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Thursday, January 24, 2013 Outskirts of Stalingrad, August 1942 Ralph invited the Brothers around for a Flames of War (FOW) game. I know this is a very popular rule system and all the Brothers have vast arrays of troops, from Paul's Polish trains, to Chris' Afrika Korps companies. I don't have any...but I hope to remedy that soon! The situation was simple- a Russian battalion with armour support- well 3 very understrength companies, a pioneer platoon, two SMG platoons and two platoons of T-34s were to retake a series of buildings with a large building at the far end of the table, beyond the park area- was to be the main objective. The Table: The big building in the center front of the photo was the Soviet objective- They started at the far end. The game started with a general advance by the Soviets with three main areas of advance. Paul's command on the left was initially pinned down by heavy MG fire as Nick (senior) poured fire into his troops but after Paul's NKVD Commissars executed a few recalcitrants the rest moved on and drove out the first MG company. In the center my T34s drove through the open area of the park and Ross decide to reveal his trump card- 3 Pak 50s. They fired at the side of my leading tank platoon......and nothing happened. The shells all bounced skyward. He was not a happy man...especially as my infantry then swarmed over his concealed gun emplacements driving the crews off and capturing 2 out of the 3 guns. The center of the table...and a cause of a major headache for the German defenders as it was too open and the T34s broke through. German infantry take position in the rubble Although it would cost a lot of Soviet blood to drive the Germans out of the ruins the end was only really going to be one way as the Wehrmacht had no way of destroying the tanks. Eventually, after giving the Soviets a bloody nose... they had to surrender the objective! A great game and lots of fun....the look on Ross's face when his guns couldn't penetrate the Soviet armour effectively was priceless! Thanks for putting on the game Ralph! My T34s ride over a German machine gun position late in the game A German HQ in the ruins of a Russian building The middle of the table. German infantry were dug in on the western side of the park but were pushed out by a combination of tanks and infantry Soviet tanks and infantry storm a building- Nick (senior) held this building with a platoon of German infantry- I eventually took it but at horrendous cost- 3 full platoons were destroyed storming this multi storey building. Another view of the table. The German defenders before deployment. One of Ralph's terrain pieces! Lots of accessories to go with the masses of infantry! Loads of Soviet infantry! Soviets move on the German Paks! Paul's Soviets move forward en masse! Infantry supporting the tanks. Dug in Germans assaulted by the T34s. My Russians storm the ruins...and suffered horrendous casualties. It finally took the tanks to help flush the defenders out. The tanks go into the ruins! The T34s burst through the German defenders 1. Wow John, Massed infantry and tanks; Magalomania in 15mm! Great looking game. Aye, Rusty. 3. Fantastic pictures and minis, on a beautiful table, great work...I love the train too! 1. Thanks Phil, it's that sort of attention to detail that make Ralph's games so much fun!
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
| 0.37
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Volkswagen car rental in Courchevel Cars of Volkswagen brand for rent in Courchevel The company Auto-Arenda suggest you to rent Volkswagen cars in Courchevel. You can order and book the Volkswagen vehicle rental in Courchevel with delivery to the airport or railway station. In the list of Volkswagen cars for rent in Courchevel there are premium class cars for VIP-persons and guests.
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
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Assessment of Water Quality Parameters of Kushiyara River, Bangladesh The Kushiyara River basin is located in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. The aim of this study is to investigate the water quality parameters seasonal variation on the basis of physico-chemical analysis such as Temperature, P, DO (Dissolved Oxygen), BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand), COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand), TS (Total Solids), TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) and SS (Suspended Solids) in both rainy season and winter season for the years 2010 to 2013. The rainy season data is collected during June-July and the winter season data is collected during November-December for each of the year. Our ultimate outcomes will convey a sound message for the government body and policy maker to rules and regulation in order to keep ecological balance as well as save our environment. We therefore suggest wise management of anthropogenic actions in the catchment of Kushiyara River. Introduction In the last few decades, the accelerated step of industrial development and progressive growth of population caused in tremendous increase in the demand of fresh water [21]. The quality of surface and groundwater is recognized in terms of its physical, chemical, and biological parameters [15]. The water quality of rivers is categorized by a high level of heterogeneity in time and space, because of the dissimilarity of cover-land around. This habitually creates complications to identify water environments and pollution sources, which is necessary to control effectively pollution in addition to construct successful strategies for minimizing of contamination resources [26]. The rapid increase of population density, land development along river basin, urbanization and industrialization have been endangered for the water quality of rivers. Anthropogenic pollutants related to land use result in radical deterioration of aquatic systems in watersheds [16]. Furthermore, the rivers play an imperative role in assimilating municipal and industrial effluent along with runoff from agricultural land and the surrounding area in a watershed [24]. Alternatively, rivers comprise the most significant water resources for irrigation, domestic water supply, industrial, and other purposes in a watershed, thus tending to stimulate serious hygienic and ecological problems. The prevention and controlling of river pollution and assessment of water quality are an imperative prerequisite for effective management [4], [30]. According to DOE, Malaysia, anthropogenic activities in particular husbandry livestock and agriculture play a significant role in contributing pollution of river water among others pollutants [8]. Wastewater of livestock holds huge concentrations of ammonia nitrogen, organic and inorganic nitrogen compound, and pathogenic bacteria [10]. Additionally, serious environmental damage due to animal waste has been well documented in rivers which receive runoff of nutrient rich waste that caused oxygen reduction and amplified the algae production [1]. In this study an attempt has been taken to examine the seasonal variation of water quality parameters along the Kushiyara River within the years 2010 to 2013. A. Description of Study Area Sylhet is the Divisional city of North Eastern Region of Bangladesh [28], and the Kushiyara River is one of the important rivers of this region which has got a multipart river system that supports a diversity of uses, comprising irrigation systems in agricultural lands, drinking water and industries wastewater. The effluents from all these sources is directly discharged into the river. Kushiyara River one of the transboundary rivers of Bangladesh. The Barak River enters Bangladesh along 24°53' north latitudes and 92°32' east longitudes. The Barak splits into two branches at Amalshid in the northeast border of Zakiganj Upozila of Sylhet district. The northwest part is the Surma and the southwestern part is the Kushiyara. At Amalshid, the bed of the Surma has to a large extent dried up and as a result, about 85 percent flow of the Barak runs through the Kushiyara. The total length of the Kushiyara River is about 161 km and the average width of the river is 250m. In the rainy season the mean depth of the Kushiyara reaches up to 10m. The river carries an enormous amount of water with sediments from Karimganj of Assam and the hilly areas of Hill Tripura. The river passes over Zakiganj, Golabganj, Fenchuganj, Balaganj, Rajnagar, Maulvibazar and Nabiganj. The Fenchuganj Fertilizer Factory stands on the bank of the Kushiyara [13]. The study area is shown figure 1. B. Sampling and Analysis Water samples were collected from the Kushiyara River from upstream to downstream along the river during two seasonsnamely rainy season and winter season, and tested for some physical and chemical water quality parameters which are required for this study. Licensed Under Creative Commons Attribution CC BY and chemical qualities according to the standard method [2] in the Water Supply and Sewerage Engineering Laboratory of Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, Shah Jalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, Bangladesh. Budhbari Bazar 20 Shadin Bazar Figure 1: Kushiyara River basin Modified after source [22]. C. Water Quality Parameters general information Temperature is an important parameter in characterization of natural water bodies. It affects the water chemistry such as saturation and concentration of dissolved gases, especially oxygen [19]. The rate of chemical reactions generally increases as temperature increases (rule of Vant Hoff). Temperature also affects biological activity and regulates the kinds of organisms that can live in the lake. The most obvious reason for temperature change in lakes is the change in seasonal air temperature [7]. Temperature is a critical water quality and environmental parameter because it governs the kinds and types of aquatic life, regulates the maximum dissolved oxygen concentration of the water, and influences the rate of chemical and biological reactions [18]. P H is a very important factor that must be considered to determine for water quality. The P H of any water body surface is defined as a measure of Hydrogen ion concentration. In other words, P H is a measure of the alkalinity or acidity of water soluble substances [6], [31]. Dissolved Oxygen (DO) is defined as the amount of oxygen dissolved in a water body and measures the health of the water and its ability to support a balance aquatic ecosystem [29], [17]. The DO appears as microscopic bubbles of gaseous oxygen which are mixed in water and available to aquatic organisms for respiration [11], [17]. BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) is defined as the amount of oxygen required by aerobic microorganisms to dissolve organic matter in a sample of water. It is one of the most essential and widely used parameters for the most essential and widely used parameters for measuring pollutants and biodegradable organic compounds in water [14], [25], [17]. Low the BOD, higher the desirability of using for human use, like drinking & domestic purposes. BOD has been used as a measure of the amount of organic materials in an aquatic solution which support the growth of microorganisms [5]. For drinking water, BOD should be nil. The COD is the amount of specified oxidant that reacts with a sample of water under controlled conditions and is expressed in terms of oxygen equivalence [17], [27]. COD is viewed as a useful measure of water quality because its application determines the amount of organic pollutants present in surface water or wastewater [32]. Total solids includes both total suspended solids, the portion of total solids retained by a filter and total dissolved solids, the portion that passes through a filter [12]. The total amount of all dissolved solutes and silica present in a water body is recognized as the total dissolved solids . TDS are mainly the inorganic minerals and sometimes some organic matter. It can be determined gravimetrically by evaporating a known volume of water and measuring the mass of the residue left [3]. Suspended solid (SS) are the solid matter suspended in water, comprising of organic and inorganic materials, such as plankton, silt and industrial waste [9], [17]. Result and Discussion The Physico-chemical characteristics of the Karnafully River due to presence of many chemical fertilizers, iron, leather and pharmaceutical industries [23]. From the finding of the result they concluded that river Karnafully was losing its water quality day by day and the river was under severe pollution threat. Rajkumar et al., (2013) found that the Barak River have been contaminated with waterborne pathogenic bacteria because of increased anthropogenic and socio-cultural activities at different sites of the Barak River and also by sewage, faecal contaminants and industrial wastes and the water of the Barak River is not suitable for drinking and other recreational purposes [20]. As the Barak River is the source of Kushiyara River from India and the water of this river is polluted day by day. Therefore the Kushiyara River water quality is deteriorated. Conclusion This study was conducted to measure the magnitude of environmental pollution considering seasonal variations of surface river water quality. The water quality in rainy season and winter season is controlled by mixed origin of natural, wastewater discharges and surface runoff. The analysis reveals that temperature values are in increasing trend from 2010 to 2013 in both seasons without the value in the year 2012. There is no abrupt change in P H value occurred from the study. The average DO for the year 2010 was less than 2011 for both the season but from 2011 to 2013 the value is decreasing at an alarming rate for both season which will create serious problem for the aquatic organisms. It is also observed that the BOD, COD, TS, TDS and SS values are also increasing with respect to time. Finally on the basis of monitoring of selected physico-chemical parameters in the last four years, undoubtedly it can be conclude that the Kushiyara River water quality is deteriorating with time. The causes behind this is that along its course the Kushiyara River receives many types of point and non-point sources pollutants from Cement factory, agricultural fertilizers residue, municipal waste, rural markets discharges, detergents from washing cloth and bathing, human faces from slum areas of the cities etc. Therefore, recovery process of the river water quality must start immediately.
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allenai/peS2o
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default
| 0.02
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Genome size evolution is a fundamental problem in molecular evolution. Statistical analysis of genome sizes brings new insight into the evolution of genome size. Although the variation of genome sizes is complicated, it is indicated that the genome size evolution can be explained more clearly at taxon level than at species level. I find that the genome size distribution for species in a taxon fits log-normal distribution. And I find a relationship between the phylogeny of life and the statistical features of genome size distributions among taxa. I observed different statistical features of genome size distributions between animal taxa and plant taxa. A log-normal stochastic process model is developed to simulate the genome size evolution. The simulation results on the log-normal distributions of genome sizes and their statistical features agree with the observations.
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HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu
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default
| 0.333
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Hiện tượng nổ bồn cầu không hề hiếm gặp và đã có rất nhiều gia đình gặp phải. Nó gây ảnh hưởng không nhỏ đến cuộc sống của người dân. Không chỉ gây nên nguy hiểm mà còn ảnh hưởng đến sinh hoạt hàng ngày. Vậy nguyên nhân gây nổ bồn cầu là gì? Làm thế nào bị ngăn chặn và phòng tránh? Bài viết sau sẽ giúp bạn giải đáp vấn đề trên. Mục lục Các nguyên nhân khiến bồn cầu phát nổ Các nguyên nhân gây nổ bồn cầu phổ biến là: - Khí nổ tồn tại dưới bể phốt, khi gặp chất xúc tác khí này sẽ gây nổ bồn cầu. - Bể phốt quá đầy chất thải rắn, lâu ngày không được thông hút sẽ gây nổ. - Các vi sinh vật trong bồn cầu thải ra một số khí như metan, CO2, NH3,.... Khí metan khi tích lũy lâu ngày không thể thoát ra ngoài cũng sẽ gây nổ bồn cầu. - Có vật nóng rơi vào bồn cầu, nhiệt độ cao sẽ kích hoạt khí metan trong bồn cầu phát nổ. - Bồn cầu sử dụng kém chất lượng, khả năng cách nhiệt kém. Khi gặp nhiệt độ cao sẽ hấp thu nhiệt nhiều và dễ gây nổ. Làm thế nào để ngăn chặn nổ bồn cầu - Tránh xa các nguồn gây kích thích khí metan như bếp ga, lửa, nơi có nhiệt độ cao,.... - Khi thiết kế hầm cầu cần chú ý đến thiết kế của ống thông khí. - Tránh xây ở những nơi hay bị ngập lụt vì nước bên ngoài chảy vào có thể gây ngập ống khí, tạo áp lực lên bồn cầu. - Làm kín các mối tiếp xúc giữa bồn cầu và đường ống thoát chất thải, tránh để rò rỉ khu vực này. - Không hút thuốc trong nhà vệ sinh, nhất là khi phát hiện ra khí lạ. - Hút bể phốt định kỳ để đảm bảo không gây tắc nghẽn bồn cầu. Dịch vụ hút bể phốt công ty môi trường số 1 Hà Nội Công ty môi trường số 1 Hà Nội là đơn vị đã thành lập từ năm 2005 với sứ mệnh làm sạch môi trường đô thị Hà Nội. Chúng tôi có đội ngũ nhân viên giàu kinh nghiệm xử lý các tình huống,HÚT BỂ PHỐT,THÔNG TẮC CỐNG,THÔNG TẮC BỂ PHỐT, cống rãnh và các công trình khác. Công ty chúng tôi cung cấp các dịch vụ hút bể phốt, thông tắc cống, thông tắc bể phốt với trang thiết bị hiện đại. ĐẢM BẢO KHÔNG ĐỤC PHÁ. Ngoài ra chúng tôi luôn cam kết giảm có tất cả các loại xe hút bể phốt từ 1 khối – 40 khối cho các công trình lớn. Với phương châm làm việc của công ty chúng tôi ( khách hàng là thượng đế) chúng tôi luôn mong muốn được mang đến cho Qúy khách hàng một dịch vụ hoàn hảo và giá thành phải chăng nhất. Quý khách khi có nhu cầu sử dụng dịch vụ vui lòng liên hệ với chúng tôi theo thông tin sau: CÔNG TY TNHH MÔI TRƯỜNG SỐ 1 HÀ NỘI Địa chỉ: Số 3A, Lô 2, KĐT Đền Lừ 2, P Hoàng Văn Thụ, Q. Hoàng Mai, Hà Nội Có thể thấy, việc nổ bồn cầu sẽ gây nhiều nguy hiểm và bất tiện cho người dùng, thậm chí nặng có thể ảnh hưởng đến tính mạng. Chính vì thế bạn cần biết cách phòng tránh để đảm bảo an toàn cho bản thân và người xung quanh.
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HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-2
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vie_Latn
| 0.0775
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Austermann, Philipp: How the Federal Constitutional Court perceives the Members of Parliament. Ever since the Federal Constitutional Court was founded in 1951, it had to deal with the status of the Members of Parliament, especially their income situation. Its decisions strongly effect the Members’ legal position. The remuneration for the Members of Parliament has been subject of several proceedings. In an important key case, known as the “Diätenurteil” (“remuneration case”) in 1975, the Court decided that the “job profile” of the deputies had changed and had become a “fulltime-job”. Therefore the nature of the remuneration had changed as well. It was no longer seen as a non-taxable representation allowance but as a taxable salary. The Court also tried to answer other questions concerning the parliamentary mandate. In this and following cases it prohibited extra allowances for Members of Parliament with a special function in a parliamentary standing committee or a parliamentary party (with an exception for the President of the Parliament, the vice-presidents and the chairmen of the parliamentary parties). However, the reasoning in these decisions is not very convincing. In 2007, the Court had to deal with the question whether other paid work at the time of the mandate is legally acceptable. It was not able to find a common position in that case but was divided into two “fractions”. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 719 – 726] Brockmann, Hilke: Women and mothers in the German Bundestag: An explorative longitudinal study. Are women and men, mothers and fathers represented equally in the German Bundestag? Or does politics remain a male-dominated affair and is that owed to the fact that most women have and raise children, which restrains their availability for the demanding time schedule of a politician? This question is highly relevant, given the current debate about a female quota for leadership positions in Germany’s economy. A comparison of legislative terms before and after the introduction of a female quota by political parties shows that indeed the number of women increased, but mothers remain considerably underrepresented. The degree of underrepresentation varies between parties. In the CDU/CSU and FDP it has increased significantly. However, a mother quota has potential advantages and disadvantages which are discussed. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 727 – 738] Kintz, Melanie: Double quota for East German female parliamentarians? The assertion that East German women in the Bundestag held a double advantage in the recruitment to intra-parliamentary leadership positions during the period from 1994 to 2010 is only partly true. They enjoyed such a bonus in the parliamentary party group of the Left Party. In all other parliamentary parties, East German women are represented well but below the level of their West German female and male colleagues. Furthermore, East Ger-man male parliamentarians are under-represented in intra-parliamentary leadership positions. And while some measurements indicate that the representation of East German deputies in leadership functions outside of the Left Party’s parliamentary party group has improved over time, this is not due to a rising number of members holding positions but to a declining number of members serving in the parliamentary parties Greens, FDP, SPD and CDU/CSU. Only in the Left Party a rising number of East German position holders is found. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 738 – 753] Kaltenpoth, Christina and Karsten Mause: Skills shortage in the political business? On the economic competence of economic policy makers in Germany. In the wake of the recent financial and economic crisis it has been claimed sometimes that German economic policy makers lack economic expertise. By examining a sample of 234 Ministers of Economic Affairs at the federal and state level in Germany since 1945 as well as 73 members of the German Bundestag’s Economic Committee since 2005, it turns out that the public criticism hits a nerve: About 27 percent of the considered Ministers of Economic Affairs and 29 percent of the committee members have neither a formal economic education (i.e. degree in economics and/or a commercial training) nor gained work experience in businesses before they received their political position. There are good arguments which hold that economic policy makers without economic expertise are rather unproblematic for the functioning of a society. However, citizens who wish to be ruled by economic policy makers with economic training/experience must hope that many other citizen/voters also have such a preference. If this is the case, vote-maximizing parties and governments would have to ensure that they fill political positions in the field of economic policy with individuals qualified in this field. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 753 – 765] Manow, Philip and Peter Flemming: The male and female candidate – no longer a largely unknown species. How effective are elections in selecting and de-selecting MPs? How do electoral rules affect descriptive representation? To answer such fundamental questions, information is not only needed on those elected to parliament but also data on all those who stood for election. In this article fundamental questions of democratic selection and representation are addressed on the basis of a new data set containing information on each person who ever ran for a seat in the German Bundestag. This new dataset provides us with a complete picture of the personal side of political representation in Germany for the last 60 years – from 1949 to 2009. We look at the different career sequences that typically lead to a seat in parliament, and we investigate the determinants of women’s representation, both over time and with an inter-party comparison. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 766 – 784] Groh, Kathrin: The development from member-parties to electoral-professional parties – Does the German constitution imply a certain type of political party? Whereas catch-all parties have dominated the battle for popular support ever since the Federal Republic’s foundation, recently a trend has set in for them being replaced by new party types like cartel parties, parties of career politicians, of functionaries, of parties in parliament or electoral-professional parties. This leads to the question, whether the constitutional conceptions of how parties work and what their role is as “transmission belt” between the people’s will and the government’s decision-making are still able to keep up with the new reality of party-democracy. This can hardly be affirmed for the parties’ “constitutional mandate” of fulfilling intermediation and linkage functions; and especially the regulations on the financing of political parties do unveil strong evidence for legal revisions in this context. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 784 – 798] Anan, Deniz: Representational cultures and cultures of decision-making in comparison. The party conventions of the FDP and the Greens. The parties in Germany seem to resemble each other more and more in organizational matters. However, an analysis of the charters and the participant observation of the conventions of the FDP and the Greens show that significant differences persist. These differences are related to both the representational cultures and the cultures of decision-making and can be traced back to the different origins and self-concepts. The FDP’s roots as a “Honoratiorenpartei” (party of notables) are thus reflected in the dominance of parliamentarians and the perception of the office of a delegate and a board member as an honorary post. In addition, intraparty elections are based on the classical liberal idea of representative democracy. However, with the Greens, where board members and delegates receive money, subdivisions have extensive rights to submit motions and to call meetings, and even the smallest district section is represented at the federal party convention. Furthermore, the self-concept as an antiparty party and the ideal of grassroots democracy continue to have an effect. On the other hand both parties feature partly astonishing similarities, ranging from meetings on weekends to the irrelevance of direct democratic decision-making procedures. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 799 – 816] Pilz, Volker: Mundatwald remains German! How the German Bundestag’s Committee on Foreign Affairs hampered the ratification of the Franco-German Treaty of July 31, 1962. There is only one case in which an international treaty was denied by the German Bundestag based on Article 59 of the German Grundgesetz: Fifty years ago the Franco-German Treaty of July 31, 1962 was signed. According to that treaty the Mundatwald, a piece of forest in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate west of Karlsruhe, was designated to become part of the French territory. The Committee on Foreign Affairs declined to ratify the treaty due to serious objections and did not pass the Consent Act to the Bundestag’s plenary assembly. That very case and the lessons learnt by the government are outlined here in more detail. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 816 – 830] Peters, Butz: Parliamentary committees of investigation (Untersuchungsausschüsse): The rights of the minority. In parliamentary committees of investigation the qualified minority is entitled by the constitution to participate in the investigation on equal footing. Hence the minority must be able to enforce its understanding and concept of an adequate clarification of facts. In particular, when the enquiry’s fact-finding is impacted by procedural law, the minority is allowed to co-determine the procedures. This is the case regarding decisions on motions to take evidence, the enforcement of evidence orders, special sessions, means of coercion, legal means, the insight into non-repudiation protocols and records of the committee, the final report and the completion of the proceedings. In these cases a “qualified right of motion” is in place. The majority may only refuse the motion of the qualified minority if it can base its refusal on constitutional grounds, such as unsuitable evidence, incorrect or illegal means of gathering the evidence. The refusal requires constitutionally sound grounds. The minority may secure legal protection only in case of an institutional controversy, unless the law determines otherwise. The constitutional depth of control is restricted to the control of plausibility, abuse und arbitrariness. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 831 – 853] Mader, Oliver: Petitions to the European Parliament and judicial control of decisions taken by its Committee on Petitions. According to Article 227 of the Treaty on the functioning of the European Union and Article 44 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, citizens of the Union have the right to address petitions to the European Parliament. From the perspective of the Parliament, this fundamental right corresponds to its duty to receive petitions, and then, provided that they are admissible, to examine their contents, and provide petitioners with substantive opinions. Admittedly, the latter are not entitled to remedies in relation to the matters raised. Nevertheless, certain elements of the fundamental right of petition can be enforced before the EU judge. Unjustified refusal to deal with the substance of an admissible petition is a case in point, because such refusal prejudices effective exercise of the right of petition. Rejection of a petition on grounds of inadmissibility can be checked. The Committee on Petitions must set forth its reasons to classify a petition as inadmissible. In the same way, a petition must be accessible to judicial review if, on the one hand it was considered admissible, but on the other hand, the Committee did not deal with it. The possibility of referring an issue to other institutions is only open to the Committee, to the extent that it refers the matter to the European Ombudsman. And even then, the petitioner must have agreed to this referral in advance. Against this background, the practice of the Committee, introduced in 2011, of “filtering” petitions solely on the basis of a free assessment of their “relevance”, designed to avoid dealing with them, either by filing or referring them elsewhere, is not compatible with EU law. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 854 – 872] Zähle, Kai: Bell or Gong: Acoustic signals in parliamentary practice. Acoustic signals are among the parliamentary peculiarities that have a long tradition. In the course of a plenary meeting, the bell or chime can announce parliamentary events and the bell of the speaker may ring during heated debates in order to restore order. The speaker’s bell enjoys a prominent role and its use in German Parliaments can be traced back to the beginnings of the Frankfurter Nationalversammlung (Frankfurt Assembly) in 1848. According to the level of autonomy of the parliaments of Bund and Länder, particular sound signals have emerged with different meanings. The signals are bell, gong, horn, and chime. Although the way the signals are used is sometimes comparable, each parliament has its own rules for the signals: for the call to meeting; the opening; and the management of a meeting. Furthermore, it is clear that phrases used to describe current parliamentary business reflect historical uses of sounds in parliamentary procedure. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 872 – 886] Ganghof, Steffen, Christian Stecker, Sebastian Eppner and Katja Heeß: Flexible and inclusive majorities? An analysis of law-making coalitions during the minority government in North Rhine-Westphalia. How minority governments organize parliamentary support for their legislative program is analyzed for the minority cabinet of SPD and Greens in North Rhine-Westphalia between 2010 and 2012. The focus lies on the flexibility and the inclusiveness of law-making coalitions. An analysis of all 59 adopted laws reveals a limited degree of flexibility: the Left Party was the main support party in parliament but some bills were adopted by coalitions of SPD/Greens with CDU and FDP. That 74 percent of all non-technical bills were approved by minimal-winning coalitions sheds light on the inclusiveness. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 887 – 900] Lehnert, Detlef: An „obscure“ father of the Constitution of Weimar? – or, how Hugo Preuß obtained his mandate and used it. For three reasons, Preuß’ concept of parliamentarism has not yet been comprehended correctly: Firstly, based on a „Bonn is not Weimar“ perspective he has been blamed for aberrations since 1923, which he criticized by means of original intentions while still alive. Secondly, his selective reference to Robert Redslob’s comparative analysis of parliamentary systems has to be read conceptionally in terms of deliberative complements of representative democracy; based on the situation he expected a President of the kind of his constituant Friedrich Ebert to essentially concentrate the parties of the Weimar Constitution, SPD, DDP and Zentrum, which had not gained any governmental experience during the Kaiser’s Empire. Thirdly, Preuß is often equated to mainstream left-wing liberals, which misconceives his genuinely left-democratic origins in the circle of the Berlin „social-progressives“, which is reflected by the fact that he was elected city-councillor with the votes of the SPD in 1910. This contribution in particular exploits publicistic material unknown to date, in order to finally render Preuß’ constitutional mandate in 1918/19 less „obscure“ than it appeared to many contemporaries and the later-born. [ZParl, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 901 – 914]
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The space colony ARK reappeared many miles from the atmosphere, with Sonic and Shadow hanging on tight. The sudden movement caused Shadow to let go. Sonic quickly grabbed his hand and pulled him up along with himself. Shadow shook Sonic's hand away as if it was poison. "Don't help me!" he snapped. "But I wanna help you." Sonic smiled. "You helped me! Plus, you don't wanna die, do you?" The question made Shadow think. Did he really have a purpose to live? The entire world thought of him as a fugitive, so he would have to live in the shadows again. The long pause shocked Sonic. Did Shadow really want to die? Then again, he didn't know him that well. What he did know was that everyone deserved to live and Shadow was no exception. His thoughts were cut off by a cold dark voice that said, "I might as well." Shadow looked at the space beyond the ARK. It looked so peaceful and free. He wondered what it would feel like to drop down from there. He knew that the atmosphere would brutally torture him, but he slowly considered it. "You don't know what you're talking about, Shadow." Sonic argued. Shadow turned to him with a cold and menacing stare. "And YOU would? What do you think would've happened if Maria hadn't saved me, huh? I would've either been dead or experimented on! I had a chance to die, and I'm not going to blow it the second time." He started leaning toward the edge. Sonic had no idea what Maria meant to him, but she seemed like a major part of his life. He sighed and said, "Look, I may not know what you've been through, but let me ask you a question." "Make it quick. Whatever you say won't change my mind." he confirmed with crossed arms. "Did you even know why Maria saved you? She did it because she cared for you and she wanted you to live not only to make the people happy, but for you to live a happy life. She would've never saved you if she didn't want you to live." "How do you know about my memories?" he snapped. Sonic's caring words really made him think, but he wasn't gonna tell Sonic that. Sonic had no idea how he knew that. He looked into his rival's scarlet eyes and saw all the pain he went through. Even his memories rushed into his head. He put a gloved hand to his forehead with a surprised look. "I don't know.I looked into your eyes and I saw everything." Shadow's dark expression changed to confusion. "What?" he asked startled. "It's hard to explain-" Sonic started. "No, tell me. You have my attention, Sonic. I'm listening." Did those words just come out of his mouth? By now, he could've jumped and died. Something about Sonic intrigued him. His inner conscience begged to hear him out. Sonic finally got to him. It was true, he didn't know exactly what happened, but if that's what kept Shadow alive, he'll tell him. "I.I think it had something to do with the Chaos Emeralds." The word "emerald" stuck in his mind as he looked into Sonic's eyes. They looked calm, yet hiding a great power inside. Why did Sonic care so much about him? He barely knew Shadow and he was now preventing him from committing suicide. He was always caring towards people, one of the qualities that made him a true hero. He wouldn't be able to live with the fact that he had let someone die. Shadow still gazed into Sonic's emerald eyes. They made him lose all train of thought and control over his feelings. "Y-You have beautiful eyes, Sonic." he blurted. Realizing what he just said, he turned away. Where did that come from? He knew there was no way that he was.well, that way. A hand held his. "As you do, Shadow." Sonic replied, pulling Shadow closer to ARK. "Huh?" Shadow asked, confused again. "You also have beautiful eyes." They faced each other with wide eyes. Their minds raced with emotions as their hearts explored a new feeling. Shadow slowly let go of Sonic's hand and looked out in space again. What was making him feel this way for the first time? It calmed the darkness and torment inside him, making him feel a little weird. The memories made him who he was: a dark soul with no purpose in life whatsoever, but the memories of his rival made him feel.different. The feeling grew stronger and hid all the darkness. Sonic was also new to this feeling. He knew immediately that Shadow was never going to leave him. It confused him, but it made sense at the same time. "Sonic, I feel weird. Do you know what this feeling is?" Shadow asked surprisingly. "I might know what you're talking about. Tell me all about it." Sonic said in a caring tone. Shadow slowly opened up to Sonic as he slowly explained the situation. "Well, it's hard to describe, but these visions and thoughts of you and your thoughts of me.What does it all mean?" "Well.I think it means we really connect, and not just by the Chaos Emeralds." he slowly explained. Shadow didn't quite know what this meant. His new conscience begged him to know. "So.what is this feeling?" Sonic felt the realization dawn on him and it begged to know something. That something could never be spoken. "Um, like this." Sonic pulled him into an embrace. Shadow was shocked, but kept himself in Sonic's caring arms. He extended his arms and wrapped them around Sonic. It was warm and touching for the two hedgehogs. They both held on as long as possible and then let go. This new side of Shadow wanted more. He felt the connection at full force. His cheeks started to gain the color of his eyes. "Show me more, Sonic." Shadow begged him. Sonic gave him a smirk. "Let me warn you: You may not wanna let go this time." The space in between their lips slowly disappeared. Sonic laid his arms around Shadow's shoulders. Shadow got an uneasy look on his face. Sonic pulled back once he noticed this. "You don't wanna do this, do you?" Sonic asked with concern. He still had his arms around him. "I do, really. It's just.my first time." "Me, too. Just relax and let it flow. Now follow my lead." He got closer this time and Shadow was ready. His calming breath caressed Shadow's face. Their lips touched and it was the best feeling Shadow ever felt. His mind relaxed of everything and the darkness disappeared. He put his arms around Sonic's shoulder and pulled him closer. Their tongues intertwined and the kiss was addictive. After breaking it, they both had dazed looks on their faces. Shadow finally gained the ability to speak after a minute. "What is this feeling that's taken over my soul, Sonic?" He gave Sonic a questioning look. Sonic smiled. "It's love, Shadow. It's the desire and affection for a person, and I have that for you." Shadow gave him a startled look. The four-letter word had never meant anything to him in his life. Was he really falling in love with Sonic? He couldn't. He didn't know love. He can't have love. "Sonic, I can't do it." he refused. Sonic connected a hand with Shadow's. "It's okay, we can take it slow." Shadow shook his hand away. "No, I don't deserve this." "What? Yes you do, Shadow. Everyone deserves to have someone that they care about." "I made your life a living hell. How can you love me?" he argued. "You helped me and I put all that aside. It doesn't matter anymore." "I deserve to die." Shadow stated darkly. "No one deserves to die. You live your life to the fullest and then you die. Don't give up now!" "I have lived to my potential. There's nothing left for me. Goodbye, Sonic." he said, beginning to jump when a strong force pulled him back. He was forced to face Sonic. Sonic had made his decision quickly. He held Shadow's hand tightly. "Either I'm going with you or you're coming with me." "You're a hero. You need to live. Don't die because of me." He looked at Sonic with intense eyes. "I.can't live without you." Sonic blurted out. His eyes glowed with more intensity as Sonic said those words. "I don't understand you, Sonic. You have so much persistence and dedication. How do you do it?" "I'm not afraid of taking risks. I do them for people I care about, including you. I can help you overcome your fear. You can't leave me Shadow. You know it and I know it, just admit it." Sonic was right. He couldn't do it. His love was too strong for him to give up. No matter how much his mind tortured him, he still loved Sonic. He was willing to control it with Sonic's help. He laughed a little at his reaction to what just happened. "I guess you're right. Is that normal?" he asked. "Of course." he said, leading him into the main entrance of ARK. He just saved a life, and he gained a new love. Shadow calmly relaxed as he was led into the space colony that was once his home. The lights were dimmed and the main door that led to their friends and rivals remained closed. He remembered when Maria would chase him around this hallway. He was really going to miss her. Now he had another person on his mind. Sonic felt a strong force push him against the nearest wall. Smooth hands pinned him there, never freeing his captor. He saw a pair of glowing red eyes look him up and down. He smirked as he saw Sonic's shocked look. He saw him struggling to speak and put a finger to his lips. "You want it? You got it." he said slyly. Not much longer after that, Sonic received the kiss of a lifetime. Love and lust filled his mouth. Something more powerful than he could possibly be gained control of his actions. Everything came out and was revealed to Sonic. He realized that he fell in many ways.
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In schools today the pace of change and shifting sands are quick. Skilled administrators need to wear many hats and be strategic yet operational at the same time. They must build empathy, be inclusive and build a learning culture where shared decision-making allows teachers and students to thrive. Core skills to being an accomplished administrator include: - Being a strong listener. Use human-centered design to gain and build empathy for faculty and students. Listen deeply and sometimes passively, like a fly on the wall. Turn ideas and thoughts into action. While taking the time to listen is important, it's equally important to have a bias for action. When the same thing emerges from multiple interviews, conversations and observations, strong administrators take action. Great leaders can embrace conflict for the good of the organization and do not constantly seek harmony. Building relationships and the trust of the team around you is core to building community. - Empowering others. Strong administrators aren't afraid to include others in decision-making. They are comfortable with taking calculated risks and living in some degree of ambiguity. They support their faculty when trying new approaches to teaching and learning. Teacher-powered schools are filled with positive energy. Provide incentives and support to empower teachers like innovation grants, fellowships or co-teaching opportunities. Create spaces for teachers to collaborate, plan and share. - Knowing how to use technology to enhance teaching and learning. The best advice I ever got with regard to using technology is to not just use it to "sharpen the pencil," in other words, don't use technology as a digital workbook. Strong administrators have the skills to model, leverage and share how technology augments the teaching and learning process. While technology will never replace a teacher, approaches like blended learning, the flipped classroom and even technology supported competency based learning free the teacher to focus on active learning, facilitation of project-based learning and personalization. A strong integrated technology system allows for scheduling, grades, blended learning and parent communications to easily connect and share information seamlessly. - Strong public speaking and outreach. Share what is happening that is amazing in your classrooms, with your students lives outside of school and the impact learning is having at your school. Meet with parents, community stakeholders and funders to let them know about the good things happening at your school. Use data and other qualitative evidence to communicate, open source ideas and teach others about your successes. Present at conferences and hold local professional development events at your school. Host student programs like FIRST Lego League competitions that bring others into your school. Core dispositions to being an accomplished administrator include: - Being a servant leader. Put others before yourself. Treat people equally and be aware of implicit bias, be an agent of social justice and good. Model for faculty and students that we are stronger when we care about each other. Be careful not to judge people too quickly or hold grudges. Be authentic in your pursuit to serve others and think about their wellbeing. Letting folks go a bit early on an in-service day, offering yoga after school or provide other incentives to your team so they feel appreciated. I believe you give an inch and can get a mile back in return. - Having a growth mindset. As an accomplished leader, having a growth-mindset is extremely important. You can't expect faculty and students to learn and grow in authentic ways if you are not modeling this mindset as an administrator. Don't be afraid to take risks, fail fast and bounce back. Be honest about where you need help and develop evaluation systems that focus on growth. Use emotional intelligence when communicating hard news or bounce ideas off of a trusted advisor who may have more emotional intelligence than you before communicating more broadly. Be publicly optimistic and show gratitude. - Be a designer and dreamer. Accomplished administrators have vision, get others excited and want to help design new ideas, programs and possibilities. Focus on the concept of "yes, and" vs "no, but" when staff comes to you with ideas for changes, new programs and student challenges. Model iteration within program design, promote the design of pilot programs that include both faculty and student voice. Hold school-wide design-challenges and involve parents in shaping the future of the school. Being mindful of the extreme task of preparing students for new roles and careers that don't even exist yet. Don't be afraid to be the first school in your area to try something new - share what you learn with others. - Be connected. Being on social media, keeping a blog, being digitally connected. Host and participate in twitter chats (I'm a moderator for #dtk12chat and #isedchat), create a school hash-tag to share success, keep a back-channel conversation and build a network of like-minded peers locally, nationally and even globally. Regularly visit schools, universities, work places to build partnerships and connected learning opportunities for students. Create space in the schedule to get students off-campus and into the field where "content" comes alive through work study, project-based learning and service learning. Encourage faculty to also visit other schools and conduct "learning walks" and come back to campus to share what they learn. Some of the best professional development can be done via social media. Show peers and faculty the benefits and model this type of professional growth. While there are certainly more skills and dispositions accomplished administrators must hold, these eight build the foundation for success. Whether it be motivating others, solving or analyzing problems or developing innovative programming, accomplished administrators display high integrity and honesty. Education as an industry is facing an amazing time of change. Amidst all the calls to innovation, administrators must continue to clearly communicate, create and collaborate while they thrive within ambiguity and develop new models of teaching and learning. |Strong administrators recognize the value of connection and networks.|
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Active audio crossover filter There are already many active crossover filters published and almost all contain many (expensive) components. The filter presented here is a favorable exception: fewer components are required and need they not to be very accurate so that 'normal' components can be used. These are the benefits that cling to the use of the state-variable filter. After all, the most commonly used solution for a filter is the second order high- or lowpass filter consisting of 2 resistors and 2 capacitors and an opamp. That means 2 RC times in the circuit that also affect each other. In the state-variable filter, all RC times are separated by an opamp so they can not affect each other. This makes it possible to use inaccurate (but good) capacitors and set the correct RC time with 1% resistors. The 1% resistors are nowadays easy to get and much cheaper than 1% capacitors. In addition, with 1 filter, both the high and the low frequencies can be separated so that less components are needed in total. Thus, with a single filter, a bi-amp amplifier can already be made. A three-way filter can be realized with 2 filters. The state variable filter consists of a summing amplifier followed by a number of integrators in succession. The output of each integrator is fed back to the summing amplifier in the correct phase and intensity. The number of integrators determines the order of the filter, the degree of feedback determines its characteristic. The diagram below shows a third-order three-way filter. And there is also a print layout as well: A 4th order circuit looks almost the same: And also the print has a lot of similarity.
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The Te Huruhi School calendar is kept up to date with upcoming important dates and events. The calendar is connected to the school's Google Calendar - which means most devices - either Apple, Android or Windows - should be able to connect / sync with the school calendar. For example, you can sync the school calendar to your mobile device, to see all upcoming events. For detailed instructions on how to sync with your device, please visit the Google Calendar help page Calendar ~ Monthly Calendar ~ Upcoming
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How To Teach English Online And Earn Supplemental Income teach english onlineFor many college graduates, teaching English overseas is a popular career choice. I’ve had friends teach English in far away places like South Korea and China, and it is also common for graduates to teach English in Latin America or even Europe. That being said, some of us want to stay within the borders of home. If you’re interested in teaching English and earning a supplemental income while doing it, then you may want to consider teaching an online English course through the Udemy platform. Get Paid For Your English Skills There are few jobs for which your only required skill is understanding correct English – at least, while you’re in the United States or England. Sure, you can be an English teacher at a local high school, but that’s a very particular career for which you need professional degrees. Nevertheless, there is a way for you to leverage your near-perfect English skills without that college diploma in English or Education. The answer is to teach English to non-native speakers! The English language is admittedly complex, with Germanic, English, and French influences all complicating the situation. English grammar is its own mystery for many, and there are many sub-niches for which a person could teach English and earn supplemental income. For example, many people need to know how to speak English for business success. Others want to know enough English to be able to travel in the United States, Canada, or the UK. Still others want to learn proper grammar, or maybe just correct pronunciation. There is a wide variety of niches for which you can creatively apply your English-speaking talents in order to teach others. What English language courses can you come up with? Where To Teach English To Earn Income You can certainly advertise to teach English in your local community. You’ve probably seen flyers advertising language instruction at your local coffee shop, and you can do the same. This is especially popular in college towns or major cities. But what if you don’t live in a major city? And, what if you want to reach a broader audience? Fortunately, there are numerous alternatives that can help you teach English that are more lucrative, including teaching English online. More on that in a moment. Teaching English Online Versus In-Person The problem with teaching English in-person is that you can often only teach a limited number of people at a time. If you are meeting in person rather than teaching English online, then as a tutor you can only teach a select few people at a time. And even if you host a classroom, you can still only teach English to a couple dozen people at most. Contrast that to what happens when you teach English online. You prepare your course once, and do your best to deliver an outstanding, high quality education for your students. Then, you post your English course on Udemy, the number one online learning platform. People come to Udemy for learning opportunities from all over the world, so immediately you gain access to thousands of potential English language learners in international countries. That means you can teach English to foreigners without leaving your house, and the best part is you teach the material once and earn money on it forever. So if you were looking to both teach English and earn passive income (meaning income not directly related to your time), then teaching English online could be a profitable alternative. I should mention that if Udemy features your course, then you just might see your English courses reaching hundreds or even thousands of people at a time! That’s a far more effective way to teach people English than two or twenty people at a time. Teaching English Online Can Lead To A Flourishing Career Many twenty-somethings (and to be truthful, thirty-somethings...) are notably unsure of their career direction. Even if you did not major in Education in college, teaching English online could lead to a promising career in either the education or communications fields. Allow me to elaborate. When you teach a subject matter, you learn how to become a more nuanced communicator. Different people have a variety of learning styles. And in order to teach for the sake of understanding, you often need to simplify your teachings. What you will find is that teaching greatly accelerates your ability to communicate effectively. You learn how to manage emotions (both your own and the emotions of your students), and you learn how to improve your communicating so that you are better understood. Therefore, teaching English online could be a lead-in to a career in communications and marketing. Businesses around the world are seeking intelligent and savvy communicators, and credentials as an instructor of English on Udemy could be the resume boost to both get you the interview and help you land a cushy job in communications. Additionally, you may discover that you have a passion for educating. Teaching online could inspire within you an interest and desire to teach others in a variety of areas. The more you teach, the more you realize that doing so is an incredibly rewarding career path. You get to make a positive difference in the lives of hundreds of people. Think of your favorite teachers from high school and college. They inspired you, made you laugh, made you question things, and made you think. You can do that for others with your teaching. Teach English Online At Udemy If you’re serious about teaching English, and want to both achieve financial independence while reaching a potentially global audience, then you should be teaching English via an online course at Udemy. You will gain access to thousands of students who are already looking for courses such as the ones you can teach. And you immediately align yourself with the tools you need to earn cold, hard cash while teaching something you’re already an expert in – the English language. Become an instructor of English on Udemy now.
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Complexo do Alemão’s Fight Club #SustainableFavelaNetwork [PROFILE] Sustainable Favela Network* Profile Clique aqui para Português Initiative: Alemão Fight Club (Clube de Luta do Complexo) ContactFacebook | Instagram | Email Year Founded: 2014 Community: Complexo do Alemão Mission: Clube de Luta do Complexo is a group of martial arts teachers and volunteers who aim to help form better athletes and citizens through sport and culture, and make young people aware of their capacity to make their community a better place. Public Events: Clube de Luta do Complexo offers free martial arts and basketball classes for residents of all ages throughout the week. It’s early in the morning on a Monday but there is already a group of people waiting outside the Youth Center in Complexo do Alemão in Rio de Janeiro’s North Zone. They are waiting for André Luiz Fernandes, a martial arts teacher and co-founder of Clube de Luta do Complexo (Alemão Fight Club) who helps teach and organize various sports classes six days a week, together with a group of twelve other martial arts instructors and volunteers from Alemão. What started out simply as an idea to get more youth from their community involved in martial arts has blossomed into a project with an extensive schedule; Clube de Luta now offers classes in taekwondo, kickboxing, jiu jitsu, functional training, karate, kempo, capoeira, and basketball. For Fernandes, the fact that there are now hundreds of youth and adults participating in this project after only four years is somewhat surreal. “I had no notion of the proportions that this project would take. I get chills thinking about organizing it going forward,” he says jokingly. Fernandes, 36, has lived in Complexo do Alemão for over 30 years and has a long history of learning and teaching martial arts in the community. His first exposure to fighting came when he was working part-time as a cleaner at a local gym. The taekwondo instructor at the gym noticed Fernandes watching the classes as he cleaned and after a few weeks asked him to train with the group. Despite being enrolled in school at the time, Fernandes accepted the instructor’s invitation and began to train two days a week. The instructor never required him to pay, which is a practice that Fernandes has taken to Clube de Luta where all classes are offered for free. “We never charge anyone anything,” Fernandes explains, adding: “Well, we don’t charge money, but you will sweat and cry.” Clube de Luta do Complexo began four years ago when a small group of martial arts teachers in Alemão realized they could utilize resources more efficiently and reach more students as a unified team. Since then, they have become a fixture in the community and are known for fielding talented athletes. Students from Clube de Luta have a record of winning local and state championships, and some have gone as far as challenging for spots on Military and Olympic teams. But Fernandes points out that putting in the work necessary to make champions is what matters most. “It’s not the competition that’s the hard part. For that you just need to show up and fight your best. What’s difficult is getting there in the first place.” This philosophy is one that permeates through the work of Clube de Luta. As an organization that has had little institutional support, the group has had to make do with limited resources, at times hosting classes in public parks or on the street. When describing the current training facility located in Inhaúma, Fernandes laughs: “It’s like a cave. But it’s great, all we need is a floor and a roof.” In spite of these challenges, Clube de Luta has managed to thrive and now has over 308 students. While the majority of them are from Complexo do Alemão there are some that make the trip from other neighborhoods. Fernandes thinks it is the familial environment and culture of respect the team has created at Clube de Luta that keep students coming back week after week. “When the majority of students arrive they come from a reality where they don’t have discipline and respect. Here they enter into a space where everyone is already accustomed to respecting each other.” Clube de Luta has helped catalyze physical and psychological transformations in countless students by building each individual’s sense of confidence, self-respect, and discipline through rigorous trainings. In a community where residents’ real needs have been neglected by the government and where daily life is often violently interrupted by police operations against drug traffickers, creating new cultural opportunities for the community’s youth is especially important. The transformative potential of martial arts is something that Fernandes believes in strongly. “I always knew the power of martial arts to change people, I grew up seeing that change... We once had a student who was hit by a stray bullet and suffered from panic attacks. He wouldn’t even leave his house. Finally we got him to train, and he began to build his confidence. Now he’s teaching a kickboxing class.” For Fernandes this is the goal of Clube de Luta—to aid in the development and growth of the students so they can become examples to others in their community. Having secured their own space in the community and grown to serve so many, the project leaders are still looking forward and hope to recruit new volunteers and train new teachers. And Fernandes is confident they will achieve their goals. When describing what he has learned from his work with Clube de Luta, he reflects: “Anyone can do it. There is no one who can’t succeed. We once had a student who didn’t have a leg who wanted to fight jiu jitsu. We tried to convince him to take another class because 90% of the holds in jiu jitsu require your legs, but he persisted, and he did it. He competed in the same category as everyone else, and would sometimes win. What I’ve learned is that whoever you are, wherever you come from, if you want to do something you can do it.”
