The Safety of Blood and Components, where is the limit?
The recent past
HIV transmission by transfusion of blood and blood products was the biggest driver of change in the history of transfusion medicine in the past 30 years. Most of the medical world in the 70’s and in the early 80’s was celebrating the control of infectious diseases. The hemophilia community was celebrating the enjoyment of a normal life provided by the prophylactic use of plasma derived clotting factor concentrates. In this environment of excitement and trust in the power of medical science and pharmaceuticals, the initial reactions to the news that AIDS could possibly be transmitted by transfusion were denial and disbelief. The first report suggesting that clotting factor concentrates might transmit HIV was published in July 1982.
It described three hemophilia patients who developed immunosuppression and opportunistic infections. By December 1982, four more cases had been identified among patients with hemophilia A (1). The first case of suspected transmission of AIDS by blood transfusion was reported at that time. Both the medical community and the patient community had no choice but to accept the growing evidence that AIDS was transmitted by a blood borne infectious agent. The epidemic ravaged through the United States, progressing from 1,000 recorded cases in February 1983 to over 500,000 cases in December 1995. In the early 80’s, over 1% of blood donors in San Francisco, California, were suspected to be infected.
HIV was identified as the etiological agent of AIDS in 1984, and in 1985 screening assays for antibodies to HIV became available, leading to a remarkable reduction of the transmission of the infection by transfusion and transplantation (Table 1). This discovery was followed by substantial advances on serological and molecular screening for other transfusion transmissible viruses (HBV, HCV, HTLV-I/II, WNV), implementation of good manufacturing practices and quality assurance for blood centers and developments in computer systems that ensured accuracy of management of donors and donations. Unfortunately, despite preventive measures and substantial therapeutic advances, there are today over a 1 million HIV infected individuals in the U.S. and over 50,000 new cases are added each year (2). Europe continues to have a lower but still significant HIV incidence rate while the incidence in Asia has been high.
|HIV||1:2,135,000||1:909,000 – 5,500,000|
|HCV||1:1,930,000||1:2,000,000 – 4,000,000|
|HBV||1:277,000||1:72,000 – 1,100,000|
|WNV||1:350,000||No reported cases|
* Range between high and low endemic areasAdapted from (3) Despite of steady incidence rates of these infections in the general population, the number of reported cases of transmission HIV, HBV and HCV by transfusion has been extremely small in the U.S., in Europe and in many other countries. However, transfusion transmission continues to be a serious problem in countries with limited resources to invest in healthcare systems as reflected by the close correlation between the quality of blood transfusion services and the World Health Organization Human Development Index, or HDI (4). The Human Development Index classifies countries as having a low, medium or high HDI, based on life expectancy, educational attainment and adjusted income.
The Concept of Emerging Infections
The Institute of Medicine the U.S. National Academy of Sciences defined emergent infectious diseases as diseases of infectious origin whose incidence in humans has increased in last the two decades, or threatens to increase the future (5). Those include not only newly recognized diseases like AIDS in the 80s but also infectious diseases that are reemerging due to conditions that facilitated their spread, as the case with West Nile Virus (WNV), Dengue virus (DENV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV). Factors that facilitated emergence have been climatic changes, globalization of human activities, air travel, migration, etc. The magnitude and the reality of the epidemic of AIDS have generated and still generate great concern about future threats, particularly among chronic recipients of blood and blood products. Justly, they are scared by the possibility that an unknown or poorly understood transmissible agent could cause as much devastation in the future as HIV did in 80s. While only few of the recognized emergent infections today constitute a significant threat to the security of the blood supply, transfusion medicine has applied substantial resources for the monitoring of infections where the transmission by transfusion was suspected. Examples are the Idiopathic CD4+ Lymphocytopenia (or AIDS Without HIV), the systemic infection of American soldiers who returned from the Persian Gulf in 1990 with Leishmania tropica, and SARS coronavirus, until extensive investigation documented that they were not transmitted by blood transfusion (6).
Risk perception in blood safety
Despite the impressive progress in blood safety observed in recent years, public concerns and fear continue to be important motivators for the implementation of additional measures, many attempting to reach an unattainable “zero risk”. The public and patient advocates reluctantly accept the risk associated with procedures and medications other areas of medicine but have difficulty accepting risks associated with blood, even when the benefits clearly exceed the risks. The classical publication of Slovic (7) provides a basis for understanding public responses and attempts to help improve risk communications with the public and with decision-makers. He indicates that both dread and knowledge drive the ultimate public perception of risk. Essentially, known risks with a low degree of dread (e.g. smoking, boating and skiing) are accepted by the public even in face of serious consequences while unknown or misunderstood risks are seen as unacceptable because of poor knowledge about the event and the high degree of dread (e.g. nuclear reactor accidents, radioactive waste and recombinant DNA technology). Dr. Slovic wisely concludes that “each side, expert and public, has something valid to contribute. Each side must respect the inside and intelligence of the other.”
The Precautionary Principle and Zero Risk
Dr. Slovic’s analyses also help us understand distortions of the interpretation of guiding principles like the precautionary principle. One of the primary foundations of the precautionary principle, and its globally accepted definitions, are stated in Principle #15 of the Rio Declaration of the "Earth Summit" of 1992: "In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall be widely applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation" (8).The European Commission has addressed the question of applicability of the precautionary principle and emphasized that it should be proportionalto the chosen level of protection including, where appropriate and feasible, an economic cost/benefit analysis (9). Unfortunately, the words “cost-effective” and “proportional” are frequently dropped from references to the principle, leading to the widespread confusion with zero risk.
Some Emerging Infections of Current Concern
This article will focus on some of the emerging infections that are likely to be transmitted by transfusion of blood and components, like West Nile Virus (WNV), Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), the agent of Chagas’ disease, DENV and CHIKV. It will not address vCJD, bacterial contamination, and non-infectious risks such as TRALI, TACO and hemolytic reactions.
West Nile Virus in the U.S.
The U.S. experienced the true emergence of a transfusion transmitted disease in 1999, when WNV was introduced in New York City. WNV is transmitted to humans primarily through mosquito bites, and the outcome of infection depends on the age and immune status of the exposed individual. WNV was first identified in 1937 in Uganda, and has caused small epidemics in Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe for many years. Recently, cases of infection have been recognized in Italy. WNV has become endemic in the U.S. with reoccurring outbreaks for nine consecutive years. Infecting between 1.8 and 4.1 million people since 1999, WNV has caused 28,943 documented cases of human disease and 1,130 deaths reported to the CDC and became the most common cause of viral encephalitis in the country. Birds are the major amplifying host of WNV and have facilitated the spread of the infection to all states in the continental U.S. In addition, several non-avian vertebrates including mammals, reptiles and rodents, can be infected by WNV and some species produce levels of viremia capable of infecting mosquitoes (10). Over 60 species of mosquitoes are able to transmit the virus (11). The explosive WNVspread in the North America suggested viral adaptation and prompted concerns about genetic variability that could potentially decrease the sensitivity of blood donor screening and diagnostic assays increasing the risk of transmission to blood recipients, affect viral pathogenesis, development of vaccines, and development of therapeutic agents. Recent studies documented an increase in the number of mutations in the full WNV genome from 0.18% in 2002 to 0.37% in 2005 when compared with the original strain isolated during the 1999 epidemic in New York City. Essentially, WNV has slowly diverged from precursor isolates as the geographic distribution expanded (12). Human-to-human transmission by blood transfusion was identified in 2002 (13) stimulating the rapid development and implementation of nucleic acid tests (NAT) for blood donor screening under FDA-approved investigational new drug protocols in 2003. Retrospective studies identified 23 cases of WNV transmission by transfusion in 2002 associated with blood components from 16 donations, whose retention samples or retrieved plasma co-components individually tested produced reactive results for WNV-RNA using a research-based PCR assay. Implementation of blood screening in the U.S. has been a success and since 2003 has resulted in the interdiction of ~2,600 WNV NAT-reactive units and the prevention of ~2,600 to 7,800 potential transmissions by transfusion. After introduction of donor screening by NAT there were 6 confirmed cases in 2003, one in 2004 and none in 2005; however there were 2 confirmed cases in 2006. There are potential transmissions in 2008 which are still under investigation.
Infection by Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease)
Chagas’ disease was first described in 1909 by Carlos Chagas, a Brazilian physician. The acute form occurs in about 20% of the infected people and appears 20 to 40 days after the vector insect bite or a blood transfusion. It is characterized by fever, lymphadenopathy and hepatosplenomegaly, and rarely by pericarditis and disturbances of cardiac conduction. It can be quite severe or fatal in recipients with a debilitated immune system. Parasitemia is frequent. Approximately 20% of recipients of infected blood remain asymptomatic. Generally, the patients recover totally after 6-8 weeks. The acute disease can be effectively treated with the experimental drugs nifurtimox or benznidazole. The chronic form of Chagas’ disease develops 10-20 years after the acute infection. Approximately 50% of the infected individuals have parasitemia without clinical symptoms. Since these individuals do not know that they are infected, they are accepted as blood donors. Approximately 20% develop a cardiopathy characterized by cardiomegaly, disturbances of conduction, and alterations of the electrocardiogram. The cardiac insufficiency is progressive and finally fatal. Between 9 and 14% of individuals chronically infected develop megaesophagus and megacolon as result of the disruption of myoneural junctions in the intestinal tract. In general, symptomatic patients have only one type of manifestations, cardiac or gastrointestinal. Chagas’ disease is caused by the protozoan flagellate Trypanosoma cruzi.Blood forms of the parasite can be seen in smears of peripheral blood when parasitemia is high. T. cruzi infects a large number of peri-domestic animals like cats, dogs, rats, skunks, armadillos, sloths, mice, rabbits, etc., are infected by T. cruzi and serve as natural reserves for the agent. The insect vectors are blood sucking reduviidea (kissing bugs in the U.S., barbeiros in Brazil and vinchugas in Spanish speaking countries). They nest in cracks in the walls of mud houses with thatched roofs in rural areas. The insects bite preferably at night and following the bite, defecate close to the wound. When