that prejudice, that racism that kind of existed as like everyday feelings.
Atticus on the other hand just thought this was genius. He thought it was this fantastic idea and he praises his son. He says, “I didn’t know how you were going to do it, but from now on I’ll never worry about what will become of you son, you’ll always have an idea.” So the fact that Jem used his ingenuity to put this together, is really impressive to Atticus. And he was really proud of his son for being able to that. If you think about Atticus, he’s the character in the book that is the most progressive. That argues the most for equality between blacks and whites. So it makes sense, that he would feel very positive about his son, putting the black and the white together.
The last thing that’s very important to consider about the snowman, is that in the end, it’s destroyed by fire. So this big event comes and so much for the dark and the light together. Fire here might represent prejudice. It’s stronger than Jem and his idea of equality and working together. So we’ve done the snowman, we’ve taken care of that. Let’s move on to the biggest symbol in the whole book, and of course the title. Let’s move on to the Mockingbird.
So here is the big one, the mack daddy, the Mockingbird, the biggest symbol in the whole book of course. The mockingbird is first introduced in chapter ten. Let's look at what Atticus says first. Atticus said to Jem one day, “I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit them but remember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” That’s the big quote. I guarantee you you’re going to talk about that in class, it’s going to show up on your tests. That’s like the mother of all of them.
However, we’ve got a little bit more explanation when we talked to Miss Maude a little bit later on. She says, “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up peoples gardens, don’t nest in corn cribs, they don’t do one thing but sing heir hearts out for us that’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”
So essentially when we’re talking about symbolism, mockingbird is representing someone or something that is good. That only exists for good reasons, it kind of has the idea of innocence with it. So if we take that symbol a little bit further, there are people within the book that we could consider to be mockingbird.
The first mockingbird I want to talk about is Boo Radley. Boo has only got the desire to do good. We see that in him when he leaves the toys for the children, when he brings Scout the blanket, the night of the fire, when he rescues Jem and Scout at end of the book. He has only good intentions. And the entire community treats him really badly and in a sense they kill him not literally, but figuratively in that way. They don’t trust him, they try to prevent him from doing what he wants to do, they look down on him, they essentially persecute him. Boo Radley is definitely a mockingbird.
The next one I want to talk about, is Tom Robinson. Now Tom is really a good man. Remember he went over to Mayella Ewel’s house to help her. She asked him some assistance, he’s a good guy. He went over there to help her. He had only good intentions and we know what happened to him, he was wrongfully accused, he went to trail, he was shot in the end. There is a literal killing of a mockingbird in that situation.
“Mr. Underwood didn’t talk about miscarriages of justice, he was writing so children could understand...He likened Tom’s death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children...” So we’re kind of really driving this symbol home with that quotation. The literal killing is like killing a mockingbird, this innocent creature that just wants to sing.
There are other mockingbirds in the story as well, think about Dill. He’s a good hearted little guy, with kind of a screwed up family situation and he tries to persevere as well.
Jem could be seen as a mockingbird. We tend to think of children as innocent to begin with. And his innocence is questioned or killed if you will, within the story, because he sees all the different things that are happening within his community.
The same can be said for Scout. In her coming of aid story, her innocence is killed because these horrible things are happening, and she needs to wrap her little eight year old mind around what’s going on.
One last mockingbird, Mr. Raymond. Do you remember who he is? This was the white man who was married who was married to a black woman. This was completely unheard of in this community. And he was really a disgrace in the eyes of many people. He was completely treated unfairly because of his choices that he made in his life. He wasn’t trying to bother anyone, he married this woman for love, he had no harmful intentions but he was prosecuted as a result. So he too can be seen as a mockingbird.
With all these different symbols that we’ve used, you can really take them into your classroom now. And see which you can get started. We’ve really just began here. You get to now take this and run with it.
In case you were watching the Spaghetti cat clip online again, here is the gist of what you missed in this episode. We talked symbolism. We did the mockingbird, the snowman, all those weird gifts that Boo Radley left in the tree for the kids. So we’re kind of all over the place. But now you’ve got a better understanding of what To Kill a Mockingbird is all about. And what these different symbols all represent.
In the next episode, we are going to go even bigger than that. We’re going to take this new knowledge of symbols and we’re going to address theme. So we’re going to take a look at the big picture. | <urn:uuid:9fd252a9-5dd3-4d8d-9a37-86d19d9adb34> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://www.brightstorm.com/english/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/to-kill-a-mockingbird-symbolism/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506658.2/warc/CC-MAIN-20230924155422-20230924185422-00195.warc.gz | en | 0.975799 | 2,762 | 2.9375 | 3 |
NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope successfully made the first clear detection of high-energy gamma-rays from Cygnus X-3, one of the stronger binary systems in the sky. Located some 37 000 light years away, Cygnus X-3 pairs a hot, massive star with a compact object that blasts twin radio-emitting jets of matter into space at the speed of light. The findings will offer scientists new insight into the acceleration and movement of high-energy particles. The research, published in the journal Science, is part of the 'GAMMARAYBINARIES' project, which received almost EUR 750 000 in funding under the Ideas Theme of the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
The binary systems are called microquasars: they are similar to tiny versions of distant galaxies (i.e. quasars). Experts speculate that these galaxies have emissions that are powered by huge black holes.
'Cygnus X-3 is a genuine microquasar and it's the first for which we can prove high-energy gamma-ray emission,' explained Dr Stéphane Corbel of the Paris Diderot University in France, one of the authors of the study.
The study showed that 'the gamma-ray emission probably originates from within the binary system, opening new areas in which to study the formation of relativistic jets'.
Astronomers first detected the system in 1966, as being one of the sky's strongest X-ray sources. Cygnus X-3 also hit headlines in 1972 thanks to a radio frequency outburst that increased its radio frequency emissions a thousandfold. Scientists say it has had periodic radio outbursts at regular 367-day periods. Astronomers first claimed Cygnus X-3 as one of the first gamma-ray sources. Because of these observations, researchers were compelled to develop and improve gamma-ray detectors; the end result is the Large Area Telescope (LAT) aboard Fermi.
According to the study's researchers, a huge Wolf-Rayet star is located at the centre of Cygnus X-3. Wolf-Rayet stars are hot massive luminous stars with temperatures ranging between 25 000 kelvin to 50 000 kelvin. This heat results in the star's mass 'bleeding' into space in a form that astronomers call 'stellar wind'.
'In just 100 000 years, this fast, dense wind removes as much mass from the Wolf-Rayet star as our Sun contains,' said Dr Robin Corbet of the University of Maryland in the US. A compact companion embedded in a disk of hot gas wheels around the star, Dr Corbet pointed out, adding that 'this object is most likely a black hole, but we can't yet rule out a neutron star'.
The LAT identified changes in Cygnus X-3's gamma-ray output related to the companion's 4.8-hour orbital motion. The researchers discovered that the brightest gamma-ray emission occurs when the disk is on the far side of its orbit.
'This suggests that the gamma rays arise from interactions between rapidly moving electrons above and below the disk and the star's ultraviolet light,' Dr Corbel said.
Ultraviolet photons gain energy and develop into gamma rays when the photons hit particles moving at a significant fraction of the speed of light. 'The process works best when an energetic electron already heading towards Earth suffers a head-on collision with an ultraviolet photon,' explained Dr Guillaume Dubus from France's Laboratory for Astrophysics. 'And this occurs most often when the disk is on the far side of this orbit.'
French, German, Italian, Japanese, Swedish and US researchers contributed to this study.
The GAMMARAYBINARIES ('Exploring the gamma-ray sky: binaries, microquasars and their impact on understanding particle acceleration, relativistic winds and accretion/ejection phenomena in cosmic sources') project is coordinated by Université Joseph Fourier Grenoble 1 in France. GAMMARAYBINARIES was launched in 2008 and is scheduled to end in 2013. | <urn:uuid:49f53b07-5cab-4e9c-859c-e665468ae0ac> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_10_01_04_en.html&item=Space&artid=14373&caller=AllHeadlines | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886120573.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20170823152006-20170823172006-00593.warc.gz | en | 0.912918 | 844 | 3.90625 | 4 |
Current strategies for human rabies pre and post-exposure prophylaxis
PEP which consists of local treatment of the wound, followed by vaccine therapy (with or without rabies immunoglobulin) should be initiated immediately following a transdermal bite or scratch by an animal suspected of being rabid or when possibly infectious material, usually saliva comes into direct contact with the victim’s mucosa or with fresh skin wounds (see full definitions of categories of exposure below). Prompt post-exposure use of CCVs combined with proper wound management and simultaneous administration of rabies immunoglobulin is almost invariably effective in preventing rabies, even following high-risk exposure However, delays in starting or failure to complete correct prophylaxis may result in death, particularly following bites in highly innervated regions, such as the head, neck or hands, or following multiple wounds. Rarely, true failures have been reported after patients received state-of- the-art treatment. Treatment should be started as early as possible after exposure, but in no case should it be denied to exposed persons whatever time interval has elapsed.
Treatment may be discontinued if the animal involved (dog or cat) remains healthy throughout an observation period of 10 days; or if the animal is killed humanely and found to be negative for rabies by laboratory examination. Any biting animal suspected of being rabid should be immediately killed humanely and tissues examined using appropriate laboratory technique(s). In areas where canine or wildlife rabies is epizootic, adequate laboratory and field experience, indicating that there is no infection in the species involved, may justify local health authorities in not recommending specific anti-rabies treatment. Obviously modification of the recommended procedures would be indicated in a rabies-free area where animal bites are encountered.
The indication for PEP with or without rabies immune globulin depends on the type of contact with the rabid animal.
Types of contact and categories of exposure are: category I – touching or feeding animals, licks on intact skin category II - nibbling of uncovered skin, minor scratches or abrasions without bleeding, category III – single or multiple transdermal bites or scratches, licks on broken skin, contamination of mucous membrane with saliva from licks; exposure to bat bites or scratches For category I no treatment is required, whereas for category II immediate vaccination and for category III immediate vaccination and administration of rabies immune globulin are recommended in addition to immediate washing and flushing of all bite wounds and scratches. All intramuscular injections must be given into the deltoid region or, in small children, into the anterolateral area of the thigh muscle. Vaccine should never be administered in the gluteal region. In order to reduce the cost of post-exposure treatment, intradermal multi-site regimens using a fraction of the intramuscular volume per intradermal inoculation site have been developed.
Tissue-culture or purified duck-embryo vaccines of potency at least 2.5 IU per single intramuscular immunizing dose should be applied according to the following schedules:
Intramuscular administration for PEP
- In the Essen regimen one dose of the vaccine should be administered on days 0, 3, 7, 14 and 30. - In the abbreviated multisite schedule, the 2-1-1 regimen, one dose is given in the right arm and one dose in the left arm at day 0, and one dose applied in the deltoid muscle on days 7 and 21. - An alternative for healthy, fully immunocompetent, exposed people who receive wound care plus high quality rabies immunoglobulin plus WHO-prequalified rabies vaccines, is a PEP regimen consisting of 4 doses administered intramuscularly on days 0, 3, 7 and 14.
Intradermal administration for PEP
The 2-site regimen prescribes injection of 0.1 mL at 2 sites (1 in each of the deltoid and thigh) on days 0, 3, 7 and 28. This regimen can be used for people with category II and category III exposures in countries where the intradermal route has been endorsed by national health authorities. Only vaccines that have been demonstrated to be safe and efficacious should be used by the intradermal route (currently PVRV (Verorab TM, Imovax TM, Rabies vero TM, TRC Verorab TM) and PCECV (Rabipur TM).
PEP in already immunized people
For rabies-exposed patients who have previously undergone complete pre-exposure vaccination or post-exposure treatment with cell-derived rabies vaccines, two intramuscular or intradermal doses of a cell-derived vaccine separated by three days are sufficient. As an alternative to this regimen, the patient may be offered a single-visit 4-site intradermal regimen consisting of 4 injections of 0.1 mL equally distributed over left and right deltoids and tights. Rabies immune globulin treatment is not necessary in such cases. The same rules apply to persons vaccinated against rabies who have demonstrated neutralizing antibody titres of at least 0.5 IU/ml.
Combined immunoglobulin-vaccine treatment is the best specific systemic treatment available for the post-exposure prophylaxis of rabies in humans, although experience indicated that vaccine alone was sufficient for minor exposures (category II). Rabies immunoglobulin for passive immunization is administered only once, preferably at, or as soon as possible after, the initiation of post-exposure vaccination. Beyond the seventh day after rabies immunoglobulin is not indicated because an active antibody response to the CCV is presumed to have occurred. The dose of human rabies immunoglobulin is 20 IU/kg body weight; for equine immunoglobulin and F(ab’)2 products it is 40 IU/kg body weight. All of the rabies immunoglobulin, or as much as anatomically possible to avoid possible compartment syndrome, should be administered into or around the wound site or sites. The remaining immunoglobulin, if any, should be injected intramuscularly at a site distant from the site of vaccine administration. Rabies immunoglobulin may be diluted to a volume sufficient for all wounds to be effectively and safely infiltrated. Most of the new equine immunoglobulin preparations are potent, highly purified, safe and considerably less expensive than human rabies immunoglobulin. However they are of heterologous origin and carry a small risk of anaphylactic reaction (1/45 000 cases). There are no scientific grounds for performing a skin test prior to administering equine immunoglobulin because testing does not predict reactions, and it should be given whatever the result of the test. The treating physician should be prepared to manage anaphylaxis which, although rare, could occur during any stage of administration.
Local treatment of wounds
Elimination of rabies virus at the site of the infection by chemical or physical means is an effective mechanism of protection. Local treatment of wounds involving possible exposure to rabies is recommended in all exposures. Recommended first-aid procedures include immediate and thorough flushing and washing of the wound for a minimum of 15 minutes with soap and water, detergent, povidone iodine or other substances of proven lethal effect on rabies virus. If soap or an antiviral agent is not available, the wound should be thoroughly and extensively washed with water. If suturing after wound cleansing cannot be avoided, the wound should first be infiltrated with passive rabies immunization products and suturing delayed for several hours. Other treatments, such as the administration of antibiotics and tetanus prophylaxis, should be applied as appropriate for other bite wounds.
The recommendations given here are intended as a general guide. It is recognized that, in certain situations, modifications of the procedures laid down may be warranted. Such situations include exposure of infants or mentally disabled persons and other circumstances where a reliable history cannot be obtained, particularly in areas where rabies is enzootic, even though the animal is considered to be healthy at the time of exposure. Such cases may be treated as category II or III. | <urn:uuid:935da635-eea6-4acb-90aa-3ea250372153> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://www.who.int/rabies/human/WHO_strategy_prepost_exposure/en/index1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1394678704059/warc/CC-MAIN-20140313024504-00002-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.911249 | 1,703 | 2.96875 | 3 |
Cloud computing has been one of the most discussed topic over the year, and the discussion is not over because what is really being discussed is the way we will access computing an storage resources in the future. Even famous French intellectuals are giving their opinion and making predictions. Future will decide on predictions's accuracy.
What is usually less discussed is the technology behind cloud-computing, though this is no secret that virtualization is playing a key role. Cloud data-centers will be loaded with virtual machines each of these machines potentially requiring in disk-space what a complete operating system (OS) requires, which can go up to many gigabytes. How much disk-space does a virtual machine image (vdi) really consum? The only good answer is: too much. Too much because the OS is part of the infrastructure as …[Read more] | <urn:uuid:23a6be4e-a158-47cb-8b35-f86b880d617f> | CC-MAIN-2017-30 | https://planet.mysql.com/?tag_search=7910 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-30/segments/1500549423769.10/warc/CC-MAIN-20170721102310-20170721122310-00098.warc.gz | en | 0.954178 | 171 | 2.59375 | 3 |
The Fire Kills campaign has concentrated on the importance of regularly testing smoke alarms. Since 1992 building regulations have required that at least one smoke alarm, wired directly to the mains.
Every year the fire and rescue service is called to over 600,000 fires which result in over 800 deaths and over 17,000 injuries. About 50,000 (140 a day) of these are in the home and kill nearly 500 and injure over 11,000, many which could have been prevented if people had an early warning and were able to get out in time. In fact you are twice as likely to die in a house fire that has no smoke alarm than a house that does.
Between April 2013 and March 2014, 97 people died and 1900 were injured in domestic fires affecting properties where no smoke alarm was present.
The majority of fires and fire-related fatalities in the UK are domestic. Last year (2014/15) 80% of all fire-related fatalities occurred in the home.
Last year saw 39,600 dwelling fires, 88% of which were accidental. Accidents happen, but ultimately, they are avoidable.
– In 31% of domestic fires there was no smoke alarm.
– In 19% of domestic fires a fire alarm was present, but it was not operational.
Buying a smoke alarm could help save your home and the lives of you and your family.
Smoke alarms are self-contained devices that incorporate a means of detecting a fire (smoke detector) and giving a warning (alarm), usually a very loud beeping sound. They are about the size of a hand and are normally fitted to the ceiling. They can detect fires in their early stages and give you those precious minutes to enable you and your family to leave your house in safety.
There are mainly four types of smoke alarm currently on the market – ionisation, optical (also described as photo electronic), heat and combined.
Ionisation: These are the cheapest and cost very little to purchase. They are very sensitive to small particles of smoke produced by fast flaming fires, such as paper and wood, and will detect this type of fire before the smoke gets too thick. They are marginally less sensitive to slow burning and smouldering fires which give off larger quantities of smoke before flaming occurs. They can also be too over-sensitive near kitchens.
Optical: These are more expensive but more effective at detecting larger particles of smoke produced by slow-burning fires, such as smouldering foam-filled upholstery and overheated PVC wiring. They are marginally less sensitive to fast flaming fires. Optical alarms can be installed near (not in) kitchens, as they are less likely than ionisation alarms to go off when toast is burned.
Heat Alarms: They detect the increase in temperature from a fire and are insensitive to smoke.They can therefore be installed in kitchens. They only cover a relatively small area of a room, so potentially several heat alarms need to be installed in a large kitchen.
Combined Optical Smoke and Heat Alarms: Combinations of optical and heat alarms in one unit to reduce false alarms while increasing the speed of detection.
Combined Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms: Alarms that combine both smoke detection and CO alarm protection in one ceiling-mounted unit. This reduces costs and takes up less of your living space. | <urn:uuid:9b2836ba-a7e1-432d-823c-eaca52aac937> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://www.atlanticfireltd.com/fire-kills-campaign/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585371824409.86/warc/CC-MAIN-20200408202012-20200408232512-00213.warc.gz | en | 0.975967 | 682 | 3.015625 | 3 |
The hottest headlines breaking the internet yesterday was the finding of hydrogen gas being turned into metal, a feat that was being attempted for over 80 years. Turning hydrogen into metal would be a big deal as besides solving a longstanding scientific mystery, the material would also be “important for solving energy problems and can potentially revolutionize rocketry as a powerful propellant” as mentioned in the paper published online in the Science journal.
But now a host of scientists have met the observations with skepticism, saying that the hypothesis, methodology, and conclusions are doubted and unverified.
The observation was published by a team of Harvard researchers on 29th January, which stated that while squeezing hydrogen between diamonds at 5.5 Kelvin or -450 degrees Fahrenheit, cranking up the pressure resulted in the observation of the transparent hydrogen turning black. And at a pressure 5 million times the atmosphere, the hydrogen turned reflective. The researchers claim that this proves that hydrogen atoms can arrange themselves into a regular, 3D structure just like in metal.
This behavior was first predicted by physicists Hillard Huntington and Eugene Wignerin in 1935, and such a material would be metastable, which means it would keep its 3D structure even if the pressure is brought down until some other outside influences turn it back into hydrogen gas.
Back in 2012, German scientists also claimed to have made metallic hydrogen to a similar critical reaction. The German researchers regretted their announcement later on, saying that their paper should have said that they “might have” created metallic hydrogen. Similar issues are now being pointed out in the latest discovery,
“I don’t think the paper is convincing at all. Ok, you’re gonna tell me that just because your sample turned shiny once, now it’s a metal? Try again, sweetie. They think the reflectivity could just as easily have come from the aluminum oxide coating the diamonds acting differently under extreme pressure.”
Other researchers raised issues on the Harvard scientists only taking one detailed measurement.
“You make such a big and bold claim,” physicist Eugene Gregoryanz from the University of Edinburgh School of Physics and Astronomy told the New York Times. “Why didn’t you repeat the experiment?”
The hydrogen sample is available for testing in Harvard’s lab, according to Nature. | <urn:uuid:3a340dde-73ab-4585-8206-36f0b9622b7e> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://wonderfulengineering.com/did-scientists-actually-turn-hydrogen-into-a-metal/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886105291.88/warc/CC-MAIN-20170819012514-20170819032514-00060.warc.gz | en | 0.961673 | 477 | 3.328125 | 3 |
How To Make A Line Graph In Excel
Ghamza Jacobs, an I.T. trainer with New Horizons, shows you how to make a line graph in both Microsoft Excel 2007 and 2010.
