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“As I write, highly civilised human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me”
As we can tell from the first line, Orwell wrote England Your England during the conflict of World War II yet the essay turns out not to be about the war but about something very dear to Orwell’s heart: the British people.
Orwell states that the people in the planes trying to kill him must be very much like the British people; but patriotism and national loyalty trumps all, a fact that Hitler and Mussonlini were able to grasp. Differences between nations are based on differences in outlook and the English are highly differentiated, distinctive and recognizable from their country terrain, to their visual appearance, to their manners. Yet while these attributes can vary substantially from area to area, the English have a common national identity. How is that possible among so many differences? Orwell investigates.
|source Wikipedia & Dennis Redfield
CC BY 2.0
Orwell makes some generalizations about the English:
- They are not artistically gifted
- They are not intellectual
- In the face of an emergency, “the whole nation can suddenly draw together and act upon a species of instinct, really a code of conduct which is understood by almost everyone, though never formulated”
- They have a love of flowers
- They have an addiction to hobbies and spare-time occupations
- They believe in the liberty of the individual
- They are not puritanical; they have their weaknesses and astonishingly have to work against hypocritcal laws to enjoy them
- They do not have definite religious beliefs yet “have retained a deep tinge of Christian feeling, while almost forgetting the name of Christ”
- Power-worship has never infected the common people
There is a gentleness in the landscape that is mirrored in its people. They have a distaste for anything military; in fact in their histories one learns more about British defeat instead of British victory. Considering the British Empire, to foreigners English attitudes seem like sheer hypocrisy, yet the common people do not seem to know that the Empire exists. A military display, such as the goose-step, would be laughed at by the British people.
|source Wikipedia & Robert Scarth
CC BY 2.0
However, despite the gentleness, there is also barbarianism and anachronisms. For example, British criminal law is antiquated:
- belief that the law is above the State and the individual
- the electoral system is “all but open fraud”
- there is one law for the rich, another for the poor
However, there is balance within this system too.
While there are differences in British “races” and class distinction, they consider themselves a single nation. Patriotism “takes a different form in different classes, but it runs like a connecting thread though nearly all of them.” They cling to their culture with a tenacity that is at once astounding as it is admirable and national unity is almost a world-view. In spite of class distinctions, suddenly the whole country can “swing together” in a surprising move from sleep to action then back to sleep.
He references the English people’s reaction to Chamberlain during WWII:
“…. it is fairly certain that the bulk of the English people were behind Chamberlain’s foreign policy. More, it is fairly certain that the same struggle was going on in Chamberlain’s mind as in the minds of ordinary people. His opponent professed to see in him as a dark and wily schemer, plotting to sell England to Hitler, but it is far likelier that he was merely a stupid old man doing his best according to his very dim lights. It is difficult otherwise to explain the contradictions of his policy, his failure to grasp any of the courses that were open to him. Like the mass of the people, he did not want to pay the price either of peace or of war. And public opinion was behind him all the while, in policies that were completely incompatible with one another ….”
Is England a genuine democracy? Orwell gives an emphatic, No!
“England is the most class-ridden country under the sun. It is a land of snobbery and privilege, ruled largely by the old and silly.”
Yet it has an emotional unity that prevents it not only from committing certain atrocities, but allows for an unusual freedom of speech. There is no worry because the country will act as one. Corruption in England is not a deliberate corruption, but more a corruption born of self-deception. “And being unconscious, it is limited.” England is not a jewel nor a hell but more a family with “all its cupboards bursting with skeletons ………. a family with the wrong members in control —- that, perhaps is as near as one can come to describing England in a phrase.”
The ability of the English ruling class has been decaying at an astronomical rate, especially during the years between 1920 and 1940, where domestic problems abounded and the foreign policy was atrocious. “What was it that at every decisive moment made every British statesman do the wrong thing with so unerring an instinct?” This ruling class had long since been unjustifiable, this fact becoming realized in the 1920s and obvious in the 1930s. Since this class had a long and dignified tradition, it could not turn into the unconscionable bandits, like American millionaires. “They had to feel themselves true patriots, even while they plundered their countrymen.” So instead they decided to retreat into stupidity, making themselves unable to grasp that any change was possible. This explains:
- the decay of country life due to clinging to sham-feudalism
- immobility of the public schools which have remained stagnant
- military incompetence punctuated by disasters
The ruling class served well in peacetime but because they lived in the past they could not grasp any of the present threats such as Hitler, Mussolini, Communism, Fascism, etc. Yet in spite of their flaws, they are morally sound and do not hesitate to get themselves killed for their country if the occasion calls for it.
“What is to be expected of them is not treachery or physical cowardice, but stupidity, unconscious sabotage, an infallible instinct for doing the wrong thing.”
In the between-war years, the Empire stagnated affecting two sub-sections of the middle class: the military and imperialist middle class, or the Blimps; and the left-wing intelligentsia. The Blimps began to lose vitality 30 years before as the telegraph buried their heros under mounds of paper and red tape and no other able, intelligent young men rose to take part in imperial administration. This weakening of imperialism, and therefore perhaps British morale, was partly caused by the left-wing intelligentsia, a growth that formed with the stagnation of the Empire. Most intellectuals were seen as left-wing and in an Empire that was stagnant and among people who were stupid, anyone understanding modern theory was suspect and kept out of important jobs. Their voice was only heard in literary reviews and left-wing political parties.
“The mentality of the English left-wing intelligentsia can be studied in half a dozen weekly and monthly papers. (They) … are generally negative, querulous attitude, their complete lack at all times of any constructive suggestion. There is little in them except the irresponsible carping of people who have never been and never expect to be in a position of power. Another marked characteristic is the emotional shallowness of people who live in a world of ideas and have little contact with physical reality ….. England is perhaps the only great country whose intellectuals are ashamed of their own nationality.” The Left, with their anti-British sentiment, made it easier for the Fascist nations to decide to plunge into war and with their Blimp-baiting made it more difficult for intelligent young men to enter the armed forces. With the stagnation of the Empire, the decay of the ruling class would have occurred in any case, but the Left hastened the process. Yet they were also a by-product of the ruling class stupidity. A modern nation cannot afford to have Blimps or left-wing intelligentsia if it is to prosper.
The spread of the middle-class both upwards and downwards, have made them nearly impossible to classify. This extension of the middle-class with their ideas and habits has enormously benefited the British working class. The differences in life between the classes has been greatly diminished. Yet while things are changing, “England will still be England, an everlasting animal stretching into the future and the past, and, like all living things, having the power to change out of recognition and yet remain the same.”
I so enjoy Orwell’s witty style of writing but also his directness in that he colours the issues exactly as he sees them without prevaricating or glossing them, while at the same time employing insight and intelligence. He’s also adept at seeing the pros and cons within the issues and again, lays them out with a delightful clarity. He’s definitely becoming one of my favourite essayists!
And lastly, do you think England still retains all or many of the characteristics Orwell describes? I’d love to hear some thoughts on this topic!
Next up in the Deal Me In Challenge will be the essay Death of a Pig by E.B. White |
Well 191 in the Moomba gas field in the outback Cooper Basin is not the most impressive piece of infrastructure, at just two metres tall with a length of 20-millimetre pipe attached.
But it is the closest thing to an iceberg in the desert because it is what is hidden that counts.
Santos executive James Baulderstone explained the well's significance.
"This well is three-and-a-half kilometres deep and extracting a resource that provides the energy for 40,000 homes in Adelaide and Sydney," he said.
It is Australia's first production well for shale gas (often referred to as unconventional gas) and Mr Baulderstone believes it is a game-changing resource.
"In the Moomba field and surrounding fields we have 700 producing gas wells," he said.
"We are hoping we can drill many wells that can take the production from central Australia that has been supplying half the gas for the eastern seaboard for 40 years and provide that for another 40 years."
Others parties also tell of the significance of unconventional gas resources.
Estimated 100 years of supply
Business SA chief executive Nigel McBride said, based on Australia's current usage, there was an estimated 100 years of gas supply in shale.
Shale gas is no different from other natural gas, it is just contained tightly within the pores of rock known as shale.
To get it to the surface a traditional well is sunk, then the rock is fractured in a process known as fracking to release the gas.
Geologists have long known about the shale deposits but they are now being exploited due to Asia's growing energy demand.
Santos signed contracts in 2010 to supply Cooper Basin gas via its joint venture liquefied natural gas plant at Gladstone in central Queensland.
To fulfil overseas demand the company needed to find more gas, which led to a dramatic change of pace for the Cooper Basin.
Instead of progressively mothballing the Moomba processing plant, Santos is spending $800 million over four years upgrading it.
Dozens of wells are being drilled and fracked using technology imported from North America.
Rather than drilling a single vertical shaft, rigs now are capable of drilling horizontally.
A well becomes like a subterranean octopus with limbs stretching out several kilometres under the desert.
A type of paste or gel is then created, with ceramic sand suspended in it. It is hydraulically forced into the cracks in the shale and in turn forces open spaces for the gas to exit.
Greens want fracking moratorium
Not everyone is as enthusiastic about the expansion of the operation.
South Australian Greens leader Mark Parnell wants a moratorium on fracking, arguing the activity has polluted groundwater in the eastern states where gas is sought from coal seam deposits.
A Lock the Gate Alliance strongly opposes coal seam gas fracking, arguing it threatens groundwater and farmland.
"We know at Moomba they have had oil and gas production for a long time," Mr Parnell said.
"There aren't a lot of people who live up that way and no farmland so to a certain extent it is out-of-sight out-of-mind but there are enough question marks over fracking that we should have a moratorium until the science is in."
Santos argues fracking is a well-known and tested technology and the company has a 40-year record of protecting the Great Artesian Basin.
"We believe we can prove we can do it safely and sustainably, not just in the past but clearly in the future as well," Mr Baulderstone said.
The South Australian Government has enthusiastically embraced the development in shale, hoping it will provide spin-offs beyond annual royalties which reached $81.2 million last year.
"It is a resource that can only be used once," SA Premier Jay Weatherill said.
"We have to ensure the benefits of that are invested for future generations, so that's why we have a future fund, that's why we are also looking at a mining centre of excellence based here so that we can get the downstream benefits of this incredible resource."
Although most of the shale gas is earmarked for export, governments are hoping increased production will lower energy prices in the domestic market, as has happened in the United States.
Oxford economist Dieter Helm said the shale market did not exist in 2004 in the US and now represents 30 per cent of the gas market.
As a result, energy prices have fallen and manufacturing has been given a boost.
Mr Baulderstone sees the potential for Australia.
"The US domestic market is 20 times bigger than the Australian domestic market and that gave them the scale to chase this kind of gas field prior to Australia," he said.
"What export does for us is it moves us along that scale to provide the pull for this gas to be developed." |
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to make himself master of the empire. Artabazes, the commander of the Armenian legions, supported Leo, who had besides many friends in the army. Leo was then holding the field against the Arabs, who had laid siege to Armorium in Galatia. After outwitting Muslima, the general of the Arabs, he set out for Cappadocia, where he found the inhabitants willing to submit to him, but was closely followed by Muslima. Leo would ere long have been pressed by two enemies, had he not anticipated the attack of the weaker of them, the emperor Theodosius. He accordingly left Cappadocia, and his rapid marches afforded him at once the double advantage of leaving the Arabs far behind him, while he daily came nearer to the imperial troops, who were far from being strong enough to resist him in the field. At Nicomedeia he was stopped by a son of Theodosius, who was defeated and taken prisoner. Leo now marched upon Constantinople; and Theodosius, despairing of success, resigned his crown (March 718), and retired to a convent at Ephesus, where he lived peacefully during more than thirty years. Scarcely had Leo received the homage of the people, when the khalif Soliman appeared before Constantinople with a powerful army and a numerous fleet. He considered the trick played by Leo upon Muslima at Armorium as a personal insult, and now came to take revenge. This siege of Constantinople, the third by the Arabs, and one of the most memorable of all, lasted just-two years, from the 15th of August, 718, to the 15th of the same month in 7*20. Soliman died soon after its commencement, and was succeeded by the khalif Omar, who swore by his beard that he would take revenge upon Leo. But Leo sallied out from the Golden Horn with his galleys, the Greek fire consumed the Arabian ships, and the emperor returned laden with booty and captives. In two other naval engagements, the Arabs were beaten with still greater losses ; and in the beginning of August, 720, their land forces were routed .in a pitched battle, with a loss of 28,000 men. Unable to continue the siege any longer, the khalif raised it on the 15th of August, but only a small portion of his fleet—the third he had built for the conquest of Constantinople—reached the harbours of Syria, the greater portion having been destroyed by a storm. So close was the siege, so enormous the preparations of the Arabs, that even the splendid victories of Leo could not prevent the inhabitants of the provinces from thinking Constantinople was lost, since the very news of those victories could not reach them on account of the watchfulness of the besiegers. The whole empire was in consternation, and in the western kingdoms rumours were afloat that the khalif had ascended the throne of the Byzantine emperors. Among those who believed these rumours was Sergius, governor of Sicily, who took measures to make himself independent, and to that effect proclaimed his lieutenant, Basil, king of Sicily and Calabria. Basil accepted the dignity, and adopted the name of Tiberius ; while Sergius took proper steps to secure the crown for himself in case of complete success. Meanwhile, however, Leo had bettered his condition so much .that he could despatch his general, Paulus, with a few loyal veterans, to Sicily ; and through the exertions of this energetic man, the rebellion was soon quelled. Basil was taken prisoner and lost his head ; but Sergius escaped to the Lombards in Italy He was subsequently
pardoned, and finally succeeded in obtaining again the same government in Italy, which he intended to wrest from the emperor. Another conspiracy that took place in consequence of the critical position of Leo, was that of the deposed emperor, Anastasius II. The plot was not discovered till 721, after the termination of the siege of Constantinople, and Anastasius paid for his temerity with his head.
In spite of his defeats before Constantinople, the khalif Omar continued the war, and in 726 took Caesareia in Cappadocia, and Neo-Caesareia in Pontus. Leo, however, had not only sufficient forces to make the Arabs feel that he was still more powerful than they, but his authority was so well established, that he undertook to carry out his favourite design, the abolition of the worship of images in the Catholic church. To this effect he issued a general edict, which is one of the most important acts of legislation in the Eastern empire, and perhaps in the whole Christian world. The question of the images was not only a matter of religion, but concerned as much the political state of the empire. The abuse of the images on one side, and the horror in which they were held by the numerous Mohammedans and Jews in the East on the other, gave origin at last to the iconoclasts, or image-breakers. In declaring for them, Leo certainly intended to purify the Catholic creed; but there seems to be no doubt that by removing the images from the churches, he hoped to make the Jews and Mohammedans more favourably inclined to the Christians and a Christian government ; and although the adherents of images were very numerous, it cannot be doubted that they would have lost all power if Leo had succeeded in rallying the Iconoclasts, the Jews, the Mohammedans, and the numerous worshippers of fire in Asia, round the throne of an energetic and enlightened emperor. Indeed it seems that the protectors of the Iconoclasts in those earlier times entertained some hope of making them the medium through which the unbelievers would be led to Christ, and the Eastern empire restored to its ancient splendour; and this explains at once the religious and, the political importance of the question. In the West the question of. the images produced scarcely any effect upon the people, though more upon the Frankish clerg3r, and still, more upon the conduct of the bishops of Rome, who,-by declaring in favour of the Iconoclasts, would have been abandoned by the last of their followers. In short, the question of the images, like so many others connected with the domestic history of the Byzantine empire, was at once religious and political ; and while, among the modern writers, Le Beau is but too often influenced by religious opinions, and Gibbon treats the history of that empire too much as a philosopher and an orator, we are entitled to hope that time will bring us another historian who, starting from a mere historical and political point of view, will satisfactorily explain the overwhelming influence of religious controversies upon the social development of the Eastern empire.
The edict of Leo through which the images were condemned caused a general revolution throughout the whole empire, and was the immediate cause of the loss of Ravenna, Rome, and several other possessions of the Greeks in Italy, which were taken by the Lombards, and of the final separation of the |
The Nature and Philosophy of Science
Scientists are unbiased observers who use the scientific method to conclusively confirm and conclusively falsify various theories. These experts have no preconceptions in gathering the data and logically derive theories from these objective observations. One great strength of science is that it’s self-correcting, because scientists readily abandon theories when they are shown to be irrational. Although such eminent views of science have been accepted by many people, they are almost completely untrue. Data can neither conclusively confirm nor conclusively falsify theories, there really is no such thing as the scientific method, data become somewhat subjective in practice, and scientists have displayed a surprisingly fierce loyalty to their theories. There have been many misconceptions of what science is and is not. I’ll discuss why these misconstruals are inaccurate later, but first I’d like to begin by talking about some of the basics of what science is.
Science is a project whose goal is to obtain knowledge of the natural world. The philosophy of science is a discipline that deals with the system of science itself. It examines science’s structure, components, techniques, assumptions, limitations, and so forth.
To properly understand the contemporary philosophy of science, it is necessary to examine some basic components of science. The components of science are data, theories, and what is sometimes called shaping principles.
Data are the collections of information about physical processes. Sometimes collecting and finding data to support theories can be rather laborious. This is because the specific details of data that come into play can make science such a tricky business that some scientists, when talking to laymen, sometime leave them out. Also, it is easy to fit a theory in with the data if the data are vague and overgeneralized. It usually becomes more difficult to fit the theory with specific data, especially since the details make it more likely for the theory to become less plausible. Even so, data are important parts of theories and of science.
Theories come in roughly two forms. Contrary to what some might think, a theory in the scientific sense does not have anything to do with whether or not it is supported by the evidence, contradicted by the evidence, well liked among scientists, and so forth. It only has to do with its structure and the way it functions. That is, just because a theory is a scientific theory does not mean that the scientific community currently accepts it. There are many theories that, though technically scientific, have been rejected because the scientific evidence is strongly against it. Phenomenological theories are empirical generalizations of data. They merely describe the recurring processes of nature and do not refer to their causes or mechanisms. Phenomenological theories are also called scientific laws, physical laws, and natural laws. Newton’s third law is one example. It says that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Explanatory theories attempt to explain the observations rather than generalize them. Whereas laws are descriptions of empirical regularities, explanatory theories are conceptual constructions to explain why the data exist. For example, atomic theory explains why we see certain observations. The same could be said with DNA and relativity. Explanatory theories are particularly helpful in such cases where the entities (like atoms, DNA, and so forth) cannot be directly observed.
Shaping principles are non-empirical factors and assumptions that form the basis of science and go into selecting a “good” theory. Why are they necessary? Can’t theories be selected solely on the basis of empirical data? Surprisingly, the answer is no. Why not? Describing some mistaken views of science come in handy for explaining the answer.
Many students (including me) were brought up with a somewhat eminent view of science, or at least a fairly eminent view of science as it should be done. As I have found however, the status of science which most of us were taught may have been a bit misleading. Some ideas of what “the scientific method” is have also been erroneous. This is perhaps because scientists themselves tend to be ignorant of the philosophy of science. Changes have been made in history about what science is and how it should be done.
In the early years of science, the system of acquiring knowledge was viewed as completely objective, rational, and empirical. This traditional view of science held that scientific theories and laws were to be conclusively confirmed or conclusively falsified based on objective data. This was supposed to be done through “the scientific method.” Apparently some sort of method was necessary because humans seemed to have a variety of tendencies and feelings that were not very trustworthy, including biases, feelings, intuitions, and so forth. These kinds of things had to be prevented from infecting science so that knowledge could be reliably obtained. Rigorous and precise procedure (“the scientific method”) was to be followed so that such imperfections of humanity would not hinder the process of discovering nature.
Baconian inductivism in the early seventeenth century was at one point considered to be the scientific method. The basic idea at the time was this: collect numerous observations (as much as humanly possible) being unaffected by any prior prejudice or theoretical preconceptions while gathering the data, inductively infer theories from those data (by generalizing the data into physical laws), and collect more data to modify or reject the hypothesis if needed. In many instances, this concept seemed to work. One can collect numerous observations of physical processes and experiments to derive natural laws, such the conservation of mass-energy. Alas, Baconian inductivism is an inaccurate picture of scientific method. When using inductivism to arrive at natural laws, certain theoretical preconceptions are absolutely vital. To generalize the data into physical laws, the individual must assume that the laws apply for physical processes not observed. This results in several assumptions being held, such as the uniform operation of nature. Even if we put aside the fact that inductive logic is invariably based on such postulations, there is another problem. Science deals with concepts and explanatory theories that cannot be directly observed, including atomic theory and the theory of gravity. Many other theories include unobservable concepts like forces, fields, and subatomic particles. There is no known rigorous inductive logic that can infer those theories and concepts solely from the data they explain. If inductivism is the correct scientific method, then such theories cannot be legitimate science. As if these difficulties weren’t enough, inductivism has other major technical problems that have led to its demise.
Sir Isaac Newton developed hypothetico-deductivism in the late 1600s (though the method was actually named at a later date). Essentially, one starts with a hypothesis (a hypothesis is basically a provisional theory) and then deduces what we would expect to find in the empirical world as a result of that hypothesis, hence the name hypothetico-deductivism. Here the idea was to quarantine human irrationality. One could make a theory for any or no reason. The sources of theories would be irrelevant in hypothetico-deductivism since the theories could be tested against the empirical world and be confirmed or refuted that way. A theory did not become a good theory by its origins, but because of the hypothetico-deductive method of verification. Inductivism, recall, could not work because empirical data cannot be the sole source of a theory. Some scientists and philosophers of science who rejected inductivism embraced hypothetico-deductivism. A significant reason is that it allowed ideas like atomic theory to be legitimate science whereas they would not be in inductivism.
Unfortunately, hypothetico-deductivism also has problems. The philosophy that rigorous proof is necessary for good science has serious problems even if we assume that sense experience, memory, and testimony are all generally reliable. For one thing, we cannot be sure that we have examined all the germane data. There is always the opportunity for future observations to topple even the most established of theories. For example, there is always the possibility that an observation could conflict with any known scientific law. This is what caused Newtonian mechanics to be cut down to size. Rather than being a total account for the nature and dynamics of the universe, Einstein, Heisenberg, and other physicists demonstrated that the realm of Newtonian mechanics is much more restricted than what was once thought. Unrevealed data can also contradict the predictions of any explanatory theory as well. Every theory has an infinite number of expected empirical outcomes, and we are incapable of testing all of those expectations. So even though a theory can be confirmed to some extent by empirical data, it can never be conclusively confirmed. Apart from this, hypothetico-deductivism’s method of verification has this sort of structure where T is a theory and D a set of data that we would expect if the theory were true:
This is not a logically valid argument. Indeed, an argument of this sort of structure is called the fallacy of affirming the conclusion. Have T = “An invisible unicorn from Mars flew into the sky to cause rain,” and D = “It is raining.” Logically, the first premise must be correct (If T is true, then D would be true). Suppose the second premise is correct. It is raining. Even so, the conclusion doesn’t logically follow. Why doesn’t it work? Because there could be other possibilities for D other than T. That is, more than one theory could exist to explain the data. And this is indeed the case. In this example, it could simply be natural weather patterns, not a flying invisible unicorn from Mars, that caused the rain. In science or anywhere else, any given body of data (no matter how large) will always be agreeable with an unlimited number of alternative theories. Invariably there are many theories that explain the exact same data, and at least some of the theories will contradict each other. This fact is sometimes expressed as data underdetermining theories, or is simply referred to as the underdetermination of theories. Because such competing theories are consistent with the same set of data, all of these theories are empirically identical. This means that empirical data by itself cannot exclusively confirm one theory from among its empirically indistinguishable competitors. Some of these empirically indistinguishable theories may be elegantly simple and others may be outrageously complex, but multiple alternatives exist for any set of data. There are examples of this problem in the real world. In one such instance, Tyco Brahe and Copernicus each had a competing theory of the solar system. It can be shown mathematically that every bit of data that is predicted by one theory would be predicted by the other theory. We may not always be able to think of alternative theories, but this only has to do with problems of human imagination in constructing such theories, not the logic of the circumstances. Of course, the underdetermination of theories also poses yet another problem for Baconian inductivism. (Explanatory theories cannot be inferred from data alone if there are always numerous alternatives that explain that same set of data.) As a result of the underdetermination of theories and the risk of undiscovered, contradictory empirical evidence, a scientific theory cannot be conclusively proven merely through the data. Even if we take out the notion of conclusive proof from hypothetico-deductivism, it seems that this idea of the scientific method dreadfully oversimplifies how science works. No rational scientist would accept the flying invisible unicorn from mars theory simply because it passed the empirical confirmation test in the above example, for instance.
Popperian falsification is another belief of what the scientific method is. Karl Popper, regarded by many as one of the finest and most influential philosophers of science of the twentieth century, realized the flaws of inductivism and rejected it. Popper recognized that one could not record everything observed, because that is simply not feasible. Some sort of selection is needed, and thus observation is always selective. That being true, Popper believed that a hypothesis had to be created first for scientific investigation to begin. Otherwise there would be no other way to tell which data are germane. Since theories must be created first in order to decide what observations were relevant, such theoretical preconceptions would be essential to doing science (contrary to Baconian inductivism). This was one of the reasons he believed inductivism is unworkable. He also denied the concept of conclusive proof and instead stressed the idea that falsifiability is the necessary criterion for a theory to be legitimate science. In other words, if a theory cannot be falsified through some conceivable observation, then such a theory is not genuine science. The necessity for a scientific theory to be conclusively falsifiable is known as the demarcation criterion. This idea seemed reasonable enough, since scientific theories can make predictions. Popperian falsification suggested that if a prediction does not come true, then the scientific theory must be false. Popper’s idea of the scientific method was for scientists to test scientific theories in experiments where the outcome could potentially falsify the theory, especially in experiments where the theory would most likely collapse. Science still had some of its traditional quality in that it could make definite progress by conclusively eliminating theories.
Yet, like inductivism, Popper’s ideas are not entirely successful either. (Consequently, some regard Popper’s contribution to the philosophy of science to be overrated.) Popper was certainly correct that data are selective, but they need not have a theory to guide the selection (though that is often the case). For instance, one can record data and apply assumptions to the data to form a theory, as is sometimes the case with scientific laws. (Note that since assumptions need to be accepted for the theory to be created, this would not be an example of inductivism without assumptions in action.) The demarcation criterion is even more flawed. Surprisingly, the problem is that it is impossible to conclusively falsify theories by empirical data. One reason is that theories by themselves are incapable of making predictions. Instead, the empirical consequences of a theory invariably rest on background assumptions (also called auxiliary assumptions) from which to derive predictions and even to obtain data.Suppose we have a particle theory that says if we process a certain particle in a particular way, we will get specified values on various measurements.
Note that most of the items depend on scientific theories. But scientific theories, remember, cannot be conclusively proven. The dependence on background assumptions to make predictions is sometimes called the Duhem-Quine problem. There are real life examples of this problem. To “disprove” the idea that the earth was moving, some people noted that birds did not get thrown off into the sky whenever they let go of a tree branch. That data is no longer accepted as empirical evidence that the earth is not moving because we have adopted a different background system of physics that allows us to make different predictions. So if a theory’s prediction does not come true, one can claim that the theory is correct and that at least one of the auxiliary assumptions is wrong.
Besides using auxiliary assumptions to make predictions, such assumptions are necessary to find out if the predictions come true. Suppose that in order to test our particle theory in the real world we must use a certain particle accelerator in a particular way. To experimentally test this, we must adhere to the following statements:
Notice that several of the items are again dependent on scientific theories, which cannot be rigorously proven. Suppose the prediction does not come true and we observe that, “this particle did not have the specified properties that it should’ve had.” That observation would be heavily dependent on theories. Although it is possible that our theory could be wrong, it is also possible that instead one or more of the assumptions listed are wrong. Often, the terminology used to describe experimental results in addition to the measurements and instruments used in testing theories make up another set of background assumptions. The dependence on such postulations for obtaining data is described as observations being theory-laden. In this example, we have to assume these kinds of assumptions (including #1, #2, #3, and #4 on the list above) to accept the observation of what properties the particle produced. A completely theoretically neutral language for recording data is not always possible. Suppose Bob’s prediction comes true. There is still the possibility of the background assumptions being wrong. Consequently, theories can neither be conclusively proven nor conclusively falsified by empirical data.
Also, it is possible to salvage a troubled theory or make arguments against a well-supported theory. This can be done because one can alter auxiliary assumptions to produce different predictions or change the meaning of theory-laden observations. For example, suppose I proposed the theory that the moon is made of cheese. To refute this theory, many people would point out that astronauts have gone up there and found out that it is more like a rock than a huge piece of cheese. I could counter that argument by saying something like, “the moon with its great age would naturally accumulate massive quantities of rocks and other particles from space. Under that layer of space debris, however, is the cheese.” This type of argument that explains away such evidence is called an ad hoc hypothesis, especially if the theory-saving device lacks further significant evidence to support itself. Of course, it is possible to rationally discard this absurd theory, but the point is one cannot do this merely by pointing to the data. When the right ad hoc hypotheses are made, the theory of the moon being made of cheese becomes empirically identical to the moon being rock-like. This sort of thing is not limited to ridiculous theories about the moon’s composition. It’s possible to modify virtually any theory so that it’s consistent with whatever data that might come up.
Despite the fact that Karl Popper was not completely successful, he did make some useful contributions. He pointed out that data are selective and subject to human choice (and thus demonstrated that data are not quite as objective as once thought). He also showed the flaws of inductivism and why a theory cannot originate exclusively from empirical data.
So it does seem that, if the only way to evaluate theories is in terms of empirical predictions, science is in trouble. In testing theories, scientists use auxiliary assumptions for which they have rational reason for being true, even though the assumptions and theories are not conclusively proven. Yet, given the underdetermination of theories, we can’t just pick a theory and justify it solely by the data. We can’t even justify a particular theory as probable by the empirical evidence since there are an infinite number of other theories that can explain the exact same set of data. How can science function?
It is evident that theories and data by themselves are insufficient for science to work, and thus other factors are needed for science to operate. This group of factors in the nature of science is that of shaping principles, which can be used to select theories and form the foundations of science. Many assumptions are made in science. One example is the uniformity of nature. That is, the belief that natural processes operate in a fairly consistent manner. This shaping principle is the basis for the idea of natural laws. For example, Newton’s laws are said to apply throughout the universe. This is believed even though scientists have not actually tested the laws everywhere in the universe. Natural laws could not exist in science without assuming the uniformity of nature. Other assumptions made for science to operate include that there exists an external objective reality, that our senses are generally reliable, and so forth.
Another set of shaping principles evaluates the empirical evidence to select theories. Because of the underdetermination of theories, there is always an infinite number of competing theories that can accommodate any given set of empirical data. Since these competing theories are empirically indistinguishable from each other, if science is to pick out a theory from among these numerous competitors and claim that it is correct, then such a selection must be based on nonempirical principles (whether they be philosophical, personal, societal, or whatever). The law of parsimony is one of them. This principle of logic states that, if all other aspects are equal, the simplest theory is preferred over other theories involving additional factors. This is also called Ockham’s razor (sometimes spelled as Occam's razor). The law of parsimony is often used because a theory conforming to this principle fits the data more easily. This principle especially applies to theories with ad hoc hypotheses. The lower the number of ad hoc hypotheses a scientific theory has, the better. Other principles include (but are not limited to) empirical adequacy (covering the pertinent data in some suitable way), self-consistency, fruitfulness (giving rise to other understandings and having stimulated pioneering investigations and advancements), and explanatory power. Another key principle is how well a theory ties in with other scientific theories and concepts that are rational to believe. It is only when these kinds of shaping principles interact with data can science then provide rational support for a theory over its competitors.
However, there are a few exceptions to the idea that there is no conclusive proof in science. Logic is the closest we can get to rigorous proof and falsification. For example, suppose our friend Bob has this theory: hairless men have no hair. By the rules of logic, Bob’s theory must be true. Of course, Bob’s theory is a tautology (needless repetition of an idea, in this case it’s the repeated concept of hairless men), and tautologies are typically not very helpful. Sadly, not very many helpful theories can be thoroughly proved by logic, and logic disproving a scientific theory is almost never used because seldom does a scientist propose a theory that is logically impossible. Most of the time science relies on other shaping principles to pick theories.
It becomes easier to understand these principles when they are put into action. In the “moon is made of cheese” example, we can reject it because of the law of parsimony. It uses an ad hoc hypothesis, whereas the theory of the moon being like a rock does not. Often times, of course, more than one shaping principle becomes applicable. For example, suppose Bob’s computer is malfunctioning. One theory he has is that an invisible gremlin has caused such problems, and another is that a computer virus has invaded his machine through his modem, computer programming, and some fairly complex electronic systems in his computer as well as on the Internet. The gremlin theory is simpler, and thus it would seem to appeal to the law of parsimony. Yet the gremlin theory hardly seems empirically adequate in this case. This is because other considerations need to be taken into account. Another fact to consider here is that the computer virus theory ties in with electronic concepts that are supported by evidence, whereas the gremlin theory does not. Because so many shaping principles are used and because they can often conflict with each other, we should be careful about justifying how much the evidence supports a theory.
Unfortunately, there are still limitations involved in scientific practice and shaping principles do not solve the entire problem, even in the basic foundational beliefs of science. Take the uniformity of nature, for example. We believe nature is consistent enough so that the experimental data (such as from testing physical laws) obtained from two years ago on Earth will essentially be the same if the experiments were to be conducted in identical conditions on Mars next week. But there really is no logical principle to tell us that physical laws will hold true in places where we haven’t tested them (even if that place is the future). A similar sort of problem arises when we choose between empirically identical theories. When using shaping principles to select a theory, we must have some philosophical basis for believing that nature’s preferences are similar to ours. And for many of these principles there is no logical rule to imply their reliability. For example, in picking out a theory from among it’s empirically indistinguishable competitors (and when all other factors are held constant), the notion that reality favors simple theories over complex ones is nevertheless a philosophical principle. Although these indicators of theoretical truth are necessary for science to work, they are significantly indirect, circumstantial, highly fallible, and are still unable to prove/disprove theories. While science may be the best we can do, the limitations should still be recognized.
On top of that, there is no known clear-cut method that tells us to what degree the evidence confirms a scientific theory, despite attempts at finding one. This becomes problematic when scientists must decide on what theory to accept as the most rational one. Scientists intuitively feel how rational scientific theories are, rather than having a precise logical method for such judgments. These intuitive feelings result from shaping principles. The interactions of shaping principles in the minds of scientists are so complex and so numerous that we may never come up with a rigorously logical system to select theories. Most of the shaping principles are frequently unspoken and sometimes scientists themselves do not know they are using them. Although some shaping principles are based on logic, others are not always so sensible and objective. Scientists (and regular human beings) are also affected by cultural, social, and personal beliefs. Indeed, such factors have been significant influences in scientific revolutions. This is because many activities in science, such constructing theories, involve numerous aspects of oneself. In the case of making theories, the theories themselves are creative inventions that come from the minds of scientists. Science is a human activity, and what affects scientists will have an effect on science. One may think that having such unscientific factors affect theory judgments is bad for science. That may very well be true, but unfortunately there is no known way to separate the helpful principles (explanatory power etc.) from the unfavorable ones (personal biases etc.) in the subconscious minds of scientists that make these theory judgments. Because every human being has their own unique set of shaping principles, different scientists (and regular human beings) can look at the exact same set of data and disagree about which theory most rationally explains the observations. Rather than the traditional view that science is to be protected from biases and other imperfections of people, it turns out that science is inescapably infected with humanness.
It would seem that there is a delicate tapestry in interpreting the data. It is uncommon for a theory to be tested in isolation because of the Duhem-Quine problem. Because we often rely on background assumptions to derive predictions for a theory, and because those background theories depend on other auxiliary theories and principles for their empirical expectations etc., it would seem to follow that the collection of theories combined with their shaping and background principles thus make up an explanatory matrix, or conceptual grid, in which to fit the data. Modifications to the explanatory matrix can be made in attempts to get a better fit, but because of the interwoven nature of the tapestry, often times one cannot supplant aspects of the grid without changing things in some way elsewhere. So it’s possible that the need would arise for an entire conceptual system to be replaced. Additionally, the nature of science can make it difficult, if not impossible, to empirically test an individual theory completely independent of this matrix. However, it is also quite possible for nature to teach us some things in carrying out our investigation. That is, the interaction between the explanatory matrix and the data can be a sort of two-way process. As we uncover more data, we can learn better ways to shape the grid and how to go about it.
Some have pictured the scientist as a completely objective individual who is free of bias and preconceptions, and who is willing to quickly abandon even the most well accepted theory if it were shown to be scientifically inadequate. This belief is not close to the truth. The reality is that scientists are humans, and humans are fallible beings. They have weaknesses just like the rest of us. For one thing, a bias towards favored theories is actually built into all scientific research. (Recall the necessity of background assumptions to make predictions and test theories.)
A related imperfection, and to many a startling one, is a shaping principle called tenacity (also referred to as belief-perseverance by psychologists). Scientists throughout history have shown a surprisingly severe loyalty to their theories, even with theories that are in trouble with the evidence. Furthermore, this sort of tenacity persists in scientists for rather long periods of time. Why is this the case? The reasons become clear when one considers what scientists do in their field of work. When people put enormous amounts of effort into something over great lengths of time, as scientists often do with their theories, they have a tendency to become attached to it. Scientists in such cases have an inclination to want the theory to be true and it becomes psychologically more difficult for them to reject it as false, even if they are presented with strong evidence against the theory. The satisfaction of destroying a theory one has arduously worked for can be small compared to watching the theory become successful. Furthermore, the reluctance to give up long-held beliefs is part of human nature, and scientists are not immune to it. Not many of us would renounce the idea that two plus two equals four even if we were presented with a mathematical proof disproving that idea. Consequently, a scientist whose career and livelihood are invested in a scientific theory will probably not give it up effortlessly. Needless to say, not everyone has been aware of this, including scientists. How is it then that new theories emerge in science? Nobel prize winning physicist Max Planck has said, “A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.”
However, tenacity is not necessarily a bad thing. Ironically, belief-perseverance is one of the reasons science has advanced as far as it has. This is because scientific theories are not perfect, and the only way to make real progress with a theory is to be committed to it. Virtually every scientific theory has some sort of problems with the scientific evidence; which are sometimes explained away by ad hoc hypotheses, at times there is some waiting for the problems to be eventually solved, sometimes the problems are unnoticed, at times they are simply ignored, and from time to time a theory is kept because there is no better alternative. If science abandoned every theory that had contradictory evidence, science would barely have any theories at all. Furthermore, if a theory’s problems are eventually solved, then we have tenacity to thank for preventing the premature abandonment of the theory. Besides that, consider this hypothetical case. Suppose a scientist who possesses no tenacity writes a paper for a scientific journal and points out all the ways a concept or experiment might be flawed. Such a paper is likely to be rejected. Part of the responsibility of a scientist is to provide the most favorable case for his theories and leaving the criticism of the theories to other scientists. Belief-perseverance helps accomplish this and thus can work well when science deals with theories that only a few scientific workers really care about. When significant tenacity to an accepted theory is only limited to a single scientist or a small group of scientists, the theory can easily be weeded out. So some amount of tecnacity is reasonable, and is part of what makes science function. Nevertheless, tenacity can become a major problem when the majority of scientists fervently accept a scientific theory that does not have enough rational support. Naturally, there is an extent where the amount of tenacity becomes excessive and it’s time to abandon the theory in favor of a different theory that has more evidence behind it. Unfortunately, there is no clear-cut agreeable procedure to decide when such scientific concepts should be discarded. Feelings and other shaping principles play a part in deciding when that time should come, and scientists can sometimes disagree reasonably on that issue.
Another imperfection is that of observation. Because scientists are human, we cannot obtain completely objective observations even if there could be total theoretical neutrality. One time it was believed (because of direct observation) by Thomas Huxley that he discovered a being halfway between a living organism and a dead one. Many other scientists made observations that came to support that view. Later, however, it was discovered to be purely mineral. Over a hundred independent observations corroborated Rene Blondlot’s concept of N-rays, but later it was discovered that there were no such things as N-rays. These are, of course, extreme cases, but it does demonstrate that data are not totally uncontaminated by humans. In practice, data are somewhat subjective. This is because shaping principles influence the data we perceive, and also because of the tendency for the mind to unconsciously fill in patterns based on these notions. Such human contamination is called internal theoretical orientation of data. As a result, totally objective data cannot be obtained.
Besides honest confusion of data, there is also deliberate distortion. Often times the scientist who commits the fraud thinks he knows the answer. Some people may have justified faking the data by thinking they were just speeding up the process. Some examples include that of Cyril Burt; a psychologist who forged data on identical twins to support the idea that intelligence was inherited. It is possible this was done because finding thirty-three identical twins who were separated at birth would be a bit tricky. A more famous case would be that of Piltdown man, an alleged missing link in human evolution. This is also an example of internal theoretical orientation of data, because the fraud was an obvious one and yet persisted for over forty years. Of course, these things do not happen all the time, but it should be noted that scientists are not perfectly moral beings either, and sometimes this can have a debilitating effect on science.
The notion that religion and science have constantly been at war is not without foundation. It is true that there have been some religious people who have disagreed with the scientific community (e.g. Biblical creationists). It is also true that many religious people once held views contrary to what is now accepted (such as the Catholic Church accepting geocentricism). However, these sorts of events should not be overgeneralized. While many attempts have been made to show that religion is unhealthy for science (particularly in the 19th century), contemporary historians see that work as more propaganda than legitimate history.
Even so, some believe that religion and science are utterly incompatible. Actually, that view is relatively recent. It dates back not to Galileo, but to the liberal theologians of the Enlightenment. (Incidentally, Galileo was not actually branded a heretic, the sentence he received was for disobeying orders.) Not every educated person believes that science is against religion. There are a growing number of people who believe otherwise, and that have rational support for the idea that theology and science cannot be totally separated. Many scientists (including Newton, Faraday, and even Galileo) have been deeply religious. To add to that, some scientists have actually implanted their religion into their scientific work, including Newton, Boyle, Maxwell, Pasteur, and others. Clearly, religion and science are not always bitter enemies.
Also, the evidence suggests that religion (and more specifically the theistic philosophy that stemmed from the Christian worldview) was a significant factor in the birth of modern science, at least partly because it provided some unique philosophical principles that science requires. Why, for instance, would a rational investigation of nature be successful? Because a rationally orderly God created the universe. (Nature consistently operating in mathematical patterns would especially be confirmative for this belief.) According to the Christian religion of that time and area, the universe is orderly, this orderly world can be known, and there is a motive to discover this order. Indeed, many of the founders of modern science were Christians trying to demonstrate that humanity lived in an orderly universe. Why should the investigation of nature be empirical? Because God could have created an orderly universe in more than one way. This sort of mindset is rather different from classical atheism (which was even accepted in the 16th century), which holds to the metaphysical view of a universe dominated by chance events. This philosophy hardly implied an orderly universe.
So what exactly is the scientific method? Although scientists certainly do something in their field of work, there really is no such thing as the scientific method. This is true for a number of reasons. First, the majority opinion in the scientific community is often wrong. Someone not going along with what the majority does can produce something scientifically useful, and this has been done many times. Second, science has many specialized fields, and scientists in those fields require certain craft skills unique in that field to conduct experiments. Such experiments do not involve precise rules that give detailed instructions on what to do at each step. What may appear to be misconduct to an outsider may actually be quite valid scientific practice in that field. Furthermore, rapid progress in science will be more likely if scientists do not follow a single standardized method. Individual scientists have numerous ways of making theories and evaluating them, which explains why there can be disagreements among scientists. The different shaping principles that interact with data can produce different results with each scientific worker, including on how scientists should approach things. Sometimes these disconformities help to produce useful scientific revolutions. At times revolutions in science happen in large part because these kinds of shaping principles that are accepted by the majority change over time. Great changes in shaping principles create another reason why there has never been a single scientific method used by all scientists. Although there are some general objectives to achieve in science (e.g. finding scientific theories that are rationally supported), there are a number of ways to go about this, and not every scientist shares the same method.
