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Brave-Up on the OLC: 9 Life Lessons You Will Never Learn In School By: jhyeh 3383 reads Jason's opinions are his own, and not necessarily those of SFU, SFU Work Integrated Learning, or Our Learning Community. There has been much debate regarding our education system failing to prepare individuals for the 'real world.' The simplefixed school system lacks avenues to help students develop skills and provide the critical knowledge and advice on what they will encounter after their degree. The education system lacks teachings of practical knowledge and understanding of the real working world and resume-boosting, professional skills. The real work environment consists of pressure, expectations and experiences that many students are completely unfamiliar with. How do students cope and prepare themselves for the real working world then? Here are 9 life lessons you will never learn in school from Charles J. Sykes, an education reformer and author of well-known books, including Dumbing Down Our Kids: Why American Children Feel Good about Themselves, But Can't Read, Write, or Add and his most recent work 50 Rules Kids Won't Learn In School: 1. "Life is not fair - get used to it!" 2. "The world doesn't care about your self-esteem. The world expects you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself." 3. "If you think your teacher is tough - wait till you get a boss." 4. "Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity." 5. "If you mess up, it is not your parent's fault, so don't whine about your mistakes and learn from them." 8. "Television is not real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs." 9. "Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll be working for one." Having said that, there has been great improvements within the current education system in encouraging students to engage in experiential learning, such as participating in paid work semesters like Co-operative Education Program and extracurricular activities, including volunteering or joining students clubs, to gain and apply practical and career-related skills and knowledge. This is a positive trend that, as a student, I wish to continue to see more at universities and colleges across Canada. Posted on November 30, 2012
What Are Expectations? What Do Expectations Mean? Expectation in general stands for a belief of happening or awaiting of something inter alia a belief of something that is bound to happen in future. Its understanding varies from people to people. Some consider it a curse, while others believe it to be a blessing in disguise. I personally believe it to be an excuse. Blaming others (or a belief) for your own wrong is what people call expectations. If a person fails to act in accordance to your will he has failed you. Here, he is not the one to be blamed but yourself. For the “expectation” was yours in the first place. Call it a desire to place someone under your will; wanting others to act in accordance to your will without communicating anything is the terminology “expectation”. We generally expect ourselves to do things without any formal commitment and are disappointed. It might be an excuse to justify our actions i.e. giving reasons to an act which was baseless at first hand. A friend of mine calls it “a double edged sword”. In his own words- “if taken as a positive it turns to be motivational. If taken as negative it results as an excuse. It is operating under the assumption that talks of accomplished prior to the initiation of the activity.(R.J.: 2015) Another friend of mine believes it to be subjective in nature and it can be subjected to a positive approach. In her own words- “It is a vital part of one’s life. A life in absence of expectations is similar to living in a mechanical world full of robots. Emotions won’t be the basis of the relationship and practicality will be predominant. That makes it baseless. Either way it helps to grow.“(R.M: 2015). A neutral take on the topic can be described as using it in an individual capacity. The friend explains- ‘expectations kills and ruins in individual capacity “of or for” one person. But if it is in group it can be taken as a motivation and work pressure‘. (P.A.P.: 2015). A theatrical on the same (a double edged sword) is likewise. Another friend explains- “People are of two kinds. Try avoiding them both and never have expectations. You are most powerful when you are most silent. People never expect silence. They expect words, motions, defense, offence, back and forth. They expect to leap into the fray. They are ready, fists up, words hanging and leaping from their mouths. Silence? No!” (H.G: 2015). As stated, silence can act like a double edged sword. It is not necessarily bullet proof. It depends on understanding how to use it as a weapon, as a defense, or not use it at all. Silence is not always an answer. The last take on the word expectation is a simple one. It cannot be explained in a single line. “People have different kind of expectations. Some people have too much of expectations which can never be met. From what one understands, you can never stand up to anyone’s expectations. It is human nature, one will always expect more.” (B.B.: 2015). Expectation is an ideology which is driven by human greed, contempt and the willingness to control. It is something bereft of conclusion until you decide to maneuver it in the right direction. 6 thoughts on “What Are Expectations? What Do Expectations Mean? 1. Expectation seems to share similarities with intention in fault. Courts think that intention alleviates the penalty, so does it follow that exspectation alleviates penalty? doesn’t seem like it. Liked by 1 person 1. Do I see a lawyer/ law student here? Opinion, expectation or intention. They have similarities but are not the same. Personal expectation amounts to opinion, but it doesn’t amount to information. If your opinion culminates to an intention to hurt someone then yes, it can be penalised, Liked by 1 person 2. I see, but I would have thought that if opinion, expectation, and intention were to be ranked by specificity, it would be: Opinion>Intention>Expectation. Aside, I’m stunned that you would guess so accurately. I want to pursue law in the future. Liked by 1 person 3. I agree. If these were to be ranked then: Information> Opinion> Intention> Expectation. I am sure you’ll reach new heights in the legal field. You have the right aptitude. Liked by 1 person Leave a Reply WordPress.com Logo Google photo Twitter picture Facebook photo Connecting to %s
Answers to Popular Questions Regarding Prevention of Viruses With flu season coming, and COVID being here, people need to know how to stay healthy (if staying healthy is even possible). Minds are racing with questions about what does or does not work in these uncertain and seemingly unhealthy times. Everyone knows to wash his hands, but what are other steps people can take to stay healthy> Does taking allergy pills to help prevent the flu and COVID? Allergy pills do not prevent COVID-19 or the flu. Many studies say there is no evidence that antihistamines help relieve cold symptoms in children. In adults however, antihistamines can be taken when people have the flu because they block the effect of histamine and help relieve such annoying symptoms as sneezing, itching, and nasal discharge. Does what you eat affect your chances of the flu and COVID? Apparently, getting sick with COVID-19 from eating or handling food such as frozen food and produce food packages is considered a very low risk. At the moment there is no evidence that people can get COVID or the flu from food. Eating foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, low-fat dairy, and healthy fats can actually help boost the immune system and decrease the chance of getting COVID or the flu. Good foods to eat are sweet potatoes, winter squash, dark green veggies, and carrots. Does a good sleep schedule help prevent the flu and COVID? Studies show that when people get a good night’s sleep and are well rested, they have a better immune system. When people do not get enough sleep, it can make vaccinations not work as efficiently. Having a regular sleep schedule can make it easier to fall asleep. People should avoid eating and drinking a lot before bed. Can breathing differently help prevent illness? Research shows that when walking past a big group of people, people should breathe out and try to hold their breath. Students in a crowd should gently and slowly breathe out until they are beyond the 6 feet social distancing guideline. Does regular exercise help prevent viral illness? Physical activity makes a healthy immune system, and when people have healthy immune systems, their chances of getting an illness decreases. Exercise also helps flush bacteria out of the lungs and airway which can reduce the chance of getting a cold, flu, or other illness. Exercise also relieves stress. Stress can increase the chance of getting viral illnesses. Does spending more time outdoors help prevent illnesses like the flu? COVID-19 and the flu can be spread by people sneezing or breathing and other people inhaling the droplets. When outside, fresh air is constantly moving so it is harder to catch illnesses. Being outside can also help people with stress, anger, depression, or tension, all which weaken the immune system.
Skip to main content New phylogenetic methods for inferring complex population dynamics Final Report Summary - PHYPD (New phylogenetic methods for inferring complex population dynamics) Phylogenetics has traditionally been developed for macroevolution. In this context, we first assessed what process of macroevolution, in particular what aspects about speciation and extinction, can be learnt based on phylogenetic trees. While such analyses can raise hypotheses such as speciation rates may be a function of species age, we realized that in order to not only raise hypotheses but to provide strong evidence for hypotheses, we need to combine phylogenetic trees with fossil data. This may seem non-surprising, as in fact the phylogenetic trees on extant species and the fossil data from extinct species are both parts of the same macroevolutionary process, and thus both shape speciation and extinction rates. However, coherent analysis of both data sources was at its infancy when this ERC project started. In the course of this project, we pushed modelling advances and methodological development leading to tools which can be used by molecular systematists and palaeontologists for joint data analysis. We used our insights in order to characterize speciation modes for a range of different species. We find that e.g. a frequent mode of speciation of whales and bovids seems to be anagenesis, meaning species gradually evolve into new ones. In the last two decades, it has been recognized that the phylogenetic concept is also crucial for improving our understanding of epidemiological processes. In an epidemiological phylogeny, tips of the tree are corresponding to infected hosts (instead of extant species), and branching events correspond to transmission events (instead of speciation events). In the second part of the ERC project, we developed new tools allowing for a detailed analysis of pathogen genetic sequencing data in a phylogenetic framework. Such analysis allows rapidly quantification of the spread of epidemics. Most recently, we developed new tools to couple the analysis of the sequencing data with classic epidemiological prevalence and incidence data. We used our methods developed prior and within this ERC to characterize the spread of Ebola spreading in West Africa in 2014. We quantified the same speed of spread as the WHO. Since both analyses were done in parallel on disjoint datasets, we had faith in the estimated number. Further, we investigated potential Diphtheria transmission between refugees coming to Europe in 2015, with the conclusion that all transmission occurred in their home countries and not in Europe, meaning public health interventions for containing transmission should be focussed to their home countries. Finally, we used the very recent methodological advances to provide insight into the epidemiology and evolution of Zika in South America, as well as for quantifying drug resistant HIV transmission and tuberculosis transmission in Switzerland. Completion of the ERC projects deepened our understanding of macroevolutionary and epidemiological dynamics, as well as led to novel phylogenetic tools allowing us to analyse the growing amount of available data, such as next-generation sequencing data, combined with data from other fields such as paleontology or epidemiology. All tools are available within BEAST v2 and tutorials for learning to use these tools is provided via our webpage
The weakness of double DES, E (k1, E(k2, M)) is that Meet-in-the-middle attack is possible. When performing Meet-in-the-middle attack, we first need to build the table with the first column all the possible keys and the second column all the encryption with these keys, then second step is sorting the second column, why do we need to sort the second column? What do we base on when performing the sorting? That's an optimization for the attack. It would work without it, but slower. To do a Meet-in-the-middle attack, we need to encrypt a known plaintext with every possible key and save the resulting text (with the used key) in a list. Now we decrypt a known ciphertext with every possible key and look if we got the resulting text in our list. We want to know the key for a specific ciphertext. Searching for a specific value in an unordered list is quite hard: We need to look at every single entry and see if it is what we search. That takes (on average) $\frac{n}{2}$ attempts (with $n$ = the key space of the algorithm, for DES it is $2^{56}$). If we sort the resulting list before we do the decryption we can use the Binary Search. This reduces the search attempts to ca. $\log_2(n)$ (n = the keyspace). That's only 56 for DES, much less than with an unsorted list. Small note: We sort the column with the key at the same time as we sort the column with the ciphertext. For example, the first key will be the key for the first ciphertext. \| improve this answer \| \| • $\begingroup$ Small note: In practice, you probably wouldn't use a binary search, but rather you'd sort both sets and run a list merge on them. In any case, though, you still end up doing about $O(n \log n)$ comparisons; without sorting, that would be $O(n^2)$, which is no more efficient than brute force. $\endgroup$ – Ilmari Karonen Nov 16 '14 at 20:11 • $\begingroup$ @IlmariKaronen: Minor note: we can do rather better than $O(n \log n)$ comparisons (!); the data we're sorting on is uniformly distributed, and for data like that, approaches such as radix sorting have better asymptotic complexity. $\endgroup$ – poncho Nov 16 '14 at 20:33 • $\begingroup$ @IlmariKaronen: I don't know how that works, so I can't insert it into my answer. Feel free to edit it, if you want. $\endgroup$ – Nova Nov 16 '14 at 20:55 Your Answer
Diese Präsentation wurde erfolgreich gemeldet. Luther king powerpoint 45.637 Aufrufe Veröffentlicht am Veröffentlicht in: Bildung • Login to see the comments Luther king powerpoint 1. 1. Martin Luther King<br /> 2. 2. Born: January 15, 1929<br />Died: April 4, 1968 (aged 39)<br />Nationality: American<br />Influenced by: Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln and Jesus.<br />Spouse: Coretta Scott King.<br />Martin Luther King Fact file<br /> 3. 3. Martin Luther King was a big leader in the African, American civil rights movement. <br />He is probably most well known for his famous speech, ‘I have a dream…’<br />He was the youngest person ever to receive a noble peace reward. He got this for his work to stop racism.<br />He was assassinated on April 4th 1968.<br />He will always be remembered for his wish to bring round equality.<br />Who is Martin Luther King?<br /> 4. 4. In March 1995, a 15 year old school girl refused to give up her bus seat for a white man. Martin Luther King looked into the case and started the ‘bus boycott’. The boycott lasted for 395 days. Luther King was arrested during this but at the end of the boycott racial segregation on buses was ended.<br />Martin Luther King did many other boycotts and speeches all of which helped to bring around racial equality.<br />What did he do?<br /> 5. 5. All I’m saying is this, that all life is interrelated, that somehow we're caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. You can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.<br />Famous Speech<br />
By: \| Post date: 2016-08-07 \| Comments: No Comments Posted in categories: Linguistics, Modern Greek A most commendable question; and you’d think a Greek dialectologist would be ideally placed to answer this. You would be wrong. Precisely because I’m used to dialects, it’s hard for me to make aesthetic judgements on them. But let me attempt to at least posit why certain dialects might be considered harsh. 1. Cappadocian It’s doubtful that most Greeks have ever even heard Cappadocian. Cappadocian is moribund, Cappadocians never had the numbers that Pontians had in Greece, and many Cappadocians had already shifted to Turkish before the population exchanges. So the full extent of my experience of what Cappadocian sounds like is the “Anatolian” (from Kayseri) in the 1830s dialect comedy Babel. The Anatolian is introduced at 5:30, and yes, the very first thing he asks for is pastırma kayserili. I’m guessing that Cappadocian will sound harsh to Greeks, because it sounds Turkish: language contact was most advanced there (even to the extent in places of vowel harmony). At an impressionistic level, it’s quite breathy, and the /a/ is back. Then again, this recording of Pharasa [Çamlıca, Yahyalı] speakers in Greece doesn’t sound anywhere near as harsh as the music hall stereotype: The other Anatolian dialect Pontic, by contrast, does not sound particularly harsh to me. At least, I don’t think so. Because the intonation really does soak in from the prestige language. Contrast below a newscast in Pontic in Greece (which sounds identical to Athens newscaster Greek), and a Russian Pontian speaker (who sounds, well, Russian): EDIT: Just got this recording of Silli dialect (near Konya). Not unpleasant, but not very Greek-sounding, either: 2. Northern Greek Northern Greek doesn’t sound particularly guttural or abrupt, but it is missing a lot of vowels. That makes it sound, at least, crunchy. Here’s an interview with someone from Lesbos. 3. Assibilating dialects Greek Assibilation is the process whereby non-sibilants become sibilants; in particular, tsitakismos (as the Greeks call it) is the subset of that process, whereby front [c] goes to a sibilant like [tʃ] or [tɕ]; palatalisation also made [s] go to [ʃ] in a lot of dialects. Standard Greek doesn’t have Postalveolar consonants, and I’d fancy that any dialect that does have them would sound harsh to Standard Greek speakers. That’s most dialects of Greek. Cretan, Cypriot, most Northern dialects, Pontic, Cappadocian, Italiot. 3. Standard Greek Or at least, Peloponnesian, which is what Standard Greek is based on. Ha! The rapid-fire intonation is what I have in mind. I don’t know for a fact what Standard Greek sounded like to Cretans or Cypriots when they first heard it, before they associated it with officialdom. But given how sing-song Cretan and Cypriot is, I imaging “harsh” would be one word. Leave a Reply • Subscribe to Blog via Email Join 319 other subscribers • December 2020 M T W T F S S « Mar %d bloggers like this:
Blanket of Air – Standards Grades K-2 Disciplinary Core Ideas PS1A: Different kinds of matter exist. Matter can be described & classified by its observable properties, its uses, & whether it occurs naturally or is manufactured. p.108 PS1B: Heating or cooling a substance may cause changes that can be observed. p.110 ESS2E: Plants and animals (including humans) depend on the land, water, and air to live and grow. p.190 ESS3A: Living things need water, air, and resources from the land, and they try to live in places that have the things they need. p.192 ETS1B: Designs can be conveyed through sketches, drawings, or physical models. These representations are useful in communicating ideas for a problem’s solutions to other people. p.207 ETS1C: Because there is always more than one possible solution to a problem, it is useful to compare designs, test them, and discuss their strengths and weaknesses. p.209 Grades 3-5 Disciplinary Core Ideas PS1A: Matter of any type can be subdivided into particles that are too small to see, but even then the matter still exists and can be detected by other means. For example a model showing that gases are made from matter particles that are too small to see and are moving freely around in space can explain many observations, including the inflation and shape of a balloon; the effects of air on larger particles or objects; p.108 LS1C: Animals and plants alike generally need to take in air and water, animals must take in food, and plants need light and minerals; …Plants acquire their material for growth chiefly from air and water. p.148 ETS1B: An often productive way to generate ideas is for people to work together to brainstorm, test, and refine possible solutions. At whatever stage, communicating with peers about proposed solutions is an important part of the design process, and shared ideas can lead to improved designs. p.207 ETS1C: Different solutions need to be tested in order to determine which of them best solves the problem, given the criteria and the constraints. p.209 Grades 6-8 Disciplinary Core Ideas PS1A: Gases & liquids are made of molecules or inert atoms that are moving about relative to each other. In a liquid, the molecules are constantly in contact with each other; in a gas, they are widely spaced except when they happen to collide. In a solid, atoms are closely spaced & vibrate in position but do not change relative locations. p.108-109 ETS1B: A solution needs to be tested, and then modified on the basis of the test results, in order to improve it. p.208 ETS1C: This iterative process of testing the most promising solutions and modifying what is proposed on the basis of the test results leads to greater refinement and ultimately to an optimal solution. Once such a suitable solution is determined, it is important to describe that solution, explain how it was developed, and describe the features that make it successful. p.209-210 Grades 3-5 Common Core Standards Leave a Reply You are commenting using your account. Log Out / Change ) Google photo Twitter picture Facebook photo Connecting to %s
What are heliophytes and sciophytes ? Heliophytes : The plants that thrive in area where intensity of light is more are called heliophytes e.g. Dalbergia. Sciophytes : The sciophytes need less intensity of light and they grow under the canopy of trees. These plants have less amount of chlorophyll and remain smaller due to decreased rate of photosynthesis e.g. Oxalis.
Published by Ny Tid Technological development seems to be speeding up. Most of us remember a time without mobiles phones and the Internet, but this almost feels alien to us now. This is because technological change accelerates over time, as Ray Kurzweil explains. According to Kurzweil, in his book The Singularity is near, is the “rate of change itself accelerating”. In the 20th century, progress for the next 50 years looked pretty much as the progress of the previous 50 years. But according to Kurzweil, this has been deceptive. We actually are experiencing an exponential growth instead of the perceived linear one. Up until a certain point, the “knee in the curve”, exponential growth resembles linear growth, or in other words: it’s pretty flat at the beginning. After the “knee of curve” though, growth becomes steep and noticeable for us all. And according to Kurzweil, we are nearing that point at lightning speed. So the achievements of all of the 20th century, “were equivalent to about twenty years of progress at the rate in 2000. We’ll make another twenty years of progress in just fourteen years (by 2014), and then do the same again in only seven years. To express this another way, we won’t experience one hundred years of technological advance in the twenty-first century; we will witness on the order of twenty thousand years of progress […].” The reason for this accelerated growth is that previous innovations facilitate the discovery of new ones. Just like pen, paper and the printing press were used to design the first computer. Now information technology is used to advance progress in all kinds of areas like manufacturing, health, and even creativity. As an example of this exponential growth, Kurzweil mentions the Internet. “[C]onsider the skepticism [sic] expressed in the mid-1980s that the Internet would ever be a significant phenomenon, given that it then included only tens of thousands of nodes (also known as servers). In fact, the number of nodes was doubling every year, so that there were likely to be tens of millions of nodes ten years later. But this trend was not appreciated by those who struggled with state-of-the-art technology in 1985, which permitted adding only a few thousand nodes throughout the world in a single year.” As technology evolves – one small, but exponential step at a time – the point of mainstream usage becomes nearer. This makes today the right time to look at what will await us very soon, since changes in our day-to-day are closer than we think. Just like the Internet didn’t rock our world until years after its development, there are some technologies that have been around for a while, but their real impact is about to just be shown to us. Let’s have a look at the impact of nanotechnology, Virtual Reality, and robotics. There are of course more technologies to be considered (some will be explored in a next article), but for now I will look at the technologies that will influence our bodies and relationships. Join me while I unlock a future of robotic girlfriends, brains uploaded in the cloud and medicine as small as blood cells soaring through our bodies. Technology will bridge distances, allow us to communicate emotions in a new way and soothe the lonely. Virtual reality, for example, enhanced with tactile, smell, and sound options allow for connecting with loved ones abroad beyond the ordinary video call option. It will also allow all of us to adopt a different persona if we choose to for that moment. Switching between body types or gender will become effortless. This could be especially helpful for transgender or bi-gendered individuals. Without surgery, they can assume an online identity that matches the way they identify. Gender becomes more fluid and adaptable with possibilities for online relationships that really feel like ‘being’ with someone. And you can assume the identity you desire and switch whenever you feel like it. If you don’t have a significant other to connect to online, you could get a robotic girlfriend (or boyfriend, but available models so far seem to be mainly female). Some models come with virtual reality glasses while others are designed for an offline experience resembling human skin, humanlike micro facial expressions, and respond to questions. The quality of the ‘conversation’ might not be very good at the moment. But Kurzweil predicts that a computer will be able to sustain a conversation like a human being (the Turing Test) by the end of the 2020s. There are of course also dangers to be considered relating to a robotic significant other. It may not increase mental health to go for the easy way out instead of facing intimacy issues. And virtual reality full body suits can be used to meet strangers online for all sorts of things like sex dates: it’s Tinder 2.0. You don’t even have to leave the house for a date. From sports to sickness and death: pretty much any human bodily experience will be influenced by technology. Sports can be enhanced drastically with technology. One option is to replace blood cells with nanobots that improve transference of oxygen. Kurzweil explains: “Robert A. Freitas Jr.—a pioneering nanotechnology theorist and leading proponent of nanomedicine (reconfiguring our biological systems through engineering on a molecular scale), and author of a book with that title —has designed robotic replacements for human blood cells that perform hundreds or thousands of times more effectively than their biological counterparts. With Freitas’s respirocytes (robotic red blood cells) a runner could do an Olympic sprint for fifteen minutes without taking a breath.” Leaving us to wonder if we will allow Olympic athletes to improve their performance with this kind of technology. If we would, sports essentially become about who has the most money to buy the best enhancements. Or if we decline the use of enhancements in sport, ordinary humans will be the ones using these technologies run and swim faster than Olympians. Will we want to look at athletes if their performance fades in comparison to our own? Nanobots can also alleviate sickness according to Kurzweil. “[N]anoengineered blood-borne devices that deliver hormones such as insulin have been demonstrated in animals. Similar systems could precisely deliver dopamine to the brain for Parkinson’s patients, provide bloodclotting factors for patients with hemophilia, and deliver cancer drugs directly to tumor sites.[sic]” And when we do die our loved ones will still be able to talk to us and get our opinion, because our mind will continue to be around. In the middle of the 21st-century, we will be able to “store and restore the thousands of trillions of bytes of information represented in the pattern that we call our brains” predicts Kurzweil. A form of immortality is near in the sense that all the information in our brain will be available long after our passing. Immortality has always been alluring because we hate the idea of being forgotten. Soon we can leave something behind that’s really part of us when we pass away. Artists always had their paintings to remember them by, writers their books and entrepreneurs their businesses. Technology allows us to be creative about our own death and leave a legacy like never before. You can upload your personal beliefs, analytical thinking processes, dear memories and favourite jokes. Our bodies and the way we love will be changed forever when these technologies become mainstream. And because new technologies will emerge faster, initiating even more technologies, we will soon live in a time where our sense of a ‘normal’ day is completely gone. Every day will be completely different from the previous one as new technologies enter our routine on a daily base. All of this is leading up to the moment of singularity according to Kurzweil. “The Singularity will represent the culmination of the merger of our biological thinking and existence with our technology, resulting in a world that is still human but that transcends our biological roots. There will be no distinction, post-Singularity, between human and machine or between physical and virtual reality.” “We will be able to assume different bodies and take on a range of personae at will. In practical terms, human ageing and illness will be reversed; pollution will be stopped; world hunger and poverty will be solved.” Progress will be so steep that it will tear up the fabric of our human existence with ever-changing possibilities and realities. The current rate of progress is already changing our societies vastly. Imagine how fast everything will change if indeed, the rate of change itself is accelerating. Welcome to the journey towards singularity. Predicted to arrive in 2045. %d bloggers like this:
by carey Download By Carey Post on 24-Feb-2016 0 download Embed Size (px) By Carey. High productivities , titers and yields are essential for the microbial production of chemicals to be economically viable, particularly for low-value bulk chemicals and biofuels. Problems : product titers and yields are often limited by metabolic imbalances . - PowerPoint PPT Presentation By CareyHigh productivities, titers and yields are essential for the microbial production of chemicals to be economically viable, particularly for low-value bulk chemicals and biofuels.Problems: product titers and yields are often limited by metabolic imbalances. Expression at too low level: bottlenecks in biosynthetic path ways. Expression at too high level: unnecessary RNAs, proteins or intermediate metabolites; toxic; growth retardation or adaptive responsesStatic control of the gene expression:Several strategies have been developed to regulate gene expression, including engineering the strengths of promoters, intergenic regions and ribosome binding sites. Dynamic regulation (DSRS): The desired metabolic pathway would be dynamically regulated in response to the physiological state of the cell. Dynamic regulation would allow an organism to adapt its metabolic flux to changes within the host or in its environment in real time.An even better regulation system for an engineered pathway would sense the concentration of critical pathway intermediates and dynamically regulate the production and consumption of the intermediates, which would allow the delivery of intermediates at the appropriate levels and rates in order to optimize the pathway for its highest productivity as conditions change in the cells environment.The challenge : 1. a sensor that can measure key intermediates 2. cognate regulators that can control gene expressionFortunately, nature has evolved sensors for a variety of intracellular molecules that could be used to sense the biosynthetic intermediate. However, the naturally occurring cognate regulators will rarely suffice to regulate an engineered pathway, as these regulators have evolved to regulate natural pathways that have lower flux, and they may not produce the desired chemical.We sought to develop a DSRS that dynamically controls microbial production of biodiesels. Biodiesels: in the form of fatty acid ethyl ester (FAEE) low water solubility and high energy density, suitable for microbial production. The steps to construct DSRS:The first step : to develop biosensors for a key intermediate (fatty acyl-CoA)We engineered fatty acid/acyl-CoA (FA/acyl-CoA) biosensors based on the naturally occurring fatty acidsensing protein FadR and its cognate regulator FadR: a ligand-responsive transcription factor that binds to specific DNA sequences , controls the expression of several genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis, degradation and transport through the membrane. The DNA-binding activity of FadR is specifically antagonized by acyl-CoAs An additional complication is that native FadR-regulated promoters have limited dynamic ranges (that is, induced expression level relative to uninduced expression level). To increase the dynamic range, we designed two synthetic FA/acyl-CoAregulated promoters, PLR and PAR, based on a phage lambda promoter (PL) and a phage T7 promoter (PA1), respectively. Response of FA/acyl-CoA biosensors to exogenous oleic acid.Biosensor plasmids pAR-rfp (black circles) or pLR-rfp (blue squares) were used to transform E. coli DH1 fadE (filled dots) or fadD (empty dots). Various amounts of oleic acid were added to the medium, and fluorescence was measured and normalized after incubation at 37 for 24 h. From the picture, our biosensors responded primarily to acyl-CoA under the experimental conditions, and served as fatty acid sensors only indirectly .Response of FA/acyl-CoA biosensors to internally produced fatty acids.Biosensor plasmids were used to transform either wild-type E. coli DH1 or a fatty acidproducing strain (TesA overexpressed) As compared to wild-type E. coli DH1harboring pLR-rfp and pAR-rfp, the fatty acidproducing strain harboring the same plasmids was tenfold and 25-fold more fluorescent, respectively .The time course of fluorescence correlated well with the time course of fatty acid production, confirming that the rfp expression was induced by acyl-CoAs activated from the produced fatty acids .The second step: to use the measurement by the biosensor to regulate an output. A tightly regulated pathway is needed to maximize product yields.we integrated regulatory DNA elements responsive to two sensors, FadR and LacI, into one promoter, giving rise to three hybrid promoters, PFL1, PFL2 and PFL3.These promoters were designed to respond to changes of both fatty acid and an exogenous inducer, IPTG. All hybrid promoters were fully activated only when both the fatty acids and IPTG were present. The previously developed FAEE biosynthetic pathway contains three modules.Ideally, modules B and C would be controlled by the availability of fatty acid, and ethanol and acyl-CoA would be produced in no greater than sufficient quantities needed for FAEE biosynthesis. Module A contains the E. coli native fatty acid synthase and a cytoplasmic thioesterase gene (tesA) and produces fatty acids.Module B contains a pyruvate decarboxylase gene (pdc) and an alcohol dehydrogenase gene (adhB) and produces ethanol.Module C contains an acyl-CoA synthase gene (fadD) and a wax-ester synthase gene (atfA) and produces FAEE as the end product.To search for the proper regulatory system with desired strength and dynamic range, we created 20 FAEE-producing strains by changing the combination of biosensor-derived promoters in each module.The FAEE production yields were analyzed by gas chromatography flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Most strains harboring the DSRS had enhanced production titers and yields (Fig. 3b). Among them, two strains, Y and W, which contain PFL2 controlling the expression of genes in module B (ethanol pathway) and PAR or PFL3 controlling the expression of genes in module C (fadD-atfA), had the highest yields. Test experiments:To confirm that the yields were enhanced because of the dynamic regulation rather than simply a change of promoter strength. 2. To determine if the DSRS increased product yields because of the improved metabolic balance. DSRS was able to improve gene stabilityIt has been well documented that accumulation of some metabolic intermediates or proteins in genetically modified microorganisms is toxic and leads to a rapid loss of gene function. because the designed DSRS alleviated the imbalances in the metabolic pathways, it would stabilize the genetic constructs.We characterized the genetic stability of the strains with various versions of the DSRS and compared it to that of the original A2A and control strains. Strains harboring the DSRS had greater plasmid integrity and the predicted copy number ratios. In particular, fadD, which was previously shown to be the least stable gene in the system, was maintained at higher copy number in the strains with the DSRS compared to the unregulated system indicating that the DSRS was able to improve gene stability.ConclusionsWe have demonstrated that one can construct a DSRS by assimilating two different natural ligand-responsive transcription factors and engineering regulators with different responses.The results show that the DSRS balanced the metabolism of host cells, improved the stability of the FAEE biosynthetic pathway and enhanced production yields. Our strategy to design the DSRS based on a ligand-responsive transcription factor can be extended to design biosensors and regulatory systems for other molecules and metabolic pathways using the large pool of natural ligand-responsive transcription factors.Thank you for your attention!
Do Silkworms Poop Silk? What stage do silkworms produce silk? pupa stageIn the pupa stage, a weave is netted around by the silkworm to hold itself. After that it swings its head, spinning a fibre made of a protein and becomes a silk fibre. Several caterpillars form a protective layer around pupa and this covering is known as the cocoon.. Do silk worms have eyes? The normal silkworm moth has black eyes (Figure 12) and its mature egg is grey. Selective breeding of an oriental race of silkworms with white cocoons produced varieties having three dis- tinct eye colors: eosine, red, and dark red. Which is the most famous silk? Are Silkworms boiled alive? Yes, it is true. Silkworms are boiled alive to obtain silk fibre to unravel the silk from cocoon. … Once the worms start pupating in their cocoons, these are dissolved in boiling water in order for individual long fibres to be extracted and fed into the spinning reel. Can you touch silkworms? Silkworms are susceptible to bruising and dying if not handled with care, especially as they grow larger. When handling and transferring the worms, be very gentle. Do silkworms need sunlight? Temperature: Room temperature is ideal for your silkworms, they do not require sunlight, and they like to stay cosy. … Food: Silkworm moths only eat mulberry leaves, feed twice a day to avoid the leaves becoming mouldy. Do silkworms make silk? There’s no getting around this: Silkworms die to produce silk. There are different types of silk, but the variety we generally refer to when we talk about silk—the one used for stunning saris or flowy dresses—comes from the mulberry silkworm, Bombyx mori. Is wearing silk cruel? Vegans don’t eat, wear, or use products made from or by animals, instead opting for animal-free and cruelty-free food, clothing, and products. Silk is made from fibers spun by worms, who are animals, in a process that’s surprisingly cruel and typically ends with the worms being killed. Can silk be made without killing silkworms? Ahimsa silk is a method of non-violent silk breeding and harvesting. Wild silk moths are bred, rather than the domestic variety. He invented the method for producing silk using an eco-friendly way and without the need for killing the silk worms. … Why is silk considered cruel? Silk fabric is made from the fiber that’s spun by silkworms when they form the cocoons for their pupal stage prior to becoming moths. In order to harvest silk, many silkworms are killed. While some methods of silk production do not require the creatures to die, it’s still a form of animal exploitation. What is bad about silk? Do silkworms have brains? Silkworms operate entirely on instinct. They have a tiny little brain. The adult silkmoth has a more advanced brain.
What can cause Candida and How to Recognize Candida fungus Symptoms What is candida? Candidiasis was nearly unheard of prior to Entire world War ll. While using introduction of antibiotics associated with poor lifestyle and diet, candida overgrowth has grown in order to epidemic proportions in this society. Candida, Latin intended for “clear and white, similar to genuine quartz” is the variety of more than 20 species of yeasts of which results in a lot of widespread bacterial infections. The nearly all commonly acknowledged Yeast infection team is known as Candidiasis: these disease live on the surface of our body shapes and beneath certain circumstances can become hence quite a few that they cause infection in warm moist parts of the body such as the genitalia (thrush), jaws, skin, armpits, nails, and ears. Typically the yeast disease also features the power to enter the blood and distributed all through the whole body (Systemic candidiasis) which can turn out to be life threatening. The way you keep healthy Our gut vegetaci�n is made up coming from over 1200 species regarding bacteria, yeast in addition to other organisms numbering 100 trillion in total inhabiting a persons gastrointestinal tract. Numerous of the organisms help to guard all of us from disease and even give rise to our health by simply producing small chain fat acids which allows you source human energy demands, yield a number of valuable nourishment such as M vitamins and even vitamin T and helping to increasing immune system function. Generally identified as ‘friendly bacteria’ that they include things like titles beginning with Lactobacillus or even Bifidobacteria, which implies this genus (group) many people fit to. Food manufactures often add these good men to foods like yoghurts. Besides friendly bacteria a persons gastrointestinal tracts contains organisms that only benefit us any time their numbers happen to be kept low by contending helpful bacteria. These small creatures contain coliform bacterias (E. coli etc), yeasts/fungus together with bacteroides. Candida candida is one of the most typical residents of this human mucous membranes this sort of as the gut, urinary system system and vagina. Candida albicans Causes Candida is a “dimorphic” organism, which suggests that it can exist sometimes as a circular fungus cell or seeing that a good fungus (mycelial form) having spindly outgrowths referred to as hyphae that can sink into the body structure connected with the host. In healthful individuals Candida remains inside yeast form as that is kept in verify by simply friendly bacteria in addition to a healthy and balanced immune answer. If the welcoming bacteria are disrupted Candida can easily increase its numbers significantly, change into a fungus infection form and the Candida reasons health problems. The particular balance of creatures throughout the intestines can get upset by different elements. Probably the most crucial factor is the employ of drugs. Antibiotic occurs from the word antibiosis which means against life, a task by which living could be accustomed to kill life. They don’t discriminate between friendly and pathogenic bacteria so every time you take the supplements for disease you destroy large statistics of friendly bacteria in your intestines that are protecting you from some other potentially unsafe digestive tract residents. Unfortunately twenty-first centuries living is leading to quite a few complications to typically the human immunity mechanism. These are usually some of the some other factors that will cause the Candida fungus overgrowth. Over employ of stimulants like alcoholic beverages, detrimental beverages, drugs in addition to smoking. Signs of Candida , surgery, diabetic, pregnancy, frequent medication. Malnutrition induced by a loss of nutrients, due to be able to a diet full regarding unhealthy foods with high carbohydrates, saturated fats plus excessive refined bad carbohydrate food. Anxiety, breathing wrong, not enough training and fresh air, a polluted environment. How Candida fungus poisons the body Candida fungus candida produces alcohol (ethanol) and even acetaldehyde (chemical responsible for hangover symptoms) like the major goods connected with its metabolism. A healthy body detoxification system can eliminate this problem, however a good overgrowth of intestinal Candida albicans, indicates the levels of alcoholic beverages coming into the blood stream are generally tremendously increased. If your own body is regularly ingesting a high level of alcoholic beverage for yrs this will impact wellness like nutrients and valuable liver organ enzymes may turn into exhausted resulting in oxidative stress, due to being consistently overworked trying to detoxify this yeast products. Strong problems for multiple body techniques can certainly in addition be induced by typically the yeast goods. Effectively the whole body is poisoned by a Candida overgrowth, resulting in an variety of Candida indicators influencing the whole body. Candida fungus Symptoms There are many distinct symptoms of the candida overgrowth. This is because when this yeast breaks from the tum and bowel wall surfaces that goes off round often the body setting up colonies and slowing down organs together with muscle tissue. This frequently results in a vast range of annoying yeast infection symptoms affecting various areas of typically the body in different intensity with regard to different people. For this reason this makes it almost impossible regarding most doctors to be able to detect. Candida symptoms incorporate contact allergies, IBS, asthma, migraines, major depression, arthritis, PMT and quite a few other illnesses in addition to chronic conditions. It is still uncertain whether Candidiasis prevails in the body because the result, or the result in of some immunologic disorders. I have privately encountered from a good candida fungus overgrowth most of living, resulting in endless health troubles, illnesses and food intolerances. After 3 spine liquidation, registered disabled, dependent about others and in continuous agony My spouse and i discovered the presence of candida. Leave a reply
$1 for 3 months. Save 97%. $1 for 3 months. Save 97%. The Bulge: American soldiers crush Hitler’s last assault Delaware Voice Samuel B. Hoff Planned in September 1944, the World War II German offensive launched in mid-December of that year had as its objectives sealing a peace treaty with the Allies and trying to get the Americans and British to turn against the Soviets. It certainly had the element of surprise, as no German military had attempted a winter offensive since Frederick the Great. When the Germans attacked through the Ardennes Forest on Dec. 16, 1944, and pushed Allied positions back into Belgium, the event became known as the Ardennes Offensive and later as the Battle of the Bulge. After 70 years, the prolonged battle is still discussed for it impact on the remainder of the conflict. German strategy in the Ardennes Offensive was to break the Allied lines, then travel along the Meuse River to Antwerp and Brussels. Because German fuel for vehicles and tanks was low, the plan was to defeat opposing forces and resupply their own needs with captured Allied resources. However, the swiftness of the Allied response played a key role in thwarting Adolf Hitler’s bold gamble. First, Allied Supreme Commander Dwight Eisenhower repositioned U.S. and British forces near the front lines quickly. Second, American military leaders displayed courage in holding key points along the line, especially at Bastogne, where U.S. General Anthony McAuliffe answered a German surrender order with the reply, “Nuts!” Finally, Hitler’s refusal to shift the attack to the flank allowed the Allies to contain the width of the offensive. The Battle of the Bulge had many unique features, albeit not all positive. For the Americans, the six-week operation which ended in late January 1945 saw more soldiers killed – about 19,000 – than in any other battle of World War II. Further, dozens of American POWs were killed by SS personnel during one part of the operation, an action which led to an atrocity-in-kind on a lesser scale by the Allies. Due to shortages of troops, General Eisenhower ordered temporary integration of military units, a harbinger of future desegregation of the U.S. military. Despite the success of the counteroffensive, Allied military leaders argued about who was most responsible for the victory, though Winston Churchill clearly viewed it as an American-led. Hitler and the German military paid dearly for the Ardennes Offensive. First, rather that forcing a quick end to the fighting or causing the Allies to split, the German move sped up a Russian offensive in the eastern front of the war. Second, German manpower and resources were further depleted as a result of the battle. In addition to losing about half of the 200,000 troops which began the offensive, Germany lost 1500 aircraft, devastating both reserve forces and the Luftwaffe. Germany also saw 600 of its tanks destroyed and had about 250,000 of its soldiers taken prisoner as a result of the operation. By February 1945, the military lines were about where they were prior to the Ardennes Offensive. Within three months, the war in Europe was won, and the only mystery left was which Allied nation would be first to taken Berlin. Hitler’s dream of getting the Americans and British to change sides and back Germany versus the Soviets never materialized during the war, a function of Germany’s brutality against not only the enemies it fought, but against millions of innocent civilians who were murdered along the way.
Hawaii volcano eruption news: Threat level RAISED for new ’explosive eruptions’ at Kilauea HAWAII’s most active volcano Kilauea has caused devastation across Big Island’s Leilani Estates for six days, with thousands of residents forced out of their homes by rivers of boiling lava and toxic gas. Now experts say there could be a greater chance of “explosive eruptions in the coming weeks” - but why is this and when will it happen? US Geological Survey (USGS) warned activity may intensify with the chance of two-metre rocks being hurtled “in all directions” while smaller lumps are thrown miles high. The stark warning, issued at 8.02am local time (7.02pm BST), also stated ash from Kilauea’s Halemaumau Crater could permeate towns tens of miles away. A USGS statement said: “The steady lowering of the lava lake in "Overlook crater" within Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano has raised the potential for explosive eruptions in the coming weeks. Why has the threat level been raised? USGS says further explosive eruptions are expected due to the “steady lowering of lava lake at summit of Kilauea Volcano”. Hawaii volcano eruption news: Kilauea lavaREUTERS This is because as the column of lava ascending from the magma falls below the water table - the higher levels of ground where water can seep into its pores - water in the ground starts to meld with hot rock. It then causes a build-up of stream pressure which will eventually explode, “typically [with] very little warning”, according to USGS. A statement on the scientific body’s website says: “Once the lava level reaches the groundwater elevation, onset of continuous ashy plumes or a sequence of violent steam-driven explosions may be the first sign that activity of concern has commenced.” USGS stressed that the current VAN (Volcanic Activity Notice) remained at its current orange alert level, meaning a major eruption is imminent or underway. Hawaii volcano eruption news: USGS graphicUSGS Hawaii volcano eruption news: Threat level explained But the grim warning will come as bad news to the thousands of Hawaiian residents who have already been evacuated. Around 2,000 people have had to leave their homes in Leilani Estates and Lampuna Gardens. But Hawaiian Airlines Data Scientist Dr Mark Kimora has suggested that up to 5,000 residents could be affected by the eruptions in the Lower Puna area at the south-east tip of Big Island. And if new explosive eruptions are imminent, it could mean many more being affected. Hawaii volcano eruption news: Smoke from KilaueaGETTY Hawaii volcano eruption news: Smoke rises from Kilauea volcano How will residents know if new eruptions occur? USGS said Hawaii Country Civil Defense Agency would notify residents with alerts if needed. The government agency has been providing regular updates for residents since the spate of recent eruptions began on May 3. A total of 14 fissures have opened to date destroying 36 buildings, while harmful air fume continue to seep into the atmosphere despite a pause in the vents.
"There'll be PhDs written on the psychology and politics of this topic" A lack of research and old medical dogmas have caused deadly delays in public health bodies accepting that COVID-19 is being transmitted through the air, says aerosols expert Lidia Morawska Professor Lidia Morawska is the Director of the International Laboratory of Air Quality and Health at Queensland University of Technology in Australia. She has been instrumental in persuading public health organisations that COVID-19 can be transmitted in the air via respiratory particles small enough to float and travel far from their original source – usually droplets of around 5μm (micrometers) and less. In July Morawska and fellow aerosol scientist Professor Donald Milton published a commentary signed by an international group of 237 other scientists urging public health bodies to acknowledge airborne transmission and take preventive measures to reduce the risk. After much debate, last week the US Centre for Disease Control updated its guidance to reflect that this transmission route is possible, having briefly published and then retracted similar guidance last month. The World Health Organization (WHO) has agreed that aerosol transmission is possible in some circumstances, but it says there is no new evidence to suggest this is how the virus is spreading. Morawska says that airborne transmission appears to be the only plausible explanation for several superspreading events where precautions to prevent large droplet or fomite [surface] transmissions had been followed. She argues that small steps to improve ventilation and air flow in indoor spaces could help reduce the risk in countless buildings across the world. “While the evidence is still incomplete, under the precautionary principle, we must address every potentially important pathway to slow the spread of COVID-19,” she and her co-authors wrote. “The measures that we propose offer more benefits than potential downsides, even if they can only be partially implemented.” Hi Lidia. We are almost eight months into this pandemic, and public health organisations have only just started to acknowledge that COVID-19 can be transmitted through the air via aerosol particles. There has been remarkable progress in understanding other aspects of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 – why is it taking so long to reach a consensus on this issue? I suspect there will be several PhDs written on this particular topic to answer this question and the psychology and politics around it. It's an issue that has been going on for a long time. During the SARS epidemic in 2003, I was invited by the World Health Organisation to join a team in Hong Kong to explore what happened in Amoy Gardens [where SARS infections spread throughout an estate of high-rise residential towers]. That expedition didn't take place in the end because by then, the epidemic was over. But I started looking into the topic of airborne transmission and I realised to my absolute amazement that there was barely any science at all. There were hardly any studies done on aerosol particles – or however we term very small droplets from human expiration – and the content of pathogen found in them. Even if we're talking about flu and the common cold, there was hardly any research into how those actually spread through the air. We wanted to continue fundamental studies on the size and distribution of particles from human respiratory activities, to understand the dynamics of these in the air and how to minimise what there is in the air. But by that stage SARS-1 was a distant memory and absolutely no one was interested in funding this area of research. What's more, when we applied for grants comments from the assessors were of the nature that airborne transmission was not possible – and if airborne transmission is not possible, why research it? So, we started this pandemic with very little research on the transmission of viruses by aerosol, and a suspicion that it was not really possible. Yes. Now, the question is why was this? The lack of understanding appears to go back to an old medical dogma, which was based on some studies from the 1930s and 1940s which concluded that if you were at arm's length from an infected person you were safe. But these studies investigated large droplets which fall by gravity very soon after they expired. The researchers even mentioned that the methods available only allowed them to study larger droplets. They didn't say that airborne transmission of anything smaller is not possible – they simply didn't have means to study it. But this was how that medical dogma was born, that beyond an arm’s length it was safe because the droplets all to the floor. This continues. At the beginning of the pandemic the WHO Director General tweeted that ‘the virus is not airborne’ – it was just as blunt as that. social distance imageThe ubiquitous 'Two Metre-Rule' is based on the assumption that COVID-19 is mostly transmitted via larger respiratory droplets which quickly fall to the floor after being exhaled. Smaller respiratory particles can linger in the air and travel much further. So can you tell me a little bit about some of the studies that have been done since that suggest otherwise? Well, it's not a huge body of studies. During a pandemic, preparing and starting studies like this is not something you can do easily. You have to have a reasonably sophisticated system, you have to have volunteers with COVID and ethical clearance. When you are in lockdown, that's basically not possible. There have been a number of studies investigating the presence of aerosols in hospital or healthcare settings, where you have a source of infected people. There was a study done in Florida where they measured concentration and size distribution of particles in the air of a hospital, analysed the viral load in three different size ranges. They showed the highest viral load, or concentration of the virus, was actually in the smallest particle, in the size range below one micrometre (1μm). I was also part of a study conducted in Beijing and in Wuhan where we showed that the virus is present in the air and in exhaled breath. However, in many medical facilities, while you find some virus in the air you may not find a lot, or it is undetectable. But that could be because usually medical facilities in developed countries have good ventilation. So if you don't detect the virus in the air in hospitals, it doesn't mean that the transmission doesn't exist – it’s that they have exactly the ventilation in place that we are calling for. Studies of outbreaks also suffer from the limitations of being retrospective studies – you cannot study an outbreak as it starts. Researchers can’t rigorously assess all the parameters about where people were and what the ventilation was like. However, a body of studies is growing that basically point to airborne transmission as the main mode of transmission now, particularly where people are obeying the recommendations such as social distancing and hand washing. If these measures are in place, how does the virus spread other than airborne transmission? Alongside two groups of colleagues we studied the choir practice event in Washington State where about 45 people were infected from around 60 participants. Using two different modelling methods both of these simulations showed that this could only really be explained by aerosol transmission. How well do cloth masks help prevent someone dispersing aerosol particles into the air? Anything you put in front of your mouth helps. We conducted a study several years ago that was on the emissions of people with cystic fibrosis, who are often infected with Pseudomonas. We used the setup which we used for our earlier studies on this and surgical masks, N95 masks and even what we call called etiquette, or coughing into your elbow, showed some benefit. The question of how much helps? It depends on the quality of the material. It's got to be more than one layer, but also very importantly, the looser the fit or the worse the fit, of course the worse the performance. But still, it can reduce the emission of aerosols and reduce the inhalation. Is there any evidence to suggest there is a link between aerosol transmission and the severity of the illness? If you are in proximity to somebody and inhaling emissions containing both small and large droplets you can’t distinguish which is which. But the small droplets can go very deeply into the respiratory tract. Now I'm moving outside my area of expertise – I’m not a virologist – but what I understand is that when they get deeper, then the infection can be more severe. Handwashing imagePublic health messaging in the early stages of the pandemic focused on hand washing to preventing transmission from surfaces and objects. Going back to what we were talking about originally – the psychology and politics involved in taking airborne transmission seriously. Do you think that the many public health organisations and Governments were reluctant to take airborne transmission seriously because it is so much more worrying and difficult to control? There were medical doctors who were advising the WHO that it is not a significant mode of transmission. So, that was one element. Another element of this was about resources, or rather a lack of resources. In the earlier stages of the pandemic the WHO advised that the general public did not need to wear a mask. Apparently, this was related to the fact that masks were not available. I think that was the wrong approach, because if you say that masks are not needed, then the market doesn't follow and masks still won't be available. And it was hiding the truth, of course. Masks are one element of this and are the responsibility of individuals. However, when we are talking about building engineering measures – ventilation, flow direction, building design – this is not the responsibility of the individual. This is something which the appropriate government bodies have to recommend or mandate. And so this is something which many governments don’t want to hear about. hands face spaceThe UK's public health messaging remains focused on preventing surface transmission and transmission by larger droplets. You are an aerosols expert. When you walk into an environment what are you looking at in terms of things that are going to help lessen your risk of contracting COVID-19? It is about making sure that there's delivery of fresh air, which means dilution of the virus or any pathogen from the air. The air flow direction is also important; for example, there have been outbreaks on aeroplanes and on buses – even though the ventilation rate is very high, or the air is filtered and recirculated, if it also flows from one person to another, and if that happens for prolonged periods of time, like during long flights, then infection is likely. This is something I've been doing well before COVID-19. I wore masks in family situations when I had a cold, or when I noticed that one of the family members was sick. It wasn’t socially acceptable to make my PhD students go home when they had a cold, but I would think about how to locate them so the air flow wasn’t going from them towards everyone else. Now, I look at restaurants, public places, and think ‘is this place ventilated?’ Many restaurants don't seem to have any ventilation, apart from an air conditioner, which doesn't necessarily ventilate but just recirculates the air. So, yes, I'm looking at such equations when I enter a place to determine whether the situation is safe. For more COVID Q&As click here. Professor Lidia Morawska is the Director of the International Laboratory of Air Quality and Health at Queensland University of Technology in Australia. She is a Professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Faculty of Science & Engineering, Queensland University of Technology.
