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The Good Green Christmas Christina Goodings (Author) Out of stock. Delivery time unknown. DescriptionReduce, reuse, recycle! This craft activity book contains clear illustrated step-by-step guides for making a whole range of Christmas crafts and decorations, encouraging children to think about ways to celebrate the season without squandering resources or adding to landfill. Cards, decorations, gifts, giftwrap - all these can be produced simply, stylishly, and recyclably - with reused, reusable or natural materials. The 16 activities include: Superbag; Starry gift tag; Festive bunting; Everlasting tree; Festive shortbread; Leaf notebooks and a Boxing Day box. Lion Hudson Ltd 18 September 2009 Earn By Promoting Books Earn money by sharing your favourite books through our Affiliate programme.Become an Affiliate
1813 – Born on October 17th in Goddelau, Hesse-Darmstadt (Germany). German dramatist, a major forerunner of the Expressionist school of playwriting of the early 20th century. 1830-1934 – Caught up in the movement inspired by the Paris uprising, Büchner published a pamphlet in Giessen calling for economic and political revolution, and he also founded a radical society. 1835 – His first play, Dantons Tod (“Danton’s Death”), is a drama of the French Revolution that is suffused with deep pessimism. 1836 – He escaped arrest by fleeing to Strasbourg and became a lecturer in natural science at the University of Zürich. – Leonce und Lena, a satire on the nebulous nature of Romantic ideas, shows the influence of Alfred de Musset and Clemens Brentano. 1837 – Died on February 19th in Zürich, Switzerland. 1879 – His last work, Woyzeck (posthumously published), which remained a fragment, anticipated the social drama of the 1890s with its compassion for the poor and oppressed.
Tilt-Up Construction was pioneered by California architect Irving Gill in the 1920s, who used it to express a sleek, undecorated aesthetic, inspired by the method’s engineering efficiency. By the mid-20th century, tilt-up had become the method of choice for big-box, warehouse, and low-cost housing projects, due it’s ease of use, speed of erection, low cost, and durability. Tilt-up also has the ability to deliver multi-storey, irregularly shaped, and complex buildings – qualities that have attracted the attention of creative architects over the past 20 years. Tilt-Up is now being used for almost every type of project, and it offers many benefits for architects – as the following examination of its Pros and Cons illustrates. The Pros of Tilt-Up for Architects: 1. Flexibility of Design Tilt-Up design provides architects with distinct design and aesthetic possibilities, made possible by the fluidity of concrete and the use of form liners and reveals. Architectural design can also include embedded thin brick and stone, as well as stains and coatings. Architects can design free-flowing geometric forms with any shape and openings, which can be released using the Tilt-Up building system in a short period of time, economically and efficiently. Tilt-up concrete buildings are not prefabricated. Each one is custom-designed for the client’s needs and preferences. A full range of building finishes, wall textures and adornments, colors, and even curved walls – inside and out – are available with this method. Once architects and designers become familiar with the Tilt-Up method, they will discover that it offers virtually unlimited flexibility in crafting a building that is functional, durable and aesthetically pleasing. 2. Reduced Construction Costs Tilt-up construction provides numerous construction cost savings. Its delivery systems are the quickest and most controllable delivery options available. It allows for a compressed schedule that is extremely reliable, primarily due to the availability of locally created raw materials and its ability to overlap trades skills. And since much of the work happens safely at ground level rather than on scaffolding, Tilt-Up construction reduces many of the risks normally faced by construction trades. Tilt-Up Construction also eliminates perimeter steel and footings making its load bearing elements attractive. Finally, the fact that much of the work can take place simultaneously makes it a preferable economic choice. 3. Built-In Fire, Sound and Heat Insulation Concrete provides excellent insulation, reducing ongoing heating and cooling costs for the tenant. This insulation extends to sound as well as temperature. Workers in a tilt-up office building located in a noisy area will be less affected by the environment. By the same token, a manufacturing business that generates noise will have less effect on its neighbors and will find it easier to comply with local noise ordinances. The concrete used in tilt-up panels meets the fire-resistance standards of even the most demanding building codes. For example, a 6.5″ concrete wall offers a fire resistance rating of four hours or more. Tilt-up panels are also frequently used in the building’s interior as fire walls. This means that Tilt-up buildings offer real protection and safety for their tenants’ employees, property and ongoing operations. Tit-Up Construction guarantees a building that will retain its value for a much longer period than tradition building methods. Low maintenance also means less cost to property owners over the life-cycle of the building. And as energy costs continue to soar, the energy efficiency of a Tilt-Up designed building will always make it attractive. The Cons of Tilt-Up for Architects: While the benefits of Tilt-Up design are many, its cons are few. 1. More Up-Front Coordination Admittedly, the Tilt-Up method requires more up-front coordination, and changes to the design once the panels have been constructed can be costly. The design and pre-planning stages of any Tilt-Up project are an essential part of a successful build. 2. Site Size Can be a Limiting Factor The size and nature of tilt-up panels also requires sufficient room to construct as well as to erect. While there are Tilt-Up building techniques that can mitigate these challenges, not every site is suitable for a Tilt-Up project. 3. Finding a Knowledgeable Design Team Most importantly, finding a design team that understands and utilizes the advantages of Tilt-Up Construction can also be challenging to the builder, but the rewards are worth it. If you are an architect who would like to learn more about the design opportunities offered by Tilt-Up Construction, get in touch – we’d be delighted to answer any questions!
Patterns that support early algebraic thinking in the elementary school Warren, Elizabeth & Cooper, Thomas J. (2008) Patterns that support early algebraic thinking in the elementary school. In Greenes, Carole E. & Rubenstein, Rheta (Eds.) Algebra and algebraic thinking in school mathematics. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Reston, VA, pp. 113-126. Over a period of three years, the authors conducted an extensive longitudinal study in Australia aimed at ascertaining teachers' actions, activities, questions, and conversations that support the development of early algebraic thinking in the elementary (primary) school classroom. The study was conducted in five classrooms and consisted of teaching experiments focused on the development of an understanding of equivalence and equations, functional thinking, patterning, and generalised arithmetic. In this article, they report on one of those experiments involving repeating patterns and geometric growing patterns. As the authors began their work, they were aware that students spend a great deal of time in their early years in school investigating repeating patterns, but they have little experience with geometric growing patterns. There are three major reasons for exploring geometric growing patterns in the elementary school classroom: (1) they are visual representations of number patterns, (2) they can be used as an informal introduction to the concept of a variable, and (3) they can be used to generate equivalent expressions. The specific purpose of the study was to identify and characterise activities that help elementary school students distinguish repeating patterns from growing patterns, to establish relationships between data sets, to extend patterns, and to develop an awareness of the synergy between patterns and tables of values. The article is organised by mathematical idea and illustrated with activities and students' work. They begin by describing how they distinguished repeating patterns from growing patterns. Impact and interest: Citation countsare sourced monthly fromand citation databases. These databases contain citations from different subsets of available publications and different time periods and thus the citation count from each is usually different. Some works are not in either database and no count is displayed. Scopus includes citations from articles published in 1996 onwards, and Web of Science® generally from 1980 onwards. Citations counts from theindexing service can be viewed at the linked Google Scholar™ search. \|Item Type:\|\|Book Chapter\| \|Additional Information:\|\|For more information about this book please refer to the publisher's website (see link) or contact the author.\| \|Keywords:\|\|algebra, equations (mathematics), geometry, mathematical concepts, patterns (mathematics), primary school mathematics, longitudinal studies, primary education\| \|Subjects:\|\|Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification > EDUCATION (130000) > CURRICULUM AND PEDAGOGY (130200) > Mathematics and Numeracy Curriculum and Pedagogy (130208)\| \|Divisions:\|\|Current > Research Centres > Office of Education Research\| Current > QUT Faculties and Divisions > Faculty of Education \|Copyright Owner:\|\|Copyright 2008 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics\| \|Deposited On:\|\|24 Nov 2008\| \|Last Modified:\|\|29 Feb 2012 23:44\| Repository Staff Only: item control page
History of the Interstate Trail, Jefferson Highway and Jefferson Association Page: 1 \| 2 \| 3 \| 4 \| 5 \| 6 \| 7 \| 8 >>Page 1 Interstate Trail: Precursor to the Jefferson HighwayBefore the Jefferson Highway Association’s dream of connecting the nation from north to south was realized, an Iowa road association, known as the Interstate Trail Association, organized a route that connected Des Moines and Kansas City. Four years after the Interstate Trail Association had begun work on their route, the Jefferson Highway Association flooded the Missouri Valley with publicity and support for the Jefferson Highway. Many of the founding members of the Interstate Trail later became integral figures in the development of the Jefferson Highway, while the path of Interstate Trail itself became part of the Jefferson Highway. On March 14, 1911, the Des Moines-Kansas City-St. Joseph Interstate Trail Association was organized in Lamoni, Iowa, and the route officially located, and ordered marked by the association who received assistance from automobile clubs, commercial organizations, farmers, and other citizens in the cities, towns and countryside traversed by the trail. The organizational meeting was called by W.A. Hopkins, banker and citizen of Lamoni. The bylaws of the Interstate Trail Association, which were subsequently established on March 11, 1913, indicated the highway route was a direct route between Fort Des Moines and Fort Leavenworth, making it a practical military road for the transportation of troops and “. . . a valuable aid in developing the resources of the counties traversed, a better means of social and business communication, and a lasting benefit to the communities through which it passes. . .” On Jan. 5, 1915, a meeting of the association was held at Mason City, at which time the original Interstate Trail was extended north from Des Moines through Nevada, Iowa Falls, Mason City, and Northwood, Iowa, and Albert Lea, Owatonna, Fairibault, and Northfield to St. Paul, Minn., and the name of the route was changed to the St. Paul-Des Moines-St. Joseph-Kansas City Interstate Trail. Hugh H. Shepard of Mason City called and organized the January 1915 meeting, and was selected as general manager of the northern division of the Interstate Trail from Des Moines to St. Paul. He was responsible for organizing the marking of the 271-mile trail section during the summer of 1915. Discovery of an original Interstate Trail markerIn 1956, one of the markers from the original Interstate Trail was discovered by Howard Muhlenbruch of Hampton, Iowa, in a grove on his farm, two miles north of Hampton. An article about his discovery, along with his photo and that of the sign, was published in the Mason City Globe Gazette in October 1995. Kathy Hotchkiss, daughter of Howard Muhlenbruch, contacted the Iowa Department of Transportation in June 2007. She relayed the following story to the department about the Muhlenbruch farm and the sign’s discovery. “Back in 1955, my parents just purchased their farm northwest of Hampton. My dad was cleaning up some brush and hit a piece of metal with a rake or something. He unearthed a sign that said, “Interstate Trail.” We had the sign on the farm for a long time, and I think my dad had nailed it to a tree; in any case, it came to the attention of a neighbor who was interested in history. We think that it probably was posted at the corner east of our farm, and due to it getting lost or buried, possibly was missed when they collected old metal for the war effort, the period when other signs disappeared. We think the old Interstate Trail sort of meandered through the small communities in Franklin and Cerro Gordo counties, whereas the Jefferson Highway and U.S. 65 are more direct. Our family’s farm is one mile west of U.S. 65, northwest of the intersection of county roads S-43 and C-31, in section 17 of Mott Township. I moved off the farm in October, to Moline, Ill., but my daughter and son-in-law live there now. I think the trail went through Chapin, Sheffield, and Rockwell north of Hampton, as there used to be a curve into town on the northwest side.” Eventually Muhenbruch’s discovery was donated to the Franklin County Historical Society and it is now on display at their museum on the Franklin County fairgrounds. Registration of Iowa trailsThe Iowa Highway Commission authorized under Section 1527-S22, Supplement to the Iowa Code, 1913, a requirement that voluntary trail organizations submit an application to register highway routes of 25 miles or more in length along with a $5 fee to the Highway Commission who would issue a certificate protecting the route names and color combinations and designs of the route markers used by these associations. There were 18 trails registered in 1914. By 1925 when the registration process ended, there were 64 registered trails. Page: 1 \| 2 \| 3 \| 4 \| 5 \| 6 \| 7 \| 8
Today we're taking a look at a new CDC report analyzing hospital preparedness for natural disasters, which found that hospitals have dramatically improved their preparedness efforts following Hurricane Katrina. The report, which assessed preparedness in 2008, found that nearly all hospitals had detailed response plans for chemical releases, natural disasters, epidemics and biological incidents. Half of hospitals staged epidemic drills, and half planned had plans for alternate care areas with beds, staffing and equipment. In addition, half of hospitals had plans for advance registration of incoming health care professionals. As usual, email comments and thoughts to [email protected].
Back to PO=LR∙BO. Whether we accept or reject a hypothesis, i.e. decide whether a claim is true or false, depends on all three elements. Posterior Odds. The minimum standard of proof required to accept a hypothesis is PO>1 (i.e. PP>50%). We call it Preponderance of evidence. But, depending on the circumstances, this may not be enough. We have seen two other cases: Clear and convincing evidence: PO>3 (i.e. PP>75%), and Evidence beyond reasonable doubt: PO>19 (PP>95%), to which we can add Evidence beyond the shadow of a doubt: PO>99 (PP>99%) or even PO>999 (PP>99.9%). The spectrum is continuous, from 1 to infinity, where Certainty (PP=100%) is unattainable and is therefore a decision. The same is symmetrically true for rejecting the hypothesis, from PO<1 to the other side of Certainty: PO=PP=0. Base Odds. To reach the required odds we have to start somewhere. A common starting point is Prior indifference, or Perfect ignorance: BO=1 (BR=50%). But, depending on the circumstances, this may not be a good starting place. With BO=1 it looks like Base Odds have disappeared, but they haven’t: they are just being ignored – which is never a good start. Like PO, Base Odds are on a continuous spectrum between the two boundaries of Faith: BR=100% and BR=BO=0. Depending on BO, we need more or less evidence in order to achieve our required PO. Likelihood Ratio. Evidence is confirmative if LR>1, i.e. TPR>FPR, and disconfirmative if LR<1, i.e. TPR<FPR. The size of TPR and FPR are not relevant per se – what matters is their ratio. A high TPR means nothing without a correspondingly low FPR. Ignoring this leads to the Confirmation Bias. Likewise, a low FPR means nothing without a correspondingly high TPR. Ignoring this leads to Fisher’s Bias. To test a hypothesis, we start with a BO level that best reflects our priors and set our required standard of proof PO. The ratio of PO to BO determines the required LR: the strength or weight of the evidence we demand to accept the hypothesis. In our tea-tasting story, for example, we have BO=1 (BR=50%) and PO>19 (PP>95%), giving LR>19: in order to accept the hypothesis that the lady has some tea-tasting ability, we require evidence that is at least 19 times more likely if the hypothesis is true than if the hypothesis is false. A test is designed to calculate FPR: the probability that the evidence is a product of chance. This requires defining a random variable and assigning to it a probability distribution. Our example is an instance of what is known as Fisher’s exact test, where the random variable is the number of successes over the number of trials without replacement, as described by the hypergeometric distribution. Remember that with 8 trials the probability of a perfect choice under the null hypothesis of no ability is 1/70, the probability of 3 successes and 1 failure is 16/70, and so on. Hence, in case of a perfect choice we accept the hypothesis that the lady has some ability if TPR>19∙(1/70)=27% – a very reasonable requirement. But with 3 successes and 1 failure we would require an impossible TPR>19∙(17/70). On the other hand, if we lower our required PO to 3 (PP>75%), then all we need is TPR>3∙(17/70)=73% – a high but feasible requirement. But if we lower our BO to a more sceptical level, e.g. BO=1/3 (BR=25%), then TPR>3∙3∙(17/70) is again too high, whereas a perfect choice may still be acceptable evidence of some ability, even with the higher PO: TPR>3∙19∙(1/70)=81%. So there are four variables: PP, BR, FPR and TPR. Of these, PP is set by our required standard of proof, BR by our prior beliefs and FPR by the probability distribution of the relevant random variable. These three combined give us the minimum level of TPR required to accept the hypothesis of interest. TPR – the probability of the evidence in case the hypothesis is true – is also known as statistical power, or sensitivity. Our question is: given our starting priors and required standard of proof, and given the probability that the evidence is a chance event, how powerful should the evidence be for us to decide that it is not a chance event but a sign that the hypothesis of interest is true? Clearly, the lower is FPR, the more inclined we are to accept. As we know, Fisher would do it if FPR<5% – awkwardly preferring to declare himself able to disprove the null hypothesis at such significance level. That was enough for him: he apparently took no notice of the other three variables. But, as we have seen, what he might have been doing was implicitly assuming error symmetry, prior indifference and setting PP beyond reasonable doubt, thus requiring TPR>95%, i.e. LR>19. Or, more likely, at least in the tea test, he was starting from a more sceptical prior (e.g. 25%), while at the same time lowering his standard of proof to e.g. 75%, which at FPR=5% requires TPR>45%, i.e. LR>9, or perhaps to 85%, which requires TPR>85%, i.e. LR>17. There are many combinations of the four variables that are consistent with the acceptance of the hypothesis of interest. To see it graphically, let’s fix FPR: imagine we just ran a test and calculated that the probability that the resulting evidence is the product of chance is 5%. Do we accept the hypothesis? Yes, says Fisher, But we say: it depends on our priors and standard of proof. Here is the picture: For each BR, TPR is a positively convex function of PP. For example, with prior indifference (BR=50%) and a minimum standard of proof (PP>50%) all we need to accept the hypothesis is TPR>5% (i.e. LR>1): the hypothesis is more likely to be true than false. But with a higher standard, e.g. PP>75%, we require TPR>15% (LR>3), and with PP>95% we need TPR>95% (LR>19). The requirement gets steeper with a sceptical prior. For instance, halving BR to 25% we need TPR>15% for a minimum standard and TPR>45% for PP>75%. But PP>95% would require TPR>1: evidence is not powerful enough for us to accept the hypothesis beyond reasonable doubt. For each BR, the maximum standard of proof that keeps TPR below 1 is BO/(BO+FPR). Under prior indifference, that is 95% (95.24% to be precise: PO=20), but with BR=25% it is 87%. The flat roof area in the figure indicates the combination of priors and standards of proof which is incompatible with accepting the hypothesis at the 5% FPR level. If TPR is on or above the curved surface, we accept the hypothesis. But, unlike Fisher, if it is below we reject it: despite a 5% FPR, the evidence is not powerful enough for our priors and standard of proof. Remember we don’t need to calculate TPR precisely. If, as in the tea-tasting story, the hypothesis of interest is vague – the lady has some unspecified ability – it might not be possible. But what we can do is to assess whether TPR is above or below the required level. If we are prior indifferent and want to be certain beyond reasonable that the hypothesis is true, we need TPR>95%. But if we are happy with a lower 75% standard then all we need is TPR>15%. If on the other hand we have a sceptical 25% prior, there is no way we can be certain beyond reasonable doubt, while with a 75% standard we require TPR>45%. It makes no sense to talk about significance, acceptance and rejection without first specifying priors and standards of proof. In particular, very low priors and very high standards land us on the flat roof corner of the surface, making it impossible for us to accept the hypothesis. This may be just fine – there many hypotheses that I am too sceptical and too demanding to be able to accept. At the same time, however, I want to keep an open mind. But doing so does not mean reneging my scepticism or compromising my standards of proof. It means looking for more compelling evidence with a lower FPR. That’s what we did when the lady made one mistake with 8 cups. We extended the trial to 12 cups and, under prior indifference and with no additional mistakes, we accepted her ability beyond reasonable doubt. Whereas, starting with sceptical priors, acceptance required lowering the standard of proof to 75% or extending the trial to 14 cups. To reduce the size of the roof we need evidence that is less likely to be a chance event. For instance, FPR=1% shrinks the roof to a small corner, where even a sceptical 25% prior allows acceptance up to PP=97%. In the limit, as FPR tends to zero – there is no chance that the evidence is a random event – we have to accept. Think of the lady gulping 100 cups in a row and spotlessly sorting them in the two camps: even the most sceptical statistician would have no shadow of a doubt to regard this as conclusive positive evidence (a Smoking Gun). On the other hand, coarser evidence, more probably compatible with a chance event, enlarges the roof, thus making acceptance harder. With FPR=10%, for instance, the maximum standard of proof under prior indifference is 91%, meaning that even the most powerful evidence (TPR=1) is not enough for us to accept the hypothesis beyond reasonable doubt. And with a sceptical 25% prior the limit is 77%, barely above the ‘clear and convincing’ level. While harder, however, acceptance is not ruled out, as it would be with Fisher’s 5% criterion. According to Fisher, a 1 in 10 probability that the evidence is the product of chance is just too high for comfort, making him unable to reject the null hypothesis. But what if TPR is very high, say 90%? In that case, LR=9: the evidence is 9 times more likely if the hypothesis is true than if it false and, under prior indifference, PP=90%. Sure, we can’t be certain beyond reasonable doubt that the hypothesis is true, but in many circumstances it would be eminently reasonable to accept it.
Studying ACCUPLACER sample questions is an excellent method for preparing for your upcoming exam. Please use our free ACCUPLACER practice tests listed below to help you achieve your highest score possible. Our free ACCUPLACER sample exams provide you with an opportunity to evaluate how well you are prepared for the actual ACCUPLACER test. Taking these practice questions will allow you to focus your study on the areas that you need the most help on. It is important to achieve the best score possible on your ACCUPLACER exam. Discover test taking tips, score information, and Accuplacer Exam Prep. Use our free ACCUPLACER practice exams. ACCUPLACER is a computerized placement test used by many colleges and tech schools to assess an incoming student's proficiency in reading, writing, English and mathematics. The ACCUPLACER test was developed by the College Board which also administers the ACT test. The ACCUPLACER assessments include tests on the following subjects: arithmetic, college-level math, elementary algebra, reading comprehension, sentence skills, WritePlacer (essay writing) and English as a Second Language (ESL). The school that is administering the ACCUPLACER will specify which of the tests a student should take.
Ever since composites first became viable for industrial use, it has revolutionized the way we are building different structures around us. First used extensively in the marine industry, composites like GRP and FRP soon found their way in automotive and aerospace. Today it is impossible to think of these without composites. The use of composite in construction has been comparatively slower to take off and staggered across different sections. While certain components like FRP shower heads have been in use since the 70s, more complex use of GRP sections India in construction came later. Today the construction industry is increasingly reliant on composites like GRP and FRP in final structures and in actual construction work. Once seen only fit for bits and pieces, today GRP is an important part of any construction project. In fact, it is also now used in restoring famous historical buildings. It seems all we were waiting for is the development of the composite material into construction material known as construction GRP. GRP is an anisotropic materials, meaning that its mechanical properties can be tweaked as per requirements. We can add reinforcements in thickness and layers. Here are some of the unique properties of construction GRP that makes it an increasingly numero uno choice in the industry: Flexibility: As explained above, GRP can be moulded as per requirement. We can build almost any component from GRP — from tubs, acoustic panels to renovations parts of an old pillar! This has provided GRP manufacturers a unique opportunity to be a one-point stop for all construction needs. Flexural strength: We can build a GRP section India as per flexural strength requirement. While some laminates may show consistent performance at different points, other laminates can adapt to the load direction. The flexural strength can be enhanced without increasing the weight. The result is that it cannot be easily damaged despite rough handling or in more demanding constructions. Shear strength: With the right reinforcement we can increase the shear strength of the material as per requirement. This is a critical requirement for construction material. We need to know how much a component can take before breaking. It is also unimportant criteria for meeting set standards in construction material. Also, once considered one of its chief drawbacks, recent developments have given us better control over those critical requirements. Lightweight: GRP has the highest strength to weight ratio, which means that even though it is as strong as other materials it is less than half the weight. This is a significant advantage in construction. We can lift GRP sections India without a lot of effort. It cost less to ship and install. Labour and equipment cost are lowered. The lighter GRP requires less structural support, reducing the stress. In certain constructions like walkways and bridges, the light weight if GRP becomes even more important. Lighter weight is a decided advantage when dealing with high installations. Corrosion resistance: GRP is remarkably resistant to many corrosive elements, making it a suitable construction material for hostile environment. Indeed GRP structures are found in some of the most corrosive places like mines and chemical factories where elevators, walkways and platforms are often built with composite material. It is also resistant to most environmental factors that an average construction is exposed to. Significantly, this resistance is not thanks to special treatment, polish or coating of paint. This is one of GRP’s inherent qualities and remains even if the structure exterior gets scratched, bent, damaged or broken in some way! Low thermal conductivity: GRP has low thermal conductivity. In construction it means that we can effectively regulate the temperature in GRP structures. Since it does not conduct heat or cold well, we can achieve a stable temperature. This is an important criteria in tropical as well cold places where we need temperature controlled interiors. Low lifetime costs: Although the initial costs of GRP sections may seem high, its cost over a lifetime is actually quite low. It does not need regular paint, polish or other high maintenance like steel, concrete or timber. It does not rot or rust. It also does not damage easily. When used in interior structures like pipes, FRP can easily outlast other materials. As a construction material for structures like bridges, all it requires is regular cleaning from time to time.Tags: GRP Sections India in Construction
Chapter Review: ▸ The Sun, the moon all those objects shining in the sky are called celestial bodies. ▸ Celestial bodies which have their own heat and light are called Stars. ▸ The Sun is a Star. ▸ Various patterns formed by different groups of stars are called constellations e.g. Ursa Major or Big Bear. ▸ The Small Bear or Saptarishi is a group of seven stars. ▸ The North Star indicates the North direction. It is also called the Pole Star. ▸ We can locate the position of the Pole Star with the help of the Saptarishi. ▸ Some Celestial bodies which do not have their own heat and light and glow by the light of the stars are called planets. ▸ The moon that we see in the sky is a satellite. ▸ Solar system l The sun, nine planets satellites, asteroids and meteoroids form the solar system. ▸ The Sun l The sun is in the center of the solar system. ▸ It is made up of extremely hot gases. ▸ The sun is about 150 million km away from the earth. ▸ Planets l There are nine planets in our solar system. ▸ The nine planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. ▸ Planets move around the sun in a fixed orbit. ▸ Mercury is the nearest planet. ▸ Pluto is the farthest planet. ▸ A new planet 2003 UB313 has been discovered. It is bigger than Pluto and is farthest from the sun. ▸ Earth l It is the third nearest to the sun and fifth largest planet of our solar system. ▸ The earth is a unique planet because it supports life. ▸ It is also called the blue planet. ▸ It’s shape is Geoid. ▸ The Moon l It is only satellite of the earth. ▸ Its diameter is one-quarter of the earth. ▸ It is about 3.84,400 km. away from us. ▸ It moves around the earth in about 27 days. ▸ Only one side of the moon is visible to us on the earth. ▸ No life exists on moon as it has neither water nor air. ▸ Asteroids l They are numerous tiny bodies which move around the sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. ▸ The largest asteroid is the Ceres. ▸ Meteoroids l The small pieces of rocks which move around the sun are called meteoroids. ▸ Our solar system is a part of Milky Way galaxy. ▸ Milky Way galaxy was named Akash Ganga. ▸ There are millions of galaxies that make the Universe. Question1. Answer the following questions briefly. (a) How does a planet differ from a star? (b) What is meant by the ‘Solar System’? (c) Name all the planets according to their distance from the sun. (d) Why is the Earth called a unique planet? (e) Why do we see only one side of the moon always? (f) What is the Universe? Answer: (a) Differences between a planet and a star: \|A planet does not have its own light and heat. It derives its light from a star. A planet is usually smaller than stars. \|A star possesses its own heat and light. Stars are very huge objects compared to a planet in general. (b) The term Solar System refers to the “family” of the Sun. The Sun is a star around which eight planets, among other celestial objects, revolve in orbits. This whole system of bodies is called the Solar System. The Sun is the “head” of this system. (c) The list of planets in the order of their distance from the Sun is as follows: (i) Mercury (ii) Venus (iii) Earth (iv) Mars (v) Jupiter (vi) Saturn (vii) Uranus (viii) Neptune (d) The Earth is regarded as a unique planet because of the following reasons: ▸ It is the only planet known to support life. It has oxygen and water present in proportions that allow life to thrive. ▸ It also has a temperature range that supports life. ▸ The proportion of water present is about two-thirds of the surface of earth when compared to land. (e) One revolution of the moon around the earth takes about 27 days. Incidentally, the moon’s rotation about its own axis also takes nearly the same time. One day of the moon is equal to 27 Earth days. So only one side of the moon can be seen from the earth. (f) The Universe is the largest unit in which we live. It is a collection of galaxies. There is only one Universe, and everything that exists, exists in this Universe itself. Question2. Tick the correct answer. (a) The planet known as the “Earth’s Twin” is (i) Jupiter (ii) Saturn (iii) Venus. (b) Which is the third nearest planet to the sun? (i) Venus (ii) Earth (c) All the planets move around the sun in a (i) Circular path (ii) Rectangular path (iii) Elongated path. (d) The Pole Star indicates the direction to the (i) South (ii) North (e) Asteroids are found between the orbits of (i) Saturn and Jupiter (ii) Mars and Jupiter (iii) The Earth and Mars. Answer: (a)—(iii), (b)—(ii), (c)—(iii), (d)—(ii), (e)—(ii). Question3. Fill in the blanks. (a) A group of ……… forming various patterns is called a ……… . (b) A huge system of stars is called ……… . (c) ……… is the closest celestial body to our earth. (d) ……… is the third nearest planet to the sun. (e) Planets do not have their own ……… and ……… . Answer: (a) stars, constellation (b) galaxy (c) The moon (d) The earth (e) heat, light.
In 1055, the Welsh thronged over the border and attacked Hereford, and Harold Godwinson was appointed to sort things out. He managed to push the Welsh back as far as Radnor, and then promptly dispossessed many of the surrounding land owners, dividing the spoils between himself, the king and some of his officers in the army. The settlement became known as the king’s town and eventually Kington. By 1287, Kington had spread further down the hill, close to where the present centre is. Edward I granted six fairs, and the Whit Monday Fair was the biggest and jolliest, but the other five were more seriously for stock. Close to the summit of Hergest Ridge, immediately to the west of the church, is a rock known as the Whetstone, which it was said went down to the Hindwell Brook at the bottom of the Ridge every time it heard a cock crow. It is thought that during the plague of 1366 a weekly market was held at the stone, where wheat (whet) was put onto the stone by farmers from the surrounding area, who would then back off to allow the townspeople to collect it and leave their money in exchange…..this was in an effort to avoid infection. The market hall in the town had two floors, with the top room being used for sales of wool, and the ground floor for dairy goods and poultry. The Rebecca Toll Gate Riots Kington, along with Ledbury, was one of the few places in the county to suffer the Rebecca toll gate riots of the 1830s, which arose because locals were angry over being forced to pay for everyday journeys such as to and from the market. Frequently the protestors were men disguised as women, and they even blacked their faces so that nobody could recognise them as they burnt or dismantled the toll gates. (the name ~Rebecca~ might have come from Genesis “the descendant of Rebecca will possess the gates of them that hate them”. Drovers roads gradually came into existence, and these bypassed the hated toll houses which still are plentiful throughout Herefordshire although of course no longer used for the original purpose. Kington had a thriving clothing industry at one time, but this declined after the late 18th century, and eventually the cloth mills were demolished. There was also a glove industry, but in the mid 1800s cheaper French gloves were being imported and this hit the Kington glove makers hard. By 1845 there were 4 corn mills, an iron foundry and a tanning industry. Churches of Kington - St. Mary the Virgin Church - Kington The oldest part of this church is the tower which is roughly circa 1200. Originally it was detached from the body of the church, and was used as a refuge for the parishioners during troubled times – the walls are a very solid and reassuring six feet thick.Read More > - St. Bede the Memorable Church - Kington St. Bede the Memorable in Kington is a Catholic Church.Read More > - Baptist Church - Kington This church was built in 1868Read More > Buildings in Kington - Kington Union Workhouse KingswoodRead More > There was a small workhouse in Kington according to a report in 1771, but a later bigger workhouse was built in 1837. The building became a nursing home in 1962 and now, much altered, it is used as offices for a housing association. - Hergest Court History This fifteenth century manor house sits a couple of miles from Kington, and originally had a moat. It underwent some alterations over the 17th, 18th and 19th centuriesRead More >
Red and Processed Meats cause cancer – Dietary Guidelines – Missed opportunities to curb the cause of colorectal cancer In the Q&A section of the 2015-2020 dietary guidelines, it is stated that the current guidelines integrated existing reports into its review, reports from the Institute of Medicine and the World Health Organization, among other international professional organizations and agencies (office of disease prevention and health promotion, 2016). However, on October 26, 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the cancer agency of the World Health Organization (WHO), after reviewing over 800 studies linking red and processed meat to colorectal cancer, issued a press release stating that red and processed meats have been linked to cancer in humans (IARC, 2015). This press release was issued prior to the release of the 2015 -2020 dietary guidelines for Americans in December of 2015. Dr. Joel Fuhrman – An Unprecedented Opportunity The major goal of IARC, which is part of the WHO, is to identify the causes of cancer. The IARC has a rating system for classifying those items/substances that are, may be, or are not carcinogenic to humans. A quick review of the IARC monographs on the evaluations of carcinogenic risks to humans can provide you with the classification system. The classification system can be viewed here: http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/index.php. \|Group 1\|\|Carcinogenic to humans\| \|Group 2A\|\|Probably carcinogenic to humans\| \|Group 2B\|\|Possibly carcinogenic to humans\| \|Group 3\|\|Not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans\| \|Group 4\|\|Probably not carcinogenic to humans\| The WHO report has given processed meat a group 1 classification, meaning there is adequate evidence linking the consumption of processed meat to colorectal cancer (IARC, 2016). This same group 1 classification has also been given to tobacco in all forms (smoking, smokeless, and second hand smoke) as well as plutonium and asbestos (IARC, 2016). https://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/ClassificationsGroupOrder.pdf. The WHO report also recognized red meat as a probable carcinogen to humans and was given a Group 2A classification. The rationale for this classification is that more data needs to be acquired but according to the IARC (2015) red meat has “strong mechanistic evidence supporting a carcinogenic effect” (para. 2). The IARC (2015) press release further recognizes that an “association was observed mainly for colorectal cancer, but associations were also seen for pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer” (para. 3). A 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by 18% (IARC, 2015, para. 6). To put that into context, three to four strips of bacon or one hot dog is approximately 50 grams. However bacon is not the only carcinogenic risk. Smoked meats, canned hams, processed lunch meats, and many other processed meats increase the risk of colorectal cancer (IARC, 2015). The IARC (2015) refers to processed meat as: Meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavor or improve preservation. Most processed meats contain pork or beef, but processed meats may also contain other read meats, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood (para. 11). Examples of processed meats included by the IARC (2015) include “hot dogs (frankfurters), ham, sausages, corned beef, and bitlong or beef jerky as well as canned and meat based preparations and sauces” (para. 12). The report further goes on to explain what products are classified as red meat. The IARC (2015) report clarifies that red meat “refers to all types of mammalian muscle meat such as beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, horse, and goat” (para. 10). The IARC’s 2015 press release can be viewed here: The IARC’s journal article published in the lancet can be viewed here: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(15)00444-1/abstract. Previous to this report by the IARC branch of the WHO, the National Institute of Health (NIH) and National Cancer Institute’s (NCI), Cancer Trends Progress Report (2015) linked red and processed meat consumption to increased risk of colorectal cancer among other cancers such as prostate cancer (para. 1). The NIH (2015) defines red meat as “… beef, pork, and lamb, although some studies include all processed meats (such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs, and cold cuts) in their definition, regardless of animal origin” (para. 1). While continued research is needed to fully understand meat’s influence on cancer, there are multiple pathways by which cancer can develop after the ingestion of meat. According to the NIH (2015) “the increased risk may be explained by the iron and fat content in red meat, and/or the salt and nitrates/nitrites in processed meat. Additionally, when meat is cooked at high temperatures, substances are formed that may cause cancer” (para. 2). These possible cancer forming compounds are called heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Despite available evidence from different governmental organizations within the United States and abroad, and over 800+ studies linking red and processed meat consumption to colorectal cancer and possibly prostate cancer, no mention or references were made in the 2015 – 2020 dietary guidelines for Americans. The bulk of evidence may not have been included in the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the United States Department of Agriculture (HHS and USDA) 2015 – 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans who co-authored the report along with many scientists in the field of nutrition. Yet, according to the office of disease prevention and health promotion’s Questions and Answers about the Dietary Guidelines (2016) website, “these reports summarize the most current and comprehensive evidence and have been written by a panel of recognized experts in the field” (p. 21). According to the HHS and USDA (2015), the 2015-2020 United States Dietary Guidelines for Americans “a message from the secretaries” Thomas J. Vilsack and Sylvia M. Burrwell, recognize that “one of our government’s most important responsibilities is to protect the health of the American public.” And they continue, saying, “about half of all American adults—117 million people—have one or more preventable, chronic diseases, many of which are related to poor quality eating patterns and physical inactivity” (p. 7). Yet no mention of the WHO report on the link between red and processed meat consumption and colorectal cancer was included within the final draft of the 2015 – 2020 United States Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are used to promote school lunch programs, school breakfast programs, nutrition programs for Women Infants and Children, as well as having a direct influence on the foods Americans purchase. However, the HHS & USDA (2015) report lists colorectal cancer as the second leading cause of cancer death within the U.S. and estimates that 1.2 million adult men and women have a history of colorectal cancer (p. 3). But there was no mention of the connection between red and processed meat and colorectal cancer. While most organizations applauded the new 2015 – 2020 Dietary Guidelines, one organizations felt there was a missed opportunity to inform Americans about the dangers of red and processed meat consumption. Sampson and Rohloff (2016) of the American Cancer Society issued a statement on January 7, 2016 stating: The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (Dietary guidelines) released today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, do not acknowledge the totality of evidence available to make recommendations intended to reduce consumption of foods known to cause cancer (para. 1). According to Sampson and Rohloff (2016) Dr. Richard Wender, Chief Cancer Control Officer of the American Cancer Society said, “the science on the link between cancer and diet is extensive. By omitting specific diet recommendations, such as eating less red and processed meat, these guidelines miss a critical and significant opportunity to reduce suffering and death from cancer” (para. 3). Cancer Organizations and Recommendations While processed meat has now been listed as a class 1 carcinogen and red meat as probably carcinogenic, some health organizations provide warnings against their consumption. The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) website uses some of the strongest language possible in terms of red and processed meat consumption. The AICR (2016a) cancer prevention guidelines state that Americans should “limit the consumption of red meats (such as beef, pork and lamb) and avoid processed meats” (para. 5). The AICR (2016b) further goes on to state that, “to reduce your cancer risk, eat no more than 18 ounces (cooked weight) per week of red meats, like beef, pork and lamb, and avoid processed meat such as ham, bacon, salami, hot dogs and sausages” (para. 2) The website also recognizes that even small portions of processed meat eaten daily increase one’s risk of colorectal cancer, and they also provide an example as a partial explanation as to the cause. According to the AICR (2016b), “heme iron, the compound that gives meat its color, has been shown to damage the lining of the colon” (para. 4). The dietary guidelines for Americans are meant to provide the public with a healthy eating pattern. The public should be able to rely on one source of information for the most up to date health advice free from conflicts of interest. According to Herman (2010), the United States Department of Agriculture has a vested interest in selling agricultural products and at times tends to favor industry over the health of the general public (p. 285). While the guidelines cannot force the public to change their dietary habits, the public should be informed and provided with the best scientific evidence available. The guidelines should provide reliable and consistent data to inform the public of the optimal diet for health. The IARC (2015) determined that red meat is linked to cancer and processed meat is a cause of colorectal cancer while the HHS & USDA (2015) made no mention of this link, though they recognize colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States (p. 3). Therefore, avoiding, abstaining or eliminating all sources of red and processed meat is advisable due to its link to colorectal cancer as well as the potential for increasing the risk of prostate and pancreatic cancer. However, cancer is not the only risk associated with consuming red and processed meat. The cholesterol, saturated fat, and trans-fat found in these and all other animal products has also been linked to increasing cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes. Therefore, to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and cancer, eliminating animal-based foods is an advisable goal (Estadella et al., 2013; Hopkins, 1992; Howell, McNamara, Tosca, Smith and Gaines, 1997; Institute of Medicine, 2002; Spence, Jenkins, Davignon, 2010). American Institute for Cancer Research (2016) a. Recommendations for Cancer Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.aicr.org/reduce-your-cancer-risk/recommendations-for-cancer-prevention/. American Institute for Cancer Research (2016) b. Recommendations for Cancer Prevention. Retrieved from Bouvard, V., Loomis D., Guyton K. Z., Grosse, Y., Ghissassi F. E., Et. al. (2015). Carcinogenicity of consumption of red and processed meat. The Lancet Oncology, 16 (16), 1599-1600. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(15)00444-1 or http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(15)00444-1/abstract Herman J. (2010). Food and Drug Law Journal Saving U.S. Dietary Advice from Conflicts of Interest. Retrieved from https://www.drmcdougall.com/misc/2010nl/jul/sc%20herman.indd.pdf Hopkins P. N., (1992) Effects of dietary cholesterol on serum cholesterol; a meta-analysis and review. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 55. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1534437, Howell, W. H., McNamara, D. J., Tosca, M. A., Smith, B. T., Gaines J. A., (1997). Plasma lipid and lipoprotein responses to dietary fat and cholesterol: a meta-analysis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 65. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9174470, International Agency Research on cancer, the cancer agency part of the the World Health Organization. (2015). IARC Monographs evaluate consumption of red meat and processed meat [Press release]. Retrieved from http://www.iarc.fr/en/media-centre/pr/2015/pdfs/pr240_E.pdf International Agency for Research on Cancer World Health Organization (2016, June 24). IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Retrieved from http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/index.php. National Academy of Sciences (2002, September 5). Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids. Retrieved from http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2002/Dietary-Reference-Intakes-for-Energy-Carbohydrate-Fiber-Fat-Fatty-Acids-Cholesterol-Protein-and-Amino-Acids.aspx National Institute of Health National Cancer Institute Cancer Trends Progress Report (Last updated 2015, March). Red Meat Consumption Retrieved from http://progressreport.cancer.gov/prevention/red_meat#field_additional_information Office of disease prevention and health promotion (2016, August 22). Questions and Answers About the Dietary Guidelines. Retrieved from Https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/qanda.asp#guidelines-q1 Sampson, D., & Rohloff, E., (2016, January, 7). American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. New Dietary Guidelines disregard important link between diet and cancer; missed opportunity to reduce death and suffering. Retrieved from http://www.acscan.org/content/media-center/new-dietary-guidelines-disregard-important-link-between-diet-and-cancer-missed-opportunity-to-reduce-death-and-suffering/ Spence, J. D., Jenkins, D. J., Davignon, J., (2010) Dietary cholesterol and egg yolks: not for patients at risk of vascular disease. The Candian Journal of Cardiology, 26. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21076725 United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services (2015, December). 2015 -2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Eighth Edition. Retrieved from https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/resources/2015-2020_Dietary_Guidelines.pdf Copyright © 2017 Kenoshaheart.org
One way our class used Gizmos to engage student learning was to have them show their understanding of simple circuits in science. Students had a BLAST ast making simple circuits and seeing if their creations would light up. They used the photo function of the Gizmo to take pictures of their custom designed simple circuits. After playing for awhile, they completed a teacher designed assessment enthusiastically and showed their understanding. It was a perfect blend of fun and learning! Nels Tooker, 4th Grade D.J. Bakie School, Kingston, NH The Gizmos my students have used are those aligned with our Everyday Math lessons. The students have been re-taught concepts they may have struggled with and then use Gizmos to practice the concept independently. The Gizmos my students have enjoyed are Chocomatic (Multiplication, Arrays, and Area) and Factor Trees (Factoring Numbers). They also have enjoyed Gizmos during choice time, to play around and get familiar with the website and other Gizmos that are available. -Nicole Elli, 5th Grade Memorial Elementary School, Newton, NH
Chickweed (Stellaria media) is a ground-hugging weed found growing in gardens and lawns throughout the United States. Its fast growth, rapid seed production and hardy nature make it a nuisance in many lawns as it competes with your grass for space and soil nutrients. Gardeners and homeowners can use various methods to remove, kill and control chickweed in their lawn to preserve the health and appearance of their grass. Tear out the chickweed in your lawn manually. This option is ideal for small patches of chickweed growth. Thoroughly irrigate your lawn to moisten and loosen the soil. Grasp the chickweed at the center of its spreading mass and pull away from the soil. For assistance in removal, use a garden fork or hand-held garden spade. Use an organic herbicide formulated with citrus oils, obtained from some garden outlets, health food stores and nurseries. This is ideal for homeowners who do not wish to use potentially toxic chemical-based weed killer. Spritz directly onto the chickweed according to the manufacturer's guidelines, as potency differs among products. Avoid widespread use on your lawn, as such herbicides are typically non-selective and may kill your grass. Use a post-emergent lawn herbicide. This strategy is ideal for widespread chickweed control and is less labor-intensive than manual removal. Such products can be found from most major lawn care brands and are designed to target weed species such as chickweed without harming common grass varieties, such as Bermuda or zoysia. Spray across your entire lawn during a dry-weather period. Apply a granular pre-emergent lawn herbicide after spraying your lawn with the post-emergent product. This prevents chickweed seeds lying amongst your grass from germinating. Such products can be obtained from most nurseries and are usually combined with a lawn fertilizer to boost the health of your lawn.
