Hi guys! Today I am writing about how to identify your thinking patterns. Thinking patterns are your type of thoughts that you use everyday. Our thinking pattern plays a large role in how we feel from day to day.
I will explain the thinking errors that are most commonly used that trigger anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem. These inaccurate thoughts really only serve to keep us feeling bad about ourselves.
Have a look and see which ones are most common for you, this will help break your thinking habits that contribute to your feelings. This techniques is a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Technique.
|All or Nothing Thinking||Things are seen in black and white categories. Thinking in absolutes such as “always”, “never”, or “every”. “I never do a good enough job on anything.”|
|Catastrophizing||Seeing only the worst possible outcomes of a situation|
|Mind Reading||Interpreting the thoughts and beliefs of others without adequate evidence. “She would not go on a date with me. She probably thinks I’m ugly.”|
|Magnification and Minimization||Minimizing the importance of events. One might believe their own achievements are unimportant, or that their mistakes are excessively important.|
|Should Statements||The belief that things should be a certain way. This can lead to judgemental and unforgiving expectations that can create a lot of anxiety.|
|Mental Filter||You pick out a negative single event and dwell on it|
|Playing the Comparison Game||Comparing yourself to others and needing to keep up with others to feel good about yourself|
|Disqualifying the Positive||Recognising only the negative aspects of a situation while ignoring the positive. One might receive many compliments on an evaluation, but focus on the single piece of negative feedback.|
|Overgeneralization||Making broad interpretations from a single or few events. “I felt awkward during my job interview. I am always so awkward.” An inaccurate thought like this, will cause you to feel awkward all the time.|
|Labelling||You label yourself or others by terms such as “lazy”, “stupid”, “fat”, “loser”, stating them like they are facts. Labelling can affect your self-esteem and self-worth.|
|Emotional Reasoning||The assumption that emotions reflect the way things really are. “I feel like a bad friend, therefore I must be a bad friend.”|
Why are these thinking patterns important to be aware of?
How we think affects how we feel and behave, as well as what happens in our body. Our thoughts, emotions, bodily sensations and behaviours are all interconnected.
Can you take a complement? Imagine that someone says: “you’re looking well today”. If you think they are only saying that, they don’t really mean it (thinking error: discounting the positive/mind reading) then you are likely to continue to feel low.
If, on the other hand you can say “thank you”, and believe that you are truly looking well, then such a compliment is likely to improve your mood.
If you are prone to catastrophizing (always thinking of the worst possible scenarios) then changing this aspect of your thinking is going to be important in helping you to reduce your heightened emotion. If you discount the positive aspects of yourself, changing that thinking error should improve how you feel about yourself.
Think back to some recent events that triggered feelings of anxiety, low mood, anger or stress in general. To start identifying your thinking patterns ask yourself the following:
- What is the event/situation
- How am I feeling?
- What thoughts am I thinking?
- What possible thinking errors am I using?
There are two reasons for getting you to write down your thoughts like this:
1. Writing things down at the time they happen (or as close to the time as possible) will provide more accurate information about your thoughts and possible thinking errors because the event will be fresh in your mind.
2. Writing things down helps you distance yourself from your thoughts. This will help you think more objectively about your thoughts and the situation, which will be very helpful in breaking the thinking habits contributing to your feelings.
I hope you this post helped you to be able to identify and become aware of your thinking pattern. In my next post I will show you how to challenge your thinking errors and to develop alternative or coping thoughts.


When a Linux system boots, it enters its default runlevel and runs the startup scripts associated with that runlevel. You can also switch between runlevels – for example, there’s a runlevel designed for recovery and maintenance operations.
Traditionally, Linux used System V-style init scripts – while new init systems will eventually obsolete traditional runlevels, they haven’t yet. For example, Ubuntu’s Upstart system still uses traditional System V-style scripts.
What’s a Runlevel?
When a Linux system boots, it launches the init processes. init is responsible for launching the other processes on the system. For example, when you start your Linux computer, the kernel starts init, and init executes the startup scripts to initialize your hardware, bring up networking, start your graphical desktop.
However, there isn’t just one single set of startup scripts init executes. There are multiple run levels with their own startup scripts – for example, one runlevel may bring up networking and launch the graphical desktop, while another runlevel may leave networking disabled and skip the graphical desktop. This means you can drop from “graphical desktop mode” to “text console mode without networking” with a single command, without manually starting and stopping different services.
More specifically, init runs the scripts located in a specific directory that corresponds to the runlevel. For example, when you enter runlevel 3 on Ubuntu, init runs the scripts located in the /etc/rc3.d directory.
At least, this is how it works with a traditional System V init system – Linux distributions are beginning to replace the old System V init system. While Ubuntu’s Upstart currently maintains compatibility with SysV init scripts, this is likely to change in the future.
Some runlevels are standard between Linux distributions, while some runlevels vary from distribution to distribution.
The following runlevels are standard:
- 0 – Halt (Shuts down the system.)
- 1 – Single User Mode (The system boots into superuser mode without starting daemons or networking. Ideal for booting into a recovery or diagnostics environment.)
- 6 – Reboot
Runlevels 2-5 vary depending on distribution. For example, on Ubuntu and Debian, runlevels 2-5 are the same and provide a full multi-user mode with networking and graphical login. On Fedora and Red Hat, runlevel 2 provides multi-user mode without networking (console login only), runlevel 3 provides multi-user mode with networking (console login only), runlevel 4 is unused, and runlevel 5 provides multi-user mode with networking and graphical login.
Switching to a Different Runlevel
To switch to a different runlevel while the system is already running, use the following command:
sudo telinit #
Replace # with the number of the runlevel you want to switch to. Omit sudo and run the command as root if you’re running a distribution that doesn’t use sudo.
Booting Directly to a Specific Runlevel
You can select a runlevel to boot into from the boot loader – Grub, for example. At the start of the boot process, press a key to access Grub, select your boot entry, and press e to edit it.
You can add single to the end of the linux line to enter the single-user runlevel (runlevel 1). (Press Ctrl+x to boot after.) This is the same as the recovery mode option in Grub.
Traditionally, you could specify a number as a kernel parameter and you’d boot to that runlevel – for example, using 3 instead of single to boot to runlevel 3. However, this doesn’t appear to work on the latest versions of Ubuntu – Upstart doesn’t seem to allow it. Similarly, how you change the default runlevel will depend on your distribution.
While Ubuntu’s Upstart daemon still emulates the SystemV init system, much of this information will change in the future. For example, Upstart is event-based – it can stop and start services when events occur (for example, a service could start when a hardware device is connected to the system and stop when the device is removed.) Fedora also has its own successor to init, systemd.
- › How to Manage Systemd Services on a Linux System
- › GRUB2 101: How to Access and Use Your Linux Distribution’s Boot Loader
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Parents are encouraged to engage in the service, to support their child in making informed subject choices and career planning decisions. Selecting the “right” course is a key decision to make, and often a challenging one. Ill-informed career decisions can have serious consequences.
A Higher Education Authority study shows that almost one-in-six students drop out of all third-level courses before 2nd Year. It is essential that students receive career guidance before they set out on a career pathway. The specific one-to-one advice as well as the up to date information offered by Anne Ryan Careers can help your son/daughter make informed and confident decisions.
Anne helps students uncover their own strengths and weaknesses, interests and aptitudes so that they can then start to navigate the ever expanding range of career options available to them.


SCIENTSTS have discovered the genes which contribute to the most frequently occurring life threatening form of skin cancer.
Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the most frequently occurring life threatening skin cancer.
Unlike other common skin cancers, such as Melanoma and Basal Cell Carcinoma, the genes which are frequently mutated in cSCC have, until now, been unknown.
Now the researchers at Dundee University, Harvard and University of California, San Francisco have identified two highly related genes which are mutated in three quarters of all cSCC cases.
The gene mutations are also active in a significant proportion of SCC cases in the lungs.
“These gene mutations are a common factor in a form of skin cancer which is both common and life threatening,” said Professor Irene Leigh, of Dundee University.
“By identifying these mutations, our group at Dundee, working with international partners, hopes to exploit the process of skin development to which these genes contribute to develop new cancer therapies capable of targeting skin and similar cancers such as lung SCC.”