scratching, the victim introduces the infected excrement into the broken skin or carries it to the eye mucosa. Chagas’ disease is endemic in Central and South America and in parts of Mexico. The number of chronic carriers of infection is estimated at 11 million individuals. These individuals became infected in rural areas but have often migrated to urban centers in Latin America, U.S. and Europe. The transmission of T. cruzi has been remarkably reduced in many rural areas of Latin America as a result of application of insecticides and improvement of rural habitations. Presently, all blood donors in Brazil, Argentina and several other Latin American countries are screened by commercial ELISAs or by indirect immunofluorescence. There have been seven documented cases of disease of Chagas by transfusion of blood in the North America between 1987 and 2007. All the patients developed acute disease and myocarditis. Past studies have shown that the prevalence of antibodies to the T. cruzi between blood donors in the U.S. is low. The potential for the establishment and the dissemination of the disease of Chagas in U.S. or Europe seems to be low because living conditions do not favor establishment of the natural cycle. However, the potential for transfusion transmission in non-endemic areas exists (14). A test for antibodies to T. cruzi was licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December, 2006. About two thirds of the American blood centers initiated universal testing of all blood donors, all the time, in January, 2007. In March 2007 the FDA’s Blood Products Advisory Committee (BPAC) recommended that universal testing be continued for a period of about two years until sufficient data were accumulated before consideration of some form of selective screening as applies in other countries as for instance Spain. In April 2009 BPAC reviewed possible testing strategies for T. cruzi infection in blood donors, including universal testing, testing donors once or twice, selective testing of specific donor groups or blood components, testing combined with donor questions related to the donor or their parents living in endemic areas, or testing donors visiting endemic areas. Panel members dismissed questioning of travelers indicating that it was not warranted because of the substantial decrease of incidence of T. cruzi infections in the endemic areas that has occurred in recent years as a result of control of reduvid vectors, and that infection occurs particularly in children after years of exposure in thatched houses where the vectors have nested. The Committee voted to recommend that “onenegative test would qualify a donor for all future donations without further testing or questions regarding risk of a newly acquired infection, subject to continuation studies to define the incidence of new infections in previously screened negative donors.” The Committee did not consider selective testing based on questions about birthplace of the donor or the mother of the donor because studies presented at the meeting showed that questions had 75% sensitivity. It was clear that many donors gave inaccurate answers because of concerns about their immigration status. This recommendation came in the wake of draft guidance from FDA that suggested that all donations of blood or organs to be tested for antibodies to Trypanosoma cruzi.It is expected that FDA will accept the recommendations made by BPAC and issue a Final Guidance recommending selective testing (15).
Dengue and Chikungunya viruses in blood donations
Arbovirus epidemics are raging in tropical areas. Dengue virus (DENV), dengue shock syndrome (DSS) and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) affect millions of individuals every year and cause significant mortality in Latin America, Africa and Asia. CHIKV virus (CHIKV) has caused recurrent epidemics in the Indian subcontinent and recent epidemics in Reunion and other islands in the Indian Ocean, with recent arrival in areas of Europe. The surprising seriousness of recurring epidemics of WNV in North America has heightened concerns about the potential for introduction and similar epidemic spread of other arbovirus infections in the US. Dengue has received particular attention since cases have been recognized in the US at the border between Texas and Mexico. DENV is transmitted efficiently by the mosquito Aedes egypti and less efficiently by Aedes albopictus. CHIKV became well adapted to Aedes albopictus, the tiger mosquito after a single mutation in its genome described during outbreak in 2007 (16). Despite the recognition of millions of cases of DENV infection and disease every year, there are very few published reports of transfusion transmission, one in Hong Kong, and another in Singapore. There are also reports of transmission by needle sticks and one case associated with a bone marrow transplant in Puerto Rico. However, transmission by transfusion is often difficult to evaluate in the midst of an epidemic because the infection could have been acquired through a mosquito bite, through a transfusion or even through a needle stick. These facts raise questions about appropriateness of development of precautionary measures to prevent transfusion transmitted DENV in non-endemic areas. Research screening tests for DENV have been developed and have been the subject of publications (17). These studies documented the presence of asymptomatic viremic donors in Honduras and Brazil that could theoretically transmit the virus to blood recipients. Transmission of CHIKV by transfusion is probable, but has not been documented. The CHIKV epidemics that raged through Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean from 2005-2007 prompted the French government to suspend whole blood collections and provide the red blood cell needs from the mainland. Platelet collections by apheresis continued locally, but the collected products were subjected to a process of viral inactivation. It should be noted that here have been no reports of CHIKV transmission by transfusion despite estimates that over 300,000 people were infected during these epidemics. What is the reason why the number of reports of TT of DENV and CHIKV are so few? There are many differences between these viruses and WNV, but they do not clearly explain the lack of transfusion transmission reports for DENV and CHIKV. WNV infects a large number of birds and mammals. Birds are highly efficient amplification hosts, presenting very high viremia. Many species of mosquitoes that transmit WNV bite both animals and humans. DENV and CHIKV do not have an amplification host. Amplification occurs in the salivary glands of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. These mosquitoes transmit the viruses from human to human in densely populated areas. In addition, DENV and CHIKV epidemics currently occur primarily in developing countries. Large numbers of individuals are affected simultaneously, overwhelming hospital emergency rooms, making impossible accurate anamnesis, physical examination and appropriate reporting. The environment is not conducive to clinical studies, even observational, that could adequately document case reports, let alone estimate rates of transfusion transmission. During epidemics, blood is diverted to the many cases with Dengue hemorrhagic fever and Dengue Shock Syndrome.. Thus, many of the patients that receive blood transfusions during the height of the epidemic are already infected with dengue. Postponement of other hospital activities like elective surgeries reduces the opportunity of transmission of infection to naïve patients by transfusions. Lookback is rarely performed in developing countries because of limited resources. The availability of potential donor screening assays for DENV and CHIKV RNA is welcome and reassuring. Available research assays could be quickly developed to address epidemics occurring in non-endemic areas. However, the need for implementation of donor screening assays for DENV or CHIKV is questionable. Epidemics in tropical areas affect tens of thousands of individuals and overwhelm the healthcare system. All resources and efforts are directed to the sick population. The value of implementation of donor screening or other high cost prevention measures to protect blood safety in those areas would require careful consideration, taking into account prevalence of viremia in donors, transmission rates, and disease penetrance in infected recipients (18). It could be argued that screening assays for DENV and CHIKV would be beneficial for qualification of travelers to endemic areas as blood donors. The actual benefit of such screening is unclear because many of these potential donors would be deferred because of malarial risk. DENV and CHIKV are clear example of situations were the application of the Precautionary Principle should be carefully analyzed taken into account donor loss vs. blood safety. Would it be appropriate to steer some of the very limited resources available in countries with low HDI to a few blood recipients, in the absence of clear idea about the frequency of transmission of these viruses? Finally, we hope that public health authorities, regulatory agencies, blood banking organizations, and manufacturers of products all support and invest in the development of technologies that may be useful for viral inactivation of all cellular components. Pathogen reduction is a more generic and proactive approach to address risks associated with arboviruses, precluding the need for implementation of donor screening assays. The example of clearance of viruses by plasma fractionation and viral inactivation procedures is remarkable, and should encourage further pursuit of methodology applicable to cellular components. It would address WNV, DENV, CHIKV, T. cruzi, plasmodia, and other reemerging agents as yellow fever virus which is reappearing in South America both in wild monkeys and in humans, with several reported human deaths (19, 20).
Centers for Disease Control. Update on AIDS among patients with hemophilia A. MMWR 31:644-6 (19822. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5736.pdf, last accessed on April 15, 20093. Bihl F et al. Journal of Translational Medicine 2007, 5:25 doi:10.1186/1479-5876-5-25 (http://www.translational-medicine.com/content/5/1/25), last accessed on April 15, 20094. http://www.who.int/bloodsafety/global_database/en/SumRep_English.pdf, last accessed on April 15, 20095. http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309047412, last accessed on April 15, 20096. Bianco, C and Rios, M. HIV Transmission by blood transfusion. In “Blood Safety and Surveillance”. Linden J.V. and Bianco, C., eds. Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, pp 251–278, 20017. Slovic P. Perception of Risk. Science 236:280-285, 19878. http://www.unep.org/Documents.multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=78&ArticleID=1163, last accessed on April 15, 20099. http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/health_consumer/library/pub/pub07_en.pdf, last accessed on April 15, 200910. van der Meulen KM et al. West Nile virus in the vertebrate world Arch Virol (2005) 150: 637–657)11. Gubler DJ.The Continuing Spread of West Nile Virus in the Western Hemisphere. Clin Inf Dis 45:1039–46, 2007. 12. Grinev A et al. Variability of West Nile Virus in US Blood Donors, 2002-2005. Emerg Infect Dis. 14:436-444, 200813. Pealer, LN, et al. Transmission of West Nile virus through blood transfusion in the United States in 2002. N Engl J Med 349:1236-45, 200314. Schmuniz, G.A. Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas’ disease: status in the blood supply in endemic and non-endemic countries. Transfusion, 31:547, 199115. http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/ac/09/briefing/2009-4428B1-3.htm, last accessed on April 15, 200916. A Single Mutation in Chikungunya Virus Affects Vector Specificity and Epidemic Potential. PLoS Pathog3(12):e201. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.0030201, 2007.17. Linnen J, et al. Dengue viremia in blood donors from Brazil, Honduras and Australia. Transfusion 48:1348-1354, 200818. Bianco C. Dengue and Chikungunya viruses in blood donations: risks to the safety of the blood supply? Transfusion, 48:1279-1281, 200816. Allain JP, Bianco C; Blajchman MA, Brecher et al. Protecting the blood supply from emerging pathogens: the role of pathogen reduction. Transf Med Rev 19:110-126, 200517.http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f?p=2400:1001:2160992847569112::NO::F2400_P1001_BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,77042