Jeanne Theoharis calls out the abuse and misuse of the Civil Rights MovementHistorians in the News tags: civil rights movement, Black lives matter Distorted renderings of movement history took on heightened danger as a new movement gained national attention. Galvanizing around the issues of police brutality, criminal injustice, and mass incarceration, Black Lives Matter came to national prominence after the killing of Trayvon Martin and subsequent acquittal of George Zimmerman in 2013, and the police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014. The vision of Black Lives Matter was articulated by three Black queer women: Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi; its various local incarnations have encompassed a broad palette of issues affecting Black lives, from enduring school inequality to living-wage struggles, and from police accountability to gender justice. Taking to the streets, blocking traffic, disrupting political events and commerce, and launching die-ins on college campuses, this new leader-full movement, organized predominantly by young Black people but joined by a rainbow of others and Black people of all ages, has forced the nation to grapple with issues of racial injustice in law enforcement and the legal system. The civil rights movement has lurked everywhere in public discussion of Black Lives Matter. While there have been notable connections and moments of camaraderie—for instance, Harry Belafonte’s Justice League, as well as by many of the former members of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee—an undertone of concern and fear about the protesters and problems with the movement they are building have come from many corners, the criticism laced with problematic allusions to the civil rights movement. Former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee outrageously stated that Martin Luther King Jr. would be “appalled” by BLM’s strategy and called on protesters to be more like King. King’s niece, Alveda King, referred to BLM’s methods as “inappropriate.” Oprah Winfrey called for “some kind of leadership to come out of this” and cautioned young activists “to take note of the strategic, peaceful intention if you want real change.” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer criticized protests in Baltimore as not being “in the tradition of Martin Luther King.” And Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed invoked the history of King to celebrate Atlanta’s tradition of free speech, but then admonished protesters: “Dr. King would never take a freeway.”... Many saw the invocation of the civil rights movement against BLM as a way for critics to stand on the sidelines. “The burden of the brutalized is not to comfort the bystander,” actor-activist Jesse Williams made clear at the 2016 BET awards, in a speech that went viral. “If you have a critique for the resistance, for our resistance, then you better have an established record of critique of our oppression.” “What I’ve learned from the [BLM] activists and what is going on today is, those of us who have lived almost a century, have no right to cynicism,” Harry Belafonte joined in. “Mostly, the people who turn away from radical thought are people who don’t like to be uncomfortable.” Recognizing the need to steep themselves in fuller histories of Black struggle, popular education and study groups have become an important but much less covered aspect of the many Black Lives Matter groups and mobilizations. And many BLM activists have partnered with a set of elders willing to build on those lineages. But that has not caused commentators to stop using the civil rights movement to chastise the work of BLM activists. Fed up with the prominent misuse of history against Black Lives Matter, sixty-six former SNCC activists published a statement in July 2016 marking the continuities of struggle .... comments powered by Disqus - ‘It Just Felt Wrong’: U. of Florida Faculty Say Political Fears Stalled an Initiative on Race - A UF Professor Used "Critical" and "Race" in a Sentence. Trouble Ensued - Hanukkah Today Would Make the Maccabees Roll Over In Their Graves - AHA, OAH File SCOTUS Amicus Brief in Mississippi Abortion Ban Case - Josephine Baker First American, Black Woman, and Performer Inducted to French Pantheon
Dance … or die! However, careful analysis of the story reveals that the fast changes in lizards are not evidence of evolution at all. Beware the fire ant! Fire ants (Solenopsis invicta) were accidentally introduced to the USA from South America in the 1930s. They soon impacted their new surrounds. If a reptile, bird or mammal strayed onto a fire ant mound, the consequences were often fatal.3 The fire ants will also actually attack far away from their mound, to obtain food. They inject neuromuscular venom into the skin to paralyze their prey, then begin to eat. “It takes just 12 of them less than a minute to kill a three-inch [75-mm] long fence lizard,” explained Penn State University biologist Tracy Langkilde. “In fact, they have even been known to eat animals as large as calves, stripping them down to their bones.”4 Langkilde’s Ecology research paper showed that some fence lizards (Sceloporus undulatus) are better than others at escaping fire ants, thanks to longer legs and a ‘twitch dance’.5 Survivor lizards dance the ‘twitch’ To attack a lizard, a fire ant will lift a scale covering the lizard’s skin in order to expose some soft flesh, and then inject the neuromuscular toxin that can paralyze and kill it. Lizards show two different responses if they unfortunately come into the ‘line-of-fire’ of foraging fire ants. Response #1: Lizards remain stationary (a strategy that usually works well to camouflage themselves from predators, such as birds), doing nothing as ants crawl over them, and are soon killed. Response #2: ‘Survivor lizards’ quickly abandon the motionless camouflage tactic as soon as fire ants begin to crawl onto them, and take remedial action. As Tracy Langkilde explained, “They do this big body shimmy, or a body twitch, where they shake their body to fling the ants off them, and then they run away from the mound.” It really is a spectacularly vigorous ‘twitch’!6 In fire ant territory, the lizards have changed Collecting lizards from different regions to ‘road-test’ on fire ant mounds,7 Langkilde observed a very interesting phenomenon. Only 40–50% of the lizards from an area not invaded by fire ants did the shimmy-and-run. This was in stark contrast to the up-to-80% ‘twitch’ rate of lizards from areas long invaded by fire ants. Also, lizards from fire ant regions had longer hind legs. Langkilde suggests that longer leg length was likely genetically selected because it gives the lizards more leverage to shake off the ants and flee more quickly. When she examined baby lizards in the fire-ant-occupied regions and found they too had longer legs, it confirmed that there had been an inherited change in the makeup of the population, rather than merely a growth response to local conditions. Furthermore, a comparison of museum specimens collected before the coming of fire ants showed that there were no differences in the lizard populations across the regions, also indicating a change in the makeup of the populations since the fire ant invasion. Dance, baby, dance Langkilde observed that all hatchlings do the twitch dance, i.e. irrespective of whether they were from fire-ant-affected areas or not. Langkilde explains that this is probably because the baby lizards have soft scales and so are vulnerable even to native, non-venomous ants. The scales of adult lizards, however, provide sufficient protection against most ants, and so the twitch dance is no longer necessary. It actually could be disadvantageous, given that overt twitching and fleeing would draw the unwelcome attention of predators to the otherwise well-camouflaged lizards. When fire ants move in, however, Langkilde suggests that any advantage of being motionless is lost, as only the lizards that maintain the twitch-and-flee behaviour into adulthood survive to pass on their genes. ‘Evolution, evolution, evolution’? Not surprisingly, the likes of National Geographic proclaimed these genetic changes as being a hallmark of evolution, e.g.:8 “Long legs and skittish behavior are recently evolved traits”1 “The findings, Langkilde said, are evidence of a rapid evolutionary response to the fire ants.”1 “Langkilde noticed that longer hind limbs are more prevalent at birth in lizards from fire-ant exposed populations, indicating an evolutionary adaptation”.1 “Duncan Irschick is a biologist at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst who uses lizards as a model to study evolution. He said Langkilde’s research presents solid evidence that these are evolved traits. … ‘It says there is some hope for species, that they can rapidly evolve to meet new challenges,’ Irschick said.”1 However, when they speak of ‘evolved traits’ and ‘rapid evolution’ etc., they are not referring to features that appeared out-of-the-blue. The twitch dance characteristic, for example, is exhibited by all hatchlings. Since the coming of the fire ants, natural selection has favoured individuals in the population that retain the juvenile shimmy dance into adulthood.9 Given the very powerful ‘selection pressure’ wielded by natural selection here—within 60 seconds any lizard that doesn’t do the shake-shimmy-twitch is ‘dead meat’!—it’s not surprising that its impact is so dramatic. Similarly, the rapid increase in the gene frequency for lizard long-leggedness is also not ‘evolution in action’ as the genes for long legs were already present in the population. (This is made plain by Langkilde’s reporting that longer legs were merely “more common” in fire-ant-infested regions than in fire-ant-free zones, rather than something new.) The role of natural selection was, as always, eliminative: wiping out lizards that lacked these genes. So, thanks to do-or-die, trial-by-fire-ants natural selection (culling), lizards now are much better adapted to survive the fire ant threat. But beware the ‘bait-and-switch’ one so often sees in secular media reporting, where ‘evolution’ is wrongly used synonymously with ‘natural selection’ and ‘adaptation’ as having caused these changes in the genetic makeup of lizard populations. These changes are not ‘evolutionary’ at all, as they are not examples of the increase in information (new genes) necessary for fish to have ever given rise to fence lizards—no matter how many millions of years an evolutionist might imagine. The changes are rapid because the genetic characteristics are already there.10 Thus equipped to be alert to the bait-and-switch, a discerning reader can confidently peruse evolutionary reporting, teasing out the facts from the ‘evolution-speak’. Here’s another extract from National Geographic News as a sample ‘test’ (with our added emphasis as an aid): “Sharon Strauss, a professor of evolution and ecology at the University of California at Davis, agrees that Langkilde presents solid evidence for rapid evolution in fence lizards. The pace of evolution, she noted, hinges on ‘how strong the selection is and whether or not there is any genetic variation in the population that allows adaptation.’ A genetic trait for twitching in adulthood is likely to have existed within the lizard population prior to the fire ant invasion, Strauss noted. In order to help species adapt to the changing environment, Langkilde said ‘we need to manage populations so that they have enough genetic diversity so that they can evolve.’” “Enough genetic diversity”, i.e. pre-existent genetic diversity—the genetic diversity that exists because the Creator provided such inbuilt capacity for variety. This has enabled His creature kinds to fill the many-and-various ecological niches around the planet. Destroy evolution and defend biblical creation To this point we have dismantled ‘evolution’ claims in line with the lead given by the Apostle Paul to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:5). But what if somebody tries to strategically shift the burden of proof from evolution to creation by objecting: “Okay, I see that natural selection of twitching, long-legged lizards is not evolution. But the fire ants’ existence clearly shows it’s a dog-eat-dog, survival-of-the-fittest world—your ‘God of Love’ is supposed to have made these agents of mischief and misery?!” To answer (1 Peter 3:15), firstly we would point out that originally fire ants could not have been wreaking ‘mischief and misery’ as everything was created “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Death and pain are in the present (i.e. post-Fall) world as a consequence of the first man’s disobedience—Genesis 3:14–19, Romans 5:12,17, 8:19–22, 1 Corinthians 15:21–22 (but thankfully not in the future “new heavens and new earth”—2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1,4, 22:3). Secondly we would look to see if there’s anything about the fire ants’ current lifestyle that might indicate how they could have lived in the pre-Fall world. And indeed there is—fire ants today actually consume large amounts of young plants, fruit, and seeds.11 Certain other Solenopsis species, too—the same biblical ‘kind’ as fire ants—are even greater partakers of vegetarian sources of food. Also, their stingers have a function which would also be important in the pre-Fall world—they mark their trails with pheromones so other ants can follow it. That tells us something of what it was like in the “very good” world prior to Adam’s sin, when lizards didn’t have to face the terrible selection pressure of dance-or-death. Re-posted on homepage: 7 July 2021 References and notes - Roach, J., Lizards evolving rapidly to survive deadly fire ants, news.nationalgeographic.com, 21 January 2009. Return to text - Other media outlets echoed similar sentiments, e.g. the news video: Discovery News—Lizards show evolution in action, youtube.com/watch?v=PoeIIZFApF4, 30 January 2009. Return to text - If a person is stung/bitten, although it can feel as if ‘burnt by fire’ (hence the name ‘fire ant’), and can cause extreme discomfort and unsightly lesions that can last for days. However, it is not usually fatal, except in people with sensitive skin or allergies. Return to text - Bryner, J., Lizards’ dance avoids deadly ants, livescience.com, 26 January 2009. Return to text - Langkilde, T., Invasive fire ants alter behaviour and morphology of native lizards, Ecology 90(1):208–217, 2009. Return to text - At the time of writing, video footage of the ‘twitch dance’ could still be viewed online via the Youtube clip given in Ref. 2. Return to text - It was reported, “Langkilde stopped the experiment after a minute to keep the ants from killing the lizards.” Ref. 4. Return to text - And many since then have continued to publicly herald this as ‘evolution in action’. E.g.: Harrison, K., 7 animals that are evolving right before our eyes—#4 Lizards are evolving to be dancers, cracked.com, 18 May 2011. Also: Pringle, L., Billions of years, amazing changes: The story of evolution, Boyds Mills Press, Inc., Pennsylvania, USA, 2011, pp. 85–86. (See our comprehensive review of this book at creation.com/pringle.) Return to text - Twitch retention might possibly result from a genetically-controlled ‘twitch switch’ failing to turn off at the onset of maturity. Retention of juvenile traits is called pedomorphosis. Return to text - See also: Catchpoole, D. and Wieland, C., Speedy species surprise, Creation 23(2):13–15, 2001; creation.com/speedy. Return to text - Extension—America’s research-based learning network, What do fire ants eat? extension.org, 29 November 2013. Return to text
If you happen to have a chance to visit Bletchley Park do not miss the opportunity to visit the National Museum of Computing where you will be able to see a large collection of computers of all sizes and ages. A recent addition is the Harwell Dekatron / WITCH which came back to like on November 20th, 2012. The Harwell Dekatron or WITCH is the World’s oldest original working digital computer dating from 1951. WITCH is an acronym that stands for Wolverhampton Instrument for Teaching Computing from Harwell. The computer aquired this name when, in 1957, it was offered in a competition to an educational establishment. The competition was won by the Wolverhampton and Staffordshire College of Technology. The machine uses “dekatrons” for its volatile memory (think of is as RAM) and it works on a decimal system, as opposed to the binary. The dekatrons are visible and thus one can literally see the state of the memory when the machine is operating. This sounds great when trying to explain how a computer works! More information can be obtained here
Richard J. Carwardine. Lincoln. London: Longman, 2003. xviii + 352 pp. $16.95 (paper), ISBN 978-0-582-03279-8. Reviewed by Stacy Pratt McDermott (Assistant Editor, The Papers of Abraham Lincoln, Springfield, Illinois) Published on H-CivWar (December, 2003) The Power of Historical Circumstances It just may be that it takes the distance of an ocean to gain new insights about Abraham Lincoln and his presidency. From his academic post at Oxford University halfway across the world, Richard J. Carwardine is removed from much of the mythology regarding Abraham Lincoln. Thus, he has written a superb political biography of one of America's best-loved presidents in which he refuses to lapse into that tired old folklore that tends to dominate the field of Lincoln studies. Instead, Carwardine analyzes Lincoln within his unique historical and political context, arguing that Lincoln was as much a product of his era as he was a producer of historical events. Lincoln is one book in the series entitled Profiles in Power, which includes biographies of world leaders like Oliver Cromwell, Maximilien Robespierre, Jawaharlal Nehru, Adolf Hitler, Benito Juarez, Catherine De' Medici, and Woodrow Wilson, to name a few. The goal of the series is not to rehash the political biographies of world leaders but rather to examine the mechanisms of their power and analyze their individual approaches to and uses of that power. Although Carwardine's narrative discusses Lincoln's political perspectives and his political career leading up to the 1860 presidential election, his contribution to this series is focused on his presidency and on Lincoln's political style in the employment of the power that his elected office afforded. In the book, Carwardine addresses the challenge of examining Lincoln's political power by immersing himself in Lincoln's words. This reliance on primary materials should not strike historians as unique, but so much of the scholarship on Lincoln published every year depends to a great extent on previous studies of Lincoln and, therefore, tends to retrace old historiographical paths and to sing familiar interpretive tunes. Relying heavily on The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln and Recollected Words of Abraham Lincoln, Carwardine charts his own path through the Lincoln manuscript material and focuses on clues therein about Lincoln's personal and religious perspectives on the topics, specifically slavery, that occupied the minds of antebellum Americans. Carwardine is well versed in the Lincoln historiography and acknowledges the canon of secondary literature on Lincoln, including David Herbert Donald. Yet Carwardine is confident in his own understanding of the era and of Lincoln himself, and, as a result, his perspective is specifically guided, his narrative is fresh, and his conclusions are insightful. The first chapter deals directly with Lincoln's political ambition and vision, including the roots of what Carwardine defines as Lincoln's "moral power" and the religious roots of Lincoln's approach to politics. The author recognizes Lincoln as "ambitious, enterprising, and determined" in his political life, and he quickly dispels any misconception on the part of his readers that Lincoln was a passive participant in politics (p. 39). The second and third chapters analyze the historical context of the development of mass participation in the political process and the increasingly entrenched system of party politics. It is in these chapters that Carwardine makes his most important contribution, arguing that the historical and political circumstances of the 1840s and 1850s created an environment in which Lincoln--a man with political ambition and talents for gauging and responding to public opinion--could ascend to a position of national power. Carwardine argues that it is important to recognize the "external sources" of Lincoln's authority "as much as his own endowments," and that Lincoln's political success was the result of personal drive, the force of public opinion, and the organizing machine of democracy (p. xii). The fourth chapter examines Lincoln as president-elect and the ways in which holding the party line and building northern support for the coming Civil War occupied Lincoln's time as he anticipated his assumption of the country's highest office. The fifth and sixth chapters discuss the Lincoln presidency, but not with a traditional political and militaristic perspective. Carwardine is not concerned with Lincoln's day-to-day strategic and administrative decisions, but rather he assesses Lincoln from an intellectual, psychological, and religious perspective. He seeks to understand Lincoln's perceptions of his power and of his leadership. Chapter 5 examines Lincoln's developing religious faith and morals in regard to prosecuting the war and transforming it from a war for union to a war for emancipation. Chapter 6 argues that Lincoln was conscious of and actively engaged in the mobilization of popular support for the war effort, yet at the same time he remained cognizant of the brute instrument of his power--the Union Army--and the role that physical power and coercion could, and should, play in the Union's moral, as well as military, victory. The book also includes chapter endnotes and a chronology of Lincoln's life, which combines the personal and the political. Generally, Carwardine's footnotes are basic citation notes. However, the author does provide short bibliographic essays on Lincoln scholarship for each chapter of the book. These descriptive essays offer a window into the literature on which Carwardine relied most heavily for particular topics covered and interpretations presented within the book. Overall, Carwardine offers a balanced interpretation of Lincoln's employment of political power. He argues that Lincoln was not squeamish about utilizing the power of his political office and the circumstances of war to press the limits of the constitution, as in the suspension of habeas corpus. However, Carwardine also asserts, although somewhat indirectly, that Lincoln's moral center guided his political actions and, at least by the war's end, religion played a significant role in Lincoln's conduct of the war. Carwardine is a fine scholar and he has not failed to reaffirm his talents as a researcher and, most notably, as a writer. Good historians often detract from their scholarship with poorly organized and awkwardly written prose. Carwardine does not. Lincoln is exceedingly well written and the narrative is engaging. However, I would be remiss if I did not share two small quibbles that I have with this otherwise very fine book. First, Carwardine completely ignores Lincoln's law practice as a context in which Lincoln developed his view of politics and of political power. Perhaps that omission strikes a particular chord with the specific bias of this reviewer. Yet it is hard to believe that Lincoln, who drank up the knowledge of his every endeavor, did not at least shade his political vision with the keen eyes of a lawyer. Having spent twenty-five years practicing law, Lincoln was as influenced by the legal profession and by his direct interaction with the structure of American law as he was by the historical convergence of mass political participation, the growing influence of political public opinion, and the machinations of political parties. Lincoln was a product of his historical context, and one of those contexts was his legal career. Second, Carwardine is a bit too comfortable with the reminiscent material he utilizes to support his psychological and inner religious interpretations of Lincoln's political philosophy and vision. He makes use of sources such as Herndon's Lincoln by Jesse W. Weik and William H. Herndon, and Herndon's Informants: Letters, Interviews, and Statements about Abraham Lincoln, edited by Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis, which is acceptable, especially given the current hospitable scholarly environment for previously out-of-favor Lincoln reminiscent materials. However, Carwardine does not adequately interrogate informant memories of Lincoln. For example, he accepts a claim by Isaac Cogdal, a friend of Lincoln's from New Salem, Illinois, that the president-to-be believed in God. Carwardine uses it as an example of how religion influenced Lincoln's early opinions. In a note, he admits that the eminent Lincoln scholar Don E. Fehrenbacher rejected Cogdal's testimony, but he does not explain why his readers should now take stock in Cogdal's claims. Carwardine is comfortable using reminiscent materials, and that is admirable. But given the cyclical nature of the validity of reminiscences in Lincoln scholarship, a more thoughtful critique of such source material, at least in a footnote, would have been useful. Those very minor criticisms aside, Lincoln is an excellent addition to Lincoln scholarship and should become a standard in Lincoln studies. A rare exception to the mythologizing treatments of Lincoln that run off printing presses each year, Carwardine's book addresses the significance of mass public political opinion and party politics in elevating Lincoln to a position of national authority. Lincoln was a man of great intellect and a masterful politician but, as Carwardine asserts, he derived much of his political power directly from the power of the historical circumstances in which he lived. . Roy P. Basler, ed., The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1953); Don E. Fehrenbacher and Virginia Fehrenbacher, eds., Recollected Words of Abraham Lincoln (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1996). . William H. Herndon and Jesse W. Weik, Herndon's Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life (Chicago: Belford, Clarke & Co., 1889); Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis, eds., Herndon's Informants: Letters, Interviews, and Statements about Abraham Lincoln (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1998). If there is additional discussion of this review, you may access it through the network, at: https://networks.h-net.org/h-civwar. Stacy Pratt McDermott. Review of Carwardine, Richard J., Lincoln. H-CivWar, H-Net Reviews. Copyright © 2003 by H-Net, all rights reserved. H-Net permits the redistribution and reprinting of this work for nonprofit, educational purposes, with full and accurate attribution to the author, web location, date of publication, originating list, and H-Net: Humanities & Social Sciences Online. For any other proposed use, contact the Reviews editorial staff at [email protected].
In an attempt to explain culture more clearly, many intercultural trainers use the Iceberg Model of Culture when delivering cross-cultural training programmes such as Working Successfully Across Cultures or Developing Intercultural Competence. Culture is often compared to an iceberg which has both visible (on the surface) and invisible (below the surface) parts. Elements of culture which we can plainly see, such as food or clothes, are represented by the upper portion of the iceberg. Those elements which are not as obvious such as why someone eats or dresses the way they do are represented by the much larger portion of the iceberg underwater. Failure to understand and recognise these parts of culture and the layers that compose them, as well as how they influence each other is the main reason misunderstandings occur when doing business internationally. By participating in a Cultural Awareness Training programme – whether the aim is to develop intercultural competence or provide you with an understanding of a specific culture – you will gain an improved understanding of the cultural clash that can occur in international business as the visible and invisible elements of two cultures come together. Without this understanding, doing business internationally could result in misunderstanding and lost time and money.
3Encoders Multiple-input/multiple-output device. Perfoms the inverse function of a Decoder.Outputs ( m ) are less than inputs ( n ).Converts input code words into output code words.input codeoutput codeENCODER 5Binary Encoder 2^n-to-n encoder : 2^n inputs and n outputs. Input code : 1-out-of-2^n.Output code : Binary CodeExample : n=3, 8-to-3 encoder Inputs OutputsI0 I I2 I I4 I5 I I Y0 Y1 YI4Y2I5I6I7 68-to-3 encoder Implementation Simplified implementation: - From the truth table Y2 = I1 + I3 + I5 + I7 Y1 = I2 + I3 + I6 + I7 Y0 = I4 + I5 + I6 + I7Limitations : - I0 has no effect on the output - Only one input can be activatedApplication: Handling multiple devices requests But, no simultaneous requestsEstablishing priorities solve the problem of multiple requestsY0I1I2Y1I3I4I5Y2I6I7 14Three State Buffers/Drivers A buffer/inverter with enable inputBuffer Buffer Inverter Inverter Actice High Enable Actice Low Enable Active High Enable Actice Low EnableThe device behaves like an ordinary buffer/inverter when the enable input is asserted.The ouput is floating ( High Impedance, Hi-Z ) when the enable input is deasserted ( The input is isolated from the output, behaves as if it did not exist)Application: Controlling the access of a single line/bus by multiple devices 15Three-state buffers Output = LOW, HIGH, or Hi-Z. Can tie multiple outputs together, if at most one at a time is driven. 21Three-state transceiver Pairs of 3-state buffers connected in opposite directions between each pair of pins, so data can be transferred in either direction.DIR determines the direction of transfer (A-->B or B-->A) 23Multiplexers (mux)Eg. Put between Processor’s registers and ALUA 16-bit processor where 3-bit field specifies on of 8 registers.The 3-bit field is connected to the select inputs of an 8-input, 16-bit mux.Select one of n sources of data to transmit on a bus. 28DemultiplexersA mux is used to select one of n sources of data to transmit on a bus.A demultiplexer can be used to route the bus data to one of m destinations. Just the inverse of a mux.A binary decoder with an enable input can be used as a demux. Eg. 74x139 can be used as a 2-bit, 4-output demux.
Did you know you could be living in a particular country, while your daily job is in another country. People living in Denmark and Sweden didn’t know this could be possible until their governments decided to connect the both countries with a bridge of roads and railway. Øresund Bridge is the longest combined road and rail bridge in Europe and connects two major metropolitan areas: Copenhagen, the Danish capital city, and the Swedish city of Malmö. The Øresund Bridge was designed by the Danish engineering firm COWI. In the 1930s, both the Swedish and Danish governments proposed the impossible: they would connect the two Nordic countries in a way that finally permitted easy travel between them. But thy were undecided about where to place the bridge until they decided to connect Malmö, Sweden, and Copenhagen, Denmark which were large regions in countries. After so many delays to start work, including the outburst of world War II, construction finally started in 1995 with each country owing a 50 percent stake. There were so many set backs including the discovery of 16 active bombs on the sea floor, but eventually the engineers finished work in 1999,while the bridge was officially opened to the public on 1st July 2000. The bridge, which is 5 miles long, runs through to an artificial island and then transitions into drodgen tunnel at perberholm for another 2.5 miles. For over two-and-a-half miles, the tunnel permits under-sea travel from Pebeholm to the man-made isle of Kastrup, a suburb of Copenhagen.. It’s an award winning double-track railway and motorway. The Øresund Bridge crosses the border between Denmark and Sweden, but in accordance with the Schengen Agreement and the Nordic Passport Union, there are usually no passport inspections. There are a few random customs checks at the entrance toll booths entering Sweden, but not when entering Denmark. Since January 2016, checks have become significantly more stringent due to the European migrant crisis. At first, travel between the two nations didn’t increase at the anticipated rate, but authorities chalked that up to high toll prices. Eventually, however, more Danish people bought homes in Malmö, a much more affordable place to live. From there, they commuted daily. The bridge starts in Malmö and connects to pylons raised with steel cables. Parts of the bridge were built on dry land and then brought to location by a barge and crane. Beneath four lanes of road span train tracks across a second, lower level of the bridge. The train travels up to 120 miles per hour, making it a perfect commuting option and a great way to facilitate travel between Denmark and Sweden. Engineers constructed the tunnel on land in 20 segments—55 tons each!—and nestled them into a seabed trench. Five individual tubes comprise the Drogden interior: two for traffic, two for trains, and one for emergencies.
(CN) — Paleontologists identified fossils from three massive marine reptiles that may be the largest animals to have ever lived. According to a study published Thursday in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, the fossils are from giant ichthyosaurs that roamed the world’s oceans at the end of the Triassic period over 200 million years ago. Among the findings is the largest ichthyosaur tooth ever discovered. Researchers recovered the fossils in the Swiss Alps at an altitude of more than 9,000 feet. During the Triassic, though, those mountaintop rock layers made up the seafloor. P. Martin Sander, lead author of the study and professor at the University of Bonn, said the giant ichthyosaurs from the late Triassic were the size of today’s massive whales and were the earliest giant species, ahead of the long-necked dinosaurs and whales. “The late Triassic lasted 35 million years. That’s half the time span since the dinosaurs went extinct, so it’s an awfully long time and the record from that time of ichthyosaurs is very scant,” Sander said in an interview. Except for some 45 to 50-foot ichthyosaur skeletons discovered in the Nevada desert and a 70-foot skeleton from British Columbia, Sander said “we have miserable coverage for what was among the most giant animals on Earth.” Sander said the limited record makes any discovery of giant ichthyosaur fossils exciting. In this study, the researchers examined fossils from three ichthyosaurs recovered from three Swiss mountaintops. Sander’s colleague Heinz Furrer of the University of Zurich found these fossils from the late 1970’s until 1990. At one site, Furrer found a tooth. Most of the giant ichthyosaurs previously found were like modern baleen whales and had no teeth at all. One ichthyosaur skull Sander previously studied was over six feet long and had teeth that were less than an inch in diameter. This new tooth is far bigger, at 2.36 inches in diameter. “We know now through this new find we have the biggest ichthyosaur tooth ever,” Sander said. “We don’t know if it was the biggest ichthyosaur ever. If it was the biggest ichthyosaur ever, it was the biggest animal ever.” Without the animal’s full skull, Sander said they cannot know with certainty how big the ichthyosaur was. Using the same skull-to-tooth scale from the other toothed ichthyosaur, this tooth would belong to an animal approximately 160 feet long — far larger than a blue whale. Sander said this estimate is possibly “unreasonable” because they cannot assume the rate of growth for the skull and the tooth is the same. But the tooth almost certainly came from a very large ichthyosaur comparable in size to the blue whale, Sander said, pointing to jaw fossils from the United Kingdom that came from animals estimated at around 100 feet long. At another site, the researchers found one vertebra and 10 ribs from an animal they estimate was the same size as the 70-foot-long specimen from British Columbia. According to Sander, the discoveries bring paleontologists closer to understanding animals that were among the largest the planet has ever seen. He said as glaciers in the Alps recede due to climate change, it's possible more fossils will be discovered. “Nobody really knows much about these ichthyosaurs because their record is so bad, and they’re just ghosts,” Sander said. “Slowly, we’re filling in the ghosts. We’re coming to realize that there were three giants in the history of Earth and the ichthyosaurs' claim to fame is that they were the first.” Sander said further study could explore a likely extinction that wiped out the giant ichthyosaurs at the end of the Triassic while smaller ichthyosaurs lived on. He added that there is still much to be learned about the similarities between the ichthyosaurs and modern marine mammals. “We have to look at all extinct things and say the whales did the same thing that the ichthyosaurs did first. And this is something you observe in dinosaurs — a lot of dinosaurs invented things that us mammals did later,” Sander said. “There are repeated runs of evolution and commonly you get the same or similar results.” Read the Top 8 Sign up for the Top 8, a roundup of the day's top stories delivered directly to your inbox Monday through Friday.
One of the things I enjoyed teaching the most when my crew was younger was colors. From wearing the color of the day to eating foods that were all the same color, we always had so much fun. I’ve listed 14 fun books to use when teaching colors. I’ve also created a fun “I See…Colors” printable you can use with your littles. Have fun! Picture Books about Colors Dog’s Colorful Day: A Messy Story About Colors and Counting by Emma Dodd \| Dog starts off the day with one black spot on his ear. But it seems that wherever he goes, he runs, rolls, and trots right into colors. As he wanders around town, Dog collects spots made of red jam, blue paint, pink ice cream, and more. When he finally arrives back home, Dog has ten different colored spots. And then it’s bath time for this colorful canine, who makes learning colors and numbers easy, messy, and fun! White Rabbit’s Color Book by Alan Baker \| One inquisitive hop, and splash! goes White Rabbit into a bucket of yellow paint. Soon the little rabbit is jumping from bucket to bucket and learning all about colors and how they mix. Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh \| One day three white mice discover three jars of paint–red, blue, and yellow. My First Colors Board Book by DK Publishing \| Ladybugs, cherries, roses, and strawberries are just some of the things that are red in this first concept book that introduces the wonderful world of colors. My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss \| Not only does it help teach colors, but it also starts to set a groundwork to give children a dialog for their feelings. Butterfly Butterfly: A Book of Colors by Petr Horacek \| Lucy sees a beautiful butterfly in the garden, along with a bright green beetle, a brilliant blue dragonfly, some red ladybugs, and many more flying and crawling things. But when will the radiant butterfly appear again? Teeny, Tiny Mouse: A Book About Colors by Laura Leuck \| Children learn their colors along with a mouse who names all the colored objects in his small house. The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt \| Poor Duncan just wants to color. But when he opens his box of crayons, he finds only letters, all saying the same thing: His crayons have had enough! They quit! Beige Crayon is tired of playing second fiddle to Brown Crayon. Black wants to be used for more than just outlining. Blue needs a break from coloring all those bodies of water. And Orange and Yellow are no longer speaking—each believes he is the true color of the sun. A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni \| Elephants are gray. Pigs are pink. Only the chameleon has no color of his own. He is purple like the heather, yellow like a lemon, even black and orange striped like a tiger! Then one day a chameleon has an idea to remain one color forever by staying on the greenest leaf he can find. Freight Train by Donald Crews \| Even a child not lucky enough to have counted freight cars will feel he or she has watched a freight train passing after reading Freight Train. Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert \| This book is a dazzling celebration of the colorful variety in a flower garden and the excitement of gardening. Mother and child plant bulbs in fall, order seeds from catalogs in winter, eagerly anticipate the first shoots of spring, select seedlings in summer, “and watch the rainbow grow,” reveling in the opulence of color. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr. \| A big happy frog, a plump purple cat, a handsome blue horse, and a soft yellow duck–all parade across the pages of this delightful book. Hello, Red Fox by Eric Carle \| It’s Little Frog’s birthday, and Mama Frog gets a big surprise when the guests show up for his party — all the animals are the wrong color! Little Frog tells her she’s not looking long enough, and he’s right. Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin \| Did you know that monsters love to scribble, scribble, mix, dance, and wiggle! Why? Because monsters love to make new colors!
One of the most famous superheroes of all time, Wonder Woman was created by William Moulton Marston – the same man who invented the polygraph (lie detector test). Besides pursuing scientific knowledge, Marston believed that comic books held great educational potential. His interview in an article in Family Circle in 1940 caught the attention of Max Gaines, the head of DC Comics, and Marston was hired as an educational consultant. Due to his involvement in testing the polygraph, Marston believed that women were more honest than men, and were more efficient workers. He believed there were not enough strong, powerful, self-sufficient female role models for girls, so he and his wife came up with the idea to create a woman superhero. Wonder Woman was to be a “feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman” (American Scholar, 1943). Wonder Woman was introduced to the public in December 1941, in All Star Comics #8. It was DC Comic’s second largest selling comic, and Wonder Woman made quite a splash. Six months later she was given her own comic book, written by Charles Marston, William’s pen name. In the early days, Wonder Woman (also known as Princess Diana of the Amazon Warriors) was an agile, six-foot tall woman with super strength. She had the ability to channel strength into her muscles with the power of her mind, which she learned in her Amazon training. On her arms she wore indestructible gold bracelets called Bracelets of Victory, which kept her safe from any weapons due to the impenetrable force field they created. She also carried a magic golden lasso called The Lasso of Truth. It was unbreakable, infinitely stretchable, and could make anyone encircled by it obey Wonder Woman’s orders, usually to tell the truth. Her gifts were given to her from the gods and goddesses of Olympus. It was said she was blessed in her crib by the gods in order to become as “beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, stronger than Hercules, and swifter than Mercury”. She was the strongest, fastest, and most intelligent warrior from a race of women bred to fight in war. After Marston died in 1947, Wonder Woman’s abilities and powers seemed to change with each story line, and depended on which writers were working on the comic book. With each new adventure, Wonder Woman was given more tools to help her defeat evil. Her earrings allowed her to breathe in outer space, her tiara became an unbreakable boomerang, and her bracelets allowed her to communicate with her home, Paradise Island. She was also given an invisible airplane. Her previous Amazon training was expanded to include scientific knowledge and the ability to speak every language known. The success of the Wonder Woman comic book led to a television series. In 1967, the first attempt at a series was abandoned, so it was not until 1975 that Wonder Woman was shown on TV. It premiered on ABC as a television movie and the success led to more episodes, which CBS picked up. The television show ran for two more seasons, and created a star out of Lynda Carter. The series began in the World War II era with Major Steve Trevor (Lyle Waggoner) bailing out of his fighter plane, and landing on Paradise Island. He is found by Princess Diana and nursed back to health by the Amazon Women. Diana wins a contest to be the one that returns Trevor back to the U.S. She ends up staying to protect Trevor from danger and disguises herself to become his new secretary. Due to her crime fighting abilities as Wonder Woman, she also becomes an agent in the Inter-Agency Defense Command. Check out this clip from an early episode of the Wonder Woman TV series: In the following seasons, the episodes took place in modern day. The format changed each year to try to draw more viewers and a younger audience, but after 1979, the show was suspended and never returned to television. The show did have an impact on US society; Wonder Woman portrayed a strong self-sufficient woman, capable of holding her own in a man’s world. This theme caught the eye of the famous feminist, Gloria Steinem, and Wonder Woman was featured in Steinem’s Ms. magazine. Despite all the changes brought to the Wonder Woman character over the years, I think Marston would be proud of his superhero. Not only can she compete with men, she can win and look pretty doing so! She can be seen as a role model for young women, showing strength, resilience, and a never-give-up attitude. Are you a Wonder Woman fan? How do you see her as part of the superhero universe?
The external appearance of the perch is simple enough. The dorsal side of the fish consists of an upper maxilla and lower mandible for the mouth, a pair of nostrils, and two lidless eyes. On the posterior sides are the operculum, which are used to protect the gills. Also there is the lateral line system, which is sensitive to vibrations in the water. Perch have a pair of pectoral and pelvic fins. On the anterior end of the fish, there are two dorsal fins. The first one is spiny and the second is soft. There is also an anal fin, which is also considered spiny, and a caudal fin. Also there is a cloacal opening right behind the anal fin. All perciform fish share the perch's general morphology. Most authorities recognize three species of perch: The European perch (Perca fluviatilis) is found in Europe and Asia. It is usually dark green with red fins. The European perch has been successfully introduced in New Zealand and Australia where it is known as the redfin perch or English perch. The Balkhash perch (Perca schrenkii) is found in Kazakhstan, (in Lake Balkhash and Lake Alakol), Uzbekistan, and China. It is very similar to the European perch, and grows to a comparable size. The Yellow perch (Perca flavescens), smaller and paler than the European perch, is found in the United States and Canada. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
By Geoff Gluckman, MS. (as Printed in B.C. Massage Practioner, Fall 1995) The increase in chronic musculoskeletal symptoms is becoming more prevalent, and workers' compensation claims and repetitive strain injuries are driving the corporations and insurance companies to their knees. What is the answer? Surgery? New medications? New modalities? Rest, ice and elevation works for some, but what about the others? Let's take a step back in time and explore an ancient concept: segmental alignment. What is segmental alignment? This element of human structure underlies the design of the human body It is defined as the proper alignment of the body segments that is maintained through unconscious neurological and muscular controls. Humans, existing as the only erect species in the presence of gravity, are designed to have our primary weight-bearing joints vertically aligned and horizontally parallel with each other and with the ground. Thus, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles line up over and above one another from the side, while from the front and rear, shoulders are level, hips level, knees point straight ahead, and feet are straight ahead and held at the width of the hips sockets. The right and left sides, being mirror images of one another in both form and function, each bear half the weight. This creates a perfect four-socket-position frame with a right angle at each primary weight-bearing joint. This right-angled design confers the greatest structural integrity (neutrality) to the human form in relation to the force of gravity. Correct segmental alignment allows the body to move fluidly and efficiently. Muscles and tendons are less susceptible to restriction and strain. The bones move such that gravitational force is evenly distributed across joint surfaces. Proper segmental alignment also permits the internal organs to function properly. Overall, good posture allows the body to perform its daily functions with less effort and energy. The concept of segmental alignment has existed for eons. The structural premises of yoga are the same as those of segmental alignment. These concepts of alignment were investigated and proven by the U.S. government's Department of Commerce in 1955. That study measured the centers of gravity of each body segment, and the results showed the predisposition of the human frame to be vertically and horizontally aligned through the center of gravity of each segment. This research was based on studies by two German researchers, Braune and Fischer, that had been conducted in 1889. Research in the field of segmental alignment continued into the mid-twentieth century. The first edition of Muscles: Testing and Function by Kendall and McCreary (1949) included lengthy portions on segmental alignment oriented toward physical therapy evaluation and treatment. The collective research findings were so powerful that the Los Angeles school system of the 1950s was motivated to incorporate a postural analysis and treatment section into their handbook. In 1960, there was an article by Arthur Michele, MD, on the implications of muscular imbalance and its effect on structural alignment, especially pertaining to the treatment of scoliosis. That article touches the tip of the mountain of postural deviations facing the health care practitioner today. Planes of the body and planes of motion The basis of structural alignment is the three planes of the body. Ideally, each plane is perpendicular to the other. The point at which the three planes converge is the center of the body and, hence, the center of gravity. The center of gravity is dependent on the alignment of the body's segments, and any new body position or alteration of body position changes the center of gravity. In addition, the body has a plane of motion associated with each of the three planes. These planes of motion are parallel to the planes of the body. The planes of the body are: Sagittal Plane (also referred to as the anterior/posterior plane). This is the vertical plane dividing the body into right and left sections. The corresponding plane of motion is represented by the motions exhibited by the arms and legs during walking. Frontal Plane (also referred to as the lateral or coronal plane). This is also a vertical plane, separating the body into front and back sections. The corresponding plane of motion is represented in the arm and leg actions during jumping jacks. The intersection of the midsagittal plane and the frontal plane creates the center line of gravity. Transverse Plane (horizontal plane separating the body into upper and lower sections). The exact bisection will vary with individuals, but the midtransverse plane typically bisects the body at the acetabula of the hip joints. The corresponding plane of motion is exhibited in twisting actions as the body rotates around the vertical center-line of gravity. Muscular Balance and Function The three-dimensional concept of the body must now be completed with the addition of over 600 muscles. Each of these muscles has a unique origin and insertion, and a unique function: no two muscles do exactly the same thing. Every muscle is connected to the skeletal system through tendons located at the terminal ends of the muscle. The function of the muscles is to generate force, via the neurological signals sent from the central nervous system, and move the bones, hence accomplishing motion. The connection of nerve to muscle to tendon to bone illustrates the importance of a body as-a-unit approach. All links in the chain must be sound in order for proper function; any interruption along the path affects the integrity of the whole. The muscles can be divided by function into postural (tonic) and dynamic (phasic) muscles. Some of the muscles may have mixed properties; however, they can be classified by predominant tendencies. The postural muscles are designed to maintain their constant length despite the application of force. The dynamic muscles adjust to varying positions and tensions through a constant analysis of muscle length sensed by receptors within the muscle-tendon complex (muscle spindles and Golgi tendon organs). All of these actions occur in the presence of gravity. The importance of gravity and its relationship to muscular balance was studied in great detail at NASA. The findings were voluminous and were presented by SandIer and Vemikos in 1986. The studies showed properly aligned humans using a consistent set of anti-gravity muscles to retain an erect posture in the presence of gravity. These muscles are the rectus femoris, the cervical and lumbar erectors, the gluteals and the iliopsoas. The hamstrings and the anterior abdominals are used in conjunction with the anti-gravity muscles to create a balanced pelvis and torso. This balanced system allows for minimal muscular tension and effort in all three planes of the body. The force of gravity of a segmentally aligned system is applied through the eight load-bearing joints and the long bones of the body such that the gravitational force is applied as evenly throughout the body as possible. However, any loss of equally distributed weight bearing removes the proper loading of the spine, long bones and joints, and the balanced pull of the muscles. Unequal load-bearing in the presence of gravity also removes proper proprioceptive signals from the periphery to the central nervous system, including the cerebellar and vestibular pathways. The scientists at NASA realized the importance of gravity and weightlessness for understanding the astronauts' experience. In order to reproduce a zero-gravity experience on earth, they used inactivity or bed rest. Sandier (1986) states: "the human body is designed for movement;". In fact, the authors point out that prior to the 19th century, bed rest as a modality for curing illness was seldom used - And the studies proved the devastating effects on the body of inactivity and lack of motion. The specific changes NASA documented to the locomotor apparatus in response to inactivity were: - decreased basal metabolic rate of up to 100 percent, - decreased peripheral blood-flow of 15-20 percent, - decreased oxygen supply (i.e., hypoxia) to periphery, - orthostatic intolerance (autonomic dysfunction), and altered sensory input from both tonic and phasic musculature, resulting in - diminished motor skills, especially the ability to perform rapid motion and fine motor skills. The studies revealed that these changes occur very rapidly - within 24 to 72 hours of inactivity. The loss of postural cues to the anti-gravity muscles occurred in the same time-frame. Since most cases handled by health care providers involve a person who has been disabled for much longer than this time-frame, the serious implication of this research is obvious. The aforementioned effects were found to take place in some subjects in as little as six to eight hours. This is an average workday for a desk bound employee in North America. The lifestyle changes from 10,000 years ago to the present day are enormous. We began as movement creatures, hunters and gatherers, dependent on motion for survival. We have "progressed" into the muscular passivity of the super technological age. Is it any wonder that 80 percent of our population suffers from some kind of muscoloskeletal pain? Is it a "natural result of aging"? Rebalancing the muscles of the skeleton and restoring muscle function are commonly used solutions. This process is often over-analyzed and over-complicated by breaking the locomotor apparatus down by quadrants or segments, and this often fails because the body does not function neurologically or musculoskeletally in this fashion. The technique called Muscle Balance and Function DevelopmentŪ Development affords the health care practitioner a simple and easy-to-apply method of full function restoration for patients through the application of the three planes of motion and of the entire body. Results are often seen and felt by practitioner and patient, respectively, by the end of the session. These results begin to take hold neurologically and muscularly in four to eight sessions with weekly re-evaluations and program redesign. GEOFF GLUCKMAN, is a health care and physical therapy educator
In 1941, some 78,000 Jews lived in Yugoslavia, including about 4,000 foreign or stateless Jews who had found refuge in the country during the 1930s. Although Yugoslavia had reluctantly joined the Axis alliance with Germany, the Yugoslav government was toppled by an anti-German military coup on March 27, 1941. Nazi Germany invaded the Balkan nations of Yugoslavia and Greece in early April 1941. Supported militarily by her Axis allies (Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania), Germany quickly subdued the Balkans. Yugoslavia was partitioned among the Axis allies. Bulgaria annexed Yugoslav Macedonia (the area including the cities of Skopje and Bitola in southern Yugoslavia). On October 4, 1941, the Bulgarians enforced an extraordinary measure that prohibited the Jews of Macedonia from engaging in any type of industry or commerce. All existing Jewish businesses had three months to transfer ownership to non-Jews or sell their assets and close down. In addition, a law that barred Jews from certain areas of town was enforced in Monastir in late 1941. Jews who lived in the more prosperous part of Monastir, located on the east side of the Dragor River, were forced to move to a poorer part of town located near the traditional Jewish quarter on the west side, and this area became the ghetto. With Monastir's Jews forced into a ghetto and registered, it became easier to carry out the theft of their property. On July 2, 1942, the Bulgarian government demanded that all Jewish households hand over 20 percent of the value of all assets, including property, furniture, cash, and household items. Committees were established to assess the value of the Jews' property. The possessions of those who did not have the money to pay the tax were sold at auction. All of these degrading, restrictive measures halted normal Jewish life in Monastir. Zamila Kolonomos, a local Jewish woman, lived through these years of occupation in Monastir. She wrote, "Ansina la vida si truko i no avia mas ni enkontros, ni fiestar, ni bodas, ni aligrias" (Thus life was so greatly changed and there were no more get-togethers, no festivals, no weddings, no celebrations). Though allied with the Germans, the Bulgarian government refused to deport Jews residing in Bulgaria proper. Bulgarian authorities did, however, deport Jews without Bulgarian citizenship from the territories of Yugoslavia and Greece which Bulgaria occupied. They deported the Macedonian Jews in simultaneous actions that began in the early morning of Thursday, March 11, 1943. In Monastir, Skopje, and Štip, where there was a tiny population of Sephardic Jews, several hundred police and soldiers, as well as cart drivers with their carts, gathered at municipal police stations at 2 a.m. to receive instructions for the removal of the Jews and their belongings. In Monastir, the Bulgarian military established a blockade around the city to prevent escapes. Between 5 and 6 a.m., groups fanned out into the ghetto to bang on doors and order the residents to leave their homes in one hour. The Jews were told that they were being transferred to other parts of Bulgaria and that after the war they would be returned to their homes, but this did little to ease the terror and confusion of this massive eviction. Advance rumors of this action convinced Kolonomos to hide, and that night she and four others sat in a windowless room in a shop and listened to what was happening to their community. Kolonomos wrote, At dawn we heard the uproar of groups of police. In a moment there was the sound of horses' footsteps and the noise of carts. Then all was calm. Then came a noise like thunder….We asked each other what it could be? Then we were able to discern the sound of voices, shouts, the crying of many people, of babies, of women! We were able to distinguish the words of the Bulgarians who shouted: 'Quickly! Quickly!' The prayers, moans, curses, the crying was clear… They were taking all the Jews, old and young, not just the youths who could work…. A river of people passed alongside us. At around 7 a.m. the Jews were forced to walk to the railroad station, where a train was waiting to take them away to neighboring Skopje; a temporary detention center had been established at the state tobacco monopoly warehouse known as Monopol. The Monopol was chosen for its ability to hold thousands of people, and also because it was served by a railroad. Albert Sarfati survived the war, and he gave this eyewitness account: They loaded us into cattle wagons, fifty to sixty people per wagon, including luggage. There wasn't enough space and many had to stand. There was no water. The children were crying … A woman in one wagon was giving birth… but there was no doctor. We reached Skopje at midnight. Night. Darkness. They opened the wagons and in the darkness pushed us into two large buildings. Cars carrying the Jews from Shtip had been added to our train. Stumbling over one another in the darkness, dragging our luggage and continuously being beaten by the Bulgarian soldiers, the children, the aged and infirm tried to squeeze into the building. When the sun rose, we realized we were in Skopje in the building of the Monopoly, and that all the Jews of Macedonia had been rounded up that same day. For the next 11 days the Monastir Jews, together with Jews from Skopje and Štip, approximately 7,215 in all, lived in crowded, filthy conditions in four warehouses at Monopol. The weather was cold, there was little food and few blankets, and the Jews were continually searched, beaten, and humiliated. Women and girls were raped. Elena Leon Ishakh, a doctor from Monastir who was released from Monopol to work for the Bulgarians, survived the war and left this description of the Monopol: Hunger pervaded… Only on the fifth day did the camp authorities set up a kitchen, but for over 7,000 of us there were too few stoves. Food was doled out starting at eleven in the morning, and the last ones were fed around five in the evening. Food was distributed once daily and consisted of 250 grams of bread and plain, watery beans or rice… They also gave us smoked meat, but it was so bad that, despite our hunger, we couldn't eat it… Under the pretext of searching us to find hidden money, gold, or foreign currency, they sadistically forced us to undress entirely… In some cases they even took away baby diapers… If anything was found on somebody, he was beaten…. Nico Pardo was one of the few who managed to escape from the Skopje detention center and after the war he described the Jews' despair in Monopol: We were in a terrible mood. The youngsters tried to sing every so often, but the adults and the elderly people were in deep depression. We did not know what awaited us, but the dreadful treatment we received from the Bulgarians showed the value of the promises given us that we would only be taken to a Bulgarian work camp. Here and there youngsters whispered of the possibility of an uprising and a mass escape, but they never materialized. There was no prospect of it succeeding. The yard was surrounded by a wooden fence and behind that a barbed wire fence. At each of the four corners there was a sentry with a machine gun and other armed guards would patrol the yard. Also, the belief that the worst possible fate did not await us prevented such suicidal acts from taking place. Three railroad transports took the Macedonian Jews from Monopol to Treblinka. The journey typically took six days, and during this time the Jews were locked in cattle or freight cars. Several Jews died during each transport, and the living had to endure the presence of corpses. On the morning of March 22, 1943, some 2,300 Macedonian Jews from Monopol were forced to board a train consisting of 40 cattle cars. Families journeyed together, and the transport included at least 134 small children no more than four years old, and at least 194 children between the ages of four and 10. The train arrived at Treblinka six days later on March 28 at 7 a.m. Four people died on this transport. The overwhelming majority of these Jews were from Skopje. On March 25, German and Bulgarian soldiers loaded about 2,400 Macedonian Jews onto a train made up of freight cars. All the Jews from Štip, who numbered 551, were on this second transport, as were about 2,000 Jews from Skopje and Monastir. Sarfati was scheduled to board the third transport, and he watched the Jews board this second train: Each wagon carried between 60 and 70 people with all their baggage. The people came out of the building carrying their belongings on their backs. Everyone was carrying things, from the oldest person to the youngest. With bowed heads, all approached the black train. In front of each wagon stood a German and a Bulgarian policeman checking off a list. It was impossible to sit down in the freight cars. As soon as the 'livestock' had been loaded into a car, it was locked and sealed. Only heads were visible through the small windows… Those of us in the building were not permitted to watch, and the police waved their machine guns toward our windows to keep us from watching. The train was ready and left about eleven o'clock. Hands were waving goodbye from the small wagon windows and all of us in the building were shedding tears. The last train carried around 2,400 Jews, approximately 2,300 of whom were from Monastir. The Jews began boarding the freight cars at 6 a.m. on March 29 and by noon the train was full. The departure of this train for the killing center at Treblinka signaled the final destruction of the Monastir Jewish community. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum acknowledges the gracious assistance of the following archives and sources. Mark Cohen, author of Last Century of a Sephardic Community: The Jews of Monastir, 1839-1943 (Foundation for the Advancement of Sephardic Studies and Culture, New York, NY). State Archives of the Republic of Macedonia
Figure 4-10. Relative shielding effectiveness of various thicknesses of concrete. Section V. RADIATION--CELLULAR CONCEPTS The careless use of x-radiation can incapacitate, disfigure, or even produce death. Since the x-ray specialist plays such a vital role in reducing radiation exposure to himself as well as to his patients, it is necessary for him to be knowledgeable of the concepts involved. This section describes cell structure and activity, how radiation can affect the cell, and the variation in radiosensitivity of different cells. 4-20. LIFE CYCLE OF A CELL Reproduction, maturation, and death are the three phases in the life cycle of a cell. Reproduction is the process in which a cell divides into two cells. In this process, the genetic operating instructions of the original cell are given to the daughter cells. Certain highly specialized cells do not reproduce themselves and cannot be replaced if destroyed. These include nerve cells and, to a large extent, adult muscle tissue. The blood cells released into the blood stream do not divide, but simply mature and die. However, those retained in the bone marrow reproduce continually and continue to liberate blood cells for use in the body. Cellular reproduction and maturation provide constant tissue repair and growth for the body. If radiation alters cellular processes, the cell may not reproduce or function correctly. 4-21. CLASSIFICATION OF CELLS Cells are classified as somatic or gonadal. Differentiation between these varieties is essential to any discussion of radiation biology, since irradiation produces distinct effects dependent upon the type of cell involved.
