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The New York Times just ran an article about how city officials like Los Angeles Mayor’s and Los Angeles water agency managers are now seeing rainwater as resource, not a nuisance. The Surfrider Foundation agrees, and utilizing it is also a way to prevent ocean pollution. It can be simple, inexpensive and done everywhere – and it’s being done now. Healthy landscapes act like “sponges” to soak up water and filter pollution, plus absorb carbon from the atmosphere. Even the parkways, streets and parking lots can inexpensively be “greened up” to do their part. These solutions also reduce the chance of flooding and damage to property and safety. Every inch of rain on a 2,000 square foot roof generates 1,200 gallons of water to direct to landscapes, resupply groundwater, and keep creeks flowing. As Treepeople’s Andy Lipkis said in the article, every inch of rainfall in big cities like Los Angeles create billions of gallons of water. The Surfrider Foundation calls it Ocean Friendly Gardens, where CPR – Conservation, Permeability and Retention – is applied to revive waterways and oceans choking on pollution and soil that is parched. Surfrider has worked with water suppliers, water quality agencies and fire departments to install Ocean Friendly Gardens, both along the coast and inland. Other non-profits and landscape professionals are doing the same. It’s a message that groups throughout Los Angeles – and the state and country – are all getting behind, and calling the “watershed approach. ” Imagine where you live, work or play as a mini-watershed, in which water drains from a high point to a lower point. In between, you want to slow that water down, let it spread out, then soak in. (The New York Times has written about our Ocean Friendly Garden Assistance Parties.) Los Angeles’ turf removal incentive program standards come close to this, and essentially just need to add the requirement to retain rainwater. In fact, environmental groups and landscape professionals are working with the Mayor’s office and City staff on up-grading the turf removal incentive standards. We want do-it-yourselfers and landscape professionals following these standards. But to meet the need to retrofits the huge number of sites, we need workforce training on a scale like the Civilian Conservation Corps of the Great Depression. Ocean Friendly Gardens and green streets, water conservation, wastewater recycling and restoring natural waterways - the components of Surfrider's Clean Water Initiative - are solutions that we promote to protect local water supplies and to keep pollution from reaching the ocean. We have written about this integrated approach in a previous blog post. We are stoked to see that government, non-profits and the private sector can help property owners (and renters) uncover the solutions that are literally right beneath our feet. Learn more about what we can all do to protect clean water in our communities on surfrider. org, including great educational resources like the Surfrider produced film, “The Cycle of Insanity,” which is linked on the Clean Water Initiative "Resources" page.

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Hemangiosarcoma occurs most commonly in the spleen or the right atrium of the heart in dogs. It is rather common in dogs and accounts for approximately 5-7 percent of all cases of canine cancer. In this page, you will find information on the types and symptoms of hemangiosarcoma, the possible causes of occurrence, and the kind of treatment options available for dogs diagnosed with this cancer. A sarcoma refers to a cancer that arises from cancerous cells developed out of certain tissues, such as bone or muscle. Hemangiosarcoma is a type of cancer that arises out of the soft supporting tissues that surround blood vessels. Canine hemangiosarcoma mostly affects the dog's spleen, heart, liver, subcutaneous tissue, and skin. Hemangiosarcoma in dogs accounts for about 5 to 7% of all malignant cancers. The cancerous cells spread very rapidly and, along their way, they build their own blood vessel network which disrupts the normal functioning of the affected organs in the dog patient. Hemangiosarcoma affects mostly middle-aged to older larger breeds of dogs. The average age of affected dog is eight to ten years. For some reason, male dogs are more susceptible to this form of cancer than female dogs. Breed-wise, German shepherds have the highest chance of developing hemangiosarcoma. Other high-risk breeds include golden retrievers, Labrador retrievers, boxers, schnauzers, pointers and Doberman pinchers. There are three types of hemangiosarcoma in dogs:Dermal (skin) Hemangiosarcoma of the skin appears as a dark, raised skin lesion, usually on areas without hair, such as the abdomen. Hypodermal (under the skin) This type of hemangiosarcoma can arise in all parts of the dog's body, under the skin. The tumor may be soft, or it can be a firm mass with ulceration. Visceral (splenic or cardiac) Visceral hemangiosarcoma most commonly occurs in the dog's spleen and the right atrium of the heart. The characteristics of this type of hemangiosarcoma is that it is locally invasive and prone to spread to other locations. Many of the warning signs of visceral hemangiosarcoma are non-specific, for example, the dog may have: More specific signs may be collapse or seizure caused by shock resulting from rupture of the affected organ. Back to Tab Please also read other visitors' experience:My Golden's Fight Against Hemangiosarcoma Early diagnosis is made with regular X-rays or ultrasound examination of the chest and abdomen. If hemangiosacroma is suspected, further blood tests are made. Abdominal fluid is aspirated to check for the presence of blood due to internal bleeding. Back to Tab Treatment for hemangiosarcoma depends on the type and location of the tumor. Hemangiosarcoma that arises on the skin (dermal) may be removed surgically if it is small and confined only to the surface of the skin. For treatment of hemangiosarcoma that occurs in the spleen, the heart atrium, or under the skin, it may be possible to surgically remove the primary tumor, which usually provides dramatic results. However, before surgery is even considered, an ultrasound examination should be done to see if there are lesions in the organs of the chest and abdomen, in order to determine a prognosis. Post-surgery chemotherapy may be needed to extend the dog patient's life quality for nine to 18 months. I'm-Yunity is a supplement made from Yunshi mushroom (Coriolus versicolor) extract. According to a study done by University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, the supplement is surprisingly effective in fighting hemangiosarcoma in dogs, with no adverse effects. A researcher in the study reported that they had had dogs that lived beyond a year with nothing other than this mushroom supplement as treatment. The supplement is not inexpensive, but it is definitely worth a try to save our furkids.

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Summary – Chapter 1: “Robinson’s first sea journey” Robinson was born in 1632 in England. His father was German, but he came to live in England. After that Robinson’s father married his mother. Her family name was Robinson so they called their son Robinson. His father was doing well in life and Robinson went to a good school. He wanted Robinson to have a quiet and good life. But Robinson didn’t want that, he wanted to have an exciting life. But he couldn’t forget so he met a friend in town whose father had a ship. His friend asked if Robinson wanted to sail to London. And so the next day they sailed to London. Robinson was very ill and the sea was rough, but the next day the wind dropped and the sea was quiet. After arriving at London, he stayed there for some time, but he still wanted more adventure. So when the captain of a ship asked him to go to Africa with him, Robinson agreed. Everything was well until a pirate ship attacked them. After a long fight they became prisoners. The pirates wanted to sell them as slaves, but the captain wanted to keep Robinson with him. And Robinson became a slave and the pirate’s captain was his master. By Gustas Tolvaišas Summary – Chapter 2: “Down the coast of Africa” For two years Robinson lived the life of slave. He was working but he wanted to escape from the captain of the Turkish pirates. Robinson’s master liked to go fishing by boat and always took Robinson, a man called Moely and a young boy Xury with him. One day the master commanded Robinson, Moely and Xury to catch some fish and Crusoe knew that it was a great chance to escape. When they were in the boat, Robinson knocked Moely into the water and shouted to him to go to the shore. Robinson and the boy wanted to go to the Canary Islands but they were afraid to go too far from the shore so they sailed down the coast of Africa.One day they saw some strange people on the shore and asked them for some food and water. The people gave them what they wanted and Crusoe shot a leopard for them. Friends sailed again. Suddenly, Xury saw a ship and they started to shout and shoot with their guns and finally they both were on the ship which belonged to the Portuguese captain. He said that he was going to Brazil and Crusoe could go with him. In Brazil Robinson said goodbye to the captain and Xury and went to begin a new life. By Miglė Kndrotaitė Summary – Chapter 3: “The Storm and the Shipwreck” Summary – Chapter 4: “A new life on an island” When the day has come, the sea was quiet. Robinson looked for a ship and he saw it. He decided to swim to it. When he was on the ship he didn‘t know how to get on it. Then he saw a hole and he climbed through it. There were a lot of useful things on board: food and tools. Robinson was hungry, so he started to eat. Later he decided to take some of the tools and made a little boat, then he took some of the goods and came back to the shore. Robinson decided to make a house for himself on one of the hills. He felt unhappy because he knew that he was alone on the island. After a lot of hard work Robinson had a very fine tent. The back end of the tent was a good place to keep his food, so he decided to call it a kitchen. That night he slept in his new home. The next day Robinson thought about dangers, so he decided to build a very strong fence. After work his fence was strong as a stone wall. When he finished all the chores he saw that he needed more tools, so he swam back and forth to the ship twelve more times. But after his twelfth time there was a terrible storm and he could not see the ship. Robinson thought that he was lucky, because he was alive and his friends were dead. Also he said to himself that he was going to be on this island for a long time. So he cut these words on a long piece of wood: I CAME HERE ON 30TH SEPTEMBER 1659. After that he decided to make a cut for each day. By Ugnė Urbonaitė The book for reading:

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For Challenged Readers, Custom-Tailored Texts School librarian K.C. Boyd has long been a cheerleader for "street lit"—gritty urban dramas with themes such as gang life or homelessness—as a way to engage the students she works with in a Chicago high school. Her job, she says, is to get students reading comfortably, then to lead them to more complex works. As part of that goal, she has turned to what is known in library circles as "high interest, low readability" books, such as a series of books by author P.J. Gray, written at a 2nd grade level and featuring teen protagonists and their struggles. "It has been a big success for me as a librarian," said Ms. Boyd, who works at 560-student Wendell Phillips Academy High School in the Chicago South Side neighborhood of Bronzeville. "I have finally been able to identify materials I can present to my students. I can meet my students where they're at, and they've progressed up to reading other materials. " Saddleback Educational Publishing, the Costa Mesa, Calif.-based company that publishes the book series, has just started offering books for readers at even lower levels of fluency. Its "Teen Emergent Reader Library," launched this year, offers books written at a kindergarten level for adolescents. Reading experts say such books have been particularly useful for students with reading disabilities and those who are still mastering English, who might otherwise avoid leisure reading altogether. "It's great across the board," Ms. Boyd said. Publishing companies have for years created “high interest, low readability” books intended to engage adolescents who struggle with literacy. The book above, published by Saddleback Educational Publishing of Costa Mesa, Calif., is intended for a teen audience but is written at a level appropriate for beginning readers. In contrast, the creators of the Common Core State Standards in English/language arts say The Great Gatsby is an example of a book that has the complexity, range, and depth appropriate for high school students. But such books have prompted educators to ask how they fit into the Common Core State Standards, which place a premium on students' mastering complex literary and informational texts. These are works, for example, that may feature a historical tale about the Underground Railroad or a biography of pop singer Rihanna, but be written with vocabulary and sentence lengths appropriate for a student just starting elementary school. The challenge is to work out a balance of engaging older readers while leading them to books that will stretch their skills, said Troy Fresch, the assistant principal of 2,200-student Tustin High School in the Los Angeles area, another school that uses these "high-low" books. "When [students] can discuss a book and they have comprehended it, it really just boosts their self-esteem," Mr. Fresch said. "And it allows them to get full credit for their assignments. " Barbara Stripling, the president of the American Library Association, based in Chicago, said that "picking books that appeal to an older audience and use lower-level vocabulary is a really sound concept for teen readers. They don't want to be reading about dogs and cats, they want to be reading about Beyoncé. " Ms. Stripling, a professor of practice in library science at Syracuse University, has also worked with school librarians in New York City to implement common-core professional development for the district's school librarians. "A lot of kids, they learn to read by reading, not so much by the instruction in the classroom," Ms. Stripling said. "The more we can provide in the library that can appeal to their interests, the more we are contributing to reading instruction. " Questions of Complexity But do the books offer enough to move students to more complex works? They're only useful if they are coupled with appropriate instruction in grade-level literacy, said Michael L. Kamil, a professor of education at Stanford University and the chairman of a federally created panel that examined interventions for struggling adolescent readers. The problem, Mr. Kamil said, is that students are not just expected to read fiction. They have to grapple with reading in mathematics, science, history, and other subjects, and books for emergent readers don't have the vocabulary students need to understand information written in those subjects. The common core expects that 70 percent of the texts a student reads will be informational. "It's almost a thought that everything on a topic is good, and that's just not true," Mr. Kamil said. "It's got to be something that moves students beyond their own knowledge to a more sophisticated level of knowledge. " And with struggling teen readers, it's important to move quickly, simply because instructors don't have very much time, Mr. Kamil said. "This isn't Band-Aid care, it's trauma care," he said. Students reading at a very low grade level in high school "are not going to make that up in any kind of normal or easy way. The older the student is, the more critical it is that we get in there and do something that's actually targeted to the difficulty they're having. " The panel that Mr. Kamil led produced a practice guide for teachers in 2008, "Improving Adolescent Literacy: Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices." Its suggestions included offering explicit vocabulary instruction, directing instruction in reading-comprehension strategies, and extending opportunities for discussing a text. Catherine E. Snow, a literacy expert and professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education who served on the validation committee for the common standards, said that such books provide useful practice for students. "Kids do get better at reading from reading, and they don't read much if the texts are way too hard," Ms. Snow said. "Of course, such texts do not by themselves solve the problem of bringing kids up to grade level. That takes well-planned instruction," including figuring why the students aren't reading well, and offering scaffolds that allow them to work with harder books, she said. But teachers need to be careful about how hard students must be made to struggle. One concern Ms. Snow mentioned is the common core's focus on "close reading," a teaching approach that requires students to derive meaning from text by careful examination of language. Close reading is being turned into a thought that students need to work hard to comprehend a text, she said. "The new lesson plans and the new curriculum guidelines often run the risk of overemphasizing the need for kids to struggle and underemphasize the need for adaptation," Ms. Snow said. Sophisticated knowledge does not always have to come with long words and complex sentence structure, teachers say. Many books that are considered literary classics are thought so not because of their highly complex language, but because of their deeper themes, said Teri S. Lesesne, a professor at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, and a former middle school teacher. For example, Soldier's Heart, a book by Gary Paulsen about the devastating effects of the Civil War on a young Union soldier, is appropriate for middle school students but uses language at a 2nd grade level of mastery, Ms. Lesesne said. Night, Elie Wiesel's autobiographical account of the horrors of a Nazi death camp, is written at a 5th grade level, she said. Books by Saddleback and other publishers that deal in "high-low" content, such as Custer, Wash.-based Orca Soundings and the Townsend Press in Berlin, N.J., are good books to start with, Ms. Lesesne said. "I think they're incredible tools. Our job is to say OK, we're ready for the next step. The next step might be a Gary Paulsen novel, or a graphic novel. That's my job, to kind of move them along," she said. Tim McHugh, the vice president of sales and marketing for Saddleback, said the 32-year-old company started out offering books geared toward middle school students who were three or four grade levels behind in their reading. But teachers said that reading level was still too high for some students. The company's newest offerings are the first offered for teens at such a low reading level, he said. "We've got to get that kid to read their first book," Mr. McHugh said. Vol. 33, Issue 29, Page 8

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Real Audio | MP3 download Although the bright sunshine and warm days of this week make it tempting to think otherwise, the month of October promises dramatic changes for the natural world in central Illinois. In urban areas, the acorns and walnuts that have already fallen add new challenges walking and cycling. Grey squirrels are in a constant frenzy, trying to figure out how to store the surplus of food available to them now. If you find walnuts stuck in your flower pots or wedged into odd places around your house or even on your car, blame the squirrels. For now, chimney swifts still enliven the skies throughout the day, chipping to one another as they swoop and glide in pursuit of insects. But somewhere around the middle of the month they’ll head for South America, not to be seen again here until mid-April. Over in Indiana migrating sandhill cranes have just begun to arrive at the Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area. As of now there are only a handful of these magnificent birds at the site, but their numbers will increase over the next six weeks until they peak at nearly 20,000 in mid-November. [Photos by author: In October, white-throated sparrows come, monarch butterflies go. ] The cranes will move on to spend the winter in Georgia and Florida, but the smaller, cold-hardy birds that come down from the north to stay in Illinois for the winter will also arrive in October. If you keep an eye out you’re likely to see the season’s first dark-eyed juncos at your feeder before the month is over, and some white-throated sparrows have already arrived. Insect life, which is still so abundant now, will also be scarce in a few short weeks. Migratory species, including monarch butterflies and assorted dragonflies, will have moved on by the time November arrives. Adults of other insect species will die off with the coming of frost, to be survived by eggs or larvae capable of withstanding the winter. Frogs and toads will continue to fatten up on insects while they can, but over the course of the month they’ll be moving toward the edges of lakes and ponds. After a cold snap or two, they’ll burrow into the mud for protection from freezing as they hibernate through the winter. I guess it goes without saying, but October is also the month for appreciating forests in the Midwest. Why not give yourself and your family the gift of a walk in the woods at Allerton Park this month? Or hit the trails for some leaf-peeping and wildlife watching at Turkey Run State Park in Indiana. Winter will provide us with all sorts of reasons to stay indoors before you know it. Until then, though, let’s make use of whatever time and good weather we’ve got.

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Depression is a mental health condition that affects millions of people globally. Out of those, around several million are adults in the USA who have had at least one depressive episode since 2014. Getting depression help for a loved one can be difficult, but living with depression is even more difficult. However, depression is a very treatable condition. With the right nudges and an excellent mental health treatment program, your loved one can soon go back to feeling happy and able to face life. At Kemah Palms, we provide several tips to help you understand and take care of your loved one with depression. Contact us today at 866. 604. 1873 for more information about our mental health treatment programs. Understanding Depression for Your Loved One Depression is a complex mental health condition that happens because of a complicated interplay of genetics, health, external circumstances, neurotransmitter balance, and even nutrition. Some external contributors include: - Lack of social support - History of trauma - Exposure to prejudice and/or discrimination - The recent loss of loved one or valuable thing - Alcohol or substance addiction Depressed people feel profoundly isolated, even when they are among people. Those who don’t know how to characterize their symptoms may assume that what they feel is normal. This belief can make getting depression help for a loved one more challenging. Depression can be debilitating. It leads to feelings of inadequacy, sadness, and low motivation, making even the simplest tasks, like getting out of bed, impossible. As a result, the condition makes it difficult for them to work, have good relationships, or enjoy their lives. Depression Is Not One-Size-Fits-All Everyone experiences depression differently. Some may have physical symptoms like muscle pain, lethargy and fatigue, headaches/migraines, or nausea and other GI symptoms. Others may show psychological symptoms like aggression and anger towards you, general apathy, listlessness, or non-stop crying. The best way of getting depression help for a loved one is to realize that depression looks different in various people. You can read up on the symptoms to learn how to care for your loved one. However, empathy for them and reaching out with kindness can help you understand the kind of support they need. Use what you know about their personality or previous depressive phases to guide your response. If you feel unable to reach them, enlisting external help is best. Getting your loved one into a psychotherapy treatment program can help them sort through their emotions. They will also receive practical coping tips or medication to help regulate their mood disturbances and other symptoms. Listening Without Judgement Listening without judging is one of the most helpful ways to support a loved one going through depression. How you listen is just as important: keep an open mind and avoid telling someone how they should feel. Listen, not to offer solutions or answers, but rather to understand and empathize with how your loved one feels. Even if you have no mental health treatment qualifications, you can let them air their emotions, fears, anxieties, and problems. This action can help them to feel less alone. It is also critical to take care of your mental health; sometimes, a loved one’s pain can affect your mental state. Talk through your feelings with someone so that you have a clear mind when taking care of your loved one. Getting Depression Help for a Loved One If you think that your loved one is depressed, gently guide them towards admitting that they need external help. Dual diagnosis treatment works if your loved one also has a drug or substance dependence that exacerbates their depression symptoms.

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Bourj Al Shamali Refugee Camp Bourj Al Shamali refugee camp in south Lebanon was opened in 1948 as a temporary shelter for Palestinian refugees coming from north Palestine, now Israel. Sixty years later, it has taken on the air of an overcrowded, unplanned, permanent city, with five times the original inhabitants occupying the original site, under the jurisdiction of the UN. Bourj Al Shamali is currently going through quite a particular and inspiring political moment with a new local committee that is independent and has no political affiliations, currently working to involve numerous people around the camp in collective work to improve daily aspects of life in the camp. One of their main objectives is to green the camp, and it is in this area that this chapter seeks to support the local community. - Claudia Martinez Mansell - Firas Ismail - Mustapha Dakhloul - Mahmoud Al Joumma, "Abu Wassim" - Amal Al Saeid STARTING-UP: An initiative to install green energy to power nighttime lighting in the narrow winding streets for community safety. ONGOING: With the local committee and Al Houla Association, we are currently working on the creation of the first public green space in the camp, in conjunction with the launch of a pilot urban agriculture initiative for the camp's residents. The first step in this process involved balloon mapping the camp and identifying locations within the overcrowded camp. |How can we build this wind turbine to power lights? ||@liz||almost 4 years ago||0||5| |Exhibition and Mapping Workshops in Bourj Al Shamali||@firas||over 6 years ago||5||5| |Public Lab Community Newsletter: December 2016||@klie||almost 7 years ago||3||0| |How useful is a map? ||@clauds||almost 7 years ago||5||0| |Balloon mapping images as a way to explain life in a refugee camp||@Mustapha||almost 7 years ago||5||2| |Camp Code: How to navigate a refugee settlement||@clauds||over 7 years ago||3||1| |A Public Lab Chapter in Bourj Al Shamali? ||@clauds||about 8 years ago||3||0| |Community Mapping to Reevaluate Space in a Refugee Camp||@gretchengehrke||about 8 years ago||2||0| |Lessons from mapping Bourj Al Shamali refugee camp in Lebanon||@clauds||about 8 years ago||12||11| Activities we've done: |Make or buy a balloon mapping kit||build||complete||@liz||-||-||0 replications: Try it »| |Host a balloon mapping workshop||-||-||@liz||-||-||37 replications: Try it »| |Use a rubber band and knotted string to trigger a camera||build||complete||@mathew||15m||easy||0 replications: Try it »| |Calculate how much helium you'll need to lift your camera||-||-||@liz||-||-||0 replications: Try it »| |Choose a camera for aerial photography||-||-||@liz||-||-||0 replications: Try it »| |How to decide on a tool for mapping||-||-||@stevie||-||-||0 replications: Try it »| |Choose a way to make your camera take pictures continuously||-||-||@liz||-||-||0 replications: Try it »| Activities should include a materials list, costs and a step-by-step guide to construction with photos. Learn what makes a good activity here.

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"Thank you so much for visiting our class on Friday! The kids loved it. . . they thought it was pretty cool to meet a "real" Astronomer! Thanks again, Janine" TABLE OF METEOR SHOWERS 2003 By Robert L. Hawkes The more prominent nighttime showers visible from the Northern Hemisphere are included in the following table, with the most visually impressive ones given in italic type. Explanations of the entries in the various columns are given following the table. Follow links in the table to descriptions of the individual showers. The column labelled Max lists the date and Time the hour (Universal Time) of the 2003 intersection of Earth with the densest region of the stream. These maxima are based on the solar longitude values ( λ ) for each shower given in the third column (epoch 2000). Many streams have a complex rate profile; for example, the Eta Aquarid and Orionid showers have earlier peaks for faint meteors than for bright meteors. Most showers show activity over a number of days, as shown in the next column, D (defined as the duration in days of 1/4 peak activity or more). Some showers (e. g. the Quadrantids) are highly concentrated with strong displays lasting only a few hours, while others are spread over weeks (e. g. the Taurid complex). Concentrated showers are more likely to be of recent formation. There are no records of the Quadrantid shower before the 19th century, while several showers have been observed for hundreds or thousands of years (e. g. the Perseids). Some showers (such as the Leonids) have meteoroids concentrated in a small region of the orbit and hence have much higher peak rates in certain years. The column labelled ZHR gives the predicted zenithal hourly rate. The higher the radiant is in the sky, the more direct the projection of the stream cross section on the sky area above the observer, and the apparent activity will be higher. The column labeled R indicates when the radiant is above the horizon for an observer at 43°N latitude; for example, >23 means that the shower can be observed after 11 p. m. local time. A √ means that the radiant is above the horizon throughout night hours. The number of meteors observed varies strongly with limiting magnitude; therefore, effective meteor observations must be made in the absence of significant moonlight. In the column labeled Moon the percentage of illumination of the Moon at the date of shower maximum is given. The rise and set times of the Moon must also be taken into account, however. The relative number of bright and faint meteors is given by the population index, r, which is defined as the ratio of the number of meteors of magnitude M + 1 to the number of magnitude M. The number of meteors that can be observed is a strong function of limiting sensitivity. For example, for a limiting magnitude of +3. 5, a shower with a ZHR of 60 and a population index r = 2. 8 would have the number of observable meteors per hour reduced by a factor of (2. 8)3 to a rate of only 2. 7 meteors per hour. The next two columns give the right ascension (RA) and declination (Dec) of the shower radiant. A typical meteor shower is active over several days, and the apparent radiant moves somewhat during this period. The tables published by the IMO give the daily motion of the radiant, which must be taken into account if one is observing meteor showers on dates significantly removed from the maximum of the shower. Meteors can only be observed when the radiant is above the local horizon (or nearly so). Finally, the geocentric speed v of the meteors in each shower is given in kilometres per second in the final column. Excerpted from the Observer's Handbook 2003 © The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, 2002. Used with permission of The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. The Observer's Handbook can be ordered at http://www.rasc.ca/publications.htm.

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A new report from the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, suggests that many people who track health-related data with wearable devices and smartphone apps are interested in sharing that data with researchers in medical and public health—provided adequate privacy controls exist. The report, titled "Personal Data for the Public Good: New Opportunities to Enrich Understanding of Individual and Population Health," also indicates that a large number of researchers are eager to access and use self-tracking data to fill in gaps in more traditional clinical data collection, although doing so will require new research methodologies and business models for companies which deal in such data. The report was prepared by the Health Data Exploration project at Calit2 using a convenience sample of individuals and researchers who are already generating or using digital self-tracking data. Among survey respondents, the five most common health conditions tracked were exercise, diet, weight, athletic activity and sleep. "Behavioral research has always depended on observations made in the laboratory or the clinic," said Robert Kaplan, a member of the Health Data Exploration Advisory Board and Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences at the National Institutes of Health. "Now we can bring the laboratory to the person in his or her own environment. This greatly enhances the opportunity to learn about the determinants of behavior in the natural environments of everyday life. " The Health Data Exploration project, which is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, is exploring how to bridge the "worlds" of health researchers, the set of mostly private and often small technology companies that hold these data, and individuals who may want to donate their own health or medical data. "We are encouraged to discover a willingness of a large number of behavioral and social scientists to partner with data scientists to delve into the depths of consumer-generated data," said Lori Melichar, Senior Program Officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "We are hopeful that we will be able to facilitate mutually beneficial partnerships between companies and researchers that can produce new insights into perplexing health challenges. " Sharing Personal Health Data Among individuals surveyed, the dominant condition (57%) for making their personal health data available for research was an assurance of privacy for their data, and over 90 percent of respondents said that it was important that the data be anonymous. On the whole, survey participants said they would be more likely to share their data if they knew that it would only be used for public good research. "We have known for a long time that altruism is a big reason why individuals participate in research studies that contribute to the common wealth, notably by evaluating new pharmaceuticals or medical devices," said Dr. Kevin Patrick, a professor of Family and Preventive Medicine in the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and a lead author of the report with Qualcomm Institute Chief of Staff Jerry Sheehan. "It's reassuring to see this same attitude applied to these new forms of health data. " A Growing Area of Research Forty-six percent of the researchers interviewed for the report have already used self-tracking data in their research, and 23 percent have already collaborated with application, device or social media companies. These findings expand on a series of reports that have emerged in the past few years from the Pew Foundation, the Institute of Medicine and others, all of which point to what Patrick calls "a landscape of opportunity" for using 'big data' to improve public health. Patrick cautions, however, that from a research standpoint, the increasing volume of self-tracked data across large groups of people – for example people who use Fitbit™ to track their physical activity – raises entirely new methodological issues for researchers. "The amount of data captured by these devices and apps dwarfs anything that we have ever had before. New computational and analytical strategies will need to be applied that have not commonly been used in health-related research," he said. In addition to the challenges of dealing with the complexity of more data, Patrick says that researchers and bio-ethicists also need to consider carefully the appropriate ethical model for assessing the rights and responsibilities of individuals who are sharing their personal data. These considerations, which require additional qualitative research to better understand the expectations for privacy for personal health data, will help guide future policy considerations regarding informed consent. Geoffrey C. Bowker, a professor in the Department of Informatics at UC Irvine and a founding member of the social science Big Data Council, concurs. "The emergent field of the Quantified Self (QS) holds the possibility of transforming the generation and deployment of data about ourselves—and thereby of informing the generation of medical knowledge. Understanding how and why people use QS and how changing attitudes to privacy affect QS data is a core task for social scientists in this domain working with both design and policy communities. " The Business Case Opportunities and obstacles for using personal health data also exist from a business perspective. Through a series of interviews, the report found that although companies which deal in such data consider advancing research a worthy goal – especially if that research validates the utility of their device or application – their primary business concern is maintaining their customer relationships. A number of companies interviewed were open to data sharing with academics, but noted the slow pace and administrative burden of working with universities as a challenge. Companies are already emerging to meet that challenge, according to the report. San Diego-based Small Steps Labs has developed a software platform called Fitabase that collects data from Internet-connected consumer devices and allows anyone – including researchers – to aggregate, analyze and export data gathered from people wearing the devices. "You could say my entire company and product exist because of these new friendly consumer wearable sensors like the Fitbit," said Fitabase CEO and Founder Aaron Coleman. "People are (rightfully so) skeptical of health tools that are one-size-fits-all and don't attempt to understand them. Greater access to data helps us make more relevant tools that fit the lifestyle of the person who is engaging our tools to better their health. " Prior to founding Fitabase, the UC San Diego alumnus (B.S. '06) led a software development team in Calit2's Center for Wireless and Population Health Systems, which designed several systems and platforms used for health related research. Explore further: 'Huge opportunities' for harvesting data shown

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Many new housing developments are being sited along major traffic corridors. While it’s logical to put infill housing close to public transport, locating medium- and high-density housing along busy roads exposes more people to traffic pollution. These developments often lack the optimal design features to minimise their exposure. This is especially the case with low, medium and high-density residential developments in Sydney. On current projections, Sydney will require 664,000 more homes by 2036 to house an extra 1. 6 million people. One explicit strategy for achieving this is to increase housing stock along transport corridors and around railway hubs and to “accelerate new housing in designated infill areas”. Local councils seek to comply with the state’s urban renewal goals and, more generally, prioritise access to services, commercial precincts and transport corridors. As a result, many redevelopment or renewal sites are on or near busy roads or around railway stations. Many government planning documents also include the goal of healthier built environments. Planning agencies around Australia have identified air quality and noise as issues for developments along busy roads. In New South Wales, various government planning documents refer to the former Department of Planning’s Development Near Rail Corridors and Busy Roads – Interim Guideline (it’s still an interim document after nine years). The Queensland, South Australian and Western Australian governments have similar guidelines. Measures to limit exposure are hit and miss Suggested design measures include: articulation or “stepping” of building façades; avoiding creation of street canyons; and mitigation measures such as greening close to the road. The NSW document suggests: The location of living areas, outdoor space and bedrooms … should be as far as practicable from the major source of air pollution. It also states that: … it is preferable if residential uses are not carried out along a busy road unless it is part of a development which includes adequate noise and air quality mitigation. This is comforting. In many cases, however, such guidelines aren’t followed. It appears that little thought is given to how placement, architecture or planting could reduce traffic-related exposures. In Sydney you’ll see many new developments with balconies and large windows facing busy roads, or minimal setbacks with little greening. Australian architectural practice for medium- and high-density living could consider alternative designs such as internal courtyard areas facing away from roads, as found in many European cities. The NSW guidelines even discuss what occupants should do where “windows must be kept closed”. A recent media report highlighted such a situation where a road is being expanded from four lanes to seven (and from 6,000 to 50,000 vehicle per day) for Sydney’s WestConnex project. The distance from apartment buildings to the road will be cut to 1. 4 metres. Contractors have been advising residents about work to mitigate the increased exposure to air pollution and noise. This includes installing air conditioning and noise insulation, and sealing air vents. Building or modifying homes in a sub-tropical climate to specifications where windows must be kept closed and residents rely on mechanical ventilation is at odds with the principles of healthy built environments. How do we explain these planning decisions? We are in a situation where councils can refuse approval for a well-designed, aesthetically pleasing carport in front of a building line, while people’s health is put at risk due to new housing developments along main roads being prioritised. How have we arrived at such incongruous decisions? Given the pace at which regeneration and major infrastructure projects are proceeding, this is a critical time to reconsider our design of urban spaces. The Parramatta Road Corridor is one example of the current approach. This urban renewal project is highlighted on the website of the state-owned Urban Growth NSW, which is setting the agenda for urban transformation in Sydney. The Parramatta Road Corridor Planning and Design Guidelines contain useful advice on building design to minimise exposure to rail and road air pollution and noise. While 21 pages are devoted to noise and vibration issues, only three pages refer to air quality near busy roads. Yet scientific evidence on the adverse health effects of air pollution is perhaps more robust than for noise effects. So what is the evidence of harm? We have shown that levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a good marker of traffic-related air pollution, changed following the building of the Lane Cove Tunnel in Sydney. After the tunnel opened, air pollution along two major arterial roads dropped up to around 100 metres away in response to reduced traffic. At the same time, NO2 levels along roads near the tunnel entrances rose in response to more traffic. Overseas studies have shown levels of NO2 and other pollutants decrease sharply with distance from roads. NO2 pollution reaches urban background levels within 100-250 metres. The sharpest decreases are within 100 metres, although some studies have recorded the influence of major highways up to 500 metres away. The NSW EPA’s emissions inventory estimated on-road vehicles contribute 61. 8% of Sydney’s NOx concentrations. NOx is the primary pollutant or precursor of NO2, which forms when NOx reacts with oxygen in the air. The adverse health effects of NO2 exposure include increases in all-cause, cardiovascular and respiratory mortality and hospital admissions for respiratory and cardiovascular disease, decreased lung function in children, and an increased risk of respiratory symptoms such as asthma, stroke and lung cancer. Traffic – and diesel vehicles in particular – is also a major contributor to ultrafine particles in ambient air. Counts along roads and in vehicles reach extremely high levels. While there is accumulating evidence of adverse respiratory and cardiovascular effects of ultrafine particles from animal and human toxicological studies, epidemiological (population-based) studies are limited. Studies of short-term exposure suggest effects similar to those seen for larger particles – increased mortality and morbidity for respiratory and cardiovascular outcomes. However, results have been inconsistent. Vehicle emissions also contribute substantially to black carbon air pollution. The World Health Organisation reported health effects similar to those of fine particulate matter and suggested black carbon might be used as an additional ambient air indicator. The conundrum is that while adverse health effects have been attributed to black carbon and ultrafine particles, the expert position is that the evidence is insufficient to support new standards for these pollutants. Reducing pollution exposure should be a priority As a public health practitioner, one can argue that evidence of the harmful effects of traffic-related air pollution is substantive and increasing. We should be designing healthier built environments to avoid increased population exposure to traffic-related air pollution. Additional options include Australia swiftly adopting more stringent fuel and vehicle emission standards. Ultimately, decreasing traffic congestion on busy and main roads will reduce exposures. In the long term, this depends on providing better options for public and active transport for work and personal trips. If left unchecked or unevaluated, planning decisions that put new homes along busy roads are likely to undermine public health protection principles.

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The lottery is a system for the distribution of prizes based on chance. It is most often used to raise money for public or charitable purposes. Prizes are primarily cash, though services and goods may also be awarded. The term is derived from the Dutch noun lot, meaning “fate” or “serendipity. ” A lottery is usually operated by a government and involves the sale of numbered tickets for a random drawing of prizes. The history of the lottery can be traced back thousands of years. The Old Testament has instructions for distributing land by lot, and the Romans held a form of the game during Saturnalian feasts to give away slaves or property. Modern lotteries are generally organized by state governments or private corporations. They can be run in a variety of ways, from scratch-off games to multiple-choice questions. In the US, state-sponsored lotteries are regulated by law and operate on a not-for-profit basis. While the resemblance of the lottery to gambling is unavoidable, it is important to distinguish between the two. The lottery is a game of chance, while gambling is a deliberate action undertaken for financial gain. While the chances of winning a lottery are low, many people find it appealing to try their luck. In fact, the lottery has become a popular fundraising method for schools and other public institutions. It is a convenient way to avoid raising taxes or cutting essential programs and still raise significant sums of money. The popularity of the lottery has been attributed to a number of factors, including its low price and relative simplicity. Most of the proceeds from lottery ticket sales go to the participating states. These funds are sometimes earmarked for particular projects, such as roadwork or school construction. However, most of the money goes to general fund accounts where it can be used for whatever purposes the state chooses. As a result, lottery revenues are not linked to a state’s actual fiscal condition. Studies have shown that a state’s lotteries can continue to enjoy broad public support even when the state is facing budget shortfalls. One reason for this popularity is the huge jackpots that are advertised on billboards and newscasts. These prizes generate buzz and drive sales. They are especially effective in times of economic stress because they dangle the possibility of instant wealth, countering the perception that most people have little or no chance of winning. In the US, the lottery is run by the states and federal territories. There are more than 30 states with legalized lotteries, and the prizes range from a few dollars to multimillion-dollar prizes. A few states have banned the practice, but most have not. There are also numerous private lotteries, which are not regulated by the state. These can be found in convenience stores, bars, and online. Some of these are scams, but others offer legitimate opportunities to win cash and prizes. The shadier ones take advantage of the gullibility of the average person and make fraudulent claims about the prizes on offer.