ACL Injury: Reconstruction, Therapy, and Recovery Contact sports expose recreational players and professional athletes to different sorts of injury. In the US, 30 million children engage in some form of sport, and there are about 3.5 million injuries every year, with sprains and strains being the most common. Johns Hopkins Medicine explains that children are more likely to suffer from sports injuries compared to adults because their bodies are still in the process of maturing, so their coordination may not be as developed. Injuries among Professional Athletes Although they know how to adequately condition their bodies and prep for the physical strain of sports, professional athletes still suffer from injuries whenever they train or compete. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are more than 2,000 injuries per 10,000 players. One of the most feared injuries among pro players, especially those in high-intensity sports, like basketball, football, and soccer, is the tearing of the anterior cruciate ligament or ACL. ACL tearing is one of the most common knee injuries among athletes, with 150,000 ACL cases happening each year. Some of the famous athletes who tore their ACL in the middle of a game are Derrick Rose, Terrell Davis, and Bernard King. How is the ACL torn? The ACL is one of the four ligaments that support the knee. It allows the knees to move properly and fluidly when rotating or pivoting. The ACL also prevents the knee from hyperextending, thus avoiding sprains and strains. Although ACL tearing is prevalent among contact sports players, the injury itself typically occurs without contact. When an athlete plants his foot on the ground and crossovers or pivots quickly, the ACL may not handle the force of the action. When this happens, the ACL tears and the knees buckle. It can also tear when the player hyperextends his or her knees while landing from a jump. An ACL injury causes a lot of pain and swelling to the knee. Some people who experienced it often say that they heard or felt a pop when the incident happened. ACL Reconstruction A sports medicine physician or physical therapist will perform a series of tests on the affected knee to determine if the ACL has been torn. They will assess the knee’s looseness and movement compared to the unharmed one through a Lachman’s test, pivot shift test, and anterior drawer test. Other doctors, like orthopedic surgeon Dr. Carlson, uses the knee scope, which looks inside a patient’s knee through a small incision and a small camera. If the medical professional confirms that the ACL is torn, the patient may have to undergo ACL reconstruction. The surgeon will remove the torn ligament and replace it with a tendon from the patient’s body or from a donor. The doctor will create incisions around the kneecap to insert the tissue graft. Then, he or she will drill tunnels in the bone to place the new tendon in the position of the torn ACL. The surgeon secures the new ligament with screws or other devices. As the incision heals, the bone tunnels fill in and the new ligament holds its place. The success rate of ACL reconstruction is high, with 83 percent of athletes returning to their sport after the procedure. Surgeons who specialize in orthopedic surgery have a lot of experience in ACL reconstruction, so the success rate of the operation may be higher. Therapy after Treatment Patient at therapy After the operation, the patient needs to wear a knee brace or use a crutch for at least a month. He or she will also undergo post-surgery physical therapy for four to six months to regain motion, strength, and control on the knees and thighs. Depending on the severity of the injury and the rate of recovery, the patient may return to his or her sport after about a year of rehabilitation. An ACL injury is commonly feared among sports players, especially since it has ended the careers of some professional athletes. But with proper treatment and therapy, and skilled medical professionals, patients with torn ACLs may go back to playing their beloved sports. Share on facebook Share on google Share on twitter Share on linkedin Share on pinterest Scroll to Top
Software versioning \| Wikipedia audio article Just another WordPress site Software versioning \| Wikipedia audio article Software versioning is the process of assigning either unique version names or unique version numbers to unique states of computer software Within a given version number category (major, minor), these numbers are generally assigned in increasing order and correspond to new developments in the software At a fine-grained level, revision control is often used for keeping track of incrementally different versions of information, whether or not this information is computer software Modern computer software is often tracked using two different software versioning schemes—internal version number that may be incremented many times in a single day, such as a revision control number, and a released version that typically changes far less often, such as semantic versioning or a project code name == Schemes == A variety of version numbering schemes have been created to keep track of different versions of a piece of software The ubiquity of computers has also led to these schemes being used in contexts outside computing === Sequence-based identifiers === In sequence-based software versioning schemes, each software release is assigned a unique identifier that consists of one or more sequences of numbers or letters This is the extent of the commonality; however, schemes vary widely in areas such as the quantity of sequences, the attribution of meaning to individual sequences, and the means of incrementing the sequences ==== Change significance ==== In some schemes, sequence-based identifiers are used to convey the significance of changes between releases Changes are classified by significance level, and the decision of which sequence to change between releases is based on the significance of the changes from the previous release, whereby the first sequence is changed for the most significant changes, and changes to sequences after the first represent changes of decreasing significance Depending on the scheme; significance may be assessed by lines of code changed, function points added or removed, potential impact on customers in terms of work required to adopt a newer version, risk of bugs or undeclared breaking changes, degree of changes in visual layout, quantity of new features, or almost anything the product developers or marketers deem to be significant, including marketing desire to stress the “relative goodness” of the new version Semantic versioning (aka SemVer), currently the best known and most widely adopted version scheme in this category, uses a sequence of three digits (Major.Minor.Patch), an optional pre-release tag and optional build meta tag In this scheme, risk and functionality are the measures of significance Breaking changes are indicated by increasing the major number (high risk), new non-breaking features increment the minor number (medium risk) and all other non-breaking changes increment the patch number (lowest risk) The presence of a pre-release tag (-alpha, -beta) indicates substantial risk, as does a major number of zero (0.y.z), which is used to indicate a work-in-progress that may contain any level of potentially breaking changes (highest risk) Developers may choose to jump multiple minor versions at a time to indicate significant features have been added, but are not enough to warrant incrementing a major version number; for example Internet Explorer 5 from 5.1 to 5.5, or Adobe Photoshop 5 to 5.5 This may be done to emphasize the value of the upgrade to the software user, or, as in Adobe’s case, to represent a release halfway between major versions (although levels of sequence based versioning are not limited to a single digit, as in Blender version 2.79) A different approach is to use the major and minor numbers, along with an alphanumeric string denoting the release type, e.g. “alpha” (a), “beta” (b), or “release candidate” (rc) A software release train using this approach might look like 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9 → 1.0b1, 1.0b2 (with some fixes), 1.0b3 (with more fixes) → 1.0rc1 (which, if it is stable enough), 1.0rc2 (if more bugs are found) → 1.0 It is a common practice in this scheme to lock-out new features and breaking changes during the release candidate phases and for some teams, even betas are lock-down to bug fixes only, in order to ensure convergence on the target release Other schemes impart meaning on individual sequences: major.minor[.build[.revision]] (example: major.minor[.maintenance[.build]] (example:, in these examples, the definition of what constitutes a “major” as opposed to a “minor” change is entirely subjective and up to the author, as is what defines a “build”, or how a “revision” differs from a “minor” change Shared libraries in Solaris and Linux may use the current.revision.age format where current: The most recent interface number that the library implements revision: The implementation number of the current interface age: The difference between the newest and oldest interfaces that the library implements.A similar problem of relative change significance and versioning nomenclature exists in book publishing, where edition numbers or names can be chosen based on varying criteria In most proprietary software, the first released version of a software product has version 1 ==== Degree of compatibility ==== Some projects use the major version number to indicate incompatible releases Two examples are Apache Portable Runtime (APR) and the FarCry CMS.Semantic Versioning is a formal convention for specifying compatibility using a three-part version number: major version; minor version; and patch The patch number is incremented for minor changes and bug fixes which do not change the software’s application programming interface (API) The minor version is incremented for releases which add new, but backward-compatible, API features, and the major version is incremented for API changes which are not backward-compatible For example, software which relies on version 2.1.5 of an API is compatible with version 2.2.3, but not necessarily with 3.2.4 Often programmers write new software to be backward compatible, i.e., the new software is designed to interact correctly with older versions of the software (using old protocols and file formats) and the most recent version (using the latest protocols and file formats) For example, IBM z/OS is designed to work properly with 3 consecutive major versions of the operating system running in the same sysplex This enables people who run a high availability computer cluster to keep most of the computers up and running while one machine at a time is shut down, upgraded, and restored to service.Often packet headers and file format include a version number – sometimes the same as the version number of the software that wrote it; other times a “protocol version number” independent of the software version number The code to handle old deprecated protocols and file formats is often seen as cruft ==== Designating development stage ==== Some schemes use a zero in the first sequence to designate alpha or beta status for releases that are not stable enough for general or practical deployment and are intended for testing or internal use only It can be used in the third position: 0 for alpha (status) 1 for beta (status) 2 for release candidate 3 for (final) releaseFor instance: instead of 1.2-a1 instead of 1.2-b2 (beta with some bug fixes) instead of 1.2-rc3 (release candidate) instead of 1.2-r (commercial distribution) instead of 1.2-r5 (commercial distribution with many bug fixes) ==== Incrementing sequences ==== There are two schools of thought regarding how numeric version numbers are incremented Most free and open-source software packages, including MediaWiki, treat versions as a series of individual numbers, separated by periods, with a progression such as 1.7.0, 1.8.0, 1.8.1, 1.9.0, 1.10.0, 1.11.0, 1.11.1, 1.11.2, and so on On the other hand, some software packages identify releases by decimal numbers: 1.7, 1.8, 1.81, 1.82, 1.9, etc Decimal versions were common in the 1980s, for example with NetWare, DOS, and Microsoft Windows, but even in the 2000s have been for example used by Opera and Movable Type In the decimal scheme, 1.81 is the minor version following 1.8, while maintenance releases (i.e. bug fixes only) may be denoted with an alphabetic suffix, such as 1.81a or 1.81b The standard GNU version numbering scheme is major.minor.revision, but Emacs is a notable example using another scheme where the major number (1) was dropped and a user site revision was added which is always zero in original Emacs packages but increased by distributors Similarly, Debian package numbers are prefixed with an optional “epoch”, which is used to allow the versioning scheme to be changed ==== Separating sequences ==== When printed, the sequences may be separated with characters The choice of characters and their usage varies by scheme The following list shows hypothetical examples of separation schemes for the same release (the thirteenth third-level revision to the fourth second-level revision to the second first-level revision): A scheme may use the same character between all sequences: 2.4.13, 2/4/13, 2-4-13 A scheme choice of which sequences to separate may be inconsistent, separating some sequences but not others: 2.413 A scheme’s choice of characters may be inconsistent within the same identifier: 2.4_13When a period is used to separate sequences, it may or may not represent a decimal point, — see “Incrementing sequences” section for various interpretation styles ==== Number of sequences ==== There is sometimes a fourth, unpublished number which denotes the software build (as used by Microsoft) Adobe Flash is a notable case where a four-part version number is indicated publicly, as in Some companies also include the build date Version numbers may also include letters and other characters, such as Lotus 1-2-3 Release 1a ==== Using negative numbers ==== Some projects use negative version numbers One example is the SmartEiffel compiler which started from -1.0 and counted upwards to 0.0 === Date of release === The Wine project formerly used a date versioning scheme, which uses the year followed by the month followed by the day of the release; for example, “Wine 20040505” Ubuntu Linux uses a similar versioning scheme—Ubuntu 11.10, for example, was released October 2011 Some video games also use date as versioning, for example the arcade game Street Fighter EX At startup it displays the version number as a date plus a region code, for example 961219 ASIA When using dates in versioning, for instance, file names, it is common to use the ISO 8601 scheme: YYYY-MM-DD, as this is easily string sorted to increasing/decreasing order The hyphens are sometimes omitted Microsoft Office build numbers are an encoded date: the first two digits indicate the number of months that have passed from the January of the year in which the project started (with each major Office release being a different project), while the last two digits indicate the day of that month So 3419 is the 19th day of the 34th month after the month of January of the year the project started Other examples that identify versions by year include Adobe Illustrator 88 and WordPerfect Office 2003 When a date is used to denote version, it is generally for marketing purposes, and an actual version number also exists For example, Microsoft Windows 95 is internally versioned as MS-DOS 7.00 and Windows 4.00; likewise, Microsoft Windows 2000 Server is internally versioned as Windows NT 5.0 (“NT” being a reference to the original product name) === Python === The Python Software Foundation has published PEP 440 — Version Identification and Dependency Specification, outlining their own flexible (complicated) scheme, that defines an epoch segment, a release segment, pre-release and post-release segments and a development release segment === TeX === TeX has an idiosyncratic version numbering system Since version 3, updates have been indicated by adding an extra digit at the end, so that the version number asymptotically approaches π; this is a form of unary numbering – the version number is the number of digits The current version is 3.14159265 This is a reflection of the fact that TeX is now very stable, and only minor updates are anticipated TeX developer Donald Knuth has stated that the “absolutely final change (to be made after [his] death)” will be to change the version number to π, at which point all remaining bugs will become permanent features.In a similar way, the version number of METAFONT asymptotically approaches e === Apple === Apple has a formalized version number structure based around the NumVersion struct, which specifies a one- or two-digit major version, a one-digit minor version, a one-digit “bug” (i.e. revision) version, a stage indicator (drawn from the set development/prealpha, alpha, beta and final/release), and a one-byte (i.e. having values in the range 0–255) pre-release version, which is only used at stages prior to final In writing these version numbers as strings, the convention is to omit any parts after the minor version whose value are zero (with “final” being considered the zero stage), thus writing 1.0.2 (rather than 1.0.2b12), 1.0.2 (rather than 1.0.2f0), and 1.1 (rather than 1.1.0f0) === Other schemes === Some software producers use different schemes to denote releases of their software For example, the Microsoft Windows operating system was first labelled with standard version numbers for Windows 1.0 through Windows 3.11 After this Microsoft excluded the version number from the product name For Windows 95 (version 4.0), Windows 98 (4.10) and Windows 2000 (5.0), year of the release was included in the product title After Windows 2000, Microsoft created the Windows Server family which continued the year-based style with a difference: For minor releases, Microsoft suffixed “R2” to the title, e.g., Windows Server 2008 R2 This style had remained consistent to this date The client versions of Windows however did not adopt a consistent style First, they received names with arbitrary alphanumeric suffixes as with Windows ME (4.90), Windows XP (5.1) and Windows Vista (6.0) Then, once again Microsoft adopted incremental numbers in the title, but this time, they were not version numbers; the version numbers of Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are respectively 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3 In Windows 10, the version number leaped to 10.0.The Debian project uses a major/minor versioning scheme for releases of its operating system, but uses code names from the movie Toy Story during development to refer to stable, unstable and testing releases.BLAG Linux and GNU features very large version numbers: major releases have numbers such as 50000 and 60000, while minor releases increase the number by 1 (e.g. 50001, 50002) Alpha and beta releases are given decimal version numbers slightly less than the major release number, such as 19999.00071 for alpha 1 of version 20000, and 29999.50000 for beta 2 of version 30000 Starting at 9001 in 2003, the most recent version as of 2011 is 140000 == Internal version numbers == Software may have an “internal” version number which differs from the version number shown in the product name (and which typically follows version numbering rules more consistently) Java SE 5.0, for example, has the internal version number of 1.5.0, and versions of Windows from NT 4 on have continued the standard numerical versions internally: Windows 2000 is NT 5.0, XP is Windows NT 5.1, Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP Professional x64 Edition are NT 5.2, Windows Server 2008 and Vista are NT 6.0, Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 are NT 6.1, Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8 are NT 6.2, and Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1 are NT 6.3 Note, however, that Windows NT is only on its fourth major revision, as its first release was numbered 3.1 (to match the then-current Windows release number) == Pre-release versions == In conjunction with the various versioning schemes listed above, a system for denoting pre-release versions is generally used, as the program makes its way through the stages of the software release life cycle Programs that are in an early stage are often called “alpha” software, after the first letter in the Greek alphabet After they mature but are not yet ready for release, they may be called “beta” software, after the second letter in the Greek alphabet Generally alpha software is tested by developers only, while beta software is distributed for community testing Some systems use numerical versions less than 1 (such as 0.9), to suggest their approach toward a final “1.0” release This is a common convention in open source software However, if the pre-release version is for an existing software package (e.g. version 2.5), then an “a” or “alpha” may be appended to the version number So the alpha version of the 2.5 release might be identified as 2.5a or 2.5.a An alternative is to refer to pre-release versions as “release candidates”, so that software packages which are soon to be released as a particular version may carry that version tag followed by “rc-#”, indicating the number of the release candidate; when the final version is released, the “rc” tag is removed == Modifications to the numeric system == === Odd-numbered versions for development releases === Between the 1.0 and the 2.6.x series, the Linux kernel used odd minor version numbers to denote development releases and even minor version numbers to denote stable releases; see Linux kernel: Version numbering For example, Linux 2.3 was a development family of the second major design of the Linux kernel, and Linux 2.4 was the stable release family that Linux 2.3 matured into After the minor version number in the Linux kernel is the release number, in ascending order; for example, Linux 2.4.0 → Linux 2.4.22 Since the 2004 release of the 2.6 kernel, Linux no longer uses this system, and has a much shorter release cycle The same odd-even system is used by some other software with long release cycles, such as Node.js up to version 0.12 === Apple === Apple had their own twist on this habit during the era of the classic Mac OS Unlike traditional version numbering (where 1.5 is not half-way between 1.0 and 2.0, given there could be any number of minor releases, e.g. 1.22) Apple’s classic Mac OS minor versions, on the other hand, rarely went beyond point-1 When they did, they twice jumped straight to point-5, suggesting the release was “more significant” The complete sequence of classic Mac OS versions (not including patches) is: 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 2.1, 3.0, 3.2 (skipping 3.1), 4.0, 4.1, 5.0, 5.1, 6.0, 7.0, 7.1, 7.5, 7.6, 8.0, 8.1, 8.5 (jumped), 8.6, 9.0, 9.1, 9.2 Thus, “8.5” became its own marketed release to mean “eight and a half”, and 8.6 effectively “8.5.1” Mac OS X (since renamed to macOS) departed from this trend, in large part because “X” (the Roman numeral for 10) is in the name of the product As a result, all versions of OS X begin with the number 10 The first major release of OS X was given the version number 10.0, but the next major release was not 11.0 Instead, it was named version 10.1, followed by 10.2, 10.3, and so on for each subsequent major release In this system, the third number (instead of the second) denotes a minor release, and a fourth number (instead of the third) denotes bug-fix/revision releases Because the first number is always 10, and because the subsequent numbers are not decimal, but integer values, the 11th major version of OS X is labeled “10.10” (rather than 11.0) This number scheme continues above point-10, with Apple releasing macOS 10.13 in 2017 == Political and cultural significance of version numbers == === Version 1.0 as a milestone === The free-software and open source communities tend to release software early and often Initial versions are numbers less than 1, with these 0.x version used to convey that the software is incomplete and remains a work in progress Version 1.0 is used as a major milestone, indicating that the software is “complete”, that it has all major features, and is considered reliable enough for general release A good example of this is the Linux kernel, which was first released as version 0.01 in 1991, and took until 1994 to reach version 1.0.0.The developers of MAME do not intend to release a version 1.0 of their emulator program because there will always be more arcade games to emulate and thus the project will never be truly “finished.” Accordingly, version 0.99 was simply followed by version 0.100 === Version numbers as marketing === A relatively common practice is to make major jumps in version numbers for marketing reasons Sometimes, as in the case of dBase II, a product is launched with a version number that implies that it is more mature than it is; but other times version numbers are increased to match those of competitors This can be seen in many examples of product version numbering by Microsoft, America Online, Sun Solaris, Java Virtual Machine, SCO Unix, WordPerfect Microsoft Access jumped from version 2.0 to version 7.0, to match the version number of Microsoft Word Microsoft has also been the target of ‘catch-up’ versioning, with the Netscape browsers skipping version 5 to 6, in line with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, but also because the Mozilla application suite inherited version 5 in its user agent string during pre-1.0 development and Netscape 6.x was built upon Mozilla’s code base Another example of keeping up with competitors is when Slackware Linux jumped from version 4 to version 7 in 1999 === Apple === Apple has a particular form of version number skipping, in that it has leveraged its use of the Roman numeral X in its marketing across multiple product lines Both QuickTime and Final Cut Pro jumped from versions 7 directly to version 10 Like with Mac OS X, the products were not upgrades to previous versions, but brand new programs, branded as QuickTime X and Final Cut Pro X, but unlike Apple’s desktop operating systems, there were no major versions 8 or 9 As with OS X, however, minor releases are denoted using a third digit, rather than a second digit Consequently, major releases for these programs also employ the second digit, as Apple does with OS X In WWDC 2016, they announced that Mac OS X will now onwards be called macOS == Dropping the most significant element == Sun’s Java has at times had a hybrid system, where the internal version number has always been 1.x but has been marketed by reference only to the x: JDK 1.0.3 JDK 1.1.2 through 1.1.8 J2SE 1.2.0 (“Java 2”) through 1.4.2 Java 1.5.0, 1.6.0, 1.7.0, 1.8.0 (“Java 5, 6, 7, 8”)Sun also dropped the first digit for Solaris, where Solaris 2.8 (or 2.9) is referred to as Solaris 8 (or 9) in marketing materials A similar jump took place with the Asterisk open-source PBX construction kit in the early 2010s, whose project leads announced that the current version 1.8.x would soon be followed by version 10.This approach, panned by many because it breaks the semantic significance of the sections of the version number, has been adopted by an increasing number of vendors including Mozilla (for Firefox) === Superstition === The Office 2007 release of Microsoft Office has an internal version number of 12 The next version Office 2010 has an internal version of 14, due to superstitions surrounding the number 13 Roxio Toast went from version 12 to version 14, likely in an effort to skip the superstitions surrounding the number 13 Corel’s WordPerfect Office, version 13 is marketed as “X3” (Roman number 10 and “3”) The procedure has continued into the next version, X4 The same has happened with Corel’s Graphic Suite (i.e CorelDRAW, Corel Photo-Paint) as well as its video editing software “Video Studio” Sybase skipped major versions 13 and 14 in its Adaptive Server Enterprise relational database product, moving from 12.5 to 15.0 ABBYY Lingvo Dictionary uses numbering 12, x3 (14), x5 (15) === Geek culture === The SUSE Linux distribution started at version 4.2, to reference 42, “the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything” mentioned in Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy A Slackware Linux distribution was versioned 13.37, referencing leet Finnix skipped from version 93.0 to 100, partly to fulfill the assertion, “There Will Be No Finnix ’95”, a reference to Windows 95 The Tagged Image File Format specification has used 42 as internal version number since its inception, its designers not expecting to alter it anymore during their (or its) lifetime since it would conflict with its development directives == Overcoming perceived marketing difficulties == In the mid-1990s, the rapidly growing CMMS, Maximo, moved from Maximo Series 3 directly to Series 5, skipping Series 4 due to that number’s perceived marketing difficulties in the Chinese market, where the number 4 is associated with “death” (see tetraphobia) This did not, however, stop Maximo Series 5 version 4.0 being released (It should be noted the “Series” versioning has since been dropped, effectively resetting version numbers after Series 5 version 1.0’s release.) == Significance in software engineering == Version numbers are used in practical terms by the consumer, or client, to identify or compare their copy of the software product against another copy, such as the newest version released by the developer For the programmer or company, versioning is often used on a revision-by-revision basis, where individual parts of the software are compared and contrasted with newer or older revisions of those same parts, often in a collaborative version control system In the 21st century, more programmers started to use a formalized version policy, such as the Semantic Versioning policy The purpose of such policies is to make it easier for other programmers to know when code changes are likely to break things they have written Such policies are especially important for software libraries and frameworks, but may also be very useful to follow for command-line applications (which may be called from other applications) and indeed any other applications (which may be scripted and/or extended by third parties) Versioning is also a required practice to enable many schemes of patching and upgrading software, especially to automatically decide what and where to upgrade to == Significance in technical support == Version numbers allow people providing support to ascertain exactly which code a user is running, so that they can rule out bugs that have already been fixed as a cause of an issue, and the like This is especially important when a program has a substantial user community, especially when that community is large enough that the people providing technical support are not the people who wrote the code The semantic meaning of version.revision.change style numbering is also important to information technology staff, who often use it to determine how much attention and research they need to pay to a new release before deploying it in their facility As a rule of thumb, the bigger the changes, the larger the chances that something might break (although examining the Changelog, if any, may reveal only superficial or irrelevant changes) This is one reason for some of the distaste expressed in the “drop the major release” approach taken by Asterisk et alia: now, staff must (or at least should) do a full regression test for every update == Version numbers for files and documents == Some computer file systems, such as the OpenVMS Filesystem, also keep versions for files Versioning amongst documents is relatively similar to the routine used with computers and software engineering, where with each small change in the structure, contents, or conditions, the version number is incremented by 1, or a smaller or larger value, again depending on the personal preference of the author and the size or importance of changes made == Version number ordering systems == Version numbers very quickly evolve from simple integers (1, 2, …) to rational numbers (2.08, 2.09, 2.10) and then to non-numeric “numbers” such as 4:3.4.3-2 These complex version numbers are therefore better treated as character strings Operating systems that include package management facilities (such as all non-trivial Linux or BSD distributions) will use a distribution-specific algorithm for comparing version numbers of different software packages For example, the ordering algorithms of Red Hat and derived distributions differ to those of the Debian-like distributions As an example of surprising version number ordering implementation behavior, in Debian, leading zeroes are ignored in chunks, so that 5.0005 and 5.5 are considered as equal, and 5.5<5.0006 This can confuse users; string-matching tools may fail to find a given version number; and this can cause subtle bugs in package management if the programmers use string-indexed data structures such as version-number indexed hash tables In order to ease sorting, some software packages will represent each component of the major.minor.release scheme with a fixed width Perl represents its version numbers as a floating-point number, for example, Perl's 5.8.7 release can also be represented as 5.008007 This allows a theoretical version of 5.8.10 to be represented as 5.008010 Other software packages will pack each segment into a fixed bit width, for example, on Windows, version number 6.3.9600.16384 would be represented as hexadecimal 0x0006000325804000 The floating-point scheme will break down if any segment of the version number exceeds 999; a packed-binary scheme employing 16 bits apiece breaks down after 65535 == Use in other media == Software-style version numbers can be found in other media In some cases, the use is a direct analogy (for example: Jackass 2.5, a version of Jackass Number Two with additional special features; the second album by Garbage, titled Version 2.0; or Dungeons & Dragons 3.5, where the rules were revised from the third edition, but not so much as to be considered the fourth) More often it's used to play on an association with high technology, and doesn't literally indicate a 'version' (e.g., Tron 2.0, a video game followup to the film Tron, or the television series The IT Crowd, which refers to the second season as Version 2.0) A particularly notable usage is Web 2.0, referring to websites from the early 2000s that emphasized user-generated content, usability and interoperability == See also
Ismaili History 551 - Revolt of Abu Raqwa In 395/1004, al-Hakim faced the most serious challenge to his authority against the rebellion that shooked and rocked the foundation of his state. This was the rebellion of Abu Raqwa, an Umayyad prince who united the forces of Berbers of Zanata with those of the Arab tribe of Banu Qorra to lead them against the Fatimids. Little is known of Abu Raqwa's background. Most of the historians gave his name as Walid bin Hisham, and Abu Raqwa was his nickname given him by the Egyptians. The word raqwa means 'leather bag', in which travellers, especially the Sufis, carried water during journey. He was an Umayyad prince from the line of Marwan bin Hakam. In his twenties, he fled from Spain when Mansur bin Amir took over power and began persecuting members of the Umayyad family. He travelled to Maghrib, Egypt, Yamen, Mecca and Syria; testing the possibility of creating a group strong enough to support the Umayyad cause. At length, he succeeded to generate a large following in Maghrib and proclaimed himself as an amir. Besides the rooted opposition of Zanata and the dissatisfaction of Banu Qorra with the Fatimids, the economic factors also appears to have been the main cause behind the rebellion of Abu Raqwa. The province of Barqa in Maghrib was very poor, and its treasury was even insufficient to supply the needs of the small army which al-Hakim sent in 391/1000 to restore Fatimid suzerainty in Tripoli. Its commercial life was limited and its income depended upon its limited agricultural output. The whole of Maghrib preceding the rebellion was caught with economic crisis, resulting a sort of catastrophe in 395/1004. Ibn Idhari (d. 712/1312) writes in 'Akhbar al-Andalus wa'l Maghrib' (1st. vol., p. 256) that, 'In 395/1004, there was a catastrophe in Africa. The poor died and the money of the rich vanished. Prices rose and food became impossible to find. The people of Badia left their homes. Houses became empty and there was no one to occupy them. With all this there was a plague of cholera.' Abu Raqwa understood the difficulties of the tribesmen, their overwhelming desire to solve their problems, and therefore, he concentrated his effort to this point. The situtation turned in his favour as an effective tool of his rebellion. When the people agreed to follow his rebellious leadership, the first pact he executed with the people concerning the booty and gains resulting from war. It was resolved to divide the booty into three shares: one for each tribe and one third to be retained under Abu Raqwa's control in order to form a treasury to help during the war. He also promised to give the chiefs the palaces and houses of the Fatimid state in Cairo and other fertile regions in Egypt. After being assured himself of sufficient support from the two principal tribes, Abu Raqwa canvassed neighboring districts, where he delivered speeches about Islam in a revolutionary manner. The tribesmen were fascinated by his eloquence, and assembled under his leadership against the Fatimids. Sandal, the Fatimid chief of Barqa had immediately reported to al-Hakim and asked permission to campaign against him. According to Ibn Athir (9th vol., p. 82), 'Al-Hakim, who apparently did not realize the urgency of the problem, neither gave permission nor sent help but recommended diplomacy, not militant stance as a solution.' Sandal's action failed, and Abu Raqwa with his troops swiftly marched to invade the city of Barqa. Sandal and his troops met them outside the city, and was subdued after a fierce fighting. Sandal retreated and barricaded himself inside the city. Sandal also contacted Ibn Taybun, the chief of the Berber tribe of Lawata, who came to the rescue and forced Abu Raqwa to break the siege, but failed to defeat him. Abu Raqwa then inflicted a heavy defeat on Lawata's forces and got the loss of many fighters including Ibn Taybun. The inhabitants of Barqa with their chief Sandal took advantage of Abu Raqwa's temporary withdrawal from their city, and strongly fortified its walls, digging huge trenches around them and storing as much food and supplies as they could. When Abu Raqwa returned to the siege, he found the city in a much stronger position to defend than before. Several months of siege, he failed to convince Sandal to surrender. Meanwhile, al-Hakim sent an army of five thousand men under the leadership of Yanal to relieve Barqa. Yanal had to cross considerable stretch of desert before he reached Barqa, and Abu Raqwa sent a body of cavalry across the route to fill in the wells. He then waited at the point farthest from Egypt to meet Yanal's forces, who arrived tired, exhausted and thirsty. Yanal was defeated and was scourged to death. Abu Raqwa sacked his all equipments and supplies, and returned to Barqa. Sandal, together with his family, fled to Cairo. In the month of Zilhaja, 395/October, 1005, Abu Raqwa captured Barqa, and declared himself amir al-mominin, and adopted the title of al-Nasir li-Dinillah (the assistant of God's order). This was struck on the coinage too, and the khutba was read in his name and the Sunni law was declared. Al-Musabbihi (d. 420/1029) writes that Abu Raqwa's supporters regarded him as a caliph. About a year after his occupation of Barqa, Abu Raqwa was driven out by the threat of famine and plague. He and his supporters left Barqa as if they were migrating from one land to another, and proceeded towards Alexandria. Al-Hakim began his preparations to quell the rebellion, and appointed Fazal bin Saleh to arrange a large force to meet Abu Raqwa in the field. Meanwhile, a news arrived of Abu Raqwa's movement towards Alexandria. Fazal sent a detachment at the command of Qabil to intercept the rebels, and prevent them from reaching the city. The two armies met in Dhat al-Hamam in Alexandria, where Abu Raqwa won a victory over Qabil. Thence, Abu Raqwa resumed his march towards Alexandria. He besieged it for several months, provoking extreme alarms in Cairo, and a large force had been dispatched from Cairo in command of Fazal bin Saleh. Abu Raqwa failed to capture Alexandria, so he turned towards Cairo. He reached at Fayyum and camped to plan the final blow against the Fatimids. Al-Hakim raised reinforcement of four thousand horsemen at the command of Ali bin Falah to Jiza to prevent Abu Raqwa's troops from raiding areas close to Cairo. Knowing this, Abu Raqwa sent a division of his troops which ambushed Ali bin Falah, killed many of his men. Skirmishes between the two forces continued until they finally met at Ra's al-Barqa in Fayyum district. It should be noted that a secret pact between Abu Raqwa and the Bedouin chiefs in the Fatimid forces had stipulated that when he would attack, they would withdraw from Fazal bin Saleh's side to create fear and confusion. Fazal was fully aware of this, and on the day of the battle, he summoned all the Bedouin chiefs to his tent. When the attack took place, the Bedouin chiefs, being the prisoners virtually in Fazal's tent, were unable to play their part in accord with the pact with Abu Raqwa, and their troops, unaware of their masters' pact with Abu Raqwa, fought fiercely. Expecting a victory, the troops of Abu Raqwa were easily ambushed and defeated, and he himself fled to the south, and then to Nubia, a large country streching from Aswan to Khartoum, and from Red Sea to the Libyan desert. Abu Raqwa reached at Dumqula, the capital of Nubia, where he pretended to be an ambassador of the Fatimid at the court of the Nubian king. Fazal followed close behind to the Nubian frontier and managed to find out Abu Raqwa, and took him prisoner in 397/1004. He was brought to Cairo, and was paraded through the streets. Ibn Qalanisi (d. 555/1160) writes in 'Tarikh-i Dimashq' (p. 65) that Abu Raqwa had written a poetical letter to al-Hakim, begging him for mercy, but al-Hakim refused pardon. But al-Musabbihi (d. 420/1029) as quoted by Makrizi in 'Itti'az' (p. 396) however refutes it and suggests that al-Hakim intended to pardon Abu Raqwa as al-Hakim had personally told him while talking about Abu Raqwa, 'I did not want to kill him and what happened to him was not of my choosing.' Ibn Athir (9th vol., p. 84) writes that, 'Abu Raqwa died from humiliation and the cruel treatment during the parade, but was not executed.' It transpires that al-Hakim did not wish to execute him and was waiting the termination of the parade to grant him mercy, but he was died. The rebellion of Abu Raqwa lasted for two years, which almost sucked away the national economy and depleted the royal treasury. In 398/1005, the Nile rising only 16 yards and 16 fingers flow with the result that there was a great rise in prices and hardship. The single bread (al-khubz) became so dear that it could be obtained with great difficulty. It was followed by disease and plague together with malnutrition. Al-Hakim immediately exempted the taxes and formulated strict measures to cope with the situation and instituted death penalty for those who inflated prices or hoarded commodities, which produced the desired effect very soon. Back to top
White Publishing Company Presidents: William Henry Harrison Birthplace: Berkeley Plantation, Charles City County, Virginia Visited in 2009. You know the First Thanksgiving: weatherbeaten Pilgrims sit down with generous Indians, and two vastly different peoples share the fruits of their labor and let celebration bridge the vast gaps between them. America's REAL First Thanksgiving took place before the pilgrims even landed. On December 4, 1619, not far upriver from Virginia's Jamestown, John Woodleaf led ashore two score settlers from the good ship Margaret. They knelt to the ground and gave their thanks to divine providence. There were no Indians; there were no buckle hats. Per their charter they would celebrate that landing each year, in the settlment at the modern-day site of Berkeley Plantation. It was a glorious and poignant tradition that survived all the way to 1622, when they sort of had to stop because Indians massacred about a third of the white people in Virginia. The moral here is that a little pumpkin pie goes a long way toward making Indians happy. Still, even if Massachusetts got it right, Virginia got it first. And any true history buff knows that FIRST IS WHAT MATTERS! Berkeley celebrates the Original Thanksgiving with a festival the first Sunday of every November, and I was able to use that awesome pretext to trick some friends into visiting the birthplace of ... wait for it ... WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON! See, you thought this was about Thanksgiving, but I turned it into a president thing. You'd think you'd learn. But first we gotta talk about this festival. When I say "festival," you're thinking big, right? Maybe some kind of food pavilion? Maybe someone on a horse? Maybe kids carrying balloons, and local artistes trying to sell ugly homemade jewelry at an endless series of booths, and clowns painting faces? Well you could not be more wrong. A festival is 30 people sitting in folding chairs under a tent in the rain, watching the following program: • Some kind of choral thing. • A "re-enactment" of the original Thanksgiving landing, minus any kind of boat. Now, if you just got off an (invisible) boat carrying 40 people after two months, you'd be pretty excited, right? You might hump a tree, or at the very least convey unbridled joy through your voice, right? Nope! I now know from the reenactment that the first thing you do when you land is take attendance, then stand in a line talking in a monotone until the guy in the minister hat tells you to kneel. I'll say this: those guys kneeled in the mud, in period costumes that are probably dry-clean only. That's love. • A speech from a retired Virgina state senator. I liked this guy. • A guy playing "Taps" while hidden behind a bush (more on this in a minute). Why was he behind a bush? I'm not exactly sure. Maybe the acoustics were better, or the guy was really ugly. I just don't know. The bush was blocking my view. • A raffle drawing. • Indian dancing. I wasn't paying too much attention at this point, so I did sort of miss how the "friendship dance" fit into the storyline of Indians killing so many people that the settlement had to be abandoned. But I am generally pro-friendship. They had more planned at some point. Mike of the James River Black Powder Club not only gave us a fine demonstration on period weaponry, he also gave us the straight dope: the rain had sent a few people packing. Crowds were light thanks to a steady downpour for most of the morning, so some of the other "living history" stuff was shut down once the media was gone. Given the chance to make my own rag doll, or perform an amputation without administering anesthesia, I might have had a blast; as it was, I had a fine time, but I don't think I'd plot a return visit until the 400th anniversary in 2019. That party is going to be OFF THE CHAIN. Really, they're going to have the blacksmithing demonstrators make a chain, then take the party off it. There's so much more to Berkeley than festivals, though! It's one of the oldest estates in America, and as such, everything interesting in United States history happened there first. Such as: Taps. Dan Butterfield wrote "Taps" while at Berkeley during the Civil War (McClellan camped the Union army there around 1862). The tune, meant as a sorrowful expression of what a huge sissy McClellan was, has survived through the decades. As a former Boy Scout bugler, I can testify that this song is so mournfully powerful, that merely playing it will have many a grown man shout: "Dave, why is your damn kid playing the ****ing bugle at 7 in the morning?" Bourbon. The first bourbon whiskey in America was made at Berkeley. There you have it. The two most important firsts in U.S. history, at Berkeley. And let's not forget the Harrisons, who turned that godforsaken hellhole into a thriving center of commerce. Benjamin IV built the fine mansion, and Benjamin V (buried on site!) manned up as a public servant and signer of the Declaration of Independence. William Henry, who spent a great deal of his life avenging the massacre of 1622, was born in the mansion, probably in an upstairs room. He left Virginia at a young age for the raw, wild sensuality of Ohio and Indiana, but the house (restored in the 20th century to its 1700s appearance) still has some nice tokens from his life, like a paisley shawl. You might say, "how could a military hero wear a paisley shawl in public?" And you'd be right to say it, because Harrison didn't. With a little less pride, he might have bundled up in 1841 and not died. According to our guide, WHH might have actually been at Berkeley to compose the Inauguration Day speech that famously killed him. But I'm not going to list that as a fact, because our guide was terrible. He admitted he hadn't given the tour in a few months, he completely blanked out on about six occasions (in a FOUR ROOM TOUR), and then gave up in every instance with: "Oh well. Any questions?" I did have questions, but I'm not too confident the answers we got. The guide mentioned that the home had brick walls three feet thick. When I asked why, he said "protection from Indians." You know, Indians, with their heavy artillery. Did I mention this was a $10 tour? Still, the house is nice if unspectacular. It was visited by every president 1 through 10, not to mention Lincoln. And it's rare these days to find a plantation tour that is willing to completely ignore slavery. I particularly enjoyed the portrait of young William hanging downstairs. He was movie-star handsome in his early years, and the portrait showed him in the uniform of a Lt. Major General. The problem is, he wasn't that rank until a much later age. Apparently he did not like sitting for portraits, so when he refused to do so later in life, they got the painter to Photoshop an older portrait. He slapped the fancier uniform right on top of the old one. Heh. Then on the way home we ate at Cracker Barrel. History is awesome. Grouseland, Vincennes, Indiana Visited in 2011. A man's home is his castle. When building his governor's mansion in Vincennes, William Henry Harrison decided to take that literally. There are gun ports around the entire house at ground level. Most walls were solid brick construction at least a foot thick, even though the town was mostly log construction. The window shutters were 2-inch-think slabs of wood capable of stopping bullets. There's a lookout tower in the attic and the walls facing the Wabash River are curved outward to improve the range of vision. The basement has an armory, a well and an old-school septic system (a French drain) to dispose of sewage in the event of a siege. There's enough floor space to sleep a bunch of townspeople in an emergency. He didn't rig a murder hole, but only because huge cauldrons of boiling pitch might damage the carpets. With a home like that, a man could screw over some Indians! In the early 19th century, when Thomas Jefferson put him in charge of the vast Indiana Territory, Vincennes was a white raft floating on an ocean of wilderness. More settlers were on the way, and the feds wanted to secure any mildly dubious lands claims with the indigenous inhabitants. Harrison had a flair for it. The Constitution didn't really anticipate the administration of federally held territories, and so governors could act like dictators as long as they got results. He would find sympathetic chiefs, then negotiate ridiculous land swaps that those chiefs weren't really authorized to make -- as the guide at Grouseland put it, it was like paying the mayor of Akron to sign over Ohio. Harrison also looked the other way whenever settlers got needlessly violent with the locals. Hostilities were a definite possibility, and Harrison probably had some personal bugaboos, too: his birthplace, the Berkeley plantation in Virginia, was the site of pretty significant massacre of settlers in the 17th century. The home Harrison was born in had brick walls two feet thick, so at least the family was mellowing over the generations. Which isn't to say that Grouseland has no charm. When he wasn't eradicating the legacy of an entire race, Harrison had a few dinner parties. The room where fairly significant chunks of the Midwest were snapped up also doubled as a swanky parlor for chatting up guests. Harrison had a reputation as a regular, approachable dude -- he dressed neatly, but not like a rich prig; he was happy to welcome regular Joes into his dining room; and he was famously beloved by his troops. One marker on the property said Grouseland was the birthplace of "Hoosier hospitality," which is really just Virginia plantation culture moved 600 miles west. The building has a frontier elegance about it, and since Harrison's wife was constantly popping out children, it's also homey. But the Indian stuff is what makes it sexy. Grouseland is where Harrison laid the foundation for the legend of "Old Tippicanoe." He stepped on enough toes that eventually Tecumseh and the Prophet called shenanigans. There was a famous showdown at Grouseland, with Tecumseh getting into a shouting match with governor. And as the nearby settlement founded by the brothers started to grow, Harrison's paranoia got the best of him. He waited for a time when Tecumseh would be out of town, raised a militia and marched north to Tippicanoe to burn the Indian village. Classy. Now, I ask a lot of questions on any given tour. But there are people -- middle-aged pudgy white men with woven belts, mostly -- who prefer to quote history lessons to the actual guides. This is because no one will talk to them about their hobby, they are not getting the graded validation of a classroom environment, and they haven't figured out that blogging is a good release. Such a man was on my particular tour, and on hearing this story, he lectured the guide for about a minute before closing with, "You have to admit the Indians had it coming." At that point, the tour guide admitted that he was half Indian. Specifically, the kind of Indian whose land Harrison stole. My enjoyment at belt guy's awkward reaction doesn't really justify three centuries of oppression and discrimination, but hey -- make as much lemonade as you can, right? • There is some original furniture in the building, but many decorations aren't exactly accurate; the D.A.R. owns the house, and according to the guide, the little old ladies who decorated it went a little overboard. For example, it is highly unlikely that William Henry Harrison kept five tea sets and kitten-embroidered pillows on his bed. • Tecumseh predicted the 1811 New Madrid earthquake to other tribes as a symbol of his power. The plaster in two of the Grouseland guest rooms still has cracks from that quake. SUCH WAS THE TERRIBLE WRATH OF TECUMSEH! • Indiana was supposed to be free territory, but Harrison brought along slaves when he moved to Grouseland. When this caused concern among some human-rights-minded settlers, Harrison solved the problem by declaring his slaves to be honorary Indians. • Harrison's hat and saber from Tippicanoe are on display at Grouseland. He eventually left the home for military service in the War of 1812, and had caretakers operate the building as a bed and breakfast for people who didn't mind the risk of being scalped in their sleep. • The name of the house comes from the birds that were plentiful in Indiana at the time; grouse was one of Harrison's favorite meals. His grandson Benjamin Harrison took this to heart in naming his first home, Funnel Cake Junction. • Despite Harrison's worries, there were never any Indian attacks on the building. However, 7 teenagers were shot trying to egg the house on Halloween 1808. • Harrison wasn't a particularly brilliant military strategist, but as the father of 10 children, he did wage a very effective siege on his wife's uterus. Grave: North Bend, Ohio Visited in 2006 and 2013. No, we haven't gotten to the mistake yet. These days, Harrison's tomb is arguably the most interesting thing in North Bend, which has a population of about 900. It has a very nice monolith, it's on the side of a hill, and it overlooks the river. Harrison wanted to be buried there, and his body was transported there from D.C. by a series of black-draped barges. (Fun fact: For the first few months of his afterlife, Harrison was kept in the "public vault" at D.C.'s Congressional Cemetery. The same structure was also the temporary resting place for John Quincy Adams and Zachary Taylor.) His family gave the tomb to Ohio in the 1870s in exchange for the states' promise to keep it nice. I've seen worse presidential graves. We checked it out, took some silly photos and went back to Cincy to do something else that was probably equally cool. It's how we roll. The Basics Places You Should Visit What Am I Missing? Suggested Reading Headliner of State
December 3, 2003 \| David F. Coppedge Got That? The Complex Story of African Mammal Evolution The article by Jean-Jacques Jaeger in the Dec. 4 issue of Nature1 is pretty upbeat about the evolutionary history of African mammals, but takes a bit of untangling to follow. He begins confidently, “For some 40 million years, the Afro-Arabian landmass existed in splendid isolation. A newly described fossil fauna from the end of that time provides a window on the evolution of the continent’s large mammals.” (He refers to a fossil group named the Chilga biota, found in the Ethiopian highlands by Kappelman et al., described in the same issue.2) Let’s take a look out said window and see how evolution has unfolded: During most of the Cenozoic era, from the Cretaceous�Tertiary boundary 65 million years ago until roughly 24 million years ago, Afro-Arabia was an island continent drifting steadily northwards towards Eurasia. Fossil mammals documenting this period are scarce and belong almost exclusively to endemic forms restricted to Afro-Arabia, such as proboscideans, hyraxes and elephant-shrews. But by around 24 million years ago, a permanent land bridge had formed between the two landmasses. A burst of faunal interchange followed: many Eurasian mammals, such as rhinos and ruminants, dispersed into Africa, and some Afro-Arabian mammals, such as elephants, migrated in the opposite direction. (Emphasis added in all quotations.) That forms the plot line, but there are problems. The Chilga specimens he describes seem to fit the story, but there are puzzles among the bones: Among the proboscideans recorded are primitive forms such as Palaeomastodon and Phiomia (also known from older deposits in Egypt). But there are also representatives of modern families, for example taxa such as Gomphotherium, the earliest proboscidean on the branch leading to extant elephants. Another surprise is the oldest occurrence of deinotheres, peculiar proboscideans with downward-curved lower tusks, which were previously recorded only from rocks younger than 24 million years old. The new species of deinothere displays molars that are more ‘bunodont’ in form (that is, made of several distinct cusplets arranged in transverse crests) than its descendant, whose molars display plain transverse crests. This discovery seems to rule out the possibility that deinotheres are derived from an ancestor bearing plain, transverse-crested molars, as was formerly supposed, and provides new evidence about proboscidean evolution. Jaeger bemoans the scarcity of the fossil record for this period, but claims, “Nonetheless, considerable information has been inferred from the evidence we do have.” He talks about how systematists have grouped the African fauna into a superorder Afrotheria based on fossil and molecular evidence. Though “African mammalian faunas are dominated by these endemic forms,” a few other groups did get over to the big island somehow, including our alleged remote ancestors, the catarrhine primates, fathers of hominoids. These “newcomers” went through “rapid evolution” on the landmass, he claims. Even though the Chilga fossils are supposed to pre-date the land bridge, Jaeger says, “The Chilga mammals also yield insights into the dynamics of the faunal interchange between Afro-Arabia and Eurasia.” How is that possible? By seeing what pre-existed before the interchange, he feels it is possible to document that “the ensuing ecological competition ended with winners and losers.” I.e., some animals were destined to fall in numbers, others to multiply and diversify. The Chilga fossils do leave a few research items for paleontologists: Finally, the discoveries of Kappelman et al. highlight two other palaeobiological issues. First, on northern continents glaciation caused a significant cooling around 33 million years ago, which resulted in numerous extinctions among mammalian communities. From these new data, however, it seems that large Afro-Arabian herbivores were not affected, either at that time or later, implying that the climatic changes were less severe on southern continents. Second, the fossil record of the Afro-Arabian continent is not only scanty but also largely concentrated on the northern edge. This has led to the proposal that other groups of mammals existed in Afro-Arabia during its period of isolation, but that they were restricted to more southern latitudes. However, the Chilga mammal community is rather like that found at Fayum in Egypt, which is some five million years older, providing hints that there was little provinciality among Afro-Arabian mammals at that time. As yet, though, we have unveiled only a few of the secrets of mammal evolution on the Afro-Arabian continent. Many more surprising discoveries are to be expected. Got that? 1Jean-Jacques Jaeger, “Mammalian evolution: Isolationist tendencies,” Nature 426, 509 – 511 (04 December 2003); doi:10.1038/426509a. 2Kappelman et al., “Oligocene mammals from Ethiopia and faunal exchange between Afro-Arabia and Eurasia,” Nature 426, 549 – 552 (04 December 2003); doi:10.1038/nature02102. Our policy before commenting on a paper is to approach it with an open mind as much as possible, and give the author the benefit of the doubt. We give the author or authors their day in court, and begin with the premise innocent till proven guilty. But we also want to see hard data that support any conclusions, and the conclusions must survive the Baloney Detector to be granted any credibility or respect. Bluffing is a big turn-off. With that in mind, not much survived in this paper. Jaeger sounds very confident that evolutionists are very well on the way to understanding mammal evolution; it’s just a matter of time, cleaning up a few remaining puzzles. His position is typical of evolutionists. The story only makes sense to someone already convinced evolution is true. The puzzles outnumber the confirmations, but since non-evolutionary alternatives are disallowed from the outset, no amount of negative data can ever falsify their claim that all animals have bacteria ancestors. How Jaeger can keep from biting his fingernails at the sheer number of puzzles is the real puzzle. With your critical, open-minded eye, consider his confessions of these non-evolutionary observations: • The fossil record is scanty. • Known fossils are restricted to isolated locales on the northern periphery of Africa. • “Modern” representatives are mixed in with alleged “primitive” specimens, even though the Afrotheria were supposedly isolated from Europe and Asia for millions of years and had plenty of time and space to evolve all they wanted. • The teeth of the deinotheres evolved from complex to simple, not the other way around. • Some critters managed to get to Africa, while others remained isolated. Was there some kind of discriminatory ferry system operating? • After the land bridge formed, there were winners and losers, but no way to predict according to evolutionary theory who would win or lose. • A long global ice age seemed to have no effect on the Afrotheria. • There was little provinciality among African mammals (i.e., geographic isolation; the animals were free to roam widely), yet fossils are rare in the interior. Anyone see evolution here? From just a few bones, at a few locations on the northern edge of the huge continent of Africa, Jaeger proceeds to weave a magical mystery tale out of thin air (and hot, spinning air at that). He daydreams about floating continents, selective weather, selective migrations, selective fossilizations, selective winners and losers, and land bridges that both increase and decrease the evolutionary adaptations of immigrants. Almost every observation is counter to what was previously believed. Nowhere does the reader see any hard evidence of transitional forms. The only solid evidence points to are dead things; remnants of advanced, complex, large, healthy, well-adapted mammals. The dates are part of the myth; they are made up, based on methods that depend for their validity on evolutionary assumptions and wild extrapolations into the unobservable past. In a courtroom, the attorneys have the opportunity to give an opening statement. These are usually overconfident claims that the facts of the case are going to prove their side. But then, witnesses have to submit to cross-examination on matters of fact, and the attorneys are prevented from spin doctoring, asking leading questions, or going beyond the evidence. Unfortunately, the news media often take the opening statement of the Darwinist lawyer at face value and parrot it uncritically to their readers. Here at Creation-Evolution Headlines, we feel our readers deserve to watch a fair trial. Jaeger is charged with five counts: doctoring evidence, manufacturing just-so stories, refusing to consider nonevolutionary alternatives, making inferences beyond what scientific caution would allow, and assuming what needs to be proved. We have swept away the storytelling elements and stared at the evidence, and have reached our conclusion. Guilty, your honor. For more examples of evolutionary storytelling contrary to hard evidence, see these other recent headlines on supposed mammal evolution: 12/12/03 on marsupials, 11/17/03 on Smithsonian’s Mammal Hall, 10/30/03 on cave packrats, 10/13/03 on monkey color vision, 07/16/03 on development, 11/22/02 on dogs, 11/01/03 on placentas, 06/04/02 on tooth evolution, and especially 03/18/03, National Geographic’s embarrassing April 2003 cover story on “the rise of mammals,” and the PNAS hall of shame from 05/28/02. For that matter, how about the next headline below? (Visited 29 times, 1 visits today) Categories: Fossils, Mammals Leave a Reply
11.5 Data Type Default Values Data type specifications can have explicit or implicit default values. Explicit Default Handling i INT DEFAULT -1, c VARCHAR(10) DEFAULT '', price DOUBLE(16,2) DEFAULT '0.00' With one exception, the default value specified in a DEFAULT clause must be a literal constant; it cannot be a function or an expression. This means, for example, that you cannot set the default for a date column to be the value of a function such as NOW() or CURRENT_DATE. The exception is that, for TIMESTAMP and DATETIME columns, you can specify CURRENT_TIMESTAMP as the default. See Section 11.2.6, “Automatic Initialization and Updating for TIMESTAMP and DATETIME”. The BLOB and TEXT data types cannot be assigned a default value. Implicit Default Handling If a data type specification includes no explicit DEFAULT value, MySQL determines the default value as follows: • If strict SQL mode is enabled, an error occurs for transactional tables and the statement is rolled back. For nontransactional tables, an error occurs, but if this happens for the second or subsequent row of a multiple-row statement, the preceding rows have already been inserted. • If strict mode is not enabled, MySQL sets the column to the implicit default value for the column data type. Suppose that a table t is defined as follows: See Section 5.1.10, “Server SQL Modes”. For a given table, the SHOW CREATE TABLE statement displays which columns have an explicit DEFAULT clause. Implicit defaults are defined as follows:
Classification of Communication System Based on the Nature of Information Signal Based on the nature of information signal the electronic communication system are classified into two categories namely: (i) Analog communication systems. (ii) Digital communication systems. Fig.1 : Classification based on Analog or Digital Communication Analog Communication The modulation systems or techniques in which one of the characteristics of the carrier is varied in proportion with the instantaneous value of modulating signal is called as analog modulation system. If the carrier is sinusoidal, then it’s amplitude, frequency or phase is changed in accordance with the modulating signal to obtain AM, FM or PM respectively. These are continuous wave modulation systems. Analog modulation can be pulsed modulation as well.Here, the carrier is in the form of rectangular pulses. The amplitude, width (duration) or position of the carrier pulses is varied in accordance with the modulating signal to obtain the PAM, PWM or PPM outputs. Examples of analog modulation Following are the examples of analog modulation systems: (i) Amplitude Modulation (AM) (ii) Frequency Modulation (FM) (iii) Phase Modulation (P.M.) (iv) Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM) (v) Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) (vi) Pulse Position Modulation (PPM) Advantages of analog communication Some of the advantages of analog communication are as under: (i) Transmitters and receivers are simple. (ii) Low bandwidth requirement (iii) FDM (frequency division multiplexing) can be used. Drawbacks of analog communication Some of the drawbacks are as under: (i) Noise affects the signal quality. (ii) It is not possible to separate noise and signal. (iii) Repeaters cannot be used between transmitters and receivers. (iv) Coding is not possible. (v) It is not suitable for the transmission of secret information. (i) Radio broadcasting (AM and FM). (ii) TV broadcasting (iii) Telephones Digital Communication The modulation system or technique in which the transmitted signal is in the form of digital pulses of constant amplitude, constant frequency and phase is called as digital modulation system. In a digital communication system (DCS), the objective at the receiver is not to reproduce a transmitted waveform with precision; instead, the objective is to determine from a noise-perturbed signal which waveform from the finite set of waveforms was sent by the transmitter. Pulse code modulation (PCM) and delta modulation (DM) are the examples of digital modulation. (i) In the PCM and DM, a train of digital pulses is transmitted by the transmitter. (ii) All the pulses are of constant amplitude, width and position. The information is contained in the combination of the transmitted pulses. Advantages of digital communication Some of the advantages of digital communication are as under: (i) Due to the digital nature of the transmitted signal, the interference of additive noise does not introduce many errors. Hence, digital communication has a better noise immunity. (ii) Due to the channel coding techniques used in digital communication, it is possible to detect and correct the errors introduced during the data transmission. (iii) Repeaters can be used between transmitter and receiver to regenerate the digital signal. This improves the noise immunity further. (iv) Due to the digital nature of the signal, it is possible to use the advanced data processing techniques such as digital signal processing, image processing data compression etc. (v) TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) technique can be used to transmit many voice channels over a single common transmission channel. (vi) Digital communication is useful in military applications where only a few permitted receivers can receive the transmitted signal. (vii) Digital communication is becoming simpler and cheaper as compared to the analog communication due to the invention of high speed computers and integrated circuits (ICs). Drawbacks of digital communication Some of the important drawbacks of digital communication are as under: (i) The bit rates of digital systems are high. Therefore, they require a larger channel bandwidth as compared to analog systems. (ii) Digital modulation needs synchronization in case of synchronous modulation. Applications of digital communications (i) Long distance communication between earth and space ships. (ii) Satellite communication. (iii) Military communications which needs coding. (iv) Telephone systems. (v) Data and computer communications.
How blockchain can affect the banking system Modern banks have mostly monopolized all significant financial activities, therefore, that gives them the opportunity to influence the economy directly, even on the international level. Using discreet and not always legal methods. But a regular person has no choice - either to trust the banks and act on unfavorable conditions for himself or to look for alternatives which practically didn't exist. However, with the advenе of the blockchain system, the situation has changed. A cryptocurrency market has emerged, it was free from external control and censorship, independent of the control of facilitators and guaranteed the legitimacy of transactions automatically, without the legal system, which wasn't always objective. Blockchain can destroy the traditional economic system by providing a fairly effective alternative. Moreover, it won't only change existing financial instruments but it can also become the basis for creating new instruments, which will be much more effective. Blockchain Benefits • Security. Decentralized systems are resistant to hacking, and cryptocurrency assets are resistant to copying and stealing. In addition, the absence of intermediaries at all reduces the risk during transactions. • Transparency. Banks use private registries, without any access. In decentralized systems, all transactions can be tracked and located. • Privacy. Blockchain helps to keep the owners of digital assets anonymous, and news often talks about classified information with a banking data which became public. • Confidence. Decentralized network are more trusted because most processes are automated and excluding the human factor. • Programmability. Blockchain networks already automated or can simplify and standardize processes that banks are still managing manually. • Performance. Bank transactions are slow because different systems are needed to be synchronized. In the blockchain, this happens much faster, since everything works according to a single protocol. Speed and cost of transactions Since banks are monopolists, they can independently determine the cost of transactions. This isn't profitable to the user, but he has no other alternatives. In addition, many transactions require manual confirmation like personal presence, signature, and other ways to ensure security, which negatively affects their speed. Everything is much more simple in the blockchain network. The high competition allows to keep commissions at a low level, the ability to work remotely allows to conduct transactions 24h. And the absence of intermediaries with cryptographic data protection allows you to effectively protect transfers from external interference. Attracting large capital during starting or developing business controlled only by external financiers - bankers and investors for a very long time. They could dictate their terms, required numerous inspections and legally secure their rights by infringing on the other side of the contract. There was no alternative to this, so the business was forced to agree to such conditions. Now there could be alternatives - the initial coin offering and initial exchange offering. Anyone can announce fundraising within the blockchain network and provide investors with a clear plan of action along with guarantees of possible profit. Through automated smart contracts, you can even guarantee a refund if something goes wrong. This is a rather effective alternative to the traditional mechanism of banks - the initial public offering of shares. The main difference is that the commission and securitization of transactions cost fewer with the use of a blockchain network. Anyway, the initial coin offer has its drawbacks. The simplicity of creating such projects has led to a huge number of scammers which are raising funds by promising a lot of profit but doing nothing except lies. Therefore, some regulation in this area of decentralized financial interaction is still necessary. But unfortunately, it is in the process of creation. Assets tokenization Work with securities requires the coordinated work of banks, exchanges and a bunch of intermediaries. However, to make it all go quickly and accurately is incredibly difficult. You always have to sacrifice something, which almost always leads to a loss of some assets. However, almost all of these assets can be tokenized. They can be attached to a specific cryptocurrency, which will act as a “certificate of ownership”. Then you can make all exchange operations with this tokens. As experience shows, this can be done not only with securities, but also with rights to real estate, ownership of works of art and various expensive commodities. There is also the opportunity to work with ""partial ownership"", which allows even unexperienced investors to work with expensive and profitable offers. Banks monopolized the credit system on which the modern economy is based. And due to this, they dictate the conditions and raise interest rates. Alas, without loans, it is extremely difficult to interact with expensive services, goods and projects, so people are forced to agree to the unprofitable partnership that they are being offered. With the help of the blockchain system, anyone can either take a loan from other network participants or lend it to someone. Timeliness of payments is regulated by consensus algorithms, smart contracts and other automatic mechanisms, so those who want to trick the system will face with great difficulties. Regarding to interest rates and size of payments, all is determined on a competitive basis. Also during work with loans, you can use cryptocurrency, which is completely impossible within traditional banks. International trading The main difficulty of international trading is the mismatch of numerous rules and regulations, which is offset by a variety of audits and additional controls. This takes time and money, since each stage involves the manual processing of information and confirmation of its reliability. The completely transparent operation of the blockchain network partially eliminates the need for these audits, and the common protocol allows the financial systems of different countries to interact effectively. Unfortunately, the legal terms for using the blockchain in international trade are practically not spelled out, however, in theory, this system is extremely beneficial for use at all levels. Transaction Security In the traditional financial system, security is ensured through the manual work of numerous lawyers. In the blockchain, all this is optimized and automated through smart contracts. For example, they open access to the account only after certain conditions are met, which is checked automatically. This reduces the risk of abuse and reduces the need for further litigation. In addition, network transparency allows you to verify the authenticity of transactions and specified data in real time. Dispite the traditional banking system, in which information is still contained on paper. In addition, blockchain algorithms protect KYC / AML digitized information from external interference, errors and fakes. Blockchain technology can completely change the usual ways of financial interaction that are familiar to us, by making them more beneficial to users, not intermediaries. In addition, the speed, quality and transparency of transactions will increase, the overall level of security will increase, and many outdated financial processes will be optimized. Despite the fact that the legal aspects of using the blockchain system at the highest levels are only being developed, its potential is so great that there is no doubt that the future of financial systems can be founded in decentralized ways of interaction. The best way to withdraw cryptocurrencies to hryvnia!
How regional IXPs became a necessity In a perfect world, you wouldn't have to think about how your computer connects to the internet, and when things work, you don't. But this is the middle of a far from perfect world, and how the data that flows on the internet makes its way around the world turns out to be pretty important, particularly when traffic has soared in the wake of covid19. Last week the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) and American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) teamed up to present a seminar on one solution, Local IXPs – No Longer an Option, Now an Imperative. The online discussion examined how the Caribbean has been using internet exchange points (IXPs) to design networks that keep internet traffic local. The internet's resilience is the result of a massively distributed design, which offers multiple routes for data to travel between source and recipient. But that also means that an email, for example, might leave your computer, travel to a server in the United States or the UK, then return to be delivered to someone who lives in the next street. Sometimes that has to happen, but often it doesn't if an IXP exists in your country to keep local traffic local. That's why countries that generate large traffic for services like Google and Netflix get their own servers to deliver data. That isn't always possible, but caching, a process that holds frequently accessed data is another way of dealing with the problem. IXPs are a great place to hold frequently accessed data, along with routing capabilities that keep traffic for local websites and services in-country. For ISPs (internet service providers, like TSTT), that can mean a significant savings on external broadband bills and it should come as no surprise that with TT's enthusiastic use of the internet, there are two IXPs in service. That isn't the case for some Caribbean countries though. Grenada started its IXP five years ago and peering, the practice of connecting two separate networks to exchange data, started with just five megabits. By 2020, the Grenada Internet Exchange was transferring 3.5 gigabytes of data locally and by March 2020, traffic from Akamai, a popular content delivery network (CDN) spiked dramatically, doubling when work and study from home data patterns became a daily reality. "Critical infrastructure doesn't have to be installed immediately, it can be built over time," said Brent McIntosh, the peering coordinator of the Grenada IXP. Brent McIntosh, peering coordinator of Grenada's internet exchange point (IXP). - "Digicel went from being a 1GB partner in the IXP to a 10GB partner. IXPs are no longer nice to have, they are now a must have." "I spend a lot of time talking to ISPs about hosting local content. We are now hosting 16 local websites." "We are no longer looking at social media content, we are looking at opportunities to cache content that's focused on national development." Creating the IXP in Grenada demanded a sales pitch to enable collaboration and explain the joint benefit. Saving on the costs of going off-island and making the exchange of data more efficient were the selling proposition at the start, but the advantages of local routing and caching during covid19 deepened the value of the system for disaster resilience. The parallels with what's traditionally thought of as a natural disaster were driven home by Kurleigh Prescod, country manager for Columbus Communications and an early agitator for TT's IXP implementation. "Covid19 brought the kind of changes that are commensurate with a national disaster planning," Prescod said. In his monitoring of IXP traffic during covid19, Prescod noted that an early surge to three gigabytes (3GB) during Carnival moved to five gigabytes (5GB) after the covid19 lockdown, with a notable increase in online gaming and the use of productivity apps. Kurleigh Prescod, country manager for Columbus Communications. - According to Prescod, 1.8 gigabytes is considered normal traffic for TT. Without the IXPs in place, Prescod believes there would have been a significant drop in traffic response. "If that had happened," he said, "there would have been an impact on how working and learning from home would have been received." The CTU embarked on its regional Internet Exchange Point Proliferation Project in 2006. "The CTU began promoting IXPs as an element in critical Internet infrastructure, between 2006 and 2008," said Junior Mc Intyre, a consultant with the CTU. The CTU formed alliances with CaribNOG and Packet Clearing House to raise awareness and encourage development between 2009 and 2010. There are 15 IXPs in the Caribbean region with one in progress in St Kitts and Nevis. Five are considered dormant and installations in the French territories of Saint Barethelemy, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin and Sint Maarten are in the planning stages. "Most merely exchange traffic but some are now hosting content and services," said Mc Intyre. "We are targeting the development of a Caribbean content industry and catalysing entrepreneurial activity, connecting public and private institutions, improving regional collaboration and coordination and incentivising regional, internet-based growth." Mark Lyndersay is the editor of "How regional IXPs became a necessity" More in this section
Facial Mannerism Authentication and Qin Dynasty Similarities using Machine Learning Facial Mannerism Authentication and Qin Dynasty Similarities using Machine Learning Facial Mannerism Authentication and Qin Dynasty Similarities using Machine Learning I believe this could be the first step to being able to do authentication using facial recognition based on people’s mannerisms. The ability of a human to recognize a face is remarkable. There is literally an entire region of the brain setup to handle this process. Similar to a human brain, could a machine handle the complexity involved in facial recognition using exponential technologies like machine learning? The simple answer is, yes it can. In this article, Human Face Recognition Found in Neural Network Based on Monkey Brains, you see the truth unfolding before your eyes. A network is learning (not being programmed) but is actually learning how to recognize faces. Interestingly, this kind of progress can get buried in particular elements presented in these kind of articles: Farzmahdi and co train the layers in the system using different image databases. For example, one of the datasets contain 740 face images consisting of 37 different views of 20 people. Another dataset contains images of 90 people taken from 37 different viewing angles. They also have a number of datasets for evaluating specific properties of the neural net. Having trained the neural network, Farzmahdi and co put it through its paces. In particular, they test whether the network demonstrates known human behaviours when recognising faces. You have to be kidding me – ‘neural net’ and ‘train the layers of the system’! It sounds like you are teaching a child in infancy. Well, this is exactly what is happening. What is a ‘neural net’ from a machine learning perspective? And what does it mean to train layers of a system? Check out this article for more information. Inspired by our understanding of how the brain learns, neural networks use learning algorithms to recognize speech patterns, object recognition, image retrieval and the ability to recommend products that a user will like. Neural Networks are gradually taking over from simpler Machine Learning methods. They are already at the heart of a new generation of speech recognition devices and they are beginning to outperform earlier systems for recognizing objects in images. If you are interested in further studies of Machine Learning, Coursera offers an online course specifically about neural networks. MIT’s Technology Review showcases a great example of how machine-learning algorithms can create three-dimensional representations of faces. These faces were reconstructed from images that capture the identifying features of the individual’s face and also, their mannerisms and expressions. The project was started by the University of Washington who asked the question, “What makes Tom Hanks look like Tom Hanks?” The software maps the movements and gestures of one person’s face and transposes it onto another’s. The team hope to use this new technology along with virtual-reality technology to build three dimensional reconstructions of deceased persons. You may also like the podcast I did where I interviewed Kayvan Alikhani, senior director of technology, RSA and discussed with him selfie-based authentication. I don’t necessarily believe that ‘selfie’ or ‘mannerism’ authentication is the underpinnings of the future of IT Security soundness. However, multi-layer or two factor authentication has proven to be a very helpful deterrent for attackers since adding a layer on top of traditionally weak passwords is necessary. Identifying people by their unique characteristics is not new Records from the 221-206 BC Qin Dynasty, China, show details about how handprints were used as evidence during burglary investigations. Clay seals bearing friction ridge impressions were used during both the Qin and Han Dynasties (221 BC – 220 AD). Fingerprints identification is also over 100 years old. Francis Galton, although not the first person to use fingerprints to identify suspects, really pushed the technology forward. In 1892, he collected a large sample of prints through his Anthropological laboratories, eventually amassing over 8,000 sets. His study of these prints provided the foundation for meaningful comparison of different prints, and he was able to construct a statistical proof of the uniqueness. Galton also provided the first workable fingerprint classification system. This was later adapted by E. R. Henry for practical use in police forces and other bureaucratic settings. Most of all, Galton’s extensive popular advocacy of the use of prints helped to convince a sceptical public that they could be used reliably for identification. Multi-factor Authentication vs Multi-layer authentication Multi-factor Authentication vs Multi-layer authentication Multi-factor Authentication vs Multi-layer authentication Multi-factor authentication requires the use of solutions from two or more of categories of factors to successfully identify someone. It requires the user to provide separate pieces of evidence so access maybe be granted. These may be knowledge (something they know); possession (something they have), and inherence (something they are). Typically this may take the form of a password or a string of characters; secret questions; a security token or key; or biometric such as fingerprints, retina scanners or voice recognition. Multi-layer or two factor authentication uses multiple solutions from varying categories at different points in the process. A simple explanation is automated when withdrawing funds from an Automatic Teller. Verification is provided by the user’s possession of a card and their PIN. Without these two the transaction can’t take place. We often come across multi-layer or two factor authentication when online companies ask us to authenticate who we are when we first visit and if we want to go into administrative pages. On both occasions, however, the user is often required to present an identical password. While both of these methods are legitimate and useful they have their drawbacks. I love when sites like google or Microsoft’s OneDrive ask me for another form of authentication in order to verify trust. I usually trigger these events because I use a variety of devices and I am switching geographic regions often. It really tweaks these products and I am willing to live with the inconvenience because I know that it is very hard for hackers to handle Multi-factor authentication. According to NEC, the biometrics of the face is the key to this kind of security. As the Technology Review demonstrated the human face plays an important role in our social interaction. It communicates people’s identity on many different levels. In all areas, including law enforcement, border control and governmental access to sensitive materials, face recognition technology offers great potential. As well, it’s a ‘non-contact’ process means that an individual can be recognized from a reasonable distance and, at times, without their knowledge. Whereas other forms of identity-based recognition such as voice printing, iris scanning, finger printing, EKG (heart signature), behavioral patterns and even ear patterns, requires a certain level of cooperation and contact. With face recognition technology, the identifiers do not have to have any interaction with the person being identified. This opens up opportunities as law enforcement departments scan, identify and store face-images. In fact, face recognition technology offers: • Fast & accurate face recognition • Multiple-matching face detection • Combination of eye-zone extraction and facial recognition • Short processing time, high recognition rate • Recognition regardless of vantage point and facial changes (glasses, beard, and expression) • Extraction of similar facial areas • Identification and authentication based on individual facial features • Easy adaptation to existing IT systems • Flexible integration into many types of video monitoring systems Machine Learning, Deep Learning and Face Recognition Technology NEC’s face recognition technology utilizes the Generalized Matching Face Detection Method (GMFD). This revolutionary science provides high speed and high accuracy for facial detection and facial features extraction. It searches and selects face area candidates after the generation of potential eye pairs. Utilizing a Generalized Learning Vector Quantization (GLVQ) algorithm, GLVQ is based on a neural network and is not easily fooled by attempts to conceal identity via the usage of caps, hats, sunglasses, as well as, smiling and blinking eyes. The minimization of the changes guarantees the overall face recognition accuracy. As well, Perturbation Space Method (PSM) converts two-dimensional images, such as photographs, into three-dimensions in a process is called “Morphing”. The three-dimensional representations of the head are then rotated in both the left-to-right and up-and-down directions. The technology then applies different combinations of light and shadow across the face. This enhances the chances of a query “face-print” for matching against its true mate from the database. How does this technology affect users? How does technology affect users? How does technology affect users? Android and iPhone users are already been exposed to Finger Print recognition on devices. Already, swipe and touch based technology through sensors are being built into the phone to support these new methods and are allowing immediate identification. Being able to identify an individual through Voice Recognition is another valid method. However, if it is not matched with a geographical location identifier, or another method of authentication, the sensors could be corrupted by something like background noise, for example. While finger prints can’t be changed they are open to corruption if someone gets a facsimile of your prints. However, passwords can be changed and altered at whim. This is a statistically important point that needs to be addressed as biometric (finger) authentication makes it very hard to work across entire populations because there are people, for example, whose finger prints can’t be read. People missing fingers, arms, like veterans, for example. It is interesting to note that apart from face recognition technology, these other methods have their flaws. Iris Security has a 1 in 2 million chance of a false positive while finger printing has a 1 in 200k chance of a false positive. This makes IRIS security 5-7 times for secure. IRIS scanning is harder and more cumbersome and less convenient. It also had a “creepy” factor. Previously, people did not like having an Iris Scanner held up to their eyes. However, a ‘Selfie’ is basically very commonplace now so, ironically, Iris scanning may be more acceptable given more time. The technology to identify an individual based on gesture and movement is also approaching. This will be identified by the way you use your phone, search Google and type text messages, just to name a few. These new steps offer both problems and opportunities for hackers. Ethics versus Context The issue here is less relevant as to whether or not facial recognition is the “second coming” of Security. The human brain has been evolving over thousands and thousands of years. Exponential Technologies are evolving so fast that they are skipping over the steps in the evolutionary process at a never seen before rate. However, time is needed to evolve and estimate if what you are creating is correct and right for society? What are the lateral implications of the toys (machine learning toys) you are making? Time gives us space to evaluate deeper societal implications that are less popular in regards to ethics and governance. A machine that can recognize a face more accurately that a human being is coming. The power to do so will reside right on your own phone. In theory, if the phone knows who its owner is then this solves mobility security right at the source. This is the good side of the story, but what about bad? What about the ‘right to be forgotten’? What about anonymity? What about this technology in the wrong hands? Consider now the plusses and negatives of Machine Learning. As this age approaches we will need strong leaders to help usher this age into existence. Bill Murphy is an IT Security and IT leadership Expert To learn more about Bill’s world class CIO Security Scoreboard, Bill’s RedZone Podcast, and CIO Mastermind Groups click on the links to learn more.