The number of children and young people who are out of school in the world has increased by six million since 2021, to a total of 250 million, partly due to the “mass exclusion”” of girls and women of the education in Afghanistan, warned today UNESCO. This increase also has to do with the “continued stagnation of educational progress around the world” and calls into question the fulfillment of one of the main UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. In a statement from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) with this new data, its director general, Audrey Azoulay, warns that “education is in a state of emergency” and calls for the urgent mobilization of states “if they do not want to sell the future of millions of children.” “Although considerable efforts have been made in recent decades to ensure quality education for all,” says Azoulay, “UNESCO data show that the number of out-of-school children is increasing.” Sustainable Development Goal 4 establishes quality education for all by 2030. To achieve it, UNESCO experts believe that there should now be six million more children in preschool, 58 million more children and young people in school and least 1.7 million primary school teachers trained. A year ago, at the UN Education Transformation Summit, 141 countries committed to transforming their education systems to accelerate progress towards that goal. According to Azoulay, for countries to achieve their goals, 1.4 million children must be enrolled annually in early childhood education by 2030, and progress in primary school completion rates must practically triple. Since 2015, the percentage of boys and girls who complete primary education has increased by less than three percentage points, and stands at 87%. For its part, the percentage of young people who complete secondary education has increased by less than five percentage points, up to 58%. Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
In Part I we looked at the beginnings of debt markets, and the early days of company stock ownership and trades. The 20th Century saw huge changes in the world’s economies, political systems, and population growth. The History of the American Stock Market both reflects these changes and used them to develop into what we see today. Next we will explore the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, and S&P 500. The New York Stock Exchange As we saw in Part I, what was called the New York Curb Market moved indoors into a new building on Greenwich Street in Lower Manhattan. By now, it had established codes of conduct and listing requirements. By 1930, despite the Great Crash of 1929, The Curb Exchange was the world’s leading stock market, and listed more foreign issues than all of the other U.S. securities markets combined. Radio was developing, and in the 1950s, Radio Amex began to broadcast stock prices and market changes so investors and traders could have up-to-the-minute information. Between 1950 and 1960, the share value traded on the American Stock Exchange had more than doubled to $23 billion. In 1971, the NYSE and Amex brought many of its informational and other services together to form the National Securities Industry Automation Corporation, or SIAC. One result of such a development was educational services on, for example, options trading. Trading stocks had become a much more complex process, so the intention was to help investors learn more about markets and make more informed decisions. Trading options and futures are two such examples. Options give buyers and sellers the right, should they choose, to trade an asset at a given price at some point during the life of that contract. Futures trading is similar, but buyers and sellers must trade at that price. Making profitable decisions now about what someone may or must do in the future demanded reliable information. In 1993, Amex introduced derivative trading. A derivative is a security whose price is based on and depends on or is derived from, the value of underlying assets. These underlying assets include stocks and bonds, commodities, currencies, interest rates, and overall market indices. In 2008, Amex was bought by and merged with NYSE Euronext. Euronext was a European stock exchange that traded in cash and the derivatives markets. It also produced market data for traders to use. The world, indeed, became more accessible when these major exchanges and market analysts merged across the two continents. “NASDAQ” stands for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations System. Beginning in 1971, it was the first electronic exchange, where investors could buy and sell online, without having to meet on a trading floor. NASDAQ is, today, a world-wide provider of financial technology information and trading services. It operates in 26 countries around the world. NASDAQ’s online services have enabled the world’s stock markets to evolve dramatically. Because it is an all-electronic service, it attracted companies such as Apple, Microsoft and Dell. Today, NASDAQ services many thousands of clients and publishes approximately 41,000 global indexes covering all kinds of industries and market sectors. This data enables trading professionals to analyze markets in detail and to advise their clients accordingly. NASDAQ major business segments all use its technology and software to generate and publish the data. The technology then enables approximately 3,100 companies, representing approximately $10.1 trillion in market valuation, to list with NASDAQ. The listings bring buyers and sellers together so they can trade in the many different asset classes offered. As a result, the NASDAQ Stock Market is the largest single pool for trading in US equities. S&P (Standard and Poor’s) The company began as the Standard Statistical Company in 1923, when its indicator included only 233 publicly traded companies. It merged with Poor’s Publishing in 1941, resulting in the index showing 416 companies. It was on January 1, 1957 that it hit the famous 500 mark. It is, now, an index that tracks the value of 500 large companies, currently representing approximately $7.8 trillion of corporate valuation, that are listed on the NYSE and on NASDAQ, hence “S&P 500.” S&P now does more than publish corporate indices. It also publishes indices on small, mid, and large cap companies and groupings including the S&P Composite 1500, and the S&P 900. It also publishes financial market intelligence across the world, and calculates credit ratings for companies, cities, states and provinces, and entire nations. The history of the American stock market is rich in fact and action. It enables individuals, institutions, and corporations to invest, raise capital, spread risk, and to speculate on individually listed corporations as well as on company groups and entire market sectors. SOURCES Part 2: Standard and Poor’s First Sub head includes info from the links in Part I: https://www.nyse.com/publicdocs/American_Stock_Exchange_Historical_Timeline.pdf http://bebusinessed.com/history/history-of-the-stock-market/
Meditation has been around in human culture for many years now, it is supposed to calm us and help us find inner peace but what is the scientific power of meditation. We know it does something because you do feel pretty relaxed, but does it actually scientifically have any power? does it really work? It Works and Starts in the Brain when we meditate, certain areas of the brain are activated, specifically the ones associated with decreased pain, anxiety and depression. The way we remember and think can actually be altered through continuous meditation and it has been found to even change the shapes of our brains altogether! After an 8 week study of meditation, scientists found that in certain areas of the brain had increased Gray matter and certain areas had it decreased. It Affects the Entire body When we move away from the brain to investigate what happens to our entire bodies, there is a definite decrease in blood pressure, and in a study where meditators and non meditators were injected with the flu, it was found that people who meditate produce far more antibodies that act much more efficiently at warding off viruses. It also affects the heart rate, allowing it to maximise oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide removal, so it seems to help us function pretty efficiently. It Changes us on a Cellular Level Who knew meditation could actually affect us down to our DNA but it does. Our genes and chromosomes are protected by something called telomeres, and when these shrink we get very sick indeed, I’m talking about cancer style sick. Not surprisingly after everything we’ve just been through, but meditation can actually increase the length and strength of our telomeres and this is thought to be a result of the decrease of psychological stress to the brain. So as it turns out meditation is brain exercise, and it benefits your whole body, so get sitting and working out!
Understanding the Characteristics of the Project \|Steven Ee, CFM In today’s global competition, organizations continue to improve their working environments, as a strategy for sustaining a competitive advantage or as a way of responding to changes before competitors. These continuous improvements and changes are brought about through the implementation of construction projects, relocation projects and facilities improvement programs. The complexity of projects is increasing, which places greater demand on facility management teams. Facility managers, therefore, are faced with greater challenges today causing a greater need for skills and knowledge in project management. To be effective, facility managers must be able to utilize technical knowledge, as well as knowledge about implementing successful projects. Projects are temporary undertakings by organizations set to achieve specific goals within a specified time, cost and requirements. Projects are initiated to implement needed changes. Thus, project management is an important methodology to carry out such desired changes as reducing risk factors and implementing changes in an effective and efficient manner. If mismanaged, a project may result in low morale, poor productivity, ineffectiveness or even a high turnover rate. It is important to understand that a project is a process comprised of different phases, commonly know as the Project Life Cycle. Projects are unlike ongoing business activities such as routine maintenance and operation because projects typically involve risk and uncertainty due to the uniqueness of the undertaking, complexity, use of limited resources, time and From the facility management perspective, to ensure that facilities receive the best value and quality for the investment by an organization or stakeholders, adequate understanding of the phases of a project is needed by facility management professionals in order to plan and manage throughout There are many names to the various phases of a project by different authors and professionals. For facility management professionals, it is sufficient to appreciate that the phases of a project comprised of four main phases, using the acronym C-D-E-F, namely the Conceptual Phase, Design Phase, Execution Phase and Finishing Phase. The Conceptual Phase includes idea generation; the initiation and roll out of the project; the completion of a feasibility study; and defining the purpose of the intended project. This is the first phase and its main task is primarily to evaluate the proposed project aroused from a recognized need, opportunity or problem in relating to the realization of an organization’s strategic objectives. The Development Phase involves planning, designing and appraising the concept of the project. During this phase, the management will appoint a project manager and key members to participate in the project. The activities in this phase involve the development of the works, such as scope, tasks, resources, budget and cash-flows, creation of a timeline, and other activities that need to be undertaken to successfully achieve the planned project. The Execution Phase involves implementation, management, control and construction of the project. The activities include: setting up the project organization; producing detailed documentation; procuring materials and services; and organizing, directing and controlling the project activities toward accomplishing the project’s purpose and objectives. The Finishing Phase is the final phase of a Project Life Cycle where the project will be completed, tested and commissioned, then closed-out and handed over to the client or main stakeholder. This phase marks the finalization of the The activities may include: checklists of outstanding work; ending the contracts; transferring of the project and responsibility to client or stakeholder who is the end-user; post-completion review, evaluation and feedback, disbanding the project team, a final statement of account; and commencing the defect liability obligations. The phase of a project represents the completion of one or more deliverables and identifies the technical works and other activities needed in each of the phases. Characteristics of the Project Life Cycle Cost and staffing levels The concentration of cost and staffing are slight at the beginning, increasing toward the completion and decreasing rapidly toward the finishing of the project. The ability to control costs and add value to the project’s output is at its greatest during the Conceptual Phase and at its least during the Finishing Phase. Probability of project success At the start of the project, the chance of successfully completing the project is lowest; therefore, the risk and uncertainty are highest. The likelihood of successful completion generally gets progressively higher as the project Potential savings and cost to change As a project progresses, the cost of alteration or addition increases. The earlier in the project life cycle that errors are identified, the cheaper they are to correct. As the project progresses, the ability to achieve savings diminishes. Similarly, the cost to change increases as the project progresses through the Project Life Cycle. Ability of stakeholders’ influence Generally, at the start of the project, the stakeholders are able to influence the final characteristics of the project’s outcome and the final cost of the project. Uncertainty and financial commitment The level of uncertainty and risk is highest during the Conceptual and Development Phases and, as more information about the project is known, it will gradually be reduced through the Execution Phase. Unlike financial commitment, it is usually lower during the initial phases and much higher during the Execution Phase. Production of information The information developed during the Conceptual and Development Phases will be used in the Execution and Finishing Phases. Thus, it is important to ensure that the project management information system and communication plans are established In today’s dynamic and competitive business environment, many organizations are realizing the importance of project management. Project management has appeared as a trend in the continuing performance improvement in organizations. Therefore, it is important for facility management professionals to understand the phases of the Project Life Cycle, its characteristics and implications in carrying out the functions of project management. About the Author Steven Ee, CFM, is a member of the Singapore Chapter of IFMA. He is a Registered Safety Officer and Fire Safety Manager with the Singapore governing bodies. He is currently a Facilities, Plant and Services Manager with a German MNC. Ee lectures at the offshore academic programs offered by Curtin University of Technology and Heroit Watt University. Ee’s e-mail is Steven Ee, CFM Back to Top
The Yanyuwa have a detailed knowledge of their climate. This includes an acute understanding of both micro and macro scale variations. The most striking feature of the region's tropical climate is the intensely seasonal variation. Photos 1 and 2 taken of the same area in the "wet" and "dry" illustrate this seasonal contrast. Summaries of temperature and rainfall statistics for the Borroloola region are given in figure 1. As the graphs in this figure indicate, the contrast between the dry season and the wet season is stark but it is a Eurocentric view to consider that there are only two seasons in Northern Australia. As the Yanyuwa five season calendar (figure 2) indicates, the climatic pattern is much more complex than this. Other researchers working in northern Australia have recorded the complexity of Aboriginal recognised seasons. Thomson (1949a:16) notes a six season system from his work in eastern Arnhem Land. Chase (1980:156) also records six recognised seasons from his Cape York fieldwork and Anderson (1984:96-97) records 5 seasons from another part of Cape York. Notes: The months listed are only an approximate guide to when events start and finish. The exact date of onset of seasons is variable. It is the sequence and not the date of their occurrence that is recorded in Yanyuwa knowledge of the seasons (and plant and food resources see figures 4 and 5). In the Yanyuwa calendar ngardaru is the hot weather time of August and September. During ngardaru grasses die back, waterholes often dry out and dust storms (kurumbirribirri) are often whipped up by strong hot winds (yunduyduwarra). Na-yinarramba is the hot humid weather of November and December. This is a period of extreme human discomfort as temperatures regularly top 40 degrees C. and accompanying high humidity make any strenuous activity difficult. There is little relief at night time as the temperature rarely falls below 25 degrees C. and the humidity persists. During this period there are often intense rainless electrical storms. In areas in the region that have not been managed by Aboriginal burning, lightning strikes during such storms often start large bush fires. A startling local meteorological feature that occurs at this time of year along the coast are the rolling clouds known as "morning glories". This feature plays a role in Yanyuwa mythology songs. The cloud is also used as an indicator that flying foxes and certain bird species are about to commence their seasonal migrations. The first storms of the wet season provide an enormous relief to the hot humid conditions. Spirits are lifted and tensions relaxed as rain finally falls after what is often a period of six to eight rainless months. The Yanyuwa sub-divide the wet season into wunthurru (early storm period) and lhabayi (wet season proper). Lhabayi is a period of heavy rainfall but it usually falls less violently than the rain of wunthurru. An unpredictable variable in the wet season are cyclones (warlungarnarra) that can occur any time between November and May. (Figure 2 shows them occurring in the area in March as this is a common month for cyclones). Late in the wet season there are also usually burrumanamala (knock him down) winds. These are windy rain storms which often flatten the high (often two metres and over) grass that has rapidly grown during the wet season. Rra-mardu corresponds to the European recognised dry season. This is a long pleasant period with sunny generally cloudless days and cool evenings. During rra-mardu heavy fogs (rra-wuna) often occur. The understandings the Yanyuwa have of these fogs are a good example of micro-climate knowledge. The Yanyuwa can predict with great accuracy the pattern of how these fogs are thicker and more common the closer one moves towards the coast. The fogs produce very heavy dews that make sleeping out in the open most unpleasant and wet. As a result this is a period of numerous colds, coughs and often influenza. The fogs are considered to have dangerous properties capable of causing the death of old people. Such fogs, however, tend to last only a few weeks and for the rest of rra-mardu conditions are pleasant and this is the time when large energy-draining ceremonies were held. European behaviour in the area has also been very season specific. For example, the recent tourist boom in the area) is concentrated in the pleasant months of rra-mardu. As Bella Marrajabu notes (1987 Tape 60A 9 min.) "when storm come now they all [go] back to their country''. <Back \| Next> Footnote This and all subsequent quotes from Yanyuwa people are from tapes I made which are now lodged with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. In Baker 1989b I discuss the methods used first to collect this material and secondly to transcribe it so that the location to the nearest minute on the tape is known.
Nestled outside of downtown St. Petersburg is a neighborhood that holds a lot of African American history. So much history, in fact, that 19 markers were designated to tell the neighborhood’s story on a fascinating walking tour called the African American Heritage Trail. The trail highlights life from 1860 to 1968 as you go by businesses, churches, schools, social clubs and houses. As one example, you’ll learn how John Donaldson, the first person of African American descent in St. Petersburg, was a leader in Pinellas County breaking away from Hillsborough County. Guided tours of the trail resume in the fall.
Leon H. KircikIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY; Indiana University Medical Center, Indianapolis, IN; Physicians Skin Care, PLLC Louisville, KY; DermResearch, PLLC, Louisville, KY; Skin Sciences, PLLC, Louisville, KY-Atopic Dermatitis (AD) is estimated to affect 15-20% of children and remains a major health consideration for pediatricians and dermatologists.1 Over the past three decades, studies have shown an increase in the prevalence of AD in industrialized nations, with lower numbers seen in developing countries.2 For most children, AD presents within the first year of life, and 80-90% of patients are diagnosed by age 5.3The disease course is characterized by recurrent exacerbations and remissions. As patients age, flares tend to become less common, and only a minority of patients continue to experience the signs and symptoms of AD into adulthood. Asthma develops in roughly one third of patients, and seasonal allergies are present in roughly two-thirds.4Emollients and topical corticosteroids remain the foundation of treatment for mild-to-moderate AD. Due to decreased expression of filaggrin and other dysfunctions of the epidermal barrier, AD patients are inherently xerotic and require frequent skin hydration. Topical steroids are used to improve symptoms, shorten the duration of acute flares, and prolong the duration between exacerbations. They deliver a multi-pronged effect due to anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive, anti-proliferative, and vasoconstrictive properties. However, topical steroids are known to inhibit lipid synthesis and hence, worsen the impairment of epidermal barrier. Therefore, the vehicle formulation of topical steroids plays a significant role in efficacy, tolerability, and treatment compliance. Lotions, creams, and ointments each provide increasing levels of potency and hydration, but along with moisturization comes greasiness. Gels are rapidly self-drying, leading to a cooling effect when used on exudative inflammation.Newer vehicles include foam and spray preparations. Foams leave minimal residue after application, and sprays are particularly particularly well-suited for large body surface areas, where preparations can be rapidly and diffusely applied. The development of these vehicles represents a significant step forward for patients, as foams and sprays have demonstrated high levels of efficacy, cosmetic appeal, and patient compliance.Low-potency steroids are preferred for chronic conditions like AD, especially in areas of the body with thinner skin and in pediatric patients. As such, low-potency steroids constitute the primary agent for children with AD. Non-steroid topicals—such as pimecrolimus, tacrolimus, and crisaborole—are useful adjuncts, although none are FDA-approved for patients under the age of 2. We have only very few topical steroids approved all the way down to 3 months of age.Future treatment algorithms will undoubtedly be influenced by application of the biologic agent dupilumab in pediatric populations. Recent phase III clinical trials evaluating dupilumab in adolescents aged 12-17 years with moderate-to-severe AD demonstrated significant improvements in skin clearing, itching, and quality of life measures.5 Clinical trials are also underway for children aged 6 months–11 years. FDA approval in pediatric patients is likely to arrive within the next year, providing the first biologic agent for these patients.The treatment horizon for pediatric AD is encouraging. Newer pharmaceuticals are now joined by novel formulations of established medications, which arms dermatologists with an increasing array of treatments to tackle this challenging condition.DisclosureDr. Kircik has received compensation from JDD for his editorial support.Dr. Kircik has been an investigator, consultant, advisory board member and a speaker for Stiefel, GSK, Aqua Pharmaceutical, and Almirall.References - Asher MI, Montefort S, Bjorksten B, et al. Worldwide time trends in the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and eczema in childhood: ISAAC Phases One and Three repeat multicountry cross-sectional surveys. Lancet. 2006;368(9537):733-43. - Nutten S. Atopic dermatitis: global epidemiology and risk factors. Ann Nutr Metab. 2015;66 Suppl 1:8-16. - Kamer B, Pasowska R, Dolka E, et al. Prevalence of atopic dermatitis in infants during the first six months of life: authors' observations. Postepy Dermatol Alergol. 2013;30(5):277-81. - Somanunt S, Chinratanapisit S, Pacharn P, et al. The natural history of atopic dermatitis and its association with Atopic March. Asian Pac J Allergy Immunol. 2017;35(3):137-43. - Simpson EL, Paller AS, Siegfried EC, et al. Dupilumab Efficacy and Safety in Adolescents with Moderate-to-Severe Atopic Dermatitis: Results from a Multicenter, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind, Parallel-Group, Phase 3 Study. The 27th European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress, Paris, France, 15th September, 2018.
Facial expressions comprise a considerable amount of nonverbal communication. With our 80 facial muscles we can create more than 7,000 facial expressions. It is one of the most difficult types of nonverbal communication to master the subtle meanings and to be able to catch micro-expressions. Some facial expressions are similar where ever we are in the world. Human faces communicate happiness, sadness, anger and fear. This documented in Paul Ekman's 1960s studies of facial expression. The sensation of tasting something sour is similarly universal. The overall appearance of the face offer information about age, sex, race, ethnicity, and even status. Cleanliness, facial hare, use, over use or absence of make up all provide even more information. Expressions can fall into two groups: intentional, unintentional and within them a subgroup of micro-expressions. Micro expressions are facial markers displayed as momentary expressions that cause changes in the forehead, eyebrows, eyelids, cheeks, nose, lips, and chin, such as raising the eyebrows, wrinkling the brow, curling the lip. They are often fleeting.Most facial expressions are readily visible, Both types can positively or negatively reinforce the spoken word and convey cues concerning emotions and attitude. Next to the words we use, our face is the primary source we use to determine an individuals internal feelings or intent. There six main types of facial expressions are found in all cultures: Happiness: round eyes, smiles, raised cheeks Disgust: wrinkled nose, lowered eyelids and eyebrow, raised upper lip Fear: area around eyes, open mouth Anger: lower eyebrow and stare intensely Surprise: raised eyebrow, wide open eyes, open mouth Sadness: area around mouth and eyes Persuasive communicators exhibit more animated facial expressions, more gestures to emphasize their points, and nod their heads more. This is only a brief over view of the non verbal communication of facial expression. Go to the Types of Nonverbal Communication main page.
The Neuro Emotional Technique (NET) is a mind-body approach to assist with stress-related conditions. Developed in the early 1980s is a psychosomatic stress reduction intervention procedure aimed at improving health. Neuro Emotional Technique combines a number of techniques and principles from traditional Chinese medicine, chiropractic, and applied kinesiology. It is a holistic approach focusing on imbalances in the structure of the skeletomuscular system, unresolved “negative emotional blocks”, toxins in the body, and deficiencies in nutrition. NET describes “negative emotional complexes” (NEC) as being stored in the body, and claims to help release or resolve them. Anecdotally, patients reported they were less stressed, happier, and felt more at ease after treatment with NET. This treatment is distinguished from psychotherapy in that it is not a therapy directed to the psyche. It does not employ counseling, nor does it advise behavioral changes. It does not have a goal of insight for the patient. It is not a ‘talk-it-out’ cure. It does not teach anything, and it does not show how to learn from one’s life experiences. The goal of NET is to identify and correct physical abnormalities and not emotions. In fact, emotions do not need to be corrected. Darwin expounded on emotions in a non-psychological way, supporting the concept that emotions are normal and healthy phenomena found in humans and animals. In an unhealthy organism, however, emotions can cause psychosomatic and somatopsychic problems. In short, NET deals with those weakened physiological states that have ultimately made the body vulnerable to the formation of what NET has defined as a Neuro Emotional Complex (NEC).
How to Communicate with a Loved One with Dementia If your loved one has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia, it can become increasingly more difficult to communicate effectively as the condition progresses. Watching your loved one’s communication skills slowly unravel can trigger a range of emotions, from frustration and anger to sadness and grief. Learning how to navigate through communication barriers can help you cope with the challenges ahead. It’s important to recognize that your approach to communication may change as your loved one moves through the stages of dementia. Adapting your own verbal and nonverbal communication style may benefit your loved one by helping them convey their thoughts and needs. Understanding Dementia’s Impact on Communication Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia can rob a person’s ability to communicate as the condition progresses. One of the most common symptoms of dementia is called “aphasia,” and it refers to the loss of ability to speak and understand speech. You might notice changes happening gradually over many months or years, or you could see a more rapid decline in their cognitive abilities. Your loved one might struggle to find the right words, change topics abruptly, or make unexpected substitutions for words or phrases. Over time, it may become increasingly difficult to follow a conversation or understand what is being communicated. Exploring ways to converse with someone with dementia can help you maintain a loving and supportive relationship with your loved one over time. Communication Strategies by Stage People in the early stages of dementia often have trouble concentrating on a conversation or losing their train of thought. It’s common to forget words when speaking or writing. You may also notice repetition in conversations, such as telling the same story again and again or asking a question repeatedly. At this stage, people with dementia are aware of these communication missteps and may try to gloss over their errors. Be inclusive. It’s natural for a person with dementia to avoid social situations where they feel confused or uncomfortable. Look for ways to help your loved one stay engaged and interact with people every day. Doing so helps keep their communication skills sharper for longer. You can also help by using dementia conversation starters that tap into long-term memories, such as asking about their childhood or family memories. Remove distractions. Making a few small adjustments can help prevent some common communication pitfalls. Whenever possible, create a calm and quiet environment where your loved one feels comfortable conversing. Make an effort to eliminate distractions like a TV or radio, and focus on one topic at a time during your conversation. Speak in plain language and avoid using figures of speech, which can be confusing for someone with dementia. Communication deficits become noticeably worse at this stage. Your loved one may struggle to keep up with a conversation or follow the plot of a TV program, movie or book. Their vocabulary begins to narrow and they may become frustrated as they search for words. They may have trouble listening and following directions. Even if they hear what you’re saying, they may have difficulty following through on simple instructions or requests. You may see your loved one using gestures to express meanings more often when the words escape them. Slow down. When you speak slowly and clearly, you may have greater success communicating with someone who has dementia. Clearly enunciate your words, and keep sentences, requests, and stories brief. Try to keep conversations as simple as possible by avoiding complicated inquiries in favor of questions with simple yes/no answers. Be supportive. Although many aspects of this journey are beyond your control, you do have control over setting the tone for communication. Instead of calling attention to the mistakes your loved one makes as they tell a story, simply let it go and focus on active listening. Your patience and encouragement may help them feel more confident expressing themselves. At this stage, your loved one’s ability to communicate may decline rapidly, and their communication may be limited to basic conversation and instructions. They may forget people’s names and other important personal details. They may have moments of clarity followed by rambling or nonsensical talk. Use body language. Pointing, gesturing, and other body language can be helpful in conveying a message as verbal language becomes more restricted. You can also engage the senses to help communicate through touch, taste, smell, sight and sound. Focus on emotion. Emotions can be expressed even when the words don’t make sense. You can pick up on a loved one’s anxiety or frustration, and help reduce those feelings simply by being there and expressing that you care. A loving embrace or a warm smile sends a strong message without any words. Speaking and responding is highly limited at this stage. Your loved one may appear to be completely disengaged, with little to no comprehension of what’s happening in their world. Offer reassurance. Simply being present and holding their hand while you visit can be comforting. Watch for body language for clues about creating a calm environment for your loved one. Find Support for Your Loved One Adopting new communication strategies while they go through the different stages of dementia can be a challenge. Walnut Place’s expert Memory Care program can give you and your loved one peace of mind. 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Editor’s Note: Last month, Whitman College students participated in a service project to teach the civil rights movement to students in the Walla Walla (Wash.) Public Schools. Here are insights from student teachers Allison Bolgiano, Noah Lerner and Shannon Morrisey. When most seventh-graders think of the civil rights movement, they think of Martin Luther King Jr. and a very specific period in American history. I know I did. During high school, I learned that the movement was a great victory in the United States. It ended racial segregation, extended the right to vote to African Americans and provided equal protection under the law. All our troubles were behind us. Only later, when I came to Whitman College, did I learn the many ways our contemporary laws fail to offer equal protection to all racial groups. But, today I’m in a seventh-grade history class in Walla Walla, Wash. My teaching partner, Elaine, and I started by asking our seventh-graders, “Can you think of modern examples of women in power?” Answers ranged from “Bill Clinton’s wife” to “Kim Kardashian.” Next we launched into a role-play activity we had planned: a conference for female veterans of the civil rights movement like Daisy Lee Baites and Angela. We talked with the class about slavery, sharecropping and Jim Crow segregation. We discussed current racial discrimination in the United States. If each student left history class that day knowing one or two female civil rights activists, they learned more on this topic than I did in seventh-grade. As my partner and I were leaving the classroom, two girls ran up to thank us and said, “Maybe someday kids will be learning about us in their history class!” For my fifth-grade class, I turned to baseball. Together, we examined fairness, equality and the injustices of segregation through the story of Jackie Robinson, the first African-American baseball player in the major leagues. My class was racially diverse, with equal representation of white, black and Hispanic students. I think this made the lesson a lot easier for them to grasp. If anything, I worried students might have a problem understanding how society was once legally segregated, but they all understood that racial prejudice is a scary and lonely thing to experience. It may be easy to understand the concept of segregation when you’re looking at a picture of a “whites only” drinking fountain, but the evils of segregation extend well beyond staying hydrated. I wanted my students to understand that segregation meant blacks weren’t afforded the same opportunities as whites in any aspect of their lives. We read a book about Jackie Robinson’s famous break into the big leagues. Then we speculated about the emotions and feelings Robinson experienced when he first started playing with the Dodgers. The students all talked about Robinson’s self-control and how he managed to keep his cool despite the nasty things people were saying and doing to him. They seemed to really appreciate how hard it must have been for this brave man and all African Americans to stay calm in the face of injustice. We wrapped up the lesson with a discussion of where things stand today. A few students said that things were still not entirely fair and that racism still persisted. Alas, when I asked for an example of this unfairness, one student called out that “we have homework,” a response which drew applause and sent the class into chaos. I suppose in the end, they are still fifth-graders. When I was a high school student, the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day march reminded me of my responsibility to keep marching toward peace, human rights and economic justice. Now that I’m in college, I see how difficult it is to stand for these goals when injustice operates covertly within our institutions. I recently taught a civil rights movement lesson to a fifth-grade class in which English and Spanish were effortlessly intermingled. Diversity and tolerance were not new concepts for these students. Still, I waited to see what they would learn and what insights they would offer about fairness and equality. We read Peter Golenbock’s Teammates, which showcases the friendship between Jackie Robinson and fellow Brooklyn Dodgers player PeeWee Reese. The students commended Robinson for not fighting back against teammates who exiled him and fans who booed him. They grasped that Reese was brave to embrace Robinson as a talented baseball player and friend. The students had a strong sense of fairness and a sharp understanding of the painful exclusion and inequity caused by injustice. I sensed the conviction in their answers and saw that getting students talking about equality in relation to both history and their own lives is an effective way to make these complex topics tangible and relevant. The students’ insightful responses and enjoyment of our discussion made me realize I had found a way to stand up for peace, human rights and economic justice. Even if I cannot advance the march toward Dr. King’s goals very far forward, I can certainly include more people in the march. is a senior sociology major at Whitman College. Lerner is a senior religion major at Whitman College. Bolgiano is a sophomore politics and environmental studies major at Whitman College.
Julia Greeley (c. 1840–1918) was born into slavery in Missouri. Around 1880 she moved to Denver and became a Catholic. Despite being poor herself, Greeley spent the rest of her life doing good deeds for the impoverished. In 2016 the Catholic Church opened the Cause for Sainthood to determine whether she may someday be canonized. Julia Greeley did not know her age or the full names of her parents. Estimates of the year of her birth range from the mid-1830s to the mid-1850s. What is known is that she was from Hannibal, Missouri, and that she was born into slavery. As a child, she was blinded in one eye by a slave master’s whip. She was free by 1865, when Missouri, which had not been subject to President Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, passed an Emancipation Proclamation of its own. By about 1871, Greeley was living in St. Louis, Missouri, and was employed by Dr. Gervais Paul Robinson and his wife, Lina Pratte Robinson. While working for the Robinsons, she met Lina’s sister, Julia Pratte Dickerson. A widow with four children, Julia Dickerson was courted by William Gilpin, former first territorial governor of Colorado. The two wed in 1874 and moved to Denver. In the late 1870s, Julia Greeley left her position with the Robinson family in St. Louis. She asked Dr. Robinson to write a letter for her to the Gilpins, asking for employment. According to the 1880 census, Julia Greeley was in Denver working for the Gilpin family. But marital relations between the Gilpins were strained, and by 1883 Julia’s service with them ended. She worked in both New Mexico and Wyoming during the next four years, but returned to Denver in 1887 to testify in the Gilpins’s bitter divorce trial. For the remainder of her life, Julia cooked, cleaned, and did odd jobs in the Denver area, all the while looking out for the city’s poor residents. A devout Catholic, Julia Pratte Gilpin introduced Julia Greeley to the Catholic Church. Greeley was baptized on June 26, 1880, at Sacred Heart Church on Larimer Street. In Catholic theology, the Sacred Heart represents Christ himself, and it was through the image of the Sacred Heart that Greeley dedicated her life to serving Christ. Her devotion to her Catholic faith took many forms. She fasted each day until noon, telling the priests “My communion is my breakfast.” Each month, she walked to all the fire stations in the city to hand out Catholic leaflets. She passed out the leaflets to Catholics and non-Catholics alike, saying, “They are all God’s children.” Denver Fire Station no. 1, at 1326 Tremont, was one of the stations Julia visited each month. Pulling a little red wagon, Julia would also deliver various goods to homes of the poor. She had almost no money herself, but she was exceptionally good at finding things that others needed. Julia did not limit herself to just the necessities of food, fuel, and clothing; one night, she was seen carrying a mattress on her back to deliver to a family. Another night, it was a baby carriage. And on another, it was a broken doll that she was taking home to fix for a child. Greeley asked girls in one part of the city to not wear their pretty clothes for too long, and to give them to her before the dresses were worn out. Then, she would deliver the dresses to poor girls in another part of the city so they could attend dances. Despite finding lovely dresses for others, Greeley herself was known for the old, tattered dress she nearly always wore, and a wide-brimmed black hat. She was a small woman, around five feet tall. The right eye that had been blinded continually wept, and she always carried a cloth to wipe her face. Greeley also loved to sing, and church music was a vital part of her life. In the late 1890s, she was working at Fort Logan as a cook. She was one of a small group who regularly attended services in a basement chapel. She also purchased an organ for the tiny church. At some point, Greeley learned how to play the piano. She would sometimes play and sing at church services at Sacred Heart. She was also a friend of Mother Pancratis Bonfils, a principal at St. Mary’s Academy and the founder of Loretto Heights College. After Mother Bonfils died, Greeley had a requiem high mass sung for her. In Catholic tradition, a Third Order is a group of people who live according to the ideals of a religious order, but who do not take religious vows. In 1901 Greeley joined the Third Order of Saint Francis at the St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish at Eleventh and Lawrence. Saint Francis had been born into wealth, but gave it up to pursue his faith. By becoming a member of the Third Order of St. Francis, Greeley was making a spiritual commitment to continue doing what she had been doing for years: to live simply, to love God, and to think of all people as her brothers and sisters. Love of Children Julia Greeley’s obituary noted that she “loved children with the intensity found in the saints.” She was always available to look after babies when they were sick or when their mothers needed to run errands. She even arranged picnics for children in Denver’s City Park; Greeley would pack up a lunch, take ten or so children on a trolley ride to the park, and joke with the conductor that all the children were hers. One day in 1914, Mrs. Agnes Urquhart asked Julia to mop her floor. Noticing religious pictures on the walls, Greeley asked if the Urquharts were Catholic. When Mrs. Urquhart said yes, Julia asked where the children were. There had only been one child, Mrs. Urquhart told her, and he had died from an inability to digest food. Mrs. Urquhart was unable to have any more children. Julia told Mrs. Urquhart that there would be “a little white angel running around the house. I will pray and you will see.” The only known photo of Julia Greeley shows her with baby Marjorie Urquhart, the “little white angel.” It was taken in April 1916, in Denver’s McDonough Park across Federal Boulevard from St. Catherine’s Church. Death and Funeral Julia Greeley died on Friday, June 7, 1918, on the day of the Feast of the Sacred Heart, the ideal to which she had devoted her life. The tiny notice in the Denver Post stated that services would be Monday morning at the W.P. Horan & Son funeral chapel. Sometime that Sunday, a decision was made to move the viewing to Loyola Chapel on Ogden Street. No one expected the large crowds that came to see her. For five hours, people from all walks of life in Denver filed past the body. For more than thirty years, Julia had labored to care for the people of Denver. She had brought fuel to the poor, food to the hungry, and clothes to the needy. But most of her labors had been done at night, in secret. She had not wanted anyone to be embarrassed that it was a black woman coming to help. It was not until her funeral, with the crowds that came in her honor, that people began to realize the full extent of Julia Greeley’s work. Her obituary in The Denver Catholic Register, complete with a five-tiered banner headline, acknowledged her extraordinary virtues with the line, “Her life reads like that of a canonized saint.” Nearly a century later, the Catholic Church is exploring whether Julia Greeley might indeed be a saint. On December 18, 2016, Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila presided over a special Mass that opened her case for canonization. Canonization is the act of declaring that a person who has died was a saint, and that he or she is included in the canon, or list, of saints. With the opening of her Cause for Sainthood, Julia Greeley is now considered to be a “Servant of God.” Road to Canonization The memory of Julia Greeley’s charity has endured nearly a hundred years later. The Archdiocese of Denver used her as their Model of Mercy and produced a short video of her life. The Archdiocese also commissioned an icon of Julia. Icons use a symbolic language of images to communicate a life. In Julia’s case, the pictures include the mountains of Colorado, a child, a firefighter hat and axe, a little red wagon, the Franciscan coat of arms, and a Sacred Heart image. The process of becoming a saint is long. A special tribunal has begun to examine Julia Greeley’s life, and other commissions in Rome will further review the tribunal’s work. If she were found to have lived a life of “heroic virtue,” there would still need to be two separate instances of miracles, in which people prayed for her assistance and received a miracle, before she might be named a saint. The actual process of canonization may take years, and its outcome is uncertain. Father Blaine Burkey devoted a full year to researching Julia Greeley’s life, publishing his findings in a book, In Secret Service of the Sacred Heart. As Father Burkey noted, “people have been saying ever since she died that she ought to be canonized.”