Hi, my name is Ghamza Jacobs, I'm an I.T. trainer with New Horizons in London.
I'm here today just to show you a couple of cool little tips and tricks on Windows 7 and Office 2010. How to create a line graph in Microsoft Excel? When creating graphs in Microsoft Excel, in 2007 or 2010, the easiest way to work with this, is to select your data first. So what I'm going to do right here is select my months, sales and expenses data.
Within the newer versions of Excel, your graphs or charts are available under insert, so the Insert Tab right at the top, you've got a charts group right over here, and you can see I can go directly to the chart type I want, the one we're going to look at right now is a line chart so all I do is go straight to line and it even asks you “what type of line chart would you like.” I can go in and say OK, I'll go for the stack line, why not, click on to that, the line chart gets created, obviously pretty basic one this is. But after you've created the line chart, Excel 2007 and 2010 both open up chart tools at the top, now you can very easily, under design, change the colors, selecting one of the built in ones, let's say you decide you want this particular chart to be on this sheet because notice what has happened, it places the chart onto the same sheet as your data, you simply would like to move the chart, one can easily just off the design, move chart, create it in new sheet so that will take it to a sheet or page of its own, OK, and now I have a chart created on a new chart sheet.
That was how to create a basic line chart in Microsoft excel. | <urn:uuid:b093ea4e-27cf-455f-896e-670d3ad58c61> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-a-line-graph-in-excel | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1394021227262/warc/CC-MAIN-20140305120707-00069-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938767 | 418 | 2.984375 | 3 |
From the early days of settlement Christchurch had a range of industries, and a number of well-known New Zealand firms are still based there.
Industry and farming
The earliest factories processed farm products or made goods for farmers. Flour mills, tanneries, wool scourers and soap factories were built mainly at Woolston, near the Heathcote River. Large woollen mills were built at Kaiapoi and in Christchurch, and freezing works at Belfast, Kaiapoi, Islington, Hornby and Fairton. Ashburton also developed industries such as flour mills, which linked town and country.
In the 20th century, a fertiliser works opened in Hornby. The Addington railway workshops were at their peak when branch railways served the rural areas.
Clothing, boots and shoes, beer and biscuits were produced for the domestic market. Lane Walker Rudkin, Lichfield and other garment producers made Christchurch the clothing centre.
Initially Christchurch dominated the rubber industry. The Para Rubber Company was founded by George Skellerup in 1910. Plastics for electrical goods became important from 1932.
In the later 20th century many long-established factories closed down – the railway workshops, the Hornby glassworks, the Islington freezing works, the Kaiapoi woollen mills, the Whitcombe & Tombs printing factory. More recently, electronics industries have flourished.
In 2013 a relatively high proportion of Canterbury’s population worked in manufacturing: 11% compared to the national average of 9.8%.
Software and sport
Electronics and computing industries have had a high profile in Christchurch. In 1998 the top sporting venue, Lancaster Park, was renamed Jade Stadium after naming rights were sold to the locally based Jade Software Corporation Ltd. This turned out to be a poor investment when the facility was destroyed by the 2011 earthquake.
From 1915 a hydroelectric project at Lake Coleridge provided a continuous power supply for Christchurch. Hydroelectricity became a major source of energy for industry as a national grid developed.
The timber industry
With native timber scarce, there was an early interest in exotic forestry. Exotic trees were also planted for shade and shelter on the exposed plains.
Government afforestation began in 1902–3 at Hanmer, and continued after the First World War at Balmoral and Eyrewell. Exotic forestry proved marginal because of frost and the fire risk associated with drought. In 1955, 7,600 acres of the Balmoral pine forest was destroyed by fire.
Many forest products are used locally. A plant near Rangiora manufactures particle board.
Fishing fleets have worked out of both Lyttelton and Akaroa. Commercial fishing has all but ceased from Akaroa, but continues from Lyttelton, which also services deep-sea trawlers. A salmon farm operates at Akaroa Harbour.
Te Waihora (Lake Ellesmere) once supplied Christchurch with fish. In the 1970s large numbers of eel were taken for export, but stocks were depleted and the eel fishery is now small.
In 2010 tourism accounted for about 8.4% of all jobs in Canterbury, similar to the national average. The figure was higher in popular spots like Akaroa. The 2011 Christchurch earthquake severely affected the tourism sector. International visitor arrivals fell by 46% following the loss of 43% of commercial accommodation in Christchurch. At least 900 jobs were lost in the hospitality sector alone. The opening of four new central-city hotels in 2013 was a sign of recovery. The number of guest nights (visitors staying overnight) in Canterbury also increased. In the three months to February 2014 the total was 1.49 million, still below the figure of 1.7 million for the same period four years earlier.
Christchurch’s international airport remained the South Island’s gateway to Aoraki/Mt Cook, Queenstown and Milford Sound. The Mt Hutt ski field attracted Australian skiers. Passenger trains to Picton and Greymouth have survived because they are popular with tourists.
Running a marathon
In 2014 Canterbury Tourism chief executive Tim Hunter compared his sector’s recovery to running a marathon. ‘We are through the first third, but we have a wee bit of a way to go yet,’ he said. 1 Hunter thought fewer flights from Australia, a lack of a convention centre and a decline in sporting events were all having a detrimental impact on visitor numbers.
A small proportion of New Zealand’s incoming and outgoing cargo passes through Lyttelton port and Christchurch airport. In 2013 they together handled 9.6% of New Zealand’s imports (by value) and 16.5% of exports. | <urn:uuid:7bffe175-ea8f-4af4-9ae6-1b0b155f77ff> | CC-MAIN-2020-24 | https://admin.teara.govt.nz/mi/canterbury-region/page-9 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-24/segments/1590347423915.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20200602064854-20200602094854-00502.warc.gz | en | 0.965478 | 977 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) is a significant drain on efficient and successful cattle production in both dairy and beef systems around the world. Several countries have achieved eradication of this disease, but always through the motivation of stakeholders who accept the benefits of eradication. These include increased cattle welfare and fitness of cattle to withstand other diseases, and decreased costs of production, the latter resulting from both decreased costs spent on managing the disease and decreased losses. This paper provides a systematic review of 31 papers, published between 1991 and 2015, that address the economic impact of BVD. Each paper takes a different approach, in either beef or dairy production or both. However with the breadth of work collated, a stakeholder engaged in BVD eradication should find an economic figure of most relevance to them. The reported economic impact ranges from £0 to £552 per cow per year (£2370 including outliers). This range represents endemic or subclinical disease situations seen in herds with stable BVD virus infection, and epidemic or severe acute situations, most often seen in naïve herds. The outcome of infection is therefore dependent on the immune status of the animal and severity of the strain. The variations in figures for the economic impact of BVD relate to these immune and pathogenicity factors, along with the variety of impacts monitored.
- bovine viral diarrhoea virus (bvdv)
- economic impact
- systematic review
This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Statistics from Altmetric.com
Bovine viral diarrhoea
Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) is a disease caused by BVD virus (BVDV), a pestivirus belonging to the Flaviviridae family. The disease can manifest as generalised immunosuppression, with evidence of synergistic effects with other pathogens, fertility problems in male and female cattle, and other often more variable signs such as decreased milk production and weight gain, fever, diarrhoea and respiratory dysfunction.1–5 The extent of disease appears to be dependent on the level of immunity of the animal and pathogenicity of the virus strain.6 7
Control of BVD depends on removal of persistently infected (PI) animals, and maintenance of biosecurity to ensure that no new PI individuals are born. BVD is currently endemic in the majority of countries of the world, with control schemes progressing in Germany, Scotland, Belgium, Northern Ireland and Ireland, as well as regional schemes throughout many European countries.8–12 The basis for seeking freedom from BVDV in these countries has been economic, as well as on welfare grounds, and to promote proactive disease control rather than reactive disease control with associated increased use of antibiotics.13
Economic incentives for eradication programmes have been used both as a direct reward for culling of PI cattle and through the promise of greater efficiency and reduced losses.12 14 One incentive for many farmers involved in national BVD eradication schemes is the hope that they can stop vaccinating. While some countries have achieved eradication without vaccination, advances in cost-effective diagnostic testing mean that maintenance of biosecurity through vaccination when eradicating BVD is an option, as seen in Germany, Ireland and Scotland.
Veterinary practitioners are key to decisions regarding disease control on farms, certainly in the UK.15 However, it is apparent that veterinary practitioners need to have more of an understanding of the economic impact of disease, not just welfare effects, because this often affects the willingness of a farmer to undertake an action.16 The economic assessments of national BVD control by Weldegebriel and others17 and Stott and others18 were integral to the implementation of the government-backed BVD eradication schemes in Scotland and Ireland, respectively. However, for voluntary schemes, such as those proposed for England and Wales, farmer and veterinary practitioner engagement will be essential to ensure the momentum to proceed to a compulsory phase (ref 19 and N. Paton, personal communication).
Economic impact (cost, C) of BVD is determined by production losses (L) (direct and indirect) and control expenditures (E):
With the aim of reducing L to 0, it may be beneficial to increase E in the short term on diagnostics, biosecurity and vaccination.20 So for the fixed period of an eradication scheme, it may appear the scheme is not cost beneficial; however, once freedom from the disease is achieved and maintained, it is cost-effective in the long term. The minimal, and therefore optimal, level of C may also be achieved over a defined period through use of an optimal level of E, which may not reduce L to 0.
Assessing the economic impact of BVD therefore needs an understanding and calculation of the losses and the expenditures of BVD being present in a herd, as well as an understanding of the objective of the assessment and whether it seeks to calculate an economic impact, avoidable loss or address a control choice or E. These figures can be assessed through looking at case histories of losses from outbreaks, cost and benefits of farm-based or regional-based eradication schemes, or quantitative modelling. Quantitative modelling techniques for disease control take the form of four options: mathematical programming, network or decision analysis, simulation and cost–benefit analysis.20 21 Mathematical programming is useful for structured decision problems, with various options to take into account and can involve linear or dynamic programming. Network analysis can contain qualitative and quantitative information, and is often a diagram that can be used to describe, explain and analyse systems or processes. Decision analysis is similar to network analysis and is useful for poorly structured decision problems where risk and associated judgement is required. Cost–benefit analysis is an overall term for a number of ways of analysing different courses of action, but essentially it tries to identify, quantify and analyse the costs and benefits of a specific resource allocation decision using a partial budget structure often in a spreadsheet model. For national-level decisions, often the costs and benefits to society are considered, producing social cost–benefit analysis.21 22 This is often given as a net present value or as a ratio (cost:benefit or benefit:cost). Simulation allows experimentation with a model of a system rather than the system itself, and can incorporate the probability of events happening. Monte Carlo simulations use random numbers to simulate random processes, to take account of random distributions in the real world, resulting in a ‘see what happens’ analysis. Monte Carlo simulations are useful when models which are deterministic, or input-defined, and stochastic, or possess-inherent randomness, have no analytical solutions or are difficult to obtain. Markov processes or chains use transitional probabilities between the states of a system, for example, infected and immune. These processes can be mingled into one analysis.21
Methods and materials
A publication search was performed in PubMed and Web of Science to gather papers that are concerned with BVDV and associated economic impact, following the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.23 Additionally, Google Scholar also was used as a search resource. Language was limited to English. A search was made of the past 25 years (from 1991 to 2015) because this coincides with an increase in understanding of the disease and therefore an increase in publications on it.
Results that could not be accessed electronically or were repeats were removed. Papers were then submitted to one screening question: ‘Are numerical results produced that provide an assessment of the economic impact of BVD?’ Information used to provide the economic assessment was then assembled into a table (Microsoft Excel 2010; Microsoft, Redmond, USA).
An advanced search was made on PubMed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/advanced) using the following search: ((bovine viral diarrh*[Title] OR bovine virus diarrh*[Title] OR bvd[Title] OR bvdv[Title])) AND (economic*[Title] OR financial[Title] OR cost*[Title]).
The results were initially filtered on PubMed by selecting the article type and publication dates.
article types: case reports, clinical trial, congresses, journal article, lectures, meta-analysis, observational study, review and systematic reviews
publication dates: from January 1, 1991 to December 31, 2015.
The 24 results were filtered to remove any that were concerned either primarily with diagnostics or were not relevant, leaving 20 results.
A second search was made in Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.co.uk/), using the following searches: allintitle: bvd economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs, allintitle: bvdv economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs, allintitle: bovine viral diarrhoea economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs, allintitle: bovine viral diarrhea economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs, allintitle: bovine virus diarrhea economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs, allintitle: bovine virus diarrhoea economic OR economics OR financial OR cost OR costs.
The results were initially filtered on Google Scholar by selecting custom range and removing citations and patents.
Return articles dated between 1991 and 2015.
There were 53 articles returned, 16 repeats were removed, 5 were removed that were involved in diagnostics and 2 that were not relevant, leaving 30 papers.
A final search was on Web of Science (V.5.21) (http://apps.webofknowledge.com/UA_GeneralSearch_input.do?product=UA&search_mode=GeneralSearch&SID=W1Y13NkN8qgoWoHxoiI&preferencesSaved=) using the advanced search: TI=((bovine viral diarrh* OR bovine virus diarrh* OR bvd OR bvdv) AND (economic* OR financial OR cost*)).
Timespan: 1991–2015. Search language=auto
There were 41 results returned; 4 repeats were removed, 6 diagnostic papers were removed and 2 papers that were not relevant from the title were removed, leaving 29 papers.
All 79 articles were then reviewed and submitted to the screening question. Following analysis of the papers, seven further papers were then sourced. There were then 43 repeats, 2 editorial pieces, 1 model, 4 review articles and 1 comparing costs with and without vaccination that were removed. Four articles were not available, leaving 31 papers, which were copied to a Microsoft Word document (Microsoft Word 2010; Microsoft).
Papers included in the systematic review were from peer-reviewed journals unless otherwise stated.
Fig 1 shows the breakdown of the systematic search method.
Historical figures from these papers were converted to current estimates, and this process can be illustrated by the equation below24:
Current value=Historical value × (1+inflation (%))number of years
However, this assumes a steady rate of inflation over many years. The Bank of England provides an online inflation calculator, which takes account of varying inflation rates over numbers of years, and this was used to produce the updated figures.25
Where results were given in a foreign currency, the figure was converted into pounds sterling before adjustment to present-day figures, using exchange rates at that time as provided by www.fxtop.com.26 Where economic impact figures were provided for the national herd in Great Britain, a figure per cow was calculated.27 28 The results were recorded to three significant figures.
Table 1 displays the results of the systematic review of the economic impact of BVD from 1991 to 2015.
The majority of papers (19 out of 31) looked at the effects of BVD in dairy herds, with five papers looking at both dairy and beef cattle. There were seven papers that analysed a separate suckler beef figure, and two papers considered beef fattening systems. Indirect losses, such as poorer milk quality and immunosuppressive effects, are less well studied, compared with direct effects such as abortion.
The range of economic impacts ranged from £0 to £2370, although this does include a severe BVD type 2 outbreak.29 Removing this figure leaves a maximum figure of £552, which relates to the impact of reintroduction of BVD to a completely naïve herd after PIs have been removed.30 The mean economic impact of the 31 papers was £82.80. When adjusted by removing the severe type 2 outlier, this figure became £46.50.
Of the various searches performed, Google Scholar found 22 of the final 31 papers and 31 surplus papers. Web of Science found 22 of the final 31 papers and 7 surplus papers, and PubMed found 17 of the final 31 papers and 3 surplus papers. Google Scholar found the most results, but the search method is not simple to perform with multiple search terms, and inevitably it does return more repeated results. There were also more irrelevant results and more grey literature results.
The variation seen in the outputs of the papers shows differences between the impact of endemic or subclinical BVD and epidemic or severe acute situations, which are usually associated with infection in a naïve herd. The impact of infection is therefore dependent on the immune status of the animal and severity of the strain. The range in economic impacts is also accounted for by differences in impact measurement.
Carman and others29 highlighted a range of impacts on dairy herds affected by the outbreak and discovery of BVDV type 2, and amounted to between £198 and £2370 in adjusted figures. There is little description of the calculation of this figure however. The Pasman and others30 paper addressing standard mixed endemic and epidemic infections in the Netherlands is interesting in that the authors assumed a lifelong immunity following infection. Scientific opinion more recently assumes only 12 months’ duration of immunity because of the nature of BVDV and the fact that true immunity from BVD is not about protection for the vaccinated dam, but actually concerns sterile immunity, or freedom from challenge, for the fetus within.31 The Pasman and others30 paper was published a year or so before the widespread availability of efficacious vaccines in Europe, and the authors state that under no circumstances should PIs be removed from a herd, lest the herd becomes naïve and then suffer such a costly breakdown. Sørensen and others32 looked at the impact of BVD in a standard, naïve Danish dairy herd, and showed that while there appeared to be a significant difference in annual net revenue between a ‘no risk’ and ‘risk of introduction’ situation over the first five years of virus introduction, there was no significant difference in the following five years, hence the lowest economic impact figure given as 0. Bennett and others33 also give a very low figure of between £2.25 and £13.50 (adjusted); however, it is worth noting that this assumes a national UK incidence of susceptible herds of only 5 per cent, and only losses in those herds, not in herds that have endemic disease. The non-peer-reviewed paper by Bennett34 examines the effect of acute infection in fully susceptible dairy herds, and this provides a relatively high figure of up to £142. This may be because, as well as addressing widespread acute infection, he assumes that all infection occurs during gestation. In an all-year-round calving herd this is unlikely; however, it does highlight the even higher economic risk to seasonal calving herds that suffer an outbreak in a naïve herd during the breeding season. Following the theme of immunity to BVDV, Chi and others35 assumed that 40 per cent of vaccinated herds suffered no effects of BVD. From an immunological point of view, many BVD vaccines only provide a reduction in clinical effects of the disease, and failure to prevent the birth of PI animals is still a risk factor. Furthermore, from a compliance point of view, it has been shown that the majority of vaccine is not used in a way that would provide the protection that is claimed.36 37 Bennett38 is a review of the Bennett and others33 paper, but with the impact of government subsidies removed, representing ‘border prices’. Inflation-adjusted, both the maximum and minimum values represent 37 per cent of the supported prices. Again, values are low as losses are assumed in only 5 per cent of UK herds that are naïve. Bennett also states that this variation in values reflects changes in the severity of the disease effects.
Houe24 is a review paper that collated a lot of the published information; however, there were no formal selection criteria, and so it did not constitute a systematic review or meta-analysis. Stott and others39 looked at disease prevention measures to reduce avoidable losses and whether they were cost-effective, showing that costs and losses of BVD including biosecurity in susceptible herds were on average lower than the costs and losses of BVD in unknown-status herds that spent less on biosecurity. The lack of knowledge made BVD biosecurity a less attractive risk management strategy with the constraint of a fixed income, which ultimately did not pay off. Gunn and others40 is a non-peer-reviewed poster that showed that small herds with low milk price and high death rate experienced less expensive outbreaks, but proportionally lost 20 per cent of income over 10 years, whereas outbreaks in larger herds with higher milk price and lower death rate were more expensive in the short term but only suffered 8 per cent income loss over 10 years. Gunn and others41 is a paper relating to beef cattle using a Monte Carlo state transition model over 10 years, which highlighted that 53 per cent of expected losses are due to reduced reproductive efficiency, with the estimated overall impact on a beef suckler cow being between £45.30 and £56.10 with a mean of £51.30. This highlights the ongoing impact of BVD in an endemic situation, due to the effect on seronegative animals within a herd. Fourichon and others42 looked in detail at the impact of BVD on dairy herds in France. The paper demonstrated two scenarios of an average case farm and a severe case farm, with the greatest impact being on milk yield, producing figures of between €75 and €133 (£69.20 and £123 updated), without considering effects of milk quota. Economic impact was less when milk yield was maintained with purchase of cows, and the highest cost was through increased mastitis. Gunn and others43 proposed a figure for the maximum annual investment in BVDV prevention in dairy herds, justified to ensure that no PI is acquired. This was £64.60 per cow, or £87.00 after adjustment. This represents the benefit for a naïve herd excluding BVD from the farm. However, the authors concede that even this figure is conservative due to the difficulties in taking account of depressed fertility and immunosuppression in acutely infected animals.