Essay / Theology The Prepared Throne There is a powerful and fascinating piece of iconography in St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, inside one of the domed cupolas. It’s a ceiling mosaic featuring this image: It’s a dove on a book on ornate drapery on a pillow on a throne. This throne simply hovers in midair, inside of concentric circles. From behind it come twelve beams of light. All of this is against a golden background made up of thousands of tiny mosaic tiles that flash light or dark gold depending on how the light hits them. The iconographic type is called the prepared throne (greek hetoimasia, italian etimasia), and it is an ancient symbol that brings together a number of meanings. This guide to understanding icons lists three of the main meanings of a prepared throne in Christian iconography: 1. It represents the invisible presence of Christ as the ruler and authoritative teacher. A throne prepared but not occupied would indicate this visually all on its own, and would invite meditation on the way Christ rules in his church even in this era when he is at the Father’s right hand, from which he shall return. Its emptiness does not indicate his mere absence, but his paradoxical presence as the one who is “with you always, to the end of the age” in one sense, and will come again in another sense. To drape that throne is to show reverence. To place a book on the throne is not to deify the Bible or to replace Jesus with text; it is to show that the ascended Christ rules, guides, governs, and “canons” his church through the prophetic and apostolic word. To place a dove on that book is to signify the Holy Spirit who manifested himself in the image of a dove at the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, and who makes the authority of Christ present to us now since his outpouring at Pentecost. Throne, book, and dove signify the authoritative presence of Jesus the exalted Lord, without directly depicting Jesus. 2. But viewed slightly differently, the prepared throne is also a very cautious allusion to the Trinity. The throne represents the foundational authority of the Father, the book represents the Word of God, and the dove, again, represents the Holy Spirit. This may strike you as too subtle a way of signifying the three persons, since the Trinity is so obviously not a chair plus a book plus a bird. But if you take a minute to consider how ghastly and wrong all attempts at direct portrayals of the Trinity are, you may find your heart warming, like mine, towards this very oblique angle of approach. 3. The prepared throne has also long functioned as a reference to the return of Christ and the final judgement. When he who is seated at the right hand of the majesty on high takes his seat and assembles before him all the nations, he will be present in direct, personal authority. That future reality is hard to depict from our point of view (again, you can paint it directly if you’d like but you’ll end up with mixed blessings like Michelangelo’s Last Judgment: clear and explicit but not credible). But a prepared throne is an excellent visual anchor for the recollection of Christ’s return. I believe all of these layered meanings go back into the early phases of Christian art; in some cases one meaning will dominate, and in others another. In St. Mark’s in Venice, the primary meaning of the image is actually yet another one: it refers to Pentecost. The throne in the St. Mark cupola is just the center of a larger image, too big and concave to ever photograph perfectly. It is an image of the twelve apostles being empowered and sent out to preach to all the nations of the world, as represented by those from many nations who heard them in their own languages at Pentecost in Jerusalem. The twelve beams of light radiating from behind the throne land one on each of the apostles, each on their own little thrones and holding their own little books; each beam of light terminates on a tongue of flame hovering at the top of their halos. In the golden field between the inner circles of the throne and the outer circles of the apostles and their audiences, there is a circular inscription. It begins directly beneath the throne, “Spiritus in flamis…” and means: The Spirit, in the form of tongues of fire, descends on them like a river. It strengthens hearts by filling them up and unites them with bonds of love. Following this, many peoples, seeing miracles and struck by the power of the Word, become believers. The middle-byzantine artists of St. Mark’s, somewhere around 1100, took the ancient image of the prepared throne and placed it at the center of a Pentecost scene. In terms of their handling of the imagery, this may account for why the dove on the book on the throne is so prominent, so big and birdy: He is visually holding together this complex image’s combination of a Pentecost reference and the Christ-Trinity-Judgment meanings of the central image. Taken all together, once you’ve had time to consider the various elements and levels of the iconography, it is a powerful focusing image for considering the mission of the church and, in particular it seems to me, the task of theology in service to that mission. Theology serves the church’s mission to disciple all nations by attending to the witness of the prophets and apostles in the power of the Spirit under the authority of Christ until he returns. Theology should hold the throne open (rather than sitting down there itself) and keep it prepared (rather than imagining Christ will not speak and judge from it). Share this essay [social_share/]
Question: Which Of The Following Is Most Resistant To Disinfectants? Why is Mycobacterium resistant to disinfectants? The cell wall makes a substantial contribution to the genus. Why are Gram negative more resistant to disinfectants? Gram-negative bacteria are generally less susceptible to disinfectants than gram-positive bacteria, presumably due to the reduced permeability of the double membrane. Which microbes are most susceptible versus most resistant to disinfectants Why? Which of the following is a limitation of autoclave? Which concentration of ethanol is the most effective bactericide? Can bacteria become resistant to disinfectants? Bacteria can develop resistance to disinfectants over time either by acquisition of exogenous mobile genetic elements or through the process of intrinsic genetic adaption. What are the most resistant microorganisms? Here is a list of some of the leading antimicrobial drug-resistant organisms NIAID is researching.Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB) … C. difficile. … VRE. (Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci) … MRSA. (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) … Neisseria gonorrhoea. … CRE. What are the factors affecting disinfectant? Several physical and chemical factors also influence disinfectant procedures: temperature, pH, relative humidity, and water hardness. For example, the activity of most disinfectants increases as the temperature increases, but some exceptions exist. Which of these microorganisms is the most resistant to disinfection? Which virus is the most resistant to chemicals? Mycobacteria: Are among the most resistant organisms to environmental disinfectants because of their waxy outerlayer. There is little concern for these organisms as they are not frequently transmitted from hard surfaces. Small, Non-enveloped Viruses: Such as the norovirus, are extremely resistant to most disinfectants. Why are biofilms resistant to disinfectants? Biofilm insusceptibility is sometimes considered to be a tolerance rather than a real ‘resistance’ since itis mainly induced by a physiological adaptation to the biofilm mode of life (sessile growth, nutrient stresses, contact with repeated sub-lethal concentrations of disinfectant) and can be lost or markedly reduced … Which disinfectant is most effective quizlet? Can autoclave kill endospores? To kill endospores, and therefore sterilize a solution, very long (>6 hours) boiling, or intermittent boiling is required (See Table 1 below). Autoclaving is the most effective and most efficient means of sterilization. Which of the following is the best method to sterilize heat sensitive liquids? FiltrationFiltration of Liquids in the Lab. In laboratories, liquids are filtered through microbial filters to remove any microbes present. It is an effective method of sterilization for heat sensitive liquids. Which microbes are most resistant to control methods? Key PointsEndospores are considered the most resistant structure of microbes. They are resistant to most agents that would normally kill the vegetative cells they formed from.Mycobacterial infections are notoriously difficult to treat. … Fungal cells as well as spores are more susceptible to treatments.
The Untold Story Of Cork And The Confederate Flag Facebook Share Share Twitter Share Flipboard Share Reddit Share FOLLOWING a decree by Cork GAA to confiscate controversial ‘rebel’ flags carried by Cork supporters at the gates of football and hurling matches, people may be wondering how a small, insignificant county in the southwest of Ireland could possibly have links to the banner of the Confederate United States, who fought against the abolition of slavery in the mid-1800s, thousands of miles away. However, Irish historians are keen to point out that the majority of people have their facts wrong when it comes to the thorny issue; and it all starts with clarifying exactly where the flag came from. “Cork didn’t adopt the flag from the Confederates; the Confederates adopted it from Cork” explains Dr. James Farrell, Ireland’s foremost flagopologist. “The flag sailed with a large contingent of Cork people who fled the Irish potato famine in 1849. After landing in New York with the vast majority of people who left on coffin ships, the Cork contingent naturally travelled south, where they were most comfortable. Cork people are very much like migratory birds; they tend to follow an instinct to get as low on a map as possible”. “They remained there until the seeds of the US Civil War sprouted in the 1860s, at which point they had endeared themselves to the Southern folk with tales of their ‘rebel’ activities in Ireland, which I’m sure we all have heard some version of down through the years. It’s possible these people never mentioned the famine at all. There are records of Cork people telling people in the Deep South that they left Ireland because they were ‘too fucking deadly’ to stay”. Although it is probable that these newly-settled Corkonians indeed regaled their new neighbours with tales of their Corkness, with some believing that a Cork man call Seamus Toole may have ‘kicked things off’ by suggesting the South rise up ‘for the craic’, this doesn’t answer the question of where the flag may have come from. “The actual make-up of the flag is very similar to the Saltire, the St. Andrew’s Cross of Scotland. We believe that the Cork crowd adopted it, mixing it with the red and white of the Cork flag” said Dr. Farrell, taking us through lithographs of Cork people eating BBQ ribs in Louisiana in the 1850s, draped in a crude version of the now-infamous Confederate flag. “The stars represent the 13 families who first went to America during the famine, who counted themselves as being ‘pure stars, boy’. It is then believed that they palmed off this design as being the ‘flag we marched under when we killed Cromwell”, and the Americans from the south, even back then an easily fooled people, bought it and went to war”. Soon after the South’s acrimonious defeat at the hands of the Yankees of the North, the Mississippi Corkonians were told ‘where to stick their flag’, and fearing that their Jenga-tower of lies and bullshit was about to come crashing down, fled for home in 1884; just in time for the formation of the GAA. “The lads arrived back in Kinsale with tales of how they ‘won the war’ in the US, and how they were looking for something else to win; namely the first GAA championship” said Derek Leadihy, GAA historian. “Which they did a few years later, under the banner of the ‘victorious’ rebel flag they brought home from the states, after they had ‘grown tired of making too much money’. And so it was for over a hundred years; the rebel flag was seen as a good luck charm for Cork GAA. Suspicions were raised about the flag when it appeared on the roof of the ‘General Lee’ on the hit TV ‘Dukes Of Hazzard’, but it was 2016 by the time that aired for the first time in Cork”. Having acknowledged that pretty much all of the racial tensions and inequality in the world has stemmed from Cork, fans have agreed to never again fly the controversial banner at GAA matches. Meanwhile in America, thousands of supporters of the flag have gone on hunger strike in a bid to protect what they see as ‘their’ flag; a beautiful irony, given the famine-based nature of it. Comments ( 1 ) Share what you think.
Red Flag Nov. 1, 2000 From the very start–and that date was Nov. 29, 1975–Red Flag has been at the forefront of the Air Force drive to dominate the enemy in air combat operations. The first Red Flag exercise, which took place 25 years ago this month, opened the pathway to a radically new type of fighter training, one that in no small way helped forge the professional Air Force that today sets the world standard. It also changed the thinking of airmen around the world, including those in adversary air forces, and it has influenced the training of the US Army and Navy air arms. Red Flag, which was developed to help the Air Force “train as it fights,” is a simulated combat training exercise that pulls in the air forces of the United States and allies. Conducted over a huge range north of Nellis AFB, Nev., Red Flag is managed by the Air Warfare Center through the 414th Combat Training Squadron. Most of the deployed aircraft and personnel are part of the “Blue Forces.” These use a variety of tactics to attack targets such as airfields, missile sites, and tanks. The targets are defended by an enemy “Red Force,” which electronically simulates anti-aircraft artillery, surface-to-air missiles, and electronic jamming equipment. In addition, Red Force “Aggressor” pilots, flying the F-16C, closely emulate known enemy tactics. A typical Red Flag exercise involves a wide variety of aircraft. Thorough mission debriefings are based on the Red Flag Measurement and Debriefing System along with TV ordnance scoring and threat video. Participants can replay the mission and learn exactly what was done correctly and what needs work. Over a quarter century, Red Flag has become one of the greatest of Air Force success stories. Like many successes, Red Flag can trace its roots to an earlier failure. It came in Southeast Asia in the 1960s. Goodbye to 10-to-1 During the Vietnam War, it became apparent that the overwhelming concern about flying safety in peacetime compromised air-to-air combat training to an unacceptable degree. The most tangible symptom of this failure was the decline in the exchange ratio (enemy losses vs. US losses) between USAF and enemy forces. The exchange ratio obtained in the Korean War had been a highly satisfactory 10-to-1. Recent research has cast some doubt on this figure, but for many years 10-to-1 was not only widely accepted as historically accurate but also was held out as the standard in any subsequent contest. In the Southeast Asian conflict, however, that exchange ratio fell to less than 1-to-1 during a period in the spring of 1972. There were reasons for this. Air warfare was focused on the air-to-ground dimension; American aircraft were employed in integrated strike packages designed to get bombs on important targets. They were opposed by a sophisticated defense system that incorporated anti-aircraft artillery, surface-to-air missiles, and interceptors operating under ground control. More important in regard to the exchange ratio was the change in enemy tactics. In the Korean War, the enemy forces made repeated attempts to contest US superiority in the air. The North Vietnamese never did that, for Hanoi had another agenda. Its main goal was to prevent American bombs landing on North Vietnamese targets. The task of their fighters was not to engage in air-to-air combat but to force US fighterbombers to jettison their bomb loads en route to the target. When that was done, North Vietnam’s fighters essentially had accomplished their mission. Whenever possible, USAF and Navy fighters sought out air combat. That is because they operated under rules of engagement generally which prohibited attacks on MiG airfields, and that meant that the only way to eliminate the fighter threat was to destroy it in the air. The enemy usually had to be lured into battle. However, once a North Vietnamese fighter engaged, it was a formidable opponent. The MiG-17 fighter, though frequently written off as an upgrade to the obsolete, Korean Warvintage MiG-15, proved to be highly effective at the altitudes and airspeeds at which the North’s pilots would engage. They also carried powerful cannons. The supersonic MiG-19 appeared later and in smaller numbers, but it had roughly the same characteristics as the MiG-17. The modern delta wing MiG-21 was much faster and armed with the effective, heat-seeking Atoll missile. In the designated areas in which they worked, Navy fighters typically encountered MiG-17s and MiG-19s. USAF fighters usually ran into MiG-17s and MiG-21s. The Communists’ aircraft had characteristics (speed, turn rate, sustained turn rate, rate of roll, climb rate) that were totally different from USAF’s F-4s. Yet, up to that time, the Air Force had conducted almost all air combat maneuver training by matching identical aircraft-F-4 against F-4. Not only that, but USAF’s training exercises usually featured duels between fighter aircraft from the same squadron. The F-4 was a big, highly capable aircraft-but it had not been designed specifically for the air superiority role. It could do many missions well. However, it was large and unwieldy, it provided relatively poor visibility to the pilot, and it was saddled with flight envelope limitations that undercut its effectiveness in the air superiority role. Later, when USAF fielded the F-4E and its pilots had thoroughly absorbed Col. John Boyd’s concept of aerial maneuverability, USAF could overcome the opposition with the E’s greater relative strength in certain parts of the combat envelope. That took a while, though. Moreover, USAF aircraft were equipped with Sidewinder and Sparrow missiles designed to strike at bombers, not fighters that were engaging in high-g combat maneuvers. For their part, USAF pilots were inhibited by rules of engagement requiring visual identification of the enemy and thus ensuring that air combat would occur at close ranges, where gun armament had an edge over missiles. Experienced leaders helped pilots cope with such disadvantages but at the cost of intensive in-theater training and combat losses. Soon, the failure of USAF’s peacetime training approach became only too apparent. The exchange ratio in the best of times was no better than 2-to-1 and, at the lowest, actually fell to under the break-even 1-to-1 level. During the Vietnam War, USAF conducted a thorough analysis of air superiority operations. It was called “Red Baron,” after Manfred von Richthofen, the famed German ace of World War I. The study demonstrated three sobering facts about USAF aircrews: • The enemy often caught them by surprise. • They had inadequate training for the mission. • They were not fully informed about the enemy. The problems became especially acute whenever pilots with relatively little fighter experience rotated into the cockpit. As a result, the service during the war considered various proposals to change the training system. However, they were not thought to be feasible. The pressure to get pilots through the pipeline and into combat operations was so great that USAF had no assets to begin new programs. In the early 1970s, USAF pilots and leaders came home from the Vietnam War bent on making some serious changes. One change, of course, concerned the service’s main air fighting instrument–the fighter aircraft itself. Problems with the jack-of-all-trades F-4 generated the drive to produce the specialized F-15 air superiority fighter. Just as important, however, was the renewed emphasis on training the human beings who had been shown in the Red Baron study to be poorly prepared for battle. Red Flag did not come into being fully formed. It derived from a series of ideas from different people over many years. In 1951, Vol. 1, No. 1, of Fighter Gunnery Newsletter appeared. The publication was dedicated to “spreading the gunnery gospel.” The January 1954 issue of Fighter Gunnery contained an article, by Maj. Frederick C. “Boots” Blesse, which maintained that positioning oneself at the proper angle was 85 percent of the air battle, while adjusting the pipper was 10 percent and actually firing was only 5 percent. In the March 1968 issue, an article noted a change in Tactical Air Command procedures calling for training in dissimilar aircraft. For many years, the idea of an “aggressor” squadron germinated. One important event was the transformation of the 4520th Combat Crew Training Wing at Nellis into the Tactical Fighter Weapons Center, under the leadership of Maj. Gen. R.G. “Zack” Taylor. Taylor saw that the huge area surrounding Nellis would be ideal for an aerial training range of mammoth proportions, ultimately reaching 12,000 square miles. Meanwhile, things were happening back in Washington, D.C. In the Pentagon’s basement, in the electronic combat directorate, Col. William L. Kirk had some majors working for him, and they knew that among the problems was the need for more rigorous training. Maj. John A. Corder, for example, was aware that the Foreign Technology Division at WrightPatterson AFB, Ohio, had a number of Soviet aircraft. He thought these could be used to provide realistic air combat maneuvering training. As desirable as this might have been, there were too many administrative problems in the way, and the project was shelved. But Corder was soon joined by two other officers who would be heard from in years to come-Maj. Richard Moody Suter and Lt. Col. Charles A. Horner. Gen. John D. Ryan, the then-Chief of Staff, had become dissatisfied with the loss rate in Vietnam and accuracy of bomb delivery. He approved a proposal made by Kirk and Corder that recommended, among other things, the formation of an air-to-air aggressor squadron. Horner then advanced the idea of using excess Northrop T-38 Talons for the new unit. He proposed that fighter squadrons rotate through Nellis to train with the aggressors and that the aggressors would go out to “visit” squadrons in the field. The Air Force in fall 1972 established the 64th Fighter Weapons Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nev. It was equipped initially with T-38s and then with Northrop F-5E Tiger aircraft. These small supersonic aircraft were used to simulate the MiG-21 in air combat maneuvers. The resulting exercises were deemed to be so useful that the Air Force fashioned a second squadron-the 65th FWS-at Nellis and two more for overseas training. A Way to Cut Losses In the meantime, Moody Suter, who had been a strong proponent of the aggressor squadron concept and had worked out the training program at Nellis, was visualizing a large-scale combat training operation going beyond mere air-to-air combat maneuvering. A charismatic if sometimes contentious figure, Suter elaborated on Corder’s and Horner’s original work with air-to-air aggressors to create a briefing that outlined the basic concepts of what would become Red Flag. He saw it from the start as a means of improving and extending the ability of Air Force integrated strike packages to get to their targets with maximum accuracy and minimum losses. Suter was once described as a man who performed systems management before systems management was invented. He had the ability to visualize operations on a grand scale and know exactly what would be required-not only of the fighter force but also of all the supporting elements. Among his many challenges was finding a way to conduct realistic training while accommodating the general Air Forcewide desire for flying safety. This desire was certainly justified. In 1951, USAF lost 824 aircraft. The figure dropped to 472 in 1959 and 262 in 1965 as a result of adherence to rigorous safety guidelines. No one in the Air Force wanted the numbers to rise, yet the emphasis on safety made a mockery of air combat training. Training missions had become standardized, with as much emphasis on filling squares on paper as putting bombs on target. Suter knew of studies demonstrating that the majority of combat losses occur during a pilot’s first 10 combat missions. After that point, losses dropped nearly to zero. Suter argued for the creation of a training environment so realistic that a new pilot would log his first 10 “combat” missions in a controlled environment. The idea was that when he went into actual combat, the pilot would have “survived” his most vulnerable period. Suter acknowledged that realistic training, no matter how carefully controlled, could result in accidents. His argument was that the acceptance of a few losses in training would prevent large-scale losses in combat. In essence, Red Flag was to teach pilots how to adapt quickly to combat and show them what would happen to them if they did not. Suter envisioned from the start an environment that offered an intense learning opportunity-and was not a career-threatening test. After having secured the necessary approvals in the Pentagon, Suter went to Tactical Air Command in May 1975 to brief its commander, Gen. Robert J. Dixon, and his senior staff. Dixon listened intently and then approved the idea. He instructed his operations deputy, Maj. Gen. Charles A. Gabriel, and the commander of the Tactical Fighter Weapons Center, Maj. Gen. James A. Knight Jr., to establish Red Flag at Nellis within six months. He instructed his comptroller, Col. Richard Murray, to find the money to do it. Dixon’s Deal Dixon would prove to be a strong patron of Red Flag. He conferred with Gen. David C. Jones, Chief of Staff, on the matter of flying safety and got Jones to go along. They agreed to take the risk of realistic training as long as TAC kept the accident rate below seven per 100,000 flying hours. This was an almost heroic position to take, given the tenor of the times. At Nellis, Suter was well-known and well-liked. He had 232 Vietnam combat missions (as wing weapons and tactical officer) under his belt; other pilots listened to what he had to say. The series of briefings that he delivered inspired enthusiasm among key personnel at the base. These included Col. P.J. White, Lt. Col. Marty Mahrt, Col. David Burney, and Ned Greenhalgh, a civilian computer expert. This small crew undertook the mammoth task of establishing the program. Their hard, imaginative work over the early years would confirm Red Flag’s promise and turn it into the finest training system in aviation history. Suter’s briefing was remarkably farsighted, lifting the whole concept of air combat training to a new, more sophisticated level. In the past, range training was routine. Instructors knew the routes, the headings, and the call signs by rote, and the students were given much the same training as was given to World War IIera students. In Suter’s view, the Air Force had to create a new program to provide realistic training against a realistic threat to test hardware and tactics. He argued that Red Flag should be not only a proving ground but also a laboratory, one where the service could quickly test possible solutions for urgent problems. Suter wanted to employ the whole force-tankers, electronic countermeasures, bombers, fighters, reconnaissance aircraft, and so forth-against a realistic enemy that operated advanced radar systems, integrated missile and anti-aircraft systems, and first-rate, dissimilar interceptors. As a cheerleader for the program, Suter was indefatigable, visiting squadrons all over the world, hammering home the notion that realistic training was vital and that saving lives in combat would not be the only result. He knew that the skills gained in Red Flag not only kept Air Force pilots alive but also enabled them to score victories against the enemy and to get their bombs on target with greater proficiency. The first actual Red Flag took place on Nov. 29, 1975, exactly on Dixon’s schedule. It featured participation by 37 aircraft, shepherded by 561 people. Some 552 sorties were flown. The effort was small compared to later efforts. Today’s Red Flag over a single year will involve as many as 250 different units and 750 aircraft of many different types. About 11,000 aircrew and squadron personnel will amass more than 12,000 sorties and 21,000 flight hours in the course of the year. Though small, the first Red Flag was an unqualified success. Initially oriented primarily to air-to-surface training, Red Flag had from the start a substantial air-to-air component, and this would grow over time. Other US services joined in, as did units from around the world. Red Flag grew in size and sophistication. Nonetheless, skepticism prevailed for a long time outside Nellis and TAC headquarters. Air Force commanders were concerned that accidents would reflect poorly on their leadership. For many, their initial participation was somewhat conditional. The accident rate indeed was high during the first two years of the program, with about eight aircraft being lost. To Dixon’s credit, he persevered, and the accident rate came down to below that of the Air Force as a whole. Further, when Air Force Systems Command sought to use Red Flag for operational test and evaluation, Dixon refused. He wanted it to evolve, to grow, to let all the major commands contribute their good ideas. Dixon saw that Red Flag could be expanded to provide benefits to other commands, including Strategic Air Command, and to other air forces. The international Maple Flag was created and is hosted by Canadian forces. Blue Flag was established at Hurlburt Field, Fla., to train people for the command and control system in the European theater. Green Flag was created to integrate electronic countermeasure warfare with Red Flag activities. Other flags would follow. By the time Dixon completed his tour at TAC, training standards had progressed dramatically-so much so that it became harder to qualify for a stint at Red Flag than it had been to qualify for combat operations in Vietnam. Dixon’s successor, Gen. W.L. Creech, greatly accelerated and expanded Red Flag. The rest, as they say, is history. One major milestone in that history, without question, was the stunning performance of American airmen in the Gulf War of 1991. It was the first war to showcase the results of Red Flag, and it produced a curious tribute. It came from an Air Force pilot who, returning from a combat mission over Iraq, was heard to remark, “It was almost as intense as Red Flag.” The Man Behind Red Flag Richard Moody Suter had many friends, and each one has a load of Moody Suter stories. He was a larger-than-life character, quick to laugh, quick to show anger, always so intensely focused on the mission that he threw off heat and energy like a boiler. He would have considered himself first and foremost a fighter pilot, a man whose job was destruction of the enemy. Even so, he was a visionary. He produced a constant flow of ideas-not unusual for a visionary-but he also had an intimate knowledge of the USAF system that allowed him to bring his ideas to fruition. Suter had the ability to inspire people, to translate his far-out ideas into fighter pilot terms that stirred the soul and led to great actions. He also had the ability to irritate people, regardless of rank or position. There is no question that he took pride and pleasure from doing this. Aviation artist Keith Ferris, one of Suter’s friends, has over the years compiled a list of “Suterisms.” For example, if a pilot showed up slightly the worse for wear, he’d say, “The fruit flies are circling around his head.” If he did not have a great opinion of someone’s intellect, he’d say, “He looks at his name tag a lot.” To inquisitive superior officers, he’d say, “We are looking at a glaring glimpse of the obvious.” He provided the following advice on air combat: Mount it with the sharp end in front of you. Move all shiny switches outboard and forward. And don’t [mess] with the red-covered or rusty knobs. After he retired in July 1984, Suter stayed abreast of technological advances and development of the airman’s art and did so until his death in January 1996. By that time, he was already a legend. Walter J. Boyne, former director of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, is a retired Air Force colonel and author. He has written more than 400 articles about aviation topics and 29 books, the most recent of which is Beyond the Horizons: The Lockheed Story. His most recent article for Air Force Magazine, “The Man Who Built the Missiles,” appeared in the October 2000 issue.
Google Rank Brain Algorithm: A Complete Guide To Google Machine Learning Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning, has launched four years ago, and it sought to cover many languages. Google Rank brain update’s or Machine Learning, the intent was to help Google provide accurate results and improve the search experience for users. Google Rank brain Google Rank brain update or Machine Learning, has been a paradigm shift in the sense that prior to RB, Google’s engineers had to manually alter the mathematical algorithm(s) to adjust search results. The problem was such algorithm changes would stay static until the next update comes. Google Rank Brain algorithm uses machine learning with the capability to learn from data inputs to give best to search engine queries. Using machine learning google Rank Brain processes massive data that appear as written content by changing them into quantitative data such as mathematical entities or vectors that computers understand. Google’s integration of Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning to core algorithm has made search results reactive to real-world events beyond the algorithm update. To the question—“what is Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning” the answer is google Rank Brain internally interprets searchers intent using external factors such as location and history. After the intent is understood Google tries to give the most relevant results. Now let see how AI works via Google Rank Brian update or Machine Learning in handling a search query “dench”. The English term has three different meanings or contexts—a slang, a type of clothing, name of actress Judi Dench. So the term is ambiguous for the search engine as it does not know what exactly the user is looking for. So it seeks to analyze external factors including location. What is Machine Learning? The rising buzz on AIO (Artificial Intelligence Optimization) is also connected with the Google Rank Brain update. According to Arthur Samuel who defined machine learning in 1959, Machine learning is something that gives computers the ability to learn without prior programming. As an application of artificial intelligence, Machine learning helps computer systems to learn automatically and boost customer experience without asking to do so. In Machine Learning, user behavior is paramount in deciding what works and what will not. Machine learning makes Google Rank Brain distinct from other updates. For better results, Google Rank Brain algorithm or Machine Learning takes data from a slew of sources. Cues from a variety of data sets improve results. Google Rank Brain uses a series of databases on people, places, and things to improve the answer to the search query. To process an unknown query, Google mathematically maps relationships and processes best results and related results. By analyzing recurring patterns and behaviors machines excel in predicting and delivering content and that matches the user intent almost 99 percent. Machine learning is already in use for spam email filtering, optical character recognition (OCR) and intruder detection. How to optimize for Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning? Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning SEO update impacts all existing concepts and practices of good SEO outlined by Google’s guidelines. SEO Experts must know Google Rank brain SEO is different from Panda and Penguin. The former two are classic algorithms. To avoid Penguin penalties and applying Panda remedies there are some common methods. But Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning is totally different as an interpretation model and will not yield to readymade optimization formulae. According to Google’s Gary Illyes optimizing for Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning will show results when the content is written in a natural language that sounds more human and gives a better user experience. So, the way out to be friendly with Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning is making the text natural so that it is true to life and does not sound artificial. Latest Google Rank Brain or Machine Learning update On October 26, 2015, Google Rank Brain update had the formal launch after testing since April 2015. Google Rank Brain filters search results to give users the best answer to their query. After the latest Google Rank Brain update, the Google algorithm update joined the mainstream from the fringes after handling 15 percent of queries to started handling every query in Google. See More Related Articles Udit Khanna Leave a Reply
Ohio Constitution The 1851 Constitution with Amendments to 2017 II.23 Impeachments; how instituted and conducted The house of Representatives shall have the sole power of impeachment, but a majority of the members elected must concur therein. Impeachments shall be tried by the senate; and the senators, when sitting for that purpose, shall be upon oath or affirmation to do justice according to law and evidence. No person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators.
Current Patients (978) 369-2500 New Patients (978) 218-2580 144 North Road, Suite 2125 Sudbury, MA 01776 Why does my breath stink? Bad Breath Sudbury MABad breath can be embarrassing and may keep people from getting too close, but did you know your bad breath may be a symptom of a more serious dental health concern? Of course, temporary bad breath caused by your lunch or morning coffee can be cleared up with a swish of mouthwash or sugar-free gum. But if brushing and good oral hygiene do not eradicate your smelly breath you may consider speaking to your dentist. What your bad breath may say about your oral health Tooth Decay: Ultimately, bad breath is caused by bacteria and so is tooth decay. If you have an untreated dental cavity, you may experience a consistent metallic flavor or smell in your mouth. Often times chronic halitosis is a symptom of tooth decay, and may lead to more necessary procedures, like a root canal. Dr. Bourgeouis offers solutions for treating decayed teeth. Treatment for tooth decay will vary depending on the severity of the decay. Dental fillings, inlay or onlays or a root canal and dental crown can restore your tooth and clear up your bad breath. Dry Mouth: Dry mouth occurs when your mouth is not being supplied with sufficient saliva flow. Saliva plays an important role in keeping oral bacteria under control and helps rinse debris and food particles from the surfaces of your teeth. Dry mouth could be caused by dehydration or could be a side effect of certain medications. Other patients are simply more prone to dry mouth and should visit the dentist on a more frequent basis. Patients with dry mouth are likely to develop tooth decay from the lack of saliva. Routine visits to Sudbury Dental Arts can help you keep your dry mouth in check. Dr. Bourgeouis can make personalized recommendations on how to moisturize your mouth. We may recommend a prescription mouth-wash and encourage all patients to drink plenty of water throughout the day. Poor Oral Hygiene: One of the most common causes of halitosis is poor oral hygiene. Poor oral hygiene is also a leading culprit for causing tooth decay- and, you guessed it, dry mouth. Brushing and flossing your teeth at least twice a day for a full two minutes is key in keeping your breath fresh and teeth and gums healthy.
Gasoline tax is higher than the price of each liter. MEXICO (ONEXPO) – According to the National Organization of Petroleum Exporters (Onexpo), in Mexico, the gasoline tax knows as “STPS” -Special Tax on Production and Services- exceeded the price of each liter in the Gulf of Mexico. According to declarations of Roberto Díaz de León, president of Onexpo, in some days, the value of the tax is more than the price of gasoline. As an example, in the ports of Madero, Pajaritos, Veracruz, Tuxpan, and Dos Bocas, the price of gasoline reached 2.44 pesos per liter. In contrast, the total STPS was 5.44 pesos per liter. These two prices were recorded on March 23. What has caused the collapse of the cost of crude oil is the health crisis that the world is experiencing due to the coronavirus covid-19. However, this is not the only factor, since the drop in demand resulting from the halting of entire cities. This drop in the price of gasoline is due to the price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia. This occurred after Saudi Arabia, leader of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), was unable to reach an agreement with Russia to cut oil production. The hostilities led to the collapse of its price worldwide, which directly influences the final cost of gasoline. In Mexico, sales at gas stations have fallen by between 15% and 20%. In the United States, the drop has been 40%. According to Diaz de Leon, the trend may continue in the coming days. In this regard, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that the price of regular gasoline should not exceed 17 pesos per liter. Currently, according to the president of Onexpo, Roberto Díaz de León, the average price is 18.60 pesos. The Yucatan Times doctoranytime BUSQUE A UN MÉDICO
Skip to main content Bluetooth Technology 101 Bluetooth Operation Bluetooth is designed for communication over a small network called a piconet. The simplest configuration is a point-to-point piconet, with one device designed as a "master" and the other a "slave." The master initiates the communication link, and in general, has control over the network's timing. Up to seven slaves can be connected to a master in a point-to-multipoint configuration. An example of this kind of operation is a smartphone (master) connecting to multiple Bluetooth slaves—a Bluetooth headset for streaming music, a Bluetooth keyboard as an input and a second smartphone for Bluetooth-based file transfers. This kind of system implies an ad-hoc network with no fixed roles or designations. Also, a Bluetooth master can dissolve its piconet and then go join a different piconet as a slave. Here's an example of Bluetooth network organization; Network 1 is a piconet in standalone mode, Network 2 is a scatternet: A Bluetooth device can be a slave in more than one network (an example would be a multi-point Bluetooth headset that connects to a smartphone and a laptop simultaneously, and the data input from each source device switches the operation of the headset), or a slave in one network and a master in another. Configurations that go beyond the master-and-seven-slave setup are called scatternets. Establishing A Bluetooth Piconet Initiating a piconet is done by a master, and the Bluetooth protocol establishes a universal method for establishing links: 1. INQUIRY: the master sends out an inquiry to determine which devices are in range 2. INQUIRY RESPONSE: the devices hearing the inquiry respond with specific information (their paging parameters) 3. PAGE: the master then pages the specific device it wants to connect to 4. PAGE RESPONSE: the paged device acknowledges and responds 5. LINK PARAMETER EXCHANGE: now the two devices exchange their link parameters, and bi-directional data transfer can begin. Each Bluetooth device can be in a number of states, depending on the commands sent to it (either internal, or based upon the type/commands of received data packets over the radio) and the type of operation that is expected of it. The three overall states are "standby," "connection," and "park." Each device maintains its own state, and the master maintains a list of its slaves' states (or expected states). There are also a number of sub-states: page, page scan, inquiry, inquiry scan, master response, slave response and inquiry response. • Faheemahmed125 • Fernando_engen • YunFuriku Max 10m in ideal conditions. • RIluske • zodiacfml • DotNetMaster777 Are there any performance tests between wifi and bluetooth ?? • exnemesis • TripleHeinz • Mpablo87 • yasminpriya15 My Bluetooth doesn’t work. What do I do? What is Bluetooth? How does Bluetooth work? Are there different kinds of Bluetooth? What can Bluetooth do? What makes Bluetooth better than other technologies?
Talking Math with My Kids “Is it more than seven minutes?” Yes. Combinatorics and Pampers I’m a mom of a toddler and a newborn, so my house goes through a lot of diapers. We’ve been using Pampers almost exclusively since my son was born in 2010. Pampers offers a program called “Pampers Rewards” where you can enter codes found on Pampers products to their website, and redeem for cool stuff. (Let’s agree to ignore all issues about the effects of disposable diapers on the world ecology, or on family size and the exponentially growing population of humans on our planet, or the obvious questions about why Pampers is trading me stuff for lots of data about how often my kids pee.) The coding scheme that Pampers uses has bothered me for a while. Each Pampers item comes with an alphanumeric 15-digit code, something like “T9PDXPKKGA3M4GK”. Given that for each character we have 36 possibilities, and the codes are 15 characters long, there are a whopping 3615 such codes. This is about 2.2×1023. That’s a lot of possible codes! How many? If every single one of the seven billion people (7×109) on the planet used Pampers, there would be enough possible codes for each person to have one billion codes just for themselves — and then there would still be some left over. While my kids use a lot of diapers, I surely hope we don’t end up needing a billion boxes of Pampers for each of them. Why does Pampers do this? I am not sure. Instead of an alphanumeric code, why not just use an alphabetical sequence of length 15? This would mean “only” 2615, or a little shy of 1.7×1021. In this case, there would still be more than a billion codes available for each one of the seven billion of us. It’s in Pampers’s interest to make sure only a small percentage of all possible codes are actually connected with a particular product; this prevents fraud on their Rewards program. If I were going to design codes, I’d want to make sure that of all possible codes, maybe only one in a million actually worked. I’ll even be very cautious and allow only one in ten billion (1 in 1010) to actually appear on a product. What is one ten-billionth of 3615? It’s about 2.2×1013. This would still leave Pampers with over ten trillion (1013) usable codes. Surely they could find a more efficient coding scheme. Apart from efficiency, I’d really love it if Pampers would just print the associated QR code along with the actual 15-digits. Having to type in multiple 15-digit codes on my Pampers iPhone app, while chasing a toddler, nursing a newborn, and typing a blog post, is really quite taxing!
American Dictionary of the English Language Dictionary Search BELONG', verb intransitive 1. To be the property of; as, a field belongs to Richard Roe; Jamaica belongs to G.Britain. 2. To be the concern or proper business of; to appertain; as, it belongs to John Doe to prove his title. 3. To be appendant to. He went into a desert place belonging to Bethsaida. Luke 9:1. 4. To be a part of, or connected with, though detached in place; as, a beam or rafter belongs to such a frame, or to such a place in the building. 5. To have relation to. And David said, to whom belongest thou? 1.Sam.30. 6. To be the quality or attribute of. To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgiveness. Daniel 9:9. 7. To be suitable for. Strong meat belongeth to them of full age. Hebrews 5:14. 8. To relate to, or be referred to. He careth for things that belong to the Lord. l Cor.7. Bastards also are settled in the parishes to which the mothers belong Hence, 10. To be the native of; to have original residence. There is no other country in the world to which the Gipeys could belong 11. In common language, to have a settled residence; to be domiciliated.
American Dictionary of the English Language Dictionary Search OR'DEAL, noun [The last syllable is deal, to divide or distribute. The sense of the prefix is less obvious. But the real sense is not obvious. The practice of ordeal however seems to have had its origin in the belief that the substances used had each its particular presiding deity that had perfect control over it.] 1. An ancient form of trial to determine guilt or innocence, practiced by the rude nations of Europe, and still practiced in the East Indies. In England, the ordeal was of two sorts, fire-ordeal and water-ordeal; the former being confined to persons of higher rank, the latter to the common people. Both might be performed by deputy, but the principal was to answer for the success of the trial. Fire-ordeal was performed either by taking in the hand a piece of red hot iron, or by walking barefoot and blindfold over nine red hot plowshares laid lengthwise at unequal distances; and if the person escapes unhurt, he was adjudged innocent, otherwise he was condemned as guilty. Water-ordeal was performed, either by plunging the bare arm to the elbow in boiling water, or by casting the person suspected into a river or pond of cold water and if he floated without an effort to swim, it was an evidence of guilt, but if he sunk he was acquitted. Both in England and Sweden, the clergy presided at this trial. It was at last condemned as unlawful by the canon law, and in England it was abolished by an order in council of Henry III. It is probably our proverbial phrase, to go through fire and water, denoting severe trial or danger, is derived from the ordeal; as also the trial of witches by water. 2. Severe trial; accurate scrutiny.
With cardiac arrhythmia what else should I be concerned about? Arrhythmia is a rhythm disturbance, or an abnormal beating of the heart. It can be fast or slow. Other symptoms such as lightheadedness or passing out, or chest pain are concerning and should be addressed by your doctor. In addition, some arrhythmias are associated with an increased stroke risk and you may need to take meds to prevent that.
minimumwage-240px-480321400Since 1991, the $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage has been in place. The inflation-adjusted wage would have to be $12.68 to have the same purchasing power today, according to the CPI Inflation Calculator from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. President Obama has been supporting an increase in the federal minimum wage to $12 per hour for the past three years. Pending legislation — the “Raise the Wage Act,” proposed by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash) and supported by presidential candidate Hillary Clinton — would make that happen by 2020. Secretary Clinton’s Democratic rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, is calling for a prompt increase to $15 per hour. Today, $2.13 is the federal hourly minimum wage for tipped employees, so long as the tipped employee’s wage plus tips works out to at least $7.25 per hour (this is known as the “tip credit against minimum wage”). Thus, to satisfy the federal requirement, the employee’s average hourly tips must be at least $5.12. Under the federal standard, “tipped employees” are generally defined as those who earn at least $30 per month in tips, a very low threshold. Higher Standard Prevails The federal standard prevails when state minimum wage rates are less generous than the federal government’s rate, as they are in Georgia and Wyoming. And when state minimum wage rates exceed those of the federal government, as they do in 30 states, the state law prevails. So, too, do minimum wages established by municipal and county governments. Here are the 30 states: And in these seven states, tips cannot be used to offset the state’s minimum wage: Minimum wage increase plans at the state level were adopted by California and New York in early April. California’s current $10 hourly minimum wage will rise in steps to $15 per hour by 2022. In California, this also applies to tipped employees, as tips don’t offset minimum wages there. Employers with 25 or fewer workers will have another year to meet that standard. Within three years, New York’s current $9 per hour minimum wage will rise to $15 in New York City, and be phased in at lower levels throughout the rest of the state based on a formula tied to economic indicators, including inflation. Although supporters of an increase in the federal minimum wage in Congress have been unsuccessful in persuading enough of their colleagues to make it a reality, President Obama in 2014 issued an executive order that raised the minimum wage for new employees hired under federal contracts to $10.10 per hour in 2015. Small Employer Exemptions State minimum wage laws generally contain exceptions, often designed to shield the smallest employers. For example, Maryland exempts “certain establishments selling food and drink for consumption on the premises grossing less than $400,000 annually,” according to the state’s labor department. Because Maryland’s current hourly minimum wage — $8.75 in most counties — is above the federal $7.25 rate, the effect of the small employer exemption is merely to require those exempted businesses to pay the federal minimum. Although the Fair Labor Standards Act that establishes the federal minimum wage exempts companies with annual revenue below $500,000, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), says this exemption doesn’t apply to workers who are “individually engaged in interstate commerce, the production of goods for interstate commerce, or an activity that is closely related and directly essential to the production of such goods.” Labor market pressures might make it hard to recruit qualified workers for less than an hourly wage of $7.25 in most parts of the country. In addition, as a practical matter, proving that employee labor meets that test would be difficult.
What Do You Know About Mad Cow Disease? It’s as yet typical to understand articles and hear discussions in farming circles about distraught bovine illness. Frequently the conversation is mistaken for Creutzfeldt-Jakob infection in people and Scrapie in sheep. In this way, how about we attempt to explain the circumstance. Spongiform encephalopathy There is a whole classification of cerebrum sicknesses in the two people and creatures that have been thought about for quite a long time. A few of them bring about the auxiliary disintegration of the cerebrum and the passing of the human or creature concerned. In sheep, this sickness is designated “Scrapie” and to the extent is known to clinical science, it has never been given to people from the utilization of sheep items. There is likewise an, extensively, comparative human sickness called “Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease” or “CJD” which has been thought about for quite a while. CJD was a particularly uncommon condition that numerous specialists would have expected to experience their whole vocations and never observe a solitary instance of. To the extent is known, there is no association between Scrapie in sheep and traditional CJD in people. The 1980s It is as yet a subject of exceptional and periodically warmed discussion, as to exactly when this image changed. What is clear is that in the mid to late 1980s, another ailment started to be found in dairy cattle that was immediately recognized as being “Cow-like Spongiform Encephalopathy” or “BSE”. As far as its impacts on the cerebrum of the creature, it looked somewhat like Scrapie in sheep and doubt promptly fell upon European steers taking care of practices that had moderately as of late utilized reused sheep proteins as a feature of cows feed. At first, there were affirmations in Europe from the clinical foundation that there had all the earmarks of being no chance of any perils emerging from the utilization of hamburger items. In spite of the fact that the specialists were at first self-satisfied and delayed to move, in the end crisis measures were established to both stop the potential guilty party staple practices and to butcher and burn contaminated cows. It was however unmistakably perceived that ‘contaminated’ hamburger would definitely have just traveled through into the human natural way of life before the issue had been distinguished and steps taken. Around a similar time, instances of CJD in people began to be accounted for at a recurrence that had recently been incredible. This CJD was distinctive in specific regards from existing CJD and it was immediately given the name “variation CJD” or “vCJD” for short. Despite the fact that the proof has been difficult to decipher and numerous years were gone through with a portion of the world’s most prominent researchers in incensed conflict with one another, it appeared as though some way or another Scrapie had gone from sheep through steers into people, being changed into BSE and vCJD simultaneously. This class of illness is currently commonly acknowledged to be brought about by something many refer to as ‘Prions’, which are fundamentally proteins. All things considered, they can’t be “executed” through anti-toxins or warmth treatment similarly as microscopic organisms or infections. At the hour of composing, 177 individuals are authoritatively recorded as having passed on of vCJD. There is no fix or powerful treatment and in spite of the fact that the recurrence of cases has been far lower than was anticipated during the 1990s, a few specialists call attention to that the sickness may have a hatching time of 10, 20 or even 30 years. Nearby impacts The most exceedingly awful influenced nation on the planet by a long shot was the UK. To the extent is known, there has never been a solitary instance of BSE in our nation. Rural apparatus and related cultivating strategies here never received a portion of the above terrible practices and that is dared to be the motivation behind why we have been so fortunate. The awful BSE adventure is a healthy exercise in the requirement for consistent cautiousness and alert while embracing new creature feed rehearses. Related posts Digital camera: the future of cameras Ancient coins as collections 3 reasons why adsense is essential for content sites
What Are The Causes of Joint Pain? February 21, 2009 by Filed under Joint Pain What are the main causes of joint pain? Arthritis: Arthritis means inflammation of joints. Arthritis is frequently accompanied by joint pain. Osteoarthritis is characterized by the wearing off of the cushioning between two bones in a joint. Rheumatoid arthritis is the body’s immune system working against the joints causing joint pain. Even Lupus does the same mischief as rheumatoid arthritis. In gout arthritis uric acid deposits on joints and causes joint pain. Septic arthritis is an infection which affects the muscles and the fluids around the joint. Such joint pains could be accompanied by low functioning of joints, tenderness, swelling, stiffness, reddening of the skin above and warm sensation in the affected area. Osteonecrosis: This is characterized by low blood supply to the bone because of which they are not able to function properly, become painful and weak, sometimes causing even bone death. Mostly thighs, legs and arms are affected. This can be due to injury, damage or thickening of blood vessels or blockage in the blood vessels which supply oxygen to bones. Joint pain increases on bearing weight with the afflicted bone. Bursitis: Bursitis is the inflammation of bursae which are small fluid filled sacs found between tissues giving cushioning to these tissues. Most of these bursae are found in joints of shoulder, elbow, hips and knees. This can be caused by injury or infection or even rheumatoid arthritis. Here joint pain could be with inflammation, tenderness, pain on movement and sometimes calcium deposits on the bursae. Osteochondritis Dissecans: In this case joint pain is experienced when the bone and the abutting cartilage do not receive enough blood supply. The most likely spots to be targeted by this sort of joint pain are the elbows and the knees. Pain is accompanied with stiff joints limiting the movement of the affected joint. It is yet to be known why they are caused but theories have been postulated on the causes being repeated injuries on that joint or some disturbance in its growth. Chondromalacia patella: This joint pain is characterized by the degeneration of the cartilage underneath the kneecap. The knee makes a grating-grinding sound when stretched, becomes tender to touch and is more painful on the front. It aggravates while climbing on stair and stressing on it to lift oneself from the chair. Sickle Cell Disease: Some people due to hereditary reasons have abnormal haemoglobin due to which the some red blood cells of the body lose shape and even rupture. These cells block the blood carrying vessels. The organs and tissues to which these vessels lead get damaged or ache for want of blood supply. Joint pain ensues with possibly weariness, anemia, inflammation, arthritis, infections, blood collecting at spots, liver congestion, injury to the heart or lungs, ulcers in the legs, bone death, damage to the eyes, abdominal pain, fever, kidney damage, brain damage, etc. Steroid Drug Withdrawal: It takes time for the body to get adjusted to steroids in the first place. But having been on steroids for a long time, the body gets used to these. Once these are withdrawn once again the body suffers. One of the symptoms could be joint pain. Infectious diseases: Diseases like hepatitis, influenza, measles, mumps, rheumatic fever, chickenpox, rubella, lyme disease also cause joint pain. Other Causes: A fracture causes immense pain in the joints. Cartilage getting torn, sprains tearing or stretching of the flexible ligaments around the joints, tendons getting inflamed could cause joint pain. Synovial sarcoma, is the presence of tumour in the tissues close to the joints which give pain to the joint. Bone tumour could also lead to joint pain. Some joint pains are caused due to disturbance in gait. When a person suffers pain, say after an injury, he changes his gait to be least impacted by the pain. This disturbed gait of the person additionally causes joint pain in some other portion of the body. Knowledge is indeed healing. Knowing the cause of joint pain is half the pain conquered. The rest can be conquered with treatments and remedies for joint pain.