It does seem that science contains various imperfections and some serious limitations on certainty. Many have pointed out the existence of technology as a sign that we are on the right track. But just because technology works doesn’t necessarily mean that our theories of why it works are correct. Often, the reliability of technology depends more upon empirical regularities, rather than explanatory concepts. For example, candles and light bulbs have worked and will continue to work even though our theories of why they work have changed over time (light as particles, waves, or some combination of the two; the rejection of the phlogiston theory of heat, etc.). The underdetermination of theories applies to explaining the effectiveness of technology just like any other data. Some have believed that science has been successful in acquiring knowledge, yet there really is no way of verifying this. Data are incapable of conclusively proving theories, and we can’t exactly read an omniscient “book of truth” to see how often our theories have been correct. Historically speaking, almost every theory in science eventually becomes discarded as wrong. Consequently, there have been so many false starts in science that it would be rather incredible if we were the ones who are finally on the right track. It would be especially amazing considering that the theories that we’ve already discarded have not even been conclusively falsified by the data. Even so, this is not to say science isn’t worth having around. On the contrary, science provides significant benefits for humanity. For one thing, science has helped us to alleviate the struggle to survive. Whether or not we are on the right track, it seems clear that science is conducive for useful technology. Various aspects of science can be used for the needs of people, understanding ourselves and even our place in the universe. Although there is a very real possibility of being wrong, we can increase our chances of being right through further accumulation of data. Despite all its imperfections and limitations, science may very well be the best tool we have for discovering nature. |
Science Speaks is live-blogging from IDWEEK 2013. Meeting in San Francisco from Oct. 2-6, with the theme “Advancing Science, Improving Care,” the conference features breaking scientific advances and approaches in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and epidemiology of infectious diseases, including HIV and TB.
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif — Willem Hanekom from the University of Cape Town updated IDWeek attendees about the progress of TB vaccine development on Thursday in San Francisco. He argued for an initial focus on HIV-uninfected adults and adolescents in vaccine efforts and noted that a TB vaccine should be viewed in the context of a comprehensive response to tuberculosis, not in isolation.
There now are 14 vaccine candidates in clinical development and more than that in pre-clinical efforts. “We are learning, but there is no magic bullet yet,” according to Hanekom. Since the mechanism that protects individuals from developing TB disease is not yet known, TB vaccine developers are forced to engage in lengthy and expensive clinical trials to evaluate potential vaccine candidates.
But they are looking for other ways to evaluate effectiveness that do not require as large numbers of trial participants and as much time. For instance, since it is known that 5 percent of individuals who successfully complete TB treatment and are deemed “cured” will in fact go on to develop TB disease again within a year after treatment, researchers are exploring whether they can look at a vaccine’s effectiveness in preventing recurrent TB disease in a group that has successfully completed treatment. This evaluation requires a much smaller sample size although there is no certainty the outcome is relevant. Researchers are also looking at whether they can evaluate vaccine candidates by looking at the acquisition of TB infection in adolescents. In South Africa, 60 percent of young people will become infected with tuberculosis by age 18. It may be possible to evaluate the efficacy of a vaccine by looking at its ability to prevent TB infection in adolescents.
Research efforts are still underway to understand the host or patient response. What about an individual‘s biology make them more or less likely to develop TB disease? While we know that HIV infection is a significant risk factor as are other conditions that undermine the immune system, more generalizable answers to that question remain elusive. |
Research Perspectives in Kinesiology, Health Promotion, & Recreation
Instructor: Andrew Colombo-Dougovito, Ph.D, CAPE Pron: Ko-lom-bow – Dug-o-vee-toe
Comprehensive practical approach to conducting physical activity programs for individuals with disabilities. Course is delivered in an online format and includes legal entitlement and relevant procedures that conform with state and federal legislative mandates. Procedures on integrating individuals with disabilities, as well as procedures for assessment, programming and facilitation of learning are presented. Instruction and activities will revolve around understanding the movement needs of a variety of disabilities and how to best modify programs to meet those needs. In addition to online-based lectures and discussions, students will gain hand-on experiences working with a child(ren) with disabilities; this allows for both a theoretical and practical understanding of the concepts presented in class.
In this course:
- You will consider your intentions for the semester and learn a potentially useful technological skill;
- You will demonstrate an understanding of material presented in each online modules & recorded lectures by completing a multiple-choice quiz after reviewing the module’s content;
- You will be able to (1) reflect on and evaluate your practical experiences (i.e., in class practicum and off campus), (2) relate your experiences with the academic topics covered in class, (3) articulate the importance of civic responsibility, and (4) evaluate your contribution to the community;
- You will be able to create a developmentally-appropriate activity within the lesson, appropriate for teaching a child with/without a disability;
- You will be able to (1) qualitatively analyze a person’s movement, and (2) provide an evaluation of their motor performance
- You will think critically of about your future profession and how you might apply the knowledge presented in class; and
- You will use the knowledge gained through this course, as well as your own additional research, to create a unique product.
- Block, M. E. (2016). A Teacher’s Guide to Adapted Physical Education (4th ed.). Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing Co.
Additional required readings will be available on Canvas.
Course FAQs and Instructions:
How should I refer to people with disabilities in class?
- You are expected to refer to people with disabilities using person-first terminology in assignments and class discussions. For example, sentences should read “people with disabilities” rather than “disabled people”, or “individuals who use wheelchairs” rather than “wheelchair-bound people”. “People with disabilities” is preferred to “people with handicaps” in every assignment. There are circumstances for which this is not appropriate, these will be discussed throughout the semester; however, as students, the default is to use person-first language. Failure to follow these guidelines will result in the deduction of points on the assignment (see rubrics).
How can I get the best grade possible?
- You are strongly encouraged to download your notes, take notes during the recorded lectures, complete all readings, exams, and assignments, and actively engage in class discussions.
- You should attempt to complete each module on Canvas during the week that it is assigned so that you do not become overwhelmed near the end of the semester. I recognize that these are not typical times, so if you fall behind, please let me know ASAP.
- To prepare for the exams, use the online modules, your notes, the readings and the recorded lectures, as exam questions may come from any one of these sources.
- You must follow the instructions outlined in each assignment’s grading rubric. If you have any questions, please message me as early as possible.
- Refer to the schedule regarding assignments. If you are unable to turn in an assignment on time, it is your responsibility to talk with me. Not doing so may result in a loss of points. Please talk to me as soon as you are know there will be an issue, and I work with you to reschedule any assignments or exams.
- You should check your grade book in Canvas weekly and contact me with questions. Do NOT wait until the end of the semester to ask questions.
- You are expected to use Canvas to access class materials. It is your responsibility to make sure you are receiving emails from Canvas, familiarize yourself with and regularly check Canvas as I will often post messages and instructions – failure to follow these instructions may result in the loss of credit.
How can I communicate with you?
- You can communicate with me through my faculty address ([email protected]) or through Canvas messaging. When sending emails make sure you do not use ‘texting’ language and abbreviations. Instead, maintain a professional manner, insert your name, etc. If you send an unprofessional or disrespectful email, you may be asked to try again before you receive a response. You are representing yourself professionally through your papers and communication with me, and you may need a reference in the future. Please allow 48 hours for an email response; do not expect a response the night before an assignment is due. I do check email over the weekend, but not as often; emails received over the weekend will be responded to promptly on Monday morning.
- Be proactive and contact me early. I also have virtual drop-in office hours (see above); if you can’t make those times, email me and we can meet at an alternative time.
What happens if I plagiarize?
- It is expected that all submitted work is your own. You must not submit work that has been copied and pasted as this is considered plagiarism—this extends to lesson plans; even if it is only a single piece. If you plagiarize an assignment you will receive an F for that assignment and an academic integrity report will be filed with the University. If you have previous reports on file, UNT’s Academic Integrity Officer will determine repercussions.
- This expectation of academic integrity extends to exams and projects, as well. All submitted work should be your own.
- All class recordings are the intellectual property of the university or instructor and are reserved for use only by students in this class and only for educational purposes. You may not post or otherwise share the recordings outside the class, or outside the Canvas Learning Management System, in any form. Failing to follow this restriction is also a violation of the UNT Code of Student Conduct and could lead to disciplinary action.
Do I need to worry about attendance?
- As with any class, remote or in-person, attendance is a key part of this class. Our class will cover the theoretical concepts of teaching and apply this knowledge in the gym. Although our course is fully online, it is expected that you login to Canvas and view the content for each module.
- I do not mandate any specific amount of time be spend view course material or that you be online any specific days, it is your responsibility to engage with the content as much as necessary for you and to complete assignments when required.
- While I will not be monitoring how much time or when you are logged in to Canvas, I will be monitoring your progress with the course materials. If you fail to login or submit an assignment for two consecutive modules, I will check in with you and may file an EagleAlert.
What if COVID-19 impact’s my attendance?
- While attendance is expected as outlined above, it is important for all of us to be mindful of the health and safety of everyone in our community, especially given concerns about COVID-19. Please contact me if you are unable to attend class because you are ill, or unable to attend class due to a related issue regarding COVID-19. It is important that you communicate as soon as you are able, so that I can work with you to ensure appropriate accommodations and adjust deadlines accordingly.
- If you are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19 please seek medical attention from the Student Health and Wellness Center (940-565-2333 or [email protected]) or your health care provider PRIOR to coming to campus. UNT also requires you to contact the UNT COVID Hotline at 844-366-5892 or [email protected] for guidance on actions to take due to symptoms, pending or positive test results, or potential exposure. While attendance is an important part of succeeding in this class, your own health, and those of others in the community, is more important.
What about late assignments?
- The deadlines set in this class are to ensure that you stay on track with course content and items don’t get backlogged so much that you feel overwhelmed later in the semester. With that said, I will accept work submitted to Canvas after the deadline up to a week after the deadline for full credit. Work submitted to canvas after 1 week past the deadline will be accepted until the end of the semester but graded out of a B (85%).
- All assignments offer multiple attempts to “submit” the appropriate document; I will grade the most recently submitted document.
- I will work diligently to grade your work and return a grade to you within 14 days of the assignment deadline. I will assign a zero (0) to any assignment that has not been submitted at the time I have entered the grades for others; if you submit your work after this zero has been awarded, then I will grade your assignment and reaward the new grade in Canvas.
- The "S*** Happens" Policy.Life happens and sometimes it hits you hard—it certainly seems to be harder than normal now. For this class, you are afforded one late assignment for the semester to help with this. If something happens and you need an extension for an assignment, please email me at [email protected] at least 24 hours prior to the deadline. You only need to tell me that you invoke your “S*** Happens Extension” and you will be given a 1 week extension (meaning your assignment could be turned in for full credit up to two-weeks after the original deadline). No questions asked; you do not need to tell me a reason for this situation. Once you use up your 1 “excused” late submission, all other late or missed assignments will be graded out of a B (85%). This may not be used for exams, quizzes, or “self-checks”; if you have a scheduling conflict with any of the aforementioned assignments, please talk with Dr. Colombo-Dougovito as early as possible prior to the scheduled assessment.
What happens if I have internet issues around an assignment deadline?
- The University is committed to providing a reliable online course system to all users. However, in the event of any unexpected server outage or any unusual technical difficulty which prevents you from completing a time sensitive assessment activity, I will extend the time windows and provide an appropriate accommodation based on the situation. You should immediately report any problems to me (the instructor) and contact the UNT Student Help Desk: [email protected] or 940.565.2324 and obtain a ticket number. I and the UNT Student Help Desk will work with you to resolve any issues as quickly as we can.
Will any extra credit or bonus points be offered?
- No individual extra credit will be available, so please do not ask. Any extra credit opportunities offered throughout the semester are at the discretion of the instructor and will be offered equally to all students.
What are your responsibilities, Dr. C-D?
- Good question! I have gathered all the materials for our semester and will be working to make sure that the content is available for you promptly.
- I have developed the module content and uploaded the recorded lectures, so that you can access them and can clearly engage with the important topics of the class—if anything is not working for you (and it’s not an IT thing), please let me know.
- I’ll be available each week during office hours to meet with you. This can be to answer broad questions or just to chat about an issue you might be facing. I very much enjoy getting to know everyone during the semester, and COVID makes that difficult; so, I hope each of you can drop in at least once throughout the semester.
- I will also work to have graded work back to you as quickly as I can. There are many of you in this class so certain graded work might take me longer than usually; however, I will try to have your work graded within 2 weeks of the deadline. For many of your assignments (such as the quizzes or exams), your grades will be returned to you immediately.
- I also pride myself in being responsive to questions of students. Typically, I will reply within 48 hours or sooner—though, if it is over the weekend, I will likely not respond until Monday morning (I need a break occasionally, too). I typically try to be more responsive around deadline but do not expect an email to be returned between 8 pm and 6 am.
- I also pledge to give fair notice about any changes regarding the course. I try not to make changes, however, sometimes they are necessary—I will let you know about it and why.
This course uses criterion-referenced grading. That is, grades are determined by performance as compared to standards for each assignment, not based on performance of other students in the class. Criteria for each assignment can be found on the course Canvas site. You can learn more about each assignment by selecting it in the below table.
Grades will be determined by the following weights:
- 179 - 200 pts = A
- 159 - 178 pts = B
- 139 - 158 pts = C
- 119 - 138 pts = D
- less than 118 pts = F
Late work will be accepted up to 1-week after the deadline with no penalty. Assignments turned in later than 1 week will be graded out of a B (85%). However, life happens sometimes; therefore, each student has one (1) “S*** Happens” exemption. If for whatever reason, you do not feel like you can complete an assignment by the due date, email Dr. Colombo-Dougovito at least 24 hours prior to the deadline and you will be given a 1-week extension. No questions asked; you do not need to tell me a reason for this situation. Once you use up your 1 allowed late submission, all other late or missed assignments will be graded out of a B (85%). This may not be used for the final project.
Course FAQs & University Policies
A Note for This Class During the Pandemic:
The COVID-19 pandemic has made regular life difficult for most people. Balancing daily expectation with work commitments and graduate studies is difficult. I know many of you are balancing more than graduate school. While I will be supplying the best course possible for you during this semester, nothing can replace (completely) the benefits of face-to-face instruction. Additionally, though the deadlines present in this class are meant to be the benefit of you (the student) to ensure work is completed efficiently and does not overburden you, I recognize the uniqueness of present time. If there ever becomes a time when you are overwhelmed, please notify me and we will discuss a plan to ensure that you are as successful as possible.
Academic Integrity Standards and Consequences:
According to UNT Policy 06.003, Student Academic Integrity, academic dishonesty occurs when students engage in behaviors including, but not limited to cheating, fabrication, facilitating academic dishonesty, forgery, plagiarism, and sabotage. A finding of academic dishonesty may result in a range of academic penalties or sanctions ranging from admonition to expulsion from the University. Any suspected case of Academic Dishonesty will be handled in accordance with the University Policy and procedures. Possible academic penalties range from a verbal or written admonition to a grade of “F” in the course. Further sanctions may apply to incidents involving major violations. You will find the policy and procedures at: http://vpaa.unt.edu/academic-integrity.htm.
Acceptable Student Behavior:
Student behavior that interferes with an instructor’s ability to conduct a class or other students’ opportunity to learn is unacceptable and disruptive and will not be tolerated in any instructional forum at UNT. Students engaging in unacceptable behavior will be directed to leave the classroom and the instructor may refer the student to the Dean of Students to consider whether the student’s conduct violated the Code of Student Conduct. The university’s expectations for student conduct apply to all instructional forums, including university and electronic classroom, labs, discussion groups, field trips, etc. The Code of Student Conduct can be found at www.deanofstudents.unt.edu
ADA Accommodation Statement:
UNT makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide a student with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding one’s specific course needs. Students may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. For additional information see the ODA website at disability.unt.edu.
American with Disabilities Act Compliance:
The University of North Texas is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public Law 92-112 – The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of new federal legislation 15entitled Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same opportunities enjoyed by all citizens. The designated liaison for the department is Dr. Andrew Colombo-Dougovito, Physical Education Building, Room 210-A, 940-565-3403. Copies of the Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion and Recreation ADA Compliance Document are available in the Chair’s Office, Physical Education Building, Room 209. Copies of the College of Education ADA Compliance Document are available in the Dean’s Office, Matthews Hall 214. The student has the responsibility of informing the course instructor of any disabling conditions that will require modifications to avoid discrimination.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Information:
Students have the right to expect their grades will be kept confidential. There are a few things, because of the size and/or nature of this class, the instructor must advise you of regarding collection and distribution of test results, quiz scores, homework assignments, roll sheets, projects, etc. During this class it may be necessary for you to pass your assignments forward to the instructor or it may be necessary for the instructor to call your name and then return your completed assignment to you by passing it across the room. The instructor, under the reasonable assumption guidelines, assumes students are collecting only their own materials. Every attempt will be made to keep your information confidential. Neither your course grades nor grades for any assignment will be posted in a way that could result in your being identified by other students or faculty members.
Student Evaluation Administration Dates:
Student feedback is important and an essential part of participation in this course. The student evaluation of instruction is a requirement for all organized classes at UNT. The survey will be made available during weeks 13, 14 and 15 of the long semesters to provide students with an opportunity to evaluate how this course is taught. Students will receive an email from "UNT SPOT Course Evaluations via IASystem Notification" ([email protected]) with the survey link. Students should look for the email in their UNT email inbox. Simply click on the link and complete the survey. Once students complete the survey they will receive a confirmation email that the survey has been submitted. For additional information, please visit the SPOT website at www.spot.unt.edu or email [email protected].
Note: Extra credit will be offered for the completion of the evaluations; this will be discussed in class. I do read through these evaluations each semester and incorporate feedback from students into the upcoming semester. I greatly appreciate you taking the time to offer insightful feedback.
Course Safety Procedures
Students enrolled in KINE 3550 are required to use proper safety procedures and guidelines as outlined in UNT Policy 06.038 Safety in Instructional Activities. While working in laboratory sessions (during Activity Days), students are expected and required to identify and use proper safety guidelines in all activities requiring lifting, climbing, walking on slippery surfaces, using equipment and tools, handling chemical solutions and hot and cold products. Students should be aware that the UNT is not liable for injuries incurred while students are participating in class activities. All students are encouraged to secure adequate insurance coverage in the event of accidental injury. Students who do not have insurance coverage should consider obtaining Student Health Insurance. Brochures for student insurance are available in the UNT Student Health and Wellness Center. Students who are injured during class activities may seek medical attention at the Student Health and Wellness Center at rates that are reduced compared to other medical facilities. If students have an insurance plan other than Student Health Insurance at UNT, they should be sure that the plan covers treatment at this facility. If students choose not to go to the UNT Student Health and Wellness Center, they may be transported to an emergency room at a local hospital. Students are responsible for expenses incurred there.
Sexual Assault Prevention:
UNT is committed to providing a safe learning environment free of all forms of sexual misconduct. Federal laws and UNT policies prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex as well as sexual misconduct. If you or someone you know is experiencing sexual harassment, relationship violence, stalking and/or sexual assault, there are campus resources available to provide support and assistance. The Survivor Advocates can be reached at [email protected] or by calling the Dean of Students Office at 940-565- 2648. If you feel you are in immediate danger, please call 911 or the police immediately. If you are experiencing any form of harassment, violence or assault, please know that you can report it to me. You should be aware that I am a mandatory reporter, which means that I am required to report these instances to the university’s Title IX coordinator or Deputy Title IX Coordinator to investigate.
Emergency Notification & Procedures:
UNT uses a system called Eagle Alert to quickly notify students with critical information in the event of an emergency (i.e., severe weather, campus closing, and health and public safety emergencies like chemical spills, fires, or violence). In the event of a university closure, please refer to Blackboard for contingency plans for covering course materials.
Notice for F-1 Visa-holding Students taking this Course
To comply with immigration regulations, an F-1 visa holder within the United States may need to engage in an on-campus experiential component for this course. This component (which must be approved in advance by the instructor) can include activities such as taking an on-campus exam, participating in an on-campus lecture or lab activity, or other on-campus experience integral to the completion of this course.
If such an on-campus activity is required, it is the student’s responsibility to do the following:
- Submit a written request to the instructor for an on-campus experiential component within one week of the start of the course.
- Ensure that the activity on campus takes place and the instructor documents it in writing with a notice sent to the International Student and Scholar Services Office. ISSS has a form available that you may use for this purpose.
Academic Support & Student Services
UNT provides mental health resources to students to help ensure there are numerous outlets to turn to that wholeheartedly care for and are there for students in need, regardless of the nature of an issue or its severity. Listed below are several resources on campus that can support your academic success and mental well-being:
- Student Health and Wellness Center (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/student-health-and-wellness-center)
- Counseling and Testing Services (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/counseling-and-testing-services)
- UNT Care Team (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/care)
- UNT Psychiatric Services (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/student-health-and-wellness-center/services/psychiatry)
- Individual Counseling (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/counseling-and-testing-services/services/individual-counseling)
A chosen name is a name that a person goes by that may or may not match their legal name. If you have a chosen name that is different from your legal name and would like that to be used in class, please let the instructor know. Below is a list of resources for updating your chosen name at UNT.
Pronouns (she/her, they/them, he/him, etc.) are a public way for people to address you, much like your name, and can be shared with a name when making an introduction, both virtually and in-person. Just as we ask and don’t assume someone’s name, we should also ask and not assume someone’s pronouns.
You can add your pronouns to your Canvas account so that they follow your name when posting to discussion boards, submitting assignments, etc.
Below is a list of additional resources regarding pronouns and their usage:
Additional Student Support Services
- Registrar (https://registrar.unt.edu/registration)
- Financial Aid (https://financialaid.unt.edu/)
- Student Legal Services (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/student-legal-services)
- Career Center (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/career-center)
- Multicultural Center (https://edo.unt.edu/multicultural-center)
- Counseling and Testing Services (https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/counseling-and-testing-services)
- Pride Alliance (https://edo.unt.edu/pridealliance)
- UNT Food Pantry (https://deanofstudents.unt.edu/resources/food-pantry) |
Medical imaging can play a crucial role in complementing genetic data in biobanks by providing detailed phenotypic data about anatomy and physiology as well as the early manifestation of disease states. This “big data” approach of combining additional data such as imaging with existing biobanking may provide information about physiological processes that can’t be elucidated with genetic data, including normal development and aging, but also the development of pathological disease states. Gatidis et al. (2016) discuss existing epidemiological imaging studies and the challenges that population imaging poses to big data research and biobanking.1
Distinct from clinical imaging, epidemiological imaging collects imaging data from large, representative, primarily healthy populations. Consequently, researchers need to consider and justify the use of ionizing radiation or intravenous contrast agents, for example, in addition to scientific value, reproducibility and standardization. MRI has therefore emerged as a preferred modality for population-based imaging studies for its lack of ionizing radiation, good accessibility and high level of detail, though it does come at a high financial cost and is a time-consuming imaging method.
The UK Biobank, the German National Cohort (GNC) and the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP)are all population-based biobanks. The SHIP includes whole-body MRI to provide a detailed characterization of the general health of the population; it also includes non-imaging parameters such as laboratory and functional tests. SHIP was one of the first to systematically use whole-body MRI. The GNC is a large-scale epidemiological study aiming to identify genotypic and phenotypic features associated with health and disease. It uses magnetic resonance studies consisting of neuroradiological, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and whole-body studies. After assigning pseudonyms, the investigators centrally store and analyze data. Finally, the UK Biobank is one of the largest ongoing population studies. Its imaging protocol includes ultrasound; dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry; and whole-body MRI scanning covering neuroradiological, cardiovascular and musculoskeletal aspects. It grants researchers access according to criteria of scientific quality and public interest.
Challenges in these types of biobanks include filtering large quantities of data that are not necessarily optimized to answer specific questions, but rather aim to provide a general anatomic and physiologic phenotypization of participating individuals.The authors note that study results may not have universal validity—they may be applicable to only the specific population that is being examined. Epidemiological imaging also introduces questions about incidental findings. That is, despite participants being drawn from a generally healthy population, researchers need to consider reporting any findings back to the participants within a short time frame.
While large-scale studies present opportunities to better understand disease pathology, Gatidis et al. highlight that they also pose significant challenges concerning data analysis and interpretation.
1. Gatidis, S., et al. (2016) “Population‑based imaging biobanks as source of big data,” La Radiologia Medica [Epub ahead of print], doi: 10.1007/s11547-016-0684-8. |
Gas Turbine Engineering Handbook 4th Edition
Written by one of the field’s most well known experts, the Gas Turbine Engineering Handbook has long been the standard for engineers involved in the design, selection, maintenance and operation of gas turbines. With far reaching, comprehensive coverage across a range of topics from design specifications to maintenance troubleshooting, this one-stop resource provides newcomers to the industry with all the essentials to learn and fill knowledge gaps, and established practicing gas turbine engineers with a reliable go-to reference.
This new edition brings the Gas Turbine Engineering Handbook right up to date with new legislation and emerging topics to help the next generation of gas turbine professionals understand the underlying principles of gas turbine operation, the economic considerations and implications of operating these machines, and how they fit in with alternative methods of power generation.
Centrifugal Compressors: A Basic Guide
Boyce provides an up-to-date reference covering all major aspects of design, operation, and maintenance. He includes technical details on sizing, plant layout, fuel selection, types of drives, and performance characteristics of all major components in a co-generation or combined-cycle power plant. Contents: Section 1: Design, theory, and practice An history and overview of centrifugal compressors Aerothermodynamics of compressors Two dimensional design of compressor stages
Three dimensional flow in a centrifugal compressor Diffuser design Surge and surge control Off design performance characteristics Mechanical equipment standards An overview of steam turbines An overview of motor drives Appendices (General properties of air; general properties of gases; Equivalent units) Index Summary.
Handbook for cogeneration and combined cycle power plants, second edition
This comprehensive Handbook has been fully updated and expanded for the second edition. It covers all major aspects of power plant design, operation, and maintenance. The second edition includes not only an updating of the technology, which has taken great leaps forward in the last decade, but also introduces new subjects such as Carbon Sequestration Technology, Chemical Treatment of Water used in Combined Cycle Power Plants, and extended treatments on Steam Turbines and Heat Recovery Steam Generators. A new Chapter has been introduced entitled, Case Histories of Problems Encountered in Cogeneration and Combined Cycle Power Plants. This is an extensive treatise with 145 figures and photographs illustrating the many problems associated with Combined Cycle Power Plants and some of the solutions that have enabled plants to achieved higher efficiencies and reliability.
This new edition assimilates subject matter of various papers, and sometimes diverse views, into a comprehensive, unified treatment of Combined Cycle Power Plants. Illustrations, with curves and tables are extensively employed to broaden the understanding of the descriptive text. The book has many special features which include comparison of various energy systems, latest cycles and power augmentation and improved efficiency techniques. All the major plant equipment used in Combined Cycle and Cogeneration Power Plants has been addressed. |
BASIC TOOLS - MAKING AND USING A WHIP
The use of whips is very much neglected. We use
the horn and holloas in the same way as the huntsman, so why not the whip? The
whip is used to control the hounds if they are rioting after an animal they
shouldn't be, or to stop the hounds from going onto main roads, railways etc.
The hounds will stop at the whip because they have been trained to be scared of
it. So all the huntsman or whipper-in has to do is to crack the whip and the
hounds will stop dead. If you see a huntsman crack the whip near a hound you
will see it cower in fear. We can use this to our advantage by stopping hounds
when they are in full cry.
MAKING A WHIP The whip is an essential piece of sabbing hardware and is
very easy to make.
For the handle all you need is a piece of dowelling from a hardware shop.
This should be about 2/3 cm thick, and as short as possible so that it will fit
easily into your pocket. The best rope to use is climbing rope (or similar). The
rope for each whip should be about 1.5 metres long - the general rule is to hold
out your arm and let the rope hang to the floor - that is the length you want.
Tape about 8 cm of the rope around the dowelling using strong tape. To fasten
the rope to the dowelling, the best thing is a plastic clip (from electrical or
gardening shops) which, once fastened, can't be undone.
The cracking noise is made by adding a shoe lace, this only needs to be about
20 cm long. Tie this onto the end of the rope and put some tape around it. You
will be able to make it more secure by practising with different ways. Put a
knot near the end of the lace, this helps it to crack.
To crack the whip, lift the stick until the shoelace is just off the ground.
Flick the stick upwards and then downwards very fast so that the stick follows
down the line of the ascending rope. It may take a while but keep trying, you
will be able to do it with practice.
USING THE WHIP
IN THE FIELD The most
obvious place to make use of the whip is when hounds are in cry. Stand on the
line where the quarry has just gone. A few sabs should then start to crack their
whips when the hounds come near. They must also "rate" them (tell them off) so
that they think they are doing the wrong thing. A horn blower should stand at
right angles to the line of the quarry. The horn blower should have holloaed
first, then started to blow fast notes to encourage the hounds to come to them.
In theory the hounds will come to the horn blower and the sabs with the whips
should then move away from the line of the quarry so the huntsman doesn't know
where the quarry has gone.
A good time to use the whip is
when the quarry has changed direction and the sabs run to where the quarry has
gone to stop the hounds following the line. The horn blower should be
encouraging the hounds to hunt on as shown.
The whip can also be employed
when a quarry comes out of a covert. Sabs run in towards the covert and rate the
hounds back with voice and horn calls: |
State-owned Indian Railways (IR) is the second largest rail network system in the world covering a distance of 65,000-km comprising 1,15,000-km of track and over 7,000 stations. Further, in 2014-15, the IR carried 8.397 billion passengers or more than 23 million passengers a day and 1050.18 million tonnes of freight in the year.
Acting as a lifeline to diverse people of India across the social and economic spectrum, the Railways is the cheapest and reliable mode of transport for long distances as its vast network covers the length and breadth of the country.
Knitting the Indian subcontinent with its services, the Indian Railways are the real sinews of the economy which depends on trains and wagon for exchange of people and goods within the country.
Besides regular trains connecting different parts of India, the IR operates special services with modern facilities like the Palace on Wheels, Rajdhani Express, Shatabdi Express and Fairy Queen to specific population for an enriched travel experience.
One of the largest commercial unity employers with nearly 1.3 million people on its payroll, the IR offers quality edge for transporting freight over other competitors from the road, sea and air. The IR are 5-6 times more energy efficient, four times more efficient in land use and are much above other modes of transport when it comes to offering a safe environment for men and materials.
The IR is ideally suited for transport of bulk commodities like coal, cement, steel and foodgrains over long distances. In the recent Railway budget, the focus has been on increasing the support infrastructure for the safe running of trains and upgrading the signals and communication devices to prevent accidents.
What has become a worrisome feature is that a number of projects like gauge conversion, construction of rail bridges and laying new tracks in rural pockets could not be completed on time due to funds shortage.
As a result there are still sizeable population in Indian villages unable to enjoy the benefits of the Indian Railways which had ushered in tremendous growth over the decades.
On 23 April 2014, Indian Railways introduced a mobile app system to track train schedules. A number of web-based initiatives have led to easy booking of tickets by passengers for travelling from any point-to-point destinations with just a click of the mouse.
Despite its vast network and indispensable role, the passenger services have to be cross-subsidised from the revenue earning freight services with the ticket fares having been deliberately kept low as a social obligation of the government to extend an efficient mode of transport to the public as a catalyst of speedy growth.
|Railway Minister||Suresh Prabhu|
|Foundation||1853 - present|
|Track gauges||Broad, Metre, Narrow|
|Revenue||INR 467.85 billion| |
Elon Musk's next business venture and one of his most ambitious projects is to make the human brain and computers directly connected. The project is called Neuralink and to date, the reality of it seemed like science fiction myth, but it will actually materialise sooner than anticipated.
A few days ago Musk revealed that his latest startup plans promising to show an update of its brain-computer interface at the end of this year.
Neuralink has evolved slowly but steadily. Last July the South African entrepreneur and inventor assured the world that his technology had already allowed a monkey to exercise control of the computer with its brain. Musk who is also co-founder of PayPal, Tesla, SpaceX or Hyperloop predicted that by the end of last year his device could be used by a patient with brain injuries or congenital defects. It seems he was too optimistic about the date but not the result itself.
In a tweet, the technology guru said that "the profound impact of high-bandwidth, high-precision neural interfaces has been underestimated. Neuralink may be ready for humans as soon as early as this year".
It will be seen in a keynote
Musk has been quite cautious with his invention and predicts that it will still be a while before it can be used in the market. "First we need it to be super-safe and make it easy to use, and then we need to determine the best utility versus risk. From initial work to volume production and implementation, it's a long way," he said in another tweet.
He is convinced that the possibility of connecting the brain to a computer has multiple applications and possibilities and could be revolutionary for various fields. For example, he believes it can help us overcome disabilities and injuries, improve accessibility and compensate for entire sections of the brain that have been lost due to a stroke or accident. "The potential is really transformative in restoring motor and brain function," he says. Ultimately, he even envisions how it could help us compete with the increasingly intelligent artificial intelligence.
If all goes according to plan Musk believes that Neuralink will be as disruptive to many patients as Tesla has been for electric cars or SpaceX for rockets. |
The removal of the monopoly of the Mines Royal allowed Cornish copper mining to expand.
Under Letters Patent, dated 1564 and 1604, the Society of the Mines Royal was given the sole right to mine for gold, silver, copper and quicksilver over much of England and Wales. The first attempts at copper mining in Cornwall and smelting at Neath in South Wales in the 1580s failed. After this time the Society ignored copper in favour of lead mining. By legislation in 1689 and 1693 the “dead hand of monopoly” was abolished, opening the way for others. |
"monologue is oppressive, while dialogue is liberating"
Paulo Friere in Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 1970
"when a dialogue becomes a monologue, oppression ensues"
Augusto Boal in Theatre of the Oppressed, 1979
Dialogue plays a pivotal role in community media, in the sense that messages can be refined and new angles to the topics explored, which can enhance the understanding of the issues at hand for the community involved. Hence dialogue can be used as a tool for changing social and cultural attitudes, this can happen through discussion forums where people can express and exchange views, etc. Development Communication, on the other hand, is at the basic key to Social Changes and Development and Community Service is at the heart of Community Media. With accurate information, people can make better choices on everything from preparing for a natural disaster to practicing healthy behaviours. Great media can make people think, prompting changes about issues like gender equality and good governance. Development communication comprises a whole range of strategies and approaches, from Behavioural Change Communication to Social Marketing for Social Change.
In the Community Media Environment, communities tend to be defined in terms of geography (a group of people living in a particular location) or interest (religion, politics, culture, hobby, or any other interest). A quality community service is one that:
• Validates and strengthens communities
• Covers topics that are relevant to the community
• Encourages community discussion and debate
Participation is the key feature of Community Media; it is what places community media outside of traditional media models, in which audiences are passive receivers of messages. In the Community Media Model, senders and receivers together create messages and meaning through participatory processes.
Applying Audio-Visual Communication Strategies, MANT has always taken participatory approaches in developing high quality contents. A basic foundation for this is creating relevant, believable messages within our productions like Serial Radio Dramas, Magazine Programmes and Publications etc. which are appropriate to the target audience, and which present a social message for change.
Media Literacy: Train people, particularly marginalized communities and individuals living in media-dark areas.
Ownership: Usually owned and controlled by marginalized people without access to conventional media.
Empowerment: Reducing digital divide.
Recognition: Giving a voice to the marginalized people and provide recognition to the people doing localized work and promoting social justice, integration and social change.
Transmission and Dissemination: Providing news of interest of marginalized community. |
Michael Gaige, MS '09Conservation Biology
You see them out in the forests at times, gnarly old trees that announce their presence by the fact that they grow not up, but out. Perhaps hard by an old stonewall, perhaps at the crest of a ridge, these trees lend a distinct character to the woods around them. Some folks call them 'wolf trees,' because of the way they stand alone in the forest, while others deem them wolves because, they say, these trees prey on forest resources. Michael Gaige, a third year AUNE conservation biology master's student, refers to them as "legacy" trees and has made them, and their little-studied role in the ecology of a forest, the focus of his research.
As their name implies, legacy trees are those left behind, memories of a disturbance to the forest sometime in the past. Such a disturbance could be the result of a natural event or cultural event. Gaige focused his studies in Vermont where, as he put it, "Rather than having lava pour over the landscape, we had humans pour over the landscape."
Gaige figures he's spent about 650 hours in the field, searching out and studying cultural legacy trees. What did he look for? While there's no hard and fast definition of a legacy tree, he looked for trees that were at least twice the diameter of the largest nearby trees and that showed an open growth form. Trees growing close by one another in a forest tend to race one another upwards, putting their energy into growing toward the canopy to capture sunlight. The trees Gaige searched for are a consequence of farming and grazing practices that allowed individual trees to grow and thrive in clearings where their growth extended outward, as well as upward.
Listening to Trees
He began his research in the spring of 2007 and soon learned where to look and, oddly enough, what to listen for. The legacy trees tended to grow near walls that once marked pastures. A few grew along ridges in old pasture lands, apparently left uncut by farmers to provide shade for livestock escaping gnats and flies. Others grew by vernal pools, which prompted Gaige to listen for the songs of spring peepers to lead him to the pools and, on occasion, the trees he sought. By summer's end, he had cataloged twenty-eight legacy trees and paired each with a nearby control tree of the same species. For each pair he recorded data that will help him better define the role of the trees in a forest ecosystem. Gaige used a mix of observational methods, including looking for indirect signs of use (denning, nesting), small mammal trapping, motion sensitive remote cameras, snow tracking during the winter, and, in what he termed a "a great lesson in patience," direct observation of each tree in his survey with "no gadgets or gear, just eyeballs and ears."
Though he aims to continue his observations for at least another season, Gaige has already developed a sense of his legacy trees' role in the forest. At a very basic level, he notes that "legacy trees are 100 years or so ahead of other trees, which means they'll die 100 years ahead of others, providing structure for the forest floor. Instead of a carpet of needles and leaves, you have lumps and cavities, downed branches and trunks, all adding complexity to the structure of the forest." Wildlife makes use of that added structure for nesting and protection. "They appear to act as a focal area," he adds, "a 'town square' within their patch of forest." Birds especially appear drawn to the trees, flocking to them in greater number and spending more time in and around them than at the control trees. From early observations, it appears that these 'wolf' trees are in fact rare resources in forests, enriching their immediate environs by offering structure, cover, and other resources to the immediate ecosystem. Gaige expects his research to be of more than academic value. Hopefully, it will lead to changes in forest management practices that encourage the growth of legacy trees, once they lose their reputations as lone wolves of the woods. |
Available in the US market as Zoloft and the international market as Lustral, sertraline is an antidepressant that is used to manage the symptoms of people afflicted with a number of mental health issues. Part of the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor drug classification, sertraline works on putting a stop to the reuptake of serotonin, which is a substance found in the brain that functions as a mood regulator. The drug is usually prescribed as part of the management of certain disorders which may include mood and anxiety disorders. Examples of the indications for one to undergo sertraline therapy are: obsessive-compulsive disorder, extreme depression, social anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, and a few other conditions.
Sertraline is commonly prescribed by doctors and widely used among patients. As a matter of fact, it was included in the 2007 most prescribed medications in the United States. However, several people who went off the drug experienced problems that are now collectively known as sertraline withdrawal or sertraline discontinuation syndrome. It is estimated that about 60% of patients developed the symptoms included in this syndrome.
What is Sertraline Withdrawal?
Sertraline withdrawal describes what happens to a patient who has been taking sertraline for a given period of time when he stops taking the drug abruptly or rapidly. The withdrawal could also occur after the interruption of sertraline intake as well as a reduction in the dosage. Depending on a patient’s metabolic functions and the total elimination of the drug’s half-life, the cluster of symptoms involved may begin to manifest anytime between the moment of dose reduction and total discontinuation.
What Signs and Symptoms Point to Sertraline Withdrawal?
If you experience a few or more of the symptoms below after disrupting the use of the drug, reducing the dose, or totally getting off the medication, then you may be experiencing sertraline withdrawal. Here are the signs and symptoms that may point to the discontinuation syndrome:
- stomach cramps or pain, indigestion, diarrhea, flatulence, nausea, and constipation
- flu-like symptoms , sensory disturbances, ringing or buzzing in the ears (tinnitus), issues with balance, dizziness, and lack of coordination
- fatigue, tingling sensations, electric shock sensations, tremors, brain zaps, and jumpy nerves
- exacerbated depression, nervousness, hostility, episodes of crying, aggression, overreactions to circumstances, depersonalization, anxiety, irritability, and very emotional
- extreme restlessness (akathasia), vivid dreams, episodes of illusions and hallucinations, paranoia, lethargy, impaired speech, impaired concentration, changes in vision, abnormal thoughts, repetitive thoughts, episodes of migraines or intense headaches, and insomnia
How is Sertraline Withdrawal Prevented and Treated?
Since the withdrawal symptoms develop following total discontinuation, rapid tapering, or interruption of sertraline intake, the syndrome can be prevented by very slowly weaning the patient off the drug. The patient is also advised to take the drug exactly as prescribed and not to miss a single dose, which may lead to withdrawal. Patient compliance with the doctor’s orders is a must to prevent the development of the syndrome.
If a patient develops sertraline withdrawal, the treatment may depend on the need for further treatment with the antidepressant or the lack thereof. Treatment will also depend on the severity of the symptoms, with the mild ones requiring only observation and reassurance, and the more severe symptoms requiring reinstatement of the drug and a more cautious weaning.
Although slow and gradual weaning is not a guarantee, it does work for most patients with sertraline withdrawal. Prevention is still the best option to fight off sertraline withdrawal. |
Dusting A Plant
Age : 12 to 24 months
Practical life activities such as caring for house plants are essential and purposeful activities for the young child. Learn how you can involve your child in daily chores from a very young age which will boost their self-esteem, develop their fine motor skills and prepare them for more academic work later.
Simple DIY instructions, video and additional resources to create simple activities for the young child. |
Amnesia is a condition in which memory is disturbed. The causes of amnesia are organic or functional. Organic causes include damage to the brain, through trauma or disease, or use of certain (generally sedative) drugs. Functional causes are psychological factors, such as defense mechanisms. Hysterical post-traumatic amnesia is an example of this. Amnesia may also be spontaneous, in the case of transient global amnesia. This global type of amnesia is more common in middle-aged to elderly people, particularly males, and usually lasts less than 24 hours.
Amnesia can be temporary. As someone recovers, older memories will generally return first. The memories of the event that caused the amnesia are often never recalled.
Treatment varies according to the type of amnesia and the cause of the problem. Sufferers of amnesia should seek medical attention.
Types of amnesia
* In anterograde amnesia, new events are not transferred to long-term memory, so the sufferer will not be able to remember anything that occurs after the onset of this type of amnesia for more than a few moments. The complement of this is retrograde amnesia, where someone will be unable to recall events that occurred before the onset of amnesia. The terms are used to categorise patterns of symptoms, rather than to indicate a particular cause or etiology. Both categories of amnesia can occur together in the same patient, and commonly result from damage to the brain regions most closely associated with episodic/declarative memory: the medial temporal lobes and especially the hippocampus.
* Traumatic amnesia is generally due to a head injury (fall, knock on the head). Traumatic amnesia is often transient, the duration of the amnesia is related to the degree of injury and may give an indication of the prognosis for recovery of other functions.
* Memory loss caused by alcoholism is known as the Korsakoff's syndrome. This is caused by brain damage due to a Vitamin B1 deficiency and will be progressive if alcohol intake and nutrition pattern are not modified. It will usually improve little over time even if they are. Other neurological problems are likely to be present.
* Lacunar amnesia is the loss of memory about one specific event.
* Fugue state is also known as dissociative fugue. It is caused by psychological trauma and is usually temporary. The Merck Manual defines it as "one or more episodes of amnesia in which the inability to recall some or all of one's past and either the loss of one's identity or the formation of a new identity occur with sudden, unexpected, purposeful travel away from home"
* Childhood amnesia (also known as Infantile amnesia) is the common inability to remember events from your own childhood. Whilst Sigmund Freud attributed this to sexual repression, others have theorised that this may be due to language development or immature parts of the brain.
* Global amnesia is total memory loss. This may be a defence mechanism which occurs after a traumatic event. Post-traumatic stress disorder can also involve the spontaneous, vivid retrieval of unwanted traumatic memories.
* Posthypnotic amnesia is where events during hypnosis are forgotten, or where past memories are unable to be recalled.