Towards the end of Norway’s successful eradication of BVD, Valle and others44 produced a retrospective cost–benefit analysis after 10 years of BVD control. This stochastic simulation model used figures for the health, production and fertility impact of BVD from herds that were seropositive at the start of the eradication scheme. This is important to note because it should take account of the widest range of impacts of BVD, even in herds that have not isolated active infection, so can be seen as a ‘baseline impact’ of endemic disease, albeit in a low cattle density environment. The largest financial effects of BVD were seen in reproduction (extra days open) and extra animals lost, representing 24 per cent and 28 per cent of the total financial loss, respectively. Prenatal infections represented 37 per cent of losses.
In the most recent update to the Reading model, Bennett and IJpelaar22 examined the welfare impact of endemic diseases including BVD. Although there is no economic value produced for the welfare impact, the increased BVD impact figure, when compared with the authors’ previous estimates of £10.70–£25.70, represents revised and updated estimates of key disease variables, as well as revised numbers of animals affected, with a mean of 10 per cent of breeding cows. Work from New Zealand45 46 looked at a similar data set of around 600 dairy herds, and analysed bulk tank milk BVDV antibodies and associations with production and health parameters. The Compton and others paper45 was a proceedings paper; however, the later peer-reviewed Heuer and others paper46 showed that there was a 2 per cent increase in abortion rates, an increase from calving to conception of 2.4 days, and 5.8 per cent decrease in total milk production with increasing bulk milk antibody level. This thorough data analysis produced partial budget losses of NZ€87 per cow, giving an adjusted figure of £40.00. However, the authors concede the figure to be conservative because there was no consideration of impact on calf health, mastitis or retained placentae. A later paper by Reichel and others47 produced a lower figure of £16.20; however, within this decision-tree analysis, there is no consideration of the effects of transient infection or immunosuppression. As mentioned above with regard to assumed vaccine efficacy, this paper used a figure of a maximum of 80 per cent when analysing cost-effectiveness of control options.
Barbudo and others48 calculated that reproductive failure could account for up to 23 per cent loss in gross margin for beef suckler herds suffering BVD effects over a 10-year period following an initial epidemic. These costs, however, were often hidden by an extended breeding season. Hessman and others3 looked at the impact of BVD in a feedlot situation by analysing data retrospectively from over 20,000 calves using a partial budget analysis. The varying levels of exposure to PIs showed performance losses of acutely infected animals amounted to between £32.40 and £72.50 (adjusted figures), corresponding to $41.84 and $93.52 from the original analysis. There was also a 55 per cent increase in feed conversion efficiency for those cattle not exposed to PIs (P=0.03), which, along with differences in fatalities, would have accounted for the greatest economic impact. This difference was only in the 66 days of the feeding period that was analysed, and the mean bodyweight of youngstock was 233.182 kg ± 1.7 kg (standard error of the mean) on arrival.
Stott and others49 again looked at beef herds, producing a figure of up to £48.10 (adjusted). The paper highlighted the risk of reintroduction of disease and showed that the higher the probability of further infection, the greater the cost of disease. Of note in this paper is that veterinary and labour costs were included; however, labour costs were put at an arbitrary level of £1 an hour, representing the low opportunity cost of family labour often used in those farms studied.
Häsler and others50 analysed the cost–benefit of the Swiss eradication scheme using a spreadsheet model, producing a figure of just over SFr16 million for the impact on the whole cattle population. Mortality and milk yield were the most significant contributors to losses. The adjusted figure of £6.46 seems low; however, as this was based on 2008 figures, the figure is affected by the strength of sterling compared with the present day, and may also represent differences in cattle production. In 2012, Stott and others produced economic impact figures to support the Irish BVD eradication scheme. In the paper they analysed dairy, beef suckler and beef finisher systems in stochastic, Markov chain, partial budget simulations. The impact in dairy herds was greater, at $63 per cow (£54.30 adjusted figure) compared with beef suckler herds at an average of $32 per cow (£27.70 adjusted). Smaller herds (<51 cows) were affected more per cow than larger herds at $38 compared with $29. Beef finisher units suffered an impact of $19 (£16.40 adjusted) per cow per year, mainly through loss of value and growth rate and increased treatment costs.
Smith and others51 looked at cost-effectiveness of BVD control measures, and produced a figure for the impact of BVD in beef suckler herds of £27.30 (adjusted). The figure was produced by bringing three Monte Carlo simulation models together, which each looked at annual risk of BVDV introduction, effects of BVDV over 10 years after introduction to a naïve herd and a model for the economic costs of BVDV infection. A non-peer-reviewed poster52 was produced on the impact of BVD on Slovenian dairy herds, based on a Monte Carlo simulation model. The main costs identified were lower milk yield and additional treatment costs, with a final adjusted figure of £155. There was an assumption in the simulation however of a PI animal incidence of 2 per cent, with 40 per cent naïve animals and 58 per cent acutely infected. There was also a paper53 that used the authors’ own calculations to produce a figure for the impact of BVD in the Hungarian dairy sector of £11.20 (adjusted); however, there was no effect of infertility, immunosuppression or other subclinical effects. Santman-Berends and others54 recently produced a stochastic model for the eradication of BVD from the Netherlands’ dairy industry. It was assumed that a herd would go from immune to susceptible when 50 per cent of the herd were seronegative through replacement only, not through waning of immunity. Furthermore, for vaccinated herds they assumed no losses due to BVD, and only 0.1 per cent probability of ineffective vaccination and 10 per cent of herds not vaccinating effectively. This was using the six-monthly BVD vaccine, Bovilis BVD (MSD). The paper based the impact figures on Hogeveen and others,55 which is in Dutch. Santman-Berends and others54 produced an average figure of €72 per milking cow, altered for inflation. Production losses in youngstock were not considered. The economic impact produced was £15.70, after adjustment.
The final paper19 that has been included is work from the Royal Veterinary College, London, which was commissioned by the AHDB Dairy (DairyCo) for the English BVD working group, and is at the time of writing unpublished. The partial budget analysis addressed costs and losses associated with BVD in beef and dairy herds, and calculated that BVD costs the dairy industry between £21.32 and £42.63 per cow, with the impact split with 37 per cent losses and 63 per cent costs. The impact split in the beef sector was 50/50, with a resulting range of £26.78 and £53.55.
Some papers of relevance were not included in this review because they were published before the set timeline, in a foreign language or were part of other papers. Wentink and Dijkhuizen56 looked at a case study of 14 Dutch dairy farms affected by BVD, and provided a figure of around 136 Dfl (£86) per dairy cow with herd variation of 42–285 Dfl (£26.60–£180). Bennett and others57 produced similar data to a paper already included.33 Also of interest is a recent paper by Gates and others58 looking at the impact of BVDV seropositivity on performance indicators in 255 Scottish beef suckler herds and 189 Scottish dairy herds. On average, calf mortality rates were 1.35 per cent higher in seropositive beef herds and 3.05 per cent higher in dairy herds. While no economic figure was provided, this paper is of relevance because farmers will appreciate the economic impact of this on farm.
In summary, the economic impact of BVD ranges from £0 to £552 per cow per year, with a mean impact of £46.50. Endemically infected herds would be experiencing an impact of between £6.46 and £87 per cow per year, with outbreaks in naïve herds ranging from £28.50 to £2370 with a severe outbreak of virulent virus. There appears to be no consistent differentiation between the level of impact in beef and dairy systems; however, the impact of BVD infecting a large proportion of calves in a tight calving beef system cannot be overestimated. Most losses occur through reproductive issues and most analyses, whether on-farm or otherwise, will underestimate impact of secondary issues such as immunosuppression. Potential losses can be reduced through use of effective vaccination; however, ultimately eradication of BVD needs to be viewed as an investment, with costs of diagnostic testing, PI removal, vaccination and monitoring being factored against reduced losses in the long term.
Alistair Stott, Jonathan Rushton, Peter Nettleton and George Gunn gave guidance and support with the dissertation, which formed the basis of this paper.
I finally thank my partner, now wife, Francesca, for tolerating the time that the dissertation and this paper has taken.
Contributor MVT provided overall supervision
Funding The main author was funded for his Master’s degree in International Animal Health by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health UK Limited.
Competing interests The main author was funded for his Master’s degree in International Animal Health by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health UK Limited.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.
If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways. | <urn:uuid:9637bf02-f3df-4fce-9250-47e652c67ba8> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/181/13/347 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593657151197.83/warc/CC-MAIN-20200714181325-20200714211325-00317.warc.gz | en | 0.956253 | 6,187 | 3.125 | 3 |
🠈 Gilsonite 🠊
Gilsonite, a form of asphaltite, is an intriguing organic mineral created from the solidification of petroleum. The mineral is black and is shiny like obsidian when freshly broken.
The material came to the attention of pioneers when a blacksmith described coal to the natives. The Utes brought a sample of gilsonite to the blacksmith in 1868. When he tried burning it, the material melted and nearly burned down his building.
Gilsonite is named after Samuel H. Gilson who created a commercial mining operation in 1888. The first vein to be developed was on the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation. Locals pressured Congress to remove 7,000 acres from the reservation in 1888 to open the first mine.
The mineral forms in petroleum bearing basins and is actually found around the world. Being hot and dry, the Uintah Basin is the only place where the mineral is found in quantities sufficient for commercial mining.
The video shows a person trying to burn a chunk of gilsonite with a torch.
- Utah Geological Survey (Drawn 11/3/2017)
- Wikipedia - Gilsonite (Drawn 11/3/2017)
- Utah History To Go - Samuel Gilson (Drawn 11/3/2017)
Prev ~ ~ Index ~ ~ Next | <urn:uuid:228b2e7b-2920-4af6-bee5-276d80b65964> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | http://vernalutah.us/page/gilsonite | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250620381.59/warc/CC-MAIN-20200124130719-20200124155719-00338.warc.gz | en | 0.9087 | 282 | 3.484375 | 3 |
View from nowhere
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)(Learn how and when to remove this template message)
In journalism ethics and media ethics, the term "view from nowhere" refers to a theory about the potential negative effects of neutrality in reporting whereby journalists may disinform their audience by creating the impression that opposing parties to an issue have equal correctness and validity, even when the truth or falsehood of the parties' claims are mutually exclusive and verifiable by a diligent researcher. Media critic and professor of journalism Jay Rosen has been a notable critic of the practice and promoter of the term. Rosen borrowed the term from philosopher Thomas Nagel's 1986 book The View from Nowhere.
Writer Elias Isquith argued in an article for Salon that "the view from nowhere not only leads to sloppy thinking but actually leaves the reader less informed than she would be had she simply read an unapologetically ideological source or even, in some cases, nothing at all".
The goal of objective and unbiased reporting ("just the facts"), often leaves subjective decisions about the evaluation of competing facts in a news report up to the audience. A journalist who does not help the audience evaluate which set of competing facts are most reasonable has taken the view from nowhere.
- 1 Common patterns of illogic characterize view-from-nowhere reports
- 2 Mitigation
- 3 See also
- 4 References
- 5 Further reading
- 6 External links
Common patterns of illogic characterize view-from-nowhere reports
A journalist who excludes relevant pieces of information from the set of true facts is telling a lie of omission; if the audience had all the missing data, it would reach a different conclusion. A journalist who strives for neutrality may also fail to exclude popular and/or widespread untrue claims from the set of facts about the story. A journalist may fail to confront their audience's biases and wrong conventional thinking because they forget the existence of the people on the other side of camera or printing press, and thus don't analyze their audience and address the audience's preconceptions.
Jay Rosen has suggested that some journalists of weak character who don't want to anger any party in any way because they lack the necessary personal courage to confront wrong beliefs will adopt view-from-nowhere reporting.
Journalists suffering from innumeracy may also be a source of view-from-nowhere reports. When a source provides statistics to support their claims, and the reporter is unable to evaluate whether the numbers are plausible, they may uncritically relay false information rather than report that the source provided incorrect data.
A journalist who knows or suspects his bosses, station, and/or network are biased may self-censor, thus producing the view from nowhere in an otherwise honest journalist who wants to protect his employment.
Special access to sources
Politicians or other sources who benefit from view-from-nowhere journalism grant more access to the journalists who promote a view from nowhere, thus crowding out other journalists, leading to a disinformed public, and bad public policy that harms everyone. This feedback loop creates a self-reinforcing cycle of bad journalism in politics and bad politicians in office.
"He said, she said" pattern
The hallmark pattern of view-from-nowhere journalism takes the form of "A said X; B said Y," where X and Y are mutually exclusive claims and Y is absurd, and then the story ends without comment. The reporter fails to reject Y or conduct further investigations to illuminate what reasonable observers in the audience would conclude if they were able to do the reporting themselves.
Thus view-from-nowhere journalists are often accused of acting like stenographers instead of journalists, merely repeating whatever statements are told to them, including obvious lies from well-known liars with obvious conflicts of interests. The lies and liars may be presented to the audience as though they possess credibility equal to all other honest claims made by other people.
Anger from all sides is not an indicator of balance, fairness or truth
View-from-nowhere journalism sources often try defend themselves by claiming, "Both sides are angry at us, therefore our reporting is fair, balanced, and correct". This is illogical, as equiposition of angered parties has no bearing upon truth or falseness of a report, "fairness", or objective "balance", especially when the balance of truth is 100 percent lopsided to only one party.
A good reporter avoids view from nowhere, then suffers accusations of "bias"
The aggrieved parties whose claims are wrong often accuse "bias" against the reporter who stakes out the truthful position. Naïve audience members will confuse "perspective" with "bias", especially when the truth is unwelcome to them. Every human must have a perspective. A good journalist will be aware of their own perspective and disclose it to the audience if it is relevant, and take steps to accommodate their own known blind spots. But an accusation of bias implies that the reporter has blindly or deliberately altered the story to change the conclusion an audience should draw from a report.
Admitting that all reporters must have some biases does not make neutrality for all stories into the objective, honest framing for all stories. Neutrality is only reasonable for situations where the facts support that middle-of-the-road position. A good journalist will address their own preconceived bias at the beginning of the story. Not every journalist's bias is so great or relevant to every story that it alters the reporting in a meaningful way that would lead the audience to wrong conceptions of the topic.
Educating the public to be vigilant for this condition in news stories protects some of them from its negative effects.
News sources can protect their entire audience from this effect if all reporters stories are reviewed by editors who use a quality checklist for all stories which includes an assessment of the false neutrality bias of view-from-nowhere reporting.
A good journalist takes steps to ensure their perspective doesn't become biased, altering the facts or analysis of the meaning of the story, and shares this information about their bias-fighting behavior on the story with the audience. The audience can then decide for themselves if enough was done to mitigate bias, if it was relevant at all.
- Maras, Steven (2013). "The view from nowhere". Objectivity in journalism. Key concepts in journalism. Cambridge, UK; Malden, MA: Polity Press. pp. 77–81. ISBN 9780745647357. OCLC 823679115.
- Isquith, Elias (12 April 2014). "Objectively bad: Ezra Klein, Nate Silver, Jonathan Chait and return of the 'view from nowhere'". salon.com. Salon. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Rosen, Jay (26 August 2011). "Why political coverage is broken". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Rosen, Jay (15 September 2011). "We have no idea who's right: criticizing 'he said, she said' journalism at NPR". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Greenwald, Glenn (13 January 2012). "Arthur Brisbane and selective stenography". salon.com. Salon. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Rosen, Jay (4 June 2004). "He said, she said, we said". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Ball, James (2017). Post-truth: how bullshit conquered the world. London: Biteback Publishing. ISBN 9781785902147. OCLC 974677489.
- Brendan, James (9 June 2016). "Death to the 'view from nowhere': how Donald Trump broke the media's brain". ibtimes.com. International Business Times. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Carlson, Matt (2017). Journalistic authority: legitimating news in the digital era. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231174442. OCLC 972089995.
- Friedersdorf, Conor (30 October 2011). "Stop forcing journalists to conceal their views from the public: the case against the view from nowhere". theatlantic.com. The Atlantic. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Friedersdorf, Conor (12 January 2012). "So whaddaya think: should we put truthtelling back up there at number one?". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Greenwald, Glenn (12 October 2012). "Martha Raddatz and the faux objectivity of journalists: establishment journalists are creatures of a highly ideological world and often cause ideology to masquerade as neutral fact". TheGuardian.com. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Kovach, Bill; Rosenstiel, Tom (2014) . "Journalism of verification". The elements of journalism: what newspeople should know and the public should expect (3rd ed.). New York: Three Rivers Press. pp. 97–136. ISBN 9780804136785. OCLC 869140989.
- Nielsen, Greg M. (2016). "Critical theory and acts of journalism: expanding the implied audience". In Gasher, Mike; Brin, Colette; Crowther, Christine; King, Gretchen; Salamon, Errol; Thibault, Simon (eds.). Journalism in crisis: bridging theory and practice for democratic media strategies in Canada. Toronto; Buffalo; London: University of Toronto Press. pp. 53–73. ISBN 9781442637368. OCLC 928122123.
- Rosen, Jay (14 June 2010). "Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right: on the actual ideology of the American press". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Rosen, Jay (10 November 2010). "The view from nowhere: questions and answers". pressthink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Stephens, Mitchell (2014). Beyond news: the future of journalism. Columbia Journalism Review books. New York: Columbia University Press. doi:10.7312/columbia/9780231159388.001.0001. ISBN 9780231159388. OCLC 842879009.
- Sullivan, Margaret (16 September 2012). "He said, she said, and the truth". The New York Times. New York. p. SR12. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- Ward, Stephen J. A. (2015) . The invention of journalism ethics: the path to objectivity and beyond. McGill-Queen's studies in the history of ideas. 38 (2nd ed.). Montréal: McGill-Queen's University Press. ISBN 9780773546301. OCLC 908308806. | <urn:uuid:52d61a3d-689d-4786-a7df-c40447bbbdbf> | CC-MAIN-2020-05 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_from_nowhere | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-05/segments/1579250594705.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20200119180644-20200119204644-00275.warc.gz | en | 0.884522 | 2,249 | 2.765625 | 3 |
1800 108 8008
What are the first 1000 days in pregnancy?
What is 'the first 1000 days?'
Pregnancy care remains one of the most important aspects of obstetrics and gynaecology. The first 1000 days signify the period that spans 1000 days from the conception of a child. It's a period that denotes the children's experiences throughout the first 1000 days of their life - from conception to age 2. The concept of ''First 1000 Days'' involves a period of swift physical growth and quick mental growth.
The foetal health depends upon the mother for nutrition and various other aspects. Mother's nutrition plays a crucial role in the mental, emotional and physical growth of the foetus. The first three months of pregnancy are referred to as the first trimester.
'The first 1000 days... Why are they so important?
Statistics suggest that about 155 million children worldwide suffer from stunting. Stunting or stunted growth involves a low birth weight for the age of such children. 52 million kids are wasted. It signifies that 52 million kids have a low birth weight for their height. A population of about 41 million kids grapple with obesity or being overweight. As many as 50% of pregnant women worldwide suffer from anaemia due to poor diet. The same issue contributes to anaemia even in the babies born to anaemic ladies. Millions of children are unable to get the nutrition they require for healthy growth and development.
Nutrition in pregnancy and infancy:
Do you wonder how you can facilitate proper trimester care? You may consider various methods to ensure sufficient nutrition for your infant during the first 1000 days. The first step towards full-fledged pregnancy care starts during the first three months of pregnancy. The first step is to eat a varied diet full of vitamins and minerals. Breastfeeding is the best way to start strengthening the baby soon after he/she is born. Breastmilk is known for various health benefits. It promotes higher intelligence, IQ scores, and motor function skills. Breastmilk is essential for healthy brain development. Breastmilk protects the baby from various health issues. They may include eczema, abdominal issues, SIDS, various allergies and viruses. Breastfeeding betters the overall senses and emotional processes in the babies.
As you are done with breastfeeding, stockpile your kitchen with natural ingredients and wholesome foods. Make sure that your baby is getting a list of items full of micronutrients. They should be free of allergens. It's time you allow your baby to pamper his/her taste buds. Informed parenting and nutritional diet are the backbones of those healthy 1000 days.
Nutrition in the first 1000 days:
Parents play a crucial role to identify the kid's nutritional requirements. Babies require ample proteins, calories and nutrients- as a foetus and as a child - for a healthy life. Below is a list of nutrients essential for the babies during the first 1000 days.
- Vitamin A:
Major organs, vision and cells depend on Vitamin A. The deficiency of Vitamin A may be rare. But now, it's occurring as a global challenge.
- Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (Like DHA):
DHA, more formally, long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential in the healthy development of the brain. DHA aids the overall immunity and immune function. This is probably the reason why most obstetricians ask pregnant women to stay away from fish contaminated by mercury.
No other nutrient replaces Calcium in the way it aids bone function. Calcium is an irreplaceable part of a kid's diet as it addresses bone health. Calcium forms a major part of the nutrition required for healthy blood clot function, muscles, teeth and nerves.
