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(BPT) - Snow and ice affect more than 70 percent of the U.S. population, according to the Federal Highway Administration. Each winter the average driver in these areas will see more than five inches of snow on the roads. And when the snow is falling there are few things more comforting than the sight of snow plows and salt trucks making highways safe for commuters, shoppers and travelers. In the Snow Belt, citizens expect roads to always be cleared of snow and ice, no matter how bad the storm, says Bret Hodne, public works director for West Des Moines, Iowa. To help meet those sky-high expectations, Hodne orders salt months before the first snowflake falls. His motto is "don't trust your climate," because if you plan for an average season it's bound to be a record-setting winter of snow and ice. Snowfighters first began using salt in the 1930s for snow and ice control, but it wasn't until the 1960s that salt became widely adapted as one of the major weapons to keep winter roads safe. In an average Iowa winter, Hodne's department alone uses 4,000 tons of salt and keeps twice that amount in storage. Salt works by lowering the freezing point of water, and when applied on already-frozen roadways (de-icing) it helps to melt the ice. When salt is applied before a freeze sets in (anti-icing) it helps prevent liquid water from becoming ice. This is why drivers will often see salt trucks out and about before the roads start to freeze. Both methods give tires more traction with the pavement, keeping roads open and safe while protecting lives and commerce. How quickly salt melts frozen water depends upon a number of variables, including temperature, time and the rate of application. Fortunately, it is usually not necessary to melt all the snow and ice on a road. Merely destroying or preventing the bond between pavement and frozen water is a more efficient, economical and environmentally sensitive approach. In fact, salt is the single most effective and economical method for treating roadways. According to the Federal Highway Administration, snowy, slushy or icy pavement accounts for more than 116,000 Americans injured and more than 1,300 killed on each year. In fact, 24 percent of all weather-related vehicle crashes occur under such wintry conditions. A study by Marquette University found that effective use of road salt reduced vehicle crashes by 88 percent, injuries by 85 percent and the cost of accidents by 85 percent. Icy road conditions are not limited to northern states, however. Sudden and unexpected snow storm and freezing rain can affect southern states as well. In January 2011, such a snowstorm hit Atlanta covering roadways in a sheet of ice and shutting down routine business and traffic for five days. In response, Bill Shelton, road maintenance division manager of suburban Cobb County, has implemented a distribution system that gets salt from storage to roads as quickly as possible. Instead of storing salt and sand in just one location, Shelton has spread it out to five spots throughout the county for easier access to its 2,500 miles of roads. Snow-fighters have several safety tips for winter drivers. The most important is if you can avoid driving, it is best to stay off the roads -- at least until the snow plows and salt trucks have had a chance to do their job. It is also best not to pass road-clearing trucks. Drivers will also want to make sure they have tires with good traction, cleared windows and headlights with properly working windshield wipers and anti-icing fluid in order to see and be seen, and to leave a good amount of space between their vehicle and the one in front. Finally, remember that taking your time and driving safely is more likely to get you to your destination. For more information please visit www.safewinterroads.org.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24433000
Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE): In 2011 there were a large number of cases of EEE seen in non-vaccinated horses in Northern Wisconsin. This disease is usually fatal in horses- with a 90% mortality rate! EEE is caused by a virus that infects the brain resulting in encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and neurologic symptoms. This virus is transmitted via a mosquito bite. Birds, horses and also people can become infected. Migrating birds can readily spread the virus to new areas. Fortunately, there is a vaccine available for horses. It is usually given in a combination vaccine that includes WEE (Western Equine Encephalitis), tetanus and West Nile Virus. WEE & West NileVirus are also spread by mosquitoes. In Wisconsin, we recommend annual vaccination in the spring- before the start of "mosquito season". If a horse hasn't been vaccinated previously, a series of two vaccines are recommended, given 3-4 weeks apart. Call us at Fredonia Veterinary Clinic if you have questions on vaccination recommendations for your horses or would like to schedule an appointment/farm call. For more information on EEE and the cases in Northern Wisconsin, click on EEE in Wisconsin.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24436000
Who Invented Fireworks Article Fourth of July for Kids There are many different ways that the Fourth of July can be celebrated. Each year, families everywhere participate in some sort of activity to celebrate the Fourth of July. This year, if you are searching for a way to celebrate the Fourth of July, you should consider simply doing things that surround the enjoyment of your child. Here, you will find many suggestions that you can use to create a Fourth of July for kids. You can implement one of these suggestions this Fourth of July, or all of them! One of the first ways that you can create a Fourth of July for kids is to encourage children to dress in the American colors. You may even allow children to purchase an outfit that reflects the American spirit. You can allow children to create an American hat, or other accessories that they can wear. You may choose to purchase small flags that they can wave as they walk around throughout the day. You may want to teach them what the different symbols and colors on the American flag represent and encourage them to teach others throughout the day of the Fourth of July. A Fourth of July for kids can include teaching many patriotic songs like “Yankee Doodle”, and teaching the history of the song and why the lyrics are what they are. It is also a great idea to check out books from the library that tell the story of the Fourth of July. These books should be the appropriate grade level for the child that you are sharing it with. There are numerous books, for example, that teach about the Fourth of July for very small children so that they have a basic understanding of the events of the day and why we celebrate it. If you want to celebrate a Fourth of July for kids, you should consider creating many arts and crafts that surround the holiday. You may want to create a firework display from paper, and American flag from fabric or poster board, and similar other things. There are many things that you can create using various items around the house that can teach children about the Fourth of July. This type of tactile learning allows many children to comprehend lessons more easily. If you are going to host a Fourth of July party, you should allow your child to decorate for the event using the lessons that they have learned regarding this holiday. This can prove to be a lot of fun for the child and the people who attend the event will enjoy the creativity of the child. You may also want to allow the child to create small flags or a variety of other items to give to the guests as a thank you for coming to the Fourth of July party.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24437000
An approach to travel that, in the simplest of terms, aims to create more positive impact on the world than negative, thereby preserving at-risk destinations and cultures for the future. Sustainable Tourism is tourism that strives to minimize its impact on the environment, to respect local people and cultures, to offer economic benefit to local businesses and communities, and to provide a memorable experience for travellers and protects destinations for future generations. Using small-scale lodging, local transportation, supporting locally-owned businesses, and incorporating community-based ecotourism projects into tours are some ways travel can work towards sustainability. A business model that recognizes and measures the social return on investment of an organization’s operations and views sustainability as a valuable part of its business. G Adventures’ business model is built on the inclusion of small businesses in developing nations. Through this, we are able to bring economic benefits to entrepreneurs and small enterprises that otherwise would not receive them. Strong, stable local economies keep tourism dollars in the communities that need them, ensuring their survival and growth. G Adventures places a priority on creating positive social change whenever and wherever we can. We offer trips to countries all over the world and utilize local services and businesses whenever possible. We contribute to local economies and provide employment opportunities to underserved regions of the world that rely heavily on tourism as their principal—and in some cases, only—source of economic support. Let’s face it: We travel to see things and do things; to experience the natural and cultural wonders of our world. If those wonders are neglected, overcrowded, polluted or compromised, no one will bother to visit, and the communities that depend on tourism will die. As a travel company that depends on the natural beauty of our destinations and the well-being of the people who live there, it’s up to us to find ways to reduce our impact and help these places not only stay alive, but thrive. The Planeterra Foundation was established in 2003 by G Adventures as a means to give back through travel. A non-profit foundation, Planeterra taps into a global network of travellers to help us change the world. Working with G Adventures, we have created an integrated partnership founded on the principles of social enterprise, investing in the futures of the people and places we visit. Operating from G Adventures headquarters, Planeterra is able to focus on areas we feel are important, to forge close ties with local communities around the world, and to connect small businesses and rural families directly to our supply chain. G Adventures provides consistent market access via its network of travellers, who serve as a sustainable source of income for communities in need. G Adventures’ travellers bring long-term success to Planeterra’s projects long after the initial investment is gone. Currently operating in over 15 countries globally, Planeterra provides the tools to empower local communities to harness the power of travel for growth. We accomplish this by providing basic health and education needs, supporting small businesses, conserving the environment and, in times of crisis and natural disaster, providing emergency relief. All of Planeterra’s administrative costs are covered by G Adventures, meaning that 100% of donor funding goes directly towards supporting the organization’s initiatives around the world. G Adventures also contributes $30,000 annually as part of fund-matching initiatives. Whether you explore the world with G Adventures, volunteer at a Planeterra project or invest in project by way of online donations, you’re helping to make Planeterra’s work possible.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24449000
The characteristics of plants give us clues as to how some plants are similar to and different from others. Classification of plant species depends upon common and unique features that are used to identify plants by their characteristics. Scientists and plant experts have collected data on numerous plant species from studying the plants in their natural habitats and recording information about their characteristics in scientific literature and databases for future reference. What Are the Plant's Features? Plant features include the color, shape, size and orientation of the plant's leaves on the stem and the color of its stem, branches and/or trunk. Is the plant evergreen, or do its leaves change color in the fall? Whether the plant's leaves fall or not identifies the plant as deciduous or evergreen. Plants are also identified by the shape and color of their fruits and the seeds they contain. Fruit and seed colors include black, brown, green, orange, yellow, red and white. How Does the Plant Grow and Change? Plant types are identified by their active growth seasons, which vary at different times of the year and in different parts of the world. Some actively grow during the spring and summer, while others grow during the winter months. The height of the plant is an identifying characteristic that defines its variety within a species. Some plants grow to a minimum height in dry soils but to a towering height in moist soil conditions. What Are Its Growth Requirements? The types of soil and soil conditions that support a plant's growth are identifying characteristics that define where a plant will and will not grow. Soil types include varying degrees and combinations of sand, loam, silt and clay. Soil pH levels and levels of potassium, phosphorus, nitrogen and salt are also characteristics that help to identify a plant. How Does The Plant Reproduce? Plants are identified by their reproduction characteristics. Plants naturally reproduce by seed, through the spreading of their roots or through their bulb or corm production. Some plants are propagated through cuttings as well. Flowering plants bloom before the formation of their fruits and seeds. Plants are identified by the shapes of their flowers and their color, whether white, yellow, orange, red, purple, brown, green or blue. Plant identification includes the times when the plants are in full bloom and for how long. The fruiting characteristics of plants--the season when the fruits form, their shape, size, color and whether the fruit is edible or poisonous---describe and identify plants. Observe and make notes about your plant. Take measurements of its leaves, its height and spread, the circumference of its base or trunk, and describe the plant's colors and distinguishing features. Compare your plant specimens to the records found in plant identification resource materials. These include reference books and online databases.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24453000
Florida's bald eagle population is up 9 percent in the past four years, an encouraging trend for our endangered national symbol. In 1973, there were an estimated 88 Florida nests. Today, based on a 2011 aerial survey, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates there are 1,457 active bald eagle nests in Florida, including five in Lee County and nine in Sarasota County. The increase is attributed to a 2008 FWC bald eagle management plan. Florida’s bald eagle population is up 9 percent in the past four years. "Bald eagles have made a remarkable recovery in Florida," said FWC Chairman Kenneth Wright. The FWC and Audubon are working together to protect bald eagles in Florida. For 20 years, Audubon Florida has recruited citizen-scientists to monitor eagles and their nests through the EagleWatch program in more than 40 counties, including Lee and Charlotte. By monitoring more than 20 percent of the state's nesting pairs, volunteers make a significant difference in conserving the species, officials said. Find a bald eagle nest locator at MyFWC.com/Eagle. "Audubon is proud to have played a role in the bald eagle's amazing success story in Florida," said Eric Draper, executive director for Audubon Florida. Working with ranchers and other landowners to protect bald eagle habitat is another priority for Audubon, with its involvement going back 50 years to the start of the Cooperative Kissimmee Eagle Sanctuary Program. Florida's greatest concentrations of bald eagle nesting territories are clustered around coastal and freshwater areas such as the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes. In 2011, Osceola and Polk counties ranked first and second, respectively, for highest number of documented bald eagle nests. Bald eagles almost disappeared from the lower 48 states by the mid-20th century, with an estimated 417 pairs in the United States in 1963. The use of the now-banned pesticide DDT was causing eggshells to weaken and break under the weight of adults incubating eggs. A healthy and stable eagle population in Florida depends on appropriate nesting and foraging habitats, as well as protection from disturbance during the nesting season. The bald eagle is no longer listed as an endangered or threatened species but it remains federally protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and by state rule (F.A.C. 68A-16.002). It is illegal to feed, disturb, take or possess a bald eagle, its feathers, nest or eggs.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24454000
Who knew GCSE revision involved the use of so many acronyms? This week Pauline Hills, an English teacher and author of our Romeo and Juliet titles, talks about the importance of PAF for GCSE English revision. PAF stands for purpose, audience and format. That’s why something is written, who it’s written for and how it’s written. For months your teacher will have been discussing the terms purpose, audience and format with you, encouraging you to write for yourself in different formats such as letters, speeches or newspaper reports and teaching you the conventions of these formats. You will be familiar with the different purposes for writing through the writing triplets: argue, persuade advise; inform, explain, describe; analyse, review, comment; and explore, imagine, entertain and you’ll have had the chance to write for these purposes – you may even have produced coursework for one of these purposes. You’ll have been taught to think about your audience – the person or people you are writing for – and whether it’s appropriate to adopt a formal or informal tone for your piece. For example, you wouldn’t speak to the headmaster in quite the same way that you’d speak to your best friends, would you? So, it’s easy to see why it’s important to take your audience into consideration when you’re planning your writing. Having practised all of these things in class, in the English exam you’ll get to apply them not only in the writing tasks, but in the reading tasks as well. An informed response to a reading task will show that you understand the writer’s purpose and how they achieve that purpose, taking the audience into consideration within the conventions of the format they are using. So, when you’re planning your English revision remember PAF – purpose, audience and format. Image: Felipe Trucco @ Flickr:cc	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24458000
environment - Search Results Articles About environment Companies around the world are learning to embrace the environment, and the gear industry is no exception. This special section takes a look at how some gear manufacturers are doing their part to conserve resources, preserve and protect the environment, and give back to the land. What we’ve found is that adopting environmental measures is far more than just good corporate citizenship. For many gear industry companies, good environmental practices also turn out to be good for the bottom line. Environmentally friendly cutting fluids aren't just good for the environment. They can also be good for performance. Not long ago, many manufacturing managers thought sensitivity to environmental protection standards meant additional expenses, decreased productivity, and a plethora of headaches and hassles. Okay, so you want to make some high quality gears for your customers, and you want to make a profit for your company, but you don't want to make a mess of the environment. What can you do? Heat treatment industry reinforces environmental/energy conservation. Design Problem: Develop a gear drive for a pedal-powered water craft that will be easy to manufacture, use and maintain; that will be lightweight enough for the boat to be portable; and that will eliminate the environmental risk of lubricants leaking into the water. One of the hot items on the public agenda these days is "The Environment." Suddenly everyone wants to save the whales and the rain forest. Politicians, rock stars, and big business have all discovered that you can't get anything but good press for saying that you're in favor of trees and marine mammals. For environmental and economic reasons, the use of coolant in machining processes is increasingly being questioned. Rising coolant prices and disposal costs, as well as strains on workers and the environment, have fueled the debate. The use of coolant has given rise to a highly technical system for handling coolant in the machine (cooling, filtering) and protecting the environment (filter, oil-mist collector). In this area the latest cutting materials - used with or without coolant - have great potential for making the metal-removal process more economical. The natural progression to completely dry machining has decisive advantages for hobbing. A main limiting factor in extending the use of hard coatings to machine component application is the lack of knowledge about how these inert coatings perform under lubricated conditions using today's lubricants. Nondestructive examination (NDE) of ferrous and nonferrous materials has long proved an effective maintenance and anomaly characterization tool for many industries. Recent research has expanded its applicability to include the inspection of large, open gear drives. Difficulties inherent in other NDE methods make them time-consuming and labor-intensive. They also present the user with the environmental problem of the disposal of used oil. The eddy current method addresses these problems. The trend toward moving coordinate measuring machines to the shop floor to become an integral part of the manufacturing operations brings real time process control within the reach of many companies. Putting measuring machines on the shop floor, however, subjects them to harsh environmental conditions. Like any measuring system, CMMs are sensitive to any ambient condition that deviates from the "perfect" conditions of the metrology lab. The wind turbine industry has been plagued with gearbox failures, which cause repair costs, legal expenses, lost energy production and environmental pollution. It used to be that a shop with hustle and plenty of big, fast machines could thrive using a manual system. But no more. Today's economic environment requires more and more in the way of topnotch service and quick turnaround - which frequently means a completely integrated shop floor control system. Electroless Nickel (EN) plating, a process dating back to the 1940s, is one of the predominant metal finishing methods today. It is especially suitable for the gear industry, whose end uses span innumerable other industries, providing an endless assortment of requirements, environments, materials and specifications. EN plating has a broad array of functional features, which include: Several trends in mechanical engineering are leading to greater surface stress on components and thus to unacceptable wear. These trends include greater stresses due to increased power densities; the need to maintain high precision of components throughout their service life; and the environmental imperative to reduce use of lubricants and additives. Top Secret Code Name: Ginger Mission: Design, prototype and test a transmission for a new device. The transmission must be compact and efficient. It should have almost no backlash, and it must be able to operate in both forward and reverse. Most importantly, the transmission must be quiet. In fact, it shouldn't sound like a transmission at all. It should blend in with the environment and sound like music or the wind. This mission, should you choose to accept it, is top secret. Not even your employees can know what you're working on... Why traditional lean manufacturing approaches need to be adapted for job shop environments. Gearbox performance, reliability, total cost of ownership (energy cost), overall impact on the environment, and anticipation of additional future regulations are top-of-mind issues in the industry. Optimization of the bearing set can significantly improve gearbox performance. This paper reviews the necessity for detailed specification, design and manufacture to achieve required performance in service. The precise definition of duty rating and a thorough understanding of the environmental conditions, whether it is in a marine or industrial application, is required to predict reliable performance of a gearbox through its service life. A case study relating to complex marine gears and other general practice is presented to review the techniques used by Allen Gears to design and develop a gearbox that integrates with the requirements of the whole machinery installation. Allen Gears has considerable experience in the design of a variety of industrial and marine gears(Ref. 1,2). For a long time, relatively high noise levels have been generally accepted for industrial gear units in the 10-100 kW power range. However, due to changing environmental awareness - both in and around industrial sites - customers expectations have moved drastically towards low noise as a key differentiating factor. The cutting tool industry has undergone some serious changes in the last couple of years in both technology and the way the industry does business. The emerging technology today, as well as for the foreseeable future, is dry cutting, especially in high volume production settings. Wet cutting continues to be as popular as ever with lubrication advances making it more economical and environmentally friendly. There has also developed a process called "near dry cutting." this process offers many of the benefits of fluids while eliminating many of hte associated problems. Three years ago, coated gears seemed to be the perfect solution for the Micro Marine Corporation. The early designs for the gear drive of their MicroCAT human-powered boat used a combination of thin-film dry gear coatings with lubrication and wear-resistance properties. These coatings simplified their design, provided corrosion resistance, made the gear drive environmentally safe and eliminated the need for gear drive lubrication and maintenance. It was a success story in the making. New innovations in the management of hear treating parts washers and yielding powerful, unexpected benefits. Simply, cost effective shop floor practices are being combined in new ways to deliver big quality improvements and significant help to the bottom line. Employing these steps early in the process can dramatically cut waste hauling expenses and greatly reduce environmental liabilities while continuously producing cleaner parts. In the 1960's and early 1970's, considerable work was done to identify the various modes of damage that ended the lives of rolling element bearings. A simple summary of all the damage modes that could lead to failure is given in Table 1. In bearing applications that have insufficient or improper lubricant, or have contaminants (water, solid particles) or poor sealing, failure, such as excessive wear or vibration or corrosion, may occur, rather than contact fatigue. Usually other components in the overall system besides bearings also suffer. Over the years, builders of transmissions, axles, and gear boxes that comprise such systems have understood the need to improve the operating environment within such units, so that some system life improvements have taken place. John P. Walter and Abby Dress analyze the challenges facing America's manufacturers to remain competitive in a global environment. The NASA Lewis Research Center investigated the effect of tooth profile on the acoustic behavior of spur gears through experimental techniques. The tests were conducted by Cleveland State University (CSU) in NASA Lewis' spur gear testing apparatus. Acoustic intensity (AI) measurements of the apparatus were obtained using a Robotic Acoustic Intensity Measurement System (RAIMS). This system was developed by CSU for NASA to evaluate the usefulness of a highly automated acoustic intensity measurement tool in the reverberant environment of gear transmission test cells. The October 2011 issue of Gear Technology featured the article “Low-Distortion Heat Treatment of Transmission Components,” which covered the combination of low-pressure carburizing and high pressure gas quenching in an automotive environment. Here, heat treating expert Dan Herring explains why oil quenching is an appropriate choice for many applications. Minimizing gear losses caused by churning, windage and mesh friction is important if plant operating costs and environmental impact are to be minimized. This paper concentrates on mesh friction losses and associated scuffing risk. It describes the preliminary results from using a validated, 3-D Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Tooth Contact Analysis (TCA) program to optimize cylindrical gears for low friction losses without compromising transmission error (TE), noise and power density. Some case studies and generic procedures for minimizing losses are presented. Future development and further validation work is discussed. In today’s manufacturing environment, shorter and more efficient product development has become the norm. It is therefore important to consider every detail of the development process, with a particular emphasis on design. For green machining of gears, the most productive and important process is hobbing. In order to analyze process design for this paper, a manufacturing simulation was developed capable of calculating chip geometries and process forces based on different models. As an important tool for manufacturing technology engineers, an economic feasibility analysis is implemented as well. The aim of this paper is to show how an efficient process design—as well as an efficient process—can be designed. There are great advantages in dry hobbing, not only for friendliness toward the environment, but also for increasing productivity and for decreasing manufacturing cost. Dry hobbing, however, often causes failures in hob cutting edges or problems with the surface quality of gear tooth flanks. These difficulties are not present when hobbing with cutting oil. Pinching and crushing of generated chips between the hob cutting edge and the work gear tooth flank is considered a major cause of those problems. Recent history has taught us that global competition has become tougher and is a major concern of American gear manufacturers from abroad have invaded American markets with products designed in an environment where management of technology has been practiced effectively. If American companies intend to compete in the changing world market, they must acquire the technologies that will allow them to do so. This article deals with certain item to be taken into consideration for gear grinding, common problems that arise in gear grinding and their solutions. The discussion will be limited to jobbing or low-batch production environments, where experimental setup and testing is not possible for economic and other reasons. In this issue of Gear Technology, we are focusing on using computers to their greatest advantage in gear design and manufacturing. In a sense, that's old news. It's a cliche to suggest that computers make our work life easier and more productive. No company that wishes to remain competitive in today's global manufacturing environment can afford to be without computers in all their manifestations. We need them in the office; we need them next to our desks in place of drafting boards; we need them on the shop floor. This article discusses briefly some common manufacturing problems relating to coarse pitch gears and their suggested solutions. Most of the discussion will be limited to a low-quality production environment using universal machine tools. 8 Gear Technology advertisers will have booths at IMTS 92, the largest trade show in the Western Hemisphere. The show opens in Chicago on Sept. 9 and runs through the 17th. More than 800 companies from around the world will cover some 931,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space to show the latest manufacturing technology - everything from forming and fabrication products to environmental and plant safety equipment. Dictatorships can be stifling. In an autocratic organization, employees seldom participate in decisions that affect them. By establishing a collaborative environment, you allow everyone to play a role in making your organization a success. This article discusses an application driven approach to the computer-aided sizing of spur gear teeth. The methodology is bases on the index of tooth loading and environment of application of the gear. It employs handbook knowledge and empirical information to facilitate the design process for a novice. Results show that the approach is in agreement with the textbook data. However, this technique requires less expert knowledge to arrive at the conclusion. The methodology has been successfully implemented as a gear tooth sizing module of a parallel axis gear drive expert system. An investigation of transmission errors and bearing contact of spur, helical, and spiral bevel gears was performed. Modified tooth surfaces for these gears have been proposed in order to absorb linear transmission errors caused by gear misalignment and to localize the bearing contact. Numerical examples for spur, helical, and spiral bevel gears are presented to illustrate the behavior of the modified gear surfaces with respect to misalignment and errors of assembly. The numerical results indicate that the modified surfaces will perform with a low level of transmission error in non-ideal operating environments. The two reports referred to in this article, "The people wise Organization" and "House Divided: Views on Change from Top Management - and Their Employees," crossed our desks some weeks ago. They stimulated a fair amount of discussion here, and we hope they do the same in your offices. We welcome your responses. How do you view the corporate/competitive environment of the next few years? How do you see yourself and your company fitting in? Can these ideas work in the gear industry? Let us now what you think. News Items About environment 1 SafeTap Plus Provides Safe and Clean Working Environment (February 13, 2008) ITW Rocol recently unveiled a new water-based tapping fluid with a custom blend of synthetic additives that provide cooling properties wi... Read News 2 Hansen Opens Environmentally-Certified Plant (July 23, 2008) After investing around 180 million euros, the expanded Hansen Transmissions Lommel, Belgium factory was officially opened by Flemish Min... Read News	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24460000
Scientists at Cancer Research UK’s London Research Institute (LRI) and the Technical University of Denmark have developed an RNAi-based approach to determine paclitaxel response. Focusing on estrogen-receptor (ER)/progesterone-receptor (PR)/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2; ERBB2)-negative (triple-negative) disease, they sequentially deleted 829 genes involved in cells’ response to the chemotherapy to see which missing or faulty genes would prevent the drug from working. Their results identified six genes which, if faulty, impacted on the effectiveness of the drug in cancer cells in vitro. The team then confirmed that the same six genes in patients’ breast cancer cells could be used to predict which individuals would derive the most benefit from paclitaxel. “Our research shows it is now possible to rapidly pinpoint genes that prevent cancer cells from being destroyed by anticancer drugs and use these same genes to predict which patients will benefit from specific types of treatment,” states Charles Swanton, M.D., head of translational cancer therapeutics at the LRI. “Now the challenge is to apply these methods to other drugs in cancer medicine and to help identify new drugs within clinical trials that might benefit patients who are predicted to be unresponsive to treatment.” Details appear in The Lancet Oncology in a paper titled “Assessment of an RNA interference screen-derived mitotic and ceramide pathway metagene as a predictor of response to neoadjuvant paclitaxel for primary triple-negative breast cancer: a retrospective analysis of five clinical trials.”	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24463000
An international team has sequenced the genome of the carnivorous bladderwort plant , Utricularia gibba . Their findings suggest that the carnivorous plant has ditched virtually all its non-coding DNA, retaining a set of sequences that's almost exclusively genic. "What that says is that you can have a perfectly good multicellular plant with lots of different cells, organs, tissue types and flowers, and you can do it without the ['junk' DNA]," said co-corresponding author Victor Albert.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24466000
Swiss company aims to fly satellites into space By Ben Coxworth March 15, 2013 If you want to launch a satellite in the usual way – on top of a rocket – it will typically cost you at least US$50,000,000. Newly-inaugurated aerospace firm Swiss Space Systems (S3), however, claims that it will be able to put your small satellite into orbit for about 10.6 million bucks. Why so cheap? S3 is planning on flying satellites into space, using an airliner and an unmanned shuttle. The launch system would incorporate an Airbus A300, an existing commercial aircraft that’s already certified for zero gravity flights. Mounted on the back of the A300 would be the shuttle, and contained within it would be a satellite weighing no more than 250 kilograms (551 lbs). The airliner would take off from a designated spaceport, and release the shuttle at an altitude of 10,000 meters (32,808 feet). The shuttle would then start its engines and climb up to 80 kilometers (50 miles), at which point the satellite would be launched from its cargo bay. From there, the satellite’s upper stage engine would take it into orbit, while the shuttle would glide back down to the spaceport for reuse. According to S3, not only would its system require considerably less fuel than conventional rocket launches, but also – if need be – the launch could be called off at any point, with the shuttle returning to earth still carrying its payload. Additionally, because the A300 could take off from any runway capable of accommodating it, multiple spaceports could be established in a variety of locations around the world. This means that clients wouldn’t need to transport their satellites great distances in order to have them launched. The first of these spaceports is planned to open in the Swiss city of Payerne by 2015, with the first test launches scheduled to take place by the end of 2017. Additional ports are planned for Malaysia and Morocco, with other locations pending. Virgin Galactic is said to be working on a similar system, in which satellites would be flown to a launch altitude aboard the company’s WhiteKnightTwo aircraft. Stratolaunch Systems also has something in the works, although it will require the construction of the largest aircraft ever flown. Just enter your friends and your email address into the form below For multiple addresses, separate each with a comma	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24472000
Cable and Wireless Cable and Wireless , a British telecommunications company, of Electra House, Victoria Embankment, London, WC2. Telephone: Temple Bar 1222. Cables: "Empiregram, Estrand, London". (1947) 1869, Sir John Pender founded the Falmouth, Gibraltar and Malta Cable Co and the British-Indian Submarine Telegraph Co, which connected the Anglo-Mediterranean cable (linking Malta to Alexandria using a cable manufactured by one of Pender's companies) to Britain and India, respectively. 1870 The London to Bombay telegraph line was completed in 1870 The Eastern Telegraph Co expanded the length of its cables from 8,860 miles on its founding to 22,400 miles just 15 years later. The Company steadily took over a number of companies founded to connect the West Indies and South America, leading to a name change to The Eastern and Associated Telegraph Companies. 1928 With increasing competition from companies using radio communications it was decided to merge the communications methods of the British Empire into one operating company, initially known as the Imperial and International Communications Ltd, which would carry out these operations. The operations that were merged included the Post Office's wireless stations and its two Anglo-Canadian cables (on a 25-year lease) as well the cable and wireless operations of Eastern Telegraph Co, Western Telegraph Co, Eastern Extension Co, the Pacific and European Co, and Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Co, and 8 others, as well as interests in 18 other companies in various parts of the world. All of the shares in the new company would be held by the member companies, including Marconi Co for Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Co's interests. 1929 Public company formed: Cables and Wireless Ltd which would be the merger company, holding the interests in Eastern Telegraph Co, Western Telegraph Co, Eastern Extension Co and Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Co by exchange of shares in the merger company. 1932 The third AGM of Cables and Wireless Ltd was told the company had 3 main sources of revenue: - From the telegraph and telephone traffic of Imperial and International Communications Ltd - Profits from the manufacturing business of Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Co - Dividends received from investments in cable companies 1934 Name changed to Cable and Wireless Limited . 1945 Following the Labour Party's victory in the general elections, the government announced its intention to nationalise Cable and Wireless. While the company would remain in being as a government-owned company, continuing to own assets and operating telecommunication services outside the UK, all assets in the UK were integrated with those of the Post Office. 1947 Listed Exhibitor - British Industries Fair. The Company Operates World-Wide Commercial Telegraph Services. Oversea Telegrams and Phototelegrams for the "Via Imperial" Route are accepted at the company's Kiosk where full information and tariffs are obtainable. (Olympia, Ground Floor, Stand No. A.1003) 1947 Nationalisation was carried out. 1961 The undertaking comprised practically all telegraphic cable and wireless communication system of British Empire, with over 153,000 nautical miles, submarine cables and about 200 cable and wireless stations. 1979 the Conservative Party government, led by Margaret Thatcher, began privatising the nationalised industries, and the history as a private company made Cable and Wireless an early candidate. 1980 Privatisation was announced. 1981 Cable and Wireless privatised in November. Part of the privatisation included the granting of a licence for a UK telecommunications network, Mercury Communications Ltd, as a rival to British Telecom. 1983 Was the first company in the UK to offer an alternative telephone service to British Telecom (via subsidiary Mercury Communications). 1985 U.K. government announced sale of its remaining (22.7%) stake in Cable and Wireless. 1997 Mercury was merged with three cable operators in the UK (Videotron, Nynex, and Bell Cablemedia) and renamed Cable and Wireless Communications. The company later offered cable TV to its customers but sold its cable assets to NTL in 2000. Sources of Information - ↑ The Times, 2 July 1930 - ↑ The Times, 10 April 1929 - ↑ The Times, 22 July 1932 - ↑ The Times, 26 April 1946 - ↑ 1947 British Industries Fair p53 - ↑ 1961 Dun and Bradstreet KBE - ↑ The Times, 4 December 1985 - ↑ The Times, October 23, 1993 - Wikipedia	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24490000
Most environmental goods and services, such as clean air and water, and healthy fish and wildlife populations, are not traded in markets. Their economic value -how much people would be willing to pay for them- is not revealed in market prices. The only option for assigning monetary values to them is to rely on non-market valuation methods. Without these value estimates, these resources may be implicitly undervalued and decisions regarding their use and stewardship may not accurately reflect their true value to society. Source: GreenFacts, based on A fundamental distinction in economics is between market and non-market goods and services. Goods and Services in a free market economy are sold for prices that reflect a balance between the costs of production and what people are willing to pay. Some environmental goods and services, such as fish and seaweed, are traded in markets, thus their value can be directly observed. Conversely, a non-market good or service is something that is not bought or sold directly. Therefore, a non-market good does not have an observable monetary value. Examples of this include beach visits, wildlife viewing, or snorkeling at a coral reef. Intrinsic value - Value Español: Servicios no mercantiles de los ecosistemas Français: Valeur non marchande	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24493000
- Filed Under Flu vaccination is safe for children and adults with an egg allergy, according to new research that is especially timely in light of the current widespread flu. "The influenza vaccine is grown in chicken eggs; therefore, it contains trace amounts of egg allergen," Dr. James Sublett, chairman of the public relations committee at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, said in a college news release. "It has been long advised that children and adults with an egg allergy do not receive the vaccination; however, we now know administration is safe," Sublett said. "Children and ...	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24501000
House of Stone Saqqara - Home of the first known large stone pyramid Check out this layout of Saqqara (For full convenience, PRINT this plan) Let's take an actual look at the site: The Step Pyramid Visit The Step Pyramid RETURN TO Guardian's Egypt Main Gate Many of the unsung heroes of ancient Egypt were artisans, architects and builders. Sadly, their names have not survived the light of modern day. It was far more common for all of the attention to be left to the king, and often his family and nobility. There are a few notable exceptions and none more legendary than Imhotep. The name of Imhotep has miraculously survived, on a statue base, in Saqqara. This fortunate discovery has shed some light on one of the few ancient known architects. Although reputed to be much more than an architect, Imhotep is credited with design and execution of the Step Pyramid of Zoser. He was later hailed by the Greeks as a god and was admired for also being a physician, healer and magician. Saqqara is a huge ancient site and has many more components which will be added to this site later.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24504000
View All By First Five Books Explore the books that started a collection. Explore the Guggenheim’s 20th-century collection in this exhibition featuring 40 paintings, sculptures, and works on paper. Preview the upcoming exhibition schedule. Published in 2005 14 pages, fully illustrated Providing an introduction to the exhibition catalogue Russia!, James Billington discusses the development and culture of Russia, looking particularly at its geography, its religion, and its perplexing relationship with Western Europe. Billington provides a background on Russian icons, the Orthodox Church, the nation's architecture, the lineage of tsars, and the Soviet era. Between the birth of a popular national culture in the tsarist nineteenth century and its destruction in the Soviet twentieth century, Russia produced one of the world's most innovative explosions of artistic modernism. This extraordinarily creative period between the late 1890s and the outbreak of World War I is sometimes called the Silver Age, but is also more accurately described as the Russian Renaissance. Like the earlier Renaissance in the West, this belated "rebirth" in Russia began with the rediscovery of a forgotten ancient culture. It was radically different from either the populist realism that came before or the socialist realism that came later. Music looked back to real or imagined pre-Christian antiquity for its leap into the pioneering, discordant modernism of Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring (1912) and Sergei Prokofiev's Scythian Suite (1914–15). Painters were dazzled into pure abstraction by the restoration (newly possible) of icons that now revealed their pure lines and colors, long obscured from view by a dark overlay from candle smoke.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24505000