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By any measure, mother-child bonding is an ideal worth striving for, but new research underscores its importance, finding that toddlers who aren’t securely attached may have a greater risk of being obese before they even start kindergarten. Researchers at Ohio State University and Temple University crunched data from 6,650 U.S. children born in 2001 who were evaluated at age 2 and again at 4 ½ years. When the children were 24 months old, researchers spent two hours observing them interact at home with their mothers. Among the 45 behaviors evaluated: could upset children be comforted through contact with their mothers? Did the children seek out hugs and physical touch from their mothers? (More on TIME. com: Can a Mother’s Pregnancy Diet Influence Her Child’s Future Weight? ) The children who scored the lowest at 24 months were deemed “insecurely attached;” when researchers calculated their body-mass index, they found the insecurely attached children were 30% more likely to be obese by age 4 ½, according to the study, which was published recently in the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Researchers controlled for a host of other factors, including eating habits and maternal health, but nothing else could account for the significant link between emotional security and weight. In fact, when considering only each child’s attachment security score and future weight, the study found that the emotionally insecure toddlers had a 48% greater chance of being obese at 4 ½. Of the toddlers judged to be insecurely attached, 23% were obese at 4 ½ compared to 16. 6% of securely attached children. The findings indicate that it may be time to expand our understanding of the causes of childhood obesity: being an overweight kid may be about far more than portion size and healthy food. Other research has shown that stress and an exaggerated stress response can disrupt the body’s ability to regulate body weight. Considering that children’s ability to regulate their emotions and respond to stress is formed early in childhood based on their interactions with their caregivers, scientists hypothesized that children who are insecurely attached are at higher risk for obesity. (More on TIME. com: Do Immigrant Kids Get Fat to Fit In? ) “The same areas of the brain regulate stress response and appetite control, so if a child is stressed because he’s not being attended to, it’s more likely he will be obese later on and will also use food as a way to respond to stress,” says Sarah Anderson, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Ohio State University and the study’s lead author. A securely attached child feels confident that her caregiver will respond quickly, allowing her to explore and seek out new experiences. Insecurely attached kids, on the other hand, may shy away from interaction with others and respond angrily or with anxiously to stressful situations. The study did not look at whether the elevated rates of obesity persisted beyond the pre-kindergarten year. “We know that children who are obese tend to remain obese, which is one reason why it’s important to look at obesity prevention,” says Anderson. “It’s hard for all people to lose weight, so that’s why it’s good to prevent it rather than treat it. ” Anderson says her study is directed more at policy-makers than parents, but that doesn’t mean moms and dads shouldn’t take note. (More on TIME. com: Obese Women Are More Likely to Miscarry or Endure a Baby’s Death) “I can say from my reading of the obesity research literature and child development literature that there are a lot of good reasons why it’s important for parents to consider how they can help their children to develop good capacities for emotional regulation,” says Anderson. “I can feel very comfortable saying that this is not harmful. And if it prevents obesity, so much the better. ”

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You might think that a larger brain equals a larger IQ, but findings from the University of Vienna suggest that brain size doesn’t matter when it comes to IQ. Early findings from the 18th century had researchers believing that a large brain meant a smart individual, but thanks to the use of imaging methods, we now know this isn’t necessarily the case. Researchers conducted a meta-analysis between correlations of in-vivo brain volume and IQ. Data was taken from 148 samples from over 8000 participants. Dr. Jakob Pietschnig from the university said, “The presently observed association means that brain volume plays only a minor role in explaining IQ test performance in humans. Although a certain association is observable, brain volume appears to be of only little practical relevance. Rather, brain structure and integrity appear to be more important as a biological foundation of IQ, whilst brain size works as one of many compensatory mechanisms of cognitive functions. ” Brain structure versus brain volume can be seen among different species. For example, the sperm whale has the largest nervous system, but based on brain mass the shrew has the most control. Differences can also be seen between men and women; men typically have larger brains compared to women, yet globally there are no IQ differences between the two genders. Then there are individuals who have megalencephaly syndrome (enlarged brain volume) and yet they perform slower on IQ tests. Pietschnig added, “Therefore, structural aspects appear to be more important for cognitive performance within humans as well. ” The findings were published in Neuroscience and Behavioral Reviews.

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Problem gambling can lead to numerous negative effects, including physical, social, and psychological. Problem gambling is a form of impulse control disorder. Apart from the physical consequences, problem gambling can cause mental health problems, including migraines, intestinal disorders, and distress. People who are addicted to gambling can even develop feelings of despondency and helplessness, and may even consider suicide. For these reasons, it is vital to seek treatment as soon as possible. To learn more about gambling addiction, click here. If your loved one has a gambling addiction, you may need to find support and guidance in a variety of ways. You can reach out to family and friends, take up volunteer work, and enroll in a self-help course. You can also find peer support groups through Gamblers Anonymous, a 12-step program based on the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous. In order to benefit from the 12-step program, you will need a sponsor, who is a former problem gambler. Your sponsor will provide guidance and support as you work towards recovery. A common form of gambling is playing the lottery. The odds are low, and winners are selected by random drawing. The money you spend on a lottery ticket is limited. Hence, you should stop gambling whenever you get the urge. If you do get tempted, get rid of all credit cards, or delegate your account to a trusted third party. You can also close your online betting accounts. Keeping only small amounts of cash with you is also a good idea.

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Tooth sensitivity is an extremely common dental problem. Read on to learn more about the symptoms and causes of this condition, as well as the treatments a dentist might use to address it. What are the symptoms of tooth sensitivity? The main symptom of tooth sensitivity is a brief but very intense pain which occurs when a person consumes food or drink that is very hot, cold, sweet, or acidic. In some cases, sufferers may also experience pain when pressure is applied to the affected teeth. What causes tooth sensitivity? Tooth sensitivity occurs as a result of a thinning of the tooth enamel. This thinning leads to the sensitive dentin underneath becoming exposed. Many things can cause the enamel of a person's teeth to wear away. Excessively forceful brushing is one of the main culprits; placing too much pressure on the teeth can eventually erode the enamel, particularly if the person is using an abrasive, hard-bristled toothbrush. Frequent consumption of highly acidic food and drink, such as carbonated water, lemons, tomatoes, and kiwis can also lead to this condition. Tooth grinding, advanced gum disease, and bleach-based tooth whitening products have also been found to cause tooth sensitivity in some people. How can this condition be treated? If a person suffers from dental sensitivity, their dentist may provide them with a list of preventative measures they can take to reduce the frequency and intensity of the pain they are experiencing. These measures may include dietary changes (for example, avoiding specific foods that trigger tooth sensitivity), altering their tooth-brushing technique (i. e. brushing more gently) and, if appropriate, switching to a soft-bristled brush. In cases where the problem is believed to have been caused by gum disease, the dentist might carry out a professional cleaning and advise the patient to improve their oral hygiene routine to prevent further erosion of the tooth enamel. If the patient grinds their teeth and the dentist suspects that this has contributed to their sensitivity issues, they may also fit them with a custom mouth guard, which they can wear whilst sleeping to prevent them from grinding their teeth and therefore eroding their tooth enamel even further. Additionally, the dentist may advise the patient to swap their normal toothpaste for one which is designed specifically to desensitise teeth. Most dental products of this kind contain a specific ingredient (usually a potassium salt) which prevents pain signals from reaching the tooth's nerve. Desensitising toothpaste does not cure this condition after a period of time, and so it needs to be used on a regular basis in order to keep sensitivity at bay. For more information and help with treating tooth sensitivity, contact a dentist in your area. Share

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3 Emotional Eating Coping Skills: Consider these facts about emotional eating: - Almost all diets are broken because of “emotional distress. ” - Most overeating occurs in the state of “tense tiredness. ” - The highest predictor of obesity is an environment of “uncertainty and insecurity. ” Emotional Eating can be disastrous to your body and to your confidence. In order to make progress, coping skills for eating disorders need to be firmly in place. Coping without food is not always easy at first. Tapping can help you curb emotional eating, but there are other skills you can add as well. Managing negative feelings and stress is an essential skill for weight loss. Whether you use tapping or not, you simply can’t keep weight off without being able to manage stress! Luckily, emotional eating coping skills are a set of skills you can learn, practice and improve over time. If you often wonder “Why an I an emotional eater? ” or “Why do people eat emotionally? ,” listen to this audio to learn about the triggers for overeating and ways to cope without turning to food. You’ll learn to build eating and coping mechanisms right into your day. Join me as I share 3 essential emotional skills for weight loss that can help make your tapping more effective. Boost your emotional toolbox! (If you don’t see the player, refresh your screen)

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As a concerned and committed parent, the health of your children is probably one of your top priorities. From making sure your youngsters get their booster shots to diligently taking them for their annual school physicals, there are likely many things you do throughout the year to promote good health in your children. Packing their lunches something you can do each day to accomplish the same goal. Packed Lunches Are Parent Approved All the effort you put forth to encourage your kids to eat healthily could quickly prove useless if they start eating junk food whenever they get to school and don’t stop snacking on it until the final class bell rings. It’s not possible to completely prevent kids from eating unhealthy foods when they’re out of your sight, but by packing their lunches with things you’d like them to eat, you’re taking part in an action that makes it more likely your kids will eat the healthy items for their main at-school meal. You Can Put Portion Control Into Practice Many parents try to teach their kids about portion control by consistently practicing it at home, so they have good examples to follow. If you’ve done the same, perhaps you’ve cautioned your youngster it’s not appropriate to chow down on an entire pizza, but said eating a couple of slices is okay. By purchasing some of the many types of reusable food and drink containers, and sending your child to school with them, it’s simple only to provide the amount of food they should be eating. That’s an important step to take if your pediatrician is concerned that your child is under or overweight for their age. Help Kids Avoid Expensive and Unhealthy Snacks Some schools have vending machines that sell familiar brands of snacks and soda. Even if you’ve given the go ahead for your child to eat one of those items daily at school, you could still encourage them to choose a better option by packing favorite snacks into their lunch bags. Maybe your daughter loves apple slices with peanut butter, and your son is a huge fan of fruit snacks. Regardless of specifics, help kids decide to eat snacks they brought from home rather than getting lured by vending machines. The food inside is likely very high in calories, and choices are probably more expensive than what you’d pay to get the same items in a grocery store. Boost Your Child’s Self-Esteem You may not realize it initially, but your kid’s lunch boxes might help them feel better about themselves. There are many styles to choose from, so whether your child wants one with a kitten design or a brightly colored tote, there are those options and more. Also, if you buy your child several bags, they’ll never be without a lunch container even if one or more needs cleaning. These are just some of the major reasons why packing your child’s lunches rather than giving them money for meals in the school cafeteria is an actionable strategy you can take to promote good health. Consider taking them shopping for a cool bag soon. This is a sponsored guest post.

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Mission San Diego de Alcalá was founded July 16th 1769 by Father Junípero Serra. It was named for Didacus of Alcalá. This is the first mission of the twenty-one Spanish missions that today line the state of California. The Spanish expedition that founded Mission San Diego brought great hardship and an enormous loss of lives. The group of religious and military Spaniards finally succeeded in establishing the first of the three missions planned in Alta California to hold the northern frontier from advancing Russians. In 1774, after only five years from its foundation, the mission was moved from Presidio Hill to the present site near San Diego River because of the shortage of water supplies and the poor soil quality. Moreover, the new site was nearer the American Indian villages whom the missionaries intended to convert to Christianity. On November 4th, 1775, the mission was burned in an Indian attack and stormed onto the grounds. Father Luis Jayme, who perished in the attack, became the first Christian Martyr of California. His body is buried under the altar in the present church. By 1780 the first California mission had been rebuilt. In 1801 the mission was damaged by an earthquake. In 1833 the mission was secularized and sold in 1845. In 1862 it was returned to the church. In 1931 Mission San Diego was restored to the way it looks today. The front of the church is one of the simplest of all California missions. The attached wall, called a campanario, which rises above the mission gardens is impressive and one of the most beautiful of all missions.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency alerted the nation’s governors on Tuesday that it is giving states an additional year to develop air quality plans that will comply with agency’s 2015 ground-level ozone standard. The one-year extension also will provide the EPA an opportunity to look at ways to make it easier for states to meet the ozone standards, the agency said. Ozone is the main ingredient in smog and is created when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds — both of which can come from car exhaust and power plants — interact with sunlight. Breathing in ozone can contribute to a range of health impacts, including a decrease in lung function and an increase in respiratory symptoms. “States have made tremendous progress and significant investment cleaning up the air,” Pruitt said in a statement announcing the one-year delay. “We will continue to work with states to ensure they are on a path to compliance. ” Areas designated as not meeting a 70 parts per billion National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone, which was set in 2015, face consequences that include “increased regulatory burdens, restrictions on infrastructure investment, and increased costs to businesses,” the EPA said Tuesday. The EPA is required to review the NAAQS ozone standards every five years and revise them if necessary to protect public health. States are subsequently required to develop plans to achieve and maintain compliance with the revised standards. The 2015 revision lowered both the primary and secondary ozone air quality standards from 75 parts per billion to 70 parts per billion. The revised standards were challenged by industry and certain states, which argued the standards should not have been lowered. Environmental groups, on the other hand, argued the EPA should have lowered the standards further to 65 or 60 parts per billion. The Sierra Club objected to the EPA’s one-year delay, warning it will have “real-world consequences” for Americans’ health. “Pruitt’s decision shows he would rather listen to a coal executive about what is safe for our families to breathe as opposed to doctors and medical professional,” Mary Anne Hitt, director of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign, said in a statement. “An asthma attack cannot be delayed a year and neither can a trip to the emergency room. ” Hundreds of medical scientists, doctors, and policy experts have weighed in on the need to strengthen clean air protections against smog pollution, according to Hitt. “Today’s action proves once again that while this administration claims to care about clean air and water, nothing could be further from the truth. We will fight this egregious breach of the Clean Air Act and the right of every American to breathe clean air,” she said Tuesday. Based on fiscal-year 2017 funding, Pruitt said he will establish an Ozone Cooperative Compliance Task Force that will try to find ways for states to comply with the ozone standard with less hardship. “The agency is taking time to better understand some lingering, complicated issues so that air attainment decisions can be based on the latest and greatest information,” the EPA said. In response to the one-year delay, John Walke, clean air director and a senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, asserted that every state already has sufficient information that allows them to inform the EPA which areas do not meet the agency’s stricter smog standard. *Every* state–red & blue–had sufficient info. to tell EPA already which areas don't meet safer smog health standard. Every. One. https://t.co/Qwu2LibD5s — John Walke (@jwalkenrdc) June 7, 2017 In 2009, the EPA began reviewing the NAAQS, finding that ozone was strongly linked to serious health effects, asthma attacks and other respiratory complications. Based on that research, the agency issued the revised NAAQS for ozone. Numerous parties, including states and industry, challenged the 2015 standard in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Industry officials claimed the rule was too stringent and costly. In April, the D.C. Circuit granted a petition by Pruitt’s EPA to indefinitely delay oral arguments in the ozone NAAQS litigation. The agency told the court it intended to review the rule. Under the court ruling, the EPA must file status reports on its review of the NAAQS rule at 90-day intervals. Industry law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP explained in a report released earlier this year that environmental groups will have “tools at their disposal” to prevent any proposed weakening of the standard. “Such tools include the ability to challenge EPA regulations they believe are not sufficiently protective of the environment or that weaken existing regulations and the ability to challenge the failure of EPA to issue regulations that such groups believe are required by environmental laws,” the law firm said.

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No matter how poor a community may be, technological and financial solutions are available for it to benefit from modern sanitation practices. Water is the elixir of life, the element that sustains all known living organisms in their life cycle. Water is abundant in nature, covering up the majority of the planet we call home. Yet, freshwater resources, which give us drinking water, irrigate plants, and are often used to generate energy, are under threat on several fronts across Asia and the Pacific. Water supply is approaching a crisis point in many Asian countries, as communities, industries, and farmers compete for this scarce resource. Against this backdrop, it is crucial that governments and communities learn how to make the most of their invaluable water assets. In Bangladesh, with support from ADB, the country's government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are tackling the challenge of creating a cleaner, healthier environment in the crowded slums of Dhaka and other urban centers. A growing trend in the country is toward on-site sewage treatment systems and sludge management projects. "Not only do these projects improve sanitation coverage and wastewater management," comments Jingmin, "but they also show how sanitation solutions can be sustainable thanks to the engagement of local communities in general and women in particular. " In Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, urban services, such as sanitation, are in a poor state. Many homes do not have proper toilets. Fecal waste is discharged into gutters clogged with garbage, posing a serious health hazard. Thanks to a small-scale pilot community project supported by ADB, one neighborhood in a poor community has improved sanitation facilities and hygiene practices, providing an example of how things can be done in the country. New sanitation goals Will Asia and the Pacific manage to meet the ambitious Millennium Development Goal 7 (MDG7), which aims to reduce by half the size of the population who do not have access to sanitation by 2015? Experts believe that this is doable, though a paradigm shift is required toward performance-based and business-oriented solutions that include technological innovation, comprehensive financing, and efficient delivery mechanisms. A lot has been done, and a lot remains to be done. And the goal of universal access to sanitation by 2025, which might replace MDG7, is already just around the corner. Stay up to date Subscribe to our newsletter and get the latest issues, news, events, jobs and data in your e-mail inbox.

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Fun with food: These pasta shapes were generated by immersing a 2D flat gelatin film into water. (credit: Michael Indresano Photography) Researchers at MIT’s Tangible Media Group are exploring ways to make your dining experience interactive and fun, with food that can transform its shape by just adding water. Think of it as edible origami or culinary performance art — flat sheets of gelatin and starch that instantly sprout into three-dimensional structures, such as macaroni and rotini, or the shape of a flower. But the researchers suggest it’s also a practical way to reduce food-shipping costs. Edible films could be stacked together, IKEA-style, and shipped to consumers, then morph into their final shape later when immersed in water. “We did some simple calculations, such as for macaroni pasta, and even if you pack it perfectly, you still will end up with 67 percent of the volume as air,” says Wen Wang, a co-author on the paper and a former graduate student and research scientist in MIT’s Media Lab. “We thought maybe in the future our shape-changing food could be packed flat and save space. ” Programmable pasta, anyone? At MIT, Wang and associates had been investigating the response of various materials to moisture. They started playing around with gelatin (as in Jello), a substance that naturally expands when it absorbs water. Gelatin can expand to varying degrees depending on its density — a characteristic that the team exploited in creating their shape-transforming structures. They created a flat, two-layer film made from gelatin of two different densities. In theory, the top layer was more densely packed, so it should be able to absorb more water than the bottom layer. Sure enough, when they immersed the entire structure in water, the top layer curled over the bottom layer, forming a slowly rising arch — creative pasta. * Culinary performance art by MIT researchers. (left) Phytoplankton pasta salad with heirloom tomatoes and wild Sorrel. (right) Flowering pasta with west-coast foraged mushrooms and fermented burgundy truffle. (credit: Michael Indresano Photography) To see how their designs might be implemented in a professional kitchen, the researchers showed their engineered edibles to Matthew Delisle, the head chef of high-end Boston restaurant L’Espalier. They jointly designed two culinary creations: transparent discs of gelatin flavored with plankton and squid ink, that instantly wrap around small beads of caviar; and long fettuccini-like strips, made from two gelatins that melt at different temperatures, causing the noodles to spontaneously divide when hot broth melts away certain sections. “They had great texture and tasted pretty good,” Yao says. The researchers used a laboratory 3-D printer to pattern cellulose onto films of gelatin. But they suggest users can reproduce similar effects with more common techniques such as “screen printing” in an open-access paper presented at the Association for Computing Machinery’s 2017 Computer-Human Interaction Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2017). They envision that their “online software can provide design instructions, and a startup company can ship the materials to your home,” Yao says. This research was funded, in part, by the MIT Media Lab and Food + Future, a startup accelerator sponsored by Target Corporation, IDEO, and Intel. * The team recorded the cellulose patterns and the dimensions of all of the structures they were able to produce, and also tested mechanical properties such as toughness, organizing all this data into a database. Co-authors Zhang and Cheng then built computational models of the material’s transformations, which they used to design an online interface for users to design their own edible, shape-transforming structures. “We did many lab tests and collected a database, within which you can pick different shapes, with fabrication instructions,” Wang says. “Reversibly, you can also select a basic pattern from the database and adjust the distribution or thickness, and can see how the final transformation will look. ” Tangible Media Group | Transformative Appetite Abstract of Transformative Appetite: Shape-Changing Food Transforms from 2D to 3D by Water Interaction through Cooking We developed a concept of transformative appetite, where edible 2D films made of common food materials (protein, cellulose or starch) can transform into 3D food during cooking. This transformation process is triggered by water adsorption, and it is strongly compatible with the ‘flat packaging’ concept for substantially reducing shipping costs and storage space. To develop these transformable foods, we performed material-based design, established a hybrid fabrication strategy, and conducted performance simulation. Users can customize food shape transformations through a pre-defined simulation platform, and then fabricate these designed patterns using additive manufacturing. Three application techniques are provided – 2D-to-3D folding, hydration-induced wrapping, and temperature-induced self-fragmentation, to present the shape, texture, and interaction with food materials. Based on this concept, several dishes were created in the kitchen, to demonstrate the futuristic dining experience through materials-based interaction design. from KurzweilAI http://ift.tt/2soxISm

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Lavender, or Lavandula, as it is known by plant-geeks is probably one of the most popular perennials bought and sold in our garden centre. It is a fairly easy care and low maintenance plant once you understand its needs. While it is tolerant of many conditions, lavender needs bright light and warmth. A location with full sun is ideal. It also likes average to poor soils that are alkaline and chalky. This type of soil will improve the scent and oil production of the plant. Lavender is drought tolerant, but newly planted ones still need to be watered well until established. This is especially true for plants in a pot or container. General Lavender Care Most people lose lavender plants not from cold, but from over watering. Our wet, mild climate is hard on lavender plants. Lavender suffers when the humidty is high and its roots are wet. Ensure that your planting area is on the dry side with course, well drained soils. Consider planting in a mound if your garden is moist to rise the lavender roots above any standing water. Winter Care of Lavender Lavender benefits greatly from an application of mulch. This protects the roots from constant freezing and thawing and helps moderate the root temperature. Also consider sheltering it from cold winter winds. While the plant is generally dormant in winter, excessive winds can cause damage. Do not prune lavender early in the year. Instead wait until you see new growth emerging near the bottom of the plant. This is often the cause of lavender death. While it appreciates a hard pruning, timing is important. Once new growth emerges, you can start cutting away any dead, damaged or diseased wood. Taller lavender varieties can be cut back by 1/3. Limit your pruning to a couple of inches of existing growth for shorter varieties. After flowering, pick off or remove spent flowers. This will help in your overall pruning program. Growing Lavender In Containers Lavender is an excellent container plant if you follow a few key recommendations. First, ensure the potting soil is well draining, otherwise the plant may rot. Remember that any plant in a pot is more exposed to the elements and therefore needs more protection against extreme winter weather. If the forecast is for cold weather, consider moving your lavender pot to a sheltered location, ie closer to the house or near other barrier plants. Lavender in pots can't go out and get its own water so remember to water it occasionally, preferably before it starts to wilt. This is more of an issue for new plants as older more established plants have a bigger root system to work with. Remember to fertilize in spring too. Every couple of years, re-pot your lavender to give it more growing area. Choose a pot that is only slightly bigger than the older one. Lavender roots like to be a little contained. If you have any questions about growing lavender, please feel free to give us a call at 604. 882. 1201, or drop by and visit Art's Nursery in person.

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Here are some instructions for preparing human bones for display, from circa 1543: Step 1. Acquire a corpse. No, no hints about where or how. You’re on your own there. Step 2. Cut away as much flesh as you can. Watch the joints and ligaments—you need those intact. Step 3. Acquire a body-length box, with holes in the walls. Place the bones inside, and cover with quicklime (used for centuries in agriculture, warfare, and cemeteries, and now available online). Sprinkle with water and wait a week. Presumably, leave the box someplace where no one will accidentally open it. Step 4. Locate a stream or other body of running water in which to place the box. Give it a week, to allow the stream wash away the now loose and decaying flesh. Step 5. Clean off any leftover flesh, and leave the skeleton to dry in the sun. The ligaments should keep the bones together. There—your very own human skeleton. If you find this set of instructions foul, so did Andreas Vesalius, the 16th-century author from whom they’re derived. Vesalius was a hotshot Renaissance scientist with a talent for self-promotion. He was young, cocky, and skeptical of the medical establishment, which was still reliant on ancient Greek medical work that was already more than a millennium old at the time. In Vesalius’s opinion, skeleton-making was “time-consuming, dirty, and difficult,” according to Oregon State University historian Anita Guerrini. He preferred a different strategy for revealing human skeletal anatomy. First, boil the body in a “capacious cauldron,” then skim away the fat and clean the boiled flesh from the bones. That way, you could actually see the joints, instead of leaving them hidden behind blackened ligaments. “Now most of the skeletons used in medical schools are plastic, but the ones that were used a couple hundred years ago—they were all people,” says Guerrini. For centuries human skeletons have been bought and sold, though it’s rare for a commodity to have once been part of a person. But despite the long practice of hanging human bones in museums and academic institutions, “we really don’t have a good history of skeletons,” says Guerrini. After noticing how overlooked they had been, she began investigating the history and iconography of skeletons—how they were they used, how they were made, and how that knowledge was passed down through generations of scientists. Vesalius’s technique was one among many proposed strategies for creating a pristine set of human bones. Vesalius’s description is the oldest-known set of such instructions, but by the 1540s, the practice had been around for some time, perhaps going as far back as the 1300s, as Guerrini recounted in a talk at Columbia University this past September. One 14th-century scientist, for instance, mentions “making an anatomy” from fleshless bones. Vesalius became a professor in Padua, as chief of surgery and anatomy, in 1537, when he was just 23 years old, and he wrote De humani corporis fabrica (On the Fabric of the Human Body), which contains the skeleton instructions, before he turned 30. “He was brilliant, and he was very brash,” says Guerrini. His book, unusually, had a portrait of himself on the title page, and another on the frontispiece. While his older colleagues deferred to the medical works of Galen, the Greek physician who lived in the 2nd century, Vesalius preferred direct observation of the human body. He taught using dissection and seemed to have no qualms about using human remains. “With characteristic macabre whimsy he recommended posing the skeleton with a scythe, or a pike, or a javelin, and suggested stringing the ear bones onto a nerve to make a necklace,” Guerrini said in her talk. He didn’t care much about the aesthetics of the bones themselves, though. The boil-and-carve strategy he advocated for would have left the bones mottled and brown. As skeletons became more popular as objects of display and learning, their appearance became more important. They remained rare objects, though, until the 17th century, when the new science of osteology, the study of bones, increased their use in anatomical study. By the middle of that century, skeletons, both human and animal, started showing up in the catalogues of natural history collections and cabinets of curiosities, such as the elaborate, skeleton-filled dioramas built by Dutch anatomist Frederik Ruysch. Soon students of both art and anatomy were expected to study human skeletons as part of their training, and the public grew curious as well. By the 1660s, there was a market for them in Europe. By the 18th century, displaying human skeletons became trendy. Guerrini found a 1716 advertisement for “The Moving Skeleton,” a public attraction “which by a mechanical projection performs several very strange and surprising actions, also groans like a dying person, smoaks[sic] a Pipe of Tobacco, and blows the Candle out, as naturally as if alive. ” By this time, anatomists wanted to produce clean, white bones. One physician made sure to leave his bones out for months to bleach in the sun. Another eschewed boiling bones and instead left corpses to rot in water, changed periodically. This “maceration” technique required pulling softened flesh away from the bones and would have required a steely constitution. But the demand for skeletons was high enough that more people were taking on this job: In the early 18th century, one surgeon offered a course in skeleton-making. While researching this history, Guerrini found that, some time in the 200 years after Vesalius, anatomists became more circumspect about their habit of stripping corpses of flesh and putting it on display. Vesalius, with his ear-bone necklace and artfully posed skeletons, was boastful of his work. By the 18th century, anatomists were less eager to crow about it. Alexander Munro, an expert in osteology, wrote a whole book on bones without ever once mentioning how to make a skeleton. William Hunter, a generation later, told his students that they should acquire a skeleton for personal use, but never published his lecture notes explaining the process of creating one. “I was struck by Hunter and Monroe’s aura of secrecy,” says Guerrini. “Looking at Hunter, in particular, he never published his anatomy lectures. ” The only reason she knows about his skeleton how-tos is that his students took notes, and those notes are still in archives, hidden away from public view. There is something eerie about the instruction that all, say, 30 students in an anatomy class should somehow acquire their own human skeletons. Hunter, Guerrini says, never specified where they were to find bodies, but students likely would have had to resort to grave-robbery, “resurrection men,” or bribing gravediggers or hospital workers. (Hunter’s brother was apparently an ace at body procurement. ) Attitudes toward death had been changing in Europe, and the idea of a carving up a not-insubstantial number of bodies and selling their bones started to seem distasteful, even morally reprehensible. While Vesalius could joke about the fate of these bodies, “William Hunter acknowledged the ‘necessary inhumanity’ of dissection,’” Guerrini says. That didn’t stop him from offering his own new-fangled techniques for skeleton-making. Like Vesalius, Hunter had strong opinions about the best strategies. “If you want the Bones to be white inject by the Aorta for two or three Hours which will return by the Veins,” he wrote, without specifying what, exactly, should be injected. “Then expose them to maggots. ” Or, if you had enough time, you could simply bury a body in a box by an anthill. It was, at least, a less hands-on method of stripping flesh from bones.

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Effective management of coastal ‘blue carbon’ systems such as mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses, requires implementation of strategic policy and financing mechanisms – most of which are already in place, as for example Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+). Developing an action plan for blue carbon policy was at the heart of discussions during the first workshop of the International Blue Carbon Policy Working Group, convened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Conservational International (CI), and the Intergovernmental Oceanic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO from July 12-14, 2011 at CI headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. International experts identified a set of policy opportunities, activities and milestones for strategically advancing and implementing blue carbon under international and regional climate, ocean and coastal policy frameworks. The International Blue Carbon Policy Working Group was formed to identify and support the implementation of blue carbon elements through existing international policies and mechanisms. This group, along with the International Blue Carbon Science Working Group , are part of the Blue Carbon Initiative, a consortium led by IUCN, CI, and IOC-UNESCO, working with partners from national governments, research institutions, NGOs, coastal communities, intergovernmental and international bodies and other relevant stakeholders. Activities planned for the next six months include publishing research and policy guidance for the inclusion of blue carbon in existing United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) mechanisms such as National Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) and REDD+, collaboration with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, and continued development of carbon accounting methodologies for wetlands for the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and other activities, including national assessments and pilot projects.

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NEWS: Researchers find UK dogs at greater risk of Lyme disease than previously thought Scientists at the University of Bristol found that ticks in dogs had a much higher Lyme infection rate than expected; they fear Lyme is likely to become more prevalent throughout the country. Press release from the University of Bristol (UK): Survey of pet dogs indicates Lyme disease risk much greater than previous estimates suggest Press release issued 25 January 2012 Ticks infected with the bacteria that cause Lyme disease may be considerably more prevalent in the UK than expected, according to new research from the University of Bristol that used pet dogs as ‘sentinels’ for human disease risk. Transmitted by ticks, Lyme disease is a debilitating chronic infection which affects a number of animals including humans and dogs. It is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. Clinical signs in humans include a characteristic circular red rash that spreads from the site of the tick bite, followed by a flu-like condition. In dogs, the symptoms can be much more vague and difficult to diagnose. If untreated, the disease progresses to neurological problems and arthritis; chronic forms of the disease can last for many years. While only occasionally affecting humans, reported cases in the UK are thought to have increased more than fourfold since the beginning of the century – from 0. 38 per 100,000 in 2000 to 1. 79 per 100,000 in 2009. In 2010 there were 953 reported cases in England and Wales but the level of under-reporting is likely to be considerable. To obtain a clearer picture of the prevalence of infected ticks, Faith Smith of Bristol’s School of Biological Sciences and colleagues recruited vets across England, Scotland and Wales to examine dogs selected at random as they visited veterinary practices. Since pet dogs largely share the same environment and visit the same outdoor areas as their owners, exposure to infected ticks in dogs is likely to provide an index for corresponding risks to humans. Of 3,534 dogs inspected between March and October 2009, 14. 9 per cent had ticks. Of the samples that could be tested, 17 were positive for the Borrelia bacteria. Hence, 2. 3 per cent of ticks were infected. Therefore, the prevalence of infected ticks on dogs is 0. 5 per cent, or 481 infected ticks per 100,000 dogs. This suggests that the prevalence of Borrelia in the UK tick population is considerably higher than previously thought. Faith Smith said: “Lyme disease appears to be a rapidly growing problem in the UK with important health and economic impacts in terms of loss of working hours and potential decrease in tourism to tick hotspots. “Without considerably better surveillance and routine diagnostic testing, Lyme disease is only likely to become more prevalent. In particular, future warmer winters might well extend the period over which ticks are active seasonally, while growing wild reservoir host populations, such as deer, will allow the tick population to expand. ” The study is published today in the journal Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and Merial Animal Health Ltd.