These Mysterious Geoglyphs in Jordan Are 6,000 Years Older Than Peru’s Nazca Lines
Although the finished product of giant earth designs has been difficult to discern, archeologists recently announced that at least some of the great “works of old men” (as the Bedouin called them in 1927) of the Middle East are significantly older than the famous Nazca Lines of Peru.
Researchers have also shown that, in the past, one cluster of the wheels could have been linked with astronomical knowledge and that some of the geoglyphs were probably connected with the burials.
It has been concluded by archeologists that at least two of the giant Wadi Al Quattafi ‘ Wheels ‘ from Wadi Al Qattafi and the Wisad Pools, in the Black Desert of Jordan are at least 8,500 years old – making them older than the famous Nazca Lines in Peru by about 6,000 years.
BBC reports that by using optically stimulated luminescence ( OSL), the archaeologists were able to show not only the date of creation of the two wheels but also that one of them was repaired about 5,500 years ago.
The research, soon to be published in the journal Antiquity, demonstrates that at the time of the creation of these two wheels the climate of the Black Desert would have been very different, making life in the area easier.
Archaeological evidence for their claim came in the form of “Charcoal from deciduous oak and tamarisk [a shrub that] were recovered from two hearths in one building dated to ca. 6,500 BC.”
Furthermore, Discovery News has reported that the recent study suggests that at least some of the geoglyphs are related to an astronomical interest by the ancient inhabitants.
Specifically, they have found importance in one group of designs in the Azraq Oasis, as “The majority of the spokes of the wheels in that cluster are oriented for some reason to stretch in a SE-NW direction – where the sun rises during the winter solstice.” This may be no more than an educated “hunch” however, as other geoglyphs in the area do not show apparent “archaeoastronomical information.”
The two wheels and the cluster make up just a small section of the famous “Works of Old Men” that cross the Arabia region – “from Syria across Jordan and Saudi Arabia to Yemen” according to the researchers from the current study.
The geoglyphs of the Middle East were first spotted in 1927 by RAF Flight Lt. Percy Maitland, while he was flying an airmail route over Jordan. he has written.
Some of the wheel-shaped structures are clustered closer together, while others appear to be solitary. Some structures have more of a rectangular shape, while many of them are round. Some of the circular structures contain two spokes that form a bar…The wheels are sometimes found on top of the kites.
The purpose of the geoglyphs probably varied according to their location and/or design.
Gary Rollefson, co-director of the Eastern Badia Archaeological Project, says that “The presence of cairns suggests some association with burials since that is often the way of treating people once they died.” However, he was also quick to add that “there are other wheels where cairns are entirely lacking, pointing to a different possible use.”
Regarding the construction of the geoglyphs, it is evident that quality also differs from one structure to the next. Speaking of the two wheels in the Black Desert, Rollefson said that they “are simple in form and not very rigidly made, according to geometric standards.
They contrast sharply with some other wheels that appear to have been set out with almost as much attention to detail as the Nazca Lines.” The precision of the other wheels may have been due to the use of a long rope and a stake.
In contrast to the designs located further north, David Kennedy, co-director of the Aerial Photographic Archive for Archaeology in the Middle East (APAAME) has said that the forms in Saudi Arabia and Yemen “tend to be small and have only one or two bars instead of spokes.
Some of the “wheels” are actually shaped like squares, rectangles or triangles.” The APAAME has also noted kites and interconnecting walls of stones, which he has dubbed as “gates.”
APAAME is currently unable to conduct on-site or aerial imaging research of the “wheels” in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, thus they are studying aerial images from the 20th century and free satellite imaging from Google Earth and Bing for now.


Medium-sized woodpecker, common and widespread across North America as far south as western Panama. Black-and-white plumage is nearly identical to the smaller Downy Woodpecker. Focus on the bill: Hairy has a longer bill, about the length of the head. Also look for clean white outer tail feathers. Some variation in color across range; birds in western North America and especially Central America are brownish, with limited white in the wing. Occurs in wooded habitats with large trees. Familiar visitor to backyard feeders, especially fond of suet. Calls include a loud “peek!” and a fast rattle, stronger than Downy Woodpecker.


About Mental Illness
A mental illness is a medical condition that disrupts a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning. Just as diabetes is a disorder of the pancreas, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.
Serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and borderline personality disorder. The good news about mental illness is that recovery is possible.
Mental illnesses can affect persons of any age, race, religion or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character or poor upbringing. Mental illnesses are treatable. Most people diagnosed with a serious mental illness can experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in an individual treatment plan.
Learn more about treatment and services that assist individuals in recovery.
Find Out More About A Specific Mental Illness:
- Anxiety Disorders
- Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD)
- Bipolar Disorder
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Dissociative Disorders
- Dual Diagnosis: Substance Abuse and Mental Illness
- Eating Disorders
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Panic Disorder
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Schizoaffective Disorder
- Seasonal Affective Disorder
Find Out More About Conditions Sometimes Related To Mental Illness:
- Anosognosia (lack of insight)
- First Episodes of Psychosis
- Sleep Apnea
- Tardive Dyskinesia
Treatment & Services
- Crisis Services
- Complementary Health Approaches
- ECT and Other Brain Stimulation Therapies
- Medications Overview
- Mental Health Professionals
- Psychosocial Treatments
- Treatment Settings


Dahn Yoga & Health Centers, Inc., a national leader in health and wellness, is featuring a section on Korean culture in its monthly newsletter, Dahn Yoga Life. This month’s issue explores the Korean concept of 'Jeong'...
Gilbert, AZ (PRWEB) June 30, 2012
Dahn Yoga principles are deeply rooted in Korean culture, with many key historical and philosophical elements expressed wordlessly as part of Dahn Yoga practice. In order to help those who become acquainted with Dahn Yoga understand it better, Dahn Yoga is providing a monthly exploration of Korean cultural concepts. This year, Dahn Yoga & Health Centers, Inc., a national leader in health and wellness, is featuring a section on Korean culture in its monthly newsletter, Dahn Yoga Life. This month’s issue explores the Korean concept of “Jeong” and how it is expressed in Dahn Yoga practice.
“Jeong” is a Korean word expressing deep affection.” The concept is so important in Korean culture that it became a topic of conversation at a US-Korea summit meeting. “Jeong” best expresses a universal Korean sentiment that is not easily translated into a single word in English. One Korean-English dictionary defines it as ‘feeling, love, sentiment, human nature, sympathy, heart.’ Actually, it may include all of these meanings and more.
The various meanings attributed to the word may relate to emotional ties that are developed as part of the unique Korean culture of community. Relationships to family, neighbors, co-workers, even pets and homes reflect a combination of mutual support and affection. It is very likely that most people who have attended Dahn Yoga classes or just visited a Dahn Yoga center, have felt a unique sense of welcome and community. Understanding the concept of “jeong” will provide useful insight for the visitor and seasoned practitioner alike. With the goal of promoting cultural understanding, this new feature of the Dahn Yoga newsletter will also help many people get more out of their Dahn Yoga practice.
About Dahn Yoga:
Dahn Yoga is a dynamic mind-body practice originating in Korea. Dahn Yoga classes combine stretching, flowing movement, deep breathing exercises and meditation in a simple and easy to learn format. Dahn Yoga is often taught alongside Tai Chi, Qigong and Meditation classes.
In the United States, Dahn Yoga classes are offered at Dahn Yoga & Health Centers, Inc., a national leader in health and wellness. Dahn Yoga classes are also offered at Body & Brain franchise, affiliate and community-based locations.


Being a teenager can be a confusing time for you and your parents. During the teenage years, your body will undergo numerous changes and start to release lots of different hormones, which can affect your mood and sense of well-being. Being a teenager also leaves you open to feeling self-conscious because of body changes, which, in turn, can make your new hormones even more difficult to handle. The teenage years bring about a whole array of confusing experiences that help you to learn how to become an adult.
Understanding Teen Feelings
It is important for parents to understand the effects that all these physical and biological changes can have on the feelings of a teenager. Hormones can particularly affect girls when they start to go through puberty, leaving them open to intense emotions.
Bodies will start to develop and change, causing feelings of embarrassment and awkwardness, especially if your teenager is the first among his or her peers to experience these.
As well as coping with hormones and body changes, teenagers have to adapt to having more pressure and responsibility in their home lives and at school. Grades become more important as teens get older and peer pressure can become more difficult to manage, as there is a natural desire to fit in with the crowd.
Friendship groups may drift apart and morph during the teenage years as children change schools or change their outlook on life. This can be a distressing time and cause a sense of vulnerability and loneliness, particularly if lost friends are not quickly replaced.
Parents and carers may expect their teenagers to take on more responsibilities around the home, such as undertaking chores, which may cause feelings of pressure when coupled with increasing amounts of schoolwork. It may be helpful to teach your teenager effective time management techniques, such as creating a study timetable and prioritizing tasks.
All of these emotional, physical and social changes can lead to outbursts of frustration, which need to be handled appropriately by parents and carers to allow teenagers to develop coping mechanisms for dealing with emotions later in life.
Techniques to Manage Teen Emotions
Teenagers require parental support to learn how to manage their emotions. As a parent, you may initially feel angry about teenage emotional outbursts and be tempted to shout back. This is a perfectly natural response, but it may not help to resolve conflict situations.
Listening to the worries of your teenager and trying to put yourself into his or her shoes can help parents to understand the reasons behind certain behaviors. Once parents know the cause of certain behaviors, they will be able to suggest better ways of dealing with them.
Parents need to understand that teenagers need space to develop their own personalities and discover themselves during their growing period. Finding fault in everything that teenagers do will not help this process, but being supportive by listening to and discussing problems calmly will help.
Sometimes your teenager will be so angry that he or she cannot be rational. Allow your child to vent frustrations in order to calm down, but make it clear where the boundaries are and that curse words and insults will not be tolerated. If you feel that these outbursts are getting out of hand, you should intervene and give a clear reminder of boundaries.
Being a teenager is a difficult time, but with the help and support of understanding parents, it can be made much easier. You may experience a love-hate relationship with each other, but if you give as much help and support as you possibly can, you should come out the other side much closer than before.


Inclusive education is a growing concern that informs and challenges educational reform processes around the world. Inclusive education stands on the recognition that education is a human right that supports a broader view and more comprehensive strategy of Education for All. It is essential to move forward from conceptual and theoretical debates towards adopting practical, comprehensive guidance materials which focus on schools, classrooms, and the interactions between teachers and learners. A principal environment for inclusion is at the school level. As social institutions, schools closely interact with cultural and societal practices and play a crucial role in engaging society towards inclusion.
While significant progress has been made toward inclusive education systems, there is still much to accomplish to ensure that all pupils and students are learning effectively. Little information emerged out of the national reports presented at the 48th session of the International Conference on Education about the daily practices in school and how schools can become more inclusive. Schools should have access to successful examples and inspiring lessons from good practices and gain a better understanding of how barriers to learning have been addressed elsewhere. Policymakers also need this important information to establish priorities for reforming education systems.
The Gulf Arab States Educational Research Center (GASERC) and the IBE jointly launched an 18-month project that aims to develop a resource pack entitled “Inclusive Schools”.
The main objectives to consider in producing the resource pack are:
- to promote awareness of inclusive schools among specialists and practitioners;
- to enhance the capacities of curriculum developers in the field of curriculum design, content selection and organization, diversification of teaching and learning resources to meet different needs of students; and
- to develop school-level assessment from the perspective and goals of inclusive education in the Arab states.
The project will identify and disseminate lessons from outstanding practices in different regions to provide policymakers, schools, teachers, and other stakeholders with concrete evidence and relevant examples of inclusive education.
The resource pack would consist of an inclusive education policy framework, an analysis of international developments in relation to inclusive education, and guides for the development of inclusive schools and classrooms. The policy framework is currently being developed; the analysis of international developments and practices will be completed around summer 2012, and the guides are expected to be ready by December 2012 – early 2013. All of the materials will then be presented at a seminar of representatives from each of the seven countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen).


