With all the chocies out there it’s good to have a little information under your belt when deciding what type of prescription glasses or sunglasses to get. Thanks to Dr. Melissa Yao we have a great article from US News that is packed with info.
For most Americans, eyeglasses are an indispensable part of our daily lives. In the United States, more than 6 out of every 10 adults use some form of corrective lens – either over-the-counter or prescription glasses or contact lenses. Finding the appropriate glasses for your needs is very important, as they help not only correct our vision, but play an important role in protecting our eyes. Consider these protective benefits.
Protecting Our Eyes From UV Rays
It’s widely known that ultraviolet rays – both UVA and UVB – from sunlight can cause numerous eye diseases. UVA light has been associated with the development of more eye and skin issues than UVB rays. Research suggests overexposure to UV rays facilitates the development of cataracts, eye and eyelid cancers and benign eye growths like ptergyium (a fleshy tissue on the cornea). If you enjoy snow sports, be especially careful on sunny days, as the intense reflection can cause “snow blindness,” which is essentially a sunburn of the surface tissue (cornea) of the eye. Although the effects of snow blindness are generally temporary, the affected person can have poor vision and severe pain during that period. It’s also important to remember that even on cloudy days, there can still be plenty of UV rays around. Therefore, the best way to protect against solar damage to your eyes is to wear sunglasses whenever you’re outdoors.
What should you keep in mind when choosing sunglasses? The most important thing is to make sure the glasses indicate that they block 99 or 100 percent of UV light. If the label states “UV absorption up to 400 nm,” that’s similar to near 100 percent UV blockage. The color and darkness of the lens don’t necessarily reflect the ability of the lens to absorb UV – therefore, purchasing the darkest pair of sunshades isn’t necessarily the best option.
Protecting Our Eyes From Trauma
As an ophthalmologist working at a large inner-city academic institution, we often see patients who come in with work-related eye trauma that could be prevented with appropriate eye protection. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 20,000 workplace related eye injuries occur each year. While most of the injuries don’t result in serious consequences, some patients are left with permanent vision loss or blindness.
Without exception, goggles or safety glasses should be worn at all times when working in an environment that warrants eye protection. Protective glasses should completely cover the eyes and not leave any openings on the sides. Sadly, we have seen plenty of cases where a piece of glass or shard of metal had snuck through the tiniest opening in a pair of protective eyewear to lodge in a patient’s eye. Safety glasses should also be made of a strong plastic material, like polycarbonate. A flimsy pair of sunglasses won’t work well to protect a high-impact trauma and may cause more eye damage from broken pieces of the sunglass itself. It’s also worth considering protective eyewear when operating a lawn mower or playing sports.
Some tips to keep in mind when purchasing eyeglasses include investing in lenses treated with both anti-reflective and anti-scratch coatings. The anti-scratch coating will increase the longevity of your lenses, and the anti-reflective coating can minimize damaging sunlight rays and glare, while improving your look by reducing reflection of the lens. For those who want progressive lenses, your optician may steer you away from purchasing lenses that have a small vertical distance, which can limit the range for comfortable reading.
Since glasses often are the first thing noticed on a person’s face, they can play an important fashion role. If economically feasible, consider investing in a colorful or fun pair of glasses that will make you feel great wearing them. Keep in mind, not all eyeglass stores are the same. A good optician, who is trained to fit and make your glasses, can also recommend glasses that will best fit your facial structures and lifestyle.
Picking out glasses can sometimes be overwhelming with all the choices that are out there but luckily here at Schmidt’s Optical and Hearing we have plenty of well trained opticians and stylists to help you find the perfect pair. Visit us today and find your next favorite pair of glasses.


Research has shown that those suffering with depression display a common yet self-sabotaging mind habit. This habit prevents them from feeling and enjoying the positive emotions that are available naturally throughout the course of a day.
A new study conducted by KU Leuven suggests that those with depression (in this case, postpartum women) experienced normal potential for positive emotions. Yet, they had a habit of suppressing those positive emotions.
The research concluded that suppressing positive emotions may play a key causal role in the depressive episode. This was the first scientific study to examine whether this suppression of positivity plays a role in the development of depression.How Researchers Came to Their Conclusion
To complete the study, Raes polled 200 women both during and following their pregnancies.
Surveys were determined whether or not the mothers were currently experiencing symptoms of depression, as well as determining their response to both positive and negative emotions. The women were polled again at both 12 and 24 weeks postpartum.
The study discovered that 8% of volunteers experienced symptoms of depression. Further, the suppression of positive emotions was a significant predictor of its occurrence.Redefining Depression?
While many people tend to characterize depression as simply an abundance of negative feelings, it is important to note that a lack of positivity is also an important characteristic. In fact, it may be the most important. Researchers now believe that this may be due to the fact that people who are prone to depression have an active habit of suppressing positive feelings that come up naturally throughout the day.
If you do suppress positive feelings, then something good happens, you say to yourself something like:
Something will ruin this, wait and see. I do not deserve to be happy.I am fooling myself if I pretend to be happy.
In other words, when you begin to feel good, it is possible to talk yourself right out of it in favor of feeling bad. It’s fair to say that this process is largely subconscious. In other words, it feels like it is happening to you, rather than something you are intentionally doing.Common Belief About Depression That Was NOT Validated
In a surprising contrast, researchers found that a tendency to dwell on negative feelings did not contribute to the development of the depression. In other words, suppressing positive feelings may be the critical, causal element. So, we could define depression (in part) as a lack of positivity, with dwelling on negativity as a merely more noticeable outcome. If you suppress the positive, then you are left with the negative.Baffled: Why Would Anyone Suppress Positive Emotions?
This study reminds me of several conversations I had with Nathaniel Branden, who calls this phenomenon happiness anxiety. When happiness is unfamiliar to you, Nathaniel would say, you don’t trust it. So, when you begin to feel positive emotions that might lead to greater happiness, you tend to dismiss them in favor of a more familiar (if negative) state.
This makes all the sense in the world if you understand self-sabotage and negative psychological attachments. We get attached to inner negativity in childhood because it is so common – and not only because many parents are bad parents.
Much of our angst has to do with ‘child-mind expectations,’ which can never be fully satisfied. Small children do not understand that they cannot have what they want, when they want and how they want it.
Children – bless their hearts – cannot comprehend others’ limitations and how the world works. So, even good parents will consistently and inadvertently make their kids feel controlled, rejected and deprived (ever raised a toddler?)
Bad parents make matters much worse.
Alas, we have no choice but to endure the perceived negativity and familiarize it. Then of course, we remain attached to the familiar. Your unconscious mind considers venturing out of familiar territory as a dangerous act. If happiness lies outside of familiar territory, it will resist happiness in a thousand ways, including talking you right out of it.
And so, yes, you need to learn to tolerate happiness and stop rejecting it. You must understand that you are rejecting happiness before you can embrace it, though. You can’t stop doing what you don’t realize you are doing.
This unfortunate set up creates self-sabotage. Yet, it can be unlearned in a relatively short period of time if you are open to its existence within you. To learn more about self-sabotage and negative psychological attachments (and how to overcome them) watch this enlightening free video.
If you like this article, then like my Facebook Page to keep up with all my writing.
Watch the free video The AHA! Process: An End to Self-Sabotage and discover the lost keys to personal transformation and emotional well-being that have been suppressed by mainstream mental health for decades. The information in this video has been called the missing link in mental health and personal development. In a world full of shallow, quick-fix techniques, second rate psychology and pharmaceutical takeovers, real solutions have become nearly impossible to find. This presentation will turn your world upside down.Follow Mike on Facebook for daily personal development tips.Like this author?