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Educational planning for gifted children who have special educational needs must address the gifted and special needs sides of these unique children. Because giftedness can mask special needs — and special needs can hide giftedness — school personnel often label twice-exceptional kids as “lazy” and “unmotivated. ” Giftedness does not open the door to special education services and an IEP. In this issue of the Special Ed Advocate you'll find articles, advocacy advice, resources, book recommendations, and free publications about making good educational decisions for a twice-exceptional child. Please don't hesitate to forward this issue to friends, family members, or colleagues. Find Wrightslaw on Facebook

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The tradition of dual residency—between city and countryside, or across national borders—has been an important survival strategy, and a source of solidarity, for indigenous communities. But in places like Oaxaca, Mexico and the Bolivian highlands, the practice is now becoming a source of conflict, pitting residents, communities, and social sectors against one another in new forms of economic and political competition. In Oaxaca, Mexico’s most ethnically diverse state where 75% of the residents live in “extreme poverty,” some 400 indigenous municipalities are governed by a centuries-old system of usos y costumbres (uses and customs). Residents choose their leaders in open, democratic assemblies and are obligated to perform unpaid community service (e. g., as local government officials, policemen, or sanitation workers) on a rotating basis. These traditions have kept the villages functioning for centuries, even in the face of vast out-migration over the last 40 years, as successive neoliberal governments instituted failed agrarian and trade policies that decimated local peasant economies. With a high percentage of Oaxacan migrants resettling as undocumented workers in southern California, as long as the border was fluid residents could—and did—return periodically to perform their obligatory service, subsidized by their own savings. Migrants retained land, homes, and voting rights in their native villages, keeping relatives and local businesses afloat through remittances and maintaining strong community ties inbetween visits. This dual residency practice has been radically altered by the militarization of the border and the increase in drug cartel violence along migration routes, which make a return home tantamount to permanent deportation. And with the U.S. economic crisis and the crackdown on undocumented workers, Oaxacan migrants have less money available for travel, remittances, or buying out of their community service obligations. In Santa Ana del Valle , a Zapotec farming and weaving community just outside the city of Oaxaca that has lost most of its youthful male population to California migration, the economic situation has turned increasingly desperate. Recently, a bitterly divided municipal assembly voted to confiscate the property of any migrant who doesn’t perform community service, or pay a buyout fee of $1,200 per year, which migrant families say they cannot afford. The controversy has pitted remaining villagers against their migrant former neighbors—who, after decades of residency in the U. S., still view themselves as Oaxacans and fear losing their lands and respect in the community where they had hoped to retire. In Aymara and Quechua communities of the Bolivian highlands, the tradition of dual residency between city and countryside dates back even farther, recalling the ancestral Andean practice of vertical integration between different ecological zones as a strategy for economic survival. In modern times, massive numbers of campesinos expelled from the Altiplano by failed agrarian reform and structural adjustment policies (exacerbated by environmental degradation and climate change) have fueled the rapid growth of major urban centers like La Paz/El Alto. Like their Mexican counterparts, these urban migrants maintain strong ties with their native rural communities, owning land in the countryside and returning there to grow crops, participate in assemblies, and even maintain leadership positions. Some rural mayors live in El Alto during the week, effectively establishing an urban seat for their Altiplano constituents. These relationships also help to promote indigenous solidarity across rural/urban boundaries. For example, when peasant-led blockades during the 2003-5 “Gas Wars” caused food shortages in El Alto, most Alteños identified with the campo, despite their immediate economic hardship as consumers. In the run-up to Bolivia’s decennial census, held on November 21, bus terminals in La Paz/El Alto were overwhelmed with residents scrambling to return to their native communities before the mandatory national travel ban kicked in. Local authorities fearing cuts in government funding allocations—which are largely based on population—had threatened to confiscate their lands and houses, cut off services, or impose heavy fines if they did not return for the count. Some rural mayors even hired buses to transport residents from and back to La Paz for free. Government officials acknowledged that the double residency issue could significantly distort the census findings, and even result in double-counting (since the rural census extended for three days, while the urban count and travel ban was limited to one). Officially, residents were encouraged to be counted in the location where they primarily live and consume services, although they could not be forced to do so. President Evo Morales affirmed to the nation that he would be counted in La Paz, his primary place of residence since 2006, despite counter-pressures from his native village in Oruro and his coca farming sindicato in the Chapare region of Cochabamba where he maintains land. Still, the governor of the La Paz department (state) pointedly returned to his native community for the census, declaring that he resided in the city only “circumstantially,” for work. He also urged all departmental natives who had emigrated to other regions, or abroad, to be counted in their communities of origin, to maximize the number of departmental seats in the national Assembly, also based on population. (La Paz is expected to gain 2 seats but the rapidly growing Santa Cruz department in the eastern lowlands will gain 3, at the expense of other western highlands departments which are losing population. ) Bolivia’s powerful social movements were divided on the issue. The three largest campesino federations (representing rural farmers, peasant women, and migrant settlers, respectively) instructed their members to return to their communities of origin. Urban neighborhood federations like FEJUVE-El Alto, fearing a mass exodus on census day by the city’s largely migrant population, spearheaded a campaign with the local mayor under the slogan, “I am an Alteño at heart, so I will be counted in my city. ” As anthropologist Xavier Albó has noted, both the census and the government’s resource allocation policies are at fault for failing to adequately recognize the phenomenon of dual residency and its historic economic and political benefits. Fortunately, the Bolivian government seems to agree, and is now considering alternative methodologies for the distribution of municipal and departmental resources, taking into account such additional measures as poverty, basic needs, food security, environmental conditions, and urban vs. rural inequities. There is also talk of expanding the size of the Assembly to avoid a controversial reallocation of departmental seats. Minimizing political strife ahead of the 2014 presidential election could be a strong motivating factor. Emily Achtenberg is an urban planner and the author of NACLA’s weekly blog Rebel Currents, covering Latin American social movements and progressive governments (nacla. org/blog/rebel-currents ).

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Coconut shells can be used for other things besides making cute faces on Flickr or banging them together to pretend you're riding a horse like Monty Python. Several companies are now distributing a range of gardening products made from coconuts husks. The hair of the coconut shell or coir can be easily used to supplement soil in gardens instead of using peat moss from rapidly depleting peat lands. Peat bogs are resources that are being depleated fast and it can take upwards of 200 years for them to renew naturally. The peat lands of Europe have disappeared at such a rapid rate that they are now protected by a directive of the European Union. Profit driven companies are now struggling to replenish the peatlands but many varieties of plants and animals are being threatened in the process. Peat moss has been a resource used by many gardeners to replenish the soil and make the soil absorb water faster. Compost is by far the cheapest, most effective and greenest way to add nutrients to your garden. It contains many more nutrients that peat moss or coconut coir. Coconut coir can also be used in the same manner as peat moss. Digging it into the soil can help the soil to trap more water as well as replenish stripped out nutrients. Coir can also be used as mulch to help reduce soil erosion, decrease the watering needs of the garden and help to keep out invading weeds. Coir is packaged in bricks or bales and can hold up to ten times it's weight in water. Most coir comes from countries overseas such as Sri Lanka or India where coconuts are plentiful and the husks themselves are garbage otherwise. This helps to reduce it's carbon footprint from shipping it overseas. Repurposing coconut husks into gardening products is a great alternative to using peat moss or mulch in the garden. I have recently purchased and used both products in a flower bed to see what they're like and was astounded at how much water the coconut husks can hold. With these types of products becoming more readily available, consumers need to put their money where their belief systems are. The more that people buy green, the more green products will become widely available.

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By Jorge Martinez, Director, LatinoEyes In case you missed it, controversial Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez Frias died earlier this month after a long battle against cancer. To many, Mr. Chavez was a righteous leader and brave revolutionary that deserved the admiration of thousands all over the world; to others, he was a tyrant who imposed his views and mishandled the responsibilities that were vested in him when he became Venezuela's president. . . and every subsequent time he successfully extended his stay in power. It seems, like with Mr. Chavez, there were no in-betweens: you either loved his legacy or flat out hated it. This note, however, is not to talk about the former president or his policies but rather to share some thoughts on one of the effects of his rise to power. One that, in my opinion, will inevitably influence the fabric of the Hispanic population in the U.S.: the growing Venezuelan community in the U.S. After Mr. Chavez rose to power in 1999, many of the changes he introduced caused a gradual but constant exodus of middle and upper middle class Venezuelans who felt either forced or compelled to look for better opportunities outside of the otherwise prosperous Venezuelan economy. Statistics from the Department of Homeland Security indicate that the number of Venezuelans obtaining legal permanent resident status just about doubled in a matter of years from a little over 5,000 in 2002 to over 10,000 in 2005, since then the flow has remained constant. Many of those who fled Venezuela are highly educated and entrepreneurial individuals who now call cities like Katy in Texas and Weston in Florida home (each city has its own Venezuelan-themed moniker: Katyzuela and Westonzuela), and their arrival has begun to shape and influence their respective communities and the Hispanic community overall. As a researcher, I have been fortunate to meet and become friends with some of those Venezuelans who now live in this country (on both ends of the Chavez-liking spectrum); and having access to them outside of the research arena has broadened my understanding of the Venezuelan culture and people, knowledge that comes in handy when you're a qualitative researcher. I know that just as I have benefited from my immersion into Venezuelan culture so have many others and most importantly, so has society in general as Venezuelans leave their footprint in wide array of fields like arts (Gustavo Dudamel), sports (Omar Infante) and fashion (Carolina Herrera) among others. A quick look at Hispanic media is enough to notice the advent of Venezuelan talent in TV and music. At a more local level, I bet there are several arepa lovers out there thanking Venezuelans for introducing them to this corn deliciousness, or to the hallacas and pan de jamon. In my view, cultures become richer as societies become more diverse and Venezuelans have contributed to enriching the ways in which Hispanic communities are defined throughout the US. Whether it is through entrepreneurial ventures, entertainment, or via academic and cultural experiences, their influence is palpable among Hispanics who have been exposed to the Venezuelan way of speaking, dancing, cooking and living life as a Hispanic in a foreign culture. As a moderator and researcher, I see this influence in a focus group, and I have come to appreciate the experience of a different Hispanic identity being present in consumer research. The death of Mr. Chavez makes me wonder what will happen to those who fled Venezuela and came to the US? Will they have a burning desire to return to their home country or will they continue to make their Hispanic identity in the US stronger? What does the possibility of a Venezuelan reverse exodus mean to us researchers and to brands that target Hispanics? Many, like those in Katyzuela and Westonzuela, have developed deep roots in this country and now have US-born children, which I imagine makes the possibility of returning to Venezuela more challenging. Hugo Chavez is dead. Now what? By Jorge Martinez, Director, LatinoEyes

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A ham and cheese sandwich is a common type of sandwich. It is made by putting cheese and sliced ham between two slices of bread. The bread is sometimes buttered and/or toasted. Vegetables like lettuce, tomato, onion or pickle slices can also be included. Various kinds of mustard and mayonnaise are also common. Sliced bread, sliced cheese, and sliced cooked ham are very readily available in Western supermarkets and as a result ham and cheese sandwiches are quick and easy to prepare. They are a common component of a packed lunch. Home made ham and cheese sandwich As recalled by ballpark concessionaire Harry Stevens in a 1924 interview, in 1894 ham and cheese sandwiches were the only food sold in New York baseball parks; frankfurters were introduced in 1909. An Englishwoman, writing in 1923 of her passage through Ellis Island on a trip to the U.S., noted: - I was in fear and trembling, having heard so many tales of the abuse aliens receive there. . . . The attendants were very kind and not at all rough with us. It was the noon hour. . . in a little while porters came along with baskets of very good ham and cheese sandwiches and coffee for the grown-ups and milk for the babies. Richard E. Byrd took ham and cheese sandwiches on his 1926 polar flight as did 1927 transatlantic fliers Chamberlin and Levine. The origin of the ham and cheese sandwich has been debated for a number of years by culinary intellectuals. The leading theory as to who first started to produce a ham, cheese and bread dish is mentioned in The Larousse Gastronomique 1961. Here it notes that Patrick Connolly, an 18th-century Irish immigrant to England, sold a bread dish which: "combined the remains of pig, cured and sliced with a topping of Leicester cheese and a kiss of egg yolk sauce (a form of mayonnaise) in a round bread roll. The dish was rather unimaginatively known as a Connolly and is still sometimes referred to as this in some parts of the Midlands in the UK. " In the UK, a common addition to a ham and cheese sandwich is pickle (a sweet, vinegary chutney originally by Branston); the snack is then known as a ham, cheese and pickle sandwich. In French cuisine, a croque-monsieur is a type of ham and cheese sandwich. It is topped with cheese and baked or fried. - ^ Jean Pare (1987). Soups & Sandwiches: Soups and Sandwiches. Company's Coming Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-0-9690695-6-0. , p. 138: "Insert slices of ham and cheese between 2 slices of buttered bread or toast. Add lettuce along with mayonnaise and/or mustard. " - ^ The New York Times, April 13, 1924, p. XX2: Ball Fans Must Eat: Harry Stevens, Caterer to the Sport World, Talks of Outdoor Appetites - ^ The New York Times, July 1, 1923, p. XX8, Letters to the Editor: Experience at Ellis Island - ^ The New York Times, June 29, 1927, p. 2, Fliers' Menus More Varied Than That on Earlier Trips. In addition to sixteen ham and cheese sandwiches, Byrd took sixteen chicken sandwiches, four roast chickens, one gallon of coffee, and one quart of tea. (Lindbergh carried ham sandwiches). - ^ "Ham, Cheese & Pickle Sandwich Calories and Nutritional Information". Fatsecret.co. uk. Retrieved March 8, 2014. - ^ "Tesco Ham, Cheese & Pickle Sandwich online in Sainsbury's at mySupermarket". Mysupermarket.co. uk. Retrieved March 8, 2014. - ^ Jess Kapadia (February 8, 2012). "England's Cheese and Pickle Sandwich". Food Republic. Retrieved March 8, 2014. - ^ "Ham, Cheese & Pickle". Urban Eat. Retrieved March 8, 2014. - ^ "The perfect Branston Pickle® sandwich recipe - All recipes UK". Allrecipes.co. uk. Retrieved March 8, 2014.

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If you are a health practitioner, here is what you need to know about referring patients to an RDN. Read More RDNs provide a nutrition assessment, determine the nutrition diagnosis, determine and implement a nutrition intervention, and then in subsequent visits monitor and evaluate the patient’s progress. Nutrition education for disease prevention and nutrition counseling for chronic conditions provided over a series of visits are essential components of a comprehensive health care program. Medical Nutrition Therapy provided by RDNs can: Medical Nutrition Therapy improves patient outcomes, quality of life and lowers health-care costs. Medicare covers outpatient MNT provided by registered dietitian nutritionists for beneficiaries with diabetes, chronic renal insufficiency/end-stage renal disease (non-dialysis renal disease) or post kidney transplant. Many other private insurance companies also cover MNT services for a variety of conditions and diseases. The Institute of Medicine identifies registered dietitian nutritionists as qualified professionals for nutrition therapy. According to IOM, the registered dietitian nutritionist is currently the single identifiable group of health-care professionals with standardized education, clinical training, continuing education and national credentialing requirements necessary to be directly reimbursed as a provider of nutrition therapy. About half of all RDNs work in clinical settings, private practice or health-care facilities. Many work in community and public health settings, academia and research, business, journalism, sports nutrition and wellness programs. RDNs have met academic and professional requirements including: The Academy has developed resources to assist practitioners and educators in the practice of dietetics. Read More

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- ABOUT US Scientists have gone beyond genetic engineering, which is simply manipulating or swaping a few genes here and there, and created a new life form from chemicals. We now have "synthetic biology" dawning before us. "IN THE end there was no castle, no thunderstorm and definitely no hunchbacked cackling lab assistant. Nevertheless, Craig Venter, Hamilton Smith and their colleagues have done for real what Mary Shelley merely imagined. On May 20th, in the pages of Science, they announced that they had created a living creature. Like Shelley’s protagonist, Dr Venter and Dr Smith needed some spare parts from dead bodies to make their creature work. Unlike Victor Frankenstein, though, they needed no extra spark of Promethean lightning to give the creature its living essence. Instead they made that essence, a piece of DNA that carries about 1,000 genes, from off-the-shelf laboratory chemicals. The result is the first creature since the beginning of creatures that has no ancestor. What it is, and how it lives, depends entirely on a design put together by scientists of the J. Craig Venter Institute and held on the institute’s computers in Rockville, Maryland, and San Diego, California. When the first of these artificial creatures showed that it could reproduce on its own, the age of artificial life began. "

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Remote Desktop Protocol or RDP is a remote connection protocol which is created by Microsoft for their Windows operating systems. But with its advantages like low bandwidth connection, resource sharing it gained a lot of popularity. Raspberry Pi is a groundbreaking SoC that provides a cheap complete system. The RDP protocol can be used with the RaspberryPi in order to connect the RaspberryPi desktop environment with GUI. Install RDP Server On RaspberryPi RDP has server and client architecture where the RDP server should be installed on the RaspberryPi. Even we call it RaspberryPi it is a Linux distribution like Raspbian, Ubuntu etc. So we will follow the apt or apt-get based package installation. First we will update repostory and package information . $ sudo apt update An we will update ot upgrade to the lastest package versions like below. $ sudo apt dist-upgrade Now eveything is uptodate and we can install the RDP server package which is named xrdp. As its name suggests it is an RDP protocol implementation for the X Server and named as XRDP. Xrdp is open source implementation of the RDP server protocol and compatible with all RDP clients like Windows RDP client. $ sudo apt install xrdp But we can also show detailed package information about the xrdp with the apt show command like below. $ apt show xrdp The following output will be displayed which provides information like version, installed size, description, home page. Package: xrdp Version: 0. 9.12-1. 1 Priority: optional Section: universe/net Origin: Ubuntu Maintainer: Ubuntu Developers [email protected] Original-Maintainer: Debian Remote Maintainers [email protected] Bugs: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+filebug Installed-Size: 3. 026 kB Pre-Depends: init-system-helpers (>= 1. 54~) Depends: adduser, lsb-base (>= 3. 0-6), ssl-cert, libc6 (>= 2. 15), libfuse2 (>= 2. 6), libjpeg8 (>= 8c), libopus0 (>= 1. 1), libpam0g (>= 0. 99. 7.1), libssl1. 1 (>= 1. 1.0), libx11-6, libxfixes3, libxrandr2 Recommends: fuse, xorgxrdp Suggests: guacamole, xrdp-pulseaudio-installer Homepage: http://www.xrdp.org/ Download-Size: 435 kB APT-Sources: http://tr.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu groovy/universe amd64 Packages Description: Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) server xrdp offers a graphical login to a remote client using RDP (the Remote Desktop Protocol). xrdp can connect to a locally created X.org session with the xorgxrdp drivers, to a VNC X11 server, and forward to another RDP server. . xrdp accepts connections from freerdp, rdesktop, and the built-in terminal server / remote desktop clients of Microsoft Windows operating systems. In the xorgxrdp (which replaces X11RDP) and VNC modes, it provides a fully functional Linux terminal server, offering an X-Window desktop to the user. In the RDP or VNC forwarding mode, any sort of desktop can be used. The RDP connection is established by using the IP address or domain name. But the IP address is the most popuar way becuase not every system provides domain name which can be resolved by the DNS servers. The RDP server IP address will be displayed with the following commands. $ hostname -I Also the ip address command can be used to print IP address of the RaspberryPi $ ip address Connect Raspberry Pi From Windows with RDP As a built-in protocol Windows operating systems like Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and all Windows Server versions provide the RDP client by default. So there is no need to install the RDP client for the Windows operating systems. The Windows RDP client can be opened via the Start menu by typing the remote desktop connection like below. The following screen we will provide the IP address of the Raspberry Pi but if the DNS server can resolve the domain name the domain name of the Raspberry Pi can be also used. As RDP is a secure and encrypted protocol it will try to identify the Raspberry Pi identity with some certificates. Just click on the “Yes” to accept it. When the RDP connection is established the xrdp welcome screen will greet us. This screen provides a login screen that asks us the Session, username, and password. Leave the session as default which will be “Xorg” and put the username and password. If you are using the default Raspberry Pi user and password use the “pi” as username and “raspberry” as password. Also for more information about default users and passwords for RaspberryPi operating systems take a look at the following tutorial. Even the RDP is a great protocol to connect RaspberryPi system remotely with a GUI there are alternatives which can be used for different cases. VNC is a popular protocol for Linux distributions which provides remote connection with GUI. TeamViewer is a propriateary protocol and tool which can be installed into the RaspberryPi and another TeamViewer user can connect to it easily even there is no need for network, firewall or port configuration.

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Tool Use Definition in Trouble Again. Over the 35 years that we have been engaged in this program of work, we have seen the question of tool use become more and more of a problem for archaeologists and anthropologists. There was a time when tool use was considered to be peculiar to man, and then Jane Goodall lived with the chimpanzees and saw that they also used tools. We now know that tool use is also present in some birds. On August 9, 2002, in USA Today, page 2A, there was an article that brought a new issue to the forefront. No one had ever seen a bird make a tool. What had been seen were birds using sticks to get insects out of holes in trees, and carrying rocks to drop on other birds eggs to break them. A new study at the Behavioral Ecology Research group at Oxford has reported that crows can actually make tools. What the researchers did was put some food at the bottom of a tube. They then gave crows some straight wires and some wires that had a hook at the end to snag the food. When no wires with hooks on the end were available, the crows would take a straight wire and bend it with their beaks to produce a hook like the ones they had been using. Clearly the ability to make tools is not a valid defining characteristic of the ancestors of man. The Bible says nothing about this controversy, and defines man in terms of his spiritual make-up in the image of God. It is obvious that brain size and the ability to do things with tools are inferior criteria to define man. Judges 9 and Watermelons. It is interesting to see the lengths that people will go to as they attempt to discredit the Bible. Also interesting is how believers find ways to respond. Over the past several years, there have been scholars who have suggested 9:50-57 could not possibly be true. The passage says that a woman in Thebez was standing on top of a tower and threw an "upper millstone" that crushed the head of Abimelech. Skeptics have said that a woman would not have the strength to lug a millstone to the top of a tower to throw it. Two professors have researched this problem. The two women--Denise Herr and Mary Boyd first showed that there are three types of millstones. Lower millstones weighed some 300 pounds and obviously were not used. Upper millstones came in 27-pound varieties, and there was a home-sized stone that weighed nine pounds. Deuteronomy 24:6 makes reference to such stones. What Herr and Boyd did was to carry the stone up and throw it at a watermelon to show that the biblical account was indeed very possible for a woman to do. I would add that there are some women who are strong enough to out-lift any man in a project like this, and the Bible does seem to indicate that this was an exceptional woman. Herr and Boyd point out that this situation is an "all-too-typical example of biblical scholars endorsing skepticism without knowing enough archaeology. " More Cloning Problems. The media tends to carry on quite a bit when a new animal is cloned. We now have cloned sheep, cows, mice, goats, pigs, a cat, and rabbits--all of these have made the television news broadcasts and newspapers. What has not made the news media is the fact that only 1 in 100 cloned embryos develops normally in the womb, and that many of these die immediately after birth. Those who do survive have problems with obesity, liver failure, joint problems, and many other malfunctions. New studies indicate that this is happening because of malfunctioning genes. Research at the University of Connecticut at Storrs has shown that the cloning process apparently fails to reprogram the donor cell nucleus to act like that of an ordinarily-fertilized egg. At the University of Pennsylvania, studies have shown that over 90% of cloned mouse embryos have a critical gene called Oct4 which is misplaced or malfunctions. It is looking more and more like cloning may be incredibly harder to do than anyone visualized when the first successes were reported. --Reference: Discover, August 2002, page 11. New Theory on Exodus. One of the areas where skeptics like to point fingers at the Bible is on the story of the Israelites' Exodus from Egypt. Many scholars have pointed out that there is no record of the Israelites being held as slaves in Egypt and no evidence of the crossing of the Red Sea. It is no surprise that the Egyptians would not tell us about the Israelites. We do not hear much about Viet Nam from the government in the United States. Things that are an unpleasant part of your history you do not do a lot of talking about--for better or for worse. The question of a lack of evidence for the crossing of the Red Sea is another matter. A new documentary titled The Exodus Revealed is now available offering some new ideas about the Exodus. Swedish archaeologist Lennart Moller has been doing research in the Red Sea Gulf of Aqaba, and it is his work that this new documentary is based on. Your local Christian bookstore can get a copy for you. Chimpanzee Wife Beaters. One of the questions that always comes up when one considers the origin of man is the question of where violence comes from. Over the years, atheists have suggested that religion is the cause of war and violence in mankind. John Lennon's famous song Imagine summarized the view when he said in his lyric "Imagine there is no Heaven.nothing to kill or die for. and no religion too. " Many writers have pointed out that animals use violence for brief times in securing mates, eating prey, and marking off territory; but that over all within their group there is no violence. Man, on the other hand, has wars and strife that are over things that animals could care less about, and which have nothing to do with survival. The idea is that these struggles of man are over religious and political control issues; and without religion and politics, the world would be a better place in which to live. A book titled The Octopus and the Orangutan by Eugene Linden and followup studies to its content have changed this picture. Researchers have now seen chimpanzees using clubs to bring pain to one another in a situation that does not have anything to do with mating or territory. The chimps bringing the pain use clubs in such a way that they hurt, but do not bring permanent injury--such as holding the club half way up its length. Chimps are capable of killing one another by biting or throwing rocks, and these behaviors have been seen in the old. This is a more restrained action obviously designed to hurt other chimps--usually of the opposite sex--but not to kill; or injure them. This study follows on another study several months ago that documented rape in the chimpanzee community. Some researchers have suggested that chimps saw people doing this and copied what the humans did, but there has not been that much contact between the chimps being studied and humans. What it shows is that violence and mistreatment have nothing to do with religion, but are a part of the natural world. Whether this happens in all animal groupings or not remains to be seen, but it is a new find that will have significant impact on our understandings of behavior in the animal kingdom. Sahelanthropus tchadensis. In the ongoing research on hominoid evolution, new finds seem to come about on a monthly basis. The name in our title translates as Sahel hominoid from Chad and is claimed to be seven million years old. What excites anthropologists is that the specimen shows some characteristics that seem to be human and some that seem to be apelike. Time magazine titled their article on the find as "Father of Us All." Newsweek titled theirs "All in the Family." First of all, we need to understand that what has been found is a skull. The snout does not protrude as much as a chimp, the canines are shorter than a chimp, and the eyebrow ridge is more man-like than it is chimp-like. What the media has not emphasized is that the brain is chimp-sized and that whether it could walk erect or not cannot be answered. This new skull really complicates all human theories about hominoid evolution, but it also may be an oddity and not typical of the ape forms that lived at the time. We would like to point out that as has been the case in the past, this new find is not of biblical consequence. The Bible defines man in terms of his having been created in the image of God. It is man's spiritual makeup that defines man, not what his physical body looks like or what characteristics his ancestors might have had. Certain anthropological theories may be proven or disproven by continued research into this specimen, but it has no consequences for the biblical account. Back to Contents Does God Exist? , NovDec02.

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Since I wrote my MA thesis on the Battle of Königgrätz I figured I would put up a post here noting that today is the 145th anniversary of the battle, which was fought on July 3rd. The battle was significant for many reasons but the most notable is that it marked the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire against the Prussians and thus signified the start of undisputed Prussian leadership of what would become modern Germany. After Königgrätz all the German states had no choice but to fall in line behind the Prussian Confederation and conform to Prussian practices. It was the culminating battle of the second of the Wars of German Unification and arguably the most important. The defeat of France in 1871 was just thew icing on the cake and allowed the Prussian king to declare the establishment of the German Empire, which had de facto existed since 1866. A paper I wrote on the battle but not my Thesis.

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Sugar has been dubbed the food villain of our time, with links to heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and obesity in both adults and children. Boston-based Tufts University recently published research which found that sugar – sugary drinks in particular – may lead to an estimated 184,000 adult deaths each year globally. The World Health Organisation’s guidelines on sugar recommend that less than 10% of an adult’s daily intake be sugar. The WHO’s guideline recommends a daily intake for an adult of 8,800 kilojoules – with sugar covering 16kJ per gram. This means that adults should not be ingesting more than 55 grams of sugar per day. However, in March 2015, the WHO updated its guideline to recommend that adults reduce their sugar intake to as little as 25 grams – or 6 teaspoons – a day. South Africa has a plethora of popular fast food outlets, while fizzy drinks, ice creams, cakes, chocolate, and condiments are all common in our daily diets. Food chains have sugar loaded into meals where you may least expect it. BusinessTech looks at the sugar content in fast food meals from six of the country’s most popular chains. Note: Sugar content below does not necessarily reflect added sugar, but is the sugar content as served. KFC – a. m. Deluxe Burger – 8. 4 grams (33. 6% of RDI) The Sweet Chilli Twister carries 18. 2 grams of sugar in it. But just a normal burger from KFC – carries between 4 grams (Crunch Burger) and 9 grams (Double Crunch Burger) of sugar. The worst offender is the Hawaiian Burger (thanks to the pineapple) at 11. 1 grams of sugar – but the most surprising is the Deluxe breakfast Burger, which contains 8. 4 grams of sugar first thing in the morning. Mcdonald’s – McRoyal Deluxe – 9. 4 grams (37. 6% of RDI) Beverages are often the biggest culprits when it comes to sugar content – and there are plenty of misconceptions about what is “healthy” to drink. A small ice tea from Micky-D’s contains 39. 6 grams of sugar – 158% of the recommended daily amount. That’s more than a small coke (33. 3 grams of sugar – 133%). Kauai – Grass Roots Wrap – 13. 3 grams (53. 2% of RDI) Another healthy option, Kauai manages to avoid large amounts of sugar in its meals – but not all. The group’s raw oat bircher contains 40. 1 grams of sugar per serving – and if you’re keen on a smoothie, it contains up to 107 grams of sugar in a 500ml offering (Coffee Date smoothie), meaning you shoot way past the RDI (428%). The chain’s grass roots wrap has a lot of healthy contents – but also a surprisingly high sugar content at 13. 3 grams. Update: In response to being featured in this article, Kauai has provided the following response. The layout of the nutritional content of the Kauai menu items on the Kauai website is based on the requirements of the Regulations relating to the labelling and advertising of foodstuffs. This regulation requires the total sugar content to be indicated. The total sugar is defined as the sum of all intrinsic and added sugars. ‘Intrinsic sugars’ are sugars that are naturally occurring and which form an integral part of certain unprocessed foodstuffs, the most important being whole fruits and vegetables, that are enclosed in the cell, (mainly fructose, glucose and sucrose) and which are always accompanied by other nutrients. The ingredients used in the Kauai Grass Roots Wrap are mostly of vegetable origin, such as roasted beetroot, roasted butternut, kale, cos lettuce and radishes which all contain natural occurring sugars. There is no added sugar in the recipe except for a little honey that is used in the dressing and the seed mix. The main source of the total sugar content of the Kauai Grass Roots Wrap is the roasted beetroot which does not contain any added sugar, only natural occurring sugars. Nando’s – Veggie Burger – 14. 3 grams (57. 2% of RDI) Nando’s offers many meals that avoid sugar – its chicken comes with all of zero sugar. A side serving of coleslaw however, contains 17 grams of sugar. As with Steers below, the biggest offender in the sugar department is the veggie burger, which has 14. 3 grams per serving. Steers – Spicy King Veggie Burger – 16 grams (64% of RDI) Hold onto your seats veggie lovers – while the sweet basting on double rack of Steers pork ribs has the highest sugar content (22 grams), it’s not that surprising. However, vegetarian burgers from the popular fast food chain leave the beef and chicken options in the dust. In fact veggie burgers contain double and triple the sugar content of their counterparts. Roman’s Pizza – Small Tangy Russian pizza – 28 grams (112% of RDI) If you can eat an entire pizza, you are ingesting more than your RDI. Even on a per-slice basis, when it comes to sugar, pizzas can hit hard. For a single slice of Tangy Russian pizza at Roman’s Pizza, you’re consuming 7 grams of sugar. If you have an entire small pizza (4 slices) – you’ve just flown past your RDI. Wimpy, Burger King and Debonairs do not list sugar content as part of the nutritional breakdown in their respective nutritional guides.

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United States (US) Manufacturing has always been the envy of the world; our expertise has been studied, exploited, and finally manufacturing has been taken out of our country altogether. The excuses were free trade, it will help our products, and services become marketed and sold outside our borders, and these decisions made by people who have no clue about manufacturing reality. Free trade did not work, just read the labels on products in your home; “Made in China” or “Made in Mexico” are easy to spot. What we know now is that overseas manufacturing labor is cheaper; these workers will work for 5% to 10% of what is currently paid to US worker. The decision for sending US manufacturing overseas, made by people who have no clue about manufacturing reality created a disconnect resulting in lost manufacturing expertise. This disconnection has contributed to the forfeiture of knowledge resulting in lost manufacturing business jobs. Employment in the US Manufacturing sector has been falling for at least 50 years. The portion of manufacturing employment in 1950 was about 35% of all jobs in the US, in 2004, this number is a staggering 13%, and 2010 this number is 5. 95% (Fisher, 2004). Loss manufacturing jobs means higher unemployment, and the American dream has become some other nation’s dream. The US is not prepared for the future; and that is why US Manufacturing is so important today. US Manufacturing Industry over twenty years ago made it possible to develop and manufacture the Boeing F/A 18 Hornet one of the most amazing flying machines on earth, flown today by the US Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels. It is estimated 15 million spectators view the Blue Angels squadron during air shows each year, and I was one of these spectators yesterday. My mind wandered during the airshow thinking about the shear amazement of the complicated, engineering, and manufacturing know-how needed to fly such an aircraft in a way that defies the laws of physics at speeds that defies common sense, generating pure spectator excitement. The maneuvers required perfect pilotage execution, and the modern flying machine to perform without a flaw. During the Blue Angels demonstration, it occurred to me why it is so important that US Manufacturing Industry once again take the lead, we must use our nation’s shear strength in science, and manufacturing diversity to develop the lead in technology, manufacturing techniques, and a superior developed best-trained workforce. In the 1830’s Great Britain did not invest in manufacturing and design research and human education as their emerging economic rivals the US did. The mighty US Manufacturing Industry prospered and made it possible for our nation and its allies to engage and win WW1 and WW2 (Dickson, 1996). Combine this history lesson with the negative effects of NAFTA (Prizinsky, 1997) the industrial foreign trade policy that attempted to balance the trade between Mexico, Canada and the United States. Robert Scott (2001) writing for the Economic Policy Institute addresses on why NAFTA core principles that better supported the 50 years of the strategic industrial growth policies of Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, and China. In this Asian model, the mentioned countries protected their industries; they invest heavily in manufacturing process research, employee education, and subsidize R&D investment. This strategy represented the complete opposite of what occurred in the United States (Scott, 2001) . Perhaps the next great Blue Angels US Navy flight demonstration team will be flying aircraft manufactured by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) or Airbus a consolidation of European defense and aerospace companies. During the Blue Angels demonstration, it occurred to me why it is so important that US Manufacturing Industry must once again create and take the manufacturing lead, by focusing our nation’s shear strength in science, and manufacturing diversity to develop the lead in technology, manufacturing techniques, and a superior developed best-trained workforce. I hope your mind wandered during this Blog, and now you’re thinking how important it is to develop US Manufacturing Industry resources today! How important to buy American, and how important it is to making jobs in America by investing in manufacturing and design research and human education… Finally, how important to check manufacturing labels and buy American first! Dickson, P., Czinkota,M. (1996). How the United States can be number one again: resurrecting the industrial policy debate. The Columbia Journal of World Business Fall 96(31), 76-87. Fisher, E. (2004). ”Why are We Losing Manufacturing Jobs? ” Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Economic Commentary, July 2004. Prizinsky, D. (1997). “NAFTA levels a soft blow to Ohio jobs so far. ” Crain’s Cleveland Business. Crain Communications, Inc. 1997. Retrieved June 21, 2010 from HighBeam Research: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-50355528.html. Scott, R. E. (2001). Fast Track to Lost Jobs: Trade Deficits and Manufacturing Decline Are the Legacies of NAFTA and the WTO. Briefing Paper. Washington, D.C.: Economic Policy Institute. Blue Angels Fly Into Portsmouth For Air Show Precision Flying Team Seen In Sky Over Portsmouth August 28th and 29th – http://www.wmur.com/entertainment/24775084/detail.html

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Argument vs Evidence-- This page curates my online resources for teaching students how to use “Argument vs. Evidence, Steps 1-6” to write more clearly. The TLC Blog posts explain the steps, and you can find the needed materials in the Download Zone. Reading and writing are two sides of the same coin, and we use tests as one way to measure students’ abilities to do both. In Connecting Reading, Writing, and Test-Prep Instruction, we examine how all three overlap. - In Part I, “MAIN IDEA/ARGUMENT: Finding One vs. Building One,” we consider how to find a main idea/argument (reading and test-taking) vs. how to build a main idea/argument (writing). - Part II, “CRITICAL READING AND ROBUST WRITING” provides code words for different types of critical reading questions, strategies for reading fiction and nonfiction, and suggestions for how to create more robust writing. Effective Topic Sentences The quest for effective topic sentences reminds me of an old TV commercial—I think it was for tacos—in which people argued, “I like making them! ” vs. “I like eating them! ” In the case of topic sentences, you must know how to FIND them before you can WRITE them. So this section addresses both angles. Many of us grew up completing grammar exercises in textbooks or correcting sentences as part of the daily class routine. Now that we’re teaching, we find that those approaches don’t really work with our students. They might earn 100% on a quiz about dependent clauses, but they struggle to use them in their own writing. This page provides helpful resources and advice on how to improve your grammar instruction so that students actually apply the lessons to their own writing. For more information, see the Using Grammar to Improve Writing page! ! ! History Writing: DBQ Essays While it’s true that DBQ (Document-Based Question) essays appear on the NY State Regents and AP History Exams, teachers—esp. history teachers—of EVERY grade should see them as a tremendous tool for teaching both content and critical thinking skills. Journal Writing can be a great way to develop students' fluency and increase their comfort level with writing. This page offers guidance in how to establish consistent, productive routines for journal writing and includes links to hundreds of writing prompts. This page includes key resources for teachers and student journalists. Many thanks to my friend Steve Chiger (former president of GSSPA) for these leads! Literary Response Paper Guide What do students need to know and be able to do in order to write an effective literary response paper? This section provides a guide complete with reading and writing tools. It also offers information on how to write a poetry explication essay. Let's face it. Stories keep us sane; we read them both for entertainment and in our quest for meaning in this life. This page offers a quick overview of how to approach narrative writing instruction. NJ ASK Prep This section is devoted to writing tasks on the NJ ASK (for grades 3-8): explanatory, narrative, open-ended response, and persuasive. For reading strategies, see READING. NJ HSPA Prep This section is devoted to writing tasks on the NJ HSPA (for grade 11): open-ended response, EXPOSITORY (NEW! ! ! ), and persuasive. For reading strategies, see READING. Open-ended Response Writing No matter what grade or subject you teach, your students will definitely need to know how to write open-ended responses. This section provides the tools you'll need to support your students! This page points to PARCC-related resources. It's probably no surprise that "argument" and "evidence" are mentioned repeatedly throughout the Common Core Standards: virtually everything we do in life and work involves some form of persuasion. Research Paper Guide Like any other major undertaking, research papers require extensive planning. This section provides you with both a teachers’ guide and a students’ guide so that you don’t miss any of the steps. Not every writing assignment has to be about a text. This section provides materials for several engaging sociological writing projects. I have used them with HS students, but you can adapt them for MS students with more scaffolding. Want to increase student motivation and confidence in writing? Trying to move students past producing bland prose in a variety of genres? Wondering how to integrate reading and writing instruction more effectively? Writers’ Workshop is an instructional model that can transform your classroom. Why do we write? What are we trying to accomplish? What do students struggle with the most when they write? This section answers these questions and provides hands-on materials that will make your life easier. Writing can take forever to grade. But it doesn’t have to. This section offers guidance on how to grade more efficiently with rubrics that work.

