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Megapixels. SD memory. Red-eye reduction. Image stabilization. What do these digital camera features mean, and which ones actually make a difference when taking photos? If today's camera technology is just too much, this handy guide can help you make sense of it all.
Manufacturers frequently say their products have the most "megapixels," a technology buzzword that determines how large an image can be printed without losing quality. Megapixels alone won't make for better photos, so if you only plan to make small prints — 4" X 6" or 5" x 7" — anything over five megapixels may be overkill. But if you want to zoom or crop your images, or blow them up, a camera that shoots with more megapixels might do more for you.
Digital cameras save images on flash memory instead of film, with SD (Secure Digital) cards being the most common method. Most cards can hold up to 2GB (gigabytes) of data — enough for 1,000 or more images, depending on camera settings. The higher the megapixels, the more space each image will take up, so buy with an eye toward the future. Large-capacity cards are convenient, but it's always a good idea to frequently upload photos to a computer for safekeeping.
To ensure a crisp focus, consider a camera with image stabilization, which will help compensate for shakiness that causes blurry photos in low light.
Red-eye reduction prevents the camera's flash from ruining good photos by turning your family into red-eyed zombie look-alikes. This tool and other in-camera features — like filters for altering the appearance of your photo — can come in very handy.
If you're planning to shoot sports or nature, a camera with optical zoom is preferable. Digital cameras with optical zoom are able to zoom in on subject matter using the camera's lens as opposed to its digital sensor. This produces crisper, more life-like images. The higher the optical zoom number, the closer you'll get to better pictures. If a camera is marked as having 10x optical zoom, it is capable of zooming in to increase your subject matter by 10 times more than if no zoom lens was present.
Wi-Fi–enabled cameras are becoming popular among social networkers. Want to send a picture to Facebook or Flickr? Just find a wireless Internet network and you can upload pictures from airports, coffee shops and hotels anywhere.
Color LCD displays have replaced traditional optical viewfinders, making it easy to review stored photos or manage camera features. Bigger is generally better, with many models now offering touch-screen displays.
SLR cameras allow you to experiment with manual settings or even interchangeable lenses for full control of your photography. And thanks to larger image sensors and the wider dynamic range offered by SLRs, digital photos look crystal clear, with richer contrast and more vivid colors. Digital SLRs also allow you to take more photos in a shorter amount of time, with precise focus adjustments that simply aren't possible with the smaller lenses found on point-and-shoot cameras. What's more, HD video recording has become a hot feature on many digital SLR models.
Now that you're armed with all of this camera-technology know-how, you've got everything you need to find the right camera in a snap. This Camera Buying Guide can help too.
Used with permission. © 2015 Walmart. All Rights Reserved. See full legal
Important Walmart Disclaimer:
All content provided herein is for educational purposes only. Neither the author nor Walmart.com assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. Walmart does not sponsor, recommend or endorse any third party, product, service or information provided on this site.</s>
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Herd size and bovine tuberculosis persistence in cattle farms in Great Britain
Brooks-Pollock, Ellen and Keeling, Matthew James. (2009) Herd size and bovine tuberculosis persistence in cattle farms in Great Britain. Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Vol.92 (No.4). pp. 360-365. ISSN 0167-5877Full text not available from this repository.
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2009.08.022
Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) infection in cattle is one of the most complex and persistent problems faced by the cattle industry in Great Britain today. While a number of factors have been identified as increasing the risk of infection, there has been little analysis on the causes of persistent infection within farms. In this article, we use the Cattle Tracing System to examine changes in herd size and VetNet data to correlate herd size with clearance of bTB. We find that the number of active farms fell by 16.3% between 2002 and 2007. The average farm size increased by 17.9% between 2002 and 2005. Using a measure similar to the Critical Community Size, the VetNet data reveal that herd size is positively correlated with disease persistence. Since economic policy and subsidies have been shown to influence farm size, we used a simple financial model for ideal farm size which includes disease burden to conclude that increasing herd size for efficiency gains may contribute to increased disease incidence. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
|Item Type:||Journal Article|
|Subjects:||S Agriculture > SF Animal culture|
|Divisions:||Faculty of Science > Mathematics|
|Journal or Publication Title:||Preventive Veterinary Medicine|
|Official Date:||1 December 2009|
|Number of Pages:||6|
|Page Range:||pp. 360-365|
|Access rights to Published version:||Restricted or Subscription Access|
|Funder:||Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (Great Britain) (BBSRC)|
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The Melting Pot of Nature
John Weeks discusses the many unique and beautiful local plants that are not native to U.S. soil. Weeks explains the multitude of ways these plants arrived in the Americas. Some came to be used for food (Dandelion), while some came because of their pretty appearance (the Daisy). Others weren't actually meant to be brought here at all.
Originally aired on Jun 22, 1984.</s>
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In the increasingly fragmented world of health care, one thing remains constant: family physicians are dedicated to treating the whole person. Family medicine's cornerstone is an ongoing, personal patient-physician relationship focusing on integrated care.
Unlike other specialties that are limited to a particular organ or disease, family medicine integrates care for patients of all genders and every age, and advocates for the patient in a complex health care system.
The AAFP represents 120,900 physicians and student members nationwide. It is the only medical society devoted solely to primary care. Approximately one in four of all office visits are made to family physicians. That is 214 million office visits each year– nearly 74 million more than the next largest medical specialty.
The specialty of family medicine was created in 1969 to fulfill the generalist function in medicine, which suffered with the growth of subspecialization after World War II. Since its creation, the specialty has delivered on its promise to reverse the decline of general medicine and provide personal, front-line medical care to people of all socioeconomic strata and in all regions of the United States.
Today, family physicians provide the majority of care for America’s underserved rural and urban populations. In fact, family physicians are distributed more proportionally to the U.S. population than any other physician specialty. Without family physicians, rural and underserved populations, in particular, would lack access to primary care.
Because of their extensive training, family physicians are the only specialists qualified to treat most ailments and provide comprehensive health care for people of all ages– from newborns to seniors. Like other medical specialists, family physicians complete a three-year residency program after graduating from medical school.
As part of their residency, they participate in integrated inpatient and outpatient learning and receive training in six major medical areas: pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, psychiatry and neurology, surgery, and community medicine. They also receive instruction in many other areas including geriatrics, emergency medicine, ophthalmology, radiology, orthopedics, otolaryngology, and urology.
Family physicians deliver a range of acute, chronic, and preventive medical care services while providing patients with a patient-centered medical home.
In addition to diagnosing and treating illness, they also provide preventive care, including routine checkups, health-risk assessments, immunization and screening tests, and personalized counseling on maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Family physicians also manage chronic illness, often coordinating care provided by other subspecialists. From heart disease, stroke and hypertension, to diabetes, cancer, and asthma, family physicians provide ongoing, personal care for the nation’s most serious health problems.
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Family Medicine Specialty</s>
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What does VECTOR stand for?
What does VECTOR mean? This page is about the various possible meanings of the acronym, abbreviation, shorthand or slang term: VECTOR.
We've found a total of 2 definitions for VECTOR:
What does VECTOR mean?
- a variable quantity that can be resolved into components</s>
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Technology gives eyes the write stuff
Read my eyes People who have lost the ability to use their arms and legs may soon be able to "write" with their eyes with the help of new technology developed in France.
The eye-writing technology tricks the neuromuscular machinery into doing something that is usually impossible: to voluntarily produce smooth eye movements in arbitrary directions.
"For persons deprived of limb movement, this offers a fast, creative, and personal means of linguistic and emotional expression," Dr Jean Lorenceau, director of research at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) says in a paper published today in Current Biology.
Lorenceau's technology uses an infrared eye-tracker mounted on top of the head to record eye movements. Custom software creates an interactive visual display.
After three, 30-minute practice sessions, most people involved in the study could make their eye move smoothly to draw cursive letters, numbers and even their signature on to the screen.
Like invisible ink, they couldn't see their letters but only a series of flickering white and black dots on a grey background.
These dots create an illusion called 'reverse phi motion,' making it seem like the screen is moving in the same direction as the eyes.
It's this illusion that allows people to make smooth eye movements in any direction they like, says Lorenceau.
You can track a moving car smoothly, explains Lorenceau, but with a non-moving background like a building our eyes make jerky movements called saccades as they rush to focus on one spot and then another.
"If you try to smoothly move your eyes, this reveals to be impossible," he says. "The visual system that we have requires a moving target [to make smooth eye movements]."
Training in eye awareness
Generally, people know what they see, but are not aware of how their eyes are moving, says Lorenceau.
"This display is the opposite, you don't pay attention to what you see, but what you do with your eyes," he says.
He speculates that training with the technology could also improve eye control for people with dyslexia and experts who rely on excellent vision such as surgeons and athletes.
However, he is quick to add training did not work with everyone. In the small group of six, only four could master the technique.
Small study looks promising
Associate Professor Mike Horsley, Learning & Teaching Education Research Centre director at CQUniversity, says the research is promising.
"He's thought of this particular issue in saccade movement in a completely different way," he says.
"The next stage for [Lorenceau] and his team is to use more subjects and find out if people can really do it."
Horsley says eye-tracking research is growing with the first EyeTrack Australia Conference held recently and the variety of applications of eye-tracking research "was pretty amazing".</s>
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Stock splits occur when a company decides that their stock price has risen to a level where it is getting harder for investors to buy it in small quantities. Normally a company will replace 1 of its shares with 2 or more new ones (ie 2 for 1 split). For example if the stock price of ABC Incorporated is $300 and the company wants to do a 2 for 1 split then each current share will turn into 2 new shares worth half as much or $150.
The important thing to note is that while the number of shares you own goes up, the value of each share goes down so your total investment will remain the same. Jason Zweig who wrote “Your Money or Your Brain” said very aptly that a stock split is like trading in a dime for two nickels.
Berkshire Hathaway (stock symbol BRK-A) run by Warren Buffet, is a very famous example of a company that has never split its stock. It currently trades for about $95,000 which makes it next to impossible for most investors to buy even 1 share! Fortunately there is a cheaper version of Berkshire Hathaway (called the baby Berk) (stock symbol BRK-B) which trades for a mere $3200.
Reverse stock split
The opposite of a stock split is called a reverse stock split. This is when a company decreases the number of shares and increases the value of each share. This usually happens when a stock has gone down in price. If the shares of a company trades at $0.50 then they might do a 10 to 1 reverse split which means that 10 old shares become 1 new share worth $5.00.
Can mutual funds split too?
In theory, mutual funds can split their unit prices, however since investors can buy partial units of mutual funds, there isn’t really any point in doing so.</s>
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This study is designed to help readers understand what narrative is, how it is constructed, how it acts upon us, how we act upon it, how it is transmitted, and how it changes when the medium or the cultural context change. Porter Abbott emphasizes that narrative is found not only in the arts but everywhere in the ordinary course of people's lives. An indispensable tool for students and teachers alike, this book will guide readers through the fundamental aspects of narrative.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Book Description Cambridge University Press, 2002. Paperback. Book Condition: New. Bookseller Inventory # mon0000099736
Book Description Cambridge University Press, 2002. Book Condition: New. Brand New, Unread Copy in Perfect Condition. A+ Customer Service! Summary: Preface; 1. Narrative and life: The universality of narrative; Narrative and time; Narrative perception; 2. Defining narrative: The bare minimum; Story and narrative discourse; The mediation (construction) of story; Constituent and supplementary events; Narrativity; 3. The borders of narrative: Framing narratives; Paratexts; The outer limits of narrative; Is it narrative or is it life itself?; 4. The rhetoric of narrative: Causation; Normalization; Masterplots; Narrative rhetoric at work; 5. Closure: Conflict: the agon; Closure and endings; Closure, suspense, and surprise; Closure at the level of expectations; Closure at the level of questions; Absence of closure; 6. Narration: a few words on interpretation: The narrator; Voice; Focalization; Distance; Reliability; Free indirect style; Narration on stage and screen; 7. Interpretation: The implied author; Underreading; Overreading; Gaps; Cruxes; Repetition: themes and motifs; 8. Three ways to interpret narrative: The question of wholeness in narrative; Intentional readings; Symptomatic readings; Adaptive readings; 9. Adaptation across media: Adaptation as creative destruction; Duration and pace; Character; Figurative language; Gaps; Focalization; Constraints of the marketplace; 10. Character and self in narrative: Character vs. action; Flat and round characters; Can characters be real?; Types; Autobiography; Life writing as performative; 11. Narrative contestation: A contest of narratives; A narrative lattice-work; Shadow stories; Motivation and personality; Masterplots and types; Revising cultural masterplots; Battling narratives are everywhere; 12. Narrative negotiation; Critical reading as narrative negotiation; Closure one more time; The end of closure?; Glossary; Index. Bookseller Inventory # ABE_book_new_0521659698
Book Description Cambridge University Press, 2002. Paperback. Book Condition: New. Bookseller Inventory # DADAX0521659698
Book Description Paperback. Book Condition: BRAND NEW. NEW Book in Mint Condition -- Great DEAL !! Fast Shipping -- Friendly Customer Service -- Buy with Confidence!. Bookseller Inventory # RP0521659698BN
Book Description Cambridge University Press, 2002. Paperback. Book Condition: New. New item. Bookseller Inventory # QX-030-89-5180505
Book Description Cambridge University Press, 2002. Paperback. Book Condition: New. Bookseller Inventory # P110521659698</s>
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posted on Oct, 11 2012 @ 04:10 PM
This piece is historical, examines religious writings/codes, and speaks of allignments.
The ancients are known to have constructed devices to measure the motions of the planets, as was attested by the discovery of the Antikythera
mechanism in 1900. The Antikythera mechanism, which was discovered in a shipwreck dating to the 1st century BC, is widely acknowledged to be the most
sophisticated technological innovation in antiquity, and considered by many to be the earliest known example of an analog "computer". This device was
primarily used for calculating the movements of the Sun, Moon and five planets - which some archaeologists have proposed were represented on the front
panel of the mechanism by a series of precious gems and metals - much in the way the mountains composed of various gemstones in 1Enoch above may also
have represented certain attributes of the planets.
In his De Re Publica, the Roman historian Cicero mentions that the Greek polymath Archimedes had constructed two different machines for predicting the
movement of the planets. So there were a number of various devices used for measuring the motions of the planets contemporary to the composition of
the Apocalypse, and a perceived relationship between the Menorah and an astronomical orrery is conceivable even in a 1st century AD context. Indeed,
an association between an orrery and the Jewish Menorah was made as early as Clement of Alexandria, who writing circa 200AD, stated that the purpose
of this seven-branched candelabra was to depict the movements of the seven wandering stars:
The lamp, too, was placed to the south of the altar of incense; and by it were shown the motions of the seven planets, that perform their revolutions
towards the south. For three branches rose on either side of the lamp, and lights on them; since also the sun, like the lamp, set in the midst of all
the planets, dispenses with a kind of divine music the light to those above and to those below.
(Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 5:6)
This relates to allignments, and the 7 headed beast, not only the hills of Rome, but the 7 planets, including the moon, that are visible and true
wanderers, the so called wandering stars
For the ancients, the "wandering stars" were the seven visible planets, which unlike the fixed constellations, freely roamed the night-skies in
their own orbit. Indeed the English word "planet" is directly derived from the Greek word πλανήτης, planetes - which means "wanderer". And it
is this word which is used in the original Greek of the Epistle of St. Jude: ἀστέρες πλανῆται, asteres planetai ("wandering stars").
The fact that the mountains/stars in the Book of Enoch are represented by precious stones could further suggest that these stars are in fact planets,
since the seven wandering stars were often associated with gems and precious metals in antiquity.
These stars/planet are connected to the abyss in the writings. And the Menorah or Jewish candelabra, which also gives a sign to an alligment, as it
is held in the right hand of Christ.
I find this very interesting.
Also, The woman clothed in the sun is the sun itself, and under her feet is satan, with the moon and dragon, signifying an eclipse.
Apparently alot of these signs have come to pass with certain allignments already and of course they've been building those underground bases, so we
need to pay attention.
Apparently those in power have long had codes and clues given to them, while we're treated like mushrooms and fed constant BS.
And we know from the writings of the 3rd century BC Babylonian astronomer Berossus that the ancients placed immense symbolic importance in the
occurrence of planetary alignments. Berossus believed that an alignment of the planets in the constellation Cancer would signal the end of the
Berossus... affirms that the whole issue is brought about by the course of the planets. So positive is he that he assigns a definite date both for the
conflagration and the deluge. All that the earth inherits will, he assures us, be consigned to flame when the planets, which now move in different
orbits, all assemble in Cancer, so arranged in one row that a straight line may pass through their spheres. When the same gathering takes place in
Capricorn, then we are in danger of the deluge.
(Berossus Babylonica, cited in Seneca, Naturales Quaestiones, 3. 28 7-3. 29)
Cancer, the Scarab often depicted in Egyptian pictographs.
edit on 11-10-2012 by Unity_99 because: (no reason given)</s>
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Removing corn stover from agricultural fields to produce cellulosic ethanol requires careful management to avoid adding greenhouse gas emissions and soil erosion to the environment, say Purdue University researchers.
Environmental impacts from stover removal can be reduced by switching to no-till corn or adding winter cover crops, but these practices likely would increase production costs, researchers reported in a study.
"Some crop rotation and tillage combinations are more environmentally benign than others," said Ben Gramig, a Purdue agricultural economist and the study's lead researcher. "But there are water quality and greenhouse gas tradeoffs when collecting stover."
Stover is the parts of a corn plant that remain after grain harvest. Greenhouse gases from cropfields are released into the atmosphere when carbon escapes disturbed soils during stover removal. Emissions also occur when nitrogen fertilizer is applied to the land or crop residues decompose. Plowing fields loosens soil and, when combined with removing stover, causes increased soil erosion.
Federal law requires 16 billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol be produced each year as part of the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard. One RFS goal is to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases are believed to contribute to climate change.
The Purdue study, "Environmental and Economic Trade-Offs in a Watershed When Using Corn Stover for Bioenergy," examined the environmental effects and costs of stover collection from eight corn-soybean rotation and continuous corn systems in a watershed typical of the eastern Corn Belt. The comparisons were made by combining results from watershed and greenhouse gas computer simulation models and minimizing the cost of stover collection, to select which farming practices to use in an agricultural watershed.
In their analysis, Gramig, Purdue agricultural and biological engineer Indrajeet Chaubey and graduate researchers Cibin Raj and Carson Reeling found that a continuous corn system - corn grown on the same land year after year - planted with conventional tillage and removing 52 percent of the stover from the field released the most greenhouse gas and soil sediment per acre: 3.5 tons and 1.1 ton, respectively. That same acre of land yielded 2.7 tons of stover.
If all the nitrogen contained in the stover that is removed must be replaced and there is more continuous corn cultivation, researchers found that greenhouse gas emissions from cropland may increase.
At the low end of the environmental impact scale, a no-till corn-soybean rotation where 38 percent of the stover was removed emitted 2.7 tons of carbon dioxide per acre and yielded 2 tons of stover.
"Combining no-till with continuous corn cultivation when stover is removed was capable of slightly lower sediment loss than the baseline today without any stover removal," Gramig said. "Introducing cover crops or replacing nitrogen that is removed with stover at lower rates was not considered in our study but should further reduce environmental impacts. These practices require additional study and would involve offsetting costs and savings."
Perhaps not surprisingly, researchers found that removing stover increased production costs over the predominant corn-soybean rotation in place today. Most of that cost is attributed to replacing nitrogen contained in stover. Stover removal was found to have the lowest cost when collected from corn grown in rotation with soybeans.
"For a given crop rotation and tillage system, as we simulated an increase in the rate of stover removal we found an increase in loss of sediment from crop fields, an increase in greenhouse gas flux to the atmosphere and a reduction in nitrate and total phosphorus delivered to waterways," Gramig said. "While optimizing production to maximize stover harvest at the lowest possible cost may lead to a reduction in nutrients delivered to rivers and streams, this comes at the expense of increased soil erosion and greenhouse gas emissions."
More study is needed to identify less environmentally harmful stover removal practices, Gramig said.
"In the meantime, farmers can use no-till to reduce the amount of sediment loss," he said. "Additional practices, such as the use of cover crops, are going to be necessary if we want to try to reduce greenhouse gas loss. We also need to determine what the correct nitrogen replacement rate is to maintain long-term soil productivity while minimizing nitrogen loss, whether to the atmosphere or to waterways."
"Environmental and Economic Trade-Offs in a Watershed When Using Corn Stover for Bioenergy" appears in the January 2013 issue of Environmental Science & Technology. It is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es303459h.</s>
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In the American experience, anti-Semitic decrees have been virtually unthinkable. Religious liberty is enshrined in the Constitution, and early in his presidency George Washington went out of his way to assure the young nation's Jews that "the Government of the United States … gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance." During the long centuries of Jewish exile, powerful officials had often promulgated sweeping edicts depriving Jews of their rights or driving them from their homes. In America, that could never happen.
But 150 years ago this month, it did.
In December 1862, with the Civil War raging, the Union Army's efforts to control the movement of Southern cotton was bedeviled by illegal speculation and black marketeers. Like many of his contemporaries, Major General Ulysses S. Grant – then commanding a vast geographic swath called the Department of the Tennessee – shared a crude stereotype of all Jews as avaricious, corner-cutting swindlers. That ugly prejudice boiled over in General Orders No. 11, the most infamous anti-Semitic injunction in American history: "The Jews, as a class violating every regulation of trade established by the Treasury Department and also department orders, are hereby expelled from this department within 24 hours from the receipt of this order."
The region commanded by Grant was home to several thousand Jews (including men in uniform serving under him). Fortunately, General Orders No. 11 had little direct impact on most of them. Jews were driven out of Paducah, Ky., and some towns in Mississippi and Tennessee, and there were accounts of Jewish travelers being imprisoned and roughed up. But a breakdown in military communications slowed the spread of Grant's directive, and at least some officers had qualms about enforcing it. Brigadier General Jeremiah C. Sullivan, the Union commander of Jackson, Tenn., commented tartly that "he thought he was an officer of the Army and not of a church."
What stopped the expulsion order cold, however, was the commander-in-chief. When word of Grant's edict reached President Lincoln on January 3, 1863, he immediately countermanded it. "To condemn a class is, to say the least, to wrong the good with the bad," the president declared. "I do not like to hear a class or nationality condemned on account of a few sinners."
End of the story? In some ways it was just the beginning.
As historian Jonathan Sarna relates in a recent book, When General Grant Expelled the Jews, Grant's order did his military career no harm. Within a few years he was commander of all Union armies and the Confederate surrender at Appomattox made him a national hero. He was elected president in 1868, and re-elected four years later.
For the rest of his life, Grant was ashamed of having attempted to evict "Jews as a class" for offenses most of them had never committed.
Yet for the rest of his life, Grant was ashamed of having attempted to evict "Jews as a class" for offenses most of them had never committed. "What his wife, Julia, called 'that obnoxious order' continued to haunt Grant up to his death," Sarna writes. "The sense that in expelling them he had failed to live up to his own high standards of behavior, and to the Constitution that he had sworn to uphold, gnawed at him. He apologized for the order publicly and repented of it privately."
Not surprisingly, Grant's order got a good deal of attention in the 1868 presidential campaign – the first time a "Jewish issue" played a role in presidential politics. Grant didn't deny that General Orders No. 11 had grossly violated core American values. "I do not sustain that order," he wrote humbly. "It would never have been issued if it had not been telegraphed the moment it was penned, and without reflection."
But it was as president that the full extent of Grant's regret became clear. He opposed a movement to make the United States an explicitly Christian state through a constitutional amendment designating Jesus as "Ruler among the nations." He named more Jews to government office than any of his predecessors – including to positions, such as governor of the Washington Territory, previously considered too lofty for a Jewish nominee.
Grant became the first American president to openly speak out against the persecution of Jews abroad. In response to anti-Jewish pogroms in Romania, he took the unprecedented step of sending a Jewish consul-general to Bucharest to "work for the benefit of the people who are laboring under severe oppression." All in all, the eight years of Grant's presidency proved to be a "golden age" in US Jewish history. When he died in 1885, he was mourned in synagogues nationwide.
It was a remarkable saga of atonement. From scourge of the Jews to their great friend in Washington; from the general who trampled Jewish liberty to the president who made protection of their rights a priority. Only in America.
This article original appeared in the Boston Globe.</s>
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Israel’s First Nobel LaureateJun 14, 2012 at 05:11:55 PM
Israelis have won an astounding 10 Nobel prizes. Can you guess which categories?
What probably first comes to mind are the peace prizes: Menachem Begin, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres.
Next obvious is in economics and the sciences - another six Israeli winners.
But the first Israeli to win a Nobel Prize was author Shai Agnon, who received the 1966 Nobel Prize in Literature.
This month marks the 100th year anniversary of the 1912 publication of Agnon's first book, "And the Crooked Shall Be Made Straight." Agnon House in Jerusalem is commemorating this landmark during the coming months with lectures and study sessions for students and tourists. Agnon House is open to the general public where visitors can learn more about the life and works of Agnon as well as visit his library of over 8,000 books, some of which date back to the 16th century.
Agnon was born in Ukraine, the son of an ordained rabbi. At age 20 he moved to Israel and adopted a secular way of life. Shortly afterwards, he returned to Jewish tradition and remained an observant Jew for the rest of his life. His writings deal with the conflict between Jewish tradition and the modern world. His books range from rabbinic lore and chassidic tales, to gothic romances and psychological dramas.
It is remarkable that Agnon was awarded a Nobel Prize for literature in Hebrew, given that much of his writing career was prior to the State of Israel, when Hebrew was primarily still a language of prayer and Torah study.
In his speech at the Nobel award ceremony, Agnon introduced himself in Hebrew: "As a result of the historic catastrophe in which Titus of Rome destroyed Jerusalem and Israel was exiled from its land, I was born in one of the cities of the Exile. But always I regarded myself as one who was born in Jerusalem."
For anyone who's been to Israel, you will recognize Agnon as the person featured on the 50-shekel bill. The design includes an excerpt from his Nobel Prize acceptance speech.</s>
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The site includes several java applets to investigate Graphs of Functions, Equations, and Algebra as well as
HTML5 Applets for iPads
. Topics explored are: equations of line, ellipse, circle, parabola, hyperbola, polynomials; graphs of quadratic, rational, hyperbolic, exponential and logarithmic functions; one-to-one and inverse functions and inverse trigonometric functions; systems of linear equations; determinants and Cramer's rule; inverse matrix and matrix multiplication; vectors, complex numbers, polar equations; absolute value function; slope of a line; angle in trigonometry, unit circle, solutions to trigonometric equations; graph shifting, stretching, compression and reflection. Applets used as Online Math Calculators and Solvers and Online Geometry Calculators and Solvers are also included.
Calculus Tutorials and Problems and Questions with answers on topics such as limits, derivatives, integrals, natural logarithm, runge kutta method in differential equations, the mean value theorem and the use of differentiation and integration rules are also included. Free Calculus Worksheets to Download are included in this website.
Trigonometry Tutorials and Problems for Self Tests on sine, cosine, tangent, secant functions, trigonometric identities and formulas are also included. Free trigonometry worksheets to download are in this site. Interactive Geometry Tutorials and Problems on topics such as reflection across a line, sine and cosine laws, central and inscribed angles, perpendicular bisector, medians and circumcircle of a triangle are also included. Free Geometry Worksheets to Download are also included. Each math topic is explored interactively and graphically through tutorials .
Math problems and Algebra Questions and problems for self tests,free math worksheets to download, analytical tutorials with examples and detailed solutions on: algebra; solving equation and inequalities; domain and range; composition of functions; solving exponential, logarithmic and trigonometric equations; graphs of trigonometric and exponential functions; equations of line, parabola, circle, hyperbola and graphing of linear, quadratic, rational, sine, logarithmic, exponential and absolute value functions are included.
Free Practice for SAT, ACT and Compass Math tests with answers are presented.
Elementary statistics and probability tutorials are also included.
All applets used to explore topics in mathematics in this site are grouped as online math software.
Examples related to the applications of mathematics in physics and engineering such as the projectile problem, distance-time-rate problems and cycloid are included. Math Videos are also included.
Primary, grades 4 and 5, Middle school , grades 6,7,8 and 9 and High School Math, grades 10, 11 and 12 exercises and problems with answers are included.
This page has also been translated into Spanish, Arabic, French, Italian, German,
Czech, Turkish, Dutch, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Portuguese, Persian, Indonesian.
Several java applets to describe the mathematical properties of Antennas are also included.
If needed, Free graph paper is available.
How to enable ( if it is not already ) your browser to view java applets?</s>
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Alaska Church Records
From Ancestry.com Wiki
This entry was originally written by Dwight A. Radford in Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources.
Alaska is home to many different faiths. Because of the lack of early Alaska vital records, church records should not be overlooked as a major record source. Before the twentieth century the Russian Orthodox Church was the largest religious organization in Alaska. Other large denominations include the Episcopal, Methodist, Moravian, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons).
Many church registers have been collected by the Alaska Bureau of Vital Statistics and used to compile delayed birth certificates. Once the certificate has been generated, the use of the information is stipulated by the Bureau of Vital Statistics just like any other birth record.
The Russian Orthodox Church, Diocese of Alaska, gave their record archives to the Library of Congress in 1927. These valuable records were in turn translated from Russian, indexed, and microfilmed. This vast collection of 401 rolls of microfilm is inventoried in the volume entitled Inventory: The Alaskan Russian Church Archives (Washington, D.C.: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, 1984). Microfilm copies of the Russian Orthodox Church Archives are available at the National Archives—Pacific Alaska Region; the University of Alaska, Rasmuson Library, Fairbanks, Alaska; the Alaska State Library, Juneau; University of Alaska Library in Anchorage; and the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City. An index of early Russian Orthodox parish registers is found in John Dorosh, Index to Baptisms, Marriages and Deaths in the Archives of the Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in Alaska, 1816–1886 (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1973).
The Roman Catholic Church officially arrived in the Alaska territory in 1902 through efforts of the Sisters of Providence. They were responsible for establishing hospitals in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Nome. The Sisters of Providence Archives is located at 4800 37th Ave. S.W., Seattle, WA 90126-2793 <www.providence.org/home/default.htm>. This archives houses the hospital records of Providence Hospital of Anchorage (1938-present); St. Joseph Hospital in Fairbanks (1910–68), and Holy Cross Hospital in Nome (1902–14).
There is no central repository for Alaskan Catholic parish registers and most are still in the custody of the local parish. There are three dioceses in Alaska: Diocese of Juneau, 415 Sixth St., Ste. 300, Juneau, AK 99801-1091 <www.dioceseofjuneau.org>; Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks, 1316 Peger Rd., Fairbanks, AK 99709-5199 <www.cbna.info> and the Archdiocese of Anchorage, 225 Cordova St., Anchorage, AK 99501 <www.archdioceseofanchorage.org>.
Moravian Church records have mainly been deposited in Bethel, Alaska. Contact Alaska Moravian Church, P.O. Box 312, Bethel, AK 99559 <www.alaskamoravian.org>. The records for the Moravian Church at Aleknagik and Dillingham are at the Dillingham Moravian Church, P.O. Box 203, Dillingham, AK 99576. Recent church records are held by the pastor in charge of a district within the church.
Presbyterian ministers arrived in Alaska during the 1870s. Mission work was conducted at Fort Wrangel and Sitka. The Presbyterian Church records through 1965 are deposited at the Presbyterian Historical Society, 425 Lombard St., Philadelphia, PA 19147 <www.history.pcusa.org>.
The Alaska Friends Church is largely Native American. Alaska Quaker records are included in the “Alaska Quaker Documents Collection” on file at the Alaska and Polar Regions Collection at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. See also:
Roberts, Arthur O. Tomorrow Is Growing Old: Stories of the Quakers in Alaska. Newberg, Ore.: The Barclay Press, 1978.</s>
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July 31, 2007 (Computerworld)
-- Some home and office laser printers pose serious health risks and may spew out as much particulate matter as a cigarette smoker inhales, an Australian air quality researcher said today.
The study, set to appear tomorrow in the online edition of the American Chemical Society's Environmental Science & Technology
(ES&T) journal, measured particulate output of 62 laser printers, including models from name brands such as Canon
. Particle emissions, believed to be toner -- the finely-ground powder used to form images and characters on paper -- were measured in an open office floor plan, then ranked.
Lidia Morawska and colleagues at the Queensland University of Technology
, classified 17 of the 62 printers, or 27%, as "high particle emitters"; one of the 17 pumped out particulates at a rate comparable with emissions from cigarette smoking, the study said.
Two printers released medium levels of particulates, six issued low levels, and 37 -- or about 60% of those tested -- released no particles at all.
Morawska called the emissions "a significant health threat" because of the particles' small size, which makes them easy to inhale and easily lodged in the deepest and smallest passageways of the lungs. The effects, she said, can range from simple irritation to much more serious illnesses, including cardiovascular problems or cancer. "Even very small concentrations can be related to health hazards," said Morawska. "Where the concentrations are significantly elevated means there is potentially a considerable hazard."
The research also found that office particulate levels increased fivefold during work hours because of laser printers. Generally, more particles were emitted when the printer was using a new toner cartridge, and when printing graphics or photographs that require larger amounts of toner than, say, text.
Morawska recommended that people make sure rooms at work and home with laser printers are well ventilated.
Specific printer results were not released today, but will be listed in the published study when it goes live tomorrow on the ES&T site</s>
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The vigorous culture war being waged in America over homosexuality and same-sex marriage is escalating. One by one, the dominoes continue to fall, softening attitudes and creating more acceptance for behavior that the Founders and the bulk of the American population once deemed morally deplorable. Two cases in point: dozens of homosexual and lesbian couples with children crashed the annual White House Easter egg hunt—a tradition held each year on the White House lawn since 1878. To identify themselves, the couples wore rainbow colored leis around their necks. Their stated purpose was “to make their presence felt in American society” (“Gay Parents...,” 2006). The organizing entity, Family Pride Coalition, explained that they were helping the President to “understand that gay families exist in this country and deserve the rights and protections that all families need” (“White House...,” 2006).
Another case in point: A second grade teacher at Estabrook Elementary in Lexington, Massachusetts recently read a fairytale book to her class. The fairytale book was not the Grimm brothers’ Cinderella or Hansel and Gretel. Nor was it Hans Christian Andersen’s The Emperor’s New Clothes or The Princess and the Pea. No, not hardly. It was King and King—a book about two princes who marry each other, acquire children, and are shown kissing on the last page. The book targets children ages six and older. The Lexington Superintendent of Schools boasts that the school system is committed to “diversity and tolerance” and maintains that he has no legal obligation to notify parents when children are being exposed to such material since same-sex marriage is now legal in Massachusetts (Jan, 2006). Of course, the Left Coast 9th Circuit Court of Appeals had already ruled that parents do not have a fundamental right to control when, where, and how their children are taught about sex (Parker, 2005).
Most Americans are unaware that the public school system is being inundated with educational materials that promote the homosexual agenda, materials that are specifically designed to prepare the next generation to embrace homosexuality. The public school system is being systematically rearranged to eliminate parents from the loop so that they will cease “interfering” with educators who seek to indoctrinate children with their anti-Christian values. The books appearing in various school libraries around the country are legion, including And Tango Makes Three; Heather Has Two Mommies; Daddy’s Roommate; Jack and Jim: Picture Book; One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads; The Sissy Duckling; Who’s in a Family?; Molly’s Family; It’s Perfectly Normal; Best, Best Colors; and My Two Uncles. Imagine what America is going to be like 10 to 15 years from now when the children nurtured by such books are adults. (Parents may want to give more consideration to homeschooling).
Christians and others who continue to oppose homosexuality will remain the objects of abuse, ridiculed as “homophobic,” “intolerant,” and “judgmental.” But “we ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). The Bible is still the inspired Word of God. The Creator has said that same-sex relations are sinful (Romans 1:24-28). The spread of such behavior will result in national destruction, as recognized by the great English jurist, William Blackstone (who exerted a profound influence on the Founding Fathers and American jurisprudence):
[T]he infamous crime against nature...is an offence of so dark a nature.... THIS the voice of nature and of reason, and the express law of God, determine to be capital. Of which we have a signal instance, long before the Jewish dispensation, by the destruction of two cities by fire from heaven: so that this is an universal, not merely a provincial, precept (1769, 4.15.215-216).
[NOTE: As soon as funds are available, Apologetics Press plans to publish an outstanding children’s book that counters the onslaught of the homosexual’s war on America’s youth titled: Does God Love Michael’s Two Daddies?]
Blackstone, William (1769), Commentaries on the Laws of England, [On-line], URL: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/blackstone/bk4ch15.htm.
“Gay Parents Quietly Crash White House Easter Party” (2006), Yahoo News, April 17, [On-line], URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060417/ts_alt_afp/u spoliticseaster_060417200009.
Jan, Tracy (2006), “Parents Rip School Over Gay Storybook,” Boston Globe, April 20, [On-line], URL: http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/04/20/parents_rip_school _over_gay_storybook/.
Parker, Kathleen (2005), “Parents Take Another Hit in the Culture Wars,” Orlando Sentinel, G3, November 6, [On-line], URL: http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/orlandosentinel/access/922392231.html?dids= 922392231:922392231&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Nov+6%2C+2005&author=Kathl een+Parker%2C+Sentinel+Columnist&pub=Orlando+Sentinel&edition=&startpag e=G.3&desc=Parents+take+another+hit+in+the+culture+wars.
“White House Easter: Gay Friendly?” (2006), CBS News, April 13, [On-line], URL: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/13/national/main 1496408.shtml.</s>
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A new resource from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) explains the A1C test to diagnose type 2 diabetes and prediabetes, and to monitor blood glucose levels of people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
The A1C Test and Diabetes fact sheet covers a wide range of information, including:
Originally, the A1C test had been recommended only for monitoring diabetes. But in 2009, an international committee of experts convened by the American Diabetes Association, International Diabetes Federation, and European Association for the Study of Diabetes recommended expanding the use of the test to include diagnosing type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. Because the A1C test does not require fasting, experts hope more people will be checked for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.
The standard blood glucose tests for diagnosing type 2 diabetes and prediabetes—the fasting plasma glucose test and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)—measure blood glucose in a person who has not eaten anything for at least 8 hours. The OGTT also measures blood glucose 2 hours after a person drinks a glucose-containing beverage. To confirm positive results, people should return on a different day to repeat the tests. The A1C test should also be repeated to confirm a diagnosis.
Physical therapists who manage patients with diabetes can find APTA's Pocket Guide: Physical Fitness and Type 2 Diabetes on the Physical Fitness for Special Populations Web page.
American Physical Therapy Association | 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-1488 703/684-APTA (2782) | 800/999-2782 | 703/683-6748 (TDD) | 703/684-7343 (fax)
Contact Us | For Advertisers & Exhibitors | For Media | Follow APTA
All contents © 2014 American Physical Therapy Association. All Rights Reserved.</s>
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How to Use NARA's Census Microfilm Catalogs
If you know the state, county, and town in which your ancestor lived in the census year, go to the microfilm catalog. Locate the census year, state, and county from the list. This shows the microfilm publication number and roll number. For example, The 1790-1890 Federal Population Censuses: Catalog of National Archives Microfilm (Washington, DC: National Archives Trust Fund Board, 1993), shows that the 1860 census for Medina County, Ohio, is on roll number 1007 of microfilm publication M653, Eighth Census of the United States, 1860. (The microfilm publication number and title is shown at the beginning of the listings for the 1860 census--just before Alabama.)
Microfilmed Indexes, 1880-1930
Microfilmed indexes are available for these censuses. Microfilmed indexes for the 1880 and 1900-1930 censuses use the soundex indexing system. Read How the Soundex Indexing System Works for instructions.
The microfilmed index to the 1890 census is arranged alphabetically by surname, thereunder by first name.
Published indexes to the 1790-1870 censuses have been published by various private companies; these can be found at many public libraries and other institutions with large genealogical collections.
The 1880 census is indexed only for families with children age 10 years or younger. If your ancestor resided in a household that did not include a child age 10 or less, you will have to search the census of the community in which he/she lived line by line.
This census is indexed by microfilm publication M496, Index to the Eleventh Census of the United States, 1890, Roll 1 (surnames A-J), Roll 2 (surnames K-Z). A Department of Commerce fire in 1921 destroyed most of the 1890 census.
There is a soundex index for all states.
There is a soundex index for only the following states:
Alabama Missouri Arkansas North Carolina California Ohio Florida Oklahoma Georgia Pennsylvania Illinois South Carolina Kansas Tennessee Kentucky Texas Louisiana Virginia Michigan West Virginia Mississippi
If your ancestor lived in a state for which there is no soundex for 1910, you will have to search the census of the community in which he/she lived line by line.
There is a soundex index for all states.
There is a soundex index for the following areas only:
Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky (only counties of Bell, Floyd, Harlan, Kenton, Muhlenberg, Perry and Pike), Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia (only counties of Fayette, Harrison, Kanawha, Logan, McDowell, Mercer, and Raleigh).
How to Use Soundex Microfilm
Go to the catalog for the appropriate census year (1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, or 1930), then find the state, microfilm publication number, and roll containing the soundex code. Note that only the beginning and ending soundex codes contained on each roll are shown. For example, The 1920 Federal Population Censues: Catalog of National Archives Microfilm (Washington, DC: National Archives Trust Fund Board, 1995), the shows that, for California for 1920 soundex code A-266 is included on microfilm publication M1551, Index (Soundex) to the 1920 Federal Population Census Schedules for California, roll 3, because roll 3 begins at A-246 Nathan and ends with A-350 Douranana.
Special Note: Within each soundex code, the microfilmed index cards are arranged alphabetically by name of head of household, such as A-266 Albert, A-266 Ann, A-266 Arthur, etc.
For additional information how to use the soundex indexes and census schedules, read the on-line introductory material to each census microfilm catalog.
Once you have located a soundex index card for the person or household in which you are interested, note the following information: county of residence; city, town, village, or township of residence; and the four numbers located in the upper right hand corner of the index card: volume number, enumeration district (E.D.) number, sheet number, and line number. Use the county name and enumeration district number to determine which roll of census microfilm you need. For example, for 1920 only, Los Angeles County, CA, Enumeration Districts 1-11, 13, 14, 33-37, and 16-32 are located in microfilm publication T625, Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920, roll 102, while other enumeration districts for that county are located on rolls 103-120.
Note that the soundex indexes and census schedules are on microfilm; you will not be able to search them on-line. Census microfilm is also widely available at public libraries, state archives, and other institutions with large genealogical collections.</s>
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The Christmas shearwater is not currently considered to be threatened with extinction (1).
However, introduced and invasive species threaten Christmas shearwater populations by predating the eggs, chicks and adults, as well as by causing habitat degradation and increasing competition for space and suitable nesting locations. In addition, human activities such as development and recreation close to nesting colonies may threaten the Christmas shearwater by causing disturbance to nesting birds and resulting in increased nest desertion (2).
Other threats to the Christmas shearwater include its exploitation for food on some Pacific islands, as well as pollution, ingestion of plastics, which may lead to starvation, and increasing levels of light pollution, which may cause the Christmas shearwater to become disorientated and confused. Collision with longline fishing gear is a major cause of mortality, while overfishing of important predatory fish may lead to reduced foraging success of seabirds such as the Christmas shearwater, which rely on larger fish to drive prey to the surface (2).
Climate change, in particular rising sea levels, is also likely to affect Christmas shearwater populations in the future, as many colonies exist on small, low-lying oceanic islets which are increasingly at risk from exceptional weather and ocean events such as El Niño, hurricanes, typhoons, and tsunamis (2).</s>
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|Print this page|
Metis National Council
|Sub Category:||Representative Body|
|Location:||Northwest Territories, Canada|
|Subject Matter:||Cultural Heritage | Economic Development | Education | Employment and Training | Health and Community Services | Research | Local Government | Self Government|
|Summary Information: |
|The Metis National Council (MNC) was established in 1983 and is the national representative of the Metis Nation in Canada. It has represented the Metis Nation in national constitutional negotiations resulting in the proposals of the Charlottetown Accord, and presently represents the Metis people in negotiations with the Canadian Government. It also acts as a representative for the Metis people in the international arena.|
|Detailed Information: |
|The mandate and objectives of the MNC are to:|
Represent and promote the interests of the Metis people;
Restore Metis lands and resources for future generations;
Achieve full recognition of the Metis Nation and its jurisdiction within the Canadian federal system;
Pursue cooperative relations with other Canadian governments and peoples;
Promote progress and prosperity for Metis people in matters social, cultural, economic and political;
Achieve self-sufficiency for Metis people and institutions;
Maintain and promote individual rights of Metis people; and
Maintain the independence and integrity of the Metis Nation.
The Metis National Council is structured at the local, regional and national levels. It comprises five provincial organisations which include the Metis Provincial Council of British Columbia, the Metis Nation of Alberta, the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan, the Manitoba Metis Federation and the Metis Nation of Ontario. Each provincial association includes smaller regional councils composed of local community councils. The members of the provincial councils are elected representatives.
The MNC itself is governed by the National President and a Board of Governors composed of Presidents of the provincial associations. This group oversees the affairs of the MNC and is assisted in the task by a small permanent secretariat situated in Ottawa.
Some of the matters around which the MNC is presently developing initiatives include culture and heritage, economic development, health, homelessness, Michif language revival, youth, and disability issues.
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Thousands of Americans are still being infected by their food every year, and infections from only one germ among 80 tracked by government officials dropped significantly in 2013, according to new data from U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The rate of Salmonella infections dropped by about 9 percent compared with the previous three years, though it was unchanged from 2006-2008, baseline years used for comparison.
But campylobacter infections mostly from dairy and chicken are up 13 percent since 2006-2008. Rates of Vibrio infection linked to raw shellfish were at their highest level since tracking began in 1996, though infections from most severe Virbio bacteria, Vibrio vulnificus, remained steady.
Other foodborne infections have not changed since the 2006-2008 period.
“CDC data are essential to gauge how we’re doing in our fight against foodborne illness,” said Dr. Robert Tauxe, deputy director of CDC’s Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases. “This year’s data show some recent progress in reducing salmonella rates, and also highlight that our work to reduce the burden of foodborne illness is far from over.”
In 2013, more than 19,000 foodborne infections were reported, 4,200 of which required hospitalization. There were 80 deaths from nine germs, logged by FoodNet, a network comprised of the CDC, 10 state health departments, the U.S. Department of Food Safety and Inspection Service and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It covers about 15 percent of the American population, including Marylanders.
Officials say, however, that there are many more cases that are not reported.
Federal officials are producing new rules to reduce risk of infection from food, such as chicken parts, officials said. Other regulations are in the works for produce farms, food facilities, food importers, food transporters and third-party certification bodies. Officials also urged Americans to protect themselves by cooking food properly, washing produce, using clean surfaces and being mindful of risks from unpasteurized milk and raw oysters.
For more information, go to www.foodsafety.gov.
Copyright © 2015, The Baltimore Sun</s>
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The State Department revealed this month that the United States has detained more than 200 children at its military prison in Afghanistan. I represent one of them, a boy who left his parents' home in Karachi, Pakistan in July 2008, when he was 14, on a trip to his grandparents' house in western Pakistan. He was allegedly captured in Afghanistan a few weeks later and has been "detained" at Bagram Air Force Base ever since. What frustrates me about the State Department report is not the number of children detained, but that the U.S. won't let me or other lawyers make a case that these children should be released. According to the U.S., the children can make that case themselves — perhaps with the assistance of a military "personal representative" — but not with the help of a parent, guardian, friend or lawyer.
The detention of children during armed conflict is not new. It has occurred for many reasons, sometimes to protect the child from society and other times to protect society from the child. Since the end of World War II, however, a consensus has emerged that children caught up in armed conflict are usually victims. Over the last 60 years, civilized societies have adopted an array of principles, laws and treaties to protect children from war.
