The IEEE wants to make idle or underutilized Ethernet connections more energy efficient, which could mean huge electrical cost savings for large enterprises. The trick: finding a way to seamlessly throttle between 10Mbps and 10Gbps.
The standards outfit recently formed an Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE) study group to explore how to do this. The idea is to save power in PCs and laptops (most of which ship with GigE cards now) when LAN links are idle, or not utilizing full bandwidth. Researchers estimate that U.S. companies could collectively save $450 million a year in power costs by using such a technology.
The study group is essentially refiguring the process of auto-negotiation — a link-detection technology in Ethernet, where a switch and NIC determine what speeds are supported (10/100/1000Mbps) and establish the link rate. EEE would make this a more real-time process on Ethernet networks. For instance, a GigE-enabled laptop would switch to 10Mbps when idle, maybe 100Mbps during low-bandwidth activities, such as e-mail or Web surfing, and burst to 1000Mbps when downloading large files or streaming video.
"There's lots to take on with this effort," says Mike Bennett, senior network engineer at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and chair of the EEE Study Group.
One challenge is finding a way to make a PC or laptop network interface card (NIC) change gears more quickly — "a couple orders of magnitude faster than auto-negotiation, to make the switch as seamless as possible," Bennett says. "Auto-negotiation runs at about 1.4 seconds and we're talking about — just to start the discussion — a millisecond of switching time."
EEE technology will have to work on both ends of a link to be successful, Bennett says. "When one device signals a speed change to another, the device would have to stop transmitting frames and tell the other end of the link, 'Hey, we're going to do a speed change here.'" The challenge with that is there are standard buffering sizes for Ethernet gear, he adds.
"Vendors build devices differently. Some have lots of buffers, some don't," he says.
If the IEEE and equipment vendors can figure all of this out, the savings could be huge for large organizations with thousands of Ethernet ports in PCs, servers and other devices, Bennett says.
Dropping a NIC's connection speed from 1000Mbps to 10Mbps could lower the device's power consumption from about 4W to around .60W. Considering the hundreds or thousands of networked machines running in some enterprises, this power savings could be significant, EEE proponents say.
Presentations given at EEE Study Group meetings cite a 2002 Department of Energy study estimating that the total power consumption of enterprise IT equipment in U.S. offices at around 97 terawatt hours per year, which translates to around $8 billion per year in energy costs. Extrapolating that cost over time, and accounting for network-related power consumption, the study group came up with the estimate of $450 million per year.
"If all Ethernet ports in the U.S. were suddenly [EEE] ports, you figure there's enough energy savings there at least worth thinking about," Bennett says.
"We don't want to make it ridiculous and blow it up to something that isn't true, but those are reasonable estimates. If not, we would never have enough people interested in it to get a study group," he says.
Discussions about how EEE technology will operate are in the early stages, Bennett says. What has emerged are two general concepts of what needs to happen at the Ethernet link layer, and higher layers. The first consideration is the control mechanisms that change the physical layer connection or PHY, to the desired speeds. This will define how to physically change PHY speeds among 10Base-T, 100Base-T, 1000T and 10GBase-T in that millisecond-changeover time period Bennett mentioned.
"First question is what's the mechanism of how you switch" among PHY speeds, says Ken Christensen associate professor of computer science and engineering at the University of South Florida, in Tampa, who was among the early researchers into EEE.
Christensen was one of the thinkers behind the idea of EEE, along with Bruce Nordman, a researcher at the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Nordman has been researching the overall energy consumption of enterprise IT equipment; Christensen has outlined a technology called Rapid PHY Selection (RPS). RPS involves ways LAN clients and switches can synchronize speeds through a quick MAC frame handshake. The trick is to handle variables such as bursty traffic.
"The next question is when do you switch, and that's the control policy," Christensen says.
Most of the IEEE's standardization effort will focus on how to control PHY speed changes. The policies on when the changes occur will most likely be defined by makers of network equipment vendors, Christensen says. Vendors who figure out how to do this well could use that as a competitive advantage.
"Very simplistically, you could look at buffer thresholds, perhaps," to determine when to switch PHY speeds. "Or you could make an explicit measurement of utilization. If it's more than a threshold, for example, you go up or down, in terms of link rate, which determines how much power the NIC draws from the system."
Learn more about this topicEnergy-efficient Ethernet?
11/27/06Vendors push gear that runs 10G over Cat6 copper, and into blade servers


Queensland University of Technology researchers have taken a unique approach to fighting the effects of chlamydia.
A breakthrough in chlamydia research could mean the creation of a drug that, instead of making someone immune to the sexually transmitted disease, renders it "harmless".
Queensland University of Technology PhD student Connor O'Meara undertook research of chlamydia three years ago and has stumbled across a medical breakthrough that could change the focus of chlamydia research.
The major effect of chlamydia is infertility, but it is caused by the body's brutal reaction to the disease and not the disease itself.
When the body tries to fight chlamydia, in a woman's case, irreversible damage can be done to the reproductive system.
Mr O'Meara works at QUT's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation and may be close to developing a drug which gives the body a tolerance to the disease instead of trying to eradicate it.
"Essentially this could form of the basis of a vaccine that does both, protects the body against infertility but also from the infection," he said.
"Most infections in women are asymptomatic anyway, most people don't know they have it so the problems come later on in lie when they try to conceive and they're infertile.
"Essentially if we can stop that from happening people won't care if they have it."
The vaccine could take the form of a tablet put under the tongue, a nasal spray or a patch put on the skin.
The reason it would not be administered through a needle was that the vaccine would be aimed at mucosal surfaces, as chlamydia usually infects through the genital tracts so the lining needs to be the focus of the vaccine.
"It was actually quite surprising how it came around, we were trialling things you put with vaccines to give your body an emergency reaction, you know, 'there's something bad here, we better react to it'," Mr O'Meara said.
"We essentially tried a number of different ones and we noticed that some animals that were protected from the infertility but still had a normal course of infection.
"We thought, this is quite interesting."
The vaccine could still be decades away as a vaccine has to go through many stringent tests before it is administered to a human, but Mr O'Meara has already won accolades for his work.
He has been awarded the a State Research Excellence and today is heading to the AusBiotech national conference where he will mingle with other PhD students, scientists and researchers.


Eating fresh cucumbers from your own garden taste so much better than anything you can buy. They are easy to grow in a garden bed or container. They can be trellised or staked.
There are many different varieties that you can choose from, some common ones are the long skinny edible peel (English) variety, the slicing varieties and the smaller varieties often used for pickling.
Botanical Family - Carurbitaceae/Ground Family
Location - Needs good drainage. Can be grown outside or in greenhouse.
Soil - Warm, rich sandy.
Soil Preparation - Dig in a few inches of or aged manure, lime (5 pounds per 50 foot bed) and seaweed before planting. Mulch with compost during the growing season.
Seed Info -
Planting times - Soak seeds then start transplants mid April; transplant at 4 weeks.
Most varieties are monoecious and produce both male and female flowers on the same plant. The gynoecious types bear only female flowers, so a few male-flowering pollinators are in the seed packet (you will need to plant all the seeds in order to get fruits). Both need bees to pollinate.
Watering - Need lots of water, deep watering rather than frequent sprinkles is best. If weather is warm water every second day if plants are in the greenhouse.
Weeding - Keep weeded when plants are small.
Disease & Insects - If diseased do not compost plants.
When plants are 6-12 inches long cut the fruit with a knife. It you twist it off you may break the stalk which may kill the plant. Harvest in the morning when it is cool.
Picking when young will encourage more fruit.
Storage - Best stored in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic. Fresh picked will keep up to a week.
1 small yellow onion
2 tsp white vinegar
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 tsp dry dill weed
salt and pepper to taste
thin and place in bowl. Slice onion thin, cut slices in half and add to
cucumbers. Mix remaining ingredients and toss with cucumbers. Refrigerate for
at least half hour. Makes 4 servings.


Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.
The analysis of DNA samples to detect the presence of a gene or genes associated with an inherited disorder.
the process of investigating a specific population of persons for the purpose of detecting the presence of disease, either incipient or overt, such as the generalized screening of all newborns for phenylketonuria. Genetic screening may be used to identify those who possess defective genes, gain information concerning the incidence of a disorder in the population, and provide reproductive information, specifically to those at risk, such as the close relatives of persons affected with inborn errors of metabolism or those in certain ethnic groups who have a high incidence of a particular disease, specifically sickle cell anemia in African-Americans and Tay-Sachs disease in Ashkenazic Jews. When accompanied by education and counseling, mass screening programs can be effective in the management of genetic disorders. See also genetic counseling.
genetic screeningMolecular diagnostics The screening of a person's serum for molecular markers that indicate an ↑ susceptibility to inherited or acquired diseases with a genetic component GS candidates Cystic fibrosis, PKU, sickle cell disease, Tay-Sachs disease
fa·mil·i·al screen·ing(fă-mil'ē-ăl skrēn'ing)
Examination directed at close relatives of probands with diseases that may lie latent, as in age-dependent dominant traits, or that may involve risk to progeny, as in X-linked traits.