Many people have asked me, why do you ask where gorillas get their protein, when our bodies and our body chemistry more closely resemble those of chimpanzees? My answer is that gorillas are much bigger and more powerful than chimpanzees. Last night, I saw a museum exhibit that compared a gorilla skull to a chimpanzee skull and a human skull. (They might have been models. It was hard to tell.) The gorilla skull was huge! The chimpanzee skull was about the same size as a human skull.
The other reason is that gorillas eat a much more strictly plant-based diet. Chimpanzees hunt once in a while, and they often eat their kill. Even so, they still eat a lot less meat than just about any human population. Nevertheless, I was afraid that the fact they eat a little bit of meat now and then would muddy the waters.
My point is this. Most of the really big and powerful land animals got big and powerful by eating plants. They don’t worry about getting a protein deficiency on a plant-based diet, and neither should you.
(Image courtesy of Mahlatini Luxury Safari, https://www.mahlatini.com/gorilla-trekking-safaris/)


Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Autumn/Fall (08/27/09)
TITLE: Artistic Autumn
By Deborah Caruso
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Autumn is when colors splash along side country roads, multihued carpets are strewn on park trails and backyard scenes become works of art, all with a clear cerulean backdrop hanging behind in ideal contrast. Autumn is when our Creatorís green masterpiece is replaced with fiery reds that pop amongst sunburst yellows, and many tints of orange blend harmonious between the two.
Autumn is when orange pumpkins, all in different proportions lay in their private patches waiting to be picked, while their cousins, butternut and yellow squash are hiding out in savory casserole dishes, corn is being hung out for show, colorful gourds are peeking over wicker baskets, and red, yellow and green apples are sitting contently together in plain wooden baskets.
Autumn is when burgundy, yellow, and purple mums are set out in galvanized metal pots in front yards or on decks, and flowers like the purple alliums, bright anemones, and blue crocus are working together in unison to redecorate Godís earth for this bright and cozy season.
Many people will visit far away places just to witness this miraculous masterpiece of Creator God. The avid leaf watchers will drive to places like Galena and Gatlinburg. In Gatlinburg, they can gaze upon the Smokies, where the mountains come alive with a bounty of colors. They will get in their cars and drive, hop upon their bikes and ride, or get on their hiking shoes and hit the trails just to gaze on layers upon layers of Autumnís hues, and every time they come, they are never disappointed, because when the Divine Artist gets out His paint brush, a masterpiece is inevitable.
Picasso knows it; Van Gogh knows it, as does Raphael.
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A view over the Maltese landscape from the walls of the fortified city of Mdina.
Mdina, Città Vecchia, or Città Notabile,was the old capital of Malta. It is a medieval walled town situated on a hill in the centre of the island. Punic remains uncovered beyond the city’s walls suggest the importance of the general region to Malta’s Phoenician settlers. Mdina is commonly called the "Silent City" by natives and visitors. The town is still confined within its walls, and has a population of just under three hundred, but is contiguous with the village of Rabat, which takes its name from the Arabic word for suburb, and has a population of over 11,000
Evidence of settlements in Mdina goes back to over 4000 BC. It was possibly first fortified by the Phoenicians around 700 BC, because of its strategic location on one of the highest points on the island and as far from the sea as possible. When Malta had been under the control of the Roman Empire, the Roman Governor built his palace there. Legend has it that it was here, in around 60 CE, that the Apostle St. Paul lived after his shipwreck on the islands.
Mdina owes much its present architecture to the Arab period, from 870 until the Normans conquered Malta in 1091. They surrounded the city with thick defensive fortifications and a wide moat, separating it from its nearest town Rabat.
Critiques | Translate
emka (76433) 2014-08-25 0:16
Hello Stephen, After detailed views from Mdina, now we can see the wide panorama. Excellent view of the maltese landscape.
WArm regrad s MAlgo
carlo62 (30583) 2014-08-25 0:38
magnifico panorama, la vista è splendida e c'è molta profondità.
Belli i colori della campagna con il mare sullo sfondo.
Royaldevon (28449) 2014-08-25 1:45
I think this was the next, natural step, after seeing the view up to Mdina and detailing the streets inside Mdina; now we see how Mdina relates to the surrounding landscape.
I think you have had a problem with harsh light, but when you are on holiday, you cannot choose exactly which time of the day you are going to photograph.
You have given us a well composed and very extensive view from the height of the battlements.
Have a lovely day,
Fis2 (83990) 2014-08-25 2:05
Gorgeous green, the view is impressive.
I like frame and colors.
A very nice picture.
Noel_Byrne (22787) 2014-08-25 2:30
Is this an older shot? The color saturation is beautiful but reminds me a little of images from the 80's. Expansive view leading off to the sea in the distance, this is one of those shots I would like to spend ages studying to find every little detail.
Thanks as always
Gerrit (46884) 2014-08-25 4:42
they could oversee the hole region from here. What a great viewpoint and view,
Remarkable light tones,
pierrefonds (56104) 2014-08-25 5:00
L'étendue des champs donne de la profondeur à la composition. La prise de vue permet de voir les détails des champs. La bonne luminosité fait ressortir les couleurs. Bonne journée.
Nicou (119507) 2014-08-25 5:16
quelle vue et image sueprbe captage et compo quelle immensité et cet ocre avec le vert quel panorama.
Bravo et amitié
dkmurphys (48088) 2014-08-25 5:27
Genuine Maltese landscape. A spectacular panorama, well taken.
Have a good week.
Sergiom (57821) 2014-08-25 6:09
Cette photo a une texture qui ressemble beaucoup à une photo argentique qui aurait été numérisée. Le regard porte loin dans ce fantastique paysage vu de haut.
ourania (29417) 2014-08-25 6:16
this Maltese landscape looks so mediterranean and so bright in the sunshine. Your picture includes a lot of characteristic features, it's very sharp and interesting. The vegetation, the dry atmosphere, the summery colours have been captured very aptly. The depth is superb and this looks like an aerial view. Congratulations and thank you!
All the best, have a great day,
photographer_sg (3533) 2014-08-25 10:46
What a view! The patches of vivid green stand out like emeralds. The expansive landscape is so inviting and full of intricate details. I agree with Noel, this picture can be gazed at for hours.
Thanks for sharing and have a great day.
PiotrF (6788) 2014-08-25 16:51
It is a beautiful place,Your picture is very well taken. Excellent perspective and depth. Good composition and quality, fine presentation.
Thank you for the detailed notes.
Cricri (104461) 2014-08-26 9:50
Grand panorama depuis les fortifications de la vile de Mdina, sublime bien sur le POV, la lumière et les détails
jemaflor (83014) 2014-08-26 23:20
A nice panorama on the landscape, good result with the contrast between stone and green fields, tfs.
miumiu (5733) 2014-08-27 1:55
Absolutely wonderful view of this unique, Maltese landscape.
l imagine that l am standing here...Brilliant feeling.
This is typical, if you are in a higher point of Malta, you can see the whole island and the sea in the distance.
l love this picture very much!
ikeharel (55332) 2014-08-31 2:58
Green, yellow and white tones mingle beautifully on the wide landscape, Stephen, contrast by blue sky and the sea.
Early summer brought an aris texture to the fields, reminded me of Sicilia which is similar and not so far from Malta.
My best regards,
- Copyright: Stephen Nunney (snunney) (81849)
- Genre: Places
- Medium: Color
- Date Taken: 2014-06-00
- Categories: Nature
- Camera: Canon EOS 1100D, Canon 18-55mm EF-S f/3.5-5.6 IS
- Exposure: f/22, 1/50 seconds
- More Photo Info: view
- Photo Version: Original Version
- Date Submitted: 2014-08-25 0:07


Common names: Copper Canyon Daisy, Lemmon’s marigold, mountain marigold, bush marigold
Botanical names: Compositae Tagetes Iemonii
General information: A member of the Aster family, the Copper Canyon Daisy reaches 4 feet at maturity – can reach 6 feet tall under good growing conditions. A native of the southwestern United States, this sprawling perennial daisy has a distinctive, pungent fragrance that not everyone likes, according to Floridata. The Copper Canyon daisy has golden-yellow blooms that are attractive to butterflies and bees. It is a good plant for areas where deer are known to be a problem — it is deer proof! Copper Canyon daisy dies back in winter and comes back from roots in spring.
Size: 4 feet tall x 4 feet wide bush at maturity
Flowers: Golden yellow about 1 to 2 inches across
Bloom time: Fall until frost in North Texas
Leaves: Lacy compound leaves 2 to 6 inches long, with serrated leaflets.
Pests and Disease Problems: Deer proof
Growing in North Texas
Easy to grown in North Texas because it tolerates high, sustained summer heat. It prefers full sun, but accepts a bit of shade. It is drought tolerant and wants well-drained soil. It will grow successfully in some of the more alkaline soils in North Texas. Be sure to keep the new plant well watered – two times per week — until it is established. After the Copper Canyon daisy is established, it requires little supplemental water.
USDA Natural Resources Convervation Service: Tagetes lemmonii
Keywords (tags): perennial, flowering, shrub, native, deer proof, butterflies, full sun, low water