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- What are the basic things of living things? - Do all living things need sunlight? - How are living things classified? - What are the 12 characteristics of life? - Is water a living thing? - What are the 4 characteristics of living things? - What are the 8 characteristics of life? - What are the 10 characteristics of life? - Do all living things eat? - What is living things and examples? - What defines life? - What are 5 things that all living things do? - What are the 7 characteristics of living things? - Are viruses living? - What are 6 characteristics of life? - Is a tree a living thing? What are the basic things of living things? Most living things need food, water, light, temperatures within certain limits, and air. Living things have a variety of characteristics that are displayed to different degrees: they respire, move, respond to stimuli, reproduce and grow, and are dependent on their environment. . Do all living things need sunlight? In different sense, every organism needs the heat provided by the sun because then the entire Earth would be too cold for any life to exist. So not every organism needs the energy of the sun for food, but all living things need the heat of the sun to survive. How are living things classified? Scientists classify living things at eight different levels: domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. Besides domains, the largest groupings are called kingdoms, and there are five kingdoms into which living things fit: Monera, Protist, Fungi, Plant, Animal. What are the 12 characteristics of life? Terms in this set (11)Reproduction. the process by which organisms are given rise to offspring. metabolism. is the process of energy generation and use. homeostasis. … Survival. … evolution. … development. … growth. … Autonomy.More items… Is water a living thing? Some examples of non-living things include rocks, water, weather, climate, and natural events such as rockfalls or earthquakes. Living things are defined by a set of characteristics including the ability to reproduce, grow, move, breathe, adapt or respond to their environment. What are the 4 characteristics of living things? There is fairly wide consensus that all living things can be recognized by the possession of one or more cells, the ability to metabolize energy from nutrients in the environment or food, the ability to respond and adapt to changes in the environment, the ability to grow, and the ability to reproduce asexually or … What are the 8 characteristics of life? Those characteristics are cellular organization, reproduction, metabolism, homeostasis, heredity, response to stimuli, growth and development, and adaptation through evolution. Some things, such as a virus, demonstrate only a few of these characteristics and are, therefore, not alive. What are the 10 characteristics of life? What Are the Ten Characteristics of Living Organisms? Cells and DNA. All living creatures consist of cells. … Metabolic Action. For something to live, it must consume food and convert that food into energy for the body. … Internal Environment Changes. … Living Organisms Grow. … The Art of Reproduction. … Ability to Adapt. … Ability to Interact. … The Process of Respiration.More items… Do all living things eat? All living things need food to stay alive, grow, and get energy. Nutrition is the process by which living things get or make food. All animals get food by eating other living things. … Humans are omnivores, which are animals that eat both plants and other animals. What is living things and examples? Examples of living things are human beings, animals and plants. Plants cannot move from one place to another. However, plants move their stem to face the sun. Hence, they are also living things. Things which cannot grow, move, breathe and reproduce are called nonliving things. What defines life? Life is defined as any system capable of performing functions such as eating, metabolizing, excreting, breathing, moving, growing, reproducing, and responding to external stimuli. What are 5 things that all living things do? All living things:are made of one or more cells. need energy to stay alive. respond to stimuli in their environment. grow and reproduce. maintain a stable internal environment. What are the 7 characteristics of living things? The seven characteristics of life include:responsiveness to the environment;growth and change;ability to reproduce;have a metabolism and breathe;maintain homeostasis;being made of cells; and. passing traits onto offspring. Are viruses living? Viruses are not living things. Viruses are complicated assemblies of molecules, including proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and carbohydrates, but on their own they can do nothing until they enter a living cell. Without cells, viruses would not be able to multiply. Therefore, viruses are not living things. What are 6 characteristics of life? To be classified as a living thing, an object must have all six of the following characteristics:It responds to the environment. It grows and develops. It produces offspring. It maintains homeostasis. It has complex chemistry. It consists of cells. Is a tree a living thing? Humans, insects, trees, and grass are living things. Nonliving things do not move by themselves, grow, or reproduce. They exist in nature or are made by living things. There are three groups of nonliving things.

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Mastitis is the inflammation and infection of breast tissue. A bacterium, staph aureus, is the most common cause, but other bacteria cause it as well. Mastitis occurs in domestic animals as well as in human beings, especially cows, since milk from the infected udders of livestock may enter the food supply and pose a public health risk. It has a tremendous economic importance for the dairy industry, to the tune of two billion dollars a year. Molecular biologist John Lippolis, in the Ruminant Diseases and Immunology Research Unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture has discovered that simple vitamin D, injected directly into a cow’s infected breast, effectively treats the disease. The importance of this should not be underestimated. Perhaps they will soon discover that vitamin D added to cow’s feed does the same thing. If so, we may all be getting a little more vitamin D in our hamburger. This is one strategy that the government is looking into fortifying food with vitamin D.

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- slide 1 of 3 Level Three Readers In general, students who are reading at a level three (also known as level C) are becoming transitional readers. In other words, these young readers possess an increased reading ability. They have a deeper understanding of books and can read books that have more sentences. They can self-correct their reading and can make predictions about what the book will be about. They also do not need to rely as much on pictures to read a story. In general, level three independent reading books will have the following characteristics: - More sight words and vocabulary - More sentences - More punctuation - Less picture support - Possibly short chapters - slide 2 of 3 Activities to Foster Independent Reading At this level, in addition to any skills that should be revisited from level two books whenever necessary, parents should be working on the following skills with their children: - Reading smoothly - Reading with expression - Reading punctuation marks correctly - Practicing unfamiliar sight words in the book (these may include, their, where, tomorrow and so on) - Help the child to identify characters, and parts of the story (the beginning, middle and end of the story) - Story elements (where does the story take place and when, was there a problem in the story and how did it get fixed? ) - Using vowels correctly - Using parts of a word to figure out an unknown word (known as word chunks). For example, in the word, "stand," the student can figure out the word, because he or she can find the word "and" in it. - slide 3 of 3 A Variety of Genres At this level of reading, parents should provide students with a variety of independent reading books from different genres. Simple poetry, science and social studies books should be added to the student's book collection. Remember to revisit and read some of the easier level books the student has mastered for reading fun and to build confidence. Tips to Encourage Independent Reading in Your Child In this series, we are taking a close look at book selection, and reading at home with children.

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Every journey begins with a first step. And every story ever made began with an idea. A seed of inspiration that was so compelling to its owner that they devoted years of their life to developing it into a premise, a concept, a series of drafts and, ultimately, a glorious final product. The originating idea may be tiny, but it is also critical. The better you understand your inspiration and the message behind it, and the better you manage to remember that inspiration as you get deeper and deeper into your story, the more cohesive, authoritative and compelling the final product is likely to be. Why? Because that original germ contained something visceral — something that resonated with you and your mind and your life — and it is that which you must capture if the final story is to resonate with the minds of others. The human truth that sparked your idea is the human truth that has the best chance of gripping someone else. So, first, I’m going to talk about how to work that inspiration, how to expand on it effectively in these embryonic moments, and then I will talk specifically about the seeds of the story we are developing through this project. Begin at the beginning It is difficult to generalise the nature of your inspiration, but most often, the inspiration is an expression of something that happens. A plot component. Here are some examples: - A normally law-abiding person can get away with a crime. - A kid goes back in time and meets his parents when they were his age. - What if someone suffers an injustice and the law does nothing? - The people running that hotel had absolutely no idea how to deal with customers. They were so rude! - A schoolgirl gets pregnant at 15. A story often has two components – the plot and the character. A good deal of the time, it is a plot element like this that comes first, however when a writer gets frustrated it is normally because they are locked on to the plot mindset – what happens – and they get stuck because they cannot think of what else can happen. The answer will always lie on a switch to the character side. So take the plot inspiration and begin to see it as a vehicle for a character. The idea must include a person and perhaps intimation of the literal or metaphorical journey they might make. There are five components of character. They are: motivation; meaningful conflict; decisions under pressure; a character arc; and a moral argument. To embrace these components of character in the context of the plot idea ask these questions of the character: - What do they want? - Why do they want it? - What are they prepared to do to get it? - Why now? - What does fulfilment look like for this character? - What is stopping them from getting it? - Why do we care? Let’s go through the first of the above plot ideas and incorporate the character drivers. The premise is that a crime is committed by a normally law-abiding person. OK so our crime must have a normal person. Let’s apply the questions to this criminal: - What does he want? He wants money. Criminals want money. - Why does he want money? He must need it for something. So he is poor. OK, and let’s say he is dying. Terminally sick. He wants to make quick easy money to provide for his family after his death. - What is he prepared to do to get it? Well, he’s dying, right? ! So he’s pretty bullish about facing lethal danger, so he does well in the criminal world. Let’s make it a dangerous world so he has to be prepared to go pretty far – drugs. Yeah! That will do it. He’s new to crime, but taking on the drugs lords and the drugs enforcement agency. - Why now? If there is a good answer to ‘why now? ’ there will be intensity and urgency in the character’s motivation. Why now is because he is dying. He has to get big money in quickly because he has limited time. - What does fulfilment look like? His family gets rich before he dies. - What is stopping him? The drugs gangs that are already there will be pretty cheesed off. The law of the land. Even his own family might not really approve. Perhaps other normal people who suffer because of drugs in their lives or their children’s lives. - Why do we care? We have empathy for a dying man trying to do right by his family. This is the way forwards. Each event – what happens – has implications for the characters that MUST be present to deliver it, and then, in turn, every action the character takes is another event – ‘what happens’ – you can blend in with the next set of character actions and reactions. And of course, you as the author have the delicious task of crafting problems into their lives to to make matters more difficult for them at every opportunity. In this way, what the characters do defines who they are, and what the characters do generates the plot. They intertwine and become one. Plot and character – one and the same thing. But we are getting ahead of ourselves. The above is a good starting point for your thinking, but of course, you will not get the premise perfect immediately. I have simply leapt from the starting point to Breaking Bad (in case you hadn’t noticed the source! ) but there will, of course, be a lot – perhaps months or even years – of work before it starts to properly shape up. Every story is some form of character journey, so the job in these very early moments is one of capturing an essence of that journey, reasons why it might be of interest and who might make that journey. Something in here is why you wish to tell your story, and it will remind you. Do not worry if you cannot put yours in a nutshell immediately. This is the first, most basic, level. It may take you ages, and it should change a great deal before you are satisfied, so keep fluid. Keep flexible. Keep trying new things. Let your imagination flow, let your answers change – it is simple at this stage to embrace change and to ask ‘What if? ’ and to let your imagination run wild. There is also another whole element of this ‘discovery’ phase, coming in the next post, but let’s get my film story up to this place before we address that. Bella: The idea and premise So the film story I am going to make began with my mother’s funeral. It was a sad day, and yet at the same time, it was a joyous celebration of her life. The seed that generates my story is this: How can a funeral, so definitive of death and driven by sadness, also be so joyous and positive? OK. So I have a death. And I have a mourner or mourners who will be devastated, and yet somehow happy. The protagonist must surely be a mourner. Theirs is a journey through morning and grief. Let’s ask the questions: - What do they want? To find a way back to a ‘good place’ after profound sadness. - Why do they want it? Because the sadness is unbearable. - What are they prepared to do to get it? Go through a process of grief, mourning and catharsis. - Why now? Because a death happened recently. There is not choice but to face it all and suffer it now. - What does fulfilment look like for this character? The story will demonstrate that grieving appropriately can help people get over death and find joy in their own life once more – perhaps even more joy. - What is stopping them from getting it? Their loss. Their irresistible emotions. - Why do we care? We have empathy for anyone who has suffered a loss. We also experience catharsis when we see someone suffer, so we learn about that suffering and the process of grief without suffering it directly ourselves. The real problem you should be able to see here is that this will not be a very good story… A death and a funeral? ! Hardly escapist wonderment for movie fans is it? ! How do I make this into a proper story? The answer is… we aren’t done yet. We have to take the above and present it using the secret keys to the power of great story: STORIFICATION. That is in the next instalment: Bella 2: The Story Seed Sprouts! To follow the progress of this project, do please sign up by clicking here. Note that this short film project will be followed by the entire, detailed story development process of a book and a feature film, entitled Mayakin. A puzzle film in the style of Christopher Nolan, coming soon, so sign up!

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Cisterns have been used for water storage for thousands of years and continue to be used today. A cistern is a large water storage container that is often underground. Many of you will remember Masada where the Roman Legion had the Jews besieged. This mountain top fortress was able to hold out for as log as they did, in part, because of the large cisterns where they stored rain water. In fact without cisterns this would have been nothing other than another uninhabited mountain. These water storage tanks can range up to thousands of gallons, or liters if you prefer. The size of your cistern should be determined by your water usage and the water source. If your water source is seasonal then a large enough capacity to get you through the dry spell would be real nice. A cistern can be above ground, below ground or partially buried. This storage is something of a midpoint in you water system sitting as it does, between the collection and distribution systems. I grew up in a community where thousands of homes collected their water off the roof and stored it in a cistern. I have seen, used, and built many different cisterns. The first one I actually put together was an inexpensive above ground pool. We made a level spot near the eve of the roof and ran the down spouts from the gutter into the pool. While today I might question whether the plastic liner was appropriate for potable water, back then the question never came up. We drank from that pool for years and it didn’t affect me… affect me… affect me. Actually because of the price and ease of installation this type of cistern became fairly popular around the community for a couple decades. While they will last for a few years the plastic eventually deteriorates in the sun or the thin metal sides rot out so this is not a permanent solution. In a SHTF scenario your down spouts could be run to your in ground pool to collect what ever rain you do get and replenish what you have consumed. If this becomes part of your plan you might want to secure and store adequate downspout and/or pipe. Another popular way to build a cistern is with a ten foot length of culvert. The suppliers would nest these starting with an eight foot culvert inside a larger and larger culvert till the largest was about twelve feet across. This greatly reduced shipping cost. Since the freight company cubes something like this you are essentially paying freight for only the largest culvert. The culverts need to be manufactured in such a manner as to have water tight seams. Delivered laying on its side it could be transported on the road with little problem. When placed on a low trailer the twelve foot height would fit under the power lines and the ten foot width was legal. The process is to dig a flat spot larger than the culvert to a depth that the top of the culvert will be lower than the eve of the house. You then make a form for your concrete and place reinforcing inside the form. Pour and level your concrete. Tip the culvert into the wet concrete and vibrate it to create a seal. The culvert should set so that it is four to six inches into the concrete. After a week or so the concrete has cured enough to start filling your tank. The tank off an old water truck was a quick answer in that it only required a flat spot. I would expect an old milk truck tank to work as well. A local mill had been serviced by a four foot diameter wooden water line. We wound up with a twenty foot section and built ends in it. A friend of mine built a tank out of plywood and put a plastic liner in it. He started with eight sheets of plywood. Standing up two on each side he attached 2X6’s every foot from the bottom past midway up then spaced them further apart. The 2X6’s were laid on their side, run past the plywood and bolted to the intersecting 2X6’s. This is a relatively inexpensive tank but be aware that eight feet of head generates quite a bit of pressure at the bottom so do quality work. Stringers tying the bottom sides together are essential as well as the top. The newer systems often choose the plastic tanks made for that purpose. The largest of these are cylindrical. A buddy of mine had room to place two, five thousand gallon tanks behind his house. There was a small ledge on the hillside next to these that allowed him to place another two thousand gallon tank. With twelve thousand gallons available they can go quite a while without rain. My personal favorite is to build the cistern as part of a concrete foundation. This requires a foundation of at least four feet tall to get adequate volume. A full basement would be even better. If this is the way you go I strongly suggest that you design the house so that no sewer lines run above the water tank. This leaves your entire water system accessible inside the house and protected against freezing. One of the problems with outside water storage is the possibility of freezing. I had an eighteen hundred gallon plastic tank freeze solid one winter with no apparent damage. It was not in current use and had been filled without my knowledge so I did not know to empty it. This tank had also been sprayed with four inches of insulation so it took over a month for it to thaw completely in the spring. Insulating a tank can help as can putting it in a shed. Two or three wraps of PEX pipe around the outside near the bottom before you spray the tank works well if you have a boiler. Your outside water storage could then be another zone off the boiler. My outside tank has seen -40°F with no problem. Okay, maybe a few problems but I worked them out. If you do not have really severe winters a heat tape on a Hula Hoop will keep your tank from splitting. Just a heat tape on the water line will leave an open passage that allows the water to escape out the top if the ice expands reducing pressure on the tank walls. You still lose that volume of water that turns to ice. At least until it warms up. We had a particularly long stretch of cold weather this year and a neighbor of mine ran the water from his water heater back into his tank to melt some of the ice and reclaim some of the lost volume. You can also put a purpose made electric heater in your tank. If the bottom of the tank is buried below the frost line freezing problems are greatly reduced. These are some of the heat sources at your disposal if you opt for outside storage. You might also want to consider PEX for your water line especially outside or any other place that is likely to freeze. PEX has a memory and will return to its original shape after it thaws. Copper will stretch until it ruptures, usual between the first and third freeze. Not only is it expensive to replace water lines but the time required is a factor as well. If you collect rain off your roof the roofing material is an important part of the system. Metal roofing is the best as it sheds water faster and does not retain as much as other materials. Three tab works but it holds a surprising amount of water and in a light misty rain it takes a bit before it starts dripping, where a metal roof might shed some water in a fog or when a frost thaws. Some three tab shingles are also built with chemicals that I am uncomfortable with but most of the roofs that I have seen collect drinking water are of this type. Cedar roofs are of particular concern. Cedar is toxic so special care must be taken with a cedar roof. I lived in an area with heavy rain. Those people who wanted to collect from their cedar roof waited for over a year with a new roof to allow the rain to flush most of the oil from the surface of the wood. This community is in the middle of a rain forest with thousands of homes collecting rain water. While I have run into people who look at me like I have a third eye, when I discuss drinking rain water, I consider rain water generally safe. What I like to call God distilled water (rain) is generally free of contamination with some rare exceptions. Were I down wind of a frisky volcano or a forest fire I might redirect my down spouts for a while. City water can become contaminated as well. How many times have you heard news reports where the community has been told to boil their water. I worked with a man who was replacing his copper water lines because his wife was having a reaction to the copper. As long as reasonable care is taken with the construction, material selection, and maintenance rain collection and a cistern is a viable option in many climates. I have seen cisterns filled by wells and wind mills. If you had a hill above your house you could also place your cistern at a useful height to provide water pressure for your home. If you have a stream on the property you could use a hydraulic ram pump/water hammer pump (clacker) to fill your cistern. This system could give you water and suitable water pressure with no electricity. If you decide to haul your water in a large tank in the back of your truck or on a trailer make sure the tank is full. If your vehicle won’t haul the weight of a full tank get a smaller tank or larger truck. Most tanks are built without baffles and when you get the weight of the water slamming back and forth you can have all sorts of problems so it is best to travel with a full tank. We used bleach about once a year to kill what ever might be growing in the cistern. The chlorine smell for the next two or three days was a bit much, but it worked. I preferred in the summer when we ran low and a truckload of city water was purchased. This was already chlorinated so the tank was sterilized but with far less odor. While a gravity collection system is preferred I have put smaller collection containers (50 to 200 gallons) under the down spouts and then used a sump pump to fill the larger tank. This method is most often incorporated when adding an out building to the collection system or when the tank can’t easily be placed below the roof line. I’ve seen the power go out and pumps get old but somehow gravity keeps working so that is my preferred method whenever possible.

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Every day, I feed my cat small, round, hard pellets that look about as appetizing as old gravel, and she gets so excited about them. I tasted one (for you, dear readers! ) and I would describe the taste as falling somewhere between the meh of cardboard and the bleh of rancid fish. Not recommended. For her part, the cat flinches if I consume an orange anywhere near her; you can tell she thinks I am disgusting for eating them. It seems pretty clear that she and I have different tastes in food. Are such differences simply matters of individual preference, or is there a biological basis for them? As in all things, I am right and you are wrong about this. It’s hard to know what something tastes like to someone else. My personal experience of peanut butter (disgusting) is likely to differ from yours (mmm, yum), despite our belonging to the same species. However, we can say with some certainty that both of us can taste peanut butter, and that it will not taste like lemons to either of us. Humans have five major types of taste receptors: sweet, umami, bitter, sour, and salty. Sugar is sweet, hamburgers and mushrooms are umami, coffee and India pale ales are bitter, lemons are sour, and salt is salty. And mice are micey. Ferruginous Hawk. Photo by Nathan Rupert* You don’t have to look at many birds to realize that they are very variable in appearance: hawks look different from hummingbirds, and both look different from peacocks. You can spend a lot of time looking at birds, though, before you realize that they are hiding a lot of variation inside their mouths: long tongues, short tongues, spiky tongues, curly tongues, forked tongues, frayed tongues, brush-like tongues. Like bird bills, bird tongues are specialized to each particular bird’s way of feeding. Birds that feed on nectar have tongues specifically adapted to nectarivory, often with many little protrusions at the tip of the tongue, giving it a frayed or brush-like appearance. This brushiness increases the surface area of the tongue, making it better at picking up nectar. Rainbow Lorikeet using its brush-like tongue to feed on flowers. Photo by Alan (Kaptain Kobold)* IDs always welcome! I do not have the field guides to identify these lepidopterans; let me know if you recognize anyone. Of all the moths I have encountered, this one, found clinging to the stem of a corn lily, is my favorite. Look at that lovely pattern! Look how fuzzy he is! Look at that face!

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4. Unable to Make Eye Contact or Forcing Eye Contact People who suffer from Asperger’s syndrome may find it difficult to make and hold eye contact with people they are speaking to. Some believe this condition is brought about from a lack of confidence. Others recount how making eye contact can make them very uncomfortable, almost painful. There is also the theory that people with Asperger’s syndrome do not realize how important eye contact is for social communication. This may lead to the opposite problem of forcing eye contact. This can make people even more uncomfortable, while the individual with Asperger’s believes they are being more approachable.

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Visit Visegrad coetus Association at: Bank account number: 19 1600 1462 1828 2254 4000 0001 Choose a language: Visegrad Citadel - Hungary In the past and now The history of this exceptional place is the key to develop political awareness of the modern Central European countries. It is where the kings of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, for the first time, initiated so called Congress of Visegrad in the 14th century. Poland, an exceptionally interesting country in terms of historical, political and cultural background, situated along the Vistula River (length of approximately 1047 kilometers) - borders on two countries belonging to the Visegrád Group - Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The total GDP amounts to 614,2 billion USD, thereby placing Poland as the country with the highest GDP index among nations of the Visegrád Group. At Visegrad coetus you will learn about cooperation between Poland and southern neighboring countries, historical "pathway" which unites nations, political and territorial conflicts in the 20th century, as well as current tightening multilateral relations. Slovakia is a mountainous country located in the center of the Visegrád Group. From the highest peak of Tatra Mountains - called Gerlach - (2655 m a. s.l., when accompanied by good visibility, we may observe northern neighbors - Poland and the Czech Republic, whereas the Danube - the second longest river in Europe - connects Slovaks with Hungarians. At Visegrad coetus you will learn about history of Slovakia, national identity of Slovaks, cooperation within Czechoslovakia until year 1993 and the current position of Slovakia in the international arena. Also, we will determine if Janosik really came from Slovakia! Czech Republic/Czechia – a country widely known for its dumplings, as well as recognized for the good soldier Švejk, along with Jožin z bažin - borders on Poland and Slovakia, two countries belonging to the Visegrád Group. According to the information published by the World Bank those countries belong to 31 of the wealthiest nations in the world. At Visegrad coetus you will embark upon a journey to discover the most beautiful and interesting - historically and culturally wise - places of the Czech Republic. Moreover, you will learn about linguistic differences between Czechs, Slovaks, and Poles, and resulting from them, now and then, amusing misunderstandings! Hungary: "Pole and Hungarian, two good friends" - is it actually true? How did the Polish-Hungarian relations shape as far back as the 11th century A.D? How Hungarians perceive Slovaks? Finally, how Victor Orbán transformed Hungary by implementing new constitution, which was enacted on 18th of April 2011? You will learn these facts at Visegrad coetus!

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One of the earliest cipher devices known is the Alberti Disc, invented by Leon Battista Alberti, in the 15th century. The device consisted of two discs, the inner one containing a scrambled alphabet and the outer one a second, truncated alphabet and the numbers 1 to 4. The outer disc rotated to match up different letters with the inner circle, which letters the cryptographer used as plaintext. The outer disc's letters then served as the cipher text. William West/AFP/Getty Images Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code" follows the adventures of a symbology professor as he solves codes and ciphers, some of which he breaks using a Cardano Grille. A clever way to hide a secret message is in plain sight. One way to do this is to use a Cardano Grille -- a piece of paper or cardboard with holes cut out of it. To cipher a message, you lay a grille on a blank sheet of paper and write out your message through the grille's holes. You fill the rest of the paper with innocent text. When your recipient receives the message, he lays an identical grille over it to see the secret text. This is a form of steganography, hiding a message within something else. In the 19th century, Thomas Jefferson proposed a new ciphering machine. It was a cylinder of discs mounted on a spindle. On the edge of each disc were the letters of the alphabet, arranged in random sequence. A cryptographer could align the discs to spell out a short message across the cylinder. He would then look at another row across the cylinder, which would appear to be gibberish, and send that to the recipient. The recipient would use an identical cylinder to spell out the series of nonsense letters, then scan the rest of the cylinder, looking for a message spelled out in English. In 1922, the United States Army adopted a device very similar to Jefferson's; other branches of the military soon followed suit [source: Kahn]. Perhaps the most famous ciphering device was Germany's Enigma Machine from the early 20th century. The Enigma Machine resembled a typewriter, but instead of letter keys it had a series of lights with a letter stamped on each. Pressing a key caused an electric current to run through a complex system of wires and gears, resulting in a ciphered letter illuminating. For instance, you might press the key for the letter "A" and see "T" light up. Photo Courtesy U.S. Army German soliders using an Enigma Machine in the field. What made the Enigma Machine such a formidable ciphering device was that once you pressed a letter, a rotor in the machine would turn, changing the electrode contact points inside the machine. This means if you pressed "A" a second time, a different letter would light up instead of "T." Each time you typed a letter, the rotor turned, and after a certain number of letters, a second rotor engaged, then a third. The machine allowed the operator to switch how letters fed into the machine, so that when you pressed one letter, the machine would interpret it as if you had pressed a different letter. How does a cryptanalyst crack such a difficult code? In the next section, we'll learn how codes and ciphers are broken.

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Search articles from 1992 to the present. Growing Giant Pumpkins This article was published originally on 5/21/1999 Few vegetables have the ability to grow to the enormous sizes of pumpkins and squashes. The size of world champion pumpkins is staggering. Giant pumpkins have been recorded with a circumference of greater than 10 feet or weigh over one thousand pounds. While attaining a half-ton jack-o-lantern may not be your goal, growing giant pumpkins is certainly fun for many gardeners. With proper cultivar selection and diligent care, growing giant pumpkins can be rewarding. Selecting the right cultivar for planting is of the utmost importance. The cultivar name is often a dead giveaway to its ultimate size. Select cultivars such as 'Dill's Atlantic Giant', 'Prizewinner', 'Big Max', or 'Big Moon'. Some of these varieties are not actually pumpkins at all but pumpkin-like squash. These giant pumpkin cultivars are also not normally suitable for cooking. As with any planting, selecting and preparing the planting site is critical. Make sure the site is in full sun with well-drained soil. Prepare the soil by adding a generous amount of well-rotted manure mixed with the garden soil. Pumpkins require a long growing season and warm soils. Seeds can be started indoors two to three weeks before the last expected frost or directly seeded into the garden after the danger of frost has past. Two or three seeds are planted in each hill or pot. Later when the first true leaves appear, thin to one plant per pot or hill. If you start the seeds indoors, be sure to harden the seedlings to outdoor conditions for a week before planting. Initially, place the seedlings in a shady, protected location and gradually expose them to longer periods of sunlight. The seedlings may need occasional protection from winds and cool nights in the beginning of the season. For giant pumpkins be sure to provide ample space for growth. Twenty to twenty-five feet between plants is not uncommon for world champion pumpkins. As the pumpkins grow, a consistent supply of water and fertilizer is essential. Pumpkin plants require one inch of water per week. Watering in the morning is best since it allows the foliage to dry during the day and thus prevent the possibility of disease. A weekly addition of a complete fertilizer is also needed. Avoid high nitrogen fertilizers as they may inhibit flower initiation or fruit growth. There are as many fertilizer regimes as there are pumpkin varieties. Some individuals use high phosphorus fertilizers before and after flowering while others use organic-type fertilizers like bone meal and fish emulsion continuously. Use a regime most convenient for you and your garden. When the baby pumpkins appear, select two or three fruits on separate runners on each plant. Remove all other fruit that forms. This ensures that all the vine's energy will go to the fruit left on the vine. The fruit will rapidly gain weight and size. It can be fun to take weekly measurements and record the progress. The trick is to keep the pumpkins growing for as long as possible. With dedication and regular care you can grow giant pumpkins or squashes. In fact, you might want to get that "Big Pumpkin" form filled out for the county or state fair. Year of Publication: IC-481(12) -- May 21, 1999

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About Latin America Come for the pristine-white beaches, the charm of colonial South and Central America, together with their crumbling ruins. Be blown away by the world-class diving, island hopping by boat and unique culinary experiences. You can’t really go wrong with the combination of Caribbean landscape and culture, Mayan history and the volcanic grandeur of Latin America. To make it even easier for you to soak it all in and just enjoy, we do all the planning, make all the arrangements and look after all the details. Our guides will ensure your Latin American experience is completely memorable. - Mexico City sinks 10 inches every year. As ground water is consumed by an ever growing population, soil is weakened, causing it to drop. - Ecuador was the first country in the world to grant constitutional rights to Nature. This means that the ecosystem itself can be treated as a defendant in court. - In the United States it might rain “cats and dogs” but in Honduras it literally rains fish. The phenomenon known as Yoro Fish Rain happens during the heavy rainy season between May and June. - El Salvador has one of the largest cellphone densities in the world; there are literally more cellphones than people (135 phones per 100 persons) - Costa Rica is one of the few nation-states that does not have an army, abolished by The Constitution in 1949. Nevertheless if the country were to be at war, the United States would offer its armed forces. - The famous Panama Canal charges for passage by weight. When American adventurer Richard Halliburton decided to swim through the canal, he paid the lowest fare in history, a total of 36 cents for his full body weight of 140 pounds

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|Title||Trends in booster seat use among young children in crashes. | |Publication Type||Journal Article| |Year of Publication||2001| |Authors||Durbin D, Kallan MJ, Winston FK| |Date Published||2001 Dec| |Keywords||Accidents, Traffic, Automobiles, Child, Child, Preschool, Humans, Infant Equipment, Population Surveillance, Protective Devices, Safety, Seat Belts, United States| INTRODUCTION: Booster seat use in the United States is extremely low among 4- to 8-year-old children, the group targeted for their use. However, more recent attention has been paid to the role of booster seats for children who have outgrown their forward-facing child safety seat. In particular, several states are currently considering upgrades to their child restraint laws to include the use of booster seats for children over 4 years of age. OBJECTIVE: To examine recent trends in booster seat use among children involved in automobile crashes in 3 large regions of the United States. DESIGN: This study was performed as part of the Partners for Child Passenger Safety project, an ongoing, child-specific crash surveillance system that links insurance claims data to telephone survey and crash investigation data. All crashes occurring between December 1, 1998, and November 30, 2000, involving a child occupant between 2 to 8 years of age riding in a model year 1990 or newer vehicle reported to State Farm Insurance Companies from 15 states and Washington, DC, were eligible for this study. A probability sample of eligible crashes was selected for a telephone survey with the driver of the vehicle using a previously validated instrument. The study sample was weighted according to each subject's probability of selection, with analyses conducted on the weighted sample. RESULTS: The weighted study sample consisted of 53 834 children between 2 to 8 years old, 11. 5% of whom were using a booster seat at the time of the crash. Booster seat use peaked at age 3 and dropped dramatically after age 4. Over the period of study, booster seat use among 4- to 8-year-olds increased from 4% to 13%. Among 4-year-olds specifically, booster use increased from 14% to 34%. Among children using booster seats, approximately half used shield boosters and half used belt-positioning boosters. CONCLUSIONS: Although overall booster seat use among the targeted population of 4- to 8-year-old children remains low, significant increases have been noted among specific age groups of children over the past 2 years. These data may be useful to pediatricians, legislators, and educators in efforts to target interventions designed to increase appropriate booster seat use in these children.

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Bacterial genomics has provided a plethora of potential targets for antibacterial drug discovery, however, success in the hunt for new antibiotics will hinge on selecting targets with the highest potential. A recent paper by Liu and coworkers describes a new approach to target selection that uncovers strategies used by bacteriophage to disable bacteria. The method uses key phage proteins to identify and validate vulnerable targets and exploits them further in the identification of new antibacterial leads. Trends Biotechnol. 2004 Sep;22(9):434-6.

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Chapter 1 - General 1. 4 JOINT PARTNERSHIPS O. cooperates with other states and federal agencies in the conduct of research on topics of common interest. These agencies include, but are not limited to: - Federal Highway Administration (FHWA): (see Glossary) In addition to working closely with O. on the administration of the research program, FHWA has conducted various studies with O. including demonstration, test and evaluation projects. - United States Geological Survey (USGS): (see Glossary) O. has worked closely with USGS on various studies covering topics such as hydraulics, scour, erosion and water quality. - Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR): (see Glossary) O. has worked closely with ODNR on studies involving underground mines, soils, slope stability and bedrock mapping. - Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA): (see Glossary) O. has worked closely with OEPA on studies involving endangered species, vegetated biofilters and exfiltration trenches. - Transportation Pooled Fund Projects: These types of studies leverage funding by cooperation and contribution from two or more agencies or entities to study topics of common interest. Ohio may, or may not, be the lead agency in these studies. For more information on pooled fund project see Chapter 3. - National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP): O. participates in NCHRP studies by proposing project ideas and serving as technical panel members on active NCHRP projects. For information on NCHRP projects refer to Chapter 3. - Transportation Research Board (TRB): Historically, O. has been heavily involved in TRB activities. Numerous personnel have served on TRB committees providing technical input on a variety of topics such as congestion, environmental issues, forecasting, geotechnical, noise, performance measures, planning, and safety. For more information on TRB activities refer to Chapter 3. - Industry: O. is actively cultivating partnerships with local industry. Input is sought from individuals in the transportation industry on both active and proposed studies. - University Transportation Centers (UTCs): (see Glossary) O. has worked closely with UTCs established in Ohio and other states on studies that are of particular interest to Ohio such as crash testing and freight.