• Join over 1.2 million students every month • Accelerate your learning by 29% • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month Assess the view that Industrialisation led to the decline of the extended family and the rise of the nuclear family. Extracts from this document... Assess the view that Industrialisation led to the decline of the extended family and the rise of the nuclear family. Industrialisation is where the country begins to expand in producing secondary goods and services using factories and transport. This allowed extended families to become wage earner that meant they were able to work for someone else other than their selves and their families. This was important as extended families consisted of the children and their parents but also grandparents or aunts and uncles. So having a large family meant everyone had to contribute financially, also with educating the younger generation and be able to look after each other and be seen as doctors for one another. Extended families were very common in Pre- Industrial England because all family members were able to support each other through difficult time and their work would be more physically demanding than Industrial England, but this work would be to support the family as it would be farming on their own land. ...read more. He believed that geographical mobility was caused by Industrialisation which meant individuals had to move around finding work and children were born into achieving their status and state welfare because the state provided more welfare than the family. As in Pre- Industrialisation the family would provide this welfare for other members if they became ill and were taught education from the parents and what they did. Parsons named the father figure in the house the 'instrumental leader' this meant that they had to work and bring money home to support the rest of the family and the females were given the name 'expressive leader' which meant they had to look after and care for the emotional needs of the family. Young and Willmott also agree with Parsons but had their own four stages of life. These were 'The Pre- Industrial Family' were the family worked together on the land and this was the unit of production up until 1750. ...read more. This made is more believable and he carried out research through a long period of time and this therefore may have been the correct information. Anderson based his research in the 1851 census on the town of Preston. He found that during early Industrial families they were not extended. He disagreed with Parsons view that the extended unit had been replaced by the nuclear family. This is because large number of households, he found to have shared extended kin. He found these extended kin are s mutual support system in a town where unemployment and poverty were high. In conclusion I think that during Pre- Industrial England that they was a mix of nuclear and extended families, but as Industrialisation came into place, families became more nuclear as geographical mobility was a big part of them living a good life so it was better suited in a nuclear family to move around as having a large family would increase stress and may have been financially straining. ?? ?? ?? ?? Tayyibah Ali Sociology ...read more. The above preview is unformatted text Found what you're looking for? • Start learning 29% faster today • 150,000+ documents available • Just £6.99 a month Not the one? Search for your essay title... • Join over 1.2 million students every month • Accelerate your learning by 29% • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month See related essaysSee related essays Related AS and A Level Family & Marriage essays Sociology. 2nd Edition. United States: Oxford University Press Inc. Dyer, Claire (1999): 'Let's Stay Together', Guardian, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/1999/oct/25/law.theguardian1 Haralambos, M. and Holborn, M, 2008. Sociology Themes and Perspectives. 7th Edition. In the past women were trapped in unhappy marriages with very few options. With the introduction of state benefits, fairer divorce settlements and greater opportunities for women at work, they now have greater independence. However, Feminists do not take into account the effect that divorce and lone parent families can have on children. 1. Industrialisation and the family Both these functionalists theories that industrialisation caused multifunctional extended family to transform into isolated nuclear families. On the other hand, Laslett (1972) was a historian who conducted a study that showed that industrialisation had no effect on the family and that nuclear families were the norm of pre-industrial Britain, as industrialisation occurred half way through his study (1700) 2. Outline and discuss the view that the nuclear family is the ideal family Chester 1985 has accepted that women were increasingly making a contribution to household finances by taking paid employment. Robert Chester offers a more contemporary view that is supportive of the nuclear family. He said "most adults still marry and have children; most children are reared by their natural parents. 1. Decline of nuclear family Single motherhood is often a temporary and transitional phase between separation and divorce and remarriage. It is generally not a permanent state, but the result of marital or relationship breakdown. Gans argued that there is very little evidence to support the New Right's claims that single parenthood is connected to 2. Sociology Family Revision Notes have been transformed by greater choice and equality Contraception ? sex and intimacy rather than reproduction for reproduction Feminism ? more opportunities for women Couples are free to define their relationships rather that defined by law or tradition e.g. cohabit rather that marriage. importance, goes on to say hospitals and schools have improved but have not taken the functions away from the family. Ansely ? Criticises the warm bath theory negatively, she states that it helps maintain capitalism by soaking up the anger of workers so they take it out on their wives, 2. Is the nuclear family in decline? From the Marxist-feminist view (Barrett and Mc In tosh 1991) did suggest that the nuclear family is presented as an ideal for us all to aspire to, and this makes the concepts of family ?anti social? as it presents other forms of family as inferior. • Over 160,000 pieces of student written work • Annotated by experienced teachers • Ideas and feedback to improve your own work
A theory that explains the behaviour of a Belgian group of teenagers. Should key events in the historical development of the human sciences always be judged by the standards of their time? This does not matter in the natural sciences. Something similar happens in psychology. Are predictions in the human sciences inevitably unreliable? In this podcast, the main author and economist behind the study discusses the fallout and criticism from that case but more importantly discusses several important concepts related to the human sciences and how people acquire knowledge generally. To learn more about our very real, very physical need for romantic love, Helen Fisher and her research team took MRIs of people in love -- and people who had just been dumped. If two competing paradigms give different explanations of a phenomenon, how can we decide which explanation to accept? When intervening in peoples lives – even with good intentions – we need to check whether we are doing them any damage. The journal aims to attract papers in the fields of evolutionary anthropology, cultural evolution, human biology, evolutionary medicine, anthropological genetics, phylogenetics, paleoanthropology and evolutionary approaches to psychology, cognition, language, economics, archaeology, primatology, politics and anything else that can be considered to be part of the evolutionary human sciences. After all, it makes us more aware of the potential harm we might inflict on others, which could prevent future immoral actions. Is “big data” changing the methodologies of the human sciences? There are some areas we cannot research for moral reasons. How is the city the greatest human invention? Current methodology in human sciences may seem sophisticated, yet we could question to which extent we can study human beings in a scientific manner. Subscribe HERE. https://quillette.com/2019/02/23/motivated-reasoning-is-disfiguring-social-science/?fbclid=IwAR2CVIZg98n-3URoBvzgAAdWJGypTl4QMkDMR6WfqlIiIJHQGCCUwk5NmVQ, Interestingly, here is another post from the same publication coming to the opposite conclusion about spanking which also speaks to the nature of the production of knowledge in the human sciences, https://toktopics.com/2018/02/04/the-spanking-debate-is-over-how-can-we-prove-anything-in-the-human-sciences/, For questions, broken links, props, plaudits or praise, please contact: [email protected], Freakonomics Podcast: Is New York City Over? Psychiatric therapies have never been atheoretical – psychiatrists have always justified their treatments with some school of thought: Freudian psychodynamic theories placed blaPsychiatric therapies have never been atheoretical – psychiatrists have always justified their treatments with some school of thought: Freudian psychodynamic theories placed blame on early childhood and subconscious urges; behaviourism justified the application of pain to try and train people out of wrongthink; and more recently, chemical imbalance theories were used to advertise pharmaceuticals, despite the narrative of simple dopamine and serotonin dysfunctions having been long dismissed in academic circles…Psychiatry today can be considered a discipline in crisis, surviving only because psychological and pharmaceutical treatments are effective for some people, some of the time, and so we still need them…. Consequently, history uses its own methods to gain knowledge about the (recorded) past. In 1973, after gay rights protestors had stormed an APA meeting…the APA called a vote to reconsider homosexuality’s status as a mental disorder. Longer read but really thoughtful discussion of the scientific method and its limits but also reflects on the extent to which we can know about things the closer we get to them and the more information we can gather. he age-old nature versus nature debate. Hayek on the importance of humility and limitations of Economics and the social sciences in general. GLAESER: It is the machine that makes all the other inventions possible, right? Maybe try a search? What is the self? TED: how can we predict the next financial crisis? https://theconversation.com/charities-arent-doing-enough-to-determine-if-theyre-really-making-a-difference-95110, Similar to an older post “How do we measure the effectiveness of charitable giving?”, https://toktopics.com/2015/02/22/how-can-we-measure-the-effectiveness-in-charitable-giving/. The fact that economists, with relatively rare exception, cannot conduct controlled laboratory experiments which allow a focus on the behavior of a small handful of variables does not render the knowledge arrived at by economic scholarship – observation, research, and reasoning – unscientific…. An astronomer can feel comfortable calling a faraway star’s path a line, even though it may curve out there at the edge of the universe; he can assume the scientific method has revealed the truth, and it will likely never be disproven. So what does this imply? What role does mathematics play within the human sciences? The fascinating “Cambridge-Somerville Youth Study”, Motivated Reasoning Is Disfiguring Social Science, Imagination Materials, Handouts, Activities, AI is wrestling with a replication crisis, Data Analytics and Sports. The object of study of history is quite unique because the past is, well... in the past. Worthwhile article that examines the nature of knowledge in the social sciences as well as its limitations caused by human limitations and the structure of our institutions that produce knowledge. Phrenology, for example, is no longer considered to give us reliable knowledge within psychology. All of this is a great representation of the methods of the human sciences and of economics in particular. We steal each other’s ideas with some degree of regularity. Although the Phillips curve showed a correlation between the two aspects, there was not necessarily a relationship of causation. Our unique TOK newsletter connects you with what’s going on in the world right now, and helps you to explore it meaningfully. This is the level on which social scientists, human scientists, and psychologists work, and, unlike faraway stars, human life is something that we know Continue reading ““The Limits of Science” About the scientific method and its impact, applying it to the human sciences”. TED blog: further readings in game theory, Article on Nobel prize for behavioural economics (Nudge theory). Instead, they were told they had to take part in a memory experiment. Human behaviour is fascinating. We learn from each other. Article on the nature of economics and the Nobel prize. Homicide, it’s a bit of a mystery. It may also be morally wrong to gather information about human behaviour in some situations. The “Cambridge-Somerville Youth Study” was a fascinating study in constructing knowledge in the human sciences but more importantly, using scientific methods to come to conclusions that seem to be completely counterintuitive: that mentorship programs can do more harm than not intervening in the lives of children considered at risk. But as a doctor, I can’t focus on a few facts to the exclusion of others, for life is the level on which I work. Human sciences refer to the areas of studies that interpret and examine human behaviours, experiences, activities, thought processes etc. (Psychology today), Human behaviour is largely context dependent. When. And so, if people aren’t out and about, then there aren’t witnesses and bystanders who might deter violent crime or violent confrontations among people that perhaps don’t care about stay-at-home orders. However, their very presence may still affect the way people behave and lead to inaccurate knowledge. Voting to decide whether a condition is a disease is not the sign of a mature science, yet to this day consensus alone is the deciding factor of whether a mind is deemed disorderly…. What assumptions underlie the methods used in the human sciences? The human sciences aim to describe and explain human behaviour of individuals or members of a group. In addition, we need to ensure that the way in which we gather knowledge is morally justifiable. 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Stem cells used to promote quick and precise bone healing The full results of this study were published in Nature Communications. Boosting the blood system after life-saving therapy John Chute: Photo courtesy UCLA HIV eliminated from mice using CRISPR and LASER ART Dr. Kamel Khalili The full results of this study were published in Nature Communications. Muscle stem cells provide insight into treatment of muscular dystrophies and aging muscles Dr. Alessandra Sacco, associate professor in the Development, Aging and Regeneration Program at Sanford Burnham Prebys. Muscles are a vital part of the body that enable us to walk, run, lift, and do everyday activities. When muscles start to deteriorate, we start to have difficulty performing these activities, which severely limits quality of life and autonomy. Typically, this becomes more commonplace as we age and is known as sarcopenia, which affects nearly ten percent of adults over the age of 50 and nearly half of individuals in their 80s. However, there are other instances where this happens much more rapidly and early on due to genetic disease. These are commonly known as muscular dystrophies, which consist of more than 30 genetic diseases characterized by progressive muscle weakness and degeneration. A cure does not currently exist. Regardless of the cause of the muscle deterioration, scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys have uncovered how to potentially promote growth inside stem cells found within the muscle, thereby promoting muscle growth. In a mouse model study funded in part by CIRM and published in Nature Communications, Dr. Alessandra Sacco, senior author of the paper, and her team describe how a signaling pathway, along with a specific protein, can help regulate what muscle stem cells do. Muscle stem cells can do two things, they either become adult muscle cells or self-renew to replenish the stem cell population. The paper discusses how the signaling pathway and specific protein are crucial for muscle stem cell differentiation and muscle growth, both of which are needed to prevent deterioration. Their aim is to use this knowledge to develop therapeutic targets that can aid with muscle growth. Dr. Alessandra Sacco is quoted in an article as saying, “Muscle stem cells can ‘burn out’ trying to regenerate tissue during the natural aging process or due to chronic muscle disease. We believe we have found promising drug targets that direct muscle stem cells to ‘make the right decision’ and stimulate muscle repair, potentially helping muscle tissue regeneration and maintaining tissue function in chronic conditions such as muscular dystrophy and aging.” Targeted treatment for pediatric brain tumors shows promising results Image of medulloblastoma Stories that Caught Our Eye: New ways to heal old bones; and keeping track of cells once they are inside you broken bones How Youth Factor Can Help Repair Old Bones As we get older things that used to heal quickly tend to take a little longer to get better. In some cases, a lot longer. Take bones for example. A fracture in someone who is in their 70’s often doesn’t heal as quickly, or completely, as in someone much younger. For years researchers have been working on ways to change that. Now we may be one step closer to doing just that. We know that using blood stem cells can help speed up healing for bone fractures (CIRM is funding work on that) and now researchers at Duke Health believe they have figured out how that works. The research, published in the journal Nature Communications, identifies what the Duke team call the “youth factor” inside bone marrow stem cells. It’s a type of white blood cell called a macrophage. They say the proteins these macrophages produce help stimulate bone repair. In a news story in Medicine News Line Benjamin Alman, senior author on the study, says: “While macrophages are known to play a role in repair and regeneration, prior studies do not identify secreted factors responsible for the effect. Here we show that young macrophage cells play a role in the rejuvenation process, and injection of one of the factors produced by the young cells into a fracture in old mice rejuvenates the pace of repair. This suggests a new therapeutic approach to fracture rejuvenation.” Next step, testing this in people. A new way to track stem cells in the body It’s one thing to transplant stem cells into a person’s body. It’s another to know that they are going to go where you want them to and do what you want them to. University of Washington researchers have invented a device that doesn’t just track where the cells end up, but also what happens to them along the way. The device is called “CellTagging”, and in an article in Health Medicine Network, Samantha Morris, one of the lead researchers says this could help in better understanding how to use stem cells to grow replacement tissues and organs. “There is a lot of interest in the potential of regenerative medicine — growing tissues and organs in labs — to test new drugs, for example, or for transplants one day. But we need to understand how the reprogramming process works. We want to know if the process for converting skin cells to heart cells is the same as for liver cells or brain cells. What are the special conditions necessary to turn one cell type into any other cell type? We designed this tool to help answer these questions.” In the study, published in the journal Nature, the researchers explain how they use a virus to insert tiny DNA “barcodes” into cells and that as the cells travel through the body they are able to track them. Morris says this could help scientists better understand the conditions needed to more effectively program cells to do what we want them to. “Right now, cell reprogramming is really inefficient. When you take one cell population, such as skin cells, and turn it into a different cell population — say intestinal cells — only about 1 percent of cells successfully reprogram. And because it’s such a rare event, scientists have thought it is likely to be a random process — there is some correct set of steps that a few cells randomly hit upon. We found the exact opposite. Our technology lets us see that if a cell starts down the right path to reprogramming very early in the process, all of its related sibling cells and their descendants are on the same page, doing the same thing.” Stem Cell Roundup: Protein shows promise in treating deadliest form of breast cancer: mosquito spit primes our body for disease Triple negative breast cancerTriple negative breast cancer is more aggressive and difficult to treat than other forms of the disease and, as a result, is more likely to spread throughout the body and to recur after treatment. Now a team at the University of Southern California have identified a protein that could help change that. The research, published in the journal Nature Communications, showed that a protein called TAK1 allows cancer cells from the tumor to migrate to the lungs and then form new tumors which can spread throughout the body. There is already an FDA-approved drug called OXO that has been shown to block TAK1, but this does not survive in the blood so it’s hard to deliver to the lungs. The USC team found a way of using nanoparticles, essentially a tiny delivery system, to take OXO and carry it to the lungs to attack the cancer cells and stop them spreading. triple_negative_breast_cancer_particle_graphic-768x651In a news release Min Yu, the principal investigator on the team, said that although this has only been tested in mice the results are encouraging: “For patients with triple-negative breast cancer, systemic chemotherapies are largely ineffective and highly toxic. So, nanoparticles are a promising approach for delivering more targeted treatments, such as OXO, to stop the deadly process of metastasis.” Mosquito spit and your immune system Mosquito bite: Photo courtesy National Academy of Sciences Anyone who has ever been bitten by a mosquito knows that it can be itchy and irritable for hours afterwards. But now scientists say the impact of that bite can last for much longer, days in fact, and even help prime your body for disease. The scientists say that every time a mosquito bites you they inject saliva into the bite to keep the blood flowing freely. But that saliva also has an impact on your immune system, leaving it more vulnerable to diseases like malaria. OK, so that’s fascinating, and really quite disgusting, but what does it have to do with stem cells? Well, researchers at the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Malaria and Vector Research Laboratory in Phnom Penh, Cambodia engrafted human stem cells into mice to study the problem. They found that mice with the human stem cells developed more severe symptoms of dengue fever if they were bitten by a mosquito than if they were just injected with dengue fever. In an article in Popular Science Jessica Manning, an infectious disease expert at the NIH, said previously we had no idea that mosquito spit had such a big impact on us: “The virus present in that mosquito’s saliva, it’s like a Trojan horse. Your body is distracted by the saliva [and] having an allergic reaction when really it should be having an antiviral reaction and fighting against the virus. Your body is unwittingly helping the virus establish infection because your immune system is sending in new waves of cells that this virus is able to infect.” The good news is that if we can develop a vaccine against the saliva we may be able to protect people against malaria, dengue fever, Zika and other mosquito-borne diseases. Photos of the week RMI IntestinalChip Young mouse heart 800x533 Stem cell injection improves muscle function in muscular dystrophy mice How to build a better brain (blob) Brain cake. Yum. A more efficient way to make iPS cells Zika mosquito Zika virus could impact adult brains Jennifer Lopez: Photo courtesy MTV Greater precision Hormone that controls if and when fat cells mature
Mod 3 speech outline Philosophy of law "But what, after all, is a law? Normative jurisprudence asks "what should law be? The concept of "natural law" emerged in ancient Greek philosophy concurrently and in connection with the notion of justice, and re-entered the mainstream of Western culture through the writings of Thomas Aquinasnotably his Treatise on Law. Hugo Grotiusthe founder of a purely rationalistic system of natural law, argued that law arises from both a social impulse—as Aristotle had indicated—and reason. Mod 3 speech outline There are three places from which to access assignments. The first is the To Do list Awhich opens as soon as you sign into Connect. This list contains the most pressing assignments from all of your classes: You can also access assignments from your Calendar A and choose to see them by day, week or month B. You can also use the Classes Mod 3 speech outline B and select the class there C. Here you can find: LearnSmart can even identify your level of confidence. LearnSmart requires you to identify how well you think you know an answer before allowing you to answer it. Select one of the four options A to answer the question. Use the progress bar B to track your status at any time while taking the assignment. Note that you can provide feedback about question or assignment content by clicking the comment icon C. Click the Assignment tab A to see a list of all of your LearnSmart assignments. Jewish Involvement in Immigration and Anti Free Speech Legislation - France To return to Connect, click Leave Assignment B. Click My Reports A to learn more about your performance and learning status. You can view sections you struggled with most, find more challenging sections and review the accuracy of your self-assessment, among other things. The Recharge attempts are for study purposes only and will not be graded. Then click Begin B. On the Connect welcome page, click Register A. by Miles for the Saker Blog. If you look at western press and punditry as of late in regards to Russia or Putin (which, for some reason is basically the same in western MSM’s perceptions) or, more specifically, in regards to Putin’s address to Federal Assembly of Russia, you would inevitably get the impression that all he talked about was weapons. - general information about attempts and scoring (D) - information about utilizing resources (E) Click Let’s go! (F) to take the assignment. Remember: Seeing this page means your assignment attempt was automatically started, and, if . select a topic, analyze the audience, state the speech purpose, compose a thesis, develop the main points, gather supporting materials, separate the speech into its major parts, outline the speech, consider presentation aids, practice delivering the speech. Enter your email address A and click Submit B. Choose one of three ways to register for your class: Courtesy access is particularly useful for students who are awaiting financial aid and for those who may drop the class. Review the class for which you are registering. Then click Continue A. Then click Complete My Registration B. Fundamentals of Speech Communication This also indicates that your Canvas account and Connect account are linked together. From here you can go to Connect A or return to Canvas B. Return to Canvas at any time by clicking the Return to Registering for Connect from Canvas For information about your scores, reports and overall performance in specific classes, click the Results menu A and then the class B. Then select the assignment you want to take B. Click Launch A to open your assignment.The four modes of speech delivery are memorization, manuscript, impromptu and extemporaneous. Each term refers to the method used by the speaker in delivering a speech. Memorized speeches are delivered after extensive rehearsal and memorization. Mod 3 speech outline Generally, the speaker writes a speech and attempts to. The writing of Heraclitus (c. – c. BC) was the first place where the word logos was given special attention in ancient Greek philosophy, although Heraclitus seems to use the word with a meaning not significantly different from the way in which it was used in ordinary Greek of his time. For Heraclitus, logos provided the link between rational discourse and the world's rational structure. In France the Jewish organization LICRA and CRIF which represents the Jews of France which are the driving forces in the promotion of hate speech legislation. The present laws in France which make it a crime to argue for free historical research, have been created according to Jewish demands, were supervised by Chief Rabbi René Samuel Sirat, . Apr 13, · David Segovia COMM Public Speaking Speech 1. The New Nicotine Alliance (UK), a registered Charitable Organisation #, is concerned with improving public health, through a greater understanding of . If you are using the JIP LN NVSE Plugin optional "" file to override the standard INI file settings, make sure it has been changed as well.. For other texture problems, see the TESTG Troubleshooting section.; Mod Conflict Isolation. If you have to isolate a mod conflict, try first "disabling" half your mods, and testing. Fallout NV Mod Conflict Troubleshooting - Nexus Wiki
Question: What Are The Signs Of Lupus In Dogs? What is usually the first sign of lupus? Other symptoms include: Sun sensitivity.. How do you treat lupus in dogs? Treatment of Lupus in Dogs Prednisone, prednisolone, azathioprine, and cyclophosphamide are most commonly used in lupus patients but thymosin fraction V and levimasole may also be tried if the other drugs are not helping. If anemia is also present in a dog with SLE, surgical removal of the spleen may be necessary. What does a lupus attack feel like? What happens if Lupus is left untreated? What are the 4 types of lupus? The four types of lupus are Lupus dermatitis, SLE, drug-induced lupus, and neonatal lupus. erythematosus (SLE). What is the best yogurt for dogs? Greek yogurtDogs should only eat plain yogurt with no added sugar. Greek yogurt is the best choice for dogs. It has significantly less lactose than regular yogurt. Kefir, yogurt’s smooth, drinkable cousin, is also low in lactose and safe for dogs. What are the symptoms of lupus in dogs? What happens when a dog develops SLE?Lethargy.Decreased appetite.Lameness that appears to move from limb to limb.Skin signs that may include redness, thinning, localized ulceration, loss of pigment, and thinning or loss of hair.Fever.More items… How do they test for lupus in dogs? By processing the skin sample and examining it under a microscope, the pathologist will be able to determine whether your dog has DLE. Dogs with DLE often have secondary bacterial infections in affected areas. How do I know if my dog has an autoimmune disease? Dr. Shearer explains that an autoimmune disease may present itself with “a change in the pet’s daily activities, a decline in energy and decreased appetite.” Symptoms of autoimmune disease in dogs “vary from the inability to function to mild weakness,” she adds. How do u get lupus? What can trigger autoimmune disease in dogs? environmental pollutants play a role.” The cause or causes of autoimmune disease are not fully understood, although some theorize that genetics and/or environmental pollutants play a role. Ultraviolet (UV) exposure is thought to be a predisposing or “triggering” cause of autoimmune skin diseases in some dogs. Do autoimmune diseases go away?
Shale Gas Fracking Causing Friction in the UK by Dominique Curtis Controversy in the UK community has sparked over shale gas. Whitmarsh (2015) discusses how shale gas is the newest project the UK government has suggested to help reduce their reliance on energy ports. The community has questioned the UK’s method of fracking to extract the shale gas because fracking is known to use large amounts of water and the chemicals used in the process are toxic. Researchers and the UK government have tried to explain the great benefits that shale gas will have on the economy and the environment while attempting to pacify the communities’ concerns. Environmental groups still protested about how fracking will contaminate and decrease the availability of water supply, and cause erosion and changes in the temperature of the water in aquatic habitats. Continue reading How Well Does CO2 Adsorb onto Shale? by Emil Morhardt Using Supercritical CO2 Instead of Water for Fracking by Emil Morhardt Shale Gas Development Poses Threats to Regional Biodiversity by Shannon Julius The Fracking Fallacy by Emil Morhardt The December 4, 2014 issue of the scientific journal Nature takes the position that the current abundance of natural gas in the US derived from horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing may be a much shorter-term phenomenon than most analysts have thought. In both an editorial and an opinion piece (not however in a scientific paper) the journal takes issue with the US Energy Administration’s (USEA) assessment that natural gas production in the US will continue to grow for a quarter century, at least. Nature relies on the opinions of a team of researchers at the University of Texas, and cites a 2013 paper (Patzek, 2012)) by members of the team which now consists of a dozen geoscientists, petroleum engineers, and economists. That paper examines extraction data from 2,057 such wells in the oldest US shale play, the Barnett Shale in Texas, and concludes that they started to decline at an exponential rate in ten years or less, and goes on to predict the total amount of gas that will be produced by their overall sample of 8,294 wells; 10–20 trillion standard cubic feet over the next 50 years. Continue reading Fracking: Fix it or Forget It? Global Gas and Oil Prices Falling. by Emil Morhardt Daniel E. Klein, an energy industry consultant, writes an interesting piece about fracking problems in Natural Gas & Electricity, an industry newsletter. His approach is to look at the prognostications of the Energy Information Administration Annual Energy Outlook (AEO)—pretty much the bible of energy projections—as they have changed from 2000 to projections of where we will stand in 2040. For example, there wasn’t much shale gas until 2005 and in 2005 the AEO predicted that US natural gas imports would increase sharply in the near future. The 2014 projection, however shows the opposite: a steady increase in US exports, at least through 2024. Similarly, “peak oil” in the US has also been reversed by shale oil production, with the crude oil production in 2013 the highest in 25 years, and imports falling sharply, at least so far. Yesterday, the news was that OPEC was debating, on the one hand, decreasing oil production, so as to increase global oil prices and therefore revenues (four members wanted that), or letting production stand so as to lower prices even further to put price pressure on American fracking operations. The latter option won, at least until June when OPEC meets again, but in the short term oil prices will have little effect on American oil operations. Continue reading by Shannon Julius Marcellus Shale Gas Wastewater Management by Shannon Julius Why Fracking Works by Emil Morhardt
Fire Alarms Fire alarms are specially installed to monitor hazards in large buildings, or in high-risk locations. A typical fire alarm uses a network of different devices, including smoke alarms, pull stations, carbon monoxide alarms, and heat detectors, to monitor for fires. If a fire is detected, the alarm goes off. When the alarm goes off, a loud sound is played through sirens that are strategically placed through the location, signaling the occupants to leave immediately through their pre-established escape routes. Additionally, most alarms are programmed to immediately call the local fire department. The use of fire alarms has been instrumental in cutting down on both loss of property, and loss of human life, in many locations across the globe. Fire alarms can be found in factories, schools, large corporate offices, and more. In fact, many insurance companies will offer you a discount for having a fire alarm installed. Call our alarm manager to schedule an appointment today!
Space exploration Space exploration is the discovery and exploration of outer space by means of space technology. Physical exploration of space is conducted both by human spaceflights and by robotic spacecraft. While the observation of objects in space, known as astronomy, predates reliable recorded history, it was the development of large and relatively efficient rockets during the early 20th century that allowed physical space exploration to become a reality. Leave a Reply
What Is FDA Orphan Drug Status? What are the benefits of orphan drug status? The purpose of the designation was to create financial incentives for companies to develop new drugs and biologics for rare diseases. These incentives include a partial tax credit for clinical trial expenditures, waived user fees, and eligibility for 7 years of marketing exclusivity [1].. When was the Orphan Drug Act passed? 1983Provisions of the Orphan Drug Act Congress passed the Orphan Drug Act of 1983 to stimulate the development of drugs for rare diseases. Are orphan drugs FDA approved? Since the Orphan Drug Act was signed into law in 1983, the FDA has approved hundreds of drugs for rare diseases, but most rare diseases do not have FDA-approved treatments. What is considered an orphan drug? Are orphan drugs profitable? What does Orphan mean? Is Albuterol an orphan drug? Albuterol, designated as an orphan drug for prevention of paralysis due to spinal cord injury, is indicated for the relief of bronchospasm, a common condition. Why are orphan drugs so expensive? Due to a much smaller patient pool and the higher cost of launching on the market, orphan medicines appear less profitable for the pharmaceutical companies to invest in, as the unit cost is significantly higher, compared to more commonly prescribed drugs. Why are they called orphan drugs? Orphan drugs are medications or other medicinal products used to treat rare diseases or disorders. They are called “orphan drugs” because due to their limited market, few pharmaceutical companies pursue research into such products. Why is ALD called an orphan disease? What is orphan indication? Orphan indications, on the other hand, have no definitive and convincing treatment. A frequent disease can be orphan, if there is no treatment. The overlapping of these two terms occurs when the cost of normal drug development is in conflict with the frequency (market size). What is orphan drug exclusivity? • The exclusivity granted to orphan drugs provides seven years without generic competition for the approved orphan designation but does not prevent generic competition for other approved uses of the medicine. • Orphan exclusivity continues longer than patent protection in only 60 of the 503 orphan-designated medicines. What is an orphan drug quizlet? orphan drug. a drug that is used to treat an orphan disease. – it doesn’t mean the drug is rare. orphan drug act. incentivizes manufacturers to research and develop drugs for orphan diseases. What are the 7000 rare diseases? You can find a list of all the 7,000+ rare diseases on the Orphanet website.Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. Prevalence: roughly 1 in 2,000,000. … Ehlers Danlos syndrome. Prevalence: Unknown. … Tyrosinemia type 1. Prevalence: Unknown. … Duchenne muscular dystrophy. … Cystic fibrosis. … NGLY-1 deficiency. How do I find out my orphan drug status? Orphan drug status can be granted for new drugs, already approved drugs, or drugs that are already on the market. However, if the drug is already approved, the sponsor must submit a plausible hypothesis on how the drug is clinically superior to previous drugs or undeveloped drugs. Does insurance cover orphan drugs? Only a small number of orphan drugs (5) are not covered by any payer. And, more than one-third of the orphan approvals (46) are covered by all payers. The median payer covers 93% of orphan approvals. What are examples of rare diseases? Examples of rare diseases caused by mutations in single genes include cystic fibrosis, which affects the respiratory and digestive systems (See: Learning About Cystic Fibrosis); Huntington’s disease, which affects the brain and nervous system (See: Learning About Huntington’s Disease); and muscular dystrophies, which … How many Orphan drugs are there? When can you apply for orphan drug designation? The orphan designation is part of the approval process Submitting an orphan designation request is unrelated to the drug approval process. In fact, the orphan application can be filed anytime in the drug development process before NDA/BLA submission, even prior to IND filing. What does FDA fast track designation mean? Fast track is a designation by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of an investigational drug for expedited review to facilitate development of drugs which treat a serious or life-threatening condition and fill an unmet medical need. Fast Track designation must be requested by the drug company.
Early Greek Science This study traces Greek science through the work of the Pythagoreans, the Presocratic natural philosophers, the Hippocratic writers, Plato, the fourth-century B. Skip to content Skip to search. Login to add to list. Lloyd writes clearly, and gives a great understanding of what the ancient questions were and how thinkers tried to come up with answers. Open Preview See a Problem? Lloyd also investigates the relationships between science and philosophy and science and medicine; he discusses the social and economic setting of early Greek science; and he analyzes the motives and incentives of the different groups of writers. Author:Bagar Goltirisar Language:English (Spanish) Published (Last):4 July 2012 PDF File Size:16.58 Mb ePub File Size:5.65 Mb Price:Free* [*Free Regsitration Required] Start your review of Early Greek Science: Thales to Aristotle Write a review Aug 15, Mark Bowles rated it it was amazing It was the awakening of the scientific mind, the opening of the spirit of man to the nature of inquiry, and the beginnings of quantification and experimentation. Lloyd are studies of Greek science from Thales of Miletus in B. D and the decline of ancient science. While the main thesis of both books are the same, their intent is different. Book one concentrates on the development of two key methodological principles of the early Greeks. The books are structured topically with physics, biology, astronomy, and mathematics being the four branches of science that are most closely studied. Lloyd makes numerous anachronistic comparisons throughout the books often stating that a certain theory was successful. He views some of the successes as would a presentist but also explores obvious failures in a diachronical sense. Book one begins with Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes, who are the Milesians that provide the first distinction between the natural and the supernatural. Instead of creating a mythology to explain natural occurrences, such as lightening and thunder, they attempted to give naturalistic explanations. The Milesians main contribution was that they grasped the problems that confronted them and attempted to account for the problem of change with their materialistic, cosmological doctrines. With this idea they were the first to quantify nature and develop deductive methods in mathematics. The study of physical systems and natural science also yielded methodological advancements. While Plato established the first methodological principle of the early Greeks, Aristotle provided the second. Aristotle advocated the idea of empirical research to the process of inves-tigation. His book the Organon details the structure of his axiomatic, deductive system. He felt that the aim of natural science was to reveal causes of natural phenomena. Aristotle contributed to numerous areas of thought including biology, meteorology, and physics. His founding of the Lyceum established a center for research which far exceeded any other previous attempt. Book two begins with the Hellenistic period B. His major contributions were collecting and classifying species of animals and plants. Hellenistic mathematics proved to be the most permanent and lasting contribution of all Greek thought. Archimedes studied statics and problems of the lever; Eratosthenes applied math to geography and made a close determination of the circumference of the earth; and Appolonius studied and coined the terms ellipse, hyperbola, and parabola. Aristarchus was the most successful of the astronomers with his heliocentric model of the heavens. The problems with these astronomers were in their attempts to "save the appearances" so that observation and mathematical reasoning corresponded to each other. In their struggle to do this, they often ignored key data that did not fit the theory. Herophilus studied anatomy and recognized that the brain was the center of the nervous system. His main contribution was in the diagnostic value of the pulse. Erasistratus used mechanical ideas to explain organic processes. He discovered the differences between the veins and arteries and knew the functions of the four main valves of the heart. He failed in his conception that the veins carried air throughout the body. The motives for construction of these devices were for war machines, practical use, and amusement. Technology often was slow to be diffused and taken advantage of. The water wheel exemplified this because of the insufficient water supply and the abundance of slave labor. A successful use of technology that caught on quickly was the pompein rotary mill which used animals to grind grain. The major failure of the Greeks in this area was in the fact that they did not use steam or wind as a motive power for their machines. The main reason for lack of development was that society did not place a great emphasis on these fields. Two great thinkers emerged in the second century A. The first, Ptolemy of Alexandria, wrote the Almagest which became the most comprehensive treaty on astronomy. Problems that arise with Ptolemy are the same as with the fourth century Hellensitic astronomers in that he ignored data to "save the appearances. His main work was in biology and medicine, and he often applied this knowledge to his occupation as surgeon to the galdiators. He performed a vast amount of empirical research by dissecting and vivisecting animals. The main motive of his research was to prove that nature did nothing without order or purpose. Book two ends with a discussion on the decline of ancient science. Lloyd contends that science did not abruptly end after A. The Christians thought that truth came from neither observation nor reason but from divine intervention. With this attitude in power, pagan scientists had a difficult position to work against. Lloyd says that Greek science never really died. It was rediscovered by Kepler and Galileo who studied the works of Plato and Pythagoras in their search for mathematical order. Reviews on the books were extremely positive. In an article in The Classical Journal Vol. He said that Farrington and Stahl failed to consider the science of this period. The American Historical Review Vol. A review of book two in The Classical World Vol. Waite feels that the modern concept of science is reached with the Hellenistic period and particularly with the mathematicians. He recommends these books for any course in ancient science. My own thoughts on these books are also positive, but I do have some criticisms. I agree that modern-day science began with the Greeks as it was they who established the methodological principles that underlie any systematic inquiry. My criticism is with his brief inclusion of technology as a subset of science. Overall, I now feel I have an appreciation for what the relatively few Greeks did in such a diverse and unknown area which is what we call science. With a diachronistic view these men were natural philosophers and mathematicians, but with an anachronistic eye these men were scientists. SAE - JA1012 PDF Early Greek Science: Thales to Aristotle Early life[ edit ] His father, a Welsh physician, specialised in tuberculosis. After a nomadic early education in six different schools, he obtained a scholarship to Charterhouse , where, despite an indifferent academic culture, he excelled in mathematics, and learned Italian from Wilfrid Noyce. The curriculum was biased to classics, which he was advised, misleadingly in his later view, to pursue. He spent a year in Athens — where, apart from learning modern Greek , he also mastered the bouzouki. Career[ edit ] A keen interest in anthropology informed his reading of ancient Greek philosophy, and his doctoral studies, conducted under the supervision of Geoffrey Kirk , focused on patterns of polarity and analogy in Greek thought, a thesis which, revised, was eventually published in He was called up for National Service in He was given the service number G. E. R. Lloyd ISBN 13: 9780393005837 Early Greek science : Thales to Aristotle Related Articles
5 Biggest Video Game Misconceptions You Should Never Believe When it comes to video games, there are countless misconceptions that can be mentioned. This is mainly because of the fact that a lot of people do not really interact with games or gamers. They end up thinking what others say and this is easily a recipe for disaster. While some gamers will seem as if they are only glued to the computer screen, the truth is that they are much more complex than many believe. Games are not actively harmful or socially isolating. With this in mind, let’s jump straight to the point and talk about the biggest video game misconceptions that you should never believe. 1. Video Games Make You More Violent Source: Addiction Center This is definitely the longest-running misconception about video games. The idea is that violent games make players aggressive when in a real world scenario. Obviously, this is an idea that is worrying many, especially since mass shootings are much more common than they should be. While the media was so quick to suggest that video games are responsible for shootings and many other atrocities, studies were conducted and it was proven that this is not the case. Basically, current scientific evidence shows that there is just a very weak link between aggression and games, as it can be seen by a recent study published in Molecular Psychiatry. Unfortunately, there are not enough studies published to show that video games do not cause violent behavior in the eyes of the media and the non-believers. However, the more time passes, the more will surely appear. 2. Video Gaming Is Addictive Source: Serene Retreat The WHO (World Health Organization) included the term “gaming disorder” in the official diagnostic manual. This launched a huge debate among academics. There are scholars that say the diagnostic label can offer access to financial help and treatment for those that are experiencing harm as they play video games. Others decided that the decision was just premature and that there is not enough evidence to prove that gaming addiction is real. We now have access to mixed studies and results. The big problem is how gaming addiction is considered to be a disorder based on the criteria regularly used for categorizing psychological disorders. The criteria do not apply with gaming addiction as it applies to other conditions. Basically, there are situations in which people can become addicted to some games. However, this is not as serious as many believe and it is far less common than most other disorders. In fact, it is much more common to see people that are constantly interested in boost upgrades, like from e2p.com. this can cause people to spend a lot of money on in-game purchases but at the end of the day, everyone is free to do whatever he/she wants with personal funds. 3. Video Games Cause Social Isolation Source: Newport Academy The stereotypical gamer is a teenager that just sits alone in a room and plays video games. It is very easy to understand how this can be seen as being very unhealthy. The problem is that people that promote this misconception do not take into account the highly-social nature of modern games. The best example that the idea of social isolation because of video games is fake is the story of Mats Steen. People thought that he was isolated and withdrawn since he was born with a very damaging disease that stopped him from having a regular life. As his family thought his life was horrible, after his death, it quickly became obvious that his life was very happy and it was lived online, in Blizzard’s World Of Warcraft. Mats was actually surrounded by friends. Many from the online world went to Norway to attend his funeral. For many, playing video games offers a social experience that cannot be achieved through regular real world means. 4. Video Games Are Just A Waste Of Time Source: Wealthy Gorilla How many times did you hear people saying that teenagers should do something else than play video games because they are a waste of time? The problem with this notion is that only the individual can decide what is a waste of time and what is not. For many, video games are art. Would you criticize someone for listening to his favorite music album or watching a favorite TV show? When such things are not seen as a waste of time, it can be seen as being hypocritical that video games are oftentimes mentioned as being a waste of time. Video gaming is widely misunderstood and it is only personal perception that causes people to say this is wasted time. For gamers, playing a favorite game is never a waste of time, it is entertainment. 5. Video Gaming Is Just Entertainment Source: Karma Impact Speaking about entertainment, way too many think that playing video games is just entertainment. In reality, we now know that video games are being used for research purposes and for so many different purposes that go way beyond entertainment. As an example, we can simply look at Sea Hero Quest. This is a game that is practically a virtual laboratory. The game is an experiment. The University College of London is using the data gathered by the game to understand many different things about the players. There are countless examples of video gaming data being used to learn more about humans. How can we consider video games just entertainment when they are used to improve society and our understanding of others? Final Thoughts On the whole, video gaming is a highly subjective topic. Some people love it and some people cannot imagine themselves playing a game and “wasting” time on it. The truth is that when we look at everything with an objective approach, it quickly becomes obvious how many bad things are said about gamers and gaming. Before you blindly think that something someone says about video games is true, look for the research that proves if this is the case or not. When this research does not exist, you simply cannot believe what is said. Video gaming keeps being proven as being beneficial for people. There is a very low possibility that things will change in the future. Please enter your comment! Please enter your name here 6 + 4 =
A low pressure system is moving towards Ireland and Scotland and will cause strong winds and rainfall during the day, especially from late morning (Fig1). Fig1. Synoptic chart valid for 9/11 midday (Met Office). During the night some showers are expected on the Irish Channel, Wales and Western Scotland, instead bright conditions on the south-east. During the morning some showers still possible in these areas. However, from late afternoon moderate/intense rainfall will move eastward from the Atlantic with rainfall on Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Cornwall and by evening also England (with the south-east hit especially on late evening). However, the most intense precipitation will be on the west and south (Wales, northern Ingland ,western Scotland, Cornwall and south-east), instead lighter on the central-northern east coast. The minimum temperatures will be steady in Scotland (5-8°C), and increase in England (5-13°C, highest values in Cornwall). Also the maximum temperatures won’t change, with values (6-10 °C)in Scotland and (8-13°C) in England. The winds will be southerly everywhere until afternoon, when they will turn westerly-south westerly. The strongest winds (moderate/strong) will be on the Irish Channel and English Channel (Cornwall) from late morning to late afternoon, instead in the evening will be moderate on the east and Northern Scotland. The tail of a low pressure system positioned between Scotland and Iceland will cross the UK from early night bringing some showers and milder minimum temperatures, though a high pressure will approach from the Atlantic from late evening. During the night moderate rain is expected in northern Wales, northern England and eastern Scotland, and some showers expected also in the south east. The showers will move eastward during the day, with brighter conditions in central England. By evening, bright conditions mostly everywhere, though some showers possible in Western Scotland. Regaridng the snow, some is expected in the night on the highlands above 400-500 m. The minimum temperatures will increase, with positive values everywhere, with (5-13 °C in England, highest values in the south-east), (5-9 °C) in Wales, and (-1°,6 °C) in Scotland (low values only on the highlands). The maximum will be quite steady, mostly (8-14°C) in central-southern England and Wales, and (5-9 °C) in northern England and Scotland. The winds from southerly during the night will be north-westerly during the day, though light. A low pressure system is moving north of the UK towards Iceland, bringing unsettled conditions (though with no intense rainfall) especially in Scotland and Northern England. During the the night some rainfall is expected on Western Scotland and northern England (mainly Pennines), with moderate rain on the mountanous areas, bright conditions elsewhere. During the afternoon, showers are expected in Wales, Scotland and northern England, with bright conditions on the east, and from the evening some showers are expected also in the south east. Some snow it’s expected still on the highlands during Wednesday evening. The minimum temperatures will decrease especially in England due to bright conditions (0-5 °C mostly everywhere), with negative values (-1,-3 °C) in Wales, highlands and northern England. During the day, milder temperatures are expected especially on southern England (10-13 °C) and Wales (8-13°C), instead still cold in northern England and Scotland (4-10 °C). Finally, the winds will be southerly and light mostly everywhere, with moderate winds in the evening in eastern England. Synoptic chart valid for 31/10/2018. Met Office. Italy weather forecast 30/10/2018 A cold front crosses the country during the night bringing cooler temperatures and more settled conditions especially during the late part of the day, with a high pressure forming north of the Alps. During the night still moderate/intense rainfall on the prealps (from the west to the east) and Toscana, instead lighter rain on the Po valley, Liguria and Tyrrenian coast from Lazio to Campania. Some rain also in Sardinia and Salento (here moderate/intense). During the morning and afternoon rainfall is still expected in the North-east (especially Dolomites and Carnia) and Tuscany, though less intense. Some rain expected in Toscana, Lazio and Umbria. By evening, brighter conditions mostly everywhere, though with some rainfall approaching Piemonte and Val D’Aosta. The snow limit, due to the colder air, will decrease rapidly in the Alps (1200 m on the west and 1500 on the east, though probably lower in the narrowest valleys and in case of intense precipitation). Some snow expected also in northern Appennine above 1500-1600 m. The minimum temperatures will decrease, with values between (6-16 °C )in the north, (highest values are in Liguria), (8-16 °C) in Central Italy and (12-20°C) in the South, with highest values in Puglia. Also the maximum values will decrease with (12-18 °C) in the north, (14-20 °C ) in Central Italy (highest values on the Adriatic) and (18-22 °C) in the south (highest values in Puglia). By the evening the minimum temperatures will be reached also thank to brighter skies: (6-13 °C) in the North, (6-15 °C) in Central Italy and (12-18 °C) in the south. During the night the winds will still strong in the Adriatic and Tyrrenian Sea, though decreasing during the morning (turning westerly in the Tyrrenian sea, instead still south easterly on the Adriatic). UK Weather forecast 30/10/2018 The low pressure system positioned in the central Mediterranean sea is moving northward towards the Baltic sea. However, the UK won’t be interested directly, especially the western part, thus settled weather is expected. However, the east of England and Scotland will see showers during the day as long as an increase in the wind speed and cloudy conditions are expected overnight and early morning especially in England. In the rest of the country settled conditions with bright sky especially in the west (Wales, Cornwall), though from the evening some showers are possible in Northern Ireland and Western Scotland due to an occluded front moving eastward. Due to cloudier sky, minimum temperatures will see an increase, with values mostly between (2-8 °C, highest values on the east coast) and only in Wales, Scotland it could be reach (-1,-2 °C). During the day instead, maximum temperatures will be still below 10 °C mostly everywhere, with 3-5 °C expected on the Highlands. The winds will be mostly northerly and light, but on the east of England and Scotland with moderate winds especially during early afternoon. Italy weather forecast 29/10/2018 A low-pressure system is moving north-eastward from Baleari Islands, bringing strong winds and intense rainfall especially in Northern Italy and Toscana. During the day, a cold front will reach the western part of the peninsula, moving towards the Balkans by evening, causing a decrease in temperatures. During the night rainfall is expected in NW Italy, Toscana, Lazio, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Sardinia, with moderate rainfall on the prealps and Liguria. During the morning, rainfall is expected in all northern Italy and most of central Italy with intense rainfall in the prealps and Liguria. In the afternoon, moderate/intense rainfall is expected especially in Veneto, Trentino, Friuli, Emilia, Toscana, Lazio and Umbria and from mid-afternoon moderate rainfall is expected in Sicilia. More settled conditions instead in the south-east. During the evening breaks in rainfall are expected in Emilia Romagna, Piemonte/Liguria, Sicilia, instead elsewhere unsettled conditions are expected, with moderate/intense rainfall still in North-eastern Italy. Due to the colder air coming from the west, a decrease in the snow limit is expected. During the night/morning snowfall above 2000-2200 m is expected in Val D’Aosta, Piemonte and Lombardia, instead above 2500-2700 on the Dolomites. During the early afternoon, before the coming of the cold front an increase in the snow limit is expected (2500 on the west, 2800 on the east), instead from the afternoon the cooler air will decrease the snow limit by late evening (1200 in Piemonte, 1500 in Lombardia and 1700-1800 in Northeastern Italy). Some snow possible also in the Appennines in Emilia, above 1800 m. The temperatures will still be very mild, especially in central-southern Italy, and the minimum values will be reached during late evening. In the morning expected (12-18 °C) in Northern Italy, (14-20 °C) in Central Italy and (14-22 °C) in Southern Italy. The maximum will be (16-20 °C) in the north, (16-22 °C) in central Italy, with the highest values on the adriatic coast due to less precipitation and winds coming from the Appennines and (20-24 °C) in the south, with highest values in Molise, Puglia and northern Sicilia. Finally, on late evening (10-14 °C) in the north, (12-16°C) in Central Italy and (14-22 °C) in the south, with the highest values in Puglia. Finally the winds will be very strong during the night and morning in the Tyrrenian Sea and southern Adriatic (southerly), instead easterlies and light in the Po valley. In the afternoon increase in the southerlies in the Adriatic, instead in the Genova Gulf strong westerlies are expected. By evening, decrease in the wind speed mostly everywhere, though still moderate in the Genova Gulf (westerlies), Tyrrenian Sea (south-westerly) and central-south Adriatic (southerly). UK forecast 29/10/2018 An anticyclone positioned over Scandinavia brings quite settled conditions over the UK, though with still low temperatures. However, during the day showers are expected on the eastern side of the UK, from Scotland to the English Channel, instead brighter conditions are expected in the rest of the country. From the evening, an increase in cloud cover is expected from the south-east, though with no precipitation. The minimum temperatures will be steady, with values between 0-5 °C mostly everywhere (possible -1,-3 °C in the Highlands and Wales, instead 6-8 °C along the coast in southern England). The maximum temperatures will be still below 10 °C everywhere, with lowest values in Scotland (3-5 °C on the Highlands). Finally, the winds will be easterly/north-easterly over England, southerly in Scotland, and they will be light, though in Western Scotland, especially in the morning, they will be moderate (30-40 mph).
The War of 1812 1054 Words5 Pages The war began with fired-up Americans seeking resolution to their deep-seated resentments toward the British; hard feelings which only festered during the French Revolutionary Wars. Since the American Revolution, the Untied States had long been provoked by the unwillingness of the British to withdraw from the Great Lakes, which was in fact American territory. Meanwhile across the Atlantic, France’s number one megalomaniac, Napoleon, waged economic war with the British in an attempt to secure his dominion of Europe. The French-British war in Europe set in motion the creation of trade embargoes and blockades in 1807 which severely restricted the process of neutral countries trading with Europe. On top of that, both the British and French would seize and search any ship vessel that entered their trade territory. For the U.S., a reluctantly neutral country to the war affairs of Europe, these trade embargoes were the source of much economic pain and all the more reason to fuel their growing distaste for the British. To make matters even worse, in 1807 the Chesapeake-Leopard conflict between two American and British ships occurred, an event that would catalyze the War of 1812. Chesapeake, an American vessel, refused to be searched by the British Royal Navy... ... middle of paper ... ...n time, General Andrew Jackson defeated the British attempt at capturing New Orleans on January 8, 1815, a battle from which he gained the reputation of being a war hero. The War of 1812 certainly gave Americans the edge they needed in order to be respected by other countries that looked upon the infant country with doubt. But when the British, Canadians and American whites who served in the war went home after all was said and done, the Native Indians who participated in the war had no home to go to, for the war had cost them their land, leaving them to move further west while Americans flooded into the new territories that were once Native homeland. Nobody won the war; everybody lost warriors. Yet, the only real losers of the War of 1812 were the eastern Native American Indians who lost their homeland. Works Cited More about The War of 1812 Open Document
Briefly describe common fish pond aerators and their operating methods Briefly describe common fish pond aerators and their operating methods Update:28 Nov 2020 With the development of intensive fish farming and inte […] With the development of intensive fish farming and intensive fish farming, the use of fish pond aerators has become more and more widespread. The aerator has three functions: aeration, water stirring and aeration. Common types of aerators 1. Impeller aerator: suitable for aeration in large ponds with a water depth of 1 meter or more. 2. Waterwheel type aerator: suitable for ponds with deep silt and an area of 1000-2540 square meters. 3. Jet aerator: Aerators with aeration efficiency that exceeds that of waterwheel type and inflatable water spray. It has a simple structure, can form water flow, stir the water body, and can make the water body increase oxygen smoothly without damaging the fish body. It is suitable Use in fry ponds. 4. Water spray aerator: It can quickly increase the dissolved oxygen content of the surface water body in a short period of time, and at the same time it has an artistic viewing effect, suitable for gardens or fish ponds in tourist areas. 5. Inflatable aerator. The deeper the water, the better the effect, and it is suitable for deep-water fish farming. 6. Aeration pump: Because of its light weight, easy operation and single aeration function, it is suitable for use in fry cultivation ponds or greenhouse cultivation ponds with a water depth of 0.7 meters and an area of less than 440 square meters. Safe operation of aerator 1. When installing the aerator, be sure to cut off the power supply. The cable must not be under tension in the pool and must not be pulled as a rope. The cable should be fixed on the rack with a lock clip and shall not be allowed to fall into the water. The remaining part shall be led to the shore power source according to regulations. 2. After the aerator enters the pool, the torque is very large, so you must not take a floating body to observe in front of the aerator. 3. The position of the impeller in the water should be aligned with the "waterline". If there is no "waterline", the upper end surface should generally be parallel to the water surface to prevent overload and burn the motor. The impeller blades are immersed in water to a depth of 4 cm. Too deep will increase the load on the motor and damage the motor. 4. If there is a "buzzing" sound when the aerator is working, check the circuit to see if there is a lack of phase operation. If so, cut off the power supply, connect the fuse, and restart it. 5. The protective cover is a device that protects the motor from water and must be installed correctly. 6. When starting the aerator, closely observe the steering and operating conditions. If there is an abnormal sound, the steering is reversed, and the operation is unequal, the machine should be shut down immediately, and the abnormal phenomenon should be eliminated before the machine is turned on. 7. The working conditions of the aerator is bad, and the user should be equipped with thermal cutouts, thermistor protectors and electronic protection devices. 8. At ordinary times, pay attention to whether there are entanglements or attachments on the impeller, and remove them in time. Check the floating body every year, so as not to reduce the buoyancy due to the abrasion of the floating body, which may increase the load and burn out the motor. 9. When the aerator is launched into the water, the whole should be kept level or moved into the water at a small angle to prevent oil from spilling in the air vent of the reducer. It is strictly forbidden for the motor to come into contact with water, so as not to burn the motor due to water immersion. Correct use of aerator 1. Determine the loading load. The type and load of aerators are generally determined according to the depth, area and shape of the pool. For example, rectangular ponds are of waterwheel type, square or round ponds are of impeller type. The impeller type aerator can basically meet the aeration needs of 2540 square meters of water surface adult fish ponds per kilowatt. Fish ponds of more than 3000 square meters should be considered Assemble more than 2 aerators. 2. Determine the installation location. The aerator should be installed in the center of the pond or at a windward position, more than 5 meters away from the embankment, and fixed with a plunger or anchor. When installing the impeller aerator, ensure that the water flow generated by the aerator during operation will not stir up the silt at the bottom of the pool. Strictly abide by the safe electricity regulations during installation. 3. Determine the boot time. The aerator must be operated under safe conditions, and determine the operating time and timing based on the stocking density of the fish in the pond, water quality conditions, growing seasons, weather changes, and the load of the aerator, so as to be effective without wasting. Therefore, when the summer and autumn are hot, stick to the switch at noon to improve water quality; switch on the next morning on rainy and cloudy days, but not switch on at noon; open at midnight during continuous rain and stop until sunrise; keep on turning on every day during the fast growing season of fish to ensure that the pond has Higher oxygen; the fish floating head should be turned on in time, and can only be shut down after the floating head goes down. The boot length should follow: long boot time on hot days, short boot time on cool days; long boot time in the middle of the night and short boot time at noon; small winds have a long boot time, and winds have a short boot time. Maintenance of the aerator During maintenance, the whole machine should be placed on a dry and flat ground, and the pontoon poles, reduction gearbox, impeller shaft, motor, etc. should be removed one by one. The motor should be checked with Omega meter for insulation, and check whether the terminal is safe and firm, and whether the wire is damaged; the gearbox should be checked one by one for wear and tear of gears, axles, etc., and timely repair and replacement, and whether the oil seal and bearing are intact. If damaged, they should be replaced. Oil should be added after disassembly; the impeller should be cleaned of attachments and rust spots. If the blades are deformed, they should be refurbished and rusted and painted with anti-rust paint; support rods and fasteners should be derusted and painted; threads should also be trimmed; check Whether the float is damaged, if any, it should be welded and painted in time. After maintenance, all parts should be placed in a moisture-proof place to avoid corrosion, and then install into a machine when needed. The aerator should be repaired and maintained after each year to ensure normal operation in the coming year.
Hey all! Welcome to my new blog post. Today, I’m gonna channel my inner professor and try to explain in simple words how the sea urchin larva nervous system is structured and what is a gene regulatory network. Us, humans when we want to perform a task, e.g. picking up our phone, we go through a subconscious process of data collection and configuration before actually performing it. This requires the synchronized firing of different types of neurons (of the central and peripheral nervous system) in order to control muscle targets. Like us, sea urchin larvae have neurons that allow them to perform less complicated tasks like feeding and swimming. In the following figure you can see a sea urchin larva, which nuclei are stained in blue and its neurons in green. Neurons have been stained using the antibody against the SynB protein that is present in every neuron regardless of the neuronal type. So whatever is blue is a nuclei, and whichever cell is green is a neuronal cell. As you can see, the nervous system of the larva at this developmental stage is quite simple, composed of around 50 neurons scattered all around the ciliary band (ciliary band = ciliated cells, whose cilia beat and force the animal to swim) and the digestive system. All those different neurons communicate to each other by projecting axons and forming synapses. The sea urchin nervous system is believed to be compartmentalized into controlling different tasks like food uptake, swimming and response to light. For a neuron to arise, genes that are saying you are gonna become a neuron must be turned on in progenitor cells and genes that say “no you will become something else” must be turned off. So now we’ve reached the second part of this blog post, which is gene regulatory networks. Gene Regulatory Networks are schematic representations showing how gene regulation at a cell type and time point is achieved. Gene regulation implies that not all of the genes encoded in the genome are active at all times and in all the cells of the organism. Indeed, one of the things that make a cell type is the subset of genes expressed in those cells at a specific time point. For instance, let’s go back to our example of a random cell and a neuron. That cell and the neuron cannot have exactly the same molecular signature since they have completely different function. That cell expresses let’s say gene 4 which block the expression of neuronal genes (repressor of gene expression) sealing the identity of that cell as non- neuronal. On the other hand, Genes 1, 2 and 3 are expressed in neurons as Gene 4 is being blocked by Gene 1 allowing Genes 2 and 3 to be activated by Gene 1. This is an oversimplified version of a Gene Regulatory Network just to get a grasp of how those interactions occur. Usually those interactions are complicated, a Gene is receiving multiple signals, activating and repressing signals, until some prevail. I’m not gonna go through more detail on this post, but I hope I was able to, at least, explain the basics of the sea urchin nervous system and of gene regulatory networks. Until next time,
Langsung ke konten utama Origin Of Passion Fruit \| Benefits for health Origin Of Passion Fruit - Passion fruit plants belonging to the genus Passiflora. botanists noted that there are more than 400 species of passion fruit that grows in the world and 40 species of which are from South America, 40 species are from Asia, Australia, and 11 species are from Madagascar. There are currently 20 species that can be consumed. There are 5 (five) types of passion fruit that are cultivated, including the following: No Passion Fruit Types Latin Names Purple Passion Passiflora edulis var. Edulis Origin Of Passion Fruit - benefits for health Sweet Passion / Sweet granadilla Passiflora lingularis Origin Of Passion Fruit - benefits for health Passiflora edulis var. Flavicarpa Origin Of Passion Fruit - benefits for health Giant Passion / Origin Of Passion Fruit - benefits for health Banana Passion Origin Of Passion Fruit - benefits for health Origin Of Passion Fruit \| Benefits for health - Inside the passion fruit there is also an abundant content, which includes energy, protein, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C and many more ingredients in passion fruit. Besides that passion fruit is also good for us to consume directly or it can also be used as juice. + Passion fruit tree Passion fruit trees are scientifically called Passiflora guadrangularis. As a member of the Passiflora family, passion fruit is still a family with passion fruit. Passion fruit trees include shrubs. His life propagates. Therefore this plant has a stem that is small, long, and not rigid. Different from the shape of the plant stem in general, the quadrilateral passion fruit tree. In this stem, besides having leaves and flowers, also grow spiral-shaped tendrils. + Passion fruit Passion fruit with oval shape about 20cm long. The diameter is about 15 cm, while the weight is 3-5 kg. About the size of the papaya fruit in Bangkok. Hmm ... No wonder that passion fruit is called giant passion fruit. Hollow passion fruit. Inside the cavity there are many seeds, just like passion fruit in general. Passion fruit that is ripe, smells good and tastes good. Passion fruit is rarely eaten directly. Usually passion fruit that has been cut into pieces is mixed with syrup and ice, into fruit ice. + Passion fruit flowers Passion flower is a single flower. That is, in one stalk there is only one flower. The flowers are big purple. Consists of many strands that form a bowl. Passion flower is a two-flowered flower (Hermaphrodite). In the "bowl" there is a pistil and stamens. Origin Of Passion Fruit \| Benefits for health - Pollination can occur by itself, it can also be with the help of insects. However, usually passion fruit trees planted at home, pollination is assisted by human hands. Usually with the help of sticks or other objects, humans touch the pistil to the stamens. + Passion fruit types are rare In the past, about 30-40 years ago, many people planted passion fruit. Besides being delicious to eat, passion fruit trees can be used for shade and home decoration. People usually make pergolas on the terrace, where passion fruit stems creep. The house terrace is covered with green passion fruit leaves with purple passion fruit flowers. While passion fruit dangles. It really makes a house beautiful. But that first. Now passion fruit trees are becoming scarce, because rarely do people grow passion fruit trees anymore. This plant can grow at an altitude of 800-1500 m above sea level, the way it develops is generally propagated by cutting and connecting techniques. = Nutrition Content Passion fruit Passion fruit or in Latin, Passiflora quadrangularis, is often known as Passion Fruit or large passion fruit. passion fruit itself comes from tropical regions in South America, namely Brazil, then Venezuela, Colombia and Peru. Then Passion Fruit spread from South America to various countries through the Spanish. In Europe itself Passion Fruit was known in the 17th century, then the 19th century began to be known and planted in South Africa, Hawaii and New Zealand. Here are some properties of passion fruit for health: • 1. As a nerve sedative Passion fruit itself is very efficacious to calm the nerves. This fruit is also a source of several vitamins, especially vitamin C and vitamin A and antioxidants. In an invitro study conducted at the University of Florida also found that fruit extracts contain phytochemicals that can kill cancer cells. South Americans use this fruit traditionally by eating this fruit it can help make it easier to sleep. Even according to them, eating passion fruit before going to bed can make a beautiful dream. Drinking a glass of cold passion fruit juice can help the nerves relax and feel more calm. • 2. As AN anti-seizure This fruit is extremely abundant useful to health like organic process content, efficacious as a pain reliever, anti-seizure, colitis, sedative, and anti inflammatory. Disorders like constipation, diarrhea, insomnia, expelling disorders, cough, hoarseness, dry throat may be driven away by this fruit. passion fruit pulp may be wont to soothe the nerves of headaches, relieve diarrhea and neurastenia ( weakness, insomnia, chronic fatigue, inability to concentrate, and , lack of appetite). • 3. As an anti-cancer In vitro studies at the University of Florida also found that extracts of berries contain many phytochemicals that can kill cancer cells. Phytochemicals include polyphenols and carotenoids. Other phytochemical content in passion fruit is harmol, harman, harmony, passaflorine, harmine, chrysin, carotenoid, vitexin, and isovitexin. While content such as energy, protein, fiber, minerals, calcium, phosphorus, niacin, iron, fat, carotene, thiamine, ascorbic acid, riboflavin, and citric acid. • 4. Good for digestion Passion fruit has a high fiber content. This is very beneficial for digestive, digestive and intestinal tract health to be clean. Seeds from this fruit can be eaten because they contain fiber. Passion fruit can also be used as a mild laxative. Food fiber in passion fruit can improve digestive ability through improving the quality of defecation, is also able to control hemorrhoids, eliminate toxins from the intestine, reduce the risk of colon cancer and improve the overall function of the digestive system. • 5. Rich in vitamin C and antioxidants Antioxidants are found in foods that contain vitamin C, which is responsible for inhibiting the growth of cancer cells in the body. Passion fruit has water and fat-soluble antioxidants. One of the main antioxidants found in this fruit is beta-carotene. Passion fruit is a good source of vitamin C, one serving of 100 g (3.5 ounces) contains 30 mg of vitamin C. This vitamin C can also boost immunity and is an antioxidant. Fruits also contain calcium, flavonoids and other nutrients that fight cancer and other diseases, also improve overall health. • 6. As a medicine for asthma sufferers Passion fruit is very good for people with asthma because the fruit is very nutritious and healthy which can calm asthma attacks. In addition to containing vitamin C, passion fruit has a histamine blocking effect that causes asthma symptoms. Eris fruit has a relaxation effect. • 7. To deal with chronic cough Passion fruit extract is known to be beneficial for asthma, it also can overcome chronic cough. This is because this fruit contains antioxidants which are believed to have the ability to block histamine, reduce inflammation and relieve other symptoms of allergic reactions. • 8. Contains vitamin A Passion fruit is a good source of vitamin A, one serving of passion fruit as much as 100 g contains 1275 IU of vitamin A. Fruits that contain vitamin A improve the quality of vision and help fight infections, while also making skin glow healthy and help cell growth. Fruit that contains vitamin A, will help ward off free radicals and toxins that cause skin and tissue damage. Addition of passion fruit for diet improves skin and vision. In addition, high levels of Vitamin A also help in growth and provide benefits to the reproductive system. • 9. Healthy heart Passion fruit is also a food source that contains potassium (containing 348 mg in every 100 grams). This mineral has a healthy effect on the human heart and helps the function of the heart, blood flow and pressure in the body. The level of potassium they contain is very good so it can regulate contractions in muscle blood pressure in the heart. It is also a potassium counter depleting effect on certain drugs and diuretics. • 10. Good fruit for diet Besides potassium, passion fruit also contains iron, magnesium and calcium. This fruit is recommended for diet for people who are on a diet. This is because passion fruit has low calories, only 97 calories per 100 grams. Passion fruit is also low in sodium and fat. • 11. Can lower cholesterol Passion fruits are also foods that contain carbohydrates and natural sugars in good quantities. Nutrition in this fruit works to reduce cholesterol levels in the body. The high fiber content in this fruit makes those who eat it become full, so they don't want to eat other foods. Blood cholesterol can be reduced through the amount of dietary fiber contained in passion fruit. Studies in healthy mice showed that passion fruit extract can decrease LDL and HDL cholesterol. • 12. Can regulate blood sugar Alkaloids in passion fruit alone have shown benefits in type 2 diabetes by reducing insulin resistance. This causes passion fruit to help regulate blood sugar levels better. In addition to reducing total cholesterol before also simultaneously reducing triglycerides and maintaining blood glucose and maintaining body weight. • 13. Reduce the risk of heart disease in people with blood sugar Passion fruit extract can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in those with type 2 diabetes. It also reduces systolic blood pressure and glucose levels in people with high blood sugar. • 14. As an alternative food Passion fruit contains the highest concentration of total sterols found compared to other fruits. Passion fruit has the second highest sterol content among all fruits and vegetables. Passion fruit is an excellent alternative. • 15. As an anti-inflammatory Passion fruit can increase the level of immunity because the content of vitamin C is rich in antioxidants, thus protecting the body against various infections and diseases. Passion fruit contains around 13 carotenoids in sufficient quantities to make a positive health impact. These carotenoids act either as vitamin A precursors or provide antioxidant activity. • 16. Reducing the pain of patients with knee osteoarthritis Passion fruit extract also reduces pain and stiffness in those with knee osteoarthritis. This is because passion fruit has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity. There has been considerable discussion about the Origin Of Passion Fruit \| Benefits for health. I apologize, if there is an error from this article. Finally, please leave your comments below as support and participation !!! Postingan populer dari blog ini Healthy Strawberry Oatmeal Bars Kiwi and Melon Fruit Smoothie Recipe Strawberry Salad with Warm Goat Cheese Croutons
What is a cataract? By: Jacksoneye November 17th, 2015 Augmented Reality Eye ExamsAmong the various types of eye disorders that can cause problems to one’s normal vision is the cataract. “What is a cataract?” could be one big question that needs a factual answer for anyone who has no medical background. Definition of Cataract The term cataract was derived from the Greek word “cataractos” meaning running water. This eyesight problem is compared to running water that flows continuously and changes its clarity from medium to white, then to cloudy. Same concept is applied to one’s eye condition when diagnosed with cataract, the clarity of the eyes changes. What causes cataract? • Acquired through birth in the form of genetic defects. • Rare cases result to early childhood eye surgery or intraocular inflammation. • Diabetes. • People who smoke are more prone to cataracts. • Prolong usage of statins, tamoxifen, or any type of steroids taken orally, nasally, or inhaled. • Aging process. Are there different kinds of cataract? Cataract formation could affect a person, either as birth defect or part of the aging process. There are various forms of cataract. • Congenital cataracts from birth or early part of childhood. • Cortical cataracts could start when dullness are noticeable on the outer layer of the lens referred as “lens cortex”. • Nuclear cataracts are developed when the central part of the lens is affected. • Subcapsular cataract could happen quickly when dullness affects the lens capsules, leading to faster changes of one’s vision. Signs of cataract development Since the formation of cataract is a gradual process, the person affected may not feel drastic changes to his/her vision or discomfort, but as it advances or progresses, these vision abnormalities can be occur: • Normal vision changes to complete blurriness. • Unable to withstand bright glare from the sun or headlights of any vehicle. • Occurrence of double vision in one eye. Possible treatments The usual medical procedure taken when one complains blurred vision is a complete eye analysis to check for any signs of refractive eye problem like cataracts. If found to have one, here are the prescribed treatments: • During the early signs of cataract development, prescribed eyeglasses may be given to the patient to aid his/her blurred vision. Other corrective measures are advised such as proper lighting conditions to minimize visual discomfort or blurriness. • Cataract eye surgery is performed when eyeglasses no longer help, when eye glare or halos with driving worsen, when any activity of daily living is impaired, when a person’s visual needs at work or with his/her hobby are bothersome, when near vision tasks are blurry especially on computers, kindles, ipads, or cell phones. Cataract could be threatening if left untreated because it could result to permanent eye damage or blindness. A cataract surgery cost is generally affordable and may vary depending on the actual coverage provided by one’s medical insurance plan. Ask your eye specialist if follow-up treatments are included in the after cataract surgery period. Cataract surgery complications are rare but treatable in most cased. Find an experienced cataract surgeon in your area with at least 10,000 case experience.