The Story of the Three Bears
"The Story of the Three Bears" is a literary fairy tale. It was written by Robert Southey and first published in 1837 in a collection of his essays and stories. Southey's story is about an ugly old woman who enters the house of three bachelor bears during their absence. She eats their food, breaks a chair, and sleeps in a bed. She runs away when discovered. In time, the three bachelor bears became Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear. The old woman became a little girl called Goldilocks. The story supports several interpretations. It has been adapted to animated movies, a live action movie, and a short opera.
Story[change | change source]
Three male bears—"a Little, Small, Wee Bear ... a Middle-sized Bear ... and a Great, Huge Bear"— live in a house in the woods. They each have a porridge pot, a chair, and a bed. One morning, they take a walk in the woods while their porridge cools. A little old woman—"an impudent, bad old Woman"—enters the house during the bears' absence. She eats the little bear's porridge, breaks his little chair, and falls asleep in his little bed. The bears come home, and discover the old woman asleep. She wakes, sees the bears, jumps out the window, and fall to her death—never to be seen again.
Origin[change | change source]
"The Story of the Three Bears" was written by English writer Robert Southey. It was published in 1837 his 4-volume collection of essays and stories called The Doctor. Southey probably heard a version of the story as a boy from his uncle William Tyler. It was this version that was probably the basis for the story Southey included in The Doctor. It is unknown where or how his uncle learned the story. Southey had known the story for a long time before he published it. He had been telling it to family and friends since 1813.
A very similar version of the story predates Southey's published one of 1837. In 1831, a lady named Eleanor Mure wrote the story in rhyming verse for her nephew's fourth birthday. In both Southey's and Mure's versions, the character who enters the bears' house is an ugly old woman. The two versions differ only in some small details: Southey's bears have porridge, for example, while Mure's bears have milk.
The same year Southey published the story, a rhyming version was written by William Nicol. Southey wrote on 3 July 1837 that he had received Nicol's version. He liked it. He thought it would bring the story more attention from children. Nicol's version was published in 1841 with illustrations.
Some[who?] think the story of the three bears resembles parts of "Snow White", or a story from Norway about a princess and three princes dressed in bear skins. Charles Dickens included a story about goblins in his 1865 novel Our Mutual Friend that also resembles "The Three Bears". A story called "Scrapefoot" may be the original for "The Three Bears". This story has a fox (not a human) as the intruder in the bears' house.
Goldilocks[change | change source]
About 12 years after Southey's story was published, writer Joseph Cundall changed the old woman into a little girl in his book Treasury of Pleasure Books for Young Children. Cundall made this change because there were many children's books about old women at the time. Once the little girl entered the story, she stayed there. She was known over the years as Silverhair, Silverlocks, Goldenlocks, and other names. She finally became Goldilocks sometime in the early 20th century.
In time, the three male bears of Southey's original became Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear. What was once a scary little story about a nosy, ugly old woman and three male bears became a cozy little story about a nosy, pretty little girl and a family of bears. In versions of the story from the Victorian Era, Southey's "[T]here she sate till the bottom of the chair came out, and down came her's, plump upon the ground" was changed to read "and down she came" instead. All mention of the human "bottom" was wiped out.
Interpretations[change | change source]
In The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales (2002), Harvard professor Maria Tatar writes that the story is sometimes regarded as a cautionary tale. It warns children about the dangers of wandering off into unknown places. She points out that the story is often presented today as one about what is "just right" for oneself. In earlier times however, the story was about interfering with someone else's property.
In The Uses of Enchantment (1976), child psychologist Bruno Bettelheim discusses Goldilock's struggle to grow beyond her Oedipal issues to confront adolescent identity problems. The story does not encourage children to solve the problems of growing up, Bettelheim writes, and does not end with the traditional "happily ever after" promise for those who solve their Oedipal issues. He believes the tale does not allow the child reader to gain emotional maturity.
Tatar writes, "[Bettelheim's] reading is perhaps too invested in instrumentalizing fairy tales, that is, in turning them into vehicles that convey messages and set forth behavioral models for the child. While the story may not solve oedipal issues or sibling rivalry as Bettelheim believes "Cinderella" does, it suggests the importance of respecting property and the consequences of just 'trying out' things that do not belong to you."
The story supports a Freudian anal stage interpretation. In ""The Three Bears": Four Interpretations" (1977), Professor Emeritus of the University of California, Davis Alan C. Elms makes such an interpretation and points to the story's emphasis upon orderliness—one of the character traits Freud associated with the anal stage of human development—as compelling evidence. Elms traces the story's anality to Southey and to his dirt-obsessed aunt who passed her obsession on to him in "somewhat milder form".
Adaptations[change | change source]
The Walt Disney and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios have both made animated movies about the Three Bears—Disney in 1922 and MGM in 1939. Coronet Films made a short live action movie in 1958 that had real bears and a real child playing the characters. Faerie Tale Theatre made a television version in 1984. It stars Tatum O'Neal as Goldilocks.
Kurt Schwertsik wrote a 35-minute opera called Roald Dahl's Goldilocks. Baby Bear is accused of assaulting Miss Goldie Locks. The tables are turned when the defense shows that the bears have had a lot of touble because of that "brazen little crook" Goldilocks. The was first presented in 1997 at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.
Notes[change | change source]
- Ober 1981, pp. 318–26
- Tatar 2002, p. 245
- Ober 1981, p. 33
- Ober 1981, p. 34
- Opie 1992, p. 199
- Dorson 2001, p. 94
- Curry 1921, p. 65
- Ober 1981, p. 47
- Opie 1992, p. 200
- Ober 1981, p. xii
- Ober 1981, pp. 109–10
- Tatar 2002, p. 246
- Tatar 2002, p. 251
- Schultz 2005, p. 93
- Bettelheim 1976, pp. 215–24
- Tatar 2002, p. 246
- Elms 1977, pp. 264–69
- Roald Dahl's Goldilocks
References[change | change source]
- Booker, Christopher (2005). "The Rule of Three". The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 0-8264-5209-4.
- Briggs, Katherine Mary (2002) . British Folk Tales and Legends. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-28602-6.
- "Coronet: Goldilocks and the Three Bears". Internet Archive. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
- Curry, Charles Madison (1921). Children's Literature. Rand McNally & Company.
- "Disney: Goldilocks and the Three Bears". The Encyclopedia of Disney Animated Shorts. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
- Dorson, Richard Mercer (2001) . The British Folklorists. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 0-415-20426-7.
- Elms, Alan C. (July–September 1977). ""The Three Bears": Four Interpretations". The Journal of American Folklore 90 (357).
- "MGM: Goldilocks and the Three Bears". Retrieved 2010-11-12.
- Ober, Warren U. (1981). The Story of the Three Bears. Scholars Facsimiles & Reprints. ISBN 0-8201-1362-X.
- Opie, Iona; Opie, Peter (1992) . The Classic Fairy Tales. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-211559-6.
- "Roald Dahl's Goldilocks (1997)". Retrieved 2009-01-03.
- Schultz, William Todd (2005). Handbook of Psychobiography. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-516827-5.
- Seal, Graham (2001). Encyclopedia of Folk Heroes. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 1-57607-216-9.
- Tatar, Maria (2002). The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales. W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0-393-05163-3.
Other websites[change | change source]
|Wikisource has original writing related to this article:|
|Wikisource has original writing related to this article:|
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Three Bears.|


Recent review of deep-sea fishes captured deeper than 200m off greater New England, from the Scotian Shelf at 44°N to the southern New England Shelf at about 38°N, documented 591 species. Subsequent trawling activity and reviews of deep-sea taxa occurring in the area have revealed that an additional 40 species in habit the deep sea off New England. Thirty-two of these new records were captured in the course of 44 bottom trawls and 94 mid-water trawls over or in the proximity of Bear Seamount (39°55'N, 67°30'W). Five of the 40 species have been described as new to science, at least in part from material taken in the study area. In addition to describing such information as specimen size and position, depth, and date of capture, errors made in the previous study of deep-sea fishes in the area are identified and corrected.
Karsten E. Hartel, Christopher P. Kenaley, John K. Galbraith, and Tracey Sutton. 2008. Additional Records of Deep-Sea Fishes from Off Greater New England .Northeastern Naturalist , (3) : 317 -334. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/occ_facarticles/535.


Skip to comments.Scientists stunned as grey whale sighted off Israel (Jonah?)
Posted on 05/11/2010 8:51:49 PM PDT by OldDeckHand
JERUSALEM (AFP) - The appearance of a grey whale off the coast of Israel has stunned scientists, in what was thought to be the first time the giant mammal has been seen outside the Pacific in several hundred years.
The whale, which was first sighted off Herzliya in central Israel on Saturday, is believed to have travelled thousands of miles from the north Pacific after losing its way in search of food.
"It's an unbelievable event which has been described as one of the most important whale sightings ever," said Dr Aviad Scheinin, chairman of the Israel Marine Mammal Research and Assistance Center which identified the creature.
A population of grey whales once inhabited the north Atlantic but became extinct in the 17th or 18th centuries and has not been seen there since.
The remaining colonies live in the western and eastern sectors of the north Pacific.
"What has amazed the entire marine mammal research community is there haven't been any grey whales in the Atlantic since the 18th century," he said. Scheinin said the creature, a mature whale measuring some 12 metres (39 feet) and weighing around 20 tonnes, probably reached the Atlantic through the Northwest Passage, an Arctic sea route that connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and is normally covered with ice.
(Excerpt) Read more at sg.news.yahoo.com ...
Its a whales life. Not a bad life really, swim all over the world in the deep blue ocean.
Wow! This is pretty fascinating. :) Thanks!
They say several hundred years since a whale like this has been seen near Israel ? does that mean that they had records of whales being in that area 700-800 years ago ?
It’s Bush’s fault.
It is Hillary and her peace mission.
I bet the whale did a big sneak through the Panama Canal when no one was looking!
No, I'm pretty sure it just means that there are records - ship's whaling logs, probably - going back to the late 17th century that noted gray whale sightings/killings in the Atlantic.
This isn't the first sighting off Israel in 300ish years, it's the first sighting anywhere in the Atlantic, to include the Mediterranean which of course is only accessible to whales from the Atlantic.
Mabye the whale is waiting to give somebody a ride Jonah style!
There are so many of those usless stinking sacks of blubber in the Pacific they had to go somewhere!
Some of them ended up in Hollywood
Couldn’t be Jonah. The Bible says Jonah was swallowed by a fish. (The Hebrew word means fish.)
Dang, dude, my eyes!
Right. He “lost his way”. Must be a Democrat whale.
Wonder if the whale will make it through the Suez? If it does, then those damn Somali pirates will probably make whale burgers out of it before it can make it to the Indian ocean.
Shame on you for making fun of our narwho-Americans.
i love how they try and spin global warming into it as the only way a whale could have made it there. maybe it swam full south and back up along africa. it could happen :)
It also could have swam right through the Suez canal. I've been through that canal, there are no locks. It is one level from start to finish, with absolutely no gates or locks of any kind. IMHO, a whale - if he was curious enough - could easily make that journey and if he was a younger whale, probably without detection.
Gray Whale Spotted on Wrong Side of World... (Israel)
I read the other day that the word in Hebrew is the same word that is used to describe all things that live in the sea. I believe the word is “dag” (IIRC)?
No problem. :)


Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf asked two “million dollar” questions today in her op-ed for the London Times: “Why should Western countries continue to support developing nations at a time of downturn, when these funds might be spent at home?” and “What benefit is there when the flow of aid never seems to end?”
The first female African head of state answers them with these thoughtful remarks:
To many people in Africa, the value of aid is obvious: at its most basic, such as through the supply of food or water, lives are saved. More sophisticated use of aid, such as improving literacy and developing legal systems that underpin the rule of law, can foster economic opportunities. This creates not only a better life for those who receive it, but business opportunities for companies from donor nations.
The debate over aid needs to mature, so that instead of hysteria about whether emerging nations deserve development funds, we have a serious discussion about how best to create new, stable trading partners that can create opportunities and jobs in emerging and donor countries.
She uses her own country as an example of how Africa is putting these ideas into practice. To help reduce aid to a minimum over time, Sirleaf is proposing a new law that sets quotas for local jobs in mining industries, ensuring that the majority. whether manual or management, are held by Liberians.
One thing is clear: aid is a crucial part of helping developing countries become self-sufficient. She ends her piece with this message:
If development aid were to halt, then the danger is that many countries such as Liberia would begin to slip backwards. There is a moral obligation to make sure that this does not happen, but there is an economic interest, too.
Read the full article here. (Subscription required)


Cherry Picker Engine
Cherry pickers are also known as boom lifts or cherry picker lifts. This equipment is seen in many different places, and it is mostly used to replace light bulbs on the streets, repair Internet wires, and install telephone cables. Firefighters also make use of this equipment as an alternative to a ladder. In fact, cherry pickers are great substitutes for ladders since they are able to reach higher locations and are safer to use. Indeed, the functions of a cherry picker have evolved into varied purposes and has come a long way from simply helping people pick fruits from trees.
Basic Types of Cherry Pickers
There are several types of cherry pickers, and these are:
• Unpowered Lifts – This type of boom lift does not require an internal power source like the electrically powered engines. Basically, this type of machine is simply pushed into place and it usually comes in the form of a personnel lift or a small scissor lift. Today, there are large unpowered lifts but they would require a crane to be able to move.
• Self-Propelled Lifts – This type of equipment is capable of moving more efficiently compared to the first type. In fact, the larger models of self-propelled lifts are mostly legal to be driven on the roads. Hence, these machineries never require extra resources and time to perform their functions.
• Vehicle Mounted Lifts – This type of equipment is typically attached and mounted to certain vehicles such as trucks, railway cars, vans, and other vehicles.
The Most Common Engine Type
Most cherry pickers or boom lifts are powered by systems of levers and entail a kind of an engine or motor in order for the equipment to be operational. Nowadays, there are several contemporary engines that would be more likely compatible to any type of cherry picker. These modern engines include diesel operated, petrol operated, and electrical operated engines. However, the most common type is the diesel-operated engine since it requires the cheapest type of fuel. Yet, diesel engines tend to become quite noisy and produce lots of fumes compared to the cherry picker engine that is fuel operated. Hybrid engines used as a power source are likewise available today. Though a hybrid engine may be costly, it is highly capable of switching between diesel and electricity as its power sources.
Buying or Renting a Cherry Picker Engine
Certainly, there are numerous cherry picker suppliers in the United States alone. But purchasing this equipment or merely a cherry picker engine is going to be a huge investment, and many people might not be able to afford its high cost. That is why hiring cherry pickers from several companies and manufacturers can be possible. Construction companies, suppliers, and other industrial businesses such as JLG, UpRight, SkyTrak, and Genie offer several types of cherry pickers. There are also plenty of choices when it comes to modifications, accessories, types, and designs of cherry pickers. Apart from providing a reliable cherry picker engine, suppliers similarly offer additional features for this equipment such as the control systems and power panels.


On this President’s Day, let’s revisit America’s founding document: the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence includes broad ideological statements such as “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,” and claims that the British have violated “certain unalienable rights.”
But were the real reasons for the American Revolution economic? According to to Lynd and Waldstreicher, the answer is yes. Wilson Quarterly reports:
“Scholars tend to view the ideological arguments for independence as building to a critical point and preoccupying the colonists thereafter. That’s inaccurate, Lynd and Waldstreicher write: From the mid-18th century right up to the signing of the Declaration, Americans objected to a myriad of British imperial policies principally on economic grounds. The antitax sentiment of the Boston Tea Party in 1773 is well known, but Americans also protested British attempts to requisition resources during the Seven Years’ War (1756–63), imperial currency manipulation that left the colonies strapped, and prohibitions on trade with the French West Indies, along with many other policies.”
The authors claim to make the strongest case for their course of action, these early Americans subsumed their economic frustrations within a broader argument for sovereignty based on the violation of rights.
In today’s Presidential races, we also see economic arguments couched in ideological terms. Obama’s argument to raise taxes is delivered under a fairness argument. President Obama says it’s the ‘height of unfairness‘ that the very wealthy can pay a lower percentage of their income in federal taxes than many in the middle class.
Tea Party candidates that argue for lower taxes do so using the language of “fiscal responsibility, constitutionally limited government, and free market economic policies.”
The take-away is that political rhetoric–both now and in colonial times–often is used to justify fundamentally economic arguments.


Horsehead (right) and Flame (left) Nebulas
Date Taken: 1/12/2010
Equipment: 5" Televue Telescope with SBIG 10XME camera;
Exposures: RGB-24 min each, Ha-32 min, Lum-12 min. Processing: MaximDL and Photoshop
Horsehead Nebula (right) and Flame Nebula (left) - 1,500 light years from Earth. The Horsehead Nebula (also known as Barnard 33 in bright nebula IC 434) is a dark nebula in the constellation Orion. The nebula is located just below (to the south of) Alnitak, the star farthest left on Orion's Belt, and is part of the much larger Orion Molecular Cloud Complex. The Horsehead Nebula is approximately 1500 light years from Earth. It is one of the most identifiable nebulae because of the shape of its swirling cloud of dark dust and gases, which is similar to that of a horse's head when viewed from Earth. The shape was first noticed in 1888 by Williamina Fleming on photographic plate B2312 taken at the Harvard College Observatory.
The red glow originates from hydrogen gas predominantly behind the nebula, ionized by the nearby bright star Sigma Orionis. The darkness of the Horsehead is caused mostly by thick dust, although the lower part of the Horsehead's neck casts a shadow to the left. Streams of gas leaving the nebula are funneled by a strong magnetic field. Bright spots in the Horsehead Nebula's base are young stars just in the process of forming.
The surrounding region also contains a multitude of different objects all unique in their own right. The bright emission nebula in the lower left is NGC 2024 (the Flame Nebula). Infrared studies have revealed a huge cluster of infant stars hidden behind the dust and gas of NGC 2024. The bright blue/green reflection nebula to the lower left of the Horsehead is NGC 2023. Interstellar dust reveals its presence by blocking light emitted from stars or nebulae behind it. Dust is composed mostly of carbon, silicon, oxygen and some heavier elements. Even organic compounds have been detected.
Description Sources: Wikipedia and Robert Gendler