For centuries the Virgin Mary has been a key figure in Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. According to Christian beliefs the mother of Jesus Christ was with her son throughout his life from his birth in the Bethlehem stable to his crucifixion, and witnessed the empty tomb three days later. Mary is the archetypal Madonna, the loving mother who nurtures and heals.
Her image appears in countless paintings and stained glass church windows and her statues appear in sacred grottos, woodland shrines as well as in great cathedrals. She is the embodiment of the eternal mother goddess who has appeared cross culturally.
Mary hears the prayers of the faithful and has performed miracles since the days when she walked the Earth. So strong is the belief of many in her loving heart and miraculous powers that whenever she makes an appearance in our world she attracts millions of pilgrims who wish to see, pray and be healed. Lourdes in France attracts 6 million visitors per year, 5 million annually visit the apparition site at Fatima,
Portugal and nearly 20 million go to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe near Mexico City. These appearances – called Marian Apparitions – have appeared all over the globe from Nigeria to Georgia, USA.
But what are these apparitions? Theories abound depending on the beliefs and lenses of those making a judgment. Interpretations of the possible meaning of these phenomena range from the belief that what is occurring is an actual visitation of the Virgin Mary to deliver a message of great importance and to heal those who suffer in mind, body or spirit to the opinion that these are close encounters with some form of interdimensional entity that is not necessarily the Virgin Mary (Vallee, 1975, 2008.)
Despite the widespread distribution of the Apparitions over time and distance they all share certain common elements:
- Initial contact is usually witnessed by children/adolescents;
- It appears at a remote location;
- There is frequently a message of Earthly significance to be transmitted and acted on;
- Unusual phenomena accompany the apparition including bright light, the sun appearing to “spin”, the smell of roses, high pitched sounds, and messages being transmitted to the children who first saw the apparition who act as conduits of communication and can frequently appear to be possessed e.g. the actions of the 4 girls communicating with the apparition in Garabandal, Spain in 1961.
- Miraculous healings occur while the apparition (who usually appears as a small figure wearing a blue robe and encased in brilliant white light) is present and thereafter at the site of the apparition (Zimdars-Swartz, 1991.)
While Christian pilgrims strongly believe that the apparitions are in fact the Virgin Mary, the veracity of such claims is determined by the Vatican through special commissions. These commissions apply a regime of tests and criteria to determine if the event was truly an appearance by Mary worthy of belief by members of the Church.
Others who have witnessed the phenomena of the apparitions first hand or who have seen miraculous healings at shrines such as Lourdes frequently give credence to the claims of divine origin based on empirical evidence and their own sensory cognition and subsequently persist in that belief despite what the Church commissions decree.
There is no way to scientifically determine if the Marian Apparitions are visits by the Virgin Mary. They could very possibly be interdimensional close encounters that are claimed to be Mary because of the spiritual orientation of the witnesses. It is a Mystery and an intriguing one that is consistent with our cultural consciousness. What happens in the Viveca Piscis between the consciousness of an individual and an extension of the numinous is a personal matter (James, 1902.) This only adds to the wonder surrounding these events.
While I was writing this blog I was listening to Symphony Hall on XM radio when the station began playing Schubert’s “Ave Maria.” Synchronicities are indeed remarkable occurrences.


Once the grain has grown, the next step on the Grain Chain is to see how it’s milled to make flour.
So for that we need… you got it – a mill! Now when you think of mills you might think of wind mills, or water wheels…
But the mills today are much MUCH bigger.
Whilst those old types of mills did the job pretty well for thousands of years, the flour they made was rather coarse. Modern mills, like this one, make much finer flour and a lot of it which is good because they need to grind over five million tonnes of grain every year!
So here’s how they do it – first they clean the wheat and for that they need…
Magnets! Magnets and other machines help extract any metal and stones from the grain. They wouldn’t be nice to eat. Next it gets a blow dry…
Air currents carry away dust before the grain is washed.
The water softens the outer bran layer which is important because this layer is too tough to make good flour – the bit that’s wanted is underneath – the endosperm.
Now the grain is nearly ready to be milled – it just needs GRISTING!
It’s a weird word that means mixing different types of grains in different proportions to make different kinds of flour.
Now the real fun starts! The grain is finally ready for milling — making the flour — this normally happens in three stages too!
First the grains are cracked to make the outer coat even looser. Then it’s rolled to release the endosperm and the wheatgerm. And finally, it’s sieved to collect the different parts.
George Explores… the Grain Chain, with support from farmers and millers across the UK
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Surprise? NASA ‘confirms’ the big bang
14 February 2003
It seems the news is buzzing with the latest reports from NASA. Many people have been asking about these reports, so we present here a preliminary response to be followed with a more detailed report.
The latest reports are once again shouting that the big bang is a historical reality. That’s what Alan MacRobert declares in the article Mapping the Big Bang in Sky and Telescope. He says that the NASA report ‘has powerfully confirmed the conclusions that many teams of astronomers had already reached’. But confirming what people already know doesn’t sound like big news. MacRobert says exactly that: ‘The big news is actually no news’.
NASA has released the first years’ results from a satellite, 1.5 million kilometres from Earth. Called the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, or WMAP, the satellite measures the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) from space. There is no doubt that this is a remarkable achievement.
The oval coloured map represents the whole sky, like the spherical Earth is represented as an oval on a sheet of paper. Different parts of the map relate to different parts of the sky. Different colours represent variations in the CMB with ‘warmer’ as red and ‘cooler’ as blue (but the differences are really tiny).
Overall, this information is not new. Similar maps have been produced before from instruments measuring CMB from the ground and from balloons, and from its predecessor, the COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer) satellite. The WMAP results, however, are more precise and cover the whole of the sky.
Neither is NASA telling a new story about the CMB. CMB has long been touted as confirming the big bang, the age of the universe, its composition, geometry, its ultimate fate, and so on. But those assertions don’t come from the measurements. They are based on an enormous number of philosophical assumptions. Of these claims creationist physicist, John Hartnett says, ‘In short, the big bang is first assumed to be true and they adjust their parameters to get the theory to fit the data. Because of this circular reasoning, it would be a miracle if it did not “confirm” the big bang.’
Furthermore, the unbelievably small irregularities in the CMB are interpreted as seeds for galaxy formation—there is no proof, or plausible mechanism.
Recent Cosmic Microwave Background data supports creationist cosmologies.
by Dr John Hartnett
First published in:
A review of CMB data by Dr John Hartnett (see right) was published in TJ early 2001. The big picture has not changed since then. In that report Dr Hartnett showed that CMB actually poses problems for the big bang and supports creationist cosmologies. One problem is that the CMB seems to indicate a preferred frame of reference, contrary to the basic assumption behind the big bang. Another is that the total mass density of the universe inferred observationally does not agree with the mass calculated from big bang theory. And this latest NASA report even said that the stars formed earlier (by their own dating methods) than previously predicted. Then there is the fact that the CMB is very smooth, contrary to big bang predictions. And so on. Creationist cosmology models do not have these problems.
So, have NASA really discovered the big bang is a reality as is so loudly proclaimed? No. They are just asserting it again. Nothing has changed. See Cosmologists Can’t Agree and Are Still In Doubt!


Choosing and Summarizing Internet ResourcesAmy Ogasawara
Miyazaki International College (Miyazaki, Japan)
AOGASAWA [at] pmail.miyazaki-mic.ac.jp
Purpose: This lesson assumes that the purpose for finding Internet resources is for a research paper or project. But the worksheets could be adapted for other, less academic purposes.
IntroductionStudents enjoy surfing the Internet, but one of the problems we as teachers have with using this fun new skill, is turning it into a sound and profitable experience for them. Many times, students cruise from one article or topic to another without really comprehending what it is they are seeing on the screen in from of them. They often skim the surface, but end up without an article or any data for their classroom assignment/research. This can prove to be frustrating for both the students and the teachers.
Therefore, the purpose of this lesson is to teach students a step by step process to follow in a) choosing an Internet resource, and b) summarizing the information found for future reference, or use in a paper or writing assignment. It is also designed to begin to teach students the importance of siting their sources.
OverviewAfter first teaching students the basics of surfing the Internet (should be done in one class period), the following two part lesson provides guided practice of the new skill.
The first part of the lesson focuses on choosing a source. Students have to analyze the information on the screen and make critical judgements as to whether or not it is relevant to their topic.
The second part of the lesson is a practice in the beginning stages of summarizing, and a guide for moving on to the next step in research, via asking more questions. In addition, students are provided with a space for writing down notes, including quotes, statistics, and other important information they may want to include in their findings, writing, or presentation.
Part One:When students come into the class, ask them to randomly choose one source which they think they could use in their research, and one which is not so relevant to their work. As they are surfing and choosing, it is interesting for the teacher to wander around behind them to see if there is any method they are using to choose sources. You will find that most of them are clicking and watching the screen, while a few of them are taking notes to help them decide on sources to mark.
When it appears that they have chosen their sources, give them two of the first worksheet, "Choosing Internet Resources." They should fill out one for each source. By giving them the worksheet after they found their sources, they are able to see more explicitly how they go through the process of deciding and choosing.
Part Two:For the second part of the lesson, have the students transfer the information from the one source they want to keep (use in their research), to the other worksheet titled "Summarizing Internet Resources".
When they get to the "questions" box on the worksheet, could either brainstorm for questions stimulated from the article, or in small groups.
Homework:For homework, students should find one more source on the Internet, using the "Choosing" worksheet as a guide (they need not fill it out each time they look at a source), and filling in the "Summarizing" worksheet for the one they chose.
It is helpful if you are doing a research project covering several weeks if students use the "Summarizing" for every source they use in collecting data.
Editor's Note: Due to limitations of HTML, there is not as much space displayed for each question as was in the original submission. You may want to save this as text, then edit it to suit your needs.
Choosing Internet Resources
Quick ReferenceTitle of resource:
Skimming the Resource
- Look for bold or colored words. What do they tell you about this resource? Jot down a few key words that tell you what this resource is going to be about.
- Read the title(s). What added information have you gained?
- Read the first and last lines in each paragraph.
- Do you think this resource will be helpful to you? Why or why not?
- What do you like about this resource? (Amount of information? Organization? Graphics?)
- How will this information help you in your research?
Summarizing Internet Resources
Quick ReferenceTitle of resource:
- What are the main points in this resource?
- What facts can you use for your research?
QuestionsAn important part of the learning process is asking questions. The more we learn, the more we realize how much we don't know! As you explore each source, you should be asking yourself some questions. Some will be practical and some will be more theoretical. Write as many questions as you can think of as you explore this source.
Site Your Source!Author(s):
The Internet TESL Journal, Vol. II, No. 5, May 1996