The information above is not intended
for and should not be used as a substitute for the diagnosis and/or treatment
by a licensed, qualified, health-care professional. This article is licensed
under the GNU Free Documentation
License. It incorporates material originating from the Wikipedia article
2012 Anxiety Zone - Anxiety Disorders
Forum. All Rights Reserved. |
For adding shapes download and uncompress the zip file on the folder shapes that you can find on the same folder containing arakne-path-shape-creatorXX.py.
- Drop:Drop shape is formed by two circles joined by tangent lines, the values to introduce are the radius for both circles.
Ray shape, we can define the quantity of parts.
- Rectangle spike, square spike:
Rectangle and square with spikes.
- Speech bubble:
Speech bubble for comic dialogs, we can define the rotation, width and height of the pointer.
Box in which certain forms are repeated, we can define the width and height of the forms, the separation between them and the direction in which they are created, into, out or in and out alternately. Available forms are rectangular, triangular or circular.
- Arch – Gothic:
Gothic arch, we can define the height of the curve of the arch, for proper operation the height must be greater than half the width of the selection.
Added a new type of spiral that can be defined by the number of turns or the distance between turns.
Create rules, you can define the spacing and length of ticks and the alternation between long and short marks. |
"It Starts With a Lump of Clay" (link below) is a step-by-step Insight-Live.com tutorial (from its help system) on how to document every step (in an account at at insight-live.com) of analyzing a raw sample of clay. You will learn things about drying shrinkage, drying performance, particle size distribution, plasticity, firing shrinkage, fired porosity, fired color, soluble salt content, fired strength, etc. We will not just observe these properties, but measure them. In doing so we will characterize the material. We will answer simple questions about how the material forms, dries and fires across a range of temperatures. In doing the testing I will be generating a lot of data. No single factor is more intimidating to new technicians than what do to with this data, how to store it, where to store it, how it can be searched, learned from, compared. This tutorial will erase that question.
It Starts With a Lump of Clay: How to Assess a Native Clay
A term used by potters and in the ceramic industry. It refers to the earthenware, stoneware or porcelain that forms the piece (as opposed to the engobe and covering glaze).
How to Find and Test Your Own Native Clays
Some of the key tests needed to really understand what a clay is and what it can be used for can be done with inexpensive equipment and simple procedures. These practical tests can give you a better picture than a data sheet full of numbers. |
A boy collects water from the Omo River floodplain in Ethiopia. Photo © Alison M. Jones via International Rivers.
"The rise and fall of the Omo waters is the heartbeat of the Lower Omo Valley," writes International Rivers -- a heartbeat that the environmental group says the Gibe 3 Dam threatens to stop. The organization, along with other global NGOs, has launched a petition campaign to halt construction of the dam, which they say threatens the land and livelihoods of 500,000 tribal people in Southern Ethiopia and Northern Kenya.Though the Ethiopian government began building the dam in 2006, it needs more than $1.4 billion to finish it -- money it's trying to raise from the World Bank, other development banks, and various national governments, while, environmental groups say, cracking down on local activists who oppose the project.
Harvests and Grazing Lands at Risk
"By ending the [Omo River's] natural flood cycle, [the dam] will destroy harvests and grazing lands along the river and fisheries in Lake Turkana, the world's largest desert lake. The dam will devastate the unique culture and ecosystems of the Lower Omo Valley and Lake Turkana, both recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites," adds International Rivers.
If the dam is completed, activists say, people in the Lower Omo Valley would no longer be able to plant their crops and graze their animals on the river's flood plains during times of the year when the waters recede, threatening food security and creating a risk of increased conflict in the region. The water in the dam's reservoir is also expected to serve as a breeding ground for mosquitoes, which can be dangerous carriers of malaria.
In neighboring Ethiopia, the loss of flow into Lake Turkana is expected to increase its salinity, making the lake's waters undrinkable for residents and uninhabitable for many fish species on which the local economy depends. Activists say these types of environmental and social impacts were not assessed before the dam was approved, in violation of Ethiopian law.
A 'Fatally Flawed' Ecological Assessment
The Ethiopian government says the hydro-electric dam, which would be the second largest in sub-Saharan Africa, is needed to generate electricity for the country, which has been undergoing a national energy crisis. It also claims that the overall amount of water reaching rural communities would not change. But many remain unconvinced by such arguments.
The government's environment assessment was "fatally flawed in terms of its logic, in terms of its thoroughness, in terms of its conclusions," famed Kenyan ecologist Richard Leakey told the BBC last year. "[I]t looks like an inside job that has come up with the results that they were looking for to get the initial funding for this dam."
More about dams:
5 Reasons Why Large Dams Have to Go Now; 5 Ways to Help Make That Happen
Brazil Confirms Huge and Controversial Hydroelectric Dam in the Amazon
Biggest Dam Removal Project In History Will Restore Health of Klamath River
Japan Election Results: Yamba Dam Project Suspended
Dam Plans, and Protests, Spread Across Turkey
Turkey Vows to Build Controversial Dam Despite Iraqi Complaints, Loss of European Support
China Earthquake Threatens Nearby Dams, Environment (UPDATED)
More Damming Evidence in India: Dams Increase Greenhouse Gas Emissions |
As Urmila Goel has written, professional behavior that critically confronts social power relations and inequalities is faced with naming these circumstances in order to respond to them. People can only modify their ignorance, prejudices, and resentments once they have acknowledged them. This almost always happens in the presence of people who are directly affected by these resentments.
The idea of error-friendliness is partly about preventing those who personally experience exclusion and discrimination from undergoing “irreversible negative results” (Goel 2016: 42). But it also means creating opportunities for everyone to develop and learn – although everyone must be aware that power relations will at times be reproduced and “speech can hurt, even unintentionally” (Ibid.: 43). In these teaching situations, “those excluded by the reproduction of power relations should not be left to face them alone. They should see these reproductions addressed and responded to” (Ibid.). She continues, “[meanwhile] the format for addressing and responding to the reproduction of power relations should provide learning opportunities even for those who have reproduced them or fail to comprehend the problem. They should be clearly presented with the consequences of reproducing power relations so that they can pay more attention to avoiding doing so in the future. These goals of error-friendliness are very challenging for lecturers” (Ibid.).
This challenge also demonstrates the importance of recognizing your own limits as a lecturer. This likewise highlights the limits of a chiefly didactic approach to discrimination: this approach requires complementary support measures and efforts at all levels of the university.
Goel, Urmila. 2016. Die (Un)Möglichkeit der Vermeidung von Diskriminierungen. In Diskriminierungskritische Lehre. Denkanstöße aus den Gender Studies, Hrsg. Geschäftsstelle des Zentrums für transdisziplinäre Geschlechterstudien der Humboldt-Universiät zu Berlin.
Version April 2017. Unless otherwise stated, this content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International licence. |
a. The hand salute is a one-count movement. The command is Present, ARMS. When wearing headgear with a visor (with or without glasses), on the command of execution ARMS, raise the right hand sharply, fingers and thumb extended and joined, palm facing down, and place the tip of the right forefinger on the rim of the visor slightly to the right of the right eye. The outer edge of the hand is barely canted downward so that neither the back of the hand nor the palm is clearly visible from the front. The hand and wrist are straight, the elbow inclined slightly forward, and the upper arm horizontal
b. When wearing headgear without a visor (or uncovered) and not wearing glasses, execute the hand salute in the same manner as previously described in subparagraph a, except touch the tip of the right forefinger to the forehead near and slightly to the right of the right eyebrow.
c. When wearing headgear without a visor (or uncovered) and wearing glasses, execute the hand salute in the same manner as described in subparagraph a, except touch the tip of the right forefinger to that point on the glasses where the temple piece of the frame meets the right edge of the right brow.
d. Order arms from the hand salute is a one-count movement. The command is Order, ARMS. On the command of execution ARMS, return the hand sharply to the side, resuming the position of attention.
e. When reporting or rendering courtesy to an individual, turn the head and eyes toward the person addressed and simultaneously salute. In this situation, the actions are executed without command. The salute is initiated by the subordinate at the appropriate time and terminated upon acknowledgment.
f. The hand salute may be executed while marching. When double timing, a soldier must come to quick time before saluting.
NOTE: When a formation is marching at double time, only the individual in charge assumes quick time and salutes. |
Sandia researchers optimizing endophytic fungi-derived renewable hydrocarbons for current and advanced combustion engines
Engine experts and biofuels researchers at Sandia National Laboratories are working on a project that aims to modify endophytic fungi to produce optimized fuel-type hydrocarbons. Endophytes are a class of fungi that live between plant cell walls; the cellular material in those plant walls can be converted into hydrocarbon compounds that work well as fuels for internal combustion engines.
Sandia is collaborating with Professor Gary Strobel from Montana State University (MSU), a known expert in Ascocoryne sarcoides and other similar fungi. In 2008, for example, team led by Strobel found an endophytic fungus, Gliocladium roseum (NRRL 50072), that naturally produces a large range of 55 different volatile hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon derivatives—a number of which are normally associated with diesel fuel. The researchers termed the fungus’ output “myco-diesel”. (MSU holds the patent on Gliocladium roseum.)(Earlier post.)
The beauty of the endophytic fungi, Sandia biochemist Masood Hadi said, is that there is no need for the cost-intensive industrial processes that are typically required to break down biomass. “These things can turn crystalline cellulosic material directly into fuel-type hydrocarbons without any mechanical breakdown,” he said.
The fungi grow on cellulose and digest it, forming fuel-type hydrocarbons as a by-product of their metabolic processes. Through genetic manipulation, the Sandia team hopes first to identify these pathways, and then to improve the yield and tailor the molecular structure of the hydrocarbons it produces.
Sandia’s bioscience team is using genetic sequencing to catalog the pathways and other molecular biology techniques to understand how changes in feedstock determine the type and amount of hydrocarbons the fungi make, with a long-term goal of engineering greater quantities of the desirable fuel species.
Meanwhile, Craig Taatjes and John Dec, both engine combustion researchers at Sandia, are experimenting with the main compounds produced by the fungi and are giving feedback to their bioresearch counterparts on the compounds’ ignition chemistry and engine performance. The ideal outcome, Dec said, is to “dial in” the right feedstocks combined with the right set of genes to produce the preferred blend of compounds to go into an engine.
The first step has been to learn what kinds of compounds the fungus makes naturally on its own. “We just don’t know much about some of the compounds, so we need to do research on their ignition chemistry and how they behave in an engine,” Taatjes said. The team, he says, is working with Professor William H. Green at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to develop an ignition chemistry model that can predict the performance of the classes of compounds made by the fungus.
Hadi and his colleagues are contributing to building up the understanding of the distribution of molecules produced by the various fungi, at which point they can genetically tailor them to produce more of the optimal compounds to suit the needs of engine combustion.
Eventually, the team anticipates that enough hydrocarbons will be extracted from those produced by the fungus to test in the lab, or even in an engine. “We hope, in the end, to have a biofuel that was developed in conjunction with the development of the combustion model for that biofuel,” Taatjes said.
Dec, who runs the Homogeneous-Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) lab at Sandia, said experiments on the HCCI platform offer good fundamental information on fuel auto-ignition behavior that can be related to performance in other engine types, such as spark-ignition or diesel, as well as to performance in HCCI engines.
Taatjes, Dec and Hadi all agree that it makes perfect sense for Sandia to invest in a project that focuses on an engine’s interaction with a new biofuel. Another aspect of this project, Taatjes said, is that the biofuels researchers are working directly with the combustion experts to understand from the start just what will work best as fuel for internal combustion engines, accelerating the pace of alternative fuel development and the associated engine optimization.
There is a whole new range of potential fuels now with biomass. The new fuels will have to work well with both existing engines and advanced engines, like HCCI or low-temperature diesel combustion. Only then will you be able to sell the fuel at the pump and get your new high-efficiency, low-emissions engine into the marketplace.—John Dec
Angela R. Tomsheck, Gary A. Strobel, Eric Booth, Brad Geary, Dan Spakowicz, Berk Knighton, Cody Floerchinger, Joe Sears, Orna Liarzi and David Ezra (2010) Hypoxylon sp., an Endophyte of Persea indica, Producing 1,8-Cineole and Other Bioactive Volatiles with Fuel Potential Microbial Ecology Volume 60, Number 4, 903-914, doi: 10.1007/s00248-010-9759-6
Meghan A Griffin, Daniel J Spakowicz, Tara A Gianoulis and Scott A Strobel (2010) Volatile organic compound production by organisms in the Ascocoryne genus and a reevaluation of myco-diesel production by NRRL 50072 Microbiology doi: 10.1099/mic.0.041327-0 |
Coordination: the ability to use different parts of the body together smoothly and efficiently.
Sport coordination: the ability to use two or more body parts together.
Racket games require good hand-eye coordination in order to strike the ball or shuttle correctly.
In football there are several types of coordination;
Hand-eye coordination for the goalkeeper is to catch a shot at goal or catch or punch the ball when under pressure.
Foot-eye coordination needed to strike the ball to pass, shoot or control it.
Head-eye coordination needed to strike the ball with the head in order to clear a corner or to aim at the target to score.
At other times players may need chest-eye or thigh-eye coordination to control the ball, so coordination is a high priority skill. |
If you live in a climate that is favorable to mango plants, you can plant and grow your own mango tree and enjoy the sweet, vitamin-packed tropical fruit for years on end. With a little time and patience, it is quite easy to grow a mango tree from seed or from a small plant. Try your hand at gardening this tropical fruit, and you'll be raising a full-sized tree in no time.
Part 1 of 3: Preparing for Planting
1Determine if you have a suitable environment. Although mangoes don’t require much maintenance once planted, they do have picky circumstances under which they must grow. Mangoes thrive best in high heat, and can handle both humid/swampy and arid areas. Most mangoes are grown near the equator, and in the United States they are primarily grown in Florida. If you live in an area that has average temperatures of 80–100 °F (27–38 °C) and cool winters that don’t freeze, you’ll likely be able to grow mangoes.
- Rainfall for your area should not exceed 12 inches (30.5 cm) per annum.
2Select an area to grow your mango tree. Mangoes can be grown in pots or in spacious areas outside. They prefer lots of heat and direct sunlight, meaning that they don’t grow well indoors (although they can be brought in in a pot for the winter). The size of each mango tree varies depending on what species it is, but they can get quite large, exceeding heights of 10–15 feet (3.0–4.6 m). Therefore, choose an area that will give them plenty of space to thrive without being shaded by other larger trees.
3Choose a variety of mango to plant. There are many different types of mangoes on the market, but only a few grow well in specific areas. Visit a local nursery to find out which ones grow best in your area. Mangoes can be grown in one of two ways: via the seed of a mango, or from a grafted sapling. Mango seeds typically take 8 years to produce fruit, but may not if they haven’t been grafted. Grafted saplings take 3-5 years to produce fruit, but are nearly guaranteed a good harvest. If you choose to plant from a seed, choose a mango from a tree you know grows successfully; taking one from a store-bought mango probably won’t provide you with a tree.
- Grafted saplings tend to be about half the size of a seed from the fruit that is planted.
- The trees produced from seeds tend to be much stronger and hardier, but they don’t have a good of fruit.
- If you’re testing the environmental limits with your mango growing, there are a few species that are able to grow in slightly cooler and wetter conditions than the aforementioned recommendation.
4Get your soil ready. Mangoes thrive in loose, sandy soil that drains water easily. Check the pH of your soil to see if it is in an adequate acidity range; the trees will grow best in soil that has a pH of 4.5-7 (acidic). Incorporate peat moss into your soil on a yearly basis in order to keep the acidity high. Avoid using chemical fertilizers or any product that contains salt, as these will hinder the growth of your mango tree. Prepare the soil so that it is tilled about three feet deep, as this will give plenty of space for the roots to spread.
5Know when to plant. Mango trees should typically be planted in late Spring or the beginning of Summer when it is a combination of rainy/sunny weather. The planting season will depend on the species, so check your local nursery to find out when yours should be planted. Some varieties, such as the Beverly and Keitt don’t need to be planted until August/September.
Part 2 of 3: Growing a Tree from a Seed
1Select a large, ripe poly-embryonic mango. If you live in an area that grows mangoes, visit local orchards to select a fruit. If you don’t have access to a healthy mango tree, visit a local grocer or farmers market to select a fruit. Ask the salesperson for help in choosing a fruit that is poly-embryonic (these are the only fruits that will grow fruit when planted).
2Remove and clean the pit. Eat the mango, or remove all existing fruit, until the fibrous pit is exposed. Clean the pit with a scrub brush, or steel wool pad, until all hairs have been removed. Be careful not to scrub away at the outer coating of the pit, and only to remove the fruit fibers that are still attached.
3Prepare the pit for planting. Dry the pit overnight in a cool location away from direct sunlight. Open the pit with a sharp knife, as you would shuck an oyster, being careful not to cut too deeply and damage the enclosed seed. Pry the pit open and remove the seed, which resembles a large lima bean.
4Germinate the seed. Place the seed about an inch deep, and concave side down, in a container full of quality potting soil. Dampen the soil and store the container in a warm, shaded area until the seed sprouts. This process usually takes 1 - 3 weeks.
5Plant the seed. At this point, your seed is ready to be planted in its permanent location. If you plan to have it outside, try to plant it directly outside rather than putting it in a plant and transplanting it, as that way you won’t have to worry about hardening it off or it going into soil shock.
Part 3 of 3: Planting the Mango Tree
1Dig the hole for planting. In your selected plot location, use a shovel to dig a hole that is 2-4 times the size of the rootball of your mango plant. If you’re planting in area that already has grass, remove the grass in an area a further 2 feet (0.6 m) around the plot space to make room for the tree. Mix a bit of compost (no more than a 50/50 mixture) with the soil you’ve dug up which will be replaced around the roots.
2Plant the tree. Remove the sapling from the container or place your seed in the hole. The base of the tree/sprout should be level with or slightly above the ground. Replace the soil you’ve dug out by filling in the hole around the tree and lightly tamping it. Mango trees grow best in loose soil, so avoid applying too much pressure to the plot as you refill the hole.
3Fertilize the tree. For the first year, fertilize your mango tree/sprout once a month with a non-chemical fertilizer. A fertilizer with a 6-6-6-2 mix should be good. You can dissolve the fertilizer in a bit of warm water for application, and keep the solution on hand for your monthly use.
4Water your mango tree. Mango trees don’t like a ton of water, but the first week watering should be slightly above average. Give the plant a few tablespoons of water every other day for the first week, and then water them only once or twice a week for the first year. You can implement an irrigation system for the tree once it is a year old, and allow the natural rainwater to do its job.
5Keep weeds at bay. Weeds can become a serious problem around your mango trees if not dealt with on a regular basis. Make sure to weed regularly, removing any plants that sprout up near the trunk of the tree. Add a thick layer of mulch around the tree to help trap in moisture and prevent weed growth as well. You can add a bit of compost to the mulch as well to help supply the tree with added nutrients.
6Prune your tree when necessary. The goal of pruning is to allow for as much space for branches to form, as the fruit will develop at the end of the branches (known as terminal flowers). Cut branches 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the trunk if there is too much crowding near the center, typically after the last fruit of the season (in the fall). You can prune your tree to limit it’s outward growth as well, by simply cutting off branches that are too tall or wide. If you have questions about your specific mango tree, visit a local nursery and check in for tips there.
7Harvest your mangoes. Because mangoes vary in color, shape, and size from species to species, you can’t tell if the fruit is ripe until you cut it open. You can get a general sense depending on how soft and fragrant it is, but should use a knife to sample the fruit. When the meat is yellow through to the core, it is ready to eat. If it is still very white and hard, then wait 1-2 weeks before testing it again. If you do pick your fruit early, you can ripen it by keeping it in a paper bag in room temperature for a few days. A nice alternative if you have picked them early is to make a salad by julienning them and making a green mango salad that goes well with fish dishes. Ad
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- Protect your young mango tree from winter frost by tenting or wrapping it securely with a blanket.
- Make sure it stays clear of too much water otherwise it would drown.
- Space mango trees approximately 12 feet (3.7 m) from other trees, or each other, for optimal growth.
- Anthracnose fungus is deadly to mango trees because it attacks all parts of the tree. Apply fungicides at the first sign of black-spotted fruit.
Sources and Citations
Categories: Growing Trees
In other languages:
Español: Cómo cultivar un árbol de mango, Deutsch: Einen Mangobaum pflanzen, Português: Como Plantar Uma Mangueira, Italiano: Come Coltivare un Albero di Mango, Русский: вырастить манговое дерево, 中文: 种植芒果树, Français: Comment faire pousser un manguier, Bahasa Indonesia: Menanam Pohon Mangga
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 201,982 times. |
1.) Use Fresh Food-Grade Materials
Whether your establishment is utilizing an older draught beer system or if you are shopping for a brand new tap system, using fresh food-grade materials is paramount in ensuring proper sanitation and draught beer quality. Today’s standards in tap system materials are stainless steel and polyethylene plastics. If you are purchasing a new system, be sure that all metal fittings, faucets, and couplers are made of food-grade 304 stainless steel. Older systems will commonly have brass or nickel parts which can easily and affordably be replaced with stainless. On large “long-draw” tap systems, the “trunk lines,” which make up the majority of the system (from the cooler to the faucets), should be manufactured from polyethylene tubing and enclosed in a glycol-chilled insulated packing.
2.) Replace Vinyl Beer Lines
A smaller portion of the system, referred to as the “jumper lines”, will be made of vinyl flex tubing, which connects the trunk to the keg couplers inside of the cooler. Carbon dioxide and nitrogen beer gas lines will often be made of vinyl too. Vinyl is utilized for this application because of its flexibility and resistance to kinking; but vinyl is not considered a food-grade material and these lines should be replaced once a year. Vinyl, unlike polyethylene, has a highly porous surface that will harbor sugar, protein, and microbial deposits that can permanently infect a draught system; therefore, it is best to simply replace these lines on an annual basis.
3.) Routine Caustic Beer Line Cleanings Every Two Weeks
Routine caustic beer line cleanings performed every two weeks by a qualified technician will greatly reduce the risk of microbial infection that may result in beer spoilage and the transmission of food-borne illnesses caused by pathogenic bacteria, mold, and yeast. Caustic solutions of either sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH) destroy sugar and protein residues that build up on the interior of beer lines, and remove microorganisms that reside and feed on these nutrient residues. These solutions should be used at a pH of 12-13. All beer must be purged from the system.
The lines should then be filled with caustic solution, given at least 10 minutes to soak, then all cleaning solution must be removed and the lines rinsed with fresh tap water. The rinse water should be run until its pH matches that of the fresh tap water (6.5-8.5) to ensure all caustic solution has been removed.
4.) Quarterly Acid Cleanings
In addition to bi-weekly caustic cleanings, quarterly (every 3 months) acid cleanings must also be performed to remove mineral deposits. Excess mineral buildup will create a rough interior on polyethylene beer lines, thus negating its anti-microbial effects and rendering it useless for food and beverage applications. To avoid mineral buildup in a tap system, be sure that acid cleanings are performed under the same criteria as caustic cleanings, but with a cleaning solution of either hydrochloric acid (HCl) or peroxyacetic acid (C2H4O3) at a pH of 2-3.
5.) Visually Inspect System Components Daily
Bar staff should visually inspect and hand-clean tap system components every day, and beer faucets should be cleaned every shift. Faucets will accumulate visible sugar and protein residues inside and out, and must be sprayed with an organic solvent such as isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) to remove them. Faucet brushes are available for cleaning the inside of faucets. Keg couplers should also be checked regularly. When visible residue buildup occurs, these residues should be removed using a toothbrush. Tough residues can be soaked in alcohol or dish detergent to break and remove these sticky protein and sugar films.
By following these simple guidelines, any bar or restaurant can be assured that they are serving draught beer at its highest quality and keeping microbial contamination to a minimum. Be sure to discuss these procedures with your draught beer line cleaner to make sure you are receiving adequate service, and educate bar staff as to the importance of daily in-house tap system cleaning regimens. |
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JMW Turner had a life-long obsession with the sea- from the tempestuous painting ‘Snowstorm’ to the fiercely dramatic pictures of whalers embattled by sea monsters. In this exhibition, Turner's position as Britain's greatest maritime painter is celebrated.
When Turner began painting, the subject of the sea had reached its greatest moment in British history. Sailing had been refined down to an art, trade was booming, and an empire was covering the globe. Whether the artist did in fact lash himself to the mast of the Ariel in order to record the gale that blew up after leaving Harwich docks is uncertain, yet what Turner found in the sea was a subject vast enough to fit the size of his own gifts.
This exhibition charts the changes in attitude to the sea through the paintings of Turner. From the heroic scenes painted during the Napoleonic wars to the beginning of Britain’s decline as a sea-faring nation, it encapsulates a time of great change in the history of Britain.
‘The Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805’ was commissioned by George IV to commemorate England’s naval victory over the French. It is a highly symbolic painting about the cost of war, particularly in Turner’s depictions of the dying sailors and admirals who jostle indiscriminately for a position in the foreground.
Many of the events of the battle were conflated into the one scene, which Turner was later criticised for. Yet the message was clear- this may have been a glorious victory, but the suffering had been immense and had cost the nation more than the death of a great national hero.
What the critics say
“… The spectator will find themselves swept away” |
Ancamna was a protector goddess of the Treveri, a Celtic tribe from the Moselle River area in Germany. Her cult centered on the area around Trier, known to the Romans as Treveri Augustorum (French Trèves).
There altars were set up to Ancamna and her consort, Mars Lenus (a healing god), as well as the genii (spirits) of the pagi (administrative regions) of the Treveri. This would suggest Ancamna was a protector goddess, like Brigantia or Belisama.
Brigantia was a tribal goddess whom the Romans latched onto to promote as a symbol of unity. Ancamna may be another, along with Noreia in Noricum, modern-day Austria.
(Deo Mercurio thinks that the cult of Victoria and Mars at Trier also represents Ancamna and Lenus, since it would make sense for the tribal goddess to be the one linked with Mars. It’s not impossible, as two inscriptions to Brigantia call her Victoria Brigantia.) Both goddesses were also connected to the emperor and his cult, as we shall see below.
The meaning of her name is unclear, although some link her to rivers or water. Given the nearness of her cult to the Moselle, this would make sense. She might have been a river-goddess like Nantosuelta and others, such as Sequana and possibly Belisama. Mars Lenus was a healing god, with his own spring just outside Trier, so it may well be that Ancamna had a healing aspect as well.
Deo Mercurio suggests that the two were the Jupiter and Juno of the Treveri, as the frequent invocations of the divine house show. There is an inscription honouring her and Mars from Trier, as well the divine house (of the emperor):
In honorem domus divinae Marti et Ancamnae Caius Serotinius Iustus ex voto posuit. (AE 1983 (1985): 680)
Another inscription, from Ripsdorf, also mentions the divine house along with Mars and Ancamna, and adds the well-being of the empire.
Other inscriptions linking her and just plain Mars appear at Trier and Ripsdorf, but at Möhn he takes on another name, Smertulitanus, whose name comes from the same smert element as Rosmerta and Smertrios. An inscription to the them both reads:
Marti Smertulitano et Ancanmae Caius G. Sec. (AE 1983 (1985): 718. Möhn)
Theirs was a fairly elaborate cult, as the site had two temples and a theatre. One of her worshippers referred to himself as deuas, which probably comes from the Celtic word “godly”. A similar name appears at Worms, in an inscription to another Mars, Loucetius. A devotee of the cult or a priest might well take such a name.
Another interesting facet of the cult were the statuettes left as offerings at their cult centers. At Mohn this included a genius cucullatus, or hooded god. These were the male equivalent of the matres, usually appearing in threes and often found together with the mother-goddesses. They both seem to have been deities of fertility and abundance.
Two other goddesses from the Moselle area were also associated with the god Mars: Inciona and Nemetona. Inciona’s consort was Lenus Mars Veraudunus, while Nemetona paired up with just plain Mars at Trier. (She joins Mars Loucetios at Bath, the shrine of Sulis Minerva, and Klein-Winternheim, near Mainz.) These three are often grouped together as similar goddesses, but we know very little about any of them, and all they have in common is an association with Mars.
At any rate, we know that Ancamna was closely linked with the Treveri people and territory, and that she was important enough that her cult was linked to the imperial cult, and the imperial house. She had devout and prosperous followers, who could set up altars and leave statues as offerings. Her “godly” follower may well have been a priest of her cult. All of this suggests that she was an important deity, at least locally, so it is a pity that we don’t have more information about her.
If you like the image at the top, click here. |
West Russia, World War II
One winter day at dark down the artillery opened hurricane fire on the enemy’s positions. Soon came the squadron and geysers of soil and curls of smoke erupted from the earth. The front enemy’s dugouts were razed to the ground for the first ten minutes. White rockets occurred on the sky as though they were artificial constellations. Then the infantry began to shoot in order to destroy that which had been missed by the shells.
The battle was won owing to one soldier – a slender, thin eighteen-year-old boy, named Sasha. There was an enormous machine-gun, skillfully hidden behind a stack of big stones. It starfed the whole road round a little bridge which was the only way to reach the fortification. No one was able to come closer and “dismantle” the private behind the cannon. If Sasha had not helped, enemy’s crafts would have come an hour later and would have killed all the soldiers on the battlefield.
The commanders saw him among the cracks of the rocks. Then he disappeared. A few minutes later a bomb explosion was heard and the machine-gun ceased shooting. And there were no holdbacks for invasion.
In the evening the chief commander of the companies called Sasha in his room.
“You ignored my explicit instructions!” he cried. “That was the worst and recklessest thing to do!”
The boy felt himself as the biggest traitor in the world.
“But nevermind”, continued the commander. “I’ve decided to reward you with a seen-day-furlough for being so devoted to your country.”
the Limitations of GeniusPeter J. Dean BA(Hons) Dip Ed.Napoleon was one of the greatest military minds in the history of warfare. He expanded the conquests of France from her revolutionary borders to that of an Empire that stretched from Spain to the steppes of Russia. Napoleon's genius lay not in revolutionizing of warfare itself, but in the refinement of existing means. He did not propose any ...
The boy smiled with satisfaction.
“Where do you want to go?” asked the commander.
“I’d like to visit my mother and father in Karanga.”
“OK. I’ve provided you with a lorry to Petropavlovsk and from there you’ll have to catch up the train.”
“Thank you, sir, thank you very much!”
He went into the sleeping-hall and began to gather the things he needed. Then he called in at the field hospital to say “Goodbye” to his best friend Volodya. And Volodya gave him a little purse with money and asked him to deliver it to his wife in Petropavlovsk where Sasha was expected to catch up the train.
At sunrise the next morning the young boy was already travelling with the lorry. In the cabin there were also two men – a driver and an ex-soldier – now an invalid because a shell had deprived him of his right leg. This man was going to Kurgan.
During the traveling Sasha and the invalid became friends. The ex-soldier told him that he was going back to his wife who unfortunately had been left alone to take care of the newborn baby, which he had not seen yet. And he was not even upset because of the lost leg.
They arrived in Kurgan on the second day and spent it all looking for the invalid’s wife because she had somehow disappeared. Sasha did not know what to do – he was unable to help his friend and he was afraid of this uncertainty. Thousand of questions occurred in his head – “What had happened to the invalid’s wife?”, “Had she gone somewhere else?”, “Is the baby with her and is it all right?”, “Is she still alive?”, “If not, what had happened to the baby?”… Many questions and no answers…
The next day the young boy continued his way to Petropavlovsk and reached it late in the evening. Sasha’s train to Karanga was the next morning so he decided to go to Volodya’s house and give the money to his wife.
When he reached the house he noticed that there was no light glimmering through the window and no smoke coming out of the chimney. He knocked at the door. No answer. He knocked again and again but nobody replied. He was very disappointed and remembered the invalid’s wife. Then he knocked once more. Silence…
Timeline of Events in The Remains of the Day 1899 (Approx.) All within a short length of time: Stevens' brother killed in South African War; Father has incident about car; Father must be butler to general. (40) 1914 Darlington in Great War (WWI), along with Herr Bremann 1920 (towards the end of the year) Darlington makes the first of a number of "disturbing" trips to Berlin. 1920's (at the start ...
When he was leaving for nowhere, as he did not know where to spend the night, he saw something terrifying at the bottom of the yard – a big grave with a cross on which had been carved the names “Natasha and Svetlana”. Sasha was speechless. Natasha was Volodya’s wife and Svetlana – his sister… He spent the cold night by the grave. He was not able to imagine how he will tell this to his best friend.
On the next day the train arrived too late in Petropavlovsk. He sat by the window and spent all the time looking plainly through it. He was too young and inexperienced and could not accept the cruel twists of fate with innocent people. He wondered about the purpose of this war, the insignificance of the ordinary man and still he could not find any answer.
When he came home he had time only to embrace his crying mother and to learn that his father had died a few days ago.
The next day his mother saw him off at the station. She was inconsolable for she knew she would never have the chance to see her only child again. The woman stayed long, long time at the station stared at the train which was receding further and further, crying and waving her black kerchief…
Sasha was a good son. He could be a good father or a good doctor. But Sasha was only a soldier… A few days later he was killed at the battlefield. |
The state’s new evaluation system was in response to administrators who produced, “superficial and capricious teacher evaluation systems that often don't even directly address the quality of instruction, much less measure students' learning” (Toch, 2008). Too often, the “good-ol-boy” attitude would insure mediocre educators would remain employed. Realizing this was often more the rule then the exception, the governor created educational mandates to focus, “on supporting and training effective teachers to drive student achievement” (Marzano Center, 2013). Initially, they expected the school districts and the teachers would have issues and experience growing pains, but in the end the goal was, “to improve teacher performance, year by year, with a corresponding rise in student achievement” (Marzano Center, 2013).
Initially, the teachers interviewed were concerned about then new evaluation system – especially after being flogged by negative, media induced hysteria that stated, “SBA and other test scores are used to measure student achievement growth under PED’s model and are supposed to count for 50 percent of the overall evaluation” [emphasis added] (Last, 2013...
... middle of paper ...
Marzano Center - New Mexico Education Reform. (n.d.). Marzano Center - New Mexico Education Reform. Retrieved November 10, 2013, from http://www.marzanocenter.com/my-state/New-mexico-education-reform/
Skandera, H. (2013). NM state regional training ppt. Retrieved from ped.state.nm: http://ped.state.nm.us/ped/NMTeachIndex.html
Teachers Matter: understanding teachers' impact on student achievement. (n.d.). RAND Corporation Provides Objective Research Services and Public Policy Analysis. Retrieved November 9, 2013, from http://www.rand.org/education/projects/measuring-teacher-effectiveness/teachers-matter.html
Toch, T. (n.d.). Membership. educational leadership :expecting excellence: fixing teacher evaluation. Retrieved November 8, 2013, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/oct08/vol66/num02/Fixing-Teacher-Evaluation.aspx
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Writing about yourself can seem embarrassing at first, but cover letters, personal essays, and bio notes about yourself come with some specific tricks and tips that can make it a lot less intimidating when it comes to style and content. Learn the basics and you'll be able to make your personal writing stand out.
Method 1 of 4: Autobiographical Writing Basics
1Just introduce yourself. Writing about yourself can be tough, because you've got a lot to say. Your whole lifetime of experiences, talents, and skills in a paragraph, or a couple of paragraphs? Whatever kind of writing you're planning on doing, whatever your purpose, just think about it like you're introducing yourself to a stranger. What do they need to know? Answer questions like:
- Who are you?
- What are your interests?
- What are your talents?
- What are you achievements?
- What challenges have you faced?
2Start with a short list of your talents and interests. If you're not sure what to choose to start, or if you're only allowed to pick one thing for the assignment, try listing out as many as possible and brainstorming good details that will help you decide. Answer the questions in the previous step, then sketch out as many different answers as possible.
3Narrow your topic. Pick one specific topic, describe it in detail, and use that to introduce yourself. It's better to pick one thing and use it to describe yourself in lots of detail, than to give someone a big long list of general topics.
- What seems the most interesting or unique? What describes you the best? Pick that topic.
4Use a few good details. When you've got a specific topic to narrow in on, describe it specifically, giving us something unique to hold onto. Remember, you're telling us about you. The more details, the better:
- Bad: I like sports.
- Ok: I'm a fan of basketball, football, tennis, and soccer.
- Better: My favorite sport is football, both to watch and to play.
- Good: When I was growing up, I would watch Big Ten football with my dad and brothers every Saturday, before we'd go outside and toss the football around. I've loved it ever since.
5Be humble. Even if you're very accomplished, talented, or cool, you want to come across like a down-to-earth person. Don't write about yourself to brag. List your accomplishments and your successes, but temper them with some more humble language:
- Braggy: I'm the best and most dynamic worker at my company right now, so you should want to hire me for my talents.
- Humble: I was lucky enough to be awarded three employee of the month awards at my current job, more than any other employee.
Method 2 of 4: Writing Personal Essays for School
1Come up with an excellent story to tell. Personal essays are commonly used for college applications and school assignments. It's dissimilar from a cover letter in that the purpose of a cover letter is to introduce a candidate for employment or admission, while a non-fiction essay is for exploring a theme. Basically, this type of assignment requires that you tell a story about yourself, using specific, real-life details that highlight a particular theme or idea throughout the essay.
- Common themes or prompts for autobiographical essays include overcoming obstacles, great successes or spectacular failures, and times you learned something about yourself.
2Stay focused on a single theme or purpose. Unlike a cover letter, an autobiographical essay shouldn't jump around quickly between different themes or events that you'd like to highlight to make yourself look good, but stay focused on a single event or theme that makes some greater point.
- Depending on the assignment, you may need to connect a personal anecdote to a reading or an idea from class. Start brainstorming topics that are connected to that idea to give yourself a variety of options to choose from.
3Write about complex topics, not cliches. An essay doesn't need to make you look good at all. When you're thinking of topics to write about, think about your triumphs and successes, but also give some thought to parts of your life that could use improvement. The time you forgot to pick up your sister from practice while you were partying with friends, or the time you skipped class and got caught might make for great essays too.
- Common autobiographical essay cliches include sports stories, mission trips, and dead grandmothers. While these can all make for excellent essays if done well, it's difficult to stand out telling the story of the time your lacrosse team lost a big game, then practiced hard, then won. We've read that before.
4Limit the timeline as much as possible. It's almost impossible to write a good five page essay about your entire life up to your 14th birthday. Even a topic like "my senior year" is much too complex to actually pull off in a good essay. Pick an event that spanned no more than a day, or a few days at most.
- If you want to tell the story of your nasty break-up, start with the break-up, don't start with the star-crossed way you met. You've got to get immediately to the tension in the story.
5Use vivid details. These types of essays are better the less you include. If you want to write a good non-fictional essay, it needs to be chock-full of vivid details and specific images and senses.
- When you have some idea of your topic, start writing a "memory list" of specific things that you remember about the event. What was the weather like? What did it smell like? What did your mother say to you?
- Your opening paragraph will set the tone for the rest of the essay. Rather than telling the dull biographical details (your name, your place of birth, your favorite food), find a way to express the essence of the story you're going to tell and the themes you're going to explore in your essay.
6Start in the middle of the story. Don't worry about "building suspense" in an autobiographical essay. If you want to tell the story about the time you accidentally ruined Thanksgiving dinner, then start with the flaming turkey, the scorched potatoes, and the rest of the failures, don't build up to them and then end. How did you recover? How did people react? How did you move on? That's the essay.
7Connect the details to the big theme. If you're writing an essay about your disaster Thanksgiving, don't forget that you're writing about more than a burnt turkey. What's the point of the story? What are we supposed to be noticing about this story that you're telling us? At least once every page, you need to have some thread that ties us back to the main theme or focus of the essay you're writing.
Method 3 of 4: Writing a Cover Letter for an Application
1Find the prompt. If you need a cover letter for a job or internship, for college, or for some other application opportunity, there will sometimes be a description or prompt of what's expected in the letter. Depending on the nature of the application, you may need to describe your readiness to complete the job, your qualifications, or other specific criteria. Possible prompts may include:
- Outline your qualifications and highlight your talents in a cover letter.
- Tell us about yourself.
- In a cover letter, describe how your education and experience qualifies you for this position.
- Explain how this opportunity will benefit your career goals.
2Match the style to the purpose. Different employers and situations will call for different styles and tones in a cover letter. If you're applying to a university, it's always best to use a professional and academic tone throughout the letter. When you're applying to blog for a tech start-up that tells you to "Explain three things you rock at!" it's probably better to use a looser and more informal style of writing.
- When in doubt, keep it brief and keep it serious. If you're unsure whether or not telling an amusing anecdote about your friend's bachelor party would go over well in a cover letter, it's probably best to leave it out.
3Describe why you're writing in the first paragraph. The first two sentences should explain the purpose of your cover letter and your application clearly. If someone reading your cover letter is unclear about what it is you want, your application will quickly get chucked in the trash.
- "I'm writing to apply for the entry-level position with Company Inc. advertised on your website. I think my experience and training makes me an ideal candidate for this position."
- Contrary to popular belief, it's not necessary to include your name in the body of the letter: "My name is John Smith and I'm applying...." Your name will be included in the signature, as well as the header of a cover letter, so there's no need to put it in the text itself.
4Structure the cover letter as a cause and effect. A cover letter should explain to the potential employer or admissions board why you are the best candidate for the position, or why you should be admitted to the university or program to which you're applying. To do this, you need to make sure every cover letter describes what you bring to the table and how that will help satisfy the ambitions of both parties. Make sure all cover letters describe the following details clearly:
- Who you are and where you come from.
- Where you want to go.
- How this opportunity would potentially help you get there.
5Detail your talents and skills specifically. What makes you the ideal type of candidate for the job or position you're applying for? What experiences, skills, training, and talent do you bring to the table?
- Be as specific as possible. It's ok to write that you're "A passionate leader in all walks of life" but it would be much better to write about an example of a time you lead in a surprising way.
- Stay focused on skills and talents that connect specifically to the thing you're applying for. Extracurricular involvement, leadership roles, and other types of outstanding achievement may be important to you personally and may tell the readers about you, or it may be totally extraneous. If you include something, make sure you connect it specifically to the goal of the cover letter.
6Describe your goals and ambitions. Where do you want to go from here? Both admission boards and employers are more interested in people with ambitions for themselves, self-starters who will be motivated to achieve at a high level. Describe what you want and how this position will help you achieve that goal.
- Be as specific as possible. If you're writing a university cover letter, it's obvious that you have to have a degree to get a job as a doctor. But why this degree? Why this school? What, specifically, do you need to learn?
7Explain how both parties will benefit from your selection. What do you bring to the table that other candidates don't? How would the university benefit from having you as a member of the student body? How would you benefit from getting that new job? Your readers will be interested in knowing what's at stake for both.
- Be careful about using a cover letter to critique a business. It's not the time to describe the suffering of a particular brand over the previous fiscal quarter, then promising that you'll be able to turn it around with your ideas. That might not go over well at the office, and you might not be able to, if you do get the job.
8Don't mistake the cover letter for the resume. While it's important to list your best skills, as they apply to the job you are interested in, a cover letter isn't a good place to list the minute details of your education, or other information that belongs on the resume. Since most places will ask for both, make sure the resume and the cover letter contain different information.
- Even if it's impressive, a high GPA or class ranking doesn't belong in a cover letter. Highlight it on your resume, but don't include it in two different places on the application.
- Don't include
9Keep it brief. Ideal cover letters should be no more than one or two pages, single-spaced, or somewhere between 300-500 words. Certain places may call for longer letters, in the neighborhood of 700-1000 words, but it's rare that cover letters should ever be longer than that.
10Format the letter. Cover letters are usually single-spaced and word-processed in a normal, legible font like Times or Garamond. Generally, cover letters should include a salutation addressed to the admission board or a specific contact listed on the application, a closing with your signature, and the following contact information included in the header of the document:
- Your name
- Mailing address
- Telephone and/or fax number
Method 4 of 4: Writing a Short Bio Note
1Write about yourself in the third person. Short blurb-style bio notes are common in work directories, pamphlets, and other materials. You may be asked to provide one for any number of reasons. They're usually short, and can be somewhat awkward to write.
- Pretend you're writing about someone else. Write your name and start describing that person like a character or a friend: "John Smith is the Executive Vice President of Company Inc..."
2Explain your position or title. Be sure to clarify your specific role and specialty, taking into consideration the purpose of the bio note. Describe what it is you do and what it is that people know you for.
- If you're a jack of all trades, say so. Don't be afraid to list "actor, musician, mother, motivational speaker, and professional rock climber" if they all apply equally.
