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The Best Sugar Free Holiday Cookie Recipes!
This listing has just been updated to include 22 great cookie recipes!
These cookies are perfect for holiday baking.
I like that many of the recipes also have options for keto, low carb, and even gluten free baking.
Be sure to see my entire recipe listing!
You will however, find plenty of sugar free, keto and low carb diet recipe ideas.
Not only dessert recipes, but some tasty meals and appetizers ideas too!
The Best Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
I have been told that this recipe is The Best Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies. But to be honest with you, there are few chocolate chip cookies that I will turn down.
This recipe is for those of us who love our cookies but, not all of the sugar that can come with them. Luckily, we can have our cookies and eat them too while we avoid sugar.
While chocolate chip may not be the number one favorite cookie for everyone, I would guess that it would place in the top three for most folks. This could have something to do with the variety of ways that you can make these yummy cookies.
See The Best Sugar Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Sugar Free Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
An amazing recipe for the best Sugar Free Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies. These cookies however are also cookies that are soft and chewy with keto and gluten free options.
If you like chocolate with chocolate then you will probably really like this recipe for Sugar Free Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies. This is especially true if you are wanting to not have a lot of sugar in that great tasting cookie!
See Sugar Free Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Sugar Free Brown Butter Pecan Cookies
This delicious recipe for Sugar Free Brown Butter Pecan Cookies has options for low carb, keto, and gluten free cookies as well.
Sugar Free Brown Butter Pecan Cookies are what you get when you mix sweet and salty in a cookie. However, this delicious version is made without adding a bunch of sugar to it!
See Sugar Free Brown Butter Pecan Cookies.
Sugar Free Lemon Shortbread Cookies
This recipe for Sugar Free Lemon Shortbread Cookies features two of my favorite things. I am a fan of both lemon anything and shortbread cookies.
Really, shortbread is known for its buttery taste. That buttery taste is enhanced by the crunch that the cookie makes in your mouth when you bite into it. It is no wonder why shortbread is a holiday season favorite!
See Sugar Free Lemon Shortbread Cookies.
Sugar Free Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
I like this delicious and easy recipe for Sugar Free Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies. This is because they can be made low carb, keto, or even gluten free as well.
As you may expect, this recipe is based upon that famous cookie with a chocolate candy in the middle recipe. Hence, there are many people who would refer to this cookie as the "Chocolate Kiss Cookie".
See Sugar Free Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
Sugar Free Snickerdoodle Cookies
This recipe for these delicious and easy to make Sugar Free Snickerdoodle Cookies has gluten free, low carb, and even keto baking options included!
However, this is that cookie that is especially popular during the fall and holiday seasons. I like to think of this cookie as a fun version of a regular sugar cookie because it has extra texture with a bit of cinnamon on top. Snickerdoodle cookies however are a bit different from sugar cookies. What you may first notice about the Snickerdoodle is that it is a different texture from a sugar cookie. That is, the Snickerdoodle is a more fluffy cookie than the average sugar cookie is.
See Sugar Free Snickerdoodle Cookies.
Sugar Free Ginger Snap Cookies
These delicious and festive Sugar Free Ginger Snap Cookies can be made low in carbs, keto friendly or even gluten free if desired.
This recipe is something that many people have been asking me about for a while. So, it just seemed logical that I would figure out a way to make these cookies happen. As you probably already know, Ginger Snap cookies are a standard cookie to eat during the holiday season.
See Sugar Free Ginger Snap Cookies.
Sugar Free Soft Pumpkin Cookies
This delicious and seasonal recipe for Sugar Free Soft Pumpkin Cookies can also be made gluten free, low carb, or keto as well.
To be honest, it is hard to notice that this sugar free cookie tastes any different from the regular sugared pumpkin cookie. I think that likeness in tastes between the two cookies has something to do with the pumpkin that is added. What I should say is that this cookie is more about the pumpkin than it is about the sugar cookie that is part of the recipe.
See Sugar Free Soft Pumpkin Cookies.
Sugar Free Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
The recipe for Sugar Free Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies features that famous taste that we expect from a cookie such as this one. Not only are we getting that great taste of a chocolate cookie with this, we are also getting a bit of spice to go with it.
This sugar free cookie certainly is a chocolate cookie both in taste and looks.
Most specifically, a chocolate cookie made with the same ingredients that we would use to make sugar free hot chocolate. I know that you would probably agree that hot chocolate is a great tasting chocolate beverage especially during certain times of the year (hello holiday season!).
See Sugar Free Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies.
Jump to see the newly added Recipes
Sugar Free Red Velvet Cookies
This is a great cookies to eat during the holiday season. However, Red Velvet cookies are also nice for Valentines day or any day as well. You may have enjoyed a Red Velvet Cake at some time. Red Velvet anything is impressive thanks to its red color. However, there is also a bit of difference in the ingredients that are used in Red Velvet.
See Sugar Free Red Velvet Cookies.
Sugar Free Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Crinkle cookies that do not have all of the added sugar in them. I like that we can enjoy these cookies. I always love seeing the wonderful variety of cookies that pop up during the holiday season. While we love the usual cookies such as chocolate chip or sugar, sometimes we want something a bit different. That is one reason why crinkle cookies are so popular this time of the year.
See Sugar Free Chocolate Crinkle Cookies.
Sugar Free Shortbread Cookies
I know that shortbread cookies really are more about the butter than anything else. However, shortbread do normally contain a bit of sugar as well. While I would probably never cut back on the butter, at least during the holiday season, I would cut back on the sugar.
There is a lot that you can do with a shortbread cookie recipe.
Obviously, you can simply roll or press the dough into the shape of your choice. As I mentioned, I love putting my shortbread dough through a cookie gun. However, I probably should mention that a cookie gun is a cookie press.
See Sugar Free Shortbread Cookies.
I have updated the Sugar Free Cookies List with 10 additional recipes!
- Sugar Free Caramel Thumbprint Cookies
- Keto and Sugar Free Almond Butter Cookies.
- Sugar Free Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies.
- Matcha Sugar Free Snickerdoodle Cookies.
- Ultimate Sugar Free S'More Cookie Recipe.
- Sugar Free Keto Shortbread.
- Also, Sugar Free Jam Filled Cookies.
- Keto Sugar Free Mint Cookies
- And, Sugar Free Cinnamon Meringue Cookies.
- And, Sugar Free Lofthouse Style Cookies.
Keep up to date with my recipes
You can check out my guide on baking with sugar alternatives on Amazon
I have some great tips on which alternatives may howewver work in a recipe such as this one.
Be sure to follow me on facebook and subscribe to my recipes via email to keep up to date as well.
Want more sugar free cookie recipes??
Check out this sugar free recipe book!
These are The Best Sugar Free Holiday Cookie Recipes! Most recipes include options for low carb, gluten free, and or keto cookie as well!
You can see items that have been featured on my Sugar Free Sunday Spotlight here.


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Countries interested in hosting a FIFA event are now spoilt for choice. FIFA has invited its 209 member associations to register their interest in the Women's World Cup 2019, Club World Cups from 2015 to 2018, Beach Soccer World Cup 2017, U-17 Women's World Cup 2018 and the U-20 Women's World Cup 2018.
With women's football growing in popularity in recent years, FIFA will be particularly hopeful of a large number of members applying to host the Women's events. "The development of football for girls and women remains one of FIFA's top priorities," it said in a statement on Thursday.
FIFA said it would prefer the Women's World Cup and U-20s World Cup events to be hosted in one country. "In principle, FIFA would prefer the FIFA Women's World Cup 2019 and the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup 2018 to be hosted and organised by the same member association."
The Women's World Cup 2019 will involve 24 teams, while 16 teams will compete in the U-20 Women's World Cup 2018.
"The FIFA Women's World Cup has grown significantly in stature and significance over the last few editions. Now with 24 teams, it enjoys the second-biggest profile of all FIFA's flagship events," FIFA said.
"The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup is the second most important women's FIFA event. The so-called 'springboard for the stars' tournament serves as a staging post towards the FIFA Women's World Cup, not only for players but also for the hosts."
The Women's World Cup 2010 in Germany holds the attendance record of 395,295 spectators, achieving an average global in-home audience per live match of 2.8 million.
The bidding timeline for these women's competitions requires the member associations that wish to host these events to submit a declaration of interest by 15 April 2014. The deadline for delivery of the hosting agreement together with all the signed bidding documents is 31 October 2014, with the final decision on the hosts currently scheduled to take place at the first FIFA Executive Committee meeting in 2015.
Club World Cups
After successful editions of the Club World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, Japan and Morocco – which will also host the 2014 edition– FIFA has also opened the bidding processes for the 2015-2016 and 2017-2018 editions. Two host nations will host the events for two years.
Member associations that are interested in hosting the event are invited to submit a declaration of interest by 30 March 2014. The complete set of bidding documents has to be provided by 25 August 2014 and the Executive Committee will select the host in September 2014.
Beach Soccer World Cup
2017 will mark the ninth edition of the biennial Beach Soccer World Cup. Sixteen teams will participate in the ten to 12 day final competition, which requires just one stadium. "The location of the venue should reflect the sun, sea and sand of the Copacabana beach, the birthplace of beach soccer," said FIFA.
Member associations should declare their interest in the Beach Soccer World Cup by 15 April 2014 and submit their definitive bids, including all signed bidding and hosting documents, by 1 October 2014. The host will be appointed by the Executive Committee at its meeting in December 2014.