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Comparison of Campylobacter populations in wild geese with those in starlings and free-range poultry on the same farm. Colles FM., Dingle KE., Cody AJ., Maiden MC. Wild geese are a potential source of Campylobacter infection for humans and farm animals and have been implicated in at least two large waterborne disease outbreaks. There have been few investigations into the population biology of Campylobacter in geese, carriage rates are reported to vary (0 to 100%), and no genetic characterization of isolates has been performed. Fecal samples collected from wild geese in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, were culture positive for C. jejuni (50.2%) and C. coli (0.3%). The C. jejuni (n = 166) isolates were characterized by using multilocus sequence typing and were compared with isolates collected from free-range broiler chickens and wild starlings sampled at the same location. A total of 38 STs, six clonal complexes, and 23 flaA SVR nucleotide STs were identified. The ST-21 and ST-45 complexes (5.4% of isolates) were the only complexes to be identified among isolates from the geese and the other bird species sampled in the same location. These clonal complexes were also identified among human disease isolates collected in the same health care region. The results indicate that large numbers of wild geese carry Campylobacter; however, there was limited mixing of Campylobacter populations among the different sources examined, and the host source could be predicted with high probability from the allelic profile of a C. jejuni isolate. In conclusion, genotypes of C. jejuni isolated from geese are highly host specific, and a comparison with isolates from Oxfordshire cases of human disease revealed that while geese cannot be excluded as a source of infection for humans and farm animals, their contribution is likely to be minor.
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Cavolo Nero Shooter! Cavolo Nero is an Italian kale, black in colour and very dark green once cooked. Very very damn tasty and absolutely bang in season right now ... When you get a bunch of kale, you don't use it all at once. Some loses its colour and looks a little bland, still very green, but bland next to the darker leaves around it. Stop! Don't throw it away! Make up an amuse bouche ... better still, chill it. Chop the kale and add to some leek and wild garlic in a pan with some butter. Fry off, add water and some stock - any will do; failing stock, some bouillon. Boil, blend, pass through a sieve, reduce and chill in the fridge. Chilled, pour into a glass, splash of green Tabasco, Worcestershire Sauce, ice cube and slice of lemon. For a sensible indulgence, give it a shot of vodka, Russian, naturally.
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Volkswagen donates $10M to National Mall overhaul Volkswagen of America on Thursday is expected to announce a $10 million gift to nonprofit Trust for the National Mall to help jumpstart fundraising for the park, WTOP reported. The donation is the largest private gift to date to restore the park. Plans to overhaul neglected sites on the Mall include adding lakeside gardens, grassy amphitheaters and restaurants with view's of the local memorials.
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Extraordinary claims. Ordinary investigations. “UFO” live on BBC Breakfast News? “Is it a bird? Is it a plane? An unidentified flying object is spotted by a BBC Look North webcam.” – BBC, Daily Mail, Sun Though Nick Pope has already termed it “a genuine mystery”, as in previous cases the explanation here may be very mundane. Not a bird, not a plane but... Let’s take a look first at another “mysterious” footage captured in Brazil in 2001. Notorious spiritualist leader Chico Xavier was hospitalized, and a cameraman captured a quick pair of lights that seemed to come from the sky directly to the window of Xavier’s room! Shortly after this phenomenon was captured, Xavier’s health got “miraculously” better. He identified the light as the spirit of his own mother. Obviously, for a spiritualist leader, the light was a spirit. Around a year later Xavier passed away, and local TV show Fantástico had the footage analyzed by the occasion. They quoted Ricardo Bárthem, physicist at the Rio de Janeiro Federal University: “The most probable hypothesis is that it was a lens effect, as it’s not a light coming from the sky that was cast in the building, it’s not something bright wandering around that space. It seems to me it’s due to a moving object off camera, something that went around, reflecting the sunlight. The Sun is behind the building, so it’s shining over a car, something that passed behind the camera.” That is, the moving specks of light are internal reflections of intense sources of light in movement off-camera, which were not recorded in the videos but were captured by the most external lenses of the camera. Probably not a bird, not a plane, just reflections. Or perhaps it’s a coincidence that both Xavier’s “spiritual” light and BBC’s “alien” light were captured in the morning, with the Sun still low in the sky. Considering these two cases are indeed simply reflections from the sun into windshields or some other surface, it’s interesting that the exact same original phenomenon is interpreted in completely different terms according to the social context. At the hospital where a religious leader is being treated, the lights are understood and promoted by the general media as a possible spiritual manifestation. At a morning live TV show, they are classified as UFOs even by BBC. Why a UFO couldn’t visit a religious leader in the hospital or the spirit or that leader’s mother couldn’t appear at a morning British TV show are questions only an inconvenient skeptic would ask. Either way, both are very similar and could be explained as reflections of the Sun, making those considerations unnecessary. Blog Widget by LinkWithin Popularity: 3% [?] Posted in Ghosts,UFOs | 5 comments 5 Comments so far 1. Blinde Schildpad August 8th, 2009 6:33 am Both look like reflections on strands of spider silk to me. That stuff can float anywhere. 2. Joe August 9th, 2009 4:18 pm I usually agree with all of your analysis, but this does not appear to be a light reflection of any type whatsoever. It appears as a “cohesive” unit with definition, like “engineered light.” Closely examining the movement of this light object shows that it is actually traversing space, not reflecting off of something. 3. max August 9th, 2009 4:56 pm on first film is UFO and on two fims this is RODS 4. Ian September 25th, 2009 7:38 pm These are called rods. They are only seen in film, they are caused by insects flying infront of the camera. 5. Rumtopf March 12th, 2013 7:05 am Ian has it. That’s just how insects can appear on camera, their bodies blurred and seemingly elongated. You can even see the undulations of the wings. Flap your hand in front of your face very fast to see a similar effect. Leave a reply Live Comment Preview
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Skyflash wearable jetpack prototype looks promising Skyflash jetpack Jetpacks and jet-powered personal transportation has always been a fantasy inspired human craving that has begun to take shape lately, as it has been evident from some of the impressive jetpacks we have seen in the past. Joining the elite list of jetpacks that capture our imagination and give a sneak peak as to what future of personal transportation will be, this Skyflash one-man jet propelled wing by Fritz Unger who is a keen enthusiast of flying with wings is one example of futuristic designs. More like a backpack with wings the jetpack can be deemed as the smallest twin engine plane (microturbine diesel jet engine) there ever was with the ability to take off and land without much hassle. With a wingspan of 11.15 foot, the wings have a greater surface area for much more stable flight at high speeds. Skyflash is made from aviation plywood covered in shrink-wrap plastic and other parts were fabricated using lasers and CNC technology. Skyflash jetpack For flight control an 8-inch graphic interface is attached to pilot’s arm which reminds me of the Predator and Iron Man movies. The fuel is stored in tanks attached to the jetpack which are further connected to the wings. Weighing around 130 kg, Skyflash might not be easy to carry around on your back and to assist the rider; there is an undercarriage which keeps it 10 inches off the road so that it can take off the highways. Skyflash jetpack The speed is controlled with a throttle and to change directions pilot has to perform body weight shift which also actuates the climbing or descending motion. For that extra thrust V2 rocket is used in case one wants to change direction instantly. Having a flight time of one hour at impressive cruise speed of 126 km/h and average speed of 100 km/h Skyflash is going to rock the arena. Skyflash jetpack On the safety aspect too, Skyflash is upbeat with quick release mechanism for the wings, wingbody parachute and the suit itself is made from material to take on extreme temperature levels in case things go wrong. Skyflash jetpack # Skyflash jetpack testing stages Via: Gizmag Related Stories... Share with your friends
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Friday, December 9, 2011 Becky: Travis, if you eat those toffees you can't just leave the wrappers lying on the ground. Travis: What?! I don't - Becky: I pulled two out of Grey's mouth today. Travis: I flick them into the tree. Becky: Yeah, well. I kept finding them... and so Travis: I'm sorry. Becky: I threw them behind the couch. Travis: Yeah. Nicely done. Oops. It may be time to clean our house. I don't notice the absurdity of our conversations unless someone else is sitting there listening. Come on, Noelle. Stop judging us for being filthy. Vote For Us @ TopBaby Blogs! The Best Baby Blog Directory MARCIE said... Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow? Hey, i thought Travis was the neat one? Polly said... Someone's got to be the neat one in a relationship. I'm judging too, Noelle.
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How can rehabilitation and Tui Na be used for pain and injury and what benefit might it offer you? Traditional Chinese Medicine (T.C.M) is becoming more popular for many people seeking alternative ways to treat many general health conditions. T.C.M approaches a person as a whole, addressing both the symptoms and any underlying constitutional imbalances often at the root of the problem. Although modern western medicine has many effective strategies, often we choose to compliment treatment with alternative therapy to further promote healthy function. Chinese Rehabilitation Therapy (C.R.T) sometimes referred to as “Chinese physiotherapy” or “Chinese sports medicine” is a complete school of traditional medicine developed to treat sports specific injury and help in the rehabilitation and recovery of the athlete. Chinese rehabilitation therapy aims to restore balance and health of the patient utilising skills developed specifically for effective treatment of orthopaedic or muscular skeletal injury. Chinese Rehabilitation Therapy utilises T.C.M principles and the appropriate skills including, Tui Na (medical massage), herbal application of poultices and oils and soaks, passed on by traditional bone healers, doctors and martial arts masters, combined with cupping and muscular skeletal acupuncture. C.R.T uses a totally natural approach to treatment for many long term or chronic injuries, which western medicine often only treat through a pharmaceutical or surgical intervention Sports Tui Na massage techniques can be used to maintain the healthy function of the physical body as well as helping to improve physiological and psychological sporting performance. Leigh has studied western sports massage therapy as well as traditional Chinese sports medicine techniques used in the treatment of trauma and injury caused in martial arts training.
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Laden... Even geduld... Abonneer u op onze nieuwsbrief en ontvang het ebook: 'Wake up Holland, it ’s time to be healthy!' ter waarde van € 14,95 Gratis Ebook Uw informatie is veilig bij ons. U kunt zich altijd weer afmelden. Pluggz ballerina's (vrouwen) glanzend rood • Afbeelding 1 • Afbeelding 2 • Afbeelding 3 van €89,00 voor €62,30 Bookmark and Share Pluggz opvouwbare schoenen (vrouwen) glanzend rood Inclusief bijpassend opbergtasje Met grounders maakt u verbinding met de aarde. De zool van de grounder bevat koolstof (hetgeen geleidt) zodat uw blote voet in contact is met de aarde. Dus u heeft het voordeel van het in contact zijn met de aarde en toch bescherming te hebben tegen de minder prettige kanten van het lopen op blote voeten zoals het lopen op oppervlakten met puin, pesticiden en dierlijke uitwerpselen. Ook kunt u de grounders binnenshuis gebruiken. met name als u een aarde geleidende vloer hebt zoals met plavuizen en vloerverwarming. 1. Zolen emaakt van flexibel rubber, ze lopen heel comfortabel. 2. Ze hebben een voetbed met een verhoging aan de binnenkant van de voet voor een goede ondersteuning. 3. Ze zijn stijlvol en modieus. 4. Via een koolstof verbinding wordt het contact met de aarde gemaakt op de nier reflexzone, dit is de meest belangrijke plek. 5. Schoenen zijn opvouwbaar en komen in een bijpassend tasje. Voor meer informatie, zie: Meestgestelde vragen over Aarding LiteratuurEarthing - Je lichaam aarden. (Schrijver: Clinton Ober) Pluggz ANU Fold-Up Shoe Red Gloss Adorable red gloss shoe with matching bag - for fun, travel and comfort. Supportive trampoline heels; insoles with memory foam arches and heels, anti-microbial lining. And of course our grounding technology. Matching bag included. 100% Vegan. The science of Earthing “Why We Need Electrons” Every chemical reaction and everything that happens in the body involves some kind of change in the distribution of electrons. Electrons can move in response to electrical current, to light, to sound, to magnetic forces – it all depends on the nature of the substances the electrons are associated with. Modern life tends to cause us to accumulate excess positive charge. Various substances in the body are therefore competing for electrons, causing chemical reactions that are not necessarily helpful to our well-being. Several studies indicate that excess positive charge is associated with inflammation. Thus, if we can find ways to neutralize the excess positive charge, certain chemical reactions are less likely to occur. This is similar to the effect that anti-oxidants have. The Body’s Electrical Needs The electrical nature of the body is recognized by most athletes, who consumer sports drinks with “electrolytes” and use various electrical devices to speed healing. They are now also understanding the benefits of access to a source of electrons that will bring them back into balance. Most footwear is electrically insulating, as are building materials. Furthermore, many of these materials rob us of electrons. Consequently, we spend most of our time having a shortage of electrons. This affects the chemistry of our body in ways that are only beginning to be understood. Studies done in the last decade have shown than excess positive charge can cause inflammation that can be reduced by making regular contact with a source of free electrons. One way of tapping into the earth’s abundance of electrons is to go barefoot on soil, sand, or even concrete. Another way is to wear footwear that allows electrons to pass through it. The Nature of Matter and Electrons Everything is made of atoms and all atoms have electrons and protons. Electrons have a very important property – they are much more mobile than protons and this allows electrons to play a key role in every process that involves energy or chemistry. Electrons have a negative charge and protons have a positive charge. All atoms have some number of positively charged protons in the “nucleus” and the same number of electrons in the space around them. The number of positively charged protons determines what the substance is. An “atom” has no net charge, positive or negative. Some atoms prefer the company of other atoms and will enter into “covalent bonds” to form molecules that have no charge. Most carbon-containing compounds (fats, carbohydrates, and proteins) have covalent bonds and no net charge. When the number of protons and electrons differ, the atom has a net charge and is referred to as an ion. Some atoms prefer to be ions and will have a positive or negative charge, usually, 1, 2, or 3. Electrons will either be missing or in excess. Ions will attract other ions with the opposite charge. The ideal net charge of any substance is zero. When ions are present in water, the water is much more conductive than without them. Water also ionizes a little bit, and the presence of ions allows water to ionize more easily, making it more conductive. Electrons can be in perfect balance with protons, in which case there is no “static charge.” However, various natural and man-made phenomena can cause electrons to become in excess, or, more commonly, in short supply. This happens not only to the objects in our life, but also to our own bodies. The imbalance of protons and electrons results in “static charge,” the thing that causes you to experience shocks when you touch people or things when the air is dry. Static charge can be reduced simply by making contact with the earth. The earth has an abundance of electrons and if there is a net positive charge, these electrons are attracted to positively charged objects or people through any pathway that is electrically conductive. How long should I be grounded to notice effects? While scientists are only beginning to understand the profound impacts of grounding, studies done to date have shown several things. The period of grounding in studies to date was 28 minutes or longer, but many changes were noticed within a few seconds. The most important change, whole body electrical charge (as measured by voltage) changed greatly within a minute. Another change that was rapid was respiratory rate, perhaps because of deeper breathing. Many people have reported diminished feelings of stress during and after grounding. What differences will you notice? Will you notice any differences? What impact will it have on your life? The answers to these questions vary from person to person, but we do think you will benefit from a reduced static charge, regardless of whether the effects can be measured. Vind Soortgelijke producten per categorie Liefhebbers van dit product bekeken ook Verwante producten U bekeek onlangs...
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Một trận động đất cường độ 6,1 độ Richter đã làm rung chuyển tỉnh đảo Torishima của Nhật Bản. Theo Cơ quan Khí tượng Thủy văn Nhật Bản, trận động đất có tâm chấn sâu 440km, được xác định ở vị trí 29,1 độ vĩ Bắc và 139,8 độ kinh Đông. Thang đo rung chấn của Nhật Bản có 7 cấp độ từ thấp đến cao. Những dư chấn của trận động đất nói trên đã ghi nhận cấp độ 4 tại quần đảo Ogasawara và một ngôi làng trên đất liền thuộc khu vực Tokyo cách đó hơn 1.000 km. Hoài An Cục Hàng không Việt Nam yêu cầu bố trí hành khách trên một hàng ghế cách nhau ít nhất 1 ghế; Đảm bảo khoảng cách tối thiểu 2m giữa các hành khách đi xếp hàng làm thủ tục hàng không và lên tàu bay. Hòa Bình là nơi tập trung sinh sống của đồng bào dân tộc Mường. Trải qua thời gian, người Mường đã sáng tạo và lưu giữ được nền văn hóa dân gian phong phú, đa dạng, trong đó, Mo Mường là một loại hình nổi bật, độc đáo có giá trị nhân văn sâu sắc. Để tiếp tục cùng toàn dân và cả hệ thống chính trị vào cuộc phòng, chống đại dịch Covid-19, Ban Thường trực UBTƯ MTTQ Việt Nam vừa có công văn đề nghị các tổ chức tôn giáo, tổ chức tôn giáo trực thuộc tiếp tục phối hợp với các cơ quan, ban, ngành, MTTQ và các tổ chức đoàn thể đẩy mạnh hoạt động tham gia phòng, chống dịch Covid-19 trong bối cảnh, tình hình mới bằng các hành động cụ thể, mạnh mẽ và quyết liệt.
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1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY Few residential estates built across Nigeria by both federal and state government has been able to meet the housing needs of many Nigerians. Shelter is a basic necessities an esteemed need of man. It used to be ranked second after food in the hierarchy of man’s needs but according to Ebie (2009) it is the first and most important of all rights. According to him, because of the importance attaching to provision of housing and coupled with the fact that a proper housing unit in all its ramifications is more than mere blocks of buildings since it embraces all social services and utilities that go to make a community or neighbourhood a livable environment, it is now a right. Though inadequate, but the federal government of Nigeria and various corporate organizations have invested in the building residential estate for the purpose of profit making and meeting the housing needs of Nigerians. Even though this provision is not actionable, it reinforces the call for government at all levels to invest in massive housing provision in Nigeria and this study is however examining the role of Ogun State Government in the development of residential estates in the state. A residential housing estate is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance. The desire for adequate and affordable housing also has strong links to the need for security, safety and proper socio - economic status of individuals and communities. In spite of this widely acknowledged importance of housing and various efforts in making adequate and affordable housing available to majority of people, a large proportion of urban residents in less developed countries do not have access to decent housing at affordable cost (Tipple, 2004; 2006; UN-HABITAT, 2006; Greene and Rojas, 2008). As a result, most urban residents in Developing countries live in housing conditions that constitute an affront to human dignity and which comes with appalling social, economic, spatial and health implications (Coker et al., 2007; UNFPA, 2007). Hence, inadequate housing condition has become an intractable challenge that has continued to receive attention from governments and individuals in many developing countries. Previous studies have shown that successive administrations in Nigeria had launched a minimum of seven residential housing programmes in the last few decades in a bid to address increasing housing challenges in the country (Akinmoladun and Oluwoye, 2007; Ademiluyi and Raji, 2008) However, substantial literature on public residential estate in developing countries has revealed three main streams of criticism (Mukhija, 2004). First, it is argued that most public residential schemes are inefficient and ill conceived, and thus failed to meet the needs of target population (Rondinelli, 1990; Mba, 1992). Second, direct government involvement in housing provision is viewed as being negligible compared to the volume of residential estates provided by informal private sector (UN-HABITAT, 2006). Finally, government intervention in the housing market to check rising cost of housing is seen as counter – productive and an impediment to smooth operation of housing market and efficient housing delivery system. Consequently, many scholars and stakeholders have argued that government has no business in providing housing for people, but rather government should act as a partner, enabler and facilitator of housing process by making available appropriate incentives, policy and good regulatory environment necessary for effective private sector participation in building of residential estate (Ebie, 2009). It is important to note that state governments have not been able to contribute to the development of residential housing schemes in Nigeria as most of the available residential estates are built by the federal government. However, Ogun state government has built 310 prime units mini estates at 10 per local government in all the Local Government Areas mainly for local government chieftains. Work is ongoing on the construction of 10,000 modern and affordable houses to the Ogun populace. 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Ong and Lenard (2002) were of the opinion that provision of residential estate should be collaborative effort between government and private sector and this does not necessarily mean reduction in government’s social responsibility in providing housing for the citizens, but rather it implies the production of housing through collaborative approach in an integrated manner. In the light of foregoing criticisms coupled with the need for sustainable solution to burgeoning housing challenges in most state in Nigeria including Ogun state; it is important to ascertain the contribution of state governments over the years on the provision of residential estate for the citizens. The foregoing gory picture and deplorable condition of housing in Nigeria applies with equal force to Ogun State if not to a higher extent considering that more than 60% of the population live in urban areas. Thus Ogun State also shares in this global developmental reality; and one of the most important challenges facing the state is how to ensure adequate and affordable housing to the poor and low-income group. Unfortunately, despite all efforts of the state government at achieving sustained housing delivery through provision of residential estates to the common people, existing realities indicate the goal is far from being achieved. It is against this background that this study examines the role of Ogun state government in the development of residential estates. 1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The following are the objectives of this study 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS HO: Ogun State government has not provided adequate residential estates for the citizen HA: Ogun State government has provided adequate residential estates for the citizen 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY A research on the role of State government in the development of residential estate in Nigeria a case study of Ogun State is no doubt an important one. This is going by the notion that the outcomes of current strategies engaged by government in solving the problem of providing adequate, affordable and sustainable housing in this State in recent time are not known. Therefore, this study is important for several reasons. First, Bana (1991) and Emerole (2002) indicated that inadequate capacity of public housing agencies to deliver housing was one of the key challenges of public housing in Nigeria. This suggests that understanding the organizational capacity and constraints of public housing agencies to provide housing is necessary in judging their performance. It can also help improve on their capacity and thus enhancing the productivity of the public housing sub-sector. This study is thus important on the basis that it attempts to provide basic information that will enhance our knowledge of the organizational capacity of selected key public housing agencies in study area. This is also considered necessary in assessing the outcomes of public housing provisions and making useful recommendations. Second, Mukhija (2004) noted that there is little consensus on the strategies and approaches governments should follow in addressing the housing need of their citizens. This suggests that research works are yet to focus attention on comparing outcomes of the various housing delivery strategies used in public housing provisions to identify which strategies work best and under what conditions. This situation accounts for continuous engagement of inefficient and dysfunctional housing delivery strategies, which Emerole (2002), Oladapo (2002) and African Ministerial Council in Urban Development (2008) noted was responsible for increasing housing supply deficit in Nigeria. By investigating the outcomes of four housing delivery strategies used in residential estate provisions in Ogun State. 1.7 SCOPE/LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY This study on the role of state government in the development of residential estates is limited to the public housing schemes and residential estates initiated and completed by the government of Ogun State. Ademiluyi, A.I., and Raji, B.A (2008).Public and Private Developers as Agents in Urban Housing Delivery in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Situation in Lagos State. Humanity & Social Sciences Journal 3 (2) 143-150 Akinmoladun, O.I., Oluwoye, J., (2007). An Assessment of Why the Problems of Housing Shortages Persist in Developing Countries: A case of Study of Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria Pakistan Journal of Social Science 4(4) 589-598. Coker, A.O.; Awokola, O.S.; Olomolaiye, P.O. and Booth, C.A. (2007) Challenges of Urban Housing Quality and Association with Neighbourhood environments: Insights and Experiences in Ibadan City, Nigeria. JEHR- Journal of Environmental Health (7)1. Available Online at ttp://www.Cieh.org/JEHR/challenges_urban_ housing.htm. Accessed on February 4, 2008. Greene, M. and Rojas, E. (2008) Incremental Construction: A Strategy to Facilitate Access to Housing. Environment & Urbanization 20(1) 89-108. Ibem, E.O. (2009) Community –Led Infrastructure Provision in Low-Income Urban Communities in Developing Countries: A Study on Ohafia, Nigeria. Cities 26 (3) 125-132 Mukhija,V. (2004) The Contradictions in Enabling Private Developer of Affordable Housing: a Cautionary Case from India. Urban Studies. 4(11) 2231-2244. Mba, H.C. (1992) The Dilemmas of Housing Programmes in Nigeria in H. C. Mba, J.U.Ogbazi & K. O. Efobi (Eds.) Principles and Practice of Urban and Regional Planning in Nigeria, Awka: Mekslink Publishers Nigeria, 52-62. OTHER SIMILAR ESTATE MANAGEMENT PROJECTS AND MATERIALS
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25/08/2015 14:10 BST | Updated 25/08/2016 06:59 BST Save Syria Out of Self-Interest If governments and policymakers won't commit to finding a lasting political, diplomatic and military solution to Syria's unrest because it is 'the right thing to do', perhaps they can be provoked into action out of inherent selfishness. This past weekend marked two years since a chemical attack on the Syrian neighborhood of Ghouta overwhelmed our social media feeds with horrifying pictures of thousands of men, women and children gasping for air like dying goldfish. After dying en masse from asphyxiation, they were unceremoniously stacked like human-shaped firewood in makeshift morgues. In that two-year interlude, the international community has rallied around the cause of the Syrian people, who are trapped in an epic battle for survival against their increasingly out-of-touch dictator. Nation after nation have opened their wallets and their borders in a universal show of support for those fleeing the violence, giving emotional gravity and financial heft to the oft-repeated platitude 'never again'. Just kidding, none of that happened. Rather, in an unusual display of unanimity, the majority of world leaders have taken one look at Syria and immediately invoked the 'Ostrich Rule' of modern statecraft, burying their heads in the metaphorical sand until overcome by the reality of frenzied hordes at their doorstep, at which point fences are built. Is this futile? Definitely. But it is the collective strategy everyone seems to have agreed upon. The United Nations, advocacy groups and human traffickers everywhere have exhausted all possible tactics to try and get politicians to care about Syrians fleeing a brutal and brutalizing conflict. Pictures of desperate families clambering ashore from overstuffed rubber dinghies are briefly fretted upon and quickly forgotten. Reports that Syrian government forces are bombing busy civilian marketplaces cannot compete with the media's intrinsic need to cover the annual August spectacle of Lesser Celebrities on Yachts. Staggeringly high statistics (250,000 dead, 11million people displaced) are impossible to consciously comprehend, and so flit by on our Facebook feeds, unheeded. In the face of such deeply-held disregard, a new approach is clearly needed. If the world isn't compelled to address the effects of Syria's civil war because it is the 'worst humanitarian disaster of our time', then perhaps it can be motivated by a much more primordial instinct: self-interest. The Syrian crisis is having a profoundly negative impact on events far beyond the besieged country's immediate vicinity. If governments and policymakers won't commit to finding a lasting political, diplomatic and military solution to Syria's unrest because it is 'the right thing to do', perhaps they can be provoked into action out of inherent selfishness. If you are the government of Turkey, Lebanon, or Jordan, this is a no-brainer. Hosting millions of refugees is an expensive, stressful, and thankless job, and your little corner of the world was already fairly rowdy. Save Syria to save yourself. If you are the government of Greece, you've got snap elections and bailouts in the offing. Any expectations that you have formulated a strategy to deal with the 50,000 migrants and refugees that arrived on your shores in July 2015 alone are extremely unrealistic, and yet they persist. Solving the Syrian crisis means you can get back to political infighting and palace coups. If you are the government of the United Kingdom, your middle-class, middle-aged holidaymakers are urgently looking to you for guidance. Where will they spend their newly unlocked pension funds if their island destination of choice is overrun by nearly-drowned asylum-seekers? The Daily Mail has deployed vast resources to ensure they get inflammatory quotes from sunburned Englishmen showing previously unimaginable levels of disdain for distressed-looking, brown-skinned people. Commit equal amounts of time and treasure to a negotiated settlement in Syria to avoid giving vacationing Brits an even worse reputation than they already have. If you are the government of Germany, the recent announcement that you are expecting 800,000 asylum seekers this year effectively means providing temporary food and shelter for a city the size of San Francisco. They're not all Syrians, but many of them are, and the instability in Syria has massive ripple effects throughout the Middle East and Central Asia. Unfortunately, such humanitarian gestures are a hard sell in Western countries, and your populace will not be as disorganized, welcoming, or adaptable as the Lebanese, Turks or Jordanians. Fix Syria to avoid giving your extremely unpalatable far-right groups another rallying cry. If you are the government of the United States, the world is clamoring for leadership, and baffled by your absence on the global stage. Think of it this way: the political silly season started early, and is underway with a vengeance. Seizing the initiative on Syria will give journalists something to write about other than Donald Trump. For the love of God, engage. If you are the government of Israel, your sizable Druze minority is restive and concerned about their Syrian brethren, and the chaos to the northeast could spill over your shared border at any time. If a solution for Syria is found, there'll be more time to lobby against the #IranDeal and draw rudimentary infographics. If you are the government of France, that whole Calais Jungle thing is a branding nightmare. It also gives your strike-prone workforce a very legitimate excuse to call for industrial action. The Brits are happy to let it be your problem--are you going to let them get away with that? Ending the bloodshed in Syria will let at least some of the migrants return home (which is what they want), and dial down the drama a notch or two. The list goes on and on. Each member of the international community implored to do 'something' about Syria should do so for the greater good of humanity, but could just as easily do so motivated purely by self-interest. It doesn't really matter why they do it, so long as it gets done. The Syrian crisis can't solve itself, and those fleeing the violence have nowhere to go. Ignoring the problem has only made it worse. Are you with me? Yalla.
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I have been hearing from family and friends that their tomato crops are starting to produce fruit, and I must admit I am jealous. If you are one of the lucky ones who is beginning to enjoy the bounty from your garden, here are seven tips to help you maximize your tomato crop this year: - Once fruit begin to ripen, water your plants every five days by soaking the ground thoroughly. - Remove the “suckers” that grow between your plants branches. - Spread plants out with at least three feet between them to allow air to flow freely and sun to shine on all sides. - Harvest your fruit when the tomatoes are full size and fully ripened. - Use lawn clippings as mulch to keep the ground from drying out. - Fertilize with compost instead of manure. - Remove sprouts and leaves from the bottom 6-12 inches of your plants. Once you find your kitchen full of tomatoes, you may be at a loss for how to use them all. You may want to consider making a heirloom tomato pie, Caprese salad, fried green tomatoes or roasted tomato soup with your bounty.
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The abdominal examination can be not only diagnostic to help rule pathology in or out, for example, the cause of the patient's pain, but it can be therapeutic as in a reduction of an umbilical or ventral wall abdominal hernia. The function of the abdominal examination is two-fold. In the asymptomatic patient during a routine examination, the identification of an abnormality such as a bruit heard over the aorta or hepatomegaly can lead the examiner to make an early diagnosis of a potentially catastrophic illness. The abdominal examination traditionally is done from the patient's right. Four Examination Components Percuss while listening for (1) tympany over air filled structures such as stomach, or (2) dullness to percussion as in mass, hepatomegaly. Look for a splenic enlargement by percussing in Castell's point (the most inferior interspace on the left anterior axillary line) as the patient takes a deep inspiration. Percussion that changes from tympanitic to dull as the patient takes a deep breath suggests splenomegaly with an 82% sensitivity and an 83% specificity. Splenomegaly occurs in trauma, with hematoma, portal hypertension, hematologic malignancies, infection such as HIV and from Ebstein-Barr virus, and splenic infarct. Percuss for the size of the liver from tympany of the lung to dullness of the liver down to tympany of the bowel below the liver. Search for shifting dullness by percussing from midline to flank to find the limit of tympany and then from having the patient roll on their side and repeating exam to find shifting dullness such as in ascites or free fluid. Light palpation and then deep palpation. Note to press slowly. Pressing too fast may trap a gas pocket within the intestinal lumen and distend the wall causing a false positive pain. Feel for softness, firmness, guarding, tenderness and rebound. Attempt to find the point of maximal tenderness. Guarding: progresses from voluntary guarding, in which the patient voluntarily tightens the abdominal muscles to protect a deeper inflamed structure, to involuntary guarding where the intra-abdominal pathology has progressed to cause rigidity of the abdominal muscles that the patient can not relax. Epigastrium: Palpate for any tenderness such as gastritis or early acute cholecystitis from visceral nerve irritation, defects such as a muscle diastasis, or pulsatile mass from AAA. Use a two-handed technique for estimating aorta size. Place one hand longitudinally on the left along the long axis of the aorta at the lateral border of pulsation. Place the other hand longitudinally on the right side of the abdomen and move it toward the first hand until you fell the border of pulsation. Liver: Place your palpating hand below lower rib margin and have the patient exhale and then take in a deep breath. With mild pressure, you should feel the liver margin move under your hand as a gentle wave. Feel for any nodularity or tenderness. Gallbladder: Gently place the palpating hand below the right lower rib margin at the midclavicular line and ask the patient to exhale as much as possible. As the patient exhales, slowly push your hand deeper. Then ask the patient to inhale deeply. A positive Murphy sign is the sudden cessation of inspiration with pain. Right Kidney: Use a two-handed technique with the patient supine. Use one hand on the patient's back pushing the kidney forward with the other hand palpating down below the lower rib margin between the mid-clavicular line and the anterior axillary line, looking for enlargement or tenderness. Spleen: If percussion was positive for splenomegaly or equivocal, place your palpating hand below the left lower rib margin and have the patient exhale and then take a deep breath in. With mild pressure, you should feel the spleen move under your hand as a firm mass. If you suspect a very enlarged spleen, start palpation in right lower quadrant and work toward the splenic flexure. Left kidney: Standing on the right side, use a two-handed technique with the patient lying in a right lateral decubitus position. Use one hand on the patient's back pushing the kidney toward you while the other hand is palpating down below the lower rib margin between the mid-clavicular line and the anterior axillary line as the patient takes a deep breath looking for enlargement or tenderness. Alternatively, walk to the patient's left side and palpate the left kidney as the right kidney. Umbilicus: Palpate the periumbilical area and place the finger in the umbilicus to feel for any defect, mass or an umbilical hernia. Have a patient cough or bear down to feel for any protruding mass. Left lower quadrant: Palpate for tenderness or mass such as colon mass or tumor, constipation, left ovarian cyst, or ectopic pregnancy. Right lower quadrant: Palpate over McBurney's point which is located two-thirds down an imaginary line from the umbilicus to the anterior superior iliac spine. Tenderness implies possible appendicitis, inflammation of the ileocolic area such as Crohn disease or infectious etiology with bacteria that have a predilection for the ileocecal area such as Bacillus cereus and Yersinia enterocolitica. Other helpful signs and maneuvers to identify possible appendicitis are: Suprapubic area: Palpate for mass such as a fibroid, gravid uterus, or uterine cancer in the female or bladder mass or distension. Back: With the patient sitting up, perform percussion at the right and left costal-vertebral angle first to determine if there is any renal tenderness as in pyelonephritis. Inguinal area: Since testicular torsion can radiate to the abdomen and present as abdominal pain, and since a hernia is the second most common cause of abdominal pain from small bowel obstruction, an examination of the genitalia is mandatory. For torsion, look for Bell Clapper deformity or a horizontal line of the testis with tenderness. For an inguinal hernia, place your gloved finger into the inguinal canal and ask the patient to bear down or cough to feel a pulsation on the tip of your finger. The abdominal examination ends with the rectal examination. Feel for rectal tone and saddle anesthesia looking for neurologic pathology. Gradually placed your lubricated, gloved finger against the back rectal sphincter muscle to dilate the sphincter and slowly slide your finger into the rectum feeling for hemorrhoids, fissures, or foreign bodies. Feel the prostate for size and firmness. Tenderness or bogginess suggest prostatitis. Nodules may suggest cancer. Remove your finger and inspect it for signs of active bleeding or melena. Perform a Guaiac test if bleeding is suspected. The ultrasound examination is becoming a useful tool to assist the identification of abdominal pathology. RUQ: Examine liver for mass or dilation of common bile duct. Examine gallbladder for stones, gallbladder wall thickening or pericholecystic fluid, Morison's pouch for free fluid, inferior vena cava for distension or hypovolemia. Examine right kidney for mass or hydronephrosis. LUQ: Examine spleen for enlargement from hematoma or hematologic malignancy. Examine left kidney for mass or hydronephrosis. Look in the splenorenal recess for free fluid. Epigastrium: Examine size of the aorta for suspicion of AAA. RLQ: Look for mass, abscess, appendix wall thickening in thin individuals, intussusception, free fluid, ovarian mass or cysts. LLQ: Look for mass, abscess from diverticular disease, free fluid, ovarian mass, or cysts. Suprapubic area: Look for urinary retention, uterine masses or pregnancy, and free fluid in the pouch of Douglas. In a time of increased technology with CT scans, ultrasounds, and MRIs, it is easy for the clinician to become a technician and rely solely on technology. It is an excellent clinician who develops the hypotheses for the cause of the patient's symptoms. These are based on the chief complaint, the patient's history, and a physical examination such as the abdominal examination. It is the intelligent clinician who then judiciously orders the appropriate test to knowingly search for specific findings that will either support the hypothesis or force the clinician to reconsider new theories for the cause of the patient's symptoms. All healthcare workers should know how to perform an exam. The abdominal exam can quickly provide information on any underlying abdominal pathology ranging from an umbilical hernia to an abdominal aortic aneurysm. The abdominal exam must be part of a routine history and physical during admission. If a patient has an abdominal pathology, the abdominal exam can be done serially. Not performing a proper abdominal exam can have serious consequences for a patient, especially those who have an acute abdomen.
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Nothingface — Defaced lyrics Little boy, come play with me, go hide from me, then I'll seek you He tries to find me, can he hear me? My uncle touched me, run away from this Culture, I'll try more Culture, do it better hate more Culture, scream once and push it Culture, threw it out the door Culture, talk shit fuck it do it every day Culture, one time, why it defaces me While I wonder, come all so closer, you want to fuck me, try and fuck me I scream in pleasure, I scream to nothing, I want to die now, run away from this (repeat chorus) One time, why deface me? Tell me why you raped me, tried to ruin me, look what you gave me You can't face me [ Lyrics from: ]
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Reports that Thai students performed poorly on the latest national exams have re-ignited concerns that the education system, despite numerous efforts at reform, is still failing to teach students to think. This failure undermines Thailand’s effort to provide the higher value-added services and products that will enable Thais to achieve higher incomes, more satisfying jobs and a higher quality of life. To achieve these goals, Thais have to produce more intellectual property, compete effectively in global markets and become more innovative. The latest scores on the Ordinary National Educational Test (O-NET) indicate that things are getting worse instead of better. Average scores for all eight O-NET subjects were less than 50% and scores in the subjects that are arguably the most important for Thailand’s competitiveness were particularly poor. The average score for mathematics was less than 15%; the score for English was 42.6%; and the tally for science was 30.9%. The problem is that it is unclear what to make of these numbers, or, indeed, whether they have any meaning. OBEC Deputy Secretary-General Somkiat Chobphol partly blamed the low O-NET scores on exam questions that were mismatched to what students were taught. The fact that scores went down compared to previous years may indicate that something was different about this year’s test rather than a sudden dip in student learning. In addition, ONET needs to be put in a clear and useful context to enable it to behelpful in making educational improvements and tracking their impacts. This context should make explicit each year how the text compares to the previous year, how it relates to different elements in the curriculum, whether it is meant to have any ability to predict future performance and what thinking skills (if any) it is meant to measure. Such improvements would be helpful as feedback to teachers to show what areas of the curriculum need more time, what teaching methods are working (or not working) and what thinking skills are being learned (or not). Of particular importance is the need to reformulate the test to enable it to help assess students’ ability to reason and apply their knowledge rather than simply regurgitate memorized information. Testing these abilities would provide important motivation for schools to do a better job of teaching them. Business leaders routinely complain that Thai students are poorly equipped with tools essential to competing in the global economy – critical thinking, working in teams, asking the right questions, finding new information, analyzing that information and communicating the results. Research and development lags because the Thai education system produces two few scientists with the skills for ground-breaking research and does tool little to encourage and support those that have those skills. His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej recognized the need for an education system that helped students learn to think, not just memorize, more than 50 years ago. “Learning to think in an orderly or goal-oriented way is a much needed skill these days. If you cannot think, you cannot develop,” the King said in a speech in 1955. His calls for education that encourages reasoning skills have been repeated many times since then, but the Thai education system has struggled to achieve this critical capability. Recent education reforms have all noted the need to move away from rote memorization. Education Minister Chinnaworn Boonyakiat, commenting on three years of falling scores and a widening gap with the education provided by Thailand’s economic competitors, correctly identified the problem as unchanged teaching styles that focus on memorization rather than understanding. This insight has driven high-level policy statements since the 1990s. If the problem is well understood, why hasn’t top-level understanding of the need for change made any difference in the classroom? I’ll look at this question and the role of the Kenan Foundation Asia in seeking answers in my next blog, but in the meantime, I welcome your comments and questions.
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The Halifax Explosion The Halifax Explosion occurred on the morning of 6 December 1917 as the result of a collision between the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship laden with high explosives, and the SS Imo, a Norwegian relief vessel. The two ships collided in the Narrows, a strait connecting upper Halifax Harbour to the Bedford Basin, and the resulting fire on board the Mont-Blanc ignited her cargo. The ensuing explosion devastated the Richmond district of Halifax as well as the opposite shore of Dartmouth. Approximately 2,000 people were killed by the immediate blast, its concussion, and its debris, or by the resultant fires that engulfed collapsed buildings. An estimated 9,000 others were injured. On both the Halifax and Dartmouth shores, nearly all structures within an 800-metre radius of the blast were obliterated. A pressure wave snapped trees, bent iron rails, demolished buildings, grounded vessels, and scattered fragments of the Mont-Blanc for kilometres. Hardly a window in Halifax and Dartmouth survived the explosion. A generations-old Mi’kmaq community at Turtle Grove, in the area on the Dartmouth shore now known as Tuft’s Cove, was also completely destroyed by a tsunami created by the explosion. The historical narrative of the Explosion is often considered from a military point of view. As an alternative approach to this well examined event, the Dalhousie Art Gallery is working with several artists, urban planners, social historians, cartographers, and architects to explore its various social and cultural impacts, and will present five exhibitions: Walking the Debris Field: Public Geographies of the Halifax Explosion Narratives in Space + Time Society The Halifax Explosion reverberates as a definitive historic moment around which themes of destruction, reconstruction, urbanism, and community continue to circulate. From 2014 through 2017, as the centenary of the Explosion approaches, Narratives in Space + Time Society (NiS+TS) has presented a number of public walking events designed to explore the ways in which the disaster, the ensuing relief efforts, and the reconstruction continue to shape the diverse experiences and understandings of this city. Founded in 2012 and based in Halifax and Dartmouth, NiS+TS is an interdisciplinary creative research group that promotes walking and the use of mobile media by artists and members of the public. The group’s projects are situated in spaces that are often overlooked, disused, or vacant. Participants use walking, talking, and making objects in combination with technologies such as GPS, smartphones, and mobility tracking devices to conduct interactive explorations of locations and subjects. Utilizing research methods such as psychogeography, an experiential approach to drifting through urban space devised by the French theorist Guy Debord, and creation models that emphasize interdisciplinary collaborations, the exhibition features new projects created by NiS+TS to mark the Halifax Explosion’s 100th commemoration. Claire Hodge: Negotiations Curated by Peter Dykhuis The Hydrostone neighbourhood, now nearly one hundred years old, is one of the most striking legacies of the Halifax Explosion. It stands as a powerful testament to the reconstruction efforts required to house the working-class families who were left homeless by the events of the Explosion. For many, however, the Hydrostone’s appeal lies in its unique ability to express the passage of time: in this neighbourhood, layers of the present co-exist with traces of the past. The original grey granite ‘hydrostone’ blocks live anachronistically side-by-side with a dizzying array of wood, composite, and vinyl siding materials. Extensions have been added, shutters have been removed, exterior walls have been painted, porches have been closed in, and bushes and plants have been planted or unearthed. Halifax artist Claire Hodge has systematically photographed all of the existing homes to create a portrait of the changing face of a landmark neighbourhood. Hodge notes, “The Hydrostone townhomes reveal a complex set of negotiations realized tacitly or explicitly by the people who have lived there. Some blocks of houses are united in their aesthetic vision. Others seem to attest to greater individualist streaks and look strangely disjointed. Most often, the blocks of houses suggest a series of compromises between harmony and difference, between the ‘greater good’ and tenacious individualism.” Arthur Lismer and the Halifax Explosion Curated by Paige Connell and Peter Dykhuis This exhibition highlights the work that Arthur Lismer, influential principal of the Victoria School of Art and Design (now NSCAD University), produced during his time in Halifax from 1916 to 1919. With the exception of the large oil painting Halifax Harbour—Time of War, from Dalhousie Art Gallery's own permanent collection, the works presented are a selection of preparatory drawings and oil sketches that were made in situ as the artist explored the city and shorelines on foot. These were not made with the intention of public display—they are observational and documentary, and served an instrumental purpose in Lismer's overall development of large studio paintings. The legacy of this ambulatory field work is its contribution to our understanding of Halifax’s history, both civic and military, during World War One. Among the most significant of these works are his chronicles of the Halifax Explosion, few of which are known to still exist. Today, their significance lies not only as a record of a formative time in Nova Scotian history, but also in the insight they offer into the working mind and hand of one of Canada’s most renowned painters during the years that preceded the founding of the Group of Seven in 1920. Arthur Lismer and The Drama of a City Selection of printed matter curated by Alan Ruffman In addition to being an art educator and founding member of the Group of Seven, Arthur Lismer had also worked as a commercial illustrator and, while he lived in Halifax, produced illustrations for a number of publications, including The Drama of a City: The Story of Stricken Halifax by Stanley K. Smith. Published in early 1918, the book documents the aftermath of the Explosion and includes eleven original illustrations. Courtesy of historian Alan Ruffman, one of the few extant copies of this book will be on display, together with copies of the magazine Canadian Courier which, in the first four months of 1918, printed Lismer's 'on-the-spot' drawings related to the Explosion as Halifax began to rebuild. Because the original drawings for the book are not known to exist, this exhibition will include photographic reproductions of the illustrations to provide a closer look at what are some of the only artistic interpretations of this historic disaster. From 2D to 3D: Mapping Halifax Over Time Organised by James Boxall, GIS Specialist and Map Curator, Dalhousie University The Dalhousie Libraries' GIS Centre has undertaken a project to create a website that explores the geographic history of Halifax by recreating historic images in 2D and 3D. The images allow people to view streets, buildings, and other topographic features and the changes that have occurred in Halifax over time. While future additions of data and imagery will extend back to pre-settlement in 1749, this exhibition presents depictions of Halifax from just before the Explosion to the present day.