Storage disk with phase-change memory Posted by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 06/17/2011 09:30 AM \| 0 comment(s) ] Researchers at the University of California in San Diego have developed a prototype disk drive based on phase-change memory. Full details over here. A new type of data storage technology, called phase-change memory, has proven capable of writing some types of data faster than conventional flash based storage. The tests used a hard drive based on prototype phase-change memory chips. Disks based on solid-state, flash memory chips are increasingly used in computers and servers because they perform faster than conventional magnetic hard drives. The performance of the experimental phase-change disk drive, created by researchers at University of California San Diego, suggests that it won't be long before that technology is able to give computing devices another speed boost. "Phase-change chips are not quite ready for prime time, but if the technology continues to develop, this is what [solid state drives] will look like in the next few years," says Steve Swanson, who built the prototype, known as Onyx, with colleagues. It had a data capacity of eight gigabytes and went head-to-head with what Swanson calls a "high-end" 80 GB flash drive made for use in servers. When it came to writing small chunks of data on the order of kilobytes in size, Onyx was between 70 percent and 120 percent faster than the commercial drive. At the same time, the prototype placed significantly less computational load on the processor of the computer using it. It was also much faster at reading data than the flash drive when accessing blocks of data of any size. The kind of large volume, small read and write patterns that Onyx excelled at are a hallmark of the type of calculations involved in analyzing social networks like those of Twitter, says Swanson. However, Onyx was much slower at writing larger chunks of data than its commercially established competitor. OCZ announces RevoDrive Hybrid PCI Express (PCIe) storage solution - 08/31/2011 04:15 PM Well, it's official. We already reported about this product back at Computex and hope to receive the first samples in two maybe three weeks. OCZ Technology announced the release of the RevoDrive Hybri... eBay goes SSD and cuts storage power consumption by 78 percent - 08/04/2011 09:47 AM eBay switched 100TB of HDD-based storage to SSD and saw impressive gains in performance and power efficiency: EBay ended up replacing 100TB of HDD-based storage in a single year with the SSD-based st... WD enters SMB market with small office storage servers - 07/13/2011 09:47 AM Western Digital announced small office storage servers and has signed an OEM software agreement with Microsoft Corporation to include the Windows Thecus D0204 Portable USB 3.0 Storage Device - 07/01/2010 08:55 AM Thecus Technology is proud to announce its first portable storage device featuring the new USB 3.0 standard - the D0204. With massive storage capacity in a tiny package no larger than a paperback book... Corsair Expands Storage Line with 512 GB SSD - 02/03/2010 05:19 PM High-capacity SSDs are few in number due to the tremendous pricetage, none the less Corsair will intro a 512 GB Performance Series rather soon. Very little info is available just yet but it seems that...	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24509000
Tai Chi – Qi Gong The Chinese characters for Tai Chi Chuan can be translated as the ‘Supreme Ultimate Force’. The notion of ‘supreme ultimate’ is often associated with the Chinese concept of yin-yang, the notion that one can see a dynamic duality (male/female, active/passive, dark/light, forceful/yielding, etc.) in all things. ‘Force’ (or, more literally, ‘fist’) can be thought of here as the means or way of achieving this ying-yang, or ‘supreme-ultimate’ discipline. Tai Chi, as it is practiced in the west today, can perhaps best be thought of as a moving form of yoga and meditation combined. There are a number of so- called forms (sometimes also called ‘sets’) which consist of a sequence of movements. Many of these movements are originally derived from the martial arts (and perhaps even more ancestrally than that, from the natural movements of animals and birds) although the way they are performed in Tai Chi is slowly, softly and gracefully with smooth and even transitions between them. For many practicioners the focus in doing them is not, first and foremost, martial, but as a meditative exercise for the body. For others the combat aspects of Tai Chi are of considerable interest. In Chinese philosophy and medicine there exists the concept of ‘chi’, a vital force that animates the body. One of the avowed aims of Tai Chi is to foster the circulation of this ‘chi’ within the body, the belief being that by doing so the health and vitality of the person are enhanced. This ‘chi’ circulates in patterns that are close related to the nervous and vascular system and thus the notion is closely connected with that of the practice of acupuncture and other oriental healing arts. Another aim of Tai Chi is to foster a calm and tranquil mind, focused on the precise execution of these exercises. Learning to do them correctly provides a practical avenue for learning about such things as balance, alignment, fine-scale motor control, rhythm of movement, the genesis of movement from the body’s vital center, and so on. Thus the practice of Tai Chi can in some measure contribute to being able to better stand, walk, move, run, etc. in other spheres of life as well. Many practitioners notice benefits in terms of correcting poor postural, alignment or movement patterns which can contribute to tension or injury. Furthermore the meditative nature of the exercises is calming and relaxing in and of itself. The practical exercises of Tai Chi are also situated in a wider philosophical context of Taoism. This is a reflective, mystical Chinese tradition first associated with the scholar and mystic Lao Tsu, an older contemporary of Confucius. He wrote and taught in the province of Honan in the 6th century B.C. and authored the seminal work of Taoism, the Tao Te Ching. As a philosophy, Taoism has many elements but fundamentally it espouses a calm, reflective and mystic view of the world steeped in the beauty and tranquillity of nature. For more information LINK The effectiveness of qigong has been proven in China by its beneﬁcial impact on the health of millions of people over thousands of years. Developing the life force, or chi, is the focus of Taoism, China’s original religion/philosophy. The Taoists are the same people who brought acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, bone setting, and the yin/yang concept to the world. For most people, the ﬁrst and foremost beneﬁt of qigong lies in the relief or prevention of chronic health problems. The range of maladies that have been helped by qigong in China include cancer, internal organ ailments, poor circulation, nerve pain, back and joint problems and general physical disease. Many physical problems are at least partially due to, or aggravated by, mental or emotional stress, so the importance of the inner tranquility developed through chi gung cannot be overestimated. The practice of qigong helps manage the stress, anger, depression, morbid thoughts, and general confusion that prey on your mind when your chi is not regulated and balanced. Strengthening and balancing the energy of your mind enhances your ability to detect subtle nuances and to perceive the world and its patterns at ever-increasing levels of complexity. Qigong is also useful on the spiritual level. The ultimate aim of all inner Taoist practices is the alchemical transformation of the body, mind, and spirit, leading to union with the Tao. Feeling the energy of your body makes it possible for you to understand the energy of your thoughts and emotions, and this leads to comprehending the energy of the spirit. From here it is possible to fully understand the energy of meditation or emptiness, and through emptiness it is possible to become one with the Tao. According to Taoism, every human being contains “the three treasures”—jing (sperm/ovary energy, or the essence of the physical body), chi (energy, including the thoughts and emotions), and shen (spirit or spiritual power). Wu (emptiness) gives birth to and integrates the three treasures. The Taoists use the all-pervasive life energy as the basis of spiritual investigation. The ultimate goal, becoming one with the Tao, has been called many things, such as “enlightenment,” “meeting with the Father in Heaven,” “reaching Nirvana,” and “ultimate understanding.” Taoists feel that it is best for one to begin with the energy of the body, then progress through emotions and thoughts to spiritual power, before going for the ultimate. What is the difference between tai chi and qigong? Each answer gives a progressively more complete answer. All are only partial truths, but at least they are the most accurate answers that can be given without going into excessive detail. The accurate part of the statement is this: the invisible chi or internal power aspects included within the tai chi part of tai chi chuan derive directly from one branch of the 3,000-year-old Taoist qigong tradition, whereas Taoist qigong does not come from tai chi. However, the statement is misleading because it omits Buddhist or Confucian qigong, which have little in common with tai chi’s roots in Taoist qigong or Taoism. This answer also involves a common error in logic: since to the Western ear it sounds as if the word energy is contained in both words, they must mean the same thing. Right? Wrong! The qi or chi of qigong means energy, the chi of tai chi does not. In tai chi the chi means ‘ultimate’. To add to the confusion, the chi in tai chi and qigong are almost universally pronounced by Westerners as “chee,” which is accurate for qigong and inaccurate for tai chi (“gee”) chuan. Those who commonly both see and mispronounce tai chi as chee also tend to assume both mean the same thing, which they do not. Confusion escalates and gets reinforced when you ﬁnd out both tai chi and qigong work with chi-energy (however often in different ways) and have similar beneﬁts. Adding to the potential confusion, although many people may have heard the name, most in the West have only seen tai chi or qigong in still photos, on television, or at the cinema. When shown visually, if these arts are even named, usually narrators inaccurately call both tai chi, because they don’t know the difference. This commonly leaves the impression that qigong is tai chi or vice versa. The public subsequently has an association that slow-motion movements + Chinese something-or-other = tai chi. Consequently, the public and the media are more familiar with the name tai chi than qigong, and commonly do not make much distinction between them.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24514000
EDITORIALS & PODCASTS Barbara Glickstein's, (Public health nurse and Cofounder and Director of the Center for Health Media and Policy at Hunter College, City University of New York) interview with NPA's President Deborah Z Altschuler. The Barbara Glickstein podcast segments are part of an educational outreach project produced by Dan Gingold and Zach Kuperstein with LaShawn McGhee as editor. New Studies Validate Old Wisdom By Deborah Z. Altschuler “They use combing to validate an active infestation, quantify lice and nits by counting what the comb removes from their test subjects, as well as confirm and compare therapeutic efficacy.” The March 11, 2010 New England Journal of Medicine published a study comparing the use of a pesticide called malathion to the use of an oral antibiotic called ivermectin to determine the efficacy of each in treating children with head lice (pediculosis). http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/362/10/896 According to this report, head lice are universal human parasites affecting over 100 million people worldwide each year. The study was conducted on children who had already been treated with topical insecticides yet continued to have live lice. “Infestation was confirmed and monitored by means of fine-toothed combing.” Adverse events for the participants included gastroenteritis, nausea, vomiting, impetigo and convulsions. The ivermectin (antibiotic) comparison study was performed on children as young as 2 years of age. Earlier studies using malathion have been performed on children as young as 6 months of age. A list of various other new products for killing lice are being studied with future ivermectin trials scheduled for very young children. Study after study reminds us that none of the experimental treatments, or those already cleared by the FDA, are 100% effective against lice and nits (lice eggs). This is why the product label for pediculicides (pesticides) recommends retreatment in 7-10 days. It also reminds us that children are exposed to 2 applications of pediculicides with the purchase of one treatment. Therefore it is curious that the NEJM article offers “that in real life, the persistence of live lice one day after insecticide application strongly suggests resistance.” There are many variables to account for treatment failure. Resistance is just one of them. Remaining nits that hatch new lice is another. And while we have documented evidence of lice resistance to some of the most widely used products, it is unimaginable that physicians would choose to use a heavy hand with antibiotics when safer choices are available. Rather than take the inherent health risks of following one insecticide or chemical or prescription with another, a more rational approach would be the same method researchers rely on to account for their scientific findings. They use combing for lice and nits to validate an active infestation, quantify lice and nits by counting what the comb removes from their test subjects, as well as confirm and compare therapeutic efficacy. In fact, the development of effective combs has been a boon to clinical studies – allowing for more objective data collection. The combing method is accepted and published as an integral part of clinical trials. Perhaps with a dose of irony, the NEJM article is another example in which combing is required for research and product development. This includes a study NPA found not only promising as an important compliment to combing, but also as a much more rational non-chemical alternative to pesticides. As published in 2006 Pediatrics: “After using a louse comb to confirm infestation, one side of each participant’s scalp was combed thoroughly to remove all lice and eggs as a control. The child’s whole head was then treated, followed by a thorough combing of the non-control side of the head.” (Italics added for emphasis). http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/118/5/1962 Perhaps the greatest benefit to recent clinical studies is the way in which they offhandedly and consistently stress that “all lice and eggs” can be removed and accounted for with combing. And it’s not just about live lice as the NEJM article seems to imply. Nits must also be accounted for. Infestations are established by lice laying eggs that hatch new lice. This is their cycle of life -– their basic biology. Combing is a scientifically reliable method to remove all lice and nits – which is another way to say it can end an infestation – literally. Combing is the safest and most cost effective approach that accomplishes what chemicals cannot. It enables families to be self-reliant, proactive, and preventive. It allows for regular screening and early detection which makes the combing approach even more practical and realistic. While chemical treatments, pediculicides, and broad spectrum antibiotics develop resistance and potentially adverse health effects, nothing compares to the kindness of a comb. Deborah Z. Altschuler National Pediculosis Association The National Pediculosis Association (NPA) is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to the mission of setting the highest possible public health standards for children as it relates to the communicability and treatment of children with head lice. The NPA is comprised of volunteers including its Scientific Advisory Board. As part of its mission, the NPA developed the LiceMeister® comb and makes it available on its website www.headlice.org. All proceeds from the comb allow the NPA to maintain independence from product manufacturers and stay loyal to its mission to protect children from the misuse and abuse of pesticides for lice. By Deborah Z. Altschuler "With the exception of an occasional accolade for all the hard work that goes into being an activist, I generally find myself resenting the term." To paraphrase an old proverb, Citizen Activists will never disappoint you if you observe two rules: 1. Find out what they are; 2. Expect them to be just that. Many of us come naturally to advocacy in our role as parents. The activist in public health, however, can face a peculiar set of problems. Regarding Pediculosis, the consensus among contemporary physicians is that head lice are essentially a nuisance, leaving treatment protocols to the pharmaceutical manufacturers who market pediculicides for direct application to human skin. Although it can be a positive force, the pharmaceutical industry is not a proper guardian of children's health. This is where the activist evolves into educator, support system and collector of personal accounts - sometimes appalling - of families and individuals who have suffered from unnecessary, unsuccessful or excessive chemical treatments. The activist must do what disinterested experts will not do: investigate the origin, nature, methods and limits of knowledge in Pediculosis and its management. The activist must also seek allies - often the school nurses, occasionally the press, and sometimes (in cases where a child has suffered grievous harm), the lawyers - when there is no mechanism in place to exchange insights, experience and research. With the exception of an occasional accolade for all the hard work that goes into being an activist, I generally find myself resenting the term. Perhaps it is because of what other think an activist should be. Activists are do-gooders working "on the outside" - people whose commitment to their cause keeps them from pursuing a "real job". Here are some common perceptions: - Activists have information - Academics possess knowledge - Activists have points of view - Scientists have hypotheses - Activists have anecdotal evidence - Researchers have reports to the literature - Activists provide outreach - Specialists give consultations No matter what the cause, such perceptions can alienate the activist as a key player in providing society with what it requires in the way of a unified effort to deliver the truth - on Pediculosis-related issues or on other important matters affecting the public's health. Meanwhile, families must be enabled to make informed decisions and seek safer alternatives before using potentially harmful but readily available chemicals for lice and scabies. The age-old disease of Pediculosis isn't going away. It is the activist's particular challenge to educate the public in spite of the relative indifference to this issue on the part of the professional communities the public turns to for advice. Ultimately, the task will be accomplished when we successfully teach the "experts" what the "experts" need to be taught. That it's not about lice - it's about kids. Deborah Z. Altschuler National Pediculosis Association The National Pediculosis Association (NPA) is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to the mission of setting the highest possible public health standards for children as it relates to the communicability and treatment of children with head lice. The NPA is a volunteer organization. As part of its mission, the NPA developed the LiceMeister® comb and makes it available on its website www.headlice.org. All proceeds from the comb allow the NPA to maintain independence from product manufacturers and stay loyal to its mission to protect children from the misuse and abuse of pesticides for lice.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24520000
What is a kidney biopsy? The word biopsy comes from the Greek words bios (life) and opsis (vision) and it involves the examination of tissues removed from a living organism. A kidney (or renal) biopsy is where a small piece of tissue is taken from the kidney to be examined under a microscope. Why is kidney biopsy performed? It is performed when there are symptoms and signs of kidney disease, but it is impossible to make a precise diagnosis with the help of blood tests, X-rays or other investigations. The usual reasons for doing a renal biopsy are - large amounts of blood and protein in the urine, with impaired kidney function, - when it is uncertain whether a mass (tumour) in the kidney is cancer or not, and - to determine if there is rejection of the kidney after renal transplantation. How is a kidney biopsy performed? There are four techniques for renal biopsy: - percutaneous needle - open surgical - laparoscopic, and - transjugular biopsy. The word percutaneous means “through the skin”. Percutaneous needle biopsy is usually performed with the patient awake, while the skin over the kidney is injected with a painkiller (local anesthesia, usually lignocaine). The patient normally lies on his stomach, but in the case of a transplanted kidney he lies on his back. The kidney is visualized with ultrasound (sonar) or X-ray imaging (computerized tomography – CT) and a biopsy needle 1-2 mm in diameter is passed through the skin into the kidney. The needle has a hollow section inside, and triggering the needle takes a core of tissue 1-2 mm in diameter and 8-10 mm in length. Open renal biopsy is performed with the patient asleep (under general anaesthesia) and lying on the side opposite to the kidney that is biopsied. A cut about 10-15 cm long is made in the flank, and under direct vision a small sliver of tissue about 10 by 5 mm is cut out of the kidney. Bleeding is stopped by placing stitches into the kidney, sometimes also using a special type of gauze or glue that promotes blood clotting. Laparoscopy is done under general anaesthesia. Two small cuts 5-10 mm in diameter are made in the flank. Through one of these cuts a tubular telescope with a camera is inserted to directly visualize the kidney, and through the other an instrument (biopsy forceps) is passed. Small pieces of kidney tissue are taken with the forceps, and bleeding is stopped by burning with a laser. Transjugular biopsy is where a thin catheter is inserted into the jugular vein in the neck. The catheter is passed down into the renal vein and a biopsy needle is passed through the catheter to obtain tissue cores from the inside of the kidney. A specially trained doctor (a pathologist) examines the kidney tissues under a microscope and makes a diagnosis based on the appearance of the cells (histology). How should I prepare? The doctor should explain the whole procedure to you, including the risks and possible problems (complications), and you should be given an informed consent form to sign. You should tell the doctor if you are taking any medicines because some of them may impair the ability of your blood to clot. The doctor will usually do a blood test to determine if you have any blood clotting disorder. You should not eat or drink anything for about 6 hours before the procedure. If it is done under local anaesthesia, there will be some pain where the local anaesthetic is injected into the skin, but you will usually not feel pain when the biopsy needle is put into the kidney itself. The doctor will ask you to take a deep breath and hold your breath, so that the kidney does not move when the needle is placed into it. This usually takes 10-30 seconds, during which time you should not exhale. The doctor may take several biopsy cores, each time asking you to hold your breath. You will usually be kept in hospital for some time after the procedure to see if there are any complications. What are the risks? The main risk is bleeding from the kidney, which has a very rich blood supply. The blood may accumulate around the kidney and not be recognized until a litre or more has been lost, so it is important to have your pulse and blood pressure regularly checked for 24-48 hours after the procedure. The blood may also go down the kidney tube (ureter) to the bladder, so you may see blood in your urine. If the bleeding is severe, blood transfusion may be necessary. If the bleeding continues, it may be necessary to get special X-rays (arteriogram) to see which blood vessel in the kidney is bleeding, so that it can be plugged (embolized) with material injected into the vessel. Sometimes it is necessary to do an open operation, and in rare cases it may be necessary to remove the kidney to stop the bleeding. Infection may occur as a result of the biopsy, but this is rare. Symptoms that indicate a possible complication after kidney biopsy include bloody urine more than 24-48 hours after the procedure, inability to pass urine, increasing pain at the biopsy site, fever, dizziness or fainting. What are the limitations of the procedure? The pieces of tissue may be too small to make a definitive diagnosis under the microscope, or the biopsies may not be representative, with the result that the wrong diagnosis is made. In about 90% of cases, however, the correct diagnosis can be made and the risk of complications is comparatively small (about 5%).	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24521000
Whether it’s a dull ache or a sharp stab, back pain is among the most common of all medical problems. In any three-month period, about one-fourth of U.S. adults suffer through at least one day of back pain. Many people lump all back aches and pains together as a “bad back.” But there are actually many causes for back pain, including muscle spasms, ruptured disks, back sprains, osteoarthritis, infections, and tumors. One possible cause that rarely gets the attention it deserves is ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a form of arthritis that’s associated with long-term inflammation of the joints in the spine. If you’ve never heard of AS, you’re certainly not alone. Yet it’s more prevalent than you might think. AS is head of a family of diseases—also including psoriatic arthritis and reactive arthritis—that cause inflammation in the spine and joints. As many as 2.4 million U.S. adults have one of these diseases, according to the National Arthritis Data Workgroup. So maybe it’s time you got to know AS better. Ankylosing Spondylitis 101 AS mainly affects the spine and sacroiliac joints (places where the spine joins the pelvis). Inflammation in these areas can cause back and hip pain and stiffness. Eventually, long-lasting inflammation may lead some bones of the spine, called vertebrae, to fuse together. This makes the spine less flexible and may lead to a stooped-over posture. At times, AS also affects other joints, such as those of the knees, ankles, and feet. Inflammation in joints where the ribs attach to the spine may stiffen the ribcage. This limits how much the chest can expand, restricting how much air the lungs can hold. Occasionally, AS affects other organs, too. Some people develop inflammation of the eyes or bowel. Less often, the largest artery in the body, called the aorta, may become inflamed and enlarged. As a result, heart function may be impaired. How the Disease Progresses AS is a progressive disease, which means that it tends to get worse as time goes by. Typically, it starts with pain in the low back and hips. Unlike many kinds of back pain, however, the discomfort of AS is most severe after a rest or upon rising in the morning. Exercise often helps it feel better. Typically, the pain comes on slowly. Once the disease is established, the symptoms may go through good and bad periods. But as the years pass, the inflammation tends to move up the spine. It gradually causes greater pain and more restricted movement. The symptoms of AS vary from person to person. Here’s a look at how they might progress: As your lower spine stiffens and fuses: You can’t get close to touching your fingers to the floor when bending over from a standing position. As pain and stiffness increase: You may have trouble sleeping and be bothered by fatigue. If your ribs are affected: You may find it difficult to take a deep breath. If the disease spreads higher up your spine: You may develop a stooped-shoulder posture. If the disease reaches your upper spine: You may find it hard to extend and turn your neck. If inflammation affects your hips, knees, and ankles: You may have pain and stiffness there. If inflammation affects your feet: You may have pain at your heel or the bottom of your foot. If inflammation affects your bowel: You may develop abdominal cramps and diarrhea, sometimes with blood or mucus in the stool. If inflammation affects your eyes: You may suddenly develop eye pain, sensitivity to light, and blurred vision. See your doctor immediately for these symptoms. Without prompt treatment, eye inflammation can lead to permanent vision loss. Why Treatment Is Important There’s still no cure for AS. But treatment can ease its symptoms and may possibly keep the disease from getting worse. For most people, treatment involves taking medication, doing exercises and stretches, and practicing good posture. For severe joint damage, surgery is sometimes an option. If you’re bothered by long-term pain and stiffness in your low back and hips, don’t just write it off to having a bum back or not being 20 anymore. See your doctor. If it turns out to be AS, early treatment can make you feel more comfortable now, and it might prevent some serious problems in the future.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24524000
Folic Acid and Birth Defects For at least three decades researchers have suggested that low folic acid intake during pregnancy is related to birth defects such as spina bifida and anencephaly. Two more recent studies, one in Hungary and another in England, are even more convincing that supplementing a pregnant woman's diet with this B vitamin dramatically decreases her baby's chance of birth defects. Hungarian researchers worked with almost 5000 pregnant women. Every day half of the women received a multi vitamin and mineral tablet containing 800 micrograms of folic acid. The rest took a tablet with a minimum of nutrients and no folic acid. All the women took their tablets one month before conception and continued through their first trimester. The folic acid group had 40 percent less birth defects than the women given none of this vitamin and none of their babies with neural tube problems. There were six cases of neural tube defects among the newborns whose mothers who didn't take folic acid (13). When English investigators gave four milligrams of folic acid each day to women who had given birth to a child with a neural tube defect in the past, the results were even more pronounced. Almost three-quarters of these supplemented women delivered children free from this birth defect (14). As of last September, health officials at the Centers for Disease Control recommended that all women of childbearing age should take folic acid as a preventive measure (15). - Needleman HL, Gatsonis CA. Low-level lead exposure and the IQ of children. Journal of the American Medical Association 1990;263(5): 673-78. - Anon. Fatal pediatric poisoning from leaded paint--Wisconsin, 1990. Journal of the American Medical Association 1991;265(16): 2050-51. - Jaroff L. Controlling a childhood menace. Time 1991, February 25: 68-69. - Sibbison JB. USA: lead in soil. The Lancet 1992;339: 921-22. - Anon. Is aluminum a dementing ion? The Lancet 1992;339: 713-14. - Sherrard DJ. Aluminum--much ado about something. The New England Journal of Medicine 1991;324(8): 558-9. - Farrar G et al. Defective gallium-transferrin binding in Alzheimer disease and Down syndrome: possible mechanism for accumulation of aluminum in brain. The Lancet 1990;335: 747-50. - Rosenberg IH, Miller JW. Nutritional factors in physical and cognitive functions of elderly people. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1992;55: 1237S-43S. - Jenner FA. Vitamins in schizophrenia. The Lancet 1973, October 6: 787-88. - Foster HD. The geography of schizophrenia: possible links with selenium and calcium deficiencies, inadequate exposure to sunlight and industrialization. Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine 1988;3(3): 135-40. - Nielsen FH. Nutritional requirements for boron, silicon, vanadium, nickel, and arsenic: currently knowledge and speculation. Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 1991;5: 2661-2667. - McBride J. The making of an essential element? Agricultural Research 1989, April: 12-13. - Czeizel AE, Dudas I. Prevention of the first occurrence of neural-tube defects by periconceptional vitamin supplementation. The New England Journal of Medicine 1992;327(26): 1832-35. - MRC Vitamin Study Research Group. Prevention of neural tube defects: results of the Medical Research Council Vitamin Study 1991;338(8760): 131-37. - Cimons M. US advises folic acid use to reduce birth defects. Los Angeles Times 1992, September 15: A1 & A17.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24525000
For women with bleeding disorders (including carriers), pregnancy can be a time of heightened worry and confusion. In this issue of HemAware, we conducted e-mail interviews of two experts in the field and members of the National Hemophilia Foundation’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Council: Andra James, MD, co-director of Duke University’s Comprehensive Thrombosis and Hemostasis Center, and Amy Shapiro, MD, director of the Indiana Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center. We discussed some of the issues that most concern pregnant women with bleeding disorders. [Steps for Living: Family Planning for the Next Generation] All women with a known diagnosis should have contact with their hemophilia treatment center (HTC) during pregnancy to ensure coordinated prenatal and postpartum care. Are there any blood products or medications taken during pregnancy that might pose a risk to the baby’s health? Dr. Andra James: von Willebrand factor concentrates are derived from purified human plasma and carry the risk of virus transmission. While a small risk of virus transmission exists, no transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B or hepatitis C has occurred with any von Willebrand factor concentrates currently marketed in the United States. Parvovirus B19, however, is very difficult to eradicate despite the purification process. Parvovirus B19 can cause a mild disease (fever, rash, aches and pains) in adults, but can cause severe, life-threatening anemia in unborn babies. There is a risk that this virus could be transmitted with purified factor products and potentially harm an unborn baby. There are, however, no reports of this actually happening. Blood products such as fresh frozen plasma and cryoprecipitate are tested for known viruses, but are not purified, and may allow unknown, but potentially harmful viruses to be transmitted. DDAVP, a synthetic version of the hormone vasopressin, if required prior to a procedure, is generally thought to be safe for mother and fetus. Tranexamic acid (Cyklokapron) crosses the placenta, but has been used to treat bleeding during pregnancy in a limited number of cases without adverse fetal effects. There are limited data about aminocaproic acid (Amicar) in pregnancy, but it was not found to cause birth defects in rabbits. In one case of its use during pregnancy, there were no adverse fetal effects. Dr. Amy Shapiro: Since the data are so limited, Amicar should only be used in circumstances in which it is thought essential, and any issues should be reported to widen our knowledge base. Women with von Willebrand disease (VWD) have a tenfold greater risk of antipartum bleeding (bleeding during pregnancy). What can be done to decrease this risk? Dr. Shapiro: We usually ask patients to maintain careful observation and provide us with early notification of bleeding. In cases where there have been previous problems, or in specific types of VWD, some form of treatment may be considered. Should a woman with a bleeding disorder assume that her baby will also have a bleeding disorder? If so, what precautions should be taken during delivery? Dr. Shapiro: The inheritance of bleeding disorders depends on the specific disorder with which the woman is affected. Based upon the specific diagnosis and the mode of inheritance, the risk to the fetus can be predicted. These issues are best addressed by a knowledgeable genetic counselor (associated with some HTCs or hospitals). Are there any concerns about using epidural anesthesia? Dr. James: An epidural anesthetic provides pain relief during labor. To administer this medication, a catheter (thin tube) is placed into the epidural space, which is just outside of the dura, or wrapping, around the spinal cord; repeated or continuous doses of a local anesthetic or narcotic pain reliever are then delivered through this catheter. In contrast, a spinal anesthetic provides anesthesia for cesarean delivery. Its administration involves a single injection of a local anesthetic into the spinal fluid, which is located beneath the dura and surrounds the spinal cord. Because bleeding in the epidural space or spinal fluid could compress the spine and cause paralysis, anesthesiologists usually refrain from giving a patient with a bleeding disorder an epidural or spinal anesthetic unless her factor levels are continuously higher than 50 IU/dL. If a woman needs pain relief while in labor and does not have levels that are continuously higher than 50 IU/dL, narcotic pain relievers can be used instead of an epidural. If she requires a cesarean delivery, a general anesthetic can be used instead of a spinal. Is there a risk for head bleeds in newborns? Is that risk increased if the baby has certain factor deficiencies? What can be done to decrease this risk? Dr. Shapiro: There is a risk with hemophilia A and B that is increased in infants who are born to women who are unaware of their carrier status, or when delivery requires use of instrumentation (like forceps) or vacuum extraction. There are specific disorders in which intracranial hemorrhage (head bleeds) risk is increased, but these disorders are ones in which the mother is not affected, such as factor XIII deficiency. Bleeding disorders affecting women, such as VWD type 1, are not associated with a significant rate of intracranial bleeding in newborns, but this information is largely based upon general information rather than prospectively gathered study data. Having a premature baby is associated with an increased risk of intracranial hemorrhage—the more premature the baby, the higher the risk of head bleeds. Regular prenatal care and avoidance of risk factors known to be associated with prematurity are especially important for pregnant women with bleeding disorders and for women who will deliver an infant with a bleeding disorder. Women with VWD are five times more likely to have postpartum hemorrhage (excessive bleeding in the mother after delivery). How would a woman recognize her postpartum bleeding as abnormal? What can she do to try to decrease the risks? Dr. James: “Abnormal” bleeding is soaking through a pad in an hour and continuing for more than an hour. During pregnancy, a woman’s von Willebrand factor levels increase. Women with mild type 1 may achieve levels above 50 IU/dL, the lower limit of the normal range outside of pregnancy, and may be able to be safely managed by their obstetrician/gynecologist at their local hospital. Women with type 3 VWD, type 2 VWD, type 1 VWD with factor levels less than 50 IU/dL or a history of severe bleeding should be referred for prenatal care and delivery to a center where, in addition to access to specialists in high-risk obstetrics, there also is an HTC or a hematologist with expertise in VWD. Laboratory, pharmacy and blood bank support is essential. The most important thing women can do to try to decrease the risks of postpartum hemorrhage is to make sure they have the right doctors and the right hospital. Most postpartum hemorrhage is caused by failure of the uterus to contract or tighten after delivery. Women with bleeding disorders are particularly vulnerable to delayed postpartum hemorrhage, the type that occurs more than 24 hours after childbirth. This type of hemorrhage occurs in less than 1% of deliveries, but occurs in up to 25% of women with bleeding disorders. Normal blood clotting appears to be necessary to prevent delayed postpartum hemorrhage. If a woman is being seen by a knowledgeable physician or hematologist, every effort will be made to assure that factor levels are sufficient to prevent bleeding from tears and incisions, and to prevent delayed postpartum hemorrhage. If hemorrhage occurs, how should it be treated? Are there differences for the different types of VWD? Dr. James: Factor levels should have been corrected before delivery, so the treatment of postpartum hemorrhage should be the same as for any woman with postpartum hemorrhage. The first response is stimulating the uterus to contract. The next response is the administration of additional medications to cause the uterus to contract. In some cases, emergency surgery may be necessary to scrape the uterus (curettage), physically compress the uterus or ligate (tie off) blood vessels. Hysterectomy is a last resort and is only necessary after one in 1,000 deliveries. In the case of massive hemorrhage, treatment with blood products may be necessary. Ideally, planning for pregnancy begins before conception. Women contemplating a pregnancy should be aware that they may be at an increased risk of bleeding complications. They should be aware of their own health status before getting pregnant. Prior to conception or during pregnancy, women may want to speak with a genetic counselor regarding the inheritance of VWD and with a pediatric hematologist regarding the evaluation of the infant after delivery. Because of the possible need for transfusion during delivery, women who have not already been vaccinated should be immunized against hepatitis A and hepatitis B.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24529000
Astrocaryum acaule Mart. Palmae. Brazil. This is a palm of the Rio Negro. The fruit is edible. Astrocaryum murumura Mart. Murumura. A palm of the Brazilian forest. The fruit, according to Kunth, has an agreeable flavor and at first a scent resembling musk but afterwards that of a melon. Wallace states that the fleshy covering of the fruit is rather juicy and is eatable. Astrocaryum tucuma Mart. Upper Amazon and Rio Negro. The fleshy part of the fruit is esteemed for food by the Indians. The yellowish, fibrous pulp is eaten by the natives. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World, 1919, was edited by U. P. Hedrick.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24530000
The Curandera's Garden It is not uncommon for a Mexican to consult a curandera for spiritual healing while under a medical doctor's care. E-mail This Page to Your Friendsx A link to %this page% was e-mailed In the 15th century Florentine Codex of Aztec physicians, the healer is "well versed in herbs, who knows, through experience the roots, the trees, the stones. She keeps her secrets and traditions." The healer is clearly female. But where the Codex covers Aztec physicians, the text indicates this role applies to the male gender. Today the role of healer or "curandera" still exists in Hispanic culture. It is not uncommon for a Mexican to consult a curandera for spiritual healing while under a medical doctor's care. For the very poor with no access to modern medicine, the curandera serves both roles, blending the art of healing the mind with the administration of botanical medicines. In the Mexican neighborhoods of most Southwestern cities you'll find botanicas, which are herb stores that carry dried traditional plant cures of the curandera's trade. If she is fortunate enough to have a plot of land, the curandera would tend a garden of useful plants for her own fresh harvest. Some of these plants are quite toxic poisons, but in her training she learned the proper dosage and preparation. Many, such as morning glory and peyote, would be divination plants handed down to her from the Aztec Nahuatl traditions. The most common of these potent medicines is called 'tlapatl' in Nahuatl or 'toloache' in Spanish. It is the wild datura of the desert and Mexico. This nightshade contains serious medicine and may be the single most powerful plant in this garden. The curandera's garden would also contain New World natives and some European herbs introduced by the Spanish early on. Maguey agave is perhaps the most ubiquitous plant in Mexico because of its use in the fermentation of an alcoholic beverage known as "pulque." Its fiber is utilized for everything from scrub brushes to weaving cloth. The agave leaf was scraped and boiled to treat assorted venereal diseases The many benefits of "nopal" or prickly pear, Opuntia ficus indica, are just now coming to light in the alternative medicine community. Flat paddle-shaped stems of this plant are chopped and simmered down to a potent brew. It is the main component of treating maladies of the heart such as angina and edema. The mix is drunk on a daily basis as a preventative. The many forms of sagebrush, genus Artemisia, are known as 'ajenjo.' They include both native and European species, all of which are strongly bitter and potentially toxic. The herbs have been used in the Old World and the New to treat intestinal parasites. They also can make up a powerful antibacterial for treating infected wounds. Some very long-lived woody shrubs also fall into this curandera garden pharmacoepia. Bushy apache plume, Fallugia paradoxa, is a desert shrub known as 'ponil.' Aspirin-like qualities are found in its inner bark, much like that of aspen and willow. A strong tea of the root and bark is also used for hair-loss treatment. Bright red Ocotillo blossoms from the woody 'oqueria splendens' are boiled, and the tea used to treat sore throat and tonsillitis. The leaves of a bright yellow trumpet flowered shrubby vine, Tecoma stans, known as "tronadora," are used to treat adult diabetes. It is important to remember that these uses of plants are not medical advice or recommendations. The way each is gathered, prepared and administered can range considerably. This is folk medicine handed down verbally from curandera to apprentice, and all are combined with a strong dose of love and personal attention. The curandera's garden is beautiful because it reflects how people have helped one another for centuries. And no one can deny that when the ocotillo turns to fire and datura perfumes the night air, the Aztec gods are pleased that Nahuatl ways live on in the 21st Century. Find an excellent compendium of plants and their uses in: Los Remedios, by Michael Moore Traditional Herbal Remedies of the Southwest Red Crane Books Maureen Gilmer is a horticulturist and host of Weekend Gardening on DIY-Do It Yourself Network. For more information, visit www.moplants.com or DIYNetwork.com. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service. On Hawaii's Haleakala volcano you'll find all things lavender -- crafts, soaps and recipes. Garden designer Matt James helps a busy California executive transform her backyard eyesore into a personal refuge.(4 photos) Fitness guru Wes Cole offers valuable advice on how to keep gardening from becoming a pain in the neck -- and back and knees.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24533000
Some workers claimed they found it after they exploded the rock. No actual proof that it was imbedded. Now that we have ways to test the thing, it's gone. The Dorchester Pot was a metal vase, which was recovered in two pieces after an explosion used to break up rock at Meeting House Hill, in Dorchester, Massachusetts in 1852. According to text reprinted by Anonymous (1852) from the "Boston Transcript", a local paper, in the June 5, 1852 Scientific American, the two pieces of the Dorchester Pot were found, not in situ within local bedrock, but loose among debris thrown out by the explosion. Apparently, it was inferred from the locations of the two pieces of this pot among the explosion debris that this pot had been blasted from solid puddingstone (conglomerate), which is part of the Roxbury conglomerate, from about 15 feet below the surface of Meeting House Hill (Anonymous 1852). The bell-shaped vessel about was described as being about 4.5 inches (11.5 cm) high, 6.5 inches (16.5 cm) in diameter as the base and 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) in diameter at the top. The body of this object was said to resemble zinc alloyed with silver in color. It reportedly exhibited floral designs on its side and a wreath or vine design around its lower part, which were both inlaid with silver (Anonymous 1852). PureInsight (2006) also provides, without any attribution, a picture of an unknown object from an unknown source, which is used to illustrate what they apparently believe the Dorchester Pot looked like, as well as an age of 100,000 years. Anonymous (1852), the primary source of information about this object, provides neither any picture of nor age estimate for the Dorchester Pot. A web page created by archaeologists Keith Fitzpatrick-Matthews and James Doeser with the stated goal of examining fringe archaeology identifies the object as "clearly a candlestick of obviously Victorian style" [http://www.badarchaeology.net/data/o...orchester.php] ; they presumably base this identification on the unsourced photograph of the Dorchester Pot mentioned above.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24539000