subset: commoncrawl


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Furnaces | Installation, Repair, Replacement & Inspection | Rhode Island (RI)
If you're like most families in the Providence, Pawtucket or Woonsocket, Rhode Island area, you're using a furnace to heat your home in the winter. And it's easy to see why – with the efficiency levels of modern furnaces, they're the perfect way to keep warm! At McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, our mission is to make sure your furnace works as smoothly as possible to keep your family warm all winter long. So whether you have a gas or oil furnace, call us today if you need furnace repair, furnace replacement, furnace inspection or furnace installation!
Furnace Installation
Your furnace's operation through its entire life, including its efficiency and how often it needs repairs, is almost completely dependent on how well it is first installed. So if high heating bills and frequent furnace repairs sound like things you don't want to deal with, call McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing! We've been doing business in Rhode Island for over 100 years, and thousands of families count on us to provide expert furnace installation services in the Providence, Pawtucket or Woonsocket, Rhode Island area. If you want reliable furnace installation service, call McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing today!
Furnace Inspection & Repair
The best way to ensure your furnace will last the whole season is by having a furnace inspection before the season starts! If it's starting to get chilly and you're getting ready to turn on your furnace, call McKee Bros.! We'll tighten the bolts, lube up the parts and check out your unit to make sure will provide total comfort through the season.
If a furnace inspection turns up some issues that need to be taken care of, we can handle those too! We can provide any furnace repairs you may need, large or small. Even minor issues should be corrected right away – you don't want them to escalate to full breakdowns! If you need any kind of furnace repair in Rhode Island, call McKee Bros. today!
Learn more about furnace repair in Rhode Island »
Furnace Replacement
As reliable as a properly installed furnace is, all furnaces have a limited life span. When it comes time to replace your furnace, you know who to call – McKee Bros.! Our Rhode Island furnace replacement experts can remove your old unit and replace it with a new, energy efficient furnace that will last you for years. Whether your old furnace has completely broken down or you simply want to upgrade, call McKee Bros.!
No matter what furnace services you need in the Providence, Pawtucket or Woonsocket, Rhode Island area, call McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing! Our furnace service experts can install, inspect, repair or replace your furnace so you can get years of quality heating.
Learn more about furnace replacement in Rhode Island »
Why call McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing?
McKee Brothers has a highly trained professional staff dedicated to serving your heating, cooling, plumbing and oil needs. Top quality oil, state-of-the-art equipment and a commitment to service that exceeds customer expectations makes McKee Brothers the full service company of choice.No matter what your furnace service needs are, call McKee Bros. Heating, Cooling & Plumbing today!


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We are proud to present our Cleaning Professionals in your area.
These are your Team Leaders with It's Maid Day. You can choose your team or allow us to pick your team. The choice is always yours.
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1 batch of fermented raw bread (recipe from our Gourmet Raw)
Ripe avocados sliced
Pickled red onions or fresh onions thinly sliced
Pickled jalapeños chopped
Yellow capsicum thinly sliced
Dehydrated Jerusalem artichoke crumb
Microgreens or desired herbs
Celery pearls
1. Slice the raw bread and dehydrate until crispy and fully dried in the dehydrator.
2. Then lay the thinly sliced yellow capsicum.
3. Place the sliced avocados on the top.
4. Sprinkle some Jerusalem artichoke crumb, add the jalapeños and onions. Top with celery pearls.
5. Decorate with desired flowers and micro greens. Serve!


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Coco Jones is becoming one of our favorite style icons! Not only is the 24-year-old former Disney actress absolutely slaying it on screen as the fabulous Hilary Banks in the Peacock reboot of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, simply entitled Bel-Air, but she's also giving us major fashion envy off-screen too, turning heads on every red carpet, appearance and Instagram post she makes. While she's certainly embodying the OG Hilary Banks' knack for fashion in the highly acclaimed reboot, she definitely seems to be taking cues from her character's innate love of fashion and applying them to her real life too, because let's face it, Ms. Coco Jones can do no wrong when it comes to setting trends and serving LEWKS!
From the Bel-Air red carpet premiere when she absolutely stole the show in her stunning purple gown to her most recent appearance at the Billboard Women in Music event and everything in between, the actress certainly knows a thing or two about setting trends, and we're absolutely in love with her effortless style! While we can't pick just one fashion moment that we love from the budding actress, here are five of the most recent style moments from Coco Jones that we love!
5 Style Moments From Coco Jones That We Love was originally published on hellobeautiful.com
1. All Black Everything
Source:Coco Jones' InstagramHere, Coco Jones was spotted at a Revolve event where she donned this sexy, curve-hugging, black cut-out dress. She accessorized the look with gold, strappy sandals, and a black clutch and wore her hair in a blunt bob that we absolutely loved!
2. Turning Heads At The Billboard Women In Music Event
Source:Coco Jones' InstagramFor this look, the actress killed in this green and blue cut-out wrap dress for the Billboard Women in Music event where she certainly turned heads as she stopped and posed for the cameras in this effortless slay.
3. Bel-Air Premiere
Source:Coco Jones' InstagramFor the Bel-Air red carpet premiere, Coco turned heads in this purple, cut out gown and was certainly one of the big stars to grace the carpet that evening.
4. Birthday Slay
Source:Coco Jones' InstagramCoco gave us a sexy slay for her birthday in this curve hugging leather mini dress. She accessorized the look with a mini lime green purse and wore her hair in a side swooped high pony tail as she served face for the 'Gram.
5. Pretty In Pink
Source:Coco Jones' InstagramThe beauty sat pretty in pink in this photo where she donned a long-sleeved pink dress with a deep v-neckline. She added pops of color to the look by rocking clear heels with yellow and blue straps and wore her hair straight down with a middle part to show off her gorgeous face.