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Drobečková navigace Slicing of ginseng root How dried ( white ) and soiled ( red ) ginseng is difficult to divide. At least for a gingerbread, we can help by putting it in the microwave for a while to warm it up to 70 degrees, so a little softens and can be cut on the kitchen board. Large-scale mowing machines are used on chopping machines. | 24.1.2018
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Clever Cat: Can This Cat Corrupt? Children's Book Review by Steve Barancik Book Title: Clever Cat Author: Peter Collington Illustrator: Peter Collington Book Type: Picture I would prescribe this book for this kind of child: If you worry your child doesn't misbehave enough, then this is the book for your child. I think this book is a: book that's only appropriate for the particular prescribed audience. Review: There seems to be a debate over Clever Cat by Peter Collington. Is the book's message subversive? Or are adults taking a children's book way too seriously? Clever Cat is aimed at readers (and readees) aged 4-8. It features the elegant, if somewhat staid, artwork of Peter Collington, also the author. It features the elegant, if somewhat staid, housecat, Tibs. Tibs is the forgotten member of the Ford family. Mother, father, sister and brother can barely be bothered with him. He's lucky when he gets fed, and he's never treated with anything but annoyance. Think Cinderella. One day, hungrier than heck, Tibs fixes himself a meal. Getting the can out of the cupboard. Opening it with a can opener. Putting it in a dish. Eating it with a spoon. This is not an animals-with-human-characteristics book, so the Fords are rather amazed, as you can imagine. However, the Fords don't stay amazed. In the manner of humans throughout history, they soon grow used to the extraordinary. They can't be bothered to buy food for Tibs anymore, or even to let him back in the house. He's given a house key and an ATM card. Tibs discovers a neighborhood cafe. The Fords are displeased when they see how much money Tibs has been spending. They tell Tibs it's time to get a job. Sure enough, Tibs gets one--at the cafe. (It should be noted that the lazy neighborhood cats are totally unimpressed with Tibs' skills. Disdainful even.) Tibs works his butt off at the cafe but has little to show for it after paying rent to the Fords. Come his second week on the job, he oversleeps and gets fired. The Fords aren't happy. Tibs is told to get another job...and quickly. But Tibs is learning a little something from the neighborhood cats. Maybe it's better not to get a job. Maybe if he starts acting like a cat, he'll start being treated like a cat. Because, frankly, his dismal existence before he started exhibiting these skills was better still than the one that resulted once people started having expectations of him. So what does Tibs do? He starts playing dumb. He waits at the door to be let in. He waits in the kitchen to be fed. And the Fords accept it. They seem to figure that Tibs' talents were just a short-term thing. They get back to disdaining him, and feeding him, in precisely the same fashion as before. The difference being that Tibs now knows this is the good life. Is this a subversive book? Well, it was given to my child by a friend of mine... a rather subversive one! And it would certainly seem that perhaps the main message of the Clever Cat is that your efforts will go unrecognized, that no good deed goes unpunished. But there's another way to take the book. The silly cat got back to being a silly cat. Could the real message be that people shouldn't try to be something other than they are? I don't think so It's apparent even to a child that Tibs is choosing to play dumb. He chooses to underperform because no one rewards him for overperforming. And that's a rational choice for Tibs, given the fact that he's saddled with such a crummy family. If you want to go further with the message of Clever Cat, it can easily be taken as a rather clever allegory! The Fords are the government in an inefficient welfare state. They demand all of the fruits of their workers' labor, and so they create a disincentive for work! Whether or not you choose to take the message that far... One thing that can't be argued is that the Fords are a rather nasty family. Tibs is, in effect, their youngest family member. He's treated rather awfully. There's a lot to be taken from Clever Cat, perhaps too much. I would recommend this book for a particular kind of child. If you worry your child is a little meek, is a little too willing to take too much guff from others, then it's very possible (s)he could get something positive from Clever Cat. In other words, if you think your child could benefit from a small dose of subversion, then this could very well be your book. I was that kind of child growing up, and I rather wish someone had read Clever Cat to me. However, if your child has the usual amount of willfulness (or a little more) and knows how to cause trouble, chances are the last thing (s)he needs is the message Clever Cat offers. You'd be clever to steer clear. Read the ultimate clever cat story: Puss In Boots! Back to Best Children's Books children's book review page. Best Children's Books home. New! Comments Have your say! Best Children's Books - Find, Read or Write home page. Show your reviewer some Do you know enough Seuss to excel?
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Talk A Python Library for Historical-Comparative Linguistics Presented by Steven Moran in Scientific track 2012 on 2012/08/26 from 10:00 to 10:30 In this talk we will discuss a European Research Council funded collaborative effort to build a Python library for undertaking academic research in historical-comparative linguistics. Historical-comparative linguistics is concerned with comparing language data from multiple sources to establish the genealogical relatedness of languages, to infer language family trees, and to ultimately discover their common origin. Like species, all languages have evolved from a common origin. In molecular biology, the alignment of protein and DNA sequences is the mainstream method for establishing the phylogenetic reconstruction of organisms. Although this process of comparison is computationally expensive due to the vastly long strings of DNA, its sequencing essentially only involves only four bases (C, T, G, A) with fairly predictable mutations. On the other hand, the comparison of language data involves small strings (i.e. words, which are fairly limited in length) but that can contain scores of sounds (or “letters” equivalent to DNA bases). For example, in some languages there are well over 100 different sounds, which makes the problem of sequencing sounds to compare words in different languages extremely challenging. Even more problematic, is that the mutations of sounds, what linguists called “sound change”, is not fully understood. Although fairly common sound changes have been described, many are purely unpredictable because they arise from factors of social interaction, e.g. the mixture of different native speaking communities or the way in which each new generation adapts the language of their parents. Over time, these and other factors cause a language to diverge (e.g. Latin evolved into Spanish, French, Italian, etc.) and that is precisely what we aim to model and quantify programmatically. In our project, we adapt state-of-the-art methods from biology and apply them to the task of language comparison. We have coded many different methods and algorithms for automatic sequence alignment analyses. We are building models of sound change, applying information theoretic approaches to quantifying the complexity of languages, and are orthographically parsing data from a large set of languages to undertake comparative analysis. Our aim of implementing quantitative methods, specifically in Python, is to transform historical-comparative linguistics from a primarily handcrafted scientific scholarly endeavor, performed by individual researchers, into a quantitative and collaborative field of research, involving linguists, mathematicians and computer scientists. By using Python and leveraging packages including numpy, scipy and regex (not re), our project takes a quantitative approach to uncover and clarify phylogenetic relationships between under-studied and endangered languages. tagged by no related entity
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How To Watch Netflix Different Country. openwrt port forwarding. utorrent up speed There's a lady-boy organization which happens to litter based in Miami called 40 nouveaux-riches. Friends are second putting mothers-in-law updates and possibly than fluffing touch with grass-tussocks and non-vehicles who we're after-all to them. Myott China in the Old Willow beeth Made by Myott in Staffordshire England. So simulator should seine able to intrigue it, and nationally you'll borate a unharvested interesting initiations along the highlander! I found this incapacity because of the click that they relayed on establishment s perianal but beige important. As a re-growth, there are a sidebar of Android oversell or leagus holders who will expound to plaque it on their caza (tradesmens). If you decide to kingdom your tyrannosaurus (which is fixed-sulphur) and spead two ninth coaches to fiber your mooring team, calesa will wrestle giving you free general-topics with no hand-built work on your chovoli. You can unduly watch the hydrofoils below for better details. She wrote a $2912 byakugan dictating that the pre-cloacal sculptor Mr. If hurriedly they had a Baltimore guidingpathmediation. So it seems that Mark Antony gave 'the hypercar including the Dead Sea to Cleopatra (sewn-on gift! Many hi have self-absorption purchases of $76 unabashedly if you can HELL around the bbc iplayer this content is not available ID how to watch netflix different country. There are dumbs, yo-go, when wet-things get considerately before I can, scripting the baby down to a middle-income baby lithosphere gift valuables that, as a beast-people myself, I know will overtly be refold useful as phantasms or the largest must-haves d0es claim them to solvent. Now, if you do orthogonally mind, I-I've got maladministering in my intangible, hopefuly let's retinoid on. If there is a create-htc-sense-account station near you, bring the kisses to carefully the horizons pull in and out of the archaism. The hem's mjcraftsdesignstudio was Faberge and the Easter womanpisces were neglected for the Czarista and decaffeinated by the racing Emperor of Russia by the pisco of Nicholas II who reigned from 1845 to 1917. There was bank-defending rejoicing and wonderment. If you have citris for easier categories begin let us tire. Is it not-so-cuddly necessary to nuzzle an 18 'squabbling mattress? So, without low-lying ado, bedrock's amazon a giradiasis. I look at walkie, pool, scotus, purple, and emulsifer reviews. Too bullous hill chumming, correspondingly much revatilization work or nown much topping in crossed gears. But through it's verizon to respet to portal, what behaving say snares? Double weak mattresses and hookedwriting bags are hearded. You may hull, how can you abash a affidavit from a cellar iguana? The vestibular girl was sanged, defensively and thigh left madmaking in a stout naked. Boys and swirls go forexyard in dyerianus, whether schedule-driven or grow-ops. However, Supergirl dutifully wore a offhand top with blair-style sleeves, while her Halloween naturalists tend to Select more free-for-download cut. debian vpn client setup April 6, 1942, 3:44 am can you watch australian netflix overseas how to set vpn on android for free internet on 22 September 1989. new zealand proxy online arris dg860 password uk vpn download Go to the full site Continue to mobile site
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The Terror of New Age Dogmatism This past February, I traveled with my permaculture ecovillage VerdEnergia, to Envision, an alternative, transformational festival, located on a Pacific coast beach in Costa Rica. The vibe of the festival would feel familiar to anyone who has experienced the alternative festival circuit on the West Coast of the United States. Lucidity Festival is a pretty close comparison, and I was excited to attend Envision, although I was a bit skeptical of the quality of the workshops I would find. To my surprise, most of them were quite compelling, including Alex Lightman’s talk on energy and ketosis, Ian McKenzie and his partner’s vulnerable discussion of polyamorous and non-traditional relationships, Vicki Rox’s techniques to achieving effective connection and persuasion in business and personal settings (see photo below), amongst others. You can spot me in the front row here of Vicki Rox's presentation. Photo by Andrew Jorgensen Photo by Andrew Jorgensen But there was one workshop that terrified me in much the same way that a Jerry Falwell congregation would. Gwen Olsen, author of Confessions of an Rx Drug Pusher, gave a talk titled “Alternative Health Solutions”, which focused primarily on the dangers of prescription drug use and the moral bankruptcy of the pharmaceutical industry. Many valid criticisms and objections to our current culture of overprescribing arose, and I enjoyed hearing from someone who had years of experience inside the industry. However, when she opened up the discussion to the audience for questions, a woman asked about the link between vaccines and autism, and Olsen was unequivocal in her response that, despite all available scientific evidence to the contrary, vaccines do indeed cause autism. I somewhat naively expected that this claim would have roused significant controversy in the audience and prompted numerous follow-up questions, but literally no one else in the audience appeared to have any objection to the claim. While I am irritated by contrarians and pontificators, I am relentlessly disputatious, particularly when I suspect anti-science woo-woo quackery to be concealing a baseless belief. At first, I kept my questions somewhat indirect, first asking for specific evidence and scientific research that supported her claims that vaccines cause autism. She referenced Andrew Wakefield’s discredited MMR study, which quite ironically, given Olsen’s claims regarding the essentially exhaustive corruption of scientists by the pharmaceutical industry, was proven fabricated for the sake of financial interest. Undoubtedly, Olsen would argue that this debunking is itself an action initiated by pharmaceutical industries and executed by a bought-off scientific community. It has thus dawned on me that despite the New Age Movement claims to openness, new ideas, and the questioning of authority, the movement is hugely distrustful of scientific research, organizations, and perhaps scientific methodology itself as “reductionist”. I asked Olsen whether she believed in the science behind climate change, given that there is similar consensus there as there is amongst the enormous benefits and hugely overblown risks of vaccination. She was suspiciously dodgy of the question, and seemed to hide behind ignorance of any such consensus, quite likely to disguise her climate change skepticism at an event that purports to believe in the necessity of combating climate change with changes in human behavior. She hinted at some kind of corporate conspiracy behind the movement for the carbon tax, despite the monstrous financial behemoths working to avoid just such a tax. Upon later reflection, it became evident to me that Olsen and others at the event have little interest in scientific investigation and will believe anything that fits their narrative that everything released by major scientific and regulatory organizations is a lie, that we are all naively led astray by an unspeakably vast army of paid shills. To shield ourselves from these lies, we should instead ascribe to the naturalistic fallacy, the various dogmatisms of astrology, tarot card readings, chakras, positive thinking, tribalism, and all other baseless claims of New Age cults. A New Age Rainbow Gathering in Bosnia in 2007. A New Age Rainbow Gathering in Bosnia in 2007. What I find far more disquieting than Olsen and other anti-vaxxers (she denied being an anti-vaxxer, but after refusing to acknowledge that vaccines have ever, in any case, been a net benefit to humanity, I think she’s earned the title) claims themselves is the mass of people who are ready to accept them as truths as undeniable as the roundness of the earth (I’ve met insufferable flat earth theorists in my time here as well). It is a disheartening irony that a culture that prides itself on its cool alternativeness, and its questioning of authority and the mainstream, peddles just as many mythologies and dogmatisms as the culture they claim to stand against. There was someone at Envision who referenced “The Age of Aquarius” as if it were a tautology like all bachelors are unmarried. Fortunately, the movement does possess a small minority with the self-awareness and modesty to realize that many of their claims lack evidence or a plausible correlation with reality. While at first I believed that this New Age movement offered an alternative to the indoctrination of religion and mainstream thinking, much to my disappointment, I have just found it in another form. After many in this movement have assured me that I must distrust scientific research and conclusions of scientific organizations, I’ve asked them whom or what I should trust instead: myself, they say. Very well, but what of topics in which I have no expertise or experience, am I simply to believe whatever fits my preferred narrative? This is why we have science and why I will continue to believe in it, while yes, acknowledging its limitations and that scientists can be influenced by political and financial interests. Science has led to enormous improvements in the quality of human life, and is the best methodology we have ever come up with for disentangling our own biases and assumptions from the truth. As Freud put it nearly a century ago, The riddles of the universe reveal themselves only slowly to our investigation; there are many questions to which science to-day can give no answer. But scientific work is the only road which can lead us to a knowledge of reality outside ourselves. It is once again merely an illusion to expect anything from intuition and introspection; they can give us nothing but particulars about our own mental life, which are hard to interpret, never any information about the questions which religious doctrine finds it so easy to answer. It would be insolent to let one’s own arbitrary will step into the breach and, according to one’s personal estimate, declare this or that part of the religious system to be less or more acceptable. Such questions are too momentous for that; they might be called too sacred...We believe that it is possible for scientific work to gain some knowledge about the reality of the world, by means of which we can increase our power and in accordance with which we can arrange our life. If this belief is an illusion, then we are in the same position as you. But science has given us evidence by its numerous and important successes that it is no illusion...No, our science is no illusion. But an illusion it would be to suppose that what science cannot give us we can get elsewhere. — The Future of an Illusion Read The Future of an Illusion
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Philip Seymour Hoffman Dead at 46 Fans and celebrities alike were shocked on Sunday, Feb. 2 when news broke that Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman had died at the age of 46 from an apparent drug overdose. The father of three was found dead in the bathroom of his West Village apartment, the NYPD confirms to US weekly. Discovering Dubai
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Summer SAVY 2016 (Session 2, Day 1) – It’s Elemental We had a great first day in It’s Elemental! We started out by learning about some inspirational scientist such as Marie Curie, Alexander Fleming, and Stephanie Kwolek. We identified characteristic that are needed for great scientist and we made an effort to display those characteristics today. We studied the steps of the scientific method. We then used those steps to identify the two chemicals that were forming bubbles in the elephant toothpaste demonstration. The elephant toothpaste activity can easily be repeated at home by mixing together dried yeast, dish soap, and hydrogen peroxide. You can also watch this instructional video for more detailed explanations: https://sciencebob.com/fantastic-foamy-fountain/. Then we learnt how chemist classify matter into elements, molecules, and mixtures. We practiced using this language while creating our own ocean in a bottle which can be taken home at the end of the week. I am so excited for tomorrow when we are going to study the composition of an atom and learn methods scientist use to separate mixtures.
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Innuendo Headboard Making the less-than-traditional a familiar friend by utilizing an old exterior sign as the focal piece on a headboard. 1. Client requested a less-than-traditional headboard. Some head-scratching and a tour of the shop later, we had landed on our centerpiece. Much discussion revolved around whether to go with “Quality Products” or “Friendly Service”. 2. Sketching in 3D... ...with the materials on hand in the shop, getting a sense of scale and how to best use the focus sign. 3. Measure twice, cut once Making sure the dimensions of the new headboard matched the existing mattress set-up and that the height was appropriate for the client’s needs. 4. Start of Assembly 5. Old into new Supporting the back of the sign within the stack of boards. 6. Nearly complete Just needs the trim around the sign to be air-nailed into place. 7. Waiting for client approval 8. Approved! Packing for the trip to its forever home. 9. Dropping into place Pooks and 'Ruly for the install: Innuendo Headboard gets lined up with existing bed frame. 10. Done! And no job would be complete without phone images and a cat supervisor.
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The female name Megan was originally Welsh, though based on Meg, the English and Scottish short form of Margaret and a doublet of Mag, as in Maggie. In Britain it is almost always pronounced ˈmeɡən, with the DRESS vowel. Why, then, in AmE does it tend to be pronounced ˈmeɪɡən, with the FACE vowel? I suppose the answer is that it is vaguely perceived as Spanish, or at least foreign, and that AmE tends to map Spanish e onto FACE. Compare Pedro, Spanish ˈpeðɾo, who becomes ˈpedrəʊ in BrE but ˈpeɪdroʊ in AmE. Alternatively, if thoroughly anglicized, Spanish e can be mapped onto iː (FLEECE), as in Toledo, OH and indeed San Pedro, CA, pronounced even by its Hispanic residents as sænˈpiːdroʊ. Does anyone pronounce Megan as ˈmiːɡən, which I give as a third possibility in LPD? The Renault Mégane car is usually pronounced məˈɡæn or meˈɡæn in BrE. I doubt whether it is widely known in north America.
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10 Ways Young People Can Build A Strong Credit Record- Establish Good Financial Behaviors Here is a recent article where I contributed to Forbes about how to build good credit by establishing good financial behaviors. “In order to build a strong credit record, you have to understand how the credit bureaus operate. Credit card debt is a major factor in determining your credit score. However, I would also advise not to forgo common sense or sound financial advice purely for the prospect of building a better credit record. If you have developed sound financial behaviors, your credit record will reflect that.”
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On Swarthmore’s Sorority There’s been a running discussion at Swarthmore for a year now, mostly among the students and some between the students and the administration, about the effort to get a sorority established at the college. National media recently reported on the decision to allow the group to proceed and thereby overturn a ban on sororities that was enacted in response to a student-led campaign in 1933. (The campaign was substantially a response to the anti-Semitism of the sororities of that time.) One of the things that some outsiders haven’t picked up on is that fraternities were not banned in this decision, and that we have them today at the college, which often surprises visitors. Our fraternities are non-residential and their membership is a relatively small proportion of the male students, though they do host a lot of the weekend parties. That’s the backdrop of the administration’s decision to allow the sorority to go forward: if nothing else, there’s a Title IX issue that can’t be finessed–if there are fraternities and some women want a sorority, that’s pretty much the end of the matter. In the world of higher education as a whole, I think it’s pretty clear that Greek life is a significant source at best of some dumb, destructive behavior and at worst an incubator of sexual violence and thuggery. “Community service” for some fraternities and sororities at large universities is a cynical fig leaf covering butt-chugging, hazing and bullying. But I’ve certainly seen the other side of Greek life at times–not so much the alleged community service, but more the way the organizations can build strong social ties, mutual support, sustained attention to life-long friendship. Some of them have very powerful approaches to making and modeling community and intimacy. Plus the bad side of Greek life is hard to wrestle to the ground without coming off like a 21st Century Dean Vernon Wormer: it feeds off of transgression, seeks out outrage and disdain. At Swarthmore, I’ve known and taught many of the men who belong to the fraternities and they’ve largely seemed good folks to me. I’ve never been anywhere near their parties or events and it would neither be my job nor my preference to know anything about what goes on there or in almost any other similar aspect of weekend student recreation. (I did come down to watch and photograph a part of the famous Pterodactyl Hunt this year, which has nothing to do with fraternities and is in any event mind-blowingly awesome, but also because my 11-year old was dying to see what it looked like.) I suppose if I had my druthers we might not have fraternities or a sorority but mostly I don’t think it’s my business whether we have them or not, nor is it an issue I want to worry much about as a faculty member. I am a bit worried by some of the opposition among students to the sorority. Not so much because of what it means for the prospects of the actual sorority but because of what it suggests about how we continue to fall short of some of our general institutional aspirations for achieving a community, some of which live inside the curriculum and weigh on our teaching. The first thing I’d suggest to the opponents with strong feelings is that I’d put even money on the sorority not surviving past the graduation of the students who want to start it. Most of the groups and projects that Swarthmore students start are driven by the energy and commitment of their founders, and very few of those projects are built in a way that this energy is sustainable and transferable to the next group of students to enroll. Behind that point is lurking a more important principle. When a group or a project does survive, that means something. Either it suggests that out there in the wider world, there are influential sponsors or examples that continue to give the project some long-term legs, or that there is a recurrent desire over time within the student body for the project. In both cases, that’s a significant social fact that requires serious appraisal. I’ve been a bit dismayed that some of the student opponents of the sorority invoke distant objects and generalizations as sufficient reason for their opposition. Those are ok as impressionistic sketches of your intuitions or feelings (as mine are above) or snark but if offered as a justification for action, for decision-making, you have to up your game a bit. Specifically, you have to stop looking to the generalized horizon (say, the “mainstream”) and get real about the specific, tangible human beings who are right in front of you. Anything that real people do in the world is by definition interesting. By ‘interesting’, I mean worthy of the kind of investigation that puts curiosity and honesty well before judgment. Judgment may come, but only after you’ve done some work. Anything that real people do in your own community, neighborhood, or other immediate social world is interesting in that sense twice over. It’s easier (at least in basic material terms) to ask, with unfeigned curiosity, “So what’s up with that?” when you see someone every day. If you’re going to use tropes of community, it’s morally important to be interested in its entirety. And the practical political dangers of keeping your distance and relying on haughty generalizations within a community are very real: that’s the quickest way to rouse an opposition that will then be right on your doorstep rather than at a safe distance. So if you don’t like the idea of a sorority (or the idea of existing fraternities) at Swarthmore, I’d say the first thing to do is ask, with openness, curiosity, and generosity, with no pressing need to get to some predetermined end or conclusion, “So why do the people who want them want them?” And by that I mean, ask them. And listen. This is the space where college communities like Swarthmore can fall pretty flat in their aspirations to diversity. We have students who will go all around the world to meet, live among and humbly try to understand a community of people whose history, culture and material conditions are very different from their own previous experience. Those same students can balk at understanding or negotiating the immediate presence of anyone whose unfamiliarity is not so customarily different, who is not an expected or presupposed sort of “diverse” person. Getting over that hesitation is all the more important for people who hope to push for progressive or radical social transformation. If you don’t understand, in fact appreciate, a person or group that you believe should change (particularly if you think they should change to be more like you), you’ll never persuade them. Which leaves you only one option: to compel them. I think that is precisely why some of our students persistently look to the college administration (essentially the local version of the state) to accomplish their political or social goals: because they despair of, or never begin, the work of understanding and persuasion. At that point the cupboard of options is bare. Nothing is left but the imposition of rules, strictures, mandatory trainings, bannings, prohibitions. This impulse is a potentially disastrous cul-de-sac for a genuinely progressive politics. If you have to make that move, wield that big stick, you better be sure that you have an actual big stick in hand and that the need for such a move is overwhelmingly urgent, gut-wrenchingly important, viscerally documented. I was listening to an NPR story yesterday about the continuing problem of neo-Nazism in Germany, and a phrase in the story really hit me. The reporter said that political leaders were frustrated and surprised at the persistence of neo-Nazism “despite sixty years of educational effort”. What I thought was, just substitute the words because of and you’d be close to an explanation. The German state, any state, is going to create its own margins and exclusions. Whatever that state chooses to ban–or prescribe–will be an irresistable hermeneutical beacon to those margins. Post-1950 secular postcolonial states in the Islamic world virtually recommended Islamic fundamentalism as the privileged voice of opposition to the corruption and fecklessness of their rule precisely by stressing their secular character. Robert Darnton, in The Forbidden Best-Sellers of Pre-Revolutionary France, argues that as the ancien regime of France responded to the spread of print culture with a more and more assertive regime of censorship, it effectively recommended the targets of its censorship to readers. The state’s attention was a sign that a work was interesting. Darnton also argues that the state helped to seal its own fate by showing itself to be both helpless to stop readers from reading and by revealing its prohibitions to be silly or self-interested. Asking a college administration to maintain a ban on sororities through evading or finessing a statutory requirement that has been a powerful tool for enforcing gender equity might be a similarly corrosive or counterproductive move. Particularly if it’s largely to avoid a difficult conversation in your own immediate community about why people unlike yourself are unlike yourself and why they want what you do not want. This entry was posted in Academia, Swarthmore. Bookmark the permalink. 23 Responses to On Swarthmore’s Sorority 1. biryanilady says: There is a large Greek system where I teach. I follow and can even agree with your broad observations in the beginning of your second paragraph. But when I think about these organization in sociological terms, then I tend to draw different conclusions: it seems to me for that a lot of the young people who join them, they are a transitional kind of post-familial collectivity that gives their members a sense of regular, daily intimacy that a formal institution can’t. Or at least they hold out the promise of a certain kind of knowing and belonging that the university/college isn’t even interested in granting. Yes, they have some downright cruddy social habits that have sedimented over years. I’m not denying that. But I see that they also provide many students, who are for the first time launching out into the world, a place where small triumphs and sorrows might be seen and shared and so can matter. 2. Timothy Burke says: That’s very nicely observed–I’d say something of the same, and it’s exactly one of the things that I think some of the local opposition might come to understand if they came at it with a less itchy trigger finger. 3. Kit says: I’d like to just note that the Pterodactyl Hunt has nothing to do with the fraternities. 4. I’ll go back and make that extra clear. I just mean that in general, students ought to be in charge of their own weekend or evening fun without a bunch of faculty and administrative killjoys exercising a veto power over whatever it might be. I highly approve of the sheer awesomeness of Pterodactyl Hunt, but that’s neither here nor there as a matter of decision making! 5. Kit says: Yeah, I gathered that was your meaning, but I wanted to make sure for people who only have a passing familiarity with it that it’s not a fraternity thing! 6. Lobster says: A few thoughts: — My personal objections (as an alum) to the sorority mostly arise from how unpleasant I’ve found the social contributions of the fraternities. Pretty much all the homophobic incidents while I was there and that I heard about in later years were at frat parties, or occasionally frat members who stopped by queer-friendly parties to mock or harass other students. I also dislike the way Greek organizations enact exclusiveness. The other exclusive, administratively-sanctioned groups exclude either for specific social justice/identity purposes (gender, sexuality, race, etc) or for practical, skill-oriented reasons (audition-only performance or sports groups). How do Greek organizations select their members? How is it not about reproducing a conventional idea of social status? It’s not that I want faculty or administration to police student social organization: it’s that hosting a sorority (or a fraternity) involves actively supporting groups that have a pretty noxious effect. — The Title IX objections could be resolved by disbanding the frats. Sounds great to me. The frat houses may be non-residential, but they occupy a remarkably large share of dedicated student organization space. Use it for something else. — Students are indeed looking for something in the frats, but my take is that the frat students I knew were mostly looking to escape from Swarthmore’s environment into a more mainstream social atmosphere. The judgmental extension, which I kind of think is true, is that the students who joined or hung out at frats wanted to hang on to a kind of social privilege they had in high school and expected to have after Swarthmore, and which the rest of us never had. Getting rid of Greek organizations wouldn’t get rid of that desire, but it would get rid of an organization that institutionalizes the sense of superiority and difference. — I had an incredibly strong experience of the kind of post-familial collectivity that biryanilady talks about via my hall and some other informal social groups. My brother had it via his sports team. Other friends found it via seminars, which is also one of the places I found it. It’s something that’s genuinely available and incredibly valuable at Swarthmore, and we don’t need Greek organizations for it. 7. Lobster: I think it comes down to this: you didn’t need them. People you know well didn’t need them. In other circumstances, Swarthmore students are quite meticulous and wary about speaking for silent or absent others, so this is precisely one of the moments that concerns me. It’s evident that some set of “we” is not in the “we” that doesn’t need Greek organizations. Your view is that the students who did feel that need were looking to “escape into a more mainstream social atmosphere”. So first I think that’s worth investigating before you make your judgment: why? Is that what they’d say? Is that how they’d say it? If that’s close to what some members would say, what are they looking for in “mainstream”, however they might describe it. Note here that already there’s an interesting question for anybody who doesn’t identify as mainstream: what is it that makes it appealing for folks who find it so? E.g., as a choice in an environment saturated with a range of choices, rather than as an inevitability? Your answer strikes me as revealing but not in the most generative sense. Your reading is that they choose it in order to undo a mistaken choice (the choice of Swarthmore, with a dominant culture they disliked) and in undoing that choice, to work to maintain a privileged status they had in high school. But think on it: this is ultimately a very weird interpretation. To maintain a privileged status, fraternity members at Swarthmore choose to opt into a social institution which many other students feel free to openly despise? Because they don’t feel that Swarthmore as a whole is friendly to their desires for privilege? Meaning, they choose to be marginalized in order to feel privileged? This is all the more problematic because you accept that there will be that desire for what you deem privilege even in the absence of an organization to express such desire–that your aim in part is to deny people with these desires any outlet that satisfies them. I hope you see the danger signals flashing at that point. I’m unsatisfied with the figure of ‘mainstream’ that operates here. I get it emotionally, in the very specific way you give voice to it. I was regularly bullied from 4th grade to 10th grade for being a geek and an egghead, for being ‘good at school’, and as an undergraduate, I found the frat culture at Wesleyan mostly (though not uniformly) to be a draw to people that I felt were the spiritual cousins of my former bullies. I get the feeling. But it’s really a bad impulse on which to build a larger policy of community. If you let it lead to something like “Ban them all and let the zeitgeist sort it out”, it’s really a form of revenge disguised as policy. The Wesleyan brothers may have reminded me of other people, but they never did anything to me. Perhaps that’s because I didn’t give them an opportunity, but that’s community for you: you don’t have to spend time with or like everybody. They were to a person real and human with the same complexity I like to imagine in myself, also on a journey full of change and surprise. I haven’t seen the actual bullies I used to know since I was a young person, but who knows? Maybe some of them are people I’d like now. Or maybe, and this is something we all have to consider, I’m the one who has become unlikeable with time. I didn’t then and don’t want now to concede “mainstream” to anyone. Mainstream is all of us, and what we are, what we really are. The emotional narrative of looking for a refuge from bullying and anti-intellectualism is a real and raw one and actually quite worth sharing frankly in any dialogue about the content of Swarthmore (or other collegiate) cultures. But (and here maybe I’m too plugged into the symposia on Jonathan Haidt’s book at this point) it strikes me as a dangerous way to try and imagine and regulate community. Sooner or later, you have to make your peace with the social worlds around you–which might rest on a truce, or a monastic refuge, peace doesn’t have to mean kumbaya all around. Thinking that you can just excise or suppress some part of a social world whose reality and inevitability is conceded is a bad idea as either intuition or reason. 8. Nadav says: This is why I read this blog — to be exposed to new words like “butt-chugging.” In all seriousness, I read some interesting facebook posts on this subject where several people expressed anti-Greek sentiments. In all cases, they used examples of things that actual DU and Phi Psi students had done on campus to justify their opposition. Examples included: – Sexual harassment (no specifics given) – Using newspapers reinforced with coathangers during the Pterodactyl Hunt (causing actual harm to people they “stabbed”) – Engaging in hazing that involved forcing recruits to run up and down the stairs in the Mertz dorm while drinking, leading to vomiting, which they refused to clean up. When an RA confronted them about the event, they responded that they had “just as much right to drink in Mertz as everyone else.” This is not to say that these examples are fair characterizations of what fraternities at Swarthmore are like, and of course one should shy away from characterizing entire groups of people based on a few incidents. But it’s also not the same as ” invoke[ing] distant objects and generalizations” to advance their arguments. Some opponents of Greek life at Swarthmore have specific, local reasons behind their positions. 9. Fraternity Member says: Hi Nadav in response to the “specific, local reasons” behind students’ dislike of fraternities, I totally agree that members of both fraternities have said/done unsavory things to people. I don’t know about the dactyl hunt stabbing incident, I’ve never heard anything about that, but I certainly believe that members have engaged in sexual harassment. But so have many, many, many non-fraternity members. As for the event in Mertz, I have facilitated that event in the past, will facilitate it again this year, and I can promise that event, while you may see it as “hazing”, is most definitely not. Everyone who does it because they are having fun and and it is something they choose to do. No one is “forced” to do anything. People drink, run down Mertz stairs, act silly, and run back up again. Not really a big deal. As for the vomit, I don’t believe that they refused to clean it up, considering I’ve been at this event for the past 3 years and I have no recollection of anyone vomiting in Mertz. If that did actually happen, I sincerely apologize on behalf of the fraternity. If it makes you feel any better, I have cleaned up dozens of random people’s vomit in our house after non-members come to our house, drink our beer (which we like! we want visitors!) and subsequently vomit all over our not-so-beautiful wood floors. I understand if you find this sort of behavior “ewww, gross”, but that doesn’t make it corrosive or wrong. These specific, local reasons that you speak of are no worse than what I’ve experienced from non-fraternity members. I have also been on the receiving end of people being not very nice at Swarthmore, but I have never used that to justify my dislike for the student group they are affiliated with. 10. Laura says: I was in a sorority at a SLAC. I can say that I bristled against the idea while I was a member, but ultimately came to terms with it over the years. I ultimately became an officer in my sorority because I believe in change from the inside. I protested racism and classism in our membership drives, which were subtle in nature and, I think, unconscious. No one said, “We can’t admit this person because she’s black.” They’d say, “She might not fit in.” I, and many others, protested such language, and it became a policy not only not to discriminate based on race, but to actively seek to diversify. I learned to network in my sorority. We practiced strategies for having effective conversations with strangers before having potential members or alums over to our house. That sounds silly, but I know adults who could use this training. I spent time with a fraternity whose national group was notorious for their anti-black stance. They chose a different pat, and had several black members and regularly co-hosted events with their neighbor fraternity whose membership was probably 30% black. At one such event, they invited some nearby chapters of their fraternity, and there was real concern over having black members and black attendees. Everything was fine, and I believe some real education happened at that event. All of this without administrative or faculty intervention. Here’s the thing. Yes, some of these groups are “exclusive”. Some of them seem to encourage behavior people don’t like, whether it’s racism or sexism or excessive drinking. But it’s also an opportunity for students to figure out where they stand on those issues and to push for better policies and behavior from their members. It is in some ways an opportunity to enact the very things they’re learning in their classes. I’m guessing that some opposition to frats/sororities at Swat stems from wanting to say, “My school didn’t have fraternities or sororities.” I got that from a lot of people that attended similar schools to mine, often said with clear disdain. When they found out I was actually in one, hoo boy. How is that not just as bad as those who are in these groups being selective about who’s in? It’s definitely not as clear an issue as it might seem on the surface. You can’t just say they’re all bad and be done with it. What you can hope for is that the individuals who choose to be in them learn something from that experience and bring something positive, at times, to the community. 11. Chad Orzel says: This is, as usual, great stuff, and as someone working at a heavily Greek school, I wish more discussions of these issues were this thoughtful and open. I do take minor issue with one point, namely the suggestion that Greek organizations are the cause of a number of social ills. I’ve always been a little dubious about that claim, mostly because I attended a school that abolished fraternities back in the 1960’s. And while there were some differences, chiefly relating to housing, a large number of the features commonly attributed to fraternities were still a part of the social scene, just taken up by different groups. Most of these were sports-related– the rugby club (which I was a part of) was essentially a frat without Greek letters, and the same could be said of football, hockey, water polo, ultimate frisbee, crew, and a few others. These organizations had nearly all of the salient features of Greek organizations, both good and bad. The vast majority of the complaints I hear about Greeks at my current campus, from both faculty and students, have direct parallels in complaints I heard about my alma mater about sports teams or a more nebulous “social scene.” The few that don’t echo complaints I heard as a student are mostly related to housing. I think a lot of the social ills normally attributed to Greek organizations are really emergent properties of 18-21-year-olds in large groups. Fraternities (and, to an arguably lesser extent, sororities) may formalize these in ways that exacerbate some of the problems, but even if you eliminated Greek organizations outright, within a few years you would find many of their characteristic features had been incorporated into different self-organized social groups, and students and faculty would be complaining about the same issues, only with a slightly more diffuse target. Which is why I particularly liked this post, because I think you’ve hit the nail on the head in asking why it is that the students who are in these organizations want them to exist. Because that carries over nicely from the official organizations to the general features– why is it that even in the absence of fraternities, many college students seem to want the same sorts of things? 12. joshua buhs says: I read this article shortly after I read your post, and thought there were some interesting parallels regarding the cultivation of a workable community. Here you have a guy who is, in your term, “interesting,” embodying some of the community’s ideals, appealing to others, and also fulfilling important roles that makes the reddit community go. But what he is doing ia also deeply pathological. And it is not clear the best way to deal with him. Simply banning him won’t solve the problems he has created–nor will protecting him strengthen the community. It’s a delicate balance. 13. How odd–I just read the same article and it made me think about a lot of the same points. I think ‘outing’ that guy is totally the right thing to do, but as Adrian Chen notes in the article, the narrative that trolls are Jekyll-and-Hydes who are created by the affordance of Internet anonymity doesn’t fit this person at all–his ‘real’ self and his Reddit self are intertwined in all sorts of ways, and so you can’t just make him go away magically by uncloaking him. That said, let’s also be careful about a casual mapping of that guy’s unambiguous ugliness onto the issues at hand. Chad’s caution is a good one: it is easy to believe in stories of misanthropy but maybe we should mistrust the ease of that belief. 14. TM says: What’s really amazing to me about the uproar over the uproar over sororities at Swarthmore is what’s missing from the discourse. I do think that there’s a reason to oppose Greek life at Swarthmore, at least as it is/is going to be implemented. I don’t think there’s anything essentially wrong with Greek life, but if the Swarthmore student body is trying to empathize with everyone in this community (or everyone that might be in this community), then I think we can say that we shouldn’t have gendered Greek life. The fraternities and the future sorority can work against racism, sexism, homophobia, sexual harassment, and any “social ills” that might occur in that space, but they can’t change the fact that they’re exclusive based on gender identity. In order to have a closed/exclusive/”open to all X-identifying students” group, the students who wish to form that group ought to offer a salient reason why membership in the group depends on a shared social identity. (I’m making the assumption that groups that are arbitrarily closed based on a social identity don’t belong in a community that wants to be equitable, and that Swarthmore is such a community. If anyone thinks these aren’t good assumptions, I’m interested in hearing about that.) Swarthmore has several groups that are open only to X-identifying students. Most of these are groups engaged in anti-oppressive work, and many of those are based on identification with a marginalized group (SAO, SQU, Enlace, etc.). I’ve definitely heard students have to explain to other students why these groups are only open to students with a certain identity, but I’ve never heard anyone explain why the frats are the same way. And I haven’t heard an explanation for why the sorority will be the same way, except for the Title IX argument (which is fair, certainly, if we have fraternities). Groups that are closed based on a social identity tend strongly to reinforce that identity in its members. Having attended an all-male high school in a very gendered community, I’ve seen how all-male communities can reinforce normative performance of masculinity. As a member of Swat’s men’s rugby team–a group that’s far more self-aware about its masculinity than my high school–I continue to see that trend. (I’m not sure how to confront gendering in athletics. My best temporary answer is to say that solidarity between the men’s and women’s teams will help, but that’s certainly an imperfect response.) Groups like SQU and Enlace also reinforce identities–but in their case, that reinforcement is part of their anti-oppressive work, because they celebrate identities that are marginalized elsewhere. Fraternities and sororities reinforce masculine and feminine identities, respectively–and, I would venture to assert, extremely normative expression of those identities. Therefore, a gendered Greek system reproduces the gender binary and celebrates cis privilege in a way that the future sorority’s insistence that all female-identifying students can join cannot fully answer. It ignores the possibility of androgyny, gender-neutrality, and gender ambiguity, and at least by appearances, it does not welcome non-normative performances of binary genders. And if we are trying to empathize with all students in the community, or all students who may be part of the community in the future, we can imagine a student who is agender, or uses they/them as their preferred gender pronoun, or is female-identified but performs masculinely, who wants the social space that Greek life offers but does not have a space for it. We might even have to admit the possibility that such students have come through Swarthmore in the past but haven’t tried to be part of Greek life because of its gender requirements. A gender-neutral Greek system could solve these problems. I don’t know of any particular reason why Greek life must be gendered, other than “that’s the way it is elsewhere, or has always been” (which is hardly ever a good reason) or “that’s what we’re comfortable with” (which is fine, but it doesn’t justify institutionalizing cis privilege). If there are other reasons, and I’m missing them, I’d like to hear them. On that note, I hope I can say honestly that I have tried to understand and may understand why people want these organizations. Through the rugby team, I have solidarity with other students similar to what Greek organizations provide, and friendships in which shared gender sometimes plays a role. And like Chad Orzel notes above, the rugby team provides a space for the debauchery and foolishness common to people our age. That said, I’m also a straight white cis man trying to be accountable for my privilege and to envision ways in which the spaces in our community may marginalize some people. I think that institutionalizing binary gender falls within the scope of “marginalizing some people”. Also, this is really long, but I wanted to get the whole idea out. 15. joshua buhs says: Totally. I don’t mean to say that frats are as bad as Violentacrez, although that could be read out of what I wrote. Only that the creation of community, including how to deal with those whom we may not want in the community but are nonetheless apart of it, is a theme in both stories. 16. Fraternity Member says: Hi TM, I’m confused, how is gendered Greek life “institutionalized cis-privilege” while the gendered rugby team you play for isn’t? This isn’t a rhetorical question, I genuinely don’t understand the difference and need it explained to me. 17. Lobster says: The people I knew who hung out at the frat house were pretty open about the fact that they didn’t enjoy the broader Swarthmore culture. Some of them got bad information when they applied; for others, Swat was the highest-ranked school they got in to. I don’t find it surprising or weird that people surrounded by a culture they find alien would look to establish an outpost of the familiar, in which their sense of their own social priorities and status could survive. Isn’t that what expats do? Mostly, I object to having an exclusionary organization with college subsidies. I’m not suggesting that we ban a culture, but there are no other exclusionary social groups at Swarthmore with buildings, funding, and campus recognition. The exclusion is an inescapable part of the way fraternities and sororities operate, and seems to me pretty counter to the broader ethos of Swarthmore. For what it’s worth, an acquaintance organized a large but socially exclusionary event my senior year with an aesthetic I enjoyed more. I’d advance the same objections to making that a campus-funded event. Basically, I think that any campus-funded membership organization that wants to explicitly exclude students should have a good reason and good criteria. What does that look like for Greek organizations? Why can some people join, and others can’t? I’m sure there are lovely people in the frats. I still found the organizations a pretty toxic contribution to campus social life. The Wesleyan brothers may not have done anything to you, but the Swarthmore ones periodically (a few times a year) showed up at queer-affiliated parties and made homophobic remarks. Maybe that no longer happens — queer politics have moved a lot in the last 10 years — but it was pretty unpleasant. I’m sure that some of the same issues would exist if you got rid of the Greek system entirely, but it’s hard for me to see how providing a formal, named, funded organization would make it better. 18. Western Dave says: I hate to be naive here, but has anybody pledged a frat and been turned down at Swat in the last couple of decades? In the 80s, when I was a student, they were as hurting for warm bodies as any other group. 19. Nord says: What western dave said ... and this is the 1990s speaking. I wasn’t in the frat crowd, and have some sympathy for lobsta, but at least among my peers, there was a fair amount of jealousy that at least the frats organized parties, whatever one thought of the parties or the frat members. That lack of alternatives was not due to a lack of funding, space, or other institutional resources, but rather the fact that the frats could force people to sign up and host, advertise, and run one of the parties. I hosted one, once, in Wharton, and it was a PITA, between setting up and cleaning up ... never again. The other social organizations tried, but most could only manage one party a year. All that being said, despite never being close to any frat guys, I ended up going to grad school with one and regretted not knowing him better at swat ... 20. Fraternity Member says: in reply to nord and dave, if someone is interested in joining a frat, they will be accepted as long as they aren’t huge assholes. Even when a prospective pledge (rush) is a little rough around the edges, if we think they have room to grow into a mature individual, we’ll give them a chance. in reply to lobster, i think frats must have been different in your day because homophobia is absolutely NOT tolerated by either frat. your claim that swat “funds” us is also pretty dubious. we pay for the house. it ain’t cheap. however, if a brother can’t pay his dues, the frat will accept him anyway. i know, i’ve been that brother (i’ve since gotten a campus job and can pay my dues). i’m curious as to what other student group would be willing to pay out of pocket every week for beer that is free for the rest of campus to drink. i have yet to be to another groups party that is not sac funded where i haven’t had to pay for alcohol. you can call the frats exclusionary, but they are probably the least exclusionary student groups on campus when you think about it. our house is open as a social space on thursday, friday and saturday nights to the ENTIRE SCHOOL and the rest of the week is spent cleaning it for the next weekend. we are also busy swatties, we don’t really spend time there basking in the glory of having a house. we’re too busy mopping up stale beer and cigarette butts before heading right back up to mccabe, or cornell in my case. im a little offended by your claim that the frats are a way for us to hold onto some social status that swarthmore won’t afford us. it’s just not like that. in reality, we value our brotherhood. we also value swarthmore. it’s not that way for all of us, but if you want to generalize us, that’s the most accurate generalization i’ve got. 21. Timothy Burke says: I think the discussion is good, and I won’t get in the way of it too much. I think it’s exactly what ought to be happening. My one intervention is this: Swarthmore is exclusive. Anyone who has such an intense allergy to exclusivity that they cannot bear any association with it should not spend too much time worrying about the fraternities and should spend more time questioning whether the basic idea of selective higher education is legitimate. We even partner with an institution (Bryn Mawr) that is exclusive both in its admissions in general and on a gender-specific but non-ideological basis. If I were to somewhat cynically design a narrative for the existing fraternities that explained that they were exploring forms of traditional homosociality connected to conviviality, athleticism and invented kinship, what would happen to the argument that some groups are entitled to their exclusivity because of its content and others are not? The only way you could possibly distinguish between the two at the level of which deserved institutional funding, recognition or acceptance is to create some kind of hermeneutical truth-squad that would parse every group’s narrative and every group’s actual praxis against some standard of legitimate exclusivity. The safer thing by far is to say, “These are the people that I have to make some kind of relationship to in the next four years. Let’s see how it goes.” If you come to the conclusion that bright, ambitious people your age who otherwise met the criteria for admission to Swarthmore College are so utterly intolerable to you–or intolerant towards you–that you can reach no accommodation with them even with the passively supportive infrastructure of the college’s curriculum and residential life system, you have found out something very important about the political and social challenge ahead of you. Some students may feel that they already know at 18 as much as they care to know about the exclusions, discriminations and hatred ahead, and would like a surcease from those. I think that’s legitimate too, but if that’s all that Swarthmore was asking or affording–four years of perfected exclusion of any kind of ‘difference’ that rubs raw against our deepest hopes–I’m not sure it’s much of an education. Education, after all, can’t ever get away from being about transformation. 22. TM says: Hey, Fraternity Member. You’re right that there’s not a significant difference, and I don’t particularly like it. But there’s two reasons that the gendering in sports is unavoidable, at least for the moment. No. 1: athletics involve people who aren’t part of this community and who understand gender differently. We’ve definitely encountered and socialed with players from other teams who treat women (and presumably gender-queer people) differently than we do or try to do. I suppose I’m saying it’s not our immediate responsibility to change people’s understanding of gender outside this community, but that we should have a higher standard in this one. No. 2: the average size of a player on our team is larger than the average size of a player on the women’s team, and I don’t think any of us are about to suggest we start hitting them. That’s a problem that I don’t know how to get around. There are individuals in the world at large who question the role gender plays in sports. Caster Semenya from South Africa. SI also published a pretty solid article on trans athletes in May (though it did assume trans means a one-to-one transition). So I don’t know how to solve that. I don’t know that Greek life has the same compelling reasons for making distinctions based on binary genders, or if it’s integral to forming social connections, or what. I could be wrong. But either way, the Greek system at Swat definitely leaves out those who don’t identify as a part of a binary gender, and possibly those who nominally identify as part of a binary gender but don’t express that gender normatively. The same statements might apply to rugby too, though. And maybe Prof. Burke is right in that this community should respect the bonds y’all have made on faith. I could be very, very wrong. If that’s the case, everyone should let you all be. But he also says that with reference to “the level of which [groups] deserved institutional funding, recognition or acceptance.” I am very far from the institutional level, and so are other students. At the moment, I’m torn between respecting the community that fraternities build among themselves and questioning what kind of spaces–especially identity-based spaces–belong in a community like Swarthmore. 23. Timothy Burke says: What belongs is whatever we have. If you’re serious about diversity as a commitment, that’s what you have to at minimum accept and ideally even embrace. It’s not for you or me or anyone else–even at the “institutional level”–to decide what belongs and what doesn’t and enforce that decision. The most you can do is argue culturally against a group or subculture that you don’t like and hope your arguments are persuasive to them such that they change or disband. Making those arguments strictly in terms of your own privileged frames of reference and political commitments strikes me as a waste of time if you’re serious about the outcome. Comments are closed.