By Roy F. Nichols Mr. Nichols, professor of history emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania, delivered this presidential address at the Hilton Hotel at Rockefeller Center, New York City, December 29, 1966. American Historical Review 72:2 (January 1967): 411-424. Forty-six years ago tonight the American Historical Association held a session such as this in the city of Washington. Upon that occasion the late Edward Channing delivered the address. As a young man he had been present at the first meeting of the Association in 1884, and, presumably, he had heard the speech delivered by Andrew D. White, the first President. As a graduate student attending my first meeting of this organization I listened to Channing in 1920. (This represents a cycle of sorts.) When President White spoke, the world, in sharp contrast to the present, seems to have been relatively quiet. England was engrossed in the Victorian Age, secure in the midst of great possessions. The unification of Germany and Italy had been accomplished. The French Republic had achieved stability. Russia had recovered somewhat from the recent shock of the assassination of an autocratic tsar, and along the Danube an Ausgleich had produced a conglomerate Dual Monarchy. At home Reconstruction had been officially accomplished, and the Grant scandals were a thing of the past. To some the only cloud on the horizon was the possibility of the election of Grover Cleveland and the return of the Democrats to power. White reflected to some extent this comparative calm when he urged his associates to contrive a philosophical synthesis of human affairs in a large, truth-loving, justice-loving spirit. He reminded his hearers in terms familiar today that, unless historians engaged in the study of general history and the d research would be barren and often worthless. When Channing spoke to his post-World War I audience, much had happened since the days of President White. The United States had become a recognized world power, the home of hitherto almost undreamed of wealth and progress. The nation had gone to war to make the world safe for democracy, and wreaths of victory bedecked the Allied standards. Channing himself was just completing his fifth volume dealing with the history of the United States from 1815 to 1848 and was deep in thought about volumes and years to come. He was particularly conscious that his native Massachusetts was beginning the commemoration of the third century of its experience, for the Mayflower had arrived just three hundred years before. Never a man of contagious optimism, Channing seemed somewhat dubious that night. He outlined the great progress that the nation had made in the last hundred years, but concluded with the question: In all this, in the evolution of the greatest industrial society that the world has ever seen, have we gained or have we lost? Are men and women to-day happier and better off, politically, spiritually, mentally, morally, and physically, than our ancestors were in the days of James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, John C. Calhoun, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and Andrew Jackson?1 I cannot recall that there was much evidence that the American Historical Association shared in these doubts and regrets; certainly Channing did not arouse any observable overt response save the hope that he might live to finish his great work. Tonight we meet not in the nation's capital, but in its great metropolis, as we again confront the task of recording, analyzing, and interpreting an age, this time nearly half a century removed from that just alluded to. As these words are written in 1966, the task of recording, analyzing, and, interpreting this different age has become a much more demanding one. When Channing spoke in 1920 we were approaching the end, had we but known it, of the Progressive Age. This age had dedicated itself to the dogma that man by taking thought could perform miracles. Disease and misgovernment seemed to be on the way to being vanquished. A great war had been brought to a triumphant conclusion, a war not only to make the world safe for democracy but to end war itself. A great League of Nations had been created to maintain all these vaunted ends. The lion and the lamb were to lie down together, and peace was to reign for a thousand years. But even in December 1920 it was evident that the lion and the lamb were not too compatible. Whether the somewhat florid Warren Harding could carry the banner of the broken Woodrow Wilson could be, and was, doubted. Perhaps Channing himself reflected something of the malaise that was increasingly apparent. He had only finished his fifth volume, and for him, too, time was running out. At the time of Channing's address the historical interest that had long prevailed in the profession was in the process of change. The long-time preoccupation with political and constitutional history was challenged by scholars holding a concept of social history represented by the editors and authors of the "History of American Life Series," and this was being reflected in a growing number of courses and dissertations in the graduate schools. Those at work in political history were aware of a novel interest displayed by some of their fellows plowing new furrows. Several varieties of specialization in fields such as economic, social, and intellectual history grew increasingly attractive, and the process of fragmentation moved on apace. The capacity to generalize suffered, and the aphorism that graduate students were learning more and more about less and less was oft repeated. Certainly political history bad lost some of its general interest. This fragmentation demonstrated a weakness and a need which, unless they were met, were bound to impair the capacity of American historians to synthesize and thus to interpret. As a political historian I was conscious both of the decline of activity in this field and of the growing lack of comprehension to which the fragmentation was contributing. Could not some unifying tendency be developed, some counterinfluence in the way of interpretation and generalization be discovered and encouraged? But fragmentation was not the only, nor was it perhaps the major, influence on a changing historiography. It was at this time that an interest in biography was attracting historians. Popularly this often included a taste for debunking, but professionally it caused scholars to become more interested in the psychiatric approach and in a more analytical study of the human beings whom they examined and portrayed. A greater realism marked the writing of the day. A third influence grew apace. The so-called behavioral disciplines were burgeoning among the social sciences, and this Association was included in the Social Science Research Council in the early days of its development. Social anthropology, social psychology, and sociology were developing interests and concepts that the historians slowly began to appreciate. This appreciation, undoubtedly hindered by semantic complications caused by the efforts of these scholars to invent a new terminology, led to what some historians might consider outlandish neologisms. Interest was developed in group dynamics, in the behavior of small groups, in mass psychology, in competition and cooperation, and in other forms of human behavior with which the historian must on occasion be concerned. The use of scientific analogies likewise continued. Certain patterns of thought developed by the natural scientists had attracted or repelled social scientists and humanists since the days of Isaac Newton and John Locke. Within the memories of many of us, historians had been looking for law, for dynamic interpretation. Edward P. Cheyney developed a concept of law in history. Henry Adams professed to see in the physicists' second law of thermodynamics the doom of man's intellect. Others pondered over concepts of relativity, uncertainty, and the immaterial nature of matter. Historians in some instances were no longer so confident that they could discover just how eigentlich things might have gewesen. During this period of fragmentation, however, the tradition of synthesis was by no means forgotten. There was a deliberate interest in continuing it and, incidentally, in arresting the chaotic influence of specialization and fragmentation upon the historian's capacity to generalize. Various efforts were made in the early years of the twentieth century to restore the desire and the power to scan wider horizons. One of these was the use of a civilization concept such as employed in different ways by Arnold Toynbee, Charles and Mary Beard, and later by William McNeill. Another very significant instrument for this purpose was the culture concept borrowed not from scholars in belles-lettres, but adopted in broader terms from social anthropologists. As I have found this cultural concept one of the most useful aids available to historians in developing the synthesis, which is one of their main responsibilities, I propose to dwell upon some of its implications for members of this Association. The term "culture" used in this sense is all-inclusive, embracing as it does all the behavior patterns employed by any given society. It also supplies the concept of a unity greater than even the sum of its definable parts. Into such a synthesis can be fitted any specialized, any personal, or any national experience. Each of us can relate his interest to any such concept of image, national character, or Gestalt that appeals to the individual's sense of the all-embracing. Viewing any specific problems in the light of such over-all interpretation supplies whatever each of us may do with a maximum of significance and interpretive meaning. There are various types of cultural definitions, but one in particular can be especially useful: namely, I believe, the design most indicative of the nature and the identity of any society. This is its plan of operation, the force or influence that organizes it and keeps within it a semblance of recognizable structure and order. In highly complicated societies this plan takes the form of government, the customs of rule, of the exercise of authority, of the structure of power. A culture therefore may be known as a democracy, an empire, a totalitarian state. Any such designation is not merely derived from constitutional institutions, but it embraces attitudes, ideas of community identification, and social as well as political relationships. The distinguishing characteristic of the society known as the United States of America is the fact that it is a democratic culture dedicated to a self-government in which all are technically involved and in which this interest is demonstrably central to the self-identification of the people. It can be used as the hallmark of the culture. This use is appropriate likewise because a basic, if not the basic, historical problem in this culture is how a society expanding so quickly in so large an area became and has remained self-governing. The study of this problem has involved me and many others in working out the process of the evolution and the operation of this culture and has also concentrated much interest on a particular phase of it, namely the stresses and strains that eventually led to the destructive social war of 1861-1865, which nearly destroyed it. This culture concept, which has dominated and determined the history of the United States, is broader and older than the boundaries of the United States would imply. It has involved consideration of the European origin of folkways and institutions. The proper definition of this broader field of analysis is the Anglo-American culture, including much that evolved in the British Isles and was transported to America. There it was transplanted and eventually matured in a new society. The employment of this very broad culture concept is extremely useful not only in overcoming the disadvantages of fragmentation but in quickening the capacity for synthesis. Likewise, it has sharpened our understanding of historical process by giving greater opportunity for more sophisticated conceptualization of certain of our historical responsibilities. Setting significant chronological limits to the study of the evolution of the Anglo-American cultural patterns shows how old many of these patterns actually are. Customs of local self-government and representative lawgiving and lawmaking processes involving the beginning of election procedures go back into the "good customs of the realm" of England, some of which originated among the British tribes and antedate history. Folkways deriving from the various invasions of Britain and from phases of the religious transformation of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries stimulated popular interest in participation in government and produced the beginnings of something like political parties. In other words, the basic patterns of community organization and self-consciousness, together with an operating power structure of self-government, were created and developed in England. During the period of the folk migration across the Atlantic Ocean that resulted in the establishment of the American colonies, these cultural patterns were transported across the sea. Consequently, much of the time there was little invention involved: the migrants took what they knew, imported it when they could, and used it with a minimum of adjustment. This process of adaptation therefore emphasized the sense of age that characterized the customs of even those in a new world. The American phase of the Anglo-American cultural evolution was separated by both time and space from the parent culture in a fashion difficult to understand in this age of television and jet propulsion. This distance and the difficulty of communication meant that the same qualities of intrepidity and enterprise that brought colonists across the sea would stimulate their long-accustomed habits of self-government to the point where they would employ another cultural pattern long in use. Not only had the British developed a habit of community self-rule and a search for consensus, but there was also a pattern of violent change in government. Regicide and revolution in some form had occurred in England about once a century from the days of the Norman Conquest, and in the seventeenth century two full-fledged revolutions, the Puritan and the Glorious Revolution, had occurred, the latter with an interesting American phase that indicated a growing jealousy of American self-governing autonomy and promised that perhaps a light weight would be assigned to European authority. The possibly inevitable rupture came at the end of the eighteenth century when, in the interesting years of the Age of Reason, American colonial leaders, impatient at certain limits imposed on their cherished autonomy, found themselves involved in violence just about a century after the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Their experience with the responsibilities and confusions of complete autonomy subsequent to 1783 led the erstwhile colonies to seek a new surrogate in place of the crown and Empire. They constructed a curiously wrought instrument that they invented probably at the only time and place where such a feat, up to this point, could have been contrived. They created a federal system in which the power structure was divided and modified by a series of checks and balances described in an unprecedented document, the Constitution of the United States. Despite their care, however, its authors did not foresee the problems involved in the choice and conduct of those exercising power, particularly executive power. The new federal republic was to have its capacity for order and definition of identity complicated by its ecology. Its area was so great, its population so scattered, and its wealth and variety so fabulous that the question began to concern the thoughtful few: could such a people so situated practice the art of self-government? Was the surrogate that was substituted for the crown adequate? The size of the republic and the variety of the ecological characteristics soon demonstrated that the so-called political federalism described in the Constitution was much more intricate than a mere political federalism. The American society was a cultural federalism, not so much a federation of political units fused into a republic as a federation of varying groups identified by attitudes, customs, and community associations and combined in a society. This variety of elements produced differences of views that in turn could be used as points of dispute and debate in the periodic elections required to determine the exercise of power decreed by the constitutions, federal and state. As the decades of the nineteenth century wore on, it became apparent that this product of the Age of Reason was not too successful in dealing with all the confusions of this rapidly growing state, and the question began to arise as to whether the confusion was not reaching a point at which it would no longer be possible for even the capacity of this self-governing society to control it and to maintain orderly self-government. Had conditions tending to disorder reached a degree at which it was no longer possible for men to control them? In 1861-1865 the outbreak of the social war seemed to indicate that such was the case--just about one century after the last appreciable outbreak of violence, the American Revolution. At the moment we happen to know much about this last episode because we have just passed through a four-year period of centennial commemoration in which many of the historical guild actively participated. And from this four-year period we have learned much about the nature of this Anglo-American culture pattern, particularly its now predominantly American phase. We have learned, or we should have learned, a great deal about the antecedents of violence and the phenomena that accompanied its outbreak. Perhaps in 1966 it may be well to make reference to some of these attendant circumstances. In the first place it is appropriate to point out what may not appear to be a truism to all of us: that we are too prone to think backward in history and to shape conclusions by what we find in the past. To use the example of 1861-1865, when the bitter war between the Union and the Confederacy was fought, it was easy to assume that this conflict between two well-defined forces must have been inevitable and have been inexorably building up during a long range of time variously defined. But the closest kind of study of the outbreak of the conflict and the antecedent years presents evidence that the dominant situation was confusion. There was not one South but several, and in the end the South presented by no means a united front in the Confederacy. And it can hardly be said that there was any North until Sumter. In fact, so great was the confusion that there were not just two alternatives, war or peace, but several. It is convenient to characterize this situation as the operation of a third force, for wherever there seems to be a convergence of two forces there are probably one or more others at work that may at any time intervene and produce a different combination. In the past this third force had on occasion been some form of compromise, and so usual had been this intervention that many in 1860 felt sure it would operate again. The confusion was too great, however, and until the last minute a variety of alternatives might have taken over. In the end I feel that a series of accidents rather than destiny, or great forces, or any deus ex machina decided the issue. Eventually, after bitter and expensive conflict, the republic righted itself--but that was a century ago. This description of the concept of American self-governing culture, which we have used in our search to overcome fragmentation and to re-establish synthesis, and of the observable tendency to periodic resorts to violence to change our patterns of self-government, not only indicates an interesting paradox, but also gives us food for thought as we ponder certain problems which today's necessities call upon us to face and which we may illustrate by asking ourselves certain questions in this year of 1966. Since that holiday season when Channing asked his questions, nearly a half century ago, many more things have changed than the fashions of history writing about which we have just been thinking. Many new conditions of life have appeared and have added much to the complexity of our task and thus to our responsibility. Now wars seem never to end, and where there is no war there may be racial tension, for a world-wide reorientation of peoples is in process. The energy of the atom has been released; population is exploding. Time and space seem no longer to be limiting concepts; man not only stands on the verge of outer space, but on occasions walks in its vastness. A mechanism is replacing the human brain in some forms of computation. We are told that the genetic code has been broken and that the universe has lost its parity and is lopsided. We are reminded that upon occasion when some basic irregularity, operating contrary to the accepted laws of the universe, has been discovered, such observation can be the prelude to significant new knowledge. A drift in the perihelion of the orbit of the planet Mercury was eventually accounted for when the general theory of relativity was formulated. With all these aberrations and incongruities may we not be on the eve of certain discoveries in human knowledge? At any rate this wide variety of new circumstances carries us far away from the days of White and Channing, and certainly into a period of new responsibility. In the light of this possible new experience we are justified in asking questions, even as Channing asked them--though they will be of a different nature. The main question that we raise is this: if we are on the verge or in the midst of certain basic changes, not only within our culture but within the cultural structure of the world, what should be the centers of our scholarly interests? Further, if we grant that there are few questions more significant than whether self-government can be maintained in the world in general and in the United States in particular, we have a closely correlated series of queries. Among today's circumstances most vigorously suggesting questions of this character are a number connected with the power situation in our self-governing culture. The desire for power has intensified in the lives of so many people. Rivalries, conflicts, tensions are everywhere and seemingly increasing. Despite our pride in our capacity for self-government, we may at times wonder whether we are keeping up. There are signs that we have a confidence in our political capacity that may have been more adequate in other times, and that we may be depending upon a changing power and status. For our security's sake do we know enough about the history of this American self-governing culture of ours, of the nature and the location of the power that is operated within it? Many calls are made upon us for the use of our power from within and without our society. And there is no certainty as to our answers to these calls. Much in fact is at stake. For if we exert too little power, we may become anarchic; if we contrive too much, we could become totalitarian. In either case we would be abandoning our basic culture pattern. Do we know enough about the evolution of our power of self-government? Can political institutions defined in the Age of Reason remain adequate in an age when reason is more in the background? Do we know enough about and do we understand the process of power choice and power change as revealed in our history? Do we understand our changing techniques of choice and decision making, of our attitudes toward the responsibilities of self-government, of the dynamics of our political emotions? Do we have adequate information about the types of people who seek political power and how they achieve it? Do we realize sufficiently the dangers involved in operating self-government in times of increasing change? Do we understand the changes and the rhythms in the exercise of the powers of self-government? Are we aware of the implications of the rhythm of our power distribution, caused by our custom of inducing an artificial crisis every four years by putting the executive and legislative power up for possible change? Do we realize that every so often confusion can increase to the point where it threatens men's understanding of and capacity to handle it, as in 1861-1865? What within the historian's range of recognition of events and behavior trends can he identify and interpret for society's benefit, because of his capacity to think in time? Our experience in 1861-1865 was that in those times there were so many signs pointing in so many directions that the observers and the analysts of that day were quite beyond their depth. Do we not have a greater capacity for observation and analysis today, and are we using it? In times such as these when there are signs of shifts in the power structure that could prove drastic, is it not essential to know the nature of the relationship between prevailing custom and the power structure? It does little good to any society to think that it is behaving as though it were independent and self-governing and then to wake up to find it is not. Finally and most important, as political change is generally determined by cultural change, have we command of sufficient skill in directing human mechanisms to make certain that we calculate and operate an efficient adjustment of political to social change so that self-government can proceed with safety? When Channing asked his questions in 1920 they were phrased in terms of achieving and maintaining human welfare and happiness. The questions we ask today are rather expressed in terms concerned about continuing efficient self-government and ensuring its survival. Having asked these questions, how well equipped are we to answer them? To do so, we need more than a skill at simple narrative. These complex times demand sophisticated analyses that will place new obligations upon us to develop our intellectual potential. Do we have it at our command? We have a much more formidable foundation of fact at our disposal upon which to erect a structure of interpretation and synthesis. So many more historical facts are now available. We know about many more individuals and types of individuals. Much more information has been collected by statistical techniques. The behavioral sciences have mobilized much knowledge about human behavior. Advances in the natural sciences are again tempting the historian into the alluring realms of Geisteswissenschaft as he dreams of discovering genetic codes shaping the destiny of societies and wonders about the effects of living in a universe that has lost its parity, in an age sometimes called absurd. Not only have we many more facts at our command, real or fancied, but there is new equipment in the realm of gadgets. We are entering the years of the computer. Now million-dollar machines are housed in computer centers and tended by programmers. It is too soon to be very dogmatic about how useful this type of automation may be, but historians are so far behind in their reporting and analysis that we must investigate to the best of our ability its potential as an instrument of historical retrieval and conceptual discovery. We are so frustrated for want of a break-through that no device should go untried. Meanwhile, we must not forget that we can experiment with certain fresh concepts, new patterns of thought. Individual scholars should be concerned with much greater spans of time. Evolution is an extremely slow process. Its slow-moving changes involve much more of adaptation than innovation. There are much less orderly process and much more haphazard confusion in human behavior. There is a greater variety of alternative action possible in even the simplest program set by determining forces. In fact, there are much less determinism and a higher frequency of accident in the processes of change. Historians, fortunately, not only have these data, these instruments, and these concepts, but a growing number of scholars are using them. Within the last few years there has been a veritable renaissance in the study of this principal element in the American self-governing culture, namely the power structure and its fluctuation. Numerous studies encouraged by the Social Science Research Council and its committees, supported by foundation grants, are being carried out at the Harvard Center for the Study of the History of Liberty in America, at the University of Michigan Consortium, at California, at Illinois, at Rutgers, and at the University of Pennsylvania, and elsewhere. These projects are much more comprehensive in type than the more narrowly defined political and constitutional history studies current at the beginning of the century. Much attention is paid to the manifold influences and subtle character of the determinants of this basic behavior. Research of this type is contributing much to our ability to answer the questions we are raising in 1966. While we enjoy advantages such as these to aid us in answering the questions we are now raising, we should, nevertheless, be aware that we are not doing all that we should to prepare the next generation to use such advantage in the quest. We may advisedly give more thought to the educational policies and programs of our graduate schools, particularly at a time when so many new such schools seem to be springing into being. More than a century ago we took over the Ph.D. program from the German university system almost without thought and with little adaptation, and we have too long avoided its reconsideration. Our current Ph.D. training often falls between two stools. It might be a degree in course, such as a law school degree, or it might be an adventure in freedom, wherein, after an experience of discovery, the student presents his results for evaluation and judgment. The program that we usually follow, however, can well be a tertium quid. Herein a certain number of requirements are set, exercises prescribed, and examinations administered. Undue emphasis is placed on the learning process--learning under observation, and surveillance if you will. There is too little opportunity to fashion concepts of the history of human behavior in the form of problems that must be formulated, analyzed, and understood. In these days of increasing enrollments in graduate schools, numbers seem to enforce a formalized program that can be administered almost by tabulation without very much individual attention. To the gifted this often means a degree that provides less than it should; to a considerable number it may mean a degree more prestigious than they deserve. Graduate faculties may well ask themselves if there should not be two degrees so that in one of them there may be real opportunity to develop more elements of sophisticated analysis, such as are suggested by these questions, while the other should concentrate upon methodology and practice both in teaching and research. Also I think graduate faculties may well expand their thinking into the realms of postdoctoral facilities in universities. There should be more opportunities available to scholars who have been teaching for a while to come back to the university for a few weeks or for a term or two to study intensively new techniques and new findings and to engage in colloquia on current problems in historiography. Here there would be new acquaintances and new ideas, new dialogues designed to disseminate the fruits of wider experience and increased maturity in a university environment. The use of these various instruments just considered in our efforts to answer the questions we have raised should give us a sense of our increased intellectual capacity developed during the life of this Association. We are peers in the realm of the mind. We have a discipline and a series of unique functions of our own. These instruments of analysis, these forms of thought are our own, and we owe them to none but ourselves. Other scholars have neither devised them nor used them with any common degree of frequency. An interesting commentary is the observation that historians themselves do not use them as they might. They fail often to recognize their own philosophic strength or to achieve their intellectual potential. They have a tendency to depend upon their colleagues in other disciplines for instruments and patterns of thought. Yet they have their own intellectual birthright, an autonomy they should never forget. Our too common dependence upon others we may ascribe to our folklore about history. To so many history is just a story of the good and the bad, of the great and the small. In school it is something to be learned at the expense of loss of interest in the story. In graduate years it becomes an exercise in the higher criticism of sources, a carefully organized narrative based upon tested facts. And for so many that is all that it ever is, and life may be spent in producing a series of doctoral dissertations, each more careful and perhaps more specialized in a narrow field than the last. To a certain extent this is highly commendable, for the historian who can put a good narrative in literary form based upon a comprehensive survey of the sources and an accurate recording of facts has indeed done much. But we can and should do more, and it is unfortunate that we do not. Simple, specialized narratives of limited national experience, though they produce much of interest, do not give the historian free play for the wide use of his mind or the development of his intellectual potential. The historian often stops too soon. His life can be, and I believe should be, one of growing capacity to discover, understand, and communicate satisfying analyses of human behavior, and not, as too often happens, a temptation to abdicate his most meaningful function. The historian should furthermore use his wisdom and his imagination to advance hypotheses, to project himself beyond his tested data and conclusions based thereon, and to establish advanced positions in the world of research, even at the risk of having to admit on occasion that he may be wrong. As in so much of prime significance for human existence, ingenuity, daring, and cultivated strength are major essentials. As we seek the answers to these questions of 1966, we as historians are dependent on no one for our philosophical instruments; as we think in time we devise our own, and by their use we can experience the past, reconstructed and relived in our own consciousness. We owe it to ourselves, therefore, to use these instruments of our own invention in an original fashion, confident that thereby we can discover truth perhaps obscure to others. If we do this to the extent of which we are capable, we may provide the knowledge indispensable for the successful continuance of our culture. A half century ago Channing asked his troubled questions in terms of the possibility of progress; today we ask them in terms of the possibility of survival. If we are to answer these questions with any degree of success, we must recognize that we have an intellectual capacity of our own, not fully realized, which we can develop. To do so we must declare our philosophical independence and raise the standard of our own intellectual identity. Roy F. Nichols 1. Edward Channing, "An Historical Retrospect," American Historical Review, XXVI (Jan. 1921), 202. [back to text] Text scanning: JSTOR Text proofing and correction: Liz Townsend 8/1/00 Text encoding and annotation: Robert Townsend 1/15/01 Version © 2001, American Historical Association	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24540000
Johns Hopkins Medicine Office of Communications and Public Affairs Media Contact: Joanna Downer April 22, 2004 GENOME-WIDE SCREEN REVEALS NEW TRICKS OF OLD GENES Process Shows How Mounds of Data Can Be Effectively Managed Johns Hopkins scientists have successfully used new techniques to search the yeast genome for genes that help keep copied chromosomes together, protecting the integrity of the organism's genetic material during cell division. By combining two genome-wide screens, the researchers were able to narrow down the dozens of genes identified by the first screen to just 17 that made both cut-offs -- a number small enough to be cost- and time-efficient to consider in some detail. Their report appears in the April issue of Molecular Biology of the Cell. "Data created from new genome-scanning techniques can be overwhelming. Reading all there is to know about 50 genes to figure out what new knowledge may be lurking in the haystack is very difficult," says Forrest Spencer, Ph.D., associate professor in Hopkins' McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine. "But by overlapping information from two screens, we were able to figure out what Mother Nature was trying to tell us that wasn't too complicated for us to understand." While the researchers had hoped their screens would reveal new genes and their functions, they instead identified genes previously linked to two other aspects of shepherding genetic material during cell division. Fifteen of the highlighted genes were already known to help ensure the accuracy of copied DNA and two help move chromosomes to opposite ends of the dividing cell. But the researchers' results give these "old" genes new jobs, associating them with cohesion, the little-understood process of keeping a chromosome and its copy together until the cell is ready to split in two. If the "sister" chromosomes aren't kept together, both copies could end up on one side of the dividing cell. Another problem is that the copies could undergo extra rearrangements, risking loss of important genes. "If there's no cohesion, the cell will die," says Spencer. "However, if the process sometimes works and sometimes doesn't, some cells survive but their genetic material gets scrambled." It's that sometimes-yes-sometimes-no problem that Spencer and her team are trying to figure out, in part because it's interesting biology, but also because genetic instability plays such a big role in the development of cancer in humans. No one knows exactly at what point errors enter the genetic material and aren't fixed, but the intricacies of chromosomes' manipulation during cell division seem a good place to start. Postdoctoral fellow Cheryl Warren, Ph.D., started the search by screening 5,916 yeast genes -- all at once -- for ones needed for survival in the absence of a gene called ctf4, already known to be a critical component of cohesion. Twenty-six genes popped out of this screen, a type known as "synthetic lethal" since the yeast survive the loss of either one, but not both, genes. However, the synthetic lethal effect of some, if not many, of the genes from this screen would be due to problems other than faulty cohesion, the researchers knew. "We had to do something else to get a manageable starting point," says Warren. So, using a technique she developed to identify whether a gene's loss causes the genetic material to become scrambled, Warren tested those 26 genes to see which of them seemed most likely to contribute to genetic instability through their involvement in cohesion. In these experiments, markers were scattered throughout the yeast's genetic material so she could easily tell if pieces of the genome moved or went missing when a gene was knocked out. Only 17 of the 26 identified genes caused genetic instability when missing from the yeast genome. Fifteen of those genes are involved in double-checking whether newly formed strands of DNA matched the cell's original genetic material and calling in "repairmen" as needed (a process called the "S-phase checkpoint"). The other two genes are part of the machinery previously known to help move the two sets of chromosomes to opposite sides of the dividing cell. "By using both screens, we got a number that was small enough to follow-up on, and yet large enough to reveal a trend," says Warren. "This is the first evidence that proteins involved in checking the DNA sequence are also involved in keeping sister chromosomes together, and it's a great starting point for understanding more." The research was funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute, the National Institute for General Medical Sciences, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, all components of the National Institutes of Health. Authors on the report are Warren, Spencer, Mark Eckley, Marina Lee, Joseph Hanna, Adam Hughes, Brian Peyser and Chunfa Jie of the McKusick-Nathans Institute; and Rafael Irizarry of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. On the Web:	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24551000
Anatomy and Function of the Heart's Electrical System Click Image to Enlarge The heart's electrical system The heart is, in the simplest terms, a pump made up of muscle tissue. Like all pumps, the heart requires a source of energy and oxygen in order to function. The heart's pumping action is regulated by an electrical conduction system that coordinates the contraction of the various chambers of the heart. How does the heart beat? An electrical stimulus is generated by the sinus node (also called the sinoatrial node, or SA node). This is a small mass of specialized tissue located in the right atrium (right upper chamber) of the heart. The sinus node generates an electrical stimulus regularly (60 to 100 times per minute under normal conditions). The atria are then activated. The electrical stimulus travels down through the conduction pathways (similar to the way electricity flows through power lines from the power plant to your house) and causes the heart's ventricles to contract and pump out blood. The right and left atria (the two upper chambers of the heart) are stimulated first and contract for a short period of time before the right and left ventricles (the two lower chambers of the heart). The electrical impulse travels from the sinus node to the atrioventricular node (also called AV node). There, impulses are slowed down for a very short period, then continue down the conduction pathway via the bundle of His into the ventricles. The bundle of His divides into right and left pathways to provide electrical stimulation to the right and left ventricles. Normally at rest, as the electrical impulse moves through the heart, the heart contracts about 60 to 100 times a minute, depending on a person's age. Each contraction of the ventricles represents one heartbeat. The atria contract a fraction of a second before the ventricles so their blood empties into the ventricles before the ventricles contract.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24552000
The student's eyes drift to the classroom window and the teacher's voice fades from consciousness. The daydream begins. It's a familiar scene, one we have likely both experienced as students and struggled against in our students as teachers. But daydreaming is not what it might seem. Recent research in both psychology and neuroscience makes clear that daydreaming is an essential part of mental processing, reasoning and, yes, even learning. 1. Daydreaming is the Mind's Natural State The most common view of the human mind assumes that our normal way of thinking consists of concentrated focus upon immediate tasks at hand. But researchers have found that this is not the case. Daydreaming is now considered to be the normal state of our minds, with focus appearing as a break from the more common mind wandering. A recent study has found that our mind wanders forty seven percent of the time we are awake with very few activities not equally peppered with natural periods of daydreaming. Another study has shown that the parts of the brain stimulated during daydreaming consist of the "default network" regions of the brain that are associated with most higher level mental activity. This suggests that we have evolved specifically to be a daydreaming species. It is even more telling that those who suffer injuries to the region of the brain in which daydreaming occurs suffer from a lack of spontaneous speech and thought. The fact that daydreaming is the natural state of the human brain suggests that those who take most naturally to daydreaming will best exhibit the skills necessary for successfully navigating the human world. Far from representing a lack of discipline, daydreaming is a hallmark of a healthy and active human mind. 2. Critical Thinking and Intelligence Aside from the "default network", one of the main regions of brain used during daydreaming consists of the "executive network", the region of the brain associated with complex problem solving. Before this was revealed, for example through the 2009 study at the University of British Columbia, it was commonly thought that the "executive network" was only active during focused problem solving. As this study suggests, a healthy amount of daydreaming is connected to improved critical thinking capabilities, an invaluable characteristic in successful learners. It has also been shown that daydreaming is dramatically more present in those considered to be of superior intelligence when compared with learners of average intelligence. One study suggests that the improved integration of the default and executive networks developed through their continual exercise through daydreaming significantly contributes to the formation of increased intelligence. It's a truism that our "dreams", by which we usually mean our goals and desires, provide motivation in life. What is less recognized, however, is the central role played by the process of daydreaming in envisioning and imaginatively experiencing the lives we wish to lead and people we want to become. Our goals and desires are what they are because we have spent time freely living through our daydreams what it would be like to achieve them. For these reasons, daydreaming in learners is related to higher levels of ambition and a deeper sense of motivation. Freely imagining "what you would do if..." is far from idle. Having envisioned scenarios and played out possible events gives us an increasing sense that we can handle them. In this way the imaginative anticipation that often occurs in daydreaming contributes as much to a robust sense of confidence as it does to a healthy motivation. Think about it this way, daydreaming is a training ground for your mind where it plays through and sometimes struggles with scenarios it has not experienced or wants to react differently to in the future. Though successful training certainly doesn't guarantee success during the real event, it does provide a mental preparedness and a firm sense that no matter what may occur we can deal with it. For this reason some of the most confident learners are also those with the healthiest daydreaming lives. 5. Increased Insight Did you ever wonder what causes that moment of insight when something suddenly clicks or a solution becomes clear? The answer is a lot of hard work on the part of your brain that goes unnoticed. Moments of insight, those sudden revelations that seem to come from nowhere, are long prepared for through the brain's ongoing hidden organizing and processing. Daydreaming, as a mental state activating both the default and executive networks of the brain, plays an important role in that organizing and processing. What you may think is just your mind drifting is actually your mind actively forming connections between information, synthesizing what was previously only chaos, and preparing the ground for the moment when things suddenly fit into place. Once we appreciate this we see that daydreaming is just as productive as spending an hour working on a difficult math problem. Recent work has shown that spending less time on the problem and more time letting our mind wander could contribute to getting the answer faster. Benjamin Baird and Jonathan Schooler at the University of California at Santa Barbara have shown, as discussed in an article in The New Yorker, that spending time daydreaming after first being given a task leads to more insightful responses to the task than focus and concentration do. In his book Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Malcolm Gladwell discusses the phenomenon of "thin-slicing", the mind's jumping to conclusions based on surprisingly little information. Despite what we tend to assume, Gladwell demonstrates that jumping to conclusions based on limited information is often statistically the most reliable way to arrive at the right decision. For example, Cook County Hospital changed the way it diagnoses heart attacks to focus on less information. Here is how Gladwell describes this part of the book on his website: "They instructed their doctors to gather less information on their patients: they encouraged them to zero in on just a few critical pieces of information about patients suffering from chest pain-like blood pressure and the ECG-while ignoring everything else, like the patient's age and weight and medical history. And what happened? Cook County is now one of the best places in the United States at diagnosing chest pain." The key point about thin-slicing is that its effectiveness depends upon two factors. Knowledge, especially when derived from experience, and mental integration that allows for swift access to the knowledge and experience we have gained. If we return to our image of daydreaming as the training ground of the mind, the increased integration it imposes on knowledge and experience we have collected improves our ability to successfully jump to conclusions based on little information. It makes us more successful thin-slicers and improves our split-second decision making. 7. Improved Problem Solving What is problem solving? From what we have already said we might suggest it is an effective use of the default and executive networks of the brain resulting in increased intelligence, critical thinking, insight and thin-slicing. The argument that the integration of default and executive networks results in improved problem solving is offered by the author of Daydreams at Work: Wake Up Your Creative Powers, Amy Fries, in an article at Psychology Today: "...your mind-wandering capacity is like that computer program-it can get to solutions that your conscious mind just can't see." In general daydreaming makes us better thinkers. Being better thinkers makes us better learners. The traditional view of daydreaming understands it as a form of escapism. We are unhappy or uninterested in where we are and so imagine we are somewhere else. It is important, this view assumes, to resist this escapist urge and instead cope with the world as it is. It turns out, however, that daydreaming is itself a central element of our mental coping mechanisms. As already mentioned, daydreaming provides the brain with the exercise course where it can secretly play out different solutions to problems. More than this, however, those precious daydreaming moments allow us the conscious rest necessary to face difficult tasks or situations with a fresh mind. Yet, during these seeming moments of rest, the brain is still hard at work beneath the surface organizing potential responses without the generally awkward interference of conscious thought. Researchers such as Eric Klinger have shown that children who weave an imaginative story around their play are likely to be happier at play and to play longer. It is easy to generalize this point to adults as well, the ability to tell ourselves imaginative stories about the world and our own lives through daydreaming makes even the tedious or downright painful parts of our life more enjoyable. In learning the ability to cope with challenging, frustrating or boring tasks is a key ingredient for success. 9. Mental Elasticity Coping is a key element of mental elasticity, the ability to shift our thought and behavior smoothly in response to changing situations and information. Daydreaming, as the practice ground for mental processing, greatly increases the mind's ability to smoothly shift in the face of unanticipated events and situations. So while daydreaming clearly contributes to organizing information and experience we have already learned, making the learned material more useful by improving our ability to apply it, it also enhances our response time in the face of the unexpected. Recent research has shown that children with a healthy amount of empty play time, i.e. play time not directed through specific games or spent watching television, display a greater amount of creativity. Those, on the other hand, who tended to turn to entertainments such as television when bored were unable to invent interesting stories. The time spent daydreaming during imaginative play is a practice period for creative invention. The neuroscience of this should be clear when one considers the similarity between problem-solving and creativity in general. Those parts of the brain used during creative problem solving are also used during daydreaming. Concentration, while certainly important in both education and life, is not something we can increase simply through hard work, practice or will. The brain, much like a muscle, can indeed be improved but there is a limit to how far it can be developed. The fact that we are a daydreaming species and that daydreaming is the natural state of the human mind points to the artificiality of the mental states associated with extended concentration. What is becoming clearer is that concentration is not as simple as one might think. Rather, what appears to be the ability to continually concentrate on one problem or subject is looking more like a complex play involving using daydreaming rest periods, even surprisingly brief breaks, in a way that refreshes our ability to concentrate. Consider daydreaming like taking a power nap. Even a half-minute spent briefly relaxing control upon the mind can improve a learner's concentration immediately after this break. 12. Increased Short Term Productivity Even as concentration works best interspersed with brief, and some times longer, moments of daydreaming "rest" during which the mind synthesizes what has been gained, so too does productivity in general go up when it is demanded in smaller bursts and peppered with healthy moments of daydreaming. This is nowhere demonstrated as clearly as through the highly successful Pomodoro Technique for time management. This technique employs a timer and breaks productive work into twenty-five minutes segments with a short five-minute break between each segment of work. After four such segments of work and breaks you take a longer break of fifteen minutes. This technique's surprising ability to increase productivity depends upon the mind's limited power of concentration with moments of daydreaming rest needed between periods of increased mental control. What it suggests is that teachers would do well, not only to appreciate the importance of daydreaming for successful learners, but even to organize lessons so as to actively encourage short breaks for daydreaming. 13. Connection to Class Material Learning is nearly impossible if students do not feel connected to the material they are learning. Students have to care about what they learn to be the most successful learners. This connection to the material involves imaginatively playing with the material through which students rearrange and experiment while finding ways to connect it to their wider concerns, life, and fantasies. For this reason students who actively daydream, especially when they are encouraged to incorporate class material into their daydreams in whatever way they like, are much more successful learners. 14. Increased Empathy and Emotional Intelligence One of the most important skills for people in general, let alone learners, is what we might call the "moral imagination". The moral imagination is the ability to think oneself into another person's shoes, to imagine what it would be like to be them. This skill is necessary if one is to expand one's sense of sympathy and empathy, but it is also a key element in problem-solving and reading comprehension. If a student is to understand a text or solve a problem what is required is creatively putting themselves in the place of the characters in the text, or in the sphere of life that most naturally relates to the problem to be solved. For this reason emotional intelligence, the ability to have a varied and complex emotional life through engagement with and response to the emotions of others, is a central if unexpected element of all mental processing and learning. It is just this ability to imagine our way out of our own situation and into that of another that daydreaming develops and encourages. For this reason not only are daydreamers more empathetic and emotionally open people, they are also better at comprehending literary and historical texts. 15. Improved Self-Knowledge Since the time of Socrates it has been thought that coming to know ourselves is both a major goal and the foundation of all truly successful learning. We can think about daydreaming as carrying out a dialogue with ourselves. In contrast, watching television or playing video games primarily involves an external exploration or dialogue, one that can involve learning but doesn't often involve reflective self-discovery. If we are to be successful learners we need to have a robust sense of our interests, our goals and the talents or skills we wish to have. This intimately involves the imaginative self-exploration only a healthy daydreaming life can provide. Clearing out distractions and allowing time for reflective thought is a great way to tap into your creativity. <a href="http://zenhabits.net/creative-habit/">Being alone with your thoughts</a> is oftentimes a prerequisite for the kind of outside-the-box that's necessary for artistic expression. Although loneliness can be a contributing cause of depression, <a href="http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1131927?uid=3739936&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21101521304683">studies have found </a>that time spent in solitude can actually ward off depression in adolescents. A 1997 study found that although teens didn't describe solitude as a positive experience, many reported increased feelings of well-being afterwards. When you're away from people, technology, work and the myriad distractions of everyday life, you can finally take time to breathe and just be. Use your alone time as a chance to clear out your cluttered mind and just get back in touch with yourself. It's tough to stop and take stock when you're constantly on the go and spending time with friends, family or classmates. Taking a little "me" time gives you an opportunity to get away from distractions for long enough to reflect on your relationships and the course of your life so that you can determine what changes, if any, you may want to make. Once you become more comfortable with the idea of being alone, doing activities like shopping, seeing a movie, or hiking by yourself can actually be enjoyable. You can do whatever<em> you </em>want without having to adhere to anyone's preferences, schedule or expectations. You might discover that spending at least one afternoon or evening per week on your own doing something you love can be totally relaxing and liberating. Learning to enjoy the time you spend alone can help you to build a better relationship with yourself. Voluntary solitude is a great way to get back in touch with your feelings and remember all the things that make you awesome. If you want to feel more confident and self-sufficient, first tackle your fear of being alone. Time spent in solitary reflection has been linked to <a href="http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/high-octane-women/201201/6-reasons-you-should-spend-more-time-alone">improved concentration</a>, as well as higher levels of academic performance. In their book "Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses," authors and sociology professors Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa <a href="http://www.bucknell.edu/x67495.xml">find that students who study alone</a> are more apt to succeed and retain knowledge than those who study in groups. Follow William Koch on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inform_ed	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24562000