3Briefly list your responsibilities or accomplishments. If you're a frequent winner of awards and distinctions, a bio note is a good time to list them and toot your own horn. Try to keep bio notes focused on recent history.
- It's common to list degrees that you've received as well, paying special attention to anything that ties into the work you are writing about. If you have special training, include it here.
4Include a bit of your personal life. Bio notes don't need to be cold. It's common to end on a small personal detail that will spice up bio notes a bit. Consider including your cat's name, or a quirky detail about a hobby:
- "John Smith is the Executive Vice President of Company Inc., in charge of marketing and overseas acquisitions. He received a MBA with distinction from Harvard and lives in Montauk with his cat Cheeto."
- Don't overshare. It can seem funny to immediately start with "John Smith loves rafting and hates eating Cheetos. He's a total boss" and such bio notes can be appropriate for some venues, but be careful to avoid awkward oversharing. Telling everyone about your killer hangover might be best left for after work talk.
5Keep it brief. Generally, these types of bio notes are no more than a few sentences. They'll usually be included on a contributor page or a list of other employees all together, and you don't want yours to stand out as the person who droned on for half a page, when everyone else used a few sentences.
- Stephen King, one of the most successful and popular authors in recent history, has a bio note that just lists the name of his family members, his hometown, and his pets. Consider leaving out the self-congratulation entirely.
We could really use your help!
hair and hairstyling?
- If you are having a difficult time writing about yourself, search online for examples of personal writing in order to get some ideas and inspiration.
Categories: Non Fiction
In other languages:
Italiano: Come Scrivi di Te Stesso, Português: Como Escrever Sobre Si Mesmo, Deutsch: Über sich selbst schreiben, Español: Cómo escribir sobre uno mismo, Русский: написать о себе, Français: Comment écrire un texte autobiographique, 中文: 写一篇关于自己的文章, Nederlands: Over jezelf schrijven, Bahasa Indonesia: Menulis Tentang Diri Anda Sendiri
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 983,240 times. |
The poems in Poems on Nature are divided into spring, summer, autumn and winter to reflect in verse the changes of the seasons and the passing of time. Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library, a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold-foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.This edition features an introduction by Helen Macdonald, author of the international bestseller, H is for Hawk. Since poetry began, there have been poems about nature; it's a complex subject which has inspired some of the most beautiful poetry ever written. Poets from Andrew Marvell to W.B. Yeats to Emily Bronte have sought to describe the natural environment and our relationship with it. There is also a rich tradition of songs and rhymes, such as 'Scarborough Fair', that hark back to a rural way of life which may now be lost, but is brought back to life in the lyrical verses included in this collection.
Macmillan Collector's Library |
This week in social studies, we talked about what technology is, how it helps people daily, and how it has changed over the years. We brainstormed and made a list of different types of technology that help us write, keep food from spoiling, listen to music, watch videos, play and many other things. In groups this week, the kids colored pages to show what technology was and sorted old and new technology.
Thursday, I brought my record/tape/CD player and a record, tape and CD to show the kids how music has changed. We also looked at an old camera. After lunch I asked the kids what they wanted to listen to during stations and everyone wanted to listen to the record. They thought it was pretty cool! |
With activists in the US preparing for the largest climate march in history, the refrain you'll often hear from naysayers is that curbing emissions in the West is pointless because China and India will continue to pollute.
That argument, however, is beginning to look tired.
With the economic and health impacts of China's coal addiction becoming ever more apparent, the government there is beginning to get serious about a shift to cleaner energy. And that shift is beginning to show results.Back in August, Greenpeace reported that Chinese coal consumption may have fallen in the first half of 2014, while GDP continued to rise. That news was met with some skepticism, and muttering about inaccurate statistics. Next, we heard that Chinese coal imports had fallen too, an indicator that is considered much more reliable than domestic consumption by many experts. Now, it's being reported that China will crackdown on the most polluting forms of coal, meaning imports from coal producing nations like Australia, where solar is already squeezing coal profits domestically, could be hit especially hard.
Of course, anyone who cares about the climate should care deeply that China may finally be cutting its own emissions. But the story is even bigger than that. With renewables, natural gas and efficiency eating into coal consumption in many Western nations, coal producing regions have been hanging their hopes on ever increasing consumption in India and China. While it's way too soon to declare victory just yet, these figures are a sign that predictions of rocketing consumption are unreliable at best, and quite possibly downright inaccurate. If the the coal industry does falter, that could have negative consequences for the many pension funds, banks and financial institutions that have coal-related assets.
It's time for all of us to get serious about divesting from coal and transitioning to a cleaner economy, not only as a moral imperative, but as a prudent step toward avoiding financial harm. |
Cape Hunting Dog
Hunting dogs, also known as painted dogs, or African wild dogs, are one of the most social canine species. Both sexes look similar
Size: HBL 75 to 110cm
Weight: 18 - 36kg
Hunting dogs are found in a variety of habitats including savannahs, semi-desert, plains and woodlands. They live in large packs from 2 - 27 individuals.
Hunting dogs mainly hunt medium-sized antelope, such as impala and gazelle, but between the pack they can take down prey weighing up to 200kg!
Hunting dogs can run at a top speed of 64km/h (that's 40mph!). However they can maintain a speed of 48km/h for up to 5km - meaning eventually they can run down most species.
Hunting dogs were formally found throughout all sub-Saharan Africa, but their numbers have dropped dramatically. Their current wild population is estimated to only be around 1,400 mature individuals. Numbers are continuing to decline as a result of ongoing habitat fragmentation, conflict with human activities, and infectious disease. |
Torsion springs are coil springs designed to apply or resist a twisting (torsional) force around a center point. They can also be manufactured with two sets of coils wound in opposite directions around the same center axis. These are referred to as "double torsion springs. The coils of a torsion spring are usually close wound with minimal tension between the coils, but they can also be made open wound to reduce friction or to create a spring that functions as both a torsion spring and a compression spring.
Torsion springs typically have two legs that can be formed into almost any configuration in order to be connected to other components. The simplest torsion springs have two straight tangential legs that simply push against the mating components.
Torsion springs can be either left-hand or right-hand wound, and they should be designed so that an applied force will wind up the spring (not unwind it). They function best when they are supported by a hub, shaft, or tube inserted through the body coils; however, the designer must keep in mind that the diameter of the coils gets smaller and the length of the body increases as the spring is wound up. |
What do you get when you cross an apple and a Christmas tree?
When European explorers first discovered this fruit in the Americas, they thought it looked awfully similar to a pine cone. This visual similarity led the explorers to name the fruit “Pineapple”. Pineapples are native to South America, and are believed to have originated near Paraguay and Southern Brazil. The Pineapple fruit is sweet and very juicy, and does well in a variety of desserts and beverages.
Did you know?
- A Pineapple isn’t an apple, nor is it a pine- the fruit is actually considered a berry!
- It takes almost three years for a Pineapple to reach full maturity!
We can source Pineapple in the following formats:
- Coarse Crushed
- IQF Fruits
- Juice Concentrates
- NFC Juices |
Delaying Sexual Debut among Uganda's Youth: Evidence and Implications: Delaying Sexual Debut among Uganda's Youth: Evidence and Implications Allison Herling
M.S. in Public Health
Oregon State University
Presented at CCIH, May 2004 My study: objective: My study: objective to conduct a qualitative investigation of Ugandan youth’s attitudes and values towards relationships and sex,
and the ways in which youth’s social environment sends messages and creates perceived norms which shape sexual behavior, especially the behavior of abstinence
The decline of AIDS in Uganda: The decline of AIDS in Uganda Uganda has seen the greatest decline in HIV incidence and prevalence of any country in Africa
HIV prevalence declined from 15% in 1991 to 5% in 2001 (UNAIDS)
Decline in HIV prevalence has been greatest among youth aged 15-24 years
from 20.9% in 1991 to 5.2% in 1998 for youth aged 15-19 years
from 24.9% in 1991 to 10.2% in 1998 for youth aged 20-24 years
AIDS prevention among youth in Uganda: AIDS prevention among youth in Uganda The government has made youth a priority in AIDS prevention
Schools are required to teach AIDS prevention
Having sex with a minor (andlt;18) is a criminal offense (defilement)
NGOs like Straight Talk have targeted youth
The main message for youth has been to abstain/delay sex Behavioral change among youth in Uganda: Behavioral change among youth in Uganda Abstinence and delayed sexual debut have been the behaviors most frequently reported by youth
Median age at first sex (sexual debut) has increased
Median number of years between first sex and first marriage has decreased
Condom use has increased Median age at first sex among Ugandan women and men aged 15-24 years: Median age at first sex among Ugandan women and men aged 15-24 years Median age at first sex among Ugandan women aged 20-49 years by background characteristics: Median age at first sex among Ugandan women aged 20-49 years by background characteristics Median age at first sex among Ugandan men aged 20-54 years by background characteristics: Median age at first sex among Ugandan men aged 20-54 years by background characteristics Median age at first sex and marriage among Ugandan women aged 20-24 years and Ugandan men aged 25-29 years: Median age at first sex and marriage among Ugandan women aged 20-24 years and Ugandan men aged 25-29 years Premarital sex and condom use at last premarital sex among Ugandan women and men aged 15-24 years (2000/01 DHS): Premarital sex and condom use at last premarital sex among Ugandan women and men aged 15-24 years (2000/01 DHS) My study: questions: My study: questions Why are Ugandan youth choosing to be abstinent or delay sex?
What values and attitudes do youth hold regarding relationships and sex?
What messages are youth receiving from their social environment about relationships and sex?
What peer and social norms exist and how do these affect youth?
I was not studying behavior! Methodology: Methodology 12 single-gender focus group discussions with 88 youth between the ages of 13 and 16 years
girls and boys
in-school and out-of-school youth
Research was conducted in Soroti Town and Masaka District
Research was conducted September-November 2003 Focus group discussion questions: Focus group discussion questions Why do boys and girls have relationships? What good and bad things can there be in relationships?
What is a good age for girls and boys to start having relationships?
What messages have you received about sex and relationships from friends, parents and other family members, churches and mosques, teachers, the media, government, etc.
What did you think of what they told you?
What do you think is the best thing for young people to do about sex and relationships? Results: themes: Results: themes There is a clear social norm of youth abstaining from sex until the age of 18 years
This norm is not followed by all youth
Early sex is seen as being very risky
Education and the hope of a ‘bright future’ are the biggest motivating factors for youth to not have sex
The decision of when to have sex is affected by social and family factors
Abstinence is a strategy to avoid risk and achieve goals
Age of first sex: Age of first sex Girls and boys strongly and virtually unanimously believed that the right age to start having sex was 18 years
or when you were married
or when you had completed school
early sex is dangerous
they were not ‘mature’ enough, physically or emotionally
law of Uganda (defilement law) Reasons for having sex: Reasons for having sex Some youth chose to have sex because they ‘needed’ it, because they liked it, or because they were in love
Girls felt that they could be pressured or forced by boys to have sex, and this made some wary of friendships with boys
Boys felt that they could be forced to have sex by their 'need,' and that girls were partly responsible for wearing short skirts or revealing clothes
Boys and girls felt that friendships with members of the opposite sex often led to sex Transactional sexual relationships(‘sugar daddy’ relationships): Transactional sexual relationships (‘sugar daddy’ relationships) Girls and boys discussed these relationships in terms of ‘need’ for both parties
girls (especially orphans) needed school fees, clothes, ‘panties’, or money
boys/men needed to fulfill their sexual desires
Sometimes parents encouraged these relationships
Girl: Girls want to play sex to get money. When the boy tells her, 'After I will give you money for shoes.' And the parents accepted things, and she plays [has sex].
Sexual relationships: risks: Sexual relationships: risks Girls and boys talked of risks to sexual relationships more than they talked of benefits
Risks and dangers:
early pregnancy (and health risks) and early marriage
dropping out of school
HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases
shame and family strife
being thrown into jail (boys)
Pregnancy was seen as a bigger threat than HIV/AIDS Pregnancy and its consequences: Pregnancy and its consequences Girl: You are two girls in the family… when you are in S4 and another one who is in S1, when you get pregnant, you can cause that one who is in S1 to stop studying, because then [your parents] are annoyed, saying, 'Even this one will also become pregnant.'
Girl: You can get pregnant and the boy cannot get money that he can feed you and at the same time you cannot feed yourself, the baby is there, you don’t have enough shelter, the boy can run away, at the same time you can suffer. You can imagine that you had stayed at your home but you can’t go there again. Education and ‘bright futures’: Education and ‘bright futures’ Sex was thought to be a threat to education
Pregnancy could disrupt or end education for boys and girls
Sex was thought to be distracting
Girl: Because if you are into sex, you cannot really perform well in class. Because if you serve two masters at a go you will not manage.
Education was thought to be the key to a ‘bright future’, so early sex was also a threat to these ‘bright futures’
Youth and their social environment: Youth and their social environment Youth are receiving a strong, consistent message from their social environment to abstain from sex, stay in school, and avoid bad consequences
Boy: There is no any people in Uganda… who is full grown, encouraging [youth] to play sex.
Youth reported that their parents and family members talked to them about sex
Boy: I always have my father, brothers, and sisters. So they always advise me that, 'Well, sex is not bad, but you first concentrate on your studies.'... They always advise me that if you hurry in sex, there are very many problems. They always say that, 'Okay, you see our father’s properties. Those are not yours. You also first concentrate on your studies, and you first of all get your properties.'
The social environment (con’t): The social environment (con’t) Teachers could warn youth about specific situations that they observed, such as ‘bad peer groups’
Religious leaders emphasized abstaining until marriage
Boy: On the side of the churches, they also advise students… early to marriage and sex is a crime to God. So you better complete your education. If you want to marry, let her go and get saved, and you marry in church.
Youth received advice to abstain or use condoms from the radio, school education, media such as Straight Talk, and the government Youth and religious faith: Youth and religious faith Some youth expressed that their religious faith motivated them to abstain from sex
Youth referred to the Bible as a guide
Boy: For me I follow the Bible and I can’t, I can’t play sex.
Youth expressed that faith also gave them the patience and courage to abstain and resist the temptations of ‘the world’
Boy: But for me I say that if you pray every day and call the Holy Spirit to help you, I think that He will be able to help you and you will not be able to do the things [sex]. Youth and peer pressure: Youth and peer pressure Youth encountered positive and negative peer pressure
Youth spoke of wanting to be associated with friends with ‘good manners’
Youth were wary of ‘bad peer groups’ who could be ‘dangerous to their lives’
Girls could pressure girls to get sugar daddies
Boys could pressure boys to prove their manhood by having sex Out-of-school youth: Out-of-school youth Most out-of-school youth expressed the same values and attitudes as in-school youth
There was one major exception: one group of out-of-school girls
these girls freely admitted that they were having sex,
and that they liked it
they said the ‘right’ age to start sex was as early as
13 or 14 years
they perceived AIDS and other STDs as threats, but considered getting pregnant a good thing
their sexual relationships were not transactional
they said that they were getting advice (from parents, churches, etc.) to not have sex, but were ignoring this advice Advice to other youth: Advice to other youth Girl: That’s why I advise my fellow students to 'Let’s say no to sex. It is dangerous for our lives.'
Girl: I appeal to my fellow students that avoid sugar daddies because they will deceive us with the money they give us but we shall end up getting HIV…
Boy: The advice [that I give to] my fellow students is that playing sex you will gain nothing. Because as you are playing sex, there are very many problems which I cannot risk.
Boy: For me I think it’s not good because when you play sex at this time, I think that you cannot achieve your goals. Advice to other youth (cont.): Advice to other youth (cont.) Girl: The best thing that I can tell my friends or my sisters is that abstain from sex. Abstain from sex is one of the best things in the world.
Girl: Let’s trust in the Lord, because God knows you better. He knows even the right time to give you a husband. Don’t rush before your time. And don’t die before your time.
Girl: It needs our minds, our hearts, it needs our hearts to be courageous… When we are told a certain piece of advice, it needs us to get that word and put it in mind that if I do bad what will it be, and what situation will I be ending with? Conclusions and implications: Conclusions and implications For many youth the decision to abstain is a pragmatic one, made by weighing risks and benefits of sexual involvement
Keeping youth (especially girls) in school and giving them the hope of a ‘bright future’ is critical to encouraging them to abstain
Girls need support in resisting coerced sex and sugar daddies
Boys need support in resisting sexual desires |
Basics of Video JournalismNo Comment
Basics of Video Journalism
Standards to register for the following course. There are three pre-conditions to join the courses:
- The participants should indicate that they are educated and have gained much experience out of media activities.
- They should also express their interests towards the Journalism internal and International News (should have media knowledge).
- Finally they should be capable of to narrate the reports by presenting the videos.
Reviewing of the short course
The following courses has been conducted for those who are willing to be a journalist, this course presents a step by step approaches which will increase the capability of the reporter to say more through videos for his/her audiences, the following course will be practical one by using movie camera, Video editing, the structure of the reports, writing script, voice over the video, and proper working process to produce a full package video with high quality of new video.
Results, outcomes of the course
If the participants make successfully through the course will be able to:
- To do filming, by using the exposure (Lights) focusing, wide balance, and framing.
- Different shots are needed for a new report to be produced for TV.
- Video Editing by using the Premier Pro.
- Structuring of a report.
- Writing the script.
- Recording the voice over the video.
- Sending the package with additional information in order to be published such as Log footage, shots list. |
Qualitative research methods are a robust tool for chaplaincy research questions. Similar to much of chaplaincy clinical care, qualitative research generally works with written texts, often transcriptions of individual interviews or focus group conversations and seeks to understand the meaning of experience in a study sample. This article describes three common methodologies: ethnography, grounded theory, and phenomenology. Issues to consider relating to the study sample, design, and analysis are discussed. Enhancing the validity of the data, as well reliability and ethical issues in qualitative research are described. Qualitative research is an accessible way for chaplains to contribute new knowledge about the sacred dimension of people's lived experience.
a Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Pastoral Care , Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati , Ohio , USA.
Chaplaincy Service, Hospital
Reproducibility of Results
Pub Type(s)Journal Article |
Celiac disease is a disorder characterized by sensitivity to gluten. Children and adults are common victims of this disease but it can affect people of all ages. Because of the allergic reaction to gluten (protein found in wheat, barley and rye), the inner lining of the small intestine is inflamed. There is no known cure for this chronic digestive disorder but we can start by eliminating gluten in our diet. We should be familiar with celiac disease because we might have it but we just don’t pay attention to it. Here are the things we need to know about this disorder:
Celiac disease can be mild or severe. Whatever the case, patients usually suffer from diarrhea, abdominal pains, feeling of hunger, mouth sores, malnutrition, muscle pains, rashes, nose bleeding, nausea, throwing up, weight loss, etc.
There are times that people never experience the symptoms of celiac disease. They will only suffer anemia, fatigue, excess gas, swelling up and abdominal discomfort which they don’t associate with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.
There are many symptoms involved that is why it cannot be easily determined without taking proper tests. Sometimes symptoms of celiac disease are also symptoms for other digestive disorder. There is no way of knowing except blood tests and small intestinal biopsy.
As mentioned earlier, we should eliminate gluten in our diet but sometimes it is hard to do. The best thing that we can do is always look for the label “gluten free”. We should be aware of the food content to be sure and safe. Generally, we should avoid milk, oats, cereals, beer, processed foods (containing gluten) and foods prepared from wheat, barley and rye (like cakes, cookies, crackers, pastas and breads). |
New Scholarship in Race and Ethnicity - Social Context and Black Racial Attitudes
African Americans are no longer the dominant racial minority group in the United States, and the urban centers in which they were once segregated have now become home to Latinos as well. This new integration poses several questions: How do African Americans perceive their racial group status as compared to Latinos? Will this perception lead to greater cooperation between the two dominant minority groups or to heightened tensions and competition for status and resources? How might the result shape the political and social landscape of the United States? In the Division of United States Studies' sixth program in its series on New Scholarship in Race and Ethnicity, Prof. Claudine Gay examined the way in which African-Americans' attitudes toward Hispanics are informed by their perception of place in U.S. society.
Gay's analysis of black racial attitudes in Los Angeles, Atlanta and Boston was based on the 1992-1994 Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality and the 1990 Census. It showed the fallacies in both the theory that holds racial predispositions to be a response only to perceived economic threat and the theory that the cause of negative racial attitudes is residential segregation and each group's resultant lack of familiarity with the other. In addition, it led Gay to hypothesize that traditional measures of economic well-being such as housing and educational level are not useful in assessing either the quality of life of many African Americans or their perceptions of their status, because many well-educated African Americans with relatively high income levels find it difficult to move into the better neighborhoods they can afford. She constructed a measure of neighborhood quality by utilizing data on housing, crime, police protection, schools, and shopping, but also surveyed African-Americans' perceptions of their group economic status relative to Latinos' status. This was done by quantifying their assessment of their own and other neighborhoods.
Gay found that many of the African Americans she studied in Los Angeles, which has the largest Latino population of the three cities, do perceive Latinos as a threat. They nonetheless have a more favorable view of Latinos than do African Americans in Boston and Atlanta. In all three cities, anti-Latino views were based primarily on the respondents' negative self-perception of their group's economic position, which suggests that economic conditions are a predominant factor in shaping black racial attitudes. The difference between Los Angeles and the other cities may be attributable to Los Angeles' long experience with diversity, which has resulted in the creation of civil society organizations in which members of different racial groups work together.
Prof. Michael Dawson commented that while existing scholarship on black racial attitudes treats such attitudes as an abstract concept or focuses on them only in the context of a black/white paradigm, Gay's path-breaking work places racial identity and attitudes in the context of a group's economic, social and political position in relation to other groups. He commented that the very concept of "black identity" is currently being contested, as immigrants from the Caribbean and from Africa make up an increasingly larger percentage of the American black population. In fact, as an audience member noted during the discussion period, Americans now live in an era of multiracial and multiethnic identities that call into question the validity of categories such as "black" and "Latino."
Prof. Lynn Sanders also lauded Prof. Gay for crossing scholarly paradigms by bringing together insights about racial identity from political science, psychology and economics. Gay's work will make it difficult, Sanders, said, for scholars to dismiss the struggles of the 1960s as no more than a fight for racial identity rather than as one for both identity and resources. Sanders' own work has shown that African-Americans' direct economic experiences were less important to their racial attitudes than was their view of the way society is constructed – that is, the way in which the society does or does not create equal opportunities for blacks and for whites. This raises the question of how experience is understood and interpreted, and how that interpretation affects racial attitudes. Sanders found Gay's paper to complement a similar study of white racial attitudes toward blacks, which concluded that whites who lose a job to an African American are most likely to hold anti-black views if they believe blacks as a group receive preferential treatment.
Policymakers who seek to minimize racial tensions must know the extent to which those tensions are economic or psychological as they seek to make decisions about the expenditure of limited resources. If, as Gay suggested, for example, black communities fear loss of access to magnet public schools as Latinos move in, then greater expenditures on education may be warranted. If multiracial civil society organizations foster mutual tolerance and understanding, perhaps it is those that should be subsidized. The public policy implications of the research, the panelists therefore agreed, are substantial.
Philippa Strum, Division of United States Studies 202-691-4129 |
Rare pictures depicting India's tryst with the radio service
Every year February 13th is celebrated as the World Radio Day as it was on this day, in the year 1946, that the UN Radio was established. Radio has t...
Every year February 13th is celebrated as the World Radio Day as it was on this day, in the year 1946, that the UN Radio was established. Radio has the power to connect with people all over the world and bring them together.
This year will be the 70th year anniversary of the UN Radio and it aptly coincides with the World Radio day. Today we celebrate radio as a platform for freedom of expression and international cooperation between broadcasters and most importantly encourage equal access to information.
Radio broadcasting services in India commenced in the year 1920. In the year 1923, the first programme was aired by the Radio Club of Bombay. Further down the lane, broadcasting services were setup, with two privately owned transmitters located in Bombay and Calcutta. The government took over the radio services in 1930 under the banner Indian Broadcasting Service. In 1936, it was renamed as All India Radio and later to Akashvani in 1957.
[gallery link="file" ids="266416,266415,266414,266413,266409,266410,266411"] |
The table of orbits and the three Figures (number and type of falls vs. year of fall, plane view of the solar system with all orbits, eccentricity vs. semi-major axis) have all been updated to include all 36 currently known meteorites with published photographic orbits. /mm
A paper describing the trajectory and orbit of the Flensburg (carbonaceous, C1 ungrouped) meteorite, which fell on September 12th, 2019 in northernmost Germany, has been accepted for publication into MAPS, and the corresponding preprint uploaded on arxiv.org. The meteoroid delivering the single known piece of the Flensburg meteorite (of only 24.5 g) originates from a quite elongated orbit with a large semi-major axis (ca. 2.8 AU), which puts it right on the 5:2 orbital resonance with Jupiter, as well as in the Jupiter Family Comets field (2 < Tisserand parameter <3). It had a mass in the range of 10-20 metric tons and correspondingly, a radius of 2-3 meters. The authors suggest that based on the orbit and the very short cosmic-ray exposure age of only 7 ka (Bischoff et al., 2021), the meteoroid probably originated on a carbonaceous asteroid close to the edge of the 5:2 resonance.
Flensburg is only the fourth carbonaceous meteorite with an orbit (the others being Tagish Lake, Maribo, and Sutter’s Mill). Its interesting to note that carbonaceous meteorites are now slightly over-represented (ca. 11%) among meteorites with orbits compared to their abundance among “normal” finds (ca. 4%), perhaps because, once landed on the surface, they decay quickly and are thus less likely to be found without the “prompt” provided by the fireball observation. /m4
A new paper by Gardiol et al. in MNRAS (available online) summarizes the results from the initial investigation of the Cavezzo chondrite, which fell in Italy on the evening of January 1st, 2020. The meteorite, of which two fragments have been found, is an anomalous L5 chondrite, the 9th L-chondrite out of 34 meteorites with orbits. The semi-major axis and eccentricity of its parent meteoroid plot along the characteristic trend, and as is often observed, the perihelion is just inside Earth’s orbit, while the aphelion is in the asteroid belt. /m4
A new meteorite with an orbit has been published in Meteoritics & Planetary Science (MAPS): Dishchii’bikoh. It is a rare LL7 chondrite which fell near the city of Cibecue in Arizona / USA, and takes its name as pronounced in the language of the local White Mountain Apache tribe. Several fragments of almost 80 g total mass were recovered using the weather radar footprint of the fall. The orbit of the meteorite is remarkable for being relatively short (1.13 AU semi-major axis) and steeply inclined (ca. 21° to the ecliptic). Radionuclides suggest it was a relatively large meteoroid, at R = 60-100 cm. The cosmic-ray exposure age is quite typical for an ordinary chondrite, at 11 Ma. It seems likely the meteorite derived from the Flora family of asteroids in the inner asteroid belt, similar to other recent LL chondrite falls, like Stubenberg (2016) and Chelyabinsk (2013).
Full disclosure: I am a co-author on the paper. /m4
In the morning of February 28th, a bright daytime fireball was observed over Slovenia. Now, a fresh, fusion-encrusted meteorite (ca. 200 g), looking like an equilibrated chondrite, has been found in the region where the fragments from the fireball were expected to drop. On March 7th, it was found and reported by Gregor Kos in the driveway of his house, and later confirmed to be a meteorite by Bojan Ambrozic. Later that same day, the meteorite was handed over to the Natural History Museum of Slovenia. The prospective name of the meteorite (not yet approved by the Meteoritical Society, which is why I provide the name with an asterisk) is Novo Mesto*.
Obviously, this is an excellent candidate for a meteorite which will have an associated orbit. /m4
On March 2nd, ca. 23:38 UTC (0:38 local, i.e., CET), a large fireball was observed over North-West Germany, as the IMO (International Meteor Organization) reports. At an estimated diameter of 2 meters and a mass of about 10 tons (although this is contingent on the assumed entry velocity of 14 km/s and the assumed density of 3000 kg m3). At that size and relatively slow velocity, it seems plausible that some meteorites survived, but again, this depends on the assumptions made. Any meteorites would have fallen to the south-east of the city of Wesel on the Rhine.
Of course, there many meteors falling all the time, but this one seems very well observed (165 observations accross multiple countries!) and also relatively large; furthermore, there are several films of the meteor captured from multiple angles – so it seems likely that in this particular case, if any meteorites are found, they will have a very well-defined orbit. We’ll see if anything interesting (in terms of meteorites, of course!) comes from this – until then, that meteor goes to the candidate list. /m4
Spurný et al. report in a new paper in MAPS on the fireball trajectory, orbit and meteorite recovery of the Žďár nad Sázavou (L3.9) meteorite, which fell in the Czech Republic on December 9th, 2014. This is the first unequilibrated ordinary chondrite with an orbit. The orbit has been in the database since 2016 because it was published in a MetSoc (Berlin) abstract by Spurný et al., 2016, now superseded by the peer-reviewed paper. The changes in the orbital parameters given in the paper, relative to the ones given in the abstract, are marginal, but I updated the list nevertheless.
Ferus et al. report in a new paper in Icarus on the trajectory, orbit and meteorite recovery of the Porangaba (L4) meteorite, which fell in Brazil just one month after the fall of Žďár nad Sázavou, on January 9th, 2015. Using two pictures of the dust trail, as well as some security camera footage allowed the authors to derive a set of orbital parameters, albeit with a comparatively large uncertainty. But since there is a closed orbital solution (unlike, e.g., to the somewhat similar case of the 1995 St. Robert meteorite), I have added the meteorite to the database. An interesting detail: the addition of Porangaba makes 2015 the first year from which (at least) four meteorite falls with orbits are known. Compare this with the fact that it took 33 years for the first four orbits…
I have updated the fall statistics and orbit plots, which now include the most recent falls including Porangaba. /M4
As you might have noticed, I am slowly modernizing the look, and improving the available content, of this website. For now, this post starts a news section. Here, I will report on new meteorite falls which might get a published photographic orbit at some point down the road (“candidates”), on newly published papers relevant to the topic, etc. Planned future improvements include a more dynamic list of orbits, a list of candidates, automated plots and more. Feel free to contact me and contribute content – or feedback! /M4 |
Capable of disabling victims from afar, this vile creature is about choice. Whether going in for the kill, or leaving them as a meal for the rest of its team, a Dilophosaurus is the master of deciding a human's fate.
Dilophosaurus is smaller than most of the dinosaurs you will encounter on the island; they are slow, small, brightly colored and easily killed. However, do not underestimate these creatures as they are also highly venomous. In addition, they have the ability to spit their poisonous concoction over large distances. The venom of Dilophosaurus has the ability to blind foes, temporarily disorientating them while it approaches and injects venom into the bloodstream through piercing bites. Due to this they are deemed very dangerous.
Dilophosaurus by nature is not venomous; unfortunately for those concerned the animals have been altered to induce this behaviour. The horrific dangers aside, it is scientifically astonishing that the species has survived in the wild for this amount of time with these alterations.
Keep your eyes open.
Bite: A Dilophosaurus bite injects a victim’s bloodstream with poison causing painful disruptions to the cardio vascular system; repeated exposure to this poison can be fatal. (In the 1.3 patch it has a bite that causes humans to have a tranq effect similar to the Scientist's Tranq Dart. The bite also has another effect where after 3 bites, the human will be slowed down dramatically.)
Spit: Dilophosaurus has the ability to either spit in a concentrated ball over large distance or in a wider spray covering a small area; The spit burns on contact with the skin and causes irritation if it comes in contact with the eyes, causing pain, dizziness and temporary blinding. (In 1.3, the Dilo's spit now has an extra effect where it can make the Dilo that spat on a human do more damage with it's bite. However, it's wider spray spit has been removed.)
Roar: The Dilophosaurus convulses its body, letting out a high pitched screech. This allows it to concentrate its internal poison allowing it to perform a long range spit for a short amount of time. (This has been edited in 1.3 so that when you roar it only allows two spits. Roaring is also the only way for you to spit.)
- Biting humans will poison them briefly, causing disorientation.
- Roaring activates your spit attack but you can use it only twice.
- Crouching and then clicking alt-fire will launch a long ranged spit attack that will temporarily blind humans.
- Spitting on a human makes your bite do more damage.
- Stay away from groups of humans as they will easily take out your health or kill you. Instead, spit at them from a distance.
- Try to stay hidden as this will effectively make you hard to find for the humans. This will also make it harder for snipers to find you as they can instantly kill you.
- Spit on a human before going in for a bite. Spitting on a human makes your bite do more damage which makes you able to kill the human quicker. However, try to do this only on lone humans or when a group of humans are distracted by other dinosaurs.
- Stay away from Pyros as they will easily take out your health or kill you. Spit at them from a distance instead, or let other dinosaurs attack him.
- Keep an eye out for Scientists as she can instantly kill you with her Sniper Rifle. Staying hidden is an effective way of making sure she doesn't find you. However, if you are close enough to a Scientist, you can effectively kill her as she doesn't do well in close combat.
- The current size and spitting action of the Dilo is an obvious homage to Jurassic Park's which started this trend of Dilo being portrayed as such throughout the media along with a frill. Primal Carnage's Dilo ignores the frill however this is often requested as an optional skin. |
Clearer labelling on products as well as schemes to encourage recycling on the move will remove confusion and inconvenience.
The first step to preventing plastic pollution is collecting more bottles before they're disregarded incorrectly. It's a simple formula - if we collect more for recycling, we not only stop build up of plastic on our streets or in our seas, but we harness a resource out of the waste.
In countries like Germany, Sweden and Norway, over 90% of bottles are returned through Deposit Return Schemes (DRS).
Deposit return scheme
With the right placement, incentive structure and collective support, underpinned by partnership with the recycling industry, DRS can deliver a massive increase in the bottles we salvage.
Collections from the home, business, streets, markets and public events all have to be as consistent as possible with simple recycling instructions for the busy consumer.
'On the go' collection infrastructure
Developing a much more comprehensive and effective on the go collection infrastructure across the UK is recognised as a key opportunity to collect more plastic bottles and prevent litter.
We welcome the way the public has challenged the consequences of improper plastic bottles' disposal and encourage people, if walking about with a plastic bottle, to be on the lookout for a recycling point, or take the bottle to recycle at home if possible.
A recognisable label on every recyclable item
A recognisable label on every recyclable item, as confirmed by the recycling industry, will go a long way to removing the headache of working out if something is recyclable or not.
We are in favour of a more precise labelling system for product recyclability, which the consumer can be confident in when making purchases. |
The focus of this book is on the P-vs-NP Question,
which is the most fundamental question of computer science,
and on the theory of NP-completeness,
which is its most influential theoretical discovery.
The book also provides adequate preliminaries regarding
computational problems and computational models.
The P-vs-NP Question asks whether or not finding solutions is harder than checking the correctness of solutions. An alternative formulation asks whether or not discovering proofs is harder than verifying their correctness. Whilst the P-vs-NP Question remains unresolved, the theory of NP-completeness offers evidence to the intractability of specific problems in NP by showing that they are universal for the entire class.
The current textbook is a significant revision of Chapter 2 and Section 1.2 of the author's book Computational Complexity: A Conceptual Perspective.
Below is the book's tentative preface and Organization. Drafts (and additional related texts) are available from HERE. See also list of corrections and additions (to the print version).
Last updated: August 2010.
A key step towards the systematic study of the aforementioned question is a rigorous definition of the notion of a task and of procedures for solving tasks. These definitions were provided by computability theory, which emerged in the 1930's. This theory focuses on computational tasks, and considers automated procedures (i.e., computing devices and algorithms) that may solve such tasks.
In focusing attention on computational tasks and algorithms, computability theory has set the stage for the study of the computational resources (like time) that are required by such algorithms. When this study focuses on the resources that are necessary for any algorithm that solves a particular task (or a task of a particular type), the study becomes part of the theory of Computational Complexity (also known as Complexity Theory).
Complexity Theory is a central field of the theoretical foundations of Computer Science. It is concerned with the study of the intrinsic complexity of computational tasks. That is, a typical Complexity theoretic study refers to the computational resources required to solve a computational task (or a class of such tasks), rather than referring to a specific algorithm or an algorithmic schema. Actually, research in Complexity Theory tends to start with and focus on the computational resources themselves, and addresses the effect of limiting these resources on the class of tasks that can be solved. Thus, Computational Complexity is the general study of the what can be achieved within limited time (and/or other limited natural computational resources).
The most famous question of complexity theory is the P-vs-NP Question, and the current book is focused on it. The P-vs-NP Question can be phrased as asking whether or not finding solutions is harder than checking the correctness of solutions. An alternative formulation asks whether or not discovering proofs is harder than verifying their correctness; that is, is proving harder than verifying. The fundamental nature of this question is evident in each of these formulations, which are in fact equivalent. It is widely believed that the answer to these equivalent formulations is that finding (resp., proving) is harder than checking (resp., verifying); that is, it is believed that P is different from NP.
At present, when faced with a hard problem in NP, we can only hope to prove that it is not in P assuming that NP is different from P. This is where the theory of NP-completeness, which is based on the notion of a reduction, comes into the picture. In general, one computational problem is reducible to another problem if it is possible to efficiently solve the former when provided with an (efficient) algorithm for solving the latter. A problem (in NP) is NP-complete if any problem in NP is reducible to it. Amazingly enough, NP-complete problems exist, and furthermore hundreds of natural computational problems arising in many different areas of mathematics and science are NP-complete.
The main focus of the current book is on the P-vs-NP Question and the theory of NP-completeness. Additional topics that are covered include the treatment of the general notion of a reduction between computational problems, which provides a tighter relation between the aforementioned search and decision problems. The book also provides adequate preliminaries regarding computational problems and computational models.
The current book is a significant revision of Chapter 2 and Section 1.2 of the author's book Computational Complexity: A Conceptual Perspective The revision was aimed at making the book more friendly to the novice. In particular, numerous technical expositions were further detailed and many exercises were added.
The notion of a Turing machine was put forward by Turing with the explicit intention of providing a general formulation of the notion of computability . The original motivation was providing a formalization of Hilbert's challenge that called for designing a method for determining the validity of a given formal statement (in a given formal language). Indeed, this challenge referred to a specific (but universal...) decision problem (later called the Entscheidungsproblem} (German for Decision Problem)), but Hilbert did not provide a formulation of the notion of ``(a method for) solving a decision problem.''[Paul Rubin]
©Copyright 2008 by Oded Goldreich.
Permission to make copies of part or all of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that new copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Abstracting with credit is permitted.
Back to Oded Goldreich's homepage. |
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Joint manipulation is a method of mobilizing a joint in order to aid the treatment and recovery of an injury. The purpose of joint manipulations is to increase the range of motion and mobility of the injured joint. It’s usually considered to be an alternative treatment used by practitioners such as chiropractors and osteopaths. The technique of joint manipulation uses a high level of force to push the it beyond the level of which the patient is able to do normally and increase the range of passive movement. Joint mobilization often causes a loud crack or click.
The method of joint manipulation is usually used on synovial joints — which covers most of the types of movable joints in a human — that are causing pain. People who’ve had joint manipulation performed can sometimes find relief from pain associated with muscles and bones. It can also help to increase the range of motion of a particular joint, which allows the body’s kinematic chain to function more correctly. One of the theories as to why joint manipulation has these effects is that there may be a possibility it can release trapped plica or synovial folds.
There is still some debate as to whether joint manipulation is safe to perform. Even though it has been used for a long time there is evidence to suggest that at least in certain situations it should not be used. Although some clinical studies have shown the risk of permanent injury or damage due to the manipulation of joints to be low this could be attributed to the fact that most cases of injury are not reported. There are certain situations where there is no doubt that manipulation should not take place such as if the joint is near a tumor or growth plate.
Although the potential long-term risks are not yet fully understood, there are often short-term side effects to chiropractic techniques such as manipulation of the joints. These can include a headache or fatigue — especially if the manipulation was in the spine or neck. The patient may also feel a general discomfort in the area of manipulation for a short time after it took place.
Despite the fact that clinical evidence has so far only shown that joint mobilization can induce a temporary relief from pain, reduce the recovery time for a back sprain and increase the passive movement range of a joint, it is still used for a number of different conditions. For example, it’s commonly used for many spinal injuries. The clinical effectiveness and safety of this practice is yet to be determined.
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Part of the December 2019 STEM Resources Digital Calendar!
More important than the learning that transpires in our classrooms is the learning we inspire beyond our classroom walls. One way to motivate students to continue using the knowledge acquired in our classes is to set up a virtual learning community. The free web tools below help teachers create a safe online class where students can access learning materials, post their work, and comment on the works of others. These platforms are online and accessible 24 hours, 7 days a week on multiple devices (computers, tablets, mobile devices and Chromebooks). Virtual learning communities enable every student to share their thoughts, ideas, and creativity with their peers in multiple formats, such as text, video, audio, and embedded media. Students are motivated to share more when they see feedback from their classmates, teachers, and parents.
💡Discover more ways to integrate technology effectively by taking one of my fully accredited online courses or get one of my books!
Collaborative Discussion Tools
Flipgrid is a video response tool and app designed for schools. Students contribute a short video response to a video discussion prompt posted and can respond to others. Students can decorate their selfie videos with stickers and quickly generate QR codes for others to scan and view their videos. Flipgrid has tons of other features students and teachers love, such as accessibility with the Immersive Reader tool and the ability to create Augmented Reality videos.
Parlay Ideas is a free platform where teachers create discussion prompts with embedded materials that students review, add a response, and respond to their peers’ ideas. The free version allows teachers to set up 6 roundtable discussions. What I love about this tool is the ability for teachers to quickly add content and questions suggested by the platform.
LinoIt and Padlet are favorites among teachers and students. Teachers create a web wall where they can post questions, pdfs, files, audio, video, and images for students to quickly access on any device by clicking a url or scanning a QR code. Students post a response with different colored sticky notes. Students can share videos, pdfs, text, photos, emojis, and images. Padlet allows a limited amount of walls with the free version.
NowComment is a free tool students and teachers register for to engage in rich discussion over any uploaded document. Any sentence, paragraph, image, or video can have multiple conversations.
Hypothes.is is a tool that requires a free registration. Students highlight and discuss parts of a website, respond to peers, and vote up peer responses they like.
Active Textbook is a free iOS, Google Play, and Microsoft app with a variety of features teachers can use to create an engaging reading experience. Teachers add interactive elements such as discussion threads to existing books or documents.
Backchannel Chat allows teachers to control all aspects of an online discussion, such as removing messages, preventing posts, or pacing the discussion. Students join with a code.
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To thank you for your sharing, friendship and support over the years I am sharing free tips, learning resources, web tools and apps for 25 days in my Digital December STEM Advent Calendar. Just click on the calendar below and a post will appear for that day. NOTE! The post will not appear until that day. If you enjoy these resources, then take one of my fully accredited continuing education and graduate online courses or check out my latest book, Hacking Digital Learning Strategies with EdTech Missions!
Interesting essay samples and examples on: https://essays.io/grant-proposal-examples-samples/ |
When most people think of the 1950s, they think of the world as it emerged post WWII. Rebuilding, restructuring, and a return to social conservatism were themes felt in countries including the US and Great Britain. Many people made a concerted effort to promote family values and religion all with a strict sense of order and conformity. But there were those that still had a wild side to nurture. Because of this, a new form of music called rock n’ roll was born.
Rock n’ roll, a term coined by an American radio DJ around 1954, was mostly a blend of country and rhythm and blues mixed with a fast moving back beat. Rock music soon emerged as a popular musical form in the US and across the globe thanks to musicians like Elvis, the Big Bopper, Little Richard, and others. Popular with teenagers and those that wanted a break from mainstream conservative views, this music gave listeners the chance to express themselves in a way other musical forms couldn’t at the time. Even today, rock music still carries a rebellious rhythm.
Advances in Music Technology
Advances in music technology also had a big impact on rock music because it was during the 1950’s that 33’s and 45’s were developed. These smaller records had much better sound quality than the standard at the time – the 78. Also, these records didn’t require large turntables like those found in most living rooms at the time. Teenagers could now buy smaller record players and listen to records in their rooms instead of with the rest of the family.