Some DSL-/DOCSIS-Modems can be accessed by the end user. To do that, you have to find out which IP address the device has and on which port using which protocol you can access it. Sometimes you additionally need the correct username and the password to gain access or to apply changes.
Once you have the information, you connect the router directly to your PC, give your PC an IP address from the same net and access it with the appropriate program. Easy. To still be able to do that through NAT, follow the instructions:
Follow these instructions if you are using a default install of backfire and manage the firewall through UCI
An IP in the same net as the modem must be assigned to the interface which is connected to the modem. To do this, we create an alias as shown below.
For this example we assume two things: that the modem's IP is
169.254.1.8, and that the interface "wan" we are adding an alias to is on eth1.
Head towards /etc/config/network and add these lines.
config interface modem option ifname eth1 option proto static option ipaddr 169.254.1.1 option netmask 255.255.255.0
To exempt the internal modem address range from masquerading, add a "masq_dest" expression to the wan zone in /etc/config/firewall:
config zone option name wan option network 'wan' option input REJECT option output ACCEPT option forward REJECT option masq 1 # The firewall will resolve the expression "!modem" to # "! -s 169.254.1.1/255.255.255.0" or whatever range # was configured in the modem alias. option masq_dest '!modem' option mtu_fix 1
If the modem should have an IP address like say
192.168.1.8, you could not use the network
192.168.1.0/24 for your LAN and at the same time access your modem with this method. Use any other network in that case, like
1. Add alias
Navigate to Admin → Network → Interfaces → WAN, fill in a name in the "IP-Aliases" add field and click "Add".
Within the appearing alias section, fill out the IP address and netmask fields suitable for your modem, hit "Save & Apply".
In my case the modem is reachable via 192.168.100.1, so I've choosen 192.168.100.10 as alias address.
After a while you should see the alias prefix appear in the interface status display (underlined red).
Navigate to Admin → Network → Firewall and open the WAN zone properties (framed red).
Switch to the "Advanced Settings" tab and enter
!modem into the destionation restriction field,
this will tell the firewall to not NAT traffic directed at the modem address range.
Hit "Save & Apply" to make the change effective.
At this point the modem should be reachable from any host in the LAN.
Let's configure source NAT. This is done with
iptables, see netfilter.
You can add these custom rules to /etc/firewall.user , or by using the LuCI interface (Network > Firewall > Custom rules).
iptables -t nat -I postrouting_rule -s 192.168.1.0/24 -d 169.254.1.8 -j SNAT --to 169.254.1.1 iptables -I zone_lan_forward -s 192.168.1.0/24 -d 169.254.1.8 -j ACCEPT
If you changed the
lan network from the OpenWrt default of
192.168.1.1, you'll have to replace
192.168.1.0 with the net you've chosen.
NOTE: Depending on how restrictive your firewall and the policy is, you may need to execute the following as well to allow flow (the above rules only manage the SNAT):
iptables -I FORWARD -j ACCEPT -i br-lan -o eth0.2 iptables -I FORWARD -j ACCEPT -m state --state ESTABLISHED,RELATED
This works because
pppd (needed for PPPoE) spawns
pppoe-dsl, so eth0.2 remains freely usable. After testing the configuration changes, add all the necessary commands to
/etc/firewall.user. Now for example, you could use a GUI program to show some information about your DSL status:
NOTE: Not all modems offer access! Above picture is obtain through a (closed source) program written for the purpose of obtaining a graphic overview for distinct modems. It is very useful to track down connection problems and monitor your DSL-connection. But some modem even offer a WebUI so you can access them with your web browser.
Follow these instructions if you don't use UCI to manage your firewall
Most of the Easy Version still applies. After assigning the modem interface an address,
you will have to source nat packets to the IP address of the DSL modem, by adding the following line, after the MASQUERADE:
IF_LAN="br-lan" NET_LAN="192.168.1.0/24" iptables -t nat -A POSTROUTING -o eth0.2 -i $IF_LAN -s $NET_LAN -d 169.254.1.0/8 -j SNAT --to-source 169.254.1.1
Follow these instructions if you are using a default install of Attitude Adjustment 12.09 and later
In this example the modem has
192.168.254.254 as default IP. Declare a new interface called "modem". An Alias is not needed anymore, as multiple interfaces can share the same ifname. Make sure you use a different network than your existing LAN. Head towards /etc/config/network and add these lines:
config interface 'modem' option ifname 'eth1' option proto 'static' option ipaddr '192.168.254.1' option netmask '255.255.255.0'
Replace eth1 with whatever interface pppoe uses. eg eth0.2
Check if your interface is up with:
The modem should now be pingable from your Router. Because forwarding between lan and eth1 below pppoe-wan is not allowed, now just simply stick the new interface to the wan zone so it will be forwarded:
uci set firewall.@zone.network='wan modem' uci commit firewall fw reload
And thats really all to be done. You could also create a new zone called "modem" and make interzone-forwarding, but thats more work to do.
With DOCSIS-Modem, we do not use the pppd and do not spawn any additional interfaces, so the SNAT-hook need to be before the MASQUERADING-hook. Also, you need to set an alias to the interface with which your Cable modem it connected.
First give the interface (in this case it's even a virtual interface) facing the Internet a second IP address:
ifconfig eth0.2:1 add 192.168.100.2With UCI you can accomplish this as well: aliases.
Then source nat packets to the IP address of the cable modem. Add the following line, before the MASQUERADE:
iptables -t nat -I POSTROUTING -o eth0.2:1 -i eth0.1 -s $NET_LAN -d 192.168.100.1 -j SNAT --to-source 192.168.100.2NOTE: Depending on how restrictive your firewall and the policy is, you may need to execute the following as well to allow flow (the above rules only manage the SNAT):
iptables -I FORWARD -j ACCEPT -i $IF_LAN -o $IF_DSL iptables -I FORWARD -j ACCEPT -m state --state ESTABLISHED,RELATED
Now access you cable modem from your PC with a telnet program or with your browser:


Traditional, pre-cladistic systems placed the flatworms in a single phylum, the Platyhelminthes, subdivided into the classes Turbellaria, Monogenea, Trematoda, and Cestoda (see Hyman, 1951). Turbellarians are the largely free-living flatworms---small soft-bodied worms with a ciliated epidermis by which they swim and creep over substrates and with a sac-like gut whose only opening is the mouth. In contrast, the Monogenea, Trematoda, and Cestoda have a specialized, non-ciliated, syncytial epidermis and are obligate parasites, mostly in or on the bodies of vertebrates. As a taxonomic group, the Turbellaria is, in particular, considered an invalid class because it is not monophyletic. (It is both paraphyletic---that is, having descendants, namely the parasitic classes, that are not classified within it [Ehlers, 1985] and polyphyletic---that is, having arisen from more than one ancestor, one for the acoels and another for catenulidans and rhabditophorans [Baguñà and Riutort, 2004; Phillipé et al., 2011]). The term "turbellarian" can still be applied to those worms that were formerly classified in the Turbellaria, but the term "Turbellaria" (specifically, the capitalized taxon name) would have to be written in quotation marks to indicate its paraphyletic status. Not all turbellarians are free-living, so an alternative name sometimes applied to turbellarians, "free-living Platyhelminthes," is not quite appropriate.
In recognition of recent proposals based on molecular sequences (particularly of 18s rDNA, some Hox genes, and, most recently, fuller genomic data) the system displayed here treats the Acoelomorpha as separate from the phylum Platyhelminthes. The position and status of Acoelomorpha have been volatile in molecular systematics, some claiming that it itself is paraphyletic, many claiming that it (possibly as separate taxa Acoela and Nemertodermatida) belongs near the base of the animal tree of life, as the most basal bilaterians---that is, the most primitive of any animal phylum outside of the sponges and cnidarians. Two genomic studies (Bourlat et al., 2006; Phillipé et al., 2011), placed the Acoelomorpha within the Deuterostomia, in a phylum Xenacoelomorpha that includes also the enigmatic sack-like animal Xenoturbella); under this concept, Xenacoelomorpha is placed as sister group to the Ambulacraria (Echinodermata + Hemichordata). Another genomic analysis places the Xenacoelomorpha outside both Protostomia and Deuterostomia, again as the most basal of any bilaterian groups (Cannon et al., 2016). In any case the Platyhelminthes, as defined in these molecular systems, would be only distantly related to the Acoelomorpha.
This taxonomic database covers all turbellarian flatworms, freshwater as well as marine ones, and including parasitic turbellarians. The position of the major parasitic taxa of the Platyhelminthes (the other classes in the traditional system), encompassed now in the taxon Neodermata, is shown as proposed by cladistic systems based on morphological characters (see Baguñà and Riutort, 2004, for summary of other proposed positions of the Neodermata). This means that it is within the turbellarian taxon Eulecithophora, sister group to (or at least within an uncertain polytomy with) the Rhabdocoela and Adiaphanida.
|Louise Bush sorting turbellarians|
|Steve Schilling collecting geographic data|
Data in this listing were initially compiled by Louise Bush. Dr. Bush's last update to the database was in 1991, the year of her death. Since 1991, the database has been updated by S. Tyler, Steve Schilling, Matt Hooge, and Tom Artois, with help from specialists on various groups of turbellarian platyhelminths, including Masaharu Kawakatsu, Ulrich Ehlers, Marco Curini-Galletti, Oleg Timoshkin, Lukas Schärer, Wim Willems, Johannes Achatz, Anatoly Petrov, Julian P. S. Smith III, Eduard Solà, Francisco Brusa, Cristina Damborenea, Miquel Vila Farre.
Images are mostly extracted from scientific papers describing species. Copyrights for images remain with the original print publishers. Copies of many of the images of Rhabdocoela and Proseriata were kindly provided by Tom Artois, Ernest Schockaert, Matt Hooge, and Rick Hochberg. Images of Acoela, Prolecithophora, and other Rhabdocoela were provided by Matt Hooge.
Many of the notes on these turbellarian taxa and references dealing with them are from index cards that Louise Bush maintained, displayed here either as images of those cards themselves or, in the case of Acoelomorpha species, transcribed into text entries. Steve Schilling scanned the Bush's cards and transcribed notes from many of them for this database.
Steve Schilling entered almost all of the geographic-distribution data. He combed the literature for any mention of collections of turbellarians and scrupulously compared geographic names mentioned with names appearing in gazeteers. Some of the early phases of this work on geographic distributions of species was supported by the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS).
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0118804.
Please cite the usage of the World list of turbellarian worms if you utilize taxonomic information in your publications. This supports the academic contributions of the author and recognizes the contribution of this database to the greater community, which are important facets to the ongoing growth and development of taxonomic knowledge.
If data are extracted from this website for secondary analysis resulting in a publication, the website should be cited as follows:Tyler, S., Artois, T.; Schilling, S.; Hooge, M.; Bush, L.F. (eds) (2006-2018). World List of turbellarian worms: Acoelomorpha, Catenulida, Rhabditophora. Accessed at http://www.marinespecies.org/turbellarians on 2018-09-26
If any data constitutes a substantial proportion of the records used in secondary analyses (i.e. more than 25% of the data are derived from this source, or the data are essential to arrive at the conclusion of the analysis), the authors/managers of the database should be contacted. It may be useful to contact us directly in case there are additional data that may strengthen the analysis or there are features of the data that are important to consider but may not have been apparent from the metadata