The United States is sometimes a leader of this movement and sometimes a perplexing resister. It has ratified and implemented the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, which prevents recruitment and use of child soldiers, and it is often a strong voice in enforcing the Protocol. But unlike nearly 100 other countries (including Afghanistan, China and Sudan) the U.S. has not endorsed the Paris Commitments, which urge prompt release of all children recruited or used illegally in armed conflict. State Department officials no doubt can reconcile these positions, but the message heard by much of the world is that detention of children involved in armed conflict is wrong — when other nations do it.
One way to change that message is to ensure that children detained by the U.S. military have a fair opportunity to prove that they should be released. A number of lawyers have argued that federal courts should provide that opportunity through their power to issue writs of habeas corpus. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is enshrined in our Constitution and dates back much further. The Supreme Court has recognized that habeas rights extend to foreigners detained as combatants at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Thus far, however, courts have not extended habeas rights to detainees, child or adult, held in Afghanistan.
Instead, according to the State Department's recent report, detainees are given "periodic administrative hearings" before military officers at the prison in Afghanistan. A military personal representative is assigned to help, but the detainee "may elect to represent" himself. If you've raised a 14-year old or been one yourself, you probably wouldn't be satisfied with either option. Children are ill-suited to represent themselves, if not legally incompetent to do so. In most legal proceedings, particularly those considering deprivation of a child's liberty, children participate through a parent or guardian, or a lawyer, or both. Military representatives cannot perform either role; they are not trained as guardians and they lack the incentive, professional obligation and perspective of a retained lawyer. And leaving a 14-year old child to present his own case — from a prison cell in a foreign land — is a perversion of any modern system of justice.
Why would the outcome be different if the detainee could present his case to a neutral tribunal through private counsel? It might not be. But if a fair tribunal concludes that a particular child should be detained, the outcome would be morally defensible, both here and abroad. On the other hand, a lawyer may convince the tribunal that the child is not culpable, and thus not detainable, at least in part because he is a child — a possibility that the United States military appears to foreclose. If our nation claims authority to detain "child soldiers" as young as 14 or 12 or 10, often for many years, it has a moral obligation to defend that position before a neutral judge in a fair proceeding.
Some humanitarians believe civilizations can be measured in part by how they treat their children. A more telling measure may be how they treat other civilizations' children taken into custody. Surely a nation as powerful as the United States can do better than asking these children to be their own lawyers.
John J. Connolly is a partner in a downtown Baltimore law firm. His email is [email protected] © 2015, The Baltimore Sun</s>
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Would you like some help understanding the Sermon on the Mount? If so, please CLICK HERE to read a verse by verse commentary of the Sermon on the Mount.
SOURCE: THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW
DATE WRITTEN : 63 AD
1And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Believers Are Salt and Light
13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
14"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
Christ Fulfills the Law
17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
Murder Begins in the Heart
21 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, "You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' 22But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, "Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, "You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire. 23Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
26Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.
Adultery in the Heart
27 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, "You shall not commit adultery.'
28But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
Marriage Is Sacred and Binding
31 "Furthermore it has been said, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' 32But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
Jesus Forbids Oaths
33 "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, "You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' 34But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37But let your "Yes' be "Yes,' and your "No,' "No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
Go the Second Mile
38 "You have heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' 39But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
Love Your Enemies
43 "You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Do Good to Please God
1"Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.
The Model Prayer
5"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
8"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us this day our daily bread.
12And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
14"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Fasting to Be Seen Only by God
16 "Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
Lay Up Treasures in Heaven
19 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Lamp of the Body
22 "The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
You Cannot Serve God and Riches
24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
Do Not Worry
25 "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
27Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
28"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31"Therefore do not worry, saying, "What shall we eat?' or "What shall we drink?' or "What shall we wear?' 32For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Do Not Judge
1 "Judge not, that you be not judged. 2For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
4Or how can you say to your brother, "Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.
6"Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking
7 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! 12Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow Way
13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
You Will Know Them by Their Fruits
15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in
sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16You
will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or
figs from thistles? 17Even so, every good tree bears good
fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot
bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
I Never Knew You
21 "Not everyone who says to Me, "Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22Many will say to Me in that day, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' 23And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'
Build on the Rock
24 "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26"But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."
28And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
New King James Version: Thomas Nelson Publisher</s>
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A new study out of the University of Texas found that the small quakes started happening after there were large amounts of CO2 and other gases injected underground to boost oil production.
The study says that the Cogdell oil field, which is north of Snyder, has these gas-injection wells. And, many of the earthquakes reported in that area have been north of Snyder.
According to the study, a total of 93 earthquakes stronger than magnitude one-point-five have hit the Cogdell area between March 2009 and December 2010, so that number is not counting the more than a dozen others that have happened since then.
The study found that there was a positive correlation between the amount of gas that was injected underground, to the number of quakes in the area.
However, researchers did say similar amounts of CO2 injections under ground in other parts of the world did not cause quakes.
Copyright 2015 Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.</s>
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Many people working for justice today stand on the shoulders of Martin Luther King Jr. However, King’s vision of justice is often gravely limited and misunderstood. Too many people thought then, and continue to think, that King's statements regarding justice were only about race and the African-American community. However, we fail to see how King's vision of justice was far wider and challenging that we might have once imagined.
For King, justice was more than a racial issue, more than a legal or moral issue. Justice was a human issue. And this was evident in King's passionate concern about a wide range of concerns: "The revolution for human rights is opening up unhealthy areas in American life and permitting a new and wholesome healing to take place," King once told a racially mixed audience. "Eventually the civil rights movement will have contributed infinitely more to the nation than the eradication of racial injustice."
Moral leadership played a profound role in the justice work that King did. He argued that true moral leadership must involve itself in the situations of all who are damned, disinherited, disrespected and dispossessed, and moral leadership must be part of a participatory government that is feverishly working to dismantle the existing discriminatory laws that truncate full participation in the fight to advance democracy. Surely part of our job, in keeping King's dream alive, is to also work to dismantle discriminatory laws and dehumanizing structures.
However, if King were among us today, he would say that it is not enough to look outside ourselves to see the places where society is broken, like our institutions and workplaces that fracture and separate people based on race, religion, gender and sexual orientation. We must also look at the ways we manifest these bigotries.
Often, we find that these institutions and workplaces are broken, dysfunctional and wounded in the very same ways that we are; thus, being mirrors not of whom we want to be, but who we really are.
King would remind us that we cannot heal the world if we have not healed ourselves. So perhaps the greatest task, and the most difficult work we must do in light of King's teachings, is to heal ourselves in relationship to our justice work in the world.
In "The Old Man and the Sea," Ernest Hemingway said that the world breaks us all, but some of us grow strong in those broken places. King's teachings invites us to grow strong in our broken places - not only to mend the sin-sick world in which we live in, but also to mend the sin-sick world that we carry around within us. We can only do that if we are willing to look both inward and outward, healing ourselves of the bigotry, biases and the demons that chip away at our efforts to work toward justice in this world.
I know that the struggle against racism that King talked about is only legitimate if I am also fighting anti-Semitism, homophobia, sexism, classism - not only out in the world but also in myself. Otherwise, I am creating an ongoing cycle of abuse that goes on unexamined and unaccounted for.
We are foolish if we think we can heal the world and not ourselves. We delude ourselves if we think that King was only talking about the wounding of institutional racism, and not the personal wounds we all carry as human beings.
In light of King's teachings, I believe that when we use our gifts in the service of others as King has taught us we then shift the paradigm of personal brokenness to personal healing. We also shift the paradigm of looking for moral leadership from outside of ourselves to within ourselves; thus, realizing we are not only the agents of change in society, but also the moral leaders we have been looking for.
Our job, therefore, in keeping King's dream alive is to remember that our longing for social justice is also inextricably tied to our longing for personal healing.</s>
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THURSDAY, Jan. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Food poisoning sickens millions of Americans each year, and most outbreaks are caused by salmonella-tainted foods or norovirus, federal health officials report.
Salmonella-contaminated eggs alone accounted for 2,231 illnesses in 2009-2010, according to researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who set out to identify the specific pathogens responsible for widespread foodborne illnesses.
"CDC estimates that one in six Americans get sick from a foodborne illness each year," said lead author L. Hannah Gould, a senior epidemiologist at CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases.
More than 1,500 foodborne-disease outbreaks were reported in 2009-2010, involving nearly 29,500 illnesses, 1,200 hospitalizations and 23 deaths, according to the CDC.
Besides salmonella in eggs, common causes of outbreaks included E. coli O157 in beef and Campylobacter in unpasteurized dairy products. Besides salmonella-contaminated eggs, outbreaks were also traced to salmonella in sprouts and vegetables, such as tomatoes and peppers, the agency said.
More than 40 outbreaks resulted in product recalls, according to the Jan. 25 issue of the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
However, outbreaks account for only 5 percent to 10 percent of foodborne illnesses, Gould said. And not all outbreaks get reported, she noted.
Both salmonella and norovirus, also called cruise-ship flu, cause serious gastrointestinal problems.
Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, said foodborne illness is "epidemic" in the United States. "There is a lack of scrutiny of food products," he said.
Contamination can occur at any step along the food chain, from farm to fork, Gould said.
"Everyone has a role in preventing foodborn
All rights reserved</s>
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Discussion of all aspects of cellular structure, physiology and communication.
11 posts • Page 1 of 1
Just to clarify:
in M1 the number of chromosomes is halved as homologous chromosomes separate.
in M2 the chromatids separate.
in terms of numbers, say for humans you'd have 46 chromosomes at the start, then 23 after M1, then 23 chromatids after M2...?
I've given myself a headache with this...
and what is the cell at the start? A gamete? If so wouldn't it just have 23 chromosomes to start with.
I'm deeply confused, to say the least.
Please help me... : )
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.
The cell at the start of meiosis is not a gamete, but a germ cell (meaning it will divide itself into gametes in the reproductive organs). So, the cell starts out as 2n= 2 sets of chromosomes= a diploid cell (46 Chromosomes). Before it enters meiosis, its chromosomes have been duplicates (DNA synthesis), which means that the chromosomes each have 2 chromatids joined together in an "X" shape. After meiosis 1, the homologous chromosomes separate, so that each of the 2 daughter cells have 23 chromosomes= n= a haploid cell (23 chromosomes), however, each chromosome still consists of 2 chromatids (still in that X shape). In meiosis 2, the haploid daughter cells' chromosomes line up at the metaphase plate and then split into individual chromatids, that is, each chromosome in the resulting 4 gametes after meiosis 2 have 23 chromosomes, but each chromosome consists of only one chromatid--- an "l" shape.
I hope this makes sense.
This Biology book (Biology, 9th edition, Mader, Sylvia) states that a chromosome is one side of the "X" and a chromatid is the top portion of the "X". You are stating that the Chromosome is the "X" and that the chromatid is one side of the "X". The reason this is so confusing is that all of us are reading different explanations of the same thing. How do we know who is giving us the correct information? My instructor wants me to think the book is correct. Are you more prominent than Sylvia Mader, who has written a book which may or may not include the correct information? I'm not trying to argumentative, because, as we all know, anyone can write a book, but not everyone has the credentials that create believability. It's really important to me to have the correct information because I'm writing a paper for class, and I don't want to look stupid.
At the start of Meiosis I, the cell has 46 PAIRS or SINGLE chromosomes? When the cell divides, and at the end of telophase I, there are 2 daughter cells that contain 23 PAIRS or SINGLE chromosomes with 2 chromatids, meaning 46 chromatids? At the end of telophase II, their are 4 daughter cells, each containing 23 SINGLE Chromosomes, each with one chromatid? Or, maybe it's 23 chromosomes, each separated, making 46 chomatids?
I feel as if this is all wrong. What am I not getting?
It sounds like you have it essentially right. Think of it like this. Imagine that A and B are a homologous pair of chromosomes in a normal ploidy germ cell.
So, the normal cell, BEFORE DNA replication is like this: AB
During the interphase leading into Meiosis I, the DNA will replicate, so going into Metaphase I, you have this:
AABB. (at this point, you can think of "AA" or "BB" as one x-shaped chromosome that you will see under a microscope)
During Anaphase I and Telophase I, the homologous pair will segregate into the daughter cells, so you get this:
AA | BB
These will then go into their respective Meiosis II phases, and end up like this after Anaphase II and Telophase II:
A | A | B | B
So, you have 4 haploid daughter cells (the gametes), each with one copy of one chromosome from a homologous pair.
So, in the case of humans, there are 23 "AB" homologous pairs. Call them whatever you want... Pair AB, CD, EF, GH, etc. if you like... the point is, each pair replicates and segregates as in the AB example above. Of course, there is some shuffling going on with crossing over, which halves of the pairs get segregated with other halves, etc. leading to a very large number of possible combinations.
Hope this helps you visualize it better.
By the way, don't get too confused by the terms "chromosome" and "chromatid". Chromosome can refer to both 1.) the X shape you see during prophase and metaphase, which is two chromatids joined by a centromere, and 2.) a single piece of coiled DNA in a cell (so a human cell has 23 pairs of these). #2 is essentially the same as a chromatid. We call chromosomes "chromatids" only during cell division when they are duplicated, supercoiled, and the two copies (now called chromatids) are joined together by the centromere. So, "chromatid" really means "sister copy of a chromosome", and when the two copies are joined together we also call that a "chromosome".
"Empathise with stupidity, and you're halfway to thinking like an idiot." - Iain M. Banks
Just to confirm something....
I know humans have 46 chromosomes. Knowing as well that they have 23 pairs of chromosomes, however, are "chromosomes" the same thing as "homologous chromosomes", with the terms just being used interchangeably?
at the start of meiosis the cell is in diploid condition that is for humanbeings have 46chromosomes(2*23)
during meiosis-1 dna gets replicates,now we have 92chromosomes(46*2)
then chromatid formation occurs which results in 92*2(184 chromatids) each chromosme having two chromatids attached at centromere
at the end of meiosis we will have two cells having 92chromatids(46 chromosomes)
during meiosis-2 each cell having 46 chromoses divides in two cells each having 23chromosomes that is haploid cells
This is just wrong . Chromatid formation is the DNA replication. The two steps are the same. You can only have 46 chromosomes MAX, and 98 chromatids when it duplicates.
Not really. Consider you have chromosome 1 and chromosome 5. These are not homologous
Cis or trans? That's what matters.
Meiosis is a special type of cell division necessary for sexual reproduction. In animals, meiosis produces gametes (sperm and egg cells), whilst in other organisms, such as fungi, it generates spores.
Whilst the process of meiosis bears a number of similarities with the the 'life-cycle' cell division process of mitosis, it differs in two important respects:-
the chromosomes in meiosis undergo a recombination which shuffles the genes producing a different genetic combination in each gamete, compared with the co-existence of each of the two separate pairs of each chromosome (one received from each parent) in each cell which results from mitosis.
the outcome of meiosis is four (genetically unique) haploid cells, compared with the two (genetically identical) diploid cells produced from mitosis.
Meiosis begins with one diploid cell containing two copies of each chromosome—one from the organism's mother and one from its father—and produces four haploid cells containing one copy of each chromosome. Each of the resulting chromosomes in the gamete cells is a unique mixture of maternal and paternal DNA, ensuring that offspring are genetically distinct from either parent. This gives rise to genetic diversity in sexually reproducing populations, which provides the variation of physical and behavioural attributes (phenotypes) upon which natural selection acts, at a population level, leading to adaptation within the population, resulting in evolution.
Prior to the meiosis process the cell's chromosomes are duplicated by a round of DNA replication, creating a maternal and paternal version of each chromosome (homologs) composed of two exact copies, sister chromatids, attached at the centromere region. In the beginning of meiosis the maternal and paternal homologs pair to each other. Then they typically exchange parts by homologous recombination leading to crossovers of DNA between the maternal and paternal versions of the chromosome. Spindle fibers bind to the centromeres of each pair of homologs and arrange the pairs at the spindle equator. Then the fibers pull the recombined homologs to opposite poles of the cell. As the chromosomes move away from the center the cell divides into two daughter cells, each containing a haploid number of chromosomes composed of two chromatids. After the recombined maternal and paternal homologs have separated into the two daughter cells, a second round of cell division occurs. There meiosis ends as the two sister chromatids making up each homolog are separated and move into one of the four resulting gamete cells. Upon fertilization, for example when a sperm enters an egg cell, two gamete cells produced by meiosis fuse. The gamete from the mother and the gamete from the father each contribute one half of the set of chromosomes that make up the new offsping's genome.
Meiosis uses many of the same mechanisms as mitosis, a type of cell division used by eukaryotes like plants and animals to split one cell into two identical daughter cells. In all plants and in many protists meiosis results in the formation of spores: haploid cells that can divide vegetatively without undergoing fertilization. Some eukaryotes, like Bdelloid rotifers, have lost the ability to carry out meiosis and have acquired the ability to reproduce by parthenogenesis. Meiosis does not occur in archaea or bacteria, which reproduce via asexual processes such as binary fission.
well in the beginning you have a grem cell(sex cell)
1- the cell goes throught the cell cycle
#don't forget that in the s-phase the chromosome duplicate
2-the 1st stage of miosis is the prophase I
-mitotic spindles start to be created and the nucleus starts to disintergrate
3-2nd phase is the methaphase 1
note some book have a premethaphase as one stage
-in methaphase I the duplicated homologues align at the methaphase plate
4-the 4th stage is anaphase I
in this stage the homologues migrate towards opposing poles
note that one pair goes to one end and the other homologue to the other
and while migrating the mitotic spindle depolymerize
5-the 5th stage usually consists of two stages simultaniously occuring
they are the telophase and the cytokinesis stage
in these stages the homologues are at opposing ends and the nucleus start to reapear and division of the cytoplasm occurs
now that you have two cells with a homologue inside we can basically conclude that they go through the same process as in MITOSIS(not miosis)
Meiosis comprises two successive nuclear divisions with only one round of DNA replication.
Four stages can be described for each nuclear division.
Interphase: Before meiosis begins, genetic material is duplicated.
First division of meiosis
Prophase 1: Duplicated chromatin condenses. Each chromosome consists of two, closely associated sister chromatids. Crossing-over can occur during the latter part of this stage.
Metaphase 1: Homologous chromosomes align at the equatorial plate.
Anaphase 1: Homologous pairs separate with sister chromatids remaining together.
Telophase 1: Two daughter cells are formed with each daughter containing only one chromosome of the homologous pair.
Second division of meiosis: Gamete formation
Prophase 2: DNA does not replicate.
Metaphase 2: Chromosomes align at the equatorial plate.
Anaphase 2: Centromeres divide and sister chromatids migrate separately to each pole.
Telophase 2: Cell division is complete. Four haploid daughter cells are obtained.
One parent cell produces four daughter cells. Daughter cells have half the number of chromosomes found in the original parent cell and with crossing over, are genetically different.
Meiosis differs from mitosis primarily because there are two cell divisions in meiosis, resulting in cells with a haploid number of chromosomes.
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About microscopic forms of life, including Bacteria, Archea, protozoans, algae and fungi. Topics relating to viruses, viroids and prions also belong here.
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In 1984, after the confirmation of the etiological agent of AIDS by scientists at the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the Pasteur Institute, the United States Health and Human Services Secretary Margaret Heckler declared that a vaccine would be available within two years.
However, the classical vaccination approaches that have been successful in the control of various viral diseases by priming the adaptive immunity to recognize the viral envelope proteins have failed in the case of HIV-1. Some have stated that an HIV vaccine may not be possible without significant theoretical advances.
There are a number of factors that cause development of an HIV vaccine to differ from the development of other classic vaccines:
Classic vaccines mimic natural immunity against reinfection generally seen in individuals recovered from infection; there are almost no recovered AIDS patients.
Most vaccines protect against disease, not against infection; HIV infection may remain latent for long periods before causing AIDS.
Most effective vaccines are whole-killed or live-attenuated organisms; killed HIV-1 does not retain antigenicity and the use of a live retrovirus vaccine raises safety issues.
Most vaccines protect against infections that are infrequently encountered; HIV may be encountered daily by individuals at high risk.
Most vaccines protect against infections through mucosal surfaces of the respiratory or gastrointestinal tract; the great majority of HIV infection is through the genital tract.
The epitopes of the viral envelope are more variable than those of many other viruses. Furthermore, the functionally important epitopes of the gp120 protein are masked by glycosylation, trimerisation and receptor-induced conformational changes making it difficult to block with neutralising antibodies.
The ineffectiveness of previously developed vaccines primarily stems from two related factors.
First, HIV is highly mutable. Because of the virus' ability to rapidly respond to selective pressures imposed by the immune system, the population of virus in an infected individual typically evolves so that it can evade the two major arms of the adaptive immune system; humoral (antibody-mediated) and cellular (mediated by T cells) immunity.
Second, HIV isolates are themselves highly variable. HIV can be categorized into multiple clades and subtypes with a high degree of genetic divergence. Therefore, the immune responses raised by any vaccine need to be broad enough to account for this variability. Any vaccine that lacks this breadth is unlikely to be effective.
The difficulties in stimulating a reliable antibody response has led to the attempts to develop a vaccine that stimulates a response by cytotoxic T-lymphocytes.
Another response to the challenge has been to create a single peptide that contains the least variable components of all the known HIV strains.
Currently, there is no effective vaccine against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Vaccine development is one of several strategies to reduce the worldwide harm from AIDS, with other approaches based upon antiviral treatments such as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and social approaches such as safe sex prevention and awareness campaigns.
Last edited by suzidoc8 on Mon Jul 23, 2012 2:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
no mistakes are allow in medical life.
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The focus in single-use bioreactor development is effective oxygen transfer, and the cultivation of cell culture processes and microbial cultures. Cell densities and productivities similar to conventional stirred tanks can easily be achieved in single-use bioreactors with the introduction of real process control. The Biostat CultiBag RM can reach KLa values of 43.2 h-1 and 12.9 h-1, in 2-L and 20-L cultures, respectively, at small scale. This article will show the productivities of Chinese hamster ovary cells (CHO), E. coli, and C. diphtheriae in the Biostat CultiBag RM using disposable sensor technology.
Early disposable bioreactors designs did not have good control capability, and growth was generally equivalent to shake flasks. Simple cultivation of cells and product for small-scale operations were possible, but a reusable stirred-tank system was required for real process optimization studies, where data could be logged and process parameters could be controlled and modelled. This was mainly because of the lack of good pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) control or at least a level of control similar to traditional stirred systems. Another limitation of rocking disposable bioreactors have been the limited aeration and agitation rates that could be achieved in systems that mix the culture by rocking back and forth and provide gassing by surface aeration alone. Such systems were mainly suited to cell cultures that exhibit low biomass concentrations and oxygen uptake rates. Also, mammalian cells are more fragile, which prevents the use of vigorous aeration and agitation strategies, making a rocking platform an ideal cultivation vessel. However, many modern cell culture processes require more strenuous aeration and agitation, and cells are becoming more robust. Therefore, the ability to have a good gas mixing strategy with feedback control is important. Microbial processes have a high demand for oxygen and are processed to high biomass concentrations. Most disposable systems cannot offer high processing rates. However, disposable rocking devices can be just as effective at the seed stage when good gas mixing and controls are available.
Recently, disposable stirred-tank bioreactor designs have been introduced that mimic traditional stirred-tank bioreactors (STR) and therefore gain more market acceptance. Most of these designs use reusable sensor technology with standard feedback control loops. The insertion of reusable sensors into a disposable system involves time-consuming tasks such as cleaning, sterilizing, and calibrating the sensors before aseptic insertion into the bioreactor. Disposable sensors are relatively new to the market and the market acceptance of such systems is slow because it requires detailed evaluation and validation. The operation of disposable sensors is different because no cleaning, sterilizing, or calibration is required at start-up. The sensors consist of membrane patches with an immobilized fluorescent dye that is able to detect the respective analyte (H+ or O2). The sensor patches are already part of the bag assembly. They come gamma irradiated and there is no break in the bag seal. An optical fiber transmits light of a specific wavelength to the sensor and returns the luminescence response from the sensor back to the measuring amplifier. This fiber optic works through the bag film, thereby maintaining sterility at all times. Standard feedback control loops are possible and recalibration functions to correct drift over time.
Sartorius Stedim North America
The use of superior gas mixing systems with disposable sensors, and tighter process control, can be used to cultivate both modern cell culture and seed stage microbial cells successfully. Process monitoring and control of cell cultivation processes are required for culture reproducibility, modeling scale-up parameters, increasing achievable cell densities, extending batch age, and increasing productivity and yield. This article shows that using disposable sensor technology, comparable cell densities, viabilities, and titers were achieved in several cell lines, and in some cases, were even higher than in stirred tanks.</s>
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If you're heading through North Dakota over the holidays, don't be surprised if your directions take you down Smashed-in Buffalo Head Road. Then again, if you're passing through the Detroit suburbs, try not to blush if you get off at Exit 69, otherwise known as Big Beaver Road. And appropriately enough, not far from the University of Michigan's school of political science, you might pass the intersection of Nixon and Bluett Roads.
From Lois Lane Drive to Chicken Shack Drive, the U.S. is lined by roadways with some wild, weird and wacky names. How did they get that way? Politics and history, mistranslations and vanity, as well as the occasional, odd sense of humor have made for much more interesting travel than were we simply a land of Main Streets and Broadways.
No doubt the oldest road names in America are those left by the Spaniards along the Florida and Gulf Coasts, the Southwest and California. The most obvious is El Camino Real - the "Royal Road," running much of the length of old Spanish California. It's certainly a lot more colorful name than the King's Highway that spanned early settlements along the East Coast.
Those early settlements paid obeisance to the Crown, with roads like King, Prince or Queen. In areas settled by the French, including Detroit, modern-day residents still struggle to pronounce street names like Beaubien, Cadieux and Navarre. (Then again, Detroiters also pronounce Freud St. as Frood, and Goethe as Goatee.)
Early American street names often reflected their purpose, such as the Boston Post Road, running from New York City to Boston. There are plenty of these functional roads: Atwater, River, Canal and Railroad, Lake Shore, Market, Main and Broadway.
The nation is dotted with Plank Roads and Turnpikes. Early enterprising pioneers would lay wooden boards, or planks, to get travelers out of the mud on primitive trails. You'd pay your penny and they're turn a wheel, raising the gate, or pike, to let you pass.
What about Deer Lick Road? It was likely a landmark for early settlers and travelers, just like Lime Kiln Lane and Smashed-in Buffalo Head Road.
What name honor?
After the Revolution, it became popular to name streets (as well as towns, counties and schools) after national heroes and leaders. We have countless Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and Madison Streets. And the trend continues with modern leaders, hence the ubiquitous Martin Luther King boulevards.
But can anyone tell us who Fangboner Rd., near Toledo, Ohio, was meant to honor?
Baby Boomers have taken to heart that old rock-and-roll lyric, "Everybody is a star." The postage stamp-sized Pleasant Ridge, Mich., regularly auctions off the right to name a local street. So do a number of other cities across the U.S., so that's why you can find a Chicken Shack Lane leading to Elm Street. And why not honor your favorite comic book character, as one fan did with Southfield, Mich.'s Lois Lane Drive?
Early roads would weave and bob, following the local terrain. As a result of the Northwest Territory Act of 1787, lands north of the Ohio River and west of Pennsylvania were laid out in north-south and east-west grids.
So rapper Eminem hung out on Detroit's Eight Mile Road, the Motor City marking distance to a central point downtown. Other cities name their grid roads alphabetically, while in New York, Avenues run North-South and Streets run East-West.
Early New York was a maze of winding lanes. Finally, city fathers tried adopting the grid system, but it didn't always work right, so in Greenwich Village, you'll find the intersection of West 4th Street and West 4th Street.
Like the politically-charged intersection of Nixon/Bluett, intersections can create some unexpected complications of their own. New York offers us another, the anti-feminist meeting of Bangher and Leever.
The U.S. doesn't have a monopoly on odd names, of course. Some European names reflect ancient events or leaders, often in dialects no longer spoken. Politics also can play havoc. According to the online research site, Wikipedia, "Names are sometimes manipulated for political purposes; the name of Svetogorska Street, in Belgrade, was changed six times since 1872."
While there are plenty of odd and uncommon street names across the country, most communities show a surprising lack of imagination. Yet the U.S. Census Bureau suggests that even the ordinary can be a little odd.
You might think that First Street would be America's most popular road name. Think again. It follows Second and Third Streets, though Fourth Street does indeed come in fourth.
Main Street? It ranks a relatively minor seventh on the top-10 list.</s>
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Hail to the Sheriff of Luzerne!
Clouds gather at Wilkes-Barre.
There are few valleys to compare with that of the Susquehanna. In point of picturesque scenery and modern alteration attained by the unceasing labor of man, the antithesis between the natural and the artificial is pronounced in many respects; especially at that place in the river where it runs through the steep banks on which is situated the thriving city of Wilkes-Barre. Here may be seen the majestic hills standing as sentinels over the marts of men that crowd the river edge. The verdure of these hills during the greater part of the year is the one sight that gladdens the eyes of the miners whose lives, for the most part, are spent in the coal pits.
The picture would be perfect were it not for the presence of the Coal-Breakers. These sombre, grizzly structures stand in a long line on the west bank of the river, and appear to the eye of one who knows their purpose, as the gibbets that dotted the shores of England and France must have loomed up before the mariners of the Channel during the Seventeenth Century, and when the supply of pirates exceeded the number of gibbets, large as this number was in both lands.
The breaker is a truly modern invention, which, had it existed in the days of the Spanish inquisition, would have placed in the hands of the malevolent fanatics an instrument of exquisite torture. It is constructed to effect a double purpose, the achievement of the maximum of production and the expenditure of the minimum of human effort. It is the acme of inventive genius. To work the breakers, a man need have no more intelligence than the tow-mule that plods a beaten path; and such a man is the ideal laborer from the standpoint of the owners of the breakers.
But such men are not indigenous to America; they must be imported, and that, too, from the most benighted lands of Europe.
What an incubator of warped humanity the breaker has become! It saps even the attenuated manhood of the aliens it attracts, and when they are rendered useless for its ends, emits them to be a scourge on the earth.
But the breakers are the monument of the civilization of the Nineteenth Century, which esteems commercial as superior to mental advancement.
As the drama to be unfolded will be enacted largely in this spot, which nature fashioned on its fairest pattern, and which man has seared with his cruel tool, a description of the town of Wilkes-Barre and its environs is essential. The town is the creation of the Mines. Coal abounds in the valley of the Susquehanna, and from the first impetus given the coal industry by the establishment of railroads, the mines at this place have been worked without intermission.</s>
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|Name: _________________________||Period: ___________________|
This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What is one way not mentioned by Kozol's friend Elizabeth that poor people know that they are living in a rich society?
(c) Reading books.
2. What reason do students give Kozol for dropping out of school in New York?
(a) They felt that school was not for them.
(b) The did not get good grades.
(c) They did not like their teachers.
(d) They felt unknown in their schools.
3. What do the students at Camden High School do during their lunch hour?
(a) Eat lunch in the cafeteria.
(b) Attend a remedial class.
(c) Get bused to a school in Cherry Hill.
(d) They leave school to obtain lunch elsewhere.
4. According to Kozol, how many people are supposed to be in PS261 at one time?
5. After speaking to the kindergarten class at PS79, Kozol learns that one of the African-American boys in the class travels how long each day to get to school?
(a) 1 hour.
(b) 3 hours.
(c) 2 hours.
(d) 4 hours.
6. How many students attend PS261 daily?
7. What does the New York Times say the better public schools are intended to do?
(a) Give the rich an alternative to high-priced private schools.
(b) To serve as academic school.
(c) To uphold the school system's high academic standards.
(d) Attract or skim off the more privileged children.
8. What issue do PS261 and PS79 share?
(a) Lack of space.
(b) Unqualified teachers.
(c) Lack of up-to-date resources.
(d) Low enrollment.
9. Which school did President George H.W. Bush attend?
(a) Dearborne Academy.
(b) St. Johns Academy.
(c) Dearfield Academy.
(d) Phillips Academy.
10. What does Thurston say black people did not understand regarding their children and the public education system in Washington, D.C. and those in the surrounding suburbs?
(a) The length that whites would go to keep their children at a distance from black children.
(b) The changes that the school system would make if white parents complained about the system.
(c) The amount of money needed to educate children in the school system.
(d) The changes that were needed to make the school system equivalent to those in the D.C. suburbs.
11. At what age does the principal in Anacostia say many of the boys in her school will be dead?
12. How many students from Woodrow Wilson, according to Kozol, sign up to take the SAT in the spring of 1990 when he visits?
13. According to Kozol, what is the estimated worth of the education a child receives in the inner city of New York?
14. Who is the former principal of East Side High School that was praised by U.S. Education Secretary William Bennett?
(a) Jim Johnson.
(b) James Richmond.
(c) Joe Clark.
(d) John Brown.
15. What are test scores in math and reading in America graded against?
(a) A regional standard.
(b) A norm or average.
(c) A national standard.
(d) An absolute standard.
Short Answer Questions
1. Who said that Americans allow all of their children the things they need to compete at the highest levels of success?
2. What does Kozol say Camden's entire property wealth of $250 million is less than the value of?
3. According to one teacher at Camden High School, what does the high school proficiency exam control?
4. According to Kozol, students in what racial group are more often categorized as retarded?
5. How long do some of the students at Morris High School think it will be before blacks and whites work together to better public education?
This section contains 592 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page)</s>
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This section contains 2,901 words
(approx. 8 pages at 400 words per page)
Collected Short Stories Volume Three Summary & Study Guide Description
Collected Short Stories Volume Three Summary & Study Guide includes comprehensive information and analysis to help you understand the book. This study guide contains the following sections:
This detailed literature summary also contains Topics for Discussion on Collected Short Stories Volume Three by W. Somerset Maugham.
Ashendenappears in Various Stories
Ashenden is an English writer who is approached by R. at a party in London, England. When Ashenden meets with R. he is given the opportunity to work for the British government as a spy for the British Intelligence Department. Since he is a writer, Ashenden will be able to pass back and forth into enemy territory without raising suspicions. In a way Ashenden is an alter personality of author Maugham. In fact, in the preface of his book Maugham indicates the character of Ashenden is loosely based on himself and his own experiences as a spy in World War I.
Ashenden is both the writer and narrator of these stories. All of the stories are written from Ashenden's point of view. Ashenden describes himself as one who observes human nature and does not become tied up in relationships and expectations. Ashenden demonstrates this power of observance in his cool relationship with Caypor. Although he dislikes Caypor because Caypor caused the death of one of Ashenden's fellow spies, Ashenden must befriend the man in order to bring justice.
Ashenden's personality and keen ability to observe the actions of others also help to keep him safe in the spy business. For instance, in the story "Miss King", Ashenden suspects that someone may have turned his name into the police. Instead of running scared, Ashenden observes closely those around him to see which of his acquaintances might be holding something against him. He avoids people who might question his motives or think his actions odd.
R.appears in Various Stories
R. is the colonel in the Intelligence Department who first approaches Ashenden about a job as a spy. R.'s real identity is never revealed in the course of the short stories. He is known simply as R., with the exception of one letter to Ashenden where he refers to himself with the pen name of Raymond. R. has a habit of telling Ashenden that one should do what he can to "mitigate the hardships of war" (p. 86). Although R. is respected by Ashenden, it is indicated by the story "The Hairless Mexican" that he does not always choose his employees wisely. Although R. believes that the Mexican will be able to do his job as instructed, the Mexican instead kills the wrong person.
R. appears in almost every story with the exception of "Sanatorium" and "Mr. Harrington's Washing." He generally appears at the beginning of each story where he introduces Ashenden to his new job or assignment. In these meetings R. usually gives Ashenden some important information about his upcoming job, then disappears for the rest of the story. It is shown in R.'s letter to Ashenden about the fictional "Aunt Maggie" that R. does have a sense of humor. However, R. does not seem to exercise this sense of humor very often.
Manuel Carmonaappears in The Hairless Mexican
Manuel Carmona is the comical character known as the Hairless Mexican. He claims to have been a General in Huerta's army. This Mexican's outstanding characteristic is that he has no visible body hair. No eyebrows, no arm hair, no hair on his head. He wears wigs, which Ashenden considers comical. R. admits to Ashenden that he does not completely trust the Mexican but that he believes that the Mexican will do the job he had been hired to do. R.'s belief is unfounded because the Mexican winds up killing the wrong man. Ashenden suspects from the beginning of the story that the Mexican is not capable of doing his job. In the end of the story Ashenden refers to the Mexican as what he really is, a bloody fool.
Giulia Lazzariappears in Giulia Lazzari
Giulia Lazzari is a dancer who goes by the stage name of La Malagueña. She is described as being a terrible dancer. Her crime is that she has fallen in love with a dangerous Indian conspirator, Chandra Lal. The agents with the British Intelligence Department hope they can use Giulia to convince Chandra to cross into French territory where he can be captured by the British government. Unknown to the British authorities, Chandra has sworn that he will never be taken alive by the British. Although he does cross into French territory, Chandra has with him a dose of prussic acid which he takes and dies before he is taken into custody. Giulia is pleased that Chandra has managed to kill himself. Giulia, however, makes an unusual request at the end of the story. She requests that she be given back the watch that she gave Chandra as a gift.
Grantley Cayporappears in The Traitor
Grantley Caypor is the main traitor in the short story "The Traitor." Caypor is an English man who is married to a German woman. By some twist, he is suspected of working for the German Intelligence Department. Caypor attracted the interest and dislike of R. when he reported to the Germans the identity and location of an English spy. This information given by Caypor caused the young spy to be caught and killed.
In his story Ashenden's purpose is to try to persuade Caypor to go back to England where he can be taken care of by the British Intelligence Department. It is already known that Caypor has not been working as he should for the German Intelligence Department. These agents are not happy with his work. Caypor begins talking with Ashenden because he believes Ashenden works with the Censorship Department. Caypor indicates that he wants to start earning a living working in the Censorship Department also. Instead Caypor falls into a trap when he goes to England with a letter of introduction from Ashenden.
Ashenden describes Caypor as a very complex person. Ashenden wonders in one part of the story if Caypor was a "good man who loved evil or a bad man who loved good" (p. 147). He describes Caypor as a pleasant, upbeat person who appears to care about his wife and his dog. Even as he talks to and gets to know this amiable man, Ashenden has to keep reminding himself that it was this man who caused the death of a fellow English spy.
Sir Herbert Witherspoonappears in His Excellency
Sir Herbert Witherspoon is a British diplomat whom Ashenden initially dislikes because of his coolness. Ashenden later finds it necessary to inform Witherspoon that an American ambassador resents Witherspoon because of his inability to be anything but polite, polished and cool. Witherspoon tells Ashenden he was right to tell him about the American ambassador's feelings, then invites Ashenden to dinner. During this dinner Witherspoon tells Ashenden about the time he had an affair with an acrobat by the name of Alix. Although Ashenden tells Witherspoon that he feels that position is more important than love, Witherspoon uses his story to try to help Ashenden understand that happiness is more important than status. Witherspoon describes his relationship with Alix as being trashy. They stayed in trashy hotels, dealt with low class people and fought constantly, but Witherspoon was happy. He recalls to Ashenden that although he has power and a great position with his current wife, he had never been able to make her happy. Even with the power and prestige that he had always wanted to have, Witherspoon himself is also not happy in his position.
Mr. John Quincy Harringtonappears in Mr. Harrington's Washing
Mr. John Quincy Harrington is the American businessman with whom Ashenden travels to Petrograd, Russia. During the 11 day train trip Ashenden learns all that he believes there is to know about Harrington. Harrington considers himself a top rate speaker and story teller. Ashenden, however, does not enjoy Harrington's slow monotone and is frustrated by his traveling companion's inability to be quiet. Harrington even prefers to read aloud, a habit that Ashenden finds very distasteful. During the span of the trip, Harrington tells Ashenden about his wife, his children, his business, and his education. Ashenden feels there is nothing left for him to learn about Harrington. Despite his incessant talking, Harrington does have the endearing quality of taking good care of Ashenden while he is sick during the train trip.
In addition to his frustrating habit of talking, Harrington is also very particular about cleanliness and his clothing. While others on the train become grubby, Harrington cleans himself and puts on clean clothes daily. It is this habit, however that leads to Harrington's death. Instead of leaving Petrograd when he first learns a revolt has broken out, Harrington insists that he walk to the laundry to pick up some clothes he had sent off for washing. On the way back from this trip, he is shot and killed.
Ivy Bishopappears in Sanatorium
Ivy Bishop is the pretty, young English girl whom Ashenden is introduced to after he meets McLeod. Since she has been in and out of sanatoriums for nearly 10 years, Ivy looks much younger than she actually is. Ashenden is told by McLeod the day they first meet that he believes there is a relationship between Ivy and Templeton. As Ashenden watches the two together and notices the soft look on Ivy's face as she smiles at Templeton, he agrees with McLeod's observation. Although she knows that her new husband will not live very long, Ivy still agrees to marry Templeton when he asks her. Ivy agrees that when Templeton dies, she will return to the sanatorium.
Major George Templetonappears in Sanatorium
Major Templeton is described as being a man of extreme leisure and a ladies' man. He appears to be as unconcerned about his coming death as he is about the amount of money he has lost playing cards. Although he begins to flirt with Ivy only because she is the youngest and most attractive lady in the hospital, he soon finds he is falling in love with her. Templeton and Ivy decide to go ahead with their wedding plans despite the fact that the wedding will drastically shorten his life.
Henry Chesterappears in Sanatorium
Henry Chester is the middle-aged business man who contracts tuberculosis. Although it is clear to the other patients that Chester loves his wife, it becomes more and more obvious that he is unhappy when she comes to visit him in the hospital. Soon Chester requests that the doctor tell Mrs. Chester that she is not to come back to the hospital any longer. Chester admits to Ashenden that he asked the doctor to do this because he was beginning to feel hate toward his wife. Chester is angry because he is sick and will probably die while she is well. At the end of the story after Ivy and Templeton's wedding, Chester and his wife manage to put this difference between them and realize that they do still love each other despite the fact that Chester is sick.
Alixappears in His Excellency
Alix is the acrobat with whom Witherspoon falls in love in the story "His Excellency." Although she is described as not being pretty, Witherspoon is mesmerized by Alix's voice. Alix is very devoted to her job although Witherspoon believes the performance is tacky. When Witherspoon suggests the two spend the time before his wedding together, Alix refuses to give up her job to do so. Instead she suggests that Witherspoon go along with her.
Chandra Lalappears in Giulia Lazzari
Chandra Lal is described as a fat Indian who is a dangerous conspirator against the Allied forces. Although he has a wife and children in India, he has fallen in love with the dancer Giulia Lazzari. Ashenden and other employees of the Intelligence Department attempt to convince Giulia to lure Chandra across the French border where he can be arrested. Although Chandra does allow himself to be lured to France, he has brought a dose of poison with him. When he realizes he has been trapped by British forces, Chandra takes the poison and kills himself.
Mr. Wilbur Schäferappears in His Excellency
Mr. Wilbur Schäfer is the American ambassador in the story "His Excellency" who finds Witherspoon and his proper manners tiresome. Schäfer is currently spending a great deal of time with a Swedish lady. Secrets have been being leaked to the Central Powers and it is suspected the leak might be found in this relationship.
Bernardappears in Miss King
Bernard is the Swiss agent who demands extra money of Ashenden. He claims that the meager wages that he is paid is not worth the extent to which he risks his life. Bernard threatens to turn Ashenden into the police as a spy. If this happens, Ashenden would be arrested and put in jail. It is Ashenden's experience with this spy that puts Ashenden on edge for the remainder of the story.
McLeodappears in Sanatorium
McLeod is one of the first sanatorium patients that Ashenden meets. McLeod tells Ashenden that he has lived at the sanatorium 17 years. He inhabits the best room there. Although he is well and could go home, McLeod has been in the hospital so long that he no longer feels comfortable in the outside world. McLeod dies immediately after victoriously winning a tense bridge game.
Campbellappears in Sanatorium
Campbell is one of the patients at the Sanatorium who has lived there the longest. His competitor is McLeod, who currently believes it is he who inhabits the best room at the hospital. Campbell claims to be waiting for McLeod to die or move out so that he can inherit McLeod's room. As a way to frustrate McLeod, Campbell plays the same tune on his violin repetitively.
Lady Anne Witherspoonappears in His Excellency
Lady Anne Witherspoon is the woman whom Witherspoon chose to marry in the story "His Excellency." He chooses Anne because her upbringing would make her an appropriate diplomat's wife. Before their wedding Anne travels to Africa with her father. It is during this time that Witherspoon has an affair with Alix, the acrobat whom he spends his life wishing that he had married instead of Anne. When Anne learns of this affair, she holds the knowledge of it over her husband's head.
Baroness de Higginsappears in Miss King, Giulia Lazzari
The Baroness de Higgins invites Ashenden to play bridge with her and a group of her friends after dinner. The Baroness is an Austrian whom Ashenden believes might have given his name to the police as a spy. Later in the story "Giulia Lazzari" Ashenden indicates that he has had a brief fling with the Baroness. This fling is brought to an end when Ashenden learns that the Baroness de Higgins is indeed an Austrian spy.
Prince Aliappears in Miss King
Prince Ali is one of the people that the Baroness invites to play bridge with her after dinner one evening. The prince does not speak much during the game but Ashenden feels the man's eye on him while he is talking with the others. When the governess employed by the prince is on her deathbed, it is not the prince that Miss King calls for, but Ashended instead.
Miss Kingappears in Miss King
Miss King is the Englishwoman who served as the governess of Prince Ali's daughters. She is treated badly by the girls. Although Ashenden tries to befriend Miss King, she is hateful to him and discourages a friendship. One evening Miss King has a stroke that keeps her from being able to speak. She indicates she wants Ashenden with her. Although Ashenden believes Miss King has something important she wants to tell him, she speaks only one word to him, the name of their mother country England, before she dies.
Gustavappears in The Traitor
Gustav is a spy employed by the British Secret Service. Although he writes excellent reports, it is soon suspected that he is not actually traveling into Germany to get the information. Ashenden is sent to Gustav's home to determine if this star spy is really doing his own work or not. Ashenden convinces Gustav to tell him that he is not really going into Germany, only getting information by word of mouth. As a bargaining chip, however, Gustav gives information about Grantley Caypor, a man believed to be an English traitor.
Byringappears in His Excellency
Byring is a promising diplomat who is friends with both Witherspoon and Ashenden. Byring plans to marry Rose Auburn, a dancer and show girl who will not be an asset to a rising diplomat.
Rose Auburnappears in His Excellency
Rose Auburn is the dancer whom Byring falls in love with and plans to marry. Byring is a promising diplomat but his marriage with Rose Auburn would severely damage his chances to be great in his field. Although Ashenden believes this union is a mistake, Witherspoon believes Byring should embrace the experience even if it makes him happy for just a few years.
Brownappears in His Excellency
When Witherspoon tells Ashenden his story of his affair with the acrobat, he tells it as if it happened to a friend of his. Witherspoon decides to give this friend the name of Brown. Despite this intent to fool Ashenden, Ashenden realizes that Witherspoon is actually talking about himself.
Fritzi appears in The Traitor
Fritzi is the dog in the story "The Traitor." He is a purebred who belongs to Mr. and Mrs. Caypor. At the end of this short story Fritzi howls a long mournful howl as if he realizes his master is dead.
This section contains 2,901 words
(approx. 8 pages at 400 words per page)</s>
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Passwords are a pain to remember. What if a quick wiggle of five fingers on a screen could log you in instead? Or speaking a simple phrase?
Neither idea is far-fetched. Computer scientists in New York are training their iPads to recognize their owners by the touch of their fingers as they make a caressing gesture. Banks are already using software that recognizes your voice, supplementing the standard PIN.