16. You are not to traffic in slander among your kinspeople.
You are not to stand by the blood of your neighbor,
I am YHWH!
17. You are not to hate your brother in your heart;
rebuke, yes, rebuke your fellow,
that you not bear sin because of him!
18. You are not to take-vengeance, you are not to retain-anger against the sons of your kinspeople—
but be-loving to your neighbor (as one) like yourself,
I am YHWH!
Your Torah Navigator
1. This translator, is translating verse 18 in a literal way. Usually, we translate it as "Love your neighbor" by saying "Be loving to your neighbor" does the meaning change at all?
2. If the verses that precede the last line "be-loving to your neighbor..." come to define what being loving is, what would be the Torah's definition of "loving". Is this compatible with your understanding of being loving?
3. According to your understanding of what being loving is, do you think it is possible to fulfill this commandment?
We are now going to look at two medieval commentators who grapple with this verse. Maimonides (popularly known by the acronym RaMBaM) and Nachmanides (also known by his acronym RaMBaN) are two of the most renowned medieval commentators. They also have two very different worldviews. Maimonides is considered by most to be a rationalist while Nachmanides is a Kabbalist, one who engages in mystical speculation. Often, Nachmanides openly disputes Maimonides' explanations in the Torah. Now, read these two commentaries carefully and see how they understand what the verse means? How does it differ with what we have understood until now? Do they differ from each other? If so, how?
Maimonides Hilchot Deot: Laws of Counsel
It is a mitzvah for every human to love each and everyone from Israel as he loves his own body. As it is written, "be-loving to your neighbor (as one) like yourself", therefore one must sing his praises, and show concern for his financial well-being, as he would for his own well-being and as he would for his own honor. Anyone who aggrandizes himself at the expense of another person has no portion in the world to come.
Nachmanides on "Be Loving to Your Neighbor"
The reason behind, "be-loving to your neighbor (as one) like yourself" is in fact an exaggeration for no human's heart can accept loving one's fellow as one loves one's own soul, and furthermore Rabbi Akiva already learned that "your life comes before the life of your friend."
It means that it is a mitzvah to love one's friend through all the good things that he loves himself, and it is possible that since the verse says "to your neighbor" (instead of merely stating "loving one's neighbor like yourself") The verse is comparing this love to the commandment to love the sojourner (Leviticus 19:34 where it says that yu should be-loving to him as yourself) i.e., to make the love of both comparable in his mind. For sometimes one loves his neighbor with the things that are known to enhance his material happiness, but not with wisdom, and qualities that are similar to it. If, however, he loves him and wishes him well with everything he desires. And that his beloved friend should be blessed with happiness, property, honor, knowledge and wisdom, while not comparing himself to his friend, by wishing in his heart that he himself should be more than his friend in all that is good. For there should not be this kind of petty jealousy, as the verse commands, "like one does for one's self", and thus he should not make limits to his love. Thus it says of Jonathan (regarding David) "He loved him as he loved his soul." (I Samuel 20:17) How? Because he had removed the attribute of jealousy from his heart, and thus the following verse promises , "And you will rule over Israel."
EXTRA INTESITY, FOR THOSE WHO HAVE TIME
SECTION II: LOVING PEOPLE AS A MODEL FOR LOVING GOD; GOD THE PARENT OR GOD THE FRIEND?
Your Talmud Navigator
The following source is one that may be well known to many of you. It's usually quoted to approve of Hillel's indulgence of the gentile and the wisdom of this approach. For a moment, however, let us take Hillel's words seriously and try to understand what he means
Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 31a
Once there was a gentile who came before Shammai, and said to him: "Convert me on the condition that you teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot. Shammai pushed him aside with the measuring stick he was holding. The same fellow came before Hillel, and Hillel converted him, saying: That which is despicable to you, do not do to your fellow, this is the whole Torah, and the rest is commentary, go and learn it."
Your Talmud Navigator
1. What does Hillel mean that the whole Torah is: "That which is despicable to you, do not do to your fellow…"? Isn't there more to the Torah than that?
2. Why does he phrase his statement in the negative, why not say, Whatever you like, do unto others?
Now that you have pondered these questions, take a look at Rashi, the premiere medieval commentator on the Talmud. Rashi quotes a verse from the Biblical book of Proverbs to prove that the word "fellow" can also refer to God.
Rashi's Commentary on this Talmudic passage "That which is despicable to you do not do":
""Your fellow and your fathers fellow you should not abandon" (Proverbs 27:10) The verse in Proverbs as well as this statement of Hillel is referring to the Holy One, so do not abandon His words, for you find it despicable when your friend abandons your words. Or another explanation is that it is referring specifically to your friend and Hillel enjoins him not to rob, steal, commit adultery and other mitzvot that are similar."
Your Rashi Navigator
1. Why does Rashi feel the need to show that "fellow" can mean God? What's bothering him?
2. Usually, when two explanations are offered, it means there is something unsatisfactory about both of them, why does Rashi offer two explanations here?
3. Is Rashi assuming that Hillel is referring to the commandment, "Be loving to your fellow…"?
A Later Commentator Uses the Previous Passages to Show How Loving God and Loving Each Other are Related
The following commentator's work appeared several hundred years after Maimonides and Nachmanides. Rabbi Horowitz was a renowned Kabbalist and his most prominent work the Covenant's Two Scrolls wielded tremendous influence over Jewish law and Jewish thought. In the following excerpt, he comments on "being loving to one's neighbor…" and equates it with loving God. He uses an interpretive device which is akin to gematria (numerology which equates Hebrew words that have the same numerical equivalent). Here, he finds it significant that the Ten Commandments contain six hundred and twenty letters. He then notes that the hebrew word for crown also contains the numerical equivalent of 620…
Rabbi Isaiah Halevy Horowitz known as the SHeLaH (the acronym for his book, Shnei Luchot Habrit, The Covenant's Two Tablets) on "Be loving to your neighbor"
It is written, "And you shall love the Lord your God" and it is also written, "be-loving to your neighbor (as one) like yourself". See how these two loves are connected and are united by His own unity, may He be blessed. Similarly, we finish the morning prayer preceding the shema with, "He who chooses His people Israel with love, and in the evening prayer, "He who loves His people Israel." And then we say the shema, the statement of God's oneness, and immediately following it is, "And you shall love the Lord your God. The ten commandments also end with the Hebrew words, "Asher lereyecha" or "that is your neighbors".
See that others have already noted that the ten commandments contains 620 letters which is the numerical equivalent of the word keter, the crown of Torah; Six hundred and thirteen of the letters symbolize the 613 commandments in the Torah, for each letter embodies one of the commandments…The commentator and author of the Tzionii has rendered the clearest explanation for the seven remaining letters. He says they are the last seven letters of the ten commandments A-SHeR LeReyE-CHa. This is the leg upon which the whole Torah stands i.e. the six hundred and thirteen commandments. Just as the Talmudic passage in the tractate of Shabbat says that Hillel taught the proselyte the whole Torah on one leg which was, "That which is despicable to you, do not do to your fellow, this is the whole Torah, and the rest is commentary, go and learn it."
Rashi explains the passage: That which is despicable to you, do not do to your fellow, "Your fellow and your fathers fellow you should not abandon" (Proverbs 27:10) The verse in Proverbs as well as this statement of Hillel is referring to the Holy One, so do not abandon His words, for you find it despicable when your friend abandons your words. Or another explanation is that it is referring specifically to your friend and Hillel enjoins him not to rob, steal, commit adultery and other mitzvot that are similar."
This is Rashi's explanation.
In truth one who reads carefully will find that most of the commandments depend on loving one's friend as one's self. The Mitzvahs of Tzedaka, tithing, leaving the gleanings of the field, good faith in business, the prohibition against taking interest, and many others.
Similarly, all the qualities of mercy, forgiveness, forbearance, compassion, giving one the benefit of the doubt, not standing idly by the blood of your kinsman, distancing one's self from gossip and slander, distancing one's self from frivolous clowning, jealousy, hatred, or, checking ones anger, and not seeking honors as well as thousands of other qualities all hinge on whether a person truly is loving of ones friend as himself.
Even that which has nothing to do with his friend like the prohibitions against eating forbidden foods, leavened bread on Passover, anyone who loved his neighbor would fulfill these commandments even moreso. For if he loves his friend as he loves himself how much more would he love the Holy One who is compassionate without expectation, a true compassion for He is the Master of the world and everything is in His hand, may He be blessed. See, "Being loving to your neighbor" is what causes "Being loving to God…
Sources: Rabbi Avi Weinstein, Director, Hillel's Joseph Meyerhoff Center for Jewish Learning. Reprinted with permission.


Overpopulation is not what's bringing about ecological catastrophe; overconsumption is. Overconsumption is the state where consumption surpasses the planet’s natural replenishing capabilities.
Living and consuming are interconnected activities. You can’t live without consuming. Water, food and air are consumed to support life. But we also consume much more than essentials, including goods and services such as electronics, furniture, appliances, cars, books, entertainment, and travel. There seems to be no end to the list of items and services we can’t live without.
Nowadays, we buy mainly to draw emotional satisfaction rather than meeting our actual needs. Advertising creates virtual problems and triggers negative feelings about them; then, it conveniently presents you with a solution. This cycle results in a deterioration of the quality of life, overworking, and overconsuming, which also damages the environment significantly.
Corporations manipulate consumers. They promise us privileges, connection, and happiness, which makes us keep buying more and more. The message’s effectiveness is so high that, despite being left in debt, overstressed, and buried under tons of possessions, we continue wanting more. But, worse of all, our overconsumption is based on our society’s reliance on it. The modern Western economy relies on us consuming more, so it focuses on fueling our wants and desires, and encourages us to upgrade more, buy more, waste more and pollute more.
Consuming Consequences To The Environment
This unrelenting consumption does not come free of charge. The natural world provides everything we consume, through mining, extraction, farming, and forestry – and there is a limit on the planet’s resources. As we keep consuming more and more, pursuing an elusive “comfortable” life, the planet is overstressed by this over-exploitation of soil, water, minerals, forests, fish, etc. As a result, species, habitats, and even entire ecosystems are collapsing. What’s more, with increased consumption comes more waste and pollution, compromising the quality of life’s very basic elements: air, water and land.
Consumption Consequences For Societies
Wealthier nations consume the biggest share of the Earth’s resources, depriving others of their fair share. 80 percent of the planet’s resources are consumed by a mere 17 percent of the total population. Valuable resources flow from the Earth’s South to the North. We exploit and use these resources to create services and goods for a small percentage of the population, instead of utilizing them to ensure that the rest of the world also has access to the essentials for life, such as water, food, health and sanitation. To satisfy the virtual needs of the rich, valuable resources are used up to produce meaningless items of luxury, further increasing the gap with the poor.
An Ecological Footprint measures the impact of a person or community on the environment, expressed as the amount of land required to sustain their use of natural resources. Natural resources provide the materials for everything we use for our day to day activities and needs. The Eco-Footprint, calculated in acres or hectares, expresses how much bio-productive space a defined population needs to sustain its current levels of life and consumption.
The following resources are factored into the measurement:
Arable Land Required: how much land is needed for growing crops for fiber, food, animal feed, etc.
Forest Resources: the resources required for furniture, fuel, houses, etc., and for ensuring the ecosystems are secured from climate change and erosion.
Ocean Resources: water required for fish and related products.
Pasture Land Required: how much land is needed to raise animals for meat, dairy production, hides, etc.
Energy Costs: the amount of land needed to absorb carbon dioxide emissions and other waste products.
Infrastructure Needed: how much land is required for transportation and creating factories, houses, etc.
Land, water and air pollution, and species extinction, are not yet factored in for the calculation of this Eco-footprint.
The planet has a biocapacity of about 4.7 acres (1.9 hectares) per individual. On a global scale, we currently use 5.4 acres (2.2 hectares) per individual. This means that we have surpassed the Earth’s sustainable biocapacity by 15 percent, a deficit of 1 acre (0.3 hectares) per individual. This deficit is self-evident by the cascading failure of the natural ecosystems –oceans, forests, fisheries, rivers, coral reefs, water, soil, global warming, etc.
It is possible to estimate the Eco-Footprint for a single person, a city, a region, a country, and the whole world. Several countries are in the “red zone”, meaning they have a larger Ecological Footprint than their ecosystems’ biocapacity, putting them into an “ecological deficit.” Conversely, countries that feature a smaller Eco-Footprint than their ecosystems’ biocapacity are in “ecological reserve.”
Cities, states, and nations are put in ecological deficits by abolishing their natural resources, for example, by overfishing, with resource imports from elsewhere and by surpassing their ecosystem’s natural capacity of carbon dioxide absorption.
Overshoot is the phenomenon of the entire planet being put in an ecological deficit. Overshoot and ecological deficit are the same from a global point of view because it is impossible to import new resources to the planet.
Currently, our planet needs 1.5 years to replenish the resources we use in one year. We keep this overshoot by abolishing the planet’s resources. We have not taken seriously how big of a threat overshoot is to humanity’s future, and have not begun to address it properly.
Earth’s Ecological Limits
In contrast to the growing populations, economies and resource demands, Earth’s size doesn’t change. It is only possible to sustain an overshoot for a small window of time, after which ecosystems start degrading and collapse. Ecological overconsumption is becoming increasingly apparent in the form of desertification, deforestation, water shortages, soil erosion, reduced crop production, overgrazing, rapid extinction of species, fish declines, coral reefs collapse, and increased carbon levels in the atmosphere.
Data from the Global Footprint Network reveal that if our current level of demand remains the same, we would need a second Earth by the year 2030. Consuming at this same rate will endanger the future of large portions of the planet’s inhabitants.
It's Time To Move Beyond Recycling
Everyone must work together to reduce consumption — public and private sectors, poor and rich, men, women, and children. The one thing we all have in common is the planet we live on. However, the larger burden of responsibility to shift behaviors lies with the wealthier nations, which have to move beyond just separating metal, glass and plastic to not consuming so much of them in the first place.
More than 30 percent of the total waste in the world is produced in America, by less than 5 percent of the total population of the planet. Since we create most of the problem, we are burdened with a higher responsibility to change our behavioral pattern. If every person on the planet adopted the lifestyle of the average American, we would need five Earths.
We must rethink what consumption is, and do our best to reduce it. The planet is being destroyed by the way societies function right now. It’s not just about recycling anymore; it’s about how to stop feeding the cycle altogether.