45’s, also known as singles because there were two songs – one on each side, were easy to transport, which made music very easy to share with friends. Other advances in music technology included transistor and car radios (found in earlier car models, car radios didn’t become a standard in most vehicles until the 1950’s). Portable and easy to use, transistor radios became a very popular way to listen to music. Car radios allowed people to drive while listening to music – something people take for granted today.
New technologies combined with the growing popularity of rock music, teenagers and young adults had finally found a way to separate themselves from the adults and create their own unique subculture.
The More Things Change…
Over the years rock n’ roll has gone through many, many changes. As musicians continue to explore this mysterious, but familiar genre, many return to its roots – the 1950’s. Most rock songs of today still contain that energetic and rebellious back beat along with a mix of other musical forms (rhythm and blues and country still a favorite combination). New generations of musicians and music lovers learn from the past and project what they like into the future. Collecting old records from this and other time periods has become a new pastime for many. With other technological advances including the Internet, people can relive their lost youth, try to understand what older generations are talking about, or just amass a large collection of old, dusty records that may or may never be played again. |
A thought is a mental event that has form, energy, and content. Although there’s no conclusive evidence on how many thoughts an average person has in a day, possibly between 12,000 and 50,000, we do know that a significant number are negative; as a rule-of-thumb, we tend to have twice as many negative thoughts as positive ones. We also know from research that our mind wanders away from what we are doing around 48% of the time and that people reported feeling more negative when their attention drifted off in automatic thoughts. So why do we have so many negative thoughts and what can we do about it?
The primary reason we have more negative thoughts is that our attention and mental processing is prioritized towards things we perceive as a threat, rather than to things we see as safe. This “negativity bias”, which extends to thoughts that are negative, rather than positive or neutral, is hard-wired in the brain as part of our evolutionary inheritance. Although our negativity bias provides one answer, there are other reasons why automatic thoughts tend to drift towards the negative.
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Principal Investigator: Georgia Hall, Ph.D.
Co-Principal Investigator: Jean Wiecha, Ph.D.
Team Members: Georgia Hall, Ph.D., Jean Wiecha, Ph.D. (University of Massachusetts), Ellen Gannett, M.Ed., Barbara Roth (YMCA of the USA),Julie Dennehy, M.M., Diane Gruber, M.A.
This research study uses quantitative and qualitative data collection methods and multiple regression modeling to examine healthy eating and physical activity opportunities in a national sample of out-of-school time programs.
Energy balance and appropriate physical activity are critical to preventing obesity and associated cardiometabolic morbidity. In the United States, 6.5 million children attend out-of-school time programs annually, participating in roughly 3 hours per day of activities typically including homework, snack, and gross motor play. If out-of-school time programs can provide appropriate snack and physical activity choices, they can be an important component of the campaign against childhood obesity. There is a window of opportunity to infuse more rigorous content and provide guidance and language in the National Afterschool Association standards for physical activity and healthy eating.
- To build capacity for childhood obesity prevention in OST by infusing rigorous science-based standards and guidelines into NAA standards for physical activity and healthy eating
- Identify current physical activity and healthy eating standards used in a targeted national sample of OST programs
- Identify current program practices in these areas
- Identify statistically significant associations between best practices and program characteristics, components, and social contextual variables
- Disseminate information on effective implementation of high quality standards, through a comprehensive report, study briefs, and presentations at national conferences
- Lay the groundwork for a subsequent Phase 2 project to re-assess the program cohort and develop a tool kit to help all OST programs implement the rigorous science-based standards for physical activity and healthy eating.
This is a mixed-methods research study using a sequence of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods and multiple regression modeling to examine program characteristics associated with providing healthy eating and physical activity opportunities in a national sample of out-of-school time programs. Effective practice will be operationalized through the application of a field-tested research-based survey reflecting current standards and guidelines established through expert sources such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Academy of Science - Institute of Medicine. Data will be collected in ten regions representing a mix of geographic locations, urban/suburban/rural communities, school district sizes, and variety of out-of-school time programs. The sampling frame will be comprised of programs with diverse demographic school district profiles and large percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch. The survey sample will include 80-100 programs within each region (500+ total) and Exemplary Program Observations at 30 of these programs. |
Nachmanides, the great 13th-century Jewish scholar, wrote that the problem of evil is “the most difficult matter, which is at the root both of faith and of apostasy, with which scholars of all ages, people and tongues have struggled.” Indeed, the existence of suffering and evil is not just a problem for Jews. A philosophical problem exists for anyone who believes that God is good (benevolent), all-powerful (omnipotent), and all-knowing (omniscient).
This problem was summed up by the English philosopher David Hume: “Is he [God] willing to prevent evil, but unable? Then he is impotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then is he malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Whence then is evil.”
However, there is an added problem for Jews, because according to the Torah, Jews have a special relationship with God. It is the problem raised by this relationship — more than the philosophical one —that is often discussed in biblical and rabbinic literature.
The covenant at Sinai established a relationship whereby the Israelites agreed to abide by the Torah in exchange for God’s protection. Put differently, if the Israelites abided by the terms of the covenant, they would be rewarded; if they abandoned them, they would be punished. As such, the Torah does not recognize the problem of evil and suffering because, in the words of Richard Rubenstein, “in strict covenant theology there can be no innocent sufferers.” Suffering befalls the Jewish people as a punishment for abandoning their covenantal obligations.
But, logic and experience show that there are innocent sufferers, and thus biblical and rabbinic literature was forced to confront the contradiction between the covenant and reality. If the covenant guarantees rewards for the righteous, why do some righteous people suffer? One might argue that the reward and punishment guaranteed by the covenant only extends to the community of Israel and not to individuals, but this is by no means a universal understanding. Passages like Ezekiel 18:5-10–“But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right…he is just and he shall surely live”–for example, seem to guarantee covenantal protection to individuals.
The discourse on suffering and evil changed in the Middle Ages. Medieval Jewish philosophers were bothered by the universal, philosophical problem of evil. This isn’t to say that the problems relating to the covenant didn’t trouble them, but in general issues of reward and punishment were related to the problems raised by God’s omnipotence, omniscience, and benevolence.
The problem of suffering and evil took on an unprecedented role in Jewish thought after the Holocaust–the greatest event of individual and communal suffering in Jewish history. Many traditional rabbinic authorities viewed the Holocaust as just another example of Jewish suffering and interpreted the event using the covenantal model. Given the magnitude of Jewish suffering, however, many Jewish thinkers found this approach unfulfilling at best and perverse at worst.
In the words of Irving Greenberg: “To account for the Holocaust as God’s punishment of Israel for its sins, is to betray and mock the agony of the victims. Now that they have been cruelly tortured and killed, boiled into soap, their hair made into pillows, and their bones into fertilizer, their unknown graves and the very fact of their death denied to them, the theologian would inflict on them the only indignity left: that is, insistence that it was done because of their sins.”
Thus many post-Holocaust theologians consider the Holocaust to be an event that is theologically unique. The suffering and evil associated with it was so great that it cannot be subsumed into the general problem of suffering and evil. The Holocaust demands a reconsideration of the problem and, thus, drastically new solutions.
Pronunced: TORE-uh, Origin: Hebrew, the Five Books of Moses. |
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Mallards - The Uncommonly Common Duck
Wildlife Feature: Mallards
The uncommonly common duck
From the pages of Camping Life Magazine
According to Crow Indian legend, before there was land or trees or mammals, the world consisted of an enormous sea. On this sea paddled ducks, the only animals in the world. One day, Old Man came to the ducks, informing them that there was earth on the bottom of the ocean. Four ducks dove to the depths at his command. When they popped to the surface, one of them presented him a bit of mud wedged between its webbed toes. From this bit of soil, Old Man created the continents that were subsequently occupied by other birds and mammals and the Crows themselves.
Many early peoples caught ducks for use as a food source, but just as many prized the duck, especially the mallard, for its beautiful plumage.
Beyond the mythologies of specific native tribes, today, people from all walks of life continue to marvel at the color and natural artistry melded in the plumage of male mallards (drakes). From Central Park in the heart of New York City to tiny ponds and prairie potholes in the hinterlands of North Dakota, springtime finds human observers enthralled with the sight of courting mallards. Oblivious to the world, a green-headed drake bobs his head up and down before a likely female. If the head-bob fails to impress his audience, the suitor may dip his bright, yellow-green bill into the water then raise it above his head to send sparkling droplets of water splashing back to the surface. He may also rear backward in the water, displaying the burnished chestnut hues of his breast to his potential mate.
With the exception of the wood duck drake, male mallards are considered by many to be the most colorful ducks of North America. In contrast to the brilliantly arrayed but relatively uncommon wood duck, though, mallards seem to be everywhere. Due to their uncanny ability to adapt to human civilization and benefit from agricultural activities, mallards are not only the most common duck in the United States, but the most widespread duck in the entire world.
Although most species of ducks are superficially similar in shape and general appearance, different species are often categorized by the manner in which they forage. Diving ducks use their powerful feet to propel themselves to the depths of lakes, ponds and streams where they glean insects and vegetation from the bottom. Mallards, on the other hand, are among the several species known as dabblers. Dabbling ducks don't normally dive, but are often seen tipped bottom-side up, with their heads submerged. Under the surface, their bills probe for vegetation or click shut on swimming bugs. Dabbling ducks will also paddle along in groups, snatching hatching insects from on top of the water.
To facilitate their feeding, the bills of mallards possess some specialized characteristics. Both the yellow-green bill of the drake and orange-colored bill of the hen are flattened, much like a spatula. Along the outer edges of the bill are a series of serrated ridges called "lamellae". As the mallard closes its bill around water or mud, the liquid is forced out between the lamellae, much like straining seeds or pulp from orange juice with a kitchen strainer. Thanks to the lamellae, mallards can efficiently feed on tiny seeds and aquatic organisms that would otherwise be nearly impossible to capture.
Along with food sources gleaned from ponds, lakes and streams, mallards are also fond of foraging in grain fields, sometimes to the chagrin of humans who would rather sell their crops than donate them to a marauding flock of mallards. Once again, the mallard's specialized bill assists its feeding. On the tip of the duck's bill is a hard, hooked, tooth-like projection that enables it to quickly pick corn from the cob or pluck kernels of other grains from the head.
HABITS AND HABITAT
Highly skilled in the art of concealing a nest in the most unlikely locations, mallard hens are capable of rearing young in city parks or backyards. However, mallards are most adapted to spring and summer life on the small ponds and prairie potholes of the Dakotas and surrounding regions of the plains. They also nest very successful along the backwaters of small creeks and streams.
For many species of waterfowl, such small bodies of water are uninhabitable due to their need for more space to launch into flight. Canada geese, for example, take to the air by flapping their wings while getting a "running start" with their webbed feet and legs. Mallards, on the other hand, are able to spring into flight immediately without running on the surface of the water. In relation to the rest of their body, the wings of mallards are very large and powerful, propelling them instantly into flight when needed. On the small ponds they inhabit or even in a city park, this adaptation is very important. When pursued by a skulking coyote or chased by an unrestrained dog, mallards' explosive launch into flight is necessary for their survival.
On the prairie wetlands of the northern plains, mallards nest with many other species of waterfowl. In autumn, great waves of migrating ducks and geese wing from the rich habitat of this region to milder climates in the south. However, mallards typically lag behind the others. Unlike their marsh-mates, mallards often remain in northern climates far into the fall or winter. In mild winters, mallards may not really make a southward migration at all. When the lakes and ponds freeze over, the greenheads simply move onto the open water of major rivers and creeks, passing the cold months of the year far to the north of the vast flocks of wintering waterfowl that blanket the southern coastline of the United States.
Declining numbers of certain species of ducks are currently a matter of concern for waterfowl biologists and conservationists. However, mallards aren't among the species of concern. Nonetheless, maintaining the wild, natural character of the prairie pothole regions of our nation is necessary to ensure the health of nearly all waterfowl species, including the pretty, plentiful mallard.
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What is egg donation?
Egg donation is when a woman (donor) gives her eggs to another woman (recipient) to allow the recipient to have a baby. To donate eggs, the donor must be given medications that will cause her to develop multiple eggs over a single cycle. The eggs are then removed from the donor by placing a needle that is attached to an ultrasound probe through the vaginal tissues. The eggs are then gently aspirated (suctioned) from the ovaries. Once the eggs are removed, they are evaluated by an embryologist. Then sperm from the male partner or a sperm bank is placed around or injected into each egg. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).
How is the recipient prepared for the embryo transfer?
The recipient’s uterus (womb) must be synchronized with the donor’s stimulation so that they are ready at the same time. There are several ways to achieve this. If the woman still has regular menstrual cycles, a medication is often used to suppress her ovaries and her menstrual cycle. Once the donor starts the medication to stimulate her ovaries, the recipient begins taking estrogen to develop her uterine lining. Around the time of egg retrieval, the recipient will begin taking progesterone to enable implantation of the embryo (fertilized egg). The embryo(s) will be transferred to the recipient’s uterus three to five days after fertilization. Hormones continue to be given until the pregnancy test and then, if the test is positive, during the early part of the first trimester of the resulting pregnancy.
Who should consider using an egg donor?
Egg donation is used for a woman who wishes to have a child but cannot get pregnant with her own eggs. This may be because she was born without ovaries, is in menopause, did not respond adequately to hormonal stimulation of her ovaries in the past, or has had poor egg or embryo quality with previous IVF attempts. Women may also choose to use a donor if they have a genetic disease that they do not want to pass on to their children.
Who can become an egg donor?
Egg donors are women, usually between the ages of 21 and 34, who are willing to provide their eggs to a recipient. They may be anonymous (unknown) or known to the intended parents. Anonymous donors are recruited through egg donation programs or agencies and are not known to the
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recipient. However, some couples find donors through advertisements. Recipients should be cautious about recruiting donors without the use of an intermediary to screen the donors and should strongly consider seeking legal counsel. Known (also called directed) donors are generally a close friend or relative of the recipient.
What tests are performed on the donor?
The donor willing for egg donation is tested for infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B and C, gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis. All donors should be tested to be sure that they are not carriers of the cystic fibrosis gene. Other genetic testing should be performed based on the donor’s history and ethnic background. Some programs perform chromosome analysis and test for Fragile X syndrome; however, this testing is not required. Psychometric testing is often done as part of the mental health screening.
How should the recipient be evaluated?
Evaluation of the recipient is similar to that of couples undergoing routine IVF. This should include a comprehensive medical history from both partners, including blood type and Rh factor, and testing for sexually transmitted diseases including HIV, hepatitis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis. The couple should be counseled by a mental health professional about the complexity of the decision to use donor eggs.
The recipient should have a pelvic exam and an assessment of her uterus (womb). If she is over 45 years old, a more thorough evaluation should be done, including an assessment of heart function and risk of pregnancy-related diseases. She may also be advised to see a doctor who specializes in high-risk pregnancy. The male partner’s sperm should be analyzed and appropriate genetic screening should be obtained based on his history and ethnic background.
What is the chance that a donor egg cycle will result in pregnancy?
The success of egg donation depends on many factors but is not considered to be related to the age of the recipient. Success rates compiled by the Centers for Disease Control for the year 2010 show an average birth rate per embryo transfer of 55% for all egg donor programs.
For more information on this and other reproductive health
topics, visit www.ReproductiveFacts.org
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Nearly 180,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer are diagnosed each year in the United States. Early diagnosis of breast cancer dramatically increases the likelihood of a cure. Every woman should be aware of her risk for developing breast cancer, and of widely available methods of breast cancer screening and early detection.
Diagnosis of Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is often first suspected when a lump is felt or when a mammogram shows an abnormality. Most of the time, these suspicious areas do not turn out to be cancer, but follow-up testing is needed. In some cases, cancer can be ruled out with additional mammograms or other imaging techniques, but a biopsy may be necessary. A needle biopsy involves the removal of tissue or cell samples from the breast with a needle. A surgical biopsy involves the removal of tissue samples from the breast with a surgical incision.
If a biopsy finds cancer, additional tests will be performed on the tissue that was removed and the lymph nodes will be sampled. These tests help determine a woman’s chances for recovery. Two major factors in determining a woman’s prognosis will be the size of the tumor or lesion when it was diagnosed, and whether it has metastasized or spread to the lymph nodes. Delay in diagnosing breast cancer means a greatly increased risk that the tumor will be larger and that the cancer will have metastasized to other areas of the body. This significantly increases the risk of premature death, and typically requires aggressive and potentially harmful treatments including radiation and chemotherapy, and invasive, disfiguring surgery.
Medical Mistakes Can Delay Diagnosis of Breast Cancer
Here are some common medical mistakes and errors that can cause a preventable delay in diagnosing breast cancer:
- Improper reading or reporting of mammograms
- Failure to recommend routine mammogram screening
- Failure to order mammogram for women at increased risk
- Failure to perform breast examination
- Failure to adequately investigate suspicious findings
- Failure to refer to a surgeon when indicated
- Failure to properly follow up on mammogram findings
- Failure to coordinate or communicate with other medical care providers
Injuries Caused by the Failure to Diagnose Breast Cancer
Types of harm caused by delayed damage of breast cancer can include:
- Severe physical pain
- Premature death
- Loss of breast and lymph nodes, or other organs
- Scaring and disfigurement
- Treatment which is significantly more expensive
- Inoperable cancer
- Lost wages
- Treatment which is more invasive, aggressive, and painful
- Significantly increased recovery time
- Long-term or permanent disability
How We Can Help
There is no amount of money can make up for a woman’s unnecessary or preventable death, or for the additional pain of knowing that early death would probably have been avoided had health care professionals acted appropriately. However, a woman’s premature death creates a financial burden on her family, and the responsible party should bear that cost. In addition, delayed treatment of breast cancer creates additional health care costs, lost wages, and in some cases permanent disability.
If you or a loved one has been injured or lost their life due to what you suspect may have been a failure to diagnose breast cancer, you may be entitled to compensation including:
- Burial expenses
- Loss of companionship
- Pain and suffering
- Current and future medical bills
- Long-term care expenses
- Current and future loss of wages
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Long-term disability
Learn more about frequently asked questions related to breast cancer misdiagnosis.
Breast Cancer misdiagnosis attorneys Michael L. Weiss, Esq. and Robert E. Paarz, Esq. have presented over 30 medical malpractice cases relating to failure to diagnose breast cancer to juries and have helped many families achieve substantial financial recoveries. Our attorneys are committed to using their knowledge and experience to help anyone who has suffered a severe, permanent injury or death due to medical malpractice to obtain compensation. If you believe you or a loved one may have experienced such an injury, please contact Weiss & Paarz, P.C ., today.
*The firm handles cases in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. For cases outside those states, Weiss & Paarz works with local attorneys in the state where the medical care took place, at no additional cost to the client. |
Scragg mill: Defined
A description of the functions of a scragg mill. November 29, 2000
I've been hearing about a scragg mill but I have no idea what it is. Any help?
A scragg mill is used mostly by pallet shops to saw short logs into 2 or 4 sided cants. A scragg mill usually has 2 blades that are movable for the width of the cut (cant). The log is either held on each end (end dogged similar to a lathe) or positioned on a "sharp chain" to move the log between the saws. Scragg mills can be band or circular blade types. Some circular scraggs can cut in both directions. The log can be turned 90 degrees, giving a 4-sided cant.
I worked for an outfit years back and we used a scragg in our stud mill. It used air cyls. to set the width of the cut and a sharp chain feed. We followed it up with a gang rip and also a band linebar resaw to recover any material in the slabs. They are not just for short wood. They do like uniform size wood with little sweep or crook.
The comments below were added after this Forum discussion was archived as a Knowledge Base article (add your comment).
Comment from contributor A:
The modern scragg mill cuts full length logs and with the aid of the computer, cuts grade lumber as well.
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Profound improvements of isolated microspores culture techniques in winter Brassica napus L.
We studied the effects of sampling stages, physical conditions (like temperature), culture conditions, embryo long-distance transportation methodology and plantlet regeneration on isolated microspores from donor plants in field. Results indicated that if microspores were sampled in bud stage instead of blooming stage to enhance the duration of microspore culture by about 9 days, embryo yield per bud reached maximum (29.61) when environmental temperature was more than 20°C. Compared with previous procedure of generating sampling buds by cutting the inflorescences, re-harvesting buds from donor plants could increase the usage efficiency of donor plants by 9 times. Use of 13% sugar solution for extracting microspores instead of B5 solution containing 13% sugar showed the similar embryo yield per bud. This improved protocol could decrease the costs of microspore culture. Compared with normal incubating method, the improved incubating method roughly resulted in the same number of embryo and appeared markedly 4 days earlier. Liquid B5 medium had several advantages in transporting embryos for long distance notably the number of embryo transported was about 8 times greater and the transported volume decreased by 7 times when compared with embryos transported in solid B5 medium. Therefore, the improved procedures could undoubtedly enhance the efficiency of microspore culture in Brassica napus.
Key words: Brassica napus, microspore culture, embryogenesis, technique improvement. |
Fitness Exercises For Kids: Keeping it FunDecember 17, 2015
Most adults associate fitness and exercise with a trip to the gym, a yoga or spin class, a run on the treadmill, bootcamp or crossfit. We keep our eye on the prize and imagine our reward for a hard workout that might sting a bit. We picture a new body with less fat, toned abs, and strong arms and legs.
Kids don’t see it the same way. They think of exercise a little differently. They think of it as playing and having fun, being physically active and moving around. They like to laugh when they exercise. Kids often exercise without even knowing it when they’re playing with other children, riding bikes, or kicking a soccer ball.
This is the key to getting your kids moving. The best way to keep your kids excited about fitness exercises is to get them moving without them being the wiser. The more fun you can make it, the more likely they are to associate fitness exercises for kids with playtime and fun.
When planning fitness exercises for children, remember to keep them motivated with exercises that mimic the playful physical activities they naturally engage with. You want to incorporate movements and poses that will make children forget that they’re exercising because they’re having so much fun.
Most of us think exercise requires a big time commitment, but this isn’t necessarily the case. While it’s true that 20 to 30 minutes of exercise is great for overall metabolic conditioning, even 10-minute sessions of exercise will help increase kids’ endurance and flexibility. If you come up with a number of sessions, you can string them together later on for a longer workout, and shuffle them around to keep it exciting.
Always begin fitness exercises for children with a warm up period to gradually increase the heart rate. Brisk walking or light jogging are both low-impact ways to boost kids’ metabolisms and set the stage for more intense exercise.
Easy kid exercises
Running is one of the most basic forms of exercise and is perfect for parks with large open areas. Try these running exercises:
- Relay races
- Running in place
- Running with high knees
- Running in multiple directions
Use your imagination to mix things up. You can also try adding in some jumping exercises like jumping jacks, criss-cross feet, and one-foot hops.
As your kids run and jump, encourage them to lift their legs as high as they can. Each time they reach higher they will increase their stamina. The goal is to get your kids playing and laughing without realizing that they’re building muscle strength and cardio endurance at the same time.
The best part is that you’ll be spending time together laughing and enjoying these fun exercises for children. You may even want to get your own workout in! Enjoy!
To find out about our In-Home training, visit www.energeticjuniors.com or contact [email protected] or call 212-879-1566. |
As women we try to fill more than what is reasonable into a day. We get up early, get ready for the day, get the kids off to school, go to work, pick up the dry cleaning, stop by the grocery store, make dinner, help with homework, pick up the kitchen, and if we're lucky catch an episode of Grey's Anatomy, and then catch up on our to-do list. There are only so many hours in the day and often the things we "give up" such as rejuvenation time, exercise, or even sleep are the most important things for us to live a healthy and reasonably sane life.
Experts recommend that we get 8 hours of sleep every night. The National Sleep Foundation found that US adults got an average of 6.9 hours of sleep. Few of us get this much sleep. However, lack of sleep can affect your health in serious ways:
- Getting just 1-2 hours less sleep than needed can impair brain function.
- Lack of sleep is associated with health conditions such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.
- Researchers found that people who don't get sufficient sleep at night produce more of the hunger hormone called grehlin (appetite stimulant) and less of the full hormone called leptin (appetite suppressant) contributing to weight problems.
- People who have a lack of sleep are less efficient and accomplish less during the day.
- Spending a couple hours less in bed at night significantly impacts mood. People experience more depression and anxiety.
- Sleep loss impairs your memory, judgment, and mental acuity.
- Lack of sleep can negatively affect your immune system leaving you more susceptible to colds and flu bugs.
When we learn how important sleep, diet, quiet time, and exercise are to our health, we begin to see a clear picture of how badly we beat up our bodies and this has become the norm in our society. It has just become a learned way of living that seems very normal in our eyes. Who else is going to do all the stuff we need to accomplish in a day? There is too much demand for our time. We have actually come to a place where we squeezed out time for our basic human needs.
We can, however, take some small steps to get back on the right track. If you consistently get less than 8 hours of sleep at night, here are some tips to help you get a restful night's sleep:
- Be flexible and willing to give yourself this time. There is no more time in the day so we often have to "give up" something in order to add something else – in this case a few more hours of sleep. We may need to let go of tasks that are less urgent or get help through family, friends, spouses, or babysitters.
- Maintain a regular sleep schedule. Go to bed and wake up around the same time each day including the weekends. Our circadian clock likes schedules and this helps to get to sleep and stay asleep each night.
- Create a regular nighttime relaxation ritual such as taking a hot shower, reading, or listening to music. This helps you to unwind, and decrease those rambling thoughts in your head so you can fall asleep easier.
- Make sure your environment is conducive to a sound sleep. This includes a dark room, cool, comfortable bed, and minimal noise.
- Avoid exercising and eating 2-3 hours prior to bedtime. Both of these can interrupt sleep patterns.
- Avoid alcohol and caffeine at night as much as possible. Caffeine is a stimulant that will keep you awake and interfere with your feeling sleepy and tired. Alcohol, even though it is a sedative, actually interferes with a restful night sleep by causing you to wake up frequently.
Do you have a health-related question you'd like Meri to address in her future columns? Click here
to send her a message through her Work It, Mom! profile |
Clarifying illegal fish breeding: What is tilapia?
THE Queensland Government has a very strong stance on the illegal owning of tilapia.
This fish is declared noxious in Queensland and it is unlawful to possess noxious fish alive or dead or to use them as bait.
It is illegal to place or release noxious fish alive or dead into Queensland waterways.
Those found guilty can be fined up to $200,000.
There are two species of tilapia in Queensland- the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) and the spotted tilapia (Tilapia mariae)
- O. mossambicus can grow to more than 36 cm and can live up to 13 years. They are usually dark grey or almost black but can be silver with 2-5 dark blotches/spots on the side. Breeding males can have red tips on their fins
- T. mariae range from dark olive-green to light yellow and they have 8 or 9 dark bars or blotches on the sides (more evident in younger fish). They can grow to 30 cm |
Imagine taking an underwater journey a mile deep to the Pacific Ocean's floor, surrounded only by darkness and the occasional jellyfish, sea anemone or octopus flashing by the window.
Two Northeast Georgia high school teachers took that trip last month when they joined a University of Georgia professor studying hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor using the famous research submarine, Alvin.
Through daily blogs and e-mail, the teachers were able to bring their classrooms along with them, turning their trip into an oceanography and physics lesson students could never get out of a textbook.
"It's the dream of a lifetime," Oconee County High School oceanography teacher and avid scuba diver Vicki Soutar said.
"It just takes on a whole new meaning when you can tell (students) first-hand what it's like to do something like this."
Joining Soutar was Jackson County High School physics teacher Ron Prescott, who said the three-week trip was "one of the most incredible experiences of my life."
The teachers were selected to assist University of Georgia marine science professor Daniela Di Iorio to study hydrothermal vents located in the Juan de Fuca Ridge about 300 miles off the coast of Washington. The vents - first discovered using Alvin in the 1970s - are created when water seeps beneath the Earth's crust, where it is heated by magma and then blown back into the ocean like an underwater geyser.
By heating the water around it, the vents make life possible for sea animals that never could survive so near the cold ocean floor.
Di Iorio received a grant three years ago to design equipment to measure the heat flow from the hydrothermal vents, and she recruits high school teachers to assist her to promote oceanographic research and education.
After two years of designing and testing the equipment, Di Iorio placed the devices about 6,000 feet deep in the Pacific in August. Last month, she returned to the site to inspect the equipment with the crew of the research ship Atlantis and its sub, Alvin.
Soutar and Prescott went along for the ride, joining Di Iorio and the 46-member crew of the Atlantis for three weeks in the Pacific.
Both teachers kept a daily blog on a Web site, often posing the same questions to students that scientists were using in their research.
"There were a lot of different ways to learn from this, from the kind of chemistry that goes on, to the biology and physical forces involved and studying the effects of pressure and the makeup of sea water," Soutar said.
They also brought their students shrunken cups, a popular souvenir from Alvin's deeper dives.
Before the trip, students decorated and wrote their names on Styrofoam cups and sent them along with the teachers. The sub's crew places the cups in a mesh bag on top of the Alvin, which then descends thousands of feet. When the sub returns to the surface, the cups are squashed to about a quarter of their former size. It's a dramatic example of the extreme pressures experienced under a mile of water.
The teachers also made videos for their class talking to crewmen and researchers about their work and how they found jobs and careers in science.
"We give them the opportunity to be there as research scientists, and they've done an excellent job of making use of what they learned and implementing it in their classrooms," Di Iorio said.
But the highlight for both Prescott and Soutar were the dives.
Both got to spend several hours in Alvin and experience life almost a mile below the ocean's surface.
The sub has achieved worldwide fame in a 44-year career that included the discovery of wreckage of the sunken liner Titanic in 1986.
Alvin has room for only three people packed into a tight glass sphere loaded with electronics. Soutar said it was more like being on a space ship on a different planet, as the sub moved around in total darkness, its lights occasionally picking up jellyfish and bacteria floating past outside.
"You see creatures that other people will never have the chance to see," Prescott said. "There are bioluminaries near the bottom, an octopus latched on to some of our equipment, and you see rattail fish, sea cucumbers, anemones and jellyfish and spider crabs."
The grant paid for each teacher's travel and paid the school districts for substitute fees while they were out of the classroom for three weeks.
Di Iorio's project will continue for two more years, and she plans two more trips to the Pacific in July and August of next year before publishing the results of her data.
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A few weeks ago, I attended a reception for literary people, and got into a conversation with a nice couple who were telling me about their favorite PBS programs. After assuring me of the programs' uniqueness and value, the man adopted a wry smile as he said, "And now they talk about cutting money to PBS."
"Well," I carefully replied, "the money isn't really there."
"That's just what they tell you," he countered. "The rich have plenty of money."
I didn't follow up because I suspected this gentleman spent his time in elementary school arithmetic classes like I did-drawing doodles in his notebook or staring out the window. I know enough arithmetic to function as an adult in American society, but not enough to function in the U.S. Congress or the executive branch. It takes numerical sophistication of the highest order to navigate the federal budget, which is why we have to leave it to wizards like Harry Reid, Barney Frank, and Barack Obama. With advice from astute businessmen like Michael Moore.
Actually, when numbers with 12 zeros come up, I suspect that most members of Congress are as lost as I am. Comparisons-1 trillion dollar bills laid end-to-end would reach to the sun and back, then head out toward Mars; 1 trillion seconds is longer than all recorded history, etc.-only reinforce my suspicion that we're approaching imaginary money territory. Fourteen trillion in debt: Is there that much money in the world? Really? Or will there be when we print it off? Would it take all of recorded history to print 1 trillion dollar bills, at one per second? For me and most Americans, the numbers are simply unreal; that may be why it's so hard to understand the nature of the problem.
David Burge, otherwise known as Iowahawk, is a good man for timely number-crunching. A couple of weeks ago he posted a breakdown of just how far we could pay federal expenses in a calendar year by taking all the Fortune 500 corporate profits and grabbing every cent over the $250,000 that defines "the rich." With that, and soaking professional athletes and throwing in the amount spent for Super Bowl ads, we could get to 6 p.m. on July 2. And what then? It's not pretty.
Bill Whittle made the same information graphic in a YouTube video (see below). It's worth checking out, for future literary receptions-so long as they last. |
Activities of field staff curbing the marauding wild animals causing human wildlife conflict in old Oyo National Park
The study examined the activities of Old Oyo National Park (OONP) field staff curbing the marauding wild animals causing human wildlife conflict in the study area. Data were collected using a combination of structured and open-ended questionnaire. All generated data were subjected to descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation analyses. Pearson correlation results revealed that reported cases of wildlife attack and compensations made due to wildlife attack were significant (P<0.05),while collaboration between the park authority and communities’ leaders was negative. Based on the findings from this study, it is imperative to examine any human-wildlife conflict issue within the context of economic, social and cultural lives of the people. For effectiveness, mitigation strategies and palliative measures must consider how and why people perceive crop losses the way they do; what they expect from any intervention and who they expect to take responsibility for the issue.
Keywords: Human-Wildlife conflict, marauding, wild animals, Old Oyo National Park |
This month for Institution for HOPE the Allen School of Health Sciences has been raising awareness for Multiple Sclerosis. Each month we focus on a different cause or awareness to get students and their families involved in giving back to the community and becoming more informed. Today, we want to share with you more about Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and how to get involved in your local area.What is Multiple Sclerosis?
It is an unpredictable, chronic disease that causes the immune system to attack the healthy central nervous system (CNS). This includes the optic nerves, spinal cord and brain. According to www.nationalmssociety.org
the symptoms include but not limited to the following: “blurred vision, loss of balance, poor coordination, slurred speech, tremors, numbness, extreme fatigue, problems with memory and concentration, paralysis, and blindness.” The ages of diagnosis rang greatly, sometimes as young as 2 or as mature as 75 years of age. However, the most common ages of diagnosis range between 20 – 50 years old.Who gets Multiple Sclerosis ?
Although, MS is assumed not to be inherited there are studies that prove that factors related to genetic risk greatly increase the development of MS. However, environmental factors can also contribute such as the following: smoking cigarettes and low Vitamin D. Within the last 50 years there has been an increasing gender difference which suggests women are two to three times more likely to develop MS than men.How many people are affected?
There are over 2.3 million individuals battling MS globally. According to www.nationalmssociety.org
“the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC does not require U.S. physicians to report new cases and because symptoms can be completely invisible, the prevalence of MS in the U.S. can only be estimated.”You might be wondering how you can get involved and in what capacity. Fortunately, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society has a wide variety of events that include:
- Walk MS
- Bike MS
- Muckfest MS
- Challenge Walk MS
- Do it yourself fundraising MS
- Finish MS
If you are interested in getting involved in another manner the National Multiple Sclerosis Society has just the right thing for you which encompasses the following:
- Advocate for Change
- Join the Community
- Raise Awareness
- Connect in your area
The Allen School of Health Sciences encourages you to learn more about this chronic disease and make an effort to raise awareness. Click on www.nationalmssociety.org
to learn more about Multiple Sclerosis and how to get involved in your local area. |
The original University of California, San Diego press release by Daniel Kane can be read here.
Scientists using two synchrotron x-ray light sources including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source (APS) have an explanation for the cause of performance-reducing “voltage fade” that currently plagues a promising class of cathode materials called lithium-rich NMC (nickel magnesium cobalt) layered oxides.
These cathode materials have garnered considerable attention over the years as promising components for better rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles.
After a battery goes through a series of charge-discharge cycles, its voltage fades and the amount of energy it can hold, and release later for use, also fades. The new research explains why this happens in lithium-rich NMC cathode materials. In particular, the researchers identified nanoscale defects or dislocations in lithium-rich NMC cathode materials as the batteries charged at a range of voltages going up to 4.7 volts.
"The dislocations are extra atomic layers that don’t fit into the otherwise perfectly periodic crystal structure,” said Andrej Singer, the lead author of the article on this study that was published in the journal Energy Research, who performed this work as a postdoctoral researcher at UC San Diego. “Discovering these dislocations was a big surprise: if anything, we expected the extra atomic layers to occur in a completely different orientation,” said Singer, who is now on the faculty at Cornell University. By combining experimental evidence with theory, the research team concluded that the nucleation of this specific type of dislocation results in voltage fade.
Knowing the origin of voltage fade, the team showed that heat-treating the cathode materials eliminated most of the defects and restored the original voltage. They put the heat-treated cathodes into new batteries and tested them at a range of voltages going up to 4.7 volts, demonstrating that the voltage fade had been reversed.
While the heat treating approach to reversing the defects is labor intensive and not likely to scale, the physics and materials science-based approach to characterizing and then addressing the nano-scale defects offers promise for finding new solutions to the voltage fade problem.
“Our paper is mainly about unlocking the mystery of the dislocations that cause voltage fade in lithium-rich NMCs. We don’t have a scalable solution yet to solving the voltage fade problem in lithium-rich NMCs, but we are making progress,” said UC San Diego nanoengineering professor Shirley Meng. She and UC San Diego Physics professor Oleg Shpyrko are the senior authors on the new Nature Energy paper.
“One of the most serious problems for lithium-rich NMC cathode materials is voltage fade,” said paper author Minghao Zhang, a recent graduate of the nanoengineering Ph.D. program at UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, where he is now a postdoctoral researcher.
Voltage fade reduces the energy density of the battery, which in turn limits the practical applications of these materials despite their high energy density in the initial charge-discharge cycles.
“Our work for the first time clearly demonstrates that defect generation and defect accumulation in the structure of lithium-rich NMC materials are the origin of voltage fade,” said Zhang. “Based on this explanation, we designed a heat treatment regime and then showed that the heat treatments removed the defects in the bulk structure and restored the battery output voltage.”
“Engineering solutions have to be based on solid science. If you don’t know what’s going on, then your mitigation strategies are less effective. And I think that is what has hindered this material,” said UC San Diego nanoengineering professor Shirley Meng, referring to the long-standing lack of clarity on what is happening at the nanoscale that is causing the voltage fade in these promising cathode materials.
Meng, Shpyrko, and their respective labs and collaborators are uniquely adept at imaging, characterizing and calculating what is happening to batteries, at the nanoscale, while they are charging. Their combined expertise allows the team to glean unprecedented insights from x-ray imaging data of batteries while they are charging.
“Being able to directly image the structure of materials and devices under operating conditions and with nanoscale resolution is one of the grand challenges in our quest to design and discover new functional materials,” said UC San Diego physics professor Oleg Shpyrko. “Our group’s efforts in developing novel x-ray imaging techniques are targeted towards fundamental understanding and ultimately control of defect formation. Our in-operando imaging studies indicate novel ways of mitigating voltage fade in next-generation energy storage materials.”
In the Nature Energy paper, the authors write: “We directly capture the nucleation of a dislocation network in primary nanoparticles of a high capacity LRLO material [a lithium-rich NMC cathode] during electrochemical charge. Based on the discovery of defect formation and first principles calculations, we identify the origin of the voltage fade, allowing us to design and experimentally demonstrate an innovative treatment to restore voltage in LRLO.”
The in situ Bragg coherent diffractive imaging technique, performed at the X-ray Science Division 34-ID-C x-ray beamline at the Argonne National Laboratory APS (an Office of Science user facility) and at the P10 beamline of the PETRA III (Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron, DESY, Germany) x-ray light source, allowed the researchers to directly image the interior of a nanoparticle during battery charge. The team’s analyses and reconstructions of these data offer unprecedented insights into what is actually happening while batteries are charging. The researchers performed a number of observational studies while battery materials were charging across a range of voltages going from 4 volts up to 4.7 volts. At 4.4 volts, the researchers identified a series of defects including edge, screw and mixed dislocations. The researchers also studied currently-commercialized non-lithium-rich NMC materials and found defects, but significantly fewer; and no new defects occurred above 4.2 volts in the non-lithium-rich NMC materials.
“With this publication, we are hoping to open up a new paradigm for materials scientists to rethink how to design and optimize this class of materials for energy storage. It still requires a lot more work and many contributions from the field to finally resolve the problem,” said Meng.
The research described in the Nature Energy paper could eventually lead to new cathode materials for solid state batteries. Many researchers, including Meng, consider solid state batteries to be one of the most promising future battery approaches. Lithium-rich NMC cathodes, for example, operate at high voltage and therefore could eventually be paired with solid state electrolytes, which also operate at high voltage. Much of the interest in solid state batteries comes from the fact that solid state electrolytes are believed to be safer than the traditional liquid electrolytes used in lithium-ion rechargeable batteries.
See: A. Singer1*, M. Zhang1, S. Hy1, D. Cela1, C. Fang1, T. A. Wynn1, B. Qiu2, Y. Xia2, Z. Liu2, A. Ulvestad3, N. Hua1, J. Wingert1, H. Liu1, M. Sprung4 A. V. Zozulya4‡, E. Maxey3, R. Harder3, Y.S. Meng1*, and O. G. Shpyrko1*, “Nucleation of dislocations and their dynamics in layered oxides cathode materials during battery charging,” Nat. Energy, 3, 641 (2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-018-0184-2
1University of California San Diego, 2Chinese Academy of Sciences, 3Argonne National Laboratory, 4Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY *Present address: Cornell University, ‡Present address: European XFEL GmbH
X-ray imaging was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science-Basic Energy Sciences, under contract DE-SC0001805 (A.S., D.C., J.W., N.H. and O.G.S.). S.H., C.F., M.Z., H.L., and Y.S.M. acknowledge support on the materials synthesis, electrochemical, and materials characterization from the NorthEast Center for Chemical Energy Storage (NECCES), an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. DOE Office of Science-Basic Energy Sciences under Award no. DE-SC0012583. The sample exchanges and collaborations between UCSD and NIMTE are made possible with the support from Office of Vehicle Technology of the U.S. DOE under the Advanced Battery Materials Research Program. This research used resources of the Advanced Photon Source, a U.S. DOE Office of Science User Facility operated for the DOE Office of Science by Argonne National Laboratory under contract no. DE-AC02-06CH11357. The authors thank Ross Harder (XSD), and all of the staff at Argonne National Laboratory and the Advanced Photon Source for their assistance with the synchrotron studies. PETRA III at DESY is a member of the Helmholtz Association. This research used resources of the Advanced Photon Source, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility operated for the DOE Office of Science by Argonne National Laboratory under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357.
Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation's first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America's scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future. With employees from more than 60 nations, Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.
The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit the Office of Science website. |
It is less than for an hour, James Naismith, sitting at a table at the office in YMCA formulated thirteen rules of the game in basketball.
- The ball can be thrown in any direction by one or two hands
- It is possible to kick one or two hands in any direction the ball, but by no means a fist
- The player cannot run with a ball. The player has to give a pass or throw a ball into a basket from that point in which it caught it, the exception becomes for the player running at a good speed.
- The ball has to be kept by one or two hands. It is impossible to use for deduction of a ball of a forearm and a body.
- Anyway blows, captures, deduction and pushing of the opponent are not allowed. The first violation of this rule by any player, has to be fixed as a foul (dirty game); the second foul disqualifies him, the following ball and if there was an obvious intention to injure the player, on all game will not be hammered yet. No replacement is allowed.
- Blow to a ball with your fist – violation of points of rules 2 and 4, punishment is described in point 5.
- If one of the parties makes three fouls in a row, they have to be fixed as a goal, for opponents (it means that during this time opponents should not make any foul).
- The goal is set off, – if the ball thrown or jumped aside from a floor gets to a basket and remains there. The protected players are not allowed to concern a ball or a basket at the time of a throw. If the ball concerns edge, and opponents move a basket, to be set off a goal.
- If the ball goes to a miss (out of platform limits), it has to be thrown out in a field and the first player who concerned it. In case of dispute to throw out a ball in the field, the judge has to. To the throwing player five seconds are allowed to hold a ball. If it holds it more long, the ball is given to the opponent. If any of the parties tries to tighten time, the judge has to give them a foul.
- The judge has to watch actions of players and fouls, and also notify the referee, on three, the made in a row fouls. It is allocated with the power to disqualify players according to the Rule 5.
- The referee has to watch a ball and define when the ball is in game (within a platform) and when goes to a miss (out of platform limits) what of the parties has to own a ball, and also control time. It has to define defeat of the purpose, keep record of the hammered balls, and also carry out any other actions which are usually carried out by the referee.
- Game consists of two periods of 15 minutes everyone with a break five minutes between them.
- The party which shot more balls in this period of time is the winner of the game.
Eventually basketball changed …
At first it was game of patience and strategy …
The majority of the first games had the final score which never exceeded 15 or 20 points.
Naismith watched closely the sport development presented in many nations by the movement YMCA, 1893.
For the first time at the Olympic Games basketball was presented in Berlin in 1936.