Doctor insights on:
Frequency Of Ovarian Cyst Ruptures
Trauma, over-filling: An ovarian cyst (a liquid-filled lump on the surface of an ovary) that keeps growing can get to several inches in diameter. Such a cyst could rupture from continued enlargement (like over-filling a water balloon) or from blunt trauma, which would likely cause great abdominal pain with internal bleeding, plus an ambulance ride to the emergency room. ...Read moreSee 1 more doctor answer
A cyst is a structure or mass that consists of a cellular lined sac. It is typically filled with fluid but may be filled with solid material. It can be congenital, traumatic, or acquired. They may develop nearly anywhere in the body and usually require complete excision for eradication or they are likely to recur. Fluid filled sacs that are not cellular lined ...Read more
Bleeding: Most cysts don't burst actually. A corpus luteum bursts as it releases an egg, which is part of normal ovulation. The "ruptured cyst" is actually bleeding into the corpus luteum after the cyst naturally ruptures, which can be quite painful for many months. But other kinds of cysts basically never burst, and in fact the ovary can stretch quite huge without rupturing. ...Read more
Complex question: This depends on many details: your medical history, your family history, features seen on ultrasound like size, solid areas, blood flow. Most cysts at age 44 if you are still having menstrual cycles will be benign, but you should follow up with your gynecologist as directed to be sure. ...Read more
Clinicopath. correla: One of the most important clinical features is the age of the patient. Approximately one of eight ovarian tumors in patients less than 45 year of age is malignant; by contrast, in older women, the proportion is about one of three. The single most common ovarian tumor, the mature cystic teratoma, dermoid cyst-benign tumor, is encountered at all ages. Clinicopathologic correlation is important. ...Read more
Unlikely: Ovarian cysts are unlikely to become infected unless you have an infection in the uterus and tubes. They form in the sterile environment of the ovary and are usually not exposed to germs. If you do get a bad infection in the uterus or fallopian tubes, the infection can spread to the ovary and create a tubo-ovarian abcess. On ultrsound this looks like a large ovarian cyst that is infected. ...Read more
See below.: Many ovarian cysts resolve on their own. Your doctor may consider watchful waiting to see if this would happen. Some cyst such as dermoid cyst, cystadenoma or endometriom don't go away on their own but these are rare compared to the typically follicular cysts. ...Read moreSee 1 more doctor answer
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What allows a population in a heterogeneous landscape to become locally adapted? In general, adaptation to a rare habitat type is difficult because divergent selection is counter-acted by the homogenising effects of gene-flow. However adaptation to a rare habitat type may occur if it has a higher quality, so that a greater number of offspring can be produced there, to compensate for its relative rarity in the landscape.
In a new paper published in Ecology Letters, we focused on an alternative way in which a habitat may be considered to have higher quality: by increasing the quality, rather than the quantity, of offspring produced.
There are many examples where the natal habitat effects the quality of an offspring, and that effect carries over to its quality as an adult (see Table). We were particularly interested in carryover effects on competitive ability. For example, a chick who is raised in a resource-rich environment may develop into an adult who is better at singing (e.g. Grava et al., 2012, 2013a) and larger than other birds (e.g. Van Treuren et al. 1999; Van De Pol et al. 2006; Ens et al. 2014) and so better able to attract a mate and win a breeding territory. We wondered if such carryover effects could also also permit adaptation to a rare habitat type, counteracting gene flow from a more-common but lower-quality habitat type.
We were particularly interested in the idea that an offspring raised in a high-quality habitat will be more likely, as a highly-competitive adult, to win a similarly high-quality territory and raise its own offspring there (i.e. the silver spoon competition hypothesis of Stamps 2006). So we mathematically tracked the following intuition. If dispersal distance is limited, competitively superior individuals accumulate in the high-quality habitat, forming a competitive barrier to immigrants from nearby low-quality habitat. A positive feedback will emerge that promotes a lineage’s repeated encounters with the high-quality habitat type, which in turn may promote selection to adapt to this habitat type. Meanwhile, adaptation to the more common low-quality habitat type is preserved, due to the relatively low contribution that individuals from high-quality habitat make to the gene pool there.
We created an individual-based, genetically and spatially explicit model of a single population on a landscape consisting of two habitat types. The figure below shows the first key result of the paper. In the absence of any differences in habitat quality (panel a), the population will adapt to the habitat type that is most frequent in the landscape (blue). However, when the rarer habitat type (red) confers a competitive advantage upon offspring raised there (panel b), then the population splits into two ecotypes, each relatively well-specialised to one of the two habitat types (red and blue).
Our second model result is that, once trait divergence has been initiated, then it can be subsequently reinforced by the coevolution of dispersal traits that promote matching between an individual’s ecotype and habitat type (‘ecotype-habitat matching’). Ecotype-habitat matching dispersal traits include a short dispersal distance and high natal-habitat preference (Davis & Stamps 2004). In turn, these dispersal traits strengthened local adaptation, creating a positive feedback loop between them. The evolution of ecotype-habitat matching dispersal traits is stronger the rarer the high-quality habitat is: first, because a smaller geographic size means that selection against dispersal outside of its boundaries is stronger, and second, because a smaller subpopulation makes it more likely for a correlation between local-adapted genes and ecotype-habitat matching dispersal genes to occur spontaneously due to stochastic process.
We believe that a comparison of blue tit populations on the French mainland vs. the island of Corsica (reviewed in Charmantier et al. 2016) may provide an empirical example of the mechanisms in our model. On the mainland, the majority habitat type is deciduous, and blue tits who settle in the rarer evergreen patches are maladapted (Blondel et al. 1993), resulting in source-sink dynamics (Dias & Blondel 1996; Dias et al. 1996). On Corsica however, where evergreen habitat dominates, the source–sink pattern is not simply reversed. Instead, trait divergence into two ecotypes has been documented (Porlier et al. 2012). We think the reason that the reason for this difference in ecoevolutionary outcomes is because the deciduous habitat type has a higher quality and confers a competitive advantage to offspring raised in it. In the paper we discuss the evidence for this, including the phenological differences between the habitat types and its effect on social dominance (Braillet et al. 2002). We also note that blue tits on Corsica have reduced dispersal which matches the predictions of our model.
Finally we propose that carryover effects as described by our model may provide a previously overlooked mechanism to initiate isolation by ecology. In current theory, isolation by ecology (Shafer & Wolf 2013) is initiated by divergent selection that is strong enough to counteract gene flow (Nosil 2007; Nosil et al. 2008). This creates a positive feedback in which local adaptation leads to a further reduction in realised gene flow between ecotypes (Rundle & Nosil 2005). In our model, the gene flow barrier is initiated by the effect of the environment upon the phenotype rather than as a genetic effect.
Kristensen, N.P., Johansson, J., Chisholm, R.A., Smith, H.G., Kokko, H. (2018) Carryover effects from natal habitat type upon competitive ability lead to trait divergence or source-sink dynamics, Ecology Letters, in press, (open access), (Github)
Blondel, J., Dias, P.C., Maistre, M. & Perret, P. (1993). Habitat heterogeneity and life-history variation of Mediterranean blue tits (Parus caeruleus). Auk, 110, 511–520.
Braillet, C., Charmantier, A., Archaux, F., Dos Santos, A., Perret, P. & Lambrechts, M.M. (2002). Two blue tit Parus caeruleus populations from Corsica differ in social dominance. J. Avian Biol., 33, 446–450.
Charmantier, A., Doutrelant, C., Dubuc-Messier, G., Fargevieille, A. & Szulkin, M. (2016). Mediterranean blue tits as a case study of local adaptation. Evol. Appl., 9, 135–152.
Davis, J.M. & Stamps, J.A. (2004). The effect of natal experience on habitat preferences. Trends Ecol. Evol., 19, 411–416.
Dias, P.C. & Blondel, J. (1996). Local specialization and maladaptation in the Mediterranean blue tit (Parus caeruleus). Oecologia, 107, 79–86.
Dias, P., Verheyen, G. & Raymond, M. (1996). Source-sink populations in Mediterranean blue tits: evidence using single-locus minisatellite probes. J. Evol. Biol., 9, 965–978.
Ens, B.J., Van de Pol, M. & Goss-Custard, J.D. (2014). The study of career decisions: oystercatchers as social prisoners. Adv. Study Behav., 46, 343–420.
Grava, T., Grava, A. & Otter, K.A. (2012). Vocal performance varies with habitat quality in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus). Behaviour, 149, 35–50.
Grava, T., Fairhurst, G.D., Avey, M.T., Grava, A., Bradley, J., Avis, J.L. et al. (2013a). Habitat quality affects early physiology and subsequent neuromotor development of juvenile Black-capped Chickadees. PLoS ONE, 8, e71852.
Nosil, P. (2007). Divergent host plant adaptation and reproductive isolation between ecotypes of Timema cristinae walking sticks. Am. Nat., 169, 151–162.
Nosil, P., Egan, S.P. & Funk, D.J. (2008). Heterogeneous genomic differentiation between walking-stick ecotypes: ‘isolation by adaptation’ and multiple roles for divergent selection. Evolution, 62, 316–336.
Porlier, M., Garant, D., Perret, P. & Charmantier, A. (2012). Habitat-linked population genetic differentiation in the blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus. J. Hered., 103, 781–791.
Rundle, H.D. & Nosil, P. (2005). Ecological speciation. Ecol. Lett., 8, 336–352.
Shafer, A. & Wolf, J.B. (2013). Widespread evidence for incipient ecological speciation: a meta-analysis of isolation-by-ecology. Ecol. Lett., 16, 940–950.
Stamps, J.A. (2006). The silver spoon effect and habitat selection by natal dispersers. Ecol. Lett., 9, 1179–1185.
Van De Pol, M., Bruinzeel, L.W., Heg, D., Van Der Jeugd, H.P. & Verhulst, S. (2006). A silver spoon for a golden future: long-term effects of natal origin on fitness prospects of oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus). J. Anim. Ecol., 75, 616–626·
Van Treuren, R., Bijlsma, R., Tinbergen, J., Heg, D. & Van de Zande, L. (1999). Genetic analysis of the population structure of socially organized oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus) using microsatellites. Mol. Ecol., 8, 181–187.
(A link to a previous blog post when I first became interested in the blue tits case study.)