Folate is essential for the health of both mother and her baby. Folate plays a crucial role in the development of the brain and spinal cord. Fruits, grains, prenatal vitamins and leafy green vegetables promise ample supply of folate.
Iodine actively contributes to healthy brain development. Lack of iodine or scarcity of iodine may impair brain development.
Around one in 10 kids grapple with iron deficiency in some phase. The deficiency of iron may cause impairment of social behaviour, disabilities while learning and irritability. Every baby is born with some quantity of iron. The overall amount of iron naturally depletes in 4-6 months. And therefore, iron supply is important throughout the 1000 days of a baby's life. Iron is also linked with depression in later life. Even if you address the deficiency of iron in the first 1000 days, it may influence adulthood. It's important to ensure ample provision of iron from pregnancy through the age of two.
Baby's brain in the first 1000 days:
The first 1000 days are crucial for the baby's brain to develop quickly. The baby's brain develops quicker than ever during these first 1000 days. The way the brain of the baby develops and accustoms itself to its environment determines the kind of personage the baby will grow into. A dietary regimen you introduce to your platter in pregnancy will contribute to your baby's intelligence. Similarly, the diet in early childhood allows your baby to learn, adopt physical skills and foster good emotional health.
Being famished or exposed to distress during the first 1000 days will leave lifelong impacts on your baby's healthy growth. The brain is an organ that associates itself with many other parts of the body. Therefore, if it's exposed to unsafe or unhealthy circumstances in the first 1000 days, it hampers physical growth as well.
Distress and trauma during the first 1000 days:
Baby's nervous system and healthy growth is an unavoidable aspect of a healthy pregnancy and childbirth. Researches denote that a mother exposed to distress or depression in pregnancy may end up complicating the overall pregnancy and childbirth. High blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and heart ailments may threaten the baby later in his/her life.
Domestic violence or emotional neglect in pregnancy may leave lifelong impacts on the baby. Parents who lack composure before the baby is born may fail to establish a good emotional rapport with the baby. It's not your fault if you encounter any emotional neglect in pregnancy. But speak to a counsellor or a life coach if you need a kind hand.
What best can you do to achieve the maximum benefits from the first 1000 days?
- Enjoy a healthy and balanced diet when you are pregnant
- Seek psychological support if you feel that you are facing emotional neglect.
- Avoid smoking, caffeine, alcohol and drugs
- Breastfeed the baby at least for the first 6 months.
- Make sure that the baby is on a healthy and balanced diet
- Give your baby the love and attention and make her feel secure
- Manage your stress by getting involved in various playful and funny activities
- Form an affable relationship with your baby
- Relationships are the bonds that your baby learns to develop from you.
- Let them learn how to view the world and how to fit into a healthy society with healthy relationships.
Leave a Comment:
Stay update don our latest packages, offer, news, new launches, and more. Enter your email to subscribe to our news letter | <urn:uuid:037ddb57-8063-4ffa-a94b-9129cb007fad> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://www.motherhoodindia.com/what-are-the-first-1000-days-in-pregnancy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506528.19/warc/CC-MAIN-20230923162848-20230923192848-00310.warc.gz | en | 0.927646 | 1,507 | 3.09375 | 3 |
Securing Virtual Private Networks (VPN)
This article introduces you to the Virtual Private Networks, the demand of today's growing networks, and its endangered security. This article highlights the following topics:
- What Is VPN?
- Security Threats to Public Networks
- How Intruders Break Into the Network System
- Symmetric Encryption
- Asymmetric Encryption
- Typical Example of the Use of Encryption
- IPSec Security Services
- Internet Key Exchange
- Initiating a New VPN Connection
- Modes of Configuring Encryption on a VPN
- Making Secure VPNs Through IDS and Firewalls
- SSH, SSL, and PPTP Technology in VPN
The widespread range of networks and the less expensive availability of Web access to the public gives rise to different security hazards that become bottlenecks for some important corporate, business, and military transactions to be performed on public data networks. Therefore, some multimillionaire sectors can afford to buy the complete data link and dedicate it for their private and secret data transfers; but what will the others do? They cannot afford to have such a dedicated link. Here comes the advent of Virtual Private Networks to the rescue and safeguard the private and secret data of these organizations.
Data transference on a shared network such as public data networks, for example, ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) networks, Frame Relay networks, and IP (Internet Protocol) networks on which data is delivered securely by applying some security measures on the data packets and the machines on the path, for example hosts (source computer and destination computer), routers (such as gateway routers and peer routers), and bridges.
The most vulnerable threats found in networks to the secured and stable packet delivery are as follows:
- Loss of Privacy
- Loss of Integrity
- Denial of Service
The solutions of the above described security threats are possible and applied in Virtual Private Networks so that they are not vulnerable any more.
- To provide confidentiality for avoiding loss of privacy through the use of encryption or the art of cryptography.
- To provide a source of authenticity to avoid impersonation.
- To provide integrity.
- To provide satisfactory service at a reasonable cost.
Generally, an intruder follows these steps to break into a network or a computer:
The intruder does this by finding public information or appearing as a normal user. At this stage, it is difficult to detect them. The intruder might walk through your DNS tables to find the names of your machines. The intruder might search news articles and press releases about your company.
The intruder scans for information, but still doesn't do anything harmful. If required, they walk through all your Web pages and look for CGI scripts (CGI scripts are often easily hacked).
Exploit the system:
The intruder starts exploiting possible holes in the target machines. The intruder might attempt to exploit well-known buffer-overrun holes by sending large amounts of data. The intruder may start checking for login accounts with easily guessable (or empty) passwords.
Get hold of the system:
At this stage, the hacker has successfully gained a foothold in your network by hacking into a machine. The intruder's main goal is to hide evidence of the attacks (doctoring the audit trail and log files) and make sure they can get back in again. They may install 'toolkits' that give them access, replace existing services with their own Trojan horses that have backdoor passwords, or create their own user accounts.
Gain advantage of the attack:
The intruder takes advantage of their status to steal confidential data, misuse system resources (i.e. stage attacks at other sites from your site), or deface Web pages.
Encryption is a method by which the data is encoded through some encryption algorithm into some other (unreadable) form at the source computer before transmitting and then it is decoded at the destination by applying the reverse decryption algorithm.
There are two types of encryption:
- Symmetric encryption, also known as conventional encryption.
- Asymmetric encryption, also known as Public Key encryption.
The symmetric encryption scheme consists of the following components:
|Plain text||Constitutes our data that has to be sent securely over the network.|
|Encryption algorithm||Can be any technique of hiding the original data and making it unreadable to others.|
|Secret Key||Used because the encryption algorithm, if known to anyone, can be decrypted easily on the network but if a key just like a hidden password is used to lock the data, the data cannot be unlocked by the intruder even he/she gets to know the algorithm by any means and only the recipient can unlock it.|
|Cipher text (Encoded)||The encrypted text that is encoded in some other form and unreadable to others.|
|Decryption algorithm||The reverse algorithm that can be applied to decrypt or decode the encrypted data to make it readable again. This is done at the destination side.|
Page 1 of 3 | <urn:uuid:83d11cdd-6cd4-4e6c-872f-226f2c68a1ab> | CC-MAIN-2014-10 | http://www.developer.com/java/other/article.php/3373431/Securing-Virtual-Private-Networks-VPN.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-10/segments/1393999657010/warc/CC-MAIN-20140305060737-00090-ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.908925 | 1,031 | 3.296875 | 3 |
Cabbagetown Southwest is a neighbourhood with a rich history and distinct character that is reflective of suburban residential development in the late 19th century in Toronto. The area was subsequently influenced by a period of economic decline and industrialization in the mid-20th century, and subsequent revitalization in the post-war period. Understanding the history and evolution of the neighbourhood, including its development, significant events, and notable individuals can help inform an understanding of how and why Cabbagetown Southwest is historically relevant and unique.
An historic overview is complemented by the analysis of the neighbourhood’s existing buildings and streetscape, including a review of dates of construction, architectural styles, and building features. Doing so can help to identify and refine an understanding of the specific features and attributes that define the neighbourhood’s character, and how those features relate to the history of the area. A high-level overview of work completed to-date is included below.
The Cabbagetown Southwest study area is an established downtown neighbourhood defined by rows of Victorian and bay-and-gable houses that date from the mid to late 19th century. The study area is part of the larger Cabbagetown neighbourhood, the boundaries of which have evolved over time but generally refer to the residential neighbourhoods east of Sherbourne to the Don River and south of Wellesley to Shuter Street, excluding Regent Park. The study area’s historic character and sense of place are derived from its uniform streetscapes with a consistent architectural vocabulary that reflects its late 19th century development as a suburb of the growing city.
The study area is located northeast of the original Town of York, comprising park lots 3 and 4 north of Queen Street between Sherbourne and Parliament Streets. Beginning in the 1860s these park lots were subdivided for speculative development and sold to small-scale developers, who began constructing dozens of bay-and-gable and cottage style houses for the city’s booming middle and working class. By the 1880s, the study area was largely built out and had assumed its present-day character, with some commercial development along Gerrard and Dundas Street.
As the geography of middle-class residential neighbourhoods evolved and moved outwards from the central city in the early decades of the 20th century the study area began to experience a change in demographics, coupled with the gradual introduction of light industrial and manufacturing uses. Many houses were subdivided, while others, particularly south of Dundas, were demolished and replaced with commercial and manufacturing buildings. A number of significant social institutions were established around this time, including Central Neighbourhood House, the Girl’s Home and Lee School, and Seaton House.
Beginning in the 1970s and continuing through the turn of the 21st century the study area and larger Cabbagetown neighbourhood has attracted renewed interest, valued for its historic character, proximity to downtown and strong community network. Largely spared from the mass demolitions associated with urban renewal – in large part due to citizen activism – the neighbourhood has and continues to be home to a diverse population, including the LGBTQ community and creative professionals, and continues to provide support for low-income residents and those living with mental health and addiction issues through neighbourhood social institutions.
The study area’s historic character has persevered through periods of significant change, retaining its mid to late 19th century streetscape defined by rows of Victorian houses that reflect a formative period in the development of Toronto.
The majority of buildings in Cabbagetown Southwest were constructed between 1870-1900, a period of rapid population and economic growth in Toronto. Neighbourhoods like Cabbagetown, the Annex, Seaton Village and Trinity-Bellwoods were largely developed by speculative and small-scale developers, and were home to the growing middle class. Builders adopted standard architectural forms such as the bay and gable and development patterns that maximized the deep and narrow lots, contributing to a consistency that defines the context of these neighbourhoods.
Interspersed with the late 19th century houses are a few early to mid-20th century industrial and commercial buildings, including former warehouses and factories. These buildings reflect the northward expansion of industrial activity from the St. Lawrence neighbourhood, and often replaced dilapidated housing stock. Where they still exist most have been converted for residential or institutional use, with a few having been re-purposed for commercial use.
The third prevailing period of construction is the late 20th century, from 1970 to 2000, a period during which the neighbourhood was being revitalized and attracting new interest. Primarily located south of Dundas and east of Ontario Street you can find tall and narrow row houses – inspired by their historic context – that replaced former industrial uses or dilapidated houses and garages.
Houses in Cabbagetown Southwest show the influence of a variety of popular late 19th and early 20th century architectural styles. As is common with bay and gable houses, few can be considered to perfectly reflect any one particular style, in larger part due to the fact that the basic form and massing was dictated by the standardized lot size. Instead, houses may include features and elements that are associated with one or more popular styles, reflecting the tastes and aspirations of the developer, builder and owners. A bay-and-gable house could be modified to reflect the Gothic Revival, Queen Anne Revival or Edwardian styles, depending on its window proportions, brick detailing, and other features.
As a result and for the purposes of this study, the majority of houses have been identified as “Victorian” in style; only where they exhibit a clear and concerted effort to be associated with an architectural style have they been labelled as such. A few buildings have been left unidentified, as they do not reflect any architectural style or stylistic influence. | <urn:uuid:1be54fa0-ba2d-4d2f-b27f-c8c9f7837396> | CC-MAIN-2023-23 | https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/planning-studies-initiatives/cabbagetown-southwest-heritage-conservation-district-plan/research-and-analysis-cabbagetown-southwest-hcd-plan/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-23/segments/1685224654871.97/warc/CC-MAIN-20230608103815-20230608133815-00727.warc.gz | en | 0.97313 | 1,193 | 3.09375 | 3 |
Meditation – An Amazing Solution to All Health Problems
Research has shown that regular practice of mindfulness meditation has beneficial effects on health. It lowers blood pressure and increases alpha and theta brainwave activity, which can help reduce stress levels. It also improves relationships and decreases loneliness. Additionally, meditation is known to improve one’s self-compassion. People who practice mindfulness meditation are more likely to be compassionate and to engage in selfless behavior.
Moreover, research has shown that mindfulness can help people suffering from chronic illnesses. It has been found that people who practice mindfulness meditation have lower blood pressure, lower stress levels, and have improved immune response. The practice of mindfulness meditation can also help people overcome anxiety and depression, which can contribute to high blood pressure. In addition, meditation improves sleep habits. It has been known to help people get the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep. Try it today. Improve health with Fildena 50 mg.
Process of meditation
To begin the process of meditation, sit comfortably and focus on your breath. Your breath is always present and can serve as a useful anchor in the present moment. It’s easy to get distracted by thoughts, emotions, and sounds, but it’s important to remember to come back to your breathing. Sit comfortably in a chair or cushion, and keep your legs crossed in front. It’s best to rest your bottom feet on the floor.
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to reduce blood pressure and reduce the symptoms of heart disease. It has also been shown to improve sleep and reduce gastrointestinal difficulties. Additionally, it can improve a person’s immune system. It can also help people manage painful emotions, such as anger and depression.
In recent years, public interest in mindfulness meditation has exploded. Despite its popularity, it is not yet a proven cure for all health problems. Research is needed to prove that mindfulness is an effective therapy. A randomized controlled study of elderly people who were randomly assigned to mindfulness meditation has shown positive results.
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to enhance creativity and innovation. Many executives have started practicing meditation because they find it helps them switch gears when the stress levels are mounting. It increases resilience and reduces cognitive rigidity, making it easier for the mind to make balanced decisions. It also improves relationships.
In addition to mindfulness meditation, journaling is a great way to practice it. This practice helps you focus on one thing at a time and allows you to be free of distractions. It is most effective when done away from computers and cell phones. It also helps people curb unhealthy habits and become more focused. The practice can also help people suffering from anxiety and physical ailments.
In addition to alleviating stress, it has been proven to reduce blood pressure. By regulating hormone levels, this practice stabilizes blood pressure and reduces the effects of stressful situations. Research suggests that mindfulness meditation can be helpful for people on antidepressants or other types of medications. It has also been shown to improve the ability to manage negative emotions, such as anger and fear. According to a small study published in the journal Consciousness and Cognition, participants whose symptoms were related to stress and anger showed significant improvements after one session of meditation.
Increasing mindfulness practice has also been found to improve the productivity of working adults. A recent study from Harvard Medical School found that people who meditated daily experienced improvements in their ability to maintain attention and fewer distractions. In addition, the research has shown that mindfulness can help people improve their personal relationships and improve their productivity.
Studies have shown that meditation can rewire the brain to focus on happiness, peace, and success. Research has also shown that mindfulness meditation helps people reduce the levels of brain tissue associated with anxiety and stress. In addition to reducing anxiety and stress, mindfulness meditation can also help people improve their sleeping patterns.
Transcendental meditation is a great technique that helps a person calm down and relax. It slows down the brainwaves, breathing, and heart rate, and helps the mind enter a meditative state known as the “alpha brainwave.” This state of consciousness is known to reduce stress and improve health in a variety of ways.
It is an effective way to overcome addiction and improve heart health. In addition, the practice of meditation can be very helpful in overcoming addiction. Vipassana meditation, for example, is very effective in overcoming addiction. In addition, Transcendental Meditation improves cardiovascular health and decreases the risk of heart disease.
Many studies have been conducted on the health benefits of this meditation, including research showing that people who practice it experience a reduction in metabolic rate. Researchers have also found that people who practice TM report lower rates of pain and disease. This may be due to the fact that TM improves the connection between the mind and body. It reduces stress and promotes deep rest, which leads to profound benefits for the body.
Deal with anxiety
Transcendental meditation has also been shown to help people deal with anxiety, depression, and stress. The technique helps people gain self-awareness, which is essential in combating stress and depression. Other benefits of TM include lower blood pressure and improved brain function.
Transcendental meditation has many benefits, including increasing happiness, reducing pain, and preventing chronic diseases. Some studies even show that it can help people manage the effects of metabolic syndrome and pre-diabetes. It also improves cognitive function in children and adults with ADHD. Finally, transcendental meditation helps people prevent and treat substance abuse.
Transcendental meditation has numerous benefits that will make it an invaluable tool in your daily life. Not only does it help you control your stress and improve your health, but it also helps you improve your creativity and self-awareness. It can also help people manage their blood pressure and improve their sleep quality.
Transcendental meditation class
If you’re curious about this practice, consider enrolling in a transcendental meditation class. These intensive classes last about four days and include follow-up instruction. During the training, you should practice for 20 minutes twice a day, preferably before breakfast and before dinner. Practicing TM regularly is a fantastic solution to all your health problems.
Research studies have shown that practicing TM can reduce blood pressure significantly. It has also been linked with a reduction in the risk of stroke and heart attack – both of which are leading causes of death. Moreover, a study of adolescents with high blood pressure showed that those who practiced it for eight months lost significant amounts of weight and body mass index. These results were observed in comparison to a control group receiving health education only. If you have any health issues so you can use Super Fildena for your healthy health.
Transcendental meditation is a simple and natural technique that promotes deep relaxation. It involves silently repeating a mantra, which may be a word, sound, or phrase. It can also help you develop concentration and focus. In addition to these benefits, it requires a healthy balance between the body and the mind.
Transcendental meditation has been shown to improve the quality of life of breast cancer patients. It reduces the stress and emotional upset that
as a result of the cancer treatment. As a result, it helps improve the patient’s mental and emotional well-being, which is vital to their survival. Furthermore, it helps decrease the amount of stress hormones, which are known to cause cancer.
A recent study funded by the David Lynch Foundation found that TM reduced the amount of medication a patient needed to cope with PTSD. A majority of patients who practiced TM were able to stabilize their anxiety meds, while 40% of non-meditators had to increase their dosages. | <urn:uuid:73b64b7a-a00a-4a3c-a32e-827b6b361753> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://seoslog.com/meditation-an-amazing-solution-to-all-health-problems/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296943809.22/warc/CC-MAIN-20230322082826-20230322112826-00435.warc.gz | en | 0.954364 | 1,573 | 2.75 | 3 |
I make no claims to be a good musician, but I am some kind of musician—I play an instrument, know a bit of music theory, listen to a wide range of music across several genres, read Alex Ross’s blog: the usual stuff. One result of this experience, I’ve found, is that roughly 95% of the science journalism that purports to make connections between neuroscience or psychology and music leave me holding my head in my hands. This must be the same feeling that philosophers get when a neuroscientist purports to have have solved some longstanding question of ethics, by means of brain scans.
Consider this report, from Scientific American:
You might have more in common with the chicken on your plate than you realize. Sure, you’ve also got two thighs, two legs, two breasts, and two wings (sort of). But new research suggests that chickens might like to rock out to the same tunes you’ve got on your iPod. The kinds of sounds that humans tend to find pleasant is called consonant, which are different from from unpleasant sounds, which are called dissonant. Think of the difference between a Mozart sonata and fingernails on a chalkboard, and you’re on the right track….
The difference between consonance and dissonance is demonstrated through two short piano passages: One follows all the simplest rules of harmony, the other violates them—and, indeed, the second example sounds abrasive.
We learn that a recent clever experiment revealed that day-old chickens do, indeed, prefer “consonant” music, and this is said to lend weight to the hypothesis that such a preference is universal and innate, including in humans.
The trouble is, the dichotomous division of music into “consonant” and “dissonant” really makes no sense, except as a cartoon, when it comes to describing the music that humans produce and enjoy.
Much of what makes Mozart’s music interesting is his use of artfully deployed dissonance; variance from the textbook rules contributes to the variety and color that distinguishes his greatest music from piano music for children. By the time you get to Beethoven, harmonies that break the rules of consonance are so thoroughgoing that some of his contemporaries thought of him as a lawless musical revolutionary. And we’re still in the early 19th century!
Wagner is an auditory thesaurus of dissonance: The famous “Tristan” chord, which Wagnerians will travel thousands of miles to hear played, is epochally dissonant. Debates rage to this day over the theory underpinning that unreal combination of notes.