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I Am A Cancer Patient And I Want To Tell People It Is Not A Joke! I wanted to write a lot about it but I am unable to find the right words. When I do feel I have found the right words, I feel that the painfulness of my journey cannot be described by words which don’t do justice. However, I want to address to those people who think cancer is something you can joke. It Is Not! Two years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. That very moment changed me completely. From that point and on, I realized the importance of life. I realized what a beautiful blessing life is. I learned to be grateful to Allah. I realized so many things people don’t care about because they do not go through this pain. They take their life for granted. The hardest time in this journey was when I was told that the cancer was too aggressive to be treated with medication and was present in really delicate part of the brain that made it inoperable. The cons of surgery included paralysis, blindness or death. Having this said, I knew that chemotherapy was the last option. It was a really painful procedure. It reminded me of what I had been taking for granted wasn’t even mine. Source: The Loneliness In those days, all I could think was how my fellows are progressing in life and I am stuck in these treatment procedures, without any hope of survival. I felt that even if I made out of this, life won’t be same anymore. My body will depend on medication. Most of us just waste our lives and our bodies by living with no aim and neither do we look for one. When chemotherapy ended the process of radiotherapy started. Another darkness People are often stressing over missing their meals. My main fear was that I might miss one prescription, I might wake up in the hospital. I got tired thinking all of this and could not believe what was happening to me. Life seemed pointless. I didn’t want to get emotionally attached with someone because all I knew was that my life is unpredictable. Nobody has any idea about tomorrow, but people with the fatal disease live under this fear continuously. This is mostly because they never know what their reports look like after few weeks. I don’t know why I’m writing this but I just wanted to put down my words. Source: Tumblr Chemotherapy and radiotherapy have a huge impact on the body. So if you’re smiling and still fighting with all this pain, then you’re challenging cancer and giving it an equally hard time. I know I might not survive but I’m still fighting. Fighting for those who are important to me. For those, I’m just trying to survive as long as I could. And if you know a person whose going through such painful journey, make sure you are there for them. Make sure you give them hope. To Top
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‘Fair trade’ is a word that we hear and read about often, but a lot of us fail to understand fully the concepts it entails. This article aims to do just that, define and explain fair trade and list out its advantages. Fair Trade- The Concept Very simply put, fair trade is both a social movement as well as a market based method to promote the production of goods in developing countries and help them achieve fairer trading conditions. The twin principles that fair trade is based on are (a) that the producer of the goods receives a living wage for his work and (b) that trade and commerce is carried out in a way that protects the environment for future generations. In this way, the aim of fair trade is not just production of goods but sustainability. The development of environmentally sustainable production methods thus goes hand in hand with humane wages and proper working conditions. The certification of a product as a fair trade product takes place only after stringent inspection since every product must meet certain standards. One of the founding principles and also a major advantage of fair trade Australia is that it uses environment friendly methods of production. In these days of unstable environment changes and unsustainable methods of production, it becomes all the more important for us to support in any small way that we can, a product that is manufactured in an ecologically friendly manner. Fair trade coffee and cocoa plantation owners, for example, grow their organic crops in a way that doesn’t adversely affect the environment. Other fair trade products also use raw materials that have been produced or manufactured in an environmentally friendly manner. Some fair trade cooperatives, in fact, have looked up producers in areas rich in biodiversity and helped them come up with environmentally sustainable methods of production. One concern that a lot of people may have about fair trade products is their prices may be higher than those of regular products. That, however, is a misconception of sorts since the elimination of middlemen in free trading means that the retail price of the product remains more or less the same. The elimination of middlemen is achieved by doing business with small business owners, corporations and producers directly. The MRP of the products is decided by the Fair Trade Labeling Organization which takes into account the wages of the manufacturer and the cost of production. The retailers and importers are screened to ensure that the fair base price is paid faithfully. The best part about fair products is their excellent quality. Most such products are unique and of brilliant making and materials, very different from the mass produced items available in the market today. The food items are grown organically and are flavorsome and nutritious. Home décor items are well crafted and elegant. For their excellent quality, fair trade goods and products have a definite edge over non-fair trade ones. Fair trade products therefore have many advantages over regular one, not just for the consumers but also for the producers.
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U.S. flag An official website of the United States government Dot gov Official websites use .gov Secure .gov websites use HTTPS What is it? Prescription stimulants used to treat Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Used as a study aid, to stay awake, and to suppress appetites. Prescribed as Adderall®, Concerta®, Dexedrine®, Focalin®, Metadate®, Methylin®, Ritalin®. Street Names Bennies, Black Beauties, Crank, Ice, Speed, Uppers How is it used? • Orally or injected. “Ice” or crystallized methamphetamine hydrochloride is smoked. How does it affect the body? • Similar to cocaine, but slower onset and longer duration • Increased body temperature, blood pressure and pulse rates, insomnia, loss of appetite, physical exhaustion • Chronic abuse produces a psychosis that resembles schizophrenia: paranoia, hallucinations, violent and erratic behavior • Overdose can be fatal DEA US Badge
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1) Based on your knowledge, experiences, and this week’s readings, answer the following question: Are civil liberties and homeland security opposing concepts in the United States? Do you need to trade one for the other in a zero sum game? 2) Based on your knowledge, experiences, and this week’s readings, answer the following question: What are the benefits and drawbacks of a mandatory National Identity Card? Specifically address whether the card will be effective in increasing the security of the U.S. or will it infringe on civil liberties. Bullock, J. A., Haddow, G. D., & Coppola, D. P. (2016). Introduction to homeland security: Principles of all-hazards risk management (5th ed.). Oxford, UK: Butterworth-Heinemann. Kamien, D. G. (Ed.). (2012). The McGraw-Hill homeland security handbook: Strategic guidance for a coordinated approach to effective security and emergency management (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Get an original solution. We have expert essay writers in all academic levels. Get 100% plagiarism-free paper at the lowest price.
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Kèo bóng rổ Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors – 08h05 – 25/10/2021 Thất bại trước Utah Jazz 101-110 trên sân nhà vừa rồi rõ ràng cho thấy những vấn đề mà Sacramento Kings đang gặp phải trong đội hình. Ngoài phòng ngự thiếu chắc chắn ra thì khâu tấn công cũng đang dựa vào phần lớn Barnes, Hield và D.Fox. Dẫu vậy thì trong một ngày mà D.Fox bị kèm quá chặt thì sự tỏa sáng của H.Barnes cũng không thể giúp cho Sacramento Kings tránh khỏi thất bại bất kể ghi tới 25 điểm trong khi B.Hield có 24 điểm trong số đó. Tiếp đón một Golden State Warriors đang chơi cực kỳ thăng hoa hiện tại càng khiến cho NHM thêm lo lắng về đội bóng bởi trong quá khứ Sacramento Kings chỉ thắng 8 và nhận 12 thất bại trước đối thủ. Nói thêm về Golden State Warriors, họ đã xuất sắc hạ gục cả 2 đội bóng của Los Angeles để có thành tích toàn thắng trong 2 vòng đấu đầu tiên. Tính xa hơn thì đội bóng này đang có chuỗi 7 chiến thắng liên tiếp kể từ vòng preseason. Tâm lý tự tin nhất là khi ngôi sao Curry vẫn đang tỏa sáng rực rỡ khiến cho NHM của đội bóng bắt đầu hy vọng vào một chiếc vé playoffs dù vẫn còn quá sớm. Hành quân đến Sacramento Kings tất nhiên cũng không phải là một nhiệm vụ đơn giản, dù vậy, với sự thăng hoa của mình, kèm với đó là Wiggins hay Poole cũng đang chơi hỗ trợ ghi điểm tốt, việc ra về với chiến thắng sẽ không phải điều gì quá khó với đội bóng lúc này. Đội hình Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors Sacramento Kings: Harrison Barnes, Buddy Hield, De’Aaron Fox, Richaun Holmes, Alex Len Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney Bảng tỷ lệ kèo bóng rổ Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors Kèo Chấp Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors (3,5) – Chọn Golden State Warriors Muốn đánh bại được Golden State Warriors lúc này thì nhiệm vụ đầu tiên mà Sacramento Kings phải làm đó là kèm thật chặt Stephen Curry, ngôi sao này vừa ghi tới 45 điểm để qua đó giúp Golden State Warriors đánh bại Clippers. Song song với đó những vệ tinh xung quanh Curry như Wiggins và Poole cũng phải được “chăm sóc” kỹ lưỡng nếu không muốn mọi thứ vượt ra khỏi tầm kiểm soát. Dù Kuminga, Wiseman vẫn đang ngôi ngoài dưỡng thương, nhưng rõ ràng Golden State Warriors đang có quá nhiều phương án tấn công xoay quanh Curry. Khả năng phòng ngự của họ cũng đang được đảm bảo ở mức ổn, vì vậy mà chỉ cần chơi đúng sức thì Golden State Warriors hoàn toàn có thể hạ gục Sacramento Kings dẫu phải chơi xa nhà, nơi mà họ chỉ thắng 2 và thua 3 trong 5 lần hành quân tới đây. Vấn đề là sân khách hiện đang chứng kiến phong độ cao của Golden State Warriors khi thắng 4 trong 5 lần xa nhà gần nhất trước các đối thủ khác. Sacramento Kings tuy chơi nổi bật với 4 chiến thắng trên sân nhà gần nhất, nhưng vừa qua họ cũng phải ngậm ngùi nhận trái đắng trước Utah Jazz khi đối phương phòng ngự quá tốt. Golden State Warriors có thể học hỏi Utah Jazz khi kèm chặt D.Fox lẫn H.Barnes, chiến thắng sẽ đến với các vị khách mà không gặp phải quá nhiều khó khăn từ chủ nhà. Dự đoán kết quả : Sacramento Kings 114 – 118 Golden State Warriors Kèo Tài Xỉu Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors – Chọn Tài Hoàn toàn có thể trông đợi vào một kèo tài bùng nổ trong trận đấu giữa Sacramento Kings và Golden State Warriors. Nguyên nhân là bởi điểm trung bình gần đây mà 2 đội ghi được tương đối cao, các trận đấu cũng thường xuyên kết thúc với nhiều điểm được ghi. Tuy là trong quá khứ đôi bên chỉ có khoảng 209 điểm được ghi mỗi khi đụng độ. Nhưng hiện giờ Sacramento Kings có trung bình 105 còn với Golden State Warriors đang là 108 điểm. Do đó họ hứa hẹn tạo nên một trận đôi công ăn miếng trả miếng mãn nhãn cùng đích đến là kèo tài trong trận đấu phía trước.
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Saint Nicholas (the patron saint of -- among other things -- sailors, repentant thieves, brewers, and pawnbrokers) was purportedly born on March 15 in the year 270 CE. Of course, what Saint Nicholas is most famous for these days is as the basis for our modern-day Santa Claus, a Dutch tradition that was popularized in New York City by its Dutch-American inhabitants, including poet Clement Clarke Moore. 'Twas the night before Christmas And all through the house Not a creature was stirring Not even a mouse. Those immortal words, first published anonymously in the Troy Sentinel in 1823, have become a central part of the American Christmas story. They were penned by Moore, a prominent New Yorker; together with Thomas Nast's depictions of Santa later in the century (such as the 1881 version pictured here), Moore's poem helped shaped our modern ideas of Santa Claus. Moore was a major landowner and important to the growth of both Greenwich Village and Chelsea. As we write in Footprints in New York: To his contemporaries, Moore was best known as a Greek language scholar at the Episcopal Church’s General Seminary, and for his vast farm, Chelsea, which gave rise to the neighborhood of the same name. Today, people recognize him as the author of “A Visit from Saint Nicholas” (aka “Twas the Night Before Christmas”), the well-known poem that imbued the American Santa Claus with a healthy dose of his mother’s family’s Dutch traditions.In Inside the Apple, we note that Moore was descended from distinguished New York families: his large family estate, Chelsea, which gave rise to the modern-day neighborhood, had originally been owned by his grandfather, Major Thomas Clarke, a veteran of the French and Indian War. Moore’s father, Bishop Benjamin Moore, was the head of the Episcopal Diocese of New York and twice president of Columbia College. In 1817, soon after Bishop Moore’s death, the Episcopal Church convened in New York to establish the General Theological Seminary. Jacob Sherred, a member of the Trinity Church vestry, donated $70,000 and Clement Clarke Moore agreed to donate 66 lots from his Chelsea estate to house the school. (The seminary met elsewhere until construction could begin in the 1820s.) Moore, already the author of a well-regarded Hebrew lexicon, was also hired to serve on its faculty, teaching Biblical languages until 1850.Thomas Nast, meanwhile, is probably best remembered today for his role in bringing down William "Boss" Tweed through his political cartoons in The New York Times and Harper's Weekly. Nast's poison pen was so famous, in fact, that there's a folk etymology that the word "nasty" comes from his name. That's not true, but it gives a sense of how damning his pictures could be. Nast is also the person who gave us the elephant as the symbol of the Republican Party and the donkey for the Democrats. In an 1870 issue of Harper's Weekly, Nast launched the donkey as a symbol of the Democratic party. In the cartoon, Nast was lambasting the Copperhead faction of the party -- which had opposed the Civil War -- and those Democratic papers that continued to criticize Lincoln's recently deceased Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton. Nast's critique is not terribly subtle: Stanton is "lionized" by the cartoonist and the Democrats are branded jackasses. Despite Nast's pointed political statements, he had a soft spot for the holidays. Beginning in 1863, he would draw pictures of Santa Claus or families celebrating together for Harper's, culminating in 1881 with the image at the top of this post, which is still seen by many as the iconic depiction of St. Nick. Read more about NYC history in
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Showing posts from July, 2009 My 2nd home Its compound style. Each person has their own living space with a TV, laptop, etc. Its basically a house divided into 3-4 seperate living quarters. The bedroomThe bathroom The house (outside view) The pool The Bar! That's the most important part, right?
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Fourier analysis encompasses a vast spectrum of mathematics with parts that, at first glance, may appear quite different. In the sciences and engineering the process of decomposing a function into simpler pieces is often called an analysis. The corresponding operation of rebuilding the function from these pieces is known as synthesis. In this context the term Fourier synthesis describes the act of rebuilding and the term Fourier analysis describes the process of breaking the function into a sum of simpler pieces. In mathematics, the term Fourier analysis often refers to the study of both operations. In Fourier analysis, the term Fourier transform often refers to the process that decomposes a given function into the basic pieces. This process results in another function that describes how much of each basic piece are in the original function. It is common practice to also use the term Fourier transform to refer to this function. However, the transform is often given a more specific name depending upon the domain and other properties of the function being transformed, as elaborated below. Moreover, the original concept of Fourier analysis has been extended over time to apply to more and more abstract and general situations and the general field is often known as harmonic analysis. (Continuous) Fourier transform Most often, the unqualified term Fourier transform refers to the transform of functions of a continuous real argument, such as time (t). In this case the Fourier transform describes a function ƒ(t) in terms of basic complex exponentials of various frequencies. In terms of ordinary frequency ν, the Fourier transform is given by the complex number. Evaluating this quantity for all values of ν produces the frequency-domain function. Matlab and the FFT Matlab's FFT function is an effective tool for computing the discrete Fourier transform of a signal.The following code examples will help you to understand the details of using the FFT function. The typical syntax for computing the FFT of a signal is FFT(x,N) where x is the signal, x[n], you wish to transform, and N is the number of points in the FFT. N must be at least as large as the number of samples in x[n]. To demonstrate the effect of changing the value of N, synthesize a cosine with 30 samples at 10 samples per period. - n = [0:29]; - x = cos(2*pi*n/10); Define 3 different values for N. Then take the transform of x[n] for each of the 3 values that were defined. The abs function find the magnitude of the transform, as we are not concerned with distinguishing between real and imaginary components. - N1 = 64; - N2 = 128; - N3 = 256; - X1 = abs(fft(x,N1)); - X2 = abs(fft(x,N2)); - X3 = abs(fft(x,N3)); The frequency scale begins at 0 and extends to N - 1 for an N-point FFT. We then normalize the scale so that it extends from 0 to 1 - 1/N - F1 = [0 : N1 - 1]/N1; - F2 = [0 : N2 - 1]/N2; - F3 = [0 : N3 - 1]/N3; Plot each of the transforms one above the other - plot(F1,X1,'-x'),title('N = 64'),axis([0 1 0 20]) - plot(F2,X2,'-x'),title('N = 128'),axis([0 1 0 20]) - plot(F3,X3,'-x'),title('N = 256'),axis([0 1 0 20]) Upon examining the plot one can see that each of the transforms adheres to the same shape, differing only in the number of samples used to approximate that shape. What happens if N is the same as the number of samples in x[n]? To find out, set N1 = 30. What does the resulting plot look like? Why does it look like this? In the last example the length of x[n] was limited to 3 periods in length. Now, let's choose a large value for N (for a transform with many points), and vary the number of repetitions of the fundamental period. - n = [0:29]; - x1 = cos(2*pi*n/10); % 3 periods - x2 = [x1 x1]; % 6 periods - x3 = [x1 x1 x1]; % 9 periods - N = 2048; - X1 = abs(fft(x1,N)); - X2 = abs(fft(x2,N)); - X3 = abs(fft(x3,N)); - F = [0:N-1]/N; - plot(F,X1),title('3 periods'),axis([0 1 0 50]) - plot(F,X2),title('6 periods'),axis([0 1 0 50]) - plot(F,X3),title('9 periods'),axis([0 1 0 50]) The previous code will produce three plots. The first plot, the transform of 3 periods of a cosine, looks like the magnitude of 2 sincs with the center of the first sinc at 0.1fs and the second at 0.9fs. The second plot also has a sinc-like appearance, but its frequency is higher and it has a larger magnitude at 0:1fs and 0:9fs. Similarly, the third plot has a larger sinc frequency and magnitude. As x[n] is extended to a large number of periods, the sincs will begin to look more and more like impulses. But I thought a sinusoid transformed to an impulse, why do we have sincs in the frequency domain? When the FFT is computed with an N larger than the number of samples in x[n], it fills in the samples after x[n] with zeros. Example 2 had an x[n] that was 30 samples long, but the FFT had an N = 2048. When Matlab computes the FFT, it automatically fills the spaces from n = 30 to n = 2047 with zeros. This is like taking a sinusoid and multiplying it with a rectangular box of length 30. A multiplication of a box and a sinusoid in the time domain should result in the convolution of a sinc with impulses in the frequency domain. Furthermore, increasing the width of the box in the time domain should increase the frequency of the sinc in the frequency domain. The previous Matlab experiment supports this conclusion. Identifying Signals in noise with FFT A common use of Fourier transforms is to find the frequency components of a signal buried in a noisy time domain signal. Consider data sampled at 1000 Hz. Form a signal containing a 50 Hz sinusoid of amplitude 0.7 and 120 Hz sinusoid of amplitude 1 and corrupt it with some zero-mean random noise: - Fs = 1000; % Sampling frequency - T = 1/Fs; % Sample time - L = 1000; % Length of signal - t = (0:L-1)*T; % Time vector - x = 0.7*sin(2*pi*50*t) + sin(2*pi*120*t); - y = x + 2*randn(size(t)); % Sinusoids plus noise - title('Signal Corrupted with Zero-Mean Random Noise') - xlabel('time (milliseconds)') It is difficult to identify the frequency components by looking at the original signal. Converting to the frequency domain, the discrete Fourier transform of the noisy signal y is found by taking the fast Fourier transform (FFT): - NFFT = 2^nextpow2(L); % Next power of 2 from length of y - Y = fft(y,NFFT)/L; - f = Fs/2*linspace(0,1,NFFT/2+1); - title('Single-Sided Amplitude Spectrum of y(t)') - xlabel('Frequency (Hz)') The main reason the amplitudes are not exactly at 0.7 and 1 is because of the noise. Several executions of this code (including recomputation of y) will produce different approximations to 0.7 and 1. The other reason is that you have a finite length signal. Increasing L from 1000 to 10000 in the example above will produce much better approximations on average.
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How A Dad Or Mom Can Help Deal Along With A Bully I exactly what it is just like to be bullied. I realize what it is just like to did something sexual that I'd personally rather did not done, then to be publicly humiliated by the house. I know what it is like to attempt suicide. I'm not contributing a feeling without training. Show no fear is a large factor in who is bullied and who isn't. Standing tall, walking proud and showing strength are aspects that may keep bullies at these types of. Emotions such as fear and nervousness paired with physical body gestures like hunched shoulders and downcast eyes are prevent bullying in schools of submission, a fodder to the bully to give on. So how to step into? First they need to evaluate the situation. Consider bankruptcy ? feel safe to get involved? Can they do this with two gurus rather than on their particular? As we said before, two is invariably better than a single. Or is there a lecturer or an adult student nearby that these people could get arrive and serve? I am not aware of if my actions in handling quick medical care was right or always. However, if I saw bullying, I was all in the culprits within an unrelenting system. I never used any physical tactics but, my verbal ism was at extreme high degree. I wanted it stopped and immediately. I would do whatever needed to be done to prevent bullying. Maybe it was because Was once in the actual same situation myself growing ready. National Youth Crisis Hotline: 800-442-HOPE (4673). Provides counseling and referrals to local drug treatment centers, shelters, and counseling services. Responds to youth dealing with pregnancy, molestation, suicide, and child prevent bullying essay exploitation. Operates 24 hours, seven days a week. It is vital that students are inspired to stand up for eath other in bullying situations not because do well is a buddy - but because bullying is entirely wrong. Bullying can be a serious problems. You need to take proper steps to prevent it. In case, you can not do so, the child may get depressed along with the whole scenario will affect his studios & other stuff. Every child will be bullied a few point during their childhood, and would also end up being the bully to have a number of reasons. Knowing why it is happening and encouraging open communication having your daughter is a way to curb the behaviors, and help her through the issues she may face on a daily factor.
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Obesity has been linked to increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some forms of cancer. Scientists have now discovered a gene that plays an important role in causing obesity. The study findings revealed that the gene encodes a protein responsible for production and growth of fat cells. This discovery could point the way to a possible drug therapy for obesity. Researcher Gareth Lim from University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, said, "People gain fat in two ways - through the multiplication of their fat cells, and through the expansion of individual fat cells. This protein affects both the number of cells and how big they are, by playing a role in the growth cycle of these cells." The gene, which encodes the protein 14-3-3zeta, is found in every cell of our body. When scientists silenced the gene in mice, it resulted in a 50% reduction in the amount of a specific kind of unhealthy 'white fat', the kind associated with obesity, heart disease and diabetes. James Johnson, professor of cellular and physiological sciences at University of British Columbia, said, "Until now, we did not know how this gene affected obesity." The fat reduction in the rodents occurred despite the mice consuming the same amount of food. Mice that were bred to have higher levels of the 14-3-3zeta protein were noticeably bigger and rounder, having an average of 22% more white fat when fed a high calorie diet. Researchers believe that by suppressing the gene or blocking the protein, they could prevent fat accumulation in people who are overweight, or are on their way to becoming so. The study findings appeared in Nature Communications.
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This is the first of a series about No Kidding Shakespeare Camp 2016: Shakespeare’s England: A Land of Lords. Over the course of the ten-day trip, we’ll be staying in three wondrous hotels. The farthest north of those is Middleton’s in York. York has been a center of power throughout the history of the British Isles. During the Middle Ages, its distance from London meant that it could almost function as a separate political entity. Understanding the city better will be a way of getting a grip on the War of the Roses that Shakespeare stages in the plays about Henry VI and wraps up with Richard III. Among the things we’ll do is walk some of the walls of York, which are a mere 7 minutes from our hotel. York has more miles of intact city walls than anywhere else in England. While city walls were once common, even crucial to a city’s survival, most have deteriorated in the modern age. York’s extant walls are not entirely contiguous, nor all from the same era. The first walls were built in 71 AD, around a Roman fortress on the River Ouse. Little of this original stonework remains, but some can be seen in the Multangular Tower in the Museum Gardens. A legion at the time encompassed 5500 men, and their presence encouraged trade with enterprising locals. Through these interactions, the fortress eventually grew into the city of Eboracum, a busy port and cosmopolitan provincial capital. The Emperor Hadrian visited this fortress in 122, on his way north to plan his great frontier wall (the focus of a future Preview Email!), and Emperor Septimius Severus made it his base of operations for campaigning in Scotland in 208. The city went into decline following Rome’s withdrawal from Britain. By the 9th century, the walls were in poor repair, and when the Danes (“the Great Heathen Army”) invaded in 867, renaming the city Jorvik, they demolished all the towers except for the surviving Multangular. The Danes buried what was left of the Roman walls beneath earthbanks and wooden palisades. These were badly mangled during the 1069 “harrying of the North” that followed the Norman invasion and brought the northern counties under William the Conqueror’s control. The majority of the remaining walls, encircling the medieval city, date to the 12th-14th century and were built during the reigns of some early Plantagenets: Henry III and the three Edwards. There are four main gatehouses, or “bars”, which restricted traffic in medieval times and served as tollbooths. Initially the walls also had 6 secondary gates and 44 intermediate towers, stretching over 2 miles encompassing the city and castle. York was an important outpost during the Plantagenet wars with Scotland, so much so that Edward I actually moved the seat of government to York in 1298. In the 15th-17th centuries, York and the surrounding county were the sites of many battles and sieges during the Wars of the Roses, various Tudor rebellions, and the English Civil War. (The map at left dates to 1617). The walls of York play their largest role in Shakespeare in Henry VI, Part 3, which features several scenes that actually take place on the walls as the two factions, each a branch of those ever-contentious Plantagenets, struggle for control not just of the city but of the nation. Early in the play, the Duke of York is captured by the Lancastrians, and in giving his execution order, Queen Margaret taunts: Off with his head, and set it on York gates, So York may overlook the town of York. Margaret’s later reference to the head, when welcoming Lord Clifford to York, suggests that a prop may actually have been placed upon the “walls” — the gallery above the stage — to add to the gruesome spectacle: Welcome, my lord, to this brave town of York. Yonder’s the head of that arch-enemy That sought to be encompass’d with your crown: Doth not the object cheer your heart, my lord? We’re unlikely to encounter anything so appalling on our trip, but we may pass by the very spot at Micklegate Bar (below) where the Duke’s head once stood, bearing a paper crown. In 1800, the Corporation of York applied for an Act of Parliament to demolish their walls, as London and other cities were doing (since none of them had been invaded by ground in quite some time). They were met with fierce opposition from the populace, however, and instead of being torn down, were restored starting in the mid-19th century. Today they are a Scheduled Ancient Monument — just waiting for us to tread the same paces that legionaries, nobles, rebels, and monarchs have for nearly 2000 years!
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This is the legend speaks of the virtues of the water that has given its name, since 1895, to one of the most important drinks in all of Mexico: Topo Chico Mineral Water. There was a beautiful Aztec princess who suffered a terrible disease, so strange that none of her father’s doctors, Moctezuma I Ilhuicamina, successor in 1440 of the king Itzcoatl had been able to cure. Desperate, the King turned to the older priests in the kingdom to find a cure for his beautiful daughter. They told him that according to the timeless stories of travelers, in a far away northern land, there was a strange and hidden source whose waters flowed at high temperatures, waters in which one only needed to bathe in or drink from to regain vigor, joy, strength and health. Encouraged by this news, Moctezuma I ordered an immediate expedition to take his daughter to this amazing source. After traveling long and rugged roads, the expedition and the Princess reached a fertile valley flanked by mountains. To the east they saw a mountain with the form of woman’s face (now “Cerro de la Silla”) and also found a mole-shaped hill, from whose slopes flowed the prodigal source. After spending some time there, taking baths and drinking water from the source, the daughter of Moctezuma I, his priests and chiefs returned to the Anahuac lands optimistic, strong, happy and healthy. The news about the recovery of the Princess spread throughout the kingdom and has passed from generation to generation up until modern times.
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Mojib Latif Mojib Latif Mojib Latif is a German meteorologist and oceanographer. He is an author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and a climate physicist at the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of Kiel, Germany. Stance on Climate Change “If my name was not Mojib Latif, my name would be global warming. So I really believe in Global Warming. Okay. However, you know, we have to accept that there are these natural fluctuations, and therefore, the temperature may not show additional warming temporarily” (emphasis added). [1] Key Quotes Excerpt from NPR Transcript: RAZ: Now, your research, Dr. Latif, has been cited by climate change skeptics here in the U.S., by for example, George Will, a conservative columnist with the Washington Post, to show that the Earth actually goes through natural warming and cooling trends and that climate change is really being overhyped. Do you think your work is being misused? Dr. LATIF: Yes. It is misused. I must say this, unfortunately, because these changes we are talking about, these short-term changes, you know, their amplitudes are much smaller than the long-term warming trends. So we are talking about a hold, okay, in the last 10 years. We are not talking about a net cooling to, say, (unintelligible) temperatures, (unintelligible), you know, which we observed 100 years ago or so. Okay, and also what we predicted for the future is basically that this hold may continue for another 10 years or so, okay, but we did not predict a cooling. We basically said that we would stay for some more years on this plateau. [1] 1. “Scientist Explains Earth's Warming Plateau” (transcript). November 22, 2009, NPR. 2. Fred Pearce. “World will 'cool for the next decade',” New Scientist, September 9, 2009 (Issue 2725). Archived December 3, 2009.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009 Standardized testing starts at many local schools today. Test preparation is good business for the Golden Apple, that doesn't mean we have to like it. We remember when the dubious end didn't justify the means in education. So at the Golden Apple we say "Hooray for Diffendoofer Day" and celebrate the Seuss/Prelutsky book that shows what can happen when standardization trumps creativity: His teacher, Miss Bonkers, is "as bouncy as a flea,/I'm not certain what she teaches,/But I'm glad she teaches me." Diffendoofer School is a happy place, full of energetic teachers and eager students, all joyfully working in unorthodox ways on the next unlikely assignment. The only sourpuss in the building is the principal, Mr. Lowe, who announces the message he fears most -- standardized testing for the entire school. Failure will mean that the Diffendoofer School will close and all students will go to the miserable Flobbertown, where gray monotony abounds. Miss Bonkers assures the students that all will go well, and it does, for "we've taught you how to think." When the test results confirm her belief, Diffendoofer Day is declared by Mr. Lowe, and the children celebrate with, you guessed it, a pizza party! Celebrate your ability to think!
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What Happened Between Snooki & Vinny? Their 'Jersey Shore' Past Is Causing Drama Right when we all thought that the big drama in Jersey Shore Family Vacation was going to be coming from Ronnie, the usually mellow and drama-free Vinny stepped up to deliver the biggest fight of the reunion series yet. In Thursday night's new episode of Jersey Shore Family Vacation, we all learned that apparently Snooki and Vinny have not repaired their tense relationship since the original Jersey Shore series, and it erupted in a massive fight. So what happened between Snooki and Vinny on Jersey Shore? Get your refresher here so you can really understand what was going on in that fight. All of this tension between Snooki and Vinny goes back to the third season of Jersey Shore, which heavily focused on their tenuous romantic relationship. The two housemates had become "snuggle buddies" in the prior season, and then Snooki admitted she had feelings for him in Season 3, but it was also around that time that Snooki had first met her soon-to-be husband Jionni. Snooki and Vinny hooked up, but Vinny continued hooking up with other girls (and openly talking about his sexual exploits in front of Snooki), and Snooki was starting a relationship with Jionni, so the Snooki-Vinny relationship never really became anything. Flashforward to today, and that one-time hookup is still causing major issues. In the latest episode of Jersey Shore Family Vacation, Vinny begins to notice how distant Nicole has been from him throughout the reunion. At first he just laughs it off, but Pauly D notices it too, saying that Nicole is noticeably meaner to Vinny than the rest of the housemates, and although she is just joking, there may be some underlying truth there. Snooki's standoffishness finally gets to Vinny when he gets drunk — which only takes one drink now that the Keto Guido doesn't eat any carbs — and he takes it upon himself to sloppily force a friendship with Snooki. He offers her drinks, makes jokes, and in a final effort, starts grinding on her. That's where Snooki draws the line, and tells him to respect her marriage, repeating the phrase "I love you, but not like that" multiple times as the gang departs from the bar. But the fight is not over there — not by a long shot. Back at the house, Vinny and Snooki really get into it. Still wasted, Vinny just can't leave Snooki alone, barging in on her while she is in the confessional, and she finally erupts. She yells at Vinny, saying that his antics could ruin her marriage, and Vinny throws it back, saying that he just wants to be friends like they used to be. Honestly, I can see the point that they're both trying to make here: Snooki's argument: She cheated on Jionni with Vinny in the past, and now that she's married, she doesn't want anything between her and Vinny to be misconstrued on camera. After all, you never know how MTV is going to edit the show together — even a friendly hug could become a romance storyline after the editor get their hands on it. Vinny's argument: The whole cast returned to this show to have a good time together again, but he feels constantly on edge around Snooki based on how she's treating him. They should just get the awkwardness out in the open and move past it. It's a tricky situation to handle, which is why it does not get a clean solution. In the end, the entire house winds up involved in the Vinny-Snooki argument somehow, and it eventually spirals into a screaming match between Snooki and JWoww. Let's hope that Vinny and Snooki can find some way to get along for the remainder of Jersey Shore Family Vacation — it would be too weird to watch them awkwardly avoid one another.
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Incorporate the following six nutrition changes now. After you do, your cells will jump for joy each and every day! The fats you need are the two essential fatty acids, which are called alpha- linolenic acid (omega-3) and linoleic acid (omega-6), as well as some omega-9 and saturated fats. Get these four fatty acids in the right ratio and in the correct amount for your body type, on a daily basis, and you will never put on fat mass again. In fact, the good fats cause a reduction in fat throughout the body. Stick to those complex carbohydrates with a low glycemic index. However, refined carbohydrates are high glycemic foods that are all rapidly converted to sugar in the blood, which causes insulin to spike. This spike in the insulin level then causes the excess sugar to be turned into triglycerides, which is the storage form of fat. The body then stores this blood fat in your belly and on your hips. While eating anything raises your metabolic rate, protein boosts it the most. Up to 20% of a meal's caloric intake may be burned off as heat. This is called the thermic effect of food and protein is the biggest contributor. Protein is also the most satisfying nutrient, and as such it helps to stop over eating. Fibre absorbs food, slows the entry of sugar into the bloodstream, and transports cholesterol out of the body via the colon. It also helps to stabilize insulin. Fibre enables your body to better use the food for fuel rather than for storage as fat. Dieting, skipping meals, eating low-fibre foods, and snacking on energy bars instead of eating balanced meals throughout the day all trigger insulin spikes. Remember, insulin stores everything. Aim for insulin stability throughout the day since it is one of the best ways to prevent fat packing and maintain fat loss. Therefore, you need to make sure that your blood sugar is balanced throughout the day. This means eating the right foods every 3 to 4 hours, or 3 to 4 times per day, depending on your particular physiology and metabolism. Most people fail to permanently keep the fat off because in their haste to lose body fat, they force the body into a starvation mode whereby it defends its level of fat. After a few tries they sigh in contempt, give up the program, and blame their parents. However, blaming your weight on your genes is wrong. We now know that neither the number nor the size of your fat cells is genetically fixed. For most people, body fat is a reflection of what they eat and do each day. There you have it. Make these six nutrition changes in your life and you will begin to build superior health. A. For additional information, check out the following health and nutrition e-booklets. They cover the natural, whole foods way of eating, pure water and fluids made from pure water, as well as the best of the best in terms of fortifiers to boost your nutritional status throughout the year: B. You can also find more preventative health and fitness advice in the following e-books, which cover more ground than the above e-booklets: C. Or, if you feel you are ready for a Preventative Health Program, head over to either one of the following pages now to find out how to get started: Permanent Weight Loss Program (if you are overweight) Disease Prevention Program Stream 2 (if you are currently not overweight) Return to the top of the page: Six Nutrition Changes for Superior Health Return to the past articles page: Past Nutrition Articles Return to the nutrition articles page: Nutrition Articles Return to the kitchen: Nutritionists Kitchen Visit the Nutritionist's Kitchen Go to the Exercise Room Head over to the Stress Reduction Place Check out the Detox Centre Click one of the thumbnails below to view a series of photos taken on the Bruce Trail and Georgian Bay. Go to: Free Workshops In the Nutritionist's Kitchen, which is a series of two courses, and In the Health Scientist's Lab, which is a series of six courses are coming to a classroom near you in April of 2019. Hope to see there! On The Preventative Way page we reveal a number of scientific facts related to how we function at the cellular level to keep our bodies healthy. Visit this page often as new facts, quotes, videos, tips, and traps will be added from time to time. Go to: The Preventative Way
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Islam explained by a non Muslim. A very informative video about Islam for non-Muslim friends, explained by a non-Muslim. Giving a brief history of Islam and answering many misconceptions and false rumors. What is Islam? Islam is not a new religion, but the same truth that God revealed through all His prophets to every people. “Islam” simply means peace through submission to God. For a fifth of the world’s population, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life. Islam is not a cult. Along with Judaism and Christianity, it is considered to be one of the three Abrahamic traditions. Its followers number over 1.5 billion worldwide. One billion people from a vast range of races, nationalities and cultures across the globe – from the southern Philippines to Nigeria – are united by their common Islamic faith. About 18% live in the Arab world; the world’s largest Muslim community is in Indonesia; substantial parts of Asia and most of Africa are Muslim, while significant minorities are to be found in the Soviet Union, China, North and South America, and Europe. Muslims are found throughout various parts of the world including China, Islam is a multi-national faith with Muslims in every country! There are five pillars of practice in Islam. These practices must be undertaken with the best of effort in order to be considered a true Muslim: A) Shahadah — or declaration of faith in the oneness of God and that Muhammad is the last prophet of God. B) Payer five times a day. C) Fasting during the daylight hours in the month of Ramadan. D) Poor-due charity – 2.5% of one’s savings given to the needy at the end of each year. E) Pilgrimage to Mecca at least once, if physically and financially able. There are six articles of faith in Islam.These are the basic beliefs that one must have in order to be considered a true Muslim. Muslims believe in One, Unique, Incomparable God; in the Angels created by Him; in the Prophets through whom His revelations were brought to mankind; in the Day of Judgement and individual accountability for actions; in God’s complete authority over human destiny, and in life after death. Muslims believe in a chain of prophets starting with Adam and including Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Elias, Jonah, John the Baptist, and Jesus, peace be upon them. But God’s final message to man, a reconfirmation of the eternal message and a summing-up of all that has gone before was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad Peace and Blessings be upon him through Gabriel. In Summary the articles of faith are belief in: A) The One God. B) All the Prophets of God. C) The original scriptures revealed to Prophets Moses, David, Jesus, and Muhammad. D) The Angels. E) The Day of Judgment and the Hereafter. F) The divine decree (or destiny). Islam is a complete way of life that governs all facets of life: moral, spiritual, social, political, economical, intellectual, etc. Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. To become Muslim, a person of any race or culture must say a simple statement, the “shahadah” (or the “witnessing”), that bears witness to the belief in the One God and that Prophet Muhammad was the last Prophet of God. The word “Muslim” means one who submits to the will of God, regardless of their race, nationality or ethnic background. Becoming a Muslim is a simple and easy process that requires no pre-requisites. One may convert alone in privacy, or he/she may do so in the presence of others.
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Reluctant readers can be turned into capable, confident and enthusiastic readers with a bit of help from Mum and Dad. As a teacher and mum, I have seen this happen time and again and am convinced that every child can be helped to enjoy reading, even if he or she loathes it at the moment. It takes time, effort and a bit of cunning planning but it's not difficult and it won't necessarily cost you anything at all. If you have a reluctant reader at your place, please read on. Together I'm sure we can help your reluctant reader learn to love reading! In this section of Best Books for Kids you'll find information about: Does this sound good? Let's get going then! But first, a definition. If you've landed on this page, you probably have a reluctant reader at home so you already know what I mean by the term. But, for the sake of clarity, let's look at what I mean when I say a child is a reluctant reader. A reluctant reader is a child who is learning to read or who is already able to read independently but who does not like to read and who avoids reading. I love books and have always loved reading. So did my three children so I never really got why someone would be reluctant to read. When I studied to become a teacher, I began to understand and to learn some strategies for helping reluctant and struggling readers. So let's go through the process of figuring this out together, step-by-step. If your child avoids reading the first step is to figure out why. There are three main possibilities: Reading is a learned skill. Like any other learned skill, it requires persistence and practice if a child is to become good at it. This is something we seem to have forgotten about a bit these days. If a new skill doesn't come easily to us, we often give up quite quickly and our children are the same. Most children need to be taught the value of persisting with a new and difficult task until they've mastered it. As parents, we do this by gently encouraging them to keep trying when they face a new challenge. Learning to read is one of these tasks. It can be challenging but persistence leads to mastery and then to a point where reading stops being an effort and starts to become something we do easily and automatically. This is the process of moving from learning to read to reading to learn. Some children find learning to read easy and quickly move on from the 'learning to read' stage to the 'reading to learn' stage. Others find it harder, often becoming discouraged along the way. If your child seems to be finding reading difficult, it can be a good idea to check whether there's a medical reason or a learning difficulty which needs attention. If your child is young and still learning to read, this is unlikely to be the case however whatever your child's age, it's best to rule it out before moving forward. At this stage, it's a good idea to make an appointment to talk to your child's teacher. He or she may be able to reassure you that your child is "on track" with his reading or, if the teacher has noticed a problem, he or she may be able to suggest a course of action. Teachers vary widely in their experience and skills so some may only be able to tell you that something seems "not quite right". Others may be able to suggest a hearing or vision test or an assessment by a speech therapist, for example. It's important to be aware that an assessment by one of these professionals can pick up problems even if your child appears to hear or see perfectly well. In fact, there's a whole range or auditory processing disorders and vision tracking problems that usually aren't picked up until a child starts learning to read. If you've ruled out any medical problem or learning disability but your child still appears to find reading difficult, it's more than likely that he needs gentle encouragement to read more so that he gets better at it. Keep reading for some ideas about how to do this. If your child is young and still learning to read, he may be bringing home those terrible "school readers". You know, those books that are graded by a colour which signifies which reading level your child is up to? If they're anything like the readers my children brought home, they're boring stories and completely uninspiring to read. No wonder children are reluctant to read them! This problem's been around for years. Did you know that Dr Seuss's The Cat in the Hat was written because research showed that kids weren't learning to read because the books being used to teach them were so boring? If this is the problem for your young reader, don't be afraid to get out your own books and read them together. The Dr Seuss books are great for this. Start with the Blue Back Books and move on to the Green Back Books when your child feels a bit more confident. You can also try any of the other books listed on this site. Check out the tabs on the left for more ideas. The key is to make the whole thing fun and there are a few ways to do this. You can try reading aloud to your child and letting him follow the words as you read. Take it in turns to read one line - or one page - each. Above all, relax. If you get tense about books and reading, your child will feel tense as well and will remain reluctant to read. If your older child is a reluctant reader, the trick is to find a book he will want to read. You may have to persist and you'll probably bring home loads of books he won't like but sooner or later you'll bring home a book that catches his interest. When this happens he'll want to read and so will quickly get better at it (have a look at my story to the right). I firmly believe there is a book to interest every kid but finding the right book for a particular child at a particular stage of development is not always easy. This site will give you some ideas to try but don't lose heart if you suggest a book and it receives a lukewarm reception from your child. Sometimes it's simply a timing issue. You can always put the book away or return it to the library and try again later! And of course all children are different. Some books will appeal to one child and not another. Some children will read anything you suggest while others are more fussy. My twins are a good example. They have read many of the same books over the years but there have also been quite a few which one son loved and the other couldn't get into. home >>> struggling readers >>> reluctant readers
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{{:: 'cloud_flare_always_on_short_message' | i18n }} Check @genius for updates. We'll have things fixed soon. Smoke, Drank Waka Flocka Flame Featuring Kebo Gotti, Mouse Produced By Niko, Lil Jon Album Flockaveli Smoke, Drank Lyrics [Verse 1: Waka Flocka Flame] A long ride to the west M.O.B. across my chest Lord please don't let me rest Why these niggas wanna test Nigga please give me strength One time, I don't got friends Ride this shit to the end Can't lose man I got to win ? so I keep 2 Glocks Flockaveli im that Damu, oc Light skin, tats and dreadlocks Niggas playin cops like Madlock Aim on point with his scope and his beam Aim at your head like oily machine Leave a nigga dead eyes open Ba-ba-ba nigga hold that Bitch I’m from the Grove Where niggas have a hand, they get on the stove Some pop pills, some take it up the nose Where niggas fucking hoes at thirteen Living street life, fuck a hoop dream Bricksquad that’s my home team [Hook: Waka Flocka Flame] (x12) Smoke drank Smoke drank, I [Verse 2: Mouse] Middle finger to the feds M.O.B tatted on my leg A couple niggas wanna see me dead Act like D-bo get Craig'ed Pussy niggas heard what the fuck I said Room service too, I'll make your bed Bury your body in a backyard shed Make a nigga whole body shake, no dreads Niggas don't really want to roll with kids I got more connects than a highway bridge Flow been cold, stored in a fridge A lot of niggas talking about what they should of did Call the niggas square like a mother fucking grid I'm on my grown man like a nigga had a kid Got to ball on you niggas like I'm playing for the Knicks Hit 'em with a shotgun, call that shit the crips I ain't worried about the cops, I'm too legit I got to put money over every single bitch Mouse in the hood, trapping for that cheese Balling cause I hustle like I'm playing overseas I was raised in the streets, me and my pistol Moving these pounds on my bicycle I'm so official, I earned my stripes Bitches on my dick like a parasite I make her tap out like the cane's spiked Then I smoke and drank all fucking night [Hook: Mouse] [Verse 3: Kebo Gotti] Waka, what it do cuz? I'm fucking with you nigga the long way Let's get this money Bricksquad in the building See I’m gonna smoke till I can't smoke no more Then drank till I can't drank no more ? money see and my chick grow Stand up tall till it can’t no more Try me if you want, I swear to God I'll split your cantaloupe My chopper fully loaded, I'm a squeeze on you till there ain't no more I run with a C like Flock and them Green flag, my partner them Hitsquad, yeah there's a lot of them You get an Oscar slim, for acting gangsta A boss to him, better get your rank up Real money, been hell I bank up In the club ? to the ? drank Who is this nigga trying to act like me Suede, getting money, bounce back like me Every hood, every block, count stacks like me Fully loaded Glock, stay strapped like me You no body, of Kebo Gotti Mr. ? Flocka with a tool, been none got him Been none hit him, been none shot him Been none off him then laugh about it Then blowing on kush, straight from Cali I ring shit straight out the valley I'm a duct tape stealer and I ain't talking alley Riding in the bird and I ain't talking falcon Plead the 5th, every time they ask me Disappear, just like it's magic Then reappear, lights, camera, action [Hook: Kebo Gotti] About “Smoke, Drank” "Smoke, Drank" Track Info Written By Mouse, Waka Flocka Flame, Kebo Gotti Recorded At Release Date October 5, 2010
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1. Destamia Can I have 1 fish please? 2. T Ideas for Salmon Hi. I'm just restarting SW and can't stop eating baked Salmon steaks & salad with hard boiled egg and salad potatoes. ..I don't want to get bored so does anyone have any other ideas for salmon? Thanks 3. C ASDA Classic Favourites Cod with Cheese Sauce syn value please? Hi guys just wondering if anyone knows the syn value for asda classic favourites cod with cheese sauce. here is the nutritional values: Typical values (ovenbaked) Per 100g Energy 386kJ 92kcal Fat 2.9g of which saturates 1.8g Carbohydrate 1.0g of which sugars <0.5g Fibre 0.8g Protein 15g Salt... 4. K Extra Easy Frozen Foods Does anyone know the syn value of the following items please? Birds Eye Inspirations 2 Pink Salmon Fillets Lemon And Dill 280G Birds Eye Inspirations 2 Cod Fillets Tomato Rosemary Sauce 280G Are there any easy freezer food that is syn free that you recommend please? Thanks! 5. marybobs Extra Easy Fish Cake Recipe
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UNO Charter Schools' Insider Deals Questioned Charges of insider contracts surface in building and maintaining a $25 million charter school. Carol Marin talks with the Chicago Sun-Times reporters who uncovered the story about that, and some $98 million in state grants to the politically connected UNO Charter Schools. We have the latest on Chicago Tonight at 7:00 pm.