By Jessica Mireille. Circuit. Publised at Monday, December 18th 2017, 14:08:09 PM. A capacitor is a device that stores energy in the form of voltage. The most common form of capacitors is made of two parallel plates separated by a dielectric material. Charges of opposite polarity can be deposited on the plates, resulting in a voltage V across the capacitor plates. Capacitance is a measure of the amount of electrical charge required to build up one unit of voltage across the plates.
By Alix Loane. Car Wiring. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 22:49:51 PM. As we stated, always use closed terminals. If your terminals have the plastic cover, remove that. Always solder the terminal where the wire end is installed. Never crimp the terminal and expect the wire to stay there forever. It won’t.
By Sasha Sara. Diagram. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 22:23:44 PM. Sometimes, to make schematics more legible, we’ll give a net a name and label it, rather than routing a wire all over the schematic. Nets with the same name are assumed to be connected, even though there isn’t a visible wire connecting them. Names can either be written directly on top of the net, or they can be “tags”, hanging off the wire.
By Valentine Sybille. Diagram. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 19:46:56 PM. Truly expansive schematics should be split into functional blocks. There might be a section for power input and voltage regulation, or a microcontroller section, or a section devoted to connectors. Try recognizing which sections are which, and following the flow of circuit from input to output. Really good schematic designers might even lay the circuit out like a book, inputs on the left side, outputs on the right.
By Alix Loane. Diagram. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 18:33:29 PM. If there’s something on a schematic that just doesn’t make sense, try finding a datasheet for the most important component. Usually the component doing the most work on a circuit is an integrated circuit, like a microcontroller or sensor. These are usually the largest component, oft-located at the center of the schematic.
By Jessica Mireille. Car Wiring. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 18:20:29 PM. Plan out your wiring. Choose the path the wires will follow. Choose the locations of all of your switches, gauges, ignition box, battery, and charging posts. If your past layout was deficient, now is the time to rethink the entire plan.
By Valentine Sybille. Diagram. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 17:30:41 PM. The unloaded PCB appears green because thin sheets of green plastic have been applied to both sides (otherwise the PCB would appear pale yellow). Called solder masks, these sheets cover all exposed metal other than the component pads and holes so that errant solder can not inadvertently short (or electrically connect) the printed wires. All metal surfaces other than the exposed pads and holes (i.e., the wires) are underneath the solder mask. Not infrequently, blue or even red solder masks are used.
By Alix Loane. Diagram. Published at Saturday, January 06th 2018, 15:25:58 PM. A schematic shows connections in a circuit in a way that is clear and standardized. It is a way of communicating to other engineers exactly what components are involved in a circuit as well as how they are connected. A good schematic will show component names and values, and provide labels for sections or components to help communicate the intended purpose. Note how connections on wires (or "nets") are shown using dots and non-connections are shown without a dot.
Altrushare - Wiring Diagram Gallery
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Guatemala Mayans: From victims of discrimination to perpetrators?
Fearful of losing their culture and land, ethnic Maya people in Guatemala — who have faced centuries of discrimination themselves — drove out a group of 230 ultra-Orthodox Jews, experts say.
The Jewish group’s departure from San Juan La Laguna, on the banks of Lake Atitlan some 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the capital Guatemala City, followed failed efforts reach a deal Wednesday.
“We are very pleased with the decision made by that group to avoid conflicts with (local) people,” Miguel Vasquez, spokesman for the San Juan Council of Elders, told AFP by phone.
Most members of the small Jewish community are from the United States, Israel, Britain and Russia, and around 40 are Guatemalan. Approximately half are children.
Since October, the local indigenous population has accused the Orthodox Jews of discriminating against them and of violating Mayan customs. Maya elders also said the Jewish community sought to impose their religion and was undermining the Catholic faith predominant in the village.
Rabbi Uriel Goldman, a representative of the Jewish group, told Prensa Libre newspaper his community had taken up residence temporarily in a Guatemala City hotel until it can find a place to relocate to in an outlying part of the capital area.
– History repeats itself –
Guatemala, a mountainous and scenic nation in Central America, cannot quite agree on how indigenous it is.
The government insists 42 percent of citizens belong to ethnic Maya tribes, traditional farmers who mainly speak Maya languages; indigenous leaders insist they represent 60 percent of the 15 million Guatemalans.
If the indigenous are right, they are starkly underrepresented in what is supposed to be a federal democracy.
During three centuries of Spanish colonialism, Mayans were marginalized. After independence in the early 1800s, they spent almost another two centuries living in relative isolation, with a Spanish-speaking ruling class in Guatemala City who long referred to Mayans as dolts for not speaking Spanish.
Yet many rural Guatemalans — most indigenous live in rural areas on their traditional land — have never been to school in any language.
Instead of embracing equal rights, including to education, in a democratic era, as recently as the 1990s, the traditional elite opted not to embrace bilingualism; not to push to guarantee rural educational equality; and not to have a strategy for integrating indigenous people into national life.
In Guatemala’s 36-year civil war that ended in 1996, some 200,000 people were killed — 93 percent of them at the hands of the government’s armed forces, according to a United Nations report.
The report also found that 83 percent of victims were ethnic Mayans.
“Having gone through history losing land to expropriation, which has contributed to their poverty, … and the state having been dysfunctional where they are concerned, really exacerbated” indigenous people’s reaction in this culture clash, Guatemalan Mental Health League chief Marco Garabito, a sociologist, told AFP.
The likelihood that more members of the Jewish community would keep coming triggered the Mayans’ intense fears they could lose more of their lands.
But on Friday, the Human Rights Prosecutor’s office said it regretted the “forced departure” of the Jewish group.
“There can be no justification for … anyone claiming to have the right to threaten or expel foreigners from Guatemalan territory, or make them relocate,” it said in a statement.
“The Jews are being attacked because of their ethnicity,” said anthropologist Estuardo Zapeta. “That’s discrimination, plain and simple.”
– Unfamiliar orthodoxy –
The Lev Tahor community was founded in 1980 by Israeli Shlomo Helbrans, seeking to practice an austere interpretation of Judaism.
The community faced legal problems in the United States and Canada before running up against indigenous opposition in Guatemala.
Canadian media reports also said red flags had been raised by the group’s treatment of children. But the group maintains its way of operating is nothing new.
Maya leaders were confounded by the group’s customs and practices, offended that they did not respond when they were greeted by locals.
“They don’t believe in Jesus Christ or the Virgin Mary. They do not work. They dress all in black. And they scare off tourists. They don’t sleep at night, and they are out walking around on the streets when we were asleep,” said the indigenous council’s Vasquez.
The Jews said they were targeted by an “aggressive” subgroup of the Maya leadership.
“We are peaceful people. And to avoid anything more regrettable, we decided to leave that town,” said Misael Santos, another representative of the Jewish group.


Google+ Badge BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY
Friday, 29 March 2013
BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY : EARLY BLACK FOOTBALL PLAYERS :- BREAKING THE RACE BARRIER DOWN :
In the North big ten schools offered opportunities to black athletes like Slater, Jesse Owens at Ohio State and Ozzie Simmons of Iowa. What Jackie Robinson was to base ball, at a much earlier date Duke Slater was a Collegiate football. Chicago Sun-Times columnist Dick Hackenberg wrote on December 13th 1960 two days after a dinner celebrating Slaters accomplishments. In1951 Slater because the first Black Player inducted into the inaugural college football hall of fame. He was a three time all big ten tackle for Iowa and could grasp an opponent in a vice like grip with his longer than normal arms according to Iowa athletics records.


Does the internet help or hinder studying?
A new survey indicates that technology is having both a positive and negative effect on university students' efficiency.
The internet has proved to be an incredible research resource (Wikipedia, anyone?), but a recent survey commissioned by McGraw-Hill Education indicates that technology often hinders the study process.
More than 500 university students participated in the survey, which sought to better understand students' study habits and the influence of learning technology on studying.
In today's society, we are inundated by technology. Phones, MP3 players, Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat all vie for our attention, with the allure of being able to check up on what our friends are getting up to 24 hours a day.
Nearly 40% of students reported that they find the internet, and social media networks in particular, are the biggest distraction when studying. Over half said they use computers, tablets and phones for non-study activities, such as texting friends or updating their online profiles, while they were supposed to be working.
It's not all bad news though, the survey indicates that despite many students not always using technology to their advantage, it can, in fact, improve the study process.
Those students who take advantage of the latest study technologies, such as adaptive learning programs, report that they feel less stressed and more productive. More than 50% of students said they felt "better prepared" and that they have "improved studying efficiency" as a result of using study technology.
"Studying effectively – and with the right type of technology – is one of the best ways to ensure that students succeed " said Brian Kibby, president of McGraw-Hill Higher Education. "But focus is the key."
So close down Facebook and turn your phone on silent if you need to get your head down. Unless, of course, you've just made a really great sandwich, in which case your friends definitely need to know about it straight away.


BALD HEAD ISLAND -- Local scientists are working to let the public know just how important barrier islands are. Without barrier islands like Bald Head Island we'd get hit even harder than we already do by hurricanes. People who work at the island's conservancy want to make sure everyone knows how crucial these islands are. Beautiful beaches, marshes, and forests make up bald head island. It's a popular vacation spot. But it and other barrier islands play a much bigger role. Suzanne Dorsey with the Bald Head Island Conservancy said, "They protect against wind damage from hurricanes, they protect against storm surge, and they protect against wave action." Dorsey is the executive director at the Bald Head Island Conservancy. She and her co-workers plan to open a barrier island study center. Dorsey said, "We need to protect what we have, we need to learn about it and the way that we need to do that is we need to encourage research and education." "If you don't have your barrier islands intact and healthy then the infrastructure on the mainland is going to suffer," Dorsey said. Dorsey says Brunswick County, including the nuclear plant, would suffer the full impact of a hurricane if it weren't for the barrier islands. Locals seem to be pleased about the step forward with the research. Bonnie Ezzelle works on Bald Head Island. She said, "This is just a precious place. There's nothing like it anywhere else and so it makes me feel good that somebody's out there, taking care of it." With climate change on the minds of so many Dorsey says the plans for the new barrier island study center are more important now than ever. "If we want to protect our barrier islands, if we want to make sure we have these beautiful places to come and vacation, to live, but also to protect our coastal communities, we need to make sure that we understand them and that we're doing everything we can to protect them," Dorsey said. Construction of the $2.5 million center is scheduled to begin in the fall. They hope to complete it in 2008.
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MEDLINE Indexing Online Training Course
If an article discusses basic biology of a gene/protein from certain organisms, indexers must also link the gene/protein to the appropriate record in the NCBI data base called Entrez Gene. The gene/protein must be the main focus of the article. The list of organisms for which gene links are made is growing constantly.
Detailed instructions for creating these links are given in Chapter 37 of the Indexing Manual (NLM staff access only).