Entrance to Washington's Headquarters, Newburgh
Hasbrouck House served as Washington's headquarters during the Revolutionary War from April 1782 until August 1783. It was chosen for its comparatively safe location north of the strategically important West Point. The 7,000 troops of the Continental Army were encamped near what is today known as Vails Gate, a few miles to the southwest.
Benson John Lossing, ed. Harper's Encyclopedia of United States History (vol. 10) (New York, NY: Harper and Brothers, 1912)


Water Supplies Soaked Up By Oil Industry in California
Photo by CGP Grey via Flickr Creative Commons
Extracting and refining oil is a water-costly process. California doesn't have much water to spare, yet it is pouring billions of gallons of this invaluable substance into its oil business. Right now, oil companies in Kern county use as much as 8 barrels of water for each barrel of oil produced. Oil companies consumed 83% of the district's water allocation last year. Is this really the wisest use of a resource that, in so many ways, is far more precious than oil? Cleantechnica reports on new data from High Country News, stating that California -- an ever more drought-prone place -- is allowing oil companies to suck up the vast majority of water allocations in an area, and then return the polluted wastewater to unlined ponds.
According to High Country News, the wastewater from the oil fields threatens agriculture as well, since it puts polluted water back into the groundwater system:
From the mid-1970s to the early 2000s, Aera [Energy] dumped more than 2.4 billion barrels (or just over 100 billion gallons) of wastewater -- known in the industry as "produced water" -- from its North Belridge oilfield into those unlined ponds, [farmer Fred] Starrh says. The impact became apparent beginning in 1999, when Starrh dug several wells to augment the irrigation water he gets from the California Aqueduct. He mixed the groundwater with aqueduct water, applied it to a cotton field beside the berms -- and the plants wilted. Eventually, the well water killed almond trees, Starrh says; he points out a few that look like gray skeletons.
Not only is the oil industry using up valuable water, but it isn't cleaning the water before releasing it into the environment, causing two-fold damage. However, even though the fields are old, Kern county still produces about 8% of the nation's oil supply. For an oil-dependent nation, that's enough of an output to place protecting the water supply, even in overburdened California, at the bottom of a steep hill to climb.
Even pushing oil companies to clean the water they use is a tough battle -- while Chevron claims it recycles 90% of its water, it refuses to state exactly how it achieves that rate. Recycling water is more expensive than disposing of it, so trusting that an oil company is doing the right thing with its wastewater would be naive. Still, even environmental advocates are timid:
Even the local Sierra Club chapter hesitates to delve too deeply into the affairs of the petroleum industry. Lorraine Unger, treasurer and spokeswoman for the group's Kern-Kaweah Chapter, lives in Bakersfield, in an area known as "The Bluff," which has a panoramic view of the Kern River oilfield. Many members of her Sierra Club chapter work for oil companies, and Chevron, she says, is "not so bad, as far as oil companies go."
Unger knows a fair amount about produced water. "They used to run it right through the agricultural ditches," she recalls. "I can see it all from my backyard." But she says her chapter is not terribly concerned about the practice. After all, there are plenty of other local issues to worry about -- air pollution, sprawl, and the poaching of black bears in the Sierra foothills.
"Besides, even if I was concerned about the water, oil is just too big and powerful around here to go after," Unger says. "It puts food on people's tables."
Oil companies might help pay for food, but it certainly isn't doing anything to help grow the food, as Starrh's experience shows. Contaminating water supplies is a surefire way to guarantee there won't be food on the table in the future.
With that kind of weak stance even from environmental groups that should be addressing issues like polluted water supplies, it's no wonder California is in a water crisis, and looking heavily toward desalination plants along coastlines to help bolster supplies.
Follow Jaymi on Twitter for more stories like this
More on Water in California
Water Supply in CA Town Contaminated with Toxic Chemical Used to Make Explosives
6 Solutions for California's Water Crisis and How We Can Help
How California Can Save Nearly 326 Billion Gallons of Water On The Cheap
New Water Reporting Requirements Have California Farmers On Edge


Innovative Digital Media as a Learning Environment for Challenging Forms of Conversation in Social Professions
In the "ConvoQuest" project, innovative digital media as learning environments are being investigated and tested. The project focuses on a course at the FH Potsdam from the summer term of 2023, in which students developed prototypical, innovative learning environments. In the future, these can be used as a source of knowledge for questions about conversation techniques.
Innovative digital media such as virtual reality simulations and browser-based serious games get increasingly recognised for their potential as teaching and learning environments for challenging professional situations in the educational context. The interaction orientation and involvement of the users has the potential to convey contexts in a particularly sustainable way.
However, an increasing spread of innovative digital learning environments (so called "Conversation Quests") also requires a critical examination of ethical aspects as well as possibilities and limits of using digital serious games as a communication tool. By dealing with challenging conversational situations in the context of an implementation in innovative playful experiential spaces, the adoption of a critical and informed attitude is supported. Furthermore, the idea of research-based teaching is implemented by giving students the opportunity to actively participate in the exploration of virtual simulation as a learning environment.
The learning environments designed in the project will be available in the third quarter of 2023 at the project homepage and made playable. They are aimed at students who want to prepare themselves for challenging conversation situations in mainly social professions and are designed accordingly for the use in educational institutions.
The project is a follow-up to the results of the BMBF-funded research project DISA at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam and was funded within the framework of the university's own innovation fund.


This set of vocabulary cards is for What is a Government by Logan Everett and Simon Adams. It is part of Unit 4 Module B for Readygen 2016 Edition.
Includes: 28 word cards with picture and definition.
All cards are labeled with the book's title so you don't mix them up with other cards!
This set of vocabulary cards is part of a money-saving bundle. Click here:Bundle Pack for Grade 3 Unit 4 Module B


The Brazilian Amazon is home to about 40 percent of the planet’s tropical forests and a staggering amount of biodiversity.
European Union (EU) fisheries ministers meeting in Brussels endorsed an European Commission proposal that would force fishermen to bring sharks to port intact.
In the last 100 years atmospheric carbon dioxide has risen to about 30 percent above pre-industrial levels.
Starting the summer of 2015, it is predicted that the Arctic sea ice could disappear thus destroying the natural habitat of polar bears and other animals in the region, according to a leading British ocean expert.
Five of eight tuna species are now threatened or nearly threatened with extinction due to overfishing, according to the Red List of Threatened Species, compiled by the Swiss based International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The African lions are declining in an alarming rate over the past twenty years. The number of African lion’s population has dwindled to almost 50 percent by retaliatory killings, loss of habitat and prey species, exploitation by recreational trophy hunters and commercial trade, disease, and other factors.
The waters off China, the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico have been featured in the the top five regions in terms of biodiversity according to the preliminary census published in the open access Public Library of Science. It is a result of a 10-year project by 360 scientists at a cost of US$ 650 million dollars.
In a study released recently, the world’s smallest group of whale population known as Eubalaena japonica has its population dwindled to almost extinction. The Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska once teemed with tens of thousands of North Pacific right whales.