At peak of development of the game, Naismith it was accepted to the Basketball Hall of Fame in spite of the fact that it was already called in his honor. |
SolarReserve has completed a 540-foot solar power tower, the centerpiece of its 110-megawatt Crescent Dunes solar thermal power plant that will use molten salt storage to help it supply power day -- and night.
SolarReserve still has to install the 10,000 billboard-sized sun-tracking mirrors or heliostats necessary to concentrate sunlight onto the massive tower at the site of the solar plant in Tonopah, Nevada. The power plant, which is expected to come online by December 2013, will be the largest of its kind in the world, according to the company. Crescent Dunes has secured a 25-year power purchase agreement with NV Energy and will provide electricity for 75,000 homes. Check out the time lapse video provided by SolarReserve below.
The critical component of the Crescent Dunes project is its molten salt storage. The reflected sunlight is directed onto a large heat exchanger called a receiver, which is located on the tower. Molten salt -- not oil like other concentrated solar power plants -- is within the receiver and absorbs heat from concentrated sunlight, reaching up to 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The molten salt flows down the piping inside the tower and into a thermal storage tank, where the energy is stored until electricity is needed.
When the utility needs power -- again, at day or night -- the high-temp molten salt flows into a steam generator, which drives a turbine to produce electricity. The cooled molten salt is then piped back into a cold salt storage tank and eventually back up to the receiver to start the whole process over again. According to the company, its technology has the ability to store energy for 10 to 15 hours. In other words, the solar power plant will be able to provide a continuous supply of power.
Variability is among the biggest problems with solar-generated power, which the SolarReserve project and others like the Gemasolar plant in Spain are designed to solve. When the sun sets, the renewable power source drops off and that can create problems for grid operators trying to maintain a steady electricity supply. Without access to solar power, the utility will switch over to natural gas- or coal-fired power plants.
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com |
Have you tried mapping the locations where your ancestors have lived? I use mapping to get a visual view of ancestor’s locations across time. This technique helps me identify records to be searched in a particular location or that help identify why they moved to the next location. As you do your family story, mapping will help you with your research plan as well as provide additional content/context.
Let’s look at an example.
Recently I have been working on a client’s ancestry. The family that I’m researching came from Norway in 1848 and settled in the Midwest. We can first find them in 1850s in Beloit, Wisconsin. This was confirmed via Lutheran Church records and a family obituary. They are not showing up in the 1850s census.
By 1865, the family has moved to Minnesota. They are living in High Forest, Olmsted County, MN according to the Minnesota Territorial Census of 1865. This is consistent with family story and obituary information as well as the Lutheran Church records. The next time we see the family in 1875 Minnesota Territorial Census, they are now living in Newry, Freeborn County, Minnesota.
According to a church burial record, dated 1884, the family patriarch is buried in the Red Oak Gravesite in Austin MN.
Let’s look specifically at the Minnesota locations. This visual shows that these locations were within 30 miles of each other. If you were researching this family, what questions would you have? I’m wondering why they moved from one location to another within those 30 miles.
I will be reviewing the following: census records (what family members were living together in these locations), land records. Local county histories of Olmsted and Freeborn as well as Red Oak Lutheran Church history will help me to understand what life was like in that area of Minnesota in the late 1900s.
A larger view of the family and extended family travels looks like this. Not only does it give us an idea of where they lived but also triggers more questions for us. Why did they did they move? What records are available to tell us more about their travels from Wisconsin to the Dakotas?
Tools – Here are links to mapping tools. Use what you’re most comfortable with—they all provide basic functions. I haven’t found one yet that will provide directions from across the sea to North America. For purposes of your story you may need to combine maps and create your own to show the complete journey.
Paper Maps – Good old paper maps are also fun to use when researching your family. Do you remember when you went on vacation and marked your route using a colorful ink pen or marker? You could use a printed map to follow your family’s trail.
You’ll find that this simple visual exercise will trigger more questions that will help your research and support your story. It will be more engaging for the reader of your family story to be able to see locations on a map. In the example I shared, the story could have sections: Norway, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota. As you write, you may choose to use location as you talk about your family story. Have fun mapping your family’s journey!
“I've always been fascinated by maps and cartography. A map tells you where you've been, where you are, and where you're going -- in a sense it's three tenses in one.
With a lifelong passion for genealogy and history, the author enjoys the opportunity to share genealogy tidbits, inspiring others to research and write their family story. |
THE WORLD OF WORK
Fresco, caupona of Salvius, Pompeii, 1st century CE
It is difficult to form a picture of
the work Roman women engaged in because Roman authors make few references to
working women and because much of the work open to women was done by slaves.
Citizen women were primarily responsible for the upkeep of their home; their duties
involved the maintenance of the domus and increase of its property,
bearing and raising children, cooking, making and caring for clothing and
domestic fabrics. While the wealthy had slaves to assist them, women of the
lower classes worked as well in the family business or took paying jobs to
support their family (see Treggiari, 1979). Although elite or wealthy matronae did less physical work than
their plebeian sisters, they were expected to supervise the familia,
keep household records and materials, and assist their husbands in building
political and social alliances through entertainment; they were also expected
to supervise the early education of their children, even if they employed
nurses and tutors. Inscriptions, especially those from large estate columbaria, are rich in terms for the wide variety of
occupations women filled outside the home, from medicine (obstetrices and medicae) to manufacture (silk worker
sericaria, spinner quasillaria, dyer of purple purpuraria,
seamstress sarcinatrix, jeweler gemmaria, pearl setter
margaritaria, gilder brattiaria, workshop manager
officinatrix) to agriculture and trade, primarily of foodstuffs (e.g.,
stamp showing female ownership of a wine and oil import company). Then as
now, female prostitution was a popular though unsavory and unsupervised activity. Frequently not a career of choice, it was a risky and often short-lived alternative
for the poor and ex-slaves (see the plight of Hispala Faecenia). Citizens who hired out their bodies or performed in public as entertainers could be charged with infamia and risked loss of citizen rights. Prostitution was plied in the streets, the taverns, brothels, temples,
entertainment areas and the baths. It offered, unfortunately, a thriving business for procurers and brothel owners, male and female (lenones, lenae). See studies by Kampen and Joshel in the
Bibliography; see also
Images of Work below.
|| Additional Readings
|L. Iunius Columella,
De Re Rustica 1.8.19: the overseer's wife
||See the Latin reader
The Worlds of Roman Women for the following
|Selections from Tacitus,
Petronius, Martial, Suetonius, Statius: Gladiatrices
||M. Porcius Cato, De
Agricultura 142-3 (excerpts): the vilica
|Domitius Ulpianus, Digesta Iustiniani
XXIII.2.43.6-9: defining prostitution
||L. Iunius Columella, De
Re Rustica 1.8.19: slave mothers
|T. Maccius Plautus,
182-218: Erotium, courtesan
||CIL 6.6647, Funerary
Inscription: Hygia, the obstetrix
||ILS 6373, Funerary
Naevoleia Tyche, public benefactor
||C. Plinius Secundus
(maior), Naturalis Historia 35.40.147-8: painters
Caupona in Pompeii: barmaids
Secundus (maior), Naturalis Historia 7.48.158: on the stage
|T. Maccius Plautus,
Cistellaria 38-41, 123-4, 133-44: meretrices
|for Gnome, hairdresser
||P. Vergilius Maro,
Aeneis 8.407-415: the homemaker
|for Aurelia Nais, fish seller
||ILS 5213, Funerary
Inscription: Eucharis, actress and singer
|for Septimia Stratonice, shoemaker
||See De Feminis Romanis at Diotima for the
following on-line Latin texts:
|for Servia Cornelia Sabina, nurse
||Dessau, Inscriptiones Latinae Selectae
|for Vernae: home-bred slaves
IMAGES of WORK
marble relief of two women in battle; at the top is an inscription in Greek
commemorating their honorable release from the arena; at the bottom, their
names: Amazon and Achillia. Roman from Halicarnassus, 1st-2nd
century CE. London, British Museum.
fresco on the wall of the inn of Salvius in Pompeii, perhaps advertising the
availability of female hire (see Ulpian above). The woman approaches to kiss
the man; above their heads is scrawled nolo / cum Myrtale (I don't
want it with Myrtale). Roman, 1st century CE. Naples, National
- Attendant pouring wine from an amphora into a pot or bucket set
on a bronze stand in the shape of a satyr (full mosaic). From a Roman villa at Centocelle near Rome, 2nd century CE.
Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum.
wearing transparent clothing (view
2) with musicians; details of a mosaic panel found on Rome's Aventine
hill. Roman, 3rd century CE. Rome, Vatican Museum.
heavily draped, she is pictured with a small box in her right hand on a limestone funeral stele (damaged).
The upper part of the inscription is missing; the letters remaining are:
[probably her father's name]INI FIL[ia] MEDICA. Gallo-Roman, from Ste. Segolene, 2nd/3rd century CE. CIL 13.4334. Metz, Musee de la Cour d'Or.
- Doctor/Pharmacist is pictured in a niche on a limestone
stele, sitting with a book under her hand on her left knee, her foot raised on a footstool, at the center of a workshop (pharmacy? factory for glass/soap?). Behind her is a shelf of round objects; a female worker stands, adding material to a vat. Beside her stands a smaller woman stirring a mixture in a vat with a figured implement (caduceus?) over a low heater; on the other side liquid is distilling into vats. Probably part of a larger tomb, since there is no inscription. Roman Gaul. 2nd century CE. Epinal (France), Musee d'art
ancien et contemporain.
entertaining a customer on a roundel in a
mosaic from a private Roman villa, 4th century CE . Piazza Armerina,
Villa del Casale.
weights. A female judge presiding over the competition awards trophies
to the victors (one
victor holds a palm branch and crowns herself). Floor mosaic from a
private Roman villa, 4th century CE . Piazza Armerina, Villa del Casale.
- Street vendor depicted in a fresco trying to sell a cupid to two well-dressed women; while the product is a charming fancy and perhaps metaphorical, the old vendor seems quite realistic. Villa Ariadne at Stabiae, 1st century CE. Naples Archaeological Museum.
- Painter completing a portrait while a closely draped elegant woman looks on. Fresco from the House of the Empress of Russia, Pompeii (region VI, insula 14, building 42), 1st century CE. Naples, National Archaeological Museum.
- Musician, a painted terracotta figurine of a young
female dancing animatedly with her lyre. Greek, South Italy 200-100 BCE. Getty
Entertainer plays the double pipes beside an incense burner on a red figure Gnathian ware pot from Southern Apulia; 330 BCE. London, British Museum.
- Domestic, a bronze statuette of an old servant woman spinning wool thread (smaller). Greek, 100-1 BCE. Getty Villa.
woman: one of a series of frescoes from the taverna of Salvius.
Pompeii, 1st century CE.
in marble relief on a large family tomb
from Neumagen. Trier, Landesmuseum.
- Nurse bathing a newborn infant as his seated mother looks on; a relief panel from the side of the biographical sarcophagus of an unidentified prominent citizen. Rome, 160-180 CE.
Los Angeles, County Museum of Art.
- Nurse looks on with Jason and the Paedagogus as Medea gives her children gifts for the new bride, Creusa; half the frontal relief from a marble sarcophagus. Found in Rome, 2nd century CE. Berlin, Pergamon Museum.
- Nurse and Medea look on as the Paedagogus controls the children with their gifts for Jason's new bride, Creusa; part of the frontal relief of a marble sarcophagus. Rome, Vatican museum (Chiaramonte).
- Elderly Nurse
holding a child, a painted terracotta statuette. Greek. London, British Museum.
- Nurse mourning over a deceased alumnus on the frontal relief of a child's marble sarcophagus. Roman, second century CE. Agrigento, Museo Archeologico Regionale.
- Aged Nurse whose marble head once fit into a statue, now lost. Realistic portrait of the elderly common to the Hellenistic period. Roman copy of a 3-2 century BCE original. London, British Museum.
- Game Shop: a relief of a well-dressed woman seated on a low-backed barrel chair before a table. Another woman (Muse?) in a Greek peplos stands behind her, pointing to a plaque on the wall containing a Latin text (Aeneid I.607-9: In freta dum fluvii current, dum montibus umbrae
lustrabunt convexa, polus dum sidera pascet, semper honos nomenque tuum laudesque manebunt). A Corinthian column separates this scene on the left from the dressed meat hung on the walls of the shop. Cast, possibly modern. EUR (Rome), Civilta Museum.
- Cushion and belt
shop: shoppers or vendors on a relief of the Augustan age. (cast) EUR
(Rome), Civilta Museum. (Florence, Uffizi).
shop: shoppers or vendors on a relief of the Augustan age. (cast) EUR
(Rome), Civilta Museum. (Florence, Uffizi).
Diana: occupying the lower floor of a brick insula
on the Via Diana near the Forum, this large, well-appointed fast-food shop
must have been popular. It offered three entrances with side
benches and external mosaic sidewalk, frescoed shop signs, a hot
food and drink counter with intact stone basins, internal
mosaic flooring, interior
marble wall shelves with a
fresco above the bank of shelves, brick arched
ceilings, an embedded
storage jar, a rear courtyard for tables and outside seating near a
stairs to cellar. The building is Hadrianic (117-138), the shop a 3rd
century CE addition. Ostia Antica.
of Asellina on the Via dell' Abbondanza in Pompeii; painted notices can
be seen (now covered with glass). Roman, 1st century CE. Pompeii.
- Fullonica: this sign (a replica), painted on the wall above the door of Verecundus' workshop, shows women working beside men cleaning and repairing garments. From Pompeii. 1st century CE. EUR (Rome), Museum of Roman Civilization.
- Fullonica: this pier, painted on four sides, is from a fuller's workshop that may have belonged to Lucius Veranius Hypsaeus, one of two in the courtyard that advertised the services of the establishment. One side contains an image of Venus, patron goddess of Pompeii. Other sides depict various activities in the cleaning process, showing women working beside men and as satisfied elegant customers. Pompeii region VI, insula 8, building 20, first century CE. Naples, National Archaeological Museum.
- Coelia Mascellina was an importer of wine and oil whose name appears on this bronze stamp (signaculum).
Translation (the words are separated by tiny amphorae): [belonging to] Coelia Mascellina, daughter of Gnaeus. A funerary inscription for her parents, fragmentary, bearing her name as dedicator was found on the wall of the mausoleum of Trebellena Flaccilla in Rome (AE 1973.71), 2nd half 2nd century CE.
Tyche, a wealthy businesswoman who was probably a freedwoman, set up a
tomb for herself, for her husband, C. Munatius Faustus, and for her freedmen
and freedwomen. Pompeii, Street of Tombs. 1st century CE.
- Gaavia Philumina, a freedwoman who had a business on the Aventine hill, built a tomb (only one damaged block of which survives) for herself and two men, one of whom was a goldsmith (CVCVMA). Her business, which must have been profitable judging from her monument, was probably identified in the lost part of the inscription. Mid-1st century BCE. Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
Nais, fishmonger, had an elegantly carved marble cippus
dedicated to her by two fellow freedmen: her patron, Gaius Aurelius Phileros, a
former slave of her former master, and Lucius Valerius Secundus, a freedman of
contains the libation jug, side
2 contains the libation dish. Early 2nd century CE. Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Heria Thisbe was a solo singer, the wife of Tiberius Claudius Glaphyrus who played the reed pipe and was victorious at the games in honor of Actium and of Augustus. Her marble funerary altar contains a libation pitcher on left side and a libation dish on right side. Last half 1st century CE. Rome, Capitoline Museum.
- Sellia Epyre was a maker and seller of gold-decorated luxury clothing (aurivestrix) on the Sacred Way. Her name appears on the cover of the marble cinerary urn while the name Q. FVTI OLYMPICI (genitive case, perhaps her husband) appears on its belly in a different script. Both were freedpersons and probably both were interred here. 1st half of 1st century CE. CIL VI.9214. Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
Pierinis, a hairdresser whose niche in a columbarium was covered by a simple
marble marker whose inscription was carefully decorated in red and contained, unusually, the precise date of her death (28 January 2 BCE). Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Hymnis Cellia, a musician who played the cithara (PSALTRIA); her columbarium niche was covered by this simple marble marker. Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Logas, a companion for the grandmother of Messalina, was only 16 at her death. Her mother (AP[h]RODISIA) placed this simple
marble marker over the niche containing her ashes in the 1st century CE columbarium of the Statilii family (CIL 6.6335). Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Italia was a quasillaria, a spinner. She died at 20. Her husband (SCAEVA), a book keeper, set this simple
marble marker over the niche containing her ashes in the 1st century CE columbarium of the Statilii family (CIL 6.6342). Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Optata Pasaes was an ostiaria, a doorkeeper or janitor. Her friends set this simple
marble marker over the niche containing her ashes in the 1st century CE columbarium of the Statilii family (CIL 6.6326). Rome, Terme Diocletiano.
- Clodii, a family of freedpersons who practiced medicine, were proudly portrayed in civic dress on this marble funerary relief: CLODIA HILARA (right); CLODIVS METRODORVS MEDICVS (center); CLODIVS TERTIVS MEDICVS (left). Roman, last third of 1st century BCE. Paris, Louvre Museum.
- Nonia Pelagia, wife of Publius Nonius Zethus, a baker and Augustalis, is commemorated on this communal monument in the shape of a marble sarcophagus with hollows on top for eight cinerary urns. It was commissioned by her husband and inscribed in front for himself, his wife, his fellow freedwoman Nonia Hilara, with the name Publius Nonius Heraclius added below (all freed by the same master, Publius Nonius). On either side of the inscription are scenes from the bakery where they all worked: a millstone and implements. 1st Century CE. From Ostia (CIL 14.393-4). Rome, Vatican Museums (Chiaramonte).
- Gaudenia Nicene appears on the front panel relief of the marble sarcophagus commissioned by her husband, a wool merchant, Titus Aelius Evangelus, for himself and her. A freedwoman, she is pictured with the belted short tunic and boots of a working woman, her hair neatly arranged, holding a funeral garland in her left hand and offering a goblet to her husband. The inscription containing her name runs along the top edge of the relief (FVERIT POST ME ET POST GAVDENIA NICENE VETO ALIVM QVISQVIS HVNC TITVLVM LEGERIT/ MI ET ILLEI FECI); his name is inscribed below the couch on which he reclines (T[ITO] AELIO EVANGELO/ HOMINI PATIENTI/ MERVM PROFVNDAT). The couple are surrounded by workmen, animals and tools of their wool business (see P. J. Holliday, "The Sarcophagus of Titus Aelius Evangelus and Gaudenia Nicene" in The J. Paul Getty Museum Journal 21 (1993), pp. 85-100). Roman, 180 CE. Malibu, J. Paul Getty Museum.
- Severa Seleuciana and her husband Aurelius Sabutius were weavers by trade: note the incised swatch of woven cloth and loom and shuttle on her funerary tablet. The language of the inscription is colloquial, the words roughly carved; Seleuciana lived with her husband for 17 years, dying in the 3rd consulship of the emperor Probus Augustus and the second of Nonius Paternus (279 CE). Rome, Capitoline Museums.
All images are courtesy of the
VRoma Project's Image Archive. |
The Shangaan believe that the baobab holds immense power. In fact it is a widely held Shangaan belief that when a person sits beneath a baobab tree it steals a piece of that person’s heart. This piece is only returned when they once again sit beneath that same baobab tree.
The baobab is the quintessential African tree and the Malilangwe Reserve is full of these beautiful giants.
The direct translation of the word baobab is tree of life, which is apt considering that every part of it can be used.
1. The white pulp, from the fruit of the baobab, is mixed with water and used as a treatment for fever, colds and flu.
2. The seeds, from the baobab fruit, are refreshing to suck on and – when roasted – they make an excellent coffee style hot beverage.
3. Over the years hollow baobab trunks have served as houses, prisons, storage barns and places of refuge from animals.
4. The leaves can be boiled and eaten just like spinach.
5. The bark makes excellent ropes and floor mats. It is also believed to have the power to help an individual secure respect, prestige and security in their job. |
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration),
[ More Details ]
Passage is an evocative word with varied meanings, at least three of which relate directly to photographic practice. As a synonym for "quotation" or "excerpt," it refers to the cropping and editing integral to photographic creation. When referring to movement or transition, as in "a passage overseas," the term describes a frequent subject—exemplified in photographs such as The Steerage (1907) by Alfred Stieglitz—and an ongoing romance with travel that spurred the growth of photography and continues to drive a market for images of distant locales. Finally, as reminders of mortality and disappearance, phrases such as "the passage of time" suggest the photographic process itself, which transforms present moments into mementos of the past.
These divergent meanings are explored in Passages: Photographs from the Collection, which features some sixty works from the Museum's permanent collections representing the full range of photographic techniques and processes from 1840 to the present. Included will be nineteenth-century movement studies by Eadweard Muybridge and Etienne Jules Marey; these works will be echoed in NASA's large, color images of astronauts venturing through outer space. Photographs by Lewis Hine, Helen Levitt and August Sander depict ordinary people whose lives are in transition: immigrants, the homeless, and the unemployed. Exquisite, artistic maritime scenes and seascapes by Gustave Le Gray or Charles Ngre in the 1850s bear a historical relation to lavish travel albums created for tourists and colonial authorities by Felice Beato, John Thomson and Francis Frith. |
History San Carlos City
During the 17th century, San Carlos City’s name was Nabingkalan which believed to have derived from the name of the chieftain’s daughter in Negrito settlement who governed the barrio at that time. This settlement was later bought by a native from Cebu and then converted it into a Christian Village.
When the Spaniards came, the Island of Buglas (Negros) was divided into 2 provinces, the West negros under Iloilo and the East Negros under Cebu. The barrio of Nabingkalan was under the jurisdiction of Iloilo at that time and it was renamed into Pueblo.
In 1890, Negros Island was divided into Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, making Pueblo a barrio of Calatrava. A few years later, a parish priest of Calatrava assembled the cabesas de barangay and all agreed to change the name of the town to San Carlos in honor of Patron Saint Carlos Borromeo. Then on Novemer 4, 1898 th seat of the town was transferred to San Carlos. In 1925, Calatrava was organized into a municipality.
During the Spanish regime in 1856, the Island of Buglas (Negros) was divided into two (2) provinces, the West Negros under Iloilo and the East Negros under Cebu. The barrio of Nabingkalan was under the jurisdiction of Iloilo and since then the place was renamed to “Pueblo”. Then in 1890, Negros Island was divided into Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental making Pueblo a barrio of Calatrava. A few years later, a parish priest of Calatrava assembled the cabesas de barangay and all agreed to change the name of the town to San Carlos in honor of Patron Saint Carlos Borromeo. Then on November 4, 1898 the seat of the town was transferred to San Carlos. In 1925, Calatrava was organized into a municipality.
In the onset of First World War, the residents of San Carlos produced enough staple and sugar crops and when the ceasefire happened on 1917, most of the planters or residents having sugar plantations gained more wealth due to the increase in the price of sugar. Then in World War II, residents of San Carlos and Calatrava formed a guerilla movement under the leadership of Lt. Leonardo Marane and Lt. Alfredo Valdivia to fight the Japanese Imperial Forces. In March 1945, the local guerilla attacked the Japanese garrison in the compound of San Carlos Milling Company and succeeded.
On July 1, 1960, by virtue of Republic Act 2643, the Municipality of San Carlos was converted into the City of San Carlos. Improvements and city development then paved way since then.
(Population/ Language/ Area)
Total recorded population of San Carlos City is 129,981 (2010 population census). People of San Carlos speaks Cebuano as their native language. There are some who still speaks Hiligaynon and a little Tagalog.
Total land area of San Carlos City is 451.50 km2 (174.33 sq mi). The city is consist of sloping to rolling lands. There are also steep areas with slope distribution and has a coastline stretch of about 21 kilometers.
San Carlos City is located just a few kilometers away from other neighboring cities such as Bacolod and Dumaguete which make it as a strategic business hub. Now, the city already has various commercial and business structures, residential subdivisions, townhouses and recreation centers. The city is also said to be an ideal investment destination due to its strategic location and rich assets in terms of agriculture and real estate. The local government supports all business ventures by giving attractive incentives such as seven (7) years exemption from taxes and other fees and five (5) years exemption from real estate taxes to various new businesses in the city.
- Sipaway Island – also known as Refugio Island, this island has a century-old Balete tree, white sand beach resort, a private wharf and a recreation center and a huge public swimming pool.
- Codcod Rice Terraces – this is just 28 kilometers away from the city proper. This place serves as the main source of rice and vegetables in the city.
- Hacienda House of Don Teodolfo Infante – located at Hacienda Guadalupe and was built in 1929 with unique architecture.
(Festivals and Celebrations)
- Bailes De Luces (La Castellana) – This is celebrated annually on December 30 to January 5 as a festival of hope and thanksgiving.
- Banana Festival (La Castellana) – This is a harvest festival every first week of April.
- Pinta Flores Festival –This is celebrated every year in the month of November with flowers tattooed on the bodies of the participants and their costumes. |
In everyday life and in education, we continuously build and structure our knowledge. Successful knowledge construction is suggested to happen through reactivation of previously learned information during new learning. This reactivation is presumed to lead to integration of old and new memories and strengthen long-term retention. Additionally, congruency with prior knowledge is shown to enhance subsequent memory. However, it is unknown how subjective reactivation and congruency jointly influence learning in an educational context. In two experiments, we investigated this question using an AB-AC inference paradigm where students were asked to first study an AB (word-picture) and then an AC-association (word-description). BC-associations were either congruent or incongruent and were linked by a common, unknown word (A). During AC-learning, participants were instructed to actively reactivate B (the picture) and report their subjective reactivation strength. Participants were first-year university students studying either psychology or family studies and the stimuli consisted of new information from their curricula. We expected that both reactivation and congruency would enhance subsequent associative memory for the inferred BC-association. This was assessed by cueing participants with C (the description) and asking to freely describe the associated picture. Results show a significant enhancement of both B-reactivation and congruency on associative memory scores in both experiments. Additionally, subjective meta-memory measures exhibited the same effect. These outcomes, showing beneficial effects of both reactivation and congruency on memory formation, can be of interest to educational practice, where effectively building knowledge through reactivation is imperative for success.
In everyday life and in education, we continuously build and structure knowledge.1 To achieve this, we can integrate separately learned instances by inferring an association between them.2 This memory integration process is suggested to happen through reactivation of old information3 while learning new information and can help build a consistent knowledge network (or schema) in our brain that in turn serves future learning.4,5 Understanding more about how prior knowledge and reactivation affect new learning is important in situations where effective knowledge building is key, such as in education.
The presence of prior knowledge has been consistently shown to enhance learning of new, related information in education research,6 psychology,7,8 and cognitive neuroscience.4,9 Prior knowledge structures are suggested to facilitate many stages of memory processing—such as encoding, consolidation, and retrieval—and reduce the interference of competing memories.10 Information that is congruent with prior knowledge is therefore generally better remembered. Little is known, however, about the underlying mechanisms through which new memories get assimilated in prior knowledge structures, and how active reactivation of prior knowledge can benefit this process.
In experiments in psychology and neuroscience, memory integration is often assessed using an AB-AC inference paradigm.2,11 Here, participants first learn an association between A and B, and this association is later complemented by an association between A and C. Through the common factor A, participants are expected to be able to reactivate B and form an indirect association between B and C, which in turn enhances BC-memory. While this process of reactivation and association is widely suggested12,13 and has been linked to neural reactivation patterns during encoding,14,15 there is as yet little evidence linking subjective B-reactivation during AC-learning to the inferred BC-memory. An alternative hypothesis would be that the BC-link is inferred only at test.12 Therefore, assessing the link between prior knowledge reactivation strength during learning to subsequent memory performance16,17 will provide useful information for educational practice.
Here, we modified the AB-AC inference paradigm to investigate how active reactivation of prior knowledge affects learning. We performed two experiments with two within-subject factors: congruency (i.e. pre-experimental knowledge of a link between B and C) and reactivation (i.e., a subjective score of B-reactivation strength during AC-learning). Stimuli consisted of words (A), pictures (B), and short descriptions (C), all related to topics studied in the Psychology and Family Studies curricula of our university (examples in Fig. 1 and Table 2). During a post-learning memory test, we assessed how these factors affected item recognition for C and associative memory for BC (see Fig. 1).
We expected congruency to enhance subsequent memory, in line with findings that prior knowledge aids retrieval. Moreover, we expected subjective reactivation of the B-picture during AC-learning to also enhance subsequent memory, which would signify a prominent role for both these factors in everyday educational learning. Finally, we also explored potential associations with memory enhancement of other factors in our design: curiosity (experiment 1) and metamemory (experiment 2) judgments after AC-learning.
For each experiment, we will discuss results in the same order. First, we focus on overall average congruency effects for the AB-test before AC-learning (to show possible initial differences in memory between the conditions) and the memory tests after encoding (item recognition, associative recognition, and associative recall, see Fig. 1), which are also depicted in Table 1. We then move on to investigate the main effect of congruency on these memory tests and its interaction with curiosity/metamemory effects. We finish by investigating reactivation effects on memory, and congruency x reactivation interactions, which are considered the main important analyses of this experiment.
Table 1 shows mean performance as a function of congruency for the AB-test before AC-learning, item recognition, associative recall and associative recognition, and results of t-tests comparing congruent and incongruent items (see Fig. 1 and “Procedure” and “Memory tests (recall)” in the Methods section). No differences were found in AB-memory before AC-learning, nor on recognition of the C items. We did find a main effect of congruency on associative recall and associative recognition. However, congruent associative recognition scores were not significantly different from ceiling (t(20) = −1.65, P = .12, d = .36, 95% confidence interval (CI) = [−.04, .00]), so we decided to not consider this memory task for further analyses. All other measures were significantly different from chance and ceiling.
Subsequently, we tested for combined effects of congruency and curiosity on memory performance. We found no effects on item recognition (congruency: F(1,13) = 1.64, P = .22, η2 = .11; curiosity: F < 1; congruency x curiosity: F < 1), and only an effect of congruency on associative recall (congruency: F(1,11) = 8.06, P = .02, η2 = .42; curiosity: F(1,11) = 1.90, P = .20, η2 = .15; congruency x curiosity: F(1,11) = 3.0, P = .11, η2 = .21), which is consistent with the main effect of congruency mentioned above. No effects of curiosity on memory performance were found.
Next, we tested for the combined effects of congruency and reactivation on memory performance (Fig. 2a). We found an effect of reactivation only for item recognition (congruency: F < 1; reactivation: F(2,30) = 5.44, P = .01, η2 = .38; congruency x reactivation: F < 1) and of congruency and reactivation but no interaction for associative recall (congruency: F(1,12) = 9.87, P = .009, η2 = .45 reactivation: F(2,24) = 8.16, P = .002, η2 = .41; congruency x reactivation: F < 1). Congruency and reactivation of the B item thus independently affected associative recall of the indirect BC-association, while only reactivation but not congruency affected item recognition for the C item.
For experiment 2 we replaced curiosity ratings with metamemory ratings. Table 1 shows mean performance as a function of congruency for the AB-test before AC-learning, item recognition, associative recall and associative recognition, and results of t-tests comparing congruent and incongruent items (see Fig. 1 and “Procedure” and “Memory tests (recall”) in the Methods section). We found no difference between congruency conditions during the AB-test before AC-learning, showing no differences in AB-memory (see Table 1). We again found significant effects of congruency on associative recall and associative recognition recall, discussed below. Additionally, we now found an effect of congruency on item recognition as well. Moreover, associative recognition scores were significantly different from ceiling in experiment 2 but to remain consistent with experiment 1, and because scores were still very high overall (means 98 and 94% for congruent and incongruent scores respectively), we did not consider this memory task for further analyses.
When testing for combined effects of metamemory and congruency on memory performance, we found main effects of congruency and metamemory but no interaction on both item recognition (congruency: F(1,19) = 5.08, P = .04, η2 = .21; metamemory: F(1,19) = 15.63, P = .001, η2 = .45; congruency x metamemory: F < 1) and associative recall (congruency: F(1,17) = 17.73, P = .001, η2 = .51; metamemory: F(1,17) = 19.43, P < .001, η2 = .53; congruency x metamemory: F < 1). We subsequently tested combined effects of congruency and reactivation ratings on metamemory ratings to investigate whether participants took congruency and reactivation into account while making their ratings. This analysis showed a main effect of reactivation on metamemory (F(2,32) = 21.09, P < .001, η2 = .57), but no effect of congruency and no interaction between congruency and reactivation (both F < 1).
Finally, when testing for combined effects of reactivation and congruency on memory performance (Fig. 2b), we found a main effect of congruency but not of reactivation on item recognition (congruency: F(1,17) = 7.52, P = .01, η2 = .31; reactivation: F(2,34) = 1.64, P = .21, η2 = .09; congruency x reactivation: F < 1), and main effects of congruency and reactivation but no interaction on associative recall (congruency: F(1,16) = 21.89, P < .001, η2 = .58; reactivation: Greenhouse-Geisser F(1.36,21.69) = 22.24, P < .001, η2 = .58; congruency x reactivation: F < 1). Experiment 2 thus replicates the finding in experiment 1 that both congruency and reactivation enhance associative memory performance for the inferred BC-association.
One issue with the current analyses is the low number of trials in the different reactivation bins. Therefore, we retested the reactivation effects after combining bins “A bit” and “None” together, increasing the amount of trials per bin. Results remained the same: an effect of congruency and reactivation but no interaction. For details about this analysis see Supplementary text S2, where we also report trial count analyses.
In two experiments, we investigated the effects of congruency and subjective reactivation strength on inferring indirectly learned associations. Using an AB-AC inference paradigm with words (A), pictures (B), and descriptions (C), we found that both congruency and subjective reactivation strength enhance associative memory between B and C. This effect was evident in both experiments.
Our results show that pre-experimental congruency between the B and C items strongly affects subsequent memory for the inferred B-C association, and in experiment 2 it also affected recognition of the C-item. These findings fit well with previous literature on schema-related learning,4,7,18,19 and extend prior results by showing that congruency effects on memory are also present when congruency (or schema) is only accessible through (active) reactivation.20
Additionally, we found that subjective reactivation scores related to subsequent memory such that higher reactivation of B while studying the A–C pairs led to better memory of the indirect B–C associations, both for congruent and for incongruent B–C associations. This reactivation effect was present in both experiments for associative recall, and in Experiment 1 also for recognition of the C-item. The consistent effects of subjective reactivation on associative memory confirm our hypothesis and extend recent findings on recollection of AB-associations before AC-learning13 and effects on false memories.21 Moreover, our findings can have important consequences for educational practice where active reactivation of previously learned study material can aid subsequent memory.1,22
Lastly, we found that curiosity ratings did not relate to subsequent memory, but metamemory ratings did for both item recognition and associative memory. This meant that when participants predicted that they would remember the word (of which we did not test the memory), they were more likely to remember the description, and recall the association between the description and the picture. This suggests that metamemory judgments were at least to some degree accurate, consistent with previous research.23 Reactivation ratings were positively related to both metamemory judgments and subsequent memory performance, suggesting that participants based their judgments on the strength of reactivation, which turned out to be a valid indicator of later memory. These findings further inform the debate on the effects of familiarity and accessibility of memories on metamemory.24 Moreover, congruency also affected memory, but did not influence metamemory ratings. Participants may thus underestimate the effect of prior knowledge, here operationalized via congruency, on subsequent memory.
As concluded above, these results could be of interest for educational practice. Activating prior knowledge is already emphasized in various forms of teaching.16,17 Our results show that reactivation of prior knowledge during learning of new information indeed results in stronger association of new information with existing knowledge networks. This can be contrasted with the practice of considering knowledge as something stored externally, e.g., on the internet, which can be searched on a just-in-time basis.25 Our findings provide more reasons for why this “Google effect of memory” is undesirable. Instead, actively reactivating previously learned information when studying new information is beneficial for subsequent memory. Additionally, memory will be stronger when information already has a pre-existing association, such that the reactivated memory is congruent with the newly learned information. However, in cases where information is incongruent with or unrelated to prior knowledge, successful reactivation is still beneficial for subsequent associative memory. These results are in line with several memory theories, such as the schema,4,8 retrieval practice,26 and reconsolidation theories.27 So, our findings stress the necessity for a curriculum where knowledge is slowly expanded and previously learned information is often revisited to allow strong knowledge networks to form.28,29
Future studies could thus focus on how this reactivation effect can be successfully implemented in educational situations. One could then think of a replication of the current effect in an educational situation, or a training program where students and teachers are taught to more often or more efficiently reactivate prior knowledge when learning new information. Furthermore, in this experiment we have not tested for memory of the word (A), while in school tests this element is often used as a cue in tests. This is because we were specifically interested in knowledge building through integration between C and the reactivated term B. However, based on previous research,13,14,15,30,31 we expect all associations between A, B, and C to be strengthened as related to subjective reactivation, especially when B is fully recollected.13 Nevertheless, a wide range of literature also suggests that AC-memory might be compromised due to B-interference.11,32 These accounts require further exploration in future research. Finally, we acknowledge that the reactivation component in our experiment is an extreme simplification of reactivation in classroom learning. However, we propose that the pictures we used represent a more extended knowledge network that, when reactivated, enhances new learning. Finally, neuroimaging studies can reveal how the brain establishes this reactivation effect on memory.2,33
In conclusion, our findings in two separate, educationally relevant experiments show that both congruency and subjective reactivation enhance associative memory for inferred associations. Additionally, we find similar effects for metamemory judgments, replicating previous effects of subjective learning on subsequent memory. These findings can be of interest to students and teachers who wish to enhance their retention and understanding of educational subject matter.
Two experiments were performed. As only a few features in experiments 1 and 2 were different, we will first describe experiment 1 in detail after which we will note differences for experiment 2. The most important of these differences was that experiment 1 contained a timing manipulation in addition to the congruency manipulation. Here, participants either viewed A for 1.5 s and AC for another 2.5 s, or they viewed AC for the full 4 s. This condition was included because we hypothesized that the former condition would enhance retrieval of B and integration with C. This manipulation did not yield significant effects, so it was dropped for experiment 2. Therefore, we will only describe analyses on the remaining factors (congruency, reactivation, curiosity (experiment 1), and metamemory (experiment 2)) in the main text. More information about the timing manipulation and associated results can be found in Supplementary text S1.
In previous studies (for example see ref. 14,34), effect sizes of the manipulations used here tended to be large if manipulated within participant. A power analysis assuming large effect size and a statistical power of 0.95 (and standard settings of G-Power35) suggests a sample size of at least 23. However, since in such experiments some participants tend to be at floor or at ceiling, we aimed to test at least 30 participants in both experiments. In experiment 1, 31 Participants studying either Psychology or Family Studies at the VU Amsterdam were recruited at the end of their first or second study year. Recruitment was achieved through a university participant system, flyers, and social media. One participant was excluded due to technical issues (coding problem), and nine participants were excluded because they did not have enough stimuli (10 or more in either condition) left for analyses, leaving 21 participants that were included in the analyses (15 from Psychology, five from Family Studies, and one unknown). Of all included participants, age was known for 20 because one participant did not fill out their birth date. The remaining participants were between 18 and 25 years old (mean: 20.33, SD: 1.58), 5 were male, and all self-reported to not be color blind and speak Dutch fluently. For participation, participants provided written informed consent and received either study credit or monetary reward (minimally €10 and maximally €12, depending on time involvement). Ethical approval was obtained before start of the experiments from the ethical committee (VCWE) of the faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences of VU Amsterdam.
The AB-AC combinations consisted of 80 words (A), clip art type pictures (B) and descriptions (C). For each word, two pictures and two descriptions were created to be able to fully counterbalance congruency (see below). In total, the set thus contains twice as many pictures and descriptions (160) as words, but each participant only encountered 80 of these during encoding. These ABC-combinations were constructed from study material of the studies Psychology and Family Studies of VU Amsterdam, focusing specifically on material learned beyond the first study year. This approach was chosen so participants could build on prior knowledge related to their studies and would be more motivated to study the material.
The ABC-combinations (examples in Fig. 1 and Table 2) were constructed as follows. The words (A-items) were chosen from study material of the Psychology and Family Studies curriculum, second study year and up. All participants, irrespective of their field of study, received the same stimuli. Words were chosen to be not too long (3–37 letters) and never consist of more than two words, so that participants could quickly read them. The set consisted of mostly of Dutch words, but foreign words were chosen when no good Dutch alternative was available (e.g., the English term “Display rules” is used in Dutch pedagogical practices). This resulted in 10 English words, three Latin words, and two abbreviations out of 80.
B-items were clip-art pictures selected to have clear lines and colors and to not be aversive in any way. They were obtained through the internet and contained no text unless absolutely necessary for the description (e.g., in case of the Stroop task) and they were judged by the experimenters to be easily describable in a few words. Picture size was set to a maximum of 350 × 350 pixels, with either the height or the width minimally equal to this value to keep the natural dimensions of the pictures (e.g. a landscape-oriented picture would be 350 × 300 pixels whereas a portrait-oriented picture would be 300 × 350 pixels). All pictures were checked manually for clear resolution and size. C-items were descriptions, consisting of maximally five words (range 1–5) and maximally 37 letters (range 5–37). All these descriptions were in Dutch. The BC-associations were chosen such that they could be combined into two congruent and two incongruent associations (see Table 2). For example, for the word “Methylphenidate” a picture of a boy juggling a lot of tasks was coupled with the description “Medicine against ADHD”. Additionally, we added a picture of a sick smiley, coupled with the description “Can cause nausea”. We thus made sure that for the congruent associations, the description always related to something in the picture. The incongruent associations were constructed by combining the picture with the “wrong” description (e.g. boy with “Can cause nausea”, and smiley with “Medicine against ADHD”). We manually checked that each incongruent association did not contain clear possible congruent relations. This resulted in four different possible associations per word that were counterbalanced randomly over participants so individual pairings would not influence average performance. This meant that each participant only learned a random half of the stimulus set, which allowed us to use the other descriptions as lures during the item recognition task (see Recall).
The experimental procedure consisted of three parts: encoding, math task, and memory tests (recall). Participants were tested individually on a computer in a room shielded from outside noise. The task was presented with Presentation 19.0 (Neurobehavioral Systems) and participants used the computer keyboard to give responses. After giving informed consent and reading task instructions from a sheet of paper, participants performed a practice session consisting of three practice items that were not included in the experiment. After the practice session, they were allowed to ask questions and were given the opportunity to take the practice session again.
During encoding, an AB-AC inference paradigm was used (Fig. 1) consisting of three items: a word (A), clip-art pictures (B), and a description (C). Participants learned these associations in 10 blocks with 8 associations each, leading to a total of 80 associations. Encoding blocks contained three phases: AB-encoding, AB-recall, and AC-encoding (see Fig. 1). The order of associations within each phase was pre-randomized for each participant separately such that (1) the congruency factor was randomly assigned, (2) each block contained four congruent and four incongruent associations, and (3) order was pseudo-randomized such that no more than three of each factor (congruent or incongruent) followed each other. The stimulus order during AC-encoding was the same as AB-encoding, but AB-recall had a different pseudo-random order with the same boundary conditions. In order to understand what was expected of them, participants were cued with the block number before each block (“Block n”) and with a description of the phase that would follow before each phase (i.e., “Learning”, “Test” etc.). Here, they were also instructed which buttons they had to use if they needed to answer questions (buttons “1” and “2” for AB-recall and buttons “1”, “2”, and “3” for AC-encoding, see below). Each of these cues lasted two seconds. Background color was set to white throughout and the experiment was run on full screen.
First, during the AB-encoding phase, participants encoded eight AB-associations (word-picture), which were depicted in the middle of the screen, word above picture (see Fig. 1). Word color was set to black and word size to 30. Words and pictures were shown for three seconds each with an inter-trial interval (ITI) of one second. Participants were asked to passively look at the associations and try to remember them. After they learned eight AB-associations, participants were tested on each of these associations (AB-recall). They were shown each word again, in a different random order than during AB-learning. This time the word was shown with two pictures underneath, one of which was the correct associated picture and the other was one of the other, randomly selected, pictures they just learned in the preceding AB-encoding phase. The side (left or right) of the correct picture was randomly assigned as well. Participants were instructed to press either “1” for the left or “2” for the right picture on the computer keyboard. After they pressed, they immediately proceeded to the next picture or, if they did not press, the program would continue after three seconds maximum.