Monday, May 21, 2012
"The Big Guns of Fayette"
From 1861-64, the unit drew garrison duty the length of the Texas coast as places like Liberty, Virginia Point, Galveston Island, Sandy Point, and Fort Mannahassett (Sabine Pass). The only real combat experienced by the men was at Calcasieu Pass (LA) in 1864, where the guns came under heavy fire (disabling two) but were nevertheless instrumental in forcing a pair of powerful Union gunboats (Granite City and Wave, mounting 14 cannon) to surrender. At only 69 pages, Boethel's narrative, based on a variety of primary and secondary source materials (but primarily on official documents), is brief, but it is strong on organizational and roster data. The chapter on Calcasieu Pass is judiciously written and suitably detailed, although a battle map would have been helpful. A trio of drawings indicate geographical points significant to the unit's service history as well as the locales where it was organized and trained. The roster at the back of the book contains a good number of sizable mini-biographies.
The Big Guns of Fayette has aged rather well and is worth picking up [unfortunately, used copies offered on the secondary market currently run in the $200 range so ILL is a better bet]. In addition to providing useful coverage of military affairs on relatively obscure coastal fronts in the Trans-Mississippi, the book's portrait of an unusual Confederate unit should also arouse the interest of social historians interested in the multi-ethnic makeup of Civil War armies.


Cuban cactus scrub
The Cuban cactus scrub ecoregion represents about three percent of Cuba’s original vegetation; the cactus scrublands of this Caribbean island are a plant formation of great national value due to the high degree of both plant and animal endemism and as important centers of diversity for the island. They are located primarily on the southern coast of Oriente, as well as different patches on the west coast and to a lesser extent in the central part of the island, and are always associated with dry coastal climates. The conservation status is vulnerable, particularly due to threats such as overgrazing and habitat conversion.
Location and General Description
The cactus scrublands of Cuba were dispersed in strips or small patches on the shore, particularly in the southeastern part of the island. From west to east we find them on the Guanahacabibes peninsula (at Punta del Holandés and from Cabo Corrientes to Cabo Francés), in the southeast of Isla de la Juventud (in Punta del Este), on the northern coast from Bahía de Cabañas to Punta Hicacos (from Havana to Varadero), on the southern coast from Cienfuegos Bay to San Pedro Bay (from Juragoa to Casilda), and in Oriente, where this type of vegetation reaches its highest expression. In Oriente, these scrublands are found in the south at Cabo Cruz, in a small strip along the southern coast of the province of Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo, widening in the easternmost area from the city of Santiago de Cuba to Punta de Maisí and Punta del Fraile. There are also small patches on the northern coast of Oriente, as in Punta Mula and around Punta Piedra del Mangle. This ecoregion has a desert-like appearance that is defined by a semi-desert climate, with average annual precipitation of 800 millimeters (mm) or less, a dry period of 9-11 months and average temperatures of 26ºC. In Oriente, the high mountains block the access of the moist winds from the northwest, causing the dry local climate. In addition, this narrow strip of vegetation is directly affected by maritime winds acting as an additional drying factor. The principal type of soil on which these scrublands are found are coastal rendzinas, derived from coralline limestone rock, that are very skeletal and have a karstic structure. Cuba also has xeric scrublands with a high level of endemism, but these are not coastal and are associated primarily with serpentine soils; these are the cuabales and charrascales.
There are different plant formations associated with this ecoregion, with a predominance of columnar cacti, as well as other succulent plants (that store water) adapted to the extremely dry environments. The most characteristic and abundant correspond to the xeromorphous coastal and subcoastal scrubland with abundant succulents, also called coastal manigua, which is represented above all on the southern coast of Oriente. It is a thorny scrubland up to six meters (m) high with palms and numerous succulent plants, primarily in the cactus group. Examples of the species of shrubs and small trees that usually maintain their foliage throughout the year in this formation are: Bourreria virgata (cafecillo), Capparis cynophallophora (mostacilla), Eugenia buxifolia (guairaje), Bursera glauca, B. cubana, Croton spp., Cordia spp., Calliandra colletioides, Caesalpinia spp., Acacia spp., Phyllostylon brasiliense, Albizzia cubana and Guaiacum officinale. Of the cactus, we can mention Opuntia dillenii(tuna) and O. militaris, Harrisia eriofora (pitahaya), H. taetra (jijira), Pilosocereus robinii (miramar), Dendrocereus nudiflorus (aguacate cimarrón), Agave spp. (maguey), Melocactus spp. (erizos) and Leptocereus spp.
Xerophytic plants of the families cactaceae, agavaceae, euforbiaceae and moraceae predominate. Another type of scrubland, the coastal thorny semidesert, has an abundance of thorny plants up to 6 m high and some (but not many) succulent plants that give it a desert-like appearance. The same cacti as in the previous formation can be found as well as the following plants: Cordia sebestena (vomitel), Hippomane mancinella (manzanillo) and Plumeria filifolia (lirio de costa).
In addition, there is coastal schlerophyllous scrubland up to 3 m high with emergent trees up to 5-6 m high; it is characterized by having plants with hard (schlerophyllous) leaves and corresponds to a formation in transition to the dry forest. Species that can be found include Picrodendron macrocarpum (yana), Maytenus buxifolia (carne de doncella), Belairia spinosa (yamaguey), Brya ebenus (granadillo) and Diospyrus grisebachii (ébano). Finally, we have the rocky coastal scrublands, open vegetation generally with little species diversity and small stunted shrubs, succulents and herbaceous plants over the karstic "dog’s tooth" soil on high coasts where they are subject to the spray of the sea and strong winds. The following species are found: Borrichia arborescens (romero de playa), Messerschmidtia gnaphalodes (incienso de playa) and Sesuvium maritimun (verdolaga de playa).
Due to the fragmentary distribution pattern of these scrublands all along the patches on the island’s coast, together with the quite specific climatic and edaphic characteristics in which they develop, the flora is particularly rich in endemisms of xerophytic plants, i.e., plants adapted to dry climates and nutrient-poor soils, possibly including 20% of the total number of species and representing an important center of speciation. The scrublands on the southern coast of the central region (from Juragoa to Casilda) and particularly those on the southern coast of Oriente (from Punta Maisí to Cabo Cruz and adjoining coastal areas) are considered to be part of two of the three most important centers of plant diversity and endemism on the island.
Some endemisms of this ecoregion that bear mentioning are Pilosocereus brooksianus, Leptocereus maxonii, L. sylvestris, L. santamarinae, L. arboreus, Opuntia macracantha, Opuntia dillenii, Melocactus matanzanus M. holguinensis, M. acunae, Escobaria cubensis, Agave albescens, A. acicularis and A. grisea, some of them seriously at risk of extinction. In the Oriente region, two endemic genera should be noted: Heppiella and Caribea, as well as the presence of relict species. Some of the adaptations characteristic of this xerophytic vegetation are succulence, schlerophília, microphília and plants with CAM metabolism.
This ecoregion also has high diversity and endemisms among fauna. For example, in the section between Maisí and Guantánamo there are 29 species of reptiles, 4 of them strictly endemic to the area and 15 endemic to the island. Among insects, this area contains some unique elements unique in Cuba, whose closest relatives are found in the southwestern deserts of North America. Various species of Sphaerodactylus (Gekkonidae) and Anolis spp. unique to the ecoregion are endangered to varying degrees, as are land pulmonates (snails) like those of the genera Polymita and Coryda, various species of scorpions and other arachnids, which also have great varieties of form in these biotopes, along with significant endemism.
According to Dinerstein et al., less than half of the original vegetation of this ecoregion has been lost and there is at least one block of this vegetation larger than 200 Km2 (nearly 10% of the ecoregion). The degree of fragmentation is relatively low, there is a low habitat conversion rate (<0.5% per year in the period 1990-1995) and the degree of protection for the ecoregion is low, in that the ecoregion has at least one protected area with an intact habitat block larger than 100 Km2 (less than 5% of the total for the ecoregion). Accordingly, the ecoregion is considered to have a vulnerable conservation status and its biological distinctiveness is important at the local level. Its conservation priority is important in national terms. According to Olson et al., the gaps in taxonomic botanical data are sufficient to hamper conservation projects, and thus additional botanical data is needed for such projects to be effective.
The biogeographic data on the ecoregion is greater than the taxonomic data but not adequate. According to Oldfield, the locations of these scrublands with conservation priority and a high degree of endemism are the coast and the lowlands from Guantánamo Bay to Punta Maisí (particularly notable for the conservation of succulent plants), the coast and lowlands of Bacanao, between Pilón and Cabo Cruz, between Gibara and Puerto Padre Bay, from Playa Girón to Punta Mulas, the northern coast of the Hicacos peninsula to Bahía Honda and the southern coast of the Guanahacabibes peninsula. According to Habitats terrestres Cuba, the coverage with this type of vegetation on the island is now about 1%.
Important protected areas for the conservation of this ecoregion because they contain it in part are in Oriente, the Desembarco del Granma National Park (258 Km2, IUCN category II and World Heritage Site since 1999) and the Bacanao Biosphere Reserve (846 Km2, IUCN category IX) within the Gran Parque Sierra Maestra Integrated Management Area (5,270 Km2, IUCN category VIII); on the south central part of the island, the Escambray Integrated Management Area (1,870 Km2, IUCN category VIII); and in Occidente, the Mil Cumbres Integrated Management Area (166 Km2, IUCN category VIII), the Guanahacabibes Peninsula Biosphere Reserve (1,015 Km2, IUCN category IX), the Cabo Corrientes Natural Reserve (16 Km2, IUCN category I), the Punta Francés-Punta Pedrales National Park (174 Km2, IUCN category II) and the Punta del Este Natural Touristic Area on Isla de la Juventud (53 Km2, IUCN category V).
Types and Severity of Threats
According to Dinerstein et al., the principal threats to this ecoregion are grazing, felling of trees, habitat conversion and the exploitation of resources associated with increased urbanization. In some areas of western Cuba, communities of Dendrocereus nudiflorus and Pilosocereus robinii have been replaced by sisal crops (Agave sisalana and A. furcroydes).
Justification of Ecoregion Delineation
The delineation’s for the Cuban Cactus Scrub were derived by from the Coastal Spiny Semidesert regions of Hernandez. Comparisons were also made with other studies.
- Áreas de Interés para la biota terrestre y dulceacuicola 1997.
- Bisse, J. 1988. Árboles de Cuba. Editorial Científico-Técnica, Ciudad de la Habana, Cuba.
- Biodiversidad de la biota cubana 1997.
- Borhidi, A. 1991. Phytogeography and vegetation ecology of Cuba. Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest. ISBN: 9630569566
- Borhidi, A. et Muñiz, O., 1980. Die Vegetationskarte von Kuba. Acta Bot. Acad. Sci. Hung. 26: 25-53.
- Caribbean Environmental Programme (CEP) 1996. Status of Protected Area Systems in the Wider Caribbean Region. CEP Technical Report No. 36
- Cuba 1997. Carte générale au 1:1.250.000. Institut géographique national, France.
- Davis, S.D., V.H. Heywood, O. Herrera MacBryde, J. Villa-Lobos and A.C. Hamilton, editors. 1997. Centres of Plant Diversity. A Guide and Strategy for their Conservation. Volume 3. The Americas. IUCN Publications Unit, Cambridge, U.K. 562 pp.
- Dinerstein, E., D.M. Olson, D.J. Graham, A.L. Webster, S.A. Primm, M.P. Bookbinder, and G. Ledec. 1995. A conservation assessment of the terrestrial ecoregions of Latin America and the Caribbean. The World Bank, Washington, DC, USA. 129 pp. ISBN: 0821332961
- Hábitats terrestres Cuba 1997. Cubierta Nacional de la vegetación natural.
- Hernandez, J.R. 1989. Atlas de Cuba: mapa de la vegetación original de Cuba. Map 1:2,000,000. Instituto de Geografía de Cuba. Havana, Cuba.
- Oldfield, S. (comp.), 1997. Cactus and Suculent Plants. IUCN/SCC Cacuts and Succulent Specialist Group. Gland, Switzerland.
- Olson, D., Dinerstein, E., Castro, G., Maravi, E. 1996. Identifying gaps in botanical infromation for biodiversity conservation in Latin America and the Caribbean. World Wildlife Fund, Washington, D.C., USA.
- Samek, V. 1973. Regiones fitogeográficas de Cuba. Academia de Ciencias de Cuba. Serie forestal 15:163.
- UNEP-WCMC 1997. United Nations List of Protected Areas. ISBN: 283170426X
- For a shorter summary of this entry, see the WWF WildWorld profile of this ecoregion
Disclaimer: This article contains information that was originally published by the World Wildlife Fund. Topic editors and authors for the Encyclopedia of Earth have edited its content and added new information. The use of information from the World Wildlife Fund should not be construed as support for or endorsement by that organization for any new information added by EoE personnel, or for any editing of the original content.