Polycystic Ovary Syndrome – PCOS
PCOS at a glance
- PCOS – also called Stein-Leventhal syndrome is a common endocrine disorder that causes a woman’s eggs to fail to mature and grow normally, causing cysts to form within the ovaries.
- PCOS symptoms can include irregular or lack of periods, weight gain, irregular hair growth, hair loss, acne, and infertility.
- There is no cure for PCOS but it can be treated to manage symptoms, and infertility treatments can help to produce a pregnancy.
What is PCOS?
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder that affects about five percent of women of reproductive age, starting as early as a woman’s teenage years. It causes infertility and other serious health repercussions later in life.
PCOS causes a woman’s eggs to fail to mature and grow normally. When that happens, the follicles stop growing and form cysts within the ovaries. Over the years, those cysts build up and fail to release eggs. They cause the overproduction of male hormones like testosterone, which in turn can cause acne and abnormal hair growth. Woman with PCOS have low success with regular ovulation and pregnancy.
Symptoms of PCOS
Women with PCOS may experience symptoms as early as their teenage years, including:
- Irregular menstrual periods
- Lack of periods for 2 to 12 months
- Weight gain or difficulty losing weight
- Hair growth on the face, back, or chest (hirsutism)
- Irregular or absent menstrual periods
- Male pattern baldness or thinning hair on the scalp
- Dark pigmentation in the armpits and back of the neck.
Later life repercussions of PCOS may include heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, or even endometrial or uterine cancer. PCOS has also been called Stein-Leventhal syndrome.
Unfortunately, there is no cure for polycystic ovary syndrome. But PCOS symptoms – including infertility – can be treated. Weight reduction improves the frequency of ovulation, improves fertility, lowers the risk of diabetes, and lowers male hormone levels in many women with PCOS. In the long term PCOS can lead to metabolic syndrome, which causes obesity and high insulin levels, so treatment must also focus on reduction of the risk of diabetes and also heart disease, which can result from diabetes. Changing or adapting nutritional and exercise habits is critical. In overweight women, another key is the reduction of insulin levels with medications.
Patients must learn to manage other symptoms of PCOS. Irritating symptoms like acne, hirsutism, hair loss, and acne often respond to metformin. If PCOS is being treated for reasons other than infertility, other medication can be used more liberally. Laser hair removal and plucking may be necessary for cosmetic reasons.
Treating infertility from PCOS
The first steps in any infertility treatment will be an examination of the woman’s reproductive system and fertility testing.
Overweight women will be advised to begin a healthy weight-loss program before or during infertility treatment. Studies have shown that some women experience spontaneous return of their ovulation and regulation of their cycles by simply losing weight through healthy eating and exercise, and once pregnancy is achieved, a healthy diet can help maintain normal weight. If that does not work, ovulation-inducing fertility medications may be used. Once ovulation is achieved, a woman with PCOS may then begin with either intrauterine insemination (IUI) or in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Can PCOS be prevented?
Physicians have not yet found a way to determine which girls may develop PCOS after the beginning of menstruation. The earlier a young woman is diagnosed and begins managing PCOS, the less likely the long-term complications of infertility, heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes. For women who are not trying to conceive, hormone therapy through birth control pills or other hormonal contraceptives can be helpful. And all PCOS sufferers, regardless of desire to conceive, benefit from a healthy lifestyle of regular exercise and good nutrition.
Suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome can cause emotional distress for a woman. The outward symptoms of skipping periods, hair growth, hair loss, and weight gain attack a woman’s self-image, not to mention her concerns of having children. A woman should consult a physician as soon as suspicions of PCOS through the symptoms listed above become apparent.


Dr. Kelly Ross, Pediatrician at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, talks about how to transition your child into a back to school sleeping schedule. First, it is important to begin easing your child into a regular sleeping schedule a couple of weeks in advance. It is not fair to expect your child to fall asleep at a bed time the night before the first day of school if there was no preparation. Most parents forget that just like going into your first day of work, the first day of school can be a huge stressor for kids and it can be even more difficult for them to fall asleep if a regular sleeping schedule is not in place in advance.
You want your kids to be at their very best for the first day of school, but that is difficult when they are sleep deprived. That is why it is so important to be proactive in getting your child in a regular sleeping schedule before the first day.
Many parents ask, “At what point do you hand this responsibility over to the kids?” Dr. Ross explains that her kids are teenagers, and they have even learned the consequences of not getting enough sleep. You don’t want to force your kids into a regular sleeping schedule, but it is important that they learn these processes in a gentle, happy sort of way.
When your child is starting to be able to tell time, it is a good idea to practice by having an alarm clock in the room. However, it is too much to expect younger children to wake up on their own with an alarm clock.
As kids mature and head toward middle school or high school, waking up on their own with an alarm clock is a reasonable expectation. About a month before that change occurs, you want to have your kids set their alarm and then follow up to make sure that they are actually getting out of bed.


As of the end of 2013, the country with the top wind power producing capacity in the world is China. Other top wind producing countries, in order, are the United States, Germany, Spain, India, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Canada and Denmark. Some countries, such as the United Kingdom and Denmark, rely heavily on offshore wind power, whereas other countries build most of their wind power facilities on land.Continue Reading
At the end of 2012, about 80 countries were operating around 225,000 wind turbines. Globally, wind power supplies about 2.5 percent of electricity, but the percentage is much higher in some isolated areas. Wind power supplies 30 percent of Denmark's electricity, more than 40 percent of electricity in some German states, 20 percent of electricity in southern Australia and 16 percent of electricity in Spain and Portugal. According to estimates by the Global Wind Energy Council, global use of wind energy is expected to reach 5 percent by 2015.
Two of the largest wind farms in the world are in the United States: the Alta Wind Energy Center in California and the Roscoe Wind Farm in Texas. As of 2013, the largest offshore wind farm in the world is the London Array, located about 13 miles off the Kent coast in the United Kingdom. Public opinion is overwhelmingly for wind power as an alternative energy source, though the amount of support varies from country to country. In a Eurobarometer survey, 89 percent of European Union citizens expressed support for wind power, while a 2012 survey in the United States put popular support for wind power at 71 percent.Learn more about Sustainability