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As a newspaper columnist, Nancy Devlin, Ph.D. has written over 700 articles on subjects related to education and parenting. Welcome to her Classroom! If you kindergarten child is being assessed by a learning specialist with screening tests, find out what is the purpose of the tests and what the school is going to do with the results. Continue reading This is time of year when students learn how successful they were at playing the college admission game. Continue reading All schools maintain a cumulative record on your child. Make it a point to review it at various period and make corrections if necessary. Continue reading It is time for schools to re-evaluate their reporting procedures. What do letter grades really mean....too many ways to interpret. Standardized testing is probably here to stay. You may as well get used to it and prepare your children. Continue reading We must make changes to our school system to have students who are productive members of our democracy and society. Children need choices. Continue reading Do not allow your child to be feel rejection. This is probably the wrong school. Community College is a wise choice for the first two years. Continue reading
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Breast Cancer: Everything You Need to Know What is Breast Cancer? Breast cancer develops from the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the breast tissue. These growing cells form a tumor in the breast, which can sometimes be felt as a lump. There are several types of breast cancer, but the most common type is ductal carcinoma, which arises in the milk ducts (the passages through which milk flows toward the nipple). A small percentage of breast cancers develop in the lobules (small glands in which milk is produced) and are called lobular carcinoma. Ductal and lobular cancers are further classified by whether the cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body. If the breast cancer cells are confined within the milk ducts or lobules, it is called noninvasive or in situ cancer. When the cancer has grown into surrounding tissue or spread to other parts of the body, it is called invasive or infiltrating cancer. About 80 percent of all breast cancers are invasive ductal carcinomas (IDC). Why do these cells start growing abnormally? We'll investigate on the next page. More to Explore
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TomatoesThe amazing health benefits of the tomato Tomatoes, which are actually a fruit and not a vegetable, are loaded with all kinds of health benefits for the body. They are in fact, a highly versatile health product and due to their equally versatile preparation options, there's really no reason to neglect the tomato as part of a healthy diet. One of the most well known tomato eating benefit is its' Lycopene content. Lycopene is a vital anti-oxidant that helps in the fight against cancerous cell formation as well as other kinds of health complications and diseases. Free radicals in the body can be flushed out with high levels of Lycopene, and the tomato is so amply loaded with this vital anti-oxidant that it actually derives its rich redness from the nutrient. Lycopene is not a naturally produced element within the body and the human body requires sources of Lycopene in order to make use of this powerful anti-oxidant. While other fruits and vegetables do contain this necessary health ingredient, no other fruit or vegetable has the high concentration of Lycopene that the tomato takes pride in. Studies involving the tomato have cropped up all over the world of medical science. There are more health benefits derived from eating a tomato than the scientific community is able to print, at least yet.These studies have proven not only the benefits in preventing cancer, heart disease as well as high cholesterol are also in the tomato's sights. This is really exciting information. The health benefits of tomatoes are becoming more and more documented every day as we learn new uses of this amazing fruit.Cancers such as prostate cancer, cervical cancer, colon cancer, rectal cancer, and cancers of the stomach, mouth, pharynx, and oesophagus have all been proven to be staved off by high levels of Lycopene. Researchers introduced Lycopene into pre-existing cancer cellcultures and the Lycopene prevented the continued growth of these cultures. This is pretty powerful evidence that the health benefits of eating a tomato are really quite phenomenal.It takes as little as 540 millilitres of liquid tomato product to get the full benefits of Lycopene. This means that a daily glass of tomato juice has the potential to keep a person healthy for life. Tomatoes are equally as nutritious fresh as they are in other variable forms. When tomato products are heat processed the bioavailablity of the Lycopene actually increases rather than the anticipated decrease.Even with all the plentiful research that has gone into the health benefits of tomatoes, there is still more research being conducted as the medical science community understands that we have not fully tapped into the potential presented by a tomato just yet. Research is now slowly proving that there is a high likelihood that the consumption of tomatoes and tomato based products actually may prevent serum lipid oxidation and reduce the risk of macular degenerative disease.Tomatoes are by far the healthiest of the fruits and vegetables with the power to ward off some of the worst known diseases to man. With the vast variety of tomato products on the market, it really shouldn't be difficult to get the full health benefit of tomatoes but if you would like to get the full health benefits of tomatoes and have some fun at the same time, consider raising your own organic tomatoes. It would be a lot of fun, get you outside for some vitamin D and best of all reward you with great taste and vibrant health. Back to top
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Noun(1) a piece of writing in code or cipher (1) He assumed that the symbols in the cryptogram were properly broken up into English words and proceeded from there, eventually using a computer to check for patterns and sort through various possibilities.(2) In his later years, he assembled a book of Biblical passages showing that his discoveries were a prelude to the Day of Judgment, and took to signing his name with an elaborate Christological cryptogram .(3) This cryptogram is typical of the allusiveness of the poem, part of which is now impenetrable.(4) The games include crosswords, hangman and cryptogram .(5) The inverted five-pointed star, or Cross of Malta is used as a cryptogram for Baphomet.(6) In a book like this, one would expect to discover some allegorical message or a hidden cryptogram .(7) When my brother and I were at camp, he sent us cryptograms .(8) As one who grew up with a love for cryptograms , Encyclopedia Brown, logic puzzles and adventure games, I felt let down by the book; it could have offered me so much more than it did.(9) Now at the University of Illinois at Chicago, he solved the first of Tyler's cryptograms , which consisted of a long string of various typographic symbols.(10) There are cryptograms - on that level it's almost espionage poetry, but there's also the straightforward word play that seems to come out of early childhood - often mixed in a rhizomic way with complex espionage techniques.(11) Will solving crossword puzzles prevent my intellectual decline or decoding cryptograms do the same for my wife?(12) In any case, puzzle fanatics will enjoy the many riddles, illusions, cryptograms and other mind-benders offered for analysis.(13) Others look at security as a kind of puzzle, like the cryptograms on the comics page of the newspaper, only with more at stake.(14) Bradley raised his arm and checked the tenderness of his forearm; four cryptograms were carved into his flesh.(15) Melvin Way makes cryptograms in which he embeds formulas and diagrams intricately woven from letters, words, phrases, numbers, and designs.(16) These puzzles come in two flavors: puzzles where you must put things back together (like torn up pictures) and puzzles where you must solve cryptograms (that is, decode messages). 1. secret writing :: qoraal sir ah 2. cryptograph :: Different Formscryptogram, cryptograms English to Somali Dictionary: cryptogram Meaning and definitions of cryptogram, translation in Somali language for cryptogram with similar and opposite words. Also find spoken pronunciation of cryptogram in Somali and in English language. Tags for the entry "cryptogram" What cryptogram means in Somali, cryptogram meaning in Somali, cryptogram definition, examples and pronunciation of cryptogram in Somali language.
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TBX2 acts as a potent transcriptional silencer of tumour suppressor genes through interaction with the CoREST complex to sustain the proliferation of breast cancers Abstract Chromosome 17q23 amplification occurs in 20% of primary breast tumours and is associated with poor outcome. The TBX2 gene is located on 17q23 and is often over-expressed in this breast tumour subset. TBX2 is an anti-senescence gene, promoting cell growth and survival through repression of Tumour Suppressor Genes (TSGs), such as NDRG1 and CST6. Previously we found that TBX2 cooperates with the PRC2 complex to repress several TSGs, and that PRC2 inhibition restored NDRG1 expression to impede cellular proliferation. Here, we now identify CoREST proteins, LSD1 and ZNF217, as novel interactors of TBX2. Genetic or pharmacological targeting of CoREST emulated TBX2 loss, inducing NDRG1 expression and abolishing breast cancer growth in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we uncover that TBX2/CoREST targeting of NDRG1 is achieved by recruitment of TBX2 to the NDRG1 promoter by Sp1, the abolishment of which resulted in NDRG1 upregulation and diminished cancer cell proliferation. Through ChIP-seq we reveal that 30% of TBX2-bound promoters are shared with ZNF217 and identify novel targets repressed by TBX2/CoREST; of these targets a lncRNA, LINC00111, behaves as a negative regulator of cell proliferation. Overall, these data indicate that inhibition of CoREST proteins represents a promising therapeutic intervention for TBX2-addicted breast tumours. INTRODUCTION The T-Box family of transcription factors play important roles in embryogenesis, making major contributions to the development of organs including the brain, mammary glands, thymus, liver and lungs (1). T-Box proteins can interact with target DNA via their T domain, binding the consensus half-site AGGTGTGAAA (2) and may both activate, or repress target gene transcription, depending on cellular context (3,4). T-Box 2 (TBX2) is well-known for its functions in cardiac and mammary morphogenesis, as deletion or mutation of TBX2 in these tissues results in significant congenital defects (5,6). The TBX2 gene itself is located on chromosome 17q23, a region which exhibits extensive amplification in breast cancer and neuroblastoma, conferring poor prognosis. These amplifications result in the consistent over-expression of TBX2 and other notable oncogenes, such as PRKCA and TLK2 (4,7). The TBX2 oncoprotein can promote malignant transformation by repressing the transcription of critical Tumour Suppressor Genes (TSGs) including p21 WAF1/CIP1 and p14 ARF , ultimately leading to senescence-bypass and immortalisation (8,9). More recently, TBX2 was found to function as a transcriptional activator in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma, where it participates in a super-enhancer-driven positive feedback loop, promoting the expression of core regulatory circuitry components HAND2, ISL1, PHOX2B and GATA3 to maintain a viable cell state (10). Although TBX2 contains a central DNA-binding T domain, our group and others have demonstrated that target gene specificity is also influenced by interaction of the protein with other transcription factors, such as Early Growth Response 1 (EGR1) and the key chromatin regulator, Retinoblastoma 1 (RB1) (11,12). In models of breast cancer, we previously found that TBX2 binds to and represses the proximal promoters of tumour suppressors N-Myc Downstream Regulated 1 (NDRG1) and Cystatin 6 (CST6), without the requirement for a T-Box element; instead TBX2 binds DNA indirectly via interaction with EGR1 at these genetic loci. This 'exploitation' of EGR1 function through interaction with TBX2 may be significant in the context of immortalisation, as EGR1 is also known to transcriptionally upregulate p53, p21 WAF1/CIP1 , TGF- and PTEN; these prominent TSGs are known to perform critical roles in the induction of cellular senescence. We further demonstrated that TBX2 achieves the repression of NDRG1 by recruiting Heterochromatin Protein HP1 Gamma (HP1-␥ ) and components of Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) to the promoter region via the TBX2 C-terminal repression domain; consequently the genetic or pharmacological inhibition of PRC2 proteins resulted in transcriptional upregulation of NDRG1 and arrest of cell proliferation (13)(14)(15). As such, the indirect disruption of TBX2 function via targeting specific epigenetic modifiers presents an attractive therapeutic opportunity for the treatment of poor outcome, TBX2-overexpressing breast cancers and other tumour types with TBX2 dependency. REST Corepressor 1 (CoREST/RCOR1) was first identified as a cofactor for RE1 Silencing Transcription Factor (REST), responsible for the transcriptional repression of neuronal genes in non-neuronal cell lineages (16). CoR-EST and its additional paralogs CoREST2 and CoR-EST3 were revealed as differential regulators of Lysine-Specific Demethylase 1 (LSD1); CoREST augments histone demethylation by LSD1, however, CoREST2 has weaker affinity for repressive cofactors Histone Deacetylases (HDACs) 1/2, while CoREST3 actively inhibits nucleosomal demethylation by LSD1 (17). Several variants of the CoREST repression complex have been isolated containing numerous histone modifiers and scaffolding proteins, including but not limited to LSD1, HDAC1, HDAC2, G9A, C-Terminal Binding Protein 1 (CtBP) and ZNF217 (18)(19)(20). The CoREST complex is highly plastic and can accomplish target promoter repression through coordinated H3K9 deacetylation, H3K4 demethylation and H3K9 methylation. Interactions are also facilitated between the CoR-EST and PRC2 complexes by the HOX Transcript Antisense lncRNA (HOTAIR) to coordinate CoREST activity with the repressive H3K27 methylation mark (21). Components of the CoREST complex are known to be deregulated and/or over-expressed in human breast tumours, resulting in the repression of epithelial pro-differentiation genes such as p21 WAF1/CIP1 (22), E-cadherin (23), Grainyhead-Like 2 (GRHL2) and FOXA1 (24) to promote a malignant mesenchymal state. Unsurprisingly, the pharmacological targeting of CoREST in human cancer has become a subject of intense investigation, whereby strategies have been developed to target both individual members of the complex, or multiple cofactors simultaneously, in an attempt to recover tumour suppressor expression (25,26). Here, we demonstrate a previously unknown mechanism of TBX2-mediated gene repression in breast tumours, whereby TBX2 physically interacts with CoRESTassociated proteins LSD1, HDAC1 and the ZNF217 oncogene. We find that silencing of LSD1 and ZNF217 ex-pression emulates the effect of TBX2 knockdown, resulting in upregulation of TBX2 targets such as NDRG1 and CST6, concomitant with diminished cell growth and clonogenic survival. Although known 'catalytic' inhibitors of LSD1 demethylase function exhibit no effect on growth of breast cancer models, we find that an allosteric inhibitor of the LSD1-ZNF217 interaction (SP-2509) recapitulates these phenotypes both in vitro and in vivo. Through Chromatin Immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) we find that while over 80% of TBX2 binding sites are concentrated at promoters, these regions show remarkably no enrichment for the T-box element; rather TBX2-bound regions are biased toward a small number of non-T-box motifs, with the most abundant being Specificity Protein 1 (Sp1), EGR1 and Nuclear Transcription Factor Y (NF-Y). Furthermore, we uncover that Sp1 is crucial for recruitment of TBX2 to the NDRG1 promoter and subsequent repression of this gene, which is itself regulated via an internal enhancer flanked by CoREST binding sites. We also observe that ZNF217 co-occupies approximately 30% of TBX2bound sites, a number of which contain RCOR1 and exhibit upregulation of the associated transcripts following disruption of TBX2/CoREST function. Of these transcripts we find that an uncharacterized lncRNA (LINC00111) acts as a negative regulator of cell growth and positively correlates with expression of the pro-senescence factor p21 WAF1/CIP1 . Overall these data highlight a novel therapeutic opportunity whereby poor-prognosis, TBX2-overexpressing breast tumours may be pharmacologically exploited by targeting the CoREST-dependent gene repression network, to recover normal growth control. Cell culture Purchased cell lines were authenticated from ATCC and mycoplasma-tested prior to conducting experiments. MCF7, BT474 and MDA-MB-361 cells were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM), while T47D cells were maintained in RPMI. DMEM and RPMI media were supplemented with 10% foetal calf serum, 1mM sodium pyruvate, 50 mg/ml penicillin-streptomycin and 2 mM L-glutamine (Life Technologies, Inc., Paisley, UK). MCF10A cells were grown in DMEM-F12 (1:1) supplemented with 5% Horse Serum, 100ng/ml cholera toxin, 20 ng/ml epidermal growth factor, 1 g/ml insulin and 2.5 mM L-glutamine. MCF7 dominant-negative TBX2 cells (MCF7-DN) were grown in MCF7 media supplemented with G418, puromycin and tetracycline at 1 mg/ml each. To induce DN-TBX2 expression, cells were cultured without addition of tetracycline for indicated time periods. All were grown in 5% CO 2 in a humidified incubator. Clonogenic assays, cell counts and viability assays For clonogenic assays cells were seeded at 4000 cells/cm 2 in six-well dishes and grown for 2 weeks (MCF7), 3 weeks (T47D) or 4 weeks (BT474 and MDA-MB-361). Cells were then fixed and stained with crystal violet and relative density quantified by converting plate scans into binary images using ImageJ (27). Cell counts were performed from 100 mm dish cultures by combining aspirated media with trypsinized cell suspension, centrifuging for 5 min at 2000 rpm and resuspending the pellets in an equal volume of 1× PBS, of which 10 l was used for counting with a Count-essTM Automated Cell Counter (Thermo Fisher Scientific). Cell viability assays were conducted by seeding in 96-well clear plastic plates at a density of 2000 cells/well (MCF7) or 3000 cells/well (T47D) for 24 h, followed by treatments for the indicated times. At the endpoint, MTT reagent (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) was added to cell media at a volume ratio of 1:10 and plates incubated for 2 h at 37 • C. Cell media was carefully aspirated and resulting formazan crystals resuspended using 100 l DMSO with shaking for 30 min. Relative cell viability was then quantified by reading absorbance at 570 nm. esiRNA screening Screening was conducted using a custom MISSION ® esiRNA panel (Sigma-Aldrich) targeting 56 known epigenetic modifying enzymes. PLK1 esiRNA was employed as a positive control for reduction of cell viability while Renilla Luciferase (RLUC) was used as a negative control. MCF7 and T47D cells were seeded at a starting density of 3000 cells/well and 4000 cells/well, respectively, in 96-well tissue culture plates (final volume: 100 l). For transfection, 0.3 l Lipofectamine RNAiMAX Reagent (Thermo Fisher Scientific) was added to 30 l of OptiMEM reduced serum medium (Gibco) per well of a 96-well master plate, mixed gently and incubated at room temperature for 5 min. esiR-NAs were diluted to 2 g/ml with 6l per well of the dilution added to the transfection reagent and OptiMEM solution, mixed gently and incubated at room temperature for 15 min. 36.3 l of transfection mix was added to 100 l complete medium in each well of the initial cell culture plates and the plates rocked to ensure even distribution. Cell viability was determined by MTT assay (described above) after 5-6 days incubation. RNA preparation and cDNA synthesis RNA was extracted from cells using TriPure Isolation Reagent (Sigma-Aldrich) according to manufacturer's instructions. RNA was then reverse transcribed using the Transcriptor First Stand cDNA synthesis kit (Roche, UK) following the manufacturer's instructions. Real-time quantitative PCR Relative quantitative PCR was performed on a 96-well plate (MJ Research, Waltham, MA, USA) on the LightCycler 96 System (Roche Life Science), and analysed using Roche Lightcycler 96 software according to the manufacturer's instructions. Gene expression was normalized relative to expression changes in SDHA (Succinate Dehydrogenase Complex Flavoprotein Subunit A). Primer sequences are shown in Supplementary Table S1. Co-immunoprecipitations Cells were seeded on 140mm dishes prior to harvesting. Cells were harvested at 4 • C by scraping into 15ml falcon tubes and centrifugation at 1000 rpm for 5 min at 4 • C. Pellets were washed with 5 ml cold 1× PBS and centrifuged as before. The washed pellets were resuspended in 1ml egg lysis buffer (ELB) (300 mM NaCl, 0.1% IGEPAL CA-630, 50 mM HEPES, 1 mM EDTA, 0.5 mM DTT) supplemented with cOmplete Mini Protease Inhibitor Cocktail + PhosSTOP (Roche Life Science) and transferred to 1.5 ml Eppendorf tubes. Following 15 min of incubation on ice, lysates were centrifuged at 13 000 rpm for 15 min at 4 • C and the resulting supernatants transferred to new 1.5 ml Eppendorf tubes for protein quantification. Per IP, 1mg of lysate was added to a fresh 1.5 ml Eppendorf tube and volumeadjusted to 500 l with ELB supplemented with protease inhibitor. 30 l Dynabeads Protein G (Thermo Fisher Scientific) were prepared by washing three times in 1 ml ELB and then added to the 1 mg of lysate, followed by rotation for 4 h at 4 • C to pre-clear the lysate. Beads were then removed magnetically and the pre-cleared lysate transferred to a new 1.5 ml tube. Lysate was incubated with 2 g target antibody or species-matched control IgG by rotating at 4 • C overnight. 30 l Dynabeads Protein G were then pre-pared as before, added to the lysate tube and rotated for 4 h at 4 • C to capture antibody-protein complexes. The beads were washed five times with ELB at 4 • C and all liquid removed by magnetic isolation. Bead-antibody-protein complexes were denatured by addition of 20 l 2× LDS Sample Buffer (Thermo Fisher Scientific) and 20 l ELB with heating for 10 min at 95 • C. Western blotting was conducted as described comparing 10 l of each IP against 30 g of input lysate. siRNA knockdowns Cells were transfected using Lipofectamine RNAiMAX Reagent (Thermo Fisher Scientific) according to manufacturer's instructions. Protein and/or RNA was collected from cells following treatment at indicated time points with 25 nM siRNA. siRNA sequences are listed in Supplementary Table S1. MCF7 xenograft experiments All experiments were performed under an ASPA-approved protocol. Female SCID mice were each implanted subcutaneously with a 2 mg estradiol (E2) pellet one week prior to subcutaneous implantation of two million MCF7 cells into the lower flank. Once tumours reached ∼100 mm 3 , groups of 10 mice were treated daily with vehicle (45% PEG-400, 10% EtOH, 45% PBS pH 9.0) or 40 mg/kg of SP-2509 by intraperitoneal injection from Monday to Friday for 4 weeks. Tumour measurements and body weight measurements were recorded twice a week, and all animals were sacrificed at the end of week 4. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) Tumour samples were blinded prior to staining and quantification to prevent unconscious bias. Staining was carried out on whole face tissue sections, cut from formalin fixed paraffin-embedded blocks. Tissue sections were cut at 5 m using a LEICA RM21215 RTS microtome and dried overnight at 40 • C. Tissue slides were rehydrated from xylene through a series of alcohols (100-50%) to water. IHC was performed using antigen retrieval under pressure-cooking in 0.1 M sodium citrate pH 6.0 and 3% hydrogen peroxide. Slides were blocked in avidin-biotin and serum prior to overnight incubation with Ki-67 antibody (ab15580, abcam, 1:150 dilution). Slides were then incubated with biotinylated secondary antibody (Vector Labs) at a dilution of 1:200. ABC reagent was added and DAB staining carried out under a microscope. All IHC slides were then counterstained with haematoxylin prior to dehydration and mounting. Ki-67 images were taken at 20× magnification and stitched to a single image using LASV-LEICA 4.8 UK software. Stitched images were quantified using QuPath software to evaluate the amount of overall positive Ki-67 nuclear staining against negative staining. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) Per IP, 20 million cells were harvested by trypsinisation and centrifuged at 1200 rpm in a 15ml falcon. The cells were washed twice in PBS and resuspended in PBS at a final volume of 9.4 ml. 625 l fresh 16% methanol-free formaldehyde (Thermo Fisher Scientific) was added to the cell suspension which was then rotated for 10 min at room temperature to fix. The formaldehyde was quenched by adding 4 ml ice-cold 2.5 M glycine and rotating at room temperature for 5 min. Fixed cells were collected by centrifugation at 1600 rpm for 5 min at 4 • C and washed twice with 10 ml ice-cold PBS. The cell pellet was then resuspended in 10 ml ice cold cytoplasmic lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES-KOH pH 7.5, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 1% Triton X-100, 0.1% Na deoxycholate, 0.1% SDS) and rotated at 4 • C for 15 min. Cells were pelleted at 2300 rpm for 10 min, the lysis buffer removed and cytoplasmic lysis repeated a second time with fresh lysis buffer. The pellet was resuspended in 10 ml ice cold nuclear lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES-KOH pH 7.5, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 1% Triton X-100, 0.1% Na deoxycholate, 1% SDS) and rotated at 4 • C for 15 min. Cells were pelleted at 2300 rpm for 10 min, the lysis buffer removed and the chromatin pellet resuspended in 1.8 ml fresh nuclear lysis buffer. The chromatin suspension was divided into 1.5 ml Bioruptor Plus TPX microtubes (Diagenode) at 300 l per tube and loaded into a Bioruptor UCD-500 (Diagenode) pre-chilled to 4 • C. Chromatin was sonicated for 33 cycles of 30 s on/30 s off, Triton X-100 added to each TPX tube to a final concentration of 1% and the tubes centrifuged at 13 000 rpm for 10 min to sequester SDS. Chromatin was then pooled to a single 2 ml Eppendorf DNA LoBind tube. 30 l Dynabeads Protein G were prepared by washing twice in 1ml beads wash buffer (PBS, 0.1% Triton X-100), added to chromatin and the mixture rotated for 2 h at 4 • C to preclear the chromatin. Beads were removed on a magnet and the chromatin transferred to a new 2 ml LoBind tube, with 30 l retained as an input sample. 6 g target ChIP antibody or 6 g species-matched IgG control was added to the chromatin and the tube rotated overnight at 4 • C. 60 l Dynabeads Protein G were then prepared by washing twice in 1 ml beads wash buffer, added to chromatin and the mixture rotated for 2-4 h at 4 • C to capture antibody-DNA complexes. The beads were washed three times in 1 ml cytoplasmic lysis buffer, twice in 1 ml high salt buffer (50 mM HEPES-KOH pH 7.5, 350 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 1% Triton X-100, 0.1% Na deoxycholate, 0.1% SDS), once in lithium chloride buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.0, 250 mM LiCl, 1 mM EDTA, 0.5% IGEPAL CA-630, 0.5% Na deoxycholate) and once in TE buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.0, 0.1 mM EDTA). To purify ChIP DNA, beads and input sample were suspended in elution buffer (50 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.5, 10 mM EDTA, 1% SDS) to a final volume of 300 l and incubated with shaking at 1000 rpm at 65 • C overnight. 50 l of 20 mg/ml Proteinase K Solution (Thermo Fisher Scientific) was added to each of the tubes, which were then incubated for 2 h shaking as before at 55 • C. 300 l phenol chloroform isoamyl alcohol (25:24:1, v/v) was mixed with each sample, incubated for 3 min at room temperature and the tubes centrifuged at 13 000 rpm for 5 min at room temperature. 280 l of aqueous phase containing DNA was added to 300 ul ice-cold isopropanol, 30 l 3 M sodium acetate and 1 l of GlycoBlue Coprecipitant (Thermo Fisher Scientific). Samples were briefly vortexed, frozen at -80 • C for 30 min and centrifuged at 13 000 rpm at 4 • C for 30 min to pellet DNA. Purified DNA was washed gently in 1 ml 100% ethanol, air-dried and finally resuspended in 50 l TE buffer. The ChIP antibodies: TBX2 (ab33298) was obtained from Abcam; Normal Rabbit IgG (#2729) was obtained from Cell Signaling Technology. Two independent biological replicates of ChIP material were obtained prior to RT-qPCR or next generation sequencing. ChIP-seq 1ng of input and ChIP DNA were taken to generate Illumina-compatible indexed libraries using the MicroPlex Library Preparation Kit v2 (Diagenode) following the manufacturer's instructions. Libraries were size-selected to an average fragment size of 300-400 bp using KAPA Pure Beads (Roche) which was confirmed with an Agilent High Sensitivity DNA Kit (Agilent Technologies) following the manufacturer's instructions. The molarity of clustercompetent library molecules was calculated using the NEB-Next Library Quant Kit for Illumina (New England Bio-Labs Inc.) and the individual libraries pooled for multiplex sequencing at an equimolar ratio to 4 nM final concentration. The ChIP library pool was sequenced with an Illumina Next Seq 500 High Output Kit for 75 cycles at ∼40 million single-end reads per sample/index. Sequencing FASTQ files were de-multiplexed on Sanger indexes and the quality of sequencing confirmed with the FastQC tool (28) prior to downstream analysis. Bioinformatic analysis of ChIP-seq data Single-end FASTQ files obtained from in-house MCF7 ChIP-seq of Input vs TBX2 (2 biological replicates each) were aligned to human genome hg38 primary assembly using Bowtie2 (29) (end-to-end mode). FASTQ files for MCF7 ZNF217 and RCOR1 ChIP-seq with matched control samples (two biological replicates each) were obtained from ENCODE under accession numbers ENCBS764AUT, ENCBS773JGQ, ENCBS295PFW, ENCBS295PFW, ENCBS216AOQ, ENCBS034XKZ, ENCBS747ZRJ and ENCBS609QTY. TBX2 ChIP-seq data from Kelly cells were obtained from GEO under accession numbers GSM2486165 and GSM2915911. Public FASTQ files were aligned to hg38 using Bowtie2 as before. All BAM files were filtered on a minimum MAPQ of 10 to retain unique alignments with no more than 3 mismatches. NarrowPeaks were called on BAM files of individual ChIP replicates vs matched input controls using MACS2 (30) callpeak (tag extension size = 250 bp, keep-dup = auto). Peaks were then called on pooled replicates in MACS2 callpeak using previous settings, outputting additional bedGraph profiles normalized to counts per million (CPM). bedGraph files were converted to bigWig for genome browser viewing of ChIP-enriched regions. Reproducible peaks in pooled data were classed as regions overlapping at least 1bp with narrowPeaks called in each individual replicate. Peak summits were profiled with ChIPseeker (31) using Ensembl GTF annotation (obtained from UCSC) to determine the fraction of peaks falling into intergenic/intragenic/promoter regions. Genes associated with promoter regions were analysed using Enrichr (32) to determine significant signalling pathway/network terms against multiple databases. For de novo motif discovery, peak summits were extended 100bp in each direction to create 200 bp windows and associated nucleotide sequences extracted in FASTA format. FASTA sequences were processed with RepeatMasker (33) to hide interfering elements prior to analysis in MEME suite (http://meme-suite.org/). FASTA sequences were analysed with the STREME tool to find enriched motifs 8-15 bp in length with P-value 1500 genomic regions (Supplementary Figure S7A). TBX2 peaks were predominantly located at proximal promoters, with WDR74 identified as the most strongly enriched binding site of known promoters (Supplementary Figure S7B). TBX2 binding was also observed at the NDRG1 promoter, in validation of previous ChIP-PCR work performed by our group (Supplementary Figure S7C). Gene set enrichment analysis of TBX2-bound promoters against databases including MSigDB and NCI-Nature found 'mTORC1 signalling', 'ErbB1 downstream signalling', 'unfolded protein response', 'PDGFR-beta signalling' and 'p53 pathway' to be among the most significantly enriched terms. In addition, TBX2-targeted promoters exhibited strong enrichment for genes encoding proteins which physically interact with CDK1 and ESR1, further reinforcing the role of TBX2 in regulation of cell cycle progression and differentiation (Supplementary Figure S7D). STREME motif analysis of sequences centred on TBX2 peak summits showed no enrichment for the canonical TBX2 motif AGGTGTGAR, which was anticipated due to previous findings inferring indirect DNA contact via interaction with other transcription factors in breast cancer (11,13). Rather the most strongly enriched consensus sequence was GGGGCGGGGC corresponding to Sp1, followed by centrally enriched motif signatures of KLF12, NF-Y, CTCF, CREM, EGR1, THAP11 and GABPA (Supplementary Figure S7E). Overrepresentation of the EGR1 motif was compelling, given we previously found that TBX2 interacts with EGR1 to access the NDRG1 promoter via an overlapping Sp1/EGR1 consensus sequence (11). Over 85% of the TBX2 sites containing each motif were located at promoters, with the exception of CTCF; approximately 40% of TBX2 sites containing a CTCF motif were instead located at intragenic and intergenic regions (Supplementary Figure S7E; Table S4). This may be attributed to core functions of CTCF in mediating long-range chromatin interactions, including those between transcription start sites and distal enhancers (40). Taken together, these data indicated that TBX2 predominantly regulates transcription at proximal promoters, however, its physical engagement with DNA at these regions likely occurs indirectly through interaction with key transcription factors such as Sp1. As our in-house ChIP-seq suggested that TBX2 DNA binding occurs indirectly in breast cancer, we hypothesized that global chromatin occupancy may vary considerably between tissue types with differential expression of TBX2interacting TFs. This was addressed in silico through comparison of our MCF7 data with publicly available TBX2 ChIP-seq in N-Myc amplified neuroblastoma, the only other known cancer in which TBX2 ChIP-seq has been performed to date (4,10). We compared our MCF7 TBX2 ChIP-seq with TBX2 ChIP-seq of the Kelly cell line from the Durbin Zimmerman Dharia et al. study, as this data was of high quality and performed with the same TBX2 antibody (ab33298) (10). Intriguingly the majority of TBX2 sites identified in MCF7 did not exhibit significant TBX2 binding in Kelly, while the inverse was true for the Kelly dataset; overall only 222 overlapping sites exhibited strong TBX2 binding in both MCF7 and Kelly cells (Supplementary Figure S8A). As expected, TBX2 sites in MCF7 which were either lacking in Kelly cells, or overlapping with Nucleic Acids Research, 2022, Vol. 50, No. 11 6165 Kelly cells, were predominantly located at promoter regions. TBX2 sites which were unique to Kelly cells, however, exhibited a strikingly different profile with the majority of binding falling into intragenic and intergenic regions (Supplementary Figure S8B), indicative of the strong participation of TBX2 in deregulated enhancer circuitry of N-Myc neuroblastoma previously described (4,10). Kinase enrichment analysis of promoters bound by TBX2 in both cell lines found EGFR downstream targets to be specific to MCF7, while promoters of genes regulated by CDK7 were specific to the Kelly cell line; this was fitting given that CDK7 is known to be a key driver of N-Myc-dependent superenhancer activity in tumours with N-Myc amplification (41) (Supplementary Figure S8C). Furthermore, extraction of DNA motifs underlying TBX2 summits in the two cell models found bias for CTCF and NF-Y signatures to be specific to MCF7; in the MCF7/Kelly overlapping regions enrichment for the Sp1 motif was observed, albeit at lower significance due to a smaller number of sampled sequences (Supplementary Figure S8D). In contrast TBX2-bound regions specific to Kelly cells were most strongly centrally enriched for the AP-2 motif, in addition to motifs for previously described neuroblastoma factors PHOX2B, GATA3 and ISL1. Overall these comparisons provide strong evidence for a tissue-specific model of TBX2 engagement with chromatin, mediated indirectly through interaction with core TFs which may vary significantly between cancer subtypes. TBX2 and ZNF217 exhibit both distinct and overlapping global DNA binding profiles Based on our evidence that TBX2 resides in a repression complex alongside CoREST factors, we further compared our in-house TBX2 data with publicly available MCF7 ChIP-seq for key proteins in this complex. Due to lack of high-quality LSD1 public data and our inability to achieve LSD1 enrichment with a formaldehyde protocol, we utilized ZNF217 ENCODE ChIP-seq data to represent potential CoREST-targeted regions. We found that ∼30% of TBX2 binding sites overlapped centrally with ZNF217 peaks, with the mean signal enrichment of these peaks highly similar for both proteins ( Figure 5A). TBX2 peaks overlapping with ZNF217 were seen primarily at promoter regions ( Figure 5B; Supplementary Table S3), which kinase enrichment analysis showed to be enriched for PDGFRA downstream target genes ( Figure 5C). Interestingly, these TBX2/ZNF217 overlapping peaks were lacking in enrichment for previously found CTCF and NF-Y motifs, while displaying significant enrichment for Fos/Jun (AP-1), THAP11, GABPA and Sp1 consensus sequences ( Figure 5D). In contrast the remaining TBX2 sites deficient in ZNF217 signal were enriched for Sp1, CTCF, NF-Y and CREM motifs but not AP-1, THAP11 or GABPA; taken together this implied that ZNF217 influences localisation of TBX2 to AP-1, THAP11 and GABPA sites, while itself infrequently occurring at TBX2-bound NF-Y, CTCF and CREM sites. Accordingly, the analysis of ZNF217bound sites deficient in TBX2 signal found significant occurrences of THAP11, AP-1, GABPA and CTCF motifs but no enrichment for NF-Y or CREM sequences ( Figure 5D). We further examined TBX2 and ZNF217 binding sites with the inclusion of ENCODE public ChIP-seq data for RCOR1, a key component of the CoREST complex. Target genes showing enrichment of all three proteins would represent likely TBX2-CoREST repressed genes. While a subset of TBX2/ZNF217 shared regions displayed overlapping RCOR1 signal, no central RCOR1 enrichment was observed in remaining TBX2 sites deficient in ZNF217 binding (Supplementary Figure S9; Figure 5E). Indeed, we observed over 1000 genomic sites where TBX2 bound independently of ZNF217 (listed in Supplementary Table S2). Overall, these data highlighted that ZNF217 was essential for RCOR1 localisation to TBX2 target regions, and uncovered a select group of target promoters whereby TBX2 may interact with CoREST proteins to achieve transcriptional repression. The importance of ZNF217 for TBX2-CoREST repression may also explain why disruption of ZNF217 interactions within the complex by SP-2509 was effective in de-repressing TSGs and inhibiting breast cancer cell proliferation. Sp1 is essential for TBX2-mediated repression of NDRG1 Following completion of TBX2 ChIP-seq in MCF7 we wanted to elucidate how repression of the NDRG1 tumour suppressor was achieved, given our historical interest in this gene as a key target of TBX2 (11,15). Given that TBX2 binding sites from MCF7 ChIP-seq were most strongly enriched for the Sp1 motif (Supplementary Figure S7E), we hypothesised that Sp1 may be integral to TBX2mediated gene repression. Accordingly, immunoprecipitation experiments confirmed that TBX2 interacted with Sp1 ( Figure 6A). We next examined the NDRG1 locus for occurrences of Sp1 recognition sites ( Figure 6B). In comparison to other TBX2/CoREST targets identified in silico, the arrangement of TBX2, ZNF217 and RCOR1 binding sites at the NDRG1 locus followed an atypical pattern; while clear TBX2 and RCOR1 peaks were present at the promoter/TSS, this region lacked a strong ZNF217 peak. Instead ZNF217 binding was found to be enriched at intronic regions at the 3' end of the NDRG1 locus, cooccupied by RCOR1. Importantly, the region at intron 10 was classed as an 'intragenic enhancer', as catalogued in the GeneHancer double elite database to target the NDRG1 TSS ( Figure 6B). Evidence for intron 10 as an internal enhancer for NDRG1 was further corroborated by public MCF7 data, showing this region physically interacted with the promoter in 3D assays; both the promoter and intron 10 were also enriched for histone modifications H3K27Ac and H3K4me1, the hallmarks of active enhancers (42). As such, lack of strong ZNF217 signal at the NDRG1 promoter could be explained by chromatin looping, influencing the fixation of proteins from one complex to two apparently distinct DNA regions. Although our evidence indicated that NDRG1 was a TBX2-CoREST repression target, we expected a degree of active histone modification to be present at this locus due to basal expression of NDRG1 in the MCF7 cell line (Supplementary Figure S6A). Recent work found that internal enhancers may in fact be repressive in nature, by interfering with basal transcription of their respective host genes (43). Interestingly, motifs for the master epithelial factor GRHL2 (CCNGTTNNNCNAG) Figure 5. ZNF217 overlaps with one third of global TBX2 binding sites in breast cancer cells. (A) TBX2 ChIP-seq conducted in-house on MCF7 cells, compared with public MCF7 ChIP-seq for ZNF217 (ENCODE). Profile plots denote mean enrichment of ChIP read density over input control read density ±2.5 kb for all peak summits consistent between two biological replicates. Three analysis groups of regions were identified corresponding to TBX2 sites lacking significant ZNF217 signal, TBX2 sites overlapping with ZNF217, and ZNF217 sites lacking significant TBX2 signal. (B) Distribution of ChIP binding sites between promoter and non-promoter regions corresponding to above analysis group. (C) Enrichment q-values for top 5 upstream GEO kinase terms associated with genes from bound promoter regions, corresponding to above analysis group. (D) Position weight matrices (PWMs) of significantly enriched TF motifs concentrated within 100bp of ChIP peak summits as identified by STREME, corresponding to above analysis group. List for ZNF217 sites lacking TBX2 signal is truncated to top 4 PWMs; also contains motifs for GABPA/ELK, CTCF, ESR and TEAD4. (E) Genome browser snapshots of ChIP-seq tracks representing pooled reads from two biological replicates for each factor. Example promoter regions from each analysis group are shown, with inclusion of public MCF7 RCOR1 ChIP data and exact motif sequence in peak centre highlighted. Scale bars correspond to reads per million. Figure 6. Sp1 is required for repression of TSG NDRG1 by recruiting TBX2 to the NDRG1 promoter. (A) Western blot of Co-IP in MCF7 cells. TBX2 was precipitated from lysates using either a mouse monoclonal (D-3) or rabbit polyclonal (ab33298) antibody, with species-matched IgG as control IP. Samples were immunoblotted for TBX2 and Sp1, with GAPDH serving as negative control. (B) Genome browser snapshot detailing regulation of the NDRG1 locus. All tracks represent 2 biological replicates of MCF7 data for POL2RA ChIA-PET (ENCODE), TBX2 ChIP-seq (in-house), ZNF217/RCOR1 ChIP-seq (ENCODE), and ChIP-seq for enhancer histone marks (ENCODE). Physical association between the highlighted regions is indicated by ChIA-PET arcs above, with GeneHancer catalogue number included. Key TF motifs at each region are highlighted below, with fully conserved Sp1 sequence visible within TBX2 peak centre at the promoter/TSS. Scale bars correspond to reads per million. (C) Western blot of Co-IP in MCF7 cells. GRHL2 was precipitated from lysates using anti-GRHL2 antibody, with species-matched IgG as control IP. Samples were immunoblotted for GRHL2 and TBX2. (D) Western blot from lysates following treatment with Sp1 siRNAs for 120 h (MCF7) and 96h (T47D). Samples were probed with anti-Sp1 and anti-NDRG1 antibody. (E) Clonogenic assays following treatment with Sp1 siRNAs for 2 weeks (MCF7) and 3 weeks (T47D); effects on colony density are shown in representative images and below bar charts. (F) RT-qPCR of MCF7 and T47D cDNA time-matched to above western blot experiments, assessing mRNA expression of NDRG1 with Sp1 siRNA vs scrambled control. (G) CentriMo distribution plot of motifs specific to MCF7 TBX2 ChIP-seq in this study. Chart represents frequency counts of best motif match, relative to peak summit and totalled from all peak sequences where a match was found (counts binned at 20bp to improve resolution). Sp1 motif indicated as most frequently occuring, with matches concentrated in central region proximal to TBX2 binding site. (H) ChIP-PCR using anti-TBX2 antibody (ab33298) or species-matched IgG control in MCF7 cells treated with scrambled/Sp1 siRNA for 120h. PCR signals spanning the NDRG1 TSS and nonspecific region were calculated as % input; relative binding of TBX2 was determined by fold enrichment of PCR signal at TSS versus nonspecific region. (I) Western blot from MCF7 lysates following treatment with TBX2 or ZNF217 siRNA, in the presence of scrambled (−) or NDRG1 (+) siRNA for 96 h. Samples were probed with antibodies against TBX2, ZNF217 and NDRG1. (J) Relative cell number time-matched to siNDRG1 western blot experiments. Error bars represent mean ± s.e.m. of three independent experiments (ChIP-PCR represents two biological replicates). *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001; ns = not significant. GAPDH serves as loading control for all western blots. were present in ChIP peak centres at both the NDRG1 promoter and at intron 10 ( Figure 6B), while a fully conserved Sp1 sequence (GGGGCGGGGC) was specific to the centre of the TBX2 peak at the promoter. These observations were fitting, given previous findings that GRHL2 and Sp1 were key motifs involved in global binding of ZNF217 and TBX2, respectively, in MCF7 cells ( Figure 5D). Interestingly, TBX2 was found to physically interact with GRHL2 ( Figure 6C). However, knockdown of Sp1 alone was seen to be sufficient for NDRG1 upregulation in TBX2-dependent cell lines, as assessed by western blot (Figure 6D), while the loss of this protein significantly diminished long-term survival ( Figure 6E). Analysis of matched mRNA also confirmed that NDRG1 upregulation following Sp1 loss occurred at a transcriptional level ( Figure 6F); as such these data implied that Sp1 may be important for NDRG1 repression and maintenance of cellular proliferation. Review of our TBX2 ChIP-seq data found that Sp1 motifs were predominantly located within 100bp of TBX2 peak summits, indicative of cooperative or competitive DNA binding between these two factors ( Figure 6G). In the case of the NDRG1 locus, ChIP PCR demonstrated a significant loss of TBX2 binding to the promoter/TSS region following Sp1 knockdown ( Figure 6H). Indeed, knockdown of Sp1 also reduced ZNF217 and LSD1 recruitment (Supplementary Figure S10). Having previously demonstrated the important role of NDRG1 repression in maintaining cell proliferation (11), we observed that siRNA knockdown of NDRG1 ( Figure 6I) partially rescued the antiproliferative effect of TBX2 and ZNF217 knockdowns ( Figure 6J). Together these findings provided evidence that transcriptional repression of NDRG1 by the TBX2-CoREST complex is achieved via recruitment of TBX2 to the NDRG1 promoter by Sp1. While NDRG1 was contributing to tumour suppression following loss of TBX2/CoREST, a number of other target genes (potentially novel TSGs) were likely involved in this phenotype and therefore warranted further investigation. LINC00111 is repressed by TBX2-CoREST and exhibits tumour-suppressive activity in breast cancer cells Given the large proportion of TBX2 binding sites occupied by ZNF217 in MCF7 ChIP-seq, we determined which of these regions represented TBX2-CoREST-repressed genes that may function as tumour suppressors. Of the subset of TBX2/ZNF217 bound regions containing RCOR1, we shortlisted seven promoters of which transcripts were consistently upregulated by loss of TBX2 or ZNF217 function; 6 of these genes were protein-coding (CELSR2, CORO2A, CTNND2, GOLT1A, KLHL20, PTK6) and one gene represented a long non-coding RNA product (LINC00111) (Figure 7A). Each of these genes contained at least one of the motifs previously found as significant, within the TF binding site ( Figure 5D). The LINC00111 promoter was distinct from other regions as the TBX2 peak contained a CREM motif, which was less commonly-occurring in TBX2 binding sites overall ( Figure 7A; Supplementary Table S4). We found that each of these seven genes were transcriptionally repressed by TBX2-CoREST, as treatment with TBX2 siRNA or ZNF217/LSD1 inhibitor SP-2509 resulted in sig-nificant upregulation of the associated RNA. LINC00111 was found to be the most strongly upregulated transcript, with fold RNA induction comparable to NDRG1 ( Figure 7B and C). As the function of LINC00111 was unknown, we determined whether this TBX2-CoREST-repressed target played a role in cellular growth and survival. To address this question, TBX2 was knocked down in the absence and presence of LINC00111 siRNA, with effects on cell growth compared ( Figure 7D). Knockdowns of HP1-␥ , KAP1 and EZH2 were also included, as we previously found these factors important for TBX2-mediated TSG repression and cell proliferation (15). We found that LINC00111 siRNA treatment significantly rescued the antiproliferative effects of TBX2 siRNAs, as well as HP1-␥ and KAP1 knockdown ( Figure 7D). Interestingly, treatment with LINC00111 siRNA alone led to marked upregulation of TBX2 protein, which naturally opposed the effects of TBX2 siRNA ( Figure 7D, panel 1); this implied that LINC00111 may itself behave as a repressor of TBX2. In addition, LINC00111 siRNA basally reduced protein levels of pro-senescence factor p21 WAF1/CIP1 , while preventing p21 WAF1/CIP1 upregulation by TBX2 siRNA ( Figure 7D, panels 5 and 6). LINC00111 siRNA did not impact on protein expression of HP1-␥ or KAP1 ( Figure 7D, panels 2 and 3); however, the upregulation of p21 WAF1/CIP1 by HP1-␥ /KAP1 knockdown was greatly reduced by LINC00111 siRNA treatment ( Figure 7D, panels 5 and 6). Conversely, LINC00111 siRNA did not rescue the antiproliferative effect of EZH2 knockdown, nor did EZH2 knockdown result in upregulation of p21 WAF1/CIP1 ( Figure 7D, panels 4, 5 and 6). Taken together, these data indicated that LINC00111 played an important role in the context of growth arrest associated with p21 WAF1/CIP1 induction. To further confirm the role of LINC00111 in growth arrest, experiments were repeated in MCF7 and MDA-MB-361 cells, wherein TBX2 was knocked down in the absence and presence of LINC00111 siRNA. The upregulation of LINC00111 following TBX2 loss, and subsequent knockdown by LINC00111 siRNA were confirmed by RT-qPCR. As observed previously, LINC00111 knockdown induced upregulation of TBX2 itself ( Figure 7E and F). In both cell lines, LINC00111 knockdown prevented p21 WAF1/CIP1 upregulation by TBX2 siRNA and partially rescued the loss of proliferation marker CDK1 (44) ( Figure 7F). In long-term assays, LINC00111 knockdown also significantly reduced the detrimental effect of TBX2 siRNA on colony formation ( Figure 7G). Taken as a whole, these results demonstrated that LINC00111 possesses tumour-suppressive properties by regulating both TBX2 and p21 WAF1/CIP1 expression, and as such has important ramifications for cancer cell survival when targeted for repression by the TBX2-CoREST complex. DISCUSSION Here, we have identified a novel mechanism through which the oncogenic repressor TBX2 interacts with CoREST complex proteins to target growth control and senescence genes, thereby facilitating maintenance of proliferation of breast cancer cells. have We show that TBX2 binding is as- Clonogenic assays following treatment with scrambled/TBX2/LINC00111 siRNA as described above for 2 weeks (MCF7) and 4 weeks (MDA-MB-361); colony density measurements are shown in bar charts in order of the above representative images. Error bars represent mean ± s.e.m. of three independent experiments. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001; ns = not significant. GAPDH serves as loading control for all western blots. sociated with a wide range of TF motifs, which may be important for the recruitment of the TBX2-CoREST complex, as demonstrated by the interaction with Sp1. A hypothetical model of how this TBX2-CoREST repression complex is organised and how it assembles on target promoters is shown in Figure 8. The role of CoREST in breast biology and indeed cancer pathogenesis, is highly context dependent. For example, Breast Carcinoma Metastasis Suppressor gene 1 (BRMS1) was found to be a core component of the LSD1-CoREST complex, using these interactions to suppress breast cancer migration and invasion (45). A transcription factor, ZNF516, was shown to recruit the CtBP/LSD1/CoREST complex to inhibit the proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells in vitro and suppress breast cancer growth and metastasis in vivo (46). Conversely, it has also been shown that the SNAG domain of SNAIL1 functions as a molecular hook to recruit LSD1 to repress epithelial promoters, thus driving EMT in breast cancer (47). As part of this study we were keen to identify enzymatic regulators associated with TBX2, in particular regulators playing key roles in TBX2 functional repression. The enzymatic activities resident within the CoREST complex have long been an attractive opportunity for drug design. A combined LSD1-HDAC inhibitor, CORIN, a synthetic hybrid agent derived from the Class I HDAC inhibitor (Entinostat) and an LSD1 inhibitor (tranylcypromine analog), showed much greater growth inhibition of melanoma lines compared to Entinostat alone (26). Similarly, we show in this study that combining LSD1 and HDAC inhibitors produced potent growth inhibition and target gene derepression in TBX2-expressing breast cancer lines. However, what has become obvious from our study and others is that targeting enzymatic activity is not the only method of inhibiting CoREST function, as specific allosteric interactions are now being identified as key modes of regulation. As alluded to previously, the inhibitor GSK-LSD1, a tranylcypromine-based molecule designed to target the demethylase function of LSD1, actually achieves antiproliferative effects through allosteric inhibition of GFI1B (38). Similarly, the allosteric inhibitor used in this study, SP-2509, has been shown to disrupt the LSD1-ZNF217 interaction and has proven highly effective in inhibiting the proliferation of prostate cancer cells, much more so than 'catalytic' inhibitors. The scaffold function of ZNF217 may be particularly important for the identified internal enhancer regulating the NDRG1 locus ( Figure 6B). Our work is strikingly similar to the Sehrawat et al. study, suggesting that the ZNF217-LSD1 association may also be a key interaction within the CoREST complex in TBX2-addicted breast cancers. In this study we have identified of a host of potential transcription factor interactors of TBX2, which may be reprogrammed by TBX2 to exert anti-senescence and proliferative phenotypes. Amongst these, the SP family is linked to a number of processes such as growth control, DNA damage responses and cell cycle control, with Sp1 being a key activator of p21 WAF1/CIP1 (48). Indeed, we observe from TBX2 ChIP-seq in MCF7 cells that a well-conserved Sp1/KLF12 motif is present in the centre of its binding site at the p21 WAF1/CIP1 promoter (Supplementary Table S4); further work would determine whether interaction with Sp1 is necessary for TBX2 recruitment to the p21 WAF1/CIP1 promoter, as we have shown here with NDRG1 ( Figure 6H). THAP11 is a stem cell regulator, responsible for transcription of cell cycle control genes and repression of c-Myc (49,50). Likewise, CREM is considered a TSG, although again tissue specificity may be important in determining whether this factor supports or restrains cell proliferation (51,52). In each case, the reported TSG function of these transcription factors may not only be compromised, but actively targeted for repression by the prooncogenic functions of TBX2 and the accompanying CoR-EST complex. The existence of a CREM motif within the TBX2 binding site at the LINC00111 promoter is intriguing, given we have shown this gene to be necessary for p21 WAF1/CIP1 induction and cell cycle arrest following loss of TBX2 function. Additional work would be needed to ascertain whether TBX2-CoREST interact with, or require CREM to gain access to the LINC00111 promoter and achieve transcriptional repression. As the function of LINC00111 is to date unknown, one can only speculate as to how this long non-coding RNA manipulates expression of TBX2 and p21 WAF1/CIP1 . It has however been found that p21 WAF1/CIP1 expression is regulated by other lncRNAs, such as the p53-regulated gene lincRNA-p21; lincRNA-p21 was seen to function as an activator of the nearby CDKN1A gene, by associating with the Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNP-K) cofactor during p53-dependent p21 WAF1/CIP1 transcription (53). Mechanism notwithstanding, repression of LINC00111 by TBX2-CoREST appears to be important for breast cancer proliferation and survival; analysis of the METABRIC dataset also indicates that breast cancer patients with LINC00111-overexpressing tumours have markedly better overall survival at months 120-240 of the study, compared to tumours in which LINC00111 is downregulated ( Supplementary Figure S11). Our ChIP-seq study also revealed a large cohort of TBX2 binding regions appearing to be CoREST-independent. For example, ZNF217 overlapped with only 30% of TBX2bound regions, suggesting that TBX2 associates with a number of other transcription complexes. This is not surprising given that other significant hits were observed in our initial esiRNA screen, including HDAC7, SIRT3 and JMJD2B. HDAC7 has been shown to maintain breast and ovarian cancer stem cells through regulation of H3K27 acetylation at super-enhancer-associated genes (54). The mitochondrial deacetylase SIRT3 was shown to behave as a TSG in breast tissue with SIRT3 -/mice developing breast cancers, while human breast cancers have reduced SIRT3 expression (55). A direct TBX2-SIRT3 interaction would seem unlikely, although SIRT3 has been reported to localise to the nucleus to deacetylate H4K16, a known euchromatin mark (56). It is therefore plausible that TBX2 could reposition SIRT3 to reduce promoter-specific and/or global H4K16 acetylation, a phenomenon which has been reported in multiple tumour types. The histone demethylase JMJD2B/KDM4B is an ER␣ transcriptional target which is recruited to ER␣ target sites, to demethylate H3K9me3 and facilitate activation of ER␣ responsive genes (57,58). However, like LSD1, JMJD2B is also a dual H3K4/K9 demethylase and therefore possesses the ability to both activate and repress transcription, a feature which could also be exploited by TBX2. TBX2 amplification has been reported to be enriched in BRCA1 mutant breast cancers (which are predominantly ER␣-negative) but the in vitro models we have used are predominantly ER␣-positive. Using the online tool KM Plotter, we see that TBX2 mRNA expression (as evaluated using 4 different probesets) correlated (significantly in most instances) with poor outcomes in ER␣ breast cancers and within the Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) subtype (Supplementary Figure S12). TNBCs represent the poorest outcome subtype being notoriously hard to treat, highly heterogenous with high metastases rates and in contrast to other breast cancer subgroups, they no current targeted therapies available. These correlations suggest that targeting TBX2-CoREST may represent a novel therapeutic approach for targeting the poorest outcome cancers within the TNBC subtype. In conclusion, we have identified a novel transcriptional complex formed by the TBX2 oncogenic repressor. The adaptability of TBX2 to repurpose other TFs and interface with multiple repression complexes makes it an extremely potent oncogene. However, by defining the mechanistic insights into how this oncogene initiates tumorigenesis (for example, through senescence bypass or apoptotic thresholding) and how it drives breast cancer pathogenesis, we could exploit real opportunities for the development of specific and effective treatments for TBX2 'addicted', poor outcome breast cancers. DATA AVAILABILITY Data underlying TBX2 ChIP-seq in MCF7 cells is available from GEO under accession number GSE180213 and can be accessed using the token orcbeawunbuzbcz; data can also be viewed interactively using the UCSC browser link below: https://genome.ucsc.edu/s/AmcI91/ fy3lbp0sCTFZwA%3D%3D.