St Mary Magdalene Church stands on a small hill close to the Thames in Woolwich. A village church has stood here for hundreds of years but today it feels isolated, rather than part of a community.
A brief history
Perhaps 1,500 years ago a Saxon fishing village and its small church stood on sloping ground in Woolwich, close to the River Thames. In 918, together with the Manors of Greenwich and Lewisham, King Alfred’s daughter gave the church to the Abbey of St Peter in Ghent.
Shortly after the Conquest it was replaced with a stone building dedicated to St Lawrence. And in 1100 King Henry I gave the church to the Priory and Convent of St Andrew in Rochester. By the 15th century the church was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and a century later it was dedicated to St Mary Magdalene.
By the 17th century the building was in danger. A new road to service the expanding dockyard ate into the sloping ground, destabilising the building. Worse still, local residents warned the Admiralty in the 1630s that ‘the bones of the dead are washed out of the churchyard and into the river’.
Today’s church dates from the 1730s. It was built through fundraising and a small donation from the Fifty New Churches Act of 1711. It stood further to the south and higher up the hill on 1.5 acres of land bought from the Bowater family, the main landowners in this area. The old church was demolished, the ossuary rebuilt, the churchyard was extended and new walls enclosed the site. The churchyard was further enlarged in later years but finally closed for burials in 1865. Plumstead Cemetery opened in 1890 and replaced the graveyard at St Mary’s Church.
Gardens of St Mary
Charles Escreet was appointed Vicar in 1892 and he worked with Basil Holmes of the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association to convert the 4-acre graveyard into a public garden. Fanny Rollo Wilkinson, the first professional woman landscape designer, was employed by the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association. She laid out the gardens. (She also worked with the Kyrle Society.) There is surprisingly little information about how she worked and the original layout of her gardens.
G P Youngman, the Council’s Consultant Landscape Architect, redesigned and enlarged the gardens in the early 1960s. He added raised beds, alpine rockeries, and new paths. More gravestones were moved to the perimeter which is always a sad sight to me.
In the garden
The trees in the gardens are lovely, and there is the usual curious wildlife! The autumn was unusually warm and some out-of-season flowers popped up.
Tom Cribb (1781-1848) was the World Champion Bare-Knuckle Boxer. His rather curious tomb stands in a corner of the gardens.
The gardens of St Mary’s Church in Woolwich are quiet and pleasing and feel quite apart from the busy life of the town below.


It’s no secret that a tough part of aging is dealing with hair loss, especially for men. Male pattern baldness makes up about 95% of hair-loss cases in the United States today, and about two-thirds of men will experience hair loss or thinning before they reach the age of 35.
In spite of years of fruitless attempts to reverse male pattern baldness, science has not slowed its search for the cause and cure, and researchers may finally be getting close to an answer. These developments could mean the end to male pattern baldness.
Researchers at the University of Southern California have published an article in the journal Cell about their findings on something called quorum sensing, which is essentially a process by which scientists pluck the hairs in specific patches and note the responses of the surrounding follicles. Scientists have found that the plucking of many hairs in specific patches of skin stimulates surrounding follicles to regenerate thicker hairs. The idea is that the immune system’s response to the injured site (where hair was plucked) is essentially to overreact to the injury by causing thicker hairs to grow than were present before.
While there’s no cure for male pattern baldness and thinning hair yet, science may be getting close with these recent tests, although it seems like the process may be a bit counterintuitive – plucking hairs in order to generate fuller growth. But stay tuned! Hopefully these scientists will have more to report on in the coming months!


Published by Lars Müller Publishers. Edited by Christina Kleineidam.
Cotton is grown on every continent, in a broad range of environmental conditions and under widely disparate conditions of production. It is an important raw material for a highly varied and profitable value creation chain, and it is traded on commodities markets throughout the world. Cotton is at the center of the dispute surrounding agricultural subsidies, and it is an important tool in development aid. International chemical companies have just as much interest in it as do advocates of ecological farming, since it consumes more water, fertilizer, and pesticides than any other crop. Cotton was already traveling around the world from producer to consumer in colonial times; all that has changed today is the routes it follows. Thus in one common scenario, cotton fibers from Texas are sent to China to be processed, then wend their way to the fashion runways of Paris, and finally travel as old clothes to Africa, where they are worn as secondhand fashion. Hans Peter Jost has created a photographic portrait of cotton on his trips to India, China, Brazil, America, Uzbekistan, Mali, and Tanzania, documenting the lives and working conditions of cotton farmers and the cultivation, harvesting, processing, and marketing of cotton. Christina Kleineidam, who accompanied the photographer on his travels, describes what they saw and offers background information on the specific problems of the individual countries. The economist Pietra Rivoli explains the global realities of the cultivation and marketing of cotton in her foreword.


Anton Adriaan Mussert ( 11 May 1894 – 7 May 1946) was one of the founders of the National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands (NSB) and its formal leader. As such, he was the most prominent Dutch fascist before and during World War II. During the war, he was able to keep this position, due to the support he received from the Germans. After the war, he was convicted and executed for high treason.
Anton Adriaan Mussert was born in Werkendam, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands. In the 1920s, he became involved in right-wing political movements that advocated a Greater Netherlands by annexing Dutch-speaking neighboring regions. On 14 Dec 1931, he abandoned his profession as a civil engineer and founded the National Socialist Movement political party (Nationaal-Socialistische Beweging), or NSB, along with other like-minded activists such as Cornelis van Geelkerken.
A fan of Benito Mussolini, Mussert ruled NSB along a similar model Mussolini had successfully used in Italy. As Italy grew closer to Germany, Mussert grew close to her as well, especially that Adolf Hitler’s vision to annex all German-speaking regions under German rule matched exactly his vision for the Netherlands. In Nov 1936, he met Hitler for the first time, and he remained in communications with Berlin from that point on until 1945.
His political agenda matched many of Germany’s, though Mussert was careful in not allowing the racism to taint Dutch politics.
A state of siege was declared by the Dutch government in April 1940 after the foreign correspondent for the New York Times, Vladimir Poliakov, spread the false news that Mussert’s followers were preparing to kidnap Queen Wilhelmina as part of a coup.
On 10 May, German troops invaded the Netherlands and Mussert was permitted to suppress all political parties other than the NSB.
Mussert was not appointed prime minister of the occupied nation. Instead, Austrian Nazi Artur Seyss-Inquart was appointed as the Reichskommissar, while Berlin summoned Mussert to control his uncooperative countrymen.
Mussert responded by working with the Gestapo in stopping resistance to the German occupation. On 21 June 1940 Mussert agreed to have NSB members train with the SS-Standarte ‘Westland’.
On 11 September, Mussert instructed Henk Feldmeijer, to organise the Nederlandsche SS (Dutch SS) as a division of the NSB. Mussert had nothing to do with the raising of an all-Dutch volunteer SS unit, the SS-Freiwilligen-Legion Niederlande. Regardless, thousands of Dutch citizens were arrested.
During the subsequent occupation, over 100,000 Dutch Jews were rounded up and transported to concentration camps in Germany, German-occupied Poland and German-occupied Czechoslovakia. By the time these camps were liberated, few Dutch Jews survived.
In February 1941, Mussert agreed and oversaw the formation of the 23rd SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Division Nederland, which trained in Hamburg. In November 1941, the legion was ordered to the Eastern front near Leningrad, under the overall command of Army Group North. The division acquitted itself well alongside its German allies, but suffered large losses.
On 8 December 1941, the independent Dutch administration in the Dutch East Indies declared war on Japan, the ally of Nazi Germany. After the Japanese invasion and occupation and the subsequent internment of 100,000 Dutch civilians and 50,000 military personnel, Mussert requested a meeting with Hitler. On 13 December 1942, Hitler declared Mussert to be “Leider van het Nederlandse Volk” (Leader of the Dutch People).
Having lost control of the Dutch SS and the military units that were serving in the Wehrmacht to his Nazi masters, Mussert had his last meeting with Hitler in May 1943, where he was told that he would never have political control. Following the unsuccessful Operation Market Garden in September 1944, that included a supporting strike by Dutch railway workers, the German authorities forbade food transport by rail, resulting in the Hongerwinter of 1944/45, during which 20,000 died.
By the end of the war, 205,901 Dutch men and women had died. The Netherlands had the highest per capita death rate of all German-occupied countries in Western Europe, 2.36%.Another 30,000 died in the Dutch East Indies, either while fighting the Japanese or in camps as Japanese POWs. Dutch civilians were held in those camps as well.
Upon the surrender of Germany, Mussert was arrested at the NSB office in The Hague on 7 May 1945. He was convicted of high treason on 28 November after a two-day trial, and was sentenced to death on 12 December. He appealed to Queen Wilhelmina for clemency. She refused. On 7 May 1946, exactly one year after his arrest and four days before his 52nd birthday, Mussert was executed by a firing squad on the Waalsdorpervlakte, a site near The Hague, where hundreds of Dutch citizens had been killed by the Nazi regime.