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The website you are at is the online store www.hammer.gr items through the Internet of the Greek company (sole proprietorship) which belongs to CHRONOPOULOS KONSTANTINOS, with Tax Identification Number: 045796957 based in AGION SARANTA 47, 18346 MOSCH. , phone 210-4820033 and email: [email protected].
Any use of the website www.hammer.gr and any transaction made through it, requires the prior consent of the user to the following terms.
These terms and conditions of Use and Sale, govern the contractual relationship between the Company and the individual who wishes to use the Website and to purchase the products available through it. In order to be able to access the Website, the visitor is invited to carefully read these Terms of Use as upon entering it is presumed that he has received knowledge and accepts these terms. Prior to the use of the website, the company recommends and urges all visitors and customers to carefully read these terms of sale, especially regarding the right of withdrawal and the pricing and payment policy, as well as to visit this at regular intervals to examine any amendments to these terms. If you do not agree to any of the terms of use and policies, references, commitments and obligations described in these terms of use, please do not use the website. Every Customer who purchases products from the Website is considered to have fully and unconditionally accepted the Terms of Use, as any amendments are valid on the day of the order. These "General Terms of Use" are subject to change on your own initiative and without notice.
The use of the website www.hammer.gr is addressed only to adults (18 years and over), who have the right and legal capacity, who are obliged to provide us correctly and with complete personal information, such as email, the address to which the order will be delivered, name and more. You also accept that we have the right to contact you with the information you have submitted to us during your order, only regarding the processing of your order. In addition, in case it is deemed necessary, we are authorized to carry out credit checks.
Www.hammer.gr ensures (according to the current legislation) the confidentiality of personal data, which includes, among other things, that all personal data of our registered and non-registered customers will not be disclosed to third parties, used inappropriately or granted.
All the content of the website www.hammer.gr, the photos, the texts, the logos, the dolls themselves and any other products, as well as their sketches etc. are added by the Greek law to the relevant provisions according to N. 2121/93 "On Intellectual Property". They may be used by third parties only in mutually agreed cases.
All items of our online store are unique, handmade, made with great care and quality materials. There may be some differences in the product you will receive compared to that of the photo, both in size and color. Www.hammer.gr cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies, ambiguities or omissions. In addition, for children under 3 years, regarding small items, such as buttons that are likely to be present in our products, we advise you to tell us to replace them. We recommend the presence of an adult where necessary. The company does not bear any responsibility for possible improper use of our products.
The items of this website are available for the whole region of Greece but also for abroad. We are at your disposal to contact us for any clarifications regarding the cost or the estimated delivery time.
Each user browses the Company's website in order to search for the products that interest them and their characteristics. For the selection of products and their quantities, it makes the necessary entries in the respective fields. Each user can supply more than one product with each transaction he makes. The finalization of the order requires in each case the confirmation from the user that he has read and agrees with these terms. The order is considered complete only if the user receives an email notification that his order has been registered in the company's system. The Company is not responsible for any error in the user's email address if this is due to incorrect registration of his data by him. In this case the order is considered complete and the user must pay the price if the company proves that it sent an email to the email address indicated by the user.
The cancellation of the order can be done at any time the user wishes until the registration of his data in the respective payment pages. If the process is completed and the user wishes to cancel it, your immediate contact with the Company is required. Depending on the stage at which the order is, the user will be informed about the cancellation process and any costs (eg shipping, if already done). Please note that in case of cancellation, depending on the stage of the order, shipping costs may apply, even if due to the amount of the canceled order no costs were foreseen.
We cooperate with ELTA for shipments within Greece. Delivery times for ready-made items are 1-3 working days for Attica, 1-5 working days for the rest of Greece, and 1-2 working days for inaccessible areas. For foreign missions we cooperate with ELTA. Delivery time is 3-5 working days within the European Union and 8-15 working days for other countries.
> During the festive season there will be significant delays in shipments outside Athens, due to the workload of transport companies as well as the measures taken due to COVID-19! Thanks for your understanding.
The available payment methods are:
• Pay Pal.
• use a credit or debit card via Vivawallet
• Bank account deposit
• Payment by cash on delivery, with an additional charge of € 2.50.
The Company undertakes not to make any use without the prior approval of the user. The Company in no way discloses, publishes, sells, exchanges personal data and information, except in exceptional cases when it is imposed by a Public Authority, court, etc., always observing the procedure provided by law.
All information related to personal transaction information is secure and confidential. The passwords used to identify your user ensure absolute security of the user's personal information. It is recommended that you change your personal password at regular intervals for security reasons and not to disclose it to third parties. All information related to the personal data provided by each user is used only to ensure direct and effective communication with the Company, to execute orders correctly (payment and delivery) to verify the identity of the user who transacts. The information collected aims to measure the number of visitors to the online store, to determine the requirements of customers for more products and to facilitate transactions with the Company. In order to process orders by card, a collection of personal data of the user is required. Any documentation and document that may be required to certify and state the identity of the customer remains strictly confidential. The submission of personal data by the user means that he consents to the use of this data by the Company for the reasons mentioned above. In no other case shall the personal data be transmitted or disclosed without the prior consent of the user and the conditions are ensured that the personal data is not subjected to any illegal processing. At any time, the user reserves the right to be informed or to object to the further processing of his data in accordance with the applicable legislation for the protection of personal data.
Like most sites on the internet, www.hammer.gr uses cookies so that we have access to certain information every time you browse with a web browser in our store. Without the use of cookies it would be impossible to offer you important services such as: order status, personal settings, etc. Cookies are alphanumeric files that we transfer to your computer's hard drive through your internet so that we can offer you services like the ones mentioned above. In your browser settings you can choose to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies or asking you every time a new cookie is to be installed on your hard drive. However, you should know that if you choose to prevent cookies from being stored on your hard drive, you will not be able to use some of our store services.
You can return the products you have ordered, for any reason, within 20 days. In case you wish to return products because you changed your mind, you will have to pay shipping fees. In any case and before returning you should contact us at [email protected] or at 210-4820033.


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3D Visual Search: training a Neural Network to recognize brand style, customer style. MFY Sneakers
- September 11, 2018
- 0 Comment
Project: 3D Visual Search, part of ELSE.ai powered by E.L.S.E. Scope: Training a Neural Network to recognize a unique brand style, customer style, using advanced AI techniques, based on synthetic…


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Let's play 'ball!
After publishing a story leading up to the IFPA9 World Pinball Championship a month ago, RedEye Chicago just released a follow up piece on the growing popularity of the sport. Featured in the article is [player]George Gomez[/player] (ranked 4321st in the world), Vice President of Game Design at Stern Pinball. Also featured is [player]Bowen Kerins[/player] (ranked 4th in the world), [player]Josh Sharpe[/player] (ranked 12th in the world), and [player]Mike Miller[/player] (ranked 2156th in the world). Click HERE to check out the article.


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The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission detained Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, a Twitter user from Abuja who goes by the handles @SimisolaGold and Simisola of Lala, on Wednesday for selling brand-new naira notes on social media, according to The PUNCH.
Although Omoseyin had yet to name other members of the syndicate, newsmen learned that she was cooperating with the investigation.
The arrest was made as a result of intelligence received, which led ICPC officials to seek out and apprehend the suspect.
Mrs. Azuka Ogugua, the anti-graft agency's spokesperson, revealed in a statement obtained by newsmen on Wednesday night.
Mrs. Ogugua said, "Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, a social media 'serial entrepreneur,' who deals in skincare, sales of fuel, facilitation of foreign travels through visa acquisitions, and other businesses, seized the opportunity of the scarcity of the new naira notes to openly market the new notes.
"It is believed that she is in collusion with key elements in the financial services sector diverting the newly released notes away from banking halls and payment channels into a 'black market'."
Ogugua further noted that Omoseyin is currently in the ICPC detention and is helping the commission with its findings on the criminal trading of the naira and the attendant scarcity and negative economic outcomes being caused by the action.
The anti-graft agency noted that the action is in furtherance of the collaboration between the Central Bank of Nigeria, the ICPC, and its sister anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, in implementing the new cashless policy and naira redesign.