Although increasing levels of greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere these days are seen as a harbinger of doom, millions of years ago they may have rescued the planet from a deep freeze.
Some researchers believe that at points in our planet's history — at least two, possibly three times — ice blanketed its surface, down to the equator and across the oceans, forming a "Snowball Earth."
But new research raises questions about whether a surge in carbon dioxide — one of the greenhouse gases responsible for modern, human-caused global warming — could have been responsible for the big thaw that followed the most recent Snowball Earth, about 635 million years ago. And if there wasn't a greenhouse effect big enough to melt the thick veil of ice, perhaps, the researchers suggest, Earth may not have been a big, icy snowball at the time.
An international team of scientists analyzed the molecular composition of rocks laid down in what is believed to be the aftermath of this Snowball Earth.
Snowball Earth could have been self-sustaining, for at least a time, because the white, ice-covered surface of the planet would have reflected sunlight back into space, keeping the planet cool.
The primary evidence for these icy times, particularly the one about 635 million years ago, comes in the form of deposits of rocks ground up and carried by glaciers. These have been found around the world at locations which, about 635 million years ago, would have been located near the equator. These deposits have another layer of rock on top of them, called cap carbonates, which was believed to have formed as the glaciers melted or shortly afterward.
It is believed that Snowball Earths came to an end when the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere surged, creating a global greenhouse that melted away much of the ice. This could have begun because volcanoes spewed the gas into the atmosphere.
The normal processes that would pull the carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere were blocked by ice, which prevented carbon dioxide exchange between the atmosphere and ocean. The cold would also have prevented natural rock weathering reactions from pulling carbon dioxide, in the form of carbonic acid, out of the atmosphere and turning into bicarbonate. This would have allowed for an intense buildup of the greenhouse gas.
To find out how much carbon dioxide was around at the time, researchers analyzed the chemical composition of rocks taken from one of these deposits in Brazil, and the organic matter fossilized within them. The researchers also looked at data from samples from elsewhere in the world. They looked at ratios of carbon isotopes, molecules of carbon that have different atomic weights, in both the rocks and the organic matter fossilized within them. [Big Freeze: Earth Could Plunge into Sudden Ice Age]
Both the rocks and the organic matter — mostly algae — form using carbon from carbon dioxide dissolved in the ocean. However, a lower concentration of carbon dioxide causes the algae to take up more of the heavy version of carbon. The ratio of carbon isotopes picked up by the carbonate rocks, however, doesn't change, regardless of the carbon dioxide concentration. So by comparing the ratios from the two sources, the scientists could get an idea of what the concentration of carbon dioxide was in the ocean, and hence the atmosphere, at the time.
They found it was much lower than expected. While previous estimates had put the carbon dioxide concentration at as much as 90,000 parts per million, this new analysis put it lower than 3,200 ppm, possibly as low as it is today, about 400 ppm.
"Since we record a very low carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere it seems to be there was never a high concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which means it cannot have been a Snowball Earth, otherwise it would still be frozen," said Magali Ader, a study researcher and assistant professor at the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris,.
There is a lot of uncertainty in the finding, she cautions. It's possible, due to difficulties in dating, the rocks they tested weren't deposited until well after the Snowball Earth had passed, when the high concentration of carbon dioxide had begun to clear, and it's possible another greenhouse gas, methane, may have been responsible.
Perhaps one of the biggest questions surrounding Snowball Earth is how life managed to survive, since there is no evidence of mass extinctions. Tiny, heavily armored marine fossils have shown up in cap carbonate rocks leading scientists to suggest that these creatures thrived in an interval between two glaciations.