Aristotle and Maimonides on Virtue and Natural Law
Abstract: This essay examines connections between two related clusters of issues. The first concerns fundamental matters of moral psychology and moral epistemology as treated by Aristotle and Maimonides. It explicates crucial differences in their conceptions of self-determination, virtue, the plasticity of character, and moral knowledge. The second cluster of issues concerns natural law. Are there grounds for regarding Maimonides’ understanding of Judaism as involving elements of natural law? How are we to understand the relationship between natural law and reasons for the commandments? What would be the merits of Judaism having a natural law dimension, and how should that dimension be characterized? I suggest respects in which Maimonidean moral thought (and Jewish moral thought more generally) indicates an approach to underwriting the objective validity and universal applicability of moral thought without involving natural law elements. This connects the question of natural law with issues of moral psychology and epistemology in the earlier portions of the essay.
Biography: Jonathan Jacobs is a professor of philosophy at Colgate University in New York. He is author of several books including Choosing Character: Responsibility for Virtue and Vice (Cornell, 2001), Dimensions of Moral Theory: An Introduction to Metaethics and Moral Psychology (Blackwell, 2002), and Aristotle's Virtues: Nature, Knowledge, and Human Good (Peter Lang, 2004). He has written widely on moral psychology and metaethics, as well as on topics and figures in medieval philosophy (chiefly Maimonides and Aquinas). He has served as director of the Division of the Humanities at Colgate University and he is a life member of Clare Hall, University of Cambridge. He has been John MacMurray Visiting Professor at the University of Edinburgh, and a visiting fellow at the Centre for Ethics, Philosophy, and Public Affairs at the University of St. Andrews.


What happened to the Big Dipper?
Nothing, really, but if you were looking for it in early evening in mid-autumn, you won’t find a trace of it if you look UP. You have to look straight AHEAD - if you live in mid-northern latitudes.
To do this you also need a low, flat northern horizon. That can be tough if you live in hill country like me.
If you do have a good spot looking low in the north, the Big Dipper appears almost like it was set down on the ground, its bowl facing upward and the handle extending to the left.
Of course the Big Dipper makes this low point every 24 hours, as the Earth spins around. As October slides into November, at about 7:30 p.m. (daylight savings time), the Big Dipper is lowest in the sky. As the Earth spins and makes the sky turn, if you look out at about 3 a.m., the Big Dipper will seem to be standing up on its handle in the northeast.
The two front stars of the Big Dipper perpetually serve as a pointer to the North Star otherwise known as Polaris or Alpha Ursae Minoris.
The North Star is the only naked eye star that seems to never move, at first glance. It actually does make a small circle on the sky as the Earth turns on its axis. The axis points from the Earth’s North Pole to an imagined point in the northern sky, around which the entire sky seems to rotate once every 24 hours.
You can see this effect dramatically in a long exposure photograph in which the shutter stays open for hours to let the stars trail across.
The Earth axis very slowly wobbles, over the millennia. In fact, it takes about 26,000 years to complete one wobble. During that time, the axis inscribes an imagined circle on the sky, and whatever easily visible naked eye star is closest at that time is considered the North Star.
Alpha Ursae Minoris has been our North Star for centuries and will be for centuries more, until the axis comes anywhere near another well seen star.
It’s interesting to point a telescope anywhere in the night sky, and leave it pointing at the same spot. Look through it and see how the stars slowly move across. The higher the magnification of your eyepiece, the faster the stars seem to move across the field.
The stars move east to west across the sky, so in your eyepiece you can always tell directions by which side of the view a star sees to "enter" (from the east) or "exit" (heading west).
This is most obvious looking away from the northern sky.
Point your telescope at the North Star, and notice how very slow it seems to move. The stars in the northern sky have smaller circles to make around where the Earth’s axis points (called the "North Celestial Pole" or NCP).
The closer a star is to that point the tighter the circle.
You will also notice much dimmer stars than the North Star with a telescope, that are even closer to the NCP. These are even more deserving of North Star status, but unlike Polaris, they cannot be seen by unaided eyes, so almost no one notices.
Way to go, Polaris!
Constellations and stars that never set below the flat, northern horizon but keep missing it are termed "circumpolar".
Depending on how far you live north of the equator tells how wide an area of sky is circumpolar. The NCP, near the North Star, measures your latitude. If you are 40 degrees north of the equator, the NCP is 40 degrees high in the sky. All the stars 40 degrees around it never set below a flat horizon.
From latitude 41 degrees and further south, the the star at the tip of the Dipper’s handle (Alkaid) dips below the horizon.
As seen from latitude 29 degrees and further south, the top front star of the Dipper’s bowl (Duhbe) goes below the horizon.
Orlando, Florida, for example, is at 28 degrees north. The North Star then is very close to 28 degrees above the flat horizon. The Big Dipper is totally gone!
Last quarter Moon is on October 31.
Keep looking up!
— Peter Becker is Managing Editor at The News Eagle in Hawley, PA. Notes are welcome at email@example.com. Please mention in what newspaper or web site you read this column.
Looking Up: For some, the Big Dipper vanishes out of sight
What happened to the Big Dipper?