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Full-scale launch of the plan to make programming education compulsory for elementary school by 2020
Tominari Sano, Journalist
From the Autumn Issue of the electronic "Salaam Quarterly Bulletin", No.26, August 2018
In the new education guidelines for elementary schools to be implemented from fiscal year 2020, "programming education" for nurturing logical thinking skills is made compulsory, and subsequently it is planned to be gradually expanded to junior high schools and high schools. However, about 40% of parents of elementary, junior high and high school students answer "I do not know" about the plan to make "programming education" compulsory. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry forecasts that the shortage of IT human resources will expand to as many as 790,000 people by 2030. How can we overcome the current situation where changes in skills required by the society and changes in policies on learning are not sufficiently publicized?
Estimated supply and demand of IT human resources
· The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry conducted questionnaire surveys and research groups by experts on IT human resources expected to play an important role in the growth of Japanese industries in the future, and the trend of human resources supply and demand in the medium to long term and the future measures for securing and nurturing of IT human resources were examined.
· In the main report, estimates are made on the growth rate of the IT market and the expected improvement in productivity by different scenarios.
· The number of information security talents is currently about 280,000 and the shortage is about 130,000, but in 2020 the number of shortages has expanded to less than 200,000.
[From the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry website "Estimate on Supply and Demand of IT Human Resources" (both reference diagram and chart quoted with explanatory text)
http://www.meti.go.jp/press/2016/06/20160610002/20160610002.html – 2018-01-20]
Programming Education
TEPIA (Association for Technological Excellence Promoting Innovative Advances) Robot programming · 3D printer classroom image
Although it is called "programming", it includes various items such as electric engineering (robot making, artificial intelligence development like AI), entertainment (e.g. game programming), and anti-virus measures indispensable in the IT era. The government considers "developing and securing high-level IT human resources that will be the source of industrial competitiveness" as a growth strategy, and intends "to acquire 21st century-type skills using IT" and implement "clarification and utilization of skill level of human resources".
Scratch (programming language learning environment developed by MIT Media Lab) is a learning site that facilitates students to acquire programming skills
"What is the thing that determines the competitiveness of our country? It is IT power. In Europe, IT power is recognized as an indispensable element for young people to enter the labor market, and many countries and regions are introducing programming as part of the curriculum of the school education, "explains the government as background. In the United States which is advanced in IT, NPO organizations with the support of Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are engaged in activities to introduce programming classes at schools throughout the country. UK makes programming education compulsory for all children from 5 to 16 years old. South Korea decided to make programming education compulsory at elementary schools since 2017.
Aim and task for mandatory programming education
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, and Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry cooperated to prepare preparation summary entitled "Towards Making Elementary School Programming Education Mandatory" and introduced that preparation for programming educational implementation at elementary school stage was completed.
According to a survey by the Cabinet Office, the PC penetration rate and ownership rate in Europe and the United States are 60 to 70% among junior high school students, but about 20% in Japan which is very low. Although the spread of smartphones has reached 55 million people, we cannot overlook the fact that people who cannot use PCs are increasing. Therefore, dissemination of IT tools left to the needs of the citizens does not necessarily lead to improvement of IT capabilities.
It is stated that the aim of compulsory programming education at elementary schools is "to nurture programming thinking, to encourage realization that the information society is supported by information technology such as computers, and to nurture attitude to solve familiar problems by utilizing computer and build a better society." Simply put, it is familiar to IT tools, "Learning logical thinking" and does not do professional programming. In other words, for elementary school students, instead of educating programming knowledge, it is a simple education to teach students to move things by combining basic programs of moving an object forward and backward to front, back, left, and right using programs already installed. It aims at having children get interested and to have them experience the enjoyment of making things by programming.
Individual farmers develop a "cucumber sorting machine".
In schools, equipment based on tablets has already been distributed. Children are already familiar with handling of smartphones, and some children can use PC tools well. However, many children are accustomed to moving things with fingers on tablets and smartphones rather than PCs. On the other hand, there are children who learn them for the first time at elementary schools. Also, due to the spread of smartphones, students who cannot use PCs start working in the society, and face difficulties as they have to use PCs for the first time when they enter a company. This kind of problem is happening in reality. It is one of challenges to fill the gap such as this.
Book on Programming Elementary and Junior High School Students Can Start
2018 edition of the "Book on Programming Elementary and Junior High School Students Can Start" was published by Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. The way to read this book is written next to the table of contents, and icons are attached in each chapter so that one can distinguish the article for elementary and junior high school students, the article for high school students or the article for parents. The first chapter has an article for parents titled "What Parents Should Know First" which poses four questions to parents. They are interesting questions so let me introduce them here.
"If elementary and junior high school students do programing, there will be benefits in the future. What are they?"
One can choose one of 4 options: ① Become a programmer, create a game wildly popular and earn a lot of money; ② Prepare for compulsory programming education of (elementary school) starting in 2020; ③ Because shortage of IT human resources is expected in the future, one does not have any difficulty finding employment; ④ The possibility of becoming a person who can lead the world in the future will increase. The correct answer is of ④. Of course, ①, ②, ③ are not mistakes either. But it is stated that the biggest reason for the current programming boom is ④ and the reason is explained (omitted here).
Survey on consciousness about the future that junior high and high school students envision conducted on April 25, 2017
Footnote below) For high school students, in case of jobs desired by male high school students, the job ranked first was "IT engineer, programmer" (20.8%), second place "manufacturing engineer (automobile design and development)" (13.3%), third place "game creator" (12.5% ), 4th place "civil servants" (11.8%), 5th place "scholar, researcher" and "operator, pilot" (both 9.5%). In case of female high school students, the job ranked first was "civil servant" (18.8%), second place "nurse: (12.8%), 3rd place "Entertainers such as singer, actress, voice actress" (12.5%), 4th place "teacher and educator" (10.8%), 5th place "visual artist (cartoonist, illustrator, animator) "(9.8%). Civil servants and nurses seem to be a popular occupation for female high school students.
[The above table and explanation are from the Internet research results of Sony Life Insurance Co., Ltd. consciousness survey on the future envisioned by junior high and high school students conducted nationwide from March 21 to March 27, 2017. It is based on the total number of valid samples of 1,000 people (200 junior high school students and 800 high school students).]
In the fifth chapter of this magazine, there is an interview article on "What should parents do for compulsory programming education" under the title "Before Going to Programming Classroom", as well as a guide on over 50 programming classrooms throughout Japan.
I covered the "Programming Kids" school for students from first grade to 12th grade, which is introduced as one of them.
Programming Kids
Classroom scene of Programming Kids classroom (Mizonokuchi school)
"Kanagawa Science Park (KSP)" (Kawasaki city, Kanagawa prefecture) is located at the place which is 5 minutes by bus from Mizonokuchi Station on JR Nanbu Line and Musashi Mizonokuchi Station on Tokyu Denen Toshi Line. When I visited there on June 30, a programming class attended by elementary school students was held at a corner of the Park.
The classroom sponsored by Number One Solutions Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Meguro-ku, Tokyo) is held in Ikejiri Ohashi (Meguro Ward), Futago Tamagawa (Setagaya Ward), Saginuma (Kawasaki City) in addition to Mizonokuchi. At Ikejiri Ohashi site, classrooms are held for junior high and high school students. Mizonokuchi school has classes for elementary school 2nd grade students (basic course) from 10:00 to 12:00 and for 3rd to 6th grade students (advanced course) from 13:00 to 15:00 on 1st and 3rd Saturday. Each classroom has ten students.
Programming fun for kids
I went to see an advanced course for the third grade students. It is not an advanced program education. It provides children with opportunity to become interested in programming and observe the process through which they overcome challenges. As to a process of teaching, software such as LEGO ® Mindstorm ® EV 3 and Scratch, Viscuit, etc. are used as teaching materials, and a unique curriculum for the classroom was prepared. This curriculum is the know-how of the Programming Kids classroom. Features of the curriculum are to allow students themselves to have a pleasant experience through the process to find a solution to the problem by trial and error. Classroom instructor, Mr. Horiuchi said, "While making trial and error, considering and advancing solutions is essential for programming. That is what I believe."
Indeed, while the classroom has an atmosphere like the school classroom scenery, the children seriously listen to the instructor's words. They immediately answer the instructor's question and act according to the instruction. 2 hour learning time is divided into segments of 10 minutes, 40 minutes, 10 minutes break, 40 minutes, 15 minutes, and 5 minutes, and flows without waste.
Class flow
In the class I observed, the instructor taught children the basic technology of how to do the work of moving a prepared car, through animated character images created by the classroom.
In the second half of the classroom lesson, children tries to actually move a car by using the knowledge gained in the first half.
After all, the children were more lively in tackling with the work to move the car in the latter half than the first half of the class. The work was to clear some problems such as moving the car straight ahead, making left turn, right turn, moving it diagonally, backward and ultimately reaching a goal.
A child with a smile who cleared the task at first attempt
Some children cleared the challenge at once, while others have gotten the instructor's OK and smiled while going back and forth between their seats and the instructor's twice or three times. The staff coordinated on the spot when a child said "Why the car does not move well?" If that does not solve it, the child returned to his seat and reconfirmed. However, there is also happening that it does not go as programmed. Still, it is a pleasant scene to observe that children trying to solve the problem without being impatient.
At the end of the lesson, efforts were made to keep children's interests, such as "reviewing" and scoring each challenging issue.
Number One Solutions Co., Ltd.
Mr. Susumu Hashimoto, Executive Managing Director of Number One Solutions Co., Ltd. said, "20% of the children have their own PC. I lend it to children who do not have it." Although it is slight difference between a child who owns PC and a child who does not, it is not big difference. On the other hand, as an ingenious device to generate children's interests, by making steady efforts such as "to keep important points and to make them abstract", "to score comments and questions to encourage children to express a lot of opinions", children can enjoy learning. It was impressive that many of the attending children on this day were raising their hands.
Mr. Hashimoto said, "I would like to value things that are not just skills," as he emphasized that he would like to value not simply pursuing skills, but the process in leading up to gaining skills.
Vision "To realize world peace through technology"
Tetsuo Omonari, Representative Director, Number One Solutions Co., Ltd.
Mr. Tetsuo Omorai, President of Number One Solutions Co., Ltd., expressed his ambition, by saying, "I gained confidence that programming education can nurture the ability to survive the 21st century. Through Programming Kids and other programming classes, I want to nurture engineers relevant to the industry and human resources who create programs on my own." In addition, he sets forward a vision "to realize world peace through technology" and demonstrated his conviction that since the introduction package for programming education has already been prepared the unique educational style of Number One Solutions can also be expanded abroad.
I hope that programming education of Number One Solutions can be introduced to Middle Eastern countries as a new education industry and a peace industry, as Middle Eastern countries including Egypt and Saudi Arabia are currently turning their eager eyes on Japan's educational style.
Footnote) [Translation of the table]
Desired future jobs (up to 3 items can be selected) *High school students' responses are shown
Male high school students (n=400)
1. IT engineer, programmer: 20.8%
2. Manufacturing engineer (such as automobile design and development): 13.3%
3. Game creator: 12.5%
4. Civil servants: 11.8%
5. Scholar, researcher: 9.5%
5. Operator, pilot: 9.5%
7. Teacher, educator: 7.8%
7. Company employee: 7.8%
9. Professional athlete: 7.3%
10. Contributor of videos such as YouTuber: 6.8%
Female high school students (n=400)
1. Civil servants 18.8%
2. Nurse 12.8%
3. Entertainer such as singer, actress and voice actress 12.5%
4. Teacher, educator 10.8%
5. Visual artist (cartoonist, illustrator, animator) 9.8%
6. Day care and kindergarten teacher 9.0%
7. Counselor or clinical psychologist 8.5%
8. Designer (fashion, interior) 7.5%
9. Scholar, researcher 5.8%
9. Company employee 5.8%
More contents available in the electronic "Salaam Quarterly Bulletin", No.26, August 2018.