Manitoba History: Historical Tour: Selkirk, Manitoba
by Wendy G. Smulan
Studying architecture is one method of examining history, but in addition to architecture are the stories of people that make those buildings. It is the stories of people in conjunction with the architecture that creates a complete picture of what life was in the past and how it impacts the present. Selkirk, Manitoba was established by a few wealthy and influential investors that had the vision of Selkirk becoming Manitoba’s capital of trade and industry. A political battle ensued between Selkirk and Winnipeg to be the central power in the province, which has made Selkirk’s history particularly interesting. The result is the richness of the town’s heritage and architecture that remain today as landmarks. Selkirk is particularly fortunate to have a highly active heritage committee that is devoted to recording and preserving the town’s significant architecture. The University of Manitoba, Faculty of Architecture and in particular the work of Dr. Bill Thompson and his students have also contributed a great deal to the documentation and study of the town’s architecture. Architecture is a symbol of a people’s culture, politics and community, and the landmarks of Selkirk help tell its story.
The Selkirk Post Office was the town’s first public building, constructed between 1907 and 1909. Not only did the building house the post office located on the main floor, but also contained the fisheries office and Indian agency on the upper level, and the customs office on the lower level. The architectural firm hired to design the building was James Chisholm and Son, one of Winnipeg’s first architectural firms.
Shortly after the turn of the century, the news was released that the town would be receiving a new public building. The construction of such a large building by the federal government was important to Selkirk and symbolised the town’s progress. Controversy arose over the location because many of the merchants argued it should be at the intersection of Eveline Street and Manitoba Avenue closer to their business establishments.  Despite their protests, the government built the post office at the corner of Manitoba Avenue and Main Street. At the time of the building’s construction there were no buildings on the surrounding lots and the post office became Selkirk’s central land-mark. The post office remained as the centre of activity for many years until the government constructed a new post office in 1956.  The old Post Office building was then sold and converted into apartments that remained occupied for 20 years and then was abandoned for several years. In 1984 the building was restored and opened as a community art centre, making it once again the centre for community activity.
The Post Office is an example of the Beaux-Art Classical style, a style that was revived at the turn of the century in Paris, and then in North America from a renewed interest in classical aesthetics. The Beaux-Art style is identified by classical architectural elements seen on the building, such as: the dentils within the bracketed cornice, voussoirs, exaggerated key stones and stone string courses. The detailing of the cornice and masonry work on the building help to make it a monumental structure in Selkirk.
Upon entering the Post Office from Main Street, one passes through a wooden, segmental arched doorway which opens into a reconstructed glass vestibule. A great deal of the structure, woodwork and terrazzo floor are original to the building. The preservation of this building as a community art centre demonstrates it to be a significant building in the foundation of the community, and its history.
A different type of public building that serves the town and symbolises the success of the community are its churches. Knox Presbyterian Church is a fine example of a church that signifies Selkirk’s development as a community, being the first congregation in town. The church began in a small log cabin on Eveline Street and evolved into the large Gothic Revival structure that stands today. The initial structure was built in 1876 and saw two expansions, first in 1904 and second in the 1960s. The magnificence of this building is experienced in the interior chapel, where the stained glass glows with warm intensity and colour. The woodwork on the interior is highly detailed. Also noteworthy are the curved wooden pews.
The Gothic Revival style is identified by the steep pitched roof, small rose window, and pointed arch windows and doors. One must note the detailed masonry mouldings around the pointed arch windows, the corbelling, and the exceptional stained glass that has been dedicated to the memory of local congregation members. The typical Presbyterian bell tower and spire, located originally on the southeast corner before the 1904 addition mark this building as one of Selkirk’s finest landmarks.
One cannot pass through the town without taking notice of the brightly painted blue lift bridge. A rumour began in 1911 that a bridge was being built to connect Selkirk and East Selkirk across the Red River. It was not until the Depression in the 1930s that the bridge finally began to take shape after the federal, provincial and municipal governments agreed to share the cost. The opening of the bridge was delayed for several years while the governments argued over funding for the maintenance costs. In the spring of 1937, the bridge had not yet opened and the river became impossible to cross. Meanwhile, the governments had quietly reached a settlement and planned an official opening of the bridge. Frustrated, Ed Maloney, a local resident took matters into his own hands and lowered the span by the manual crank to allow people to cross.  The bridge was in full use that day, only to be promptly closed by the government until the official opening only two days later. The bridge marks an interesting moment in the history of Selkirk and its development as a prairie town.
Selkirk has an engaging political history because of the men who had a vision of Selkirk as Manitoba’s centre of trade, export and finance. However, that vision was short lived and by the turn of the century it was apparent that the main rail line would cross through Winnipeg and not Selkirk. A great battle was lost and one that residents of Selkirk still mention.
Selkirk then changed its goals to become the centre of agriculture for the Interlake Region and a summer resort for Winnipeggers. In 1892 a group of businessmen formed the Selkirk Electric Railway Company to build a link between the town and Winnipeg.  In 1908, the Winnipeg Selkirk and Lake Winnipeg Railway Company (W.S & L.W.), affiliated with Selkirk Electric Railway opened the line between Selkirk and Winnipeg with daily trips.
A building with a significant history is the old Eaton General Store at Eaton Avenue and Eveline Street. W. H. Eaton, relative to Timothy Eaton, was one of many original investors in Selkirk and took a steadfast interest in the town’s growth and prosperity. Eventually, the Eaton General Store closed and the building became the train station, where visitors to Selkirk got their first glimpse of the town and local people gathered to travel into Winnipeg for its urban conveniences.
The building changed hands after being the centre of transportation and it has not been preserved or restored to its original appearance. The stout, but sturdy building is typical of a boomtown building with a parapet to give it greater height. There has been added decoration on the front facade with brick corbelling above the entrance and the symmetrical windows. The building is obviously important to Selkirk’s development and growth.
The Garden on Eaton, is a Queen Anne Revival style home that has been converted into a tea and craft house. The home is a good example of how historic buildings may be preserved and reused for contemporary purposes. The building has many of the characteristic features of the Queen Anne Revival style home found throughout Selkirk, with its tower and spire, intersecting gable roof, veranda (that has been enclosed), columns and asymmetrical design.
Another noteworthy Queen Anne Revival style home is the former Stuart Residence on Eveline Street.  The Selkirk Electric Company (S.EL.C.) was the first company to bring electricity to the town in 1904. The residence was built under the supervision of James Stuart, one of the founding members of S.EL.C. The home was built beside the electrical plant (which no longer exists) to house the company engineer, who happened to be James Stuart’s son. S.EL.C. had many difficulties providing reliable electricity to the town, and as a result of many complaints, the company was sold in 1906.  James Stuart’s son continued to be engineer for the new company as James Stuart was a member of the new electric company, until 1915. The house is currently owned by the Town of Selkirk and is under review for municipal heritage designation. It is possible that in future the home will be converted into a museum for the town, separate from the Selkirk Marine Museum, which is only one block south of the Stuart residence.
The Stuart residence was built from brick that came from a brick plant owned by James Stuart in Manitoba. The masonry work is very detailed with brick string courses and segmented arches over the doors and windows. The veranda is original to the home with its decorative balusters, and shades a small bay window.
St. Clement’s Anglican Church on the south side of town was one of three churches in Selkirk affiliated with the Church of England, which during the 1870s attempted to convert local Natives to Christianity. The church stands alone surrounded by a large cemetery that contains the graves of many of the founding families of Selkirk. The building is a sturdy stone structure in the English Parish Gothic Revival style with crenellation crowning the bell tower and pointed arch windows and door. The entry to the chapel is through the bell tower where one may see the thickness of the stone walls by the inset windows. The chapel is simple, but has beautiful stained glass windows that are best seen from the interior. The masonry work is very rustic. Finer cut stones provide subtle contrast which highlight the door and windows as well as the crenellated battlements and moulding on the bell tower.
At the corner of Eveline Street and Manitoba Avenue, the old centre of Selkirk’s business community when the town was first established, is the former Dominion Bank built in 1905. The building is a modification of the “Chicago School” style, it is symbolic of industrial growth and technological innovation, which marked Selkirk as being a modern town. The style is atypical for a bank, which may explain the suggestion that its original function was something other than a bank. The “Chicago School” architecture began in the mid nineteenth century in the Midwest and was predominantly used for commercial buildings. The building initially appears to be in the Classical style, with its cornice, frieze, dentils and pediment.
However, the heavy cornice separating the first and second levels, the canted corner, and the window groupings in three signify the building as being inspired by the “Chicago School” architectural style.
The building as it stands is in need of much repair and restoration, and the present owners of the building are currently working to do so. The building has great potential to be a more significant landmark to the town of Selkirk, but it also stands as a reminder of the commitment of the people of Selkirk to preserve their architectural and cultural history. The hard work and dedication of the people of Selkirk has been ongoing, and the rewards are the many well preserved and documented architectural landmarks that tell the story of the town’s historical development.
The author wishes to express her deepest gratitude to Mr. Frank Hooker, Chairman, Selkirk Heritage Committee for sharing so much of his time and knowledge. In addition, she extends her appreciation to Dr. George R. Fuller of the University of Manitoba, Department of Interior Design for his suggestions and comments.
Hooker, Frank (Chair of Selkirk Heritage Committee). Interview by author, 14 January 1997, Selkirk.
Hooker, Frank (Chair of Selkirk Heritage Committee). Interview by author, 15 July 1997, Selkirk.
Humphreys, B. A. The Buildings of Canada. Montreal: Reader’s Digest Association, 1990.
Potyondi, Barry. Selkirk: The First Hundred Years. Winnipeg: National School Services, 1982.
Rostecki, R. R. “Former Public Building: 406 Main Street, Selkirk, MB.” For the Historic Resources Branch, Province of Manitoba, September 1988.
Selkirk Heritage Committee in conjunction with University of Manitoba, Faculty of Architecture. Compilation of data collected to document history of Selkirk buildings built prior to 1940.
Smith, Alicia, in conjunction with the University of Manitoba, Faculty of Architecture, “The Former Stuart Residence: 478 Eveline Street, Selkirk, MB.” For the Selkirk Heritage Committee, May 1997.
1. R. R. Rostecki, “Former Public Building: 406 Main Street, Selkirk, MB.” (For the Historic Resources Branch, Province of Manitoba, September 1988), 2.
2. Ibid., 5.
3. Selkirk Heritage Committee in conjunction with University of Manitoba, Faculty of Architecture. Compilation of data collected to document history of Selkirk buildings built prior to 1940.
4. Barry Potyondi, Selkirk: The First Hundred Years (Winnipeg: National School Services, 1982), 138.
5. Ibid., 100.
6. Alicia Smith, “The Former Stuart Residence: 478 Eveline Street, Selkirk, MB.” (For the Selkirk Heritage Committee, May 1997), 1.
7. Ibid., 2.
Page revised: 27 August 2020


A type of Malware called Mirai that can be used to create an IoT botnet is now available for download online. The malware can be used to launch DDoS attacks on e-commerce websites, bringing those businesses to a halt. This is a huge risk for e-commerce sites, and could cause chaos over the holiday period. Worst of all? Since the source code for the malware was leaked to the net last week, cybersec experts have noticed a marked rise in its use.
The Mirai malware is designed to exploit an existing vulnerability within IoT devices that has been understood for some time. There are millions of IoT devices on the market that are misconfigured and set to forward messages via the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). Often, when people buy IoT devices they do not update the factory settings with the necessary password to protect those devices.
It is these leaky IoT devices that are being exploited by hackers to launch attacks, including DDoS attacks on ecommerce businesses. The powerful malware has already been used to launch some of the most savage DDoS attacks ever seen. Last week, Google had to step in to help protect the KrebsOnSecurity website from an incredible 620Gbps DDoS attack. That is massive, but is just one example of how DDoS attacks get worse year on year – without fail.
The attack on Krebs isn’t the biggest recent attack, either. Since security expert Brian Krebs was attacked last week, an even bigger attack has taken place on the French web host OVH. That attack surged at a rate of between 1Tbps and 1.5Tbps – staggeringly enormous. Those DDoS attacks on websites are unprecedented, and are directly linked to the use of the IoT botnet malware Mirai.
How does it work?
Ryan Barnett, a security researcher at Akamai has explained the details. His firm noticed that attacks were coming from a huge number of IP addresses. This coupled with the fact that customers of its content delivery system were having their sites systematically checked for existing password combinations, brought the problem to light.
It is believed that those passwords are the spoils of major hacks like the one at Yahoo. The stolen passwords are often sold off on the deep web, and it is thought that they are now being tested on other websites (due to the fact that that people often use the same password for multiple logins). Barnett comments,
‘They were all formatted exactly the same, except that the username and password was different. So we knew that this was probably being controlled by a single entity that was launching these attacks.’
It was the realization that all those IP addresses were being controlled by a single hacker that led Akamai’s team to discover the IoT botnet,
‘Because we were able to see this across all these different customers, we were able to see the same IP addresses hitting multiple websites. When we mapped them back, that’s when we were able to see that these were IoT systems.’
Barnett has gone on to explain that the problem itself can be traced back to security flaws in the IoT products that are being exploited by Mirai.
Firstly, IoT products often ship with a default login such as ‘admin’. This allows them to easily be made part of the botnet.
The discovery is further evidence that IoT products need to be managed more effectively. Barnett’s team says that manufacturers must be forced to make IoT consumers update those setting before the product will fulfill its purpose. Default settings must be abolished in favor of a compulsory initial setup procedure.
The second problem is the aforementioned TCP settings used in IoT products. Transmission Control Protocol is a Linux-based feature that IoT devices ship with. It is that message forwarding protocol that is exploited by the Mirai malware using the default admin passwords. During attacks, message forwarding is used to hide the origin of the onslaught by rapidly spreading the messages through the IoT botnet.
Consumers at fault?
The solution is for end users of IoT products to update their devices’ passwords. The problem, however, is the sheer amount of IoT products that have already been sold. That number, combined with a general lapse of security amongst the world’s consumers, spells disaster.
Often people buy IoT products like kettles or thermometers and simply plug and play, without ever checking the manual – nevermind updating default passwords. If the IoT device does what the consumer hoped it would, that user is under the illusion that they have no cause for concern.
What the Mirai software teaches us is that IoT products can be harnessed – on masse – to carry out attacks on third parties: Without IoT consumers ever having a clue that they are involved. With the security problem so extensive, and consumers unlikely to suddenly become conscientious, the burden of responsibility has to lay with manufacturers. Only IoT device makers can effectively tackle the problem going forward.
As for the devices in people’s homes, that are already being exploited? That problem is here to stay, and if last week’s sudden uptake of the Mirai malware is anything to go by then we might be in for quite the bumpy ride this holiday season.