And after years of predicting its demise, security researchers are renewing their efforts to supplement and perhaps one day obliterate the old-fashioned password.
“If you ask me what is the biggest nuisance today, I would say it’s the 40 different passwords I have to create and change,’’ said Nasir Memon, a computer science professor at the Polytechnic Institute of New York University in Brooklyn who is leading the iPad project.
Many people would agree. The password has become a monkey on our digital backs - an essential key to our many devices and accounts, but increasingly a source of exasperation and insecurity.
The research arm of the Defense Department is looking for ways to use cues like a person’s typing quirks to continuously verify identity - in case, say, a soldier’s laptop ends up in enemy hands on the battlefield. In a more ordinary example, Google recently began nudging users to consider a two-step log-in system, combining a password with a code sent to their phones. Google’s latest Android software can unlock a phone when it recognizes the owner’s face or - not so safe - when it is tricked by someone holding up a photograph of the owner’s face.
Still, despite these recent advances, it may be premature to announce the end of passwords, as Bill Gates famously did in 2004, when he said “the password is dead.’’
“The spectacularly incorrect assumption ‘passwords are dead’ has been harmful, discouraging research on how to improve the lot of close to 2 billion people who use them,’’ Cormac Herley, a researcher at Microsoft, the company that Gates founded, wrote in a recent paper.
Herley suggested instead that developers try “to better support the use of passwords’’ - for example, by helping people protect their wireless connections from eavesdroppers. “Passwords,’’ Herley continued, “have proved themselves a worthy opponent: All those who have attempted to replace them have failed.’’
The touch-screen approach of Memon works because, as it happens, each person makes the same gesture uniquely. Their fingers are different, they move at different speeds, they have what he calls a different “flair.’’ He wants logging in to be easy; besides, he said, some people find biometric measures like an iris scan to be “creepy.’’
In his research, the most popular gestures turned out to be the ones that feel most intuitive. One was to turn the image of a combination lock 90 degrees in one direction. Another was to sign one’s name on the screen. In principle, the gesture can be used to unlock a device, or an app on the device that safely holds a variety of passwords.
Despite their resilience, passwords are weak, notably because their users have limited memories and a weakness for blurting out secrets. Most people need dozens of them, and they tend to pick ones that are so complex they need to be written down, or so simple they can be easily guessed. Recently, criminals have become adept at stealing passwords by sneaking malicious software onto computers or tricking users into typing them into an illegitimate site.
Companies like Facebook and Twitter have sought to address the frustration with passwords by allowing their usernames and passwords to open the door to millions of websites, a convenience that brings obvious risks. A thief with access to a master username and password can have access to a host of accounts.
Rachna Dhamija, a California computer scientist turned entrepreneur, sought to combat those weaknesses by breaking up the password. The user first logs in to the service that Dhamija built, UsableLogin, and signs in with her own partial password. Behind the scenes, the service verifies that the user is on an authorized device, and pulls the third piece from the cloud, generating a unique password for any website that the user wants to log in to - Facebook, for instance. In other words, one piece of the password rests with the user, another is stored in her device, and a third piece is kept online.
“You take a secret and you spread it across,’’ said Dhamija, whose service was recently acquired by Webroot Software, based in Broomfield, Colo. “You’re spreading the risk. The password is not stored in its whole form anywhere.’’
But even if a user has been authorized at the start of a session, what if someone else gains access to her computer an hour later? Darpa, the Defense Department’s technology research arm, has invited security researchers to develop ways to verify a user every instant, based on the way the individual uses the machine - “for example, how the user handles the mouse and how the user crafts written language in an e-mail or document,’’ it explains on its website.
Each of these techniques is driven by the notion that a password alone is an insufficient means to verify online identity. Think of them as a fortification: a password plus.
Many companies use a smart card or a security “dongle’’ - a small piece of hardware that plugs into the computer and functions as a key - as that second step of verification to allow access to internal networks. Today, biometrics - an individual’s unique physical traits - are emerging as an alternative.
At least a half-dozen banks in the United States ask their customers to verify who they are by reciting a two-second phrase to a computer over the phone, in addition to punching in their PINs. It could be as simple as “at my bank,’’ and a million customers could recite the very same phrase and still sound unique, according to Nuance Communications, a company based in Burlington, Mass., that makes the technology.
As mobile phones become bodily appendages for people worldwide, they too are emerging as instruments to verify identity.
Google introduced its two-step process earlier this year. It sends a six-digit code to an application on a Google user’s cellphone to be entered, along with a password, when signing onto a Google account on a computer or tablet. The code can also be sent as a text message for those who don’t have smartphones, or it can be conveyed through a phone call.
The extra step is not mandatory, and the company will not say how widely it has been adopted. But as vulnerable as passwords are to theft and compromise, Google says, it is increasingly important for a user’s identity to be verified through another channel - a cell phone, in this case.
“I think we’ll start to see people using their mobile devices as their pervasive identifiers,’’ said Brendon Wilson, a security researcher at Symantec. “The password will no longer be the final arbiter that you are you. You will see layers on top.’’</s>
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO; /ˈneɪtoʊ/; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique Nord (OTAN)), also called the [North] Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949. The organization constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. NATO's headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium, one of the 28 member states across North America and Europe, the newest of which, Albania and Croatia, joined in April 2009. An additional 22 countries participate in NATO's Partnership for Peace program, with 15 other countries involved in institutionalized dialogue programmes. The combined military spending of all NATO members constitutes over 70% of the global total. Members' defense spending is supposed to amount to 2% of GDP.
NATO was little more than a political association until the Korean War galvanized the organization's member states, and an integrated military structure was built up under the direction of two U.S. supreme commanders. The course of the Cold War led to a rivalry with nations of the Warsaw Pact, which formed in 1955. Doubts over the strength of the relationship between the European states and the United States ebbed and flowed, along with doubts over the credibility of the NATO defence against a prospective Soviet invasion—doubts that led to the development of the independent French nuclear deterrent and the withdrawal of the French from NATO's military structure in 1966 for 30 years. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the organization was drawn into the breakup of Yugoslavia, and conducted its first military interventions in Bosnia from 1992 to 1995 and later Yugoslavia in 1999. Politically, the organization sought better relations with former Warsaw Pact countries, several of which joined the alliance in 1999 and 2004.
Article 5 of the North Atlantic treaty, requiring member states to come to the aid of any member state subject to an armed attack, was invoked for the first and only time after the 11 September 2001 attacks, after which troops were deployed to Afghanistan under the NATO-led ISAF. The organization has operated a range of additional roles since then, including sending trainers to Iraq, assisting in counter-piracy operations and in 2011 enforcing a no-fly zone over Libya in accordance with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973. The less potent Article 4, which merely invokes consultation among NATO members, has been invoked four times: by Turkey in 2003 over the Iraq War, twice in 2012 by Turkey over the Syrian Civil War after the downing of an unarmed Turkish F-4 reconnaissance jet and after a mortar was fired at Turkey from Syria and in 2014 by Poland following the Russian intervention in Crimea.</s>
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On the New York Post’s opinion page, Sally Pipes of Pacific Research Institute writes about two campuses with menegitis outbreaks and how current vaccines given don’t prevent the disease from spreading. However, a 20 year old vaccine available in Europe, Canada and Australia is still being delayed by the FDA.
Twenty years in the making, the vaccine has undergone numerous clinical trials involving nearly 8,000 infants, children, adolescents and adults. US health officials, alarmed by the outbreak, have taken the unprecedented step of importing the drug as part of an emergency vaccination campaign at Princeton.
Yet Bexsero is still awaiting approval by the Food and Drug Administration. A combination of excessive caution and regulatory inertia has left thousands of Americans vulnerable to this dangerous disease.
A strong dose of caution when it comes to approving new treatments may seem like a virtue. But as the students and families affected by these outbreaks know, excess caution can have grave consequences.
Obviously, this isn’t the first time that FDA delays bureaucratic inertia have cost American lives. Pipes notes:
For example, a seven-year delay in approving beta-blockers contributed to over 100,000 premature deaths among heart-disease sufferers. And during the 3½ years it took the FDA to approve the drug Interleukin-2, 3,500 patients died of kidney cancer even as the drug was being used successfully in nine other countries.
So, what is the process for FDA approval and why do many drug companies bypass it for markets in other countries?
Already, the average process of shepherding a potential drug from discovery through approval takes 14.2 years, according to Tufts University researchers. For every 5,000 compounds screened, the FDA will approve only five for human testing, and (eventually) license only one for marketing.
These are long odds, and they keep getting longer as the FDA pushes for ever-more data and ever-longer trials. In the case of rare diseases — like bacterial meningitis — many drug companies may find that there aren’t enough patients to make it financially feasible to jump through the hoops of the FDA’s approval process.
The result is a record number of drug shortages — many of which can be attributed to “actual or anticipated action by the FDA,” according to a joint report by the American Society of Oncology, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and other stakeholders.</s>
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François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon, (born Aug. 6, 1651, Château de Fénelon, Périgord, Fr.—died Jan. 7, 1715, Cambrai), French archbishop, theologian, and man of letters whose liberal views on politics and education and whose involvement in a controversy over the nature of mystical prayer caused concerted opposition from church and state. His pedagogical concepts and literary works, nevertheless, exerted a lasting influence on French culture.
Descended from a long line of nobility, Fénelon began his higher studies in Paris about 1672 at Saint-Sulpice seminary. Ordained a priest in 1676, he was appointed director of Nouvelles Catholiques (“New Catholics”), a college for women who instructed converts from French Protestantism. When King Louis XIV heightened the persecution of the Huguenots (French Calvinists) in 1685 by revoking the Edict of Nantes, Fénelon strove to mitigate the harshness of Roman Catholic intolerance by open meetings with the Protestants (1686–87) to present Catholic doctrine in a reasonable light. While unsympathetic to Protestant belief, he equally repudiated forced conversions.
From his pedagogical experiences at Nouvelles Catholiques, he wrote his first important work, Traité de l’éducation des filles (1687; “Treatise on the Education of Girls”). Although generally conservative, the treatise submitted innovative concepts on the education of females and criticized the coercive methods of his day.
In 1689, with the support of the renowned bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, Fénelon was named tutor to Louis, Duke (duc) de Bourgogne, grandson and heir to Louis XIV. For the prince’s education, Fénelon composed his best-known work, Les Aventures de Télémaque (1699), in which the adventures of Telemachus in search of his father, Ulysses, symbolically expressed Fénelon’s fundamental political ideas. During the period of his popularity in official circles, Fénelon enjoyed various honours, including his election to the French Academy in 1693 and his selection as archbishop of Cambrai in 1695.
Anxious about his spiritual life, Fénelon sought an answer from the Quietist school of prayer. Introduced in October 1688 to Quietism’s leading exponent, Mme Guyon, Fénelon sought from her some means of personally experiencing the God whose existence he had intellectually proved. But his search for spiritual peace was short-lived. Bossuet and other influential people at court attacked Mme Guyon’s teaching, and a document investigating Quietism’s doubtful orthodoxy even obtained Fénelon’s signature. When Bossuet, however, next launched a personal attack on Mme Guyon, Fénelon responded with Explication des maximes des saints sur la vie intérieure (1697; “Explanation of the Sayings of the Saints on the Interior Life”). Defending Mme Guyon’s integrity, Fénelon not only lost Bossuet’s friendship but also exposed himself to Bossuet’s public denunciation. As a result, Fénelon’s Maximes des saints was condemned by the pope, and he was exiled to his diocese.</s>
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Valerius Cato went to Rome from Cisalpine Gaul (present-day northern Italy, especially the Po Valley). He was often mentioned by other members of the Neoteric movement, which flourished in the 50s and 40s bc. His scholarship was highly praised, and he was compared with Zenodotus of Ephesus, the great critic and Alexandrian librarian of the 3rd century bc, as well as with Crates of Mallus, a celebrated Alexandrian philologist. He was said to have been perennially short of money; he was eventually forced to sell his villa near Tusculum (present-day Tuscolo, Italy).
Valerius Cato was well respected in his time. Fellow poet Helvius Cinna praised his Dictynna (“Diana”), which seems to have been an erudite short epic (what modern scholars call an epyllion) that probably influenced subsequent poets. Lydia, which may have been a collection of amorous poems, was praised by the Neoterian poet Ticida.</s>
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function in earthworm excretory system...as a result of the reabsorption of salts. Finally, a very dilute urine passes into the bladder (an enlarged portion of the tubule) and then to the exterior through the external opening, or nephridiopore. The rate of urine flow for an earthworm may be as much as 60 percent of its body weight in a period of 24 hours.
part of nephridiumThe protonephridium consists of a hollow cell located in the body cavity and a duct leading from it to an exterior opening, called a nephridiopore. Fluid in the body cavity filters into the hollow cell, called a flame bulb (or flame cell) if it possesses cilia, or a solenocyte if it has a flagellum. In either form, the cilia or the flagellum wave filtered urine down the tube to the outside.
Simply begin typing or use the editing tools above to add to this article.
Once you are finished and click submit, your modifications will be sent to our editors for review.</s>
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- Semiconductor and junction principles
- Two-terminal junction devices
- Bipolar transistors
- Metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors
- Metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors
semiconductor device, electronic circuit component made from a material that is neither a good conductor nor a good insulator (hence semiconductor). Such devices have found wide applications because of their compactness, reliability, and low cost. As discrete components, they have found use in power devices, optical sensors, and light emitters, including solid-state lasers. They have a wide range of current- and voltage-handling capabilities, with current ratings from a few nanoamperes (10−9 ampere) to more than 5,000 amperes and voltage ratings extending above 100,000 volts. More importantly, semiconductor devices lend themselves to integration into complex but readily manufacturable microelectronic circuits. They are, and will be in the foreseeable future, the key elements for the majority of electronic systems, including communications, consumer, data-processing, and industrial-control equipment.
Semiconductor and junction principles
Solid-state materials are commonly grouped into three classes: insulators, semiconductors, and conductors. (At low temperatures some conductors, semiconductors, and insulators may become superconductors.) Figure 1 shows the conductivities σ (and the corresponding resistivities ρ = 1/σ) that are associated with some important materials in each of the three classes. Insulators, such as fused quartz and glass, have very low conductivities, on the order of 10−18 to 10−10 siemens per centimetre; and conductors, such as aluminum, have high conductivities, typically from 104 to 106 siemens per centimetre. The conductivities of semiconductors are between these extremes.
The conductivity of a semiconductor is generally sensitive to temperature, illumination, magnetic fields, and minute amounts of impurity atoms. For example, the addition of less than 0.01 percent of a particular type of impurity can increase the electrical conductivity of a semiconductor by four or more orders of magnitude (i.e., 10,000 times). The ranges of semiconductor conductivity due to impurity atoms for five common semiconductors are given in Figure 1.
The study of semiconductor materials began in the early 19th century. Over the years, many semiconductors have been investigated. The table shows a portion of the periodic table related to semiconductors. The elemental semiconductors are those composed of single species of atoms, such as silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), and gray tin (Sn) in column IV and selenium (Se) and tellurium (Te) in column VI. There are, however, numerous compound semiconductors that are composed of two or more elements. Gallium arsenide (GaAs), for example, is a binary III-V compound, which is a combination of gallium (Ga) from column III and arsenic (As) from column V.
Ternary compounds can be formed by elements from three different columns, as, for instance, mercury indium telluride (HgIn2Te4), a II-III-VI compound. They also can be formed by elements from two columns, such as aluminum gallium arsenide (AlxGa1 − xAs), which is a ternary III-V compound, where both Al and Ga are from column III and the subscript x is related to the composition of the two elements from 100 percent Al (x = 1) to 100 percent Ga (x = 0). Pure silicon is the most important material for integrated circuit application, and III-V binary and ternary compounds are most significant for light emission.
Prior to the invention of the bipolar transistor in 1947, semiconductors were used only as two-terminal devices, such as rectifiers and photodiodes. During the early 1950s, germanium was the major semiconductor material. However, it proved unsuitable for many applications, because devices made of the material exhibited high leakage currents at only moderately elevated temperatures. Since the early 1960s, silicon has become a practical substitute, virtually supplanting germanium as a material for semiconductor fabrication. The main reasons for this are twofold: (1) silicon devices exhibit much lower leakage currents, and (2) high-quality silicon dioxide (SiO2), which is an insulator, is easy to produce. Silicon technology is now by far the most advanced among all semiconductor technologies, and silicon-based devices constitute more than 95 percent of all semiconductor hardware sold worldwide.
Many of the compound semiconductors have electrical and optical properties that are absent in silicon. These semiconductors, especially gallium arsenide, are used mainly for high-speed and optoelectronic applications.</s>
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Medieval gardens, £9.99
Diameter: 6.100 cm
CM EngM.1/PI 755
Edward VI coronation medal
England, AD 1547 (old style 1546)
The first English coronation medal
This spectacular gold medal was produced for the coronation of the English boy king Edward VI (reigned 1547-1553). It was the first coronation medal produced in England.
The Latin inscription around the king's image translates as 'Edward VI by the grace of god King of England, France and Ireland, defender of the faith and the supreme head on earth of the Church of England and Ireland, crowned 20 Fenruary 1546 at the age of ten years'. The same inscription appears in Greek and Hebrew on the back.
The medal was subsequently part of the collection of coins and medals owned by George III (reigned 1760-1820).
K. Sloan (ed.), Enlightenment. Discovering the (London, The British Museum Press, 2003)</s>
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- Human Rights Commission
Human Rights Commission
The Cambridge Human Rights Commission is a city law enforcement agency that investigates complaints of discrimination that occur in Cambridge -- in housing, employment, education and public accommodations. The Commission enforces two ordinances: the Cambridge Human Rights Ordinance, chapter 2.76 and the Cambridge Fair Housing Ordinance, chapter 14.04.
These laws prohibit discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, gender, physical and mental disability, sexual orientation, religion, age, family status, military status, and source of income. We also work HUD to enforce the Federal Fair Housing Act. The Commission also aids the City of Cambridge by educating both businesses and residents, providing community outreach, and cooperating with other city, state and federal agencies. The Commission is available to conduct workshop presentations on fair housing and employment discrimination for community groups, social service agencies, and schools. We have an employee that is fluent in both Spanish and English.
2013 Fair Housing Awards
2014 Fair Housing Awards</s>
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http://www.cambridgema.gov/hrc.aspx
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Every single person in this country has a vested interest in the viability of our coastal communities. These coastal communities are home to a growing number of Americans, support our food and energy needs, and contribute millions to our annual economy. The coast also serves as cultural touchstones for so many of us—who can forget their first time seeing the ocean or wriggling their toes in the sand?
This is one of the many reasons The Nature Conservancy in Texas has worked hard to restore Half Moon Reef, a historic oyster reef located in Matagorda Bay. Oysters are one of the Gulf’s most important inhabitants—those little bivalves are not only delicious, they also act as a natural water filtration system. The Gulf of Mexico is the final outlet for 207 estuaries and more than 30 major river systems in this country, including the mighty Mississippi River; oysters strip nutrients and impurities from those millions of gallons of freshwater flowing daily into the Gulf. With Half Moon Reef, we plan to not only construct a viable habitat for oysters (and various other marine life), but to help restore the Texas Gulf Coast to ensure protection against hurricanes and tropical storms well into the future.
The Conservancy has previously constructed new oyster beds and restored existing reefs along the upper and lower Texas coast, but the 45-acre Half Moon Reef will be the Conservancy’s first reef constructed from the ground up. It’s also one of the largest restoration projects around the country, said Boze Hancock, research scientist for the Conservancy’s Global Marine Team.”We are not [just] restoring oysters, we are restoring habitat,” he added.
Intrigued by Half Moon Reef? Want to learn more? Hear about all the incredible details in this video!
photo: Oyster Lake © Jerod Foster</s>
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The Kingdom of Israel, formed by the secession of the Ten Tribes under Jeroboam, covered the whole northern and north-eastern part of the realm of David which constituted the bulk of the land of the Hebrews. Politically and materially it was of much greater importance than its southern neighbour, Juda. Under Jeroboam II (782-746 B.C.) it had recovered from the inroads of the Syrians and the pecuniary exactions of Shalmaneser II of Assyria, and had regained on the east and north-east the boundaries conquered of yore by Solomon. In fact the Israel of Jeroboam II was at the summit of its prosperity. But beneath this bloom lay a depth of religious and moral corruption. Jehovah had always been acknowledged as the supreme God, but His worship was still tainted by the heathenish symbolism of the calf at the national temples of Bethel and Dan ( Hosea 8:5-7 ), and affronted by the Chanaanitish cult at the high-places and groves, where the Baalim or gods of fertility were offered rites accompanied by unbridled sexual licence ( Hosea 2:13, 17 ; 4:12 sq. ). The Prophets Amos and Osee (A. V. Hosea), especially the latter, paint in strong colours a picture of the dire iniquity of the times: "There is no truths and there is no mercy, and there is no knowledge of God in the land. Cursing, and lying, and killing, and theft, and adultery have overflowed, and blood hath touched blood." ( Hosea 4:1-2 ) Practically there prevailed the principle that Jehovah could not fail to uphold His People, sin as it might, so long as that people paid Him the outward homage of sacrifice and ceremony. Against this superstitious presumption and the licence of the land Osee spoke in burning words, and in the very hey-day of Israel's prosperity foretold the detruction of the kingdom as the penalty of its wickedness. They announced captivity in foreign countries: "They shall not dwell in the Lord's land; Ephraim is returned to Egypt, and hath eaten unclean things among the Assyrians " ( Hosea 9:3 ).
After Jeroboam II, political disintegration began from within by a series of short reigns of usurpers, who reached the throne and were hurled from it by murder. At the same time a world-power, Assyria was looming up on the East and menacing the existence of the small states which lay between it and the Mediterranean. An Assyrian king, Tiglath-pileser III (D.V. Theglathphalasar, the Phul of 2 Kings 15:19 ), led a campaign against Damascene Syria, Hamath, and Palestine (742-738), and Manahem, the reigning prince of Israel, was fain to buy security with a heavy tribute silver. Manahem's son Phaceia (Pekahiah), after a two years' reign fell a victim to a conspiracy, and the throne was seized by its leader, Phacee (Pekah). The latter entered into an alliance with King Rasin (Rezin) of Damascus, whose object was the capture of Jerusalem and the placing of a Damascene king over Juda, in order to consolidate the Syrian-lsraelitie defence against the ever-threatening Assyrian domination. But Achaz of Jerusalem acknowledged Tiglath-pileser's suzerainty, and called in his aid in opposition to the prophetic warnings of Isaias. Later, at Damascus, he did homage to the Assyrian emperor, and from that city imported pagan ideas into the Temple ritual. The power Achaz invoked was destined ultimately to scourge his country, but it fell heavily first upon the coalition against Juda. Tiglath-pileser reappeared in Syria in 734, and his advance forced the allies to raise the siege of Jerusalem. After defeating Rasin and blockading Damascus, the Assyrians turned westward and occupied Northern Palestine. The cuneiform inscriptions tell us that Tiglath-pileser required Phacee's death as the penalty of his presumption, and made his slayer, Osee (Hoshea), king in his stead. (Cf. 2 Kings 15:29 sq. ) Numbers of captives were carried out of Israel, the first of the deportations which depopulated the country. The prisoners were taken from Galaad, Galilee, and other northern districts of the kingdom, both east and west of the Jordan basin.
It was therefore over a crippled and impoverished land that Osee ruled as a vassal-King. For relief from this galling pressure he turned to Egypt, the only nation that could then pretend to cope with Assyria. He ceased paying the annual tribute and allied himself with Sua (So), a ruler of Lower Egypt, and Hanan, a Philistine prince of Gaza. The expedient was a ruinous failure; Egypt, always a false friend of Israel, deserted Osee. Tiglath-pileser's successor, Shalmaneser (the fourth of the name), having learned of this conspiracy, came down upon the Kingdom of Israel and made Osee a prisoner. But the patriotic revolt was a national one and survived the king's capture. Samaria, the capital, held out desperately against a besieging Assyrian army for three years, and was not taken till 722 B.C., Sargon II having meanwhile succeeded Shalmaneser. It was the death-blow of the Kingdom of Israel. An Assyrian inscription found in the ruins of Sargon's palace at Nineveh informs us that he carried away 27,290 of the people. War, famine, and earlier deportations must have much reduced the population. To fill the place of the dead and exiled Israelites, Sargon brought in among the remnant Babylonians and other pagan peoples from conquered lands. The Northern Kingdom became the Assyrian province of Samaria, and from the intermarriage of its various races arose the Samaritans. Out the depopulation of the former kingdom of its natives was far from complete. The bulk of the populace, composed of the poorer and least influential inhabitants, was allowed to remain, so that we read in the Assyrian monuments of a later futile effort of Hamath, Arpad, Simnira, Damascus, and "Samarina", i.e. samaria, to shake off the lordship of Sargon. (Schrader, keilinschriftliche Bibliothek, II, 56, 57.) But the Israelitic stock left in the land was gradually merged into the composite race of Samaritans.(2) The Ten Tribes in Exile
The exiles were settled by their conquerors "in Halah and Habor [a river] by the river of Gozan, in the cities of the Medes". Their colonies were therefore in the heart of Northern Mesopotamia and in Western Persia, then subject to Assyria. In Mesopotamia, or Assyria proper, the Israelites were assigned to the region centring about the city of Nisibis, which is mentioned by Josephus as their leading settlement. The exiled of the Ten Tribes remained and multiplied, never returning to Palestine. (See authorities cited by Schurer in art. "Diaspora" in sup. vol. of Hastings' Bib. Dict., 92.) Wellhausen and others who assume that the banished Israelites of the Northern Kingdom lost their identity and disappeared in the surrounding population regard the explicit testimony to the contrary of Josephus in his "Antiquities": "the ten tribes are beyond the Euphrates until now, and are an immense multitude [ myriades apeiroi ), not to be estimated by members." We may well believe that the swarming Hebrew population of Southern Russia is composed in large part of descendants of the Israelites expatriated in Northern Assyria and the regions south of the Caspian. No particulars of the lot of these transplanted inhabitants of the Northern Kingdom have reached us. We may only surmise from the manner in which they multiplied that their situation was at least a tolerable one.(3) Assyrian Harrying of Juda
The annihilation of its sister kingdom laid open petty Juda to the full pressure of Assyria. Thenceforward that unhappy state, placed between the rival Assyrian and Egyptian Empires, was at the mercy of whichever happened at the time to be the stronger. A miraculous intervention did indeed hurl back Sennacherib's Assyrian army from the walls of Jerusalem in the reign of Ezechias (Hezekiah), but the country outside the city suffered cruelly from the ravages of that expedition. A monument of Sennacherib, who was Sargon's son and successor, records that he captured forty-six fortified towns and numberless smaller places of Juda, and took away as spoil, presumably to Assyria, 200,150 people and an immense number of beasts and herds. (Cf. 2 Kings 18:13 , in confirmation of this.)
Yet Jerusalem, the Temple and the dynasty remained intact. Under the succeeding rulers, Manasses and Amon, the kingdom slowly recovered, but their potent example and approval led the nation into unprecedented syncretic excesses. So flagrant was the idolatry the worship of the Baalim under the symbol of obelisks and pillars or sacred trees, and the degrading cults of Astarte and Moloch, that not even the holy precincts of the Temple of Jehovah were free from such abominations. The morality of a people given over to licentious and cruel syncretism may be imagined. The sweeping religious reform under Josias seems not to have penetrated much beneath the surface, and the inveterate pagan propensities of the nation broke out in later reigns. The Prophets denounced and warned in vain. Except in the spasm of Josias' reform they were not listened to. Only a supreme national chastizement could purify this carnal people, and effectually tear idolatrous superstitions from their hearts. Juda was to undergo the fate of Israel.
A prelude to the process of national extinction was the defeat of Josias and his army by Pharao Nechao at Mageddo or Migdol. Egypt had thrown off the Assyrian suzerainty and was threatening Assyria itself. Josias had encountered the Egyptians, probably in an effort to keep the independence Juda had enjoyed during his reign. But by this time the second Assyrian Empire was tottering to its fall. Before Nechao reached the Euphrates Nineve had surrendered to the Medes and Babylonians, the Assyrian territories had been shared between the victors, and instead of Assyria Nechao was confronted by the rising Chaldean power. The Egyptians were defeated at Carchemish in the year 605 by Nabuchodonosor (Nebuchadnezzar), the son and heir of the Babylonian king Nabopolassar. It was now the Chaldean Kingdom, with its capital at Babylon, which loomed large upon the political horizon. Joakim (Jehoiakim), a son of Josias, was forced to exchange Egyptian for Babylonian vassalage. But a fanatical patriotism urged defiance to the Chaldeans. The people looked upon the Temple, Jehovah's dwelling-place, as a national aegis which would safeguard Juda, or at least Jerusalem, from the fate of Samaria. In vain Jeremias warned them that unless they turned from their evil ways Sion would go down before the enemy as the sanctuary of Shiloh had long before. His words only stung the Jews and their leaders to fury, and the Prophet narrowly escaped a violent death. In the third year of his reign Joakim rebelled, and Juda was able to ward off for four or five years the inevitable taking of Jerusalem by Nabuchodonosor. Joachin (Jehoiachin), who meanwhile had succeeded to the crown of Juda, was forced to surrender the beleaguered city, 597 B.C. His life was spared, but the conqueror dealt Jerusalem a terrible blow. The princes and leading men, the rank and file of the army, the citizen of wealth, and the artificers, numbering in all 10,000, were carried captive to Chaldea. The Temple and palace were rifled of their treasures. Sedecias (Zedekiah), an uncle of Joachin, was placed over the shadow of a kingdom remaining. ( 2 Kings 24:8 sqq. ) After nine years of a reign characterized by gradual decay and religious and moral chaos, revolt flamed forth again, fed by the always illusory hope of succour from Egypt. Jeremiah's warnings against the folly of resistance to Chaldean domination were futile; a blind, fanatical fury possessed princes and people. When the patriotic cause momentarily triumphed, the advance of the Egyptian army causing Nabuchodonosor to raise temporarily the siege of Jerusalem, the Prophet's was the solitary voice that broke the exultant peal by the persistent refrain of ruin at the hands of the Chaldeans.
The issue verified his prediction. The Egyptians again failed the Israelites in their hour of need, and the Babylonian army closed in on the doomed city. Jerusalem held out more than a year, but a dreadful famine weakened the defence and the Babylonians finally entered through a breach in the wall, 586 B.C. Sedecias and remnant of his army escaped in the night, but were overtaken on the plain of Jericho, the king captured, and his followers routed ( Jeremiah 3:7-9 ). He was carried to the Babylonian camp at Reblatha in Emath, and cruelly blinded there, but not before he had seen his sons put to death. The royal palace was burnt. A similar fate met Solomon's splendid Temple, which had been the stimulus and stay of the religious-national outbreaks. Its sacred vessels, of enormous value, were taken to Babylon and in part distributed among the pagan shrines there; the large brass fixtures were cut to pieces. The destruction of the larger houses and the city wall left Jerusalem a ruin. The people found in Jerusalem and, presumably, the greater number of those who had not sought refuge in the city were deported to Chaldea, leaving only the poorest sort to till the land and save it from falling into an utter waste. Some local government being necessary for these remaining inhabitants, Masphath (Mizpah), to the north of Jerusalem, was chosen as its seat, and Godolias (Gedaliah) a Hebrew, left as overseer of the remnant. On learning this, many Isralites who had fled to neighbouring countries returned, and a considerable colony centred at Masphath. But a certain Ismahel, of the Davidic stock, acting at the instigation of the Ammonite king, treacherously massacred Godolias and a number of his subordinates. The murderer and his band of ten were leading away to Ammon the terror-stricken rest of the community, when the latter were rescued by a Hebrew military officer connected with the administration. But fear that the Chaldean vengeance for the overseer's death would smite indiscriminately drove the colony into Egypt, and Jeremias, who had taken asylum at Masphath, was compelled to accompany it thither.(2) The Exile and its Effects
We are left to conjecture the number deported from Juda by the Babylonians. The 200,150 captives whom Sennacherib the Assyrian took from the Southern Kingdom three generations before its downfall we can reasonably surmise to have been settled in Assyria, i.e. Northern Mesopotamia, perhaps in the neighbourhood of the Israelitish communities (see above). These cannot be reckoned as properly in the Babylonian Exile. We have no data for a close estimate of the numbers brought away by the Chaldeans. Assuming the dates of Jeremias 3:28-30 to be correct, none of the deportations there noted took place in the years of the great disasters, viz. 597 and 586. Adding these minor expatriations -- a sum of 4600 -- to the l0,000 of the first capture of Jerusalem, gives 14,000; and since the final catastrophe was more sweeping than the former we are warranted in trebling that number as a rough estimate of the total of the Babylonian Captivity. The exiles were settled in the Kingdom of Babylonia, partly at the capital, Babylon, but rnore in localities not very distant from it, along the Euphrates and the canals which irrigated the great Chaldean plain. Nehardea, or Neerda, one of the principal of these Jewish colonies lay on the great river. (Josephus, Antiquities, XVIII, ix, 1.) Nippur, an important city between the Euphrates and the Tigris also contained many Hebrew captives within its walls or vicinity. One of the main canals which fertilized the interfluvial plain, passing through Nippur, was the nâr Kabari , which is identical with the river Chobar "in the land of the Chaldeans" of Ezech., i, 1, 3; iii, 15. (See Hilprecht, Explorations in Bible Lands (1903), 410 sq.] Other colonies were at Sora and Pumbeditha. It has been plausibly conjectured that Nabuchodonosor, whom the cuneiform records show as a builder and restorer, would not fail to utilize the great labour power of the Hebrew captives in the work of reclaiming and draining waste lands in Babylonia ; for, as its present condition proves, that region without artificial irrigation and control of the overflow of the rivers if a mere desert. The country about Nippur seems to have been thus restored in ancient times. In any case it is a priori quite probable that the mass of the exiles were for a time at least in a condition of mitigated slavery. The condition of slaves in Babylonia was not one of grinding serfage; they enjoyed certain rights, and could, by redemption and other means, ameliorate their lot and even gain entire freedom. It is evident that soon after their deportation many of the Jews in Chaldea were in a positions to build homes and plant gardens ( Jeremiah 29:5 ). Babylonia was pre-eminently a land of agriculture, and the Southern Israelites , who at home, on the whole had been a vine-growing and pastoral people, now by choice, if not by necessity, gave themselves to the tilling of the soil and the rearing of cattle in the rich alluvial flats of Mesopotamia (cf. Ezra 2:66 ). The products of Babylonia, especially grain, formed the staples of its busy internal commerce, and doubtless the great marts at Babylon, Nipper, and elsewhere, attracted many Jews into mercantile pursuits. The trading activities and the exact and well-regulated commercial methods of Babylonia must have greatly stimulated and developed the innate commercial genius of the expatriated race.
The fact that the Jews were allowed to settle in colonies, and this according to families and clans, had a vital bearing on the destinies of that people. It kept alive the national spirit and individuality, which would have disappeared in the mass of surrounding heathendom if the Southern Israelites had been dispersed into small units. There are indications that this national life was strengthened by a certain social organization, in which reappeared the primitive divisions of leading family and tribal stocks, and that their heads, the "elders", administered under royal licence the purely domestic affairs of the settlements (cf. Ezekiel 8:1 ; Ezra 2:2 ; Nehemiah 7:7 ). As long as the Temple stood it was the centre and pledge of Jewish hopes and aspirations, and even the first exiles kept their mental vision fixed on it as a beacon of early deliverance. The negative and ill-presaging voice of Ezechial was unheeded by them. When Jerusalem and the Temple fell, the feeling was one of stupor. That Jehovah could forsake His dwelling-place and allow His sanctuary to be humbled to the dust by deriding Gentiles was inconceivable. But there was the terrible fact. Was the Lord no longer their God and greater than all other gods? It was a crisis in the religion of Israel. The providential rescue was at hand in prophecy. Had not Jeremias, Ezechiel, and others before them repeatedly foretold this ruin as the chastisement of national infidelity and sin ? This was remembered now by those who in their fanatical deafness had not listened to them. So far from Jehovah being a defeated and humbled God, it was His very decree that had brought the catastrophe to pass. The Chaldeans had been merely the instruments of His justice. He now revealed to the Jews as a God of moral righteousness and universal sway, as a God who would tolerate no rival. Perhaps they had never before realized this; certainly never as now. Hence it is that the Exile is a great turning-point in the history of Israel -- a punishment which was a purification and a rebirth. But Exilic prophecy did not merely point to the great religio-ethical lesson of the visitations of the past: it raised more loudly than ever the of hope and promise. Now that Jehovah's purpose had been accomplished, and the chosen people been humbled beneath His hand, a new era was to come. Even the mournful Jeremias had declared that the captives would return at the end of seventy years -- a round number, not to be taken literally. Ezechiel, in the midst of the desolation of the Exile, boldly sketched a plan of the resurgent Sion. And Deutero-Isaias, probably a little later, brought a stirring and jubilant message of comfort and the assurance of a joyful, new life in the fatherland.
Several minor but important factors contributed to the preservation and cleansing of the religion of Israel. One was negative: the forcible uprooting from the soil where Chanaanitish idolatries had so long survived, detached the Jews from these baneful tradition. The others are positive. Without the Temple no sacrifices or solemn worshilp could be lawfully practised. The want was in part supplied by the keeping of the Sabbath, especially by religious assemblies on that day -- the beginnings of the future synagogues. The Mosaic Law, too, assumed a new importance and sacredness, because Jehovah therein manifested His will, and in some sort dwelt, as an ordaining Presence. The writings of the Prophets and other scriptures, in so far as they existed, also received a share of the popular veneration hitherto concentrated on the Temple and external rites. In short, the absence of sacrifice and ceremonial worship during half a century had a tendency to refine the monotheism and, in general, to spiritualize the religion of the Hebrews.(3) The Prelude of the Restoration
Nabuchodonosor after a long and prosperous reign was succeeded by his son Evil Merodach, the Amil Marduk of the monuments. The latter showed himself benign to the long-imprisoned ex-king Joachin (Jechonias), releasing him and recognizing in a measure his royal dignity. After a short reign Evil Merodach was deposed, and within the space of four years (560-556) the throne was occupied by three usurpers. Under the last of these, Nabonidus, the once all-powerful Babylonian Monarchy declined rapidly. A new political power appeared on the eastern and northern frontiers. Cyrus, the King of Anzan (Elam) and Persia, had overcome Astyages, ruler of the Medes (or Manda), and seized his capital, Ecbatana. Media, by the partition of the Assyrian Empire and the further conquests of Cyaxares, had grown powerful; its territories took in, on the north and west, Armenia and half of Cappadocia. Cyrus extended these conquests by the subjugation of Lydia, thus stretching his sovereignty to the Aegean Mediterranean and forming a vast empire. The balance in Hither Asia was destroyed, and Babylon was threatened by this formidable rew power. The Deutero-Isaian Prophet hailed this brilliant star on the political horizon with joy, and recognizing in Cyrus the foreordained servant of God, predicted through him Babylon's downfall and Israel's deliverance ( Isaiah 44:28 - 45:7 ). In the year 538 B.C. the Persian monarch invaded Chaldean territory; helped by disaffection in the south, one of his generals was able in a few days to take Babylon without resistence, and Cyrus became the ruler of the Chaldean Kingdom.(4) The Restoration under Cyrus: Zorobabel's Return
Cyrus reversed the policy of deportation followed by Assyrian and Babylonian kings. He deemed this the wiser statecraft, probably because he had experienced in the conquest of Babylonia the danger of keeping an ill-affected population in the midst of a country threatened by a foreign foe. At the same time, to repeople Judea with a nation bound to the Persian dynasty by ties of gratitude would strengthen his realm against Egyptian invasion. Thus did xxyyyk.htm">Providence "stir up the heart of Cyrus" to a liberal course towards the Israelites, and employ him as an unwitting instrument in the reconstitution of a people whose mission was not yet accomplished. Cyrus, accordingly, in the first year of his rule at Babylon, 538 B.C., forty-eight years after the destruction of Jerusalem issued an edict in which he allowed and recommended the return of all the Hebrews in his domain to the fatherland, ordered the rebuilding of theTemple, for which a subsidy from the royal treasury was granted, directed the sacred vessels seized by Nabuchodonosor to be sent back, and urged all Isralites to contribute to the restoration of public worship. The extreme liberality of the Persian monarch in the matter of the Temple is less surprising when we consider that a restored Jerusalem was inconceivable without a restored sanctuary. Semitic cities and districts rose or declined with the shrines of their deities, and Cyrus's largeness towards the Jews in religious affairs is quite in keeping with his rehabilitation of certain Babylonian temples and the return of images to their former abodes, as witnessed by his inaugural proclamation (Records of the Past, new series, V, 143 sq.). That the Northern Israelites dwelling in Assyrians Mesopotamia were not similarly favoured is to be explained not merely by the much longer time elapsed since their political extinction -- a lapse which had permitted them to become rooted to the land of their exile -- but principally to the absence of any desire on their part to set up the old symbolic, half-heathen sanctuaries of Jehovah. They too had learned the stern lesson of the Captivity. It was a province of the Persian Empire and not a Kingdom of Juda, that Cyrus had determined to create, and therefore Zorobabel, the grandson of Joachin, alias Jechonias ( 1 Chronicles 3:17-19 ), and therefore the heir-royal of the Davidic line, was to be only its governor. He was a young man who had never known any court but that of Babylon, and so far as history records never violated the surprising trust placed in him by attempting to recover the crown of his fathers. A contrary thesis has been defended on insufficient grounds by Sellin (Serubbabel, Leipzig, 1898). Sassabasar, "the Jewish prince" mentioned in the first Book of Esdras, is identical with Zorobabel. He and Josue, the high-priest, were entrusted with the Temple furniture, and made the leaders of the gola , or expedition of the returning Jews. Besides a considerable number of slaves, 42, 360 followed Zorobabel on the long journey to Judea. The data about this repatriation in the Book of Esdras are fragmentary. "Every man went into his own city" and from the latter particulars we should infer that the body of the immigrants took up their abode in the small cities and towns outside, and mostly to the south of Jerusalem. The latter must have been little more than a ruin. The returned exiles found the neighbouring tribes and races, the Samaritans, Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, installed at nearly at many points on Jewish soil, alongside pitiful remnants of their countrymen, it must have needed the authority, if not the force, of the Persian Emperor to make room for the Israelites on their former homesteads. Under Zorobabel the struggling community enjoyed autonomy in its internal affairs. In the absence of the old system of royal administration, the primitive organization by clans and families, partially resumed in captivity, gained added vigour, and the heads of these sections, the "princes" and "elders", represented them in all general assemblies.
But the new Israel was less a political than a religious community. Only a fraction of the 250,000 or more Jews who had gone into the East could have lived to return, and, allowing for natural increase among the captive people, a still smaller part of those who might have looked upon Judea as their home returned from the Exile to dwell within its borders. Only the most patriotic and religious, the zealous elite, answered the call of Cyrus and migrated from their abodes, which had become fixed, moved by a desire to restore the theocracy in a purer form with the "house of God " as its heart and centre (cf. Ezra 1:5 ). One of the first measures, therefore, to which the leaders addressed themselves was the rebuilding of the altar of burnt-offerings upon whose dedication the faithful rejoiced at the resumption of the daily sacrifices. Within less than a year after the corner-stone of a new Temple was laid. But an obstacle was encountered in the jealousy of the Samaritans, the half-heathen neighbours on the north. They were largely represented in the alien elements living among the Jews, and viewed with distrust the reorganization of a religion and community in which they would not fill in important, much less a prodominent role. They accordingly asked to join in the construction of the Temple. Zorobabel declined their aid by referring to the decree of Cyrus. Hereby he inaugurated that policy of separation from all contaminating influences long tollowed by later leaders of Israel. But the Samaritans, if they could not assit, could hamper the enterprise by intrigues at the Persian court. Owing to these difficulties the work was suspended, and the zeal of the people cooled. It was not till these were aroused by the reproaches of the prophets Aggeus (Haggai) and Zacharias that Zorobabel and Josue could begin anew the work under Darius Hystaspis (521), sixteen years after its suspension. The external obstacles had been removed by a decree of Darius; the undertaking was pushed vigorously, and four years later the second Temple was completed. But those who had seen the Temple of Solomon sadly confessed that the new sanctuary could not bear comparison with the glory the former.
The history of the Jewish Captivity properly embraces the additional migration from Babylonia of about 1400 souls led by the priest and scribe Esdras (Ezra). In the sacred narrative the account of the second gola follows immediately that of the finishing of the Temple. But its true chronological setting a matter of dispute. The obscurity involving the point arises from the fact that the books of Esdras and Nehemias, the chief inspired sources for the history of the Restoration, mention in several places a King Artaxerxes, without specifying which of three Persian monarchs of that name is meant, viz. whether the first, surnamed Longimanus (465-424 B.C.) the second, Mnemon (405-362), or the third Ochus (362-338). The controversy turns on the point whether the expedition of Esdras, referred to in the first book of that name (viii), preceded or followed the first governorship of Nehemias. The hitherto accepted order places the Esdras gola in the seventh year of Artaxeres (458 B.C.), and hence before the appointment of Nehemias, which occurred in the twentieth year of an Artaxerxes. But several exegetes have recently advanced strong reasons for reversing this order. Van Hoonacker, the leading advocate of the priority of Nehemias to Esdras, assigns the latter's expedition to the seventh year of Artaserxes II, i.e. to 398. Lagrange, according to whom the mission of Nehemias took place under the second Artaxerxes, fixes the Esdras migration as late as 355, a little more than a century after the prevalent date. Of course a revision of the temporal relations of the missions of Esdras and Nehemias postulates a serious confusion in the text and arrangement of the books bearing those names as they have come down to us. More or less involved in this chronological question is that of the respective parts of Nehemias and Esdras in the reconstruction of the Jewish theocracy. Van Hoonacker contends that the cooperation of Esdras with Nehemias, described in II Esdras (also called Nehemias), viii, occurred before Esdras had, as he claims, gone Babylon to organize the expedition in order to strengthen the new community, and that we must allow that the priest scribe's place in the task of reorganization was minor and supplementary to that of Nehemias, the governor. According to this view -- and herein it is largely borne out by the terms of Esdras' commission as given by the Persian king ( Ezra 7:13-26 ) -- the charge of the priest-scribe was not the promulgation of the Law, but the embellishment and improvement of the Temple service, the constitution of judges, and other administrative measures. The question is not without an important bearing on the validity of the Graf-Wellhausen hypothesis of the origin of the Pentateuch. (See ESDRAS, NEHEMIAS, BOOKS OF)
Jerusalem fell before the Roman arms in August, A.D. 70, after a long and dreadful siege conducted by Titus, the son of the Emperor Vespasian and himself later emperor. Hosts of prisoners were taken in this war ; the number was estimated at 97,000, being substantially all that remained of the nation in Palestine. The severity of treatment meted out to these unfortunates tells of the exasperation caused by the stubborn defence of Jerusalem. The weak and sickly prisoners were at once put to death. The rest of the concourse were gathered in the Gentile's Court of the ruined Temple and told off into various classes. All those recognized or reported as active in the rebellion were set aside for slaughter, except seven hundred young men of the finest presence, who were spared to grace the triumph at Rome. The remainder of the captives were divided into those over and those under seventeen. Of the former, part were put in chains and sent to labour in the Egyptian mines; others, including thousands of the female sex, were dispersed among the Roman cities to be victims of the inhuman public games. Those below seventeen were sold as slaves. The leaders of the rebellion, John of Gishkhala and Simon of Gerasa were carried captives to Rome to appear in the triumph of Titus; John was afterwards put to death .