Gender Distribution of Advanced Degrees in the Humanities NOTE TO READERS: Please include the following reference when citing data from this page: "American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Humanities Indicators, Updated (3/11/2013) with data for academic year 2010 (July 1, 2009–June 30, 2010). Note on the Data Used to Construct Degree-Related Indicators Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees. Although master’s degrees in the humanities were awarded somewhat more often to men than women in the mid-1960s, by 1970 gender parity had been achieved. Women subsequently went on to become the majority of humanities master’s recipients, garnering 60% of all degrees awarded in 2010 (a slight decline from 2004’s record high of 62%; Figure II-13a). In 2010, only education/social service professions and the health sciences awarded a substantially greater percentage of master’s degrees to women than did the humanities. Business, engineering, law, and physical sciences awarded considerably smaller shares. At the master’s level, as at the bachelor's, the percentage of humanities degrees awarded to women has traditionally been higher than that for all fields combined, although the gap narrowed steadily over time, almost disappearing in the early years of the new century. In the mid-1960s, the humanities, like all other academic disciplines, awarded only a small minority of doctoral degrees to women. Though they fared better in the humanities than in nearly all other fields, women still received only 19% of humanities doctorates at that time (Figure II-13b). Throughout the 1970s, however, this percentage increased steadily, and by the mid-1980s women represented approximately 45% of all new humanities doctoral degree recipients. As the 1980s continued, growth of women’s share of humanities degrees slowed, and gender parity was not reached until the mid-1990s. Thereafter, doctoral degrees continued to be distributed quite evenly between men and women, in contrast to the lower degree levels where the share of female degree recipients continued to grow. Nonetheless, the percentage of humanities doctorates awarded to women has traditionally been greater than that for all fields combined. By the mid-2000s, however, the situation was similar to that at the master’s level: the share of humanities doctorates awarded to women was approximately the same as that for all fields considered together. (For information regarding the gender distribution of advanced degree completions in particular humanities disciplines, please see Part II, Section C, Undergraduate and Graduate Degree Information for Specific Humanities Disciplines). Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees According to the National Center for Education Statistics’ (NCES) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) Glossary, master’s degrees are “awards that require the successful completion of a program of study of at least the full-time equivalent of 1 academic year, but not more than 2 academic years of work beyond the bachelor’s The NCES, which collects the degree completion data presented as part of the Humanities Indicators, defines first professional degrees as those awards that require completion of a program that meets all the following criteria: (1) completion of the academic requirements to begin practice in a profession; (2) at least two years of college work prior to entering the program; and (3) a total of at least six academic years of college work to complete the degree program, including prior required college work plus the length of the professional program itself. According to NCES, the following ten fields award first professional degrees: Chiropractic (D.C. or D.C.M.) Although some fields (e.g., library science, hospital administration, and social work) require specialized degrees for employment at the professional level, NCES does not count degrees in these fields as first professional degrees; instead, they are treated as master’s degrees. Dentistry (D.D.S. or D.M.D.) Law (LL.B. or J.D.) Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) Podiatry (D.P.M., D.P., or Pod.D.) Theology (M.Div., M.H.L., B.D., or Ordination) Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M. or V.M.D.) Whereas all doctorates had previously been included in a single category, for academic years 2008–2009 and 2009–2010 NCES gave schools the option of employing a new classification system that distinguishes among three types of doctoral degrees: Research/Scholarship—A Ph.D. or other doctoral degree that requires advanced work beyond the master’s level, including the preparation and defense of a dissertation based on original research, or the planning and execution of an original project demonstrating scholarly achievement; Schools could classify certain degrees that had historically been treated as first professional degrees as either “Professional Practice” doctoral degrees (as in the case of medical degrees, for example) or master’s degrees (as in the case of advanced, nondoctoral degrees in theology). Professional Practice—A doctoral degree conferred upon completion of a program providing the knowledge and skills for the recognition, credentialing, or licensing required for professional practice; or Other—A doctoral degree that does not meet the definition of the research/scholarship or professional practice doctorate. To ensure comparability with previous years, for 2007–2008 and 2008–2009 the Humanities Indicators counted as doctorates all of those degrees classified by postsecondary institutions as “Doctorate Degree,” “Doctorate Degree—Research/Scholarship,” or “Doctorate Degree—Other.” The HI treated as “master’s and professional degrees” those degrees classified by schools as “Doctorate Degree—Professional Practice,” “First Professional Degree,” or “Master’s Degree.” For academic year 2010–2011, NCES eliminated the “first professional degree” category. The agency now requires schools to use the three-category system described above to classify all advanced degrees other than master’s degrees. Back to Content Note on the Data Used to Construct Degree-Related Indicators The data that form the basis of these indicators are drawn from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics’ (NCES) Higher Education General Information System (HEGIS) and its successor, the Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System (IPEDS), through which institutions of higher learning report on the numbers and characteristics of students completing degree programs (as well as a variety of other topics; for more on this major data collection program, see http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/). The HEGIS/IPEDS degree-completion data going back to 1966 have been made accessible to decision-makers, researchers, and the general public by the National Science Foundation (NSF) via its online data analysis tool WebCASPAR. The NSF has traditionally used the NCES data to tabulate science and engineering degree awards as part of Science and Engineering Indicators Program, which since 1973 has issued a biennial report designed to provide public and private policymakers with a broad base of quantitative information about the U.S. science, engineering, and technology enterprise. The NSF has developed a set of standardized disciplinary categories that can be used across the various data sources it relies upon to construct its indicators. Because the NSF focuses on trends in science and engineering education, its disciplinary classification is most detailed in these areas. The utility of the NSF system for the purposes of the Humanities Indicators (HI) is limited. For example, the NSF scheme does not distinguish between the academic study of the arts, considered by the HI to be part of the humanities, and art performance. The HI thus cannot include in its tally those degrees conferred in the areas of musicology, art history, film studies, and drama history/criticism. Moreover, while the HI considers such disciplines as archeology, women’s studies, gay and lesbian studies, and Holocaust studies to be part of the humanities field, NSF categorizes them as social sciences. Additionally, NSF places interdisciplinary degrees in areas such as general humanities and liberal studies in a broad “Other” category that includes degrees for many disciplines that are not within the purview of the humanities as conceptualized by the HI. Consequently, such interdisciplinary degrees, along with those mentioned above, cannot be captured in humanities degree counts from 1966 to 1986. For 1987 and later years (1995 and later for data on the race/ethnicity of degree recipients), however, NSF also categorizes earned degrees according to the more detailed Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP), which permits a more precise count of humanities degrees; that is, a count that includes degrees in all those programs that are part of academic disciplines included within the scope of the humanities for the purposes of the HI. (For an inventory of the disciplines and activities treated as part of the humanities by the HI, see the Statement on the Scope of the “Humanities” for Purposes of the Humanities Indicators.) The CIP was first developed by NCES in 1980 as a way to account for the tremendous variety of degree programs offered by American institutions of higher learning and has been revised three times since its introduction, most recently in 2009 (this version is referred to as “CIP 2010”). The CIP has also been adopted by Statistics Canada as its standard disciplinary For the purposes of the Humanities Indicators the CIP has several advantages over the NSF classification system. For example, because the NSF system groups degrees in the nonsectarian study of religion with those awarded in programs designed to prepare students for religious vocations and because the latter type of degree is much more common, the HI cannot include what the NSF considers to be degrees in religion in the humanities degree counts for years prior to 1987. With CIP-coded data, however, academic disciplines such as comparative religion can be separated from vocational programs such as theology and thus can be included in the humanities degree tally. Additionally, when using CIP-coded data, the HI can include degrees in all the excluded disciplines mentioned above, from art history to Holocaust studies, in its counts of humanities degrees from 1987 onward. For an inventory of the NSF and CIP disciplinary categories included by the HI under the broad academic field headings (“humanities,” “natural sciences,” etc.) used throughout Part II of the HI, see the NSF and CIP Discipline Code Catalog. This catalog also indicates which degree programs the HI includes within specific humanities disciplines (e.g., for the purposes of the HI, English degrees include those classified under CIP as being in “English Language and Literature,” “American Literature,” and “Creative Writing,” among others). In constructing indicators that use IPEDS data to track historical trends in the academic humanities, the HI has employed completion data that were classified using both the NSF and CIP systems. In these cases, either a note accompanying the chart or a break in the trend line indicates where estimates based on the NSF classification system leave off and those based on CIP begin. For those indicators reporting degree data gathered in 1987 or more recently (1995 or more recently for the charts and tables describing the proportions of all degrees received by members of racial/ethnic minority groups), CIP-coded data are used. In the case of several of the degree-related indicators, the humanities are compared to certain other fields such as the sciences and engineering. The nature of these fields is specified in the Statement on the Scope of the “Humanities” for Purposes of the Humanities Indicators. These broad fields do not encompass all postsecondary programs. Therefore, where fields are being compared in terms of their respective shares of all degrees, the percentages will not add up to 100%. Also, none of the graphs showing change over time in the share of degrees awarded to members of traditionally underrepresented ethnic/minority groups includes a data point for the academic year 1999, because the NCES did not release data for that year. The degree counts presented as part of the HI do not include “second majors” because NCES began collecting data about these degrees only in 2001. The HI deals separately with the issue of second majors in Figure II-1c (“Humanities Bachelor's Degrees Earned as ‘Second Majors,’ 2001–2010”). Data on the number of students completing minors are not collected as part of IPEDS, but such information was compiled for selected humanities disciplines as part of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences–sponsored Humanities Departmental Survey (HDS; see the HDS final report, page 8, Table 12). Back to Content	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24565000
Altair 8800 Computer with 8 inch floppy disk systemThe MITS Altair 8800 was a microcomputer design from 1975, based on the Intel 8080 CPU and sold as a mail-order kit through advertisements in Popular Electronics, Radio-Electronics and other hobbyist magazines. The designers intended to sell only a few hundred to hobbyists, and were surprised when they sold thousands in the first month. Today the Altair is widely recognized as the spark that led to the personal computer revolution of the next few years: The computer bus designed for the Altair was to become a de facto standard in form of the S-100 bus, and the first programming language for the machine was Microsoft's founding product, Altair BASIC. History While serving at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base, Ed Roberts and Forrest M. Mims III decided to use their electronics background to produce small kits for model rocket hobbyists. In 1969, Roberts and Mims, along with Stan Cagle and Robert Zaller, founded Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS) in Roberts' garage in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and started selling radio transmitters and instruments for model rockets.The model rocket kits were a modest success and MITS wanted to try a kit that would appeal to more hobbyists. The November 1970 issue of Popular Electronics featured the Opticom, a kit from MITS that would send voice over a LED light beam. Mims and Cagle were losing interest in the kit business so Roberts bought his partners out, then began developing a calculator kit. Electronic Arrays had just announced a set of 6 LSI ICs that would make a four function calculator. The MITS 816 calculator kit used the chip set and was featured on the November 1971 cover of Popular Electronics. This calculator kit sold for $175 ($275 assembled.) Forrest Mims wrote the assembly manual for this kit and many others over the next several years. He often accepted a copy of the kit as payment.The calculator was successful and was proceeded by several improved models. The MITS 1440 calculator was featured in the July 1973 issues of Radio-Electronics. It had a 14 digit display, memory and square root. The kit sold for $200 and the assembled version was $250. MITS later developed a programmer unit that would connect to the 816 or 1440 calculator and allow programs of 256 steps.In additions to calculators, MITS made a line of test equipment kits. These included an IC tester, a waveform generator, a digital voltmeter and several other instruments. To keep up with the demand, MITS moved into a larger building at 6328 Linn NE in Albuquerque in 1973. They installed a wave soldering machine and an assembly line at the new location. In 1972, Texas Instruments developed its own calculator chip and started selling complete calculators at less than half the price of other commercial models. MITS and many other companies were devastated by this, and Roberts struggled to reduce his quarter-million-dollar debt. Popular Electronics January 1975 Popular Electronics with the Altair 8800 computerIn January 1972, Popular Electronics merged with another Ziff-Davis magazine, Electronics World. The change in editorial staff upset many of their authors and they started writing for a competing magazine, Radio-Electronics. In 1972 and 1973 some of the best construction projects appeared in Radio-Electronics. Art Salsberg became editor in 1974 with goal of reclaiming the lead in projects. He was impressed with Don Lancaster's TV Typewriter (Radio Electronics, September 1973) article and wanted computer projects for Popular Electronics. Don Lancaster did an ASCII keyboard for Popular Electronics in April 1974. They were evaluating a computer trainer project by Jerry Ogdin when the Mark-8 8008 based computer by Jonathan Titus appeared on the July 1974 cover of Radio-Electronics. The computer trainer was put on hold and the editors looked for a real computer system. (Popular Electronics gave Jerry Ogdin a column, Computer Bits, starting in June 1975.) One of the editors, Les Solomon, knew MITS was working on an Intel 8080 based computer project and thought Roberts could provide the project for the always popular January issue. The TV Typewriter and the Mark-8 computer projects were just a detailed set of plans and a set of bare printed circuit boards. The hobbyist faced the daunting task of acquiring all of the integrated circuits and other components. The editors of Popular Electronics wanted a complete kit in a professional looking enclosure.The typical MITS product had a generic name like "Model 1600 Digital Voltmeter." Ed Roberts was busy finishing the design and left the naming of the computer to the editors of Popular Electronics. At the first Altair Computer Convention (March 1976) editor Les Solomon told the audience that the name was inspired by his 12-year-old daughter, Lauren. "She said why do not you call it Altair - that's where the Enterprise is going tonight." The Star Trek episode is probably Amok Time, as this is the only one from The Original Series which takes the Enterprise crew to Altair (Six).A more probable version is that the Altair was originally going to be named the PE-8 (Popular Electronics 8-bit), but Les Solomon thought this name to be rather dull, so Les, Alexander Burawa (associate editor), and John McVeigh (technical editor) decided that "It's a stellar event, so let's name it after a star." McVeigh suggested "Altair", the twelfth brightest star in the sky.Ed Roberts and Bill Yates finished the first prototype in October 1974 and shipped it to Popular Electronics in New York via the Railway Express Agency. However, it never arrived due to a strike by the shipping company. The first example of this groundbreaking machine isthereforelost to history. Solomon already had a number of pictures of the machine and the article was based on them. Roberts got to work on building a replacement. The computer on the magazine cover is an empty box with just switches and LEDs on the front panel. The finished Altair computer had a completely different circuit board layout than the prototype shown in the magazine. The January 1975 issues appeared on newsstands a week before Christmas of 1974 and the kit was officially (if not yet practically) available for sale. Intel 8080 Ed Roberts had designed and manufactured programmable calculators and was familiar with the microprocessors available in 1974. The Intel 4004 and Intel 8008 were not powerful enough, the National Semiconductor IMP-8 and IMP-16 required external hardware, the Motorola 6800 was still in development so he chose the 8-bit Intel 8080. At that time, Intel's main business was selling memory chips by the thousands to computer companies. They had no experience in selling small quantities of microprocessors. When the 8080 was introduced in April 1974, Intel set the single unit price at $360. "That figure had a nice ring to it," recalled Intel's Dave House in 1984. "Besides, it was a computer, and they typically cost thousands of dollars, so we felt it was a reasonable price." Ed Roberts had experience in buying OEM quantities of calculator chips and he was able to negotiate a $75 price for the 8080 microprocessor chips.Customers would ask Intel if they could get same the low prices that MITS must be paying for 8080 family chips. Some salesmen said that MITS was getting cosmetic rejects or otherwise inferior chips. In July 1975, Intel sent a letter to its sales force stating that the MITS Altair 8800 computer used standard Intel 8080 parts and that no one should make derogatory comments about valued customers like MITS. The letter was reprinted in the August 1975 issue of MITS Computer Notes. The "cosmetic defect" rumor has appeared in many accounts over the years despite the fact that both MITS and Intel issued written denials in 1975. The launch The induction of the Altair 8800 happened at just right time. For around ten years colleges had required science and engineering majors to take a course in computer programming; typically using the FORTRAN or BASIC languages. This meant there was a sizeable customer base who knew about computers. In 1970, electronic calculators were not seen outside of a laboratory but by 1974 they were a common household item. Calculators and video games like Pong introduced computer power to the general public. Electronics hobbyists were moving on to digital projects such as digital voltmeters and frequency counters. There were Intel 8008 based computer systems available in 1974 but they were not powerful enough to run a high level language like BASIC. The Altair had enough power to be actually useful, and was designed as an expandable system that opened it up to all sorts of applications.Ed Roberts optimistically told his banker that he could sell 800 computers and he knew they needed to sell 200 over the next year just to break even. When readers got the January issue of Popular Electronics, MITS was flooded with inquires and orders. They had to hire extra people just to answer the phones. In February MITS received 1000 orders for the Altair 8800. The quoted delivery time was 60 days but it was months before they could meet that. Roberts focused on delivering the computer; all of the options would wait until they could keep pace with the orders. MITS claimed to have delivered 2500 Altair 8800s by the end of May. The number was over 5000 by August 1975. MITS had under 20 employees in January but had grown to 90 by October 1975.Altair 8800 computer was profitable but expansion bus would allow MITS to sell extra memory and interface boards. The system came with a "1024 word" memory board populated with 256 bytes. The BASIC language was announced in July 1975 and it required one or two 4096 word memory boards and an interface board.MITS Price List, Popular Electronics, August 1975. \|Altair 8800 Computer\|\|$439\|\|$621\| \|1024 word Memory Board\|\|$97\|\|$139\| \|4096 word Memory Board\|\|$264\|\|$338\| \|Parallel Interface Board\|\|$92\|\|$114\| \|Serial Interface Board (RS-232)\|\|$119\|\|$138\| \|Serial Interface Board (Teletype)\|\|$124\|\|$146\| \|Audio Cassette Interface Board\|\|$128\|\|$174\| \|Teletype ASR 33\|\|N.A.\|\|$1500\| 4K BASIC language (when purchased with Altair, 4096 words of memory and interface board) $608K BASIC language (when purchased with Altair, two 4096 word memory boards and interface board) $75MITS had no competition for the first half of 1975. Their 4K memory board used dynamic RAM and it had several design problems. The delay in shipping optional boards and the problems with the 4K memory board created an opportunity for outside suppliers. An enterprising Altair owner, Robert Marsh, designed a 4K static memory that was plug-in compatible with the Altair 8800 and sold for $255. His company was Processor Technology, one of the most successful Altair compatible board suppliers. Their advertisement in the July 1975 issue of Popular Electronics promised interface and PROM boards in addition to the 4K memory board. They would later develop a popular video display board that would plug directly into the Altair.A consulting company in San Leandro, California, IMS Associates Inc., wanted to purchase several Altair computers but the long delivery time convinced them that they should build their own computers. In the October 1975 Popular Electronics, a small advertisement announced the IMSAI 8080 computer. The ad noted that all boards were "plug compatible" with the Altair 8800. The computer cost $439 for a kit. The first 50 IMSAI computers shipped in December 1975. The IMSAI 8080 computer improved on the original Altair design in several areas. It was easier to assemble, the Altair required 60 wire connections between the front panel and the mother board (backplane.) The IMSAI motherboard had 18 slots. The MITS motherboard consisted of 4 slots segments that had to be connected together with 100 wires. The IMSAI also had a larger power supply to handle the increasing number of expansion boards used in typical systems. The IMSAI advantage was short lived because MITS had recognized these shortcomings and developed the Altair 8800B which was introduced in June 1976. Description In the first design of the Altair, the parts needed to make a complete machine would not fit on a single motherboard, and the machine consisted of four boards stacked on top of each other with stand-offs. A further problem facing Roberts was that the parts needed to make a truly useful computer weren't available, or wouldn't be designed in time for the January launch date. So during the construction of the second model, he decided to build most of the machine on removable cards, reducing the motherboard to nothing more than an interconnect between the cards, a backplane. The basic machine consisted of five cards, including the CPU on one and memory on another. He then looked for a cheap source of connectors, and came across a supply of 100-pin edge connectors. The S-100 bus was eventually acknowledged by the professional computer community and adopted as the IEEE-696 computer bus standard.For all intents, the Altair bus consists of the pins of the Intel 8080 run out onto the backplane. No specific level of thought went into the design, which led to such disasters as shorting from various power lines of differing voltages being located next to each other. A further oddity was that the system included two unidirectional 8-bit data buses, but only a single bidirectional 16-bit address bus. A deal on power supplies led to the use of +8V and +18V, which had to be locally regulated on the cards to TTL (+5V) or RS-232 (+12V) standard voltage levels.Altair 8800b computer front panelThe Altair shipped in a two-piece case. The backplane and power supply were mounted on a base plate, along with the front and rear of the box. The "lid" was shaped like a C, forming the top, left and right sides of the box. The front panel, which was inspired by the Data General Nova minicomputer, included a large number of toggle switches to feed binary data directly into the memory of the machine, and a number of red LEDs to read those values back out.Programming the Altair was an extremely tedious process where one toggled the switches to positions corresponding to an 8080 opcode, then used a special switch to enter the code into the machine's memory, and then repeated this step until all the opcodes of a presumably complete and correct program were in place. When the machine first shipped the switches and lights were the only interface, and all one could do with the machine was make programs to make the lights blink. Nevertheless, many were sold in this form. Roberts was already hard at work on extra cards, including a paper tape reader for storage, extra RAM cards, and a RS-232 interface to connect to a proper terminal. Software Main article: Altair BASIC Around this time Roberts received a letter from a Seattle company asking if he would be interested in buying its BASIC programming language for the machine. He called the company and reached a private home, where no one had heard of anything like BASIC. In fact the letter had been sent by Bill Gates and Paul Allen from the Boston area, and they had no BASIC yet to offer. When they called Roberts to follow up on the letter he expressed his interest, and the two started work on their BASIC interpreter using a self-made simulator for the 8080 on a PDP-10 minicomputer. They figured they had 30 days before someone else beat them to the punch, and once they had a version working on the simulator, Allen flew to Albuquerque to deliver the program, Altair BASIC (aka MITS 4K BASIC), on a paper tape. The first time it was run, it displayed "Altair Basic," then crashed, but that was enough for them to join; the next day, they brought in a new paper tape and it ran. The first program ever typed in, was "2+2", and up came the "4." Gates soon joined Allen and formed Microsoft, then spelled "Micro-Soft". Emulators SIMH emulates Altair 8800 with both 8080 and Z80. Resource: Part or all of the information provided in this section is brought to you via wikipedia and other similar sites. Please repsect their licenses and for more information visit the homepages of these sites.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24568000
Principal Investigator(s): Marx, Gary T. Summary: This study is part of the University of California's Five-Year Study of anti-Semitism in the United States. As a result of the outbreak of Black rioting during the summer of 1964, it was decided to expand the proposed Black subsample of the national sample to a larger Black oversample in order to study the climate of opinion in the Black American community. These Black respondents were selected by drawing five samples: one general metropolitan sample and four urban samples from Chicago, New... (view full summary) Persistent URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR07002.v1 One or more data files in this study are set up in a non-standard format, such as card image format. Users may need help converting these files before they can be used for analysis. These data are available only to users at ICPSR member institutions. You will be asked to log in prior to downloading the data. This study was originally provided by ICPSR. ICPSR provides leadership and training in data access, curation, and methods of analysis for a diverse and expanding social science research community. Data use tutorial (introduction for new users)	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24576000
Evaluating the Use of Process Mapping and Visual Storyboarding in the Classroom Stephanie Munson, Assistant Professor, Industrial Design Program \| University of Illinois, Chicago Kevin Reeder, IDSA, Associate Professor, Industrial Design Program \| Georgia Institute of Technology At the 2005 Eastman/IDSA Education Conference, Stephen Wilcox gave a presentation on procedure mapping. The next day, Kevin Reeder, with Stephanie Munson, discussed visual storyboarding. Both procedure mapping and visual storyboarding are communication methods that emphasize viewing and discussing the entire use, storage to storage, of a product. In turn, the design team uses the broad view to pinpoint areas where greater research is needed, a competitive market edge can be achieved, opportunities for innovation can be identified, and empathy for the user becomes critical. As a process communication tool, a procedure or process map/visual storyboard can be a fluid, pin-up device to communicate project concerns to all parties involved. It can example the overlap of industrial design and business marketing issues or industrial design to manufacturing. In all cases, process mapping and visual storyboarding provide a broad, overarching message to the participants in the product development process. At the 2005 Eastman IDSA Education Conference, Stephen Wilcox, a principal at Design Science, discussed the value of using information graphics to make complex forms of information understandable. As example, Dr. Wilcox discussed the construction of a procedure map and its function as a communication tool within the design team as well as with the client. Michael Lee Smith, director of process improvement at ETS, on corporate procedures states that “Process mapping is a technique for making work visible.” and “There has probably never been a process map developed where someone has not said, ‘Why are we doing it that way?’.” Chris Ahoy, associate vice president at Iowa State University describes a process map as “a workflow diagram to bring forth a clear understanding of a process or series of parallel processes.” Adrian Mallon in an Internet article states storyboards need not take the considerable time that some think that it does, depending on how one goes about it (“Storyboarding Multimedia” 1). And there are significant advantages to be considered. There is a document, which everyone can point to as a common point of reference, enabling the design team (which includes client) to say, ‘Yes, that is what I meant’, or ‘No, we’ve a problem here’. Problems may be spotted from the storyboard that may have proven more costly to correct at a later stage.”	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24579000
David Furman, born in Berdichev in 1919, was one of the 1.1 million Soviet soldiers who fought in the Battle of Stalingrad, the seven-month battle that turned the war on the Eastern front and left one and a quarter million German and Soviet soldiers dead. Furman left school at the age of fourteen to become a carpenter like his father, but he was drafted into the army in 1939. He was stationed in the Far East until the war broke out in 1941, when he was taken to the front. He fought at the front until 1943, when he lost his leg in battle. By the time that Stalingrad began, in August 1942, Furman had already received word that his entire family — his father, Zelig; his mother, Leyke; his sister, Kheyved and his two brothers, Moyshe and Berl--had been murdered by the Nazis in Berdichev. He knew what he was fighting for. In this clip, Furman, whom we first met at the synagogue soup kitchen in which the interview takes place, tells about his experience in the war. Viewers should note that the question posed to him is “Tell us something about Berdichev? Were you born in Berdichev? Tell us about the old days? Tell us about your schooling?” Rather than talk about his childhood or his hometown, Furman shares with us his proudest moment--his military service. He rushes through his childhood and neglects his postwar life, but straightens his back, raises his chin, and lets out a smile as he tells us that he fought in Stalingrad! Not only that, but he pulls out of his pocket a snapshot of himself decorated with military medals, as though he expected an international camera crew to show up at the soup kitchen that day. For David Furman, every day is Victory Day.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24595000
What Every Tech Pro Should Know About 'Green Computing' For most companies, the movement is about saving money, not the environment. But it's getting better at both. Forget Al Gore and his Oscar for a global warming documentary. To gauge how today's trendy green movement is affecting computing, skip Hollywood and head to Wall Street. There, Green Computing isn't a save-the-planet-for-our-kids movement. It's about the other green: cutting operating costs as the demand for computing power soars. It's a movement grounded in measurable, near-term results. "The top priority at hand is data center efficiency," says Sabet Elias, CTO of investment bank Lehman Brothers, which last year boosted energy efficiency 25% and set a goal of another 35% by next year. White PapersMore >> It's not just financial services companies, with their huge processing needs, that stand to benefit from green computing. Companies in every industry, from nonprofits to consumer goods, are paying much closer attention to their power bills, as the amount spent on data center power has doubled Elias wants to cut energy use 35% at Lehman Brothers. Still, IT execs would be wise to keep an eye on more than the economics of energy-efficient computing. Energy consumption has gotten so huge--U.S. data centers consume as much power in a year as is generated by five power plants--that policy makers are taking notice and considering more regulation. A group of government and industry leaders is trying to set a clear standard for what constitutes a "green" computer, a mark that IT execs might find themselves held to. Global warming concerns could spark a public opinion swing--either a backlash against big data centers or a PR win for companies that can paint themselves green. IT vendors are piling on, making energy efficiency central to their sales pitches and touting eco-friendly policies such as "carbon-neutral computing." One under-the-radar example of what's changing is a long acronym you'll start hearing more: EPEAT, or the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool. EPEAT was created through an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers council because companies and government agencies wanted to put green criteria in IT requests for proposals. EPEAT got a huge boost on Jan. 24 when President Bush signed an executive order requiring that 95% of electronic products procured by federal agencies meet EPEAT standards, as long there's a standard for that product. The tech industry's environmental impact is gaining attention. The United Nations estimates that 20 million to 50 million tons of computer gear and cell phones worldwide are dumped into landfills each year, and it's the fastest growing segment of waste, says Greenpeace legislative director Rick Hind. At most, 12% of PCs and cell phones are recycled, he says, putting chemicals such as mercury and PVC into the environment. "The good news is that computer companies are talking about greenness, touting green programs," Hind says. CIOs will keep setting IT strategy against their bottom lines, but they're sure to face more questions about whether there's a chance to meet environmental goals at the same time. Here's a practical guide to what's happening in Green Computing, and why IT people should care.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24604000
Old age is not a disease As a result of advances in veterinary medicine, more knowledgeable care and improved nutrition, dogs are now living much longer, healthier lives. But, just as for humans, the passage of time has its effects, and you may begin to notice that your once-frisky pet seems to have slowed down a bit. Being aware of the natural changes that can occur as your dog reaches his or her golden years, as well as what you can do to help keep your pet as healthy, active and comfortable as possible, can ensure that you both enjoy this final stage in your dog's life to the fullest. How-and when-will I know that my dog is getting "old"? As dogs move into the geriatric phase of their lives, they experience gradual changes that are remarkably like those of aging humans: hair turns grey, their bodies are not as limber and reflexes not as sharp as they once were, hearing, eyesight and the sense of smell may deteriorate and energy levels, as well as attention spans, seem to diminish. In fact, the first sign of aging is often a general decrease in activity, combined with a tendency to sleep longer and more soundly. Such signs may begin to manifest themselves before 8 years in large breeds like Great Danes, while smaller breeds can remain youthful until 12 years and even longer. Furthermore, a healthy dog, will most likely age later than one that has been affected by disease or environmental problems early in life. Again, as with humans, the aging process will vary with the individual. Your veterinarian will be able to judge when it's time to consider your pet a "senior". Checkup time now comes twice a year As your dog ages, regular checkups at the veterinarian’s become more important than ever. In fact, at this stage of your pet’s life, it is recommended that he or she receive a thorough examination every 6 months, as adult dogs can age as much as 3 years (in human terms) within the period of one calendar year. Besides the usual complete physical examination, your veterinarian may conduct a urine and fecal analysis as well as ultrasound or other imaging tests. Furthermore, many vets now recommend minimum yearly blood screens for senior pets. Keep your vet informed Most importantly, you should tell your veterinarian about any noticeable change in your dog's physical condition or behaviour. A problem that you may assume is simply related to your pet's advanced age may actually be the result of a treatable medical condition. For example, your dog's reluctance to exercise may not stem from the normal decrease in energy that comes with age, but from arthritis or a heart condition both of which can be managed with the proper treatment. Regular, semi-annual checkups can thus help your veterinarian work out a suitable preventative health program for your pet and catch any problems sufficiently early to provide effective treatment. Working together, you can both ensure that your dog's senior years will be healthy and happy ones. Something to chew on As your pet ages, your dog’s nutritional needs may also change. You may find that, although your pet is eating less, he still puts on weight. This could be due to a slowdown of his metabolism or a decrease in his activity. Excess weight can aggravate many canine medical conditions, including heart, respiratory, skin and joint problems. To help a portly pet reduce, try feeding smaller quantities of food or gradually switch to a diet that is lower in calories. Other dogs have entirely the opposite problem – they lose weight as they age, sometimes as the result of heart or periodontal disease or diabetes. In either case, ask your veterinarian for advice about your pet’s individual nutritional requirements. Put comfort on the menu You should also ensure that your dog is comfortable while eating. Most pet owners place food dishes and water bowls on the floor, but this may be a source of discomfort for a large or overweight dog, or for one whose arthritis makes it difficult – or even painful – to bend down. Many pet supply outlets have eating tables that are specially designed with cut-outs for food and water containers and available in various heights to suit various sizes of dogs. Or you can fashion your own inexpensive solution to this problem: for example, a plastic crate covered in a towel to absorb spills. Senior dog food do’s & don’ts - Since food with high mineral and protein content should be avoided, Ask your veterinarian for recommendations about a type that’s right for your dog. - Do consider, in consultation with your veterinarian, increasing the level of fibre in his diet, especially if he suffers from frequent constipation. - Don’t feed your dog between-meal snacks or table scraps. The top 10 health tips for senior dogs - Take your dog to his or her veterinarian for twice-yearly checkups. - Become informed about conditions and diseases common to senior dogs, be on the lookout for symptoms and, should they arise, inform your dog’s veterinarian promptly. - Feed your dog the best food you can afford and consider giving him two small meals a day rather than one large one. - Don’t overfeed-obesity causes many health problems and may shorten your dog’s life. - Consider, on your veterinarian’s recommendation, the use of dietary supplements such as glucosamine/chondroitin for arthritis. - Make sure your dog receives adequate exercise, according to his physical capacities. - Look after your dog’s dental health. Brush his teeth daily and have them cleaned professionally when your veterinarian so advises. - Have your veterinarian do a risk assessment to determine an appropriate vaccination protocol for your dog. - Do your utmost to control ticks and fleas and make sure your dog and his environment (his bed, play area, etc.) are always spotlessly clean. - Give your dog lots of love and attention and do all you can to keep him interested, active, happy and comfortable. Back to top	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24606000