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A pulse oximeter is a small, lightweight device used to monitor the amount of oxygen carried in the body. This noninvasive tool attaches painlessly to your fingertip, sending two wavelengths of light through the finger to measure your pulse rate and how much oxygen is in your system. Once the oximeter finishes its assessment, its screen will display the percent of oxygen in your blood coming from your heart—as well as your current pulse rate. This article will explain the significance of the measurements provided by a pulse oximeter and how they affect you. Blood Oxygen Saturation (SpO2) Your SpO2 reading is an estimation of the amount of oxygen in your blood. An SpO2 reading of 95% or greater is generally considered to be a normal oxygen level. However, an SpO2 reading of 92% or less (at sea level) suggests that your blood is poorly saturated. Insufficient saturation can cause a range of adverse health conditions—including chest pain, shortness of breath and increased heart rate. Your pulse rate is an estimation of the number of times your heart contracts per minute. According to the Mayo Clinic, normal pulse rate values for adults range from 60 to 100 beats per minute (bpm). In general, a lower heart rate at rest implies more efficient heart function and better cardiovascular fitness. For some people, a pulse rate below 60 bpm indicates abnormally slow heart action, also known as bradycardia. Bradycardia can cause a number of problematic symptoms—including fainting, fatigue, chest pains and memory problems. A pulse oximeter gives you accurate insights on your SpO2 and pulse rate within a matter of seconds, empowering you to respond quickly and confidently to abnormal readings. As a result, many people with adverse heart and breathing conditions invest in personal oximeters for in-home use. Note: SpO2 and pulse rate measurements outside the normal range aren’t always a sign of health problems. For example, your heart rate can be expected to increase during exercise, and oxygen saturation may decrease slightly (it should still remain at 90% or greater). Personal Finger Pulse Oximeters Since being invented by Nonin in 1995, the finger pulse oximeter has expanded the availability of pulse oximetry to include at-home patient monitoring. People with heart or breathing problems can rely on personal finger pulse oximeters to help them manage these conditions under physician guidance. For example, individuals with asthma can leverage personal oximeters to assess the severity of attacks and exacerbations. Accurate pulse rate and SpO2 readings are particularly important for patients who are physically active or experiencing frequent drops in oxygen levels. For people with COPD, asthma or other lung diseases who want to stay active, the quality of their pulse oximeter is incredibly important. Fast, reliable oximeter readings play an essential role in helping patients adjust their oxygen flow when exercising, participating in social activities or spending time at home. High-quality monitoring devices can also help physicians with monitoring the efficacy of treatment efforts and respond quickly if the condition worsens. That’s why people spanning the globe count on Nonin’s leading-edge finger pulse oximeters for personal use. Nonin Personal Pulse Oximeters Nonin is known for developing world-class pulse oximetry equipment for clinicians, first responders and in-home patients. Our flexible monitoring devices are built for repeated daily use in the most challenging patient environments imaginable, bringing simplicity and dependability to your self-monitoring efforts. If you want to monitor your oxygen levels and pulse rate in-home or on the move, Nonin has options for you. Our fingertip pulse oximeters are available with a prescription from a medical professional, or you can buy a NoninConnect 3245 without a prescription. These portable monitoring devices are highly durable and easy to use, even when exercising or traveling. They provide responsive and precise readings in a range of conditions, and feature: - Proven Performance: Nonin PureLight® sensors produce a high-intensity pure light spectrum, which eliminates variations in readings for consistent measurements time after time. - Unrivaled Versatility: Provides reliable results even in the presence of challenging monitoring conditions (such as low perfusion and dark skin tones), making it a suitable monitoring tool for almost any patient. - Peerless Durability: Can withstand repeated use and multiple drops without compromising on performance, making it one of the most durable self-monitoring oximeters in the industry. - Comparison Superiority: In a side-by-side comparison, Nonin accurately tracked a person’s oxygen level decrease from 98% to 74% while a primary competitor only tracked down to 95%. “I take care of my father who has COPD. Nonin's fingertip oximeter is very easy to operate and totally accurate when compared at the physician’s office” Count on Nonin for Dependable Self-Monitoring Solutions If you’re interested in learning more about Nonin and our best-in-class self-monitoring devices, then be sure to call or message us today. Our team can provide all the resources and support you need to find the best personal pulse oximeter for your lifestyle. “My fingertip oximeter works reliably and accurately compared to readings at my doctor’s office and with my physical therapist. ”

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Acrostic poems may appear elementary, but they can be taken to any level. 1) Pick a subject, any subject. 2) Think of things that relate to that subject. 3) Write the subject vertically on a piece of paper, one letter at a time. 4) Write each line of the poem relating to your chosen subject. An example . . . . . TIME FOR LEAVES TO FALL OFF TREES PATCHES OF PUMPKINS FOR THE KIDS DAYLIGHT HOURS ARE SHORTER EACH DAY TEMPERATURES TURNING COLD AND CRISP HARVEST MOONS ADORN THE SKY GARDENING SEASON HAS SAID ITS GOOD-BYE. Our brains have fun playing around with words if we give them the chance. Writing poems, for me, is simply a way to think deeper, and it's a great way to explore subjects that interest me. Acrostics can be written using the name of a person and then writing a description of him/her. Put the letters anywhere in the sentence, at the beginning or end, or in between like I did with this one of Autumn. Take a spiral notebook and write a poem each day, simple as it may be. You'll impress yourself in one month when you go back and re-read them. I'll betcha you'll say to yourself, "Did I really write that? " "Breathe-in experience, breathe-out poetry. " ~ Muriel Rukeyser

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RANTERS, an antinomian and spiritualistic English sect in the time of the Commonwealth, who may be described as the dregs of the Seeker movement. Their central idea was pantheistic, that God is essentially in every creature, but though many of them were sincere and honest in their attempt to express the doctrine of the Divine immanence, they were in the main unable to hold the balance. They denied Church, Scripture, the current ministry and services, calling on men to hearken to Christ within them. Many of them seem to have rejected a belief in immortality and in a personal God, and in many ways they resemble the Brethren of the Free Spirit in the 14th century. Their vague pantheism landed them in moral confusion, and many of them were marked by fierce fanaticism. How far the accusation of lewdness brought against them is just is hard to say, but they seem to have been a really serious peril to the nation. They were largely recruited from the common people, and there is plenty of evidence to show that the movement was widespread. The Ranters came into contact and even rivalry with the early Quakers, who were often unjustly associated with them. The truth is that the positive message of the Friends helped to save England from being overrun with Ranterism. Samuel Fisher, a Friend, writing in 1653, gives a calm and instructive account of the Ranters, which with other relevant information, including Richard Baxter's rather hysterical attack, may be read in Rufus M. Jones's Studies in Mystical Religion (1009), xix. In the middle of the igth century the name was often applied to the Primitive Methodists, with reference to their crude and often noisy preaching. Note - this article incorporates content from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, (1910-1911)

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It is a statement of fact that most Holey Dollars are today found well worn. No quality parameters were set on Macquarie’s shipment of 40,000 silver dollars. This Holey Dollar is the exception. The original 1798 Spanish Silver Dollar from which this Holey Dollar was created is graded in the absolute premium quality levels of about Uncirculated indicating that it underwent minimal circulation before the hole was cut into it in 1813. The coin has original silver lustre and light toning and is very attractive. And this is a point worth pursuing. The earlier the date of the silver dollar, the greater the potential for circulation before the nation’s first mint-master, William Henshall, got his hands on it. In the case of this Holey Dollar the silver dollar had 15 years of potential circulation before it was holed. Its state of preservation is therefore remarkable. The extent of usage of the Holey Dollar after it was released into circulation is evidenced by the wear to the counter-stamps, the over-stamping around the inner circular edge … New South Wales, 1813 and Five Shillings. The counter-stamps of this Holey Dollar are also graded in the premium quality levels of about Uncirculated and retain their original silver lustre. Created in 1813 by mint-master William Henshall, circulated in the colony for 16 years when it was eventually demonetised with minimal usage in between. That this coin has survived in this state is simply a miracle. The Holey Dollar is one of Australia’s most desirable coins. Talk to those fortunate enough to own one, either private collectors or institutions such as Macquarie Bank, National Museum of Australia and the Mitchell Library, and they will tell you that the Holey Dollar is viewed as the jewel in their collection. And that statement is made irrespective of the quality level. The coin is rare. And the coin is steeped in history. A Holey Dollar can resemble a washer if it is well circulated. Or it can reach the heady quality heights of this coin. No matter the quality, the pleasure of ownership is immeasurable. Once you move from the well circulated Fine and Good Fine quality levels up to the Extremely Fine and Good Extremely Fine echelons, the differences in quality are marked and noticeable and clearly visible to the naked eye. It is the detail in the hair, the robes and the overall state of the fields as evidenced in this Holey Dollar. The status of the Holey Dollar as Australia’s first coin ensures that it will never be forgotten and, as time passes, its historical value can only increase. No other coin has had so many books written about it. The Holey Dollar is a coin that is held in the utmost respect. It is history. And yet it is refreshingly current. The ingenuity of Governor Lachlan Macquarie in creating our first coin is reflected in the naming of the Macquarie Bank and the bank’s ultimate adoption of the Holey Dollar as its logo. Notice the detail in the hair and the robes. Also note the strength of the edges and the date 1798. This Holey Dollar is nicely toned and has original silver lustre. The counter stamps are a supreme quality Good Extremely Fine on both obverse and reverse and also have original silver lustre. A provenance of note. This Holey Dollar coin has changed hands a few times over the last century and always into esteemed collector hands … S. A. H. Whetmore, Ray Jewell, Philip Spalding, to name but three. The provenance is detailed below. Renowned British collectors. Revered US collectors. And then eventually back to where it all began in Australia. That the coin has attracted sustained buyer interest right across the globe for more than a century, in London and New York, reflects the international appeal of the Holey Dollar. And the resounding appeal of this particular coin. This Holey Dollar is featured on page xvi of the Philip Spalding book, The World of the Holey Dollar: a compliment in itself. Published in 1973 this book is still to this day a major reference on the Holey Dollar. A copy of Spalding’s book will be provided with this coin.

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10 Ways to Keep Sarasota County Beautiful for Future Generations Everyday ways to ensure our area remains healthy, enjoyable and viable. There are several national celebrations coming up that draw attention to our environment. June 5 is World Environment Day, and June 8 is World Oceans Day — opportunities to highlight natural resources, learn how to to preserve those resources, and participate in ways, no matter how small, to ensure longevity of the place we call home. Sarasota County offers beautiful waterways, award-winning beaches, a habitat for sea turtles to nest, abundant seafood, thriving agriculture, clean air, balmy climate, and more, but sometimes it’s easy to move through our daily routines and forget about what we can do to ensure these things are available to future generations. So let’s make every day Earth Day! Here are a few ways to help: Keep Trash out of Public Areas Sarasota County has a team that keeps beaches, parks and public areas clean, but each of us can help by placing trash into receptacles and picking up light trash that crosses our paths — this reduces the likelihood that it will end up in the path of a Sea Turtle, a fish, a Gopher Tortoise, or even clog a stormwater drain. You can also check out Keep Sarasota County Beautiful, which organizes projects like The Great American Cleanup (Spring), The Liberty Litter Cleanup (Summer), and The International Coastal Clean Up (Fall). Plant a Tree or Native Plant Plants contribute to healthy air, and many even attract pollinators, vital elements for ecosystem success. And native plants are acclimated to our climate, reducing (or eliminating) the need for water or pesticides, all while adding beauty. The folks at Florida Native Plants Nursery are happy to share their knowledge of native plants, but also check out Albritton’s Nursery, Crowley Nursery & Gardens, and Your Farm & Garden. The Florida House also offers great tools for sustainable planting, and more. Recycle and Reuse Fortunately, we live in a place that requires household recycling, but we can reduce our volume by using less plastic, which limits volume in landfills and lessens harmful gases. Consider stainless steel or glass bottles, get a reusable coffee mug, use cloth vs. plastic grocery bags, donate household items, re-purpose items, or buy something used/recycled. Support Eco-Friendly Restaurants Several offer biodegradable options including non-plastic straws and takeout containers (like The Beachhouse on Anna Maria, and Green Zebra Cafe in Sarasota), or commit to sustainable practices like recycling used cooking oil, sourcing products that reduce waste, partnering with local farms, and utilizing sustainable resources, like Gecko’s Grill & Pub, Indigenous, Lila or Boca Sarasota. Supporting them helps ensure they’ll be able to keep doing what they’re doing. Buy from Local Farms We have many local farmers who work hard to grow nutritious food. Buying from them supports the local economy because dollars stay in our community, creating jobs and supporting families, plus, the food is fresher, tastes great, and has more nutrients because it hasn’t traveled a long distance to get to us (which reduces the amount of energy consumed! ). Live like a local Staying in Sarasota County for a longer stay? Consider these following tips, especially if you might be RV camping or have an interest in learning more about local produce and and farms. Adopt a Highway Keep Sarasota Beautiful also manages an Adoption program that encourages citizens to participate in an anti-litter campaign by supporting a stretch of road or area (you may have seen their signs around the County). Join a Community Garden If you live in a high-rise building or deed restricted area, you might not be able to plant a garden. But that shouldn’t stop you if you love gardening, because Sarasota County’s Extension Office oversees many community gardens throughout the County. They’re a great way to get your hands dirty, spend time with folks who have common interests, reduce food costs, and reduce pollution by lowering carbon dioxide levels and increasing oxygen levels, all while creating habitats for insects and animals. Get a Rain Barrel Generally, we can collect about 1/2 gallon of water per square foot of roof area during a 1-inch rainfall, so a house with a 2,000 square foot roof can get about 1,000 gallons of water in a heavy rain! That water can be used for targeted yard and plant irrigation, all while reducing the amount of stormwater runoff that can bring harmful materials to our waterways. If you cook, you know it’s easy to generate food waste via kitchen scraps so, rather than clogging precious landfill space, consider composting. By mixing scarps with yard waste, along with important elements of heat, bugs and water, the result is rich, organic soil that retains moisture and enriches depleted soil. Sunshine Community Compost is hosting a Compost-A-Thon May 12 during National Compost Week, encouraging folks to deposit scraps into a community receptacle, keeping it out of the landfill. The Extension Office even offers classes and tools to get started. Volunteer to Glean Gleaning dates back centuries. It’s the process of farmers sharing crops with those in need, while helping themselves keep their fields rotated, and reducing volume of waste. Volunteers pick the produce, then it’s packed by All Faiths Food Bank, which distributes it to underserved populations. Transition Sarasota manages the effort — its mission is to create food and economic security in our area by supporting local, sustainable sources and providing education.

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The SBHC Model Healthy kids learn better. School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) ensure that kids can get the care they need, without missing class time. SBHCs are a unique health care model for comprehensive physical, mental and preventive health services provided to youth and adolescents either within a school or on school property. With easy access to health care in a school setting, SBHCs reduce barriers such as cost, transportation, and concerns surrounding confidentiality that often keep children and youth from seeking the health services they need. SBHCs provide a full range of physical, mental and preventative health services to all students, regardless of their ability to pay. Each SBHC is staffed by a primary care professional who may be a doctor, nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant, other medical or mental health professionals and support staff, such as a receptionist. The centers are comfortable and accessible to encourage kids to either make an appointment to come in or to drop by when they need medical attention and/or want to learn more about health issues. SBHCs have existed in Oregon since 1986 and succeed through unique public-private partnerships between the Oregon Public Health Division, school districts, county public health departments, public and private practitioners, parents, students, and community members. Goals of SBHCs - Improve access to affordable quality primary care and mental health services for school-aged youth - Provide patient-center care services for all students, regardless of insurance status - Reduce costs related to unnecessary hospital stays and use of emergency rooms - Improve educational outcomes because healthy kids learn better - Save parents time by reducing missed work hours Services are available to students regardless of their ability to pay, insurance status, race, color, national origin, religion, immigration status, sexual orientation, handicap, or gender. Reasonable accommodations are made to provide confidential services to non-English speaking students. In some instances, centers provide services to siblings, families, and community members as well. - Routine physicals, well-child exams, and sports exams; - Diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic illnesses; - Treatment of minor injuries/illnesses; - Vision, dental and blood pressure screenings; - Vaccination administration; - Alcohol and drug treatment and prevention; - Preventive health and wellness messaging delivery; - Counseling and referral for mental health concerns; - Reproductive health service provision; - Health and wellness classroom education; - Medication prescription; - Help students find social supports. Why SBHCs Work SBHCs are located on school grounds and are open and operating when kids are in school. As a result, students are back in class faster than if they had sought health care in a non-SBHC setting. Additionally, parents do not need to take time off work in order to transport a sick student to the doctor. SBHCs provide accessible, comprehensive, and confidential health care services to Oregon youth through public and private partnerships (e. g. schools, health departments, community providers, hospitals).

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- A psychiatric advance directive (PAD) is a legal document that documents a person’s preferences for future mental health treatment, and allows appointment of a health proxy to interpret those preferences during a crisis. - PADs may be drafted when a person is well enough to consider preferences for future mental health treatment. - PADs are used when a person becomes unable to make decisions during a mental health crisis. Virginia Mental Health Resources Virginia Health Care Decisions Act – Click here to see the statute as it appears on the Virginia General Assembly website Although Virginia does not currently have a specific statute for a psychiatric advance directive, you can learn more about general advance directives for health care in Virginia at the Caring Connections website. If you know of any relevant current legislation, pending legislation, or general issues of interest relating to psychiatric advance directives in your state, click here to contact us.

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American experts from the Mayo clinic in Minnesota, and urged people to ignore the opportunity to sleep for a few hours after lunch, no matter how attractive a chance like this sometimes never seem. According to experts, the NAP can lead to hypertension, and as a result, a number of cardiovascular diseases and other problems. The scientists collected and compared data of nine previously conducted studies, which together have received more than 112 thousand people. As it turned out, people who slept during the day, with marginally higher probability (by 13-19%) suffered from hypertension, high blood pressure. At the same time those people who worked the night shift and whose “main” dream I had on the day, the relationship between short nocturnal sleep and changes in blood pressure were observed, writes The Telegraph. Experts say that for a more accurate understanding of the role and consequences of NAP it is necessary to conduct a number of additional studies — in particular, to check whether the effect of sleep duration, as well as diet, level of athletic training and the health status of the person. It is also worth noting that the experts did not revealed only the relationship between hypertension and NAP time, so we cannot exclude the possibility that daytime sleep is not conducive to the development of hypertension, and people suffering from hypertension, are more likely to sleep during the day. As the authors of the study, hypertension can be a cause of other health problems, including heart and kidney. Their results, scientists reported at the annual conference of the American society for the study of hypertension. Earlier in another study, a group of scientists from Harvard medical school concluded that women who worked night shifts more than three times per month for five years, significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, however, further transition to a more normal schedule normalizes the situation. Related posts:

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Beware of MilletUpdated: September 24, 2018 Healthy Living At the top of the list of gluten containing foods is wheat, the indisputable, primary staple of the Western diet and the very foundation of the hopelessly misguided USDA Food Pyramid. Given how important bread and other wheat based carbohydrates are to our society’s basic food requirements, it’s no wonder that folks seek a quick and easy substitute for wheat bread and wheat based snacks when a gluten allergy or celiac disease has been diagnosed. Millet: An Ancient Whole Grain Enter millet. This ancient grain was cultivated in East Asia as far back as 10,000 years ago, according to archaeologists. Surprisingly, cultivation of millet in prehistoric times was more prevalent than even rice, particularly in what is now China and the Korean peninsula. Millet’s resistance to drought is perhaps the reason for its popularity in ancient times and its spread to Europe by 5000 B.C. Despite the 5000 year difference adapting this whole grain as a staple food, millet porridge is considered a traditional food in Russia as well as China. Use of millet is also widespread in Africa, like gluten free teff, likely due to the drought prone climate. Millet Bread: A Logical Substitute for Wheat The protein structure of millet is quite similar to wheat. The one glaring exception is that millet is a gluten free grain. Wheat contains copious amounts of this hard to digest plant protein. When plain millet flour is used for baking bread (as opposed to homemade gluten free flour or a healthy gluten free flour mix from the store), the resulting loaf is light, white, and quite similar in texture to wheat bread. As a result, people who wish to avoid gluten tend to immediately gravitate to millet bread as the most logical and palatable substitute. Millet bread is extremely popular in healthfood stores. Sami’s Bakery and Deland Bakery are two local bakeries that sell an absolute ton of millet bread to these stores around my local metro area. I recently corresponded with a person up the East Coast of the USA who was consuming a lot of the millet/flax chips as an alternative to wheat based snacks and had no idea of the potential health risks from consuming so much millet. It was this discussion that led me to write this blog and warn folks about the dangers of consuming too much millet! Beware of Millet – A Potent Goitrogen While millet does not contain gluten, it does contain goitrogens. These are substances that suppress thyroid activity and can lead to goiter. This condition involves enlargement of this very important gland which resides in the throat. Low iodine intake can also lead to goiter for those who rely on millet as a staple according to the Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism. Hypothyroidism is a serious and sometimes debilitating condition. It accompanies a weak or enlarged thyroid such as what occurs with goiter. Depression, difficulty losing weight, loss of hair, cold hands/feet, and fatigue are common hypothyroid symptoms. By some estimates, hypothyroidism is at epidemic proportions in Western society. (1) Goitrogens in foods that contain them are usually reduced by cooking such as cruciferous vegetables like broccoli. However, cooking actually increases the goitrogenic effect of millet! Incidentally, the same effect occurs when fermenting soy. Therefore, when folks begin eating large amounts of millet bread with a wholesale switch over from wheat, the thyroid suppressing effects of this simple dietary change can be profound. Injuring the thyroid can have a cascade effect to other glands as well. For example, those suffering from adrenal fatigue many times have thyroid issues as well. Eat Millet in Moderation Protect your thyroid at all costs! It is a real challenge to unwind the effects of hypothyroidism once this vital gland is weakened or enlarged. Don’t take any chances with your thyroid health by consuming large amounts of millet bread or millet based snacks. If gluten and/or wheat is a problem, then simply reduce bread consumption. Alternatively, use another grain that is both gluten free and non-goitrogenic such as rice, oats or teff. Be sure to get quality, though, as rice is frequently high in arsenic. Millet bread consumption is fine in moderation if your thyroid is healthy – just don’t overdo! Given how difficult it is in modern society to maintain thyroid and overall glandular health, taking a chance by eating a lot of millet bread is a risky proposition indeed. Traditional peoples did not have the constant stresses and strains on their glands like modern people do with the pollution of our food, water, air and overall environment. Therefore, we must be overprotective of our glandular health and avoid regular consumption of foods that might impair it in any way. Healthy Alternatives to Millet If you have thyroid issues and need alternatives to millet, here are the healthiest options to consider with associated benefits outlined in detail: - Einkorn Benefits (contains “good gluten“) - Teff Benefits - Yuca Root Benefits - Arrowroot Benefits - Wild Rice Benefits - Farro (great if only modern wheat is the problem) Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist The Healthy Home Economist holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Mother to 3 healthy children, blogger, and best-selling author, she writes about the practical application of Traditional Diet and evidence-based wellness within the modern household. Her work has been featured by USA Today, The New York Times, National Review, ABC, NBC, and many others.

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By Robert Brooks, Ph.D. Research about resilience highlights the significant influence of even one adult to help children with learning and attention problems become increasingly hopeful and successful. The late Julius Segal called that one person a "charismatic adult," noting this was an adult with whom children "identify and from whom they gather strength. " Segal observed, "And in a surprising number of cases that person turns out to be a teacher. " Not surprisingly, teachers and schools play a major role in determining a child's sense of self-worth and dignity. How can teachers serve as charismatic adults? Certainly they must use particular interventions to bolster the self-esteem and resilience of students. However, if strategies are to be effective, the teachers using them must possess a positive mindset, or set of assumptions, about themselves and their students. Some of the main features of this mindset are: If one accepts the tenets of this mindset, then it is easier for educators to rely upon attribution theory for offering guideposts for bolstering self-esteem and hope. This theory directs us to find ways for youngsters with learning problems to feel an increasing sense of ownership, control, and responsibility for their successes and to view mistakes as experiences from which to learn rather than feel defeated. What follows are several key strategies with examples of how teachers might accomplish this task. Each educator should use these strategies in a way that most successfully meets the particular needs of each student. Understanding Our Students' Learning Problems and De-Mystifying These Problems for Them A first step in helping children with learning difficulties is for teachers and parents to appreciate the nature of these problems, help children understand their unique learning strengths and weaknesses, and make appropriate accommodations in their school programs. When I conduct psychological/educational evaluations, I seek to enlist the children, as well as their parents and teachers, as active "partners" in the evaluation. I ask these youngsters what they see as their learning strengths and weaknesses. I am often very impressed with their ability to articulate their learning profile. I describe the evaluation as an attempt to understand more clearly their strengths and weaknesses so together we can figure out the best ways for them to learn. When I complete an evaluation, I sit down with the youngster to review my findings, emphasizing both his islands of competence and his areas of difficulty and what we might do to strengthen the latter. Typically, I write a special report for each child, thanking him for working with me and detailing, in language he can understand, the main findings of the evaluation and the interventions I believe would help him. I should note that the interventions follow from the discussions I have with parents and teachers. My close friend Dr. Mel Levine, through his writings and lectures, has skillfully demonstrated the importance of de-mystifying for children their learning strengths and problems. The more articulate students are about their learning style, the better equipped they will be to become self-advocates for what they need to succeed in the school environment. Sign up for our free newsletter and we'll send you more just like it every week. Thank you! You will begin to receive newsletters from us shortly. Thanks for verifying your updated email address. Oops! That email verification link has expired. Please click the button below to receive a new one. Create an account to submit your answers. Sign in with an existing GreatSchools account or using Facebook: Your review has been posted to GreatSchools. Share with friends! Post your opinion of on Facebook. Welcome to GreatSchools! Thank you for registering as a school leader. We just need to verify your email address. We've sent you an email - please click on the link in that message to get started editing your school's information! Thanks! We just sent you an email – please click on the link in the email to post your answers. Get timely updates for , including performance data and recently posted user reviews.

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Organic farming is a kind of agricultural production system that does not use chemically synthesized fertilizers, pesticides, and growth regulators, nor does it use genetic engineering and ion radiation technology. Instead, it follows the laws of nature and adopts agricultural, physical and biological methods to fertilize the soil, prevent and control plant diseases and insect pests in order to obtain safe biological and products. In fact, fertilizers are not completely prohibited organic planting, but organic fertilizers can be used: farmhouse manure, mineral fertilizers, biological bacteria fertilizers, etc. processed by high-temperature fermentation and harmless treatment. Due to the limitation of this kind of fertilization, the growth cycle of plants is bound to be affected, and the current large demand in the market appears to be in short supply. Therefore, shortening the production cycle is one of the methods. LED plant grow lights help shorten the growth cycle of plants, because the LED plant grow light source of this kind of light is mainly composed of red and blue light sources, using the most sensitive light band of plants, red light wavelengths use 620-630nm and 640-660nm, blue wavelengths use 450-460nm and 460-470nm. These light sources are to make plants conduct the best photosynthesis, and the plants get the best growth state. Experiments and practical applications have shown that in addition to supplementing the light during the lack of light with LED plant grow lights, they also promote the differentiation of side branches and buds during the growth process of plants, accelerate the growth of roots, stems and leaves, accelerate the synthesis of plant carbohydrates and vitamins, and shorten the growth cycle. With the rapid increase in global organic food demand, vigorously developing organic farming is an opportunity for more and more producers.

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Compared with other animals, human babies take much longer to learn to walk. Does this have something to do with our big brains? —Mahmoud Dhaouadi, via e-mail John Bock, an anthropologist at California State University, Fullerton, provides a reply: A HORSE can walk within an hour after birth. A newborn baboon baby can cling to its mother’s hair while she jumps through the trees. Even among our closest evolutionary relatives—chimpanzees and bonobos—babies are far more agile than their human counterparts. That’s because humans are born with brains that are largely immature, leaving babies with little control over their movements. This uniquely human attribute is the result of a lengthy evolutionary battle between big brains and narrow pelvises. One of the first traits that differentiated humans from our ancestors was upright gait. There are several hypotheses about the emergence of this trait, but it seems to have offered a way to move more efficiently in open environments such as the savanna. Although our earliest human ancestors were very apelike in terms of their brains, their upright gait had changed their pelvis to look much like our modern one. This reshaped pelvis came with a narrower birth canal, making childbirth more difficult. Meanwhile the new roaming grounds afforded advantages in acquiring resources and negotiating social relationships to those with flexible, problem-solving behavior. Over time, natural selection increased brain size in these early humans. But at some point, the selection for bigger and bigger brains collided head-on, so to speak, with the narrow pelvis. If babies’ heads got any bigger, they would get stuck in the birth canal and kill both mother and child. Although natural selection worked to maximize what could be done—for instance, babies’ heads compress as they twist their way around the bones in the pelvis—there simply is not enough room for a big, mature brain to pass through. As it turned out, the evolutionary answer was to let the brain keep growing outside the womb before it matures. So in contrast to other mammals, humans have a good bit of development to do after birth. The result is a relatively undeveloped infant who needs lots of care and can do much less for itself than other newborn primates. Physiologically, why is the sound of fingernails on a blackboard so unnerving? Is this effect particular to human beings, or are other creatures similarly affected? —Rowan Snyder, via e-mail Neuroscientist Josh McDermott of New York University explains: PROBABLY A COUPLE of factors combine to make such sounds unpleasant. The first, perhaps unsurprisingly, is the presence of high frequencies. The range between two and four kilohertz—approximately that covered by the highest octave of a standard piano—seems to contribute the most to the nastiness of the sound. It is unclear why people tend to fi nd these frequencies unpleasant, but we know that noise-induced hearing loss most commonly occurs in roughly this region, so it is conceivable that the aversive reaction partly reflects the ear’s vulnerability. The spectrum of screeching sounds is also much noisier than that of an instrument; that is, there is a strong random component to the sound. The noisiness probably results from the fingernails repeatedly catching on part of the chalkboard surface before sliding forward. This catching and sliding also causes rapid fluctuations in intensity, giving the sound a “rough” character. Roughness is known to be unpleasant—car manufacturers, who aim to produce minimally unpleasant engine noise, for instance, find that smooth sounds with minimal variation in intensity are preferred by listeners over those that are rough. It’s a bit harder to say why sound roughness is considered unpleasant—as far as we know it is not harmful to the ears.

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For men and boys, traditional clothing comprises a kandora, ghutra, agal, and occasionally the bisht. Women and girls wear the abaya and shayla. In a country where the majority of the population are foreigners (around 90 per cent), Emiratis view it as important to be recognised as a citizen and local. The national dress here is not restricted to celebrations and special occasions. The UAE national dress, in particular the abaya and shayla, also conform with Islamic modesty standards. Clothing such as the kandora and ghutra are practical, providing protection from the harsh sun, dust, and sand. Most of the shopping malls in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and other UAE cities have stores selling these garments. Another good place to buy them is the Old Souk (Textile Souk) in Bur Dubai. Men and Boys The UAE national dress for men and boys includes the kandora, ghutra, and agal. The kandora is a an ankle-length, long-sleeved cloak made of cotton. White is the most common colour and reflects the sun’s rays well. Colours such as yellow, gold, blue, and brown are also worn, particularly in winter. Colours are often popularised by those worn by the sheikhs. In the UAE the kandora has no collar and sports a long, braided tassel. The style differs from other Arab countries. For example in Saudi Arabia, men wear a kandora with two buttons. The Kuwaiti kandura has a collar with only one button. Other common English spellings include khandura, kandurah, kandoora, and kandura. Other names for the garment include dishdasha and thawb (also spelled thobe, thaub, thoeb etc. ). This cloth headpiece provides protection from the sun, dust, and sand. White is the most popular colour amongst Emirati men. White and red chequered ghutras are also popular, but more so in Saudi Arabia. The ghutra is held in position by the agal. Other common English spellings include ghutrah, guthra, ghatra, gutrah, and ghitra. Other names for this headgear include shemagh and keffiyeh (kufiya). The agal is an accessory worn to keep the ghutra in position. The cord is worn doubled around the head. It is usually black and is traditionally made of goat hair. Many men, particularly the younger generation, find the agal uncomfortable and secure the ghutra by knotting it behind the head. Other English spellings include iqal, egal, and igal. The bisht is a loose robe worn on top of the kandora. It is worn on special occasions such as weddings and festivals and as formalwear by politicians, officials, and religious scholars. It is the Arab equivalent of a dinner jacket. Women and Girls The UAE national dress for women and girls comprises the abaya and shayla. Women in the UAE wear the abaya. This long cloak covers the body from the neck to the feet, and has sleeves extending to the wrists. Traditional abayas are black and not the best choice of colour given the intense temperature and sunlight. Modern day abayas come in a variety of colours, fabric, and cuts. They may be adorned with colourful embroideries around the collar and on the sleeves. Many women wear Western clothing beneath their abayas. The classic black and dark colours help conceal the clothes worn underneath. The abaya is worn with a shayla. This headscarf is worn by most Emirati women in the UAE. It can either cover all the hair or worn more loosely allowing the fringe to show. Other common English spellings include shela, shaila, and shiela. Hijab describes the act of covering up. The term can also refer to any head or body covering worn by Muslim women. A niqab is a veil that covers the face, leaving the eyes uncovered. It is worn with a headscarf. A burka (also spelt burkha, burqa, and burqua) covers the face and body. It has a mesh screen covering the eyes. Although it is a common belief that the abaya and shayla combination has been an integral part of Emirati dress for centuries, it only became widespread in the 20th century. Prior to that, Emirati women wore the burka. Today, in the UAE, the burka is typically worn by older generation women.