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The twist to this particular story is that 28-year-old Sichen Sun wasn't planning to shoot anyone with his 3D printed guns – they were simply cosplay props. The guns that he created included replicas of a MA5C from the game Halo, which "does not replicate any real firearm in existence," said Sun, and a P90 submachine gun used in Stargate as well as by US law enforcement. Again – replicas. That detail was irrelevant to the courts, however, as Sun became the first person in Australia to face sentencing for possessing a digital blueprint for a 3D printed firearm.
The maximum penalty for such an offense is 14 years in jail. Sun was arrested in March of last year after detectives searched his home following a tip-off. He had found the files for the firearms on MyMiniFactory, and started a hobby of making "screen accurate" weapons for cosplay purposes. Eventually, Sun offered one of his 3D printed guns for sale in a private Facebook group for a negotiable price of $1 million. An outlandish price, for sure, but Sun said that he wasn't actually expecting to sell the weapon – he simply wanted recognition for his work.
"Every craftsman wants their work to be acknowledged," he said. "With 2020 hindsight I realise how silly, idiotic, stupid and naïve my actions were."
When asked under cross-examination if he was aware of the laws he was breaking, Sun admitted that he had thought of them.
"I didn't in my mind perceive these to be real pistols," he said. "These were never supposed to be any more than costume props."
Most people would likely agree that costume props aren't dangerous, but the harshness of Australia's law designates all manner of 3D printed firearms, real or otherwise, as criminal. It's ironic that the first person to face sentencing under the law should be someone 3D printing guns for cosplay purposes only; it makes you wonder if the law is, in fact, unnecessarily harsh. Where is the line drawn between an actual weapon and a prop? It seems as though it should be a clear line, and Sun's lawyer reiterated that there was never "any intent to make [the props] into functional weapons."
Intent, however, is irrelevant under the law, and Sun is paying the price. His sentencing has been adjourned until the end of August, but he has been working to spread the message of the dangers of 3D printing guns (even prop ones) by distributing pamphlets about the New South Wales legislation at the Comic-Con and Supanova conventions, as well as four 3D printer stores and two police stations.
"I don't want anyone to go through what I've been through the last 18 months," he said.
Sun is far from the first person to 3D print replica guns as cosplay props. Most of the people who have done so, however, haven't been arrested – because it's been clear that their creations are replicas only. Many people agree that the United States' gun laws are in need of tightening, but at least those laws recognize the difference between a toy and the real thing. Sure, you can get in trouble for holding up a convenience store with a prop gun, but Sun did no such thing, and punishing him with jail for 3D printing prop guns, with the clear intention of using them for cosplay purposes only, seems a bit extreme. It's true that his guns look more real than a lot of cosplay props, but still, 14 years in jail seems like an outsized sentence. We'll see if that actually ends up being the sentence handed down at the end of the month.
What do you think? Discuss this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts below.
[Source: Computerworld]
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Technical Specifications
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"Your engineers were very friendly, respectful and professional and nothing was too much trouble. Their quality of work, cleanliness, attention to detail and the end result was excellent. My parents were both very impressed and so pleased with the works carried out by them"
M S, Hackney