Monitoring your Body's PH levels
pH: What does it mean? pH is the abbreviation for potential
hydrogen. The pH of any solution is the measure of its hydrogen-ion
concentration. The higher the pH reading, the more alkaline and
oxygen rich the fluid is. The lower the pH reading, the more
acidic and oxygen deprived the fluid is. The pH range is from
0 to 14, with 7.0 being neutral. Anything above 7.0 is alkaline,
anything below 7.0 is considered acidic.
Human blood stays in a very narrow pH range right around (
7.35 - 7.45 ). Below or above this range means symptoms and disease.
If blood pH moves to much below 6.8 or above 7.8, cells stop
functioning and the patient dies. The ideal pH for blood is 7.4
A healthy blood pH without cancer has acid + alkaline balance
almost equal. Actually a healthy body is slightly alkaline measuring
approximately 7.4. This ideal blood 7.4 pH measurement means
it is just slightly more alkaline than acid.
||The pH in the human digestive tract varies greatly (see
Human Digestive Tract pH Range Chart on the left side). The
pH of saliva is usually between 6.5 - 7.5. After we chew
and swallow food it then enters the fundic or upper portion
of the stomach which has a pH between 4.0 - 6.5. This is
where "predigestion" occurs while the lower portion
of the stomach is secreting hydrochloric acid (HCI) and pepsin
until it reaches a pH between 1.5 - 4.0. After the food mixes
with these juices it then enters the duodenum (small intestine)
where the pH changes to 7.0 - 8.5. This is where 90% of the
absorption of nutrients is taken in by the body while the
waste products are passed out through the colon (pH 4.0 -
If you have a health problem, most likely you are acidic. Research
shows that unless the body's pH level is slightly alkaline, the
body cannot heal itself. So, no matter what type of modality
you choose to use to take care of your health problem, it won't
be as effective until the pH level is up. If your body's pH is
not balanced, you cannot effectively assimilate vitamins, minerals
and food supplements. Your body pH affects everything.
Total healing of chronic illness
only takes place when and if the blood is restored to
a normal, slightly alkaline pH.
An Imbalance In the
body’s pH may lead to serious health concerns, including:
Bladder and kidney concerns.
Acceleration of free radical damage.
Structural system weakness, including brittle bones, hip fractures
and joint discomfort
Stressed liver function
Slow digestion and elimination
The body has to have a balanced pH like most living things on
earth or it does not function correctly. The alkaline level is
very important because research has already proven that disease
cannot survive in an alkaline state and yet they thrive in an
The truth is everyone has different nutrient requirements,
but we all share one thing in common - we need to have alkaline
blood to stay healthy.
An acidic balance will: decrease the body's ability
to absorb minerals and other nutrients, decrease the energy production
in the cells, decrease it's ability to repair damaged cells,
decrease it's ability to detoxify heavy metals, make tumor cells
thrive, and make it more susceptible to fatigue and illness.
An acidic pH can occur from, an acid
forming diet, emotional stress, toxic overload,
and/or immune reactions or any process that deprives the
cells of oxygen and other nutrients. The body will try to
compensate for acidic pH by using alkaline minerals. If the
diet does not contain enough minerals to compensate, a build
up of acids in the cells will occur.
There are two factors that are ALWAYS present with cancer no
matter what else may be present. Those two factors are Acid pH
and Lack of Oxygen. Can we manipulate those two factors that
always have to be present for cancer to develop and by doing
so may help reverse the cancer? If so, we need to learn how to
manipulate those two factors.
Cancer needs an acid and low oxygen environment to survive and
flourish within. Terminal cancer patients are around 1000 times
more acidic than normal healthy people. The vast majority of
terminal cancer patients possess a very low body pH. Why?
In the absence of oxygen, glucose undergoes fermentation to
lactic acid. This causes the pH of the cell to drop from between
7.3 to 7.2 down to 7 and later to 6.5 in more advanced stages
of cancer and in metastases the pH drops to 6.0 and even 5.7
or lower. Our bodies simply can not fight disease if our body
pH is not properly balanced.
||Shown here are four representations chemists
use for molecular oxygen. In colored molecular models, oxygen
is traditionally shown in red.
The normal human cell has a lot of molecular oxygen
and a slightly alkaline pH. The cancer cell has an acid pH and
lack of oxygen. Cancer cells cannot survive in an oxygen rich
environment. At a pH slightly above 7.4 cancer cells become dormant
and at pH 8.5 cancer cells will die while healthy cells will
live. Again, the higher the pH reading, the more alkaline and
oxygen rich the fluid is. Cancer and all diseases hate oxygen
/ pH balance. The proper alkalinity pH of the blood ( 7.35 -
7.45 ) is critical for the overall health of the body. In other
words... alkalize or die.
Soda and pH Levels
Remember that the pH number is an exponent number of 10; therefore,
a small difference in pH translates to a big difference in the
number of oxygen or OH-ions. A difference of 1 in a pH value
means ten times the difference in the number of OH-ions, a difference
of 2 means one hundred times the difference in the number of
OH-ions. In other words, blood with a pH value of 7.45 contains
64.9% more oxygen than blood with a pH value of 7.30.
Here's a picture of healthy red
Blood cells have a negative charge on
the outside and a positive
charge inside; this is what keeps them healthy
and far apart from each other. However, when your body
is over-acidic, the acid strips your blood of it's negative
charge. Your blood cells no longer have the same repelling
force and clump together like this:
Fact: If your body's pH is not balanced, you cannot
effectively assimilate vitamins, minerals and food supplements.
Also, mucus on the small intestine can block your body from vitamin
and mineral absorption.
Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP)
When your tap water arrives at your home,
it will usually be a little over neutral in
pH ~ around 7.5.
It will, however, be robbed of its electrical
negative charge and will almost always have
a 'positive' ORP .
This means it has no antioxidant abilities
and cannot assist your body in the fight against
oxygen free radicals. On the contrary, it actually
robs you of energy as you drink it.
The measurement of this positive or negative
charge is expressed in millivolts, so an ORP
reading on our ORP meter of tap water will most
likely depending on your area show around +350
millivolts. After it has been through Ionizing
Water filters it will most likely show anything
from -150 to -650mv (depending on the amount
of soluble minerals in the water and on the original
pH of the water).
ORP is a "potential" energy that is
stored and ready to be put to work. An analogous
way to look at ORP would be to consider pressure.
When you blow up a balloon you use energy that
creates force. As long as the balloon remains
closed, this force is a “stored potential
energy” in this case measured as air pressure.
When released, this “potential” energy
becomes kinetic energy.More
Test Your pH Level...
Salivary pH Test: While generally more acidic than blood, salivary
pH mirrors the blood ( if not around meals ) and is also a fairly
good indicator of health. It tells us what the body retains.
Salivary pH is a fair indicator of the health of the extracellular
fluids and their alkaline mineral reserves.
Optimal pH for saliva is 6.4 to 6.8. Spit onto to your Portable
PH Meter on arising before anything is put into the mouth. A
reading lower than 6.4 is indicative of insufficient alkaline
reserves. After eating, the saliva pH should rise to 7.8 or higher.
Unless this occurs, the body has alkaline mineral deficiencies
( mainly Calcium and Magnesium ) and will not assimilate food
very well. To deviate from ideal salivary pH for an extended
time invites illness.
Acidosis, an extended time in the acid pH state, can result
in rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, lupus, tuberculosis, osteoporosis,
high blood pressure, most cancers and many more. If salivary
pH stays too low, the diet should focus on fruit, vegetables
and mineral water as well as remove strong acidifiers such as
sodas, whole wheat and red meat.
Urinary pH Test: The pH of the urine indicates how the body
is working to maintain the proper pH of the blood. The urine
reveals the alkaline building (anabolic) and acid tearing down
(catabolic) cycles. The pH of urine indicates the efforts of
the body via the kidneys, adrenals, lungs and gonads to regulate
pH through the buffer salts and hormones. Urine can provide a
fairly accurate picture of body chemistry, because the kidneys
filter out the buffer salts of pH regulation and provide values
based on what the body is eliminating. Urine pH can vary from
around 4.5 to 9.0 for its extremes, but the ideal range is 5.8
Are you Dehydrated
Individuals' daily water requirements can
vary due to many factors - including amount
of exercise performed, total body weight, total
lean muscle weight, and the temperature and
climate of your locale. Many people wait until
they are thirsty before reaching for a bottle
of water. However, thirst is a very unreliable
measure of the water needs for our bodies.
The body can lose up to 2 or more cups of water
before thirst strikes. Not getting enough water
may result in a faster heart rate, thicker-than-normal
blood, lowered endurance capacities, and muscle
cramps. Drinking water in regular intervals
throughout the day is an important habit to
Foods considered to be alkaline-forming and thus helpful to
people with consistently acid pH include: almonds, aloe vera,
apples, apricots, bee pollen, buckwheat, cabbage, cantaloupe,
celery, carrots, cucumbers, dairy products except hard cheese,
dates, dulse, poached eggs, figs, grapefruit, honey, lettuce,
millet, parsley, raisins, peaches, fresh red potatoes, pineapple,
soy products, sprouted seeds, cooked spinach, turnip tops, wakame
miso soup, azuki beans, rice, mineral water. More alkaline-forming
People who remain too acid often display symptoms such as: anxiety,
diarrhea, dilated pupils, extroverted behavior, fatigue in early
morning, headaches, hyperactivity, hypersexuality, insomnia,
nervousness, rapid heartbeat, restless legs, shortness of breath,
strong appetite, high blood pressure, warm dry hands and feet.
Nano Energy Flask Portable Water Alkaline pH Enhancer Increases the pH level
in your drinking water
More Information Click here
Balancing the pH is a major step toward well-being and greater
health. Acidosis ( overly acidic body ) is the primary indicator
of Calcium Deficiency Disease. Scientists have discovered that
the body fluids of healthy people are alkaline ( high pH ) whereas
the body fluids of sick people are acidic ( low pH ).
MONITOR YOUR PH DAILY
Portable PH Meter Monitor
This meter tests the PH. It features a fast response probe and
is easy to calibrate. It is very reliable, stable and transportable.
The operation is simple . The values are readable within a few
seconds and easier and more accurate to use than droplet tests
and color charts.
Portable PH Meter Monitor
is Super Accurate For :
Laboratory & Hospital
Swimming Pool & Spa
Excellent For 24/7 Monitoring
Powered By Batteries ( Included )
Measuring range: 0.00~14.00PH
Operating Temperature: 0-50oC
Power Supply:4×1.5V(AG13) (included)


Flood Frequency Analyses with Python
This is for an undergraduate geomorphology course (200 level).
- Pandas Dataframes
- Data Visualization
- Subsetting dataframes
- Flood Frequency Analyses
- Rating Curves
- Time-series gaps
Here is a helpful link - https://www.usgs.gov/centers/sa-water/science/flood-frequency-information?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects
You could include requirements that students check their results for the given rivers (Fishing Creek, Tar River, Ellerbe Creek, and Roanoke River) to the USGS calculations for an extended assignment.
I have adapted a lab similar to this one by SERC (https://serc.carleton.edu/hydromodules/steps/168500.html) from T. Perron using excel to analyze flood frequency of a river into python. It would be easy enough to include more background on Wollman & Miller, geomorphic work, the characterstic flood, extreme value analyses, etc dependent on your course interest and focus.
Please visit https://github.com/ale37911/CSDMS_Labs/tree/main/Flood_Freq for associated files (data and instructor Notebook).
This lab can be run on the lab (for educators) and jupyter (for general use) instances of the OpenEarthscape JupyterHub: just click one of the links under the Run online using heading at the top of this page, then run the notebook in the "CSDMS" kernel.
If you don't already have a JupyterHub account, follow the instructions to sign up at https://csdms.colorado.edu/wiki/JupyterHub. If you're an educator, you can get JupyterHub accounts for students--please contact us through the CSDMS Help Desk: https://csdms.github.io/help-desk.
If run locally, this lab requires the installation of the Python packages numpy, pandas, and matplotlib, as well as peak annual stream and daily discharge data for a given location.
CSDMS and Mark Piper provided support for the creation and hosting of my jupyter hub notebooks


The House at Sugar Beach
Helene Cooper talks about her memoir that tells the story of her family in Liberia -- and by extension chronicles Liberia's history.
The history of the West African nation of Liberia is closely linked to the history of the United States. Modern Liberia was a U.S. creation -- a colony for the resettlement of freed American slaves.
Journalist Helene Cooper's great, great, great, great grandfather was one of the freed slaves who first colonized Liberia -- he was on board Liberia's own version of the Mayflower -- the ship was called the Elizabeth, and set sail from New York harbor in 1820.
Cooper's family not only helped found Liberia, it was also part of the elite that governed the country for more than a century.
But things changed drastically in 1980, when the Liberian government was overthrown.
Marco Werman speaks with Helene Cooper about her memoir, "The House at Sugar Beach - In Search of a Lost African Childhood." It tells the story of Cooper's family in Liberia -- and by extension chronicles Liberia's history -- from its founding by freed American slaves to its modern civil war.
PRI's "The World" is a one-hour, weekday radio news magazine offering a mix of news, features, interviews, and music from around the globe. "The World" is a co-production of the BBC World Service, PRI and WGBH Boston. More "The World."


Adam and Eve
Temptation in the Garden of Eden
A cookie jar filled with cookies
Activities + Resources
Do you have a cookie jar at your house? (Place the cookie jar open in the middle of the group of children, and remind them not to touch it.) When I was young, we always had a cookie jar. Sometimes I would come home from school to find my mother baking cookies. I remember she would tell me, "Don't eat any of these cookies before dinner; you’ll spoil your appetite." That was quite a temptation. Does anyone know what the word “temptation” means? (Pause). Temptation happens when something or someone makes you desire to do something that you’re not supposed to do. But God is always there to help us do the right thing.
My cookie story reminds me of a game we used to play in school: "Who Stole the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?" We sat in a circle and said a rhyme. Sing along with me if you know it:
Accuser: Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?
[Child’s name] stole the cookies from the cookie jar.
[Child’s name]: Who, me?
Accuser: Yes, you!
[Child’s name]: Not me!
Accuser: Then who?
[Child’s name]: [Another child’s name] stole the cookies from the cookie jar.
Lead kids in saying the rhyme several times.
You know, that must be the oldest game in the world--a similar version of it started in the Garden of Eden. That was a beautiful garden that God gave the first two humans, Adam and Eve. Gold told them they could eat anything they wanted, except for the fruit from one tree. But when Adam and Eve were tempted by the fruit, they disobeyed God and ate it. Then they both blamed it on someone else, like in the cookie jar game. Adam blamed it on Eve, and Eve blamed it on the snake who helped convince her to eat it.
Tell about a time your parents told you to do something and you did the right thing. (Pause.) Tell about a time someone blamed you for doing something wrong, but they did it!
God wanted Adam and Eve to do the right thing. God wants us to do the right thing, too. And God helps us do the right thing.
Dear God, thank You that You help us do the right thing. Thank You for giving us the power to choose the right way. In Jesus' name, amen.