Then, participants proceeded to the AC-encoding phase. Here, they were shown each of the eight words again (in the same random order as during AB-encoding), but this time with an associated description, for four seconds (or 1.5 s A and 2.5 s AC, see Supplementary Text S1). Words were again shown in black above the descriptions, which were depicted in blue, both with the same text size. Participants were instructed to again study these associations and additionally try to reactivate the associated B-picture by generating a mental image. After stimulus presentation, participants were asked two questions. First, they were asked to indicate whether they (1) already knew the word, (2) thought the word was interesting, (3) thought the word was not interesting (curiosity). After they answered this question or, if they did not press, after four seconds, they moved on to the second question. Here, they were asked to indicate whether they managed to reactivate the B-picture: (1) strongly, (2) a bit, or (3) not. This trial was again presented for maximally four seconds. For both these questions, participants were instructed to answer with the buttons “1”, “2”, and “3” and answer as quickly as possible to avoid exceeding the answer period. After finishing this phase, they saw a block cue and moved on to the next block in which they learned 8 new associations. Encoding lasted approximately 25 min.
After encoding, participants performed a short math distraction task. Participants were asked to count backwards from a given number with a given step amount (e.g., from 89, count back in steps of 6). After 10 s, they were asked to type in the number they ended with and press “Enter”. Participants followed this procedure for 6 numbers, which lasted a few minutes, depending on how quickly participants answered. This task was solely included to disrupt possible ongoing working memory processes so logfiles were checked to see whether participants performed the task but data was not analyzed.
Memory tests (recall)
Following the math task, participants were tested on the learned C-items, first through an item recognition test, then a cued recall test, and finally an associative recognition test for each of the ABC-combinations that they learned during encoding (see recall panel in Fig. 1). Order was pseudo-randomized for each participant such that no more than three items of each condition (congruent and incongruent) followed each other. Lures consisted of all the descriptions that were not learned during encoding (80) and were interspersed pseudo-randomly using the same constraint. Before starting the memory test, participants received a practice trial containing five items of which three were previously seen during the encoding practice round. If they wished, they could do this practice task a second time.
First, participants performed an item recognition task for the C items. They were shown a description in the middle of the screen and were asked to indicate whether they learned this description during encoding. They did this by using a 6-point likert scale ranging from “1” (“very sure I learned this”) to ”6” (“very sure I did not learn this”). If participants indicated they learned an encoded stimulus (i.e., by using buttons 1–3), they continued to the next two memory tasks. Else, they were shown the next description. This trial lasted for four seconds regardless of when participants pressed a button. After answering, participants were shown their answer (with a red marking) on the screen and the screen froze for the remainder of the trial before moving to the next trial.
The second memory task (referred to as associative recall) was a cued recall test of the indirect BC-association where the description (part C) was used as a cue and participants were instructed to answer by typing in a description of the indirectly associated picture (B). Answer time was self-paced, and participants proceeded to the next test by pressing “Enter”. If they did not know the associated picture, they were instructed to press “Enter” immediately. Then, participants received a cue to put their fingers back on the buttons 1–6 and press “1” to continue. This was included to make sure participants could answer quickly in the next test.
That third memory task was an associative recognition test of the BC-association where the description (C) was used as a cue, and participants could choose from two pictures, one of which was the correct answer (B) and the other was randomly chosen from the full set of learned pictures while making sure that this lure picture only appeared as a lure once. The pictures appeared in random order next to each other underneath the description. To answer, participants used the same scale as during item recognition, where buttons 1–3 corresponded to the left picture and 4–6 to the right picture. This trial lasted for three seconds regardless of when participant pressed a button. After answering, participants were shown their answer (with a red marking) on the screen and the screen froze for the remainder of the trial before moving to the next trial.
Time spent on the memory tests depended on performance, specifically because the cued recall task involved typing in the answer in a self-paced manner (see below). Nevertheless, total participation time never exceeded 1.5 h. After finishing the recall task, participants filled out a study-specific questionnaire describing their experiences with the experiment, and a payment form in case they wanted a monetary compensation. They also received a debriefing that stated the goal of the experiment and provided the opportunity to learn about future outcomes of the experiment, and they were invited to ask questions about the nature of the experiment.
Analyses and code availability
Analyses were performed using custom Matlab 2015b (The Mathworks) scripts, IBM SPSS Statistics 23, GPower 3.1,35 and graphs were created using Jupyter Notebook (http://jupyter.org/) together with the Seaborn package (https://seaborn.pydata.org). All scripts can be found on https://github.com/marliekevk/Integrating-Educational-Knowledge. Stimuli of which the word was indicated to be known (to ensure new learning was going on), or were not responded to in time during AC-encoding were excluded from analyses. Additionally, trials that were not responded to in time during recall were omitted as well. As indicated above (in the Participants section), only participants that still had 10 or more trials left per condition (item recognition hits) after these omissions were included in the analyses (21 participants). For the curiosity and reactivation analyses, the trials that did not include a curiosity or reactivation score were also omitted.
To investigate congruency effects, we used paired-sample two-tailed T-tests on performance scores for all three memory tests (d-prime for item recognition, and percentage correct for associative recall and recognition), and one-sample two-tailed T-tests to detect differences from chance performance. D-prime was calculated by Z-scoring the hits and false alarms scores and calculating the difference between these measures (Z(hits)—Z(FA)).36 Confidence level was not further considered because of low trial numbers. In cases where there was a 0% false alarm rate in a certain condition, false alarms were recalculated using the MacMillan method37 (false alarm rate = 0.5/n where n is the maximum number of trials per condition). Correctness of the answers in the associative recall test (where participants were instructed to freely type in their answer) was assessed by hand by two independent raters that rated each description with either 0 (incorrect), 0.5 (partly correct) or 1 (correct). After independent rating, the two raters reached consensus on the items where they disagreed to come to a final rating per item. Performance in the final associative recognition test was calculated as the proportion of hits, independent of confidence.
To investigate effects of curiosity and reactivation, we calculated average memory scores for each bin (2 scores for curiosity and 3 scores for reactivation, see Encoding for details on these ratings). We subsequently assessed effects of within-subject factors congruency and curiosity (2 × 2) or reactivation (2 × 3) using a repeated-measures ANOVA. Note that because trials were not equally divided over curiosity, metamemory (see below Exp. 2), and reactivation factors, statistics for these factors were not necessarily equal in the different ANOVAs. For that reason, we report first paired-sample T-tests for main effects as well (see above), which would normally be redundant. Alpha was set at .05 throughout.
For experiment 2 we made a few adjustments to the experimental design. Only the differences are detailed below, the rest of the procedure and design was the same as in experiment 1.
Thirty participants were recruited at the end of their first study year (one year after experiment 1). One participant was excluded due to technical issues (no encoding logfiles were stored) and six participants were excluded because they did not have enough stimuli (ten or more in either condition) left for analyses, leaving 23 participants that were included in the analyses (16 from Psychology, five from family studies, and two unknown; seven male; mean age 20.32 SD 1.56, range 18–24).
We omitted the 16 associations that participants in experiment 1 indicated were most familiar from the set, leaving 64 associations divided over 8 blocks of 8 associations. These consisted, next to Dutch words, of seven English and two Latin words.
The timing condition was omitted because we did not find effects in experiment 1 (see SI), leaving only the congruency condition. Because of a null-effect for curiosity ratings as well, we now asked participants to indicate metamemory judgments (“how well do you think you will remember the word”) after AC-learning instead of curiosity ratings. More specifically, participants were asked whether they (1) already “knew”, (2) thought they were “going to remember” or (3) thought they were “not going to remember” the word. The rest of the procedure was the same, and for randomization only the congruency factor was taken into account. Because of the decrease in number of associations, this experiment was a bit shorter than experiment 1: approximately 20 min for encoding and 1 h and 20 min in total.
Data are openly available on Harvard Dataverse: https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/UQV9H4. Supplementary information (SI) is available online, and all original stimulus combinations are available upon request because of copyright issues.
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The authors wish to thank all participants for participating. Additionally, we would like to thank Alinda Wilbrink for help with stimulus construction, data acquisition, and performing first analyses on the data of Experiment 1, and Lianne de Vries for help with data acquisition for Experiment 2 and serving as second rater for the associative recall analyses. This research was funded with a Marie Curie Individual Fellowship of the EU Horizon2020 Framework Program for Research and Innovation awarded to Marlieke van Kesteren (Grant number 704506).
The authors declare no competing interests.
Publisher's note: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
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van Kesteren, M.T.R., Krabbendam, L. & Meeter, M. Integrating educational knowledge: reactivation of prior knowledge during educational learning enhances memory integration. npj Science Learn 3, 11 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-018-0027-8
Frontiers for Young Minds (2020)
npj Science of Learning (2020)
Scientific Reports (2020)
Instructional Science (2019) |
English is the primary language of our Parish. If something is said liturgically in Greek it's usually immediately repeated in English; in addition, all of our youth education classes are in English.
It's important to realize that, scripturally speaking, the Greek language is the language of both the Old and New Testaments. When the Apostles quote the Jewish Scripture in their own writings, the overwhelmingly dominant source for their wording comes directly from the Septuagint (LXX), which is the translation of the Jewish Scriptures into Koine Greek by 72 Jewish translators (6 from each Jewish tribe) in the 3rd century B.C. Please read the following article for more on this: Holy Scripture.
Orthodox Priests are required to spend years studying the Greek language in all of its forms, even if they've grown up speaking it themselves! They read and teach from the very texts the Apostles studied (i.e. the Septuagint), and ALL of the texts of the New Testament were written in Greek except for the book of Matthew (Aramaic). So you're in good hands since you'll be hearing the best english translation and apostolic interpretations available!!!
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The Music Curriculum at Hever
Music Lead - Mrs Ruth Gray
Our Music curriculum aims to provide children with the knowledge and skills to engage with and make music. We follow a wonderful scheme called Charanga that enables us to give the children a rich and varied experience of music styles, and to teach musical knowledge and skills in an exciting way.
Within each unit of work, children are introduced to a new genre of music from around the world. They learn to read simple musical notation, to sing and perform and to apply this knowledge within an improvisation.
We also have two wonderful peripatetic Music teachers who offer one to one and group tuition in a variety of instruments.
As a school we foster children's love of music through meaningful experiences, such as the Young Voices Choir and whole class violin lessons for Year 4.
Genres, skills and songs covered through the curriculum:
Hip Hop, Reggae, Blues, Latin, Folk, Funk, Baroque, Bhangra, Latin Bossa Nova, Film scores, Big Band Jazz, Mash-up, Latin Fusion, Pop, Musicals, Western Classical Music
South African Music, Christmas, Big Band, Motown, Elvis, Freedom Songs, Rock, Reggae, Songs about friendship, Western Classical Music
R&B, Western Classical, Musicals, Motown, Soul, basic instrumental skills, Reggae, a little bit funky and music from around the world, disco, Western Classical Music
1970s pop, basic instrumental skills by playing tunes in varying styles, Grime, Classical, Bhangra, Tango, Latin Fusion, Gospel, Pop/Folk, Western Classical Music
Rock, Jazz, Pop Ballads, Hip Hop, Motown, Western Classical Music
Pop/Motown, Jazz, Latin, Blues, Benjamin Britten (Western Classical Music), Gospel, Bhangra, Female Musicians, 1970s Acoustic Folk, Western Classical Music
Updated February 2021 |
||William Falconer's Dictionary of the Marine
Table of Contents
BACK of the post to BALANCE of the mizen
BALANCE of the boom sail to BARK
BARNACLE to BEAMS
BEAMS to BED of a river
BED of a cannon to BIGHT
BILANDER to BLACK-STRAKES
BLADE to Trim the BOAT!
To bale the BOAT to BOLT-ROPE
BOMB to BOTTOM
BOTTOM to BOX-HAULING
BOXING to To BREAK-UP
BREAK-WATER to BRIDLES of the bowline
BRIG, or BRIGANTINE to Ship-BUILDING
BRIG, or BRIGANTINE
To BRING by the lee
Ship-BUILDING to BUNTINE
BUNTLINES to BUTTONS
Ship-BUILDING (continued)Under this is placed another piece parallel thereto, and called the deck-transom, upon which the after-end of the lower-deck is supported. Parallel to the deck-transom, and at a proper distance under it, another piece is fixed to the stern-post, called the first transom, all of which serve to connect the stern-post to the fashion-pieces. Two more transoms, called the second and third, are also placed under these, being likewise attached to the fashion-pieces, into which the extremities of all the transoms are set, as exhibited in plate X. fig. I. The fashion-pieces are formed like the other timbers of the ship, and have their heels resting on the upper-part of the kelson, at the after extremity of the floor-ribbands.
All these pieces, viz. the transoms, the fashion-pieces, and their top-timbers, being strongly united into one frame, are elevated upon the sternpost, and the whole forms the structure of the stern, upon which the galleries and windows, with their ornaments, are afterwards built.
The stem and stern-post being thus elevated upon the keel, to which they are securely connected by knees and arched pieces of timber bolted to both; and the keel being raised at it's two extremities by pieces of dead-wood, the midship floor-timber is placed across the keel, whereto it is bolted through the middle. The floor-timbers before and abaft the midship-frame are then stationed in their proper places upon the keel; after which the kelson, which, like the keel, is composed of several pieces scarsed together, is fixed across the middle of the floor-timbers, to which it is attached by bolts driven through the keel, and clinched on the upper-part of the kelson. The futtocks are then raised upon the floor-timbers, and the bawse-pieces erected upon the cant-timbers in the fore-part of the ship.
The top-timbers on each side are next attached to the head of the futtocks, as already explained in the article Naval ARCHITECTURE. The frames of the principal timbers being thus completed, are supported by ribbands, as exhibited in the plate referred to from the article RIBBANDS.
The ribs of the ship, being now stationed, they proceed to fix on the planks, of which the wales are the principal, being much thicker and stronger than the rest; as is represented in the MIDSHIP-FRAME. The harpins, which may be considered as a continuation of the wales at their fore-ends, are fixed across the hawse-pieces, and surround the fore-part of the ship. The planks that inclose the ship's sides are then brought about the timbers, and the clamps, which are of equal thickness with the wales, fixed opposite to the wales within the ship; these are used to support the ends of the beams, and accordingly stretch from one end of the ship to the other. The thick sluff, or strong planks of the bottom within-board, are then placed opposite to the several scarfs of the timbers, to reinforce them throughout the ship's length. The planks employed to line the ship, called the ceiling, or foot-waling, is next fixed in the intervals between the thick-stuff of the hold. The beams are afterwards laid across the ship to support the decks, and are connected to the side by lodging and hanging knees; the former of which are exhibited in their proper stations in plate III. F. and the hanging ones, together with the breadth, thickness, and position of the keel, floor-timbers, futtocks, top-timbers, wales, clamps, thick-stuff planks within and without, beams, decks, &c. are seen in the MIDSHIP-FRAME.
© Derived from Thomas Cadell's new corrected edition, London: 1780, page 53, 2004
Published by South Seas, using the Web Academic Resource Publisher
To cite this page use: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cs-ss-refs-falc-0223 |
What Is Credit And Why Do You Need It?
What Is Credit?
Simply put, credit is borrowed money that you can use to purchase products and services. You get credit from a credit grantor, who you agree to pay back any amount spent/borrowed within an agreed-upon time, plus any applicable charges or fees.
Four Types Of Credit
- Revolving credit – This is one of the most common types of credit. With revolving credit, you are given a maximum credit limit (for example, $5,000), and you can make purchases/charges up to that limit at any given time. Credit cards and home equity lines of credit are popular forms of revolving credit. They usually require minimum monthly payments and accrue interest if you carry a balance from month to month.
- Installment credit – This is another popular form of credit. Installment credit generally refers to a loan for a set amount of money with a fixed, recurring payment schedule. An example of this would be, you borrow $15,000 to purchase a new car and you have a term of 48 months to pay the balance off. There are numerous types of installment loans, including student loans, mortgages, auto loans, personal loans, and more.
- Open credit – This is a somewhat rare type of credit. A person can borrow up to a maximum amount (like a credit card), but it must be paid back in full each month. An example of open credit is a charge card, which is not the same thing as a credit card.
- Service credit – Most people use a form of service credit every day, from heat, electricity, phone, and similar services. Service credit is often one of the first forms of credit acquired by a person starting out on their own. Since this of credit is typically one of the first forms of credit utilized by a person, it’s important to stay on top of payments in the early years to establish a solid credit history.
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Why Do You Need Credit?
Good credit is necessary if you plan to make a major purchase that you can’t pay cash for. Common examples include a new car, home or even renting an apartment in some cases. Credit grantors review credit information to determine financial risk: If they lend you money, will you pay it back? Your credit history also factors into the interest rate you will pay on a loan or credit card. The more history you have of paying loan amounts off in a timely manner, the more likely you’ll receive a lower interest rate from a lender and in the long run saving you money.
Check Your Credit Score For Free!
One of the many perks of being an Honor Credit Union member is we provide you with your updated VantageScore four times per year, completely free. These quarterly updates are done through soft pulls of your credit, so rest assured these have absolutely no impact on your score itself.
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- Log in to online banking on your desktop computer
- Under the “My Accounts” tab, select Credit Score
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By Daniel & Nicole
Hockey was included for the first time in the competition schedule of the 1908 Olympic games. In the United States we call it field hockey.
Hockey is a keep away game, teams try to keep the ball away from the other team and try to score a goal so you win. It is played in two halves of 35 minutes each with a half time of ten minutes. The team with the most goals at the end of the game wins.
At the Olympics Hockey is played outdoors on a grass or synthetic field with eleven players each on two teams. To play hockey you need a ball, a stick, a goal, and goalie equipment. The ball is white, hard and made of Teflon and is a little bumpy. The stick is made of wood or carbon fibre and is smooth and straight with one curved end. At the end, one side is flat. The goalkeeper wears body protection. leg guards, hand protection and a helmet with a mask.
In hockey you can only use the flat face or edge of the stick, but if you are goalie you can use all of the stick and you can also use every part of your body. Good hockey players hockey are able to control, pass, push and hit the ball.
Hockey became an Olympic sport in 1908. At the Olympics there will be men's teams and women's teams.
This page was last edited December 02, 2005.
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Modified this week 5 days ago January 10, 2021, 7:39 pm
Sentences showing verbs and tenses
- The Earth turns around the Sun.(10)
- park got a goal yesterday.(55)
- Tom will take an exam tomorrow.(10)
- Sam has finished his homework.(5)
- When I came home, My mom had cleaned up the living room.(2)
- Come to my office, at that time I will have finished my work.(1)
- An englishman is walking on the street in New York.(10)
- When Ann called me, I was reading a book.(3)
- When you visit to his office, he will be working there.(1)
- Susan has been doing yoga since 2000.(1)
- When I came out of the airport, it had been raining.(1)
- Mike will have been speaking until he dies.(1)
Sentences showing some patterns
- Charlie got a golden ticket.
- Tom was interested in darwing.
- Nemo was late for school.
- George's grandma took a medicine.
- Sullivan took care of Helen.
- The teacher had students read books.
- John allowed his brother to use his car.
- The witch turned the prince into a frog.
Four basic noun forms
- Love is real. (John Lennon's song)
- It's a book.
- I like apples.
- pass me the pencil, please.
- A brave knight killed a dragon.
- The internet cafe is popular with students who want to play the computer games.
- This webcam on the monitor seems to see me. It's just kidding.
- I have lots of things to do.
- The garden full of flowers is a paradise for butterflies.
- The swan flying in the sky disappear into the clouds.
- The woman called pyoungyangdaek is not from pyoungyang.
- This simple rules that give learners how to write should be drilled until learners have English mind.
- The Christmas when Jesus was born is coming.
- I didn't understand his theory that nothing is faster than the light.
- You are so beautiful.
- Seeing is believing.
- To see is to believe.
- Sam thinks that his girl friend is pretty.
- Students learned why the Earth turns around the Sun.
- I often go to the movies.
- A bird was flying in the sky.
- I am glad to meet you.
- Having lunch, we studied English.
- Jim was late for work because he had forgotten to bring his car key.
- As Alice came out of the house, it was snowing. |
Teaching a Child To Shoot
I believe that if guns are to be present in a family, the children should be taught to shoot. Each child reaches the maturity level necessary at different times, as all children are different. The average time usually occurs around age seven, when the child reaches Erikson's industry vs. inferiority conflict. This stage, often called the Latency, is a time when we are capable of learning and accomplishing numerous new complex skills and knowledge. The skills and values learned at this time often stay with the person throughout their life, and form the foundation of their personality in adulthood. Many competent shooters, of all ages relate being taught to shoot by a father or uncle at age seven or eight.
But why shooting? Shooting accurately is a task that demands concentration and dedication unmatched in many endeavors. Holes in targets that spread across the surface or clump together like clover leaves on a bulls eye is instant, nonjudgmental evidence of whether the shooter is applying what they have learned. Other sports do not have this no error aspect. In basketball, there is always another shot. In football another down. Baseball has another inning. In most sports, scores are accumulated by success. In shooting, scores are tabulated by failures. There are lessons to be learned from that.
Even though I am not a hunter, I have to consider the values instilled in a child through hunting. The quietness necessary to get close enough to game is lost on many children. The one chance or go hungry aspect of hunting, especially as referred to by Rufus Hussey introduces the child to the realities of the adult world. Do your job right, and you will be fed. Continue to do it wrong, and you will go hungry....... Or get on public assistance.
So why teach a child to shoot? If done successfully, shooting provides the child with demonstrative evidence of their competence at a skill that elevates them above the common man. Competence in shooting is not measured by time spent, rounds down range, or firearms owned. It is measured by holes in targets. A ten year old child, competent with his rifle, can best a thirty year old man who is not. The result is self esteem and confidence in oneself. That is the real reason to teach a child to shoot, whether it is plinking at tin cans, or shooting competitively.
There are those who say that if there are going to be guns in the home, they should be locked away from children. Guns should be secured when not in use or under adult control. Children do not all have equal levels of maturity, and parents will often be surprised at what a child does when the child is alone with friends. Teaching the child to shoot removes the lure of the taboo from the gun in the home. If anything, the gun safety that the child learns will serve them well when they are at a friend's home, and the friend want to show off the unsecured gun in the house.
The bottom line though is that we owe it to our children to teach them how to shoot. Firearms are a means of self preservation unparalleled in defensive circles. Even a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick is eclipsed by the power of a 30.06. When we teach our children to shoot, we are giving them power. Power to do good, power to sustain themselves, and the power to preserve their way of life. Yes, we are also giving them the power to do evil, if they so choose. What we must remember is that we must not simply teach our children to shoot, or play ball, or do algebra. We must teach them the value of these endeavors. We must teach them to value themselves. What Randy Pausch said was true. It's a head fake. Indirect learning. We learn best the things that we did not even know we were learning at all. Perseverance. Discipline. Individual accomplishment. Responsibility. Self respect. Respect for others. Confidence. Humility. These are the values a child learns indirectly when taught marksmanship. They are also the values that will insure the child uses what they have learned appropriately. |
Scale free networks are said to be robust. But they are robust in only a peculiar statistical sense. Consider, as an example, the road network. The roadways in most regions are scale free networks. They are robust in the sense that if you select a random road in the network and remove it from service the effect on traffic is very slight. Obviously this is just a trick; the randomly selected road is typically going to be some minor dirt road way out on the tail of the distribution. The effect of it’s removal will likely go unoticed until somebody decides to drive up there next fall to collect a load of firewood.
Random attacks are only one kind of risk systems need to guard against. Pick the right intersection and you can do plenty of harm to a region’s road network. The random failure model assumes that the source of trouble is uncorrolated with the topology of the network. Scale free networks seem almost brittle if the failures are aligned with the hubs in the network.
There are key intersections in the local road network that often fail, because traffic is perfectly aligned with the network’s hubs and a simple fender bender can take the intersection out of service. It would be much worse than it is if the system didn’t adapt. The failing hubs attract the attention of highway engineers and they adjust the traffic flows to reduce the incidence traffic related failures.
Various sources of failure raindown on systems like these. If the rain is totally random then the scale free network is robust because the hubs are hidden in a mist of far far less critical hubs. If the system threads are aligned with the topology of the network, like traffic on the roads, then the system can respond in one of three ways. It can add resources to the hub. You can change the topology of the network. You can offensively attempt to stop the source of the failures.
For example shift this over into a biological frame. Radiation rains down on the animal continously triggering numerous tiny failures but the scale free system design makes that chance of total system failure from quite low. The body’s various organs serve as hubs and each one of the has evolved to accumulate redundancy and numerous of special case adaptions to deal with the problems that arise from the ebb and flow of the work they perform. And then there is always good hygiene.
But notice that changing the topology of the network isn’t on the list. I suspect that’s because I don’t really know anything about biology. Maybe that if you want to see changing topology you have to shift from single species to ecologies?
It’s hard for individuals to shift topology. The city maybe at risk because it has only one bridge over the river and the traffic engineer can say “you really need to build in some redundancy,” but it is hard to get a redundent topology to emerge if the system has already condensed into a topology without one. It’s particularly difficult if your going to have to shift resources to make it happen. Displacing people from their property or taxing the efficency of the existing system to fund the shift. For this reason systems tend to fail rather than adapt. It’s notable that the scalefree topology is actually resistent to change.
It seems relevant to point out at this point that there is a large section of the US highway system that isn’t scale free. The interstate highway system – built by military minds – isn’t. That seems relevant because if you fear an attacker who is extremely smart you may prefer to design a system that forgos some of the efficency advantages of a perfectly scalefree network and instead design a system that is topologically more random. Maintaining that will be hard though, because over time the system will evolve toward the scalefree pattern as it seeks the efficency of hubs. In fact over the decades the interstate highway system has become less a grid and more a scale free network.
The assumption that adaptible systems can always respond to any problem is just plain false. We don’t have two hearts and we are unlikely to evolve a second one. The only time that it’s true is when the attack on the system isn’t fatal, but only painful enough that it allows the system time to adapt. If the system is attacked at it’s hubs with sufficent vigor it will collapse.
Since scale free system appear in so many venues these points apply in many venues. The military comming out of the second world war was very sensitive to these issues and the design of the interstate highway system reflected that. They traded efficency for a more resilient topology. The design of the internet was similarly intentionally laid out with that in mind, though most of that’s been lost. I suspect this is one reason why London’s circle line, which forms a kind of hub, was the target of the terrorist’s attacks. |
In 1862 Rudolph Koenig (1832-1901) developed the manometric flame apparatus, which was used into the first decade of the twentieth century to examine the wave-shapes of sounds. The heart of the apparatus is the manometric flame capsule. In the Kenyon apparatus, sound enters the capsule from the left-hand side (probably conveyed there via a funnel and a length of rubber hose), and impinges on a rubber membrane placed between the two halves of the capsule. Illuminating gas enters at the bottom of the shaft and burns in a small flame at the upper right-hand corner. The oscillations of the membrane modulate the gas supply, and the height of the gas flame varies accordingly. The oscillating gas flame is viewed in the rotating mirror, which supplies the necessary time base to make the waveshape visible.
The manometric flame in the Kenyon apparatus was made by Central Scientific, and the rotating mirror by Knott of Boston. The latter was sophisticated (and cost $9.75 in 1916); inside the mirror is a mechanical governor to keep the rotation rate constant. The capsule from St. Patrick's College (Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland) is by Yeates of Dublin, and has two mouthpieces attached to it, one being used as a base. In use, one of the mouthpieces would be attached to the sound input tube on the left-hand side.
REFERENCE: Thomas B. Greenslade, Jr., "The Rotating Mirror", Phys.
Teach., 19, 253-254 (1981)
|This unmarked apparatus at Duke University combines the capsule and the rotating mirror on one base. It is probably German and from the first years of the 20th century.|
| At the left is a large manometric flame apparatus made
by the firm of W. A. Olmsted of Chicago sometime prior to 1898, when the
company was destroyed by a fire in which Olmsted was killed. It is 13 inches
in height and the spun brass cone is removable.
At the right is an equally large rotating mirrors dating from about 1900. It is unmarked, but looks like a piece of apparatus by Max Kohl of Chemnitz, Germany.
This apparatus is in the Greenslade collection.
| The maker's mark at the top of the manometric flame apparatus
at the left is difficult to decipher, but it starts with "M" and ends with
"O&Co.", suggesting that it was made by the McIntosh Battery and Optical
Company of Chicago. This company sold out to Olmsted in May, 1897, setting
an upper bound to the age of the apparatus.
REF: Thomas B. Greenslade, Jr., “Apparatus Manufacturers in Chicago, ca. 1900”, Rittenhouse, 13, 16-19 (1999)
The rotating mirror apparatus at the right is by Knott.
Both pieces of apparatus are in the Greenslade collection.
||The unmarked manometric flame at the left is in the Greenslade Collection.|
| The manometric flame apparatus at the right
is by Kipp of Delft in the Netherlands. I was not able to take it apart,
but I think that the shielded leads are attached to a small speaker, which
is directed downward to the vibrating membrane of the manometeric flame
at the bottom. At the left is the gas supply, and the flame is at the right.
As such, this is a hybrid between the fully mechanical system of observing acoustical wave shapes with a manometric flame and a rotating mirror, and the fully electrical system using a microphone and an oscilloscope.
The apparatus is in the Greenslade Collection. |
عنوان مقاله [English]
Problem related to water scarcity has always been one of the most important issues to be considered in arid and semi-arid regions. Due to the seasonality of surface water drainages and subsurface structures in these regions, it is necessary to use structures which control and store the water flow in order to be used during arid seasons. One of these types of structures is underground dam to control the flow of water in the subsurface.
In semiarid and arid areas in which deserts are progressing, exploitation of water has been focused on underground surface water resources having the trouble of stability (Ouerdachi, L., et al., 2012). These conditions require the use of surface and underground short dams for exploiting water in developing countries with arid weather situations. At present, these kinds of structures have been desirably featured in terms of both implication and efficacy in performance (Nilsson 1986, Cavalcanti, N.B., 2001).
2. Materials and methods
The area studied is part of Semnan province and its surroundings are 216467 hectares in width which geographically have the coordinates of 53D 81M to 53D 15M eastern longitude and 35D 13M to 35D 85M northern latitude. Evaluation of station climes studied by both Domarten and Amberje indicates that the studied span has a semi dry-cold climate at heights reaching cold-arid climate where lower-height areas exist. The situation of considered area is shown in Figure 1. With respect to climatic conditions, there are many syllabic flows throughout side hills of the area where underground dam’s establishment is a proper way to control aridity problem in arid seasons of this area. The most significant data of this study are related to topography, geology, underground water, and aqueduct resources. Software used in this research are both expert choice to prioritize and Geography information systems to combine data.
In this research, basic criteria of evaluation including water, pedestals, fountain, economic-social criteria have been targeted at the highest range placing indicators and incidentals criteria at other categories of AHP. Then, proper locations for underground dam establishment have been prioritized.
3. Results and discussion
Based on Gorry and Morton method, decision-making supportive systems are either the systems capable of transporting data or computerized systems which can be used to solve our problems clearly or partly clearly known or unknown respectively (Gorry, G. A., and Morton, M.S., 1971). Decision-making supportive systems are models which receive vast majority of data and deliver many solutions specifically designed to overcome the existing problem (Klosterman, R.E., 1997). Decision support systems (DSs) used in identifying proper location to underground dam establishment possess AHP mode and are used in three stages.
Considering climatic conditions over the area studied and existing stream, Underground dam establishment highly affects both performance revising and balancing act in underground water removal. Using new methods instead of traditional and time-consuming ones, can highly help with saving time and cost to underground dam location-finding. In the first step of this research, presented DSs considering eliminating criteria in the area of 216467 hectares in width assign suitable pedestal in each limit which is capable of potential underground dam establishment. Then, in the second step, the most suitable strait in each limit is assigned to the underground dam establishment. In the latest step after weighting each main criterion at its related map and as well adding total values of map pixels together in a software called GIS, 8 locations to underground dam establishment at the second step of location-finding in fifth scenario were prioritized as follows:
First scenario (weights equality of four main criteria) locations: 5, 3, 2, 4, 6, 1
Second scenario (priority with water criterion) locations: 5, 3, 2, 6, 1, 4
Third scenario (priority with pedestals criterion) locations: 5, 6, 4, 3, 1, 2
Forth scenario (priority with fountain criterion) locations: 3, 6, 4, 5, 1, 2
Fifth scenario (priority with economic-social issues) locations: 3, 1, 5, 4, 2, 6
As shown in most scenarios, pedestals A and D mostly take first to third place. Furthermore, theses pedestals as the best ones catering for all groups’ opinion to underground dam establishment can be offered. |
An Imperial College study of the mRNA vaccine against COVID-19 published on Friday had found that people who have not previously contracted the virus and have received the first of two doses of the shot are still susceptible to the mutations of the virus, such as the South African and Kent variants.
The research was based on immune responses of UK healthcare workers that received their first dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. It turned out that those who already had mild or even asymptomatic infection are significantly more protected against the virus strains.
“This study highlights the importance of getting second doses of the vaccine rolled out to protect the population,” said Professor Rosemary Boyton, who led the study. The findings are important for those countries that chose the strategy of giving the first dose to as many people as possible, prolonging the wait for the second shot. |
Both works from Morton and Giovanni gives an account for the earliest of Native American cultures and life. In his work, Morton was considered to as an irresponsible liberitine due to his tendency of fictionalizing and harshly criticizing the Pilgrims. Morton has come out strongly to present accurate and sympathetic account telling more about Native Americans culture, way of life and appreciates the beauty of American landscape. Morton is using satire and humor to enhance critical view of hypocrisy of the Pilgrims and he is comparing the Pilgrims inhumanity to being kind and their humanity to the Indians.
New English Canaan
Morton using printed literature to offer a challenge to the authority, this has contributed much to the uncomfortability of Puritans and seems to be causing serious threats to the colony leaders. Morton’s May Day celebrations are interpreted by the Puritans as act of Paganism. Despite him observing the Anglican Church, the Puritans are still finding the Anglican Church as vile.
Morton works is showing a deliberate mixture of classical and Biblical allusions which he has designed to directly offend the Puritans. His classical allusions are superfluous and to great extent offensive I God’s eyes and also to be mixed with Biblical allusions (Morton, 1999).
The book of New English Canaan is insisting on the Natives humanity and Morton is admiring their simple life. He is going ahead to contrast them with Puritans who he is seeing as devoid of humanity and ill-educated, this in its way demoralizes the Puritans in the society. In his second book, Morton is describing the natural resources in the New England. The critique behind the work is that he is giving priority to the Englishmen to explore the available commodities in New England before the Dutch explores them.
The third book of New English Canaan talks of lives of Puritan and their conflict among the inhabitants of Ma-re Mount. The book has satirical tone and has used a variety of style from being satire to narrative and then to complex allegory. The erecting of maypole is the most notable part in this book and it contains two poems,” Rise Oedipus” a composed poem and a song (drinking song) sung by revelers as around the maypole. The rest of the book contains Morton’s two arrest and deportation destroy Morton’s attacks those who had sought to destroy him making the tone to increase and also use of humor e.g. he calls Miles Standish “Captain Shrimp “hence satirizes Puritans wickedness. In his work Morton shows facts and fiction using styles such as allusions and references. The work is somehow confusing since Morton insight into the lives of the colonialist, Indians and also Morton’s himself (Morton, 1999).
Giovanni da Verrazzano
Giovanni da Verrazano was an Italian navigator and explorer between 1518 and 1528, he became the first European to explore, discover and chart the Atlantic coastline of North America; he first discovered the cape fear, and proceeded his exploration to north Carolina and also, most importantly he discovered the New York. The king of France was among the European competitors who sort for new territories, therefore, Verrazano among others a few was considered suitable for the exploration. He started his voyage in 1524 and whose main objective was to find a waterway intended to connect the Atlantic ocean to pacific ocean that would eventually give a way to Asia an particularly to china; also part of the mission was to capture Spanish ships ((Verrazzano, 1841). Of the four ships deployed by the king of France, only that of the Verrazano succeeded in exploring the North America as the other three broke away and engaged in pirating and capturing the Spanish ships for precious commodities. Verrazano was not successful in establishing the passages but he did a great working describing the eastern coast of North America as well. Other voyages included west India, Brazil and China; he died in 1528.
The goal of Verrazano work was mainly to fulfill the duty and the requirements of the king of France in discovering new lands, north western sea passage to china and pirating the Spanish ships whereas that of Morton’s focused specifically on the earliest description of life and culture of native Americans. The purposes of these two works are not the same as one centralizes in the life and culture as the other considers land exploration. In one way or the other the works of Morton and Verrazano are interconnected in historical development such that as latter discovers and explores the new land of North America, the former describes the way of life and traditional aspects of people living in these regions.
Verrazano work is not exhaustive and precisely accurate. In as much as he had opportunities to explore much of the interior land he did not do so apart from one occasion during winter when he and his crew spent much time offshore in a winter. An appropriate example is when he discovered the Chesapeake Bay and immediately concluded that it was a connection of between the continent of China and North America without further investigation. On the other hand Morton’s work is fictionalized to some extent through the use of humor, attire, symbolism and other aspects of literature in describing humanity thus making it a little hard to believe some of his work.
As he describes the accounts of his exploration, Verrazano shows aspects of possessiveness as he tends to reflect on the success of the voyages from his effort. Therefore, his work is deemed to be exaggerated in actual findings and success despite occasional description of failures and challenges faced for instance the fact that he was able to retrieve fire from a burning stick of a native is not put in the right omen of mere chance (Verrazzano,1841).
Much of the work of Verrazano revolves in the style of description. He gives an account of the voyage findings though detailed description of geographical appearances, flora, fauna and natives of the land. For instance, in his letter describes the clothing of the natives as, “They clothe themselves in the skins of bears, lynxes, seals, and other animals.” Nevertheless, Morton’s work applies the style of narrative as he narrates the history of life and culture of Native Americans through the use of humor and satire to give a contrast of humanity of India, China and Native Americans.
In conclusion, the analysis of the two works depicts the development of the history of the ancient North America at different angle. Both works in as much as they give abundant knowledge of the history they have short comings and challenges as discussed. |
Syphilis is an uncommon sexual transmitted infection caused by the bacteria spirochetes or treponema pallidum.
It also referred to as Lues. Generally, it infects women mostly among sexually active adults aged between 20-29.
Usually you can acquire syphilis infection from sexual contact with an infected person particularly through direct contact with syphilis sore.
Mostly, the sores occur on the external genitals, vagina, anus, or in the rectum. It also occurs on the lips as well as in the mouth.
This infection can also pass to your baby through the placenta during pregnancy. Syphilis that is transmitted to a fetus during pregnancy is called congenital syphilis. It is estimated that about half a million infants are born with congenital syphilis every year worldwide.
If you are with syphilis and became pregnant at any stage of this infection, then the infection can pass to your fetus in the womb any time during your pregnancy through the bloodstream across the placenta.
Your baby may acquire this infection even during delivery. Remember that not all infants born to infected women will be infected. Also, if syphilis is detected and left untreated, then it results in a high risk of a bad outcome of the pregnancy by becoming chronic, transmitting throughout the body.
There is a very high chance that your baby may born with infection, particularly if you’re in the early stages of the disease, the most infectious period.
About two out of five pregnant women with untreated early syphilis end up with a miscarriage, a stillbirth (a baby born dead), premature births, permanent disability baby, disfigured baby or a baby who dies shortly after birth.
However, if your baby is among those that born with syphilis infection then your baby may exhibit no symptoms immediate after birth, but in the first few months your infected baby may typically experience skin rashes or small sores on the body.
Also, the baby may develop lesions around the mouth, genitals, and anus. May have yellowish skin (jaundice), a bloody and running nose, anemia, swollen arms and legs, or severe pneumonia at an early stage of life.
In some rare cases, some of these symptoms may develop at birth and even some other problems, such as enlarged livers and spleens.
If these symptoms are detected and left your baby untreated, then serious physical problems can occur years later, such as bone damage, teeth damage, vision problem, hearing loss, and also neurological problems.
In some cases, your baby can have brain seizures and may experience very late mental growth and slowed physical growth.
That’s why it’s critical for you to be tested for syphilis in the early stages when you become pregnant and if your syphilis is detected then treatment during pregnancy lowers the risk of syphilis in the infant.
Thus, you and your baby will most likely be fine and healthy. But, in any case, if your baby born with syphilis then they need to be fully evaluated and treated as well. |
Croatia is on the so-called Balkan route of migration that runs from Serbia to the countries of the EU. How does the country, soon to become the 28th Member State of the Union, deal with migration issues? We have asked Julija Kranjec, expert in asylum and migration policy of the Centre for Peace Studies in Zagreb
How many asylum seekers and illegal migrants are there in Croatia, according to your estimates? Which countries do they come from?
According to data from UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), at the beginning of 2012 there were 122 people – mostly from Afghanistan, Somalia, Pakistan, and Iraq – who had applied for asylum in Croatia. 2035 applied in the period between 1997 and 2011. Of these, 47 have received some kind of protection – 29 asylum applications were accepted and 18 people have obtained the so-called subsidiary protection since 2004.
As for irregular migrants, in 2011 the Ježevo shelter hosted 649 people, mostly from Afghanistan, Turkey, Albania, and Kosovo.
The number of asylum seekers in Croatia and the region has grown continuously over the last 2-3 years. Why? What do you think will happen when Croatia becomes a member of the European Union and the Schengen area?
To be more precise, there has been an increase in both asylum applications and illegal entries. However, whether all these people are actually going to stay remains an open question. According to statistics from the Croatian Home Office, most refugees leave Croatia before receiving the final decision on their asylum application, which suggests that they perceive Croatia as a transit country.
In our daily work, however, we have noticed a growing interest in Croatia as a destination. The reasons for this are the recently developed democracy and improved security, which set the country apart from the ones the migrants flee from. Croatia's entry into the European Union in the near Future is one more reason to stay. We in fact foresee an increase in the number of irregular migrants and asylum seekers once the country has entered the European Union. Albeit the system is unprepared to accept a higher number of refugees with satisfactory reception standards and appropriate procedures. Despite Croatia having made extensive use of the EU funds available to improve its asylum system, most resources and efforts have been directed at developing mechanisms for border policing including the acquisition of hi-tech equipment for sophisticated border control. There is evident hypocrisy in applying the values underpinning the European Union. Creating the conditions for effective border control and illegal migration seems to be a priority over peace building and respecting the human rights of refugees.
What are the entry and exit points from Croatia? Where does the migration route go?
According to statistics from Croatia's Ministry of the Interior, the largest number of illegal migrants enter Croatia from Serbia, in the Vukovar-Srijem county, which is on the so-called "Balkan route". Most illegal migrants leave the country throuth the border with Slovenia in the counties of Zagreb and Primorsko-Goranska. There are several ramifications of this "Balkan route" and those trafficking in human beings often abandon migrants in Croatia, telling them they are already in the European Union.
Croatia is one of the "whitest" countries in Europe, much more today than some decades ago, when students of non-aligned countries used to study in Yugoslavia…
Croatia's society is largely homogeneous in ethnic, cultural and religious terms. The results of a 2009 study by the Centre for Peace Studies showed that 25% of the population completely or partially agreed with strongly stereotypical statements on nationality, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and marital status. In addition, one in four people found it unacceptable for their children to marry a person of another religion, nationality, or skin colour. As a pacifist organisation that has been working on human and migrant rights for many years, we see rising xenophobia and prejudice against refugees, asylum seekers, and irregular migrants, as well as a lack of political will to develop some aspects of the asylum system.
And how do the media portray foreigners?
There is a particularly problematic combination of limited coverage and negative information. Using phrases like 'taking advantage of our hospitality' and 'invasion from the East and the South', as well as deformed and incomplete information on the arrival and transit of asylum seekers or irregular migrants, on who these people are and why they come here, creates an inhospitable climate and lack of understanding for people that are fleeing danger and seek protection in our country – all this despite our recent experience of both war and emigration.
We need to acknowledge that Croatia has been so far mainly a country of emigration and thus we should promote solidarity – not only towards those who are similar to us, because this is very simple, but also to those who are and we perceive as different. Instead, refugees are often placed in the same 'dangerous' category as terrorists and international criminals, which we strongly oppose.