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Funnyman Rory Cowan has praised Brendan O'Carroll, the creator of the smash hit Mrs Brown's Boys for making a huge difference in how gay characters were presented in Irish entertainment.
In his new memoir, Mrs Cowan's Boy, he wrote, "When Mrs Brown's Boys started on RTE 2fm in 1992 as a radio soap, you could be sent to jail if you were convicted of having sex with another man. In most TV shows, gay characters were figures of fun, or had tragic lives. In the Mrs Brown's Boys radio series, Brendan wrote in two gay characters, Rory and Dino, who were in a relationship.
"This was a year before gay sex was decriminalised. Brendan broke a taboo. He wrote two characters into a prime time radio show and he made those characters likeable and just the same as everybody else. And I was there when he was doing this. I played Rory in the radio soap opera. I knew something big was happening."
Rory Cowan initially worked as a PR person for O'Carroll before making the move into the show. He also explained how it was his sexuality which convinced O'Carroll to hire him for the job.
During the interview in 1991, Cowan said, "I made my pitch for the position and told him what I thought I could bring to his organisation… After I made my pitch, Brendan's business partner said he had just one question. I had a feeling what was coming but I was going to wait to be asked.
"He was getting flustered, trying to ask the question in a roundabout way while I just stood there looking at him saying nothing. Eventually Brendan said, 'What he wants to know is if you're gay?' 'Yes,' I said, knowing I could be talking myself out of a job. 'You've got the job,' he said.
"Are you giving me the job because I'm gay?,' I asked with a hint of confusion in my voice. 'Yes I am,' Brendan replied with a big smile on his face. He explained: 'I've heard that gay people are very creative so that's a plus. But you've also told the truth when we asked you the question. We can trust you, that's the most important thing. Welcome on board.'"
Rory's book is now available.
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Tips To Increase Your Visibility On Your Blog Posts
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This sample Desertification Research Paper is published for educational and informational purposes only. Free research papers are not written by our writers, they are contributed by users, so we are not responsible for the content of this free sample paper. If you want to buy a high quality research paper on history topics at affordable price please use custom research paper writing services.
Experts disagree over the current rate at which arable land is becoming desert, to what extent human activities are responsible, and whether the process is reversible. Yet events such as the Dust Bowl of the 1930s in the United States are compelling evidence of a link between desertification and human misuse of the land.
Desertification is the process of land becoming desert, as from human mismanagement or climate change. It remains a controversial issue with regard to definition, nature, rate of spread, irreversibility, and causation. Nonetheless, it is a serious example of land degradation in dry lands. Deserts have repeatedly expanded and contracted during the last few millions of years in response to climate changes, but their margins are now being affected by a suite of increasing human pressures that depletes soil and vegetation resources.
Desertification was first used as a term, but not formally defined, by a French forester named "Aubreville" in 1949, and for some years the term desertization was defined as "the spread of desert-like conditions in arid or semi-arid areas, due to man's influence or to climatic change" (Rapp 1974, 3).
Different experts have defined desertification according to its cause. Some definitions stress the importance of anthropogenic (human-caused) actions. The scientist Harold E. Dregne says, "Desertification is the impoverishment of terrestrial ecosystems under the impact of man. It is the process of deterioration in these ecosystems that can be measured by reduced productivity of desirable plants, undesirable alterations in the biomass [the amount of living matter] and the diversity of the micro and macro fauna and flora, accelerated soil deterioration, and increased hazards for human occupancy" (Dregne 1986, 6–7).
Other studies acknowledge the possible importance of natural climatic controls but give them a relatively lesser role. In a report for the U.S. Department of the Interior / Bureau of Land Management, desertification is defined as "the sustained decline and/or destruction of the biological productivity of arid and semi arid lands caused by manmade stresses, sometimes in conjunction with natural extreme events. Such stresses, if continued or unchecked, over the long term may lead to ecological degradation and ultimately to desert-like conditions" (Sabadell et al. 1982, 7).
Other experts are more even-handed with respect to the balance of anthropogenic and natural causes: "A simple and graphic meaning of the word 'desertification' is the development of desert like landscapes in areas which were once green. Its practical meaning . . . is a sustained decline in the yield of useful crops from a dry area accompanying certain kinds of environmental change, both natural and induced" (Warren and Maizels 1976, 1).
Experts are not sure how extensive desertification is or how fast it is progressing. The lack of agreement on the former process makes determining the latter difficult, prompting some to remark, "Desertification will remain an ephemeral concept to many people until better estimates of its extent and rate of increase can be made on the basis of actual measurements" (Grainger 1990, 145).
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has played a pivotal role in the promotion of desertification as an environmental issue, as is made evident by this statement from The World Environment 1972–1992: "Desertification is the main environmental problem of arid lands, which occupy more than 40 per cent of the total global land area. At present, desertification threatens about 3.6 billion hectares—70 percent of potentially dry lands, or nearly one-quarter of the total land area of the world. These figures exclude natural hyper-arid deserts. About one sixth of the world's population is affected" (Tolba and El-Kholy 1992, 134).
Some scholars, however, have been critical of UNEP's views on the amount of land that is desertified. They state: "The bases for such data are at best inaccurate and at worst centered on nothing better than guesswork. The advancing desert concept may have been useful as a publicity tool but it is not one that represents the real nature of desertification processes" (Thomas and Middleton 1994, 160).
Despite its critics, UNEP continues to support issues of desertification. UNEP helped established the U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), which holds an international World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought on 17 June. These worldwide annual events supported by UNEP and the UNCCD seek to raise awareness and promotion of desertification issues. In 2006, UNEP focused the international World Environment Day (held annually on 5 June) on desertification issues with the theme "Don't Desert Drylands."
Rates of Desertification
Experts have conducted relatively few reliable studies of the rate of desert advance. In 1975, the British ecologist Hugh Lamprey attempted to measure the shift of vegetation zones in the Sudan in Africa and concluded that a portion of the Sahara Desert in Sudan had advanced by 90 to 100 kilometers between 1958 and 1975, with an average rate of about 5.5 kilometers per year. On the basis of analysis of remotely sensed data and ground observations, however, other scholars found limited evidence that this ad-vance had taken place (Hellden 1984). One problem is that substantial fluctuations in vegetation production may take place from year to year. Meteorological satellite observations of green biomass production levels on the southern margins of the Sahara Desert have revealed such fluctuations.
The International Soil Reference Center in the Netherlands conducted a global assessment by soil degradation on behalf of UNEP during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The center used a Geographical Information System to analyze data collected through a clearly defined, but largely qualitative, methodology. Despite its flaws, the Global Assessment on Human Induced Soil Degradation (GLASOD) provided a database through which experts could assess susceptible dry land soil degradation in terms of spatial distribution, contributory degradation processes, and relationships to land use.
The GLASOD estimated that during the late 1980s and early 1990s approximately 1 billion hectares, equivalent to 20 percent of the susceptible dry lands, had experienced accelerated soil degradation caused by human activities. Water erosion was identified as the major physical process of degradation in 48 percent of this area and wind erosion in 39 percent. Chemical degradation (including salinization) was dominant in just 10 percent of the area, and physical changes such as compaction and crusting in just 4 percent. The severity of degradation was described by the GLASOD as strong or extreme in 4 percent of the susceptible dry lands. This figure relates to lands that have had their original biotic (relating to living organisms) functions of the soil destroyed and that are irreclaimable without major restorative measures.
The spatial character of desertification is also the subject of controversy. The spread of desertlike conditions is not, as popularly supposed, an advance over a broad front in the way that a wave overwhelms a beach. Rather, it is like a rash that tends to be localized around settlements. Fundamentally, "the extension of desert-like conditions tends to be achieved through a process of accretion from without, rather than through expansionary forces acting from within the deserts" (Mabbutt 1985, 2). This distinction is important because it influences perceptions of appropriate remedial or combative strategies.
Experts have debated whether desertification is irreversible. In many cases where ecological conditions are favorable because of the existence of such factors as deep, sandy soils, vegetation recovers after excess pressures are eliminated. The speed of recovery depends on how advanced deterioration is, the size of the area that is degraded, the nature of the soils and moisture resources, and the nature of local vegetation. Much desert vegetation is adapted to drought and to harsh conditions and often has inbuilt adaptations that enable a rapid response to improved circumstances.
Nonetheless, long-term monitoring elsewhere tends to reveal that in certain circumstances recovery is so slow and so limited that it may be appropriate to talk of "irreversible desertification." For example, in southern Tunisia tracks made by tanks and wheeled vehicles during World War II are still apparent on the ground and in the devastated and unregenerated vegetation.
Causes of Desertification
The causes of desertification remain controversial. Experts have asked whether it is the result of temporary serious droughts, long-term climatic change, or human actions degrading the biological environments in arid zones. No doubt severe droughts do take place, and their effects become worse as human and domestic animal populations increase. The devastating drought in the Sahel (the semidesert southern fringe of the Sahara Desert) from the mid-1960s caused greater ecological stress than the droughts of 1910–1915 and 1944–1948, largely because of increasing anthropogenic pressures.
Experts have discredited the concept that climate is deteriorating through postglacial progressive desiccation. However, numerous studies of meteorological data (which in some cases date back as far as 130–150 years) do not allow experts to reach any firm conclusions on systematic long-term changes in rainfall, and the case for climatic deterioration—whether natural or aggravated by humans—is not proven. Indeed, Rapp wrote that after consideration of the evidence for the role of climatic change in desertification his conclusion was "that the reported desertization northwards and southwards from the Sahara could not be explained by a general trend towards drier climate during this century" (Rapp 1974, 29).
Woodcutting is a serious cause of vegetative decline around the area to the south of the Sahara. Many people depend on wood for domestic uses, and the collection of wood for charcoal and firewood is especially serious in the vicinity of large urban centers. Likewise, the recent drilling of wells has enabled rapid multiplication of domestic livestock numbers and large-scale destruction of the vegetation in a radius of 15–30 kilometers around them. Given this localization of degradation, amelioration schemes such as local tree planting may be partially effective, but ideas of planting massive belts as a cordon sanitaire (protective barrier) along the desert edge (whatever that is) would not halt deterioration of the land beyond this belt. The deserts are not invading from without; the land is deteriorating from within.
Clearly, therefore, a combination of human activities (e.g., deforestation, overgrazing, and plowing) with occasional series of dry years leads to the presently observed desertification. The process also seems to be fiercest not in desert interiors, but rather on the less arid marginal areas around them. The combination of circumstances particularly conducive to desert expansion can be found in semiarid and subhumid areas—where precipitation is frequent and intense enough to cause rapid erosion of unprotected soils and where humans are prone to mistake short-term economic gains under temporarily favorable climatic conditions for long-term stability.
These tendencies toward bad land-use practices partly result from the imposition of state boundaries on many traditional nomadic societies, restricting their migration routes, or from schemes implemented to encourage the nomads to become sedentary. Some of their traditional grazing lands have been taken over by cash-crop farmers. The traditional ability to migrate enabled pastoral nomads and their stock to make flexible use of available resources according to season and yearly variations in rainfall and to move away from regions that had become exhausted after a long period of use. As soon as migrations are stopped and settlements imposed, such options are closed, and severe degradation occurs.
People have suggested not only that deserts are expanding because of human activity, but also that the deserts themselves were created by human activity. People have proposed, for example, that the Thar Desert of northwest India is a postglacial and possibly a postmedieval creation, and others have suggested that the vast Sahara Desert itself is largely human made (Ehrlich and Ehrlich 1970). This proposal is not accurate. The Sahara, although it has fluctuated in extent, is many millions of years old, predates human life, and is the result of its climatic situation.
Possibly the most famous case of desertification associated with soil erosion by deflation was the Dust Bowl of the 1930s in the United States. In part the Dust Bowl was caused by a series of unusually hot, dry years that depleted the vegetation cover and made the soils dry enough to be susceptible to wind erosion, but the effects of this drought were worsened by years of overgrazing, poor farming techniques, and the rapid expansion of wheat cultivation in the Great Plains. The number of cultivated hectares doubled during World War I as tractors (for the first time) were employed in the thousands. In Kansas alone the wheat area increased from less than 2 million hectares in 1910 to almost 5 million in 1919. After the war wheat cultivation continued apace, helped by the development of the combine harvester and government assistance. Over large areas the tough sod, which had exasperated earlier homesteaders, had given way to friable (easily crumbled or pulverized) soils of high erosion potential. Drought, acting on damaged soils, created the "black blizzards."
Dust storms are still a serious problem in parts of the United States. For example, in the San Joaquin Valley of California a dust storm caused extensive damage and erosion in 1977. More than 22 million metric tons of soil were stripped from grazing land within a twenty-four-hour period. Although the combination of drought and a high wind (as much as 300 kilometers per hour) provided the predisposing natural conditions for the stripping to occur, overgrazing and the general lack of windbreaks in the agricultural land played a more significant role. In addition, broad areas of land had recently been stripped of vegetation, leveled, or plowed up prior to planting. Other quantitatively less important factors included stripping of vegetation for urban expansion, extensive denudation of land in the vicinity of oilfields, and local denudation of land by vehicular recreation. Elsewhere in California dust yield has been considerably increased by mining of dry lake beds and by disturbance of playas (flat-floored bottoms of undrained desert basins that become at times shallow lakes).
A comparable acceleration of dust storm activity occurred in the former Soviet Union. After the "Virgin Lands" program of agricultural expansion during the 1950s, dust storm frequencies in the southern Omsk region increased on average by a factor of 2.5 and locally by factors of 5 to 6.
Desertification is not restricted to heavily populated lands with large agricultural and pastoral populations. As the examples of the U.S. Great Plains and California illustrate, high technology, non-labor-intensive land, and water use can also cause severe degradation.
Human-induced desertification is not new. Although people often focus on the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s and the current degradation of the Sahel, desertification has been the subject of great interest in the Mediterranean area since classical times. Likewise, some evidence indicates that more than four thousand years ago Mesopotamia was suffering from chemical degradation of soils and crop yield reductions as a consequence of the adoption and extension of irrigation. Nevertheless, land degradation is not the inevitable consequence of increasing population densities and land-use intensification, and many techniques are available for desert reclamation.
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- Dregne, H. E. (1986). Desertification of arid lands. In F. El-Baz & M. H. A. Hassan (Eds.), Physics of desertification (pp. 4–34). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Nijhoff.
- Dregne, H. E., & Tucker, C. J. (1988). Desert encroachment. Desertification Control Bulletin, 16, 16–18.
- Ehrlich, P. R., & Ehrlich, A. H. (1970). Population, resources, environment: Issues in human ecology. San Francisco: Freeman.
- Gill, T. E. (1996). Eolian sediments generated by anthropogenic disturbance of playas: Human impacts on the geomorphic system and geomorphic impacts on the human system. Geomorphology, 17, 207–228.
- Goudie, A. S. (Ed.). (1990). Desert reclamation. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley.
- Goudie, A. S., & Middleton, N. J. (1992). The changing frequency of dust storms through time. Climatic Change, 20, 197–225.
- Grainger, A. (1990). The threatening desert: Controlling desertification. London: Earthscan.
- Grove, A. J., & Rackham, O. (2001). The nature of Mediterranean Europe: An ecological history. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
- Hellden, V. (1984). Land degradation and land productivity monitoring—needs for an integrated approach. In A. Hjort (Ed.), Land management and survival (pp. 77–87). Uppsala, Sweden: Scandinavian Institute of African Studies.
- Jacobsen, T., & Adams, R. M. (1958). Salt and silt in ancient Mesopotamian agriculture. Science, 128, 1251–1258.
- Mabbutt, J. A. (1985). Desertification of the world's rangelands. Desertification Control Bulletin, 12, 1–11.
- Marsh, G. P. (1864). Man and nature. New York: Scribner.
- Middleton, N. J., & Thomas, D. S. G. (1997). World atlas of desertification (2nd ed.). London: Arnold.
- Nicholson, S. (1978). Climatic variations in the Sahel and other African regions during the past five centuries. Journal of Arid Environments, 1, 3–24.
- Rapp, A. (1974). A review of desertification in Africa—water, vegetation and man. Stockholm, Sweden: Secretariat for International Ecology.
- Sabadell, J. E., Risley, E. M., Jorgensen, H. T., & Thornton, B. S. (1982). Desertification in the United States: Status and issues. Washington, DC: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior.
- Thomas, D. S. G., & Middleton, N. J. (1994). Desertification: Exploding the myth. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley.
- Tiffen, M., Mortimore, M., & Gichuki, F. (1994). More people, less erosion: Environmental recovery in Kenya. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley.
- Tolba, M. K., & El-Kholy O. A. (Eds.). (1992). The world environment 1972–1992: Two decades of challenge. London: UNEP Chapman and Hall.
- United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP). (2006). Don't desert drylands: United Nations environment programme message on world environmental day. Retrieved December 24, 2009, from http://www.unep.org/wed/2006/downloads/PDF/UNEPWEDMessage06_eng.pdf
- Warren, A., & Maizels, J. K. (1976). Ecological change and desertification. London: University College Press.
See also:
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In case you didn't realise, we're BIG FANS of colour! Ha! And let us tell you, today's shoot is definitely not short on it, with bright florals, popping furniture, vibrant glassware and the most epic balloon installation ever! You're gonna love it!
"AGH! White Rock Canyon is literally my FAVE venue." Kelci from Weddings by Abi & Co told us, "It's all of the Middle Tennessee/Carolina vibes in Sunny South Florida. The venue has so much character, the vibes are immaculate and the owner Brooke, is amazing. You literally have to get married here!"
"The theme was bright and airy. Colorful and different. I wanted something that you don't typically see at weddings. The florals were a collection of bud vases spread throughout the tables. The napkins were bright, the cups were bright! I had the coolest hanging floral installation hung in front of White Rock Canyon with a combination of chairs and colored couches in the "driveway" of the front of the venue. I wanted a challenge and the not so typical wedding!"
"I had an almost 40 foot colored balloon installed in the "cocktail hour room" it definitely caught your eye! Especially teamed with the colored furniture and bright blue mobile bar cart. I reached out to all local vendors! Each and every one of them contributed to this special shoot! It was so different and out of the "norm" I guess you could say that everyone who was involved was stoked and couldn't wait to see the outcome!"
"The couple in this shoot have actually been dating a very long time! I think this style wedding is geared for a fun, wild and outgoing couple! You only get married once, might as well make it a huge statement!"
"I saw the venue space and how different it looked and knew bright colors would make everything pop! I decided to switch things up and use the front of the venue space outside for a different twist on ceremony with an assortment of vintage colored couches and cross back chairs! The hanging floral arrangement was such an inspiration that I needed to have it at this venue and this ceremony space! Our florist, Bloom Shakalaka knocked it out of the park and it was bright, fun and so magically different!"
"I love the knotted napkin, simple farm table, various bud vases with bright blooms are my favorite!!! I wanted to curate a wedding that was fun, different and out of the norm!! I think with the massive balloon installation, bright florals, and cotton candy machine this styled shoot an absolute blast!"
Planner & Designer: Weddings by Abi & Co. / @weddingsbyabiandco // Venue: White Rock Canyon / @whiterockcanyon // Photography: Hannah T Photography / @hannah.t.photos // Hair & Makeup Stylist: Hair & Makeup by Nereida / @nereidamua // Dress: Truly Forever Bridal /@Trulyforeverbridal // Rings: Diamonds Direct / @diamondsdirectstpete // Stationery: The Moxie Workshop / @themoxieworkshop // Florist: Bloom Shakalaka / @bloom.shakalaka // Furniture Rentals: Southern Chairs / @southernchairs // Tabletop Rentals: @set_and_styled // Balloon Installation:@sopoppinballoons // Cotton Candy: Sky Candy / @skycandyfl // Mobile Bar: The Tipsy Trotter / @thetipsytrotter // Baker: Sugar Sugar Cake Boutique / @sugarsugarcakeboutique // Wedding Submission Services: @publishedandpretty //