The dissonance of 20th-century concert music is well known. Indeed, this is the point when people begin to argue that composers departed from the “natural” laws of consonance, and ought to revert to them. (Their defenders argue that they were pushing ahead with the experiments of Wagner and the Romantics.) But sidestep that debate. Here’s a more persuasive point, for most Americans: The minor third played against a major third chord, the essence of the blues (and much rock), creates a minor second interval, the very interval that Scientific American describes as the epitome of a sound that humans hate. (Do you hate B.B. King?) Jazz, with its flatted ninth chords, contains dissonance in abundance. Metal, with its love of the flatted fifth, the “devil’s interval,” fetishizes dissonance.
It is certainly interesting and important that day-old chicks display a preference for one kind of musical interval over another. But the leap from that finding to any statement about human musical taste is unimaginably vast. Rest assured (although you knew this): Day-old chickens do not prefer the same music that you do. And in the face of Shostakovich and Charlie Parker, not to mention B.B. King, neuroscience stands mute.
There’s a bit more to music than this. | <urn:uuid:e921d76b-4040-4997-b7ba-dea54a57a553> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://blogs.wsj.com/ideas-market/2011/11/11/neuroscience-cant-explain-wagner-or-b-b-king/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1409535924501.17/warc/CC-MAIN-20140909013109-00081-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953513 | 846 | 2.625 | 3 |
Shy students may face challenges in school due to their hesitancy to participate and engage in classroom activities. However, whether they fall behind or not depends on various factors such as their individual learning abilities, support system, and teaching methods utilized in the school.
If you require more information, continue reading
As an expert in the field of education and student development, I can confidently assert that shy students may indeed face challenges in school. Their hesitancy to participate and engage in classroom activities can sometimes hinder their academic progress and overall learning experience. However, it’s important to note that whether they fall behind or not depends on various factors, such as their individual learning abilities, support system, and teaching methods utilized in the school.
Due to my practical knowledge and experience working with shy students, I’ve witnessed firsthand the impact their shyness can have on their academic performance. Shy students often find it difficult to actively participate in class discussions, ask questions, or seek clarification from their teachers. This lack of involvement can lead to a lack of understanding and can hinder their overall comprehension of the subject matter. Additionally, shy students may face challenges in group activities or presentations, further affecting their academic progress.
However, it’s crucial to recognize that being shy does not necessarily equate to falling behind in school. Despite their hesitancy to engage in classroom activities, shy students can still excel academically with the right support system and teaching strategies. Teachers and parents can play a vital role in providing shy students with the necessary encouragement and creating a supportive learning environment that fosters their confidence and participation.
In a Forbes article, Susan Cain, the author of “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking,” states, “There’s zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas.” This quote resonates with the discussion at hand, highlighting that shy students possess unique qualities and strengths that can contribute to their success in school, even if they may not be the most outspoken in class.
To further understand the impact of shyness on academic performance, let’s explore some interesting facts:
- Shyness is a personality trait that affects approximately 40% of the population.
- Shy students often have higher levels of anxiety in social situations, which can impact their classroom performance.
- Some shy students may excel in independent learning environments, where they have the opportunity to work alone and at their own pace.
- With the right support and strategies, shy students can develop their communication and social skills, aiding them in overcoming their shyness and thriving in school.
- The classroom environment and the teacher’s approach to student participation can greatly impact shy students’ engagement and involvement.
In conclusion, while shy students may face challenges in school, such as hesitancy to participate, it is not a guarantee that they will fall behind academically. With the right support, encouragement, and classroom strategies, shy students can excel and reach their full potential. As educators and parents, it is crucial to create inclusive learning environments that value and nurture the unique strengths of all students, including the shy ones.
Table: Factors Influencing Shy Students’ Academic Performance
|Factors||Impact on Academic Performance|
|Individual learning abilities||Shy students may have unique learning styles that can be tapped into to enhance their academic performance.|
|Support system||A strong support system consisting of teachers, parents, and peers can help shy students overcome their shyness and provide the necessary guidance and encouragement.|
|Teaching methods||Utilizing a variety of teaching methods, such as individualized instruction, group work with clear roles, and supportive feedback, can enhance shy students’ participation and comprehension in the classroom.|
Here are some more answers to your question
Most teachers consider shy students to be less intelligent than they really are, and a few teachers offer shy students special attention. While shy students perform on par with their peers in group and written tests, they often fall behind in individual and verbal examinations.
This video has the solution to your question
Leonard Sax, the author of “Boys Adrift, Girls on the Edge,” discusses the reasons why girls are outperforming boys in almost every level of education in Canada. He suggests that creating a school environment that caters to the learning styles of boys without excluding or hindering the success of girls is crucial. Sax emphasizes the value of hands-on learning and active participation for boys and suggests incorporating this approach into the classroom to increase engagement and achievement. However, he underlines the significance of not restricting this approach to only boys, ensuring that all students have access to a variety of learning styles and opportunities. | <urn:uuid:c71568da-f47b-42d6-8d6e-64fa7405ea0f> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://fulz.org/admission/general-problems-do-shy-students-fall-behind-in-school.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506528.3/warc/CC-MAIN-20230923194908-20230923224908-00786.warc.gz | en | 0.953009 | 973 | 3.40625 | 3 |
On the morning of October 16, 1968, the world of sports was shaken like never before. It was barely six months after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., with America still stricken with the African Americans’ movement for equal rights. The Olympics Project for Human Rights (OPHR), an organization established to protest racial apartheid in the US and South Africa, called for a boycott of the Mexico City Games of 1968 that failed to materialize. Yet, the Games are more or less remembered mostly for the organization’s propaganda.
The highlight of the Games was undoubtedly the infamous Black Power salute, performed by two Black Americans after the 200 meter final. Tommie Smith won the gold and John Carlos won the bronze, while Australian Peter Norman took home the silver. As the three of them climbed onto the dais, they wore an OPHR badge. These Americans did not wear any shoes, and wore black socks to represent the impoverished condition of the Blacks. While the Star – Spangled Banner was being played, Tommie Smith and John Carlos bowed their heads and wore a black glove (Originally, both were to wear a pair of gloves, but Carlos had forgotten his and Peter Norman suggested to them to share Smith’s pair. Tommie Smith wore one on his right hand and Carlos on his left hand). As the two Americans left the field, they were booed off by the crowd.
The incident made front page news around the world. The IOC felt that there was no place for such political gestures at the Olympic Games, and the both Tommie Smith and John Carlos were suspended from the US team and banned from the Games Village. Back home, they and their families received several death threats. Neither of the two continued in the field of athletics for long, while Norman was not picked for the Australian team for the 1972 Games despite finishing third in trials. Tommie Smith and John Carlos played American Football. Norman continued to run till 1985 when he contracted gangrene after tearing his Achilles muscle, which nearly resulted in amputation of his leg.
Although the media was initially against the silent protest, their attitude has changed over time. Many hail the incident as an important event during the Civil Rights movement. In 2005, San Jose University unveiled twenty feet high statues of the two athletes’ protest. Many other protests during sporting events have been inspired by the salute (remember the black armbands worn by Heath Streak and Henry Olonga during the 2003 World Cup, protesting against Robert Mugabe’s tyrannical rule in Zimbabwe?). Tommie Smith, John Carlos and Peter Norman may not have achieved as much as most of the other legendary Olympians, but their contribution to sports and society will never be forgotten.
[Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dogukansavas/2038575880/] | <urn:uuid:725deb85-aaaa-41c9-83f9-792b980574db> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://theviewspaper.net/the-black-salute/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886120573.0/warc/CC-MAIN-20170823132736-20170823152736-00347.warc.gz | en | 0.976072 | 584 | 3 | 3 |
- [verb] to consider or examine in speech or writing; "The article covered all the different aspects of this question"; "The class discussed Dante's `Inferno'"
Synonyms: discourse, talk about
- [verb] speak with others about (something); talk (something) over in detail; have a discussion; "We discussed our household budget"
Synonyms: hash out, talk over
- talk shop
negociate, negotiate, talk terms
consider, debate, moot, turn over, deliberate
bandy, kick around
moderate, chair, lead
confer, confabulate, confab, consult
- bandy about
thrash out, hammer out | <urn:uuid:bb1fbd75-2ae6-4aaf-9d16-be26b5ce01b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.elook.org/dictionary/discuss.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705957380/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120557-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.893296 | 143 | 2.828125 | 3 |
Definition of Cheddar pink
1. Noun. Mat-forming perennial of central Europe with large fragrant pink or red flowers.
Cheddar Pink Pictures
Click the following link to bring up a new window with an automated collection of images related to the term: Cheddar Pink Images
Lexicographical Neighbors of Cheddar Pink
Literary usage of Cheddar pink
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. The Garden: An Illustrated Weekly Journal of Gardening in All Its Branches by Esther Baldwin York (1906)
"Of the cheddar pink it is needless to say much. It is one of our best dwarf border plante, but one might, perhaps, express a desire to see it used in Lhe ..."
2. The Wild Garden: Or the Naturalization and Natural Grouping of Hardy Exotic by William Robinson, Alfred Parsons (1903)
"A mossy old wall, or ruin, gives a home for many rock-plants which no specially-prepared situation cheddar pink, SAXIFRAGE, ..."
3. A Garden in the Suburbs by Leslie Williams (1901)
"I have a great affection for the cheddar pink, but I cannot yet get it to grow here; we have no limestone, but it might put up with chalk. ..."
4. The Encyclopaedia Britannica: “a” Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature edited by Hugh Chisholm (1911)
"... cheddar pink, occurs only on the limestone neta at Cheddar. Two others, D. plumarius and D. ..."
5. The English Flower Garden and Home Grounds: Design and Arrangement Shown by by William Robinson (1907)
"D. cassius (cheddar pink}.—One of the neatest and prettiest of the dwarf Pinks, the fragrant and rosy flowers appearing in spring, on stems 6 in. high, ..." | <urn:uuid:dc0b1ae2-b9b9-44e6-99c1-d497b8581cd0> | CC-MAIN-2017-47 | http://lexic.us/definition-of/cheddar_pink | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-47/segments/1510934805114.42/warc/CC-MAIN-20171118225302-20171119005302-00653.warc.gz | en | 0.866301 | 418 | 2.6875 | 3 |
Severe scurvy struck Columbus's crew during his second voyage and after its end, forensic archaeologists suggest, likely leading to the collapse of the first European town established in the New World.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic, beginning Europe's discovery of the New World. Two years later on his second voyage, he and 1,500 colonists founded La Isabela, located in the modern-day Dominican Republic.
The first permanent European town in the Western Hemisphere, La Isabela was abandoned within four years amid sickness and deprivation. (See "Columbus's Cursed Colony.")
Historians have long blamed diseases such as smallpox, influenza, and malaria for the town's demise. But a study of graveyard remains from the town site, reported online in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, suggests that an ancient seafarer's scourge—scurvy, a severe vitamin C deficiency—plagued Columbus's first colony and worsened the illnesses behind their town's collapse.
"There were lots of diseases, fevers, epidemics, we know from their writing. It seems no one was spared," says study author Vera Tiesler, an archaeologist at Mexico's Universidad Autonoma de Yucatán. "But apparently scurvy played a big role." (Related: "Columbus's Failing Mining Colony Pilfered Its Supplies.")
Since the 1980s, archaeologists have been unearthing the bones of La Isabela's inhabitants from graves behind the abandoned village's small churchyard, and storing them at the Museo del Hombre Dominicano in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The skeletons are of sailors and colonists from La Isabela who were buried in the Catholic tradition, laid on their backs with their arms crossed. "They were still encased in earth when we started the study. We had to clean the bones to proceed," Tiesler says. (One of Tiesler's co-authors, her husband and colleague Andrea Cucina, is a National Geographic Society grantee, on a separate but related project.)
Tuberculosis, syphilis, and other diseases that historians believe struck La Isabela would leave their mark on skeletal remains. Tiesler and colleagues examined 27 of the skeletons, all but one belonging to men. At least 20 bore signs—striations carved in the outer lining of bones—of what the study called "severe scurvy." The telltale marks were found on weight-bearing bones on both sides of the body, evidence against severe bone infection, which would strike in one location.
The study "shows convincingly that the crew members of Columbus who were buried at La Isabela had suffered, but also had healed, from scurvy before they died," says scurvy expert George J. R. Maat of Leiden University Medical Center, the Netherlands.
Scurvy remained the scourge of seafarers until the 18th century. British sailors famously were nicknamed "limeys" for the lime juice they drank as a preventive for the severe vitamin C deficiency, which produces symptoms including lethargy, anemia, and, in severe cases, the re-opening of old wounds. The ailment typically appears after one to three months of complete vitamin deficiency.
The study suggests that the colonists, weakened by a two-month voyage and the one-month wait at sea that preceded it, probably already suffered from scurvy when they arrived in 1494.
In the New World, however, the colonists would have been surrounded by fresh fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C. So how did they end up with severe scurvy?
"The implication, to me, is that the Spaniards had cut themselves off almost completely from their new environment by alienating the native people around them," says Charles Mann, author of 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created.
"The Caribbean is full of foods that are packed with vitamin C," Mann says. Fruits such as guava and wild cherries, and the native staples of cassava (yucca) and sweet potato, all contain enough vitamin C to forestall scurvy.
"Packed behind their stockade in La Isabela, they seem to have sampled next to nothing of the rich menu of the Caribbean," Mann says. "It was a lethal mistake."
The finding might explain why Columbus implored the Spanish crown to send more shipments of food to the early colonists. But none of the foodstuffs requested were rich in vitamin C, and ultimately the colonists faced rationing.
"One problem was that Christopher Columbus himself was more concerned with looking for gold than feeding his people," Tiesler says. "In their letters they all want to go home."
The organization of La Isabela, the tools, and its pottery all point to Spanish colonists pursuing a European lifestyle there. "This probably also applied to their dietary preferences," says the study.
"They also faced constant attacks" by the native people, Tiesler says. Later weakened by European epidemics, the native Taino people of the island probably couldn't have helped the colonists, she adds, even if they had wanted to.
Tiesler acknowledges that her initial report of the scurvy findings, at a 2010 bioarchaeology meeting, met with strong skepticism from some archaeologists, who did not see evidence of scurvy in the colonists' own accounts from the time. "Diagnosis from old letters is very difficult," Tiesler says. "We argue [that] the historical evidence and what we see on the bones support the argument for very bad cases of scurvy."
Some of the bones do show some signs of healing, likely as a result of the colonists eating limited amounts of some foods containing vitamin C, says Maat. A. E. van der Merwe, Maat's Leiden University colleague and fellow scurvy expert, concurs. Some vitamin C must have been present in the diets of some of the dead, she says, because they had been healed of scurvy when other diseases killed them.
Follow Dan Vergano on Twitter. | <urn:uuid:dfdf82aa-4e62-4597-9d01-30947fd1653b> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/04/140415-columbus-crew-town-scurvy-science/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187825700.38/warc/CC-MAIN-20171023054654-20171023074654-00149.warc.gz | en | 0.974295 | 1,264 | 3.921875 | 4 |
Principles of Bridge and Life
(These can apply usefully to relationships, business, music, and more....)
I believe the game of bridge is as much about personal character as about technical skills:
handling oneself at the table and knowing how to deal with others. Equanimity, flexibility,
focus, respect, and sense of humor win the game.
The following (loosely-organized) principles are my reflections about the game,
thinking back to my typical patterns and feelings when I'm playing well (and when I'm not).
Some of these are undoubtedly also influenced by the more than 100 bridge books I've studied
as I continue to work on my game.
I also try to observe the situations where good players who "should" be winning
fail to do their best: one can always learn from occasions where things didn't work.
Some of these principles overlap or repeat one another, but what's wrong with that?
It is useful to look at ideas from different angles. The whole list can probably be
summed up as: "Honor others" - "Think creatively" - "Conserve energy" - "Say less"
- "Move on" - "Evaluate context" - "Stay balanced" - "Count" .... But the depth appears in
the ways these are worked out.
One's own focus
- There is no substitute for thinking clearly on your feet, with a fresh and alert mind.
- Experience should help you make reasonable moves automatically, saving your
concentration for the close decisions.
- Think of several alternatives before choosing an action. The most immediate idea is not
- Let your plays speak for themselves; they don't have to be explained to anyone.
Especially don't volunteer an explanation that nobody asked for.
- When there's only one choice, take it...but also consider a line that holds your
probable losses to a minimum. Sometimes accepting a small defeat is much more valuable
than staking all on a miracle. Figure out what the opponents can make, and hold your
losses to be surely less than that.
- In a disaster, get it over with and move on. Prolonging the agony won't help.
- "What if" discussions after a bad result (or even after a good result) usually waste
more energy than they help. Stay fresh for the next problem. When someone has a disaster,
just write down the score quietly and move on.
- Take breaks between rounds. Real breaks. Talk about something else.
- Fresh and relaxed beats tense and nervous.
- Don't let emotion keep you from doing your best. But have enough emotional
engagement to enjoy what you're doing.
- Do the best you can with what you're given to work with. Don't focus on the things you don't have.
- Don't let anything break your concentration. Little things will get an edge into your
mind, and there will go your game.
- When you are the dummy (out of play), relax and really rest. Save your mind for the
times when it will matter.
- Collect as much information as you can before committing to the most difficult decisions.
Often the decision can become a sure thing given enough context.
- Know more than you say.
- Play steadily and don't give away anything in your manner.
- Do your thinking before any crisis comes up, so you can handle it calmly.
- Don't try to solve the crisis after it's already passed.
- Learn more by listening (reading) than talking...let useful information from the opponents
come to you in the bidding, rather than shutting everybody out with an unsound aggressive guess.
- Conduct yourself with quiet confidence. You might be egregiously wrong, but if the opponents
don't know that they might misjudge the situation and let you out.
- Say less than your instinct tells you to say.
- When you are already in a position to win, don't blow it by trying too hard. "Just take it out
of the freezer and heat it up."
- Let your partner do his/her job.
- Make things as easy and clear as possible for your partner.
- Help your teammates/partner enjoy the game and do their best.
Criticizing them in action never helps.
- In any close situation, err on the side of supporting your partner or in
leading your partner's suit. Show your partner your solidarity with the partnership
effort. Show your partner you believe him or her!
- Choose the action that best keeps your partner in the picture. Let two heads
be better than one. A masterminding approach says you don't trust your partner.
- Give your partner accurate information.
- Your partnership's assets combined are far more important than your own in isolation.
A telescope is two separate lenses focused together with an optimum distance and
- "The most important single skill any bridge player can possess is to be a good partner." (motto
on the back of score cards)
- Your partner means well.
- If partner may be already out on a limb, don't saw it off. If partner is under
some pressure, allow leeway.
- If partner's play had good reasoning but it just didn't work out this time, don't blame
- Be rational enough that your partner can trust you.
- Prefer a practical if imprecise move if there is any chance your partner would be
confused by a more scientific move. The practical move also gives less information to the
opponents. This game is an art, not a science.
- If partner makes a final decision, don't overrule it. It's bad for partnership trust.
Keep in mind that partner's final decision might well be "pass."
- Keep your promises. Show up for the game on time. Have the cards that fit your
bidding. As often as possible put down a better dummy than your bidding may
- Talk about "we" and "us" rather than "you" or "I" or "me." It's a cooperative effort.
- When partner is playing badly, don't say much. When partner is playing very well, don't
say much. Do compliment partner on finding an outstandingly good play,
but away from the table.
- Build rapport by talking about things other than the task at hand.
- It is more important to build partner's tactics and attitudes than to build
partner's technical skills.
- Play a simple and logical set of agreements rather than a complicated system
that requires a lot of memory.
Why waste part of your mental effort on ideas that are unnecessarily complex?
Elegance and grace make things easy for both partners.
- A difficult defense superbly played in cooperation by both partners
is one of the most fulfilling aspects of the game...and one of the best places to
pick up huge wins. Defense sets a great partnership apart from a good one.
- Help your opponents have a good time and feel respected. If they don't
keep coming back for more, there's no game.
- If you need the opponent to make an error to give you any chance, put the
guess as early as possible so the opponent can't collect information first.
- Make it easy for opponents to volunteer information you can take advantage of.
(If they want to tell you what their cards are, let them!) Let as much unforced
information come to you as possible.
- Anticipate the opponent's move before he makes it; you might be able to stay
a step ahead.
- Trust your opponents to know what they are doing. That is the case that matters.
If they don't know what they're doing, you'll win anyway by skill and don't need to try hard
to beat them.
- "Be courteous -- opponents may just be friends we haven't met yet!" (motto on the old
standard Yellow Card)
- Give your opponents the room they need to make honest mistakes. Don't take their
bad judgment out of the picture; let them use it to help you!
- Make your opponent guess last.