Value propositions and positioning statements are part of marketing strategies designed to differentiate small or large companies from their competitors. A company's value proposition describes the benefits of its products and services. A single value proposition may contain several positioning statements, which are more focused messages that form the basis of advertising campaigns.
The main objective of a marketing strategy is to define and reach the target customer demographic. Segmenting the market is especially important for small businesses because they cannot go after every segment and need to allocate their limited resources selectively. Value propositions and positioning statements can shape a company's marketing message and alter its product-design strategy to maximize its chances of attracting those who influence and make final purchase decisions.
Value propositions describe the functional and emotional benefits of companies and their brands. Functional benefits are linked to specific product features, while emotional benefits refer to positive feelings that customers experience when using a company's products and services. For example, the functional benefit of a gardening tool could be the efficient removal of lawn weeds, but the emotional benefit could be its ease of use by people with knee ailments. Value propositions are not necessarily about offering the cheapest products. They are about convincing customers that they are getting value for their money. For example, a consulting company may be able to charge premium rates for its services if it can demonstrate a record of accomplishment of cost savings and process improvements.
Positioning statements flow from value propositions. Positioning statements should describe why customers should use one product over another. For example, a small bakery's positioning statement could be its multigrain breads and custom-designed cakes that appeal to customers who are looking for flavorful and creative products that are different from the standard mass-produced items at big-box grocery stores. Correct positioning could determine market-share gains and profitability. In this case, the bakery is trying to position its products in the market segment that includes customers who want high-quality, high-priced goods. If it tries to compete solely on price, it may not survive because bigger companies can use their buying power to drive down input costs. Companies should be prepared to modify their positioning statements to respond to changes in the business environment.
Marketing strategies and advertising campaigns are effective when value propositions translate into market share gains. Successful advertising campaigns have consistent messages across all media platforms, such as television and the Internet. Advertising messages are usually based on value propositions and positioning statements. For example, if the value proposition of a restaurant is its exclusive reliance on organic produce, its advertising fliers and radio spots should highlight the benefits of consuming organic foods.
- Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty Images


Teaching little learners about our community is one of my favorite units! There is so much to learn and explore together. I love introducing units in a fun and engaging way and this community helper interactive poem is perfect for the job.
Interactive poems are always a hit and I love all that my learners get out of just one interactive poem. By reading the poem with a new helper each time, they are building their accuracy, fluency, practicing new sight words, concepts of print and more without even knowing!
Introduce Community Helpers
This poem can also be used to introduce new community helpers. If you are learning about how police officers help our community just add the picture to the poem, read together and explore the responsibilities of a police officer in more detail.
Whole Group Instruction
This poem is great for preschool, pre-k, kindergarten and even first grade classrooms. Whether you read this poem as a class during a literacy mini-lesson or to introduce your social studies unit this provides a great activity for whole group instruction. You can focus on reading strategies or how each helper works in our community to explore the poem in more detail.
After reading the poem during whole group instruction you can move the poem to a shared reading center and let your learners continue to practice. They love being the “teacher” and having control of the helpers they add to the poem. You can also have your learners complete the workpage included in the link below as an extension to the poem.
If you want to use this poem in your classroom or learning center you can download it by clicking the download button at the bottom of this post! Just cut, tape on a sentence strip (or just tape together) and laminate for durability. Finally, place the poem on a pocket chart and enjoy!!!
If you are planning a community helper unit check out these amazing resources….
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
Community Helpers Bingo // The Letters of Literacy
Community Helper Vehicles Count and Clip Cards // Modern Preschool
Community Helper Pattern Block Mats // The STEM Laboratory
Community Helpers Sort and Classify Mats // Fairy Poppins
Community Helpers Sight Words Game // Play and Learn Every Day
I Spy Community Helpers Printable // Powerful Mothering
Community Helper Interactive Poem // Mrs. Jones’ Creation Station
Community Helpers Counting Puzzles // The Kindergarten Connection
Community Helpers Little Readers // Liz’s Early Learning Spot
Community Helpers Mazes // Sara J Creations
People Who Help Us Alphabet Match // Adventures of Adam
Community Helper Math Games // Recipe for Teaching
Community Helpers Easy Reader Freebie // The Simplified Classroom
Community Helpers Write and Color the Room // A Dab of Glue Will Do
Community Helper Alphabet Dab Sheets // Playdough to Plato


CICS Researchers Link Ozone Hole to Changes in Southern Hemisphere
The midlatitude surface westerlies have been observed to shift polewards by several degrees of latitude in the past 20-30 years. This remarkable change in atmospheric circulation has numerous implications, ranging from Australian drought to carbon dioxide uptake in the Southern Ocean. While models of global warming predict a poleward shift, the observed shift is much larger than anticipated. It has recently emerged from climate models at several centers, including NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL), that the ozone hole in the Southern hemisphere stratosphere is likely responsible for a part of the observed displacement. How the ozone hole causes this tropospheric response has remained mysterious.
Background: Gang Chen, a graduate student in Princeton’s Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences Program working with Isaac Held at GFDL, has recently added an important new idea to this subject. Chen and Held (2007) have documented an increase in the eastward propagation speed of midlatitude cyclones in the Southern Hemisphere. In earlier theoretical work, they had described a mechanism through which an increase in this propagation speed would push the midlatitude storm track and westerly winds polewards.
Significance: This theory was developed to explain how changes in the roughness of the Earth’s surface can change the latitude of the surface westerlies (Chen, et al 2007), a seemingly unrelated problem that Chen and Held argue provides a clue to the ozone hole-tropospheric connection.. Based on these observations and this theory, they describe a mechanism whereby the temperature changes in the stratosphere caused by changes in ozone concentrations result in faster midlatitude eddies, thereby changing the latitude of the westerlies. Chen is currently pursing these ideas in a post-doctoral position at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, supported by a NOAA Global Change Fellowship.
Chen, G., and I. M. Held, 2007: Phase speed spectra & the recent poleward shift of Southern Hemisphere surface westerlies. Geophysical Research Letters, 34, L21805, doi:10.1029/2007GE031200.
Chen, G., I.M. Held, and W.A. Robinson, 2007: Sensitivity of the Latitude of the Surface Westerlies to Surface Friction. J. Atmos. Sci., 64, 2899–2915.


Just because something tastes good, does not mean that it is good for you.
However, that is your individual choice. A choice that only hurts you.
> <<Anita Graf (Staff) wrote:
> We all have to make choices about what we choose to live with....I certainly am
> not convinced that carmelized onions, burnt toast, etc. are enough of a threat
> that I'm going to avoid them in my diet.>>
Again, this is a personal choice.
My objection is not with what individuals choose to eat themselves. My objection
is partial truths in press releases sent to the media that lifestyle causes
cancer and most people get cancer based on their own diet. When there diet may
be contaminated based on what industries put into the environment.
Certainly cooking meat or other food at high temperatures, which happens during
grilling or charring,
increases the amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the food.
Cancer-causing Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons are in burned toast, blackened
red fish (a favorite of some in Louisiana) and other charred food. It is also in
the smoke from home heating of wood. This is a known fact. And, it is confirmed
by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Until recently, the
media did not report that: PAHs are present in tobacco smoke. However, it is
also in creosote-treated wood products, cereals, grains, flour, bread,
vegetables, fruits, meat, processed or pickled foods, and beverages. Food grown
in contaminated soil or air may also contain PAHs. PAHs are formed during the
incomplete burning of coal, oil and gas, garbage, or other organic substances.
PAHs can be man-made or occur naturally. There is no known use for most of these
chemicals except for research purposes. A few of the PAHs are used in medicines
and to make dyes, plastics, and pesticides.
''PAHs can occur in the air either attached to dust particles, or in soil or
sediment as solids. They can also be found in substances such as crude oil, coal,
coal tar pitch, creosote, and road and roofing tar. Most PAHs do not dissolve
easily in water, but some PAHs readily evaporate into the air. PAHs generally do
not burn easily and they will last in the environment for months to years,''
according to the ATSDR. In fact, PAHs are found throughout the environment in
the air, water, and soil.
The greatest exposure occurs in the workplace. PAHs have been found in coal-tar
production plants, coking plants, bitumen and asphalt production plants,
coal-gasification sites, smoke houses, aluminum production plants, coal-tarring
activities, and municipal trash incinerators. PAHs have also been found in other
facilities where petroleum, petroleum products, or coal are used or where wood,
cellulose, corn, or oil are burned, such as hospital or biomedical waste
We are exposed to PAHs from drinking water contaminated by industries, and by
consumers, based on their purchases. So, it's not that individual lifestyle
causes cancer, it's corporate behavior that plays a big role in contributing to
And, the reason cancer has not been controlled despite the potential billions of
dollars thrown into researching it, is because ''there has not been a national
coordination of cancer-fighting efforts in the public, private, and voluntary
sectors,'' according to a report Cancer at a Crossroads: A Report to Congress for
the Nation (1994).
The National Cancer Advisory Board wrote that current (as of 1994) health care
reform proposals are devastating to the War on Cancer by denying resources for
research and quality cancer cares; current laws, public policy, and government
regulation undermine cancer prevention, treatment, and control efforts; failure
to support translational research hinders rapid development of cancer fighting
advances; many people in this country, especially the poor, elderly, and
uninsured, receive inadequate cancer care.
However, while some people have tried to enlighten the public, vested industry
front groups seem hell bent to keep the public confused, ignorant, and
continually purchasing their backers products. This is why the war on cancer
will not be won. Not at least until each of us moves forward to reduce, rather
than increase pollution. Sustaining the organic method is one way that this can
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As a human living in a society, you’ve probably had unsolicited help offered to you at least once – even an act as simple as holding a door. Now it turns out that behaviour is not unique to humans.
Researchers have found that bonobos are willing to help out their fellows – even if those fellows are strange bonobos they’ve never met before.
Previous studies have established that bonobos extend kindness, both to strangers and their friends and family. A 2013 study found that bonobos offer consolation to their friends and relatives when they’re upset, and that this may be rooted in empathy.
And another 2013 study found that bonobos will willingly share their food – even going so far as giving their own food to a stranger in exchange for a social interaction.
It’s the team behind the latter study, Jingzhi Tan and Brian Hare of Duke University, that have conducted this new research into bonobo altruism.
Their earlier study found that bonobos would not give food in their possession if there was no opportunity for social interaction in exchange. When the food is not in their possession, though, they will help other bonobos get it, even without the social exchange.
The team studied wild bonobos at the Lola ya Bonobo sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The first part of the study involved an experiment in which a bonobo could help a second, unfamiliar bonobo obtain out-of-reach food. A piece of apple was tied in an enclosure by a rope held in place with a wooden pin. By removing the wooden pin, the helper bonobo could drop the apple to the stranger, who would not be able to reach it otherwise.
However, it was not without cost to the helper bonobo. Their starting position was across the room, where they could play with toys. In order to help the stranger, they had to cross the room and climb the cage to release the apple.
The bonobos released the apple four times more often when there was a waiting bonobo in the cage below the apple than when it was empty.
One variation included an opening in the mesh surrounding the cage so that the waiting bonobo could stick their arm through to gesture for help.
The helper bonobo helped just as often when the waiting bonobo didn’t request help as when they did – indicating that bonobos are willing to help others, even when they’re strangers, even when they don’t ask for it, and even when there is no benefit to themselves.
For the second part of the experiment, the researchers tested yawn contagion in bonobos – that is, when watching someone yawn triggers a yawn in the observer, a phenomenon that is thought to be closely linked to empathy.
They showed the apes short videos of other bonobos yawning or making a neutral expression, both familiar to the individual and strangers. The researchers found that the observing bonobos yawned in response to videos strangers yawning as they did to videos of their friends.
“Although not the primary test of our predictions, it is interesting to note that stranger yawns were at least as contagious as those of groupmates,” the researchers wrote in the paper.
“Because the contagiousness of bonobo yawns is an indicator of social rapport, this result suggests that the strength of prosociality toward strangers and that toward groupmates is similar.”
Xenophilia, or affection for strangers, could evolve when the benefits of bonding outweigh the potential costs, such as having less food, Tan noted in a 2013 dissertation.
And the first step in this process is making a good first impression.
“All relationships start between two strangers,” Tan said. “You meet a stranger, but you may meet them again, and this individual could become your future friend or ally. You want to be nice to someone who’s going to be important for you.”
The research has been published in the journal Scientific Reports.