While completing my bachelor of science degree at a local college, I was introduced to a completely different style of teaching by one of the science instructors. The class was in aquatics, but the subject was not nearly as inspiring as the instructor. After each test was graded, she would divide the class into groups so we could discuss and correct the errors on our papers. A portion of our grade was based on conferring with our peers and assisting each otherâ€™s understanding. Of all the courses I took, this was my favorite. I learned more about the science itself, as well as the importance of the teaching style, than in any other classroom. Along with the interesting grading ideas, we also had first-hand field experience on a pontoon boat to gather and analyze water samples. Looking back, I realize my experience in this class was similar to the ultimate goal for the new Common Core Standards–to teach with less rote memorization and more critical thinking and hands-on learning with real-life potential. Unfortunately, teaching critical thinking skills is not typical in K-12 classrooms, for one important reason–instructors are not given the opportunity to learn how to teach critically through current professional development for teachers. With 91.5% of traditional professional development programs providing new ideas in the form of workshops, conferences, or quick one-time courses, how can educators be expected to teach critical thinking and collaboration if their learning methodology does not offer these advantages? The answer lies not in learning, which happens with regularity, but with implementation. Professional development does not regularly provide direction in implementation, which occurs with peer review, co-teaching, collaboration, and mentoring. Another answer is ongoing access to professional development for teachers to ease them into new methods of teaching. Fortunately, eSchool Solutionsâ€™ Electronic Registrar Online (ERO) program is able to provide your staff one-of-a-kind professional development programs for ongoing training tailored to each teacherâ€™s requirements. Contact us today to learn more about our innovative ERO program.
- and an alarming need to establish responsibility Vitamin D deficiency is a widespread problem, which increases the risk of complicated COVID-19 infections, muscle weakness, cancer, and a lot of other problems. The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration now recommends that both children and adults take vitamin D supplements throughout the entire winter period and that particularly vulnerable groups take high-dosed vitamin D supplements all year round. However, the new recommendations have not yet been included in the Danish Health Authority’s awareness campaigns for fighting COVID-19 because vitamin D appears to have ended up in a legal gap between being a foodstuff on one side and medicine on the other. According to a British study that was published earlier, there is currently an alarming need to establish responsibility in order to make sure that nursing home residents and other exposed groups get their vitamin D supplements, just like they receive their prescription medicine. The sun during the summer period is our main source of vitamin D. Unfortunately, many people do not expose themselves to enough sunshine, and because the liver is only able to store limited quantities of the nutrient, vitamin D deficiency is a problem during the winter period. According to a press release issued by the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, one in five Danes who is not in the habit of taking vitamin D becomes vitamin D-deficient in the spring time. Therefore, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration has started recommending that all adults and children from the age of four years supplement with vitamin D throughout the entire winter period (from October to April). Both the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and the Danish Health Authority also recommend supplementary vitamin D all year round for children until they reach an age of four years. The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration still recommends high-dosed vitamin D supplements all year round for pregnant women, people with dark skin, nursing home residents, and individuals who are unable to get enough sun exposure. The new guidelines for vitamin D follow in the wake of a study of vitamin D status among Danes that was conducted by the Danish Cancer Society. An advisory working group with participants from the Danish Cancer Society together with experts and researchers from leading Danish universities and hospitals concluded that there is an urgent need to correct the population’s inadequate vitamin D status with help from supplements. Nonetheless, many people are unaware of the problem, which increases the risk of many diseases and new COVID-19 waves, and makes it more likely that the virus infections become complicated and potentially life-threatening. New recommendations for adults and children aged four and older: New recommendations for infants and toddlers up to the age of four years: Recommendations for specific population groups: 20 micrograms daily all year round: Vitamin D supplements: An alarming need to establish responsibility and introduce a shift of paradigm A British survey study of nursing home managers, private practitioners, and health professionals tried to find out where the responsibility lies for ensuring that nursing home residents have adequate levels of vitamin D in the blood. The study showed that the residents were not given supplements on a routine basis. Most of the participants in the study assumed it was the responsibility of the physicians. The nursing home managers did not feel properly equipped to make decisions regarding vitamin D or administering supplements with prescriptions. Based on their findings, the researchers behind the study concluded that there is a gap between the official vitamin D guidelines issued by the health authorities and what the nursing home residents who need the nutrient actually get. What is needed here is a shift of paradigm to make it possible to view vitamin D both as an essential nutrient and medicine for protecting the nursing home residents. The researchers claim that the widespread vitamin D deficiency among old people may contribute to increasing the spread of COVID-19 and the likeliness that it becomes much more severe. It is a fact that nursing home residents are much more vulnerable, which is why there is an alarming and urgent need for a solution for this serious problem. The British study is published in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health. Official recommendations, actual need, and safe upper intake limit Many experts believe that the actual need for vitamin D is a lot greater than the official recommendations in terms of optimizing blood levels of the nutrient. It depends on a number of factors such as diet habits, genes, sun exposure, age, skin type, BMI, use of cholesterol-lowering drugs, and chronic diseases like cancer and diabetes. High-dosed vitamin D supplements with 20-80 micrograms of vitamin D are available on the market. EU’s Scientific Committee on Food has established a safe upper intake levels for vitamin D that is 25 micrograms daily for infants aged 0-6 months, 50 micrograms daily for children aged six months to 10 years, and 100 micrograms for children from the age of 11 years and all adults, including pregnant and breastfeeding women. Vitamin D is a lipid-soluble vitamin, which means that you benefit the most from the nutrient by taking it in oil-filled gelatin capsules. Blood levels of vitamin D Fødevarestyrelsen. Nye D-vitamin-anbefalinger til børn og voksne. Pressemeddelelse 21. december 2020 Joseph Williams and Carol Williams. Responsibility for vitamin D supplementation of elderly care home residents in England: falling through the gap between medicine and food. BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health. 2020 Northwestern University. Vitamin D levels appear to play role in COVID-19 mortality rates. Science Daily. May 2020 Ali Daneshkhah et al. The Possible Role of Vitamin D in Suppressing Cytokine Storm and Associated Mortality in COVID-19 Patients. medRxiv April 30, 2020 JoAnn E. Manson. Commentary. Eliminating vitamin D deficiency during the COVID-19 pandemic. A call to action. Metabolism Clinical and Experimental. July 23, 2020 Search for more information...
CDC has provided the information on this page because it may be of interest to you. CDC does not necessarily endorse the views or information presented. CDC cannot answer personal medical questions. Please talk to your health care professional about specific questions concerning appropriate care, treatment, or other medical advice. No two people with FASDs are exactly alike. Children with FASDs can have impairments in learning, memory, behavior, social interactions, or combinations of these impairments. Some children have poor growth, including reduced head size. A minority of children with FASDs have minor facial features that reflect problems in brain growth before birth. These symptoms and features can range from mild to severe. Treatment services for people with FASDs are most effective when they address a person’s specific impairments and build upon his or her own strengths. Early Intervention Services There is no cure for FASDs, but research shows that early intervention treatment services can improve a child’s development. Early intervention services help children from birth to 3 years of age (36 months) learn important skills. Services include therapy to help the child talk, walk, and interact with others. Therefore, it is important to talk to your child’s doctor as soon as possible if you think your child has an FASD or other developmental problem. In a majority of states, children with a diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) are immediately eligible for early intervention services. Even if your child has not received a diagnosis, he or she might qualify for early intervention treatment services. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)external icon says that children younger than 3 years of age who are at risk of having developmental delays may be eligible for services. The early intervention system in your state will help you have your child evaluated and provide services if your child qualifies. In addition, treatments such as speech therapy for language delays, or physical therapy for motor issues, often do not need to wait for a formal diagnosis. Studies have shown that some positive factors can help reduce secondary effects of FASDs and help people with these conditions reach their full potential.1 Protective factors include: - Early diagnosis A child who is diagnosed at a young age can be placed in appropriate educational classes and get the social services needed to help the child and his or her family. Early diagnosis also helps families and school staff to understand why the child might act or react differently from other children sometimes. - Involvement in special education and social services Children who receive special education geared towards their specific needs and learning style are more likely to reach their full potential. Children with FASDs have a wide range of of learning needs and behavior challenges that might need to be addressed. Special education programs can better meet each child’s needs. In addition, families of children with FASDs who receive social services, such as counseling or respite care have more positive experiences than families who do not receive such services. - Loving, nurturing, and stable home environment Children with FASDs can be more sensitive than other children to disruptions, changes in lifestyle or routines, and harmful relationships. Therefore, having a loving, stable home life is very important for a child with an FASD. In addition, community and family support can help prevent secondary conditions, such as criminal behavior, unemployment, and incomplete education. - Absence of violence People with FASDs who live in stable, non-abusive households or who do not become involved in youth violence are much less likely to develop secondary conditions than children who have been exposed to violence in their lives. Children with FASDs need to be taught other ways of showing their anger or frustration. Types of Treatments Several types of treatments are available for people with FASDs. They can generally be broken down into five categories: People with FASDs have the same health and medical needs as people without FASDs. Like everyone else, they need well-baby care, vaccinations, good nutrition, exercise, hygiene, and basic medical care. But, for people with FASDs, concerns specific to the disorder must also be monitored and addressed either by a current doctor or through referral to a specialist. The types of treatments needed will be different for each person and depend upon the person’s symptoms. Types of medical specialists might include: - Primary care provider - Mental health professionals (child psychiatrist and psychologist, school psychologist, behavior management specialist) - Plastic surgeon - Speech-language pathologist - Occupational therapist - Physical therapist No medications have been approved specifically to treat FASDs. But, several medications can help improve some of the symptoms of FASDs. For example, medication might help manage high energy levels, inability to focus, or depression. Following are some examples of medications used to treat FASD symptoms: This type of medication is used to treat symptoms such as hyperactivity, problems paying attention, and poor impulse control, as well as other behavior issues. This type of medication is used to treat symptoms such as sad mood, loss of interest, sleep problems, school disruption, negativity, irritability, aggression, and anti-social behaviors. This type of medication is used to treat symptoms such as aggression, anxiety, and certain other behavior problems. - Anti-anxiety drugs This type of medication is used to treat symptoms of anxiety. Medications can affect each child differently. One medication might work well for one child, but not for another. To find the right treatment, the doctor might try different medications and doses. It is important to work with your child’s doctor to find the treatment plan that works best for your child. Behavior and education therapies can be important parts of treatment for children with FASDs. Although there are many different types of therapy for children with developmental disabilities, only a few have been scientifically tested specifically for children with FASDs. Following are behavior and education therapies that have been shown to be effective for some children with FASDs: - Good Buddies – A children’s friendship training to teach individuals with an FASD appropriate social skills1 Children with FASDs often have difficulty learning subtle social skills from their own experiences; those kinds of skills are typically “learned by osmosis” on the playground, such as how to slip into a group, appropriate sharing, or dealing with teasing. This intervention uses a group format to teach age-appropriate social skills over 12 weekly sessions for parent and child. Sessions are organized around and toward each child hosting a play date with a classmate or peer. - Families Moving Forward (FMF) program to provide support for families who deal with challenging FASD behaviors2 This intervention is most appropriate for children with severe, clinically significant behavior problems based in part on positive behavior support techniques. It is a feasible, low-intensity, sustained model of supportive consultation with a parent or caregiver (rather than directly with the child). The intervention lasts 9 to 11 months, with at least 16 every-other-week sessions, typically lasting 90 minutes each. Services are carried out by mental health providers with specialized training. - Math Interactive Learning Experience (MILE) program to help with mathematics difficulty3 Deficits in mathematical functioning have been reported consistently among alcohol-affected individuals. The MILE program is designed to improve the child’s mathematical knowledge and skill. Children complete 6 weeks of one-to-one tutoring using specifically adapted materials (eg, vertical number line, timers, etc.) that are appropriate to their academic level. Parents also receive training on behavioral regulation techniques to optimize the child’s readiness to learn. - Parents and Children Together (PACT) a neurocognitive habilitation program to improve self-regulation and executive function4 Building upon techniques developed from the brain injury literature, this intervention used 12 weekly sessions with parents and children to address and improve behavior regulation and executive function (that is, planning, organizing, and understanding of others). It uses a particularly engaging metaphor of “how does my engine run” to teach children awareness of their current behavioral state and specific techniques for optimizing that state for the current situation. Children with FASDs might not respond to the usual parenting practices. Parent training has been successful in educating parents about their child’s disability and about ways to teach their child many skills and help them cope with their FASD-related symptoms. Parent training can be done in groups or with individual families. Such programs are offered by therapists or in special classes. Although each child is unique, the following parenting tips can be helpful:1-4 - Concentrate on your child’s strengths and talents - Accept your child’s limitations - Remember, much of your child’s challenging behavior is because of brain-based challenges rather than willful misbehavior - Be consistent with everything (discipline, school, behaviors) - Use concrete language and examples - Use stable routines that do not change daily - Keep it simple - Be specific-say exactly what you mean - Structure your child’s world to provide a foundation for daily living - Use visual aides, music, and hands-on activities to help your child learn - Use positive reinforcement often (praise, incentives) - Supervise: friends, visits, routines - Repeat, repeat, repeat Families might need support from a family counselor or therapist. Parents might also benefit from local support groups, in which parents of children with FASDs can discuss concerns, ask questions, and find encouragement. Check with one of the following resources in the directory below to find support in your area: National and State Resource Directoryexternal icon from FASD United (formerly NOFAS) With any disability, injury, or medical condition, many untested therapies become known and are promoted by informal networks. These therapies are referred to as alternative treatments. Before starting such a treatment, check it out carefully, and talk to your child’s doctor. Your child’s doctor will help you weigh the risks and benefits of these therapies. Some of the alternative treatments used for people with FASDs include: - Auditory training - Relaxation therapy, visual imagery, and meditation (especially for sleep problems and anxiety) - Creative art therapy - Yoga and exercise - Acupuncture and acupressure - Massage, Reiki, and energy healing - Vitamins, herbal supplements, and homeopathy - Animal-assisted therapy - O’Connor MJ, Frankel F, Paley B, et al. A controlled social skills training for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2006;74(4):639–648. - Carmichael Olson H, Leavitt S. Families Moving Forward. Platform Presentation on October 23, 2010. FASD Fall Conference at Emory University, Atlanta, GA - Kable JA,Coles CD,Taddeo E. Socio-cognitive habilitation using the math interactive learning experience program for alcohol affected children. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2007; 31: 1425-1434. Bertrand J, Floyd L, Chasnoff I, Wells A, Bailey G, et al. Interventions for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs): Overview of findings for five innovative research projects. Res Dev Disab. 2009;30(5):986–1006. - Wells, A.M., Chasnoff, I.J., Schmidt, C.A., Telford, E., & Schwartz, L. (2012). Neurocognitive habilitation therapy for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: An adaptation of the Alert Program®. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 66, 24-34.
Free Moliere: the Misanthrope Essay Sample \|← Night\|\|Organic Community →\| Buy Cheap Moliere: the Misanthrope Essay The Misanthrope is one of the literary creations of a celebrated comic dramatist from France. The first performance of the play in 1666 featured Moliere himself and his wife (Bolt 3). Injustice, hypocrisy and corruption are the major issues that disgust Alceste who is the “misanthrope” as also it has been expressed in the title because he is entangled in a number of lawsuits. He wants justice since the result of these cases is not aimed at pleading someone guilty. On the contrary, the most influential in court are the people who determine the outcome. Nevertheless, Alceste falls in love with a young widow Celimene (Dromgoole 12). She is a bright example of dishonesty since she finds fun in surrounding herself with suitors and flirting hence despite the acts with a bad reputation which Alceste despises. Moreover, she promises her love to a number of suitors and sees others on their back at the same time. Hence she is confronted by all of them. Alceste swears to run off and live in isolation in the backwoods and it can be viewed as a sign of giving up and fearing the effects of diverse legal encounter (Bolt 7). The Misanthrope, thus apprehends himself with the themes of hypocrisy, honesty, injustice, the conflict between society and individuals along with the manipulative social games people engage in. In this paper, I will therefore critically analyze and scrutinize the understanding and interpretations of the characters Alceste, Philinte, Celimene and Eliante. I will also place them by looking at the message they are communicating. In the play The Misanthrope Alceste is the protagonist as well as the person respoinsible for the major conflict in the play. His status quo clashes with the ethical values in his society, hence he is frustrated with the present immense corruption (Dromgoole 17). He is a ringleader in advising others on the importance of honesty and giving them reasons why they should avoid hierocracy. No one takes his words seriously and it leads to his isolation from the others. Nonetheless, he is loved by both men and women and Philinte appears to respect his integrity. Furthermore, both Celimene and Arsinoe display attraction towards him. By the end of the play, Alceste shows some changes since he is willing to forgive. He marries Celimene despite the fact that she disrespected and offended him. He realizes that he is not unique since he is also a captive of love just like any other human being. The change Alceste goes through is not absolute because he gets infuriated with Celimene’s behavior. Therefore, he ended up alone and unhappy (Moliere 39). Consequently, the author uses Alceste’s character as a device to show satire. He signifies that surviving in a society where most people do not observe moral values is tricky even when the willingness is present. In fact, this evil is capable of pulling someone from righteousness (Nicholas 114). Alceste has a number of embodiments, for example, one as a comic revolutionary and second as an ordinary emotional human which is widely juxtaposed and contracted within him. Moreover, we have Celimene who controls the actions of the misanthrope. She is naughty, energetic, young and bouncy, hence can capture anyone’s attention and make all play revolves around her (Moliere 66). Celimene stands out since she is jovial, charming and witty. At the same time with a common magnitude Alceste is bitter and isolated. She has been also adopted to the survival tricks in her society wich gives her lot of happiness as every man in the court stare at her. She has own way of saying the right words to the right persons besides gossiping and flirting, hence she remains the centre of attention (Moliere 19). One of the greatest ironies of the play is Alceste getting attracted to Celimene, yet their personalities are greatly contrasted. Despite their disparities, she cares for him, thus showing her receptiveness to emotion. In the last scene of the play, Celemene’s carelessness goes too far since several of her suitors ascertain a letter she had written making fun of all of them (Gaines 23). We can then say what goes round comes round since her gossip comes back to hound her. In this confusion all her suitors leave her apart from Alceste and she is not sure about what she really wants in spite of being very confident (Moliere 78). At no time does she demonstrate extreme frustrations and desires that may give an explanation to her lack of ethics. Celimene is quick to criticize and attack others, yet she is unable to correct her own mistakes. She also does not have ethical values and she is not reliable for making decisions. It is evident from the scene when she turns to Eliante when Alceste and Oronte ask her to make a decision to choose between them. Despite all her beauty and charm, Celimene is immature. Moliere proposes that she will never become mature unless she starts taking responsibilities for her deeds and words. This immaturity declares her a fallen hero at the end of the play since she is alone and unhappy. Her traits alert us that we should learn to make choices and to look at ourselves before criticizing others. Philinte. The author blesses Philinte with a balancing sense that is very sharp and quick (Nicholas 33). Philinte values and respects the society in addition to his being forgiven. He recognizes that people are imperfect which makes him a very boring character, totally opposite personality to Alceste. Moliere portrays him as an advisor when he tells Alceste to treat others fairly when he concentrated so much on judging others on what is morally acceptable or not acceptable. The social balance of Alceste continues to shamble since he ignores his friend’s advice, which is unfortunate (Moliere 44). He is an outstanding male character in the play given that he does not solely seek Celimene’s attention and adoration. Eventually, Philinte is rewarded with an unbeaten relationship with the author, Moliere. Eliente and Philente confess their love for each other in the last scene. This character communicates that reticence, modesty and control are the acceptable behavior in the society. Alceste and Celimene do not have these values in different ways, hence they turn into alone and unhappy people as the play ends. From a critical point of view, Philinte narrates this story except for his romantic affairs. He mentions Eliante and Alceste to be the most unpredictable characters in the story. He also never acted impulsively and his actions are stable throughout the play. Eliante. She is the cousin to Celimene, though she avoids gossip and appears satisfied (Moliere 7). Eliante adjusts well and seems to have solutions to everything because she keenly observes human behavior. Most of the time she comes with a sensible answer whenever Philinte avoids giving a comment regarding anything. She conveys an intelligent appraisal of how men act being in love and she balances Celimene’s behaviour. Celimene is her total contrast. She is also helpful when Celimene asks Eliante to favor her to choose a lover. However, she turns her down requiring Celimene to find own way out of this mess. She is only portrayed as weak when she feels obligated to Alceste abasing herself to the level of agreeing to be his lover in order to help him overcome the deceptive experience he had with Celimene (Nicholas 26). At the end, she thought it out and decided that Philinte is her perfect match. It is much respected throughout the play that Eliente is not involved in deceit and hypocrisy what makes her perfect for Philinte. Moliere brings in a successful conclusion when he unites Philinte and Eliante. Unfortunately, the protagonist in the play, Alceste, does not find happiness. In conclusion, The Misanthrope is a story of domestic unhappiness, struggle, death, hard work and even shame. Celimene is imprisoned in her own deeds since she does not become mature enough to the end of the play. Alceste also loses out since his expectation of a perfect world is a fantasy that never comes true. Thereby, he ends up being unhappy and miserable.
'TV makes me angry!' Studies show that too much TV exposure can make your child aggressive. By Anne Harding The more television that a three-year-old watches, the more likely he or she is to behave aggressively, according to a U.S. study. Article originally in Reuters Just having the TV on in the background, even if the child wasn't watching it, was also linked to aggressive behavior although the relationship wasn't as strong, said the researchers. "Parents should be smart about TV use," researcher Jennifer Manganello from the University at Albany, State University of New York, told Reuters Health. "They should limit the time that children use TV, pay attention to the content of TV programs, and consider how TV is used throughout the home." The study looked at 3,128 women from 20 U.S. cities who had a child between 1998 and 2000. While there was some diversity of education among the study participants, one-third hadn't graduated from high school. Two-thirds of the mothers said their three-year-old watched more than two hours of TV a day, and the average viewing time for children was around three hours. On average, the TV was on for about five additional hours on a typical day. After accounting for factors known to be associated with aggressive behavior, such as living in a violent neighborhood or having a mother who suffers from depression, TV watching and household TV time were both still significantly associated with aggressive behavior, such as hitting others, having angry moods, being disobedient, and screaming a lot. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no TV at all for children two and younger, and two hours a day or less for older kids, lead researcher Jennifer Manganello and her team from the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine noted in their report. There are a number of ways that excessive TV viewing could contribute to a child's degree of aggressive behavior, the researchers add in their study published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Children may see violence on TV, and time spent watching TV may mean less time for behaviors that help kids develop positively, such as reading or playing. "We really don't know what's going on for certain," Manganello said, adding that future research was needed to look both at TV content and at what's going on in a child's home when the TV is on. But Manganello said the findings show that parents have to consider the "overall TV environment" of the home, as well as how much TV their child is watching. How much TV does your child watch?
Acid rain is a broad term that is often used to describe several forms of acid deposition. Wet deposition is when rain, snow, fog, or mist contains high amounts of sulfuric and nitric acid. When sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are emitted into the atmosphere, they dissolve in water and fall as precipitation. Dry deposition occurs when dust and smoke that contain high amounts of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides settle to the ground, or onto buildings, cars and vegetation. These gases are converted to acids when they contact water. The acidity of acid rain can vary. Pure water has a pH of 7 and normal rainwater has a pH around 5. In , the most acidic rain that fell in the United States had a pH of 4. Acid rain develops when sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxides enter the atmosphere. While natural processes, such as the eruption of a volcano or decomposing vegetation, can emit sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the air, acid rain is primarily caused by excessive emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides as a result of human actions. ACID RAIN FACT SHEET The fossil fuels that humans burn for energy can come back to haunt us as acid rain. All rights reserved. Acid rain describes any form of precipitation that contains high levels of nitric and sulfuric acids. It can also occur in the form of snow, fog, and tiny bits of dry material that settle to Earth. Normal rain is slightly acidic, with a pH of 5. Rotting vegetation and erupting volcanoes release some chemicals that can cause acid rain, but most acid rain is a product of human activities. The biggest sources are coal-burning power plants , factories, and automobiles. When humans burn fossil fuels , sulfur dioxide SO 2 and nitrogen oxides NO x are released into the atmosphere. Those air pollutants react with water, oxygen, and other substances to form airborne sulfuric and nitric acid. Winds may spread these acidic compounds through the atmosphere and over hundreds of miles. What Causes Acid Rain? Pure water has a pH of 7. As is seen in Table I, carbon dioxide CO 2 is present in the greatest concentration and therefore contributes the most to the natural acidity of rainwater. Carbon dioxide, produced in the decomposition of organic material, is the primary source of acidity in unpolluted rainwater. NOTE: Parts per million ppm is a common concentration measure used in environmental chemistry. The formula for ppm is given by:. Science Explorer. Multimedia Gallery. Park Passes.
In reading folktales to young children, we rarely ask ourselves whether the child can understand everything in them. The examples are too numerous to count. Could the average adult easily say what exactly a coachman does? What’s the difference between a justacorps and a caftan? Between hay and straw? Some of these things you could point out to a child in the book’s illustrations. Others can be explained. But the object-thinking of a preschooler demands actual, real items. You want to see it with your own eyes, understand its size and scale, touch it, smell it, feel its texture. As it turns out, it’s not too hard to arrange a first-hand encounter with old things. Museums are places specially created to store old things with care. Of course, many adults feel a sort of reverent awe for museums and are a little anxious about bringing a child into a world where strict “Do not touch” signs abound. Museums and parents will continue to struggle with this “curse” for decades to come. Still, today we are lucky to have many Russian museums—ethnographical, local, historical, and art museums—that have models, copies, and duplicates of antique items, all of which you can—and should—touch. Every weekend I lead an activity session for groups of six- to eight-year-old children. In the wintertime, we meet at all sorts of museums—both those for children and those for adults. With each visit, I am reminded that a museum is very interesting to a child, that it becomes a space for inner growth—as long they are able to connect their impressions of the museum to their everyday lives, struggles, and experiences, including those they get from books. A storybook treasure chest I brought a storybook treasure chest to one of the sessions. It was an ordinary box, covered in wrapping paper, filled with various items from different stories. The children took turns taking them out and trying to figure out what story the given item “lives” in. As I expected, there were only two items they immediately identified: a glass slipper (which was actually an ashtray in its ordinary life) and a tin soldier. Now what was this? The children had all kinds of theories. You could probably dig with this stick...but why were both ends sharp? If it was a needle, where do you put the string? Could it be a hook? Or a paintbrush? Or an old screwdriver? I didn’t give the kids any hints—neither written, nor spoken. What’s most important to me is that they think for themselves. The guesses can be anything—someone else will absolutely find the mismatch or a mistake, and put forth their own suggestion. To find the answer to this question—what was that mysterious stick with the thick center and two sharp ends?—I brought the kids to the Weaving Hall of the Russian Museum of Ethnography. Within ten minutes, when the kids had peered into all the displays, they were gleefully reporting: “Here it is, we found it! It’s a spindle!” Those who knew how to read helped those who were still learning make sense of the museum label. They found a few more spindles. Then they remembered this story: “But she had scarcely touched the spindle when it pricked her finger. At that moment she fell upon the bed which was standing near and lay still in a deep sleep…” From the "Sleeping Beauty" by Brothers Grimm. Translated by Margaret Hunt. So what’s a spindle for? The children held it, along with a bag of pure wool, which I had also brought to the lesson. By closely examining the museum’s display cases and models, and following the steps they saw illustrated there, they tried to work the spindle—and they got everything almost exactly right! An ancient, forgotten craft came to life for modern kids...with the help of a story and the museum. But the lesson in the Weaving Hall isn’t over yet. I ask the kids to find items from other stories. And now we’re looking at Russian distaff, another tool used for spinning. “Three fair maidens, late one night/Sat and spun by candlelight.” From "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" by Alexander Pushkin. Translated by Louis Zellikoff. They “spun”—what does that mean? Did the maidens use a spindle? Are spinning and weaving the same thing? And seriously—why does the tsar need so much cloth? The pieces in the museum exhibit allowed us to reconstruct the whole process of making clothes: how linen is grown, sheep are sheared, how raw materials are processed, how strings are made with a spindle; how people spin, cut cloth, and sew. Nearly every item reminds the kids of a story. Here, for example, is a loom straight out of Andersen’s “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” We wrap up our lesson with a discussion about the clothes the kids arrived in. What are they made from? Do their clothes know the work of spindles, distaffs, looms? How are clothes made these days? A few years ago, while asking eighth-graders about their impressions from a visit to the Hermitage, I heard: “What most amazed me was the clock with the big pendulum…” I understood then that today’s children and teenagers don’t often get the chance to hear a clock chime, to see a cuckoo in the clock window, to observe the swing of a pendulum. Since we live in St. Petersburg, the children’s group and I set off to the Hermitage. There are hundreds of clocks there, starting with the famous “Peacock,” which has anything but clock hands or a clock face. But you could conduct this activity in practically any city—local museums and historic house-museums that have antique items are everywhere. Most likely, they have a clock. In advance of the activity, I asked the kids to bring stories that feature clocks. They outdid themselves—many children brought several books. We ended up with four editions of “Cinderella,” for example. Besides “Cinderella,” the children also brought in “The Nutcracker,” Leonid Yakhnin’s Cardboard Clock Square, Sofia Prokofieva’s Story of the Cuckoo Clock, and Evgeny Schwartz’s The Tale of Lost Time. We remembered the plots and if a story was unfamiliar to some, the kids tried to summarize the book’s contents for their classmates. They were very proud of themselves—it turns out their knowledge and books are interesting to others! Then we set off through the Hermitage. We never have “museum tours” in the classical sense, instead each child gets an activity sheet or folder with assignments to complete while studying a particular exposition independently. Since only a few children know how to write at that age, assignments usually involve searching for items, sketching them, and making up a story. In this case I photographed the five most interesting clocks ahead of time, but I erased several important details from the images. Each child got five incomplete photographs and had to search for the items in the museum hall (in the process, they were also learning to explore a museum hall independently, without adult help). They were to examine each item closely, find the details missing in the picture, and draw them in. They were also learning to truly see the exhibit, not just its label. The children were also asked to imagine which of the stories we had discussed would be a good fit for each individual clock…. Finally, each participant was to find and draw the most interesting clock—later we looked through all their choices together. We were in for a lot of surprises. Someone had discovered Roman numerals on a clock face—so we set about learning to decode them. Another child had noticed a “missing piece”—an old clock had no minute hand! Our conversation turned to how differently people see time…. Time for rocks While walking through St. Petersburg and the museums, the children and I often speak about what everything around us is made of and how: the spindles, clocks, jewelry boxes, embankments, houses, columns, and lattice work. After all, these children live in a world of culture, a man-made world. I think it’s vitally important that a child feel at home in this world of culture and learn to understand, value, and create it. A whole unit was devoted to wood and wooden items. Afterward, the children and I examined the intricate lattice of St. Petersburg and visited a real smithy, where each child forged his or her own first nail. And then it was time for rocks. A recent edition of Pavel Bazhov’s Silver Hoof, with illustrations by Mikhail Bychkov, was our starting point. In Bazhov’s “The Malachite Box“ collection, this story stands out as the happiest and kindest one. There’s no struggle of man against nature, no predatory hunt for riches, just peaceful admiration and gratitude. The kids and I read the story and discussed the illustrations in great detail—I even read them the afterword from Bychkov himself, in which the artist talks about his childhood love for Bazhov’s work. A picture he drew as a child is printed alongside the afterword. We all went to a theatre production based on the story. We visited the workshop of a sculptor who works in stone. We asked all the adults we knew to contribute to our collection of jewelry with gems—necklaces, bracelets, pins, earrings, and rings. All the children, without exception—both the boys and the girls—looked over these riches, enthralled, picking out the tones of the colors, the many shapes of the amethyst, jasper, malachite, lazurite, onyx, chrysoprase, and many, many other gems. Then we headed to the Geological and Prospecting Museum. Once again, we skipped the tour. We saw where rocks were born: the museum had volcanic lava, fragments of a meteorite, and even real dinosaur bones. We saw the different forms rocks take out in the wild; gold nuggets, ore, and gold dust were all on display. There was even a huge slab of rock salt you could lick. Each participant left the museum with every intention of starting their own rock collection—and they began as soon as they stepped outside: is that limestone? Granite? Shell rock? Of course, we also spoke about Bazhov’s other stories. Later, parents who read their children The Mistress of the Copper Mountain or The Malachite Box after our “rock outings,” told me that the kids listened to these stories with particular interest and a sense of familiarity. Half a century ago, the psychologist Aleksei Leontiev said that perception is not equivalent to understanding. What a person (especially a child) perceives—hears, sees, feels—is not something he or she necessarily understands. And hearing—experiencing!—“The Snow Queen” or “Tom Thumb” or “The Bremen Musicians” for the tenth time, children may understand them completely differently than adults do. Or not understand them at all. Understanding is separate work, one which demands significant intellectual efforts. It could be that the first, beginning stage of that work is related to figuring out what all those words from the stories mean. The object-world of the old stories differs dramatically from the world in which modern kids live. Immersing ourselves in that world, I believe, will not only give a child the information needed to understand the text, but also help bring vanished worlds to life, to bridge the divide between the past and the present, between the reality of the book and the everyday life of the child. Translated from the Russian by Alisa Cherkasova Follow us on Facebook.
I just need around 200-300 words for each bullet point to help me write my final paper. 1.) What are some business strategies businesses may use? What are some implications of these strategies to your business or one with which you are familiar? What recommendations do you have to better use business strategies? 2.) Why might a strengths, opportunities, weaknesses, and threats analysis be important to an organization? Provide an example of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in your business or one with which you are familiar. How would you use strengths to leverage opportunities and minimize areas of weakness? 3.)What are the components of a successful business model outlined by Chesbrough and Rosenbloom? How does each role affect businesses? Hello. I provide the following to assist you. What are some business strategies? Types of Business Strategies Published on February 15, 2009 by Kalaiselvan in Business There are Several types of business strategies implemented in business environment. "The following types of strategies have been recommended by management experts: 1. Stability Strategy: An organization that has a stable environment, limited number of products, customers, suppliers and competitors, minimum need for special skills and so on may follow what is called the 'Stability Strategy'. Such an organization is satisfied with its existing level of activities and wants the same to continue. 2. Growth Strategy: An organization that wants to raise its level of performance may adopt what is called the 'Growth Strategy'. The following measures are usually adopted by such an organization: (i) Development of new products for the existing markets. (ii) Creation of new uses for the existing products, and (iii) Development of new products for new markets. 3. Vertical Integration Strategy: A business enterprise itself may decide to produce the raw materials needed for production to ensure continuous supply. On the other hand, it may also decide to start its own sales outlets to serve its ... This solution will provide a detailed explanation of business strategies that are implemented in a business environment.
January 15, 2009—Like glowing parentheses, two sun dogs gave cold-bitten Omaha, Nebraska, residents a reason to go outside Wednesday. Typically seen to the left and right of a low-lying sun, sun dogs, or parhelia, can take a number of forms—from slightly brighter segments of a solar halo (as shown) to rainbow-hued horizontal streaks to blinding spots nearly indistinguishable from the sun itself. The sharpness, movement, and orientation of hexagonal, cloudborne ice crystals determine a sun dog's shape, sharpness, and color. Mottled, wobbling, or tall crystals, for example, generally result in more diffuse or colorful displays. Despite Nebraska's subzero temperatures yesterday, sun dogs don't require cold ground temperatures. The atmospheric phenomena can be seen globally in any season—and even on other worlds. Eight-sided ammonia crystals above Jupiter and Saturn, for example, may spawn quadruple sun dogs, according to physicist Les Cowley on the Atmospheric Optics Web site. See also: "Rare 'Fiery Rainbow' Spotted Over Idaho.