- Use subtle irrationality only in situations where partner can't be fooled, or where
it doesn't matter if partner is fooled. The idea is to have partner trust you but also
create the illusion that the opponents dare not trust you. (The illusion is enough -- make
them second-guess you, especially when you're right.)
- Don't step into the opponents' argument. Politely and firmly remind them that it's time to
go to the next hand.
- If opponents choose to defeat themselves with an unsound play, let them. Don't try too
hard when the win is already coming to you; save your energy.
- If the opponents overstep, double them: not to punish them but to protect your own
- Push the opponents only slightly beyond their comfort level, and
do it as early as possible -- they'll make the most wrong guesses that way.
If they guess right anyway, don't sweat it.
- Let your opponents play their game, but don't get sucked into it! It is much easier
to win on neutral turf or your own turf than on the opponents' turf.
- Don't let the opponents glimpse uncertainty in any of your plays.
- Count. Collect information all the time. Develop habits so information flows to you
all the time without any "extra" effort. Count. If you know where almost everything is,
having a mental picture of what everyone is working with, you can figure out the contexts
for their decisions and know what is happening. Much of that picture can already come
into focus early in the hand as inferences, and then continue to be refined as more
facts come in. Count. A clear mental picture leads to plays that are either sure or very
strongly with the odds. Count. Build a powerful combination of reasoning and intuition.
- Know the language, the information that can be communicated legally through
bids and plays. That is the way to know what your partner is doing, and to collect free
information from the opponents.
- A moderate pace is best.
Don't play too fast; you'll miss important details.
Don't play too slowly; you'll annoy
impatient people and perhaps lose your own focus as well.
- "Pass" is more often the winning bid than one might expect.
- Don't bid the same feature twice. Your partner heard you the first time.
- If partner has a bad hand but one long suit, try to get that suit to be trump
so your partner can contribute some value. That is to say: your best role on any
given hand might be to become the dummy; don't hog all the contracts.
- Often it's good to save your high cards for later...but not so late that they go away.
- One can win more by playing steadily solid defense than by playing too much offense.
- If you have wasted high cards in the opponents' suit, your hand and your partner's
hand are not worth as much as it sounds like they "should" be. Circumstances alter
values, sometimes severely.
- Timing is crucial.
- Be willing to give up one trick to get more in return -- take losses early to keep control.
- On offense: only rarely is it right to "take the money and run."
- Think as far ahead as you can, but not so far ahead that you forget what you are doing
in the current moment.
- Play the card you are known to hold...especially if it is equal in value to some
other card they don't know you have.
- Make plays that offer the opponent a losing option -- don't paint him into a corner
where his only remaining desperation play will work.
- Know the basics thoroughly. Review them regularly.
- Learn how to sense when your own assets, nice enough in isolation, are worthless
in context. And also sense when a meager-looking feature is worth gold. Act accordingly.
(This level of understanding is difficult!)
- Capture the opponents' high cards, not your partner's high cards.
- Don't try to outrun an incoming attack, just sidestep it. Let the opponent waste
his own energy.
- The simplest approach is often best. Fancy stuff just creates confusion.
- Arrange the situation so even if you're wrong you get something out of it. You can
still win without being right.
- If a fish jumps into your boat, keep it.
- You canna change the laws of physics. If a hoped-for outcome is inconsistent with
the facts, discard that strategy and look for something else.
- Some situations call for passive strategy: don't try so hard that it gives something away.
- Don't volunteer information unless it can help your side more than it helps opponents.
- When you see a clear solution, take charge. When you don't, don't!
- Think ahead during the bidding so the maximum amount of free information will come to you,
while you give out no more information than necessary yourself.
- When it's right to play defense, play defense. When your side has no defense, try
to take the contract or at least to push the opponents beyond their comfort zone.
- Negative inferences are just as important as the clues you do hear and see. They can
reveal a remarkable amount of information; learn to listen to silence.
- If your hand and partner's hand don't fit, stop bidding. Let the opponents have
this time bomb if they want it.
- If you already have the opponents right where you want them, don't get greedy and
warn them to escape. Go for S J Simon's "best result possible rather than the best
possible result." Don't gild the lily.
- If you have a natural advantage, don't throw it away. If you are at a disadvantage,
act boldly anyway.
- Keep your partner on balance and the opponents off balance.
- A bad play can pay off in future situations.
- Focus on getting a good result for your side, not on giving a bad result to the
opponents. Treachery isn't as profitable as simply playing well, especially in the long
- "Anything you say can and will be held against you." If your bid won't help your
side buy the contract or help your partner's defense, choose to pass instead. Why tell
the opponents what you have? Bids that advertise weakness backfire on the user
at least as often as they work.
- A mostly moderate approach will probably win in the long run. Let those with extreme
or uncooperative tactics burn themselves out.
- Raise your partner's bid sooner rather than later. It lets partner in on the good news immediately,
and it shuts the opponents out of space where they could have done something to their advantage.
- When a problem appears binary, stop to think of a third option (no matter how crazy)
before acting. The third way might be better!
- The previous deal is over.
- On some days bad luck will stop even the best players.
- Focus energy on possibilities that need the attention or the close decision; let
everything else take care of itself.
- One learns most by playing against and with the best.
- Every card might matter.
- Review both your good results and bad results away from the table to learn from
them; be reflective and honest about aspects that need improvement. (One of my own acknowledged
weakness is opening leads....)
- Let the director and other authorities do their jobs. Cooperate and don't take
matters into your own hands. When something goes wrong, notify the appropriate authority.
The authorities need to feel respected and honored in their jobs just as anybody else does.
- Principles are more important than memorization of facts. But the core of facts is
also necessary. Keep a balance.
- If things appear easy, think of what might go wrong and guard against the unlikely bad breaks.
- If things appear impossible, visualize a possibility that at least offers a chance; don't give up.
- Even the winners might be right only 55% of the time.
- Trust the game to deliver reasonable rewards and punishments -- vigilante or vindictive tactics
are a waste of energy. The system is bigger than you are.
- There is always room for self-improvement.
- Even the most brilliant player in the world cannot influence every hand.
Pick the battles where your opinion does make a difference, and let the others go by.
"Honor others" - "Think creatively" - "Conserve energy" - "Say less"
- "Move on" - "Evaluate context" - "Stay balanced" - "Count" ....
© Bradley Lehman, December 2001, still evolving later | <urn:uuid:1e8e721e-c536-4122-8f65-e7f3a7d9febf> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bpl/bridge-principles.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1409535921550.2/warc/CC-MAIN-20140901014521-00403-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951631 | 3,580 | 2.578125 | 3 |
- News Home
5 December 2013 11:26 am ,
Vol. 342 ,
An animal rights group known as the Nonhuman Rights Project filed lawsuits in three New York courts this week in an...
Researchers have been hot on the trail of the elusive Denisovans, a type of ancient human known only by their DNA and...
Thousands of scientists in the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) are about to lose their jobs as a result of the...
Dyslexia, a learning disability that hinders reading, hasn't been associated with deficits in vision, hearing, or...
Exotic, elusive, and dangerous, snakes have fascinated humankind for millennia. They can be hard to find, yet their...
Researchers have sequenced and analyzed the first two snake genomes, which represent two evolutionary extremes. The...
Snake venoms are remarkably complex mixtures that can stun or kill prey within minutes. But more and more researchers...
At age 30, Dutch biologist Freek Vonk has built up a respectable career as a snake scientist. But in his home country,...
- 5 December 2013 11:26 am , Vol. 342 , #6163
- About Us
Tree Leaves Fight Pollution
21 October 2010 3:02 pm
Environmental organizations keep reminding us that we need to reduce pollution and greenhouse gases. But plants are already doing their part. Research published online today in Science shows that deciduous tree leaves, such as those from the maple, aspen, and poplar, suck up far more atmospheric pollutants than previously thought.
The study concerns the most abundant class of carbon-based particles in the atmosphere, so-called volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Plants produce VOCs when they decay, but a major source comes from automobile exhaust, coal burning, and other human activities. Some atmospheric VOCs combine with oxygen to form tiny airborne particles called oxygenated VOCs (oVOCs), which insulate the atmosphere and lead to warming. These oVOCs have been "poorly represented or partly even neglected in [climate] models," says atmospheric chemist Jos Lelieveld of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz, Germany, who was not involved in the study. And even though plants take up a major greenhouse gas—carbon dioxide—when they photosynthesize, researchers weren't sure if they also consumed oVOCs in large amounts.
So scientists led by Thomas Karl of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, decided to re-examine how deciduous plants interacted with oVOCs. Via a combination of computer modeling, laboratory experiments, and field studies, the researchers looked at how many oVOCs were taken up by a poplar tree leaf sample. Plants exposed to oVOCs increased their normal uptake of the compounds, absorbing 40% more than expected. Although scientists suspected that plants consume small amounts of oVOCs, this study provides the "first concrete data," says chemist Roger Atkinson of the University of California, Riverside, who was not involved with the research.
In another set of experiments, the team showed that stressing out the plants—by exposing them to ozone pollution, for example—also increased their uptake of oVOCs. This suggests, says Karl, that deciduous trees provide good negative feedback for atmospheric pollution: The more polluted the atmosphere becomes, the more oVOCs the plants take up. However, he says, there is a limit to how much pollution plants can handle. Karl and his team now plan to look at pines and other coniferous trees to see if they also suck up oVOCs and other pollutants.
Those data, along with the new work, will help scientists devise more accurate climate models, says atmospheric chemist Mattias Hallquist of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.
Karl suggests another possible benefit of understanding how plants process oVOCs. "This is looking very far into the future," he says, "but perhaps these new models could even lead to genetically engineering plants to uptake more air pollution." | <urn:uuid:d9fe8788-b342-4959-8e73-f25ebd5b1fbd> | CC-MAIN-2013-48 | http://news.sciencemag.org/chemistry/2010/10/tree-leaves-fight-pollution?rss=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-48/segments/1386163053865/warc/CC-MAIN-20131204131733-00021-ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952981 | 841 | 2.59375 | 3 |
Book success for former student
A University of St Andrews alumna has edited a new book which aims to bring serious science to a wider audience.
Anna Grayson’s book – Equinox: The Earth – is based on Channel 4’s flagship science series Equinox and reveals several insights into the planet’s history. As well as describing the findings of the programmes, the authors expand upon them, bringing the stories bang up to date.
The first chapter – When Pigs Ruled the Earth – is written by Anna and focuses on the Lystrosaurus. Over 250 million years ago, a mass extinction wiped out 95% of life on Earth. One of the few species to survive on land was this reptile with mammal-like features. These “pigs” had no predators and therefore multiplied to occupy and dominate the world. From studies of fossils, Lystrosaurus and its close relatives are shown to have features that we would recognise today. Meanwhile, the second chapter, also written by Anna, is entitled Killer Earth. Examining possible causes of mass extinctions, Killer Earth asks whether external factors such as asteroids were really to blame for wiping out dinosaurs or whether an internal force of destruction inside the Earth periodically causes death and destruction. Other chapters, written by Douglas Palmer, Paul Simons, David Jackson and Karl P N Shuker, cover everything from mammoths to earthquake predictions.
Anna Grayson studied Geology at the University of St Andrews and went on to work for the BBC. She worked as a writer and presenter on Radio and TV programmes such as Rock Solid, Postcards from the Past, Science Now, Chain Reaction, How Does Your Garden Grow, Science in the Attic, Earthworks, Live from Mars, The ‘Ology Hour and The Essential Guide to Rocks. She has previously studied the kind of rocks that might have been a contributory factor to the demise of the dinosaurs. Her broadcast work has earned her the RH Worth Prize from the Geology Society of London and a Glaxo Wellcome Science Writer’s Prize for the best contribution to a Science TV programme during 1998. Anna lives near Watford in Hertfordshire.
Equinox: The Earth will be published on 22 September 2000 by Channel 4 Books.
NOTE TO EDITORS – To order a copy of the book or arrange an interview with Anna Grayson, please contact Emma D’Almeida on telephone 020 7881 8176 or email e.d’[email protected]. A new series of Equinox starts in the Autumn. For further information please contact the Channel 4 press office on telephone 020 7306 8444.
Issued by Beattie Media on behalf of the University of St Andrews For more information please contact Claire Grainger on 01334 462530, 07730 415 015 or email [email protected] Ref: annagrayson/standrews/chg/14sep2000
Category University news | <urn:uuid:a9c9f324-8303-4b39-b75f-98ed965bd3a6> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://news.st-andrews.ac.uk/archive/book-success-for-former-student/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510387.77/warc/CC-MAIN-20230928095004-20230928125004-00769.warc.gz | en | 0.928611 | 613 | 2.859375 | 3 |
Trevor E. S. Smith | Hurt? Upset? …..Why?
How we process and file incoming information, influences how we relate to others and how we respond to events. Some of the upset and hurt that we experience can be avoided by making one fundamental adjustment.
The critical change that will make a huge difference in our lives is to put yourself in the shoes of others. Before you turn off and think you have been hearing that from childhood, bear with me a little longer.
I am suggesting that you develop the discipline to consistently ponder why the individual did what they did or said what they said before reacting.
Some of us are far too sensitive and touchy. Our first impulse is to take offence, and feel disrespected. In that state of mind, it is difficult to think objectively, and things go downhill from that point.
We all know people with that mentality, and relating to them is like walking on eggs. The challenge is that traces of the mindset that leads to that kind of reaction might be more present in us than we realise.
Pause for a while and reflect on some situations in which you have been upset or experienced hurt. In your reflection, see if any of these factors were present.
Were you focused on yourself and your needs?
When we focus on ourselves to the exclusion of others, it is easy to find things that are not in sync with where we are mentally. Anything that falls outside of our needs prompts internal conflict, which may or may not be expressed.
Suppressed conflict often manifests as anger or hurt.
You can reduce the number of instances in which you are upset by being more mindful that we need to be interdependent. We have to make sacrifices to support each other. Deny self and reduce anger.
We do not like to accept the role of pride in our lives, but we have some explaining to do. Why would we feel disrespected because we were not mentioned by name in a speech and others were?
Why else would Donald Trump throw away the advantage of his convention speech to return to his childish 'tracing' because Ted Cruz did not endorse him?
Why would we take umbrage to the fact that we were not consulted in the decision-making process or invited to the meeting or function?
In those cases, a haughty self-image has got the better of us.
Reduce instances of being angry and upset by accepting that you might be less important in the larger scheme of things than you think. Increase humility and reduce hurt.
3. Low self-esteem
We are not happy accepting that we might have low self-esteem. However, it is an issue for some of us.
People who are lacking in self-confidence tend to attach a negative spin to unfolding events. There is a tendency to think that things are not in their favour. The motive of others is questioned and rarely deemed to be in their best interest.
Hurt and anger linked to this mindset can be reduced by spending considerable time in mental visualising exercises. Picture yourself experiencing positive outcomes. Play mental videos of things going well for you. Time and time again, see people being kind to you and giving you the respect that you deserve.
Above all, know that you are worthy. Increase self-esteem and reduce anger and being upset.
Did you notice that there is no mention of forgiveness? If there is no offence taken, then there is no need for forgiveness.
Are there situations in which there is genuine cause to be angry or to experience hurt? Yes, but I prefer to pass on some opportunities to be upset. It gives me peace of mind and enhances my relationships.
• Trevor E. S. Smith is a behaviour modification coach with the Success with People Academy, home of the Certified Behavioural Coach Award. Email: [email protected]://certifiedbehavioralcoach.com. | <urn:uuid:bdc46d74-9474-4add-b3f0-58a6623ce367> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/outlook/20160731/trevor-e-s-smith-hurt-upset-why | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886126027.91/warc/CC-MAIN-20170824024147-20170824044147-00355.warc.gz | en | 0.972358 | 801 | 2.609375 | 3 |
Date: 26 May 2017
Andrew Wiles has been awarded the Copley Medal, the Royal Society’s oldest and most prestigious award. The medal is awarded annually for outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science and alternates between the physical and biological sciences.
Andrew Wiles is one of the world’s foremost mathematicians. His proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem the 1990s catapulted him to unexpected fame as both the mathematical and the wider world were gripped by the solving of a 300 year-old mystery. In 1637 Fermat had stated that there are no whole number solutions to the equation xn + yn = zn when n is greater than 2, unless xyz = 0. Fermat went on to claim that he had found a proof for the theorem, but said that the margin of the text he was making notes on was not wide enough to contain it.
After seven years of intense study in private at Princeton University, Andrew announced he had found a proof in 1993, combining three complex mathematical fields – modular forms, elliptic curves and Galois representations. He had not only solved the long-standing puzzle of the Theorem, but in doing so had created entirely new directions in mathematics.
Andrew is a member of CMI’s Scientific Advisory Board and recipient of the 1999 Clay Research Award. | <urn:uuid:b72e5eaf-27e3-474a-a017-50133928feac> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://www.claymath.org/news/copley-medal/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510412.43/warc/CC-MAIN-20230928130936-20230928160936-00434.warc.gz | en | 0.976243 | 282 | 3.046875 | 3 |
Many previous studies have shown that background color affects the discriminability and appearance of color stimuli. However, research on visual search has not typically considered the role that the background may play. Rosenholtz (2001a) has suggested that color search asymmetries result from the relationship between the stimuli and the background. Here we test the hypothesis that background color should have an effect on asymmetries in visual search based on color, using searches for color stimuli on different colored backgrounds. Observers searched for a single known target stimulus among homogeneous distractor stimuli. The target stimulus differed from the distractors only in chromaticity, but targets and distractors both differed from the backgrounds in luminance so that they were easily visible regardless of chromaticity. Target/distractor pairs differed primarily in saturation (Experiments 1, 2, & 3) or in hue (Experiment 4). Each member of each pair of colors served as target and distractor color on both achromatic and red backgrounds. When the stimuli were presented on an achromatic background, response times were shorter when the more saturated member of each pair of colors served as the target color. When the same stimuli were presented on a red background, the asymmetry was either reversed or abolished. When target and distractors differed in hue, there was little asymmetry on the achromatic background but a sizable asymmetry for some color pairs on the red background. On both backgrounds, the magnitude of the asymmetry varied with the difference between the stimulus colors and the background color. Results confirm that asymmetries in color search are dependent on the relationship between the stimulus colors and the background color. Two candidate models are suggested that show promise in predicting these experimental results: Rosenholtz' saliency model (1999, 2001a) and a modification to signal detection theory models in which the observation noise is proportional to the difference between target/distractor color and background color. | <urn:uuid:0d899e19-4397-415a-9e0e-66eee0bc12b0> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15086312/?ordinalpos=3&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655879738.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20200702174127-20200702204127-00317.warc.gz | en | 0.939067 | 389 | 2.734375 | 3 |
What is a Trust
Trusts are more common than people think and they’re not just for the super rich in fact some of the most common services in the UK are trusts. The National Trust, HNS and most charities take advance of the amazing benefits of a trust.
Trusts are common around the world, but they’re most popular where the countries legal system is based on the English legal system. Each Country will adapt the trust law to suit their needs so that the technical details will vary. Our expert Trust team will help you make the right choice when in comes down to deciding where to base your trust.
The Concept of a Trust is a simple one and can be described as follows
A trust is the transfer of assets; These assets are held by a group of people or trust company with a set of instructions to keep the assets for the benefit of others.
The assets can be anything you like, but they mainly hold property, cash, art or shares in other companies.
There are three main parties in a trust
- The Settlor – this is the person or party which is giving the assets
- The Trustee – this is the group of people or trust company who has been asked to look after the assets
- The Beneficiary – this the person or people who will benefit from the trust
All trust will have an arrangement related to how the trust is managed; this is called a Trust Deed
Most people think that the legal owners of assets are the trust but the trust cannot own assets, so the legal owners of the assets are the trustees. While this might alarm a lot of people, the trustees are legally bound to work at all times in the best interests of the beneficiaries and can not place their interests above that of the beneficiaries. This is also said for the settlor, while they can also be a trustee they have to work in the interest of the beneficiary.
Trust can be formed at any stage during the lifetime fo the settlor (there is a small window after the death of the settlor)
Why use a trust?
Trusts are incredibly common, and we use them every day. As mentioned the NHS is a body smaller trust, Most of the workplace pensions are based around trusts. The reason why trusts are so popular are they work, and they provide administration, regulation and taxation clarity.
It’s not the only Pension which takes advantage of trust, Most Life insurance policies have been “Written in Trust“. What is means is once the holder of the policy passes away the policy is paid out into a trust and them-they the trustees will distribute the policy fund in line the insured person wishes.
The Charitable sector is a massive user of trust, though foundations have become more popular over the past ten years. While many large high street charities use trust, there are a large number of smaller trusts and foundations set up to focus on a smaller project. Trusts are very powerful for this giving, since the Settlor and set the desired outcome of the trust for example Lung Cancer research it’s up to the trustees decides the best way for assets in the trust to be used to reach this desired outcome. In many cases, experts will be added as a trustee to make sure they have all the tools in places. The flexibility in a trust is ideal for anyone making long-term commitments.