Wallace & Gromit teach kids about invention and intellectual property 17 May 2012 Wallace and Gromit, the world-famous characters developed by British studio Aardman Animation, are the stars of an interactive exhibition on innovation and intellectual property (IP) which opened at Scienceworks in Melbourne on 19 May. Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention showcases innovation and creativity in everyday life, highlighting the important link between invention and IP protection. Visitors walk through different rooms in Wallace and Gromit’s “house”, where they can view both real and imaginary innovations, learn about important Australian inventors and discover how IP rights work in practice. Visitors are also encouraged to get creative themselves with activities such as devising a smoothie recipe and logo, inventing household tools and singing their hearts out in the Karaoke Disco Shower. We are the principal sponsor of the exhibition in Australia and have worked with Scienceworks to ensure that the exhibition contains strong and accurate IP messages that are relevant to an Australian audience. We hope that the exhibition inspires a new generation of Australian inventors who understand IP rights and how to use them to protect their inventions. The exhibition will be in Melbourne until 11 November 2012 and then move to the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney from 12 December 2012 until 26 May 2013. Tickets are $19 for adults, $7.50 for concession holders and $6 for children. We will be organising a number of events, competitions and activities associated with the exhibition so keep an eye on out for details. You can visit the ScienceWorks' website for more information. Last Updated: 29/11/2012	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24616000
The Idaho Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind (IESDB) Accessible Instructional Materials Library acquires, maintains and distributes specialized instructional materials, as well as coordinates and produces textbooks in Braille and Large Print, to assist school districts and educators to provide blind and visually impaired students with an appropriate education and equal access to the general curriculum. As an Authorized User (AU) of the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC), IESDB , at the school district's request, can facilitate the assignment of National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) files to Accessible Media Producers. LEA's can then access those converted files in Audio or Digital for eligible blind, visually impaired, and print disabled students. The IESDB AIM Library is able to offer the following resources for loan: Braille writers, tape recorders, slate and styluses, pre-braille and literacy kits, tactile tools, raised lined maps, standardized tests, some assessment tools, and other materials provided by Federal Quota Funds through the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) for eligible legally blind students. Large Print: Dorothy Ogden Forms for requests are listed below, please fill out the appropriate form, sign and return to the address listed on the form. 1- Assessible formats of Print, Click Now 2- Student Data, Click Now 3- Book Request form, Click Now 4- Eligibility & Certification for Specialized Formats of Print, Click Now	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24624000
21 Feb 2009 Gratitude is often lacking in our world today. People are so wrapped up in their own lives that they forget to appreciate what others have done for them. Gratitude is a character trait that we should try to develop and nurture in our children and in each other. It’s quite simple to thank others for their support, thoughtfulness, helpfulness and caring. Have you done things for others and have them go unappreciated or even unnoticed? As grounded as we may be spiritually, emotionally and or mentally, repeatedly feeling unappreciated can affect our sense of self. We all thrive and do better when we experience being appreciated, our well-being is uplifted. A little appreciation and gratitude can improve moods, situations, relationships and outcomes. When we are blessed by others in surprising and unexpected ways, there are a number of ways to show our appreciation and gratitude. Simply saying, “thank you” is a great start. Writing thank you notes is another traditional way of expressing gratitude and nice to do when you have received a gift. It’s also thoughtful to do when someone has gone out of their wat to do something special for you. When we let others know through our words or actions that we truly appreciate them, it uplifts them and causes a ripple effect of gratitude. It’s a good practice to acknowledge the ways that your family, friends and co-workers are been good to you in supportive and thoughtful ways. Imagine what the our families, friendships and places of employment would be like if we showed more appreciation and gratitude. So how will you extend and show more gratitude and appreciation to others this upcoming week….. With many blessings to you and yours,	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24626000
Professor Peter Hayes (Northwestern U.) specializes in thehistory of Germany in the 20th century, particularly the Nazi period. He did an admirable speaking job, presenting a dark and serious topic while dealing gracefully with the challenges of a late evening audience digesting its dinner and a very noisy, joyful event happening in the room next door. Learn more about Peter Hayes at http://www.history.northwestern.edu/people/hayes.html. Professor Hayes challenged eight widely-believed "facts" about the Holocaust, pointing out that when the public thinks it knows something, scholarship often has trouble making itself heard. His hope was that the audience at AJL might be more receptive than many others, and allow new ideas to penetrate. Here are the eight misconceptions that, when examined more closely, turn out to be untrue. (From notes scribbled during the keynote address, please forgive any errors.) 1. Anti-semitism played a major role in bringing Hitler to power. Apparently we've put the cart before the horse. "More Germans became anti-semites because they became Nazis, than became Nazis because they were anti-semites." 2. Killing Jews was Hitler's goal from the beginning. The original intention seems to have been to remove the Jews from German-held territory, but it soon became apparent that by gaining territory they were gaining Jewish residents. The more practical way to remove them was to kill them, but the Nazis realized this only after they started taking over other countries. 3. TheAllies could have saved many more Jews than they did. Anti-immigrant sentiment was very strong at the time, and politicians who pushed for bringing in more Jews would have been voted out of office. Also, 3/4 of the six million were killed out of reach of Allied intervention in northeastern Europe, in a short period of time, while the Germans seemed to be winning the war. 4. Jews could have done more to save themselves. Jews were a tiny percent of the population in all the countries where they lived, and being more assertive wouldn't have had much impact on the larger population's opinions/actions. The Jewish ghetto uprisings that did happen were quickly squashed and didn't really save lives, so more uprisings probably wouldn't have saved more lives. 5. Greater solidarity with or sympathy for Jews in Europe would have saved more Jews. Individual people saved other individual people, but to really raise the numbers you would have needed institutions or governments working to save Jews. More Jews were saved by the collaborating French government than by individual righteous gentiles, just because governments have more power than individuals. But most of the governments in Europe had been taken over by the Nazis. 6. Killing Jews diverted resources and weakened the German war effort. It didn't take large numbers of guards or even trains to deal with imprisoning/killing Jews, compared to the number of soldiers overall. 7. Persecution of Jews was driven by greed (ie the desire to take the Jews' possessions). Taking Jewish possessions was a side benefit for the Nazis, not their main goal. They got more money by taking over banks in the countries they invaded than by taking Jewish possessions. 8. The Holocaust represents modernity and its dangers. The image of mechanized murder has been overblown. "Auschwitz was a dis-assembly line, but more like a 19th century slaughterhouse than a modern factory." Most killing was done with simple tools: a gun, carbon dioxide from a car. And cultural genocide is certainly not a new idea. Conclusion: the common denominator of all 8 myths is the desire to shield ourselves from the horror, to think that thinks could have been better or to find a place to lay blame. But these are prettifications of history. Posted via web from The AJL Convention Blog	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24642000
Nathan Adler was born in Hanover, Germany, in 1803. After being educated at Gottingen, Erlangen and Wurzburg, he became chief rabbi of Oldenburg in 1829 and of Hanover in 1830. Adler moved to England and in 1845 was appointed as chief rabbi of the united congregations of the British Empire. In 1855 Adler established the first Jewish College to train ministers. When Nathan Adler died in 1890 he was replaced as chief rabbi by his son Hermann Adler. This was a time when Jewish immigration was growing very fast. A significant number of Jewish immigrants from Europe refused to accept the authority of the new chief rabbi. His Anti-Zionism was especially unpopular with the recent arrivals. Hermann Adler, who wrote The Jews in England, died in 1911. Source: Spartacus Educational	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24644000
It’s What was for Dinner There are 650 species of river snails in North America which makes this continent the richest in the world for these tiny animals. Many of these are shell dwelling soft bodied gastropods that live in the streams and rivers of the southeastern region of our country. Within this group is a genus called Leptoxis (or more commonly known as Anculosa) which are gill breathing and operculum bearing snails that usually live in the bottom of reasonably fast flowing streams in the middle South to southern Midwest. Of the thirty three known members of the Leptoxis genus, many are now threatened with extinction because of river impoundment and siltation and industrial/agricultural pollutions. But during the prehistoric times in the region, the natives consumed the little mollusk Anculosa because it was available in enormous numbers and became what was for dinner. Most of us contemporary people would not wish to gather river snails for food but beginning perhaps as far back as the Paleo Period (10,000 BC) the American natives did just that. Possibly during the Archaic Period and most likely during the Woodland Period (1000 BC to AD 1000) most definitely during the Mississippian Period (AD 1000 to 1700) these people did harvest and eat the various river snails found in the waterways in the southeast. As the natives became more agrarian and began living in small permanent villages near the rivers and large streams, they were adjacent to the watery homes of the apparently easy to catch snails. Probably during that time of clean natural water sources there were many millions of these mollusks for the taking and the natives did take them. We know that because there have been huge mounds of discarded mollusk shells found near rivers from Kentucky to Alabama and Virginia to Georgia. They would most likely have placed the snails in steatite or ceramic pots of boiling water and waited for the heat to force the little cooked animals from their shells so they could be eaten. The empty shells would have then been discarded or used for ornaments. The freshwater Anculosa snails produce the calcium carbonate body coverings by excreting consumed calcium and other minerals and which harden into the protective shells. The outside of the shells are coated with a horny epidermal called periostracum which give the shells various colors from to tans and browns to gold and blue. These hues are most likely evolutionary means for the snails to camouflage themselves from predators such as fish, turtles, water birds and humans. There have been some large caches of Anculosa shells, which look like miniature conch or whelk shells, found in the southeast and that were purposely altered to make beads. An edge of the shell whorl would have been rubbed against an abrasive substance such as sandstone or granite until a hole was made. Or a hole was bored using a rotating chipped stone drill. A sinew string or thong could then have been passed through the manufactured hole and out through the natural shell opening through which the animal moved and ate. The beads, which are normally less than an inch long from the base of the whorls to the top of the spire, could have been strung into necklaces and bracelets, hung from the earlobes or sewn onto garments by using these holes. Archaeological investigations have uncovered ancient burials that had thousands of these shell beads placed with the deceased. One grouping found in Tennessee had an estimated one hundred thousand of the Anculosa shell beads. Calcium carbonate is a hard substance that any of you who have picked up a marine shell on a beach can attest. It must have taken almost countless hours for the bead makers to rub and/or drill holes in a hundred thousand beads. And that is just one of the many riverside groupings that has been found during the last hundred or so years. These little beads, which can still be found today as bleached and patinated white/grey shells, must have had some important meanings to the natives and we shall probably never know what those meanings were. But we do know that they extracted a source of food from the little mollusk. The little gastropods houses certainly had ornamental shell usage, but the Anculosa snails themselves would have been what was for dinner. Burch, J. T. 1989 NORTH AMERICAN FRESHWTER SNAILS Dillon, Robert T. 2000 THE ECOLOGY OF THE FRESHWATER MOLLUSCS Emerson, Thomas J. 2009 ARCHAIC SOCIETIES: DIVERSITY AND COMPLEXITY ACROSS THE Goodrich, Calvin 1922 THE ANCULOSAE OF THE ALABAMA RIVER DRAINAGE Lewis, T. M. N. & Madeline Kneberg 1959 “The Archaic Culture in the Middle South”, AMERICAN ANTIQUITY, Vol. 25, No. 2 Parmalee, Paul W. 1906 “Remains form the Aztalan Site”, WISCONSIN ARCHAELOGICAL SOCIETY Webb, William S. 1974 Wood, W. Raymond 1974 JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Vol. 30, No. 1	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24646000
Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar was born in Concord, Massachusetts, on February 21, 1816. He graduated from Harvard in 1835, studied law there and received his LL.B. degree in 1839. He was admitted to the bar in 1840. He was judge of the court of common pleas in Boston from 1849 to 1855, and associate justice of the State supreme court from 1859 to 1869. President Grant appointed Hoar Attorney General of the United States on March 5, 1869. He was a member of the Joint High Commission which framed the Treaty of Washington with Great Britain in 1873 through 1875. From December 1873 to March 1875, Hoar was a Representative in Congress. He died on January 31, 1895 in Concord. William Morris Hunt was born in Brattleboro, Vermont. He attended Harvard, but left before graduating. He studied art at Dusseldorf in Germany and with Thomas Couture in Paris. Hunt returned to the United States and settled in Boston. He was known for his landscapes, portraits and cameo portraits. He is remembered, too, for his murals in the State capitol in Albany, New York. His portrait of Attorney General Hoar was painted in 1870.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24660000
Information contained on this page is provided by NewsUSA, an independent third-party content provider. WorldNow and this Station make no warranties or representations in connection therewith. /National Wildlife Federation) - Many children are too busy tweeting to go outside and hear a real tweet. Kids today spend an average of seven hours per day using electronic media but only four to seven minutes outside in unstructured outdoor play time. "The importance of media in today's world is indisputable, but a sky's-the-limit approach to technology can have a powerful downside for kids if it's not tempered with something more down to earth," said Lindsay Legendre, manager of the National Wildlife Federation's Be Out There movement -- an effort to get more children outdoors more often. Research shows that spending time outdoors makes kids grow lean and strong, enhances their imaginations and gives them time to let off steam and just be kids. The Kaiser Family Foundation says children who spend too much time with technology are more likely to get fair or poor grades. As a result of research like this. NWF's Be Out There movement created the "Outdoor Play for Every Day: A Parent's Guide for Overcoming Common Obstacles to Kids and Outdoor Play," which is loaded with tips and activities to help parents overcome the lure of technology and other common obstacles to getting kids outdoors. Consider the following suggestions to maximize outdoor time while making peace with media and technology: * Monkey See/Monkey Do. Set a good example about limiting tech time, and your kids will be more likely to follow suit. Talk to your kids, and let everyone have a say on the amount of time that screens will be used each week so ground rules are clear up front. * Pay to Play. Encourage kids to earn screen time by balancing it with equal amounts of reading, chores or playing outside. Len Saunders, author of "Keeping Kids Fit" and father of two, suggests that for every hour of physical activity, kids earn 30 minutes of tech time. * Let 'Em Pick. Offer kids a set amount of screen time each day and let them decide how to use it (watch TV, play video games or surf the web). If the weather is nice, and they want to trade their screen time for playing outdoors, they can bank their screen time for use on a rainy day. * Go Geocaching. Take your kids on an outdoor adventure that combines popular GPS technology and a treasure hunt. Don't have a GPS? There are several smart phone apps that can do the trick. Learn more at www.Rangerricktrails.com For parents who want their kids to enhance their physical and mental health by playing outside more often, the Be Out There Parent Guide is a valuable resource. Find the Guide and more ideas for enjoying outdoor time at www.beoutthere.org	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24666000
Most packaged meals and snacks marketed to toddlers have more than the recommended amount of sodium per serving, meaning children as young as 1 are most likely eating far too much salt early in life, according to one of several studies on sodium presented this week. The studies were presented at the American Heart Association's Epidemiology and Prevention/Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism 2013 Scientific Sessions in New Orleans. The findings were alarming to researchers since there is evidence a child's sodium intake is related to the likelihood that he or she will develop hypertension as an adult. Hypertension is a major risk factor of cardiovascular disease and the number-one killer of men and women in the United States. "The good news is that commercial foods for babies, when they start complimentary feeding from 4 to 12 months ... are relatively low in sodium," explains Joyce Maalouf, the study's lead author and a fellow at the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "But the products marketed to toddlers were significantly higher in sodium: more than 75% of the toddler meals and snacks had high sodium content." Maalouf and her team reviewed more than 1,100 products specifically marketed to babies and toddlers that were sold in grocery stores. Any product that had more than 210 milligrams of sodium per serving was defined as being high in sodium, based on guidelines outlined by the Institute of Medicine and MyPlate.gov for salt intake and young children. Some of the toddler meals tested had upwards of 630 milligrams of sodium per serving. Meals and "savory snacks" had the highest amount of sodium compared to the cereal bars and fruit snacks that were tested. Maalouf and her team are not releasing the brand names of the foods they tested but described the meals as being readily available in grocery stores aisles stocked with food for babies and toddlers. "We're talking meals that are pre-packed ... like mac and cheese, pasta with meat sauce, pizza, or chicken and vegetables," says Maalouf. "These are not frozen meals, they're usually microwavable."	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24668000
Wed December 12, 2012 Scientists Mourn Popular Wolf Shot By A Hunter Originally published on Wed December 12, 2012 1:34 pm The most popular wolf in Yellowstone National Park was shot by a hunter last week, a big blow to scientists and many wildlife enthusiasts who loved following her story. "She was very recognizable, and she was unique and everybody knew her," says biologist Douglas Smith. The animal known as 832F had a beautiful gray coat and was the alpha female of the Lamar Canyon pack. Smith has followed this wolf for years but only got to put a tracking collar on her in February. "I tried to catch her for several years prior to doing it, and she was so smart we couldn't. We do it with a helicopter, we dart them, we fly in on them. And she used the landscape to her advantage," Smith says. "I watched her. And every other wolf is running, she's watching, figuring out the next move to get away from us." Smith says that's an extraordinary wolf. "People in this world today crave something real, and our society is lacking that, and they could come to Yellowstone and see real nature unfolding in front of their eyes with this very unique personality of a wolf, and they loved her. They thought it was great," Smith says. Gray wolves were hunted and trapped to the point that there weren't any in the western U.S. by the 1930s. Smith helped to bring wolves back to the park in the mid-1990s and has studied them ever since. He says that closely watching wolves like 832 has taught biologists that they were wrong about the basic way wolf packs function. Alpha females like 832 lead the packs — not the alpha males, as biologists long thought. "She was clearly in charge, and actually, typically males are better hunters than females. That was not true in this case. She was a great hunter, in fact brought down elk by herself single-handedly," says Smith. 'A Level Of Tolerance' Wolves were only taken off the endangered species list in Wyoming a few months ago, and this is the first season it's been legal to hunt wolves in all three states bordering Yellowstone. Wolf 832, who was taking a rare jaunt outside park boundaries when she was shot, is one of at least seven wolves from Yellowstone that have been killed in legal hunts this year. Hundreds more out of about 1,800 in the northern Rockies have also been killed. Suzanne Stone, a wolf expert from the environmental group Defenders of Wildlife, says the hunting is too aggressive. "This is not a legacy that anyone would want to have. This was one of the most successful wildlife reintroduction programs anywhere in the world. And it's being put in jeopardy now," says Stone. Randy Newberg hunts wolves and makes hunting television programs. He says tourists love wolves, but many people who live around them don't like them and hate that the federal government forced wolves on them. He thinks wolf hunts are easing the animosity many local people feel toward the predator. "Having these hunting seasons has provided a level of tolerance again," Newberg says. Smith says as much as he hates to lose a wolf as valuable as 832, he agrees. "To get support for wolves, you can't have people angry about them all the time, and so hunting is going to be part of the future of wolves in the West. We've got to have it if we're going to have wolves," Smith says.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24669000
All systems secure Kettering researcher develops a new communications architecture and protocol for safety critical systems in automotive applications that will make driving more safe and less costly for car companies. When you slam on your brakes unexpectedly while driving, do you worry that your car may not stop? Do you wonder if your airbag will actually deploy correctly, given the infrequency of its use, or if your door might spring open during a collision, exposing your body as your car careens out of control? As a nation with highways jammed with drivers, most of us don't realize what sort of technology goes into safety systems on the cars we drive, such as brakes, steering and stability. We know they are probably expensive but short of that, as long as the safety system works, most of us are happy. When we lease or purchase a new vehicle, we typically assume it is safe to drive, since it has passed federal and state regulations. But the work in developing the dependable technology that helps a car stop or glide safely and smoothly over rough terrain is complex, highly sophisticated and very expensive for automakers to incorporate into your vehicle. Kettering University's Juan Pimentel of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Dept. is fully aware of how difficult it is to develop dependable systems in cars. Dependability is an important concept that involves safety, reliability, availability and security. What makes his most recent research exciting is that his dependable, simple and cost-efficient system not only works well with traditional combustion engines, but also with hybrid vehicles and electric propulsion systems, which may one day replace the cars we drive today. Over the past several years Pimentel has worked in the field of controller area networks (CAN) to develop an architecture and protocol for highly dependable (otherwise known as safety-critical) systems in automobiles. By definition, controller area networks work in conjunction with other electronic systems inside cars for various operations, such as braking and steering. Unfortunately, there are no dependable systems on the market that are simple and inexpensive. So Pimentel went about researching and developing an architecture and protocol he calls FlexCAN, which is based on CAN protocol and is suitable for highly dependable systems. Pimentel also integrated SafeCAN into his system, which deals with error detection and fault management of buses and nodes used to communicate electronically with other system components inside a vehicle. What does all this techno mumbo jumbo mean? In simple terms, Pimentel has developed a highly dependable system that is simpler and cheaper for automakers to incorporate into their vehicle while sustaining the high quality of research necessary to create systems to protect drivers in case of emergencies. His work enhances the current CAN protocol used in the industry today, which is very different from what other companies and firms are currently doing. His architecture and protocol rely on commercially over the shelf (COTS) CAN components available on the market. This is vastly different from other companies as they work in developing safety critical systems from scratch, which is costly and often times passed on to the automaker and thereby the consumer, due to the complexity involved in creating a system that works effectively. "To make these systems work efficiently and effectively, one needs an approach that considers all aspects of development and usage to achieve dependability at various levels." For Pimentel, the CAN protocol available in today's market still holds great potential and opportunity. "I want to build on and enhance what's already available in terms of CAN systems, since the basic operation of these systems works well," he explained. "But I am going about utilizing these components with a little different twist. In previous years, you had specialists who worked in various capacities for safety critical systems, but not all specialists knew what the other was doing. Thus, they didn't have afull understanding of how these systems worked in conjunction with each other in the broad range of operation, for example, in automotive applications, or how their work in this field affected the work of other engineers." To address this trend, which has several pitfalls in Pimentel's eyes, he approached the development of his system and protocol (called FlexCAN and SafeCAN) from an interdisciplinary perspective, or what others might term a holistic approach. This method is new to safety critical systems development, one that utilizes Pimentel's interdisciplinary training and experience. "To make these systems work efficiently and effectively, one needs an approach that considers all aspects of development and usage to achieve dependability at various levels," he said. "FlexCAN considers advances and component availability in the following fields: application domain, embedded systems, protocols and networks, safety and reliability, real-time systems and systems engineering." The development of FlexCAN began three years ago and is now at a stage that allows use of the system for evaluation purposes in the design and incorporation of safety critical systems. In the past few years, some of the projects that utilized various aspects of FlexCAN include simulation, target implementation, diagnostics, network management, testing and verification. On April 28, Pimentel held a demonstration in Kettering's Computer Networking Laboratory that involved a steer-by-wire system built on FlexCAN and SafeCAN. Representatives from the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) attended the demonstration and have shown considerable interest in standardizing this protocol. If this proves to be the case, Pimentel said a large percentage of future cars might use the protocol, which "has tremendous, positive impact and implications for the University." More than 20 representatives from such firms as Ford, Bosch, dSPACE, EDS, Delphi, Lear, Vector CANTech Inc., Ricardo, and USDI attended the demonstration. John Kaniarz, a 2003 Computer Engineering graduate from Troy, Mich., currently employed by GM, collaborated with Pimentel on the development of SafeCAN and continues working with him on the ongoing development and research associated with FlexCAN's potential. He became interested in this project during his spring 2003 capstone project. Other researchers at the University of Aviero, Portugal and the University of Padova in Italy are also collaborating with Pimentel on further analysis and development of FlexCAN and SafeCAN. To learn more about this important research, visit to see http://www.kettering.edu/~jpimente/ how this new development will impact the automotive industry at a time when other efforts achieve similar objectives based on technology developed from scratch. Written by Gary J. Erwin	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24678000
Is it an allergy? Drug allergies can be a confusing area for parents because an adverse reaction to a medication does not necessarily mean that the child is allergic to that medicine. In fact most drug-related symptoms will not be caused by an allergic reaction. Nevertheless, whether it’s an allergic or a non-allergic reaction, all adverse drug events should be checked out by a doctor, as they can be very serious, even life-threatening. What are the symptoms of allergic reactions? Most allergic reactions occur fairly soon after taking a medicine, however, it is possible to develop an allergic reaction after several weeks on a drug, or during subsequent use of medicine. The most common symptoms of an allergy include: - Skin rash - Facial swelling - Shortness of breath And it’s worth noting that many of these are also the symptoms of a non-allergic reaction. What is anaphylaxis? While rare, it is the most serious allergic drug reaction and is a medical emergency. Anaphylaxis symptoms usually start within minutes of exposure to a drug. Symptoms of a possible anaphylactic reaction include: - Tightening (constriction) of the airways and a swollen tongue or throat, causing trouble breathing - Shock, with a severe drop in blood pressure - Weak, rapid pulse - Nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea - Dizziness, light-headedness or loss of consciousness It's possible to have an allergic response to a drug that caused no problem in the past. Common drug allergies This is the most common drug allergy, with penicillins, cephalosporins and sulfonamides (those containing sulpher) the main culprits. Antibiotics can also cause non-allergic side effects such as a skin rash and digestive problems. Allergic reactions can occur, but rarely, after a vaccination. Usually an allergic reaction is triggered by other ingredients in the vaccine such as egg or neomycin, rather than the vaccine itself. Non-allergic reactions to vaccines are common, but in most cases they aren't severe and symptoms improve quickly. What are non-allergic reactions? An allergy involves the body’s immune system identifying a chemical or substance as harmful and creating antibodies to attack it. In most cases, what appears to be an allergy is actually a reaction that doesn't involve the immune system. Some drug reactions that are similar to, but may not be an allergic reaction include: - Breathing difficulties: nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) including aspirin and ibuprofen can cause asthma-like symptoms in some people so it's understandable why these can be confused with an allergy. - Skin rashes: medicines can affect the skin in many different way, for example, sulfonamides may cause cause a rash by making the skin burn more easily in the sun. - Stomach problems: nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea are common side effects with antibiotics. - Dizziness or light-headedness: many medicines can cause this by lowering blood pressure or by affecting the central nervous system. - Swelling of the face, lips, tonuge or other parts of the body: some medicines for high blood pressure and heart conditions can cause these symptoms directly without involving the immune system. Who’s at risk? Anyone can have an allergic reaction to a medicine but there are some factors that can suggest an increase in your risk, such as: - Having a past allergic reaction to the same drug or another drug. If past reactions have been mild, you could be at risk of a more severe reaction. - Taking a drug similar to one that caused a reaction in the past. - Having a health condition that weakens your immune system. - Having hay fever or another allergy. When to seek medical help Inform your doctor of any reactions as it can influence whether you can be prescribed the same medicine again. If possible, see your doctor when the allergic reaction is occurring. This will help identify the cause and make sure you get treatment if it's needed. Obviously if there are any severe symptoms or signs of anaphylaxis, seek urgent medical attention. Related allergy articles This article was written by Fiona Baker for Kidspot, Australia’s best family health resource. Sources include NPS MedicineWise. Last revised: Tuesday, 15 February 2011 This article contains general information only and is not intended to replace advice from a qualified health professional. - Do I have postnatal depression? - Are your kids getting enough green time? - 6 ways to reduce your risk of breast cancer today - Being friendly with your breasts could save your life - Sunscreen shock: Just how safe is sunscreen for our kids? - Why mums need breakfast too - Digestive distress: How to manage bloating, wind and cramping - Phthalates in plastics: how safe are they? - In a lather over sodium lauryl sulfate - What's the fuss about parabens?	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24684000
- School Stuff Christmas is the Christian holiday that celebrates the day when Christ was born. Today, December 25th has taken on a bit of a different spin, with Jolly Ol' St. Nick bringing toys to all the girls and boys of the world on this December holiday. It takes all kinds of people to make the world go 'round. Some people actually like Paris Hilton and others race snow shovels. Go figure! Don't be surprised if you see a lot of peeps sporting red ribbons December 1st. It's World AIDS Day. Find out more about it here. Snow isn't that mysterious. It's white and cold, right? But do you even know what snowflakes are made out of? Find out here. Have you ever wondered where some Christmas traditions started? Get the 411 on the annual festivities here! Winter solstice is the first day of winter. Check out all the celebrations that take place on the shortest day of the year! Kwanzaa and Boxing Day fall on the same day. Find out all about both holidays in one handy story. Do you know what the largest gift was? How about how tall the largest Christmas angel ornament was? Or the most expensive toy? You'd never guess what it is. Keep reading to find out... Skeleton racers need strength, agility and, most importantly, guts. Learn about this dangerous sport. The best part about being a sports fan is cheering on your favorite team when they win and booing and taunting them when they lose.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24686000
SEATTLE -- A Seattle nuclear watchdog group is accusing the federal government of failing to keep the public informed of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. In the days following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the U.S. began monitoring radiation from Japan's leaking nuclear power plants. Most of the public attention went to the air monitoring which showed little or no radiation coming our way. But things were different on the rain water side. "The level that was detected on March 24 was 41 times the drinking water standard," said Gerry Pollet from Heart of America Northwest. He reviewed Iodine 131 numbers released by the Environmental Protection Agency last spring. "Our government said no health levels, no health levels were exceeded.When in fact the rain water in the Northwest is reaching levels 130 times the drinking water standards," said Pollet. Elevated rain water samples were collected in Portland, Olympia and Boise, which had the highest. But EPA officials say the data was there for anyone to read on their website. A spokesman sent this statement, in part: "Since Iodine 131 has a very short half-life of approximately eight days, the levels seen in rainwater were expected to be relatively short in duration." State health agencies added that they constantly monitored public drinking water sources and never found levels even approaching the unhealthy range. Even the watchdog group admits, watering plants with water exposed only briefly to those levels is unlikely to cause health problems. But they say it's information the public deserves to know about. The EPA points out this was a brief period of elevated radiation in rainwater, and says safe drinking water standards are based on chronic exposure to radiation over a lifetime.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24687000
Hyperactivity, also referred to as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD (A-D-H-D), is a condition that occurs when excessive levels of impulsiveness, inattentiveness, and hyperactivity characterize a child's behavior. Although children can be diagnosed as having attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity, most experts agree that inattention and hyperactivity generally go hand and hand. Hyperactivity is far from rare, and it occurs in boys more often than in girls. The condition is usually first noticed by teachers, because the child's activity and restlessness tend to impair schoolwork. Hyperactive children refuse to sit still, and often fidget or squirm in their seats during class. They're prone to outbursts of temper, find it difficult to follow instructions, and have trouble remembering their assignments. They typically disrupt class, are involved in fights, have a poor self-image, and have a hard time making friends. One unfortunate aspect of the condition is that parents and teachers sometimes blame the child's problems in school on lack of effort, and this only complicates matters. Fortunately, hyperactive children generally respond extremely well to treatment, which may consist of counseling, special education programs, or medication. For more information, consult a local health care professional.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24701000
In the late 1940s, Knoxville's black community faced various challenges and experiences. They ranged from a Ku Klux Klan cross-burning on Lay Avenue to student demonstrations at Knoxville College for the firing of a popular professor. There were discussions about closing the Ethel Beck Home for Colored Orphans. And there were sometimes controversial efforts to improve Carl Cowan Park in West Knox County. The News Sentinel of June 18, 1946, reported that city detectives believed that the KKK was responsible for the burning of a cross in the 2600 block of Lay Avenue the night before. "Detectives Floyd Raley and Henry Morris investigated, and the former said he was told that the demonstration was the result of a Negro's planning to build a group of houses in the vicinity. The cross, about 10 feet tall and wrapped in soaked flammable rags, was burned near the former Booker T. Washington Park," the item stated. At the time, it was reported that the Knoxville Klavern of the KKK had a membership of 500 to 600. A former exalted cyclops, J.T. Lewis, said he got out of the organization in November 1945 because of trouble over membership. "I had a man thrown out of the organization because he had caused trouble in the name of the Klan," he said. The Knoxville Council of Community Agencies on June 21, 1947, recommended that the Ethel Beck Home be discontinued and that "its work be absorbed by the Negro unit of John Tarleton Institute." At the time, the Beck Home, which had been established in 1919, had 14 children. The three-member Knox County Commission and the Knox County Parks Board wrangled over who had the authority to let a contract for the digging of a well "at the Lowe's Ferry Pike Negro Park area" in January 1949. It seems that the matter was "settled peaceably after Squires Bob Knott and Harley Bittle spoke strongly about the board getting the 'runaround' on the matter." Almost a year later, the Knoxville Journal of Dec. 21, 1949, reported that the "U.S. Army Engineers' district office in Nashville is considering County Park Board's request for construction of a breakwater and float at Carl Cowan Park near Lowe's Ferry. The float will accommodate fishing and recreational boats, and the 200-foot breakwater will protect the cove from wave action." Meanwhile, things were a bit more turbulent at Knoxville College. The News Sentinel of May 19, 1949, reported that classes were "suspended indefinitely — authorities act as students protest firing of teacher." Vice President John M. Frazier said the student unrest began with the firing of popular professor the Rev. E.A. Paul, a middle-aged teacher of religion. Quoted students said, "President J. Reed Miller asked Paul to resign. The only reason given for that request is that Mr. Paul is not a graduate of Xenia Seminary in Pittsburgh." Although Paul was reluctant to discuss the situation, he confirmed that, adding that he "is a graduate of Knoxville College, Gammon Theological Seminary in Atlanta and Northwestern University." The 250-plus student body met in the college chapel and voted to hold demonstrations. They painted signs on the school buildings reading "We want Paul" and "We want Paul; Frazier can go." The paint was washed from the buildings, but students vowed to continue their protests. Classes were discontinued on orders from the executive committee of the Board of Trustees in Pittsburgh. "Classes will be resumed as soon as the demonstrations cease completely," they said. Robert J. Booker is a freelance writer and former executive director of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center. He may be reached at 546-1576.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24704000
Future foods: what will we be eating in 20 years’ time? August 6, 2012 Volatile food prices and a growing population mean we have to rethink what we eat, say food futurologists. So what might we be serving up in 20 years’ time, asks BBC News? - Insects will become a staple of our diet: a great source of protein, cost less to raise than cattle, consume less water and do not have much of a carbon footprint. - Sonic-enhanced food: certain sounds could make things taste sweeter or more bitter. - Lab-grown meat: a more efficient and environmentally friendly way of putting meat on our plates. - Algae can be grown in the ocean, a big bonus with land and fresh water in increasingly short supply, and the biofuel derived from algae could help reduce the need for fossil fuels.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24716000
Teen Texting Impact Study finds teens are losing sleep to texting. When it's lights out for teens their cell phones light up. They're sending texts when they should be sleeping. Dr. Peter Polos of JFK Medical Center in New Jersey surveyed 40 kids and teens. It was a small sample of students, but they revealed late-night texting has the potential to translate into big problems during the day. In addition to general fatigue kids who texted or surfed the internet late into the night were more likely to say they suffered from anxiety, depression, ADHD and learning difficulties. "The impact of this over time is cumulative sleep debt, which is very difficult to pay back," says Dr. Polos. More than three-quarters said they had trouble getting to sleep at night and many said they were awakened by texts in the middle of the night. Experts recommend taking cell phones and computers out of kids' bedrooms so they can concentrate on getting a good night's sleep. None of the 40 kids and teens surveyed was found to have healthy sleep habits.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24718000
Scientists from Stanford University, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the American Museum of Natural History, and other organizations are closing in on the answer to an important conservation question: how many humpback whales once existed in the North Atlantic? Building on previous genetic analyses to estimate the pre-whaling population of North Atlantic humpback whales, the research team has found that humpbacks used to exist in numbers of more than 100,000 individuals. The new, more accurate estimate is lower than previously calculated but still two to three times higher than pre-whaling estimates based on catch data from whaling records. Known for its distinctively long pectoral fins, acrobatics, and haunting songs, the humpback whale occurs in all the world's oceans. Current estimates for humpback whale numbers are widely debated, but some have called for the level of their international protection to be dropped. The study appears in the recently published edition of Conservation Genetics. The authors include: Kristen Ruegg and Stephen Palumbi of Stanford University; Howard C. Rosenbaum of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the American Museum of Natural History; Eric C. Anderson of the National Marine Fisheries Service and University of California-Santa Cruz; Marcia Engel of the Instituto Baleia Jubarte/Humpback Whale Institute, Brazil; Anna Rothschild of AMNH's Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics; and C. Scott Baker of Oregon State University. "We're certain that humpback whales in the North Atlantic have significantly recovered from commercial whaling over the past several decades of protection, but without an accurate size estimate of the pre-whaling population, the threshold of recovery remains unknown," said Dr. Kristen Ruegg of Stanford University and the lead author of the study. "We now have a solid, genetically generated estimate upon which future work on this important issue can be based." "Our current challenge is to explain the remaining discrepancy between the historical catch data and the population estimate generated by genetic analyses," said Dr. Howard Rosenbaum, study co-author and Director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Ocean Giants Program. "The gap highlights the need for continued evaluations of whale populations, and presents new information informing the debate and challenges associated with recovery goals." "We have spent a great deal of effort refining the techniques and approaches that give us this pre-whaling number," said Dr. Steve Palumbi of Stanford. "It's worth the trouble because genetic tools give one of the only glimpses into the past we have for whales." Reaching some 50 feet in length, the humpback whale was hunted for centuries by commercial whaling fleets in all the world's oceans. Humpbacks had predictable migration routes and were reduced to several hundred whales in the North Atlantic. The global population was reduced by possibly 90 percent of its original size. The species received protection from the International Whaling Commission in North Atlantic waters in 1955 due to the severity of its decline. Since that time, the humpback whales of the North Atlantic have made a remarkable comeback; experts estimate the current size of the North Atlantic's humpback whale population to be more than 17,000 animals. North Atlantic humpback whales are now one of the best-studied populations of great whales in the world and the mainstay of a multi-million dollar whale-watching industry. But estimating the number of whales that existed prior to commercial whaling is a far more difficult problem, critical in determining when the total population has recovered. Historical catch data from the logs of whaling vessels suggest a population size between 20,000-46,000 whales, but the current genetic analysis indicates a much larger pre-whaling population. The results of the genetic analysis indicate that the North Atlantic once held between 45,000—235,000 humpback whales (with an average estimate of 112,000 animals). A previous study using the mitochondrial DNA of humpbacks in the North Atlantic suggested a higher pre-whaling population size; an average of 240,000 individuals. To increase the accuracy of the current analysis, the team measured nine segments in the DNA sequences throughout the genome (as opposed to just one DNA segment used in the previous study). Palumbi, who participated in the first humpback genetic analysis, added: "The International Whaling Commission reviewed the results of the first study and recommended we improve the method in six specific ways. We've done that now and have the best-ever estimate of ancient humpback populations." Scott Baker, Associate Director of Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute and a co-author said: "These genetic estimates greatly improve our understanding of the genetic diversity of humpback whales, something we need to understand the impact of past hunting and to manage whales in the uncertain future." The research team analyzed genetic samples from whales in the North Atlantic as well as the Southern Hemisphere. Southern Atlantic whales were used to answer one of the six IWC questions: was there intermixing of whale populations across the equator? The samples were analyzed by sequencing specific regions of DNA in known genes. By comparing the genetic diversity of today's population to the genetic mutation rate, Ruegg and colleagues could estimate the long-term population size of humpbacks. They also showed no substantial migration of humpbacks whales across the Equator between the Southern and Northern Atlantic, and no movement from the Pacific to the Atlantic. The team recently used the same techniques to estimate pre-whaling numbers for the Pacific gray whale and the Antarctic minke whale. A difference of two to three times also was recorded between the genetic and catch estimates for the grey whale population, but were exactly on target for the Antarctic minke whale, which has not been extensively hunted. Wildlife Conservation Society: http://www.wcs.org This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24724000