Does the Smoke Ever Really Clear? Thirdhand Smoke Exposure Raises New Concerns Environ Health Perspect 119:a70-a74 (2011). http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.119-a70 [online 01 February 2011] You may never have heard of thirdhand smoke, or THS, but chances are you’ve smelled it. THS is, in the words of The New York Times, “the invisible yet toxic brew of gases and particles clinging to smokers’ hair and clothing, not to mention cushions and carpeting, that lingers long after secondhand smoke [SHS] has cleared from a room.”1 Recent research exploring potential dangers of THS has received a flurry of coverage in the international media2,3,4 and the scientific press.5,6,7 And in the United States, court cases are beginning to appear in which plaintiffs are citing these alleged dangers,8,9 despite a lack of human health studies on the long-term health effects of THS exposure. So how dangerous might THS really be? The answer, still to be pronounced, will depend on many factors. A Brief History of THS THS was a topic of interest long before it received its present name. The seed of the idea that cigarette smoke toxicants might linger on room and car surfaces long after the smoke itself was gone was planted in 1953, when it was reported that smoke condensate painted onto mice caused cancer.10 Thirdhand smoke consists of residual tobacco smoke pollutants that 1) remain on surfaces and in dust after tobacco has been smoked, 2) are re-emitted back into the gas phase, or 3) react with oxidants and other compounds in the environment to yield secondary pollutants. In 1991 the house dust of smokers’ homes was first found to be contaminated with nicotine.11 Later, in 2004, nicotine was quantified in the dust of nonsmokers’ homes and homes in which mothers smoked in the house over the preceding 3 months.12 In homes with the highest SHS exposure, in which the mothers smoked in areas where their children were present, nicotine in dust averaged 64.0 µg/m2 in living rooms and 15.8 µg/m2 in infants’ bedrooms. Surfaces in living rooms and infants’ bedrooms averaged nicotine coatings of 73.05 µg/m2 and 56.26 µg/m2, respectively. The same study showed the dust and surfaces of homes in which smokers had tried to limit their children’s exposure (for instance, by sometimes smoking outdoors) were also contaminated, although to a lesser degree. However, no nicotine was found in the dust or on the surfaces of homes never exposed to tobacco smoke.12 In 2008 similar findings were reported for cars.13 Nicotine was detected in significantly greater quantities in the dust (mean 19.51 µg/g) and on the dashboards (mean 8.61 µg/m2) of 78 vehicles belonging to people who smoked in their vehicles than in the dust (mean 3.37 µg/g) and on the dashboards (mean 0.06 µg/m2) of 20 vehicles of nonsmokers. Eight smokers had imposed a smoking ban in their vehicles for at least 12 months. Their vehicles nevertheless were contaminated with nicotine (mean 11.61 µg/g in dust and 5.09 µg/m2 on the dashboard). The authors point out, however, that the cars may have been contaminated by smoke that entered the car from outside and that smoking bans may not have been complied with 100% of the time. A 2010 study showed THS also remains after smokers move out of their homes, even after being vacant for two months and being prepared for new residents, sometimes with new carpeting and paint.14 Meanwhile, other lines of research have confirmed some smoke compounds adsorb onto surfaces and then desorb back into the air over time, providing a source of tobacco toxicants that lingers long after people finish smoking.15,16 The term thirdhand smoke may have first appeared in print in 2006,17 but it became more widely known in 2009 when it was used by Jonathan Winickoff, an associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, and colleagues in a paper published in Pediatrics.18 In that work, the researchers reported that 65.2% of nonsmokers and 43.3% of smokers believed THS could harm children and that such beliefs were independently associated with the imposition of home smoking bans. The authors also wrote that emphasizing the potential dangers of THS to children’s health might be important in encouraging parents not to smoke around their children. A new development emerged when Mohamad Sleiman, a chemist with the Indoor Environment Department of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) Environmental Energy Technologies Division, and colleagues reported that nicotine adsorbed onto surfaces reacted with nitrous acid—an air pollutant found in vehicle exhaust and produced by improperly vented gas stoves and burning tobacco—to form tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) including 1-(N-methyl-N-nitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridinyl)-4-butanal (NNA), 4-(N-nitrosomethylamino)-1-(3-pyridinyl)-1-butanone(NNK), and N-nitrosonornicotine (NNN).19 There is some evidence NNA is mutagenic.20 NNK and NNN are classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as human carcinogens21 and by the National Toxicology Program as reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens.22 Box 1. An Estimate of Exposure NNA absorbed on filter paper = 5 ng/cm–2 Area of passenger’s hand = 160 cm2 One firm handplant on the dashboard could conceivably pick up 5 × 160 = 800 ng NNA, assuming all the NNA on the dashboard is picked up by the hand Assume the hand is wiped across a 1-m swath of the dash. With an average hand width of 10 cm, this equals 10 handplants made on surfaces similar to the dashboard. A passenger could pick up 10 × 800 = 8,000 ng (or 8 μg) NNA. For NNK, divide this figure by 5 (only 1 ng/cm–2 NNK was found on the dashboard): 8/5 = 1.6 μg Assuming the passenger weighs 80 kg, the potential doses received are: NNA: 8 μg over 80 kg body weight = 0.1 μg/kg for 3 days, or 0.033 μg/kg/day NNK: 1.6 μg over 80 kg body weight = 0.02 μg/kg for 3 days, or 0.0066 μg/kg/day Later in 2010 Sleiman et al. reported that ozone, another indoor air pollutant, reacted with some 50 compounds in SHS to produce ultrafine particles smaller than 100 nm, the compositions of which are yet to be determined.23 The effects of ultrafine particles are thought to vary depending on their composition and characteristics, but their tiny size likely facilitates their uptake and distribution throughout the body to potentially sensitive target sites including the bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, heart, and central nervous system.24 Sleiman et al. also speculated these ultrafine particles may be capable of depositing on surfaces and later resuspending into the air.23 In the same year, another research team provided the first preliminary quantitative data showing these particles did just that, although reaching airborne concentrations 100 times lower than levels in SHS.25 By the latter part of 2010, with thirdhand smoke an established moniker, researchers began to define the phenomenon with a “three Rs” description: “Thirdhand smoke consists of residual tobacco smoke pollutants that remain on surfaces and in dust after tobacco has been smoked, are re-emitted back into the gas phase, or react with oxidants and other compounds in the environment to yield secondary pollutants,” Sleiman says. Working It Out Although concern that THS might be a hazard has grown, proof of harm remains to be formally demonstrated. The papers by Sleiman et al.19,23 focused on chemistry; they did not study health implications. However, figures reported in their nitrous acid/TSNA paper19 allow a back-of-the-envelope calculation that provides a starting point for debate on the potential of THS to cause harm. In this work, Sleiman and his colleagues sampled the interior of an old pickup truck whose owner typically smoked more than 10 cigarettes a day inside the vehicle. They placed a filter-paper patch on the dashboard; three days later, with the owner having smoked as usual, they removed the filter paper and also took a wipe sample of the stainless steel glove compartment door. Both the filter-paper and wipe samples were analyzed, showing that ambient nitrous acid levels were able to produce TSNAs by reaction with nicotine. No NNN was detected in this experiment, but the filter paper returned values of around 1 ng/cm–2 for NNK and 5 ng/cm–2 for NNA. The glove compartment door returned about 0.2 ng/cm–2 for NNK and 1.0 ng/cm–2 for NNA. Considering the filter-paper results for the truck and factoring in many assumptions, a calculation for potential exposure emerges (see Box 1). At this point, estimating the cancer risk of such an exposure would be speculative—no cancer potency factor (CPF) is available for NNA,19 and the CPF for NNK refers to a combination of lung, pancreas, liver, and nasal cancers in association with oral exposure over a lifetime of 70 years.26 Sleiman and colleagues caution, moreover, that an important limitation of the calculation in Box 1 is the assumption that 100% of NNK and NNA on the surface of the hand is absorbed into the body and/or ingested. But although the predicted figures clearly could be lower, Sleiman says at least some of the input figures seem reasonable. He points out, “The quantities of TSNAs on the paper were only those collected after three days of one person smoking ten cigarettes per day. How much more might be accumulated after months of smoking, perhaps by more than one smoker smoking more than ten per day?” “Different materials absorb different amounts of nicotine [therefore producing different amounts of TSNAs],” adds coauthor Hugo Destaillats, also of the LBNL. “We only examined paper and stainless steel; other materials in cars and homes absorb other quantities.” For instance, wool, cotton, silk, linen, acetate, and polyester all absorb SHS compounds,27,28 and nicotine is reported to be adsorbed by carpet and wallboard in quantities 2–3 orders of magnitude greater than the amount that would have been adsorbed by the pickup truck’s stainless steel glove compartment door.29 Further, although nitrous acid levels typically reach 5–15 ppb by volume indoors and 30 ppb by volume in vehicles, concentrations as high as 100 ppb by volume have been measured indoors.30 Moreover, nitrous acid photodecomposes during the day, so concentrations could be especially high at night in polluted cities, speculates coauthor Lara Gundel, also an LBNL researcher; TSNA production could increase with higher nitrous acid concentrations. Gundel adds that SHS contains many more toxic and carcinogenic compounds—such as benzo[a]pyrene, 1,3-butadiene, benzene, formaldehyde, cadmium, arsenic, and lead—that the researchers did not consider in their studies. “Alongside NNK and other TSNAs, they could increase the dangers of thirdhand smoke residue,” Gundel says. Moreover, she says, the dermal CPF for at least one compound in SHS—benzo[a]pyrene—is actually about 15-fold higher than its oral counterpart.31 Winickoff is concerned that small children might be particularly exposed and more susceptible to toxicants in THS. “Infants crawl over, touch, and mouth contaminated surfaces and are known to consume up to a quarter gram per day of dust—twice as much as do adults,” he says. “They could therefore be getting much higher doses of thirdhand smoke toxicants than older children and adults.” Gundel also suggests that cleaning staff working in hotels where smoking is allowed could receive high THS exposures, for example by handling THS-contaminated bedding. Clearly, not all the worst-case scenario inputs used in Box 1 may apply. Michael Siegel, a professor of community health sciences at Boston University School of Public Health, says there is no evidence to support the assumption that 100% of the NNK on the surface of the hand would be absorbed into the body and/or ingested. He further argues, “The most likely source of meaningful human exposure—ingestion—would only be a major issue for infants, and the time period during which high levels of ingestion of chemicals on the hands occurs is only about one year” (although Gundel points out a smoker’s spouse might certainly be exposed for 50 years over the span of a marriage). A more important consideration, suggests Siegel, is whether the potential threat posed by THS adds significantly to the hazards of smoking and SHS exposure. Smokers who are exposed to THS on surfaces after smoking has ceased would already have been exposed to many times the quantities of the same chemicals through the act of smoking itself, he explains. Likewise, nonsmokers who are exposed to SHS—including the children of smokers—also would take in far greater quantities of NNK and other toxics via smoke inhalation than through THS. “This would make any small additional NNK exposure meaningless,” Siegel says. Siegel believes one issue that is potentially meaningful is whether significant exposure to toxic THS constituents could occur as a result of smoke absorbed by a smoker’s clothing. “This question is important because it determines whether or not smokers who smoke only outside the home nevertheless place their children at potential risk,” he says. “The research that is needed is a study to determine the level of infant carcinogen exposure resulting in the setting of parents who only smoke outside the home.” Finding subjects for such research will not be too hard. Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007–2008 indicate more than half of U.S. children aged 3–19 years, some 32 million children, are exposed to SHS.32 Globally, an estimated 40% of children, 35% of nonsmoking women, and 33% of nonsmoking men are regularly exposed to SHS.33 Cutting through the Smoke Of the Sleiman et al. paper,19 Catherine Armstrong, a spokeswoman for British American Tobacco, says, “[This work] did not study any health outcomes. As the authors themselves note, more research is needed before conclusions on possible health hazards can be drawn.” That research is about to start. The California Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, which is funded by the California tobacco tax, recently made US$3.75 million of funding available for studying THS and cigarette butt waste.34 Georg Matt, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, points out that even in the absence of any hard evidence of actual long-term health effects of THS, many nonsmokers—and former smokers—have already been sensitized to the phenomenon. “We ask for nonsmoker hotel rooms, nonsmoker apartments, and we prefer nonsmoker cars when we buy a used car. Hotels and car rental companies know that cleaning up [smokers’] cars and rooms is very expensive, and real-estate agents know that smoking affects property values.” Regardless of whether THS is conclusively shown to cause illnesses, it is already changing attitudes, behaviors, norms, expectations, purchasing behavior, and the economic value of personal property and real estate, Matt says. In combination, these are powerful factors that have the potential to reduce tobacco use and lower the health risks associated with smoking itself as well as SHS and THS exposure. “The most important impact of the efforts to prevent exposure to thirdhand smoke,” Matt says, “may be . . . the reduction of health risks from active smoking and secondhand smoke exposure.” For these forms of tobacco smoke exposure, at least, the discussion about whether they may be dangerous is well and truly concluded. - Rabin RC. A New Cigarette Hazard: ‘Third-Hand Smoke.’ New York Times, Health section, Research subsection, online edition (2 Jan 2009). Available: http://tinyurl.com/9g9vrk [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Third-hand Smoke as Dangerous as Cigarette Fumes. The Telegraph, Lifestyle section, Health subsection, online edition (8 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/48ye2ob [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Fox M. Even Third-hand Smoke Carries Carcinogens: Study. Reuters, U.S. edition (8 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/ybqr6c6 [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Watson T. New Tobacco Danger: ‘Third-Hand Smoke.’ AOL News, Nation section, Health subsection (8 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/4h47p6y [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Carcinogens Form from Third-Hand Smoke. ScienceDaily, Science News section (9 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/ybr7ek9 [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Hamzelou J. Smoking May Pose ‘Third-hand’ Cancer Hazard. New Scientist, Health section, online edition (8 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/4hgdhja [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Harmon K. Third-hand Smoke Contains Carcinogens Too, Study Says [weblog entry]. Scientific American, Observations section, online edition (8 Feb 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/ybjzxea [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Ryan C. Judge to Allow Smoking Lawsuit against LVCVA. Las Vegas Sun, News section, online edition (20 May 2010). Available: http://tinyurl.com/4dazleg [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - ASH. Four New Dangers to Nonsmokers [website]. Washington, DC:Action on Smoking and Health. Available: http://tinyurl.com/6dtt9cu [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Wynder EL, et al. Experimental production of carcinoma with cigarette tar. Cancer Res 13(12):855–864. 1953. PMID:13116124. - Hein HO, et al. Indoor dust exposure: an unnoticed aspect of involuntary smoking. Arch Environ Health 46(2):98–101. 1991. PMID:2006900. - Matt GE, et al. Households contaminated by environmental tobacco smoke: sources of infant exposures. Tob Control 13(1):29–37. 2004. doi:10.1136/tc.2003.003889 - Matt GE, et al. Residual tobacco smoke pollution in used cars for sale: air, dust, and surfaces. Nicotine Tob Res 10(9):1467–1475. 2008. doi:10.1080/14622200802279898 - Matt GE, et al. When smokers move out and non-smokers move in: residential thirdhand smoke pollution and exposure. Tob Control. doi:10.1136/tc.2010.037382 - Singer BC, et al. Gas-phase organics in environmental tobacco smoke. 1. Effects of smoking rate, ventilation, and furnishing level on emission factors. Environ Sci Technol 36(5):846–853. 2002. doi:10.1021/es011058w - Singer BC, et al. Gas-phase organics in environmental tobacco smoke: 2. Exposure-relevant emission factors and indirect exposures from habitual smoking. Atmos Environ 37(39–40):5551–5561. 2003. doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2003.07.015 - Szabo L. Babies May Absorb Smoke Residue in Home. USA Today, 6 Aug 2006, Health and Behavior section, online edition. Available: http://tinyurl.com/zhoke [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Winickoff JP, et al. Beliefs about the health effects of “thirdhand” smoke and home smoking bans. Pediatrics 123(1):e74–e79. ( 2009. ); doi:.10.1542/peds.2008-2184 - Sleiman M, et al. Formation of carcinogens indoors by surface-mediated reactions of nicotine with nitrous acid, leading to potential thirdhand smoke hazards. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 107(15):6576–6581. 2010. doi:10.1073/pnas.0912820107 - Crespi CL, et al. A tobacco smoke-derived nitrosamine, 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone,is activated by multiple human cytochrome P450s including the polymorphic human cytochrome P4502D6. Carcinogenesis 12(7):1197–1201. ( 1991. ); PMID:2070484. - IARC. Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Volume 89 (2007). Smokeless Tobacco and Some Tobacco-specific N-Nitrosamines. Lyon, France:International Agency for Research on Cancer (2007). Available: http://tinyurl.com/4ooen43 [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - NTP. Report on Carcinogens, 11th Edition. Research Triangle Park, NC:U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, National Toxicology Program (2009). Available: http://tinyurl.com/c7e3k [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Sleiman M, et al. Secondary organic aerosol formation from ozone-initiated reactions with nicotine and secondhand tobacco smoke. Atmos Environ 44(34):4191–4198. 2010. doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2010.07.023 - Oberdörster G, et al. Nanotoxicology: an emerging discipline evolving from studies of ultrafine particles. Environ Health Perspect 113(7):823–839. 2005. doi:10.1289/ehp.7339 - Becquemin MH, et al. Third-hand smoking: indoor measurements of concentration and sizes of cigarette smoke particles after resuspension. Tob Control 19(4):347–348. 2010. doi:10.1136/tc.2009.034694 - CalEPA. Expedited Cancer Potency Values and No Significant Risk Levels (NSRLS) for Six Proposition 65 Carcinogens: Carbazole, Meiq, Meiqx, Methyl Carbamate, 4-N-Nitrosomethylamino)-1-(3-Pyridyl)-1-Butanone,Trimethyl Phosphate (2001). Sacramento:Reproductive and Cancer Hazard Assessment Section, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California Environmental Protection Agency. Available: http://tinyurl.com/4fy4jmv [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Cieslak M, Schmidt H. Contamination of wool fibre exposed to environmental tobacco smoke. Fibres & Textiles in Eastern Europe 12, No.1(45):81–83 (2004). Available: http://tinyurl.com/4pcng5b [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Ueta I, et al. Determination of volatile organic compounds for a systematic evaluation of third-hand smoking. Anal Sci 26(5):569–574. 2010. doi:10.2116/analsci.26.569 - Van Loy MD, et al. Dynamic behavior of semivolatile organic compounds in indoor air. 2. Nicotine and phenanthrene with carpet and wallboard. Environ Sci Technol 35(3):560–567. 2001. doi10.1021/es001372a - Beckett WS, et al. Effect of nitrous acid on lung function in asthmatics: a chamber study. Environ Health Perspect 103(4):372–375. 1995. - Knafla A, et al. Development and application of a skin cancer slope factor for exposures to benzo[a]pyrene in soil. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol. ; doi: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2010.09.011 - Kaufmann RB, et al. Vital signs: nonsmokers’ exposure to secondhand smoke—United States, 1999–2008. MMWR 59(35):1141–1146. 2010. Available: http://tinyurl.com/6hghnhw [accessed 12 Jan 2011] - Öberg M, et al. Worldwide burden of disease from exposure to second-hand smoke: a retrospective analysis of data from 192 countries. Lancet 377(9760):139–146 (2011); doi:10.1016/ S0140-6736(10)61388-8 - TRDRP. Call for Applications [webpage]. Oakland, CA:Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, University of California [updated 22 Jun 2010]. Available: http://tinyurl.com/4apdho3 [accessed 12 Jan 2011] 2015 Impact Factor EHP is pleased to announce its new impact factor of 8.44, up from 7.98 last year. We thank our authors, associate editors, reviewers, and readers for their contributions and support. CEHN July 2016 Article of the Month “Childhood Blood Lead Levels and Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): A Cross-Sectional Study of Mexican Children” (doi:10.1289/ehp.1510067) has been selected by the Children’s Environmental Health Network (CEHN) as its July 2016 Article of the Month. These CEHN summaries discuss the potential policy implications of current children’s environmental health research. Sign Up to Receive E-mail Alerts Recent Advance Publications Mortality due to Vegetation-Fire Originated PM2.5 Exposure in Europe – Assessment for the Years 2005 and 2008 Long-Term Exposure to Traffic-Related Air Pollution and Risk of Incident Atrial Fibrillation: A Cohort Study IL-33 Drives Augmented Responses to Ozone in Obese Mice Ambient Air Pollutant Exposures and Hospitalization for Kawasaki Disease in Taiwan: A Case-Crossover Study (2000-2010) Relative Contributions of Agricultural Drift, Para-Occupational, and Residential Use Exposure Pathways to House Dust Pesticide Concentrations: Meta-Regression of Published Data
Renewable Energy News -- ScienceDaily Renewable Energy Sources. Read the latest research on renewable sources of energy such as solar energy, wind power, nuclear energy, hydrogen fuel, ethanol, methane and other alternative energy sources. Supersized wind turbines generate clean energy--and surprising physics 23 Nov 2020 at 2:34pm As wind energy scales up, researchers study the fluid dynamics challenges. Researchers overcome barriers for bio-inspired solar energy harvesting materials 23 Nov 2020 at 8:24am Inspired by nature, researchers can demonstrate a synthetic strategy to stabilize bio-inspired solar energy harvesting materials. Their findings could be a significant breakthrough in functionalizing molecular assemblies for future solar energy conversion technologies. New semiconductor coating may pave way for future green fuels 18 Nov 2020 at 11:17am Hydrogen gas and methanol for fuel cells or as raw materials for the chemicals industry, for example, could be produced more sustainably using sunlight, a new study shows. In this study, researchers have developed a new coating material for semiconductors that may create new opportunities to produce fuels in processes that combine direct sunlight with electricity. New technique seamlessly converts ammonia to green hydrogen 18 Nov 2020 at 11:17am Researchers have developed a highly effective, environmentally friendly method for converting ammonia into hydrogen. The new technique is a major step forward for enabling a zero-pollution, hydrogen-fueled economy. The idea of using ammonia as a carrier for hydrogen delivery has gained traction in recent years because ammonia is much easier to liquify than hydrogen and is therefore much easier to store and transport. This technological breakthrough overcomes several existing barriers to the production of clean hydrogen from ammonia. Moving wind turbine blades toward recyclability 17 Nov 2020 at 4:26pm A new material for wind blades that can be recycled could transform the wind industry, rendering renewable energy more sustainable than ever before while lowering costs in the process. Researchers demonstrated the feasibility of thermoplastic resin by manufacturing a 9-meter-long wind turbine blade using this novel resin. Making a case for organic Rankine cycles in waste heat recovery 11 Nov 2020 at 11:43am Researchers say that cascaded organic Rankine cycle systems could improve the way in which environmentally-friendly power is generated from waste heat. Policy, not tech, spurred Danish dominance in wind energy 6 Nov 2020 at 10:43am In a new study focused on Denmark, a global leader in wind energy - a relatively mature and low-cost renewable technology - researchers found that government policies have been the primary driver of that industry's growth and development. Scientists generate realistic storm turbulence in the lab 4 Nov 2020 at 7:22am Turbulence is an omnipresent phenomenon - and one of the great mysteries of physics. A research team has now succeeded in generating realistic storm turbulence in the wind tunnel of the Center for Wind Energy Research (ForWind). Increasing the efficiency of organic solar cells 3 Nov 2020 at 4:55am Organic solar cells are cheaper to produce and more flexible than their counterparts made of crystalline silicon, but do not offer the same level of efficiency or stability. Researchers demonstrated that increases in efficiency can be achieved using luminescent acceptor molecules. 'Transparent solar cells' can take us towards a new era of personalized energy 2 Nov 2020 at 2:32pm Solar power has shown immense potential as a futuristic, 'clean' source of energy. No wonder environmentalists worldwide have been looking for ways to advance the current solar cell technology. Now, scientists have put forth an innovative design for the development of a high-power transparent solar cell. This innovation brings us closer to realizing our goal of a sustainable green future with off-the-grid living. New sulfur dioxide conversion method may transform current industrial techniques 28 Oct 2020 at 2:14pm A single-step, plasma-enhanced catalytic process to convert sulfur dioxide to pure sulfur from tail gas streams may provide a promising, more environmentally-friendly alternative to current multistage thermal, catalytic and absorptive processes, according to scientists. Renewable energy targets can undermine sustainable intentions 28 Oct 2020 at 7:18am Renewable energy targets (RETs) may be too blunt a tool for ensuring a sustainable future, according to new research. How to design organic solar cell materials 27 Oct 2020 at 10:37am Scientists have recently scrutinized organic solar cells and derived design rules for light-absorbing dyes that can help to make these cells more efficient, while tailoring the absorption spectrum of the cells to the needs of the chosen application. Photovoltaics industry can help meet Paris agreement targets 27 Oct 2020 at 8:12am To meet the Paris Agreement's goal of preventing Earth's average temperature from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial level, one of the best options for the energy economy will involve a shift to 100% renewable energy using solar energy and other clean energy sources. Researchers describe a model developed to predict what is necessary for the solar industry to meet Paris Agreement targets. Material properties for longer-lasting, more efficient solar cells 26 Oct 2020 at 1:44pm Researchers are helping to understand the fundamental processes in a material known as perovskites, work that could lead to more efficient solar cells that also do a better job of resisting degradation.
The main goal of our research is to understand the origin of biodiversity. Specifically, we would like to know: (1) how individual mutations alter gene function to change the physical appearance, behavior, or physiology (i.e., the phenotype) of an organism, (2) how these changes impact the ability of organisms to survive and reproduce in nature, (3) how, over time, natural selection and demographic processes (e.g., changes in population size, movement of individuals) shape variation in natural populations, and (4) the circumstances under which these processes lead to the formation of new species. Importantly, we would like to know whether the answers to these questions are predictable/repeatable when examined across different organisms and traits. Approach and Study Organisms: To address these questions, we integrate fieldwork, morphological measurements, behavioral observations, molecular work, genetic mapping, population genomics, phylogenomics, and comparative genomics. Our primary study organisms are pine sawflies in the genus Neodiprion (Order: Hymenoptera; Family: Diprionidae). We have chosen these insects for two main reasons. First, they are experimentally tractable: we can find them in nature, rear them in the lab, and make crosses between different species. Second, they harbor tremendous phenotypic variation within and between species and at all stages of their life cycle. Because many species in the genus are economically important pests, this variation is remarkably well described. Some variable traits we are interested in include: host use, overwintering mode, larval color, and larval gregariousness (see specific project descriptions). Comparative analysis of host-shift speciation Like many plant-feeding insects, Neodiprion sawflies are intimately associated with their host plant throughout their life cycle (left). It has long been hypothesized that changes in host use drive species formation in plant-feeding insects. To test this hypothesis, we are utilizing the redheaded pine sawfly, a widespread pest of multiple pine species throughout the eastern US. If host shifts predictably initiate speciation, we expect to find increased genetic, ecological, and reproductive divergence between populations collected on different hosts. This project is funded by the NSF and led by Robin Bagley (who is supported by a USDA predoctoral fellowship), with assistance from Carrie Anderson. Genetic basis of host-use traits and speciation Whereas Neodiprion pinetum females lay 2-3 eggs per needle and strongly prefer white pine over other hosts, N. lecontei females lay many eggs per needle (left) and generally avoid this thin-needled host. Hybrids tend to prefer white pine, but have a lecontei-like oviposition pattern that causes the needles to dry out and the eggs to die. These two species are interfertile in the lab, and we are taking a QTL-mapping approach to uncover the genes involved in host preference, ovipositor morphology, and oviposition pattern in adult females, a combination of traits that produces a strong postzygotic barrier to reproduction. This project is led by Emily Bendall, with assistance from Brianna Washington and Anna Sosso. Comparative genomics of host specialization Comparative genomic studies in fruit flies (Drosophila) suggest that ecological specialization is often accompanied by an accumulation of loss-of-function mutations in chemosensory genes; however, the generality of this model remains unclear. Also, an increasing number of studies suggest that particular genes are repeatedly involved in adaptive evolution. To test the extent to which changes in host use are "predictable," we are characterizing chemosensory genes in multiple generalist/specialist Neodiprion species pairs that also exhibit convergent gains and losses of the same pine hosts. This project is funded by the USDA and led by Kim Vertacnik, in collaboration with Dr. Scott Geib, USDA-ARS in Hilo, HI and Dr. Hugh Robertson at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. Maya Gershtenson is also participating on this project. Genetics and evolution of larval gregariousness Feeding aggregations are one of the most common and taxonomically widespread social behaviors in nature. In Neodiprion, larval behavior varies from solitary to highly gregarious. We are using a comparative approach to uncover the ecological function and genetic mechanisms that generate and maintain this variation. This project is led by John Terbot, with assistance from Layne Gaynor and Adam Douglas. Genetic basis of larval color There is substantial variation within and between Neodiprion species in larval body color, head color, and patterning. A major goal of the lab is to find the genes, mutations, and molecular mechanisms underlying this variation. To these ends, we are currently mapping multiple color traits using a cross between two Neodiprion lecontei populations with distinctly different larval color morphs: a white, dark-spotted morph (top) and a yellow light-spotted morph (bottom). This project is led by postdoc Claire O'Quin. Evolution of larval defense strategies Neodiprion larvae suffer heavy mortality from avian and insect predators, egg and cocoon parasitoids, viruses, and fungi. Although larvae of most species are chemically defended, larval color ranges from cryptic to aposematic. To explain this variation, we are combining a comparative approach (in which we investigate correlations between defense traits and the environment within and between species) with field experiments (in which we seek to uncover causal relationships between correlated variables). This project is in collaboration with Dr. Carita Lindstedt (University of Jyväskylä), with assistance from John Terbot, Layne Gaynor, and Adam Douglas. To test hypotheses and accurately describe convergent evolution, we require a clear understanding of historical relationships among Neodiprion species. However, estimating a phylogeny for this group has proved challenging due to their recent and rapid divergence and frequent hybridization. We are tackling these issues with full genome sequences for 20 species and multiple "species tree" methods. This project is led by John Terbot, with assistance from Kim Vertacnik and Emily Bendall, and in collaboration with Dr. Susanne Pfeifer (Arizona State University). Additional projects and collaborations: In addition to the projects described above, we are investigating: Methylation patterns across the Neodiprion genome (in collaboration with Brendan Hunt, University of Georgia). Neodiprion microbial symbionts (in collaboration with Jen White, UK Dept. of Entomology). Divergence-with-gene-flow at multiple geographical and temporal scales (in collaboration with Vitor Sousa, University of Bern). Genetic basis of Neodiprion sex determination (in collaboration with Scott Roy, SFSU).
Every device that connects to the Internet has its own Internet Protocol (IP) address. IP addresses make it possible, among other things, for computers from different networks to find each other. IP addresses are vital for all Internet-based activities, and yet it's not uncommon that a user doesn't know his computer's IP address or what it's good for. Public vs. Private IP Addresses There are two types of IP addresses: private and public. Private IP addresses are part of a reusable pool set aside by the Internet Engineering Task Force for individual networks. These include, particularly, addresses beginning with “10.”, “172.16.”, and “192.168.” These IP address are only relevant to your corporate or local area network. To communicate across the Internet, computers need a public IP address. This address is globally unique, so it cannot be the same as any other in the world. Looking up your IP configuration information in Window settings will often return your private address, which cannot be reached through the Internet. You’ll need to use a service to determine your public IP address as assigned by your Internet service provider (ISP). IP Addresses and DNS Most IP addresses are hidden by a service called Domain Name Service, or DNS. DNS translates an easy-to-remember URL, such as www.MyAddress.com, into an IP address. This service requires massive DNS servers, which stores a table of which names go to which IP address. Making a request to Myaddress.com first requires a DNS resolution request be made to a DNS server, which then returns the IP address your computer ultimately uses to communicate with the MyAddress.com Web server. File sharing between Windows PC relies on a technology called NetBIOS. This system is similar to DNS, and uses a computer's "name" and a series of discovery packets to create a connection. By typing "\\[computer name]" (without quotes) into an Internet Explorer Window, you begin this NetBIOS discovery process. But this process can be slow and, under certain configurations, not work properly. Knowing the direct IP address, and typing it as "\\[IP Address]" completes the process faster by circumventing the NetBIOS or DNS lookup process. This trick applies to any settings, such as e-mail server configuration, which uses a host name. Enable Remote Administration and Control The Internet enables great remote services; your home desktop computer, for example, can be controlled remotely using software such as Windows Remote Desktop or DameWare Remote Control. IP-based security cameras, likewise, often have the option to be viewed using any Internet connection. Even if you use a host name service, such as DynDNS, setting up and using these devices over the Internet requires that you know their public and private IP addresses. Facilitate Network Troubleshooting When troubleshooting a failing network connection, you typically use Ping and Traceroute commands. The typical format for these commands is "ping [detination IP]" or "tracert [destination IP]" (without quotes). Ping sends a single packet looking for a response, and records whether that response was received. Traceroute sends a packet to a destination and asks all routers on the path to return some basic information. For example, if you ping www.yahoo.com and www.google.com, receive no response, then the problem could be with your Internet connection or the DNS server. If you ping 220.127.116.11 and 18.104.22.168, then you eliminate the possibility of a DNS failure. If you suspect a problem with you DNS server, then sending a ping request to that server’s IP will help you to confirm. - Microsoft Technet: Public and Private IP Addresses - Microsoft: Allow Remote Desktop Connections from Outside Your Home Network - Microsoft Technet: How DNS Works - IETF: Address Allocation for Private Internets - Microsoft Technet: Command-line Utilities – Test Connections Using Ping - Microsoft: NetBIOS over TCP/IP Name Resolution and WINS - Ryan McVay/Photodisc/Getty Images
With the Quest Learning Online math program, your child will achieve mastery of essential math calculation skills. Mastery of these skills also helps your child develop confidence, minimize stress, and establish a stronger math foundation. The program's learning tools consist of weekly digital booklets arranged sequentially for each mastery level, from beginning number sequencing through high school geometry. Calculations skills are presented in a step-by-step manner. Each concept is practiced until real mastery is achieved. The student is required to not merely understand how to perform an operation, but rather must internally "own" the knowledge of each new concept before advancement. Testing and review confirm the student's mastery at each level. MATH TOPICS COVERED WITH QUEST LEARNING ONLINE Addition and Subtraction Multiplication and Division Order of Operations Probability and Statistics Our individualized pacing benefits children at all ability levels and ages. Through daily practice and mastery of materials, students advance in small, manageable increments while improving their concentration, developing better study skills, and increasing confidence. Recommended oral drills complement the daily, digitally written work to facilitate memorization of the basic math facts. Finger counting, reliance on calculators, and other crutches make success in high school and college math very difficult. Quest Learning Online also addresses grade level word problems and standardized testing preparation with each child. We want our students to be ready and confident. Our goal at Quest Learning Online is to help your child build solid learning skills, disciplined study habits, and the confidence to succeed in school….and beyond. Quest digital math program is designed to help students achieve mastery of calculation skills. We know that mastery equals confidence and accuracy. Before students can add and subtract though, they must be able to recognize and write their numbers. Our young learner’s weekly digital math booklets focus on number recognition for numbers 1-500. The exercises include counting, number tracing, sequencing, next-number and number-before, and place value concepts. Our fine motor skills activities guide the young learner in proper number formation. Early concentration on these skills prepares children for the next step in the program.
A History of the County of Worcester: Volume 3. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1913. This free content was digitised by double rekeying. All rights reserved. Oddingley is pleasantly situated about 3½ miles to the south-east of Droitwich on the slopes of a valley through which run the Worcester and Birmingham Canal and the Bristol and Birmingham branch of the Midland railway, which has a goods station at Dunhampstead, but no passenger station at Oddingley. A road from Droitwich to Huddington passes through the north of the parish, and another road connects the village of Oddingley with Droitwich. The village is in the centre of the parish, and besides the church of St. James and Church Farm contains brick and tile works on the canal. The old rectory is about half a mile from the church to the north-west. The present rectory and the school are at some distance from the village to the north on the Droitwich road. The church lies a little to the south of the by-road along which the main part of the village is built, and is surrounded by a small churchyard. Immediately to the south-east of the church is a farm-house of brick and half-timber, which appears to date from about 1600. It is of two stories with attics, and latterly has been divided up into three cottages. In the meadow adjoining is a fine dovecote of half-timber work, rectangular in plan, with a pyramidal tiled roof, surmounted by a flèche affording entrance to the birds. The timbering is of simple uprights and cross-beams, with occasional straight struts, and the filling appears to have been originally wattle and daub, though this has been replaced in many places by brick. The structure is probably contemporary with the adjacent farm-house. The few cottages which make up the main portion of the village are situated a little to the north of the church. Here are some good examples of half-timber work. A small cottage standing a little way back on the west side of the road has two remarkably fine late 15th-century moulded brick chimney stacks with circular shafts, spirally fluted, and octagonal cappings with concave sides. The plan is a simple oblong containing two rooms on the ground floor with fireplaces at either end of the building, a central staircase, and a small out-house on the north. There is an attic story in the roof. The ceilings are open-joisted. About three-quarters of a mile south-east of the church, on the opposite side of the railway and canal, is Netherwood Farm, a modernized 17th-century building of red brick; in an adjoining barn was committed a murder consequent on the 'Oddingley murder' in 1806. A man was tried for this in 1830 at the Worcester assizes, but was acquitted. This barn has been since demolished and a new one erected on its foundations. The vill of Oddingley is said to have been thrown into the forest of Feckenham by Henry II, (fn. 1) but was disafforested at the beginning of the reign of Henry III. (fn. 2) A part of Trench Wood, which lies chiefly in Huddington, is in Oddingley. Oddingley Heath was inclosed before 1817, and until its inclosure the inhabitants of Oddingley, Tibberton, Hindlip, Hadzor and Salwarpe enjoyed rights of common there. (fn. 3) The parish contains 894 acres, of which 357 are arable land, 423 permanent grass and 75 woodland. (fn. 4) The soil is loamy and the subsoil Keuper Marl, producing crops of cereals and roots. The manor of ODDINGLEY was apparently given to the see of Worcester before 816, for at that date Coenwulf, King of Mercia, granted to Bishop Deneberht and the church of Worcester that Oddingley should be free of all secular services except building of strongholds and bridges and military service. (fn. 8) Cynewold, the fifteenth Bishop of Worcester (929–57), is said to have given this manor about 940 to the monks of Worcester, (fn. 9) and in 963 Bishop Oswald, with the permission of the convent, of Edgar, King of England, and of Alfhere, ealdorman of Mercia, gave this estate for three lives to Cynethegn with reversion to the church of Worcester. (fn. 10) A more detailed account of this alienation is given in the registers of the monastery. A certain clerk of noble birth called Cynethegn came to Godwin, the venerable dean of the monastery, and asked for a cassata of land called Oddingley. Godwin being unwilling to deny him, as he knew him for a powerful man of great prudence, granted it to him without delay, on condition that he should pay 5s. a year for the land. This agreement Cynethegn kept as long as he lived, but on his death his heirs usurped the land and would not do any service for it. In this way the monks lost the land and the service due for it. (fn. 11) The manor was, however, included in the land of the church of Worcester at the time of the Domesday Survey. It was held by Ordric, and his predecessor Turchil had done service for it to the bishop. (fn. 12) The tenure by which this manor was held seems to have been doubtful. Towards the end of the 12th century it was returned as belonging to the Bishop of Worcester's great manor of Northwick in Claines, but the tenant did no service for it. (fn. 13) In 1330–1 it was said to be held of the Abbot of Wigmore, (fn. 14) but in 1346 it was granted to John de Beauchamp for the service of serving the king with his cup whenever he should come to the manor. (fn. 15) In 1360 and 1424–5 it was not known of whom the manor was held, (fn. 16) while in 1398–9 it was said to be held of the king in chief by knight service. (fn. 17) In 1432–3 it was held of Richard Earl of Warwick and others, as of their manor of Bromsgrove, for a service unknown. (fn. 18) Adam de Croome is the first under-tenant of the manor whose name is known. He claimed a hide at Oddingley of the bishop's fee as the land of his cousin. This apparently happened in the time of Bishop Samson (1096–1112), (fn. 19) and Adam later gave the estate to William Hacket, who was in possession towards the end of the 12th century. (fn. 20) In 1226–7 Alda widow of Thomas Hacket claimed a third of a hide of land at Oddingley as dower from Ralph Hacket. It was agreed between them that Alda should have half a knight's fee in Coston and a rent of 1 mark yearly in Eckington in satisfaction of her dower. (fn. 21) In 1254–5 William Cassy sued Philip Hacket for land in Oddingley, (fn. 22) and in 1274–5 Philip Hacket brought a writ of novel disseisin against Roger Mortimer for land in Oddingley. (fn. 23) The manor of Oddingley had, however, been sold before this time, probably in the reign of Henry III, (fn. 24) by Robert Hacket to Roger Mortimer, but the charter recording this grant is undated. (fn. 25) This Roger Mortimer was evidently Roger Mortimer of Wigmore, and he gave the manor to his younger son Roger Mortimer of Chirk, who in 1284 applied to his brother Edmund for a confirmation of their father's grant. (fn. 26) Margery widow of Gregory de Caldwell sued Roger son of Roger Mortimer in 1274–5 for a third of the manor of Oddingley which she claimed as dower. Roger said that she had no right to this dower, as Gregory had been outlawed, but Margery said that the manor had been taken away from Gregory before his outlawry by Roger de Mortimer, sen. (fn. 27) Gregory possibly held a lease of the manor under the Hackets. His son Edmund claimed two-thirds of the manor in 1279, stating, as his mother had done, that Gregory had been unjustly disseised of the manor by Roger Mortimer the elder. (fn. 28) It would seem that Margery Caldwell secured a third of the manor, for in 1284 she was sued for this third by John Costentyn and Margery his wife, as Margery's right, and Margery Caldwell called Roger Mortimer to uphold her right. (fn. 29) Roger Mortimer had probably recovered possession of the manor in 1300, for he presented to the church in that year, (fn. 30) and granted the manor for life to Adam de Harvington in 1304–5. (fn. 31) Roger Mortimer of Chirk forfeited all his possessions in 1322 for taking up arms against the Despensers. (fn. 32) He died in prison in August 1326, (fn. 33) and, though he left a son Roger, his nephew Roger Mortimer of Wigmore was declared his heir, and presented to the church of Oddingley in December 1326, (fn. 34) the king having presented in October of that year by reason of the lands of Roger Mortimer of Wigmore (fn. 35) being in his hands. (fn. 36) Roger Mortimer of Wigmore was restored on the accession of Edward III and was created Earl of March in 1328, (fn. 37) but he was convicted of treason and hanged in 1330. (fn. 38) The manor of Oddingley was enumerated among his possessions at that time, (fn. 39) but was probably still held by Adam de Harvington. On the death of Adam the manor reverted to the Crown on account of Roger's forfeiture, and was granted for life by Edward III in 1344–5 to Thomas de Hawkeston for his good services, at a rent of £6 6s. (fn. 40) This rent was remitted in 1345. (fn. 41) In 1346 the reversion after the death of Thomas was granted to John de Beauchamp. (fn. 42) John died in December 1360, (fn. 43) and the reversion of the manor had evidently been granted to Roger Mortimer, grandson of Roger the first Earl of March, when he was created Earl of March, and his grandfather's attainder reversed in 1354, (fn. 44) for he had confirmed the king's grant to John de Beauchamp, and died seised of the manor in February 1360. (fn. 45) His son and successor Edmund died in 1381, leaving a son Roger, aged seven, (fn. 46) and the manor passed into the king's custody. (fn. 47) Roger, then Earl of March, died seised of the manor in 1398, (fn. 48) and it was assigned as dower to his widow Eleanor, who married as her second husband Edward Charleton Lord Powys. (fn. 49) Edward and Eleanor granted an annuity of 100s. from the manor to Alice Bremle for her good service to Eleanor, and this grant was confirmed to her by the king in 1405, (fn. 50) probably on account of the manor coming into his hands by the death of Eleanor Lady Powys in that year, her son Edmond being still a minor. (fn. 51) Edmond died without issue in 1425, his heirs being his sisters Joan wife of Sir John Grey and Joyce wife of Sir John Tiptoft and his nephew Richard Duke of York. (fn. 52) This manor was assigned to Richard Duke of York, but Anne widow of Edmond Earl of March held a third of it as dower until her death in 1432–3. (fn. 53) Richard Duke of York died in 1460, (fn. 54) and his son Edward was proclaimed King of England in March 1460–1. In June 1461 he, as Edward IV, granted the manor of Oddingley to his mother Cicely Duchess of York, (fn. 55) and this grant was confirmed by Richard III in 1484. (fn. 56) The manor was probably held by Elizabeth, queen consort of Henry VII, as she presented to the church in 1499. (fn. 57) Henry VIII granted the manor in 1509 to Katherine of Aragon, (fn. 58) and it evidently also formed part of the jointure of Jane Seymour. (fn. 59) In January 1540 it was granted for life to Anne of Cleves on her marriage with the king, (fn. 60) and in 1541 to Katherine Howard. (fn. 61) In 1544 it was granted to Katherine Parr. (fn. 62) Edward VI granted the manor in 1549 to John Earl of Warwick, (fn. 63) and confirmed it to him in 1552 and 1553, (fn. 64) having created him Duke of North-umberland in 1551. He was attainted and beheaded in 1553 for taking the part of Lady Jane Grey, (fn. 65) but this manor seems to have remained in the possession of his widow Joan, for in 1553–4 Queen Mary granted to her other manors in exchange for the manors of Yardley and Oddingley, (fn. 66) the latter of which the queen granted in 1554 to her secretary Sir John Bourne. (fn. 67) He died in 1575, (fn. 68) and his widow Dorothy and her son Anthony sold the manor in 1575–6 to George Winter. (fn. 69) It then followed the same descent as the manor of Huddington (fn. 70) until the death of Sir George Winter in 1658. By his will dated 1657 Sir George had charged the manor of Oddingley with his debts and legacies, (fn. 71) and it evidently passed with Huddington to his aunt Helen Winter, for it was sold by her to Thomas Foley, (fn. 72) who was in possession in 1661. (fn. 73) The manor followed the same descent as that of Great Witley (q.v.) from this time until 1806 or later. (fn. 74) It was purchased about 1837 by John Howard Galton of Hadzor. (fn. 75) He died in 1867, and the manor was held until her death in 1877 by his widow. (fn. 76) It then passed to her son Theodore Howard, who was succeeded in 1881 by his son Major Hubert George Howard Galton, R.A., of Hadzor House, the present owner of the manor. (fn. 77) Some 16th-century Court Rolls of the manor are preserved at the Public Record Office. (fn. 78) The church of ST. JAMES consists of a chancel 17½ ft. by 12½ ft., nave 37¼ ft by 14½ ft., north transept 9½ ft. deep by 11½ ft. wide, south transept 11 ft. wide by 12 ft. deep, and a western tower 8½ ft. by 9 ft. These measurements are all internal. No part of the fabric is earlier than the 15th century, when the existing building, with the exception of the tower, was erected. The nave, judging from the position of the doorways, was originally longer, and was shortened when the tower was added, probably in the 17th century. Although the church retains its original windows, they have been much restored and their stones recut, doubtless when the chancel was rebuilt in 1861. The east window of the chancel is wholly modern and is of three lights under a four-centred traceried head. The two 15th-century windows in the south wall have been reset; each is of two lights under a square head. Between them is a reset 15th-century doorway with a four-centred arch. The window in the north wall is similar to the south-west window opposite. There is no chancel arch, but the wall returns on both sides to the walls of the wider nave. The north transept is entered by a plastered archway and has an east window of two lights similar to those of the chancel and apparently old. The north window is of three lights with cusped cross-tracery and a two-centred arch; much of its stonework appears to be original. The west window is probably a later insertion, and is of two lights with unpierced spandrels. Across the opening to the south transept is a 15th-century moulded timber archway or screen, the western post being placed against the west jamb of the opening, while the eastern stands free and gives access to the pulpit. This arrangement appears to be original, the narrow opening being evidently left for the passage of a rood-loft stair. The east and west windows of the south transept, both original, are of two lights and resemble those in the chancel. The south window has three lights with pierced spandrels within a two-centred head. The lower part of the lights is filled in with modern stonework. The two-light north window of the nave, which is apparently old, conforms to the general type. The south window is square-headed with three lights. The north and south doorways (of which the former is filled in) have each a single chamfered order and a four-centred arch and appear to be original. The timber porch to the south doorway is modern. To the east of the doorway is a round-headed niche partly repaired, but the stoup which occupied it is now gone. To the west of these doorways are low buttresses flush with and not bonded to the nave walls. The tower, of rough rubble without quoins, is three stages high with square string-courses to mark the divisions. The plastered archway towards the nave has a pointed head and the partly restored west window is of three lights with tracery above. It was probably the original west window of the nave removed and reset when the tower was added. The second stage is lighted by plain rectangular lights to the north and south and the bell-chamber or third stage by a pair of round-headed windows in each wall. The roof is of pyramidal form, tiled, and with plain eaves. The rest of the church is rubble faced with quoins. The chancel walling is all modern, and the upper part of the transept has also been rebuilt. The gabled roofs are plastered internally with ornamental trusses at intervals. The font is octagonal and is apparently original work recut. The moulded lower edge to the bowl is carved with roses and fetterlocks alternately. Some of the oak seats are made up with 17th-century re-used woodwork. There are two old plain chests in the church made from solid tree trunks, and in the nave is a wrought-iron hour-glass stand. The other furniture is modern. In the east window of the chancel are some fragments of 15th-century glass, including complete figures of St. Martin and St. Catherine. Above the latter in the north light is a shield of the king's arms impaling Nevill, and below are the half-length figures of a man and wife praying and the inscription 'Orate pro animabus Johannis Yarnold et Johanne uxoris eius'; below these again is another figure in a blue habit and scapular kneeling before a prayer desk. Below St. Martin in the middle light is part of the figure of an archbishop. In the south light is the fragmentary figure of a female saint holding a cross staff over her with the arms of Mortimer. Below are inscribed the words 'Dñs Joh[ann]es Haryes' and under this are the kneeling figures of a man and his wife without inscription. Below these is a priest in sub-deacon's vestments. Among the other fragments are a small head of Christ with the crown of thorns and part of an inscription referring to a rector. In the north window of the chancel is an Assumption of our Lady, with a Majesty to the east. There are also bits of old glass in the spandrels of all the chancel window heads. There are three bells: the treble is inscribed 'Prayse and glory be to God for ever I.P. 1661,' and on the waist is the mark of the founder, John Martin of Worcester. On the second bell is a cross with the letters H K, a lion passant, G O, H O, and another lion passant. The tenor is dated 1713 and was cast by Richard Saunders of Bromsgrove. The plate (fn. 79) includes a plain cup of peculiar pattern, gilt inside, with the hall mark of 1802; also a salver paten standing on three feet with an embossed ring 6 in. in diameter, inscribed on the reverse 'Hadzor 1816,' and having the hall mark of 1754. There is in addition a curious pewter flagon with a pearshaped body, made of two pieces joined together, also a pewter plate. The registers (fn. 80) before 1812 are as follows: (i) all entries 1661 to 1745; (ii) baptisms 1745 to 1812, burials 1748 to 1812, marriages 1748 to 1754; (iii) marriages 1756 to 1812. The descent of the advowson of the church of Oddingley is substantially the same as that of the manor. (fn. 81) It was apparently excepted from the grants of the manor to Adam de Harvington, Thomas de Hawkeston and John de Beauchamp. Elizabeth consort of Henry VII presented to the church in 1499 (fn. 82) and Queen Katherine in 1523, (fn. 83) but it was not included in the grants of the manor to the other consorts of Henry VIII. The advowson of the church was granted with the manor to Sir John Bourne in 1554 (fn. 84) and has since descended with the manor. The living is a rectory, united in 1864 to Hadzor. (fn. 85) In 1631 Henry Button, as stated on the church table, by his will gave 2s. 6d. per annum out of certain land in the parish for the poor on Good Friday for ever, to be distributed by the churchwardens and overseers. The same table also stated that Margaret Parker in 1657, by her will, gave to the poor 10s. per annum issuing out of land known as Aves Hills, to be distributed to the poor on Christmas Day and Whit Sunday. Upon non-payment thereof a power of distress was given to the churchwardens and overseers. It is understood that the annuity is paid by the proprietor of the farm charged.
IUCN announces a new App for detecting marine invasive species in Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas. Did you know that invasive species are one of the greatest threats to the biodiversity of both Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and the Mediterranean Sea? There is a need to detected these species in time, to control them and to reduce their impact. You can help by reporting your sightings by using a new Smartphone’s application developed by IUCN. Your information will be will be given directly to the manager body of the closest MPA. A new app for identifying potentially invasive species The IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation invites amateur or professional divers, marine technicians, MPA managers, fishermen or scientists to download and use a new app for identifying potentially invasive species in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Mediterranean Sea. This new application can be downloaded on smartphones. An online platform supports the app, by providing an identification guide of the most important invasive species found in the Mediterranean Sea. Once you identify a potentially invasive species you can report via the app. All reported data will be verified before display on an online map, which is accessible through an online platform. Mediterranean Sea – hotspot of marine bioinvasion Especially, the Mediterranean Sea is being considered as one of the main hotspots of marine bioinvasions and it shows increasing rates of introductions. Once an invasive species has been introduced and has establish viable populations it can expand into previously uncolonized areas in the Mediterranean Sea. These species are capable of damaging the environment, the economy, or human health. In the the Mediterranean, very well know examples for damaging the environment, the economy, or human health are species such as the highly invasive algae Caulerpa racemosa or Caulerpa taxifolia, or the poisonous fishes such as the Lagocephalus sceleratus. This new IUCN app enables collecting information into one database. All data will be online accessible for all those interested in receiving information on invasive species. More importantly, it will support conservation efforts through recording the presence of potentially invasive species and help MPAs managers to control the spread of invasive species in the Mediterranean Sea. Interested to support scientists in MPA manager in detecting marine invasive species ? Are you an amateur or professional divers, marine technicians, MPA managers, fishermen or scientists? Than you should download the new app! The Smartphone’s application is free and available in English, French and Spanish. You can download it here.
The breast cancer causing genes BARD1 and RAD51D are protein in nature. These genes inherit pathogenic variants leading to higher risks of breast cancer in women, finds a research conducted at Mayo Clinic. "The BARD1 and RAD51D genes, have been included in clinical testing panels to determine breast cancer risk," says Fergus Couch, Ph.D., a geneticist at Mayo Clinic and lead author of the study which was presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium ‘Not all, but certain pathogenic variant genes like BARD1 and RAD51D are responsible for increasing the risk of breast cancer in women.’ "However, the genes were identified as 'breast cancer' genes through very small studies, so there has never been strong evidence indicating that they are important in driving breast cancer risk." Dr. Couch and his colleagues studied data from 65,000 women with breast cancer to obtain risk estimates associated with 21 cancer predisposition genes from testing panels. They found that pathogenic variants in certain genes, such as BARD1 and RAD51D, caused moderately increased risks of breast cancer. These researchers also confirmed the involvement of the ATM, CHEK2 and PALB2 genes in breast cancer. They also found that the RAD50 and MRE11A genes did not increase risks of breast cancer. "Our findings are important, because genes that do not increase risk of breast cancer can now be ignored and potentially removed from clinical testing panels," said Dr. Couch. Dr. Couch also said, "I am hopeful this work will lead to much better interpretation of results from clinical, hereditary [and] genetic testing."
The Role of Research in Improving Adolescent Literacy Research-based techniques have benefits for teaching and students. Academic Language and English Language Learners Mastering academic language can make the difference between successes and failures in school. Getting Real in New Orleans CCCC Convention, April 2–5, 2008 English Language Learners: An NCTE Policy Research Brief There is no one profile for an ELL student, nor is one single response adequate to meet the educational goals and needs of English language learners. ELL students are a diverse group that offers challenges and opportunities to U.S. education and to English language arts teachers in particular. This NCTE Policy Research Brief addresses some common myths and provides research-based recommendations for effective ELL instruction. Charles Simic: The Love of Poetry The U.S. Poet Laureate is “perhaps our most disquieting muse.” Candidates are announced for Spring elections. The 2007 Presidential Address Where Ignorant Armies Clash by Night The Bad Habits of Good Readers * Journal articles are provided in PDF format and can be opened using the free Adobe® Reader® program or a comparable viewer. Click here to download and install the most recent version of Adobe Reader. Copyright © 1998-2016 National Council of Teachers of English. All rights reserved in all media. 1111 W. Kenyon Road, Urbana, Illinois 61801-1096 Phone: 217-328-3870 or 877-369-6283 Looking for information? Browse our FAQs, tour our sitemap and store sitemap, or contact NCTE Statement and Links Policy. This document was printed from http://www.ncte.org/magazine/issues/v17-3. NCTE - The National Council of Teachers Of English A Professional Association of Educators in English Studies, Literacy, and Language Arts
Did the British steal the Crown Jewels? The Crown Jewels have never been stolen since that day – as no other thief has tried to match the audacity of Colonel Blood! Did Oliver Cromwell destroy the Crown Jewels? This crown, along with all the items worn and held by monarchs of England since Saxon times, was destroyed by Oliver Cromwell after the English Civil War. The metal within the Crown Jewels was melted down and turned into coin, and the jewels themselves were sold. Does Queen Elizabeth own the Crown Jewels? Who owns the crown jewels? The crown jewels are still in use by the royal family during ceremonies, like during their coronation. They are not owned by the state but by the queen herself in right of the Crown. Their ownership passes from one Monarch to the next and they are maintained by the Crown Jeweller. Why did Oliver Cromwell destroy the Crown Jewels? After the execution of Charles I in 1649 many of the Crown Jewels were sold or destroyed. Oliver Cromwell ordered that the orb and sceptres should be broken as they stood for the ‘detestable rule of kings‘. All the gemstones were removed and sold and the precious metal was used to make coins.