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Copyright © Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company New York, NY. Volume 1: 1907; Volume 2: 1907; Volume 3: 1908; Volume 4: 1908; Volume 5: 1909; Volume 6: 1909; Volume 7: 1910; Volume 8: 1910; Volume 9: 1910; Volume 10: 1911; Volume 11: - 1911; Volume 12: - 1911; Volume 13: - 1912; Volume 14: 1912; Volume 15: 1912
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.- Fleeing war-torn countries and political persecution, refugees from all around the world come to the United States to find peace and to prosper. Through the years, 30,000 of them have been resettled in Utah.
On June 20 – designated as World Refugee Day by the United Nations – some of them will tell their stories at an event sponsored by Catholic Community Services.
"Refugees: The Real Story" will feature stories from a Rwandan refugee and a teenager who is in the refugee foster care program. Bishop John C. Wester, immediate past chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration, will be a keynote speaker.
The event is intended to educate Utahns about their new neighbors, and give information about ways to volunteer or advocate for refugees, who are legal immigrants to the United States.
"The best way for the community to know about the refugees is hearing from the refugees – their stories," said Aden Batar, director of Immigration & Resettlement for CCS.
Batar knows first-hand the impact of such stories. The first Somali refugee to be settled in Utah through Catholic Community Services, he tells his story at schools and other venues, and "the response is always positive," he said. "It’s eye-opening for a lot of people."
In 1992, when civil war broke out in Somalia, Batar was a recent college graduate with a wife and son. Fearing for their lives, he and his family moved from place to place. "You have to make a decision within a second to decide where to go, because that could save your life," he said. "The next day, you don’t know where your meal’s going to come from or whether you will be alive or dead."
When their son died, Batar told his wife he would try to find a safe place for them and their second son, who at the time was only a few months old. He headed toward Kenya, walking across lands controlled by tribes that killed strangers who didn’t speak their dialect.
"If you’re not armed, you will be victimized," said Batar, who had nothing with him, not even a change of clothing. "All the odds are against you."
At one point, he was given a ride in a truck. A militia man stopped the truck and told the 10 passengers to separate themselves by tribal origin. Batar realized from the way the armed man spoke that he was a member of the same tribe as the others in the truck, so Batar joined the others, and the militia man told them to go on their way.
To cross the border from Somalia into Kenya, Batar squeezed himself into a cattle truck. The smell was horrible, he said, but he didn’t care; the cattle prevented the guards from seeing him.
Once in Kenya, he bribed an airplane pilot to bring his family to Nairobi. Two years later, a family member in Utah sponsored them to come to the United States.
Like Batar, many Rwandan refugees have suffered through war. The June 20 event is a way for CCS to reach out to the community "so we can get as much support as we can generate for refugees who are coming into our country," Batar said.
To that end, community leaders and legislators have been invited, said Janet Healy, agency volunteer coordinator for Catholic Community Services.
"Refugees: The Real Story" is one in a series of events throughout June, which is Utah Refugee Month. The month will include a variety of events, from a soccer tournament to art exhibits to a job fair. For information, visit refugee.utah.gov or utahrefugee.org.
Printed with permission from Intermountain Catholic, newspaper for the Diocese of Salt Lake City.</s>
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VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - Scientists have recently discovered an important health fact: all fat is not created equal. It all comes down to location, location, location. The most dangerous place for fat is around your middle.
Did you know we carry two kinds of fat? Surprisingly, that jiggley blubber you see in bathing suit pictures is the safer kind. It's known as subcutaneous fat.
The really dangerous fat hides deep inside the mid-section, pressing up against vital organs like the heart, liver, and lungs. That fat is called visceral fat, also known as belly fat.
Belly Fat No Laughing Matter
Dr. David C. Lieb, assistant professor of medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School, said visceral fat, or belly fat, should be taken very seriously.
"As you become obese and gain weight, as you get older, you start to gain visceral fat," he explained.
Dr. Lieb participated in a study at Eastern Virginia Medical School comparing visceral fat to subcutaneous fat. He said the results were clear: visceral is worse.
"It's the visceral fat that's really associated with inflammation, increased risk for heart disease, increased risk for diabetes and other things like high blood pressure and high cholesterol," he explained.
"So you don't want to have a whole lot of subcutaneous fat either, but in general, the subcutaneous fat is the less inflammatory, the more healthy, of the two depots, the two types of fat," he said.
Power to Lose It
This so-called belly fat can lead to heart attacks, cancer, strokes, and even dementia.
Even though we can't see whether we have too much fat deep in our belly, it can be detected with MRIs and CT scans.
There is also an at-home test to check for it. Simply get a tape measure and measure around the circumference of your waist. Women hit the danger zone at 35 inches and men at 40 inches.
If you are at that point or above, don't despair. The good news is you have the power to change it.
Jamie Dockiewcz, a personal trainer at Inlet Fitness in Virginia Beach, Va., knows all about getting rid of belly fat.
"The bottom line is, you've got to put the time in," she began.
1. Healthy Diet
Dockiewcz recommends a four-pronged approach, beginning with a healthy diet.
"You really want to stay away from refined and processed foods, things that are found in boxes and packages, certainly sugary foods," she said.
2. Turn on the Burn
Then turn on the burn! Do something that gets you breathing hard.
"One of the best ways to get rid of that body fat is to simply get moving, your aerobic exercise, in which you are getting that heart rate up, working into that sweat," Dockiewcz said.
3. Build Muscle
She then advises her clients to lift weights to speed up their metabolism.
"The more muscle you have, the more calories you actually burn, even at rest," she explained.
4. Bedtime Rest
Finally, don't skimp on your sleep! Making sure to get your rest is crucial to weight loss success because it keeps those nasty stress hormones at bay.
"Those cortizol levels get high when you're not getting enough sleep, and that also contributes to your belly fat as well," Dockiewcz said.
Health and Cost Savings
Betty Brothers follows the four-point program to the letter and enjoys spectacular health.
"I eat mostly chicken and fish; I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, no desserts," she said. "I run five times a week, which averages 52 miles a week, and I work out at the gym three days a week."
Brothers is a great-grandmother and is in far better shape than most people her age.
"I see it every day. Even some of my classmates are so obese," she lamented. "They have all kinds of health issues and are on all kinds of medication, and it's just so sad."
One of the greatest perks of being in such good health is the cost savings. Brothers said she spends practically nothing on health care, practically no money and no time.
She only goes to the doctor for her regular check-ups and the only pill she takes is multi-vitamin. She said she wishes more people would do the same.
"Just think how much money the insurance companies would save, and the individuals, if they would just try to take care of themselves some more," Brothers said.
Surgery If Necessary
If the natural approach isn't enough to get rid of belly fat, some doctors recommend bariatric surgery. Dr. Lieb described the surgery in layman's terms.
"You take the intestine, and you alter the anatomy of the intestine and the stomach. So people may not absorb as many calories as they were before, and they tend to lose weight," he explained.
So cut that belly fat down to size. It's an investment that could add years to your life. Just ask Betty Brothers.
"I just try to eat healthy and take care of myself because I want to be around to see this great-grandchild grown!" she laughed, with a twinkle in her eye.
Like Lorie Johnson on Facebook and follow her on Twitter @LorieCBN
*Originally published Sept. 14, 2012.</s>
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- Encourage students and staff to cover their mouths and noses with a tissue when they cough or sneeze. Also, provide them with easy access to tissues and running water and soap or alcohol-based hand rubs. Remind them to cover coughs or sneezes using their elbow or shoulder instead of their hands when a tissue is not available.
- Advise sick students, faculty, and staff to stay at home or in their residence until at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit or 37.8 degrees Celsius) or signs of a fever (have chills, feel very warm, have a flushed appearance, or are sweating). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medicines (any medicine that contains ibuprofen or acetaminophen).
- Establish a method for maintaining contact with students who are sick. If resources permit, student affairs staff, housing staff or health care providers could be assigned to make daily contact with each student.
- Encourage students and staff at higher risk of complications from flu to check with their health care provider about their options. People at higher risk of flu complications who get sick will benefit from early treatment with antiviral medicines. It’s very important that antiviral drugs be used early to treat flu in people who are very sick (for example people who are in the hospital) and people who are sick with flu and have a greater chance of getting serious flu complications. Other people may also be treated with antiviral drugs by their doctor this season.
- Discourage sick members of the public and sick visitors from attending institution-sponsored events until they are free of fever for at least 24 hours.
- Establish regular schedules for frequent cleaning of surfaces and items that are more likely to have frequent hand contact such as desks, door knobs, keyboards, or counters, with cleaning agents that are usually used in these areas. Promote frequent cleaning of bathrooms and ensure adequate supplies of soap and paper towels.
- Provide disposable wipes so that commonly used surfaces such as chairs, remote controls, and keyboards shared by students can be wiped down prior to each use.
- Encourage students to frequently clean their living quarters. Students living together should frequently clean commonly-used surfaces such as doorknobs, refrigerator handles, remote controls, and countertops.
If the flu conditions are MORE severe, institutions should consider adding the following steps:
- Allow students, faculty, and staff at higher risk for complications to stay home. These students, faculty, and staff should make this decision in consultation with their health care provider. Try to come up with ways for work or study to continue from home.
- Find ways to increase social distances (the space between people) in classrooms such as moving desks farther apart, leaving empty seats between students, holding outdoor classes, and using distance learning methods.
- Extend the time sick students, faculty, or staff stay home or in their residence to at least 7 days, even if they feel better sooner. Those who are still sick after 7 days should continue to stay home until at least 24 hours after symptoms have gone away. Symptoms of flu include fever cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills, and tiredness. Some people may also have vomiting and diarrhea. People may be infected with the flu, including 2009 H1N1 and have respiratory symptoms without a fever.
- Consider how and when to suspend classes by working closely with your local and state public health officials. The length of time classes should be suspended depends on your goal for suspending classes and the severity and extent of illness.
Follow these steps to prepare for the flu during the 2009-2010 academic year:
- Review and revise current flu (or emergency) response plans and procedures, including plans protect to higher risk students, faculty, and staff.
- Collaborate with the local health department, community organizations, local businesses, and social services on a plan for flu response.
- Communicate with vendors who supply critical products and services, to ensure this will continue when flu conditions are more severe.
- Update student, faculty, and staff contact information as well as emergency contact lists.
- Identify and establish points of contact with the local public health and education agencies.
- Develop a plan to cover key staff positions at your institution’s health clinics.
- Encourage good hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette through direct education, communication materials such as posters and flyers, and other methods including e-mail, text messaging, or phone calls.
- Develop communication materials (e.g., letters to parents, Web site postings) that can be used to inform students, faculty, staff, and parents about your institution’s flu response. Check out Preparing for the Flu: A Communication Toolkit for Institutions for Higher Education for basic information and communication resources such as letters and announcements. The toolkit is available at School Planning.
- Consider adjusting sick leave policies so sick faculty and staff can stay home. Review policies for students to ensure that there are no negative academic consequences for staying home while sick.
- Develop a plan and options for how work can be continued at home (e.g., homework packets, Web-based lessons, phone calls), if institutions suspend classes.
- Help students, faculty, and staff understand the important roles they can play in reducing the spread of flu.
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- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Rd
Atlanta, GA 30333
TTY: (888) 232-6348
- Contact CDC-INFO</s>
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Since 1946, CDC has used a mechanism called EPI-AID to provide rapid epidemiological response to investigate potential threats to public health. The objectives of EPI-AID #2001-13 included the following:
- To quickly determine if FDA AERs were consistent with allergic reactions to food;
- To obtain serum samples from individuals in this study who met the case definition for allergic reactions after eating corn-containing food (for possible future serologic testing);
- To determine if development of a Cry9c-specific serologic test was warranted.
FDA personnel performed an initial triage of all AERs received since July 1, 2000, selecting those that included consumption of corn products. FDA provided blinded copies of these reports to CDC for review. CDC reviewed the AERs and developed a working case definition for further investigation.
A case was defined as a report forwarded to CDC concerning human consumption of a corn product occurring between July 1 and November 30, 2000, that manifested as follows:
- A suspected anaphylactic reaction (e.g., dizziness, weakness, or loss of consciousness) that occurred within 1 hour of product consumption, or
- Any of the following dermatological or oropharyngeal symptoms (hives, rash, pruritis, oropharyngeal tingling or swelling) that occurred within 12 hours of product consumption, or
- Any of the following gastrointestinal symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramping) that occurred within 12 hours of product consumption and that involved only one individual among meal companions, and
- These symptoms not explained by a pre-existing medical condition
FDA requested permission from all reporting individuals to release their identifying information so that CDC could directly contact individuals who had filed AERs. CDC interviewed individuals, either by phone or in person, using a questionnaire that incorporated a validated food allergy survey. CDC also invited each person to provide a blood sample that was to be banked pending the outcome of the CDC investigation and in anticipation of developing a Cry9c-specific serologic test. CDC obtained informed consent from each individual (see Appendix A).
CDC received AERs from FDA involving 51 individuals. Of the 51 individuals who experienced adverse health effects, 23 did not meet the CDC case definition for the following reasons: four experienced symptoms other than those included in the case definition; five had symptoms that did not occur within the established time frame following product consumption; two had symptoms that were attributed to a previously diagnosed illness; and 12 had meal companions who also experienced gastrointestinal symptoms, suggesting infectious causes of foodborne illness.
Of the 28 individuals meeting the case definition, 25 gave FDA permission to release identifying information to CDC; however, one individual who gave permission to be contacted never responded when contact was attempted. CDC completed interviews with 24 of the people who filed AERs and who also met the CDC case definition. These 24 case subjects ranged in age from 5 years to 74 years, with a mean age of 36 years; 13 cases were male and 11 were female. They resided in 15 states (California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin), the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (see Figure 1 [opens in new window]). No more than 2 people were from the same state or territory. Seventeen of the people who completed questionnaires also provided serum samples.
For 10 of the 24 case subjects, symptom onset was rapid (within 1 hour), and most people reported multiple symptoms. One individual reported loss of consciousness, and two others reported weakness or dizziness, within 1 hour of product consumption. Nineteen individuals sought medical care, and 19 of the 24 case subjects were either self- or physician-treated for allergic reaction. Two people were hospitalized. Case individuals reported having eaten several different corn products from a variety of manufacturers, including corn taco shells, corn tortillas, corn chips, corn cereal, wheat flour tortillas, black beans and rice, and breaded chicken nuggets. (The last three foods are not technically considered corn products, but each listed corn as an ingredient).
CDC presented preliminary results of the epidemiologic field investigation to an EPA scientific advisory panel (SAP) on November 28, 2000. The preliminary findings suggested the utility of developing an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to further assess the relation between allergic manifestations and the Cry9c protein. SAP endorsed this recommendation, and CDC began to develop a research protocol to assess the case serum samples as well as comparison serum samples.</s>
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Vocational education graduates of upper-secondary or post-secondary schools have a greater chance of being employed than graduates of general education at the same level. They are also less likely to spend prolonged periods without work, and more likely to stay on in their first job for more than four years.
These are among the findings of a new Cedefop report, From education to working life: the labour market outcomes of vocational education and training.
Comparing young graduates of 20-24 years of age shows a considerable gap in employment prospects between vocational and general streams. Almost 76 % of 20-24 year olds with secondary or post-secondary vocational education were working compared with 67 % for general graduates.
At present about 23 million young people (aged 25-34) in the European Union are graduates of upper secondary and post-secondary vocational programmes – a figure higher than the population of Romania.
Although short-term employment prospects are better for vocational graduates, project Manager Alex Stimpson warns against complacency.</s>
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A marble block of mass m1 = 549.1 kg and a granite block of mass m2 = 290.4 kg are connected to each other by a rope that runs over a pulley, as shown in the figure. Both blocks are located on inclined planes with angles α = 38.8 degrees and β = 51.2 degrees. Both blocks move without friction, and the rope glides over the pulley without friction. What is the acceleration of the marble block? Note that the positive x-direction is indicated in the figure.</s>
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Forced to work in back-breaking, under- or unpaid jobs from agricultural work to prostitution, slaves today -- men and women, old and young -- are trapped in the same spiral of brutality and control they have endured for centuries, with one crucial difference: a collapse in the price of human beings. Globalization, governmental corruption, and the population explosion have thrust billions of people into the pool of potential slaves. This huge surplus of impoverished people has pushed the human price tag to only $100, the cost of a pair of "designer” jeans. This means that it’s worse to be a slave today than ever before. Slavery Today traces the "products" created by this inhuman system from the jungle and farm through the global markets and into our lives and homes. It addresses the controversies over prostitution and the buying back of slaves while presenting solutions and ways readers can get involved in the growing global anti-slavery movement.
Back to top
Rent Slavery Today 1st edition today, or search our site for Kevin textbooks. Every textbook comes with a 21-day "Any Reason" guarantee. Published by Groundwood Books.</s>
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From Los Angeles, California, USA:
Is it true that in poorly controlled diabetes, growth hormone levels are often higher than normal? Does that mean if your child's control were too tight, your child would not grow as much? Would your child grow taller if his blood sugar were not so tight?
It is true that many states of "relative starvation," including poorly controlled type 1 diabetes, anorexia nervosa, and others, are associated with higher basal serum growth hormone (GH) concentrations. In some of these conditions, the higher GH has been postulated to be a compensatory mechanism: GH is a glucose regulatory hormone and promotes higher glucose levels. In poorly controlled type 1 diabetes, for example, although there is plenty of glucose in the serum, most cells of the body see little of it because there is lack of insulin to facilitate the entry of the glucose into the cells. This has been called "starving in a sea of plenty." Subsequently, the body tries to compensate for this lack of glucose recognition by perversely activating the mechanisms to increase serum glucose, one of which includes increased GH secretion. Still, there are suggestions that during some types of induced starvation, the body becomes relatively resistant to the effects of GH, hence, GH is higher and its effector hormone, IGF-1, is low.
Ideal glucose control, along with good health, will maximize a diabetic's growth in height. Good control does not stunt growth. It was previously observed that new onset type 1 patients tend to be "taller," but poor glycemic control does not promote better growth in height. It is possible that those earlier observations of taller new-onset type 1s was really a demonstration of poorer weight-to-height ratios, given the typical weight loss that precedes a diagnosis of new-onset type 1 and accompanies a diagnosis of poorly controlled type 1 diabetes.
Last Updated: Tuesday April 06, 2010 15:10:18
This Internet site provides information of a general nature and is designed for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your own health or the health of your child, you should always consult with a physician or other health care professional.
This site is published by T-1 Today, Inc. (d/b/a Children with Diabetes), a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, which is responsible for its contents.
© Children with Diabetes, Inc. 1995-2015. Comments and Feedback.</s>
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(PUBEerdmans)The famous Jesuit cardinal sought to revitalize Catholic theology by studying patristic thought. "He is probably best known for his monumental four-volume L'exegese medievale, which is still essential reading,"---Catholic Library World. This volume probes the intricate meanings of fourfold allegory. 467 pages, softcover.
Originally published in French as Exighse midiivale, Henri de Lubac's multivolume study of medieval exegesis and theology has remained one of the most significant works of modern biblical studies. Available now for the first time in English, this long-sought-after volume is an essential addition to the library of those whose study leads them into the difficult field of biblical interpretation. The first volume in de Lubac's multivolume work begins his comprehensive historical and literary study of the way Scripture was interpreted by the church of the Latin Middle Ages. Examining the prominent commentators of the Middle Ages and their texts, de Lubac discusses the medieval approach to biblical interpretation that sought "the four senses" of Scripture, especially the dominant practice of attempting to uncover Scripture's allegorical meaning. Though Bible interpreters from the Enlightenment era on have criticized such allegorizing as part of the "naivete of the Middle Ages," de Lubac insists that a full understanding of this ancient Christian exegesis provides important insights for us today.
Have a question about this product? Ask us here.</s>
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National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.
It is possible that the main title of the report Santavuori Disease is not the name you expected. Please check the synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and disorder subdivision(s) covered by this report.
- Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis
- Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis Type 1
- Infantile Type Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis
- Infantile Finnish Type Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis (Balkan Disease)
- Santavuori-Haltia Disease
Related Disorders List
Information on the following diseases can be found in the Related Disorders section of this report:
- Jansky-Bielschowsky Disease (Late Infantile Type Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis) (includes Variant Late Infantile Type Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis)
- Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses (General) (Includes Batten Disease [Juvenile Type NCL] and Kufs Disease [Adult type NCL])
- Alpers Disease
- Rett Disease
- Schindler Disease Type I
- Tay-Sachs Disease
- Sphingolipidoses (General)
- Associated Congenital Disorders (General)
Santavuori disease, a rare genetic disorder, belongs to a group of progressive degenerative neurometabolic diseases known as the neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCL). These disorders share certain similar symptoms and are distinguished in part by the age at which such symptoms appear. Santavuori disease is considered the infantile form of the neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses. The NCLs are characterized by abnormal accumulation of certain fatty, granular substances (i.e., pigmented lipids [lipopigments] ceroid and lipofuscin) within nerve cells (neurons) of the brain as well as other tissues of the body. This may result in the progressive deterioration (atrophy) of certain areas of the brain in addition to neurological impairment and other characteristic symptoms and physical findings.
In most cases, infants with Santavuori disease appear to develop normally until approximately nine to 19 months of age. They may then begin to exhibit a delay in the acquisition of skills that require the coordination of mental and muscular activity (psychomotor retardation). In addition, affected infants begin to lose previously acquired physical and mental abilities (developmental regression). Affected infants may then experience a variety of symptoms including episodes of uncontrolled electrical disturbances in the brain (seizures), impaired ability to coordinate voluntary movements (cerebellar ataxia), abnormally diminished muscle tone (hypotonia), and repeated, brief, shock-like muscle spasms of the arms, legs, or entire body (myoclonic seizures). Affected infants also experience progressive visual impairment due to deterioration of the nerves of the eyes (optic nerves) that transmit impulses from the nerve-rich membranes lining the eyes (retina) to the brain (optic atrophy). Neurological impairment continues to progress and may be characterized by an inability to move voluntarily (immobility); sudden involuntary muscle spasms (spasticity); and lack of response to stimuli in the environment. Life-threatening complications may develop by the end of the first decade. Santavuori disease is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait.
In most cases, infants with Santavuori disease appear to develop normally until approximately nine to 19 months of age. They may then begin to show indifference to stimuli that would normally be of interest (apathy), may appear unusually sluggish both mentally and physically, and may begin to exhibit abnormal delays in the acquisition of skills that require the coordination of mental and muscular activity (psychomotor retardation). In addition, affected infants may experience episodes of uncontrolled electrical disturbances in the brain (seizures). Affected children typically lose previously acquired physical and mental abilities (developmental regression) such as the ability to speak. In addition, in children with Santavuori disease, the head and brain cease growing after approximately the first year of life. As a result, affected children develop microcephaly by the age of approximately two years. Microcephaly is a condition that indicates a smaller head circumference than would be expected for an infant's age and sex.
In addition, as affected children experience developmental regression, several neuromuscular abnormalities also begin to appear. Affected children demonstrate an impaired ability to coordinate voluntary movements (cerebellar ataxia). (The cerebellum is the part of the brain that plays a role in maintaining balance and posture as well as coordinating voluntary movement.) In addition, they may demonstrate certain repetitive involuntary movements such as unusual "knitting" hand movements. Because of the lack of coordination of the legs, affected children may be unable to walk or stand, although some may have previously acquired such skills earlier in development. In addition, at this stage of the disorder, many children may have generalized muscular weakness and diminished muscle tone (hypotonia) usually accompanied by abnormally exaggerated tendon responses. By the second year of life, most affected children experience repeated, brief, shock-like muscle spasms of the arms, legs, or entire body (myoclonic seizures).
Early in the course of the disease, infants and children with Santavuori disease also exhibit various abnormalities of the nerve-rich membrane lining the eyes (retina). Such abnormalities may include narrowing of the retinal blood vessels, abnormal yellowish-gray or brown coloring (pigmentation) of the normal depression on the retina that plays an essential role in color vision (macula), and/or, in some cases, progressive degeneration of the colored layer of the retina (pigmentary retinal degeneration). In addition, shortly after the onset of symptoms, affected children may begin to experience rapidly progressive visual impairment due to deterioration of the nerves of the eyes (optic nerves) that transmit impulses from the retinas to the brain (optic atrophy). In most cases, affected children experience complete vision loss by the end of the second year of life.
Neurological deterioration continues to progress in affected children and, by approximately the third year of life, may be characterized by loss of electrical activity of certain areas of the brain (electrocortical activity); an inability to move voluntarily (immobility); sudden involuntary muscle spasms (spasticity) with exaggerated reflexes; uncontrolled, rigid extension and rotation of the arms, legs, fingers, and toes due to abnormalities of the brain (decerebrate rigidity); and/or no response to stimuli in the environment. Life-threatening complications may develop by the end of the first decade.
Santavuori disease is transmitted as an autosomal recessive trait. Genetic diseases are determined by the combination of genes for a particular trait that are on the chromosomes received from the father and the mother.
Recessive genetic disorders occur when an individual inherits the same abnormal gene for the same trait from each parent. If an individual receives one normal gene and one gene for the disease, the person will be a carrier for the disease, but usually will not show symptoms. The risk for two carrier parents to both pass the defective gene and, therefore, have an affected child is 25 percent with each pregnancy. The risk to have a child who is a carrier like the parents is 50 percent with each pregnancy. The chance for a child to receive normal genes from both parents and be genetically normal for that particular trait is 25 percent. The risk is the same for males and females.
Investigators have determined that Santavuori disease results from abnormal changes (mutations) of a gene that encodes the enzyme known as palmitoyl-protein thioesterase (PPT). According to researchers, deficiency of the PPT enzyme appears to be the primary defect responsible for the symptoms and findings associated with the disease.
The gene that encodes that PPT enzyme is located on the short arm (p) of chromosome 1 (1p32). Chromosomes are found in the nucleus of all body cells. They carry the genetic characteristics of each individual. Pairs of human chromosomes are numbered from 1 through 22, with an unequal 23rd pair of X and Y chromosomes for males and two X chromosomes for females. Each chromosome has a short arm designated as "p" and a long arm identified by the letter "q". Chromosomes are further subdivided into bands that are numbered.
In individuals with Santavuori disease, abnormal accumulation of certain fatty, granular substances (i.e., pigmented lipids [lipopigments] ceroid and lipofuscin) within nerve cells (neurons) of the brain and other tissues of the body result in progressive deterioration (atrophy) of certain areas of the brain (e.g., cerebrum and cerebellum), neurologic impairment, and other symptoms and physical findings characteristic of the disorder. As mentioned above, Santavuori disease appears to be a lysosomal storage disorder that results from deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme palmitoyl-protein thioesterase (PPT). Lysosomes are the primary digestive units within cells. Enzymes within lysosomes break down or "digest" nutrients, such as fats and carbohydrates. In the lysosomal storage disorders, deficiency or improper functioning of particular lysosomal enzymes may lead to an abnormal accumulation of certain complex compounds consisting of fatty materials and/or carbohydrates within the cells of particular tissues of the body.
According to the medical literature, Santavuori disease, which appears to affect males and females in equal numbers, has been reported worldwide. However, the disorder most commonly occurs in individuals of Northern European Scandinavian ancestry, particularly individuals of Finnish heritage. According to reports in the literature, one in approximately 13,000 to 20,000 infants in Finland has the disorder. Santavuori disease, along with the other forms of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses, is estimated to occur in approximately one in 25,000 live births iIn the United States.
Symptoms of the following disorders may be similar to those of Santavuori disease. Comparisons may be useful for a differential diagnosis:
Jansky-Bielschowsky disease is the late infantile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCF). The onset of symptoms associated with the disorder typically begins between the ages of two to four years of age. Until that time, children with the disorder appear to develop normally or may exhibit slight delays in the acquisition of skills that require the coordination of mental and muscular activity (psychomotor retardation). Between two to four years of age, they may then begin to experience seizure episodes characterized by sudden breaks in action or thought, twitching of certain facial muscles, and/or spasms of the neck and/or arms (petit mal seizures) and/or episodes characterized by loss of consciousness occurring in association with muscle contractions (grand-mal seizures). Affected children also begin to demonstrate repeated, brief, shock-like muscle spasms of the arms, legs, or entire body (myoclonic seizures); impaired ability to coordinate voluntary movement (ataxia); abnormally diminished muscle tone (hypotonia) with unusually exaggerated reflexes; gradual intellectual deterioration; and/or, in some cases, visual failure due to retinal degeneration. In addition, a variant of Jansky-Bielschowsky disease has been identified in individuals of Finnish descent. In this variant form, symptoms tend to appear later, at approximately five to seven years of age, and tend to progress more slowly than in the classic form of the disorder. Jansky-Bielschowsky disease and its variant form (neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis variant late infantile type) are inherited as autosomal recessive traits.
There are four major disorder types belonging to the inherited neurometabolic diseases known as the neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCL). In addition to Santavuori disease (infantile type) and Jansky-Bielschowsky disease (late infantile type), described above, these disorders also include Batten disease (juvenile type), which is also called Spielmeyer-Vogt disease, and Kufs disease (adult type). Some researchers use the term Batten disease to encompass all forms of NCL; other still use it to denote only the juvenile form. Although the juvenile and adult forms of these disorders are characterized by symptoms similar to those associated with the infantile and late infantile forms, the onset of symptoms occurs later in life. Such symptoms typically include gradual intellectual deterioration, seizure episodes, progressive movement (motor) impairment, and, in the case of Batten disease, progressive visual impairment. In individuals with Batten disease, symptoms begin to occur at approximately five to 13 years of age. In those with Kufs disease, symptoms associated with the disorder may not appear until the third or fourth decade of life. Batten disease and Kufs disease are thought to be inherited as autosomal recessive genetic traits. (For more information on these disorders, choose "Batten" and "Kufs" as your search terms in the Rare Disease Database.)
Alpers disease, a rare condition that typically becomes apparent during early childhood, is characterized by progressive mental deterioration and motor impairment, repeated seizures that are unresponsive to anticonvulsant drug therapy (intractable epilepsy), and, in some cases, impaired liver function. Many of the symptoms associated with the disorder appear to be due to degeneration of nerve cells of the brain. Researchers believe that Alpers disease, rather than being a distinct disorder, is a condition that may be due to a number of different underlying causes. (For more information on this condition, choose "Alpers" as your search term in the Rare Disease Database.)
Rett syndrome is a rare progressive neurological disorder that occurs only in females. In most cases, affected children appear to develop normally until approximately six to 18 months of age, at which time their psychomotor development may seem to halt and they may begin to lose previously acquired physical and mental abilities (developmental regression). In addition, in children with Rett syndrome, the head and brain cease growing during early childhood. As a result, although the head circumference is normal at birth, affected children appear to have an abnormally small head (microcephaly) by the age of one year. As the disorder progresses, affected children lose the ability to perform purposeful movements with their hands and begin to demonstrate certain repetitive involuntary (stereotypical) hand movements (e.g., rubbing, "handwashing," etc.). Additional symptoms may include abnormally rapid or deep breathing (hyperventilation), seizure episodes, progressive loss of additional motor abilities, and/or other abnormalities. Many symptoms associated with the disorder appear to be due to progressive degeneration of certain areas of the brain (encephalopathy). The exact cause of Rett syndrome is unknown. (For more information on this disorder, choose "Rett" as your search term in the Rare Disease Database.)
Because the disease gene responsible for Santavuori disease has been identified, genetic testing may aid in the accurate diagnosis of the disorder and assist in diagnosis before birth (prenatally) as well as carrier determination. However, it is possible that such testing may only be available through research laboratories with a special interest in this disease.
In some cases, prenatal diagnosis may be performed through the use of chorionic villus sampling (CVS). During CVS, tissue samples are removed from a portion of the placenta and specialized enzyme tests (assays) and DNA studies may be performed. In cases of Santavuori Disease, such evaluations (e.g., mutation analysis and fluorometric PPT enzyme analysis) may reveal abnormal changes (mutations) of the PPT gene and deficient PPT enzyme activity. According to researchers, prenatal testing may also be feasible through the use of amniocentesis. During amniocentesis, a sample of fluid that surrounds the developing fetus is removed and analyzed. Studies have demonstrated that specialized enzyme assays (fluorometric PPT enzyme analysis) conducted on amniotic fluid cells may also reveal deficient activity of the PPT enzyme. Such prenatal screening procedures may be considered for families with a history of Santavuori disease.
In many cases, Santavuori disease may be diagnosed or confirmed during the first years of life based upon a thorough clinical evaluation, a detailed patient history, identification of characteristic physical findings, and a variety of specialized tests. According to the medical literature, the childhood NCLs such as Santavuori disease should be considered in infants or children who begin to experience developmental regression and seizure episodes in association with progressive visual impairment.
As with prenatal diagnosis, postnatal diagnostic techniques may include DNA studies (e.g., mutation analysis) as well as specific enzyme assays (e.g., fluorometric PPT enzyme analysis) that may reveal deficient PPT enzyme activity in certain cells. For example, in individuals with the disorder, deficient activity of the PPT enzyme may be demonstrated in certain skin cells (fibroblasts), white blood cells (leukocytes), the fluid portion of the blood (plasma), and the cerebrospinal fluid.
In addition, diagnostic procedures may include the microscopic examination (i.e., electron microscopy) and study of the chemical components (histochemical examination) of samples of tissue (biopsy), usually from the skin (i.e., sweat glands) or from the transparent membrane covering the whites of the eyes (conjunctiva). In some cases, tissue from the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord (peripheral nerves) and/or from the brain may be biopsed and studied. In cases of Santavuori disease, study of such tissue samples reveals abnormal accumulations of fatty, granular deposits (i.e., pigmented lipids [lipopigments] ceroid and lipofuscin) in membrane-bound cavities within the body (cytoplasm) of cells (inclusion bodies). Similar granular deposits may also be present in other tissues and cells of the body (e.g., certain white blood cells [lymphocytes], lymph nodes, pancreas).
Additional specialized tests may be conducted to detect certain abnormalities typically associated with Santavuori disease. Microscopic examination of tissue from certain portions of the brain's cerebrum and cerebellum (e.g., cortices, central gray structures) may reveal near absence of nerve cells (neurons), an abnormally increased number of specialized cells that serve to eliminate waste products of nerve tissue (histiocyte-microgliocytes), and the presence of certain cells that tend to accumulate due to destruction of nearby neurons (astrocytes). In addition, microscopic examination of retinal tissue may reveal destruction of nerve cells that respond to light stimuli (photoreceptor cells).
Advanced imaging techniques may also reveal the presence and/or extent of specific abnormalities associated with Santavuori disease. For example, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computer-assisted tomography (CT scanning) of the brain may reveal abnormal smallness of the brain (microencephaly) and progressive, generalized deterioration (diffuse atrophy) of the cerebrum and the cerebellum. During MRI, a magnetic field and radio waves are used to create cross-sectional images of the brain. During CT scanning, a computer and x-rays are used to create a film showing cross-sectional images of the brain's tissue structure.
Early in the course of the disease, electroencephalography (EEG), which records the brain's electrical impulses, may reveal brain wave patterns that are characteristic of certain types of seizure activity. Later during the disease's course, EEG testing may reveal rapidly progressive diminishing of electrical activity in certain areas of the brain (electrocortical activity). In addition, in children with Santavuori disease, electroretinography (ERG), a special instrument that measures the retina's electrical response to light stimulation, may reveal lack of response when the eye is stimulated by light (visually evoked potential [VEP]), confirming progressive retinal pigmentary degeneration and/or optic nerve abnormalities (e.g., optic atrophy).
The treatment of Santavuori disease is directed toward the specific symptoms that are apparent in each individual. Treatment may require the coordinated efforts of a team of specialists. Pediatricians, physicians who diagnose and treat neurological disorders (neurologists), eye specialists (ophthalmologists), physical therapists, and/or other health care professionals may need to systematically and comprehensively plan an affected child's treatment.
Specific therapies for Santavuori disease are symptomatic and supportive. In some cases, treatment with anticonvulsant drugs may help prevent, reduce, or control various types of seizures associated with Santavuori disease. Genetic counseling will be of benefit for affected individuals and their families.
Information on current clinical trials is posted on the Internet at www.clinicaltrials.gov. All studies receiving U.S. government funding, and some supported by private industry, are posted on this government website.
For information about clinical trials being conducted at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD, contact the NIH Patient Recruitment Office:
Tollfree: (800) 411-1222
TTY: (866) 411-1010
For information about clinical trials sponsored by private sources, contact:
Affected individuals are being recruited for a study of the use of a drug called Cystagon as a therapy for infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (Santavuori disease). This study is sponsored by the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health. Only patients between six months and three years of age will be admitted to the study. For details, contact the NIH Patient Recruitment Office (see above) or visit the www.clinicaltrials.gov web site.
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Principles of Neurology, 5th Ed.: Raymond D. Adams and Maurice Victor, Editors; McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1993. Pp. 824, 832.
Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics, 15th Ed.: Richard E. Behrman, Editor; W.B. Saunders Company, 1996. P. 1726.
Neurology of Hereditary Metabolic Diseases of Children, 2nd Ed.: Gilles Lyon, M.D. et al., Editors; McGraw-Hill, 1996. Pp. 48-52, 81-82, 146-50, 241-43, 292-93.
De Vries BB, et al., First-trimester diagnosis of infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (INCL) using PPT enzyme assay and cln1 mutation analysis. Prenat Diagn. 1999;19:559-62.
van Diggelen OP, et al., A rapid fluorogenic palmitoyl-protein thioesterase assay: pre- and postnatal diagnosis of INCL. Mol Genet Metab. 1999;66:240-4.
Bennett MJ, et al., The neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses (Batten disease): a new class of lysosomal storage diseases. J Inherit Metab Dis. 1999;22:535-44.
Hellsten E, et al., Human palmitoyl protein thioesterase: evidence for lysosomal targeting of the enzyme and disturbed cellular routing in infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis. EMBO J. 1996;15:5240-5.
Vesa J, et al., Mutations in the palmitoyl protein thioesterase gene causing infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis. Nature. 1995;376:584-7.
Hellsten E, et al., Identification of YAC clones for human chromosome 1p32 and physical mapping of the infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (INCL) locus. Genomics. 1995;25:404-12.
Vanhanen SL, et al., MRI evaluation of the brain in infantile neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis. Part 2: MRI findings in 21 patients. J Child Neurol. 1995;10:444-50.
Vanhanen SL, et al., MRI evaluation of the brain in infantile neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis. Part 1: Postmortem MRI with histopathologic correlation. J Child Neurol. 1995;10:438-43.
Goebel HH, et al., Prenatal diagnosis of infantile neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis: a combined electron microscopic and molecular genetic approach. Brain Dev. 1995;17:83-8.
Goebel HH, The neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses. J Child Neurol. 1995;10:424-37.
Vanhanen SL, et al., Early differential diagnosis of infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis, Rett syndrome, and Krabbe disease by CT and MRI. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 1994;15:1443-53.
Williams R, et al., Genetic heterogeneity in neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL): evidence that late-infantile subtype (Jansky-Bielschowsky disease; CLN2) is not an allelic form of the juvenile or infantile subtypes. Am J Hum Genet. 1993;53:931-5.
Vesa J, et al., A single PCR marker in strong allelic association with the infantile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis facilitates reliable prenatal diagnostics and disease carrier identification. Eur J Hum Genet. 1993;1:125-32.
Santavuori P, et al., MRI of the brain, EEG sleep spindles and SPECT in the early diagnosis of infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis. Dev Med Child Neurol. 1992;34:61-5.
Jarvela I, et al, Linkage map of the chromosomal region surrounding the infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis on 1p. Am J Med Genet. 1992;42:546-8.
Jarvela I, et al., Molecular genetics of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses. Pediatr Res. 1992;32:645-8.
Jarvela I, Infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (CLN1): linkage disequilibrium in the finnish population and evidence that variant late infantile form (variant CLN2) represents a nonallelic locus. Genomics. 1991;10:333-7.
Jarvela I, et al., Infantile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (CLN1) maps to the short arm of chromosome 1. Genomics. 1991;9:170-3.
Jarvela I, et al., DNA-based prenatal diagnosis of the infantile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (INCL, CLN1). Prenat Diagn. 1991;11:323-8.
Rapola J, et al., Prenatal diagnosis of the infantile type of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis by electron microscopic investigation of human chorionic villi. Prenat Diagn. 1990;10:53-9.
Jokiaho I, et al., Infantile neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis is not an allelic form of batten disease: exclusion of chromosome 16 region with linkage analyses. Genomics. 1990;8:391-3.
Hagberg B, et al., Early stages of the Rett syndrome and infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis--a difficult differential diagnosis. Brain Dev. 1990;12:20-2.
Rapola J, et al., Placental pathology and prenatal diagnosis of infantile type of neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis. Am J Med Genet Suppl. 1988;5:99-103.
FROM THE INTERNET
Chang CH. Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses. Emedicine Journal, April 24, 2006. Available at: http://www.emedicine.com/neuro/topic498.htm Accessed on: August 18, 2006.
Wisniewski KE. Updated:5/17/2006. Neuronal Ceroid-Lipofuscinoses. In: GeneReviews at GeneTests: Medical Genetics Information Resource (database online). Copyright, University of Washington, Seattle. 1997-2003. Available at http://www.genetests.org.
Kohlschutter A. Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses. Orphanet encyclopedia, January 2004. Available at: http://www.orpha.net/data/patho/GB/uk-CLN.pdf Accessed on: August 18, 2006.
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For a Complete Report
This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.® (NORD). Cigna members can access the complete report by logging into myCigna.com. For non-Cigna members, a copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html.
The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.
It is possible that the title of this topic is not the name you selected. Please check the Synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and Disorder Subdivision(s) covered by this report
This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.
For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email [email protected]
Last Updated: 5/14/2008
Copyright 1997, 1998, 1999, 2006 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.
Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.</s>
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How Judaism shaped Steven Spielberg’s films
Steven Spielberg’s films, including his latest, Lincoln, continue to reflect his Jewish upbringing.
Like most movies, the script of the legendary director’s life and career begins with some adversity – he was initially ashamed of his religious identity.
Born in Ohio to a Jewish family, Spielberg’s mother, Leah Adler, was a restaurateur and concert pianist, and his father, Arnold, was an electrical engineer involved in the development of computers.
According to Lester Friedman, scholar-in-residence at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and author of The Jewish Image in American Film, American Jewish Filmmakers and Citizen Spielberg, there is more to Spielberg than meets the eye.
“It’s indisputable he’s the most successful filmmaker in American history, but he’s much more than that,” Friedman told JNS.org. “His Jewish background is omnipresent. It cuts both ways.”
Friedman explained that Spielberg’s parents “lived in predominantly Christian areas” and that Spielberg was “was the subject of antisemitism, everything from swastikas on the windows to rolling a penny down the aisle in class and students saying ‘go get it Jew-boy.’
“He was concerned about hiding his Judaism,” Friedman said. “His early films stayed far away from it. He doesn’t confront it until An American Tail, where Fievel is the name of his grandfather [the main character, named Fievel, is a young Russian mouse who gets separated from his family and must relocate them while trying to survive in a new country]. He confronts it in the most crucial and important way in two films. Schindler’s List, in which he makes the archetypal Holocaust film, and 12 years later with Munich.”
In 1994, inspired by his experience making Schindler’s List, Spielberg established the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation to gather video testimonies from survivors and other witnesses of the Holocaust. While most of those who gave testimony were Jews, the foundation also interviewed homosexual survivors, Jehovah’s Witness survivors, liberators and liberation witnesses, political prisoners, rescuers and aid providers, Gypsy survivors and others.
Within several years, the foundation’s Visual History Archive held nearly 52,000 video testimonies in 32 languages, representing 56 countries. It is the largest archive of its kind in the world.
Nigel Morris, the author of The Cinema of Steven Spielberg, told JNS.org that some critics “carelessly dismiss him as a children’s director or maker of escapist fantasies.
“They resent his enormous success, mistakenly focus on what they label as manipulation or sentimentality, or confuse him with [Star Wars director] George Lucas and naively blame either director or both for the blockbuster tendency that destroyed the freedom and creativity of early 1970s Hollywood, as if that were not an economic inevitability,” Morris said.
Morris agrees with Friedman that Spielberg had little desire to embrace his Jewish ethnic identity or faith until he was profoundly affected by making Schindler’s List while in his late 40s.
“Being Jewish has influenced Spielberg’s craft and sensibility,” Morris said. “The characteristic ‘God light,’ as the director has called it, is central to both Spielberg’s visual style and the deeper meaning of his work… flows from his earliest memory of being pushed in a stroller through a Cincinnati synagogue aged just six months. The candles and dazzling reflections in candelabra became entwined with the awe of larger-than-life figures when he first saw a movie in a theatre, creating the quasi-religious wonder that is repeatedly associated with spectacle, and particularly film, through all his output.”
Morris said Spielberg, as a child, was displaced to various strange new locations across the United States as his father changed jobs, suffering bullying and antidemitism. One of Spielberg’s coping strategy was to seek popularity by casting his oppressors in the movies he made outside school hours.
“Spielberg was quoted as saying that being ‘Jewish and wimpy made me part of a major minority,’” Morris said. “This helped the fledgling director empathize with the civil rights cause and arguably led to his much later adoption of two African-American children, as well as the interest in black culture manifested seriously and respectfully in several of his films.”
Morris said Schindler’s List, coinciding with the Holocaust’s 50th anniversary, catalyzed arguments surrounding the new Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., resurgent neo-fascism and attempted genocide around the world, and the impetus such events gave to recording a dwindling number of survivors’ testimony.
“Spielberg partly established the context, and tone, for many of the attacks that were made as much against him as the film,” said Morris. “When he imperiously declared, ‘If it takes my name to get people to see Schindler’s List, so be it,’ he suggested the project might not have been viable without him and implied higher aspirations than ‘mere’ entertainment. Certainly, a black-and-white film, over three hours long and without major stars, seemed unlikely to appeal to youthful blockbuster audiences, 60 per cent of whom were unaware of the Holocaust. Publicity portrayed Spielberg, who – it was understood at the time – waived his profits until the movie broke even, as pursuing a mission.”
According to Morris, Schindler’s redemption parallelled Spielberg’s transformation from shallow crowd-pleaser to serious Jewish artist.
“Promotion and interviews stressed his return to ethnic roots and newfound faith,” Morris said, “as well as identification with Schindler. Spielberg repeatedly spoke of his own antisemitic experiences, thereby identifying himself, descended from German Jews, with Holocaust victims. Equating seriousness, solemnity and quality, industry names finally recognized Spielberg, bestowing Academy Awards at the exact time that media coverage was distancing him from Hollywood entertainment values.”
With Lincoln, Hollywood has another popular film, but Spielberg has more. He has his finger on the heartbeat of a historic American dilemma – with applications to modern times – by dealing with president Abraham Lincoln’s moral question of whether to prolong the Civil War to get an important amendment passed.
Perhaps columnist Clarence Page best answered Spielberg’s (and Lincoln’s) question in the Chicago Tribune when he wrote, “Democratic governance of a large, diverse republic requires compromises. You can’t always get what you want, but we can work together across partisan lines to get what we need.”</s>
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Shearwater Pottery today is more active than it was before Hurricane Katrina uprooted it nine years ago.
Nine years after Hurricane Katrina, the people of the Mississippi Gulf Coast still are recovering, determinedly recovering.
Almost a half century before that deadly storm, local artist Walter Inglis Anderson had chosen to paint a scene of rebirth for these people on his Ocean Springs Community Center mural, a visual epic now valued at more than $30 million. In the mural's "Venus panel," painted in 1951, two eagles lock talons and churn toward earth in a cartwheeling mating ritual, but break free from their death spiral just before landing. The eagles finally soar upward, with life-affirming energy.
Was the Venus panel about the churning of life on the Coast, of hurricanes, of both?
That was three or four generations ago, when the rejected, eccentric painter — now the town's favorite son — relentlessly saw beauty through hardships.