How would you define Croatia's current migration policy?
At the moment, Croatia has no valid, consistent migration policy. The last law was passed in 2007. The country needs legislation that takes into account in a comprehensive manner all types of migrants and all aspects of migration. This is particularly clear in terms of the integration of migrants into Croatian society, especially unaccompanied minors.
What are the positions of the main political parties?
There is not much attention to the subject at the political level. Whereas in EU countries it is a crutial matter for gaining or losing votes, here it is not perceived as something important. The HDZ, the main centre-right party, for example, has no stance on it. The electoral campaign of the centre-left coalition government has mentioned that, in the coming years, Croatia will be confronted with an increased flow of migrants bringing with it the risk of social imbalances and a rise of right-wing forces. The centre left has also said that Croatia, currently totally unprepared in terms of ear-marked resources, should find the right strategies to tackle the problem and increase its collaboration with the migrants' countries of origin. How, when, and what they will do during their term in office remains to be seen.
Most European countries have struggled with migration for years. Many times, migration policies have proved a failure or even led to human rights violations. Is there a model of migration policy that you see as effective and applicable to Croatia?
First of all, the current situation in Croatia indicates that a lack of migration and integration policies leads to terrible violations of basic human rights. Croatia has proved to be unprepared for a potential increase in the number of migrants on many levels. For example, our law only recognises two categories of people: citizens and foreigners. All others, such as refugees or foreigners under subsidiary protection, remain outside this definition and therefore potentially subjected to exploitation and violation of rights. Unfortunately, Croatia's asylum and migration policy has been developed exclusively because of pressure from the European Union, not because it has been recognised as important by Croatian society, nor have we been determined to improve our legisaltion by adapting EU directives to our context. |
Human Services is a conglomeration of various services and knowledge with the objective to improve the quality and life of the people all around the world. It helps in finding solutions and fighting against problems through knowledge and strive to improve the quality and life of people around the globe. There are various layers to Human Services. Human services include study of different methods, models and theories from social, technological to scientific innovations with the goal to fight problems and improve the quality of life of people. Human Services have always tried to promote practices that involves working at all levels of society in order to promote the independence of each and every individual whether formal or informal. People who are into human services, are doing their best to fight for the autonomy through various modes such as education, civic engagement, health promotion, movies, media etc.
There are lots of colleges and universities that provide a degree on Human Services. It is one of the most valued program of the modern world.
Burnford and Chenault had a dispute on human services. They stated that in order to consider Human Service as a professional work of discipline, human services program should be established and students who are interested in the field must be trained and educated on human services. A dynamic graduate human services program was set up by Audrey Cohen, who was viewed as an inventive teacher for her time. The Audrey Cohen College of Human Services, now called the Metropolitan College of New York, offered one of the principal graduate projects in 1974. In a similar day and age, Springfield College in Massachusetts turned into a noteworthy drive in saving human administrations as a scholarly train. Right now, Springfield College is one of the most seasoned and biggest human administrations program in the United States. A study on manpower had been conducted in the 60’s and 70’s which showed that there was a shortage of manpower in various fields of services. Educators came up with the idea to train non-professionals in order to build the gap. South Regional education board funded by the National institute of health was one of the first educational institution who initiated the undergrad curricula. SREB helped colleges in developing new social welfare programs which later on went on to be termed as human services.
The improvement of junior college human administrations projects was aided with government subsidizing that was reserved for the elected new professions activities. Thus, the governmentally supported New Careers Program was made to create a nonprofessional vocation track for financially distraught, underemployed, and unemployed grown-ups as a procedure to destroy destitution inside society and to end a basic deficiency of human services personnel. Graduates from these projects effectively gained work as paraprofessionals, yet there were restrictions to their upward portability inside social administration offices since they did not have a graduate or expert degree.
At present Human services awards programs on three different levels, associate, baccalaureate and graduate level. There is an estimated number of 600 Human services program offered in three different levels of study in the United States. The online directory lists out not all but many of its programs state by state in affiliation with the Council of standards for Human Services education. The programs of Human services are based on different branches of knowledge which allows students not only to learn about Human Services but also practically implement those ideas and models from their perspective. According to the curriculum of human services programs, students are often taught to visualize human problems from socioecological perspective which shows that all human strengths problems are interconnected and part of one society. The primary motive of Undergrad human services program is to prepare students for the role of human services generalists whereas a master in Human services program prepares students to perform the role of human services administrators. Doctoral programs in human services program prepares students in the field of research analyst and educators. Some of the topics researched on human services program are organizational change, management of human organizations, social welfare policy, advocacy, community development, community organizing, integrating technology, different cultures, key issues of poverty, and strategies related to social changes.
Centre for credentialing and education gestated the human services board certified practitioner with help from National Organization for human services and council for standards in human service education. The accreditation was made for human administrations experts trying to propel their vocations by gaining free check of their information and instructive foundation.
Students from human administrations projects can acquire a Human Services Board Certified Practitioner accreditation offered by the Center for Credentialing and Education. The HS-BCP confirmation guarantees that human administrations specialists offer quality administrations, are able specialist co-ops, are focused on elevated expectations, and hold fast to the NOHS Ethical Standards of Human Service Professionals. HS-BCPE Experience Requirements: HS-BCP candidates must meet post-graduation necessities to be qualified to take the examination. Be that as it may, alumni of a CSHSE authorize degree program may sit for the HS-BCP exam without confirming their human administrations work involvement. Generally, encounter necessities for applicants not from a CSHSE certify program are as per the following: Associate degree with post degree encounter requires three years, including at least 4,500 hours; Bachelor's Degree with post degree encounter requires two years, including at least 3,000 hours; Master's or Doctorate with post degree encounter requires one year, including at least 1,500 hours.
The HS-BCP exam is intended to confirm a hopeful's human services learning. The exam was made as a community oriented exertion of human administrations topic specialists and normed on a populace of experts in the field. The HS-BCP exam covers the accompanying territories:
Right now, the three noteworthy business parts played by human services graduates incorporate giving direct administration, performing managerial work, and working in the community. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, distributed by the US Department of Labor, the work of human administration colleagues is foreseen to develop by 34% through 2016, which is faster than normal, for all occupations. There will likewise be brilliant openings for work for people with post-optional degrees. Be that as it may, compensations stay low, which may mirror managers' absence of comprehension of the human administrations calling.
Looking for online tutors for help with human services course? Get instant homework help for human services course and major social services and social science courses such as psychology, sociology, family and gender studies, health services, criminology, public policy, applied psychology, safety sciences, human development studies, environment development, sustainable development and much more.
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Vintage Religious Illustration Gallery
Vintage religious illustration of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries reflected widespread curiosity about the historic “Holy Land.”
During the Golden Age of Illustration (1880-1920), popular American and British magazines regularly carried stories and articles about religious sites in the Middle East.
Artists often were called upon to interpret passages from the Bible or illustrate descriptions of the early Christian epoch.
Old Testament stories, the history of Judaism, and early Muslim and Hindu literature were all subjects of interest, particularly in America, the land of immigrants.
Many artists considered a journey to the Holy Land a requirement for a well-rounded art education.
Illustrators, sketchbooks in hand, traveled across Egypt, Palestine, and Syria in search of historic places and buildings. Others toured Europe, creating careful depictions of ancient Celtic ruins, medieval cathedrals, temples, and mosques.
Still others focused on the rich pageantry of religious ceremonies and processions.
In America, these illustrations often took the form of churches and local religious customs and folk-lore. All of the great illustrators of the era produced religion-themed art at one time or another.
Their interpretations of religious subjects have become stereotypes that resonate today; Howard Pyle's New England snow-bound churches, William Ladd Taylor's renditions of the life of Jesus, Norman Rockwell's small-town Christmas and Thanksgiving holidays.
Check the Image Galleries for more examples of
vintage religious illustration.
Vintage magazine illustration by W. S. Stacey, "Flight into Egypt."
Illustration by W. S. Stacey, "Jesus Working in the Carpenter's Shop."
Chicester Cathedral, England, 1910.
Mosque of Shah Hamadan, Srinagar, Kashmir, by Edward Molyneux, 1911.
Magazine cover, Violet Oakley, 1908: "Ask now the beasts and they shall teach thee and the fowls of the air and they shall tell thee."
Magazine illustration, William Ladd Taylor, 1923: "As an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest...as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Isaiah xxxii, 2.
Magazine illustration, William Ladd Taylor, 1915: "Rebekah Comes to Isaac," Genesis xxiv:61-67
Above: Vintage religious illustration, "Tombs of the Caliphs,
Cairo, Egypt," by F. Dillon, c.1904.
For high-resolution, royalty-free religious images you can download, visit the Palma Collection at
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BLOOD TESTING FOR
PROFESSIONAL CYCLISTS: What's a fair hematocrit
The decision of the UCI to use blood tests to deter the use of rhEPO by professional cyclists is admirable, but the 50% hematocrit limit may be too strict. Ten years of data collected from road cyclists at the Australian Institute of Sport indicate that a 52% hematocrit limit would result in fewer false positive tests.
Attempts to Discourage Use of rhEPO
The news has made headlines on sport pages around the world. Both the Federation Internationale de Ski (FIS) and the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) have implemented random blood tests prior to competition to deter the alleged use of DNA-recombinant human erythropoetin (rhEPO), a hormone known to increase the rate of red blood cell production. These decisions have come after years of finger-pointing and unsubstantiated claims that some of the world's most competitive cyclists and cross-country skiers are receiving an illegal performance advantage by injecting rhEPO. The governing bodies for these two endurance sports have decided upon slightly different methods and cut-off values for screening blood samples. Whereas FIS have identified specific hemoglobin concentrations (16.5 g/dl women; 18.5 g/dl men), the UCI have decided to use a 50% hematocrit for male cyclists.
Seiler (1997) has recently reported on blood testing cross-country skiers to deter the use of rhEPO. This report will focus on similar issues faced by the international cycling community.
No More Hematocrits Higher Than 50%
At their annual meeting in Geneva (24 January 1997), UCI delegates, in consultation with medical professionals, decided to implement blood testing to deter the alleged use of rhEPO by selecting a 50% hematocrit as an upper limit. In an article entitled "Cycling Pro's Saddled with Blood Tests" appearing in The European (30 Jan - 5 Feb, 1997), it was reported that random blood tests would begin on March 22 at the Milan to San Remo Classic bike race. UCI president, Hein Verbruggen, has stressed that the testing is a " health check" and that a positive test does not imply rhEPO use. The testing has been primarily established to insure that professional cyclists will not begin a major road race with a dangerously high hematocrit. In contrast to a positive drug test, which can result in prolonged suspension from competition, riders with a hematocrit greater than 50% would be suspended only until values decreased to an acceptable level. But are there data indicating that a 51% hematocrit is dangerous for a professional road cyclist? And more importantly, what is the normal incidence of a hematocrit above 50% in professional cyclists not taking rhEPO? It appears that answers to these questions are currently not available.
RhEPO Can Be Dangerous
It is now well recognized that the uncontrolled use of rhEPO can be dangerous. Within the first four years of rhEPO's introduction, this synthetic hormone was suggested to have caused over 17 athlete deaths (Ramotar, 1990). Some news reports are now suggesting that over 20 competitive cyclists have died as a result of rhEPO administration (The European, 12-18 Dec, 1996). Never-the-less, international competition is fierce and many competitive cyclists desire the financial gains and prestige associated with being a champion. Perhaps this is why the suspected incidence of rhEPO use among professional cyclists in high. An article presented in The European (5-11 Dec, 1996) has summarized a controversial dossier prepared by Sandro Donati, an Italian professor of exercise physiology. Donati's reports suggests that, "rhEPO was being used by 60-70% percent of all professional cyclists." Additionally, the dossier presents the names of 21 professional riders including three well known cyclists. Donati also names seven Italian sport doctors who supposedly administered rhEPO to road cyclists for large annual fees ($50,000-$100,000). Some of those implicated have adamantly denied allegations indicating that there is no proof to support the outlandish claims.
Why a 50% Hematocrit?
Although the UCI should be congratulated for their efforts to prevent the illegal use of rhEPO, the 50% hematocrit limit (approximately 16.5 g/dl) may be too aggressive and result in many false positive tests. The UCI cut-off is obviously much lower than the 18 g/dl hemoglobin limit selected by FIS. In response to a query made by the Department of Physiology and Applied Nutrition at the Australian Institute of Sport, the UCI explained that the 50% cut-off valued was agreed to by sport doctors and team directors working for the major professional cycling teams. The UCI explained that, a 53% hematocrit limit was initially proposed (based on three standard deviations above the average hematocrit value for a normal population) but then decreased to 50% to ensure that all professional team delegates were in agreement. Why would doctors with professional cycling teams push for a lower detection limit? Maybe "clean" cycling programs want to insure that drug users will be caught or at least be more limited with their illegal activities. Or perhaps there is evidence indicating that a 51% hematocrit is dangerous for endurance athletes.
Hematocrits in Australian Road Cyclists
Unfortunately, the prevalence of a hematocrit greater than 50% in elite road cyclists not taking rhEPO is not well established. Additionally, the effects of body posture, dehydration and altitude training on the hematocrit of professional cyclists is not well documented. At the Australian Institute of Sport , top Australian Road Cyclists (including five Professional Australian Cyclists who are now racing in Europe) have participated in routine blood tests to monitor health and training stress. As part of the normal venous blood analysis, hematocrit is determined using routine laboratory equipment (a Coulter Counter). A retrospective analysis of 360 blood samples collected from Australia's top road cyclists between 1987-1996 resulted in 10 hematocrit values of 50% or more. Thus, 2.8% of blood samples from the Australian Road Cyclists exceed the 50% hematocrit value recently set by the UCI as an acceptable limit. It is believed that these cyclists were training and competing in a "clean environment" at the time of testing. In other words, it is unlikely that they were taking rhEPO. The maximum hematocrit 52.0%, recorded in one cyclist.
Hematocrits in Other Competitive Australian Athletes
In a much larger data set (12,359 blood samples) that including male and female athletes participating in a variety of sports (e.g., swimming, athletics, water polo, weight lifting, rowing, tennis, soccer, basketball, netball, gymnastics) 3.4% of blood samples had a hematocrit value greater than 50%. The percentage of hematocrit scores greater than 50% is therefore similar between the Australian cyclists and other Australian athletes competitive at the national level. A more detailed examination of the hematocrit data from all sports determined that the percentage of tests where hematocrit was greater than 50% ranged from 0.3% in netball to 25.7% in weight lifting.
Effects of Posture on Hematocrit
Hematocrit reflects the balance between red blood cell production and destruction but is also known to be influenced by dehydration and body posture. Heart rate and blood pressure are higher when standing compared to sitting or lying down. The higher blood pressure when standing is associated with the movement of intravascular fluid (i.e., plasma) into interstitial compartments. This causes plasma volume to decrease and hematocrit to rise. Gore and Colleagues (1992) have reported a 6% decrease in plasma volume associated with 30 minutes of standing following 30 minutes of sitting. The following example illustrates how body position could determine whether a cyclist is disqualified or not based on the 50% hematocrit UCI ruling. If a cyclist has a blood volume of 6.0 liters and a hematocrit when sitting of 49%, then the blood would be composed of 2.94 liters of red blood cells and 3.06 liters of plasma. If the cyclist stands for 30 minutes and undergoes a 6% reduction in plasma volume, hematocrit would now rise to 50.5% and under the new UCI ruling the cyclist would be disqualified. It is worth noting, that at the Australian Institute of Sport venipucture blood draws were performed on athletes in the morning in a fasted state after remaining in a supine position for 5-10 minutes. If blood was collected from the Australian cyclists in a seated or standing position, it is likely that more than 2.8% of the blood samples would have a hematocrit greater than 50%. In attempts to control for extraneous variables such as posture, the UCI has established that blood will be taken from cyclists in the morning, before breakfast, in a seated position.
Direct Detection of rhEPO
Techniques have been developed to test for rhEPO use but thus far, none have proven to be completely satisfactory for screening athletes. Wide et al. (1995) have demonstrated that rhEPO can be distinguished from endogenous EPO in both urine and serum samples using electrophoretic techniques. The electrophoretic technique is based on the observation that endogenous EPO generally has a greater negative charge than rhEPO. Although no false positive tests are detected using this technique, it appears that the use of rhEPO can only be confirmed up to three days after injections have stopped. The success of this technique would therefore depend upon random "out-of-competition" sample collections.
Indirect Detection of rhEPO
Another potential method for determining whether an athlete is using rhEPO has been suggested by Casoni et al., (1993). Using sophisticated scattering laser technology Bayer has introduced a series of hematology analyzers that allow for red blood cell volume and hemoglobin content to be evaluated on a cell by cell basis. The Technicon Bayer H*1, H*2, and H*3 analyzers allow for the distribution of cell size to be plotted against cell hemoglobin content resulting in a nine quadrant cytogram. Casoni and colleagues (1993) observed that the percentage of cells that were macrocytic (>120fl) and hypochromic (<28 pg) was greater than 0.6% only in those subjects who underwent rhEPO therapy. A limitation to this technique was is that more than 0.6% macrocytic-hypochromic cells could only be observed towards the end of, and for 10 days following a 45 day course of rhEPO. Also, approximately 60% of rhEPO treated subjects tested below the 0.6% cut-off value.
Recently, Bayer Health Care Australia has entered into a sponsorship agreement with the Sports Haematology and Biochemistry Laboratory at the Australian Institute of Sport. This sponsorship has resulted in the acquisition of a Technicon H*3 analyzer which is currently being used to analyze athletes' blood. A retrospective analysis of blood samples provided by 50 male endurance athletes (8 swimmers, 12 cyclists, 30 rowers) was performed to evalute the incidence of macrocytic-hypochromic red blood cells. In all but one sample the percentage of macrocytic hypochromic cells was equal to or less than 0.2%. The highest value measured in this group was only 0.3%. It should be noted that all of these athletes were tested during the initial phases of a competitive season in the summer. As mentioned by Wide and co-workers (1993), a combination of direct and indirect techniques will likely emerge in the near future to enable rhEPO use to be confidently detected.
The decision of the UCI to test the blood of professional cyclists to deter the use of rhEPO is admirable. However, the 50% hematocrit limit appears too aggressive on the basis of 10 years of data collected from road cyclists tested at the Australian Institute of Sport. A 52% hematocrit limit would result in fewer false positive tests and could still deter the suspected use of rhEPO. While elite athletes wait for sensitive rhEPO detection techniques to emerge, measurements of hematocrit may represent a temporary deterrent. However, prior to implementing blood testing for hematocrit it would seem worth while to carefully evaluate the cut-off level and also consider the influence of body position, altitude training and dehydration on hematocrit values in professional cyclists. It is now possible that the leader in the Tour de France could be prevented from competing in the final stage because his hematocrit is "dangerously" high. With lucrative salaries at stake, it will be interesting to see if the 50% hematocrit rule will last throughout the 1997 professional cycling season.
April 97. The UCI 50% Hematocrit rule has been implemented at the 1997 Paris-Nice Road Race. Three out of the 20 professional cyclists tested registered hematocrit measures greater than 50%. Their fate? An individual fine of 1,000 Swiss Francs and a team fine of 10,000 Swiss Francs. In addition, the riders with the "dangerously high" hematocrits were removed from competition for a period of 15 days. Erwan Mentheour (Fra, La Francaise des Jeux), Luca Colombo (Ita, Batik-Del Monte) and Mauro Santaromita are the riders who have lost money and a chance to win UCI points in Paris-Nice despite any evidence of rhEPO use.
Martin, D. T., Ashenden, M., Parisotto, R., Pyne, D., Hahn, A. G. (1997). Blood testing for professional cyclists: what's a fair hematocrit limit? Sportscience News, (Mar-Apr), http://www.sportsci.org/news/news9703/AISblood.html
Casoni I., Ricci G., Ballarin E., et al. (1993). Hematological indices of erythropoietin administration in athletes. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 14, 307-311.
Gore C., Scroop G., Marker J., Catcheside P. (1992). Plasma volume, osmolarity, total protein and electrolytes during treadmill running and cycle ergometer exercise. European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 65, 302-310.
Ramotar J. (1990). Cyclists' deaths linked to erythropoietin? Physician and Sports Medicine, 18, 48-49.
Seiler, S. (1997). Tighter control on EPO use by skiers. Sportscience News, (Jan-Feb), http://www.sportsci.org/news/news9701/EPOfeat.html
Wide L., Bengtsson C., Berglund B., and Ekblom B. (1995). Detection in blood and urine of recombinant erythropoetin administered to healthy men. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 27, 1569-1576. |
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
What does all this have to do with Jane Austen?
She thought about landscape a good deal, although her novelistic descriptions are famously brief. There was a rage for landscape design in the late Georgian and Regency periods, as the naturalistic concepts of Lancelot Capability Brown gave way to the Gothic vogue of Humphrey Repton. The "improvement of the estate" became the object of every gentleman of Fashion; and Jane's tongue-in-cheek treatment of this bit of pop culture is most obvious in Mansfield Park. Poor, dull, Mr. Rushworth hankers after an Improver for his estate at Sotherton; his friend Smith has employed Repton; his affianced bride is certain only Mr. Repton will do for her--and Rushworth even states, with careless insouciance, that Repton's terms are five guineas a day, an astronomic sum that signifies Rushworth's wealth. (Mansfield Park, Oxford edition, p. 53). How did Jane know all this? One of her relatives employed Repton to transform Stoneleigh Abbey when he inherited it--the estate Jane is commonly thought to have used as a model for Rushworth's Sotherton. She would have made a point of getting the man's fees exactly right.
But of course, landscape is chiefly valuable as metaphor, in Austen's work--Rushworth's need to dress up his noble pile is unwitting evidence of a value for form over substance. His sham landscape--decorated with faux Gothic ruins and other Follies--is a metaphor for his sham marriage, where all the expense in the world cannot compensate for a lack of real feeling. Similarly, Henry Crawford--the consummate Improver--tries to remake simple Edmund's honest home in the style of a gentleman--representing a clergyman's living as a fashionable residence for a man of the world, which is what Edmund has no desire to pretend to be. Even Mary Crawford unconsciously invokes Alexander Pope in urging her brother's help: "Only think how useful he was at Sotherton! Only think what grand things were produced there by our all going with him one hot day in August to drive about the grounds, and see his genius take fire." (Emphasis mine. MP, p. 244).
Posted by Stephanie at 10:38 AM |
It is hard to identify mental illness especially in children. It is important for parent to identify early of mental illness that effect on their children health. The are many mental health condition that affect children such as :-
1. Schizophrenia. The mental causes children losing focus in reality. He/she will always think something that not really exist. For example, a friends that never exist.
2. Autism. It is serious developmental problems. Usually children before age 3 that cause of this disorder will show some symptoms.
3. Mood disorder. It is such as bipolar and depression that could affect feelongs of sadness or extreme mood.
4. Anxiety disorder. Children could have such as obsessive compulsive disorder, social phobia, post traumatic stress disorder .
5. Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. This disorder combine many issues such as hyperactivity, difficult to sustaining attention and impulsive behavior.
There’s are sign that child might have mental health such as :-
1. Intense feeling.
2. Mood changes
3. Difficulty concentrating.
4. Substance abuse.
5. Physical harm
6. Unexplained weight loss
If your children has that sign, get a psychiaty. It is important to cure it in early stage. |
33+ Jatropha Plant Diagram Pics. It is originally native to the tropical areas of the americas from mexico to argentina. Without neglecting the preset conditions as mentioned in the page about intercropping (never use existing.
They have returned again this spring and are. Planted as a living fence, it will act as an unpalatable barrier to livestock after the coming wet season photograph by. Say hello to a great plant, jatropha integerrima, as one of next year*s texas superstars*.
Jatropha cuneata (limber bush) b.
Jatropha is a genus of flowering plants in the spurge family, euphorbiaceae. Propagation is easy and the plant can survive long periods of drought, though it. They have returned again this spring and are. Vernacular names edit wikidata 'category:jatropha podagrica' linked to current category [edit wikidata. |
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries a number of England's regional newspapers published descriptions of a popular rural custom known as wife-sale. This event incorporated the symbolism of a livestock auction with a public declaration by a husband and wife to part ways. While previous studies have focused on wife-sale as a mode of self-divorce, the present work explores the meaning behind the symbols and rituals of wife-sale within the context of English popular culture. The existence of the newspaper accounts of wife-sale is largely due to the curiosity of middle-class commentators who expressed disgust (sometimes feigned) at the humiliation inherent in wife-sale. Consequently, this investigation into the meanings attached to wife-sale goes beyond the context of the rural plebeian community to include middle-class representations of wife-sale and their influence upon English culture and gender relations. |
Although some citizens believe that vaccine are harmful and they should get to choose if they get them or not, vaccines can be justified as a safe, effective method to stay immune to diseases. In order to ensure the health of the public and prevent illnesses, it is essential to make vaccines mandatory. When people are not vaccinated, they have a high risk of developing disease, which can lead to sickness and possible death. According to UNICEF, a program providing humanitarian and developmental assistance, 16,000 children die every day from preventable or treatable causes. This statistic shows how many lives we are losing due to the fact that people are not vaccinated.
The impact of this implementation was shown through the increase of vaccination rates (Steyer, Ragucci, Pearson & Mainous, 2004). Cases of vaccine-preventable diseases were also shown to decrease after the advent of vaccines and widespread immunization (Cortes, Curns, Tate, et al., 2011).
The public has been let down because the proper studies have not been done.” (Lorraine Fraser, Medical Correspondent, 2002) From this article there are multiple powerful, anti vaccine statement from Dr Jefferson about the inner industry view behind vaccinations. These people are just a small representation of many qualified people out there that also have a view against vaccination. However there are also many people that preach positively of vaccination programs and conversely claim, “Immunizations are simply one of the greatest public-health achievements," claims Mary Glodé, M.D, Professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado in Denver. According to Pro-Vaccines (2015) “For society to improve its health, it must rely on vaccinations. There are substantial benefits from being immunization, especially when all are
American Journalist and Author, Hunter S. Thompson once said, “Paranoia is just another word for ignorance.” This quote rings true in a generation that runs ramped with fake news, believing anything heard by a seemingly credible source. This ignorance is seen throughout society, especially when it comes to medicine. Vaccinations are essential to keeping this world rid of the infectious diseases that in previous generations, were some of the leading causes of death. In recent times parents who are opting out of vaccinating their children (also known as antivaxxers) believe that vaccinations are harmful, and could even cause developmental disabilities such as autism. These anti- vaccination beliefs stem from ignorance which can be dangerous because
One of the most common reasons people give for requiring vaccinations is that vaccination can lead to “Herd Immunity.” In other words, the greater the percentage of people in a population that are vaccinated, the less likely it is that unvaccinated people will come into contact with a contagious person. According to one doctor, “‘Someday we may live in a world that doesn’t scare patients into making bad health decisions…. vaccine mandates are the best way to ensure protection from illnesses’”(Finnegan 2). Maybe in the future the scariest diseases will not exist. Then, vaccines will not be necessary.
The lack of vaccinations and medical treatment for some viruses has wiped out populations as a whole. Disease can overthrow a culture and spread like wildfire when not taken precaution against. However, there exists a fierce opposition against the mandate of vaccination by some groups of interest with the existence of adverse effects by vaccination to the human body as a reason. Although vaccination carries some health risks,
As a result, people can contract a bacterial infection that has no cure. These two articles describe bacteria as something humans are at war with. Some people also fear that it is a war we may someday lose. The fact that bacteria can change into diffrent forms so fast, makes it very challenging for healthcare providers to fight off infections. New antibiotics and treatments are developed each day, however most are not effective.
Some health care advocates criticized the spending, calling the two-and-a-half million dollar budget over two years “completely indefensible.” But hospital advertising has always had a controversial history in the US. Up until 1980, the American Medical Association banned it. The AMA code of ethics from 1847 considered hospital advertising to be “derogatory to the dignity of the profession.” However, in 1980 a circuit appellate court ruled that such restraints on advertising violated the Federal Trade Commission Act protecting free commerce. Today, hospital advertising still continues to be a contentious topic. Some believe that hospital advertising presents significant danger of misinforming potential patients.
I hope to one day have career in the field of medicine, as a Physical Therapist. In the last decade there have been multiple reports of doctors compromising patient care for their own personal benefit. Experimental drugs, drug abuse, unnecessary surgeries, and pure neglect have caused countless deaths of innocent people who thought they were receiving good medical treatment. These doctors however, took advantage of vulnerable patients for their own financial gain. Many Americans now refuse to seek medical treatment, for fear that they too will be victims of selfish acts conducted by medical professionals.
Vaccines are one of the public health sector’s greatest achievements. However, there is an ethical dilemma within the balance of managing risks to public health and preserving personal and parental autonomy. The egoistic tendencies of parents who are unwilling to vaccinate their children, putting the welfare of their own family as well as the welfare of the population at risk to satisfy their personal morals and beliefs, is posing problems. Vaccination rates for certain diseases, such as for measles in the United States, are dropping for the first time in history due to various reasons, and outbreaks for these viruses are becoming more frequent. It is necessary that legislation considers various tactics in order to raise these values once again. |
Frederick Douglass’s narrative provides a first hand experience into the imbalance of power between a slave and a slaveholder and the negative effects it has on them both. Douglass proves that slavery destroys not only the slave, but the slaveholder as well by saying that this “poison of irresponsible power” has a dehumanizing effect on the slaveholder’s morals and beliefs (Douglass 40). This intense amount of power breaks the kindest heart and changes the slaveholder into a heartless demon (Douglass 40). Yet these are not the only ways that Douglass proves what ill effect slavery has on the slaveholder. Douglass also uses deep characterization, emotional appeal, and religion to present the negative effects of slavery.
In the 1800’s, African Americans were affected by the Jim Crow Laws in the South because of the discrimination. The Jim Crow Laws were a set of strict rules preventing blacks from having the same privileges as whites. These laws affected blacks and treated them differently because of the color of their skin. From having different ways of transportation for African Americans, to not letting them use the same restroom, the Jim Crow Laws had a tremendous impact across America. Throughout my research, I learned how the blacks were affected after the Jim Crow Laws were passed.
The most dehumanizing experience of a slave, as introduced by Douglass, includes: humiliation, emotional trauma, inequality, and physical abuse. Douglass, a man of wisdom, character, and determination; fought liberally and strategically, to surmount the odds of being deprived of his humanity while enslaved. Douglass, along with many other slaves, experienced the most gruesome epidemic that America was granted in history. Slaves were treated badly, and often seen as an epitome to society in the south. In the “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” he foreshadows his experience as a slave, and explains some of the most dehumanizing experiences, from blood bashed beatings to intense emotional trauma.
Through his own experience of slavery from a child to adult, he exposed the brutal nature of slavery and revealed underside of how slave owners maintain such terrible regime. In the institution of slavery, whites gain their power over slavery by the practice of violent and cruel treatment, deliberately keep slaves ignorant of basic facts about slave themselves and the intention of enslaving them. Slaveholders in the south separated slave’s family, slaves will become vulnerable and lost consciousness or hope in the absence of family love. Slaveholder could keep them without facing any lawful punishments. Basis on these, whites can make black slaves lost their individuality and qualities as human, they will have not have consciousness aware their place in the society.
Why did Fredrick Douglas despise slavery? Fredrick Douglas, an African American that has an abundance of history with slavery and torment. Without reading this I wouldn’t have learned how cruel slavery actually was, and how enslavers stole people from their homes, and how he wished to be an animal. The Immorality of slavery is gruesome to many eyes. Though, people still want to rule over other people for various arrogant reasons.
1930’s Alabama was not an easy time for people of color to live. Constant racism and prejudice had been instilled into the hearts and minds of, what seemed like, everyone. Throughout history examples of this have been seen, like the instance of the Scottsboro, where 9 innocent boys spent a major part of their life rotting in jail for what they did not do. Alongside that, they felt the immense hatred of a society of racist, close minded people pounding down on them. This prejudice did not only serve Blacks, those in the society often held ill feelings towards other members of their own community.
African Americans were treated very cruel as slaves during the 1800’s. The cruelty of the slaves’ punishments depended usually on their location, the conditions, and the time. The Slaves were mostly whipped, executed, and raped. They weren’t allowed to learn to read and write. The whites kept them from having religious gatherings, and made them feel useless without their owners.
The holocaust and the nigerian genocide were both bad genocides.The Holocaust and the Nigerian genocide both involved a lot of hatred, but how the victims were treated, the areas of the world that were impacted, and the goals of the perpetrators were different. The holocaust was a very bad time for jewish people. Jewish people during the holocaust were treated badly and they were relocated and starved and even killed just for fun.The nazis doing the holocausting affected germany and parts of poland.The goal that hitler wanted to accomplish is take out all jews all over the world.Therefore the holocaust was a very sad time for jewish. The nigerian genocide was also bad.They had hatred against women.Nagirea was affect by this act of genocide.Goal
Slavery, just the word makes some people cringe. That single word reminds people of America 's deep, dark history. The nation that was divided into two, the war fought over it, all of the innocent lives lost. Slavery was not a good thing in America, but we have learned from our past mistakes. America will never fall that low into a place that cruel ever again.
African slaves were treated as if they were dirt and replaceable. “Tortures, murder, and every other imaginable barbarity and inequity are practiced upon any poor slave with impunity” (Equiano). This really shows how the slaves were treated during this time. Equiano writes about the many injustices placed upon the slaves but the biggest on is barbarism. These slaves weren’t treated like real humans but were treated as if they were something beneath their owners. |
What is Permaculture
- Permaculture; is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation, rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system. “Bill Mollison”. Permaculture is a holistic design system for creating sustainable human settlements & food production systems. It is a movement concerned with sustainable, environmentally sound regenerative land use and the building of stable communities, through the harmonious interrelationship of Humans, Plants, Animals & the Earth.
- Biodynamic Farms and Gardens; are inspired by the biodiversity of natural ecosystems and the uniqueness of each landscape. Annual and perennial vegetables, herbs, flowers, berries, fruits, nuts, grains, pasture, forage, native plants, and pollinator hedgerows can all contribute to plant diversity, amplifying the health and resilience of the farm organism. Diversity in domestic animals is also beneficial, as each animal species brings a different relationship to the land and unique quality of manure. The diversity of plant and animal life can be developed over time, starting with a few primary crops and one or two species of animals (even as small as earthworms or honeybees), and adding more species as the farm organism matures. “Rudolph Stiener”
- Holistic Orchard Management; has fascinating biological connections that make for a healthy orchard ecosystem. All insect pests and fruit tree disease whether fungal or bacterial have launching points and particular timing. Healthy trees address these challenges first and foremost from within. Growers utilizing an ongoing investment in the fungal duff and biodiversity that sets the stage for nutritional and biological sprays to grow a successful fruit crop. “Micheal Phillips”
- Regenerative Farming; is an agriculture system of farming principles and practices that seeks to rehabilitate and enhance the entire ecosystem of the farm by placing a heavy premium on soil health with attention also paid to water management, fertilizer use, and more. It is a method of farming that “improves the resources it uses, rather than destroying or depleting them,” Rodale Institute".
Receive consultation on implementing the available solutions from NatureCures practitioners who have the expertise to specialize in assisting farms make the shift from commercial farming ensure these values are met regeneratively for generations to come.
NatureCures Practices the Twelve Principles of Permaculture |
“The lament”, by Eleni Ikoniadou
Audio description: sound performance “The lament”, by Eleni Ikoniadou y Carolin Schnurrer
Yet meet we shall, and part, and meet again,
Where dead men meet, on lips of living men.
What sweet relief to sufferers it is to weep, to mourn, lament, and chant the dirge that tells of grief!
All over the ancient and modern world, death is a woman’s business. Women wash, dress and decorate the corpse, and then sing it to its final resting place with a lament. Lamentation is an extreme expression of sorrow that precedes every other form of oral ritual, and has led to the creation of the oldest epic poems across human culture.
A traditional burial includes the wake, the procession to the cemetery, the funeral itself, and memorials at a future point in time. All four might be accompanied by one or more female lamenters. These are usually older women dressed head to toe in black, vocalising the horror of the loss with a chilling lament, ranging from talking and singing to sobbing, keening, and wailing, for the one no longer there.
Keeners can be friends or relatives of the deceased and their family, part of the wider community, or hired professionals, briefed about the dead person’s character, background and history, prior to the funeral. The ritual may include these participants lifting their arms in the air, clapping their hands in unison, beating their heads and chests, and the pulling of their hair. There is a rhythm to the performance, though performing here doesn’t mean faking it, as even hired lamenters are emotionally invested in the particular deceased person they are lamenting.
The process starts with a light wailing during the wake, which lifts to a crescendo during the procession, subsides briefly in the course of the church service only to rise again on the way to the grave, and soar to a climax during the lowering of the coffin into the ground. But this unspoken rhythmic rule is one of few repetitive elements, as the lament is almost always improvised.
This is known as the primary lament, erupting spontaneously from overwhelming grief, barely controlled by the lamenter. The sound of death is a formidable force, taking over the vocal cords of the woman and gushing out of her mouth like a torrent of wildly manifold configurations: sophisticated literary content gives way to street language, poetry turns to swearing, and stormy outbursts are preceded by calm seas in the voice and intonation of the mourner.
At its core, the dirge is uncontrollable and unknowable, making it impossible to repeat or own entirely. This explains how the same mourner can produce elegies of entirely different form, style, and quality. However, it would be wrong to assume laments merely derive from within. While the main lamenter bursts out improvised words and sounds, the surrounding women incessantly feed her with information about the departed, which she effortlessly incorporates in her keening in real time. Therefore, the lamenter, in addition to speaking, is also always listening.
And yet a lament typically contains more than just pure facts about the history of the dead. Entangled with it is information apparently known only to the lamenter, and which she seems to have gathered from unknown sources. The lamenter criss-crosses the deluge of information she holds about the deceased’s past with the data received in real time, adding speculative material and processing it all at incredible speeds while vocalising it. In so doing, she is making things once considered private into a part of the permanent record.
At its climax, the lamenting voice leaves the past and present of this world to open up a door to the otherworldly. More than sonically expressing the grief and pain of loss, lamentation is rooted in a concrete ancient belief in the afterlife. Accordingly, wakes and burials are of great significance, as the last chance to prepare and equip the deceased for the journey to the underworld. Some of their favourite things—coins for the boat-fare to the other side, praise for their lives, messages to pass on to the other dead, are gathered by the lamenter herself.
Lamenters are actively interested in the dead body’s fate in the next world, and are seen as being capable of opening up channels of transmission between the living and the dead through their unsettling vocalisations. The main lamenter is not to be interrupted at any cost during the build-up of a lament, and is typically feared, admired, respected, but also mocked and hated, largely by the men, who hold lamenting to be dangerous witchcraft. The threat that moirologists are perceived to pose to the social order owes to the extreme uncertainty that such an orgiastic state of grief carries with it. But it is also to do with the fact that, in lamentation, women were allowed an isolated moment of speaking out. Hence lamenters would often deviate from the particular death they were mourning and move on to other sensitive, political, private and public matters, commonly untouchable by females, and in some cases even by males. Mostly, however, the terror of the lament lies in its extemporaneous, untamed, inhuman dimension; that which reveals it as a sonorous force of unspecified destiny and unknown origin, separate from the body that hosts it.
In the lament, we find an urgency to channel the alien, all-devouring unseen that lies beyond this world. The lamenter becomes a transducer of death into sound, an acoustic passage between different orders of the real, devising a direct encounter between incompatible realms. Her unearthly incantation leading across, transferring to or from, vocally mediating and negotiating the ceaseless trade between the living and the dead.
The weeping woman is a device for receiving, storing, processing, and manipulating information. This speaking voice which is not hers, not consciously controlled by her, or a mere conveyor of her thoughts, is an inhuman sound in the service of something. In singing, in keening, in talking, in recording, in transitioning, in revivifying the dead, the voice cannot be said to belong to the body per se. It is not authentic or authorised, it is hormonally masculinised, its vocal pitch lowered. It is never perfect or real, it is corrected, perfected, manipulated. It passes through a chain of software effects. It is unnatural and supernatural. It’s an effect without a cause. The voice is not private, ephemeral, personal, or even human. Processed. Artificial. Synthetic. Forced.
Lamenting is the first step towards dehumanising the voice. The lamenting body is a transmitting device no more human than it is machinic. The temporality of the voice is therefore paradoxical: at once organic and technological; embodied presence and recorded revenant; human but immortal; continually returning yet always anew.
It is anticipated that future developments in deep learning and AI consciousness, will lead to the complete outsourcing of lamentation to artificial intelligence. AI lamenters will detach lamenting from its traditional association with death and extrapolate it to its quotidian state, appropriate for the times of universal sorrow to come. Mourning the loss of cultural life, the horror of politics, the destruction of the environment, but also mundane everyday struggles. You can project and transfer your grief onto them.
The voice makes Harawayan alliances ‘across the killing divisions of nature, culture, and technology, and of organism, language, and machine.’ It drifts from one chthonic entity to another, ‘of, in, or under the Earth and the seas’. Not-us, more-than-us, not finished.
Choruses of voices whose lamenting unleashes the untold tales of history. Dehumanised and undomesticated. Dangerous, threatening and ruinous. Primordial, pre-mammalian, simultaneously ancient and yet to come. |
By NAN Staff Writer
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. May 10, 2016: Come May 26th, the CARICOM South America-based nation of Guyana will mark its 50th year of independence from Britain. Thousands of Guyanese call the U.S. home, and in New York, Guyana’s 50th Independence Anniversary Celebration Committee will mark the anniversary with a week-long series of events between Saturday, June 4th and Sunday June 12, 2016. Here are ten fast facts about Guyanese in the U.S. you may not know:
1: The United States has the highest number of Guyanese outside of Guyana. An average of 6,080 people a year emigrated from Guyana between 1969 and 1976, increasing to an average of 14,400 between 1976 and 1981. As of 1990, 80 percent of Guyanese-Americans lived in the Northeast United States.
2: According to the latest U.S. Census’ American Fact Finder, there are an estimated 273,000 people in the U.S. claiming Guyanese as their first ancestry as of 2013.
3: The majority of Guyanese live in New York City – some 140,000 – making them the fifth-largest foreign-born population in the city.
4: In Queens, NY – which has the largest concentration of Indo-Caribbeans in the five boroughs – Guyanese represent the second largest foreign-born population with some 82,000. A large concentration of them can be found in the neighborhoods of Richmond Hill and Ozone Park, Queens according to the ‘Population Analysis of Guyanese and Trinidadians in NYC’ by the Indo-Caribbean Alliance using New York City Department of City Planning data.
5: Guyanese are the second largest immigrant group in Queens, NY. Other Guyanese populated areas in the U.S. include Orlovista, FL; Irvington, New Jersey; Orange, New Jersey; East Orange, New Jersey; Flatbush, Brooklyn; Canarsie, Brooklyn; East Flatbush, Brooklyn, Rockland County, New York, Schenectady, New York; Verona Walk, FL; Oakland, FL; Emerald Lakes, PA; South Plainfield, NJ; Olanta, S.C.; Lincoln Park, GA; Bladensburg, MD and Loganville, FL.
6: The first Guyanese to arrive in the U.S. came around 1968, either as “private household workers” or as nurses’ aides and were of African descent according to research from Jacqueline A. McLeod in “Guyanese-Americans.” Some 70,523 came post 1964.
7: According to Monica Gordon in ‘In Search of a Better Life: Perspectives on Migration from the Caribbean,’ more Guyanese women than men settled in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s, making them primarily responsible for securing immigrant status for their families. These women, Gordon concluded, tended to see migration as a means to improve their economic and social status and the educational opportunities of their children.
8: Some 17 percent of Guyanese in the U.S. are seniors (ages 65 and older) but 74 percent of all immigrants from Guyana had the highest naturalization rates, meaning they are more likely to be U.S. citizens and can vote.
9: Recent remittances from the United States to Guyana totaled some US$438 million, (G$ 90.7 billion), according to the Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF).
10: Famous Guyanese and those of Guyanese ancestry include: late elected politician Shirley Chisholm; actors Derek Luke, C. C. H. Pounder, Nicole Narain, Sean Patrick Thomas and Mark Gomes; baseball player Mark Teixeira and highly recognized HIV researcher, Dr. Deborah Persaud. |
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