This year, in International Youth Day, YMCA decided to highlight the theme of “Improving E-learning culture,” to make it more inclusive, accessible, and relevant to today’s pandemic world. Young people’s views should be at the heart of any decision that concerns them. Through this activity, we got to see another angle and we let their voices be heard. Education must combine knowledge, life skills, critical thinking, advance gender equality, human rights, and a culture of peace. Pandemic has left considerable consequences to the educational systems in Kosovo which were caught unprepared to respond to such situation, youth, and teachers struggle to implement their program online, due to the lack of experience. Hence it is essential to ask and consult our club members about the challenges they have faced in the education system, especially on their day. In order to keep everyone safe, the only way to get more significant opinions of young people was through an online survey. From the survey, most of the answers collected were negative. When asked what would they change in the education system, they asked for more productive classes, the interaction between students and teachers to be higher, and to have classes that teach them about money management, time management, and self-confidence. From the other question about their biggest struggle during online classes, we gathered different views. Someone said that it was a problem to focus and concentrate on the lessons; someone said that two classes were scheduled at the same time which made it impossible to keep up with the two of them; while someone complained about the low internet connection. They asked for less homework and more practical action. They asked for training of teachers about technology. And they asked for tolerance and acceptance. This activity was part of the project “Men and Boys as Partners in Promoting Gender Equality and Preventing Violence and Extremism among Youth in the Balkans” implemented by CARE International Balkans in partnership with YMCA in Kosovo supported by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and Oak Foundation.
\| Pygmy Spotted Skunks live along the tropical Pacific coast of Mexico, an area of booming tourism. These tiny skunks are sometimes trapped, killed, stuffed, and sold as souvenirs. Left to their own devices, they inhabit forest and desert scrub habitat, and den underground or under cover of rocks, vegetation, or other shelter. They eat insects, spiders, crayfish, small mammals - including an occasional bat - and birds, eggs, and some fruit and seeds. Probably their acute sense of smell helps them locate prey as they patrol pathways and streambeds at night. They are solitary: males defend their territories from other males. Females can have more than one litter a year, of one to six pups. The newborn skunks are covered with fine white hair. Their eyes and ears remain closed for about a month. Tail: 70 mm males; 63 mm females Total Length: 240-282 mm Thomas, O., 1898. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1897:898 . Mammal Species of the World Mammalian Species, American Society of Mammalogists' species account
Some of my favorite childhood memories are of my mom reading aloud to me. Not just as a little kid but through middle school. Reading aloud to kids drops off dramatically after third grade and so does a child's interest in reading. Reading aloud to older kids has many benefits especially for those kids who are reluctant to read on their own. -When you read aloud to kids you are modeling positive adults behavior towards reading. Kids just can't wait to grow up so why not show them that adults enjoy reading too. -Reading aloud transforms reading from a solitary activity into a shared social experience. This creates positive and fulfilling reading experiences. -Hearing words read aloud can increase confidence with sounding out words in print. Many kids are reluctant to read because they struggle with sounding out words. The more words a child hears the greater their success will be when they encounter words in print. So find a warm spot and share a good book together. You can read anything you want and it can be any length. A classic fiction story, a non-fiction book, or today's comics section. Need some suggestions to get you started? Here are a few of my favorites for reading aloud to older kids. Stand Straight, Ella Kate: The True Story of a Real Giant by Kate klise and M. Sarah Klise Stay: The True Story of Ten Dogs by Michaela Muntean Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman The Scarecrow and His Servant by Pilip Pullman For more great suggestions see our Great Family Read-Aloud book list.
On average it took only two days for control curtains to become contaminated with potentially pathogenic bacteria, while PurThread curtains withstood contamination an average of 14 days. This double-blinded Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) is the first and only peer-reviewed study of its kind to assess the effectiveness of privacy curtains with antimicrobial properties in an active clinical setting. The study titled, Novel Hospital Curtains with Antimicrobial Properties: A Randomized, Controlled Trial, was published online in the journal of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. Cleaner Patient Environment "Without environmental hygiene, hand hygiene is insufficient to the challenge," said August Valenti, M.D infectious disease physician at InterMed Maine Medical Center. "Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs), are the fourth highest cause of mortality among US adults, and current hand hygiene efforts, while critical, are simply insufficient to the challenge of environmental contamination in the patient setting. This study suggests that continuously active surfaces, like those under development by PurThread, are solutions that may enhance hand hygiene efforts and provide an additional layer of patient safety." Privacy curtains were chosen for the study because they are frequently touched by the freshly washed hands of healthcare workers before touching patients, and they often hang in place for weeks or months without being changed. A previous University of Iowa study, Hospital Privacy Curtains are Frequently and Rapidly Contaminated with Potentially Pathogenic Bacteria revealed 92% of hospital privacy curtains were contaminated with potentially dangerous bacteria such as MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and VRE within one week of being laundered. Additionally, published studies have shown the transfer of bacteria from curtains to healthcare worker gloves, and that healthcare worker hands are considered leading vectors of pathogens to patients. "The study demonstrates PurThread's commitment to the highest standards of scientific rigour and clinical integrity as it develops this promising new technology," said Kathryn Bowsher, VP of Clinical and Regulatory Strategy at PurThread Technologies. "The contamination variation, in this study, between PurThread experimental curtains and control curtains shows the antimicrobial materials being developed by PurThread can have a measurable and meaningful impact in a clinical setting. Textiles \| On 29th Apr 2017 The textile sector could have a uniform Goods and Services Tax (GST)... Textiles \| On 29th Apr 2017 European Union (EU) rules are needed to oblige textile and clothing... Apparel/Garments \| On 29th Apr 2017 The forecast for operating income growth in the US over the next 12... 'Worsted wool is the ideal fabric for menswear' ‘Indian footwear market is nascent and largely a trend follower’ We are using Facebook and Instagram to promote ourselves Larry L Kinn Larry L Kinn, Senior Vice President - Operations Americas of Suominen... Swerea IVF AB Marten Alkhagen, Senior Scientist - Nonwoven and Technical Textiles of... Paolo Ocleppo, Rotary Cutting Segment manager, Sandvik Hyperion discusses... <b>Sanjukta Dutta</b> creates unique garments by clubbing prints of... Hyderabad-based designer <b>Prathyusha Garimella</b> is known for blending ... She grew up in the walled city of Old Delhi, completed her studies, and...
As I was reading this information, it struck me that I am now in my fifth year of post secondary education and still getting instruction on how to search for key words, phrases, or topics. It also dawned on me that each time I am taught about these strategies, there is slight variations. I began to reflect on my time in post secondary and grade school and came to yet again, another realization. The first time the groundwork was laid on how to effectively research was in my first year of post secondary. Granted, each year there after I have taken part in library workshops or professor led classes, much like this one, and each year they get slightly more in depth or focused to a particular topic or subject area. My “how to research” education has been scaffolded through the years. The key question here, “Why is it that I wasn’t taught effective researching skills until my first year in post secondary?” It is extremely clear from the ICT Program of Studies that these are skills that high school students should be graduating with. More than ever, with how technologically focused our world has become, as teachers we have to take responsibility to prepare our students for the future. This does not mean only post secondary, students who choose to graduate high school and find a career from there will at some point have to do some form of research – even if it is just them having to employ effective research strategies to find that job! The fact of the matter is, our students are leaving grade school with the understanding that Google and Wikipedia exist and that they can type words into the blank bar on each site and hit search and a whole bunch of stuff will come up. Beyond that, their scope of understanding is small. It would be very helpful to our students, if when they leave high school they have a more holistic understanding of the endless possibilities and resources that are at our disposal courtesy of the world wide web. Through projects at school, in each and every grade level and subject, teachers must scaffold our students understanding of “what effective researching skills are”. Until next time,
kidzsearch.com > wiki Explore:web images videos games The Corsac Fox (Vulpes corsac), also known as the Steppe Fox, is a medium-sized Asiatic fox species. It is spread throughout the central steppes of Asia. It is very social and lives in "corsac cities" where animals have several dens with connected holes. It prefers some steppe and semi-desert in mountainous areas. It is mainly grey-reddish with silver celadon areas on their coat. The Corsac Fox is threatened by hunting for the fur trade.
Women’s shoes were similar to men’s in most respects. The shape was very comparable to men’s, with slightly higher heels. Royal women did not wear the red heel like their male counterparts. For court dress, the slippers worn by women were very similar to those worn by men. There is evidence that light binding of waxed linen tape was used to make the feet smaller. The common shoe of the populace resembled the man’s shoe of heavy black leather with medium heels and latchets tied over the tongue. For dress, common women wore slippers similar to the dainty shoe of the aristocrat, but made of wood. Women were also making use of the wooden patten and the pantoffle to protect their shoes. This practice was carried over to the New World as well. The high chopine was also still used, though not as in vogue as in previous times.
Why drones may become as important to Iowa farmers as tractors SCRANTON, Ia. ― From the shade of his back deck, Randy Christensen can check on his cows and calves a mile away. He can zip above his cornfields to assess the health of his family's sprawling 1,500 acres of cropland, and get a live, bird's-eye view of his soybeans. Chores that not so long ago would have required a trip on a pickup truck or four-wheeler, Christensen now assigns to his $3,000 drone ― which he expects will soon become commonplace on Iowa farms. "It's going to make us lazy," he joked. "In our business, they're almost becoming a necessary tool." With better and cheaper models hitting shelves, a growing number of Iowa farmers like Christensen say drones are helping them assess the performance of vast acres of crops throughout the growing season. While still not widespread, acceptance is growing. In Iowa, agriculture is listed second behind aerial photography as the top reason for drone operators requesting federal flight exemptions, according to an Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International database. Drone enthusiasts expect the machines eventually could be the next technological leap for farms: Saving farmers time and money and helping improve yields. Christensen, 33, likens his drone to the auto-steer capabilities of modern tractors, combines and sprayers. Many farmers balked at the technology initially, but it's become commonplace on the farm. "Guys are going to buck the trend for a long ways," he said. "And then once you get it, you don't know how you lived without it." 'You could see as far as you wanted to walk' The power of drones, Christensen says, is that they help him identify larger patterns and investigate specific crop problems. They also help him see more of a field in less time. "You could see as far as you wanted to walk," he said, "and when you're walking through there and the tassel's a foot above your head, you only see what's right in front of you." But drones have their limitations. Iowa State University Extension Agronomist Mark Licht said the eagle-eye view from drones can pick up on problems with tile lines, tractor compaction or fertility misapplications. But many of those issues can't be corrected during the growing season. And even when assessing crop health, drones aren't always much help in divulging root causes. "The imagery helps identify ‘good’ areas and ‘bad’ areas," Licht said, "but at this point doesn’t necessarily tell what is causing the ‘bad’ areas to be bad." For now, he expects ag retailers and crop consultants to use drones more widely than individual farmers. 'It will be here sooner, rather than later' Many farmers are buying the same drones that consumers pick up from big-box retailers. "It's basically what you go to Walmart and buy yourself," said Jeremy Groeteke, senior manager of digitization at DuPont Pioneer in Johnston. But researchers at DuPont Pioneer have altered and built more sophisticated drones that can do more than shoot pictures and video. Their models have special sensors that can measure plant height, count the number of plant stands in a given space and pick up color variations not visible to the human eye. Those drones mostly are used to monitor test fields in the company's internal plant breeding programs. But Groeteke says early signs point to real potential for widespread use of these machines on individual farms. Drones with more complex sensors can collect and analyze data, rather than simply spitting out images or video frames. Eventually, Groeteke believes data from drones can be combined with weather readings, information on plant genetics and soil data to give a more complete picture of crop health and challenges. While the high-powered drones aren't widely available, Groeteke said they are getting closer to widespread commercial viability. "It will be here sooner, rather than later," he said. Even so, the value of drones is already becoming more evident: About 20 percent of Pioneer's 300 independent crop consultants, called certified services agents, have purchased drones to help scout customers' fields. In Groeteke's native Nebraska, farmers use drones to remotely check the performance of giant pivot irrigation heads. And some ranchers in Nebraska rely on them to check on cows and calves across sprawling pastures. While some farmers may hesitate to adopt the new technology, he says they are naturally inclined to trial and error. "It's not so much even the technology," he said. "It's new practices, new seeds, new chemistry, whatever it is. Growers constantly look to improve their operation." 'Nearly every farmer' will have a drone For now, two distinct classes of drones are flying over America's farms, said Phil Ellerbroek, director of global sales for RoboFlight and Agpixel, a Johnston company that uses unmanned and manned aircraft to collect and analyzing agricultural data. There are the commercially available drones that farmers buy at the store, which can be had for as little as a few hundred dollars. Then there are the high-tech models used largely by big ag companies and university researchers that can cost tens of thousands each. But Ellerbroek said the gap between the two is quickly shrinking. A drone Ellerbroek meticulously assembled and soldered five years ago might have cost $15,000. He said you can buy roughly the same thing now for $750 to $1,000 at Best Buy and Amazon. "So yes, it's becoming more and more affordable," he said. "I envision that if not now, in the very near future, nearly every farmer of any type of scale will have one of these drones, even if it's just for general photos and videos." Ellerbroek's firm works primarily with ag companies and academics. Their drones stitch together multiple images into one high-resolution image of a field. By using both images and data, the drones can pick up on plant stress weeks before the naked eye, he said. Sensors measure plant color, which during photosynthesis indicates health. "The human eye sees 16 energy levels of green, where the drone sees like 20,000," he said. "And it sees it two weeks earlier than the human eye." Drones doing manual labor? Like other technological advancements, the high-tech drones will likely be adopted by the farmers with the biggest operations first, said David Miller, director of research at the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation. Smaller players will likely rely on co-ops and crop consultants who can fly over 10,000 or 20,000 acres across several farms. Those same economies of scale are why he hires his local co-op to apply fertilizer with a variable-rate sprayer, rather than investing in his own at his 500-acre farm south of Des Moines. "It isn’t so much whether you own the technology," he said, "as it is, 'Do you have access to it?'" Miller said researchers in Arizona have started testing the use of drones on cotton plants to apply insecticide only to portions of a field showing damage from insects, drastically reducing the chemicals needed. He said drones may eventually be able to do the same thing with fertilizer in soybean and corn fields: Apply nitrogen only to the exact areas where sensors detect a need. "I think it's going to move to that," he said. "But we need both more development on the sensor technology, the speed at which the analysis can happen and more ability to carry payload." 'Nothing’s better than going out and looking at the crop' Hal Tucker just purchased a drone for his Storm Lake-based independent crop consulting business, Tucker Consulting. He thinks the machines have promise, but he's skeptical about how much they'll substantively change farming. "It just helps you in certain situations," he said. "It's not a substitute for scouting by ground." Recently, he was looking for rootworm beetles, a task he said is better suited for professionals than his drone. "Nothing’s better than going out and looking at the crop," Tucker said. "Even if you do have a drone, you still need to go out there and figure out what’s happening in areas that are a concern." There could be problems with nitrogen levels. Or water. Or insects. "You’ve got to be able to separate those out," Tucker said. "Going out there and looking at the field is the best way to do it." He's not complete skeptic. After all, he did fork over several thousand dollars to buy his own drone. "There's no way I can scout a 200-acre field as good as if I flew over it," he said. Drones will soon be 'a total expectation' Andrew Lauver, a certified services agent with DuPont Pioneer, said he purchased a drone to provide more value to his 34 customers. He uses his small white aircraft to help monitor nitrogen and fertility levels in their fields throughout the growing season by keeping watch over plant growth. But he knows that eventually farmers will be able to do that themselves as they buy their own models. "At some point, me saying I'll come fly your fields won't have as much value," he said. Drones allow farmers to make more mid-season decisions, he said, whether it's replanting early in the season or applying fertilizer throughout the season. They can replicate some of the analytics provided by yield monitors in combines, but at a much earlier point in the season. By closely monitoring individual sections of fields, Lauver believes drones can help prevent nutrient runoff on farms, a major environmental concern in Iowa that contributes to the state's poor water quality. "We don't want to put on more nitrogen than we need," he said. "We want to have just enough." Aside from his crop-consulting business, 26-year-old Lauver said his drone has already paid for itself through higher yields on his family's 500-acre Rockwell City farm. "I couldn't tell you it returned (exactly) $10.50 per acre," he said, "But it's returned the cost I've paid for it. And there's not a lot of overhead costs." For now, Lauver plans to continue offering drone scouting as a free bonus for his customers. He thinks he'll eventually start training other farmers to fly drones. "Even five years from now, if you don't have technology like drones to deploy, I think it would be a hindrance to business," Lauver said. "It will be a total expectation." How the government regulates drones The Federal Aviation Administration requires that drones used for commercial purposes to be registered, with pilots securing certification, paying licensure fees and following rules regulating the safe operations of drones. Drones used for crop scouting or other agricultural tasks require commercial licensure to meet FAA standards, though some operators purchase off-the-shelf drones to avoid the regulatory hoops. Editor's note: This story has been updated to note that the Federal Aviation Administration requires commercial licensure for crop scouting and other agricultural tasks.
\|Home > Facts > Fortification\| ...fortification—The public health policy of adding ...fortification program began in the United States in 1938 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) ...fortification of grain products, and a reduction in the ...fortification)Flour, breads, cereals, rice, macaroni, ma ...fortification has reduced incidence of rickets in North ...fortification of flour is mandatory. Folate’s r ...fortification of flour with folic acid in recent years h ...fortification. Vitamin B12's role in health Vit Dietary Reference Intakes ...fortification programs that helped eliminate many vitami ...fortification of milk. SEE ALSO ANEMIA; BERIBERI; OSTE Highlight any text in the article to look up more information! Fortification is the addition of nutrients to foods to enhance their nutritional value. Enrichment, on the other hand, is the addition of nutrients to foods to restore nutrients lost during processing. Examples of fortification include the addition of folate and iron to grain products, calcium to juices, iodine to salt, and iron to infant formulas. Decisions to fortify foods are often population-based to address geographical inadequacies, such as lack of iodine in the soil, or to increase the intake of key nutrients, such as calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin D. Challenges involved in fortification include identifying suitable foods to deliver the nutrients, selecting appropriate forms of the nutrients, designing appropriate processing techniques, and implementing systems to monitor the efficacy of the fortification. M. Elizabeth Kunkel Barbara H. D. Luccia
If you’re thinking about a career in information technology (IT), it could be a smart career move. It is a field that offers something for nearly everyone. It’s forecast that employment opportunities in IT will grow by 22 percent by 2020. With the right training and experience, you could easily have a promising career for the rest of your life. Computer specialists are in demand with organizations of all kinds. Here are some things you should consider as you try to break into the field. Define Your Career Path There are a wide range of opportunities in IT. If you like working with people, you could become a trainer or network trouble-shooter. Those who enjoy math and logic might choose to become programmers. You may be more interested in the hardware aspects of computer technology to become someone who designs and maintains the physical side of computer networks. Wherever your interest lies, get some training and start looking for opportunities at work. You could even volunteer to help out with IT on your own time as a sort of apprentice. Just having some hands-on experience and the right professional contacts will make the transition to an IT career easier. Education and Training Most IT specialists have a four-year degree in computer science, information technology, digital security, or some related discipline. Some go on to earn their masters or doctorate, but a bachelor’s degree is the norm. While this may not be possible for everyone, there are alternatives. Online schools are more affordable and allow you to study from home at your own pace. Your own local college may offer training programs on special subjects like databases, web design, or programming. Many of the major IT companies, such as Oracle, Microsoft, and Cisco, provide exams on various IT products that you can study for to earn certificates. Getting some formal IT training and credentials is an important stepping stone to launching a career. Acquire a Useful Skillset While every company will have a unique IT team with its own policies and tools, certain skills are valuable to nearly all companies. Most companies have databases of some sort, so learning SQL (structured query language) to manipulate data and data structures is important. Mastering and becoming a resource for common productivity tools like Office 365 or Google’s G Suite can help your career. Most tools now are cloud-based, so you should also learn about software like Avanti Workspace and similar programs that let you run virtual desk tops. These are network-based desktop that users can log into and use with their mouse and keyboard just as if it was installed on their own computer. Many companies are utilizing this technology, and the ability to set it up properly can be a big plus. Keep Adding to Your Resume While many companies may insist on a bachelors or masters for their IT teams and leaders, not all of them do, especially smaller companies that are really just looking for top talent. That means anyone with solid experience and high-level skills. Once you decide where your career is going, get the software you need to learn. Study and practice until you feel you’ve becoming something of an expert. Look for assignments or projects at work you can contribute your skills to, or even pursue initiatives on your own if you think it will make an impression on management. Keep your skills updated. A great resume and some good references will open many doors. Part of promoting yourself is to create a profile on LinkedIn that reflects your IT skills and experience in the best light. You may find hiring managers from other companies anxious to recruit you. It isn’t necessarily for geeks or college grads. It’s a very complex field with many opportunities. All you need are some solid skills.
What's In A Name? How the meaning of the term karate has changed By Maurey Levitz Toude Before Karate Many people are aware that karate was formerly known as "toude" (often written "tode"), but this information seems to have remained unknown to the general practicing population, and misunderstood by others. At the root of this misunderstanding lies three essential kanji (Chinese characters). The first is pronounced "Tang" in Chinese-Mandarin (Character 1), and refers specifically to the Tang Dynasty, one of China's great historical eras. In Japanese, it is pronounced either "tou" or "kara," and came to mean China in general, and things of The second kanji is pronounced "kong" in Mandarin (Character 2), and is usually also pronounced "kara" in Japanese, but it can also be pronounced "aki," "ku," and "sora." The pronunciation changes according to context and grammar, and can mean "empty," in a philosophical sense, or "sky." This kanji does not mean "China." The third character is pronounced "shou" in Mandarin (Character 3), and may be pronounced as either "te" or "de" in Japanese, depending on the context, and means "hand." An alternate pronunciation is also "shu." In Japanese, "toude" (characters 1 and 3) means "China hand" and not "empty hand." When Japanese say "karate," it could be interpreted as either "empty hand" or "China hand." However, the average modern-day Japanese person would not even think of translating it as "China hand." From "Chinese Hand" To "Empty Hand" The shift from using character 1 to character 2 (both meaning "Kara") in karate was the result of the Okinawans taking advantage of a homonym (two words with different definitions but identical pronunciation). You can pronounce characters 1 and 3 as either "toude" or "karate." But if you choose the pronunciation "karate," then it is conceivable to use characters 2 and 3 when writing the word. Since the martial art we are referring to is performed without weapons, the homonym "empty hand" makes sense in this context. was this formal change in meaning and kanji made? The earliest known document is Chomo Hanashiro's "Karate Kumite," first published in August 1905 (available in the 1992 reprint of Genwa Nakasone's 1938 "Karate-Do Taikan," in Japanese). Hanashiro was a greatly respected karate master. He was a student of Bushi Matsumura and later Itosu. Along with Itosu he helped introduce karate into the Okinawan school system. Nakasone's book clearly shows Hanashiro's use of characters 2 and 3 in the title of his book. Although the "empty hand" characters had been used, "China hand" remained the more popular written expression of the martial art. Ankoh Itosu's (the most famous karate teacher of his ear) "Ten Precepts of Bu," written in 1908, for example, still used the "China hand" characters. (1) It was a report to government on this art and it discussed the virtues of karate including its physical education benefits for the military -- something that would appeal to authorities at a time of growing nationalism. Many people incorrectly credit Gichin Funakoshi (considered by many as the father of Japanese karate since he first officially demonstrated the art in Japan and was one of the first who began teaching karate there) as the first to write "karate" using characters 2 and 3. However, in 1922, his first book, "Ryukyu Kenpo Tode" used the characters 1 and 3 (Chinese hand). There is also evidence that the first black belt certificates Funakoshi gave out in 1924 used the "toude" characters Funakoshi was clearly not the first to use the "empty hand" (kanji) meaning for karate. He was, however, influential in popularizing this meaning by calling on his colleagues to abandon the "Chinese Hand" meaning of karate in favor of "empty hand." This made sense since Japan by the 1930s had become very nationalistic. The nation had just emerged on the international stage. Its armies had also moved to occupy northern China (1932). Thus efforts to change karate's meaning to "empty hand" were a measured decision, one seen necessary to the acceptance of this newly imported art from Okinawa (If you are fighting the Chinese in China, you might not want your children studying something called "China hand" at school). The well known karate historian, John Sells in his book, "Unante: The Secrets of Karate" notes that as early as 1933 the head of the Butokukai (the semi- official Japanese organization founded in 1895 to preserve and promote the martial arts and ways in Japan) while visiting Okinawa suggested the change in characters. (2) Two years later, Funakoshi in his1935 book, "Karatedo Kyohan" did reflect this change (empty hand). The change from "China hand" to "empty hand" gained immediate popularity on the main islands of Japan once it was introduced. But back on Okinawa the change seems to have taken some Japanese mainland influence to effect widespread Okinawan acceptance of the new name. In 1936, Nakasone Genwa helped organize a meeting of Okinawan karate meeting was sponsored by Chofu Ota, Editor-in-Chief of the Ryukyu Shinpo Press (Okinawa's leading newspaper). During the course of this meeting, an interesting discussion took place about whether or not to accept this change in kanji, with at least some of the masters proving hesitant. It was finally decided to adopt the new meaning of karate so as to promote their art and its official acceptance It is easy to understand the desire to change the name in the 1930's, but what prompted Hanashiro Chomo to do so in 1905? Certainly Japan had a long history of conflict with China -- could it have been for the same Perhaps he felt it more accurately described the art. Some martial arts styles had been in Okinawa for several hundred years. Maybe he felt that the Okinawans had changed the art enough through centuries of practice so that it really wasn't "China hand" anymore. I would like to believe that given Okinawa's role as a historical middle man in the region, he chose a word that, when spoken, could still lead the dedicated martial artist back to the art's Chinese origins, while remaining diplomatically neutral in nature. We may never really know what motivated Hanashiro's choice of kanji. A Note On Pronunciation The pronunciation and Romanization of "toude" varies between the Japanese and Okinawan (Hogen) dialects. (3) As far as the Romanization of character 1, in modern Japanese, it can be rendered as "tou," although you might see it written phonetically in an English-Japanese dictionary as "tô." The Japanese pronunciation of "tou" is similar to the English word "toe." The Romanization of character 2 is "te," pronounced "tay" (Some suggest that "tay" rhymes with the English word "day" but this would add an extra sound that is not there making it sound more like :dei." More precisely it rhymes with "pet" but without the "t" of course). According to Japanese rules of grammar, "te" switches to "de" depending on usage, and "de" is pronounced like the English word "day." The Okinawan dialect follows the same grammatical rules as Japanese, but has different pronunciations of some words. While pronouncing "tou" the same as the Japanese, the Okinawans pronounce "te" like the English word "tea." When you make the grammatical switch from "te" to "de" (as in "toude"), the Hogen pronunciation changes to sound like the English name "Dee." The Romanization in Hogen would therefore become "toudi." If one wanted to use "toudi" -- although accurate -- it might be confusing to people familiar with modern Japanese unless one specified that the rendering was in Hogen. To promote consistency, I think we should use the term "toude" in the growing body of historical writing and research into our art's origins. Not all agree with me, however. Much like movements to save dying Indian dialects here, there are active movements to save the Okinawan dialects (there are at least six). Thus some would say there is a lot to be said here for preserving these terms and thus toudi should be used, but explained. (1) Chomo Hanashiro and Ankoh Itosu were both students of the famed karate teacher Sokon (Bushi) Matsumura, but later Hanashiro also became a student of Itosu. Itosu was a teacher Gichen Funakoshi. (2) The official name of the organization was the Great Japan Martial Virtues Association. It was the later acceptance of karate by this organization that paved its way for acceptance of karate as an official Japanese martial art. In addition to the change in the characters used to mean karate, this organization also promoted the adoption by karate of standard uniforms, grading and teaching methods. (3) Here the term "hogan" meaning dialect is used to refer to the Okinwan dialect of Japanese spoken on the Island. The discussion is actually made more complicated by the fact that there were subtle variations in dialects of Japanese spoken on this island. The image of Hanashiro Chomo's 1905 book is provided by Patrick McCarthy from his book, "Karate-do Tanpenshu - Funakoshi Gichen Short Stories", translated by Patrick and Yunko McCarthy. About The Author: Maurey Levitz has continually studied martial arts since 1988. He is currently the head instructor of the New Paltz Karate Academy, an accredited member of the American Budo Kai. He can be reached at: New Paltz Karate Academy, PO Box 1026, New Paltz, NY 12561 (845 255-4523). His e-mail and his website is Newpaltzkarate.com.
Dalou, Aimé-Jules(ĕmā`-zhül dälo͞o`), 1838–1902, French sculptor. He was popular under the Third Republic. Dalou studied with Carpeaux and was later exiled (1871–79) to England for his revolutionary sentiments. He taught in London. His best-known works are his Triumph of the Republic (Place de la Nation, Paris), his reliefs for the chamber of deputies, and his Silenus and monument to Delacroix (both: Luxembourg Gardens). His work was baroque in its sources although his style is often considered naturalistic. Dalou was particularly skilled in portraiture. Born Dec. 31, 1838, in Paris; died there on Apr. 15, 1902. French sculptor. The son of a worker, Dalou was a student of J. B. Car-peaux. He was an active participant in the Paris Commune of 1871 and was chosen to be curator of the Louvre. He created the terra-cotta statuette The National Guardsman (1871, the Hermitage, Leningrad). After the fall of the Commune, Dalou was sentenced to hard labor for life, but he fled to England, where he worked until the amnesty of 1879. In the works that he executed during this period Dalou supplemented the buoyancy that he had learned from Car-peaux with an interest in the everyday life and feelings of common people (A Woman of Brittany, 1870’s, plaster, the Hermitage, Leningrad). Returning to France, Dalou completed large, sometimes overly heavy bronze compositions (The Triumph of the Republic, Place de la Nation, Paris, 1879–99). His democratic convictions and his desire to develop a clear, energetic language of realistic sculpture are particularly evident in his thematic reliefs (Mirabeau Replying to the Marquis Dreux-Breze, bronze, 1884, the Palace of Deputies, Paris) and in his 54 figures of workers and peasants for the project Monument to Workers (bronze and terra-cotta, c. 1889–98). REFERENCESBrodskii. V. Khudozhniki Parizhskoi Kommuny. Moscow, 1970. Caillaux, H. Aime-Jules Dalou. Paris, 1935.
Prunus americana, or American plum, often called Wild plum, is native to most of Kansas. It is the most common wild plum in Kansas except in the west where Sand Hill plum dominates. Found naturally in pastures, road sides and woodland borders, it has also been planted extensively throughout Kansas. American plum reaches a height of 12 feet with good growing conditions, but on more restrictive sites it may only reach 6 feet. Sprouts from spreading root systems form thickets up to 35 feet wide. It grows at about 12 to 18 inches per year. Leaves, Stems and Fruit Leaves are alternate, 2 1/2 to 4 inches long, oval or elliptic with tapered tips and sharp teeth along leaf edges. Flowers are white, forming in early April before leaves appear. Fruits mature in August. They are red or orange with a slight whitish film ranging from three-quarters to one inch long. Twigs are rigid and often spine-tipped. Windbreaks - American plum may be used as the outside row of a windbreak. Its dense growth is ideal for reducing the wind velocity near the ground. White flowers make it attractive in the spring. Some people find its thicket forming habit objectionable in windbreaks. Wildlife Habitat - This is one of the more popular woody plants for use in developing wildlife habitat. The thorny thicket is valuable for songbird and gamebird nesting, loafing and roosting. Various other animals also use it for loafing, bedding and escape cover. The fruit is eaten by numerous birds and other animals. Water Erosion Control - Development of suckers from the root system makes American plum effective in stabilizing stream banks and gullies. It will tolerate several days flooding. Human Food - The fruit is used for making wine, jam and jelly. Adaptation and Soil American plum has adapted statewide and in a wide range of soils, but grows best in deep, moist soils. Avoid planting in especially droughty soils. American plums are spaced 4 to 6 feet apart. One-year-old, bare-root seedlings 18 to 24 inches tall are used in plantings. Survival generally is very good. Although somewhat tolerant of weed and grass competition, they will develop faster with good weed and grass control. Insects and diseases may cause problems with this species, but usually not serious. Rabbits will occasionally chew on the bark, but the plant forms new sprouts to replace the injured stems. \|Average Height in 20 Yrs:\| \|Native Species:\|\|Native to Kansas\| \|Soil Saturation:\|\|Medium Tolerance\| \|Salinity Tolerance:\|\|Low Tolerance\|
The word alchemy is derived from the Arabic root “kimia”, from the Coptic “khem” (referring to the fertile black soil of the Nile delta). The word “alchemy” alludes to the dark mystery of the primordial or First Matter (the Khem). Alchemy in medieval times was a concoction of science, philosophy and mysticism. Far from operating within the modern definition of a scientific discipline, medieval alchemists approached their craft with a holistic attitude; they believed that purity of mind, body and spirit was necessary to pursue their goals. At the heart of medieval alchemy is the idea that all matter is composed of four elements: earth, air, fire and water. With the right recipe of these elements, alchemists thought, any substance on earth might be conjured into being. The most prestigious of which was gold. Although other precious metals and medicines were also thought to be created from a process of transmutation. These practices were shrouded in secret symbols and mysterious names for the materials used. Alchemy evolved independently in China, India, and Greece. Subsequently, scholars in medieval Europe translated these texts from Arabic into Latin and revived these texts in the 12th century. By the end of the 13th century alchemy was discussed seriously by leading philosophers, scientists, and theologians. One of the goals of alchemy was to find the philosopher’s stone, an elusive substance from which it might be possible to create an elixir of immortality and the transmutation of common substances into gold. Alchemy was frowned upon by the Catholic Church and practiced in secret during the Middle Ages. So many alchemists passed on their secrets and recipes via apprenticeships often in clandestine and secretive ways. Many occult practices use alchemy as a foundation. Also many of the experimental practices of alchemy laid the foundations of modern chemistry as a scientific discipline. So as you might imagine, being an alchemist wasn’t the easiest and simplest of jobs in medieval times. As well as reams of text, the illustrations from those times are dizzyingly complex in terms of codes and symbology. Alchemy has given rise to whole host of strange and wondrous imagery over the centuries. Here are some medieval images of alchemy and metaphysical magic of the old ways from Wellcome Images and the brilliant Manly Palmer Hall collection at the Internet Archive.
Hadoop and its Additional Technologies Apache Hadoop is an open source platform to develop distributed applications that can process huge amounts of data. It provides both the computational and distributed storage capabilities. Computational Layer: Computational Layer uses a platform called MapReduce Distributed Storage Layer: It uses a distributed file system that provides storage called HDFS Here are some of the Hadoop and Additional Technologies Hive: It is a distributed warehouse and manages the data stored in HDFS. It provides a SQL based query language for querying the data. HBase: It is a column oriented distributed database uses HDFS for its primary storage and supports both the batch style communications using point queries and MapReduce. Pig: Pig runs on HDFS and MapReduce clusters. It is an execution environment and data flow language to explore huge datasets. R: R is a software and software programming environment for graphics and statistical computing. It is widely used among the data miners and statisticians for data analysis and for developing statistical software. RHadoop: It allows to use R interfaces to the open source Hadoop distributed computing environment. Cascading: Cascading is open source apache licensed software allows creating and executing the complex data processing workflows by using JVM based language. Crunch: Apache Crunch is a Java Library for Testing, Running and Writing Hadoop MapReduce pipelines based on FlumeJava. It makes pipelines of many user defined functions easy to test, effective to run and simple to run. RHipe: It is R and Hadoop integrated process platform to analyze data using Hadoop Tools within the R Environment. ZooKeeper: It provides a distributed coordination service and primitives such as distributed locks used to build distributed applications. About Hadoop Online Training @ BigClasses BigClasses is one of the best online training organizations offer Hadoop training. We have qualified and experienced faculties who are responsible for taking the online sessions. We provide study materials and 24 hours support to our national and international learners as well. If you are interested in Hadoop online training, contact us for the detailed course and the free demo classes.
10 personality traits every successful entrepreneur but i've found myself settling on ten traits that are shared in common or approach your boss. critically assess the personality (or psychological) traits approach to explaining entrepreneurship what makes an entrepreneur, an entrepreneur. Entrepreneur, an individual must posses certain traits or characteristics of personality like creativity, self confidence, risk taking, imagination, perseverance, etc. What makes an entrepreneur, an entrepreneur could it be the environment they grew up in or simply, the personality that they were born with or developed as they grow. Entrepreneur is the wrong question in the trait approach the entrepreneur is assumed to be a particular personality type, a fixed state of existence,. Characteristics that are examined in a personality approach to entrepreneurship, which while the trait approach focuses. The trait approach to entrepreneurship was pioneered during the 1950’s by mcclelland et al and subsequently echoed by a range of more contemporary academics. Entrepreneurship and the big five personality traits: a behavioral genetics perspective entrepreneur and the personality traits approach to assessing business. Free research that covers entrepreneurship is how a lot of businesses get started but the vast majority of the businesses started fail after a short time the. Researchers found that several common traits (eg, as the expertise approach to cognition and entrepreneurship began to develop further,. The aim of this article is to review the personality approach on the basis of the theoretical framework, which assumes that the effects of a person's traits on his or. What managers need to know about entrepreneurship history 8/13 in response to the traits approach the entrepreneurship-as-process approach was heavily. Resilience and entrepreneurship: a dynamic and biographical approach presented as a personality trait of the entrepreneur our approach is to. Theories of entrepreneurship let us understand the meaning of theory a hypothesis proven true through research/testing trait theory of entrepreneurship. Article- entrepreneurship development: concept and context in the trait approach, the entrepreneur is assumed to be a particular personality type. Approaches to entrepreneurship • schools of entrepreneurial thought approach • process approaches entrepreneurial schools-of-thought approach macro view. Personality characteristics and business philosophy: while in trait approach an entrepreneur is a set of personality traits and characteristics. This paper intends to discuss the trait theory related to entrepreneurship in order to understand different traits of entrepreneurship, a critical literature. Integrating psychological approaches to entrepreneurship: the entrepreneurial personality system the big five traits approach traits and entrepreneurship,. This article is about entrepreneurship and it answers the question who is a true entrepreneur using the trait approach we can agree that a true entrepreneur possess. Baylor university an attitude approach to the prediction of entrepreneurship problems with the personality/trait approach. The process of identifying specific traits of an entrepreneur starts with an the behavioral traits of a successful take a team-based approach to. Entrepreneurship: a person ibased i i theory approach i ii: 1 iz % 3 1 douglas naffziger gone far beyond a trait approach to entrepreneurship. Understanding the psychological nature and development of the individual entrepreneur is at traits, as assumed in the approach to entrepreneurship. Mediator approaches to the effects of personality traits on entrepreneurship most researchers of the personality approach agree that distal personality traits are not. Approaches to entrepreneurship – founding vs need for achievementattribute approach • psychological traits – intelligence work experience. Entrepreneurship is a driver of competitive advantage and carland, 1984), and traits have been widely criticized implications of this approach for the.