Options when a disk does not unmount "Eject Failed" appears when attempting to unmount a drive. There can be a variety of causes for this behavior. A clue about the origin is in the error message that appears. If the wording is: "The disk could not be unmounted. Make sure that all applications and files are closed on this disk." The cause is likely an open program, a file transfer, or an additional user on the machine using the disk. If the wording "Resource Busy" is added to the error, close all open programs, and try again. If the message continues to appear, reboot the computer. There is usually a crashed program that can not be closed, or a cabling/power supply problem. Determining the origin can be done by using the Terminal program (located in Applications --> Utilities.) Type the command: Where the command says "drive", put the name of the LaCie drive that will not eject. In the example below, the drive is called "LaCie". The listing underneath the word "COMMAND" shows the program occupying the drive. In this case, it's the "mds" process (Spotlight indexing) that is causing the problem. Usually, an Internet search will find the program responsible for the problematic command causing the error message.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24725000
Why we are the Lasers... From our earliest beginnings in the nineteenth century when the lamp of knowledge was emblazoned on our College seal, to the one hundred and fifty years of Torchlight Parades, light has been a part of Lasell's rich history. It is in this tradition of light, and the pursuit of knowledge and excellence, that our athletes bear the name LASERS. Lasers are by definition a source of intense energy. Therefore, like a laser, our athletes are fast, focused and intense on the fields and courts of athletic endeavor. It all began with the light. Legend has it that in the spring of 1851, a group of individuals gathered together and as the sun rose in the sky, illuminating Bragdon Hill, these individuals with a laser-like focus, made the decision to found a new school. As the founders, known as boomers, put shovels into the rocky New England soil, sparks flew and the flame of knowledge was ignited for a new generation of students. The lamp of knowledge was emblazoned into the college seal. Early in the history of Lasell College, the tradition of the Torchlight Parade took hold, with seniors marching through the campus, proudly holding high their burning torches, illuminating the academic path for future students as they passed on these symbols of light to the students who would succeed them ... and the flame of knowledge continues to burn brightly here at Lasell, where being "Ignorant of Defeat" is the way we live. With the intensity of a laser, Lasell's growth and prominence has continued its boom for over 157 years, and in all that time, our torch has never dimmed -- our flame of knowledge has never stopped burning brightly -- and our seniors continue to pass the torch to those they leave behind, as through their actions and deeds they bring light to the world wherever they go. It is time to shine the light on the Lasers. Now is our boom-time. Never before have we had more reason to hold high the Lasell torch, lighting the way for the world to see. Who will lead us? Who will carry the torch the highest? Who will bring the light, and guide the Lasers to victory? Who will take the burning intensity of the Lasers and make it come alive? It will be our TORCHBEARER ... it will be our symbol of the LIGHT ... it will be our SPARK to victory ... It will be BOOMER! BOOMER will lead us; BOOMER will light our path; BOOMER will burn bright; BOOMER will inspire the Lasers; BOOMER will ignite us; BOOMER will BEAR THE TORCH and show us the way!	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24729000
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary A court order allowing a motion or other legal matter to be set at a time shorter than provided by law or court rules. Shortening time is usually granted when the time for trial or some other court action is approaching and a hearing must be heard promptly by the judge. Example: Local rules require that a party give the other side ten days' notice before a hearing. If the trial is set to begin in nine days, a court might shorten the time to schedule a hearing to five days, provided the notice is served within 24 hours. Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. August 19, 2010, 5:24 pm	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24733000
History of Western Political Tradition A brief overview of the development of political philosohpy from Socrates to Marx by John A. Sterling Biblical origins of American Political philosophy by John A. Sterling. A look at the biblical and philosophical origins of self-government. Christianity as an Influence on the Founders A look at some of the best-known founding fathers and what they said about Christianity and the Bible. Also, what their contemporaries said about them and their faith. By John A. Sterling Scroll down the page for Documents and quotes that demonstrate the ideological basis of American Self-Government 1. Magna Carta 2. The Mayflower Compact 3.Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking up Arms. 4. The Declaration of Independence 5. The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights 6. The Federalist Papers This hyperlink takes you to the THOMAS information site maintained by the U.S. Government. To return to the Law & Liberty Foundation, use the BACK button on your browser. 7. Davy Crockett's speech on the Floor of Congress 1830 8. Madison Veto of Public Works Law March 3, 1817 9. Sermon by Samuel West on the right to rebel against governors, 1789 10. Offenses Against God by Sir William Blackstone11. Discourse on Civil Liberty by Nathaniel Niles, legislator, judge, & preacher, (1741-1821) 12. Civil Disobedience: A duty to disobey by Jonathan Mayhew, (1720-1766) Sites on the Web where you can find many more historical documentsLINKS The Constitution Society Articles on Religion and America's Founding	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24735000
The Heart Catheterization Procedure A heart catheterization involves placing a catheter (a long thin tube) into the heart to measure pressures, inject dye and take X-rays. This procedure normally takes less than an hour. Providing Excellent Cardiovascular Health Care Our staff of medical professionals has vast experience in cardiovascular health care and diagnostic procedures. Based on years of practical and specialized training, our cardiovascular team provides our patients with the finest care available in South Carolina. Assessing Your Cardiac and Vascular Health To properly evaluate your cardiac and vascular health condition, your physician may recommend a cardiac catheterization (a “heart cath”), a diagnostic procedure used to evaluate problems with the heart and its blood supply. Cardiac catheterization provides information about: - blood flow through the heart and coronary arteries (blood vessels that supply blood to the heart muscle) or other major blood vessels that carry blood to and from the heart; - pressure within the heart chambers; - the detailed structure of various parts of the heart and vascular (blood vessel) system; and the heart's pumping ability.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24744000
No Categories available for this record. War & Locale: World War II -- European Theater Date of Birth: By Claudia Farias Nicanor Aguilar is something of a renaissance man, both as a musician and, at an age when most people would be slowing down, an athlete. But Aguilar’s proudest accomplishment involves his efforts to end discrimination in his West Texas hometown after returning from the war. Born Jan. 10, 1917, in Grand Falls in rural Texas, he spent most of his time helping his father, a tenant cotton farmer. The family of three brothers and two sisters helped pick cotton on 100 acres of land. In 1930, a schoolhouse was finally built for Mexican American children next to a group of mesquite trees, but he left after one year to work with his father. No schools existed for Mexican American children after elementary; entry into the "Anglo" schools was banned. Aguilar learned most of his English from the Anglo children with whom he played in town. One of his younger sisters, Maria, was prevented from attending junior high. But then along came Laura Francis Murphy, a teacher who was an advocate for teaching disenfranchised Latino students. "[Ms. Murphy] did a lot for the Mexicans," Aguilar said. His sister, Maria, ultimately became the first Hispanic to attend Grand Falls High School in 1942, thanks largely to Ms. Murphy. Maria, an accomplished trumpet player with the family's orchestra, also won band competitions. The entire Aguilar family was musically inclined. In 1927, at age 10, Aguilar began playing with his father and, later, his brothers. "We were bad, but we played good music," Aguilar said, referring to his family's Grand Falls Orchestra ensemble. The Aguilars played both Mexican and "American" music, including classics such as "Stardust." Each family member was paid $1 an hour to perform at weddings and other dances. Aguilar started playing drums, but didn't like it because he would have to read the music simultaneously and miss watching the people dancing on the dance floor. So his father put him on the violin instead, and he was able to focus on his dual interests. "I didn't like the violin too well, but there I was. At least I could see the people," he said, laughing. He would go on to play the clarinet, saxophone and piano for the next 50 years. Aguilar proudly displayed a framed article from a 1946 edition of a regional newspaper headlined, "Aguilar's Brought 'Big Band Sound' To West Texas," and featuring a photo of the family playing. This family bond helped inspire him to join the U.S. Army; younger brother Isabino Aguilar, had already enlisted. Aguilar received basic training at Camp Hood, Texas, and later Fort Ord, Calif. He was intent on fighting in Europe for his country and joining his kid brother in Germany. Aguilar ultimately shipped out to Italy and fought with the 36th Infantry Division on the European front. Like many veterans, Aguilar is reticent in recalling war stories. In his interview, he focuses instead on the social battles he fought stateside. After the war, he found discrimination hadn’t disappeared in his hometown. "There was the same discrimination in Grand Falls, if not worse," Aguilar recalled. "First, we'd work for a dollar a day. After the war, they raised it to $2 [for] 10 hours. And the whites would get $18 (a day) in the petroleum [field]." Virtually none of the town's petroleum jobs were available to Latinos. Aguilar managed to maintain employment for one year with a small petroleum company, but only through a friend's assistance. He felt he had to act to end his town's discriminatory climate. "It wasn't right," he said. "I started calling other veterans and I told them, 'We have to do something good.'" Toward that end, they secured assistance from a League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) associate. "We would investigate. For example . . . I would see [signs that read] 'No Mexicans, whites only.' There was only one [restaurant] that would serve us. We would write reports so they could give us the reasons. Some would answer us well; others, not so well. I brought those reports to El Paso and gave them to a LULAC associate. I don't know what he did with them after that. Once, a more powerful LULAC associate came to see me from San Antonio and congratulated me." Gradually, the oppressive signs began coming down from diner windows. In 1948, Aguilar moved to El Paso after a drought in Grand Falls, still continuing his work for LULAC. Today, he’s a LULAC Member At Large. He married Mercedes Borunda and the couple had four sons: Nick Jr., Pete, Paul and Joe. Aguilar knows it was the efforts of many people like him that led to changes. "You don't know the sacrifices we made," he said. In addition to his civil rights efforts, Aguilar started competing in the Senior Olympics when he was 65, participating in running, bicycling and other events. Today, he displays his mounted awards. In later correspondence, Aguilar noted that, all told, he has 67 awards, most of them gold or first place. And he added that 14 of those were earned at the age of 85. In further post-interview correspondence, Aguilar writes extensively about the discrimination of his youth, seemingly as vivid a memory as the war. Perhaps he’d internalized much of that personal history earlier, preferring instead to record his thoughts at a more leisurely pace that would accommodate intermittent waves of emotion upon remembrance. In the makeshift building -- the one next to the mesquite trees - he soaked up whatever learning he could, he wrote. "We had scraps of education in old abandoned houses with teachers perhaps not qualified," he said. "I was kept three years in the seventh grade because the state could not afford any more books. I had one choice: Stay 'til I grew a beard or quit ..." But he didn’t quit. And today his story of growing resonates powerfully and speaks volumes. Mr. Aguilar was interviewed in El Paso, Texas, on December 29, 2001, by Maggie Rivas Rodriguez.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24749000
Bushy Tail – The Gray SquirrelFall 2010 by Bill Banaszewski Every year, my wife’s extended family comes to our place for a holiday celebration. The younger members of the tribe quickly get bored with the indoor festivities and convince good ol’ Uncle Bill to head outside for some winter fun. For the past several years, however, the weather has been anything but winter-like. So, instead of snowball fights, we have hiked into the woods for a wildlife adventure. Two years ago, after I promised we could see all kinds of animals, we returned from our adventure, and Sam – then 3 years old – was asked what he saw. He emphatically replied, “Nothin’!” This past year, I was determined to produce. However, with youngsters ranging in age from 4 to 10, we sounded like a herd of elephants tromping through the woods, even though I stressed the importance of walking quietly “like Indians.” After 15 minutes, the questions started: “Where are the fox, turkey and deer, Uncle Bill?” Just as I was about to offer a litany of excuses, I enthusiastically pointed to a gray squirrel that scurried across the trail in front of us. My buddy, Sam – then 4 – looked at me and rather incredulously said, “We got a million of those things in our yard,” as he stomped back to the house. Sam’s exaggeration was only minor; gray squirrels are indeed abundant. Originally, the Finger Lakes Region was a hardwood forest wilderness, teeming with gray squirrels. Millions were believed to inhabit the forests of New York in the early 1800s. They were an absolute plague to pioneers who had established farmsteads in forest clearings – only to have the squirrels destroy their corn and other food crops. Because they were so destructive and abundant, bounties were established, and hunters easily harvested a hundred squirrels a day. Sixty-six different members of the squirrel family live across the United States. Here in the Finger Lakes they include gray, red and flying squirrels; chipmunks; and – to the surprise of many people – woodchucks. Although they are fairly common, flying squirrels are seldom seen because they are nocturnal. By the way, they don’t fly but glide from tree to tree. Gray squirrels are so named for obvious reasons. However, their color ranges from gray with yellow to reddish brown tints, to white (albino) and black. Distinct populations of black squirrels can be found across the region, which some mistake for a different species. They are simply gray squirrels with two recessive genes that give them their black coats. Gray squirrels feed on insects, occasionally bird eggs, and a wide variety of seeds and tree buds. In the spring, I’ve watched them nip the buds of maple trees and then, in apparent pleasure, lap up the sweet sap. Their main source of food is acorns, walnuts and hickory nuts. In autumn, they carry fallen acorns and nuts quite a distance and then bury them in the ground for their winter food supply. Studies have determined that although they find and consume 75 percent of the cached nuts, those that are not found germinate in the spring, thus, regenerating the forest. Some have suggested that gray squirrels planted almost every hickory tree in America today. (However, even Sam might say that’s an exaggeration.) Not only a problem to pioneer farmers, gray squirrels remain the subject of much complaint because they dominate bird feeders, dig up flower bulbs, and nip off the new growth of vegetables in backyard gardens. Bushy tails, another name for gray squirrels, typically produce litters of three or four young in the spring and again late summer. During their winter courtship, I have observed several wild mating chases. On one occasion, nine males pursued a single female as she scrambled up and down and back and forth between two hickory trees. When she reached the end of a branch with no escape, she turned to face the onslaught, bared her teeth and screamed like a hawk. A dominant male joined the wild scramble and chased off the other would-be suitors. Even when not engaged in mating chases, gray squirrels can be quite mouthy. When alarmed, their call is a rapid chucking sound, which is often accompanied by a fore and aft waving and fluttering of their tail. Once I watched a gray squirrel bark at a red fox that was walking through the forest, and later, it hysterically scolded a hawk that was perched in a nearby tree. Fox prey on squirrels, but they must catch them on the ground, and that is quite a feat. Red tail hawks, sometimes called squirrel hawks, are more successful. Nesting red tails effectively hunt squirrels as a team. The squirrel I observed staring down and scolding the red tail was unaware of the hawk’s mate as it quietly flew in undetected, and captured the mouthy squirrel. After observing that encounter between predator and prey, I remembered my father’s warning when I was young and mouthy, “If you keep jibber-jabbering all the time, you’re eventually going to get yourself into trouble.” So too, it must be with squirrels.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24752000
A packet filtering firewall, designed to regulate incoming and outgoing packets from a network or an operating system, is akin to security personnel guarding the entrance to a commercial or residential property. Such a system has very little authority, unless given additional powers, in what applications inside the operating system or network are able to do. That is where an application “firewall” comes into play. It is designed to ensure that applications in an operating system (or in some instances, a network) adhere to access control rules that govern their “activities.” It should be noted that an application firewall, like a stateful packet filter, is not a one-shot security solution. It merely adds an extra layer of security to a system, complementing other security protocols and systems in place. That idea also formed the main point of why your computer needs a firewall enabled. This crude sketch shows applications in an operating system when there is no application firewall to regulated their actions. They are free to wander as they please. And here is what it looks like with an application firewall activated. By the way, this screen shot and the one above, were taken from Tomoyo’s website, an application firewall featured in this article: There are three such applications built into the Linux kernel, and they are available as loadable modules. While they tend to be described using slightly different terminologies, and may even differ in how to operate, once activated, they have the same effect – intelligently enforcing access rights for applications they are configured to monitor. In alphabetical order, the three application firewalls are: An effective and easy-to-use Linux application security system. AppArmor proactively protects the operating system and applications from external or internal threats, even zero-day attacks, by enforcing good behavior and preventing even unknown application flaws from being exploited. AppArmor security policies completely define what system resources individual applications can access, and with what privileges. A number of default policies are included with AppArmor, and using a combination of advanced static analysis and learning-based tools, AppArmor policies for even very complex applications can be deployed successfully in a matter of hours. SELinux, or Security-Enhanced Linux, was contributed to the Linux kernel by the National Security Agency. It is the application firewall activated by default in Fedora, and it has a reputation as being a bit more difficult to manage and configure than the others. The following is a brief description of SELinux from its Fedora project page. Security-Enhanced Linux (SELinux) adds Mandatory Access Control (MAC) to the Linux kernel, and is enabled by default in Fedora. A general purpose MAC architecture needs the ability to enforce an administratively-set security policy over all processes and files in the system, basing decisions on labels containing a variety of security-relevant information. When properly implemented, it enables a system to adequately defend itself and offers critical support for application security by protecting against the tampering with, and bypassing of, secured applications. MAC provides strong separation of applications that permits the safe execution of untrustworthy applications. Its ability to limit the privileges associated with executing processes limits the scope of potential damage that can result from the exploitation of vulnerabilities in applications and system services. MAC enables information to be protected from legitimate users with limited authorization as well as from authorized users who have unwittingly executed malicious applications. Tomoyo was launched in 2003 and its development is sponsored by Japan’s NTT DATA Corporation. It is, as far as I know, the only one that is not used by default on any Linux distribution. However, that should change when the next edition of Chakra Edn is released. According to the official description, Tomoyo is a: Mandatory Access Control (MAC) implementation for Linux that can be used to increase the security of a system, while also being useful purely as a system analysis tool. TOMOYO Linux focuses on the behaviour of a system. Every process is created to achieve a purpose, and like an immigration officer, TOMOYO Linux allows each process to declare behaviours and resources needed to achieve their purpose. When protection is enabled, TOMOYO Linux acts like an operation watchdog, restricting each process to only the behaviours and resources allowed by the administrator. Most distributions have one of these applications activated by default. If yours does not, talk to the developer(s) about it. Sometimes, all you need to do is install the userland utilities for managing it.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24761000
I got this idea from No Time for Flash Cards All you do is: - Cut out a pumpkin or 2 with orange paper. - Add a stem. - Laminate it, or put it in a sheet protector. - And draw different pumpkin faces on it with a dry-erase marker! So easy and a lot of fun. It's also a good way to practice drawing shapes. You could even make a game of it where you roll a dice and draw that shape for the eyes, another for the nose, etc.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24770000
Active Sunspot Shoots Off Intense New Solar Flare The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) captured this image of the sun during an M6.1 flare that peaked at 7:44 AM EDT on July 5, 2012. The image is shown in the 304 Angstrom wavelength, which is typically colorized in red. The sun fired off yet another intense solar flare today (July 5), the latest in a series of storms from a busy sunspot being closely watched by space telescopes and astronomers. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory snapped a daunting new image of a strong M-class solar flare that peaked this morning at 7:44 a.m. EDT (1144 GMT). The M6.1 flare triggered a moderate radio blackout that has since subsided, according to officials at NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The eruption came from a sprawling sunspot, called Active Region 1515, which has been particularly dynamic this week. In fact, the sunspot region has now spewed 12 M-class solar flares since July 3, NASA officials said in a statement today. The sunspot region is huge, stretching more than 62,137 miles long (100,000 kilometers) in length, they added. This sunspot region has also produced several coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are clouds of plasma and charged particles that are hurled into space during solar storms. Powerful CMEs have the potential to disrupt satellites in their path and, when aimed directly at Earth, can wreak havoc on power grids and communications infrastructure. The CMEs that were triggered by this week's solar flares, however, are thought to be moving relatively slowly, and will likely not hit Earth since the active region is located so far south on the face of the sun, NASA officials said. [More Solar Flare Photos from Sunspot AR1515] But, the sunspot is slowly rotating toward Earth, and scientists are still monitoring its activity. "Stay tuned for updates as Region 1515 continues its march across the solar disk," officials at the Space Weather Prediction Center, a joint service of NOAA and the National Weather Service, wrote in an update. X-class solar flares are the strongest sun storms, with M-class flares considered medium-strength, and C-class the weakest. Today's M6.1 eruption is a little over half the size of the weakest X-class flare, NASA officials said. Radio blackouts can occur when a layer of Earth's atmosphere, called the ionosphere, is bombarded with X-rays or extreme ultraviolet light from solar eruptions. Disturbances in the ionosphere can change the paths of high and low frequency radio waves, which can affect information carried along these channels. Radio blackouts are categorized on a scale from R1 (minor) to R5 (extreme). An R2 radio blackout can result in limited degradation of both high- and low-frequency radio communication and GPS signals, NASA officials said. The sun is currently in an active phase of its roughly 11-year solar weather cycle. The current cycle, known as Solar Cycle 24, is expected to peak in mid-2013. MORE FROM LiveScience.com	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24771000
Early Embryo's Odd Behavior Reveals Chances of Miscarriage Time-lapse images of human embryos in the first two days of development. CREDIT: Kevin E. Loewke Amazing time-lapse videos of embryos in the very earliest stages of development could help fertility doctors prevent miscarriage, new research suggests. By watching the timing of the cells' development, doctors could determine which cells are genetically healthy, and which have abnormal numbers of chromosomes, finds the study published today (Dec. 4) in the journal Nature Communications. "What we've shown is that by watching, you can detect some differences in the movements in the cell cycle of those [embryos] that are carrying errors from those that are more likely to survive," said study researcher Renee Reijo Pera, who studies stem cells and early embryo development at Stanford University. Chromosomes are coiled packets of DNA. Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, but genetic accidents can alter that number, a condition called aneuploidy. Some aneuploidies cause disorders such as Down syndrome, which occurs when there are three chromosomes on what should be the 21st pair. Other aneuploidies are incompatible with life, causing early miscarriage or later stillbirth. Extra or missing chromosomes are shockingly common, affecting up to 75 percent of all embryos, studies find. This may be why as many as 50 to 75 percent of pregnancies are so-called "chemical pregnancies," meaning that an embryo spontaneously aborts right after implantation in the uterus. Many women with chemical pregnancies may not even realize they were ever pregnant. There's little to be done about these early miscarriages in typical pregnancies. For in vitro fertilization (IVF), however, it's important to choose embryos with the best chance of life to prevent miscarrying. Pera and her colleagues have already found that abnormal embryos show strange behaviors in the first four days of development. For example, the length of time it takes an abnormal embryo to complete its very first division from one cell body to two differs from the time it takes for a normal embryo to do the same. Abnormal embryos also show more fragmentation, Pera told LiveScience. Fragmentation occurs when one cell in an embryo experiences a problem. In most situations, a cell with a problem simply dies. In embryos, however, these cells seem to break apart instead. Often, DNA-containing cell fragments will fuse with other cells in the embryo, transferring extra chromosomes to those cells. The researchers wanted to know whether they could use these odd behaviors to reliably distinguish a healthy embryo from a doomed one. They took 75 human embryos that had been frozen at the single-cell phase and cultured them in Petri dishes for two days, taking a microscopic snapshot of each embryo every five minutes. [See Video of the Developing Embryos] These snapshots were then strung together into time-lapse movies, which the researchers analyzed for the timing of various cell-division phases. Of the 75 original cells, 53 survived four days, which represents the zygote stage of embryonic development. Of those, 45 were usable for genetic analysis. About 75 percent, or 34 of the 45 cells surviving to the zygote stage, had the wrong number of chromosomes. The abnormal cells showed more variations in their cell-division cycles than normal cells, the researchers found. While normal cells all developed at similar paces, abnormal cells lagged behind or sped ahead in the divisions of the first, second and third cells. Combining data about the abnormal timing with other signs that something has gone wrong (such as fragmented DNA and asymmetrical cell sizes within a developing embryo) could reliably show which cells have the right number of chromosomes and which don't, the researchers report. The findings offer some insight into why early human development is so likely to go wrong, Pera said. Other animals don't have so many problems, she said. Mice, for example, make mistakes in embryo development only about 1 percent of the time. Researchers have long thought that perhaps humans have so many problems because women's eggs degrade with age, Pera said. But in the current study, only 20 percent of the embryos showed these kind of errors. Much more frequent were so-called mitotic errors, which occur later in development, after sperm and cell fuse and the embryo begins to divide. "That so many errors are being made after the egg and the sperm come together, that appears to be kind of special to humans," Pera said. A California-based biotech company has now licensed the embryo-watching technology and is going to begin testing it in fertility clinics, Pera said. The hope is that doctors can use the technique as a way to non-invasively watch embryos before implanting them in women, ensuring that they pick the cell clusters most likely to survive to birth. Editor's Note: This article was updated at 4pm EST to add comments from the researcher. MORE FROM LiveScience.com	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24772000
Eric Lomax, as a young Royal Signals officer, had the misfortune to get caught up, with a third of a million others, in what has been called a 'logistic imperative', an enterprise more vulgarly known as the Death Railway, planned and carried through by the Japanese Imperial Army. At any point in history a logistic imperative is something to be avoided at all costs, whether it involves cutting the Americas in two or building St Petersburg in a freezing swamp. It is familiar lore that on the labour-expendable rail route from Siam to Burma each sleeper represented a human life. More than twelve thousand of Lomax's fellow prisoners of war died of disease and vile treatment, as did an estimated one hundred thousand 'coolies' from neighbouring lands. Lomax, for breaking his captors' rules, had both his arms broken in a flogging to which was added water torture; his punishment was roughly equivalent to the old-time treatment for an obstinate sailor - the cat-o'-nine-tails and a keel-hauling. Mercifully, if surprisingly, no flashbacks portraying these events were shown in the lightly fictionalised television film Prisoners in Time, which was based on The Railway Man. Given what was done in the film The Bridge over the River Kwai, that stirring symphony of false notes, it can hardly have been an easy decision for Lomax to allow his life to be re-scripted and interpreted by others. Millions will have seen Prisoners in Time, but this well-written and well-judged book is the superior article. LRB 5 October 1995 \| PDF Download	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24776000
The introduction of steam power into factories from the beginning of the nineteenth century meant that goods could be made more cheaply and easily than by hand. Steamships brought raw materials and foodstuffs to Europe in larger quantities and more reliably than before. Here we look first at how shops changed and were themselves mechanised in order to sell larger quantities of manufactured goods to an increasingly prosperous public. A new cultural industry arose as steam power was also applied to the printing press. Books became cheaper and more plentiful. Newspapers sold by the million and became brighter and more readable. The inexpensive mass-audience magazine was born, and with it came new forms of advertising aimed directly at the consumer. The electric telegraph connected distant places by wire, but by the 1890s telegraphy without wires, or radio communication, had been discovered. From this came broadcasting, which was to become part of almost every home in Britain within 15 years. Television went from a theory propounded in a scientific journal in 1912 to an established fact in 1936. Although television itself did not become a mass medium until the 1960s, many of the elements of the consumer world we know today were in place by 1940.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24789000
Volume 9, Issue 2 Tricks of the Trade In and Out Download This Issue Learning about Differential Equations from Their Symmetries Application of MathSym to Analyzing an Ordinary Differential Equation In the previous section we used a scaling symmetry to help understand the solutions of a pair of differential equations. In each case, the scaling symmetry was found by inspection. Here I present the computation of the complete set of point symmetries for two additional differential equations. Our third example is a nonlinear ordinary differential that we analyze using its two symmetries. The final example is the partial differential equation known as the cubic nonlinear Schrödinger equation . Example three is the ordinary differential equation that arises in the study of nonlinear water wave equations. I also show that we can use its two symmetries to begin to learn something about the structure of its solutions. MathSym returns a system of equations, the determining equations, whose solutions generate the symmetries of equation (8). Internally, the MathSym package denotes all independent variables in an equation as and dependent variables as . This way it can be run on systems of equations with arbitrary numbers of independent and dependent variables without needing to know how to treat different variable names. Furthermore, constants are represented as internally and printed as . With this notation, constants are treated correctly by Mathematica's differentiation routine Dt. MathSym's output is the following list of determining equations. With the output from MathSym we can continue our analysis of equation (8). First, we solve the determining equations: The functions and determine two symmetries that can be used to convert equation (8) into two integrals. The reader is directed to similar computations for the Blasius boundary layer equation which appear on pages 118-120 of . We begin by considering the symmetry that occurs because of the term. Setting and produces a transformation and . We next look for two quantities that do not change under this transformation. Obvious choices are and . If we assume that is a function of and write the differential equation for that arises by insisting that satisfy equation (8), we find This is a standard reduction of order for autonomous equations that may be found in a sophomore differential equations text such as . This equation in and has a symmetry that is generated by the constant appearing in equations (9) and (10). From this symmetry we can derive new variables and and consider as a function of . In terms of and , equation (11) becomes We have now converted the problem of solving the original equation into two integrations. First we find as a function of giving us a solution of equation (12) and hence of equation (11). Then we return to the original variables and have implicitly as a function of . Integrating again gives a relationship between and . We can make Mathematica carry out some of these computations. First we will ask that it determine a solution to equation (12) by integrating both sides of the equation. In the equation for we can return to the original variables and . What results is an implicit relationship between and and while MathSym has been successful in generating the symmetries of equation (8), it still is a challenge to solve this equation. About Mathematica \| Download Mathematica Player Copyright © 2004 Wolfram Media, Inc. All rights reserved.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24798000
Digestive Diseases: Food Poisoning Food poisoning is a common, yet distressing and sometimes life-threatening problem for millions of people in the U.S., and throughout the world. People infected with foodborne organisms may be symptom-free or may have symptoms ranging from mild intestinal discomfort to severe dehydration and bloody diarrhea. Depending on the type of infection, people can even die as a result of food poisoning. More than 250 different diseases can cause food poisoning. Some of the most common diseases are infections caused by bacteria, such as Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shigella, E. coli O157:H7, Listeria, and botulism. What Is Campylobacter Infection? Campylobacter is a bacterium that causes acute diarrhea. Transmission usually occurs through ingestion of contaminated food, water, or unpasteurized milk, or through contact with infected infants, pets or wild animals. Is Campylobacter Infection a Serious Health Concern? It can be, especially in those with weakened immune systems. In rare cases, Campylobacter infection can cause additional problems such as arthritis or brain and nerve problems. Occasionally, these problems occur after the diarrhea has stopped. How Is Campylobacter Infection Diagnosed and Treated? If you think you may have been exposed to the infection, see your doctor. By testing a sample of your stool, the bacteria can be identified. If you are found to have the infection, you will likely recover on your own without treatment within 2-5 days. Drink plenty of fluids to prevent becoming dehydrated. In more severe cases, antibiotics (such as Cipro), if given early in the illness, can be used to shorten the length of time you are sick. What Is Salmonella? Salmonella is a bacterial infection that can be passed on to humans from domestic and wild animals, including poultry, pigs, cattle, and pets. But most often, it is caused by drinking unpasteurized milk or by eating undercooked poultry and poultry products such as eggs. Any food prepared on surfaces contaminated by raw chicken or turkey can also become tainted with salmonella. Less often, the illness may stem from food contaminated by a food worker. Salmonella can escape from the intestine and go into the blood and travel to other organs. It may become a chronic infection in some people, who can be symptom-free yet capable of spreading the disease to others. Salmonella infections occur worldwide, but it is most extensively reported in North America and Europe. Symptoms include acute onset of: Get the latest health and medical information delivered direct to your inbox FREE!	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24810000
Definition of Immunization Immunization: Vaccination. Immunizations work by stimulating the immune system, the natural disease-fighting system of the body. The healthy immune system is able to recognize invading bacteria and viruses and produce substances (antibodies) to destroy or disable them. Immunizations prepare the immune system to ward off a disease. To immunize against viral diseases, the virus used in the vaccine has been weakened or killed. To immunize against bacterial diseases, it is generally possible to use only a small portion of the dead bacteria to stimulate the formation of antibodies against the whole bacteria. In addition to the initial immunization process, it has been found that the effectiveness of immunizations can be improved by periodic repeat injections or "boosters." Also see Immunizations (in the plural) and Immunization of a specific type (such Immunization, Polio). Last Editorial Review: 4/27/2011 5:27:15 PM Back to MedTerms online medical dictionary A-Z List Need help identifying pills and medications? Get the latest health and medical information delivered direct to your inbox FREE!	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24812000
Written by adam on Mar 16, 2006 Food Dictionary: Chop, Mince, Dice, Grate To chop or not to chop, that is the question. Whether 'tis mincing or dicing in the mind to chiffonade the basil to outrageous perfection. To grate, perchance to shred - aye, there's the rub. Oh fair Henckel's -- Knife on my block. Be all my ingredients remembered. Epicurious and Hamlet, bring us this latest batch of food words .... words .... words .... words that tell us how we are cutting our ingredients. Do we chop, grate, mince, dice, or shred? Chop: cutting food into small, bite-sized pieces Mince: to cut food into very small pieces. Note: minced food is smaller than chopped food Dice: to cut food into tiny cubes Grate: To reduce a large piece of food to small particles or thin shreds by rubbing it against a coarse, serrated surface, Shred: to cut food into narrow strips by hand or by grater or food processer. Interesting. So you can grate with a grater and you can also shred with a grater.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24814000
There is much a pregnant woman can do to take care of herself during pregnancy. If she has any questions about diet, the use of drugs or nutritional supplements, physical activity, and sexual intercourse during pregnancy, she can talk with her doctor. Diet and Weight: During pregnancy, the woman's diet should be adequate and nutritious. If she does not consume enough nutrients for herself and the fetus, nutrients first go to nourish the fetus. However, adding about 250 calories to the daily diet is usually enough to provide nourishment for both. Most of the extra calories should be protein. The diet should be well balanced and include fresh fruits, grains, and vegetables. Cereals that are high in fiber and low in sugar are a good choice. In the United States, most women get enough salt in their diet, without adding salt to their food at the table. Commercially prepared foods often contain excessive amounts of salt and should be consumed sparingly. Dieting to lose weight during pregnancy is not recommended, even for obese women, because some weight gain is essential for the fetus to develop normally. Dieting reduces the supply of nutrients to the fetus. An average-size woman should gain about 25 to 30 pounds during pregnancy. Gaining more than 30 to 35 pounds puts fat on the woman and the fetus. Because controlling weight gain is more difficult later in pregnancy, a woman should try to avoid gaining too much weight during the first months. On the other hand, not gaining weight can hinder the growth and development of the fetus. A woman should try to gain between 2 and 3 pounds each month during early pregnancy. Sometimes a pregnant woman gains weight because she is retaining fluid. Fluid may be retained because when she lies flat, the enlarging uterus interferes with blood flow from the legs back to the heart. Lying on one side, preferably the left side, for 30 to 45 minutes 2 or 3 times a day may relieve this problem. Wearing elastic support stockings may also help. Drugs and Dietary Supplements: Generally, avoiding drugs during pregnancy is best. However, drugs must sometimes be used (see Drug Use During Pregnancy). A pregnant woman should check with her doctor before taking any drug—including nonprescription (over-the-counter) drugs, such as aspirin, or medicinal herbs—particularly during the first 3 months. Pregnancy doubles the amount of iron needed. Most pregnant women need an iron supplement because the average woman does not absorb enough iron from food to meet the requirements of pregnancy. If a woman has anemia or develops anemia during pregnancy, she may need to take a larger dose of iron than other pregnant women. Iron supplements may cause mild stomach upset and constipation. All pregnant women should take a folate (folic acid) supplement (usually included in prenatal vitamins) daily. Ideally, the folate supplement is begun before pregnancy. A deficiency of folate increases the risk of having a baby with a birth defect of the brain or spinal cord, such as spina bifida. Women who have had a baby with spina bifida should start taking a high dose of folate before they become pregnant. For some other women who may have a folate deficiency, the amount of folate in a standard prenatal vitamin is sufficient, even if the risk is somewhat increased. For example, women who are exposed to excessive ultraviolet (UV) light, particularly fair-skinned women, may have decreased folate levels. Also, women who have taken oral contraceptives within several months before conception are more likely to develop a folate deficiency, but there is no proof that they are more likely to have a baby with spina bifida. If the diet is adequate, other vitamin supplements may not be needed, although most doctors recommend that pregnant women take a prenatal multivitamin containing iron and folate daily. Many pregnant women are concerned about moderating their activities. However, most women can continue their usual activities and exercises throughout pregnancy. Mildly strenuous sports, such as swimming and brisk walking, are good choices. Vigorous activities, such as running and horseback riding, are also possible if done cautiously, to avoid injury, particularly to the abdomen. Contact sports should be avoided. Sexual desire may increase or decrease during pregnancy. Sexual intercourse is safe throughout pregnancy unless a woman has vaginal bleeding, pain, leakage of amniotic fluid, or uterine contractions. In such cases, sexual intercourse should be avoided. Preparing for Breastfeeding: Women who are planning to breastfeed do not need to do anything to prepare their nipples for breastfeeding during pregnancy (see Newborns and Infants: Breastfeeding). Expressing fluids from the breast manually before delivery may lead to an infection of the breast (mastitis) or even early labor. The body prepares the areola and nipple for breastfeeding by secreting a lubricant to protect the surface. This lubricant should not be rubbed off. Observing and talking with women who have breastfed successfully may be instructive and encouraging. Travel During Pregnancy: The safest time to travel during pregnancy is between 14 and 28 weeks. Travel time should not exceed 6 hours a day. Women can obtain useful tips and information about travel from their doctor, so discussing their travel plans with the doctor is a good idea. When traveling in a car, airplane, or other vehicle, pregnant women should always wear a seat belt. Placing the lap belt across the hips and under the expanding abdomen and placing the shoulder belt between the breasts can help make wearing seat belts more comfortable. The belts should be snug but not uncomfortably tight. During any kind of travel, pregnant women should stretch and straighten their legs and ankles periodically. Travel on airplanes is safe until about 36 weeks. The primary reason for this restriction at 36 weeks is the risk of labor and delivery in an unfamiliar environment. Last full review/revision November 2007 by Haywood L. Brown, MD	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24815000