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Divorce and the Holidays – Tips on How to Get Through
It's very common to feel blue during the holidays, especially if you are in the middle of a divorce or have just finalized a marital separation agreement.
Holidays bring out many emotions, and when you are going through a divorce, those emotions are magnified, and rightfully so.
Our collaborative divorce mental health professionals often teach families how to navigate the holidays emotionally. Here are a few tips they share with clients on how to get through these emotionally charged seasons:
- Surround yourself with supportive family and friends
- Create a holiday sharing schedule ahead of time
- Create new traditions – doing this can give a spark of excitement
- Look to the future – realize the holidays will pass, and you will heal from your divorce experience
- Be kind to yourself – taking some "me time" is not selfish; it's essential to the healing process
- Step out of your emotional safety zone – open yourself up to new experiences
- Don't make your children pick sides of who they will be with on important holidays
- Allow yourself to have fun – lean into new experiences and emotions
Many times, during the holidays, experiencing emotional turmoil can be overwhelming to you but, don't let these feelings overcome you – reach out to a mental health professional. They will teach you strategies that can help you get through the holiday season more healthily.
Our team of mental health professionals can not only help you, but your spouse and your children, deal with the negative feelings divorce often bring.
Family Divorce Solutions is comprised of well-respected, experienced and trained attorneys, mental health professionals, financial professionals, and child specialists who work as a team to reach a complete and satisfactory resolution for everyone involved.
Contact us today to see how we can help you keep your family's emotional wellbeing intact during the holidays.
Note: This information is general in nature and should not be construed as legal/financial/tax/or mental health advice. You should work with your attorney, financial, mental health or tax professional to determine what will work best for your situation.


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Naomi Fowler ■ Tax Justice Network Arabic podcast #49: تونس: قانون الإقتراض المُقنّع
Welcome to the 49th edition of our Arabic podcast/radio show Taxes Simply الجباية ببساطة contributing to tax justice public debate around the world. It's produced and presented by Walid Ben Rhouma and is available on most podcast apps. Any radio station is welcome to broadcast it for free and websites are also welcome to share it. You can follow the programme on Facebook, on Twitter and on our website.


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'Broadchurch' came to a close on Monday (17 April) night, with Trish Winterman's attacker being revealed, but the show's writer has revealed that the closing episode could have been very different.
Chris Chibnall has penned all three series of the ITV drama, and speaking on 'Good Morning Britain', he revealed that previous plans would have seen a different character revealed to be behind the rape.
He explained: "I wrote episode one, draft one and I thought it was somebody and then I was thinking about it and I was like, 'oh actually that's how it should resolve'.
"It changed slightly but then from the second draft of episode one [it was] always the same."
Chris also revealed that the whole cast signed up to the show without knowing whether their character was the attacker.
"We had a conversation with that person [who played the culprit] during the process, but they didn't know when they joined," he said. "Everyone had to join on the proviso that they didn't know."
The final episode of the series, which was also the last ever 'Broadchurch', took a dark turn as the possible culprits faced interrogations from DI Hardy and DS Miller.
The series finale also brought closure for a number of the longtime residents of the village, with Mark Latimer accepting that a reconciliation with Beth was not on the cards, while vicar Paul Coates gave his final sermon, before heading on to pastures new.