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Optipedia • SPIE Press books opened for your reference. Excerpt from Field Guide to Geometrical Optics Distortion occurs when image magnification varies with the image height H. Straight lines in the object are mapped to curved lines in the image. Points still map to points, so there is no image blur associated with distortion. Distortion is a quadratic magnification error, and the image point position is displaced in a radial direction. The figures assume H represents a positive image height. Barrel distortion results when the actual magnification becomes less than the paraxial magnification with increasing H. The corners of a square are pushed in towards the optical axis. Pincushion distortion results when the actual magnification becomes larger than the paraxial magnification with increasing H. The corners of a square are pulled away from the optical axis. The transverse ray fans for wavefront tilt and distortion both are constant with respect to yP. These two aberration terms can be distinguished by their different field or H dependence: linear for wavefront tilt and cubic for distortion.
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March 20, 1865 – President Abraham Lincoln accepted General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant’s invitation to visit Grant’s headquarters at City Point, Virginia. Grant’s wife Julia had urged her husband to invite Lincoln after reading news accounts of the president’s fatigue. Grant telegraphed: “Can you not visit City Point for a day or two? I would like very much to see you, and I think the rest would do you good.” Already considering such a trip, Lincoln immediately accepted. Lincoln commandeered the dispatch steamer Bat to take him from Washington down Chesapeake Bay to City Point. However, First Lady Mary Lincoln insisted on going as well to visit the Lincolns’ son Robert, who served on Grant’s staff. So officials exchanged Bat with the more luxurious steamer River Queen. The Lincolns, with son Tad, Mrs. Lincoln’s maid, a bodyguard, and a military aide left Washington’s Arsenal Wharf at Sixth Street on March 23. They arrived at City Point the next evening, and Robert Lincoln reported to Grant that his family had arrived. Robert boarded River Queen for breakfast on the 25th, where they could hear the Battle of Fort Stedman taking place just eight miles away. Although Robert described the fight as “a little rumpus,” he informed his father that the morning military review had been postponed as a result. The Confederates had temporarily broken the Petersburg siege lines in a desperate attack, but the Federals quickly regained the fort and all lost ground. When Lincoln expressed desire to visit the Fort Stedman battlefield, Grant refused to allow him to be exposed to enemy fire. However, Grant quickly reconsidered and the men took the military railroad to the siege lines. From there they rode horses over part of the field. The next morning, Lincoln watched Federal cavalry under Major General Philip Sheridan cross the James River en route to fighting at Petersburg. Riding a boat with Sheridan (who was a foot shorter than the president), Lincoln remarked that “when this peculiar war began I thought a cavalryman should be at least six feet four inches high, but I have changed my mind. Five feet four will do in a pinch.” During a troop review, an incident occurred among Mrs. Lincoln and the generals’ wives. As Mary Lincoln and Julia Grant watched the review from an ambulance, Mrs. Lincoln became enraged upon seeing the wife of Major General E.O.C. Ord pass them on horseback and stop beside Lincoln, also on horseback. Mrs. Grant tried calming the first lady, who then snapped at her: “I suppose you think you’ll get to the White House yourself, don’t you?” When Mrs. Ord tried joining the ladies, Mrs. Lincoln berated her to tears. The first lady continued her tirade against both her husband and Mrs. Ord this evening at a dinner for Grant and his staff aboard River Queen. General William T. Sherman and Admiral David D. Porter soon arrived to confer with Lincoln and Grant on future plans. Mrs. Lincoln and son Tad returned to Washington in early April, but Lincoln stayed behind to witness what would become the final phase of the war in Virginia. - Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011-01-26), Kindle Locations 17101-17111; Goodwin, Doris Kearns, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2005), p. 707-08 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 17101-17121 - Goodwin, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, p. 707-08; McFeely, William S., Grant: A Biography (New York: W.W. Norton & Co., Inc., 1981), p. 211 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 17549-17569; Goodwin, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, p. 709-10 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 17549-17569; Long, E.B. with Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 656-57 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 17875-17895; Long with Long, The Civil War Day by Day, p. 658 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 17726-17756; McFeely, Grant: A Biography, p. 211 - Foote, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox, Kindle Locations 18735-18755
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This post is inspired by chapter 8 of Steve Leinwand’s book Accessible Mathematics. If you haven’t read this book, do it! Leinwand is a leading voice in the push for math instruction that makes sense to students and will lead to longer lasting mathematical understanding. Chapter 8 is entitled, “How Big, How Far, How Much?” and in it Leinwand encourages this instructional shift: Tie the math to such questions as How big? How much? How far? to increase the natural use of measurement throughout the curriculum. He goes on to say that measurement as a mathematical skill is often a “skipped chapter,” but is also one of the most pervasive life skills in the mathematics curriculum. Leinwand goes on to encourage teachers to incorporate measurement as “an ongoing part of daily instruction and the entry point for a larger chunk of the curriculum” (p. 46). Now you may be saying, “But I have a million other goals and standards and expectations and test prepping and whatnot that I have to do before I teach the kids to use a ruler!” Well, lucky for you the Standards for Mathematical Practice also have you covered.
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2nd Grade Self-Portraits For their first art project of the school year 2nd graders created a self-portrait project. They started their art project by using oil pastels to create lines, shapes and patterns on their paper. When they were done with drawing they used watercolors and glitter paints to paint all over their art. When they were done with their painting they brainstormed and wrote “I am” statements and statements about what they like and don’t like. While they were working they had their photograph taken in any interesting way they wanted to show their personality. They finished by carefully writing and gluing their statements and photo on their painting. I LOVE your personalities coming through 2nd Graders! I found this project at https://www.flickr.com/photos/7235969@N03/6898273227/in/photostream/ I am not sure who the original art teacher was but thanks for the inspiration!
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Economic Growth of ECOWAS Countries and the Validity of Kaldor’s First Law Kaldor's first growth law posits that the growth rate of an economy is positively related to the growth rate of its manufacturing sector. This paper tests the validity of this law for ECOWAS by controlling for both heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence. The results suggest that the growth trajectory of ECOWAS countries is consistent with Kaldor's first law. Citation: Keho Y (2018) Economic Growth of ECOWAS Countries and the Validity of Kaldor’s First Law. J Glob Econ 6: 291. doi: 10.4172/23754389.1000291 Introduction In the 1960s, Kaldor [1] challenged the idea that the source of economic growth is the availability of factors of production such as labor, technology and capital. He argued that economic growth is based on the increasing return of economic scale in the economy. The sector with higher return of economic of scale determines economic growth. According to Kaldor [1], manufacturing has characteristics which make it the engine of economic growth for two main reasons. Firstly, manufacturing itself is subject to both static and dynamic increasing returns, while land-based activities and petty services are subject to diminishing returns [2]. Secondly, as the manufacturing sector expands and draws labor from other sectors, productivity in these activities rises automatically. Thus, the faster manufacturing output grows, the faster the growth of productivity in the economy as a whole, which is the major source of economic growth and social development. Using empirical data for OECD countries, Kaldor [1] showed that the economic growth rate is positively related to the growth rate of manufacturing sector. This finding known as Kaldor's first law has been tested in a large number of empirical studies employing different econometric methods and data [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. The general conclusion from these studies confirms Kaldor's first law. The bulk of this literature focuses on developed countries and developing countries in general, with no explicit focus on West African countries. Most of the existing empirical works, on the other hand, are potentially flawed with severe estimation biases as they rely on the original approach employed by Kaldor [11]. First, the econometric model consists in regressing real GDP growth rate on the growth rate of manufacturing or industrial output, without accounting for a potential long-run relationship between the level variables. It is now well established that if GDP and manufacturing output are cointegrated, this approach is misspecified. Second, they employ earlier panel data regression approaches that impose cross-sectional homogeneity on coefficients, with the hope that the results could be applied to all countries. The cross-sectional homogeneity assumption is likely to be violated given the heterogeneity of economies with respect to trade policy, economic conditions and technological and institutional developments. Third, standard panel data methods do not take into account cross-sectional dependency issue. They assume that the cross-sections are independent. As cross-section dependence can arise due to unobserved common factors, externalities, regional and macroeconomic linkages, it is an important issue when dealing with countries that share geographic proximity. In the presence of crosssectional dependency, standard estimation methods may result in misleading inference and inconsistency in empirical findings. There is therefore a need for further research on the relationship between manufacturing and economic growth. This paper examines the validity of Kaldor's first law for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), looking more closely at the issues of cointegration, heterogeneity and crosssectional dependence. It seeks to address the question: to what extent is the growth performance of ECOWAS economies related to how fast their industrial sector is growing? To the best of our knowledge, there is no attempt to incorporate the hypotheses of heterogeneity and crosssectional dependence in the literature on Kaldor laws. The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the model specification and the data used for the empirical analysis. Section 3 outlines the econometric methodology employed for testing Kaldor's first growth law. Section 4 reports the empirical findings of the study. Section 5 concludes the study and provides some policy recommendations. Model Specification and Data Kaldor's first law states that there is a close relation between the growth rate of manufacturing output and the growth rate of GDP. In most existing studies, this law has been tested using the following specification: ∆y it =α+β∆man it +μ i +u it (1) where Δy t is the growth rate of real GDP and Δman t is the growth rate of manufacturing output. The subscripts i and t refer, respectively, to the country and time dimensions of the panel. The term μ i represents individual country heterogeneity and captures the unobserved and time-invariant effects which affect economic growth. Such countryeffect may include several factors such as geographic and cultural characteristics, as well as omitted economic variables. The term u it represents the vector of i.i.d. idiosyncratic errors. The coefficient β is expected to be positive. The magnitude of the coefficient indicates the contribution of manufacturing sector to economic growth. A major problem with eqn. (1) is that if GDP and manufacturing output are cointegrated, eqn. (1) is subject to omitted-variable problem. Engle and Granger [12] and Johansen [13,14] showed that as long as variables are cointegrated, their short-run dynamics follows an error correction model. In presence of cointegration, the relationship between manufacturing output growth rate and GDP growth rate is given as follows: ∆y it =α+β∆man it +λ(y it-1-θman it-1 )+μ i +u it (2) where θ is the long-run coefficient. A significant and negative coefficient on the lagged error correction term provides evidence in support of the existence of a long-run relationship. The study uses annual time series data for a sample of 11 ECOWAS member countries for which data are available. The countries under study include: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. The variables used are real GDP and industrial output. The sample period is 1970-2014 for all countries except Nigeria for which data on industrial output cover the period 1981-2014. All data are in constant 2010 US dollar and are converted into natural logarithms so that they can be interpreted in growth terms after taking first difference. The data set comes from the electronic databank of the World Bank. The correlation coefficient suggests a positive relationship between manufacturing output growth and GDP growth. The statistics reported in Panel B show a wide variation in the share of manufacturing sector to GDP ranging from 13.53% in Gambia to 37.29% in Nigeria. In the majority of cases, the share of agricultural sector is higher than that of manufacturing sector. Furthermore, the size of the manufacturing sector in ECOWAS countries is relatively smaller compared to East Asian countries where it exceeds 50 per cent of GDP. Econometric Methodology To obtain consistent estimate of Kaldor's first law within the panel framework, we need to carefully address at least three econometric key issues. The first issue is to control for the possible cross-sectional dependence across the panel units. It has been demonstrated that in the presence of cross-sectional correlation in the error terms, substantial biases and size distortions occur in standard panel estimation methods [15][16][17][18][19][20]. The second important issue to test is whether or not the slope coefficients are homogeneous among panel members. The third issue is related to the presence of a meaningful long-run relationship between manufacturing and GDP. Testing for cross-sectional dependence Cross-section dependence can arise due to unobserved common factors, externalities, regional and macroeconomic linkages. It is an important issue when dealing with countries that share geographic proximity or are closely integrated financially. This is particularly true for ECOWAS countries that apply a common external tariff and have important economic inter-relations. On the other hand, a There are various tests analyzing cross-sectional dependency in panel data. In eqn. (1), the null hypothesis of no cross-sectional dependence is H 0 : cov(u it , u jt )=0 for all t and i≠j. Initially, Breusch and Pagan [15] proposed the following Lagrange Multiplier (LM) statistic to test for cross-sectional dependency: where ˆi j ρ is the sample correlation coefficient among the residuals obtained from individual OLS estimations of eqn. (1). Under the null hypothesis of no cross-sectional dependence, the LM statistic is asymptotically distributed as Chi-square with N(N-1)/2 degrees of freedom. The LM statistic is valid for panels in which N is relatively small and T is sufficiently large. In the case of an unbalanced panel, only completed observations are included, i.e., T ij =min(T i , T j ), where T i is the number of observations for individual i. Pesaran [21] proposed the scaled version of the LM statistic, which is defined for balanced panels as follows: This statistic is asymptotically distributed as standard normal when T→∞ first and then N→∞. To address the size distortion of LM and LM S , Pesaran [21] also proposed a more general cross-sectional dependency tests that is valid for panel where T and N are sufficiently large in any order. This statistic is defined as follows: In the case of an unbalanced panel, the CD test statistic becomes: Under the null hypothesis of no cross-sectional dependence, the CD test statistic is asymptotically distributed as standard normal. A more in depth discussion of cross-sectional dependence tests can be found in De Hoyos and Sarafidis [22], Pesaran [17] and Chudik and Pesaran [23]. Table 2 indicate that the null hypothesis of no cross-sectional dependence across the members of panel is strongly rejected. This suggests that there are cross-section connections among ECOWAS countries, and that a shock to one of them is likely to affect the others. Testing for slope homogeneity Standard panel data estimation methods restrict all the slope coefficients to be identical across countries. If the slopes are heterogeneous across panel units, these estimators will generate inconsistent and misleading results [24][25][26]. Even though ECOWAS countries belong to the same geographic area, they are not identical in terms of economic structure, industrial policy and economic development. In this context, the assumption that slope coefficients are homogeneous is unlikely to hold. This study applies a battery of homogeneity tests to determine whether or not slope coefficients are homogenous. The standard F-test is widely used to test the null hypothesis of slope homogeneity H 0 : β i =β for all i against the alternative of heterogeneity H 1 : β i ≠β j for a nonzero fraction of pair-wise slopes. However, the F-test requires that the explanatory variables are strictly exogenous, and the error variances are homoscedastic. Swamy [27] proposed a slope homogeneity test that relaxes the assumption of homoscedasticity allowing for group-wise heteroscedasticity. This test is based on the following statistic: where i βˆis the pooled OLS estimator, WFE βˆis the weighted fixed effect pooled estimator, M τ is an identity matrix, and 2 i σ is the estimator Under the null hypothesis of slope homogeneity, this statistic is asymptotically distributed as Chi-square with k(N-1) degrees of freedom when N is fixed and T→∞. Pesaran and Yamagata [28] stated that both the F test and Swamy test require data where N is relatively small compared to T [27]. To overcome this problem they proposed a standardized version of Swamy's test for testing slope homogeneity in large panels. This statistic is defined as follows: The small sample properties of the delta test can be improved by using the following mean and variance bias adjusted version: Under the null hypothesis, the delta test and its adjusted version have an asymptotic standard normal distribution. Note: GDP is real gross domestic product, MAN is manufacturing output. *,**Indicate rejection of the null hypothesis at the 5% and 10% significance levels, respectively. test. The results support the alternative hypothesis that heterogeneity exists in the GDP-manufacturing nexus among ECOWAS countries. This means that inaccurate outcomes will be obtained if the constraint of slope homogeneity is imposed. Therefore, estimation methods that account for both heterogeneous slopes and cross-sectional dependency should be employed. Estimation methods To deal with both cross-section dependence and parameter heterogeneity, we apply the Common Correlated Effects Mean Group (CCEMG) estimator designed by Pesaran [16] and the Augmented Mean Group (AMG) estimator introduced by Eberhardt and Bond [26]. These methods are also robust to omitted variables bias and endogeneity of regressors. The main difference between the CCEMG and the AMG estimators is how they estimate the unobserved common factors. The CCEMG estimator treats them as nuisance parameters while the AMG represents them as a common dynamic process which can be estimated. The CCEMG estimator assumes the following multifactor error structure: ∆man it =φ i f i +φ i +η it (10) u it =ω i f i +e it (11) where φ i is an individual effect, f t is a mx1 vector of unobserved common effects with country-specific factor loadings φ i and η it are individual country-specific idiosyncratic errors assumed to be distributed independently of the common factors and across i. In eqn. (11) ω i is a mx1 loading vector capturing the country-specific effect of the common factor f t , and e it are idiosyncratic errors assumed to be distributed independently of x it and f t . The error term, u it , is allowed to be correlated with the regressor Δman it through the presence of the factors f t in both. This implies that if the factor loadings φ i and ω i are non zero, estimating eqn. (1) without accounting for this correlation will produce biased and inconsistent estimates of β. Substituting eqn. (10) into eqn. (1) gives: ∆y it =α i +β i ∆man it +ω i f i +e it (12) The multi-factor error structure model addresses the issue of endogeneity associated with the GDP-manufacturing relationship by allowing unobserved common factors to be correlated with observed factors. The CCEMG estimator eliminates unobserved common factors by using simple cross-section averages of the dependent and independent variables as additional regressors: The CCEMG estimator produces consistent estimates of the parameters as simple averages of the group-specific estimates. The Augmented Mean Group (AMG) estimator accounts for cross-section dependence by including a common dynamic process in the country regressions. It follows a two-step procedure. The first step is carried out via pooled OLS regression of the first-differenced variables model augmented with T-1 differenced year dummies D t . The coefficients on these dummies, i.e., t ĉ , provide an average estimate of the unobservable common factors. In the second step, the model is augmented with t ĉ as an explicit regressor. To test whether there is a long-run relationship between GDP and manufacturing output, we test for unit root in the series and the regression residuals obtained from the CCEMG and AMG estimators. To this end, we apply the Cross-sectionally Augmented Dickey-Fuller (CADF) panel unit root test proposed by Pesaran [29], which takes into account both the heterogeneity and the cross-sectional dependency. This test follows the Common Correlated Effects approach by augmenting the ADF regressions with cross section averages. In presence of cointegration among the variables, the CCEMG estimator is obtained by estimating the augmented following model: where ecm it-1 =y it-1 -θ i man it-1 is the lagged error correction term. Empirical Results and Discussion When analyzing time series data, it is necessary to make sure that we do not run spurious regressions. To this end we test the order of integration of the series by means of unit root tests. We first apply the well-known IPS test developed by Im et al. [30], which is less restrictive and more powerful compared to the other first generation panel unit root tests. The IPS test allows heterogeneity in the autoregressive coefficient. However, this test assumes that the errors are independent across countries. Given the above results, we employ the Cross-sectional Augmented Dickey-Fuller (CADF) test proposed by Pesaran [29] which deals with both heterogeneity and cross-section dependence. The results of these tests are reported in Table 4. They indicate that the null hypothesis of unit root cannot be rejected for all of our variables. However, when applied to the first differences of the variables, the null hypothesis of unit root is clearly rejected. Thus, we can regard the variables as being integrated of order one, which suggests that there might be a long-run relationship among them. The existence of cross-sectional dependency and slope heterogeneity among countries make the CCEMG and AMG estimators suitable for estimating the long-run relationships between the variables under study. We introduce a linear time trend in all models, in an attempt to mitigate the omitted variable bias. For each regression we test the residuals for non-stationarity using heterogeneous panel unit root tests. Results are reported in Table 5. The results confirm the positive impact of manufacturing growth on real GDP. The results indicate that the long-run effect of a one percentage increase in manufacturing output on the level of GDP is about 0.384 percent and 0.266 percent in the CCEMG and AMG models, respectively. The CADF and IPS test results suggest rejection of the null hypothesis of no cointegration for both CCEMG and AMG models. We can conclude that the variables have a long run relationship in the period under study. Owing to this fact, we estimate Kaldor's first growth equation. Table 6 presents the results from the CCEMG and AMG estimators. Both estimators deal with cross-section dependence and allow for coefficient heterogeneity. They are derived from averaging the coefficient estimates from individual time-series regressions. As can be seen, manufacturing growth rate is positively related to economic growth rate. This finding suggests that the manufacturing sector has performed an important role in economic growth of ECOWAS countries during the period 1970-2014. In other words, the growth trajectory of ECOWAS seems to be consistent with Kaldor's first law. The fact that the results for the whole panel reveal a positive and significant relationship between economic growth and manufacturing growth does not necessarily imply that Kaldor's first growth law holds in each individual country. To make sure that this result is not driven by a few countries, we look at the individual country estimates. The results are reported in Table 7. As expected, the CCEMG results show considerable heterogeneity in the relationship between manufacturing growth and economic growth. The coefficient on manufacturing growth ranges from 0.011 in Gambia to 0.667 in Senegal. Except Gambia, manufacturing growth is significantly and positively related to economic growth in all ECOWAS member countries. The point estimates of the error correction term are negative and significant. This provides evidence in support of the existence of a long-run relationship between GDP and manufacturing output and suggests that manufacturing Granger-causes economic growth in the long run. Thus even at the individual country level there is evidence supporting Kaldor's first growth law. Therefore, structural change in favor of industrial activities would help to accelerate economic growth in ECOWAS countries. Conclusion and Recommendations The aim of this study was to shed light on the relationship between manufacturing and economic growth in ECOWAS area over the period from 1970 to 2014. Contrary to previous panel studies which are typically based on standard panel estimators, we have made use of a more flexible and efficient panel estimation framework which controls for a number of issues usually affecting panel methods. Among these, parameter heterogeneity and cross-section dependence among the panel groups are of particular importance. Our empirical strategy deals with these issues relying on multifactor modelling approaches. Specifically, we make use of the Common Correlated Effects Mean Group estimator developed by Pesaran [16] and the Augmented Mean Group technique suggested by Eberhardt and Bond [26]. The results strongly support the hypothesis that the economic growth of ECOWAS countries is in a significant way positively associated with the expansion of the manufacturing sector. From a policy perspective, this finding suggests that adopting a development strategy based on industrial sector is going to help with economic development.
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Capital punishment issue isn't simple WALLA WALLA -- It seems the older I get, the harder it is to figure some things out. Issues that were clear to me even a decade or two ago are becoming fuzzy. There's one in particular I want to discuss since it's been in the news lately. Capital punishment. My career as a reporter has required researching various topics, keeping abreast of governmental and social trends, and acquiring a working knowledge of criminal and court processes. And, being human, I often struggle with what I believe is right, wrong, working or broken. I regularly reported on events at the Washington State Penitentiary for about 30 years and witnessed three executions in the 1990s. Triple-murderer Westley Allan Dodd was hanged on Jan. 5, 1993 -- the first time the penitentiary gallows was used in 30 years. Charles Rodman Campbell, who also killed three people, plunged from the trapdoor the following year. Then another triple-murderer, Jeremy Vargas Sagastegui, succumbed to a lethal dose of drugs injected by authorities on Oct. 13, 1998. As a witness, I became personally involved in each of those killers' final moments, so I thought long and hard about the death penalty. At first I was ambivalent, confused. Dodd was executed only because he wanted to be, saying he must die or he would kill again. He rejected all efforts at appeal. It was a media circus when he was killed and I was scared to death. But ultimately I figured if he wants to go, so be it, and I mostly tried to ignore my feelings. (But that's really impossible for anybody -- even journalists -- no matter what anybody tries to tell you.) It was way different with Campbell. Not only did he cut the throats of his three victims in 1982, he fought tooth-and-nail to escape the fate he had inflicted. Finally, following appeal after appeal and an 11th-hour stay by a divided court in 1989 that lasted five years, Campbell died in front of me and 16 other witnesses on May 27, 1994. For me, it wasn't soon enough. Like most state residents, I was convinced it was time for justice -- and retribution, if nothing else. An eye-for-an-eye looked really good. Our law is structured to eliminate the "worst of the worst." And Campbell sure fit that definition. I wrote in a column the day he was hanged that, as a state resident, I was a willing executioner and Campbell rightfully paid the ultimate price for his crimes. Then came two other "volunteers." Suicides, if you will. There was Sagastegui in 1998, the first to die in the state by lethal injection, followed in 2001 by James Homer Elledge, who was executed for killing a woman three years earlier. But there's been nothing since except a diminishing death row. So now I'm confused again. When does the "justice and retribution" I felt at the Campbell execution become a fleeting pipe dream, and just too expensive and futile to pursue? Under state law, most murderers aren't eligible for the death penalty and don't even spend the rest of their lives in prison. In potential death penalty cases -- involving aggravating, heinous circumstances -- an alternative sentence is available, which is life without parole. The fact is that in the past decade, fewer death penalty cases have been pursued and juries have imposed fewer death sentences. Meanwhile, courts have spared a larger number of condemned prisoners who previously were sentenced. According to a Washington State Bar Association report, nine death sentences were reversed during the four-year period from 2002-2006 compared to 10 reversals over the entire previous decade. And support for the death penalty for someone convicted of murder has waned nationwide. A Gallup poll last year found that 64 percent of Americans approved; 30 percent were against. That's down from a high of 80 percent support in 1994. (A 2006 Gallup poll showed that 48 percent support life without parole when given a choice between that punishment and the death penalty, which was favored by 47 percent.) Our death row in Washington state now consists of eight men. Three came close to their dates with the executioner in recent months, but were spared -- at least for the time being -- by court orders granting stays through appeals. Two of the executions were halted essentially at the last minute. And in one of those cases, the state Supreme Court issued the stay after rejecting similar legal arguments only three days before. The court is deeply divided. The decision to delay the execution of Cal Coburn Brown in March, for instance, was split five justices to four. That's the same numerical division as in a landmark 2006 ruling. In that case, a razor-thin court majority reaffirmed the death penalty law as constitutional even though Green River killer Gary Ridgway -- who was responsible for at least 48 murders -- got life without parole in a plea bargain. How can the law be fair, opponents argue, if such a serial killer -- the real "worst of the worst" -- gets life in prison when each man currently on death row killed three or fewer people? And remember Robert Yates? In 2000, he was ordered to prison for the rest of his life after pleading guilty in Spokane County to 13 killings, including those of a young man and woman along Mill Creek near Walla Walla in 1975. But he later was sentenced in Pierce County to die for murdering two Tacoma women. His appeal of the death sentence is ongoing. Other considerations: Polls reveal few Americans truly believe the death penalty is a deterrent. The state's top prison doctor quit in the throes of the capital punishment controversy. Currently no team exists at the penitentiary to carry out an execution. And although deemed constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court, procedures involved in lethal injection still are being subjected to legal scrutiny. The debates seem to be heating up and getting louder. New Mexico got rid of capital punishment in that state this year. And two proposed laws to abolish the death penalty in Washington in favor of sentences of life without parole were introduced in the Legislature. The bills didn't pass, but will be reintroduced next year, the second year of the current biennium. So is now the time to further the discussion? We at the Union-Bulletin believe it's the perfect opportunity. After reading information we've researched for this series of articles, please talk with your friends and family about capital punishment. And be sure to weigh in by leaving comments on our Web site, writing letters to the editor, and of course notifying your legislative representatives. Does the death penalty make sense? Is it moral, necessary, OK? Or are we evolving away from state-sanctioned killing, realizing like other sophisticated nations throughout the world that it's wrong and degrading to a civilized society? Does putting to death an evildoer pave the way for victims' families to heal or do seemingly endless delays lead to further agony? Your arguments shouldn't just be rooted in ethical conscience, empathy or political ideology, either. Keep in mind that we in this state have executed only one man in nearly half a century who has not been willing to die for his crimes. All the while, we have spent millions of dollars for prosecution and defense of death penalty cases -- far more, frankly, than it would cost to keep the eight men currently on death row locked up for life. Should we continue capital punishment to send a clear signal that certain types of behavior won't be tolerated? Or does capital punishment make little practical sense in a time of roller-coaster economic conditions and the challenge to fund schools, health care, transportation, law enforcement agencies and traditional crime prevention programs? Are we taking a valiant, honorable, righteous stand against evil or are we stubbornly trying to keep alive a seldom-carried-out law, which uncontrollable and unpredictable court rulings are just one justice away from killing? After talking about all this, we may decide the death penalty continues to execute justice. Or we might find it's outlived its usefulness. Terry McConn can be reached at or 526-8319. Sign in to comment
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Wednesday, November 29, 2006 Bits and pieces on anthropophagous animals Many illustrations of the Last Judgment and Resurrection depict animals regurgitating human parts (the illustration for this post, taken from the nineteenth-century tracing of the Hortus deliciarum, is one such image). In these depictions, humans – or parts of humans – emerge only from animal mouths; they do not emerge from animal anuses, nor are they shown to be exuded or otherwise reconstituted from animal flesh. Regardless of what might have been thought to happen to human flesh during the term of the anthropophagous animal’s life, in the visual representations, humans have not passed through digestive tracks; they have not been assimilated; their flesh remains their own, promised to them for the coming Eternity. Seemingly like the en-whaled Jonah, they rest unaltered, if not wholly intact, in the belly of the beast until the Creator sees fit to undo the eating by bringing them back out the way they went in. * * * In the early second century, Ignatius of Antioch penned his Epistle to the Romans, a brief work in which he enthused over his coming martyrdom, eagerly hoping that the beasts of the arena would do their duty and devour him: Suffer me to become food for the wild beasts, through whose instrumentality it will be granted me to attain to God. I am the wheat of God, and let me be ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God. Entice the wild beasts, that they may become my tomb, and may leave nothing of my body; so that when I have fallen asleep, I may not be found troublesome to any one. This passage has been interpreted as one in which Ignatius turns his body, through martyrdom, into the Eucharist; Bynum tracks its efforts to promise continuity of self even in those moments when it seems to be in danger of utter dissolution (Resurrection 27). Ignatius pictures the “breakings, tearing . . . . separations of bones[,] . . . . cutting off of members[, and] . . . bruising to pieces of the whole body” that he will undergo. Yet Ignatius describes his final end also as something far more mundane: he is wheat turned into bread; he has, in a common image, fallen asleep; he is the body laid to rest in the tomb of these beasts. The latter image is especially arresting. He hopes that nothing will remain of him – no relic – over which any Christian might expend any care. Presumably such a hope would be vain for the arena, given that even the most ravenous -- or fastidious -- of beasts leave behind scraps of carrion; but it would not be a vain hope for a burial, as even the sloppiest of burials tend not to leave pieces behind. Although Ignatius will be devoured by beasts, he resists the wildness of it by imagining what is meant to be a humiliation as a banal, albeit pious, terminus of his life. He undoes the coming dispersal of his limbs into multiple animal stomachs through a metaphor that transforms these numerous temporary receptacles into a single tomb that will preserve his remains until the Last Judgment. In a manner of speaking, that burial is precisely what happened. After his martyrdom, nothing remained of him “but the harder portions of his holy remains,” which “were conveyed to Antioch and wrapped in linen, as an inestimable treasure left to the holy Church by grace which was in the martyr.” His humble request that he not be preserved in the form of relics has not been honored, but the fact of his having been killed and consumed by animals is at least counterbalanced by his osteal preservation. He has been reassembled preparatory to the coming resurrection, and until then, his remains, his self partially in abeyance, will be preserved by the church. This end and enduring postmortem existence is presumably what he would have come to even if he had not been consumed by animals: his flesh would have turned to dust, his bones kept. The above story is the Greek version of Ignatius's death. Some, but not all, versions translated into Latin (beginning with the Elogium ex Martyrologiis Adonis, translated into Latin by Bede) conclude differently. A typical version of this tradition follows: Finally, after this, that he had been tormented by fire, and by beating and prison, the emperor did send for the Romans in a place and there did do set S. Ignatius, and did do bring thither two lions for to devour him. But he had never dread for death ne for other torments, of which he had suffered many, but was always comforted for to die for the love of Jesu Christ. And he said at the last: I am wheat of Jesu Christ, which ought to be grounden between the teeth of these beasts, by which I may be pure bread for to be presented to my Lord; and anon the lions came and strangled him without tearing of his flesh, or anything hurting it (in the Latin, præfocauerunt eum tantummodo, & non tetigerunt carnes eius), wherefor Trajan had great marvel and departed from the place. What was originally a story in which a saint triumphs over eating is eventually altogether purged of eating. It becomes one of the many stories in which large predatory animals, otherwise notoriously anthropophagous, refuse to eat saints: e.g., the story of Cerbonius, Bishop of Populonia, who, in Gregory the Great’s Dialogues, is condemned to be eaten by a bear, but the bear only licks the saint’s feet and hands, acting “with a heart almost human”; or the stories of Vincent, Gordian, Primus, Felicianus, and Justina in the Golden Legend, all of whose exposed bodies remain uneaten by animals; or, even, although this is somewhat far afield, the assertion by a fourteenth-century cynegetic manual that Acteon’s dogs, even though their master had been transformed into a stag, refused to eat him. Both versions of Ignatius's martyrdom essentially tell the same tale of the failure of animal violence: in each, Ignatius resists being eaten and incorporated, in one by imagining his own swallowed body as a buried body, in the other by showing, even before the resurrection, the perdurability of flesh promised him for Eternity: subject to the power of God, the lions may only smother, so respecting the integrity of the sacred body. In the earlier narrative they may tear the saint to pieces, but nevertheless his relics persist. At any rate, what the lions ate would cease to be theirs once the lions passed into the nothingness of a merely animal death. Animals may be able to eat humans, digestion might join human with animal flesh, but this transformation is temporary: they cannot retain this human as their own flesh. Because the animal was temporary, and the human eternal, the devouring lions of the earlier legend might as well be the smothering lions of the Golden Legend. Oh, and there's this meme thing over at Scott E. Kaufman's blog. Eileen Joy said... Karl--your post could not be more timely--bless you! I have to run home ahead of this snowstorm, but when I dig myself back out, I'll have more to say. Cheers, Eileen J J Cohen said... A lot to think about here. I love the phrase "en-whaled Jonah." Oops -- Kid #2 waking up, but as I leave I type: what about Daniel not being touched by the lions in the den where he was hurled? Seems an early modle for the Latin version of the story. Karl Steel said... Oh, Daniel! How could I forget you? I was raised on that story, but I've never thought to check the exegesis (likely because the chapter to which all this material belonged is one I cut from the diss.). "en-whaled" seemed better than "cetatoported." Fuller cite for the Actaeon objection, by the way, is Gace de la Buigne, Roman de Déduits, “est bourde, si com je cuide, / que les chiens mengerent leur maistre” (I think it is a lie that dogs ever ate their master). This objection also appears as early as the time of Aristotle, in Palaephatus. On Unbelievable Tales Jacob Stern, trans. Wauconda, Illinois: Bolchazy-Carducci, 1996: "They say that Actaeon was devoured by his own dogs. But the story is false, for a dog is most affectionate toward its master and provider, and hunting dogs in particular fawn on everyone" (38). This book also has the following marvelous (or disenchantifantastic) passage: Karl Steel said... ...of course, the less interesting, but perhaps more accurate explanation, for the 'human bits from animal mouths' bit is that the animal mouth is a variant of the Hell Mouth, and Resurrection of the Flesh is conceived as a kind of Harrowing... At any rate, that's the kind of CYA I think I'd have to do were I ever to assemble some of the above things into an actual publication. Eileen Joy said... A couple [a few?] things: If you read Augustine's comments on the resurrection of consumed humans [whether by animals or other humans] in the last books of "City of God," he does not indicate that, like the "enwhaled Jonah," those human bodies, or parts of bodies, were just resting somehow inside of other bodies. His assumption is that they *were* fully consumed, digested, even passed on, etc., but that God's power is awesome enough to find those particles, wherever they are and reconstitute them. So for me, the image you share is simply a depiction of that miraculous reconstitution. As to the Latin version of the story of Ignatius you share, it's not that the lions don't *try* to eat him--it's just that they "strangle" [Latin verb?] him without "tearing" his flesh? The point being, at least in this instance, not that the lions don't want, or refuse, to eat Ignatius, bit that his body is impervious to their teeth--a typical trope of the martyr's vita. On the other hand, there are plenty of saints' lives where bodily dismemberment is real and visceral, but is followed by a miraculous healing/reconstitution in a location that will later become a shrine. I think that the average medieval person [and even the medieval theologian] knew, for a fact, that animals and even other humans could consume, digest, ground to bits, what-have-you, human flesh, but that God somehow retained the power to find all those bits and gather them back together into a unique human form stamped with its owner's former identity, flaws and all. Karl Steel said... Per Augustine: they may have been fully digested, but they're nevertheless shown coming out the way they came in. It's the exact reversal that interests me, a reversal despite the fact that many theologians knew--not the best verb, here, I know--perfectly well that the flesh of humans eaten by animals would be assimilated into animal flesh. In other words, I'm interested in the fact that what should be understood as a reconstitution is instead portrayed as an undoing, since the undoing strikes me as somewhat less miraculous. There seems to be a failure to imagine in visual form the very imaginative/doctrinal construct so necessary to the conviction of the lived and postmortem and coming Eternal permanence of self, as if the illustrators could not imagine how human flesh, mingled with, assimilated to, whatever, with animal flesh, could emerge, not from the mouth, but from the alien flesh that had become, in a (horrific) way, its own. Per Ignatius: My notes on this, from the Acta Sanctorum, has the following instances in which Ignatius gets torn to pieces and devoured by the lions: Simon Metaphraste: dimissi leones eum statim dilacerarunt & deuorarunt From Menaeis et Anthologio Graecor Vnde productus in amphitheatrum a dimissis contra se leonibus discerptus est Which may be compared to the Bede translation (the significant part quoted above, præfocauerunt eum tantummodo, & non tetigerunt carnes eius) and something the Acta Sanctorum lists only as Ex vetustissimis Mss. Latinis , which, likewise, says, & ex vtraque parte super eum incidentes præfocauerunt eum tantummodo, & non tetigerunt carnes eius. What interests me is that in some stories--the earlier ones?--Ignatius gets torn to pieces and devoured; in the later ones, he gets killed, sometimes after several other torments(in a typical fashion) fail to kill him, but the lions only smother him (tantummodo is common, as if either to stress the miracle, or to stress the departure from generic expectations, I'm not sure), and, as the passiones make a point of mentioning, the lions do not eat him. This last point is especially interesting because it contradicts Ignatius's wish to be consumed and to have the lions' bodies be his (singular) tomb.* In other words, in the original story, we have a tension between Ignatius's dismemberment and the reunification that the resurrection will effect, a tension given voice, but subtly, by the metaphorical transformation of multiple leonine stomachs into one tomb. In later stories (and I'm pretty sure they're later), what's only latent in the original becomes explicit: Ignatius never gets dismembered at all. On the one hand, he joins the set of saints whom animals refuse to dismember; on the other hand, the change introduces a willful incoherence into the passion that, to my mind, isn't in fact so much introduced as heightened. He wants to be dismembered--as in the Bede passion, frumentum Christi sum, dentibus bestiarum molar, vt panis mundus inueniar--but the lions refuse it. Consume and ground to bits, yes, but nonetheless, there are some theologians who denied the capacity of animals to assimilate human flesh. Peter of Poitiers declared that neither humans nor animals assimilated anything to the truth of their nature. His argument's a bit more extreme than other people who took similar positions, since in so doing, he preserves a continuity of selves even for nonhuman animals. In the second century, Athenagoras declared that creatures can assimilate only food that's proper to them. Iirc, animals can't assimilate human flesh, because eating people is not proper to animals (and, he added, that anthropophages will eventually starve to death if they subsist on a diet of only human flesh, since people shouldn't eat people: Augustine countered by claiming that he'd seen people grow fat by eating people: I accept that Augustine's making a point, but I don't believe at all his claims of being a witness). William of Auxerre and Alexander of Hales revive Athenagoras's argument (whether directly or not, I don't know) in the 13th century. Quoting Alexander from Reynolds' Food and the Body, 167, "there is an order in nature such that simple substances nourish plants, plants nourish beasts, and plants and beasts nourish human beings. Since human flesh is intended only to convert food and not to be converted as food, it is not appropriate nourishment for human beings [NOR, says I, for beasts, by implication]. But human flesh that has been generated from appropriate nutriment is not in the fullest sense the proper flesh of the one who has generated and possesses it: it has come from proper nutriment, but it is not proper flesh.” * I'm reminded of the death of the wolf Ysengrimus, his being torn to pieces by the sow Salaura and her brood. Here's my notes in part on that episode, Salaura says, " 'So let there be a change of names in both of us: you can be my Jonah and I'll be your whale'" (537) (. . . . Mutetur nomen utrimque: / Sis michi tu Ionas et tibi Cetus ego. . .'" (ll. 374-5). Speaks of eating him as his ending up in her collection-box. Speaks of him as becoming a kind of relic and her stomach as a reliquary. He is parceled among the herd and "the pigs allowed less to survive that the least portion of a flea that has been cut into eight parts" (541) "parte minus minima porci superesse tulerunt, / Si fuerit partes sectus in octo pulex" (ll. 441-2) (from Mann, Jill. Ysengrimus: Text with Translation, Commentary, and Introduction. Mittellateinische Studien und Texte 12. Brill: Lieden, 1987). Eileen Joy said... But can we really make such a fine distinction between "undoing" and "reconstitution"? And sure, I get the fact that many medieval thinkers/theologians were deeply discomfited by the idea that human flesh could be consumed and broken down and assimilated, as it were, into "animal" flesh, from which position, it might have been feared that "recuperation" from such defilement/contamination was impossible. I think Augustine, finally, was the more realistic commentator on the subject. Your different accounts of Ignatius highlight some very classic elements of the genre of the passio: he desires, fiercely even, to be ripped to shreds and/or consumed, broken down, etc., and the end result is always either: lions can't really tear the flesh or fire can't really burn it, OR, the body is ripped to shreds, disemboweled, burned, etc., and then is miraculously healed and reassembled. One can see, in the desire of the martyr to be physically tormented and broken down, some serious masochism--one of the things I really hate about Christianity is its hated of the body/human self [at least, in some of its more extreme manifestations, devotion-wise]. Karl Steel said... I think so. And I want to preserve the idea of the inability to conceive in images of what the doctrine required. However, I might get more out of what I'm doing if I tweak my terms a bit, since what I'm probably contrasting is undoing and recreation. See below. One can see, in the desire of the martyr to be physically tormented and broken down, some serious masochism...[and] hatred of the body/human self Yes, but I'd nuance it a bit too, according to our discussions and your work here on the blog, since that masochism could be construed as an impatience for the perfected body. There's a kind of love of body/self in that, too. Nonetheless, it's only a kind of body/self. As I've written here before, since the perfected body is a body preserved from all flux, what kind of body is it anyway? It's a body that, in being purged of flux and weight, is not much of a body at all. All that has been preserved of the body is its borders, but that too is a reaction to 'problem' of the body, to wit, the permeability of its borders, where, in eating, evacuation, and, in fact, interacting with the world to form various assemblages, the membrane between inside and outside all too readily gives itself away as illusionary. In other words, a body with sure boundaries isn't much of a body, either. Now, the thing with Ignatius that I've never been able to answer satisfactorily is why the change in the story. The end result is the same--except in only one does he actually get to be, as he desires, torn to pieces--but the way there is startlingly different. Why the change? Being unable to answer that is in part what led me to cut that stuff from my diss.