From 1959 to 1964, Rivers Sampson worked as a sandblaster and used silica as an abrasive agent. In 2014, at the age of 77, Sampson died of sepsis and silicosis, which is a progressive disease caused by inhaling silica dust. Having silica dust attached to the lungs causes inflammation and scarring.
Sampson’s two surviving adult children brought a lawsuit against more than 20 companies that mined and sold silica for use in sandblasting. It was alleged that these defendants chose not to warn of the health risks of silica exposure. Some of these defendants settled before the trial for confidential amounts or were otherwise dismissed from the case. However, the lawsuit did proceed to a jury verdict against Mississippi Valley Silica Co.
The Sampson family sought punitive damages claiming that the defendants, in choosing not to warn of the known health hazard, constituted actual malice or gross negligence. The Sampson family asserted that the defendant failed to add product warnings regarding the health hazards of silica exposure until 1972, although the industry was well aware of the dangers since at least the 1930s.


Evaluating climate change adaptation options for the Pedieos River Basin
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Tuesday, 07 July 2015 Posted in News, BeWater News
Climate change is affecting our environment and our water resources. Research and dialogue are needed to identify how to adapt to longer droughts, higher temperatures and more intense rain storms. A participatory workshop at The Cyprus Institute engaged water managers, agricultural and environmental officials, forest researchers, landscape planners, hydrologists, economists and educators in the discussion.
The participants identified the forest along the slopes of the Troodos, the river and its natural vegetation, and runoff in the urban areas of Nicosia as key concerns for climate change adaptation. George Demetriou from the Water Board of Nicosia highlighted the important role of “water consciousness” for climate change adaptation.
30 different water management options for the Pedieos River Basin were evaluated by the participants. The options that received full votes were the restoration and maintenance of the river bed, the implementation of good agricultural practices, and the dynamic management of the water of the Tamassos dam. The management of the dam should achieve a balance between the water needs of local communities, the biodiversity of the dam and the river, the recharge of groundwater resources and the protection against floods.
This one-day workshop was based on the challenges, needs and constraints for the Pedieos River Basin identified during the first BeWater workshop that took place one year ago (July 2014). Stakeholders’ reflections will provide key elements for the design of a climate change adaptation plan for the Pedieos River Basin.
The BeWater project is financed through the 7th Framework Programme of the European Commission under the Science in Society initiative. For more information, please contact Elias Giannakis.


by William Cullen Bryant
Lines 73-81 Summary
Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
So live, that when thy summons comes to join
The innumerable caravan, which moves
- If that was the end of the poem, it would be pretty depressing. Now, though, all of a sudden, Bryant switches the mood up a little.
- The speaker says: "So live." Enjoy the time you have. Sooner or later you will hear the call ("the summons") of death. You will join the endless train of people leaving this life. We’re still talking about death, but there’s some hope, a reminder of the importance of life.
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take
His chamber in the silent halls of death,
Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,
- We’re all headed for what our speaker calls "that mysterious realm," what Shakespeare called "that undiscovered country." We’re all going to get a room ("chamber") in the quiet "halls of death."
- Still, we shouldn’t go as if we were being forced, like slaves in darkness.
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave,
- Instead of acting like we are being whipped ("scourged") into some underground prison, we should trust that what is happening to us is good. We should be comforted and soothed by our belief in the comfort and rightness of death.
- Notice that he doesn’t say exactly what we should be trusting in. This is important. There’s no clear religious message here, just some general comfort.
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
- We end the poem with an image that we think is actually really beautiful. After all that grim contemplation of death, the speaker closes things on a soothing, comforting note. He says that we should get ready to die like someone wrapping a blanket ("drapery") around him and getting ready for a happy, dream-filled sleep. Kind of nice, huh?


Smart Sleeping: How Sleep Powers Your Brain
Feeling less sharp after missing sleep is not all in your head… well, actually it is.
Studies have shown that lack of sleep is a huge contributor to lessened brain power and even declining brain size. During REM sleep, the brain becomes energized to the point that dreams occur. This stage of sleep is vital to rejuvenating the brain and repairing brain cells. Although it is recommended that individuals get a solid eight hours of sleep, naps are also beneficial to strengthening the brain and remaining alert during waking hours.
Failing to get enough sleep can be detrimental to your health and brain processes. It is even thought that sleep disorders contributing to lack of adequate sleep can result in Alzheimer’s and dementia, and, in the short term, makes it much more difficult to learn and retain new information. Although many people are aware of the damage to the body and mind that results from lack of sleep, sleep deprivation continues to be an issue, especially among students and young professionals.
Lack of sleep is horrible for your entire body so it is vital to give your mind and body the rest it needs. Sleep is also an important contributor to parts of the brain that influence growth, social interaction and emotional reactions. While you may only view sleep as a time to rest your brain, you are actually exercising it by allowing it to act in a way and produce chemicals it doesn’t have the ability to while the body is awake. Not only does lack of sleep hurt your brain, your brain cannot produce sleep inducing chemicals if you don’t go through the entire sleep cycle that occurs upon a full night’s sleep.
Give your brain a break and make sure to get adequate sleep to ensure a happy, healthy noggin.
“Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep.” : National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). 25 July 2014. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/brain_basics/understanding_sleep.htm>.
Haiken, Melanie. “Lack Of Sleep Kills Brain Cells, New Study Shows.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 20 Mar. 2014. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/melaniehaiken/2014/03/20/lack-of-sleep-kills-brain-cells-new-study-suggests/>.
Willingham, Val. “Lack of Sleep May Shrink Your Brain.” CNN. Cable News Network, 1 Jan. 1970. Web. 17 Sept. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/04/health/no-sleep-brain-size/>.
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The clavichord (or Clavinet)
is a stringed instrument operated by a keyboard, and enclosed in a
rectangular box. Clavinet seems to be an alternative name for the clavichord, but in modern times it is applied to a brand of electronic keyboard.
This is an old European instrument dating from the 1500s, and it was eclipsed by
the invention of the piano in around 1770. It has a very soft tone, easily
drowned out by other instruments. But it allowed the performer to achieve louder
or softer sounds by striking the keys with varying degree of force. Playing a
key causes a brass blade called a tangent to press against the string. Early
clavichords had a range of only 3 octaves, later ones had 4.


Teacher: Kerri Bernhardt Lesson Topic: Triangle Congruence using ASA and AAS
Level: 10th grade
NCSCOS Goal and Objective(s): Mathematics-The student will learn how to prove two triangles congruent using multiple postulates and theorems. (NCSCS 2.03 a) Computer- The learner will demonstrate knowledge and skills in the use of computer and other technologies. (NCSCS 2.01)
Prerequisite Background Knowledge/Preassessment (information needed for students to benefit from lesson):
The students must know the meaning of included for both sides and angles. The students will need to know what congruent means and properties that can be used to prove triangles are congruent.
Materials/Resources/Technology: Protractors, compasses, scissors, computer lab with publisher and word or similar applications, textbook, paper and writing utensil, projector
Procedures (beginning, middle, end – comprehensive step-by-step explanation of teacher and student activities):
The lesson will begin with an investigation activity of the ASA postulate. The students will draw a triangle and label it ABC. Next they will construct a segment XY congruent to AB, angle X congruent to angle A, and angle Y congruent to angle B. Finally they will label the other point on this triangle Z. The students will then cut out the triangles and investigate congruence. Next a conjecture will be made about these two triangles and their similarities will be discussed.
There will be a discussion of the differences between SAS and ASA (sides vs. angles). The ASA postulate will be defined. Next a proof will be done using the ASA postulate. The angles and sides of a lacrosse goal will be used to write a proof using ASA.
The class will walk though the steps of a flow proof of the AAS theorem using the ASA postulate. Next the AAS theorem will be defined. Next the class will write two proofs using the AAS theorem.
the class will travel to the computer lab and use applications like
and Word to draw diagrams and write explanations of SSS, SAS, ASA, and
Thinking Question: Create an outline proof of the
Angle Side Angle postulate.
Differentiation (What will the teacher do to meet the needs of the various learners in your class?):
The investigation activity helps the students visualize the ASA postulate. The computer activity makes a visual and explanation in the students own words of the different theorems and postulates used.
Assessment (How will the teacher know students learned?):
The computer activity will be collected and assessed to determine students understanding.
Remediation/Next Steps (What will the teacher do for students who did not meet expectations? Also, what will the students do for follow-up/Homework/Enrichment?):
Students who did not meet expectations will be given another assignment of problems and written explanations after a review of the topics covered. All students will be assigned a number of homework problems to ensure their understanding.
successful? What should be
done differently regarding classroom management, instructional
Kerri Bernhardt: Back