And there has been much for the Coast since then, through 1969's Camille — then thought to be the hurricane to end all hurricanes — and now through the long and lasting wake of Katrina. Since then, rebirth again is the story of the Coast.
Katrina, which bore down nine years ago today with a tidal surge of 28 feet and 175 mph winds, was the costliest tempest on record and the largest in Mississippi history. Some 200 Mississippians died. Another 1,000 perished across the South. It spun off 33 tornadoes. The storms ran inland all the way to Jackson.
"I don't think anyone will be the same here after Katrina — nobody I know," said Mary Anderson Pickard, the late artist Anderson's daughter, whose "hurricane proof" Ocean Springs house vanished in the storm.
Most adjacent homes and work buildings on the Anderson family's Shearwater compound also were "just gone," she said.
"But I think Ocean Springs probably did better through and after Katrina than Biloxi and Gulfport," Mary said, "partly because Ocean Springs is on higher ground. For months and years, people came over to Ocean Springs to eat and shop. It took longer in Biloxi and Gulfport to even get streets back.
"Now, Gulfport is coming back and Biloxi is getting a new baseball stadium. But there still are holes in some of their streets."
Similar devastation swept through every town on the coast, from New Orleans to Pascagoula.
It was unthinkable to many in Mississippi that the artistic oasis of Shearwater could be nearly obliterated.
Since 1922, Shearwater was the homestead and dream of the Andersons and their sons — Walter, a consummate artist in vast mediums; Peter Anderson, a master potter; and James "Mac" Anderson, an accomplished sculptor, decorator and painter.
The three brothers worked at Shearwater Pottery. Their mother, artist Annette McConnell Anderson, had nurtured their education and creativity. Their artistic and resourceful descendants would carry on the cottage industries the brothers, all deceased, built.
As homes and businesses have come back post-Katrina, so has the Anderson family's art, which perhaps is one barometer for the resilience of their beloved Coast.
"In some ways, Katrina forced the family to create," Mary said.
Some Andersons restored or rebuilt new homes, where their own or their parents' homes had stood at Shearwater. Others, like Mary, moved safely inland, but still in Ocean Springs. Some Andersons returned to the city from out of state to help with hurricane recovery, then stayed. Nobody moved away.
Shearwater Pottery today is more active than it was before the storm uprooted it.
"There is definitely new resolve here. We do have a lot more product than we did," said Beth Ashley, a business manager of Shearwater Pottery and granddaughter of Peter Anderson.
"I came after Katrina. I'm part of the recovery," the computer expert said of moving back home from Nashville.
"My parents lost their home, and my mom lost her business," Beth, 51, said of the pottery's longtime driving force, Peter's daughter Margie Anderson Ashley. "I couldn't keep my head in the corporate ballgame after that."
The other Andersons who work at Shearwater Pottery are master potter Jimmy Anderson, his rising star potter son Peter Wade Anderson, master decorators Adele Anderson Lawton and Patricia Anderson Findeisen, and figurine painter and constructor Ruth Findeisen.
Pottery decorators also include dancer, artist and poet Leif Anderson and accomplished painter Chris Stebly.
Jason Stebly, Beth and others helped the older Andersons build the pottery's new Shearwater Showroom as well as rebuild the Annex and workshop outbuildings where pottery is made, fired, glazed and decorated.
Jason works as a woodcarver and construction artist. He also composes and performs music.
Realizations: The Walter Anderson Shop, founded as the family's Ocean Springs retail shop in 1986, survived Katrina. Located a bit inland on Washington Avenue, the store sells silkscreen reproduction prints, textiles and gift items. Billy Anderson is president of shop's board of directors.
"Carolyn Fournier Anderson, my brother Billy's wife, always has done a wonderful job running the printmaking for the shop," Mary said of silkscreens that reproduce Walter Anderson's original linoleum block prints.
Carolyn's daughter, Dodie Anderson Bertolino, has added such contemporary products as iPhone covers, placemats and mugs to the store. For just a few dollars, visitors may take home some form of Anderson art.
John Anderson manages his father's estate and the costly restoration of hundreds of his artworks damaged in Katrina. The Realizations website includes a page about the Walter Anderson Conservation Fund, where the public may donate to help restore his damaged art.
The newest art enterprise in the family is Twisted Anchor Tattoo parlor on Washington Avenue in Ocean Springs operated by tattoo artist Matt Stebly, Walter Anderson's great grandson. Matt also has toured the United States and parts of Europe creating tattoos at expos and other forums.
Like the many generations of Andersons who have become artists of some form, Matt demonstrates his own style, yet the influence of his forefathers is apparent.
About 15 years ago, his grandmother, Mary, began painting in earnest as a watercolorist. Today, her watercolor and oil paintings are sold in Shearwater Showroom and at Realizations. In July, her work sold out at an Arkansas exhibition.
Mary still draws inspiration from her father. The late artist and naturalist embraced every aspect of the Coast, even its tempests. To experience a hurricane in full force, Walter Anderson tied himself to a tree on Horn Island in Hurricane Betsy in 1965, the year he died.
"I think Daddy and my uncles would be proud that our families still make a living through art," said Mary, 76. "I honestly don't think my father would be that upset that as much as 80 percent of his art was damaged and 300 of his best paintings were destroyed in Katrina.
"Art was an expression for him. He made it on typing paper, linoleum, fallen trees — anything he could find. It was his passion," she said. "He never did it for the money, or even to be remembered.
"But he did do it for his family and for the people of the Coast."
Mary concluded, "Daddy said that art should be as ephemeral as the line a wave makes when it breaks on the beach — ephemeral and ever-changing.
"He said hurricanes were nature's way of house cleaning. Sometimes, it feels better to remember that."
Contact Leslie R. Myers at [email protected].
Walter Anderson Museum of Art
The largest showplace of Anderson art is Ocean Springs' Walter Anderson Museum of Art, which opened in 1991 to present and preserve his legacy. "It has been struggling for local funds since Katrina," said Mary Anderson Pickard, the late artist's daughter.
Mississippians who want to donate to the museum, a nonprofit organization, can visit www.WalterAndersonMuseum.org or call the museum at (228) 872-3164.</s>
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If Eliot Spitzer resigns, he would be succeeded by Lt. Governor David A. Paterson, who would become New York's first African American governor and the first who is legally blind.
According to his official biography, Paterson was born May 20,1954 in Brooklyn, NY. His father was Basil Paterson, the first non-white secretary of state of New York and the first African-American vice-chair of the national Democratic Party.
The Lt. Governor earned his bachelor's degree in History from Columbia University, graduating in 1977, and completed his J.D. at Hofstra Law School in 1982.
Paterson entered public life in 1985 when he began representing Harlem in the New York State Senate. In 2002, he became its Minority Leader -- the first non-white legislative leader in New York's history. He made history again in 2004 when he became the first visually impaired person to address the Democratic National Convention. And in 2006 Mr. Paterson was elected New York's first African-American lieutenant governor.
Paterson, who is legally blind, is a member of the American Foundation for the Blind, serves as a member of the Democratic National Committee and is a board member of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.
In addition, he is a member of the board of the Achilles Track Club, having completed the New York City Marathon in 1999.</s>
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In 1961, the U.S. came in a close second in the race to put a man in space but laid the groundwork for missions to the moon. Shepard had key roles throughout the era.
The space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union was at its most intense in the late 1950s and on into the 1960s. First came Sputnik and a rush of satellites. But the next big contest--apologies to the dogs and chimps rocketed aloft--was to get a man into space, and again the Soviets claimed victory with the April 12, 1961 flight of Yuri Gagarin.
The U.S. wasn't far behind, however. Just over three weeks later, at 9:34 a.m. ET on May 5 of that year, NASA launched the second human and first American into space, a 37-year-old U.S. Navy test pilot named Alan Shepard.
Shepard was one of the seven Mercury astronauts, the first group of U.S. flyers designated to go into space. He's at left in the back row, beside Virgil "Gus" Grissom and, at right, Gordon Cooper. The front row, from left to right, shows Walter Schirra, Donald Slayton, John Glenn, and Scott Carpenter. It was this group that for many years provided the macho, heroic image of the U.S. astronaut corps, memorably portrayed in Tom Wolfe's book (and the later movie) "The Right Stuff."
Here we see a lighter, and more dapper, side of the Mercury astronauts, posing with a model of an Atlas rocket. Once again, Shepard is at left in the back row. NASA had introduced the Mercury Seven to the public in April 1959.
On the morning of his landmark flight, Shepard gets a physical exam. "Shepard, awakened at 1:10 a.m., began an unhurried but precise routine involving a shower and a shave. With his physician, William K. Douglas; his understudy, John Glenn; and a few other members of the operational team, he sat down to a breakfast consisting of orange juice, a filet mignon wrapped in bacon, and some scrambled eggs," according to a NASA account entitled "This New Ocean: A History of Project Mercury."
The physical exam, which included standard blood pressure and temperature checks, took place at 2:40 a.m. ET, according to NASA. At this point in history, no one outside of Yuri Gagarin and probably just a few others associated with the Soviet space program knew for sure what the effects would be on a person traveling outside the atmosphere.
Unlike later astronauts in the Apollo and space shuttle eras, Mercury astronauts flew solo. This is what NASA calls a "boilerplate" version of the Mercury space capsule (here undergoing testing and inspection) in which Shepard and his comrades would ride into space. The capsule was a little under 7 feet long and just over 6 feet in diameter. Shepard's was called the Freedom 7.
A technician checks out Shepard's communications gear just ahead of launch, while the astronaut shows himself to be the embodiment of nonchalance. At about 5:20 a.m. ET, he would enter the capsule, carrying a portable air conditioner. "Afterward he told how his heart quickened as the hatch was closed," NASA's "This New Ocean" account relates. "The sensation was brief; his heartbeat soon returned to normal. At 6:25 a.m. he began a denitrogenation procedure by breathing pure oxygen. This was to prevent aeroembolism, or decompression sickness, the airman's equivalent of the deep-sea diver's bends."
The Mercury-Redstone rocket carrying Shepard lifts off, after Shepard had been waiting in the capsule for more than 4 hours--about twice as long as he'd been expected to be waiting. (One delay stemmed from an error found in an IBM 7090 computer in Maryland.) NASA says that at liftoff, his pulse rose from about 80 beats per minute to 126--not so remarkable, the space agency says, considering that a driver pulling onto a crowded freeway experiences about the same surge. Redstone rockets were used for the suborbital Mercury flights; for the trips into orbit, an Atlas rocket was used.
"[Shepard] was surprised by the smoothness of the liftoff," according to the NASA account. "The ride continued smoothly for about 45 seconds; then the rocket, capsule, and astronaut began vibrating. Conditioned to these circumstances, Shepard realized that he was passing through the transonic speed zone, where turbulence built up."
This cutaway shows some of the features of the Mercury capsule. For a more accurate depiction of Shepard's experience in the capsule, imagine rotating the image 90 degrees to the right, so that the astronaut is at the bottom looking up.
The pressure suit kept Shepard relatively cool at about 75 degrees Fahrenheit, compared with 91 degrees in the cabin proper--and the 220 degrees of the capsule's exterior. The maximum gravitational load he experienced during acceleration was 6.3 G, and the ascent speed reached 5,134 miles per hour.
Here's a schematic of the navigational controls in the Mercury capsule. Much of Shepard's flight was automated, but one of his tasks was to determine whether the spacecraft would respond to manual control of its flight attitude--the pitch, roll, and yaw--beginning with pitch. "When Shepard assumed control of all three axes, he was pleased to find that the feel was about the same as in the procedures trainer, the Mercury simulator. Although he could control his ship well, he was unable to hear the spurting control jets above the noise of his radio," NASA says. (Click here for a larger view of the Navigational Aids image.)
Shepard splashed down in the Atlantic after reaching an altitude of 116.5 miles and traveling a terrestrial distance of 303 miles down range from his starting point in Florida. Peak gravitational forces during descent had reached 11.6 G. Here, he's being hoisted to the retrieval helicopter.
Fellow Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper had briefed Shepard on prelaunch conditions during the several hours before liftoff. Here, he's seen during the recovery operations. The man standing at left is Wernher von Braun, the rocket scientist who earlier had led the development of the V-2 ballistic missile for Nazi Germany and who after World War II played a vital role in the development of missiles and rockets for the U.S. Army and for NASA.
Just a day after his historic space flight, Shepard was at the White House to receive NASA's Distinguished Service Award from President Kennedy. Shepard's wife, along with his mother, are at left, and the group also includes the other Mercury astronauts.
Shepard would later make one other trip into space. In early 1971, he was the commander of the Apollo 14 mission to the moon. Here, he's seen with Edgar Mitchell, who served as the pilot of the lunar module on that mission.
The vast, nearly empty surface of the moon, where Shepard and Mitchell sojourned for a record 33 hours, including a record 9 hours, 17 minutes of extravehicular activity. Shepard can be seen to the left of the lunar module.</s>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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Curiosity rover's first photos from Mars (pictures)
The Mars Science Laboratory vehicle has taken its first very big step -- it has landed on the surface of the Red Planet. Like any good tourist, it's sent home some snapshots.
After traveling 352 million miles from the Kennedy Space Center following last November's launch, the Mars Science Laboratory -- in the form of the big Curiosity rover -- is now on Mars. The rover touched down on the Red Planet a little after 10 p.m. PT on Sunday, August 5.
This image is one of the very first sent home from Curiosity, showing the rover's own shadow on the Martian surface. NASA says that the clear dust cover is still on the camera, hence the dust seen around the edge of the fish-eye image. The photo was taken by one of the rover's front hazard-avoidance cameras on the vehicle's front end, at only one-quarter of full-resolution.
Larger color images should come later in the week when Curiosity's mast is deployed. The mast carries high-resolution cameras.
Editors' note: This slideshow was updated several times on August 6 and 7 as new images became available.
History buffs, take note: This is the first image taken by NASA's Curiosity rover after it settled down on the Martian surface as August 5 was giving way to August 6 here on Earth. In this photo, the camera's clear dust cover is still on, and you can make out the dust around its edge. In the lower right corner, one of the rover's wheels is visible.
Here's a sharper version of that image. Taken by a rear hazard-avoidance camera, it shows one of the rover's six wheels (bottom right) and part of its power supply (top left). The top of the image is saturated, NASA says, because at the moment it was taken, the camera were pointed directly toward the sun.
While engineers did not expect pictures right away, blurry low-resolution thumbnails from the rover's rear hazard avoidance cameras were transmitted within minutes of touchdown showing a wheel on the surface of Mars.
"Odyssey data is still strong," said mission control commentator Allen Chen. "Odyssey is nice and high in the sky. At this time we're standing by for images..."
This view from Curiosity's front "hazcam" shows Mount Sharp rising three miles above the floor of Gale Crater to the southeast with the shadow of the rover in the foreground. Curiosity's mission over the next two years is, first, to explore its landing zone and then eventually to drive up the side of Mount Sharp in search of carbon compounds that would provide clues to whether Mars may at some point have been habitable.
Behold Curiosity's first color image of the Martian landscape, looking north from the rover toward the north wall and rim of the Gale Crater that Curiosity now calls home. The picture was taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), still protected for the time being by its transparent dust cover -- hence the murky quality of the image, NASA says. The peak to the left side is about 15 miles away and stands about 3,775 feet high.
Photo by: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Malin Space Science Systems / Caption by:
Here, NASA provides some perspective for that cockeyed landscape photo. The black-and-white scenes on either side of the tipped-up center rectangle are computer simulations built from data provided by two orbiting satellites, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and the European Space Agency's Mars Express.
The mast on the Curiosity rover carries seven cameras: the Remote Micro Imager, part of the Chemistry and Camera suite; four black-and-white Navigation Cameras (two on the left and two on the right), and two color Mast Cameras (Mastcams). The left Mastcam has a 34-millimeter lens and the right Mastcam has a 100-millimeter lens. The rover's robot arm, which is tucked away in this image, carries one camera -- the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI).
Nine other cameras are hard-mounted to the rover: two pairs of black-and-white Hazard Avoidance Cameras in the front, another two pair mounted to the rear of the rover, and the color Mars Descent Imager (MARDI).
During its descent, Curiosity snapped this picture of its 15-foot-diameter heat shield about 3 seconds after its separation from the rover and about 2.5 minutes before landing on Mars. The photo was taken by the rover's Mars Descent Imager instrument, aka MARDI, and is one of the first color images that Curiosity sent back -- in low resolution, to allow for a prompt return of the images to Earth.
The Gale Crater is Curiosity's new stomping ground, and where it will begin its long, slow trek up the side of a 3-mile-tall mountain. The region is filled with large, ancient craters, as you can see on this elevation map.</s>
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Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is a medical examiner?
A medical examiner is a physician, hence, the title medical examiner. The medical examiner is authorized by state statute with the investigation and examination of persons dying suddenly, unexpectedly, or from physical or chemical injury. The responsibility of the medical examiner is to determine cause and manner of death, and to document and preserve evidence as it relates to the decedent.What is an autopsy?
An autopsy is an examination of a dead body. In the course of an autopsy the body is examined multiple times; first as it is received, then again after it is unclothed, and yet again after being cleaned (any loose dirt, blood or other foreign substances are removed). At each step, identifying features, injuries or other unusual features are documented with multiple modalities (i.e. photographs, verbal and/or diagram). The body is then opened, and each organ is examined, in turn, for the presence of injuries or pre-existing natural disease.
In the course of an autopsy, samples of various organs, tissues and body fluids are retained for additional ancillary studies, if warranted. The ancillary studies include microscopic examination (Histology), drug testing (Toxicology), and microbiology (bacterial and viral culture). Additionally, depending on the type of case, other items of evidence may also be retained: foreign objects (bullets, knife blades or tips, ligatures, etc.), scalp hair (for comparison to hair on a suspect weapon or vehicle), fingernail scrapings (for analysis of blood and/or foreign DNA), sexual assault swabs, gunshot residue test swabs, and so on. The HCME is also very active in the collection of trace evidence from dead bodies (collected under visible and alternate light sources). What is the importance of performing an autopsy in someone in whom the cause of death is "obvious"?The importance of examining people in whom the cause of death appears obvious is several fold. In the case of shootings or other fatal assaults the forensic pathologist, during the course of the examination, may recover bullets or other important trace evidence. In the case of motor vehicle occupants, it is important to determine who was driving and to assess driver factors, vehicle factors or environmental factors that might have caused or contributed to the crash.</s>
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During his art residency with the MAMUTT Art Project in Mexico City, Argentine street artist EVER created an intricate and mesmerizing screen-print called November 19,1910. The print is meant to exemplify Mexico, drawing on some of the themes he studied during his stay there—issues related to Mexican history and culture.
EVER immersed himself in research, attending lectures, visiting museums, and developing correspondence with historians and artists, in order to create his new print. The prints were produced by the masters of the craft at Cabiros Workshops in Mexico City using the “drift” method, a process where several prints are produced, each one different from the next, meaning that from the outset his work involves “political rhetoric.”
“November 19, 1910 is a mixture of mythological and historical processes, i.e., is a work that alters the reality of an event. Man justifies his actions via a higher power that commands it. His future is decided by a deity. What if we say, then, that one of the most important social movements of the 20th century (the Mexican Revolution) was due to the appearance of Xinolen, protector of corn and fertility? An Aztec goddess that night and day takes care of the most important food of Mexico, corn, and tries to tell the working people that the future is full of obstacles, but that in reality we ourselves have created them. November 19, 1910 is more than a screen print, it is a metaphysical account of human ideals,” EVER says of his piece.
There are 35 editions of November 19, 1910, each a four layer, hand-pulled screen print, hand-painted and signed by EVER.
To support the Mamutt Project, November 19, 1910 will be sold exclusively through Street Art News’ store for $132.60.</s>
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Gulonolactone oxidase is an enzyme that catalyzes the reactions needed to produce ascorbic acid (vitamin C). This gene is present in most animals however it has been inactivated due to mutation in some. Animals that can no longer synthesize vitamin C include: simians, guinea pigs, and several species of fruit bats. Since these organisms consume a large portion of their diet in fruit the inactivation of the gene was not a significant detriment. Humans that fail to eat sources of vitamin C can develop scurvy.
The mutation that causes the inactivation of the L-gulonolactone oxidase gene is different depending on the group the organism is in. All extant guinea pigs share the same inactivation mutation, while all extant simians share a different one. The likelihood of two different species sharing the same inactivation mutation is statistically impossible and is actually shared due to common inheritance. The most recent common ancestor of all extant guinea pigs developed the mutation in the gene, while a different mutation developed in the most recent common ancestor in simians.
- ↑ Molecular basis for the deficiency in humans of gulonolactone oxidase, a key enzyme for ascorbic acid biosynthesis, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 54, 1203S-1208S
- http://www.ihop-net.org/UniPub/iHOP/gismo/88910.html GLUOP from IHOP</s>
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http://www.conservapedia.com/Gulonolactone_oxidase
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Adult Protective Services' role, responsibilities
Between July 1, 2011, through June 30, 2012, Adult Protective Services (APS) responded to 11,000 reports of mistreatment or self-neglect of at-risk adults in Colorado. These reports involve the abuse, exploitation, and neglect of people 18 years old or older who cannot provide for their own health, safety, or welfare; or obtain services necessary to keep themselves safe and healthy. Some of the conditions that may make an adult at-risk of mistreatment or self-neglect include dementia, Alzheimer's disease, developmental disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or serious medical conditions.
APS' response depends on the allegations and the condition of the at-risk adult. When APS responds to a report, the first step is to interview the at-risk adult and determine if the mistreatment or self-neglect is actually happening.
Next, APS tries to find out if the adult has the ability to make responsible decisions and if they understand the consequences of their decisions. The ability to understand and communicate responsible decisions is referred to as "decisional, mental, or cognitive capacity." Adults with capacity have all the same rights as any other adult no matter what their condition or disability might be. Adults with capacity have the right to refuse or accept some or all of the help APS offers. The right to accept or refuse services is known as "Consent." APS must get the consent of an at-risk adult who has capacity in order to provide protective services.
There are a lot of things to consider when APS investigates a report. Some people choose to live in a way that appears unsafe or strange, but as adults, they have the right to live that way if they have capacity. In all cases APS tries to work with the at-risk adult and other community resources to keep the at-risk adult safe. There are circumstances when an at-risk adult does not have capacity or the ability to understand the consequences of their actions. In these cases, where there is apparent and ongoing risk to the adult's health, safety, or welfare, APS may assist the client without their consent.
When investigating abuse, exploitation, and caregiver neglect, APS caseworkers must coordinate their efforts with law enforcement and the district attorney to determine if a crime has taken place. APS may share information with the police if there is evidence of criminal activity. In this type of case the police have the role of investigating and prosecuting crimes and APS works with the at-risk adult to keep him or her safe.
APS cannot provide legal advice or be an adult's medical proxy decision maker. APS cannot force a client to participate in medical or mental health treatments or place the adult in a facility against their will. If a court determines that an at-risk adult lacks the ability to make decisions to keep them safe, APS may ask a court for guardianship.
Regardless of the at-risk adult's capacity or the allegations, APS caseworkers are always guided by three principles: 1) confidentiality; 2) self-determination; and 3) the least restrictive intervention. APS caseworkers are required by the APS statute to keep any and all information about a report and client confidential. Self-determination is an adult's right to make their own decisions and to choose their own course of action. Finally, the principle of least restrictive intervention means that APS caseworkers try to provide the minimum amount of services necessary to stop or prevent the mistreatment and self-neglect.
Remember, if you suspect mistreatment or self-neglect, it's okay to speak up. You should immediately report the situation to the Montezuma County Department of Social Services at 970-564-4110. Ask to speak to Adult Protection. If calling about an emergency situation during non-business hours, contact law enforcement at 970-565-8441 to make the report.
All reports are confidential and may be made anonymously. However, it is helpful to APS if you provide your contact information so APS can contact you, if needed.
Warning Signs of Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation:
S udden changes in behavior, finances, or lifestyle
P hysical injuries, dehydration, or malnourishment
E xtreme withdrawal, depression, or anxiety
A bsence of basic care or necessities
K ept away from others
U nsanitary living conditions
P ersonal items or money missing
Holly Bock is the Montezuma County Adult Protection caseworker. She can be reached at 564-4110.</s>
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<urn:uuid:d7ec5281-826c-4079-96a8-c17770aff96a>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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http://www.cortezjournal.com/article/20121228/Columnists/121229810/0/COLUMNISTS19/Adult-Protective-Services'-role-responsibilities
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Emancipation is a legal way for children to become adults before they are 18. Once a child is emancipated, his or her parents do not have custody or control of him or her anymore. Emancipation is usually forever. But the court can cancel the emancipation if the minor asking for the emancipation lies to the court or is no longer able to support himself or herself.
If you are emancipated, you can do some things without your parent’s permission, like:
If you are emancipated, you will give up the right to be supported by your parents.
Even if you are emancipated:
Note: If you have a legal guardian, all of the information in this section about parents applies to your legal guardian and your case, too.
There are 3 ways to get emancipated:
If you do not want to live with your parents, you do not necessarily have to get emancipated. You can:
You can learn a lot more about emancipation by reading Legal Services for Children’s Emancipation Manual. This manual has a lot of answers about emancipation for teenagers.
Read the Emancipation Pamphlet (Form MC-301) for more information about the court process.</s>
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<urn:uuid:ac9d6922-6cc8-4636-9ae8-032937a62ff3>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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http://www.courts.ca.gov/forms.htm/selfhelp-emancipation.htm
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s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2015-32/segments/1438042981460.12/warc/CC-MAIN-20150728002301-00000-ip-10-236-191-2.ec2.internal.warc.gz
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| 0.951028
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|
FIGURE T1. Five-month running mean of the
Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) (top), sea-level pressure anomaly (hPa)
at Darwin and Tahiti (middle), and outgoing longwave radiation anomaly (OLR)
index averaged over the area 5°N–5°S, 160°E–160°W (bottom).
Anomalies in the top and middle panels are departures from the 1951–80
base period means and are normalized by the mean annual standard
deviation. Anomalies in the bottom panel are departures from the 1979–95
base period means. Individual monthly values are indicated by "x"s
in the top and bottom panels. The x-axis labels are centered on July.</s>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/CDB/CDB_Archive_html/bulletin_0607/figt1.html
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Lithograph from the Pacific Railroad Survey
of the Sierra Blanca
near Fort Massachusetts
(larger scan and history
Lithograph - a
lithograph printed from 2 or 3 stones, one producing the details of the
image in black ink, and 1 or 2 others providing some wash-like coloring
(typically fawn, blue, green or gray).
1853, the U.S. Congress authorized the Corps of Topographic Engineers to
undertake a survey of potential rail routes between the Mississippi River
and the Pacific Ocean. This print is an illustration from the report
of the survey at the 38th and 39th parallels under the leadership of Captain
John W. Gunnison, assisted by Lt. Edward G. Beckwith, who surveyed routes
in Kansas, Colorado and Utah. Gunnison, Richard H. Kern, topographer
and artist to the expedition, and seven others were killed by Ute Indians
along the Sevier River in Utah. Beckwith assumed leadership and the
survey explored routes at the 41st parallel which Beckwith (and Gunnison
before him) recommended as an economical and practicable route.
Although this suggestion had little influence at the time of the survey,
the first transcontinental railroad completed in 1869, when the Union Pacific
and the Central Pacific Railroads were joined at Promontory Point, Utah,
basically followed Beckwith's route.
This lithograph is 146 years old; it is not a modern reproduction.
Title: Peaks of the Sierra Blanca, from near Fort
Mix Stanley (1814-1872) from a sketch by Richard
H. Kern (1821-1853).
Richard Kern was actually the
artist of the Pacific Railroad Survey at the 38th and 39th parallels; he
was the one who made the original drawings and paintings. Because he was
killed in October, 1853 by Ute Indians in Utah, John Mix Stanley prepared
the images for lithography. Stanley, a noted artist himself, was
artist to the northern route of the USPRR Survey under Gov. Isaac Stevens,
that explored the area between St. Paul and Puget Sound.
Sarony & Co., New York.
Size: 8 3/4 x 5 7/8 inches.
Size including margins: 11 1/4 x 8 1/2
inches. (Scan below includes margins)</s>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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By the end of October, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service must decide whether the white-tailed prairie dog deserves consideration for protection under the Endangered Species Act.
The announcement comes as a surprise to some local ranchers who consider the prairie dog as plentiful as ever in Moffat County. But Fish and Wildlife has actually been involved in a two-year lawsuit regarding the prairie dog.
On Wednesday, Fish and Wildlife settled the suit with the Center for Native Ecosystems, a Denver nonprofit environmental organization, by agreeing to make a decision on the prairie dog by Oct. 31.
A decision to list the prairie dog could have strong consequences in Moffat and Rio Blanco counties, which contain some of the last population strongholds in Colorado.
A listing would mean the Fish and Wildlife Service would institute stringent standards to protect prairie dog habitat. Ranchers would need permission from the agency before beginning any project in prairie dog habitat, whether that is digging a ditch or installing a fence.
But local ranchers say they haven't seen a change in prairie dog populations. Wanda Walker said she hasn't noticed any scarcity of prairie dogs on her ranch near Vermillion or on the range in other parts of the county. Nor does Randy Culverwell believe they will they disappear from his ranch anytime soon.
Nonetheless, three of the five prairie dog species in Colorado have been approved for protection by Fish and Wildlife, and one more species is under consideration.
The Mexican prairie dog is listed as endangered, the Utah prairie dog is listed as threatened, a petition has been filed to protect the Gunnison prairie dog, and the black-tailed prairie dog is awaiting protection once funding is available.
Mike Albee, a wildlife biologist with the Bureau of Land Management's Little Snake office, said the BLM has been monitoring the white-tailed prairie dog populations in Colorado. Depending on which population segment one looks at, prairie dogs are either declining, increasing or remaining stable, he said.
Sylvatic plague has had the greatest effect on white-tailed prairie dog populations, he said. Sylvatic plague was introduced to North America in the early 1900s, and now the disease moves around the state, wiping out population segments in different areas.
Plague is next to impossible to manage. That's why it's so important to control other factors that affect prairie dog populations, such as poisoning, sport shooting and natural resources and urban development, said Erin Robertson, a biologist with native ecosystems.
"Because plague is so difficult to deal with, it's more important to deal with human detriment," Robertson said.
Utah has a seasonal ban on shooting when prairie dogs have pups. Right now, Colorado has no limits on shooting, Robertson said.
But biologists with the Bureau of Land Management question the impact of the factors Robertson cited. Albee said he feels shooting has little to no impact on populations. Nor does he feel permitted public lands activities, such as oil and gas drilling and grazing, impact prairie dogs.
BLM wildlife biologist Ron Lambeth said there are far fewer prairie dogs in the Grand Junction area than 15 or even 10 years ago. Those who monitor these populations attribute the decline to suburban development around that city. But development segregates those populations from one another, an effect that seems to protect them from plague.
"Suburban sprawl removes their habitat. Plague can't rampage through isolated spots, so they're healthy until a bulldozer comes through," Lambeth said.
In Grand Junction, a citizen group is starting up to protect the white-tailed prairie dog, Lambeth said. And the BLM is developing a plan to manage prairie dog populations in the hopes that the animal won't need to be listed.
If the white-tailed prairie dog population were allowed to dwindle, it could adversely affect other animal populations, including furriginous hawks, which depend on them for food, and burrowing owls, which live in prairie dog holes.
Moreover, the reintroduction of the black-footed ferret has been complicated by instability in the white-tailed prairie dog population, Albee said. The black-footed ferret depends on the prairie dog for 100 percent of its food. When a prairie dog population crashed near Little Snake, plans to reintroduce the black-footed ferret there were postponed due to the sudden lack of food.
Rob Gebhart can be reached at 824-7031 or by e-mail at [email protected].</s>
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How to fight a rising sea
What the Netherlands has done – and is urgently planning to do – in the face of climate-driven sea-level rise holds important lessons for the rest of the world.
Dordrecht, Netherlands — The Dutch enjoy a hard-earned reputation for building river dikes and sea barriers. Over centuries, they have transformed a flood-prone river delta into a wealthy nation roughly twice the size of New Jersey.
If scientific projections for global warming are right, however, that success will be sorely tested. Globally, sea levels may rise up to a foot during the early part of this century, and up to nearly three feet by century's end. This would bring higher tidal surges from the more-intense coastal storms that scientists also project, along with the risk of more frequent and more severe river floods from intense rainfall inland.
Nowhere does this aquatic vise squeeze more tightly than on the world's densely populated river deltas.
So why is one of the most famous deltas – the Netherlands – breaching some river dikes and digging up some of the rare land in this part of the country that rises (barely) above sea level?
In the Biesbosch, a small inland delta near the city of Dordrecht, ecologist Alphons van Winden looks out his car window at a lone excavator filling a dump truck with soil. He considers the question and laughs. "We do have a hard time explaining this to foreigners," he says.
The work here represent a keystone in the country's climate-adaptation plans, Mr. van Winden says. Indeed, nowhere are adaptation planning efforts to address rising sea levels and flooding more advanced than in the Netherlands.
To be sure, the country's economic wealth and long experience dealing with threats from seas and rivers give it an advantage over other low countries that face rising waters, such as Bangladesh, Vietnam, and the tiny tropical island nation of Tuvalu in the South Pacific. But many of the approaches the Netherlands is taking can and are being slowly adopted even in countries far poorer, specialists say.
The excavation work here is one example of what van Winden calls "soft approaches" to flooding in this small nation where competing interests jostle for every square foot of land. By buying out the few farmers remaining in this region, breaching the dikes they built to protect their land, and digging additional water channels, the Dutch government aims to reduce peak flood flows at Dordrecht and other cities downstream. No longer will tightly constricted river and canal channels hold high water captive. Big floods will overspread the Biesbosch, reducing the threat of water spilling over the top of levees that guard densely populated cities to the west.
The Biesbosch may also be critical to the future of farming on the productive southwest coast. There, most of the area's fresh water sources are close to the coast – and vulnerable to salt-water contamination from a rising North Sea. This could make farming difficult, if not impossible. The Biesbosch, however, hosts three large reservoirs, each surrounded by a 20-foot-high dike. Fresh water piped from these reservoirs, some 50 miles inland, could keep coastal areas supplied.
1.4 billion live near seacoast
Globally, some 21 percent of the world's 6.6 billion people live within 20 miles of a seacoast – and nearly 40 percent within 60 miles, says Robert Nicholls, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Southampton in England.
Seacoast populations who face the greatest risk from floods, storms, and sea-level rise live on river deltas, says the UN-sponsored Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
In the IPCC's latest set of reports on the impact of global warming, released earlier this year, scientists looked at data from 40 of the globe's river deltas, home to 300 million people. If current trends continue through 2050, flooding in the Nile, Mekong, and Ganges-Brahmaputra river deltas could each displace more than 1 million people. Up to a million more may be forced to head for higher ground in each of another nine deltas, including the Mississippi River delta. Up to 50,000 could be forced to relocate in each of 12 other deltas, including the Rhine River delta – an area known more widely as the Netherlands.
Besides global warming, scientists say the challenges these regions face have other causes as well. Levees, sea walls, drainage canals, dams, and other land-use patterns have taken a toll. Deltas tend to subside (sink) naturally, accentuating the rise in sea level. Past engineering projects can actually limit the ability of natural processes to replenish the land mass of deltas.
A patch of the Netherlands between Rotterdam and Gouda, called Zuidplaspolder, highlights the issue in a way that New Orleans might recognize. The 19-square-mile area is bounded by dikes and the Gouwe River. Face the river, and the landscape looks like a typical river plain. But turn and face Zuidplaspolder, and you see a steep decline dropping more than 20 feet. The huge dimple in the delta stretches as far as the eye can see.
It's the lowest spot in Europe, some 23 feet below sea level.
"And it's all subsidence," says Willemien Croes, a planner with the provincial government of South Holland. Over the centuries, residents dug up thick layers of peat to warm their homes in Gouda, Rotterdam, and Amsterdam, she says. Much of Zuidplaspolder then filled with water. Farmers pumped it dry, grew crops, and raised dairy herds on the rich clay and peat. When the soil settled, farmers ringed the area with dikes for protection.
The area's low elevation and the anticipated increased future risk of floods, combined with development pressures from Rotterdam and Gouda, have turned this area into one of the country's biggest adaptation challenges. But it's hardly alone: Some 60 percent of the country, accounting for 70 percent of its gross domestic product, lies below sea level.
These sinking lowlands are protected along the coast by sand dunes, dikes, and sea barriers that stretch across the mouths of estuaries. These natural and engineered defenses have protected millions from the North Sea since a devastating storm surge hit the country in 1953. But these defenses have come at an ecological cost. Unlike river deltas such as the Mississippi's, which grew as sediment washed downriver from deep in the North American interior, the Dutch delta was built by the sea. Currents swirling through the Strait of Dover since the end of the last ice age eroded the white cliffs and deposited the material along the Dutch coast.
That process has slowed substantially, says van Winden, who works for Stroming, an environmental consulting firm in Nijmegen. Although the delta drains three of Europe's major rivers – the Rhine, Meuse, and Scheldt – the rivers never carried enough sediment to build the delta, and don't carry enough silt to maintain it today. From that standpoint, he says, over the long term "we are living beyond our means."
Dutch humble in face of rising threat
Faced with the twin threats of increased river flooding from inland storms and higher ocean storm surges as the climate warms and sea levels rise, the country aims to meet these challenges with a variety of approaches, ranging from complex engineering to "natural." But it's doing so with increased humility, given the levee failures in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina in 2005.
"If you want a caricature of the Netherlands, it's: 'We have the dikes; we are 100 percent safe. So just go on with your life,' " says Pieter Bloemen, who runs the government's Adaptation Program for Spatial Planning and Climate. But these days, "even we proud Dutch, with climate change in the back of our heads, have to think about broken dikes. That's a big paradigm shift."
Zuidplaspolder is a case in point. As the lowest real estate in one of the Netherlands' most vulnerable provinces, it has become a test bed for factoring water and climate change into zoning and development plans. In the next 20 years, 15,000 to 30,000 new housing units will be built here. Anticipating this growth, in 2004, officials from provincial and local governments joined with nongovernmental organizations to develop a master plan for the polder. (A polder is a large tract of land containing farms and villages encircled by dikes. The dikes offer flood protection, but they also turn the polders into enormous bathtubs with bottoms that slowly, inexorably sink.)
The new homes that rise in the polder may look nothing like those in the villages the Dutch are used to, Mr. Bloemen says. To deal with floods, homes on this higher ground could be designed to float in place or built on stilts. They may sport tall ground floors, with living space and utilities placed on higher floors. Entire villages might be built to float in place, linked by buoyant sidewalks and roads.
In addition, he adds, officials may ask developers to use a technique that dates back centuries: building houses, even whole villages, on mounds. That low-tech approach is appearing in other parts of the world, too. Oxfam International is working with villages in Bangladesh to build individual homes and even small villages on flood-resistant mounds.
In the Netherlands, river floods are a top item on the climate-change adaptation must-fix list. To be sure, the country has tried to be forward-looking in tackling flood control and sea-level rise, notes Hans Balvoort, with the Netherlands' Ministry of Public Works, Transport, and Water Management. It typically uses a 50-year planning horizon. But a wake-up call came in the 1990s, "when, for the first time, rainfall was so heavy and intense that our pumping systems could not cope," he says.
Powerful pumps long ago replaced the signature windmills as the way to keep the polders from flooding. "On such a large scale," he says, the inability of pumps to keep pace with rainfall was "something we had not experienced before."
Moreover, for two winters during that decade, flooded rivers rose so high that officials evacuated some 250,000 people out of concern that levees might not hold. Instead of building large numbers of new levees, he continues, scientists, engineers, and officials looked for other ways to store flood waters over the short term to reduce the risk.
The Biesbosch project, with its dike removal, or "depoldering," is one approach. The government also is working on a range of other strategies to give flooded rivers more room to flow. They might spread dikes farther apart, excavate land between river and dikes (to capture overflow), deepen central river channels, remove jettylike groins that now force most of the flow into the center of a river, remove other obstructions, and even add new channels to the flood plain or restore old ones.
Storm surge is biggest coastal worry
The government plans to spend €2.2 billion ($3.2 billion) to make these changes to its rivers. Meanwhile, along the coast, the big worry is not about any average increase in sea level, which scientists project to rise here between 35 and 85 cm (14 to 33 inches) by 2100. Instead, the biggest concern is the change in storm-surge patterns that will ride atop that rise, says Pier Vellinga, who heads the climate program at Wageningen University.
As if to highlight this point, last weekend Britain and the Netherlands closed their sea barriers in the face of a storm in the North Sea that sent a 13-foot surge bearing down on their coasts.
Planners in other countries often design for a once-every-hundred-years storm. While that approach can be useful, the challenge is that climate change may throw those projections out of whack. For example, some researchers say that in the US Northeast, midcentury coastal winter storms could lead to flood levels every three or four years – floods of a severity that used to occur only once every 100 years. Netherlands planners aim for a 10,000-year storm for the country's most vulnerable areas. And even that may be inadequate, Dr. Vellinga says.
"When you do an economic assessment of the damage," he says, "and what you can afford to [spend to] avoid that damage, a better safety level would be a recurrence of 1 in 100,000 years." One storm like that could cost the country up to a year's worth of gross domestic product – €500 billion ($730 billion).
In 1990, the government decided to maintain the country's existing coastline by replenishing its extensive phalanx of coastal dunes using enormous deposits of sand that lie far offshore – another geological gift delivered over millennia from the English Coast to the Netherlands.
Three years ago, the government added that it will strive not only to maintain the coastline at its current position, but also to maintain the shape of the current offshore slope to a depth of about 130 feet. Today, that means dredging and depositing nearly 16 million cubic yards of sand along the coast each year. So, as the sea level rises, the dunes will, too, says Joost Stronkhoorst, with the National Institute for Coastal and Marine Management at The Hague.
Offshore sand deposits are large enough to allow the Dutch to accommodate a rise in sea level up to 16 feet, he says. But the line of coastal dunes is not unbroken. The gaps are spanned by barriers that in some cases will require 20 feet added to their height given sea-level-rise scenarios out to 2100.
In some cases, that's not possible. The northern coastal town of Petten shows why. It's tucked hard against the back of a sea dike that traces its origins to the Middle Ages – and sits 14 feet below the level at which waves crash on the other side.
To build up a dike, you must expand its base, explains Roel Posthoorn, with the Dutch nature trust Natuurmonumenten, as he stands on the crest of the dike on a blustery fall afternoon. The presence of the village eliminates the chance to expand the dike's base inland. And churning North Sea currents already sweep away precious coastal sand from the seaward edge of the dike's base, preventing planners from trying to expand the dike seaward.
Possible solution: artificial reefs
Here, Mr. Posthoorn says, the long-term solutions may lie in building an offshore reef to reduce the height of the waves slamming into the dike. Or, as some are now beginning to suggest, perhaps the large deposits of sand offshore should also be used to build the country's coast westward by nearly a mile.
In the meantime, groups like Natuurmonumenten are working to meet two of the country's adaptation goals by trying to prevent further development behind sea dikes like this one and converting the land to nature reserves. These "climate buffers" are another tool in the Netherlands' kit for coping with global warming.
Adaptation experts generally agree that scientists, engineers, and policymakers already know what needs to be done to adapt to global warming. For the most part, they say, it means doing what they already know how to do to reduce risks from natural hazards – it's just doing more of it and a better job of it.
As if to underscore the point, Henk Wolfort, a researcher at Alterra, an institute at Waganingen University that focuses on sustainable development, shows a set of maps illustrating the evolution of watery areas and polders in the country since the 14th century.
"Our problems are not so very different from the problems the people in the Middle Ages had," he says. Even back then, techniques like building on mounds or widening the space between river dikes to accommodate flooding were well understood. The lesson? In a high-tech age, some of the effective adaptation approaches may come from a decidedly low-tech time.
"I think the people in the Netherlands have forgotten about those old ideas because they have relied on technological solutions," he says. "Now they see that technical solutions don't provide 100 percent safety. So perhaps we should think about the old solutions again."</s>
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Chimeric macaques give new meaning to phrase, 'I'll be a monkey's uncle'
Scientists have created baby rhesus macaques with cells from genomes of as many of six different monkeys, giving new insight into the capabilities of stem cells.
They look like ordinary baby rhesus macaques, but Hex, Roku and Chimero are the world's first chimeric monkeys, each with cells from the genomes of as many as six rhesus monkeys.
Until now research on so-called chimeric animals, or those that have cells with different genomes, has been limited to mice; a recent procedure produced mice using cells from two dads.
The researchers turned to monkeys for more insight into the capabilities of embryonic stem cells. Most experiments on stem cell therapies are based on mice, and the researchers wanted to understand whether primate embryonic stem cells respond the same way as those of mice do.
To create the chimeric monkeys, researchers essentially glued together cells from individual rhesus monkey embryos and then implanting these mixed embryos into mama monkeys.
The key was mixing cells from very early-stage embryos, or blastocysts, that consisted of just two to four cells – each one of the cells still totipotent, capable of transforming into a whole animal as well as the placenta and other life-sustaining tissues. (This is in contrast to pluripotent stem cells, which can differentiate into any tissue type in the body, but not certain embryonic tissues or entire organisms.)
"The cells never fuse, but they stay together and work together to form tissues and organs," said Shoukhrat Mitalipov of the Oregon National Primate Research Center at Oregon Health & Science University. "The possibilities for science are enormous." [Images of the Chimeric Monkeys]
Try, try again
The researchers first tried creating chimeric monkeys using the process for chimeric mice. In this procedure, embryonic stem cells are injected into a host embryo after they have been cultured for as long as decades. These stem cells will mix with the host embryo's cells to produce tissues and organs and ultimately offspring. When these offspring are mated, the resulting offspring have cells derived solely from the implanted stem cells. If you were to pluck two cells from a chimeric mouse's body, you could get two different genomes – complete sets of chromosomes and genetic information.
But the methods that work to create chimeric mice failed in rhesus monkeys, leading to offspring with cells only from the host embryo.
"Unfortunately that didn't work," Mitalipov told LiveScience in a telephone interview. "We produced offspring that way and they didn't show any contribution of stem cells." The stem cells seemed to have gotten lost somewhere, he said.
The researchers guessed that the culturing somehow had changed these embryonic stem cells. So they recovered stem cells from an embryo's inner cell mass (rather than from the freezer after being cultured) and, without culturing them, injected the stem cells into a host embryo.
Rather than one chimeric monkey infant, the result was two separate fetuses — twins.
Finally, the researchers hit on a successful method, using early blastocysts that had split into no more than four separate cells. They took individual cells out of these clumps and aggregated them back together, mixing and matching between three and six individuals to create 29 new blastocysts. The researchers picked the 14 strongest-looking of them and implanted them in five surrogate mother monkeys.
All five got pregnant. Researchers terminated the pregnancies of three of them to test the fetuses for chimerism, and they found it. Soon after, the remaining two monkeys delivered twins (named Roku and Hex for the Japanese and Greek words for "six") and a singleton, Chimero. All appear male, though testing on their cells reveals that they also contain individual female genomes.
Growing up chimeric
The monkeys were delivered by C-section. Their mothers rejected them, probably in response to the nonnatural method used to deliver them, so now they are being raised by a foster mama.
Researchers aren't yet sure whether Roku, Hex and Chimero will be able to reproduce. It takes rhesus macaques four to five years to reach sexual maturity.
There are no plans to create human chimeras and no need to, Mitalipov emphasized. This research by itself should help scientists in conducting biomedical research more relevant to humans, he said.
Chimeric mice, for instance, are used to produce genetically engineered "knock-out" mice that carry deletions of important genes. In that way, researchers can see firsthand what genes do or don't do.