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Professor Benny Shanon, professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, experienced a hallucinatory trip a few years ago when he participated in a tribal ceremony in the Amazon and drank a cocktail made from a plant called “ayahuasca. ” This experience led him to believe that the miracles and visions Moses experienced in the Sinai desert, and presumably when Pharoah in Egypt witnessed miracles, were nothing more than delusions induced by acid trips. “I have no direct proof of this interpretation,” he says. “It seems logical that something was altered in people’s consciousness. There are other stories in the Bible that mention the use of plants: for example, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.” Of his own drug use, Shanon says, “I experienced visions that had spiritual-religious connotations. Hypotheses have been around for 20 years connecting the beginning of religions with psychoactive materials. ” The acacia tree also has psychedelic properties, according to Shanon. Acacia is mentioned frequently in the Bible. It was the type of wood from which the Ark of the Covenant was made. Metaphysical naturalism is a worldview in which nature is all there is, and all things supernatural, such as spirits and souls, supernatural beings, miracles, and transcendent truth as taught by the Bible, do not exist. This view is distinguished from methodological naturalism, which is a worldview that claims that the scientific method is limited to the study of the natural world, but unlike metaphysical naturalism does not deny the possibility of supernatural or paranormal phenomena. In other words, a methodological naturalist who believes the Bible is God’s inerrant Word may do so without violating the principles of science, because the scientific method cannot use natural means to study the supernatural. It is simply not the purpose of science to prove or disprove the supernatural. It’s not a proper measuring tool any more than a yard stick can be used to measure barometric pressure. For instance, science can be used to tell us something about the world’s geological history and it’s possible origin, but it cannot ever negate the possibility of a Creation in six days. Much of the western world has absorbed the philosophy of Enlightenment thinkers such as Hume, Kant and Hegel, who moved from a belief that the proper role of philosophy and science was to study only natural phenomena, to a presupposition that the supernatural simply does not exist. The metaphysical naturalist rejects the supernatural from the outset and automatically discounts any belief system that includes God or a supernatural world as primitive superstition. The common method of metaphysical naturalists when interpreting the Bible is to reject the miracles and doubt both the history and authenticity of the literature that would give any credence to eyewitness records of supernatural events. However, much of the Bible is supported by corroborating history and archaeology. It gives historical context and purports eyewitness testimony. The metaphyscial naturalist, if he is to be consistent with a scientific trust in empirical records, has to accept that at least some of these phenomena have a basis in fact. He is left with the only option of reinterpreting the data in terms of a “scientific explanation. ” The Apostle John on Patmos saw visions because he ate wild mushrooms. The Ark of the Covenant shot bolts of lightning because it was a giant primitive battery. Visions and revelations are the result of psychological stress and trauma. And so on. Hence Shanon’s hypothesis. He guesses that Ten Commandments, with the voice of God heard in the “thunder,” had its origin in a psychedelic experience. Was Moses tripping when he heard the Law of God? “But not everyone who uses a plant like this brings the Torah,” Shanon concedes. “For that, you have to be Moses.” Shanon should know. He reports that since his Amazon trip, he has used the plant hundreds of times. «- A Crank on Gay Marriage - Murphy Brown Revisted - Science and Technology -» How to add your website or blog to Google's search index Your comments are welcome! High Quality Paperback — 200 pages A Reasonable Response to Christian Postmodernism Includes a response to the book Christian Jihad by Colonel V. Doner The title of this book is a misnomer. In reality, I am not trying to get anyone to shut up, but rather to provoke a discussion. This book is a warning about the philosophy of “Christian postmodernism” and the threat that it poses not only to Christian orthodoxy, but to the peace and prosperity our culture as well. The purpose is to equip the reader with some basic principles that can be used to refute their arguments. Part 1 is a response to some of the recent writings by Frank Schaeffer, the son of the late Francis Schaeffer. This was originally written as a defense against Frank’s attacks on pro-life street activism – a movement that his father helped bring into being through his books, A Christian Manifesto, How Should We Then Live? and Whatever Happened to the Human Race? These works have impacted literally hundreds of thousands of Christian activists. Part 2 is a response to Colonel Doner and his book, Christian Jihad: Neo-Fundamentalists and the Polarization of America. Doner was one of the key architects of the Christian Right that emerged in the 1980s, who now represents the disillusionment and defection many Christian activists experienced in the 1990s and 2000s. There is still great hope for America to be reformed according to biblical principles. As a new generation is emerging, it is important to recognize the mistakes that Christian activists have made in the past even while holding to a vision for the future. $14. 95 — ORDER NOW! (We accept all major credit cards and PayPal. ) Download the Free Study Guide! Just what is Calvinism? Does this teaching make man a deterministic robot and God the author of sin? What about free will? If the church accepts Calvinism, won’t evangelism be stifled, perhaps even extinguished? How can we balance God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility? What are the differences between historic Calvinism and hyper-Calvinism? Why did men like Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Spurgeon, Whitefield, Edwards and a host of renowned Protestant evangelists embrace the teaching of predestination and election and deny free will theology? This is the first video documentary that answers these and other related questions. Hosted by Eric Holmberg, this fascinating three-part, four-hour presentation is detailed enough so as to not gloss over the controversy. At the same time, it is broken up into ten “Sunday-school-sized” sections to make the rich content manageable and accessible for the average viewer. Running Time: 257 minutes $19. 95 — ORDER NOW! (We accept all major credit cards and PayPal. ) “When the lives of the unborn are snuffed out, they often feel pain, pain that is long and agonizing. ” – President Ronald Reagan to National Religious Broadcasters Convention, January 1981 Ronald Reagan became convinced of this as a result of watching The Silent Scream – a movie he considered so powerful and convicting that he screened it at the White House. The modern technology of real-time ultrasound now reveals the actual responses of a 12-week old fetus to being aborted. As the unborn child attempts to escape the abortionist’s suction curette, her motions can be seen to become desperately agitated and her heart rate doubles. Her mouth opens – as if to scream – but no sound can come out. Her scream doesn’t have to remain silent, however … not if you will become her voice. This newly re-mastered version features eight language tracks and two bonus videos. “… a high technology “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” arousing public opinion just as Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 antislavery novel ignited the abolitionist movement. ” – Sen. Gordon Humphrey, Time Magazine Languages: English, Spanish, French, South Korean, Chinese, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese Running Time: 28 minutes $17. 95 — ORDER NOW! (We accept all major credit cards and PayPal. ) Foundations in Biblical Eschatology By Jay Rogers, Larry Waugh, Rodney Stortz, Joseph Meiring. High quality paperback, 167 pages. All Christians believe that their great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will one day return. Although we cannot know the exact time of His return, what exactly did Jesus mean when he spoke of the signs of His coming (Mat. 24)? How are we to interpret the prophecies in Isaiah regarding the time when “the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:19)? Should we expect a time of great tribulation and apostasy or revival and reformation before the Lord returns? Is the devil bound now, and are the saints reigning with Christ? Did you know that there are four hermeneutical approaches to the book of Daniel and Revelation? These and many more questions are dealt with by four authors as they present the four views on the millennium. Each view is then critiqued by the other three authors. $12. 95 — ORDER NOW! (We accept all major credit cards and PayPal. ) That Swiss Hermit Strikes Again! Dr. Schaeffer, who was one of the most influential Christian thinkers in the twentieth century, shows that secular humanism has displaced the Judeo-Christian consensus that once defined our nation’s moral boundaries. Law, education, and medicine have all been reshaped for the worse as a consequence. America’s dominant worldview changed, Schaeffer charges, when Christians weren’t looking. Schaeffer lists two reasons for evangelical indifference: a false concept of spirituality and fear. He calls on believers to stand against the tyranny and moral chaos that come when humanism reigns-and warns that believers may, at some point, be forced to make the hard choice between obeying God or Caesar. A Christian Manifesto is a thought-provoking and bracing Christian analysis of American culture and the obligation Christians have to engage the culture with the claims of Christ. $19. 95 — ORDER NOW! (We accept all major credit cards and PayPal. )

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3D Printing Comes of Age in Aerospace The number of aerospace applications and research projects using additive manufacturing, sometimes called 3D printing, continues to grow. With parts now flying on engines and aerostructures, expanded use will also require managing and moving enormous data sets from suppliers to OEMs. In a look to the future, NASA announced in a press release that it had tested a rocket engine injector made through additive manufacturing. NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland conducted the successful tests for Aerojet Rocketdyne through a non-reimbursable Space Act Agreement. The release noted that the type of injector, if manufactured with traditional processes, would take more than a year to make. With additive manufacturing, the part can be produced in less than four months, with a 70 % reduction in cost. While testing novel uses in rockets is important, commercial aircraft engine manufacturers are turning to additive manufacturing for production parts. The Hartford Courant reports that “[Pratt & Whitney], the engine division of Hartford-based United Technologies Corp., put more than two dozen 3D-printed components on its latest quiet and fuel-efficient PurePower geared turbofan engine. ” The article quotes Thomas Prete, the company's head of engineering, as saying "We've contemplated lots of parts and continue to add to the list. " The article also states that GE Aviation is using 3D printing to make complex fuel nozzles for an engine. “The main advantage,” the article quoted Prete as saying, “is that engine designers can do things that would have been impossible. ” GE Aviation is so serious about additive manufacturing, noted in Popular Science, that the company purchased Morris Technology and its sister company Rapid Quality Manufacturing, well-known companies in 3D printing. While plastics and a limited number of metals were once were the only materials available, “That’s changing. Companies have an increasing number of printing techniques to choose from, such as electron-beam melting, which, like SLS, makes production-grade aerospace parts. They can also print with many materials, including titanium, ceramic, and resin…. For now, those parts aren’t critical aircraft components. For example, the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner includes 30 or so printed components—a record—but most of them are air ducts or hinges. ” Published Date : 8/1/2013

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- On 12/11/2014 - In Underwater Archeology By Megan Gannon - News Discovery Divers recovered a bronze bell from the wreck of the HMS Erebus, a British ship that was missing for nearly 170 years after an ill-fated expedition to the Canadian Arctic. In 1845, British Royal Navy officer and explorer John Franklin led more than 100 men on a quest to find a Northwest Passage connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. But they never completed their mission; in 1846, their ships — the HMS Erebus and HMS Terror — became trapped in ice near King William Island in northern Canada. The weeks and months that followed were grim. Many of the crewmembers died of some combination of exposure, starvation, scurvy and lead poisoning. Some may have resorted to cannibalism. Search parties looking for the missing crew turned up empty, though a few graves were later found. The fate of the ships, meanwhile, remained a mystery until this past September. Since 2008, Parks Canada led six searches for the sunken vessels. The agency finally succeeded this year, after capturing sonar images of a wreck in the eastern part of the Queen Maud Gulf.

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- Enter a word for the dictionary definition. From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v. 0.48: Gneiss \Gneiss\ (n[imac]s), n. [G.] (Geol.) A crystalline rock, consisting, like granite, of quartz, feldspar, and mica, but having these materials, especially the mica, arranged in planes, so that it breaks rather easily into coarse slabs or flags. Hornblende sometimes takes the place of the mica, and it is then called hornblendic gneiss or syenitic gneiss. Similar varieties of related rocks are also called gneiss. [1913 Webster]

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A reader who has not been told that James Weldon Johnson’s The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man is a novel can be forgiven for not knowing how to classify it. When it was first published, anonymously, in 1912, the book included a preface from the publisher, written almost exactly as Johnson proposed, that described it as a “new picture of conditions brought about by the race question in the United States” (p. xxxiii). The preface suggests that what follows is a sociological study. But in the novel’s first paragraph, the unnamed narrator tells us that he is “divulging the great secret” of his life, moved by “the same impulse which forces the un-found-out criminal to take somebody into his confidence” (p. 1). This beginning prepares us for a confessional narrative such as those by St. Augustine or Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Exemplifying the capacity of novels to absorb other genres, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man is a sociological study in terms of its analysis of the dynamics of race, class, and geography, and a confessional narrative, albeit a fictional one. But it is as a novel that Johnson’s book engages us most urgently, in that the story of its narrator’s life is ultimately a plea for the reader’s understanding. The narrator’s great secret, which he reveals early in the book, is that he is not white, although his skin is light enough for him to pass as white. For some years, this had been a secret even from the narrator. He only learns the truth because his teacher asks him to sit down when she calls on the white students in the class to stand for the principal. When he gets home and asks his mother if he is white, or if she is, she tells him they are not. She will only say of his white father, whom the narrator has never met, that he is “one of the greatest men in the country” and that the narrator has in him “the best blood of the South” (p. 12). At the end of the novel, the narrator has decided to live as a white man; the meaning of his decision is the central question of the book. If the narrator’s comparison of himself at the beginning of the novel to an “un-found-out criminal” implies guilt, the novel’s last sentence could be taken as the most succinct confession of his crime: “I have sold my birthright for a mess of pottage” (p. 154). Investing in real estate in New York, he has gained a measure of wealth, but he has given up his goal of expressing “the joys and sorrows, the hopes and ambitions, of the American Negro, in classic musical form” (p. 108) and abandoned the cause of elevating blacks in the eyes of whites. His musical aspirations begin to form when, as a child, the narrator is discovered to be a piano prodigy, but his dedication proves questionable at best. He is repeatedly diverted from whatever direction his life is moving in, an element of the novel that raises the question of whether the narrator’s life reflects the operations of chance on human intention or his inability to fully assume a coherent identity. The most important instance of these changes of direction occurs when the narrator appears most likely to commit himself to his music. Inspired by the powerful spirituals and orations he has heard at a rural church meeting, he leaves with one of the participants, intending to take a train from the man’s nearby town and “settle down to work” (p. 133). Instead, he ends up witnessing a horrific scene in the town—a black man burned alive by an angry white mob. This experience propels the narrator to live as a white man, overcome with shame “at being identified with a people that could with impunity be treated worse than animals” (p. 139). In contrast with the narrator’s celebration throughout the novel of the achievements of African Americans and their contributions to American culture, this pivotal moment suggests the ambiguities of the narrator’s thoughts about race. His musical ambition can be seen as an attempt to integrate and artistically represent the black and white halves of his heritage, in that he wants to merge the musical forms of African Americans with the classical music of European composers. But the narrator frequently seems to accept a white, often racist perspective on the world in general and on blacks in particular. He says that he has never forgiven the teacher who first led him to understand he was black. In his travels through the South, his observations are often consistent with those of a typical white racist, such as when he notes the “unkempt appearance, the shambling, slouching gait, and loud talk and laughter” of the lower-class blacks that he meets (p. 40). He also admits that he “never exactly enjoyed” the sight of a rich white widow and her black companion at a club in New York City (p. 79). After taking part in a debate about race among several white passengers on a train, the narrator expresses his admiration for the most racist of the other men. Perhaps the most extreme example of the narrator’s willingness to adopt the most racist of white attitudes toward blacks is his relationship to the millionaire who pays him to play the piano. Though the narrator considers him a friend and benefactor, the millionaire “loaned” the narrator out to his friends and made the narrator play until he rose from his chair and said, “That will do” (p. 88). Given the difficulty of ascertaining the narrator’s attitude toward race, what kind of sense are we to make of his decision to pass for white? Does he elicit sympathy or scorn? He seems to want his life to appear tragic. When the narrator happens to see his father at an opera house in Europe, he assumes the girl with his father is his half-sister and suddenly feels “the desolate loneliness” of his position (p. 98). He has to restrain himself from screaming to the audience that in their midst is “a real tragedy” (p. 98). If the narrator’s life is tragic, perhaps this is because he is without an identity—unable to be either white or black or both. Not knowing who he is, he lives as if he were born an exile, never a part of any community. But Johnson fosters the suspicion that what the narrator truly considers tragic is the fact that he is not white. At the end of the novel’s first paragraph, the narrator tells us he wishes to “gather up all the little tragedies” of his life and “turn them into a practical joke on society” (p. 1). Is the joke the deception he has perpetrated, or is he unwittingly the victim of society’s joke, unable to free his mind from being dominated by a white world despite his knowledge of who he is? The iceberg that the narrator sees as he sails to Europe with his millionaire friend seems to perfectly capture the elusiveness of the meaning of his situation: “it glistened like a mammoth diamond” and “constantly changed its shape” (p. 93). It is also white, of course, but part of it is submerged. Does it represent the narrator? Or is the narrator the “stranded polar bear” (p. 93) he remembers seeing in pictures of icebergs from grammar school—although he sees no polar bear on this one? By becoming an “ex-colored man,” the narrator has turned inside out the American penchant for self-invention, choosing instead self-negation. If much more than the narrator’s name remains unknowable, perhaps this is because Johnson wished to represent the endless complexity that inevitably attends issues of race in America. A man of extraordinarily varied accomplishments, James Weldon Johnson was born in 1871 in Jacksonville, Florida, the son of a schoolteacher and a headwaiter at a luxury hotel. After attending Atlanta University, Johnson returned to Jacksonville to become a principal of the high school from which he had graduated. He studied law while a principal and was admitted to the Florida bar. In 1900, Johnson wrote the song “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing,” set to music by his brother John Rosamond, for a school celebration of Lincoln’s birthday. The song’s popularity grew until, some twenty years later, it was adopted by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as “the Negro National Hymn.” In 1901, Johnson joined his brother in New York, where, along with Bob Cole, they enjoyed a reasonably successful career writing songs for Broadway shows. Johnson gave up songwriting in 1906 to become United States consul to Venezuela; he was transferred to Nicaragua in 1909. It was while he held these posts that he wrote his only novel, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, which he published anonymously in 1912. Favorably reviewed but unremarkable in its sales, the book was assumed by most readers to be nonfiction. Johnson returned to New York in 1913 to oversee the editorial page of the New York Age, an African American weekly. In 1916, he was named the national organizer for the fledgling NAACP and became the first black man to head the organization in 1920, greatly increasing its membership and influence by employing his talent for bringing together people of different ideological stances. In 1927, Johnson published his most acclaimed book of poems, God’s Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse, which was inspired in part by the summer he spent as a college student in rural Georgia instructing the children of former slaves. That same year, he published a second edition of his novel, this time acknowledging his authorship. Although he declared it a work of fiction, the book was often taken as his autobiography, which prompted him to tell his own story in Along This Way(1933). Among the books he edited, the Book of American Negro Poetry (1922) is one of the most important to emerge from the Harlem Renaissance and a milestone in the history of African American literature. After retiring from his position at the NAACP in 1930, Johnson was named the Spence Chair of Creative Literature at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. He died in an automobile accident in 1938.

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Wood has a high strength-to-weight ratio, i. e., for the same strength required for a given structure, the weight of the timber material to be used can be as much as 16 times less than steel, or five times less than concrete. Weight for weight, wood can be designed to carry a heavier load than steel, i. e., one tonne of wood can carry a heavier load than one tonne of steel. Modern engineered timber products like Glued Laminated Timber (Glulam) and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) allow wood to be used in constructing high-rise buildings. Currently, the world's tallest timber building is a 14-storey apartment called Treet in Bergen, Norway. In the pipeline are plans to build a 34-storey timber building in Canada. There is a great variety of timbers with a wide range of properties to suit various outdoor and internal applications, and for both aesthetic and structural purposes. While some timbers require treatment when used under harsh conditions, many species of timbers can naturally last for a very long time. Timber can be treated to make it harder, termite resistant or weather-resistant. Treatment can be done by impregnating wood with certain chemicals which are effective yet safe for use by humans. This process is widely available and is affordable. Treated timber will often out-last naturally durable timbers. Wood is an excellent insulating material because of the presence of the empty cell walls, which act as tiny air traps that resist the transfer of heat. This characteristic is deemed ideal for insulation materials. Compared with wood, other building materials such as bricks, steel and concrete are not good insulators. Wood requires minimal external energy to keep a building within the thermal comfort zone of its inhabitants. Wood is six times better than brick as an insulator; eight times better than glass; 15 times better than concrete; 390 times better than steel and 1,700 times better than aluminium. Performance in Fire Research has shown that timber used as structures such as columns in large buildings, performs better during a fire compared to steel or concrete. This is because steel will buckle and concrete will crack and crumble very suddenly under high temperatures. Thick timber columns, on the other hand, will initially ignite but the charring of the outer layers of wood will cut off the oxygen supply and effectively slow down the burning of the deeper layers of the timber. The slow rate of burn is important because it gives the occupants enough time to evacuate during a fire. Timber columns have been found to be still standing and functioning after intense fires. The speed and ease of ignition is dependent on the rate of accumulation of heat at the surface of the wood. Several factors influence this rate and they are the size of the piece of wood, the rate of heat loss from the surface, the presence of thin outstanding edges and the rate which heat is supplied to the surface of the wood. Small pieces with sharp projecting edges such as matches , ignite easily. On the other hand, large pieces, with round edges, like a round Glulam column catch fire at a much slower rate. In buildings with engineered timber panels, heat does not conduct from one side of the panel to the other. Case Study: Timber's Performance in an Actual Fire Shortly before midnight on 31 December 2012, a fire started in a strip mall in Salem, Oregon. The fire spread fast and destroyed everything, except for the Glulam beams the building was designed around. Post-fire, the Glulam beams were still so sound that crews had to use their backhoes and bulldozers to physically break the beams in half to get them down. Glulam beams consistently outperform other leading materials in fire resistance tests. The average building-fire temperature ranges from 700° to 900° Celsius. Steel weakens dramatically as its temperature climbs above 230° Celsius, retaining only 10% of its strength at about 750° Celsius. Wood will not ignite until it reaches almost 260° Celsius. Once heavy timber ignites, it chars at a slow rate of 0. 635 mm per minute*. The slowness of burn is due to the inherent property of wood to naturally insulate in a fire. Thus, in a 30-minute fire, only 19 mm of each exposed surface of the Glulam is lost to charring, leaving most of the original cross section intact. Unprotected metals lose their strength quickly in a fire and often collapse suddenly due to their rapid loss of strength. Studies have shown that within 10 minutes of a fire starting, steel loses its structural properties by over 50%, while Glulam still holds over 80% of its strength. Actually, no building is fire-proof since most fires start with the structure's contents. The goal of fire-resistive construction is to provide occupants adequate time to evacuate the structure safely. *under the American ASTM E-119 fire exposure. Source: American Institute of Timber Construction. Steel weakens dramatically as its temperature climbs above 230° Celsius, retaining only 10% of its strength at about 750° Celsius. Wood will not ignite until it reaches almost 260° Celsius.

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Sudoku Puzzle Triplets -- Identifying and Understanding by Ed GLysson (Morgan Hill, CA) Sudoku Puzzle; Identifying and Understanding Triplets: The “Sudoku Puzzle -- Triplets” example attached can be used as a visual aid to promote the the identification and understanding of a Sudoku Puzzle pattern that I call a “Triplet”. The black entries represent the original puzzle and the blue entries represent the puzzle challenges that were filled in by the puzzler. The Curtains and Belts highlighted in yellow identify the Triplets. As you may be able to determine, it is a valid puzzle. Also attached are four puzzles of differing degrees of difficulty that each have two Triplets to be discovered; then there is another attachment that contains the solutions to the Triplet puzzles as well as the highlighted Curtains and Belts containing the Triplets. (Refer to my other article “Sudoku Square and Space Notation” for a full explanation of the terms: Belts, Curtains, Squares, and Spaces.) How to identify a three Space pattern of entries called a Triplet: Observe that in Curtain 1(D) (composed of Squares 1, 4, and 7) there exists a sequence of three Space entries that follow a diagonal pattern (which in this case is left to right, but can be either left to right or right to left). The 3 Triplets in Curtain 1 are 268, 347, and 159. Observe that the Triplet 268 “runs” diagonally from the upper left of Curtain 1 to the lower right of Curtain 1 (Spaces 11, 14,17 , 42, 45, 48 , and 73, 76, 79 ). The second Triplet in Curtain 1, 347, “runs” through Spaces 12,15,18 , 43, 46,49 , and 71,74,77 . And the third Triplet in Curtain 1, 159, “runs” through Spaces 13,16,19 Notice that Curtain 3(F) also has Triplets (137, 689, 245) (Squares 3, 6, and 9). And that Belt 3(C) also has Triplets (146, 578, 239) (Squares 7, 8, and 9). This is an unusual puzzle to have three sets of Triplets. Very few puzzles have one Triplet! Understanding the benefit of recognizing a Triplet: What's beneficial about Triplets is that when resolving a Sudoku puzzle if ANY two groups of diagonal three Spaces contain the same entries then the ENTIRE Belt or Curtain can be resolved with Triplets. Perhaps its possible, but I have NEVER seen a puzzle with partial Triplets. Try working the puzzles in the attachment Sudoku Triplet Examples. As you puzzle, look for any Triplets that develop as each example puzzle has two sets of Triplets. Recognizing Triplets will definitely speed up your puzzle resolution time and they are just fun! Ed Glysson, Morgan Hill, CA Spring, 2016 Sudoku Puzzle – Triplets Sudoku Triplet Examples Sudoku Triplet Examples and Solutions Article “Sudoku Square and Space Notation”

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SafeAssign is an online program used to detect plagiarism in students' work by comparing the work submitted to a database of academic sources to identify if they overlap. It helps students learn how to cite their sources and write original work rather than paraphrasing. It is also a deterrent against copying and pasting information when students should be using their own words. BlackBoard learning system, which is an online portal used by universities for students to submit their work online, administers SafeAssign. As of 2015, the database consists of over 1,000 publications and over 2. 6 million articles beginning from the 1990s and updated weekly. The database also includes all works students have submitted through BlackBoard and SafeAssign to prevent students from copying each other's work or recycling work. In addition to the work submitted through the sites, SafeAssign allows students to contribute other work to add to the database. In addition, SafeAssign searches the Internet when evaluating papers to check for online references. After checking a student's document, SafeAssign produces an originality report that details areas of potential plagiarism and the possible source of the information. Students then have the opportunity to revise their work to meet their instructor's standards.

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A common weather map is the surface map, however it can be a complex map to fully comprehend. The first step to understand the surface map is to know the meaning of the symbols used on this type of map. |The cold front symbol: It serves as a marker or a “boundary” between warmer air on one side and colder air on the other. |The warm front symbol: This symbol represents the direction in which the warm air is likely to move towards. | Isobars on this sample map (fine gray lines) are analyzed lines of equal pressure values and are used to locate and identify the patterns and tendencies of atmospheric pressure. The high pressure symbol: H The low pressure symbol: L High pressure is associated more with fair weather conditions (light wind and less cloud cover), and Low pressure is associated with more active weather conditions.

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FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS A crossword is a word puzzle that usually takes the form of a square or a rectangulargrid of white- and black-shaded squares. The game’s goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues, which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer words and phrases are placed in the grid from left to right (“across”) and from top to bottom (“down”). The shaded squares are used to separate the words or phrases. The winter solstice is one of the two times each year that the Sun is at its farthest point from the equator and appears to stand still. The word solstice is derived from the Latin sol, or “Sun,” and stitium, or “stoppage. ” The Halcyon Days also occur around this time. According to ancient legend, a grieving wife named Halcyon threw herself into the sea upon discovering the drowned body of her beloved husband, Ceyx. The gods took pity on the pair, transforming them into kingfishers, or halcyons, with the power to still the stormy seas for 14 days near the time of the winter solstice while they hatched their young. ” Question of the Day Is there anything I can do to stop the stairs in my house from squeaking? There is. Find the offending step (or steps) and sprinkle some talcum powder into the noisy joint between the tread and the riser. For a more permanent solution, if you can get at the back of your stairs, you can repair them by driving nails from underneath through the riser and into the tread at an angle; this will make them hold better. Advice of the Day To defeat sleepless nights, try as hard as possible to stay awake; you’ll soon be asleep. Home Hint of the Day If you’re nailing into knotty or tough wood, first make a pilot hole. Drill a hole slightly smaller in diameter than the nail before inserting and hammering it in. Word of the Day HomichlophobiaThe fear of fog or clouds Puzzle of the Day When a person falls out a window, what does he always fall against? Against his will - Giovanni Boccaccio (poet) – 1375 - Marc Connelly (playwright) – 1980 - Jane Fonda (actress) – 1937 - Samuel L. Jackson (actor) – 1948 - Ray Romano (comedian & actor) – 1957 - Kiefer Sutherland (actor) – 1966 - On December 16, 1620, the British ship Mayflower arrives at modern-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, and the Pilgrims begin building their settlement, Plymouth Colony.– 1620 - Mackenzie Bowell became Canada’s 5th Prime Minister– 1894 - The first crossword puzzle was printed in a NY newspaper– 1913 - Pianist Vladimir Horowitz wed Wanda Toscanini– 1933 - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs premiered at the Carthay Circle Theater in Hollywood, California. It was the first animated feature-length film with sound and color– 1937 - A four-day snowstorm began in Portland, Oregon– 1892 - A storm in Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana brought 26 inches of snow to Hillsboro, Texas– 1929

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|K||0. 2.1.1.||ELA||Reading Benchmarks: Informational Text K-5| |K||K.1. k)||Science||Virginia 2010 Science Standards of Learning| |K||1. 1.||Science||The Nature of Science| |K||2. 1.||Science||The Nature of Technology| |K||0. 2.2.2.||ELA||Reading Benchmarks: Informational Text K-5| |K||0. 2.4.4.||ELA||Reading Benchmarks: Informational Text K-5| |K||0. 3.0.4.||ELA||Reading Benchmarks: Foundational Skills K-5| |K||0. 2.10. 10. ||ELA||Reading Benchmarks: Informational Text K-5| April is National Inventors Month! This is a great opportunity to showcase various inventors, study the design process, and consider the impacts of inventions in our everyday lives. Throughout this lesson, students will have the opportunity to research and celebrate Henry Ford and his invention of the automobile and how it impacted our global society. Provide students with open-ended materials to explore the movement and speed of toy cars and things to construct ramps (i. e. construction paper, snap cubes, wooden blocks, Lego bricks, books, etc. ). Pose the question to students: "How have cars changed our everyday lives? " Allow students to capture their initial thoughts (via science notebook if possible). Allow students to share their responses in partners to provide an opportunity for every child to share their answers. Set the purpose for these series of lessons, "Over the next several days, we are going to explore and research a famous inventor and look at how we designed and created the automobile. We will also readdress our original question of 'How have cars changed our everyday lives? ' so we can understand how this important invention impacts us personally. " Provide students with grade level appropriate text sets (nonfiction articles, leveled readers, trade books, online websites); students should work in small group with appropriate scaffolding and support to acquire information for the text sets. Give a purpose for reading by asking students to read and answer specific questions (both literal and interpretive questions) such as: 1. Who invented the automobile? 2. What was the inspiration for the automobile? 3. How did the inventor use the design process in his invention? 4. How did the automobile impact our daily lives? Provide at least 2 specific examples. 5. What is the most important lesson we can learn from Henry Ford? Why? To support our young readers and writers, you can create a graphic organizer or a mini-research book with desired questions to help them read and answer their questions. Provide the opportunities for students to be able to share their work (digitally or in-person). Students should be able to share their answers gathered from their research. Possible ways to share: Digital Showcase (example: SeeSaw), Author Spotlight (students' research books are shared in the classroom library), Book Buddies (pair with another class to share research), etc.

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The "dehesa" is the Iberian pigs' natural habitat. It is a pasture area composed mainly of cork and holm oaks, where it begins to rout when its weight reaches approximately 80-100 kilos. During this period, the acorn forms the basis of their food and gives the unique flavour to Pata Negra hams. The composition of the acorn varies considerably from one oak to another and depends on the time of year. However, the seeds of the holm oak are generally considered to be the sweetest. In Andalusia, the dehesa covers around 1. 2 million hectares, mainly distributed along the Sierra Morena, and to a lesser extent the Sierra de Cádiz and the Sierra de Málaga. Some information about the dehesa The holm oak is a species of tree that retains its leaves for 3 to 4 years on average. It flowers between April and May and produces fruits in the months of October and November. The cork oak, whose acorns mature between September and February. The "montanera" is the period during which the pig is fed mostly acorns found in the dehesa. During this fattening phase, the pig can consume around 10 kilos of acorns a day. The montanera lasts from four to five months (from December to April, approximately) according to the acorn season.

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Abstract or Introduction In Aldous Huxley’s piece, “Brave New World”, one can find multiple ideas taken from Marxist ideology; specifically from Marx’ and Engels’ Communist Manifesto. The role of technology is in both works related to the creation of multiple classes, although with different power structures. This paper will analyze to what extent technology is pertinent in the pursuit of utopia, drawing parallels from the Communist Manifesto (where technology, which leads to a particular mode of production, is under attack) and the fictional piece, Brave New World (where technology also impacts the social order arguably negatively). The economic crisis of 1929, more commonly known as the Great Depression and Keynesian consumerist theory as a response to it, showed that there was a need for an alternative to address the shortcomings of capitalism. Socialism, was an enticing concept that not only sparked revolutions of nation states but also has become entrenched in modern culture. - Quote paper - Lucas Agudiez Roitman (Author)Eric Roberts (Author), 2013, The impacts and tradeoffs of technology, communism and inequality in the fiction of "Brave New World", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/354900

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Somme Prisoners of War 1916 Continuing with the Somme theme, this is a German snap-shot taken by a soldier in the 26th (Reserve) Division showing British soldiers captured on the Somme in July 1916. It is believed the photograph was taken in the village of Miraumont, which appears to have been a processing area for POWs, and that these were men captured between Thiepval, Beaumont-Hamel and Serre. The Scottish Sergeant with his back to the camera seems to be marshalling the men and one man has a shell dressing on his face indicating a battle wound from the recent fighting in which these men were captured. In the early stages of the Somme many soldiers were captured in the German trenches when attacks went wrong, or got cut off in No Man’s Land and were unable to return to their own lines. The 26th (Reserve) Division was a Wurtemburg formation which had been on the Somme front since late 1914.

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We thought it was time to raise awareness about Coeliac Disease which is a condition that people with Down’s syndrome are more susceptible to. It is a condition that may be overlooked and symptoms too readily explained away as ‘just part of Down’s syndrome’. So constipation, which may be a symptom of Coeliac Disease, may be put down to low muscle tone rather than the person being given a proper medical examination. What is Coeliac Disease? With this condition, a person has a bad reaction to gluten which is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. The wall of the small bowel (intestines) becomes inflamed and its lining becomes flat and this makes it harder for the body to absorb vitamins, minerals and calories. Coeliac Disease is usually diagnosed in childhood, but it can develop at any age even if you haven’t previously shown any signs of having the condition. Is Coeliac Disease more common in people with Down’s syndrome? Coeliac Disease is an autoimmune condition and we know that, compared with the general population, people with Down’s syndrome have a higher chance of developing certain autoimmune conditions. Autoimmune conditions are diseases where the immune system, the body’s defence mechanism against infection, attacks parts of the body in the same way that it would attack a germ. With Coeliac Disease the immune system wrongly identifies certain substances found in gluten as a threat to the body and attacks them. This is what causes the damage to the small bowel. The DSA are collaborating with a research team at the University of Bristol who are investigating Feeding and Autoimmunity in Down’s syndrome. The team is looking for new parents willing to complete a questionnaire about their child’s feeding and health as a young baby and at six and twelve months. They will also ask about the child’s health yearly after this until the age of 5 years old. It is hoped that the study will help us understand why children with Down’s syndrome are more likely to experience problems with their hormones and their gut, help reduce this risk and lead to the development of new treatments to help with feeding. Further information about the study can be found here. What to look out for Here are some of the more common symptoms of Coeliac Disease Diarrhoea (which may be quite smelly) Passing wind and bloating Feeling tired, lack of energy or motivation (because the body is having difficulty taking in nutrients from food) In children, not growing at the expected rate As with any medical condition that occurs, parents/supporters should never allow symptoms to be dismissed because a person has Down’s syndrome. Conditions such as Coeliac Disease can be managed, and its effects reduced, once properly diagnosed. There can, of course, be other reasons for these symptoms to occur rather than because someone has Coeliac Disease. If someone with Down’s syndrome is showing some of these symptoms, it’s always a good idea to get them checked out with their GP. How is the condition diagnosed? The process of diagnosing Coeliac Disease starts with an assessment by a GP of a person’s symptoms and a physical examination. The GP may then arrange for a blood sample to be taken to test for antibodies that are usually present in people who have Coeliac Disease. We know that some children and adults with Down’s syndrome will find having a blood test difficult. Take a look at our blog about children with Down’s syndrome giving blood samples here. The blog contains tips and ideas that you can try to make the experience easier for your child. This blog piece has been extended to include adults and turned into an article for the current DSA Journal. Find out how to receive DSA’s Journal here. If the antibodies are present, the GP will make a referral for a biopsy of the gut. This will usually be performed by a Gastroenterologist and involves a flexible tube with a small video camera (endoscope) being fed through the mouth and down into the small bowel where a sample of tissue will be taken for analysis. A local anaesthetic or sedative may be given for this procedure to help the patient relax. The biopsy is the only way to be absolutely certain that a person has Coeliac Disease. It is possible to have Coeliac Disease and not have the antibodies in your blood. If symptoms continue, the GP may still make a referral for a biopsy anyway. Should people with Down’s syndrome be regularly screened for Coeliac Disease? At the moment there is no formal Coeliac Disease screening programme in the UK for people with Down’s syndrome. If there is any evidence (even if relatively minor) to suggest that a person may have the condition, their GP should be asked to carry out screening. We suggest that Coeliac Disease is discussed as part of an Annual Health Check. Everyone with Down’s syndrome over the age of 14 years is entitled to a free Annual Health Check with their GP. Information for GPs about Coeliac Disease can be found here under ‘Gastrointestinal Disorders’ Information about Annual Health Checks can be found here How is Coeliac Disease treated? Once the diagnosis has been made, the person with Down’s syndrome will need a gluten-free diet because even a small amount of gluten can cause the symptoms already discussed. This means wheat, barley and rye should be avoided. It is important that a gluten-free diet is balanced and healthy. Your GP can give help and advice about managing with a new gluten free diet. You may be referred to a dietician for support and advice. It may also be a good idea to avoid oats for a while; seek advice about this. Some people may need to take vitamins and minerals while the body repairs itself. How will my son/daughter cope with their new diet? We know a number of adults who, with support, cope very well with sticking to a gluten-free diet. In fact the tendency of people with Down’s syndrome towards sameness and repetition can be usefully employed in some individuals to make sure they stay on track with their new diet. To stick to the diet, the person needs to learn about the foods and other non-food substances (e. g. some medications, lipsticks, stamps), that may contain gluten. Most people will need help and support with this to varying degrees. Visual supports can be useful to help teach about the new diet; these could include a resource around recognising gluten-free foods and packaging labels. There is an internationally recognised ‘Crossed Grain’ Symbol that is found on packaging for gluten-free foods. It may be useful to think about how to give your son/daughter the means of explaining that they have Coeliac Disease. This may be through teaching them the words they need to know and/or giving them a way to let strangers know about their Coeliac Disease (e. g. a laminated card with gluten free written on it to present to a waiter or shop assistant). ‘Gastrointestinal problems in children’ can be downloaded here Easy read information about having an endoscopy – an example can be found here

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One of the phrases I most hated when I was in secondary school was “Use your time wisely. ” It seemed like teachers and guidance counselors and principals and parents had all been to the same workshop and decided the best way to help their children get school work done was to reiterate this phrase, over and over. In truth, and what so many of us kids couldn’t then understand, is it’s just good advice! Even so, using your time wisely is not as easy as it seems. It requires discipline. And while some people perhaps are just born with the gift of discipline, most of us will have to work hard to develop that elusive skill. Discipline is all about habit, and developing habits—especially replacing older bad habits with new, good habits—requires time and hard work. Building good guitar habits When we sit down to practice on the guitar, long, built-up habits can take over and we go on auto-pilot, noodling away or simply playing through songs we’re learning instead of taking a problem-solving approach and working to improve areas that are lacking or need restructuring. Our brains create powerful neural pathways that transmit information across nerve cells when we do certain actions over and over and on a regular basis. When you go to grab that bag of chips (instead of the broccoli and carrots—or vice versa! ) your brain is firing up that neural pathway, that habit. To create new habits in our practice (as much as in the way we eat or all kinds of other aspects of our lives) we have to create new neural pathways, redirecting that neural data to a different destination. Luckily our brains are wonderful organs and they are changing all the time, but it will still take time and indeed a bit of rewiring. If you lack or struggle with discipline one thing you’ll find pretty quickly is that the new habit you’re trying to create just feels . . . off. It’s just easier and just feels right to do the thing our brains have already learned to do. When we first start playing guitar, for instance, the muscles in our fingers and hands and arms are being asked to do completely new things. They’ve been trained to turn door handles, pick things up, brush our teeth, pick the lint out of our belly-buttons—not play scales and arpeggios! So at first your fingers will have a mind of their own—that’s because they kind of do: the way you have been using those muscles for your whole life has been tied to particular neural pathways. Now you’re asking them to do something new. Suddenly getting your hands to play the guitar is like asking someone to pat their head, rub their belly, and stand on one foot all at the same time—if they haven’t practiced those combined actions it will be very difficult to coordinate them at first. And this is the basic answer to our question about discipline: discipline, creating new habits that enable us to use our time wisely, will take practice just as much as playing scales, arpeggios, and breaking up songs and pieces we’re learning into bite-sized chunks. So how can you begin to develop and practice discipline, now? Tacking action and building discipline The first thing to do is to face that “off” feeling of the new habit you’re developing—in this case bringing discipline, organization, and structure into your practice—and just go with it. It’s not going to feel comfortable at first when you start down this path, but it’s essential that you push through that initial discomfort and just do it. But there are other things we can do to help us ease into discipline. First off, clear away any distractions you have. If your tendency is to answer the phone or check social media or your email when you’re practicing, then turn off your phone and your computer. If you’re responsible for others, see if someone can help take over for a bit so you have the free time to focus on your practice. If you like to noodle with new songs or pieces, then put the music or tab for those away until it’s time to work on them (put them in your guitar case and off your music stand). Remove anything that gets in the way of focusing on the task at hand. Secondly, inserting structure into your practice will go a long way to making your practice sessions more disciplined. Before you play write down a brief schedule for that practice session: 15 minutes on warm-up, 30 minutes on technique and specific technical problems, 15 minutes on a few bars from the song or piece you’re learning (just as an example of a one-hour practice session). Better yet, write out a weekly practice schedule that you can keep on your music stand or on the wall next to where you practice (some place where it’s visible to you). More importantly, keep time during your practice sessions. If you’ve set only fifteen minutes for warm-up, you’ll be less likely to just slip into noodling or playing songs if you have a timer beeping at you when your warm-up is over. So set a timer on your phone or watch and stick to it as best you can. Finally, keep a journal where you can write goals for yourself and digest how past practice sessions have gone and where you can improve in the next one. Setting small-term and longer-term goals can be a great way to stay motivated and give you a reason for the structure in your practice. But don’t overshoot your goals and undermine your discipline either: keep your goals manageable and reward yourself when you achieve them. Your longer-term goals can stay on the horizon, but they should never overwhelm the simpler, smaller tasks of the day-to-day. If you know what you’re working toward you’ll have the necessary motivation to stay on task. Discipline is not an easy thing and it won’t happen suddenly over night. It takes time, hard work, perseverance, and even a bit of discomfort. But the rewards and benefits are so great it’s totally worth it. So give your brain a new destination and your fingers new tasks: build up your discipline for a better, healthier practice time.