When do you think is the correct age for a child to start brushing? A mother looks after a child’s every need, be it singing him a lullaby or ensuring he gets his food when he feels hungry. Amongst the various daily chores of a mother, keeping her child’s teeth strong and healthy is one. It is needless to say that the first step to maintaining good oral hygiene is to brush his teeth regularly.
Till the age of two, as a mother, you can just brush the teeth of your toddler with plain water. But beyond the age of 2, mothers, often, have this common question in their mind – “how to get my toddler to brush his teeth?” Well, the answer to this question is that you need to be persistent and patient.
Tips On How To Get Your Toddler To Brush His Teeth:
A visit to a dentist for your little one is something that you want to avoid for sure. Apply the following tips that can help you know how to encourage toddler to brush teeth.
1. Follow A Routine:
Inculcate the habit of brushing the teeth as part of his daily morning routine. You should also incorporate the activity of brushing the teeth as a part of the bedtime routine. Brushing his teeth should be the first thing your son does once he wakes up in the morning. He has to repeat the activity before he goes to bed.
2. Play Copycat:
Toddlers like to copy their elders. So, you need to brush your teeth in front of your toddler so that he can emulate you.
3. Play “Tooth Brushing”:
It might sound weird, but there might be days when you may have to play tooth brushing all day. Let your little one brush the teeth of a doll, a puppet, or even your teeth for him to get used to the idea of brushing the teeth.
4. Make Tooth Brushing A Fun Game:
Make sounds like “tee” and “ahh” so that he wide opens his mouth for you to get access to the front and back teeth. You can also encourage him to make a roar like a lion so that he opens his mouth that can help you brush his teeth. These activities can help the mundane ritual of brushing the teeth turn into a fun time.
5. Give Choices Of Toothpaste:
Give your little one a number of options of toothpaste. There are a number of kid’s toothpastes available in the market that he can choose from. After your toddler settles with a particular brand or taste of toothpaste, use it regularly to make brushing his teeth a fun activity.
6. Do Not Use Force To Make Your Toddler Brush His Teeth:
You definitely do not want your little darling to undergo the trauma or fear the activity of tooth brushing. So, refrain from using force to brush his teeth. Be patient and try out these tips for brushing toddlers teeth.
Remember, do not expect your toddler to make tooth brushing a regular habit almost instantly. He might take time to get into the habit. Initially, he may hate it. Your cute may also cry his eyes out to prevent you to brush his teeth. But after a few days, he will get used to it.
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World energy use will
grow by a steady two percent a year from now till 2020, and carbon dioxide emissions which contribute to unwanted climate change will rise at about the same rate. Most of the increases will come in developing countries. Oil, gas and coal will continue to dominate the world fuel mix. Countries that import oil and gas will grow increasingly dependent on production from OPEC members in the Middle East.
These are some of the main projections to be found in the "reference scenario" of World Energy 2000, the biennial flagship publication of the International Energy Agency. The new Outlook was launched today at the COP 6 Conference in the Dutch capital.
Robert Priddle, the IEA Executive Director, said on presenting the book: "This is a detailed portrait, warts and all, of how the energy world might develop from now till 2020. It points to a number of serious challenges. But it also shows how some adverse trends could be changed. It contains an array of relevant facts and dispassionate analysis that can help the world to understand and meet the challenges posed by the energy sector.
WEO 2000, the latest in a series of publications that have become the point of reference for the energy world, contains a number of important innovations. Previous editions were based on a "business as usual" scenario, which simply projected forward established energy trends. The "reference scenario" in this year's Outlook goes beyond that approach. It takes into account the likely effect of policies and measures to combat climate destabilization which have been adopted since 1997, the last year for which authoritative global statistics are available. WEO 2000 also offers, for the first time, a selection of "alternative cases," which trace what could happen if additional measures were taken.
The energy world depicted
in the reference scenario of WEO 2000 is dynamic, expanding and rapidly changing. It assumes that the world economy will grow by 3 percent a year, that fossil fuel prices remain flat till 2010, then rise to $28 in today's money by 2020. In that event, overall energy demand will grow by 57 percent over twenty years, just slightly below the rate in recent years. CO2 emissions will swell by 60 % or 2.1 % annually - one-third from power generation.
Fossil fuels - coal, oil and natural gas - will continue to provide 90 percent of the world's primary energy, although gas will displace coal in some regions. Petroleum will remain the dominant fuel, meeting 40 percent of world energy needs. Oil use will surge from 76 million barrels a day now to 115 mb/d in 2020. Nuclear power output will remain constant in absolute terms, but decline as a proportion of total energy supply as older nuclear reactors in Europe and North America are retired. New renewable energy sources will increase rapidly, from 2 percent to 3 percent of total demand.
Energy use will grow much faster in the world's poorer nations than in the rich. But rich and poor alike will come to depend heavily on a diminishing number of gas and oil suppliers. Middle East OPEC countries, which furnished 26 percent of world oil in 1997, will be called upon to produce 32 percent in 2010 and 41 percent in 2020.
Despite all the efforts made so far to reduce energy-related CO2 emissions, the WEO 2000 reference scenario sees them rising by 60 percent from 1997 to 2000, faster than energy demand and faster than in recent decades. Developing countries will account for more than two-thirds of the increase, with China's new emissions matching those of the whole OECD. Emissions from power generation will increase by more than three-quarters and those from the transport sector by nearly as much.
These projections show how much more needs to be done in the energy sector if developed and transition countries are to meet their commitments to limit greenhouse gas emissions under the terms of the Kyoto Protocol. The reference scenario foresees North American emissions 42 percent higher than the Kyoto targets by 2010. The gap would be 29 percent in the OECD Pacific region and 18 percent in Western Europe.


Ionising radiation is used in different types of medical imaging such as X-rays. These pass through the body and thus produce a sharp image of solid body parts, i.e. bones.
To execute a mammography a physician uses soft X-rays to study the differences between fat and glandular tissue. Bone densitometry also involves low dose ionising radiation. During the examination an X-ray the size of a needle passes across the body. The apparatus measures how much radiation passes through the bone and is able to define the exact bone calcium content.
SCK•CEN studies the long term health effects
of these low dose radiation imaging techniques. The resulting findings and recommendations ensure better protection for both patient and medical personnel
. The developed models and control techniques enable radiation doses to be kept as low as possible
During their first few months of life premature babies are subjected to many medical examinations, including lung x-rays. Babies are exceptionally sensitive to radiation, which means that the dose must be kept to a minimum.
The same applies to unborn babies and hence examinations involving pregnant women.
More info: Optimizing medical radiation doses


Caching is used to improve performance of Application like consistency & looking. We can virtually provide results to user and run the Application more faster. Cache means programmed memory Area.
ASP.net supports caching in different concepts but the important areas. Where user has to involve and produce results are 3 types.
1)Page output caching
All these caching methods objective is same but the only diff is what they cache.
1)In page output caching entire processed page request is cache. So , that for every request we provide output to uses from cacheinstead of performing process it.
2)It is also important to understand ASP.net page life cycle with caching & without caching . User has to explicitly add cahcing support in order to cache the page. Different directives are provided to implement page output cache.
1)Page Output Caching:
Design the page with all content regularly and write code according to requirement.
Go to directives section and add
<%@OutPutCache Duration="n sec" VaryByParam="none/*/param"%> to the page.
Here , Duration specifies the amount of time we want to Cache the page OutPut Results.
VaryByParam is used to specify parameter based Caching when not required we specify none.
1) In a new page drag & drop label, textbox, button controls
2) On button click evetn write below lines of code.
Protected void btn_Click(Object sender,EventArgs e)
3) Go to directives section and add
<%@ OutPutCache Duration="60" VaryByParam="none"%>.
If we specify any parameter for VaryByParam attribute then ASP.net store different cache results for different values. But the load to maintain values will also increase. Parameter can be any control or QueryString value.
In Data Caching we will Cache only the Data which we process with ours statement. It can be a simple varriable or it can be a complex type. Cache object of ASP.net is used to create DataCaching this object is provided to overcome the drawbacks of Application object. Like consistency and looking and some programatic issues. Apart from this Cache obj has exclusive advantages like Time Based Expiry, Dependence Base Expiry, Managed By Runtime.
1)In a new form drag & drop button , link button name as Refresh and GridView controls.
2)On your button click event write the below lines of code.
Protected void btn_click (Object sender,EventArgs e)
3)On your link button click event write below lines of code.
Protected void lnkbtn_Clck(Object sender,EventArgs e)
The reason to provide Refresh button to our page is to make or generate consistence output. Without refresh button if we want to manage consistency logically. Then we can create admin page in order to update the Cache Data apart from doing logically we can also use TimeBased or DependencyBased features to provide consistency result.
The timebased Expire in Data Caching:
When we cache data by default it will be available as long as our Application is running apart from logical methods another updations methods that we can useare time based & dependency based expiry.
Time Based Expire:
In time based expire we will cache data and provide time for expire. So that we can reload over data from original datasource.
Cache object has insert method for creating time waste and dependence base expire object.
//Time Based Expire
Note: After 1 min data will be loss. Why because here we add minutes 1 .
Dependency Based Expiry:
To create dependency base expiry we use some insert method but with cache dependence class which will perform dependence based expiry. Some time we can't have logical update to our Cache Data and also time base expiry may not be better solution. In such cases we will go for dependency based Expire.
Note: We do either time based (or) dependency based not both at a time
In this method we will Cache some part of our webpage unlike page output caching where entire data is Cache. Fragment caching is implemented with a concept but not with any new command or directive. Fragment caching is very important as we use web user control concept in it.
In ASP.net user defined control vis created in 2 ways
-> Using web User Control
-> Using Custom control.
For any project user defind controls are required and it is very important to create new property and consume it with web user control we can create user defind controls with in the project and consumed it in the same project.
Web User Control:
• Add a new item -> web user control
A file with extension .ascx( Active Server control).
This file is created with< %@Control.....%>
Directive instead of <%@Page....%>
No default content like HTML, head are present in this file.
• Add <%@ OutPut Cache directive to the control.
• Go to Page and register to the control as it is compulsory to consuming a control.
with custom control also we can create ASP.net user defined control. Most of the standard controls are like custom controls. Unlike web user control. A custom control is prepared as .net library assembly . i.e. .dll. a custom control is created using the base control called web control. Which doesn't provide any functionality for a control. All content should be created and managed by developer only VS.net provides a separate project template for creating a custom control. We can use that and build a .net dll containing ASP.net control.
The following steps are followed fro developing custom control.
• Start file -> new project -> web -> ASP.net server control.
• A .cs file is created where a clas will be extending "web Control" class. Which is base class for all controls. Sample property & a method for displaying the control initial or processed output is also provided.
• User has to add all control functionality here i.e. in a class required for preparing a best control.
• We can add more controls to our project using add new item and ASP.net server control template. Every cotrol is designed with same component building style.
• After preparing all these controls we have to just build our project and the result will be a .dll file containing all these controls.
Consuming the .dll file:
• Start a web site and create a tab in toolbox. So , that controls are not mixed up with other categories.
• Right click on the created tab and select choose items which will result in displaying of window showing all controls components that we can add / remove to our project.
• Browse our .dll file which is created and deserve how they are displayed in toolbox.
• From toolbox we can simply drag & drop asp.net automatically register created a control in pages.