Added: 06/17/2009 This site is an animation of the light dependent (oxygen generating) reactions of photosynthesis. Note that the mechanism depicted is for prokaryotes and differs somewhat from what occurs in eukaryotes. Added: 06/17/2009 This site provides an excellent presentation on this difficult topic. In topic 1, students look at the components of chemiosmosis in the bacterium Paracoccus denitrificans in which they step through animations of electron transport, proton gradient, and A Added: 06/17/2009 This site is an excellent introduction to thermodynamics as it applies to living organisms. In topic 1, students make decisions for a paramecium living in a Petri dish that will determine if it will have enough energy to survive and reproduce. Students wi Added: 06/17/2009 These learning materials address the dynamic processes of photosynthesis that are found in the chloroplast. They include the light reactions (cyclic and non-cyclic of Photosystems I & II) and the non-light limited reactions of the Calvin Cycle. Structure of the chloroplast is included and the many images and flash movies are provided as downloadable files. Added: 06/17/2009 This Website covers cell biology all in animation. Cell structure with descriptions of each part, DNA structure, an animated overview of water chemistry, the light and dark reactions of photosynthesis are all presented in this Website. You are also able to see cells broken apart and explained, molecules in structural form, and the pH scale describing acidic and basic. Added: 06/17/2009 Tutorials on energy conversions, cellular respiration, photosynthesis, proteins, DNA, RNA, DNA replication, protein synthesis, and mutation. Complete with illustrations and animations. Added: 06/17/2009 This Website includes interactive learning with animation, movies, and tutorial links. It is created to help in teaching and the learning of science. Topics include basic chemistry, mitosis, meiosis, photosynthesis, and virology. Added: 06/17/2009 Interactive animated tutorial that demonstrates photosynthesis, develops understanding of the organelles and compounds at work, describes the light and dark reactions and photorespiration. Added: 06/17/2009 These problem sets are part of the University of Arizona Biology Project. They are located in the Biochemistry section. Each problem set gives a multiple choice question; incorrect answers take student to a tutorial. These self-grading problems are a good learning tool.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24819000
prev - home - index - next Preceded by calendrical dates, both these monuments depict snakes with their maws wide open, out of which emerge humans. The other three sides of the stelae are covered with what some scholars maintain is a writing system. Stelae 1 and 3 Late Classic (600-900 A.D.) Xochicalco, State of Morelos Originally, approximately 1.50 m. National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico. Photo © Jorge Pérez de Lara	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24820000
This lavishly illustrated volume describes the 1594 triumphal entry of Archduke Ernst of Austria into Belgium. The description was written by Jan Boch, the scholarly town clerk of Antwerp, and the images were engraved by Pieter van der Borcht. Van der Borcht is best known for his engraved depictions of boisterous peasant scenes, but he also had a career producing mythological scenes and recording historical events, as demonstrated here. This book was printed by Plantin Press, one of the great Dutch printing houses of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. By the time the "Descriptio publicae gratulationis" was published, the firm was run by Christophe Plantin's widow, Jeanne Rivière, and his son-in-law and heir, Jan Moretus. Illustrated: p. 113, "Schema Elephanti"	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24821000
While a young architectural apprentice, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, the son of a Glasgow policeman, attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art, where he met Herbert MacNair, Frances Macdonald, and her sister Margaret Macdonald (who would later become Mackintosh's wife). Together they formed "The Four," producing watercolors, poster designs, and small decorative objects that were published in "The Studio." In 1889 Mackintosh was hired as a draftsman at the architectural firm of Honeyman and Keppie, where he would remain until 1914. It was there that he developed a unique design idiom based on the forms and materials of traditional Scottish architecture. Mackintosh undertook all aspects of a design commission, providing every element, from an architectural setting to small decorative objects and textiles. His best-known commissions include a building for the Glasgow School of Art (built in two phases, 1897–99 and 1907–09) and Hill House (1902–04), the Walter Blackie residence in the Glasgow suburb of Helensburgh. Perhaps frustrated by a lack of success at Honeyman and Keppie, Mackintosh left Glasgow in 1914, and by 1920 he had completely abandoned his architectural career. He increasingly turned to watercolor, a medium he continued to explore until his death. Mackintosh designed this washstand as part of the furnishings for the Blue Bedroom in Hous'hill, an eighteenth-century residence in a suburb of Glasgow he remodeled for Kate Cranston (Mrs. Cochrane) and her husband. Miss Cranston, one of Mackintosh's most important clients, was the proprietress of a group of highly successful tearooms in Glasgow, many of which she had Mackintosh design. With its uncompromising shape and brilliant abstract panel of glass, the washstand shows the architect/designer at the height of his creative powers.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24822000
* (Under Construction) Ninety Five Theses and the Revolution that followed by Thomas Leckwold Martin Luther's Ninety Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences was nailed to the castle church in Wittenberg, in now modern day Germany, on October 31, 1517. This document was a protest that strongly criticized the practice of selling indulgences of the Roman Catholic Church, known here after as the Church. The document was a challenge to church authority that set forth events that permanently changed the religious, political, and social factors of central Europe, and led to a series of wars using the pretext of faith, and the role of the Church in the political structure of Western Europe. Luther's document was not meant to be a call to revolution, but the social conditions, and economic factors, along with religious convictions did set in motion a revolution and subsequent conflicts in central Europe. Cairo’s Fortress on the Mountain by David W. Tschanz Cairo residents call it the Qal'at al-Jabal, the Fortress on the Mountain, or just al-Qal'ah, the Fortress. The rest of the world simply calls it “The Citadel.” For nearly a millennium it has stood as a silent sentinel, residence, and symbol of power. Standing on its battlements, and looking westwards provides a view of over 4500 years of architectural marvels from the mosque of Sultan Hasan, just below to the Pyramids of Giza across the Nile. From atop this fortress the awesome sweep of history is a vivid reality. It is a view that must have given even the sultans who ruled from here, cause to reflect. Member Article: Armenian Warriors, Japanese Samurai by Dr. Armen Ayvazyan Armenian historiography contains considerable information about ancient and medieval Armenian military ideology. In the works of fifth century historians Pavstos Buzand and Movses Khorenatzi, the commands and legacy of the Armenian sparapets (commanders in chief) to their successors articulate in detail the obligations and responsibilities of Armenian warriors. Their norms of conduct share striking similarities with the system of values of the Japanese samurai codified during the 16th to 18th centuries, as well as with later medieval West European chivalry of the eight to 14th “Fight and offer your life for the Armenian World just as your brave forefathers did, consciously sacrificing their lives for this Homeland…” Member Article: Byzantine Military Pragmatism vs. Imperial Prejudice: Possible Reasons for Omitting the Armenians from the List of Hostiles in Maurice’s by by Dr. Armen Ayvazyan The problem of the various images of the Armenians in Byzantium has already become the subject of numerous, if sketchy, historical investigations and remarks. As a rule, students of this subject have focused on the images of those Armenians who resided beyond Armenia proper in the Byzantine capital and peripheral provinces as either newly-arrived immigrants or old-established inhabitants. Consequently, the shaping of the images of the Armenians in Byzantine Empire was appropriately sought and analyzed in such spheres as ecclesiastical differences between Armenian and Greek Churches, the ethnic peculiarities of everyday life as well as the rivalry in the imperial court between the Armenians and Greeks, the two major ethnic components of Byzantine elite. In contrast, this essay aims to analyze the Byzantines’ image of the Armenians of Armenia, that is, those who continued to live in and exercise military and political authority over their homeland. Accordingly, this study focuses on the geopolitical determinant in the construction of Armenian images in the imperial strata of Byzantine society. Member Article: Lusty Stukeley: Deceiver of Princes by Comer Plummer The day was Monday, August 4, 1578. Sir Thomas Stukeley stood in his armor on the plain of Ksar el-Kebir, in the heart of the Kingdom of Fez, with the hosts assembling for battle around him. He had collected himself by then, having shed the ordeal of the previous night, with its discomforts and frustrations. He would have been calm and reflective, as only experienced soldiers could be at such times. Thomas probably knew that he was playing his final card. In a life of twists and turns the climactic moment had at last arrived. There was no maneuvering out of it. He was adrift among forces beyond his control. At last, on this battlefield, his destiny would be decided. Member Article: Constantinople - The Citadel at the Gate by Comer Plummer, III The art of fortification is a clear reflection of our past. It bears witness to our roots as a race of mutually hostile societies, and impresses upon us the determination of a people to defend themselves. It has existed ever since man first came to realize the value of natural obstacles to his common defense, and evolved as he sought to invoke his own methods to fully exploit this advantage. The building of barriers rapidly evolved from the simple mud parapets and mountain top abodes of the Neolithic Age to the construction of linear and point stone obstacles of the Bronze Age, best represented by the Hittite capital of Hattusas. Member Article: The Battle of Poyang Lake by Joshua Gilbert In late August 1363 AD the two main contenders for control of China, Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang, faced off on Poyang (also called Boyang) Lake, the largest freshwater body of water in China. In the end Zhu Yuanzhang would win the battle and go on to found one of China’s greatest dynasties: the Ming. Member Article: Apocalypse Then: The Battle of the Three Kings by Comer Plummer Don Sebastian, the twenty-four-year-old King of Portugal, rose early on the morning of August 4, 1578. He was restless as they dressed him under the silken tent in new armor, over which was applied a leather tunic to guard against the heat of the Sun. Outside, the din of the camp was building as the army too girded for battle. On the hills facing them, the Moroccan army was also Member Article: The Emergence of Seapower in the Yuan Dynasty by John J. Trombetta and Steven C. Ippolito John Keegan views the Mongolian war-making polity as a fusion of the "horse and human ruthlessness[.]" The great khans, Chinggis, Ogodei, Mongke, and Khublai Khan, gathered the martial energies of the steppe nomad in the quest for Empire, and released them like so many dogs of war upon Asia, Europe, China, Korea, the Middle East of Persians and Arabs, and Japan. Results were startling: extraordinary political changes that reworked the map of the thirteenth century Asia, and a transformation of war in the Asian steppe "making it for the first time," in the view of Keegan, "'a thing in Member Article: The Hundred Years War: An Analysis of the Causes and Conduct of the Longest by Patrick J. Shrier The Hundred Years War between England and France from 1337-1453 is best viewed as a series of interconnected wars with the same basic objective instead of as one long war. There was not continuous fighting during the period nor did England and France keep armies constantly in the field, rather it was almost a game between the two countries with clearly defined rules as to when to fight and when to rest. The period was marked by many truces some for just a season and some lasting years. The most striking thing when one studies the wars of the period is how the English army was almost invariably superior to the French in capabilities yet somehow the English managed to lose the war. Member Article: The Muslim Horde's Easy Invasion of Iberia by Robert C. Daniels After a short foray in July of 710 AD, Muslim forces from North Africa invaded the Christian Iberian Peninsula (modern day Spain and Portugal) in the spring of 711, and within two years, with the exception of the extreme northwestern portion of the peninsula, had successfully overpowered and conquered the Visigothic Christian realms of Iberia. Not only did it take the Frankish forces under Charles Martel to stop the Muslim horde at the battle of Poitiers in 732 from further intrusions into Western Europe, it would take nearly eight centuries for the Iberian Christians to re-take the peninsula from the Muslims. Member Article: The Orin War by Joshua Gilbert The Onin War, (so called because it occurred in the regnal year Onin 1), was the catalyst that sparked the century long period of Japanese history known as the Sengoku Jidai, the "Age of the Country at War". What began originally as a dispute between a father and his son-in-law, became an eleven year war that trashed the once great city of Kyoto and sparked an era of bloodshed that remains famous to this day. The Onin War began because of the weakness of one Shogun. In 1464, Ashikaga Yoshimasa, the 8th member of the Ashikaga clan to hold the title Seii-Taishogun, and a man renowned for his focus on tea parties and poetry, wanted to retire but had no son. He decided to instead make his younger brother, Yoshimi, his heir. However Yoshimi was a Buddhist monk, so the Shogun had to first drag his brother out of the monastery in order to make him his Member Article: The Battle of Shrewsbury by John Barratt By the beginning of the 15th century, the English longbowman was one of the most effective killing machines in Western Europe. For over half a century he had dominated the battlefields of France and Northern Spain, winning for England’s Plantagenet monarchy an extensive continental domain. The battle of Shrewsbury, described by a contemporary writer as “the sorry bataille of Schrvesbury between Englysshmen and Englysshmen”, witnessed the dawn of a new and more terrible era in English warfare, when, for the first time in a major engagement, the English longbowman turned their deadly power against each other. It was a foretaste of the bloodbath which would follow half a century later in the Wars of the Roses, and would also provide William Shakespeare with the inspiration for one of his greatest plays - King Henry IV Part One.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24831000
7. Praxeological Prediction Praxeological knowledge makes it possible to predict with apodictic certainty the outcome of various modes of action. But, of course, such prediction can never imply anything regarding quantitative matters. Quantitative problems are in the field of human action open [p. 118] to no other elucidation than that by understanding. We can predict, as will be shown later, that?--other things being equal?--a fall in the demand for a will result in a drop in the price of a. But we cannot predict the extent of this drop. This question can be answered only by understanding. The fundamental deficiency implied in every quantitative approach to economic problems consists in the neglect of the fact that there are no constant relations between what are called economic dimensions. There is neither constancy nor continuity in the valuations and in the formation of exchange ratios between various commodities. Every new datum brings about a reshuffling of the whole price structure. Understanding, by trying to grasp what is going on in the minds of the men concerned, can approach the problem of forecasting future conditions. We may call its methods unsatisfactory and the positivists may arrogantly scorn it. But such arbitrary judgments must not and cannot obscure the fact that understanding is the only appropriate method of dealing with the uncertainty of future conditions.[p. 119]	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24835000
NASS Dairy Products Prices; how does that work? Over the years some confusion surrounding the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Dairy Products Prices (DPP) program and the use of these data in the class price formulas. Why are NASS’s DPP reports used in the Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) class price formulas? How are the NASS reports compiled? Is there a magic formula used to generate the NASS DPP reports? What prevents manufacturing plants from misreporting or manipulating the prices? Prior to the 1996 Farm Bill, USDA’s AMS used the Basic Formula Price (BFP) to determine Federal Order minimum Class III milk prices. Price differentials were added to the BFP to establish minimum prices for Class I and Class II milk. The BFP was based on a monthly survey of prices paid for manufacturing grade (Grade B) milk in Minnesota and Wisconsin which established a Base Month Price. The BFP was then calculated by adjusting the preceding month’s Base Month Price by a formula to reflect the most recent changes in cheddar cheese prices. In 1996, due to concerns regarding the cheddar cheese price data from the now closed National Cheese Exchange, AMS asked NASS to implement a survey to provide accurate and timely information on cheddar cheese prices. NASS began collecting weekly data on cheddar cheese sales, volumes and prices, and published the first set of numbers for the week ending March 7, 1997. The NASS cheddar cheese prices were then used by AMS as an input for computation of the BFP, until the 1996 Farm Bill became law. The bill changed language in the USDA’s FMMO Reform Final Rule to include the following statement, “commodity prices (cheddar cheese, butter, dry whey, and nonfat dry milk) determined by surveys conducted by USDA’s NASS will be used in the formulas that replace the BFP.” NASS published the first set of data on butter, nonfat dry milk, and dry whey for week ending September 5, 1998. NASS continues to collect and publish this information under contract for AMS. Each week, NASS statisticians receive data from all plants in the U.S. that produce and sell more than 1 million pounds annually of any of the qualifying products (Cheddar 40 blocks, Cheddar 500 barrels, butter, nonfat dry milk, and dry whey) according to AMS’s reporting criteria. There are several reporting criteria for each individual product. For example, all sales priced more than 30 days in advance are excluded from reporting. Products of interest must meet strict grade standards (Grade AA butter, Extra Grade dry whey, etc) along with several other strict pricing criteria that ensure prices represent the weekly wholesale commodity price for initial product sale. Each product must adhere to strict product specifications for example cheddar cheese; prices are only collected for 40 pound blocks and 500 barrels, eliminating price differentials for product sizes. Manufacturers must also exclude specialty types of cheddar like organic, aged, or faith-based products. Every Wednesday, manufacturers are required by law to submit, no later than noon, their qualifying total sales volume and total dollars received for the previous 7-day period ending on Saturday. All reports received from manufacturers are summed together for total volume and total dollars then divided to calculate regional and national average prices. Once each year, statisticians from NASS sit down with each reporter to ensure they understand all program requirements, products specifications, and misreporting penalties. Each reporter also indicates their understanding of the product specifications weekly. AMS conducts on-site report verifications of all reporting plants; they audit plants under authority from the mandatory reporting law. All plants have been through a least two verifications, with some plants experiencing as many as seven since the verification program was established. Discrepancies are issued, tracked, and addressed to prevent continued misreporting. AMS has broader regulatory authority if misreporting persists. Prices that NASS publishes each Friday at 8:30am ET represent wholesale commodity sales completed in the previous week. Based on the reporting requirements and AMS’s verification program, the value of the dairy products prices used in the Federal Market Order pricing formulas are accurate. Whether we agree or disagree with the current pricing process, dairymen should be confident NASS is generating the most accurate components possible, based on the current laws guiding the program.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24836000
Researchers studied nearly 7,400 British people for a decade and for those aged 45-49, it was discovered their ability to reason declined 3.6 percent in the time they were studied. The decline sped up for people aged 65-70: men experienced a 9.6 percent decline in ability to reason, and a 7.4 percent decline for women. Other mental abilities that faded included memory, and so-called verbal fluency, which measures a person's ability to quickly say words in a particular category. However, people's vocabulary didn't change.The BMJ report says that it was previously widely accepted that cognitive decline did not occur until age 60. The researchers say that with increasing life expectancy, understanding cognitive aging will be a challenge of this century.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24837000
Sexuality refers to one's capacity for sexual feelings, experiences and responses. The "Circles of Sexuality" model describes it as comprising five broad, interconnected areas: sensuality, intimacy, sexual identity, sexual health and reproduction. Sexuality is a complex blend of many biological phenomena and varies greatly from person to person. Sexuality in humans typically begins developing in the early teenage years, during the biological process called puberty. Humans are among the few animals to engage in both reproductive and nonreproductive sex, and sexuality becomes a fundamental aspect of our personalities and social lives. It is often the driving force behind our strong emotional feelings toward others, as well as a motivator for many of our decisions and actions. While it is ever-present in our lives, some aspects of sexuality still have societal taboos and stigmas attached to them. The historical taboos against homosexuality and the LGBTQ community, however, have begun to erode in recent years due to growing societal acceptance. (Photo: Shutterstock)	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24840000
- At Home As the days get warmer and longer, the last report cards are passed out and our kids start trading in their back packs for beach bags, the signs become inevitable â€" summer is upon us. As parents, itâ€™s important that we help our children continue to learn during the summer months to ensure they donâ€™t forget everything theyâ€™ve learned during the school year. According to the National Summer Learning Association, when kids take an absolute break from education during the summer months â€" whether by circumstance or design â€" they can lose up to two monthâ€™s worth of grade-level skills. Two months!	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24843000
One of the questions we asked top sports dietitians and nutrition experts during our month-long special blog series on sports nutrition was what they thought of nutritional supplements. Not surprisingly, most thought that athletes should meet their nutritional needs by eating whole, minimally processed foods, with most saying a multi-vitamin is okay to fill nutritional gaps. Here's what each had to say on the subject of supplements (to go read their full blogs, click on their name): I think the most important item is FOOD! Food provides energy, as well as vitamins, mineral and nutrients such as protein, carbohydrate and fat. That being said, some athletes may need iron, or Vitamin D, or calcium, or sometimes a protein isolate, BUT never in place of food. I think kids should take a safe, quality multivitamin to fill the nutrient gaps in their diet. No one eats perfectly all the time, and this is a simple way to ensure certain nutrient needs are met. The type, amount and timing of meals are particularly critical throughout puberty, when nutrition can make its greatest contribution to a youth athlete's future overall physical stature as an adult, and getting the optimal amounts of key nutrients is extremely important. I also believe that youth athletes benefit from consuming a carbohydrate- and protein-containing meal replacement shakes/smoothies before and after exercise, since research shows doing so helps to (1) top off muscle fuel stores needed during activity, (2) replenish muscle stores after activity, and (3) support muscle repair and growth. The liquid form allows the nutrients to be rapidly absorbed and digested, which is important pre- and post-exercise. The body has a certain window of opportunity approximately an hour after exercise during which nutrient uptake is optimal, so timing is also key. Most kids do not eat a balanced diet; convenience foods are popular, fruits and vegetables are not. Many kids have suboptimal levels of iron, copper, zinc, vitamin A, C, D, calcium, fiber and potassium. Intense exercise boosts the needs for some of these nutrients even higher. I suggest these supplements: - Multivitamin/mineral (MVI) to ensure the basic micronutrients are met (teenage girls who do not eat red meat should consider a MVI with iron) - Omega 3 fish oil helps support focus, reduce inflammation and much much more - Calcium with magnesium, Vitamin D, boron, Vitamin K supports growth and strength for bones - Greens: drink to reduce the oxidation associated with exercise, increase nutrients similar to vegetable intake If athletes are meeting their energy needs through whole foods, additional supplements are not needed. The only supplement I may recommend to young athletes is a standard multivitamin containing 1000 IU vitamin D, and possibly omega-3's. However, the multivitamin only serves as nutritional "insurance" and complement but cannnot make up for a lack of a solid nutrition foundation of a well-balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats, and dairy foods. The supplement industry is a scary one, as it's currently not regulated by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Many can make health claims without any scientific evidence; as a recent report from the FDA pointed out, 20 percent included prohibited disease claims on their labels which were unsubstantiated, and others may not actually contain the ingredients (or contain more ingredients) than listed on the supplement facts panel. The other frightening fact is that the supplement industry is among the fastest growing industries in the country. According to the Supplement Business Report, the dietary supplements industry surpassed $30 billion in 2011 sales, growing 7% annually in a return to performance levels not seen since before the economic downturn. Adulterated supplements are common, and you won't know for sure if a supplement is true to the label unless it has been third-party tested by a reputable company (e.g. NSF Certified for Sport). The bottom line is a fully-nourished body is a strong and powerful body! Food first, always. I am not a fan of supplementing high school athletes' diets with manufactured or engineered ‘nutrition supplements.' I think there is way too much we don't know about these products. For every claim out there by the marketers of these products, as clinicians we see studies that show harm with supplements. In addition, of the supplements available for purchase, more than a quarter of them are illegally labeled or don't contain what is listed. I recommend to my Olympic, professional and college athletes that they start with the basics - good hydration and sleep, and not skipping meals. They can find the nutrition they need to perform at an extremely high level through natural products. There is no need for them to look for lightning in a bottle or a pill. Yes, youth & high school athletes need "compliments" to their healthy diet. I recommend a good multi-vitamin, especially containing adequate amounts of Vitamin D, C and zinc. Yes, vitamins are a "supplement." Make sure the products are SAFE and can be properly absorbed. Many supplements & vitamins are cheap and ineffective because the formulations do not allow the body to break them down and absorb them properly. Parents should do their research on these items and not purchase based on price alone. I do not think high school athletes need supplements. Everything they need can be found in food, it just requires some forethought and planning. In fact, research in the area of youth sports and supplements, such as amino acids and creatine, is limited; the American Academy of Pediatrics advises no ergogenic (muscle-building, performance-enhancing) supplements for youth athletes due to their unknown side effects. For young athletes who have a documented iron deficiency or a limited vitamin D or calcium intake (due to food allergy or other), micronutrient supplements may be indicated, but this should be reviewed with a health care provider first. NSF Certified For Sport Multi-Vitamin and protein source for smoothies (preferably, a blend of whey, soy and casein). No, I never recommend supplements to kids at all, especially those 18 years or younger. Kids are still growing during their teens and adding a supplement is not going to make an athlete gain weight or be a better athlete any faster. Protein powders, creatine, etc, is absolutely not necessary for youth athletes. Most kids are lacking from a simple dietary intake standpoint, so supplements are just a waste of money for parents. Ask your child what he/she eats in a day and how often and that will be your answer to improving performance or weight gain, not a supplement. A simple children's multi-vitamin is quite all right, however. Youth and high school athletes need wholesome foods, not supplements. Within the range of 1,200 to 1,500 calories, a student-athlete can consume all the vitamins, minerals and protein they need to meet their nutritional needs. Most student athletes consume 2,000 to 3,000 and more calories, so have the opportunity to consume a LOT of vitamins. Kids need to learn to be responsible with their food choices because no amount of supplements will compensate for a lousy sports diet. Posted November 20, 2012	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24846000
Tip of the Week Making home a safe, secure environment is a priority for any parent. It's why we have smoke alarms and deadbolts, secure screens on second-floor windows and set the temperature of our hot water heaters to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. But what about unexpected sources of danger in our homes? While it's impossible to anticipate and guard against every eventuality, it still pays to think about some dangers that are often overlooked. Here are some accident risks that are statistically worth worrying about when you're working on making your home as safe as possible for your children. - Tipping TVs: TVs keep getting bigger, and more of us have multiple sets in our homes. Unfortunately, many of those TVs will end up on dressers, coffee tables and folding tray tables that were never intended to hold a television. Even TVs placed on a stand made for displaying a set can tip over if not properly secured. There were an estimated 20,000 injuries related to TV tip-overs in the United States in 2010, according to Consumer Product Safety Commission data. Fortunately, it's easy to reduce the risk of a TV tipping or falling. Never place any TV atop a dresser, bureau, bench, box or folding tray table. Using a TV wall mount can help minimize the chance of a TV falling on and injuring a child or adult. - The laundry room: You may think of this room as one of the most harmless and useful rooms in the house, but the laundry room holds hidden dangers for children. Since 2005, at least two children have died and many more have been injured in washing machine-related accidents, U.S. News and World Report recently reported. In fact, CPSC data indicates that tens of thousands of injuries are attributed to washing machines and clothes dryers every year. Injuries may range from burns from hot dryer elements and limb injuries from spinning parts to accidental drowning if a child becomes submerged in a filled washer tub. - Exercise equipment: Many Americans rely on home exercise equipment to stay in shape, but some of those machines can pose a safety risk to children. A CPSC study estimated that over an eight-year period, more than 46,000 exercise equipment-related injuries sent children 4 and younger to hospital emergency rooms. Treadmills, elliptical machines and other home fitness devices can cause a range of injuries, including cuts, fractures, dislocations, burns and even amputations. The study recommended parents be aware of the risks and take steps to reduce children's exposure to home exercise equipment. Family Movie Night "Wreck-It Ralph," in theaters Length: 101 minutes Violence/scary rating: 2.5 Sexual-content rating: 1.5 Profanity rating: 2 Drugs/alcohol rating: 1.5 Family Time rating: 2. This is a decent movie for families, with some video-game style violence the only thing to be aware of. (Ratings are judged on a five-point scale, with 5 being "bad for kids" and 1 being "fine for kids.") "Ten Tiny Toes," by Todd Tarpley and Marc Brown (illustrator) Synopsis: Into the world came ten tiny toes, a hundred times sweeter than one could suppose. … There's nothing sweeter in the world than a baby's 10 tiny toes. From tiny feet nuzzled and tickled in the crib to bath time, playtime and those very first big steps, here is a wonderful way to commemorate the unforgettable moments in a young child's life. Marc Brown's adorable collage illustrations bring Todd Tarpley's rhythmic text to life in this tender read-aloud. It is a joyous celebration of the unbreakable bond of love that guides a child through each exciting milestone and beyond. - Little, Brown Books for Young Readers Did You Know According to a study published in The Journal of Pediatrics, kids who have attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) appear likely to benefit from just 20 minutes of exercise. GateHouse News Service	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24849000
The Central Coast Maritime Museum Association preserves and interprets the maritime history of California and beyond. Our mission is to provide an easily accessible educational venue for maritime history, science and technology. Restoration of the Alma is Under Way! Thanks to a generous grant from the Hind Foundation, the conservation, and stabilization of the historic vessel Alma is under way. The Alma is an important part of California’s maritime history and we are very fortunate to be able restore her for future display in Morro Bay. Consultation with experts indicates that the Alma is eligible for listing on the US Department of Interior's National Register of Historic Places. Built at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf in 1927, the Alma gained notoriety on the morning of December 23, 1941, when under the command of the late Merle Molinari of Cayucos, she headed north toward Piedras Blancas and rescued crewmembers of the Union Oil Tanker Montebello which had been torpedoed and sunk earlier that morning by a Japanese Submarine. After the Montebello incident, the Alma assisted the war effort by patrolling local waters and towing targets for the military. In the post-war years, the Alma worked the waters of Estero Bay as a harbor tug and became an iconic figure of the working Morro Bay waterfront. A 46’ tug, Alma is a surviving example of a "gas boat," utilitarian workboat common to California harbors in the early 20th century. The work currently underway will replace and repair decks, bulwarks, wheelhouse exterior and some interior structural members. Future work will repair cracks in the ferro cement hull coating, paint exterior, fabricate display cradle, create interpretive signage, move the vessel to a display location. The costs for the project have been reduced by generous donations of time and effort from local volunteers and businesses. If you are interested in supporting the effort to restore the Alma please contact us.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24861000
Tuvalu Runs Dry The Telegraph reports that Tuvalu's state of emergency was declared after existing desalination plants broke, exacerbating an already dire drought: The Tuvalu Red Cross said it had not rained properly in the country for more than six months. Meteorologists have forecast a lack of run until December. Typically it gets between 200mm to 400mm [~8 to 16 inches] of rainfall per month... [New Zealand] was working with the Red Cross to deliver aid workers and supplies as quickly as possible. I wrote about the troubles facing Tuvalu's nine tiny islands in my 2003 Mother Jones article All the Disappearing Islands. At that time Tuvalu was threatening to sue Earth's gassiest nations for emitting enough CO2 to sink Tuvalu for good: Tuvalu is among the smallest and most remote countries on Earth, with a total land mass comprising only 10 square miles/26 square kilometers, less than half the size of Manhattan and scattered over 347,400 square miles/899,000 sq km of ocean—an area larger than California, Oregon, and Washington combined... At no point is the sandy island of Funafuti higher than 13 feet above sea level, as is the case throughout the nine coral atolls of this South Pacific nation of Tuvalu. Surrounded by the sea, the people here have been shaped by it as few others on earth. Every afternoon, rain or shine, Tuvaluan children romp in its unsupervised playground... Inescapably, this is a nation of waterfront property; even the plywood and corrugated-tin houses standing 'inland' a block or two enjoy the ambiance of the ocean. No one here has ever lived a moment without hearing the thunder of surf. Now Tuvalu's freshwater aquifers may be contaminated, reports the BBC: Secretary General Tataua Pefe advised people against drinking water from wells. "It's not safe for consumption," he told Radio Australia. "Some animals have died recently and we think it's because of subterranean water." Floods and rogue waves raise the saltwater table underlying the atolls, poisoning the Tuvaluans' staple crops. Already some farmers have been forced to grow their [crops] in tin containers, and already some of the smaller motus [islands] have lost their coconut palms to saltwater intrusion. Nor are storms a prerequisite for disaster. "Last August," Prime Minister Saufatu Sopoanga tells me, "on a clear, calm day, a sudden wave surge rolled in from the sea and washed across Funafuti into the lagoon, flooding houses." There was no apparent reason for it, and during my stay on the atoll, I find the sensation of threat to be ever present—the sea on both sides, the constant drumroll of surf, a thin strip of land between—like living on a liquid fault line. Meanwhile 3 News New Zealand reports the drought is affecting other Pacific islands too, notably Tokelau—a New Zealand territory of fewer than 1,500 people living on three coral atolls in the central Pacific—which has also declared a state of emergency. At the same time The Taiwan News reports a possible cholera outbreak in Tuvalu. Inundated by ills from afar, more and more Tuvaluans are leaving their home islands—and not because they want to. From All the Disappearing Islands: Within the coming decades, the atolls of Tuvalu and elsewhere will almost certainly revert to sandbars and then nothing. Although the people themselves will not go extinct, without their home islands to anchor them, their beliefs and identity probably will, scattered person by person across the rising waters... until, like Atlantis, the name of Tuvalu fades into myth.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24864000
New research from the Environmental Working Group shows that the animal products you eat have remarkably different affects on the environment . The research shows that Lamb, beef and cheese have the highest emissions. In part this is because they come from ruminant animals that constantly generate methane through their digestive process. Methane (CH4) – a greenhouse gas 25 times more (CH4) potent than carbon dioxide (CO2), accounts for nearly half the emissions generated in this study’s Nebraska beef production model (see chart below). Pound for pound, ruminants also require significantly more energy-intensive feed and generate more manure than pork or chicken (see figure 2). - Lamb has the greatest impact, generating 39.3 kg (86.4 lbs) of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) for each kilo eaten – about 50 percent more than beef. While beef and lamb generate comparable amounts of methane and require similar quantities of feed, lamb generates more emissions per kilo in part because it produces less edible meat relative to the sheep’s live weight. Since just one percent of the meat consumed by Americans is lamb, however, it contributes very little to overall U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. - Beef has the second-highest emissions, generating 27.1 kilos (59.6 lbs) of CO2e per kilo consumed. That’s more than twice the emissions of pork, nearly four times that of chicken and more than 13 times that of vegetable proteins such as beans, lentils and tofu. About 30 percent of the meat consumed in America is beef. - Cheese generates the third-highest emissions, 13.5 kilos (29.7 lbs) of CO2e per kilo eaten, so vegetarians who eat a lot of dairy aren’t off the hook. Less dense cheese (such as cottage) results in fewer greenhouse gases since it takes less milk to produce it. It takes 10 pounds of milk to make 1 pound of cheese. Full Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Common Proteins and Vegetables The EWG are calling for us all to forgo meat and cheese one day a week, environmentally it would be the same as the country driving 91 billion fewer miles a year. The call joins a growing movement advocating once-a-week meat-free meals, from an International Meatless Monday campaign and a European Veggie Days movement to decisions by some Catholic bishops to suggest a return to the no-meat Fridays of old. The EWG report is the most recent in a long list calculating the greenhouse gases emitted in food production. Source: Environmental Working Group	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24872000
Lockheed’s Missile and Space Division designed the YO-3A as a nearly silent observation aircraft. The United States Army used the plane to spot nighttime enemy activity and direct artillery fire during the war in Vietnam. A downward-facing periscope equipped with night vision and infrared (heat sensing) capabilities allowed the aircraft’s forward observer to spot activity on the jungle floor, even in nearly complete darkness. The YO-3A and it's prototype, the QT-2 represent represented the first use of aerial stealth technology in combat. Unlike the stealth aircraft we know today, the QT-2 and YO-3A were not designed to hide from radar, but to hide from human detection. The plane’s muffler-equipped engine drove a special slow propeller that eliminated the buzzing sound typical of propeller aircraft. This let the YO-3A operate almost unheard by people on the ground. Lockheed project manager, Stanley Hall described the aircraft’s noise as “the gentle rushing sound of the ocean surf”. The Museum’s aircraft, 69-18005, was the sixth of just 11 aircraft constructed. It served in Vietnam from 1970–1972 before it was sold to an aviation school. The Museum acquired the aircraft in 2010 from Mr. Bruce Elliot of La Connor, WA. The YO-3A exhibit tells the story of this highly unique aircraft and looks at the sources of airplane noise and ongoing efforts to quiet them down.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24874000
Creativity and Innovation. Students can be encouraged to identify interesting heroes and produce creative stories, short films, and artwork to honor them that can then be shared through the MY HERO website. Communication and Collaboration. Since MY HERO includes participants and an audience from around the world, students embark on the path of creating clear and compelling content when they create their work for publication. Teachers have commented on student awareness of the impact of their work and the widespread reactions they receive. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making. Students employ online and offline critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making tools as they evaluate their research and decide on heroes to feature in their stories, artwork, or short film. Digital Citizenship. As responsible global citizens, students consider heroic attributes that contribute positively to our world, and choose stories of heroism to share through their contributions to the MY HERO website. Technology Operations and Concepts. Students consider, identify, and employ a range of software and hardware as they develop their MY HERO artwork, short film, or story. By evaluating the level of understanding and competency students already have with regard to the use of technology tools, teachers can provide them with next steps and deeper challenges to encourage their mastery of NETS through MY HERO projects. Technology operations and concepts. As teachers develop their lessons for students to develop stories, artwork, or short films for the MY HERO project, they practice what they will be asking their students to do, thus demonstrating and improving their own technology expertise. Planning and designing learning environments and experiences. For over ten years, the MY HERO Project has collected student and adult stories focused on heroes in a variety of categories. Through an online tool, eCreate, teachers can build a page of hero stories on a particular curricular theme or interdisciplinary topics, or a page of their own students’ work and make them available to students. The opportunities for creating rich learning situations for students abound. Teaching, learning, and the curriculum. Including MY HERO content in lessons and challenging students to research and write hero stories for inclusion on the site constitute fine examples of using technology in a meaningful way to maximize student learning. Assessment and evaluation. To evaluate student work, teachers may require students to word process their stories, email them to the teacher, edit their work electronically, and upload their stories to the MY HERO site. Teachers can assess through observation, note taking on a laptop, or applying a rubric to online submissions. Productivity and professional practice. As teachers share their MY HERO assignments with their colleagues via email, listservs, or forums, they can refine and improve the assignments they give their students. Social, ethical, legal, and human issues. By allowing all students to explore the MY HERO project website and contribute stories, teachers address issues of equitable access, and support the idea of the power of diverse talents and experiences as students read a range of inspiring hero stories. While administrators may not be directly involved with students and teachers as they engage in developing content for the classroom and the MY HERO website, administrators can make a powerful statement by encouraging teachers to develop curriculum that includes using and contributing to the MY HERO project. Leadership and vision. Administrators, through their example, inspire good work. By becoming familiar with the many features of the MY HERO project, and allowing time for teachers to do the same, administrators provide a strong model for teachers who are working hard to integrate technology in a meaningful way in their classrooms. Learning and teaching. Through inspiring stories of real people, students find their place in the world, and begin to see the potential each of us has to contribute to our world. The MY HERO project focuses attention on good work and positive contributions, while making it easy for students and teachers to use technology tools to add more curricular-based stories to the Y HERO global database. Productivity and professional use. The MY HERO project includes a number of tools for teachers, such as eCreate, that are easy to use and allow teachers to develop personalized hero web pages for classroom use. Administrators can facilitate teacher and student improvement in employing technology by encouraging the use of projects such as MY HERO that utilize technology tools and resources embedded in curriculum. Administrators can be asked to contribute a hero story to a class project! Support, management, and operations. A carefully monitored project such as MY HERO meets the guidelines set by most schools that direct online technology use. Because of the ease with which teachers from a variety of disciplines can develop a MY HERO project that meets their curricular goals, administrators can support this model for technology integration into curriculum. Assessment and evaluation. Administrators can assess some levels of student and teacher fluency with technology by viewing her/his school’s contributions to the MY HERO project. Social, legal, and ethical issues. By promoting online projects that pay attention to the good works of the world’s citizens, require research and citing sources, and provide an environment for a global exchange of ideas among students and teachers such as the MY HERO project, administrators model support for the best uses of technology in education. The MY HERO project offers many opportunities for students, teachers, and administrators to practice and perfect technology standards identified by ISTE’s NETS project. At the same time, solid curricular goals and interesting content mark MY HERO stories, artwork, and short films. All this in a global context makes the MY HERO project a powerful addition to any school’s teaching and learning practices. Common Core State Standards : Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. The Common Core Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects Standards are specifically for 6-12 and begin at grade 6; standards for K–5 reading in history/social studies, science, and technical subjects are integrated into the K–5 Reading standards. These standards in literacy work in tandem to define college and career readiness expectations—the former providing broad standards, the latter providing additional specificity. Common Core - Media Standards The Common Core Standards are a nationwide effort to define the knowledge and skills that U.S. students should have within their K-12 education careers, so that they will graduate high school able to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing academic college courses and in workforce training programs. The following is a collection of The Standards in English Language Arts that relate specifically to students' use of media in different grade levels. As you will see, the term "media" can refer to online, film/tv-related or artistic materials that can be utilized as sources in the course of research projects. Media can also refer to multi-media and/or artistic content that students create for class projects and presentations. One of the goals of the CCS is that students will leave their schooling with a firm grasp of 21st-century media and technology skills. In calling for students to develop skills in both the critical analysis and production of media, the CCS recognizes the increasing importance of media literacy in the modern world. MY HERO shares this view, and our Media Arts curricula provide teachers with the tools they need to develop their students' mastery of media and technology. In a time when so many schools and districts have cut their fine arts programs, a project that ties art to curriculum is a welcome idea. The MY HERO Project provides opportunities for students to create artwork on the hero theme, and produce short films on the topic as well. The National Visual Arts Standards consist of six items and are discussed in three grade levels—K-4, 5-8, and 9-12—that promote developmentally appropriate student work and understanding of concepts. The six standards are as follows: Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes. Using knowledge of structures and functions. Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas. Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures. Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and merits of their work and the work of others. Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24881000