The LIFE program is the Environment financing tool of the European Union. The general goal for the LIFE program is to contribute to the feasibility, update, and developing of the environment politics and EU legislation by the co-financing of pilot projects.
This program aims to facilitate the environment issues into other politics and, generally, helps with the sustainable development.
- LIFE+ includes three different topics:
- LIFE+ “nature and biodiversity”
- LIFE+ “Politics and environment governance”
- LIFE* “Information and communication”
The program began in 1992 and as today there have been completed 4 phases (LIFE 1: 1992-1995, LIFE 2: 1996-1999, LIFE 3: 2000-2006, LIFE +: 2007-2013).
During this timeframe, LIFE has co-financed almost 3,954 different projects in all the EU, contributing with € 3.100.000.000 for the environment conservation.
Natura 2000 is the centrepiece of EU nature & biodiversity policy. It is an EUwide network of nature protection areas established under the 1992 Habitats Directive. The aim of the network is to assure the long-term survival of Europe’s most valuable and threatened species and habitats. It is comprised of Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) designated by Member States under the Habitats Directive, and also incorporates Special Protection Areas (SPAs) which they designate under the 1979 Birds Directive


4 Steps to Evaluating a Technical Training Program
- Choosing a Trade, Canadian Apprenticeship Forum and Skills Canada, http://www.careersintrades.ca/index.php?page=choosing-a-trade&hl=en_CA
- Choosing a Vocational School, Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Information, August 2012, http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0241-choosing-vocational-school
It can be tough to evaluate trade schools, especially if you are relatively new to a particular field. There are many programs as well as a variety of institution types. Additionally, degree programs and certifications can take months or longer to earn, and tuition can be expensive. No one wants to waste time and money only to find that they are ill-suited to a particular career path or that there aren't jobs available in the field they have selected.
As a result, students investigating vocational programs should do their homework before even applying to a program. Taking some time to think about your skills and interests now can prevent headaches down the road. Here are some things to consider as you evaluate vocational schools.
Step 1: Think about what's right for you
Yes, there are plenty of vocational programs that can lead to lucrative careers. However, not everyone is suited to every type of job. For example, do you enjoy working with technology? Perhaps a computer or IT-related career is a natural fit. Or maybe healthy living is your passion. If so, a career in health care, the dental industry or nursing may be the way to go.
Remember to think about both the technical skills required for a particular job as well as the working environment. If you enjoy working independently, then perhaps you are well-suited for a career in IT where work may be completed remotely. If customer service excites you, then a career in cosmetology may be just the ticket. If you're a perfectionist, then you may be interested in learning more about what it takes to become a machinist.
Step 2: Consider where you're starting from
People enter or even change careers under very different circumstances. This diversity means there is something for everyone. However, it also means that you want to be strategic in selecting the program that will prepare you for the career you want as quickly as possible. For example, if you never completed your high school diploma, that's probably going to be first on your to-do list!
From there, learn about the educational attainment that is required for entry-level positions in your chosen field. For some careers, an associate degree in a related area or even a certificate may be all you need. However, other careers require that you have a bachelor's or even a master's degree in order to be a competitive applicant. While you don't want to be in school longer than you have to, you also don't want to earn a credential that is insufficient for your goals.
Step 3: Pick a program
So you've narrowed down the types of careers you are interested in and the amount of education required to get your foot in the door. Now the tricky part begins: it's time to evaluate vocational programs and pick the school and format that are right for you. There are numerous considerations at this stage:
- Is an online program right for you? If online classes are a natural choice given your chosen vocation then you may have more options in terms of institutions and programs. However, online education isn't the best fit for every career goal.
- Do you need or want to attend in-person classes? If so, is there a trade school close to you that offers the program you are interested in? If there isn't a program nearby, are you willing or able to move? Note that if a program isn't offered at a nearby school, there may not be jobs in that field available in that area, either.
- Is it important that the institution you attend is accredited? This may be important to ensure that the program meets potential future employers' standards. In addition, if you will be relying on federal financial aid to help pay for school, accreditation may be a crucial factor.
- What kind of resources are available for current students and alumni? For example, is there an office that can help identify and coordinate internships or supervised clinical hours? Is the equipment you will use up to industry standards? Is there a career center that can assist you as you finish the program and begin applying for jobs?
If you are able to take a class or two prior to starting a program officially, that may help you evaluate trade programs and determine whether a particular program or institution is a good fit.
Step 4: Give it your all
You may have heard the saying that what goes in, is what comes out. What does that mean if you are evaluating vocational schools? Simply put, it means that the institution that you pick may not be the most important factor to your future success. No matter what school or program you choose, the amount of effort and care you put into your education may be what sets you apart from the rest of the pack.
How do you do that? Go to every class (or listen to every lecture/complete every lesson, if the program is online). Don't settle for "getting the gist of it" -- study until you know the required material backwards and forwards. Take advantage of your teachers by asking them questions. If there is a career center, don't wait until your last semester to make contact. Network and keep in touch with faculty, staff, and fellow students. You never know where your next opportunity might come from.


Behavioral economists are finding that businesspeople often fail to account for low-likelihood, high-impact events when planning for disaster.
Continue Reading Below
“There’s no such thing as an accident,” the old saying goes. Examine this notion that all accidents are preventable, and you’ll discover it’s often, though certainly not always, true.
To make the point, take a hypothetical tire blowout on a small-business delivery van. It occurs on a congested freeway and ends in a multi-car crash that seriously injures six people, including your employee. What led to the blowout?
- The tire tread began delaminating from the underlying rubber plies and the tire blew when it hit the rough edge of a concrete pothole.
- To save some money during a tough business year, the business owner had chosen lower-end tires from a discount supplier eight months earlier.
- The tire manufacturer turned out to have a sketchy quality record, especially on its lower-end tires, and later was forced to recall 35,000 tires.
Continue Reading Below
It’s not hard to see how this particular tire might never have been on this van on this road at this time, and thus no blowout and chain-reaction injury accident would have occurred. Yeah, you might retort skeptically, but who could have foreseen this unlikely chain of events leading to such an outcome?
Preparing for low-likelihood, high-impact events
The difficulty and inherent unwillingness of human beings to “imagine” such scenarios and then prepare for low-likelihood, high-impact events in the future are precisely what trip up businesspeople time and again, write Howard C. Kunreuther, professor and co-director of Wharton’s Risk Management and Decision Processes Center, and Geoffrey M. Heal, a professor of economics and public policy at Columbia University, in a June 2012 paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research.
What factors work against people and businesses protecting themselves against such possible events? Kunreuther and Heal postulate several, including:
- Discounting events that may occur, if at all, far into the future. Immediate issues carry far more weight than distant possibilities.
- Postponing decisions, especially when they involve creating protections against abstract future events. The authors cite the behavior of emergency planners in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina as an example of this sort of procrastination.
- The effect of interdependency — if your neighbors or peers are not acting to protect their businesses in similar situations, you may be less likely to act yourself.
- Underestimating the risks, as was done by the small-business van owner in the hypothetical example above.
‘I won’t let that happen to me’
Risk underestimation, similar to discounting future events, is a key error that can occur in decision-making among individuals and businesses, notes Yale law professor Christine Jolls in a 2009 interview published in Qn, a publication of the Yale School of Management. Jolls cites studies in which people were presented with a future risk that has been specified as having a 1 percent chance of occurring. Evidence indicates that most people will believe their personal risk is well below 1 percent. Jolls refers to this as “unrealistic optimism,” and describes how such an erroneous assessment can create substantial problems.
For example, some critics of workplace safety laws object to them as paternalistic and suggest that warning employees of workplace dangers should be enough. However, Jolls cautions that such warnings alone, because of our human proclivity for unrealistic personal optimism, may lead some to underestimate their personal risk.
Lack of specific workplace risk evaluation and the failure to create and enforce explicit, non-negotiable work rules can clearly elevate risk for the employee and, by extension, for the business owner.
Review your business risks
It could be useful to review your business’s disaster assessment and plan against the behavioral factors identified above. Does your plan accurately and fully account for all possible risks, especially those of low probability and high impact, as realistically as they can be expressed? If not, what changes would you make to the plan and, more important, what additional resources might you have to apply over time to ensure it is fully funded? The time and cost to do this work may seem daunting, but the risks — and disasters — avoided can make it well worth the effort.
Business on Main is an online destination for small-business leaders and entrepreneurs who are looking for information and inspiration to take their companies to the next level. Sprint champions Business on Main in collaboration with MSN to support and demonstrate its commitment to the men and women who lead small businesses across the country.