The cases above show some of the uses of trust the most common use of a trust is to arrange the family assets. Trust are brilliant when it comes to the financial affairs of a family as it all the settlor to have greater confidence on how the assets will be used and put to use. Since the trustee has to work for the benefit of the trustee and the settlor decides who the trustees are the settlor will have 100% confidence that their wishes for their estate will be followed. There is a form of trust called discretionary trusts that be set up for people who aren’t even born.
Common uses for a family to use a trust
- To hold an inheritance for people who aren’t old enough to responsibly look after their affairs
- To provide for individuals who aren’t able to look after themselves
- To pass a family business to other generations
- To leave money to children once there has been a divorce or second marriage
How secret are Trusts
Due to the personal nature of a trust, most people would expect their trust agreement to be kept confidential, Often the beneficiaries of the trust will not know about the trust.
While the details of trust are confidential from most people, many jurisdictions require trusts to submit and tax return and are they are subject to tax. This is not the case for all jurisdictions, but ThomTax will help you with this.
Taxation and Trust
While it’s common to think that trusts are just a means to avoid tax there aren’t many situations where it’s advisable to set up a trust just to gain tax advantages. Setting up a trust is a big step, as the settlor giving away their ownership of their assets to someone else. While the tax advantages do help this decision, the settlor must have a clear outcome they want to achieve by places the property into the trust.
While the tax benefits of the trust are decreasing, there are still many taxation benefits to using a trust. Talk to one of our team to discuss this.
There are many countries which offer tax advantages to trusts but is a lot of cases they’re focused on trusts that are set up to do social good. This may be a charitable trust or foundation for research, but they’re also available to trust that benefit vulnerable or disabled relatives. | <urn:uuid:c2ed5599-8648-417d-aa8c-b081ba652835> | CC-MAIN-2020-24 | https://wordpress-412905-1298764.cloudwaysapps.com/trusts/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-24/segments/1590347410745.37/warc/CC-MAIN-20200531023023-20200531053023-00074.warc.gz | en | 0.971521 | 1,162 | 2.84375 | 3 |
First we had Sci-Fi, then we had Hi-Fi, then Wi-Fi and now we have Li-Fi. What the Fi?
What is Li-Fi you ask? Well according to Wikipedia it is
“a bidirectional, high speed and fully networked wireless communication technology similar to Wi-Fi. The term was coined by Harald Haas and is a form of visible light communication and a subset of optical wireless communications (OWC) and could be a complement to RF communication (Wi-Fi or Cellular network), or even a replacement in contexts of data broadcasting. It is so far measured to be about 100 times faster than some Wi-Fi implementations, reaching speeds of 224 gigabits per second”
Okay so what does this all mean? Simply, you can transfer data through light – SAY WHAT! Li-Fi is the extension which will close the digital divide. Currently there are roughly 4.3 billion people without access to the internet and according to the Dell Report of 2014 on the internet of things (IOT), there will be around 50 billion connected devices by 2020. Currently worldwide information and communication technology requires about 100 nuclear power plants, however with Li-Fi all that will be required is LED lights and solar panels – now that’s what is called eco-friendly.
So how does this impact us? Well as stated, the IOT is ever-growing and we require more and more bandwidth to run these devices. As Li-Fi uses energy from LED lightbulbs, there will be less stress on the bandwidth and it will allow us to activate these devices and use them with much more ease than Wi-Fi which, through my experience, is more vulnerable to slow down or…
Exactly I could not finish that sentence because my Wi-Fi cut out and this is where Li-Fi comes into play. A standard solar shell which powers the LED bulbs and thus the Li-Fi will provide 50MB! 50MB! I can’t even get 4MB in my house.
Li-Fi could be REVOLUTIONARY! Street lights, IOT, less developed countries which have slow to non-existent web access, Li-Fi will allow these countries to fully connect at great speeds. With Google Project Loon and Facebook’s internet.org trying to give internet access to remote areas, Li-Fi is the next edition in building a more connected world.
It does have its downsides, one of which being that the lights always have to be on for connectivity and that the signal cannot pass through walls but for me this is a minor negative as most rooms have light and most people leave their lights on anyway. Regardless, Li-Fi is not here to replace Wi-Fi but to work side by side so any areas which Wi-Fi cannot handle Li-Fi will pick up the slack.
I guess Li-Fi adds a whole new meaning to being switched on! | <urn:uuid:0d0aa8af-42ac-4879-bada-d9144083459d> | CC-MAIN-2017-26 | http://www.omdukblog.com/innovation-hunters/li-fi-closing-the-digital-divide/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-26/segments/1498128320338.89/warc/CC-MAIN-20170624203022-20170624223022-00437.warc.gz | en | 0.950908 | 600 | 2.71875 | 3 |
Health Benefits Of Lemon Water
Lemon is a citric fruit. It is known to have originated from the foot hills of Himalayas before it spread to other parts. Lemon is high in vitamin C and low in calories. It is also a great source of potassium, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. It also has B complex, iron and fiber. All these vitamins and minerals make lemon water a drink with a lot of health benefits. Some of the health benefits of lemon water are.
Drinking warm lemon water helps to improve digestion. Lemon water has citrus flavonoids. Citrus flavonoids support the hydrochloric acid in the stomach in breaking down the food and aid digestion. It also has a calming effect to an upset stomach and indigestion.
Lemon water is a natural detoxifying agent. Citrate which is the main ingredient of lemon inhibits toxins. Whereas the citric acid in lemon water helps to flush out the toxins, lemon water has the ability to enhance the enzyme function of the body and improve the liver function, which helps in filtering the toxins.
#3. Boosts Immune System
Drinking lemon water regularly helps to boost the immune system. Lemon has vitamin C which helps in improving the immune system.
#4. Helps to Lose Weight
The citrus flavonoids present in lime helps digestion. It also has appetite suppressing qualities. Pectin and polyphenols found in lemon also help suppressing appetite. Pectin makes you feel full and contributes in reducing food intake which results in loss of weight. Drinking lemon water regularly helps in reducing weight.
#5. Blood Pressure
As discussed above lemon contains pectin and polyphenols. These two substances are known to increase fat metabolism. They increased HDL (Good) Cholesterol and reduced LDL (Bad) Cholesterol. Drinking lemon water regularly will help in keeping the levels of bad cholesterol low and thus keep blood pressure under control.
Lemon water helps to reduce inflammation. Pectin and polyphenols also have the property to bring down inflammation. Further lemon water flushes out uric acid from the joints, which is one of the main causes for inflammation.
#7. Liver Health
Drinking lemon water regularly helps in boosting the enzyme function by providing energy to liver enzymes when they become dilute. It also helps in maintaining proper calcium levels and oxygen levels in the liver. This improves the liver function and helps the liver to maintain good health.
#8. Common Cold
Lemon juice is rich in vitamin C, which not only builds immune system but also helps in effectively keeps common cold at bay owing to is antibacterial properties.
#9. Neutralize body acids
Some acids in the body can build up and cause negative side effects like upset stomach, acid reflux etc. In order to counter this it is necessary to alkalize the body or maintain proper Ph level which should be in the range of 4.6 to 8. Drinking lemon water regularly will help to maintain proper Ph levels in the body.
#10. Skin Health
Lime is rich in vitamin C. Vitamin C is an antioxidant. This will stop the free radicals to cause damage to healthy cells. Vitamin C also helps in the synthesis of amino acids which are help the connective tissues to hold things tight and protect the skin tissues. Therefore drinking lemon water regularly will help in maintaining a healthy and wrinkle free skin. | <urn:uuid:2f79244d-4015-4dc3-85cc-5d9f040387f3> | CC-MAIN-2017-34 | http://www.sunsigns.org/10-health-benefits-of-lemon-water/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-34/segments/1502886133447.78/warc/CC-MAIN-20170824082227-20170824102227-00033.warc.gz | en | 0.930647 | 697 | 2.671875 | 3 |
In my last post titled “Create Small Learning Communities with the Station Rotation Model,” I provided a blended learning strategy that creates more time in the classroom for teachers to work individually with students. This week I was presenting on technology-infused reading strategies and resources for K-5 teachers and wanted to share them. They can be used in combination with the Station Rotation Model to help differentiate reading practice for younger students.
This is what a reading practice could look like in a station rotation model.
This strategy uses technology in two stations. In one online learning station, students listen to books/stories with an audio recording. In the read-to-self station, students read a digital storybook and record an audio capture of their reading.
Here are some great online resources for the online learning stations.
Read & Listen Resources
Storyline Online is a fantastic site sponsored by the SAG Foundation. There is a wonderful collection of popular children’s books read by actors. The simple animation is captivating and each book comes with a resource guide teachers can download to access discussion points and activities. This is perfect for students who might benefit from both reading and listening to a text.
Storynory is another online resource that allows students to hear audio stories and read the text. The stories can also be downloaded to a device if connectivity is an issue in your classroom. The free version has minimal advertising on the site
National Geographic Young Explorer Magazine is a great resource for nonfiction reading. Students can click through the magazine playing audio clips while reading along. The word being read in the text is highlighted in a different color so it is easy for the kids to follow along with the audio clips. There is a collection of magazines that include articles about animals, plants, stars, etc.
We Give Books is a Pearson Foundation initiative that allows students to read books (no audio) for ages 4-10 years old. These are fantastic for students reading on their own in the classroom on a device. Students can select their own books depending on their reading level and interest.
International Children’s Digital Library has an incredible collection of stories in a wide range of languages. The site also allows teachers to customize searches by age, genre, book length, or type of story (kid characters, animal characters, fiction or nonfiction).
If you use other online reading resources, please post a comment and share them! I’d love to hear what elementary teachers are using to get students reading online. | <urn:uuid:42eb68a9-478b-4826-9a6b-7a090a789631> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://catlintucker.com/2015/07/early-elementary-differentiate-reading-practice/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233506686.80/warc/CC-MAIN-20230925051501-20230925081501-00467.warc.gz | en | 0.939157 | 516 | 3.609375 | 4 |
Hidden Figures Composers Tried to Challenge “Assumptions About The Way Space Exploration Should Sound”
The composers for Hidden Figures recently spoke about their scoring process, and how they tried to subvert “assumptions about the way space and space exploration should sound.” A film’s music does crucial work in underscoring and reinforcing its tone and themes, and the Hidden Figures team wanted their score to push back against tropes as much the movie’s narrative. As someone who isn’t particularly musical, I found the insights into how music might reinforce a dominant cultural narrative–for example, the idea that space exploration is done by people who look like Bruce Willis–pretty fascinating.
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and Benjamin Wallfisch are the co-composing trio behind the score. Williams is also a producer on the film, which tells the story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson, three African-American mathematicians whose calculations made it possible for NASA to launch John Glenn into orbit.
Zimmer said that, in a typical NASA movie, “Either you have the idea of mathematics, which is the Philip Glass thing, or you have preconceived ideas like The Right Stuff or Apollo 13. But nothing in the music ever hints at an African-American, let alone female, undercurrent.”
As a result, the composing team played with musicality to put a twist on standard elements of a space movie score. For example, they would include an “Aaron Copland type” trumpet, but “as if Miles Davis played it.” This sort of maneuver lets Hidden Figures sound like an identifiably NASA-mission film, but with touch of challenge and surprise.
Williams was also concerned about diversity in the movie’s staff, and he convinced Zimmer to hire a large number of female and African-American musicians for the project. “We flew players in from all over the country,” said Zimmer, “and we had this truly extraordinary string section. The sound was more beautiful and more committed…because everybody knew what they were playing because they were playing about themselves. And that is sort of the way music is supposed to work.” They also brought in Herbie Hancock, the Grammy-winning jazz pianist who played with the Miles Davis Quarter, to play a number of the songs.
As Williams said in an earlier Vulture interview, “One of the things I learned from [Zimmer] about the scoring of this movie is objectivity, asking, ‘This may sound good, but what does it do? What does it mean?’ The music always needs to be supporting the story.”
Personally, I’ll admit I haven’t always paid close attention to film scores in the past, but I’ll be listening a little more attentively in the future, especially when Hidden Figures hits theaters on December 25.
Want more stories like this? Become a subscriber and support the site!
—The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—
Have a tip we should know? [email protected] | <urn:uuid:d6b7d629-d582-4bf6-bc28-3bbe6f27d465> | CC-MAIN-2020-29 | https://www.themarysue.com/hidden-figures-soundtrack/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-29/segments/1593655879738.16/warc/CC-MAIN-20200702174127-20200702204127-00392.warc.gz | en | 0.957763 | 671 | 3.015625 | 3 |
We use the imperative when we want to tell somebody to do something. When we use the imperative, we use only the verb.
When the imperative is negative, we use don’t.
There is also a special form of the imperative when we are a part of a group and we want the whole group to do something. In these situations, we use let’s.
We use the imperative in about 3% of sentences in spoken English.
Sit down. Come here. Bring it. Don’t jump. Don’t do it Let’s go home.
You can see more examples in the book Robinson Crusoe. | <urn:uuid:5728eb05-9921-40eb-a012-189a4781269b> | CC-MAIN-2023-50 | https://www.grammarinlevels.com/level1/lesson9/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-50/segments/1700679100540.62/warc/CC-MAIN-20231205010358-20231205040358-00212.warc.gz | en | 0.86879 | 136 | 3.546875 | 4 |
Posted by Jaba Shadrack , Thursday, October 27, 2011
© JABA SHADRACK, Department of Public Law, School of Law (Formerly, Faculty of law) at the University of Dar es Salaam. (CTL CLASS – OCTOBER 27, 2011)
1.1 Meaning of law
1.2. Role and functions of law
1.3. Sources of law in Tanzania
1.4. Classification of law
1.1 MEANING OF LAW
To religious people, the term law is closely associated with God's commands or directives or rules contained in Holy Books, thus 'law of nature' (i.e. law proclaimed my a supernatural beings, e.g. ancestors, spirits, goddess and etc). But, to social scientists, lawyers, politicians and economists, the term 'law' relates with the command of the sovereign (state) and its various institutions, thus 'law of science' (i.e. peoples' will or agreed system and standards of conduct). However, the area of concern in this brief outline is the 'law of science'.
The following are some attempts to define the term 'law':-
(a) Oxford Dictionary of law, 7th Ed., 2009 (p. 316).
Define the term 'law' as the enforceable body of rules that govern the society.
(b) Shivji, 2004, et. al., p. 3.
Is an obligatory rules of conduct imposed or recognised and enforced by the state.
(c) Salwan and Narang (2008) Academic's legal dictionary. 18th Ed., p. 201.
Refer the term law as: (a) legislative pronouncements of the rules which should guide one's actions in society; (b) the body of principles recognised and applied by the state in the administration of justice; (c) a rule of action to which human being's conduct must conform.
(d) Webster's New World law Dictionary (2006)
Define the term 'law' as: (i) the complete body of statutes, rules, enforced customs and norms, and court decisions governing the relations of individuals and corporate entities to one another and to the state; (ii) the subset of such statutes and other rules and materials dealing with a particular subject matter; (iii) the system by which such statutes and rules are administered; (iv) the profession of interpreting such statutes and rules.
Means a set of rules and norms or a standard of pattern of behaviour to which every individual in the society has to conform to. Rules ought to be obeyed, otherwise, the violator of such rules or standards behaviour can be taken to court, tribunal or other formal/informal institution or person and get punished/sanctioned.
Rules against genital mutilation, rape, fraud, forgery, theft, corruption, homicide, and etc
Basic elements or features to be considered in defining the term 'law':
The law must be a body or system of obligatory rules/norms (not optional) obeyed or adhered to by every member of the society (i.e. normative nature of the law: – law is obligatory on human conduct/s).
QUESTION: What about the concept of 'a King/Queen can do no wrong' (i.e. rex/regina non potest peccare).
(i) The law must be imposed or recognised and enforced by the sovereign or state (i.e. state centred or backed law: – institutional nature of law).
(ii) The impact or consequences of violating (breach) of the law must result into sanction/punishment/threat (i.e. coercive nature of law).
(iii) The law must apply to a whole community or to a cross-section of a society (i.e. general application).
Section 22 of The Interpretation of Laws Act (Cap. 1) provides that;
Every Act shall be deemed to be a public Act unless the contrary is expressly provided in the Act and shall be judicially noticed as such.
QUESTION: How does law differ from 'religious norms or rules of morality'?
1.2. ROLE AND FUNCTIONS OF LAW
There are conflicting views as to what actually is the role or aim of the law in the society. On one hand, Marxist scholars see it as a tool of a ruling class (haves) to protect their interest and status quo in the society (i.e. law as an instrument of oppression and domination, e.g. Apartheid laws, Nazi laws, Negro laws, colonial laws, e.g. property law, treason and anti-revolution laws, and etc). On the other hand, Bourgeois scholars conceptualise law as a tool of development, justice and peaceful working and co-existence of individuals in the society or between societies (i.e. law as social engineering, e.g. property ownership laws, city or town planning laws, electoral laws, succession laws, and etc). Specifically, law has the following functions in the society;
General functions of law:
(a) To structure and distribute public powers to both individual personnel and organs/institutions of the state (e.g. Judiciary, Legislature and Executive; or powers of the president as opposed to powers of the DPP or Attorney General and etc.
(b) To regulate private relations or dealings (e.g. land law, contract law, marriage) and etc.
(c) To provide a way of resolving or avoiding conflicts/disputes in the society.
Specific functions of law:
(i) To maintain public order, e.g. criminal law
(ii) To regulate human and state dealings and cooperation/interaction, e.g. law of contract, international laws, and etc.
(iii) To act as a medium of dispute resolution, e.g. law of tort, procedural laws and etc
(iv) To protect public morality, e.g. criminalizing homosexuality, prostitution, pornography, and etc.
(v) To regulate governmental powers, e.g. constitutional law, administrative law
(vi) To protect individual rights and freedom, e.g. bill of rights, anti-discrimination legislation.
1.3. SOURCES OF LAW IN TANZANIA
There are two sources of laws in Tanzania, namely formal/primary and non-formal/secondary.
(a) Formal/Primary sources of law:
(i) The Constitution (as the basic law);
(ii) Statutory laws,
i.e. principal legislations (Ordinances or Acts of Parliament);
(iii) Subsidiary legislations, i.e. by-laws, regulations, rules, directives, orders and etc.
(iv) Court Decisions in Tanzania: (especially, Court of records, i.e. The High court and Court of Appeal).
Note: refer the concept/s of 'stare decisis', 'standard of justice' and 'precedent'.
(v) Received laws: i.e. the common law, Doctrine of Equity, and Statutes of General Applications.
(vi) International and Regional law: i.e. Treaties, Conventions, bi-lateral or multi-lateral agreements, declarations and etc, e.g. refer laws of the EAC, SADC, AU and other laws made under the auspices of the UN.
(b) Non-formal/Secondary sources of law:
(i) Customary laws (customs and norms of each tribes), e.g. Haya customary on succession law.
(ii) Religious laws, e.g. Islamic law.
(iii) Trade usage, customs and lawful agreements or contracts or arrangements between private individuals.
Note: for non-formal sources of law to be enforced [they] must be constitutional and consistent with primary sources of law.
Question: Where do we get law in Tanzania?
Section/s 2(3), 3, 9 and 11 (schedules thereto) of JALA, Cap. 358.
Article 63(3) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, 1977 (RE: 2008).
1.4. CLASSIFICATION OF LAW
By classification of law we mean, branches or types or divisions of laws. Laws may be classified into two (2) major categories;
(1) Municipal laws:
These are national or local laws enacted by legislative bodies in Tanzania. Municipal laws are also divided into two (2) groups;
(a) Public law and Private law
Public law is the law which deals with the relationship between the state and individuals, the distribution and exercise of public powers. Braches of public law are Constitution law, Administrative law, Regulatory law (e.g. EWURA & TCRA laws), and Criminal law (e.g. Penal Code). While, Private law is the law which governs relationships between private individuals, for example, law of contract, tort law, property law, succession (and trust) law, and etc. Private laws usually do not involve the government, and are laws that allow one private entity to sue another private entity in a civil lawsuit.
(b) Substantive law and Procedural law
Substantive law is laws which governs or give rise to rights and obligations, e.g. the Penal Code, Cap. 16 (RE: 2002). While, Procedural laws are just legal steps to be followed in filing a lawsuit against another party, or before arresting or searching another party.
(2) International laws:
These are laws which govern intercourse or relations between sovereign states, or individuals and sovereign states at international level, e.g. law of high seas, diplomacy, and international crimes (e.g. genocide, crimes against humanity, and etc).