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Telehealth and telemedicine have made it so providers and patients have a new way to communicate. Telehealth is defined as the provision of healthcare remotely by means of telecommunications technology. Telemedicine is defined as the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients by means of telecommunications technology. Telemedicine can be performed by different applications, for example, real-time or face to face communication. Store and forward video conferencing is typically used by healthcare providers to share patient diagnostic and treatment information. This is popular with specialties like dermatology, ophthalmology and radiology. Remote Patient Monitoring or ‘telemonitoring’ is a method that allows providers to track a patient’s vital signs and activities from a distance. This is typically used for patients who are at high risk for health-related complications, for example, cardiac patients. The American Medical Association (AMA) reports the top three specialists who use telemedicine the most as of January 2019 are: - Radiologists—39. 5 percent - Psychiatrists—27. 8 percent - Cardiologists—24. 1 percent Telehealth services bring value to providers and patients in many ways. Telemedicine increases access to care, especially those patients who do not have access to transportation. Studies have shown it improves the quality of care for patients. Telemedicine is cost-effective compared to face to face in-office visits. Patients value the convenience, flexibility and real-time care with their providers. There are certain barriers to overcome in telehealth. For example, limited access to smartphones and high-speed internet in rural areas. Also, state requirements for licensing and credentialing of telehealth providers vary widely. Lack of reimbursement is a key barrier to the use of telehealth services. Each state has different rules and regulations about the types of services that can be reimbursed by Medicaid. In addition, Medicare strictly regulates the types of providers who are reimbursed for providing telehealth services Per the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Medicare pays for specific Part B provider services furnished through a telecommunications system. Telehealth services substitute for an in-person encounter, and the beneficiary must go to an originating site for services. An originating site is the location where the Medicare beneficiary gets medical services through a telecommunications system. To be eligible, the originating site must be located either in a county outside a metropolitan statistical area or a rural health professional shortage area. Authorized originating sites include; physician and practitioners’ offices, hospitals, critical access hospitals, rural health clinics, federally qualified health centers, hospital-based or CAH-based renal dialysis centers (including satellites), skilled nursing facilities, community mental health centers, renal dialysis facilities, home of beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease receiving home dialysis and mobile stroke units. Distant site practitioners who can furnish and get payment for covered telehealth services (subject to state law) include physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurse-midwives, clinical nurse specialists, certified registered nurse anesthetist, clinical psychologists and clinical social workers, registered dietitians and nutritional professionals. Clinical psychologists and clinical social workers cannot bill Medicare for psychiatric diagnostic interview examinations with medical services or medical evaluation and management services. They cannot bill or get paid for CPT codes 90792, 90833, 90836, and 90838. Per CMS, you must use an interactive audio and video telecommunications system that permits real-time communication between you at the distant site, and the beneficiary at the originating site. Transmitting medical information to a provider who reviews it later is permitted only in Alaska or Hawaii federal telemedicine demonstration programs. Submit professional telehealth service claims using the appropriate CPT or HCPCS codes. If you performed telehealth services through a store and video telecommunications system, add the telehealth GQ modifier with the professional service CPT or HCPCS code (for example, 99202 GQ). Submit telehealth service claims, using place of service 02-Telehealth, to indicate you furnished the billed service as a professional telehealth service from a distant site. Distant site practitioners billing telehealth services under the CAH Optional Payment Method II must submit institutional claims using the GT modifier. HCPCS code Q3014 describes the Medicare telehealth originating sites facility fee. Bill your Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) for the separately billable Part B originating site facility fee, per CMS. CMS also noted how the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act (SUPPORT Act) statutorily removed the geographic limitations for telehealth services furnished to individuals diagnosed with a substance use disorder (SUD) to treat the SUD or a co-occurring mental health disorder. The change also allows telehealth services for the treatment of a diagnosed SUD or co-occurring mental health disorder to be furnished to individuals at any telehealth originating site (other than a renal dialysis facility), including in a patient’s home. No originating site facility fee is paid when the beneficiary’s home is the originating site. These changes became effective July 1, 2019. On July 29, CMS proposed the 2020 Physician Fee Schedule rule, which contains new telehealth services covered under Medicare. CMS proposed adding three codes to the covered Medicare telehealth service list: GYYY1: Office-based treatment for opioid use disorder, including development of the treatment plan, care coordination, individual therapy, group therapy and counseling; at least 70 minutes in the first calendar month. GYYY2: Office-based treatment for opioid use disorder, including care coordination, individual therapy, group therapy and counseling; at least 60 minutes in a subsequent calendar month. GYYY3: Office-based treatment for opioid use disorder, including care coordination, individual therapy, group therapy and counseling; each additional 30 minutes beyond the first 120 minutes (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure). These services are expected to be added to the list of Medicare telehealth services when the final rule is published and would go into effect January 1, 2020. CMS Medicare Learning Network MLN Booklet, ICN 901705, January 2019 The National Law Review, Emily H. Wein & Nathaniel M. Lacktman, August 12, 2019 Rural Health Information Hub, Online

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Skip to content Date posted: 1 February 2012 The ABC has reported that researchers hope most dengue mosquitoes at Machans Beach, north of Cairns in far north Queensland, will be unable to transmit the disease by the end of the wet season. For the past month, the Monash University-led team has been releasing mosquitoes with a bacteria that stops them spreading dengue fever. Program leader Professor Scott O'Neill says 49 per cent of mosquitoes caught are now carrying the wolbachia bacteria and he hopes to almost double that number. 'It's a very good result. We . . . would have been happy with a number closer to 20 per cent for this stage of the trial, so a number of 49 per cent was great news to get,' he said. 'We want to see that number hopefully get closer to 100 per cent before the end of the wet season. 'Then we're wanting to see what happens when we stop releasing mosquitoes and whether the wolbachia stays in the mosquito population and it sustains, then that's really the key result for us. 'If that's the case then that population should be . . . unable to transmit dengue between people living in Machans Beach.' The first results from a trial at Babinda, south of Cairns, will be released at the end of the week.

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Wild grapes are one of the most famous fruits to pick and eat. When I was a kid, I first read about wild grapes in the book The Forager’s Harvest by Samuel Thayer. Once primed to notice wild plants, like many other species in Michigan, they started popping up everywhere – from flowers on the side of the road that bloomed for a second before disappearing behind nearby trees or along sidewalks where their roots had broken through asphalt cracks. In this guide, you will learn the hidden as well as some interesting facts about wild grapes. Wild grape vines love to grow around trees and in forests, along roads, or near parks. You can find them in parking lots of national parks that largely have sunny areas because the wild grapes need full sun to survive. My father has a vine growing up her trellises while she sits on their deck when it’s the season of growing wild grapes – many of our relatives and friends come by to pick the wild grapes for wine! But did you know? Wild grape jelly is even better than that- it’s delicious with sweetened jellies topped with fresh mint leaves and candied citrus zest! The best month to pick wild grapes is August when summer is at its extreme. If you’re out hiking during the growing season and have time on your hands, it’s easy to see where ripe wild grapes will be because of their color which will also depend on other things like mushrooms and herbs that grow during this time too. When the grapes are ripe- deeply colored with juice inside them-I strip them from their branches or vines off before putting them into something sturdy so they don’t break if they get wet (make sure it’s food-grade plastic) then put all my harvested fruit into a box or container that won’t rip when filled up with grapey goodness. Here’s what I do if I want to quickly process the grapes so they don’t get dried out in my fridge: If it is done when the grapes are fresh, then remove them from their vines and wash off any dirt or grit that might be on them. Next, put them into a stockpot with water up to about an inch below (don’t let it touch! ) of the grape mix, bring this mixture up to a simmer. When it’s hot/boiling enough now mash gently for two seconds before passing through a food mill so you can squeeze as much juice out of your potential jam/jelly material as possible – without compacting too much! You’ll get less than using processed juices because there won’t be any sugar left behind! Wild grapes are still one of the most bountiful, delicious fruits out there. You simply need to know how to use them though- and they will never stop you from eating some! Wild Grapes Leaves Wild grape leaves are exactly the same as grape leaves sold in stores, but it did take me a couple of years and dating a Greek woman to figure it out. In hindsight, I should’ve just looked up one online or in a cookbook. Once the vines are ready, some of the leaves will be past-prime (not good for consumption). It’s easy to collect hundreds of wild Grape Leaves at once by working quickly! Grape leaves are edible, and they are fantastic for their most traditional use: stuffing. Since grape leaves can be tough, tannic, and sour at times, you’re not going to be making a salad out of them. However, I have experimented with some preparations where the leaves were fermented before cutting into pieces to make dishes such as salads or pickles. The grape is smaller than normal, measuring an average of 8 millimeters across and weighing less than 1 gram each. They ripen from pale green to reddish-purple and then to a deep purple as the seasons change and the leaves turn shades of orange, gold, or red. Although they have thin skins for easy consumption when ripe with sweet flavors, this variety offers its sweetness most notably following the first frost in the fall season – making them perfect for winter desserts! California Wild grapes are a good source of vitamins, manganese, and potassium. They have a high antioxidant content from the polyphenols in their skins, as well as an excellent tartaric acid content. The distinctive flavor comes from its high concentration of this particular type of acids found in the flesh. Wild grape is a sweet and tart fruit that can be enjoyed fresh, used in cooked dishes, or made into wine. The fruits are also great for making jam or jelly as well as frozen desserts. Refrigerating the juice overnight will allow the diluted acid to separate from the juice, resulting in sweeter grapes. They’re perfect for chutneys and salsas too! Store these grapes tightly wrapped in plastic wrap so they don’t oxidize; refrigerate them for up to one week before using them again. California wild grapes are native to the northern and central areas of the state. They can be found growing in parts of Oregon, Nevada, and Southern California as well. The vines prefer sunny spots along riverbanks or hillsides near springs or streams where they get moisture year-round. To create wine from these grapes requires rootstock with a specific taste that is not offered for sale by nurseries yet so it must be bought separately. We Are Not Foodies. We found this article by our favorite site that specializes in some home cooking tips and recipes. The easy one includes berries, the harder three include other fruits like pomegranates or apples for different textures and flavors. You can also read: http://fruigees.com/all-you-need-to-know-about-champagne-grapes/ Current Facts About Wild Grapes The wild grape, also known as the California Wild Grape or Vitis California, and they can be found in many varieties in the United States. It’s been used by native people for centuries and has been found in both Central and Northern California. One thing that this plant offers is a healthy rootstock that may have saved the wine industry after pests killed nearly all grapevines across Europe in 1884-85 during an infestation crisis called “The Great Spilling”. I I hope this guide has helped you enough to know everything about this fruit. Let us know in the comment section if you know more about this wild fruit.

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When Sands Chevrolet put Goodyear tires on my car last year, I was pleased. No, I'm no expert on tires, but I do have a fascination with Phoenix history, and Goodyear has been very important. And it all started with cotton for tires. Goodyear developed what was to be called Pima cotton, which turned out to be great for tires. And not only was the demand for tires for cars going up, it went WAY up during World War I, from 1914 to 1918. And so Goodyear was growing cotton all over the valley, including places like Marinette, which is where Sun City is today. Image above: the Goodyear sign on I-17 and Grand Avenue in 1968. The sign doesn't say Goodyear anymore, but the shape is the same. |The Goodyear blimp in the 1940s| Become a PhD (Phoenix History Detective) today on Patreon! Click here to become a Patron! History Adventuring posts are shared there daily including "then and now" photos, billboards, aerials, videos, and super high-definition photos of historic Phoenix, Arizona. Discounts for seniors, students, teachers, and veterans.

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Confederation of Arab States The Arab Confederation's Official Name is the Confederation of Arab States, usually Abbreviated to "CAS", it is the official name of the merger between the Saudi Arabia and Egypt the Confederation was announced on the 15th of June 2011. United Arab Emirates has officially called to join the Confederation, but was Left with several steps to reach more integration with the other Arab states. - Egypt- Lower Egypt, Middle Egypt, Upper Egypt, Sinai, Red Sea Coast, Western Desert. - Saudi Arabia- Al Jawf, Tabuk, Al Qasim, Northern Borders, Eastern Province, Ha'il, Al Riyadh, Al Madinah, Makkah, Al Bahah, Asir, Najran, Jizan. Total original Regions: 19 Capital : Cairo (Lower Egypt) Their are Three Main Important Strategic Regions that form a Barrier for the Confederation's Inner Regions, and these Regions are the Eastern Province in the Arabian Peninsula, Lower Egypt and Sinai, which form a gate between Asia to Europe, and Vice Versa. Arabic and English are the two Only Official languages to be spoken in the countries, and on the IRC. several non-Arab Minorities are located in the Confederation, most Notably, Greek, Croatian, Armenian, Macedonian and English Speaking Communities, thus all can feel free posting with their own Language in their Media. Formation of the Confederation The Confederation is a step towards the ultimate Union between All Arab states, its mission is to help merge and integrate the States, politically, socially, economically, and culturally. each country will remain to control its affairs, with an independent Flag, and President, and Congress. "Egypt has announced joining the Arab Confederation to ensure improved work and trade with Saudi Arabia as well as possible other members in the future. " Saudi Arabia's Official Statement by Voice: "in continuing our rapprochement and integration with the Arab countries, and building on the close and inseparable ties to our brothers in Egypt, Saudi Arabia is joining the Arab confederacy! We are not losing any of our sovereignty, but we are integrating more on baby boom issues, arabization, and translation issues" |June||2011||Arab League||Egypt||2 Votes| |July||2011||reconwarhawk||Egypt||Appointed as VP by previous President| |September||2011||Arab League||Saudi Arabia||3 Votes (opposition egyptian government)| The Arab Confederation has a very simple Hiarchy. - 1- Supreme Arab President, each 2 Months, a Candidate is elected by the winning Presidents form Saudi Arabia and Egypt. - 2- Country Presidents, representing each country in the Confederation, currently, Saudi Arabia and Egypt - 3- Foreign Ministers from Each state, who respond to the Supreme President, as well as their own Country Presidents - 4- Congress of Each State, should meet and decide on important crucial matters, concerning Integration laws between the member states The members must be members in the Real Arab League, and must have a population of Arabs, as well as Arabs represented in Congress, and the Cabinet. United Arab Emirates Their are 3 Arabs states in eRepublik, yet due to lack of integration plans done by UAE, and its history of PTOers the country was not accepted in the Confederation, yet plans are to take place to push for more Emirati integration in the Confederation. Some Israeli Citizens have announced that they wish to one day see the Confederation Evolve to Include them, as part of it, but with a differant less ethnic based term. the Middle East Alliance has been proposed. on the day of Announced Establishment, several Australians have asked for the possibilities of joining the Arab Confederation, but were turned down, due to the insignificant Arab population in Australia, as well as it not being a member in the Real Arab League organization. Starting from 9/12/2011 , the Arab Confederation has started to Organize and push for more integration of Military Unites between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, The Military of Arab Confederation has several Military Units, of the Arab Air Forces, Arab Naval Forces, Arab Armed Forces, Arab National Guards, and the Arab Training Unit. |MU Name||CAS. Leader||Seal||CAS. Insignia||Egypt Division Insignia||Saudi Division Insignia||Division Leaders||Strength| |Arab Training Unit||Supreme President||*Ahmedae||15-1,000 str. | |Arab Armed Forces||Supreme President||1,000-2,000 str. | |Arab Naval Forces||Supreme President||2,000-3,000 str. | |Arab Air Forces||Supreme President||*Akhraziel||3,000-4,000 str. | |Arab National Guards||Supreme President||over 4,000 str. | |Active game alliances||Major alliances||Asteria| |Minor alliances||Asgard · Pacifica · Root|

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Cryptozoology is the study of hidden animals. These are either animals that were thought to have gone extinct in the past and yet are still being seen today or they are animals that no one has ever caught or officially recorded. Most accounts are based on eyewitness testimony or out of focus photos and though many reports seem bizarre or too good to be true, once in a while a new (or old) animal is discovered (or rediscovered) proving the eyewitnesses correct. The legend of the Minnesota Iceman has intrigued me for years because it tells a pretty convincing narrative that there may be something to the bigfoot legend. In the late 60’s, zoology major Terry Cullen came across a travelling exhibit in Milwaukee displaying what appeared to be a dead bigfoot carcass frozen in a block of ice. Because of the appearance of the specimen, he contacted Ivan T. Sanderson, a zoologist known for his nature writing and interest in cryptozoology. The owner of the exhibit was a man named Frank Hansen. Hansen stated that the Minnesota Iceman was discovered in the region of Siberia and that he was acting as its caretaker for an absentee owner he described as an “eccentric California millionaire”. Touring carnivals and fairs with the exhibit, Hansen was once reportedly detained by Canada Customs officials, who were concerned he was transporting an actual cadaver. He eventually gave permission to Sanderson, as well as a man named Bernard Heuvelmans, to study the Iceman closer. What this meant was that they could observe it through the ice for as long as they wanted but were not allowed to actually touch the body in any way. Through the ice the specimen was very convincing and the body featured a fracture to the left arm as well as a dangling right eyeball, where this creature had supposedly been shot through the back of the head. They concluded that it was a genuine creature, saying they found “putrefaction where some of the flesh had been exposed from the melted ice. ” Sanderson, then science editor for “Argosy” magazine, authored an article about the Iceman in the April 1969 issue that featured the headline, “Is this the missing link between man and the apes? ” Sanderson also spoke about the Iceman in television appearances, and contacted primatologist John Napier, asking him to investigate it under the official auspices of the Smithsonian Institution. Hansen then suddenly withdrew the Minnesota Iceman from public inspection, saying the withdrawal was on orders from its California-based owner. Hansen later provided a new “Iceman” for exhibit, described by observers as a latex model that was clearly different from the original. Napier, in conjunction with the Smithsonian, made preliminary investigations of Hansen’s affairs and said he found that Hansen had commissioned the creation of the Iceman from a West Coast company in 1967, leading Napier to quickly conclude there was only ever one Iceman latex model that he theorized was repositioned and re-frozen between appearances. Napier stated that “The Smithsonian Institution…is satisfied that the creature is simply a carnival exhibit made of latex rubber and hair…the ‘original’ model and the present so-called ‘substitute’ are one and the same. The interesting part though is the amount of detail in the “original” Iceman. If this was a fake, why would the creator go to the length of adding such details as a fracture and dangling eyeball? The long dark hair could also clearly be seen coming out of the skin, as opposed to glued on like many special effects artists do. The cost of a model of this size and detail would’ve been quite high at the time. Many feel that when word got out that the Iceman was real, Hansen panicked and pulled it from exhibition, avoiding possible arrest for transporting a corpse from town to town. By replacing it with a latex model, he covers himself if local police or the FBI decides to investigate more. So, was the original body real later to be replaced with a fake? If so, what happened to the real body? If the “real” body was also fake, who was the artist that created such a realistic prop? Why has no one come forward to take credit? The artist certainly deserves credit for a job well done! In 2013 the Minnesota Iceman showed up again, after being out of the public eye for many years, went for sale on eBay, claiming to be the original prop used by Hansen in the late 60’s and early 70’s. It sold to a man named Steve Busti, owner of the Museum of the Weird in Austin, Texas. I was thrilled to learn that the Iceman was going to be on loan to the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine. Looking for an excuse for a road trip, my nephew and I decided to take the 3 hour drive (4-1/2 hours after hitting Boston traffic and torrential rain storms) on August 21, 2015. I had no idea what to expect. I knew it was the “fake” Iceman but didn’t know how it would be displayed. On the one hand it would be cool if it was in ice but on the other hand, I really wanted to be able to see it clearly to appreciate the time and effort that went into making it. There was only one rule: no photography! I understood why as owner Loren Coleman wanted as many people as possible to come and see the Iceman in person during its limited run from August, 2015 until February, 2016. If people post pictures all over the internet, why visit? In fact all pictures of the Iceman used in this blog are from Google. As soon as you entered the museum, the display case was in the first room, right near the admissions’ desk. The wooden case was glass-topped with a large piece of cloth covering what was inside. You had to move the cloth to see the body. Let me say that I was very impressed with this creation! It is very well made and if this is the actual one used in the early 70’s, then the creator should be commended. The detail is beautiful and even not enshrouded in ice is very realistic. For me, the 4-1/2 hour trip was worth it just to see this piece of history and the International Cryptozoology Museum should be commended for obtaining it for that limited run. More recently, in 2017 and 2018, I made my way to Austin, Texas and got to see the Iceman on display at his permanent home. My girlfriend had been to the Museum of the Weird on a previous visit to Austin and was very excited to share it with me, knowing how much I love this kind of thing. Upon entering I was totally overwhelmed by their gift shop, one of the best I have ever seen, with so many great things to look at and be tempted to buy. For an additional fee you could then enter the back room featuring so many great tributes to the world of the sideshow. From there, a tour guide brings you to yet another location, featuring the Iceman on ice in a freezer that looks like a giant coffin. Here the guide answers your questions about the Iceman and then proceeds to do a show for the audience that is a combination of magic and sideshow trickery. This show was very entertaining though at times not for the squeamish. For example, after hammering a nail up into his nasal cavity, my girlfriend proceeded to remove it with a rusty pair of pliers. Great stuff! Seeing the Iceman was like stepping back in time to an era where people were entertained by leaving their houses with their friends and family for a few hours, to enjoy a carnival or to take a chance to see what was behind the curtain. Though it was great to see him out of the ice in Maine, seeing him encased in ice is how he should be displayed. Even though I knew it was fake, the ice added such an air of mystery to the display and I can see how, when it was originally on display, people would believe it was real (of course, perhaps at one time it actually was). The only thing missing was the hint of rotting flesh smell. To think that back in the 60’s and 70’s this display created such a stir, with people not only validating its authenticity as an honest to goodness missing link but to also have police and the FBI concerned enough that an actual corpse was being used for this display. This is unheard of these days. This display is such an important part of American history, regardless of whether there once was a real body of a bigfoot of missing link or just a big hoax. Whatever it was, the Minnesota Iceman will remain in the history books as a what-if moment. What if the original body on display truly was the missing link? How would that change everything we thought about the evolution of man? All I know is that it is a hell of a story; one that should be shared and kept alive for future generations. Don’t forget to read my other posts in my CABINET OF CURIOSITIES series! If you would like to purchase the books I referenced here, just click on the images below.

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Iran: No progress on human rights In the submission prepared for the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Iran in October-November 2014, Amnesty International noted the following concerns: - Executions, including of juvenile offenders, carried out in violation of international standards for fair trial. - Torture and other ill-treatment in detention centres continue to be committed with impunity, - Violence against women and girls, - Discrimination on grounds of sex, sexual orientation, ethnic identity or religious belief. - Religious and ethnic minorities. - Criminalization of Adult same-sex sexual conduct. - Undue restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly, affecting in particular human rights defenders, trade unionists, women’s rights activists, journalists and student activists, - Control of universities, including by limiting academic freedoms. Read the full report here

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Customize your JAMA Network experience by selecting one or more topics from the list below. A 15-MONTH-OLD child had a 4-day history of fever and a 1-day history of a rash. On physical examination she was irritable and had a temperature of 38. 3°C. Scattered vesicles were present on her thumb and fifth toe (Figure 1), erythematous papules and a few vesicles were present over her perineum (Figure 2), and a few superficially eroded papules were evident on her lips (Figure 3). The lesions were gone 3 days later, but a playmate presented with early findings of a similar exanthem. Slavin KA, Frieden IJ. Picture of the Month. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1998;152(5):505–506. doi:10. 1001/archpedi. 152. 5.505 Monkeypox Resource Center