The current state of globalization has raised a strong dispute among economists, on whether the financial crises are inevitable. In this paper, the term globalization of financial markets is interpreted as the incorporation of a country’s internal economic structure with global financial systems and institutions. This incorporation normally calls for the authorities to liberalize the regional financial sector and the prime account (IMFStaff, 2008). In the last three decades, globalization of financial markets has resulted to financial crises. Globalization has long been influenced by new technological development and liberalization of local financial institutions.
The Inevitability of Financial Crises
Despite that, the effects of globalization on financial crises are not felt uniformly among nations and to some extent not felt at all in others; it is debatably an inevitable process which may no end soon (Gilman, 2010, p. 416). He reveals that quickly developing technology enables electronic commerce and funds transfer on an international scale and nations have no option rather than following the trend.
Financial crises may rise due to limitation in global financial markets. The defect in financial markets can cause tentative attacks, crashes and so on. This leads to crises in all countries despite their sound decision making procedures. Moreover, when a nation liberalizes its economic system it gives the right to the domestic and local investors to exercise market discipline. Financial crises can also be due to some external factors, still in nations with sound basics and even in the lack of deficiency in global money markets. When a nation relies on foreign capital country becomes dependent on foreign capital, rapid changes in foreign capital surge may lead to financial complexities and economic recession. According to Calvo, Leiderman, and Reinhart (1996) the external factors are imperative determining factors of capital rate of flow to developing nations.
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In principle, globalization illustrates a globe that is permanently nified to an extent that proceedings in a single region of the globe are felt in all other parts. According to Gilley, globalization has enabled different people and societies to have the right to the similar expertise, and information than what they had before. This shows that all nations are competing with each other and hence, the effects of financial crises are irreversible.
Globalization of financial markets allows more people and societies to get pleasure from better living standards as it improves the economy of a country. It is proven hard eliminate any nation or state from the effects financial crises. All nations developed and under developed are striving to be integrated within the global society (Harvey, 2010, p. 256).
What governments can do to reduce the likelihood of financial crises?
According to the IMF report there are four areas that the governments need to address to prevent more financial crises. They include; the perimeter of regulation, procyclicality, information gaps, harmonizing global regulatory procedures with legal frame works and provision of liquidity to markets. The perimeter of regulation requires to be enlarged to cover all the institutions and markets that are beyond the detection by supervisors. Most of these institutions are capable of using debt to purchase assets to an extent of threatening financial stability (IMFSurveyonline, 2009). To evade overload of valuable markets and financial institutions it is vital to recognize cautiously the definite faults which broader regulation might strive to solve.
Monetary cycles are to be anticipated, however, several institutional regulations can emphasize cyclical movements. These regulations may include; capital regulations and compensation exercises in various monetary sectors (Jochen Andritzky, 2009, p. 2). Incentives ought to be brought in to persuade financial institutions to build up supplementary capital buffers through upturns and reduce them through downturns. Several ways can be implemented to achieve this, for example, a nation can make funds necessities countercyclical; thus, this leads to rise in the sum of capital necessary to maintain aa specified level of resources would increase through booms and decrease through busts. Preferably, this regulation helps in stabilization during upturns and down turns.
The governments should ensure that all the relevant information is communicated to the concerned financial institutions. Clear and consistent information would ensure better judgment of the impending risks to the investors. Serious examination of dealing with financial crises calls for the provision of information. Most likely, the required information on the financial crisis is crucial to the market and other financial institutions. Also, the governments should work on harmonizing global regulatory procedures; this will help in dealing with inconsistencies in the current financial institutions both locally and globally (IMF, 2010, p. 6).
Finally, the governments need to focus on regulating liquidity in the market. The governments through the Central banks’ of specific nations should use their capabilities in regulating interest rates to govern the globalised financial markets. Central banks should determine the market in which they can influence in order to maximize the returns. They need to take into consideration how the rates reflect on the end users. The provision of emergency liquidity should be controlled and the authorities need to ensure discontinuation as markets normalize. The timing should also be controlled to prevent rapid transfer of liquidity and credit (Perotti, 2011).
It is evident that the financial crises are inevitable with the globalization of the financial market. The integration of financial systems for different countries means that, when one nation suffers financial crises the others also suffer either directly or indirectly. Nations need to devise measures to protect the negative effects of globalization. The unsealed regulatory setting puts it tricky to weigh the future trend of the global market and thus, financial crises don’t seem to end soon. Thus, the governments should strive to present consistency in the regulations in order to restore and maintain urgently desired certainty in the financial markets.
Free Essay Sample «Globalization of Financial Markets»


Theoretical Appraisal: Understanding Remittances
The economic role of remittances in the lives of immigrant workers, their sending communities, and the developing nations they hail from is well documented (World Bank 2006a). The Council of Europe estimated that $72 billion flowed from workers to their homes in developing countries in 2002. This total was well in excess of the total official aid directed to developing nations that year (COE 2006: 7). Through the end of the decade and even during the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 remittance rates remained consistently strong and did not drop as did other forms of aid (see figure I.1 in the introduction). Similarly, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found that at least $126 billion followed the networks that immigrant workers maintained with their sending households and communities in 2005 (OECD 2005). The formal, legal transfers noted by these studies represent large and largely stable amounts of money (Maimbo and Ratha 2005; Ratha, Mohapatra, and Xu 2008; World Bank 2006a), yet they do not include informal, unofficial, and illegal transfers (Christiansen 2008; Lozano Ascencio 1998; Mohan 2002; Shehu 2004). Furthermore, although these are large amounts of money, the studies of remittances often do not acknowledge the anticyclical nature of remittances practices, the role remittances continue to play for movers and their families, and the measurable benefits that go directly and indirectly to developing nations’ economies and coffers even in moments of economic crisis (Lianos and Cavounidis 2010). Remittances can cushion the impact of financial crisis and support communities that might otherwise share in the misery of the moment.


September 1942 QST
Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles
QST, published December 1915 - present (visit ARRL
for info). All copyrights hereby acknowledged.
There was a time when a sense of national
pride accompanied an ingrained a desire to perform a civic duty, particularly when
crisis or war was upon the country. Unlike today's environment of "rights" and entitlements
promised by politicians without any authority in the Constitution, people volunteered
to assist neighbors and friends for the good of not just their immediate neighborhoods,
but of their country. Rationing was imposed on many goods by the government for
the sake of the war effort, but most folks were more than willing to comply since
nearly everyone had a son, father, uncle, or good buddy serving to defeat the Axis
powers. Recall the scene in "It's a Wonderful Life," where George Bailey and family
served as volunteers for the Red Cross, bottle and tire drives, and Civil Defense
block wardens, while younger brother Harry flew bombers.
As is their proud history, Ham radio operators contributed mightily to the war
effort by helping to train civilians in the proper and efficient operation of radio
equipment, and by joining the service to apply their own skills to the task. Here
is an article that appeared in the November 1942 edition of QST magazine on the
subject of training.
Training Civilians for Wartime Operating
Organizing Community Classes for Radio Training
By John Huntoon W1LVQ
In the prosecution of the war our armed forces find themselves confronted with
a great shortage of trained specialists. This is particularly true in the communications
field. Training schools by the hundreds with a prodigious total enrollment have
been set up to relieve this shortage, but they are not enough. Then, too, the flow
of trained civilians into military service has stripped essential home communications
activity of personnel, creating a serious problem in finding operators to man the
War Emergency Radio Service.
Many affiliated clubs and other amateur groups have responded to this need by
setting up classes in radiotelegraph code and theory in their respective communities.
Now that Autumn is upon us and the school season returns, this is an "allout" call
to every club and every amateur remaining home to assist in this widespread training
work. Let it not fall on deaf ears at "one of those meetings of hams-at which everyone
sits and suggests that something ought to be done," (as Jack Hill describes them
on page 80). This is an important job, one which we amateurs can do well since we
have a supply of the necessary raw material - instructors and equipment.
The new War Emergency Radio
Service needs many trained operators. Sixty-nine YL's graduated June 28th from A
WVS radio classes under the supervision of Leonore Conn. W2NAZ, and are now awaiting
their amateur licenses from FCC. Reeve Strock, W2GTZ. deputy radio aide for New
York City, was right on hand to sign up the gals for participation in WERS.
Our broad objectives should be three-fold:
First, to give pre-induction training to prospective selectees so that they may
advance rapidly during their military communications schooling; second, to prepare
local civilians to fill essential communications jobs whose former holders have
gone to war; and third, to train operators for the War Emergency Radio Service.
Every training class should have as its goal the acquisition of an FCC license,
amateur or commercial, by each student; such a license is about the only documentary
evidence, aside from a radio engineering degree, which military personnel officers
will honor in support of a candidate's claim to radio ability.
The first step is to decide what scope of training you will offer - code or
theory, and to what degree. Important considerations will be what instructor material
is available and what equipment can be secured. Probably code is the better course
to offer, at least at the beginning, for it is a more interesting one to evening
students and one which a greater percentage of amateurs are capable of teaching.
It is obvious that only reasonably-good operators - meaning good fists rather than
high speed - should be allowed to handle the code classes, so that no poor sending
habits will be transmitted to students; we want to turn out a product far superior
to some of the mass-production nonamateur Army field operators we often hear.
You will need a classroom, of course. The principals of local schools should
be willing to help you out; in fact, they may wish to offer the course as part of
their regular evening-school training. If this source is not productive, contact
civic clubs, the YMCA, chambers of commerce - we're certain you won't need to go
further. (You need not be particular, but if there is a choice between classrooms
choose one which has the most sound insulation.)
If your town has a population greater than 50, you need have no fear of the success
of your course. If publicity should appear in a local paper you probably will need
a police guard to handle the crowds around the registration point you name! Of course,
a large number of applications is a desirable thing; you can reserve the right to
select students on your own specification, and can thereupon proceed to choose first
those for whom induction is imminent, and so on.
Above are pictured some examples
of amateur-sponsored community training classes in radiotelegraph code and theory,
designed to give both stay-at-home civilians and future Army selectees preliminary
knowledge of radiocommunication.
Upper and center left: The Bamberger classes are held in the
WaR studios, with Ed Oberle, W2LCA, instructing in theory. Lower left: Troop of
Rock Springs, Wyoming, Girl Scouts receiving code instruction from John Duffy, W7DIE.
Upper right: First graduates of the Navy League Service radio class, instructed
by Walter Faries, who will be remembered as the winner of the Cairo Survey Award.
Center right: The St. Paul Radio Club's 15-minute radio program goes on KSTP. to
teach code to Twin Cities' listeners; left to right, Leo Hartig; J. L. Hill, W9ZWW;
A. E. Swanberg, W9BHY; R. N. Runyon; Dorothy Swanberg. Lower right: Dr. E. F. Murphy,
age 68, and Glenn Still, 12, learn code from Willard Coder, W9HWS, president of
the St. Paul Club. Has your club started a training program yet?
Adequate training literature in the form of student texts for both code and theory
classes is available from Hq, In addition, we shall be glad to send to any club
without charge a mimeographed set of material containing hints to code instructors,
together with some practice material. There is also available, gratis, an outline
of a theory course based on the Handbook, though the current QST series is much
more elaborate and detailed.
Equipment is not much of a problem in code classes, for an adequate oscillator
may be built from nearly every amateur junk box. Procurement of new headphones and
keys is not always possible, but students can be informed that they must bring their
own 'phones, along with the suggestion they scout around, inquiring of friends and
acquaintances for old pairs; they exist in many attics and cellars and usually will
fill the need. Telegraph keys can be acquired in the same manner, while early receiving
practice is under way; keys may be shared, too, so that a supply equal to the class
enrollment is not necessary. As a last resort only, if sufficient 'phones are not
available, buzzer sets or a loud speaker may be used. The equipment problem becomes
more complicated for classes on theory, but here again the junk box may be source
number one, for the QST-course series utilizes demonstration units constructed to
a great extent from just that type of gear.
In any class, but particularly in one aiming at the radiotelephone third-class
operator permit, you should plan to turn out operators, not just licensees. If you
happen to be instructing members of the Civil Air Patrol, for example, make certain
they get classroom practice simulating airport control station and aircraft contacts,
so they will learn voice technique in a snappy manner. Give your code students practice
operating in networks, alternating the control station assignment, and let them
handle dummy messages. Trainees should receive guidance in copying to typewriter,
ten-to-the-line. In theory classes, allow as much time for "laboratory" work as
possible; nothing is more abstract than radio technique when only a paper knowledge
To any affiliated club wishing to conduct code tests, ARRL will be glad to send
a supply of proficiency certificates upon receipt of an application accompanied
by a description of how the competition will be conducted, equipment used, etc.
The awards are issued in the name of the sponsoring group, and can be used for sending
or receiving ability.
By no means least, keep us informed of your activities. Let us know how many
persons you are training and to what end, so we may list you in the "Honor Roll."
We want amateur radio to do a bang-up job in community radio training, and we want
to chronicle it in QST's pages.
Posted April 5, 2019(original 3/21/2011)