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The damages caused by the overproduction of plastics are now reaching every part of the globe. While plastic production continues to increase, the manufacturing process and the large amounts of plastic waste are already affecting our planet's capacity to provide a habitable environment. Here's what you need to know about why today's so-called "plastic age" needs an international response:
- The Arctic snow contains microplastic particles. (more…)
- The expected amount of plastic flowing in the ocean by 2040 is set to triple. (more…)
- The United Nations Environment Assembly is drafting an international treaty to secure a unified international response to the issue. (more…)
- There are several things we can do as individuals to be a part of the fight against plastic pollution. (more…)
Background Information: The Problem with Plastic Pollution
It's snowing plastic in the Arctic
Researchers have discovered that Arctic snow contains microplastic particles. Here are some details of what they found:
- Samples of snow from the Arctic were tested in the laboratory at Germany's Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven. According to a report, a surprising amount of more than 10,000 microplastic particles per liter of snow was found in the gathered samples.
- According to the scientists, the snow not only contained plastic particles but also the following man-made products:
- Fragments of rubber tires
- Varnish
- Paint
- Synthetic fibers
- Though the process by which the microplastics reached the Arctic has yet to be determined, the researchers believe that these microplastic particles are likely transported by the wind.
- Their research reveals that even in regions considered to be the world's last "pure" natural ecosystem, human and animal residents alike are probably inhaling microplastics.
Plastic waste in the ocean is set to triple by 2040
Researchers have found that the amount of plastic waste flowing into the ocean is likely going to triple by the year 2040. This will drastically affect the biodiversity of the ocean as we know it. Here is some of the information on how it can be countered.
- Experts estimate that by 2040, approximately 1.3 billion tons of plastic will be deposited on land and in the oceans. This is due to the continuous consumption and production of new plastic globally, rather than recycling and substituting plastic with biodegradable products.
- The quantity of plastic anticipated to be deposited in the ocean over the next 20 years might climb from 11 million metric tons to 29 million metric tons if no further action is taken. Researchers also revealed that the current measures used by the government and other industries to combat plastic pollution are insufficient, and will only reduce the quantity of plastic in the ocean by 7% if implemented correctly.
- However, the project developed by the Pew Charitable Trusts and SYSTEMIQ, Ltd., a London-based environmental think tank, essentially calls for a wholesale remaking of the global plastics industry by shifting it to a circular economy that reuses and recycles. If the approach to changing the plastic industry succeeded, it could reduce the annual flow of plastic waste into the ocean by 80%.
The infographic below shows the System Change Scenario, which could reduce 80% of plastic pollution by 2040.
A unified international response against plastic pollution
A bigger solution to the plastic problem requires both political and social participation from a number of stakeholders. In early 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly created a new global treaty to address plastic pollution. While it's still being drafted, and won't become legally binding until 2024, it is still important to take a look at the setup of the treaty. Here's what you need to know about it:
- To secure a unified international response to fight global plastic pollution, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), assembled in Nairobi, Kenya, and drafted an international treaty based on the idea of the plastic circular economy.
- The legally binding instrument to address the complete plastic life cycle and end plastic pollution by 2024 was developed under the new international treaty. This resolution establishes an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), which will focus on the completion of the legally binding draft by its agreed deadline in 2024. Here's an overview of what is planned for the next two years:
- UNEP, in collaboration with INC, will prepare and determine the projected timeline.
- By the end of 2022, UNEP will conduct a forum to share the determined practices and global approach.
- During the next 2 years, INC will continue to report its progress to UNEA.
- Once finished, UNEP will conduct a conference regarding the result of INC's draft for the legally binding instrument.
- UNEP will open the new treaty for signatories of different national governments.
- The UNEA member states are also encouraged to guarantee that the intended target of eliminating plastic waste discharges by 2030 together is aligned to the new international treaty against plastic pollution, and must be implemented accordingly.
Things we can do to be a part of reducing plastic pollution
Ways to counter plastic pollution are never out of reach and it can start with any of us as individuals. Here are some ways we can contribute to reducing plastic pollution:
- Reducing single-use plastics or refusing to use single-use plastic products such as plastic bags, water bottles, straws, utensils, and take-out plastic containers.
- Buying products like clothing or cookware that is made from non-plastic materials, like cotton, ceramic, or glass.
- Recycling plastic properly, as it minimizes the quantity of new plastic in circulation.
- Reusing products; if you have no other option but to buy a plastic bottle or a plastic container at the groceries, you can always reuse it afterward. A plastic bottle may be refilled multiple times, and plastic containers can always be cleaned and reused.
"Plastic crisis needs binding treaty, report says." BBC News, January 18, 2022
"Connecting the Dots: Plastic pollution and the planetary emergency." EIA International, January 2022
"Historic day in the campaign to beat plastic pollution: Nations commit to develop a legally binding agreement" UN Environment Programme, March 2, 2022


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I have been reading coverage and watching interviews about the latest book by Steve Hilton. Apparently, he is the favourite political guru of David Cameron and therefore his ideas are ones we might expect to be implemented in the next five years. You might find a perusal of @stevehiltonguru on Twitter to be interesting, his TV appearances suggest he has been coach to "Call me Dave" in the way Chris Barrow has been a polarising national coach to the UK dental profession.
Our profession has massive frustrations with our daily lives and the restrictions which are all around us, reaching out to almost affect our pattern of breathing. Steve Hilton argues that what has happened, as our information society has developed, is that it has become easier and easier for systems which we must follow to be written and then codified. I believe our dental profession has been trapped by this codifying of systems, almost trying to make every dentist work and behave in the same way, with the same paperwork, the same records. The words I am using here could be used for every field in the UK, ask your spouse, your friends, professional colleagues, business people, all are being stifled by the weight of the state's hefty duvet of regulation.
In the 20th century, Hilton argues, due to the way communications worked, only the people in the centre were able to make decisions, and these rippled out, in some cases enforced. Before the Industrial Revolution, decisions were taken locally as the communications of the times meant a distant ruler in the capital city may impose large scale decisions such as war and taxation. The King in the castle could not micro-manage the daily actions of subjects hundreds of miles away, the local lord, or sherrif imposed their version for their area.
Can the philosophy of applying those systems allow us to be trusted again with making our own decisions, our own leadership, rather than being force fed by the nanny state?
Nationally, this broad idea encompasses powerful, executive, city mayors. This concept is being taken forward, we will see this as more and more city mayors take office across the UK. The benefits will be a translation of what may be a well meaning law or regulation emanating from a Whitehall Minister's desk, into what this means in a locality, where a well argued, seemingly sensible, national edict may be counter intuitive to the situation on the ground.
If there are to be more and more local mayors, or decision makers, could this idea be applied to dentistry? Many agree that the whole profession is frustrated daily by the national edicts which do not fit in with how we run things on the ground, in our own practices, or in our own areas?
In oral health provision, the needs of differing areas do vary widely. Truly local decisions will help people on the ground, the providers of healthcare working together with the recipients of this care. How can we move the profession away from political control, away from the politicos who are able to speak publicly and utter soothing platitudes, but when devising and enacting changes, they seem to be regularly and plainly wrong? But our decision makers must be of the people, possibly elected, and definitely not from the present Dental Public Health elite who continue to drive change in their narrow eyed image.
Decision making for the future of our profession needs to be more human, more involving, and not just showered onto dentistry from the top down. This itself will mean different things to different people, but will allow concepts from grass roots to flourish, we have many mechanisms for communication, to set the agenda, and make the changes. The age of imposing change must now be over.
My call now is for our largest trade union, the BDA, to take this forward to this new Government on terms that fit in with their style, their politics, their understanding, in order to make a change to the top down mindset. This is about freedom, modern politics, and a move away from the paternal style of the last century, using modern coimmunications but not only in a single direction.
Top-Down remote Hierarchy
Human scale yes, but which hum...


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In France, May 1st is the day that workers' rights are celebrated and the day people give each other lily of the valley.
Lily of the valley is a flower adorned with little white bell-shaped flowers and long green leaves. It blossoms in the Spring thus celebrates the return of beautiful weather.… Read More
La Chandeleur : A French Celebration!
Every year on February 2nd, French people celebrate La Chandeleur. On this date, we used to cook crepes, that we would then flip in the skillet while holding a golden coin in the hand, which will bring us luck all year long.
Originally, crepes parties were part of a casual winter family routine that the Catholics picked as the celebration of Jesus Presentation to the Temple.… Read More
Christmas in France
Christmas is a famous holiday all around the world, a family day where we give each other presents and eat a good meal together. With that said, each country has its own traditions around the 25th of December. France is no exception.
How do French people celebrate Christmas?… Read More
Why is McDonald's better in France?
If you have been to a McDonald's restaurant in both countries, you most likely noticed huge differences.
- Restaurants are decorated nicer, look newer, and are better equipped in France.
- Menus are (much !) more elaborate, with a wider range of ingredients.
Top 5 Local Markets in Paris
A symbol of gathering and of the famous French fraternity, markets are an important part of Parisian life. We urge you to add them to your go-to list during your visit of the Capitale. Here is a selection of the most beautiful markets in Paris, in our opinion:
- The Marché d'Aligre: is an iconic indoor/outdoor market which is open every day.