A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other The breeze blowing through the Buchanan house is symbolic of the ever changing nature of Tom’s wealthy lifestyle, which serves as a direct contrast to Gatsby’s formulaic routines made apparent at his party in chapter 3. Just as “the only completely stationary object in the room” was a large piece of furniture, Tom himself is afraid and unsure of the concept of permanence and possibly even commitment. The fluctuating structure of Tom’s house acting as the reciprocal of Gatsby’s refined and standardized behavior evince the fact that just because a man is wealthy, he doesn’t necessarily have to fit a strict stereotype of how to live. Improve the quality of The Great Gatsby (Chapter I) by leaving a suggestion at the bottom of the page
The Positive Theory of Capital In his Geschichte und Kritik der Kapitalzins-Theorieen (1884), which I translated in 1890 under the title of Capital and Interest, Professor Böhm-Bawerk, after passing in critical review the various opinions, practical and theoretical, held from the earliest times on the subject of interest, ended with the words: "On the foundation thus laid, I shall try to find for the vexed problem a solution which invents nothing and assumes nothing, but simply and truly attempts to deduce the phenomena of the formation of interest from the simplest natural and psychological principles of our science." The Positive Theory of Capital, published in Innsbruck in 1888, and here rendered into English, is the fulfilment of that promise. The criticisms directed against the various theories of Interest in the former work may be briefly summarised as follows. The Productivity theories—those which, more or less explicitly, attribute the existence of interest to the productive power of capital—are dismissed as confusing quantity of product with value of product, either in the way of tacitly assuming the identity of the two, or of failing to show any necessary connection between them. The problem of capital is a problem of surplus value, and value does not come from the side of production but from the side of consumption. Capital is productive, but interest is not its product. The Use theories, which are more or less scientific expansion of the familiar formula, "Interest is the price paid for the use of capital," are shown to base interest, which is notoriously an income obtained from all kinds of capital, on an analogy drawn from one special kind of capital, viz. durable goods. The idea that the use of capital is something distinct from the using-up of capital, and interest something different from the price of the principal, becomes untenable when the true economic nature of the "good" is understood as the sum of its material uses or services. If consumption is only a single exhaustive use, and use only a prolonged consumption, the payment for "use" of Capital must be included in the price of capital. In the Abstinence theory, which makes interest a compensation, made to the owner of capital, for his renunciation of immediate consumption, Böhm-Bawerk sees a confusion of the origin and accumulation of capital with the source and cause of interest. Abstinence will account for the owner having a sum to lend, but it will not account for that sum growing 3% larger in a year's time. Lastly, the Socialist or Exploitation theory, which makes interest simply a gain from exploited labour, is shown to be a theory which could only arise on the negative basis of the unsatisfactory accounts hitherto given, and on the positive basis of a mistaken value theory. When an income obtained without work and without risk was claimed as the reward of abstinence, and when all value was ascribed to the action of material labourers, it was inevitable that there should rise a reactionary theory proving that interest was robbery. Thus the board was swept clean for the Positive Theory. A translator who does his duty must pass the work he renders through his own mind. The necessity this imposes on him of understanding his author, and getting at his point of view, should make him peculiarly sensitive to certain difficulties which are not removed by simple translation. Modes of thought, arrangement, manner of working, may remain foreign. A translator's preface, then, is not without justification if it anticipates some of the questions that are sure to arise in the minds of readers more accustomed, perhaps, to English economics. Now as the main difficulty of the present work is that alluded to by Professor Böhm-Bawerk in his own Preface, that the strikingly simple outlines of his theory are obscured by the very elaboration and completeness with which it is worked out, perhaps the best service I can do is to give a short direct summary of the main argument, expanding on one or two points which seem to me to require commentary. Economic science being based on an analysis of the industrial life, the first question in a theory of capital is one of terminology: What does the practical world mean, and what has it hitherto meant, by the word Capital? Here we find in common acceptance not one but two conceptions, both based more or less on Adam Smith's old distinction between National Capital and Individual Capital. It is quite necessary for scientific progress that the exact distinction between these two conceptions should be fully recognised, but it would be useless to refuse the name to either of them: the practical world would not follow us. On looking closer at the two, however, we can see that one of the conceptions really includes the other, and that the difficulty may be avoided by adding an appropriate predicate to each. Taking as basis the old root idea of "an interest-bearing sum of money," we may define capital in its widest sense (or Acquisitive Capital), as the complex of products destined to the Acquisition of goods. Under this, as narrower category, we put the conception that came later in time. but perhaps better deserves the name without predicate, that of Social or Productive Capital, comprising all products destined for the production of fresh wealth; briefly, the complex of Intermediate Products. Thus we happily preserve in both conceptions the popular idea of "income bearing": society as a whole can only obtain an income by "producing" new wealth, while the individual may "acquire" it as well by the transfer of old wealth. By these definitions Land and Labour are excluded from capital. They have certain analogies, even close analogies, with it, but scientific accuracy is not gained by making definitions so wide as to conceal really discrepant elements. The definition of Social Capital also excludes the Maintenance of Labourers; for, obviously, to include the direct and most obvious means of living would be to take away all possibility of distinguishing between capital and consumption wealth. The subject, then, naturally divides itself into two parts:—Capital in the narrower, but more widely important, meaning of the Instrument of Production, and Capital as the Source of Income. First, of the Instrument of Production. In the economical world man finds himself a being of infinite want, confronted with a universe full of potential wealth but with no tools except hands and brains to give him possession of it. Incapable of creating anything, he yet finds himself endowed with a power of moving things, which, as he masters the secrets of nature's working, gradually enables him to imprison, impress, or suspend the action of her powers, and so make her his servant. In various concrete ways he adapts or rearranges nature—never, of course, changing her laws or acting contrary to them, but varying the causal connection of natural processes in such a way that, to a large extent, he remakes the natural world to suit his purposes. Thus, between man and his natural environment there gradually grows up a third term, a machinery for the fuller satisfaction of man's life, and to this, in general terms, we give the name Capital. But, however the growth of wealth and industry disguise the fact, in all production of wealth there are only two original forces at work, nature's powers and man's powers. Human powers, as always limited, and as always put forth "at the cost of" brain or tissue, are all "economic"; but in the great treasury of natural forces there are some powers so universal in their scope and working that they do not enter into calculations of cost. As we say, using two phrases whose full significance we do not always realise, we do not "economise" the free gifts of nature—they "cost" us nothing; although they enter into the operations of all production, they do not enter into "economic" consideration. The original factors of production, then, are man and nature: the strictly economic factors of production are labour and those natural forces (called by metonymy Land) which are limited and capable of being monopolised. But Capital, however much credit it gets and deserves for its work in present-day production, is no independent factor alongside of these. In one aspect it may be called "stored-up labour," in another—and more truly—"natural force stored up by labour"; but in capital itself, alike in its origin and in its working, there is nothing that is not accounted for by the other two factors. We say, in its origin and its working, and it is advisable to emphasise that these are distinct things. The origin of capital is due to two factors, Industry and Saving, both being indispensable. It should be noted, however, that what is saved is not capital but productive power. The primitive labourer works overtime, produces a surplus subsistence, and spends it in making tools: his saving is saving of strength to make tools. The modern worker produces a surplus over his subsistence: gives that over to banks and other agencies to be spent in building factories, erecting machinery, etc.: what is saved is the natural forces thus put in position to turn out consumption goods. But when we know the origin of capital, we have still to ask: What is the nature and character of the production carried on by means of capital? The answer may be put in the following way. The aim of production is essentially the making or procuring of a living. The animal finds a certain provision spontaneously offered it in nature; goes straight toward that provision; and never gets beyond it. Man, on the other hand, even in the simplest state, takes an indirect course. He allies natural with his own (still natural) forces; and he gets behind these natural forces, setting them against each other, or co-operating with each other in carrying out his instructions. He steals fire from heaven, and turns it against the gods. The end is always the consumption good—the good which exhausts itself in ministering to man's life in its higher and lower forms; the factors are always labour and nature; but the way in which the end is reached is here indirect, lengthy, and roundabout. From the rude spade, which the savage first uses as a medium between his bare hands and the fruits or roots he lives on, down to the many years' production process stretching between the sinking of the shaft for coal or iron and the flying shuttles turning out the cloth which finds its goal in covering bare backs, is simply an evolution of the roundabout method. The course of economic progress puts increasing intervals between preparatory and finishing labour, decreasing the stock by increasing the tools; and at every new stage labour embodies itself in further intermediate products or capital. The characteristic result is twofold. As we should expect from the accumulation and concentration of natural forces, this capitalist method is immensely productive as compared with direct or unassisted labour. On the other side, however, is to be put the sacrifice of Time necessarily involved in the indirect process. The relation of these two aides must be carefully noted. As time plays a greater part in production—as the average period is extended—the absolute productiveness of the capitalist process increases, but the relative productiveness decreases. That is to say: when the process has reached a certain point, it becomes subject to a law of diminishing returns. The function, then, of capital in production may be said to be that of allowing labour and natural powers to work out their economic effects in processes that take time, or the utilisation of natural forces in roundabout methods. Or, if we adopt the peculiarly modern view that man is the economic Ziepulnkt, we may say that capital gives time to labour to avail itself of those powers of nature which become available only at a considerable sacrifice of time. So much for the function of capital, and one is apt to jump to the conclusion that, having shown how capitalist industry produces a great quantity of products as compared with unassisted labour, the sole and sufficient origin of interest has been indicated. A little consideration will show that we are yet on the threshold of that inquiry. The concrete result—the raison d'être—of a factory is the mass of products it sends to market. These are the transformed shapes of raw and auxiliary materials, machinery generally, and labour; and the price realised for them repays the outlay on materials, keeps up the machinery, and pays the wages—including all the wages of intellect. But beyond the repaying of all these costs it is a familiar fact that, in normal production, the prices realised leave a surplus. This surplus is not accounted for by profits, although often confused with them. Profit is either employer's wage (and is thus already included), or it is the chance of a happy conjuncture that allows a higher price to be obtained than is normal—which chance is continually being levelled down by competition. But this surplus is recognised as something due to the owner of capital without claim of personal work from him, and it is a surplus of value which competition cannot wipe out. In Böhm-Bawerk's former book, Capital and Interest, it was exhaustively proved that no theory had yet shown what capital does, or forbears from doing, that it should get this surplus under the name of interest. It is not a payment for the labour embodied in concrete capital, for that labour is presumably fully paid for—say, by the machine maker to his men and to himself—and does not warrant a further continuous payment. It is not a payment for the working of natural forces embodied in the machine, for the value of the machine consists in nothing else than in the working of these forces, and in the price is already paid all the forces that the machine will put forth and mediate. And it is not wear and tear, nor is it insurance against risk, for in all normal undertakings these are provided for by separate replacement and insurance funds. For proof of these statements I must refer the reader to that book, or the brief summary of it in the preface. What must be emphasised here is that the explanation of capital as the Instrument of Production is exhausted when it is shown that it allows nature and labour to work out their effects in lengthy processes The source of interest will not be found simply within the sphere of production, for the reason that interest is a problem of surplus value, and value takes us into the sphere of distribution. Thus we come to the next division of the present work, Capital as it appears in the sphere of Distribution, or Capital as the source of the income called Interest. If we begin, as usual, by asking what business people understand by interest, we shall be told practically that a sum of money paid down now—say £I00—will buy a greater sum—say £103 or £105—this day twelve months. Or if I owe £100 now for goods received, and do not pay the debt for a year, I have to add a certain amount under the title of interest. The most obvious fact here is that the payment of interest has some very definite connection with the time when payment is made. This suggests the general question: What is the place and influence of time on the value of goods. And the answer is: It is an empirical fact of undoubted universality that present goods are valued more highly than future goods of like kind and amount. For this three causes may be given. First, is the difference between the circumstances of want and the provision for want in present and in future. In any case, if want is pressing and provision is scarce, value is high. But the pressure of want in the present is always with us, while as regards provision in the future it is generally true omne ignotum pro mirifico. Thus present goods obtain a permanent importance from felt present wants, and future goods a permanent unimportance from anticipated future provision. Most men, accordingly,—people in immediate distress and beginners of all sorts being types—are willing to pledge their future for a really inadequate present sum. Second, is the general underestimate of the future, common to humanity, and traceable to want of imagination, defect of will, or feeling of life's uncertainty. Children and savages are typical of the improvidence which is more or less striking in all classes. It may be that this cause is not on the same level with the first, and tends to less importance with social progress. But, in the world as it is, it is certain that the things of the future are of less value to us simply because they are future. And, third, is the technical superiority of present goods. As we have already seen, in the hands of labour wealth increases enormously with the extension in time of the production process. Goods available now have accordingly the promise and potency of being greatly multiplied in the future, while goods coming into our disposal only in the future must undergo another period of production before the same abundance is reaped. Of these three causes the first two are cumulative, the second alternative. The first group alone would account for a difference in value between present and future goods: the appearance of the latter makes the difference not only apparent but measurable. If, then, from so many aides and classes—from the young who expect to be better off, from the rich and improvident who wish to enjoy the present, from the industrious who wish to add to their wealth; that is to say, from probably the majority of mankind—there comes an underestimate of the future compared with the present, it is easily explained why, as a rule, present goods have a greater value than future goods of like kind and amount. In this empirical and psychological fact, for the full treatment of which the reader is referred to Book V., our author finds the source of interest in its three principal forms. The simplest case of interest is that in which it appears in the loan for consumption. Here we have a real and true exchange of a smaller amount of present money, or present goods, for a larger amount of future money or goods. The sum returned, "principal" plus interest, is the market valuation and equivalent of the "principal" lent. The apparent difference in value is simply due to our forgetting that £100 in our hands now is not the same thing as £100 a year hence. This Agio on present goods is interest. In other words, interest is a complementary part of the price; a part equivalent of the "principal" lent. In this simple case interest is more evidently the result of the first two causes just mentioned. Apart altogether from an organised system of production this agio would emerge, and has emerged, as something claimed by the saving from the unthrifty. But so long as there was no organic production, the circumstances of borrowers and lenders were too diverse and arbitrary to allow of a measured rate of interest. But when the third factor comes into play, time becomes a condition of surplus product, and interest becomes measurable in terms of time. The second and principal form assumed, then, by interest is that in which it appears is part of the so-called "profit of undertaking." A capitalist employer hires land, buys raw and auxiliary materials, machinery, power, and labour. He sets these to co-operate in the making of a product. The product is the new shape taken on by all these productive goods, and we should naturally expect that the price obtained for it would exactly cover and reimburse the value of all the goods consumed in making it. But, as we know, after all ordinary costs are accounted for, the price obtained in normal economic circumstances shows a surplus of value. The explanation of the surplus is that productive goods, while materially and physically present, are, to economical consideration, future goods: that is to say, they are products in the making. The wants to which they minister, and from which alone they get their value, are future wants. On the admitted ground of equivalence between costs and products, then, the value of the means of production must be the same as the value of the goods into which they pass. But these goods being in the meantime future goods, and suffering from the discount which, as we have seen, is made on all future goods, the value of means of production must suffer the same discount. The undertaker intentionally turns his wealth into productive goods: that is to say, he exchanges his money for raw materials, workshops, machinery, labour. In the production process these ripen into present goods, with the full value of present goods. The price he receives for these recoups all his expenditure plus interest. Interest thus proves itself, as before, the difference between the formerly future and now present goods. There is a third case of interest which has some features so puzzling as to demand separate consideration: this is the case of income obtained from Durable Goods, usually called Hire or Lease, and, in one case, Rent. The distinction between a perishable and a durable good is that, while both are the sums of their respective uses or services, the durable good is a sum extending over a period of time. But on our theory the later services of such a good must have a less value than the proximate services, and the total value of the good will be a sum of diminishing amounts. The "capital value" of such a good, then, will be to all appearance much less than the sum of the values really obtained during its lifetime. Here, as in the former cases, the services originally undervalued ripen to full present value in the hands of the owner, and the difference between the past and the present values, after providing for replacement of the good, is Interest. Thus if the owner of capital throws his parent wealth into the form of stone and lime, he possesses, in the durable shape of a house, a sum of future uses discounted according to their futurity. As each year passes one annual service is realised, and its value is thrown off, while each service still to be realised is one year nearer the present, and is thus one year more valuable. The house, as now containing one rent less, is less valuable, and this loss falls to be deducted from the gross return as wear and tear. But what is lost, be it noted, is not one annual service estimated at present value; it is the last future service of which the good is still capable,—for if all the services have moved up one step in value it is the value of the last service that drops off. The difference between the present service realised (gross rent) and the last service now deducted (economic wear and tear) is the net return of interest. Thus, again, we find that interest is the difference between the formerly future and now present goods. This somewhat difficult point is made clear from the concrete figures on pp. 343-345. It will be seen that in this we have a theory, not only of durable consumption goods such as houses, and of durable productive goods such as machinery, factories, and fixed capital generally, but a theory which carries us beyond our formal definition of Capital into the sphere of Land. In land we have a durable good whose services will be rendered to generations unborn: the "last" service is, therefore, to the calculations of the present, nil: there is no economic wear and tear—no need of any fund for replacement—and the gross return suffers no deduction but is all interest. To put it concretely. A man buys land as he buys fixed capital;—to get an interest from it. He buys its annual services or rents for a sum which represents the future services diminished in perspective. In other words the "capitalised value" is not an infinite number of years' rents but so many years' purchase. In his hands the future uses ripen into present: he gets the present value of what he bought as future value: as there is no wear and tear, nothing of this need be set aside for replacement: the whole gross rent is net interest. Ricardo, in pointing to the "original and indestructible powers of the soil" as the cause of rent, was right so far as his explanation indicated why the gross return was also the net, but wrong so far as it indicated that rent was due to the productiveness of this peculiar kind of durable good. The interest on a mine and the rent from land are essentially the same, although the one should wear out in thirty years while the other is "indestructible." These are the simple outlines of the Positive Theory. By it all three kinds of interest are traced to the one identical source, the increasing value of what are, either naturally or economically, future goods, as they ripen into present goods. But when dealing with the principal form of interest, that in which it appears as part of the profit of undertaking, Dr. Böhm-Bawerk makes a long excursus into the relation of wealth to labour, which is not the least suggestive and valuable part of the work. As it suffers somewhat, however, from its position in the text, I shall take the liberty of putting it in my own way. There are three markets in which the particular kind of "future goods" known as means of production are exchanged against finished present goods—practically against money: these are the Labour market, the Land market, and the market for Concrete Capital. Taking the Labour market as the most typical and the most difficult, its prominent features are these. On the one side are the Capitalist Undertakers. These are men presumably possessed of a surplus of wealth which they cannot advantageously use in their own consumption; to them personally, therefore, the present goods which constitute their surplus have per se no advantage over future goods. But in this surplus they have the means of waiting over lengthy processes of production. As their wealth increases the average period of production is extended, and with every extension the absolute productiveness of the process increases. On the other side is the majority of the population, the Wage-Earners. Their circumstances, as a class, are such that they cannot engage in any independent production that takes time. Even if they could, their production period would necessarily be short, and in competition with the long process the handicap would be too heavy. It may be assumed, therefore, that they will rather take service as "hands" than risk independent production. Evidently the big battalions are on the side of the capitalist, and in regard to this particular kind of present good, Labour, it seems to need no further demonstration that the price of it, namely Wage, will always be less than that of product, and thus allow the employer an interest. This is, in general terms and in a more dispassionate way, the Socialist answer. But, while admitting, as we very well may, that there is enough and to spare of exploitation in profit generally, the question is by no means so simple as Socialist theory would have it. If there is force on the one side there are certain forces which work steadily on the other. The Trade Unions give the labourers a certain power of waiting, and tend to force employers, as a class, to give up at least that portion of profit which is pure exploitation. Yet wage would not be explained if it were shown to be, in many cases, the exploitation of profit! The inter-competition of capitalists, again, has surely been effective enough of late decades to force the remuneration of capital towards an economic—as distinguished from an exploitation—level. If there is no economic level of interest, why has it not been wiped out of existence altogether? The argument is one that Socialism itself often uses; that, in some respects, the dependence of capital is as absolute as that of labour. It is necessary even for the status quo of wealth that the capitalist should bury his surplus in the fertile womb of earth, or in the living powers of man. But in the present state of economic development there is no question of mere preservation of wealth—there can scarcely be, so long as the seed sown returns some thirty, some fifty, some a hundred fold. The motive of the capitalist undertaker is certainly not preservation but increase. He changes his wealth into means of production in order that the value of the products should be more than the value of the costs. He is warranted by experience in assuming that, at the worst, the price realised will contain a certain minimum rate of interest; will, most probably, contain also a good wage for himself as master workman; and that, possibly, a happy conjuncture may give him a "profit " besides. (Of course I am speaking of the enlightened employer who knows that "wage," technically, is remuneration for work done, and does not claim as wage more than, say, the remuneration of a Prime Minister.) Where the employer and the capitalist are separate entities—as they always are to economic consideration—the motives also are distinct: the motive of the employer is wage and "profit"—using that ambiguous word in the loose meaning of gain beyond wage of superintendence and pure interest—while that of the capitalist is interest—with perhaps a chance of "profit." Now, as thus separated, the competition of capitals with each other becomes more intense; for capital becomes a suppliant, not only to the labourer who demands the minimum wage, but to the class of employers who expect a perhaps extravagant "wage of superintendence," and a "profit" besides. In this state of sharpened competition the insufficiency of the exploitation theory becomes manifest to experience. We are forced to see that there is a level of interest which no amount of competition normally levels away, and we conclude that this is the economic level. Where the inter-competition of capitals is the fiercest, the owner of wealth has not to content himself with the mere preservation and re-creation of his wealth—much less pay a premium to labour for keeping it—but gets his minimum 2¾% or 3% of interest. This explanation will be found if we turn from the question as between labourers and employers, and consider the larger question as between owners of present goods on the one side, and labourers and employers alike on the other. And here we come to Böhm-Bawerk's enunciation of a proposition which seems to me one of the most important in modern economics. It is that the supply of present goods, available in any community either as means of production to labourers or as subsistence to mere borrowers for consumption, is the sum of that community's existing wealth exclusive of land. No one nowadays hoards wealth, drawing on it as needed. Thanks to banking systems and facilities for investment, nearly all wealth that is not actually being consumed by the owners is made available to supply this double demand. Disregarding as before the demand for consumption, the effect of which is merely to lessen the amount of wealth available for productive borrowers—and remembering in passing that the agio on present goods is the joint result of these two collateral demands, we find this wealth confronting the demand of labour, transmitted through the employers for the means of subsistence during the production period. Now, thanks to well-known motives, wealth in normal circumstances increases faster than population. As it accumulates it becomes possible for the labourers to extend their processes. Seed-time and harvest become separated, not by months but by years, and the amount of wealth in a community, as enabling labour to bridge over the long time of growth, becomes visibly the condition of its average production period, and so of its average productiveness. Thus to him that hath much much is given: the rich nation is the heir of the economic promises. From this it is not difficult to see that the value of means of production must always lag behind that of finished products. There is always a demand for ampler means of living, and the condition of obtaining ampler means is—time to extend the production process. So long, then, as the wants of spiritual beings call for fuller and finer satisfactions, and so long as the working life rises to higher levels, so long will there be a premium put on the present wealth which makes more ample wealth possible. Thus we are justified in saying that the demand for means of production will always be greater than the supply, and interest, as the agio on such, will appear in the price of products. The superficial resemblance of this Subsistence Fund to the generally discredited Wage Fund of the classical economists will not mislead any one who enters into the heart of Böhm-Bawerk's theory. The difference between the two will be found in the few pregnant sentences on pp. 419, 420. In case of misunderstanding, however, two cautions may be given here. One is that by "means of subsistence" must be understood, not simply food, nor even the common necessaries and comforts of life, but all that goes to the maintenance of the workers, whatever their various levels of comfort. It is not a certain wage fund, provided arbitrarily by capitalist employers, that is available for the simple "subsistence" of the working classes: it is the entire wealth of the community that is available for the maintenance of all classes of workers. The caution is much needed quite outside of this connection. I am persuaded that many people think they have determined the "cost" and due reward of labour when they have found how many weekly wages of 20s. are contained in the community's stock of wealth. The mischief that this idea does, in making people think that a rise of wages is a social calamity, is, to my mind, very great. To economic consideration, however, the line is a vanishing one which divides Hodge's beer and bacon from Plugson's venison and champagne. Rightly considered, the prices of books, the stipends of clergymen and teachers, the seats at theatres and concerts are "expenses of subsistence," just as much as the labourers' bread and cheese—unless we are to limit the category of "workers" to the 20s. a week class. The other caution is that this wealth available for subsistence does not consist exclusively of goods already in the finished state. To put all wealth into this form, indeed, would be the greatest possible waste. What is required is, that the various means of subsistence should be ready when wanted, and this involves that, at any given time, the wealth of a country consists of products at all stages of maturity. To put it concretely:—At this moment the wheat is being sown that will feed human beings after next harvest, while the sapling is being planted that will not come to its full growth for a century to come: at the same moment, perhaps, the oak is being felled that began its growth a hundred years ago, and to-morrow the wood of it will enter into the framework of a threshing-machine which will extend its life-work over a score of harvests: sapling and tree, machine and wheat, are alike parts of that wealth which is available for the labourers' demand in its continuity. Remembering these cautions we can see the full import of this conception. It defines the true relation of wealth to labour in the following terms: The function of existing wealth is to subsist the workers during the interval between the beginning and the end of the social production period. This strikes us as strange mainly because of the bourgeois idea that wealth is the end and goal of labours, and the more vicious idea that labour is a tax on life. For certain purposes of economic study we may think of labour as the means, and consumption wealth as the end of production, but the economist falls into error whenever he forgets that economic life is an endless circle, where wealth, as subsistence, passes into muscle and brain, and muscle and brain pass into wealth again. Even when we rise—as the economist may do—to wider conceptions, and point to man's full free life as the goal of economic effort, we ought to recognise that the working life which we lead, and should lead, is at once an end and a mean. In working we live; and in working we produce wealth: this wealth, again, permits of freer work and fuller life. In correspondence with this, the type of labourer is not the man who produces on one day to consume on the next, but the man who consumes during his work day—who consumes while he produces—and, moreover, whose consumption increases with his production. The function of wealth, then, we say, is to support this working life, with its increasing claims, during its work. Thus instead of making wealth the final cause of industry—as the economist in virtue of his professional bias is apt to do—or making it the beginning and limit of industry—as the Wage Fund theory tended to do—this conception places wealth in the centre as the maintenance of the working world during its rise to higher and higher levels of working life. In other words, it puts the economic conception into line with the moral by making wealth simply the mean to the working life. If, then, interest is so purely a natural phenomenon, why has it met with so much covert dislike, and so much scientific opposition? There are at least three reasons. First, the element on which all interest is based, namely time, has come to be a peculiarly important factor in modern production. All things come to him who waits, and, in economic life, this describes the capitalist. But this fact involves that the labouring classes who cannot wait, and cannot compete with the productiveness of lengthy processes, are put in a position of peculiar dependence: hence the possibility of exploitation of wage, of usurious rates of interest, of unjust rents. Second, from a moral point of view, there is much that is objectionable in the fact that interest allows certain classes to live without working and to make this possibility hereditary in their families. Third, in this income there is no ratio between gain and desert. Those who have little must accept Savings Bank interest for their hard-earned shillings; those who have much have all the chances of bonds, mortgages, joint-stock investments and the like. All the same, so long as men do put a different valuation on present and future goods, interest cannot be prevented. Even a Socialist state could not prevent it: if by forcible means it were stopped between individuals it would still obtain between commune and labourer. The state in this case would replace the capitalist, and "exploit" the worker in the same way—although, it may be hoped, with a clearer view to the wellbeing of the exploited—but no organisation could make interest into wage. In Book VII. Dr. Böhm-Bawerk passes to the most difficult part of the subject, the Rate of Interest. Here, however, we shall find him using terms which are scarcely intelligible without some knowledge of the theory of value enunciated by Jevons and Menger, and now held practically as the fundamental doctrine of the Austrian school. The formulation of this theory, so far as was necessary to the theory of capital, occupies Books III. and IV. of the present work. It is not possible, unfortunately, in the short space at my disposal, to give anything like an easy account of this theory. I have already found difficulty enough in putting it into the compass of my own Introduction to the Theory of Valve, and all I can hope to do here is, perhaps, to assist the reader who finds any difficulty in the text. The essential points are as follows. Value is altogether based on utility, and the amount of value is determined, not by average, but by final or marginal utility. The subjective value of a good, as distinguished from its utility, lies in its being the indispensable condition of some satisfaction of want: the amount of value it obtains is determined by the last use to which it, or a similar good of the stock, is put in the then circumstances of want and provision for want. Thus the utility of a bushel of corn is given it by its power of supporting life: its value comes from the fact that it is so limited that some human want depends on it for satisfaction: the amount of its value is determined by the least use to which the bushel is economically put in the circumstances of the consumers on the one hand and the amount of the harvest on the other. Thus value has no absolute level; it is neither intrinsic nor relative to any personal or material average: it is always found in the relation of these two determinants of Want and Provision. Price, or Exchange Value, again, is a superstructure on this subjective value, determined by the competition of buyers and sellers with each other and among themselves. Under a simple barter system each party in a market would put a subjective value on the goods changing hands, as having a direct bearing on his own wellbeing, and would base the amounts offered and asked on this valuation. With organised industry comes the money valuation, where the comparative use value of goods to people generally becomes reflected on a money scale, and it becomes more definite and intelligible to say a thing is worth so many shillings than to say it is worth so many other things which admit of direct valuation in terms of satisfaction of want. Buyers and sellers, then, come together in markets with a definite valuation in their minds of what the goods or the money is worth to them. Thanks to the differences in subjective scales, it is the interest of both parties, and it is possible for both parties, to get an advantage by the exchange, although their interests diverge in regard to the amount of advantage that each may get. In this competition the goods pass from the "most capable" sellers to the "most capable" buyers, and the price is fixed between the valuations of the two "marginal pairs," viz. the last buyer and seller and the first unsuccessful buyer and seller. The level, again, of these marginal pairs is determined by the relation of the wants of both parties to their economical provision. It must be added that, in an organised economy, "utility" becomes a more complex conception. In the case of a manufacturer the utility of raw material is not the personal uses to which he can put his own products, but the uses to which he, as a manufacturer, can put the raw material, and these, again, are determined by the wants of his customers. The direct use of a good is here replaced by the employment of the good, and the "most useful " is translated into the " best paying," or "most remunerative." And this emergence of the professional producer, who makes for the market and to whom his produce has really no subjective value, simplifies the calculation of the marginal pairs by eliminating the subjective valuations of the sellers, and determines the price at the valuation of the last buyer. This law does not, as one would suppose, come into collision with the old law that value is determined by costs of production. The Law of Costs is one amply confirmed by experience as regards the great mass of articles produced under free competition. But this empirical law was never thought to determine the value of goods produced under any other conditions. The point on which it requires amending is that it should be expressed as a law of equality between costs and products. The old theory not only said that the value of goods tended to an equality with that of the means of production, but went on to put the causal relation exactly the wrong way about. As we have said, it is human want that gives value to goods; and that value is thrown back upon the means of production without which the goods cannot come into existence, and which are really the goods in a previous state of existence. In developed economy it is true that there comes a reflex influence from costs to products. If a group of means of production is capable of making goods which for the moment have different marginal utilities, the value that is transferred to the costs is the value of the last or marginal product made from these costs. In time, no doubt, competition forces this value again on to the other products, thus giving the impression that the value comes from the costs: but the fact is that the very value which these costs have, came from their product—not, however, from this or that particular product, but from the marginal one. Now the immediate point of connection between the theory of value and the theory of interest is that the problem of interest, in all its manifestations, is nothing more than a problem of price, the commodity bought and sold being—Present Goods. When, then, we go on to the final question, the Amount or Rate of Interest, what we have to remember is that here, as in price transactions generally, we have a resultant of subjective valuations, and that the determining elements we have to deal with are the extent and intensity of the subjective valuations of buyers and sellers. We have already seen what is the extent of this supply, and we know the motives which weigh with the owners and determine its intensity. The demand, again, comes from those who borrow to consume, and those who borrow to produce. Of these two co-ordinate demands we shall, as before, confine ourselves to the more important and more difficult, and to its most important section, the Wage-Earners, referring the reader to Böhm-Bawerk's last two chapters for the other sections. One way of looking at this demand would be to consider it, not as a direct demand from the wage-earners, but as interpreted and in certain definite ways modified by the undertakers. But it is perhaps better to consider the undertaker as the owner of capital, and take the question simply as one between Wage-Earners and Capitalists. In the following argument, then, we assume that the demand comes exclusively from labour, that the entire supply and demand meet in one single market embracing the whole community, and that all branches of production show the same scale of surplus returns. If wage were a fixed point—say determined at the subsistence level, as the Iron Law assumes—the calculation of the rate of interest would be comparatively easy. Say that every added £100 of capital permitted simply a further extension of process. Every extension of process assures an extra product. But where capitalist industry is well developed, the increments of product at each extension diminish relatively to those preceding, and there comes a point where the increase of product does not balance the expense of extension. To put it in familiar terms: an employer making 10% on his own capital, and offered loans at 4%, may profitably extend his business by borrowing although at every extension he makes a smaller profit. But when the extension made possible by the last loan returns him only 4%, there is no inducement to extend further. In this case the rate of interest would be determined by the "last dose of capital " economically applied, to use Thünen's phrase. But the great difficulty is that wage is not a fixed amount. The value of labour to the employer depends upon anticipated product, and that product depends on productiveness, and productiveness depends on length of process, and thus we have no fixed point from which to start. Böhm-Bawerk's solution is the following. The fixed point which we cannot get in wage is got in another way. As in the theory of money it is well known that any quantity of currency, small or great, will effect the necessary exchanges, so here the available quantity of present goods offered for sale will buy up the whole of the available labour. This is due to the circumstances already spoken of—the need of the labourers to hire themselves out, and of the capitalists to hire out their wealth. The few cases of unemployed labour and capital may be left out of account, as, obviously, it is only because of bad organisation that there are such. When the proportion of wealth and of labourers changes, all that is required is to contract or extend the production period. Granted this assumption, then,—that at any moment labour buys up the available "wage fund,"—the rate of interest is determined on the ordinary lines of the formation of price. The period will be extended till such time as the marginal employment of the unit of capital is reached; that is, till the extra product gained by extension of process is outweighed by the diminishing productiveness of the process. To put this difficult argument in a way perhaps more easy to grasp. Say that at any given moment there is a certain amount of wealth divided out among the wage-earners as subsistence. In any case there will be some agio on this wealth, and there will be an average production period. If now wealth increases faster than population—in Great Britain it increases more than twice as fast—there must be some disturbance of the equilibrium at present established. The new wealth will seek for employment, and find it—not, of course, in offering higher wages, for there is still nothing in increased wealth to increase product—but in extending processes. But as, presumably, we have now entered the stage of progress where extension of period gives decreasing surpluses, the return to this last employment of wealth will be less than before. This marginal employment will bring down interest generally: the rate will be determined by the last extension of the production period: wage will rise relatively to interest: and the equilibrium be found at a new level. If population increase, wealth and productiveness remaining constant, the converse will be the case: wage will fall and interest rise because the community is brought back to a production period where the absolute product is less, but the relative surplus, due to extension of process, is greater. If, lastly, productiveness increase, wealth and population remaining constant, the same phenomenon will take place, owing to the decreasing progression of surplus returns being for the moment checked. Thus we can see that the three concrete factors which determine the marginal extension of process, and thereby the rate of interest, are the amount of the national Subsistence Fund, the numbers of the working Population provided for, and the degree of Productiveness reached in the industrial development. To quote our author's words, "interest will be high in proportion as the national subsistence fund is low, as the number of labourers employed by the same is great, and as the surplus returns connected with any further extension of the production period continue high, and vice versâ." All this is in perfect harmony with the known facts of interest. It explains how as a country grows wealthy the rate of interest falls while wages rise; how an increase of population without a corresponding increase of wealth has a tendency to raise the rate of interest and depress wages; and, finally, how inventions which increase productiveness tend to raise the rate. It is not within the scope of my task here to follow Böhm-Bawerk in gradually adding on the other elements required to make the picture true to the actualities of life, and to show that they make no material change in the principles laid down. Enough has been said to give the outlines of a theory which challenges attention, both by the originality of its ideas, and the thoroughness of its treatment. My thanks are due, first of all, to Dr. Bohm-Bawerk, who has materially added to the value of this rendering of his work by giving it the stamp of his revision: to Professor Edward Caird, of Glasgow, and Professor M'Cormick, of Dundee, for many valuable suggestions and corrections: to Miss Christian Brown, of Paisley, who has again put me under heavy obligation by most carefully revising my proof-sheets: and to two other of my students who have spared me many weeks of thankless work by deciphering and rewriting my crabbed MS. GLASGOW, June 1891. It has taken me longer than I expected to follow up the publication of my Geschichte und Kritik der Kapitalzins-Theorieen by the present work. The heavy part of The Positive Theory of Capital lies in the theory of Interest. In the other portions of the subject I was able, at least on the whole, to follow in the footsteps of previous theorists, but for the phenomena of interest I had to put forward an explanation which breaks entirely new ground. I make this latter statement with some confidence. It is quite true that my explanation of interest rests on certain important ideas previously put forward by Jevons. But Jevons did not give them that special application which might have made them serviceable towards the explanation of interest—if they had been taken in connection with certain other lines of thought not then familiar to Jevons. Thus it is that, in his interest theory, Jevons remained under the spell of the old classical opinions, notwithstanding these new lights which came to him from another quarter and were applied to other ends. And, moreover, as the ideas common to both of us were not borrowed by me from Jevons, but discovered in entire independence—indeed long before I became acquainted with Jevons's writings—I feel bound to take on myself, for good or ill as events may prove, the entire and undivided responsibility for the interest theory now put forward. As regards the way in which I have treated the subject, I may be allowed to make two remarks. The method of statement adopted for the most part throughout this book is that which people generally—not without a suspicion of passing judgment on it—call " abstract." All the same I contend that my theory does not contain one single feature which is not based on true empirical principles. There are various ways of being empirical. We may obtain the facts of experience which serve us as foundations from economic history, or we may gather them from statistics, or we may try to get them directly in our common daily life by simple informal observation. No one of these three methods has any monopoly: each of them has its separate and peculiar sphere. In the nature of things the historical and the statistical method treat the matter of experience in much ampler fashion, and gather it from wider fields of observation; but for that very reason they fail, on the whole, to seize any but the larger and more apparent facts: they put economic events, as it were, through a large sieve, where a great many delicate and unobtrusive, but, perhaps, more essential features of economic life, escape unnoticed. If, then, we would rescue these and make them objects of economic investigation—and for very many scientific problems we simply cannot do without taking cognisance of them—there is nothing for it but to have recourse to the comparatively narrow but always impressive personal observation of life. Now I have endeavoured to make full use of all three methods of investigation. What help economic history and statistics could afford me in my task I have thankfully accepted and conscientiously made the most of, even where I have not explicitly mentioned the original materials with which I worked. But the matter thus obtained was not by a long way sufficient for my purposes. The theory of capital has to reckon with a number of facts which history and statistics have not recorded, partly because in their nature they could not, partly because attention has not hitherto been drawn to the importance of these facts. What, for instance, could history and statistics say about the question which is so important in the explanation of interest, as to whether there is in perishable goods an independent enduring use? How much, again, could we get from them as to the actual grounds on which are based the different subjective estimates of present and future goods? Or what have we learned—up till the present at least—as to the relation between the amount of the national subsistence fund and the average production period in a community? In matters like these one is obliged, for good or ill, to turn to other sources of information, and other paths of knowledge than those of history and statistics. And if proof be needed that I was right in doing so, and that indeed it was impossible for me to do otherwise, I may appeal to witnesses whose authority, as regards this question, is beyond dispute, namely, the leaders and adherents of the "historical school" itself. For full thirty years the historical and statistical tendency has been the prevailing one in German economics. During the whole of this long period there has not been even an attempt to solve the great problem of interest by the tools of the historical method, although this problem has always occupied a front place in economical discussion. Perhaps the nearest attempt to a really historical treatment was that of Rodbertus, with his famous statement of the different forms under which, in various ages, the ruling economic classes have always drawn the better part of the product of the nation's labour to themselves. But, accurately speaking, Rodbertus, in these historic flights, aimed only at winning assent to his exploitation theory, while the characteristic feature of that theory is that it makes use from end to end of the abstract deductive machinery of the classical school, the labour theory of Ricardo. Or to mention only the recognised leaders of the historical school;—Roscher has put together his interest theory out of elements taken partly from J. B. Say, partly from Senior—that is to say, altogether from " pre-historic " theory; while Knies, following Hermann, invents a theory of the "use" of goods, which not only has nothing in the world in common with history and statistics, but, as I at least believe, dispenses with any inductive foundation whatever, and is the result of simple speculation—and not even happy speculation. If, then, the historical economists themselves, when brought face to face with the problem of capital, have not trusted to their peculiar method, and have taken to a kind of investigation generally foreign to them, I cannot be reproached if I take the same course as they do. I am free—at least I try to be free—from any onesidedness of method. In my opinion there is no one royal road of investigation: to my mind that way is good which leads to the goal of knowledge in the individual case. And sometimes that will be the one, sometimes the other method, according to the different nature of the individual problems that present themselves. In the present case I imagine that I have employed the method of research which was most suitable to the special nature of the theoretical problems of capital—abstract in form, but empirical in essence; and indeed, as seems to me, empirical in a truer sense than can be assigned to the investigations which the historical school has directed towards the same end. The second remark I should like to make is this. The fundamental ideas of my interest theory are, I believe, unusually simple and natural. Had I been content to arrange these ideas in a more concise form, avoiding all casuistical matters of detail, I should have put forward a theory which, in small compass, would have produced the impression of being exceedingly simple, even verging on being self-evident. So far as power of carrying conviction goes, this would certainly have been an advantage, and, if I have forborne to seize that advantage, it was only after full consideration. The fact is that, in the theory of capital, there have been so many plausible views put forward and subsequently found false, that I must expect to find the public very critically disposed, and indeed must presume that my best and most careful readers will be the most critical. In these circumstances it appeared to me more important to make the structure of my theory secure than to make it easy and pleasant reading. Thus I decided to encumber my work with numerous demonstrations, details, exact figures, and so on, rather than leave room at critical points for doubts and misunderstandings. In this direction one circumstance gave me particular trouble. In a theory of any range and any difficulty there are points which, by reason of some casuistical peculiarities or other, are not always quite easily explained, even when the general principle which will give their solution is already known; and, so long as those points are not distinctly traced back to the general principle, they stand like so many living objections to its correctness. As it happens, there are a good many such points in the two theories so closely connected;—that of value and that of capital. Now in the theory of value I had experienced how unexplained questions of this sort may stand seriously in the way and hinder the acceptance of the best grounded general theories,—for I am convinced that people have been so long prevented from getting right views on the nature and laws of value only because they stumbled at certain striking facts, which, to hasty consideration, seemed to contradict these views, while in truth they were only complicated cases requiring casuistical treatment. To save my theory of capital from a like fate I tried to anticipate objections of this sort, and remove them by suitable digressions. Naturally I did not deal with all conceivable objections, but only with those which seemed to me likely to crop up in the minds of critical readers, and which, at the same time, seemed difficult enough to warrant a special explanation: all the same it gave me occasion to go into more detail than was favourable to the fluent statement of my theory. Thanks to all this I have arrived at a result as paradoxical as it is natural: that the very trouble which I took to clear difficulties out of the way has given my theory a certain appearance of difficulty. Unsuspicious of these hidden and dangerous rocks, many of my readers, I doubt not, would have sailed safely over them, while I, knowing them so well, and trying to steer a safe but laboured course, have made the journey long, difficult, and troublesome. I trust, however, that something may be put to my credit in this regard; for, after all, no one could very well expect to arrive at the solution of a problem of such recognised difficulty except through earnest and laborious thinking. I may at any rate take this opportunity of asking one favour of my readers;— that, if they have once read my theory with all its casuistical detail, they would go over it a second time omitting the detail. If in this way the leading ideas are put directly together again, and cleared of all superfluous elaboration, I venture to think that the theory will again produce that impression of simplicity and naturalness which is warranted by the simplicity of its constituent ideas; an impression which I may have sacrificed to a critical precaution that was perhaps exaggerated, but was not altogether without justification. This book was already well through the press when Carl Menger's Contribution to the Theory of Capital appeared in Conrad's Jahrbücher (vol. xvii. part ii.) I very much regret that it was then too late for me to make full use of that most interesting and suggestive work, and, in particular, that I could not do more justice to its author in my critical notice of the historical development of the conception of capital. Unfortunately by the time it appeared the first part of my book,—that which deals with the conception and nature of capital, and touches most closely on this work of Menger,—was already printed off. For the same reason I could not notice the important work of Wieser on Natural Value, which only came to my hands during the printing of my last chapter. INNSBRUCK, November 1888. In systems of Political Economy the word Capital and the theory of Capital are regularly met with in two distinct spheres; first, under Production, and, second, under Distribution. In the former case capital is represented as a factor or tool of production: as an instrument which men use to extort from nature the various forms of wealth unattainable by simple labour. In the latter case capital appears as a source of income or a rent fund; and we are shown how, in the division among the various members of society of that wealth which has been produced in common, capital acts like a magnet, drawing a portion of the national product to itself, and delivering it over to its owner: it appears, in a word, as the source of Interest. When we are told that capital assists in the production of wealth, and then again that it assists in the obtaining of wealth for its owner, we are apt to jump to the conclusion that the two phenomena are intimately and essentially connected, and that the one is the immediate result of the other—that capital can bring wealth to its owner because capital assists in the production of wealth. As a fact, Political Economy has taken up this idea only too readily and too completely. Captivated by the deceptive symmetry that exists between the three great factors of production—Nature, Labour, Capital—and the three great blanches of income—Rent, Wage, and Interest—the science, from Say's day till the present, has taught that these three branches of income are nothing else than the payment for the three factors of production, and that Interest in particular is nothing else than the compensation which capital receives for its productive services when the product is divided out among society. Propounded by various interest theories in various forms this idea has found its most concise and, at the same time, its most naïve expression, in the well-known "Productivity theories"—those theories which explain interest directly as the natural fruit of a productive power peculiar to and resident in capital.*1 In beginning the study of the theory of Capital, it cannot be too emphatically stated that this idea, simple and natural as it may appear, contains a prejudgment calculated to preclude unbiassed consideration of the problems of capital. If there were no other objection, the fact that the word capital is never used exactly in the same sense in the two spheres of phenomena must give us pause. True, all capital which serves as a tool of production is also capable of bearing interest, but the converse is not the case. A dwelling-house, a hired horse, a circulating library bear interest to their respective owners without having anything to do with the production of new wealth. If, in the sphere of distribution, the conception of capital thus embraces objects which are not capital in the sphere of production, this alone is sufficient to show that the bearing of interest cannot by itself be an indication of the productive power of capital. We have not to deal with one motive power transmitting itself to two different spheres; not even with two groups of phenomena which have grown up so intimately connected that the explanation of the one is got fully and entirely through the explanation of the other; but with two distinct classes of phenomena. Thus we have two distinct subjects, which give us material for two distinct scientific problems; and finally, we have to seek for the solution of these problems by two distinct and separate roads. It so happens, however, that these really distinct problems are accidentally linked together by one name; they are problems of Capital. It may be that, besides identity of name, we shall find many inner relations between the two series of phenomena and the two problems;—our investigation shall decide that later. But such relations are yet to be discovered; they must not be assumed; and unless we would give up all idea of being unprejudiced in our quest and in our conclusions, we must begin the inquiry free from any preconceived opinion of a necessary identity, or even of an exact parallelism, between the productive efficiency of capital and its power of bearing interest. Our division of the subject will correspond to this real independence of the two problems. In one part of the present work we shall take up the theory of Capital as a Tool of Production, and in another the theory of Interest. But we shall first devote a separate book to the attempt to obtain some insight into what Capital itself is, in conception and nature. Notes for this chapter See my Capital and Interest, 1890, p. 111. End of Notes Return to top
ALBANY -- The turkeys, cakes and pies served during the holidays can bring guilt and larger waistlines. That often leads to New Year's vows to diet and exercise. But all holiday foods needn't evoke images of clogged arteries, heart attacks and unbridled adiposity. Recent scientific studies show that at least two holiday foods, peanuts and pecans, can make people healthier when eaten in moderation. ''They can feel less guilty when they're eating peanuts and pecans because they're getting many good nutrients ... but they still have to watch their total calorie intake,'' said Ron Eitenmiller, a University of Georgia food scientist in Athens. Nutritionists have known for years that peanuts and pecans were high in Vitamin E and folic acid. Now, Georgia researchers have discovered that these commodities are also high in plant sterols -- fat-like substances that cause the body to absorb less harmful cholesterol. They also contain monounsaturated fatty acids, which can reduce the risk of heart disease. ''Plant sterols are considered to be a significant functional food component,'' Eitenmiller said. ''They aren't nutrients or vitamins, but they are really potent, effective food constituents. ''Plant sterols are now considered by the medical community and the Food and Drug Administration as another approach to lowering serum cholesterol,'' he said. ''The sterols inhibit the absorption of cholesterol.'' When Penn State researchers compared diets, people who got their monounsaturated fatty acids from peanut butter attained nearly the same health benefits as those who got fatty acids from olive oil. Eitenmiller and Phillip Koehler, another Athens food scientist, recently completed a study on Vitamin E and foliates in Georgia peanuts and pecans. They did the work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agriculture Nutrient Composition Laboratory near Washington, which publishes the nutrient values of various foods. The Athens researchers have developed a more accurate method for analyzing folic acid in foods. Their method has been adopted by the FDA and it is being accepted worldwide, Eitenmiller said. ''In actuality, before we started work ... the data was very poor and almost nonexistent,'' he said. ''Our data provides a new and better look at not only peanut composition, but the composition of a lot of foods,'' he said. Using their method, they discovered that peanuts have even higher levels of Vitamin E and folic acid than previously thought Almost all nuts are high in Vitamin E, an antioxidant that neutralizes compounds that damage living cells. Folic acid is needed to form red blood cells and to prevent birth defects. ''All peanut products are good sources of folates,'' Eitenmiller said. ''Folate is an unstable vitamin that is relatively short supply in our diets.'' Peanut consumption declined during the late 1980s and the early 1990s when nutritionists were recommending lowfat diets. Now they acknowledge that a moderate amount of fat from such things as olive oil and nuts can be beneficial.
other topics: click a “category” or use search box From TeachHUB! (www.teachhub.com), a classroom behavior strategy offered by Randi Saulter and Don Crawford, called the Teacher/Student Game. Nearly all human behavior is based on reaction to consequences: touch a flame and jump back; see a smile and give back a smile and learn to be friendly. The authors tell us that psychologists, scientists, and education professionals have determined a “magic ratio” for affecting behavior in others, whether they are adults or children. By following a three-to-one (3:1) positive to negative interaction ratio, you ought to be able to ensure better behavior and long-term success in the classoom. How It Works Set up the game before start of class. The teacher draws a “score card” somewhere prominent — on a white board, blackboard, paper — so it is visible to students and easily accessible. The teacher will be awarding points to the class or himself frequently. At the beginning of the class, the teacher explains the Teacher/Student Game and reviews rules and expectations. (It’s a good idea to introduce children to the game at the beginning of the school year. As the year goes on, review the rules.) We’re going to play a game, me against you. I think I can win because I’m really smart and I win this game A LOT! Here is how it works. You get points for getting things right, and for following the rules which are everyone responding, everyone keeping their eyes on the lesson, everyone waiting their turn to talk [insert your specific expectations]. But I get points whenever someone forgets the rules or makes a mistake! I bet I’m going to win. I’m really good at this game. Right away, you are naming your expectations; children straighten up and pay careful attention. Immediately give their team a point, acting disappointed. Say something like You guys have your eyes on me so well, that I have to give you a point. You’re already ahead! But I know you’re going to forget the rules and then I’ll win… Children immediately enjoy their lead in the game. They feel proud of their accomplishment. Ham it up a bit; act REALLY disappointed. The children try harder to beat you. Immediately give your students points for meeting all of your expectations — before they have a chance to forget. Give them points for answering correctly, keeping their eyes on the lesson, taking turns. Tell them what they did to earn their points. Gosh! I’m going to have to give you another point because everyone is paying attention. Darn! You’re ahead, but I’m going to catch up soon. Give yourself a point energetically, obnoxiously and gleefully whenever even one child needs a question repeated, doesn’t have her eyes on the book, interrupts you or talks to a neighbor. When you give yourself the point (on this VERY public chart) tell everyone YEA! I get a point because someone talked out of turn! I KNEW I was going to win… Be obnoxiously cheerful about getting a point. Make sure you are so annoying that they really want to beat you. If you do this right, they will hate letting you have even one point; they’ll be motivated to monitor their own behavior closely. Many teachers are reluctant to give themselves points. They ignore minor misbehaviors, afraid to discourage the kids. But the teacher should catch EVERY infraction and take every point possible. That way you enforce high standards and make children adhere to their most excellent behavior. The way to keep the students encouraged is to be vigilant in catching them being good. Keep the ratio of positives up. Catch them being good at least three times as often as you have to give yourself a point. It isn’t easy. Focus hard to catch students answering correctly, demonstrating attention, tracking in their books, looking at the teacher, answering quickly when called on. Make your positive statements brief and exciting; clearly identify both the behavior and the student. This is not for young students only. If you spotlight your competitive side and really appear to be tough, even high school kids will get into it. You always lose the game, but you win in the classroom. source: www.teachhub.com , article by Randi Saulter and Don Crawford. TeachHUB! is a free daily, one-stop shop for resources, top recommendations + bargains for teachers by teachers. tutoring in Columbus OH: Adrienne Edwards 614-579-6021 or email [email protected]
Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is the famous novel about nineteenth century Nigerian society and Colonialism’s impact on it. The book was written in 1958, in English. This short novel follows Okonkwo, an important man in Igbo society. The story covers a swath of Okonkwo’s life. He is wealthy, respected and successful. The tale explores the people that he has relationships with, including his multiple wives, children and friends. When he accidently kills a man he is sent into a seven - year exile to his mother’s home village. During this time European government and missionaries move into the area. The newcomers disrupt the life of the Iocal people. Okonkwo family and friends are divided as some convert to Christianity at the urging of the newcomers. There is violence between the Igbo and the Europeans. At its height, an entire Igbo village is massacred. This book works on several levels. The author delves into Igbo culture and society. Many pages are devoted to customs and folklore. The story covers such diverse topics as food, religion and marriage, just to name a few. The philosophy and message of this book is complicated. The story exposes the arrogance and wrongness of Colonialism. The Europeans bring death and chaos to the local society. There is also something ugly going on among the Igbo. Okonkwo is a brutal man and a murderer. He physically abuses his multiple wives. He devalues woman. Throughout the text, the author seems to be reminding us that within this society there is a streak of brutality, violence, a devaluating of the feminine. We find out that when twins are born they are left in the forest to die. These horrors reach a low point when Okonkwo murders the young boy that he has taken in as son. All of Igbo society is indicted as the killing was ordered by a religious leader. At one point, Nwoye, who is Okonkwo son, is shown to be enjoying the stories told be his female relatives. But sexism and the glorification of violence leads him to reconsider. “That was the kind of story that Nwoye loved. But he now knew that they were for foolish women and children, and he knew that his father wanted him to be a man. And so he feigned that he no longer cared for women's stories. And when he did this he saw that his father was pleased, and no longer rebuked him or beat him. So Nwoye and Ikemefuna would listen to Okonkwo stories about tribal wars, or how, years ago, he had stalked his victim, overpowered him and obtained his first human head…” It seems that the author is criticizing both European and Igbo society and actions. This book contains strong anti - violence and anti – misogynistic themes. The tale accomplishes this by shedding light upon the malignant effects of violence and the harmful affects of degrading women. There is a lot to recommend this work. In addition to the themes mentioned above, this is a wonderful examination of the positive aspects of Igbo culture. The commentary on Colonialism and religion is also complex and deserves a separate blog post. Okonkwo, despite his flaws, is a brilliantly crafted character. I recommend this book to those who appreciate serious literature as well as anyone who may be interested in learning about the Igbo culture.