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© All Rights Reserved Sharon E Sailors return from Zanzibar with tales of the heavy scent of cloves that can be smelt even before the island is visible on the horizon. Zanzibar, known alternatively as the Spice Island, has made its impression on the world for centuries, acting as a significant trading port for Arabs and Europeans alike. Now, in a smart political move that's had great ramifications for tourists, the island has joined forces with Tanganyika to form Tanzania. Travelling there never looked so good. The fine attractions of Zanzibar are packaged together with the mainland's equally impressive collection of crowd-drawers: Mount Kilimanjaro (Africa's tallest peak and arguably its most rewarding climb), Dar es Salaam (the capital and hub of cultural activity), Serengeti National Park (for East Africa's best safari) and the sensational Ngorongoro Crater. The range and frequency of Tanzania's highlights makes it one of your best bets for a great East African holiday. Tanzania is probably one of the oldest countries ever to be known continuously inhabited areas on Earth; fossil remains of humans and pre-human hominids have been found dating back over two million years. About 2,000 years ago, Bantu-speaking people began to arrive from western Africa in a series of migrations. Later, Nilotic pastoralists arrived, and continued to immigrate into the area through to the 18th century. Travellers and merchants from the Persian Gulf and Western India have visited the East African coast since early in the first millennium AD. Islam was practised on the Swahili coast as early as the eighth or ninth century AD. Claiming the coastal strip, Omani Sultan Seyyid Said moved his capital to Zanzibar City in 1840. During this time, Zanzibar became the center for the Arab slave trade. In the late 19th century, Imperial Germany conquered the regions that are now Tanzania (minus Zanzibar), Rwanda, and Burundi, and incorporated them into German East Africa. During World War I, an invasion attempt by the British was thwarted by German General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, who then mounted a drawn out guerrilla campaign against the British. The post-World War I accords and the League of Nations charter designated the area a British Mandate, except for a small area in the northwest, which was ceded to Belgium and later became Rwanda and Burundi). British rule came to an end in 1961 after a relatively peaceful (compared with neighbouring Kenya, for instance) transition to independence, with Julius Nyerere as the first president. After the Zanzibar Revolution overthrew the Arab regime in neighboring Zanzibar, which had become independent in 1963, the island merged with mainland Tanganyika to form the nation of Tanzania on 26 April 1964. Nyerere set up one-party rule. The communist bloc powers of China, East Germany and the USSR established friendly relations with the new regime. Corruption was rampant. Years of socialism left the country as one of the poorest, the least developed and the most aid-dependent in the world. From the mid 1980s, the regime financed itself by borrowing from the International Monetary Fund and underwent some reforms. From the mid 1980s Tanzania's GDP per capita has grown and poverty has been reduced and tourism has risen to proportions which are becoming almost beyond sustainability. At 947,300 km², Tanzania is the world's 31st-largest country. Compared to other African countries, it is slightly smaller than Egypt and comparable in size to Nigeria. It lies mostly between latitudes 1° and 12°S, and longitudes 29° and 41°E. Tanzania is mountainous in the northeast, where Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, is situated. To the north and west are Lake Victoria (Africa's largest lake) and Lake Tanganyika (the continent's deepest lake, known for its unique species of fish); to the southwest lies Lake Nyasa. Central Tanzania comprises a large plateau, with plains and arable land. The eastern shore is hot and humid, with the island of Zanzibar lying just offshore. Tanzania contains many large and ecologically significant wildlife parks, including the famous Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti National Park in the north, and Selous Game Reserve and Mikumi National Park in the south. Gombe National Park in the west is known as the site of Dr. Jane Goodall's studies of chimpanzee behaviour. The government of Tanzania through its department of tourism has embarked on a campaign to promote the Kalambo water falls in the southwestern region of Rukwa as one of Tanzania's main tourist destinations. The Kalambo Falls are the second highest in Africa and are located near the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika. The Menai Bay Conservation Area is Zanzibar's largest marine protected area. The Engaresero village on the Western shores of Lake Natron has been chosen by the government of Tanzania to exemplify the Maasai pastoral system given its singularity, integrity, high diversity of habitats and biodiversity. The site also has major additional significance, because of the presence of Lake Natron and the volcano Ol Doinyo Lengai, which have immense ecological, geological and cultural value. The community has demonstrated a strong resilience in facing threats to their systems, and has maintained associated social and cultural institutions, which ensure its sustainability under prevailing environmental conditions. Tanzania is one of the best countries in Africa to experience a real African safari and along with Kenya it probably is the best in East Africa. For more information about a safari in Tanzania check the safari article for more details about possibilities, costs and parks to choose from. Tanzania's oldest and most popular national park, the Serengeti National Park is famed for its annual migration, when some six million hooves pound the open plains, as more than 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle join the wildebeest’s trek for fresh grazing. © All Rights Reserved Utrecht The Ngorongoro Crater with its steep walls of 610 metres has become a natural enclosure for a very wide variety of wildlife, including most of the species found in East Africa, except the giraffe. Aside from herds of zebra, gazelle and wildebeest, the crater is home to the "big five" of rhinoceros, lion, leopard, elephant and buffalo, and is often an excellent chance to see wildlife. The Selous Game Reserve is the second biggest game reserve of Africa and you can find wild dogs, elephants, black rhinos, crocodiles, cheetahs, and many more different kinds of wildlife living in the same areas. Relatively undisturbed by human impact, this is a great place to go and usually a better option that the more crowded Serengeti National Park. Covering 50,000 square kilometres of land, this Reserve was made an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. There are a few good lodges that you can stay at in the Reserve, as well as many different guided safaris. Katavi National Park isn't the biggest park in Tanzania but it is by far the most remote and is jam packed with game. It's famous for having the highest density of mammals per square kilometre of all Tanzanias parks and for its huge herds of buffalo (up to 2,000). However, the best feature is that few people know about Katavi. Because of that, it only receives about 300 visitors per year in comparison with Serengeti's 2 million. The park entrance fees are also considerably less than all other Tanzanian parks. © All Rights Reserved robandpol Lake Tanganyika is the longest and second deepest lake in the world. It is also estimated to be the second largest freshwater lake in the world by volume. It is not easy to get to, but the long dirt roads are well worth it. It is absolutely stunning and its crystal clear waters are full with at least 250 different kinds of fish. Since 2004, the lake has been a massive focus to monitor the state of the lake, improve water quality, and set common criteria for acceptable levels of sediments and pollution. In fact, the water is so clean that in some places of Lake Tanganyika, you can drink it! Unification Day - Arguably one of the biggest celebrations in Tanzania, Unification Day is celebrated on April 26, when the Zanzibar Islands joined Tanganyika (now known as the Republic of Tanzania) in 1964. Locals get dressed up in their traditional garb in the main cities and you can expect plenty of flag waving and parades. Tanzania generally has a warm tropical climate with humid weather year round. Temperatures are generally around 30 °C during the day and still above 20 °C at night at most places around the coast and on Zanzibar as well as places more south and west. In the central and central north though conditions are somewhat different with temperatures during the day slightly lower during the cooler June to September period, but a bit higher in the hot December to February period. Night temperatures can drop below 10 °C at night though during the cooler June to September period, mainly because of the altitude of places like Arusha and the capital Dodoma. The central parts of the country have a totally dry time during these months as well, whereas the coastal areas and Zanzibar never are entirely dry. Instead, they have a long wet season from March to May with April being the wettest month. It can rain for several days on end, whereas during the short wet period from late October to early December rain usually comes in late afternoon downpours. Note that some parts like the Ngorongoro Crater Rim and the higher parts of the Kilimanjaro mountain never get really hot. Air Tanzania is the national airline of the country and is based at Julius Nyerere International Airport (DAR) near Dar es Salaam. It offers flights to/from Blantyre, Lilongwe, Arusha, Moroni, Entebbe, Juba, Nairobi, Harare, London, Johannesburg, Kilimanjaro International Airport, Addis Ababa, Anjouan, Cairo, Lusaka, Dubai, Amsterdam, Maputo, Muscat, Doha, Kigali, Zürich and Istanbul. Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) is probably of more importance to travellers as it is closer to the Kilimanjaro mountain and safari parks. There are direct flights from Amsterdam with KLM and Frankfurt with Condor. Other flights are mainly within the continent. Centrally located in Zambia, north of the capital Lusaka, Kapiri Mposhi is the starting point of a two nights trainride to Dar es Salaam on the Tanzanian coast. From here you can travel further by boat or plane to the tropical island of spices, Zanzibar. This so called TAZARA Railway (Tanzania-Zambia Railway) operates scheduled services twice a week, leaving in both ends of the line on Tuesdays and Fridays around 4:00pm, arriving on Thursdays and Sundays at 9:30am in Zambia, but after noon in the other direction in Dar es Salaam. Travelling to and from Tanzania is straightforward, provided you have your car papers and insurance in order. A bribe usually is not necessary, though you never know in Africa. You can use a lot of border crossings, mainly with Kenya, Zambia, Rwanda and Malawi. There are boats across Lake Tanganyika to and from Zambia and across Lake Malawi to and from Malawi. The trip to Zambia starts in Kigoma, usually on Fridays or Satudays. There are ferries between southwestern Tanzania and Mozambique via Malawi on the MV Songea between Mbamba Bay and Nkhata Bay. From here it goes on to Likoma Island (Malawi), Cóbuè and Metangula (both in Mozambique) on the MV Ilala. The MV Ilala departs from Monkey Bay (Malawi) at 10am Friday, arriving in Metangula (via Chipoka and Nkhotakota in Malawi) at 6am Saturday, reaching Cóbuè (Mozambique) around midday, Likoma Island at 1. 30pm and Nkhata Bay at 1am Sunday morning. In southern direction departures are at 8pm Monday from Nkhata Bay and at 6. 30am Tuesday from Likoma Island, reaching Cóbuè at 7am and Metangula at midday. Tanzania has four international airports located within its borders and over 100 smaller airports or landing strips. Precision Air flies between Bukoba, Kigoma, Kilimanjaro, Musoma, Mwanza, Shinyanga, Tabora and Zanzibar. Air Tanzania has several flights as well between Zanzibar, Dar es Salaam and Mwanza. http://www.coastal.cc|Coastal Air]] has flights between many private air strips and the country and the major towns and cities, as well as the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Mafia. Tanzania Railways Corporation has services from Dar es Salaam to the interior at Tabora. Here, a branch goes to Kigoma in the west and one goes south to Mwanza. Tanzania and Zambia Railway Authority has twice a week trains between Dar es Salaam and Zambia, with stops in Tanzania on the route as well. Tanzania has a surprisingly well maintained network of tarred roads, which constitutes for 80% of its passenger traffic, and some secondary dirt roads which are passable at all times. Many other roads on the other hand become impassable after heavy rains. It is best to rent 4wd vehicles, especially if you want to explore the beautiful national parks that Tanzania has to offer. Traffic drives on the left and cars can be hired at major cities like Dar es Salaam and Arusha, also with a driver if you prefer. A national driver's licence is valid as long as it is in English, otherwise an international driving permit is recommended. Note that it is expensive to rent cars, so it is best to split up the costs with several persons. There are dozens of bus companies, one of which is Scandinavia Express (yes, you have read it right! ), offering services between all major cities and regional towns, like Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Tabora, Dodoma, Mwanza, Moshi, Morogoro and Kigoma. Alongside the large bus companies are smaller independents who run 'Dala Dala's'. These are small people carriers, transit vans and converted pick-up trucks. They run all the main routes and many more. Simply turn up, hop on and off you go. There are two slight drawbacks, they only go when they are full and even when they are full, they can squeeze more on. In general though, they are cheap, fast and fun. Azam Marine and Sea Express run frequent, fast and comfortable hydrofoils and catamarans between Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar, taking around one and a half hour each way. There are also services from Zanzibar to Pemba. There are ferries on Lake Tanganyika and Lake Victoria. There is an overnight service on Lake Victoria between the ports of Bukoba and Mwanza which takes 10 hours. The service on Lake Tanganyika runs between Kigoma in the west of Tanzania and Mpulunga in Zambia at the south of the lake, stopping at other Tanzanian places as well. It's a great country to cycle through. Traffic can be bad at times, so it can be dangerous especially since bikes don't have the right of way. It's best to keep an eye out for cars. In the rural areas, watch out for the wildlife and predators! Nationals of the following countries do not need a visa: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, Brunei, Cyprus, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malaysia, Malawi, Malta, Maldives, Mauritius, Namibia, Nauru, Sao Tome & Principe, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Swaziland, Tuvalu, Tonga, Uganda, Vanuatu, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Also no visa is required for stays of less than 3 months for citizens of Namibia, Romania, Rwanda, Hong Kong and all commonwealth member states (except the United kingdom, Canada, Bangladesh, New Zealand, Nigeria, India, & South Africa). The latter Commonwealth countries ad most other nationalities can get a visa upon arrival for a fee which is usually around $50, but can be higher for some foreigners. Double entry visas are usually twice as expensive as well, around $100. You can get the visa upon arrival at Dar-es-Salaam International Airport, Kilimanjaro International Airport, Zanzibar International Airport and Namanga boarder crossing point between Tanzania and Kenya. Some other points might join this list later, but for now you will need a visa beforehand if travelling from Mozambique or Rwanda for example. In general, it is advised to obtain a visa before you arrive in Tanzania, because some rules tend to change now and then. Most times though, travellers will be fine to get one upon arrival. The following nationalities cannot get a visa on arrival: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Gambia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Somalia , Sudan, Syria, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey and Yemen. East Africa might get a single tourist visa in 2010 and the East African Community (EAC) is working towards a plan to implement this visa, which basically is one visa which is valid in five countries: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. The trial phase would be available for tourists from Germany, France, the US, Italy, Japan, Canada, South Africa, the UK, Netherlands, Belgium and the Scandinavian countries. See also Money Matters The local currency is the Shilling, which can only be obtained in Tanzania. Coins are available in 50, 100 and 1,000 cents and bank notes in denominations of 500, 1000, 2000, 5,000 and 10,000 shillings. Please note that older or torn notes are not accepted everywhere, so you should carry newer bank notes. The 10,000 and 5,000 notes can be difficult to break when shopping in small shops, a. k.a. dukas. In Tanzania, it's usually the customer's responsibility to provide exact change. But if they do agree to provide change, you could be left with several 1000 and 500 notes of very poor quality. However, you won't have such problems in the large hotels and restaurants catering to foreigners. US dollars are welcome in all shops, but they often give back in Shilling at unfarourable exchange rates. ATM's can be found in many large cities and usually have their own security guards. Please note that the daily cash withdrawal limit is about US$300 which you receive in local Tanzanian Shilling. Foreign currency can be exchanged at banks, bureau de changes and most hotels have forex facilities (keep in mind that the rates here can be higher than the ones in banks). Please note that money exchange on streets is prohibited and even dangerous. Major banks are open from 09:00am-3:00pm Monday till Friday and from 09:00am-11:00am on Saturdays. International credit cards are accepted by most stores, restaurants, hotels, camps, lodges, car rental firms etc. However they are not widely used and many small shops in rural areas will not accept them. You will have to pay a surcharge between 5-15%, if you use a credit card. Tanzania does not have any restrictions about the amount of foreign currency or travellers cheques you may bring with you. There is a wide assortment of volunteer organisations sending volunteers and interns to Tanzania to do work in health care, orphanages, education, and development projects. Finding a paying job may be more of a daunting task, taking more time and making use of local connections, but a job could be certainly obtainable when sought hard enough. Various schools and volunteer programs offer courses ranging from Beginners Swahili to Economic Development. Dar es Salaam also has a well-established University, which has exchange programs with several universities in the US and other countries. The two most spoken languages are the Bantu Swahili language and English, the latter inherited by colonial rule. They serve as the two official languages. Currently, around 10% of people from Tanzania speak Swahili as a first language, and up to 90% of them speak it as a second language. Most Tanzanians are not only bilingual, knowing how to speak Swahili as well as their local language, but many are also trilingual and are able to speak English. Tanzania is a multilingual country; they have many languages that are spoken in their country but no single language is spoken natively by a majority of the population. There are over 129 languages that exist in Tanzania, 126 are still actively being spoken and 3 are no longer spoken or ‘extinct’. . Within Tanzania’s various populations and ethnic groups, they typically speak their mother tongues within their own communities. Among the languages spoken in Tanzania, all of the four major languages of Africa’s language families are present including: Bantu, Cushitic, Nilotic, and Khoisan. The two official languages, English and Swahili, are used to varying degrees of fluency when communicating with other populations. In 1984, the nation announced that Swahili is the language of the political sphere and primary/adult education, and English would be the language of secondary education/universities, technology, and the courts. People are encouraged to use Swahili, particularly in urban areas, as often as possible in an attempt to unify the many different ethnic groups that live in Tanzania. The food in Tanzania is of a relatively high standard, with less chance of catching stomach complaints than in other countries in the region. As with many other African countries, their most common cultural dish is Ugali. Usually composed of corn, with a similar consistency to a stiff paste or porridge, this dish isn't bad to eat for those who have never tried it before! Other local foods that are typically eaten are mixtures of cassava and millet flours (also used for ugali), rice, cooked green bananas, beef, goat meat, beans, fish, and leafy green vegetables. Street food is also cheap and plentiful. Barbecued maize on the cob is very nice, as are the chipped potatoes (fries), cooked over a roaring fire. Mandazi is a sweet doughnut-styled food that is mostly made fresh each morning. Great with coffee in the morning, it makes an ideal snack. Although Tanzania is still considered a third world country, there are many great places to stay, especially the parks, on Zanzibar and some larger cities. Accommodation options range from backpacker hostels and cheap pensions to luxurious hotels and lodges and anything in between. One of the other great places to stay in Tanzania is in the south in a place called Selous Game Reserve, which is Africa’s largest reserve as well as a World heritage site. You can see all kinds of wildlife there including elephants, cheetahs, rhinos, hippos, and crocodiles. Although accommodation is somewhat limited there, there are plenty of nice places to stay. In Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's largest and richest city there are many different hotels and guest houses to stay. Bottled water is cheap and widely available throughout the country. You shouldn't drink the tap water unless you have no other option, and it must either be filtered with a high quality filter and purifier or brought to a boil before consumption. Recent tests on tap water have found it contaminated with e-coli bacteria. Konyagi is a wonderful gin-like beverage, sold only in Tanzania. Domestic beers are Kilimanjaro, Serengeti and Safari, which are western-style and very good. Imports include Tusker, Stella Artois, and Castle. Locally produced banana-beer is also available at times, but questionably safe to drink. Traditionally, you will drink this out of a hollowed gourd. First drink the guests, who then pass it to the elders. In some parts of Tanzania, fermented bamboo juice (Pombe) is the common tipple. Passion fruit, mango, and orange juices are available in many restaurants, and excellent when the fruits are in season. Soft drinks are widely available; Stoney Tangawizi (ginger ale - tangawizi means 'ginger', in Swahili) is one of the most popular. Other popular beverages are Orange Fanta, Bitter Lemon, Soda Water, Tonic Water, and Lassi (a sweet or salty yogurt drink). See also Travel Health There are no vaccinations legally required to travel to Tanzania. There are two exceptions though. You have to have a cholera stamp (prove of the fact that you don't have that desease) when going to Zanzibar. And you need a yellow fever vaccination if you have travelled to a country (7 days or less before entering Tanzania) where that disease is widely prevalent. A yellow fever vaccination is recommended anyway! Still, it's a good thing to get your vaccinations in order before travelling to Tanzania. The general vaccination against Diphtheria, Tetanus and Polio (DTP) is recommended. Also both hepatitis A as well as typhoid would be recommended. If you are staying longer than 3 months or have a particular risk (travelling by bike, handling of animals, visits to caves) you might consider a rabies vaccination. Vaccination against Tuberculosis as well as hepatitis B are also sometimes recommended for stays longer than 3 months. When staying longer than 6 months, vaccination against meningitis might be recommended, depending on your contact with other people. Like most African countries south of the Sahara, Malaria is prevalent in the country. Don't underestimate this tropical disease and take precautions. Buy repellent (preferably with 50% DEET), and sleep under a net. Finally, other possible health issues include diarrhea and other general travellers' diseases like motion sickness. Watch what you eat and drink and in case you get it, drink plenty of fluids (to prevent dehydration) and bring ORS. Also note that Southern Africa and thus Tanzania as well has a high percentage of people with AIDS. See also Travel Safety In general Tanzania is a safe country to travel around, though you are advised to keep an eye out when in Dar es Salaam, especially at night. Better to avoid quiet streets and take taxis instead. Your biggest hazards will probably be natural ones, like heat or the altitude when going up Mount Kilimanjaro, or mosquitos which can transmit diseases. Also traffic can be a problem, with regular accidents, also with small planes sometimes and recently a ferry between the mainland and Zanzibar. If the boat seems to crowded, it usually is. Major tourist areas and cities have internet cafes and many hotels offer (free) wifi nowadays. Connections can be slower at more remote places. Also safari oriented places offer some sort of internet connections as well, by computers or wifi. See also International Telephone Calls The International Dialling Code for Tanzania is +255, followed by area codes (e. g. (0)22 for Dar es Salaam, or (0)27 for Arusha). Calling from Tanzania, you dial 00 plus the relevant country code (44 for the UK, 1 for the USA). There are four cell providers in Tanzania: Zain (the major one), Zantel, Vodacom and Tigo, who all offer roaming facilities. Connections are good in Tanzania, even in places such as Tarangire, Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, and some parts of the Serengeti (the western and northern region of the Serengeti not). You can buy the prepaid cards in amounts ranging from $5 to $50. You can even buy a cell phone while in Tanzania. The price for a simple cell phone ranges between $55 and $80. Avoid roaming charges with you home cellphone and turn it off. Instead, use a local SIM card or just wifi. Tanzania Posts Corporation is the national postal services of Tanzania. There are post officies in most major cities and towns throughout the country, which are generally open Monday to Friday from 8:00am to 4:30pm and Saturday from 9:00am to noon. Services are generally quite reliable though not very fast. Prices for international airmal services start at around 500-600 TSHS to other countries in East Africa and 700-900 TSHS to Europe and North America for postcards and letters up to 20 grams. Small packages start at around 2,000-3,000 TSHS, but it's generally better to do business with international parcel services like TNT, UPS, DHL or FedEx. Help contribute to this article to share the ad revenue. Ask African Son a question about Tanzania I'm working in a tourist company called African Son Tours,actually we don't compete with other but we add value on what others offers and we know well about tourism industry. Ask jacksong a question about Tanzania Lived there for a year Ask Stefano H a question about Tanzania Hi everyone, I am native Tanzanian who knows well my country, area, people, attractions and culture. I am a native Swahili speaker, I speak English too and basic Chinese. I would be glad to help answer your questions concerning Safari & Tours, Cultural Tourism, History, Mountains Climbing and Treks, Beach and Walking Safaris. Feel free to email me: email@example. com Ask January Nicolas a question about Tanzania I am Tourguide/Tour leader, Bird expert, Conservationist and the founder of Bird environment community, You are warmly welcome for any kind of question based in Tourism industry and conservation. Always willing to help people who need to plan for their visit in our elegance Nation Tanzania Dar es salaam. Ask Ally Simba a question about Tanzania Hi, my complete name is Ally Simba. I am a native Tanzanian who knows the area and Tanzania culture very well. I am hereby assisting and help you regards any question concerning Safaris & tours, Culture & history, Climbing & treks, Beach & bush and other rare things found in Tanzania. I will volunteer my time to answer your kindly questions you may have. Please welcome! Except where otherwise noted, content of this article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3. 0 License

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Provided for Adults and Children in Croydon and the surrounding areas. Dedicated to Transforming Lives Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a type of therapy helps clients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviour. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of disorders, including phobias, addictions, depression, and anxiety. Cognitive behaviour therapy is generally short-term and focused on helping clients deal with a very specific problem. During treatment, people learn how to identify and change destructive or disturbing thought patterns that have a negative influence on behaviour and emotions. Psychodynamic approaches to PTSD focus on a number of different factors that may influence or cause PTSD symptoms, such as early childhood experiences (particularly our level of attachment to our parents), current relationships and the things people do (often without being aware of it) to protect themselves from upsetting thoughts and feelings that are the result of experiencing a traumatic event (these "things" are called "defence mechanisms"). For example, they may lead you to avoid starting a relationship with someone, because the relationship could bring up some of these painful feelings. Therefore, just as with cognitive-behavioural therapy, psychodynamic therapy also wants to bring about changes in behaviour. It is just that the road it takes to get there is Humanistic therapy is exploring how a person feels in the here and now, rather than trying to identify past events that led to these feelings. Additionally, the humanistic approach provides an atmosphere of support, empathy, and trust that allows the individual to share their feelings without fear of judgement. The therapist does not act as an authority figure; rather, the relationship between the client and the therapist is one of Goal setting is at the foundation of SFBT; one of the first steps is to identify and clarify your goals. I will begin by questioning what you hope to get out of therapy and how, specifically, your life would change when steps were taken to resolve problems. By answering these types of questions, you can begin to identify solutions and come up with a plan for change. One of the key question’s therapists asks is called the miracle question: “If a miracle occurred while you were asleep tonight, what changes would you notice in your life tomorrow? ” This opens your mind to creative thinking and, again, to setting goals and developing a clear plan that will lead to life-changing solutions. Unlike traditional forms of therapy that take time to analyze problems, pathology and past life events, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) concentrates on finding solutions in the present time and exploring one’s hope for the future to find the quicker resolution of one’s problems. This method takes the approach that you know what you need to do to improve your own life and, with the appropriate coaching and questioning. Is a technique for slowing down and examining one’s thought processes and learning to be fully present in the moment. In the practice of mindfulness, we bring attention to our experience in the present moment. We let go of our regrets and rumination about the past, or our worries about the future and return our attention to what is happening right now. We start by focusing on the sounds in the room, the sensations of the breath, or the feeling of sitting in a chair with our feet touching the floor. As we develop this skill of being open to and accepting of whatever is emerging, we become more present in our experience and that of others. As we become less distracted and preoccupied with our own concerns, we can listen more fully.

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Mên-an-Tol : Madron – Cornwall, England Mên-an-Tol, or “Stone of the hole” in Cornish (a Brythonic Celtic language), was centuries ago called the Devil’s Eye. Legend has it that faeries and trows (trolls; or drow, meaning ghost, spirits) could only be seen by looking through the ‘eye’ of a holey stone. Through the ages, locals have crept through the eye of the stone (nine times, against the sun) in search of a cure for pain or rheumatism. (The age of the stones are uncertain, but they are usually assigned to the Bronze age 3000 – 4000 years ago. ) Mên-an-Tol is renowned for curing many ailments, including lower back pain and particularly rickets in children, which has resulted in the local name of Crick Stone. Recent discovery of recumbent stones buried nearby indicates these three granite stones were once part of a stone-circle. Holey stones are also called dian-stane from the Norse dynestein, meaning thunderstone. In Scandinavian folklore they are thought to fall from the sky during storms, hurdled by Thor at the heads of trolls to keep them in control, lest they overtake the land. Legend has it they will protect from lightning strike and as a result they were built into many farmsteads or hung from a string near the door for protection. Once used to protect horses, holey stones were also thought to be sun stones, and were hung from the plough with horsehair when tilling fields in the spring. The stone was placed to face the sun while tilling – a blessing for bringing the return of warmth to the land. When the days work was done, the holey stone was returned to a nail in the stables to protect the animals therein. Holed stones are often called Odin stones, a term rising from the Elder Edda. A wise giant, a travelling teacher named Kvasir was killed by dwarves, who then mixed his blood with honey to form the Mead of Poetry. A tiny sip of the magical mead would make anyone skáld eða frœðamaðr, (a poet and scholar). Secretly, under the name of Bölverk, (fictitious names are Neptune ruled) Odin tilled the fields of the family who had hidden the magical mead in the mountain. Bölverk sought a taste of mead in payment for his work. When they would not allow Bölverk in the cave, he devised a plan. Odin convinced one brother to help him – Odin let him use the magical auger Rati to drill a hole through the stone into the cavern where the mead was guarded. Odin quickly transformed into a snake, entered the hole, and stole the mead for his people in Asgard. Odin stones have been worn for protection against ill omens, lightning strike, snake venom and the evil eye. For an Odin to have power as an amulet, it cannot be bought or sold – it must be found and freely given. Odin stones were revered by Druids, and are steeped in mythology and legends across the world. They are said to be windows into other worlds, living earth spirits. When peering through the hole on a full moon, the world of faerie and spirits can be seen. They represent the doorway between the physical and the spiritual, endowing the wearer with high psychic powers. By historical accounts lovers would visit The Standing Stones o’ Stenness (called by some accounts the Temple of the Moon) where the woman would kneel and pray to the god, Wodden (Odin) that they would keep the vows they were about to make. The lovers would then walk one mile Northwest to the Ring o’ Brodgar (called by some the Temple of the Sun, pictured above) where the man would kneel in ritual prayer. To finalize the oath, they would return to the Standing Stones o’ Stenness, to an area approximately 150 yards north of the ring of Stenness stones where the Odin stone once stood (since destroyed, artist rendering 3rd from the top). Clasping hands through the Odin stone, they would speak aloud their sacred vows to one another. Vows taken in this manner could not be broken. One of my college buddies grew up in geode country and was very familiar with holey stones. She lived in what she called the magic cabin (It was – and it had geodes set into the rock foundation) and carried a holey stone on her keyring in case she lost them, saying, “you don’t find them, they find you”. They are called Odin stones, seer stones, witch stones, faerie stones, holey stones, among many other things. They represent goddess energy manifest in stone, the Womb of the Earth, a symbol of the divine feminine. American Indians call them Watai (a link between the visible and the invisible), the Lakota believe the stones are inhabited by the Inyan, the Stone People. The stone spirits pass along ancient knowledge, wisdom and strength of the ages. Just as all humans have an animal totem, they also have a stone ally. To find your stone ally, be respectful of place, leave an offering, a gift to Gaia. Feel the energy of the stone as you hold it. Be aware of what emotions and thoughts drift in your mind’s eye as you make friends with the stone. Only you will know which stone is right for you. Follow your heart, trust your instincts. Wodden, Wodan, Woden, Odin is the Anglo-Saxon god who hung from the world tree, Yggdrasil, for nine days to gain divine insight – which resulted in the Runic alphabet. To find asteroids pertaining to the Norse God in your natal chart: enter 2155 for Wodan ; Odin is 3989. Score yet another Wowser moment for astrology. You don’t have to believe it for it to work, folks. I looked at my Wodan / Odin for the first time just before wrapping up this post. Odin in my natal dovetails into my 9th house Virgo stellium. By transit, Odin has just passed my Mercury in Libra and is applying to midheaven. Writing ! Woden in my natal is 22 degrees Virgo, Mars Rx is applying within minutes of exact as I write this. Woden by transit is applying to my natal Mars within 2 degrees of separation. My most highly aspected planet, Neptune (22 degrees Scorpio natal exact sextile to Woden) returns home tomorrow. My lucky number – two. groOovy baby ! 2 = duality, balance, choice, polarites and relationships 4 = foundation, materialization, structure and stability For the record, the last time Neptune entered Pisces was 1848, the year of the California gold rush.

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Animating Light and Shade Animating Light and Shade in 2D: With Animate and After Effects : How can you 2D animate a shade, casted by a moving light? One solution is to combine frame/cel animation with shape layer animation and get the best out of each craft. Lighting and shading is an essential part of an illustrations style and expression- so it’s a shame to exclude this when we animate! Follow along my process and get new insights when it comes to animating shade. By the end, you’ll be able to create unique 2D animations by combining different animation techniques. You’ll learn how to: - Import and prepare a character (with shade) for animating frame by frame in Adobe Animate (Flash) - Make guides and plan for drawing a moving shade - Frame-by-frame/cel animate the shade - Transfer your project from Animate to After effects - Add texture and expression with effects in After Effects - Export an animated loop Whether you’re an illustrator who’s curious about animation, or a motion designer looking to solve a new problem, learning a combination of frame-by-frame and shape layer animation will open up new possibilities for your work to evolve. This class is open to all levels, though some experience with Adobe software, and in the best case After Effects, is suggested to make it easier to follow along. To finish the class project, you’ll need a version of any frame-by-frame animation software and After Effects. The shade animation will be easier to do if you have access to a digital drawing device. There is plenty in the subject this class doesn’t cover. To educate yourself further in animation, consider looking into classes covering: the concept phase of animation (like storyboarding); the 12 principles of animation (like squash and stretch) and the graph editor in After Effects. Watch the Introduction Video : Direct download links 627 MB : CGArchives Is The Best

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KAIWA ONLINE Classroom – Conversation is communication between two or more people, so it will be difficult to work if you study by yourself. Kaiwa Online class will help you study anywhere, with the feeling almost like direct Kaiwa class. This is an online course for students from all over the world who have mastered Japanese to Chinese skills, who want to practice and develop their Japanese speaking skills. Practice conversation in Japanese on common situations and topics, based on the use of knowledge of the relevant competence level. The set of textbooks and supplementary materials compiled by Saigon Language Center. The course is designed 100% of the time with Japanese teachers. Use 100% Japanese during the lesson, to help students practice reflection, explanation and direct communication in Japanese. – Study at home, no need to go away. Convenient, safe. – Direct interaction with Japanese teachers & Classmates, more communicative than many existing self-Learning software and applications. – Study and practice on topics, focusing on related vocabulary, grammar, from simple content to achieve the best effect. |BASIC JAPANESE COURSE SYSTEM| |Level||General capacity||Chinese characters||Vocabulary (words)||Level| |N5||Understand basic Japanese at a certain level||100||800||Beginner| |N4||Understand basic Japanese:||300||1,500||Basic| |N3||Understanding Japanese language in everyday contexts is limited||700||4,000||Intermediate| |N2||Understand Japanese in everyday contexts and in a variety of contexts||1000||6,000||middle advanced| |N1||Understand Japanese in a variety of contexts||Over 2,000||Over 10,000||advanced|

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For three days a week, Wayne Garcia has been getting an unconventional workout. He starts by putting on a virtual reality (VR) headset. He then gets on a specially designed exercise bike and starts peddling. He is taking part in a study at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine to see if a dose of VR can help prevent age-related cognitive decline and dementia. “It’s very scary that one day that could be me. Grandparents both had dementia. My father, he had dementia, as well, and my mom has dementia,” said Garcia, who painfully remembered his father reading the newspaper upside down and almost setting the house on fire by putting a towel on the heater. “Just the sadness — you remember what your dad was like, what your mom was like when they were all good, and then the decline now. And now you’re taking care of them rather than when they used to take care of you,” Garcia said. Garcia is participating to see if using virtual reality concurrently with exercise can help prevent dementia in the future. “The actual diagnostic definition of dementia is when a person is no longer able to take care of themselves, things like paying the bills, driving, cooking for themselves, dressing themselves. This is really late stage. It happens much later in the progression of the disease. A lot of the neurodegenerative diseases, which are the underlying ideologies of dementia, take 10, 20 years to develop,” said Judy Pa, assistant professor at the Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics in the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California (USC). Pa is part of a team of researchers studying the effects of virtual reality on the brain and cognition related to aging. Pa said unlike 2D games, VR provides a first-person, 3D immersive experience that is critical to spatial memory training. “Our goal is to prevent dementia (and) to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. There are no effective treatments yet. We hope that we will get there eventually, but my perspective and the research that we do in my laboratory at USC is really surrounding prevention,” Pa said. Targeting risk factors The VR study targets some of the risk factors of Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive dysfunction, which include a sedentary lifestyle and lack of cognitive and social stimulation. The VR study exercises the participants’ body and brain at the same time, challenging the memory and decision-making part of their brain. Participants have to pedal on the exercise bike and keep their heart rate up. In the VR experience, they are trying to learn and remember a route while picking up food items by hitting the brakes, then feeding the food to some animals. “Understanding changes in the brain that happen with exercise, changes in the brain that happen when you’re in an enriched environment and putting those two together, and that’s what our intervention is currently targeting,” Pa said. Even if virtual reality can help, it may not be for everyone. In a feasibility study, 4 out of 20 people withdrew from the research because of symptoms of motion sickness. Pa will be conducting trials over the next year with participants who are 50 to 80 years old to gather additional data. Garcia has high hopes for what VR might mean for the future. “There might be a place where you could go, and you can get your daily dose of virtual reality and cardio to keep the mind going,” he said. Still, in the early stages of research, the goal is to prevent or even delay the onset of cognitive decline so people can have a solid quality of life during their golden years.

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Decoding Area Charts: A Comprehensive Guide Area charts are graphical representations that showcase the changes over time for two or more related groups making it easier to understand overall trends. From finance to marketing, various industries use these charts to project various data sets. Keep reading to delve deeper into the realm of area charts. Understanding the Basics of Area Charts Area charts, also known as area graphs, consist of a series of data points joined by line segments with the spaces below filled with shades or colors. They are similar to line charts except for the filled areas which highlight the magnitude of changes over time. An essential caveat to using area charts is the comparison of multiple sets of data. Too many datasets can make the chart complex and hinder its decipherability. These charts are especially helpful for showcasing time-series data where one can visualize trends over time. You can understand the value associated with each point by viewing area chart examples. The neat presentation of these charts makes it effortless to analyze data trends, making them an excellent graphical tool for industries seeking to explore variations over time within similar data frames. The Functionality and Usefulness of Area Charts Area charts stand as a versatile tool in data visualization, allowing effective communication of complex information. They are extremely useful in highlighting fluctuations over a given period, especially when comparisons between multiple categories are required. This is particularly applied in the finance industry to represent price movements. Area charts are also essential tools for economists. They use these visual aids to directly observe and interpret economic indicators, different sectors’ performances, and variations in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) over a period. Furthermore, these charts are brilliant aids in representing cumulative totals, helping businesses understand sales data and market trends seamlessly. Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Area Charts Having a step-by-step guide to create area charts equips you with an invaluable skill, useful across industries. Start by identifying and organizing your datasets. It’s a best practice to use data that changes over time. Next, plot your data on the horizontal axis (time) and the vertical axis (measurement). Join all your data points to create a basic line chart before filling in the area beneath. Make sure to select distinct, contrasting colors for different data sets. This enhances visibility and ensures that viewers can clearly differentiate between various trends. Lastly, always include an informative title and labels for your axes. This increases comprehensibility and allows viewers to glean vital insights at a glance. Best Practices for Effective Area Chart Visualization To achieve effective visualization, there are a few best practices to keep in mind while working with area charts. The chart should be simple, avoiding overloading it with too many shades or data sets. This could lead to confusion and may convolute the final message. Keeping the most crucial data at the bottom of the chart makes it more readable since shading can obscure the datasets behind the foremost one. One useful pointer would be to use opacity if the data series are overlapping. This can make all the series visible to the eye, aiding overall interpretation. Finally, always prioritize data integrity. Area charts can often exaggerate proportions due to their two-dimensional nature, so, it’s crucial to represent the data accurately. Also read: What Is Fax API Technology? Real-Life Applications of Area Charts Area charts find numerous applications in real life. In finance, they’re used to display stock market trends, making it easier for investors to visualize market fluctuations. In the field of meteorology, area charts aid in representing temperature changes over a period, providing viewers with a holistic view of weather patterns. Area charts are also widely used in the healthcare industry. They are instrumental in showcasing trends like the rise and fall of disease occurrences, medication usage, or patient recovery rates over time. In conclusion, the versatility and ease of comprehension offered by area charts make them invaluable in many fields. From visualization to analysis, they serve as excellent tools to present complex data seamlessly. Understanding and using these charts effectively can dramatically improve your data interpretation skills.

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Professional and Technical Writing/Documenting Your Sources/Location Of Citations In The Text< Professional and Technical Writing | Documenting Your Sources Location Of Citations In The TextEdit •Sources are cited in the body of a text with the use of parentheses. The type of citation style will differ depending on what is put inside the parentheses. These parentheses are always put on the inside of the sentence's period or comma. Example: Using APA style formatting- According to J.C. Smith (2010, pg. 777), "It is important to always write clearly and succinctly. " Citing One Source for One Sentence, Quotation or FactEdit •For one sentence, the citation is put in parentheses immediately after the referred sentence, quotation, or fact. Example: On November 8, 2009, the world's largest cookie was made (Smith, 2009). Citing One Source for Multiple SentencesEdit •For one or more sentences, the citation should be placed in the first sentence of the group of sentences that are being cited. This sentence should introduce the material that will be discussed in the upcoming sentences. The readers will then understand that the citation refers to all the material related to this leading sentence. Example: The topic of cookies and their origins has been studied by John Smith (2009). Cookies are thought to have come from. . . They were originally used for. . . Citing Multiple Sources for One or Multiple SentencesEdit •For multiple sources, only the information inside the parentheses changes. This is dependent on what type of citation style you are using. Example: Childhood obesity is on the rise in America, creating a need for more nutrition education classes in grade schools (Smith, 2009; L. Johnson, 1998).

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Social media today plays a huge role in the ongoing drug abuse crisis in America. Although it is marketed as a safe, fun, online place to interact with friends and family (and it definitely can be), some people also abuse it for the purpose of sharing drug-related propaganda or for selling illegal substances. Social Media in Today’s World Social media platforms have an increasingly large responsibility to maintain online safety due to an ever-growing population of users. According to Tech Crunch, some of the world’s most popular social media platforms boast the following total monthly users. 1 - Facebook – 2 billion monthly users - YouTube – 1. 5 billion monthly users - Instagram – 700 million monthly users - Twitter – 328 million monthly users - WhatsApp – 1. 2 billion monthly users - Snapchat – approximately 255 million monthly users - Facebook Messenger – 1. 2 billion monthly users - WeChat – 889 million monthly users Seven in ten Americans (or 69 percent of the population) use social media. 2 Engagement on these platforms is even higher among teens and young adults, with only two percent of 13 to 33-year-olds not actively using any social media platform at all. That means 98 percent of teens and young adults are engaged with at least one social media platform today. 3 The Link Between Social Media and Drug Abuse It’s very clear that the idea of sharing our personal lives via social media is something that many Americans value and use on a daily basis. Although most (if not all) social media channels maintain some type of anti-drug policy, some of these websites do not enforce them as strictly as others, leaving plenty of opportunity for drug-related activities and sales. Illegal drugs are sold on a number of different social media platforms, including4: - Facebook Marketplace Drug dealers typically don’t sell substances on these social media sites with blatant posts proclaiming “Drugs for Sale! ” Instead, they use imagery and hashtags to engage interested buyers before migrating the conversation to an anonymous messaging app like Kik or Whisper to close the deal. 5 For example, drug dealers on Instagram may use hashtags like #kush4sale paired with images of scantily-clad women smoking marijuana to attract buyers. These potential buyers may then direct message the dealer on Instagram to get in contact with them. These conversations are often then carried to other platforms to actually purchase the drugs or arrange a meeting. Eighty-two percent of drug dealers on Instagram claim to sell marijuana, but codeine cocktails are also available from 58 percent of dealers and 20 percent are selling MDMA. 6 In addition to the illegal sales being made on these platforms, users frequently tout their own drug and alcohol abuse on their profiles with pictures and status updates, which may encourage some of their younger friends and/or peers to do the same in an effort to live up to some sort of social expectation. Combating Drug Abuse with Long-Term Rehab Drug and alcohol abuse continues to be a prevalent problem among teens, young adults, and older adults, and there’s no doubt that social media plays a part in this. In a time when drugs and alcohol are easily accessible via social media and the internet, it’s extremely important to address the drug abuse and addiction of loved ones immediately, before it gets out of hand. If you believe that a loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol, an inpatient or outpatient drug rehab program may be the best way to address the physical, psychological and behavioral aspects of their addiction. Long-term drug rehab lasting 90 days or longer has been shown to provide better outcomes for individuals who are suffering from addiction. 7 Recovery from substance abuse is a lifelong process that may require multiple episodes of treatment, such as drug detox, inpatient drug and alcohol rehab, sober living, and aftercare. If your loved one is addicted, it’s very important that he or she does not leave treatment prematurely, as this could hinder his or her long-term recovery and lead to relapse. There are plenty of things that may keep a person from enrolling in a rehab program, such as fear of failure, denial, or a concern for what others may think, but a carefully planned intervention may be just what your loved one needs to start their recovery journey. Plus, a high-quality rehab center like Nova Recovery Center will provide you or your addicted loved one with a personalized continuum of care plan to keep you fully engaged in each step of your recovery so you have the best chance at achieving a genuine and lasting personal transformation that leads to a full life of sobriety. If you or a loved one regularly purchase drugs on social media or has been sucked into a lifestyle of consistent drug and alcohol abuse in an effort to maintain a social standing, you should know that there is a way out. Call Nova Recovery Center today to speak with an admissions specialist about our gender-specific drug and alcohol rehab programs for men and women. We are here to help whenever you’re ready.

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Activity descriptions for teaching geoscientific thinking If you would like to add to this collection by contributing an activity, please fill out the Activity Submission Form or the Activity Supplement Form if you wish to supplement an activity you have previously submitted. Grade Levelshowing only High School (9-12) Show all Grade Level Results 1 - 4 of 4 matches My Geologic Address: Locating Oneself in Geologic Time and Process Kip Ault, Lewis and Clark College Students locate their homes on local, regional, and global scale geologic maps. They build up an "address" describing their location in geological terms based on the features of the maps, from local bedrock to regional and global tectonic features. Reasons for the Seasons Jeff Thomas, Central Connecticut State University The inquiry method and meteorological and astronomical online data can be used to elicit the inconsistencies of students' naïve ideas about the "real" reasons for the seasons. The first phase of this two-part investigation uses online meteorological data to identify factors that might explain differences of seasonal temperatures among cities These factors are used to hypothesize why differences of seasonal temperatures occur among cities. During the second phase, the variables and hypotheses that were previously identified in part one are used to design and conduct an inquiry-oriented investigation. Astronomical data is used as part of the investigation to "test" students' hypotheses conclusions are drawn then communicated. Interpreting the Geologic History of Canyon de Chelly Holly Godsey, University of Utah The is a two part lesson designed to given in-service teacher an experience in field geology. The lesson is designed by Canyon de Chelly, AZ but can be used anywhere there are outcrops of two or more rock types. Exploring Earth Systems Science: The Interactive GLOBE Earth System Poster Amy Ellwein, Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory

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An excavation team working near the Dahshur royal necropolis has made an exciting discovery! There aren’t a lot of details about the ancient pyramid, but some of the facts we do know include: • The structure was discovered near King Sneferu’s pyramid in the south of Cairo, a burial site for high-ranking officials. • The pyramid dates back around 3,700 years. • The structure was likely built during the 13th Dynasty, about which historians know very little, due to the rarity of surviving monuments from this time. As archaeologists continue to excavate the pyramid, they will also continue to gain information about how large it is, whether it is intact, and what secrets the structure may hold. It was originally reported that this pyramid was believed to be one of the first attempts by Ancient Egypt to build a smooth-sided pyramid, but this is now thought to be a translation error. We now know that this pyramid was built much later and near the time that Ancient Egyptians ceased making pyramids at all. This is a good example of the importance of using a good-quality scientific notebook to keep accurate records when recording any type of data to prevent having it misconstrued. The location and timing of the new discovery have led to excitement over the potential for learning more about a time where few records exist. King Sneferu constructed the Red and Bent Pyramids, both of which are considered early examples of the Egyptian’s pyramid architecture. Later, King Sneferu’s son, King Khufu, built the pyramids at Giza. Findings and recordings from the past provide scientists with important information about how significant this discovery may be. Only time will reveal who is buried in the pyramid, but it is already looking as though it may be a high-ranking official like those in proximity to the new discovery. One can only imagine the thrill that comes from this type of discovery. As researchers anticipate the findings that are likely to be unearthed throughout the excavation, many of us will remain watchful of the news of what each new day may bring. As scientists continue to reveal what the new discovery has to offer, they are likely to feel the rush of making a new discovery with each milestone they reach. New discoveries are only experienced once before they become news and the scientist moves on to the next one. The same is true for any researcher at every level of research. From high school students to those scientists who are working in the field to find new and amazing discoveries from a past era, no other tool is more important than a high-quality journal or research notebook where they can record data, first impressions, and a wide variety of details that will be needed for future analysis. Without accurate and detailed records, the true value of any discovery is at risk of being lost. The Scientific Notebook Company is a valuable resource for the highest quality notebooks for the classroom, in the field, or any place where valuable data is being recorded. To learn more about available products or to place your order, call SNCO at 800-537-3028.

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