Dietary carbs are currently regarded as the culprit for most modern human diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and neurodegenerative diseases. Indeed, numerous studies demonstrate the association between over consumption of carbs and a high percentage of blood sugar problems, obesity and cognitive impairments among modern humans from all age groups. Consequently, carb-bashing today is at an all-time high. Many people develop carb phobia and low or no carb diets are now the darling of the media. So it seems, the two most popular dietary methods are currently carb or calorie restriction. Most, if not all diets are based on either one or both methods. Yet, in spite of the growing awareness of the hazards of over consumption of carbs and calories, the rate of weight gain, obesity and blood sugar related diseases is still accelerating. To make matters worse, people who follow extreme low calorie or low carb diets often face unpleasant symptoms including mental and physical fatigue, chronic cravings for carbs (in particular sweets), loss of libido and severe mood swings. Bodybuilders, who try to slim down via low calorie low carb diets, often face similar adverse symptoms in addition to loss of muscle mass and strength. Obviously, something must be wrong with the assumption that chronic carb and calorie restriction is the practical solution for most of modern disease. Even though the idea of carb and calorie restriction may very well work theoretically, in practical terms (in vivo) it fails. The purpose of this article is to shed some light on the critical role of dietary carbs in human metabolism as well as to challenge the notion that carbs aren't essential for human survival. Finally, conclusions are presented together with some practical methods as to how to take advantage of dietary carbs for reaching a desired metabolic potential to build lean tissue (including muscles), burn fat and increase energy production. Maximum oxygenation is a biological term that describes maximum energy production from metabolic processes that require oxygen. Active individuals, including athletes and bodybuilders, should note that maximum oxygenation is a principal key to maximum performance. The upcoming paragraph may be somewhat technical. Nevertheless, understanding this topic could mean the difference between average and superior capability to build muscles and ignite energy. Living organisms derive most of their energy from oxidation-reduction (redox) reactions, which involve the transfer of electrons to the respiratory chain complex (an aerobic energy-yielding metabolic process that involves interaction between hydrogen protons and oxygen). Aerobic energy production requires oxygen and yields most of the energy needed for survival. In fact, the electron transfer system (oxidative phosphorylation) yields ten times more energy than the Krebs cycle itself. Dr. Otto Warburg, one of the world's foremost leading biochemists, won a Nobel Prize for his basic work with respiratory enzymes and cellular energy production. He discovered and characterized certain nucleotide compounds and proteins, which are necessary for the actions of the respiratory chain, which, as noted, yields most of the energy needed to maintain an optimum metabolic state. Dr. Warburg suggested that energy released in the oxidation of foodstuff may be conserved and transferred via a special mechanism for use in synthesis and growth. On the other hand, anaerobic respiration (an energy yielding metabolic process that does not require oxygen) may adversely catabolize and damage healthy tissues. Dr. Warburg and other researchers showed that there is indeed a relationship between anaerobic respiration, tissue destruction and cancer. Dr. Abram Hoffer and Dr. Morton Walker, in their book Smart Nutrition (Avery 1994), suggested that anaerobic respiration is the most primitive energy producing method compared to aerobic respiration which is a later development in the evolution of life from unicellular to multicellular organisms. It is likely that multicellular organisms did not develop until cells became aerobic. According to this theory, the switch back from aerobic to anaerobic respiration brings the cell back to a primitive condition that may cause uncontrolled cell division and a resultant catastrophic damage to the whole organism. As you're about to see, aerobic respiration clearly depends on dietary carb utilization and the production of substrates and enzymes that serve as energy molecules. All energy molecules are, in fact, made from nucleotides. Most important, all nucleotide material, including all energy molecules, are derived from glucose that is then predominantly derived from dietary carbs. The Essential Role of Carbs It is commonly assumed that carbs serve as fuel and nothing more. This assumption is wrong and quite misleading since it fails to recognize the main biological functions of carbs, which go far beyond being just a sheer substrate for energy. Evidently, optimum carb utilization from food is critically necessary in order to afford full activation of two vitally important metabolic pathways, which are bound together: i) the pentose phosphate pathway and ii) the uronic acid pathway. As you'll soon see, these pathways play essential roles in facilitating DNA, RNA and nucleotides synthesis as well as steroid hormones production, enhancing immunity and generation of energy. As such, these pathways regulate hormonal actions, rate of tissue regeneration as well as protection against DNA damage and disease. Most important, both pathways' actions depend upon dietary carb consumption and utilization. The Pentose Phosphate Pathway The pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) is an anabolic process that is derived from glucose metabolism and occurs mostly (but not exclusively) in the liver. It utilizes pentose (a five-carbon sugar) from and glucose (a six-carbon sugar). The pentose phosphate pathway's primary functions are: - To generate the energy molecule NADPH for biosynthesis reaction in the cells - To provide ribose-5 phosphate for the synthesis of nucleotides and nucleic acid including DNA and RNA - To metabolize dietary pentose from the digestion of nucleic acid - To biosynthesize steroid hormones and fatty acids (by utilizing in NADPH) - To regenerate the most powerful antioxidant glutathione enzyme and thereby protect cells and mitochondrial DNA from oxidative stress and aging - To support the production of UDP glucuronic acid, that is essentially important for overall detoxification. Hormonal transport production of proteoglycan and glycoproteins and the synthesis of sphingolipids (lipids that are necessary for detox and neural protection) The Adverse Effects of Low Calorie and Low Carb Diets As you can see, the pentose phosphate pathway controls critical metabolic functions. However, in times of a desperate need for energy, such as during prolonged fasting or due to low calorie diets, the pentose phosphate pathway may shut down its main functions and instead switch into sheer energy production. It is likely that energy demand is a top priority for the body and therefore, in times of desperate need for energy, the body would suppress certain important metabolic pathways to accelerate immediate energy production. In fact, 30 percent of liver glucose oxidation can occur via the pentose phosphate pathway. Consequently, dietary carb utilization is a factor that can significantly influence the pentose phosphate pathway's actions. Since the synthesis of glucose from protein or fat (gluconeogenesis) is in fact a limited metabolic process that occurs mostly in the liver (muscle can't produce glucose), it is reasonable to conclude that severe low carb diets, for active individuals in particular, which chronically over-restrict dietary carb consumption (under 100g of carbs per day), may adversely affect the pentose phosphate pathway due to insufficient glucose supply and increased energy demand. The pentose phosphate pathway's actions also decreases with age, a fact that may contribute to the decline in steroid hormone production, muscle waste, increased vulnerability to disease and reduced energy production. Finally, it's important to note that insulin sensitivity is necessary for optimum glucose utilization and the activation of the pentose phosphate pathway. Glucuronic Acid Pathway (or Uronic Acid Pathway) The glucuronic acid pathway, or as it is called, uronic acid pathway, is also derived from glucose metabolism, mostly in the liver. Its active compound UDP glucuronic acid is a co-enzyme responsible for binding with toxins to facilitate their elimination. In that respect, UDP glucuronate conjugates with endotoxins such as bilrubine (a toxin metabolite of hemoglobin and dietary meat) as well as sulphoric acid and thereby protects the body from endotoxicity and exposure to carcinogens. SIDEBAR: Meat Eaters and Coffee Drinkers Meat eaters and coffee drinkers should be aware of the important role that glucuronate plays in overall detox, in particular with regard to the digestion and assimilation of animal protein and the neutralization of coffee acid toxin compounds. The Uronic Acid Pathway is a primal evolutionary metabolic process that initially synthesizes Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in mammals, except in primates including humans. Nevertheless, UDP glucuronic acid's primal actions include: - The transport of fat soluble hormones and substances to target tissues for subsequent release - The production of proteoglycans and glycoconjugated compounds such as glucosamine glycan and glycoproteins, which perform critical immune and hormonal signaling functions on the cell surface and in the extracellular matrix. Some proteoglycans serve as growth factor receptors. The uronic acid pathway also regulates the production of sphingolipids (lipids which are based on a lipophilic amino alcohol backbone rather than glycerol). Sphingolipids play an important role in transduction signals, protection against toxins, viruses and bacteria, activation of cell receptors and neuroprotective actions. The glucuronic acid pathway functions depend on the pentose phosphate pathway and therefore depends on overall glucose metabolism. Evidently, both pathways' optimal actions requires sufficient dietary carb utilization. In summary, dietary carbs and glucose utilization go far beyond just sheer energy production. Chronic carb or calorie over restrictions may help one lose fat in the short run. However, in the long run, such dietary methods may diminish the essentially important pentose phosphate pathway with its related UDP glucuronic acid functions and thereby adversely affect critical metabolic processes including steroid hormone synthesis, nucleic acid and nucleotides production, tissue repair, removal of toxins and overall generation of energy. Bodybuilders and athletes should never overlook the important role of carb utilization in muscular development and overall performance. Nonetheless, the question remains - how can one practically consume carbs in order to maximize all the beneficial effects without causing insulin resistance or fat gain? How To Take Advantage of Dietary Carbs for Building Lean Tissue, Removing Toxins, Burning Fat and Igniting Maximum Energy - Avoid prolonged low calorie or crash diets to grant sufficient energy supply necessary for optimum function of the pentose phosphate pathway and the related uronic acid pathway - Avoid chronic carb over restriction due to prolonged very low or no carb diets. Insufficient carb utilization may adversely affect the pentose phosphate pathway and its related UDP glucuronic acid functions. - Limit your carb consumption to one meal per day, preferably at night. That way you may be able to keep high insulin sensitivity toward the end of the day and thereby afford optimum carb utilization. - You can opt to cycle between days of low carbs and days of moderate to high carbs. This method could be highly effective in protecting against insulin resistance and preventing fat gain, while maximizing carb utilization for overall regeneration of tissue and ignition of energy. For instance, you can incorporate a high carb day followed by two days of low carbs (high fat), followed by a moderate carb day, followed by a low carb high protein day, and so on. - Minimize simple carb consumption. Prioritize your dietary carb intake. Always choose complex carbs with low a glycemic index and those that are naturally high in fiber. The best choices for carb food are legumes, roots, squashes, barley, oats, wild rice and quinoa. Whole complex carb food releases glucose at a slower rate than simple carb food and therefore may afford better glucose utilization with a decreased risk of insulin and blood sugar fluctuation. - Do not eat carbs alone, in particular grains or roots. Always combine these carbs with protein or fat to decrease their glycemic effect. Carbs alone may provoke an insulin spike and a consequent low blood sugar with symptoms such as dizziness, fatigue, irritability, headaches and a craving for sweets. Bodybuilders and athletes should carefully design their pre-workout recovery meals to contain a high ratio of protein to carbs. - Eating low glycemic whole fruits such as apples, berries or kiwis on an empty stomach is ok. Nonetheless, it is highly recommended to squeeze lime or lemon juice on the top. Acid slows the rate of carb absorption. The fiber in whole fruits significantly reduces the sugar impact and effectively enhances overall detox. - Take multivitamin and multimineral supplements as well as EFAs to facilitate optimum assimilation of all essential nutrients. A lack of even one essential nutrient may lead to severe metabolic impairment and compromise the ability of the body to utilize glucose and energy. B vitamins, in particular, are precursors to co-enzymes, which are vitally important for glucose and energy utilization. Antioxidants are necessary for protection against oxidative free radicals and overall detox. Note that active individuals, including bodybuilders and athletes, need to increase essential nutrients and antioxidant intake due to higher food consumption and increased oxygenation with their respective waste and toxin metabolites. Dietary carbs should be regarded as a double edge sword. Nonetheless, in times of so much confusion as to what to eat and how much, it's important to present another way of looking at food, including carbohydrate-rich foods. Food should be regarded as a source of complete nourishment and as such, it should satisfy three requirements: - Food should supply all essential and conditionally essential nutrients - Food should be clean of chemical toxins. It should smell and taste well and be fully digestible. - Food should supply an optimal amount of energy substrates (including glucose) to satisfy the body's metabolic needs. Optimum means: the right amount needed - no less, no more! Dietary carbs are a most viable source of conditionally essential glucose as well as fiber, minerals, oils and phytonutrients. Carbs add unique taste, smell and aroma to food and are considered the cleanest and most digestible fuel. One should never dismiss the importance of smell, taste and overall satiety from food. Hunger and satiety mark the presence of most powerful neuropeptides that aside from regulating feeding cycles, also regulate hormonal secretion, sleep-awake cycles, aggression and relaxation, regeneration of tissues (growth), overall energy expenditure and rate of fat burning. From that aspect, both sensation of hunger and satisfaction from food are necessary for maximum nourishment. Food works as a source of nutrients and also as a neurocatalyst for other numerous critical metabolic functions that regulate the rate of growth, fat burning and energy production. Chronically over restricting or eliminating dietary carbs from one's diet may lead to severe consequences including hormonal and neural impairments, stunted growth, sluggish metabolism and advanced aging, notwithstanding chronic hunger, in particular craving for sweets, mood swings, depression and fatigue. Saying all that, carbs should always be treated as the fastest to assimilate and most aggressive component of food. As noted, they should never be consumed too often during the day to avoid insulin resistance and blood sugar fluctuation. Finally, use your instincts and common sense. Through trial and error, you can find the right amount of carbs that your body needs. Using old dietary methods such as carb depletion followed by carb the loading will enable you to periodically consume a large amount of carbs without gaining fat. Remember, what you see is what you get, and in a related matter, what looks good, smells good and tastes good is generally good. Regardless of what many low carb advocates say, our human body is well preprogrammed to ingest and utilize carbs. Therefore, chronically over restricting or avoiding carbs may be biologically perceived by the body as a suppression of a primal need. When you go against your true nature, your body may come back with a vengeance to reclaim what was taken away from it, and it will do so by inducing an excruciating hunger with a chronic cravings for sweets, that often leads to compulsive binging on carbs and undesirable fat gain. Do not deny your body from its primal need to eat carbs. Do not tempt to fool your body with carb substitutes and artificial sweeteners. Nothing can take the place of real dietary carbs and their critical function in your body. NOTE: People suffering from diabetes and blood sugar related problems should consult their physician or health professional before adopting any dietary regimen. \|\|Ori Hofmekler is a modern renaissance man whose formative military experience prompted a life interest in survival science. Defense Nutrition's mission is to help people defend themselves against industrial and natural substances known for causing weight gain, hormonal disorders and cancer. Find out more at www.DefenseNutrition.com	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24882000
National Alliance on Mental Illness page printed from http://www.nami.org/ (800) 950-NAMI; firstname.lastname@example.org Using Virtual Reality to Treat PTSD Dr. Robert McLay with some of the virtual reality equipment used for treatment. Courtesy of Johns Hopkins University Press By Taylor Poor, NAMI Education Program Coordinator Dr. Robert N. McLay’s recent book, At War with PTSD: Battling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with Virtual Reality (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2012), offers a valuable lesson about treating people rather than diseases. After all, as the author says, “doing mental health is not just about biology.” Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a type of anxiety disorder associated with the direct or indirect experience of a traumatic event, and often involves memory disturbances, emotional detachment, hypervigilance (abnormally increased arousal) or insomnia. Though soldiers have endured the psychological consequences of armed combat for millennia, PTSD has gained credence only recently as a biological disease with a potentially measurable impact on the brain, a disease that can occur at any age, following any type of traumatic experience, from assault or rape to war or a natural disaster. But the increase of PTSD’s validity as a clinical diagnosis does not protect service members and veterans from the shame of the stigma they face from comrades-in-arms—and from the civilian population once they return home. At War with PTSD: Battling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with Virtual Reality By Robert N. McLay Dr. McLay emphasizes the importance of looking at where patients are coming from before starting treatment, whether that’s the battlefield, a prison, or a home with domestic abuse. He draws from countless individual testimonies (“psychiatric fables”) to illustrate the diversity of patients who are looking for different solutions and who require different approaches. Maybe the same basic treatment techniques will find success with both service members and non-service members experiencing PTSD, but for those service members, the idea that “somebody else gets it” is important; it’s helpful to talk to a military psychiatrist rather than a civilian doctor. However, the distinction between combat PTSD and other types of PTSD isn’t necessarily clinical. Dr. McLay explains that combat PTSD is typically a version of “complex PTSD,” involving multiple, compounded traumatic incidents; unlike “simple PTSD,” which involves a single incident. However, the unique components of combat trauma, combined with the military atmosphere (“no problem marines can’t solve by more yelling”), demand a fine-tuned and circumspect treatment approach. Dr. McLay always intended to join the military as a scientist, but “put it on the back burner” while at work on his B.A., M.A., Ph.D. and M.D. When the Navy offered him a job, he found the perfect arena for his psychiatric expertise: directing development programs for new technology to assist service members experiencing the stress of deployment. In 2008, he took a virtual reality machine with him on deployment to Camp Fallujah, Iraq, where he tested the effectiveness of virtual reality therapy on soldiers living with PTSD in the field. From the service members he treated, he learned about the values of confronting traumatic experiences head-on, through reconstructed combat landscapes, as well as the limitations of any form of treatment in the face of stigma and skepticism. At the end of his book, Dr. McLay talks about the future of PTSD treatment for service members. He asks about two components of this future: reduction in stigma and scientific improvements in treatment. Regarding stigma, the current landscape remains bleak: the world of psychiatric treatment for military veterans is a murky swamp of “perverse incentives”, Dr. McLay explained on the phone at the end of October. On the one hand, he believes initiatives to officially grant service members with PTSD eligibility for prestigious honors such as the Purple Heart (an unsuccessful political cause since World War I, and one NAMI supports) are well-intentioned efforts to reward bravery and to recognize that PTSD represents a real war wound, thereby reducing stigma. However, Dr. McLay also believes that the difficulties of separating valid PTSD cases from “malingering”—faking illness to avoid duty—mean awarding the Purple Heart for PTSD could in fact worsen stigma as an unintended consequence. Meanwhile, service members who face discrimination when they apply for disability benefits without a visible wound are unlikely to then seek treatment, and thus possibly lose those hard-won benefits. On the other hand, continuing advances in research and technology paint a brighter picture. Dr. McLay has cautiously gained confidence in virtual reality treatments since his return to the U.S., but is “convinced VR is not going to solve all our problems.” Other promising possibilities include: stellate ganglion block, or an anesthetic injection to a spinal nerve cluster that alleviates pain and some other PTSD symptoms; transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), which involves producing weak electric currents in the brain; and “third location”, or staged, decompression, where instead of being transported straight back into civilian society, service members returning from duty can spend a period of time in a non-combat zone outside of their home country. All of these techniques serve to widen the array of treatment options that can be personalized to reflect an individual patient’s hopes and priorities. The reason Dr. McLay’s book doesn’t feel like the typical treatise on a controversial mental health diagnosis is his unassuming tone. There is no pedagogy about symptomatology or the complexities of PTSD: he seems to be simply taking the reader along for the ride as he figures out the answers—or some possible answers, at least—to the very questions he’s just asked in the text. His final message, which he reiterates on the phone, is similarly simple: the only way to reduce stigma is “to get the word out” about mental illness, and particularly PTSD. With the help of accessible, informative and compelling books like At War With PTSD, that goal seems more reachable than ever.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24889000
NAMI’s Position (Summarized from the NAMI Policy Platform) Treatment, not punishment: NAMI believes that persons who have committed offenses due to states of mind or behavior caused by a brain disorder require treatment, not punishment. NAMI believes that a prison or jail is never an optimal therapeutic setting. NAMI believes that mental health systems have an obligation to develop and implement systems of appropriate care for individuals whose untreated brain disorders may cause them to engage in inappropriate or criminal behaviors. Treatment while in correctional settings: NAMI believes that states and communities have legal and ethical obligations to provide people with brain disorders humane and effective treatment while in correctional settings. Training and education: NAMI believes that education about brain disorders at all levels of judicial and legal systems is crucial to the appropriate disposition of cases involving offenders with brain disorders. Judges, lawyers, police officers, correctional officers, parole and probation officers, law enforcement personnel, court officers, and emergency medical transport and service personnel should be required to complete at least 20 hours of training about these disorders. Consumers and family members should be a part of this educational process. NAMI believes that, in the overwhelming majority of cases, dangerous or violent acts committed by persons with brain disorders are the result of neglect or inappropriate or inadequate treatment of their illness. NAMI supports the retention of the "insanity defense" and favors the two-prong test that includes the volitional as well as the cognitive standard. NAMI opposes the adoption of "guilty but mentally ill" statutes. NAMI supports systems that provide comprehensive, long-term care and supervision in hospitals and in the community to individuals found "not guilty by reason of insanity," "guilty except for insanity, or any other similar terminology used in state statutes pertaining to the insanity defense. Parole and probation, transitional services: NAMI believes that states must adopt systems for assisting individuals with serious brain disorders who have served sentences and are eligible for release on parole with appropriate treatment and services to aid their transition back into the community. NAMI opposes the death penalty for persons with brain disorders. The "Criminalization" Trend Is Today Worse Than Ever In 1992, NAMI and Public Citizen’s Health Research Group released a report, entitled Criminalizing the Seriously Mentally Ill: The Abuse of Jails as Mental Hospitals, which revealed alarmingly high numbers of people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other severe mental illnesses incarcerated in jails across the country. Most of these people had not committed major crimes, but either had been charged with misdemeanors or minor felonies directly related to the symptoms of their untreated mental illnesses, or had been charged with no crimes at all. Unfortunately, the problems described in that report have worsened in the ensuing years. A report issued by the United States Department of Justice in 1999 revealed that 16 percent of all inmates in state and federal jails and prisons have schizophrenia, manic depressive illness (bipolar disorder), major depression, or another severe mental illness. This means that on any given day, there are roughly 283,000 persons with severe mental illnesses incarcerated in federal and state jails and prisons. In contrast, there are approximately 70,000 persons with severe mental illnesses in public psychiatric hospitals, and 30 percent of them are forensic patients. Additionally, police are increasingly becoming front-line respondents to people with severe mental illnesses experiencing crises in the community. Conditions in jails and prisons are often terrifying for people with severe mental illnesses. These settings are not conducive to effectively treating people with these brain disorders. Many correctional facilities do not have qualified mental health professionals on staff to recognize and respond to the needs of inmates experiencing severe psychiatric symptoms. Correctional facilities frequently respond to psychotic inmates by punishing them or placing them in physical restraints or administrative segregation (isolation), responses that may exacerbate rather than alleviate their symptoms. Inmates with severe mental illnesses usually do not have access to newer, state-of-the-art, atypical antipsychotic drugs because of the costs of these medications. Federal and state prisons generally do not have adequate rehabilitative services available for inmates with severe mental illnesses to aid them in their transition back into communities. These alarming trends are directly related to the inadequacies of community mental health systems and services. The widespread adoption of systems with proven effectiveness in addressing the needs of people with the most severe mental illnesses, such as assertive community treatment programs, would sharply decrease the numbers of people with severe mental illnesses involved in criminal justice systems. However, since these programs are available only sporadically throughout the country, NAMI’s strategies for reducing criminalization focuses both on improving community mental health services and on addressing the treatment and support needs of people with severe mental illnesses in criminal justice systems. Strategies for Reducing the Criminalization of People with Severe Mental Illnesses: NAMI is pursuing the following strategies for reducing the criminalization of people with severe mental illnesses: Adopting programs such as the Memphis Police Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) program to train police officers who come into contact with people with severe mental illnesses in the community to recognize the signs and symptoms of these illnesses and to respond effectively and appropriately to people who are experiencing psychiatric crises. Creating authority in state criminal codes for judges to divert non-violent offenders with severe mental illnesses away from incarceration into appropriate treatment. This includes authority for judges to defer entries of judgment pending completion of treatment programs and to dismiss charges and expunge the records of individuals who successfully complete treatment programs. Establishing specialty "mental health courts" to hear all cases involving individuals with severe mental illnesses charged with misdemeanors or non-violent felonies, with the purpose of diverting as many of these cases as possible away from criminal incarceration into appropriate mental health treatment and services. In 2000, Congress enacted and President Clinton signed into law S. 1865, a bill authorizing grants to communities to establish demonstration mental health courts. However, the bill was enacted too late in the legislative cycle to obtain funding for these courts. Therefore, one of NAMI’s priorities for the year 2001 is to ensure that Congress appropriates funds for the implementation of S. 1865. Training probate, civil, and criminal court judges and personnel about severe mental illnesses and legal issues affecting people with these illnesses. Creating specialized divisions or units within departments of parole and probation with specific responsibility for coordinating and administering services for people with severe mental illnesses who are on probation. Providing specialized training to parole officers about severe mental illnesses, the needs of people with these illnesses on probation, and treatment resources and benefits available to these individuals. For more information about NAMI’s activities on this issue or other policy areas, please call Ron Honberg at 703/516-7972. All media representatives, please call NAMI’s communications staff at 703/516-7961.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24890000
Joined: 16 Mar 2004 \|Posted: Tue May 27, 2008 11:36 am Post subject: Assembly lines for nanotechnology. \|24 August 2007 RSC Publishing - Chemical Technology Nano production lines Researchers in Switzerland have built nanoscale cargo loading stations and shuttles, an important step towards assembly lines for nanotechnology. Drawing of a nano conveyor belt Biological assembly lines consist of kinesin proteins which carry cargo, like organelles or vesicles, and literally walk along microtubules. However, as far as man-made systems go, 'nothing comparable to a macroscopic assembly line exists at the nanoscale,' according to Viola Vogel of the Department of Materials at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. 'Imagine if you wanted to build a car by fabricating all of its components, putting them in a glass full of water and hoping that they would self-assemble spontaneously into the finished car.' The challenge is to tune the interactions in the system so that the cargo remains stuck to the station when not needed, but can be picked up easily by the shuttle. As a test of principle, Vogel and colleagues used gold nanoparticles coated in anti-biotin antibodies as cargo, and compared loading stations made of biotin-tipped DNA with biotin-tipped polyethylene glycol. Biotinylated microtubules, powered by kinesin motors, act as shuttles rather than conveyor belts, as they do in cells. Vogel and team then tracked the fate of the gold nanoparticles with scanning electron microscopy. They found that the shuttles did indeed pick up the nanoparticles and that they held on to them, with a loss rate of about 28% over 12 minutes. They also found that DNA stations are more effective than polymer ones. 'Future challenges will be to combine the main components of a transport system: pick-up of cargo from defined locations, guided transport, and controlled discharge of the load at the final destination,' commented Vogel. She went on to caution: 'The problems are always in the details of working through the engineering challenges of interfacing biological molecules with synthetic devices.' Story posted: 24th August 2007	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24893000
Another Tropical Cyclone Developing Hurricane Season 2012: Tropical System 92E (Eastern Pacific Ocean) While Tropical storm Aletta is forecast to weaken and dissipate another tropical cyclone appears to be forming in the eastern Pacific south of Acapulco, Mexico. The TRMM satellite passed above this tropical disturbance (92E) on 18 May 2012 at 0957 UTC. Data captured with this pass by TRMM's Microwave Imager (TMI) and Precipitation Radar (PR) instruments were used in the rainfall analysis shown. This analysis indicates that this area contained very heavy rainfall in the northeastern quadrant of the disturbance. Some storms were producing rainfall at a rate of over 50 mm/hr (~2 inches). A 3-D image from TRMM PR shows that a few of these strong convective storms reached heights of about 15km (~9.3 miles). Radar reflectivity values of over 50 dBz found by TRMM PR in this stormy area provided more evidence that heavy rainfall was occurring. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) assigned this disturbed area a 40% probability of becoming a tropical cyclone within the 48 hours. It would be named Bud. SSAI/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , Greenbelt, Md.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24898000
Materials Science Research Rack Heats Up For Valuable Space Station Science Have you ever wondered how we develop new materials or find out what properties we can change in existing materials to improve them? Scientists and researchers at NASA are doing just that through materials science research using the Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR ) aboard the International Space Station Materials science research is the applied study of the properties of matter and substances. This type of research in space benefits from the microgravity environment, and it allows researchers to isolate chemical and thermal properties of materials from the effects of gravity. The MSRR is about the size of a large refrigerator and contains two furnace inserts that can heat materials to temperatures of 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit. Cartridges are placed inside the furnace insert one at a time for processing. Once a cartridge is in place, the experiment can be run from the ground. Processed samples are returned to Earth as soon as possible for evaluation and comparison of their properties to samples from similarly processed cartridges on the ground. Researchers have used the rack to process 16 samples of different materials since the facility launched to the space station in 2009. In late 2011, there was a loss of communications between the MSRR and the computer that controls it. The automatic safety procedures on the rack caused it to shut down as designed; but, in doing so, it also caused the temperatures inside the furnace to exceed their normal limits. These higher temperatures caused some of the material inside the furnace to become bonded to the furnace itself. This required the station crew to clean the furnace and remove the materials. To prevent such an event from happening again, Shawn Reagan, manager of the MSRR project at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and his team worked with Marshall engineers to design a software upgrade for the MSRR. This update will prevent this scenario from occurring in the future, allowing the facility to begin processing samples again. "The MSRR has been a great tool in understanding how different materials like ceramics or metals react when heat is applied to them in space," said Reagan. "The original design of the software that controls the MSRR called for it to shut down within 30 seconds of losing communications from the main computer that controls it. Through our experience over the last several years on how the MSRR operates, we were able to design a much more efficient software program that will allow the furnace to stay operating for up to three hours after losing communications. This will give researchers enough time to troubleshoot any problems and prevent any contamination of the furnace due to overheating of materials." Getting the MSRR back online is important because applied materials science is essential for the development of new, safer, stronger and more durable materials for use throughout everyday life. One of the goals of performing research in space is to gain a better understanding of the role of gravity in the microstructural development during solidification. One of the first experiments performed on the MSRR melted and solidified an aluminum and silicon alloy. This type of processing typically is used for producing commercially important products such as high temperature turbine blades. The MSRR was fired up on Jan. 23 and began its work processing the first of 11 new samples that will be tested over the next several months. "Everything looks great and the first sample was processed successfully," said Reagan. "We are really proud of our team for working through these issues with the MSRR and designing this software to make it work even better. This is what science is all about -- working through challenges and coming out of those with an even better product." NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24899000
Talking Points on the Environment #14 Checklist for Endangered Species Act Reform Congress will soon take up the issue of Endangered Species Act reform. Before Congress can devise a species protection plan that will work for all species -- both humans and wildlife -- it must first: - Realize that the American people want genuine species protection and that an incentive-based plan must be devised. While most Americans would object to the excesses of the current Endangered Species Act -- excessive protections afforded the Flat-Spired Snail, for example -- most favor some form of protection for the most valued species. The best way to protect these species while protecting individual liberty is through a voluntary, incentive-based - Recognize that the current Endangered Species Act has failed. Some 900 plants and animals are currently listed as either "endangered" or "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and nearly 4,000 other species are either candidates for future listing or are in the process of being listed. Since the ESA's inception 21 years ago, only 27 species have managed to get off the "endangered" list. Of these, seven were delisted due to extinction. The remaining delistings were due to "data error" (meaning the species was wrongly listed in the first place), court orders, or species improvement unrelated to the ESA. The ESA has failed at its central mission -- protecting and recovering endangered and threatened species. - Understand why the Endangered Species Act has failed. The ESA has failed because it creates perverse incentives that actually encourage the destruction of species habitat. Under the ESA, private landowners can be barred from engaging in activities such as farming if their property is identified as potential habitat for an endangered species. Since the government offers no compensation for either the revenue or property value losses that result, landowners have an incentive to make sure their land will not attract species. They also have an incentive to harvest whatever natural resources their land possesses quickly while they still have access to them, damaging habitat in the - Accept that a goal of reform is to eliminate injustice, not simply to limit that injustice to a relative few. The ESA is fundamentally flawed and should be replaced. Piecemeal reforms -- those that simply tinker with existing law -- will do little to protect endangered species and little to help those who have been forced to foot the bill for what is essentially a public good. A species protection plan that protects both species and individuals' constitutionally-guaranteed private property rights is possible. But protection of property rights must be absolute: Reforms that solve some of the ESA's problems while continuing to place an unjust burden on small numbers of politically-powerless Americans is unethical and doomed to failure. Recommendations developed based on information from David Ridenour of The National Center for Public Policy Research; Myron Ebell, formerly of the American Land Rights Association; John Shanahan of The Heritage Foundation; "Perverse Incentives and Endangered Species," by Brian Seasholes of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, The Washington Times, April 6, 1995; and NWI Resource , Issue Date: April 12, 1995 Talking Points on the Economy: Environment #14, published by The National Center for Public Policy Research, 501 Capitol Ct NE, Washington, D.C. 20002 Tel. (202) 543-4110, Fax (202)543-5975, [email protected], http://www.nationalcenter/inter.net. For more information about Talking Points on the Economy: Environment #14 contact Bob Adams at 202/543-4110 or <<< Return to the Science and Environment <<< Return to the Talking Points on the Environment Cards Page <<< Return to the NCPPR Home Page	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24901000
When James III was killed at Sauchieburn, his fifteen-year-old son James IV succeeded him. He had been the rebels? assumed figurehead, and for his indirect role in his father?s death James decided to wear a heavy iron belt for the rest of his life. A highly intelligent man, James IV proved an effective ruler. He spoke many languages and took an interest in literature, science and law. Determined to establish strong central leadership he suppressed the Lordship of the Isles and created a powerful navy. In 1503 he married the English king?s daughter, Margaret Tudor, in an attempt to create peace between the two countries. However, when England invaded France, James felt obliged to assist his old ally. He confronted the English army in 1513 but was killed in the disastrous battle of Flodden.	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24902000
by William Wasden Jr. Introduction by Cle–alls (Dr. John Medicine Horse Kelly) The potlatch is the traditional way that North America's northwest Aboriginal people have always celebrated important events. Potlatches are the gatherings at which communities install chiefs, adopt new family members, make peace and more. These lavish affairs include feasting, speeches, gift–giving, songs and dances. But, between 1884 and 1951, the Canadian government outlawed our potlatches. Since then, slowly, very slowly, we have begun anew to openly conduct these crucial celebrations and all that goes with them. Non–Aboriginal authorities also attempted to nullify our ability to identify ourselves in our own words. Now, many of us are reviving our traditional names, both individuals and entire nations. As a Haida, my Taas Laanaagaas clan (Sandy Beach People) gave me the name of my grandfather, the Rev. Minister Peter Kelly: Cle–alls (Fireweed, or the Orator). That name is an immense honour. But it is an equally immense responsibility. I use Cle–alls daily now and prefer it to my English name. A growing number of people in our region do the same. Years ago, the great Professor Franz Boas (1858–1942) and his eminent disciples laboured long and hard to document our languages and cultures. I, for one, appreciate their efforts. However, even those well–meaning people made mistakes. For example, Professor Boas called one First Nation the Kwaguił. But, the proper name that covers all those people is Kwakwaka'wakw. Also, see how I have spelled Kwagu'ł? The "ł" symbol refers to a special sound that is like a breathy 't' and 'l' combined into one. But, it does not occur in English, so Professor Boas chose to write the ł as "tl". It is as close as an English–only keyboard can get. The ł sound suggests an important truth: Northwest coastal Aboriginal languages, dances, songs, stories, sounds, words and meanings belong solely to our peoples. We treat them as heirlooms, as other North Americans regard gold, silver, or diamonds. Northwest cultures are unique to the Kwakwaka'wakw nation and its neighbors, the Salish, Tlingit, Tsimshian, Nisga'a and my own people, the Haida. That is one reason why not only we but the entire world must do everything possible to keep these languages, songs, dances and stories alive. If they die, our people and our children – and the human race – will lose something that no one can ever recover. Our languages, celebrations and traditions define who we are, and they keep our heritages alive. They are our lifeblood. How'a and How'a sta, Cle–alls (Dr. John Medicine Horse Kelly) * * *	fwe2-CC-MAIN-2013-20-24903000

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