after 3pm, Sydney time (other
locations). The full disk of Venus should be visible
as a tiny black dot on the Sun by 3.30pm and will be partly across
the Sun at sunset. The whole event takes about 6 hours so we in Sydney
will miss more than half of it. :(
Always supervise children who are interested in
this rare event. Never, ever
the sun directly or through an amateur telescope or binoculars
(do not trust a solar filter
equipment - especially
Note that welding goggles and the like are useless because Venus is so small, compared with the Sun's disk. If you have very good eyes and can easily see craters on the Moon unaided then you might be able to spot Venus crossing the Sun. The rest of us will need to use a telescope to project the image (see below) or watch the event on the Internet.
are useless for this event and sunglasses
will not protect the eyes from
One safe way to use a small telescope is
the image onto a screen using a 90 degree mirror (see pictures
below) - then several people can observe the event without fighting
over the telescope. Practice this technique by observing sun spots
before the event - this will also help you distinguish between sunspots
If you can set up in or next to a building (remember the Sun
will be low in the western sky in Sydney) you may be able to project a
much larger image than the one pictured onto a screen (or ceiling) in a
Aim the telescope by observing its shadow - the whole of the white
tube will go
into the shadow of the cowl, when the telescope is pointing at the sun.
adjustment until the image appears in focus on the screen. Do not try
to use the
finderscope - it will damage your eyes!
Unless you are lucky enough to have a motor drive telescope will
you need to adjust the aim of the telescope every few minutes to follow
the Sun as it sets in the Western sky (as well as magnifying the image,
telescopes magnify motion). It is much easier to make the adjustment
before the Sun's image moves out of the field of view.
This is the set up showing the Sun's image projected at right
angles, onto a white screen. The telescope has a 60mm main lens. With
larger telescopes it may be advisable to partly cover the end of the
tube to cut out some of the sun's light.
This shot shows a good observing position. I could easily see some sunspots from here. Note that the finderscope has been removed (or cover it up) - although small it can still easily damage the eye by concentrating the Sun's rays.
Here is another view of the set up. If the surrounds are relatively dark, like this room, then the screen can be moved further away to obtain a larger image.


(Click image for larger view.)
In the Book of Genesis Israel was born. In the Book of Exodus Israel was chosen. In the Book of Numbers the nation was proven. In the Book of Leviticus it was brought nigh by the blood. In Deuteronomy it was instructed. Now in the Book of Joshua it faces conflict and conquest.
The Book of Joshua completes the redemption of Israel that was begun in Exodus. Exodus is the book of redemption out of Egypt; Joshua is the book of redemption into the Promised Land.
The key word in the Book of Joshua is possession. God had given the children of Israel their land in an unconditional covenant. To Abraham He had said, “And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God” (Gen. 17:8). However, Israel’s possession of the land was conditional. There was conflict and there was conquest. They had to fight battles and lay hold of their possessions. And, as Joshua reminded them in his final message before his death, their obedience to the Word of God would determine their continued possession of the land.
The Talmud says that Joshua wrote all but the concluding five verses, which were written by Phinehas. Joshua was the successor to Moses. He was a great general. Born a slave in Egypt, he was forty years old at the time of the Exodus out of Egypt. He was eighty years old when he received his commission as Moses’ successor and one hundred ten years old at his death. Joshua had already gained prominence during the wilderness wanderings. When they were attacked by the army of Amalek, it was Joshua who organized the men into an army that fought off Amalek. Joshua served as a minister or servant to Moses. References to him in that connection reveal his loyalty to Moses and his devotion to God. At Kadesh–barnea he was one of the twelve men who went to spy out the land of Canaan. He is one of the two spies that returned with a favorable report in full confidence that God would give them the land.
Joshua’s name means “Jehovah saves.” The same word in the New Testament is Jesus. Joshua was a man of courage, dependence upon God, faith, leadership, enthusiasm, and fidelity. He is a type of Christ in his name and in his work. As another has said, “Joshua shows that a man of average ability may become a leader in the church. Joshua received his call not in flaming letters written across the sky, but from an older man who knew God and knew Joshua, and saw that he was fitted by God to be a leader.”
The Book of Joshua has a very practical application to the believer today. The Promised Land cannot be a type of heaven since heaven is not a place of conflict and conquest. Heaven is received as a gift of the grace of God. Rather, the Promised Land represents the place to which believers are brought right here in this world today. The Book of Joshua corresponds to the Epistle to the Ephesians in the New Testament where we see that the believer is blessed with all spiritual blessings. The practical possession and experience of them depends upon conflict and conquest. These are never attained through the energy of the flesh, but through the power of the Holy Spirit in the yielded life of the believer. The Book of Joshua is the pattern, and it illustrates the method by which the believer can possess what God has given to him.
(McGee, J. Vernon. Thru the Bible Commentary, Vol. 10: Joshua & Judges. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991.)


Part of the physical examination that assesses current mental capacity through evaluation of appearance, mood, anxiety disorders, perceptions (eg, delusions, hallucinations), and all aspects of cognition (eg, attention, orientation, memory).
Problems with mental status can be suggested by the medical history (by both its content and its manner of delivery by the patient); however, determination and documentation of current mental status require a mental status examination. Identification of the underlying cause of abnormal mental status requires integrating all information from the history, the mental status examination, other components of the physical examination, and laboratory tests.
Mental status examination begins with the clinical assessment of the patient and is followed by use of one or more quantitative assessment instruments (see Table 38-1), the most widely used being the Mini-Mental State Examination. Quantitative assessment instruments can be used in screening for cognitive and related disorders and in assessing response to treatment. Serial quantitative measurements of cognition should be considered for any elderly patient suspected of experiencing delirium or progressive changes in cognition.
Mental status examinations can help a court establish a person's legal competence for making a will or for giving informed consent for procedures. When combined with functional assessment, these examinations help the physician select an appropriate environment and level of care for a patient after hospital discharge.


The international community has caught onto the need to halt global warming and promote a low-carbon economy. The European Union has established a binding target for 2030 to cut greenhouse effect gases by 40% in comparison with 1990 levels. And by 80% in 2050.
The building industry is one of the key action levers in order to make these goals a reality. Within the EU, the sector generates 35% of all greenhouse gases that cause climate change. In this sense, Directive 2010/31/EU on the energy performance of buildings (responsible for 40% of all power consumption) stipulates that as of 31st December 2020, all new constructions must be ‘nearly zero-energy’.
The Passivhaus standard has raised building energy savings to new heights by aiming to reduce or eliminate heating or cooling requirements in order to guarantee interior thermal comfort. It sets out five key principles in the building process: outstanding levels of insulation for outer walls and roofs; thermal bridge-free designs; airtight barrier layers; a mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery; and high performance windows and doors. In order to be eligible for Passivhaus certification, buildings must deliver ambitious results in terms of power requirements and airtightness.
Why use wood for Passivhaus buildings?
All House Habitat’s building projects comply fully with Passivhaus criteria. Furthermore, we use natural and sustainable materials that respect people’s health and in this sense, wood is a key structural element due to its outstanding insulation properties.
A recent study revealed that if all the buildings in the city of Barcelona alone complied with Passivhaus criteria, CO2 emissions would be reduced by 1,022,349 tons, equivalent to the amount absorbed by no fewer than 100,000 trees.
The use of wood in construction would help to reduce pollution levels even further.
The use of wood sourced from sustainably managed forests, based on replanting principles, contributes to guaranteeing the survival of our planet’s major CO2 sinks. Young trees, planted for their later use in construction, remove carbon from the atmosphere as they grow, achieving higher rates of efficiency in comparison with more mature trees.
In sharp contrast, cement production is responsible for 6% of the world’s carbon emissions, whilst steel production – half of which is used in the building industry – accounts for 8%. During the process of transforming raw elements into building materials, wood produces the lowest levels of pollution attributable to CO2 emissions of all the most common materials. For instance, producing a laminated wood beam requires just a sixth of the energy needed to manufacture a steel beam with a comparable resistance performance.
In short, adopting the Passivhaus energy efficiency standard and using wood in buildings are two solutions that the construction industry can deliver in response to the urgent need to halt climate change. Two trends that complement each other to perfection and are also experiencing a sharp hike on an international scale.