- MicroRNAs are molecules involved in using the information in genes to produce proteins.
- A recent study explored their potential as biomarkers for ME/CFS by looking at differences in microRNA levels in the blood between 40 people with ME/CFS and 20 healthy control subjects.
- Compared with controls, people with ME/CFS had significant differences in the levels of four out of the eight microRNAs analysed.
- Furthermore, higher levels of microRNAs were related to more severe ME/CFS symptoms.
- Further research and larger studies are needed to validate and build on the findings of this relatively small study, to bring us closer to determining the diagnostic potential of microRNAs in ME/CFS.
Over the past decade, microRNAs (or miRNAs) have gained considerable attention for their potential as biomarkers in ME/CFS. These small molecules, found both inside and outside of cells, play a role in gene expression – the process of using information from sections of DNA, known as genes, to produce proteins that serve various functions in the body. To further investigate the role of microRNAs in ME/CFS, a recent study was conducted by Dr Irene Offritti and colleagues, with 60 participants recruited from an outpatient clinic in Latvia.
What was the aim of the study?
The primary aim of this small study was to assess whether there are differences in circulating microRNAs (i.e. in the blood or other body fluids) between patients with ME/CFS and healthy control subjects.
A secondary goal was to determine the human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) status of participants. HHV-6 is essentially a set of herpesviruses which has been proposed as one potential trigger of ME/CFS, and has been suggested to impact the expression of microRNAs.
As with similar research, the rationale for the study was to ascertain whether differences in microRNAs could be used to distinguish people with ME/CFS from healthy individuals, and therefore indicate that understanding microRNAs could move us a step closer to developing a diagnostic biomarker.
What were the methods?
The researchers recruited 40 patients and 20 healthy controls (without a medical history of ME/CFS) from an outpatient clinic in Latvia. It should be noted that whilst the paper consistently mentions ME/CFS, their clinical diagnosis was based on the Fukuda criteria, which actually refers to chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). A semi-structured interview approach was used to categorise patients into three groups according to disease severity: mild, moderate and severe.
Extensive tests were performed on blood samples obtained from the participants. This analysis aimed to provide information about the types and levels of microRNAs and to detect the presence of HHV-6. The researchers focused on eight specific microRNAs (mir-124, mir-127, mir-140, mir-142, mir-143, mir-150, mir-448 and mir-551) which they thought were relevant based on previous literature.
The researchers also measured levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (signalling proteins associated with inflammation), referring to previous links which had been made between them and HHV-6. Essentially, they were looking at the relationship between inflammation and microRNA levels in these patients.
What did they find?
The main findings of the study were:
- MicroRNA expression – Levels of three of the microRNAS analysed (miR-142, mir-150 and mir-448) were higher in people with ME/CFS than in controls, while another (miR-40) was lower in ME/CFS patients.
- Symptom severity – MicroRNA levels tended to be higher in patients who had more severe symptoms, indicating a potential association between microRNA expression and disease severity in ME/CFS. However, these findings were not always statistically significant, suggesting a need for further investigation.
- HHV-6 and pro-inflammatory cytokines – There was no significant correlation between microRNA levels and the presence of HHV-6 or levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. This suggests that differences in microRNA expression are not directly associated with HHV-6 infection or the inflammatory status of individuals. However, the researchers did mention that the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and benzodiazepines could reduce levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, thus making it difficult to draw firm conclusions.
The researchers mention that they used semi-structured interview questions by Minnock et al. to group patients according to disease severity. However, the reference article is not related to ME/CFS, rather it primarily addresses perceptions of fatigue in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. This raises a concern about the suitability of using these questions for ME/CFS classification, and it would be useful if the researchers had provided more information about their methods with respect to this.
The study refers to ME/CFS but uses the Fukuda criteria, which are specific to CFS and do not require the presence of post-exertional malaise, considered to be a cardinal feature of ME/CFS. This mismatch between the criteria and condition has potential implications on the validity of the study findings.
The researchers acknowledge that, not only did the study have a small sample size, but there were significant age differences between the patient and control groups. A small sample may not accurately represent a larger population and is more susceptible to being skewed by outliers or random fluctuations. Additionally, as the control group was not matched for age it makes it harder to draw firm conclusions as the differences in microRNA levels might have been age-related.
A quick glance at the summary table from a recent systematic review analysing potential ME/CFS biomarkers will tell you that an enormous number of microRNAs have been analysed, with minimal overlap between studies. Despite the limitations of this study, it is useful that the researchers chose to study microRNAs that they had noted in previous literature as this gives the opportunity to compare findings.
The three microRNAs increased in the patient group (miR-142, mir-150 and mir-448) were also found to be upregulated in previous data. However, they also mention that there are mixed results between studies regarding the expression of miR-140 and the presence of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
With the help of ME Research UK funding, researchers such as Dr Bhupesh Prusty and Dr Francisco Westermeier have also touched upon the relationship between ME/CFS and microRNAs. However, this is a vast and complex field, and we need larger studies with robust methodology to build upon and validate previous findings. At present it seems that quite a few more steps are needed before microRNAs could be considered a frontrunner in the search for biomarkers.