The accounts from the 16th to 20th centuries regarding Muziano's life said he began work under the tutelage of Romanino, an imitator of Titian. Yet, a nearly autobiographical story of Muziano written by his confessor (unpublished until 1954) indicates instead that Muziano was born in Brescia, and left this town as a young man, and that his first apprenticeship was under Domenico Campagnola and Lambert Sustris in 1544–46 in the town of Padua. He then spent time in Venice until 1549, but moved permanently to Rome about 1550. He was known there as Il giovane dei paesi (the young man of the landscapes), but although he continued to draw and paint landscapes throughout his career, he aspired instead to grand manner figure painting. He painted historical painting in a style based largely on Michelangelo, giving great prominence to the monumental anatomy of his figures, even in works with ascetic saints as their subject. His Resurrection of Lazarus (1555) was painted for the Colonna palace in Subiaco. It established his fame; Michelangelo himself pronounced its author one of the "first artists of that age". The painting was later placed in the church of Santa Maria Maggiore above the artist's tomb; it was afterwards transferred to the Quirinal Palace, and now is in the Vatican Pinacoteca. The painting returns to a spatial organization and narrative composition more typical of the High Renaissance than of Muziano's Mannerist contemporaries. Muziano came to be the leading artist in Rome during the 1570-80s, painting in a style that appealed to Counter-Reformation patrons. He worked for Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este from 1560–66, and his frescoes for the Cardinal's villas in Tivoli could be seen in Villa d'Este. His most noted paintings include Circumcision, formerly the high altarpiece in the church of the Gesù (although now removed to a corridor behind the sacristy), paintings for three chapels in Santa Maria in Aracoeli, and St Jerome preaching to Monks in the Desert in Santa Maria degli Angeli. This last painting was one of two altarpieces that Muziano painted for St. Peter's Basilica during the time when Muziano served as superintendent of works for Pope Gregory XIII (the other painting, a "Mass of St. Basil" is lost, although it is recorded in an etching by Jacques Callot). Muziano also designed mosaics for the Gregorian Chapel in the basilica, and was responsible for re-founding the Academy of St Luke (Accademia di San Luca) in Rome (1577). His works can also be seen Santa Caterina dei Funari, the Galleria Colonna (portrait of Vittoria Colonna), in Orvieto (Museum of Cathedral), and in the church of San Francesco in Frascati. Anthology of works - "Cristo riceve gli ambasciatori del Battista" - Museo antico Tesoro- Loreto - Landscape with waterfall (drawing) - Three paintings Hercules steals the Apples of the Hesperides – Twelfth Labor (1565), Villa d'Este, Tivoli. Hercules slays the Stymphalian Birds – Sixth Labor (1565), Villa d'Este, Tivoli. \|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Girolamo Muziano.\| - Patrizia Tosini, Girolamo Muziano 1532-1592: dalla maniera alla natura (Ugo Bozzi, 2008). - Chisholm 1911. - "Resurrection of Lazarus". Vatican Museum. Retrieved January 26, 2012. - Catalogo istorico de' pittori e scultori ferraresi e delle opere loro., Volume 1; author Cesare Cittadella; published by Francesco Pomatelli in Ferrara, 1782, Page 162. - Freedberg, Sydney J. (1993). Pelican History of Art, ed. Painting in Italy, 1500–1600. pp. 344–345 Penguin Books Ltd. - Italy cyberguide entry - Brief bio of Muziano from the Web Gallery of Art - This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Muziano, Girolamo". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Everyday English workbook: English for Beginners English for Beginners is a Ladybird series designed for young people learning English worldwide. The emphasis is on word recognition and word learning through simple, clear text and colourful pictures and activities. Each workbook is accompanied by its own hardback title, re-enforcing the learning process in a structured but entertaining way. Everyday English Workbook contains more than twenty stimulating and enjoyable activities based on the useful, realistic dialogues illustrated in Everyday English. Each activity is clearly illustrated and each encourages writing, drawing, reading and understanding. Earn By Promoting Books Earn money by sharing your favourite books through our Affiliate programme.Become an Affiliate
- They were a late species of dromaeosaur, similar to Deinonychus but not as big, only six feet long and weighing maybe one hundred pounds. They probably had feathers and must have had a high metabolism, since they were bipedal but agile enough to kill prey with the large talons on their feet. For 10 points--identify these "speedy plunderers" who were smaller and less scaly than they appear in the - In the century after its publication, it averaged an edition a year and was translated into over thirty languages. The underlining in surviving copies suggests that readers paid more attention to the jokes and instructions on how to ride and dance with elegance than the conversations of Duchess Elizabeth of Gonzaga and her lieutenant Emilia, which dealt with philosophical questions of the necessity of noble birth and the role of warfare in the life of the well-bred Italian. For 10 points--name this set of instructions on good behaviour and courtly love written in 1513 by Baldassare Castiglione. answer: The Book of the Courtier or Il - She is not Joycelyn Elders, but she has advocated teaching children about masturbation as a more realistic safe-sex alternative than abstinence in her best-seller Promiscuities. Stances such as these have been controversial since she has reportedly been paid $15,000 per month by the Gore campaign for political strategy advice on how to appeal to women voters, including how to make him be perceived as an "alpha male." For 10 points--name this prominent feminist, author of The answer: Naomi Wolf - They are like humans in that they have bodily needs, are mortal, can do good or evil, and will eventually face salvation or damnation by Allah. They were thought to inspire poets, and Muhammed originally feared that his revelations were due to them. Christina Aguilera claims to be one in a hit song. For 10 points--identify these supernatural beings beneath angels and devils in Islamic mythology. answer: jinni or jinn (accept ifrit before - Its lobby features walls of Moroccan red marble, elevator doors inlaid with Japanese ash, and a ceiling covered with an Edward Trumbull mural entitled "Energy, Result, Workmanship and Transportation." Its seven-story pinnacle was assembled inside the building and, at the last minute, jockeyed into position, thwarting its competitors in the contest to become the world's tallest building. For 10 points--name this Art Deco masterpiece of William Van Alen, a 1,084-foot New York landmark notable for its gargoyles made of radiator caps. answer: Chrysler Building - Despite saying such things as "Since God has given us the Papacy, let us enjoy it," and "What profit has not that fable of Christ brought us," he was considered more pious than his Borgia predecessors. He formed the League of Mechlin to oppose France. A lavish supporter of the arts, he re-affirmed the indulgences which had been authorized by Julius II to finance the construction of St. Peter's, but these indulgences were not popular in northern Europe. For 10 points--name this pope who was driven to excommunicate Martin Luther. answer: Leo X or Giovanni de Medici - It was advertised with the tagline, "There is no future without it." Ruby Rhod couldn't figure out if he was more like Prince or Arsenio Hall, and Zorg was dumb enough to get blown up by his own bomb. It's a good thing Plavalaguna had those stones inside her, or everyone on Earth would have been crushed by a huge fireball of pure evil. These plot elements appear in--for 10 points--what 1997 Luc Besson movie starring Milla Jovovich and Bruce Willis? answer : The Fifth Element - His greatest memorial is his mortuary temple at Abydos, and his tomb is the finest in the Valley of the Kings. During his reign, the great hypostyle hall at Karnak was completed, and many public works were restored after the troubled years of the 18th Dynasty. He reclaimed Palestine and parts of Syria for the Egyptian empire and pushed the Hittites under Muwatallis back to the Orontes River. For 10 points--identify this king of the 19th Dynasty, the son of Ramses I and the father of Ramses II. answer: Seti I - His Bathroom had seamless germ-free surfaces, a mirror which didn't steam up, a "Fog Gun" vapor shower that only required one cup of water, and a toilet which neatly shrink-wrapped excrement for composting. His House was heated and cooled by natural means, had downdraft ventilation to reduce the need for vacuuming and dusting, and had rotating closets to bring you your clothes. His Car got 30 miles to the gallon, went 120 miles an hour, and could do a 180 degree turn in its own length. For 10 points--what inventor of the Dymaxion House, Car, and Bathroom also invented the geodesic dome? answer: R(ichard) Buckminster Fuller - The name may have been derived from the Spanish for "flat country." Formed by the confluence of the Tugaloo and Seneca rivers, it constitutes the boundary between Georgia and South Carolina as it flows southeastward past Augusta and its namesake city, which was the objective of Sherman's march to the sea. For 10 points, give the name of this river and colonial capital of Georgia, which has nothing to do with a terrain characterized by an open tree canopy above a hot, dry grassland. - His last words were, "Oh dear, I think I'm becoming a god." Milestones on the way to immortality included his proconsulship in Africa, where he was so miserly that the people pelted him with turnips, and his successful military campaign in Judaea, which was interrupted by the death of Nero. For 10 points--identify this Roman general who, after the brief reigns of Galba, Otho, and Vitellius, ended a civil war by becoming emperor and founding the Flavian dynasty. - Dedicated to the Biblical command of Exodus 22:18, it was first published in 1486 by Johann Sprenger and Heinrich Kraemer, and it would go through 28 editions over the next century. Sprenger and Kraemer had received a papal bull from Innocent VIII two years earlier, which gave the book an aura of papal authority as it advocated the use of torture in securing confessions. For 10 points--identify this handbook on how to hunt witches. answer: Malleus maleficarum or The Witches' Hammer - Their first recording was in the Virtual Earth sound studio around February, 1977, and their first live performance was in Paris on May 28, 1977. They only recorded one album, which contains the songs "Visions of the Night," "New World Blues," and "Lady of Delight." The band that followed them reworked their song "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" and made it famous. For 10 points--identify this rock group, the precursor to The Police, which also shares its name with a highly radioactive isotope of element 38 which has a 28-year half-life and is the product of - "When at the first I took my pen in hand/ Thus for to write, I did not understand/ That I at all should make a little book/ In such a mode: nay I had undertook/ To make another, which when almost done,/ Before I was aware, I this begun." begins the author's apology for this book. The story proper begins, "As I walked through the wilderness of this world, I lighted on a certain place where there was a den (the gaol), and I laid me down in that place to sleep: and as I slept, I dreamed a dream." For 10 points--name this 1678 book about the adventures of Christian, written by answer: Pilgrim's Progress - He was not Jesus, but he was murdered on an Easter Friday. He was not the Archangel Michael, but the army that he commanded was described as "the glory of the coming of the Lord." He was not Moses, but he is famous for delivering a people from bondage. He was not the patriarch Abraham, but you might say that he was a patriarch Abraham. He still was not Jesus, but he is well-known for saying that "a house divided against itself cannot stand." For 10 points--identify this sixteenth President of the United States. answer: Abraham Lincoln - Its creators admitted that their intent was to design a product for a company that would be bought out quickly. Internet users are now starting to auction off their numbers on eBay and attracting bids if the numbers are small enough. The numbers identify users of this service that allows instant communication through the internet via a protocol first created by the Mirabilis company. The UINs in question are--for 10 points--used by what instant-messaging program now owned by America Online? - In his 1903 tone poem Symphonia Domestica, a huge orchestra describes 24 hours in the life of his family, including bathing the baby, quarreling, and having make-up sex. He and his wife appear again as the protagonists of the 1918 opera Die Frau ohne Schatten, a bizarre Wagnerian version of Mozart's The Magic Flute. For 10 points--name this composer more famous for the opera Der Rosenkavalier and the tone poem Also Sprach Zarathustra. answer: Richard Georg Strauss - His grandnephew, who was named for him, had the last name Pickard and developed the crystal detector radio receiver, a point-contact rectifier which was the forerunner of the transistor. He himself wrote antislavery pamphlets for William Lloyd Garrison's Liberator, as well as church hymns which are still sung today, but he is better known for sentimental poetry about nature and incidents in rural life. For 10 points--name this Quaker poet, influenced by Robert Burns, whose works include "Maud Muller" answer: John Greenleaf Whittier [note: his grandnephew was named Greenleaf Whittier Pickard, and probably got beat up a lot at school.] - The Interrotron, which allows persons to look directly into the camera while maintaining eye contact with the interviewer, was used to speak to mole-rat specialist Ray Mendez, lion-tamer Dave Hoover, topiary gardener George Mendonca, and designer of bug-like robots Rodney Brooks. For 10 points--these men appear in what 1997 Errol Morris documentary, whose title comes from a paper by Brooks subtitled "A Robot Invasion of the answer: Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control - The Wiedemann-Franz law shows that, for this class of materials, the ratio of the thermal conductivity to the electrical conductivity is directly proportional to the temperature. The constant of proportionality, called the Lorenz number, is independent of the particular material, a result which supports the theory of the free electron gas used to describe the properties of--for 10 points--which materials which include rubidium, cesium and sodium and are useful for body piercings and chain link fences? - Her death at the age of 34 tormented her father, who had found great comfort in their correspondence, until his own death nine years later. The daughter of Maria Gamba, she was considered unfit for marriage because of her illegitimacy and was placed into a convent. There she took vows as Sister Maria Celeste, a name she chose out of respect for her father's fascination with the stars. For 10 points--identify this Venetian nun, whose 124 letters to her father, the discoverer of four moons of Jupiter, form the basis of a 1999 book by Dava Sobel. answer: Galileo's Daughter (accept Virginia) - Called hamestagan by Zoroastrians, it is inhabited by the faithful who have fallen off the Bridge of the Requiter and are doomed to suffer extreme heat and cold. In Laetentur Caeli, Pope Eugenius IV authoritatively defined it according to Second Maccabees 12:45, which states, "...If he was looking to the splendid reward laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin." For 10 points--name this haven for souls which can be purified by indulgences bought on their behalf by the faithful on earth. answer: purgatory (do not accept: limbo)
Energy Initiatives \| Feature The Big Green Chicago Public Schools has developed and begun implementing a comprehensive strategy for going green, one that encompasses information technology, facilities, and education to reduce the district's environmental impact, cut operating costs, and help build students' awareness of the environment. - By Bridget McCrea Implementing environmentally friendly initiatives across more than 600 schools is no easy task, but that's exactly what Suzanne Carlson had in mind when she came on board as Chicago Public Schools' (CPS) director of environmental affairs in 2007. At the time, the city's mayor Richard M. Daley was talking a lot about his vision for making Chicago "the greenest city in the country." As part of that plan, the mayor was installing environmental advocates within every city department and agency. "Under that directive, I joined CPS," recalled Carlson, who had her work cut out for her when it came to spearheading district-wide environmental initiatives. Individual schools and departments within the district had instituted their own energy conservation and recycling plans, she said, but the district lacked a comprehensive strategy for going green. "When I came here, I introduced an environmental action plan that addressed our top priorities, and a way to [achieve] them," Carlson said. The proposal revolved around reducing the district's environmental impact while teaching students to be environmental stewards. It laid out 11 goals and 26 strategies to engage the entire district in environmental stewardship, from energy conservation to school gardening. Carlson said the plan put particular emphasis on the use of alternative energy, which it has been buying since 2007. In 2010, the district upped its green power use and found itself at the top of the Environmental Protection Agency's current Top 20 K-12 Schools List as a result of that effort. The district currently buys more than 107 million kilowatt-hours of green power annually, representing 20 percent of its total electricity use (According to the EPA, this equates to the removal of 20,000 passenger cars from the nation's roads.) The district also produces solar power on-site at 16 schools, where solar power usage totals more than 165,000 kWh annually. Last year CPS also earned the Green-e Energy Program certification from the Center for Resource Solutions, which runs an independent certification and verification program for renewable energy and greenhouse gas emission reductions in the retail market. "Our certification went into effect in July, when we signed our new renewable energy contract," said Carlson. "With those [elements] in place, we were immediately identified as number one for the EPA's environmental leadership program." Of course, becoming a "green" powerhouse in the K-12 sector requires more than just a purchase order for alternative energy. Carlson said the district takes a comprehensive approach to "minimizing impact on the environment and teaching students to be environmental stewards." All schools recycle paper, cardboard, newspaper, steel cans, plastic bottles and aluminum cans, for example, with top recyclers earning rewards every semester. Carlson said some schools also compost food waste--outdoors or in worm bins--to reduce waste and teach students about decomposition, and that all schools participate in energy-saving competitions that are tracked through an online energy monitoring system. A new pilot program for 2011 will find individual schools receiving monetary rewards for reducing their energy use. Such incentives go a long way in getting individual principals on board with CPS' overall "green" vision. "Principals always like to see resources coming back to their local schools," Carlson said. "Through this program, we're telling them that if they have a 5 percent reduction in energy use, compared to the prior three years, then they'll receive money back for their schools." Carlson said getting all 600 schools and their administrators, teachers, and students to accept and implement the plan has been her department's biggest challenge. "It's hard to get them to make it a priority, and to keep them engaged," said Carlson, who is sometimes left out of the loop on school-specific initiatives. A more centralized approach, she added, could benefit the entire district. "We can have a much bigger impact if we go out for bid as a district (for a recycling program, for example)," she said, "rather than just having a few individual schools involved." To help spread the word across the district and to the community about its green efforts, CPS has created a Web site dedicated to the cause. It includes information about environmental action plans and primary initiatives within transportation, energy, waste, water, and usage. The site highlights green initiatives that range from simple moves like ensuring that all of the district's 120,000 computers are shut down at night, to more complex measures such as constructing LEED-certified school buildings. Carlson said she hopes these and other efforts will positively impact the district's 400,000-plus students, and help them become environmentally conscious citizens. As part of that charge, CPS is rolling out age-appropriate science curricula and lesson extensions that will teach students about green power, carbon management and energy efficiency. "At the end of the day, this is all about educating the next generation," said Carlson. "If we can convince our students to be part of these programs, and to get involved, engaged and committed over the long haul, then everyone benefits." Bridget McCrea is a business and technology writer in Clearwater, FL. She can be reached at [email protected].
David Bourget (Western Ontario) David Chalmers (ANU, NYU) Rafael De Clercq Jack Alan Reynolds Learn more about PhilPapers Behavioral and Brain Sciences 4 (4):515-629 (1978) An individual has a theory of mind if he imputes mental states to himself and others. A system of inferences of this kind is properly viewed as a theory because such states are not directly observable, and the system can be used to make predictions about the behavior of others. As to the mental states the chimpanzee may infer, consider those inferred by our own species, for example, purpose or intention, as well as knowledge, belief, thinking, doubt, guessing, pretending, liking, and so forth. To determine whether or not the chimpanzee infers states of this kind, we showed an adult chimpanzee a series of videotaped scenes of a human actor struggling with a variety of problems. Some problems were simple, involving inaccessible food as in the original Kohler problems; others were more complex, involving an actor unable to extricate himself from a locked cage, shivering because of a malfunctioning heater, or unable to play a phonograph because it was unplugged. With each videotape the chimpanzee was given several photographs, one a solution to the problem, such as a stick for the inaccessible bananas, a key for the locked up actor, a lit wick for the malfunctioning heater. The chimpanzee's consistent choice of the correct photographs can be understood by assuming that the animal recognized the videotape as representing a problem, understood the actor's purpose, and chose alternatives compatible with that purpose \|Keywords\|\|chimpanzee communication cognition consciousness intentionality language mind primate intelligence\| \|Categories\|\|categorize this paper)\| \|Through your library\|\|Configure\| Similar books and articles Roger Fouts & Erin McKenna (2011). Chimpanzees and Sign Language: Darwinian Realities Versus Cartesian Delusions. The Pluralist 6 (3):19-24. Daniel J. Povinelli & Jennifer Vonk (2006). We Don't Need a Microscope to Explore the Chimpanzee's Mind. In Susan L. Hurley & Matthew Nudds (eds.), Rational Animals? Oxford University Press. 1-28. Mary Lee A. Jensvold, Jacquelyn C. Buckner & Gina B. Stadtner (2011). Caregiverchimpanzee Interactions with Species-Specific Behaviors. Interaction Studies 11 (3):396-409. C. M. Heyes (1998). Theory of Mind in Nonhuman Primates. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 21 (1):101-114. Maria Ujhelyi (1999). Territorial Song and Facial Gesture: A Language Precursor in Apes. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 22 (3):572-573. Lawrence H. Davis (1989). Self-Consciousness in Chimps and Pigeons. Philosophical Psychology 2 (3):249-59. Daniel J. Povinelli & Jennifer Vonk (2004). We Don't Need a Microscope to Explore the Chimpanzee's Mind. Mind and Language 19 (1):1-28. Nobuyuki Kawai & Tetsuro Matsuzawa (2001). “Magical Number 5” in a Chimpanzee. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 24 (1):127-128. Kristin Andrews (2005). Chimpanzee Theory of Mind: Looking in All the Wrong Places? Mind and Language 20 (5):521-536. William M. Baum (1998). Why Not Ask “Does the Chimpanzee Have a Soul?”. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 21 (1):116-116. Added to index2009-01-28 Total downloads270 ( #912 of 1,008,729 ) Recent downloads (6 months)30 ( #2,937 of 1,008,729 ) How can I increase my downloads?
What You Learn about Investment And Also What You Do Not Know About Financial Investment. A financial investment refers to a financial purchase involving exchange of one sort of financial instrument for one more. Financial investment can be made on stock market, bonds, products, insurance, mutual funds, gold and property. A service is additionally an investment. Consequently, the revenue or loss in any kind of company does not just depend upon the proprietor, but likewise on the person who has actually placed his money in organization. How can you make sure that you are making the best investment choices? To invest smartly implies to devote with your financial objectives to the optimum degree so as to realize your economic objectives. The initial step to spend intelligently is to establish your financial goals. To recognize your economic goals, experience your yearly budget plan to see where you are investing needlessly. You must likewise look at your costs as well as see how much you can cut or just how much you can enhance your cost savings. gold ira cost When you have actually established your financial goals, evaluate the investment choices like bonds, mutual funds, supplies and also property. Do your research study and learn about the advantages and disadvantages of every investment alternative. Figure out whether a choice provides you a larger return or not. If you think that there are any type of risks associated with a financial investment, then don’t adopt it. For supplies, you can choose mutual funds or supplies. You require to examine the principles of supplies as well as identify the firms that make sense to you. You can speak with a graph of all the stocks listed on the stock exchange. There are many stock market study companies that will certainly provide you with comprehensive details about different fields of stock market. You can also go with on-line study. Property is another type of investment. You can buy rental income. This is where you rent out your residential property and obtain returns for it. One of the most common investment concept is getting a house as well as rent it out. You require to compute your monthly services as well as determine the capital admiration. See what price of capital gratitude you will be hopping on your investment. Savings accounts are likewise a great location to make financial investments. If you contend least a five percent share of cost savings in your savings account, after that you can conveniently buy supplies and also bonds. Nevertheless, if you have other financial savings, like checking accounts, after that you can choose individual securities like bonds, mutual funds, CDs as well as cash market funds. Your finest choice is always mutual funds as these offer the maximum return as well as you pay minimal maintenance. how to set up a gold ira If you have a long term strategy, like conserving up for a retirement, after that you can raise your financial savings over a long period. A Specific savings account (ISA) is the most effective suited alternative for such investors. If you are trying to find greater returns, you can choose the stock exchange. An Individual retirement account, or Individual interest-bearing accounts resembles an interest-bearing account yet it has added advantages like tax deferment, adaptable costs as well as development going beyond that of a common account. Likewise, there are no restrictions on the type of investments that you can make in an Individual retirement account. Lastly, it is imperative to understand your very own danger tolerance and also determine how much you will certainly be investing. If you are spending for a long term in the stock markets, then you require to expand as well as buy various other instruments like bonds, mutual funds, bonds, and also CDs. If you have a short-term or even moderate term vision, then you can invest in supplies and also bonds only as well as avoid investing in other possessions. There are a variety of alternatives readily available as far as purchasing shares is concerned. You can select between investing directly in a company through getting shares and then marketing them for a revenue or investing through the stock exchange. Both these methods have their very own advantages and also negative aspects. For instance, direct investing provides a clear picture of just how the possession would carry out over a long-term duration, whereas the stock market enables you to quickly acquire details on the financial efficiency of a firm with its supply rates. Supplies supply an uncomplicated method of spending cash without any troubles. The main benefit of supplies is that they offer immediate accessibility to the latest financial investment news. It provides liquidity in certain types of investments. These investments do not have any type of limitations like the bonds as well as dividends as well as additionally provide a great possibility of profit. However, it is very important to be careful about the timing of your purchases and also sells. An additional sort of investment which has actually ended up being fairly prominent over the years is an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF). An ETF is a specific kind of financial investment product which allows investors to trade shares of an underlying profile of protections on the stock exchange. An ETF is generally set up in a trust which holds numerous financial investments in numerous different industries of sectors as well as currencies. gold backed ira information The other most typical technique of investment is the mutual fund. A mutual fund is an investment fund managed by a specialist supervisor that invests the funds of his customers according to his predictions regarding the direction of the marketplace. The vital advantage of mutual fund over other kinds of financial investment is that it gives high go back to its financiers in a relatively brief amount of time as compared to the collective growth of the financial investment in a conventional mutual fund. Nevertheless, both kinds of financial investment offer high dangers, depending upon the selection of securities in a mutual fund as well as the total monetary scenario of the business that provides the fund. So, it is essential that comprehends the differences between these two investment choices before deciding on what type of investment would best match them.
The University of Maryland Medical School has discovered taste receptors found on the tongue are also in human lungs. The specific receptor in the lungs is for tasting bitterness. Of exceeding interest is the lung receptor being connected with the muscle that regulates airway contraction and relaxation. The Maryland scientists feel they can help treat asthma by manipulating the bitterness receptor. Perhaps this will mean lemon or rhubarb inhalers!
There are so many types of curriculum to choose from when you start homeschooling. How do you decide? Learn about the differences and similarities between traditional, unit study, Charlotte Mason, and a few other options. As you begin researching your options for homeschool curriculum, be sure to learn as much as possible about the advantages or disadvantages of each method. I don't want to get too technical or delve into the learning styles or your particular style of teaching because those things have already been thoroughly covered in several helpful resources written by popular authors such as Mary Pride, Cathy Duffy, and Teresa Moon. Traditional – This option provides student textbooks and teacher's support materials. It may also offer supplemental resources such as flash cards or other visual aids. It is designed for a typical teacher-classroom scenario and not necessarily suited for your child to work independently, although it may be possible in the higher grades. Unit Studies – This form of study selects a particular "unit" to study such as space, computers or horses. Similarly, a unit study could cover a time period such as the Middle Ages, and take an entire semester, year or even two years to complete. Basically, you elect to study all or most of the subject areas surrounding this planned topic of interest. Math and additional grammar lessons may need to be added to fulfill requirements particularly in the high school grades. It is also possible to design your own unit study or purchase packages that can be completed in a month or quarter's time. There are freebies to be found on the Internet, too, at places such as Homeschool Share. Classical Education – This form of educational resource adheres to the features of the Trivium, which emphasizes rhetoric, logic, and grammar be taught to students. Online Homeschooling – Student work is presented online and parents' role as teacher is greatly diminished, if not replaced by the "virtual instructor" and virtual classroom. Parents may still give tests and keep student records although most of that can be done electronically, too. Charlotte Mason – This type of curriculum includes quality real books rather than workbooks and "dry" textbooks. Typically, they are referred to as "living books." A few other types of curriculum for homeschoolers include the unschooling, eclectic, and Montessori forms. These are more aptly referred to as "styles" because they follow a strong belief about the method in which a child learns best. Those who hold to the Unschooling type of curriculum believe that children learn best through a natural or organic method of immersion in life. They encourage free play and expression and allow learning to occur "along the way." Any resources used will be those that interest the child although the parent may make certain resources available. The Eclectic method is very similar to the unschooling method because it is child-driven. But, most recently, I see that it has also come to refer to a style of teaching where resources from multiple publishers are used. So, a family might be considered eclectic if the Mom uses ABeka for English, Saxon for math, and some of Sonlight's resources to teach history to all of her children. The Montessori plan also encourages individual expression by students however it is more structured than the Unschooling way. There are also numerous age-appropriate resources developed to foster creativity and expression, through play, for those who utilize this form. It has been my experience that the best type of curriculum is the one that you and your child will most consistently complete. Okay, not trying to "cop out" here but what use is it to talk about studying a plethora of subjects with your child yet only accomplish one or two? We have had great fun doing unit studies and they are probably my most favorite type of curriculum. However, when pregnant plus caring for a toddler, for example, it was easier to consistently complete a more packaged and complete program such as Christian Liberty Press or Bob Jones. At times like those, I might elect to just add a science unit to our studies that year. I own several Montessori resources and enjoy using them very much. However, I am not that relaxed in my teaching at home as to allow our children the absolute freedom of Maria Montessori's program. Currently, I am utilizing a more of an eclectic type of curriculum, pulling resources from what I feel is best for our children. I utilize traditional books, Charlotte Mason-style dictation, spelling, and reading, and endeavor to complete unit studies that interest our children. I hope this helps as you continue your search for selecting your best type of curriculum to teach your children at home. Don't forget to "like" on FB if you enjoyed this page! Other Pages You Might Like: Homeschool Curriculum Reviews Homeschool Curriculum Choices Annual Best Homeschool Curriculum Picks
Study Shows How Discrimination Creeps Into Grading Practices A study released this month by Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government uses an innovative experimental design method to get an intricate picture of how cultural discrimination plays into the grading decisions that teachers make. For their study, researchers Rema Hanna and Leigh Linden traveled to India, a country known for its deeply entrenched caste system. The researchers then recruited elementary and middle school-level students from all levels of society to take part in a contest. Students took a battery of tests in mathematics, language, and art and were told that the highest-scoring student in each age group would win 2,500 rupees, or $58, which is about half of their parents' average monthly income. I'd say that's pretty high stakes. Likewise, 120 teachers from both government and private schools were recruited to grade the test and were paid about $5.80 for their efforts. The tests, however, were randomly assigned different student characteristics. One student, for instance, would be listed on a cover sheet as a member of the Brahmin caste, the highest of India's four social groups, while another might be described as being in the lowest caste, the Shudra. The tests were also graded separately by a research staff member who had no knowledge of any of the students' characteristics. As might be expected, the results showed that teachers, on average, assigned scores to students from low castes that were 3 percent to 9 percent lower than those of students who were described as being from a high-caste group. What was particularly interesting, though, was that teachers from low-caste groups were driving most of that discrimination; no evidence of bias could be found for teachers from high-caste groups. And they tended to direct it most often toward the lowest-performing students in the low-caste group—the students who presumably best fit the stereotype. On the other hand, the researchers did not find any evidence that teachers were grading boys' or girls' tests any differently—except in the cases of the highest-performing girls, who were graded slightly more harshly than their high-performing male counterparts. (Incidentally, check out the Web-chat that I moderated on the gender gap at the top in mathematics and science. Could this be another possible explanation?) Another new wrinkle in this study: Teachers' caste biases seemed to lessen as they got closer to the bottom of the test pile. The researchers hypothesize: "It appears that when grading students early in the process, when the overall distribution of scores in unknown, teachers may use the caste of a student not as a signal of performance, but rather as a signal of where the child will eventually land in the overall distribution of tests." Hanna and Linden suggest that schools can counteract some of that bias by taking time to familiarize teachers with new tests. This is all important, of course, because a long line of studies have documented what they call the "Pygmalion effect" in education. That is, children tend to fulfil their teachers' expectations for their performance. That's one strike that disadvantaged children don't need—in any society.
Tag: Fluorosis/Caries Relationship Showing 1 of 1: Moderate/Severe Dental Fluorosis In its “moderate” and severe forms, fluoride causes a marked increase in the porosity of the enamel. After eruption into mouth, the porous enamel of moderate to severe fluorosis readily takes up stain, creating permanent brown and black discolorations of the teeth. In addition to extensive staining, teeth with moderate to severe fluorosis are more prone to attrition and wear – leading to pitting, chipping, and decay.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently released its World Energy Outlook 2015. The report forecasts world energy production and consumption through 2040. The IEA argues that world oil prices will not return to $80 a barrel until 2020, that renewable energy along with nuclear power will make up 45 percent of electricity production in 2030, that Asia will drive continued increases in natural gas consumption, that China’s energy demand will begin to level off around 2020, and that India’s energy system will need an investment of $2.8 trillion over the next 25 years with the majority used to build its electricity system. Oil Production and Consumption The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that oil prices will not return to $80 a barrel until 2020.[i] Further, the IEA warns that continued prices at low levels (around $50 per barrel) could lead to oil supply shortages in the future because the world will be forced to rely on Middle Eastern producers since most non-OPEC oil producers would be priced out of the market. Low oil prices have produced “unprecedented declines in investment” in oil production and refining. Major oil companies canceled 80 projects worldwide this year because of low oil prices and cut capital spending by about $22 billion—20 percent. Investment is expected to decline another 20 percent next year, making the world again rely mostly on OPEC producers, risking a return to the strategic oil crises of the 1970s.[ii] Low prices are forcing oil companies to abandon high-cost projects in the United States, Canada, Russia, Brazil and parts of Africa. IEA expects U.S. shale oil output to drop by 2.5 million barrels a day by 2020, eliminating more than half the gains made during the shale revolution. IEA believes that new shale drilling in the United States will pick up once prices reach $60 to $70 a barrel, but shale oil producers in Texas, indicate that the price may be closer to $50 to $55 a barrel as advances in hydraulic fracturing technology are cutting drilling costs. Below is IEA’s expectation of shale oil production in the United States between 2015 and 2020 based on varying oil prices. According to the IEA, the oil industry needs $650 billion in new investment each year to keep output steady as old wells are depleted and the decline rate steepens. If this 2-year drop in investment occurs, it will be the first time since the 1980s that investment will have declined for two consecutive years. A protracted period of low oil prices near $50 a barrel would increase the Middle East’s hold on oil exports from 50 percent to 75 percent, leaving little spare capacity should a crisis arise. This highly concentrated level of oil exports from the Middle East will bring about energy security concerns with Asia being particularly vulnerable. IEA expects America’s oil consumption to drop by a quarter by 2040 due to fuel efficiency standards (CAFE) for cars and trucks, cutting oil demand by 4 million barrels per day. According to the IEA, renewables made up half of all new global electricity generation last year, and it is expected to account for 60 percent of all new investment in power over the next quarter century–a $7 trillion expansion. Renewables are expected to overtake coal around 2030, becoming the largest source of electricity. Wind power is expected to increase by 300 percent to 1,400 gigawatts and solar to increase 500 percent to 1,066 gigawatts. Solar energy made up just one gigawatt of electricity globally in 2000, but increased to 176 gigawatts last year. Because the share of electricity generation from hydro, wind, solar, other renewables and nuclear increases to about 45 percent in 2030, carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector remain flat despite electricity demand growing by more than 40 percent. (See chart below.) According to the IEA, the growth rate of global demand for energy will fall to just 1 percent a year by the 2020s (from 2.5 percent a year a decade ago) as consumption in the United States and the European drops in absolute terms, breaking down the linkage between energy use and GDP. Globally, natural gas faces strong competition from renewable energy and coal. In the IEA forecast, developing Asia accounts for nearly half of the increase in global gas demand and 75 percent of the increase in imports by 2040.[iii] The IEA expects China’s energy demand boom–the largest in history–to be almost over as the country switches from a heavy industry economy to a service economy, requiring 85 percent less energy for each unit of future economic growth. The agency expects China’s energy use to start to flatten beginning in 2020, despite having 500 million vehicles on the road within a generation. By 2040, IEA expects China’s hydropower, wind and solar power to equal that of America and Europe combined, and supply nearly a third of its generation. China’s net oil imports are expected to be almost five times that of the United States. Despite the growth in shale oil, the United States is still expected to be a net oil importer in 2040.[iv] The 240 million people living in India without access to electricity will drive the largest surge in global energy demand, overtaking China as the world’s largest user of coal and boosting oil demand to 10 million barrels a day–roughly equivalent to China’s daily demand now.[v] By 2040, India’s energy demand is expected to be close to that of the United States, but its demand per capita will be 40 percent below the world average. The IEA believes India will import 90 percent of its oil by 2040, as its production “falls well behind the growth in demand,” and will outstrip the oil imported into the European Union. India’s policymakers and private sector will need $2.8 trillion to meet the nation’s energy needs over the next 25 years, and of that, about three fourths of it would go toward building power plants and boosting electricity capacity. India is expected to progressively shift into renewable energy, similar to China, but with a time lag. Renewables are expected to generate about a quarter of India’s power in 2040.[vi] The International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2015 expects oil prices to remain around $50 a barrel until 2020, when they will each $80 per barrel. Low oil prices results in OPEC’s share of oil exports to increase from 50 percent to 75 percent, creating an energy security issue akin to the 1970s. U.S. shale oil production is expected to decrease unless oil prices reach $60 to $70 per barrel. The IEA expects China’s energy boom to taper off as it moves from a heavy industry economy to a service economy, allowing India to drive the surge in global energy demand, overtaking China as the world’s largest user of coal and boosting oil demand to 10 million barrels a day. [i] International Energy Agency, World Energy Outlook 2015, November 10, 2015, http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/weo2015/#d.en.148701 [ii] Telegraph, World energy watchdog fears 1970s oil crunch as Mideast regains stronghold, November 10, 2015, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/11986070/World-energy-watchdog-fears-1970s-oil-crunch-as-Mid-East-regains-stranglehold.html [iii] International Energy Agency, World Energy Outlook 2015 presentation, November 10, 2015, http://www.iea.org/media/weowebsite/2015/151110_WEO2015_presentation.pdf [iv] UPI, IEA forecast drags on crude oil prices, November 10, 2015, http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Energy-Industry/2015/11/10/IEA-forecast-drags-on-crude-oil-prices/2671447165931/ [v] Fuel Fix, IEA: Cheap oil era could boost reliance on Middle Eastern crude, November 9, 2015, http://fuelfix.com/blog/2015/11/09/iea-cheap-oil-era-could-boost-reliance-on-middle-eastern-crude/ [vi] U.S. News, Low Oil Prices Deepen Dependence on Mideast Oil, November 10, 2015, http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2015/11/10/frenemies-forever-faced-with-low-oil-prices-us-reliance-on-mideast-oil-may-return-to-the-1970s
Vasculitis is an inflammation of blood vessels in the body. It happens when the blood vessels are incorrectly targeted by the immune system, whether due to an infection, medication, or another disease. This can restrict blood flow and cause damage to tissues and organs. This can damage veins, arteries, and capillaries. When a blood vessel gets inflamed it can: - Make it difficult for blood to flow through, as the vessel gets smaller - Close completely, to avoid blood from flowing through - Stretch and so much weak that it bulges. It is known as an aneurysm and can cause severe bleeding inside the body if it bursts. Several forms of vasculitis exist but most are rare. Vasculitis, however, may affect one or more organs, and maybe long-lived (chronic) or short-lived (acute). Although certain forms of vasculitis are more common in certain groups of people and among those suffering from specific diseases, this disorder can affect everyone. Symptoms of vasculitis may result from direct damage to the blood vessels or indirect damage to tissues (such as nerves or organs) with damaged or reduced blood supply (ischemia). Symptoms differ depending on the size and position of the damaged blood vessels and the degree of damage to the organs involved. There may be, for example, the following: - Skin: rash with bluish-purple patches (haemorrhages) or blotches (purpura), hives, small bumps (nodules), red spots (petechiae), dilated blood vessels (livedo reticularis), or sores (ulcers) on the lower legs. - Peripheral nerves: tingling, numbness, or weakness in the affected limb. - Brain: Confusion, seizures, and strokes. - Digestive tract: stomach pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, and blood. - Heart attacks: Angina and heart attack. - Kidneys: elevated blood pressure, fluid accumulation (edema), and defective kidneys. - Joints: discomfort or swelling between joints. When to Call a Professional If you experience unexplained fever, weight loss, exhaustion, or malaise (a general feeling of sickness), with or without areas of rash, muscle weakness, breathing problems, chest pain, or other symptoms mentioned above, call your doctor. What causes vasculitis is not entirely clear but genetics, infection and the immune system tend to play a role. The immune system, which is the part of the body that normally battles infection, can attack cells of the blood vessel by mistake resulting in inflammation. Many medical professionals believe that vasculitis is an autoimmune disorder. Vasculitis can affect individuals of any age, race, or gender. Smoking and living with a chronic infection, such as infectious hepatitis, can put you at an increased risk of developing vasculitis. Cancer, other drugs, and other illnesses are known to cause inflammation can also cause vasculitis. Doctors do not know exactly why Vasculitis happens. Vasculitis may occur at any age, or in any sex or race. But the risk can increase by some factors, such as: - Having autoimmune disorders like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and scleroderma. - Having Infections like hepatitis B, hepatitis C, or viral illness. - Blood cancers. Vasculitis can cause damage to the blood vessels, rendering them thick, thin, narrow, or scarred. It will restrict blood flow so that the organs and tissues do not get the oxygen and nutrients they need. Many humans can never suffer vasculitis complications. Many patients may encounter problems with arthritis, nose, or sinus. Stronger risks include: - Vision loss or blindness. - Infections like pneumonia and sepsis (blood infection). - Limb loss. - Organ damage including to lungs, heart, kidneys or brain - Blood clots and aneurysms Can You Prevent Vasculitis? The following suggestions may help: - Choose a healthy diet. Eating healthy may help avoid possible complications, such as thinning bones, high blood pressure, and diabetes, that may arise from your medications. Select a diet featuring fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, and lean meats and fish. When you are taking a corticosteroid drug, ask your doctor if you need to take a supplement of vitamin D or calcium. - Get routine vaccinations. Being up to date on vaccines such as the flu and pneumonia may help avoid complications that may result from the medications, such as infection. Chat about vaccines with your doctor. - Exercise most days of the week. Regular aerobic activity, such as walking, can help you reduce bone loss, hypertension, and diabetes that could be associated with corticosteroid usage. This protects your heart and your lungs too. Furthermore, many people find that exercise boosts their mood and overall sense of health. If you don’t perform the exercise, continue slowly, and gradually build up. The doctor will help you prepare the correct fitness program. - Maintain a strong support system. As you cope with this condition friends and family can help you. If you think it would be helpful to talk with other people who are living with vasculitis, ask a member of your health care team about connecting with a support group. - Understand your condition. Know about vasculitis and its treatment all you can. Know the possible side effects of the medications you are taking, and inform your doctor about any changes in your health. - Go ahead with your treatment plan. Your treatment plan could include daily visits to the doctor, more tests, and blood pressure checks.

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