Did You Know Cheese … history of cheese,types of cheeses,cheese,soft cheeses,hard cheeses,blue cheese,stinky cheeses,mild cheeses,total healthCheese predates history, and the earliest evidence of cheese was found in Egyptian tombs dating to 2000 BCE. So, by the time of the Roman Empire arrived making cheese was an art form. From there cheese and cheese manufacturing expanded, until the first cheese factory opened in the early 1800s in Switzerland. Factory cheese making began to grow by leaps and bounds, until by World War II traditional cheese manufacturing was replaced by factory cheese making. Cheese is generally known as a nutritious product because it provides calcium, protein, and phosphorous. However, it’s also full of saturated fat, which can lead to heart disease and obesity. Some studies have shown that cheese is good for dental health and gum disease prevention. Yet, one problem for some people is their inability to digest cheese, which is known as lactose intolerance. One controversial cheese in the U.S. is raw-milk cheese because it can cause serious health problems including brucellosis, listeriosis, salmonellosis, and tuberculosis. Since 1944 all raw-milk cheese has been required to be aged 60 days. However, there has been an on-going push to have all cheese pasteurized, but that is controversial because some people claim unpasteurized cheese has better flavor, while those for pasteurization note unpasteurized cheese can harm a pregnant woman’s unborn child if she catches one of the infectious diseases listed above. The United States is the world’s top cheese producer, with Germany and France in second and third, respectively. However, France is the world’s largest exporter of cheese. There are also thousands of cheeses to choose from and numerous factors influence the taste of cheese, such as the fat content, the type of milk, the aging process, the texture, or the country or region where it’s produced. There are also numerous types of cheeses, which it makes it difficult to categorize them. However, I’ve divided them into five major categories: mild, stinky, soft, hard, and blue cheese. Mild cheeses are delicate in flavor, subtle on the palate, and usually unripened. Mild cheeses include: • Chèvre. This cheese is one of my favorites. It’s a soft goat milk cheese and has a tart mild flavor. I put it on sandwiches and crackers. You can also buy it flavored with herbs or spices. • Cream Cheese. The first cream cheese in the U.S. was made by William Lawrence in 1872 in Philadelphia, and that’s why it’s so frequently called Philadelphia Cream Cheese. It’s a sweet, mild cheese, and there are numerous variations from veggie to onion to fruit flavors. • Feta. Feta cheese has been around since the Byzantine Empire and is often referred to as pickled cheese. True feta is made from goat or sheep milk and is a traditional brined-curd and aged cheese. It is usually a semi-soft cheese with a salty and lightly tangy flavor. • Mozzarella. Mozzarella is an Italian cheese traditionally made from buffalo milk, but in the U.S. it’s usually made from cow’s milk. It is used in pizza and lasagna and has been around since the 1500s. • Robiola. This Italian cheese is a soft-ripened cheese made from goat, sheep, or cow’s milk or from a blend of the three. It is usually not aged and is considered a table cheese with a mild and slightly sour flavor. Stinky cheeses do just that, stink! They are pungent in odor and have unusual flavors. France is known as the world’s leader in stinky cheese, although other countries, including the United States make some cheeses that stink to high heaven. Stinky cheese include: • Époisses de Bourgogne. Époisses is one of the most odoriferous cow cheeses, and it’s odor is so strong the French prohibit it from being carried on public transit. However, when eaten, it’s a creamy paste washed with brine to deepen its flavor and then finished with wine or brandy to get the traditional orange rind. • Hooligan. This is an American cheese from Connecticut made by Cato Corner Farms. It has a strong aroma but is one of America’s top cheeses. It’s a ripe washed-rind cheese with a soft creamy interior and a gorgeous orange rind. • Limburger. This strong-smelling cheese was created by Belgian Trappist monks, although the Germans soon made it their own. It is a tangy strong-tasting cheese, and Germans insist it be served with beer. • Morbier. This odoriferous cheese is surprisingly mild with a nutty aftertaste. It is aged for at least 60 days, and through its center runs decorative vegetable ash reminiscent of the way it used to be produced in eastern France’s Franche-Comté. • Pont L’Eveque. While this French cheese is a soft cheese, it has a pungent odor, firm consistency, fine texture, and full-bodied flavor. • Taleggio. This Italian cow cheese was around for centuries but became popular worldwide around World War I. It is creamy, aromatic, and flavorful. Soft cheeses are tasty, but they’re not the best cheese to cook with and are actually better to spread on crackers or eat with spoons. • Banon. This soft cheese hails from France and is wrapped in chestnut leaves steeped in brandy. Brie. This is a soft cow milk cheese that originated in the French province of Brie. It’s aged seven days and is soft and savory with a moldy edible rind. • Camembert. This cheese was first produced in the 1700s and is made from unpasteurized cow’s milk ripened by penicillium. Its typically sold in rounds and was given to French soldiers during World War I, which is one reason why Camembert cheese is so strongly identified with French culture. • Forsterkase. This cheese comes from Switzerland and is made from cow’s milk. It’s known as lumberjack’s cheese and has a earthy, woody flavor with a silky smooth texture. • Munster. Munster cheese is made from cow’s milk. It’s a washed-rind cheese, and the French often add caraway seeds to it. It dates back to ancient monks who settled in the Alsace region of France and created a strong pungent cheese with a solid, soft, and creamy taste. • La Serena. This is another Spanish cheese but is made from Merino sheep’s milk. It has a slightly bitter, salty taste. It is usually eaten with a spoon as the top’s cut off and it’s velvety softnessis scooped out from the inside. • Pélardon. This soft cheese comes from French Languedoc-Roussillon area. It is made from goat’s milk and covered in mold. Hard cheese are often thought of as grating cheese. They tend to have intense flavors and are crunchier in taste than other cheese. • Cheddar. Cheddar cheese is well-known in America, but actually originated from the English village of Cheddar. It is usually made from cow’s milk, although occasionally it is made from goats. It may be aged as long as 60 months and is known for its pungent flavor and firm texture. • Gouda. Gouda Cheese is named after the Netherlands’s city of Gouda. It is aged for a long time and is a yellow cheese made from cow’s milk. It has a distinct flavor but is a mild, mellow cheese. • Parmigiano Reggiano. Parmigiano Reggiano is a hard cheese better known in the U.S. as Parmesan. It’s made from raw cow’s milk and aged a minimum of one year. In America it usually sold grated and is aged for a much shorter time, so there is a big difference in taste. • Pecorino Toscano. This cheese is sometimes called Toscano, and it comes from Italy. It’s a mild sheep cheese with a subtle flavor. • Roomano. This complex cheese is similar to Gouda, but produced in the Northern Netherlands. It has less butterfat than Gouda and is both sweet and salty. It is very difficult to find, and many people confuse it with Romano cheese made in Italy. Blue cheeses are noted for their veins of blue, gray, russet, or green, and their distinct flavor and pungent smell. They are made from goats, sheep, or cow’s milk using a penicillium culture. Most blue cheeses are aged and tend to be salty and sharp flavored. • Blue Castello. This blue cheese comes from Denmark and is a new variety created in the 1960s. It has a mild, spicy flavor and a brie-like texture. • Buxton Blue Cheese. This is English cow cheese very similar to Blue Stilton, but veined with a russet color. • Cabrales. This is a distinguished Spanish blue cheese with an intense, strong, and spicy flavor in a semi-soft texture. • Roquefort. This world famous cheese is made from sheep’s milk in southern France. It has a green mold and that’s what gives it such a distinct flavor. It is a sharp flavor with a sweet, smoky, and salty finish. • Stilton. This cheese, often called Blue Stilton, is known for its deeply veined blue appearance. It originates from England and strict rules are enforced for its production. It is often eaten with pears, celery, crackers, or bread. It gets creamier, mellow, and buttery with age, but if eaten soon after manufacture it can be tart and zingy. To find these fabulous cheeses, there are numerous online stores. Here’s a list: • Cowgirl Creamery. This site promises Cowgirl Creamery organic cheeses and they won numerous awards proving the quality of their cheeses. These also offer artisan cheese collections from around the world. • Gourmet Grocery Online. This site offers a variety of imported cheese and they provide online coupon codes you can use to reduce the cost of your order. Look for the tab “Coupons” on the top bar. • Gourmet Food Store. This site has over 350 different gourmet cheeses, which includes everything from kosher cheese to raw milk cheese to organic cheese. They also offer cheeses from America, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, England, Italy and Spain. • igourmet. This site offers 700 gourmet cheeses from 30 countries. • Kosheritalia. This site offers a variety of Italian, French, Swiss, Dutch, and English cheeses. • Wisconsin Cheese Sellers. • Beechwood Cheese. This company makes over 50 flavors of handmade cheeses. • BelGioioso Cheese, Inc. This company makes award-winning Italian Cheeses. • Burnett Diary Cooperative. Numerous championship cheeses have been produced by Burnett, including this years Provolone and Monterey Jack with pepper. • Jim’s Cheese Pantry, Inc. Over 200 speciality cheeses are offered by Jim, get his catalog to order. • Maple Leaf Cheese Cooperative. This cooperative provides a wide variety of cheeses and has won two consecutive U.S. cheese championships with Monterey Jack wheels and two Governor Sweepstakes awards for their Gouda. • Organic Valley. All products are certified organic, and they produce a variety of 25 cheeses. • Roth Käse USA, Ltd. Their history dates back to 1863 and Switzerland. They have won numerous awards for their cheeses since 1863.
Learn how to make a space shooter for the Sega Mega Drive using SGDK! I highly recommend working through the Megapong Tutorial first, as that explains a lot of the basics of MD coding. Megalaga 7 - Enemy Bullets Posted April 8, 2020 So far, enemies are nothing more than cannon fodder. They don’t shoot or even move towards the player, so there’s not really any way to fail the game. Let’s change that by having enemies shoot at the player! Shooting Bullets We will be efficient and use our existing shootBullet() function to handle the enemy bullets. To do that, first we’ll need to change two defines. All bullets in the game will come from the same pool, so we need to increase the max amount of bullets that can be visible at one time. When only 3 bullets can be on the screen at once, there will not be much shooting going on, which is not really exciting. Additionally, we will define the bottom edge of the screen, so we can check if the enemy bullets go offscreen (since they move downwards, they can only leave the screen at the bottom). #define BOTTOM_EDGE 224 #define MAX_BULLETS 6 Now we modify shootBullet(). So far this function only dealt with the player, but now we want to make it more universal. To that end, we’ll make it so you pass in the entity that is shooting. This way we can use the same function for both player and enemies. Add an argument to the definition: void shootBullet(Entity Shooter){ And then update the one call to the function we have, which is inside the joypad callback: if (state & BUTTON_B & changed) Now we need to figure out a way to see who is shooting. If the player is shooting the bullets will go up, while enemy bullets will move downwards. We’ll also have to flip the bullet sprite vertically depending on where it’s going. So how do we figure out the shooter? There are many approaches, but we’re gonna be clever and keep it simple. In our game, the player is always at the bottom of the screen, while enemies are always at the top. So we can simply check the y-position of the Shooter we’re passing into the function. If the entity is below, say, 100, it has to be the player. Anything above that is an enemy. So add this line at the beginning of shootBullet: bool fromPlayer = (Shooter.y > 100); Next we need to modify these two lines: b->x = player.x + 4; b->y = player.y; These place the bullet at the player’s position before firing them. But since our function is supposed to be universal now, we have to replace the player reference like this: b->x = Shooter.x + 4; b->y = Shooter.y; This shows how useful structs are. Since the player and enemies are both Entity-structs, both are guaranteed to have y-values, so we can simply replace player with Shooter here. This places the bullet at the right spot, now to handle the actual firing. Since now we have two possible directions for bullets (up or down), we need to add an if-statement to set the proper velocity. After reviveEntity(b); replace the line b->vely = -3; with this: if(fromPlayer == TRUE){ b->vely = -3; } else{ b->vely = 3; So if the player is shooting, we shoot the bullet upwards, otherwise we shoot it downwards. We also flip the sprite vertically, so it points in the right direction. And finally, we have to expand our check if the bullets are on screen or not. So far, we’ve only checked if a bullet leaves the upper edge of the screen, but now we’ll have to check the bottom edge as well. Otherwise the bullets shot by enemies would loop forever, which is not exactly fair. So add an else if-statement to our function positionBullets so that it looks like this: if (b->y + b->h < 0) } else if(b->y > BOTTOM_EDGE){ } else { ... } And now we can use our shootBullet function for enemies as well! But of course the enemies are not shooting yet, because we never tell them to. But if we did, we’d run into a problem: We’re always checking for collisions between bullets and enemies. This means that the moment an enemy shoots a bullet, they get killed by it. Also, the player would never get hit a by bullet, because we don’t check for that collision. So let’s change that! We will fix the collision issues in handleCollisions(). Take a minute to re-familiarize yourself with the function. We cycle through bullets in our pool and grab one. If it is dead, we take it and check it against all enemies. And this is where we have to add a new condition. Because now we don’t want to just check collisions with the enemy, but also with the player. At the same time, we want to not check for certain collisions; if an enemy shoots a bullet, that bullet should only collide with the player, not with enemies. How do we decide what collisions to check for? We can again use a clever trick. If a bullet travels upwards, it has to come from the player and should therefore only collide with enemies. If a bullet moves downwards, it’s other way around; we’ll only check for collisions with the player, so the enemies won’t blow themselves up. In code terms this means wrapping our existing code in a new if-statement, then adding an else-statement where we check for collision with the player: void handleCollisions() // ... if (b->health > 0) if(b->vely < 0){ //This is new! for (j = 0; j < MAX_ENEMIES; j++) e = &enemies[j]; } else{ //Also this And that’s all we need to do. Now bullets will not collide with whoever shot them, only the other party. Note that killEntity takes a pointer, so we have to pass in the address of the player entity, not the entity itself. Making enemies shoot We’ve already done a lot, but enemies still aren’t actually shooting. Let’s finally take care of that now. We’ll do it like this: We will have a timer running that triggers every 2 seconds. When it triggers, we give each enemy in turn a random chance to fire. If one fires, we restart the timer. That way it is random which enemy shoots and when, but we don’t flood the screen with bullets. Of course there are other ways to handle this, but I find this one works well enough. First we’ll define the interval of shots. At the top of main.c add a define: #define SHOT_INTERVAL 120 Then we need a variable that acts as our timer: u16 shotTicker = 0; Now to implement the shooting. We will do this in the positionEnemies() function. This makes the function seem slightly misnamed, but it’s the most convenient place to put our new code. We want to give each enemy a chance to shoot, and in positionEnemies() we’re already looping through all of them. So at the very top of the function, increase the shotTicker: void positionEnemies() We’ll add the shooting code at the end of that function, after we use SPR_setPosition to position the enemy sprite on screen. Start with an if-statement: e->x += e->velx; SPR_setPosition(e->sprite, e->x, e->y); if(shotTicker >= SHOT_INTERVAL){ If shotTicker equals the defined SHOT_INTERVAL, it is time to shoot. Our game will run at 60fps, so a SHOT_INTERVAL of 120 equals 2 seconds. Now, inside the if-statement add this: if( (random() % (10-1+1)+1) > 4 ){ shotTicker = 0; That condition might seem familiar to you. That’s right, it’s the same formula we used in part 1 of this tutorial to generate a random space background! Basically we’re generating a number between 1 and 10. If that number is bigger than 4, the enemy fires, in which case we also reset the shotTicker. If the number is less than 4, positionEnemies() will loop to the next enemy and give him a chance to shoot. This will loop until one of the enemies fires and the cycle starts anew. And that is it! Now we have enemies that randomly fire bullets that can kill us, but not them. And we did it all by extending some of our functions! Now that’s good programming. However…there is actually a slight potential issue with our code. It concerns the fact that both players and enemies share the same bullet pool. We’ll fix it next time, but feel free to look at the code again and try to figure out what I’m talking about! Until next time and be excellent to each other! Download the source code All patrons on Patreon get the complete source code for this tutorial, as well as other perks such as early access! Become a Patron! Just Want to Buy Me a Coffee? Check out the rest of this tutorial series! • Megalaga 1 - Space • Megalaga 2 - Entities • Megalaga 3 - Enemies • Megalaga 4 - Enemy Movement and Input • Megalaga 5 - Bullets • Megalaga 6 - Collision and HUD • Megalaga 7 - Enemy Bullets • Megalaga 8 - Spam Protection • Megalaga 9 - Sound • Megalaga BONUS - Powerup • Get Words in Your Inbox! comments powered by Disqus Related Posts HaxeFlixel Tutorials! Read More Streets of Was As I’m sure many of you will remember, the original Streets of Rage for the Mega Drive had multiple endings. The real canonical ending has you beat the crap out of Mr. X, thereby ending his reign of terror forever (yeah, right). However, if you confronted Mr. X with a buddy in tow, a new possible path unlocked. A quick refresher is in order. When you confront Mr. X he will ask you to join his organization. Read More Streets of Rage 2 Design Docs Read More
“Quick! Call 911!” These words may be the cause of striking terror in anyone. Usually because anytime someone frantically asks you to call 911, it means that someone is either ill or injured and in serious need of some help — maybe from you. So, what can you do to be prepared for these situations? It’s helpful to ensure that the building number and physical address are posted on each phone in your office or job site. In these situations, people can suffer from loss of memory, so if the address is easy to find this will make it much easier to get the injured person the help they need. Another important thing you can do is to become trained in CPR and first aid. This training will be very helpful in situations where someone needs help. Wouldn’t it be nice to help, instead of standing around feeling helpless? You should also assess the situation during an emergency situation where someone is hurt. Look for the hazards that can cause another incident. Don’t rush – just look around and make sure that all is clear so you can safely go towards the injured person. Don’t try to move the person unless they are in immediate danger. You should also check if the person is unconscious. If they are not breathing properly then you will have to do your best to help them until the paramedics arrive. You may have to start CPR. If a person is bleeding, you will need to apply direct pressure to the area, as this will reduce blood flow. You can use latex gloves to protect yourself. Moreover, if a person is conscious, try to talk to them in a normal tone. Never say anything that could alarm the person. If possible, please cover the injured area of a person so that they won’t be able to see the injury. Always remember that there is a possibility of shock. In these situations, give any available blankets to the person so they are comfortable and warm. There are chances for an emergency to strike at any time and if you are prepared, it may save a life!
Oak Tree Seedlings My Garden Zone Is The Many Advantages of Planting Oak Seedlings There are many different oak species out there that you can add to your property for many other benefits. Oaks are tall, beautiful trees that can add several distinct advantages to your property. Helping to Improve the Environment With Oak Tree Seedlings Oak trees can help to improve your environment. When an oak tree gets tall, its leaves can help to shade your home and property. This can help you to save money on your energy bills each month. Oak trees also can help to stabilize your soil. Helping Wildlife Rodents, deer, bears, and even some birds love to eat acorns. Eventually, when you plant oak seedlings, they will grow up and produce lots of acorns for all the wildlife near you. It is not uncommon to have an oak tree that is full of life. Encouraging wildlife like birds can help to diminish harmful pest populations like biting flies and mosquitos. Not only will the oak tree provide food, but it will also provide an excellent and safe habitat to several different wildlife species. Renewable Wood One of the most popular uses of oak is to make furniture with it. When you make furniture with it, it is sturdy, dense, and extremely durable. Furniture, cabinets, and beams are all made from oak. Oak trees are extraordinarily renewable and grow fast. When one is used for furniture making, it can be replaced with oak seedlings to ensure that one or more oak trees come up in its place. If you heat your home with a fireplace, you will want to have some oak firewood on hand. Due to the wood's density, oak can burn a long time and burn cleaner than some other firewood. Since it is renewable, when you chop one down for firewood, you can easily do oak seedings again to ensure that you have a renewable firewood source. Yard Decoration If you want a tree that will bring beauty to your yard, you should consider planting an oak tree. This tree is very stately, making a gorgeous statement in your yard. In the Autumn months, your oak tree will provide you with rich red, orange, and yellow coloring. Acorns that drop below the tree also add to the ornamental value. Mulching and Composting If you wish to mulch your garden or flower beds or you would like to create a compost pile, oak leaves are great for this. They are full of nutrients that will improve the soil and surrounding areas. Your plants will grow better by using compost created with oak leaves. There are many benefits to planting an oak tree. Look around your property to see where you might be able to place one or more of these beautiful trees. If you ever go to resell your home, these oak trees can attract buyers. Buy oak tree seedlings online at Tn Nursery
Your Guide To Doctors, Health Information, and Better Health! Your Health Magazine Logo What Are Pterygium and Chalazion? NewView Laser Eye, Inc. . http://www.NewViewEyeCenter.com What Are Pterygium and Chalazion? Pterygium usually has no symptoms, and many do not require treatment. However, some pterygium become red and inflamed from time to time. Large or thick pterygium may be more irritating than painful. Occasionally, large pterygium will begin to change the shape of the cornea and cause vision changes (astigmatism). Pterygia are more common in sunny climates and in the 20-40 age group. Scientists do not know what causes pterygia to develop. However, since people with pterygia have usually spent significant time outdoors, many doctors believe ultraviolet (UV) light from the sun may be a factor. In areas where sunlight is strong, wearing protective eyeglasses, sunglasses, and/or hats with brims is suggested. While some studies report a higher prevalence of pterygia in men than in women, this may reflect different rates of exposure to UV light. The eye is surrounded by small oil-producing glands that help lubricate it. Occasionally, the gland becomes plugged, and a hard and sometimes painful lump called a chalazion (ch lae zee on) forms. The pimple-like chalazion is a small annoyance that can become a big problem. What starts out as a small annoying lump can become infected and cause great discomfort. The eye may become red, swollen and sensitive to light. In the worst cases, it can even affect eyesight, causing blurry vision. This is due to pressure placed on the eye from the inflammation (swelling) of the eyelid and the growing chalazion. Luckily, most chalazions stay small and are just a minor annoyance. They can be treated at home with warm compresses and a gentle massaging of the affected area to loosen the plugged oil glands. They often resolve on their own within a few weeks. Chalazions that are a greater nuisance or become infected can be treated with antibiotics and other medications. In the worst cases, the chalazion can be surgically drained and/or removed in the doctor's office. If the chalazion returns or if you have had them over a long period of time, your doctor may send the removed chalazion to a laboratory to be tested.
CloserLook Nature Photography Pardalotes: A Bird (Nest) in a Burrow is Worth Two in the Bush Male Spotted Pardalote at entrance to tunnel to nest cavity, Langwarrin Flora and Fauna Reserve, Victoria, Australia (Canon 1D Mark II with 500mm f/4 lens plus 1.4x extender, 1/100 sec at f/9, ISO 640, exposure compensation -1/3 eV, tripod) With a beak full of eucalyptus bark strips, the tiny bird races down the underground tunnel that is barely 5-cm wide. The end of the half-meter long burrow opens into a nest cavity that is neatly lined with generous amounts of bark. Placing the new pieces upon the bed of bark, our bird finds a few unacceptable bits of nesting material, scoops them up and hurries back out the tunnel to the open air. This process of nest enhancement continues all day, with repeated trips by both male and female. Meet the Spotted Pardalote, a colorful passerine that nests in a cavity deep within the earth. What would lead such a delicate creature to choose a dark, damp and dirty hole in the ground to raise its young? This question takes on an even more curious context when we consider what pardalotes do when they're not busy tunneling through the earth. The Spotted Pardalote (Pardalotus punctatus) is a tiny bird, at only 9-grams and barely 9-cm in length from beak to tail tip. With a short stout beak and stubby tail, it has a distinct compact appearance. The flashy yellow rump and throat, especially that of the male, combine with a dizzying pattern of white dots on a black head and primaries to produce a spectacular sight. This pardalote is found along the eastern coast and extreme southwest coast of Australia and is one of four species of pardalotes indigenous to the continent. The Straited Pardalote (P. straitus) has the widest distribution, covering almost every part of Australia. The Red-browed Pardalote (P. rubricatus) is found in the northern half of the continent, and the endangered Forty-spotted Pardalote (P. quadragintus) is found only in southeast Tasmania. All four species will nest in burrows, however, generally all but P. punctatus and P. rubricatus will also utilize hollows and knotholes in trees. These pardalotes have a serious sweet tooth, for the favorite foods for adult and fledgling alike are the sugary substance called "lerp" and the tiny invertebrates called "psyllids" (lerp insects or simply "lerps") that produce it. Lerps secrete this honeydew substance as a protective coating while they suck the sap from eucalyptus leaves. One of the eucalyptus species utilized by pardalotes is the Manna Gum (Eucalyptus viminalis), so named for the sugary white sap (manna) that oozes from the insect bores in the leaves and was collected for food by Aboriginals. To find these tiny carbohydrate-rich insects and their exudate, adult pardalotes spend much of their day hovering and probing in and about the leafy treetops, far above the ground. Damage to eucalyptus by lerps can be severe, with the most conspicuous symptom being leaf discoloration, but defoliation and dieback can occur during outbreaks of the insect [1]. So by feeding on these insects, pardalotes may play an important role in controlling these parasites. Returning to our original question, given that these pardalotes feed amongst the treetops, why would some of them favor a burrow in the ground to a hollow up high in a tree? Perhaps we can put the idea of a bird nesting in an underground cavity into a context that may shed some light on the puzzle. At first glance, building a 10-cm diameter cavity at the end of a long horizontal tunnel seems like an unlikely task for a tiny bird. The excavation time and energy expenditure alone must be considerable, not to mention that once the cavity is hollowed out, the bird still has to go out and collect bark and bits of vine to line the nest. Furthermore, these passerines have feet well adapted to perching and beaks designed to glean insects off of leaves. Imagine these implements put to use in excavating a tunnel and we have a further incongruity. Putting aside for the moment the image of this dainty bird dirtying its fine plumage with cave dust, if we want to investigate why they would choose this nesting environment we need to examine the extent that various environmental pressures exert on the selection process. What advantages could such a confined nesting quarters offer a growing family? There is protection from weather to consider: out of the chilling wind or blazing sun, the interior of an earthen cavity offers relatively stable temperatures, albeit generally cooler than that above ground. Protected from gusting wind and the swaying motions of the tree branches, there is no worry that eggs or fledglings can fall out of the nest when one is on (or in) solid ground. Sheltered below ground from the rain and elements above, a well-constructed burrow would seem a stable environment in which to raise a brood. Perhaps comparable in offering some of these advantages might be the choice of nesting in a hollow in a tree. The protection from weather is certainly attractive in this case, as is the relative inaccessibility by predators (more on this later). Here is where an element of competition may come into play. "Competition for nest sites could be a factor, as it is extremely high in the Aussie bushland" says Dr. Lainie Berrie [2] who is a native Aussie now presently a research biologist at the University of Washington and an expert on nest predation. She further comments that "a small bird like the spotted pardalote might have trouble defending a hollow against occupation by larger birds and mammals, so they may have resorted to building their own holes in the ground." But, as she points out "This doesn't explain why striated pardalotes nest in tree hollows. " Female Spotted Pardalote with new bark awaiting her turn to enter the burrow, Langwarrin Flora and Fauna Reserve, Victoria, Australia (Canon 1D Mark II with 500mm f/4 lens plus 1.4x extender, 1/50 sec at f/8, ISO 640, exposure compensation 0 eV, tripod) However, there are other forces at work in the nest selection process. Certainly there is an issue of accessibility to consider. That is, accessibility of the family fortress to the various predators that share this neck of the woods. To quote Berry [3] "Nest predation is believed to be one of the most important influences on breeding biology, given its direct effect on reproductive output and thus fitness." Certainly, an open nest above ground or in a tree is easy pickings for scavengers such as ravens, butcherbirds, hawks and owls. This makes the four strong walls and roof of a cavity, be it underground or in a tree hollow, seem attractive from the predation risk standpoint. But given the accessibility of a hole in the ground to terrestrial predators, is this not a dangerous place to raise a clutch? Weighing the relative risks inherent in ground versus arboreal cavity nesting sites, Berry offers "Predation might seem to be more of a risk on [or in] the ground than in a tree, but perhaps it is not. Many of the nest predators (other birds, some snakes such as the tiger snake, some mammals especially arboreal ones), may be just as likely to access a nest in a tree as in the ground." Be it small predators that can easily traverse the tunnel entrance, or larger carnivores and omnivores such as the bandicoot and quoll that could excavate the subterranean sanctuary, our tiny pardalote is no match for the determined invader. These various predatory issues are among the pressures present during the evolution of pardalotes. But times change and we now find many alien invasive species in search of an easy meal. In some areas of Australia, cane toads are already wrecking havoc on the tunnel-nesting Rainbow Bee-eater's eggs and fledglings, reducing fledgling populations by one third compared to that before the toad was introduced from Central and South America [4]. More species of mouse and rat accompanied settlers to this southern continent and they fare well in the absence of their former predators. So it would seem that the pardalote must learn to cope with a new set of predatory forces in order to survive. Besides the risk of predation, there are chemical and physical factors involved in cavity nesting to which the pardalote must have adapted. One advantage that below ground cavity nesting often provides is near constant 100% relative humidity. As the eggshell serves as a semi-permeable barrier to gas exchange, the near-saturation levels of moisture eliminates the danger of dehydration. But within the confines of a cavity, respiration of adult and fledgling tends to reduce the oxygen and increase carbon dioxide concentrations. Thus cavity-nesting species must be able to cope with varying degrees of hypoxia (low blood oxygen) and hypercapnia (high blood carbon dioxide). Furthermore, unless feces and food particles are removed, ammonia (NH3) can be produced in these humid environments. Studies of bee-eater nests have found NH3 levels of up to 0.5 Torr (0.07% or 700 ppm), which can be harmful to the birds [4]. All this is to say that with a typical clutch size of three fledglings per nest and two attending adults, it could get pretty uncomfortable at the back of the burrow. Spotted Pardalote returning to the nest with prey, Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, Australia (Canon 1D Mark II with 500mm f/4 lens plus 1.4x extender, 1/500 sec at f/8, ISO 400, flash @ -1.7 eV, exposure compensation 0 eV, tripod) Recent literature suggests that physiological adaptation to cavity environments has been studied more in depth in mammals than in birds [5]. Nonetheless, we can infer from the above discussion that there are important adaptations in birds that choose to nest in enclosed spaces, and that these are different from those forced upon open-air nesting species. For pardalotes, the disadvantages of predatory risk from those that can breach the burrow, competition for site availability and the stresses of subterranean living are apparently outweighed by the advantages of environmental protection and some degree of predator inaccessibility afforded by burrow nesting. The rearing of offspring is always challenging for any parent. One fascinating aspect of this problematic endeavor is how various animals find the right balance to be successful given the resources and risks in their chosen environment. If you want to see pardalotes for yourself, an excellent location is Bruny Island in southeast Tasmania. Three of the pardalote species, the Striated, the Spotted and the Forty-spotted Pardalotes, are all present on this island, often sharing the same manna gum forests. Forty-spotted Pardalotes were deemed "one of the world's rarest birds" [6], but if you know where to look, you can find these charming birds in relative abundance. Good places to search for Forty-spotted pardalotes are where the ravine of a creek crosses a backcountry road. In the shelter of the ravine, the manna gums and the foraging birds are protected from the winds. It's a bit of a neck-strain to search the upper foliage of trees that can reach 50 m in height, and the fact that the pardalotes are not much bigger than the leaves upon which they forage makes them even harder to spot. Listen for their soft low-pitched call "where... where... where..." (Listen to a recording here) to help locate them. These are agile, ever-moving tiny birds and the light levels inside the eucalyptus canopy can make photography quite challenging. Visit during the southern spring and perhaps you'll be lucky enough to witness how these fascinating creatures make a living high above you in the treetops yet raise their young below your feet. Forty-spotted Pardalote foraging for psyllids and lerp among the high branches of a manna gum tree, North Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia (Canon 1D Mark II with 500mm f/4 lens plus 1.4x extender, 1/160 sec at f/8, ISO 400, exposure compensation 0 eV, tripod) References and Further Reading: [1] Forestry South Australia, "Forest Health Fact Sheets - Lerp Insects", no. 6 (1992). [2] Berry, L., personal comm. [3] Berry, L., "Breeding biology and nesting success of the Eastern Yellow Robin and the New Holland Honeyeater in a southern Victorian woodland", Emu 101, 191–197 (2001) . [4] Boland, C.R.J., "Introduced cane toads Bufo marinus are active nest predators and competitors of rainbow bee-eaters Merops ornatus: observational and experimental evidence", Biological Conservation 120, 53–62 (2004). [5] Ar, A., Barneab, A., Yom-Tova, Y., and Mersten-Katza, C., "Woodpecker cavity aeration: a predictive model Respiratory", Physiology & Neurobiology 144, 237–249 (2004). [6] Knowler, D., "Tasmania's Endemic Birds", Tasmania 40° South, 36, 30-32 (2005). Copyright Benjamin R Miller / CloserLook Photography 2009
Subproject Earth Landroutes and overland communications in southern Euboia’. PhD-researcher: Stefan Kooi, MA Within the Mediterranean interconnectivity paradigm there is only a limited interest in terrestrial connections and land-based communication systems. This is directly related to a more general underestimation of the importance of overland communications in the ancient Mediterranean, which resulted in an archaeological neglect of the subject. The aim of this subproject is to fill the resulting lacuna by making a detailed study of landroutes and economic, religious, defensive, and socio-political overland communication systems in southern Euboia. Empirically-known, ancient roads stand at the basis of this research, which differs from many other studies that focus more on concepts of connectivity within network theory, but ignore the actual routes of interaction. The dataset of ancient roads known from previous investigations is complemented by roads found on aerial images attained by drones and in archaeological field surveys conducted by our project. A Geographic Information System (GIS) is used to analyse these roads in relation to the ancient physical and human landscape, in order to answer such questions as to how space was used, organized and perceived, and how people in different periods were connected to their natural resources, their gods, other communities and the wider Mediterranean world. Two case studies may be singled out, connected to the cultic and economic landscape, respectively: 1: Recent excavations on the top of the coastal hill of Plakari to the southwest of modern Karystos have revealed a sanctuary dating to the Early Iron Age to Classical period. On the nearby Karababa hill a second cut place is located that on the basis of surface finds can be dated to the Archaic-Classical period. The two sanctuaries are clearly linked though intervisibility, orientation and similarities in architecture and layout. It is hypothesized that there was a processional road connecting the two sanctuaries, as segments of an ancient road can be seen on the slopes of the Karababa hill leading towards the sanctuary close to the hil top. Finding and mapping new road segments using various remote-sensing techniques (drone imagary, satellite images, field surveys) help to reconstruct how these fragments connect. A next step in the analysis pertains to how this road system linked the two cult sites together, how it connected the cultic to the agricultural landscape, how it helped people to experience their territory, what different views on the landscape it offered, etc. 2: Close to the Roman cipollino marble quarries north of modern Karystos several, over ten meters long columns are lying in situ on the steep mountain slopes. They date to the Roman age period and apparently have been left there for further transportation. It remains a complete mystery how these large columns were to be transported to the coast. Remote sensing (drone imagery, satellite imagery, field surveys) in combination with Least-Cost Path (LCP) analysis in combination with may throw important new light on this aspect of the economic landscape.
A cat with a “pointed pattern” is a cat with all of its color and/or pattern at the extremities – the face, ears, feet and tail. Comments are closed. Cat Coat Colors Explained. 9. The solid colors found includes white, black, brown, cream, blue and shades of blue-gray. Bicolor, Tuxedo or Van. White. Cats also come in gray/blue, chocolate, cinnamon, lilac, cream/buff, and fawn. Gray cats try to be cool but are often overcome by their own curiosity. A tabby cat is not a breed; it's actually a coat pattern and there are five different types of tabby cats. Here are some of the most widespread Siberian cat colors: Brown Tabby Brown Tabby with White Solid Black Black and white bi-color Siberian cat … The kittens are born black or blue and then develop the reddish color and become amber or light amber. Solid Coats. Colorpoint Cat Colors. blue-eyed solid black. A gray cat’s color is a dilution of black. Learn the differences between tabby cat patterns right here. According to the UC Davis research, cat coat-color pattern genes fall into four categories “that dictate the amount of white (“spotting”); the intensity of pigment (“dilution”); the orange and agouti pelage (“pigment-type switching”); and the patterns of ticked, tabby, and spotted (“pattern”). Black and White Cat Names. For example, a cat can be orange and white bicolor with tabby stripes (as seen below left). When choosing what type of cat you want, it is exciting to learn about all the different types of coats and colours they come in. Feline Coat Color Introduction The modern-day domestic cat displays a wide variety of coat colors and patterns. A cat’s color depends upon the presence of pigmentation in the epidermis. The Ragdoll pictured above, Dandenong Tora Rhianne, is a Seal Mitted with a blaze. Ragdoll Cat Colors and Patterns. Cats(domestic) have a wide variety of patterns and colors that are apart of the pelt. The pointed pattern is a form of partial albinism caused by a mutation in the gene that codes for tyrosinase, an enzyme involved in the production of melanin ( C/c/c1 ). Your basic cat color. The Oriental is essentially a Siamese cat with a different coat color. Black Cat Names. A silver chinchilla Persian, one of the shaded cat fur colors and patterns. Frequently we see many different colors in the same litter of kittens. A Russian breed called the Topaz has blue eyes or odd eyes that are independent of coat colour e.g. The colorpoint coat occurs in cats due to albinism caused by the modification of an enzyme, tyrosinase, responsible for the production of pigments. In order to be considered mitted, your Ragdoll must have a solid white stripe that runs from the hindquarters to the chin along the belly. #1 – Smoked We may also describe a cat such as this as a “color point.” Many people automatically describe a cat with such a pattern as a “Siamese Cat.” Genetically, the Siamese gene is responsible for this pattern. There is a wide range of colors, shades and patterns within the Bengal breed. All domestic cats, pedigreed or not, come in a variety of colors and patterns. Bengal cats are more than small, domestic versions of their larger cousins from the jungle. Dandenong Tora Rhianne from Ciara’s Ragdolls. The blaze is the white stripe that goes down the center of the nose. Tonkinese are a domestic cat breed produced by crossbreeding between the Siamese and Burmese.They share many of their parents' distinctively lively, playful personality traits and are similarly distinguished by a pointed coat pattern in a variety of colors. Patterns can appear in many colors, and cats can have multiple patterns. As is the case with the ticking effect: The cats do not just have a single color on their body but rather a group of colors that band together to create the tabby patterns these cats are known for. However, each colour and cat pattern carries a genetic label. Mixed, these colors create amazing patterns and beautiful shades. White cats are enigmas, which makes sense when you understand that their white color is usually inherited as a white masking gene or a white spotting gene. Asking me to identify your cat's colour is a waste of my time and I won't respond. Solid colors give the cat a distinct look and help them stand out because of the color and fluffy coat combined. If you want to learn more about the different cat colors and cat coat patterns, please read on. It sounds simple, but it’s actually fairly rare for a cat to have absolutely no other color. Cat coat genetics: Pattern types. The popular spotted and golden leopard coats are not the only accepted color and pattern for Bengals. These cats, which had a myriad of colors and patterns, are now known under the breed name Oriental. Ragdoll cats come in a variety of patterns and colors. In other breeds, the gene that causes the colour/pattern also affects the eye colour e.g. To Determine the Color of a Tonkinese Cat . 8. The Ragdoll Cat, Colours and Patterns. What is a tabby cat and what are the tabby cat colors and patterns? Different cat breed organizations accept different Siamese cat colors, so if you are planning on buying a show cat, check which colors are accepted in your country. Cats come in an array of gorgeous colors and patterns. All the colors variations we see are of these two colours, black and red. New Colors: A mutation in the coats of Norwegian Forest Cats has led to an amber color. Despite the variety of colors and patterns, cats come in three basic colors: red, black, and white. There are two primary colors in all cats, which are black and red. The same study about human perception of a cat's personality due to their coat color also discusses white cats.They are seen as “less bold and active and more shy and calm than other colors of cat”. Below is a table of the coat color genes and DNA tests offered by the Veterinary Genetics Laboratory. MacIntosh – Blue Pointed Ragdoll Cat Mitted Ragdoll Coat Pattern. As a result, most pet owners don’t realize all of the different options when it comes to the Maine Coon Cat. I personally think this is the most adorable way of identifying a coat pattern. Everything else is a variation of red and black. When you think of a cat, you probably think of a few basic coat colors and patterns that you most commonly see cats in. These siblings are likely to have a good deal in common, fur color notwithstanding. The labels don’t always correspond with what we see. Cat Coat Colours And Patterns One of the wonderful things about cats is the vast range of coat colours and patterns that makes each cat unique. There are 32 Siamese cat colors and patterns in all. Each one is absolutely beautiful and elegant in its own right. Siberian cats come in multiple coat color and patterns. Many of us are attracted to cats because they own the most stunning coats. The pattern varies from Tuxedo – when the cat is mostly black with a little bit of white on its chest, to Van – mostly white with colored tail and top of the head. The mitten coat pattern is named after the idea that the cat is wearing “mittens”. A lot of mostly black cats have small white markings on their bellies or between their toes. If you think you’ve seen them all, check out this list! Cat lovers simply go crazy for those coats. 1. The coat of Abyssinian cats is ticked and the colors they have tend to just enhance this effect even more. But the first thing most people notice about a cat is its diverse coat colors and patterns. For cats, only two pigments exist: black and red. Maybe they changed it, but the thing is, their lines aren’t the same, cat genetics don’t change from person to person so the colours do very little changing, so do the white patterns and so on. If the kittens are silver, the amber becomes apricot or cinnamon. But did you know there are some rare coat colors out there? All cats, no matter what color they are on the outside, are genetically either black or red, or in females, a combination of the two. Click here to learn how to care for and raise a well-adjusted cat. CAT COLOURS AND PATTERNS - PLAIN ENGLISH VERSION. These cats come in a wide range of colors and patterns but share a common ancestry. Isn’t this fantastic news? The modified enzyme is active at cooler parts of the skin but does not work at body temperatures. Tuxedo. The color description of tabby is the most known type of Maine Coon cats. While some breeds are made up entirely of rare coat colors, others truly are hard to come by. This is a layperson's list and includes formal terms used by registries in different countries, plus descriptive terms used by non-breeders as well as archaic terms that you may find in historical cat books (many of which are now online). People have confusion of why something is named what it is. Over time Orientals produced some longhair kittens. These more unusual colors are genetically recessive or diluted versions of the darker colors. This is corroborated by many cat guardians who see their white cats as being generally more reserved and often shy, yet loving and caring when they bond with their family. So, in honor of these beautiful companions to men, we dedicate a whole article to show you various coat colors and patterns of cats. In other words, a single litter can easily include a black, orange, and calico kitten. Maine Coons come in a variety of colors and patterns. You also can’t argue that making a chart like this is strictly your thing because having that visual can help some people understand a bit better. Their true color — and their true nature — is hidden. Blue eyes or odd eyes are mostly associated with solid white cats or cats with a large amount of white on the face. Maine Coon cats are available in over 84 colors and pattern variations. Even more interesting, the gene is a color-changing gene. A solid color without any patches, stripes, swirls, or spots is considered one of the basic cat coat patterns. The full series (get the book! Most people get confused by the Tonkinese coat colors when they first see a Tonkinese cat.Tonkinese come in 4 base coat colors (platinum, champagne, natural, and blue) with 3 coat patterns (point, mink, solid) for a total of 12 individual color combinations. There are four tabby cat patterns, each with its own distinctive markings. Some breeds are based a particular colour or pattern while others exclude certain colours. Color. Ragdoll Cats are a Pointed cat, in that their points (ears, face, limbs and tail) are a darker colour than their body colour.. Ragdoll Cat Colours: Seal – dark brown points on a lighter body colour and; Blue – steely-grey colour with a lighter body colouring; The standard Ragdoll Cat colours are Seal and Blue, only. So: How many colors can you find in an Abyssinian cat when you go out looking for one? Grey Cat Names. Vika Hova/Shutterstock.com. Popular Posts. The color throughout the body will remain uniform, and there will be other color seen anywhere. The cat can be all black, white, gray, red, or cream. Originally published Nov 6, 2014. Color-pointed pattern is often associated with Siamese and Himalayan cats, and although the pattern can occur in non-related cats as well, it is still one of the rarest coat colors in cats. Cat hair color grows in eight colors including black, white, red, brown, grey, cream, cinnamon, and fawn. Cat Coat Patterns Solid. The tabby cat is not a breed but the most common coat pattern to occur in most cat breeds and the one you’ll see more often is the brown tabby cat. Orange Cat Names. Try these: Striped Cat Names. TABBIES. The names and what people call the patterns and colors are told to be based off of the genetics of each one. Now, red encompasses what many people call orange, ginger, yellow and marmalade. The 5 Tabby Cat Patterns. Looking for a name for your cat based off of their coat color and pattern? White Cat Names. A breeding program of Orientals may produce some cats that carry the color restricted pattern of the Siamese, but they are still considered Orientals. 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Depiction of Disney princesses contributing to serious mental stuggles within young girls Ariana Santilli, Features Editor Today, young children have more accessibility to television and movies than ever before. Walt Disney Productions has been known to make the most magical movies for over 100 years, giving these children a platform to build their imagination. However, new studies have shown that these movies may be affecting one’s self esteem. Studies from Iowa University have shown that children between the ages of three and four have a brain that is constantly absorbing all of their surroundings. Children are strongly influenced by what they watch in the movies, whether it be in a negative or positive way. Maybe, without noticing, Disney’s movies have stuck something harmful in our minds by creating characters who look and act unrealistic. In the story of Cinderella, she is a housemaid who is told she will never be good enough to find a prince. She wears old fashioned clothing, and does not own a fancy ball gown. As soon as fairy godmother makes her beautiful, however, she is “good” enough to attend the ball. Stories like this spark the discussion of how children view themselves in new ways. Could it be possible that young children compare themselves to princesses like Cinderella and princes like Prince Charming? Typically, the princess is portrayed as a damsel in distress and calls for the help of a strong knight in shining armor. This can set unrealistic expectations when one grows older. Guidance counselor Jill Hamilton has considered the bigger question. “I think it limits both genders in what they see is available to them,” Hamilton said.”For example, if a boy isn’t into sports he feels less like a man.” Snow White spent her days singing about her magical prince to come, and Belle was given dozens of dresses to look more beautiful. When children watch this, they begin to copy and admire that character, in order to be just like them. This can start to damage self–esteem at a young age. Sophomore Lauren Trajano knows there has been a direct influence to one’s self esteem. “Most girls grew up watching the girl fall in love with a prince and live happily ever after,” Trajano said. “In reality women are looked down upon making others think that men can use us.” Whether one believes Disney’s characters are harmless or if they are a direct influence on low self esteem, Disney will still be the place we look to for magic. “Disney has always strived to be perfect not just in their characters but in their parks,” Hamilton said.”It is a magical place, a place to escape from your everyday life.”
What is te in Taoism? 12/30/19, 3:30 PM The word ‘te’ appears in the title of Taoism’s most popular book: the Tao te Ching. This translates as a Book (Ching) about developing ‘te’ guided by the way of Tao. Confucianism and Western interpreters refer to it as virtue, but earlier Taoists described it as one’s inherent character. There is a vast difference between expressing one’s inherent character and the idea of practicing moral rectitude. Te is the essence of Tao active in everything and is similar to what Jungians would call the actualized Self. The Tao te Ching says: ‘The highest virtue is not virtuous.’ This is because the type of virtue described by ‘te’ should come naturally, not dictated by society. Just as Tao is spontaneous in and of itself, so is te in the individual. Conforming to other’s idea of who you are is like a log jam that blocks a river. Eventually Tao will break away all that blocks your expression of te. Like everything in nature; Tao eliminates all obstacles to growth. In your ‘coming to be real’ Tao would have you express yourself – warts and all. Jungians describe ego as a tiny island floating in the sea of the unconscious. The Self encompasses the totality of the ego and unconscious. However, in Taoism, there is no separation of ‘me in here’ and ‘that out there,’ so there are no islands. An awareness of Tao (or the way) is what awakens te in the individual. In a sense, awakening to the interconnected flow of Tao is what engages the emergence of te. Like the seed of a tree that knows inherently that it will grow to become an oak tree, it can be planted among pines, but it is not going to become anything other than an oak tree. Te is not something we develop – it is a blue print within us. Tao is the way life unmasks all that blocks our te. The oak’s nutritional needs will be different from the pine, and Tao will bestow exactly what it needs in its ‘coming to be real.’ Similar to the oak seed growing among pines, we cannot separate ‘in here’ to become what we see ‘out there.’ All of life will conspire to ensure each seedling grows to become what it is. The outline of our te is revealed by the unique symbols and story line of our dreams. Until it is actualized and expressed, it can be projected as the Unknown Self. This is why apparent conflict can teach us so much about what we have hidden away. All that we disown is projected onto the face of the Other. ‘Dragging the adversary about when there is no adversary will cost you your inner treasure.’ Your inner treasure is your te. Accessing Te Working with your dreams, can teach you about the expression of te. Over the many decades of doing dreamwork, I have observed the common themes that orchestrate its expression. We dream of what we are not acknowledging during the day. Our dreams are cryptic as a way of allowing new ideas to transcend the walls of preconceptions. I added the oracles to my website for those who cannot remember their dreams. People may think they do not dream, but REM (rapid eye movement) proves everyone dreams nightly. Having an intimate conversation with an oracle is another way of accessing te. I have written popular translations of the Tao te Ching, I Ching, Tarot and also offer in depth astrology readings. I have witnessed how all of these tools describe the lifepath, challenges and the road to our empowerment. Like dreams, each correlate to a set of common archetypes and themes, and like our individual DNA, each of our stories are unique. The Human Journey and Nature In Taoism, the human journey is no different from the way an oak grows from a seed. Everything it will become was already within, dormant only until it is activated. Evolution shows us how nothing new is added to the overall genetic mix. What proves successful in one line finds its way into the general population through sexual reproduction. All that we are unfolds from a pattern of genetic instructions. The I Ching describes the human journey from the perspective of nature’s cycles of change. Tarot is the Western version of the common archetypes that describe one’s current situation and likely outcome. The Tarot Trumps are drawn from the characters of its myths, and the archetypes are accessible in their humanity. Astrology, or how the macrocosm is revealed in the microcosm, captures a snapshot of the universe at the moment of birth in a story that describes the lifepath. Observing the placement of pyramids and our ancient fascination for the moving planets, we were told the stars were placed there as signs. The rainfall was predicted by the alignment of Sirius with openings in the pyramids and led to the agricultural revolution. Eastern astrology is different, but what is captured in a reading of the Water Tiger is uncannily similar to the more detailed western reading of a chart with a water and fire grand Trine. All of our oracles are meant to guide us in understanding the way of Heaven, but Tao is the nameless origin or Earth and Heaven (Yin and Yang.) The way of Tao is to people like rivers are to a fish. Tao is the natural condition of the flow of life, and te is the natural condition we were born with. How Tao Unmasks Te The Taoist is after a perspective that awakens one to the joyous flow of existence. The entire text of the Tao te Ching provides a poetic journey that guides us in moving just outside of the known. We release the ‘carved block’ portrayed by any given moment. We learn to embrace the ‘uncarved block’ of what the ever-present moment may become – if we allow it. All of these tools reveal how life is about give and take, how to join and unjoin, and when to stay and when to flow. More importantly, they reveal the difference between what blocks us and how life attempts to break us out of self- defeating ideas. When we transcend any sense of separation from what unfolds, we access our power to participate with the outcome. Whether through dreams, Tarot, the I Ching or Astrology, the information revealed is remarkable because of their similar themes. As 2020 greets us, I thought it would be a good time to trace the ‘thread running through the way’ in all of these approaches to self-understanding. By contrasting the I Ching’s 8 Pa Kua with Tarot Trumps, planets in Astrology and elements of dreams, we can see the transformative cycle that unmasks our te. Empowerment: The Appropriateness of Taking – Qián The Creative Many philosophies negate experience or teach us to practice inaction. In Taoism, Wu Wei means not striving, but it is not the same as taking no action. The difference between action and striving is how we respond to what is happening. Striving can disconnect us from the way as we push our way forward. However, there are times when we must recognize how we hide and are guided to take the action to follow what the time requires. Shadow dreams of a stalker attempting to break into our house or to overpower us reveal how a potent part of our nature was sent underground. Some part of us simply wants to be understood, integrated and allowed back into ‘our house.’ In dreams, the house represents our paradigm. Shadow dreams are always about activating authentic empowerment and Qián is like our Ch’i or empowered essence. Qián teaches us about empowerment, but asserting our power is not a ‘me vs them’ exercise. Empowerment is how we learn to fearlessly express who we are. This is similar to the Magician in Tarot who has gained access to all of the elements: wands (passion/ideas), swords (initiative/discipline), pentacles (practical/self-sufficiency) and cups (inspiration/benevolence.) The Magician is an empowered individual with command of experience in a way that makes what they do seem like magic. In reality, the individual has just mastered an awareness of following Tao to express their te. The Magician has become master of their experience. In Astrology, Pluto reveals the theme of empowerment by its placement in a sign and house. Mars portrays our tendency to actualize this drive. Summer, Yang and all that is visibly growing and active on the earth is described by Qián. Even among plants, the drive for positioning of leaves to access the sunlight is a fundamental part of nature. We cannot attempt to help others when we have not learned how to help ourselves, but we learn much about our te when we place ourselves in position to help another. Themes: Strong, assertive, creative, father, sky, heaven, empowered, potent force, power, Shadow dreams. Joy: Learning How to Receive – Duì The Joyous Lake Life loses its meaning if we have not learned how to take time to enjoy the fruits of our labor. There comes a point when we recognize how the mind can get wrapped up in neediness or routine that leads us away from Tao and te. The heart mind in Taoism is that place just below the heart, sometimes referred to as the solar plexus. It combines feeling with thought in a way that allows us to resonate rather than react from judgment. Duì The Joyous Lake reminds us to resonate with life. Throw a rock into the lake and the water ripples in circles, settling slowly back to a peaceful center. Water in dreams portrays the condition of our emotions and feeling nature. A difficult passage in water, or traveling in the dark can reveal the level of access we have to our feelings and our emotional response to life. Just as there is a time to take, we must also learn how to receive. We cannot follow Tao without access to the heart mind. Without this heart connection, we become a mind just splashing emotional reactions and lose access to our center. In Tarot, this level of enjoyment and care-free joy is expressed by the Sun card. A naked child with arms open to embrace life rides on the back of a horse. This card captures the essence of our ‘coming to be real.’ It is said ‘te is the bubbling of instinct by the prospect of your coming to be real.’ In Astrology, the placement of Jupiter reveals our tendency toward expansion and joy. Its effect is to open doors, and how receiving opens us to the mystery of life as it unfolds. The key to understanding Duì is recognizing the difference between responding and reacting. When we react, we are defending something – often connected to the past. When we respond, we are participating with life to allow it to unmask us. Being free to receive changes the texture of what we experience. Themes: Pleasure, tranquil, complete devotion, opulence, contentment, arrival, water in dreams Relationships: The Importance of Interdependency – Li Clinging Fire Life is one vast network of interdependency and we are included in this design. Li portrays our relationship to others and the outer world, and its clinging nature means what we see cannot be separated from who we are or how we are behaving. Working in cooperation with others, we learn to share who we are and what we can do without giving up our authenticity. We join groups because of shared similarities – but te is revealed in the way in which we are different. Dreams are like a mirror where everything is a reflection of our inner world. Each symbol is a unique portrayal of our inner condition. In life, a similar mirroring occurs. Dreams are cryptic to allow ideas to transcend the walls of critical consciousness. In life, those things we can’t understand serve the same purpose. We are stopped in our tracks when te is excited. This is why projection – or encountering behavior in another that bothers us – creates a charge. It embodies a quality we wish to explore or express. When we meet conflict, we believe life is working against us. In fact, Tao is purposefully unmasking us through these types of encounters. You see how when you smile the world smiles back. Wake up with a bad attitude and it will be mirrored in all you see. If you are in a hurry no amount of rushing will change how others will also appear to be in a hurry. In Astrology, Venus represents the right brain and how we relate to others. It is the part of our nature that recognizes the whole rather than the sum of its parts. Li is called the Clinging Fire because if we want to understand what is important to a person, we need only observe what they are actively cultivating, fixated on or clinging to. The fire nature of Li is like the Star card in Tarot that transcends mundane concerns to align the Soul with the vision of Heaven. It transcends spiritual dogma because the inspiration is uniquely personal. Even in the most trying circumstances, we can learn to laugh in the way Tao makes us laugh at ourselves. 'The mysterious mirror' shows how all of life is a mirror presenting us back to ourselves. In this way, we are given a type of cosmic joke when we awaken to Tao. If you don’t like how life is responding, change your attitude. The Clinging nature of Li teaches how the outcome always has a cause – and the cause is you. Themes: Light giving, humane, dependence, clinging, conflict, clarity, adaptable, inspired, mirror nature of dreams Shocking: Freedom from the Known – Zhèn the Shocking Thunder Taoism portrays children being closer to Tao because of their spontaneity in expressing te. These are the qualities that just come natural to us. As we grow, we tend trade them for acceptance and begin to set up a paradigm that thwarts any ideas that go against what we believe. This is why dreams are so bizarre and why the most frightening dreams have the power to shake us out of stagnant thinking. Similarly, the situations that shock us the most in life have the purpose of tearing down a stagnant paradigm. Because of our desire to conform and fit in, we can sometimes become trapped in a sense of self that is not authentic. People often contact me because of nightmares, but the reason we have nightmares is to liberate us from what has trapped us. Like Shadow dreams, nightmares are a positive sign that power is being resurrected in the psyche. The shocking nature of Zhèn is meant to coax us out of hiding. This element of nature is revealed in the severe weather patterns that regenerate a barren landscape. In ancient times, the clan would tell scary stories around the campfire at the end of winter. Children do this too with stories of the boogie man. Zhèn is often described as ‘ha ha’ or ‘ho ho’ like laughter. You can imagine the intensity of fear that builds up until its expression is released as laughter. Fear is an energy that traps us and shocking experiences are meant to release it. The Trickster in dreams is like the Trickster stories told by the ancient clan. This character turns the rules topsy turvy to show how blindly following dogma has no personal meaning. Like a late-night comedian, dreams of a silly character will appear to poke fun at our serious attempts to be certain. There are no absolutes in life except that there are no absolutes. The Fool in Tarot captures a similar theme. When we are embarking on a path drawn from a vision nobody else can understand, sometimes we are called a fool. But we are following the inner drummer and this is the expression of te. Uranus in a chart also describes the area of life we are called to pioneer. Like Zhèn the Thunder, during Uranus transits to the chart, its energy is sudden and out of the blue. It excites freedom from the known and awakens us to our authentic path. Whether through nightmares, Trickster dreams or the unexpected, when life moves into unpredictability we are returned to a more authentic path. Themes: Inciting movement, arousing initiative, awaken, freedom from the known, trickster, nightmares Patience: The Time it Takes to Learn – Xùn The Gentle Wind Some of the most beautiful structures on the earth are red rock mountains that have been carved by centuries of wind. This didn’t happen over-night, which is why the wind is called Gentle. When we apply commitment and dedication with the discipline to keep trying – in time, we will succeed. Patience is a funny curriculum and you can see this in situations where you are not allowed to laugh. The intensity of being placed in a scenario that seems to go against your comfort level allows you to release the bubbling of instinct. This is te in its purest form because you can feel the excitement of your coming to be real. Perhaps someone asks you about your feelings, or being pulled into conformity has suddenly become more than you can bear. Either way, life has a penetrating way of releasing you to your truth – even when it takes embarrassment or a humiliating experience to do so. Sometimes we get stuck in a routine without any sense of being grounded. What we want often takes time as if life is testing us on our desire. Is this what you truly want? If it is real it will endure. In the Temperance card of Tarot we see an angel with one foot in the water and one foot on land as a message about taking the middle path between extremes of thinking. The angel is pouring water between two chalices portraying alchemy. Our base nature can be hidden by ego driven behavior, but is purified through the forward and backward movement of Tao into gold. This is the 'yellow undergarment' or te referred to in the I Ching and Tao te Ching. Te is like gold, and life tosses us back and forth to release the heavier sediments that hide it. Mercury in astrology is the embodiment of our left brain and discernment. Associated with alchemy, it is used to dissolve gold, releasing any sediment. When it is boiled, mercury evaporates, leaving the gold nugget. This is a good example of the discernment required to gain insight without closing the mind to future possibilities. Walking the middle path, we learn to stop judging good and bad, and give life the chance to reveal its perfection. Unlike the sudden gusts of Shocking, Xùn teaches us about commitment and longevity, balance and moderation. We cannot see the wind but we know it is there because of the effect it has on the world. In this way, Xùn is about developing faith in what we cannot see. Synchronicity is a cornerstone of Taoism because when we give up a sense of separation, we are able to calmly release ourselves into the totality of what is. The mirror of life can make us laugh at our attempts to be anything other than what we are at any given moment. Joy allows us to giggle our way back to our center. Like a child who lives in wonder, we hover at the doorway of perception. What we believe becomes manifestation until we release the need to believe anything. By opening to wonder, we can experience ourselves wandering in the unfathomable. Themes: Penetrating, longevity, patience, enduring, moderation, harmony, alchemy, synchronicity Transcending: Going with the Flow - Kǎn The Abysmal Water Every culture has a flood story, as if our genetic memory might recall a time of being connected to an unconscious or intangible existence pre-arrival. In the womb, we are sea creatures nurtured by an amniotic fluid. Transcendent means to go beyond the limits of what we know ourselves to be in order to identify with the infinite. If wandering in the unfathomable releases the hold the mind can have over us, identifying with the infinite allows us to resonate into the eternal everything. There is no quicker way to learn how to go with the flow then to release any sense of me vs. the universe. We are the universe. In Astrology, Neptune is called a transpersonal planet because it is not energy that describes personal characteristics. Kǎn, the Abysmal Water resembles what we know about Neptune. It is the instigator of peak states achieved through meditation, spiritual discipline or drugs. It is an awareness that is mind blowing, but difficult to bring back and describe to anyone else. It urges a transpersonal epiphany that becomes deeply personal, but unrelated to ego awareness. People spend almost half of their day thinking about something other than what they are doing. Add the eight hours of sleep and dreams and you get the sense that the mind has a propensity for transcendence. In dreams, natural disasters like earthquakes, floods or tornadoes show us how our paradigm undergoes transformation. We are picked up from the known and transported into another context altogether. Kǎn is called Abysmal because when our foundation is being renovated, we can find ourselves swept up into a river of change with nothing to cling to. The most interesting thing about a dry and parched landscape is that it brings about the gusts and storms meant to regenerate it. Where there is foliage and trees, the storms are less severe. The I Ching refers to Crossing the Great Water as a way of crossing to the opposite side of our mental landscape to gain a better view of where we are. Rather than churn through indecision and keep revisiting an idea of a current crisis, we look at the repetitive themes that occur to understand what life is reflecting back to us. Constant rejection can reveal how we have a fear of becoming intimate. Constant crisis can reveal how we are not going with the flow. ‘Those who go against the way are called unlucky.’ The Tower in Tarot has a similar theme. When a faulty foundation or ‘ivory tower’ needs to come down, nature doesn’t distinguish between paupers and kings. Where Zhèn, the Shocking Thunder can be instantaneous like a bolt out of the blue to release fear, Kǎn is a complete deluge that returns us to the Great River. We go with the flow because the flow knows where to go and learn that life is truly more than our idea of it. Themes: Dangerous, in motion, intangible, release, deluge, the flood, natural disaster dreams Grounding: Become Master of Your Experience – Gèn Mountain Keeping Still The Tao te Ching says: ‘Go to the end of emptiness. Hold fast to the way of stillness. The myriad of things all rise together and return to their separate roots. Returning to your roots is called stillness. Returning to stillness reveals your nature.’ Your nature is your te and it becomes more accessible through stillness. Much of the Tao te Ching teaches us about turning back, or knowing when to stop, which is the lesson of Gèn. Those who are resolved in their power have no need to defend anything, and words are a measure of this inner knowing. Like the shavings removed to make a sculpture, substance and te are revealed by what is taken away. Gèn is this sense of turning within to learn: ‘composure straightens out one’s inner life; honor will square one’s external life.’ No matter the crisis, there is no need to be defensive. Defensiveness ensures that the outcome will be relentless because we are generally defending something we do not need. It is something that is usually outworn and of the past. How do we know? Because life is conspiring to eliminate it. In the Chariot card of Tarot, we see a soldier in a chariot, drawn by black and white sphinxes in repose. While this card can suggest movement, it is not without careful consideration. The black and white sphinxes pose the riddle that is solved by knowing the middle way. Black, white, light, dark, cold, hot, up and down are all variations of something, but that something needs no definition. Through stillness we can eliminate the contradictions that cloud the essence of the intangible. The Chariot can suggest something related to the vehicle, and in dreams vehicles represent our motivation and what is driving us. Gèn allows us to see what is driving us through contemplation in stillness and we learn we are more than the story we tell of our insecurities and suffering. In dreams, a vehicle driven by someone else shows their input on what we do. A vehicle out of control shows we are not moving forward authentically. Looking for a vehicle, or losing our car in a parking lot in dreams represents examining motivation. Different vehicles relate to different things. A boat moves through the emotional landscape while a train shows tracks that were laid down for us that are not easily changed. Hopping in and out of trains shows our desire to find our true path as does the bus, which symbolizes moving away from conformity. Sometimes we have to stop before we can understand the path forward. Saturn in Astrology has a similar message of the need to be grounded and it shows the area we want to get right in life. Being grounded is not always pleasant, but we learn a valuable lesson. Often Saturn feels restrictive until we learn the importance of commitment, patience and perseverance. Contemplating and aligning vision with will, we discover how knowing and believing are no match for what is real. The sobering effect of Saturn and Gèn lead us to realize: what is – is. They teach us to give life the time required to show us why. Themes: Resting, standstill, completion, basics, aligning vision/will, time out, transportation in dreams Returning: The Universe Within – Kūn The Receptive We began with Qián the Creative and its opposite is Kūn the Receptive. These energies are the foundation for Yin and Yang. Where Yang represents Summer and all that is visible and growing on the earth, Yin is the Winter and the gestation of the unseen. Tao is the blending of the visible and invisible, and this pushing and pulling energy of life. We observe it in the force and fields of electro-magnetism. Yin is the field, while Yang is the force. Both are necessary to propagate life. The force of Yang creates the field and the field coaxes the force forward to perpetuate movement. Qián and Yang are masculine, while Kūn and Yin are feminine. We can see the power of Yin in the High Priestess of Tarot. When this card appears, we are guided to turn inward to connect with vision, inspiration and our dreams. Intuition is our direct connection to te. Beyond the expression of personality (Sun) libido (Mars) discipline (Saturn) expansion (Jupiter) logic (Mercury) and relatability (Venus), the Moon portrays elements taught by mother, our need for comfort, how we feel safe, and our subconscious tendencies. There are many myths about heroes going into the underworld to uncover clues that will teach them who they are and what they are supposed to do. Dreams of going underground, into caves or even just into the basement are also indicative of digging into the subconscious terrain. On this journey of activating te, we must take responsibility for our condition to understand how it can become buried. One of the most basic but most difficult concepts in Taoism is learning to become open. Unlike Duì the Joyous Lake, which teaches us about opening and receiving from experience, Kūn is about becoming receptive to the inner world. Like the High Priestess, we open to our dreams and intuition to make sense of what we are experiencing. When we meet conflict, we yield to allow the charge to teach us about what it is that is pushing our buttons. And if our buttons are being pushed – why? What are we protecting? Chances are the situation will reveal a valuable part of our nature. There is a devotional aspect to Kūn that suggests surrender, rather than pushing. Like the feminine aspect of courtship, when we yield or turn away, we become magnetic. Life is only complicated because it is our nature to seek tangibility and stasis. Life is better understood when we look inward. Do we court conflict or joy? Are we open to becoming, or are we stuck in a state of being something we are not? Many people know a lot about their Sun sign, but know little about their Moon sign. The Sun is Yang and describes the personality, but the Moon is Yin and can reveal subconscious motivations. An adventurous and Sagittarian with a watery Moon (Cancer/Pisces/Scorpio) will be more cautious. An inquisitive Gemini with an earthy Moon (Taurus/Virgo/Capricorn) will be tamed by more practical and tangible needs. The elemental makeup and sign of the Moon will flavor the Sun sign. When we learn that the universe is within, we see how our tendencies drive our motivation, and our motivation drives our focus. Being receptive comes when we acknowledge that we have an antenna. We can watch the show, but we come to realize it is being broadcast from somewhere else. Themes: Devoted, yielding, intuition, response, undercurrents, underworld and basement dreams Look for Tao and it cannot be seen; it is invisible. Listen and it cannot be heard; it is inaudible. Reach for it, although it cannot be touched; it is intangible. What is unfathomable can only be looked upon as one. It rises like illumination, but does not dazzle. It settles back down, but is not obscure. It is without beginning, and end, It is infinite, indefinable. This is the form of the formless; it exists in non-existence; Being indefinable is its greatest mystery. Go up to it, and you will not see its beginning; follow behind, and you will not see its end. Hold close to the ancient Tao and become the master of your present existence. The ability to know the beginning of antiquity is the thread running through the way.