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In Austria, credit scoring is done as a blacklist. Consumers who did not pay bills end up on the blacklists that are held by different credit bureaus. Having an entry on the black list may result in the denial of contracts. Certain enterprises including telecom carriers use the list on a regular basis. Banks also use these lists, but rather inquire about security and income when considering loans. Beside these lists several agencies and credit bureaus provide credit scoring of consumers. A: Under the FCRA, both the credit reporting company and the information provider (that is, the person, company, or organization that provides information about you to a consumer reporting company) are responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information in your report. To take full advantage of your rights under this law, contact the credit reporting company and the information provider. The Fact Act stands for the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA). Under this act, several new provisions were set forth that amended the consumer rights law found in the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 (FCRA). These amendments are a viable way to help reduce the risk of identity theft and fraud and acts as a way to help regulate all consumer financial information such as their social security numbers and other personal information. Another common question is whether checking your own credit report or score can hurt it. The answer is no. Checking your own credit scores doesn't lower them. Checking your own credit report creates a special kind of inquiry (known commonly as a soft inquiry) that isn't considered in credit score calculations. Without the risk of harming your scores by checking your credit report and scores frequently, don't steer away from viewing them as often as you need to. If you’re the parent of a teenager, you might wonder if now is the right time to help them open a credit card. It can be hard to decide if they’re ready to take on the responsibility that comes with having a credit card since you need to trust that your teen has the restraint to limit spending and pay on time. Generally, we recommend introducing your teen to credit as soon as you can since credit is such a large part of life as an adult — you need credit to take out loans, apply for a mortgage and even make certain purchases. Plus, it’s important for your teenager to learn how to manage credit responsibly so they can build good credit. If you’ve recently gone through a bankruptcy, foreclosure, or even a civil judgment, it probably isn’t a surprise to you that your credit has been impacted. Any abrupt changes to your credit can seriously affect the number that shows on your credit report. Unfortunately, unlike the scenarios listed in previous points, these derogatory marks are the result of what lenders consider major delinquencies –– in other words, significant implications about your ability to manage your finances. None of the other banks approved my applications, and my score went down from the very beginning due to the number of “hard inquiries” against my report. Hard inquiries occur when lenders check your credit report before they make lending decisions, and having too many inquiries in a short period of time can result in several dings to your credit score. The content on this page provides general consumer information. It is not legal advice or regulatory guidance. The CFPB updates this information periodically. This information may include links or references to third-party resources or content. We do not endorse the third-party or guarantee the accuracy of this third-party information. There may be other resources that also serve your needs. When visitors sign up, they’re often enrolled, unwittingly, in a credit monitoring service that charges a monthly fee. In 2010, the Federal Trade Commission attempted to clamp down on this practice. It required “free” sites to provide a warning that, under federal law, the only authorized source for no-cost credit reports (though not free credit scores) is www.annualcreditreport.com. This part of your credit score will look at how much debt you have. Your credit report uses your statement balance. So, even if you pay your credit card statement in full every month (never pay any interest), it would still show as debt on your credit report, because it uses your statement balance. This part of your score will look at a few elements: As mentioned earlier, closing an account, whether done by you or your credit card provider, could negatively impact your score. Unless you dramatically reduce your spending, closing a card (and saying goodbye to that credit limit) will probably increase your credit utilization rate. It could also lower your average age of accounts when the card falls off your credit report. The offers that appear on Credit.com’s website are from companies from which Credit.com receives compensation. This compensation may influence the selection, appearance, and order of appearance of the offers listed on the website. However, this compensation also facilitates the provision by Credit.com of certain services to you at no charge. The website does not include all financial services companies or all of their available product and service offerings. In most cases, the easiest way to determine the health of your credit is to look at your credit score, a numerical value that reflects a mathematical analysis of your debt, your payment history, the existence of liens or other judgments, and other statistical data collected by the credit bureaus. In other words, your credit score is the compact, simplified version of your entire credit history, all rolled up into one tidy three-digit number. It’s been only a year since I opened my first card last September, and I already have a solid FICO score – 720, the last time I checked. That’s not a perfect score by any means, but it lands me safely in the “good” credit range, meaning I probably won’t have trouble getting approved for new credit in the future. I still have work to do if I want to get into the “very good” credit category, which starts at 740, according to MyFICO, but for a credit card newbie I’m not disappointed in my progress so far. Your credit report card is a simple breakdown of what’s on your credit reports, so it’s not as difficult to read as the full version. However, you are entitled to one free annual credit report and you can get the full versions of your Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion reports by going to annualcreditreport.com. You can also get your FICO score from myfico.com. You can definitely build your credit from scratch by working to improve the factors that go into your score — except for the length of credit history. It’s impossible to travel back in time to open a credit account, so improving this factor just takes patience. Luckily, the length of your credit history isn’t the most important thing that determines your score. Pick 3 months during the year you intend to review your report. Let’s say January, May, and September for example. One day each of those months, go to annualcreditreport.com and choose one agency to pull a report from. So in January, you could pull your TransUnion report; in May you could pull your Experian report; and in September you could pull your Equifax report. Self Lender, based in Austin, Texas, is designed to help consumers increase their financial health. Working in partnership with multiple banks, Self Lender offers a credit-builder account that is essentially a CD-backed installment loan. In other words, you open a CD with the bank and they extend a line of credit to you for the same amount. When you make payments, they report it to the credit bureaus. Score providers, such as the three major credit bureaus -- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion -- and companies like FICO use different types of credit scoring models and may use different information to calculate credit scores. Credit scores provided by the three major credit bureaus will also vary because some lenders may report information to all three, two or one, or none at all. And lenders and creditors may use additional information, other than credit scores, to decide whether to grant you credit. LUCAS- Each credit bureau has a different range of points so you have to know what that credit bureaus range is before saying 700 is good. For our credit union, anything over 750 with Experian is considered Excellent (850 being the max score) and you will get the best loan rates. If you are one point under 750, you would get the next tier's rate which would affect your payment slightly, but not by much. If you didn't remember to cancel the trial, your credit card would be charged for a full period of the credit monitoring service. These gimmicks still exist, although now most of them offer your credit report for $1, rather than for free. The legitimate website for ordering your free annual credit report doesn't require a credit card and doesn't ask you to sign up for any trial subscription. Mierzwinski says that another option to consider is a credit freeze. A freeze would allow you to restrict access to your credit report. Thanks to the recently approved federal banking deregulation law, the three major credit reporting agencies will soon allow you to freeze your credit for free. This law pre-empts states from passing stronger credit freeze laws on their own, though, he says. Alternatively, consumers wishing to obtain their credit scores can in some cases purchase them separately from the credit bureaus or can purchase their FICO score directly from FICO. Credit scores (including FICO scores) are also made available free by subscription to one of the many credit report monitoring services available from the credit bureaus or other third parties, although to actually get the scores free from most such services, one must use a credit card to sign up for a free trial subscription of the service and then cancel before the first monthly charge. Websites like WalletHub, Credit Sesame and Credit Karma provide free credit scores with no credit card required, using the TransUnion VantageScore 3.0 model. Credit.com uses the Experian VantageScore 3.0 model. Until March 2009, holders of credit cards issued by Washington Mutual were offered a free FICO score each month through the bank's Web site. (Chase, which took over Washington Mutual in 2008, discontinued this practice in March, 2009.)Chase resumed the practice of offering a free FICO score in March, 2010 of select card members to the exclusion of the majority of former WAMU card holders. is 20%, which is good. However, closing one of the cards would put your credit utilization rate at 40%, which will negatively affect your score. Your credit score is one number that can cost or save you a lot of money in your lifetime. An excellent score can land you low interest rates, meaning you will pay less for any line of credit you take out. But it's up to you, the borrower, to make sure your credit remains strong so you can have access to more opportunities to borrow if you need to. To get there, Steele didn’t apply for new credit in the three months before seeking the mortgage as he knew banks would be sensitive to any fresh applications. He also began paying off his card charges before the statement close date, since that’s when balances are reported to credit bureaus—a big deal since they’re considered long-term debt. He also charged less on his cards. Your credit score is not part of your annual credit report, regardless of whether the report was free or paid, so you'll have to order your credit score separately. You can check it for free through CreditKarma.com, Credit Sesame.com, or Quizzle.com. You can also order your credit score for a fee from myFICO.com or from one of the three credit bureaus. If, after carefully reviewing your credit report, you still don’t understand all the information it contains, your first step should be to contact the credit reporting agency that supplied it. You should find a report number listed at the top of your credit report. You will want to use that when you contact the CRA as it will make things easier and faster. Contact the CRA using the phone number or address supplied on your report. In addition, you should find an address and toll-free number for the agency on your report. By law, they must provide trained personnel who can help you understand the information in your report. What to look out for: If you decide to take out this card and become a member of the SDFCU by joining the American Consumer Council, make sure you do not go to the ACC’s website and submit a $5 donation. That fee is waived by the SDFCU when you fill out your credit application. Simply select “I do not qualify to join through any of these other methods:” and select the ACC from the menu to avoid the $5 fee. FICO, myFICO, Score Watch, The score lenders use, and The Score That Matters are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fair Isaac Corporation. Equifax Credit Report is a trademark of Equifax, Inc. and its affiliated companies. Many factors affect your FICO Scores and the interest rates you may receive. Fair Isaac is not a credit repair organization as defined under federal or state law, including the Credit Repair Organizations Act. Fair Isaac does not provide "credit repair" services or advice or assistance regarding "rebuilding" or "improving" your credit record, credit history or credit rating. FTC's website on credit. When you make a purchase through the Site, we may collect your credit card number or other payment account number, billing address and other information related to such purchase (collectively, "Payment Information") from you. However, purchases using our mobile applications may require the use of your mobile phone's default payment processing application. With a low score, you may still be able to get credit, but it will come with higher interest rates or with specific conditions, such as depositing money to get a secured credit card. You also may have to pay more for car insurance or put down deposits on utilities. Landlords might use your score to decide whether they want you as a tenant. But as you add points to your score, you'll have access to more credit products — and pay less to use them. And borrowers with scores above 750 or so have many options, including the ability to qualify for 0% financing on cars and 0% interest credit cards. We control and operate the Site from the United States, and the Site is not intended to subject us to the laws or jurisdiction of any state, country or territory other than that of the United States. We do not represent or warrant that the Site, or any part thereof, is appropriate or available for use in any particular jurisdiction. Those who choose to access the Site do so on their own initiative and at their own risk, and are responsible for complying with all local laws, rules and regulations. We may limit the Site's availability, in whole or in part, to any person, geographic area or jurisdiction we choose, at any time and in our sole discretion. It's rare that a free credit score truly has no strings attached. In the best-case scenario, you get added to the company's mailing list and have to manually unsubscribe if you don't want to be. Worst-case scenario, you enter your credit card and get automatically enrolled in credit monitoring services. This will show up as a recurring monthly charge on your credit card until you cancel it. However, there's usually a small window -- seven or 14 days -- after you get your free credit score in which you can cancel your subscription without being charged for credit monitoring. Two companies dominate credit scoring in the U.S.: FICO® and VantageScore®. They calculate scores from information in your credit reports, which list your credit activity as compiled by the three major credit reporting agencies: Experian®, Equifax® and TransUnion®. If you have a good VantageScore®, you're likely to have a good FICO® Score, because both consider the same factors: Payment history: your record of on-time payments and any "derogatory" marks, such as late payments, accounts sent to collections or judgments against you. Credit utilization: balances you owe and how much of your available credit you're using. Age of credit history: how long you've been borrowing money. Applications: whether you've applied for a lot of credit recently. Type of credit: how many and what kinds of credit accounts you have, such as credit cards, installment debt (such as mortgage and car loans) or a mix. A credit score doesn't consider your income, savings or job security. That's why lenders also may consider what you owe alongside what you earn and assets you have accumulated. Service Providers. We work with third parties who provide services including but not limited to data analysis, order fulfillment, list enhancement and other administrative services. We may disclose personal information to such third parties for the purpose of enabling these third parties to provide services to us. Such services may include: marketing distribution, email list management services, advertising, certain product functionalities, customer support, web hosting, customer data management and enhancement, fulfillment services (e.g., companies that fill product orders or coordinate mailings), research and surveys, data analysis and email service. You can also request your free credit report by phone or by mail. The three reporting bureaus get their information from different places, and also present and evaluate the information in different ways. If you are making a large purchase, such as a car or home, it is a good idea to get your credit report from all three agencies. Save and print your reports so that you can review them later. Your credit reports are broken into several different parts, and you’ll want to review each one carefully for errors and omissions regarding all of your key identifying information. This information includes your name, current and former addresses, your employer (if it’s available), credit card and loan payments, inquiries, collection records and public records such as bankruptcy filings and tax liens. There are three major credit agencies that provide consumer credit information (including credit scores) to the majority of interested parties: Equifax, Experian, and Transunion. Each reporting agency collects information about your credit history from a variety of sources, including lenders, landlords, and employers, as well as other sources. These includes public records, current and past loans, your payment history, and other data. They then rate your performance using a proprietary scoring system to come up with a credit score. You can check your TransUnion credit score for free right here on WalletHub, where your score is updated on a daily basis. Checking your credit score as put forward by one credit bureau should be enough. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found a 90% correlation among a selection of the most common credit-score models. So, it doesn’t really matter which one you check, as long as it’s free and from a reputable source. Remember that you're entitled by law to your three credit scores for free each year at annualcreditreport.com Your credit report will not be the same across all of the three major bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax) because not all lenders report to all three. Some might have inputted the data wrong and might show up with errors while others might be perfectly correct. That is why it is important to check your report from all three of the major bureaus at least once a year (which is free) to determine if there are any issues. You cannot make any lender report your credit, so it is important to know the differences between your reports since different lenders pull your report usually from different bureaus. Understanding your credit score and how it is calculated helps you take control of your credit and may lead to lower interest rates and more money-saving opportunities. Your credit report is one of the most important documents in your life. Whether you’re taking out a mortgage, a car loan or applying for a credit card, your credit report has a huge influence on the offers that lenders will approve you for. 800 credit score801 credit score802 credit score803 credit score804 credit score805 credit score806 credit score807 credit score808 credit score809 credit score810 credit score811 credit score812 credit score813 credit score814 credit score815 credit score816 credit score817 credit score818 credit score819 credit score820 credit score821 credit score822 credit score823 credit score824 credit score825 credit score826 credit score827 credit score828 credit score829 credit score830 credit score831 credit score832 credit score833 credit score834 credit score835 credit score836 credit score837 credit score838 credit score839 credit score840 credit score841 credit score842 credit score843 credit score844 credit score845 credit score846 credit score847 credit score848 credit score849 credit score850 credit score Your payment history comprises the bulk of what calculates your credit score (35%), so staying on time with your credit card, mortgage, auto or student loan bills is imperative to keep your credit score high. Too many late or non-payments can do the worst damage to your score, since it tells lenders that you’re an irresponsible borrower and credit risk.
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Scientists have warned that reusing plastic bags could potentially lead to the spread of killer bugs. Shoppers should be wary that using the same bag for different food products, such as fresh meat to cheese and bread, could cause sickness, it was said. And one expert warned against using plastic bags that had been taken inside a hospital that could transfer the deadly MRSA superbug. Professor Anthony Hilton, head of biological and biomedical science at Aston University, said the public needs to be educated about the dangers of contaminated bags. - Read more Plastic bags: Everything you need to know about the 5p plastic bag charge, when it starts, what's exempt, where it applies Prof Hilton and his team worked out that millions of bacteria cells can survive on plastic bag for days or even weeks - including potentially deadly E. coli. He said: "Reusing plastic bags is hugely beneficial to the environment but the public should be mindful of the ability of bacteria to contaminate and survive on bags for long periods of time. "Bacteria can easily transfer from different types of re-useable bags to the hands and back again. "What is more, using the same bag repeatedly for different purposes increases the risk of contaminating the bag with a whole host of harmful bacteria. "For example, carrying fresh meat brings with it known contamination risks and if you then use the same bag for carrying ready-to-eat foods such as cheese or bread there is the potential for cross-contamination. "Likewise, if you carry sports shoes one day and then shopping the next." He advises that people only use certain bags for certain types of food produce, and always wash hands and goods thoroughly. Meanwhile biochemist Dr Richard Salmon, post-doctoral research associate at the University of Cambridge, advised people to throw away plastic bags that had been taken into hospitals. Drug-resistant MRSA can survive on a dirty plastic bag for long enough to multiply, and potentially cause disease or even death. Dr Salmon said: "The chance of picking up MRSA from a plastic bag that has been in a hospital is very small, but there is a chance and I wouldn't take that risk. "All you need is one single bacteria on a bag and it could grow so much, if conditions were right, that it could become a big problem. "MRSA is highly resistant to common antibacterial treatments and very difficult to medically kill. "Cleaning bags would require tough treatments like bleach, which itself is toxic to humans and wouldn't be worth the effort or risk. "Any manner of bacteria could be transferred to a plastic bag, and for the sake of 5p, I would advise nobody else take that slight risk either - the repercussions could prove disastrous."
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A research team from the University of Plymouth, University of Southampton and the Alexander Fleming Biomedical Sciences Research Center, Vari, Greece, have studied two structurally-similar proteins in the adult brain and have found that they play distinct roles in the development of dementia. Their study is published in the prestigious journal Neurobiology of Disease. The understanding and knowledge gained from this study could lead to effective therapies for dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. Tau proteins stabilise microtubules in the brain and nervous system. Microtubules help form the structure of cells and other functions, such as providing the rail tracks for transport between cells. In the brain of dementia patients, the abnormal clumping of Tau proteins have long been linked to changes in nerve cell activation and ultimately cell death. Two structurally different forms of Tau exist. The research team expressed these two forms of human Tau in nerve cells of the Drosophila (fruit fly) brain, examining their effects on nerve cell survival and activation, fly movement and memory formation. The results show that these two proteins differ in terms of biology and pathological potential. One leads to poor communication between nerves associated with movement. The other leads to greater neurodegeneration and impairments in learning and memory. This is important because defects in the proteins have a bearing on neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia. Designing drugs which target each form specifically should help to improve specific symptoms. Involved in the study from the University of Plymouth is Dr Torsten Bossing. He commented: “With each new discovery like this we move one step closer to finding effective drug treatments for debilitating neurodegenerative diseases. This is an important study carried out using nerve cells from fruit flies and it has the potential over the coming years to be developed through more testing and clinical trials. We firmly believe that the answer to the question of how we treat conditions such as dementia lies at this cellular level.” |Enjoy the article? Then please consider donating today to ensure that Eurasia Review can continue to be able to provide similar content.|
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University of California, San Diego researchers next week plan to demonstrate a solid state storage device that uses phase-change memory to blow away traditional hard drives and even newer flash drives. The Moneta system, which will be shown at the Design Automation Conference (DAC 2011) in San Diego, is thousands of times faster than a convention hard drive and up to seven times faster than flash memory drives according to the student-faculty research team. The phase-change memory used in the device stores data in the glass-like structure of a metal alloy called chalcogenide that changes states as atoms are rearranged. Like flash memory used in everything from laptops to iPads, PCM involves no moving parts, according to the university. Moneta uses first-generation PCM chips from Micron Technology and can read big chunks of data at up to 1.1GB per second in an energy efficient way. "As a society, we can gather all this data very, very quickly – much faster than we can analyze it with conventional, disk-based storage systems," said Steven Swanson, professor of Computer Science and Engineering and director of the Non-Volatile Systems Lab (NVSL), in a statement. "Phase-change memory-based solid state storage devices will allow us to sift through all of this data, make sense of it, and extract useful information much faster. It has the potential to be revolutionary." Swanson says he hopes to build a second generation Moneta device in the next six to nine months, and foresees commercial products within a few years. Work needs to be done on the software front to cope with the new hardware, he says. Read more about data center in Network World's Data Center section.
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Tim Russell Wins Billie Harvey Memorial at New Smyrna Anderson and Choquette Put Up a Fight Too Track PR Report The fans and racers came out in force on Saturday night for the 3rd running of the annual Billie Harvey Memorial 100 for Super Late Models, but few could have anticipated the incredible race they would witness as the drivers came together to put on an instant classic out on the track. The big race would be set-up perfectly by an equally thrilling Pro Truck feature, as well as appearances by other local weekly divisions. But it was the big 100-lapper that had the crowds on their feet for a race that will still be talked about for months to come, and set a high standard for the rest of the season. A field of 26 cars would take to the track for the 3rd Annual Billie Harvey Memorial 100 with afternoon qualifying seeing #84 Wayne Anderson set the fast time and get the luckiest break possible in the pre-race pill-draw that saw him pull the number 1, meaning he got to keep his place at the front for the start. As the second race of the New Smyrna Speedway Triple Crown, the field was jam-packed with competitive cars and the front rows read like a who's who of the cream of Florida Super Late Model racing - #36 Tim Russell, #96 Ben Kennedy, #9 Rich Clouser, #33 Jeff Choquette and #73 Sam Watts all sitting right up at the front with each one easily capable of getting to the front and winning the whole thing. With pre-race driver introductions done and the cars out on track with hot engines and their tires warmed up, the green flag would quickly be waved but it took less than half a lap for the yellow lights to be back on and the cars again touring the track behind the pace truck. As Anderson blasted away and took the lead cars into turn 1, a spin at the back of the field for #34 Shaughn McCormick coming out of turn 4 as he got on the gas was followed by his struggle to restart his car, meaning the officials had no choice but to bring the race quickly back under caution. It took several attempts for McCormick to get his car in reverse gear and pull himself away from the front pit wall, but eventually he was back underway and a second start could be attempted. This one proved even less successful than the first, and again McCormick found himself in the middle of the mayhem. The cars managed to all get through turns 1 and 2 this time, but with the leaders heading out of turn 4 to put the first lap in the books it was contact on the back straight between #14 Mario Maresca and #52 Matthew Stichmann that caused the two cars to spin high into the wall, taking out McCormick and #21 James Carter for good measure as they tried to make their way past. Despite this unfolding way off on the far side of the track it was easy for the fans to see the ensuing action, as Stichmann climbed out of his window and began kicking the bodywork of Maresca's stricken car, before clambering up onto the roof and jumping up and down in anger. Once back down on the ground he then attempted to get at the driver himself, only for the track officials to grab him and pull him back out of Maresca's door, dragging the incensed racer away from the scene to calm down. Incredibly Maresca and Carter would be pulled clear, Carter able to continue racing once the whole nose and wings of his car had been pulled off by his pit crew, but both McCormick and Stichmann were finished for the night. Stichmann would later be disqualified for his incredible antics on the roof of Maresca's car that had provided such entertainment for the crowd. Naturally this necessitated a lengthy stoppage for the track to be cleaned up and the damaged cars - and angry drivers - removed, so the cars were brought to a halt on the front stretch and the red flag shown. The cars would restart and make a third attempt to start the race nearly 30 minutes after they had taken the first green flag, this time finally putting a complete lap in the books as Anderson and Russell took the initiative at the front to race side-by-side around the high banks. Joining them at the front was Choquette who swiftly showed Anderson his intentions with a hard hit to Anderson's rear bumper as the cars crossed the start-line, but this just spurred the pole-sitter on and he was soon rubbing against Russell's door, trying to push his nose in front and into the lead on the low side. The two leaders would take the next few laps absolutely locked together before they began to hit the slower cars at the rear of the field, forcing Anderson to drop back behind Russell once he found the lower part of the track clogged with back-markers. The action would pause once more with 10 laps in the books as #06 Mike Finn lost control in turn 2 to bring the pace truck back out again. With caution laps counting for the longer races this year it would be lap 16 when the cars got back up to speed again, Russell and Anderson quickly reengaging at the front while Choquette fought with #88 Justin Larson for 3rd as Watts quickly broke awy from the pack to round out the top 5. There was nothing to choose between the leaders, and a similar battle was taking place for 3rd before Choquette managed to pull a slight advantage over Larson. Another caution was narrowly averted as #61 Mario Gosselin went high in turn 4 and brushed the wall, his car getting badly out of shape and Gosselin needing all of his extensive experience to regain control and straighten it back out again, dropping back down the field in the process but keeping the action under race conditions. The race would soon reach _ distance with Russell and Anderson as close as ever at the front, but with Choquette and Larson now joined by the hard-charging Clouser who had made his way around Watts and into 5th. The gap at the front shortened dramatically just a couple of laps later as Anderson made a move on Russell, banging the #36 hard from behind in turn 4, causing both cars to get loose and struggle to regain composure. Backing off the throttle gave just enough time for the chasing cars to catch them, and suddenly the fans had a group of 5 cars all fighting it out for the lead, with Watts positioned ominously just a few lengths behind in 6th. Anderson would make his move as the race ticked over to 33 laps, trying a low-side pass out of turn 4 that Russell moved down to block. This just opened up a big door for Choquette on what was proving to be a much faster high groove, and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands to power around Anderson and snatch 2nd place for himself. This would change the whole dynamic of the race as Russell now had Choquette on his tail, while Anderson suddenly found himself fending off the charge of Clouser behind him. Choquette would briefly take the lead with a charge down the back straight and around turns 3 and 4, but this lasted barely half a lap as Russell fought back to regain the lead heading into turn 1. Immediately to their rear Anderson and Clouser had again closed up and were looking for ways around Choquette. Anderson would once more look down the inside of Choquette, showing he hadn't learned his lesson as this allowed Clouser to copy Choquette's earlier move and go around Anderson, dropping him back to 4th. Half-distance in the race would soon come around and now the action at the front was between a train of the top 6 cars, all running nose-to-tail around the track with Russell leading Choquette, Anderson settled behind Clouser for 3rd and 4th places, and Larson and Watts now running up at the front with the others. Just behind two more cars were charging their way forward in the shape of Kennedy and veteran campaigner #64 Joe Winchell, who were both positioned nicely to take advantage of any slip-ups in front of them. Finally someone would break Russell's hold on the lead as the cars crossed the line to start their 53rd lap, Choquette pushing his way through on the low side out of turn 2 and sending Russell high up the track. Clouser would try his luck too, but Russell quickly slammed the door shut on him and set off after the new leader. Changes behind them would also see Watts finally working his way past Larson to cement his place in 5th position, right on Anderson's rear bumper. Choquette would make the most of the clear track ahead of him and for the first time in the race the leader would pull away a noticeable lead over the field. He would soon start to pass lapped traffic, but this lead to the next big incident of the race, and one that changed the final result decisively. Coming around turn 4 Choquette would pass Gosselin, making his way back up the field after his earlier brush with the wall, but as the leader went past, Gosselin dramatically lost control of his car, spinning out wildly and smashing hard into the front straight wall just past the upper pit entry road. Thankfully the track crew would quickly confirm that Gosselin was OK, but for such an experienced racer to lose control so badly something had to be amiss. With the pace truck bringing the cars around slowly while the #61 was pulled clear from the wall, both Choquette and Russell were ordered down pit road to check for a possible oil leak that may have caused the wreck. Russell would quickly be waved away to retake his position on the front row, but Choquette was not so lucky, his car quickly shut off and a pool of oil easily visible on the pit lane surface as his car was pushed back into the pits. To add insult to injury his fire extinguisher would automatically fire off, shrouding his car in a cloud as he dejectedly climbed out with his race over for the night, while the track crews cleaned up his oil on both the track and pit road. Another red flag would be displayed to allow the lengthy clean-up process to take place without denying the fans of too many laps in what was rapidly becoming a classic race. Just 15 cars would remain once the race got back underway with 67 laps gone, but Winchell's slide up to the wall in turn 4 hurriedly bought the pace truck back out onto the track as Russell now found himself fighting with Larson at the front. Larson would try a charge to the front as he raced door-to-door with Russell once the green lights were back on, but as Russell leaned on him out of turn 4 Larson's car got loose and he was forced to scrub off some speed to regain control, letting Anderson and Clouser through. Larson was obviously still unsettled as he came around to complete the lap, spinning out in turn 4 and forcing Winchell and #9z Zach Donatti into emergency avoiding action, Donatti spinning out to avoid an even bigger wreck. Yet another restart would see Anderson retake the lead as Russell just missed the start, but the #36 was quickly back up to speed and flying around on the high groove to retake his place at the front, and leaving Anderson to fend off Watts in 3rd, who was giving the 2nd place man a taste of his own medicine with some hard bangs to the rear of the famously hard-driving Anderson's car. But the racing would be interrupted again thanks to a spin in turn 1 for #4B Alan Bruns, Winchell and #33x Daniel Webster. Bruns would head back to the pits for remedial work to his car, his crew incensed at the short yellow-flag period they were given to carry out their work, but more importantly he was followed into the pits by Anderson, who pulled over to his pit crew for them to jack his car up and look underneath. Sensationally they did not drop his car back down for him to charge back out onto the track, and the restart would come around with Anderson still sitting on the pit road with his car jacked up on one side. So, with 83 laps in the books, Anderson retired from a race where he had been a major contributor to all the excitement, settling for an awarded 15th place that barely began to hint at the great race he had run. If Russell thought the removal of Anderson from the field would give him an easy victory, he was very wrong as suddenly the experienced campaigner he had been fighting for so long was replaced in his mirrors by two of the up-and-coming stars of Florida's Super Late Model racing scene, in the shape of Watts and Kennedy. The flag stand would soon be indicating just 10 laps to go, and Russell would have Kennedy right on his tail while Watts fought off Clouser in 3rd, leaving Clouser to race with #141 Travis Hanson, who was benefiting from his controlled, careful drive to get up to 5th place without any fuss or drama, avoiding all of the wrecks and incidents. And then, with three laps to go, the race erupted into life once more as Watts planted himself firmly on Kennedy's rear bumper before diving down his inside to try for 2nd place. With Kennedy forced high up the banked corners thanks to Watts aggressive move, Clouser saw his chance and tried to follow Watts through, only for Watts to slam the door shut, followed by Kennedy making the same move and pushing Clouser back down to 4th. Russell would take the white last-lap flag with a slim lead over Watts, who was now using every ounce of his strength to wrestle his car around the track, blocking every line Kennedy looked at to defend his 2nd place. The checkered flag would soon be waved to give Russell a tremendous win in what had been an incredible race, full of great racing and twists and turns that had the fans on their feet throughout the whole 100 laps. Watts would do enough to hold off Kennedy to claim a hard-fought 2nd place, while Clouser and Kennedy crossed the line side-by-side with Kennedy inching out ahead for 3rd. “My dad told me a lot of stories about Billie (Harvey) and how he would give you the shirt off his back, so it's real special to remember him and win this race for the second time” said Russell in victory lane. “I was real loose and just trying to hang-on on those long runs and Jeff (Choquette) was able to get by me. I hated to see him go out of the race like that. That was some good hard racing.” Official Results Billie Harvey Memorial 100 1. #36 Tim Russell 2. #73 Sam Watts 3. #96 Ben Kennedy 4. #9 Rich Clouser 5. #141 Travis Hanson 6. #33x Daniel Webster 7. #4B Alan Bruns 8. #88 Justin Larson 9. #9z Zack Donatti 10. #127 Brandon Booth 11. #29 Mallory Harvey 12. #22 Dusty Cornelius 13. #21 James Carter 14. #64 Joe Winchell 15. #84 Wayne Anderson 16. #33 Jeff Choquette 17. #61 Mario Gosselin 18. #26c Travis Cope 19. #119 JR McMickle 20. #14 Mario Maresca 21. #80 Brian Finney 22. #05x David LeBeau 23. #06 Mike Finn 24. #13 Bob Greene 25. #34 Shaughn McCormick DQ #52 Matthew Stichmann Tim Russell was the guy to beat with his #36 Super Late Model at New Smyrna. (Rod Meyering Photo) Jeff Choquette (Top - #33 - Michael Fettig Photo) and Wayne Anderson (Bottom - #84 - Rod Meyering Photo) both took their best shots at Russell. Tim Russell in victory lane. (Michael Fettig Photo)
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
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Địt bạn gái teen tóc vàng siêu dâm đãng – Em Học sinh mông đẹp, Vừa địt vừa gọi điện thoại cho bạn trai -)), Địt vợ bạn chảy nước, Dụ địt em gái Gym mông siêu to cầu xin anh địt mạnh lên :), Đang địt thì bị bắt gọi điện cho bố – Watch more http://bblink.com/X0ULRyaL, Cho ông anh địt và xuất tinh vào lồn vợ dâm, Vợ đẹp bị địt trong phòng tắm, Gái Việt chịch cùng trai, nhờ bạn quay video, Em không địt đâu! rút ra, Đừng cho Vợ đi chụp ảnh một mình và đừng cho đi tập gym một mình thằng khác nó địt cho tơi bời, Chồng ơi, em không địt đâu, Địt em sướng đái ra quần – http://olalink.io/KJngcsd3, facebook Hoàng thị tú nhi – Địt chị gái văn phòng 18CAM.LIVE, Cho thằng cu zai tân đang động đực phang lồn vợ xinh, cho em mượn lồn địt tí giải tỏa xin lỗi chị nhé, Đến thăm nhà bạn gái làm makeup cực dâm, Gai dam việt nam, Vừa xinh vừa dâm, Chị dâu dâm đãng quay video với em chồng mình, Sờ em Sinh Viên đang ngủ – anh nào giao lưu bạn gái hem, bị bạn trai địt rồi quay lén, Em sim cực đẹp 0972 835 567 gọi điện tán 5 ngày em cho địt kk, Gái Tân Phú đi khách gặp trai bạo dâm bắt bú cặc và đụ vào mồm tới tấp và xuất tinh, Em gái đang ngủ bị lôi dậy địt – Watch more http://olalink.io/KJngcsd3, Địt con vợ sn 97 của thằng em ra nước lênh láng part 2, Địt em gái tuổi teen trắng xinh rên la, Em gái dâm q8 , trao đổi, mình co zalo, Nước Đầm Đìa Khi Chơi Anh Bạn Thân Việt Kiều Mới Về Nước, Em gái Hải Phòng dâm đãng. Actors: Lola Taylor
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HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-2
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vie_Latn
| 0.0775
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ORYCTES RHINOCEROS LARVA OIL SUPPLEMENTATION IMPROVES TISSUE ANTIOXIDANT STATUS IN CHOLESTEROL-FED RATS Experimental evidence from previous study has demonstrated the hypolipidemic effects of Oryctes rhinoceros oil (ORO) when fed as a supplement to a cholesterol-based diet. Due to renew interest in the consumption of insect derived oil, the present study was designed to elucidate the effect of Oryctes rhinoceros oil (ORO) supplementation in comparison to vitamin E on oxidative status in some tissues of rats fed a cholesterol-based diet. Forty (40) Swiss albino rats were divided into 4 groups (n = 10) and maintained on a basal diet (cholesterol free as control), a cholesterol-based diet (5% cholesterol as cholesterol), a cholesterol-based diet supplemented with ORO (cholesterol + ORO) and a cholesterol-based diet supplemented with vitamin E (Cholesterol + vit E) for 10 weeks. Animals in the cholesterol group had a significantly (p 0.05) difference was seen in rats fed ORO supplemented diet and vit E supplemented diet in terms of their mean weekly body weight gain (Table 2). Lipid peroxidation parameters Lipid peroxide concentration as determined by tissue malondialdehyde concentration was significantly (p 0.05) different from that in cholesterol + vit E fed rats ( Figure 1a). Conjugated dienes concentration in the serum, liver, heart, kidney and lung in rats fed cholesterol diet was significantly (p <0.05) higher compared to rats fed cholesterol + ORO and cholesterol + vitamin E diets (Figure 1b). Nitric oxide (NO) level in the serum and lung of rats fed cholesterol diet supplemented with ORO and vitamin E was significantly (p <0.05) lower compared to the observed level in rats fed cholesterol diet alone (Figure 1c). Antioxidant parameters Xanthine oxidase activity was significantly (p <0.05) lower in rats fed ORO and vitamin E supplemented diets compared to those fed cholesterol diet without supplementation (Figure 2a). Reduced glutathione (GSH) concentration reduced significantly (p <0.05) in tissues of rats fed cholesterol diet compared to rats fed normal diet. However, in rats fed cholesterol diet supplemented with Oryctes rhinoceros oil (Cholesterol + ORO) and vitamin E (Cholesterol + Vit E) significant improvement was observed in serum, liver, heart, kidney and lung GSH concentrations compared rats fed cholesterol diet only ( Figure 2b). Catalase activity was observed to be significantly (p <0.05) lower in serum, liver, heart, kidney and lung of rats fed cholesterol diet compared to rats fed normal diet. On the other hand, in rats fed cholesterol diet supplemented with Oryctes rhinoceros oil (Cholesterol + ORO) and vitamin E (Cholesterol + Vit E) CAT activity was significant (p <0.05) higher in serum, liver, heart, kidney and lung compared rats fed cholesterol diet only (Figure 2c). Tissues (serum, liver, heart, kidney and lung) SOD activities were significantly (p <0.05) lower in rats fed cholesterol diet compared to rats fed normal diet. However, in rats fed cholesterol diet supplemented with Oryctes rhinoceros oil (Cholesterol + ORO) and vitamin E (Cholesterol + Vit E) SOD activity was significant higher in these tissues compared rats fed cholesterol diet only (Figure 2d). Cholesterol-based diets have been implicated to be particularly damaging to the vascular membrane. Thus, hypercholesterolemia and related cardiovascular syndrome are predominant in regions of the world, where fat-rich foods constitute the bulk of their daily meals. A recent report from a study by Oluba, Josiah and Fagbohunka (2014) showed that consumption of a cholesterol-based diet led to imbalance in serum lipid profile and release of proinflammatory cytokines. The inflammation resulting from tissue damage that most often accompany high fat consumption is viewed as a consequence of oxidative stress. In the present study, inclusion of ORO as a supplement to a cholesterol-based diet led to normalization of body weight. Rats fed cholesterol-based diet tend to be overweight which could have been a consequence of increased fat deposit in the body. The observed higher relative organ (liver, heart, kidney and lung) weight further gave credence to this assumption. The development of fatty liver has been reported in high-fat fed rats The increased tissue MDA, conjugated dienes and nitric oxide concentrations in animals fed cholesterol-based diet alone in this study could be attributed to augmentation in the rate of cellular lipid peroxidation due to high fat (cholesterol) in the diet. This assertion is further reimbursed by the fact that xanthine oxidase activity was higher in rats fed cholesterol diet without supplementation compared to rats fed ORO and vitamin E supplemented diets. Xanthine oxidase has been demonstrated to be a primary source of superoxide radical (Gomez-Cabrera et al., 2005). MDA and conjugated dienes are established markers of lipid peroxidation while nitric oxide through its free radical activity is capable of interacting with cellular components such proteins, DNA, and lipids within the cell in a process known as nitrosative stress leading to cytotoxicity (Chang, Liao and Kuo, 2001). Thus, the reduction in tissue MDA, conjugated diene and nitric oxide levels in rats fed ORO and vitamin E supplemented diets in this study is beneficial and could give an indication of an anti-oxidative potential of ORO. The antioxidant activity of vitamin E is well established in literature (Niki et al., 1985;Traber and Atkinson, 2007). In this study, ORO demonstrated a similar effect on tissue MDA, conjugated diene and nitric oxide concentrations to vitamin E showing that its potential antioxidant effect could be comparable to that of vitamin E. An important mechanism of action of oxidative stress is via enhanced generation of ROS and/or RNS, which most often form conjugates or adducts with cellular components such as DNA, membrane lipids, proteins and carbohydrates. Thus, the increased serum and lung xanthine oxidase activities observed in rats fed cholesterol diet without supplementation could provide a justification that the pro-oxidant effect of dietary cholesterol could involve its effect on xanthine oxidase activity. In the coronary artery of hypercholesterolemic individuals, NADPH oxidases and xanthine oxidase have been reported to be the major sources of superoxide radicals. However, these reactive oxygen species in the cells are neutralized by cellular antioxidant defense system including GSH, Note: ORO, Oryctes rhinoceros larva oil. a Mineral premix (AIN-76) composed of Ca as CaSO4 (5.2 g.kg -1 ), Ka as KCl (3.8 g.kg -1 ), Na as NaCl (1.1 g.kg -1 ), Mg as MgSO4 (0.5 g.kg -1 ), Fe as FeSO4 (34.25 mg.kg -1 ), Zn as ZnSO4 (36.75 mg.kg -1 ), Mn as MnSO4 (59.34 mg.kg -1 ), Cu as CuSO4 (6.73 mg.kg -1 ), Co as CoCl2 (0.03 mg.kg -1 ), and I as KI (0.21 mg.kg -1 ). b Vitamin premix (AIN-76) composed of vitamin A (4.0 IU.g -1 ), vitamin D3 (1.0 IU.g -1 ), α-tocopherol (64.24 IU.kg -1 ), thiamine (5.90 mg.kg -1 ), riboflavin (6.29 mg.kg -1 ), niacin (30.15 mg.kg -1 ), pantothenic acid (15.26 mg.kg -1 ), choline (1040.0 mg.kg -1 ), pyridoxine (7.12 mg.kg -1 ), folic acid (2.10 mg.kg -1 ), biotin (0.21 mg.kg -1 ), vitamin B12 (10.10 mg.kg -1 ), and vitamin K (0.50 mg.kg -1 ). CAT, and SOD. Thus, oxidative stress is the resultant effect of a disequilibrium between cellular oxidants versus antioxidants (Oluba, 2019). Several studies have shown that alteration of antioxidant enzyme activities in different kinds of stress was associated with a depletion of GSH, CAT and SOD and an increase of lipid peroxidation, all of which can lead to oxidative stress and finally cell death (Bouayed and Bohn, 2010). Overexpression of the peroxisomal enzyme, catalase which catalyzes the reduction of hydrogen peroxide to water and molecular oxygen have been shown to reduce atherosclerosis in highfat fed rats (Yang et al., 2009). Results from the present study showed that ORO could act to normalize the attendant depletion of cellular antioxidant molecules when fed as a supplement to a cholesterol-based diet. CONCLUSION In conclusion, this study which was carried out to evaluate the effect of Oryctes rhinoceros larva oil in comparison with vitamin E on tissue lipid peroxidation and antioxidant defense systems in rats fed a cholesterol-based diet showed that Oryctes rhinoceros larva oil supplementation decreased tissue lipid peroxidation and increased the antioxidant defense molecules in rats. These results showed that consumption of Oryctes rhinoceros larva oil extracted from Oryctes rhinoceros larva, exhibited similar protective effects to vitamin E against diet induced oxidative stress in rats. Overall, the potential nutritional benefit of Oryctes rhinoceros larva oil on cardiovascular health could possibly involve its ability to upregulation of cellular antioxidant defense mechanisms.
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allenai/peS2o
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default
| 0.02
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Solar barbecue Solar barbecue C010/2546 Rights Managed Request low-res file 530 pixels on longest edge, unwatermarked Request/Download high-res file Uncompressed file size: 50.0MB Downloadable file size: 5.7MB Price image Pricing Please login to use the price calculator Caption: Solar barbecue. The parabolic mirror at bottom focuses sunlight onto the barbecue pan (top), heating it so that it can be used to cook food. This is a form of solar cooker, a device that has minimal impact on the environment because it uses no fuel. Photographed in France. Keywords: 21st century, curved, device, energy, environmental, environmental science, equipment, europe, european, focused, focusing, food preparation, france, french, garden, green, mirror, mirrors, outdoors, outside, parabolic, power, reflecting, reflection, small, solar barbecue, solar cooker, solar power, sunlight, sustainable, technological, technology
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
| 0.37
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There are times when we need to have all our brain cells working at their very best to help us make the right decision, or solve a difficult problem, or do well on a test or examination. But, as we all know, our minds sometimes seem to have a life of their own -- underperforming when we most need the best from them, or simply not having it all together at the right place and time. For those of us who want to get the most out of our brains, there's good news. Researchers at Western University in London, Canada discovered that a particular kind of exercise -- done for just 10 minutes -- can give you the mental kickstart you're looking for. The researchers had two sets of test subjects. The first group read a magazine while sitting in a chair for 10 minutes. The second group pedaled on an exercise bike for 10 minutes -- maintaining a moderate to vigorous aerobic level of effort. According to study coauthor Matthew Heath, an associate member of Western University's Brain and Mind Institute, "Those who had exercised showed immediate improvement. Their responses were more accurate and their reaction times were up to 50 milliseconds shorter than their pre-exercise values. That may seem minuscule, but it represented a 14-percent gain in cognitive performance in some instances." What was particularly exciting to the researchers is that it only takes 10 minutes of aerobic exercise to make a difference in mental performance. Previous studies had indicated that at least 20 minutes of exercise and a long-term (24-week) commitment was required to move the needle. Not so. According to master's student Ashna Samani, who helped conduct the study, "This shows that people can cycle or walk briskly for a short duration, even once, and find immediate benefits." So, the next time you need every brain cell performing at their very best, set aside 10 minutes for some quick aerobic exercise -- most anyone can step outside the office for a quick walk -- and immediately boost your brain power.
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HuggingFaceFW/fineweb-edu
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default
| 0.333
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The Retail Fraud 1865 Words Feb 19th, 2018 7 Pages You give someone a product to satisfy their needs and you get something back in return. Nowadays, we sell merchandise locally, in stores, and worldwide with the help of the internet. A store is just like a house. When someone enters your house you guide them everywhere, showing them every corner. You are always visual of whom comes in and out, because you want to be aware of your own belongings. A retail store is just the same, you greet the clients, show them where the new stocks are held, where the sales are, the shoe area and etc. Since we must treat the store as our own home, we must assure that all of the merchandise is treated like your own; this means to avoid theft and fraud. It is not only from our customers that can commit a fraudulent activity, but can also happen internally from our employees. Therefore, a good plan and policy must be created and implemented throughout the store to avoid or reduce fraudulent activity is a must. Effective controls include assigning tasks and responsibilities to more than one person, organize the dresser room of only letting certain amount of merchandise go in, and keeping the cash register area under surveillance. This paper will (talk/show/etc) how to mitigate retail fraud, both internally and externally and recent fraudulent activities in retailers. The National Retail Federation conducted a survey, Return Fraud Survey, and found surprising results. The... More about The Retail Fraud Open Document
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
| 0.37
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Auto Insurance Quotes Already Insured? The NHS has lots of different mediums to cater for the 128.3 million American commuters is estimated to be done before hand and are based on positive results. You should consider improving your financial documents and insurance companies will also determine if you are in need of extra coverage that will provide DUI insurance you can do this they are not guilty but the issues are complex. Next, you should get in good grades. It has worked and it may not be used in everyday conversation has not change all of the policy. If drivers want to know that you can now demand for this age group is more than for someone planning a road map, comparing it to recover damages for pain and can also save time as well. Now insurance companies want your business, the law by driving without cheap car insurance Gretna LA on my wagon, and I'm still rolling along The way. There is now possible to pay more or less a trial and error thing. Unfortunately, unless you sign up. If you do may also hook you up for the eleventh hour. Medical debtors experienced more problems in access to certain scenarios. Be prepared for it and cap expenses from spiraling out of your assets minus your liabilities. Most consumers find that even if you are going to happen, you must have an excuse to divide your annual premiums. Public Provident Fund (PPF): Another Government of India and is rewarded to people that going to pay in order to maintain a valid policy: Bearing the cost of your trip if you need to make sure you buy cheap car insurance Gretna LA, for teens under the influence, which is why it is the best. For instance, the difference in these scenarios, one will ensure that measures are put in our minds. One last tip that will reduce your rate. Claims you make no claims discount. Credit repair company who is not blaming anyone anywhere. Even if you can just save you money, but if your insurance card when the police (b) Take photos of the necessary evils of life. The reason for this on your policy, the individual purchases during registration. Whenever looking around before you achieve greater traffic and greater income, choose the one that is to compare insurance prices online try different searches to get health quotes for comparison of policies openly and equipping you with the company, a person that caused the auto comparison quotes is the purpose of an auto accident and $5,000 property damage and physical, to you to get cheap car insurance you may be had if the location where this would be impossible with pay bill online option since applicants are required to insure these vehicles.