The results may be useful in stem cell therapy, Mitalipov said. Researchers believe that stem cells cultured in Petri dishes could be transplanted into adult patients to treat conditions such as paralysis or Parkinson's disease.
"But this is based on mouse models," Mitalipov said. "We didn't know whether primates have this capacity."
The chimeric monkey study, reported today (Jan. 5) in the journal Cell, shows that primate cultured stem cells probably have some potential to differentiate, but they aren't comparable to in-vivo stem cells, or stem cells produced in the body, Mitalipov said.
"We cannot model everything in the mouse," Mitalipov said. "If we want to move stem cell therapies from the lab to clinics and from the mouse to humans, we need to understand what these primate cells can and can't do. We need to study them in humans, including human embryos."
Even though the researchers found success without culturing, cultured cells shouldn't be written off, said Richard Behringer, a geneticist at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. The reason the cells didn't work in monkeys may be due to something in the laboratory process, not because of the cells themselves, Behringer told LiveScience.
"We know so little about the early embryology of our cells," Behringer said. "We know about the fertilization to the blastocyst stage because you can do that in vitro, but after that there's very little known about human embryology — this is when a woman may not even know she's pregnant. Having the monkey model is useful to understand the early embryonic development, where the monkey can stand in for the human."</s>
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During the Cultural Revolution, millions of Red Guards rampaged at the behest of Chairman Mao to rid China of its ‘Four Olds’: old customs, old culture, old habits, and old ideas. They defaced ancient monuments, destroyed historical artifacts, burnt monasteries, persecuted traditional arts, and tortured minorities and ‘bourgeois thinkers’, leaving half-a-million dead in their wake. Special venom was directed at things Confucian. Encouraged to question their parents and teachers (who were traditionally revered), youngsters were soon marching with slogans like: ‘Parents may love me, but not as much as Chairman Mao’.
Regarded later as an unmitigated disaster even by diehard communists, this wasn’t the first time a Chinese leader had turned against Confucianism. The very first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, who also commissioned the Terracotta Army, had launched his own great Confucian purge in the third century BCE. But such events are anomalies for Confucianism, which would revive, adapt, and thrive again (the longest slump was during the Tang dynasty), giving China a distinctive cultural continuity for almost 2500 years.
No person has left a deeper mark on Chinese culture than Confucius, who lived 2,500 years ago in an age of social turmoil. He was a member of the scholar or professional class who managed to become a mid-level bureaucrat and sought to define and practice the art of ruling (1). Though, like Plato, he had no success in the real world, he laid the foundation of a great deal of subsequent Chinese reflection on education and comportment of the ideal man, how he should live and interact with others, and the forms of society and government in which he should participate (2).
Like the Buddha, Jesus, and Socrates, Confucius too never wrote a word. Even the Analects of Confucius, considered closest to his thought, was compiled after his death by many generations of disciples. To understand what he inspired in China, a better approach is to read the Analects along with three exegetical works that form the animating core of Confucianism, ie. the Confucian canon - the Book of Mencius, the Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean.
A striking feature of the Confucian canon is its overwhelming concern with life in this world. Whilst there is an abstract Heaven and the obligation to respect one’s ancestors, God is conspicuously absent. Nor is there much metaphysical wonder or concern with the origin of the universe, the nature of mind and matter (as in Buddhism), or death and beyond. Humans, according to Confucius, should waste no time in trying to understand the forces of heaven and the realm of the spirits; and should concentrate instead on the problems of this world, best tackled through education and character development.
Confucianism, in this sense, is less religion or speculative thought, more a humanistic discourse on personal and social conduct.
The Golden Rule (‘Do not impose on others what you do not wish for yourself’) finds a prominent mention in the canon. Many propositions are based on moral reciprocity. The dominant view is that human nature is innately good, but corrupted due to our failings. With effort, each of us can perfect it and recover our original goodness. This, in fact, is the goal of all learning - to discover our universal human nature and live a worldly life in accord with it - the Way of the Heaven, or simply, The Way. A clear implication is that recovering our innate nature will lead to inner peace and social harmony.
Furthermore, the canon considers all men to be equal in their moral capacities: any person can become a sage, or at least a superior man. That men may not pursue the path of self-improvement did trouble Confucius, evidenced by his pithy but despairing remark that he had ‘never seen a man who loved virtue as much as sex’. Yet, he never lost his faith in the transforming and sustaining power of education (3).
Confucius believed that cultivation of the self lies at the root of social order, which in turn is the basis for peace and political stability. (4)
A progressive and radical thinker in his time, he approved his society’s move away from a slave-owning to a feudal age (taking this out of context, modern commies and capitalists have called him reactionary). Worthy men, he said, were under no obligation to serve unworthy rulers, and must be prepared to sacrifice their lives in defense of principle (5). Analects 9:26 says: ‘One may rob an army of its commander-in-chief; one cannot deprive the humblest man of his free will’. A good government rules humanely, ‘by virtue and moral example rather than by punishment of force’ (6). The canon enumerates the qualities of the exemplary ruler. For instance, he must possess five virtues: benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness. He must use nine standards to administer the empire:
cultivating the personal life, honouring the worthy, being affectionate to relatives, being respectful toward the great ministers, identifying oneself with the whole body of officers, treating the common people as one’s own children, attracting the various artisans, showing tenderness to strangers from far countries, and extending kindly and awesome influence on the feudal lords.
Centuries later, in early 2nd millennium CE, the impact of Buddhism, Taoism, and other social transformations led to what we now call Neo-Confucianism. Whilst it mainstreamed the Taoist concepts of chi, yin and yang, and tai-chi, Neo-Confucianism also took a turn for the worse, taking a more hierarchical view of society. For instance, it expounded on five social relationships and the conduct appropriate for each: ruler and ruled, son and father, younger brother and older, wife and husband, friend and friend. It advocated submission to authority, loyalty and obedience, orthodox family values, filial piety, thrift and hard work. Confucius, almost certainly, would have disapproved.
Like Chinese food in India, Buddhism altered its flavour in China. Despite their shared agnosticism and focus on this world, the primacy of the individual spiritual quest, detachment, and monasticism in Buddhism posed a threat to Confucianism. What therefore arose in China was a ‘Confucianised’ Buddhism. And just as Hinduism borrowed from and then marginalised Buddhism in India, Neo-Confucianism marginalised Buddhism in China, not the least because it was a ‘foreign faith’ (though it would not disappear as completely as in India).
The Confucian canon, notably, was a vital part of the curriculum of China’s civil services exams for 1300 years (until 1905). This China-wide administrative system (which likely shaped the British model in India) helped forge cultural homogeneity and common social values, reduce political regionalism, and build a common identity that made possible the Chinese nationalism of the twentieth century. Not surprisingly, this came at a price. According to Jonathan Spence,
By the 12th century AD, something approximating a state Confucianism was in place and over time this came to encapsulate certain general truths that had not figured prominently in the original Analects. For example, now included under this broad definition of Confucian thought were hostility to or the demeaning of women, a rigid and inflexible system of family hierarchies, contempt for trade and capital accumulation, support of extraordinarily harsh punishments, a slavish dedication to outmoded rituals of obedience and deference, and a pattern of sycophantic response to the demands of central imperial power. (1)
This no doubt contributed to the subsequent stasis in Chinese civilisation. The birthplace of paper, printing, gunpowder, and the magnetic compass turned inward, uncreative, and xenophobic. The sense of humiliation that colonial encounters left behind, the experience of Maoism, and the worldly Confucian ethos of its people under post-Mao regimes go a long way in explaining the tenor of modern China.
It is notable that today, unlike the Buddha and even various Hindu gurus and yogis, Confucius has almost no following outside the Chinese cultural sphere in East Asia.
This may be because the ideal Confucian path is a ‘society of cultivated individuals’ - the emphasis is on both ‘society’ and ‘cultivated individuals’. The two go hand in hand and reinforce each other. One is incoherent without the other.
It requires people to cultivate themselves to establish a critical mass of ‘social harmony’, which then leads to wider cultivation of individuals and greater harmony. But can one speak of a Confucian individual in the West, which has no equivalent goal of social harmony? This is perhaps why Confucius has few followers in the West. The Buddha’s enlightenment is of course a very individual path and so it resonates more strongly; likewise the idea of saving oneself through the ‘wisdom’ of a Hindu sage.
A new form of Confucianism is ascendant again. The Chinese government now aggressively promotes it and has even established 120 Confucius Institutes in 50 countries. Shrines to Confucius now abound in China. ‘Harmony’ was a notable theme at the Beijing Olympics. The sage has been co-opted by the market-friendly authoritarian regimes of East Asia to help drive voluntary obedience, law and order, and nationalism. These regimes also withhold a host of human rights from their citizens under the pretext that ‘Asian Values’ are different from ‘Western values’. That’s not what Confucius would have said. The Analects makes clear that ‘he stood for something far closer to personal liberty than to unswerving obedience to the state’ (3).
Jonathan Spence in Confucian Ways, Reith Lectures, 2008.
Confucius, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
What Confucius Said, Jonathan Spence reviews Simon Leys’s translation of the Analects, New York Review of Books, 1997.
Confucianism, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008.
The Search for Modern China by Jonathan Spence.
A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy by Wing-Tsit Chan.</s>
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NEW YORK (AP) — A mysterious long-haired critter that's been sighted on the streets of a Bronx neighborhood for several months has a name.
It's a member of the weasel family called a fisher or fisher cat.
Zoologist Roland Kays of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences tells WCBS-TV (http://cbsloc.al/1mhrXe2 ) that the short-legged, furry-tailed creature may have come down the river.
New Yorkers should be thrilled. Turns out the fisher preys on rats and squirrels, but is not a threat to humans.
Fishers were found in Manhattan when the island was first settled. The fur trade pushed them north and into the Adirondacks.
Fisher trapping was banned in the 1930s. Kays says today the fisher population is booming in the Northeast and a trapping season has been reinstated.</s>
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The U.S. military has seen an increase in the
number of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) from prolonged combat in Iraq and
Afghanistan. Marines and soldiers have greatly suffered TBI-related injuries
from improvised explosive devices (IEDs), RPG attacks, and similar ambushes
These coordinated attacks against coalition troops
both wound and kill personnel, with wounded soldiers treated in rehab centers
in Iraq and Afghanistan. Just a few years ago, many of these soldiers
would have arrived stateside without receiving any pre-medical screening able
to pinpoint possible medical and mental issues.
Immediate treatment at these polytrauma
centers overseas helps provide assistance, and soldiers can head back into
combat according to Military Times.
The U.S. Army can better manage TBI suffered in
combat without sending a soldier back to the United States. If not treated
immediately, researchers believe the brain injury leads to both emotional and
physical issues. TBI also have been a problem in the United States, with 1.4
million new cases reported each year.
Similar to military breakthroughs, the private
industry has made strong developments, including the hope to one day aid
in brain cell recovery through the use of stem cells. Mild traumatic brain
injury also is often ignored by soldiers, with Army doctors pleading with soldiers
to come forward if they've endured a concussion.
As the number of TBI cases increased, the
Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) has also tried to keep up by increasing
disability compensation for TBI cases. Furthermore, screening and evaluation
efforts by the VA help soldiers get faster treatment -- but continued errors
within the VA mental health department has led to confusion and misdiagnosis.</s>
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It looks as though energy efficiency is still a big priority
for municipalities and countries across the globe. We've already detailed energy-efficient LED
lighting efforts put forth by Raleigh, NC. We've also discussed how Australia and the European Union (EU)
plan to get rid of incandescent light bulbs by 2009. The United States is also
moving towards ushering out inefficient lighting with H.R. 1547, which was
published on March 15, 2007.
The bill (PDF),
which was submitted by California representative Jane Harman, indicates that
light bulbs which have an overall luminous efficacy of 60 lumens per watt
(lm/W) will be prohibited by January 1, 2012. The energy requirements get
progressively steeper every four years. On January 1, 2016, the requirement
will grow to 90 lm/W and will reach 120 lm/W by 2020.
A traditional 100W tungsten incandescent light has an
overall luminous efficacy of 17.5 lm/W. A 23W
compact fluorescent (100W equivalent) has an overall luminous efficacy of 60
Exemptions could be made by the Secretary of Energy for
certain applications where it wouldn't be feasible to use energy-efficient
lighting. These include applications related to military, medical or matters of
If an exception is made by the Secretary of Energy, that
still doesn't give entitle the recipient to a free pass to continue using
outdated technology. The exemption will only be in effect for two years after
which the current enacted requirement will have to be adhered to.
The bill also notes that consumers and businesses will be
given incentives to encourage the use of energy efficient light bulbs.</s>
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The scientific review, published in Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, analysed the scientific evidence available on portion sizes, asking what exactly is already known about the influence of portion size on energy intake, and what additional information still needs to be established.
Written by Professor David Benton from Swansea University, the review notes that there is increasing evidence that the portion sizes of many foods have increased "and in a laboratory at least this increases the amount eaten." However, he said that such conclusions are limited by the complexity of the issue.
"There is a need to consider meals freely chosen over a prolonged period when a range of foods of different energy densities are available," said Benton. "A range of factors will influence the size of the portion size chosen: amongst others packaging, labelling, advertising and the unit size rather than portion size of the food item."
From the lab to the real word
Benton suggested that while it may be established in laboratory settings that larger portion sizes lead to increased food intake; the way that portion size interacts with the 'multitude' of factors that determine food intake in a real world setting has not been established.
"The single most important objective is to establish the importance of portion size relative to the range of other variables that influence food intake," said the expert, who reiterated that laboratory findings linking increased portion size to higher food intake cannot be taken in to the real word.
"Although for many such a relationship appears very likely it should be remembered that the association has not been demonstrated," he said. "There is an urgent need for intervention studies that show that changing portion sizes reduce weight in those consuming a freely chosen diet, rather than in those in a laboratory situation that prescribes or limits the nature of consumption."
"Without such data we cannot be sure that the response to portion size is more than a laboratory phenomenon of limited practical significance."
Benton added that the findings from the review highlight the complexities surrounding the UK Government's Public Health Responsibility Deal's call for reduced portion sizes as a way of obtaining reductions in caloric intakes.
He warned that concerns about portion size need to be part of a multi-faceted approach to the topic, suggesting that it is 'unlikely' that any single change is going to have a significant impact.</s>
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|Find College Courses and Degrees
This is a practical, hands-on degree, where student will learn about the relationships between molecular, anatomical, physiological and the anthropological aspects of human biology. It allows you to combine a programme that includes a strong focus on the medical aspects of human processes, such as how the body responds to infection and how drugs act on the body. The course will also strengthen your understanding of the philosophical foundations regarding scientific methods, healthcare ethics and medical research.
|This degree will suit you if you want a thorough understanding of the structure and function of the human body, and are looking for a career in areas such as biomedical science, archaeology, forensic science, palaeontology, sports science or teaching. It will give you a strong, relevant, and current foundation in the basic sciences, and prepare you for the many career options available in various health related professions.
The course itself places significant emphasis on laboratory techniques, handling data, solving problems, writing reports and oral presentations. A diverse range of human biology projects is usually taught, ranging from the study of molecular parasitology to forensic anthropology, microbiology and ecology.
A combination of theory and practical modules are studied, with students being taught through lectures, tutorials and practical classes. Assessment is done through coursework and exams at the end of each year. Tutorials are designed to help you adjust to academic life at university and to establish good study habits.
Human biology degree course overview
Lecturers at university tend to be specialists in the field of human biology, microbiology and infection, cell biology and molecular genetics. Many are active researchers and this research interest ensures that curriculums are up to date with current understanding of human disease and treatment.
On many courses students are given the choice of taking a broad approach, based on the principles and methods of different aspects of biology, or focusing on a narrower range of modules with a view to becoming a specialist.
Typical course modules and areas of study on a human biology degree
- Human evolution
- Stem cell
- Developmental biology
- Musculoskeletal biology
- Cardiovascular biology
- Principles of Anatomy
- Fundamental Themes In Human Biology
- Cell Structure and Function
- Circulatory and Respiratory Anatomy
- Integrative Experimental Human Biology
- Principles of Microanatomy
- Tissues and Disease
- Cardiovascular System
- Primate Biology
- Human Evolution
- Comparative Anatomy and Clinical
- Anatomical and Cellular Basis of Neurological Dysfunction.
- Clinical Nutrition
- Infectious Diseases
- Public and Preventive Health
- Human nutrition
- The Musculoskeletal System
- Endocrinology, Metabolism & Homeostasis
- Clinical Biochemistry & Pharmacology
- Human structure and function
- Evidence-Based Medicine and Diagnostics
- Nutrition and Exercise Genomics
- Energy Regulation and Obesity
- Research Methods for Life Scientists
Students will learn about
- Development and ageing.
- Anatomy of the head and neck.
- The immune system in health and disease.
- Bone metabolism.
- Biological principles.
- Research methods.
- Analytical techniques.
- Diet in the management of disease.
- How is our blood pressure controlled.
- Why are some people obese while others are not
- How physiological imbalance or microbial infection alters and exploits human physiology.
Skills you will learn on a human biology degree course
- Practical Laboratory Skills.
- Effective oral and written communications.
- How to apply scientific and research principles to molecular investigations.
HUMAN BIOLOGY PERSONAL STATEMENT
Below is a example of a professionally written human biology personal statement, you are advised not to copy it word for word, but instead to use it as a guide.
Human biology personal statement example 1
"I am a forward thinking and much experienced student who possess drive, ambition and ability. Already having a deep understanding of the biological techniques and knowledge of the life-science study of human beings, I am now looking for a professional education that focuses on employability, personal development and equips me for the twenty-first century. Academically speaking I consider myself to be a imaginative, intelligent and results orientated person, I say this without wishing to sound arrogant.
I want to study biology because to me it’s an exciting area of study that underpins many of the important advances that have transformed the quality of human life. I am particularly interested in learning more about how the human body functions in health, the processes that lead to disorders in cellular function and methods of detecting and treating disease.
Human biology can open many doors to successful careers in various fields of medicine and graduate study. This degree provides the scientific basis for a career in a range of related fields, including biomedical research, teaching, sports science, healthcare and promotion, or the biotechnology industries. It will equip me with the subject knowledge and transferable skills that I can apply to a whole range of roles, from a clinical perfusion scientist to a medical events organiser.
At college this was one of the most popular subjects, and i was lucky to get a place on the course. I really enjoyed my time at college, apart from the academic aspect of the experience I met some of my best friends there. On the course I got my first experience of lab work, where I had an opportunity to apply in a practical way what I had learnt in lectures.
On the theory side I got a comprehensive introduction to the study of living things, their structure and anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, ecology, genetics, nutrition etc. Overall I found it to be a fascinating subject and got a basic understanding of why we look and behave the way we do, and why we fall ill. My college experience is what drove me to study this subject at university.
At present I am employed by on a part time basis as a research assistant at a private medical company. Although most of my work is administrative and office based, I am also occasionally involved in the technical side of things, i.e. preparing samples for assays, carrying out various assays and analysing and summarising the data of projects. Under the guidance of supervisors I am involved in the design of successful programmes of investigation, and also setting up, conducting and recording the outcomes of the research. Other duties I perform include analysing data using appropriate statistical techniques and packages and then preparing written summaries of the work.
My long term ambition is to use the qualification, specialist skills and knowledge I gain from this course as a foundation for work in research in university or biopharmaceutical industry laboratories, clinical trials, scientific writing or teaching.
The most important thing for me when choosing to apply to you university was your reputation, I did my research and checked out the league tables and decided to put your institution on my short list. What sealed the decision for my was visiting the campus on a open day and seeing it for what it really was. I was particularly impressed by the mix of old traditional buildings next to the cool modern ones, this really gave me the feeling that I could study at your university for the duration of my course. I also had a look around your library and found it to be top notch, it had the latest articles and publication, right through to medial books written 100 years ago. In conclusion I feel that your university is one of the most innovative and exciting in the country, and I would be privileged to study there."
Biomedical science degree
Marine biology degree
Medical science degree
More personal statements
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Student CV examples
Student CV templates (over 30 free professional written examples)
More career resources
Cover letter examples (over 50 expertly cover letter examples)
CV templates (over 300 free professionally written samples)
Medical CV template examples</s>
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When citing sources in a MLA Style thesis or dissertation, you will have to follow two different arrangements . In – text citations are references to resources that you make inside the primary text of your papers . ” Works Cited ” is a separate page in the conclusion of your paper where you record every research resource you used in the document . In a formal paper, it is very important to mention every source you utilize . You need to let your readers know that you just have performed the investigation that is proper to support the the career you’ve drawn in the paper . Than what you have supplied in your paper, visitors who desire more information may use the resources that are cited . It’s not unimportant to credit the investigators who supplied the information in your newspaper .
With this specific article, we will give attention to MLA guidelines for citing sources inside the text . I. BASIC RULES With Design, an in – text citation might be called a quotation . Fundamentally, if you paraphrase supply or another person’s thoughts, or any period you work with a direct quote in your paper, you should mention that source . By mentioning the source within the the writing, you give your subscribers the opportunity to locate the source content themselves, as long as they they desire extra information in regards to idea or a certain quote . two . IN – TEXT CITATIONS When creating an in – text citation, you want to give your readers a simple method for locating the source content .
You merely need enough information in the in – text quotation to provide the reader an easy approach to finding the source in the Works Cited list at the end of your papers . Since the Works Cited list will undoubtedly be in order, listed by the writer’s last name first, you only need to list the author’s surname for your in – text quotation . Below are a few examples for in – text citations, based on situation and particular sources . A ) one-source, writer understood . Listing the composer of the resource and the page number or numbers that you used in your reference . Set the supply content inside parentheses immediately after the content you need to source .
Do not separate the author’s name as well as the site number to any punctuation . *Some economists have suggested that technological progress spur economic growth ( Manley 16 ). B ) one-source, author unknown . cheap custom essay writing services If you don’t understand the author’s name, in addition to the page number, list a shortened name for the supply . List it in italics in the event the name is for a long function . If the title is for a work that is brief, list it inside quotation marks . *Some economists have suggested that technological advancements spur economic growth ( ” 2007 Economic Development Record ” 16 ).
i cant write my essay C ) 2 or even more sources, authors known . Follow the exact same guidelines as you used with one-source, but you’ll have to separate each help with writing an essay supply using a semi colon . D ) Multiple works, same author . For those who do have more than one source from the author that is same, simply put in a shortened title for this resource you’re using to the author’s name in the in – text quotation . Divide the author name along with the title with a comma . *Some economists have indicated that technological advancements spur economic development ( Johnson, ” 2007 Financial Progress Report ” 16 ).
E ) Multiple authors, same last name . You may end up getting resources from two authors who share the same name. If so, you could use first name and middle initial, the author’s first original, first and middle initials, or middle and first names. Use the maximum amount of of the primary and middle names as required therefore it is not difficult for the readers to locate the resource in the Works Cited list . *Some economists have indicated that technological advancements spur economic development ( B. Manley 16 ).
F ) Oblique resource . For those who own a quotation taken from an indirect resource, range from the expression ” qtd. in ” with all the in – text citation . * Jones has mentioned that ” technological progress spur economic growth ” ( qtd. in Manley 16 ). G ) Other option .
*The economist Johnson has indicated that technological progress spur economic development ( 16 ). You are not permitted to utilize the site number or numbers in the word, even though MLA Style allows you to make use of the author name in the the writing of the word you’re citing . The site number should appear in parentheses . Brian Scott is a professional freelance writer with more than a decade of expertise . He advocates utilizing an MLA composing applications to accurately compose and format papers in MLA Design, available at Published At: Permanent Link:</s>
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Reading Comprehension and Historical Thinking: Classroom Realities in Building a Context Connection
Which comes first with a primary text source, historical thinking or reading comprehension? Clearly, for students to understand and think historically when reading a source document, they must be able to comprehend what they read. To assume, however, that there is a single monolithic model for improving students' reading comprehension across all subjects would be... incorrect. Acquiring domain-specific knowledge from what we read requires more than mere literal comprehension of the words in a documentit involves thinking and reasoning in a way that is often particular to the domain or subject addressed in the reading. Pre-eminent historian Sam Wineburg (2001), among others, argues that historical thinkingthe central goal of studying history, whether directed toward construction of contexts, critical analysis of documents in terms of contexts, or context-sensitive judgments of behavioris neglected by the use of traditional reading strategies that simply emphasize literal interpretation and comprehension. That is not to say we should not use the opportunity of reading historical narrative to help students improve their comprehension skills. Quite the contrary.
In search of historical thinking through text comprehension
Wineburg goes further to advocate the use of the sourcing heuristic before beginning to read for comprehension, so that students can understand the document as a source in a specific context. His claim is supported by the past research of his language arts counterparts on effect of prior knowledge on comprehension, by using the familiar through such activities as comparing story characters or events with those in their own lives (see Using the Familiar to Introduce Students to the Study of Primary and Secondary Sources and the student activity "I Left a Trace") as well as general schema theory (Anderson & Pearson, 1984; Athey, 1983; Harris & Hodges, 1995). Reviews of similar findings (National Reading Panel [NRP], 2000) regarding the value of context-based approaches for improving reading comprehension have uncovered 14 different highly reliable studies that demonstrate empirical evidence supporting the value of prior instruction across a variety of strategies and with a number of related effects on comprehensionall, however, pointing toward improvement in students' abilities to elaborate on what is being read, draw inferences based on available information, and recall and use information at a later time.
Taking a leap forward into how this might translate into classroom practice from the historian perspective, Nelson & Drake (2001) suggest that analysis guides that are useful in introducing the sourcing heuristic prior to reading can also remain effective tools for cultivating historical thinking throughout the course of working with certain documents. As when historians read documents, students can likewise learn to give due attention to the corroboration heuristic (e.g., drawing relationships and testing sources against other sources to measure validity), as well as contextualization within a time and place and comparison to conditions and events in other parts of the world at the time the document was created. This is compelling. Though reading theorists concur that there is indeed a distinction between literacy development as reading instruction and literacy development to support subject matter learning (Alvermann & Phelps, 1994; Ruddell, 2001), and that the development of reading comprehension skills is directly impacted by a reader's existing preparation and understanding of the subject matter (Anderson, 1984; NRP, 2000; Steffensen, Joag-Dev, & Anderson, 1979), Nelson & Drake's suggestion carries with it the implicit notion that we should structure students' ongoing learning experiences in a way that maximizes the positive impact of dual efforts toward "reading to learn" and "learning to read." If we need further rationale for the worth of capturing this natural symbiotic relationship, we have only to turn to our own "history" of devaluation of domain-specific historical learning in classrooms. It's not new, especially at the elementary level (Ravitch, 1987), and the omission of history testing in No Child Left Behind only exacerbates the dilemma (Ungurait, 2003). Regardless of our views, we can and should seek better ways of accomplishing our goals. Finding solutions that integrate history into comprehensive school programs that place emphasis on reading in only one such possibility.
In the language arts and reading comprehension community, there is a substantial theory and literature base surrounding the positive aspects of before/during/after reading techniques (Brown, Armbruster, & Baker, 1983; Taylor & Frye, 1992; Tei & Stewart, 1985). These are often called "fix-up" strategies. More recently we are seeing the emergence of a far more robust set of research evidence findings that outline these strategies and the situations, age ranges, and reading comprehension purposes for which they have been found to be most successful. A number of these effectively promote interpretive and critical reading skillsinferring main ideas and cause-and-effect relationships that are not directly stated, detecting the author's purpose and mood/viewpoint, determining accuracy and relevance of materialwhile simultaneously getting at the heart of historical thinking and the sourcing and corroboration heuristics.
What works: Putting reading comprehension strategies to work within historical contexts
Those that emphasize question answering and/or use of graphic organizers focus mainly on the first two facets of interpretive and critical readinginferences and author intentwhile going straight at the heart of the sourcing heuristic, and while contributing to the simple but important ability to locate, organize, and make sense of relevant information. When taken together, detailed reading comprehension analyses (NRP, 2000) have revealed 28 scientifically based research studies that bear direct evidence of the effectiveness of question answering instruction and the use of graphic organizers. Graphic organizers, diagrams or pictorial devices that display relationships (Harris & Hodges, 1995), have turned up results that are especially effective in content areas such as science, social studies, and alas, history. The gains are not only in text content reading in those domain-specific areas, but in the specific content understanding, with no "reading comprehension middle man" standing between it and test measures (four studies cited by the NRP alone). Additional studies by historians and history educators represent further evidence of effectiveness of linking relationships on graphic organizers in the form of concept maps for establishing student understanding of internal as well as external conceptual consistency (carry-over or transfer to other unique situations) of historical modelsideas, events, and even temporal (unusual to say the least) arrangements (Herl, Baker, & Niemi, 1996; Wineburg, 1991). As "reading to learn" and "learning to read" are also both reinforced through story-form narrative (Levstik & Pappas, 1987), story mapping represents another form of mutually beneficial use of graphic organizers. Story mapping uniquely addresses reading comprehension needs when working with story structure, while simultaneously helping students to understand story-form historical narrativegreatly enhancing student learning by promoting the ability to reconstruct historical paths and creating a macro-context for scientific inquiry and understanding.
Through all of this, however, question generationpossibly the most evidence-supported category of reading comprehension instruction with 30 studies cited in a comprehensive meta-analysis by Rosenshine, Meister, & Chapman (1996), 11 in conjunction with another method as part of reciprocal teaching where the teacher models what he or she would do to try to understand the textmay be an even more highly prized tool for historical sourcing, especially when tackled via the corroboration heuristic. As historians piece together an interlocking network of components related to a central source or past event, they continually ask questions that "target purpose"that get at which parts introduce inaccuracies or are not relevant to the picture as a whole. So must students, and in so doing, address the third facet of interpretive and critical reading discussed abovedetermining accuracy and relevance of material.
Teach them well: Getting at skills that last
An interesting aspect uncovered by the evidence now available is that students do not make that leap on their own. We must teach them. It's bold, and it seems simple enough... but it is difficult to teach true thinking skills, especially ones that require such a high degree of metacognition and self-regulation. The stakes are raised by the realization of the effectiveness of comprehension monitoring, often referred to as metacognitive awareness. Though viewed by some as another category of instruction, it serves more as a lens through which to view our lesson design, and a guide by which to establish our student learning goals and approach our instruction in pursuit of those goals. As the term "metacognition" would imply, the learning goal for students is nothing less than the ability to recognize what works for the sake of their own learning, and to choose and adjust strategies as needed depending on the task requirements (Elliott-Faust & Pressley, 1986; Harris & Hodges, 1995; Markman, 1978; Taylor & Frye, 1992). Other than the obvious need to modify approach and expectation, and the need at any grade to carefully choose the specific source types utilized, age is not a significant constraining factor for integration into lesson design. The findings of the NRP indicate success with metacognitive strategy instruction in reading comprehension in grades 2-6 (mode at grade 4), while the various strategies we suggest using in tandem show positive results for numerous studies across grades 1-9 (modal grades usually ranging from 4-6). In history education circles, the abilities necessary for "sourcing" and historical thinking have been shown for many years to be achievable by students even in the lower grades in elementary school (Zaccaria, 1978), so much so that they now comprise their own set of related process-oriented standards (standards in historical thinking) in the United States' K-4 National Standards for History (National Center for History in the Schools [NCHS], 1996). We employ metacognitive approaches as an umbrella approach, or in another way of speaking, a thread that runs through each of the other techniques we use in a variety of grades. Despite the grade, however, it again must be "taught," through modeling and teacher-student interaction in each of the other areas of instruction mentioned. Of course, we'll be prepared to do that regardless, given that we are trying to actively engage students in the "unnatural" act of historical thinking. It is also clear that the details of our approach must perceptibly change with each new context or set of circumstances.
Eight studies cited by the NRP and a mounting body of evidence from both reading and subject-area specialists is beginning to also support claims for the effectiveness of curriculum plus strategy instructionstrategy-specific reading comprehension skill training within the context and content of specific subjects and topics of study. Interestingly, and further bolstering Wineburg's claim for the importance and relevance of domain-specific knowledge, no curriculum plus study has been located to our knowledge that supports the value of a particular model that extends unaltered across multiple subjects. Coupling these data with the value of context-based approaches for learning vocabulary (six studies specifically dealing with subject-context acquisition as identified by the NRP), and the additional natural fit for the use of graphic organizers (seven studies showing positive effect) in conjunction with content-rich reading, makes a persuasive argument for a parallel approach to learning historyor any subjectalong with efforts to improve reading comprehension.
Alvermann, D., & Phelps, S. (1994). Content Reading and Literacy: Succeeding in Today's Diverse Classrooms. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Anderson, R. (1984). Role of the reader's schema in comprehension, learning, and memory. In R. Anderson, J. Osborn, & R. Tierney (Eds.), Learning to read in American schools: Basal readers and texts. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Anderson, R., & Pearson, P. (1984). A schema-theoretic view of basic processes in reading. In P. Pearson (ed.), Handbook of reading research (pp. 255-291). New York: Longman.
Athey, I. (1983). Language development factors related to reading development. Journal of Educational Research, 76(4), 197-203.
Bradley Commission on History in Schools. (1988). Building a history curriculum: Guidelines for teaching history in schools. Washington, DC: Educational Excellence Network.
Brown, A., Armbruster, B., & Baker, L. (1983). The role of metacognition in reading and studying. In J. Orsany (Ed.), Reading comprehension: From research to practice (pp. 49-75). Hillsdale, NJ : Erlbaum.
Duffy, G. (1993). Rethinking strategy instruction: Four teachers' development and their low achievers' understandings. Elementary School Journal, 93(3), 231-247.
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LearningLeads - Reading Comprehension and Historical Thinking: Classroom Realities in Building a Context Connection</s>
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After a decade of intense focus on lithium-ion, material scientists are beginning to look to new battery chemistries for future electric cars.
The new chemistries could require a long wait -- 10 or 20 years in some cases -- but they might change the future of electric transportation. "We're getting to the end of the road as far as being able to extract more energy out of lithium-ion," John Kopera, vice president of commercial operations for Sion Power, a maker of lithium-sulfur batteries, told us. "But we can see a time when batteries could have higher energy, weigh less than half as much, and still be less costly than lithium-ion."
Sion Power isn't alone in believing better battery chemistries are on the horizon. The Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-e) has tabbed a variety of chemistries for government-sponsored development through its Batteries for Electrical Energy Storage in Transportation (BEEST) program, including lithium-sulfur, lithium-air, zinc-air, and magnesium. Other materials scientists are targeting aluminum-ion and even lead-acid as possible EV solutions.
Using lead-acid chemistry with enhanced power density, Energy Power Systems hopes to replace the nickel-metal hydride batteries in hybrid cars with batteries that cost less than half as much.
The road to EV battery nirvana is fraught with difficulties. It has taken more than a century to reach today's state. Moreover, the EV battery industry has been notorious for overpromising and underdelivering on its technology. "People who develop batteries often don't appreciate all the problems that are involved," Elton Cairns, a professor of chemical engineering at the University of California-Berkeley, who designed fuel cells for the Gemini space programs, told us. "Each new idea looks really great until you get farther along and discover all the problems."
Still, battery chemistries such as nickel-metal hydride and lithium-ion have provided great gains for the auto industry over the last 20 years. Experts say more are on the way, especially if automakers and consumers appreciate the fact that battery development takes painstaking work and patience.
The wait for lithium-ion was a long one. John Goodenough, a professor of mechanical engineering and material science at the University of Texas, began exploring lithium-iron-phosphate chemistries in the late 1970s. The technology hit the automotive radar in the early 1990s, and it took two more decades for it to reach its current level.
Some experts say lithium-ion may be reaching its limits. Though development continues on lithium-ion batteries that are said to offer specific energies of more than 300Wh/kg, many materials scientists say lithium-ion won't exceed its current level of 150-200Wh/kg. "Mature battery technologies typically reach about 40 percent of their theoretical energy," Kopera said. "Lithium-ion is already at 40 percent."
The reason is simple. In practice, battery designers must add dead-weight components (such as electrolytes, terminals, and housings) that boost the battery's mass and thereby reduce its specific energy. Scientists say lithium-ion is reaching the point where mass reduction is getting more difficult.</s>
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Just before Buddha’s remains were about to be cremated, a group of monks arrived from Pava. They were headed by Mahakassapa (‘Od-srung chen-po, Skt. Mahakashyapa), who insisted that the cremation wait until they had paid their last respects. Mahakassapa was a brahmin from Magadha who had become a monk in his old age a few years earlier. When Buddha had first met him, he had given Mahakassapa his old worn out robe in exchange for the brahmin’s new one. Later, this presentation of Buddha’s robe was taken to represent the transmission of authority and the start of the line of Buddhist patriarchs.
Buddha, however, had stated explicitly to his disciples on several occasions that, after he had passed away, the Dharma itself would serve as their teacher. He wished his community to continue on the model of the parliamentary system of Vajji. He did not intend for them to model themselves after a kingdom like Kosala and Magadha and have a single chief monk as its head.
Nevertheless, after Buddha’s passing away, there seems to have been a power struggle between Mahakassapa and Ananda, in other words a struggle between a traditional Indian system of transmission of autocratic authority from guru to disciple and a more democratic egalitarian system of mendicant monks living in small communities and following a common set of practices and principles. Mahakassapa won out.
After Buddha was cremated and his relics distributed, the monks agreed to Mahakassapa’s proposal to hold a council in Rajagaha the next rainy season to recount, confirm, and codify what Buddha had taught. Mahakassapa was to choose those elders who could attend. He chose only arhats, those who had attained liberation, and these numbered 499. At first, Mahakasspa did not include Ananda on the grounds that he had not yet attained arhatship. Mahakassapa excluded him despite Ananda having the best memory of Buddha’s discourses. In addition, Ananda was a strong supporter and vocal advocate of Buddha’s wish for his order not to have a singular leader. Perhaps another factor involved in Mahakassapa’s dislike of Ananda was the fact that Ananda was the one who had convinced the Buddha to ordain women. This would have offended Mahakassapa’s conservative brahmin background. In the end, however, the monastic elders protested Ananda’s exclusion and Mahakassapa gave in and allowed Ananda to attend. According to the Theravada account, Ananda attained arhatship the night before the council.
While waiting for the council to convene, however, Ananda met Vassakara (dByar-gyi rnam-pa, Skt. Varshakara), King Ajatasattu’s prime minister. Ananda learned from him that in addition to the attack on Vajji that the Magadha forces were preparing, they were also preparing for an expected attack from King Pajjota (Rab-gsal, Skt. Pradyota) of Avanti (A-banti’i yul, Skt. Avanti), the kingdom to the west of Magadha. Thus, although Buddha did not intend for there to be a line of patriarchs heading his community, Mahakassapa’s taking over the leadership undoubtedly contributed to the survival of Buddha’s teachings and monastic community through these perilous and uncertain times.
In older forms of Buddhist thought like abhidharma, philosophy and general sutra, you don't need a guru. They wrote it down so people could benefit from it and hopefully gain the means to liberation. I believe that a guru as a precondition for liberation was a later development in Buddhism in India which was eventually transmitted to China. Post-Gupta India saw the rise of feudalism with both Hindu and Buddhist doctrines shifting towards dependence on living authorities rather than scripture. In other words, more pressing concern with hierarchy and authority than before. That is not to say this is a negative thing that should be rejected, but just that in the classical exoteric approach having a guru is not a precondition for liberation.
In a lot of Classical Indian thought it seems assumed that you can become liberated through reading, understanding and realizing the content of scriptures. There is no particular need for it to be transmitted from a superior to you. You just need to accurately understand the content and apply it. For instance, Nāgārjuna's basic model suggests dhyāna coupled with realization of emptiness (wisdom) as a means to liberation. He doesn't mention a guru as a precondition, though perhaps it helps to have reliable spiritual friends. However, liberation in this context is not identical to attaining buddhahood.
So, presumably if you master dhyāna and read scriptures while maintaining a moral lifestyle you'll advance towards liberation. It might not be a lineage or identifiable tradition you're following, but then in earlier periods I don't detect much concern for such things.....
I suspect that towards the end of the Gupta (550) and the rise of Indian feudalism thereafter we can identify practices or lineages that insist on a guru as a precondition for liberation. This was perhaps tied in with vast cultural and religious changes in north India where authority, both political and religious, came to be heavily emphasized. This likewise applied to Hindu schools of thought as well. Buddhist institutions like Nālandā became fortresses with abbots acting effectively as lords over the peoples in their territories. In such a cultural context authority and deference to authority seem to have become a lot more emphasized than ever before.
Just want to spark a discussion on the pros and cons of transmission of Dharma, through a guru/disciple system; in comparison to more of a egalitarian way of propagating the Dharma to the next generation.
Does anyone agree on the necessity of a guru/disciple transmission as a means for continuation of the teachings? As a way to insure that the next generation receives the correct or right teachings of the Buddha?
What if the sangha itself have had served a greater role in the continued transmission of the Buddha Dharma? How would the propagation of the Buddha-Dharma fare, if it was transmitted exclusively through the community of practitioners?</s>
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Optimization of the Cooke triplet with various evolution strategies and the damped least squares is presented. All algorithms are described and their advantages and shortcomings are presented. After detailed presentation of the evolution strategies their adaptation to the optimization of optical systems are discussed. Analysis of the Cooke triplet optimizations is given and optimum optimized optical system is chosen.
Problem of the automatic lens design and optimization of optical systems is very old. Many researchers proposed various methods or their improvement in order to solve this problem, which belongs to a class of highly nonlinear optimization problems. All optimization problems can be classified in two broad groups:
Currently many automatic lens design programs are commercially available or developed for proprietary use and most of them employ some variant of the damped least squares. Authors intention is to try to implement modern optimization techniques in the optimization of optical systems. Following evolutionary algorithms, based on the evolution strategies which are applied in the optimization of optical systems, are presented in this paper:
All those algorithms are compared among themselves and with the classical damped least squares optimization and the best evolutionary algorithm is selected.
Research in applying those algorithms in optimization of various types of objectives (doublets cemented and separated, Cooke triplets, Tessars, Petzvals) are conducted for several years and it is subject of authors Ph.D. Thesis 1. First results in applying evolutionary algorithms in optimization of the cemented doublets are published in 2, 3. All optimizations are done on proprietary optical design program called ADOS (Automatic Design of Optical Systems) developed as a part of the authors Master of Science Thesis 4.
2.Definition of the problem
Cooke triplet is one of very popular objectives, which is used mainly for normal and narrow angle applications. Maximum field angle for this objective is 50˚ - 60˚ and maximum relative aperture is f/2.8. As a rule one can say that the higher the aperture of a Cooke triplet, the smaller the field that it covers. Standard Cooke triplet found in Cox 5 (catalog of the optical systems at the end of the book) is used for testing various optimization methods.
Optical systems are defined by the parameters associated with the individual surfaces of the system. These parameters can be divided in two main groups:
Basic parameters are following parameters:
To completely define and analyze optical system, one must, beside basic parameters, define ray data, which describes rays that are to be traced through the optical system.
The optimization concept is fairly simple but its implementation can be quite complex. One can define it as given an initial system definition and set of target performance goals determine the set of system configuration variables which minimizes the deviation of actual performance from targeted goals without violating boundary limitations. This simply stated problem becomes a complex problem when the number of variables and targets are large, errors are nonlinear functions of the variables, and the errors are not orthogonal to each other with respect to the variables. In the typical optical system optimization case, all of these conditions are true to varying degrees.
When working with various types of optimization methods one usually define single number, called a merit function value, to characterize actual system performance compliance with the targeted system performance. In other words the merit function value is the measure of the effectiveness of the optimization method as it is the goal of the optimization to reduce the merit function value.
The selection of an appropriate merit function for the optimization is fundamental to the successful outcome of the process. From the mathematical point of view most appropriate merit function is function in quadratic form. This type of the merit function is used in all optimization methods (classical damped least squares and various evolution strategies). It can be defined as a sum of squares of the aberrations:
ψ - the merit function value;
m - the number of parameters of the optimization;
ωi - waiting factor for each calculated aberration;
fi - each aberration that is calculated by raytrace through the optical system.
Waiting factor for each calculated aberration is necessary because one calculate different types of aberrations (transverse ray, angular, waveform) that may differ very much. In order to be able to compare aberrations and to reduce their values one have to bring them to similar values.
3. Classical damped least squares optimization
Least squares optimization is a modification of the Newton - Raphson method first developed by Levenberg . It was introduced into optics by Rosen and Eldert , Merion [8,9], Wynne and others. Damped least squares optimization evolved after a period of intensive research and experimentation in late 1950s and mid 1960s. Now almost every optical design program has some kind of the DLS optimization. Experience gained with this method seams to confirm that the DLS optimization is probably very efficient and general method available to the optical designer. Authors implementation of the DLS optimization is based upon works of the researchers from the Imperial College in London (Wynne, Wormell and Kidger [11-14]). Mathematical theory of the DLS optimization is well known and will not be presented here.
The DLS optimization belongs to a broader group of linear optimization models, which does not take any explicit account of the fact that there may be many local minima of the merit function in the space of all variables. The number of local minima depends on merit function and number of variables. The damped least squares generally drives the merit function to the local minima nearest the starting point (optical system). Optical designer has several tools besides optical design program, which allows him possibility to find satisfactory optical system. These tools are:
These tools are highly dependent on the skill and experience of the designer. Even an experienced designer may have difficulty in searching out a satisfactory solution for a "state-of-art" design requirement.
Evolution strategies are algorithms, which imitate the principles of natural evolution, such as mutation, recombination and selection as a method to solve parameter optimization problems. Bienert, Rechenberg and Schwefel developed them during 1960s at the Technical University of Berlin in Germany. From that time they evolved from relatively simple (1+1) ES to a powerful, robust and self adapting tool for mathematical and technical optimization. The main application domain of ES is optimization of high dimensional continuous problems. The strategy performs well in domains where it is impossible, difficult or expensive to find a precise mathematical description of the problem at hand.
The most general algorithmic description of ES is following:
1.The problem is defined as finding the real-valued n dimensional vector x that is associated with the minimum of the function F(x).
2.An initial population of parent vectors, is selected at random from feasible range in each dimension. The distribution of initial trials is typically uniform.
3. An offspring vector is created from each parent by adding a Gaussian random variable with zero mean and preselected standard deviation to each component of x.
4. Selection then determines which of those vectors to maintain by ranking the errors and The N vectors that possess the least error become the new parents for the next generation.
The process of generating new trials and selecting those with least error continues until an optimum solution is reached or the available computation is exhausted.
Schwefel gives detail mathematical theory of the evolution strategies in 15. First he developed two membered ES as a minimal concept for organic evolution. Principles of mutation and selection are used for change of variable parameters and choosing of the individuals during optimization. To completely specify algorithm one must define following things:
Schwefel in 15 first gives description of the algorithm using only terms from biology and after that using terms from mathematics.
For the control of the optimizations step length Schwefel in 15 uses 1/5 success rule which reflects theoretical result that, on average, one out of five mutation should cause an improvement of the merit function. The 1/5 success rule states that the ratio of successful mutations to all mutations should be 1/5. If it is greater then 1/5, optimization method should increase the step length, otherwise decrease the step length.
For the convergence criterion Schwefel in 15 uses two functions:
Fogel in 16 discusses two major drawbacks of the two membered ES:
The two membered ES offers only essential imitation of the evolutionary process. In order to overcome these difficulties Schewefel decided to reach higher level of imitation of the evolutionary process by increasing the number of the individuals in the population and including set of the genetic operators instead of only one genetic operator (mutation). He developed several multimembered ES. First come method called GRUP. It has μ parents and λ offsprings (λ ≥ 6μ). It is generational type of ES, which means that λ offsprings chose among themselves μ best offsprings to form new generation. In Schwefel notation one can write (μ, λ) ES GRUP. It uses only one genetic operator mutation. Further research in this field took Schwefel to the new method of the multimem-bered ES which he called REKO. It has everything that has method GRUP and has two genetic operators:
The final and most advanced method of the multimembered ES developed by Schwefel is method KORR. It has everything that have methods GRUP and REKO and adds many more features. KORR strategy has following characteristics:
All genetic operators can be applied to:
KORR is only ES method that has linearly correlated mutations.