International law may be divided into two classes;
(i) Public international law: law governing relations between states, or a state and private individuals.
(ii) Private international law: law governing relations between people across nations, e.g. marriage and divorce between a Tanzanian man and Canadian woman.
What is a difference between Criminal law and Civil law?
What is Public law? List sources of public law.
Mention and discuss main functions of public law.
Why do you study public law?
Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania of 1977
Constitution of Zanzibar of 1984
Interpretation of laws Act, Cap 1, R.E., 2002
Judicature and Application of Laws Act, Cap 358, R.E., 2002
Farrar and Dugdale (1990) Introduction to Legal Method. 3rd. London: Sweet & Maxwell. (ref. Chapter1).
Shivji, I.G., et al (eds), Constitutional and Legal System of Tanzania: a Civics Sourcebook, Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota Publishers, 2004.
Author: Jaba Shadrack
Jaba is a Law Lecturer at the University of Dar es Salaam, School of Law and a blogger based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Read More → | <urn:uuid:687a1deb-ac55-4742-91f7-f361078908b6> | CC-MAIN-2014-35 | http://jabashadrack.blogspot.com/2011/10/introduction-to-public-law-of-tanzania.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2014-35/segments/1409535917663.12/warc/CC-MAIN-20140901014517-00304-ip-10-180-136-8.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.908182 | 2,338 | 2.9375 | 3 |
OBSERVER: Introducing the Copernicus Health Hub: Empowering Health and Well-being through Earth Observation
The Copernicus Health Hub – a new tool to help the health sector better leverage all the Earth Observation data, information, products and services available to them – was officially launched on 14 June 2023. It is the second Copernicus Thematic Hub to open, with more Hubs currently in preparation.
What does Copernicus have to do with protecting citizens health and ensuring their well-being? Quite a lot, it turns out.
“From mapping air pollution and habitats of disease vectors, to providing information on allergens and heat stress, the added value that Earth Observation brings to the healthcare sector is becoming increasingly evident,” says Julie Letertre, officer in charge of the implementation of the Copernicus Health Hub at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).
It is against this backdrop that ECMWF is excited to announce the Copernicus Health Hub – a one-stop-shop for all Copernicus data, products and information having to do with health.
Aligned with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) comprehensive definition of health, the Copernicus Health Hub covers three core topics:
- Physical Health: relating to the state of being, free from injury or illness and living in a body that is strong, capable and free of disease.
- Mental Health: having a mind that is strong, capable and free of illness.
- Well-being: not just the absence of illness, but the maintenance of physical, mental and emotional stability and balance.
The Copernicus Health Hub: A one stop shop for enhanced health and well-being
The free-to-use service is designed to help health user communities – including scientists, consultants, planners, policymakers, the media and the public – better leverage all the Copernicus environmental information available to them.
Our health and well-being are closely related to our environment which affects what we see, breathe, drink and eat. It is thus no wonder that the comprehensive and ubiquitous capabilities of Copernicus for monitoring the environment have a lot to offer in terms of studying a range of diseases, monitoring and managing health risks as well as supporting preventive actions.
The new Copernicus Health Hub offers an extensive array of benefits to users in the health sector. For example, in the realm of allergies, health care providers and scientists may use Copernicus data to better understand how pollen and pollutants affect the symptoms experienced by allergy sufferers. Copernicus also provides detailed information on ultraviolet (UV) radiation, for which excessive exposure can cause sunburns and skin cancer, while insufficient exposure can adversely affect vitamin D levels and the immune response function. Policy makers will be able to use data from the Copernicus Health Hub to inform the public about these risks. This may also include gaining a better understanding of how thermal stress affects present and future populations amidst a changing climate, as well as comprehending the escalated risk of respiratory, cardiovascular, and other severe diseases such as dementia due to poor air quality.
The scope of domains in which Copernicus information can support users in the health sector is vast and encompasses numerous other subjects. For instance, topics like monitoring the quality of bathing waters or surveilling habitats for disease vectors, such as mosquitoes, stand prominently on this extensive list. Copernicus data available on the Health Hub is free, open and reliable, making it an invaluable tool for everyone interested by questions of health and well-being.
“We invite the health community to utilise this treasure-trove of data and tools to inform their decision-making, develop innovative new health applications and solutions and raise awareness about the environment’s impact on our well-being,” adds Cristina Ananasso, Team Leader for Copernicus Thematic Hubs at ECMWF.
The Copernicus Health Hub Launch Event
The Copernicus Health Hub officially launched on 14 June as part of the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service’s (CAMS) 7th General Assembly in Valencia, Spain. During the event, representatives from the different Copernicus services have discussed how their information can be useful to the health sector.
The Copernicus Health Hub is managed by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), an independent intergovernmental organisation who, on behalf of the European Commission, implements the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).
The Copernicus Health Hub is operated by CAMS but offers access to information products related to health and well-being from all of Copernicus. It is the second Copernicus Hub to open, after the Coastal Hub and more Hubs are currently in preparation. Each Copernicus Thematic Hub will provide a single point of entry to the entire Copernicus portfolio for users in selected domains of relevance for European citizens where Earth Observation is an important source of information. Each of the Thematic Hubs will be operated by one Entrusted Entity in the Copernicus ecosystem, on behalf of Copernicus. | <urn:uuid:b57c763f-c90c-46cf-9358-6d3bd20c496a> | CC-MAIN-2023-40 | https://www.copernicus.eu/en/news/news/observer-introducing-copernicus-health-hub-empowering-health-and-well-being-through-earth | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-40/segments/1695233510334.9/warc/CC-MAIN-20230927235044-20230928025044-00416.warc.gz | en | 0.917428 | 1,076 | 2.515625 | 3 |
Going through such things as the depression, the Dust Bowl summers, and trying to provide for their own families, which included finding somewhere to travel to where life would be safe. Such is the story of the Joads. The Joads were the main family in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, a book which was written in order to show what a family was going through, at this time period, and how they were trying to better their lives at the same time. It wouldn’t be enough for Steinbeck to simply write this story in very plain terms, as anyone could have simply logged an account of events and published it. Critics have argued, however, that Steinbeck was too artificial in his ways of trying to gain some respect for the migrants. Regardless of the critical opinions, John Steinbeck utilized symbolism as a forum to convey the hardships and attitudes of the citizens of America during the 1930’s in his book The Grapes of Wrath.
The first aspect of the novel that must be looked at when viewing the symbolic nature is that of the characters created by Steinbeck and how even the smallest facets of their person lead to a much larger meaning. The first goal that Steinbeck had in mind, was to appeal to the common Midwesterner at that time. The best way to go about doing this was to focus on one of the two things that nearly all migrants had in common, which was religion and hardships. Steinbeck creates a story about the journey of a family and mirrors it to that of biblical events. The entire family, in themselves, were like the Israelites. “They too flee from oppression, wander through the wilderness of hardships, seeking their own Promised Land” (Shockley, 91). Unfortunately, although the Israelites were successful, the Joads never really found what they could consider to be a promised land. They were never lucky enough to really satisfy their dreams of living a comfortable life. But, they were still able to improve on their situation.
Another symbolic character that was undoubtedly more religious than anyone else taking the journey was Jim Casy. He was a preacher that was picked up along the way by the Joads. Steinbeck manages to squeeze in a lot about this character, and a lot of the background he creates about Mr. Casy shows just how much of a biblical man he really is supposed to be. So much so, that Steinbeck uses Jim Casy to symbolize Christ. Oddly enough, his initials were not only the same as Jesus Christ, but much of his life is similar to the biblical accounts of Christ. Not only did he also begin his long trek after a stay in the wilderness, he also had rejected an old religion to try and find his own version of the gospel and convince people to follow him. His death, another aspect comparable to that of Christ, also occurred in the middle of a stream, which could represent the “crossing over Jordan” account. “Particularly significant, however, are Casy’s last words directed to the man who murders him” (Shockley, 92-93). Jim’s last words are to forgive the man who kills him with a pickax. He tells him “You don’t know what you’re a-doing,” which is a simple allusion to the statement by Jesus to God when He is being crucified and asks his Father to forgive them, for they knew not what they were doing. In this novel, even the title is a Christian allusion. The title is “a direct Christian allusion, suggesting the glory of the coming of the Lord” (Shockley, 90).
Looking at the main character of the story, Tom Joad, even more Christian symbolism is seen. Tom Joad is almost a direct fit for the story of the “prodigal son” from the bible. He is the son that must lead everyone across in a great journey, while symbolically already wandering from the favor of God by killing a man in self-defense. Tom must find a way to forget about this event and continue to keep his goal of getting to California (and his Promised Land) in sight. He understands that he must stay determined and persevere because he is an example and a leader to his family and he cannot allow any internal event to slow him down.
Rose of Sharon, the daughter of the family, also has a very religious connotation; her religious meaning is not so much symbolic of a specific person or event in the bible, but more of an example of Christian values. The great hardship in her life was the fact that the child she was pregnant with the whole story, and the one that kept her from doing work necessary to everyone’s survival, was stillborn. Now, after going through all this, she had to face the reality of living without her child and the reality of her husband walking out on her. Even after all this when the Joads come upon the old man in the barn “the two women [Ma Joad and Rose of Sharon] looked deep into each other’s eyes. Not my will, but Thine be done.” (Shockley, 94) Rose knows that even though she had lost her own child, she must now take another, and the fact that Steinbeck has her say “Thine will be done” is because she knows that it is in fact God’s will that she is serving, and that is much more important than any problem she has.
Next, the women in the story are an example of the mentality of the “indestructible woman.” The greatest example of this is the eldest, Ma Joad. “Ma Joad stands out in Steinbeck’s work as a complete and positive characterization of a woman” (Gladstein, 118). She is the only character in the novel that appears to be flawless on every level, not just as someone who does monotonous chores throughout the story. She stands as a shining example of a woman who refuses to back down, no matter what the obstacles at hand. Some of the obstacles included Grandma’s death, the desertion of Noah, the leaving behind of the Wilsons followed by Connie’s departure, the murder of Casy, Tom becoming a fugitive, Rose of Sharon’s baby being stillborn, and being surrounded by starvation and depression. She uses al of her strength and willpower to help deal with these tragedies. One of the biggest examples of her undying strength and love is the way she help Rose of Sharon deal with her pregnancy and the loss of her baby. She helps keep the family together, and if that meant giving every ounce of spirit and energy that she had, she’d do it because of the love she had for her family. Steinbeck creates her as that indestructible woman because he wants to convince the migrants of the 1930’s to follow in the footsteps of Ma Joad, and ultimately, mirror the journey of the entire Joad family. Warren French explains exactly what Steinbeck’s intent with having the characters, especially Ma Joad, develop the way they do throughout the novel:
The story that Steinbeck sought to tell does end, furthermore, with Ma Joad’s discovery that it is no longer the “fambly” alone that one must “give a han’,” but “everybody.” As I wrote in my own study of Steinbeck, answer the charge that the tale is inconclusive, the scene in the barn “marks the end of the story that Steinbeck has to tell about the Joads,” because “their education is completed… What happens to them now depends upon the ability of the rest of society to learn the same lesson they have already learned.” (93-94)
Rose of Sharon is another woman who shows indestructibility. She also has to deal with her stillborn baby and all of what Ma Joad had to go through, but she still attempts to continue on and help Ma whenever she can. “Bedraggled and burdened, deserted by her husband, Rose of Sharon still drags herself out of bed to do her part in earning money for support of the family” (Gladstein, 122). In the novel Steinbeck writes about she tries how because of the way she tried so hard to help, that she was constantly vomiting, just to keep up with regular chores, yet her spirit remained unwavering. With all of this occurring around her, one of the novel’s greatest Christian allusions comes from her character. In the climactic event at the end of the novel, Rose of Sharon looked at the old man who needed her milk and just smiled. “This is my body, says Rosasharn, and becomes the Resurrection and the Life. In her, life and death are one, and through her, life triumphs over death” (Shockley, 94). She gives herself for that of another, and that is a major Christian principle.
Besides the characters, the events in the story are also an example of how Steinbeck uses symbolism. This is the second major way that Steinbeck uses symbolism in this story. There are several examples which show how perserverent the human spirit could be in times of trouble. The trek itself shows how committed to their dreams the Joads were. They had to risk everything just to find work and a place to live. Also, the characters in the story had to adapt to the events that were happening to them throughout the journey. For example, Tom first got his idea of transportation when he saw the tractor at the beginning of the story and remembered that tractors were just now starting to cover the plains all the time, so they must be able to make it in some kind of machine. When Tom visits the car dealer, he comes away with a car that didn’t quite fit their needs, but he made it work. Another example is how the family learns to use every item, the realize how valuable every single item they have is to their existence, and it becomes more and more clear every single day as the situation becomes more and more harsh.
Also, the kindness of the human spirit is shown in Steinbeck’s novel through these events. The main example in the novel is when the waitress in the café lets the poor migrant have a free loaf of bread just to continue his journey. She is then rewarded with two big tips from the next customers, who are truckers that come through to eat. This is a shining example of the old adage “kindness breeds kindness” (Carlson, 97). Then, when Rose of Sharon took care of the old man in the barn, she ends up symbolically gaining a child where before she had lost her own. These two were both examples of human kindness and in both instances, the people were rewarded for their kindness. These examples are also examples of a major principle in Christianity which is to do unto others as you would like done to you.
The third and final major aspect of symbolism shown in The Grapes of Wrath is the role that nature plays in the story. It is unquestioned that nature plays a big part in the lives of the Joads simply because their journey takes place in the middle of the plains where weather, such as rain, can easily become a harsh hazard since there is really no shelter from it and they really have no other option that to continue trudging forward as much as possible. Weather is shown in this as both a destroying and regenerative force. “Steinbeck goes on to depict in lyrical prose the disintegration of the house before the almost delicate onslaught of nature: rain, weeds, dust, wind” (Owens, 79). Nature then knows that the house is no longer useful to the Joads and “reclaims it as its own” (Owens, 79).
One of the most interesting parts of this work is what is known by Steinbeck as the “interchapters.” Steinbeck includes several chapters throughout the novel which simply act as a symbolic reference to some other idea, that at first glance, have no meaning to the story, but these stories symbolically prove a point for Steinbeck. The first, and most famous, of these is the journey of the turtle. Steinbeck opens a chapter by simply describing a turtle that is struggling to cross a highway. Steinbeck goes through great detail to explain much about the turtle and its own little journey, but he really doesn’t say much about the purpose. That is because it is so clear. The turtle is simply heading somewhere and must cross the road. It struggles and struggles and when it finally gets close to the other side a truck comes by and knocks it across the road anyway, unharmed. The moral is that the turtle made it across, but if it had tried any less, it might have been hit by the tire instead of just being brushed aside by it. Another story symbolic of the plight of the farmer is the ant lion trap which is analogous to the fact that most farmers were scurrying around trying to acquire land and supplies to live but avoid being caught at the same time. Of course, not everyone can succeed, so Steinbeck inserts the story of the Joad’s dog being hit by the truck. Not everyone is going to be as lucky as the turtle in their efforts, and this lesson comes at a price to the Joads.
Machines played a major part in this story in the way was created because of the fact that machines were taking over everything in the farming community and workers weren’t really needed anymore. Not only were machines one of the causes of the migration in the first place, but they also directly cause several deaths in the story. It is stated in the novel that “one man on a tractor can take the place of twelve or fourteen families.” Through this manner, Steinbeck shows in the plot itself how machines add to the complexity of the situation. He then uses the interchapters to show how much effect they had on nature and animals as well as humans. “Tom sees the ‘No Riders’ sticker on the tractor as an example of how inhuman machinery has become” (Griffin, 222). It is then very symbolic when they meet at the beginning of the journey westward and must meet at the truck, which is seen as the only “real” thing left, since the house is demolished. The truck was never meant to be of any “real” significance in the first place, for it is a machine.
Lastly, Steinbeck made great reference to animals throughout the story. He used them repeatedly to show how people were acting and to describe things and events, as well as foreshadow future happenings. One example of the description of people was the reference to Muley Grave’s sex drive in his younger days, when “he describes his first experience as ‘snorting like a buck deer, randy as a billygoat” (Griffin, 220). Then a reference to nature again being like farmers is when the moths circling the fire are pointed out, they are just like the farmers circling a town, looking for opportunity and waiting to enter. Then, animals are also used in foreshadowing death (be it the dog or Rose of Sharon’s baby) by the circling of buzzards overhead. Steinbeck loved to use more minor events in nature to explain the trials and tribulations of the Joads.
Although Steinbeck created this highly acclaimed world of symbolism, it is not without its fault, at least according to some interpretations. Steinbeck goes to great lengths to create this world of symbolism with very intricate characters which he wants the reader to understand to be his representation of the public during the 1930’s. Unfortunately, some found his book to be all too artificial. “Complete literalness in such matters doesn’t necessarily simulate life in literature” (Moore, 59). The dispute here is whether or not Steinbeck is attempting to overglorify the attempts or the migrants. Many Midwesterners did feel quite a bit of harshness enter their lives when trying to live through the 1930’s, but it is hard to say if the Joads had life as tough as most. However, Henry Moore states that the shining examples of good symbolism and truth in The Grapes of Wrath come in the interchapters, such as the turtle and tractor tales. The problem though, as he states it, is that “the contrapuntal chapters about the Joad family don’t always have the continuous strength to carry them” (Moore, 60). Basically Dr. Moore is saying that if Steinbeck really wanted to use symbolism in this story to show the trials and tribulations of the migrants in the 1930’s, he should have kept the story more realistic and down-to-earth in its approach to the topic.
Overall, John Steinbeck did appeal to the Midwesterners through his book The Grapes of Wrath. He won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962 while The Grapes of Wrath won the Pulitzer Prize in 1939. He managed to explain many events of the current time period through his use symbolism, and obviously, many readers enjoyed it. By using characters, nature and events for forms of symbolism, Steinbeck keeps the reader interested and at the same time conveys his thoughts and beliefs. | <urn:uuid:db653992-5f95-46d2-91d1-baa50ff7319f> | CC-MAIN-2020-16 | https://schoolworkhelper.net/symbolism-in-grapes-of-wrath/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2020-16/segments/1585370506673.7/warc/CC-MAIN-20200402045741-20200402075741-00287.warc.gz | en | 0.982379 | 3,643 | 3.796875 | 4 |
Individual presentations should address the following topics:
1. An historical explanation of the work of art within its specific context of creation and reception to better understand why it was considered "controversial" at the time of its appearance;
2. A brief introduction about the artist's life, so one may verify the relevance of this particular work within the master's career;
3. Personal critical remarks about the piece (in conversation, of course), with ideas and interpretive hypotheses provided by at least two scholars who had studied the same work.
This seminar course is designed to introduce students to the nature of art historical inquiry. Through the exploration of a designated topic, the course will focus on a core set of artworks and relevant primary literature. The course will also introduce students to selected issues in art historical interpretation and argument, as well as theory and criticism.
Listed on this page are key reference resources that provide a general overview of a topic or help identify synonyms, related terms, or basic data. These sources often include references and lists of further readings. | <urn:uuid:e10f2cf5-8dd5-402e-9848-43fd45d9a3a6> | CC-MAIN-2017-43 | http://libguides.willamette.edu/arth121/whatisart | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2017-43/segments/1508187823350.23/warc/CC-MAIN-20171019160040-20171019180040-00603.warc.gz | en | 0.950347 | 214 | 2.6875 | 3 |
A new drug has shown promise for regulating sleep in people with Alzheimer’s disease.
Lemborexant appeared to benefit individuals with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s dementia who experience an irregular sleep-wake rhythm. People with this problem, called circadian rhythm disorder, tend to take multiple naps each day and cannot sleep steadily through the night.
The study found lower nighttime activity levels, less fragmented sleep and greater total sleep time in participants taking the drug, compared to others given placebos. No serious adverse events were reported, and cognitive function did not appear to decline, according to a statement released at last week’s Alzheimer’s International Conference 2019.
Lemborexant is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a potential drug for treatment of insomnia for adults who have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep.
“We know that sleep disturbances are a significant problem for persons with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers,” said researcher Margaret Moline, Ph.D., of Eisai Inc., Woodcliff Lake, NJ. “This may be a promising treatment for sleep problems in individuals with Alzheimer’s.” | <urn:uuid:569bee47-3a68-484d-80d3-d891d4edacd0> | CC-MAIN-2023-14 | https://www.mcknights.com/news/clinical-news/new-drug-therapy-may-ease-sleep-disruptions-due-to-alzheimers/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2023-14/segments/1679296948932.75/warc/CC-MAIN-20230329023546-20230329053546-00769.warc.gz | en | 0.932228 | 246 | 2.84375 | 3 |
Subsets and Splits