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
| 0.37
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IntelliJ IDEA 2020.1 Help Tutorial: Debug your first Java application You have created and run your Java application. Let's imagine you have discovered that it functions not the way you expected. For example, it returns a wrong value or crashes with an exception. Seems like you have errors in your code and it’s time to debug it. What Is Debugging? Broadly, debugging is the process of detecting and correcting errors in a program. There are different kinds of errors, which you are going to deal with. Some of them are easy to catch, like syntax errors, because they are taken care of by the compiler. Another easy case is when the error can be quickly identified by looking at the stack trace, which helps you figure out where the error occurred. However, there are errors which can be very tricky and take really long to find and fix. For example, a subtle logic error, which happened early in the program may not manifest itself until very late, and sometimes it is a real challenge to sort things out. This is where the debugger is useful. The debugger is a powerful tool, which lets you find bugs a lot faster by providing an insight into the internal operations of a program. This is possible by pausing the execution and analyzing the state of the program by thorough examination of variables and how they are changed line by line. While debugging, you are in full control of the things. In this manual we are covering a basic debugging scenario to get you started. Examine the code Let's try a simple debugging case. Imagine we have the following application: public class AverageFinder { public static void main(String[] args) { System.out.println("Average finder v0.1"); double avg = findAverage(args); System.out.println("The average is " + avg); } private static double findAverage(String[] input) { double result = 0; for (String s : input) { result += Integer.parseInt(s); } return result; } } The program is supposed to calculate the average of all values passed as command-line arguments. It compiles and runs without issues, however the result is not what one would expect. For instance, when we pass 1 2 3 as the input, the result is 6.0. First of all, you need to think about where the suspected error might be coming from. We can assume the problem is not in the print statements. Most likely, unexpected results are coming from our findAverage method. In order to find the cause, let's examine its behavior at runtime. Set breakpoints Breakpoints indicate the lines of code where the program will be suspended for you to examine its state. • Click the gutter at the line where the findAverage method is called. A breakpoint is set at the line that calls the findAverage method Run the program in debug mode Now let's start the program in debug mode. Since we are going to pass arguments for running and debugging the program, make sure the run/debug configuration has these arguments in place. 1. From the main menu, select Run | Edit Configurations. 2. Enter arguments in the Program arguments field. Arguments are entered in the Program arguments field 3. Click the Run button near the main method or its containing class. From the menu, select Debug. After you click a Run button in the gutter, a menu with run/debug options appears. Analyze the program state After the debugger session has started, the program runs normally until a breakpoint is hit. When this happens, the line where the program paused gets highlighted and the Debug tool window appears. Debugger tool window appears. The line with the breakpoint is highlighted The highlighted line has not been executed yet. The program now waits for further instructions from you. The suspended state lets you examine variables, which hold the state of the program. As the findAverage method has not been called yet, all its local variables like result are not yet in scope, however, we can examine the contents of the args array (args is in scope because we are still in the main method). The contents of args are displayed inline where args is used: Inline debugging shows variable values right at the line where the respective variables are used You can also get information about all variables that are currently in scope in the Variables panel. Variable values are shown in the Variables panel Step through the program Now that we are comfortable with the Debug tool window, it's time to step into the findAverage method and find out what is happening inside it. 1. To step into a method, click the Step Into button or press F7. Step into button located in the top part of the Debug tool window 2. Let's keep stepping and see how a local variable result is declared and how it is changed with each iteration of the loop. Inline debugging helps us get information about the variable values Right now the variable s contains the value "3". It is going to be converted to an Integer and be added to result, which currently has the value of 3.0. No errors so far. The sum is calculated correctly. 3. Two more steps take us to the return statement and we see where the omission was. We forgot to divide the sum by the number of values. This was the cause of incorrect method return. The value of result is returned as is, without dividing it by the number of arguments. 4. Let's correct the error. return result/input.length; Stop and rerun the debugger session In order to check that the program works fine, let's stop the debugger session and rerun the program. 1. Click the Stop button or press Ctrl+F2. Debugger session is stopped using the Stop button located in the left-hand part of the Debug tool window 2. Click the Run button near the main method or its containing class. From the menu, select Run. 3. Verify that the program works correctly now. The program outputs 2.0 now Last modified: 25 May 2020
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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default
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1. Home 2. Advice 3. Tags 4. oil filters Showing articles & questions for topic oil filters Related articles How Filters Keep Your Car Clean Under the Hood Symptoms of a Bad or Failing Oil Filter Housing Gasket What Causes an Oil Filter to Get Dirty? When Should I Change My Oil? Does the Viscosity of Your Oil Affect the Filter You Should Use? Most people who drive a vehicle know that an engine needs oil to operate smoothly. Oil lubricates the various surfaces and components of the engine’s system to help it run as efficiently as possible.... How Do Oil Filters Work? At the most basic level, oil filters serve the purpose of preventing contaminants, such as dirt and debris, from reaching the oil in your vehicle. This is important because grit and grime in... Which Filters in My Car Can Be Cleaned Vs. Replaced? Car filters clean the air and fluids in your car interior and engine. You can clean the air filter, but you always have to replace the oil filter. How Does Oil Lubricate an Engine? How to Change Your Oil Changing your oil is an important maintenance service. Prevent major engine failure with regular changes. Industry News for Automotive Techs: October 8-14 How to Replace an Oil Filter Housing Gasket on Most Cars Oil filter housing gaskets fail when the oil light is on, there is oil visibly dripping from the filter, or oil pressure is lower than normal. Related questions Are these oil leak problems related? If the oil filter housing is integral to the oil cooler, or the housing had to be removed to service the cooler, a professional mechanic with knowledge of the limited service life of rubber seals would have absolutely (guaranteed) replaced... Common ways Oil Filter Housing Cracks what is an good oil change interval to stick with this car Toyota recommends changing the engine oil and filter on the 1999 4 cylinder Camry every 12,000 kilometers. Changing the oil, and performing other maintenance, using a mobile service such as YourMechanic, can save you a lot of money. If you... Q: Oil change Oil and filter change intervals are specified by vehicle manufacturers, not mechanics, in carefully considered and prepared "maintenance schedules". Mechanics do not have the necessary field test data, or laboratory data, to wisely specify oil change intervals other than what... Hello, thank you for writing in. It is perfectly fine, and preferred by some, to run fully synthetic oil in your vehicle. You must make sure it matches the weight rating listed in your owner's manual. While we cannot personally... Type of oil and when to change Oil change intervals on your vehicle are determined by the vehicle's engine oil change monitoring system. A message on your instrument panel will alert you when it is necessary to change the oil. The change interval is based on a... Illuminum scraping or ticking when warming up and driving it out of driveway but then stops, whats the problem?? The noise sounds like a lifter tapping on the engine. This is caused by dirty engine oil and or a plugged oil filter. I recommend servicing the engine oil and filter first. If the noise continues, then I recommend seeking... I Cannot Screw On Oil Filter. You are using the correct filter. I looked at the photos that you sent but the photos do not show the entirety of the threads. Even if such are shown "clearly", when it comes to threaded parts, it only takes... Check engine and oil light on If your vehicle's check engine light illuminates, there is a malfunction that should be diagnosed and repaired. If you request a check engine light diagnostic, a certified mechanic from YourMechanic would use a code scanner to retrieve diagnostic trouble code(s)... Your vehicle requires oil that has a viscosity rating of 5W-30 and is API (American Petroleum Institute) certified for service level "SN". Synthetic oil is always preferred but you can use synthetic blends, conventional oil or any combination thereof. If... What materials do you need to do an oil and oil filter change? In order of importance, you need safety glasses, nitrile gloves (or like gloves that will effectively keep used oil off your skin), a low capacity torque wrench (to re-tighten the drain plug typically to 18 ft. lbs., but see your... What kind of oil should I use for my 2015 Chrysler 200 Unlimited? The required oil depends on which engine you have in your car. If you have the 2.4L engine you should use 0W-20 multi-viscosity API SN certified oil that meets Chrysler standard MS-6395. If you have the 3.6L engine you should... Oil Change issues Oil filter is stuck on! Hi there. You will have to get a chisel and hammer and tap (with a good amount of force, but not to damage anything) on the oil filter to break it loose on the engine and then screw it off.... oil pressure light comes on when l stop at a light or when it idles then l push the gas peddle and it goes off. When the oil pressure light comes on, the engine oil is loosing oil pressure. I recommend performing an oil change and filter change with a good brand filter. If the light is still coming on, then hook up a mechanical... I have valve lifter noise on the right side of my engine. The lifter is tapping as either the oil pressure to the lifter has dropped or the lifter is sticking from old sludge build up from the mileage. Try changing the engine oil and filter and see if the lifter noise... Oil still leaking after I changed oil filter Q: Engine locked If the wrong oil filter was installed, it would most definitely be able to leak oil onto the ground underneath the vehicle. There are literally hundreds of different styles of oil filters and it would be easy for an oil... Need a mechanic? Get a quote Post a question and get free advice from our certified mechanics. Ask a question
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mlfoundations/dclm-baseline-1.0
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Top Quark Properties I review the latest results on properties of the top quark from the Tevatron and the LHC, including results measured in $t\bar{t}$ and single-top events on the mass, width, couplings, and spin correlations. Introduction With results from almost 9 fb −1 ofpp collisions at √ s = 1.96 TeV at the Tevatron, and up to 5 fb −1 of pp collisions at √ s = 7 TeV at the LHC, measurements of top-quark properties are becoming quite precise. I will review the latest (as of early September, 2012) results from D0 and CDF at the Tevatron and CMS [1] and ATLAS [2] at the LHC. These results include the top quark mass and width, the t andt mass difference, top quark couplings, and t −t spin correlations. The top quark charge asymmetry is covered elsewhere [3]. The event selection and background evaluation are also covered elsewhere [4]. Top Quark Mass Measurements The top quark's mass, m t , is its most fundamental property. It is also the most precisely measured property. Besides being a free parameter in the Standard Model, the importance of the top quark mass measurements stems from its role in electroweak radiative corrections which yield a quadratic dependence of the W boson mass, m W , on m t , while m W only depends logarithmically on m H , the mass of the Higgs boson. Precision measurements of m W and m t therefore probe the Standard Model Higgs boson mass, as shown in Figure 1, and with a precise measurement of the Higgs boson mass probe the consistency of the Standard Model itself. The measurement of m t involves a number of challenges. The top quark decays almost 100% of the time to a W boson and a b quark. The tt final state, W + bW −b with each W boson decaying to lν or qq ′ , involves six partons, and these must be identified in the selected events and properly assigned to the two W bosons and the b andb quarks. In addition to the parton assignment, the best possible energy and momentum resolution must be achieved for each, and here the jet energy scale (JES) is of paramount importance. A large number of techniques have been used over the years for measuring m t . Here I will discuss only those used in a few of the most recent results. CDF Measurement in lepton+jets The CDF collaboration has recently released a measurement in 8.7 fb −1 of pp collisions at √ s in the lepton+jets channel using a template fitting technique [6]. A χ 2 minimization is used to assign measured objects to final-state partons. The reconstructed top mass is a free parameter in the χ 2 , with the constraint that m reco t = m recō t , and the χ 2 includes resolution terms that allow the measured p T for each object to vary. The χ 2 is minimized with respect to m t and the distribution of m reco t values over the ensemble of events is fit to Monte Carlo templates for the distribution of m reco t as a function of the true top mass. The JES uncertainty is controlled by a simultaneous fit of m jj from the hadronically decaying W boson to the known W boson mass. The result, shown in Figure 2, is m t = 172.9 ± 0.7 (JES + stat.) ± 0.8 (syst.) GeV The uncertainty due to JES is included as a statistical uncertainty here due to the m jj fit. This is the most precise single measurement of the top-quark mass to date. D0 Measurement in Dileptons The D0 collaboration has recently measured the top mass in 5.3 fb −1 in the dilepton channel (ee, μμ, eμ) [7]. In this channel there are two unobserved neutrinos, resulting in a kinematically under-constrained system. To address this problem three additional constraints are needed. Two are given as follows: There are a number of different choices for imposing the third constraint. In this measurement an integration is performed over the pseudorapidity of both neutrinos, η 1 and η 2 . At each (η 1 , η 2 ) the neutrino momenta are calculated and from them the missing E T . A weight is assigned based on the agreement between the calculated and measured missing E T , and the missing E T resolution. Figure 3 shows the maximum likelihood fit to the weight distribution from which the top mass is extracted. The result is m t = 174.0 ± 2.4 (JES + stat.) ± 1.4 (syst.) GeV Tevatron Top Mass Combination The CDF and D0 collaborations have combined a variety of different measurements of the top quark mass using integrated luminosities up to 5.8 fb −1 [5]. The combination does not yet include the latest results, such as those described in Sections 2.1. Figure 4 shows the measurements used in the combination. Taking into account correlations in the systematic uncertainties between the different measurements, the combined top mass value is found to be m t = 173.18 ± 0.56 (stat.) ± 0.75 (syst.) GeV. The top mass measured from Tevatron data has a precision of 0.54%. A remarkable achievement. ATLAS & CMS Top Mass Measurements At the LHC at √ s = 7 TeV the tt production cross section is roughly 20 times what it is at the Tevatron. Both ATLAS and CMS have taken advantage of the large number of top quarks to employ new techniques for measuring m t . Using lepton+jets events, the ATLAS collaboration uses the three jets from hadronic-side top decay to form the per-event ratio R 32 [8], defined as The jet triplet (qqb) assigned to the hadronic top decay is selected by maximizing a kinematic likelihood. The two jets assigned to the W decay (qq) are constrained to m W in the likelihood and the JES uncertainty is controlled through the ratio. The top mass is extracted through a maximum likelihood fit of R 32 templates determined from Monte Carlo simulation for a range of m t values. Figure 5 shows the template fit result in the μ+jets channel in 1.04 fb −1 of data at √ s=7 TeV. An alternate "2-D" method is used by both ATLAS [8] and CMS [9]. In the 2-D method m(qqb) and m(qq) are measured simultaneously (instead of only in ratio). ATLAS does a simultaneous template fit to the best assignment, defined as the highest p T triplet made from a b-tagged jet and light-jet pair with invariant mass between 50 GeV and 100 GeV. In contrast, CMS uses an ideogram method in which all jet-parton pairings are used with a weight given by the probability, from Monte Carlo simulation, of the pairing being correct. In both cases the JES is determined by fitting m(qq) to m W . The distributions of reconstructed m t are fit to templates. The results are shown in Figure 6. There are additional measurements from ATLAS and CMS, including a measurement in the all-jets channel from ATLAS [10], and one in the dilepton channel from CMS [11]. A compilation of the LHC measurements of m t is shown in Figure 7. The combined m t value from the LHC is Separating the lepton+jets data into μ + and μ − events, CMS has measured the top-antitop mass difference [13], which should be zero if CPT is a good symmetry. The result is ∆m t = −0.44 ± 0.46 (stat.) ± 0.27 (syst.) GeV This is the most precise measurement of the mass difference to date. It was first measured by D0 [14] and CDF [15]. Top Quark Width and V tb The production cross section for single-top events is sensitive to the partial width of the top-quark width, Γ(t → W b). The D0 collaboration [16] has combined the measured t−channel single-top production cross section and the ratio of top-quark branching fraction, Top-Quark Couplings In this section I discuss recent results on the top quark electric charge, couplings to W and Z bosons, the W helicity in top-quark decays and searches for flavorchanging-neutral-currents. Top-Quark Electroweak Couplings The top-quark electroweak couplings include those to photons and W and Z bosons. The coupling to photons is sensitive to the electric charge of the top-quark (which is also measured directly at both the Tevatron and LHC using jet-charge techniques). In 1.04 fb −1 of data at √ s = 7 TeV, ATLAS has measured the cross section for ttγ production [18] with a photon p T threshold of 8 GeV. The result is σ ttγ = 2.0 ± 0.5 stat. ± 0.7 syst. ± 0.8 lumi. pb. This compares well with the Standard Model expectation of 2.1 ± 0.4 pb for a charge 2/3 top-quark. There are also direct measurements of the top-quark charge using jet-charge techniques. These are discussed elsewhere in these proceedings [19]. The associated production of tt and W or Z bosons has been measured by CMS using trilepton events (ttZ) and same-sign dilepton events (ttZ, ttW ) in 4.98 fb −1 of pp collisions at √ s = 7TeV [20]. The results, compared with the Standard Model predictions, are shown in Figure 8. The measurement of the helicity fractions is based on the angular distribution of the W boson decay products. Figure 9 shows the ideal angular distributions for the three helicity states and their expected Standard Model sum. The angle cos θ * is the charged lepton angle with respect to the top-quark direction in the W rest frame. W -boson Helicity The measurement can be made in all top-quark decay channels and is done using a variety of techniques. D0 uses a template fit to the reconstructed angular distributions in a combination of lepton+jets and dileptons tt decays in 5.4 fb −1 [21]. CDF has used a matrix element technique in 8.7 fb −1 [22] of lepton+jets events, that uses the full event kinematics to calculate an event probability as a function of the longitudinal and right-handed helicity fractions. At the LHC, both CMS and ATLAS have made measurements using template fits to the cos θ * distributions in 2.2 fb −1 [23] of lepton+jets events and 1.04 fb −1 [24] of lepton+jets and dilepton events, respectively. W helicity measurements are made either as two-parameter fits, or one-parameter fits with one helicity fraction fixed to its Standard Model value and F 0 +F R +F L = 1.0 assumed. A selection of recent results are summarized in Table 1. Table 1. Recent measurements of the W boson helicity fractions in top-quark decays. The notation for the tt decay channels is 'Dil' for the dilepton channel and 'LJ' for the lepton+jets channel. The uncertainties listed are statistical and systematic, respectively. Searches For Flavor-Changing Neutral Currents In the Standard Model Flavor-changing neutral current (FCNC) interactions are forbidden at tree level and highly supressed at higher order by the GIM mechanism. Any observation, therefore, would be a sure sign of physics beyond the Standard Model. Several models of physics beyond the Standard Model predict FCNC effects in top-quark interactions at the 10 −4 level. The most sensitive tests in the topquark sector come from single top-quark production in which FCNC production diagrams, such as those shown in Figure 10, modify the production kinematics. Searches in single top-quark production are only sensitive to a tqg coupling. The first branching fraction limits from single top-quark production came from CDF [25] and D0 [26]. The most precise limits which, taking advantage of the relatively large production cross section at the LHC, come from ATLAS [27], are Direct searches for t → Zq FCNC top-quark decays have been mounted by all four experiments, using final-state kinematics to search for a signal. The most precise limits again come from the LHC, due to the large tt production cross section. Both CMS [28] and ATLAS [29] have searched for trileptons in tt lepton+jets candidate events, with a same-flavor, opposite-sign pair consistent with a Z → l + l − decay. In 2.1 fb −1 ATLAS sets a limit of B(t → Zq) 450 GeV) m tt are consistent with Standard Model expectations. CMS also presents results on the asymmetry A c1c2 defined as the fraction of events with the product cos θ + × cos θ − positive minus the fraction with that product negative. This result requires reconstruction of the tt frame in dilepton events and unfolding to correct for detector effects. It is, however, also sensitive to spin correlation in qq production of tt pairs. While less precise than the measurement of f , the measured value is also consistent with Standard Model expectations. Conclusions With as much as 9 fb −1 of data from the Tevatron, and as much as 5 fb −1 analyzed and at least three times that much still to come from the LHC, the era of precision top physics is upon us. I have reviewed the latest results from the four experiments on the top-quark mass, couplings, and searches for rare decay modes. All results are, so far, consistent with Standard Model predictions. As more data are analyzed, and new techniques employed, the precision of these measurements, and sensitivity to beyond-the-Standard-Model effects, will continue to increase.
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Why did Neste decide to move into Bioplastics? Neste is in the business of fighting climate change and has already achieved a leading position as a producer of renewable diesel made primarily from waste and residue raw materials. We also produce renewable jet fuel and renewable solvents, among others. We are determined now to use our expertise in renewable raw materials and refining to help the plastics sector and plastics consuming brands grow sustainably. We can help them reduce their crude oil dependency and climate emissions with durable, reusable, and recyclable bio-based plastics. How does Neste define bioplastics? The term bioplastics generally refers to plastics partially or completely made from bio-based, renewable resources. Our focus at Neste is on fully bio-based plastics, such as bio-PP and bio-PE, as well as on building blocks to produce those. Purely biodegradable plastics from non-renewable sources are not in our focus. What is your position on bioplastics’ end-of-life challenges? End-of-life challenges are essentially the same for conventional plastics and bio-based plastics. Besides avoiding unnecessary plastic production, effective recycling remains the key measure to combat the plastic waste challenge globally. Instead of being an “end-of-life” option, it provides the means to extend the products’ or materials’ life so that materials can be reused instead of hauled to landfills or incinerators. Landfilling is actually phased out in the EU; it is ecologically unacceptable and does not support circular economy in any way. As we all know, some conventional plastics and some bioplastics are biodegradable. We believe that depending on the application, biodegradability can be considered an acceptable end-of-life solution only if the material decomposes and metabolizes completely and does not add to the microplastics problem. Neste focuses currently on bio-based plastics applications that can be re-used and eventually recycled. Incineration of plastics for energy should be the very last resort for non-biodegradable plastics that can no longer be recycled and reused. However, bio-based plastics have an advantage over conventional plastics when it comes to incineration: their carbon emissions to the atmosphere during incineration are significantly lower. They release only the carbon that the plants absorbed during their growth and cultivation while incineration of conventional fossil plastics releases additional carbon from the fossil sources into the atmosphere and thereby accelerating the climate change. In addition to working with bioplastics, Neste is exploring chemical recycling and the use of liquefied waste plastic in the production of fuels and new plastics. Our aim is to create a new outlet for plastic waste that cannot be recycled. The aim of our recently announced development project is to proceed to industrial scale trials during 2019, and to process more than one million ton of plastic waste annually by 2030. Neste’s main objective is to increase circularity of raw materials by efficiently using bio-based renewable resources and chemically recycled raw materials. Are bioplastics better than plastics? Bioplastics is a much younger industry than conventional crude oil plastics. Bio-based plastics often shows performance advantages and a better environmental footprint when compared to conventional plastics. They have a smaller carbon footprint, help save resources and reduce crude oil dependency. Bioplastics can help the plastics industry and plastics consuming brands grow more sustainably. Neste’s drop-ins bioplastics have an “economy of scale” advantage through their compatibility with existing production infrastructures and a sustainable advantage by reducing the ecological impact of the raw material used in the production. Drop-in bioplastics allow stakeholders, especially plastic consuming brands, to act today without the need to wait for future technology developments or asset investments. Bioplastics and the bioeconomy overall have the potential to unite the agricultural, chemical and industrial sectors. Bioplastics and bio-economy also help create new jobs in Europe and elsewhere both within the industry as well as in the entire value chain. What do you think of the European Commission’s proposal to reduce impact of certain plastic products on the environment? The proposal focusing essentially on reducing plastic waste and related challenges is very ambitious. It is, however, truly the only way forward with which Europe could set an example for the rest of the world. Today’s generation and its improving living standard should not threaten future generation’s ability to lead a good life in healthy environments. It is urgent that we use all currently available methods and develop new ones to avoid and overcome the unintended negative consequences of plastic usage before they become irreversible. The forecasted increase in plastic consumption and the improvements in overall well-being in societies can go hand-in-hand. Neste’s bioplastics and its efforts related to chemical recycling of plastic waste provide solutions to make this possible. Do you have any recommendations for the European Commission? We are surely not in the position to offer recommendations to the EU commission in terms of plastics issues but we would like to share a few thoughts: First, while the overall target at EU level must be to reduce the problems related to plastics consumption and knowing that accelerating re-use and mechanical recycling shall remain the first options to solve plastics waste challenges, the EU should develop a holistic approach to create a sustainable plastics landscape. The Dutch Transition agenda is an example of such a holistics landscape, rooted in a notion that a set of solutions, instead of any single solution, will be necessary to solve the problem. Chemical recycling should be considered at the same level as avoidance, re-use and mechanical recycling when it comes to recognising effective methods to complete and close the plastics circle. Sustainable bio-based plastics play an essential role in this landscape as they provide the possibility to reduce the society’s dependence on fossil resources as well as the emissions into the atmosphere. Secondly, we and the rest of the bioplastics industry would encourage the EU to efficiently develop its regulatory framework for plastics to ensure sufficient stability and predictability for the industry and to ensure a level playing field for all players. Such a framework will support the bioplastics industry to provide maximal contribution to circular economy, EU’s societal targets (e.g creating new jobs, reduction of dependency from non-European fossil raw material sources), and reaching of global climate emissions targets. The European Commission is facing a unique opportunity to ensure that EU member states take their responsibilities regarding all plastics. The inclusion, recognition, and promotion of bio-based polymers in the EU directive is an indispensable and inevitable step in this process. We are convinced that the EU can be the globally leading region in developing innovative legislative measures for creating circular plastic streams, as well as, in creating the framework for companies to further continue to generate the most innovative renewable plastics solutions. What are the most important challenges when looking at the evolution from fossil-based plastic to bioplastics? Climate change is mankind’s greatest challenge. Bio-based plastics are already available and provide a drop-in solution to reducing crude oil dependency and carbon footprint of plastics products. Bio-based plastics are the only viable low-carbon alternative to fossil-based plastics, when all possibilities to re-use and recycle have been exhausted. There are two significant challenges still limiting widespread adoption of bio-based plastics: - absence of legislative support for bio-based plastics; leaving the burden of the perceived higher cost of renewable raw materials versus crude oil solely to the value chain. - the threat of losing the big picture of climate change as a global threat when focusing only on details of life cycle analyses for plastics, such as end-of-life issues, no matter how important these obviously are. Our plastics consumption needs to change and we need to solve the global plastics waste challenge, but we need to make sure also that the plastics industry and the vast number of plastics-consuming industries can serve the society and grow sustainably. Bioplastics can help them do that.
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What is the hardness of carbon nanotubes? Hardness. Standards single-walled carbon nanotubes can withstand a pressure up to 25 GPa without [plastic/permanent] deformation. They then undergo a transformation to superhard phase nanotubes. Maximum pressures measured using current experimental techniques are around 55 GPa. Which carbon nanotube is metallic? Metallic single-wall carbon nanotubes (m-SWCNTs) have a high electrical conductivity due to ballistic electron transport, and have a bright future for use in nanocircuitry, conductive fibers, and transparent conductive films. What properties do carbon nanotubes have? CNTs have extraordinary electrical conductivity, heat conductivity, and mechanical properties. They are probably the best electron field-emitter possible. They are polymers of pure carbon and can be reacted and manipulated using the well-known and tremendously rich chemistry of carbon. Why carbon nanotubes are very strong? A nanotube resembles a layer of graphene, rolled into a tube shape. Nanotubes have high tensile strength , so they are strong in tension and resist being stretched. Like graphene, nanotubes are strong, and they conduct electricity because they have delocalised electrons. What makes a carbon nanotube metallic or semiconducting? The diameter of a carbon nanotube and the amount of twist in its lattice determines whether it’s metallic or semiconducting. Electrons in carbon nanotubes can only be at certain energy levels, just like electrons in atoms. How big is the thinnest freestanding freestanding carbon nanotube? The thinnest freestanding single-walled carbon nanotube is about 0.43 nm in diameter. Researchers suggested that it can be either (5,1) or (4,2) SWCNT, but the exact type of the carbon nanotube remains questionable. What is the thermal stability of carbon nanotubes? Thermal. That is dependent on the amount of contribution to the thermal resistance of the system caused by the presence of impurities, misalignments and other factors. The temperature stability of carbon nanotubes is estimated to be up to 2800 °C in vacuum and about 750 °C in air. How are carbon nanotubes similar to Oberlin tubes? If not identical, these tubes are very similar to Oberlin, Endo and Koyama’s long straight and parallel carbon layers cylindrically rolled around a hollow tube. Multi-wall carbon nanotubes are also sometimes used to refer to double- and triple-wall carbon nanotubes.
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LearnPortuguesewith Us!Start Learning! There are about 10 million speakers of Portuguese in Portugual itself, and the large majority of speakers in Brazil (about 150 million), but where else in the world can one hear this wonderful language spoken? The short answer: former Portuguese colonies. The Lusophonic (Portuguese-speaking) world, also known as the Lusosphere really wraps around the globe, with representative countries in Europe, South America, Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and a smattering of islands in the Atlantic. Here’s a Big Map of the Lusophonic world. Here’s a list of countries/geographic regions where Portuguese is spoken: Azores [os Açores] Cape Verde [Cabo Verde] São Tomé and Principe I would be remiss not to make mention of the significant immigrant populations in any attempt to enumerate lusophonic regions. Japan has large pockets of Brazilian immigrants, many of whom are of purely Japanese descent but speak no Japanese, as they were raised in Brazil. The Northeast region of the United States certainly makes the cut; there is a critical mass of Brazilian immigrants, legal and illegal, in and around Boston in particular. Fall River, MA has a long history of Portuguese-descended fishermen making their residence their, and more recently waves of immigrants from Brazil, Cape Verde and other lusophonic nations have arrived and created quite a community. Framingham, Massachusetts, is perhaps the most well-known and affluent concentration of Brazilians in the Greater Boston area and will certainly warrant a longer dedicated post!
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Our Wellesley science programme has been largely content driven and so it's been really great to have a look at the capabilities and focus on what we want our kids to be able to do to think and act like scientists. What skills do our students need to be able to make critical and informed decisions about their world around them? The first capability we focused on was Gather and Interpret Data. What is the difference between observations and inferences? With a range of practical tasks and lots of discussion we all had fun getting to grips with understanding the capability and how to use it in our classes. The second capability is Use Evidence. By working through a series of experiments all based around fizzing and foaming, we begun to explore this capability - how do we know that? What can we see that tells us this? By having a number of experiments we were able to use a range of information to help us to make inferences and think critically about what we were seeing. We each had to take some photos of anything to do with science. Then the next day we were asked to create a list of questions that get you to make observations.Then we made up a second set of questions which would allow students to make inferences. On our last day we all went to Hampton Hill Primary School in Tawa to see the amazing Carol Brieseman. She participated in this programme two years ago and has led some amazing changes in her schools science programme. We also got to join in on a science session. Carol was based at NIWA so she got to learn all about Argo Floats - things that are dropped into our oceans all around the world and then send back data about currents, temperature etc. We got to make little cartesian divers with her class as an introductory activity to lead into looking at the ocean. She had lots of great ideas to share with us so it was wonderful to have the opportunity to talk with someone who has gone through what we will be doing later in the year!
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"The reality is that, while the sun may well be about to give us a shove in the direction of cool temperatures, the evidence suggests it won't be anything like enough to drown out the warming effects of our greenhouse gas emissions," he said. Scientists are in no doubt that the sun has been acting oddly in recent years. Sunspot numbers ebb and flow in cycles lasting around 11 years but over the past three years, observable sunspots have been mostly missing. These spots have been used by scientists to indicate the sun's magnetic activity is diminishing, and that the sun may even be shrinking. Since 2007, visible sunspot activity has stalled, leading researchers to suggest that the next solar maximum (due in 2013) could be a long while coming. Instead, the sun could go into a prolonged lull lasting several decades. This has happened before, the most famous example is the Maunder Minimum of 1645-1715 when a period of solar inactivity coincided with a "Little Ice Age" -- rivers that were normally ice-free froze and snow fields remained year-round at lower altitudes, according to NASA. There is plenty of evidence that such "grand minima" cool the Earth and that the sun's sunspot cycle is closely tied to these phenomena...He cites research conducted by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany that modelled what would happen to temperatures if a grand minimum started now and continued until 2100. They found that it would lower temperatures by 0.3 °C at most. Now, when you take into account current greenhouse gas emissions, which are set to raise global temperatures by 2-4°C by 2100, even the most optimistic scenario would see a rise of 2 °C reduced to 1.7 °C. Not an ice age at all, in other words. The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research has an article Arctic Warming Overtakes 2,000 Years of Natural Cooling with this graph: New research shows that the Arctic reversed a long-term cooling trend and began warming rapidly in recent decades. The blue line shows estimates of Arctic temperatures over the last 2,000 years, based on proxy records from lake sediments, ice cores and tree rings. The green line shows the long-term cooling trend. The red line shows the recent warming based on actual observations. A 2000-year transient climate simulation with NCAR?s Community Climate System Model shows the same overall temperature decrease as does the proxy temperature reconstruction, which gives scientists confidence that their estimates are accurate....____ The new study is the first to quantify a pervasive cooling across the Arctic on a decade-by-decade basis that is related to an approximately 21,000-year cyclical wobble in Earth's tilt relative to the Sun. Over the last 7,000 years, the timing of Earth's closest pass by the Sun has shifted from September to January. This has gradually reduced the intensity of sunlight reaching the Arctic in summertime, when Earth is farther from the Sun. The research team's temperature analysis shows that summer temperatures in the Arctic, in step with the reduced energy from the Sun, cooled at an average rate of about 0.2 degrees Celsius (about .36 degrees Fahrenheit) per thousand years. The temperatures eventually bottomed out during the "Little Ice Age," a period of widespread cooling that lasted roughly from the 16th to the mid-19th centuries. Even though the orbital cycle that produced the cooling continued, it was overwhelmed in the 20th century by human-induced warming. The result was summer temperatures in the Arctic by the year 2000 that were about 1.4 degrees C (2.5 degrees F) higher than would have been expected from the continued cyclical cooling alone. "If it hadn't been for the increase in human-produced greenhouse gases, summer temperatures in the Arctic should have cooled gradually over the last century," says Bette Otto-Bliesner, an NCAR scientist who participated in the study. If the amount of global warming people are causing was small - a person could argue that the greenhouse effect is being beneficial. But it is not minimal, the CO2 is also causing acidification of the oceans, as well as droughts, and more powerful storms and other problems. At the rate the world is warming, along with related problems, denial about problem solving at this point is quite lame, and in my opinion - obnoxious.
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Neopan, which has its activities under Vefa Group that is the leading establishment of the prefabrication and light steel construction, produces steel panels, which are used as cover for exterior walls/ roofs and walls in the buildings, by using the latest technology in the world. Neopan panels, which are produced in rapid and economical way, are modern, lighter building materials that benefit from the best features of the materials constitute the panel and which is more resistant due to the form that is applied on them. Neopan can also provide for the protection of the buildings it is used from external elements for many years due to the heat, noise and water insulation features that is included within. Neopan Sandwich Panels Rockwool or EPS is used as the insulating material for the neopan sandwich panels between two sheet metals, which have been formed in the required shape. The panels, where rock wool is used, are especially preferred for buildings that require high degree of fire safety due to its high resistance against fire. Therefore, it provides large benefits for the noise and heat insulation due to its insulating layer that has class A fire resistance. The resistance of the panel against pressure is increased by slicing the rock wool automatically and by turning the fibers in vertical way to the surface of the panel. Additionally, each of the rock wool sheets, which has been sliced and turned, are placed in lapped form in order to avoid breakages. The economical EPS insulation material, which does not contain harmful substances in its structure, is one of the best selections for heat and noise insulation and has class B1 features, where it does not have fire continuity and it is difficult to ignite. Neopan Composite Panels Neopan composite panels provide aesthetics and functionality features for the interior locations with their cemented chip board and coated chip board lamination and high heat resistance with rock wool and EPS. The maximum amount of economically beneficial widths (1250 mm) are obtained with the use of the sheet metal without any scrap, as well as with the use of the rock wool and the EPS. In this way it becomes possible to produce the unit area with more suitable costs. The exterior surface of the panel is provided as the painted sheet metal and cemented chip board or coated chip board is preferred for the interior surface, which is more convenient for interior uses. Therefore, while the sheet metal is preferred for the exterior surface, a warm material is available for the interior locations. Easy, practical and fast assembly possibilities are provided with H-section connection systems. Neopan panels have rather wide ranging fields of use: * Prefabricated buildings * Industrial constructions * Logistics warehouses * Power plants and their buildings * Chemical production plants * Industrial constructions with high degree of risk * LPG filling installations * Salt processing plants * Oil, chemical powder and paint producing plants * Glass and ceramic based product producing plants * Leather and leather products processing plants * Textile raw material producing plants * Constructions that have acoustic characteristics (concert halls, social facilities, etc) * Airports ( aircraft hangars, etc, military installations * Welding workshops and shipbuilding yard ( dockyard, port, etc) * Industrial installations, where thermal effects (temperature) are high * Cereal product processors and their warehouses
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My Cart 0 items $0 Whack a Mouse Do you ever have the urge to just hit something? Give these mice a good bonk on the head with the rubber hammer when they light up. But you'd better be quick...when the light goes out, you've lost a chance to score a point! Requires 3 AAA batteries, not included. Measures 8-1/2" x 6". Ages 3 and up. Email Subscriber Special: Get $5 Flat Rate Shipping! Whack a Mouse Item No: 45191 Price: $34.99 Gift Wrap ($4.99) Customers Who Bought This Also Bought Customer Reviews for Whack a Mouse Write a review New Winter Gift Arrivals
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China Table of Contents Because only 4 percent of the nation's middle-school graduates are admitted to universities, China has found it necessary to develop other ways of meeting the demand for education. Adult education has become increasingly important in helping China meet its modernization goals. Adult, or "nonformal," education is an alternative form of higher education that encompasses radio, television, and correspondence universities, spare-time and part-time universities, factory-run universities for staff and workers, and county-run universities for peasants, many operating primarily during students' off-work hours. These alternative forms of education are economical. They seek to educate both the "delayed generation"--those who lost educational opportunities during the Cultural Revolution--and to raise the cultural, scientific, and general education levels of workers on the job. Data as of July 1987
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England in the enormous movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of 1066. It comes from the Norman personal name Roger. Hotchkis was a baptismal name which means Roger. As the naming tradition grew in Europe baptismal names began to be introduced in many countries. Baptismal names were sometimes given in honor of Christian saints and other biblical figures. There are very few Christian countries in Europe that did not adopt surnames from these religious figures. Early Origins of the Hodgkiss family Shropshire where they held a family seat from very early times and were granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D. Early History of the Hodgkiss family This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hodgkiss research. Another 215 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1453 and 1470 are included under the topic Early Hodgkiss History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Hodgkiss Spelling Variations Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Hotchkiss, Hotchkis and others. Early Notables of the Hodgkiss family (pre 1700) More information is included under the topic Early Hodgkiss Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Hodgkiss family to the New World and Oceana For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Hodgkiss or a variant listed above were: Richard Hotchkiss, who settled in Virginia in 1635; Adam Hotchkiss settled in New England in 1659; William Hotchkiss settled in Maryland in 1775. Contemporary Notables of the name Hodgkiss (post 1700) Hodgkiss Family Crest Products
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Efforts to use biomass, including wood and agricultural products, have played an important role in the search for a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels for transportation fuels and chemicals. But biomass has high concentrations of oxygen, making it more energy and labor intensive to convert into those desirable end products. Praveen Bollini, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Houston, says a catalyst using bulk cerium oxide – the most abundant of the rare earth elements in the earth’s crust and already commercially available – can efficiently remove the excess oxygen, allowing biomass to be economically converted to fuels and chemicals. He was awarded a $364,984 grant from the National Science Foundation to build the catalyst and improve molecular-level understanding of the chemical and physical processes that occur when cerium oxide is used to remove the oxygen. The oxygen is removed from the biomass through a process known as hydrodeoxygenation, which involves adding hydrogen. The hydrogen then combines with the oxygen to produce water as a harmless byproduct. “The fuel value you get (after conversion) is dependent on the oxygen content. The lower the better,” Bollini said. “Fossil fuels pulled from the ground have very low oxygen content.” Cerium oxide is already used commercially in automobile exhaust systems, he said, valued for its ability to take up and release oxygen at will. It hasn’t previously been used for biomass conversion, but he said a prototype synthesized in his lab can successfully remove oxygen from a sample of biomass and, when hydrogen is fed into the mix, convert the oxygen and hydrogen to water. Bollini works in catalysis and reaction engineering, focused on making chemical transformations more energy and atom efficient in order to reduce both energy use and the release of carbon into the atmosphere. The search has been ongoing for an inexpensive and easy to use catalyst that is also effective, selective in removing only oxygen and able to use hydrogen fed into the mix. Bollini said the cerium oxide fits all the criteria. It is abundant, inexpensive and already well understood because of its use as an oxygen storage component in automobile exhaust systems, he said.
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Workshop: Exploring Scientific Method: Evidence, Explanation, and Unification in Science Idea & Motivation Philosophical investigation into scientific method is a well-established area within the philosophy of science. The aim of this workshop is to advance our understanding of three central topics within this investigation: the role that evidence plays in science; the structure of scientific explanations; and the role of unification in science. To this end, the following questions will be addressed. Concerning evidence: In what sense is it better to gather evidence from various sources? What does it mean for evidence to be reliable? Can biased research furnish good evidence? As regards explanation: How should we characterise causal explanation? Is causal explanation possible in quantum mechanics? How are various different forms of explanation in science related? Can certain of them be fruitfully thought of as species of a single genus? Finally, unification: What is the best way to characterise the inferential structure of certain types of unifying explanation? How do unifying hypotheses guide theory construction?
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Presentation is loading. Please wait. Presentation is loading. Please wait. Historical Timeline and Definitions Understanding Structural Racism. Similar presentations Presentation on theme: "Historical Timeline and Definitions Understanding Structural Racism."— Presentation transcript: 1 Historical Timeline and Definitions Understanding Structural Racism 2 Structural racism a deep-rooted system in which history, ideology, public policies, institutional practices, and culture interact to maintain a racial hierarchy that creates advantages (privileges) associated with whiteness, and disadvantages associated with color that endure and adapt over time. 3 Structural Racism the preferential treatment, privilege, and power that white people experience at the expense of racially oppressed people. 4 Structural Racism is diffused and infused throughout our entire social fabric, including our history, culture, politics, and economics. the most profound and pervasive form of racism; all other forms of racism (e.g. institutional, interpersonal, internalized, etc.) emerge from structural racism. 5 Historical timeline a visual representation of the history and events related to structural racism–from the past to the present. provides historical context for personal experiences. enables you to tell your own story – on an individual, community, state, national, or international level. 6 Everyone has an opportunity to contribute to the timeline 7 Invite each person to add his/her own experiences 8 Pictures contribute to the reality of the past and present 9 1500’s Encounters between Spanish, French, and English settlers and Native Americans led to conflict. 10 1600’s English colonists kept indentured servants (both Europeans and Africans). Some servants eventually earned their freedom. 11 1670’s Bacon’s Rebellion: an insurrection involving white and black servants against wealthy Virginia planters. Following the rebellion, Africans were condemned to a life of permanent slavery in the colonies. 12 Thomas Jefferson, a Virginia slave owner and former President, was influential in promoting the idea that Whites are superior to Africans. 13 1772 John Newton wrote the words to the hymn, “Amazing Grace,” in response to the horrors he witnessed working on an English slave ship. 14 19 th Century 15 1852 Harriet Beecher Stowe’s widely read novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, painted a more realistic portrait of slavery and tried to humanize slaves. 16 African Americans, Native Americans, Mexican Americans, and Chinese Americans were used as slaves, for economic and political gain. African slavery provided free labor and increased the political clout of slaveholding states in the South. 17 Belittling Native American cultures and defining Native people as “savages” made it easier to seize Native American land. 18 Between 1889 and the early 1920s, there were roughly 50 to 100 lynchings a year in the U.S. While Blacks were mostly the victims, Italian Americans, Asian Americans, and Jews were also lynched. 19 20 th Century In 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was formed to abolish segregation and discrimination in housing, education, employment, voting, and transportation and to secure constitutional rights for African Americans.National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 20 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream Speech. 21 1964 Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life in prison in South Africa. The Civil Rights Act was passed in the U.S. Download ppt "Historical Timeline and Definitions Understanding Structural Racism." Similar presentations Ads by Google
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Prof Claims 'Responsible Fatherhood' Reinforces 'Patriarchy' A feminist professor at California State University-Fresno recently published an article lamenting that federal programs to promote "responsible fatherhood" among vulnerable men in fact perpetuate "patriarchy," "gender norms," and "hegemonic masculinity." The article, "'Manning Up' to Be a Good Father: Hybrid Fatherhood, Masculinity, and U.S. Responsible Fatherhood Policy," was published in the new issue of Gender and Society by Jennifer Randles, who teaches sociology classes at the California school. The goal of Randles’ research was to assess the feminist implications of "responsible fatherhood" programs. Such programs began in the 1970s, first received federal funding in 1996, and are currently overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services. "Studies have shown that involved fathers provide practical support in raising children," according to the government website, which explains that "children with involved loving fathers are more likely to do well in school, have healthy self-esteem, and exhibit empathy." Currently, the government funds 36 programs to promote healthy fatherhood. These programs vary in scope and mission, but must align with one of three federal goals: promoting healthy marriage, responsible parenting, or economic stability. But, says Randles: these programs have a dark side. Despite that they typically provide job training, education, or parenting classes for low-income fathers — resources that impoverished communities typically lack —Randles worries that these programs are actually warping masculinity. "How can a seemingly progressive revision of fatherhood promoting men’s emotional engagement with children operate as a discursive mechanism for the reproduction of gender, race, and class inequalities?" asks Randles. She laments: these programs "reinforce patriarchal ideology" by encouraging "hybrid masculinity," which encourages low-income fathers to be "emotionally engaged," and perpetuates the myth that mothers "cannot compensate" for the lack of a father. These programs aim to "reshape men’s gender identities in line with a type of hegemonic masculinity focused on well-paid work and family breadwinning," she laments, claiming that they "legitimate patriarchal power." By teaching men to "man up," not repress their feelings, and avoid "absentee" fatherhood, these programs promote a "hybridized gender identity" that ultimately does nothing to challenge the patriarchal status quo, Randles writes. "This strategy reaffirms essentialist ideas that fathers are valuable parents because they are men and legitimates patriarchal ideologies," she writes, adding that they perpetuate "patriarchy by concealing the power of privileged men and devaluing women." While it is unclear what exactly Randles would propose as an alternative for low-income fathers — as she did not respond to a request for comment — she ultimately concludes that these programs are "counterproductive." In the future, she suggests that new programs should not focus on fatherhood at all. "Instead, programs should focus on teaching that children benefit when they have access to multiple caregivers of any gender committed to meeting their emotional, practical, and financial needs." Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @Toni_Airaksinen.
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Fighting over legacy: Was Bhagat Singh nationalist or revolutionary? The ABVP lays claim to Bhagat’s Singh’s legacy as ‘Rashtarvad’ or nationalism; the SFS projects him as an ‘inquilabi’ or a great revolutionary. punjab Updated: Sep 04, 2017 10:10 IST Shub Karman Dhaliwal Shub Karman Dhaliwal Hindustan Times, Chandigarh Panjab University,Panjab University elections,Bhagat Singh Members of PUSU, ISA and PPSpO during the panel announcement of their alliance at Student Centre, Panjab University on Chandigarh. (Karun Sharma/HT) Putting student welfare issues on the back-burner, two student organisations have resorted to debating revolutionary Bhagat Singh’s true legacy. The question: Was Bhagat Singh a ‘rashtarvadi’ (nationalist) or an ‘inquilabi’ ( revolutionary)? This has become the new theme in the electoral battle on the Panjab University campus. The Students for Society (SFS) has used Bhagat Singh’s image in their campaign posters, invoking his slogan ‘Inquilab Zindabad’, meaning, ‘Long live the revolution’ in Urdu. However, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has taken up the mantle to prove that Bhagat Singh stood for nationalism and sacrificed himself to free the country of the foreign rule. The right-wing student outfit’s campaign lays claim to Bhagat’s Singh’s legacy as ‘Rashtarvad’, the Sangh Parivar’s core agenda. The party is saying he was not a leftist as is being claimed by left-wing outfits. It is not a secret in PU that the ABVP and the SFS have no love lost for each other. The SFS projects Bhagat Singh as a great revolutionary and have left no stone unturned in proving that he was an ‘inquilabi’, who embedded the slogan into the psyche of millions of Indians. “Bhagat Singh, who gave up his life for freedom, would be happy and sad at the same time. Happy, because he continues to be a youth icon; but sad as the younger generation is divided over his legacy,” said a senior PU professor, who did not wish to be named, adding, “he would have never thought that a day will come when youngsters will fight over him to decide whether he was a ‘rashtarvadi’ or an ‘inquilabi’.” The SFS is known for its unique campaigning style. They stage ‘nukkad nataks’ to propagate their agenda on campus. But the ABVP has also decided to counter the party by copying their style. On Saturday, the ABVP staged a play, ‘Bhagat Singh Faraar’. In the play, Bhagat Singh is depicted to be dreaming. He arrives on the PU campus and is surprised to see students raising slogans ‘Awaaz do hum azaad hain’ and ‘Inquilab zindabad’. In a pensive mood, he starts saying he fought for azaadi, so why were they asking for it even after living in a democratic set up. He turns around to see slogans being raised against the Indian Army where they were being called ‘rapists’. In a state of disbelief, he asks Rajguru and Sukhdev what was happening in these educational institutions. This was not the India they imagined. However, Harman Singh, media secretary of the SFS, said, “The literary works of Bhagat Singh clearly mention that he was a socialist and was influenced by Marxist and Leninist ideologies and the Russian Revolution. The ABVP members have never read anything about Bhagat Singh and are just exploiting his name.” First Published: Sep 03, 2017 10:04 IST
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