In textbook RSA, the Euler $\varphi$ function $$\varphi(pq) = (p-1)(q-1)$$ is used to define the private exponent $d$. On the other hand, real-world cryptographic specifications require the Carmichael lcm function $$\lambda(pq) = \operatorname{lcm}(p-1,q-1)$$ to define $d´$. It is clear that the $d´$ divides $d$, and therefore using $d´$ may be more efficient than using $d$. My question is: Are there any further reasons, e.g. regarding security, why one should not use $d$? I'll use these common definitions and notations: • $a\equiv b\pmod c$ means that $c>0$ and $c$ divides $b-a$ • $a\equiv b^{-1}\pmod{c}$ means that $a\cdot b\equiv 1\pmod{c}$ • $a=b\bmod c$ means that $a\equiv b\pmod{c}$ and $0\le a<c$ • $a=b^{-1}\bmod c$ means that $a\equiv b^{-1}\pmod c$ and $0\le a<c$ • $\varphi$ is the Euler totient function (also noted $\phi$) • $\lambda$ is the Carmichael function I restrict to $N$ product of distinct primes; for two such primes, $\varphi(N)=(p-1)\cdot(q-1)$, $\lambda(N)=\operatorname{lcm}(p-1,q-1)$, and $\varphi(N)=\lambda(N)\cdot\gcd(p-1,q-1)$. The cryptographic standard PKCS#1 requires that the private exponent $d$ is an integer with $0<d<N$ and $e\cdot d \equiv1\pmod{\lambda(N)}$. The later condition is used because it is precisely the necessary and sufficient condition on $d$ so that textbook RSA works, that is: $$\forall x\in\{0,\dots,n-1\}, y=x^e\bmod N\implies x=y^d\bmod N$$ Notice that $e\cdot d \equiv1\pmod{\lambda(N)}$, or equivalently $d\equiv e^{-1}\pmod{\lambda(N)}$, does not uniquely define $d$. If $d$ is a valid private exponent, then from a mathematical standpoint $k\cdot\lambda(N)+d$ is also a valid private exponent $\forall k\in\mathbb Z$, and is valid from a PKCS#1 standpoint when $0<d<N$. It is PKCS#1-conformant to use $d=e^{-1}\bmod\varphi(N)$; that uniquely defines a value of $d$, with $0<d<N$ since $\varphi(N)\le N$, and $d\equiv e^{-1}\pmod{\lambda(N)}$ since $\lambda(N)$ divides $\varphi(N)$. This common choice of $d$ will lead to exactly the same results as using any other valid $d$ when exponentiating to the $d$th power modulo $N$. As far as we know, it is not less safe than using $d=e^{-1}\bmod\lambda(N)$, even when side channel attacks are taken into consideration. Using $d=e^{-1}\bmod\lambda(N)$ rather than $d\equiv e^{-1}\pmod{\varphi(N)}$ is not a good speed optimization: if one is interested in speed, one does not use $d$ at all! Rather, one implements RSA using the Chinese Remainder Theorem (CRT), where exponentiation is performed modulo each prime $p$ dividing $N$, using an exponent which can be computed as $d_p=e^{-1}\bmod{(p-1)}$ irrespective of which $d$ is chosen. Update: as pointed in comment, the FIPS 186-4 standard requires $2^{\lceil\log_2(N)\rceil/2}<d<\lambda(N)$. Use of $\lambda(N)$ rather than $\varphi(N)$ restricts to a single private exponent, easing Known Answer Tests used for certification; does that in the most mathematically satisfying way; and happens to simplify the requirement $2^{\lceil\log_2(N)\rceil/2}<d$, intended to repel some dangerous ideas of using $p$, $q$ and/or $e$ crafted for low $d$, which otherwise would need to be expressed as the cumbersome $2^{\lceil\log_2(N)\rceil/2}<\big(d\bmod\lambda(N)\big)$. • 5 $\begingroup$ Nist Fips 186-4 explicitly requires $2^{nlen/2} < d < lcm(p-1,q-1)$. $\endgroup$ – user27950 Oct 4 '15 at 17:58 The security of $\varphi$ and $\lambda$ should be equivalent since they are mathematically equivalent in the context in which they are used. (That is: the $d´$th power in $(\mathbb Z/pq \mathbb Z)^\times$ is exactly the same operation as the $d$th power.) However, the mathematically right modulus for computing $d$ is $\lambda(pq)$: it is precisely the exponent of the group $(\mathbb Z/pq\mathbb Z)^\times$, that is, the least non-negative integer $k$ such that $x^k\equiv1\pmod{pq}$ for all $x\in(\mathbb Z/pq\mathbb Z)^\times$. Both options work, but what one actually wants, conceptually, is $\lambda$. Along with the practical performance advantage, this makes it the better choice. • 1 $\begingroup$ shouldn't it be $x^k\equiv 1\pmod{pq}$? $\endgroup$ – SEJPM Oct 4 '15 at 15:57 • 1 $\begingroup$ There is one additional caveat here. According to Fips, $2^{len/2} <d$. Now it could happen that $2^{len/2} <d$ if d is defined by $\phi$ , but $2^{len/2} \ge d$, if d is defined by lcm. $\endgroup$ – user27950 Oct 17 '15 at 7:51 Your Answer
Is/was there any way to perform face recognition, instead of using the Convolution Neural Network which uses the technique of mapping(encoding) the face using 128-D vector and then using classifier (like knn/SVM) on it? Before the invention of the CNN approach, what did we use for face recognition? From a comment by @rahulreddy: Custom object detection is possible using Voila-Jones Haar cascade or using the histogram of oriented gradients (HOG) technique or now by CNN. As it stands, NN-based approaches are the current state of the art. It outperforms the method described below, but in the spirit of answering the question, here it goes... The trick for not using CNNs is to find a good representation of images with faces on them. CNNs are great because they learn good features. If you don't want to use it, you can use CNNs, you can use Eingenfaces as your features. The main assumption is that most face images lie on a low-dimensional subspace determined by the first k (k<d) directions of maximum variance. You can Use PCA to determine the vectors or “eigenfaces” u1, ... ,uk that span that subspace. Then you can represent all face images in the dataset as linear combinations of eigenfaces. For example, given these images for training: enter image description here You can learn the following eigenfaces: enter image description here These eigenfaces highlight different features in a person's face. If you average all of them you find a mean face, which would be the most common features among all people in your training set. Then, this face: enter image description here Can be reconstructed by a linear combination of the mean face and some other eigenfaces: enter image description here Now, the weights of each component can be used as features for your classification algorithm. Which at this point can be anything, like KNN or SVM. • $\begingroup$ Probably worth mentioning that the performance of more recent NN-based approaches is better than this alternative. $\endgroup$ – Neil Slater Aug 11 '18 at 9:14 • $\begingroup$ @NeilSlater, duly noted. I edited this at the beginning of the answer. $\endgroup$ – Bruno Lubascher Aug 11 '18 at 9:20 Your Answer
What Does an Iron Filter Do? April 15, 2020 1:29 am Published by Leave your thoughts Have you ever turned on the tap to find brown or orange water gushing out? Do you see rusty orange deposits in your sinks and other places where water sits or flows? Does your water supply come from a well? You likely have high iron content in your water, which can be destructive to your fixtures, laundry and pots and pans. It’s also unpleasant to drink, thanks to its metallic taste, and can affect the flavor of your meals. Iron can be visible in the water (ferric), which indicates the presence of solid minerals in the water. Ferrous iron, meanwhile, is dissolved, so the water appears clear until the iron oxidizes. Luckily, iron water filters are readily available in Shelby County, OH, and can remove other harmful minerals like manganese and hydrogen sulfide. Here’s an overview of how they work and why you’ll benefit from using one. How iron water filters work In order to filter out iron, it needs to be oxidized (ferric) first. Some water conditioning systems inject oxidizing agents, such as air, chlorine or hydrogen peroxide, into the water before it meets the iron water filter. Once the contaminants are oxidized, they clump together and can be filtered out. The water is forced through a filter at a steady rate; the filter catches the minerals and holds them while the clean water flows through the screen. Finally, the system will perform a “backwash” by forcibly removing mineral sludge from the filters by forcing water back through the filter. Here’s a closer look at the benefits of iron water filters: • Removes iron, sulfur and manganese: The biggest benefit of using an iron water filter is that it eliminates contaminants from the water that can cause your pipes and appliances to corrode. • Better tasting water: Who wants their water to taste like they’re drinking a liquid penny? When you use an iron filter, your water—and your cooking—will be completely free of unpleasant metallic flavors. • No water stains: Rust stains on your sinks, tubs, laundry and dishes are frustrating to deal with, and can even ruin your clothes. Get rid of them by using an iron water filter. You’ll love how much longer your wardrobe, fixtures and appliances last. • Removes sediment: In addition to eliminating minerals, your iron filter will also catch any additional sediment that has escaped other filtration or treatment systems. • Easy to maintain: You won’t need to spend a lot of extra time and money maintaining your iron filter—just check it twice a year to make sure the backwash function is keeping the filter clean. • Chemical free: Best of all, iron water filters are chemical free, ensuring fresh-tasting and safe water. Find iron water filters in Shelby County, OH For iron water filters and other water conditioners in Shelby County, OH, call or stop by Fogt Water Conditioning. We’ve been helping customers in the Shelby County area find the right water systems for their needs since 1959, and we make it a priority to sell only the highest quality products at great prices. Reach out to us today to learn more. Categorised in: This post was written by Writer
Monster Mutants for Your Math Needs Education Electronics Geek Culture Software Technology Videogames MMM-featuredOver on Kickstarter, Tom Beatty of The Dimension’s Edge just launched a new Kickstarter for the development of Monster Mutants Multiplication, a new PC/Mac program designed to teach kids about multiplication. A father himself, Tom realized his daughter was having trouble with learning her multiplication tables, so he decided to make it as fun for her as he could. The game comes with three different ways for kids to learn their tables. They each use a cast of up to 16 cute and friendly monsters to help give the kids visual cues, subtle hints to the answers they need. Tom does a fine job of explaining it all himself. Tom’s clearly put a lot of thought into the game, and it includes a few neat tweaks that separate it from other programs of its type. For one, you can set it to only bring up problems that the player has gotten wrong recently, which allows you to target more challenging sections rather than go over things that have already been learned cold. The game can also produce a progress report that not only shows how the player is doing but also identifies those challenging areas. It even displays how long it takes the player to come up with each answer, so you can shoot for improving times as well. You can get a basic downloadable version of the game (numbers up to 12) for $15, or a deluxe version (numbers up to 16) for $20, and higher levels of backing come with CD-ROMs, T-shirts, and more. If you have a kid in your home who’s learning the multiplication tables, go check out Monster Mutants Multiplication before time on the Kickstarter runs out. Disclaimer: I’ve known Tom for years, although we’ve still yet to work on anything together.
The Pyro Board: A Two Dimensional Ruben’s Tube What happens when you take a tube, put some holes along it, add a speaker on one end, pump some propane in, and then light it on fire? You get an awesome fire visual — also known as a Ruben’s Tube. It works because the sound pressure from the speakers causes the flow rate of gas leaving the holes to vary, which results in a visible “standing frequency” of flames, i.e. a flaming VU meter. Based in Denmark, [Fysikshow] travels to schools teaching kids about physics using the Pyro Board and many other fun experiments. [Thanks Eren via This Is Colossal] 36 thoughts on “The Pyro Board: A Two Dimensional Ruben’s Tube 1. Technically yes, but you know exactly what he meant. The is too much spurious ‘signal’ (flames) and the board fails to show a good representation of standing waves. This could be to bad gas flow, or maybe even weird reflections in the square corners of the box. 1. In the visualizing music department, you might be able to make a ruben’s tube with an inverted horn, so you’d have different sections responding to different frequencies. 1. I have been looking to understand what an inverted horn speaker is. I assume you mean the old HMV type gramaphone tubes that amplified sound produced from a needle on a record. So could you elaborate on what you mean here . How would you apply this gas and sound input to such a speaker? 1. It’s pretty insane now. However if you fine tuned a series of band pass filters going into the box to get rid of most of the noisy intermediate node frequencies, it could be more spectacular. One could make a nice living building, tuning and selling these to clubs, ski resorts, and other social businesses all over the world (as long as you were insured and bonded!) 1. My guess is it might be more successful with a round base so you never get an orthogonal reflection. To me it seems waves would better propagate and constructively amplify at the right note if you interjected them at an angle and they bounced around a circular perimeter. However I assume the guy likely tried it already and this is the shape that works best. 2. I think the 2D-ness robs it of the impressiveness a Ruben’s tube has. Watching waveforms pump out along a Ruben’s tube, standing wave or not (in fact, “not” looks better) is immediately impressive. Particularly with bassier sounds where you can literally see sine waves made of flame. A Ruben’s tube is pretty much 1-dimensional, so the waves look like they do in textbooks, really wave-like. I think the nature of the 2D thing, letting them spread out, and the interference, spoils the effect quite a bit. OTOH might be a nice effect in a nightclub, or at Burning Man or something. Presumably kept in a strong glass case, for safety. 3. The grid gives me another idea though. Do you think, maybe with thermostats or valves of some kind, you could do something like Conway’s Game Of Life on one of these? With lit cells being “alive”. Conway’s rule just needs to sum up the living cells to decide the next generation, shouldn’t be too hard to match that to a certain amount of heat input. Maybe it’s harder than I think, maybe it’ll get too warm eventually and stop working. Just something that struck me watching the tiny flames moving round a grid. 1. It looked like it actually was already playing Conway’s Game of Life. There are finite resources of air and fuel, and if too many flames were in one location, some would go out. Other flames that happened to be near a resource-rich area would start new flames there. 1. It’s like the advice the tour at Johns Hopkins gave me when I was looking at colleges: placing any apostrophes in their name was a sure-fire way to guarantee you would not get admitted. 1. Any one done this? That’s what I’m thinking of! It would be interesting to see if you could get standing waves of different diameters to propelgate at different frequencies, the radial waves would be so much cooler! 1. I am interested in building it too. I have the time to, but not everything else. Since there are 2500 holes, the surface would be 50 x 50 holes. They are evenly spaced apart, we just need a measurement. Leave a Reply to Ty Tower Cancel reply
Cate 3Cate 7th Grade Gastroparesis, Chronic Intestinal Pseudo Obstruction, and Short Bowel Syndrome June 8, 2018 "Mom, get in here now," Leo screamed. I ran up the stairs behind her and saw my sister, Madeline, having a seizure. My mom's face was struck with fear and worry. My big sister was shaking uncontrollably. I felt terrified of what might come next. "Call 911," my mom screamed. I remember being so scared. I thought to myself: this might be the last time I see her. When the ambulance arrived, she was still seizing. "Is she going to be okay?" I asked them. They didn't answer. I am so worried, but I know that there is nothing I can do now. I know I have to leave it to the first responders and the doctors. I watch in a quiet fear as the paramedics carry her downstairs on a backboard, and then put her into the ambulance as my mom gets in her car to follow them. The next morning my mom calls and says, "It was non-epileptic, so it didn't hurt her brain." I am relieved. Thinking that my sister was going to die was the worst feeling I have ever felt. That day I was driven to the hospital to see her. She was in a lot of pain, but she was better than she was last night. It took my sister, and my family, three years, four diagnostic pediatric specialty hospitals, and five cities to find out what was wrong. That is the reality of being rare. My sister is rare. Rare diseases are a significant problem today (more than 1,200 diseases have been identified and affect over 30 million people) and we can combat the silence by raising awareness and urging people to be compassionate towards each other's suffering. The Diseases A disease is characterized as "rare" if it affects less than 200,000 people. You may hear this and think, "If it's less than 200,000 people why should I care?". Well, it turns out that rare diseases are not so rare after all. 30 million people in the United States are living with rare diseases. This is hard to believe, but 1 in every 10 Americans are living with rare diseases. This means that about 12 kids in my class could be living with a rare disease. If all of the people with rare diseases lived in one country, it would be the world's 3rd most populous country according to Global Genes. All the people living with rare diseases are equal to the United State population. Approximately 50% of the people affected by rare diseases are children. Some of these children live their entire lives not knowing what it is like to be healthy. Others, like my sister lose their youth before they can drive, drink and vote. Gastroparesis is a disease that affects the normal movements of the muscles in your stomach. My sister has idiopathic gastroparesis. Diabetes did not cause it, and no one seems to know what did. We have been to four different pediatric hospitals that have all told us that her stomachache is in her head. Dr. Samuel Nurko at Boston Children's Hospital diagnosed her with gastroparesis in February. Most of the time the cause of gastroparesis can be hidden, and the doctors can't find a cause, so they have to go off of the symptoms the patient has. The effects of gastroparesis are destroying people today. Additionally, according to IFFGD, "Most people with gastroparesis experience nausea and vomiting. Many have abdominal discomfort or pain, which can range from bothersome to debilitating. Other prominent symptoms include bloating, fullness after eating, or early fullness (satiety) - the inability to finish a meal. These symptoms may be mild or severe, depending on the person." My sister lives with abdominal pain/discomfort most of the time. She cannot eat through her mouth, but almost every morning she wakes up with severe bloating. On some days she looks like she is seven months pregnant. Chonic Intestinal Pseudo Obstruction Chronic intestinal pseudo obstruction (CPO) is a rare disease that has symptoms that mimic those that are caused by a blockage, or obstruction, of the intestines (also called the bowel). CPO is caused mainly by nerve and muscle mis-movements that cause blockage symptoms in your bowel. This is also called dysmotility. Most of the time the doctor cannot find the cause. The doctors are uncertain as to what caused by sister to develop CPO, but its presence was verified by Dr. Nurko in February. The effects of CPO are devastating people today because it limits their ability to live life to its fullest. Additionally, according to IFFGD, "Symptoms of bloating, pain, nausea and vomiting can result either from weak contractions or from disorganized (unsynchronized) contractions that result from intestinal muscle (visceral myopathy) or nerve (visceral neuropathy) problems." Pain is a part of all of these people's lives; they have to learn to live with it day in and day out. My sister is one of the many people who live in pain every day. She can be fine one moment and in severe pain the next. My sister suffers from constant nausea and both types of miscontractions. Like many rare diseases that affect the intestinal tract, CPO has a wide range of symptoms. Some are lucky to live with mild symptoms and infrequent attacks, while others experience the worst symptoms more often. Short Bowel Syndrome Short bowel syndrome (SBS) is a significant problem today because it has multiple causes. Some people lose part of their intestines due to accidents, others are born with strictures that need to be removed, others lose portions of their bowel for other medical reasons. The effects of SBS are crippling to people today because the main side effect is dehydration. Dehydration is taxing on the body and the mind. It makes it hard to take blood for tests, it causes headaches and loss of appetite. It makes the body work harder than it should. My friend has SBS. She tries to drink as much as she can, but only consumes 16 oz a day. Even 16 oz of water is not enough for her, but it makes her feel full. Even though the doctor is recommending 64 oz a day, she is working hard to consume just 16 oz. Like both gastroparesis and CPO, SBS is a rare disease that affects its sufferers in a variety of ways. While dehydration is the main effect, SBS by definition means that you have less bowel with which to absorb vitamins and nutrients provided by the food you eat. This loss of absorption area brings a host of malnutrition issues. We Can Help While there are many solutions to the issue, one solution we must pay attention to is social awareness. IFFGD President Ceciel Rooker states, " that when people see those backpacks, they might think: 'Wow, that must be someone show is requiring feeding and I wonder what it is that's causing them to have to wear backpacks.'" The more everyone becomes aware of the needs and equipment utilized by those with rare diseases, the more accepting and inclusive and improved lives of those affected will be. Social awareness is the strongest solution because: Cate 2 • This will reduce the stares • This can reduce the questions • Being aware can reduce discrimination and, • Being socially aware can increase tolerance If we practice these issues then maybe my sister will not have to suffer from both intolerable pain in her body and pain from people misunderstanding. The Raffle Rare diseases are an important and overlooked plight. They affect millions of people and it is time for a call to action. We need to make the need for a better quality of life, treatment, and care a reality for the millions of people who suffer from rare diseases. Don't wait, your sibling could be next. How does one raise awareness for rare diseases? Well for my GUTS Factor, I chose to do a raffle. It took about a week to get all the prizes together. I went around to my parents' group of friends asking for donations for the raffle. I ended up receiving some AMAZING donations in the name of both my sister and rare diseases. My uncle donated one of his most recent oil paintings. Our family friend Crystal donated a membership for an entire month at her gym! I was shocked and humbled to see this small group in the community rally behind my cause. I made a poster to demonstrate to others by GUTS Factor. The poster was divided into three sections, each section showcased one of the three diseases mentioned above, and gave some general information about each one. I was astonished as to how many of my close family friends wanted to donate prizes. Why was I scared? Well, I was afraid no one would want to support me and my cause. Turns out a lot of people did, and a few of the people had relatives with a few of the same problems. A man walked up to my stand and said, "My wife is battling one of the same rare diseases as your sister. She has gastroparesis." We exchanged a look of understanding and compassion that reminded me why I was out here. One outstanding charity that helps raise awareness for rare diseases is IFFGD, otherwise known as the International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders. They invited me to be a junior advocate as one of the first siblings to be on the Patient Advisory Committee. I have since then reached out to all of our health Representatives in the House and Senate as an advocate. While the raffle prizes intrigued people, it was the poster that facilitated a conversation. In my small way I was able to start the conversation to raise awareness that these rare diseases exist in our community. The six hours I spent standing outside of the grocery store sparked the local call to action. We need to continue learning about and teaching others about these rare diseases and how it affects people that look like you and me. Advocate for Change capital hill day 2 Taking Action for Digestive Health The Functional GI and Motility Disorders Research Enhancement Act Make Your Voice Heard
(redirected from valueless) The estimated or appraised worth of any object or property, calculated in money. The word value has many meanings and may be used in different senses. Because value is usually a relative term, its true meaning must be determined by the context in which it appears. Value sometimes expresses the inherent usefulness of an object and sometimes the power of purchasing other goods with it. The first is called value in use, the latter value in exchange. Value in use is the utility of an object in satisfying, directly or indirectly, the needs or desires of human beings. Value in exchange is the amount of commodities, commonly represented by money, for which a thing can be exchanged in an open market. This concept is usually referred to as market value. Courts have frequently used the word value without any clear indication of whether it referred to value in use or market value. Generally, however, the courts and parties in civil actions are concerned with market value. Though courts may refer to salable value, actual value, fair value, reasonable value, and cash value, these terms are synonymous with market value. Value is also employed in various phrases in business and commercial usage. The phrase actual cash value is used in insurance to signify the cost of purchasing new replacement property less normal depreciation, though it may also be determined by the current market value of similar property or by the cost of replacing or repairing the property. Cash surrender value is used in life insurance to refer to the amount that the insurer will pay the policyholder if the policy is canceled before the death of the insured. Book value is the value at which the assets of a business are carried on the company's books. The book value of a fixed asset is arrived at by subtracting accumulated depreciation from the cost of the asset. Book value may also refer to the net worth of a business, which is calculated by subtracting liabilities from assets. Liquidation value is the value of a business or an asset when it is sold other than in the ordinary course of business, as in the liquidation of a business. In the Stock Market, par value is the nominal value of stock; it is calculated by dividing the total stated capital stock by the number of shares authorized. Stated value is the value of no par stock established by the corporation as constituting the capital of the corporation. Fair Market Value. VALUE, common law. This term has two different meanings. It sometimes expresses the utility of an object, and some times the power of purchasing other good with it. The first may be called value in use, the latter value in exchange. 2. Value differs from price. The latter is applied to live cattle and animals; in a declaration, therefore, for taking cattle, they ought to be said to be of such a price; and in a declaration for taking dead chattels or those which never had life, it ought to lay them to be of such a value. 2 Lilly's Ab. 620. References in classic literature ? The lumber was practically valueless for export to other settlements across the mountain roads, which were equally rich in timber. From that moment the sheep had begun to gather to the fold -- that is to say, the camps -- and offer their valueless lives and their valuable wool to the "righteous cause." Why, even the very men who had lately been slaves were in the "righteous cause," and glorifying it, praying for it, sentimentally slabber- ing over it, just like all the other commoners. Accept them, lady to me they are valueless. I will never wear jewels more.'' That is another reason, if another reason is needed, why a treaty between us would be valueless. You and I--the whole world knows that before a cycle of years have passed Japan and America must fight. On my view of characters being of real importance for classification, only in so far as they reveal descent, we can clearly understand why analogical or adaptive character, although of the utmost importance to the welfare of the being, are almost valueless to the systematist. In some parts the estate is of no width, that is to say, the land cannot be irrigated, and therefore is valueless, like the surrounding rocky desert. Speaking during last week's Thursday morning breakfast show at Radio Jambo, CBK governor Patrick Njoroge reiterated that the old Sh1,000 notes will become valueless starting October 1 and that the deadline will not be extended. In the Lower House audit report, COA called on congressmen to initiate "house cleaning" by disposing of "damaged, valueless and insect-infested documents" that have accumulated in various offices. Mike Kendrick, a pal and business associate of Virgin tycoon Sir Richard Branson, is behind a team which infuses rhino horns with a toxic pink dye which renders it valueless once severed. The toxin and inedible dye renders a horn valueless, and the risk of being caught and convicted is hugely increased by the DNA evidence. As these could be ripped up within seconds of the new Tory leader taking office, any agreement struck with Mrs May was valueless. This was a crisis imposed on the country by the Tories.
Scientists Discover That Platypuses Glow Under UV Light Paul Pinkerton Credit: Mammalia 2020; 10.1515/mammalia-2020-0027 Credit: Mammalia 2020; 10.1515/mammalia-2020-0027 What happens when you shine a blacklight on platypuses? It glows a weird bluey green color. How come? It’s all to do with biofluorescence, a process observed in the natural world but not really understood. A blacklight is a long-wave ultraviolet (UV) light. As with other light sources not detected by human eyes, it has wild effects on wildlife. Biofluorescence is when something, be it an animal or object, “absorbs light at one wavelength and emits it at a different wavelength” according to National Geographic. The resulting colors aren’t always blue and green, it depends on the species. The story came to light, so to speak, thanks to research published in October’s ‘Mammalia’ scientific journal. A team including Paula Spaeth Anich and Erik R. Olson – Associate Professors of Natural Resources at Northland College in Wisconsin – published the findings. Why does it happen? Good question! Experts haven’t been able to crack the code behind this colorful reaction. It could be connected to inter-species communication. It might be a survival instinct, obscuring the creature from hungry predators. Or it may be simply a redundant feature from centuries past. However it works, the result fascinates scientists. Platypuses are especially noteworthy, as on the whole mammals don’t display biofluorescence. Sea-based life forms are among the likely candidates, though it’s not as if they stay still long enough for theories to be tested. Come to think of it, mammals aren’t exactly super approachable either. That’s why it was helpful for boffins that the platypus was dead in the first place. Anich and Olson’s colleague Jonathan G. Martin, Associate Forestry Professor, is the man who inspired these illuminating antics. It all started with a flying squirrel. As reported by the New York Times, he spotted the critter having a munch on a bird feeder. His torch beam hit the little visitor and Martin noticed a “bubble gum glow”. Martin wasn’t going to spend time chasing squirrels, so headed to Chicago’s Field Museum so he could shine a light to his heart’s content on long-dead specimens. Accompanying him was Associate Prof Olson. Quoted by the Times, he began “wondering how broadly distributed this trait might be. Like, what about platypuses?” The institution just so happened to have what the article refers to as a “platypus cabinet”. And it was here the biofluorescent discovery sparked imaginations. For those wanting to see the evidence for themselves, visual information is available via a striking, Andy Warhol-esque composite. It contrasts a platypus lit by regular light, one by UV light and then yellow-filtered UV light. Anich was “a little flabbergasted” by the results, as noted by National Geographic. platypuses shine! Credit: Mammalia 2020; 10.1515/mammalia-2020-0027 Over in the Land Down Under, another platypus in a more unfortunate situation found itself under a blacklight. This was roadkill. But it gave the Northland College team encouragement that the reaction occurs in the wild. They haven’t performed the operation on a live platypus yet. If they do manage to obtain one, they’d better be careful. Eccentric-looking the species may be, however the male carries venomous spurs on its feet for the unwary explorer. Go back to 1985 and ‘Mammalia’ published a piece titled ‘Labile pigments and fluorescent pelage in didelphid marsupials’, written by Ronald H Pine (also associated with the Field Museum). It won’t exactly trip off the tongue for the uninitiated, but the marsupials in question are opossums. The largest order of their kind in the Western Hemisphere, they threw out all manner of colors in response to light sources. So this isn’t exactly new information, but it does provide fresh and exciting insight into the subject. National Geographic writes biofluorescence is “more widespread throughout the animal kingdom than previously thought.” Another Article From Us: Cher Welcomes “World’s Loneliest Elephant” to New Home in Cambodia A platypus’s fur does more than just keep the cold out. As for what exactly this means, people will have to remain in the dark for now… © Copyright 2021 - Outdoor Revival
a nickname, generally used in biological terms to refer to specific BACTERIA with one or more enhanced phenotypic properties beyond those which are usual and that may produce detrimental effects. Examples include: 1. (a) bacterial strains resistant to many different antibiotics (see MULTIPLE DRUG RESISTANCE), such as multiply resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Such super-bugs render many drugs useless in combating the infections caused by these organisms and sometimes defy the last line of antibiotic defence. 2. (b) Extremely radiation-resistant Deinococcus radiodurans, surviving doses that would kill most bacteria; and 3. (c) the genetically modified bacterium of the genus Pseudomonas developed by A.M. Chakrabarty and capable of degrading multiple hydrocarbons, for use in clearing oil spills. References in periodicals archive ? A 2014 study at Auburn University in Alabama found that MRSA - a super-bug resistant to many antibiotic treatments - can live for a week in the fabric of a seat pocket nestled in a small blob of saliva. A new super-bug which can cause infertility has been sweeping the United Kingdom these days. Widespread use of antibiotics over a long period of time targeting this bacterium is believed to have resulted in the emergence of acne super-bug strains that are resistant to first-line antibiotics. A COVENTRY pensioner died after catching a deadly super-bug as he lay in his hospital bed. Scientists find drug-resistant super-bug. Scientists say they have discovered new drug-resistant bacteria that appear to be spreading worldwide. Cases of the super-bug MRSA, which is resistant to many antibiotics, have halved compared with August last year from 32 cases to 15. At least nine wounded soldiers have contracted the MRSA super-bug while being treated in hospital - and that is just the number admitted to by the Ministry of Defence. WASHING hands in soap and warm water is the best method to combat the clostridium difficile (C.difficile) super-bug claims a recent Canadian study. Hospital bosses say it is because strict measures have been put in place to tackle the super-bug infection. Rates of the MRSA super-bug have soared in the past decade, with hospital cleanliness largely blamed for helping infection to spread. A hospital has been forced to pay damages to a patient who contracted the super-bug MRSA in what lawyers said was the first reported case of its kind. Colin Evans, 71, was diagnosed with the super-bug after his wife became increasingly concerned about his health.
How Artificial Intelligence Will Kill Science With Thought Experiments Think about this: Science—empirical study of the world—only exists because thought experiments aren’t good enough. Yet. Philosophers used to figure out how stuff worked just by thinking about it. They would take stuff they knew about how the world worked, and purely by applying intuition, logic and math to it, figure out new stuff. No new observations were needed; with thought alone, new discoveries could be created out of the raw material of old discoveries. Einstein developed a lot of his theories using thought experiments. He imagined gliding clocks to derive special relativity and accelerating elevators to derive general relativity. With thought alone, he figured out many of the fundamental rules of the universe, which were only later verified with observation. That last step is always needed, because even the greatest human intelligence can’t account for all variables. Einstein’s intuition could not extend to tiny things, so his thought experiments alone could not predict the quantum weirdness that arose from careful observation of the small. Furthermore, human mental capacity is limited. Short-term memory can’t combine all relevant information at once, and even with Google, no human is capable of accessing all relevant pieces of information in long-term memory at the right times. But what happens when we go beyond human intelligence? New York as painted by an artificial intelligence If we can figure out true artificial intelligence, the limitations above could disappear. There is no reason that we can’t give rise to machines with greater-than-human memory and processing power, and we already have the Internet as a repository of most current knowledge. Like the old philosophers on NZT, AI could take the raw material of stuff we currently know and turn it into new discoveries without any empirical observation. Taken to a distant but plausible extreme, an advanced AI could perfectly simulate a portion of the world and perform a million thought experiments within it, without ever touching or observing the physical world. We would never need science as we know it again if there were perfect thought experiments. We wouldn’t need to take the time and money required to mess with reality if new discoveries about reality could be derived just by asking Siri. It solves ethical issues. There are a lot of potentially world-saving scientific discoveries held back by the fact that science requires messing with people’s real lives. AI could just whip up a virtual life to thought-experiment on. Problem solved. Of course, AI brings up new ethical problems. Is a fully functioning simulated life any less real than a physical one? Should such a simulation be as fleeting as a thought? As technology advances, there will be a lot to think about. Tolerance, Conflict, and Nonflict A lot of conflict can be explained in terms of differing tolerance levels. A disagreement may simply be a matter of one person hitting their limit before another. An example will help: let’s say a couple is fighting because he feels like he always has to clean up her mess around the house. It would be easy to label her as a slob and/or him as a clean freak, but maybe they just have different levels of tolerance for messes. Let’s say he can tolerate four dirty dishes before cleaning up, while she can tolerate five. They agree on most things: too many dirty dishes are bad, cleaning up after one dish is a waste of time, etc. They have no fundamental disagreement. Yet, that one-dish difference will result in him cleaning up every time, simply because his four-dish limit gets hit first. That can lead to other conflicts, such as unequal division of labour, questioning compatibility, failure to communicate, etc. All because of one very small difference in tolerance. How does this help us resolve conflict? On one hand, it can help foster understanding of different points of view. Many conflicts are not between people on different sides of a line, but rather different distances from the same side of the line. It’s worth noting that most people don’t choose their limits; they are born with them, or they had them instilled early on, or they believe they are rational. Sometimes the resolution to a conflict can be as easy as “ok, your limit is here, my limit is here, and that’s okay.” On the other hand, living with other humans often necessitates adjusting our tolerance levels. Things run smoother if our limits are close. In the example above, if she dropped her tolerance to four dishes 50% of the time, each of them clean up half the time, and they live happily ever after. Sometimes it’ll have to go the other way too: if he’s not too ragey with disgust after four dishes, he could wait until five, then she hits her limit and naturally cleans up. Either way, hooray for compromise. This may be a subtle point, but I think it’s a good one: many disagreements are not disagreements at all. It’s not that one person is wrong and the other is right. They’re just feeling different things based on how close they are to their limit. That is much easier to deal with than genuine conflict, especially if it’s recognized as the non-conflict (nonflict) it is. Light and Dark in Daily Deals, one of those daily deal Groupon clones that everyone got sick of, often posts questionable deals. Some are only useless or frivilous (oh hi Justin Bieber tooth brush), but others are actively deceptive. One such deal was for a “Crystal Bala Bracelet With Magnetic Hematite Beads.” While careful to avoid specific health claims, they do claim that “in Buddhism, the pañca bala, or Five Strengths are critical to the achievement of enlightenment. Now you can keep them close to you every day with the Bala Bracelet.” How does a mere bracelet help you achieve enlightenment? Well: “Crystals catch and refract the light every time you move [and] six beads of magnetic hematite polarize the effect of light and dark” Sciencey yet spiritual! It must work. It’s not quite the magnetic bracelets you see at summer festivals that claim to cure cancer, but still, manipulative and deceptive. Luckily Dealifind has a forum to clear up any misconceptions about the products, so I dug a little deeper. Here’s my conversation: Mike (me) Can you provide a link to the peer reviewed scientific articles supporting the claim “six beads of magnetic hematite polarize the effect of light and dark”? I’m sure they just got left off by accident. Thanks! Amy (Dealfind Admin) Hi Mike, Thanks for your inquiry. Our deal page states: “In Buddhism, the pañca bala, or Five Strengths are critical to the achievement of enlightenment. Now you can keep them close to you every day with the Bala Bracelet. Each of the crystal-encrusted balls represents one of the bala: Faith, Energy, Mindfulness, Concentration and Wisdom. Six beads of smooth magnetic hematite provide the perfectly polarized color choice to offset the crystals.” For more of a scientific background, please contact Widget Love at 1.800.990.6771. Thank you! I have to call them just to have any idea about whether or not the bracelet does what it says it does? 😦 Can you at least explain what “polarize the effect of light and dark” and “polarized color” even mean? I want to know more about what I’m getting into before buying into this sca–…er…product. I’m afraid polarizing my dark could have serious medical effects. The above post was deleted shortly after posting it. Later: Oh fiddlesticks, I think my follow-up post failed to go through so I’ll post my question again: Can you at least explain what “polarize the effect of light and dark” and “polarized color” mean? Mesha (Dealfind Admin) Hi Mike, Thank you for your post. In this sense polarized means that although the colours range from one extreme to another (both dark and light) they compliment each other and the crystals. I hope this helps! 🙂 Ah, so it’s saying “there are black rocks and white rocks but they are both rocks.” Thanks! That clears up everything! I’ll take 50! That post was deleted too. Yeah, I’m kind of just being a dick. But trying to sell people bullshit (bullshit capitalizing on the perfectly respectable religion of Buddhism) is also pretty dickish. So screw Dealfind and the dickshit company they promote. It’s just a cheap bracelet, but every penny milked from gullible people through lies is a penny too much. On Lying I recently finished reading Sam Harris’s short essay on the topic of lying, which is called, no lie, Lying. In it, he explores the rationality of communicating things that are not true, and comes to the conclusion that it is wrong to lie. Yeah. Obviously. But Harris goes further than what many people mean when they say “it’s wrong to lie,” arguing that even seemingly justified forms of lying, like little white lies, lying to protect someone, and false encouragement, are all wrong in their own way. He’s convincing, for the most part. Take false encouragement; the lies we tell without a second thought, like “yeah, I love your blog, you are such a good writer.” It seems harmless, and it would be awkward to say otherwise to someone, but Harris makes a good point: “False encouragement is a kind of theft: it steals time, energy, and motivation a person could put toward some other purpose.” I’ve always been a big believer that the truth is the fastest route to success, both on a societal level (hence my interest in science) and on a personal level. It would be easy to get carried away with this, becoming one of those people who spouts his opinion whether asked for it or not, and is rarely invited to the next party. However, I think it is possible to tactfully express the truth whenever asked to. I appreciate blunt people. Others may not, but even they can be served well by the right kind of bluntness. If I tell you that yes, you actually do look like a giant turd in that brown dress (like really, brown dress? What were you thinking?), it might hurt at first, but when you show up to the party in a different dress and get genuine compliments rather than awkward false encouragement, you’re better off in the long run. Harris also makes the point that lying is not only harmful to the people being lied to, but taxing for the liar. Keeping up a lie takes a lot of mental effort, since the lie was fabricated in the liar’s mind. Every time the lie comes up, the liar has to check against his memory of previous lies, who knows what, how the lie affects everything else; he essentially has to store a new version of reality entirely in his head, often fabricated in real-time. When the truth comes up, though, it’s easy to keep track of; the truth-teller only has to keep track of one version of reality. The real one. Many of these examples assume the people involved are regular, sane people, who ultimately just want to get along. Where Harris starts to lose me is when discussing situations where this arrangement breaks down. He discusses a hypothetical situation of a murderer showing up at your door looking for a little boy who you are sheltering. Should you tell the murderer the truth? Harris argues that lying could have unintended harmful consequences; the murderer might go to the next house and murder someone else, or at best, it just shifts the burden of dealing with the murderer to someone else. Instead, a truth like “I wouldn’t tell you even if I knew,” coupled with a threat, could mollify the situation without a lie. I’d argue that, when facing someone for whom cooperation and rationality have obviously broken down (e.g., a kid murderer), sometimes there are known consequences of lying (e.g., saving a kid’s life) that are almost certainly less harmful than far-fetched unknown consequences. Harris later makes this same point on a larger scale, when justifying lying in the context of war and espionage, saying the usual rules of cooperation no longer apply. I think blowing up a city with a bomb and stabbing a kid with a knife are both situations where cooperation has broken down, and both situations where lying can be a tool used in good conscience. There are no absolute moral principles that work in all situations. Life is too complicated for that. Trying to summarize it in simple prescriptive rules (as many religions have) doesn’t work. So, the rule “lying is always wrong” can’t work. There are extreme situations where the rule breaks down. Luckily, most people will never encounter such an extreme situation in their daily lives. This is where Harris’s main point is spot on: we should lie a lot less than we do. If everyone told the truth in every normal situation, relationships would be stronger, and people would be happier and more productive. I’ve certainly been more aware of my honesty since reading the book, so it’s fair to say it literally changed my life. That’s certainly worth the $2.00 it costs (buy it here). No word of a lie. Evolution’s Failures I think it’s hilarious to imagine evolution’s failures. Think of how our digestive systems are able to function no matter which way we’re sitting or lying, carrying food to the right place in a peristaltic wave, even if it’s going against gravity. Think of the pre-human who didn’t get that gene. He’s all like, “check out this handstand!”, then as soon as he’s upside-down, all the wooly mammoth he ate earlier is pouring out of his face. He suffocates, dying before he ever had a chance to procreate, and his shitty genes never get passed on. Hilarious. Thing is, one day that guy will be us. Evolution is not only biological, but technological. We already pity the people of the past—most of human history—who didn’t expect to live past the age of thirty. Technology has doubled our lifespan just by tuning up our default biological hardware from the outside. Think of what we can do once technology moves inside. It’s a near certainty that we will merge with technology. We already rely on it, and there’s gotta be a better way of interacting with it than through our fingers. When our brains and bodies are made more of bits and bytes than nerves and leukocytes, the people of today will be the pre-humans. Looking back, we’ll think that our squishy biological way of doing things was hilarious. “That’s right son,” we’ll say, to our sons. “We had computers we plugged into walls, but our own method of recharging was—hah, it’s so gross, but get this—we mashed up other living things with our teeth then let them slide down our throat. There were actually people who couldn’t find things to eat, and they died. Forever! They didn’t even have a backup.” And our sons, they probably won’t even understand how (or why) we managed to get through the day. Evolution makes failures of us all. The Myth of the Evil Genius Joker by Nebezial The evil genius only exists in fiction. An evil genius cannot exist in reality, because in reality, intelligence and evil are incompatible. A genius acts rationally, and history constantly proves that it is rational to be good. Genius and evil are two terms that are nearly impossible to define, but most people know it when they see it. Adolf Hitler was evil. Osama Bin Laden was probably evil. Albert Einstein was a genius. Bill Gates is probably one too. It’s not that evil doesn’t pay; genius and evil both pay, in some sense. Bill and Osama both have mansions, and could probably afford the most expensive bacon at the grocery store (though I guess Osama would pass). The difference is that Bill is living a comfortable life that leaves a trail of advancements and improved lives. Osama is at the bottom of the ocean riddled with bullets, and has left a trail of destruction and ruined lives. Osama and Adolf did gain power, but was it through genius? I doubt it. They excelled in some areas—charisma, mostly, and probably a good helping of being in the right place at the right time—but I doubt they were geniuses. Not in the sense meant here: extreme mental ability for coming to correct conclusions. On both an individual and a societal level, it is rational to be good. More often than not, the correct choice between a good option and an evil option is the good option, all things considered. Murdering a person you can’t stand may be easier than altering your own life to get away from him (say, packing up and moving away), but on an individual level, murder will probably put you in jail or dead yourself, and on a societal level, allowing people to murder willy-nilly wouldn’t be conducive to happiness and productivity. That’s why the evil genius doesn’t exist. Even if the impulse to do evil was there, a true genius would take a moment, and think “hmm, considering all the consequences, maybe genocide isn’t such a spiffy idea.” If The Joker was really so smart, he’d figure out a way to resolve his Batman problem without blowing up innocent people and getting thrown in Arkham again and again. Evil cannot result from the cool calculated machinations of a genius. In real life, evil is in the hot passion of an argument when a knife is nearby. It’s in the subtle biases of a politician whose values are misguided. And in that sense, evil is in all of us; luckily we also have an inner genius to play superhero. On Ann Coulter, Tolerance, and the Subjectivity of Morality Ann Coulter, the conservative political commentator from the U.S., recently made a visit to Canada. First she visited my fine school, UWO, to talk then avoid questions and make a few racial slurs. Then she tried to talk at Ottawa, but backed down when she discovered a shocking truth: people here don’t really like her. Everyone is talking about this. A lot of the discussion goes like this: • I support free speech. • I support free speech but I do not want you to speak. • I support free speech but I do not want you to speak about me not wanting to speak. • I support free speech but I do not want you to speak about me not wanting to speak about you not wanting to speak. Etc., forever. But such discussion isn’t really productive. I think we need to get more meta, and look at some higher-level questions that Coulter’s visit brings up: 1. Is indiscriminate tolerance a good thing? 2. If not, what should be tolerated, and what shouldn’t be? 3. Once we figure that out, what should we do with people we don’t tolerate? These may seem like matters of opinion, or moral questions without any objective answers. For example, while most people, when pressed, would agree that the answer to #1 is “no,” they can agree to disagree on #2. Some think homosexuality is wrong, others think worshiping a false god is wrong, and that’s just their opinion. Same with #3; acting on those opinions, is it better to stage a peaceful protest, or “invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity”1? Some argue that’s a moral question with no precise answer. I don’t buy that. Some actions are objectively right and other things are objectively wrong, and it doesn’t take an omnipotent being writing rules on stone tablets for that to be true. When we disagree on which of two actions is best for humanity, one or both of us is wrong. An individual person is extremely unlikely to have all the answers, whether she is a priest or a physicist, but we should never deny that there are answers. And I believe that with enough time, science, and careful critical thought, many of these answers will be revealed to us. In a recent TED talk, Sam Harris expresses a similar viewpoint (it’s well worth clicking and spending 20 minutes to watch this talk if you’re at all interesting in this stuff). From the talk: Now, it’s often said that science can not give us a foundation for morality and human values because science deals with facts. And facts and values seem to belong to different spheres. It’s often thought that there is no description of the way the world is that can tell us how the world ought to be. But I think this is quite clearly untrue. Values are a certain kind of fact. They are facts about the well-being of conscious creatures. The only wrinkle is defining morality to begin with, but I think the one Harris provides—maximizing the well being of conscious creatures—is one that most people (and if they could be asked, animals) would agree on. And the point is that for any definition of morality, there is an objective answer to moral questions. So what about Ann Coulter? Well, I believe that free speech is objectively good. History has proven that the open flow of information from all sources maximizes human well being. I fully support her right to speak, and while you won’t find me out there protesting, I fully support their right to protest as well. But much of the content of her speech is objectively false. For example, should we invade countries and convert them to Christianity? No. The objective truth value of her Christian beliefs is questionable, plus the very act of violently converting people to any belief system is repugnant. I am open to being proven wrong about my moral stance. However, while it’s nice to see people using Coulter as a staring point for discussing moral questions (even writing blog posts about it), part of me thinks her ideas are so comically evil that it would be better to just ignore her. After all, what’s worse: being scared off a campus by a group of peaceful protesters, or arriving without fanfare to an empty room, then leaving without selling a single book? Regardless of whether it’s inspired by Coulter or not, we do need to keep questioning and requestioning our morals, because it is possible to find answers. 1 Coulter, 2001. P.S. This is kinda off topic, but another thing I have a problem with is making fun of Coulter’s physical appearance. Yeah she’s a celebrity and thus opens herself up to it to some extent. However, pointing out her adam’s apple because you disagree with her political stance is coming from the same base, ugly, immature side of human nature that her crass racial quips come from. Don’t stoop to her level. P.P.S. Try putting into your web browser. Book Review: Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner I’ll keep this short, because Freakonomics is a pretty simple book. It takes a look at various topics—the effect of names on success, drug dealer salaries, cheating in sumo wrestling, etc.—through the eyes of an economist. This book is a few years old (and has a sequel out now), and it took me a while to get through it, mostly because it’s been my “sit on the bedstand and read for a few minutes before bed” book for a long time. And that’s the ideal context for it. Read a few interesting facts, go “huh, that was interesting,” then put it aside and go to sleep. There’s some weird deifying of Levitt that just feels out of place, but aside from that, the authors do a good job of merging interesting anecdotes with potentially dry number crunching. The accuracy of the conclusions is sometimes questionable, though. While there is a section about the difference between correlation and causation, causal claims based on correlational data are still presented with more certainty than is warranted. Much has been made about some of the more controversial topics in here, such as racism, and abortion. For example, they claim that legalizing abortion can lead to a drop in crime rates years afterwards. This may be true (or may not)—and certainly this fact should inform moral judgments about abortion—but the fact itself has no morality attached to it. Presenting such a fact is not a moral stance. Information itself is neutral; it’s what we do with it that determines morality. Anyway, I’d recommend Freakonomics as a nice little entertaining read for anyone interested in some offbeat conclusions that have been drawn from studying economics. I wouldn’t take it any further than that. Play TV Canada Has No Legs Here is one of last night’s “puzzles”: I’ll write it out: • 4 girls are travelling on a bus • each of them have 3 baskets • in each basket there are 4 cats • each cat has 3 little kittens Which brings us to a grand total of 584. Someone called this in. “Nooo, sorry.” So ignoring the kittens: = 222 legs. Normal Activity
Do Bayesian statistics rule the brain? This week’s New Scientist has a fascinating article on a possible ‘grand theory’ of the brain that suggests that virtually all brain functions can be modelled with Bayesian statistics – an approach discovered by an 18th century vicar. Bayesian statistics allow the belief in the hypothesis to shift as new evidence is collected. This means the same evidence can have a different influence on certainty, depending on how much other evidence there is. In other words, it asks the question ‘what is the probability of the belief being true, given the data so far?’. The NewSci article looks at the work neuroscientist Karl Friston, who increasingly believes that from the level of neurons to the level of circuits, the brain operates as if it uses Bayesian statistics. The essential idea is that the brain makes models upon which it bases predictions, and these models and predictions are updated in a Bayesian like-way as new information becomes available Over the past decade, neuroscientists have found that real brains seem to work in this way. In perception and learning experiments, for example, people tend to make estimates – of the location or speed of a moving object, say – in a way that fits with Bayesian probability theory. There’s also evidence that the brain makes internal predictions and updates them in a Bayesian manner. When you listen to someone talking, for example, your brain isn’t simply receiving information, it also predicts what it expects to hear and constantly revises its predictions based on what information comes next. These predictions strongly influence what you actually hear, allowing you, for instance, to make sense of distorted or partially obscured speech. In fact, making predictions and re-evaluating them seems to be a universal feature of the brain. At all times your brain is weighing its inputs and comparing them with internal predictions in order to make sense of the world. “It’s a general computational principle that can explain how the brain handles problems ranging from low-level perception to high-level cognition,” says Alex Pouget, a computational neuroscientist at the University of Rochester in New York. Friston is renowned for having a solid grasp of both high-level neuroscience and statistics. In fact, he’s was the original creator of SPM, probably the most popular tool for statistically analysing brain scan data. Needless to say, his ideas have been quite influential and ‘Bayesian fever’ has swept the research centre where he works. I was interested to see that his colleague, neuroscientist Chris Frith, has applied the idea to psychopathology and will be arguing that delusions and hallucinations can be both understood as the breakdown of Bayesian inference in an upcoming lecture in London. This edition of NewSci also has a great article on how cosmic rays affect the brains of astronauts, so it’s well worth a look. Link to NewSci article ‘Is this a unified theory of the brain?’. Link to article ‘Space particles play with the mind’. In the midst of the video game fury The BPS Research Digest has just alerted me to an excellent cover article from Prospect magazine on the effects of computer games on young minds and why the scaremongering is largely hot air. One of the biggest mongers of scare is the otherwise excellent Susan Greenfield, who seems to be convinced, mostly on the basis of speculations from some rather obliquely-related neuroscience studies, that video games and electronic culture and doing dreadful things to young minds (although not to elderly minds, who should apparently buy the ‘brain training’ software she’s endorsed). There is indeed evidence of an association between violent video games and aggression aggression in some young people, but there’s also plenty of evidence of the benefits of children playing games. Psychologist Tanya Byron wrote a remarkably well-researched report on the topic for the UK government, which is rightly highlighted by the Prospect article as one of the high-points of the debate. The Prospect piece is a great overview of some of the things less often touched on by the academic literature, such as the real-life management skills needed to succeed in some of the massively multiplayer online role-playing game’s like World of Warcraft or Second Life. Link to Prospect article ‘Rage Against the Machines’. Fantastic introduction to MRI brain scanning physics Magnetic resonance imaging is the most popular method for scanning the brain both for research and for clinical investigations. I’ve just found a wonderfully written article that gives a great introduction to the physics of how MRI scanners work. It is both clearly written for the non-specialist and fantastically complete. This is a rare and valuable combination. There are some other guides to MRI physics which are also wonderfully written but most lack the sufficient detail that would bring you up to ‘entry level’ in the field. For example, How Stuff Work’s guide to MRI is a great place to start, but it won’t tell you about why and how T1 and T2 imaging are different, or any of the other things you need to know to understand the fundamentals of MRI technology. You don’t need to know maths to understand the article (the downfall of most ‘introductory’ guides to MRI) and the author uses wonderfully clear analogies throughout. The article is written by radiologist Robert Pooley, who should give himself a pat on the back for such a great job. It was published as an open-access paper in the journal RadioGraphics. Perfection! Link to article ‘Fundamental Physics of MR Imaging’. 2008-05-30 Spike activity ABC Radio National’s The Philosopher’s Zone broadcasts part two of its series on the philosophy of suicide. PsyBlog has been rocking the cognitive biases recently. This is a fascinating article on ‘Four Belief Biases That Can Reduce Pleasure‘. Columbia University has an archive of video lectures by some of the ‘big names’ in psychology and neuroscience. The BPS Research Digest covers a new study that finds that harsh discipline actually makes aggressive children worse. Calm Zone. A fantastic UK initiative to encourage young inner city males to get help for mental health difficulties. “Why we posted epilepsy film to YouTube”. The Guardian continues the debate over whether video of people having seizures is education or exploitation. Time magazine wonder about the possibilities of prescribing our own antidepressants. Pete Doherty says ‘a mind is a terrible thing to waste’. No it’s not the Pete Doherty you’re thinking of. The All in the Mind blog finds some interesting commentary on movement, the mind, cognition and the car. Psychologist David Rabiner asks does mindfulness meditation help adults and teens with ADHD? in an article for Sharp Brains. The Situationist discusses whether we’re living in an age of increasing child anxiety? Gratingly banal headline obscures an interesting article from The New York Times on the neurobiology of cigarette addiction. Not Quite Rocket Science covers recent research on how perceived social hierarchy affects cognitive abilities. The Economist on the same. A fantastic 2002 article from Wired on the curious and death of psychiatrist Elisabeth Targ, who completed the (in)famous prayer healing (not quite so) randomised controlled trials. Brain Windows is a fantastic looking neuroscience blog that seems to have been dormant for a couple of months. Plenty of good articles there though. Forgetting Is the New Normal according to an excellent brief article on memory and ageing from Time magazine. Furious Seasons looks at some new broadsides in the debate over the effectiveness of antidepressants. Can you teach happiness? ABC Radio National’s education programme EdPod examines whether it’s possible to teach positive psychology to school children. Inspirational Kid’s Company founder and child therapist Camila Batmanghelidjh is interviewed in The Independent. Time magazine looks at the psychology of Second Life. The ‘seven challenges of psychotherapy‘ are discussed by PsychCentral. Miracle fruit trips out flavours The New York Times have an article on the truly miraculous miracle fruit, a plant that contains a unique protein that transforms even the most intensely acidic flavours into sweet taste sensations. ‚ÄúYou pop it in your mouth and scrape the pulp off the seed, swirl it around and hold it in your mouth for about a minute,‚Äù he said. ‚ÄúThen you‚Äôre ready to go.