It was on or about this day in 476 AD that the German chieftain Odoacer was proclaimed rex Italiae by his troops after his revolt overthrew Emperor Romulus Augustulus, usually considered the last of the Western Roman Emperors. However, many people have a mistaken view of Odoacer and how he behaved after he and his mutinous forces deposed Emperor Romulus. Odoacer, although his rule was based on power, had the belated support of the Roman Senate and he claimed to be using his authority on behalf of the Emperor Julius Nepos, exiled Western Roman Emperor who had been replaced by Emperor Romulus through the betrayal of his father, Orestes, who had been in the employ of Julius Nepos (after having been a chief lieutenant of Attila the Hun). Although his rule was mostly unquestioned, Odoacer usually only claimed to be the agent of Julius Nepos or, after his time, the Eastern Roman Emperor who still claimed sovereignty over the whole of Italy. Eventually he did get involved in the Byzantine intrigues of the west and was at first successful in the war that followed, conquering Austria. However, the Eastern Emperor told Theodoric the Goth that he could be King of Italy with imperial blessings if he could defeat and kill Odoacer. After fighting his way onto Italian soil Theodoric invited Odoacer to a banquet where he was poisoned and killed in 493, clearing the way for the reign of King Theodoric the Great.


Heterogeneous Computing with OpenCL
Revised OpenCL 1.2 Edition
Heterogeneous Computing with OpenCL teaches OpenCL and parallel programming for complex systems that may include a variety of device architectures: multi-core CPUs, GPUs, and fully-integrated Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) such as AMD Fusion technology. Designed to work on multiple platforms and with wide industry support, OpenCL will help you more effectively program for a heterogeneous future.
Written by leaders in the parallel computing and OpenCL communities, this book will give you hands-on OpenCL experience to address a range of fundamental parallel algorithms. The authors explore memory spaces, optimization techniques, graphics interoperability, extensions, and debugging and profiling. Intended to support a parallel programming course, Heterogeneous Computing with OpenCL includes detailed examples throughout, plus additional online exercises and other supporting materials.
- Explains principles and strategies to learn parallel programming with OpenCL, from understanding the four abstraction models to thoroughly testing and debugging complete applications.
- Covers image processing, web plugins, particle simulations, video editing, performance optimization, and more.
- Shows how OpenCL maps to an example target architecture and explains some of the tradeoffs associated with mapping to various architectures
- Addresses a range of fundamental programming techniques, with multiple examples and case studies that demonstrate OpenCL extensions for a variety of hardware platforms
308 pages; ISBN 9780124055209
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Title: Heterogeneous Computing with OpenCL
Author: Benedict Gaster; Lee Howes; David R. Kaeli; Perhaad Mistry; Dana Schaa
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- Academic > Mathematics > General > Mathematics
- Academic > Computer Science > Computer science
- Academic > Computer Science > Electronic data processing
- Academic > Computer Science > Computer programming
- Academic > Computer Science > Object-oriented programming
- Academic > Computer Science > Parallel programming
- Academic > Mathematics > Instruments and machines
- Academic > Mathematics > Geometry. Trigonometry.Topology
- Computers > Programming > Software Development
- Computers > Computer Architecture
- Computers > Logic Design


By FRANK CARINI
The amount of plastic swimming in the planet’s waters is incomprehensible, and frightening. The fact that plastic fibers have now been found in drinking water should come as no surprise. Humans, after all, have been dumping all sorts of nasty stuff, from raw sewage and industrial/agricultural waste to coal ash and pharmaceuticals, into water for millennia.
A recent investigation by Orb Media found microplastic contamination in 83 percent of drinking-water samples tested worldwide. The United States had the highest contamination rate, at 94 percent, with plastic fibers found in tap water sampled at such sites as Congress buildings and the Environmental Protection Agency’s headquarters.
A smaller study conducted last year in Ireland also found tiny plastic fibers and fragments in tap water and well samples. Bottled water also has tested positive for microplastics. Plus, the water is actually stored in, well, plastic.
Besides the air we breathe, you’d be hard-pressed to make an argument that water isn’t the most vital resource to our survival. It’s certainly not oil, gold, the latest iPhone, or plastic bags. But we continue to take water for granted, even the sources we rely on for drinking. NFL quarterbacks are better protected.
Where’s the outrage about plastic-infused drinking water? The general public is too distracted posting pictures of what’s for dinner, and politicians get more fired up about plastic-bag bans and the alleged jobs that would be lost if these petroleum pouches were outlawed. By this logic, prior to 1979, when plastic grocery bags were first introduced, must have been akin to the Dark Ages.
The tiny plastic particles floating around in water are hard to find, but they carry some scary stuff. Plastics often contain a variety of chemicals to change their properties or color, and many of these are toxic or hormone disruptors. Plastics also can attract/absorb pollutants such as dioxins, metals and some pesticides, which we spray around with little consideration.
Microplastics can attract bacteria found in sewage. Studies have shown there are harmful pathogens on microplastics found downstream of wastewater treatment facilities. Microplastics are also known to contain and absorb toxic chemicals, and research on wild animals shows these toxins are released in the body.
How microplastics end up in drinking water is unknown, but the atmosphere is one obvious source, with plastic fibers shed by the everyday wear and tear of carpets and clothing. Dryers are another likely source, with nearly 80 percent of U.S. households having dryers that usually vent outside.
Plastic fibers may also be flushed into water systems, with a recent study finding that each cycle of a washing machine potentially releases 700,000 fibers into the environment.
Standard water treatment systems don’t filter out many microplastics, which isn’t a good thing, considering some 300 million tons of plastic is produced annually worldwide. And, with just 20 percent recycled, much of the remaining 80 percent ends up contaminating air, land, and drinking water.
Researchers believe if microplastics are in your water, they’re also likely to be in your food, and craft beer. Scientists in Belgium have calculated that shellfish consumers are eating up to 11,000 plastic fragments in their seafood annually.
New studies also have found microplastics in salt from the United States, China and Europe, adding to the mounting evidence that plastic pollution is pervasive.
Plastic is essentially indestructible. It doesn’t biodegrade, and instead continues to break down into smaller pieces — down to particles in nanometer scale, one-one thousandth of one-one thousandth of a millimeter. Studies show these tiny particles can migrate through the intestinal wall and travel to the lymph nodes and other organs.
The impact of microplastics on public health isn't yet fully understood — the same thing was once said about lead and asbestos — but a few more bag bans certainly wouldn’t hurt.
Frank Carini is the ecoRI News editor.