Schwefel in 15 gives all necessary definitions for the multimembered ES. He first gives description of the algorithm using only terms from the biology and after that using terms from the mathematics.
In the multimembered ES there is no fixed rule to control step lengths. There step lengths become variable parameters and can be changed along with other variables in the optimization. In this way nature is simulated more precisely.
Convergence criterion for the multimembered ES is the same as for the two membered ES.
5.Application of the evolution strategies to the optimization of optical systems
Optimization of optical systems is very specific and evolution strategies must be adapted to it. Flow chart diagram is given on the figure 1. Each type of the evolution strategy needs different input data to be defined. Simple rule is the more complex type of the evolution strategy the more input data needs to be defined. To start optimization with the evolution strategies one needs a starting point i.e. initial optical system. This system must be valid i.e. it has to fulfill all necessary geometric boundary conditions. If this initial optical system is valid, then one can calculate aberrations and merit function and proceed with search for improved optical system. If this initial optical system don't fulfill all conditions one have to formulate auxiliary merit function which represents deviation measure from the geometric boundary conditions. This auxiliary merit function is optimized by the same evolution strategy. Process of the optimization is stopped when all conditions are fulfilled i.e. auxiliary merit function is equal to zero.
After detail testing of the starting optical system one have to make initial population by random changes of the starting optical system according to Gaussian normal distribution law. Each new optical system must be completely tested by:
If the new optical system is valid it is accepted in the population, otherwise it is rejected. When the whole initial population completed the evolution process can start. First thing is forming new optical system by application of the genetic operators. Various ES methods have different genetic operators, from only point mutation in EVOL to quite complex and numerous genetic operators in the KORR. When genetic operators form new optical system, optimization method must decide whether optimization is possible or not. If the optimization is not possible and search method is looking for the new starting point (valid optical system) then the geometrical boundary conditions of the new optical system is tested. If all conditions are fulfilled then new valid initial optical system is found and optimization is stopped. It has to be restarted with this optical system as an initial optical system.
If the optimization is possible then new optical system is tested. If it is OK, optical system is accepted in the population. Process of forming, testing and accepting new optical systems is repeated until whole new population is not fulfilled. After forming new population, the best optical systems with minimum merit functions are selected to become parents for next generation. It is important to notice that the optimization method knows in every moment which optical system is the best with minimal merit function.
At the end of the each generation optimization method is testing fulfillment of the all convergence criterions. If any of the criterions is fulfilled then optimization is finished and currently best optical system becomes optimal optical system. If the convergence criterions are not fulfilled then new generation is started and new optical systems are made.
6. Analysis of the Cooke triplet optimizations
Cooke triplet, one relatively simple optical system, is chosen to be starting point for optimization. This is because the evolutionary algorithms are rather time consuming and if there are lot of variable design parameters they may take time before they come with results. They also have stochastic nature so they ought to be run several times. Each evolutionary algorithm is run five times which is minimum value for calculating necessary average values. Optimization by each algorithm is done when:
Glasses aren't varied because they are discrete variables that are taken from glass database. Radiuses and separations are continuous variables and the evolutionary strategies are optimization algorithms that use only continuous variables for the optimization.
Principal optical data for the chosen Cooke triplet are given in table 1:
|focal length [mm]||f = 25|
|relative aperture (f-number)||f / 4|
|aperture stop||at the fifth surface|
|field angle [°]|
Results of the optimizations are characterized by the merit function of the optical system. Results from the optimizations when only radiuses were variable are presented in table 2:
|(1+1) ES - EVOL||(m, l) ES - GRUP||(m, l) ES - REKO||(m, l) ES - KORR|
One can see very small variation of the merit function with change of the optimization algorithm. It is important to notice that initial Cooke triplet is very good optical system and optimization methods can improve only little this optical system. When the radiuses of the optical system are only variables DLS method didnt find any improvement. Optimized and initial optical systems are identical. Various evolutionary strategies found little improvement and optical system with the smallest merit function is found by (1+1) ES EVOL method. All optical systems found by ES methods are very similar and one can say that they represent global minimum when the radiuses are only variables.
Results from the optimizations when radiuses and distances were variables are presented in table 3:
|(1+1) ES - EVOL||(m, l) ES GRUP||(m, l) ES - REKO||(m, l) ES - KORR|
One can see that the merit function is reduced from the value 4.544 to the values from 0.565 to 0.398. This is rather significant reduction of the merit function. From the table 3 it is obvious that the differences in the merit function values are greater then when the radiuses were only variables. The smallest value of the merit function (0.398) is found by classical DLS method. Methods EVOL, GRUP and REKO found very similar values of merit functions and method KORR found values of merit function in between from methods EVOL, GRUP, REKO and DLS. From the table 3 can be seen that every ES method found almost the same local minimum all five runs of the optimization.
It is very important to notice that the merit function is only one indicator of the quality of the optical systems. Optical designer has to take in account other indicators like aberrations and geometrical properties of the optical systems if he wants to make complete picture of the each optimized optical system and possibly choose the optimal one.
In the table 4 are shown aberrations of the initial and optimized optical systems. Optical systems with the smallest merit function are chosen for the each ES method.
|Longitudinal spherical aberration [mm] H=Hmax||0.0169||0.0305||0.0353||0.0303||0.0296||0.0325|
|H = 0.7·Hmax||-0.0766||-0.0348||-0.0399||-0.0363||-0.0399||-0.0407|
|Transvere spherical aberration [mm] H=Hmax||0.0021||0.0038||0.0044||0.0038||0.00373||0.0041|
|H = 0.7·Hmax||-0.0068||-0.0031||-0.0034||-0.0032||-0.0035||-0.0036|
|Field curvature [mm]||-0.1312||-0.0477||-0.0806||-0.1134||-0.0850||-0.0702|
In the table 4 are shown five main aberrations:
The initial optical system is very good optical system with spherical aberration (longitudinal and transvere) and comma corrected and other aberrations small enough. All optimized optical systems have corrected spherical aberration (longitudinal and transvere) and reduced astigmatism and field curvature. Comma is small but not corrected. Comma and distortion of the optical systems are in connection: if comma is smaller then distortion is greater and vice versa.
Initial and optimized optical systems are shown on the figure 2.
|Initial optical system||Classical DLS optimization||(1+1) ES EVOL optimization|
|(m, l) ES GRUP optimization||(m, l) ES REKO optimization||(m, l) ES KORR optimization|
From the figure 2 it is obvious that the optical system found by the classical DLS method has very thick first lens and very thin second lens. It is not rational to make such optical system. Optical systems found by ES methods are, in general, better systems. The EVOL method found optical system that has only second lens non-adequate (too thin). The GRUP and REKO methods found optical systems that have all lenses adequate. The KORR method found optical system that is similar to the optical system found by the classical DLS. It has first lens too thick and second lens too thin. After detailed analysis of the all data one can decide that the optimal optimized optical system is the system found by the (m, l) ES REKO method. It has merit function value 0.472 which is in the middle of the merit function values (0.565 0.398). It has corrected spherical aberration (longitudinal and transvere) and reduced astigmatism and field curvature. Distortion is little bigger then the distortion of the initial optical system. Comma is corrected for the and small enough for the . It has all three lenses that are adequate (neither too thick nor too thin).
In this paper Cooke triplet, one of very popular objectives, is optimized by various evolution strategies (twomembered EVOL and multimembered GRUP, REKO and KORR) and classical damped least squares method. All optimized optical systems are compared among themselves and with initial optical system, which is very good optical system.
When radiuses are only variable parameters of optical system, all optimization methods found similar results. Classical DLS didnt manage to find better optical system then initial optical system. Various ES found optical systems with merit function little different from merit function value of the initial optical system.
When radiuses and distances are variable parameters of optical system all optimization methods found optical systems reduced merit function values. To completely analyze any optical system, optical designer cant rely only on merit function value instead he has to analyze also aberrational balance and geometrical properties of optical system. When all factors are taken in consideration optimum optical system is found by the multimembered ES REKO.
|1||D.,Possibility of applying genetic algorithms in the optimization of the double Gauss objectives for passive night sights, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Yugoslavia, 1998(in serbian)|
|2||Vasiljeviĉ D., Golobič J., "Comparison of the clssical damped least squares and genetic algorithm in the optimization of the doublet", Proceedings of the First Worksshop on soft computing, Nagoya, Japan, August 1996, pp. 200 204|
|3||Vasiljeviĉ D., Golobič J., "Analysis of various evolutionary algorithms and the classical damped least squares in the optimization of the doublet", in Second Online World Conference on Soft Computing in Engineering Design and Manufacturing, P.K. Chawdhry, R. Roy, R. K. Pand (eds.), Soft Computing in Engineering Design and Manufacturing, Springer Verlag, 1998|
|4||Vasiljeviĉ D., Contribution to the lens design optimization with personal computers, MSc Thesis, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Yugoslavia, 1989 (in serbian)|
|5||Cox A., A System of Optical Design, Focal Press, London, 1964|
|6||Levenberg K., "A method for the solution of certain nonlinear problems in least squares", Q. J. Appl. Math., vol. 2 (1944), pp. 164-168|
|7||Rosen S., Eldret C., "Least squares method for optical correction", JOSA, vol. 44 (1954), pp. 250-252|
|8||Meiron J., "Automatic lens design by the least squares method", JOSA, vol. 49 (1959), pp. 293-298|
|9||Meiron J., "Damped least squares method for automatic lens design", JOSA, vol. 55 (1965), pp. 1105-1109|
|10||Wynne C., "Lens designing by electronic digital computer", Proc. Phys. Soc. Vol. 73 (1959), pp. 777-783|
|11||Wynne C., Wormell P., "Lens design by computer", Appl. Opt., vol. 2 (1963), no.12, pp. 1233-1238|
|12||Kidger M., Wynne C., "The design of double Gauss systems using digital computers", Appl. Opt., vol. 6 (1967), no.3, pp. 553-563|
|13||Wormell P., "Version 14, a program for the optimization of lens designs", Opt. Acta, vol. 25 (1978), no.8, pp. 637-654|
|14||Kidger M., The application of electronic computers to the design of optical systems, including aspheric lenses, Ph. D. Thesis, University of London, London, UK, 1971|
|15||Schwefel H-P., Evolution and optimum seeking, John Wiley , New York, 1995|
|16||Fogel D.B., Evolutionary Computation, Toward a New Philosophy of Machine Intelligence, IEEE Press, New York 1995|</s>
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Almost daily news casts highlight the on going race issues throughout the contiguous 48 states. The arguments for illegal aliens divides towns that depend on these workers for much of the work force. While illegal, they hope for a chance of freedom and the American dream.
Turn the channel and issues of segregation are the focus, bringing to the forefront the not so hidden race issues of the 50’s and 60’s. To watch the news, the past repeats itself and answers are still not found. While illegal immigrants and segregation are in the forefront, there are race issues most are not aware of, yet they are dividing a culture.
In the idyllic scenery of the Hawaiian Islands a line has been drawn between those who hold fast to their native Hawaiian ancestry
and those who believe living in Hawaii and adopting the culture makes them Hawaiian. The line has been drawn because of a 1921 program created by Congress that enables native Hawaiians the opportunity to own land for $1 a year. For those with ‘mixed ancestry,’ low-interest loans and admission to the highly accredited school, Kamehameha. Those who are not native Hawaiians want the same benefits are those awarded to with at least 50 per cent Hawaiian ancestry.
In Hawaii, however, blood and ancestry are stronger and more important than anywhere, and being able to prove that you are native is a big deal, as it can not be done by blood, instead birth certificates, census, obituaries and marriage license are the ways to prove a family is truly Hawaiian and not merely a transplant, as some may call them.
Some argue that being Hawaiian is more than blood, it’s a culture and a way of life and holding elections open to only Native Hawaiians is racially discriminating.
Hawaii spend millions of dollars a year on programs to promote the Hawaiian language, pushing for Hawaiians to be federally recognized and other program that benefit native Hawaiians, believing those who are less than 50 per cent Hawaiian are “Obviously more of something else, they are not Hawaiian.”
It’s hard to know who is right in this instance, but it shows us that no matter where we live, the racial divide is there.</s>
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The Reedy River is a small river with big responsibilities. Although the Reedy flows through a relatively small watershed of approximately 167,000 acres, the upper portion of the watershed includes the rapidly growing City of Greenville, portions of Mauldin and Simpsonville, and the industrialized Interstate 385 corridor. Flowing through this urban environment places a significant set of demands on this small ribbon of water. The Reedy takes the community’s treated wastewater; the runoff from yards, parking lots, streets, and construction sites; other trash and debris we leave behind and moves silently downstream.
Like many of our nation’s rivers, the Reedy River has accepted and transported our refuse continuously for decades. However, we have come to understand that the river is much more than a simple receptacle for our various forms of waste. The Reedy River is much more. It is home to an array of aquatic creatures and provides us with a source of recreation. Its riparian forests provide habitat for a range of birds and animals. It connects us to our past through the historical resources associated with the river.
For many years the Reedy River occupied a special place in the lives of the people of Greenville and Laurens Counties. Kids played in the Reedy River. Couples were married below the beautiful falls of the Reedy. Families picnicked and played at places like the Reedy River Falls, Cedar Falls and Ekom Beach along the Reedy River.
Over time, activities along the river changed. Textile mills dominated the use of the river in the city of Greenville, while picnic areas and swimming holes were forgotten. The use of the river changed during this time and the once vibrant, important resource became polluted and little used.
In recent years, the character of Reedy River has changed for the better. Laws such as the Clean Water Act of 1972 have allowed the Reedy to rebound resulting in improved water. Additionally, community interest in the river throughout the watershed appears to be at an all time high. The community has turned its attention to the Reedy River with a wide range of concerns for this important resource. Into this mix comes a comprehensive study of the Reedy River Watershed.
In recent years we have developed a better understanding of the inter-connected nature of the resources that sustain and drive human society. The natural resources of land and water are obviously inter-connected and the health of these resources is tied to our economic well-being. Both our natural resources base and sound economic opportunities yield a good quality of life for everyone in the watershed.
A comprehensive watershed study is our attempt to focus on the broader inter-connected set of resources and the values each of these resources represents in a community. The Reedy River Watershed Study is a citizen-based planning effort that takes a comprehensive look at the watershed’s resources and examines the inter-relationships among these resources in a long-term management plan. This type of approach to natural resources planning recognizes that to be successful in sustaining our natural resources, we must understand all uses and interests in the community to make sound management decisions.
In light of these considerations, the Reedy River Task Force was established to examine the critical resources in the watershed and create the long-term management plan to help guide the use of this critical asset. Task force members included local government officials, landowners, and representatives of conservation organizations, industries, other local groups and state agencies. Committees were formed for each of eight critical issues facing the river corridor, as identified by the task force. Each committee developed a set of policy recommendations and presented them to the task force for discussion and approval.
On a fundamental level, the Reedy River Watershed Study is an effort to create a common vision for the future of the Reedy River and its surrounding watershed that is based on sound information and local values as determined by the citizens who served on the task force. This vision will assist in the long-term management and sustainability of the critical natural resources of the Reedy River.
The Reedy River Watershed Study takes a landscape level approach to understanding these natural resources. The recommendations developed as a result of this study will assist in making proactive decisions that can help guide the continuing growth and change in the watershed. Hopefully, this study can assist decision makers in shaping change to meet the needs of coming generations, as they will also need to depend upon the natural resource base of the Reedy River.
A summary of the planning process and the resulting set of policy recommendations is provided in The Reedy River Report: Managing a Watershed, produced in 2001. While this report represents the completion of the planning process, it also marks the beginning of a new phase of the project: implementation.
Contact Reedy River Management Project Staff:
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 167
Columbia, SC 29202
Telephone: (803) 734-9095
Fax: (803) 734-9200</s>
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Arginine (Arg) is an α-amino acid. The L-form is one of the 20 most common natural amino acids. In mammals, arginine is classified as a semiessential or conditionally essential amino acid, depending on the developmental stage and health status of the individual.
Arginine can be considered to be an amphipathic amino acid as the part of the side chain nearest to the backbone is long, carbon-containing and hydrophobic, whereas the end of the side chain is a complex guanidinium group. With a pKa of 12.48, the guanidinium group is positively charged in neutral, acidic and even most basic environments. Because of the conjugation between the double bond and the nitrogen lone pairs, the positive charge is delocalized. This group is able to form multiple H-bonds.
Arginine is synthesized from citrulline by the sequential action of the cytosolic enzymes argininosuccinate synthetase (ASS) and argininosuccinate lyase (ASL). This is energetically costly, as the synthesis of each molecule of argininosuccinate requires hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to adenosine monophosphate (AMP); i.e., two ATP equivalents.
Citrulline can be derived from multiple sources:
from arginine via nitric oxide synthase (NOS); from ornithine via catabolism of proline or glutamine?/glutamate; from asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) via DDAH. The pathways linking arginine, glutamine, and proline are bidirectional. Thus, the net utilization or production of these amino acids is highly dependent on cell type and developmental stage.
On a whole-body basis, synthesis of arginine occurs principally via the intestinal–renal axis, wherein epithelial cells of the small intestine, which produce citrulline primarily from glutamine and glutamate, collaborate with the proximal tubule cells of the kidney, which extract citrulline from the circulation and convert it to arginine, which is returned to the circulation. Consequently, impairment of small bowel or renal function can reduce endogenous arginine synthesis, thereby increasing the dietary requirement.
Synthesis of arginine from citrulline also occurs at a low level in many other cells, and cellular capacity for arginine synthesis can be markedly increased under circumstances that also induce iNOS. Thus, citrulline, a coproduct of the NOS-catalyzed reaction, can be recycled to arginine in a pathway known as the citrulline-NO or arginine-citrulline pathway. This is demonstrated by the fact that in many cell types, citrulline can substitute for arginine to some degree in supporting NO synthesis. However, recycling is not quantitative because citrulline accumulates along with nitrate and nitrite, the stable end-products of NO, in NO-producing cells ().
Arginine plays an important role in cell division, the healing of wounds, removing ammonia from the body, immune function, and the release of hormones.
The geometry, charge distribution and ability to form multiple H-bonds make arginine ideal for binding negatively charged groups. For this reason arginine prefers to be on the outside of the proteins where it can interact with the polar environment. Incorporated in proteins, arginine can also be converted to citrulline by PAD enzymes. In addition, arginine can be methylated by protein methyltransferases.
As a precursor
Arginine is the immediate precursor of NO, urea, ornithine and agmatine; is necessary for the synthesis of creatine; and can be used for the synthesis of polyamines (mainly through ornithine and to a lesser degree through agmatine), citrulline, and glutamate. For being a precursor of NO, (relaxes blood vessels), arginine is used in many conditions where vasodilation is required. The presence of asymmetric dimethylargine (ADMA), a close relative, inhibits the nitric oxide reaction; therefore, ADMA is considered a marker for vascular disease, just as L-arginine is considered a sign of a healthy endothelium.
Implication in herpes simplex viral replication
Tissue culture studies have shown the suppression of viral replication when the lysine to arginine ratio in vitro favors lysine. The therapeutic consequence of this finding is unclear, but dietary arginine may affect the effectiveness of lysine supplementation. ()
Implication in contributing to risk of death from heart disease
A recent Johns Hopkins study testing the addition of L-arginine to standard postinfarction treatment has implicated L-arginine supplementation with an increased risk of death. ()
It can be found in any protein containing foods such as meat, poultry, dairy products, fish, etc. Foods high in arginine include chocolate, peanuts and walnuts.</s>
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http://www.drpeterjdadamo.com/wiki/wiki.pl/Arginine
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Pronunciation: lip′ō-prō′tēn lī′pās, lī′pō-
Definition: An enzyme that hydrolyzes one fatty acid from a triacylglycerol; its activity is enhanced by heparin and inactivated by heparinase. It is activated by apolipoprotein C-II; a deficiency of lipoprotein lipase is associated with familial hyperlipoproteinemia type I.
Search Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Examples: glitazone, GI cocktail, etc.</s>
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CC-MAIN-2015-32
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We're sorry but this item is temporarily out of stock.
Snap Circuits Junior makes learning electronics a "snap". You can build over 100 projects just by following the colorful pictures in the manual. Enjoy hours of educational fun while learning electronics. You can make projects such as flash lights, doorbell, and AM radios. Contains over 30 parts. 2 AA batteries required. Age 8-108. Create your own exciting experiments. Have fun learning about electronics. 2-speed fan, periodic sounds, light police siren, flashing laser light with sound and adjustable sound level. Easy to identify color coded parts. Projects go together with ease. Create your own exciting experiments.
Choking Hazard-small parts. Not for children under 3 years.
My 2nd grader LOVES this, and my 4 y.o. likes to help. The instructions are very clear. If your child loves to build (LEGO etc), this is a wonderful toy because it also teaches scientific concepts about electricity/circuits.
Was this a gift?:
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend</s>
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| 0.89364
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STEVE LEWIS/Durango Herald
Scott Travis stepped delicately around the ruins of Cliff Palace, his eyes deftly scanning the sandstone bricks, the carefully carved windows and the well-worn wooden beams of at one of Mesa Verde National Park’s most extensive cliff dwellings. Below him, hundreds of voices in a harmony of different languages filtered up through the air as tourist groups streamed through the ruins.
As he walked, Travis, the park’s chief archaeologist, pointed out cracks in the stone walls and misshapen kivas, the traditional buildings used by the ruins’ architects for gatherings and ceremonies.
But the stability and preservation of Cliff Palace, one of the park’s most iconic structures, is one of increasing concern for park officials. Of all the park’s ruins, the palace is unique in the scale of the problems going on there, Travis said.
“Ultimately, we’ve got a lot of localized things and a lot of broadscale (issues), as well, that we’re starting to see the effects of in a fairly dramatic way,” he said.
Cracks in the Palace
The structures of Mesa Verde, including 600 cliff dwellings, were built by the ancestral Pueblo people who lived there from A.D. 550 to A.D. 1300. Cliff Palace is an intricate mix of towers, multistory stone rooms and kivas built into a soaring alcove in the canyon wall.
Officials estimate that 160,000 people visit this “interpretive centerpiece” of the park every year.
But many of the structures within the palace are exhibiting signs of destabilization and deformation that park officials call alarming.
A fault line running parallel to the back of Cliff Palace is threatening the southern half of the ruin and Kiva F, one of the key stops on guided tours. The structures are slowly sliding toward the lip of the alcove because the ground beneath them is loose material. Park officials have been forced to close Kiva F to tours to avoid further damage.
The walls of other kivas also are sagging or disfigured and large cracks run down the walls of the buildings. Precipitation at the opening of the alcove and water seepage near the back have speeded the degradation of many structures.
The slow destruction is the result of many factors, including water seepage and precipitation, natural geological aging and impacts from rodents, birds and insects, Travis said. Visitation alone also presents a “huge challenge,” he said. And while more preservation work has been done to Cliff Palace than any other place in the park, such work added outdated modifications and materials that preservationists now have to work with.
“It’s a complex equation, putting it all together,” Travis said.
Park officials also are in the dark about how fast the sliding, cracking and deformation is occurring in many of the structures, he said.
While not a scientific measure, park rangers who give tours around the park are in a unique position to see the park’s condition evolve day after day.
Paul Bostrom, an interpretive ranger who has worked at the park for 12 years, said he watched while visitors’ footsteps slowly wore away scrape marks where native people used to sharpen stones.
The vast majority of visitors know and abide by the rules of the park and only walk where they are supposed to, but even those repeated footsteps on the soft sandstone cause a certain amount of wear over time, Bostrom said.
Repairing the ruins
At Cliff Palace, Travis and his staff have conducted a detailed analysis of the southern half of the ruins. Next, they will assess the condition and structural integrity of the northern portion of Cliff Palace and finish a culvert system that directs water from the parking lot above the alcove to drainage areas away from the ruins.
Park officials are considering several options to stabilize structures that are sliding or buckling. Potential strategies include backfilling beneath the ruins to solidify the foundation, installing buttresses or creating a more permanent set of braces to hold up walls. A new retaining wall near the ledge of the alcove also would help support the entire foundation and prevent the downward slide.
Travis said the entire project will take at least two years.
The nonprofit Mesa Verde Foundation helps support the park financially and has rallied around the Cliff Palace stabilization work.
The foundation and the National Parks Foundation are working on an agreement to partner in an effort to raise $150,000 to support those efforts, said Ben Duke, the foundation’s executive director.
“Cliff Palace is such an iconic American treasure, it is pretty hard to ignore that something is happening to it,” Duke said. “This (project) captured the imagination of everybody.”
A new age of preservation work
The preservation work happening at Cliff Palace represents a “huge change” in archaeological work that involves a “more proactive strategy that gets at the bigger problems,” Travis said. Archaeologists now combine geology, hydrology, geography and historical knowledge with sophisticated techniques like three-dimensional laser scanning and ground-penetrating radar mapping.
“It has become a very technical science to manage and understand these resources,” Travis said.
The park has numerous partnerships with institutions and individuals around the world that use the park as a learning laboratory. A new summer seminar at the University of Pennsylvania allows graduate students and postdoctoral researchers to learn from the work going on at Mesa Verde.
While the deterioration of Cliff Palace and many other ruins is increasing, archaeologists are able to attack the issue with a new level of sophistication, Travis said. Their goal is to re-create history.
“The key in all of this, of course, is trying to preserve the original fabric, the character, the nature and the materials that constitute Cliff Palace,” he said.</s>
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Elaine Thompson/Associated Press
Elaine Thompson/Associated Press
CHICAGO – Advanced breast cancer has increased slightly among young women, a 34-year analysis suggests. The disease is still uncommon among women younger than 40, and the small change has experts scratching their heads about possible reasons.
The results are potentially worrisome because young women’s tumors tend to be more aggressive than older women’s, and they’re much less likely to get routine screening for the disease.
Still, that doesn’t explain why there’d be an increase in advanced cases, and the researchers and other experts say more work is needed to find answers.
It’s likely that the increase has more than one cause, said Dr. Rebecca Johnson, the study’s lead author and medical director of a teen and young adult cancer program at Seattle Children’s Hospital.
“The change might be due to some sort of modifiable risk factor, like a lifestyle change” or exposure to some sort of cancer-linked substance, she said.
Johnson said the results translate to about 250 advanced cases diagnosed in women younger than 40 in the mid-1970s versus more than 800 in 2009. During those years, the number of women nationwide in that age range went from about 22 million to closer to 30 million – an increase that explains part of the study trend “but definitely not all of it,” Johnson said.
Other experts said women delaying pregnancy might be a factor, partly because getting pregnant at an older age might cause an already growing tumor to spread more quickly in response to pregnancy hormones.
Obesity and having at least a drink or two daily have both been linked with breast cancer but research is inconclusive on other possible risk factors, including tobacco and chemicals in the environment. Whether any of these explains the slight increase in advanced disease in young women is unknown.
There was no increase in cancer at other stages in young women. There also was no increase in advanced disease among women older than 40.
Overall U.S. breast cancer rates have mostly fallen in more recent years, although there are signs they may have plateaued.
Some 17 years ago, Johnson was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer at age 27, and that influenced her career choice to focus on the disease in younger women.
“Young women and their doctors need to understand that it can happen in young women,” and get checked if symptoms appear, said Johnson, now 44. “People shouldn’t just watch and wait.”
The authors reviewed a U.S. government database of cancer cases from 1976 to 2009. They found that among women aged 25 to 39, breast cancer that has spread to distant parts of the body – advanced disease – increased from between 1 and 2 cases per 100,000 women to about 3 cases per 100,000 during that time span.
The study was published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
About 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime, but only 1 in 173 will develop it by age 40. Risks increase with age and certain gene variations can raise the odds.
Routine screening with mammograms is recommended for older women but not those younger than 40.
Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society’s deputy chief medical officer, said the results support anecdotal reports but that there’s no reason to start screening all younger women since breast cancer is still so uncommon for them.
He said the study “is solid and interesting and certainly does raise questions as to why this is being observed.” One of the most likely reasons is probably related to changes in childbearing practices, he said, adding that the trend “is clearly something to be followed.”
Dr. Ann Partridge, chairwoman of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advisory committee on breast cancer in young women, agreed but said it’s also possible that doctors look harder for advanced disease in younger women than in older patients. More research is needed to make sure the phenomenon is real, said Partridge, director of the breast cancer center at the Harvard-affiliated Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
The study shouldn’t cause alarm, she said. Still, Partridge said young women should be familiar with their breasts and see the doctor if they notice any lumps or other changes.
Software engineer Stephanie Carson discovered a large breast tumor that had already spread to her lungs; that diagnosis in 2003 was a huge shock.
“I was so clueless,” she said. “I was just 29 and that was the last thing on my mind.”
Carson, who lives near St. Louis, had a mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiation and other treatments and she frequently has to try new drugs to keep the cancer at bay.
Because most breast cancer is diagnosed in early stages, there’s a misconception that women are treated, and then get on with their lives, Carson said. She and her husband had to abandon hopes of having children, and she’s on medical leave from her job.
“It changed the complete course of my life,” she said. “But it’s still a good life.”</s>
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|Why Save Seeds?|
Commercial plant breeders like varieties that will make them lots of money – those they can sell in bulk. Many of the newer varieties they sell have been designed for large-scale horticulture, rather than being bred for gardeners. For example, commercial growers pre- fer crops that ripen simultaneously because they are more efficient to harvest. Gardeners struggle to cope with gluts, and prefer to harvest over a longer period.
Because it preserves our vegetable diversity
It is thanks to seed savers that many of our vegetables are still in existence. Varieties which are not profitable for seed companies would go extinct without gardeners saving the seed. We are already seeing increasingly unpredictable weather conditions due to climate change. Preserving as many plant varieties as possible gives us the best chance of finding those which will adapt to new conditions and diseases.
Because your veg will be suited to where you live
Commercial plant breeders also like varieties that will grow relatively well all over the coun- try. But it’s far more useful to have plant that will do really well in the particular conditions where you live. A variety that has been developed in Wales is likely to be better adapted to our climate and conditions than one from Kent for example.
Because it saves money
Many vegetable varieties sold by big seed companies are F1 hybrids. These come from plants which have been carefully crossed and are often very productive. The down side is that any seeds you collect won’t be ‘true-to-type’ – that is, they won’t be the same as their parents. This might be fine if you like experimenting, but if you want the same F1 plants you’ll have to buy more seed. If you save some of your own non-hybrid seed and swap with friends you’ll be saving money every year.
Because it celebrates our plant heritage
Each variety of fruit and vegetable has its own special character, and heirloom varieties often have a fascinating story behind them. The best way to safeguard this is to keep growing them, so we have a living library of plant heritage. This also means that the variety can continue evolving and adapting. We can preserve seed in a seed bank, but we can only really enjoy them if they are in our gardens as well.</s>
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A few months ago I scanned a 3,000 mummy, as described in my earlier post. This is just a quick note about his perspicuously elongated skull shape, known as dolicocephy (elongated head).
First, here's the profile of Neskhons (the mummy I scanned):
Next, here's a shot of two other mummies:
(photo (c) National Geographic)
You can see the obvious resemblance in all three skulls. Now here's the kicker. The bottom-left mummy is King Tut. The one on the right comes from a scan in 2007 of another mummy found in 2007. That mummy was speculated to be the body of Tut's missing father Akhenaten -- based in large part on the observation that the skull looks roughly alike. From the National Geographic news report:
"The CT scan supports the idea that the mummy is Akhenaten by revealing it as a male between the ages of 25 and 40 who shares many physical similarities with Tut—assuming Akhenaten was Tut's father, as some experts believe. The mystery mummy's strange elongated, egg-shaped skull, called dolichocephalic, is strikingly similar to Tutankhamun's."
Unfortunately, that alone is poor evidence, and here's why. Tut lived 350 years before Neskhons, and yet the skull shape is shared: it was common among the Egyptian royals. Therefore, one cannot draw a meaningful conclusions that two mummies are likely to be father and son simply based on an argument that their skulls look alike!</s>
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<urn:uuid:175fc895-11d6-49b2-a256-1425709c63c5>
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Imagine taking a class field trip across the country, or even to another continent. As a cutting-edge player in today’s environmental research, the Earth Institute at Columbia University recognizes the importance of expanding traditional learning and education to settings outside of the classroom. Every year, the Earth Institute’s Office of Academic and Research Programs provides specific funding for course support, which allows instructors and professors the opportunity to organize field trips out of the classroom learning experiences. For the 2008-2009 academic year, the Earth Institute has awarded over $37,000 in funds to twelve courses in eight different departments, which far exceeds the amount given out in previous years.
“As an urban campus, we can’t bring all of the environments we are teaching in to the classroom, but we can help faculty bring the students into those environments through the course support program,” explained Louise Rosen, Director of the Office of Academic and Research Programs at the Earth Institute. “This program offers faculty funding to be able to provide field work in their classes. Fieldwork is an important learning experience for students.”
This May 2009, Patricia Culligan, Professor of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, will travel to Ghana with her undergraduate Engineering for Developing Countries class for the fifth time in the past two years as part of the Council on International Educational Exchange. This year’s trip will offer 20 undergraduate students the opportunity to focus on collecting data on sustainable solid waste management in a neighborhood in Ghana. The opportunity to assist a community while gaining overseas experience in their field of study is sure to be a unique life experience that many of the participating undergraduate students will not forget. Michael Shields, an alumnus from the course, comments on his time in Ghana: “I can honestly say that my experience working in Ghana has fundamentally altered my perspective on many aspects of life. Not only does it make me appreciate how fortunate I am, but more importantly it reiterates that we can all use that good fortune to make a difference in the lives of others. My experiences in Ghana have been among the most gratifying of my life because I can directly see that my work is having a positive impact on the lives of others.”
Another field experience will be offered this upcoming spring break by Earth and Environmental Science Professor Nicholas Christie-Blick, whose undergraduate geology class will travel to California’s Death Valley to gain experience in developing scientific interpretations from actual field observations. The class, “Geological Excursion to Death Valley,” focuses on the geology of Death Valley and the adjacent areas of the California desert. Alumni of the course, which will number 120 undergraduate students by the end of this year, remember the Death Valley trip as one of their best experiences at Columbia and Barnard. Says Peri Sasnett (CC ’11), “As a budding geologist, it was a fantastic opportunity to be able to go to such an ideal locale and learn from enthusiastic and expert teachers. The trip solidified my geologic ambitions and sparked a further passion for the subject matter.” Not only did it attract students from scientific disciplines, but it also provided the opportunity for non-science students to appreciate the valuable geological fieldwork. “As even students with no scientific background found the trip inspiring, the Columbia community would be well-served by the creation of many more similar opportunities to explore the earth sciences in the field,” affirms Stephen Cox (CC'09). Needless to say, the opportunity to visit what has been deemed the best geological example of the Basin and Range configuration will continue to be a worthwhile experience for undergraduate students.
The mixed undergraduate and graduate Earth and Environmental Engineering class on Alternative Energy Resources, led by Professor Klaus Lackner and Professor David Walker, will be taking a tour of the waste-to-energy facility at Covanta in Rahway, New Jersey this year. The focus of the trip is to gain an appreciation of the size and complexity of a small steam-driven generating installation. The class, which includes students from Columbia University’s undergraduate School of Engineering and Applied Sciences as well as the graduate School of International and Public Affairs, will also investigate the ways alternative disposal schemes affect our environment.
These are only three of the twelve trips that the Earth Institute at Columbia University will be sponsoring throughout the 2008-2009 academic year. Undergraduate students enrolled in Barnard’s “Intro to Environmental Science” course can also look forward to traveling to Black Rock Forest in Upstate New York; Graduate students enrolled in “Advanced Systems and Technologies in Civil Engineering and Construction” will travel to India to participate in the design and construction of a housing project; and undergraduates will travel to Costa Rica for a five-day field course for CERC’s Certificate in Conservation Biology class. These trips and explorations will not only enrich the educational experiences of students and faculty directly involved, but also certain will strengthen Columbia University’s environment and sustainability programs.</s>
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HealthyStuff.org's mission is to research toxic chemicals found in everyday products. This site is based on research conducted by environmental health organizations and other researchers around the country. The Ecology Center created HealthyStuff.org and leads its research and development.
The latest research on toxic chemicals in children’s car seats was released today by the nonprofit Ecology Center at the consumer-friendly site, www.HealthyStuff.org. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of seats tested contained hazardous halogenated flame retardants and over half contained non-halogenated organophosphate flame retardants, some of which are hazardous as well. The study finds that the flame retardant chemicals and alternatives used by companies are poorly regulated, putting consumers at risk, and questions the fire safety benefit of using these chemicals. Top rated companies in the study, Britax and Clek, have been proactively implementing policies to reduce hazards in their products while still meeting all safety standards. The poorest performing company was Graco.
Concerned about a product hazard?
A number of US regulatory agencies are charged with addressing dangerous consumer products. In general, chemical hazards in consumer products are poorly regulated and outside a few examples (toys & some children's products) consumers are largely left unprotected. HealthyStuff still encourages consumers to report products related chemical hazards to the appropriate agency.
General Consumer Products: US Consumer Product Safety Commission Unsafe Product Report
Vehicles and Car Seats: SaferCar.gov is the NHTSA site where you can identify and report problems you might be having with your vehicle, tires, equipment or car seats.</s>
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Can happiness be measured? Students will learn how utility relates to economic decision making and the law of diminishing marginal utility.
- Learn how behavior is linked to utility.
- Graph a total utility curve.
- Graph a marginal utility curve.
- Observe diminishing marginal utility.
- Equate marginal utility with marginal cost.
- Determine a connection between marginal utility and the law of demand.
Does man seek pleasure and avoid pain? Do consumers seek to maximize pleasure in their pursuits? Economists use the term utility to describe the satisfaction consumers receive from consumption. Students, will try to measure and graph total and marginal utility. (Utility does not explain why some people volunteer to work in a homeless shelter or give millions away to an orphanage, but provides a reasonable explanation of how humans try to maximize pleasure. Some behavior is outside the scope of economics such as self-destructive behavior. The lesson shows how rational consumers behave.)
Utility Worksheet: This worksheet contains problems for students to complete plus the extension activity.
Utility Solutions: Solutions are provided on this sheet regarding the information from the "Utility" worksheet.
How to Calculate Marginal Revenue Article: For additional help this article provides a definition of marginal revenue and provides an example of how to calculate marginal revenue through 5 steps.
Diminishing Marginal Utility: This is a YouTube video explaining the concept of diminishing marginal utility. (Note: If YouTube is blocked at your school, we suggest that you download the video ahead of time, or simply repeat the experiment in your own classroom.)
[Note: For additional information on how to calculate marginal revenue read the following article ]
1. Get a large bag of jet puffed marshmallows. (I prefer Campfire Giant marshmallows.)
2. Introduce the idea of utility (satisfaction) and ask for a volunteer.
3. If there are too many volunteers, have them choose a number between one and 100. Chose the student closest to your number. You can use a TI-83 to pick a random number for you.
4. Place a desk or chair in the front of the room facing the class and have the student sit in it.
5. Explain what utility means to the entire class.
6. Draw a graph on the board, labeling the Y-axis 'Utility' and the X-axis 'Number of Marshmallows Consumed'.
7. Place the numbers 1 to 10 on the vertical side of the graph.
8. Explain to the volunteer that he or she is to eat one marshmallow and then rate the utility they receive from 1 to 10. (10 is the highest utility)
9. After each marshmallow is consumed, have the volunteer rate his or her satisfaction and place a point on the graph that represents this.
10. Continue until the student's satisfaction begins to drop. It is up to you how far you want this drop to go to prove the law.
(This should take about 15 minutes.)
11. Using the graph that you have drawn on the board, show how to calculate the slope of the total utility curve. Explain to the class that this is marginal utility. To calculate the slope of a curve remember: “Rise over run makes finding the slope fun.” So take the change in Y divided by the change in X. You should find that the change gets smaller with each increment in X.
12. Draw another graph, and plot marginal utility. Explain that the marginal utility curve slopes down and to the right just like the demand curve. Explain that as more marshmallows are consumed, the consumer receives less and less satisfaction. In economics, this is called diminishing marginal utility. (Here is the author’s YouTube video on Diminishing Marginal Utility . If YouTube is blocked at your school, we suggest that you download the video ahead of time.)
13. Explain how economists use marginal analysis to equate marginal utility with marginal cost.
14. On your graph of marginal utility, show how many marshmallows would be consumed if the price where $2. (Assume that the price is constant.)
15. Repeat step 14 but lower the price. (The students should observe that more is consumed.) Explain that this is the law of demand.
16. Ask if diminishing marginal utility applies to the consumption of all goods. (It should.)
17. Ask how decision making with marginal analysis could be used to determine how long to study or workout.
Use the following information to graph the total utility and marginal utility for Juan's consumption of chocolate covered strawberries. Q=0 TU=0; Q=1 TU=9 Q=2 TU=14; Q=4 TU=18; Q=5 TU=21; Q=6 TU=23; Q=7 TU=24
Ask the students how the graphs might have changed if a different student would have been selected. (A different student would have a different utility). Economists do not have a way of measuring utility, but utility is a useful way to make predictions about behavior. In economics, it is assumed that consumers make consistent rational decisions and seek to maximize their utility with a fixed income. (The choice of utility units is arbitrary. I have used money as a standard to measure utility, but other measures could have been used.) Ask the students why they continued to eat marshmallows even though their utility was declining. (Students will weigh the benefits of eating one more marshmallow with the cost. As long as the benefit is greater than the cost, the student will continue to eat another marshmallow. This is marginal analysis.)
In this activity you will see how to make decisions on the margin using your TI-83 Graphing calculator. Suppose that marginal utility for rock polishers is given by the formula,Y1=iPart((1/(2X^.5)*100)). Suppose the price of rock polishers is given by the formula, Y2=25. Key these formulas into your calculator and graph. Using your table function, verify that four rock polishers would be purchased? Now change the price in Y2 to 18. How many rock polishers would be purchased now? Explain how marginal utility proves the law of demand. [When the price is reduced from $25 to $18, the quantity demanded increased from 4 to 7. This proves the law of demand since the quantity demanded increased as the price decreased.]
“I really think this lesson will work but I cannot download the student utility worksheet. EconEdLink: Try again, you should be able to now. Thank you for the comment.”
Review from EconEdReviews.org
“I don't think the the average tenth grader( that's our target grade where I teach) could handle the math.”</s>
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Part IV, Chapter XXI
The Woolen Manufacture, (continued). Characteristics of the American Industry
Having surveyed the growth of the two great branches of the American wool manufacture, we are prepared to consider the more difficult problems concerning the effects of protection: the technical development of the industry in this country and in Europe, the effectiveness of the labor and capital engaged, the prospect of attaining independence of tariff support. Was the growth similar to that in other textile industries? As regards cottons, we have seen that extremely high duties can be fairly said to have been almost without effect either for good or evil: they did not check industrial progress, nor did they serve to promote it. The history of the silk manufacture suggests, even if it does not quite prove, that a newly-established industry may not only grow in size under the influence of protection, but advance in effectiveness. What does the evidence indicate in the case of woolens?
The preceding account of the history and characteristics of the worsted and woolen branches would lead one to surmise that the first named, young though it is, would have proved more likely to give scope to the special industrial excellences of our inventors and business leaders, and more promising as regards eventual independence. The woolen branch, on the other hand, seems to have characteristics that indicate less adaptability to American conditions, a field less favorable for American enterprise. Yet it is not clear that distinctions or conclusions of this sort can be maintained. The course of development in both branches has been different from that in the other textile industries; the situation in many respects is puzzling.
First, as regards worsteds. Here, to repeat, the opportunities for American industrial talent seem promising. Yet it appears that in precisely the direction where one looks for advance by Americans,—the invention of new machinery or improvement of old,—the worsted manufacture showed least indication of progress or of independence. On the contrary, it seems to have remained under European tutelage, content to import and to use European machinery. This at all events was the case in those departments of the industry which are most distinctive,—combing and the operations closely connected with combing. The facts brought out by the Tariff Board in 1912 were surprising. It appeared that in the worsted mills hardly any machinery, in all the processes up to and including spinning, was of domestic make. Almost all the combing machines were imported, almost all the drawing frames (these begin the manipulation of the tops as delivered from the combs, reducing the tops to a thin sliver ready for spinning), almost all the frame spinning machinery, and absolutely all of the mule spindles. Such small fraction of the combing and spinning machinery as was of American make was a direct copy of that imported. Leadership in the industry was clearly on the other side of the water.
Nor did it appear that there was anything in the organization of the working force or in the efficiency of the individual operatives which gave any advantage to Americans. The evidence on this topic, taken at its face, pointed to but one conclusion. It is true that here, as elsewhere, the turn taken by the protective controversy caused the manufacturers to lay stress on their own disabilities or failings. The notion current among protectionists for many years, that duties should be so levied as to cover higher cost of production in the United States, led their spokesmen to dilate on disadvantages and on the absence of any factors making for advantage or special effectiveness. The mill operatives, it was said, were chiefly of foreign birth, and not of the best foreign birth,—raw agricultural laborers from southern and eastern Europe, suddenly transplanted to factory towns; not equal in steadiness, skill, even tractableness, to the English, German, and French who remained in the competing mills of these several countries. The American mills were said to have the same equipment; the operatives performed the same tasks and performed them no better, nay, not so well; how could the industry possibly maintain itself, paying American rates of wages, without protection? On the principles of protection, the argument was unanswerable; its applicability in this case apparently was beyond cavil. It raised unequivocally the fundamental questions that underlie the whole controversy. Is it worth while to support industries that have no superiority over their foreign competitors, and show no prospect of attaining any? If all American industries were in the same state as the worsted manufacture (in the departments here under consideration),—if all machinery were quite the same as in Europe, all workmen no more efficient, all management no better,—could the product of American industry be larger, and could wages in general be higher? Was not the industry one in which the effectiveness of industry failed to measure up to the general American standard of effectiveness, which alone makes possible a high general rate of wages?
In some other departments of the manufacture the situation was not so unpromising. As in the textile industries at large, weaving stood in a position apart. Here the conditions as regards domestic and imported machinery were quite reversed. Only one-fifth of the looms were imported; the great majority were of American make. Not only this, but the striking American improvements in weaving had been found applicable, not indeed throughout, but at least in some directions. The automatic loom was used in weaving certain kinds of worsteds, and cut down cost, i.e., increased effectiveness, in this part of the manufacturing processes. From the nature of the case it could be used to advantage only where thousands of yards of a single kind of fabric were turned out; such as "blue serges" and the like for women's wear, having a cotton warp, comparatively cheap and sufficiently serviceable,—goods which could be steadily marketed in great quantities. Worsteds and woolens are in general not of uniform pattern or quality, and are much subject to the vagaries of fashion; hence mass production of this sort is not susceptible of the same extension as in the case of cottons. Indeed, as will appear presently, there are peculiarities in woolen weaving which seem to militate against any wide-spread adoption of the methods which have so profoundly affected the cotton manufacture. The apparently exceptional cases in which the automatic loom was used in weaving worsteds served rather to emphasize the contrast between them and the more typical American conditions. It is not to be supposed that this industry was quite outside the main current, and quite uninfluenced by the pervasive tendency in the United States to extend the use of labor-saving devices. Yet the available evidence indicates that, as regards machinery, the advances over competing foreigners were less, and surprisingly less, than in other textile industries.
It is possible that forward strides were taken in other directions,—in the more general economies from large-scale operation. In the worsted manufacture, as elsewhere, a contest has been going on between different systems of organization and management,—between the large mill and the very large mill, between integration and specialization, between the single establishment and a combination embracing many establishments. In these respects the American industry shows contrasts both with its European rivals and with other textile industries in the United States.