‚Äù He ushered his guests to a table piled with citrus wedges, cheeses, Brussels sprouts, mustard, vinegars, pickles, dark beers, strawberries and cheap tequila, which Mr. Aliquo promised would now taste like top-shelf Patr√≥n. The miracle fruit, Synsepalum dulcificum, is native to West Africa and has been known to Westerners since the 18th century. The cause of the reaction is a protein called miraculin, which binds with the taste buds and acts as a sweetness inducer when it comes in contact with acids, according to a scientist who has studied the fruit, Linda Bartoshuk at the University of Florida‚Äôs Center for Smell and Taste. Apparently, some pioneering barmen have been experimenting with miracle fruit cocktails and the article has video of a ‘flavour tripping party’ where people get together to try the small red berry before sampling a while range of foods which take on a strange news flavour. Link to NYT article ‘A Tiny Fruit That Tricks the Tongue’. Review: “Why the mind is not a computer” “Why the mind is not a computer: A pocket lexicon of neuromythology” Raymond Tallis (2004, originally published 1994). Neuromythology is the shibboleth of cognitive science that the mind is a machine, and that somehow our theories of information, complexity, patterns or representations are sufficient to explain consciousness. Tallis accuses cognitive scientists, and philosophers of cognitive science such as Chalmers, Churchland and Dennett, of the careless use of words which can apply both to thinking and to non-thinking systems (‘computing’, ‘goals’, ‘memory’, for example). This obfuscation “provides a framework within which the real problems can be by-passed and the illusion of progress maintained”. At his best Tallis is a useful reminder that many of the features of the brain which are evoked to ‘explain’ consciousness really only serve as expressions of faith, rather than true explanations. Does the mind arise from the brain because of the complexity of all those intertwined neurons? The processes inside a cell are equally complex, why aren’t cells conscious? Similarly for patterns, which depend on the subjective perspective (yes, the consciousness) of the observer rather than having an objective existence which is sufficient to generate consciousness; and for levels of description, which, with careless thinking are sometimes reified so that the mind can ‘act’ on the brain, when in fact, if you are physicalist, the mind and brain don’t have separate existences. Moments of the argument can appear willfully obstructive. Tallis maintains that there is no meaningful sense in which information can exist without someone being informed, any more, he says, than a watch can tell the time without someone looking at it. He’s right that we should be careful the word information, which has a very precise technical meaning and also colloquial meanings, but if you suppose that subjective consciousness is required to make information exist (and rule-following, representation and computation to pick a few other concepts about which he makes similar arguments) then you effectively disallow any attempts to use these concepts as part of your theory of consciousness. The disagreement between Tallis and many philosophers of cognitive science seems to me to be somewhat axiomatic — either you believe that our current models of reality can explain how matter can produce mind, or you don’t — but Tallis is right to remind us that the things we feel might eventually provide an answer don’t in themselves constitute an answer. In essence what this book amounts to is a vigorous restatement of the ‘hard problem’ of consciousness — the stubborn inadequacy of our physical theories when faced with explaining how phenomenal experience might arise out of ordinary matter, or even with beginning to comprehend what form such an explanation might take. Disclaimer: I bought this book with my own money, because I needed something to read at the Hay Festival after finishing Ahdaf Soueif’s wonderful ‘Map of Love’ (200) and because Raymond Tallis’s essay here was so good. I was not paid or otherwise encouraged to review it. History of american psychiatry, in two obituaries The last few months have seen the passing of Frank Ayd and Charles Brenner, two huge figures in American psychiatry. Their obituaries in The New York Times reflect the ideological divide between psychoanalysis and pharmacotherapy that defined stateside psychiatry during the 20th century. Ayd, pictured top, was one of the pioneers of antipsychotic drug therapy in the states. Although it was already popular among European psychiatrists, Ayd was one of the first to try chlorpromazine (more commonly known as Thorazine) with some of his outpatients. As well as noticing the huge potential for the drug, virtually the first ever effective treatment for severe psychosis, he was also persistent in publicising the disabling side-effects when many others were dismissing them as part of the illness or ‘hysterical’ in nature. In contrast, Brenner was a mainstay of mainstream Freudian psychiatry for most of his life. Interestingly, both Brenner and Ayd came from similar backgrounds. In their early years, both published on drug treatments and lobotomy (then at the height of its popularity), although Brenner later trained as a psychoanalyst and began to focus almost entirely on a Freudian approach. Brenner is perhaps best known for his ‘conflict theory’, first presented in an influential paper entitled The Mind as Conflict and Compromise Formation. This overturned the distinction between the Id, Ego and Superego and the Freud’s idea of the unconscious as being nothing more than metaphors, and proposed a model of the mind which we would now recognise as a constraint satisfaction approach – where the mind attempts the best compromise between the satisfaction of drives while accounting for emotions and defences. While Anglo-European psychiatry tended to lean toward the biological approach, in the mid-20th century American psychiatry was largely Freudian. This is partly to do with the differing practice traditions, European psychiatry was largely hospital based and focused on psychosis while American psychiatry was largely concerned with office practice and neurosis. The shift to a more scientific approach to psychiatry in the 1970s was led by several US psychiatry departments who were more Anglo-European influenced (Washington University, Johns Hopkins, Iowa Psychiatric Hospital, New York Psychiatric Institute). This hit psychoanalytic psychiatry hard. One of the major blows was the 1980 publication of the DSM-III diagnostic manual that threw out almost all Freudian-influenced diagnoses after studies found them unreliable. Link to NYT obituary of Frank Ayd. Link to NYT obituary of Charles Brenner. Encephalon 46 arrives The latest edition of the Encephalon psychology and neuroscience writing carnival has just appeared online, ably hosted by The Neurocritic. A couple of my favourites include an article on the psychology of superstition from PodBlack and one hot from the Association for Psychological Science convention, where Cognitive Daily report on cognitive influences on calculation. It’s a bumper edition and it even has some video of an intriguing experiment on ‘distributive justice’. You’ll have to read more to find out. Link to Encephalon 46. Hash high in cannabidiol but varies widely In light of research showing that an ingredient in cannabis, cannabidiol, seems to actually reduce the risk of psychosis, I speculated previously on Mind Hacks whether smokers might be attracted to high-cannabidiol dope. A study of UK street cannabis published in the Journal of Forensic Sciences suggests that cannabis resin (hashish) has the average highest rates of cannabidiol, while ‘skunk’ and imported herbal cannabis (weed) have the lowest. For people who take cannabis, it’s not the cannabidiol that makes you ‘high’, it’s mainly a substance called tetrahydrocannabinol or THC. There’s accumulating evidence that THC increases the risk of psychosis, while cannabidiol reduces it – so the ratio of the two substances in the street drug might give a ‘risk profile’ in terms of mental health. ‘Might’ is the operative word here, as the research is still preliminary and the studies are still largely correlational with regard to cannabidiol-to-THC ratio and psychosis-like symptoms. However, if this does turn out to be case, the new survey of UK street cannabis suggests that, on average, cannabis resin has higher levels of cannabidiol, with the implication that this might be less risky in terms of developing schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders. This finding is an average over all the samples, however, and the study also found that resin had quite a bit of variability with regards to cannabidiol-to-THC ratio. However, imported herbal cannabis and skunk was generally very low in cannabidiol. Additionally, skunk also had about 6 times the THC content of normal weed, making it especially potent. The study concludes: This study suggests that cannabis in England in 2005 remains a very variable drug with unpredictable pharmacological and psychological activity. The potency (THC content) of the cannabis varies widely, as does the content of other cannabinoids, especially in herbal cannabis and cannabis resin. The average potency within the country appears to be increasing, but large variations remain within and between different areas of the country. CBD affects the pharmacological qualities of THC and reduces it psychoactive potential. The relative proportions of THC and CBD in resin are wide ranging, supporting the view that the potential effects of resin cannot be judged by measuring the THC content alone. The resin samples were all similar in appearance and gave the user no indication of their cannabinoid content. Of the three principle forms of cannabis, sinsemilla [skunk] commonly had the highest THC content and almost totally lacked CBD. Had CBD been present it would have reduced the psychoactive potential of this material. In addition to having increased in potency, sinsemilla also appears to have become the most widely used form of cannabis. The current trends in cannabis use suggest that those susceptible to the harmful psychological effects associated with THC are at ever greater risk. This is due to the combined rise in potency and popularity of sinsemilla and the absence of CBD in this product. The lead scientist in the study is called Professor Potter. Do with that fact as you will. Link to abstract of Journal of Forensic Sciences study. Placebo is not what you think The New York Times covers an interesting development in the world of consumer medicine – a company selling placebos to consumers that they can use to ease their children’s ills. For doctors, the use of placebos to treat medical conditions is explicitly banned by most medical associations but their use is widely debated. Thousands of clinical trials have shown us that placebo is one of the most effective and safest of medicines (although it is not entirely without side-effects). However, it is also one of the most misunderstood of treatments. An article in this month’s Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine (which has been debating placebo over the past year or two) dispels some of the myths. The placebo effect is usually equated with the average response of patients receiving placebo controls in randomized trials. However, it’s not quite that simple. For example, not every improvement that happens after someone is given a placebo treatment is the ‘placebo effect’ (some symptoms will just get better by themselves) and not every improvement after medication is the active effect of the drug, some of that will be ‘placebo effect’ too. Placebos are not ‘ineffective’. In fact, when three condition trials are run (no treatment vs placebo vs medical treatment), placebo consistently out performs ‘no treatment’ and of course, not uncommonly, the medical treatment condition as well. Placebos are not a ‘non-specific’ treatment. A study on people who take the dopamine-boosting drug L-DOPA for Parkinson’s disease but who took a placebo L-DOPA pill, showed almost identical brain changes, as if they’d taken the real thing. Furthermore, studies done in the 1970s showed that when heroin users inject water (sometimes done deliberately to alleviate cravings when drugs are in short supply), they can experience drug-like euphoria and have been observed to show opiate-like physiological signs such as pupil constriction. This last point also demonstrates that placebo is not solely about expectancy, belief or ‘being fooled’, as the heroin users knew they were injecting themselves with water. Conditioned responses play a role. This can also be seen from the fact that these specific effects of placebo tend to fade after a while, as the conditioning becomes extinguished. The fact that placebo can be a relatively safe, effective, and sometimes selective treatment has led some to argue that doctors should be able to use it officially (although, of course, many use it unofficially). Law professor Adam Kolber (who you may know from the excellent Neuroethics and Law blog) wrote a fascinating paper last year that reviewed the research and argued that in limited circumstances, placebos could be ethically used. The article is available online and I really recommend reading the ‘Avoiding Deception’ section if nothing else – for series of recommendations on how placebo could be used without straight up deception. Link to NYT on buy-your-own placebos for kids. Link to JRSM article on placebo. Full text here (thanks Ines!). Link to Adam Kolber’s article (scroll down for free full text download). Spellbound by the box A quote from the sardonic Alfred Hitcock where he notes the curious interaction between mind doctors and the moving image: I suspect he was commenting on concerns about negative effects of television, although I wonder whether he still might say the same, in light of the enduring influence of pharmaceutical adverts and claims of disease mongering. Hitchcock himself was famously fascinated by the psychiatry of the day, and his films are well known for containing Freudian themes. The most obvious was Spellbound, which featured psychiatrists, a psychoanalytic plot, and a symbolic dream sequence designed by Salvador Dal√≠. Free choice and the female science divide The Boston Globe has a provocative article that sheds some new light on the old debate over why there are so few women in maths and physical science subjects. One important factor seems to be that they simply choose other professions, but if you think this answer is too simplistic, there may be more to it than meets the eye. It no longer seems to be the case that women are being explicitly blocked from maths, physics and engineering jobs, although the number of women in these professions is still very small. One strong argument for why women are in the minority is that they suffer from the effects of implicit sexism, a system designed to take advantage of male attributes and life choices. Some argue that the lack of support and consideration for women’s lives puts them off, and so they decide against what seems like a bad option. However, the article presents an interesting piece of evidence against this as being the major influence. In her controversial new book, “The Sexual Paradox: Men, Women, and the Real Gender Gap,” [Susan] Pinker gathers data from the journal Science and a variety of sources that show that in countries where women have the most freedom to choose their careers, the gender divide is the most pronounced. The United States, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, and the United Kingdom, which offer women the most financial stability and legal protections in job choice, have the greatest gender split in careers. In countries with less economic opportunity, like the Philippines, Thailand, and Russia, she writes, the number of women in physics is as high as 30 to 35 percent, versus 5 percent in Canada, Japan, and Germany. “It’s the opposite of what we’d expect,” says Pinker. “You’d think the more family-friendly policies, and richer the economy, the more women should behave like men, but it’s the opposite. I think with economic opportunity comes choices, comes freedom.” If the gender gap in many fields has its roots in women’s own preferences, that raises a new line of questions, including the most obvious: Why do women make these choices? Why do they prefer different kinds of work? And what does “freedom of choice” really mean in a world that is still structured very differently for men and women? Of course, this doesn’t deny that there are still other reasons why women might be put off these careers (lack of female role models, perception / effect of a ‘boys club’ etc) but it’s interesting that support for female physical scientists seems not to correlate with their numbers. The article also mentions an interesting point that women with high maths ability tend to have good verbal ability (meaning they have a much wider potential choice of careers) whereas this is less often the case with men. In essence, the article argues that women would rather select jobs with more human contact. It’s probably worth saying that in the life sciences, females predominate. In fact, in psychology, men are typically outnumbered 10-1. Clinical psychology tends to be even more extreme. Despite the vanishingly small number of male psychology undergraduates, I’ve never heard of any effort to recruit or attract more males to the subject. I’m always curious as to why having few males in life sciences doesn’t seem to bother people but having few females in maths or physics does. Can’t we have some equality in our equality? Link to Boston Globe article on women in science and engineering. Like a bullet in the head Neurophilosophy has collected some of the most unusual cases of penetrating brain injury from the medical literature, with x-rays that illustrate how some of the most curious objects can end up on the wrong side of the bony brain protector. You may recognise a couple that we’ve noted before on Mind Hacks, but this is a far more complete and frankly quite surprising collection. The most amazing is the case of a “32-year-old Caucasian male with a history of repeated self-injury drilled a hole in his skull using a power tool and subsequently introduced intracerebrally a binding wire from a sketchpad”. A striking, and, in some places, stomach churning collection of case studies. Link to Neurophilosophy on unusual penetrating brain injuries. Mental illness following The Exorcist Horror movie The Exorcist remains one of cinema’s darkest and most frightening classics. So great was its power that rumours circulated about viewers running in fear, feinting, or even going mad after seeing the film. In fact, it caused such concern that it was discussed in the medical literature for its possible role in triggering mental illness. In 1975 psychiatrist James Bozzuto wrote an article for the Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease entitled ‘Cinematic Neurosis Following The Exorcist’ that reported four cases of previously untroubled people who seemed to develop psychiatric difficulties after watching the film. I’ll return to the case reports in a moment, but it’s probably worth mentioning that Bozzuto was not alone in discussing the possible ‘destabilising’ effect of the film. In fact, his commentary was remarkably reserved in comparison to some of his contemporaries. A 1974 Time magazine article quoted some of his less inhibited colleagues: After seeing the film, two young Chicagoans required hospitalization. “They’re way out in leftfield,” said Dr. Louis Schlan, psychiatrist and medical director of Riveredge Hospital in Forest Park, Ill. “They see themselves possessed by Satan.” Predictably, there are widespread objections to the film’s R rating, which permits youths under 17 to see it if accompanied by a parent. Manhattan Child Psychiatrist Hilde Mosse warns that the film provides a “deadly mixture of sex, violence and evil. The idea that we can solve our problems by magic instead of by rational solutions is destructive. I lived through this before Hitler came to power. He said, ‘Listen to the language of your pure Germanic blood, your unconscious.’ The Jews in Germany then became the devil to be exorcised. The only thing The Exorcist can do,” Dr. Mosse concludes emphatically, “is to pull young people down to a primitive level.” With Hitler, hallucinating children and Satanic possession being invoked in relation to the film, it’s no wonder that people had anxieties about its influence. Bozzuto’s explanation for his four case studies is perhaps a little mundane in comparison, but the influence of the media hysteria is plain to see. One case is particularly striking, owing to gentleman’s florid magical thinking about the Devil and his possible malign influence. Case 4. Mr. Lyle H. was a 24-year-old black male who initially came to the emergency room for three visits approximately 1 month after seeing “The Exorcist”. At that time, he complained of flashbacks and of getting “nervous”, especially with his two children and his wife; he was frightened that his 5-year-old daughter was possessed, had insomnia, and felt that certain people “looked strange”. He was given Vallium and referred to the Psychiatric Clinic. After being contacted for his first interview, he was fearful of coming for he felt that the therapist may have been involved with the Devil. The patient stated that he knew little about the movie but had seen it discussed on a TV talk show before. He went with his wife and another couple. He was so upset during the movie that he had to walk out, and afterward he was frightened, feeling that the Devil “would come”. He had immediate insomnia, 15-pound weight loss over the past month, and numerous nightmares of vampires chasing women with himself interfering. He could not look people directly in the eye for fear he might imagine them to be devils… Also, since seeing the movie, he complained of a stiff neck which he related to an identification with the girl in the movie. He was afraid to use a razor that his brother-in-law had given him because it might be stolen and it would imply he had done something wrong and would therefore be like the Devil. Bozzuto suggests that each of his patients was already under significant pressure and the film was the last stressful straw that broke the camel’s back. He also suggests, invoking the spirit of Freud, that the movie’s theme of losing control to the love-hate figure of the Devil may have had special significance for the four, each of which was apparently struggling with an ambivalent relationship. According to Bozzuto, the similarity triggered repressed feelings, leading to an emotional crisis and a subsequent breakdown. While the cases remain entirely anecdotal, it’s interesting that they made it into print at all, considering that almost all films have the potential to trigger emotional crises in some. The fact that the issue of ‘Exorcist madness’ was considered serious enough to appear in a medical journal is more likely testament to the fact that the film touched a raw nerve in the America of the 1970s, than the fact that it raised the hackles of some of its audience members. Link to PubMed entry for ‘Cinematic neurosis following The Exorcist’. Link to Time article ‘Exorcist fever’. ‘Miracle cure’ for dyslexia fails to make the grade Terry Pratchett, on the ropes On the Ropes, BBC Radio 4’s programme about people in difficult situations, interviews author Terry Pratchett about his recent diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. In the first half of the interview, Pratchett talks about his early years as a writer and how he came to write the Discworld series and other novels. In the latter half, he talks through the realisation that he had Alzheimer’s, from being tested for his initial relatively minor stroke, to being more comprehensively assessed for his ongoing cognitive difficulties. He gives a fascinating first-person account of how he experiences the difficulties and the effects of the medication on his mind. After his diagnosis, Pratchett was surprised at how little Alzheimer’s disease research was going on and donated half a million points pounds to scientific research. Pratchett fans have set up Match It For Pratchett, a drive to match the Discworld author’s donation and boost degenerative brain research. Link to On the Ropes interview with Terry Pratchett. Link to Match It For Pratchett.
Which Children Are Most Vulnerable For Contracting COVID-19? Can the coronavirus disease spread through sewage? There is no evidence that the COVID-19 virus has been transmitted via sewerage systems with or without wastewater treatment.. Can the coronavirus spread via feces? What is the incubation period of the coronavirus disease? Are smokers more vulnerable to contracting COVID-19? Should a child wear a mask at home during COVID19? Any child who has symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 should wear a medical mask, as long as they can tolerate it. The child should be isolated, and medical advice sought as soon as they start to feel unwell, even if symptoms are mild.Family members/caregivers who come within 1 metre of the sick child at home should also wear a mask. A household member who is sick or has tested positive with the virus that causes COVID-19 should be isolated from everyone else if possible. If the child comes within 1 metre of the sick person at home, the adult and child should wear a medical mask during that time. Can COVID-19 be transmitted through feces or urine? Is the coronavirus disease a pandemic? Can drinking alcohol help in preventing COVID-19? Can babies get the coronavirus disease? Who is most at risk for the coronavirus disease? People of all ages can be infected by the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Older people, and people with pre-existing medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease) appear to be more vulnerable to becoming severely ill with the virus. WHO advises people of all ages to take steps to protect themselves from the virus, for example by following good hand hygiene and good respiratory hygiene. Are children with underlying health conditions at higher risk for COVID-19? Current evidence suggests that people with underlying conditions such as chronic respiratory illness including asthma (moderate-to-severe), obesity, diabetes or cancer, are at higher risk of developing severe disease and death than people without other health conditions. This also appears to be the case for children, but more information is still needed. Can the coronavirus disease be transmitted in hot or humid climates?
Respect a Child’s Right to a Name, an Identity and Family Respect a Child’s Right to a Name, an Identity and Family 6 November 2011 Sisters in Islam (SIS) welcomes the Terengganu state government’s proposal to allow children born less than six months after their parents’ marriage to carry their fathers’ name in accordance with Section 13 and 13A of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957. The practice of registering Muslim children’s surnames as “binti/bin Abdullah” when they are born within 6 months of the date of marriage leads to serious and unjust repercussions on the children’s emotional well being and their future. The Muslim child is being punished and labelled “illegitimate” for what is assumed to be the parents’ sin of conceiving the child before marriage. The biological father is denied the duty to exercise all parental responsibilities and to confer all rights the child is entitled to. This National Registration Department (NRD) ruling supposedly originated from a fatwa which states that a pregnant woman may get married to the father of the child, however “the man cannot be recognized as the father of the unborn baby, the baby cannot inherit from him,cannot be his mahram (unmarriageable kin)and the man cannot be the baby’s guardian.” The Qur’an states that no one bears the burden of another, nor passes one’s burden to another (Surah Fatir 35:18). This injunction should guide us towards compassionate care and enable us to fulfil our obligation to always provide for the best interest of the child. Instead, this NRD ruling has punished innocent children, forcing them to bear the burdens of their parents’ actions. To label a child “illegitimate” and deprive them of their rights and entitlements as a member of a family cannot be justified. Over the years, SIS has received complaints over the rights of children born out of wedlock, children conceived out of wedlock but born within a marriage, and adopted children, not just at the time of registration, but also at the time when they apply for identity cards, begin school, when they get married and upon the deaths of their parents. The best interest of the child must be the primary concern in making all laws, policies and decisions that affect them. This principle is upheld by Islamic teachings, universal human rights and Malaysia’s law-making process. For example, the Quran recognises a stepmother or stepfather to be the mahram of their stepchildren (Surah An-Nisa 4:22-23). What more the biological father of a child? Using the principle of the best interest of the child, Muslim jurists allow the custodial mother to maintain custody of the child beyond the age when custody is supposed to be transferred to the father. Malaysia’s Islamic Family Law was amended in 1994 to reflect this. The Quran in Surah al-Ahzab 33:5 also states “Call them by (the names of) their fathers: that is more just in the eyes of God.” While this is understood to refer to adopted children, is it not possible to extend the spirit of the verse to recognise the biological fathers of children conceived or born out of wedlock? The dominant opinion in classical fiqh relating to paternity allows a man to admit paternity of a child born out of the wedlock through the procedure of iqrar (i.e. he acknowledges that the child is his). Some classical jurists were deeply concerned with the need to protect a child against the stigma of illegitimacy. They went as far as setting the possible duration of pregnancy as long as seven years under the Maliki school of law and four years under the Shafie school. Thus Section 111 of Malaysia’s Islamic Family Law recognises the nasab or paternity of the child is established in the man even if the child is born more than four years after the death of the man or after divorce, if “he or his heirs assert that the child is his issue.” Given all the social problems disproportionately affecting the Muslim community, the 1971 fatwa, which was only enforced more recently by the NRD, would lead to more emotional and social harm to the children. It will also affect their status in the family and society. This discriminatory practice towards Muslim children violates a child’s right to a name, an identity and family, thereby constituting a violation of Article 8 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child which Malaysia ratified in 1995. SIS is disturbed by the continuing discriminatory and unjust rulings governing the personal status of Muslims in this country. There was a time when a couple could just go to a police station or the NRD and register the birth of their child. The couple’s acknowledgement that the child was theirs and the details on their identity cards were sufficient for a birth certificate to be issued with both parents’ particulars included. There was no need to produce a marriage certificate. But now Muslims are required to produce a marriage certificate as a prerequisite for the inclusion of the father’s surname on a birth certificate. Under the original provision of the Islamic Family Law of 1984, biological fathers of children born out of wedlock could be held responsible for the maintenance of their children. But not anymore. Later amendments made mothers solely responsible for the children. We urge the Federal Government to take steps to immediately adopt the proposal by the Terengganu state government to enable the NRD to duly recognise the man who claims parentage jointly with the mother, to be the registered father of the child and for the child to be given his surname. This is in accordance with Sections 13 and 13A of the Births and Deaths Registration Act. Furthermore, SIS believes that there must not be any markings on the birth certificate or identity cards to indicate that the child was conceived or born out of wedlock to prevent further stigmatisation of the child. Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on pinterest Share on google
Steganography: Hide text within an Image file using steghide Today we will be looking on how we can hide important texts in an Image file. This method of concealing texts inside an Image is known as Steganography. But the concept is not new. However only the people in computer security are aware of this method. And it can be really helpful in multiple situations. Let us look at how we can use steganography to hide any text inside an image file using steghide. Quick Navigation What is Steganography ? Before we dive in to the actual technical bits. Let me provide you some basic background on the Steganography. Steganography is a practice of concealing important data in an image, audio, video or similar files. The important data can be any other file that you want to hide. The data might be stored in the lowest bits that are noisy areas of the targeted file. The word noisy here means the often unwanted and subtle areas of the file. Because if the major areas of the files are targeted the file will be completely unusable. If you want to learn more about it google is your best friend. Also Read : Learning about encrypting files & folders on Ubuntu Why would you use Steganography ? Now that we know what Steganography, why would we want to use it ? You would use this way of hiding to make the secure data less obvious. If you add some data in an image file which was your holiday visit. No one would really notice anything right off the bat. Because it’s just your vacation image. Or maybe you want to store your sensitive information. We need to use a utility named steghide available on Linux to hide our data using Steganography. Let us look at how. What is steghide ? steghide is a command line utility available on *nix like platforms. It allows us to hide textual contents inside supported image file. Note that I have mentioned supported image files. As this tool cannot append data on to a PNG file but JPG works just fine. Which is good enough for tricking the prying eyes in general. steghide steganography options At the time of writing this article version 0.5.1 is in use. And we are going to look ate each of the parameters in this utility. Also Read : 5 Productivity Tips and Tricks for Ubuntu How to hide text using steghide ? Let us finally see how we can actually hide our super confidential text using steghide. The very first step is to create a text file containing the confidential text. For this I have written something in a file named such_confidential.txt. steghide steganography preparation You might notice the lunch has a typo. But nuclear is just the name of a restaurant nearby. We also have a image file named not_sketchy_at_all.jpg. We will be storing the contents of the text file in this image file. Run the command below to encrypt and append the data. You will be asked to type a password twice. steghide embed -cf <image_file> -ef <file_with_confidential_text> Code language: Bash (bash) The -cf option is short for --coverfile which specifies the targeted image file. Whereas the -ef option is short for --embedfile which is the file which needs to be hidden. In case of this blog post is the command shown in the image below. That’s it, if you open the image you will not see any text but it is there. It’s secure from everyone even if you freely distribute it. It’s safe as long as no one knows its there. And as long as you have a strong passphrase. The command will also save the name of the file from where the data was taken. Which will help restore the original file name when we extract the data from the image. Which we will see in the next section. Also Read : Learn Interesting Uses of ‘ls’ command in Linux How to extract hidden text using steghide ? Now that we have appended our text in the file in the section above. Let us see how we can actually retrieve the file from the image. If we look at the folder where we have the image file we can see only the image file exist. Now that we have the file let us run the command below to extract the data from the image file. It will prompt for password which you have used to encrypt the text. steghide extract -sf <image_file> Code language: Bash (bash) The option -sf is short for --stegfile which is the file which holds the appended data. And when we use the utility. We will have the following output for this blog post example. And once we list the directory again we will see both files in the directory. We have our original file name with same contents. which is shown in the image below We have successfully extracted the encrypted information from the image. If you want to extract the data to a separate file you can do that by using the -xffile_name.txt which is short for --extractfile file_name.txt option. steghide extract -sf <image_file> -xf target_file.txt Code language: Bash (bash) Also Read : Password 101: You are overlooking your own security But wait, there’s more If you are really advance user you can do something more with this utility. You can pass in the encryption algorithm to be used for the input file. You can do that with the command -e or –encryption. Let us look at an example of the command. steghide embed -cf <image_file> -ef <file_with_confidential_text> -e serpent Code language: Bash (bash) As you can see that we have used the serpent algorithm. But you can use any algorithms available. For a list of available algorithms run the utility with command below. steghide --encinfo Code language: Bash (bash) Which will output something like the list below. You can use the available algorithms as you wish. So that was how you can use the steganography method to hide the text inside image using steghide. Related Posts Leave a Reply
The Swimming Pool Safety Cover In Canada Protective net cover Since the introduction of modern pools in the United States, owners have used many different methods to prevent unwanted visitors from their pools. You will place a large tarp or canvas over the pond and weigh the perimeter of the brick. In 1941, an Indiana company began marketing and selling solid color polyester vinyl sheets. The layer is weighed around it with sand or a water bag. These covers work well at preventing animals and debris from escaping from the pool. But it will eventually fill with snow and rain during the winter months, causing the edges to move under the perimeter load and end up in the pond. Something better had to be done. Throughout history, a pool owner encountered a dead skunk swimming in the water in 1957 and gathered in the pool's hard vinyl cover. Recognizing the need for a product that could melt rainwater and accumulated snow while protecting children, animals and debris, he began experimenting with lightweight trampoline-style materials. This material is gently stretched over the surface of the pond and held in place by anchors that are inserted into the surrounding pool. In 1960, he and his colleagues received a patent for the first protective tissue layer. This is the beginning of today's strong new industry. Leave a Reply
Photo 101: ISO ISO is a weird part of the Exposure Triangle. There isn’t a physical component with it like there is with aperture (an opening at the back of the lens that opens and closes) or shutter speed (where a physical cover opens to reveal the sensor for a brief period of time). ISO describes how much amplification the signal receives as it’s going from the sensor to the processor. The more that signal is amplified, the grainier it gets. So what does graininess mean for photographs? Let’s go back in time a couple of decades. Back in the film days, saying that a photograph was ‘grainy’ made perfect sense. Film relied upon silver halide crystals which, when exposed to light, react to it based upon their size and other characteristics. The larger the crystals, the faster the exposure can be made. This is great for sports and extremely low light situations, but it causes the pictures to look kind of like a cloud of confetti was in the air when the picture was taken. Like this: That speckliness you see– especially in the darker areas– shows the film’s grain. Because I used an 800-speed film for this photograph, you can clearly see that grain. Had I used a slower film speed, like 100 or 200, the silver halide crystals would have been much smaller and so you wouldn’t be able to see them as well. In the digital era, silver halide crystals have gone by the wayside, but we still worry about graininess. Have you ever taken a picture with your smartphone in a restaurant or some other dark place without the benefit of a flash, then looked at the result and wondered why the color is weird and everything looks a little fuzzy? I took this picture on my phone at night during a snowstorm last winter (hence the white streaks). See how the building looks a little fuzzy and the night sky is kind of a wonky purple/gray/green? That’s the result of a high ISO number. When you set the camera’s ISO number higher (800, 1600, 3200, 10,000 and up), the camera has to work harder to make the picture. High ISO numbers allow you to use faster shutter speeds in low light, so they are useful when you’re photographing indoor sports or if you can’t use a flash indoors, but you’ll want to remember that they will cause graininess, (or ‘noise’, though there’s no actual sound). A low ISO number (like 50, 100, or 200) will give you a sharper picture that lacks graininess. The detail will be sharp and refined, and the color will be more accurate. It’s the look we’re all going for. 05_31_2019_a7III_01 copy I photographed this rose with an ISO of 160. It’s a nice, clean image with none of the noise or grain from the previous photographs. So why don’t we use low ISO numbers all the time? Because the lower the ISO, the more light you’ll need whether you have a sunny day, additional light from a flash, or a very long shutter speed. We don’t always have the luxury of a sunny day, we can’t always use a flash, and most situations don’t allow for long shutter speeds. So we have to push that ISO number higher to counterbalance low light. The trick is to choose an ISO number that’s as low as the situation will allow for but is high enough to give you the shutter speed/aperture combination you need.To see how ISO affects your exposure, try putting the camera into the ‘P’ mode (that’s Programmed automatic, where the camera sets the aperture and shutter speed for you, but gives you control over ISO and a few other settings). There’s no silver bullet, but here’s a basic guide: • Sunny day: ISO 100-400 • Indoor/Outdoor/Cloudy day: 400-800 • Nighttime, Indoor sports: 800 and up Most current cameras have ISOs that go far higher than film ever allowed for. Mine, for example, goes to 204,800. I do not push the camera that far. I don’t need to. Usually, an ISO of 3200 is high enough for what I need to do. Here is a series of examples of photographs taken at differing ISO settings. Notice how the graininess increases as the number increases. ISO 50: ISO 400: ISO 800: ISO 6400: ISO 25,600 ISO 64,000 ISO 204,800 Note: Cameras with small sensors (point & shoot or smartphone cameras) produce more digital noise. Why? It’s because the millions of little pixels that make up the sensor are extra tiny on those little sensors, and because they’re so tiny that 1) they don’t take in as much light as cameras with larger sensors and 2) they have to work a lot harder when the ISO is increased. To see what happens when you change the ISO on your camera, try taking the same picture multiple times at different ISO numbers to see what happens. 3 thoughts on “Photo 101: ISO Leave a Reply You are commenting using your account. Log Out / Change ) Google photo Twitter picture Facebook photo Connecting to %s
Around the world, deaths peak in winter: study in Canadian journal shows Article content In a Utopian world, we would banish winter and all be on a permanent summer vacation. That’s one of the conclusions we might reach after reading about a study in the Canadian Medical Association Journalwhich shows that there are fewer deaths in countries all around the world during summer months. The authors examined mortality statistics from European countries (Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Spain and Sweden), Canada, the U.S., Japan, Australia and New Zealand. In Canada and the U.S., death rates are lowest in August and highest in December and January. The study authors speculate that temperature plays a major role when it comes to “excess mortality” and more specifically, cold weather is associated with a higher risk of death from cardiovascular causes and respiratory infections. Those Canadian snowbirds obviously know this already but on the subject of vacations, the authors, from the National Technical University of Athens and from Tufts University School of Medicine, say: “Vacations can have both physiologic and psychological effects. Greater exposure to sunlight leads to increased synthesis of vitamin D which may have beneficial effects for cardiovascular disease, renal failure, certain malignant diseases, autoimmune disorders and infections, including influenza. The positive psychological effects of vacations consist of ameliorating mood, decreasing mental stress and providing a sense of recuperation and well-being….” Article Sidebar
Revive Expanding Banner 1500×510 Voices of the Bulge, Part II By Michael Collins & Martin King In the first installment, a large German force made a surprise counteroffensive against American positons along the Belgian-German border—an operation that became known in the West as “the Battle of the Bulge.” In this conclusion, some SS troops, in their ruthless desire to succeed at all costs and perhaps force the Allies to reconsider their demands for unconditional surrender, executed Belgian civilians and U.S. soldiers who had surrendered. It is not our intention to write the definitive account of the events; they have already been covered from virtually every angle. Later in this article there are references to the Malmédy Massacre as it was reported to soldiers in the field at the time, and it is their perspective that we will focus on. The German Pincer While the “Battling Babies” of the 99th U.S. Infantry Division fought with every ounce of strength they could muster in the north, the 106th (“Golden Lion”) Infantry Division reported at 1:15 pm on December 16, 1944, that it could no longer maintain contact at the interdivision boundary, and by this time observers had seen strong German forces pouring west through the Lanzerath area. Panic and chaos began to take hold as the young U.S. defenders of a very thinly held line began to feel the extent and ferocity of this German attack. The intelligence section of the 106th Division staff analyzed the enemy plan correctly in its report on the night of December 16: “The enemy is capable of pinching off the Schnee Eifel.” In actual fact, only one German division, the 18th Volksgrenadier, formed the pincers poised to grip the 106th Division. After all, the entire 62nd Volksgrenadier Division stood poised to break through in the Winterspelt area and to strengthen or lengthen the southern jaw of the pincers. Through the early, dark hours of the 17th, the enemy laid down withering mortar and artillery fire on the frontline positions of the 424th Regiment of the 106th Division. An essential part of Hitler's massive attempt to inflict heavy losses on American forces in Belgium was the capture of the road-junction town of Bastogne; the Germans nearly succeeded. An essential part of Hitler’s massive attempt to inflict heavy losses on American forces in Belgium was the capture of the road-junction town of Bastogne; the Germans nearly succeeded. While the German forces pounded away relentlessly on the Schnee Eifel and at the harassed defenders of the Elsenborn Ridge, the 1st SS Division poured through the Losheim Gap virtually unmolested. General Courtney Hodges, CG of First Army, decided to plug the southern approaches to the ridge with his tried and tested veterans of many campaigns from North Africa to Normandy. The Germans knew of the 1st Infantry Division. At that moment, the Big Red One was recuperating after being engaged in heavy fighting during the November offensive and was spread out as far south as Paris. The troops were hastily summoned to report for duty on the morning of the 17th. By the evening, they were speeding north to protect the southern flank of the Elsenborn Ridge and relieve pressure on the 99th Division. It should be noted here that one of the most prominent features of the U.S. Army in 1944 was its capacity to displace from one location to another at great speed. Speed and mobility were going to prove key factors in this offensive. The 82d Airborne Division was located at Camps Suippes and Sissonne, France, undertaking normal ground divisional training when, on December 17, 1944, first orders were received to move to the east. Maj. Gen. James M. Gavin received a phone call while at dinner with his staff, stating that SHAEF considered the situation at the front critical and that the airborne divisions were to be prepared to move 24 hours after daylight the following day, December 18. On both sides of the battle, line reinforcements were on the move, the Germans to close the pincer on the Schnee Eifel troops, the Americans to wedge its jaws apart. The battle had continued all through the night of December 16-17, with results whose impact would only be fully appreciated after daylight on the 17th. Massacres of the Bulge Colonel Mark Devine, the 14th Cavalry Group commander, left the 106th Division command post about 8 am on December 17 without any specific instructions. The previous evening, V Corps had asked VIII Corps to reestablish contact between the 99th Division and the 14th Cavalry. This call had been routed to Colonel Devine, at St. Vith, who spoke on the phone to the 99th Division headquarters and agreed to regain contact at Wereth—a town that was to become the scene of one of the most brutal massacres of World War II. December 17 would go down in history as the day that the Malmédy Massacre occurred, perpetrated by members of Kampfgruppe Peiper. But that was not the only massacre that occurred on that frozen December day in 1944. Eight GIs were murdered at Ligneuville just outside the Hotel du Moulin, and 11 African American GIs suffered the same fate at Wereth. German soldiers watch as Americans captured during the Battle of the Bulge are marched to the rear. Participation by African American GIs in the Battle of the Bulge is not well known or recognized. The majority of the African American GIs in World War II, 260,000 in the European Theater of Operations, were simply never acknowledged. They are the “invisible” soldiers of World War II. They included 11 young artillerymen of the 333rd Field Artillery Battalion who were murdered by the SS after surrendering. The 333rd Field Artillery Battalion was a 155mm howitzer unit that had been in action since coming ashore at Utah Beach on June 29, 1944. Typical of most segregated units in World War II, it had white officers and black enlisted men. At the time of the Battle of the Bulge, the unit was located in the vicinity of St. Vith, Belgium. Specifically it was northeast of Schönberg and west of the Our River in support of the U.S. Army VII Corps and especially the 106th Infantry Division. By the morning of December 17, German troops and armor were penetrating virtually all sectors of the thinly held line. While many personnel tried to escape through Schönberg, 11 men of the service battery went overland in a northwest direction in hopes of reaching American lines. Murder at Wereth At about 3 pm, they approached the first house in the nine-house hamlet of Wereth, Belgium, owned by Mathius Langer. The men were cold, hungry, and exhausted after walking cross-country through the deep snow. They had two rifles between them. The family welcomed them and gave them food. But this small part of Belgium did not necessarily welcome Americans as “liberators.” This area had been part of Germany before World War I, and many of its citizens still saw themselves as Germans and not Belgians. The people spoke German but had been forced to become Belgian citizens when their land was given to Belgium as part of the poorly assembled Treaty of Versailles. Unlike the rest of Belgium, many people in this area welcomed the Nazis in 1940, and again in 1944, because of their strong ties to Germany. Mathius Langer was not one of these, however. At the time he took the black Americans in, he was hiding two Belgian deserters from the German Army and had sent a draft-age son into hiding so that the Nazis would not conscript him. A family friend was also at the house when the Americans appeared. Unfortunately, unknown to the Langers, she was a Nazi sympathizer. About an hour later, a German patrol of the 1st SS Division, belonging to Kampfgruppe Hansen, arrived in Wereth. It is believed that a Nazi sympathizer (possibly the Langer family’s friend) informed the SS that there were Americans at the Langer house. When the SS troops approached the house, the 11 Americans surrendered quickly, without resistance. The Americans were made to sit on the road, in the cold, until dark. The Germans then marched them down the road. Gunfire was heard during the night. Classified “Secret” In the morning, villagers saw the bodies of the men in a ditch. Because they were afraid that the Germans might return, they did not touch the dead soldiers. The snow covered the bodies, and they remained entombed in the snow until mid-February, when villagers directed a U.S. Army Graves Registration unit to the site. The official report noted that the men had been brutalized, with broken legs, bayonet wounds to the head, and fingers cut off. Prior to their removal, an Army photographer took photographs of the bodies to document the brutality and savagery of this massacre. An investigation began immediately with a “secret” classification. Testimonies were taken from the Graves Registration officers, the Army photographer, the Langers, and the woman who had been present when the soldiers arrived. She testified that she told the SS the Americans had left. The case was then forwarded to a War Crimes Investigation unit. However, the investigation showed that no positive identification of the murderers could be found (i.e., no unit patches, vehicle numbers, etc.), only that they were from the 1st SS Panzer Division. Remembering the Massacre By 1948, the “secret” classification was cancelled and the paperwork filed away. The murder of the 11 soldiers in Wereth was seemingly forgotten and unavenged. Seven of these unfortunate men were buried in the American cemetery at Henri-Chapelle, Belgium, and the other four bodies were returned to their families for burial after the war ended. It is remarkable to know that the identities of the Wereth 11 remained unknown, it seemed, to all but their families. Herman Langer, the son of Mathius Langer, who had given the men food and shelter, erected a small cross with the names of the dead in the corner of the pasture where they were murdered, as a private gesture from the Langer family. But the memorial and the tiny hamlet of Wereth remained basically obscure and were not listed in any guides or maps to the Battle of the Bulge battlefield. Even people looking for it had trouble finding it in the small, German-speaking community. This monument at Wereth honors the memory of 11 African American soldiers murdered by the SS. In 2001, three Belgian citizens embarked on the task of creating a fitting memorial to these men and additionally to honor all black GIs of World War II. There are now road signs indicating the location of the memorial. Combat Engineers at Malmédy As Battle of the Bulge got under way, the members of the 291st Engineer Combat Battalion were among the many engineer battalion soldiers who picked up rifles and fought off the German assault. Throughout the war, the Germans feared and detested the American engineer battalions because not only could they blow up bridges, they could fight off German soldiers just like the infantry. The engineers even had the capacity to take out tanks with explosives and dynamite—these guys implemented multitasking long before it became a contemporary buzzword. After the German Army began its thrust through the Ardennes, the 291st was sent to Malmédy and ordered to hold the town at all costs. The engineers set up a series of roadblocks in and around Malmédy, where there were only about 128 men holding the line against the whole Sixth Panzer Army. Their initial roadblocks would be the only barriers between Kampfgruppe Peiper and the roads toward the Meuse River. Since most of the U.S. Army was in disrepair after the first day of the Bulge, the engineers would have to make do with what they had to buy the rest of the American forces time to regroup. Men of Company C, 291st Combat Engineer Battalion, pose for a photographer near Malmédy after the crisis had ended. Ralph Ciani of Company C, 291st Engineer Combat Battalion, swept for mines and was involved in many different actions the 291st took part in during the Battle of the Bulge: “When we went into Belgium, we were working at a sawmill in Sourbrodt, and we thought we would be going home for Christmas. In the morning, we saw swastikas on the houses, and we heard shots being fired around but did not know what was happening. When they broke through, we got orders to go to Malmédy and hold it all costs. We went with a company of men, and the heaviest piece of equipment was a bazooka, with only a few mines. Ralph Ciani, 291st Engineer Combat Battalion. Ralph Ciani, 291st Engineer Combat Battalion. “As we were pulling into Malmédy, there was an MP there, and he asked us, ‘Who are you guys?’ “‘Engineers,’ we replied. “‘Well, good luck—I am getting the hell out of here,’ the MP replied. When we went into Malmédy, we did not know what to expect, and it was scary.” Axis Sally Frank Towers of Company M, 120th Regiment, 30th Infantry Division, said, “At about 10 pm the night of December 17, our division was ordered to move out—to where, no one seemed to know. Just follow the vehicle ahead of you! Soon, we were able to realize, by orienting on the stars above, that we were moving south, but to where and why were still big questions. “Finally, in the early hours of the morning, with some of the men still awake and partially conscious and listening to the American Forces Network on their radios, there was a break-in on that frequency by our nemesis and rumor monger, ‘Axis Sally,’ the major German propagandist, who informed us, ‘The 30th Infantry Division, the elite Roosevelt’s SS Troops and Butchers, are en route from Aachen to Spa and Malmédy, Belgium, to try to save the First Army Headquarters, which is trying to retreat from the area, before they are captured by our nice young German boys. “‘You guys of the 30th Division might as well give up now, unless you want to join your comrades of the First Army HQ in a POW camp. We have already captured most of the 106th Division and have already taken St. Vith and Malmédy, and the next will be Liege.’ We were stunned, since only then did we have any clue as to where we were going, or the reason for this sudden movement. Hope From P-47s John Hillard Dunn, Company H, 423rd Regiment, 106th Division, recalled, “There was a strange quiet Sunday morning the 17th. No rolling thunder of a dawn barrage. A false and temporary optimism … from the west we heard planes. “A couple of former Air Force men were overjoyed and not above rubbing it in that the planes were coming to our rescue. Then we saw that the P-47s were dumping their loads a long way to our rear. Now we knew that somewhere back there the German spearhead was grinding along. “But the P-47s gave us hope that we might be able to break through and reach whatever American forces lay to the west. Clouds gathered swiftly, and a steady, soaking rain was falling by noon, turning knee-deep snow into ankle-deep mud. Those former Air Force smart alecks didn’t have to tell us that the ceiling was zero and that the P-47 fliers whose luck hadn’t run out were back swigging coffee someplace in France. “Rumors were thicker than rain clouds that afternoon, and as we wallowed about in mud, moving aimlessly from one place to another, we heard that an armored division was battering its way through to us and that we could expect to see Georgie Patton racing around the corner any minute. “By evening the magnitude of the German effort was more apparent. GIs with ‘rear echelon’ patches on their shoulders—and a hunted look in their eyes—began showing up and offering us the clothes off their backs if we would trade an M-1 for a .45-caliber pistol.” Dunn continued, “Sunday night is still a nightmare. We holed up in a pinewood, putting our still-present prisoners in a three-sided wooden stockade. Two men were assigned to guard them in four-hour reliefs. Another newly made MP and I had a relief to midnight. As we stood there in the drenching rain, he talked almost hysterically of his wife and four children. He’s cracking, I thought. Now and then a prisoner wise-cracked in German. “It was necessary for me to leave the stockade to check on our relief. As I returned to the stockade, I could hear muttering and moaning in the darkness. I thought one of the Heinies was sick. But when I drew up to the tall pine that I had used to mark our position, I realized that the moans were from my companion. “He was on his knees in the snow. His hands were raised, and he was crying and praying in a loud, piercing wail. What he had done with his weapon, I don’t know. The Heinie prisoners were stirring and jabbering. I had to do it. I swung with my fist as hard as I could on my kneeling buddy.” 10th Armored Division on High Alert Harold “Stoney” Stullenberger, C Company, 55th Armored Engineer Battalion, 10th Armored Division, noted, “Two or three of us were in some little town near Metz. It was pretty cold, but we had a chance to take a bath in a stream. It was about 3 o’clock in the afternoon. A runner came down there and told us we had to get back and get our gear and get ready. We had no idea where we were going. Harold Stullenberger, 55th Armored Engineer Battalion. Harold Stullenberger, 55th Armored Engineer Battalion. “That first night I stayed in a schoolhouse in Arlon with my platoon, and then the following day we moved toward Bastogne. We went there around 5 or 6 o’clock, and it was quiet. There was no activity at all. We then moved up to Magaret and stopped between there and Longvilly. The head of the column was all the way up at Longvilly. Our second squad, Wayne Wickert was the sergeant; they were 500 yards ahead of us. It became dark that first night, and there were a lot of stragglers coming back from the 9th Armored and the 28th Infantry. They changed the password on us about three or four times, so we figured something was going on, but we still had no idea. So we sat there all night.” John Kline, M Company, 423rd Regiment, 106th Division, commented, “German activity was reported along our front the 17th (remember the Bulge started on the 16th). The commander called me back to the command post. He informed me that I should be prepared to move my gun to his area to protect the command post. “While visiting with him, I noticed that he was very nervous. His .45 Colt pistol was on the table, ready for action. Our master sergeant, who was also present, seemed equally concerned. Later, I was to learn the reason for their anxiety. I suspect, in retrospect, that they had been made aware of the German breakthrough yet did not yet know the importance of the news. “While in the vicinity of the command post bunker, I watched a U.S. Army Air Corps P-47 Thunderbolt chase a German Messerschmitt Me-109 through the sky. They passed directly in front of us. Our area being one of the highest on the Schnee Eifel gave us a clear view of the surrounding valleys. The P-47 was about 200 yards behind the Me-109 and was pouring machine-gun fire into the German plane. They left our sight as they passed over the edge of the forest. We were told later that the P-47 downed the Me-109 in the valley. As it turned out, my machine gun was not moved to the command post. “During the night of the 17th we heard gunfire, small arms, mortars, and artillery. We also could hear and see German rocket fire to the south. The German rocket launcher was five-barreled and of large caliber. The rocket launcher is called a Nebelwerfer. Due to their design, the rockets make a screaming sound as they fly through the air. Using high explosives, but not very accurate, they can be demoralizing if you are in their path of flight.” Captured by the Germans Clair Bennett of Company F, 90th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (Mechanized), 10th Armored Division, said, “As we traveled up from Sierck, France, we stopped for about 15 minutes around 12 o’clock. I did not intend on going to sleep, but I fell asleep. First thing I know someone kicked me in the back down in the turret, I roused, and there’s no doubt that I used the aircom in the tank, which we had for communications, since naturally you can’t see each other all the time. Clair Bennett, 90th Cavalry Recon Squadron. Clair Bennett, 90th Cavalry Recon Squadron. “With the noise and whatnot, it is virtually impossible to hear each other. I said, ‘What do you want? What’s the problem?’ And George Sutherland, the tank commander, said, ‘I’ve been trying to wake you up for the last 20 minutes!’ “As we continued onward we came to a place, and we were getting pretty darn close to our location. I lost track of the blackout lights, since you can only see for 50 or 75 feet. I cut across, and I went through a grove, and I started to go toward a ravine. I went through a German bivouac area, but I finally got back on the road. I could see where other tanks had been, but I was exhausted, there was no question about it.” Nelson Charron, Company D, 422nd Regiment, 106th Division: “December 17th, we continued to fight; there was nothing else we could do. We all wanted to fight; it was either be captured or killed. The officers told us to surrender, and we had to destroy our weapons. On their tanks they had 88s, and anybody who tried to escape was shot. There was a group who tried to get out, but they did not make it because of those 88s. “At first we walked. There were 3,000 of us who were captured, and we walked and walked for about a day and a half, and we were put in boxcars. One night we were bombed by the British, and the Germans locked us in the boxcar, and they left, but they left us to be bombed. Some of the cars were hit, and we lost some men there. The next day, the Germans came back, and then we continued on to Stalag IX-B. They took all the Jewish boys, and they took them down the road and shot them. They massacred them. Just in our barracks there were maybe 10 or 15 of them.” “Sounds Like a Name That You Might Find in a History Book- Bastogne” William “Richard” Barrett with the 420th Field Artillery Battalion, 10th Armored Division, recalled, “The next morning we mounted up again and headed out. On the way up there I remember seeing a sign on the side of the road. I was in my machine-gun position, and Corporal Dillon was on the other side of the tank. I said, ‘Dillon, that sounds like a name that you might find in a history book—Bastogne, 14 kilometers.’ An unidentified American soldier lies dead as members of his unit hastily dig foxholes in a roadside ditch during the German breakthrough in the Ardennes, December 1944. “That afternoon we pulled through Bastogne, people standing around, watching us drive through, and headed out north and east, set up in the firing position like we normally did out in a field. We got everything set up and got our ammunition ready to go—no firing mission because it was foggy and you couldn’t see nothing. They had a sergeant call there. He called all the section chiefs and told them to keep everything because we might have to move fast.” Withdrawing the Artillery John R. Schaffner noted, “The 2nd Battalion of the 423rd Infantry Regiment, in Division Reserve, was ordered to hold positions in front of the 589th [Field Artillery Battalion] while it withdrew to the rear. Meanwhile, the 589th held on in the face of heavy small-arms and machine-gun fire until the infantry was able to move into position shortly after midnight. “About 0400 on the morning of December 17 our battalion was ordered to move out to the new position. By now the enemy was astride the only exit for the C Battery position so that it was unable to move. The battalion’s commanding officer, Lt. Col. Kelly, and his survey officer stayed behind and tried to get infantry support to help extricate this battery, but they were not successful. The infantry had plenty of its own problems. “C Battery was never able to move and was subsequently surrounded, and all were taken prisoner. While all this was happening, I was given orders by Captain Brown to take a bazooka and six rounds and, with Corporal Montinari, go to the road and dig in and wait for the enemy attack from ‘that’ direction. This we did and were there for some time waiting for a target to appear where the road crested. We could hear the action taking place just out of sight, but the battery was moving out before our services with the bazooka were required. “As the trucks came up out of the gun position, we were given the sign to come on, so Montinari and I abandoned our hole and, bringing our bazooka and six rounds, climbed on one of the outbound trucks. I did not know it at the time, but my transfer from A Battery to B Battery was a lucky break for me, since Captain Menke, A Battery’s commanding officer, got himself captured right off the bat, and I probably would have been with him. “A and B Batteries moved into the new position with four howitzers each, the fourth gun in A Battery not arriving until about 0730. Lieutenant Wood had stayed with the section as it struggled to extricate the howitzer with the enemy practically breathing on them. Battalion headquarters commenced to set up its command post in a farmhouse almost on the Belgian-German border, having arrived just before daylight. “At about 0715 a call was received from Service Battery saying that they were under attack from enemy tanks and infantry and were surrounded. Shortly after that the lines went out. Immediately after that a truck came up the road from the south, and the driver reported enemy tanks not far behind. With their hands up, American soldiers surrender to men of the 1st SS Panzer Division in a Belgian village. “All communications went dead, so a messenger was dispatched to tell the A and B Batteries to displace to St. Vith. The batteries were notified, and A Battery, with considerable difficulty, got three sections on the road and started for St. Vith. The fourth piece again, however, was badly stuck, and while attempting to free the piece, the men came under enemy fire. The gun was finally gotten onto the road and proceeded toward Schönberg. Some time had elapsed before this crew was moving.” Under Fire From the Germans “B Battery then came under enemy fire, and its bogged down howitzers were ordered abandoned, and the personnel of the battery left the position in whatever vehicles could be gotten out. I had dived headfirst out of the three-quarter-ton truck that I was in when we were fired on. I stuck my carbine in the snow, muzzle first. In training we were told that any obstruction of the barrel would cause the weapon to blow up in your face if you tried to fire it. “Well, I can tell you it ain’t necessarily so. At a time like that I figured I could take the chance. I just held the carbine at arms length, aimed it toward the enemy, closed my eyes, and squeezed. The first round cleaned the barrel and didn’t damage anything except whatever it might have hit. As the truck started moving toward the road, I scrambled into the back over the tailgate, and we got the hell out of there. “Headquarters loaded into its vehicles and got out as enemy tanks were detected in the woods about 100 yards from the battalion command post. Enemy infantry were already closing on the area. The column was disorganized. However, the vehicles got through Schönberg and continued toward St. Vith. The last vehicles in the main column were fired on by small arms and tanks as they withdrew through the town. Soldiers of the 99th Infantry Division are on the alert for the enemy. The snow and sub-freezing conditions added more misery to the combat experience. “As the vehicles were passing through Schönberg on the west side, the enemy, with a tank force supported by infantry, was entering the town from the northeast. Before all the vehicles could get through, they came under direct enemy fire. The A Battery executive officer, Lieutenant Eric Wood, who was with the last section of the battery, almost made it through. However, his vehicle, towing a howitzer, was hit by tank fire, and he and the gun crew bailed out. Some were hit by small arms fire. Sergeant Scannipico tried to take on the tank with a bazooka and was killed in the attempt. The driver, Kenneth Knoll, was also killed there. The rest of the members of the crew were taken prisoner, but Lieutenant Wood made good his escape. His story has been told elsewhere. Several of the other vehicles came down the road loaded with battalion personnel and were fired on before they entered the town. These people abandoned the vehicles and took to the woods, and with few exceptions they were eventually captured.” 101st Airborne Division in Bastogne By December 17, 1944, Allied intelligence had a slightly better idea of the strength and objectives of the attacking German forces. Under mounting pressure, General Eisenhower, at the request of Lt. Gen. Courtney Hodges, the U.S. First Army commander, decided to commit his reserves: the XVIII Airborne Corps. Lt. Gen. James Gavin received notification that the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions had been alerted to move into action at daylight the following day and head, without delay, toward the town of Bastogne. Men of the 505th Parachute Regiment, 101st Airborne, move into a town during the Battle of the Bulge. Lieutenant General Gavin left for Spa, Belgium, and a meeting with Lt. Gen. Hodges. On arrival, Gavin received more information regarding the latest situation and was ordered to attach the 82nd Airborne to V Corps and to bolster the defenses in the area of Werbomont, northwest of St. Vith—their mission to support existing units in the area and block the advance of the Sixth Panzer Army. The 101st Airborne Division, under Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe, established its headquarters in the town of Bastogne to reinforce the defense of this vital location. The troops in Reims boarded trucks and departed with all haste to their allocated positions. Many men were pulled from leave, and many others were devoid of proper equipment or arms, but they were notified that these would be collected at their destination, so they departed with all speed. By 8 pm on December 18, the lead elements of the 82nd had arrived in Werbomont, where they trudged through blizzard conditions along muddy, snow-blocked roads toward their defensive positions. William Hannigan of the 82nd Airborne William Hannigan, a member of H Company, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, said, “We had come off the line for rest and kind of repair. We were in Ramerville [sic] in France when the Germans invaded the forest. And we were pulled out on trucks; inadequately armed and given, you know, clothes. We were just pulled out in necessity in this thing. Wasn’t well thought out, but we did get up on these trucks and were taken right up to Bastogne. My brother was at Bastogne [in the 101st Airborne], and I always told him that we saved his skinny little butt. “Now we went up and were put in there. We had leadership in Lieutenant James Megellas, another special officer named La Riveriera, and Jack Rivers, and we had Ted Finkbeiner, an excellent leader. I asked him just recently, “How come you never had the fear that the rest of us had, normal fear?’ and he said, ‘I grew up in the swamps in Louisiana with a gun in my hand in the woods and the rivers hunting all the time.’ And he said he found great joy in it. And I thought, well, these people didn’t send us into battle … they led us, that was important. “Now the battle is a confusion of things that I just know a very small amount about. A couple of things I remember are that toward the end we captured some Germans who’d been pulling back from the Battle of the Bulge, and I asked a noncommissioned officer (NCO) in the German Army, ‘Why when you knew you lost the war did you fight so viciously?’ And he said, ‘My family. For eight or ten years that’s all we had, one another, so we protected and fought viciously for one another.’ I thought it was interesting. Troops from H Company, 82nd Airborne Division, advance in a snowstorm behind a tank. The packhorse, which was not U.S. government issue, was likely “borrowed” from a local farm. “First we got off the trucks in Werbomont and started moving north, and we had engagements then. It was a question of survival and lack of equipment, and they talked about getting two guys in a hole in the ground. They called it ‘dig a foxhole.’ Well, if three guys got in there and you slept ‘spoon fashion,’ the guy in the middle got warm, and you did that and turned it over. Now it sounds a little out of sync, but you did some things you normally wouldn’t do in order to survive. And I want to tell you that I spent a lot of years trying to forget this and I succeeded.” “We Didn’t Know the Situation, We Just Knew it Was Cold” The 101st arrived at 11:45 pm on December 18, and at daylight the next morning the soldiers began taking up positions at the roadblocks around Bastogne in support of Team Cherry, Team O’Hara, and Team Desobry at Noville under the command of the distinguished William R. Desobry. The 501st arrived first and moved into areas around Longvilly. The unit proved to be a stubborn barrier that would allow the necessary time to build Bastogne’s defenses. Ralph K. Manley of the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne, said, “I was in Paris on a 24-hour pass after we just returned from Holland, and a loudspeaker came on saying, ‘All units report to your units immediately, as quickly as possible, any way possible.’ So, we returned then from Paris back to our unit and immediately got on what clothes we had. I still had on my Class A’s, of course, for being in Paris, and we loaded onto port battalion trucks—these semi trucks that had four-foot sidewalls on them and open tops—without overcoats and without overshoes and headed toward the Bulge, and it was very cold. “We met troops that were coming out, wounded, walking as we crossed paths, us going in, and them coming out—those who were disenchanted, having been overrun by the Germans and so on—a truck with maybe a series of bodies on it, and as one rounded the corner, some of the pieces of bodies fell off the truck. Men of the 26th Volksgrenadier Division attempt to enter Bastogne from the north through Noville. That they did not succeed was due to a savage defense by Team Desobry—20th Armored Infantry Battalion, 10th Armored Division, plus engineer and airborne troops. “At that time they had grouped together clerks, anybody who was a soldier, to go to the front, and some of those not having seen that just keeled over in their tracks because they had not seen that type of wartime before. We did not know actually what was going on. As we got back to our unit in Mourmelon, France, then we got our equipment and our guns and what have you and were on trucks in minutes, headed off to Bastogne. “We didn’t know the situation, we just knew it was cold, and we had to go as we were without overshoes or overcoats. Again, with zero degrees, you can imagine—in open-air trucks, going there, put in like cattle you might say, on trucks that weren’t covered. They were actually port battalion trucks that were used to haul merchandise from the ships out to the warehousing areas, so that’s what we rode to Bastogne on. “Once we got there, of course, it was just dismount and head up the road to the city, on foot. We just missed others as they were coming out—both wounded, disabled, and what have you, who were hobbling and going out in trucks, hauling bodies that had been killed and so on. That’s what we met as we were going into Bastogne. “Being a demolitionist, I was out on the edge, in a foxhole. In this case, the ground was frozen, but we were in a barn lot with all the feces and cattle stuff, so it was easier to dig a foxhole there. You can imagine what I must have smelled like. We disabled some tanks that were coming through with the bazooka, but they got very close. Oftentimes you maybe had two in a foxhole, but in this case it was just one because the ground was so hard to dig, at least on the surface with the snow. “Also, you didn’t want to reveal your position because of the black dirt on top of the white snow, so you had to get snow and cover over the soil that you had dug out of the foxhole.” Defending the Ridge at Prumerberg Out on the freezing Prumerberg just east of St. Vith, a few hundred members of the 168th Combat Engineers were fighting tooth and nail against the whole 18th Volksgrenadier Regiment, who were attacking their position with devastating ferocity. They had no idea how long they were going to have to hold that ridge. One of those serving with the 168th Engineer Combat Battalion was James W. Hanney, Jr. For six long days and nights, Hanney and the rest of the 168th resisted sustained attacks of the determined enemy in the most inhumanly cold conditions. It was minus 18 degrees Fahrenheit on that small ridge, and they had to contend, not only with the Germans but also with a scythe-like wind that skimmed in across the icy hills of the Schnee Eifel. James was eventually wounded and helped down from the ridge by his best friend, Frank Galligan. James W. Hanney Jr., 168th Engineer Combat Battalion. James W. Hanney Jr., 168th Engineer Combat Battalion. Some years ago, co-author Martin King accompanied Hanney and a few members of his family back to the battlefield. King said, “We even managed to locate what we believed to be the actual foxhole that he dug back in 1944. The soldiers of the battalion were ordered to dig in on the ridge just to the east of St. Vith and hold their positions until they received further orders. I recall asking him how on earth they managed to dig into that frozen ground up there on the ridge. ‘It was easy,’ he told me. ‘We just tossed hand grenades to loosen up the ground and then dug in.’ The Malmédy Massacre Seventy years on, perhaps the best-known incidents in the entire Battle of the Bulge are the atrocities committed against both U.S. service personnel and Belgian civilians in December 1944, by a German unit known as Kampfgruppe (Battle Group) Peiper, an element of the Sixth SS Panzer Army. The events that occurred in the small village of Baugnez, Belgium, in December 1944, are referred to in most history books as the Malmédy Massacre, despite the fact that Malmédy is about five or six kilometers east of the site. Survivors of Battery B of the ill-fated 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion, the unit that was unmercifully gunned down after having surrendered, have written and rewritten numerous accounts of their experiences, but what is not so readily available is the testimony of the perpetrators. Endless testimonies about that particular atrocity have been given, and it has been covered at great length in many books about the Battle of the Bulge. That the massacre occurred is an indisputable fact of history, but the circumstances under which it occurred have been contradicted time and again. Belgian civilians who were unfortunate to be in the path of advancing SS units also were gunned down. One only needs to follow the line of progress (Rollerbahn D) of Kampfgruppe Peiper to see that it was not an isolated incident; other cold-blooded murders occurred along the route. In spite of this, this incident always appears to raise more questions than answers. The Malmédy Massacre was a pivotal event that changed the psyche of the American soldier during the Battle of the Bulge. There were many massacres during the battle, but when 86 defenseless soldiers from the 285th were murdered in a field in Baugnez, Belgium, the war became even more personal for the average GI. The phrase “take no prisoners” became part of the American soldier’s motto. Captured by the SS Ted Paluch of Battery B, 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion, was in one of the half-tracks that came under attack while the convoy headed past Baugnez to see how far Peiper’s advance had come. Paluch recalled, “On December 17 we were in Schevenhutte, Germany, and got our orders to go. We were in the First Army; we got our orders to move to the Third Army. There was a tank column going with us, and they took the northern road and we took the southern road. That would have been something if they had gone with us south. “Right before we left, a couple of guys got sick and a couple of trucks dropped out of the convoy, and they were never in the massacre. Also, there were about 15 sent ahead to give directions and all, and they escaped the massacre. From the massacre you saw guys … they got one guy named Talbert, I remember him, both arms, both legs, across the stomach. He lived to the next day. Two Germans put on boots they have stripped from dead Americans in Honsfeld, Belgium. “We had no idea that it was going to happen. We took a turn, like a ‘T’ turn, and the Germans were coming the other way. We were pretty wide open for I guess maybe half a mile, and their artillery stopped our convoy. We just had trucks, and all we carried was carbines. We might have had a machine gun and a bazooka, but that was about it; we were ‘observation.’ “They stopped the convoy. We got out, and the ditches were close to five or six feet high because I know when I got in it, the road was right up to my eyes. There was a lot of firing; I don’t know what we were firing at or who was firing at anything, but there were a lot of tracer bullets going across the road. “Finally, a tank came down with the SS troopers behind it. They wore black, and on one collar they had a crossbones and skull and on the other collar they had lightning. They just got us out, and we went up to the crossroad, and they just searched us there to get anything of value—cigarettes, and I had an extra pair of socks, and my watch, everything like that. They put us in the field there that was their front line—ours was 21/2 miles away in Malmédy.” Survival at Malmédy “When we were captured and being brought up there, the people who lived there or in that general area brought up a basket. I guess it was bread or something, and they brought it up to them to eat. Every truck and half-track that passed fired into the group, and why I didn’t get hit too bad … I was in the front, right in the front, the first or second or third right in the front. Each track that came around the corner would fire right into the group in the middle so that they wouldn’t miss anything; that’s why I didn’t get too badly hit. We laid there for about an hour, maybe two hours. While we were lying there, they come around, and anyone who was hurt, they just fired and would knock them off. “Someone yelled, ‘Let’s go!’ and we took off. I went down the road, there was a break in the hedgerow, and a German that was stationed there at that house came out and took a couple of shots at me, and I got hit in the hand. If he saw me or not I don’t know, he went back and didn’t fire at me anymore. I was watching him come, and there was a well, and I went over there. It was all covered up, and I laid down. A GI surveys the snowy field littered with dead Americans massacred at Baugnez, near Malmédy. “There was a little hill right behind where I was, and I just rolled. I got there … near a railroad, and I figured it would take us somewhere. I met a guy from my outfit, Bertera, and two other guys—one guy from the 2nd Division, he was shot, and another guy from the 2nd Division. The four of us came in together. It was dark when we got into Malmédy, but we could see some activity. “I thought they would take us back, but they were on the move, so they could not afford to take us back. There were something like 75 who were killed right there. If I had been moaning, I would have been killed then.” Paluch is one of the last five Malmédy Massacre survivors left in the United States. The men who first heard about the massacre were from the 291st Engineer Combat Battalion. The Only Organized Massacre at the Bulge William “Stu” Getz said, “We [Company C, 291st Engineer Combat Battalion] were at a town called Malmédy. There was another outfit coming up, and our colonel told them not to go that way because the Germans were ahead of them. They said they could not disobey their orders. We heard a lot of gunfire for about 45 minutes, and two or three of the GIs came down from the massacre. They were wounded but survived, and we took them to the medics. Our colonel called up SHAEF to report what happened. We did not take too many prisoners after that.” By December 20, Peiper’s command had murdered approximately 350 American prisoners of war and at least 100 unarmed Belgian civilians, this total derived from killings at 12 different locations along Peiper’s line of march. So far as can be determined, the Peiper killings represent the only organized and directed murder of prisoners of war by either side during the Ardennes battle. The commander of the Sixth SS Panzer Army, Josef “Sepp” Dietrich, said under oath during the war crimes trials of 1946 that, acting on Hitler’s orders, he issued a directive stating that the German troops should be preceded “by a wave of terror and fright and that no human inhibitions should be shown.” Many of his troops certainly followed Dietrich’s orders—and earned lasting infamy. Postwar Trial For the Malmédy Massacre The postwar trial—Case Number 6-24 (United States vs. Valentin Bersin, et al.)—was one of the American-run Dachau Trials, which took place at the former Dachau concentration camp from May 16 to July 16, 1946. It is also an indisputable fact that the testimonies of the perpetrators of this war crime were extracted under duress before the ensuing trial. More than 70 people were tried and found guilty by the tribunal, and the court pronounced 43 death sentences (none of which, incidentally, were carried out) and 22 life sentences. Eight other men were sentenced to shorter prison sentences. As a GI guard stands watch, a German prisoner found wearing American clothing is forced to remove his captured trousers. His feet are wrapped in rags to replace the GI boots he has already surrendered. However, after the verdict, the way the court had functioned was disputed, first in Germany (by former Nazi officials who had regained some power due to anti-Communist positions with the occupation forces), then later in the United States (by Congressmen from heavily German-American areas of the Midwest). The case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which was unable to make a decision. The case then came under the scrutiny of a subcommittee of the U.S. Senate. A young senator from Wisconsin named Joseph McCarthy used it as an opportunity to raise his political profile, coming to the defense of the convicted men by stating that the court had not given them a fair trial. This drew attention to the trial and some of the judicial irregularities that had occurred during the interrogations preceding the trial itself. However, even before the Senate took an interest in this case, most of the death sentences had already been commuted due to a revision of the trial carried out by the U.S. Army. The other life sentences were commuted within the next few years. All the convicted war criminals were released during the 1950s, the last one to leave prison being the infamous Joachim Peiper in December 1956. SS Colonel Joachim Peiper, infamous commander of Kampfgruppe Peiper, accused of committing atrocities. Manfred Thorn, a veteran of the 1st SS Division, Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler, wrote a book and released a DVD titled Mythos Malmédy in which he claims that the massacre never occurred. After much searching, co-author Martin King located Thorn in Nuremberg. King said, “His wife, Hazel, a British woman, answered. She seemed to be a very mild-mannered and approachable woman, so I asked if I could speak to Mr. Thorn. I asked him his opinion, which he was quite reluctant to impart when I told him that I was in the process of writing a book with a friend in the United States. He said quite sternly, ‘The Malmédy Massacre was a setup; it never happened. Those bodies were placed there by U.S. intelligence to appear like they were all massacred. That is the end of it. I don’t want to participate further; respect my decision.’ So ended our discussion. “Some days later, I visited the U.S. cemetery in Neuville-en-Condroz. This cemetery had been the location of the mortuary after the Battle of the Bulge. The bodies of the victims had been brought there for forensic examination and identification. It was more than apparent that many of the victims had been shot at close range due to the nature of the bullet holes in their skulls. Moreover, there’s pretty compelling evidence to suggest the 1st SS Division was more than capable of completely ignoring the Geneva Convention rules.” The End of the Battle of the Bulge The German counteroffensive was finally stopped at the end of January 1945—many miles short of its objective of Antwerp, Belgium. Despite inflicting heavy casualties on U.S. forces, it had failed to achieve its aims; the Americans and British did not fall out with one another, nor did they join with the Germans in turning against the Soviets. With many of its best troops, tanks, and artillery pieces now gone, Germany now had no hope of winning the war. The complete story is captured in the authors’ book, Voices of the Bulge (Zenith Press, 2011), from which this article is excerpted. 1. Robert Lonergan It’s always madding when the command structure ignores reports of buildups reported by enlisted personnel. You would think that through the centuries they would learn the little guy on the ground knows what is going on. Leave a Reply Top Ad Space Top Ad Space 2 Middle Ad Space Bottom Ad Space Our Magazines Military History Magazine Cover WWII History Magazine Cover WWII Quarterly Cover
AskNadia: The scoop on sleep apnea Dear Nadia, I have type 2 diabetes and have trouble sleeping and feeling rested. I live alone and wonder if I might have sleep apnea? James, Boise Idaho Dear James, Sleep apnea affects 22 million people in the United States. Interestingly enough, 80% of these people don't know they have it. If you feel tired after 8 hours of sleep, you could have sleep apnea. If you had trouble sleeping before your type 2 diabetes diagnosis, chances are that your inability to sleep through the night may have contributed to your type 2 diabetes diagnosis. In fact, scientist have found a pre-diabetes connection to this particular sleeping disorder. If left untreated, you could be at risk for other cardiovascular diseases. Fifty percent of the population that have diabetes, high blood pressure and one form of cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure are at risk. Sleep Apnea Definition Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects your breathing while sleeping. Your sleep is frequently interrupted by the relaxing of your palate, tongue, and larynx. This combination relaxes your throat creating a block and prevents you from inhaling oxygen up to 55 seconds. Once the oxygen is cut off, your body triggers a surge where you wake up gasping for air. How well you sleep, how many interruptions, and how long theses interruptions persist for, can only be determined by a sleeping study. Sleep Apnea Symptoms Most common symptoms are: ~ Snoring ~ Waking up gasping for air ~ Inability to sleep through the night ~ Inability to focus during the day and ~ Difficulty in staying awake during the day ~ Inability to sleep through the night ~ Feeling irritable ~ Depression ~ Experience a dry throat and or mouth after awakening You mentioned you live alone which means you don't have someone that can observe these symptoms for you. So, in your case, I would recommend setting up a recording device while you sleep. A smartphone that stays plugged into the electrical outlet would be ideal. This way your battery does not run out of juice and you can videotape or use an audio app to record your activities while sleeping. Ask your physician if you can be tested for sleep apnea. Sleep Apnea Causes ~ The National Institutes of Health (NIH) reports that half of the people that experience sleep apnea are overweight. ~ Men are more likely to be diagnosed than women. ~ Physiological differences such as having large tonsils with a narrow throat. Or narrow airways in your nose and mouth contribute to apnea ~ Age and a family disposition can put you at a higher risk. ~ Smokers are at a higher risk of being diagnosed. Sleep Apnea Treatments ~ Losing weight if you are overweight since the circumference of your neck is a factor. ~ Start using a CPAP (pronounced See-Pap) machine. This is an air pressurized machine with a mask that covers your nose. If you find the CPAP difficult to use there are other CPAP devices that adjust the air pressure when you are asleep. ~ Surgery may be appropriate to expand narrow air passages. ~ Oral appliances that keep your airways open and free from obstruction are provided by dentist Disclaimer: Nadia's feedback on your question is in no way intended to initiate or replace your healthcare professionals therapy or advice. Please check in with your medical team to discuss your diabetes management concerns. About Nadia and Diabetes Health: Publisher Nadia Al-Samarrie has used her personal loss to help people lead healthy lives while managing their diabetes. She writes a popular Monday column, "AskNadia" where people from all over the world ask for her advice. Google ranks her column #1 under the keyword search "AskNadia." People and healthcare professionals can also listen to Nadia's Podcast on research and business briefs every Wednesday and Friday on
• Complete Canine Your dog is learning to be bilingual – are you? Why learning to understand and speak your dog’s language is so important Communication is a two-way street Communication is a process which involves a system of signalling between senders and receivers. Each signal is specifically designed to carry a particular piece of information from the signaller to the intended recipient, such that the latter responds in a particular way. So, what is it you are trying to tell me? We humans typically spend a lot of time ‘training’ our dogs to understand what we want them to do. We ‘teach’ them that when we send a specific human communication signal to them, such as a showing a certain hand signal, saying a verbal cue (such as ‘stay’ or ‘come’), or blowing a whistle, we are asking for a particular behaviour from them in return. Developing a communication system through which our dogs can clearly understand our human signals can of course be very helpful for both parties, and indeed essential for safety in certain situations, however we must be careful not to focus only on one side of the conversation. Dogs have their own needs, wants, and ways of perceiving the world, they experience their own emotional and physical states, and crucially have their own ways of communicating about all of these things using specific dog communication signals. Sadly, all too often these signals are not noticed, are ignored or are misinterpreted by humans who have not taken the time to learn how dogs communicate. If we do not understand the signals our dogs are sending to us, to other people and to other dogs, we will fail to respond in the ways our dogs expect and need us to. Our inability to take appropriate action can lead to our dogs becoming confused, frustrated, stressed, anxious and frightened, and potentially place not only our dogs, but ourselves, other people and other dogs, in physical and emotional danger. Humans use a lot of verbal communication Two different species, two different languages Both humans and dogs are social species, and as such both species have evolved their own rich vocabularies with which to communicate with their own kind. Humans are primarily a verbal species, using vocal communication as the main means of establishing understanding and continuing a conversation when in the presence of another human. Dogs are amazing pupils, and can learn to understand a lot of human signals, but they do not speak English, Italian, Polish, Japanese or any other verbal human language. Shouting at a barking dog is like barking yourself! Your dog isn’t being disobedient, they don’t understand you Your dog has heard someone approaching the front door and starts barking, you shout ‘be quiet’ and your dog carries on barking, you shout ‘be quiet’ again and your dog carries on barking. Your dog doesn’t know what the words ‘be quiet’ mean, they just hear you sounding aroused and making a noise too. From their perspective it might sound like you’re joining-in with the barking, which just encourages them to bark more! The doggy dictionary Whilst dogs use some vocalisations to communicate, they primarily use a wide array of visual signals such as facial expressions and body postures, to understand and converse both with one another, and with us. Dogs communicate with many facial expressions Dogs send visual signals using their: • Eyes • Ears • Mouth and teeth • Heads • Back • Legs • Tails Dogs position and move all of these face and body parts in different ways to communicate different meanings to the recipients of their communication. Stringing words into sentences Fully understanding what one visual signal means however is reliant on observing which other signals are being presented at the same time, as well as the environmental context in which all of the signals are being displayed. Not all tail wags are happy A common misconception is that a wagging tail means that the dog is happy. Sometimes this is true, but sometimes it can mean quite the opposite! Dogs may wag their tails when they are happy, uncertain, frustrated, aroused or over-stimulated. The way the tail is wagging gives an indication of the way the dog is feeling, but to be more certain of the precise meaning of the wag, we need to look at the bigger picture. We’ve arrived home to our family dog, her face and body look soft and relaxed, she is wiggling her bottom and her tail is wagging quickly side-to-side or around and around like a helicopter = HAPPY dog, safe to approach. We’ve wondered onto a farmyard during a country walk, there is a dog on the yard, his tail is wagging quickly side-to-side, but his face and body look tense and stiff, his eyes are wide and staring and he is barking = OVER-AROUSED dog, may be dangerous if approached. Some dogs can be harder to ‘read’ than others Dogs tell us a lot with their eyes...if we can see them! The physical characteristics of some dogs mean that their visual signals can go unseen or be misinterpreted. If a dog has long hair on his face that covers his eyes, other dogs and people cannot see whether his eyes are soft, staring, blinking or have dilated pupils. Or if a dog has a tail that naturally curls tightly over her back, she may appear confident and aroused, even when she is feeling nervous Some dogs use fewer signals to communicate how they are feeling. Where one individual might communicate his anxiety about having his bottom sniffed by an unfamiliar dog by clamping his tail down, rounding his back, turning his body away, holding his ears back and down, looking at the other dog out of the side of his eye and flashing his teeth; another individual who feels equally nervous might just stand still with her mouth closed, holding her breath. Beware anthropomorphism Reading facial expressions and body language is not an alien concept to humans, after all we use these types of visual signals when communicating with other people. We must however be careful not to try and understand dogs as if they are humans. It is all too easy to look at a dog’s appearance and behaviour and attribute human feelings, needs and motivations to them, but doing so can have damaging and even dangerous consequences. Your dog's not feeling guilty, he's worried Misinterpretation harms your dog’s well-being and your relationship with them You’re meeting your friend for a drink, you shut Rover in the kitchen at home whilst you go out. Rover can smell some irresistible aromas emanating from the bin, he puts his feet up on it, leans on it and nudges the lid with his nose, eventually it topples over, woohoo! Out spills yesterday’s roast chicken carcass and Rover enjoys a tasty snack. You get home with your friend, you see and smell the messy, stinky contents of the bin all over the floor, and start panicking about whether there was anything dangerous in there. Rover bounces happily out of his crate to see you but you’re angry about the mess, worried about what he might have eaten, and you start yelling at him, grab him by the collar and turf him out into the garden, slamming the door behind you whilst you go in to clean up the mess. Fast forward a couple of weeks and you’re meeting your friend for a drink again. You leave Rover in the kitchen whilst you’re out and when you come home with your friend, you can’t believe your eyes, the bin’s contents are all over the floor again. You look around for Rover and see him laying stiffly at the back of his crate, his head is turned slightly away but he’s looking at you with big ‘sorry-looking’ eyes. ‘Look, he knows he’s done wrong!’ you say to your friend as you start getting angry again, ‘look at that guilty expression!’ STOP! You’re misinterpreting Rover’s communication. He’s not feeling ‘guilty’. Why would he? He doesn’t know that helping himself to a snack out of the bin isn’t ok. He’s feeling anxious about what you are going to do when you enter the room. Last time you left him for a few hours in the kitchen and came home with your friend, you shouted at him, roughly pulled him outside by the collar, slammed the door loudly and left him in the garden in the rain. The context means that he is anticipating that you might show threatening behaviour towards him again. By keeping still he hopes not to attract your attention, by turning his head away he is trying to pacify you by avoiding a confrontational face-on position, but he is keeping his wide-open eyes looking at you so that he can see everything you are doing, so he can react quickly if he needs to if you start to threaten him again. It’s YOU who should 'know you've done wrong’. You left irresistible food in the bin - food is a basic need for dogs and most will be very motivated to access it, and you who frightened Rover with your behaviour when you came home to the upturned bin the first time. He had no idea why you yelled at him, yanked him uncomfortably by the collar, banged the door and left him outside in the cold alone. You have damaged the trust between you, and given Rover reason to feel anxious. Misinterpretation increases bite risk Aggressively bared teeth can look like a smile to young children Research testing the ability of young children to interpret dog facial expressions, found that a quarter of 6 year olds, over a third of 5 year olds and nearly three-quarters of 4 year olds, thought that the image of a dog showing an aggressive display of barred teeth was a happy, smiling dog. By interpreting a dog’s face in the same way as they would a human’s, young children may then make the mistake of trying to approach and / or pet the dog, because they have not understood that the meaning of the dog’s teeth display is ‘I feel threatened by you, stay away from me, these are my weapons, I will use them if you keep approaching me’. This lack of understanding about the way in which dogs communicate differently from humans places young children at an increased risk of being bitten. Learn to ‘talk’ as well as ‘listen’ like a dog If we can learn to understand what our dogs are asking for when they send different dog communication signals, not only can we learn how to respond appropriately to their requests, we can also learn how to use our dogs’ signals to communicate our intentions in ways that they will find easy to understand, whilst also being mindful not to accidentally use signals that our dogs might find intimidating. ‘I’m not a threat’ It’s the first time that you’re going over to your new friend’s house. They’ve told you they have a dog who’s nervous of strangers who will probably avoid you when you come around. You arrive at your friend’s house and they take you through to the living room. Their dog Missy is laying on her bed on the other side of the room. She’s very quiet and very still, apart from her eyes which follow you intently as you move around the room. Learning to talk dog can help diffuse tension You decide you want to make friends with Missy from the outset so that she knows you’re not a threat. You start to walk directly towards her, you’re eyes on her eyes, repeating the words ‘Hello Missy, don’t worry, I’m a friend, I won’t hurt you’. You remember you’ve got some of your own dog’s treats in your pocket and you take one out. As you get close to Missy you lean down and reach out your hand down to her to offer the treat. STOP! Everything about the above approach to Missy tells her that you ARE a threat! She was clearly communicating that she did not want to engage with you, she was keeping her distance from you and staying very still so as to discourage you from approaching. Despite this you kept moving closer to her – your head-on face and body posture looked bold and assertive. You held eye contact with her - she felt she couldn’t move. You were talking to her in a strange, high-pitched repetitive way using words she doesn’t understand - she’s unsure of your intentions. You stood over her - she feels trapped. You reached out your hand – she doesn’t know what that hand’s going to do, she might get hurt! REWIND! This time you enter the room and see Missy laying on her bed by the opposite wall. You can see she’s not all that comfortable with you being there. She’s keeping still and quiet and watching you carefully. You keep your distance, look away from her and turn your body side on to her position as you sit down on the sofa furthest away from her, whilst continuing to chat casually to your friend. Everything about this approach communicates to Missy that you are NOT a threat. You are not focussing any attention on her, your body language is unintimidating, you are giving her space to go wherever she wants, and you are interacting in a relaxed, ‘normal’ way with her owner. Now it’s up to Missy to decide if / when she wants to approach you and make friends. It’s time we all took language lessons If we fail to understand what are dog’s communication signals mean, we are more likely to do things that compromise their well-being, damage our relationship with them and potentially even put our dog, ourselves and others in danger. If, however, we take action right now to put as much time and effort into learning how to understand and use our dogs’ language, as we do into ‘training’ our dog’s to understand ours, we have a wonderful opportunity to develop genuine two-way communication with our dogs, and in so doing, build a rich relationship of mutual understanding, trust and respect for a happy, safe and rewarding life together. Resources to help you learn more about dog communication ‘Clever Dog – Understand What Your Dog Is Telling You’ by Sarah Whitehead ‘Tail Talk – Understanding The Secret Language of Dogs’ by Sophie Collins ‘Canine Body Language’ from Victoria Stillwell’s ‘Positively’ website ‘How to communicate with a dog in his own language’ by Kikopup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgnLgHFRJu4&t=6s ‘Reading Your Dog's Body Language When Training’ by Kikopup Online courses: ‘Learn To Talk Dog’ from Sarah Whitehead Course 1. Canine Body Language and Facial Expression Course 2. Understanding Dog-To-Dog Communications #dogbehaviour #dogcommunication #talkdog • White Instagram Icon • White Facebook Icon © 2020 Complete Canine Dog Training 07833 662417 Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire
• Shuffle Toggle On Toggle Off • Alphabetize Toggle On Toggle Off • Front First Toggle On Toggle Off • Both Sides Toggle On Toggle Off • Read Toggle On Toggle Off Card Range To Study Play button Play button Click to flip Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards; Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card; H to show hint; A reads text to speech; 8 Cards in this Set • Front • Back What is an Exception? An Exception is an abnormal condition or an error that arises in a code sequence at run time. What are the three blocks in an Exception handler? Try, catch and finally. Explain the throw keyword used in an exception block? Throw is used to generate an Exception. What are the two possible sources of Exceptions? Exceptions can be thrown by the Java run time system or can be generated programmatically by a piece of code. What is "Catch or Specify" as it pertains to Exceptions? This means that either an Exception must be caught or the method in which the Exception is generated must specify that it can throw such an Exception. Any subclass of Exception that isn't also a subclass of RuntimeException is subject to "Catch or Specify". What are the three types of exceptions in Java? 1. Checked Exceptions which are of the sort that an well written program can anticipate and recover from. FileNotFoundException for example. 2. Errors which are of the sort that are external to the system and are probably un-recoverable. 3. Runtime exceptions which are of the sort that are internal to the system and probably unrecoverable. ArithmeticException such as in the case of a divide by zero, IndexOutOfBoundsException and NullPointerException are examples. What are some advantages of exception handling? 1. Separates error handling code from regular code. 2. Propagation of errors up the call stack which allows a method's caller to handle it. 3. Grouping and differentiating error types. You have an Exception handling block that has a try block and a finally block. You call System.exit(0); inside the try block. Will the finally block get called? No. System.exit() does not return. It terminates the JVM.
During a heart attack, the blood supply that normally nourishes the heart with oxygen is cut off and the heart muscle begins to die. Heart attacks — also called myocardial infarctions — are very common in the United States. In fact, it’s estimated that one happens every 40 seconds. Some people who are having a heart attack have warning signs, while others show no signs. Some symptoms that many people report are: • chest pain • upper body pain • sweating • nausea • fatigue • trouble breathing A heart attack is a serious medical emergency. Seek immediate medical attentionif you or someone you know is experiencing symptoms that could signal a heart attack. There are a few cardiac conditions that can cause heart attacks. One of the most common causes is plaque buildup in the arteries (atherosclerosis) that prevents blood from getting to the heart muscle. Heart attacks can also be caused by blood clots or a torn blood vessel. Less commonly, a heart attack is caused by a blood vessel spasm. Symptoms for a heart attack may include: There are many more symptoms that can occur during a heart attack, and symptoms can differ between men and women. A number of factors can put you at risk for a heart attack. Some factors you can’t change, such as age and family history. Other factors, called modifiable risk factors, are ones you can change. Risk factors that you can’t change include: • Age. If you’re over age 65, your risk for having a heart attack is greater. • Sex. Men are more at risk than women. • Family history. If you have a family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, or diabetes, you’re more at risk. • Race. People of African descent have a higher risk. Modifiable risk factors which you can change include: A diagnosis of a heart attack is made by a doctor after they perform a physical exam and review your medical history. Your doctor will likely conduct an electrocardiogram (ECG) to monitor your heart’s electrical activity. They should also take a sample of your blood or perform other tests to see if there’s evidence of heart muscle damage. If your doctor diagnoses a heart attack, they’ll use a variety of tests and treatments, depending on the cause. Your doctor may order a cardiac catheterization. This is a probe that’s inserted into your blood vessels through a soft flexible tube called a catheter. It allows your doctor to view areas where plaque may have built up. Your doctor can also inject dye into your arteries through the catheter and take an X-ray to see how the blood flows, as well as view any blockages. If you’ve had a heart attack, your doctor may recommend a procedure (surgery or nonsurgical). Procedures can relieve pain and help prevent another heart attack from occurring. Common procedures include: • Angioplasty. An angioplasty opens the blocked artery by using a balloon or by removing the plaque buildup. • Stent. A stent is a wire mesh tube that’s inserted into the artery to keep it open after angioplasty. • Heart bypass surgery. In bypass surgery, your doctor reroutes the blood around the blockage. • Heart valve surgery. In valve replacement surgery, your leaky valves are replaced to help the heart pump. • Pacemaker. A pacemaker is a device implanted beneath the skin. It’s designed to help your heart maintain a normal rhythm. • Heart transplant. A transplant is performed in severe cases where the heart attack has caused permanent tissue death to most of the heart. Your doctor may also prescribe medications to treat your heart attack, including: Doctors who treat heart attacks Since heart attacks are often unexpected, an emergency room doctor is usually the first to treat them. After the person is stable, they’re transferred to a doctor that specializes in the heart, called a cardiologist. Alternative treatments Alternative treatments and lifestyle changes can improve your heart health and reduce your risk of a heart attack. A healthy diet and lifestyle are essential in maintaining a healthy heart. Several complications are associated with heart attacks. When a heart attack occurs, it can disrupt your heart’s normal rhythm, potentially stopping it altogether. These abnormal rhythms are known as arrhythmias. Heart attacks can also affect your heart valves and cause leaks. The amount of time it takes to receive treatment and the area of damage will determine the long-term effects on your heart. While there are many risk factors that are out of your control, there are still some basic steps you can take to keep your heart healthy. Smoking is a major cause of heart disease. Starting a smoking cessation program can reduce your risk. Maintaining a healthy diet, exercising, and limiting your alcohol intake are other important ways to reduce your risk. If you have diabetes, be sure to take your medications and check your blood glucose levels regularly. If you have a heart condition, work closely with your doctor and take your medication. Talk to your doctor if you have any concerns about your risk of a heart attack.
Shouldn't sustainability in plastics and packaging be a solution we need for our world and our children's future? We custom design and manufacture Biodegradable plastic packaging and products including Cutlery, Plates, Bowls, Bags, Shrink Wrap Films, Envelopes, Coffee bags, Diapers, Plant Pots, and Produce Stickers.Whatever biodegradable plastic need you have, we can help you create it. Biodegradable Plastics News Will biodegrade in landfills No heat or moisture issues Has no expiration date Can also be safely recycled with mainstream plastics Can be made with either recycled or post consumer plastic Because Green Film biodegrades, it won’t end up in rivers, lakes and oceans Unlike most ”compostable” plastics, Green Film Products WILL biodegrade in backyard compost. Our Biodegradable Plastics come in a variety of colors, including clear plastics, with no appreciable change in physical properties Green Film interacts with biota found in compost and thus breaks down Will leave no harmful chemicals behind after biodegrading No toxic residue as tested by EPA How Does Green Film Work? When it is composted or thrown away in a landfill, it interacts with biota found there and thus breaks down. It works without oxygen (anaerobically). Only a plastic that can break down without oxygen will biodegrade in a landfill. Otherwise, it will stay there for hundreds of years. When breaking down anaerobically, it turns into water and methane. This methane is harvested in 75% of all landfills in the US the US. Much of this methane is converted into electricity in many cases. Meets FDA certification for food applications Methane is a cheaper source of energy at $.03-.045/kilowatt than windpower ($.11/kilowatt hour) and solar power ($.60/kilowatt hour). Biodegradable Plastic – How Does It Work? Moisture is also a factor. Nothing degrades quickly in an arid atmosphere. For example, Dr. Rathje from the University of Arizona did a landfill excavation in Tucson, Arizona, He and his colleagues bored shafts into the landfill going as deep as 90 feet. They found newspapers that were 40 years old and still readable. (In fact they ascertained the age of the newspapers by merely reading their dates.) They were “mummified.” Ten-year-old carrots were still bright orange on the inside. Arizona has an extremely arid and hot climate. Our biodegradable film degrades quicker with moisture present. This is because moisture encourages the growth of active biota. Active biota are necessary to the degradation process. The more active they are, the quicker the degradation process. Also biota is in landfills, the soil in the backyard, ponds, and even oceans, so these films will biodegrade in these locations also. Consider the normal degradation of a fallen tree. If we were to bury the entire tree, the quickest part of the tree to degrade would be the leaves. They are the thinnest part of the tree. The smaller branches or twigs would be the next to totally degrade. The trunk or larger limbs would be the last to degrade simply because of their density. Therefore, one can also conclude that the thickness of the film could also be a factor in the degradation process. Maverick Enterprises “Green Film”™ is unique in its degradation process that makes it both environmentally safe and user friendly. This film does not affect the product that it is used to package. It can even be used with food and medical products and can be FDA approved. It does not affect the film’s clarity, strength, or tear properties. If you put it side by side with a nonbiodegradable film made from identical reins, you cannot tell them apart. In 1995, 20 million tons of plastic products were put in the landfill. By 2010, it is estimated that this amount will be 20% higher or 24 million tons. I feel by using this product, both companies and private citizens can be part of the solution, rather than being part of the problem. * EPA 6010 metals analysis and EPA 8260 soil matrix Maverick Enterprises “Green Film”™ is an environmentally preferred film that offers tremendous options in the waste management process. Average plastic film can take from four hundred to one thousand years to degrade. So how does Maverick Green Film™ work? The enzymes in the film enable the microorganisms in the environment to metabolize the molecular structure of the plastic into inert forms that are harmless to soil and water. This process starts once the plastic is buried (whether in a landfill, in a backyard, a pond, or under a pile of leaves.) The biodegradation process begins with proprietary swelling agents that expand the plastics’ molecular structure. After the swelling agent creates space within the plastics’ molecular structure, the next step begins. The bioactive compounds in the plastic film then attract microorganisms that metabolize and neutralize the plastic. I like to little “Pakmen” gobbling up the plastic. This process can work aerobically (with oxygen) or anerobically (without oxygen). During the degradation process, methane and water are the byproducts of anaerobic degradation, while carbon dioxide and water are the byproducts of aerobic degradation. The end products are humus. EPA tests * have proven that there is no toxic residue harmful to any living organisms in either land or water. So what does effect the degradation of Maverick “Green Film”™? Unfortunately, it is not a case of “poof” and it’s gone. The biodegradation process depends on where the plastic is deposited. When it is exposed to more oxygen, for example in an active landfill or compost pile, the films are more quickly degradable. (The amount of methane gas emitted at a landfill is a gauge to rate how active the landfill is and how quickly items degrade. Methane gas is a good indicator of degradation. The more methane gas present, the more active the landfill.) Therefore, Maverick biodegradable plastic degrades faster under aerobic conditions and in active landfills. The film will turn into humus and then into either carbon dioxide and water (if biodegrading aerobically or with oxygen) or methane and water (if biodegrading anaerobically or without oxygen). Most landfills are airless, so methane will be the final product. Methane is converted at 75% of all US landfills now into energy. BMW has a plant in South Carolina which has a pipeline coming from the closest landfill to the plant where it is converted into energy to run the plant. Johnson and Johnson has done the same. California has just passed a law stating all methane in landfills must be harvested! This is the cheapest source of energy now available. © 2018 Maverick Enterprises. All rights reserved. • Google+ - White Circle • Facebook - White Circle • LinkedIn - White Circle Maverick Enterprises 818 Circle Trace Road Monroe, NC 28110-7677 Contact Us We make custom biodegradable plastic products for forward-thinking companies. Tell us more about your needs: TEL: 704-291-9474 FAX: 704-291-9537
Previous section How do we know about the Leeds Pals? How are they remembered now? People remember their loved ones in a variety of personal and public ways. They may keep their medals. They may remember with poppies, or poetry, through the memorial plaques (the so-called 'Dead Man’s Pennyies'), remembrance bookmarks, or through public memorials in public spaces, factories or churches. Use the interactive to design your own medal. Member of the Leeds Pals Association, thought to be Herbert Thornes, laying a wreath to his fallen comrades of the Leeds Pals Battalion, in Leeds Parish Church in front of the memorial to the Leeds Pals Not everyone is listed on a public war memorial. They were often by public subscription, and if the family couldn’t pay, their loved one wasn’t listed. Or, sometimes, people are on two – the public one where the family paid, and their work one put up by the company. Leaflet with a memorial poem to the Leeds Pals Commonwealth War Graves are often a good place to start an investigation, and there are quite a few Leeds Pals graves across Leeds. A number of these men were injured in the Battle of the Somme, and were sent home for medical care, but died of wounds either in transit or upon their return. In Holbeck cemetery, there are a number of Leeds Pals and West Yorkshire regiment graves for local men who lived and worked in Holbeck. Newspaper cutting of a photograph of the memorial to the Leeds Pals on the Moors
Most everyone knows about expectations. Simply stated, expectations are a strong belief that something will happen sometime soon or in the future. But expectations represent sometime more than that simple statement. Many don’t realize that expectations also serve as a self-fulfilling prophecy. A self-fulfilling prophecy is an event that, because it is predicted and expected, is therefore more likely to happen, and even caused to happen. As an example, a few years ago Success magazine had an article about two different groups of psychologists who were asked to observe the same child playing. One group was told beforehand that the child was emotionally disturbed. The other group was told that the child was a genius. When the psychologists were asked to report on their observations afterward, each group had found evidence to support their preconceived ideas. It's important to realize that expectations or self-fulfilling prophecies are everyday experiences -not just laboratory experiments. For instance, what do you expect your day to be like when you get up in the morning? How do you expect your children to behave? How do you expect your co-workers will perform? How much success do you expect for yourself? The point is that if you predict failure, failure is generally what you will find. But if you expect excellence, excellence is very likely what you will get. How we think about a situation determines how we act, and how we act, more than anything else, determines the results. That is how expectations become self-fulfilling prophecies and how they influence the outcomes. There's nothing magical about it. What you get in life is pretty much how you behave, coming back at you. Norman Vincent Peale, the late American minister and author famous for his concept of positive thinking, said, “We tend to get what we expect.” Over the next several days, see if you recognize areas where you are setting yourself up because of your expectations. If you are setting yourself up for the good, terrific! If not, what can you do to change those internal expectations, and change your life and the lives of those who surround you? Think about it…
• Zachary Wallace Blockchain: The Basics Updated: Apr 26, 2020 Blockchain is currently one of the most commonly misused buzzwords in the technical community. Blockchain is consistently tied to cryptocurrency because it is the easiest application of this technology for most people to understand. However, my entire goal of this post is to bifurcate blockchain and cryptocurrency. Conceptually, blockchain is the underlying technology that makes cryptocurrency possible; better said, cryptocurrency wouldn’t be possible without the blockchain technology, but neither would many other technical solutions. So let’s back up a little bit, what exactly is this underlying technology called blockchain, and why do we even care about it? Christian Catalini, an Assistant Professor at MIT defines blockchain as, “At a high level, blockchain technology allows a network of computers to agree at regular intervals on the true state of a distributed ledger”. Cool, so you get blockchain now, right? If I were a betting man, and I am, I would probably say you would like a slightly more in-depth explanation than the definition provided by Catalini. Let’s dive right in, but before we do, I want to make a slight adjustment to the quote above: “…state of a distributed, immutable ledger”. This slight adjustment here will really solidify the definition provided by Catalini. Now let’s take a trip down memory lane, back to school, where we are given five million definitions at one time, and we are expected to remember all of them: Transaction - A transfer of any object, whether physical or virtual, from one entity to another entity Immutable - Cannot be changed Ledger - A historical record of transactions Node (used below) - A node is an individual piece of a larger system. A node is typically a server or a supercomputer, but it is possible for a node to become a personal computer or a phone in the future. Luckily for you, you aren’t actually in school, and bookmarking this page will lead to the same result as taking notes. Using the definitions above, let’s put this in layman’s terms… Essentially, the blockchain records all of the transactions, which are distributed to an immutable ledger across every node in the entire system. This means every node on the network must have exactly the same transactions recorded in their respective ledgers, which will provide many benefits. The best way to learn something is to think about how it translates into familiar concepts. Let’s look at its most common application today: cryptocurrency. Consider a system of nodes in which there are four separate nodes (or people in our case): Ada, Phil, Jasmine, and Zach. Ada gives Jasmine $1, which then is recorded by every node in the system, so Ada, Phil, Jasmine, and Zach all record that Ada gave Jasmine $1 and this transaction will be recorded for the entire duration that every node in this system is running. The distribution of the ledger may seem superfluous at first, but it actually provides two crucial benefits: permanence and security. Permanence is crucial in the financial world because the transactions that are recorded can vary from very small amounts to massive transactions across a network. Fun fact: there are large transactions that occur all of the time, in fact, there was one that went across the network for almost $150 million! With the size of that transaction, it seems realistic that the two entities involved will want to maintain a record for as long as this system exists. Security is the second aspect where blockchain technology absolutely excels solely because of the constant agreement all ledgers must have throughout the distributed network. The blockchain is built to be considered a zero-trust system, or a trustless system. Essentially, as described by Forbes, the blockchain does not selectively trust anything that is passed to it, from any entity or node. Every single interaction with the system is regarded as though it is not trusted, and the entirety of the system must verify any addition to the ledger. Quoting the Forbes article, “A simple analogy is guards at the entrance of a building. The traditional model is to mount guards at the gate who will keep out infiltrators, but the zero-trust framework mounts guards at the entrance of every door in the building to checkmate threats.” Security is one of the reasons that many financial institutions are incredibly interested in this technology; however, as the number of nodes in the network increase, the performance of the system decreases since the system must verify the transaction with every single node in the network. I could talk for hours about this, and I have many times. However, I am going to keep this concise because I don’t want to overload the readers with too many ideas on the first technical post! If you would like to hear more about any specific area of blockchain, including the areas that I left out of this post, please post it below and I will attempt to answer! Again, I’d love to leave you with something for you to think about: The blockchain does one thing: It replaces third-party trust with mathematical proof that something happened.” - Adam Draper 6 views0 comments Raleigh, NC ©2020 by Techucate LLC.
Clean it Good (a.k.a. JVM GC) - Part 2 Updated: Apr 12, 2020 Last time we went through some of the main strategies and algorithms used in garbage collection. Now as we have some ground knowledge we can look into their combinations used in different garbage collectors. To be able to somehow categorize GCs and find patterns in how they function, we’ll need some basic concepts defining them: • Concurrent — this means that garbage collection is done while an application is still running, concurrently with its execution. • Stop-the-world (STW) — meaning application is stopped while garbage collection is being performed. • Parallel —GC uses multiple threads to perform collection. Note that it has nothing to do with concurrency. GC can be both concurrent and parallel, neither of those, concurrent but not parallel, or vice versa. • Serial — all work is done in one thread, meaning no parallel execution. As in the case with the parallel, we are not talking about concurrency. • Monolithic — all garbage is collected in a single, indivisible step. • Incremental — garbage collection is done in a series of smaller, divisible steps with gaps in between. • Generational — we already discussed that, but just to remind, it means that the heap where objects are stored and from which they are collected is divided into two main spaces — old generation and young generation. • Regionalized — meaning that the heap is divided into a number of regions (they can be of equal or varying size, depending on the implementation) . Upon startup, the JVM sets the region size. The region sizes can vary among different GC, depending on the heap size. • Mostly — it is not my original idea to include this important “term” here, since you’ll see it in most of the talks or papers, but it is very important to keep in mind that nothing is absolute — GCs can be mostly concurrent, mostly parallel and so on, meaning they sometimes stop the world, fallback to monolithic, etc. The most popular GCs that you’ll find in the listings are: • Epsilon (do nothing) • Serial • Parallel • Concurrent mark sweep collector (CMS) • G1 and the newest ones: • ZGC • Shenandoah Serial GCs are not widely used as they are single-threaded and designed mainly for small heaps. Meanwhile a Parallel collector is default in applications using all Java versions till 8 (e.g. Wix uses it). Next goes CMS. This type of collector is not default in any of the versions of Java since it requires some additional CPU resources to perform its best and it’s not recommended for heaps bigger than 4Gb. If that’s the case there’s G1 GC, introduced in Java 7, which is default starting Java 9. But if you want something even more exciting, there are two very hot and exciting GCs out there— ZGC and Shenandoah (we’ll talk about them a bit later). So now that we know basic algorithms, strategies and terms that are used to define GCs, we can summarize some of them in the following table: Summary of some of the most common GCs Why do we need so many GCs? Why there’s these new ZGC and Shenandoah to which we event can’t apply previously discussed strategies and algorithms? Why not make everyone use G1 or Parallel since they are default in some Java versions? (and note that not only Oracle is developing GCs — Shenandoah is the product of Red Hat, which implies that after all there must be a good reason to do it) Main reasons some developers are not happy with existing GCs: • No fully-concurrent GC. Both Shenandoah and ZGC focus on reducing pause-times while still compacting the heap. Main challenge for concurrent compaction is that it requires the GC to move objects around while Java threads are still running, while all references to those objects immediately start accessing new copies. Both ZGC and Shenandoah are developed so they can move objects around the memory, while an application is running. Aleksey Shipilёv did a great job comparing some of the GCs in the context of concurrency in the presentation “Shenandoah GC Part I: The Garbage Collector That Could” here (slide 7). • Heaps are getting bigger — back when G1 was introduced (2006) the most powerful AWS instance available had 1 vCPU and 1.75GB of RAM. Today you can rent one with 128 vCPU and 3,904GB of RAM. New GCs are being developed for our times, when such capacities are common. Both ZGC and Shenandoah were developed to meet the following goals: • Pause times do not exceed 10ms • Pause times do not increase with the heap or live-set size • Be able to handle heaps ranging from a few hundred megabytes to multi terabytes in size If you look back at the summary table above you see that first 4 GCs are fairly simple and all our terms can be applied to them. But it’s not the case with the last two — ZGC and Shenandoah. In order to understand them we’ll need some new terms. • Pointer coloring —in a few words, it’s simply refers to storing additional data in pointers. Pointers used here are 64 bits (ZGC is 64-bit only), meaning there is more available space that can actually be used, so 4 bits are used for additional data — pointer’s “color”. Possible states are finalizable, remap, mark0 and mark1. finalizable bit — the object is only reachable through a finalizer; remap bit — the reference points to the current address of the object; marked0 and marked1 bits — these are used to flag reachable objects. There’s a nice diagram in the ZGC source for it. • Brooks forwarding pointers — we mentioned above that for a long time there was no fully-concurrent GC. And the reason behind this is that the compacting phase had to be done in STW mode to ensure no one could access an object until it was in it’s new location. Problems could occur if you tried accessing an object, which the GC moved. When objects are moving, an object graph is considered to be inconsistent, so it’s better to prevent access to it. Forwarding pointer is a reference in the old object’s location which is pointing to the new location. So as objects are moving you can still access them with the old reference, since it can still be accessed through the forwarding pointer. • Load barriers (sometimes called read barriers) — it’s a small piece of machine code, injected by the JIN in strategic places, more specifically when loading an object reference from the heap. For instance, in ZGC this piece of code checks if the pointer has the correct color, and if not, corrects it. • Write barriers — almost the same as load barrier, except the aforementioned piece of code is emitted by the compiler immediately before every store (write) operation. So now as we are loaded with terms, we can actually try to understand how these new GCs work in a very simplified manner. In order to understand how ZGC works we’ll need some of the terms we just introduced: • Pointer colouring. • Load barriers. As in all GCs, once triggered, ZGC needs to do a marking stage, to see which objects are eligible for garbage collection. ZGC breaks marking into the following phases: 1. A STW phase of identifying and marking GC roots. 2. A concurrent phase of tracing objects and marking them. marked0 and marked1 metadata bits are used for marking. Once marking is done we can move on to another stage — relocation. In ZGC the memory is split into blocks (called pages) and reallocation is done either for all objects on the page or for none. This way memory allocation is faster since there are whole empty blocks in the memory. Reallocation consists of three phases: 1. A concurrent phase looks for pages that have live objects to be relocated and puts them into a relocation set (set of the pages chosen for evacuation, e.g. those pages with the most amount of garbage). 2. A STW phase relocates all root references in the previously selected relocation set and updates their references. 3. A concurrent phase relocates all remaining objects in the relocation set and stores the mapping between old and new addresses in the forward table. Then, finally, remapping happens. Notice, that the relocation phase didn’t include rewriting references for the objects that were moved (except roots). This is done later, once objects are loaded, using load barrier and coloured pointers to indicate what needs to be done. The remapping stage can be presented as following: ZGC is a non-generational GC, but as mentioned in the talk given by Erik Österlund, they are looking into possibilities to add Young Generation to it. In contrast with ZGC, to be able to move objects while an application is running, Shenandoah uses: • Brooks forwarding pointers. • Read/write barriers. In Shenandoah all reads and writes by an application go through a forwarding pointer. Shenandoah Phases: 1. A STW Initial Marking: scan the root set. 2. A Concurrent Marking: trace the heap marking live objects, updating any references to regions evacuated in the previous gc cycle. 3. A STW Final Marking: re-scan the root set, copy and update roots to point to to-region copies. Initiate concurrent compaction. Free any fully evacuated regions from previous compaction. 4. Concurrent Compaction: Evacuate live objects from targeted regions. So basically it marks the garbage starting from usual GC roots and relocates live objects from selected regions by copying them to new regions. And only the second time GC is triggered, during a Concurrent Marking phase, is when it updates all references to point to the evacuated (copied) objects. At the end of this phase the evacuated regions may be reclaimed. And how does GC know which references need to be updated and to what? Brooks forwarding pointers. Each GC cycle consists of two stop-the-world phases and 2 concurrent phases. Illustration of simplified Shenandoah phases can be seen here. No silver bullet - conclusion There’s a need for new GCs - since we always want better performance, lower pauses, etc. But nothing’s perfect — neither ZGC nor Shenandoah nor any other GC is the ultimate one everyone should or will use. Because it all depends. They all have their trade offs — e.g. ZGC can’t be used on machines other than x64/Linux, both ZGC and Shenandoah have time overhead because of read and write barriers, there’s maintenance costs for forwarding pointers, CMS is not compacting, etc. What’s important to understand is that garbage collection matters — although no one might be talking about it, everyone’s still doing it because they have to. Oh, and don’t worry if you didn’t get how the last or any of GCs I’ve presented here work in actuality — to be honest I didn’t as well. My goal wasn’t to explain to you the very details of how they’re implemented, but rather to provide you, and myself, with some ground knowledge and concepts in order to be able to analyze them, think about, and maybe one day, with some additional reading, tune them or be able to decide which to use for your project. This post was written by Brygida Ivona Pliška Photo by VanveenJF on Unsplash For more engineering updates and insights: 245 views0 comments • Black Twitter Icon • Black YouTube Icon Have any questions? Get Wix Engineering Straight to Your e-mail
Guidelines for Digital Security Security Mind Set Understanding the need for (digital) security 1. Look at security as a slider between no (network) access and no security. 2. Everyone can harass anyone on internet. 3. Everyone is interesting to hackers, so you (and your computers and devices) are too. 4. Common sense is a good defense, use it. 5. Avoid risks when possible. 6. Attacks are getting more advanced over time. 7. Don’t be an ostrich: when in doubt, ask someone to help and check your device(s). Read next: Digital Basics.
Too big for your britches From Spanking Art Jump to navigationJump to search Man's tailcoat, outer vest, inner vest, breeches. Circa 1790-1795, France. The phrase too big for your britches in an indictment that you are presuming rights and privileges you have yet to earn, especially those that come with age. Britches is a spelling variant, of breeches dating from the 17th century. They are an item of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each leg, usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles. The britches were normally closed and fastened about the leg, along its open seams at varied lengths, and to the knee, by either buttons or by a draw-string, or by one or more straps and buckles or brooches. Formerly the breeching of a young boy, at an age somewhere between six and eight, was a landmark in his childhood. Presently, "britches" reflects a common pronunciation often used in casual speech to mean trousers or pants in many English speaking parts of the world. As such the phrase is an allusion you are acting bigger hence older than you actually are. And spanking[edit] The phrase is popular with spanking art due to easy follow on of a remedy to this misbehavior fits the allusion in the removal of said britches so that the spankee's attitude can be resized via a spanking. See also[edit] Smallwikipedialogo.png This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Breeches. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Spanking Art, the text of Wikipedia is available under a copyleft license, the Creative Commons Attribution Sharealike license.
Install Samba on Raspberry PI Samba is available in Raspbian’s standard software repositories. We’re going to update our repository index, make sure our operating system is fully updated, and install Samba using apt-get. Open a Terminal and type: sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade sudo apt install samba samba-common-bin Create your shared directory We’re going to create a dedicated shared directory on our Pi’s micro SD hard disk. You can put it anywhere, but ours will be at the top level of the root file system. sudo mkdir -m 1777 /mnt/share This command sets the sticky bit (1) to help prevent the directory from being accidentally deleted and gives everyone read/write/execute (777) permissions on it. Edit Samba’s config files to make the file share visible to the Windows PCs on the network. sudo nano /etc/samba/smb.conf In our example, you’ll need to add the following entry: Comment = Pi shared folder Path = /mnt/share Browseable = yes Writeable = yes only guest = no create mask = 0777 directory mask = 0777 Public = yes Guest ok = yes This means that anyone will be able to read, write, and execute files in the share, either by logging in as a Samba user (which we’ll set up below) or as a guest. If you don’t want to allow guest users, omit the guest ok = yes line. You could also use Samba to share a user’s home directory so they can access it from elsewhere on the network, or to share a larger external hard disk that lives at a fixed mount point. Just create a smb.conf entry for any path you want to share, and it’ll be made available across your network when you restart Samba. Create a user and start Samba Before we start the server, you’ll want to set a Samba password – this is not the same as your standard default password (raspberry), but there’s no harm in reusing this if you want to, as this is a low-security, local network project. sudo smbpasswd -a pi Then set a password as prompted. Finally, let’s restart Samba: sudo systemctl restart smbd sudo systemctl enable smbd From now on, Samba will start automatically whenever you power on your Pi. Once you’ve made sure that you can locate your shared folder on the network, you can safely disconnect the mouse, monitor, and keyboard from your Pi and just leave it running as a headless file server.
How the Response to COVID-19 Could Positively Impact Rural Patients Proper care for rural patients in America poses a real challenge. Imagine suffering a brain injury and the nearest city of 100,000 residents or more is 3 hours away. I use this specific population because in the U.S., it almost always requires this size of city to fully represent the sufficient amount of healthcare disciplines required for complex illnesses, such as encephalitis—inflammation of the brain. The physical location of rural patients often impedes access to qualified professionals with knowledge of or experience with the brain disorder, encephalitis. However, as the healthcare world has quickly adapted to tele-health, new opportunities for diagnosis and treatment is suddenly possible to those in remote locations. Tele-health is a means of connecting virtually with a healthcare provider via a secure portal using a computer or phone. Usually, both parties can see as well as hear each other, adding a more personalized experience. As complex patients, those with encephalitis typically require oversight from multiple healthcare disciplines. Based on the implications and extent of damage to the brain due to encephalitis, a patient may need access to neurology, psychiatry, neuropsychology, physical therapy, internal medicine, pulmonology, speech therapy, psychology, immunology and epidemiology. In smaller populations, there is limited or potentially no access to some of these specialists. The likelihood of driving from a rural area to a larger city with all of these disciplines and seeing all the healthcare professionals needed for ongoing care is remote without incurring the additional cost of staying for several days, and adding the burden of the essential medical costs. Even if a patient makes the trip, it’s unlikely that they’ll see the most knowledgeable team of doctors who have a thorough understanding of encephalitis all within a 2- to 3-day span. So how does COVID-19 produce any beneficial outcome when we consider the staggering number of infected people suffering and the alarming number of deaths? As the board president of Encephalitis411, a nonprofit that aims to improve the quality of life for those impacted by encephalitis, I see a silver lining for our rural followers, those patients and caregivers who access our hotline and ask for referrals in the absence of local help. While tele-health has grown in acceptance, this platform has catapulted since COVID-19’s surge while officials create more stringent means of social distancing. Tele-health is playing a critical role in day-to-day access to healthcare professionals. Patients in rural areas now have the same access as those who live within 5 miles of their doctors. This is a landmark turning point in supporting those who have been sorely under-served in the past. And in cases like COVID-19, telehealth keeps patients with weaker immune systems away from people who may be contagious but not yet symptomatic. This means a safer means of communication for everyone. My hope is that when COVID-19 is somewhat in the rearview mirror, whenever that may be, that we don’t return to “normalcy” in providing healthcare. I urge that tele-health becomes a common alternative, a platform to serve anyone, regardless of location. There are also many technologies available that provide remote monitoring using common devices such as our phones and iPads. Will insurers or payors need to change their policies? Yes! As an example, with my current insurer, I can only see providers in my home state. And one would think that living in a metro as huge as DFW that I’d have access to leading professionals regardless of healthcare discipline. Not true. Just prior to the “shelter in place” orders, I traveled on my own dime paying my own hotel, meals and rental car expenses in addition to three days of day-long therapy in Montana with a therapist who specializes in vestibular disorders. Such an example should be a challenge for insurers to revisit their plans and provide access to the right specialist, regardless of location. They need to open their minds to treating our suffering and not placing barriers to necessary treatments based on geography within the States. In current discussions about the COVID-19 virus, infectious-type encephalitis survivors are not believed to be at a higher risk of the rest of the population, according to doctors in the UK. They did state that auto-immune encephalitis survivors may be at higher risk if they are currently undergoing treatment or have concluded treatment in the last 6 months. So, if you have AE, please don’t go out unless you are going to a treatment. Please wear gloves and a mask to take necessary precautions. Otherwise, I encourage everyone to shelter in place and don’t take the risk. Ask for help. It’s ok. I wish everyone safety and good health in this unprecedented time. Our first responders are putting their lives on the line. The term “first responder” has expanded beyond healthcare providers to grocery store checkers and stockers, mail and package delivery people, food delivery drivers, pharmacy staff, educators and those officials in the position of deciding the best care and precautions to stop the spread of this invisible enemy. Thank you for what you are doing to keep America going. Becky Dennis is the author of Amazon’s top-rated book, Brain Wreck. She is also one of the founders and board president of Leave a Reply

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