CJPME Factsheet 23, published March, 2007: Inaugurated in 1920 and ending in 1947, the British Mandate for Palestine was the product of 1) British political ambitions to replace the Ottoman Empire in the Middle East, 2) Britain’s promises of colonial control to the French in the region, and 3) conflicting British promises of self-determination to the Arabs and Jewish statehood for Zionists. The British ruled Palestine under the League of Nations Mandate which followed Britain’s Balfour Declaration of 1917, whose unilateral principle was “the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people,” in Biblical Palestine.
Jewish Terrorism under the British Mandate
What was the British Mandate in Palestine?
Inaugurated in 1920 and ending in 1947, the British Mandate for Palestine was the product of 1) British political ambitions to replace the Ottoman Empire in the Middle East, 2) Britain’s promises of colonial control to the French in the region, and 3) conflicting British promises of self-determination to the Arabs and Jewish statehood for Zionists. The British ruled Palestine under the League of Nations Mandate which followed Britain’s Balfour Declaration of 1917, whose unilateral principle was “the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people,” in Biblical Palestine.
What was the intent of Jewish violence under the British Mandate?
In the 11 years leading up to the creation of the state of Israel in Palestine in 1948, Zionist extremists who lived in the territory of Palestine under the British Mandate used terrorism as a military strategy to accelerate the establishment of an independent Jewish state. Their violence was directed against the British authorities who governed Palestine and against the Palestinian indigenous population throughout Palestine. Over 57 violent attacks were carried out by Zionist terrorist groups (e.g. Haganah, Lehi, Irgun – ultra-nationalist groups from the far right wing of the Revisionist Zionist movement) killing over 5,000 Palestinians and dozens of British. While Zionist terrorist groups assassinated UN personnel, murdered British officers and attacked British military headquarters to overthrow the Mandate, they terrorized Palestinian inhabitants in order to provoke mass flight, displacement and migration.
Who were these Zionist terrorist groups? Who did they target?
Prominent Zionist Terrorist Groups during the Mandate period included:
The Irgun (Etzel): Known as the National Military Organization and the Military sector of the Revisionist movement, the Irgun stated that “political violence and terrorism” were “legitimate tools in the Jewish national struggle for the Land of Israel.” Their attacks included:
- Al-Quds massacre, December 1937: Member of the Irgun hurled a hand grenade at the marketplace near al-Quds mosque, killing and injuring dozens.
- Haifa massacre, March 1938: Members of the Irgun and Lehi gang throw grenades at Haifa market, killing 18, and injuring 38.
- Haifa massacre, July 1938: The Irgun explodes booby trapped vehicles in Haifa market, killing 21 and injuring 52.
- Balad El-Sheik Village Attack, June 1939: This Palestinian village was attacked by members of the Haganah, the Main Jewish Defense. Five villagers were kidnapped and murdered.
- King David Hotel Bombing, July 1946: Led by Menachem Begin, the Irgun planned and carried out the bombing of the KingDavidHotel, the British military headquarters in Jerusalem in July 1946 in order to destroy documents proving the terrorist campaigns of Zionist groups. The attack killed 28 Britons, 17 Jews, 41 Palestinians and 5 others for a total of 91 victims.
- Attack on the British Officers’ Club at Goldschmidt House, March 1947: This Jerusalem attack killed 17 British military and intelligence officers.
- Kidnapping and murder of British Soldiers, July 1947: This attack which led to the murder of two British sergeants in Netanya was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Very soon afterward, the British abandoned the British Mandate, turning Palestine over to the UN.
- Bombing of the Jerusalem Railway Station, October 1947: The Irgun bombed the Jerusalem Railway Station in addition to mining roads and attacking army vehicles.
The Stern Gang: Founded by Avraham Stern in 1939, the Stern Gang was an eccentric group which even sought contact with the Nazis in order to subvert British control in the Middle East. Under Stern, the group conducted robberies and attempted assassinations against the British. Stern is also noted for his “Eighteen Principles of National Renewal,” which articulated an expansionist mandate of Zionism, claiming a Jewish state from the Nile in Egypt to the Euphrates in Iraq.
The Lehi: After the British assassinated Stern in 1942, his followers regrouped as an underground movement called the Lehi, acronym for Fighters for the Freedom of Israel:
- Assassination of Lord Moyne, November 1944: Assassinated in Cairo, Egypt, Lord Moyne was the highest ranking British government representative in the Middle East at the time. The Lehi targeted him because of his support for a Middle Eastern Arab Federation.
- Cairo-Haifa Train Bombings, Early 1948: A few months before the 1948 Israeli-Arab war, the Cairo-Haifa train was bombed several times, attacks claimed by or attributed to the Lehi. An attack in February killed 28 British soldiers, and wounded 35 more. An attack in March killed 40 civilians, and wounded 60 more.
- Deir Yassin Massacre, April 1948: Commandos of Lehi and Irgun headed by Menachim Begin attacked Deir Yassin, a village of 700 Palestinians, ultimately killing between 100 and 120 villagers. The Master Mind behind the Deir Yassin massacre, Begin justified the attack in his book The Revolt:
Arabs throughout the country, induced to believe wild tales of ‘Irgun butchery,’ were seized with limitless panic and started to flee for their lives. This mass flight soon developed into a maddened, uncontrollable stampede. The political and economic significance of this development can hardly be overestimated.
- Assassination of Count Folke Bernadotte, September, 1948: Count Bernadotte, a UN Peace mediator who had come to the Middle East 1948 to modify the Palestine partition plan in an effort to resolve Arab-Jewish disputes, was also assassinated by the group.
- A Legacy of Assassinations: More than any other Jewish terrorist group, Lehi was known for using assassinations as a terror mechanism, even using them against Jews they accused of being traitors. Lehi carried out 42 assassinations, more than twice as many as the Irgun and the Haganah combined. Of its politically-motivated assassinations, over half of them were carried out against other Jews.
What happened to these terror groups following the establishment of Israel?
A building block of Israel’s political perspective and statehood program, most Zionist terrorist groups transitioned from underground terrorist groups to political mainstreams parties rapidly with the founding of Israel in May, 1948. (Note, however, that some groups continued to operate even after May, 1948, e.g. assassination of Count Bernadotte in September, 1948 as mentioned above.) Menachim Begin transformed the Irgun into a political party called Herut. The Lehi became the Moledet party which today continues to openly advocate the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza, territories now occupied by Israel. Paradoxically, terrorist leaders Menachim Begin and Yitzhak Shamir later became Prime Ministers of Israel – their political heirs now forming part of the political establishment of Israel.
 Cohen, Michael J. The origins and Evolution of the Arab-Zionist Conflict, University of California Press, 1987.; Also see http://www.palestinecenter.org/palestine/britishmandate.html
 http://www.palestine-encyclopedia.com/EPP/Chapter04_1of2.htm, accessed March, 2007
 Chomsky, Noam, "Blaming The Victims," ed. Said and Hitchens.
 Amichal Yevin, Ada, In purple: the life of Yair-Abraham Stern, 1986, Tel Aviv: Hadar Publishing House, p. 316 (Hebrew) See also http://www.saveisrael.com/stern/saveisraelstern.htm
 See http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=341600202419569830
 Begin, Menachim, The Revolt.
 Ben-Yehuda, N., Political Assassinations by Jews (State University of New York, 1993), p. 397
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Mikhaj and Others v. Russia
Segregated Classes for Roma Children
The authorities of School No. 66 in Tula, a city south of Moscow, have for many years operated a segregated school with separate classes just for Roma children. The school statute and website describe them as "Roma classes." Under this system, Roma children receive an inferior education and cannot transfer to regular classes. The Roma-only classes end after five years, meaning that the children have no access to secondary education, further marginalizing their community. This discrimination violates their right to an inclusive education.
For several years, all Roma children at School No. 66 in Tula City, Russia have been taught in so-called "special classes" with inferior instruction, whereas all the non-Roma children have been taught in regular classes.
The head of School No. 66 states that in the primary school there are "special classes for children of Roma ethnicity." The statute for School No. 66 explicitly states that the special classes are designed for "Roma children." Thus, this is a case of direct discrimination.
Lists of pupils for the 2008-2009 school year show that 41 students, all of whom are Roma, attended the four special classes in School No. 66. There were no Roma in the school's 12 regular classes.
Russian law stipulates that children are carefully tested before they are assigned to special classes, and the consent of their parents is required for both the testing and their placement in special classes. However, the Roma parents have not been asked to give their consent, and some were not even aware that their children were being segregated.
Children in special classes receive an inferior education compared to children in regular classes. Their education in the Russian language is poor. They are not taught a foreign language. They are not taught computer science or technology, all of which are essential skills in order to progress in society.
Until recently, it has been virtually impossible for Roma children to transfer to non-Roma classes. There are special classes only for the first five years of school. Thus, Roma children have no opportunity to attend middle or secondary school, severely limiting their life opportunities, and perpetuating their marginalization as an ethnic group.
The applicants sought to challenge this treatment before the Russian courts, arguing that it violated their right not to be subjected to discrimination, as well as their right to be educated, their family rights, and the dignity of the children. However, the courts rejected the claims as "unfounded."
Open Society Justice Initiative Involvement
The Justice initiative is representing the applicants before the European Court of Human Rights together with lawyers from the Memorial Anti-Discrimination Center in St. Petersburg.
The existence of separate classes for children with "special needs" that have, by design and in practice, only Roma students, constitutes impermissible racial discrimination and segregation, in violation of the following rights protected by the Convention:
Right to education. The children are given a sub-standard education for only the first five years of primary school, and are denied any access to the secondary education that exists for other Russian children, violating the right of access to effective education protected in Article 2 of Protocol No. 1.
Respect for family life. The refusal to seek, let alone secure, parental consent for both testing of the children and their placement in special classes constitutes a violation of the right to respect for family life protected by Article 8 of the Convention.
Discrimination. The children have been subjected to discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to education on the ground of race or ethnic origin by being placed in Roma-only classes in primary school which constitutes a violation of Article 14 taken in conjunction with Article 2 of Protocol No.1.
No effective remedy. Despite the fact that the case presents clear evidence of ethnic segregation in School No. 66, the efforts made by the applicants to seek a remedy were prevented by procedural hurdles, such that the substance was not considered. This means that no effective remedy has been provided for the applicants at the national level, in violation of Article 13 of the Convention.
The case is currently being considered by the court.
Application filed with the European Court of Human Rights.
Appeals filed to the Tula Regional Court, arguing that Russian Courts should directly apply the decision of the European Court in D.H. and Others v. Czech Republic.
Complaints filed with the Tula District Court, arguing that the discrimination violates the rights of the children. The claims are rejected.
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination recommends that Roma are fully integrated into the general education system in Russia.
No Roma class opened in the fifth year due to a lack of pupils. Students have to re-take the fourth year.
The School No. 66 Statute is approved, which states that classes for children with special needs are provided "to Roma."
Makhashev v. Russia
This case involves brothers who were beaten by Russian police and subjected to anti-Chechen insults. Discrimination by police against Chechens is common in Russia, but this was the first time it has been challenged in court.
D.H. and Others v. Czech Republic
In 2007, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Roma children in the Czech Republic face systematic discrimination. But the Czech government has yet to take steps to remedy continuing school segregation.
Bagdonavicius v. Russia
This is a case brought by the Open Society Justice Initiative challenging the destruction of Roma families' homes in Russia.
Failing Another Generation: A Photo Essay
The Open Society Justice Initiative commissioned photographer Stephanie Sinclair to document how the Czech government is funneling a new generation of Roma children into sub-standard schools, in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights.
A Hard Look at Discrimination in Education in Germany
Imagine if you were ten years old and already knew your educational choices were limited and your future job prospects dim. This is the situation for children in Germany from Turkish, Kurdish, or Arab backgrounds.
A Dark Anniversary in the Czech Republic
In November 2007, the European Court of Human Rights demanded an end to segregated education for Roma in Czech schools. Last week, five years later, Gypsy Crew took the stage.


Lecithin is a fat and a necessary component of every cell in our body. It belongs to phospholipids and composed of glycerol, phosphoric acid, fatty acid and choline. In our body, it is mainly found in lipoproteins and cell membranes which carry cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. Lecithin is also produced in certain quantities in the major organs of the body like heart, liver and kidneys. It plays an important role in cells construction and also prevents the hardening of cell membranes. Except the health benefits lecithin also has the therapeutic uses. It is taken as a medicine and also used in the medicines manufacturing.
Health Benefits of Lecithin
1. Neurological conditions
It is used in the treatment of neurologic disorders. It is the good source of choline and increases accumulation of acetylcholine (Ach) in brain. Acetylcholine (Ach) plays an important role in several brain functions like supports the good memory. So increased concentration of this neurotransmitter (Ach) results in improved memory.
2. Effects on Liver/Cholesterol level
Lecithin is used the treatment of liver complications and hypercholesterolemia. It is packed with the wonderful properties which are quite effective in reducing cholesterol levels thus helps in the preventing or controlling atherosclerosis.
3. Immune system effects
It helps in the activating the specific and nonspecific defense systems. Thus lecithin is useful to modify the immune system.
4. Protect cells
Lecithin helps in the protection of cells which is useful for maintaining the resistance to various diseases in the body.
5. Cardiovascular health benefits
It helps to maintain the good health of heart. It helps in lowering down the levels of bad cholesterol and triglycerides. Besides this, lecithin increases the HDL, known as good cholesterol in the body. Lecithin prevents the damages which may occur due to coronary artery diseases. It prevents the cholesterol and fat deposition in the heart. It also improves the circulation and prevents the clot formation.
It has been found that vegans and vegetarians are at a risk of developing lecithin deficiency. Lecithin deficiency in body may result in the several health issues like digestive problems, nausea, muscle, joint problems and sluggish memory.
Food sources of Lecithin
Good sources of lecithin may include cauliflower, soy, peanuts, corn, spinach, oranges, wheat germ, egg yolk, fish, milk, red meat and beef liver.
Side Effects of higher intake of lecithin
Higher intake of lecithin may result in the nausea, anorexia, increased salivation, abdominal pain, fishy body odor, diarrhea and hepatitis.Share with your friends:


January 2016 was an exciting month in the world of nutrition, as it brought the highly-anticipated release of the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). The DGA is a resource that supports policy makers and health professionals in helping Americans make healthy choices. The DGA is released every five years to reflect changes based on the latest scientific evidence regarding nutrition.
New Guidelines Recommend Limiting Added Sugars
One of the most talked about changes in the updated DGA is the recommendation to limit added sugars to no more than ten percent of daily calories. While previous editions of the DGA recommend limiting added sugar – this is the first time an actual “upper” limit has been advised.
Note: This recommendation refers only to sugars added to food products; not naturally occurring sugars that you find in fruit and dairy.
How Do You Know if a Food Has Added Sugars?
The best way to assess if sugar has been added to a food is to read the ingredient list. There are many different types and names for sugar. To help you in identifying sugars, here is a list from the USDA.
Quick tip: The ingredient list is organized in order of weight, so therefore the higher sugar is on the list you can assume the higher the sugar content per serving.
What Does Ten Percent Look Like?
What does a ten percent of caloric intake look like in the real world? In an average 2000 calorie diet this would equate to about 200 calories per day. This means there’s not a lot of wiggle room for added sugar in your diet. So, what steps can you take to reduce the amount of added sugar in your diet to a more reasonable and moderate amount?
- Become Nutrition Label Literate. Read labels to be able to compare and choose products that have less, or no added sugar. The FDA has a handy guide on how to read nutrition labels.
- Beverage Choices. When you hydrate, choose water, unsweetened tea or coffee, low-fat milk, 100 percent juice, or other calorie-free drinks.
- Breakfast or PBJ? Whether you’re having waffles or making a PBJ, use low or no-added sugar jellies, jams and syrups.
- Sugar Alternative. Replace sugar with low-calorie or zero-calorie sweeteners such as stevia.
Looking For Ways to Reduce Added Sugar? Choose Stevia.
Let’s face facts, while many people desire to be healthier the taste of plain yogurt or unsweetened tea may not appeal to everyone. If you are looking to adapt your sugar intake to the DGA’s recommendations – stevia is a natural, zero-calorie sweetener that can help you enjoy the foods you love while decreasing your sugar intake. Not only is stevia zero calories, but it also does not impact blood sugar making it safe for people with diabetes. It comes in both powder and liquid forms so that it can be used in a variety of foods, and it can even be used in baking.
Suggestions for Stevia
Stevia can really be used in any food or beverage as an alternative to sugar. It makes it easy combine your personal food preferences with a diet that meets the new DGA guidelines. Here are some easy (and tasty) suggestions to begin using stevia in your diet.
- Try a few drops of vanilla stevia in your afternoon chai tea for a virtually calorie-free pick me up.
- Mix a ½ cup of low-fat cottage cheese with one packet stevia and a dash of cinnamon for a calcium rich, protein packed, low-cal snack.
- Replace the sugar in a brownie recipe with stevia for a rich dessert lower in calories and sugar.
Check out the recipe section on Stevia Benefits to get more ideas on different ways you can use stevia.
Finally, the DGA made another big change in its latest edition – urging Americans to focus on making small changes to help transitioning to a healthier diet feel manageable and sustainable. A small change like switching from sugar to stevia is a perfect complement to this recommendation and reducing added sugar.
Carolyn Reynaud, MS, RD, LD is a licensed registered dietitian and a paid contributor to SteviaBenefits.org. She received her BS in nutrition from Michigan State University and her Masters and Certificate in Public Health from Georgia State University. She has experience working in several avenues of health care including corporate wellness, clinical disease management, research, and health promotion. She has been working as a health coach specialist for close to 6 years, where she counsels patients on preventative healthcare and helps them meet their health goals. Follow her on Twitter @ReynaudCari.


Staff Person: Maury York
The Chinese New Year is one of that country’s most important holidays. It begins on the first day of the first lunar month, in late January or early February. In 1903, Commander George Leland Dyer, a U.S. naval officer, witnessed the Chinese New Year celebration in Shanghai. He described the celebration in a letter to his wife, dated January 31, 1903.
“We had a good look at Shanghai on an interesting occasion. It was the Chinese New Years and the streets were crowded with Chinese in gala dress. There was a continual passing of Chinese women in carriages of the hack variety and in rickshas. These people were all handsomely dressed in colored silks and were painted very perceptibly. Many women were also walking or stumping along on their deformed feet, all attended by women more plainly dressed. There were also many riders on the small ponies which seem to be in use. These were all Caucasians and men. I saw no ladies on horse back.”
Dyer was nearing the end of a long career in the Navy that had begun in 1870, when he was graduated with honors from the U. S. Naval Academy. His papers are a rich primary source for studying naval history. A finding aid for the George Leland Dyer Papers is available on the Special Collections Department’s website.


ATLANTIS AND 2012 THEN SCIENCE OF THE LOST CIVILIZATION AND THE PROPHECIES OF THE MAYA
by Frank Joseph
264 pages, 6×9
Include 8-page color insert and 18 b&w illustrations
Frank Joseph posits the Mayan Calendar was brought to Mesoamerica by survivors of Atlantis and Lemuria. He reveals how the calendar’s eternal cycle correlates with scientific studies on glacial ice cores and predictions from indigenous people.
Inner Traditions Bear & Company


The illustrated definitions of golf terms are grouped along the categories listed below. Use this section to access in-depth guides regarding golf terminology.
Golfers have at their disposal a collection of tools that assist them in bringing the golf ball into the hole in the least amount of strokes possible. These tools are called golf clubs and mastering each of them is the ambition of any serious golfer. A golfer is allowed to carry 14 of these clubs in his bag but is free to decide what the final makeup ultimately looks like. Visit this section for golf terms related to the types of golf clubs available.
If you’re at all interested in the game of golf you’ll inevitably run into golf lessons and instructions which will refer to specific club parts. Visit this section for golf terms related to the club parts.
Before a golfer is to even feel comfortable hitting a shot he will meticulously position several key parts of his body in relation to the ball, to the club in hand, and to the target. Only after everything is in place will he be ready to begin his swing. Visit this section for golf terms that relate to the golf setup.
The golf swing is the relatively complex result of a carefully choreographed sequence of movements. Indeed, it starts as the golfer lines up for an upcoming shot and ends when he stands immobile, watching the ball fly in the air. The golf terms representing the many movements involved are broken down into sections.
The golf swing is a complex procedure, necessitating the timely and orderly flow of various movements that solicit muscles and joints in the entire body. As a result, it is not uncommon that one strays away from the textbook swing and commits one of the golf swing errors described in this section.
From the moment it is struck to the moment when it finally lands a golf ball can travel along a variety of ball flights. Indeed, as golfers can attest, balls do not always travel along a straight line. Some are more desirable than others, and the golf terms related to the ball flights are explained in this section.
For many reasons golf is a sport unlike any other. Indeed, in order to play it one must learn to perform an incredible variety of different shots, using many different clubs. How one will select which shot to perform next will depend on the environment around the ball, around the target, and everywhere in between said ball and said target. The different shots that a golfer will need to master in order to confidently go through a whole round of golf are explained in this section.
Inevitably, golfers will execute bad shots from time to time. Reducing their frequency is key to lowering one’s score and ultimately one’s handicap. Still, there are several ways a golfer can mishit shots. Golf terms related to golf shot errors are explained in this section.
Starting from the tee-box and through his journey onto the green and ultimately into the cup, a golfer will have to contend with shots of varying difficulty based on where the ball is located. Here are the golf terms that represent the types of lies that golfers will face, fully explained and illustrated.
Because no two golf courses are identical the scores posted on different venues can be difficult to accurately compare, unless other factors are brought in to standardize them. Here are key concepts and golf terms related to handicap and their related formulas.
People often assume incorrectly that golf is played using a single format. This misconception surely stems from the fact that most golf played and viewed on TV does indeed feature the same format as it is played on one tournament after the next. Rather, there are at least fourteen different formats that one can use when golfing, each adding different challenges and sets of goals. The golf terms related to the different playing formats are explained in this section.
The ultimate objective in a traditional game of golf is to finish a round of 18 holes using the least amount of strokes. After each hole is completed, the golfer will write down the number of strokes that was required in bringing the ball from the teeing ground all the way to the hole. Names are given for each of those numbers and the golf terms related to golf scores are explained in depth.
Occupying a large area of land a golf course features many different types of areas and objects. Over the course of a round a golfer will find himself or encounter many of those. The golf terms related to the course elements are defined in this section.


What Is the Difference Between Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Big Data?
Feb. 20, 2017
The concepts of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning and Big Data have become increasingly important. However, these terms are often confused.
We are going to explain the differences between these buzzwords in a simple way. First, we will clarify the concepts and then we will focus on their differences.
When we commonly talk about Artificial Intelligence (AI), we usually refer to machines that are capable of learning and thinking in a human-like way. Actually, it is an ever-changing concept. For example, optical character recognition (known as OCR) was one of the first practical applications of Artificial Intelligence. However, since today it is a common technology, it is no longer perceived as Artificial Intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence has been applied in a wide range of fields, including Natural Language Processing (to understand human language) or artificial vision (for example, to recognize objects in a photograph). It is also commonly used in knowledge representation, classification, clustering, prediction, or recommendation.
Machine Learning is a branch of Artificial Intelligence dedicated, as the name implies, to learn. It is usually the core of most AI applications, but it is often combined with other technologies. For instance, to understand human written language it is necessary to apply knowledge of morphology, syntax, synonymy, statistics, etc. Once a model is built with this knowledge, machine learning can help us understand and classify new texts.
Deep Learning is a branch of Machine Learning. Although born in the nineties with the appearance of neural networks, it is considered one of the newest branches. Today, thanks to the latest advances in computing, it is possible to relate observation fields that until recently had to be treated independently.
The term Big Data refers to new technologies capable of processing vast amounts of data. This trend has been gaining momentum since the digital data explosion in 2010. This data analysis may be merely statistical and it does not necessarily imply the use of Artificial Intelligence. However, it is common to employ Machine Learning in some tasks, for example to detect previously hidden patterns.
In short, we can explain the differences between these four concepts by ordering them. Deep Learning is a new branch of Machine Learning, which is in turn a branch of Artificial Intelligence. Big Data is not necessarily related to Artificial Intelligence since it is a set of independent technologies designed to manage large volumes of data.
Finally, we always like to point out that Artificial Intelligence is very artificial, meaning that it is a product of human activity. So far, it is not very intelligent by itself. That is, Artificial Intelligence projects keep demanding a lot of human work. Maybe we should call it Big Artificial.


The words recited, resighted sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. Why do recited, resighted sound the same even though they are completely different words?
The answer is simple: recited, resighted are homophones of the English language.
To repeat or utter aloud (something rehearsed or memorized), especially before an audience.
To relate in detail. See Synonyms at describe.
To list or enumerate.
To deliver a recitation.
Simple past tense and past participle of resight.
Definitions from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition, from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License and Wordnik.
Homophones (literally "same sound") are usually defined as words that share the same pronunciation, regardless of how they are spelled.