In the mere fact of a comparatively large scale of production it is not peculiar; worsted mills in Europe also are larger than woolen mills, and as large as cotton and silk mills. But some of the American mills are of such extraordinary size that they may be called giants; they endeavor to secure the advantages of large-scale operations on a scale not elsewhere dreamed of. The much-discussed Wood Mill, erected by the American Woolen Company at Lawrence, Mass., is said to be the largest textile establishment under a single roof in the world. Others, such as the Arlington mills in the same city, are of similar size; there is a well-known list of other great mills. Side by side with them are a number of establishments of more moderate size, comparable with the typical European establishment. It is not certain which type is gaining in the United States; but the huge concern seems at the least to hold its own. Its methods are in accord with those of American industrial triumphs. The worsted industry, or at least some branches of it, may be thought to be on the way to securing a comparative advantage.
Possibilities of the same sort may be considered as regards the effects of integration and combination. The American tendency on the whole is toward integration. Certain it is that specialization is carried less far than in Europe, in the worsted industry itself as well as in textile industries at large. In some respects there are signs of some reaction toward specialization in the United States; the trend toward integration is by no means without exceptions; but there is nothing like the division of labor between distinct branches,—scouring, combing, dyeing, spinning, weaving, finishing,—which is the established European organization. It remains to be seen in this matter also whether management and organization after the American plan will hold their own, or whether specialization will extend; and further, whether the great integrated establishment will prove to have advantages not only over its specializing competitors at home, but over its competitors of the same character abroad.
So it is with regard to combination. In this industry, as in others, the United States is the scene of a bold experiment in great-scale management. The American Woolen Company is a combination of a number of mills of different character, united under single control, and endeavoring to secure various potential advantages. Among these are economy in the purchase and allotment of materials, standardization of equipment, and specialization among the several establishments,—not specialization of the kind referred to in the preceding paragraph, but in the sense that each mill is confined to one class of goods, operates continuously on its specialty, and makes no endeavor to turn out a "line" of varied products such as the independent manufacturer commonly thinks it necessary to offer. All sorts of mills are combined in this great agglomeration; not only worsted mills, but woolen mills in the narrower sense (carded wool mills); scattered moreover in many far-separated places. The experiment is of no little interest to the economist, quite apart from any bearing it may have on the tariff question. Does this method of organization really conduce to effectiveness in production? It seems to raise no question of monopoly. However important and even dominant is the position of the American Woolen Company, it has not even a quasi-monopolistic control of the industry or of any branch of it. It has to meet competition on every side; the contest is a direct uncomplicated one between the single concern and the great combination of similar concerns. The traditional reasoning does not point to any certain or even probable advantage for the latter in this particular case. It is true that large-scale production is growing in the worsted industry; but its advantages are not proved to progress indefinitely with enlarging scale. Integration, though carried on to an unusual extent in American establishments, has to compete with specialization in this country, and even more with the specializing industry of Europe. The goods produced are of great variety, and subject to the whims of fashion; hence standardization of equipment and sweeping application of machine methods cannot be carried as far as, for example, in the manufacture of the ordinary grades of cotton goods. It is to be observed, moreover, that in the two other leading textile industries there has been found no promising field for a great combination: neither for cottons, where mass production has been carried so far, nor for silks, where there are conditions resembling those of woolens as regards variety of goods and irregularity of fashion. It would seem that only certain parts of the woolen manufacture give any prospect of gains from horizontal combination; more particularly those parts of the worsted branch which produce on a large scale great quantities of homogeneous fabrics. But on this subject it is well to refrain from prophecy, perhaps even from speculation. The whole question of the technical and managerial possibilities of combined enterprises awaits solution, and not least so in this industry.
Turn now to the other branch of the woolen industry, that of carded woolen goods. Here the conditions are in many ways different; in some ways they seem more promising for the American producers, in others less so.
This is the older part of the industry, and therefore, it might be supposed, the one less likely to be dependent on the tariff. The manufacture of worsteds, like that of silks, grew up after the civil war, and was the direct product of high protection. The woolen branch is the oldest of all in the textile group; it goes back to the "domestic" system of colonial days. True, it is younger, as a machine using industry, than the cotton manufacture, since the epoch-making inventions of the eighteenth century were first applied to the latter. But carding, spinning, and wearing machinery was adapted to wool at an early date in the nineteenth century, both in England and the United States. The American tariff controversy of the first half of the nineteenth century was concerned as much with the duties on wool and woolens as with any other single set of duties. The manufacturers were encouraged by high rates during earlier years, and then compelled, after 1846, to adjust themselves to rates decidedly low. Under the tariffs of 1846 and of 1857 the effective duty was less than 25 per cent. Yet the industry did not succumb. Though the imports formed in 1860 a much larger proportion of the total supply than they did in later years, the domestic product even then exceeded the imports, and the manufacturers looked to the future with courage under duties so low that they would be adjudged rank free trade by the modern protectionists.
If this was the situation in the middle of the nineteenth century, it would seem inferable that the degree of dependence on protection would have become less rather than greater after the lapse of another half-century. All manufacturing industries grew and strengthened after the civil war. The textile industries that were well established at the earlier date, as well as other industries then in a firm position, continued to hold their own. The high rates of the later period would seem unnecessary; and the carded woolen manufacture, mature and settled as early as 1860, might be expected to show in 1910 greater independence of tariff support than the newer worsted manufacture which owed its origin to extreme and comparatively recent protection.
Confirmation of this impression would seem to be afforded by a comparison between the two branches as regards one point on which stress has been laid,—namely, the relative use of imported and domestic machinery. The carded woolen branch was found by the Tariff Board to be in a different position from its younger rival, in that it relied but little on imported machinery. Carding is the step in the woolen industry which corresponds to combing in the worsted. The Board's inquiries showed a sharp contrast between the sources of supply for combs and cards. Whereas almost all the combs were imported, the carding machines were preponderantly (92 per cent) of American make. It is noteworthy also that the somewhat modified carding machines used in worsted mills (they prepare wool of comparatively short fibre, such as cross-bred wool, for the combing operation) were also largely of foreign make; here again the worsted branch relied much more on imported equipment. In spinning there was the same contrast. Much the greatest part (85 per cent) of the mule spindles in the woolen mills were made in the United States. But in the worsted mills absolutely every mule spindle was imported. It may be noted also that of the "cap" spindles used in the worsted branch, and there used only (being inapplicable to carded wool), the proportion of American machinery was insignificant,—only 8 per cent, as compared with 92 per cent imported. Here again the worsted branch relied almost exclusively on foreign apparatus.
The significance of this contrast, however, is affected by some other facts brought out in the same investigation. It appeared that the machinery in the worsted mills was the more modern, i.e., had been in use for a shorter period than that in the woolen mills. The cards in the latter were, it is true, of American make; but they were old. Nearly one-half of them (47 per cent) had been in use twenty-five years or more. The cards used by the worsted makers were distinctly more modern,—of foreign manufacture, it is true, but comparatively new. Only 7½ per cent were twenty-five years old or more, as compared with the 47 per cent just stated for the woolen mills. A similar difference, though not so marked, appeared as regards the age of the mule spindles. This part of the equipment of the woolen mills, while chiefly American, was older than the same equipment, all of it imported, in the worsted mills. The combs in the latter, it will be remembered, were almost all of foreign make; but these also were comparatively new. The preponderant use of American machines by the woolen mills might thus be a sign not of progress, but of lack of it. It would be so if the domestic machines were inferior to the foreign, or at least not superior. And similarly the preponderant use of foreign machines by the worsted makers might indicate that they were using the best that was obtainable. This throws the question of the comparative effectiveness of foreign and domestic industry one stage farther back,—to the machine makers who supply the manufacturers. So far as concerns the final outcome, the problem remains the same. Whether an American industry can hold its own against foreign competition depends, to repeat, on the combined effectiveness of all the factors,—climate, power resources, and raw material; quality of workmen; ability in organization and management; and, finally, the technological equipment. But in comparing the woolen and worsted branches within their own circle of operations, the mere use of domestic machinery by the one, of foreign by the other, does not necessarily measure their relative progress or effectiveness. Apparently the worsted branch, using imported equipment, simply turned to the best that was to be had; while it is conceivable that the domestic equipment used by the woolen branch failed to keep pace with the general American progress in labor-saving devices, perhaps even failed to keep pace with progress in foreign countries.
It must be borne in mind that during the period here under review the woolen branch was virtually at a standstill, while the growth in worsteds was rapid and continuous. The retention of old equipment in the former may seem a natural result of adverse conditions due to shifts in fashion and other extraneous causes. Yet adverse conditions do not necessarily have a deadening effect on industry. It is often said that severe competition and trade crises tend to have the opposite effect,—to compel economies and put every producer to his trumps. In this case, as in the converse case of favoring conditions, there seems to be no a priori ground for saying that either progress or stagnation will be promoted. High protection, for example, is said by the free trader to conduce to laxness, by the protectionists to stimulate domestic improvements. Under either set of conditions,—depressing or encouraging,—the only helpful method of inquiry seems to be the examination of the available historical and statistical material, and also of the indications of adaptation, or lack of adaptation, to the country's general industrial environment.
It happens that in this instance there has been some direct testimony to stagnation. It cannot be said that American experience in general verifies the free trader's prediction concerning this sort of consequence from high duties. On the contrary, the history of many industries (such as iron, silks, and cottons) indicates that protection and progress are not incompatible. But there are indications that in the carded woolen branch backward establishments were enabled to hold their own under tariff shelter. The long-continued use of old machinery would seem to point that way. More significant is the fact that the protectionist spokesmen themselves have sounded notes of warning. During the civil war the abrupt increase of demand for woolen cloths inevitably caused all sorts of mills to make profits even with poor equipment and slack management. Notwithstanding a process of weeding out which set in after the war (the wool and woolens act of 1867, with its elaborate compensating system, was in reality an endeavor to stave off the inevitable readjustment) this abnormal stimulus seems to have left its impress on the carded woolen industry throughout the ensuing half-century. During the brief period of free wool and lowered woolen duties under the Wilson tariff act (1894-97) some plain speaking came from the protectionist ranks. It was said that the carded wool branch had been backward, and consequently had been hit by the lowered duties more than the worsted branch. A general overhauling was not to be avoided. This period of low duties and of stress proved short,—shorter than the protectionists themselves expected; or else such confessions would hardly have been forthcoming. In 1897, the tariff barrier was put up again, high and strong as before; and behind it the industry was enabled to go its way for another long period (from 1897 to 1913) without paying attention to any possibilities of foreign competition.
What now is the explanation of the situation which has come to view in this account of the American woolen manufacture? In general, the tale is one of backwardness; how explain it?
One explanation often given is that all is chargeable to the duties on raw wool. This is the outstanding factor not present in the other textile industries. For silks and cottons the raw materials never were subject to duty. The woolen industry alone labored under the handicap of taxes on its material. The free traders, and especially those who preached the gospel of free materials, laid stress on this circumstance. The wool duty, it was said, handicapped the manufacturers, narrowed the range of the industry, stood in the way of diversification. This explanation was particularly acceptable to the free traders because as a rule they were reluctant to go the full length of their own creed and to admit that the manufacture itself might be in danger if their policy were adopted. No: it was thought that, given free wool, the manufacturing industry would hold its own, and even expand and progress.
But I cannot believe that this tells the whole story. No doubt the wool duty did operate as a handicap on the manufacturing industry. The qualities of wool are extraordinarily diverse; the particular way in which the duty was so long levied served to prohibit many grades, and to hamper the use of others. Probably there was some effect in keeping the manufacture in routine grooves, even in a rut. But the wool duty was so completely offset by the compensating system, and the characteristics of the manufacturing industry appear in so many matters that are little related to the duty, that this cannot be judged a decisive or even commanding factor. After all, though the compensating system proved to be ill adjusted, and unequal in its effect on different branches of the industry, the duties on woolens as a whole,—compensating and "protective" taken together,—left a generous margin for protection in almost all cases. Just as the wool duty does not serve to explain the greater growth of the worsted branch as compared with that of carded woolens, so it does not explain the general characteristics of both branches. It has sins enough of its own to answer for, without being held accountable for everything that seemed to go wrong. The question persists: how account for the seeming failure of the woolen manufacture to keep in line with the general march of American industrial effectiveness?
To this question, as to so many in the field of economics, it is easier to give negative answers than positive; easier to say what was not the cause than to say precisely what was. The phenomena are perhaps most puzzling in that the historical sequence in the manufacture seems out of accord with its contemporary position and prospects. The woolen branch (carded woolen) is much the older; apparently it was firmly established at an early date; yet it has been beaten by its younger rival, the worsted branch, not only in size but apparently in adaptability to the general industrial conditions. Yet it is in the last-named circumstance,—adaptability to American conditions in general,—that the solution of the problem is most likely to be found.
The historical anomaly in the carded woolen branch,—its growth and assured position at an early date, contrasting with the more precarious modern stage,—is perhaps to be explained on the ground that in the course of time the industrial environment itself underwent a change. In the United States of the first half of the nineteenth century an industry of small or moderate scale was more likely to hold its own securely than in the United States of the twentieth century. Intelligence and handicraft skill on the part of the individual workmen, which play so marked a part in this branch, had not then found so many other fields for advantageous application. Add to this the circumstance that the industry had traditions and an established basis, inherited from the domestic spinning and weaving of colonial days, with their necessary adjuncts in the fulling and finishing mills,—and it is not so difficult to understand the contrast between the middle of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth.
The worsted industry, on the other hand, exhibits in all countries the more dominant characteristics of modern industry,—highly-developed and quasi-automatic machinery, standardized material, large plant, a dominance of organization, and (in comparison with the older branch) a lack of individuality. These characteristics appear most sharply in the manufacture of the staple grades of fabrics, turned out in large quantities and at prices low enough to make possible their sale to multitudes of purchasers. It is in accord with the general trend of American industry that our manufacturers should have turned chiefly to goods of this sort, while those calling for more detailed care, more variety, more individual finish continued to be imported even in face of the extremely high duties levied so long. It is in accord, too, with the general international division of labor that the more highly-finished goods should be produced in France more than in Germany, and in Germany more than in England. Thus it would seem that the manufacture of staple worsteds was the most promising part of the industry for the Americans, giving favorable opportunities for the methods and appliances which they have learned to apply better than others. And yet, to repeat, the evidence points little to progress. The record on the whole is one of imitation, not of independent advance, still less of leadership. While the carded woolen branch may be said to have been left behind by the American industrial current, the worsted branch simply kept up with the general European movement, and showed little sign of keeping pace with that in the United States.
It is true that protection veils the situation, as it does in the case of the silk manufacture. Behind it the American worsted industry may have achieved more than can be readily seen, more than the manufacturers are aware of, or (if aware) are ready to admit. Some allowance must doubtless be made for that timorousness with regard to foreign competition which protected producers show at all times and in all countries. Invariably they exaggerate their own deficiencies and exhibit a panic fear of foreign competitors. But even after making allowance for this sort of exaggeration in the general accounts given by the protectionists, such specific facts as the Tariff Board brought to light regarding the importation of machinery point to a real basis for their fears. It would seem that the American wool manufactures, as a rule, are not able to meet foreign competition on even terms, and have little prospect of doing so. And the question recurs, why not?
I cannot but believe that there is something in the quality of wool fibre which has affected fundamentally the course of development; just as the quality of silk fibre affected the silk industry. It is in this direction that we are most likely to find some explanation of the peculiarities in the history of both branches of the American wool manufacture.
It is certain that in some respects at least wool is not amenable to machinery of the quasi-automatic kind. As regards spinning, for example, the ring spindle, which dominates the cotton manufacture of the United States, has not been found available for wool. All carded wool is spun on the mule; and in this branch of the textile manufacture, as has been already pointed out, the Americans have no advantage either in the machinery itself or in its operation. Most combed wool is also spun on the mules. A method of spinning similar to that with the ring—cap spinning—is used for some combed wool in Yorkshire and in the United States. But the absence of any American improvements, and presumably of any special adaptability to American industrial conditions, is indicated by the fact that almost all the spinning machinery of this kind used in the United States is imported from Great Britain. There is no sign of such American inventions and improvements as have so profoundly affected the spinning departments of the other great textile industries,—silks and cottons.
As has been repeatedly pointed out in these pages, weaving is the textile operation in which American manufacturers have long been most proficient. So far as concerns the sources of supply for weaving machinery, the situation in the woolen mills was found by the Tariff Board to be quite different from that in the spinning department. Over three-quarters of the looms were of American manufacture. Those that were imported,—a very few from Germany, the larger quota from England,—were used chiefly in the manufacture of fine goods, of which more will be said presently.
Nevertheless, even with respect to weaving, there is a great difference between the woolen and cotton industries. Woolen looms are usually wide,—five feet wide or more; and for this reason, and also because of the less automatic character of the work, it is rare that a weaver is given charge of more than two looms, at most three. Only where there is large-scale production of uniform goods, on narrow looms, is any attempt made to put a weaver in charge of a considerable number of woolen looms; an endeavor which of course is made with most effect where the automatic loom has been found applicable to some worsteds. It would seem that the nature of wool and the yarn spun from it, as well as the more diversified character of the fabrics, stand in the way of any sweeping application of the methods which have proved of such far-reaching effect in the weaving of cottons.
Another consequence of this general situation is a difficulty in finding and keeping the sort of weaver who can run a woolen loom well. The Tariff Board in the course of its inquiries elicited from manufacturers a number of instructive statements. Repeatedly it was declared that the woolen weaver must have the qualities of a mechanic; that quickness, a good eye, a skilful hand, are called for; that the good weaver is a high-priced man; and not least, that one who is highly capable tends to drift away into other occupations, in which his services command higher pay. Similar statements are made about the weavers of fine grades of cotton goods. These also are a selected group among the textile operatives, skilled by nature or by training, paid at a comparatively high rate, and able to find ready employment in other industries.
All this serves to illustrate the principle of comparative effectiveness. Workmen who have the qualities of the skilled mechanic are needed in woolen mills and in the cotton mills making the finer fabrics; but they seem to add no comparative effectiveness there. In American industry at large, the man of mechanical capacity and training is in great demand,—for instance, in the wire fence and automobile industries mentioned in the letters just quoted. It is among the characteristics of our general industrial conditions that the gap between the wages of skilled and unskilled is greater than in other countries. The mechanic, the craftsman, the man of quick eye and deft hand, gets an unusually high rate of pay, and has an unusually favorable position in the adjustment of wages between non-competing groups. And he has this advantageous position because in general his labor is applied with unusual effect. No doubt the reasons are complex; partly that he is individually skilful, efficient, strenuous, more largely that inventors and employers have found ways of making his labor tell better than in other countries. But tell it does; and hence it commands high pay. Any industry which calls for such men must pay wages at the current rates; and if it cannot secure from them results commensurable to the pay, and if its products are subject to foreign competition, it "needs" protection and clamors for it. Precisely this seems to be the case in the woolen manufacture.
As machinery becomes more automatic, the skilled workman is needed only to construct it, keep it in repair and supervise. It can be tended by an unskilled immigrant, perhaps a woman. The cause of comparative effectiveness in industry,—if there be such,—must then be sought primarily in the ingenuity of inventors and the organizing leadership of business managers. The wages of the rank and file among the factory operatives who are thus directed and led are low in the United States relatively to those of mechanics, though high relatively to those of similar operatives in European mills. Such is the social stratification in the typical cotton mill; it tends to be such also in the typical silk mill and the great standardized worsted mill. A lower grade of operative can be utilized in the weaving departments of these than in the weaving departments of woolen mills proper. The proportion of women employed in the worsted mills is considerably higher than in the woolen mills (49 per cent against 35); nor are any such statements as those just quoted to be found from manufacturers of worsteds. It is significant, too, that in the operation of cotton looms for ordinary goods no difference is found between the efficiency of men and women as weavers; at piece rates they earn the same total. It is only for the finer cottons that the weaver needs those mechanical abilities in which men excel and which cause them to be preferred in woolen mills. In this regard also the technical conditions would seem to be less favorable to the industrial acclimatization of the carded woolen manufacture.
Still another factor works in the same direction. The finishing processes are of the first importance for carded woolen fabrics. They are of great variety, and they are almost decisive as regards the character and saleability of the goods. Typical of the various manipulations is the ancient one of "fulling,"—the cloth being passed between rollers and through liquid soap, or soap and water. It is thus shrunk and felted. In essentials, the process remains a handicraft operation, even though no longer carried on, as it was in earlier days, in a separate fulling mill. It is little aided by machinery, and is dependent on the skill and unrelaxing attention of the individual workman. The same is the case with the raising of a surface by teazles, the stretchings and dryings and beatings and ironings. To quote from Professor Clapham's excellent account of the industry in England, where finishing has been carried to greatest elaboration and perfection: "The variety of finishing processes is singularly great. New ones are constantly being devised, many of which are kept more or less secret." But worsteds are much less subject to them than woolens. "Light worsted dress materials are not milled at all.... Generally speaking, worsted materials are altered but slightly at this stage. As they appear in the loom, so they appear in the warehouse; colour of course excepted in the case of piece-dyed goods.... With woolens, the reverse is often true. Only an expert in these cases, could identify the finished cloth with the loose and altogether different substance that came out of the loom. In one case finishing is a subsidiary, in the other a primary process." And this primary process, it is to be emphasized, is little under the influence of modern machinery and labor-saving devices; in other words it is one in which American industrial talent finds no tempting or remuneratory field.
In accord with the same general trend, it appears that the finer grades of goods are more likely to be imported, while the cheaper and medium grades are more likely to be made at home; and this, notwithstanding efforts to promote the manufacture of the finer grades by making the duties on them particularly high. The case is alike with all the textiles; the finer goods of all kinds are more apt to be imported. The same explanation is invariably given: they need to be more carefully finished, they call for more labor, and high wages are therefore felt to be an obstacle in particularly great degree. The more fundamental explanation has already been indicated: goods of the most expensive sort fail to be made within the United States because labor is applied to them with less machinery, less of labor-saving devices, less effective organization,—in sum, with less advantage than to the cheap and medium grades. So it is with woolens and worsteds. In both branches the protective policy was throughout more effective on the cheaper goods. It is characteristic also that not only the finer fabrics themselves, but the machinery for their manufacture had to be imported,—for carding, combing, and spinning, even for weaving, where the Americans in general are superior. A large German firm, engaged in making fine goods, was tempted by the high duties of 1897 to transfer a plant to the United States. It had to import machinery of every kind; and not only this, but found that the factory labor of this country was also ill adapted to its methods of manufacture. From the then-accepted protectionist point of view, all these disadvantages, and the consequent high expenses of production, should have been offset by correspondingly high duties; the industry was to be "acquired" on any terms necessary to domesticate it. But these special conditions would seem to be in reality but evidences of the unsuitability of this particular branch of textiles to American conditions.
It deserves to be noted that during the last decade of the extreme protective policy there were signs of improvement in the quality of American woolen fabrics, and especially of worsteds. That some change in this direction set in, I am convinced by repeated testimony from all sorts of persons conversant with the trade,—manufacturers, dealers, tailors. Though the bulk of the American woolens remained of medium grade, an increasing proportion, and one not inconsiderable, was of better grade and finish than during the nineteenth century; the improvement being most marked in worsteds. Just what this tendency signified, it would be difficult to say. The obvious explanation would ascribe it simply to extreme protection. Make your duties high enough, and you can bring about the domestic production of anything and everything. The most elaborately finished woolens and silks and cottons will be made within this country if a sufficiently heavy handicap be imposed on foreign producers; even though the outcome may be delayed somewhat by lack of habituation among the manufacturers and by a long-lingering prejudice among consumers in favor of imported fabrics. Presumably the change here noted was the effect of precisely this cause,—extreme protection. But possibly it was due, in part at least, to some beginning in improved processes, better organization, greater effectiveness. Yet the evidence pointing this way is slight; nor is it on general grounds probable that forward steps by American manufacturers would be first taken in this part of the industry. It is in the production of the standardized fabrics of medium grade that the opportunities are most promising for advances by Americans.
On the whole, the best conclusion I can reach is that the difficulties and the apparent backwardness of the wool manufacture rest partly on the physical characteristics of the raw material and partly on the impossibility of standardizing its fabrics to the same degree as, for example, cotton goods. Both of these circumstances stand in the way of mass production and so of the sweeping use of labor-saving machinery. The silk manufacture long encountered the same obstacles; it has still to face them in a large part of its product; yet, as we have seen, the march of invention appears to be removing the first obstacle, and at all events gives some promise of enabling the American industry to progress to independence. The absence of indications of similar progress in the wool manufacture is not easy to explain. Possibly this is no more than a sporadic episode, standing apart from the general industrial movement. Not everything in economic history can be ascribed to the uniform action of the same causes. It remains puzzling why the machine processes were not applied with more decisive success to this material, and why Europeans and not Americans took the lead in the considerable success which was achieved in the worsted branch. Another half-century may bring independent advances in this country; we may still witness considerable changes in the existing relations between the wool manufacturing countries and districts. Possibly free wool will have greater effect in promoting the development of the American manufacturing industry than would be expected in view of the foregoing analysis of the influence exercised by the wool duties in the past. A considerable period must elapse before it will appear how the industry may adjust itself to such new conditions as were established in 1913. The sober-minded investigator will be slow in laying too much stress on single causes, slow in generalization, slowest of all in prediction.</s>
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New Student-Poverty Measures Proposed for National Tests
Proposed indicators go broader, deeper
Aiming to get a clearer picture of how students' home and community resources affect their academic achievement, America's best-known K-12 education barometer, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, is building a comprehensive new way to gauge socioeconomic status.
The new measure, being developed by the National Assessment Governing Board and the National Center for Education Statistics, is intended to look beyond a traditional measure of family income to a child's family, community, and school supports for learning.
"This issue has just been on the burner for so, so long," said Maria V. Ferguson, the executive director of the Washington-based Center on Education Policy. "When NAGB starts talking about it, that does elevate it to a place where it could be part of a bigger policy debate," she said. "I wonder if the folks at NAGB are hoping this could be an opening salvo into a bigger conversation about how [different SES measures] might affect other programs."
The governing board commissioned eight researchers in education, economics, statistics, human development, and sociology that have been working on the new indicators since 2010. The panel released its initial proposal at a NAGB meeting here Nov. 29.
"We rapidly learned that socioeconomic status contains multiple dimensions and categories that don't neatly collapse back to 'low' versus 'high,' " said Charles D. Cowan, the chief executive officer of the San Antonio-based research group Analytic Focus and a member of the governing board's expert panel. "Over the last 10 to 15 years, there's been an explosion in the data available" on student characteristics, Mr. Cowan said. "Perhaps now is the time to think about alternative measures of SES simply because now we are able to think about it."
Beyond Free Lunch
The National Assessment Governing Board is considering a new method of identifying a student’s socioeconomic status when disaggregating the results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. NAEP researchers now rely primarily on a student’s eligibility for the National School Lunch Program—which as of 2011 provided free or low-cost meals to more than 31 million students in poverty each day—as a proxy for socioeconomic status. This traditional indicator is bolstered by background questions on home possessions, such as washing machines, encyclopedias, and mobile phones.
Proposed New “Core” SES Indicators
• Family income and indicators of home possessions and that have been shown to be linked to educational access, such as Internet availability and number of books in the home
• Parents’ educational attainment
• Parents’ occupational status
Potential “Expanded” SES Indicators
• Family: For example, family structure, stability, and the presence
of extended family and other supportive adults
• Neighborhood: Including the concentration of poverty or linguistic isolation, the percentage of unemployed adults, and the availability of museums, parks, or safe walking routes
• School: The aggregate SES composition of students at the school the child attends, as distinct from the neighborhood SES level
Potential Additional Context Indicators
• Physical stressors: Local rates of illness or environmental problems
• Psychological stressors: Levels of crime in the school and community
• Psychological protectors: Student perception of parent involvement and expectations
SOURCE: National Assessment Governing Board
For decades, the universal proxy for students' socioeconomic status—for NAEP and nearly every federal education and child-health program—has been just such a high-low indicator: eligibility for subsidized meals under the National School Lunch Program.
Federal food aid does capture a huge swath of students in poverty: The school lunch program alone provides meals for more than 31 million children, at reduced cost to those living at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty line, and free to those who are at or below 130 percent of the poverty line or who are homeless, in foster care, or in certain other programs. In 2012 in the lower 48 states and the District of Columbia, children living in a family of four on $40,000 or less a year would be eligible for reduced price meals; the free-lunch cut-off for the same family would be $30,000.
From a research and policy perspective, however, experts say food-aid eligibility gives an incomplete picture of the resources of students in poverty, and no information about students who don't qualify. Moreover, those poverty counts notoriously underrepresent students as they get older and more self-conscious about applying for free or reduced-price lunch.
"There are many problems regarding the use of free and reduced-cost lunch," said Henry M. Levin, a research panelist and an economics and education professor at Teachers College, Columbia University, who is now on sabbatical at Peking University in Beijing.
"It does not distinguish in a sensitive way differences along the entire spectrum of SES," he noted in an email to Education Week. "Even for the poor or relatively poor, there are large differences" within the range of free-lunch eligibility.
The governing board has tried in the past to fill in the gaps using the background questionnaire students complete along with NAEP, according to William Ward, a senior research scientist for assessment at NCES, which administers NAEP. But some of those questions have become outdated or have not been found to be relevant to a child's real socioeconomic status.
"We used to ask, 'Do you have a washer-dryer?' but now everyone has a washer-dryer," Mr. Cowan said. "We used to ask, 'Do you have a cellphone?' Now, do any of your students not have a cellphone?"
More Than Income
The updated measure of socioeconomic status will look at broader resources and learning supports, Mr. Cowan said.
It will start with the "big three": the family's income, parents' level of educational attainment, and whether and where they are employed. This year's administration of NAEP has also tried out new background questions, including how long the child has lived in the United States, how many family members live with the child, and how many adults in the home have a job.
Because elementary students in particular may have difficulty identifying these, the governing board is considering supplementing the data with information from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey, an annual study of a representative sample of 3.5 million households nationwide that asks about family structure, employment and income, transportation, and other details.
The NAEP student survey would still include questions about home possessions that research has shown to be related to student achievement, such as access to the Internet and the number of books in the home, Mr. Ward said. But the board is considering supplementing the "core" SES measures with other indicators of resources in the child's neighborhood and school that could highlight differences between students living at the same income level in different areas.
For example, an 8th grader in New York's Spanish Harlem neighborhood could still have access to libraries and museums, while a peer in rural southern Utah may have no local library but live a bike ride away from national parks.
Indicators of school and neighborhood supports also may be pulled from administrative data and from the Census Bureau, such as the degree of concentration of poverty or linguistic isolation, the average educational degree earned, and the employment levels in the neighborhood.
The governing board panel plans to present its proposed socioeconomic indicators at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association in April before piloting their use in 2014 and reporting the results in 2015.
Vol. 32, Issue 14, Pages 6-7</s>
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Portland, Ore. A breakthrough in sonar technology may soon make it possible to more accurately detect and map underwater artifacts, such as mines, even when they are buried.
"Our results are from simulations, but they show that some relatively simple changes to standard sonar equipment will result in a much simpler and effective means of detecting underwater mines," said David Pierson, a Johns Hopkins University scientist who invented the
technique for his dissertation under professor David Aspnes at North Carolina State University.
The scheme works by rendering the ocean floor transparent, thereby making an artifact stand out in stark relief even if it is buried. The key is time-reversing the echo from a first sonar ping and broadcasting it in lieu of a second sonar ping. The background of the subsequent echo from that second broadcast is canceled out, Pierson said, effectively rendering the ocean floor transparent. As a result, after several such cycles, even the faintest echoes from buried mines, once masked by obstacles, stand out on a grid of ocean floor.
"Each time we transmit a time-reversed echo, we find the seafloor gets suppressed, but the echo from buried objects is enhanced even when the signal from the buried object was too small to be detected at first," said Pierson. "Today, navies use everything from dolphins to divers to software modeling with elaborate sonar arrays. Now we think we can do better."
Since 1776, when mines were invented, navies have sought ways to detect them. The most sophisticated sonar setups today use multiple transmitters and receivers to map out items on the ocean floor. Pierson's method is simpler, requiring only a single standard sonar rig, rather than an elaborate setup of multiple transmitters and receivers. It even detects buried mines that may be missed by multiple-transceiver rigs.
"We don't need arrays of sonar transmitters and receivers or any modeling software. Instead, we just record the return echo of a sonar transceiver, time-reverse it and transmit it back out," said Pierson.
Pierson's approach is not the first use of the reversed-echo technique just its first use for mapping. Both optical and acoustical experiments have been performed using reversed broadcasts, according to Pierson, but his is the first to use isolating targets in back-scattered signals.
Pierson's work at North Carolina State was supported by a grant from the Office of Naval Research. At his current job at Johns Hopkins, his work is supported by the U.S. Navy.</s>
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New Year's celebrations are probably the oldest of all holidays -dating back to ancient Babylon about 4,000 years ago. Observations began with the new moon after the first day of spring, or vernal equinox, which made sense because spring was the season of "rebirth" - blossoming, planting new crops, etc. Western nations first observed the holiday on Jan. 1 about 400 years ago; since then a host of fascinating traditions and superstitions have accumulated - many centered on food.
Culinary choices selected for New Year's celebrations are supposed to improve the odds for achieving good health and wealth in the coming year - or ward off bad stuff. Although the food choices vary, there are many similarities: worldwide, the six top picks for good luck are grapes, greens, pork, legumes, fish and some special cakes.
New Year's revelers in Spain consume 12 grapes at midnight, one grape for each stroke of the clock. This custom is also observed in Portugal, Mexico, Cuba and other South American countries. Each grape represents a different month, so one hopes they'll all be sweet; if one is a bit sour -- for example, the third grape -- March might be an unlucky month. The goal is to swallow all the grapes before the last stroke of midnight.
Cooked greens, including cabbage, collards, kale and chard, are favored in many countries because the green leaves look like folding money -- thus promising wealth in the coming year. Danes eat stewed kale sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon; collards are the top choice for Southern U.S. menus. Cabbage or sauerkraut is popular in Germany; before their holiday meal dinner guests wish each other as much goodness and money as the number of strips of cabbage in the sauerkraut pot.
Pork products are popular here and abroad. Historians theorized that because pigs can't turn their heads to look back without turning completely around -- they're always looking to the future -- and thus symbolize progress. Roast suckling pig is served for New Year's in Cuba, Spain, Portugal, Hungary and Austria. Pigs' feet are eaten in Sweden, while Germans enjoy roast pork and sausages.
Eating legumes -- beans, peas and lentils -- promises financial rewards in the coming year. The first meal of the New Year in Brazil usually includes lentil soup; in Japan, osechi-ryori, a group of dishes eaten the first three days of the new year, include sweet black beans called kuro-mame. In the Southern United States, it's traditional to eat black-eyed peas in a dish called "Hoppin' John" -- peas combined with pork and often rice and other veggies. Some very patient diners count and consume 365 black-eyed peas -- to bring luck for every day of the new year.
Fish choices on the New Year's table include boiled cod or baccal (dried salt cod) in many countries. Herring is on midnight menus in Poland and Germany; Germans also enjoy carp, and some follow the tradition of placing a few fish scales in their wallets for good luck. In Japan, herring roe is consumed for fertility, shrimp for long life and dried sardines for a good harvest. People in northwestern United States often include salmon on the holiday table for good luck.
Cakes and other baked goods for New Year menus feature round or ring-shaped items symbolizing wholeness and the completion of a full year. Italian tables feature chiacchiere -- round, fried pastries drenched in syrup and dusted with sugar. Doughnuts are popular in Poland, Hungary and the Netherlands. Greece is known for its vasilopita, a round, anise-flavored cake baked with a coin inside; when the cake is cut, the first piece is for St. Basil and the other slices are given to guests in order of their age. In Sweden and Norway, cooks hide a whole almond in rice pudding; whoever gets the nut is guaranteed great fortune in the new year.
Holiday traditions also include "unlucky" foods. Lobster is considered a no-no because the crustacean moves backward and could therefore lead to setbacks. Chicken is discouraged because the bird scratches backward; this implies dwelling on the past or the diner may have to "scratch for a living." Another theory discourages eating any winged fowl -- because good luck might fly away.
A few more interesting customs for added luck: Peruvians believe eating gold-colored food will put money in your pocket: papas a la Huancaina, a potato dish tinted with turmeric is served on New Year's Eve. Long buckwheat noodles served in Japan -- toshikoshi soba -- promise good luck and long life to those who can swallow one noodle without chewing or breaking it. To start eating less in the new year leave a bit of food on your plate after midnight and your pantry should remain stocked during the coming months!
"Open house" events, popular on New Year's Day, date back to 17th-century Dutch immigrants in New York's Hudson River Valley who welcomed friends and relatives by "opening the house," serving special drinks and refreshments. In later years it was not uncommon for people to announce their open houses in the local newspaper -- which led to disaster. Groups of young men, many strangers, armed with newspaper listings, made the rounds of "open" homes for their free glass of punch, wine and snacks. It became a challenge to see how many homes could be covered in the designated period. Newspaper announcements of at-home hours were dropped toward the end of the 19th century, and homes were "open" only to invited friends.
If you're hosting an open house this New Year's holiday, add this black-eyed pea salad to your buffet table. Black-eyed peas are low in fat, contain no cholesterol, are low in sodium and are high in potassium, iron, and fiber -- a natural for a healthful dose of luck. Serve this on broad green lettuce leaves (folding money) with golden round corn muffins (prosperity) and you're set for a great 2013.
Black-Eye Pea Salad
Serves about 8 -- easy to double or triple recipe. Feel free to add or delete any ingredients but leave the black-eyed peas!
2 15-ounce cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 cup sliced green onions -- about two bunches
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeño chile, stemmed, seeded and chopped (use serrano if you like it hotter)
1/2 red or orange bell pepper, cored, seeded, chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 4-ounce jar chopped, drained pimentos
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Combine everything except salt and pepper in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve on broad dark green lettuce leaves.
Ruth Taber is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals; [email protected]</s>
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Definition of Cryophobia
Cryophobia: An abnormal and persistent fear of cold, including cold weather and cold objects. Sufferers from cryophobia experience anxiety even though they realize their fear is irrational. To avoid cold, they may live in a warm climate, dress more warmly than necessary, stay indoors on cold days, and avoid cold foods and ice cubes.
"Cryophobia" is derived from the Greek "kryos" (cold, frigid) and "phobos" (fear). "Kryos" has given us English words such as "cryometer" (a thermometer for measuring very cold temperatures) and "cryotherapy" and "cryosurgery" (medical techniques that freeze and destroy diseased tissue). Related term: Thermophobia, fear of heat.Source: MedTerms™ Medical Dictionary
Last Editorial Review: 6/14/2012
Medical Dictionary Definitions A - Z
Search Medical Dictionary</s>
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Biofeedback is a relaxation technique for learning to control a body function that is not normally under conscious control, such as skin temperature, muscle tension, heart rate, or blood pressure. Biofeedback techniques can be used to manage tension and migraine headaches, back pain, panic or anxiety attacks, irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, and other conditions that are helped by reducing muscle tension and controlling other body functions.
Learning biofeedback requires practice in a lab or other setting under the guidance of a trained therapist. Home feedback units are also available.
eMedicineHealth Medical Reference from Healthwise
To learn more visit Healthwise.org
© 1995-2014 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.</s>
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Plantar Fasciitis: Exercises to Relieve Pain
What is an Actionset?
- Heel pain can be caused by stress placed on the plantar fascia ligament when it is stretched irregularly, which causes small tears and inflammation. Stretching and strengthening exercises can help the ligament become more flexible and can strengthen muscles that support the arch, in turn reducing stress on the ligament.
- Exercises for plantar fasciitis—when combined with other steps such as resting, avoiding activities that make heel pain worse, using shoe inserts, icing, or taking pain relievers—usually succeed in relieving heel pain.
- Exercises for plantar fasciitis may be especially helpful for reducing heel pain when you first get out of bed.
- If you have questions about how to do these exercises or if your heel pain gets worse, talk to your doctor.
Return to topic:
Exercises that help relieve heel pain from plantar fasciitis include:
- Stretching exercises, especially to stretch the plantar fascia on the bottom of the foot and to stretch the calf muscles.
- Strengthening exercises, to strengthen the muscles of the foot and ankle.
Exercises to avoid
Some exercises may make your heel pain worse. One example is exercise that involves repeated motions and pounding of the foot against a hard surface such as running or jogging. You should avoid this type of exercise.
People who have plantar fasciitis may have less flexible feet and ankles, and weaker foot muscles. Their feet may tend to flatten and roll inward (pronate) more when they walk or run.
Exercises can protect the plantar fascia from injury and inflammation by making the plantar fascia and calf muscles more flexible and by strengthening the foot and ankle muscles that support the arch.
- Warming up and stretching before sports or exercise may make your plantar fascia more flexible and may decrease the chance of injury and inflammation.
- You may want to take a pain reliever such as a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), including aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen, to relieve inflammation and pain. Some people take NSAIDs at least 30 minutes before doing recommended exercise, to relieve pain and allow them to do and enjoy the exercise. Other people take NSAIDs after they exercise.
- After you exercise, ice your heel to help relieve pain and inflammation.
Stretching exercises before getting out of bed
Many people with plantar fasciitis have intense heel pain in the morning, when they take their first steps after getting out of bed. This pain comes from the tightening of the plantar fascia that occurs during sleep. Stretching or massaging the plantar fascia before standing up can often reduce heel pain.
- Stretch your foot by flexing it up and down 10 times before standing.
- Do toe stretches to stretch the plantar fascia.
- Use a towel to stretch the bottom of your foot (towel stretch).
Other steps can help reduce heel pain when you take your first steps after getting out of bed. You can:
- Wear a night splint while you sleep. Night splints hold the ankle and foot in a position that keeps the Achilles tendon and plantar fascia slightly stretched.
- Massage the bottom of your foot across the width of the plantar fascia before getting out of bed.
- Always wear shoes when you get out of bed, even if it is just to go to the bathroom. Quality sandals, athletic shoes, or any other comfortable shoes with good arch supports will work.
Exercises to do each day
Stretching and strengthening exercises will help reduce plantar fasciitis.
- Stretching exercises should create a pulling feeling. They should not cause pain. It's best to do each exercise two or three times during the day, but you do not need to do them all at once.1 Stretching exercises:
- Strengthening exercises:
There are other exercises you can use to stretch and strengthen your foot and leg. Ask your physical therapist or doctor which exercises will work best for you.
For more information about exercises to reduce heel pain from plantar fasciitis, talk to:
- Your doctor.
- A physical therapist.
- An occupational therapist for job-related activities.
If you would like more information on exercises to reduce plantar fasciitis, the following groups can provide information:
|American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS)|
|6300 North River Road|
|Rosemont, IL 60018-4262|
|Phone: ||(847) 823-7186|
|Fax: ||(847) 823-8125|
|Web Address: ||www.orthoinfo.aaos.org|
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) provides information and education to raise the public's awareness of musculoskeletal conditions, with an emphasis on preventive measures. The AAOS website contains information on orthopedic conditions and treatments, injury prevention, and wellness and exercise.
|American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (ACFAS)|
|8725 West Higgins Road|
|Chicago, IL 60631-2724|
|Fax: ||(773) 693-9304|
|Web Address: ||www.foothealthfacts.org|
The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons provides information on surgery and shoe selection as well as the care and treatment of heel, toe, ankle, nerve, tendon, nail, and skin conditions. You can also look up and learn about sports injuries, diabetic foot problems, arthritis, and resources in your local area.
|American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society|
|6300 North River Road|
|Rosemont, IL 60018|
|Web Address: ||www.aofas.org|
The American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) provides information on a variety of topics, including foot care for adults, children, and people who have diabetes; proper shoe fit; and how to select children's shoes and sports shoes. Some information is available in several languages besides English.
|American Podiatric Medical Association|
|9312 Old Georgetown Road|
|Bethesda, MD 20814-1621|
|Phone: ||1-800-FOOTCARE (1-800-366-8227)|
|Fax: ||(301) 530-2752|
|Web Address: ||www.apma.org|
The American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) provides information about foot and ankle injuries, sports-related foot concerns, surgical and nonsurgical treatment of foot problems, special medical issues such as diabetes, and resources in your local area. Some information is available in Spanish.
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and American Academy of Pediatrics (2010). Plantar fasciitis chapter of Foot and ankle section. In JF Sarwark, ed., Essentials of Musculoskeletal Care, 4th ed., pp. 839–844. Rosemont, IL: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.
Other Works Consulted
Digiovanni BF, et al. (2006). Plantar fascia-specific stretching exercise improves outcomes in patients with chronic plantar fasciitis. A prospective clinical trial with two-year follow-up. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 88(6): 1775–1781.
Pasquina PF, Foster LS (2008). Plantar fasciitis. In WR Frontera et al., eds., Essentials of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: Musculoskeletal Disorders, Pain, and Rehabilitation, 2nd ed., pp. 469–473. Philadelphia: Saunders Elsevier.
|Primary Medical Reviewer||William H. Blahd, Jr., MD, FACEP - Emergency Medicine|
|Specialist Medical Reviewer||Barry L. Scurran, DPM - Podiatry and Podiatric Surgery|
|Last Revised||July 13, 2011|
eMedicineHealth Medical Reference from Healthwise
To learn more visit Healthwise.org
© 1995-2014 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.</s>
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These stories demonstrate Three Ring’s potential as both an instructional application and an assessment tool.
“Chief Education Officer” Steve Silvius reached out to introduce EmergingEdTech readers to Three Ring, a free application that allows teachers to quickly and easily create digital portfolios of student work, using a wide variety of devices for input. Knowing that the best way to understand how an application can be used in a meaningful way by teachers is to learn about real world uses of the tool in an academic setting, Steve shared these examples of ways in which this recently introduced application is being used in the classroom.
- A High School STEM teacher had students presenting on a project they had worked on all year to build a new product and market it. He taped each group’s presentation, gave feedback after on the tape, and had the students watch the tape at home that night…all in a few clicks. The class iterated this process over and over, incorporating peer feedback and self assessment before finally presenting to the judges a few weeks later.
- An Elementary Music Teacher taped short segments of students singing solos, improvising beats, and similar skills aligned to the state music standards. She then re-taped the skills later in the year. Since the skills are all tagged using Three Ring’s tagging functionality, it is just a matter of searching for the tag and the student’s name and you can immediately juxtapose the videos to see student growth.
- An elementary math teacher had students working in groups on an involved application problem. They did the work with blocks and on large sheets of rolled paper. Both the teacher and a student-recorder circulated the room and documented the block work and the paperwork for each group, tagged to the applicable standard and the new CC Standard for Mathematical Practice that the students were demonstrating.
- A 3rd Grade SPED teacher had a small group of students completing sentences. She immediately took a picture of all the papers and then projected her Three Ring account on the smart board. The students then conducted peer reviews, deciding if each other’s work was an appropriate way to complete the sentence, and having a dialogue about other possibilities around the task.
- A middle school art teacher finishing a project and had every student line up and quickly hold their work against the white board while she took a picture before they left class. Moving through the line in just minutes, she created the next entry in their progress portfolios despite having only one device for the class (imagine how easy this can be done in 1-1 and BYOD classes).
- A HS English teacher documented exemplary character sketches while students were studying The Crucible, then shared these exemplars at a later class as students re-worked their first attempt. She plans to use the exemplars next year as well. Later in that class, the students began debating the themes of the book and she other students immediately start recording the debate which was seamlessly added to the participating students’ portfolios.
Related Posts (if the above topic is of interest, you might want to check these out):
Using Google Sites to create e-portfolios for students
4 New Technology Tools for Measuring Learning Outcomes
E-Portfolios are the cover story for Campus Technology for November</s>
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